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"I dream of a new world, of equals, and I will stop at nothing to create it."
On a distant planet...
On a distant planet...
The earth beneath her shook, rattling and slinging her as if she were only rag doll doing a puppet’s dance. Rubble already covered everything that was around her. The dust and dirt blanketed the ground. Her clothing, which was nothing much to begin with, was being torn to mere rags from trying to escape the crumbling walls that surrounding her. A city that had taken hundreds of years to build had taken only seconds to destroy.
She didn’t know why she was almost sad to see it like this. This city had brought nothing but anguish to her. It had grown cruel and corrupted, and it seemed especially so to this orphan child. Fate was a cold mistress. Here, you would be lucky if you were born a bastard child whose father could be black mailed into providing money to support you. But she had been left on the orphanage doorstep with nothing, not even a name, only a few days old.
She didn’t expect anything out of life, but to become a slave to someone of greater importance. Obviously the keeper of the orphanage, a sly man named Hackerd, thought the same. He named her “Zakya” meaning “the end” or “death” in the old language. She and most of the other orphans like her were considered the lowest of the low. Even though Abregado-rae had become more civilized there were still parts where money reined and if you were poor you had no choice but to become a slave. Everything depended on luck and a pretty child was a lucky child. Someone from nobility might choose you as a pet.
Children often became dolls, to be petted and prodded, the play toys of children lucky enough to be born with blue blood running through her veins, and more often than not a worse destiny met you when you became the adults plaything. Zakya had none of the features that usually attracted attention though, her hair as brown as the dirt on her feet, and her limbs as short like the branches of the newly planted tree. These things plus the freckles that dotted her face, a mark of the sun, she passed as average. The only thing that could be said was attractive about her was her bright, intelligent blue eyes; even those were too intimidating at times to be attractive. But with that intelligence, she had landed herself here, finally alone, finally away from the Keeper, his wife, and the other children.
Who knows where they were. But she honestly didn’t care; she was safe and free. Free. She sighed with such peace the earth seemed to calm with her. She was thirteen, scared, and alone, but she was free.
Zakya had collapsed on the ground. She had been running since she felt the first tremble of the storm. She had just had her first beating of the day from the Keeper’s wife, Margreth. Tears streaming down her face and rage mingled with hatred and fear filling up her heart, she just couldn’t take it any more. She was shaking so bad it was hard to recognize the beating of the storm, but she looked up and saw it out of the kitchen window.
The storm came in the form of dust and lightning, slowly gathering dirt and stones; then the ground started to tremble. Someone was yelling for or at her, but by then she had already turned and ran out of the kitchen towards the vortex of dirt and ruins. She wove between the building, her whole body being beaten by the boards, trees, rocks and other debris flying by. She couldn’t see, but she heard the mingled wails of the wind and cries of people. She ran without any though to why one word echoed through her mind… Free.
The same word appeared in her mind right before she opened her eyes to the face hovering above her. She opened her eyes to a sight she would remember forever, the sight of a pale, white face of a noble lady perched above her in a brightly painted cart. Zakya stared up at her, squinting. What did this lady care if she, a street urchin, were lying on the ground; what did she want? Then the lady, who she now noticed was veiled, hair covered to, peer back at her with open curiosity.
The woman snapped her fingers and two men, who must’ve been carrying the cart, appeared above Zakya. One of the men was short, bald, and very well muscled. The other was tall, thin, and looked as though he had wisdom he wasn’t allowed to often to use. She didn’t take her eyes off Zakya as she said,
“She will do.”
The two men started to pick Zakya up and were startled when she looked impertinently directly at the lady.
Then she said boldly, “What do you mean ‘she will do’?” The woman looked at her blankly, and then to the two men’s bewilderment, she started to laugh.
“You’re perfect. Girl, you shall come with me, but since I like you, you may choose if you would like to stay with me or not. Come now, you can’t just sit in the dirt all day. You seem much too intelligent for that.” Zakya thought for a moment… it seemed safe enough, even though this was an extremely strange noble woman. She shrugged and climbed clumsily into the cart next to the woman.
“Who are you?” Zakya asked with layered skepticism. The woman’s eyes crinkled at the corners showing she was smiling beneath her veil and she straightened her back.
“I am Taelesa Silverwhip.”
“Oh, really?” Zakya replied nonchalantly. Lady Taelesa’s eyes crinkled some more.
“Yes, really. And what are you called?” The Lady answered.
“Zakya of the Dirt.” Zakya said only slightly sarcastically.
“Oh, really?” said the Lady mocking her.
Zakya smirked, “Yes, really.” The cart came to a stop and Zakya glanced at her surroundings and found that she was at the foot of an immaculate manor with twenty foot tall white marble columns and an equally huge gold plated door. To Zakya it looked like a house for the gods.
