Well, good readers, you have waited…and now here it is. KITE CHAPTER 16…THE MEANING OF FRIENDSHIP. The grand finale will commence now! *snaps fingers* Two more chapters left after this! Quick acknowledgments…

To Laurie…thank you for…yes, I'm going to say it…THANK YOU FOR HELPING MAKE KITE NOT SUCK! :D *bug* (cracks up)

And to Becjedi: For being an incredible beta, and an even greater bud. She did such an awesome job betaing this, and she's helped me so much with this chapter. Yeah, the meaning of friendship, mate, you're that. :) (look, I was aussie there for a minute! Did you see?!)

And finally: Thank you all for your great reviews. They keep me writing. And smiling. :)

AND WITHOUT FURTHER ADO- ze grand finale!!! :D woohoo! Hope you all enjoy!!

"Li-Bird!" Tahl screamed for the thousandth time that afternoon, pausing in her trudging to make a grab at the little feathered blob hopping off her shoulder. It had been a day now since the bird joined their little party, and they were back to trooping toward the village. Tahl was doing better, but still a bit unsteady from the poison.

"Qui-Gon! Get your stupid bird!" Whenever she was being irritating, Li-Bird quickly became Qui-Gon's bird.

The boy ducked out from behind a tree and secured the creature, shooting Tahl a look for the 'stupid' remark. "Be nice..." he muttered, but it was unclear whether he was speaking to the bird or Tahl.

It was a hard fact to admit, but to be completely truthful both parties were getting a bit sick of each other. The good friends usually had their regular spats, but they had been significantly more intense than usual. They had been in very close quarters for a little bit too long, and now the differences in their personalities were beginning to strain on each other's nerves. Tahl in Qui-Gon's opinion, was being totally cranky and insensitive, whereas Tahl was positive she could not take another second of Qui-Gon's absurd melancholy. At any rate, they both needed space.

Qui-Gon absently stared at the stream as he walked, eyes absorbed into this blue water they had followed for so long. Li-Bird swayed on his shoulder as he paused. The entire landscape was changing, he realized. They had been walking non-stop all day, and things were starting to look definitely different now. The trees were thinning, and the terrain was getting rockier. They were getting closer.

"Quit..." He mumbled to Li-Bird, who had her claws dug into his shoulder. The creature was getting so jittery all the sudden. Come to think of it, he was feeling a little on guard. Wincing, Qui-Gon lifted his hands to pry the bird's claws out of his skin. He secured her, and then glanced across the stream. In the late afternoon sunlight it looked almost as if some sort of creature was lurking in the undergrowth. Suppressing a shudder, he quickened his pace to catch up with Tahl.

As he matched Tahl's stride with his own, he felt somehow better, warmed by the sense of comradeship in their steps. They were almost there. And it was really a glorious afternoon. Long, golden beams of sunlight lay on the forest floor in front of them, and their shadows lay behind them. Their feet crunched pleasingly on the carpet of leaves under them. Neither quite knew what lay ahead, but somehow, they knew their path would lead them home. Li-Bird seemed to want to contribute something to the moment, and broke into a wavering song from Qui-Gon's shoulder. Her scarlet plumage glowed in the warm sunlight.

As evening fell, they finally broke through the trees into a clearing. Qui-Gon ducked under a branch and stepped out, holding it out of Tahl's way so she could pass. His gaze traveled idly across the grassy fields they had come upon, checking out the landscape. Suddenly he stopped, letting the branch zip backwards. Tahl behind him nearly smashed into his back, and Li Bird screamed her protest at his abrupt stopping.

"Hey, what's wrong with you?!"

But he remain frozen, his eyes glued across the field. It seemed a rather typical grassy plain, some trees here and there, surrounding it, a small creek running through it...and on the far side, a wall. A gate. The entrance to a settlement.

Tahl nudged him out of the way and glanced across the meadow as well, following his gaze. She did not cry out as he had, but rather standing immobile as he was, gasping. "Qui..." A slow smile grew over her face. "I-is that what I think it is?"

"Tahl..." He began, but his voice cracked with a tremble of excitement. "It's the village. I'm sure of it!"

"Then...?" Her dancing eyes turned to him.

"We can go home!" Qui-Gon gasped, his face transformed with joy.

"H-home?" Tahl looked up, her emerald eyes glimmering as they stared entranced into her friend's. "Ohh!" She impulsively threw her arms around Qui-Gon's neck and clung to him.

Qui-Gon was far too happy to blush, and instead hugged her back, quite pulling her off her feet. Together they jumped around like children, both laughing and crying at once. Li Bird fluttered around them, shrieking, confused by all the excitement. Finally Qui-Gon recovered himself, and stopped bounding to squeeze Tahl's shoulder excitedly. "We made it!"

Tahl let go of him and led him across the meadow, grinning. "What is the first thing you want to do when you get back to the temple?"

He laughed as they stumbled through the grasses and wild flowers. "...medical attention comes to mind...."

She shoved him playfully. "Besides that I mean!"

"Ooh—" he spun around, his eyes flying skyward. "I'm not sure...get a decent meal, grab a shower?"

Tahl smiled slowly. "I suppose that's satisfactory..."

"You suppose!?" He laughed.

"Well, knowing you, I would have thought you'd say something like visit the Room of a Thousand Fountains!"

"Necessities first Tahl..." He winked at her. "It's been weeks..."

"Since the decent meal or the shower?"

Qui-Gon paused, considering. Then he grinned at her. "Both."

"Qui-" She started to laugh and then fell suddenly silent. Her smiled faded.

They had neared the wall now and just visible next to the main gate was a squad of guards. Qui-Gon followed her eyes and his breath caught too. The guards weren't Philomel. They were Muh-Hadden.

