"T3, please don't argue with me. Just tie the Ebon Hawk's database to here," Jaden said quietly as she sat in the main conference room waiting for the others.
After she snuck out of Dustil's room, she went and cried on Visas's shoulder for a little while then went to Carth's quarters to shower. The tears were never far from her and her heart still hurt, but there was little she could do about it now. Jaden was afraid of what she might say to Carth if she saw him, so she was avoiding another confrontation. A part of her wanted to tell him everything she was feeling but another part, perhaps what little dark side she had left said frack it. This meeting would be a good way to get her mind off her thoughts and perhaps get her off the Sojourn and away from Mr. Trust-Nothing-Jump-to-Conclusions, quicker.
When Atton came in, he studied her for a moment before frowning. "You look like hell. How are you feeling?"
"Thanks, and I'm fine."
"You and poster boy get into it?" he asked sitting in the chair next to hers. Jaden gave him a sharp look and Atton put up his hands, "Sorry I asked. But if you want me to kick his butt . . ."
"What I want," she snapped, "is for you to . . . never mind." Jaden closed her eyes and took a calming breath. Atton didn't have the chance to respond as Visas and Canderous arrived.
"T3," she said when they were seated.
"Beep, boop, dwoo."
Jaden took a deep breath and rubbed her temples hoping the galloping Ronto in her brain would decide to take a break. This was the downside to being . . . corporeal but she pushed it aside and sighed, "The legend of the keys . . ."
Canderous interrupted, "We're not waiting for Onasi?"
"He's busy," she retorted, thinking the worst of me, she thought as she picked up the stylus and began at the top of the screen and drew a box. Below that and to both sides, she drew two more boxes and connected them to the top box with lines. "The top box represents the masters, the Force. Below on the right is me, the other is Zared. It's like a scale." Jaden tapped the screen twice and a box appeared around her drawing then she moved it to the upper right of the screen. All of these actions were mirrored on the larger screen behind her. "T3."
"Dwoo . . ." the droid sputtered then beeped morosely at Jaden's dead look. On the screen appeared ancient text.
"What is that? I don't recognize it," Visas said.
"It looks familiar," Canderous added.
"It's an ancient language, a dead language, besides me only Radha Amenusis knows what it means, and his knowledge is limited."
"What language?" Atton asked studying the screen. Jaden watched as he tried to form the words and was pleased when she saw the look of recognition come into his eyes.
~~ He takes another step, child. ~~
~~ Yes, but in which direction. He's just as likely to flee as to go forward. ~~
~~ Have faith in your smart mouth master Jedi. ~~
"That's . . ."
"The language of the masters. It's how I communicate with them."
"You can read that?" Canderous asked with a snort.
"And speak it. This text is the history of the Valley of the Jedi and the keys . . ."
Even millennia have millennia and consequently knowledge of time is lost but one thing will remain constant: there was the beginning. There was the Force. No one knows how the Force and the beginning are intertwined and that's not important. What is important is what comes after.
The Midiclorians, which reside in almost every living thing, share a symbiotic relationship with the Force and they were the first to recognize the need for balance. Even among them, there were some that were discontent and wanted to use the power they possessed through the Force. Fortunately, both sides recognized that a struggle would devastate them and ultimately the collective consciousness they shared between the Force and every living thing, so they struck the first of three accords recognizing that light and dark must co-exist in order to survive, thus the True Jedi and the True Sith were created and the universe was divided equally.
Thinking they had solved their dilemma, they soon realized that it wasn't just the Midiclorians that had this problem but the sentient beings, in which they resided, as well, which could prove detrimental not only to them but also to the Force. The beings of the galaxy fought, each struggling to gain more wealth, more land, more of anything they felt they needed for survival. Some early societies were wiped out, lost to the millennia's millennia. Others were charitable with those lesser than themselves, but they were quickly defeated and again lost to the millennia's millennia.
Therefore, after much deliberation between the True Jedi and the True Sith, the second accord was struck, if one side became more powerful in the galaxy than the other, balance must be returned so that they could survive.
"Wait a minute," Canderous interrupted, "Are you trying to tell us that the Sith and Jedi work together to maintain balance in the Force?"
Jaden, using the stylus, brought her drawing back down and below Zared's name; she made a box and labeled it 'Sith'. She repeated the action under her own name and put 'Jedi'. "No," she said putting 'TJ' next to her name and 'TS' next to Zared's. "The True Sith and the True Jedi work to maintain balance, the Sith and Jedi you know are amateurs at it, wouldn't you agree?"
