Two days later:

~Lux's POV~

Lux awoke two days later. Softly, he groaned. His body felt numb, and fuzzy with mugged sleep. There was something dim and golden above him, overwhelming, some sort of blurry, distant light.

He squinted at it. It's beautiful, he thought idly, watching it sit above him with patient, unchanging stillness.
Like when you look at the sun too long, and you can see its outline and shape, when you can narrow your view down to the core behind the fire. It looks like that. Like the sun.

And it felt as warm as the sun, too. Warmth. Something Lux had not felt for what felt like a very long time. He hadn't kept track of the days, or weeks or months or years.

Would everything around him be changed? Had his friends already withered into older models of themselves, weary and bent beneath the crushing weight of war? Had he grown old?

It was odd now to feel the tingle of light against skin, the gentle heat radiating round his body blearily. He could almost pinpoint the places where the warmth was most prominent.

Then again, he also could not. His body felt like a whole thing, a blob of constant warmth, no part any different than the other so it was all one.

Individuality caused separateness. They were two dancers who followed one another like night and day, one the consequence of bearing the other. Yet nothing was individual in this state. He could not tell what was arm, leg, head or torso. It all felt numb and fuzzy.

Somewhere deep inside him, he had memorized what was what. He knew that there were separate limbs with separate professions and posts to work inside his body. A slow rhythm thumped in his ears. He felt empty, yet full. Fuzzy and stiff, separated and amalgamated.

And beyond all this there was a voice. Or voices, really. Faint voices. He remembered them, actually. He could not remember what they meant, or even hear what they were saying. He remembered them being louder the last time he had heard them. Now they were muffled underneath something, and Lux had not the energy to care what it was.

He blinked up at the light, and slowly, his eyes focused. It became more defined as he did, centering until he saw a plain, wide bulb that shined with golden luminosity.

It was not the sun, but a lamp. Beyond and around the lamp was darkness, or near to darkness. It was nice darkness, the relaxing, soothing kind like when you closed your eyes. Not the same darkness that had been inside of his cell back at…

Lux gasped and sat straight up. Dooku.

Sitting up had been a very bad idea. His entire body sizzled with pain that felt as if he had been thrown against the sun purposefully. Lux let out a strangled cry of pain and sank back down into the bed, fingers twisting in the heavy, warm blankets around him, the soft and yielding mattress beneath his aching body.

He gasped for breath, looked up at the lazily swinging lamp above him, how much it looked like the same lamp the droid had placed around him before bolting him to the table like some sort of experiment rat.

Fury rose within him, somewhere in the nameless places of his united body mass. He glanced around, noticing vaguely a curtain wrapped round his bed in a half circle, a wall behind him. Where was he?

Suddenly, a sliver of light penetrated his personal darkness, and a shadow swept inside without sound. Calmly, Intrepid stepped into the warm glow of the lamp and grinned down at him, her face the very face of an angel. He stared up at it, wondering at this hallucination, this mirage of a different time with different people.

"Hello, Lux," he basked in the bliss of her voice, that voice that always remained calm, and reminded him of the soft trickle of water running over smooth pebbles, flawless, cool, peaceful, confident, mellifluous.

She was standing above him, a hazy glow surrounding her on all sides. He took it to be her halo. Slowly, he felt something move and separate itself from the wholeness of the rest of the body. It was his arm, the mechanical one, he remembered.

He wanted to touch the hallucination. He wanted to feel skin against skin instead of flesh against metal for once. He knew she was a dream, but if only he could try to remember what she had felt like he would be satisfied.

The angel smiled at his face, or maybe she just always smiled, and suddenly the nerve probes in his arm felt her touch him, instead of the other way around, her grip strong and slightly painful, but not the bad painful.

Not like Dooku. She was not coated in a dark but submerged in light, and her touch was feather light as she gently brought cold metal hands to her lips in a formal kiss of greeting. His eyes grew wide and he squeezed the warm hand, pulsing with life, real with blood, with…

She was real?

"Intrepid?" he croaked, and found his throat amongst the wholeness. Arm, throat, eyes, mouth. He squeezed again, and with the recollection of her touch, came the recollection of his escape.

She was real, then. Lux gasped sharply as reality hit him in the face. "Intrepid!" he cried softly, yanking with that thing called arm on her hand. Intrepid gasped lightly as he pulled her into a constricting hug.