Now they could see the signs of the battle. Blasters had pocket-marked the wall in some places and parts of the gate had been blown away. There was not a Philomel in sight, but destruction was everywhere.

"The village...this was the equivalent of their capital..." Qui-Gon breathed, staring brokenly at the blackened gate.

"And it's been taken..." Tahl whispered numbly.

Qui-Gon continued to stare. "I have failed." He seemed in a daze. "I've failed my mission. That was the whole point of everything..."

Tahl turned to him, worried by the growing panic in his eyes. "What...what do you mean?"

"I mean, the whole reason...oh-the whole reason I came to Childor was to prevent this!" He squeezed his eyes shut. "The whole reason they tortured me was to find out..." He broke off shuddering horribly. "I don't understand how...." But he couldn't finish.

Tahl stared hard at the blaster-scoured walls. "Well-did you tell them anything?"

Qui-Gon's eyes went wide. "What?!"

"Did you tell...the Muh-Hadden anything?" She looked hesitantly at him, her eyes uncertain.

"No!" Qui-Gon said with unnerving vehemence. "That's why I don't understand how they-"

"Are you sure?"

She doesn't believe me?! Qui-Gon's eyes flashed as he spun to face her. "Do you not hear what I'm saying? I didn't tell Conn anything!" He yelled, surprising himself with the intensity of his feelings.

Tahl stepped back, caught off guard at his sudden outburst. "Hey, listen Qui, don't be angry. I meant... I only was wondering if maybe you got drugged and told them something...something that you don't remember...and that would explain...it doesn't really matter anyway..." Somehow her meek surprise only fueled his shame and anger.

"You're wrong!" He snapped. "I remember everything!" Deep inside, he knew she hadn't meant to hurt him, or bring up something painful, but the torrent of pain that rushed to the surface was overwhelming. Words tumbled out before he could check them, bitter and hurt filled. "You don't know. You can't understand. No one can!" He choked out, angry passion in his voice. "You think Conn was about to give me a rest by drugging me into oblivion? I wish he had!" Qui-Gon screamed at her, turning away and starting back across the field.

Tahl's eyes flashed, her fiery temper flaring up. "There's no reason to yell at me like that!" Instantly she regretted her tone, but the words had been said.

"There's perfect reason!" He fired back. "You think that I just spilled under pain?!"

"That's not what I said!" She screamed back at him.

"It's what you meant!!!"

Tahl closed her eyes briefly. She knew Qui-Gon didn't really mean any of this. He was just upset. She really couldn't blame him, either. "Listen...that's not what I meant at all." Tahl dropped her hand softly to his shoulder. "Just calm down."

"Let go of me!"He twisted his arm out of her grip and stormed off in the other direction. She stared blankly after him.

~*~

Qui-Gon's sense of being sorely wronged by trusted company carried him into the thin forest on the other side of the field. But as he looked back, his heart sunk. Tahl had not followed him in here. He was really alone. Sighing, the boy fell back against the trunk of a slim tree.

A sound made him freeze. His hand strolled to the ligthtsaber clipped to his belt. But before he could even close his hand around the slim metal cylinder something dropped out of the tree he was leaning against. A strange head leered upside down at him.

Qui-Gon shrieked and actually jumped sideways. He scrabbled backwards on all fours, hyperventilating slightly and staring widely at the head. Then something clicked in his mind.

"Shadow!" He yelled angrily. "What are you doing here?!"

The head lowered and a torso and legs appeared. Shadow had her feet hooked against a branch and was hanging upside down from the slender branches. It was the first time Qui-Gon had seen her in actual light. Back in the cell, it had seemed a ray of sunlight would have evaporated her, but now she seemed more corporeal, more real. She was not the object of a pain-filled delirium any more than Tahl had been when she appeared had out of the gloom. Qui-Gon studied her curiously. He could see now that her skin was not black, rather a colored a midnight blue. Her facial features looked more human-like in the sun, however sharp little fangs flicking out from her dark lips deemed her undeniably alien.

"Shadow had every right to be in the Elli Mwet that Man-child has." She observed, with seeming indifference. She studied her claws as she spoke, hardly looking at Qui-Gon.

"That's true." Qui-Gon began diplomatically, swallowing. "But...you shouldn't...shouldn't startle people like that."

She bared her teeth at him in a grim smile. "Scared?"

"Not of you." He said defiantly. He was no longer at her mercy, chained down and bleeding. Shadow was no longer the monster out of a nightmare. "But a little surprised What are you doing out of the cells?"

"Could ask the same thing for you." She hissed softly, looking for the first time straight at him. "Shadow thought she'd never see you living again."

"Hmm." Qui-Gon made a noncommittal noise and shrugged. "But I thought you never came out into the forest..."

"Now and then and sometimes." She waved her elegant, clawed hand. "To hunt. But, this time, Shadow has left the cells for good. No reason to stay there, anymore, not since the fight."

"What fight?" Qui-Gon's eyes flashed, but his face remained impassive.

Shadow grinned-at least, Qui-Gon assumed it was a grin. "Oh, Man-child's leaving caused much fighting between the Hadden." She cackled. "One did not think they were right to hurt a runt-baby creature..."

"Oh, thanks a lot-"

She hissed at him for silence and continued. "...and so the head Hadden got angry. Lots of yelling, then shooting, finally, lots of bodies for Shadow to feed on." She seemed to get savage pleasure out of the look of horror and disgust on the young Jedi's face.

"...so...who... won?" Qui-Gon asked, almost afraid of the answer, and horrified by Shadows comments.

"No one. Fighter Hadden left. Leader and the others...well...they left as well." She considered. "Shadow does not know why. Building all abandoned. So, Shadow went too."

"But-there were other prisoners too, in the cells, weren't there?" Qui-Gon's eyes grew wide and horror-filled. "Conn just left them down there to die?"

"None of Shadows concern." She muttered. "Followed the Man-child, and his mate's trail."

