Venus & Mars

Chapter 3 ~ Wake Up Call

I woke up with a jolt. How long had I been out? Groaning softly, I opened my eyes, taking in my surroundings. A feeling of unease swept through me as I looked around the room. It was dark, dimly lit with a red lamp, and had an ominous vibe around it. One moment I had been leaving my home planet with the most infamous villain of my time, and the next I am laying on a bed of burgundy silk. I sat up, analyzing my situation. "I see you're awake." A mechanical voice spoke from somewhere behind me. I jumped in surprise, whirling to face the unseen figure. Even without the visual I knew who it was. Kylo Ren. His voice chilled me to the bone, and I could feel my fear growing and my heart rate increasing. What did he want with me? What was he going to do to me? The cloaked man moved out of the darkness, shuffling closer to me. "What is your name?" He asked. I swallowed nervously. "Andromeda. Andromeda Kalane." I replied, gazing at the masked tyrant evenly. He was silent for a moment, and then he moved his hands to the back of his head. There was a click, and then the sound of metal adjusting as air released somewhere inside the metal, and finally the man removed his mask from his head and face.

What was under the mask was totally not what I had expected at all. I had assumed that my captor would have been a monster. A disfigured, grotesque, horrid, old creature of a man. The face I was gazing at presently was perfectly normal, if not (dare I say it) attractive. Perhaps not traditionally attractive, in the sense of fictional princes and heroes who always seemed to capture the heart of a young damsel in distress. But attractive in the sense that he was unique. Different. I had never met anyone who looked like him in my entire life. It was not an ugly, perverted man behind the mask. This guy was obviously not much older than me at all. His skin was a pale cream color, slightly more tan than my own. Messy, jet black hair framed his face, falling just a few inches above his shoulder and feathering outward. He had pouty pink lips that, had the situation been much different, I would've longed to kiss them. He also had a very fresh scar stretching from the right side of his jaw and upwards across his face, ending above his nose and left eye. But the most appealing features were his eyes. They were a deep chocolate brown, and I was utterly captivated by them. They seemed to hold an bottomless pool of secrets, memories, and emotions. He wasn't drop dead gorgeous, but he was still cute in a rugged-dorky-evil-Sith-lord kind of way.

Relaxing slightly, I let out the breath I didn't realize that I was holding. "My name is Kylo Ren." He reintroduced himself, voice surprisingly deep and dulcet. The question I wanted to ask was, "Why did you take me from Naboo?" but instead I settled with, "Why did you bring me here?" "You're a Force-sensitive." He answered simply, staring at me with indifference. My eyes widened. "What? Me? No!" I argued. "Then explain the damage you caused to my stormtroopers on Naboo." He said. I blushed, "That was an accident..." I mumbled, glancing downward for a second. "Maybe so, but you are strong, stronger than you know. That's why you are here, Andromeda. My superior, Supreme Overlord Snoke, believes that you may be of great use to us. With you, I can finish what Darth Vader started. I will become the greatest Sith lord that the galaxy has ever seen...There are rumors that another Force-sensitive like yourself has found the Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. Apparently she has become his apprentice..." He growled, the muscles in his jaw clenching angrily.

He looked back to me, his gaze full of blazing fire. "That is where you come in. You are going to be my apprentice, and you will help me win this war." Kylo Ren replied. I didn't want this! I hated the Sith! And now I have to be an apprentice to one? What did I do in a past life to deserve this?! I wanted to lay back down, go to sleep, and wake up to find that this was all a nightmare. But even I knew that this was very much real, and as much as I totally despised the idea, we all do what we have to to survive.

Swallowing thickly, I met Kylo Ren's hard gaze, my own eyes full of both acceptance and contempt. "As you wish..." I replied stiffly. Besides death, this was obviously my only option. "What shall I call you?" I asked. Kylo Ren looked taken aback by my answer, and it took a moment for him to reply. "You will call me Master Ren in the presence of anyone else, especially our superiors. When we are alone you may refer to me as Kylo if you would like." He told me. I nodded in disdainful understanding.

Well, he may be younger and better looking than I expected, but he was still a jerk. "Orusa Taku, she is a Mirialan and the only tailor on this ship. She made something for you..." He began, walking over to a small table across the room from us. "She sends her regards on your training." He finished, handing me a pile of black and purple fabric. "This is your uniform. Put it on and meet me outside." He said briskly, turning on his heel and starting toward my door. Without another word, he put his mask back on and raised one of his hands to the iron doors. They slid open effortlessly, probably by use of the Force if I had to guess, and Kylo Ren walked into the brightly lit hallway, leaving me alone in the confining darkness of what I assumed would be my personal chambers from now on. "Show off." I snorted, rolling my eyes.

Sighing, I returned my gaze to the pile in my arms. On the top was a pair of shiny black strapped sandals. They were brand new and obviously made out of the finest shoe material available. Then there was a dark purple dress made out of a cotton-like fabric, both thin and light, but strong and durable. With Kylo Ren as my new Force training master, I would probably need it that way. But still, it was surprisingly soft and beautifully made, a bit too beautiful for an apprentice, but gorgeous nonetheless. It was sleeveless with a scoop neck, and the skirt looked like it would fall a bit above the knee. Lastly, there was a black cloak made from fine velvet. It looked like it would cover my chest and shoulders and had a hood attached to it. Even before I put it on, I knew it would fall well passed my feet and drag on the floor.

Deciding not to keep my new "master" waiting, I quickly discarded my dirty Nabooian clothes in favor of the new ones that Orusa Taku had sewn for me. I folded up the scarlet two piece and placed it under my bed, before turning to put on the royal purple dress and black shoes. As I went to don the cloak, something heavy fell out of the inside, clanking loudly against the floor. Curious, I leaned down to inspect the objects, and my eyes widened as I stared at them. There was a wide, somewhat heavy ring, which upon further examination, I realized was a waist belt for my dress. The other two objects I discovered were arm bracers made of matching silver armor. With a smirk, I put on the waist belt and the bracers, and then the cloak.

I turned around, scrutinizing myself in the full length mirror in my room. I hadn't even been gone from Naboo for three days, and already I looked really different than before. Darker, more powerful. Surprisingly, I found myself admiring how beautiful the new outfit made me feel. The skirt was a bit shorter than I expected, ending about my mid thigh, but there were some extremely short pant like things built inside the dress, preserving at least some of my modesty. But my legs looked surprisingly good, stronger and longer than I remembered them ever looking.

It had been a while since I had seen a full reflection of myself, and I hardly recognized the young woman staring back at me. The once overweight and tomboyish pre-teen was somehow a woman in her own right. I had an hourglass figure now, and though I hadn't grown in height by much, it was still an improvement. I had changed so much in seven years of peace and harmony on Naboo, how would I look after God knows how long in this hate and darkness fueled ship? I could only imagine how sinister I would become.

Taking one last glance at myself, I turned around and strode over to the door. I didn't even want to bother trying what Kylo Ren had done. Thankfully, there was a glowing green button which I assumed would open the door. I slammed my hand against it and the iron doors slid apart, allowing me to exit the chambers. Kylo's mask was covering his face once again, and he acknowledged my presence with a brief nod. "Follow me." He said, walking away at a swift pace. Nodding, I followed nervously, unsure of what I would be encountering from that moment on.