"Lux, you're healing, for force sakes, let me go!" she hissed, bracing her hands against his shoulders, but he held on tight, burying her head in his chest and resting his chin atop her head.

He felt small droplets of liquid leak from his eyes, and suddenly his shoulders were shaking, though mouth made no sound. He wrapped his arm around her, never, ever wanting to let go. "I thought I'd never see you again," he choked out. Upon hearing this, Intrepid ceased her struggle and sighed.

"Me, too," she mumbled into his shirt, or whatever thin fabric unsuccessfully covered his body. With that said; one arm snaked around his neck and gripped the back of his head, painfully pulling hairs in a relentless grip.

Taking this as an invitation, Lux held her another moment before slackening his grip. Intrepid straightened and looked down at him with eyes full of emotion.

"You imbecile," she muttered fondly, gently swiping away the tears on his face with green thumbs. He shook his head and grabbed her hand, with his real one this time. Finding now arms.

"You're safe now, Lux. You escaped Dooku's clutches-a feat worthy of recognition, may I add-and now we're aboard Anakin's ship. You're alright," those words meant everything right now. He let out a sigh of relief and lay back against the pillows.

Intrepid looked down at him with crossed arms. "How do you feel?" She asked softly. Lux gave a sore half shrug. "Relieved," he had no room in his heart for anything else right now. "Well, that's better than most of the other options you have," Intrepid breathed, with a slight slackening in her shoulders. Lux squinted at the curtain behind her.

"Where am I?" He asked softly. "In the med-bay, of course. I placed the curtain around you for a bit of privacy. The Rescue Bird worked. We have saved many lives, yet the med-bay's are all brimming," she explained.

Lux nodded. He hated being treated as special, but in this case he was grateful for the privacy. He was not sure what he would do if he had to face people again. He wasn't sure he could. Speaking of people, though…

Intrepid held up a hand before he could speak. "Ahsoka is coming. She probably sensed you wake, and I predict she'll drag the others in with her with no regard to their own personal responsibilities. The twins have missed you," the twins. Luke. Leia. Even their names brought him relief. "How long have I been gone?" he asked.

"You were aboard that Sith scum's ship for a week. You've been out cold two days. I was beginning to fear you'd gotten an infection, even so…" She reached forward, delicately, eyeing him warily as if afraid he would bolt, and gently grabbed his temples between her hands.

He saw her close her eyes; and the voices shouted a bit louder behind his ears. He cringed and had to bite back a cry of fear. After a moment, she withdrew, followed by the voices. "Oh, Lux," Intrepid breathed. She opened her large eyes and gazed at him somberly. "That evil chosski raided your psyche, didn't he?" She asked softly.

Lux nodded, with a grimace of pain. Intrepid rested a light hand on his shoulder. "If you'll let me," she said softly. "I'll try to undo whatever he's done. Do you know what information he got?" She wondered.

Lux shook his head ruefully. Intrepid pursed her lips worriedly, but said nothing. She did not have time to say anything, because at the exact moment the curtain was pushed to the side again, and into the room bustled seven additional people.

"Lux-Lux!" Luke and Leia shrieked, the sounds resounding in his ears shrilly. He ignored it, instead focusing on the smiles that bloomed across their faces at the sight of him.

"Hey, guys." He croaked out as he held out a bandaged hand. Tiny hands both gripped his fingers in harsh and tight holds, grinning. The other Jedi filed inside of the small space quietly, packed so closely that the very air warmed with body heat. Lux's eyes traveled over each face in turn, memorizing each detail, each smile and dancing pairs of eyes, and sighed in content. He was home.

"Lux, I'm so glad you're alright," Padme said softly, clasping her hands together. Her eyes were twinkling with joy. "How do you feel?" Nava wondered as Ahsoka moved forward to stand beside Intrepid.

She squeezed his shoulder, lopsided grin in place. He squeezed the hand holding his and shrugged lightly. "Relieved. Exhausted. Sore. Tender. Bitter," he named off. Obi-wan stroked his beard and nodded.

"You'll be fine," he assured him with confidence now. Lux let out a breath, and found some weight alleviated from his chest. "Lux-Lux, guess what?" Luke cried. "Leia and I have been practicing and we finished that flip you taught us!" Luke said, excitedly.

