{2 Days later}

The past couple of days had been exhausting and the Jedi Grand Master fell back on his bed, running his hand over his weary eyes. Training Vestara was difficult. She was an excellent student, a quick learner, but was easily frustrated and quick to anger when she failed to do something correctly. Though that anger was quickly buried, its appearance was overwhelming for a short time. More than once she became irritated because his teaching method and lessons were very different from her fathers and dead masters. Luke also had to remember that she technically was not his student; she just wanted to learn a few things so that she could come to a decision over who she wanted to be easier. It would take more than a few lessons, that was for sure.

Sighing, Luke changed out of his clothes and into sleep pants before lying down for the night, his mind racing. Too much was going on and, as usual, his thoughts were on his son.

Ben had yet to contact them, and though that wasn't surprising given the fact that he said he wouldn't be looking for Vestara's answer until five days had passed, he stilled feared for the safety of his only child. That fight had been more emotionally straining than physically so. Luke was a master swordsman and easily could have worn down his son, but unlike the foes of his past who he'd managed to spare, this was his son. Fear of inadvertently harming him kept him from fighting at his fullest. Then there was all Vestara had told him. From what she had said, it sounded like there was no hope for Ben.

But Luke refused to believe that.

If anyone could turn away from the Dark Side, it was Ben Skywalker.

He didn't know how long he had been lying there, but at some point his eyes had closed and he became more relaxed. He also felt as though his bed were dipping behind him, as though someone were lying there with him…

Then a warm arm went around his middle and someone's face pressed into the back of his shoulder.

Not daring to breathe, Luke just laid there in tense silence. Last time this had happened, he had thought it had been Mara, but it had been Abeloth. This time, however, he wasn't so sure. This felt real.

Swallowing, he willed himself to ask, "Mara?"

A soft, airy laugh came from the woman behind him. "Who else would it be, Farmboy?"

It was her. It had to be. Only she could put that much love and affection into the teasing nickname she'd given him. And, more importantly, he could feel her through their Force-bond. Even though she was dead, he would always feel her.

Turning to face her, he threaded his fingers through her red, slightly gray hair. "I'm dreaming, aren't I?"

She nodded, a sad smile gracing her lips. "Afraid so. I would have come to you in spirit while you were awake, but in a dream we can at least have the illusion of holding each for a least a while."

The desire to hold his wife took over and he pulled her to him, tucking her head under his chin, inhaling the scent of her. "I miss you, Mara," he murmured into her hair and felt her tighten her arms around him.

"I know," she replied softly. Placing a kiss on his shoulder, she pulled back a bit so she could see his face. "What's wrong with Ben?" At his questioning frown, she added, "I might be dead, but I can still feel the both of you in the afterlife. I can't help but feel that Ben's in danger. I sensed he was asleep and tried to go to him in his dreams prior to coming to you, but his barrier is a thick a durasteel. I can't get through."

"He is in danger," Luke replied and told her the events of the past few days, starting from the moment Tarick arrived. He told her how he'd let the Sith onto the Jade Shadow so that he could keep an eye on him and see what his intentions were. How Ben sensed that he was far more dangerous than Luke realized. About Vestara's vision. Then he told her a little about catching Ben with the Sith girl, and how everything had gone downhill after that. Vestara had been helping him with the ship when she felt Ben's distress through their bond and ran to help him. He told her what he'd heard over the comlink. That Ben then attacked them both and how Vestara managed to convince Ben to let her go. "Ben agreed to give Vestara time to think and get rid of her stress and let her go. Now we're waiting," he sighed, finishing up. "We still have three more days to go until we hear from him."

Mara was quiet, staring at Luke with disbelief. Licking her suddenly dry lips, she shook her head. "Palpatine mentioned once that there was a myth about infecting others with Sith blood. I'm glad he didn't discover it was true."

"As am I," he agreed. He dared not think about what the outcome of the war would have been if Palpatine did know it was fact and not myth. "Unfortunately, Vestara doesn't know if there's any cure."

"Speaking of Vestara," Mara began, "With Ben being so against turning to the Dark Side after seeing what it did to Jacen, how did he manage to fall for a born and raised Sith?"

