Topic: The Life of the Apprentice

Katerrina Hess

Date: 2007-12-04 12:50 EST
It was late in the evening. Katerrina stood at the small window in her room looking at the barren lands outside the Tower. The room was small and spartan, but she was long used to small and spartan on Ossus. A hard sleep-couch stood on one wall. A plain wooden bureau stood on the opposite wall. They were the only fixtures in the room besides the window.

Her hands were folded behind her back as she stood at the window. Katerrina's routine was similar enough to what she knew on Ossus so that it came naturally. Awake at dawn. A run as the sun rose. A small breakfast. Physical training, sometimes against droids, sometimes against Master Travanix. Another small meal. More physical training. The occasional visit to the Marketplace to replace unitards burned and damaged beyond repair. More training. A small meal. Sleep.

Katerrina used the time before sleep to go over the day. Seeing where she had made progress. Seeing where she needed work. Master Travanix taught her something daily. Usually with a healthy dose of pain behind it. For the first time, she was challenged. She learned more in the short time as Master Travanix's apprentice than she had in her years on Ossus. Even her old master paled in comparison to Master Travanix.

He drove her not just to the limits of her endurance. He broke them, and made new limits in their place. Katerrina was already stronger. Her muscles were firmer and harder. She was faster and more agile. Every now and then she thought she saw approval on her Master's face. Every time she tried to focus on it he taught her new levels of pain.

Katerrina turned from the window and lay on the sleep-couch. She gave her body the command to sleep. Dawn came early.

Katerrina Hess

Date: 2008-07-11 12:19 EST
The hour before dawn was dark. Katerrina stared out her window into the darkness. Faint clicking noises reached her ears. Once they made her jumpy. Now the terror beasts were as normal as the forest they lived in.

Katerrina closed her eyes. She felt the Tower stir. Slaves were already up and going about their morning chores. A ripple told her Master Travanix was getting ready for his morning run. Katerrina was already dressed for the daily run. She'd join him, and keep the punishing pace he set. Once the 10 kilometer runs left her fatigued. Now they energized her.

After a small meal, Katerrina sometimes trained. Master Travanix never let her slack off on her training. Using the skills daily kept the reflexes razor sharp. There were some mornings when different training was called for, when she had meetings with clients in Master Travanix's stead. She found her presence accepted, especially after she'd severed the head of a client who thought she was the slave, and not the Master. Being a woman in the Circle was harsh. Very few women had what it took to survive, unless they were slaves. Katerrina was the only woman on a par with the men. She impressed them with her creative brutality.

Evenings were now spent socializing. The upper class had no idea the enchanting girl with the stormcloud eyes was born a commoner on a distant planet. Her manners were flawless. Her charm and wit kept men hanging on her every word. Sometimes those men vanished when they'd outlived their usefulness, or if they'd be more useful somewhere else.

Katerrina turned from her window as the sky began to lighten. Her red curls were soon a blur as she left for the morning run. It was the dawn of a new day, with new challenges to meet and new prey to capture. And it was good.