Qui-Gon wrinkled his nose, rather bewildered. "My mate?" Then a smile crept over his face."Oh, you mean Tahl?!" He laughed in his soft quiet way. "Tahl isn't my mate!"

"Oh." Shadow paused, looking almost uncomfortable with her incomprehension, bothered by his laughter. It was the first time she had seen any expression of joy, or amusement from him, in fact it was the first emotion besides hurt that she had really seen in him. She did not understand what he was laughing about. "Then...why...is she with Man-Child? If not-"

"No, no...because she...she's my friend. Its nothing like what you're thinking." A fine blush was settling over his features.

Shadow paused. "Friend?"

"Yes!" He exclaimed. Whoever had taught Shadow basic had done a very poor job."You know-someone I trust...who I like to be with." He took a breath. "Someone I love!"

She gave him a look of complete and total incomprehension.

"A person I associate myself with!"

"Shadow does not understand." She growled at him.

"Qui-Gon? What are you doing?" Tahl had emerged from between the trees and was staring at her friend and the creature with hesitant curiosity. Li-Bird was resting on her shoulder. "What...what is that?"She was watching the upside-down Shadow warily.

"Tahl..." he gasped with a rush of warmth, "...it's you. Listen, about what happened in the field..."

"No...don't. I'm sorry." She looked down, blushing. Her eyes raised and drifted to the creature hanging in the tree. "Um...."

Qui-Gon looked quickly at Shadow who's eyes were flickering between Tahl and the bird on the girls shoulder hungrily, as if deciding which to consume first. He glared at her and shook his head no.

Tahl carefully crossed the space between them to stand next to Qui-Gon. Her eyes followed Shadow the entire way. "Who...who is that?"

"It's sort of hard to explain." He hedged.

"Could you try?"

"Okay." Qui-Gon took a breath, and looked up. "This..." He motioned at Shadow, who had lost interest in the conversation beneath her and was clawing at a passing butterfly in a vaguely cat-like manner. "..this is...my friend Shadow." She snatched it out of the air and immediately it found its way into her mouth. "Shadow, this is Tahl."

Tahl watched in sort of fascinated horror as Shadow proceeded to eat the lovely little insect with apparent relish, dropping the wings out of the corner of her mouth, and munching on the soft body. One delicate wing escaped her clutches and drifted down to the leaf litter below, glittering and exquisitely colored as it sailed gracefully down. Tahl followed it with her eyes, watching it slowly fall and turn to the ground. Only once Shadow had swallowed her snack did she look up. Tahl found it was herself under the predatory eye now. "Qui-Gon, where did she come from?"

"The cells. She was good to me in the prison..." He paused, closing his eyes and swallowing. "I was so sick... it hurt so bad, but she talked to me a little bit. She brought me water. I wasn't quite as lonely with her around, and I wasn't as frightened."

He spoke simply, but Tahl heard a slight waver in his voice that whispered to her how much the words had cost him. Very slowly, she was beginning to pick up the pieces of what had happened to her friend in that week and a half of suffering. A combination of scars, and his own testimony-the involuntarily betrayal of his mind in the hours of vulnerable sleep- had lead her to see the things he had been reluctant to tell her, or claimed to have forgotten. And Tahl was seeing now that Qui-Gon remembered a great deal more than he admitted.

"She says there was some sort of rebellion at the prison.." Qui-Gon went on, looking over at Shadow and swallowing. She was still eying Tahl and Li-Bird, but somewhat less intently, which relieved him. The creature seemed to have abandoned interest in her hunt, and taken to stripping pieces of tree bark off the branch next to her. "She said that afterwards everyone left. I'm assuming they headed for the village to help with the invasion..."

"Makes sense..."

Qui-Gon nodded vaguely, glaring down at the dust. He seemed to be daydreaming almost, looking at nothing, but Tahl knew from years of friendship that the cloudier her friends eyes got the harder he was concentrating. She waited.

"Shadow..." He whispered, finally looking up. "Shadow, you told me something in the cells...that you hated the Muh-Hadden, am I right?"

She released the bit of bark she had been shredding and it sailed down below to rest alongside the masticated carcass of the little butterfly. She locked eyes on Qui-Gon and froze. "Yes..."

"That someday you wanted to destroy them?"

"Yes."

Qui-Gon's stormy blue eyes gleamed. "Then will you help us?"

She paused a moment. Qui-Gon could almost see the memories of the prison stirring her face, and an old bitter wound reaching out to the surface; something buried deep under the primal loathing that had turned her mad. A flicker on her countenance passed as a flitting shadow of what once was, and truly, shadow was an apt name for it. Whatever she had been at one time had been obliterated, leaving only dark reflections. And the boy was certain that the Muh-Hadden had been responsible for whatever grievous thing that had formed her into what he now saw. Horribly he wondered if this would have been himself, had the torture gone on; an imploded star, a force sensitive turned to a swirling pool of dark insanity, formed by the cruelty of other beings. The thought made him shudder in spite of himself. It was a tormented and wretched fate Shadow had been forced to accept. Someone should be held accountable, he thought, watching her. Someone should have to pay.

Finally Shadow flashed her fangs at him in something akin to a grim smile, and dropped out of her tree to land beside him. "Shadow will join the Man-child and Friend."

"Perfect." He was smiling broadly, boyishly almost, but his eyes had not lost their intensity. "I think I have a plan..."

~*~

Tahl and Qui-Gon made their camp on the far side of the wall, near the gate. A little outcropping of trees kept them hidden, and the tall, swishing grass around them made it a nice campsite. As soon as they had settled, Qui-Gon snapped off a dried stalk and drew a circle in the dust. "Alright, this is what I thought we could do." He glanced up to be sure Tahl and Shadow were watching. "Here's the village." He tapped the ground with his twig.

