Author's Notes: I just wanted to thank all the people that added this story to their favourites, or their alert list, or even added me to their alerts list! I also want to thank the people who reviewed - you guys are the greatest. 3
IV
Tiaan and Carth sat in companionable silence, the great trees of Kashyyyk surrounding them; enveloping them in the sounds of the tropical planet. Tiaan, being impatient by nature, normally would have gone insane waiting for Zaalbar, but being in such humid surroundings seemed to calm her; almost as though she could have waited all day for her Wookie friend to finish discussing the future of Rwookrrorro village with his long-lost father.
Lying on the floor of the balcony over-looking the village, Tiaan was gazing up into the sky, trying to catch a glimpse of the Kashyyyk sun through the treetops. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Carth trying to catch a glimpse at her. She propped herself up on her elbows and raised her eyebrow at him. Carth smiled and looked innocent.
"You look like you have something to say." Tiaan said, grinning.
"Oh you can tell, can you?" He questioned, taking his blaster out of its holster to inspect it, earning a few unfriendly glares from the Wookies around them.
"It doesn't take Jedi powers to read a man," Tiaan laughed, "Believe me."
"Oh yeah?" Carth shook his blaster at her, "Well listen, Beautiful, I don't need to take this abuse. I get enough female Jedi bashing from Bastila, thank you very much." Tiaan snorted at the mention of the prim Jedi.
"What are you going to do about it?" Arrogance was plastered all over her face.
"Wouldn't you like to know," He ignored her frenzied nods of affirmation, and continued, "Just you wait. I promise it'll be good."
"You love the attention, admit it."
"You think so? I could probably get the same kind of attention from a blaster." He said, examining his in a very scrupulous manner.
Tiaan settled back down to stare up at the treetops again, "Oh, I think there's things I can do that a blaster can't." She smiled at the sound of Carth spluttering, secretly thrilled at his concealed embarrassment.
"Anyway," he coughed, "As fun as this, uh, is, I do have to talk to you about something serious." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Really serious. Uh, is this a good time?"
Tiaan sat up properly and turned around to face him fully. Sitting on a crate, Carth was a good foot up from her, but the seriousness in his tone of voice matched that with the look on his face. "Of course this a good time, what's this about?"
"It's about you," he said. Tiaan raised her eyebrows in surprise. Always frank and to the point, that Carth, she thought. He continued on, "I'm worried about what might happen to you. You have a, a lot of courage, and the fact you've remained strong is amazing, but there's even greater danger ahead." He took a deep breath, as though steadying himself. "I think you may be setting yourself up for a fall. Maybe at the urging of the Jedi, I don't know… But you're definitely going to become a target." Rubbing the back of his neck, he seemed to struggle to find the right words. "If uh… If I'm going to find some purpose beyond taking revenge on Saul, then it's going to have to be in protecting you. I don't know why, but I think some terrible fate is waiting for you. I think the Jedi council knows it, too. And I don't want that to come to pass."
Tiaan's head was reeling. What does he mean that the Jedi set me up? "You think the Jedi have thrown me to the wolves?" She asked.
"Don't chalk it up to my paranoia just yet. Something isn't right. I uh… Blamed it on you before, but I… I think the Jedi didn't tell us everything. If I'm going to live past Saul, I need you to as well." He took her hand in his. Tiaan felt as though her heart was in her throat. "Let me protect you… From yourself, from the Sith. You have to let me try."
Still surprised, she managed to ask, "Why are you doing this?"
"Because…" Carth sighed, rubbing his free hand across his forehead. "Because I never got the chance to save my wife and son. Because I didn't stop Saul when I had the chance. Because I finally have the chance to do it right." Staring at her straight in the eye, he continued. "You are an extraordinary woman. You make me think that maybe I might have some purpose beyond revenge." He let go of her hand. "I don't know if it means anything to you, but it does to me."
Tiaan smiled a small smile that lifted Carth's heart. "It means the world to me Carth. Thank-you."
