Chapter 51
Enemy of My Enemy
Although his smirking lips expressed calmness and assurance, the pounding of his heart told a different story as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of Carth's head. The very mention of his name caused an even greater stir amongst the Mandalorian warriors who swarmed around him in increasing numbers, blaster weapons of all sizes and calibers pointed and poised to end his life at the first sign of hostility.
"You've got a lot of guts waltzing in here," said a warrior in the crowd, the helmets making it impossible for Carth to identify exactly who spoke. "I remember you well."
"Really?" Carth replied mockingly, fighting his own nerves as he continued to put on an act of composed arrogance. "I'm touched. Care to step forward and point out where I hurt you?"
"Ignore my underlings, Onasi. I am Rally Master Ondar Fett, and your business is with me," the leader grunted and unhesitatingly stepped forward, halting right in front of his old wartime foe. "Explain yourself. It's obvious from your friend's appearance that he is a Jedi. Give me one reason why I shouldn't have both of you shot dead right now."
"That's easy," Revan said, crossing his arms. "Contrary to what you think, we're actually here to help you. So long as we get a share of the spoils too, of course."
"I highly doubt that, Kael Deren, if that's even your real name," Ondar accused, having not noticed the slightest twitch of Revan's finger after he spoke. "I know all too well about your Order, as well as Mr. Goody-two-shoes over here. The HoloNet wouldn't stop gushing him praises during the war, so much that several of our warriors had to fight the urge to shoot down screens in public whenever his face was pictured on worlds that were either under our occupation or were being scouted by our spies. Do you honestly think that I buy your story even for a second?"
"That was then. This is now," Revan replied. "I've heard what happened to your people after the war; how you were stripped of everything that made you what you are, and forced to makes a living by doing things such as…this. I was one of the few who opted to make our way back to Coruscant after our victory on Malachor V, instead of following Revan all the way. We expected a welcome befitting heroes, only to be rewarded with expulsion from the Order. So here I am, a mercenary just like you. A man's gotta make a living somehow, doesn't he?"
"We were never anything more than pawns on a game board," Carth added. "I'm proud of what I achieved during my service, I won't deny that. I thought we were fighting for a good cause – to protect our homes and families – and that the Republic would have our back. But they didn't. The only things that those frauds in the Senate were looking out for were their own credit chips. The Republic High Command was short on resources due to political meddling, and we barely managed to beat you by the skin of our teeth on Malachor. Before we could even properly settle down to enjoy the short peace, the Sith onslaught had reached our own homes. My planet…my whole family…was lost because of them. The darn politicians who sat on their hands and had done nothing. Their incompetence and greed."
"Very touching, boys," Ondar chuckled, not being able to help himself as he smirked and looked down, shaking his head. "But I'm not some gullible chump who's fresh out of some academy. It'll take more than that to convince me."
"We're not here for your sympathy; we're here for the Wookiees," Revan said flatly, moving on with the point. "We struck a deal with Chieftain Chuundar in the village above. We nail those renegades that are pestering him, he promised to reward us handsomely."
Playing along, Carth commented further. "There's a lot of credits on offer for us, but as outsiders, we simply don't have any pointers to work with. Getting down here alone almost cost us an arm and a leg – literally."
"It's not just the Wookiees we're after. We've seen the cargo your Czerka friends have packed in droves in the great walkway above. It's quite impressive what they've managed to gather, but I'm convinced that there are even bigger prizes to be found out there. Rare, exotic monsters that we may have never even seen or heard of. Judging by the maps saved in the terminals close to the elevator, I'd say that you haven't been having much luck at all at finding any."
"And you think that the simple difference of having you and this pilot here will swing things in our favor?" Ondar dismissed. "I highly doubt that. You might still have a cocky attitude stemming from the war, where your Force powers aided you in fighting the most novice of Mandalorian warriors, but you wouldn't last a day in combat against those Wookiees in their own backyard. Hell, with the likes of you, you'd probably have your throat slit while sleeping."
Studying the activity going on in the camp, Revan shook his head after joining the dots together. "Things aren't going so well for you here right now, I see. I thought Mandalorians would naturally have everything under control. Guess I was wrong." The moment he uttered those words, the blasters aimed at his face resounded with renewed focus, the Mandalorians' trigger fingers itching to take a shot as payback for the insult. In an attempt to defuse the situation, he continued. "Look, boys. Think of the opportunity you're passing up here. Just one more push, and you can finally clear out those damn Wookiees who have been tormenting you for so long, getting in the way of your plans at every turn. We can help you with that."
"Is that right?" Ondar nodded, although his hand never strayed far from his blaster. "You really mean what you say?"
"What do you have to lose?" Revan insisted, raising his hands up by his sides with his palms pointing upwards, beckoning not only to Ondar but also to the rest of the Mandalorians behind him. "Carth and I are more than willing to put ourselves on the line if it means being able to make a fortune. We're done with taking orders from the Republic and Jedi Council and living off the scraps they give us. Think about what you've got going on for yourself here, Ondar. Nobody's stopping you from going back to Mandalore a few thousand credits richer, and I commend you for that little achievement. But why stop there? You've barely scratched the surface of what Kashyyyk has to offer, but now the entire planet is within your grasp. All you need to do now is to accept my help, and reach out… and there you have it – riches beyond your wildest imagination."
