This is something I've wanted to work on, and since I'm having trouble coming up with ideas for my other stories, figure I'll write one based on one of my favourite romances in SWTOR.

Chapter 1: Dark Meetings

Vette sat in the cell, waiting for that jerk to return and beat her up some more. She couldn't believe how stupid she'd been, believing what Cada Bliss had told her and her partners about a job on Korriban. How could she be so stupid to think she could get into the tomb of a Sith and not be slaughtered by numerous Acolytes. It was only by sheer luck that she had been caught by a not-quite-so-murderous Sith. Of course, she kinda wished she was dead now.

The Twi'lek fiddled with the collar the jailer had fitted around her neck, careful not to accidentally shock herself. The jerk seemed to have fallen in love with the idea of shocking her into submission; though why should she be surprised? She was in the Sith Academy, probably about to be executed for desecrating the tomb. One thing was for certain though, if she ever got out of there, she would find Bliss and make him pay.

At that moment, the jailer returned, 'Hey, buddy,' Vette called, standing up, 'how are ya? Did you lose weight in the last hour? Or did you gain it? Honestly, I can't tell.'

'For kriff's sake,' the jailer growled, 'one more chirp from you, little bird, and you'll regret it!' Vette inwardly smiled, glad she was getting on her jailer's nerves.

'Chirp, chirp!' Vette was enjoying the look on the jailer's face, but within seconds, the collar activated and Vette shook in pain. 'Jerk,' she mumbled, 'look, you don't like it, smiley, just say so! I can do other animals too; Dire Cat, Frog Dog, Kowakian Monkey-Lizard, c'mon, what'll it be?'

'Quiet!' the Sith yelled, prompting the Twi'lek to shut up. It was at that moment that someone new walked into the room. He was a Zabrak, quite well built, though not the largest Zabrak she'd seen on her travels. As was common in Imperial space, he face was covered inn those weird red and black tattoos. However, she didn't say anything, the ice she was on was thin enough already, and she didn't need a Zabrak Sith beating her senseless. The two Sith started talking and Vette sat down again, and for a split second, the Twi'lek and Zabrak made eye-contact. Vette shivered inwards, she wasn't sure what it was, but there was something about the Zabrak's eyes that unsettled her; his eyes weren't filled with the sort of thing that made her comfortable, it was scary, like he had no remorse left for anyone in the galaxy, like the slightest insult would send him on a rampage. That one second of eye-contact was all Vette needed to remain silent, and observe what the Zabrak was doing.

Slowly, but surely, the Zabrak made his way down a row of other prisoners, and one by one he killed or tortured them. Vette watched in disgust and fascination as the Zabrak interrogated each one, only looking away when he had finished what was probably a test. 'You're an interesting one, kid,' the jailer stated as the Zabrak walked back over to him, 'there's no denying that.' It was at that moment when the Zabrak turned to Vette, and her blood ran cold.

'What about her?' his voice was commanding, cold, and terrifying. Was this her fate? Was she destined to die at the hands of a bloodthirsty Sith Acolyte?

'No,' the jailer interrupted, allowing Vette to breathe again, 'Tremel made it clear who you were to interrogate. She's being saved for later,' Vette stopped breathing again when she heard this, 'now return to your master and report your success.' The Zabrak left without uttering a word, and Vette took a deep breath. The jailer turned to her, 'Don't relax yet, slave, chances are you'll be used in another trial. Fact is, it'll keep going 'till you're dead or have outlived your usefulness, so get comfortable,' the jailer laughed and left the room, Vette's heart sank as she realised the gravity of the situation: She was dead already, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Vette must have lost about two kilograms in weight by the time something truly interesting had happened. She had just finished naming every floor tile in her cell when the jailer returned. The Twi'lek looked up and sighed, 'So what glorious torture are you gonna put me through today, smiley?' she asked, only to get another shock, 'OW!' Vette shook her head to remove the spots from her vision, 'give it a rest would ya?'

'I'm just trying to get as much enjoyment as I can out of this, slave,' the jailer chuckled. Right as the jailer mocked the increasingly depressed Twi'lek, the Zabrak entered the room, and Vette's blood ran cold again. 'Heh,' the jailer laughed, 'as if on cue… word is you might become Baras's apprentice, good job if you get it, I'd say you've more than earned it.' The Zabrak turned his attention to Vette, and the Twi'lek had an inward shiver as the Zabrak stared her down.

'You know what my trial is?' the Zabrak asked the jailer, not taking his eyes off of her.

'Yeah, you'll be relieving me of this Twi'lek,' Vette could've sworn that her heart had stopped, 'word of warning, she's a pain in the neck.' The Twi'lek took a deep breath, just play it cool, she thought.