"I really don't know. When we first met her he really did not care much for her. I'm not sure when they started getting along. But they were never really seemed to hate each other. Even after all her betrayals, Ben still believed that Vestara could be turned to the Light and believed that she'd fallen for him," he sighed, tucking a stray strand of red-gold hair behind Mara's ear. "I didn't even want to consider that he was right. There was so much going on with the other Sith that I just didn't think it possible. Also, unlike all other Sith we've faced, she was born into that life, trained to be one since birth. I just didn't think it were possible."

"And now?"

"Now…" He turned onto his back, pulling his wife into his side, rubbing random circles into her shoulder with his thumb. "Now I think Ben might be right. In the past few days, I've seen her come a long way. It was evident that she wasn't as evil as I thought when she came to me for help after her vision, but I didn't want to believe it. After I found Ben in bed with her, I went a little too far in insisting that they couldn't be together, I admit that, but," he trailed off, shaking his head. "I don't understand how they could have come to form a Force-bond."

"Skywalker, for a Grand Master you can be really dense," Mara said matter-of-factly.

He arched a brow. "Pardon?"

"I can't say that I'm thrilled our Jedi son has fallen for a Sith, but a bond is not something easily formed and it can happen with the most unlikely of people. Look at us! I tried to kill and was the Emperor's Hand. We were the most incompatible people in the galaxy. When we announced that we were getting married, how many Jedi do you think didn't understand how we could form a bond?"

He didn't need to answer. Most of the Jedi didn't understand.

Continuing, she said, "The only people capable of understanding are Ben and Vestara because it is their bond. We can comprehend what they may be feeling, but we will never be as in tune with their feelings as they are, just like no one can truly comprehend our feelings shared through our bond but us."

When she put it that way, he felt like an utter idiot for not being more accepting of the Ben and Vestara's feelings for each other. Out of all the beings in the galaxy, he should have understood his son's bond with the girl the most. And it seemed as though that bond they'd formed was helping to turn Vestara away from the Dark Side. With Ben having joined the Sith, unwillingly or not, Luke feared that she would revert back to the Dark.

"I've been teaching Vestara some Jedi techniques and she's becoming more and more open to the idea of becoming a Jedi, but if we can't save Ben I fear that she will turn her back to it and she will be lost to the Dark Side. She's already expressed how much she wants Ben back to the way he was. She didn't know that his personality would change so dramatically. She's running out of positive things to say about her people and their techniques. That alone suggests that she's capable of changing, but without Ben she doesn't think she can handle the transition."

For a moment, Mara said nothing and studied her husband. "Don't take this the wrong way, Luke, but it almost sounds as if you are more concerned about Vestara than you are your own son."

Luke didn't answer, considering her words. He was concerned about both of them greatly. "I'm terrified for Ben's safety, and I fear that Vestara may be right about there being no cure for him. Unlike typical Jedi turning to the Dark Side, Ben was poisoned by someone else's blood. Every cell in me wants to go off and search for him, but there's nothing I can do until he contacts us, I wouldn't know where to look. Even when we do get to him, I'm not sure there will be anything I can do. But Vestara… she can save him. She was able to convince him to let her go even after he accused her of betraying him. I'm hoping that if I can get her to concentrate enough, she can try to speak with him through their bond. She's the only chance Ben has at redemption. And if she can save him, that redemption may reach her as well. So until we find him, I'm putting all my attention into teaching Vestara. That's all I can do right now."

"I see," Mara sighed. Shaking her head, she hugged him tightly, burying her face in his chest. "I'm sorry I can't be of some help."

"You are helping. Just by being here right now, you're helping." Still, Luke felt a sharp ache in his chest, right in his heart. The moment he woke up, she'd be gone and he'd be alone again. Though he'd found the strength to live without her, he desperately missed her every second. Tears that he'd thought he'd cried long ago stung his eyes.

Sensing his despair, Mara pushed herself up on her elbow and leaned over to place a hard kiss on his lips that he eagerly returned. All too soon, she pulled away, her own green eyes brimming with tears. "I didn't want to leave you and Ben, Luke."

"I know, Mara," he whispered sadly, placing a small kiss on her forehead as an invisible fist squeezed his heart. Swallowing the lump that formed in his throat and threatened to choke him, he added, "I struggled to move on after your death, did things that I'm not proud of, but Ben helped me find the strength to live without you. But losing you and then my son? I don't know what I'll do if I lose Ben, too."

"You won't lose him," she insisted, lookin him in the eyes.

"I'm glad you're so sure," he muttered.

