Kotor Revan Reborn

by Reven Onasi

Betrayed by his apprentice, captured by the Jedi, mind broken and reformed into that of a soldier. Revan fights for answers to his past. Once he finds them, will he fight for life and the light, or bring the galaxy to it knees? Story follows the major events of the game. Contains Mature content. All characters involved in mature content are 18 or older. Thanks for reading!

10. Chapter 10 Acceptance

Fair warning for this chapter, Smut ahead.

Sorry again for the wait, fatherhood is time consuming to say the least. However I have already made good progress on the next chapter, I hope to have it out in the next couple weeks.

Thanks for reading everyone, and if you feel like it, writing a review whether filled with brutal criticism or full of praise helps my work improve.

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Chapter 10

Acceptance

Mission and I just looked at each other for a long moment, I could feel concern and sympathy from her, but no surprise or fear. Her violet eyes gazed back into mine, her lips turned up into a soft, sad smile and nodded slowly. The simple movement hit me like a hammer blow, her face blurred as tears formed in my eyes.

I shouldn't have been so shocked, I had been coming to terms with the fact that I wasn't who I thought I was for days. Yet despite that, the easy acceptance from Mission, the person I was closest to on the entire planet was a shock that I wasn't expecting. I searched through her emotions looking for disgust or anger, but all I found was concern and affection.

"You're taking this really well." I managed to say through a thick throat. She gave me an encouraging smile, turned a bit in my lap to wrap her arms around me and pull my face into her chest.

I took a deep breath, enjoying her pleasant smell and her obvious concern for me. She held me like that for a long moment before she finally spoke softly.

"I recognised your voice." the words were barely loud enough for me to hear, and despite myself, I stiffened at the implications of her words, but before I could pull away to look up at her she held me tighter and continued. "Remember when I told you about me and my friend seeing Revan a few years ago? When you came to Taris to free slaves, I went with a friend to one of your rallies. We watched from the crowd while you spoke." she paused for a moment to chuckle in rye amusement, "You were quite impressive, you convinced a number of people to join your troops, including my friend, though the majority of the crowd ignored your warnings about the Mandalorians. My friend though," she let out a sad little chuckle, thinking back, "She dragged me through the crowd to where your Jedi were recruiting. As soon as we got close enough to talk to someone you just appeared next to us. You said that both me and my friend were strong in the Force, but I was too young to join a war. My friend volunteered on the spot, the only thing in my life that hurt worse than her leaving was Griff abandoning me." she paused again squeezing me tighter against her as though I would toss her off me and run. When she spoke again her voice was heavy with emotion as though fighting off tears, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, at first I didn't believe it myself. What are the chances that one of the most famous and deadly people in the galaxy show up in a dive bar in the lower city." she stroked her fingers through my hair and despite my roiling emotions, the simple touch soothed me some. "But when I saw you seem to teleport in the sewers and kill all those Rakghouls before any of us could even react, I knew it was you." she finally pulled back to look down into my eyes, her own shining with emotion. "That's why I asked you about the Force, and if you were a Jedi, at first I thought you were undercover or something. But when it became obvious that you didn't remember who you really were, I couldn't think of a way to tell you that wouldn't blow up in my face." she paused again to smile sadly, and stroke my cheek with an unnerving amount of tenderness and affection. "I don't know if you noticed, but I'm falling hard here, and the fear of how you would react, kept me from explaining what I knew."

Only her plain honesty kept me from doing something I would have regretted for the rest of my life. I felt betrayed, the trust between us was hit hard by the revelation, but I could feel her in a way that made it impossible for her to lie to me. I could feel her concern for me, the warm care and affection that was becoming more and more like love. Most of all I could feel fear, she managed to keep it off her face, but she was nearly panicked that I would hate her for keeping this from me.

She had kept what she knew about me to herself, but after I took a moment to calm my anger and feeling of betrayal I looked at the situation from her perspective. Why would a man like Revan be on Taris? What were the chances of that? If I had been on the planet with a covert mission to complete, what would my reaction have been if I met someone who knew my true identity? If I was being honest with myself, I would have killed her to protect the mission. She was a smart woman and probably came to the same conclusion, so that explained why she didn't say anything to me at the beginning. But what about later on, when it became apparent that I didn't know my true nature?

That was also simple, she cared about me and was concerned about both hurting me, and losing both me and Zaalbar if I reacted badly. The big Wookiee would come with me when I left, whether or not Mission was with us. Looking at it from that perspective, she was showing an incredible amount of bravery. She could have kept her knowledge to herself until we were off world, giving me more time to become even more attached to her before the truth came out. That was the easy option and the cowards way out. She hadn't done that though, she told me at the first opportunity where she knew that I wouldn't be able to deny what she was saying. On top of that, looking back at the last few days, she had been trying to give me hints, and she had told me that she didn't care what my past held, only who I was now. How many people could say the same, would Carth accept me for the person I was now, or only see the monster I had been?

While I worked over the situation in my head, she waited with all the outward signs of infinite patience, simply looking down into my eyes while running her fingers through my hair. She kept the same sad, yet hopeful smile on her face. If not for the ever growing pit of fear in her stomach that only grew worse as I sat thinking, she would have seemed able to stay like that all day. I kept my face neutral and held her gaze while I worked through the situation in my mind, more out of an effort to keep from lashing out than any effort to unnerve her, but when the pit of fear in her twisted into something closer to despair, I made my decision.

I reached up and cupped her cheek letting a small smile break through my impassive expression. Without a word I pulled her down into a kiss, softly pressing my lips into hers. The moment our lips met I felt the pit of roiling fear in her pop like a balloon, only to be replaced with relief and joy so deep that it felt like being bathed in the glow of a sun.

She wrapped her arms around me and leaned into me letting out a shuddering sigh of relief. Her tongue invaded my mouth with a need that took me by surprise, but one I was happy to match. We explored each other's mouths while our hands went about their own explorations. It was only when I realised that we were about to end up naked on the floor of Bastila's room that I finally pulled back.

Mission's eyes were slightly dazed when they met mine. "No more secrets between us?" I asked softly, brushing my thumb over her cheek.

"Never again." she said breathlessly, leaning into my caress.

"Thank you, for being brave enough to tell me." I said, feeling an undeniable sense of rightness with her in my arms. It would take me some time to completely work through the lingering feelings of hurt and betrayal. But I knew that I had made the right choice, she was worth it.

"It was one of the hardest things I've ever done." she said softly, pressing closer to me. "I don't think I've ever been so afraid."

"I could feel it," I said smiling, "feeling what you felt made it really hard to be mad at you."

"I'll never complain about you knowing what I'm feeling, ever again." she said, with a small laugh that sounded almost like a sob. "I have no idea what I would have done…" she broke off, unable to finish the thought.

"You won't be getting rid of me that easily honey." I said, and nipped playfully at her nose. My distraction worked, she grinned and leaned in to kiss me hungrily.

After only a few moments she broke the kiss, nibbled her way across my jaw and nipped at my ear. "It's time for you to make me scream," she whispered, her hot breath playing across my skin making me shiver with desire.

"Zaalbar will worry when he comes to check on us and we aren't here." I said, somehow managing to think despite the sudden bar of durasteel in my pants rapidly draining all the blood from my brain.

"Come on," she said, pulling me to my feet and leading me from Bastila's room, "We'll stop to tell him on the way," she glanced back to grin at me as we exited the quarters. "Trust me, he won't mind."

She practically dragged me through the halls of the base, never letting go of my hand as though she was afraid I might bolt if she gave me half a chance. She didn't have any need to be worried, I was so hard and ready to get her alone, I was close to just dragging her into a storage closet.

After a couple turns she came to a stop by one of the identical doors in the hall and knocked loudly. "Z, you awake?" she asked loudly through the door. A few seconds later it opened and Zaalbar stepped out. He sniffed the air subtly and amused satisfaction filled the Wookiee.

"Go, I will watch the little Jedi." he said motioning us down the hall.

Mission blushed violet, but was already pulling me down the hall.

"Thanks Z." I called over my shoulder, I thought I heard Zaalbar mumble something like "new mates", with a snort, but Mission was already dragging me farther down the hall to her quarters.

The moment the door slid closed behind us, Mission was shucking off her vest and pulling her tight black top over her head to reveal an expanse of blue skin and a simple black bra. I just stared as she unclipped the latch behind her back and let it fall to the floor. She was lean and athletic with high, perky breasts that were just a bit more than a handful. Her nipples were a darker blue than the surrounding skin, and pebbled under my gaze.

Her violet eyes seemed to nearly glow as I pulled my own shirt over my head. I had a soldier's body, fit and muscular, but nothing I would consider out of the ordinary. It seemed to have an effect on Mission though, she bit her bottom lip and took a good long look before moving over to place a small soft hand on my scarred chest. She ran her fingers through my light chest hair and grinned impishly up at me.

"You know Twi'lek males don't grow chest hair, I don't know why, but I really like it," she leaned in and kissed my chest, then she tangled one hand in my hair and pulled my down into a hungry kiss, while the other undid my belt and expertly popped the button on my pants. Without breaking the kiss I slid my pants and underwear down. My rock hard shaft sprang free and she instantly had her hand around it, stroking slowly while she panted into my mouth.

