The question came unexpectedly, nearly making the small unicorn stumble in her step as she stifled a yawn. She still wasn’t quite used to being a quadruped, even after a couple months of practice
“Sure, lemme just tell my friends,” Green chirped, turning to wave at her classmates. “You girls go ahead, I’ll meet you back at the clubhouse after my magic lesson.”
Looking back at her teacher, she made her way to her desk with a curious tilt to her head. “Was there something you needed, Miss. Cheerilee?”
“Well,” The teacher began slowly. “Since you’ve started staying with the Apples, I’ve noticed you’ve been pretty tired, are you sleeping well?”
“I’m fine,” Green responded, “It’s just tiring keeping up with the Crusaders, you know? Sometimes I feel like I’m much older than I look.”
“Yes, but this has been going on for longer than that,” Cheerilee frowned as she looked at the filly with concern. “It’s only this past week you started running with them, and you’ve been nodding off a lot during classes.”
“I know the material,” Green insisted, “You can test me if you like.”
“I know that, Green,” Miss. Cheerilee said delicately. “You have the highest score in the class, but that’s not what I’m asking. Do you have any problems in your foster home?”
“No.” Green shook her head, she could feel the anxiety begin to grip her chest, “Everything is fine. Look, I have to go now if I’m going to get to my magic lesson on time.”
“Green, please wait,” The words came out sterner than intended, though it was strange to hear the generally mild-mannered mare speak in such a way. “The Apples are good Ponies, Big McIntosh is a good friend of mine, but if there’s something wrong, you need to tell us.”
Green really didn’t want to look anxious in front of Cheerilee since it would definitely be taken the wrong way so instead, she tried to play oblivious. She would need to pretend her anxiety was over being tardy rather than... anything else.
“I don’t want to be late!” Green called out as she ran out of the schoolhouse, pretending not to hear the teacher calling her back, “See you tomorrow!”
As Green approached town a dark cloud hung over her head in a much more literal and less figurative sense than usual. The cloud was a deep blue color and bristled with multi-colored lightning. While her magical education was incomplete she knew that these clouds were not typical, even in Equestria.
“Uh, Rainbow Dash?” Green asked, “This is some kind of prank right? I’m sorry I told Applejack you were sleeping in her orchard.”
Bolts of spectral lightning struck all around her and in a flash, and everything went black.
When she woke, it took her mind a moment to catch up. From what she could gather, she was laying on something very cold and hard, probably some kind of metal, maybe an exam table? The chill seeped through her fur, and she shivered.
Opening her eyes, Green saw a concrete ceiling with pipes running all over it, with grey being the most prominent color pallet, so not really the standard for Ponyville Hospital. That might’ve been the first hint that she wasn’t in Ponyville anymore.
At least she hadn’t changed into a new body this time.
That’s when she heard a familiar sound, but not one she had ever expected to hear again. She heard a lightsaber being ignited.
The red glow of the Lightsaber filled the room as the device emitted a harsh buzzing noise. If this had happened a few months ago, before she’d traveled to Equestria, she might have thought it was a dream or hallucination. Instead, she accepted it immediately. She was stuck in a small room with a Sith Lord.
She noted the empire emblem that adorned the Sith’s shoulder and it filled her with a sense of dread. From what she could remember, the Empire wasn’t too fond of aliens, especially little green ones with telekinetic powers.
The Sith looked at Green with an expressionless mask of metal and reflective glass and it was all she could do to keep herself from hyperventilating under his inspection.
"Uh... Hello." She mumbled.
For a second, Starkiller's clone thought he was face to face with Jedi Master Yoda.
The moment The creature's words reached his helmet's audioreceptors, the crimson tip of his lightsaber nearly closed in on the small being's neck before he managed to stop himself from decapitating the tiny being.
As his mind processed what he saw, his eyes studied every detail in the light emitted from the red blade. It seemed to have the ability to speak, that was for certain as the babble of High Galactic streamed from it's lips. Certainly a strange choice, but Starkiller knew it was fairly prolific even in the Mid-Rim, and saw limited use in the Outer-Rim as well. Though if anything, it looked like a pet owned by some Moff's child, going by how well kept it's fur was, or perhaps coat was a better word? He wasn't certain on the terminology, but that was hardly worth mulling over.