Tahl nodded, Li-bird squeaked, and Shadow sneezed. Taking that as a sign that everyone was listening, Qui-Gon etched another solemn line into the sand. "This is the gate...it will be the best guarded area....so we'll have to go in over the wall." He indicated a section of the circle. "And our main goal is the hanger, and ultimately, Tahl's ship." Qui-Gon dropped a rock into the center of the circle he had scrawled. "In the middle of the village." He leaned back and took a breath. "Now anyone have any idea how we're going to get in there?"

The only sound from his listeners was Li-Birds peeps. Tahl stuffed a few berries off a bush next to her into the creatures beak, and the cries subsided into a gulp. "No clue."

"I was thinking we could use a distraction at the front gate..." He mused. "Shadow?"

The creature's dark eyes darted to his face. Light from the last rays of the sun caused them to almost glow. "Shadow will do as the Man-child asks."

"Alright, then it's settled. Shadow, you'll head for the guarded areas and draw them away, Tahl and I will sneak in to the hanger and make a break for the ship..."

Tahl looked quizzically at Qui-Gon and then at Shadow. "Man-child?" She seemed to be hiding amusement with a solemn face.

Qui-Gon flushed a bit and straightened up, turning to Shadow who was getting to her feet. "You have got to stop calling me that. I've got a name you know."

Shadow seemed uninterested. "So? It is what you are. Not quite man, a little bit still child. I know." She shrugged. "Shall Shadow use this name then?"

Qui-Gon suddenly felt uncomfortable, although he was not completely certain why. A very odd, unsettling thought came to him, and sank into his middle.

"Um...."

Shadow had been there. She had been in the cells, seen his weakest, most vulnerable moments. When he felt certain that his mind would break with the agony, when he wanted nothing more to die, when he had sobbed until his body had no tears left to give him, she had been watching. Shadow knew things he hadn't even told Tahl. A shudder ran through him as he looked into her alien face. He didn't want her to know his name. If she knew it, it made it all too real. It made it so those terrible things had happened to Qui-Gon, rather than a nameless half-grown human boy. And then he could no longer pretend.

"I suppose it's only fair that you can call me whatever you'd like, since I call you Shadow." He shrugged, and offered a weak smile. Across from him, he saw Tahl look up at him questioningly, but she kept silent.

Shadow too, cocked her head to the side in question. But she did not mention it either. Instead, she turned toward to the wood. "Shadow must hunt now, Man-child. But later tonight, Shadow will return." She stopped and her expression tightened. "And tomorrow will be the day we hunt Hadden."

He nodded numbly.

In the field, life was settling and stirring. The sun was past setting, although toward the horizon shards of pink light raked the dark curtain sky. The day birds had ceased their chattering, and a chorus of a new kind began, with insects and night creatures as they began to awaken for the night. Stars emerged, glowing pinpricks above them. It had gotten cooler. Li-Bird had ruffled her feathers up and was now sitting on Tahl's pack, perched on one foot, sleeping.

Qui-Gon stared across the dim field taking it all in. Suddenly he felt a hand take his own scarred one. It hadn't hurt, but he winced the same, giving a little gasp of surprise. Looking back, he saw Tahl. She was smiling shyly at him. Her soft hand had slipped perfectly into his.

Qui-Gon turned to her and smiled back, feeling a sort of warmth inside him when he looked at her. A fluttering, happy, healing sort of emotion filled him, and he assumed it could only be love. She took his other hand, and stood, pulling him to his feet with her, grinning.. "Come on."

"Come on where?" He laughed, allowing her to pull him out into the deep grass.

"Anywhere!" Her eyes were full of laughter, reflecting the glittering stars above them. The velvet sky deepened over them, and she lead him further out into the field. Long grasses and wild flowers brushed their legs as they moved. "It's a beautiful night. Lets just get away from the woods. We've been in there too long."

'I agree..." he whispered as he breathed in the sweet scent of the flowers and plants around them. "I've missed seeing the stars so clearly."

They reached the center of the field and Tahl threw herself down into the soft grass. Qui-Gon flopped down next to her a few seconds later with a content sigh.

She winked at him as he settled. "Your friend is an interesting character..."

"Isn't she fun?" He smiled in a good-natured way. "But I'm eternally indebted to her for a drink of water in the cells."

"I see..." Tahl plucked a flower out of the ground and twisted it's long stem. "Then I won't say a word about her manners." She smiled warmly up at him. "If she looked after you, even just a little bit, she's a friend of mine."

He didn't answer and she sighed, picking another flower. "But that's not what you're brooding about, is it?"

Qui-Gon stared at the sky, looking for a release there, and finding none. "No." He turned his eyes away, looking anywhere but Tahl's gaze. "It's just...I don't like thinking about what happened there. Seeing Shadow again brought it all back." His face turned pale and he looked physically sick. "And Tahl..." he murmured, not even bothering to mask the tremble in his tone. "...we're going to break into the headquarters of the Muh-Hadden and steal a ship tomorrow! What if--" He stopped, taking a few deep breaths. His training took over and suddenly his voice was calm. "What if we see Conn?"

"So what if we do?" Tahl shot back, something in her voice both strong and gentle. "We've got four of us now! At the very least we out number him!"

Qui-Gon smiled humorlessly. "I doubt Li-Bird will get many kicks in, during a fight with Conn."

"Qui-Gon...we're going to be fine. In and out. Nothing complicated. Conn isn't going to be able to touch us we'll be gone so quickly." Her eyes softened as she looked at him. "And don't worry." She leaned over and tucked the flower she has been twirling behind his ear. "I won't let him hurt you."

He smiled at her, although the grin did not reach his sad grey eyes. Ruefully, he rubbed his shoulder. "Although I really wouldn't enjoy another confrontation...and my shoulders would appreciate it even less, it isn't myself that I worry about." Qui-Gon brushed the flower lightly with his fingertips.