Observing firsthand how the Czerka engineers and poachers started to whisper amongst themselves, and the Mandalorian warriors' focus began to falter, Carth felt a chilling sensation run up and down his body. It had always been a mystery as to how so many soldiers and Jedi Knights who had once loyally served the Republic and Jedi Order had turned their backs on everything they once swore to defend, but now he knew.
Indignation, unjust compensation, pride, greed, and a lust for power…Revan had just now preyed on all of these emotions in one fell swoop. Although Carth wasn't able to discern whether any noticeable attempt at a Jedi Mid Trick had been attempted by Revan, the charisma, conviction and enticement behind every word spoken was enough to, at the very least, spark some interest in each soul who listened to him.
As conflicted as they may have seemed, the Mandalorians were no fools. Although increasingly irritated by the endless chattering of their greedier Czerka colleagues, not a single one allowed his emotions to take over, and they soon looked to their leader to see what he would do next.
"What do you say, Ondar?" Carth asked, letting his hands hang freely by his sides, away from his blaster pistol in a show of confidence. "Kael here has set out a perfectly good deal; I'd take up his offer if I were you. We may have had a hell of good a reason to blast each other's heads off in the past, but things have changed. Besides, we didn't come to this planet just to be turned back unexpectedly at the last minute. Why not let bygones be bygones and work together for a change? We'll definitely make it worth your while."
"Very well. Let's say that I do want to co-operate with you," Ondar chuckled, crossing his arms. "Now tell me…what would be the first step that you propose?"
"First thing's first: return to the village above, regroup and resupply," Revan replied, much to the displeasure of many Mandalorians around him. "You've been down here for weeks, and Chuundar suspects that your supplies may be starting to run low, especially given all of the Wookiee raids. This position is horribly exposed, and too far from any established supply line. One step back to take a giant leap forward, if you ask me. And the next time you return down here, Carth and I will have your back all the way."
"Sounds like a good plan to me," Carth agreed, then spoke up towards the Mandalorians. "You see? There's far more to Jedi than meets the eye."
A tense silence followed, during which Ondar conferred with one of his subordinates who came up to him and started whispering back and forth. Looking once more at Revan, Carth was amazed by the sheer confidence with which the former Dark Lord had sought to manipulate his foe, with slippery lies all tucked in between layers of half-truths and the undeniable reality of the current situation.
Following a brief pause to ponder his next moves, a crude, sinister smirk stretched across Ondar's face once his subordinate had stepped aside. Their senses now in a state of higher alert, Revan and Carth awaited the next move by the Mandalorian leader who cocked his head in the direction of the camp. "Follow me. I have something to show you."
Although gaining access to the camp without a fight was part of their objective, Revan and Carth were made to feel uneasy by the confidence which exuded from Ondar. They gingerly entered, their eyes fixed upon the Mandalorian leader and avoiding sharing glances with the grunts, some of whom even had it in them to nudge their 'guests' along with blaster barrels pointed right up against their backs.
"We came here to hunt and make money, not play show-and-tell, Ondar," Carth complained, doing his damnedest to keep up the self-serving façade while trailing behind, made extremely uncomfortable by the notably pushy Mandalorian who followed lockstep behind him. "Just what is it that we need to do further before we get on with our actual work?"
"I have a…little problem that fell into my hands, you see," Ondar sighed, his steps calm and collected despite maintaining his suspicions and walking in front of the two men who could have easily opted to kill him in a heartbeat. "It suddenly popped up out of nowhere and is causing me a damned headache. I was hoping you'd be able to solve it for me."
"And that is?" Revan said, remaining as calm as possible although his heart was beginning to pick up the pace, the feeling of inevitability beginning to sink in.
"Right here," Ondar gestured with his hand after turning a corner, leaving Revan and Carth speechless at what they saw.
The relief that came with seeing Canderous alive was marred by the clear fact that he was far from well. Stripped of his armor and bound by rope and shackles to a metallic post, he was barely able to move his limbs under the biting cold, his pride being the only thing that kept him from visibly shivering.
Hearing his companions approach, Canderous slowly opened his swollen eyes, managing to fight the pain enough to part his cracked lips to draw a weak breath. A trail of crimson ran down from his nostrils all the way down his torn undershirt, but the Mandalorian veteran's spirit was far from unbroken.
Upon making eye contact with Canderous, Revan continued on with the ruse, shaking his head with his lips slightly ajar so as to feign disbelief to Ondar, but sending a covert message to Canderous to play along. However, Ondar's attention was soon diverted to another Mandalorian – a raven-haired woman with striking green eyes who stood close to Canderous, off to the side.
"The hell are you doing here, Tasi? Where's Dom? I specifically told him to stand guard!" Ondar barked as he approached her.
"I heard you had problems getting the answers you wanted out of him, while the cleanup crew and I were busy searching through him and his companions' camp and belongings," Tasi replied coolly. "Plus…Canderous and I have some unsettled scores over Malachor we needed to discuss. Dom, as usual," she sighed with a shrug, "is a half-assed nitwit. I'm not surprised that he's completely missed informing you as to what I was trying to do here."
"So I see," the leader replied with a low hiss, his eyes studying both Tasi and Canderous closely. "Well then…have you had any luck?"
"I, erm…," she stammered, taking a sharp breath in while her gaze darted between Ondar, Canderous and the two newcomers. "N-no. At least, not yet."
"Ah, so you're out of luck, aren't you," Ondar chuckled and nodded with a mischievous smirk on his face. "Shame. Darn shame. Because so is he." Cocking his head towards Canderous, he took sadistic pleasure in watching Tasi's complexion suddenly lose what color it had left.