'Who's the pain in the neck?' Vette asked, keeping up her cocky attitude, 'I'm the one wearing a shock collar.'

'Consider that a going-away present, girly,' the jailer said, gesturing towards the Zabrak, 'this bruiser will be taking you into the tombs where we caught you,' Vette inwardly laughed, so that's what this is about.

'None of you can figure out how to open the secret door, can you?' Vette asked before turning to the Zabrak, 'you got some Sith-y business in that tomb, huh?' The anger in the Zabrak's eyes terrified her, that was a BIG mistake, she thought.

'Jailer,' the Zabrak growled, turning to his fellow Sith, 'I think she needs another shock.'

'Alright then,' searing pain followed as Vette recoiled from the pain.

'Okay! Okay!' she yelled, desperate to stop the pain.

'Here kid,' the jailer handed the controller to the Zabrak, 'I'll set it to a high level,' Oh God, NO! Vette mentally screamed.

'I guess I can play tomb tour guide,' Vette meekly chimed in, 'after all, I got in once, and I can do it again.'

The Zabrak examined the controller, 'I think we need to give this higher setting a test run,' Vette braced for the pain, but still wasn't ready for the new level of agony. The Twi'lek struggled to stay standing as the collar sparked and jolted and she could've sworn she saw the jailer laugh at her suffering.

'Alright!' Vette screamed in agony, 'I'll show you how to get inside the secret chamber! And I'll shut up! A real bargain!'

Vette wasn't sure whether she should loath the Zabrak for the shocking he'd done earlier, or like him for the amount of times he'd saved her life in the tomb. And they hadn't even gotten to the chamber yet! Of course, it was more than likely that the Zabrak was defending her due to her importance in his trial.

Vette had activated the final switch to open the secret door to the chamber, quickly leading the Zabrak inside, doing her best not to make eye-contact with him. She so desperately wanted to ask for his name, but was so certain that speaking up would result in more shocking, or worse, getting stabbed in the gut. The two had only made eye-contact on occasion during their trek through the tomb, and Vette wasn't sure if the Sith liked her or not. Pushing these thoughts to the side, Vette led the Sith into the main chamber.

'Okay, this is it,' she called out, 'just let me get my bearings.' The Twi'lek walked over to the wall to start searching for a secret panel when she saw another Sith, no idea who he was, sneaking up behind the Zabrak. 'Look out!' she yelled, hoping to save the Zabrak. The second she'd yelled out to help him, the Zabrak spun around and kicked the other Sith in the face.

'Vemrin,' he growled, unsheathing his war blade.

'Artagesh,' the other Sith replied, before looking towards Vette, 'you get that door open slave, don't mind us.'

'Do you want to explain what you're doing, Vemrin?' the Zabrak named Artagesh demanded. Vette couldn't help but feel her "master" was drawing out his conversation with the Sith, as if trying to give her instructions. Well, whether he wanted help or not, Vette snuck behind the Sith named Vemrin as he ranted about honour and survival, drawing her blaster and shooting him in the back.

Vemrin screamed in agony, 'you bitch!' he yelled, propelling her into a wall with the Force.

The fight was a blur, with Vette only regaining consciousness at the end, and seeing Artagesh cut Vemrin down. Vette let out a groan, just loud enough to attract the Zabrak's attention, and the Sith walked over to her, offering his hand to help her up. 'Sorry,' Vette mumbled, 'I screwed up.'

'No you didn't,' Artagesh replied, 'you helped me defeat my rival, and did what any non-Sith would do,' was this really the guy who had been electrocuting her for the sake of it? Or had he just been replaced by a nicer doppelgänger.

'Now,' his voice returned to its commanding tone, 'get that door open.'

'Sure,' Vette mumbled, 'I'll get right on it.' The Twi'lek wandered around the room, searching for the right panel to open the door, thinking about the Zabrak Sith. What was his story? Did he enjoy the suffering of others or was that just an act? Whether she liked it or not though, he was her only way off Korriban, and hopefully he wouldn't kill her the first chance he got. Vette found the panel and pressed and the wall in front of her descended. Proud of herself, Vette turned to Artagesh as the wall dropped. 'You're welcome!' she called out.

Artagesh gave her the slightest smile, 'your work is appreciated.'

'Thanks,' Vette replied, 'it's nice to be acknowledged.' As Artagesh headed into the deeper tomb, Vette couldn't help but wonder what this guy was about, and if she could get off the planet if she tagged along with him.

Those who have read SWTOR Tales will know about Artagesh, my Sith Warrior. This is a storyline I felt deserved to be its own story, instead of being watered down to a few chapters. Honestly, I ship Vette and the SW BIG TIME. Anyway, Rate and Review! Hope you liked this one!