She picked out another, and tilted her head to one side to look at him. "Does it hurt?"

"Hm?"

"Your shoulders and everything...do they still hurt?"

His brows came together in a furrowed line and he turned her words over in his mind. "It's not bad. Why?"

"And I'm feel great. That's the point. We're okay. We made it. We've come this far, and both survived haven't we? Don't worry." Tahl looked up from her plucking of petals to fix him with a stare.

Qui-Gon considered this a long moment, and then seemed to accept it with a nod. "I suppose we have come a long way."

"You suppose!" She scoffed, and toss a handful of the petals she had been tearing at him. "Besides, we've got Shadow on our side now." She grinned. "Isn't that enough?"

Qui-Gon laughed and stood, feeling at least lighter if not entirely reassured. He shook petals out of his hair, and they fell around him in a shower."You're right. I was being silly. With Shadow and Li-Bird, they don't have a hope."

She laughed too, and hopped to her feet. "That's the spirit."

It was now fully night. The twin moons hung low in the sky, casting an eerie glow over the field. Qui-Gon scanned across the grasses and slowly smiled. "Look..." Little soft glowing orbs were slowly beginning to rise out of the forest.

Tahl watched the little lights beginning to dance across the swishing grasses with fascination. "Qui-what are they?" She marveled, her eyes shining.

Qui-Gon laughed softly and crept toward the nearest little glowing fairy light. "Beautiful."

"I mean-" She scampered after him, swishing through the tall grass. "-what are they called? Oh, don't touch them!!" With reflexes like a flash of summer lightning, her friend had snatched a little glowing light out of the air and cupped it carefully in his big hands. "Qui-Gon!" She protested.

He grinned at her and then looked down at his clasped hands, which glowed as if they held in some magical power. "No...look..." He murmured, his voice low and excited. She peered over his shoulder as he opened his palms. The glowing light illuminated his face as what appeared to be a little glowing moth crawled across his hands. "It's a type of firefly."

Tahl scooted next to Qui-Gon watching with awe. "It's gorgeous. It looks almost pretend."Qui-Gon pressed his hand next to hers and the insect crawled onto Tahl's hand, flickering slightly. "I've never seen anything like it."

"You've never seen a firefly?"

"Not like this."

The little creature fluttered its tiny wings and was gone in a glowing flash to rejoin the host of fireflies now playing about the field, dancing with the moonlight. They were scattered far and wide across the landscape like pieces of shattered stars. Qui-Gon and Tahl made their way back to the campsite, to spend the rest of the night watching them.

*

The morning before their attempted invasion was foggy and deary. It was as if the previous night had spent all the beauty the weather allowed for any extended period of time, and it was back to rainy mist. Shadow did not stay around long at the campsite, and despite her aversion to water of any kind, she wandered out into the rain to inspect the wall as only she could. Qui-Gon and Tahl were contented to spend the daylight hours huddled shivering under a blanket strung over a bush. Occasionally bursts of petty conversation parted the silence, but for the most the makeshift tent was quiet, heavy with thought of the feat they both were about to undertake.

Morning turned to afternoon, and afternoon faded into evening. The drizzle slackened with the light, and Qui-Gon knew soon it would be time. Shadow appeared out of the fogginess, wet, but having found the perfect spot to scale the wall. They would all three go over, and then while Shadow took her vengence out on the guards, they would get into the hanger, and take the ship, picking up Shadow on the way out.

As the darkness grew, they could wait no longer. In the twilight they would be able to get in without being noticed. Li-Bird was hidden carefully away in Tahl's pack. When it was time to move they crept like three silent phantoms across the field and along the wall. They followed it's winding expanse for a long few moments, following Shadow.

Suddenly she stopped, and put a finger to her lips. In the semi-darkness of dusk she was almost invisible. Only her eyes glowed out from the black. She motioned toward the wall. "Shadow will check for safety."

Before either Qui-Gon or Tahl could absorb these words she was gliding up the wall, her lithe body conforming to it's every dimension. Now Qui-Gon could see how easily she had maneuvered the prison. It wasn't a supernatural quality that got her in and out of the cells so effortlessly. Her body was amazing. He watched with something like awe as she slid like stray moonlight over the top and down the other side. Her feet did not even crunch the gravel as she landed.

Her whisper came over the wall. "All clear. Man-Child next."

With less grace, Qui-Gon buried his fingers into a crack in the surface and pulled himself up the wall. His lacerated shoulders screamed agony as his body weight hung from them. He reached for another hold, but the rain had made everything slick. His fingers slipped.. He found himself grateful that the Muh-Hadden had taken his boots, as he dug his toes into the hold below him.

"You alright?" Qui-Gon heard Tahl whisper below him, anxiously. Mild irritation flickered through him. He had climbed more difficult things as an eight year old! Of course he was alright. It was just that every nerve of him hurt at the present...

With a burst of willpower he scrambled the remaining distance up the wall, attempting to use the force. Before long he landed on the other side, shoulders shaking.

Tahl followed him, moving more quickly and gracefully than he had, but when she landed on the other side he saw she looked pale too. Instead of prideful satisfaction, he felt a sense of empathy toward her, remembering the dart. Shoulder wounds hurt, large or small.

They had come over into a cobblestone alleyway, behind some Philomel houses. The streets were deserted, and the few lanterns that lined the corners were weak. Qui-Gon turned to Shadow.

"Know where you're headed?"

The creature nodded. "Will meet the Man-child in the hanger, when the Hadden are finished with. If they are to many, leave. Shadow can disappear if need be."

Qui-Gon took a long, shaking breath, trying to bite back the sudden panic he felt as Shadow melted into the darkness. This was it. They would get out of there that night or die trying.