"I need you." she said, the words came out as a breathless moan.

Reaching down I undid her belt and helped her out of her own pants. The moment they hit the ground I lifted her up and revelled in the feel of her strong legs wrapping around my hips. I carried her to the bed and lowered her to the mattress coming down on top of her. I kissed my way down her neck and over her chest until I reached her perfect breasts. I licked one of her small nipples, before sucking it into my mouth. She arched up into me and let out a breathy gasp of pleasure.

"Oh yes," she ran her fingers through my hair and pulled me closer, "I love your mouth on me, it feels so good."

I lavished her breast with attention, licking around the nipple then across it, before nipping it lightly with my teeth. She moaned and squeezed her legs around my hips trying to pull me closer. Bracing myself with one arm I let the other travel up the firm plane of her stomach to her other breast and squeezed it softly before gently tweaking the nipple while sucking on the other with a bit more force.

"Yessss!" she drew out the word into a strangled hiss.

Desperate for more, I kissed my way down her body until I was greeted by her simple low cut black panties. I kissed her inner thigh and bit down on the crease where her leg met her hip. Her hips bucked up into my mouth, she moaned and shuddered, excitement and arousal spiking through her emotions.

"You like it when I bite?" I asked teasingly, then punctuated the questing by biting down on the other thigh with a bit more force.

"Yes, gods yes." she said and shivered, her hips rolling of their own accord.

I moved my way closer to her core, licking and nipping as I went. Her breathing became ragged and desperate need flooded her emotions. I pulled back enough to grab her panties and pulled them down, she lifted her hips to help get them off. As soon as they were out of the way I settled back between her legs and gave her a couple light, teasing licks on her folds. She groaned and rolled her hips up to meet me. Need and frustration flared within her.

"Rory, don't tease me," she said, in between panting breaths, looking down to meet my eyes, "I need you, please."

I just grinned and repeated the light teasing touches, admiring the perfect, warm, deliciously wet folds of her pussy. She was so aroused, she was dripping down onto the bed, and the fact that I was making her so hot and ready sent a thrill lust through me that was truly intoxicating.

"Rory, please," she begged, keeping her violet gaze locked onto mine while I teased her.

"What do you want?" I asked, giving her a long slow lick up the outside of her folds. "Tell me."

"I want you to lick me." she panted, eyes and emotions burning with lust.

"Where would you like me to lick you?" I asked, repeating the lick on the other side.

"My pussy," she groaned in frustration, "I want you to lick my pussy until I come on your mouth."

Unable to continue with the teasing, I gave her what she wanted and kissed her swollen lips, spearing my tongue inside her. Pleasure blooming inside her, her whole body shuddered, her hands tangled in my hair, her hips rolled up to meet me, and she gasped in ecstasy. I lavished her with my tongue, surprised once again by how good she tasted, slightly sweet and pleasantly tangy.

Using my ability to feel her emotions, I quickly worked her into a quivering mess of screaming pleasure. When she shuddered and fell back against the mattress for a second time I climbed up and settled between her legs. I leaned in and kissed her letting her taste herself while positioning myself and sliding inside her in one smooth thrust.

"Yes!" she gasped against my lips once I was seated fully inside her. Her walls clamped down around me as though to hold me in place, while a new wave of pleasure bloomed inside her.

"You feel incredible," I groaned out while pulling back until just my tip was still inside her then thrusting back in with painful slowness. "So tight, so wet and ready for me."

"Deeper, fill me," she moaned, tilting her hips to give a better angle, "So big, I love the way you feel inside me," she said pulling me back in for another deep, hungry kiss.

We moved together finding a rhythm that built us slowly towards a peak, though being able to feel her pleasure was a double edged sword. I was able to find the perfect angle and pace to drive her wild, but the effect made it nearly impossible for me to resist my own climax. But ultimately it was a losing battle and I knew it, I reached down between us and began rubbing her perfect little clit in hopes of pushing her over first. The moment I touched the bud, her walls clamped down around me and she whimpered with a new rush of pleasure.

"Come for me Mission." I growled into her mouth, while applying a bit more pressure and speeding up my pace.

"Yeesss!" her response was a drawn out cry as she spasmed around my shaft, her orgasm exploding inside her. Her pleasure slammed into my mind like a wave. My own orgasm seized me, my whole body tightened and I slammed into her with abandon, thrusting hard and deep in time with the pulses of my seed.

When the pleasure finally broke, I collapsed on top of her and panted like I had sprinted a mile. She wrapped her arms around me and held me close as our breathing slowly calmed.

"Thank you." she said softly next to my ear.

"Glad to be of service." I said with a grin, not bothering to move.

"Yes, that too," she said and I could hear the smile in her voice, "But I meant, thank you for understanding."

"I know what you meant," I said, pulling back just enough to look her in the eyes, "I care about you too much to hold it against you," I said, brushing my thumb over her cheek, "On top of that you stood to lose your closest friend if I reacted badly, yet you told me anyway," I leaned in to kiss her sweetly before continuing. "Thank you for being brave enough to tell me."

Tears formed in her eyes, while her emotions flooded with warmth. "You're nothing like the man I remember." she said with a wide smile, her lower lip trembling.

"I suppose I'm not that man anymore," I said, considering our situation and how I was feeling, "It's my understanding that Jedi don't become romantically involved with anyone, so this alone," I paused to emphasize the words by rocking my hips forward, reminding us both that I was still deep inside her. I closed my eyes in bliss at the feeling of her still wrapped around me, while she let out a soft sigh of pleasure. "Would suggest that I no longer think like a Jedi." I continued after a moment.

"Thank the gods for that." Mission replied with a grin. Then her expression turned thoughtful and she said, "I would guess that whatever the Jedi did to you changed how you think, because you don't act like a Sith either." she said idly stroking her fingers through my hair. "Don't get me wrong, you can be ruthless and cold, but you can also be kind and loving," she paused to kiss me with a smile before continuing. "Whatever you are now, it's neither Jedi or Sith. But you don't really act like a soldier either."

"What do you mean?" I was confused, "How do I not act like a soldier?"

"Well for one thing, you order Carth around like he's the sergeant and you're the Lieutenant, not the other way around." she said with a grin. I opened my mouth to object, but she kept going before I could say anything. "Not only that, but I bet it never even occurred to you to let him take charge, did it. And don't even get me started on your hair, no soldier in the history of the republic has had hair that long."

I closed my mouth and thought about it, now that she mentioned it, I did pretty much take over the moment I woke up. At first it was more like we were acting as a team of equals, but now I couldn't deny I was definitely in command. While there was an argument to be made that I had operational authority because of our situation, it was strange that Carth never even attempted to take command, or that I never expected him to. Most officers in his place would have fought to take over, and even if I convinced them to take a back seat, there should have been more friction around it. I couldn't even recall actually discussing the situation with him, I just kind of took over and that was the end of it. She was also right about my hair, it was far and away from code, now that I thought about it, I couldn't remember having hair this long before, yet it felt right. Just another inconsistency with the implanted memories.

"I admit that is a bit odd, and I hadn't really thought about it, but technically I do have operational command of our mission, because I was directly posted to Bastila's guard detail. Carth probably just knew that and didn't want to make our situation harder by causing a fuss about it. Though I will grant you I have no explanation for my hair." I explained with a light laugh, and went to pull out so I could lay next to her, only to have her legs tighten around my hips holding me in place.

"No, I like to feel you inside me." she said with a grin, and rolled her hips causing some delicious friction, that had us both letting out a pleased sigh.

"It's difficult to think clearly when you do that." I said, leaning in to nibble her neck.

"Thinking is overrated." she replied a bit breathlessly, and lightly dug her nails into my ass, encouraging me to start moving again. I was still hard inside her and didn't need much encouragement.

Almost an hour later we broke apart to collapse back into the mattress and let our breathing calm once more. Mission snuggled into my side and laid her head on my shoulder. I wrapped an arm around her and lightly ran my fingers over her hip while she idly toyed with my chest hair.

"What do we do now that we finally have Bastila?" She asked into the comfortable silence.

"Find a way off planet," I replied, taking a great deal of enjoyment from the feeling of her soft skin under my fingertips. "I might have found an ally in that endeavor already."

"Does this have to do with whatever Canderous palmed you?" she asked, I could feel a smug amusement radiate off of her when I stiffened in surprise.

"I thought I was being subtle." I said, trying not to sound irritated.

She laughed lightly and kissed my chest, "You were, no one noticed but me," she said without looking up, still playing with my chest hair. "You forget I was raised in the Lower City, spotting a hand off was something of a requirement."

"It was a note telling me to meet him tomorrow in a cantina called the Swoop Den, if we were interested in a way off planet." I explained, feeling impressed that she spotted the hand off so easily.

"Oh, that is very interesting, either Davik is interested in helping us get off planet or Canderous is about to betray his boss." she said, finally looking up at me. "Are you going to meet him?"

