Part Nine: From Bad to Worse

Kuro grimaced and tried to open her eyes. She was lying against a tree or rock…she wasn't sure which…and her body ached in places she didn't know she had. Her mouth was dry and her nose was plugged with mucus. If this was what it felt like to be sick in a human body she regretted choosing this form. But where she was and how she got here she could not remember. The last thing she could remember was sitting in a cage in a night elven city. She cracked her eyes open and at first only saw a gray blur. She closed them again because there was a sharp stabbing pain just behind her eyes when the light first entered her vision and the gray became lighter. Then someone pushed on her shoulder making her wince. Why did they have to hit so hard? Were the night elves trying to punish her? Was this their torture for her because she was a black dragon? If they were killing her she wished they would hurry up and just finish it…end the pain.

"Kuro…can you hear me?" she heard a male voice ask.

For a second she tried to place the voice. It was familiar somehow. Someone she knew was trying to talk to her…someone she had met recently. Not one of the night elves but someone else.

"Kuro?"

She knew that voice, but try as she might she still could not quite place it. There was a hollowness to the sound…perhaps that was the reason she had trouble recognizing the speaker. Or maybe it was the constant ringing that made it sound strange.

"I think she can hear us," the voice continued. "She winces every time I say something."

The hand pushed harder and the pain was almost unbearable. She groaned. She wished whoever it was would stop pushing so hard, but they kept pushing and the stabbing pain in her shoulder moved to her spine sending another jolt through her entire body. 'Please stop!' she screamed in her mind.

"Kuro…try opening your eyes again."

It hurt too much the last time she tried, but she wanted answers. She wanted to see the face with the voice. She wanted to tell that person to stop pushing on her. It was easier to open them this time. Now instead of a gray blur she saw a light blur and some dark shapes. She moved her eyes from the left to the right trying hard to focus on anything. The pain was horrific and she instinctively wanted to shut her eyes again, but she fought those instincts. She was a dragon. Deciding to focus on the left image she concentrated hard. The voice sounded like it came from her left and it was also her left shoulder that hurt. Or was it the right one? So much of her body hurt that she wasn't exactly sure. She blinked hard and the image she was focusing on became a little clearer. She tried to take a deep breath to center her thoughts and concentration, but as she began to inhale the pain in her chest increased a thousand-fold. She wanted to cry because the pain was so great. 'Please…make the pain go away!' she again screamed silently.

"Kuro…take your time," the voice said. The ringing was less now and she was certain she knew this person's voice, but what was his name? It was calm and soothing…friendly. "Just focus on me. That's it. Focus on my face."

The blur was now rounder…round like a face. It was mostly light pale brown with something silver across the top half and white along the very top and sides. She closed her eyes trying to remember who she knew that looked like that.

"Open your eyes, Kuro," the man said.

She tried to breathe deeply again. This time the pain was not so great, but the man was still pushing hard on her shoulder hurting her. She tried to speak, but only managed to moan. He would never understand that she wanted him to release his grip on her shoulder. She opened her eyes again. She saw a blurry face but still could not make out the finer details. Where eyes should have been was a silver metal band, and he had white hair that fell to his shoulders. Instantly she knew who was speaking to her. It was the jedi, Daneel. But he was…somewhere else…somewhere…he was on a dragon…a red dragon…Alexstrasza. He was riding her. And there was Tariolstrasz…she remembered him…she was riding on his back when something grabbed him…something hidden amongst the trees…something large…and then she jumped…

"NO!" Kuro screamed as she sat upright.

The pain jabbed at her again across her entire body. She remembered now being grabbed by the tentacles of the leviathan. It pulled her into something on its back and it closed around her. She was screaming when it closed shut and while she watched the jedi walk along Alexstrasza's tail. She looked to her left to see that same man kneeling on the ground beside her…smiling at her. She blinked a couple of times before looking to her right. There was Alexstrasza also kneeling in her elven form…and it was her hand that was lightly touching her right shoulder. The pain from the dragon queen's touch was gone now, but other pains still remained. Her vision was clearing and she saw the jedi's wife standing just behind him. So to was Kandrostrasz. Not far from them was Cielstrasza who was working with the mangled arms of Tariolstrasz. They were all in their mortal forms. He looked at her and smiled with a nod of gratitude. She looked back at the smiling jedi and former Aspect.

