[b][u]A Game of Alchemy, collab by Rtron and SunderedEcho, before timeskip[/u][/b]

As Zanna left the prison cell area, she began to learn more about this Thalia, who wanted her dead so badly. She didn't like not knowing anything about who was trying to kill her. It left her feeling...vulnerable. And in the Sith world, vulnerable quickly meant dead. So, she set about correcting that lack of knowledge. 
 
That meant using Force Persuade to ask the ship's personnel all they knew about her. Even the alcolytes. The majority seemed to know little, which was irritating but the few who did know proved valuable. She was a lazy human apprentice, who had apparently been with Nyiss for years. The alcolytes worshipped her to a ridiculous point. She had never shown any ambitions. That was from those who weren't alcolytes. 
 
The alcolytes, on the other hand, made the [i]human[/i] appear as if she was as powerful as Nyiss, if not stronger. There had to be a reason for that, right? Even the most ridiculous of lies had a small basis in the truth. Did the girl have power? Was she just biding her time? Was the laziness a facade? It was a puzzle, that was certain. Well..there was only one way to find out, wasn't there?
 
Zanna headed to the security room, stopping only briefly by her own room to grab materials she would need for what was coming. She needed to find Thalia quickly, and there were cameras everywhere on the ship. Flicking through the cameras on the screen, she almost passed the human. "My, my. What are you doing [i]there[/i]?" 
 
Zanna wondered aloud, as Thalia entered the cell of the Jedi. She settled down to watch, a small smirk on her face. The smirk grew into a smile, which grew into a grin, which turned decidedly wolfish as Thalia sprinted from the cell. "Someone made a mistake." Zanna almost sang aloud. Pulling her datapad out, she copied the video file of the attack onto it. She knew where Thalia would be running to. 
 
Zanna turned around towards the door and waited, smiling. This was going to be easier than she originally thought.
 
Thallia ran headfirst into the surveillance room, eager to erase any evidence of her... mistake. She very nearly bowled into the Sith waiting for her, stopping only at the last moment and staring. It was not a Sith she'd seen personally before, but she knew who it was. The Apprentice Zanna, who'm she'd recently sent a trio of Acolytes to kill. Apparently they'd failed, quite miserably if Zanna was now here for the reason Thallia thought she was. She began to calm herself, trying to avoid doing anything rash. When she spoke, her voice was low, and filled with menace. "What the hell are you doing here?"
 
Zanna kept her smile on her face, even as Thallia nearly ran into her. The girl was clearly eager to erase her mistake before Nyiss could find it, so when Thallia was done with her staring and had moved on to the questions, she only smiled wider and stepped to the side. "Me? I was watching the prisoner cameras, seeing if there was anything, [i]interesting[/i] I could find. Friends amongst them for torture, prescious items, and so on. I didn't find any of those, sadly. But it wasn't a complete loss, was it?" This was all said in a mild, even friendly, voice. "I'd suggest you delete your mistake quickly. Nyiss could be glancing through the camera records at any minute, wondering what the fuss is about." She advised, gesturing for Thallia to go forward.
 
Thallia could tell the Sith was up to something. It wouldn't be that easy to just delete the record. She crossed her arms and stood still, feeling safe in the knowledge that Darth Nyiss didn't bother with trawling through the camera records. That was, afer all, why she had been assigned to do just that herself. "The Darth doesn't look at these records unless [i]I[/i] inform her there is something she needs to see... Now what the hell do you want!" Despite all her attempts, calm was just not a state she could maintain right now.
 
Zanna dropped her smile. "That's interesting to know. Regardless, I'll get straight to the point. I want an alliance. Someone tried to kill me recently, by sending a few Acolytes. I tried to look into their minds, but they died before I could get any information out of them. I need help, and you're my best bet right now. Seeing as I want an ally who won't be watching for the soonest moment possible to stab me in the back and twist the knife, it seems prudent not to do something that would make you want me dead. Now, are you going to delete your evidence or shall I assume I've made a mistake in even approaching you?"
 