"He seems to be smart and honest, from our dealings with him so far," I said with a shrug, "So unless anyone has a better idea of how to get past the Sith Blockade I figured we could go see him tomorrow."

Warm emotions bloomed up in her at the word 'we' only for them to evaporate and a frown to spread over her face. She laid her head back down on my chest and I felt anxiety spike through her as she spoke. "What about after we make it off planet?"

"Get Bastila back to the Jedi on Coruscant or Dantooine most likely." I replied with a shrug, not really understanding her sudden trepidation.

She stayed silent for a moment, working over what she wanted to say next. When she finally did speak, the question was soft and sounded uncertain. "And what will you do after that, back into the military, or do you think the Jedi will have a new mission for you?"

Understanding snapped into place in my mind. I gave her a tight squeeze and tilted her head up to look at me. "Whatever we do after that, we do together," I said with a smile, "But most likely the Jedi will have a plan for me, they went through an extreme amount of effort to save me and get me back on their side. I doubt they are going to try to send me off to be Sergeant Jager. They need me for something, and since they need me, we have leverage. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally on board with helping to stop the Sith, but now that I really think about it, I'm not willing to give up a chance at happiness to do it. Us together or not at all." I finished with a squeeze of her athletic ass and a warm smile.

Mission smiled brighter than the sun and buried her face in my chest. Along her back her lekku spasmed in barely understandable Ryl, "Gods, I think I love him". She froze against me the moment the words were signed. "Shit." she mumbled against my chest, which made me bust out laughing.

"Thinking out loud?" I asked between chuckles.

"Sometimes I hate that you understand Ryl." she grumbled with a deep sigh, "It's so rare for anyone other than Twi'leks to understand it that I constantly forget you know it." embarrassment flared around her like a heavy cloud.

Getting an idea I tilted her face up to look at me, trying hard not to chuckle at her deep blush. "Do you trust me?" I asked, managing to keep a straight face.

"Of course." she replied instantly, as though it should be obvious.

"Sit up, I have an idea." I sat up and pulled her after me, getting us situated sitting cross legged directly across from each other. I took her hands in mine and smiled, "I have no idea if this will work but it might. Bear with me while I try to figure it out."

"What are you going to do?" she asked, looking curious and a little apprehensive.

"You'll see," I grinned and squeezed her hands, trying hard to stay focused despite her incredible naked body sitting so close to me. "Just relax." I added and closed my eyes trying to clear my mind and focus inward toward the light at the core of myself that I now understood was the Force.

I found it easily, it seemed brighter and closer to the forefront of my mind. I reached out to it with my will and it flowed to meet me like an old friend eager for an embrace. It flooded me the moment I touched it, the strange but familiar feeling of a bright torrent of energy pouring into me. It swept me up in the flow filling me to the brim with vitality and power. I felt as though I could run all day, climb mountains and have sex for a week straight without stopping. The feeling was giddy and almost euphoric, it was so all encompassing that it took some time for me to remember what I had intended to do when I reached for it. Focusing hard and remembering what I had done the day before to reach out to Mission across the base, I managed to dial back the power and focus the flow into a thin stream that I sent through my hands and into Mission.

Her emotions became so clear in my mind that it became difficult to distinguish her emotions from mine. A sense of her body and being came into focus within my mind. I could feel her curiosity intermingled with nervousness and a warm feeling that was so much like love it overwhelmed me when I touched it. Shying away from the intense feeling I refocused on her body, everything about her became clear in my mind as my will flowed around her body on a tide of the Force. Old wounds, and newer hurts sprang forward as I searched for my goal within her. A scratch on her palm that was nearly healed, a hangnail on her left foot's big toe, an old fracture that hadn't quite healed right in the Humerus of her right arm, and another in her left ring finger.

Delving deeper past the distractions of her body, I searched for the Force inside her, trying to find a bright core of power like the one inside myself. It took me a while before I finally found it, the one inside Mission, seemed to be much smaller and very dim compared to my own. It was hidden deep within her, buried under her consciousness and her strong emotions.

Keeping the place locked in my mind I pulled back enough that I was again aware of my surroundings. I opened my eyes to see Mission looking at me with curious eyes and a dreamy smile.

"Okay I'm ready to try my idea," I said, careful to keep a mental lock on the place inside her, "If you would like me to."

"It feels so warm and comforting," she said, her dreamy smile growing wider, "I trust you Rory, go ahead."

Smiling in return at the affectionate sound of her pet name, I closed my eyes once more and sent my will back to the small point of power at the core of her being. Reaching out, I gently touched the core of the Force within her and let out a shuddering gasp of surprise when it instantly burst to life shining like a star to my perception. That star of power reached out to me and melded with my own, forming what felt like a river that flowed between us both in equal measure.

Mission gasped and her hands clamped down on mine. "Rory," she began sounding awestruck, "gods I can feel you, it's incredible." she trailed off and I could feel her wonder and amazement like it was my own.

As the power flowed between us, our minds and our emotions mingled together. Nothing was hidden, our fears, our hopes, our feelings, even a few of our thoughts laid out for inspection by the other. It was like being embraced from the inside out, the total intimacy of the moment both incredible and intimidating. In that moment we both knew for an absolute certainty how the other felt, and what the other wanted. All doubts that we had about each other were washed away in the complete and utter truth shared between us.

We stayed like that for what felt like only a few moments but when I finally pulled away from the small bright star of power at the center of her being and opened my eyes I saw from the small chrono on the nightstand that more than two hours had passed.

I watched Mission's eyes slowly flutter open, cherishing the feeling of her hands still in mine. Her violet gaze focused on my face and a bright happy smile bloomed across her face.

"That was…" she trailed off and shook her head in amazement.

"Yeah," I grinned, suddenly feeling a bit sheepish, "intense wasn't it."

"How did you do that?" she asked, still a bit overwhelmed.

"I'm not exactly sure how I did it," I said with a shrug unsure how to describe what I did, "I just wanted you to know what I was feeling, it didn't seem fair for it to only be one way."

Mission looked at me for a long moment letting my words sink in, then without saying a word she climbed into my lap and wrapped her legs around my hips. She settled down on my groin and leaned in to kiss me while grinding herself down onto my half hard shaft. Our tongues tangled together while her hands clawed at my back, pulling me closer and rubbing her pert breasts into my chest.

"I want you to do it again," she panted into my mouth, "I want to feel your pleasure while I ride you." She was so turned on by the idea I could feel her dripping down onto my now raging hard cock.

Not needing much encouragement I reached for my power and sent it questing back inside her. Since I had already performed the feat once, it was easy for me to find her core of power once again and connect us for a second time. We both gasped and shuddered against each other when it snapped into place. The connection was stronger than the first time, and it took much less mental effort for me to keep it in place. Which was a good thing because the sudden onslaught of her emotions banished all conscious thought from my mind.

"I knew you wanted me," she said, reaching between us to guide my shaft to her soaking entrance, "But feeling just how much, is intoxicating."

She lowered herself down, taking me to the hilt on one smooth motion. We both cried out at the intensity of feeling each other's pleasure. She clamped down on my shaft, her inner walls pulsing with pleasure, which in turn sent a shudder of delight through my whole body. Which flowed back into her causing her to moan and clamp down on me harder. Back and forth it went, pleasure and sensation passing back and forth between us building on each other. She ground her hips down on me trying to get me deeper, sending more sudden spikes through both of us. She lifted herself up and dropped back down on me with force grinding her hips into me, causing her clit to rub into my pelvis. That was all it took, pleasure shot through us both like lightning, her inner walls convulsed, squeezing down on me like a vice. The sudden sensation of her orgasm and the pressure around my shaft had me exploding an instant later. We clung together, bodies locked and straining, shouting our ecstacy to the heavens at the top of our lungs. Completely overwhelmed by the sensory overload, our minds shut off. We collapsed back onto the bed in a heap, unconscious.

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Bastila woke in a strange place she didn't recognise, moaning in pleasure. Her head felt woozy, her thinking slow. Her hand was between her legs rubbing desperately at her completely soaked folds trying to put out a fire of need that she couldn't even attempt to understand.

She had been tempted in her life as a Padawan. She knew attraction, and frustration in equal measure. More than once the frustration of always being alone, had pushed her to take care of her own needs. Seeing other beings find love and satisfaction yet being denied the same for the sake of being a Jedi, she loved the Jedi Order, but sometimes she wanted nothing more than to just be allowed to be a normal person. To find a man or woman to love and be loved in return, one of the most basic needs of all naturally reproducing species. Find a mate, have children. Being a Jedi didn't take that need away, Padawans were simply taught to ignore it, push it down, find ways to distract themselves from the desire.

Not this time, this time she could feel hands on her skin caressing her lovingly. Hot breath in her mouth, soft lips against hers. She was too overwhelmed and distracted to try to make sense of how she could feel the phantom lover embracing her. She had just enough presence of mind to pull the pillow from behind her head and pull it over her face. Screaming into it as she speared herself with her fingers and came with such force that her whole body locked up, her tunnel tightened and spasmed around her fingers, her hips rolling up into her hand of their own accord.