"Try not to move too suddenly or quickly," Alexstrasza said to her. "You were nearly dead when Daneel pulled you from the leviathan's blisterpack."

She nodded and tried to reply but her mouth and throat were too dry and she only managed a feeble squeak. Demira leaned forward and handed a water bottle to the jedi. He smiled and held the opening to her mouth, and Kuro took a drink. At first if felt like fire in her throat, but as more water flowed through the bottle into her mouth the burning lessened. He took the bottle away from her mouth and handed it back to the mage. Kuro smiled at the couple and gave them a slight nod.

"Just…try to relax," Daneel said as he guided her back to lying against…what was it she was lying against? Was it the leviathan's…corpse? "As I was slaying the beast it must have drained your energies faster just to try and keep itself alive. I am sorry for that."

"Y-y-you s-saved my l-l-life," she replied meekly. Her voice was only slightly back, but even speaking just a little was still very painful. "If you….had not acted…when you…did…I might…not be…talking now." She managed a meager smile, but judging by the reactions she received from the rest of them they were relieved to hear her voice even if it was weak. "Th-th-thank y-y-you."

Alexstrasza looked at the black dragon and smiled warmly at her. "You acted nobly and courageously. You put yourself in harm's way without thinking about it…something a black dragon has not done in thousands of years. I am proud of you, Kuro."

"You have my thanks as well," Tariolstrasz said to her. Kuro adjusted her eyes to focus on him. "You risked yourself to save me. I owe you my life." He left his compatriot's side and walked towards Kuro before kneeling by her. She grimaced at the condition of his arms. They were bandaged and obviously someone had tried healing them, but the damage was still severe enough they may never heal completely. She gave him a sorrowful look which only made his smile widen. "Don't worry about my arms. In time they will heal or I will adjust. I am just glad that you are alive and safe. My queen says you should fully recover in a day or two…and for that I am also grateful."

"You should get some rest so you can recuperate," the dragon queen said as she stood. Tariolstrasz and the jedi stood with her. "We have slain the creatures and the danger is past. For now, my friend, I want you to get some rest. I have done all I can to tend your wounds, but right now sleep will do you the most good."

"B-b-before I d-d-do," Kuro began, "How long w-w-was I out?"

"Little under an hour," Daneel replied. "Please listen to Alexstrasza. We are in no hurry to leave just yet, and I can explore the nexus alone."

"Y-y-you shouldn't," she said, but she felt her eyes begin closing. She was exhausted. Even just this little bit of time and conversation took a great deal of effort on her part. The leviathan had left her extremely weak. "P-p-promise me…you will not…go…alone."

"I promise," he replied with a smile. "I will take another with me. Now you need to get some sleep."

She closed her eyes and only intended to for a moment, and it seemed that way when she opened them again. However, she was not lying in the same place when she woke. Before she was in a desolate place with dead trees around them, but now she saw lush bushes and flowers…there were leaves on the trees. It was also much brighter when she first opened her eyes, and now the sun was setting and the stars were out in what sky she could see through the leaves. The air also smelled more fragrant instead of the dusty smell from before. She lifted her head and looked around her. Nearby was a small campfire with a few small tents around it. Demira was leaning over the fire stirring something in a cooking pot and beside her was Cielstrasza. Kandrostrasz was sitting near them and she could hear them talking and laughing while the mage cooked. Tariolstrasz was sitting beside the other male and looking off into the woods. She noticed his arms were more bandaged than before. He snuck a look back at her and then back at the woods when their eyes met. Curious. Cielstrasza looked at her and nodded to the others before walking towards her. Kuro took a deep breath. The pain she felt before was gone, but there was still a soreness to her muscles and joints. With some effort she pulled herself up to sit against the tree she was lying near. She noticed they had placed her on a mat and that there was a small tent to her left. By the time she looked back to the others the female dragon had come and sat beside her. Kuro smiled meagerly while keeping her head down. She looked at the other dragon with her eyes.