Thallia could tell that Zanna was up to something. There was no way she'd simply give up something as useful as the records on that terminal. Unless she was downright stupid. She slowly made her way to the console and tapped in the commands to delete the evidence, fully expecting Zanna to have made her own copy. "Why would I ally with you and make myself a target?" She said cautiously.
 
"You yourself won't be in any danger. Just have those loyal to you spread word of how you seem to be growing evermore frustrated with the Apprentice Zanna, and her stupidity as an ally, or something similar. The one trying to kill me would approach you, either personally or through another means if they don't trust you. After all, it's easier for them to have you, someone I should trust, to kill me than strangers that I don't trust. Then, you either kill them or tell them you'll do it and tell me who wants me dead. Of course, you could always just betray me, but at this point it's a risk that really won't change my situation anymore if it backfires. What do you get from this if it works? Well, whoever wants me dead would have followers in need of a leader. You could easily take that role." Zanna explained, leaning against the monitor desk. "But, I think this conversation will go better somewhere more comfortable. Any suggestions?" 
 
Having a such conversation where anyone could walk in wasn't exactly ideal for negotiations to go smoothly. On top of that it would be better if Thallia chose a location she felt safe in. Less likely to get Zanna stabbed or force choked or whatever else. 
 
"Well I'm quite comfortable here actually." Thallia said, taking the other seat. She wasn't gonig to let herself be taken somewhere private where fatal accidents could happen easily. Zanna's plan was clearly designed to benefit Zanna more than it was her, and making waves in the status quo was not something Thallia did without a major reward. The 'reward' Zanna was offering might've appealed to most Sith, but Thallia had remained an Apprentice for a reason. It was decidedly safer and less stressful. "I'm sorry Zanna but you'll need to offer me more than that to risk myself like that." She said coldly. If Zanna was going to blackmail her, she'd prefer it to happen sooner rather than latter.
 
Zanna shrugged. "Fair enough." She replied, sitting in the seat next to the human. Apparently, she would rather chat here than in a ground of her choosing. The Sith Pureblood kept the derision she felt for the human before her suppressed and locked away where it couldn't be seen. Or felt, for that matter. "So, what would convince you to help me?" As she waited for an answer, Zanna pulled a pouch from her robes, smiling apologetically. "Sorry, I've been living amongst other Purebloods up until now, and I'm still not quite used to the smell of humans everywhere. Much less the stench of that filthy Trandoshan. This is just a powder I created that tends to block the smell out. Nothing meant to kill or harm you, I promise." 
 
Sith tended to be a suspicious lot when it came to other Sith. Zanna couldn't really blame them. She poured the contents of the pouch into her hand and breathed in a bit of the reddish powder to prover her point, waiting a few moments afterwards. "See? I've not died or gone comatose or suddenly had repeated seizures. Now, I'm going to spread it so the smell spreads." With that, she lifted the powder in her hand and blew on it, spreading the dust between the two of them quickly. It had a rather spicy smell.
 
Thallia considered the question for a moment, it seemed harmless enough. When she saw the contents of th epouch though, she immediately became suspicious. Powder was one of the most effective means of delivering all manner of drugs and alchemical attacks, she knew because she'd used it before. What tipped her off though was that the Empire didn't have enough purebloods for Zanna's story to be true. There were humans [i]everywhere[/i]. Her hand slipped to her belt and retrieved a tiny bottle, the lid automatically unsealing as she raised it to her lips. She tipped it back quickly and a not more than a dozen drops of crimson liquid flowed down her throat, burning all the way down. It was not a pleasant experience, but it would keep her almost entirely safe from any other alchemical effects for a short time.
 
"I'm sure you'll understand that I must take this from time to time. Medical condition." She lied through her teeth. "I'd prefer to see what you have to offer me before I make demands for... helping you." She doubted that Zanna would have only the one substance with her, especially once she was able to identify the smell. The tips of her fingers went slightly numb, but it didn't spread as it would of if she hadn't had her own potion.
 
