After Dark

by Dave

Jaina kills a mysterious Dark Jedi and is haunted by him as she tries to resume a normal life at the Academy. Her grip on reality evaporates into a fantasy world designed by her tormentor, and her only way out may come at the expense of someone very close.

After Dark
by David Pontier
dpontier@hotmail.com

Prelude: "Thincar"

It was a dark and stormy night.

The rain fell in a constant downpour. It was not a flood creating rain, merely a good drenching. The wind was moderate for the most part, but gusts were frequent and often violent. Lightening lit up the distant sky, the thunder coming at a considerable delay, letting anyone who watched the storm know they were not getting the worst of it.

Jacen Solo did not care he was only on the edge of the cell, it was miserable regardless. The hill he climbed was getting no less slippery and treacherous as the rain continued to fall. His right foot slipped on a stone loosened in the mud, and he fell forward. The stone went bouncing down the slope behind him as his hand secured itself in the mud, breaking his fall.

Jacen cursed the rain, wishing his growing Force skills concerning weather were more progressed so he could do something with the storm. As it was, he was only now coming into an understanding of how the Force worked in weather, and he doubted he would ever come to a good enough comprehension to control any weather at all, much less a storm of this magnitude.

Jacen righted himself slowly, grabbing onto the trunk of a skinny tree. He used the trunk to both steady himself and wipe the mud off his hand. Jacen found a more solid foothold, started forward again, and was whipped in the face by a wet, leafy branch. He went back down into the mud.

"Would you cut that out!"

Jaina Solo looked over her shoulder and saw her brother scrambling back up out of the black mud. He was covered in the slippery stuff, and she stifled her laughter. "Cut what out?"

Jaina turned her back on her brother and thoughtlessly bent another branch aside as she continued up the hillside. Jacen's Jedi reflexes were ready this time, and he caught the branch just in front of his face. He broke the half-meter long branch and hit his sister in the back with it.

Jaina turned around. "What do you want?!"

Jacen had the springy branch cocked like a catapult, and as his sister turned around, he released the end, slapping Jaina in the face with it. "I want you to walk behind for a while."

"Would you two be quiet back there! I don't see how you expect to sneak up on Thincar while you're yelling at each other."

Jacen and Jaina stopped their fighting for a moment and looked up at the third member of their group. Garri Dolch was almost two years older than the twins and was the leader of this escapade. Despite the age difference, Jaina and Jacen's Force skill placed them in a lot of the same classes as Garri.

"If you guys can't stop fighting," Garri continued, his eyes glaring in the night, "I'll have to include it in my report to Master Skywalker when we get back to the Academy."

The Solo twins knew he was bluffing, but they also knew their assignment should be taken more seriously than they were taking it. The two spread apart and walked up the hill side by side, staying a few meters behind Garri.

They were going to the top of this large hill to see if they could find out who Thincar was, or even if he existed. They were on the planet of Drenkon, a planet that was still centuries from advanced space flight, which would unite it with the rest of the galaxy. The people on Drenkon were very much human, and the Jedi students had run into very little trouble fitting in.

Their presence on the world was in violation of several different Republic ordinances pertaining to primitive planets within Republic space. Luke often sent his students off on homework assignments that clashed with Republic law, but to this point he had not been caught and did not feel guilty in the slightest.

The three Jedi students on Drenkon were there to study the mind-set behind deeply held superstitious beliefs. The people who lived around the tall hill the students were now climbing worshipped Thincar, who lived at the top of this hill - supposedly.

The people of the small village said that Thincar was an all-powerful being that controlled everything. They called him The Thincar of Death. The students were using their Force skill to interpret the villagers, but "Thincar" was not translatable.

No one had ever actually seen this Thincar, but they had plenty of horror stories to tell about people who had climbed the hill to meet this deity and then tragic results when those people did not return.

The Drenkonians stayed near the hill, thinking that as long as they appeased their god by giving him sacrifices and laying their best livestock at the foot of the hill - offerings that seemed to vanish in the night - Thincar would grant them good weather for crops.

The Jedi students immediately saw that the Drenkonian's success at farming had nothing to do with any deity, but had everything to do with ideal crop conditions. The soil was dark and rich with nutrients. There was a lot of sunshine with plenty of nightly rain showers. The seasons were mild, and the insect population was very low.

When the Jedi pointed out these things, the villagers simply said that Thincar provided them with these blessings. They were not advanced enough to recognize the natural benefits of their location, and they credited them to their invented deity.

The lack of technological and biological understanding forced the Drenkonians' inquisitive nature to turn to the supernatural for answers. The students took notes on these things, but could not just dismiss the potential existence of something on the top of this hill. The villagers did not have the knowledge to explain thunder and lightening either and claimed they belonged to Thincar. They even said there were rumors that Thincar often made appearances during such storms.

As the Jedi students climbed the hill, they fully expected to find a large bear, or perhaps a misplaced yeti, or maybe even a small rancor. Something big enough and hungry enough to collect the few villagers who had climbed the hill in the past, but something also smart enough to collect the livestock offerings left for it.

The rain continued to fall on the three students, slowing them down a little, but the hope of catching a glimpse of the elusive Thincar kept them going. They were scheduled to leave Drenkon the next morning, and they definitely wanted to get good closure on their homework assignment tonight.

As they got nearer to the top of the hill, the rock and stone content increased. Garri stopped his walking to examine a large pile of the rocks. "What do you guys think of these?"

The pile of stones seemed too symmetrical to have been placed there by nature.

"I think they've been worked," Jacen responded, walking up beside the older student. "Look at how smooth some of these sides are while others are very jagged. It looks like they were part of an ancient building that fell apart a long time ago."

"Over here," Jaina called. "This one has some faint carvings on it."

The two male students moved through the rain, which was falling much heavier now, to see what Jaina had found. The carvings were barely legible in the dark night. As if sensing their predicament, a long bolt of lightening traced a jagged line across the sky.

"Thanks, Thincar," Jacen said absent-mindedly as he looked at the carvings. It appeared to be some type of picturesque language, but the carvings were so weathered and faded with time it was impossible to make them out.

"Do you get the feeling we're being watched?"

Jacen and Jaina stood up from their crouched examination to look at their group leader. Garri was standing a bit away from them in a small clearing staring up at the top of the hill. The wind had picked up, and the rain was coming down much harder. That last bolt of lightening had occurred almost directly above them. The trees were swaying in the wind, screwing up any ability of the students to detect motion around them.

"Let's go," Garri said and continued moving up the hill.

The trees prevented the students from seeing the top of the hill, but they took careful notice of the things around them. Jacen's theory was quickly proving itself to be correct. More stones, clearly crude construction blocks, were piled up in disarray littering the hillside.

Still 50 meters from the top of the hill, Garri stopped in front of a remarkable stone structure. It was a simple pile of stones built symmetrically into the shape of an altar one-meter tall. It was remarkable because it looked to be in perfect shape.

Jacen walked up beside Garri, eyeing the structure suspiciously. "Someone's been attending to this altar."

"And I don't think it was a bear. The markings on this one seem much more resent. Plus there is still some wood on th-"

Jacen held up his hand, looking about cautiously. Garri caught the gesture. "What it is it?" he whispered.

Jacen exploded into motion. "Move!" He shoved his hand into Garri's chest, throwing the older, but smaller, student back as Jacen performed a more coordinated flip away from the stones.

A powerful bolt of lightening struck the altar, tearing the stone structure asunder. The sound was incredible, and both tumbling Jedi were showered with rock fragments. Jaina had her lightsaber out in a second and held the purple blade in front of her with both hands, trembling.

Jacen and Garri slowly got to their feet, recognizing, as Jaina had, that coincidence do not exist. Jacen brought both his weapons in front of him, and Garri detached his lone lightsaber as well.

Jaina walked carefully toward the destroyed altar while her companions tried to shake the cobwebs from their heads. The Force sharpened her ears as she searched for some clue as to what had just happened. So shortly after the explosive noise, the rain and wind seemed awful quiet. The leaves of the nearby trees whispered harshly in the wind and rain, giving Jaina the feeling that restless natives surrounded them.

The inky blackness of the night seemed to close in around Jaina and her lightsaber, refusing to let the weapon illuminate the altar area. "There is a Dark power at work here," she said quietly.

Jacen and Garri had collected themselves and were walking behind Jaina. They nodded to her back, and the three crept slowly up the hill. At the top they came to a very definite building. It looked as if the slightest breeze would knock the walls of the ancient structure down, but the gale of the storm had no effect on it.

As the students hesitantly walked into the ancient temple, they saw that rain poured in through the enormous holes in the roof, as if the building had no covering at all. The stone work on the floor had been laid concentricly, centering on the middle of the building beneath what had once been a tremendous dome.

The temple was now adorned with vines and dead trees, but the students could imagine what it must have looked like centuries earlier. Tapestries and sculptures had been on high display and the carvings in the wall showed that this had been a place of great importance.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Garri said slowly, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end. The twins echoed his sentiments silently. This was a very Dark place. Thincar was very real.

"I don't think this is a superstition at all," Garri continued. "I'm not sure if Master Skywalker knew this, but I have no doubt that something up here has given the people down there a very viable claim to what they believe."

The twins nodded to this, again remaining silent. None of them had ever faced fear like this before. The night was alive with violent action, but even the harshest lightening bolt that flashed across the sky paled in comparison to the intense darkness that penetrated their souls.

"Still," Jaina spoke quietly, "there must be some physical embodiment of what we are feeling."

"If there is," Garri said with conviction, "I do not wish to meet it this night. I think we should leave."

Garri turned around and was thrown back as the entrance to the temple exploded in a shower of rock. He and Jacen went down in a heap again while Jaina scrambled, careful not to impale herself on her own lightsaber. All three students looked at the former archway, seeing that exit closed for good. There were plenty of other holes in the wall, but no one moved for a moment.

"An early exit into night is not for those about to fight."

The Jedi spun around, looking into the center of the temple beneath the crumbling dome. A dark, robed figure stood in the middle of the concentric stonework on the floor. None of his features were visible, and he stayed so motionless that he could easily be mistaken for a statue. The students were not even sure this figure had spoken.

"Stand in awe at what you see; the fear in you comes through me."

With that verse, the figure raised his arms above his head and beckoned to the heavens. Jacen did not need to be told this being was evil and needed to be destroyed. With a primal yell Jacen did not think himself capable of, he rushed the figure, both lightsabers in motion.

A terrific funnel of rain had formed over the dark figure and he casually brought his arms down to hurl the collection at the charging Jedi. Jacen was thrown from his feet like he was running uphill into a waterfall, both lightsabers flying from his grasp.

Garri brought his weapon to life and stepped in front of Jaina. "Who are you? Are you Thincar? What do you want?"

"Too many questions in one breath, your answers come with your death."

The figure snapped his arm toward Garri in a violent gesture. No lightening or water came from his outstretched arm, but as Garri somersaulted away from the action, a huge chunk of ceiling came crashing down onto his previous location.

Garri rolled into a crouch and glanced back to see that Jaina had also avoided the cave in. She was busy scrambling over to her brother. Jacen had gotten up and called both his lightsabers to him. He was mad that his opening flourish had been so easily defeated. Now he and Garri charged this strange enemy from opposite sides.

The cloaked figure moved with incredible speed, easily avoiding the closing Jedi. Garri and Jacen met each other in the center of the temple and turned to face the elusive enemy. They prepared themselves for a more cautious charge, but a large cracking sound from above startled them.

Garri wasted time looking up while Jacen leaped out of the way. Garri did not make it. He tried to dive out of the way at the last second, but the first chunk of stone caught his leg, and he flopped to the ground. The following rocks covered him in a rapid finality. No dust rose from the cave in, the heavy rain turning the fine pieces of rock into a muddy paste.

"No!" Jacen ran over to the rock pile, preparing to rip it apart with his bare hands. He knew before he even touched the rock pile that Garri was dead. Instead off attacking the rock pile with his furry, Jacen turned it on the murderer.

The cloaked figure just laughed and hurled a powerful force wave at the young Jedi. Jacen was lifted off his feet and thrown over the recent cave in. He quickly leaped back to his feet and charged again.

Through all this, Jaina watched in shock. This new enemy, Thincar, she assumed, seemed totally invulnerable yet very unaware. Jaina had fought against many Jedi students in mock battle and was used to feeling her opponent's presence in the Force as they scoped out the surroundings. Thincar did not appear to be doing this. He was using the Force, there was no doubt about that, but he did not seem to be projecting it in any other way than offensive strikes.

While Jacen struggled under another Force wave, Jaina concentrated on picking up a large chunk of ceiling that had come down early in the fight. With Thincar occupied, she hurled it at his prone form. The large stone struck the oblivious enemy in the side, and Thincar went down hard.

This hermit god had never fought Jedi before, and had not even known these three students that had stumbled upon his temple were Force strong. The attack from Jaina had taken him totally by surprise. Jacen took advantage of his prone form and leaped on top of him with his lightsabers crossing down on the fallen figure.

Before Jacen landed, and long before his lightsabers came close to the fallen Dark Jedi, Jacen was hurled back in the air and collided heavily with a wall, which then collapsed on top of him.

Jaina ignored her brother's futile effort, but continued to attack the unaware Thincar through the Force. Using his own trick against him, she brought a portion of the ceiling down on top of him. Thincar saw it rather than feeling it with the Force, and he was late in escaping the stone rain.

Jaina walked slowly toward the pinned figure. Large chunks of stone covered the lower half of his body, and Jaina could see blood seeping from under the rocks as if a dam had broke. The rain mixed with the blood, and a small red lake was forming. Thincar was moments from death.

Jaina looked on his face for the first time and saw what looked like a very young man. His features were twisted in a frightening picture of anguish as he tried to smile through the pain. "It is over, so it seems," he said in a raspy voice.

Jaina could tell he was trying to summon enough power for one last outburst. She hoisted her lightsaber above her head and prepared to crash it down on him.

"I wish you nights of sweet dreams."

Jaina paused at the odd words, thinking the executioner should wish the convicted sweet dreams. Her hesitation lasted only a second as she felt power welling up inside her enemy. She cut down and was thrown back as the Dark power erupted from Thincar's death.

Jaina landed uncomfortably on the pile of stone in the middle of the room and then quickly rolled off it as she remembered what was underneath the pile. She also remembered seeing a wall collapse on her brother. Jacen limped over to her location, favoring a bloody leg and a twisted ankle.

Together the twins worked at the pile of stone in the middle of the room and revealed their broken friend. His body was wetter with blood than rain. His chest had been crushed by a huge chunk of stone. He had died instantly, but that did little to console his friends.

Jaina stood quickly from the gruesome scene, anger welling up inside her. She turned her back on Garri's grave and walked slowly to where Thincar had last lay. The evil Force user's death had thrown his pile of rocks to the edges of the room, but the blood and dark cloaks had remained. His body had not.

Jaina kicked the toe of her boot through the folds of the heavy cloak and felt something hard inside. She bent low and carefully pulled aside the cloth. A beautiful medallion lay in the center of the cloak. Jaina picked up the necklace slowly and held it in her hand. The medallion was as big as her palm with an immense black sapphire in the center of it. The gem looked like a large eye staring right into Jaina's soul.

Jaina dropped the thing instantly, feeling a chill run its way through her body. She shook off the chill and picked the necklace up by the chain instead, pocketing the large piece of jewelry without looking at it again. She turned around and saw that Jacen had worked what was left of Garri's body out from under the stone pile.