"Ready?" Tahl whispered. She was smiling, but he noticed she had her hands clasped to stop them from shaking.

"Lets go."

They ran down the alley, and through the deserted streets, splashing through puddles and shadows. Qui-Gon whirled at footfalls behind them. It sounded as if a specter was chasing them, clinging to their heels. But their only pursuer was only their own footsteps echoing down the way behind them.

They rounded a bend and the eerie still was broken by the loud pinging of blaster rifles. Shadow had been found, or she had found the guards. Hunter and hunted were indistinguishable in this perverted game. Still, Tahl and Qui-Gon ran on.

They passed a few larger buildings, and crisscrossed side-streets and alleys to avoid any Miuh-Hadden. They raced along passage after passage occasionally bounding over garbage units to hide from pedestrians. They both had at some point been inside the village, and both had a vague idea of where the hanger was...somewhere in the middle. They had to cross a few courtyards, but the Philomel were a poor race, and the village was small and rather primitively built, with lots of little side alley that all connected.

"Hey! You there!" A loud shout came from a man in a uniform but they continued to run for their very lives. Bright bolts of lethal light splashed across the cobblestones, and then suddenly ceased. Qui-Gon glanced back to see a dark shape darting away from the now-still guard. He grinned. Nice one, Shadow.

They sprinted onward. Qui-Gon immediately recognized the great structure just a few blocks down. It was the only substantial building in the village. A large hanger with many little side buildings that connected to it stretched before them. On one side was a large watchtower. Immediately Qui-Gon could sense this was what they had been chasing after. He felt his heart rise in his chest, with fear and excitement.

As they drew closer to the building, Tahl flung out a hand to stop her friend. "Listen, you go ahead to the tower, and knock out the coding for my ship. I'm willing to wager it's the only Jedi craft in there, and the Muh-Hadden will have figured that out and locked down the systems. I'll sneak inside the actual hanger and make sure Clee's little shuttle isn't damaged." Her emerald gold eyes were almost glowing. This was the part she loved best. The grand escape.

"I don't know anything about ship coding, you're the computer genius. Why don't you check out the tower?" Qui-Gon murmured, not wanting to split up, even less wanting Tahl wandering around by herself while Conn was somewhere in the vicinity.

She shrugged. "You don't know what sort of ship it is. Clee checked me out on it before we left. I just need to make sure everything's still in shape." Tahl winked at him. "And if you can't decode anything, just unlock it manually."

"Manually?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Well...I mean, just hack at the control panel with your lightsaber."

"And that will help?" The beginnings of a smile played on his anxious face.

"Will help lower your stress level for sure, now get going!" She called over her shoulder. He gave her a half-amused, half-unsure glance but raced off toward the tower. Tahl watched him go, feeling her facade of jocular ease fade off her face. "Please be careful Qui-Gon..." She whispered after him, as if somehow her words could protect him. Then she turned to the hanger.

The sound of running feet caused her to jump behind a bin and hide as squad of muh-hadden guards ran past. She heard a few shouts crackle over their comm links as they passed.

"...creature by the main gate...reenforcements needed....repeat, send backup...."

She smiled. Shadow had certainly made it easier for them. Swiftly she crept into the main hanger.

It was a large, open room with a few miscellaneous ships and speeders, most in a state of disrepair and scattered about. Long wooden beams supported the gigantic structure, and there were many little platforms and ladders on the walls. It seemed more a repair shop, than a working hanger. Large drums of crude fuel used in the Philomels primitive speeders were stored everywhere.

Tahl picked her way slowly through the hanger, glancing about for her small ship. She no longer needed to hide, the hanger was utterly deserted thanks to Shadow. Her footsteps echoed across the stone floor as she moved. Everything around her was eerily silent. She stopped. No...it was something else besides the unnatural silence. Something was wrong here.

"Conn." Qui-Gon had never described him to her, but in an instant she knew he was here. When she had been trying to heal Qui-Gon she had quite by accident tapped into some of his emotions, and she knew the feel of the boy's tormentor exactly. She drew her saber carefully. The blue blade snapped to life with a soft hiss.

Tahl felt the force scream to her and she dropped on sheer instinct. A blaster bolt arched over the place her head had been mere seconds ago. She flipped back up, and spun to face her assailant. Her saber blazed as she moved.

A man stood at the far end of the hanger. In one hand he held a smoking blaster, the other, a long staff which Tahl could see was buzzing faintly in the dimness. He started toward her, walking slowly across the distance between them. His white hair was tied away from his thin face. His yellow eyes gleamed angrily out of the dusty gloom.

Tahl tightened her grasp on her saber and steeled herself for the fight, but the man moved casually. As he neared he spoke. "A she-Jedi." He muttered to her. "How very droll."

"Expecting someone else?" Tahl called out, her voice mocking.

"Actually, this will do nicely." Conn, for, of course, that was who it was, was smiling his thin, snake-like smile and stopped walking a few paces from her. "Very nicely indeed."

"I suppose you've got me right where you want me?" She laughed hollowly and the noise echoed through the cavernous hanger.

"Why, indeed I have." Conn hissed. "Your friend too. I can't believe you both were duped into this, after all your cleverness and hiding." He bared his teeth at her. "Oh yes, you heard me, the boy is walking straight into an ambush."

Tahl paled, her bravado faltering a little. Qui-Gon! "You're a coward! And you're going to die a coward!" She yelled, whirling her saber.

Conn in turn twirled his staff, and broken shards of light danced with him. It seemed to be a weapon, his rod, a specialized electro pole of some type, and when Tahl met his strike with her saber the pole did not snap as a usual weapon would under the heat of a saber. Puzzled, but not enough to falter, Tahl attacked again, spinning in her acrobatic style. Conn was forced to back off under her onslaught. "You're lying..." She gritted out. "You think you can set me off emotionally and win. It only shows how desperate you are."

