CHAPTER XXI
Questions
Kyp Durron strode impatiently down a wide hall in the Jedi Temple, ignoring the frequent glares he received from various Jedi Knights, Masters and Padawans. For two consecutive days, he had managed to irk almost the entire Jedi Order and Kyp was beginning to wonder whether they might impose some kind of restraining order on him to keep him from pacing, irritated, around the Temple.
Ever since Palpatine had attacked Jaina and she had left for Shanthral, Kyp had found himself in an extremely bad-tempered mood brought on partially from anxiety and partially from lack of sleep. After saying goodbye to Jaina, Kyp had spent almost an entire day sleeping. The effort that had been required to pull Jaina back from the mindlock had completely drained his energy. However, once he had restored what had been lost, Kyp found that he couldn't sleep due to an unprecedented amount of questions, concerns and problems that constantly sprang to mind.
Had he done the right thing by sending Jaina off-world? Would she be safe on Shanthral? Kyp fervently hoped that she would be, but it was impossible to know how Palpatine would react when he discovered that she was no longer on Coruscant. The Sith Lord's interest in Jaina was worrisome. How long had he been watching her? Palpatine had known who they were from the moment they had encountered him on the Invisible Hand. A dark suspicion was starting to form in Kyp's mind – what if Palpatine's trick had merely been a test? Had it been an attempt to test their limits, to see just how far they were willing to go?
A sudden, horrid realization dawned on Kyp.
"Shavit!" he swore under his breath.
This hadn't been aimed at Jaina.
This had been aimed at him. Palpatine already knew all he needed to know about the Skywalker-Solo clan. Jaina would be too easy for him to read – predictable, even. The Sith Lord could travel through time. If he was keeping close watch on Anakin in this era, Kyp had no doubt that Palpatine would also want to know everything about Anakin's future descendants, no matter which "version" they were. Palpatine would know just how to deal with a Skywalker.
Kyp knew that he himself was an entirely different matter.
Even if Palpatine had gone into the future to observe Kyp's potential future lives, the act would most likely have been done after he and Jaina had arrived in this time period. After all, what possible interest could Palpatine have had in him before? There were thousands upon thousands of Jedi in the future. Palpatine could not have had the chance or interest to observe them all.
Palpatine did not know anything about him at all, which – considering the way the Sith Lord planned – made it all the more logical that Jaina's attack had been aimed at him and not at Jaina herself. Palpatine was testing him; he wanted to know what he was up against. Jaina was only half of the equation.
You could be Palpatine's next target.
A test, a trap – how far would Palpatine go before he was finished toying with them? Jaina's fears for him were rational. They were quickly losing control of the situation. It was as if they were playing a long, complicated game of Dejarik and Anakin's fate was the prize. Palpatine's latest move – Jaina's entrapment – had been a well-played fork that would cost them. At what price, Kyp didn't know. Jaina's life? Her sanity?
His own?
It had been a well-executed move. Now that Palpatine knew Kyp's own limits, Jaina's fears might very well come true. Kyp had told her that he could look after himself merely to keep her from arguing with him. After what she had been through, she didn't need to worry about him. But it was impossible to know what Palpatine was going to do next. Just like a fork in Dejarik, Palpatine had been targeting them both with his assault on Jaina. He had forced them to act, to make a choice, and they had chosen to send Jaina to safety.
Or relative safety. Who knew how long it would be until Palpatine discovered where she was? And what then? Would he attack her again, or would he target Kyp?
It was a no-win situation. Kyp was trapped until Palpatine made his next move. Trapped and alone, now that he had done what he had thought was best. Even now, as he paced the halls of the Jedi Temple, he had never felt more anxious. Without Jaina, this world was foreign to him. Despite the time he had spent here on Coruscant, the Old Republic remained unfamiliar and the Jedi Order alien. Without Jaina, their mission here seemed even more unattainable.
Had he done the right thing sending her away?
