The Beast Of Black Forest
Part III
Luke turned left at the end of the large alcove and headed down a narrow path lined with candles attached to the rock walls. It turned and twisted around in the dim light, but Luke followed it easily through the Force. Eventually, he came to a staircase that was definitely man-made. They were made of wood but built imperfectly with jagged angles. They still held their purpose as they led up to a mechanical door. Luke climbed the stairs and the door slid open. He walked through an area that was built into the cavern. The cottage. He was led into a hallway that was lit with modern lighting, though the area was still dim. Luke followed the hallway and came to the entrance to a large room.
At the other end, the old man tended to what was the room's main source of light. A hearth. The fire inside of it burned brightly. The dancing light, thought Luke. The old man sang cheerfully while he worked.
Luke could then deduce what was happening. The trap. The keeping of victims in cages. The drip that filled the victim with nutrients so that the muscles would be...thicker. They were being fattened up. Luke cringed at the thought. Luke had come across darkness in his life. Not like this. Pure and wild with no purpose but for one. This man deserved to be called a beast.
Luke looked around the room. The hearth was at the opposite end from him. To the right was a large table. An enormous cutting blade was stuck upright into the wood. Next to it on the edge was their pack that they left when they went through the trap. Next to that, Luke spotted his lightsaber and Mara's beside it. Luke watched the man carefully and waited for him to turn his back to him. Luke called his lightsaber into his hand through the Force.
Immediately, he heard the man stop singing. He knew Luke was there.
The man sang, "Ahhh, the rat has loosened the grip. Free of metal, free of soul. He bites off chips by the edges." The old man turned toward Luke's direction. "The nosh does not like it's ration state."
Instead of hiding, Luke came out to stand before the old man defiantly. "I know what you are doing. I know what you have done for so many years. You have tormented this village for the last time. You use the dark side of the Force to lure people into your trap. A trap that is a hidden image within the Force. You keep them caged and fed without them knowing. Until they are ready." Luke glanced behind the man at the fire in the hearth. "Ready for the dancing light."
"Yes, yes, the nosh gains knowledge of the fort. Close to pieces lost."
Though Luke couldn't understand his meaning, he went with it. "You are not lost. You must stop what you are doing. I can help you. You can do good using the Force. Search your feelings."
For a moment, the man was silent. Then he started to crack a smile. He then began to slowly cackle that grew into a hearty laugh. The sound of his laughter echoed in Luke's memory. He had heard it before from another dark Force user long ago. He could feel the darkness growing inside the old man. A darkness that was void of all compassion and full of greed.
The man sang, "Pity, pity, the nosh knows not of the juice. Hidden under the recluse."
Luke could suddenly feel something else building up inside the man. This was also all too familiar to Luke. This time, he was prepared.
Instantly, a large spark of Force Lightning shot through the old man's fingers and directed it at Luke. Luke quickly ignited his lightsaber to absorb the energy. Though he successfully blocked the lightning, the sheer force of it pushed Luke back several steps. He still held out his green blade to deflect the bolts coming at him at random. Luke considered using the Force to absorb the energy with his real hand, but that attempt failed years ago in his youth against the clone of Palaptine. Age had caught up to the Master Jedi.
The old man stopped the bolts abruptly. "Feeble, feeble, nosh. No means of freeing the box. Doomed is all who enters the realm. End is nigh into the dancing light."
Luke had an idea and he started to circle around the man with his blade in a defensive position. When the second attack of energy came from the old man, Luke used the reflective techniques of Form Three to propel the energy back at its user. The power of the man's own doing was double bouncing off Luke's blade. It thrust the man backwards several meters. He landed into the large table, thus knocking it over along with its contents. The smell of burnt flesh rose from the man's smoldering robe.
The old man let out an inhuman cry of rage as he stood up weakly. Luke could sense his rage burning like the fire behind him. Underneath the rage was a hint of desperation. Luke anticipated the man's next move and positioned himself specifically.
The old man spat out, "Dark pours from the wound! Heal is the catch! Never you come with might! Triumph is the fight! Forever is your shade of end. Coldness declares you to bend!"
Knowing only half of what the man was speaking about, Luke cried back, "I know of darkness! All of my life I have lived through it. I've both confronted it and accepted it. I am the master of my darkness. You can't control yours. It will be your undoing. For all darkness, there will always be a spark of light."
At once, the man attacked with a battle cry. He used the Force to launch himself into the air with sparks of Force Lightning ready to consume Luke. He flew directly at Luke with lethal intent.
He never had the chance.
Luke crouched low beneath the old man flying at him. He swung his blade in an upward arc just as the man was directly above him. The blade cut through the man's torso fully. The two bisected pieces kept their momentum from the speed and landed just where Luke had intended.
