Jolee had been badly injured, so we left him behind with a medpact. Juhani had wanted to hang back and help him patch himself up, but I'd said no. We couldn't slow down. We had to reach the summit of the temple.
The two of us emerged into the tropical sun and the blazing white stone of the temple. I squinted as I looked forward. There was a black figure some distance away, standing between us and the dampening field controls.
"Another dark jedi," Juhani said.
"Looks like—" I stopped. There was a shutter in the Force. It came through my Force bond, something creeping and evil, unnatural, seeping into me.
"What?" Juhani asked.
"It's Bastila."
"Has she escaped?"
I drew my cyan lightsaber. That was all the answer she needed, and she drew hers as well, fiery bronze with the Heart of the Guardian, a gift that I couldn't resist giving her.
The three of us drew together, and Bastila's red lightsaber hissed into life.
"Hello, Bastila," I said.
"Revan—I knew that you would come for me. Malak thought you might be afraid to enter the temple again, but he doesn't know you like I do. Not anymore. Not since you've changed."
"I always had a feeling that it would come to this," I said, stepping into stance.
"Very perceptive of you, Revan. Defeating what's left of the great Darth Revan will secure my place as apprentice to the Dark Lord."
Juhani said, "No! Bastila, I was saved from the dark side, I know that you can resist it's pull too!"
"You are beneath my contempt, Juhani. When you tasted the power of the dark side you ran away to a grove like some animal. I am the apprentice to the Dark Lord!"
Juhani tightened her grip on her lightsaber.
"One last chance Bastila: get out of my way, or I'll be forced to kill you."
"Kill me? You are a fool, Revan. And now, you will die. Know the power of the dark side!"
She charged us with a fury that I'd never seen in her before. She was good, better than she had been before, but I still wasn't impressed. Juhani and I were more than a match for her. Bastila suddenly gave a powerful Force push, and Juhani and I flew backwards.
"You are stronger than I would have thought possible, after what the Jedi Council did to you. Seems that Malak was wrong—the power of the dark side is not lost to you after all, Revan."
"I do whatever I have too to win," I said.
"For who? The Jedi Council? The old fools who stole your mind from you?"
"No, I don't care about them. All I want to do is destroy Malak."
"And you can!" She retracted her lightsaber and threw it across the ground, "Malak was wrong about you! You are still Revan, Dark Lord of the Sith! It is you who I should follow, Not Malak! Allow me to become your apprentice, and we shall rule the Galaxy!"
"She will never fall to the dark side!" Juhani cried.
"Shut up!" Bastila snapped.
"She's got a point, Juhani," I said quietly.
"What?"
"Be realistic. The Republic is finished. The Jedi are finished. There's no point in fighting for them anymore. Why should we anyway? What have they ever done for us? They betrayed us both. We owe them nothing."
"Perhaps, but I will not go back to the dark side."
"Don't you get it? The Star Forge can be ours! The Galaxy can be ours!"
"No. I know where this road leads. I will not follow it again! Not… not even for you."
That hurt. She was betraying me. She was choosing the council and the Republic over me! She was supposed to be my friend! My….
"Don't cross me, Juhani. I saved the Galaxy from the Mandalorians when the Jedi did nothing. I save you when the Jedi did nothing! The Galaxy is mine by right, and so is your loyalty." I felt the rush of power. To reclaim the name of Revan! That was magnificent. I was magnificent!
"Revan… Please, no."
"Bend knee to your dark lord!" I cried, taking a step towards her.
"I was looking forward to rending your flesh, Cathar, but if you agree to recognize the rightful empress of the Galaxy, then you may have a chance at life after all."
Juhani took no notice of Bastila, but kept her gaze fixed on me. "No, Revan. You saved me from slavery once, and from the dark side again. Now," she retracted her lightsaber, "It is my turn to do the same for you." She walked between me and Bastila. "You spared my life once. Remember that time, and do it again."
"Such a fool," Bastila spat, "Master, allow me to prove my devotion to you and kill her."
I was dumbstruck. I couldn't say anything. Bastila, however, didn't wait for permission. She shot out force lightning into Juhani's back. Juhani choked back screams and staggered. Then she fell to her knee, crying out. I could smell burning skin.
I felt something welling up in me. Something submerged, something I only half realized was ever there before. It came over me, enveloped me. Then, I was washed in hate.
"NO!" I screamed, loosing Force lightning into Bastila, "STOP HURTING HER!" I pumped more power into my attack and Bastila flew backwards and struck the temple wall. I walked forward, stepping over Juhani, who lay smoking on the ground. Bastila was going to suffer. I would punish her for hurting my Juhani.
"Revan…." A small voice behind me said. I stopped. Hate still coursed through me, but something in her voice tugged at me too much to ignore. "Don't give in to hate. I… I… Revan…"
Her words were so soft, so gentle. My hate fell from me, replaced with concern, and not a little shame. "Juhani!" I cried and ran back to her side. I kneeled beside her and took her hand in mine. "Juhani, I'm so sorry…." I tried to heal her wounds with the Force, gently pushing the force to flow from me into her.
I heard a lightsaber ignite behind me. I stood and turned, igniting my own.
Bastila was walking toward me. She wiped blood from the side of her mouth and grinned, a feral look.
"See? I knew that you still had it in you, Revan. Now I know what I must do to set you free: I will kill this little kitten and let your hate free. I'll make sure she suffers horribly. You'll thank me for it in the end."
I stood over Juhani, defending her. I wanted my hate back, but that would have been a betrayal to Juhani. I recited the Jedi code, under my breath, the words running together from overuse.
"That game is over, Bastila. Juhani has saved me. If I can be saved, so can you. I can undue everything that Malak did to you."
Bastila's face darkened. "So it seems that the great Darth Revan is dead after all, replaced with the Jedi's tool. So be it. Killing you will be nothing."
She charged at me with fury anew, a whirlwind of red light. But I was ready. I blocked her left and right. She tried to force me back, but I didn't give a centimeter of ground. I wouldn't. Bastila left an opening in her defenses, and I threw her back with a Force push, sending her tumbling across the ground.
"Get out of here, Bastila. Go back to the Star Forge. Tell Malak to get ready, because I'm coming for him."
Bastila stood, seething and baring her teeth in anger. "You got lucky this time, Revan. We'll see how you fare on the Star Forge!" And she rushed off to her ship.
I immediately turned my attention back to Juhani.
"Are you okay?" I asked, taking her hand again.
She open her eyes and smiled. "Yes, Revan."
"I'm so sorry, Juhani. You could have died right before my eyes! I almost let that happen! Can you ever forgive me?"
"Forgive you? I do not ask for forgiveness. I have finally repaid my debt to you."
"Juhani… thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you."
"Wait… I… after this, I need to tell you something."
"What?"
"I… I… I care for you… deeply… as more than a friend…"
"Oh… Juhani… this is… heh, a dream come true. I feel the same way."
"You mean you…?"
"Juhani, I love you."
"I love you, too. Oh… Now what do I even—"
I cut her off with a kiss, passionate, longing, but gentle. When I finished, we nuzzled our faces together and laced our hands. For a while I tried to think of something to say, but then I realized that we didn't need anything.
We had moved beyond words.