Kyp wasn't sure. It was impossible to know if she was safe on Shanthral or not. It was impossible to know because they could not know what Palpatine was planning next.
Damn it, we've been playing right into his hands!
Tests and traps… Kyp shuddered as he remembered Jaina's expression when he had rescued her from her nightmarish prison. Frightened – petrified, even. He was starting to get the feeling that it wasn't so much what Palpatine had forced her to live through that scared her, but the fact that he could do it. That attack had been the last thing they had been expecting – after all, who had ever heard of someone trapping another within their own mind and forcing them to relive their worst experiences a hundred times over, each with a different outcome?
He had never seen Jaina that scared before.
She's changed, Kyp thought. She was no longer the Jaina Solo he had known. She wasn't the same woman who had fought alongside him in the Yuuzhan Vong war, she wasn't the person he had briefly taken as an apprentice. She wasn't the person he had tried to help when she had brushed the edge of the Dark side after Anakin died and Jacen was captured. She wasn't the same Jedi who had been given the title Sword of the Jedi. Hell, she wasn't even the same person who had agreed to take Augustine's mission into the past.
Settling disputes and fighting crime lords during the two years after the end of a brutal war had had almost no lasting effects on Jaina Solo. She had changed because of her travel through time. Meeting her grandparents, seeing the legends that her uncle had told her about and coming face to face with a nemesis who knew everything about her had impacted her unlike anything had before. Jaina was a fighter, but Kyp knew that if Jaina didn't come to terms with her surroundings soon, the accumulation of these events would begin destroy her – if they hadn't begun already.
Did Augustine know what he was doing when he sent Jaina and me back in time? Kyp wondered. Did he have any idea what would happen?
Augustine the mysterious professor… Augustine the time traveler. How could he, let alone anyone else, know what was going to happen? As Kyp remembered it, Augustine had sent them backwards in time out of desperation, their last chance to stop Darth Sidious forever.
So far, he wasn't doing a very good job. If Augustine was a time traveler, couldn't he at least journey through time for just a moment and give them some advice?
Perhaps not.
Kyp was beginning to wonder whether he regretted his split-second, off-hand decision to join Luke on his mission to Mustafar that day. It was a hazy memory now, lost forever in the folds of time. Kyp remembered that he had chosen at the last moment, out of boredom than anything else.
Boredom! Kyp barked a short laugh. It was ridiculous. Half the time, he felt as though he lived for the moment, as if he couldn't survive without the suspense and thrill of being on a mission. The other half of the time, Kyp wondered how much of an idiot he could be at times. If he hadn't been "bored" the day when Luke had mentioned the Mustafar mission, he wouldn't be here right now.
Kyp didn't even want to think about where he'd be if he hadn't been on Mustafar when Jaina had been selected – no, ordered – to travel into the past for one last, desperate attempt to save her grandfather.
With Jacen dead, the weight of the universe had been set on her shoulders.
Until he had convinced himself that he better join her just to keep her out of trouble, as Jaina was incapable of doing that herself. Perhaps it was a Skywalker/Solo trait, but wherever Jaina Solo went, trouble was not far behind. More than once she had gotten herself in so deep that she needed someone to pull her out.
It had been a split second decision, and Kyp had volunteered to fill that position, lest havoc break loose. As much as he had wished he could trust Jaina as the sole saviour of the Galaxy, her fiery personality could have quite possibly been the destroyer of her mission had she gone into the past alone. She needed to have someone looking out for her.
And you're doing a great job so far, Kyp snarled to himself.
Jaina had been threatened; now she was gone, off to Shanthral. Who knew when he would see her next? Would she be safe with Obi-Wan? Perhaps she would be. As long as there was someone there… but what did Obi-Wan know about her? As dear as she was to him, Kyp couldn't deny the truth. Jaina was very volatile.
Just like he had been in his younger days – and still was, to some extent.