Inside the burning fire.
The old man's cries of pain ended. It was at that moment when he felt a sudden joy. He turned and his wife appeared at the entrance to the room with a weak Augie standing beside her.
"Luke, what happened?"
Before he could answer her, he felt another surging from inside the hearth. He felt that surge before, as well. Knowing what was about to happen, Luke yelled to his wife, "Get down!"
The dark energy from within the old man erupted from his death, just as it had when Palpatine and C'Boath died. The blue wave of Force came out of the hearth and obliterated everything in its path. All of the man's belongings and furniture were destroyed. The table that held Luke and Mara's pack was on the floor. Luke dropped to the floor making his body flat against it. He used the Force to deflect any debris that flew at him. He could sense Mara through their bond and could feel confusion but her survival instinct won out. She moved herself and Augie back into the hallway away from the blast.
Within seconds, it was over.
Luke picked himself up and dusted himself off. The fire inside the hearth had been extinguished. The only light source in the room now was from the outside sun barely coming through the blackened windows. Their pack was underneath him and he grabbed it. He also spotted Mara's lightsaber nearby on the debris-filled floor. He picked it up, too. Mara came out from the hallway with Augie behind her.
"You all right," he asked.
"Yeah. Guess I don't have to wonder what that blast was."
"No."
Mara surveyed the damaged room and then noticed something. A doorway that had been opened from the blast. "Luke, what was behind there?" She started to walk over to it. Luke tried to call to her to not open it further, but it was too late. Mara gasped at the sight.
Falling out of the storage area were the remains of various dead carcasses. Some had been decayed from years of age and others were still fresh. It looked like someone or something had feasted on them. Mara didn't have to guess. "What...did he do to them?" she could barely whisper.
Luke stood in front of Augie, who was looking in another direction. "He consumed them. That was his food. He couldn't stop killing and feeding."
Mara nodded slowly. "That's why no one came back."
"Yes," Luke replied in a low voice.
"And I was next," said Augie, who suddenly appeared beside them. "I just wasn't plump enough."
Mara gave the boy a knowing glance. "You led us here. Those were your hoyy seeds in the forest."
The boy smiled and nodded. "I figured someone would try and track me down. I never thought it would be the two greatest Jedi."
Mara scoffed. "We are hardly that."
"Now, now, let the boy have his opinion, Mara."
Mara gave her husband a cocked red-gold eyebrow. "Whatever you say, Master."
Luke turned to Augie. "So you laid out those seeds so someone could trace where you ended up?"
Augie nodded. "People in my village have known about the Beast for years. He used to lure men, women, and children back here. They were never to be heard from again. People in my village are not violent. They didn't know what to do. They were too afraid to chase him off. I guess when I disappeared my uncle had had enough."
"But you went in here on purpose to let people know where the man lived," Luke stated.
"It was stupid, I know."
"No, Augie. It was brave. You risked your life for this to never happen again. It's what the Jedi call courage. That's what makes a hero."
Augie smiled. "So...is it over now?"
"Yes, Augie," said Luke, "the Beast of Black Forest is dead."
A generation later...
"What happened next? What happened next, Daddy?" the young boy cried out.
"Well, as you know, Luke and Mara went back to the village to take the boy back to his father and sister. They were all overjoyed."
The little girl who sat beside her brother had an inquisitive look. "How can you be over joy?"
Their father laughed. "No, honey, they were all very happy."
The boy cried, "And Luke and Mara told how they killed the Beast and were called heroes. Right, Daddy?"
"That's right. They were named Heroes of the Village."
The girl stated, "And the Beast stopped eating people up."
"Yes, it did. The Black Forest was no longer dangerous. The boy showed great courage in helping to save more people from being lured by the Beast. Once the villagers realized what the boy did, they were no longer afraid. The boy conquered his fear. And that, my loves, is the beginning of wisdom." He saw the boy try and hide a yawn. "All right, it's time for bed. Both of you."
The girl hopped off her brother's bed and jumped into her own. "Will you tell that story to us again tomorrow night, Daddy?"
"Of course. I know you can't hear it enough."
As the boy covered himself with covers, he asked, "Whatever happened to the boy who helped Luke and Mara, Daddy?"
He gave a grin and replied, "He became a wise man."
"We like hearing that tale, Daddy," said the girl.
"Then you shall hear it again. And then you can tell it to your kids. And they to theirs. Now, are you all tucked in? Excellent." He went to the doorway and switched the main light to a small nightlight in the corner of their room.
"Good night, Daddy," said the boy.
"Good night, Daddy," said the girl. "Oh, and tell Grandpa Augie good night for us."
"I will. Good night, Greta. Good night, Hansa."
THE END