Atton tipped his head and gave her a questioning look. "Did you just insult me?"
No, just a kick in the pants, she thought before saying, "No. But the history," she said pointing to the Sith and Jedi boxes, "hasn't exactly been all hugs and kisses now, has it?" Jaden drew an equal sign between her and Zared then added an arrow on top of that pointing to the Force.
"But Zared was a Jedi," Visas stated.
Jaden sighed, "I'll get to that in a moment . . ."
As part of the second accord, both sides agreed that each generation would have an embodier so that if it became necessary to restore balance to the Living Force, the embodier would be on hand, possessing both sides in equal measure. Because of the time needed for the Living Force to become so out of balance that the embodier was needed, the temple in the Valley of the Jedi was built specifically to be their home and training ground until it was time to fulfill their destiny. The temple represented the light and the dark and would be the symbolic home of the Midiclorians. Knowing the temple and the embodier would need to be protected; three keys were forged from the native ore, making them indestructible. One key represented the light; one key represented the dark, and one key was neutral.
"And no, the reason for the name has been lost in the passing millennia," Jaden said when Atton looked like he was ready at ask.
Six men were chosen; three who followed the light and three who followed the dark. They were paired off, given the keys and told where to bury them. None of the men were told which key they carried or where the others were going to prevent collusion among the group. When the task was completed, they were instructed to return to the Valley.
"None of them did and although the Masters deny it, I think they knew that would be the outcome. Once each pair reached their destinations and buried the keys, the dark side struck at the light. I asked the dark ones about that, and I believe that they had nothing to do with it, that it was a 'nature of the beast' thing. Anyway, the first pair battled until they both struck fatal blows simultaneously and died instantly. The second pair, well, once the key was buried, the Sith struck down the Jedi. When he began to unbury the key, he was caught in the cataclysmic explosion of the planet."
"The asteroid field," Canderous said remembering what Jaden told him earlier.
"Huh?" Atton asked looking confused.
"Zared," Canderous chuckled, "is searching an asteroid field for the second key."
Atton's wicked grin was full of devious pleasure as he waggled his brows. "And the last one?"
"Tatooine. Same scenario, but the Sith was frightened off and the Jedi survived. He moved the key to the Krayt Dragons cave after he recovered from his wounds. When the Sith returned, he killed him then remained on Tatooine to protect the key. He died of a mysterious illness shortly after he sent his wife and son to Telos."
"Telos?" Visas asked sitting back in shock.
"Sounds to me like it was a suicide mission from the start," Canderous said.
Jaden shrugged then picked up the stylus and tapped it a few times. "T3," she said standing up. The beeps this time were laced with resignation but he projected a vid that looked like a long handled broom, its bristles spread in many directions.
"Hold it steady, you idiot droid."
"Atton," Jaden sighed. "This is the timeline, it's supposed to move." And it did, appearing as if the "handle" grew longer, slowly twisting into a stiff unchangeable rod. "We're here," she said pointing to where the bristles began to fan out, indicating all the different directions fate or choices could lead someone. "The end, here," she pointed to the straight, lopped off end, "represents the First Great Schism in the order when Xendar and his Legions of Lettow were formed. You could say this was the beginning of the written history of the Jedi and Sith."
"We're here for a history lesson," Canderous growled.
Jaden smiled at him, "No, because it bores even me. This is more for context. The Valley, the keys, and two of the three accords were well before this point, before the advent of hyperspace or the Rakatan's Infinite Empire. This point, where the line begins, is where the Sith you know also begin. After all, they are nothing more than fallen Jedi." Jaden went back to the table and drew a line down the slide between herself and Zared. She then added another box under her name and labeled it 'Sith'. She did the same under Zared and labeled it 'Jedi'.
"Balance," Visas said studying the larger screen. "So the Jedi also exist in the True Sith empire?"
"They're called Proditor's, it means traitor. When they pop up out of their hidey-holes they are quickly crushed."
"Unlike the Republic that takes a wait and see attitude until it's almost to late," Atton said with a small measure of disgust.
"And why the Mandalorians were able to sweep through the Outer Rim."
"She didn't say it was a perfect system but the Jedi believe in peace and are the guardians of such, choosing to use the Force and its power to guide their path, in the service of civilization," Atton said. "Better to battle what you see than strike at shadows," he added as he studied the timeline. When he noticed the silence, he looked at Jaden who had a faint smile on her face. "What?"
"You're sounding more and more like a Master Jedi, Rand," Canderous snorted as he shook his head.