Jaina went over and helped her brother carry their fallen friend. The rain had calmed down somewhat and the twins took great care as they carried their friend out of the temple and down the hill to their hidden ship.



Part I: "Insomnia"



Now I lay me down not to sleep
I just get tangled in the sheets
I swim in sweat three inches deep
I just lay back and claim defeat

Chapter read and lesson learned
I turned the lights off while she burned
So while she's three hundred degrees
I throw the sheets off and I freeze

Lids down, I count sheep
I count heartbeats
The only thing that counts is
That I won't sleep
I countdown, I look around

Who needs sleep?
Well you're never gonna get it
Who needs sleep?
Tell me what's that for
Who needs sleep?
Be happy with what you're getting
There's a guy that's been awake
Since the second World War

My hands are locked up tight in fists
My mind is racing filled with lists
Of things to do and things I've done
Another sleepless night's begun

Lids down, I count sheep
I count heartbeats
The only thing that counts is
That I won't sleep
I countdown I look around

Who needs sleep?
Well you're never gonna get it
Who needs sleep?
Tell me what's that for
Who needs sleep?
Be happy with what you're getting
There's a guy that's been awake
Since the second World War

There's so much joy in life
So many pleasures all around
But the pleasure of insomnia
Is one I've never found
With all life has to offer
There's so much to be enjoyed
But the pleasures of insomnia
Are ones I can't avoid

"Who needs sleep?"
--Barenaked Ladies

Jaina lay quietly staring at the ceiling.

The insects outside chirped away playfully as they played their mating game. The nocturnal, avian population of Yavin IV sang to each other as they flew through the trees, rustling the leaves as they went. The gentle night wind prodded at the remaining foliage imitating a string section for the natural orchestra. To Jaina it all sounded like a huge traffic jam in the lower levels of Coruscant.

She had not slept on the trip home from Drenkon, but that was to be expected. They had placed Garri's body in a bacta cell. They did not have any illusions that the medical salve would heal his torn body, but they merely wanted to prevent decomposition and hoped to remove the smell.

The trip back to the Academy had lasted seven hours and Jaina had spent all 25,200 seconds of it staring at the hyperspace starlines. Jacen had insisted that his sister try to get some rest, but she did not feel tired. In truth she was exhausted, not physically, but mentally.

Jacen and Jaina had grown up hearing stories about their relatives fighting against the Empire and had witnessed many battles first hand. They had also been brought up on the ancient Jedi tales that their uncle had been able to collect over the years. Jacen and Jaina knew what they were. They knew they were the galaxy's next great Jedi. They knew in a hundred years, the next Jedi children would be hearing stories of them. Jaina hoped this story would not be one of them.

Battle had never been one of Jaina's strong points. She was very good with a lightsaber, and was ranked high in her class, but Jacen had long ago taken the role of warrior in the family. Jaina was more like her mother. She was calm and collected, quick to finding a peaceful resolution to every situation and very slow to anger.

The face of Thincar had played itself in the starlines in the ship ride home and now formed on Jaina's swirled ceiling. Jaina had often searched out interesting images in her textured ceiling, but now everything she saw reminded her of that dreadful night almost a day and a half ago.

The other Academy students had collected beneath the ship as Jacen had brought it down to the moon. The younger, less talented students had been eager to hear of the homework assignment, but the older students had sensed something was not right. Jaina had walked out of the ship first. Luke had intercepted his sorrowful niece immediately.

"Garri's dead," had been the only words Jaina had said the entire day. Jacen had detailed the account for the Luke and the rest of the Jedi Masters. Jaina had spent the rest of the day sulking. She did not speak; she did not eat; she did not interact with anyone; and now she did not sleep.

Jaina slammed her arms down on her bed as she lay on her back, blowing a long sigh out of her lungs. Her uncle had told her that there was nothing she could do to bring Garri back, and it had only been her quick actions that had spared her and her brother from the same fate. Jaina understood and agreed with the comments, but it brought her little relief.

The noises outside continued. "Shut up!" she yelled and then felt suddenly sheepish for disturbing the night. Her outburst caused a slight ripple in the Force, and the outside wildlife complied with her request - for a few seconds. After a short pause, the insects were at it again.

Jaina slammed clenched fists down on her bed again and then brought her hands up to her head. She used both hands to curl her pillow up around her head to muffle the noise. The thick cotton pillow muffled the sounds a little, but in the dead of night it was still the only noise, and Jaina's Force augmented senses could pick up every inflection of the crickets' mating calls.

Humming came next. Jaina did not have a tune picked out, but just hummed any series of notes she could to drown out the noise. This worked well until Jaina found herself humming the same tune as the insects outside her window. She growled in frustration, tossing her bunched up pillow at the window. The fluffy projectile disappeared from view as it fell to the ground three stories below.

Jaina almost laughed at herself. The window was open. She walked to the sliding glassine pane, beckoned her pillow back to her with the Force, and closed the window. Jaina went back to her bed and plopped down for a peaceful night's rest.

Fifteen minutes later Jaina remembered why the window had been open - why the window was always open. It felt like she was burning up. Her thin nightshirt stuck to her like a wet washcloth, and her sheets were damp with sweat. She kicked the sheets off her, but the thick, hot air of the jungle moon pressed down on her like she was huddled under ten quilts wearing a Hoth environment suit.

It was getting hard to breathe, as the temperature in the room seemed to climb to near broiling temperatures. Sweat rolled down Jaina's temples, and she panted like a dewback in the Tatooine suns. Even though the window was closed and Jaina could only here the nature song if she really strained, the noise had been imprinted on her brain, and she soon found herself breathing in the dreaded three beat rhythm.

Jaina could stand it no more and went to her refresher. She flipped on the lights and looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair lay in a tangled mess on her shoulders and her face was beet-red. Her nightshirt had been her father's a long time ago and bore the logo of his favorite smashball team back on Corellia. It was worn and very thin, hanging just long enough to cover her shorts. They were the only two pieces of clothing she wore, but they seemed to be trapping all her body heat.

She thought about taking them off but remembered that Jacen had a bad habit of sneaking into her bedroom in the morning and waking her up with a variety juvenile tactics. Instead, she turned on the water faucet and ran some cool water. She cupped her hands and splashed the water on her face several times. The water was no cooler than the outside air, but it felt very refreshing to Jaina.

The water made her shirt wetter, but she did not care. Jaina opened one of the cabinets next to the sink and got a hair tie. She picked up a brush and yanked out all the tangles in her hair. She tied up her shoulder-length, brown hair so it did not touch her neck. Her wet skin immediately appreciated the removal of the hairy blanket that had been suffocating it.

Jaina flipped off the refresher light and walked back to bed. She wished she could turn on a fan, or better, an air conditioner, but Luke had designed the dorms to be without electricity. Lights were the only exception, and Luke had only begrudgingly allowed them. He felt a Jedi did not need any help from technology to survive.

Jaina knew for a fact that the Jedi Master had several holoviewers, a refrigerator, and an air conditioner in his luxury room. There were also dozens of computers and communication devices in the classroom building, but Luke insisted they were there only to facilitate teaching and were in no way necessary for survival. A Jedi has all he needs with the Force.

Jaina laughed briefly at this, but as she lay back down, she decided to put her uncle to the test. With her eyes closed, Jaina filled her mind with the Force. Images of Drenkon began to fill her head, but she shoved them out, trying to focus on snow and ice. Slowly the air temperature in the room began to drop. Jaina smiled as she felt the cooler air circulating around the room and caressing her moist skin.

Jaina became so lost in her efforts she began to shiver. She opened her eyes and exhaled the breath she had been holding. It came out as cloudy vapor in the cold room. Goosebumps stood up on her bare arms, and her cold, damp shirt began to steal her body heat instead of trapping it.

The sheets were bunched up at the foot of the bed, and Jaina sat up quickly, yanking them back over her shivering body. The fabric was cold also, and Jaina curled herself up in a tight ball, wishing she had paid more attention to what she was doing with the Force.

The heat that had plagued her only minutes before now seemed very elusive. In her shivering state, her mind drifted and she found her self curled up in the middle of the Drenkon temple, ice cold rain pouring down on her through the broken dome of the ancient building. Thincar laughed at her. The chilling rain turned to snow, and Jaina could feel her soaking-wet nightshirt begin to get stiff with ice.

Jaina yanked her eyes open, realizing she had been dreaming. She had broken into a cold sweat, still curled up in a ball under her thin sheets. She slowly stretched her limbs, fighting off the cramps her cold muscles went through as she let go of her compressed position. She swung her legs over the side of her bed and stood up. Her body was shaking so badly now that she could barely walk. Her arms were crossed tightly over her chest trying to coax some kind of heat out of her body. She slowly made her way over to the window, and with trembling, numb hands, opened the sliding pain.

The gust of jungle air swept over her like a sunbeam through the clouds. The shivering slowly subsided as she stood there, and her clothes began to dry out from the warm air rushing into the room. Jaina moved more easily back to her bed and lay down once again.

The room finally felt comfortable, the warm air not completely removing the arctic chill that had been present, but leaving a moderate environment. Jaina smiled contently as she rolled onto her side and pulled the sheet over her shoulder.

Something smelled funny. Jaina sat up slowly, looking at the window, wondering if some animal was nearby. She was on the third floor, and it did not smell like a bird. Besides, when Jaina sat up, the smell disappeared. She shrugged her shoulders and lay back down. The smell came back. She rolled to her other side. The smell was there too. She buried her face in her pillow to hide from the offensive stench and realized her pillow stank.

Jaina pushed herself up with her arms and looked down at the pillow. In the dim moonlight she could make out a stain on the pillow. She quickly picked up the offensive object and carried it into the refresher. The light was on again and Jaina gagged as she saw the brown stain on the pillow. It must have landed in something when she had thrown it out the window.

Jaina quickly ran her hand through her hair, taking out the bun she had tied. She brought her hand back in front of her face and recoiled at the smell. The water was back on in the sink, and Jaina went to work with every cleaner and lotion at her considerable disposal.

Five minutes later Jaina's hair smelled like it was being blown about by a fresh spring breeze that had made its way over a bed of wild flowers, had been blown through a hive of honey bees, been filtered through an arctic waterfall, had found its way through an orange grove, and finally had swirled about a fly infested pile of animal dung.

The combination of pleasing aromas only made the offensive smell more noticeable. Jaina was at her wit's end. She was moments away from cutting all her hair off, but she calmed herself. She would take a shower in the morning and would get the smell out. Right now she needed to get some sleep.

The bed waited for her, looking suddenly like a torture apparatus. Without a pillow (it was stuffed in the refresher's disposal unit - never to return) the bed seemed harder than normal. Jaina could not get comfortable lying on her side with nothing to support her head and soon found her only comfortable position was lying on her back.

She was right back where she started, minus one pillow. Her textured ceiling stared back at her with a variety of images, all seeming to somehow represent that night on Drenkon. The insects outside were chirping away, not caring what their song was doing to a very tired, teenage, Jedi.

Jaina looked at her dresser across the room where a battery operated chrono sat. The bright red numbers declared that it was only a few hours till dawn. Jaina pounded her fists into her bed in frustration. She needed to get some sleep. She rolled away from the clock and told herself she needed to be awake for Garri's funeral tomorrow.

Next to the clock, sitting just under the leaves of a potted plant where Jaina had tossed it earlier in the day, was Thincar's medallion. The sapphire eye in the middle of centerpiece was wide open.

* * *

Thirty-one Jedi students stood in a semi-circle around the central altar where a thirty-second student lay burning. Jaina stared into the flames trying to let the heat and light burn her eyes open. Her lids felt like they were made of lead. The sleep that had been so evasive the night before seemed omni-present now.

Jaina had managed to get most of the smell out of her hair with a very long shower that morning. She had then drank more stimsuline than she had ever thought possible, thinking that a full bladder and caffeine high would be able to keep her awake. Instead the warm drink had calmed her body and made her more relaxed.

Jaina's gaze began to drop down the altar. She saw what was left of her dead friend and quickly moved past it, examining the construction of the altar. Her eyes then found the ground, and her lids began to fall. She yanked her head up in a quick motion as she realized she was falling asleep again.

She looked around quickly to see if anyone else had noticed, but they were all looking into the flames. Jaina should be too, but she could not hold her concentration on any one thing without drifting off to sleep. She carefully moved her eyes around the gathering under cover of her cloak's hood. She saw some of the younger students crying, while the older students looked on stoically. She saw Lowbacca but, as always, had a hard time identifying the Wookiee's disposition.

Jaina's eyes fell on her brother. Jacen was standing next to Tenel Ka with his arm draped over her shoulders. Tenel Ka was crying softly as she leaned against Jacen and looked into the fire. Jaina knew that Garri and Jacen had often vied for the attractive Hapan's attention, but Jaina had not thought that Tenel Ka had ever picked a winner of the flirting war. A tear came to Jaina's eye as she thought of the cruel irony that fate had made the choice for Tenel Ka.

Jaina blinked away the tear and took momentarily relief at the massaging effect her lids had on her moist eyes. She blinked a few more times and soon caught herself with her eyes closed. She yanked her head and eyelids back up.

Jaina brought one of her hands up to her face under the guise of wiping away a tear. She began to prod and pinch her face, trying to work the sleep from her head. Motion to her left caught her attention, and Jaina saw Luke move to the opposite side of the altar. The fire had subsided, and Luke walked up onto a small platform so he was visible to the students just over the dying fire.

"We have had many losses," he began. "Garri Dolch was a strong student and nearly a Jedi Knight. He brought the joy of life to everyone with whom he came in contact. He took his studies very seriously, and some mistook him for being too strict and not capable of fun. Let me be the first to tell you that Garri was a joy to teach, and he had many friends, all of whom enjoyed his company immensely.

"We would be wrong to look at this time and only count the things we have lost. Instead let us look at the things we have gained. Garri has left us with many important lessons. Some of us joke around and try to have fun in every situation, but Garri should remind us that there comes a time for fun and games, and there is a time for seriousness.

"This is not a fun-and-games galaxy that we live in. Death and destruction lurk in the shadows waiting to catch those who are unprepared. Let no one say that Garri was unprepared. Let his death instead teach us that as Jedi, we are not indestructible. Many of our jokes stem from the idea that we are invincible and life is a game. It is not a game.

"As Jedi, we have a responsibility to use our gifts for the betterment of the galaxy. We are not kings or emperors. Instead we are servants willing to give our lives for the good of others. Garri was the perfect example of that, and he will continue to be a shining example if we do not forget him."

Luke finished his speech and looked at Jaina. The Jedi Master had asked if she would say a few things, and Jaina had agreed. Jaina shook her head, trying to ward off the sleep that threatened to take her as soon as she let down her guard. The platform was two steps above the ground, and Jaina climbed them slowly. She turned to see the gathering of students looking at her from behind the smoldering funeral pyre.

Jaina looked solemnly at the altar, trying to think of the words she had composed that morning. Instead, her eyes bore into the burnt blackness that remained of her friend. The sight in front of her seemed to consume her, to draw her int. The darkness became all encompassing, filling her sight so she could see nothing else. It was a dark pit sitting right in front of her, and she could feel herself falling forward into it.

It was a very slow and deliberate fall, almost as if she were leaning over to look into the pit and lost her balance. She hung there, poised at the edge, fighting against gravity, still capable of stopping herself before committing to the pit. The blackness was too entrapping, stealing all desire and emotion from her, and she continued to fall forward.