Kyp shook his head. There was no point on dwelling on what had put him in his current situation. The decisions, the actions taken – they were all in the past and there was nothing he could do about it now. He still had a job to do. After all, someone had to deal with the ever-temperamental Anakin Skywalker on his own.
Kyp quickly reviewed everything he knew about the Chosen One. Bad-tempered, powerful, passionate, rash and arrogant – the ultimate Skywalker. That in itself would have been bad enough, as Kyp knew after many years of dealing with Skywalkers. However, Anakin was friends with their ultimate enemy, and it was a friendship that ran deep. Somehow, Kyp had to find a way to break that bond between Sith Lord and Jedi Knight. If Anakin remained under Palpatine's grip, they might as well call game-over.
This task, hard enough on its own, had its difficulty amplified by the fact that Kyp hadn't seen Anakin Skywalker for several days. Since reviving himself after Palpatine's attack, Kyp had searched every inch of the Jedi Temple, asked every Jedi, but Jaina's grandfather was nowhere to be found. When he had inquired several times as to where Anakin might be found, the only straight answer he received was that Skywalker was in a meeting with the Jedi Council.
The absurdity of that repeated answer grated on Kyp's nerves. Anakin couldn't possibly spend that much time in meetings with the Jedi Council. That in itself would be enough to turn him to the Dark side.
So, if he wasn't constantly in meetings with those dry old Jedi Masters, where was he?
Two answers came to mind: Palpatine's office and Padmé Amidala's suite in 500 Republica.
When Anakin Skywalker returned to the Jedi Temple that morning, his mind was still full of thoughts from the night before. He was filled with conflicting emotions – delirious joy from spending time with Padmé battled against impatience, irritation and frustration from the rules of the Jedi Order. The fact that he was constantly sneaking around just so he could spend time with his wife was rapidly wearing down his nerves.
How long is this going to last? Anakin growled to himself. To hell with the Jedi Order!
If it wasn't for Padmé's gentle reminders and Anakin's own deeper desires, he would have walked out on what was effectively his adoptive family long ago. He should have done that. Padmé didn't deserve to be separated from him this way. His children didn't deserve it. The rules and regulations imposed on them from some drafty old Jedi Masters who were so ingrained in their traditions that they were blinded by them would destroy his family before it even had a chance to begin.
Anakin had had enough. As soon as the children were born, he was leaving. For good.
And the Lost Twenty will become the Lost Twenty-One, he mused. What good was being a Jedi if he couldn't spend time with those he loved most? The Jedi lived isolated lives, disconnected from any real emotion. Anakin couldn't afford that anymore.
He smiled as he remembered Padmé's words from the night before.
"Your kids are a rowdy pair," she had remarked wryly.
"Oh?" he had replied, confused. "What do you mean?"
Padmé smiled. "They're kicking."
"Kicking?!"
She had laughed at his astonishment. "Oh my Ani," she had murmured to herself. "Come here."
He had gone to her then, and she had gently placed his hand on her swollen abdomen. Sure enough, he felt something and then jumped as Padmé winced.
"Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. They kicked me in several different places, that's all."
"Maybe they're punching as well," Anakin had replied dryly, trying to keep an innocent expression.
"Ha ha, very funny, Anakin."
Padmé had looked very uncomfortable then, and so Anakin had cautiously sent out his thought, looking for the minds of their unborn children. He had found the twins' minds with ease, and they had reacted curiously and excitedly to his presence.
Settle down, you two, he had told them sternly. You're making your mother uncomfortable.
The moment, however, did not last. As soon as the sun came up, reality sank back in.
If only the Jedi Order wasn't in the way! Anakin thought as he trudged away from the landing platform. Everything would be perfect.