That begged a question; Was it intelligent enough to hold conversations? Even if it spoke from earlier, it could be simple mimicry.
Returning his Lightsaber to his belt as he knelt down on one knee, holding one of his hands out like one wild a shy animal.
"Speak," The Clone commanded. "If you understand, then I shall hear what you have to say."
Green was surprised when the Sith deactivated his lightsaber and knelt down in front of her. She reciprocated by giving the best approximation of a bow she could on four legs and tried to think how she should answer.
"My name is Green," She spoke cautiously, "And I don't know how I got here. I'm at your mercy; what would you have me do?"
Green decided she would refrain from showing off any magic in front of the Sith. If he believed she was force sensitive there was no telling how he might react. While she maintained a submissive posture she tried to surreptitiously look around the room to identify an escape route.
She hadn't had the chance to learn any magical self-defence while she was in ponyville, but she was considering her options. Her telekinesis probably wasn't strong enough to hurt the full grown human, and her pyromancy would likely do nothing but piss him off. Her best option, if he became hostile, would probably be to frost up his visor so he couldn't see and condense water vapor out of the air to form a sheet of ice under his foot. If she was very lucky, and this force user couldn't sense her life force, that might give her a chance to escape.
Oh god what was she thinking? There was no way that would work. Failing to appease this Sith Lord would mean certain death. Maybe if she looked cute enough he would take her as a pet? Did Sith even like cute fluffy things, or were they more into dark things with spikes on them? She couldn't imagine Darth Vader with a puppy.
“Just so you know,” Green spoke nervously, “I’m totally cool with the Empire, heil the Emperor and all that.”
Green wanted to try and look tough, but she could barely keep herself from trembling as her tiny heart beat against her chest.
"That depends, Little One." Starkiller responded, "On who and what you are."
The Clone twitched, causing the alien to flinch. Looking at the small creature triggered memories impressed deep within his mind.
They weren't his own memories, but those of Galen Marek. The former Apprentice of Darth Vader had a far worse time training with the Sith Lord than the Rogue Brother ever had to experience. One of the many trials he had been subjected to involved raising a pet, loving and nurturing it. The Jedi avoided emotional attachments; not so with the Sith.
Starkiller had an exceedingly strong connection with his Koth-Wolf pup, a distant relative of the Loth-Wolf if he remembered correctly. His master was pleased at this - all the better to test his apprentice's resolve.
Galen had called forth his most loyal companion and, at his master's instruction, he locked eyes with the pup as he plunged the sith dagger into its back. Confusion, fear, pain; he could feel the pup's struggle through the force. It whimpered and reached out to him for help even as he twisted the knife in it's back to end it's suffering. In this way Galen proved his dedication to the only one he could consider a Father. In this way his connection to the dark side of the force grew stronger.
These were the memories of the original, not his own experiences, yet the memories were a part of the clone's fundamental sense of self. He had not been born, but grown fully formed and freed from the cloning vat with the memories of the original locked within his brain.
He could sense the fear bleeding off the small creature in front of him, but it did not try to run.
"You are... Not native, yet... You know me, or you know of me..." It wasn't a question as it was a statement. Lightly seizing hold of its head, the Clone started to slip deeper into the young alien's terrified mind, rummaging through it as he searched for any answer it could give him. "Tell me, Little One... How do you know of the Emperor?"
Green was at a loss for words. Trapped in the worst way possible, being questioned by a man who could read her mind. Unlike her previous 'interrogation' on her arrival in Equestria, this time she wasn't concerned with convincing anyone she was sane.
"Why wouldn't I know who the Emperor is?" Green asked, "He's the one who leads the Empire, right? With all those triangle ships filled with guys in white armour?"
Green had no idea how skilled this force user was at reading minds, but she could feel his 'magic' forcing its way into her head. She guessed that if he learned that she knew of his universe as a fiction that he would just think she was crazy... or maybe kill her for knowing too much about the sith plot to take over the galaxy.