"Wh-what do you mean?" she mumbled, stepping forward with a blank expression. "You…you can't be serious as to—!"
Turning with ice-cool composure back to Carth and Revan, the Mandalorian waved his blaster pistol in the direction of Canderous. "Kill him. Right now."
Knowing that even the slightest hint of unsettled nerves would doom them all, both Revan and Carth managed to collect themselves just in time, giving each other puzzled looks before Carth responded. "He's got nothing to do with us. Just what the hell is happening here?"
"Canderous, here, has done the unthinkable," Ondar explained. "Just like you, he stumbled across our operations down here in the Shadowlands. We never quite saw eye to eye during the war, but would have been more than willing to take him in among our ranks had he opted to reconcile and join us. Instead, he not only refused to join us, but outright fired upon us. So here we are."
"Carth here may have crossed him at some stage, but as far as I'm concerned, he means nothing to me," Revan said with a straight face while looking Canderous directly in the eyes. "This is none of our business. Let's get on with discussing what we need to do to wipe out those Wookiees."
"No…no," Ondar shook his head while smirking. "You misunderstand. Yes, Canderous here probably has absolutely nothing to do with you, indeed. But if you want me to believe you, then you have to do it. Kill him now."
"Executing a tied up, beaten and helpless prisoner? We may have turned our backs to the Republic, but do you really think that we'd sink so low?" Carth scoffed.
"Let's cut the crap, shall we? You spoke of living only for yourselves; of caring only about the money. Now's the time to prove that. Let's be clear about one thing: you're not gonna just kill the Wookiee combatants – you're gonna help us kill them all. That's what Chuundar has paid you and I to do. The men, the women, and however many little furballs they may keep with them. Every. Single. One. If you're serious about killing the Wookiees, then you should have absolutely no problems with killing a former foe. So do it. Do it now."
Sensing the tension building around them, Carth interjected. "Look, you might have gotten off on the wrong foot, but surely you can have another valuable ally in Canderous if you just think rationally for a second and play your cards right. Can't we just—"
"No," Ondar firmly declared, his patience evidently wearing thin as he raised his blaster pistol to aim a shot at the side of Carth's head, prompting every single one of the warriors around him to do the same. "You test my patience. Make your next move, and be smart about it. In fact," he turned to Revan, "I want you to do it. I've seen both Mandalorian warriors and Republic soldiers tearing each other apart at the first opportunity, but you Jedi? You've always acted like you're above it all; incapable of giving in to rage or the desire to kill. Well now that's about to change."
Revan looked at him wordlessly, his eyes darkening with simmering contempt.
"That's the spirit," Ondar mocked, then walked right up to him and gently shoved him by the back towards Canderous. "Just like you said to me, all you need to do is reach out…break apart and throw away those old Jedi teachings. Live for yourself, just like you claimed you would."
"Ondar, please, I just…just need more time!" Tasi stammered, surging towards him and grabbing him by the forearm. "I'm so close to getting the information we need from him, I know it!"
Her incessant pleas clearly having struck a nerve, Ondar looked to the skies and let out a long, hearty sigh. Then, taking her completely by surprise, he lowered his blaster and holstered it in one swift motion before grabbing her by the throat in a vicious grip and whispering into her ear.
"You've already failed in your own little task, Tasi – a task that I didn't give you authorization to carry out, I might add. You were lucky to escape Dxun, but don't think that that same luck will keep you alive here. Especially if you get in my way."
"I…," she murmured with her hands working desperately in a vain attempt to loosen Ondar's grip, her breaths growing fainter by the second.
Drawing her away until they were face to face, Ondar glared menacingly into her eyes for a brief moment before brutally shoving his palm against her nose and cheek. Starved of air, she spun around from the impact as she fell face-first into a putrid pile of mud.
"Don't feel too bad for yourself, Tasi," he mocked, further twisting the knife. "This might be the second time you're eating dirt, but be thankful for the fact that you're not buried beneath it. Hell, that's probably better than what I can say of Jena."
Jena?!
Unlike Carth who showed a slight degree of pity but otherwise appeared largely unmoved as he had not joined in the quest out in the Dune Sea, Revan's eyes sparked at the very mention of that name. He looked wordlessly towards Canderous, who in turn murmured inaudible words while fixating his gaze upon the downed and humiliated woman.
It was her.
Whether he wanted them to or not, the memories quickly came flooding back as he looked at Tasi who lay helplessly on her back, staring back at him. He remembered the paleness of her cheeks as she lay unconscious, bleeding profusely from the stab wound inflicted on her during that night on Dxun. The desperation in Jena's eyes and voice as she begged him to help her little sister. That brief spark of humanity he was so glad to have experienced once more amidst the savage chaos of war.
"Now…let's get back to business," Ondar said, turning once more to Revan. "Kill him."
Sensing that all eyes were now upon him, Revan stepped forth and unclipped his lightsaber from his belt, holding it by his side. Three solemn strides later, he presented himself before the bound and helpless Canderous, the two men's faces separated by barely a hand's length as they stared intently into each other's eyes.
Unable to see what was going on behind him, Revan closed his eyes to focus on the surrounding noise. Beyond the muffled chatter among the Mandalorians and Czerka workers, the whispering between Ondar and one of his subordinates who approached him, and the deep, tension-fueled breaths of Carth, Canderous and Tasi, there were no other noises to be heard. Virtually the entire camp was now gathered in one place…and Czerka's vital equipment and hardware on the other side of the camp left completely unattended.