"How long have I been asleep?" she asked. She worked her fingers trying to get some of the soreness out of them.

"About a day," Cielstrasza replied with a grin. "That jedi wasn't kidding when he said those creatures were dangerous even to us. None of our usual tactics worked against them. If the Life Binder and the jedi had not used their special abilities we might not have survived." Kuro looked back over at the others and noticed that Tariolstrasz quickly looked away from her and back into the woods. Cielstrasza giggled beside her. "I think he likes you, Kuro. He's been by your side ever since we moved out of the dead zone to this place. When you started to stir is when he rushed over to sit with the rest of us."

Kuro looked down at the ground still working her fingers. "I know he thinks I saved his life, but I was caught by the creature and almost killed. I wasn't much help. He's just glad to see I survived." She looked in his direction with her eyes while keeping her head down. He was looking at her. "I hope his arms will heal."

Cielstrasza leaned over closer to her and talked quietly. "No…he isn't just glad to see you are alive because you saved his life. He really likes you…you know."

Kuro looked up at the red dragon who winked at her. Her eyes widened as she looked back at Tariolstrasz. He quickly looked back away into the trees. "You mean he likes me as a…a…a mate?" She looked back at the other dragon who nodded and giggled. "Why?"

"He's a handsome dragon, Kuro. I know several reds who would be jealous of you right now having caught his attention."

"But I'm a black dragon," she protested. "I thought all of the reds hated my flight."

"You said it to Alexstrasza yourself…there is no more black dragonflight," the red replied. "Nor, for that matter, is there a blue flight either." She looked at Kuro and smiled. "I know there is a lot of history between our flights. Before today I would never have believed any black dragon would put themselves in harm's way to save another…but you did. And you more than any other would have more reason to not jeopardize yourself because you are the last black dragon. I wouldn't have blamed you if you had simply stepped aside. I wouldn't like you as I do now…but I wouldn't blame you either. Call it a pragmatic outlook on your position in the world."

Kuro looked back at the ground feeling a little embarrassed. "I wasn't looking for a mate, Cielstrasza. I just wanted to keep my freedom. It had been so long since I didn't have Neltharion's voice in my head that I felt I was finally truly alive…and I just wanted to stay that way."

"Keeping your freedom wasn't why you leapt at the leviathan when it attacked. You jumped at the beast to save him, not yourself." She looked over to the other red dragon then back at Kuro whose head was lowered again. "What did you two talk about on the way down here? It must have been quite the conversation to get those feelings started between the two of you."

"We really didn't talk much about anything," Kuro replied telling a slight lie. Tariolstrasz had asked her a lot of questions and she answered all that she could. It felt good to hear someone ask her about herself and make it feel less like an interrogation and more of an actual interest in who she was. She liked the male dragon's demeanor. She had to admit that during that flight she did feel drawn to him because he was friendly, but she also never thought he could ever be interested in her. It was because of her loneliness that she felt that way towards him…or at least that was what she had convinced herself. Before the attack she had put those thoughts to the side, and now in the aftermath she wasn't sure what she felt. And more importantly, would such a pairing as Cielstrasza was suggesting even be feasible? "Perhaps he's just so grateful we're alive that he's confused. I'm just…not sure about anything yet. I'm still too weak to think clearly…and maybe we all are after what happened with the leviathans."

"So you want me to go tell him that?" the red asked as she started to stand. Without thinking Kuro grabbed her arm stopping her. She didn't know why at first and then didn't want to admit why. Cielstrasza sat back down and giggled again. "He is handsome."