"Oh hell no! I'd have to prance around in robes and give up drinking and Pazaak." Then added softly, "Not to mention women."
~~ All right, Child, ~~ the Masters sighed, ~~ They are baby steps but steps none the less. ~~
~~ And the order will thrive for thousands of years because of it. ~~
"Damn it Jaden, stop looking at me like I'm a tasty morsel," he groused embarrassed.
"What ever you say," she cleared her throat, "Master Smarty Pants." Atton shook his head but there was a smile lurking at the corners of his mouth. "You can turn it off now, T3," she said sitting back down.
"So what happened with the keys?" Visas asked.
"Nothing, really. The Masters followed the accord, created the embodier for each generation, built their civilizations, and sniped at each other. Still do for that matter. There were a few times some came close to discovering one of the keys but since no record was ever made outside of the valley, no one knew what they were."
"Until now." Atton stated. Jaden nodded.
"What is it he found?" Visas asked.
"I think a better place to start is why he is looking for them."
"All right, why?" Atton piped in.
As Jaden got up to pace, the door to the conference room slid open and Carth and Kwyn walked in. Great, now he shows up. Jaden froze for a nanosecond before she continued standing. Her eyes met Carth's briefly but they were shuttered and hard to read. Reaching out she found the voice through the cracked and crumbled barriers to find desolation. The hope that had so briefly flickered to life a few days ago was now in ashes, replaced with dejection. Physically he looked better, having at least showered, but emotionally he was indifferent, beaten down by what had happened and her failure to protect him.
Kwyn mumbled their apologizes for being late as they sat at the opposite end of the table. Jaden gave him a faint smile, shut herself off from the voice, and began pacing as T3 put the ancient text back up on the screen.
Because the embodier possessed equal parts of light and dark, the Masters of both sides raised the child as they taught the child, in equal measure. Even the names used would be the same. Embodier would have the same number of characters as Sith'ari. When the child had successfully completed their lessons and trials they would become the Supreme Master of the Jedi and Darth Tyr, the supreme dark lord of the Sith.
Over time, each side promoted the legend of a perfect being, one that would bring balance to the Force, in hopes of creating something better the sentient life forms could believe in when hardship and strife struck at the galaxy.
"Over the millennia, the legend has become distorted as most legends do. Storytellers add or take away parts that may or may not fit the telling. As the story is passed down, it can take on different dimensions, but the meaning is the same."
"The embodier will restore balance," Canderous said with a frown. There was no side for the Mandalorians to align themselves. Regardless of the outcome.
"Yes. The Jedi defeat the Sith, or the Sith defeat the Jedi."
Kwyn sort of raised his hand, "Forgive my ignorance, but what's wrong with a happy peaceful galaxy?"
Atton answered, "Peace can lead to apathy, apathy can lead to complacency, which can lead in all sorts of directions, mostly it leads to decay in a society and civilization will soon follow. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger," he shrugged. "You didn't wake up one morning and suddenly decide to be General Kwyn Lavek, you had to work at it and that makes the reward more gratifying." Atton looked at the five sets of eyes that stared at him. "What?"
"You're killing me, Captain Rand. Should I call a tailor to fit you for those robes?" Canderous asked disgusted.
"Hey! I know first hand, as do you, that the struggles we face in life teach us, makes us stronger. We could have laid down, let the galaxy run over us but we didn't," he said looking at Canderous, "and because of that we recognize injustice and fight against it. If you still wanted to be a mercenary, you would, but that isn't who you are so you fought against your peoples downfall and decided to restore honor to the Mandalorians by reuniting the clans."
"As opposed to you who ran from Revan's service to hide on Nar Shaddaa. You would probably still be there if it wasn't for the Exile picking you up out of the gutter."
"He didn't pick me up out of the gutter, Mandalore; he rescued me from self destruction. I made the choice to follow the light because I was tired of always fighting my life, so I chose to change it, just as you chose to change yours!" Atton looked at Jaden and found that 'tasty morsel' look on her face again. "Now what?" he asked slamming back in the chair and frowning.
Jaden doubted Atton even realized what he just said. ~~ Baby step, baby step, baby step, massive leap! ~~
~~ To a teetering ledge, Child, tread carefully. ~~
"Nothing. I agree with you. The good, the bad, the ugly are found in each species, that's what keeps things in balance. The choices we make are a part of that."
"But this imbalance is larger than that, isn't," Visas stated quietly, but she too was pleased to see Atton acknowledge what his life had been and what it could be.
Jaden nodded and moved her first drawing back to the screen as she quickly explained what it was to Carth and Kwyn.