"Completely understandable." Zanna said, still smiling, even as she cursed in her own language on the inside. So much for the easy way. She tapped her finger on her chin, considering the question. "It depends on what you want." She said finally. "I can't tell you if I can get it for you if I don't know what you want or need now, can I? Though, I suppose you won't do it out of the kindness of your hear to help a fellow Sith not be killed?" It was clear that that last part was meant to be a joke. Her mind wasn't fully on the conversation. It was currently going through all she had on her and debating it's feasibility right now.
 
"I don't mean to sound Callous" Thallia said half mockingly. "But you being dead means less work for me." There really wasn't much this apprentice could offer her. Thallia was quite happy with where she was and what she had. "I don't think there really is anything I want that you can get me. I've got everything I need already." That statement was perhaps also intended to discourage the other Sith from more alchemical attacks. It was a bit of a bluff though, as Thallia wasn't at all prepared for a confrontation of this nature, and she couldn't very well just pull her lightsaber on the other Sith. She quickly ran through the few Alchemical options she had with her and was disturbed by how short that list was. Some of the earlier frustration was starting to seep back into her, and with it anger, though she tried to keep that under control. It wouldn't do her any good here.
 
Zanna tilted her head. "True enough. If I die, you won't have to be bothered by this again. You'll be left alone to all that you need." She felt the frustration of Thallia, and gave a slight shrug. "Of course, they could also decide just to get rid of you to be safe. When I was pillaging the mind of the Acolytes, there was quite a lot of mention of how you were taken prisoner so easily by that Jedi." That was a lie. She had learned that particular information through the other staff on the ship. Still living. 
 
"And if they raid my mind before I die just to be safe, they'll see this meeting. A weak Sith, like you've been appearing, suddenly talking with another weak Sith that they're trying to kill? Most on this ship would decide to deal with you now, when your reputation is that practically anything can deal with you, before you can recover and perhaps seek revenge. Now, if they see this whole conversation it's doubtful they'll take that course. But who knows what will be twisted and misinterpeted in death throes?"
 
Thallia's attempt to control her rage was eroded significantly by Zanna's words, particularly those acusing her of being weak. What had been a difficult but winnable battle suddenly became totally futile as Thallia's building rage overflowed and she snapped. First that freakish old-man, then the Jedi that would not submit and now this. It was too much for her. She leapt to her feet and screamed at the top of her lungs "I AM NOT WEAK!" She gathered all her might and anger into a Force push and directed it straight towards Zanna.
 
Zanna felt the instant Thallia lost control, and allowed herself a small smile. Angry enemies made mistakes. They also tended to attack, and attack hard. She got to her own feet, bracing as she heard the Sith apprentice screaming. She didn't try to stop it, not fully anyways. She softened the blow enough that it wouldn't break anything when she crashed against whatever was behind her, but other than that she let it happen. It was a token gesture, one a weakling in the Force would have made. Then the full force of the Push hit her and she went flying over her chair and crashed against the wall. Nothing broke, that she was sure of, but it still [i]hurt like hell[/i]. As she recovered from having the breath knocked out of her, Zanna struggled to not lash back out against this [i]human.[/i] As much as she wanted to put the impure bitch in her place, she couldn't. Not yet. 
 
Underestimation was a powerful tool. Picking herself up and only raising her head once she was sure that Thallia would only see the desparation of someone who knew the end was coming and couldn't stop it, and with One hand warily on her lightsaber(and subsequently closer to more air borne poisons), Zanna responded. "Then [i]prove[/i] it! Because after they're done with me, you're next." The anti-poison couldn't be lasting much longer. She just had to wait.
 