"It's not that," Kuro said quietly. "I'm just…shocked…is all." She looked at the red who was smiling. "I know I feel that all of us are dragons and the color of our scales no longer matters. And he is handsome. But I also know that no matter what I may think there are many who will always see me as a black dragon and one of Deathwing's minions. And nothing I do will ever change that. I just…didn't think that anyone else…"

"Would feel the same way?" the red interrupted looking over towards Tariolstrasz. "For the most part I would say you are right. But if change is coming then it has to start somewhere. Why not with the two of you? Think of it…first it starts with the two of you…then other flights start doing the same…before you know it we won't know who belonged to what color flight." She laughed and looked back at the black dragon. "All I am saying is that he likes you. What happens after that is between the two of you and no one else. Who's to say that you weren't always meant to be together and that events happened this way to bring you to each other? Only Nozdormu could truly answer that question…if he would even do that. But when we leave and if you two are flying with each other the rest of us won't judge." Again she winked at Kuro.

"That's not likely to happen. I can't…" Kuro started to say as she brought her hand to her neck, but it was no longer there. She had grown so used to the magical collar that blocked her transformation to her dragon form that she didn't realize it had been removed. She looked at Cielstrasza as the red stood up.

"Alexstrasza took it off while you slept," she said answering the unspoken question. "She said you no longer needed it…and I for one agree." She turned and walked back towards the campfire while Kuro just stared at her…and Tariolstrasz.

Crimson blades clashed against violet ones as Celeste and Illiana dueled. They had moved from one room to the next as the jedi padawan retreated trying to avoid injuring the elf. The woman was strong in the Force that much Celeste could sense, but she had not been trained by a master like Daneel. Several times the padawan was given an opening for a killing blow only to pass on it knowing that the elf's fate was tied to the planet's. One false slip or misjudgment by the padawan could mean the end of all life on Azeroth. Killing the woman would mean the end of the world. The padawan brought her saber above her head twirling the blades. A shocked expression crossed the elf's face and she raised her saberstaff to block an incoming attack. Celeste was using a technique the elf had never seen before. Celeste brought her weapon down, and Illiana's block was late. The violet blade severed the hilt of the saberstaff. One blade extinguished as its power cell was destroyed by the attack. Illiana backed up holding the working half of the hilt while she threw the other half to the floor. She raised her free hand and tried to use the Force to push Celeste, but the padawan braced herself in the Force negating the elf's attempt. Behind them the redheaded elf fought against Kitali and Ysera. She also had a crimson bladed lightsaber, but where Illiana's had two blades like the padawan's hers was only a single-bladed weapon. They were wearing the other elf down and the lightsaber so far had not been a factor in that struggle and it was clear to Celeste that this younger one was willing to leave her mother behind if the situation came to that. She was watching Ysera cast a spell at the other…a second's distraction…and Illiana took advantage. She raised her arm and shot Force lightning at the padawan. The attack caught the young human in the chest and she fell to the ground writhing as the lightning coursed through her body. Her screams alerted the other women, and Kitali disengaged from her fight to run towards Illiana and Celeste. She raised her right arm as she ran while holding a totem in her left. Lightning sprouted from her fingers at the elf. Her attack struck Illiana on the shoulder causing her to cease hers on the padawan. She turned and growled at the draenei advancing in her direction. Illiana turned back and ran towards the lift at the end of the room and activated the controls once she reached it. Kitali stopped and knelt next to the unconscious Celeste and looked up to the fleeing elf. The remaining blade of her weapon was still ignited casting an eerie red glow on the walls around her as the lift ascended to the upper levels. In seconds she was gone from Kitali's sight. Shouting behind her made the draenei turn around to see the redheaded elf running in her direction, but not at her. When the woman got close Kitali reached out and tripped the elf causing her lightsaber to clatter to the ground. The crimson blade left scorch marks in the stone before extinguishing. Ysera came running up behind the elf and stopped near the fallen woman's feet. The elf turned over and looked up at the former Aspect. She took a deep breath and raised her hands in surrender. Kitali looked back down at Celeste and checked for a pulse. There was one but it was weak. Closing her eyes and reaching into her shaman's pouch, she cast a healing spell on the padawan. After a moment the draenei opened her eyes and rechecked the pulse of the human. It was stronger now. She glowered at the elf at Ysera's feet and stood.