Lux's own chest expanded with pride. "Did you? Well, I can't wait to see it," he told them. "And I drew you a bunch of pretty pictures," Leia informed him shyly, pudgy cheeks coloring with redness. "I'm sure they're the greatest," Lux agreed, nodding.

He felt very tired, and yet very relieved. He was out of that cell. He was out of Dooku's clutches. He was back in the protective encase of people who loved rather than hated. It was a welcome change. "Alright, you two, go see to your training. Master Tinn said he'd teach you about controlling the force today," Anakin shooed them.

The twins frowned up at their father anxiously. "But what about Lux-Lux?" Luke demanded. "I'll be fine. I'll come see all the nice things you've completed in my absence later. Just go on and learn your weird customs," how they taught the younglings how to control the force was beyond Lux's knowledge, and really he wondered if he'd even like to know.

"Okay," Leia said skeptically. She eyed him suspiciously. "If you say so," Luke agreed just as dubiously, as they stepped away from his hand together. Then, with a neat half bow to him, they turned and waltzed out the door to begin their Jedi lessons early.

Lux watched them go with affection. He had missed them. "Good," Anakin stated once they were out of earshot. "Now that they're gone, how bad is he, Intrepid?" Lux had been wondering that as well. He was glad Anakin had said it. He had not known how to ask, and even if he wanted to know. He felt a stab of fear. Ahsoka squeezed his shoulder.

Intrepid sighed and tugged absently on a head tail. "Well, he has naught but one broken rib. Skin damage, and some internal bleeding. We managed to flush out the blasted poisons they used to keep you docile, but I suspect that when they will truly wear off soon, then you are in danger of shock or mental trauma, which is more worrisome than physical injuries. You have so many cuts and bruises that you've lost half your weight in blood and have hairline fractures on most of your bones. What I worry about though is Dooku's mind probe," she ground out. Lux blinked rapidly.

All of that? His heart sped up a bit, worry getting the better of him. Would he ever be able to get through all of that? What if shock and trauma set in? Would he slowly go insane? Become reclusive and depressed? When the relief of being free wore away, what would he feel afterwards? Am I strong enough to get through this? He wondered.

"That sorry sick scum messed with your mind?" Ahsoka demanded, her eyes flashing with rage. Lux nodded. "When he didn't get what he wanted by way of torture, he got impatient," he explained, mildly for all the pain that had caused. He scowled.

"I still hear the voices, but they're dimmer now," he observed aloud. "Voices?" Padme asked with concern. He nodded. "After he sort of ransacked my head, I heard thousands upon thousands of people yelling in my mind. They won't shut up," he explained.

How could he be so calm about any of this? "That's common when a force sensitive thoroughly invades another non-force sensitive's psyche, especially a Dark user," Nava stated sullenly.

"Can we reverse it?" Intrepid inquired. Nava narrowed her eyes at him appraisingly. Lux gulped, hoping she would say yes. "You say they're dimmer now?" Nava asked. He nodded.

"I suspect that's due to the light, they don't usually kick up again unless they have hatred to fuel them on. They might just fade to a complete stop with time. I don't want us risking messing up your mind even more. What do you think, Obi? Did Ventress ever go into your head?" She asked. None of them ever asked about Bruck.
Obi-wan crossed his arms and let out a short bark of laughter. "All Ventress did with my head was hit it, she assumed I was already possessed and needed no more assistance," he scoffed.

Lux could not help but smile feebly at the remark. The others snickered. Obi-wan smiled. His dark wit could sometimes be of help. "But yes, it is reversible. I think it would be a better idea to try than to let it wear off. That could take any number of weeks, and the process of that induces hallucinations and nightmares no person should have to bear. It will be hard enough with the memories. Let's not add dark images to the list of things yet to do," he advised. Lux shuddered.

Intrepid screwed her lips nervously. "How do I reverse it?" She was the best healer among them. "Truthfully, I'm not sure," Obi-wan admitted remorsefully. "Though I suppose all that's required is to pour light into his mind to exterminate the last lingering traces of dark. That is all that is making doubts into external voices," he said.

"I vote we ask Master Yoda before we go rummaging around in Lux's head," Ahsoka piped in after a considerably silence spent thinking on this. Lux instantly agreed with her proposed plan of action. If Yoda did not know then no one would.