When the pleasure finally faded, she laid in the bed panting into the pillow that was still on her face. She stayed like that for several minutes, too satiated and spent to bother moving it. When her breathing finally calmed she pulled the pillow back under her head and looked around the room she found herself in.

It was a good sized bedroom, utilitarian and simple but the bed she was laying on large and very comfortable. Confused at the total change in her surroundings since her last memory she sat up pulling the thin blanket up to cover her breasts. She took a better look around noticing a door in the wall behind her next to the bed, a small table in one corner with two chairs, and a large armoire against the wall on her left that seemed to be made of real wood. The bed was a king size with what felt like an air mattress with molding foam. It was extremely comfortable, and felt high quality.

Her mind spun with possibilities, the last thing she could remember was Brejik punching her in the face and losing consciousness while he yelled at her, sounding like a prepubescent girl throwing a tantrum. She shivered at the memory and took another look around the room, trying to think of a scenario that could have started with her being a prisoner and ending with her naked in a large comfortable bed. Thinking of only one real possibility that didn't make her want to vomit she thought of her options. She obviously was no longer in Brejik's loving care, he kept her drugged at times and would never have risked letting her mind clear. So who had her? She reached for the Force, half expecting it to be a useless attempt. Instead, the power flowed into her easily, filling her with warmth and life, revitalizing her body and brushing the last of the drugs from her mind.

Letting out a half sob, half sigh of relief she smiled and let her mind reach out, searching her surroundings for other people. In a room on the other side of the wall behind her, she could feel a very strong, patient presence. Focusing on it, she felt deep amusement mixed with embarrassment. Guessing at the cause of the emotions, she felt her face flush red, and she cast her mind farther out putting the presence behind her. She got the sense of a large complex, dozens of beings populated the building. She got the sense of a celebration, the beings felt happy, satisfied. She searched for several minutes but couldn't find anything in the people that caused her alarm. Pulling back into herself, she looked within herself, searching for injuries she could have sustained while unconcious. After several moments of searching she couldn't find anything that she wasn't expecting. Bruises, soreness, mild dehydration, that last made her notice the I.V. in her left arm, glancing over to see the bag was empty she pulled it free of her skin and focused the Force into the small puncture rapidly speeding up the healing process. Once she was sure it wouldn't start bleeding she finally focused inward deep within herself to find her bond with Revan. She could feel him there warm and content, sleeping peacefully, looking closer she could feel that someone else was with him, and that he was very close. Embracing the bond more deeply she got a sense of fatigue that was being kept at bay by his connection with the Force. He was drawing on it even in his sleep, speeding his body's natural recovery. That sent a chill down her spine. Being able to hold the Force while one was asleep was extremely difficult, most could never learn how to do it, that was the primary purpose for the resting trance that most Jedi preferred over sleep.

Fearing the worst she delved deeper into the bond allowing herself to mingle with his mind. She felt deep satisfaction and contentment, nothing to represent the anger or fear most often found in the Sith. Still she looked deeper determined to find any evidence of his old personality resurfacing. After several long minutes of scouring his mind, she came up empty, all she felt was a content man resting peacefully.

Drawing back she focused on the other presence in the room with him. She quickly got the impression of a woman who was perhaps a couple years older than herself. Feeling a sudden spike of anger she looked closer and found that the woman was laying naked atop him. Not only that, upon closer inspection she found that Revan was in fact still half aroused inside the woman. Feeling hurt and angry for reasons she couldn't understand she focused on the woman more closely trying to understand how something so catastrophic could have happened in such a short time. Passions like that were the exact sort of thing that could easily lead Revan back down the dark path she had fought so hard to pull him back from. She delved deeply into Revan's bed partner looking for ill intent or hidden motives. She was sure that this woman must be manipulating him somehow. Maybe an agent of the Sith that sensed his power and set about trying to corrupt him. She searched and searched but the longer she looked the more defeated she began to feel. The woman had a dark past, she was deeply scarred by loss and heartbreak. But no matter how hard she tried, all she could find was overwhelming affection of someone newly in love.

Just when she was about to give up she spotted something that peaked her interest. In the core of her being she found the bright core of power that indicated a strong connection to the Force. The woman was strong, nearly as strong as herself, surprised to say the least as she looked closer and found something else, a Force bond. It was nestled near the core, shining dimly with the soft glow of new love. Feeling a pit in her stomach she followed the connection and found it's end anchored in Revan right next to his bond with her. It was dim compared to the one she shared with him, a new and fragile thing. She probed it gently trying to understand how another bond could have formed while she was unconscious. The occurrence of bonds like theirs was so rare that the chances of two happening to the same person were unheard of. When she touched it, she felt nothing other than the soft warm presence of one newly in love. Bastila's mind blanked for a moment in complete shock, how could that have happened? The woman was definitely in love with Revan, she could feel the emotion flowing freely through the new bond, it was still new, and still uncertain but there was no mistaking it. But people fell in love all the time, even Jedi, affairs within the order were a bit more common than most Jedi liked to admit. Yet a bond like the one she was looking at was so rare as to be nearly unheard of and Revan had two of them. Was he so powerful that he could form Force bonds by accident? Did he remember enough of his old self to do it intentionally? Or did it have something to do with the woman? Those and a hundred other questions swirled around her mind as she contemplated the twin bonds at the core of Reven.

Deciding she needed to speak to Revan to find out more, she pulled her mind back from the connection, only pausing long enough to assure herself that he was nearby. Opening her eyes and stretching out her sore and protesting muscles, she climbed out of the bed taking the thin blanket with her to cover herself. Wrapping it around herself like a long sheath dress she stepped over to the door and thumbed the activation pad. It slid open silently revealing a small comfortable apartment with a small seating area on one side and a kitchenette on the other.

Sitting on a couch in the seating area was one of the biggest Wookiees Bastila had ever seen. He stood when he saw her unfolding to somewhere well north of two meters tall and must have weighed over one hundred and forty kilos. His fur was a deep brown streaked with black, doing nothing to hide the veritable mountain of muscle underneath. His eyes were dark pools that sparked with keen intelligence that glinted with amusement at her stunned expression.

"I am pleased to see you awake and well master Jedi." he said in the growling language of his kind. She was familiar enough with the tongue that she recognised his speech to be formal and cultured. He spoke like a clan leader, which peaked her curiosity enough to dull the sudden spike of fear his presence caused in her. Trained in the Force, she was powerful and dangerous even unarmed and naked as she now stood, yet the primal part of her brain recognized him as the apex predator that he was, the sudden urge to lock the door and hide in her room was strong enough that only her years of training controlling her emotions kept her from taking a step back.

"Thank you," she said, then paused finding herself at a loss for words.

The massive Wookiee grinned revealing sharp canines that made her shiver involuntarily. "My name is Zaalbar," he said, when she just stood there, "I imagine you have many questions. First you should know that you are safe, my life bonded Rorick Jager was successful in his efforts to secure your freedom. You are now within the Hidden Bek's compound, an organisation that assisted us in freeing you."

She did have a thousand questions but one thing he said snapped out at her, demanding and explanation. "Life bonded?" she asked, feeling a little stunned.

"Rorick saved me from Gamorian slave traders," he explained, holding tight to the Force Bastila got a sense of revulsion from him as he spoke. "He, Carth and my chosen sister Mission, fought their way through the Undercity sewers to find me. Since he was the force behind my rescue I have sworn a life debt to him." He explained, using a word to describe Mission that meant something like 'little sister by choice', or something similar she thought.

She just looked at him trying to take it in. Revan had fought a band of slavers to rescue the biggest Wookiee she had ever met then found a way to rescue her in just a few days. She realized that she was just staring at him in dumb amazement when he grinned again.

"Yes he is quite impressive for a human, I was equally surprised myself," He paused motioning back to the bedroom behind her, "There is a refresher beyond the door in the back wall, if you would like to clean up. I'll find you some clothing and bring some food."

"Yes thank you that would be lovely." she said, snapping out of her stupor. Zaalbar grinned again, gave a slight bow and left the apartment, ducking noticeably to fit through the door.

Bastila turned and walked back through the room to the refresher. When the door slid silently shut behind her she dropped the thin blanket and turned on the shower. Stepping under the warm water she rested her head against the cool tile and closed her eyes. She didn't know what Revan did to rescue her but the little she knew already made her feel that the Council's plan to control him would be fruitless at best, or disastrous at worst. She groaned and thumped her forehead against the tiles of the shower, trying to think of a scenario that didn't end with her dead or scrubbing toilets in the temple for the rest of her life. By the time Zaalbar knocked on the refresher door to inform her he had brought her clothes, she still hadn't thought of one.

---

I woke to the sound of knocking, I shifted and felt a warm feminine body pressed to my chest, my hand cupping a soft breast and an athletic ass pressed firmly to my groin. Smiling I gave the breast a squeeze and opened my eyes to look past Mission's head towards the door as another knock sounded.

"Time to get up I think," I whispered into her cone shaped ear, "looks like they need us for something."