No no no! She wanted him out of her mind and her magic responded to her desire with an increase in thaumic pressure, which pressed on the tendrils of force energy he was projecting into her body. When he immediately loosened his grasp on her head it was clear that he had noticed her resistance. Damnit! She hadn't meant to do that.
"Please don't kill me!" Green yelled as she wrenched her head out of his grasp.
Green used her magic to quickly chill the Sith's visor, causing it to fog as she made a mad dash for one of the doors in the room.
The burst of force energy came as a surprise, momentarily stunning Starkiller as he was thrown out of the creature's mind.
Shaking his head, he could hear the cry and the sounds of the galloping alien. While temporarily blinded, his helmet's internal systems activated, soon leaving his eyes unobscured as he saw the last evidence of Green's escape, that being her retreating form. Drawing on his own connection to the Force, he went after her, taking long measured steps as he watched her scramble away.
"There is no escape," He echoed his Master as he walked the short distance, summoning his Lightsaber to his hand. "That... Was an error, little one. But it will only become a mistake if you fail to correct it."
Stretching out his hand, his clawed fingers roughly grasped the neck of the green Pony, lifting her to face him. "Think carefully on your words now, or I shall become very cross."
When Green felt the man's fingers grasp the scruff of her neck she was terrified, but as she hung in midair she felt her whole body relax. Everything was going to be fine... Wait, no! She had to focus. The Sith, perhaps unbeknownst to either of them, was holding Green as a mother cat might carry her kittens and it was triggering the same reflex in her.
Stay awake! Focus!
Green laughed awkwardly as she hung limply in the Sith's grasp.
"Uh, sorry about trying to run away," She yawned, "I thought you were going to kill me."
Green gave her best sheepish expression.
"You're uh, you're not going to kill me, right?" Green had trouble keeping her eyes open, and she had to fight the warm fuzzy feelings she felt towards the armour-clad dark-side warrior in front of her. She yawned again and felt herself beginning to drift off.
The Clone frowned, displeased at the casual nature the alien switched to as he was, ultimately, holding her fate in her hands. Shaking her back and forth slightly to keep her awake, he carefully studied the small creature.
Juvenile, quite clearly. A fairly stocky build, not really used for agility or brawn. Though the small horn on the top of her head seemed to be a natural weapon; it lacked any sharp point, with a fairly blunt tip. He didn't recognize the species, yet it seemed to know of the symbol painted on his shoulder and of the Emperor. It was force sensitive; the strong reaction he had gained as he tried to probe her mind, combined with the blast of force energy the creature had projected confirmed that.
"What are you, Little One?" He asked quietly, tilting his head at the almost sleeping youngling. "It shall have to wait for a later time, we must move on."
Keeping a strong, yet careful, hold on the child, the warrior tucked her close to his chest as he entered the elevator, both of them soon on their way out.
When the Sith released his grip from the back of her neck Green noticed that she was now being held against the man's chest as one might carry a puppy. She was uncomfortable, pressed as she was against the hard armour, and she bristled at the indignity of being treated like an animal, but she feared what the Sith might do if she complained. The man was shaking her in what she thought might be an attempt to keep her awake, but she decided the best course of action would be to feign sleep.
If he wished to, the man could no doubt tell that she was awake with his mind reading ability, but she was confident that she would notice if he tried to invade her mind again.
This situation, while far from ideal, was not as bad as she had feared. The Sith seemed more curious than hostile. She still expected an interrogation in the future, but for now she wasn't in immediate danger.
For an uncomfortable amount of time, the lift groaned and stretched as it pulled both of them upwards. Starkiller still kept his lightsaber close at hand, still in it's fused form, though it would be woefully cumbersome to wield while holding a living creature were they to encounter anything hostile.
Speaking of it, the small equine seemed to be pretending, even with her mind active as a snowstorm on Hoth. Though the Clone resolved to let her continue her trickery if only to discourage any more escape attempts.