-Jaina-

It was a sharp mental call made by her uncle that brought her back. Her left foot came forward suddenly, catching herself as she was shaken out of her trance. Her eyes returned to the colorful morning setting and she saw that she had almost fallen forward off the platform.

Jaina brought her foot back and stood straight, sleep suddenly driven from her by what had almost happened. Here she was at one of her best friend's funeral, and she could not stay focused enough to keep from falling asleep in front of him! She was instantly mad at everything, and any speech she had planned was forgotten. She stared at the smoking pile in front of her again, but this time it did not draw her in; she drew it in.

Jaina absorbed the fading heat of the coals into her fury and inwardly screamed at the injustice of the galaxy. How could Garri be dead? He was not even out of his teens. He had been only a year or two from graduation. Instead, he had been killed by some hapless hermit on a hilltop that got his jollies from playing with the minds of primitive natives.

Luke walked up to his niece when he realized she was doing more harm than good. Her state of mind was very evident to even the weakest of students, and Luke needed to end this display before some dark actions came from it. Jaina recoiled harshly at Luke's touch, but calmed quickly as she looked into his soft eyes. All hate evaporated from her tortured body, and sleep once again threatened to take hold.

Luke supported his niece in his arms and felt her body go limp as she succumbed to sleep. The two walked down from the platform, Luke doing most of the walking while Jaina stumbled.

* * *

Two hours later Jaina sat in Luke's private quarters nursing another cup of stimsuline.

"Are you ready to tell me what happened on Drenkon?" Luke asked.

Jaina breathed deeply, inhaling the aroma of her drink. She had not spoken to anyone since her first words to Luke after exiting the scout ship early yesterday.

"Jacen told me what he saw happen, but I want you to tell me what you felt happen."

Jaina sat silently for a while. "I don't know."

Luke was patient. "What is it exactly that you don't know?"

Jaina shrugged her shoulders.

"Did he say anything to you?"

"He wished me sweet dreams."

Luke looked interested at this. "Were those his words exactly?"

Jaina searched her Jedi augmented memory. She had tried so desperately to forget those events, but now they came flooding back to her. "'It is over, so it seems; I wish you nights of sweet dreams.'"

Luke had listened to Jacen's account of this strange enemy's language before and was not surprised at this cryptic verse. He was confused, though. He had done extensive studies into the ways of the Sith and could not remember anything like this. Sith did not waste time on poetry; they were far too busy killing. By Jacen's account, this enemy was very strong in the Force, but Jacen also told about how easy it had been for Jaina to trap him using his own tactics.

"What did you think of his Force skill?" Luke asked.

"He seemed strong," Jaina said slowly, "but not very open. You've taught us to be aware of our surroundings, and by turning ourselves over to the Force, it will guide our actions according to our surroundings. Thincar, if that was his name, seemed to be very closed to his surroundings, focusing all his efforts into offensive displays. If he could not see me or hear me, then I might as well not have been there. That was how I was able to catch him off guard."

Luke nodded, absorbing this piece of information. Thincar had not been a Sith. Sith were too well trained to be caught off guard. Even if he had been on that hill for centuries, his training far behind him, he still should have been able to detect Jaina's action with enough time to avoid the cave in, if not to retaliate.

Also, according to Jacen, Thincar's attacks had been made with raw, unrefined power. Sith were trained to use pinpoint accuracy in their attacks. This Force user had come upon his training some other way. Luke feared he would never find the answer he was looking for.

"What did he look like?" Luke asked.

"He looked young," Jaina responded. "Maybe ten years older than me. Definitely younger than you."

Luke did not feel insulted. He knew Jaina was just answering his question. In truth, the comparison to Luke's age was significant. Luke did not look his age, and he doubted this Thincar was only in his late twenties. Still, he could not have been on that hill for very long, yet by the Jacen's report of the villagers, Thincar had lived atop that hill for decades at least.

"Now, what about you?" Luke asked. "What's wrong with you? Are you not getting any sleep?"

Jaina shook her head. Luke rose from his chair and walked over to Jaina. He put his hands gently on his niece's temples and could immediately feel the turmoil that was swimming around in her head. He stood up and looked down at her. "I want you to get some food in you and then try to get some sleep. We aren't going to have any classes this afternoon, but you can't live the rest of your life in this type of sleepless haze. We all miss Garri, but we have to put that grief behind us and live our lives."

Jaina nodded mutely.

"Now go to the cafeteria and get something to eat. Then go to your room and get some sleep."

* * *

Two hours later Jaina lay in her bed staring at the ceiling, feeling like no time had past since the previous night and she had just dreamed everything in between. The idea that she might have dreamt it meant that she had been asleep. Jaina knew this could not be the case.

She felt like one of the dolls she had played with as a child. The doll had been made with a weight balance system tied into its eyelids so when you laid the doll down, it would close its eyes. When you stood it up, its eyes would open. Jaina felt like someone at the toy company had screwed up her weight system. Her eyes only wanted to close when she was standing up, and it seemed like the weight of the entire forest moon was keeping them open when she laid down.

A few things had changed from the previous night. It was very bright in her room, and she had a new pillow. The daytime wildlife far out did its nighttime counterparts in the noise department, and the heat was far worse. She had borrowed one of her brother's shirts this time, and it was long enough to negate the need of the shorts she had worn last night.

Jaina was bored. In daylight, her ceiling did not provide her with any disturbing images, and it was much easier to keep her mind from wandering where she did not want it to go. Instead, she thought about nothing. She thought about the heat. She thought about her hot sheets. She thought about the stale air. She thought about the noises outside. She did not think about sleep and did not think about Drenkon.

She tried to dwell on what Luke had told her. The past was the past. She could not have stopped Garri's death, but she had saved her brother from the same fate. No! She was not going to think about it. The history was history. She would just lie here and not think about history. History . . .

Jaina sat up in bed. She had a quiz tomorrow in her history class. All ideas of sleep, or lack thereof, flooded from her mind. She went over to the duffel bag she had taken on their trip to Drenkon. She had brought along reading material from her history class that she had never read. Jaina dug through the jumbled mess of clothes and pulled out two data pads.

In history class, they were studying the Palpatine Era. This was a very well known period in history as far as galactic events went, but the Jedi students focused more on little known facts. One of the pads Jaina had produced detailed how Palpatine was able to collect apprentices without the Jedi council knowing. It explained the secret mind blocks he used when conducting business with Jedi and how he was able to play the part of a two-faced villain. The second part documented his rise to power and had very little to do with the Force. It did include the explanation of how Anakin Skywalker was turned, but Jaina knew that story well.

She decided to read the first datapad. Master Tionne tended to like that portion of the Palpatine Era a bit better, and Jaina already knew that the final test on this section was going to include a few killer essay questions about her grandfather and what he had done wrong. It stood to reason that this quiz would focus on the earlier portion of the Palpatine Era.

Jaina sat down on her bed with her pillow propped up behind her against the wall. History reading had always put her to sleep in the past, but now it seemed riveting. Palpatine had existed in secret as Darth Sidious, searching out potential apprentices before the Jedi Council could get their hands on them.

After the Rebellion took over the palace on Coruscant, they came across a lot of Palpatine's secret files detailing several apprentices he had trained. Most of these dark students had not survived the training. In fact, only one ever showed his face to the Jedi, Darth Maul.

For some reason Jaina found the reading of how Palpatine had trained his students in secret very fascinating. There was one account of a Jedi Padawan that did split duty between Palpatine and his Jedi Master. The padawan was weak in the Force compared to his master, but was able to hide his dark half from him for a long time using Plapatine's mind blocking techniques. The episode ended tragically when the padawan challenged his master and was killed in the ensuing fight. The council reacted harshly with the Jedi Master, stripping him of his rank and exiling him from the brotherhood.

Jaina was so into her reading, that time slipped away from her. It was not until she started squinting at the words on the datapad's screen that she realized it was getting dark outside. Jaina looked at her wrist chrono in amazement. It was almost time for dinner, but it felt like she had just finished lunch a few minutes ago.

Jaina read on until the next section break and put the datapad away, wide-awake. She felt good for the first time in days. Her mind was clear and there was a spring in her step. After changing into presentable clothes, she literally bounced down the steps of the dormitory to the cafeteria.

Tenel Ka and Jacen were just entering the cafeteria when Jaina entered. Tenel Ka still appeared very depressed about the loss of Garri, but Jaina could see her brother was trying to cheer her up. Jaina got in the food line and tried to eavesdrop on her brother and Tenel Ka. Something else distracted her as she felt an odd sensation in the Force behind her.

Little Collin Paris, only six years old stood staring up at Jaina. Jaina was puzzled by the young boy's expression. He was very strong in the Force but had not matured enough to collect his thoughts in an organized fashion. Because of this, it was very difficult to figure out what he was thinking, but always very obvious that he was thinking about something.

Jaina crouched down in front of Collin so they were eye to eye. "What do you want?" she asked pleasantly.

"You are scary," Collin replied and walked away.

Jaina stayed in her crouch staring at the floor, trying to figure out what Collin had meant by that.

"What are you doing down there?" Jaina looked up and saw Kalina, a female student a couple years younger than Jaina standing above her.

"Just thinking," Jaina replied, standing up so she was at Kalina's height, "just thinking."

Kalina nodded, not saying anything else and falling in line behind Jaina. Jaina noticed that Kalina seemed disturbed, and coming so close after Collin's words, Jaina felt she was the cause. Jaina's position in line had reached the serving droids, and she stepped up next to her brother.

"Is there something wrong with my appearance?" Jaina asked Jacen as she picked up a food tray.

"You look beautiful, Sis," Jacen responded without looking at her.

Jaina ignored him and examined the food before her. Apparently some of the students had gone hunting during the classless afternoon and had caught a few game birds. Jaina paid special attention to the wild turkey, and asked for a triple portion. She would fall asleep tonight. She also collected several bread rolls, two servings of vegetables, and three deserts. It was just dawning on Jaina that she had not had a whole lot to eat since the incident on Drenkon.

Jaina walked through the sparsely crowded dinning hall, catching quite a few people looking at her. She returned the looks with a smile, and the students looked away. Jaina was very confused when she sat down next to Jacen and Tenel Ka. Kalina had followed the three older students and paused dramatically when she saw the only available seat at their table was across from Jaina. Jaina looked her friend in the eye, and the younger student had no choice but to sit down.

"What is wrong?" Jaina asked as soon as Kalina sat down. Jacen was sitting next to Jaina, and he stopped his conversation with Tenel Ka. All three students looked at Jaina. "What is going on? Why is everyone avoiding me?"

"You scared us all pretty bad this morning," Jacen finally said. His voice took on a tone Jaina had never heard from her brother before. He was always joking around and never serious, but now his voice seemed very grave. "Some of the students think you took Thincar's dark powers when you killed him."

"That's crazy," Jaina burst out, looking at the three people sitting near her. "You guys don't believe it, do you?"

"You have to admit," Kalina said, "you've been nothing but downcast and angry since you've come back. And that display at the funeral . . ."

"But I'm not depressed now," Jaina refuted looking around for a shred of support from her friends.

"We see that," Jacen said, trying to change topics as quickly as possible, "did you finally get some sleep or are you just excited about turkey and cake?"

Jaina looked down at her tray, overflowing with food, and laughed. Jacen had a gift for making people laugh in uncomfortable situations. "I haven't eaten in a while. Maybe I over did it."

"So what is it?" Jacen asked. "Why this sudden change of emotion?"

"I just finished reading most of our history assignment for the quiz tomorrow."

"Now I know you're insane. That class is boring with a capitol Boring."

Jaina just smiled as she started to work on her food. Tenel Ka and Kalina were not in the advanced class and thought their history classes with Master Skywalker were very interesting. Of course their classes were covering the ancient Sith Wars and the glory days of the Jedi, which even Jacen enjoyed reading about.

"Who teaches the class?" Kalina asked.

"Tionne," Jacen responded.

"Master Tionne," Tenel Ka quickly corrected. It was the first time Jaina had heard the sorrowful student speak, and it was only appropriate that her first words were to correct Jacen. The two had a history of disagreeing on things.

"What's so boring about it?" Kalina asked.

"It deals with the time period 50 to 75 years ago," Jacen responded as if this should be self-explanatory. It was not.

"What? That should be easy," Kalina said. "Everyone knows what happened then. That's the Palpatine Era, right?"

"Right," Jacen responded. "Since everyone knows what happened, Tio- uh, Master Tionne digs into the most arcane facts you could imagine. We don't study about what Palpatine did, we talk about what kind of clothes he wore and what he ate for breakfast." Jacen took a bite of his food and washed it down with a fruit drink. "I really have no idea what the class is about," he admitted.

"But don't you have a quiz tomorrow?" Kalina asked, looking between Jaina and Jacen. They both nodded, their mouths filled with food. "Well, don't you want to do well?"

Jacen did not say anything so Jaina jumped in. "He cheats."

"You cheat!" Kalina blurted out.

Jacen nearly spit out his food. "Shhh, I don't really cheat," he said, looking around nervously to see if anyone was listening. Of course in a room filled with Jedi students, they could all be listening. "I like to call it using my resources well."

"He cheats," Jaina repeated. The look on Kalina's face announced that she did not understand. "When you use the Force, you don't have to see someone else's testpad to know what answers they're putting down."

Kalina was appalled.

"I don't do it that often," Jacen spoke up quickly, seeing he was fast loosing face in the eyes of Kalina. "Only when I don't know the answer."

"Which is every other question," Jaina piped in. She was taking great pleasure in flustering her brother. Jaina even saw a smile begin to form on Tenel Ka's lips.

"I do not do it on every other question."

"What about our last test?" Jaina continued. "You must have stolen 60 of the 100 questions."

"How would you know?" Jacen retorted.

Jaina said nothing but tapped her temple.

"So you help him?" Kalina asked Jaina.

"No," both twins said at once.

Kalina did not look convinced.

"I tried to get them from her once," Jacen admitted, "but she caught on too quickly. She started thinking of the wrong answers while she scribed in the right ones. I didn't exactly pass that test."

Tenel Ka pretended to choke on some of her food, but Jaina could tell she was holding in laughter.

"So if you don't get the answers from Jaina, who do you get them from?"

"I go straight to the best student in the class, Gar-" Jacen paused, his mouth open and half-full of food. His eyes instantly went to Tenel Ka. She was no longer holding back laughter, and Jacen's careless slip had nearly brought her back to tears again. "I get them from someone else," Jacen said quietly.

"Oh," Kalina replied, dropping the subject.

Jaina could tell that Tenel Ka was taking the loss of Garri a lot harder than she had originally thought. Maybe she had been wrong earlier and Tenel Ka had made a choice between Jacen and Garri. Jaina could also feel her brother scolding himself for being so careless. He was searching for something funny to say, but everything that came across his mind was in very bad taste about him having to read his assignments from now on. Jaina was glad her brother kept his mouth shut.

They said little else throughout the rest of the meal, and Jaina spent most of her time with her head down, working on her full tray. Much to her own disbelief, she finished it all and then went back for a small second helping of everything. The food was especially good, and she wished the droid cooks had a pride circuits so she could compliment them.

Instead, Jaina made her way back up to her room. It was still very early for bed, but Jaina had a lot of catching up to do and changed back into her clothes of an hour ago and picked up her datapad again. She continued to read and waited for the sleeping drug in the turkey to take charge.

