Hi, everyone! I'm sorry for taking so long and coming back with a not-so-exciting chapter. I will admit straight away I wanted to put the last part aka the meeting with Harkun in it, but it just didn't fit so I've left it for the next chapter. Now, another thing that bothers me about the SI story on Koribban was how you just kill Balek and Wydr and BAM! You're done. I just found that not realistic and not fitting for Noli so I changed that a bit. I hope you can forgive me. Also a certain reviewer made an interesting comment on the last chapter about Nyx searching for people who wished his Master harm and here is what I did with it. I do hope that reviewer doesn't mind, I merely loved his/her idea. Well, anyway, Enjoy! I hope you like this chapter although in my mind it's not up to par with the others.

=====GL: RDN=====

Chapter 7 - The Fall of the Twins

Nyx remained still long enough to make sure his master was asleep before slowly and cautiously shifting out of her grasp. It was a bit strange how she liked to fall asleep with him beside her, but he couldn't deny that he enjoyed the attention and the fact that she was so warm and smelled so nice. Still, right now he had to prioritise who was set on causing her harm rather than sleep. He knew that his Master was strong and that she was powerful, but in her sleep she was far too vulnerable and it was the same when she was caught off guard. He would protect her in any measure he could, no matter how big or small.

Nyx easily jumped down from the top bunk and with a soft thump he landed on the cold floor. Sheathing his claws so they didn't click against the floor, Nyx padded across the dorm room, slipping in between the bunk beds and stopping every once in a while to make sure the acolyte in the bed was asleep. As he searched for those who he instinctively felt wanted to cause his master harm, Nyx made sure to keep an eye on the steady flickering of Noli's Force presence just in case. He wouldn't put it past one of these acolytes to try and murder her in her sleep - none of them had the sense of honour Noli did. Nyx paused when his perceptive ears picked up the barely audible noise that he recognised as whispering. As soon as he identified those two awake presences that belonged to those that were whispering Nyx swiftly changed course. Keeping low to the ground, Nyx stalked over to them, like a predator sneaking up to his prey. His small size worked in his favour, they didn't notice him - sometimes being a runt could be useful. It was the two nearly identical men that were in his master's group. In a flash, Nyx rushed over and climbed under the bed silently. They didn't notice him. Lying down, Nyx lifted up his ears and proceeded to eavesdrop on their conversation. They appeared to be speaking in dialect that came from some different world, it wasn't Sith or Basic either, but Nyx understood them. He didn't know how he did, but maybe it had something to do with him being a tuk'ata that hadn't gone insane. In any case, the one that his master had once addressed as Balek was whispering:

-But, brother, she isn't a typical acolyte...

-Yes, well, do you have another plan?

The other voice was the one Nyx recognised well - Wydr, he had been the one that claimed he wouldn't live long because he was a runt. Nyx bristled internally, but remained silent. Balek shook his head:

-No. But she has a tuk'ata with her now, I doubt he's a pushover...

-He's a runt. Don't worry about him. We need to corner her and get her once she's alone, no witnesses - the runt doesn't count. He can't speak yet.

Nyx growled internally, but resisted the urge to bite him. He was right on the fact that he couldn't speak yet and while that made communication with his master difficult that didn't mean it was impossible. Nyx would not go down without a fight. Balek sighed, evidently he had strong doubts about whatever they were planning:

-Wydr, I don't like this. Harkun knows we can't beat her - this is just going to end up with us dead. Look at all Nolianna has accomplished and it's been less than a week since we came here. She got approval from Spindrall, she successfully interrogated an acolyte, she retrieved the texts and came back unharmed, she killed Niloc who had an artefact from Ffon and then she brought back a holocron that no one has been able to retrieve in a thousand years. There's also been rumours about a redhead acolyte who nearly beat Lord Samus in a sparring match yesterday. Let's face it - we're dead if we attack her. Maybe if we keep going through the trials-

-Do you want to end up like Kory and Gerr?!