Kwyn frowned before hesitantly saying, "So you embody the light and Zared embodies the dark. But didn't you say there was only one embodier?"
"I did," she answered softly picking up the stylus and twirling it in her fingers. "Despite the two accords and knowing that they need each other, the Masters constantly struggle against one another. At times, you see the results of that in the various wars that have engulfed the galaxy. They don't instigate them and it's usually the dark masters that offer their power first, but that is only after a conflict has grown to the point where they see a benefit to them. Sometimes they step in out of sheer jealousy and drag the light masters along to protect and defend the innocent on both sides. The dark masters are a greedy lot, always looking for ways to expand the True Sith Empire. The light masters work to expand the knowledge of the people of the Republic, to make the civilization stronger though compassion." Jaden went to T3, and asked him to put the timeline up once more. When the holo-vid showed in the room she reached out and touched a spot not far from where the bristles began. A larger area appeared and she continued the process until she found what she wanted.
"That's Malachor V, when Revan gave the order to fire the Mass Shadow Generator," Canderous growled, the anger of that day still clear in his voice.
"Actually," she said touching the screen, "That's Revan and Malak at the Trayus Academy," she added pointing to the cloaked and masked woman with the jawless Malak beside her. She moved her finger and touched a small dot. The image enlarged to reveal a ship with Zared and Bao Dur standing on the bridge. "Zared, believing Revan was dead because she hadn't returned from the surface, gave the order to Bao Dur to fire the Mass Shadow Generator," she said quietly as they watched Zared turn to Bao Dur and nod once.
Even twelve years later, watching the destruction of the planet once more caused a horrifying silence to descend on the large conference room. As the others watched, Jaden relived the pain, heard the stark cries of the dying, and felt the loss of a part of her all over again.
Moments after the deed was done, Zared walked from the bridge to his quarters, collapsed against the wall, and sank to his knees. They didn't need audio to know he cried out, 'What have I done!' as he banged his head against the wall then began destroying his room. They watched the light fade from his eyes, the proud, cocky and fun-loving aura dim as his hands became bloody and mangled from the abuse as he overturned his desk, smashed the other furniture, broke lamps and glass scattered about the room. Suddenly he covered his ears as if to block out a terrible shriek that appeared to tear at his sanity as he tore at his hair. My scream. Moments later he fell to his knees then collapsed. At the same time I did. Slowly she reached out with a shaking hand and touched the point at the present and the timeline faded.
"Is that when he cut himself off from the Force?" The quiet question from Visas sounded like a sonic boom in the silence.
"Yes . . . and no."
"That's sound a little like being sorta pregnant. Either you are or your aren't." Atton pointed out.
Jaden gave him a sad smile before looking at Carth who was leaning at a slant with his chin on his hand. He had been quiet up to this point, and in a way, she hoped that would continue. While Atton and Visas knew what she truly was, he still believed her to be only the embodiment of the light side.
~~ Child, please do not do this. ~~
~~ He has a right to know. They all do. ~~
~~ You punish yourself. ~~
Jaden blocked out the masters as she went back and sat down.
"Zared has always had a strong connection to the Force. It was easy for him to bond with others, influence their decisions and actions as you all know. Kavar, Vrook, Atris, they all recognized it and spent extra time with him hoping to temper this connection, but they failed," she sighed. As she continued, her voice went from being saddened to being angry. "When he returned for his trial, they didn't tell him what happened because they didn't understand it themselves. They lied to him because not knowing was more terrifying then trying to help him!" If they had only told him the truth!
"It surprises you that the Jedi didn't do anything?" Carth asked casually as he traced an invisible picture on the tabletop.
"I have every right to be angry, Admiral, because instead of this," she said hitting the drawing on the screen, "it should be this!" What is wrong with you? This is not my fault! Why are you being so cold and indifferent! She hastily brought up a blank screen and drew a box at the top labeled 'Force/Jaden' then drew a long line through the box on the screen writing 'TS' on the left and 'TJ' on the right, below each of those she put 'S/J' or 'J/S'. "The only reason it's like this," she went back to the first drawing, "is because Zared took a part of me!"
Carth sat up straighter as he studied the two diagrams side-by-side. What the hell? This is what I get for trusting her, more lies, more deception! He didn't think he could feel any worse yet the idea of crawling into a hole and dying crossed his mind if it would take away the ugliness he felt inside.