"Who are you?" Kitali asked stomping over to stand next to the dragon. "And what are you doing in this place?" The woman just looked at her and said nothing. Kitali walked over and picked up the lightsaber and then back to stand by the dragon. "I'm only going to ask this one more time," Kitali said as she ignited the crimson blade and pointed it at the elf. Shock and horror was written on Raeva's face when the blade ignited. "Who are you?"

Hands still raised in surrender she looked at the draenei and then Ysera. "My name is Raeva." But her mind was racing. Who were these people? The human woman she surmised was the jedi apprentice Illiana had mentioned because of the lightsaber she wielded. But this draenei above her held Narcis' weapon like she had used one before. Was she the main jedi Illiana referred to? Was Illiana wrong in thinking the jedi was a man? Did the sith and draenei come from the same galaxy?

"What are you doing here?" Kitali repeated.

"Are you the jedi?" the woman asked her.

"She isn't, but I am," Celeste said from behind her companions. Neither took their eyes off the elf, but Raeva watched as the human stood up. Celeste reached out through the Force and her lightsaber flew through the air to her outstretched hand.

"You are the apprentice, then," Raeva said but she already had guessed that. "The one my companion mentioned. The one with sith blood in her family?"

"How would you know that?" Kitali asked for the padawan. "Only a select few know that secret."

"Have you been to the main chamber above us? That old sith knew," Raeva replied looking up at the draenei. She looked back at Celeste. "I also know you have a master that comes from another world. Came here seeking them…to finish what they started far away from here long ago."

"If that is what that old sith told you then he was lying," Celeste said as she walked to stand next to Kitali and Ysera. "That war ended centuries ago…long before my master was even born. But the sith in his galaxy did return and began another war…a war that almost brought their civilization to the edge of ruin." She knelt down next to Raeva and stretched out with the Force. "You're stalling. For your daughter's escape?" The elf's eyes widened. "I heard you talking near the pit. I know she is your daughter and I know that she has a dead-man's switch for that drill. It's tied to her heart…yes? If she dies the drill turns on and destroys Azeroth? But I sense that you are afraid of her…of what she plans?" Raeva nodded. "What is she planning besides the destruction of our world?"

Raeva looked at the other two standing above her. She recognized Ysera, but sensed that the human and draenei were actually in charge. Could she tell them what she feared? Could she trust them? She didn't want the end of the world…she never wanted that. Illiana's plans had nothing to do with the world's destruction…the drill was a failsafe for her protection from her enemies. Would they understand that…or believe it? And her daughter did scare her, but she was still her daughter. Despite all of the fear and doubt, Raeva loved her child. She couldn't think….didn't know what to do.

Celeste stood up and looked at Ysera. "Can you tell the others not to harm the other elf?"

"I already have," Ysera replied still looking down at Raeva. "I have told them to detain her. And I have told them why." She looked over at the other two women. "We need to get word to your master and my sister about what we have learned. There are no leviathans here, but this I think is more dire than what we originally came here to discover."

"Nothing we have learned still answers the question about Azshara. What is her role in all of this?" Kitali queried. Raeva gasped and they all looked back down at the elf. "I take it you know something about that?"

Raeva nodded. "I only know that we were meant as a diversion while my daughter and Azshara planned something else." There…she had said it. She had told them some of the truth. But should she tell them all of it that she knew?

"You were a diversion?" Celeste asked. "You mean with the terentateks? We know of Thera'gon. And the other, Malfus, was captured by the black dragon and was killed by his own hand in Astranaar."

Shock overtook Raeva again. These people knew more than she or Illiana realized. While her daughter thought they were chasing down the remaining terentatek of Malfus they had actually foiled and killed him as well and were already searching for the leviathans. She didn't believe that Malfus committed suicide…he was too narcissistic for that. And a black dragon was involved? She thought they were all dead. If they knew this much…and that Azshara was behind their schemes…how much more did they know? Already her daughter's plans were coming unraveled and she had not really started implementing them. The fact that these three were questioning her indicated they were not even aware of how close to the truth they actually were. If she told them about the Sunwell how would they react?