Carth beamed, his relief evident. "I'm… I'm glad to hear that. I'll do my best."
Curled up in her bunk with the sheets wrapped tightly around her like a cocoon, Tiaan smiled bitterly at the memory. How simple it was back then. The Kashyyyk Star Map was their fourth, just before they were captured by the Leviathan. She remembered walking into the Hawk with Zaalbar and Carth after business was finished on Kashyyyk. She and Carth walked side by side the entire time, barely an inch apart. Bastila had commented on it later that night, as they were meditating. She warned her against relationships, stating that they only led to the Dark Side. Tiaan simply nodded and agreed, but in her mind, all she could think about Carth and his promise.
Carth's promise still remained, but it was tainted by his hatred. Tiaan willed herself not to cry, but to no avail. It was all becoming too much to bear. The loss of Bastila affected her greatly. Used to having Bastila near her always for council and support, it felt like a part of her was gone. The bond that was always there between them was silent. It was almost as though Bastila was dead. No feelings penetrated through in Tiaan's consciousness. No feelings, thoughts or memories could be extracted from the nothing that Tiaan sensed on the other end of the bond.
A knock on her door broke Tiaan's reverie. "Come in," she croaked, her voice sore from the tears she shed. Juhani entered, and Tiaan realised she had been holding her breath, for fear that Carth would be the one knocking. She couldn't deal with him, not now.
"Juhani," She said, sitting up, and wiping her eyes quickly, and attempting a smile for her friend. Her trauma was something private, and even though it was obvious to everyone around her how she felt, Tiaan was a Jedi at heart, and she wanted to display herself as such – with as little outbursts of emotion as possible. "What brings you here?" Motioning for her to sit down at the end of her bunk.
"I wanted to see if you were alright," Juhani said with deliberate carefulness as she sat down. "Carth said…"
Tiaan interrupted her, all too aware of the fact that if she talked about Carth, she would probably start crying again. "Oh, Carth said nothing for you to be worried about," She smiled, forcing every muscle to do so. "Actually, I've been meaning to talk to you myself. About Korriban." Juhani nodded, and Tiaan continued. "I know Jolee told you that you weren't strong enough to go, and I think… he may be right." Juhani shoulders drooped from their normally stoic position. "The Dark Side will be over-powering there," She continued, putting as much sympathy into her words as she could. "Korriban is a planet covered with the Sith, and I'm afraid if you're exposed to it, you may fall once more. Even being in Dreshdae might be over-whelming for you."
"I know," Juhani sighed, "You're doing what's best for me, and I appreciate that immensely. But I'm worried for you, also." She stared into Tiaan's eyes, her own showing her fear. "What if you should fall there, after hearing of your true past?"
Juhani voiced a fear that had resided in Tiaan's mind since she found out she was Revan. "There is always that fear, wherever I go," Tiaan whispered. "And I'm not saying that I'm stronger than you in that respect, because I didn't come back to the Light willingly, like you did." Juhani smiled modestly, bowing her head in thanks. "The council had to create a whole new identity for me, to siphon off the Dark Side from me. But the fear of the Dark Side resides in all Jedi, everywhere we go – the temptations are all around us. But it is the strength of the Light that we draw from to help us steer clear of that path, and I believe we are both strong enough to stay on the road of the Light Side. Having saying that, however," She added, "I would feel better knowing you were safe in Dreshdae, where no harm can come of you. I'm not ready for you to leave me yet." She smiled.
"Thank you, Tiaan. It means a lot to me, to hear you say that." Standing up, Juhani headed for the door, "Oh, we are arriving at Korriban soon, Carth," saying his name delicately, she smiled sheepishly. "Told me to tell you."