The older twin's voice was harsh and even Nyx flinched at the words. He had heard his master mention Kory to Gerr and he had met the latter himself so he knew what Wydr was referring to. Still, they were the ones plotting to hurt his master so they deserved what was coming. He wouldn't let them get away with it. Balek ran a hand down his face as he lay on his back:

-I see your point. Fine, so that's it. We take Harkun up on his deal. We kill Nolianna and we go home. Alright, let's do it tomorrow when she goes to the training hall. So where-

-Hush, Balek! We have an eavesdropper.

Suddenly Nyx was pulled out from beneath the bed by the scruff of his neck and lifted up. The small cub unsheathed his claws and scratched Wydr across his face, drawing blood. As Balek looked down from the top bunk, Wydr grabbed Nyx by the neck, slowly applying more and more pressure as he held the creature at arm's length. Clearly angry, Wydr hissed:

-What are you doing, runt? Eavesdropping?

Nyx snapped his teeth at him, his blue eyes full of untamed fury. Balek looked around worriedly: he wasn't sure how Noli would react if he saw Wydr holding her pet like that. He didn't have to wonder long as a quiet, but stern female voice sounded:

-Wydr, let Nyx go. I'm sorry he woke the two of you, but he's with me and unless you want to cross me right now I seriously suggest you listen.

All three males turned to see Noli standing there, her body posture relaxed, but her deep blue eyes were alert. Huffing, Wydr dropped Nyx and after headbutting the man with his horns in the kneecap, Nyx scampered back to sit at Noli's side. Noli leaned down and easily scooped the tuk'ata cub back into her arms, before looking back at the boys. She looked half-asleep, but for some reason that look that she cast the twins as she wished them good night was enough to send chills up their spines.

Climbing back into her own bed, Noli waited for Nyx to snuggle up next to her before she whispered:

-Nyx, what were you doing over there?

She knew Nyx could give her no verbal answer, but the look in the tuk'ata' eyes held no regret. So he had been aware of what he was doing. Noli sighed:

-Okay, so did they say something to you before we went to bed?

The tuk'ata shook his head before carefully pressing his nose against her cheek. Noli smiled gently and placed a finger in between his two tiny horns, rubbing that spot as she whispered:

-So it was for me?

Nyx nodded his head, enjoying the head rubs even though he was frustrated with the fact that he couldn't relay everything he had heard. Noli looked at the cub again to see him looking at her worriedly. It was like he was trying to warn her to be careful. Of who? Balek and Wydr? Noli wasn't sure. She sighed and before she even managed to form another thought she found herself drifting back off to sleep. Nyx huffed, but snuggled into her side, all the while keeping his head turned in the direction of the twins. He would be ready for them if they even dared to try and hurt Noli.

== GL: RDN ==

Noli wasn't sure why this had happened. She hadn't wanted it to happen, in fact she had done everything she could to avoid thinking of the mere possibility. But if she was being honest with herself she really should have seen this coming. As she stood looking at Balek and Wydr's corpses before her, Noli's heart felt as though it was pierced. It hurt so, so much. Unlike Gerr and Kory who Harkun had killed along with Ffon, this was solely her doing. Completely, but then again all things seemed to lead back to Harkun anyway. Noli's pale hands clenched into fists. She hated that man, she hated him more than she had ever hated anyone before. He would pay, she would make certain that he would pay and he would pay dearly. Choking back a sound between a sob and a growl, Noli's mind drifted to what had led this to this point.

She had woken up early, gotten dressed in the new gear (a black tunic and pants with metal fastenings) that had been supplied as Lord Samus had said and then she headed down for breakfast. Nyx had seemed jumpy the whole time, looking around intently and hardly eating anything. It was like he was waiting for someone to ambush them. The tuk'ata's intuition soon proved correct. When Noli entered the training room at ten to seven so she could get warmed up, she was stopped by Balek and Wydr. Instantly, Nyx bristled, his fur standing on edge. Noli, although slightly confused turned to look at the two. Her heart rate suddenly increased and adrenaline started pumping through her veins. The Force was warning her to be careful. They were out of the camera's sight - this was a prime ambush spot. Noli hoped and prayed that they weren't attempting to do what she thought they were going to do. Her heart sank when she heard Balek apologise:

-Sorry it had to be this way.

