Prologue Part 8
Part 1 Part 9
Part 2 Part 10
Part 3 Part 11
Part 4 Part 12
Part 5 Part 13
Part 6 Part 14
Part 7 Part 15
Part 16
Mara’s hands were locked in binders, and she was led through the facility flanked by stormtroopers. They entered the turbolift, and she looked at her reflection. Staring back was a hairless blue alien Twi’lek girl. Her lekku -brain tails, as they were sometimes called- both came out of the back of her head and hung down her back in an uncomfortable fashion; Mara always preferred to wear them over her shoulders. Still, in the hands of the Empire it was doubtful that the position of her lekku would be on her mind for much longer.
The doors opened and she was led into the interrogation center, where she was quickly stripped and secured to the table. As expected, Isard was on hand to perform the interrogation, and Mara knew just what to expect. Casually she walked up the length of the table and ran her nails down both lekku, and instantly Mara began roaring. “Oh, not there! NOT THERE! WA-HAHAHAHA!!!” A Twi’lek’s brain tails were filled with nerve endings and were highly ticklish; she’d hoped the Imperial would ignore them, but clearly it had been a false hope. “PLEASE NO-HOHOHOHO!”
Isard asked her questions, and Mara had no answers, so again and again the nails would start at the edge of her skull and slide down, wriggling as they passed along the quivering lekku while Mara screamed in ticklish torment. “I DON’T KNOW! HEHEHEHEHAHAHAHA!” But Isard ignored her refusal, and continued to torment her lekku until they were writhing under her nails.
Finally the tickling stopped a moment, and she walked to the other end of the table. Mara looked down just in time to see her apply her nails to Mara’s feet, and it was almost as intense as it had just been. “NO! PLEASE!!!” She roared as the fingers danced up and down her exposed soles, tickling and stroking and prodding while Mara shook with laughter. “NO! NO!!! GET AWAY!!!” But Isard’s fingers danced over the blue skin and Mara couldn’t resist.
Eventually she stopped and Mara took another few deep breaths while she tried to recover, but it was only a momentary break. Isard grabbed her flanks and began kneading and tickling and Mara’s laughter bubbled out. Her thumbs wriggled into the flesh and Mara couldn’t find the air to even talk any more, she could only laugh quietly, eyes screwed shut as she wished this horrible torment would end, but knew it wouldn’t. This was inescapable; she was in the hands of the Empire, and would be subjected to whatever they wished.
The nails plunged into her ribs, causing Mara to scream. She was laughing like mad now, trying to twist her body away somehow as Isard dug all over her ribcage, quickly and brutally. “NO MORE! HAHAHAHA!!! STOP!!! I’M HAHAHA I’M BEGGING YOU! STOP!!!” But still Isard worked the ribs, up and down; not like a harp, more like she was tucking the sheet around a very tiny bed and was making sure it was thoroughly in place. Thorough; that was the only word to describe her technique. She left no rib unprodded.
After that came the armpits; with no hair there they were smooth, and Mara knew how much a tickler loves a smooth armpit. Isard scratched and prodded at them while Mara erupted with laughter. She put two fingers into each hollow and made little circles, and Mara screwed her eyes shut and held her head back, tears filling her eyes. “STOP IT!!! BWA-HAHAHAHA!!!” She couldn’t even hear Isard’s questions any more, she was laughing so much.
There was a thumping sound and Isard looked dazed, then crumpled to the floor. Standing behind her was Seven holding a blunt object; she tossed it aside. “Are you damaged?” she asked.
Mara panted a little. “No, I’ll be fine.” Seven rushed over and deactivated the restraints and Mara sat up. “Thanks; I don’t know what I’d do if you hadn’t arrived.”
“Thanks are unnecessary,” Seven said, “I do this because I love you.” And she kissed Mara’s blue lips, and pleasure passed through her. It seemed like it had been a thousand years since she last felt that kiss. Their lips parted, and Seven offered the smallest of smiles. “I always will,” she promised.