Thallia hardly heard the further taunts the red-skinned bitch shouted at her as she was already gathering her strength to unleash Force Lightning. The moment the other Sith was standing again she thrust her hands out before her, her fingers clawing up as the arcane electricity was channeled through them and across the room. Alchemical concerns were forgotten as her rage flowed, her only concern being inflicting pain upon the other Sith. Several errant arcs shot out and struck the surveillance consoles as well, screens exploding as circuits overloaded.
 
Being wary paid off. Lightning arced across the room, and Zanna drew her lightsaber and activated it, catching the bolts on her blade. Most of them anyways. The couple of bolts that got past her blade hurt, and the Pureblood Sith gritted her teeth(from as much will as the electricity in her body seizing her jaw shut) and resisted screaming. She wouldn't give the impure human that pleasure. When the lightning finally stopped, she stood there, breathing hard, lightsaber still ready. She couldn't cripple Thallia and still have her be useful..but it was an increasingly tempting offer. 
 
Still, letting the woman throw lighting bolts at her wasn't an appealing prospect either. Zanna concentrated and did a Force Pull on the Thallia's ankles, yanking them towards her. 
 
Shortly after it became evident that the Lightning would not pass the other Siths Lightsaber, Thallia forced herself to stop the flow and search for an alternative. The moment she did, however, she felt her legs being swept from under her. Again. This seemed to be something people were quite fond of doing to her. She landed on her back, breaking the fall with the Force so it didn't cripple her as much as it had in the past. She leapt to her feet as quickly as she could, activating her Lightsaber in her traditional reverse grip as she did so, just in case it came to a duel, but she was starting to lose a little more feeling in her fingers.
 
The potion was wearing off. It still kept her from the worst effects, but that wouldn't last. In desperation, she grabbed for whatever bottle she had at her belt and threw the mid-sized object at the other Sith with the Force, including another push at the Sith in the process.
 
As soon as she saw Thallia grabbing at her belt, Zanna began pushing on the bottle using the Force. She didn't want whatever it was to touch her, that was for sure. But, she underestimated just quite how much power rage and desperation gave Thallia. Rather than sending the bottle crashing to the ground, as she had wanted, she only suceeded in slowing it down. It would have to do. Zanna tried to leap out of the way using the Force, but the bitch Pushed her again, causing her to stumble. That cost her prescious time, and while she managed to dodge enough to avoid it hitting dead center, it still managed to crash against her arm, shattering the bottle. As soon as the mixture touched her skin, it began hurting, drawing a reflexive curse from the Pureblood. 
 
Other than that though, it seemed to have no other ill affects. Glancing over, fully expecting another attack, Zanna was pleasantly surprised to see Thallia finally succumbing to the poison, and collapsing. "Took you long enough." She muttered, walking over to the Apprentice.
 
Thallia was satisfied to see her Sithspawning mixture impact on Zanna's arm, but even as a wicked smile began to curl her lips the satisfaction was dashed from her mind. Her whole body was losing feeling and her thoughts were sluggish and moments later she fell awkwardly to the ground in a heap, her Lightsaber deactivating as it left her hand. She tried to scream in rage, but no sound came out. All she could see with her blurry vision was the other Sith standing over her.
 
Zanna giggled in joy at seeing the impure human finally brought down to her place. Kneeling down, she whispered in the immobile Thallia's ear, "Here's what's going to happen. I know you sent Acolytes to kill me. I also know you don't have enough ambition to have decided on that course of action yourself. So, I'm going to ask you questions, and you're going to give me answers. If I don't like your answers, I leave you to die from the poison. I'll even make it look like a suicide."
 
Reaching into her robes, she withdrew a needle. After eyeing the other Sith critically for a moment, she jabbed it into a vein and injected the formula into Thallia. After waiting a few moments, "Now. Who had you try to kill me?"
 