L-tryptophan, a natural sedative, was a normal constituent of turkey flesh. It had also been a widely used commercial sedative, until recently. A Bothan company had changed its fermentation process of the drug to incorporate genetically engineered bacteria, and had also accidentally contaminated the purification process with trace amounts of salmonella. The result was a bad batch of the drug and a widespread outbreak of eosinophilic-myalgia, an often-fatal disease that is characterized by muscle pain, nausea, weakness, and joint pain.

The ensuing investigation bankrupted the Bothan company and ended the commercial production of L-tryptophan. It was found that only certain people reacted unfavorably to the drug when contaminated, but the Republic Drug Administration removed it from the market anyway.

The droid cooks were good, but they were not perfect. They had used a few contaminated eggs when preparing the cake for that night's meal. It was not enough to hurt anyone, but in Jaina's stomach, the enormous amount L-tryptophan from her four servings of meat and the salmonella from her two large pieces of cake were slowly getting together and making an uproar.

Less than three hours after retiring to her room, Jaina felt a slight rumbling in her stomach. Jaina patted her slightly swelled gut, smiling to herself as she read her history assignment. Maybe she had had a little too much eat. A slight pain that Jaina attributed to gas accompanied the next rumble.

"Might not be a quiet night after all," Jaina joked to herself.

Her stomach took her seriously. The next rumble was combined with a violent convulsion that literally flipped Jaina over. The intense pain was so sudden that Jaina found herself half-lying on her stomach, her head pressed uncomfortably against the stone wall beside her propped up pillow.

Another massive convulsion hit her and yanked her body into a tight ball, banging her head against the wall. The attack had come so suddenly that Jaina had a hard time even identifying where the pain was coming from. Two more contractions hit in rapid succession, letting Jaina know exactly where the origin of the pain was. Jaina could not think about anything but the pain, and the seconds between contractions, waiting for the next one, was the most hideous torture she could imagine.

For the next half-hour Jaina was throttled on her bed mercilessly. She tried to gag herself several times, but each time she nearly bit her finger off as a convulsion hit her during the effort. Finally her stomach obliged her and emptied itself on its own. The vomiting lasted for several minutes, and Jaina was too weak to even move her head off to the side of her bed.

Afterwards the stomach contractions were less severe, but the muscle spasms continued and were accompanied by violent dry heaves. Jaina was too weak to care what she was lying in and merely wanted to find some kind of relief. She rolled through her half-digested food and fell off her bed. It took her three minutes to crawl to the refresher.

As if mocking her, just before she reached the lavatory, her bowels released. Jaina just lay there for a while, spent and too miserable to even want to clean herself off. Some inner fire revolted at this state of mind even more than at the filth that covered her. Jaina half-crawled, half-dragged herself into the refresher. She propped her head just high enough to look into the toilet and gagged herself.

After making sure her stomach was completely empty, Jaina found a small reserve of strength and brought herself to a kneeling position. She tore off her filthy shirt and tossed it back into her room. She then climbed awkwardly into the tub and turned on the water.

Once the tub started to fill up, Jaina's new found strength left her, feeling it had gotten her where she needed to be. Her head lolled on the lip of the bath, just above the surface of the water, which spilled freely over the edge of the bath with the faucet unchecked. The refresher slowly filled up with water, with the threat of a potential flood only ending when the faucet turned itself off after the refresher's water quota was exceeded.

Jaina did not even register that the water noise no longer filled the room. Her mind was just a clouded mess, her body still occasionally undergoing a minor spasm under the water. Back in her room, the chrono on her dresser read 10:12 PM. Next to it, the medallion's eye was still wide open.

* * *

"Hurry up, Alex, and be quiet."

Alex Quarlim, a Jedi student from Sullust, walked quickly and quietly as ordered and came up next to Jacen Solo. "Are you sure she won't get mad?"

"Of course she'll get mad; that's the point," Jacen responded, cradling his hands in front of him carefully.

"But if she gets mad she might-"

Jacen turned on the Sullustan quickly. "I know what you're thinking, Alex. My sister is not Dark."

"But yesterday she-"

"Yesterday she was very upset and sad. One of our close friends died, and we had to watch it. Has anyone in your family ever died?"

Alex shook his bulbous head.

"When you witness someone close to you die, you'll know what I'm talking about. Jaina's going through a very rough time right now."

"Then maybe we shouldn't . . ."

Jacen adjusted his hands as the snake he was holding tried to slither out of his grasp. "Maybe we shouldn't play a prank on her?" Jacen finished for his friend. "This snake is harmless; besides, this is the best time to play a prank on her. It'll help her get her mind off things she can't do anything about. Besides, she seemed in pretty good spirits last night."

Alex argued no further, and the two walked quietly through the hall in the early morning hours toward Jaina's door. "Now I'm going to be calming Stripe so he doesn't get away," Jacen explained, referring to his pet snake. He had dozens of much more dangerous pets back in his room that he would never dream of teasing his sister with. This snake was, like he had told Alex, harmless. "I need you to open the door for me and make sure Jaina doesn't sense me."

Alex nodded his head. The two pranksters stopped at Jaina's door, and Alex opened it. Instead of creeping into the room, Jacen fell back away from the open door as the foul stench inside wafted out at him. "What in the-" Jacen started as he slowly crept into the room. His eyes searched the dark interior in the slowly growing light of dawn trying to find out what was wrong.

His eyes drifted over the empty bed. It was not exactly empty, Jacen thought, bile rising slowly in his stomach, but Jaina was not in it. He then saw one of his favorite shirts lying on the floor. Forgetting about his prank, Jacen tossed Stripe to Alex, who was taken totally by surprise. While the Jedi Sullustan chased the reptile down the hall, Jacen bent over to pick up his shirt. "Jaina," Jacen called out. He immediately dropped the filthy shirt. "You can keep the shirt."

-Jacen-

Jacen felt the call more than he heard it. It sounded desperate. Jacen followed a very visible trail into the refresher, took one unexpectedly wet step into the small room, and froze.

Jaina's face looked at him - no - was pointed at him - just visible over the edge of the overflowing tub. Her eyes did not seem to have the capability of sight. They looked like hollow black sapphires.

"Alex! Alex! Alex! Get Master Skywalker! Now!"

Alex was busy trying to pick up Stripe by the tail but forgot about the snake at Jacen's call. For as long as the Sullustan could remember, he had never heard Jacen call his uncle Master Skywalker. Something must be very wrong.

* * *

Three hours later it was pretty much decided that Jaina was not going to make it to her quiz that morning.

The doctor walked out of the sealed off medical section of the renovated Massassi Temple. Luke and Jacen stood by anxiously waiting for his report. Having a doctor on a moon full of Jedi that were capable of healing wounds modern medicine could do nothing with seemed ridiculous, but Dr. Franclyn had other uses. He was a top-notch mechanic and kept most of the service droids in working order. He was also a very skilled communications expert and spent long hours ensuring the com units on the moon were secure. He was also a pretty good doctor.

Luke had spent five short seconds trying to get into Jaina's mind as she had lain listlessly in her tub of cold water and knew he would be able to do nothing for her. Her mind had been like a block of permacrete, completely unpliable.

"Well, Doctor," Luke prompted.

"Food poisoning," Dr. Franclyn responded. "She suffered fr-"

"Food poisoning?!" Jacen blurted out. "And I'm a balding, midget Wookiee! You can't tell me that fo-"

Luke put a firm hand on his nephew's shoulder. "Doctor," Luke began, much calmer, "I haven't been around much," he continued in a voice that implied the opposite, "but I've never seen anyone look like that. Food poisoning?"

"Luke," Dr. Franclyn was the only one on the moon that used the Jedi Master's first name without an "uncle" in front of it, "your niece has gone for over 72 hours without sleep, at my best guest, and what she suffered from last night was not your run of the mill food poisoning. She loaded herself up with two very rare chemicals that reacted violently in her system. She suffered from a severe case of eosinophilic-myalgia."

"Never heard of it," Jacen quipped back, as if this meant it did not exist.

Dr. Franclyn looked hard the agitated, young man. "Neither had I, Jacen. I had to look it up. Hundreds of people died from eosinophilic-myalgia about ten years ago. Right now I can't find a trace of it in her system. All things considered, your sister is in extremely good shape." The doctor turned to Luke. "As all your students always are." When working with Force adepts, the doctor rarely got credit for saving the patient.

"If you can't find the disease in her system, how did you-"

"She left plenty of samples for me back in her room," the doctor interrupted Luke. "She's fine now. I use that word 'fine' very loosely. Medically, there is nothing wrong with her anymore, but it looks like she just ran two marathons on your home planet. I've got her drugged up right now, but she needs natural sleep. My normal recommendation would be one month in bed, but knowing your students, I'm sure she'll be fine after about a ten-minute Jedi trance. Good day."

Dr. Franclyn left the two men standing in the small waiting room of the medical station. Without any further direction from the doctor, Luke and Jacen walked through the inner doors, down a short hall, and into Jaina's room. She looked much cleaner and more peaceful than she had before. She was dressed in a white gown, lying under a crisp white sheet. Her torso was slightly elevated and her head was propped on a thick, white pillow. A few pieces of medical monitoring equipment were hooked up to her, and they beeped away with comforting regularity. She looked very peaceful except for one thing. Her eyes were wide open.

It did not look like her eyes were actually seeing anything, they just stared up at the ceiling, unblinking and unmoving. Jacen walked up to her and put some gentle pressure on her eyebrows, trying to search out her lids, but they were jammed open leaving nothing to pull down.

"Come on, Sis," he said, his voice finding it hard not to crack, "you've got to get some sleep." Jacen grabbed hold of his sister's hand under the sheet and crouched down beside her. "If you don't sleep at night, how am I supposed to wake you up. Stripe was really looking forward to waking up in bed with you this morning. Besides, I've still got those two speeder bikes I'm trying to repair. You know how I am with machines. With Anakin off with Mom and Dad, I need your help.

"Just think, tearing through the trees on a pair of old speeder bikes, pretending we are on Endor. You want to talk about history; there's your history right there. But I can't do it without your help. Promise me you'll get some sleep tonight." He gave her hand one last squeeze and rose from her bedside.

Luke put a hand on Jacen's shoulder as he stepped back away from the bed. "She'll be all right. We'll be able to move her back to her room as soon as the droids are done cleaning it up. Now as I understand it, you have a history quiz this morning. I suggest you get off to class. I'll take care of Jaina."

* * *

True to his word, Luke moved Jaina up to her room a few hours later. It was late in the afternoon before she came out of her drugged-up state. The first thing she wanted was food. Her body was empty from the night before, but she was careful not to eat too much. She steered clear of the turkey and cake this time.

Luke stayed with her for a while, giving her a little help with a few advanced Jedi calming techniques. "It's supposed to rain tonight," Luke said as he got up to leave. The clouds were already rolling in overhead, threatening to shorten the day. "It will be cool tonight. You should have no problem falling asleep. Tell me you will."

Jaina was too tired to speak but nodded her head.

"Good," Luke said. "I'll see you in the morning. I'll get with Master Tionne and see if I can schedule you a make-up quiz for early next week. Good night."

Jaina looked for a long time at the closed door after her uncle had left. Her bed felt softer than the previous nights. Her sheets were not as itchy and her medical gown was very comfortable. Outside, through a half-cracked window, she could hear the insects quieting down as the soft, steady pit-pat of the rain began to fall.

Jaina let out a long sigh, closed her eyes, and fell fast asleep. On her dresser, the medallion's sapphire also closed, narrowing to barely more than a slit.



Part II: "Never Never Land"



Say your prayers little one
Don't forget, my son
To include everyone
Tuck you in, warm within
Keep you free from sin
Till the sandman he comes

Sleep with one eye open
Gripping your pillow tight
Exit: Light
Enter: Night

Something's wrong, shut the light
Heavy thoughts tonight
And they aren't of Snow White
Dreams of war, dreams of liars
Dreams of dragon's fire
And of things that will bite

Sleep with one eye open
Gripping your pillow tight
Exit: Light
Enter: night
Take my hand
We're off to Never Never Land

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
And if I die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take

Hush little baby, don't say a word
And never mind that noise you heard
It's just the beasts under your bed
In your closet, in your head

Exit: Light
Enter: Night
Grain of sand
Exit: Light
Enter: Night
Take my hand
We're off to Never Never Land

"Enter Sandman"
--Metallica

The sun shown beautifully on the glistening morning. The leaves were wet from the night rain, and they sparkled like green emeralds. The breeze was cool and moist in the early hours of the day, the sun not yet influencing the air of the normally hot moon. The birds rode the breeze easily, chirping and singing in perfect harmony. Jaina felt good.

She had not felt this good in a long time. She walked through the short grass in her sandals, letting the moist blades caress her exposed toes. She was full from a good breakfast and felt no ill effects from her stomach problems of the other day. This day held no classes for the Academy, and Jaina did not really have a purpose as she walked through the open field.

A noise of metal on metal caught Jaina's attention. She walked toward it and heard her brother's voice cursing. Jaina peaked a small knoll and saw Jacen working on one of two speeder bikes. Jaina looked back over her shoulder at the dormitory in the distance and then pranced down the hill toward her brother.

Jacen looked up as he sensed his sister nearing. Jaina stopped at a distance, not used to the sight of her brother working on machines. Jacen spotted her and frowned. "Don't stand there, come help me make this thing work."

Their father had given the bikes to Jacen as a gift, knowing the carefree Jedi loved reckless adventure. What Han had neglected to tell his mechanically inept son was that one of the bikes did not work. It was an effort to turn Jacen into his father, but it was not working. Anakin and Jaina had the same mechanical interest as their father, but Jacen was different.

"What's wrong with it?" Jaina asked as she walked toward her brother.

Jacen shrugged. "Got me, all the circuits are going berserk."

Jaina stood over him as she watched him pull two faulty stabilizer chips out of the main repulsar engine and switch them around. He fired the power unit up and watched it start sparking again. He quickly turned it off. He looked like he was going to loose it when he noticed Jaina's shadow clouding him. He squinted up at her into the rising sun.

"You just gonna stand there or give me a hand?"

"I'm monitoring your progress," she replied. She gave him a moment of doubt and then squatted down next to him. "These," she said, pulling the chips out, "don't go here. They go here." She moved to the other side of the bike, inserting the chips into the appropriate place. "Fire it up now."

Jacen complied and the repulsar hummed beautifully, though it did not rise off the ground. "Cut it," Jaina said, and the engine stopped. "You still need the main repulsar lift modules."

Jacen gave her a look that said, "duh," and picked up two very old looking modules. With Jaina on the other side of the bike, he tossed one to her. Jaina caught it and coughed as a cloud of dust and sand shook out of the unit. Jaina looked at him accusingly.

Jacen shrugged. "Sorry, all these salvaged parts are full of sand."

"Salvaged?" Jaina queried. "Where did you get these?"

"I got them off a crashed Imperial TIE," Jacen said.

Jaina knew all about the Imperial and Rebellion hardware that laid scattered all over this jungle moon from the battle against the first Death Star. Jaina had even thought about trying to put together a ship from all the pieces lying around. "Are all your spare parts junk?" Jaina asked.

Jacen shook his head and produced two power couplings from his large toolbox. "No, these are the best that credits can buy."

Jaina caught the coupling Jacen tossed her and used it to attach the ancient lift module to the main repulsar engine. She then went around to Jacen's side of the bike to help him with his module. "You've got it on backwards, Bro," she said after looking at his handy-work.

Jacen stood up and backed away from the bike, gesturing toward it. "Please, by all means, be my guest and fix it."

