It was a matter of cultural oppression and lack of mercy among peoples of the galaxy. That's how Ghriin saw it. Oh, and it's pronounced "Jeh-reen", not "Green". That mistake had been made SO many times in her processing. Luckily, she had gotten one of the more culturally savvy and merciful caseworkers, so she was able to avoid the prison jumpsuits, and, while her Aaft'Drednus swords and knives were taken away, she was able to keep her bladed hair ties. The caseworker was a good man, Ghriin felt sorry for him. It was the only reason she hadn't broken out. Yet. A few more of her kind had been locked up as well. Damn shame, all this cultural oppression. She thought she also heard a Blackguard Monk was incarcerated here. She wanted him to go free.
As an aside, outside of her knowledge, if she knew her younger siblings were locked up with her, she'd be ballistic.
But she had no knowledge of it. So she was stuck whetting her hair ties on the cell, carving various symbols correlating with Blackguard religion - which she followed. She knew she could never become a sister of the order, being a smuggler, but she had her faith in Kefla - or, as he is known intergalactically, Kephalla the Mad Justicar. Indeed, it would be his will she would steal herself away from this place. She would abscond on the spacial wings with allies, it was a prophesy she had found in her carvings. She only wished she could rescue her brothers and sisters in chains, her fellow Andha'Sisha. It would be her will as an extension of Kefla.
Ghriin had made a shrine carving in the wall of her cell. This was actually rather astonishing, considering her cell was made of some alloy. Of course, she was on an inner cell block, so her cell was still safe from the risk of puncturing and letting out the air. But the metal used to make the blades of the Andha'Sisha were much stronger than most metals on other planets. It was a complex mixture between various metals, including mercury, titanium, and iron, or the refined version, steel. The mercury was used to grant the blade not only the ability to poison an enemy without venom, but also a flexible blade for picking locks. The titanium was used to harden the blade so it could cut through bone and was also used to resist elemental decay. The steel was easy to sharpen and decorate, thus, the blade would be deadly and ornate. There were many other metals adding to what's listed and attributing more advantages, but let's not get all spacey-wacey.
She had an idea. She'd pick the lock, just this once. She was well behaved, but a bit rebellious in a sense. Ghriin never shut her mouth to the guards. But she did as she was told because... Well, what else was there to do? No other options. So for now, she'd pray to Kefla for a small time. She prayed that the lock would fall to her blade, that she would not be doled punity, and that her people would flourish on her return. She prayed in her native tongue and ended her prayer on the phrase, "Hibha Veir'Forla", pronounced "hah-bee vee-reh-flo-rah", which translates to "For the flowers of the realm", a Blackguard customary salutation to Kefla.
Cracking her fingers and neck, she immediately got to work on the lock. She was somewhat high security, mostly for her murders and evasiveness, so she had to check both ways before starting. Like most smugglers, she had experience in lockpicking, mostly so she could get into locked morgues. She had never found a mechanical lock which had more than ten tumblers, and she had a chip in one of her ties in case it was electronic. The electronic chip uploaded a simple hacking program to the keypad, wherein she would merely have to find the correct character within 7 attempts or 30 seconds. Considering the alphanumeric character combinations in most electronic locks, this would seem hard, but she was experienced. She would often use her first five attempts on A, Z, 0, 9, and # in that order. If none of them worked, she had two more attempts, and, most likely, she'd have it. The hacking program also gave her hints suggesting whether or not it's in the right character group, and what multiple of five is it within.
This lock was two-sided so guards could come in unaided and leave using their key or card. The thing was, though, sometimes it was hard to tell if a mechanical lock was really mechanical. There had been an uprise in electronic keylocks used to fool thieves. They frustrated her because they were so unpredictable, but she deals. This one had two methods of locking, and one lock, which means either she had to use both, or either one, but never any specific one. If it didn't unlock on the first successful pick, she'd have to pick the other lock. She started with the mechanical lock.
Sliding the blade into the lock, she let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't an electronic lock. She got to work, twisting the blade and the ring in her hair tie, causing different grooves to rise and fall on the blade, working the lock. She heard a few tumblers check above so she started working more in the blade, getting into the correct position, and...
*chk*
Single lock. Mechanical or electronic. Easy stuff. She must not be on too high security. Hell, there was some guy walking around the halls. That clicking of his heels was soothing. Rhythmic.
She pulled the gate open and rolled out silently, pocketing the tips of her braided tails so the hair ties wouldn't clatter on the floor. This guy was one of those assassin types. Contract killers and whatnot. Sounds like a good enough guy. But she had to get away from her cellblock before she could talk to anyone. She closed the cell door behind her and made her way to the mess hall.
A good sum of her people were here, getting their fill. They'd need it for the road ahead. Andha'Sisha were easy to torture, due to their two hearts. Would be a Hella thing to go through for any creature.
Dear Kefla, what is that pink thing over there!? Why, that's Lactra. The friendly neighborhood frikkin' CANNIBAL! Why is he not in restraints? Of all the people she thought deserved to be in here, she thought he deserved it most. A good tip for anyone, never take meat from that guy. It's very likely to be some sentient person who's body is being desecrated by being devoured by some flower-mouthed... Abomination.
She really didn't like that guy. Especially since she stole from the dead to help the living, this guy eats the dead AND the living. Not a good person. Not in anyone's book ,she hoped to Kefla. Andha'Sisha aren't a vegan people, but at least they eat Kefla's bounty, that is, non-sentient animals. Sentients were not meant to be eaten, it was well-known they felt pain, and fear, and horror. They were not meant to be in the middle of the food chain. "Curses from Kefla upon you, cannibal." It had been awhile since she had some of the Condemn's ass-tasting soup, so she decided she'd get a meal while she was here. Sit with some of her people. Discuss religion. Andha'Sisha were easy to talk to when it came to religion. As long as you don't deny them their beliefs, you can get along with them. Or maybe they'd discuss some of their greatest adventures. Of course, she was a celebrity among the Andha'Sisha, so she'd likely be swooned over by men and ganged up on by women. Woo~oo~, it's Ghriin Vuirtka! The top smuggler in Andha'Sisha space! Kefla bless! Bluh bluh bluh, she'd have to ask to be treated like just another person they met on the street so she'd feel less... compounded.
So, she grabbed a tray and ran through the line, then sat with a large bunch of her people. "Hey, guys." A couple of Batallion soldiers, a few smugglers, and some people in for possession of stolen organs, or illegal cybernetics, some bollocks that can't be helped. "Are you...?" "Yeah, I'm Ghriin. Don't get all excited, as far as you're concerned, I'm a nice person you met at the bazaar. Just don't get all celebrity on me, alright?" The smugglers smirked, the Batallion soldiers saluted, and the others just nodded.