Or almost perfect. One tiny part of Anakin's mind refused to let him forget about Palpatine and the dangerous, threatening possibility Obi-Wan had warned him about: Palpatine could be under the control of a Sith Lord. Anakin was appointed representative on the Jedi Council and he was his friend – he could not, would not abandon Palpatine like that. Anakin could not turn his back on him when he knew that the Chancellor might be in terrible danger. In order to protect Palpatine, Anakin had to remain a Jedi. He had to stay with the Order.
It was unfair.
The Order enforced boundaries upon him – boundaries that Anakin did not agree with. It was a backwards society, one that held the concept of love above all others but did not understand it. And what the Jedi did not understand, they banned. Love – true love – was forbidden to them.
But not to Anakin. He had released himself from those boundaries long ago; in fact, he had never been bound to them. He had been raised outside of the Jedi Order by someone who had known how to love: his mother.
Anakin swallowed hard as Shmi Skywalker's face flashed before his eyes. He forced the memories back. They still haunted him, even after all these years. Briefly, he recalled the dusty landscape Tatooine as he had run to give his mother one final hug before leaving with Qui-Gon Jinn. And it had been so soon after that he met Obi-Wan. Little did he know at the time that the Jedi Padawan he had been so excited to meet would soon become his Master and one of his best friends.
I wonder what he's doing now, Anakin thought briefly. He supposed that he should be used to it by now, but whenever Obi-Wan was away on a mission, things were never the same around the Temple.
However, thoughts of Obi-Wan reminded Anakin of exactly who had been chosen to accompany him on his mission to Shanthral. Anakin growled to himself as Jaina Solo's face flashed through his memory.
Snarky attitude… Mid-Rim Sieges… Sneaking up on Padmé for Force knows what…
Anakin didn't trust her, and he never would. Obi-Wan's plan to test her, to see if she was trustworthy, had a high probability of backfiring. Jaina had a few impressive tricks with the Force, but that didn't change the fact that she was foreign. Her backstory was flawed, her knowledge of current events was weak – she was a suspicious character and absolutely not to be trusted.
She refused the mission at first.
That was puzzling and only served to enhance Anakin's distrust. Clearly, there was something here on Coruscant that she wanted to do, or find – but what could it be? And what had caused her to so abruptly change her mind?
Anakin looked up at his surroundings at that point, dragging himself out of his musings. As he did so, he saw someone standing a little ways away down the hall from him. Anakin came to a stop.
Durron.
Jaina Solo's partner.
Anakin found the sharp-eyed Jedi imposing much more often than he would like. Despite the few strands of grey in his dark hair, Durron acted like a much younger man, giving off an impression of vigour and vitality. Of the few times that Anakin had seen him, he seemed composed and cool, the complete opposite of his companion. However, there was also a dark, foreboding nature around him – one that Anakin did not like at all.
Furthermore, Anakin had heard from several Jedi Knights around the Temple that he had been looking for him. For what reason, they never said.
Anakin felt himself tense, but he continued walking.
Solo and Durron – out of the two of them, he had only ever had a proper conversation with the former since the events on the Invisible Hand. However, he had seen them many times at the Temple. They were always together, whispering to each other – secretive, elusive, almost never speaking to the other Jedi. Out of the corner of his eye, he had watched them – just as he felt they were watching him. Their eyes were always on him. It was disturbing.
They behaved unlike any other Jedi Anakin knew. Separate or together, both Solo and Durron were mysteries.
Mysteries set Anakin's teeth on edge.
Durron was observing him from afar, his eyes narrowed, his expression unreadable. In a split second, Anakin made a decision.
"Durron!" he called as he moved forwards down the hall.
"Yes?" the other man replied, his voice sharper than Anakin had expected.
Anakin came to a halt several feet away from him. "I heard you were looking for me."
"Did you?" There was no change in his expression. "You must have heard wrong."
It was with difficulty that Anakin tried to keep his scowl from becoming too prominent. The question what do you want? was forming on his lips, but he hastily cut it off. Several things flickered through his mind instead.
"Was there something in particular that you wanted?" Durron asked.
