Chapter Twenty-Five – Invaders

"Do you have any idea what you're asking me to do, General?"

Aeryn watched the irate Zabrak pace in front of her, his back slightly hunched, his shoulders tense as his eyes, now narrowed to angry slits, scanned the Mandalorian camp. Although she considered him a close friend, Aeryn realized she'd gravely underestimated his feelings toward their former enemy.

"Bao, I understand how you feel, but…."

"Do you?" The towering Tech turned to her, his fury boiling just below the placid surface. "You understand how it feels to be asked to help the very people who decimated your homeworld? The same race who butchered and enslaved your friends, your family? I'm sorry, General, but I don't think you do understand."

Aeryn was speechless for a moment. To see that this naked hatred, this seething rage lay hidden beneath the calm exterior of her ever-patient friend was a little frightening, and it took her a while to find her voice. "The war is over, Bao-Dur. These men are not your enemy."

"How can you say that? We're not standing in a peaceful village, General! This is a war camp, and these men are training for battle."

"Because Revan ordered them to."

Bao-Dur took a step back at the softly delivered words, the rage on his face coupled now with disbelief. "What?"

"You see that man over there?" Aeryn pointed discreetly to Mandalore, who was giving orders to a group of his men in the courtyard. "Revan chose him to be the one to gather his people under a common name again. Their race was dying out," she rushed on when he opened his mouth to speak, "and I understand that you think that would have been what they deserved, but she can see the bigger picture when we can't. For whatever reason, she knew the Mandalorians were not ready to fade from the galaxy."

"And you accept that?" The Iridonian studied her closely and she shifted uneasily under his gaze.

"I trust my sister," she murmured, and Bao's frown deepened at the lack of conviction in her voice. "Don't you trust me?" The moment the words were out of her mouth, Aeryn wished she could take them back. It was such a cowardly tactic, to manipulate him by making this about her instead of about the real issue, and the guarded look on his face made her feel worse. Oh, Kreia would be proud….

"You know I do, General." His voice was quiet, almost tender. "I would follow you anywhere."

For some reason, Aeryn was saddened by his words and she found it difficult to meet his eyes. "I feel the same way about Revan. I can't always say I trust the motives of the Force, but Revan sees farther than anyone I've ever known. It's almost like the universe is transparent to her…but only when it's really necessary."

The Tech was silent for a long moment, and Aeryn gave Canderous a nod when she noticed him waiting for her. Bao-Dur caught the action and sensed that she was impatient to speak with the Mandalorian leader. "I will trust you on this, General." He was still frowning, and Aeryn was certain he was holding back, but she decided to let it go for now.

"Thank you, my friend. I promise this is for the best."

As Aeryn approached Mandalore, the rest of her crew gathered around them as well as if they knew she needed to speak with all of them. "Mira and Bao-Dur will help with the repairs you mentioned," Aeryn said as she gestured to the two people in turn. "I'm sending Atton back to the Hawk to bring us all some clothes and supplies – I'd appreciate it if you could send some of your men with him to show him the smoothest route there and back."

"That shouldn't be a problem," Canderous nodded. "As long as you have that droid on a leash."

Aeryn waved off his concern. "Atton can approach the ship alone – HK won't attack him." She pointedly ignored the scoundrel's skeptical look and instead turned her focus to Visas, who looked pale and withdrawn. "Is there somewhere quiet where my friend can rest for a while?"

"Kex here can show her to the quarters where your crew can bunk."

"Thank you. I think Kreia would probably like…to…" Aeryn turned in a circle, a worried frown blossoming on her face. "Where's Kreia?"

"One of your crew is missing?"

"She was right here just a few minutes ago." Bewildered, Aeryn glanced around once more, then internally cursed herself for being so dense. What good is a bond if you don't use it? Stretching out with the Force, she tried to touch Kreia's mind, but almost immediately she found the way blocked, and blocked very firmly. "She must have left the camp," Aeryn muttered, a mix of frustration and confusion running through her.