"Give it another minute, maybe if we ignore them they'll go away." she replied sleepily, grinding her ass back into my morning wood with a contented sigh. I chuckled content to hold her for another few moments.

The knocking came again, and I focused my attention beyond the door. I could feel Carth standing outside, he was impatient and concerned about something.

"What is it Carth?" I asked loudly enough that he could hear me through the door. I felt his emotions spike with surprise then an exasperated feeling settled over him.

"She's awake, and she wants to talk to you." He said, his voice muffled by the door.

"She can't wait an hour?" Mission called out, more than a little annoyed herself.

"Come on Mission, Rorick needs to debrief her, she is technically our commanding officer." He said, going for patient and reasonable.

"We need to get ready to meet Canderous anyway." I said, running my hand over her hip.

"I know," she said, grabbing my hand and moving it back to her breast, then snuggling closer, "it's just been a long time since I got to cuddle, I'm enjoying myself." she finished and ground her ass back into my groin again.

"I see you have no intention of fighting fair." I murmured, kissing and nibbling my way up her shoulder to her neck.

"Fighting fair is for idiots." she replied breathlessly. "And I can feel your desire, that's not making it any easier."

Surprised I looked inward and found that I was still powering the bond between us, I must have kept it open all night. "Do you want me to turn it off?" I asked, unable to resist squeezing her perfect perky breast.

"No." she said, turning to embrace me. "I like being able to feel you." she grinned and leaned in to kiss me.

I returned the kiss deciding that Bastila could wait another hour. But before we could go any farther I felt a sharp spike of annoyance inside my mind. It felt almost like a mental slap. Jerking back I followed the sensation back to my bond with Bastila. Now that I was paying attention I could feel severe disapproval, flowing off of her in waves. Looking closer it felt almost like jealousy, that didn't make any sense though, she didn't even know me and Jedi didn't have relationships. More than a little irritated at her intrusion, I blocked out the bond as best I could, pushing it far from my consciousness. It felt a little like putting her in time out, which made me grin despite myself.

"Was that Bastila?" Mission asked, looking at me with curiosity.

"You could feel that?"

"Yeah, it was hard to miss, she was quite irritated wasn't she?" She grinned and kissed me again. "She wants you." she said, pulling back amusement thick in her emotions.

"Come on she's a Jedi, and what's more she doesn't know me at all." I argued.

She placed her hand on my chest and looked at me for a long moment, her violet gaze drawing me in. "She's a young woman that's been emotionally repressed her entire life," she paused, a sudden look of sadness passing over her fine features, "I don't know much about the Jedi, but I know what confusion and jealousy feels like."

"Even if she is infatuated with me, which I'm not sure I believe, she'll just have to get over it." I said, cupping her face. "Not that it matters anyway, she'll be back with the Jedi as soon as we get off this planet."

"Just try to be patient with her, she's been through alot, and I imagine that feeling two people you don't know having sex would be unsettling to say the least." she said, planting a playful kiss on my lips, she grinned and hopped out of bed to stretch, showing off her incredible lithe body.

I sighed and followed, climbing out of bed and looking for my pants. "Yes Carth we're up," I said loudly, before he could knock again, "we'll be right there." I could feel him shrug beyond the door and walk off down the corridor, obviously done with the situation.

"Take a shower, I'll go to your room and get you some clothes." Mission said, as she pulled on a plain pair of black skin tight pants and a matching sleeveless top. She stepped over to me with swaying hips and a wicked smile. She kissed me deeply then pulled back and walked to the door. "You stink like a dead dog." she called over her shoulder with laughter in her voice.

I narrowed my eyes at her back and took a sniff myself, while I wasn't that bad, I definitely needed a shower. I took my time, washing my hair and scrubbing myself down. As I was rinsing out my hair I felt Mission's hands wrap around me from behind. While I rinsed she scrubbed my back, when she was satisfied she handed me the cloth and returned the favor. Knowing we needed to get a move on, I resisted the urge to take her against the shower wall, instead I gave her a quick kiss, then got out and dried myself quickly.

Walking out of the refresher I saw the clothes Mission got for me sitting on the bed. A plain brown pair of cargo pants made from a sturdy fabric, and a skin tight black shirt with short sleeves. Pulling on the garments, I looked around for something to tie back my damp hair, and eventually just ripped a strip of fabric off of the shirt I wore the day before. Once my hair was in a tight ponytail I donned my boots at the same time Mission exited the refresher dressed in the same sleeveless top and black pants. She pulled on her leather vest from where it lay on her dresser and laced up her own boots.

We left her room together and made our way to Bastila's room in comfortable silence. As we neared her door I felt a brief pulse of power from within and the door opened just as we reached it. So that's what it feels like.

Mission took my hand and led me into the room. Carth, Zaalbar and Gadon were already there sitting in the living area. Bastila was sitting at the small table across from them with a cup of caf in front of her. She wore a brown pair of pants like mine and black top like Mission's. Her long wavy brown hair was pulled up in a tight ponytail and her chocolate brown eyes looked at me with impatience, though caution and nervousness permeated her emotions. I was surprised to see that she looked the perfect picture of health, the bruises from the day before were completely gone. Nothing about her hinted that she had spent a week being drugged and beaten.

"Sergeant Jager, how kind of you to join us." her voice was musical with a cultured accent, despite her obvious irritation I got the impression that she would have an amazing singing voice.

Before I could speak, Mission pulled me to the sofa and Zaalbar moved to sit on the floor so we could sit. "You will forgive us for having a late start to the day, Rory nearly died a few days ago, and he is still recovering." she said, pulling me down onto the couch next to her. I smiled ruefully, and squeezed her hand. I thought we were supposed to be patient with her.

"It has been a long week Padawan Bastila, and we still have quite a way to go before we get off this planet." I said, keeping my voice neutral.

"Carth and Zaalbar brought me up to speed on our situation and your efforts to set me free," Bastila said, her face softening, "thank you Sergeant, I'm grateful for all you've done."

Before anyone could say anything else, Gadon stood. "It was a pleasure to meet you master Jedi." he said and gave a slight bow.

"Just Bastila is fine," she replied with a genuine smile, "Thank you for your assistance Gadon."

"My pleasure, I'll excuse myself and allow you all to plan your next steps, if you need anything just let me know." Gadon said and gave another small bow before leaving five of us alone in Bastila's quarters.

I was desperate for answers, but I couldn't think of a way to ask Carth and Zaalbar to leave without sounding suspicious, or at least peaking their curiosity. Fortunately Bastila broke the awkward silence that permeated the room.

"Carth and Zaalbar have given me a full report of your actions and our current situation, so our next priority is finding a way off planet and back into Republic controlled space. In that vein I sense that you two have an idea." she said, looking to Mission and I.

I just blinked at her in surprise for a moment, it really is unnerving isn't it. "Yes I have information that could prove useful, though I'm not sure if the source is reliable." I finally said.

"Really?" Carth asked looking over at us, "When did this happen?"

"At the meeting with Canderous yesterday, he slipped me a note when I shook his hand." I explained, breaking eye contact with Bastila. "It said to meet him today, at a cantina in the Lowercity if we wanted a way off planet. He seemed to be an honorable man, but I can't know for certain."

"I am loath to trust the sort that worked with someone like Brejik," Bastila interjected, looking like she smelled something foul. "Surely we have a better option?"

"I don't even know where we could start," Mission said, looking at Bastila with patient amusement, like an older sister explaining some obvious truth, "The Sith have Taris completely locked down. Their blockade will destroy anything that doesn't have approved travel codes. So unless you know of a spare Republic fleet we could use, I think we will have to take what we can get." I felt Bastila bristle at Mission's tone, but Carth spoke up before she could comment.

"Canderous is a Mandalorian, they generally don't like subterfuge," Carth added, looking thoughtful, "It bothers their sense of honor. He shot Brejik on the spot for his underhanded stunt with the race. I don't think he would be the one his boss would send if he wanted to draw us into a trap."

"Davik doesn't need to do anything so devious," Mission said, with a chuckle, "If that man wants us dead, he could have five hundred assault droids at our doorstep in less than an hour." she shook her head looking Carth in the eye, "No Canderous has a reputation for being honest to a fault and surprisingly reasonable for a Mando. I would take him at his word."

"Good enough for me," I said with a grin, "I couldn't sense anything deceitful about him either of the times we met. And since we don't have any other options I think we should get ready to go meet him." I turned to meet the young Jedi's eyes, "Any objections Bastila?"

She looked at me for a long moment, appraising me, I could feel her presence in the back of my mind probing me with the bond. Though what she was looking for I had no idea.

"I don't like it, but it seems our best option." She said with a nod.

Nodding in return I stood my team following suit, as we walked for the door Bastila spoke up again. "Sergeant Jager, please remain, I have some questions for you."

"Go ahead I'll get your gear ready." Mission said, giving me a quick kiss and an encouraging smile. "Okay you two, lets go get ready." Mission said to Zaalbar and Carth ushering them to the door. I felt curiosity and a bit of suspicion from Carth but he just nodded to me and left with them.