Perfect.
With a crackling hiss, Canderous's wound-ridden body was lit up by the blue hue of Revan's lightsaber which was raised to the side of his neck. But despite being completely in the dark as to just what Revan was planning, Canderous showed no sign of alarm, merely continuing to stare at his companion as Carth approached from Revan's left and tilted his head towards him.
"Do it," Carth said, his lips directed not at Revan, but to the upper pocket of his jacket.
"No!" Tasi screamed, raising her hand at the two men in a hopeless gesture. Seconds later, just as Revan brought his lightsaber up over his head to strike, a loud explosion erupted from the other side of the camp, causing every Mandalorian to grasp their blasters in a state of full alert while the Czerka teams showed mixed reactions ranging from battle-readiness to shrinking in fear.
"What in the blazes?!" Ondar shouted, his instincts first compelling him to watch Carth and Revan with a hawk-like gaze for any sign of treachery while he barked further orders to his subordinates. "Go check it out. Now!"
"Shouldn't we head over there to see what happened?" Carth asked, looking over his shoulder at Ondar. "No point in standing around here if it's something serious."
"No. Stay put. That's an order," he growled, his finger itching to pull the trigger in order to lay his growing suspicions to rest. He turned to shoot a glare at Tasi who slowly rose to her feet, having keenly observed her sudden shift in behavior.
"These fucking rats have tricked us, commander!" yelled a Mandalorian rank-and-file warrior who came right up to Revan and held a pistol to his head. "Better that we kill them now than wait around and find out what else they have planned!"
"They're in league with that bloody Cathar! Don't just kill them – interrogate them, Drogal, you idiot!" shouted another who came running up to the group.
One after another, close to every Mandalorian began to swarm around Carth and Revan, shoving and punching at them while crying out with accusations and bloodthirsty calls for vengeance, the unofficial vote having become split between interrogation and outright murder. Frustrated by the sudden breakdown in discipline, Ondar raised his pistol up and fired a single shot into the air, silencing the crowd immediately.
"Enough!" he roared, then pointed at the two men. "Put them next to Canderous and keep a close watch on them. If either of them makes funny moves, blast them. Nobody enters or leaves this camp until this issue is resolved, and –"
"Commander! Come quickly!" one of the warriors sent to investigate huffed as he hurriedly returned. "It's worse than we feared!"
After taking a quick look over his shoulder to ensure that his men had Revan and Carth under close supervision, Ondar dashed after the subordinate to the other side of the camp. Upon arrival, he was shocked to see that the large batch of collected animal specimens, the main armory station, and a substantial pile of equipment were strewn about amidst blackened rubble and small embers.
Furthermore, several Czerka workers and engineers lay either motionless, or were writhing in pain on the ground, clutching onto their faces which were gushing with blood. Here and there were gory shrapnel-ridden arms and legs, torn off their bodies from the force of the blast.
"What the fuck happened here? Answer me!" Ondar shouted, mercilessly grabbing by the back of the neck and wresting around a Czerka engineer who was hunched over while grasping onto the supporting pole of a tent to keep himself from collapsing.
"Some…something in the weapons cache…discharged," the worker weakly whimpered, his face laced with cuts and darkened by smoke. "We…we started gathering and packing all of the perimeter defense equipment and—"
"What? Who the hell told you to…," Ondar snapped, then immediately began scanning the immediate vicinity. All sensory equipment parts that moments ago were still deployed around the area were lying in smoking ruins and beyond repair…including the sonic emitters. He flew into a rage, wildly shaking the man by the throat as he bellowed. "Who gave you the order? I made it clear that the damn sonic emitters were the last things that were to be packed, and that they should still be active! Who the fuck gave you the order to disassemble all of this equipment? Answer me!"
"Y-you did…sir," the man shivered, eyes trembling all the while streams of sweat began bulleting down the side of his head.
Within seconds, Ondar's shock and disbelief at the man's words quickly turned to seething rage as he curled his fingers into an iron fist. An experienced veteran of many battles during the Mandalorian Wars, this was not the first, but certainly the most painful and vexing instance of him dealing with an all too familiar trick.
"The Jedi…" He grabbed his blaster pistol and immediately turned to walk back, resolving to not let the two intruders see what was coming to them.
Then, in the distance, came a howl.
Then another.
Another.
The trees and bushes all around him began to rustle with an unbelievable amount of noise, and a sickening deep echo of voracious growls and hisses drew closer and closer until at last, dozens of beasts of all types bearing razor-sharp fangs and claws descended upon them at once from all directions.
"Fight! All of you, fight!" Ondar yelled and fired the first shot while frantically retreating, his desire to exact payback on Revan and Carth now completely replaced by the desperation to stay alive. He was preventing from doing so, however, as a pack of predators swooped in behind him and cut him off, baring razor-sharp teeth.
"Fuck, fuck! Run! Save yourselves!" yelled one of the senior staff members among the Czerka hunters, wasting no time and not bothering to fire off a single round as he made a mad dash towards the rear of the camp where he saw a small and fleeting opening among the torrent of animals headed towards them.
The moment that the man made a run for it, a chain reaction followed among the rest of the Czerka ranks. One man followed, then another, then three more, until suddenly all of the remaining engineers and poachers abandoned their companions to whatever fate had in store for them. Torturous screams could be heard in the bushes where many of them disappeared into, accompanied by the stomach-turning sounds of claws and teeth ripping into flesh and bone.