"What was the something else they were planning?" Kitali asked. The red blade was still pointed at Raeva.

For the love of her child she would not tell them. "I do not know," Raeva lied.

"She is lying…holding back the truth to protect her daughter," Celeste stated drawing a sharp glare from the elf. "I can sense it through the Force. She won't tell us."

"I have ways to find the truth," Ysera said. "I disdain from using it…but with the fate of the world in jeopardy I must." Below them Raeva collapsed into slumber. "I will enter her dreams and discover the truth she hides from us." The dragon closed her eyes for a few moments and then reopened them. "The child seeks to taint the Sunwell. She believes that by doing so she can bring the sin'dorei to the brink of collapse and then arrive as a savior and teach them how to use the Force." She looked at the other two women. "Beyond that this one does not know…only that her daughter had broken from Azshara and there is a conflict brewing between them that frightens her. The child is in grave peril not only from her own plans but also from the wrath of the naga queen."

Kitali extinguished the blade of the lightsaber and placed it in her pouch. "And I bet Azshara knows nothing about that dead-man's switch in the daughter's chest. While I fear what would happen if the Sunwell becomes tainted again…we have to make disarming this drill our priority." She turned to Celeste. "Have you told Daneel any of this yet?"

"Something is blocking my holocommunicator from sending a signal to him. I tried it when I first heard them talking," Celeste answered. On top of all this she would also have to tell him that she had failed in detaining the elf and why…because she lost her focus and was distracted. She was not looking forward to the disappointment she knew he would feel at her failure.

Kitali turned and looked back to the room where they had first encountered the elves. She took a deep breath and turned back around and looked at Celeste. "I know I am not Daneel, but I think the best thing right now is to keep an eye on that girl. A hunch tells me she will elude the others on the upper levels. She knows this place and knows it well…that much is obvious. So we must assume she will escape. You need to get with Valithria and find this woman's daughter and track her. If Azshara comes after her you will need to protect her. Don't engage the naga queen directly. Distract her, grab the girl, and get her to safety. Until we decommission that drill she is the key to everyone's survival." She looked up at the lift. "This place just became our base of operations until this crisis is resolved. Ysera…we'll need one of the others to retrieve a friend of ours here in Northrend. I'll tell you where once we reach the upper levels."

"What about this one?" Ysera asked indicating Raeva still asleep on the ground. "Azshara will be interested in her as well."

"Not like the other I think," Kitali countered. "It was she who made the challenge to the naga queen and she who will be the focus of her wrath. This one's fear of that brewing conflict leads me to that conclusion. No…the daughter is our priority while we work here. The Sunwell…the war between the Alliance and the Horde…whatever plans Azshara has in mind…everything else can wait."

Daneel led Alexstrasza through a labyrinthine maze of tunnels in a dark cave they found near the base of the mountain and not far from where they fought the leviathans. Neither carried torches as both could see quite well in the darkness. Closer to the surface they had found a small tomb with a crude statue of a sith lord. While the presence of the sarcophagus told them a sith had once lived and was entombed here, Daneel was certain the person inside was not the source of the dark side nexus. He sensed it further and deeper in the mountain. Not far from that tomb they had reached what the dragon queen thought was a dead end, but with his Force vision common to his species Daneel found the hidden door leading to more tunnels. There were no lifts leading them downwards, instead the flooring had a gradual decline that seemed to spiral along the outer edge of the mountain. In some places natural formations acted as steps to another level below. Now after several hours they stood at the edge of a large room that had been carved from the bedrock. Daneel whistled. A few seconds later the echo returned indicating the room was massive.

"What is this place?" he wondered out loud.

"I am not sure. This appears to be the work of…dwarves. But I am not aware of them ever inhabiting this region of Kalimdor," Alexstrasza stated. "Are we any closer to the nexus you sensed?"