When the door closed behind them Bastila motioned me towards the other free chair at the small table.

"Quite the interesting team you've assembled," she said as I sat, "Though I have to say, entering into a sexual relationship with a member of your team, is foolish to say the least." disapproval dripped from the words. Though she couldn't hide a flash of embarrassment in her emotions.

"No offence Bastila but with what you and the Counsel did to me, I don't think I'll be taking your relationship advice." I responded, torn between wanting to laugh and strangle her at the same time. This woman was involved with what they did to me, making me question my sanity, giving me the mind and memories of a good man only for me to find out I was a monster. A part of me hated her, while another was just grateful to be alive.

Bastila froze, for a moment and I felt her probing my mind with the bond. This time she was looking much more carefully. "What is it you think I did to you?" she asked, her voice giving nothing away. She seemed perfectly composed, only our bond let me know that she was hiding terror just below the surface.

"Calm down, I'm not going to try to kill you." I said with a sigh, leaning back in the chair.

"What exactly do you know?" she asked, voice still emotionless, though she did relax a little.

"I'm Revan, I think I was injured and you saved me," I gave her a tired smile before continuing, "then you took me to the Jedi, and they imprinted me with someone else's memories. Though why you went through all the trouble is beyond me."

She let out a deep sigh and visibly slumped in her chair, "I saved you because you were wounded and defenseless, I couldn't bring myself to kill you in cold blood." She gave me a wan smile and a shrug. "As to why the Counsel implanted you with Sergeant Jager's memories, I honestly don't know. They just told me to keep an eye on you and monitor you over the bond. They said that because I managed to forge a Force bond with you, I was the best person to watch you for signs of the dark side."

"Did you forge our bond on purpose?" I asked, she seemed willing to answer my questions and I was determined to take advantage of it.

"No," she said and shook her head, "I have no idea how I did it, on our way back to Dantooine it took everything I had to keep you alive. For three days I sat by your side in the cockpit in a healing trance so deep I didn't even wake from it to land the ship. Fortunately my ship's onboard AI was good enough to land itself, the dock crew found us and moved you straight into surgery. The masters think I formed the bond to more easily use the Force within your body." she paused and looked at me with a contemplative expression for a moment before continuing. "Though now that I've seen you form a bond with the Twi'lek, I wonder if you formed our bond unconsciously. Some sort of deeply ingrained survival mechanism."

"I don't know, anything is possible I suppose." I shrugged, "I realized that I could feel emotions a few days ago, and I felt time seem to slow during combat a couple times." I paused thinking of how to describe what I did to Mission the night before. "As for Mission, I just reached into her until I found what felt like a dim point of power, when I touched it, it became bright, easier to perceive and the bond formed. Though I am using constant effort to keep it open."

Bastila just sat looking at me with an adorably stupefied expression, as though I had just shown her evidence that stars were made of sugar. After more than a minute of stunned silence she shook her head and laughed. "Well that explains how the Jedi never found her, you opened her to the Force." she continued laughing until it turned into sobs. Not having any idea what to do I just sat there looking at her as though she had lost her mind, trying to decide if I should try to comfort her or not.

I eventually settled on a middle ground, "Bastila, are you okay?" I asked and reached out to take her hand. She gently pulled her hand away and shook her head, though her sobs became sniffles and a hopeless smile.

"It takes multiple Jedi masters to awaken the Force in someone if they have repressed it for whatever reason. You did it by yourself without even knowing what you were doing." She let out a deep sigh, "If you decide to go down a dark path once again, there is nothing I can do to stop you, and I'm the one that helped you regain your connection to the Force. If you turn, everything from here on will be my fault." She grimaced and looked away from me studying a spot on the floor.

I sat back and let out a heavy breath taking in her words. Apparently I was powerful even though I didn't understand how to use that power very well yet. She was afraid I would go back to the Sith and pick up right where I left off, but something about that felt off to me. I felt nervousness and sadness from her, even a little jealousy still hidden down deep. But I couldn't feel any real fear.

"If you're truly afraid of me becoming a monster why are you telling me all this?" I asked, "If it were me, I would try to keep me in the dark as much as possible. Why open up and confess everything?"

"I can't hide anything from you, I saw to that myself," she laughed bitterly, "my only option is to be completely honest with you. I have misgivings about your actions, but I don't sense any real darkness in you, so I'm hoping I can convince you to help the Republic."

"What do you mean, 'you saw to that yourself." I asked, curious.

She sighed again, and looked at me, she seemed so young. A girl that had made a terrible mistake and was waiting for a parent to lay into her. "I reached out to you while I was drugged, in my confusion I broke the barrier the masters placed on your connection to the Force. Another thing that should have been impossible," She snorted, her refined Jedi persona suffering greatly from act. "I was afraid and desperate, I couldn't touch the Force within myself, but somehow I touched the Force inside you. I channeled the Force through you and our bond, again something that shouldn't be possible. When you were stabbed I used your own power to save you from bleeding out."

Realisation dawned on me, "That's why I collapsed when we got back, you lost your connection to my power when you were hurt. I was wondering what happened. I felt a spike of pain and surprise then my wound opened up."

"Brejik came in with a stun baton, when I didn't respond to his questions…" she trailed off with an involuntary wince.

I felt nothing but honesty and resignation from her through the whole conversation so I decided to take her at her word. "Alright, let's say I forgive what the Jedi did to me and we get off this planet alive," I rested my arms on the table and held her gaze with mine, "what then, what's the plan here Bastila?"

"My only plan at this point is to get off this planet and head back to Dantooine. I need to discuss our situation with the counsel." she said, already looking tired.

"What if I don't want to put myself under the power of the Jedi?" I said, narrowing my eyes at her. "No offence but I don't want to run the risk of being captured and forced to undergo getting my mind replaced again."

Bastila visibly winced under my gaze, and shame flashed in her emotions before she responded. "I understand why you would be leery of returning to the Jedi, but I don't think they would try anything like that again. It took three powerful masters nearly two full days to imprint your mind, while you were in a coma. I doubt it would be so easy a second time."

Before I could respond a knock came at the door and I felt Mission standing outside, she felt anxious and concerned.

"She really cares about you," Bastila said, giving me a sardonic smile, "she's worried that I'm going to hurt you somehow."

"She has reason to worry." I responded, before calling out louder, "Come on in."

Mission opened the door and stepped inside looking between Bastila and I with discerning eyes. "Did you learn anything important?" she asked me.

"A few things," I stood and walked over to her, "I'll tell you about it after we meet with Canderous."

She nodded and turned to lead me out when Bastila stood. "I would like to accompany you to meet this man." she said, looking between us.

Mission was already shaking her head, "Not a good idea, the Sith are scouring the planet for you."

"I'm aware, I have ways to make myself unobtrusive," she took a step towards Mission holding her gaze, "I understand you don't trust me and you have good reason but I can be useful if you give me a chance."

Mission grimaced and looked at me, "It's one thing for you to know what I'm thinking, I'm not thrilled about her being able to do it." she said, her lekku twitching rapidly.

Bastila looked between us quizzically, obviously not familiar with Ryl sign language. I just shrugged, "Not really anything we can do about that."

A flash of annoyance brought my attention back to Bastila, "It's rude to discuss someone as though they aren't there." she said, a slight flush heating her cheeks.

"I said, I don't like that you can tell what's going on in my head." Mission told her, looking the other woman in the eyes. "I'll see if I can find you a cloak or something." With that she took my hand and dragged me from the room before Bastila could respond.

"I like her and I feel sorry for her," she said, when we were out of earshot, "and it irritates me, I kind of want to hate her."

Her candor made me laugh and she turned to grin at me sheepishly as we walked into my room.

"I understand, but she saved my life, twice, so despite the ridiculousness of our situation, I want to give her a chance." I walked to my bed, where Mission had stacked my armor and weapons for me.

"I know," she sighed and sat next to my gear, "it doesn't help that she's just a kid, she's obviously out of her depth, gahh!" she put her head in her hands and groaned in irritation.

"Hey," I put a hand on her shoulder and waited for her to look at me, "one thing at a time," I said pulling my chest armor on over my shirt, "right now we need to go meet with Canderous and see what he has to say. We can worry about everything else afterward."

She grimaced, but nodded and stood. "I better go find her a cloak, it would suck to go to all the effort of rescuing her only to have her snatched by the Sith." She sighed then kissed me soundly, giving my ass a good squeeze. "See you down in the hanger." she pulled back, gave me a wink and left.

I snorted in amusement and strapped my blasters to my thighs, slung one of my vibroblades over my back then grabbed my wrist comp from the side table and checked the time. We woke up late, it was already 10:00 local time. I slid the comp into one of the big pockets in my pants. I turned to leave, then paused and looked back at my gear. I reached down and pulled the lightsaber from the pocket in my greaves and studied it thoughtfully. I could use the weapon, but not like a Jedi could, deciding to take a chance on the young Jedi I tucked the lightsaber into a pocket in my pants and left my room.