"I sent several squads out to deal with the scouts that followed you here," Mandalore said with a frown in his tone. "Their orders are shoot anything that moves – you'd better hope they don't run across your friend out there."

"That old woman is going to get herself killed," Aeryn grumbled under her breath.

Atton choked on a bark of laughter. "You don't think that old Sith witch can handle herself? I'd be more worried about the Mandalorians."

"Sith?" Canderous' voice was hard as steel. "You brought a Sith here?"

"It's not…she's not really…" Aeryn broke off with a sigh and sent a scathing glare Atton's direction. "It's a very long story, one that will take twice as long if I start from the middle." The leader shifted his weight for a moment, then nodded almost imperceptibly and Aeryn turned to her companions. "I need to talk to Can…Mandalore," she caught herself, "and it may take some time. Don't worry about me, and please stay safe." She tried to make the words sound like "stay out of trouble" and hoped her crew would understand.

"Your people are uneasy being here." Mandalore watched Aeryn carefully from the edge of his vision as the pair moved away across the encampment. "Especially the Zabrak."

Aeryn shrugged. "He's an Iridonian. I hope you didn't expect him to be thrilled at the idea of helping your engineer get your weapons back online."

"Maybe not. But…."

"There's nothing to worry about," Aeryn cut him off, a little impatiently, but she sighed and backed down almost immediately. "They have questions. Frankly, so do I. But I think you deserve to hear what's been happening up to this point, and what's going on with Revan."

Canderous nodded as he ushered her into what appeared to be his private chambers. She took a seat at the tiny table in the front room as the Mandalorian leader stripped off his armor in another room and joined her a few minutes later. "I told my men to send us a meal in an hour or so, but other than that, we won't be disturbed here."

"Good," Aeryn said with a somewhat rueful look, "because this is going to be a long story." As soon as he'd settled into the chair across from her, Aeryn took a deep breath. "Revan found me at a cantina on an Outer Rim world about four years ago…."

-

"Shouldn't she be back by now?" Atton paced the length of the small barracks that had become their temporary home inside the Mandalorian base. Darkness had fallen long ago, and Mira and Bao-Dur watched the worried scoundrel with a touch of annoyance as they tried to get comfortable on the hard cots. Visas had long since retreated to the farthest bunk in the room and was curled up in a ball, sleeping deeply.

"Don't worry," Mira said with a mocking smile, "she'll be back soon enough, and then you can go back to staring at her ass."

Both Atton and Bao-Dur glared at the young huntress, who only offered an unapologetic shrug before turning her back to them both.

"I don't like being left in the dark," Atton snapped. "Something isn't right about this whole thing – getting shot down by the Onderon military, finding Mandalorians rebuilding here on Dxun…Mandalore calling Aeryn his sister. I mean, what the hell is that about?"

"He called me sister because he's Revan's mate." Atton stopped pacing, Bao-Dur sat up, and even Mira turned to study the weary Exile as she leaned hard against the doorframe. "Your other two concerns are going to take a bit more time to explain, and you'll just have to wait until morning. I'm almost too tired to breathe."

Atton blinked in surprise. "Mate? As in…?"

"As in lover, husband, partner, whatever you want to call it. I don't think Revan minds any of those, but she always called him her mate."

Shaking his head as if he couldn't help himself, Atton gave a disbelieving laugh. "I've never met two women with stranger taste in men. Malak, Mandalore…" his amused chuckle faded off when he noticed the cold look on Aeryn's face.

"Get some rest," she snapped, stalking past him and toward the 'fresher. "We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

Bao-Dur shook his head at Atton and rolled over. "Smooth," Mira commented as she too settled down to sleep. With an exasperated sigh, Atton wandered over to a vacant bunk, his stormy gaze drifting to the fresher door as he congratulated himself for being able to piss her off so much lately.