Mara flinched back with a cry of terror as a red lightsaber blade emerged from Seven’s chest. The Borg girl looked down at it, then up at Mara with a grief-stricken expression. The lightsaber was pulled away, and she collapsed to the floor, dead. Mara looked up at the figure with the lightsaber. She bore the most sinister grin, with that red hair framing her face like fire and green eyes that practically glowed. And as she looked at Mara she snickered just a little.
“Resistance is futile,” the Emperor’s Hand said.
Mara’s breath came out trembling as her eyes slipped from her to Seven’s body. Her jaw quivered as she looked back at the Emperor’s Hand. “Why?” she demanded.
“Because it is in my nature to kill,” she replied without a hint of remorse.
A sob slipped out of Mara’s lips. “But I loved her!”
“Love is irrelevant,” the Emperor’s Hand said, and two Borg assimilation tubules emerged from her wrist, like sickly gray worms. Before Mara could react she plunged them into her neck, and the transformation began. “You have been assimilated,” the Hand informed Mara while her blue skin turned peach. “Your biological distinctiveness will be added to our own.”
“No!” Mara said in despair, feeling her lekku transform into fire-red hair.
“Your life as it has been,” the Hand said, “is over. From this time forward you will service us.” Mara closed her eyes, trying to fight the change, but it was impossible. It was inside her, it was what she was, what she always had been, and what she could never, ever escape. She opened her eyes and saw the lightsaber still shimmering in her hand, and looked down at her victim.
Mara Jade, The Emperor’s Hand switched off the blade and knelt over the body of Seven, her latest victim. There was nothing she could have done to stop it. She was an assassin; pretend all she liked, but that wouldn’t change. And she looked into those sad, dead eyes, and her former lover taught her one last, horrible, painful lesson.
Mara Jade was evil.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Seven awoke to the sound of Mara weeping quietly. It was a very unpleasant sound for her; she was compelled to try to stop it, but she had learned that the nuances of human emotion were beyond her, and her simple logic was usually ineffective in combating it. She could strip down and rebuild a starship from memory, but she couldn’t stop the woman she loved from crying. “Are you damaged?” she finally asked.
“I can’t be with you any more, Seven,” Mara said.
Seven felt the breath leave her body. “Whatever I have done,” she said quickly, “I apologize. I am inexperienced in human affairs-“
“It’s not you, Seven,” Mara said. “It’s me. I’m... I’m a monster! I’ve murdered people, lots of people.” She must have seen Seven’s expression of disbelief, because she quickly looked away. “I was an assassin for the Emperor,” she said. “I killed those he couldn’t remove in other ways. Some were evil, of course, but many were simply those who opposed him, one way or another, just people doing what they thought was right.”
Seven opened and closed her mouth a few times. “Do you regret your actions?”
Mara turned back to Seven. “Never... until just now, until I realized what I’ve done. I destroy... I destroy lives and ideals and hopes and families...” She covered her eyes with one hand as she looked down, crying again. “And if I stay here I’ll destroy you too!”
Seven took a deep breath. “I cannot believe that,” she said finally. “I have come to understand you, Mara, and I see only a kind and loving woman who could never harm me.”
“You forgot what I did to you when we first met,” Mara said bitterly. “Even after you showed me kindness, I tormented you solely because it gave me pleasure.”
“And I am certain you have realized the error of your ways,” Seven said, “and have become a better person as a result.”
“And what if next time I won’t be able to see the error until after the damage is irreparable?” Mara asked. “Seven, I still feel guilty about what I did to you... if I ever hurt you... even k-“ She couldn’t even finish the word. “You’re too important to me to take that chance.”
“I can’t believe you could ever truly hurt me.”
Mara shook her head, but still she couldn’t look at her. “I was raised to be the Emperor’s Hand,” she said. “I have always been a killer, and never thought twice about it. It’s impossible for me to stop being that.”
“I cannot accept that,” Seven said sharply.
“What do you know of it?” Mara demanded. “Nothing!”
At the remark, Seven’s fear turned to anger. “You wish to compare your upbringing to mine, Mara Jade? Do you know what it is to be Borg? You murdered people, I murdered worlds, civilizations. Those whom I did not kill I violated and turned into drones for the Collective. I was a tool in the service of a cold and logical evil that swept across the galaxy.” Her breath quivered. “What do I know of it? I know that you are a rank amateur compared to me.”