"Kwyn, to answer your question, I am the embodiment of the Force. The only reason I am the light at this point is because the dark masters saw their chance to stick it to the light but good, so they enlisted Kreia through a deception of their own, to manipulate Zared to choose the dark side. In essence he became the Sith'ari instead of it remaining safely hidden away within me."
"And if he refused, chose the path of the light?" Kwyn asked cautiously.
"You'd be battling the True Sith," Canderous said, "because she knows where the keys are and Zared doesn't."
"No! There would be no battle, no Sith fleet wandering around the Republic. I would have collected the keys, confronted Zared and gone home with none of you the wiser." Jaden plowed her hands through her hair and hung her head before continuing. "Zared didn't just become a wound in the Force. There was so much death at Malachor V, and because of his strong connection, it overwhelmed him. He didn't recognize what was happening and like an overstuffed closet, he slammed the door to keep the throbbing from escaping. When he did that he . . . trapped a part of me within. Kreia slowly opened the door by manipulating him. When he showed up at the Sith home world, Radha recognized who he was and filled him in on the rest." Jaden looked up and saw the accusation in Carth's eyes. Before he could accuse her she said, "No, Admiral, I'm not defending him, only telling you what happened."
Kwyn was doing a fair imitation of a fish before he said, "Let me get this straight. You're the embodiment of the Force."
"Yes."
"Okay," he went on nodding, "and Zared, when he slammed this . . . door, kept a part of you."
"Yes."
"And Kreia . . ."
"With the help of the dark masters."
" . . . Right, turned him into this Sith'ari."
"Yes."
"But on the screen you show you're equal," he said shaking his head.
Jaden sighed and placed her elbows on the table with her hands, palms up. "The wars and the loss of so many Jedi have weakened the Republic," she said as she lowered her left hand. "There is a great deal of unrest among its citizens and that leads to darkness," her hand lowered a bit more. "Add in the strength of the Sith Empire," a little lower, "and the Sith'ari and the scales tips to the dark side." The back of her hand slammed to the table startling everyone.
"That's some hefty overwhelming odds you hope to defeat," Canderous pointed out.
"She only needs to defeat Zared," Carth said frowning and sneering at the same time. Jaden nodded. "She gets back what he has and the rest is up to us."
"Yes," she sighed watching him.
"Then the keys do what?" Kwyn asked. "I mean if balance is restored when you defeat Zared, what are the keys for."
"They reopen the temple to whomever wins," Carth answered holding her gaze. Jaden let all his disappointment, all his mistrust, and his pain flow over her.
"The second accord also states that if the Living Force becomes unbalanced, then once the embodier leaves, the valley will disappear until such time that the balance is restored. Look, I'm not an astrophysicist, so I don't know exactly how they do it, but somewhere out there is a hole in space. The keys," she shrugged, "fix it."
Atton frowned. "So if Zared gets the third key you'll cease to exist."
"Pretty much," she told him nodding her head. She felt a shiver run down her spine, so looked at Carth through lowered lashes, his mouth was slightly open, and he looked like he had been sucker punched. Think of it this way Onasi, you won't have me to kick around anymore.
"Then we need to find the last key," Visas stated as she looked at Carth and Jaden. The tension between them was growing and that worried her. Jaden still wasn't strong enough to face Zared and Carth was disgusted enough that he could throw Jaden off the Sojourn.
"T3," Jaden whispered knowing this would be the last nail in her coffin so to speak. Maybe this was for the best, she thought. As soon as she was able, she intended to take the Ebon Hawk and retrieve the last key. She was slowly dying inside, but if this was a way to get him to stay behind . . .
A hologram appeared behind her showing three obelisks forming the base and a round orb nestled within the points. The same writing that was in the text, adorned the sides of the obelisks. "This is the completed key."
Carth threw up his hands in frustration and disgust as he rose from the chair. "You told us you didn't know what to look for, only where." Is there no end to her deceptions?
"I lied," she said her face impassive.
He slammed his fists on the table and Jaden was actually glad she could feel his anger wash over her; it was better than the cold, empty indifference.
"Knock it off, Onasi," Canderous shouted, slamming his own fist on the table. "Even I recognize she did it to protect us."
"Why?" Carth demanded as he leaned forward, his knuckles curled into tight balls on the table as he glared at her.
Jaden looked at T3 and the droid put the hologram in motion, taking it apart by moving the obelisks to the side to reveal the key on the inside. Each of those then separated into three pieces.
"Katarr," Visas whispered.
"Corellia," Atton breathed.
"Telos," Kwyn said as Carth drew in a sharp breath before falling back into his chair.
"Yavin 4." Canderous told her.