Anakin paused. "I have a question for you," he said bluntly.
"And?"
Anakin folded his arms, hesitating while he thought of the correct way to word his question.
"If I was on a mission," he said slowly, emphasizing the last word, "would it be a good idea to let my companion take a side-trip?"
Durron looked unimpressed; a flicker of annoyance flashed in his eyes. "Listen," he said firmly, "I have no control over what Jaina wants or doesn't want to do. Only she can make up her mind and she doesn't have to listen to a word of advice I give her."
Anakin's eyes narrowed. "So, she's the one in charge then?" he asked brusquely.
Durron raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"
Anakin snorted. He's bluffing, he thought.
"You know perfectly well what I mean," Anakin replied hotly. "You and Jaina Solo have a mission here and it's not something you want to tell the Council."
Durron didn't reply and his expression remained stony.
"Don't try to play dumb," Anakin continued, "I've seen you and her together. All over the Temple, always together. And you two… you're different from the rest of us. You don't act like Jedi. You have all the skills, but you don't seem like Jedi."
Durron actually laughed at that. "Are you accusing me of something?"
"Oh, please," Anakin snarled. "You know exactly what I mean. And be warned – I'm going to find out what it is you're doing here. I'll prove the Council wrong, prove that you aren't trustworthy."
"I don't know where you're getting your crazy ideas," Durron retorted, "but you're not making much sense, Skywalker. You're on the wrong course."
"Am I?" Anakin snapped. "Then why did Solo change her mind about going on the mission? First she was adamant that she wasn't going to go – shocked the entire Council, too – and then the next day she's already joining Obi-Wan—"
"A piece of advice, Anakin," Durron interrupted, "from someone who's been around a lot longer than you have. Don't jump to conclusions. It's a bad habit that often gives you a wrong, untruthful impression of someone. If you're so curious about Jaina, then ask her yourself when she gets back. I'm sure she'll be absolutely thrilled to talk to you."
Anakin stared at him, unsure of what to say. Don't jump to conclusions… Oh, really! When was the last time he had done that?
"Very well, then," Anakin said. "I'll do just that."
Anakin stalked away down the hall, seething with frustration and annoyance. Who was Durron to give him advice? Anakin didn't need any advice! He received enough of that from Obi-Wan.
As he walked away, Anakin shot a dark look over his shoulder at Durron. All of his answers had been veiled. He was clearly hiding something, but until Anakin found out what, he couldn't do anything about it. He needed proof.
He was determined to get it, no matter what. If Durron and Solo were just barely even connected to a Sith Lord, they were endangering the Jedi and Palpatine. If he found proof of that, Anakin knew that he would do everything in his power to stop them from doing anyone any harm.
As Kyp watched Anakin leave, he was more than slightly troubled by their conversation. Anakin clearly didn't trust him and he was fishing for answers. Sooner or later, he would get them, but hopefully before he jumped to any more wrong conclusions. If Kyp chose to tell him the truth, how would he react?
Kyp had a feeling that Anakin would take the information the wrong way.
"Frustrated, Skywalker is, by your presence here," a familiar voice commented.
Kyp spun around and saw Yoda standing some feet away, leaning on his gimer stick. His expression was, as per usual, unreadable. It was always impossible to tell what Yoda was thinking.
Kyp looked down at the small Jedi Master and nodded in reply. "Yeah, I kind of got the message."
"And angry you are, too, by the decision of your friend, yes?" Yoda asked, although it sounded more like he was making a statement.
"Not angry, no," Kyp replied. At least, he wasn't angry at Jaina. If he was angry, it was because the business with Shanthral was tied to Palpatine and to Kyp's own decisions. In that case, his anger was directly at least partially at himself.
"Humph."
Kyp sighed; nothing was ever hidden from Yoda for long. The Jedi Master obviously knew that he was hiding something.
"Jaina, she…" Kyp shrugged. "It's complicated."