Yet, while everything was turning to madness around them, the Mandalorians stood firm, having lost none of their pride despite all that they had been through since their defeat in the war. Every last one of them, from the least experienced raw recruit to the most hardened veteran, held their ground, ready to fight to the death.
"You need our help," Revan declared to his Mandalorian watchers, raising his voice so that he could be heard over the din of scowling and hissing animals that were now mere seconds away from contact.
In an effort to move things along quickly and prevent the men from having second thoughts, Carth drew his dual blaster pistols and rushed into the action alongside his one-time foes. Surging forward, he nudged his elbow against Tasi's arm, bumping her in Canderous's direction and subtly hinting at her to take a protective position by his side. "Stand your ground! I'll take point!"
Dazed by the sudden predicament and realizing that attacking the Jedi Knight meant consigning themselves to almost certain death, either at his hand or being mauled by the overwhelming number of beasts, the two Mandalorians guards wordlessly took the gamble of putting their shaky faith in their uneasy new allies as they took up combat positions.
"Open fire!" yelled a veteran in silver armor, staring dead-straight into the black eyes of a katarn that leapt up towards his throat. Sporting a heavy repeating blaster in the same style as Canderous, he unleashed a torrent of fire, riddling with smoking holes the body of the creature which screamed in pain before harmlessly swooping over his shoulder, falling dead on the ground.
To Revan and Carth's dismay, the katarns were accompanied by, among others, the very same beasts that had almost torn them and their companions apart during their descent into the Shadowlands. Despite being larger and heavier than the katarns, they moved with astonishing comparative speed, the claws of one ripping clean through the torso of an unfortunate Czerka worker just a few feet in front of Revan.
As he carved clean through a katarn that had lunged at his knees, Revan thought for a brief moment in amazement. In spite of two fearsome carnivorous species being in such close proximity of one another, they did not seek to fight and devour each other in the typical fashion for jungle predators; rather, they were united in directing their wrath at the poachers who were their common enemy and greatest threat.
Their wrath was undoubtedly a terrible sight to behold. Once Revan looked up, he saw that the entire camp was now swamped by the monsters, with the Mandalorians fighting back with any and everything they had, right down to their personal sidearms and combat knives, some warriors struggling and rolling about on the ground while grabbing the monsters by the face to keep the fangs away from their own necks.
He swiftly turned to look at Carth, who was quickly becoming surrounded by a mound of corpses while fighting desperately alongside Tasi, constantly retreating and giving up ground. Seeing that another wave of monsters was racing towards him, Carth cursed as he took up position right in front of Canderous. "Damn it! Where the hell is she? She should have come over here already!"
"You're waiting on your own rescue now? You're kidding me, flyboy!" Canderous barked. "Stop the bullshit and get Kael to cut me loose already!"
Quickly glancing over his shoulder towards the main section of the camp, Carth could see that Ondar and the few men around him were gradually gaining the upper hand in their fight against the beasts, at the cost of three Mandalorian warriors and almost all of the Czerka members in his vicinity lying dead. The tides of monsters on all sides of the camp perimeter were now beginning to die down, and with them, the chances of successfully extracting Canderous.
"Cover me!" Tasi yelled at Carth, her heart racing at the very thought of putting her faith in a former enemy. Pulling out her utility knife, she made a beeline to the ropes bound around Canderous's legs and began the arduous process of cutting through, all the while sweating bullets and praying that none of her fellow Mandalorians saw fit to blast her in the head for betraying them. "Shit," she cursed when she raised her gaze to look at the irons and chains that bound his wrists to the metallic beam behind him. "It's useless! I won't be able to—!"
"Move!" cried a woman's voice from above, although nothing could be seen when Tasi and Carth looked up to find the source. His instincts kicking in, Carth yanked Tasi back by the arm, pulling the shocked Mandalorian woman away from Canderous. Suddenly, a great pile of tent canvas began to fall on top of them after the support beams were cut, but not before a blue lightsaber blazed to life and delivered three precise strikes in quick succession. The chains and rope that imprisoned Canderous were severed, and he fell forward with a pained groan, almost toppling Tasi who struggled to catch him.
"A blaster! Give me a fucking blaster!" he demanded, his desperation to fight shrouding his deep gratitude to Juhani, whom he knew he couldn't afford to thank just yet. While his voice still carried his usual aura of indomitable strength, Canderous's body betrayed him. Still weak from lingering nausea and brutal beatings, his knees began to give way, and his hands shook with a nervous energy that Carth and Revan hadn't seen before in combat on Dantooine or Tatooine.
"There's no time! Get him out of here!" Juhani yelled, using the Force to manipulate and hold up one side of the fallen tent to shield Canderous, Carth and Tasi from the view of both the Mandalorians and beasts.
"Come on! This way!" Carth grunted, holstering one of his pistols and reaching out to grab hold of Canderous's torso. Tasi automatically mirrored his movement, wrapping her arm around the other side. Coming to his senses and noting that he was currently in no condition to fight, Canderous breathed in deeply before the three of them surged forward and out of the cover of the fallen tent, Carth and Tasi's blasters blazing left and right and striking down all of the beasts that ran at them.
"They're getting away! Stop them!" cried out a Mandalorian, finally able to respond to his new target after managing to get the herd of animals under control. He aimed his blaster rifle without hesitation, ready to kill even Tasi for the crime of betraying the group.