-

Atton couldn't have been asleep long, probably less than an hour, but something forced his thoughts to struggle through the mental fog back to reality. Blinking into the inky blackness of the room, he scanned the barracks lazily and was about to let his mind relax back into the warm embrace of sleep when he saw Aeryn's shadowy form curled on the bunk beside his.

She was having a nightmare. Groaning, she pulled her knees tighter to her chest and mumbled something Atton couldn't quite make out. Still groggy, the scoundrel slipped from his bunk and knelt beside her. He only watched a moment, the dim light from outside the windows outlining the pained grimace on her face, before he reached to smooth her hair back from her forehead in an attempt to wake her.

"It's alright," he whispered very softly so as not to wake the others sleeping nearby. "It's just a dream." As irritated as he'd been with her lately, and as often as they seemed to disagree, he couldn't help but feel worried as her eyes flitted back and forth frantically beneath her closed lids and she cringed from his touch with a fearful gasp. "Come on, wake up, sweetheart," he encouraged, leaning farther over her.

He never even saw her move, but suddenly his throat was being crushed by an impossibly strong grip. He tried to gasp, struggling backward, but through the Force she held him fast as she slowly sat up on the bunk. In the pale light, her wild eyes seemed to see right through him, and the horrific snarl on her face, her lips pulled back over her barred teeth, sent icy chills down Atton's spine. Black spots overwhelmed his vision as a crackling pain shot from her fingers down his chest; he tasted blood in the back of his throat.

As suddenly as the attack had come, Aeryn's eyes snapped back into focus just as abruptly. With a horrified gasp, she jerked her hand from his neck and Atton fell limp onto her lap, nearly unconscious as he tried in vain to breath through his crushed throat.

"No, no, no," he dimly heard Aeryn whispering feverishly as he felt her cool fingers sliding under his chin, lifting his head off her lap. A soothing sensation spread from her touch, easing his mind as well as his damaged body, and suddenly Atton gasped sharply through his now mended windpipe. Shaking, the scoundrel pushed himself up only to find her terrified blue eyes only inches from his.

"I-I'm so sorry," she stammered in a breathless whisper, her eyes rimmed with tears as she cradled his face in her hands. "I was…dreaming…and then…I thought you were…damn it, Atton I'm so sorry. I…."

"It's okay," he croaked, the agony he'd experienced now only a sharp memory. "Just…remind me never to wake you up again."

"No, it's not okay," she insisted, her hands still cupping his jaw line. "I could have killed you…I'd never forgive myself if…." Her voice trembled to silence as she noticed his gaze was fixated on her lips.

He kissed her. Perhaps it was the only way he could think to shut her up and tell her, "I understand and it's alright that you almost killed me," or possibly it was just a scoundrel taking advantage of the moment. Whatever his reasons, Aeryn responded almost immediately with a passion that matched his own.

Thrown off guard by what had just happened, her mind was wide open and he found himself drawn in as her arms snaked around his neck, relief and regret pouring from her in waves. As he pulled her tight against his chest and caressed her back, he saw flashes of her thoughts - the first time Malak had kissed her, the day she and Revan had been reunited after fifteen years of separation as children, and the day both those people turned their backs on her and walked away together. Flashes of a vision of Revan being hunted, and another of her being ruthlessly tortured. Aeryn's emotions were a maelstrom, her memories a tangled mess of pain and second-guessing and he felt overwhelmed by the power of it all, but he only tightened his hold on her and kissed her hungrily again.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered over and over against his mouth, and he wondered if she wasn't just apologizing for attacking him.

In his arms, she felt so warm and soft, but even at that moment he knew he was a little afraid of her, and for good reason. She could easily have killed him just then, after all, but it was much more than that. No one should have survived the things she'd been through, yet not only had she survived, she'd thrived. The harder the galaxy had hit her, the stronger she'd become, and through it all she'd managed to keep her compassion, although it was tinged with an undeniable bitterness that showed her scars.

He was definitely afraid of her, he decided as he slid one hand into her short, silky hair and clasped the small of her back with the other. Hell, maybe that was even part of her appeal. He was also afraid for her, and more than willing to protect her at any cost. And he was rapidly falling in love with her.