"No," he replied. "I sense it deeper…under us. Its presence is strong here, though." He started walking into the room with the dragon queen with him. "We are near the border of Silithus and Feralas. Strange that just south of here to the ocean the land is mostly desert, but except for the dead zone around this mountain the area here is mostly lush jungle."

"Do you think this nexus is the cause of the sudden change from jungle to desert?"

"It could be or the change could be natural. I have been to worlds that were similar and without any dark side influence," the jedi replied. "I am just noting the location. It could be the cause, but I am more inclined to think something happened here that created the nexus…and the change in the environment may be the reason it occurred here."

Once they reached the far side of the room they found another tunnel leading downwards and back under the room they were just in. Like the other tunnels some steps had been carved and others were from natural formations. They continued further into the mountain and under it for four more levels…four more large empty rooms with no indication of who made them or when or for what purpose. On the fifth level they came to a room filled with machinery, but none of them were working. Scattered about the room in apparent random locations were small droids.

"Mechagnomes," Alexstrasza said when they found the first one.

But when Daneel tried to activate it there was no reaction. Lines along the body and limbs appeared to be power conduits, but whatever the source it must have run out long ago. Adjacent to this room were more filled with more machines and mechagnomes, but like the first one they found nothing that was active. At the end of the last room they stopped and looked back. There were no more hidden doors and no more access points to the area. They had explored the entire facility.

"Something is not right here," Alexstrasza said as she walked back and leaned over an inactive mechagnome. "The Titans created these beings to be immortal. They should not be…like this."

"You mean these are…or were…living beings? Living machines?"

"I mean just that," the dragon replied as she straightened up to look around the rest of the room. "For them to all be like this…it had to be something catastrophic." She looked back at the jedi. "Perhaps what happened to them is what created this Force nexus?"

"The source of the nexus is still deep beneath us," Daneel stated. "Its presence is strong here…stronger than I have ever felt in all my travels, but we are still far from the source and I would guess we are around five kilometers beneath the surface right now."

"I sense something also," Alexstrasza said after a moment's silence. "It feels like an Old God."

"What's an Old God?" the jedi asked.

"They were here before the Titans," she answered looking about the room. "They desire destruction and chaos and are elemental beings that warred with the Titans. They were defeated and imprisoned deep underground." She looked at the jedi. "We Aspects were given our powers by the Titans to protect this world and prevent the Hour of Twilight…the Old Gods plans for the ultimate destruction of this world. We ended that threat, but some of the Old Gods and their lieutenants still exist."

"Then deep beneath us could be one of those Old Gods…or the echo of one in the Force. Its influence is why everything here is dead. Like the mechagnomes down here so to is the surface…all dead."

"The echo?"

"There was a world in my home galaxy called Malachor V," Daneel began looking introspectively at the ceiling. "There is nothing left now but chunks of dead rock, rubble, and debris of broken starships. A battle was waged in space above it, and a weapon of unbelievable destructive power was used that killed thousands in the blink of an eye. The gravitic vortex created by that weapon crushed the planet and scores of ships high in orbit were brought to the surface with enough force that they were buried deep beneath the crust. All those present in both fleets that were in the proximity of the Mass Shadow Generator were instantly killed. Their pain and suffering at that last second before their lives ended can still be felt in the Force on and around the remnants of that world…an echo of the death and destruction when that weapon's power was unleashed. That happened over three hundred years ago and yet the echo exists today as if it had just happened."

"I see," Alexstrasza said. "I am more inclined to believe one still exists under us. Their deaths lead to catastrophic results. The Cataclysm was caused because of Yogg- Saron's death, I believe, and allowed Neltharion to return. It was why the Titans imprisoned them instead of killing them when the world was young." She looked back at the inactive machines. "Perhaps this place was an old Titan prison like Uldum or Ulduar. If that is the case and with these machines having stopped functioning I am greatly concerned."

"You fear it might escape?" the jedi asked looking back at the former Aspect.

Alexstrasza looked at him with a grim expression. "Or it already has," she replied.