"I'd better get ready, so." Tiaan muttered, staring at the dark robes that hung before her, lost in her thoughts. Barely hearing the door close behind Juhani, she stood up and headed towards the clothes she had laid out in preparation for Korriban. Her usual brown robes wouldn't do at all – they were like a beacon for the Sith; alerting them that a Jedi was near. Instead, she had rummaged through her belongings and found these robes that she lifted from a Sith corpse. When she originally took them, she was actually hoping to get a few credits in trade for the robes. She had not expected to be needing them at all, let alone to emulate a fallen Jedi.
Shrugging on the robes, she looked into the mirror to see a small, forlorn figure in black wrapping, looking straight back at her. Is this what I looked like, just before my fall? She had seen holocrons of Revan – herself, she corrected tersely, at the height of her and Malak's power, and the mask and robes she wore were infamous. When did I decide to hide behind a mask? Obviously she hid to invoke fear; no fear was greater than that of the unknown. Her thoughts were cut off abruptly, however, when a wrenching pain sliced through her mind. Crying out in agony, Tiaan hurled herself to the floor, clutching her head.
Canderous was the first to run in. Shouting for Jolee, he tore across the room to Tiaan, and tried to stop her from her current act – clawing at her face in sheer desperation. "Jolee!" He screamed above her cries, "Get in here NOW!"
By now, the rest of the crew had arrived at the doorway, too shocked to move. The old Jedi shoved his way past them, and knelt down next to the shrieking Jedi and the Mandalorian. He motioned for Canderous to stop Tiaan's frantic clawing, and took out a small vial of liquid from a pouch in his belt. He opened it and held it under her nose. It seemed to do the trick, for Tiaan slumped into Canderous' arms and fell silent.
"What the Force was that?" Canderous asked incredulously.
"Some of your Tarisian ale, left to uh… mature." Jolee chuckled, then turned towards the unconscious Jedi. "Tiaan," he muttered, "Wake up." Everyone in the room felt a little hazy at the amount of persuasion in his voice.
Tiaan stirred. "Ow," She whispered, holding her head. Looking at Jolee, she turned her head up towards Canderous, alarmed. "How did I end up on the…" It suddenly dawned on her. "Bastila!" She shrieked. "Bastila's hurt!" She struggled to stand, but Canderous held her down at Jolee's signal.
"What do you mean?" Mission gasped, falling ahead of the others at the door. "Did you feel it through that Force bond thing?"
Tiaan nodded. "Malak's torturing her," She said, despairingly. Nobody answered. "We have to help her!" She shouted, her voice going hoarse.
"What do you expect us to do?" A voice from the door asked. Tiaan's blood froze. Carth walked in front of Mission, his every movement that of anger. "We don't even know where Malak is keeping her, and you very nearly died on the Leviathan facing him! How do you expect to rescue Bastila in the condition you're in now?!" Tiaan grudgingly admitted she had a point. She suddenly became very aware of the scrape marks on her face. "The only way we can help Bastila," Carth continued, "is by getting the last Star Map."
"Carth's right, Tiaan," Jolee said. The others nodded in agreement. Sighing heavily, Tiaan stood up, dimly aware of the sudden weight she felt on her shoulders. Nodding in response to Carth, she slowly headed for the door, using the Force to bring her lightsaber towards her. The crew of the Ebon Hawk moved aside without a word, letting her past.
After a moment's silence, a small whirr could be heard. "T3 says that Dreshdae is giving us clearance to land," Mission translated for the droid. Carth had been staring at the spot Tiaan had been, apparently lost in thought. "Carth?" Mission asked delicately. "Did you hear what T3 said?"
"Hm?" Breaking out of his trance, he nodded, "Yeah, uh, yeah, I did. Alright, everyone. Get ready to land." And with that, he left the room. Jolee and Juhani followed, exchanging significant glances with each other. Zaalbar, Mission and Canderous all looked at each other and raised their eyes skyward. Jedi.
Author's Notes: Reviews are greatly appreciated, my dear reader. wink wink
I got a little preachy with Tiaan's speech on the Light Side, huh? Bahahaha, never mind. Update should be coming up later on tonight!