As he pulled back slightly for air, he caught the look in her eyes and even in the dim light he knew she'd sensed his emotions. A small, almost shy smile appeared on her lips, and the scoundrel would have found it funny considering how unabashedly she'd attacked his mouth only a few seconds before had her expression not suddenly shifted again.

"Something is wrong," she murmured, her eyes drifting across the thankfully still sleeping forms of their companions.

"Yeah," Atton agreed with the beginnings of a smirk, "you stopped." His playfulness quickly dissipated when she didn't give him her normal irritated look, but only frowned deeper and eased out of his embrace.

Fear crawled up his spine, along with the feeling of being watched, and his blaster was in his hand almost as fast as her lightsaber was in hers. On silent feet she slipped across the room and gently woke Visas as Atton prodded Mira awake.

"Piss off," the huntress grumbled as she rolled over and Atton contemplated smacking her in the back of the head with the butt of his blaster. The door to their barracks slid opened, and the scoundrel whirled around, his weapon raised.

"Wait!" Aeryn hissed from across the room. "It's Kreia." Atton hesitated long enough to make it clear he wished he could shoot the crone anyway, but he lowered his blaster as Aeryn stalked up to her bond-mate. "What have you done?"

"I made sure your Mandalorian friends did their job and dispatched our pursuers," she responded calmly.

"Oh yeah?" Aeryn snapped, her eyes flickering to the dark shadows outside the still-open doorway. "I think you missed a few."

"There are assassins surrounding the camp," Visas murmured in Aeryn's ear, and the Exile gave her an appraising look, glad that the Miraluka seemed to be fairing better. "The Mandalorian patrols will be overwhelmed - we must alert the camp immediately."

"Doing so will allow the assassins to flee and reorganize," Kreia argued. "Sacrifice the patrols and allow the assassins to believe we are unaware of them. Lull them into confidence, and we will have the upper hand when they attack."

"Wow, you're a seriously sick bitch," Mira muttered groggily as she and Bao-Dur joined them in the doorway. "Why don't you just go slit their throats yourself and save them the trouble? They'll be really confident if they know they have an accomplice on the inside."

"Enough already," Aeryn cut her off with an impatient wave of her hand. "I won't sacrifice them." Kreia shook her head in disgust, but Aeryn was still speaking. "I need to get to Mandalore as quickly as possible. All of you stay here and stay hidden and don't come out unless I come for you. Got it?"

-

The attack came in the final hour before dawn. Mandalore had surreptitiously recalled all patrols and sentries, and the sudden absence of the Mandalorians must have made their attackers suspicious – just as Kreia had predicted. Sagging wearily against the wall where she stood watch, Aeryn could feel the old woman's contemptuous self-satisfaction from across the courtyard, but at least the witch stayed silent. For the twelfth time that morning, Aeryn wished she'd gotten more than an hour of sleep.

The five central buildings inside the camp now held the majority of Canderous' troops, huddled together and amazingly silent considering just how heavy their armor and weapons were. The remaining Mandalorians, along with the crew of the Ebon Hawk, were waiting inside one of the outlying buildings as a surprise force that would hopefully entrap their enemy and catch them off guard.

The land darkened as the sky began to lighten, and Aeryn was nearly convinced that the Sith had retreated when a distortion in the air somewhere to her left caught her attention. Her breath hitched in her throat as she immediately spotted a dozen more, but she remained still and didn't turn her head. Feigning an itch on her wrist, the Exile quickly tapped the button on her Comm twice while she lightly touched Kreia's mind with a warning, then leaned against the wall once more and let her eyes fall shut. Outwardly it appeared she was dozing on her feet, but her mind was stretching through the camp with the Force, trying to determine numbers and positions.