"Well, somebody has to be," she replied but her eyes were suddenly far off and she had the look on her face that told him she was thinking about something, forming an idea. A determined fire started in her green eyes. "Luke, I need you to wake up. Right now."

"What?" The prospect of leaving his dream, leaving his wife, threatened to tear his heart to pieces. "Why?"

"I might not have been able to get into Ben's dreams, but Vestara might be able to because of their bond," she explained. "You say that she's probably the only one able to save our son, well, let's see if she can. Have her enter his dreams and talk to him, see what's going on, where he is, or even just be there for him. He was asleep before I came to you, Luke, and he's likely still asleep but I'm not sure for how long. You have to wake up and get Vestara to get through to him, wake her up if you have to, I don't care, just get her to try."

Luke's thoughts were racing. He wasn't sure Vestara knew how to place herself into another's dream. It was something he would rather teach her gradually instead of force on her. But Ben's life was at stake, as well as much more. She could do it. If the bond between Vestara and Ben was strong, she could do it. All Luke had to do now was force himself to wake up and leave his wife's warm embrace.

Sensing his conflict, a few tears fell from her eyes and she touched her forehead with his. "I love you, Luke. I'd give anything to just stay here with you like this. But our son needs you. He needs Vestara. You have to wake up."

Taking her face gently in his hands, he placed his lips on hers in a desperate, passionate kiss, his tears blending with hers. He never wanted to let her go. A dream couldn't last, he knew that, but it was still hard. She was his soulmate, his light, his rock, his everything. Waking up without her seemed like losing her all over again. But for the sake of his son… he could wake up and accept that his time with her, as real as her presence was, was no more than a dream. He had to accept it.

Breaking the kiss, they held each other tightly, both waiting for the dream to end.

"I love you, Mara," Luke choked out.

"And I love you," she replied, a soft sob escaping her. "I always have, and I always will." Her warm breath brushed his ear and she whispered, "Wake up."

Someone was shaking her roughly, and Vestara swore to the Force that she was going to strangle whoever was disturbing her sleep. It had been hard for her to fall asleep, her worries concerning Ben keeping her awake.

When the shaking continued and someone – Luke, she assumed – said her name, she grumbled, "Go away."

"Vestara, wake up right now. I have an idea on how you can talk to Ben early."

Immediately she was wide awake and sat up, staring at Luke with wide brown eyes. "What? How?"

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he explained, "If you concentrate on Ben enough, you may be able to place yourself in his dreams, bend it to look how you want it to look."

"I… I don't know how to do that," she stammered. More than anything she wanted to talk to Ben, to see him, but what if she couldn't? What if he wasn't even asleep? "How do you know he's asleep?"

A pained look crossed over his face. "I know. Trust me."

That was a lot to ask from her, but she would place her trust in him. "… Okay. What do I do?"

Something was different.

For the first time since Tarick poisoned him, Ben felt comfortable, at peace. He wasn't stuck in the cramped cockpit of the Sith's fighter. His head didn't ache. Everything was fine.

Frowning, he kept his eyes closed and tried to think of what he'd been doing prior to feeling so at peace. He'd been exhausted and Tarick had been asleep, letting the ship fly on autopilot for a while, and Ben had… been trying to fall asleep as well. He recalled that something had been pressing against the barriers the Sith blood had put up in his mind, but he couldn't figure out what that had been. Then, before he felt as he did now, he'd felt the same sensation, only this brush against the barrier had been more desperate and intimate.

A hand suddenly touched his cheek, startling him out of his thoughts and he jumped into a sitting position, eyes snapping open… and he came face to face with liquid brown eyes.

"Ves?" he asked tentatively, hardly daring to believe that she was there next to him.

She smiled and he knew it was her. Before she could utter a word he pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her small frame and was rewarded with her own going around him. It was impossible for her to be there with him, but she felt so real and for the first time in days he felt their bond in full force. Pressing his face into her long brown hair, he breathed deep, inhaling the familiar scent that was Vestara.

"How are you here?" he asked quietly, almost afraid that if he spoke to loud he would break the spell and she would disappear.

"Your father showed my how to hijack your dream and alter it. It's a way we can talk to each other without Tarick knowing and have you be you." She tensed a bit and pulled back to look at him, suddenly wary. "You are you right now, right? No Sith influence?"

He gave her a reassuring smile. "It's me, Ves." And it was him, for the first time since this nightmare began.