“It’s not the same thing-“
“Isn’t it?” Seven demanded. “I am Borg, I consume and destroy, and when I was forcibly removed from the Collective I sought every avenue to return to them, and logically I should have been allowed to, or destroyed, but neither was done. I was introduced to human concepts that had no place within the Collective, camaraderie and individuality and love. But more than those, I learned of compassion, forgiveness, and redemption. I learned that despite the evils I had done, it was never too late for me to realize it and change for the better, to atone for my crimes and attempt to become a better person.” She took Mara’s hand. “If I, who toppled countless billions, can be redeemed, Mara, then why can’t you?”
Tears still ran down Mara’s face. “I’m so afraid, Seven.”
“I was as well,” Seven said. “But the Voyager crew offered to help me overcome my fear, and I will do the same for you. All you need do is accept it.”
Mara’s cheeks shone with the tears, but it looked radiant as she forced a smile to her face. “How can you be so good to me?” she asked.
“I believe you already know the answer,” Seven said, and she pulled her close and squeezed her so hard Mara winced, but Seven couldn’t help herself. She couldn’t live without Mara now, and she’d been terrified that she might want to leave. Seeing that she would remain with her lifted her spirits. “Now,” she said, letting Mara go, “an important part of this is trust. I must show my trust for you, and clearly there is only one possible way to do this.” She reached over and took up one of the manacles that were attached to the bed and snapped it around her own wrist.
Mara got the implication. “Are you sure, Seven?”
Seven nodded. “I will be helpless and at your mercy, and while I suspect that you will provide me with a most intense session of tickling, I believe the better angels of your nature will be evident.” She gently pushed Mara off the bed to give herself room. “Clearly the only way to solve this is for you to tickle me half out of my mind.”
Mara chuckled a little. “If that’s what you want.”
“It is,” Seven said, and then smirked. “And I am certain that it’s what you want.”
Mara laughed. “You really do know me to well.”
Part 1 Part 9
Part 2 Part 10
Part 3 Part 11
Part 4 Part 12
Part 5 Part 13
Part 6 Part 14
Part 7 Part 15
Part 16
Mara’s hands were locked in binders, and she was led through the facility flanked by stormtroopers. They entered the turbolift, and she looked at her reflection. Staring back was a hairless blue alien Twi’lek girl. Her lekku -brain tails, as they were sometimes called- both came out of the back of her head and hung down her back in an uncomfortable fashion; Mara always preferred to wear them over her shoulders. Still, in the hands of the Empire it was doubtful that the position of her lekku would be on her mind for much longer.
The doors opened and she was led into the interrogation center, where she was quickly stripped and secured to the table. As expected, Isard was on hand to perform the interrogation, and Mara knew just what to expect. Casually she walked up the length of the table and ran her nails down both lekku, and instantly Mara began roaring. “Oh, not there! NOT THERE! WA-HAHAHAHA!!!” A Twi’lek’s brain tails were filled with nerve endings and were highly ticklish; she’d hoped the Imperial would ignore them, but clearly it had been a false hope. “PLEASE NO-HOHOHOHO!”
Isard asked her questions, and Mara had no answers, so again and again the nails would start at the edge of her skull and slide down, wriggling as they passed along the quivering lekku while Mara screamed in ticklish torment. “I DON’T KNOW! HEHEHEHEHAHAHAHA!” But Isard ignored her refusal, and continued to torment her lekku until they were writhing under her nails.
Finally the tickling stopped a moment, and she walked to the other end of the table. Mara looked down just in time to see her apply her nails to Mara’s feet, and it was almost as intense as it had just been. “NO! PLEASE!!!” She roared as the fingers danced up and down her exposed soles, tickling and stroking and prodding while Mara shook with laughter. “NO! NO!!! GET AWAY!!!” But Isard’s fingers danced over the blue skin and Mara couldn’t resist.