Conn kicked out at her but she ducked smoothing, recovering herself. "You're kidding yourself Jedi. I broke your friend. I'll break you too."

She slashed at his head and then down at his feet. Conn staggered as he dodged her blows. "Yeah, right. I saw. You had to tie him down even after he'd been beaten unconscious." She spat at him. "Admit it! You were afraid! You were terrified of him!" Tahl screamed at him.

Conn swung his staff again, rage contorting his ugly features. "You'll pay, you'll pay-you'll die screaming, you little-!"

Before Conn could finish his expletive Tahl had blocked him. The staff and saber locked, neither willing to give.

But then the side door of the hanger opened, and both combatants turned to stare at the figure standing there. It was Qui-Gon.

Tahl breathed out a sigh of relief at seeing him safe and Conn swore. But Qui-Gon did not move. He was staring at Conn, completely frozen. He did not blink. He did not breathe.

A twisted sort of grin emerged on Conn's sweat streaked face. Tahl found herself suddenly filled with bitter rage. "Qui-Gon! Run!!!" She shrieked at him. "Get moving! I've got him! Get to the ship!"

Qui-Gon still was standing motionless. His eyes still were fixed on Conn's as if in a trance.

"Qui-Gon!"

There was no change.

"GO!"

Conn saw his chance and did not miss it. Tahl's attention was on Qui-Gon. He swung his staff as hard as he could at her, while he had the opportunity. She didn't respond quickly enough. The length of the pole caught her directly in the mid section and Conn flung her slight body backward.

Qui-Gon cried out.

Tahl slammed into the hanger wall and slide down it like a limp rag doll. She landed in a broken heap on the floor, unconscious or dead.

Qui-Gon was in her place in a flash, his face a mask as he flew at Conn with his fists. He was unaware of anything but that he hated this creature more than he had hated anything before. It was not the deep focused hatred Conn fought with, but rather a wild, grief-stricken rage, like that of some wounded animal. He did not recognize form or flow as he fought, but attacked with mad aggression, desperate to hurt any part of this man who had caused him so much agony. He would end it all here. He would kill this cruel thing now, with his bare hands if it came to it. He would spill Conn's blood.

Made sloppy with anger, and still weakened, Qui-Gon was not much though, and it took the Muh-Hadden about five minutes to break through the Jedi's wild offensive and smash him in the face with his staff. The boy was went down with the force of the blow, and landed clumsily, one hand dropping back to break his fall, the other clutched over his face. Blood splattered the cobblestone floor.

For a moment, time seemed to freeze between them. Conn was staring transfixed at the bright crimson stain upon the stones, his yellowish eyes glowing. Qui-Gon pulled his hands away and stared too at the blood covering them. His nose was bleeding profusely. The sight of his own blood dripping down his hand seemed to return him to a cold reality. He looked up, and met Conn's eyes with his own blue fury.

Then he drew his lightsaber.

The green blade appeared suddenly in an wide arc as Qui-Gon twirled it. He thrust the blade forward and flipped to his feet again, not losing the rhythm of the fight as he did. Conn was thrown off from the sudden beam of deadly light sailing toward him, and stumbled backward a few paces to counter this new attack. The boy advanced, clipping the blade left, and then right again as he moved forward. Blood trickled down his face and was illuminated by the ghostly light of his saber.

He struck out again, and Conn leapt back, blocking with his staff. The two energies smashed together, and neither gave. Splatters of light and blood danced around the two blades. No one gave an inch. The connection was broken as Qui-Gon kicked out, and then attacked at a new angle. They fought with a ferocious passion and grace that can only be witnessed in a duel for life and death. Both were beyond exhaustion or pain in their battle, completely focused on the strokes and parries of their fight. Across the stone floor and back again, each matched blow for blow.

Conn suddenly found himself uneasy. Qui-Gon wasn't tiring as he should be, and the Muh-Hadden couldn't keep up much longer. This boy he had taken so much pleasure in hurting was more formidable opponent than he had ever realized. Every time he attempted to drive him back, he rebounded with even more angry passion and energy than before. His face looked completely dark and deranged, with his eyes flashing, and blood still flowing from his nose. Conn knew he had to do something to end the fight quickly.

Thinking fast, he scrabbled up a ladder onto a ledge. Now was about time for his getaway. Conn laughed hoarsely, and kicked the ladder down so Qui-Gon could not follow. As much fun as killing the brat would have been, things had grown out of control.

But then...suddenly...out of the corner of Conn's eye, he saw a flash of green light. Incredulously, he turned. Qui-Gon was now standing on the ledge too, his eyes glowing out of the gloom at him with their strange light. His pants for breath echoed in Conn's ears. He had....jumped?!

Conn thrust his staff at the young Jedi in complete shock and the instinct that drove this attack perhaps made it his most accurate. Though Qui-Gon ducked, the buzzing staff caught the hilt of his saber. The sharp edge sliced into the top of the hilt and the saber deactivated with a hiss.

Qui-Gon stared at the lightsaber clutched in his hand for a moment. Desperately he thumbed the button but the activator only crackled uselessly. He looked up, his eyes suddenly wide and panicked.

Conn was grinning. He advanced slowly, never moving his predatory gaze off of the boy's face. Qui-Gon stepped backward slowly, but there was no where to go. Conn swung his staff, and the Jedi ducked and kicked out in desperation. His foot slammed into Conn's chest. The Muh-Hadden flew backward with a shriek of surprise.

He fell.

Qui-Gon closed his eyes as he heard the sickening thud which signaled that Conn had hit to the cobblestones below. He waited, not daring to breathe. The hanger was silent except for the steady plopping noise of his blood dripping from his nose. Cautiously, he peered over the edge of the platform.