Anakin snorted. "Yoda probably hears things too, we've all seen him talking to himself," he grunted. Padme rammed an elbow into his ribs. "Ow! What? It's true! Let's ask someone who doesn't speak backwards," he voted, rubbing his sore side. Lux chuckled softly. "Would you stop? Who are we gonna ask, then?" She contemplated with a nasty glance at her husband.

Suddenly Ahsoka perked up. "Aayla might know," she suggested. "Aayla Secura? Why would she know?" Nava asked in surprise. Ahsoka waved her hand dismissively. "A hunch. Do you think you'd be alright for now, Lux?" She asked. He nodded.

Obi-wan cocked his head. "Hmm. I'll ask some of the other council members. They might know something more," he offered. "Master Luminara might know, or some of the other Jedi healers," Intrepid said, with a nod.

"We'll go ask around together," Nava agreed. "I'll go with you," Padme volunteered. Lux felt warmth expand in his chest. He wasn't alone in this fight, at least.

Padme turned to her husband with crossed arms. "And who are you going to ask?" She demanded. Anakin returned her accusing glare with a charismatic smile.

"Artoo," he claimed haughtily. The others stared at him. Lux felt his grin growing larger beneath the shifting waters of laughter. He hadn't laughed in so long. "Why?" Intrepid wondered a moment later, sounding as if she had no real particular reason for asking besides that she was curious.

Anakin did not seem to think his answer odd at all. "You'd be surprised at what Artoo knows. He's a pretty smart droid, huh Snips?" he looked to Ahsoka, who slowly shook her head, staring at him as if he were a rather ignorant and obnoxious child.

"Don't bring me into this," she told him helplessly. "Anakin, that droid has a loose wire," Obi-wan informed his former apprentice, with a long-suffering sigh. "He does not, Obi-wan. Don't say that. You all underestimate him any…" Padme interrupted with a laugh. She patted him on the shoulder with a fond hand. "Only you would be creative enough to think to ask a droid for help, Ani," she told him with a laugh. He grinned down at her.

"Thanks, angel, you understand," Anakin said. Lux cocked his head. They seemed more relaxed around each other now, more loving and less awkward. He wondered what had happened in his absence. He only shook his head, deciding to be grateful for the time being rather than thoughtful.

After all, he was home.


~Ahsoka's POV~

"Let's split up and meet back here in an hour," Anakin said firmly, his eyes shining with determination for answers as they all emerged from the med-bay into the halls.

"Agreed, someone has to know something," Padme said, Nava nodded at her side and then moving as one, the two women charged down the hall, one brown and one white cloak fluttering at each of their heels. Obi-wan and Anakin shared a fleeting look before hurrying down the opposite hallway.

"Do you know where Master Secura is?" Intrepid asked when they were gone. Ahsoka shook her head, keeping her vision straight ahead. "No, I'll have to find Jinx and ask him," her head tails burned brighter colors at the thought of the young man.

She had seen nor spoken to him since that morning a few days ago when they had woken up in each other's arms after their fight. Innocent as it had been, she could not help but think about what it could have been. She flu shed colors every time.

Intrepid, too, had not forgotten. She cocked her brows and put her hands on her hips. "Hmm," She hummed suspiciously. Ahsoka glanced up and sighed, "It really wasn't how it seemed, Intrepid," she assured her once again. "I know it wasn't," Intrepid agreed magnanimously.

"For one, you both were still dressed, and another, I know you wouldn't turn to that source of pleasure to relieve stress. It is not in your characters. But it can become something like that," She said.

Ahsoka feigned ignorance. "What do you mean?" She asked innocently. Intrepid chuckled mirthlessly. "I mean attachment. Or even worse, love. It's not something you plan, you know? But beware it does not cloud your judgment," Intrepid warned.

Ahsoka rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, me and Jinx? He drives me insane. He's impulsive, self-absorbed, quick-tempered, pessimistic, and cynical. We're complete opposites," she pointed out blandly. Intrepid smirked.

"Hence the old saying: opposites attract. I like Jinx, I do. I just…Just know what you're getting yourself into if you do fall in love. Because once you go in, there's no coming out," Intrepid cautioned, with a shake of her head.