Jaina smiled as she stepped forward and righted the improperly attached module. Before getting up, Jaina looked the whole bike over, giving it a full inspection with the Force. She slapped the seat of the bike as she stood. "Looks like you're ready to go."

Jacen looked the bike over, himself, licking his lips and rubbing his hands together as he did. "Thanks for your help, but here's where I exit." Pushing Jaina aside gently, Jacen straddled the large bike. He gripped the handlebars and ran the throttle up and down with the bike off.

He gave an evil looking grin to Jaina, and she wisely stepped back. Jacen pulled the clutch in, held down the starter switch, and jumped on the kick-start. He opened the throttle at the same time, and Jaina cringed as the engine nearly leaped out of the bike. It stayed in one piece for now, and Jacen yelled above the noise. "Oh yeah, that's more like it, now we're cooking!"

"Jacen," Jaina tried to yell above the bike, "you have to put it-" but she was drowned out as Jacen released the clutch and gunned the engine. The bike did not move. Jacen quickly released his vice grip on the throttle when the tachometer went deep into the red.

When the noise came back down to a tolerable level Jaina tried again. "Jacen, you have to put in gear first."

Jacen looked at her sheepishly, mouthing the word "oops." Jacen looked down at his feet and toed the bike into first. He had forgotten to put the clutch back in and the bike lurched forward as it was dropped into gear. Jacen looked up quickly, just avoiding the first tree in his path. He came to near idle speed, just crawling over the grass. Jacen shook his head free of his stupid mistakes and hit the throttle. The bike sailed away with Jacen whooping as it accelerated.

Jaina watched as her brother made a large circle in the mostly open field, shifting smoothly up the gears and then back down as he approached his sister. His face was alive with excitement as he came to a humming stop in front of Jaina. He sat very casually on top of the bike as if he were the best rider in the world and not the novice he truly was.

"Are you to join me or just keep looking."

"You're on," Jaina said. She hopped on the other bike and started it with little trouble. Jacen swallowed hard at his sister's ease on the bike but did not say anything as he rocketed away. Jaina pulled in behind him and then passed him, smiling as she flew by. Jacen gave his bike more speed and caught his sister.

The twins slalomed amongst themselves for a few minutes, but Jacen quickly saw that his sister was a much better rider and put her to the test. As they raced near the edge of the large field, Jacen made a sudden dive into the trees. Jaina hesitated momentarily wondering about the prudence of the move. Shrugging her shoulders, she followed.

In the close confines of the forest, the skill level was more even. Jaina's skill came from her intimate understanding of her bike and how it worked. She could squeeze just a little more out her bike than Jacen because she knew right when to shift and exactly how hard to brake on the turns. Jacen was a fighter and normally operated on action and reaction. In the open field, everything was a straight line and there was little spontaneity. Now in the woods, Jacen was seeing three and four moves in the future as he wove through the trees.

Jaina caught her brother and the two accelerated to very unsafe speeds as they wove around trunks and under limbs. They hooted and hollered at each other, daring the other one to go faster. Jaina was having a blast. Her hair was blowing straight back, and she felt more alive than she had in a very long time.

The two pulled alongside each other in a relatively clear stretch. Jacen turned to Jaina and smiled. "Se ya later, bye bye." He opened up his bike and pulled ahead.

"Oh yea," Jaina responded, opening her throttle to full also and turning her head to look at her brother, "where am I going?"

Jacen's face turned to one of pure evil. "You are going to die."

Jaina was stunned at the sudden change as she turned to look forw- Tree!

Jaina's eyes snapped. She was hyperventilating with staccato breaths, her body plastered to her bed, lying flat on her back and staring at her ceiling. The swirled patterns of the textured ceiling produced the image of a huge tree and it hovered over Jaina like a speeding image in a holovid that had just been paused.

Jaina looked at the shuddering image of the tree, knowing she was staring death right in the face. The tree was ugly, covered with misshapen nubs and hollow crags, and it had just been speeding toward Jaina at well over 150 kilometers per hour - certain death.

Jaina's breathing refused to slow down, and her quick breaths did not allow her blood to receive its proper amount of oxygen. Her focus was too intent on death poised above her to put any effort into calming her respiration. Her limbs began to go numb. The tingling sensation crept up her legs and arms, until it passed over her rapidly rising and falling chest. Soon Jaina could only feel her head, all her focus trained on the tree.

As her body's oxygen debt threatened to pull Jaina into unconsciousness, her breathing slowed down naturally, and the tingling feeling retreated before taking Jaina's mind. Jaina watched as the tree slowly retreated back into the textured ceiling, fading away like it had never been there.

Jaina blinked for the first time in five minutes and tried to look around. Her body was not moving, and Jaina put forth no great effort to make it move. She was too frozen in fear. It was not fear in anything particular, just pure fear. Death had been just a few meters away from consuming her, and Jaina had never experienced anything like that before.

Jaina did not dare close her eyes. She could still see the image of the front of her bike plowing into the tree. The buckling of the bike had thrown her viciously at the tree, and it had been this stomach wrenching feeling that had woken her. It had been like a giant hand had grabbed her in its fist and hurled her at the tree. There had been no time for reaction or correction. Jaina had been as certain of death as one could be of anything.

The face of her brother haunted her as well. He had been the bringer of the news, Death's Herald. The look he had given her had been that of the Grim Reaper, announcing and welcoming her into death.

Jaina had never felt so helpless in her life. She had always been in charge, always been strong. Now she lay shivering in her bed with no avenue of sanctuary open to her. The darkness of her room pressed in on her from all sides but above. Jaina felt no weight on top of her, leaving a clear avenue for the dreaded tree to leap back out of the ceiling and take her. Jaina knew that if she closed her eyes, the tree would do just that.

The pressure of room crushed her mentally, forcing her to retreat into a back corner of her mind. It pushed in on her from five sides, leaving the sixth so wide open that Jaina felt herself a fool for not taking it. "It was just a dream," a voice inside her mind said. "It wasn't real. Only one escape for what you feel."

Jaina closed her eyes.

Her body spun violently off the bike, exploding viciously agai-

Jaina's eyes sprung open again, this time without any breathing at all. The tree hovered just a millimeter in front of her face, begging to descend a smidgen further. Jaina's entire body was shaking from imagined pain. The sickening smell from the decaying death tree wafted into her inactive nostrils, triggering every repulsive notion in her mind.

Jaina still did not breathe, too scared to even let her lungs move. She felt like a falling rock climber whose safety rope had snapped tight a fraction of a second before the climber's body splattered on the rocks below. Instead, it was the tree that dangled on a rope, while Jaina remained rock solid beneath it.

With a sudden burst of will power, Jaina shook her head violently side to side as she resumed breathing. The tree was gone when she returned her gaze upwards, but its memory still very clear. Jaina could not close her eyes again. Her dream had been frozen right at the spilt second of her death, and now she existed in that moment. As long as she stayed awake she would avoid the finality of her dream.

The irony was sickening to Jaina. She had spent the last few nights begging for sleep, and now that she had it, she wanted nothing to do with it.

Without moving her head, Jaina managed to glance at her chrono. There was still five hours of darkness left this night, and Jaina would force herself to stay awake through it. Next to the chrono, the sapphire in the center of Thincar's amulet struggled to close itself into nothing, but Jaina's willpower kept it slightly open.

* * *

The sun shown beautifully on the glistening morning. The leaves were wet from the night rain, and they sparkled like green emeralds. The breeze was cool and moist in the early hours of the day, the sun not yet influencing the air of the normally hot moon. The birds rode the breeze easily, chirping and singing in perfect harmony. Jaina felt terrible.

She had smiled at everyone thus far, but she could not keep up the effort for long. Luke and Jacen had come to her room to see her in the morning. Jaina had not moved one muscle all night. When she had felt them approaching through the Force, she had finally summoned enough strength to move. She had left her bed and jumped into the refresher just as Luke and Jacen had entered.

The two had heard the water running, and respected Jaina's privacy. They had waited and met her outside her room. A hot shower had removed all physical traces of her nightmarish experience, and she put forth extra effort to clear her mind. Breakfast had been quiet, and Jacen had not stayed with his sister after the meal.

Jaina stood outside, her dream coming back to her. The experience felt identical. The birds, the weather, the grass, and the trees all matched her dream exactly. Jaina moved slowly through the moist grass, trying to find something that did not match her dream, something that could convince her it had been a dream and not the future.

The sound came from over the small knoll in front of her like she knew it would. Before she peaked the crest, she knew she would see Jacen. Jaina walked to the top of the knoll and stared at the scene in total shock. She gasped in terror, her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide with fright.

Jacen was working on one of the bikes just like he had been in the dream, but Jaina's attention was drawn to the second bike. It was smashed almost beyond recognition. The total length of the bike was a little less than one fifth of what it should be, the front of it compressed violently into the rear compartment. The seat upholstery was torn apart and charred. The engine was composed of scrap, pieces of it sticking out at every angle. Even at Jaina's considerable distance, she could see that the entire bike was covered in blood. She screamed.

Jacen spun around, but relaxed when he saw it was his sister. He could not read the terror in her eyes at their distance. "Don't stand there, come help me make thi-" but he stopped as Jaina bolted from the hill and ran into the woods. Jacen shrugged his shoulders at his sister's odd behavior. "I guess I'll have to figure it out by myself," he said, turning from the bike he was working on to the other one. The second bike was in perfect condition, and Jacen analyzed the repulsar engine to see exactly how the chips he held were supposed to fit in the other bike.

Jaina ran at top speed through the woods, small branches and twigs slapping her face as she ran. She stumbled and tripped as she threw aside all caution but managed to stay on her feet. Her body bumped against tree trunks, and her feet kicked roots as her forward motion slowed with her loss of composure.

Jaina ended her run as she tripped into a small clearing, falling to her hands and knees and panting at the ground. Her breaths were long and smooth, filling her lungs with the sweet smells of the forest. Her mind was beginning to clear, when a fowl stench made its way into her nostrils. Jaina slowed her breathing and raised her head.

The death tree stood in the middle of the clearing. It was exactly how Jaina remembered it: big, rotting, and ugly. On all fours, Jaina made a feline growling noise and leaped up. Her lightsaber came off her belt as she charged the tree. The powerful blade snapped into existence and cut deep into the tree. Jaina took just the one powerful swipe and stood back, staring at the hacked tree.

The line of the cut stood out clearly across the large trunk and Jaina could see hordes of termites and maggots pouring out of the dying tree. Jaina smiled cruelly as she watched its collapse. She listened to the popping that started slowly, but quickened as the few fibers that remained holding the tree tore under the weight of the giant. The popping crescendoed into a large crack, and the tree fell. It broke away from Jaina, spraying a fine mist of moldy, decaying vapor at her as it fell.

The long, twisted branches grabbed onto some of the smaller surrounding trees, taking them down with it in a loud crash. The wildlife in the area scrambled at the noise, but quickly settled down. Jaina kept her eyes on the fallen tree, the sadistic grin remaining on her lips. She stared at her dream's nemesis for several minutes before shaking from the trance. She dragged her sleeve across her face, wiping off the moisture the tree had sprayed on her and turned her heel on the dead tree.

The rest of the day went smoothly. Jaina spent very little time with anyone else, preferring the comfort of her history datapad and a shady hammock. She felt truly relaxed for the first time ever, and she knew she was not dreaming. She did not feel tired or weak. The little incident in the woods had rid her of her demons, and she finally felt in charge of her life.

Jaina had been the prisoner of fatigue for the past few days, and she thought she had finally put that behind her. Her mind was convincing her that her restlessness had simply been an over-reaction to watching Garri die. It was not a normal reaction, but Jaina was not normal. She was a Jedi. Not only that, but she had always been in control. In the temple on Drenkon, she had not been in control, and it had shaken her to her core.

Jaina was beginning to realize that she could not always be in control, but she could always still handle what was thrown at her. She had been powerless to stop Garri from dying, but she had killed his murderer. She had also been powerless last night. The tree had owned her, insisting that she give it her life. She had ended that threat also. There was nothing she could not handle.

Jaina surprised everyone at dinner with a smile on her face. She caught the eye of little Collin Paris, the young boy who had called her scary the other day. She smiled at him, but he still turned his back on her and walked away.

Jaina got her food and sat down at the table with Jacen, Tenel Ka, and Kalina. They all greeted her quietly. Jaina responded much louder. "Good evening, beautiful day today, wasn't it?"

Kalina and Tenel Ka looked questioningly at each other, but Jacen stared at his sister. "It would have been nicer if I had been able to get my bikes working," he said. "What were you doing this morning? I saw you race off into the trees as if you had seen a ghost."

Not far off, Jaina thought. "Oh, nothing. I just needed to do some thinking."

"About what?" Tenel Ka asked.

"About how it wasn't my fault Garri died. About how I don't need to know or have control of everything. About how even Jedi have weaknesses and are not indestructible."

"Speak for yourself," Jacen said pompously, getting laughs from the three girls present.

"Shut up," Kalina laughed, throwing a bun at him from across the table. She picked up a cerulean and bit into the blue fruit. Her smile turned to a frown as she examined the fruit.

Everyone saw her uncertain look. "What is it?" Jaina asked.

"This cerulean tastes funny," she replied, taking another bite.

Jaina picked up one from her tray and bit into it. As the taste of the sweet fruit filled her mouth, an image of fire flashed across her mind's eye. Jaina dropped the fruit with the bitten piece in her mouth still unchewed.

All eyes went to Jaina, and she quickly realized she had a terror stricken look on her face. Jaina grabbed at her throat and began gagging. "Ahhhh," she said in a mocking tone, "it's poisoned."

Kalina hit her on the arm. "Stop it."

Jaina laughed as she chewed and swallowed. "It's fine, Kalina."

Kalina took another bite and put the piece of fruit to the side. Jaina picked up her dropped cerulean and took another bite to see if the fiery image came back. It did not. She smiled. She still had control.

"So what's wrong with your bike?" Jaina asked.

"The repulsar won't work," Jacen responded. "I got all the parts Dad told me I needed, but I can't put them in right. I'm using the other bike to help me, but it must be a slightly different model."

Jaina was about to ask how Jacen could tell anything from the smashed up speeder, but she suddenly realized that the demolished speeder bike had just been a hallucination. "I'll help you with it tomorrow," Jaina promised.

The four friends talked about a few other trivial things before leaving the dinning hall. Jaina tried to get Jacen to tell her what was on the history quiz, but he had not done very well on it and was no help. Instead, Jaina went up to her room and decided to study on her own. She sat down at her desk and began writing out as many different essay questions she could think of and then filled in the answers.

The questions were all about how Palpatine was able to hide his presence from the Jedi, how he had been able to train new pupils under the council's nose, and how he had been able to play both sides of the game. Jaina spent several hours hard at work before she looked up for the first time. It was dark outside and very late.

Jaina stretched her cramping arms and wrist, yawning as she did. She quickly changed into her sleeping shirt and got ready for bed. It was not raining outside, but the air was just as cool as it had been the other night, and Jaina opened her window wide. Her bed was very welcoming as she climbed in, ready for a good night's sleep.

Jaina had barely closed her eyes when she heard a pounding on her door. She flipped on the bedroom lights, went over to her door, and opened it.

"Jaina, please, help me!"

Jaina stared on in shock as she looked at her visitor. Kalina was standing in the hallway just outside Jaina's quarters. She was not wearing a shirt, naked to the waist, but her partial nudity seemed to be the least of her worries. Her chest was literally smoldering in front of Jaina's eyes.

