Thumb hovering above the activation switch of his lightsaber, Kyp Durron crouched behind a tall, thick tree with narrowed green eyes, staring out into the open black night. The full moon up ahead bathed the scenery in a soft white hue, just enough to make out the silhouettes of a pack of fierce looking wolves on the prowl in the distance, blocking the path that led to the ship.
Jaina Solo stood a few feet behind him and Kyp gestured for her to stay back while he carefully stepped into the wide open meadow, instantly catching the wolves' attention. Dozens of golden eyes turned his way as his boots crunched on the soil. Baring pointy white fangs and growling in warning, the wolves silently moved into attack position.
Kyp sat down cross legged on the cold ground and lifted his eyes to the dark sky above. Seconds ticked by and stretched into what seemed like an eternity while he did absolutely nothing. But then there was a ripple in the Force, a stone thrown into the infinite sea of living energy. Kyp summoned the Force around himself, like an impenetrable bubble and he pulled at it until it seemed so tight it was difficult to move at all. He sent out feelers with his mind, tendrils of raw energy doing his bidding.
He could feel the animals' minds, their consciousness, their single need to sate the hunger in their bellies. Kyp planted simple suggestions into their minds, willing them to move away to find a better hunting ground. He waited several moments and then frowned into the dark as he realized –
"It's not working." Jaina said, placing a hand on the butt of her lightsaber. "I really don't want to have to cut them down."
Leaves rustled behind her. Jaina cast a quick look over her shoulder and scowled at the little girl that approached them. Her skirt hiked up above her knees, amber curls bouncing around slender shoulders and bright blue eyes blazing with curiosity, little Tavia stood on her toes to get a better look at what the two Jedi were doing.
"I told you to stay at the fire." Jaina hissed at her, jerking a finger back the way the girl had come.
"And I told you that I want to see what you're up to."
"Tavia –"
"Shut up!" Kyp hollered. "Both of you."
Something was wrong. He could feel it in his bones, a cold dread in the pit of his stomach. The wolves should have obeyed. They should have been long gone by now, searching the wilderness and forgetting that three humans were theirs for the taking.
Theoretically.
"We've got a problem." Kyp said, slowly getting to his feet and taking a step back. There was thick, heavy darkness around them, a scent of evil permeating the air. "Someone is controlling the wolves."
"I feel it." Jaina unhooked her lightsaber from her weapons belt while she looked down at Tavia. The little girl jerked her chin upwards, defiance glowing fiercely in her eyes. "I'm not leaving." She said before Jaina even had a chance to utter a single word.
"You see those animals?" She raised her voice as she gestured to the wolves slowly circling the meadow, ready to attack at a moments' notice. "We're food to them, Tavia. You need to stay back and let us –"
"No!" Tavia stomped her foot on the ground. "I'm not going anywhere. And you can't make me!"
Kyp took a deep breath and wondered not for the first time how they'd let themselves get caught up in this situation in the first place. They didn't have the time to discuss their next course of action with a ten year old spoiled little girl.
"Just watch me." Jaina spat. "I'll tie you to the damned tree if I have to." She made her point by slapping her palm against a nearby tree trunk. "We promised to keep you safe, remember?"
Jaina got down on her knees in front of the little girl. She laid her lightsaber aside and took the girls' small, delicate hands into hers. The gentleness in her voice surprised even Kyp. "I don't want you to get hurt, Tavia. And this is a bad place we're in right now. You need to trust us. You need to trust me. I won't let anything happen to you."
Her defiance melted away, Kyp noted with a lift of his brow. "I'm afraid." Tavia whispered. "I don't want to be alone."
"Let us take care of this." Jaina said, gathering up her lightsaber and getting to her feet. "And then we'll get you home as soon as we can."
"Jaina!" Kyp turned back to the wolves, their growls growing louder the closer they got. "They'll follow us no matter where we go. They're natural born hunters. And they'll go for the weakest link first."
"I know." Jaina said hastily, grabbing Tavia's hand.
"Do not run." Kyp warned, facing off with the lead wolf. Its eyes glowed amber gold and it slowly approached, white fangs dripping saliva. It would only take them a few seconds more before they attacked, all at once together as one, their sole objective to kill the intruders. It wasn't instinct controlling the beasts. It was something else entirely.
From behind him, Kyp heard hushed whispers as Jaina made sure Tavia was safely settled within the sheltering branches of one of the tall trees. She returned to Kyp's side a moment later. "How're we doing this?"
"The hard way, of course."
"Why'd I even ask?"
As if they sensed their readiness, the wolves attacked as one. Jaina and Kyp activated their lightsabers simultaneously, amethyst blades coming to life with a sharp snap-hiss. Together they built up a Force barrier of pure energy, shoving the animals back. Those who chose to jump crashed against it. With the power of his mind, Kyp hurled the closest wolves through the air, wincing as he heard a howl from the dark and a sickening crunch.
"Behind you!" Jaina called out. Kyp pivoted around just in time to come face to face with a set of teeth that could have easily taken off his hand. He slammed the hilt of his lightsaber into the animals' head, satisfied as the wolf lay still at his feet, still breathing.
"You okay up there?" Kyp yelled, lifting his head with a reassuring smile on his face.
Tavia glanced down from her hiding place. "Can't you hurry up?" She asked. "It's getting pretty cold up here, you know."
Kyp had no time to comment. Jaina gave a shout through the Force and back to back, she and Kyp fought off the growling pack of wolves. They used the Force to stun the animals, to shove them back, to make them change their minds and direct their appetite somewhere else. It wasn't working as well as they'd hoped. Only once did Kyp have to use his blade as one of the beasts nearly clamped its jaw around Jaina's ankle.
"Thanks." Jaina said, flustered and a bit pale. She turned back to the matter at hand only to realize that the wolves were suddenly retreating back towards the meadow into the dark.
She shut off his lightsaber and frowned. "I don't get it." She said quietly, her gaze following the animals as they disappeared.
"Whoever controlled these animals is a very powerful individual." Kyp could still feel the residual energy of another Force user somewhere in the vicinity, hidden from his eyes but not from his senses.
"I guessed as much." Jaina's frown deepened. "But why? Why go to all this trouble –"
She stopped and a gust of cold wind sang between the trees. Jaina felt the jolt of shock through the Force, the abject horror of what had truly happened.
"Tavia!" Kyp called, running back to the tree where the little girl had been perched. She was no longer there. "Tavia!" He called out again, turning a full circle. "Tavia!" His voice echoed between the trees but he received no answer.
Eyes burning with anger, Kyp turned to face Jaina. "It was a distraction. All of it only a distraction."
"To get to Tavia." Jaina concluded quietly, that feeling in the pit of her stomach growing heavier by the second.
"I promised I wouldn't let anything happen to her." Jaina said. "I broke my promise."
"Jaina, you couldn't have known –"
She held up his hand, a gesture for Kyp to quiet down. The young Jedi Knight glanced up into the sky, a carpet of black space speckled with golden stars. "They knew we'd be here." She said quietly. "They were waiting for us."
"We've been betrayed."
"Seems so." Jaina sighed and ran her hand through wavy auburn hair. "Kyp –"
"Whoever did this…they want war." He locked gazes with Jaina and the young woman was taken aback by the anger creeping onto the Jedi Masters' face. "Fine. Then they damned well got one."