Thallia's eyes screamed where she could not, frustration and rage returning once more as the red-sith bitch lorded over her. She keenly felt the jab of the needle into her and with it, her mind and tongue seemed to be restored to her. "You stupid bitch! Do you think I'd betray him? He'd do worse things to me than you ever could!" Her words were defiant and filled with malice and fear. There was no way to come out of this situation without a heavy risk of later death.
 
"While that may be true, whoever he is, he isn't the one holding your life in their hands. And, I don't think that he can do quite as bad things as Nyiss can, when she realises that you not only dismembered a jedi, you tried to cover it up, and then tried to kill me. That's quite a lot of laws broken, and Nyiss somehow doesn't strike me as the type of woman who likes to have to repeat herself. Especially not when she just made an example out of another apprentice not so long ago." Zanna smiled down at Thallia, clearly enjoying the position of power she was in. Her rightful position, above the humans.
 
"All I want is for you to tell me who wants me dead. I'm offering you the easy way out. I could just weaken your mind and then painfully pillage the information from you. Besides, it's not a betrayal if I'm going to find out regardless if you tell me now or I take the information later. If you don't say anything, he won't even know you've done what you did until it's too late." She knew the effects of the poison. Thallia's mind wouldn't be able to resist while it was busily shutting down. "Come on. Just his name. What's that compared to Nyiss's wrath?" She coaxed.
 
"Nyiss wont do anything to me, whore. And the law isn't broken until you're dead." She was confident in that at least. As long as she didn't totally break any of Nyiss' commands, she was safe. Nyiss found her too useful to just kill. That was why she was here wasn't it? "Find a better threat." If she wasn't in such an awkward position on the ground, she might've even spat at the other Sith.
 
"True enough." Zanna conceded, chuckling gently at the insult. If only Thallia knew what she had been doing before the Acolytes tried to kill her.... "The law isn't broken. But, if you're so confident in Nyiss not doing anything for breaking her commands, why did you come running here so quickly? I saw you chop off that Jedi's leg. So did the cameras. So did the back up I made, ready to be delivered to Nyiss if it ever strikes me that I should. Remember, one of the things she specifically told us through Minder was to not cut off limbs that wouldn't regrow. Humans aren't like the Trandoshan, last I checked." Zanna shrugged. "But, if you insist, I can see you'll be of no use to me. I'll just have to wait for the poison to batter down the slowing formula, and then weaken you enough that your mind will be nice and open. And then leave you for dead, of course." Zanna relaxed into a sitting position, and began to wait. 
 
Thallia was silent for a long while. She hated herself for it too, because even that silence displayed she was beaten. "Fine. Fine I'll tell you. But when he sends someone better equipped to kill you it'll be your own fault for trying to fight him. It Katherion. [i]Moff[/i] Katherion." With that she let her eyes sink to the floor, defeated.
 
"Fight? What makes you think I'm going to fight him? Regardless, you're not lying. The only other options are Sish, Minder, or Kando. The Trandoshan isn't smart enough to even use you, I'd be dead if Minder wanted me dead, and Kando is a lapdog of Katherion." For as much as her voice sounded calm, and she projected confidence, Zanna had a multitude of emotions suppressed and swirling. Primarily, fear and anger. The Moff. The [i]Moff.[/i] He wanted her dead. How was she supposed to get rid of [i]him?[/i] She'd find a way. She had to. Death was the only alternative, and she rather liked living.
 
"Thank you for your help." She said, with a cheerfulness that was sickening to even her. She pulled another needle from her robe and injected the formula into Thallia. "That's the antidote. It's only temporary, I should mention. Lasts you roughly 48 hours. You'll have to tell me when the time is running out or I'll have to remember, and I'll bring you another dose. In addition to that incentive to keep me alive, I'll set up the back up copy with a daily passcode needed to prevent it from being sent to Nyiss. A passcode that gets changed. So, you see, we'll be working very closely together for the duration of this trip and perhaps beyond. Your Acolytes will be put to good use." With that, she stood and walked out of the camera room, leaving the human in her proper place. 
 
Defeated, humilated, and conquered.