He still held on tight, though. She had information that could prove valuable from what he had gleaned from her mind. Images flashed in front of him, of creatures he had never seen before, yet held an odd semblance of many things from his own universe. Beings with a connection to the Force stronger than he had ever seen before, powerful enough to move celestial bodies from their orbits through their will alone.
It was something he would have to look into further, that was for certain.
The whole affair was quite the headache, even with the small critter clutched close to his chest, Starkiller couldn't help but feel everything was so... Wrong. The Force was calling out, glimpses of suffering echoed throughout the walls as he walked out of the elevator, now at a rather large circular room, holding only a space reserved for a greenhouse in the middle filled with overgrown alien vegetation.
Despite it's rather decrepit looking state, there did seem to be other inhabitants. Voices bounced off walls, leaving the Acolyte curious yet hesitant, caressing his lightsaber with his free hand.
Frowning underneath his helmet, and feeling the call of the Force coming ever closer, he started walking in the direction, eventually stumbling across a rather tense situation.
He immediately recognized the Death Troopers, the elite bodyguards of the Galactic Empire, though the various other individuals, both alien and human, were lost on him. Some carried technology that he had never seen before, even at a glance. And others seemed to nearly be at each-others throats.
"Well, this is certainly a surprise."
The trouble with feigning sleep was that Green had to keep her eyes closed. She had no idea where this sith was taking her, but with some breathing exercises she managed to keep her traitorous body from shaking like a leaf and ruining her act.
When the Sith finally spoke however, she couldn't help but risk cracking an eye open. When she did, the shock of what she saw made her forget all about her act. The storm troopers in dark armor were to be expected, but several other figures were completely out of place. A predator stood near the Sangheili Arbiter - what were they doing in the Starwars universe? If this even was the Starwars universe.
One thing was for sure, Green was well outside her weightclass if any of these factions came to blows. The Predator, she guessed, wouldn't consider her a worthy opponent, but she couldn't count on the predator to be her protector either. From what she remembered of Halo, the Arbiter too was an honorable warrior and was unlikely to slaughter a child, even an alien one. The Sith however... well there was definitely precedent for Sith to be slaughtering defenseless younglings.
The trouble was, only the Sith knew that she was sentient, and if she called out for help she risked becoming a hostage. Instead she said the first thing that popped into her head.
"A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one."
It didn't take long for the group to lessen in numbers with his appearance.
The Clone watched silently as they departed, turning to face the infamous visage of the Death Troopers, still seemingly ready for whatever the cold metal walls could throw at them. Giving a nod in acknowledgement, he approached, ignoring the small creature on his arm.
"Status report," He commanded. Despite the cold tone behind his words, he was relieved to see a face, or rather, helmet, that he could recognize. He was still wearing his own, thankfully, leaving his voice distorted and deep, though the Galactic Empire emblem engraved on his shoulder painted a clear picture of his allegiances. "I have little in ways of information. Lord Vader sent me on a mission, yet I was led here for a reason."
Starkiller frowned, turning to face the commander. "I would like to request an immediate escort transfer. I have belief that this one," He showed them the small green... being. "Has relevant information, yet it seems unpliable at best."
Green felt sick. She could read between the lines - she knew that the Sith calling her 'unpliable' meant he intended to torture her for information. She knew some things he would no-doubt find interesting, but she had no reasonable way to explain how she knew them. Intelligence was only as valuable as your ability to verify and trace the source of the information, and these men no doubt knew that. The Sith could probably have her tortured for months, or years, maybe even just for fun. With that in mind, a quick death by lightsaber was down-right preferable. Of course, there was also the other, more pro-active option; her captors almost surely had no magic suppressor rings so there was little they could do to prevent her from taking her own life by targeting her pyromancy towards her own brainstem.
With her 'backup' strategy in mind, she took a big risk, but a calculated one. From what she knew of anti-kidnap training, you NEVER allow yourself to be taken to a place of the kidnapper's choosing; always fight as hard as you can and make as scene as possible, even if it means risking them killing you, since they will likely end up killing you anyway.
"PLEASE SOMEBODY HELP ME! I'VE BEEN KIDNAPPED!" She screamed, and then she braced for the inevitable pain of the beating she was expecting to receive.