Her eyes slowly trailed away, staring into the distance. The Force rumbled with remembered pain. Ahsoka eyed her friend seriously. "You know from experience?" she asked softly. Intrepid nodded and swallowed once.

"He betrayed me to the Sith. He was…Beautiful. I allowed my love for him to cloud my thoughts and judgment, and innocent's paid the price," Ahsoka swallowed past a lump in her throat.

Courascant had taken something from them all. That place had been a curse. She inhaled deeply, accepting this knowledge as an act of trust, a pledge to their already unbreakable sisterhood. She stepped forward and put a hand on her friend's shoulder.

Intrepid looked up with eyes opaque with pain. The pain of a lover lost, and a woman betrayed, a heart broken. Intrepid rested a hand atop Ahsoka's, and squeezed, barely. "Be careful," she whispered, and it was a supplication to, this one time, think before she acted, use her mind before she followed the whimsical dictates of her heart.

"I understand. I will," Ahsoka promised sincerely. She did not know if she wanted or could even bear to feel the pain she saw reflected in Intrepid's eyes. This was the cost of loving as a Jedi-you must be ready for torture, brutality…and Betrayal.

You must be ready to lose what you fight for, as you must be ready with everything else. Ahsoka considered herself prepared and nodded, taking her hand away. With a reverent bow to seal off their mutual trust, to dedicate this moment in time to themselves and their friendship, she and Intrepid turned, and ran their separate ways.

Later:

She found Jinx aboard his ship, head bowed over a holo-graphic map of all the resources given him and his ships with his admiral and clone commander. "We haven't lost our complete stock of gunships yet, sir. Next time we can only send out three fourths, though," his admiral was saying when Ahsoka walked into the room. Jinx, whose handsome brow thundered with concentration, looked up and his eyes grew wide to see her.

"Ahsoka!" he quickly cleared his throat to get rid of the squeak that had come out when he spoke her name. She, herself, felt sweat itch beneath her arms at seeing him. Her skin ran ice-cold and she shivered involuntarily. Why did he give her goose-bumps?

She bowed slightly at the waist. She was not here to talk about that. "I'm sorry to disturb you, but I'm looking for Master Secura. Do you know where she might be?" She asked. Jinx seemed relieved that she had asked a common question, yet scowled thoughtfully over the request.

"Last time I saw she was with Master Fisto aboard his ship," he answered. Ahsoka nodded. "Thank you. I'll see you…" before she could finish though, Jinx spoke again. "Ahsoka, I heard you have found Lux. Is he alright?" Now it was she whom was relieved at the simple question.

She stared at Jinx, and saw in his black pools of reflection a sincere concern for her friend. Her heart melted. At least some one cared enough to mark Lux's sacrifice as something worth importance. "He's in no grave danger presently," she explained slowly.

"But we're trying to see if anyone knows how to dislodge the Dark Side Dooku implanted in his mind out," she explained. Jinx's visage darkened. "He messed with his psyche?" he demanded.

As Jedi, they had been taught from earliest memory never to go directly into another person's thoughts without explicit approval or unless the situation called for it.

What Dooku had done was not like mind tricking someone. That was only when there was not much of a mind to change, and even then it was harmless unless done too many times.

What he had done… It was an invasion of privacy, an assault on one of the most important possessions a being could possibly have. To mess with the mind, with thoughts and views, and contemplation, was to destroy something completely, a desecration unredeemable in its horror.

To a Jedi, it was repulsive. Ahsoka assumed Dooku had had enormous fun in it, and fury sprang to life at the thought. She released it. Anger would not help Lux. "Yes. Do you think Master Secura might know how to reverse the effects?" she wondered. Jinx leaned back, thoughtful. "Maybe. You'd better ask. Is there anything I can do?" He asked genuinely.

Ahsoka smiled and folded her arms into opposite sleeves. "For now? Hope Intrepid can pull it off," or pray the force be with him. Jinx heard the unsaid response and crossed his arms. "She can. I know she can. I wish you luck," he said gracefully. Ahsoka accepted this with a small smile and a solid note in her head that there was no such thing as luck.

Jinx seemed to know it was in her mind, for he smiled ruefully and turned away, dismissing her with debonair. Haughty ass. Ahsoka, chuckling, took her leave.