"Hmm…" Yoda tapped his stick thoughtfully on the floor. "At least, lost Jaina this time, you have not. Heh. Know where she is, you do."
Kyp smiled bleakly, remembering the last time he spoke to Yoda. "Yes."
"Heh." Yoda leaned on his stick. "Confused still, you are. Come. Talk, we will."
He began moving off down the corridor. Kyp had no choice but to follow him.
There was some sort of comforting power about the serenity of Yoda's simple living space. Unlike Kyp's own quarters, which only gave off a sense of practicality, Yoda's home echoed with calm wisdom and tranquility.
Kyp sat on a pod chair, sinking into the peacefulness, barely listening to the ancient Jedi Master speak quietly. He was distracted by his own thoughts of Jaina and Anakin and all the problems they had faced since coming into the past, and all the problems they would face if they ever wanted to get back home in one piece…
"What know you of the Dark side?"
The question startled Kyp, jolting him awake. "Sorry?"
"What know you of the Dark side?" Yoda repeated his question firmly.
Kyp shifted uncomfortably in his seat. What did he know of the Dark side? Many things – in his long career as a Jedi, he had seen its work more than once. Having once touched its power, he knew how fulfilling it could be. He understood how Dark Jedi and Sith Lords could possibly become obsessed with the idea of power. He knew how disastrous the results were when someone fell of the Dark side, not so much out of watching Palpatine murder a friend or hearing of Darth Vader's terrible deeds, but because he knew from personal experience. His wounds from the day Exar Kun had invaded his mind still existed; even though he kept it deeply buried, the memory of what had happened Carida at his hands never left his mind.
"Hmm?" Yoda prodded.
Kyp ran a hand through his hair. "Uh… I know of its power." He hesitated, giving himself enough time to make sure that he wouldn't reveal anything… stupid. "I know," he continued, "what can happen when a Jedi takes control of the Dark side. I know its effects. I've seen them first hand."
Yoda made no response; his ears twitched slightly. It seemed as though he was waiting for Kyp to continue.
"Master Yoda," Kyp said, "I'm not sure exactly why you brought me here to talk about… about the Dark side."
"Humph!" Yoda said. "You know not much, it seems, Knight Durron."
Kyp smiled slightly. "Yes, well –"
"Help us find Sidious, yes, you agreed," Yoda said abruptly. "Testing your knowledge, I am. Know your opponent, it seems you do."
Kyp frowned. He couldn't see where this was going. "Master Yoda –"
"How fight you the Dark side?" Yoda continued.
Kyp paused. He had fought the Dark side many times, but putting his battles into a definition seemed impossible. It was indescribable. "Uh… I'm not sure."
Yoda stared at him, his eyes penetrating. He required an answer.
"Um," Kyp tried again. "You fight the Dark side with the Light?"
"Heh!" Yoda tapped his chair with his fingers. "Yes! To fight the Dark side with the Dark… Unspeakable things can happen. Fear light, darkness does. Darkness dies in the light. Remember that, you will."
Kyp blinked, puzzled. "What does –"
"Know of the Dark side, say you," Yoda interrupted, raising a hand. "To fall to the Dark… No! Darkness fought with darkness, work it will not."
"Yeah, I kind of figured that," Kyp muttered. Was there a point to this conversation?
"Think on this, you shall," Yoda said. "Talk again, we will." He pointed to the door with his gimer stick.
As Kyp left Yoda's quarters, he couldn't help wondering what the Jedi Master had been talking about. Fight the Dark side with the Light… Was Yoda, in a very odd manner, telling him about the future?
Cold fear plunged to the pit of his stomach. Would they fail? With Jaina gone, the chance of using Anakin's connection to the future to save him was gone as well. Would they have no chance of preventing him from falling to the Dark side?
Kyp shuddered as he walked down the hall. Questions, questions, and more questions. With each question answered with another question, Kyp seemed to be getting nowhere.