Instead of returning to his embrace, she sat back on the bed and Ben realized that they were in his cabin. Grasping his hands tightly in hers, she said, "I don't know how long I can keep this up, Ben. Your dad had me hardcore meditating for a good hour before I was finally able to get in your head and past the barriers. I need you to tell me everything you know about Tarick's plans. Where's he going? What is he intending to do? Everything."

Licking his suddenly dry lips, he said, "Fevrin. We're going to some planet called Fevrin. I don't know where it is and he won't give me the specifics on how to get there until we are actually on the ground. Guess he's afraid I'll somehow tell you ahead of time. As for his plans…" he trailed off, eyes traveling down to their joined hands. "He plans to destroy the Jedi Order and the Sith Order. He wants to be strongest being out there and create his own Order. The only reason he needs me is so because I can get close to the other Jedi out there and… take care of them without them suspecting the betrayal. Though I don't know how that will work. I look like I've got black webs splayed out over my skin and my eyes scream Sith." To prove his point, he let go of her hand pulled up his sleeve… and found normal skin.

Frowning, he looked at Vestara.

With a small smile, she explained, "Like I said, your dad told me how to alter your dreams. I didn't think you'd want to look like something out of a nightmare."

"Thanks for that," he said sincerely, raising his hand to cup her cheek. Swallowing, he recalled how he hurt her during the fight and his vision became cloudy as tears stung his eyes. "I'm sorry, Vestara. I… I didn't mean to hurt you but I couldn't control my actions. I was still aware of what I was doing but I couldn't stop."

She covered his hand with her own. "I don't blame you. It's okay." Giving his hand a squeeze, she asked, "What can you tell me about the effects the blood is causing?"

Taking a moment to think so that he didn't leave anything out, he said, "It feels like someone else is controlling my words and actions while I can only stand by and watch. My head aches all the time, as does the rest of my body. And Tarick has me… inject myself with his blood regularly." Disgust washed over him and a chill ran down his spine.

Nodding, Vestara fell silent. Ben could feel worry and sadness though she kept the emotions off her face, and could feel the wheels turning in her head as she thought. "Right before he has you take an injection, how do you feel?"

"… It's easier to fight the effects. I think that's why he has me do it regularly."

"Well, that's one of the reasons," she mumbled.

Frowning, Ben felt the dark cloud hovering over her thoughts and asked, "What are the other reasons?" She didn't say anything and turned her eyes away. Wanting an answer, he hooked his fingers under her chin and gently tipped her head back up to look at him. "Tarick said there would be unpleasant side effects. Is that true?"

Biting her lip, she nodded. "Insanity," she began, "pain… death is the most common result in all cases."

"Is there a cure?"

Vestara locked eyes with him and he knew through her expression and their bond. There was no known cure. "We'll find a way to save you, Ben," she promised, leaning closer and cupping his jaw with her hand.

Taking a deep breath, he took it all in. If they couldn't save him, he would be stuck in this hell for Force knows how long. He would do things he didn't want to do. He'd be a monster. That was something he wouldn't allow himself to become. "If you can't save me, Ves… I want you to kill me."

Vestara's eyes widened and he felt her deep set disbelief and reluctance in the Force. "… No. No! I can't kill you, Ben!"

"If there's no way to save me, I don't want to live like this. You'd be doing me a favor."

"Then ask your dad, don't ask me."

He shook his head. "My dad's been through too much. I can't ask him to do it and I don't think he would even if I did ask. I need you to kill me if it comes down to it."

"It won't come to that. I swear it won't," she insisted and Ben knew that she'd fight with everything she had to save him.

Sighing, he pulled her to him and she laid her head on his shoulder. "I need you to promise me that you'll do it, Vestara. Please. Promise me."

Vestara shook slightly and his heart broke when he realized that she was crying. After a long silence, she nodded against his shoulder. "I promise," she whispered so softly he had to strain his ears to hear her. But she did promise.

Holding her tightly, savoring the feel of her in his arms, he asked, "How long can we stay here? Together in this dream, I mean?"

Shifting so that she was settled comfortably in his lap, she said, voice trembling as tears continued to fall, "Until I'm unable to keep up this illusion or until you wake up."

"Then I hope you can keep up the illusion for a long time," he murmured into her hair, rubbing his hand up and down her arm soothingly and not bothering to hold back his own tears of sadness, fear, and love. "Because I don't plan on waking up anytime soon."