A/N: The songs referenced sometimes show up actually in the story and are sometimes just the inspiration or were actually playing while I was playing the game at that point in time. Yes, I'm weird, I make notes of the songs while I play. And yes, there are sometimes OOCish remarks from my character that add to the levity in the story. ;) Enjoy it for what it is. Fun. Also - holy crap, all the follows that suddenly happened after the last two chapters! You guys have no idea how much I Snoopy danced and then panicked all at the same time every time I got an email notification. Lots of love from me and I am pleased you're enjoying the ride.
Star Wars The Old Republic, the settings from the universe and the characters from it are not mine, they are the property of Bioware and LucasArts, and now Disney. All songs referenced belong to their artists, they just inspire the scenes. I'm only filling in some gaps in between all the questing and galactic conquests with my vivid imagination. All copyrights, trademarked items, or recognizable characters, plots, etc. mentioned herein belong to their respective owners. No copying or reproduction of this work is permitted without their express written authorization.
Chapter 8: Desert of Death Songs in order of appearance: Not Like the Movies ~ Katy Perry, From Chaos to Eternity ~ Rhapsody of Fire, Raise Your Glass ~ Pink , Neobedouin ~ Abney Park, Bodies ~ Drowning Pool.
The Desert Wound Ravine was going to be another half day's hike through the desert. I was wishing I had bought a few speeder bikes or a landspeeder on Nar Shaddaa. Maybe before we left here. Sharack had taken off ahead of us, she was soon out of sight and Quinn and I marched on by ourselves. We took a momentary respite around mid-day to eat some of our rations and hide in the shade of some rock formations near the outpost called Mos Anek. There were a few womp rats not far from us, scavenging in the dried foliage. I tossed a few handfuls of dried fruit out in their direction and watched as they scurried and fought over the morsels.
My eyes kept wandering over to Malavai, who was just packing up our gear. A soft song was playing on my earpiece, a woman lamenting about glamorous love, or the lack there of. I smiled to myself and shook my head. Life isn't like the stories.
"My lord?" Quinn asked, turning to look at me.
I hadn't realized I said that out loud. I cleared my throat. "Nothing, Captain. Just thinking about how unglamorous life is versus the way stories are told." I gestured to my, now tan with dust and sand, armor and sweat soaked hair.
Quinn let a smile ghost across his face. "It rarely is, my lord. I don't think many would appreciate the reality of what is really required."
I nodded at him, getting up from my rocky seat and futilely brushing dust from my rear end. "For what it's worth, I think they're missing out on some of the best moments. This is the stuff that builds character." I said.
I heard a small chuckle escape from him as he handed me my pack. "Indeed, my lord."
We continued through the desert, following our datapad coordinates. We reached the ravine in late afternoon, the shadows already covering the whole crag in darkness. Following our marker, we began skimming the walls, looking for this hidden door. We discovered it behind a stalagmite, nearly invisible from anywhere but right in front of it. It was less of a door and more like a large crack in the wall. Quinn and I squeezed through and continued inside.
Within was a strange pool of water that seemed to create its own light. The walls of the cavern danced with small wave-induced ripples. It was actually quite beautiful. We approached the edge of the pool, setting our packs down.
As I stared across the water, a white, ghostly form appeared. I rubbed my eyes and shook my head, thinking perhaps the desert has finally started causing mirages. But then Quinn stopped what he was doing and stared at it too. It walked toward us, shaping itself into a mirror image of...me.
"You have lost your way, dark one." It said to us in my voice, yet hollow. "I have come to correct your course. I am the embodiment of your greatest potential." It stood in front of me now, floating just above the lapping waves from the indoor lake. "I am what you could be, if you overcame your fear and walked in the light."
"Impossible," I said. "You're trying to trick me."
"Only someone riddled with fear lies to herself," it replied. "The light eliminates the need for such fear. Let me prove that I am you. We hunt Noman Karr's Padawan, who can see the true nature of anyone. Our Master, Darth Baras, fears that this girl will expose his network of spies and bring about his demise."
I frowned at the apparition. "You know too much, I will have to silence you."
"Fear of exposure marks you and Baras as weak. It is the rot of the Dark Side. If you persist down this path, your life will be consumed by paranoia and fear. Betrayal will wait around every corner. You will never know whom to trust." It tried to reason with me.