These Sith were skilled at masking their minds, frustrating Aeryn's efforts, but she guessed there was at least one hundred assassins worming their way throughout the camp. She nearly cursed aloud as her touch grazed a mind that was fevered and chaotic, and she mentally retreated as fast as she could and hoped the Sith apprentice hadn't felt the contact. Nervous for the first time, Aeryn cautiously explored once more and hissed, "Shit," out loud as she felt the presence of another Force-trained Sith. Covering for her response, she jerked as if she'd slipped off the wall and resettled herself with a tired grunt. She hadn't been expecting Force-sensitives to be part of this attack, but it was a surprise they would have to deal with and she couldn't afford to let it distract her.

Focusing her attention on the assassin closest to her, the Exile allowed her fingers to creep to the hilt of her 'saber as the cloaked man slid wraith-like toward her. Ten feet…seven feet…four feet…her thumb unhooked her weapon with an imperceptible, practiced motion. The assassin lifted his sword, and Aeryn heard his heart pounding with anticipation and excitement as he thought with pride of striking her down silently. Just as the muscles of his arm bunched, set to thrust his sword through her chest, a pale blue blaze blinded him for a fraction of a second before he smelled singed clothing and burning flesh. Aeryn stared grimly into his disbelieving gaze as his stealthfield generator disengaged and he slid off her lightsaber onto the damp grass, the hole in his heart still smoldering.

Locking onto another target, Aeryn propelled herself through the air with the Force as she heard a roar rise up behind her from the Mandalorians streaming out of the buildings. Despite the lack of light that restricted her vision, Aeryn landed nearly on top of her opponent, but the assassin had seen her dispatch his counterpart and was prepared. The moment she lunged for him, he parried and leaped backward as several more assassins materialized out of the shadows.

Ignoring the battles that erupted around her as the Mandalorians engaged the Sith, forcing them out of hiding, Aeryn lashed out with the Force, flinging the group of attackers backward, then spun to block a blade that arced toward her back. The assassin landed with a grunt on the ground as Aeryn hooked her leg behind his knee and shoved him off balance. A whirl of her 'saber ended the man's life as she flipped back and away, ready to dance with her next opponent. She was aware of her companions as they joined the defense effort, and she sent a powerful surge of confidence to them through the Force.

Her blood pounding in her ears, Aeryn lost herself in the rhythm of battle, only once having to fight back the memories of the last time she'd fought on the Demon Moon. Spinning away from an assassin, Aeryn's blade sent eerie, blue shadows across the Helm of Mandalore, and before she could stop herself, her lightsaber flashed down toward his face. Canderous grunted as he managed to get his sword up in time to stop the blow, and seeing the look on Aeryn's face, he held strong against her but did not push back. Shaking her head in confusion, she stepped away, her mouth open to speak, but she got no chance to explain as Mandalore lunged at her, knocking her out of the way as a crimson lightsaber hissed over their heads.

Pushing away from each other, Aeryn and Canderous rolled to their feet and faced the Sith apprentice. Bloody shadows danced across her distorted features as she twisted her lightsaber, eager to attack but enjoying their moment of surprise. Aeryn felt a surge of pity for the young Sith in front of her, but it was quickly replaced with grim determination.

The Sith's eyes flickered from one to the other as they circled her, each staying on opposite sides of her. "Two against one?" she growled, her voice thick with dark amusement. "Are you certain you won't need more help?" She chuckled mockingly at Aeryn. "And he said you were to be feared…what a fool."

"Who?" Aeryn demanded, not expecting an answer but feeling obligated to ask nonetheless.

"Why do you ask questions when you already know the answer?" the Sith sneered. "Ask your Master if you're too ignorant to know the answer." The apprentice lunged toward Aeryn, their blades sizzling as they crashed together, and the Sith leaned her face close enough for Aeryn to see the dilation in the other woman's yellow eyes. "No more words."