"What's happening?!" Jaina asked her, trying to keep her voice under control.

"It hurts! Please make it stop."

Jaina watched the young woman's skin start to bubble and blister from the heat generated beneath it. All of her blood vessels were on the verge of rupture and smoke was beginning to billow out from her mouth.

Jaina raced up to her and grabbed her wrist. "Quickly," Jaina urged, "we need to get you into the shower."

Jaina half-dragged, half-carried her friend into the refresher and threw her into the shower. She yanked the water on, not caring what the temperature was. There was no way the water could ever be hotter than Kalina, and the colder the water, the better.

Instead of Kalina's condition improving under the heavy stream of cold water, Jaina watched as it got worse. The water danced on the young woman's steaming skin like water drops on a hot fry pan. The steam was so thick Jaina could no longer see Kalina, but her moans and groans were still very audible.

Jaina turned off the ineffective water, unaware that not one drop had found its way down the drain but had all be turned to steam on the burning Jedi's skin. Jaina used the Force to evacuate the room of steam and regained just enough visibility to watch Kalina's chest explode in a gory fireball.

Jaina was drenched with boiling blood and screamed both at the sight she had seen and the pain she now felt. She stumbled blindly over to the sink and hurriedly tried to clean off the scalding red fluid from her face. She removed the blood, but the painful burns remained. As she looked into the mirror to see how bad the damage was to her face, she saw in the reflection that flames were dancing in the tub where Kalina lay.

Fighting the revulsion of the potentially gory scene, Jaina turned and looked into the tub. Kalina was no longer recognizable as a human being, her body already decomposed into ashes. Despite the gallons of water Jaina had just recently showered down upon the woman, the flames burned as if feeding on the driest wood on Yavin IV. In pure frustration, Jaina turned the shower back on, and the flames were put out, leaving the heavy smell of smoldering flesh in the air.

"What's happening?" Jaina shouted at herself. "This can't be happening! I must be dreaming!" Jaina slapped herself several times, but the pain of the burns covering her face and arms were more than enough to tell her this was real.

Jaina stumbled weakly from the refresher, searching for some fresh air before she tried to reason out what had just happened. Before she got the chance, she heard a yell of pain from the hallway. Jaina walked quickly to her doorway and saw Collin crawling towards her. The back of his shirt was already black and crisp from the heat and Jaina could tell from her experience with Kalina that this child would not last another minute.

Without even contemplating the action, Jaina summoned her lightsaber to her from across the room and threw it as the child reared up in front of her. A look of disbelief crossed Collin's face as he watched the lightsaber spinning towards him. He was too weak to dodge the weapon and it pierced his chest. The sudden pressure release from the hole over his heart sent his life fluid gushing onto the stone walls, catching the recently carpeted hallway on fire.

Jaina ignored the flames, knowing something far more disastrous was going on. The image of the cerulean flashed through her mind along with the fiery images that had accompanied it. "It was poisoned," Jaina said. "But how could it-" Jaina's thought was cut off as she felt heat beginning to rise within her.

The sounds of other Jedi students shouting and dying filled the hallways of the dormitory but Jaina paid them no mind as she dropped to her knees, her hands on her chest. The heat was growing quickly, and Jaina knew she was about to die.

The heat created a fierce itching all over her skin, and she scratched ferociously at her chest, ripping her shirt to shreds. She looked down and could see her sternum glowing red hot. Her heart was pumping her boiling blood to each limb, sending unbelievable pain through her entire body.

The image of Kalina's chest exploding filled her mind as she clawed at her chest, tearing large cuts in her breasts that bled steaming blood. Her hands caught fire as they were coated with the searing hot blood. The pressure inside her was growing exponentially, and Jaina could feel death was a moment away.

"Noooooooo!"

Jaina was kneeling in bed. The lights were off, and a cool breeze blew in through the window. Her shirt was ripped off and she was bleeding from several deep cuts on her chest. Her hands were trembling in front of her, covered in blood.

Jaina slowly lowered her hands, still trembling as she slowly tried to come to grips with what was happening. She looked into her refresher, the lights were off, and no smoke came from the shower. Her lightsaber still lay on the nightstand beside her bed, and there were no screams coming from beyond her closed door in the hall.

"Another dream?" Jaina said out loud. "But it was so real."

Jaina could feel her blood running down her stomach, and she looked at her bare chest. It had been torn badly under the relentless attack of her fingernails. She could also still feel a very real burning sensation directly over her heart.

Jaina was too aggravated at her condition to be scared of the dark now. She got up and went over to her refresher. She ran some cold water and splashed it on her burning cuts. She spent several minutes treating her wounds before she managed to stop the bleeding.

Jaina's chest still stung painfully, but she tried to ignore it as she walked back to her bed and sat down on the corner. Her head was in her hands as she mumbled frustrated curses under her breath. "What is going on?"

Jaina could not get herself to stay on any one thought for more than a second and stood up in frustration. Tears streamed down her face as she paced around her room, beating on her head with her hands. "What is wrong with me? Why am I being tortured so? What did I do?"

Jaina paused briefly, leaning her forehead against a wall, her body trembling with sobs. It just was not fair. Life was not playing fair. How could she win this? There was no way. No matter what she did it all ended up the same. When she wanted to sleep, she could not. When she could, she did not want to. There was no way to win. "I give up," she said meekly, pushing herself away from the wall.

Jaina walked over to her dresser to get a new shirt and noticed the time. She wanted to throw the chrono across the room because it said that there was still eight hours until dawn. As she reached for the clock to do just that, her hand brushed against Thincar's medallion.

The metal was very cool to the touch, and Jaina forgot about the chorno and picked up the necklace. She had not really looked at since she had picked it up almost a week ago. The half-closed black sapphire in the center of the amulet sparkled in the dim light from the refresher. It was also very cool. On an impulse, Jaina pressed the metal against her burning chest and immediately felt relief. Jaina slipped the thin chain over her neck and let the medallion hang naturally. It rested directly above her heart, nestled comfortably in her cleavage.

Jaina could feel all the pain leave her as the soothing effects of the amulet took over her body. She quickly put on another shirt and walked back to bed. She did not even bother to turn the refresher light off as she lay down on top of her covers, falling instantly into sleep.

The black sapphire disappeared completely from the center of the medallion, sinking deep into Jaina's chest.

Part III: "Lonesome Road"

One need not be a chamber to be haunted,
One need not be a house;
The brain has corridors surpassing
Material place.

Far safer, of a midnight meeting
External ghost,
Than an interior confronting
That whiter host.

Far safer through an Abbey gallop,
The stones achase,
Than, moonless, one's own self encounter
In lonesome place.

Ourself, behind ourself concealed,
Should startle most;
Assassin, hid in our apartment,
Be horror's least.

The prudent carries a revolver,
He bolts the door,
O'erlooking a superior spectre
More near.

--Emily Dickinson

Like one that on a lonesome road
Doth walk in fear and dread,
And having once turned round walks on
And turns no more his head;
Because he knows, a frightful fiend
Doth close behind him tread.

Excerpt from "Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner"
--Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Jaina stood at the entrance of the ruined temple on Drenkon. The wind and rain were there, but neither seemed as harsh as she remembered. The clouds above glowed brightly, backlit by the thousands of stars hidden behind them. The scene before Jaina was familiar, but for the first time since that fateful night, she did not look away.

Jaina knew she was dreaming, but she also felt comfortable in this dream. She had finally given up her in her struggle for control and composure. Like a Calamarian finger puzzle, it gripped her hardest when she tried to pull away. Instead of fighting, Jaina decided to see what her subconscious wanted to tell her.

All the key players were in the temple already. Garri stood in front of Jacen and Jaina with Thincar standing in the middle of the temple. Like most dreams, time had no meaning or order, and Jaina was able to freeze the action as she looked about. She focused her attention on Thincar. He seemed very young and harmless, even more than in the moments before she had killed him. Jaina felt that under different situations, she might even be attracted to him. He certainly did not seem like the type of person who would attack three innocent kids.

Jacen attacked with a primal yell. This action seemed very peculiar to Jaina now. Thincar had made no move to attack yet. Luke had always taught his students never to be the first to attack. Violence is not always the answer.

With these thoughts in her mind, Jaina watched as Thincar easily defeated the charge by hurling water and wind at Jacen. The defense was very calm, considering Jacen's attack. Jaina watched her brother land unharmed, rolling along the floor.

A sickening bile began to rise in Jaina's throat. Had they attacked Thincar unnecessarily? He seemed very calm in this dream. Not at all like she remembered him. Had they acted too quickly? Maybe Thincar had not wanted to fight.

Jaina turned her attention to Garri and her dream-self. Thincar brought the ceiling down as Garri began his charge on the lone figure. Jaina did not remember the incident all that well, but now saw that the cave in was not actually aimed at either of them, but had been placed directly in front of Garri so he would not be able to charge. Both Jaina and Garri easily avoided the falling rocks.

So far Thincar had only acted in self-defense, not once trying to harm any of the attacking Jedi. Jaina now watched as her dream-self made its way over to Jacen. Jacen and Garri charged Thincar before she got there, but Jaina was remembering that she had wanted to tell Jacen to stop. She remembered wanting to say that they should talk with Thincar to see what he wants. Thincar easily avoided the two charging students, again, attacking neither of them.

Now came the moment of truth. Everything slowed down as Jaina watched Thincar motion to the ceiling above Jacen and Garri. The memory of this incident had been clouded with emotions before, but now the dreaming Jedi could see everything clearly. The cracks in the ceiling did not appear directly above the two male students, but to the right of Garri. He was not trying to kill them, Jaina realized, he was trying to trap them or slow them down.

Jacen looked up at the cracks and smiled. Jaina slowed the images even further, not believing what she saw. Jacen smiled and shoved Garri to the right, directly under the falling rocks. Jacen took a few steps to the left as he watched Garri stumble under the shove. He also looked up and made a desperate move to get out of the way, but a huge chunk of rock slammed into his leg, bringing him down. Garri cast a betrayed look at Jacen as a bigger rock sunk into his chest.

Jaina looked away at the slow motion death scene, and her eyes fell on her brother, which was even more terrifying. It looked like Jacen might almost laugh at the sight.

"Noooooo!"

All the images stopped. Jaina looked at the frozen scene and could not come to grips with it. Jacen was laughing while blood was literally exploding from Garri's chest. In confusion, Jaina turned to look at Thincar. A look of shock lay on the cloaked face. He had not wanted this. He had not wanted to fight at all.

"This can't be what happened," Jaina said to Thincar.

The cloaked figure detached himself from the frozen scene. "There is truth in what was shown. These memories are your own."

"They can't be! I don't remember seeing this."

Thincar said nothing but simply pointed at were Jaina had crouched during the death scene. Jaina followed the gesture and saw her frozen form with her hands over her eyes.

"My actions in this night you mistook, for at the facts you chose not to look."

"But why?" Jaina insisted. "Why would my brother kill Garri like that? They were friends."

"The device behind the deadly shove, was clearly wrought of jealous love."

Jaina started to ask what he meant by that when she remembered her brother and Tenel Ka. The Hapan princess had indeed made a choice between the two suitors, and Jacen had apparently not been happy by the outcome. Jaina remembered her brother comforting Tenel Ka at the funeral. Tenel Ka had been crying, but Jacen seemed very peaceful.

The images in the room continued on, taking an entirely different meaning now. Jacen charged Thincar again, but his scream of sorrow seamed very phony to Jaina's ears, and she almost cheered as Thincar easily threw him into the wall. Jaina was disappointed to see that her brother had not been hurt badly.

Now Jaina watched as her image attacked Thincar. She tossed a huge rock at him, bringing him down. Jaina's dream image then walked over to the fallen victim and raised her lightsaber to bring the deathblow.

"Stop!" Jaina ordered. With the stoppage of action everyone disappeared except Thincar and Jaina's real self. She walked over to the pinned figure with a very sorrowful look on her face. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I thought you had killed my friend."

"Fear not, with you I hold no grudge. For your deed is not mine to judge. You acted as you thought was right, the better choice, though, was not to fight. I only wish for justice done. The guilty is your mother's son."

Jaina watched as the body of Thincar evaporated from under the cloak into a black wisp and floated up and out of the temple. Jaina reached down and fished out the black sapphire medallion. She put the necklace on. "I will avenge you."

* * *

Jacen rolled over in his bed as the first rays of dawn struck him in the face. He had thought about getting up early to try and prank Jaina again, but had thought better of it. He would leave his sister alone for a while. She seemed to have finally gotten over Garri's death, but he would give her a few more days until he was sure her grief was past.

As Jacen was slowly sitting up in bed, his door burst open, the wooden pannel flying off its hinges and halfway across the room. Jacen squinted into the hallway light to see his sister standing in the empty doorframe holding her deactivated lightsaber. She was wearing her nightshirt and long pants.

"What do you want?" Jacen asked, still sleepy and very confused.

"I'm going to kill you."

Jacen woke up very fast as his sister leaped to the foot of his bed, activating her weapon and swinging down on him in one easy motion. Jacen rolled off his bed just in time, clumsily knocking his head against his nightstand. Jacen sat confused beside his bed, and Jaina took a mighty swing at his head. He fell flat as the blade cut cleanly through a potted plant and his bedside chrono.

Jacen rolled over and sprang to his feet as Jaina climbed off his bed and walked toward him. "Easy, Sis, what's this about?"

"Shut up, you murdering son of a bitch." Jaina swung at him again, but Jacen flipped over the swipe in the tall room. Jaina's attack cut through two of Jacen's animal cages, freeing one of his favorite pet birds.

Jacen tried not to get mad, but it was difficult. "If I'm a son of a bitch, what does that make you?"

Jaina was not in the mood and turned around with her lightsaber leading. Jacen sucked in his stomach and hopped backwards, coming up against another collection of cages. He suddenly wished his room was not this cramped, though he had never thought he would do battle in it.

Jaina recovered quickly from her miss and brought her weapon back in a backhand swipe. With no room to back pedal, Jacen ducked and performed a leg sweep on his sister. Jaina swung through more cages, freeing a few more of Jacen's pets before she fell heavily on her back. Jacen sprang away from the corner and searched his room for his lightsabers. Where had he put them?

"Stop fighting and accept your judgment, you bastard!" Jaina screamed as she got up quickly.

Jacen thought this latest insult also made little sense coming from his twin sister, but he was tired of making jokes. Jaina attacked him in a very wild swing with her right arm. Jacen stepped into the swing and smoothly grabbed her attacking wrist with his right hand, spinning his body so his back pressed up against Jaina's chest. With the weapon now in front of him, Jacen easily wrenched it from his sister's grasp and continued his turn, elbowing Jaina in the side of the head with his left arm.

Jaina stumbled away from the expert fighter and Jacen continued to spin around, bringing the stolen weapon to bare on his defenseless sister. The move was supposed to end with Jacen taking his enemy's head, but with his sister as the enemy, Jacen held the killing blow in check and lashed out with his bare foot.

The high kick struck Jaina in the back between her shoulders and sent her sprawling toward the door. Jacen leaped on top of her back before she could get up, straddling her with her own blade poised at her neck.

"Now what is going on?!" he demanded harshly.

Kalina and Alex were standing in the hall, brought by the great commotion the fight had created in the Force. Both of them stared at Jacen sitting atop his sister with her blade at her neck.