Eventually she stopped and Mara took another few deep breaths while she tried to recover, but it was only a momentary break. Isard grabbed her flanks and began kneading and tickling and Mara’s laughter bubbled out. Her thumbs wriggled into the flesh and Mara couldn’t find the air to even talk any more, she could only laugh quietly, eyes screwed shut as she wished this horrible torment would end, but knew it wouldn’t. This was inescapable; she was in the hands of the Empire, and would be subjected to whatever they wished.
The nails plunged into her ribs, causing Mara to scream. She was laughing like mad now, trying to twist her body away somehow as Isard dug all over her ribcage, quickly and brutally. “NO MORE! HAHAHAHA!!! STOP!!! I’M HAHAHA I’M BEGGING YOU! STOP!!!” But still Isard worked the ribs, up and down; not like a harp, more like she was tucking the sheet around a very tiny bed and was making sure it was thoroughly in place. Thorough; that was the only word to describe her technique. She left no rib unprodded.
After that came the armpits; with no hair there they were smooth, and Mara knew how much a tickler loves a smooth armpit. Isard scratched and prodded at them while Mara erupted with laughter. She put two fingers into each hollow and made little circles, and Mara screwed her eyes shut and held her head back, tears filling her eyes. “STOP IT!!! BWA-HAHAHAHA!!!” She couldn’t even hear Isard’s questions any more, she was laughing so much.
There was a thumping sound and Isard looked dazed, then crumpled to the floor. Standing behind her was Seven holding a blunt object; she tossed it aside. “Are you damaged?” she asked.
Mara panted a little. “No, I’ll be fine.” Seven rushed over and deactivated the restraints and Mara sat up. “Thanks; I don’t know what I’d do if you hadn’t arrived.”
“Thanks are unnecessary,” Seven said, “I do this because I love you.” And she kissed Mara’s blue lips, and pleasure passed through her. It seemed like it had been a thousand years since she last felt that kiss. Their lips parted, and Seven offered the smallest of smiles. “I always will,” she promised.
Mara flinched back with a cry of terror as a red lightsaber blade emerged from Seven’s chest. The Borg girl looked down at it, then up at Mara with a grief-stricken expression. The lightsaber was pulled away, and she collapsed to the floor, dead. Mara looked up at the figure with the lightsaber. She bore the most sinister grin, with that red hair framing her face like fire and green eyes that practically glowed. And as she looked at Mara she snickered just a little.
“Resistance is futile,” the Emperor’s Hand said.
Mara’s breath came out trembling as her eyes slipped from her to Seven’s body. Her jaw quivered as she looked back at the Emperor’s Hand. “Why?” she demanded.
“Because it is in my nature to kill,” she replied without a hint of remorse.
A sob slipped out of Mara’s lips. “But I loved her!”
“Love is irrelevant,” the Emperor’s Hand said, and two Borg assimilation tubules emerged from her wrist, like sickly gray worms. Before Mara could react she plunged them into her neck, and the transformation began. “You have been assimilated,” the Hand informed Mara while her blue skin turned peach. “Your biological distinctiveness will be added to our own.”
“No!” Mara said in despair, feeling her lekku transform into fire-red hair.
“Your life as it has been,” the Hand said, “is over. From this time forward you will service us.” Mara closed her eyes, trying to fight the change, but it was impossible. It was inside her, it was what she was, what she always had been, and what she could never, ever escape. She opened her eyes and saw the lightsaber still shimmering in her hand, and looked down at her victim.
Mara Jade, The Emperor’s Hand switched off the blade and knelt over the body of Seven, her latest victim. There was nothing she could have done to stop it. She was an assassin; pretend all she liked, but that wouldn’t change. And she looked into those sad, dead eyes, and her former lover taught her one last, horrible, painful lesson.
Mara Jade was evil.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Seven awoke to the sound of Mara weeping quietly. It was a very unpleasant sound for her; she was compelled to try to stop it, but she had learned that the nuances of human emotion were beyond her, and her simple logic was usually ineffective in combating it. She could strip down and rebuild a starship from memory, but she couldn’t stop the woman she loved from crying. “Are you damaged?” she finally asked.
“I can’t be with you any more, Seven,” Mara said.