I nodded to the few Beks I passed on the way down the hangar, but no one stopped to talk to me. When I stepped through the doors into the large open space, I saw Carth and Zaalbar waiting by a simple little six seater transport near the main hangar door. I gave them a wave when they noticed me and walked over to them.

Carth was in plain brown pants, with a black shirt and his leather jacket. His twin blasters were strapped to his hips and he looked ready to take a nap, leaning against the transport.

"Why the hardware?" he asked, motioning to my gear.

"I'm paranoid by nature." I said, taking a spot next to him to lean against the vehicle.

"It's only paranoia, if no one is out to get you." Zaalbar said sagely, from his spot on the floor next to us. He wore nothing other than a harness for his Bowcaster with pockets for spare power cells and a forty centimeter long single edged blade sheathed at the small of his back. "Unfortunately many would gladly see us dead, so I would call it prudence."

"Yeah okay that's a good point." Carth replied.

The three of us lapsed into silence, comfortable to just wait. After the race, it seemed that the Beks were taking advantage of our victory to relax. The hectic energy of the day before was long gone. Only a half dozen people shared the space with us, seeming to work on their own private projects.

After a few minutes I looked inward and found my bonds, curious as to what was delaying the girls. Their emotions were tense from the direction the bonds pointed, I guessed they were both in Bastila's room. From the feel of their minds I would have bet money they were arguing about something. I sighed deeply, that wasn't a good sign. Looking closer I found that while Bastila was quite angry, Mission felt more amused and surprised than anything. A spike of disbelief flashed through Mission and I felt her laugh loudly. Bastila in contrast was so angry at that point I was about to rush up there to stop a fight when I felt Mission speak. I couldn't quite understand what she told Bastila, but the young Jedi's anger died, to be replaced by shame. A few moments later I felt them leave Bastila's room together and head down to the hanger.

"What's wrong?" Zaalbar asked, when I opened my eyes.

"How do you know something's wrong?" Carth said, looking the big wookiee over with a curious glance.

"Smell, every emotion smells different."

"I feel like I'm surrounded by mind readers." Carth grumbled in irritation.

"At least you can understand me now Carth." The wookiee gave him a happy yet unnervingly toothy grin before turning back to me and raising one of his brows in question.

"Mission and Bastila were arguing about something. It felt like it might turn into a fight for a few seconds." I said, not seeing any reason to keep it from them.

"Let's hope for our young Jedi's sake she doesn't push Mission too far." Zaalbar said with another grin.

"How do you figure?" Carth asked, skeptical.

"There is only one thing they would be arguing about, and Mission will fight to the death for her mate." Zaalbar said and closed his eyes again to wait, feeling he explained adequately.

Carth looked from me to Zaalbar with a skeptical expression, "Mate, you mean Rorick?"

The big wookiee looked up at him from the floor, "Of course." he said simply.

"But they just met." Carth argued.

"Sometimes a true mating comes on suddenly, especially for the shorter lived races." he explained, looking at Carth like he should have known all of this already.

Carth turned his scepticism on me. "Well…?"

I just shrugged, "She calls it Soressi Ythuura, it's when people connect really quickly. I have to admit, I'm attached to her in a way I have never been with anyone else in my life." I shrugged again, a little uncomfortable with the depth of my feelings, despite myself. "But even though it makes me nervous I'm in no hurry to change it."

"Finding one's true mate, opens you up to pain," Zaalbar said, knowingly "being nervous is normal. Just don't allow the fear of loss to influence you unduly."

Carth's face became thoughtful before he slowly nodded, "I know that I was scared shitless for a while when I met my wife." he paused, fighting a sudden spike loss and pain. I wisely didn't ask about it. "But the time we had together was the best of my life, I wouldn't change it."

I considered that, it was true, the idea of losing Mission scared me already. How much worse would it be after months or years together? Though even knowing that I still didn't want to let her go. Zaalbar was right, family of any kind opened you up for pain, but that was just a part of life. No use worrying over it, going down that path led to insanity.

I was pulled from my thoughts by the two women arriving in the hangar bay. Mission had strapped on her double blasters securely to her thighs. Bastila was completely enveloped in a heavy dark brown robe, the cowl was thrown back leaving her head exposed. She met my eyes and I felt uncertainty flit through her emotions for a moment then it was gone. She visibly straightened her shoulders and walked right up to me. Mission looked on with a small smile, trying not to be smug.

Bastila stopped before me and took a deep breath, let it out slowly and bowed to me. "I'm sorry," she said, straightening back up, "You have done the impossible to free me and I have no right to judge your actions. I hope you can forgive me."

I raised a brow at Mission, who just grinned at me unable to hide her satisfaction. Looking back to Bastila I nodded, "Thank you Bastila," I paused for a moment considering my options before nodding again and taking the light saber from the pocket in my pants and holding it out to her. "We are going to have to trust each other and work together if we want to get off this planet alive, so take this as a sign of our trust."

She looked at the weapon and a deep sorrow flared inside her, she took another deep breath blinking rapidly to hold back sudden tears. She accepted the intricate lightsaber and secreted it away in her robes. "Thank you." the words were hoarse and soft, she closed her eyes for a moment when she touched the weapon and let out a heavy breath. When she opened her eyes again they were filled with purpose, all traces of her sorrow gone. There was a great deal of strength in those eyes, though deep down I knew the strength was fragile. She would be fine for now, but eventually she would be pushed too far, and when that day came, she would break.

For now though we had a job to do, "You're welcome," I said and motioned to the speeder, "time to go."

We piled in and Carth maneuvered us out, and into the lower city's sky lanes. The thriving metropolis was bright with artificial light, we passed the half a kilometer wide sky towers that served as a support structure for the mind bending ceiling above, stretching into a dark grey blur kilometers ahead of us. We rode in silence as we flew through the city, each of us caught up in our own thoughts.

Several minutes later, Carth brought us down into an automated parking structure. Carth brought us to a stop in a bay large enough to fit a vehicle three times the size of ours. We piled out and waited as a droid handed Carth an electronic chit. Last out was Bastila who had pulled up the deep cowl of her robe, completely obscuring her face.

Carth thanked the droid and we watched as a door opened at the far end of the bay, exposing dozens of other vehicles stacked in adjustable storage areas that looked similar to a honeycomb. Two massive powered armatures reached into the bay lifted our speeder out and into the hive of vehicles.

"The cantina is a couple blocks to the south." Carth said, pointing down the long pedwalk that was already heavy with walking traffic. We started down the pedwalk Carth leading the way, Bastila walking close behind.

Mission moved back to walk with me, while Zaalbar stuck close to Bastila's side.

"What was the fight about?" I asked, just loud enough for Mission to hear over the bustle of the people around us.

She smiled up at me with amusement, "Our young Jedi strongly disapproves of our relationship. She tried to convince me that it was in my best interest to leave and forget all about you."

Anger flared up inside me with more intensity than I would have expected. Mission reached out and took my hand giving it a squeeze as though she could feel the emotion. "What did you have to say about that?" I asked, pushing the anger down.

"That, someone who stood by while the Jedi messed with your mind had no right to an opinion on your life, or mine." she said, and chuckled with dark amusement. "You should have seen her face." the chuckle became a full laugh, drawing the attention of a few of the people around us. I felt amusement flare up in Zaalbar even though he was a good five meters ahead of us, he was obviously listening.

"Surprised was she?" I asked, giving her a grin.

Looking up to the Jedi in question walking a few meters in front of us, she shook her head in bemusement still chuckling, "I'll tell you later."

A short walk later the Cantina came into sight, it was a good sized three story building with a dome barely visible at the center of it's roof. Traffic for the cantina seemed to be good despite it being an hour before lunch. I noticed a good number of armored mercenaries in the groups of people entering and exiting the establishment. On either side of the cantina were scantily clad females and a few males, of a number of different races tried to get the attention of people in the crowd.

A large sign over the main door announced 'The Swoop Den' in bold holographic letters. Dodging through the pedestrians and ignoring the invitations from the escorts, we followed as Zaalbar took the lead, cutting a wide path through the crowd. The bouncers at the large double doors took one look at the wookiee and got out of his way. The big enhanced human males bulged with artificial muscle and obvious cyber implants, the looks on their faces though making it clear that despite their imposing appearance they well knew their limitations. Zaalbar politely held the doors for us and we filed past him, Mission giving the large dark skinned bouncer on our right a smug grin as we entered.

The interior of the cantina was not what I was expecting. The layout appeared to be a similar circular design to the others I had visited on the planet, only much bigger. Far ahead in the very center of the building sat a circular chain link cage about eight meters in diameter and stretched from the floor below all the way to the dome in the roof. Seating surrounded the cage filled with excited spectators as they looked down to the floor below, cheering in victory, or groaning in disappointment. Around the cage the cantina was a spacious open floor plan. Tables took up a majority of the floor space with a section on the wall across from us reserved for a band with a dance floor in front of it. Along the other walls long bar counters were filled with dozens of patrons talking or shouting for drinks and food. Very attractive women and men weaved their way through the many tables carrying food and drinks, while wearing very little.

"Fight club and brothel all in one." Carth said just loud enough to be heard over the upbeat music filling the place.