Wydr made a noncommittal shrug of his shoulders:

-We don't like it any more than you do. Well, maybe a little more.

At his words Noli's blood began to boil, but she faked ignorance. She was seriously starting to dislike Wydr, but she actually liked Balek. However the former was actually threatening her. Quietly, she gave voice to her own thoughts:

-This sounds vaguely like a threat. What did I ever do to you guys?

Balek sighed and shifted uncomfortably:

-I'm sorry, Nolianna. I liked you, I really did.

Noli's heart felt pained. She didn't need to use the Force to know that Balek was being sincere. This time around she didn't even need them to spell it out for her. She knew what was about to go down and she hated it. Wydr confirmed her guess:

-But Harkun made us a deal, see. We kill you, we get to go home.

Noli's hands clenched into fists at this, her blood boiling with hatred. At her heels Nyx released a angry growl. So, Harkun was too much of a coward to try and face her himself again? She should have figured. He had lied to the twins to make them do his dirty work. At that moment in time, Noli's hatred for Harkun reached the level of her hate for a certain other individual who had destroyed her life. She didn't try and tell the twins that Harkun was lying and that they would never get to go home. It was the basic truth: in the Sith academy you either fight and live or you die. There was no going back unless you became Sith. So, Noli simply drew her warblade and warned them:

-You will regret that.

Balek shrugged helplessly:

-We don't want to. But we know we can't beat Ffon and we'll never be Sith. At least this way, we can go home - alive.

His tone was apologetic, but Noli was far past apologies. There were reasons they would never be Sith and this cowardice was one of them. She knew they couldn't beat Ffon, but they didn't even try. She clearly remembered Gerr, Kory, even Niloc trying. Kory, who was the purest soul among them, had given it her best and Harkun cut her down. Niloc, who while he had been cowardly and obeyed Ffon still dared to challenge her which was saying a lot about his bravery. Gerr had walked into that room after making his last request of his own free will when he could have run. That was bravery. Even Niloc's attack was brave. This was cowardly and if they wanted to fight her she would give them a fight. Wydr seemed to be thinking along the same lines:

-Quiet, Balek. The time for talk is past. Fight for your life, acolyte.

Wydr's address of her as acolyte was symbolic. It meant they were no longer on even terms, they were enemies.

The fight that had ensued after that had been one of the tougher ones of Noli's life. The twins had worked in perfect sync, but that hadn't been enough to save them. They wanted a fight to the death? Noli gave them one. The only problem for them was - she wasn't dead and they were. Noli ran a hand down her face silently. Nyx gave a concerned yap from her side. Noli simply gave him a small reassuring smile.

Noli headed off to find Lord Samus and to her luck found him rather quickly, he had been meditating in the back. Upon seeing her expression, Lord Samus correctly surmised that she was in no mood to talk and quickly got to his feet. He led her out into the training area:

-Good. Let us begin.

==GL: RDN==

Lord Samus hadn't been joking when he said that training with him would be hard - every day in the evening Noli felt as though her legs and arms had turned to floppy pieces of string. It was insanely taxing, but she could feel herself improving. By the 3rd day Noli could hold her own against Lord Samus for 47 minutes which was a record. It also seemed that other instructors had taken an interest in the young acolyte and so Noli ended up being trained by more than one instructor. One of them, Lord Kardius, had done a few joint training sessions with her and Nyx, teaching them how to work together and far more in sync. Noli only took breaks from training to tend to her physical needs. She hadn't seen Ffon or Harkun for days, not that she was complaining. In short, her training was progressing rather well.

On the evening of the 4th day, Noli was eating dinner with Nyx in a secluded corner of the mess hall when a familiar face, or, well, mask approached them. As soon as she swallowed the vegetable piece she'd been chewing on, Noli greeted the academy guard with a small smile:

-Good evening, Samuel.

