On the Wings of Valkyrie

Chapter C

Luna came back to reality screaming as a torture she hadn't felt since the Cylo-Executor incident jolted her back to full awareness. There was an electroshock prod streaming a pure electric current into her chest, not only creating internal agony but also causing every part of her skin touching metal to burn and blister. She distantly felt the prod move away though she hardly took note, most of her nerves being more concerned with telling her all about the resulting agony her body was being subjected to. It took a few moments for Luna's eyes to find the interrogation team as the ex-Shadow forcefully crafted her expression back into as much of a cold and emotionless mask as she could manage with a mind dizzied by pure pain. The interrogator seemed less than pleased that nearly choking her to death and electrocuting her back to life had done nothing to change the girl's attitude.

"While you were out, the Emperor requested something special for you," the interrogator said. Luna noticed a box full of something resting in a corner of the room behind one of the other men with a bar of metal sticking out of it that hadn't been there before. "He said that once you finally see the truth, you will truly regret your actions thanks to this reminder."

It was apparent to the ex-Shadow with the way that the interrogator spoke that he wasn't fully on board with what the Emperor apparently wanted, but he was going to do it and enjoy it to the fullest anyway. His two associates roughly grabbed the girl, dragging her off the table. She didn't have the chance to pull on pain relief from the Force as new cuffs of the same material were on her wrists the moment she was out of the first pair.

Luna was forced to her knees, unable to contain a groan as she was unwillingly moved just before a stream of painful coughing racked through her injured body. The girl managed to gather herself enough to spit out the blood that had gathered in her mouth.

Everything hurt. She hadn't thought it was possible for the human body to hurt so kiffin' much. Luna could hardly keep track of her surroundings now, the waves of agony pounded through every inch of her body, it was ten times worse wherever she was touching something and a hundred times worse when moving (breathing included, why was breathing invented?). The girl didn't know if her mask was still in place or not. She was starting not to care, just wanted to go back to the darkness she'd been in moments before.

Some part of Luna's mind abstractly wondered if this was how Vader felt in his suit sometimes.

But Vader had the Force and not a pain increasing serum.

She didn't doubt he had felt worse though; although, the girl was admittedly currently struggling to imagine how. Regardless, it was a thought that gave her some small measure of strength as Luna had always figured she ought to be able to endure anything Vader could and convinced her to find a way to continue fighting, even if that fighting was only her remaining semi-clear headed enough to think.

Luna fought to contain a shiver as her skin had finally managed to pick up on something besides pain, the serum having increased her sensitivity to the air, not that it helped cell blocks were always kept cold. Just now it felt like she was naked in the middle of Hoth's night.

The involuntary movement in turn caused even more pain and another coughing fit. The girl barely noticed one of the men ripped off her overtunic, ripping it in the process, as they exposed most of her upper body to the icy air.

Luna was only marginally glad of the fact she had yet to change out of the excuse of clothes that was part of the "uniform" at the club she had slipped into for information just before her capture. It wasn't near what Luna would want to be wearing, but at least it was moderately decent.

Even if it was practically a midnight blue and silver inlaid bikini top. The girl would have changed before breaking in for the data, but she hadn't had the time to really do anything besides put decent clothes on over the outlandish outfit.

Luna's head was forced to the floor, causing an involuntary cry of pain as she was roughly forced to move her body yet again. Her arms were pulled out straight, causing her shoulders to cry out in agony, apparently under the impression she'd just been put into one of those medieval racks.

It was all the girl could do to grit her teeth and bare it.

"This is going to feel awful," the interrogator promised. Luna could hear the smile in his voice.

You're sick, Luna thought to herself as she heard him do something loud. Based on the clangs, it had to do with metal. The ex-Shadow would have tried to look up, pain or no pain, and watch had she not been all but kissing the durasteel floor with her hair cascading around her head and hiding everything else.

So she didn't know what the sounds meant until she felt the heat of something on her skin right in the middle of her back just below her neck. It felt like it was burning her in the next moment despite the fact that whatever it was had yet to touch her skin.

A lightsaber?

No, she hadn't heard one turn on.

Without warning, the last few millimeters between Luna's skin and whatever was causing the heat disappeared.

She lost it.

The girl screamed, struggling to free herself, bucking against the men restraining her, not caring about her lungs throbbing in anguish as the far more painful agony was pressed deeper into her skin. It was like pure lava had just been injected into her back. Her nerves had come alive, and Luna could do nothing but give voice to their screams.

The interrogator continued pressing it deep into her back branding her very soul with the liquid fire. All Luna knew was fire, until it suddenly disappeared, the pure relief lasting a millisecond before her senses registered the agony that had resulted from her fruitless resistance. The ex-Shadow struggled to take in deep breaths of cold air, only to be reminded that short and shallow breaths were more realistic, as a strange sound began pounding through her skull. It took the ex-Shadow longer than it should have for her to clear her mind enough to recognize the alarm for what it was and even longer to pay attention long enough to try and recognize the message it blared.

Under attack?

Luna tried to think, but the waves of pain clouded her mind as tears silently flowed down her cheeks.

If only she could connect to the Force, find a balm for the pain.

The interrogator was talking to someone on a commlink. Had been talking? Was listening? She couldn't tell, the pain plus the noise had complete rein over the girl's senses. The ex-Shadow could hardly process anything but the agony her nerves were sending her.

"New plans," the man said, getting off the comm. The words were hard to make out through the agonized cries of her nerves. "We execute her. Immediately."

The word execute raced about in the girl's skull, it's meaning not being completely understood, but instinctual fear reactivating her adrenaline which in turn dulled the pain and started clearly her mind enough to comprehend the message.

For the first time since being captured, true fear struck Luna's heart.