==3==

[rejalgar]

Today's just made of surprises and disappointments, isn't it.

They really weren't lying. I've been moved for special training. accelerated training. Skipping most of the actual learning and throwing me right into the Academy trials. I don't know all of why yet, but I've got the shape of it.

This Overseer Tremel. He's got some problem, maybe with one of the other overseers, I don't know. He's looking for new talent he can use, so he goes looking through the roster at CPC, thinking he can find something useful. Finds me, sees the family name, in for murder, maybe about how I did it. Thinks, "Aha! I've found a secret heir to a Pureblood house who's got training and power and is stuck in a vulnerable place right now. I can keep him under my thumb and use him to get what I want."

That would all work out fine if it was real. He's human, maybe he doesn't know that the rest of my family's all redder than me. Can't tell yet if he's caught on to the mistake he made, but he's probably going to figure out soon enough that I'm not trained. I know how to fight, sure. And there's probably not many others who picked up that kind of brawling, so it might give me an edge for a while. But that didn't touch any Force stuff, and that's going to drag me down if I don't learn fast.

And Tremel's going to be a problem. He's all promises about building me up to the top of the class, but it's not sounding much different than the gangs making their introductions in CPC. Which means yeah, I have to play along with him for now, because just like in CPC, if you say "No, fuck you, I'm not joining" and don't have a better option lined up, you get cornered in the laundry and ten minutes later the cleaning droids are scraping your bits off the floor.

But getting that collar off was worth it. I can think again. Tiny, stupid thing to feel good about, but I'm glad for it.

So, fine. Going into the tomb of Ajunta Pal to grab something from the armory. If there's anything legitimately still down there, then it's not been completely picked over. But I'm going to have to walk all the way through it to get to the Academy, so there's got to be some well-mapped passages. There's k'lor'slugs in it, probably some acolytes running around looking to beat on new people.

Any of them try it, and I'm bashing their face in. Just like prison. Only difference is they handed me a weapon when I showed up.

And they gave me my rings back, all thirty of them. Didn't realize CPC still had them in the first place. Fat lot of good those are going to do me, all the piercings have healed over by now. So, until I can find someone who does body mods, I'm going to be carrying them around.