Seven felt the breath leave her body. “Whatever I have done,” she said quickly, “I apologize. I am inexperienced in human affairs-“
“It’s not you, Seven,” Mara said. “It’s me. I’m... I’m a monster! I’ve murdered people, lots of people.” She must have seen Seven’s expression of disbelief, because she quickly looked away. “I was an assassin for the Emperor,” she said. “I killed those he couldn’t remove in other ways. Some were evil, of course, but many were simply those who opposed him, one way or another, just people doing what they thought was right.”
Seven opened and closed her mouth a few times. “Do you regret your actions?”
Mara turned back to Seven. “Never... until just now, until I realized what I’ve done. I destroy... I destroy lives and ideals and hopes and families...” She covered her eyes with one hand as she looked down, crying again. “And if I stay here I’ll destroy you too!”
Seven took a deep breath. “I cannot believe that,” she said finally. “I have come to understand you, Mara, and I see only a kind and loving woman who could never harm me.”
“You forgot what I did to you when we first met,” Mara said bitterly. “Even after you showed me kindness, I tormented you solely because it gave me pleasure.”
“And I am certain you have realized the error of your ways,” Seven said, “and have become a better person as a result.”
“And what if next time I won’t be able to see the error until after the damage is irreparable?” Mara asked. “Seven, I still feel guilty about what I did to you... if I ever hurt you... even k-“ She couldn’t even finish the word. “You’re too important to me to take that chance.”
“I can’t believe you could ever truly hurt me.”
Mara shook her head, but still she couldn’t look at her. “I was raised to be the Emperor’s Hand,” she said. “I have always been a killer, and never thought twice about it. It’s impossible for me to stop being that.”
“I cannot accept that,” Seven said sharply.
“What do you know of it?” Mara demanded. “Nothing!”
At the remark, Seven’s fear turned to anger. “You wish to compare your upbringing to mine, Mara Jade? Do you know what it is to be Borg? You murdered people, I murdered worlds, civilizations. Those whom I did not kill I violated and turned into drones for the Collective. I was a tool in the service of a cold and logical evil that swept across the galaxy.” Her breath quivered. “What do I know of it? I know that you are a rank amateur compared to me.”
“It’s not the same thing-“
“Isn’t it?” Seven demanded. “I am Borg, I consume and destroy, and when I was forcibly removed from the Collective I sought every avenue to return to them, and logically I should have been allowed to, or destroyed, but neither was done. I was introduced to human concepts that had no place within the Collective, camaraderie and individuality and love. But more than those, I learned of compassion, forgiveness, and redemption. I learned that despite the evils I had done, it was never too late for me to realize it and change for the better, to atone for my crimes and attempt to become a better person.” She took Mara’s hand. “If I, who toppled countless billions, can be redeemed, Mara, then why can’t you?”
Tears still ran down Mara’s face. “I’m so afraid, Seven.”
“I was as well,” Seven said. “But the Voyager crew offered to help me overcome my fear, and I will do the same for you. All you need do is accept it.”
Mara’s cheeks shone with the tears, but it looked radiant as she forced a smile to her face. “How can you be so good to me?” she asked.
“I believe you already know the answer,” Seven said, and she pulled her close and squeezed her so hard Mara winced, but Seven couldn’t help herself. She couldn’t live without Mara now, and she’d been terrified that she might want to leave. Seeing that she would remain with her lifted her spirits. “Now,” she said, letting Mara go, “an important part of this is trust. I must show my trust for you, and clearly there is only one possible way to do this.” She reached over and took up one of the manacles that were attached to the bed and snapped it around her own wrist.
Mara got the implication. “Are you sure, Seven?”
Seven nodded. “I will be helpless and at your mercy, and while I suspect that you will provide me with a most intense session of tickling, I believe the better angels of your nature will be evident.” She gently pushed Mara off the bed to give herself room. “Clearly the only way to solve this is for you to tickle me half out of my mind.”
Mara chuckled a little. “If that’s what you want.”
“It is,” Seven said, and then smirked. “And I am certain that it’s what you want.”
Mara laughed. “You really do know me to well.”