"Go ahead and kill me, you murderer!" she screamed into the floor. "That's what you want, isn't it? That's how you solve all your problems, right? You just kill whoever gets in your way."

"What are you talking about?"

"What's going on here?" a very demanding voice said from the hallway. Jacen looked up and saw Luke walking past Kalina and Alex.

Jacen quickly deactivated the lightsaber and stood up. "Uh, Uncle Luke, Jaina, well, she just attacked me. I don't know why."

Luke looked at Jaina, who had rolled over onto her back and was smiling up at her uncle. "What's going on, Jaina?" Jaina did not say anything. "Did you attack your brother?" Still Jaina remained quiet.

Luke spun around to the two onlookers. "What did you see?"

"N-n-not much," Alex replied.

"When we got here," Kalina filled in, "Jacen was already sitting on top of Jaina with the lightsaber at her neck. It is Jaina's lightsaber though."

Luke turned back to Jacen and held out his hand. Before Jacen had a chance to toss the weapon to his uncle, it leaped from his hand and sailed into Luke's. The Jedi Master looked at it. "So it is." He looked down at Jaina who was still lying flat on her back. "Why did you bring your lightsaber into Jacen's room? Was this some idea of a prank? You know what I think about playing games with your weapons."

Jaina continued to remain quiet. Luke was stupid, Jaina thought carefully. He did not have the courage to stand up for what was right. He had just believed what Jacen had told him about Garri's death without investigating it at all. He did not even search the Force for the answer. The idea that Thincar had killed Garri was nice and neat and the need for the exact truth was not important.

"Get up," Luke said to Jaina. She complied. "I want both of you dressed and in my quarters in fifteen minutes." Luke shook the lightsaber handle at Jaina. "And I'm keeping this until I get an answer from you." Luke walked away.

Jacen stepped up to his sister and placed a hand on her shoulder. "So what is thi-"

Jaina grabbed the hand and spun around, twisting her brother's arm. Jacen easily freed his wrist from her grasp and tensed for another attack. Jaina could see that she would not - could not ever - be able to beat her brother in straight up combat. He was too aware, too prepared. She had stormed in on him while he had been sleeping and unarmed, yet less then a minute into the fight he had had her pinned on her back with her own lightsaber at her neck.

Jaina smiled at him with a mischievous look. She turned her back on him and walked out of his room. She would bring justice, but not now. All in good time.

* * *

Luke gazed sternly at his twin relatives. "So who wants to tell me what happened this morning?"

Neither Jacen nor Jaina spoke for a while. Jacen had calmed down in the short time since the fight, and his rarely seen temper was gone. He no longer remembered the events exactly how they happened, refusing to see his sister's actions in a dark light.

Jaina did not reply right away because she was concentrating. She had studied Palpatine's methods thoroughly in the past few days and felt she was doing a very good job of hiding her emotions. The real trick was to think of the truth while speaking the lie. When dealing with a Jedi Master (Palpatine had dealt with dozens of them) you needed to keep your state of mind stable. If you constantly tried to convince your mind that the lie you were speaking or living was indeed the truth, the mental struggle would show up plainly to the Jedi Master, and he would know you were lying.

"I guess I just got carried away," Jaina admitted finally, her voice becoming very quiet. "I wanted to really scare Jacen. I thought it would be funny afterwards."

Both Luke and Jacen looked at Jaina incredulously. "You nearly killed me," Jacen replied.

"No I didn't," Jaina argued. "I knew you were way too good to get hurt from my attacks. Besides, I had to make it look real or else you wouldn't fall far for it."

"But you called me a murderer."

"Did that catch you off guard?" Jaina asked. Jacen nodded. "Good, that was the point."

"My question," Luke jumped in, "is why did you do it in the first place?"

"Jacen is always putting creepy things in my bed and waking me up in annoying ways. I just thought I'd return the favor. I didn't expect him to fight back so well. I was kind of hoping for a more submissive target."

Luke turned to Jacen. "Is this true? Have you been tormenting your sister?"

"I wouldn't exactly call it tormenting," Jacen started. "I was just playing a couple jokes on her. I didn't mean any harm."

Luke smiled, glad that this incident was not as bad as he had feared. "I think you both need to bring it down a notch. Your time here is supposed to be spent studying. I know most of these classes are easy for you, and your skills are far more advanced than most students, but that does not give you the right to break the rules."

Luke turned to Jaina. "You know what I think about using a lightsaber as a toy." He held up Jaina's weapon. "This is a tool, and a deadly one at that. It is also a symbol of galactic justice and peace. It is the symbol of a Jedi. Treating it as if it were a toy or a prank item disgraces everything this Academy is about. As punishment, I will hold this weapon for the rest of the day, and you will not participate in the afternoon sparring session."

Jaina nodded, trying hard to let her mind think on what she was really feeling while her outward appearance remained placid. The twins were about to leave when Luke turned to Jacen. "As for you, you will not get off easy either. You'll be leaving your new speeder bike's indoors for a few days, and if I ever catch you using your pets to torment any of the other students, I will make you set them all free."

Jacen swallowed hard at the rebuke and nodded. "You two may go. I believe you have classes to attend."

Jacen and Jaina had missed breakfast because of their little incident and went straight to class. When they walked into their history class, Master Tionne beckoned to Jaina and brought her to a separate room to take her make-up quiz. Jaina took a seat in the empty room and looked her testpad over. It was exactly what she had studied for. There were a few dozen multiple-choice questions and then a few long essays.

Two hours later, Master Tionne came to get the quiz and found Jaina still hard at work. "Time's up."

"But I'm still writing," Jaina said.

Tionne double-checked her wrist chrono. "You can't still be writing, you've had the quiz for two hours. It's not that long of a quiz."

"I'm being thorough. Just ten more minutes."

The teacher shrugged. "Okay, ten minutes."

* * *

After two more classes, Jaina made her way to the cafeteria for lunch. Jacen, Kalina, Alex, and Lowbacca were sitting together at a table, and Jaina joined them.

"So then," Jacen was saying with the full attention of his audience, "she tried to cut my head off, but I rolled out of the way. I still didn't have my lightsabers on me, but when she attacked again, I disarmed her with this move I had been practicing, and two seconds later I was sitting on top of her with her own weapon."

"Truly the best swordsman that ever lived," Jaina said sarcastically, her hate for her murderous brother barely staying in check.

Jacen looked up startled by his sister's voice. "Oh, hi, Sis. I was just telling these guys about our little 'encounter' this morning."

"Did you care to mention how I let you win?"

Jacen just smirked at her. Kalina decided to run with the joke. "Come on Jacen, you might be the best fighter at the Academy, but Jaina's no slouch either. There's no way you could have beaten her without a weapon unless she let you."

Lowbacca barked in his agreement. Jacen turned to Alex. "What do you think?"

The Sullustan was very non-confrontational. "It is not my place to take sides."

Jacen just smiled at the group and sat up straight in pride. "I don't think you guys realize that you are in the midst of greatness. My prowess is unsurpassed. My coordination is the stuff of legends."

The comedic display brought a chuckle from all present but Jaina. To her the display made her sick. She could not get the images from her dream out of her head. She could see her brother looking up at the falling rocks and shoving Garri underneath them. Now that he was boasting that he was the greatest, Jaina felt even more certain that Jacen would eliminate his competition through any means necessary.

While Jacen still sat with his chest puffed out, Jaina slipped her spoon into a pile of creamed corn and flung a wad of the hash at her brother's face. Jacen's reflexes really were as good as he said, and as he flashed a hand in front of his face, he would have caught the flying food if Jaina had not moved it with the Force. The corn hit Jacen square in the nose, spreading yellow mush over most of his face.

"Truly your coordination is a sight to behold," Kalina mocked, breaking out into laughter. Lowbacca and Alex joined her, but Jaina just stared at her plate. If she had her lightsaber right now . . .

* * *

Jaina sat in her bedroom wishing she could take part in the afternoon sparring session. The Academy was getting ready for its annual tournament, and these afternoon sparring sessions, which were held every other day, were a way to not only prepare the students for the tournament, but also to give them a ranking for placement in the tournament. Jaina not only needed these sessions to hone her skills, but she needed to attain the second ranking so she would be assured of meeting her brother in the finals.

Jaina paused in this line of thought. She could not beat Jacen. She had known that he was good before, but this morning had shown her the true skill difference between the twins. All previous fights between them had been in fun and Jacen had never fought to his full potential. This morning his life had been in jeopardy, and he had defeated Jaina with relative ease.

Jaina tried to clear her head of these discouraging thoughts. If she could not defeat her brother then Garri's killer would go unpunished, and Jaina could not allow that. If she had learned anything at the Academy it was that a Jedi's responsibility was to see that justice was done and that good always triumphed over evil. Jaina could not go to her uncle. She knew that he was very non-confrontational, and she had a feeling Jacen was his favorite.

Jaina's specialty was with electronics and machines. She could outperform the best pilots and mechanics the Republic had to offer with little or no training on any ship or piece of equipment. While her skill was very valuable it did not show itself on this primitive moon as prominently as Jacen's skill did. Her brother was attuned with nature the same way Jaina was attuned with machines. Most students saw Jacen's skill as being superior, for the Force emanated from life and understanding nature was the first step to understanding life. Being able to manipulate man-made machines did not seem nearly as important as being able to communicate with nature.

This way of thinking was false. The Force did not just come from life; it came from everything. Suns were not alive, but they produced more energy in the Force than a jungle moon ever could. Geothermal energy, lightening storms, and gravitational forces were not alive, but they produce incredible amounts of Force potential. Jaina specialized in machines because she understood these non-living energy sources. She understood fusion engines, electrical circuits, interdiction fields, and hyperdrives because they operated on the same physical principals that governed the universe.

Still, Jaina had always felt that Jacen gained more attention for his abilities, and as a result was viewed as the Academy's best student, or at least the best fighter. His test scores would never allow him to give a speech at graduation. Jaina did not think Luke would pay much heed to her accusation that Jacen was a murderer. Luke had believed her brother's story and had closed the book on Garri's death. This was a vendetta Jaina would have to take up on her own.

As she pondered this, she was absent-mindedly playing with the amulet around her neck. She wore it all the time now, but it usually hung underneath her shirt. Now she had it out and was fiddling with the large metal medallion. She thought she remembered there being a black sapphire in the center of it when she had found it.

A tap on her door interrupted Jaina's thoughts. "Come in."

The door opened and Master Tionne walked in. Jaina quickly slipped the medallion in her shirt and tried to hide her contempt for the Jedi Master. Jaina's opinion of her uncle was quickly deteriorating, and with it, the other teachers at the Academy were loosing face as well. They were all just pretenders. They spoke about preserving peace and defeating evil, but none of them, save her uncle, had ever done anything of any importance toward their teachings. They stayed cooped up at the Academy without ever putting their teachings into action.

Tionne especially raised Jaina's ire. Jacen held the female teacher in mock disrespect because of her lack of Force skill, but Jaina's dislike was becoming much more sincere. That Luke had bestowed the title of Jedi Master on someone so Force inept as Tionne, was far more disrespectful to the Jedi than Jaina's actions with her lightsaber ever could be.

Tionne tried not to notice Jaina's cross expression as she took a seat at the room's desk, turning the chair so it faced her student sitting on the bed. "I just got done looking over your quiz," she said. "You did very well."

Jaina said nothing, neither faking placid facial expressions nor trying to hide her derogatory thoughts. She did not respect Tionne enough as a Jedi, much less a Master, to use Palpatine's methods on her. Instead, Jaina only tried to keep the hateful sarcasm running through her mind from escaping through her mouth.

"One thing did disturb me, though," Tionne continued. "When you answered the essay questions, you did so in the first person. It caught me off guard at first, but then I realized you were writing from Palpatine's point of view."

Had she? Jaina did not remember. She did remember that she had breezed through the multiple choice and had spent most of her time on the essay questions. She had answered them as thoroughly and as expertly as she felt possible and had no doubt she had aced the quiz. The fact that she had fallen so completely into the questions that she had taken up the persona of Palpatine did not bother her.

"My question to you is why did you choose to answer that way? It seemed very odd, and, frankly, it concerns me, given your state of mind over the past few days."

"When on Palpatine tested, who better than the Emperor vested. To answer questions of his state, himself in me I did create." Jaina's words surprised herself as much as they did Tionne. Jaina hid her surprise much better.

"Really," Tionne said, not sure exactly what to think. Luke had talked with Tionne after the twins had returned from Drenkon to see if there were any records of Sith that spoke in verse. Jaina's words could not be coincidental. "Who is Thincar?"

The question surprised Jaina more than her own words had, and she was shaken out of her trance. "Thincar?" Jaina repeated, defensive of her new friend. "He is nobody. He was just an over-proud, would-be Sith who got his kicks out of terrorizing primitive natives. Why do you ask? I thought my brother gave you all the information you needed."

Tionne could easily hear the animosity in Jaina's voice, but her lack of Force skill kept her from digging too deeply into Jaina's mind. She could not tell if the hate was directed at Thincar, Jacen, or herself. Tionne rose from the chair. "You've missed a few classes in the past few days. I suggest you spend this afternoon studying the next assignment."

Tionne left Jaina's room and headed toward Luke's quarters to have a long talk with him. Back in her room, Jaina scowled at the departing Jedi Master. Tionne knew there was a sparring session today and also obviously knew Jaina was not going to take part in it, thus the suggestion for studying. Jaina planned on studying, all right, but it had nothing to do with Tionne's history class.

* * *

Jacen squared off against Lowbacca.

The Wookiee had not yet reached full maturity, but he still stood a good head taller than Jacen, and Jacen was not short either. Lowie's hair covered his muscular arms deceivingly, but Jacen knew this was not an easy opponent.

The adversaries ignited their weapons, and Jacen swallowed hard. Lowie's lightsaber was easily one and a half meters long, fifty percent longer than Jacen's. It was not Lowbacca's strength that allowed him to use a longer weapon, for the blade of a lightsaber was weightless, it was his height. If Jacen tried to use Lowbacca's weapon, it would be very clumsy, the tip of the weapon often dragging through the ground. Jacen normally fought with two lightsabers and he had to shorten the blades when he did so for the same reason - it was too clumsy.

Though the longer weapon weighed no more than Jacen's, Lowbacca's increased strength did come into play, for when the two blades were engaged, Lowie's lightsaber offered him a lot more leverage that his strength was able to use effectively, while Jacen would have struggled under the force.

Jacen used only one weapon now, and he tossed it between his hands as he eyed-up his opponent. The lightsaber felt slightly off-balance to Jacen's keen senses. A quick glance down at the weapon reminded Jacen that it was fitted with a filter. The device was designed by Jaina and allowed the blade to pass over solid matter as if it was just a flashlight, but still repel other blades.

Neither fighter moved for a few moments, wondering who was going to act first. Jacen was a student of the sword; Lowbacca was not. Wookiee's were renowned for their fighting ability, but it was not for their prowess; it was for their strength and ferocity.

Lowbacca charged, swinging wildly in front of him. Jacen tried to side step the charge, but miss-judged his friend's reach and was forced into a hasty parry that brought him to one knee. Jacen pivoted quickly on his bent leg and sprang at Lowie as he was turning around.

The Wookiee turned with his blade leading, and intercepted Jacen's charge, his long blade forcing Jacen out wider than the smaller Jedi had planed. Lowbacca's arm was folded over his chest and he swung back with his elbow leading. Jacen ducked the elbow and brought his weapon back in from his right, aimed at Lowie's legs. Lowbacca swung his huge weapon in an incredibly fast circle, up, down, and around in front of him, nearly blasting Jacen's lightsaber from his hand.