To the man's shock, a blaster bolt crashed against his back from seemingly nowhere, causing him to lurch forward with a yelp of pain. Saved by the legendary durability of Mandalorian armor but unable to judge his attacker's location, he scrambled to his feet to recommence the attack. However, barely a split second later, he was left struggling and thrashing his feet about in midair before being flung back with violent force against another Mandalorian, as Revan turned about and discarded the false pretense of cooperation.
Another warrior emerged to take his place, shooting a spray of rounds in Revan's general direction, hoping to land blows on both the Jedi and his companions who were making their way out of the camp behind him, heading to the outer perimeter. Almost as soon as Tasi's heart sank with fear when she heard and saw the roaring fire, she was amazed when she beheld her unlikely ally effortlessly deflect the oncoming attack by guiding his lightsaber with rapid flicks of his wrist, the blaster rounds being sent right back at his assailant who stumbled under the impact.
Judging that the battle was nearing its end, Revan delivered an almighty wave of Force Push, knocking away the Mandalorians in front of him before he sped off after his friends, helping Carth and Tasi to whisk Canderous to the safety of the thick vegetation beyond the camp. The moment the Mandalorians began the pursuit, they were stopped in their tracks by yet another volley of fire that came from the unknown assailant. One bolt hit a warrior on the left shoulder, knocking him out of action and causing the others to take cover behind anything they could, all the while silently fuming over having lost contact with their enemy and being resigned to instead mop up the remnants of the animals.
A short time later, with the group having travelled northwards and well out of sight from the Mandalorian camp, Carth and Tasi let out sighs of relief and exhaustion once Revan motioned to them that it was safe to lay Canderous down against a tree for him to rest. The task of extracting their companion completed, they stepped aside and made way for Revan and Juhani who crouched down next to Canderous to begin the Force Healing process.
"Good work back there, Juhani," Revan lauded her, their hands emitting a dim white glow. "We couldn't have done this without you."
"Thank you for your kind words," she replied, almost letting slip his name before she reminded herself that they were in the presence of Tasi, "…Kael. But this is still far from over." Glancing over at Tasi, she spoke with a cautious tone. "Who are you, Mandalorian? Why did you help us?"
"My name is Tasi Farr," she answered. "Canderous told me that he knows where my sister Jena is, and the only way I'd get anything out of him would be if I helped him escape. So I did."
"Gotta say, it's a brave risk you took back there, helping us get out," Carth said. "To be honest, this whole operation was a gamble for us. Dealing with Czerka alone might have been simple, but your people made it all the more difficult."
"We wouldn't be Mandalorians if we weren't such a pain in the ass to take down," Tasi smirked, then went quiet, drifting off on a train of thoughts while she continued to observe the way Revan and Juhani worked wonders with the Force, causing Canderous's cuts and bruises to vanish before her eyes.
"What's the matter?" Carth asked, causing her to blink. "You look like you're seeing a ghost, rather than some Jedi at work."
"No-nothing," she stammered, then turned to face him. "Carth Onasi, was it? A few of the boys around me were chomping at the bit and grumbling about how much they wanted to settle old scores with you from the war."
"Heh, tell 'em to join the queue, then," he quipped.
Ending their proper introduction with a smile and a nod, Tasi then looked back at Revan and Juhani, the former introducing themselves. "My name is Kael Deren, and this is Juhani. We're here on a mission from the Jedi Council."
"Never thought I'd see a Cathar in person," Tasi remarked, studying her new acquaintance carefully. "I thought for sure that they'd be nearing extinction by now."
"Watch what you say around her, Tasi," Canderous warned, groaning with pain while he focused on recuperating as fast as he could. "Juhani and I may have buried the hatchet between the two of us, but that doesn't mean that she'll warm up to every Mandalorian she sees. Or any other, for that matter."
Deciding not to push the issue further, Tasi instead raised her hand to her forehead, brushing aside the strands of her long black hair that fell over her eyes, beads of sweat falling down her face. "Noted. So what's next?"
"Dejected statement: I am sorely disappointed, Master," said HK-47, his voice projecting through the transponder that was tucked into the inner pocket of Revan's Jedi robes. "To think that I played such an instrumental role in your escape, only to not even receive a proper thank-you?"
"Of course, of course," Revan chuckled as he introduced him. "HK-47 is my droid, Tasi. He covered our escape from his vantage point."
"Commentary: Intercepting the Mandalorian meatbags who were attempting to thwart your escape was not the only task I accomplished. There were also numerous beasts that threatened to pounce on you from angles you were unaware of.
"Unnecessary quip: Sometimes I wonder just how meatbags have such lengthy lifespans, given such shortcomings."
"HK, what's the situation back at the camp?" Revan asked.
"Statement: 'Dire' would be the term I would use, Master. Not one Czerka meatbag is left, having all ran into the woods and gone missing, or died in most delightfully gruesome ways. Over half of the Mandalorians are dead or badly wounded. It does not appear that they will be able to sustain their operations here any longer."
"Understood. Keep a close eye on them and let me know as soon as they make a move."
"Confirmation: Of course, Master. I only hope that you do not intend on bringing the female Mandalorian meatbag onboard. There is only so much noise that my audio receptors can handle, especially given the presence of the Twi'lek and her guardians." With that, the glow of the transponder faded to black, and HK continued his vigilant watch over the camp.
"Nice droid you've got yourself there. I'm sure I'd be absolutely thrilled to meet him in person," Tasi snorted sarcastically. "So where do we go now? Do you have a plan?"