“I suppose this is your place, huh?” Zakya said trying not to sound impressed.
“Yes, it is. Now come on, we have a lot to discuss.” The tall man opened the door of the cart and helped them out. The Lady seemed taller, even nearly as tall as the man who was a good seven and a half feet tall. Zakya felt intimidated for the first time in a long time.
The short man pulled a thick, silver cord and the golden doors slowly swung open. Lady Taelesa took Zakya by the hand to guide her to the sitting room. The inside of the manor was just as elaborate as the outside complete with jeweled tapestries lined with silver and gold thread, and a great, winding marble staircase. The furniture of the sitting room was covered in a soft peach silk. Taelesa motioned for her to sit down.
Zakya shook her head, “ Why did you bring me here?”
Lady Taelesa sighed, “It’s rather complicated. But all in all, I want to make a change in the world and I’ve always wanted a daughter. You provide to means for me to have both in one. Straight to the point, this is my proposition. Become my daughter and we shall make the rest of the planet and other planets what they should be. I need someone like you who is smart and strong, someone who can lead us all to equality. ”
Zakya stared at her blankly, “What?”
The Lady rolled her eyes, “You are not a stupid child. Don’t play the part. My sister,” she sighed, “died a week ago. I will say you were hers and I adopted you. Of course we will have to change your name… How about Kya?”
A thousand thoughts rushed through Zakya’s mind. Was this woman serious?
“I need some time to consider your very generous offer.” She said carefully. Lady Taelesa sighed,”If you must. But while you’re considering, you can take a nice, hot bath. I’m sure Marisette has already drawn it for you.” She stood and lingered at another golden rope.
“I think I will show you to your rooms myself.” Zakya, or Kya, as she should now be called because it felt as though the name had already attached itself to her, stood mutely, still unsure of her words or actions. She wanted to jump for joy at the sound of the word “bath”. She had only gotten one a month at the orphanage and savored the feel of the water on her skin, even though it was always cold and she was never allowed to stay in longer than a couple of minutes. Seeing Kya, would not move on her own, Lady Taelesa grabbed her hand again and pulled her out of the parlor and up the marble steps.
The Lady glided and Kya stumbled past many doors and several portraits of Ladies and Lords bedecked with silk and jewels, until Lady Taelesa stopped at a door with what seemed to be crystal door knob.
“Are you ready?” The Lady said smiling. Kya looked at the closed door and then
back at the Lady and nodded. The Lady lightly twisted the door knob and gave the door a soft push. Kya stepped into the room without looking up, but when she did , she gasped. She was swept up by the dark plum and rich silver of the room, that could be meant for no other than the moon personified. Her ceiling sparkled like the night sky where flecks of real silver had been painted on.
Her bed was immaculate and high off the ground with blankets of fur and sheets of silk. If she was speechless before, now she was permanently mute. She didn’t have long to admire it though. The Lady had drug her into another room that was connected to hers. She hadn’t even recovered from her first gasp when she was hit with another one. The walls shimmered from the glow of about a hundred candles sitting around a huge, steaming marble tub.
Flower petals floated delicately at the surface of the water. The Lady watched Kya’s face and smiled.
“Do you need someone to wash your hair?” Kya just dumbly shook her head.
“Then I’ll leave you to your thoughts. But first let me say, I chose you because you are not like the rest of this world, poor or rich. You have something in your eyes that tells me you have a power, and I only wish to help you on this journey to find what this power is. I know you will make the right choice.” And the Lady glided confidently out, closing the door behind her. Her clothes were off in an instant and sighed as she dipped the first foot in. She slipped into the tub, allowing her aching muscles to settle, and she closed her eyes. She didn’t know what she was doing. This eccentric Lady was just a little too much. But she thought that after all she had been through, she deserved this.
She deserved to be pampered, to learn, and to be loved. If she couldn’t be loved here then, at least she would manage to learn and have wonderful baths.
Five years later...
Her bags were packed and she had all she needed for the journey. Over the last five years, Lady Taelesa had taught her much ain hopes that under her care she would help a girl of no consequence, Kya, become a jedi and bring justice to this planet and others. The lady had seen a spark in Kya that no one else had, a power that had been suppressed by abuse and malnutrition. But now Kya was different, her potential radiant.
She and Taelesa had shared their good byes the night before and now Kya wandered the quiet mansion one last time. As she was about to push open the door to walk out of the house, possibly forever, she saw a glint out to the corner of her eye. A heavy silver ring with a large onyx set into its center sat on a table nearby. Beside the ring was a piece of paper that read simply, "For my daughter, Kya." Tears filled up her eyes as she slipped on the ring and made her way determinedly out into her destiny.
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