Both women shoved away, and with their weapons low but ready, they circled each other slowly. Canderous stepped forward, but Aeryn cast him the briefest of looks that left no question that she intended to fight this battle alone. He shifted his weight a moment, unhappy with the idea of leaving the Sith to her, but a shout from his right distracted him and he saw two of his men collapse under assassin's blades. With a last fleeting glance at the two women, Mandalore broke away toward his fallen men to help hold the line.

Aeryn didn't bother trying to touch her opponent's mind. Not only would it likely be well protected, but if the Sith was particularly strong in Force manipulation it would be possible for her to send Aeryn information that contradicted her actions. Knowing nothing about her opponent, Aeryn decided to rely on the one thing she'd learned all Sith possessed: impatience.

With lazy ease, the Exile matched her opponent's movements, keeping the same space between them no matter what move the Sith made. Her lip curled in annoyance, the apprentice dashed forward, the Force clearing the distance between them too fast for eyes to see, but Aeryn was ready. Spinning out of the way, she leveled a hard kick at the Sith's legs as she neared, but the woman snarled and leaped away to catch her balance. Aeryn was on her, taking advantage of the slightest hesitation, but the Sith dodged her cyan blades with inhuman speed and rolled to the side. The crackle of lightning filled Aeryn's ears just before the wave of pain swept through her body.

Grinding her teeth to fight back the scream of agony that rose in her throat, the Exile reeled her arm back and hurled her twin blades at her enemy. The Sith ducked and the weapon boomeranged over her head ineffectively, but it broke the woman's concentration and gave Aeryn an opening. Before her weapon had returned to her hand, Aeryn threw a stasis field at the Sith apprentice, but she shrugged it off and lunged once more. Aeryn's lightsaber spun back into her grasp just in time to block a downward slash, but she was at an awkward angle and the end of the crimson blade slid forward and sank into Aeryn's upper arm.

Roaring in pain, Aeryn threw the woman back from her with all the Force she could muster. When the Sith landed hard on the ground several yards away, gasping as the wind was knocked out of her, Aeryn launched herself up and forward with all of her strength, her 'saber raised for a killing blow. Her yellow eyes wide with fear, the Sith tried to raise her blade to block, but Aeryn sliced clean through the hilt of the crimson blade and the cyan lightsaber sank deep into the apprentice's shoulder, nearly severing her arm from her body. Horrific shrieks from the dying Sith filled Aeryn's ears and she raised her blade a final time to end the woman's suffering, but a chilling terror gripped her heart and Aeryn spun away, her eyes wildly searching the battlefield.

The sun crested over the horizon, bright and cheerful as the new day illuminated the bloody carnage inside the Mandalorian camp. There was still fighting going on at the far end of the camp, and only a few people were near Aeryn so she had little trouble locating the source of her distress.

Atton's body was being held several feet off the ground, but no one was near him. Stunned, Aeryn stared as his chest rippled and contorted, as a ball of clay does under a potter's hands. Time seemed to slow down, and her thoughts clouded over as she tried to get her leaden legs to run toward him. She knew it was the other Sith apprentice, the one she hadn't been paying attention to…the one she should have been watching out for. It took all her effort to tear her eyes off the horrific sight of Atton's limp form dangling above the earth, but when she did, she spotted the Sith standing on top of one of the buildings inside the compound. She started to sprint toward the man whose face was twisted in a gleeful snarl as he crushed Atton's chest, but a bright glint of metal made her stumble to a halt.

The vibroblade whistled through the air, almost too quickly to follow, and arced in front of the Sith apprentice. Atton's body crumpled to the ground as the Sith's joyful expression transformed to disbelief and he clutched at his gapping throat. Blood poured over his fingers and down his chest before his legs gave way and he pitched off the edge of the roof.

A look of hard determination etched on her face, Mira effortlessly caught her vibroblade as it returned to her hand, but the look almost immediately faltered. She dropped the blade hastily and stepped back as if it had burned her, her expression confused and afraid as she tried to sort out what she'd just done.

Aeryn's shout knocked Mira back to reality, and she was overcome with dread as she watched the Exile sprint toward Atton's lifeless body.