The three rescuers wordlessly looked at one another, all hesitant to express to Tasi the grim reality she would soon have to face. Even Juhani, who by all rights should have had the greatest personal conviction to do what must be done, showed signs of hesitation, the emptiness she felt after witnessing the death of Xor on Tatooine still fresh in her mind.
His other companions unwilling to speak up, Revan stepped forward. "Tasi, we have to—" All went silent again when Juhani's senses went on high alert, turning her gaze to the rustling of dried, broken twigs some distance away to her left.
Anxiously preparing herself for yet another round of battle, Tasi raised her blaster pistol alongside Carth, while Revan and Juhani poised themselves with their lightsabers. However, mere seconds before Juhani was poised to disappear once again to scout out the potential threat, a subdued whisper came from behind the bushes.
"…Dad?"
A single word was all it took for Carth to immediately lower his guard, walking forward while his heart began to race with hope. "Mission? Mission, is that you?"
Sure enough, the stealth device gave way as Mission shimmered into view, her eyes fixed upon her guardian. Small, hesitant steps eventually intensified into a sprint on both sides as she and Carth wrapped their arms around each other, the latter stopping just shy of shedding tears as he rested his chin on the top of her head, speaking softly. "I thought I'd lost you forever. I'm so glad to see you safe."
"Same to you," Mission whispered, then continued on once they broke off. "How did you get here? What happened?"
"I was just about to ask you the same thing," Carth replied. "As far as I knew, you've been out in the wilderness a whole night by yourself – no tent, no supplies, no proper weapons. How did you make it through ok?"
"I, uh," she chuckled and pointed upwards, knowing what was going on all around her, "I had a bit of help. Kuriiima, come on down here!"
Acknowledging Mission's hushed request, a lone Wookiee dressed in a red robe descended from the upper branches of the tree overlooking the group, taking her place next to Mission. "So, Mission, these are the friends you told us about?"
"Uh-huh," she nodded with a smile, then spoke to her own crew. "Guys, I'd like you to meet Kuriiima. She took care of me after she found me lying unconscious in the forest. If it wasn't for her, I have no clue where I'd be right now."
Surprised to see that Mission had managed to find what was surely the renegade Wookiees loathed by Chuundar, Carth was nevertheless grateful. "Thank you," he said, smiling at Kuriiima.
Shortly after Carth spoke, the female Wookiee raised her head and waved her hand in the air, prompting several Wookiees to come climbing down from the trees surrounding the group. Having never seen the natives of Kashyyyk in action, Revan and the others were amazed at how such beings who were large and heavy enough to crush a man under their sheer weight could travel in an almost soundless manner in the forest.
Despite the implicit goal of facilitating communication and cooperation between the two groups, the outcome was far from it. Mission's presence, as essential as it was, served only to prevent the Wookiees from murdering her friends on sight. The other warriors, not possessing the same warmth and goodwill as Kuriiima, soon had the five strangers boxed in in a tight circular perimeter, glaring daggers at them with scowling, bared teeth while their fingers lay restlessly wrapped around their bowcasters and machetes. Above all, their ire was aimed squarely at Tasi, who was garbed in the armor of their mortal enemies.
"Easy there," Carth raised his palm towards the Wookiees, hoping that they could understand him. "She's not an enemy."
"That remains to be seen," said a remarkably tall, brown-furred Wookiee who seemed to command the respect of his fellows as he approached, looming directly over Carth while staring into his eyes. "So, Mission, these are the companions of yours who will aid us in retaking our planet?"
"Yes, they are," she confirmed, turning around to respond. "This is my stepfather, Carth Onasi." She then gestured towards the elder Wookiee, introducing him to her friends. "This is Freyyr, rightful Chieftain of Rwookrrorro, and also Zaalbar's father. He's the leader of the rebel Wookiees who are fighting to take back their village from Chuundar." The moment she spoke, Mission could see the sudden shift in all of the faces of her companions and the Mandalorian woman she was yet to acquaint herself with. Having engaged in an unstructured search that had devolved into aimless wandering, to finally find the Wookiee they were looking for had at last renewed hope in their hearts.
"Pleasure to meet you," Carth spoke, doing his utmost to maintain his composure in the face of the intimidating Wookiee leader.
"Likewise," Freyyr said, then took one look over at Tasi, who stood beside Canderous who remained seated against the tree, having still not recovered from the nausea inflicted by the stun rounds. The mere sight of the dreaded Mandalorian armor was enough to cause Freyyr to narrow his eyes into a disdainful glare. However, reading the situation at hand, he subdued his rage for the time being, as he studied the bloodied and tattered clothes worn by Canderous. "So, you've made contact with the Mandalorian camp."
"Yes," Revan answered. "My name is Kael Deren. The plan was highly risky, but we managed to extract our friend Canderous here after setting the wild animals upon the Mandalorians by blowing up their sonic emitters. But now that that's complete," he lowered his gaze, his expression darkening, "we have to go back there. If we allow those Mandalorians to regroup and recuperate, there's no telling what they might do. We have to end this now while we hold the clear advantage."
"You…you don't mean…?" Tasi murmured, shaking her head.
"To return and finish what you started," Freyyr concluded. "Our intentions were the same. None of them can be allowed to escape. Not a single one. They all must be brought to justice."
"Ok, I want a translation of that. Right now," Tasi began to pant nervously, eyes darting between Freyyr and Revan.
Mission bit her lower lip with unease before replying. "Freyyr says…we have to kill them all."