It was me, but still didn't know my deepest secret or it would not have tried to push the trust issue. I decided to play along. "I never thought of it that way." I said.
The apparition nodded. "You see the Dark Side seeks to subjugate the Force. It treats the Force as an adversary to be used and manipulated. When you embrace the light, you meld with the Force, become part of it. Then true clarity and peace can be achieved."
I sighed, "Don't make me laugh." I wondered if it was listening to music too. My music was hinting at epic battle.
"Don't scoff, dark one. Look at our Master. If the dark is so potent, why is Darth Baras deathly afraid of a young girl? Noman Karr's Padawan is only a nascent champion of the light and already she strikes fear into the heart of a Dark Side Master."
"I won't fall for your manipulations." I said, getting irritated.
"If you refuse the light, you must strike me down. Do you have it in you to kill part of yourself?" It challenged.
"Let's get this out of the way." I said, readying my sabers.
"Come then, take me on. You'll discover the light inside you can not be vanquished." It altered it's appearance, becoming a masked and armored female figure in grays. It mirrored my battle stance.
I motioned for Quinn to back away and he did so, if reluctantly. The being and I met in unison, blade crossing blade in a flash of light. We danced, parrying and feinting, like I was fighting my shadow. Shadow. I smiled at the apparition and changed up my stance, becoming defensive instead of offensive. The figure pressed, probably assuming I was tiring. Not so. I again changed my stance, channeling every emotion I could muster into my self and then traded it with the Force. Many may wrestle and fight with the Force on our side. But I knew a secret. One taught to me by real Masters. If you wanted anything from the living Force, you traded for it. I traded my storage of emotions. My ferocious offensive caught the specter by surprise and I managed to strike not one, but two killing blows within mere milliseconds.
It retreated, retracting it's saber and hunched over. Then, it changed again. It's colors became red and black, Force power emanated from it and it walked toward me, unharmed. I stood my ground, staring it down as it walked into me, causing me to stagger. I absorbed it into myself, embracing the union. Quinn dashed to my side as I fell to one knee.
"You have proven your way is strong and viable," a voice spoke from inside my core. "With this victory our essence has been purified. In the clarity of this union, a vision of our destiny on Tatooine appears." I let myself fall to kneel fully on the ground, my hands wrist deep within the cool liquid, communing with the lake water.
"Do you see it too," the voice spoke as a vision of an adobe hut in an endless sea of sand appeared. "An encampment, hidden in the farthest reaches of the desert. Past a rock formation called the Forbidden Pass."
"Tell me more of this," I say aloud, standing.
"There is no doubt this is where the Padawan went. This is where the great master helped her powers become expressed. The image fades. Find the Forbidden Pass and confront Master Yonlach beyond it. Our journey on this planet ends there. Farewell." The voice faded, as did the momentary power surge of Force energy.
Quinn approached me, cautiously. Then turned, alarmed, as Sharack suddenly appeared next to him.
"I can not believe what I just witnessed!" She said, sounding out of breath. "Di...did you just tell yourself to venture beyond the Forbidden Pass?"
I nodded. "Tell me everything you know about this place."
"I am chilled to the bone. The desert beyond the Forbidden Pass is an area that no one can survive." She said. "No one! Even the Sand People dare not go. You mustn't go!"
I glanced over to Quinn, who still seemed a bit shaken. "Your concern for me is unnecessary." I said, trying to ease this irrational fear she seemed to harbor.
"This is not some silly superstition," Sharack said, defensively. "Those who go beyond the Forbidden Pass are never seen again. I will not...I can not follow you there."
I frowned at her. "I needn't waste any more time with a coward."
"How that word burns me," she said with venom. "I will return to your spaceport and update Darth Baras." Sharack backed away and then turned, disappearing around some rocks.
Quinn and I turned to watch her leave.
Once she had departed, we gathered our things and I called to check in with Vette using my holocommunicator.
"'Bout time, boss." she said brightly.
"Quinn and I will be venturing into a place of the desert that is apparently...forbidden. So, if you haven't heard from us in twenty-four hours, I want you to speak with Sharack and see if you can locate us via the chips Quinn had installed in our armor." I directed.
"Okie dokie. You two have fun in the Forbidden Zone...or whatever. I'll keep you monitored from here." She waved and signed off.
I tucked the device away and we stood there a moment. I looked at Quinn and put my pack back down.