The academy guard sat down across from her with his own tray laden with food. He chuckled:

-You're being very formal, Nolianna.

-Well, I wasn't sure quite what to say.

Responded Noli, as she continued eating her food. Her curiosity was peaked when she saw Samuel reach to take his helmet off, she'd never seen his face after all. He paused and Noli rolled her eyes when she felt the amusement radiate off him into the Force:

-Are you curious?

-Get over yourself, Samuel.

Was Noli's simple retort. Samuel chuckled, but took off his helmet anyway. Noli's deep blue eyes widened slightly in surprise when she saw the guard's face. He had a tanned complexion, warm green eyes and imperial-style close cropped red hair hair. His face was one of a middle-aged man and though he was not all that old his hair had a few prominent grey streaks running through it. Noli beamed:

-Well, well, well. Who'd have known that I was in the company of a fellow redhead all along?

Samuel laughed as he picked up his utensil and began eating. Swallowing, he responded:

-That's true enough. That was actually the first thing I noticed about you.

-What?,- Noli joked, grinning and flicking a stray lock of her hair dramatically,-Was my hair far too fabulous for you?

Samuel snorted:

-Hardly.

-I'm insulted, Samuel. I thought that you were gentlemanly enough to compliment my fiery tresses. Now, what should I do in retaliation?

Had Samuel not known Noli as long as he had, he would have been more worried, but he had long figured out that when the young woman started acting like this she was just joking. Well, most of the time. He was learning to pick up on her moods. Still, that didn't stop him from tensing up - too many years spent among Sith had taught him that he could never be too careful and even more so because young acolytes seemed to take far more pleasure in bringing other pain than more seasoned Sith did. However, Samuel ended up simply staring at the redhead as his plates started doing some weird synchronised dance routine while the food calmly stayed on them. Noli faked a manic laugh as she gently moved the fingers of her left hand:

-Mwahahaha! This is your punishment for insulting my hair, you Force-blind peasant!

-Oh no! Lord Nolianna, please have mercy upon me!

Noli chuckled at Samuel's fake begging tone and easily returned the plates back to their spot. After swallowing a piece of the purple squishy vegetable that had been on her plate Noli asked:

-So, how've you been?

Samuel shrugged:

-Same as ever. Haven't seen you in a while.

-Yeah, I've been training day and night on the academy training room on the second floor. It's exhausting honestly, but I've made progress.

-Oh? So your weak point is duelling?

Noli laughed quietly as she shook her head:

-Nope, but there's always room for improvement, you know? Isn't that right, Nyx?

The small tuk'ata looked away from his bloodied piece of steak for a minute to give an affirmative yap before returning to his meal. Samuel cast a glance under the table to look at the tuk'ata who spared him a single glance before going back to his food. Samuel decided to follow in Nyx's footsteps and eat his own food before commenting:

-Well, he looks better.

-Hm, well, he has been getting three meals a day. He's still tiny though - not that I'm really complaining.

-Give him time. Anyway, my fearsome lady of the Sith, are you done with your training for the day?

Noli gave Samuel a look for the teasing title, but nodded her head:

-Yeah, I'm done. Why?

-Well, nearly a week ago you expressed an interest in meeting my friends. Still interested?

Noli's eyes lit up in excitement and she suddenly jumped up from her chair, grabbing one of the academy guard's hands excitedly:

-Oh, can I?!

Samuel looked a bit bewildered by her overenthusiastic reaction, but he nodded anyway:

-Sure. I wasn't expecting you to be this excited for it though.

Noli sighed as she plopped back down in her seat, ignoring the "are you crazy?!" look Nyx was giving her:

-Sorry about that. It's just...How do I put this? Well, I haven't really met many normal people before. Most people either plot to kill me, try to kill me or are killed by me. You can see how that's not a healthy relationship.

-I suppose that's true enough. Life expectancy when you're friends with a Sith is very questionable as it is.