"What? So you're just gonna straight-up murder them all, is that it?" Tasi fumed, walking right up to Revan and gripping him by the front of his robe. "When I agreed with Canderous that I'd help him, I thought that the only thing I'd be doing was to help him escape. I never agreed to play a role in outright slaughtering my own people. Are you seriously gonna go ahead with this? When virtually half of them are lying wounded and unable to properly fight back? And you call yourself a Jedi?"
Unperturbed by her aggressive approach, Revan remained calm and composed as he replied. "I wanted to avoid that outcome, Tasi. Truly, I did. But they're stubborn, and wouldn't give an inch. They weren't just acting on Ondar's orders – they were eager to kill Carth and I. You saw what Ondar was willing to do, didn't you? He even went as far as to try and get us to kill Canderous. As much as we attempted to talk Ondar out of it, he persisted till the end. I have no doubts he'll do the same when it comes to his entire operations here."
"I accept that that may be Ondar's fate, but not the others," she demanded. "There are many veterans of the old wars who hate Carth's guts and want to see him dead, but there are also several young, almost raw recruits among our ranks. Goddamn kids who aren't that much older than she is." She pointed her finger at Mission, who stood by with a puzzled look on her face, wondering just who on earth the Mandalorian woman truly was. "Many of them were pressganged into the war in those last desperate stages, even though they could barely pass as proper recruits. They came out here for the same reason I did: because they had nowhere else to go. Because there is nothing left for them on Mandalore. I'm not going to abandon them to die, just because I managed to save my own hide by choosing to side with Canderous."
"Kael," Canderous said, slowly rising to his feet. "Tasi's right. I know I sound like some kind of crazy fool to say this, given that I'm in my current state because of those men back there, but we have to try. I have to try. Besides, executing a couple of helpless, wounded and incapacitated men isn't something that fits my taste."
"Clearly, you do not know these Mandalorians well," Freyyr insisted, followed by a translation by a very troubled-looking Mission. "We had previously suffered a catastrophic loss among our ranks in an incident where the Czerka and Mandalorian scum broke the terms of a ceasefire which they initiated themselves. They are nothing but barbarians and murderers. They cannot be trusted. They will not hesitate to shoot you the moment you lower your guard."
"They are indeed murderers, yes," Juhani sighed, then turned to Revan. "But should their judgement come by our hand, especially when they are broken and unable to even fight back? Is a simple act of vengeance truly the only way that is open to us?"
The two Jedi stared reflectively into each other's eyes, their ears echoing with the screams and pleas for mercy which haunted their dreams on many nights. Those countless wrongs which could never in a thousand lifetimes truly be made right…and yet they were obligated to try.
"I see that you understand where I'm coming from," Canderous observed. "This is something that I must do. If I can't pull this off, if I simply step aside and let those battered and wounded boys be slaughtered where they stand – no, where they lay exhausted and bleeding – then I know that there's no chance in hell for me to save my own clan from being subjugated and crushed under those Fetts back on Mandalore."
"Do you really believe that you can do it?" Revan asked. "Tasi might have been the lone exception, but the rest of those Mandalorians are most likely squarely under the thumb of Ondar."
Canderous grunted. "Only one way to find out." He turned to face Freyyr, holding his own and not backing down an inch as he returned the steely gaze of the Wookiee who towered over him.
Seeing that his companion's mind was made up, Revan opened the exchange. "Chieftain Freyyr, I am Kael Deren of the Jedi Order. As Mission must have informed you, we're here on a quest on behalf of the Order and the Republic in a bid to defeat the Sith. Right now, we need your help to neutralize the threat posed by the remnants of the Mandalorians' camp."
"Neutralize, but not kill unless absolutely necessary and unavoidable," Canderous insisted. "I am Canderous of the Mandalorian Clan Ordo. As a former Marshal during the old wars who led my people into battle, I wish to speak to you, one clan leader to another. In exchange for helping you to retake your position amongst your people, I want to negotiate with you to not simply end the lives of those men, but rather bring them to heel."
After a long moment of deliberation and incredulous stares at the two men who faced him, Freyyr let out a low growl. "Then speak."
A/N: Hi all, glad to be back with another update. It's hard to believe that it's been a little over five months since I released the last chapter, but I've finally managed to get this chapter out after squeezing in whatever time I had to spare in between work, gym, and learning game development in Unity. I'm committing great amounts of my time nowadays mostly towards learning Unity, as I'm growing increasingly disillusioned with working in the investments space and want to seriously explore the prospect of going down a new path with more independence.
Brainstorming just how exactly this part of the story would play out was quite a challenge, since the Czerka and Mandalorian camps didn't cooperate with each other in the game, and I haven't found a single other fic out there that has those two camps working together as one big obstacle for Revan & company as opposed to separate side quests. I also didn't want either Revan nor Freyyr handle the Mandalorians by themselves: since Revan is supposed to demonstrate to Jolee that he can solve the problem without resolving to quick and easy bloodshed, it would've been inappropriate for him to just stumble across a camp that's been already pacified by Freyyr. On the other hand, it felt very disappointing in the game to see Freyyr – who's supposed to be the rightful leader of the Wookiees – simply climb back up to the village to demand his position back after Revan did all of the hard work for him in the Shadowlands. It also felt right to have Canderous step forward and try to resolve the conflict with his own people, something that was present in the second game but very missing in the first.
Hope to bring you all the next update as soon as possible!