"My lord?" He said, confused.
"It's almost nightfall. Why don't we just camp here until the morning? This place seems relatively safe being sacred and all."
He nodded and placed his own pack down, setting up our little camp for the night. It stayed a constant temperature within the cavern, so there was no need for a fire to fight off the cold of night. We even had a place to wash up for the first time in days, though Malavai eyed the water warily the first time he approached the shore. No force ghosts came to assault him, though. Both of us slept soundly, though when I awoke, his cloak had appeared on me again. I smiled and shook my head, watching him fill our back canteens with water from the lake. We packed up and headed out of the hidden oasis just as the first sun broke the horizon. The first song of the day made what lie ahead a little more tolerable and I quietly sang along.
The trek to the Forbidden Pass and beyond was hot and dusty and full of angry Sand People. I guess these tribes didn't get the message about us being Demon Slayers. We ended up having to kill quite a few just to get to the rock monument. I was gross and covered in a layer of tan dust again, my hair matting to my neck. Quinn looked about as fresh; I noted his scruffy two days worth of facial hair, but we pushed on knowing our task was almost complete.
Passing the stone formation, we stared at a sea of sand. I blinked, watching the heat move in shimmery waves in front of us. I sighed and blew an errant lock from my nose, finally pushing it behind my ear with my left hand.
"Alright. Guard my back, Captain. It looks like I need to do some communing." I sat down and he stood behind me, pistol out.
I closed my eyes, sitting in a kneeling position, resting my hands palm down on my thighs. I pictured the encampment in my mind, willing myself to locate it in the endless sea of dust and sand before us. I used the music in my head as an additional focus, falling into the beat. Reaching out with the Force, I sought other beings or Force users. Faintly, I felt a ripple. I smiled and stood up.
"I know where he is."
We walked a few kilometers when the small homestead came into view just below a dune. It looked almost like a mirage and if I hadn't been able to feel the Force users inside, I would have passed it off as such. We half slid down the dune and stepped into the unobstructed doorway, dropping our packs outside.
A large, beefy Jedi stood in front of a desk. He had muttonchops that would rival that Captain on Nar Shaddaa. He looked young and soft and was dressed mostly in white and tans. Behind him sat an older man. Bald and thin, but he held considerable Force power.
"Master Yonlach," the youth spoke to the man. "The Sith you've been tracking is upon us. Retreat to safety. I will take the intruder on." He pulled his saber out and ignited it.
A green blade appeared. Quinn pulled his pistol, but I motioned him to back down. He did so reluctantly as the old man spoke.
"No, Yul-li, control your feelings. Stand at my side. I will face this trespasser." The man stood and came forward around the desk. Yul-li did not retract his blade. Yonlach's voice was actually rather friendly. It reminded me of a kindly grandfather. "Come no farther Sith. I've been aware of your pilgrimage here. You are a fascinating and contradictory example of your order."
I stared at him, frowning.
"I know why you've come. Master Noman Karr's Padawan threatens you somehow. You seek to flush her into the open and silence her." he surmised.
"You've figured it out." I quipped.
"I will not allow it. It won't be the cause of her exposure. She came to me for guidance and the bond we struck was the most profound of my life." He held his hand to his forehead as if remembering the moment. "We are psychically linked, she and I. And I have already warned her about you. She will not fall for your manipulations."
"I assure you, I can be very convincing." I smiled. From the corner of my eye I thought I saw Quinn nod as if in agreement.
He pointed at me. "Your will may be great, but hers is greater. And mine is unrelenting." He warned.
I shrugged at him.
"The disparity in our capabilities is equal to the disparity in our age. You can not win, turn away now." he tried reasoning.
"I've come too far to stop now," I said, truthfully.
"What does it matter how far you've come, if your life ends here? In me you face a full Jedi Master. And Yul-li has greater command of lightsaber combat than any Jedi Knight I've trained."
Quinn frowned then spoke, "My lord, the threat is not lost on me. Are you certain we can take on a full Jedi Master and a Jedi Knight?"
I smiled at him, "The Jedi have no idea how potent you are, Quinn."
"I sense that's a bluff, but no matter. Your compatriots query is moot, as you will be facing us on your own." Yonlach said as he raised a hand directed toward Quinn.