"That doesn't even cover half of it." Mission said laughing. "I'll go see if…" she started only to be interrupted by a young human woman wearing scarlet chest wrap and a short skirt of the same color that didn't even make it half way down her thighs, and nothing else.

"Your room has been prepared, if you will follow me please?" she said with a slight bow motioning to the back of the cantina.

Mission blinked in surprise for a long moment before shaking herself and nodding, "Thank you, lead the way." she said, taking a step towards the attractive young woman.

Carth looked about to say something when Zaalbar slapped a paw down on his shoulder, cutting him off before he could utter a sound. We followed the server in silence as she glided her way across the huge room to some cleverly hidden stairs next to the band. She led us up to the second floor to a plain looking door down a short hall. She opened it with a keycard and ushered us inside. A carved wooden table with seating for ten filled the private dining room. One chair at the foot of the table was twice the size of all the others, pointing to a well informed staff. The server waited for us to take our seats before taking our drink orders and leaving with a small bow.

"I was not expecting service like that from this place." Carth said into the silence of her departure. "They even had a chair for Zaalbar"

"This is a favorite spot for many of the powerful in the Lowercity." Zaalbar said, reclining in his special chair, looking deeply gratified.

"This Canderous must have a great deal of wealth or power to warrant this kind of reception." Bastila said from beneath her hood.

"He's the right hand of Davik Kang, an exchange boss that controls about a third of the illegal activity on the planet." Mission replied, her normal confidence suspiciously absent.

"A dangerous proposition," Bastila replied, with a nearly unnatural calm, "dealing with such a man."

The door opened and the server came back in with a tray layden with drinks before anything else could be said. I accepted the dark ale and took a tentative drink while she handed out the rest. It was a good rich ale, dark but slightly sweet, I couldn't help a hum of satisfaction as I took another longer drink. Mission accepted her drink and handed the woman a credit chit. The server gave another small bow and left without a word.

I opened my mouth to ask why she hadn't asked about food when the door opened again and Canderous entered. He was dressed simply in dark grey pants and a matching shirt that stretched tight over his chest and upper arms, emphasizing a good deal of hard muscle. He had a Mandalorian Heavy blaster strapped to his right thigh, nearly the same as the ones I wore, and a short vibroblade strapped to his left.

"Good morning everyone." he said, coming in and taking a seat at the head of the table. He sounded surprisingly cheerful despite his deep gruff voice and the prominent scar over his left eye, nearly in the same place as mine. In fact looking at him sitting there I had the strange feeling that I would look much the same in another twenty years. "Glad you all decided to come, and early too, must be anxious to get off world."

"Curiosity got the best of us." I replied with a grin.

"First of all we can speak freely here," he said motioning to the walls around us, "No sensors in here of any kind."

"How very clandestine of you." Carth said, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Needs must when you take on someone like Davik, not to mention the Sith." Canderous replied with a small mean smile.

"You're joking," Mission said in disbelief, "You've been Davik's right hand for years, what could make you turn on him now?"

"That is a good question my young slicer friend." Canderous replied with a genuine smile for Mission. "Simply put I'm sick of being the hammer Davik uses to crush the weak and helpless of this world."

"If that's the case, why stick around, why not leave?" Mission asked.

"The simple answer, the blockade, no one other than approved transports can get past those damn Sith in orbit. As to why I didn't leave before they showed up, well my reasons are my own. All you need to know is that I have a plan to get past that blockade, a plan that will require a team to complete." He explained in a level tone.

"Assuming all of this is on the level, why come to us?" I said, finally cutting into the conversation.

"Because of this." he said, and pulled a small holoprojector from somewhere beneath the table and set it down on the table before him. He touched the edge of the small silvery disk and sat back.

The projector lit up and a holo of a bare gey corridor bathed in red light appeared over the table. After a moment a group of at least twenty lightly armored men and women came into view at a quick trot. They stopped and a middle aged man in the lead raised a blaster rifle pointed at something out of view. The man yelled something though no sound projected from the hollow. A second after he spoke he fired, a red blaster bold streaking out of view. An instant later I saw myself fly forward toward the man. I was moving so fast that it was difficult to tell that it was me over the holo, only the fact that I had been there made me sure who I was seeing. A streak of silver flashed over my shoulder and a knife buried itself into the man's neck. He fell back clutching at the wound, blood spurting from between his fingers. Then I was on them, I watched myself dance through them, slicing the group of Vulkars to pieces much faster than I remembered. Zaalbar joined me less than a second later and my eyes widened as I watched the giant wookiee annihilate anything that came into range of his looted axe. At one point he grabbed a large woman with a vibrosword, lifted her off the ground by her wrist and kicked her in the chest so hard that her arm came free of its socket. The body flew across the corridor spraying blood like a fountain only to slam into the wall. I just blinked as I watched the carnage unfold, I knew what we had done, but watching it like that from an outside perspective made me feel more like I was watching a horror holo than a security feed.

When the last of the group fell to blaster bolts from off screen, Mission and Carth walked into the shot, and the scene paused. "That was recorded by one of our own bugs, with the way Brejik had been conducting himself we felt it necessary to watch him." Canderous explained, giving me an openly curious look.

"So that's why it was still functioning." Mission said distracted, examining the floating scene.

"I for one am quite interested how a republic soldier learned to fight like that." Canderous said, ignoring Mission to continue staring at me.

"Special operations," Carth interjected, saving me from answering, "Our grunt here has been trained in a lot of scary things."

"I fought in the Mandalorian wars," Canderous said, still looking me in the eye, like he was trying to read my mind, "I have seen the republic special forces in action many times," he paused then to finally look over to Carth, "and not a single one of them could fight like that." he let the sentence hang there for a long moment before I decided to break the silence.

"How I learned to fight isn't what you really want to know," I searched his emotions and found curiosity mostly, a little warriness, but mostly this guy wanted our help. "What you really need to know is if we are willing to work with you, and if we are willing to risk taking on the Sith, and your boss."

Canderous looked back at me and we sat in silence studying each other for a long minute before he finally nodded. "You are correct, though I can't deny that I'm curious." He waved a hand dismissively before grabbing the holo projector and sitting back in his chair. "My plan will involve a great deal of risk to all of us, and if any of us are caught we will all most likely die."

"I don't trust him." Bastila said, finally breaking her silence and throwing back her hood to look at Canderous directly.

"Well that just hurts my feelings Bastila," Canderous said, not sounding hurt in the least, "what have I done to give you the idea that I'm not trustworthy?"

Bastila opened her mouth to reply then seemed to think better of it and sat back closing her mouth and looking thoughtfully at him.

Canderous grinned at her smugly, "I know Jedi can sense truth so how about this," He met her gaze levelly, "I honestly wish your help to get off of this world and I have no ill intentions for any of you."

I knew Bastila could sense his honestly just as well as I could so I was surprised when her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You seem to be telling the truth, but you are hiding something." she said before lifting her glass of water to her lips.

Canderous burst out into a laugh, he looked from me to Bastila and back again. "Is she serious?" he asked, mild disbelief in his voice.

I couldn't help but grin back and nod.

"Of course I'm hiding things, we don't know each other and unlike you I can't read minds." he explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I have no way of knowing if I can trust any of you, I'm taking a huge risk just by talking to you. So until we establish some trust I'll be keeping my secrets."

"He smells sincere to me." Zaalbar interjected before Bastila could respond.

Instead of speaking out loud I felt Bastila push on my mind through the bond, 'I don't like this but since I have no better option I'll trust your judgment.' her words floated through my mind sounding slightly different than her actual voice. It took everything I had not to let my surprise at her mental voice show on my face.

Fortunately, Mission distracted me. "So Canderous what is your plan?" she asked, giving him a curious look.

"As I mentioned, no one can get off world without Sith transportation authorization, anyone trying to break the atmosphere without it is immediately fired upon. So the first step is getting those codes." Canderous said, smiling wickedly at Mission.

"You are not suggesting what I think you're suggesting," Mission said, disbelief plain on her face, "No wonder that hollo got you excited, that's suicidal at best!"

"Would someone fill me in please?" Bastila asked, looking between the two with obvious confusion.

"The transportation and communication codes are generated onboard the flagship of the blockade fleet, they are then sent to communication hubs across the planet. Those systems are not connected to the local planetary network. The only way to get those codes is to steal a ship that has already been updated with them, or break into the communication hub and download them." Canderous explained, grinning at the young Jedi.

"And let me guess, there is a reason we can't just steal a ship?" Mission asked with a resigned sigh, then took a big swallow of the colorful drink before her.

Canderous turned his gaze to her and gave her a nod, "We aren't sure how but every single one of their ships is hard coded to their pilots implants, if you don't have a Sith piloting implant the ship won't start. And their implants are DNA encoded, so no killing a pilot and transplanting it either, we already tried."

"We are so fucked." Mission sighed as her head thumped onto the table.

I gave her hand a squeeze below the table and turned to Canderous with a grin of my own. "So tell us about this plan of yours, storming a Sith installation sounds fun."