Conn lay in a crumpled heap, silent and motionless. Qui-Gon used the force to drop lightly off the ledge, and walked timidly over to the body. He stared at it, in complete shock. The evil yellow eyes were shut tightly, and a thin trickle of blood ran out of the corner of the Muh-Hadden's thin mouth. I...killed him?

A mixture of horror and thrill surged through him. He had killed him. He had wanted to kill him.

But then he remembered Tahl. Qui-Gon gasped and ran to the far side of the hanger.

He threw himself to the ground at her side, desperately taking her limp hand in his own, pulling her against him. She was so light, so delicate in his arms; so lifeless. Qui-Gon felt desperate tears well up in his eyes. His trembling fingers groped for a pulse.

For a moment, time seemed to hold its breath., spinning out until it meant nothing. His body was numb to everything except the immobilizing fear that surged through him like icy water, weighing down his limbs. In that frozen eternity he knew deep in his heart that he would lose a piece of himself if he lost her. He didn't dare breathe.

Then, finally! There it was, a soft flutter against his fingers. He felt lightheaded with relief, but wouldn't let himself savor the feeling. He scooped her up and carried her over to where her pack lay.

He lay her against him and dripped some water onto a cloth. Qui-Gon gently dabbed her cheeks with it, trying to bring her around. Suddenly he froze. Something was desperately wrong.

Behind him, there was a soft whine as a blaster powered up.

"Well, well, Little Jedi, it's been a merry chase, but now it all ends." Conn's voice rang out mockingly, echoing across the courtyard. The Muh-Hadden pointed the blaster at the boys' back. "No more running, no more hiding, no more of your tricks and games, and best of all, no more *you!* " The man chuckled, a dry bitter sound, unlike laughter at all.

Qui-Gon kept his eyes closed, and his back turned, holding Tahl tightly. He tried to ignore Conn's words, but it seemed the less attention he gave them the more they burned into his mind. In his arms, the girl stirred. He whispered a word to quiet her.

"You have this most irritating tendency to not die. I don't understand it, frankly. There's nothing special about you, yet somehow you and your friend made it this far..." His voice was now full of deadly rage, his teeth grounding together audibly. "A scrape of a boy, and a half-bred little wench."

Qui-Gon's eyes snapped open, blazing blue fury. His hand instinctively felt for the cold metal of his lightsaber. But no...his weapon lay in two pieces somewhere on the hanger floor.

"Now, now, none of that." The blaster nudged him. "Did you think you had killed me? Did you really think you could make it off planet?" Qui-Gon's silence was beginning to seriously irritate Conn. "Did you think you had escaped?" The boy remained motionless, his back still turned.

"Look at me when I'm speaking to you, whelp!" Conn screeched, striking him across the face and knocking him backward. Qui-Gon broke his fall on one hand and met Conns' wicked yellow eyes with a look of barely contained rage.

Conn spoke again. The hand holding the blaster, now aimed at Qui-Gons' chest, did not shake. "But you have taught me something by your sad adherence to life. That is, to never leave your enemies alive, however barely." He took a step forward. "I would like to make you suffer. Especially after all the trouble you caused..." The man shook his head slowly. "But I will not. Instead, I'm going to kill you. And then I'm going to kill you again." The tip of the blaster glowed. "Just to be sure."

The boy squeezed his eyes shut. This was it. There was no escape now. They had come so far, but Conn was right; it was end game. In a few seconds he would be joining the force, and Qui-Gon Jinn would cease to exist.

But no. It would not be surrender. Fierce defiance welled inside him, and his eyes opened. He would die like a Jedi, if he had to die. And he would protect Tahl at all costs. Qui-Gon turned away from Conn, shielding his friend with his body. Then came the flash of light that signaled the end of his life.

Time seemed to shatter into a thousand tiny pieces with the flash. The white hot light raced towards him, unalterable on it's lethal path. Someone screamed. Qui-Gon saw everything race before his eyes in that eternal moment, and he felt keenly the Living force surge within him. He could sense it all, the energy in the weed struggling to grow between the cobblestones, Tahl breathing beside him, Conn's eyes glowing with the light of the blaster fire. He felt keenly in the second his own heartbeat and the burning knowledge that the warm life within his was about to be extinguished. Then the bolt struck him.

The next instant, all he could feel was pain. White hot agony seemed to crash into his body like an unbearable storm, and he heard himself cry out something between a moan and a sob. Instinctively he curled into a dying ball, wrapping his arms around his wounded side and shaking. Each breath was torture. Consciousness began to ebb away from him as he passed back into the familiar world of gray and blur. Vaguely, he supposed he was dying.

Dazedly and perhaps by accident in pained delirium, he looked up, seeing the fuzzy image of Conn standing over him. Triumph shone on the wicked man's narrow features. The blaster leveled with Qui-Gon's head.

"Didn't finish you off, eh? Well let's try again then. After all, I promised to kill you twice." The words echoed as if from far off, but the meaning was all too clear. Qui-Gon raised his head to met Conn's eyes feebly. The blue eyes were in fact, now quite wide, involuntary tears of pain spilling out of them, as he looked up. The defiance held in them was replaced with something heartbreaking.

It was a child's terror; full and uncomprehending.

If perhaps Conn had even a shred of pity in him, the look on the boy's face would have stopped him in his tracks. However, the Muh-Hadden had always prided himself on a certain lack of mercy. He squeezed the trigger.

If it helps I feel awful about leaving it this way. But worry not, part 17, Master's Wrath, shall be out quickly. A good deal of it's already written. And I made this part extra long to make up for the cliffhanger, see? :D I'm reader friendly…right? Right?! J Anyway Kite 17 will be soon, and in the meantime you can amuse yourselves by reading "JESS'S WACKY FUN STAR WARS CHRISTMAS SPECIAL FANFIC" which will be posted soon as well. :D Happy December!