Malavai's eyes suddenly rolled up and his eyes closed as he fainted to the floor like some discarded rag doll. Dirty Jedi tricks! I frowned and crossed my arms, adjusting my stance minutely.
"Well done, Master Yonlach." Yul-li praised his master. "Now please, retreat and let me face the Sith."
"Your concern is appreciated, Yul-li. But I did not seize the advantage here to immediately relinquish it." Yonlach said.
"You don't fight fair, Jedi." I accused, uncrossing my arms. Even Jedi don't have much honor. Being in a moral minority stinks sometimes. I glanced down at Quinn quickly, making sure he didn't hurt anything on his hard fall.
"When the stakes are this high, I am bound to do whatever it takes to preserve the order. Now for the last time, will you stand down?"
"I don't respond well to threats." I said, letting my anger begin to build. "Besides, Quinn may have only gotten in the way."
Master Yonlach glanced at my fallen comrade, "I sense his feelings for you, Sith. His devotion goes beyond professional duty. Such misplaced affections are a sign of self-loathing, I think."
I glanced again at Quinn, pursing my lips and then let the anger I had been brewing spill through me. How dare he try to manipulate me with Quinn! I stared at the Jedi in front of me, hate filling my essence. The music in my ear only helped intensify my emotional angst.
"Enough of this," Yul-li burst out. "It's useless to reason with a Sith." He swung his saber at me and I ignited mine, countering his with a one-handed block. My second saber was ignited in less than a heart beat.
"Yul-li...don't!" Yonlach cried out, "Blazes, my hand is forced," before igniting his own saber.
The fight was upon us, as Quinn would say. I concentrated on Yul-li first. He may be well trained in the saber arts, but had he really been tested in battle? Apparently not, though he did manage to get a good strike on my right thigh, causing me to limp. I forced him to his knees and he raised his hands in surrender, tossing his saber to the side. Master Yonlach was tougher, he was less skilled in sword play, but very skilled in Force manipulation. I finally managed to get him to yield as Yul-li had, with Yul-li's help.
"Stop!" Yul-li cried out, pulling himself up to shield his master from me. "Hold your weapon, Sith. I beg you."
"Yul-li, stay your tongue!" Yonlach ordered, standing and holding a wound at his side.
"No, she is just a Padawan. You are a great Master," Yul-li tried to reason with Yonlach. "I must bargain for your life." He turned to me. "Sith, I'll tell you everything I know, if you spare Master Yonlach."
"Your devotion is remarkable." I answered.
"I'm sorry, Master Yonlach." Yul-li said to the Jedi beside him. "But I must do this. Her name is Jaesa Willsaam. And Noman Karr has taken her to..."
Yonlach shook his head and held his hand toward his protege. "Yul-li, you have no recollection of the Padawan this Sith seeks."
"I have no recollection of the Padawan this Sith seeks." Yul-li repeated with a blank look on his face.
"Now, sleep." Yonlach commanded and Yul-li slumped to the floor much as Quinn had.
I watched this all with faint amusement, but the anger still boiled inside me at Yonlach's manipulations.
"I do not relish wiping Yul-li's mind like that," Yonlach stated. "But his feelings for me got the better of him."
"Most impressive." I replied.
"It was a terrible thing, last resort." Yonlach rambled, his guilt momentarily getting to him. "I had to act for the greater good. Jaesa is special, her power unprecedented. If untouched by the likes of you, she has the potential to lead the Jedi to greatness."
"You've already failed, old man." I replied.
He leaned against the desk behind him, avoiding the slumbering man at his feet. "You know Jaesa's name, but that is all you'll get here. So you may as well kill me. I must find tranquility, so Jaesa will sense only peace when you strike me down."
"Your death will wound her, deeply." I growled out, tired of his rambling. I stabbed him in the stomach with my lightsaber. He fell heavily to the floor.
"There is no...death. There is only...the Force." He whispered as his life left him.
With Yonlach down, Quinn had regained consciousness.
He looked forlorn as I assisted him to his feet. "My lord, I am sorry I was of no use to you. I did not anticipate the Jedi's incapacitating tactic."
I shrugged at him, as I assessed the damage. "Don't be so hard on yourself, Quinn."
"I do not like to be caught unaware. I am just thankful my support proved to be unnecessary. Sharack said she would be at our ship. She thought we were doomed. We should inform her of our success."
I nodded. "She'll definitely be surprised."