Noli suddenly slammed her fist down on the table, her blue eyes blazing as she exclaimed:

-I would never try to hurt you!

Samuel threw her a cautioning look and quietly replied:

-I didn't mean to offend you. I was just stating facts. You are different, Nolianna, but there are times when you cannot control your actions. Anyway, if you do want to meet my friends let's finish up our meal and go. They're currently in the soldier's barracks.

Noli nodded and was about to take a sip of her drink when a question popped into her mind:

-Wait, how will the other guards react if they see me? I mean I am a Sith acolyte.

Samuel mulled her question over for a minute before shaking his head:

-I think it'll be fine. I'll just take you to our personal hangout spot without too many people seeing you.

Noli snorted:

-You make it sound like we're breaking rules or something.

Samuel cracked a smile at that:

-Only the rules of sanity and imperial behaviour protocol.

==GL: RDN==

Noli was actually openly smiling happily as she swung her practice blade against the squad of droids who seemed determined to chop her into bite-sized pieces as part of her test. This was the morning after she had met Samuel's friends and her happy mood had carried over. Samuel's friends were amazing people and Noli had taken a liking to them instantly despite their initial wary welcome of her. Two of them were women: a Sith (the race not the status) by the name of Li'asha Darven nicknamed Ash and a rather beautiful raven-haired human woman name Kiara Noren. There was also a man named Esten Callen who definitely had the weirdest sense of humour Noli had ever encountered in a person. Esten had been the first to warm up to her as she laughed at one of his jokes to the point of which she had tears of mirth in her eyes. Somehow, that must have acted as proof for Ash and Kia that she was human indeed and it hadn't taken long for them to start treating the young acolyte as one of them. Noli sighed happily as she chopped the heads off two droids, not caring how creepy she must have seemed. That evening had been one of the best of her life. And the fact that she had just managed to barely best Lord Samus in combat definitely didn't worsen her mood. She was just so happy. Noli dodged a vibrobalde by backflipping with a handspring landing. As she crouched down the droids rushed at her, predictably failing to notice the smirk on her lips. As soon as they were in range Noli sent a current through the metal training platform and hopped off it herself. The droids deactivated and fell to floor limply as though they were dolls. Noli reattached her training blade to her back and dusted off her hands before turning to Lord Samus who was nodding in approval, completely ignoring the trio of young people who were gaping at her. The young woman snorted softly at their expressions: it was like they'd never seen anyone use their brain in a battle before, but then again she could see some of them absorbing that knowledge so maybe not all was really lost. Noli shook her head at her own thoughts: she shouldn't act all high and mighty, because who knows one day she could be at the mercy of these Sith who she now regarded as simpletons. Perhaps it wasn't a very Sith notion, but it definitely was a very Noli one.

Lord Samus actually smiled and clapped his hand together in approval once:

-Well, I suppose that is it.

Noli looked a little surprised at the Instructor's words:

-What do you mean?

-I mean, Nolianna, that I'd say it's time for you to return to your trials and put everything you've learned from me and the other instructors to good use.

-Are you saying...

Lord Samus nodded:

-I've taught you all I can, but do not get ahead of yourself - true mastery only comes with experience. Am I understood, acolyte?

Noli nodded:

-Yes, sir.

-Good. I suggest that you return to your overseer now. I will forward my commendations to Harkun.

-Thank you for all your help.

Noli thanked Lord Samus and turned to leave when suddenly she heard her name, making her stop:

-Acolyte Nolianna.

Noli looked over her shoulder, a little confused:

-Lord Samus?

The instructor was silent for a moment before quietly adding so that only she could hear:

-I rarely say this - it has been a pleasure to teach such a promising student. I expect to hear of your progress soon enough.

-I promise you will, sir.

-Goodbye, Nolianna.

Noli's face softened into a small smile and she nodded her farewell. She had taken this step and now she was off to face Harkun once more. Well, she hoped he'd enjoyed the week long break she'd given him because it was at an end. If she was right the final trial should be soon and there was no flipping way in this universe or the next she would let Ffon beat her to the prize.