"She should not have doubted you," he responded, a bit of anger peeking through.
"Doubt is natural. Come on. Let's hoof it to that outpost at the edge of the Forbidden Pass we saw earlier and see if we can't hop some kind of taxi back to Mos Isla." I retrieved my bag from outside the door.
"Right behind you, my lord." Quinn replied, taking up his own bag.
He made me wait a few moments, before we left the vicinity of the small building to check out my injuries. Once he was satisfied with my dressings we moved on.
What had taken us two and a half days on foot was covered in less than 90 minutes by speeder. I totally need to invest in some personal speeders for us. This whole trip would have been so much easier. Quinn and I sat in silence during the trip. Both of us lost in our own trains of thought.
We arrived at Mos Isla and walked through town to the spaceport. I would head out after we checked in to see what kind of transportation we might be able to scrounge up. Once off the spaceport elevator, we located our docking bay door and walked in to see Sharack idly standing by a cargo crate in front of the ship. Vette saw us from the ship's view port and waved down at us.
Sharack pushed off the box, a look of shock and relief on her face. "I didn't expect to see you again. Does this mean you've ventured beyond the Forbidden Pass and found Master Yonlach?"
"The mission is complete." I replied, nodding at her and smiling slightly. I saw Quinn glance at me and smirk.
"This is a great lesson. The only barriers that exist are the ones we create in our minds. I will never again assume I know all there is to know. And I will explore the entirety of the Tatooine desert without reservation." She looked appropriately cowed.
"I don't care what you do." I answered honestly. I was tired and a little cranky, I admit.
Sharack's face fell. "It is my great shame that I have not endeared myself to you. I hope Lord Baras knows how fortunate he is to have such a fine champion shepherding his cause. I shall never forget you."
"I bid you farewell," I said, trying to be more sociable. It's not really her fault I was grouchy.
"Safe travels, my lord. If you're ever on Tatooine again, come and see me." She made a little bow with her hands on her thighs. She stood up and walked past us, out of the docking bay.
"It will be a pleasure to put this overheated sandbox behind us," Quinn spoke in a low voice after she had passed.
I smirked at him. "You look good with a tan, Captain." He didn't have much of a tan, it was just a good excuse to try to make him squirm.
His face reddened a bit. "I hope it hides my blushes, my lord." He paused for a moment, then snapped back into duty-mode. "I will ready the ship for departure."
We strolled up the gangway, into our home among the stars.
We both retreated into our respective quarters, eager to wash the dirt and sweat from ourselves. The shower was like being reborn, washing all the grime and Demon blood from my pores. I took much longer than normal, deciding that I deserved it. Once out and dried off, I slipped into some of my two-piece jammies, wrapping a robe around myself. 2V-R8 had already fetched my soiled armor from the floor. I padded out, barefoot, into the common room to see Vette's smiling face as she literally bounced up to me and gave me a hug.
"Welcome back! Missed you. Kinda missed ol' Mr. Uptight too. But don't tell him that." She rambled.
I smiled at her and returned the hug. "It's nice to be back, and clean. I've got to report in, just hang on and I'll give you the full rundown after we check in with Baras."
"I gave him some of the basics, like you asked on your way back." She nodded and from behind her I saw Quinn emerge from his chamber, freshly shaved and clean.
He came up to us and nodded to me. "Ready to report in, my lord."
I walked to the holoterminal and pressed the buttons.
"You have done admirably, apprentice." Praised Darth Baras from the holoterminal. "Your time on Tatooine was well spent. Noman Karr's Padawan, Jaesa Willsaam, no longer enjoys anonymity. I am very pleased."
"I'm touched by your enthusiasm." I replied.
"Your handling of Master Yonlach has sent our enemies a clear message. Noman Karr and Jaesa Willsaam now know they can not hide. It gnaws at the Master and brings his prized Padawan to her knees."
"I can not wait to get my hands on them." I stated.
"I believe that moment is rushing toward us. Only Alderaan remains, Jaesa Willsaam's home world. Go there immediately. I will contact you when you arrive." He ordered.
I bowed and his image faded to black.
"I will set the course for Alderaan, my lord." Quinn said, giving a small salute and heading to the bridge.
Once he had left, Vette grabbed me by the wrists and tugged me to the sitting area. "You gotta tell me all about your adventure!"