Jacen rolled with the parry in an effort to keep his arm from popping out of his socket. Lowbacca's swipe left his weapon pointing right at Jacen's rolling form and he leaped forward to skewer the human. Jacen came to his feet suddenly and changed directions, leaping at the charging Wookiee. Lowbacca faltered when he saw Jacen's smooth movements, and knew he had lost.

In a spin so fast it was a blur, Jacen hacked at the thrust weapon from right to left, continued in the counter-clockwise spin, and 360 degrees later, sliced cleanly into Lowbacca's exposed left side. Though Lowie had lost, he was not impaired, and continued the fight with renewed ferocity.

Jacen's quick parry had sent the Wookiee's weapon to his right, and he brought it back in now. Jacen was too close to the Lowie's chest to make the Wookiee's attack effective, but if he stayed there, he would be caught in a vicious bear hug. Instead, he rolled under the attacking arm and spun about.

Lowbacca did a 180 and brought his weapon down in a tremendous arc. This time the attack did blast Jacen's weapon out of his hand and sent the smaller Jedi rolling. Having not learned from his earlier haste, Lowbacca again jumped toward Jacen. Jacen leaped to his feet and deftly stepped inside the thrust.

Using the same move he had used against Jaina earlier in the day, Jacen grabbed onto the wooden lightsaber handle with his right hand and spun about so his back was pressed against Lowbacca's chest. He was miraculously able to wrench the weapon away, but instead of elbowing his too tall opponent in the head, Jacen hooked his left elbow around Lowie's side and flipped around to the Wookiee's back.

Jacen's right arm spun around in a wide arc and stabbed the huge lightsaber into Lowbacca's spine like it was a dagger. Lowie could feel the weapon pressed into his back and knew that if the filter had not been in place he would see his own blade emerging from his chest.

Lowbacca had been defeated again but this time relaxed. Jacen had just told him how the move worked at breakfast, yet he had been too anxious to attack the weaponless Jedi to guard against it. Lowie burst into a barking laugh, complimenting Jacen on being the best fighter in the Academy.

On top of the nearby dormitory, an unseen observer thought the same thing. Jaina looked at her brother as he picked up his own lightsaber from where it had fallen and hooked it onto his belt. The weapon had a twin on the other hip that he had not even had to use. Jaina had seen him use both, though, and knew he was twice as graceful as he had just been.

Jaina stood from her concealed position on the roof of the dormitory and moved back to the edge she had climbed. She knew she was inadequate for the task at hand. She could not beat him. This thought weighed heavily on her as she went back to her room to get ready for dinner.

* * *

Jaina sat alone as she ate. Across the cafeteria she saw all her friends sitting together listening to Jacen tell his jokes. Kalina, Lowbacca, and Alex had all lost their fights that day, and Jacen was not being easy on them. Tenel Ka had won, but as usual, she remained quiet.

Jaina looked down at her tray, not wanting to see her friends falling for Jacen's outward theatrics when inside he was really a heartless killer. A movement across the table surprised Jaina, and she looked up. Luke sat down at her table. Jaina took one look at the expression on her uncle's face and knew she did not want to have a discussion with him.

"I had a talk with Master Tionne this afternoon," Luke started.

Jaina said nothing, but continued to spoon mashed potatoes into her mouth.

"She told me about how you answered the test questions and how you talked to her in your room afterwards. Is there something you want to tell me?"

Jaina did not make any other motion than to continue eating.

"You know I can hold onto your lightsaber for more than just the rest of today."

Jaina stopped now and looked up at her uncle. Who was this guy? What right did he have to tell Jaina what she could and could not do? - what she could and could not have? She had built the lightsaber, not Luke. It was hers. Luke had not given Jaina her Force powers. He had not even really taught her how to use them. He merely showed his students how they could teach themselves.

Jaina was about to say as much when she caught herself. She was forgetting everything she had learned from her history class. Keep yourself calm and do not over-react. Close off your mind. Hide your hate. Do not let your thoughts betray you. But what could she tell Luke?

"It's Thincar," Jaina replied, guessing - and guessing correctly - what she thought her uncle already assumed. "I think he's haunting me, or at least the memories of him are haunting me. At first I couldn't sleep, then when I could, I had nightmares."

"And now?"

And now, Jaina thought, I've finally realized what he's been trying to tell me. That my brother is a murderer and you and all your Jedi Master teachers are just inept pacifists. "And now I think I'm past it."

"And how about your attack on your brother this morning? Was that really just a prank?"

He wants me to say it was not, Jaina thought. If I tell him something he does not believe, he will try to see if I'm lying. "No," Jaina said with a defeated tone to her voice. "I was just mad. I was mad at Jacen, at myself, and at everything. I mean Garri was dead - is dead. And we had to watch it and couldn't stop it."

"And how did you overcome this depression?"

He would not quit, would he? "I realized I'm not alone. I am surrounded by people who love and care about me. Garri was also surrounded by those who loved and cared for him, and though he died, a Jedi's existence is not defined by life and death, but through the Force. If we continue to remember Garri in the Force then he will never die."

Luke smiled as he placed Jaina's lightsaber on the table. "Now why couldn't you have said that at the funeral." Luke rose and left the table, leaving the lightsaber where he had placed it. Jaina let out a long sigh as soon as her uncle was gone. That had been very difficult.

Jaina truly felt like she was alone on this forest moon and only by thinking of Thincar and Palpatine did she rationalize her statement in her mind. If she remembered Thincar, not Garri, he would not die. The only way Thincar could pass from her life was if she avenged his death, allowing him proper rest.

Jaina picked up her lightsaber and smiled. Luke, a Jedi Master, had bought the whole thing. Palpatine was a genius. As she clipped her lightsaber to her belt, she touched Thincar's medallion through her shirt. "I will let you rest."

Part IV: "Lessons Learned"

Lessons learned they are not,
In the mind they search for solid hold.
Lessons learned are forgot,
In the mind they turn forever cold.

Teach me so I can learn,
Lessons that will last the test of time.
Knowledge is what I yearn,
That will not leave me when the bells chime.

They chime for me, but no,
I'm lost and blind, without safety here.
I search for what I know,
But I from my soul pull only fear.

Fear is my teacher now,
Its lessons are not soon forgotten.
In them I live, but how,
For now from fear I am begotten.

With my fear as a guide,
Lessons from my mind, they do not flee.
Yourself you can not hide,
For now truth is crystal clear to me.

I see what thought I saw,
And now I know that I saw it wrong.
What truth I thought was law,
Are but truthless teachings of a throng.

To right the wrongs I try,
But friends bestow me with words untrue.
They are blind in the eye,
I'll give them fear so they can see too.

The Perfect Teacher
--David Pontier

Jaina sat on the wooden bench with her hands in her head.

"What could ever put you in such sorrow? Your face should shine as the sun tomorrow."

Jaina looked up and saw a figure walking out of the darkness. He was dressed in a light-colored Jedi robe that was held tight at the waist. He was young and attractive. The smile on his face did some to lift Jaina's spirits but was not entirely successful.

"I tried," Jaina said pitifully, "but I can't beat him. He's too good. I'm sorry."

There was only the bench. There was no ground or surrounding trees, only the bench and a solitary light above it. Thincar sat down next to Jaina on the bench and put is arm over her hunkered shoulders. "Do or do not, there is no try."

Jaina looked up at this familiar phrase. Thincar smiled at her. "Not all you have learned is a lie."

Jaina did not laugh at the joke and returned her face to staring into the darkness below. "Then it will have to be 'do not,' because I can't."

"You do not wish to try? Or you do not wish to die?"

"Neither," Jaina replied, but then paused. Is that what it was? Was Jaina scared that her brother would treat her like he did Garri? If Jaina raised the stakes and came after Jacen with clear intent, would he kill her? She did not think so, but she had not thought her brother was a murderer either.

Jaina did not know what to think. She looked up at Thincar. "Can you help me? Can you teach me how to beat him?"

"I can not teach a mind that isn't ready. Your heart must be true and your will steady. Your brother is not an invincible foe. It is not how you fight, but is what you know."

"Know your enemy," Jaina repeated, nodding at the sound advice. As she nodded, she watched the medallion hanging around her neck swing back and forth. She stopped nodding. "This is what I know. He is the best fighter in the galaxy, and I can not defeat him."

Thincar stood and began to walk away. "I can not teach a mind that isn't ready."

"Wait!" Jaina said. "I may not be able to beat him now, but I am willing to learn."

Thincar turned and gave her a look as if to say, "really?"

"I will learn what you have to teach."

Thincar paused for a long while and finally nodded.

* * *

Jaina spent the next morning eagerly awaiting the end of classes. She had three, and each seemed to be longer than the next. Jaina did not even take lunch after her third class but went straight to work. She spent the better part of the afternoon searching through the wreckage of some of the crashed Imperial hardware looking for TIE ballasts.

TIE fighters were extremely lightweight compared to the thrust they produced, and when they entered an atmosphere with gravity and wind resistance they were often tossed about without keeping any type of orientation to the ground. To remedy this problem, ballasts were added to the bottom of the crafts so they would naturally orient themselves when they encountered gravity.

After Jaina had collected ten of the heavy, steel weights, she moved them to a small, abandoned Massassi temple. The building was overrun with vegetation and reminded Jaina of the Drenkon temple where she had first met Thincar. The ballasts were in the shape of teardrops with a metal hoop at the top of each of them. The ten-kilogram weights were designed to be suspended inside the base of a TIE, and Jaina now suspended six of them from the ceiling of the temple.

Jaina used steel, tensile thread to hang them so they were about half a meter off the ground. When she was finished, the weights hung in a circle roughly four meters across. Each of the ballasts were only about 20 centimeters in diameter at their widest, and the thread that supported them was slightly over two and a half meters long.

Jaina also produced six of the ten electromagnetic plates she had taken from the Academy's tech shop and attached them to the ceiling of the temple in a much wider circle. She placed each plate two and a half meters outside of a ballast so a line could be drawn through the plate, a ballast anchor, and the center of the circle.

When she was finished, Jaina examined her work. She had two circles now, one inside the other. Jaina stepped into the center of the circles and drew her lightsaber. She stood still and closed her eyes, taking the medallion out from inside her shirt and holding it tightly in her hand.

Slowly the ballasts began to sway. They did not move together, but each had its own vector and timing. The movement of the ballasts increased, and they were soon swinging very close to Jaina. The Jedi stood perfectly still in the middle of the six heavy pendulums as they continued to accelerate.

After a few moments one of the ballasts attained enough energy to hit Jaina in the shoulder and Jaina exploded into action. Her lightsaber came alive, and, with her eyes still closed, she swatted at the ballast. The steel weight stood up to the attack but changed direction violently.

Jaina's movement brought her in line with another ballast, and it too changed direction with a sparking slash. Two more came in aimed at Jaina's head, and she ducked, letting the weights hit themselves. Jaina sensed another weight flying in high and she stayed down.

Two more ballasts swung over her head and she sat down. With a frustrated sigh, Jaina opened her eyes and looked up. The weights were swinging wildly now, and to stand up would be fatal.

"You avoided contact through passive action. You need to learn to rely on reaction."

Jaina nodded at the correction and began to slow the ballasts down with her mind so she could start again. Before she had made any headway in the task, the voice in her head spoke again. "Stand up."

"But I-"

"Stand up!"

Jaina stood up and was pummeled by three different weights and thrown from the center of the circle. Jaina rolled a few extra meters to make sure she was safe from dangerous pendulums and examined her injuries. She had three deep bruises, but no broken bones.

"Stand up."

Arguing with the voice was useless. She knew he was right.

"Walk back in. Walk back in and you will win. There is no try, only do or die."

Jaina studied the movements of the ballasts. One of them swung out toward her, reached the peak of its swing, and went back to the middle of the circle. Jaina raced behind it, hitting it before it could swing back into her face. She spun around and hit three other ballasts in one swipe. Without turning, Jaina swung her lightsaber over her head and deflected two more.

Jaina was able to catch a quick breath before the first weight that she had followed in came swinging back at her. She hit it away again, and then turned to meet the three other ballasts she had hit earlier. They were right on schedule, and Jaina hit one of them harder than the others. The two aimed at her back came again, and Jaina adjusted her swing for one of them also.

The first ballast came back again like clockwork. As Jaina hit it away, she examined the analogy. Of course it was like clockwork. Pendulums are used to run clocks and have to be predictable. Jaina turned to meet the next three and found the one she had hit harder came back sooner. She hit it and then adjusted the motion of the next two. The last two came at different times now too, and Jaina sent them into a desired motion.

After only four cycles, Jaina was working the ballasts like a circus juggler, timing them each so they only arrived when she was ready for them. "Very well done, now use the plates. Failure comes to she who hesitates."

Jaina did not know exactly what Thincar meant, but as she concentrated on the first ballast, she understood. She spent a split second more on the ballast to aim it at the magnetic plate on the ceiling, and had to bail out on it as she threw off her timing. Jaina scrambled to regain control like a juggler who had momentarily tripped. Instead of dropping rubber balls, if Jaina faltered, she would be crushed.

A few anxious moments later, Jaina regained control. She realized she did not have time to hesitate on any one ballast. She needed to aim the weight with her normal swings because that was all she had time to do. The problem was that none of the ballasts were swinging in line with the magnetic plates and they were only swinging to half the height of the ceiling. She would need not only a powerful swing, but also a perfectly aimed one.

Jaina had no time to concentrate on the action and kept bailing out at the last second, hitting each ballast with her normal swing. She felt like a daredevil pedestrian standing on the edge of a busy street, rocking back and forth on his feet, waiting to bolt across traffic. He would stand there, just about to ready to go for an hour before he ever saw an opening.

Jaina was controlling the frequencies of the ballasts and she did not think she would ever get an opening.

"Impossible with your lightsaber, of course," Thincar said. "Do not use your weapon, instead use the Force."

Jaina nodded her head, sweat flying off her brow as fatigue started to set in. Jaina tried to concentrate on the swinging weights, but just like before, she had no time. It took her too long to pick out a ballast, and she still would not be able to aim it.

"You need instant emotion amidst this commotion."

"Instant emotion?" Jaina asked as she fought on, slowly wearing down.

"Love will take years to acquire, but hate a second to inspire."

Jaina was too fatigued to contemplate the right or wrong of the comment, and she only analyzed the logic of it. The logic was flawless. It took years to love someone, but only a split second to hate them. Jaina remembered the image of Jacen's smiling face as the temple roof fell on Garri. That image flashed across Jaina's mind and she lashed out at one of the ballasts.

The Force wave was more than strong enough to send the ballast rocketing to the ceiling, but the aim was not true, and it crashed into the stone roof almost two meters away from the targeted plate. Jaina barely had the composure to repel the other five before the first came zipping back at her.

It took all Jaina's skill to deflect the deadly ballast and force it to resume its flight under normal velocity. "I still don't have time to aim!" Jaina shouted, her anger getting the better of her.

"Of this there is no shame. Just use your hand to aim."

Jaina did so. With her hand pointed at the plate, it was only natural for the Force wave to travel in the same direction. The ballast again rocketed to the ceiling, but this time stuck fast to the magnetic plate. Five seconds later all six ballasts were stuck to the ceiling.

Jaina deactivated her lightsaber and stood in the middle of the circle, exhausted. "Good, next we will try ten, after you do it again."

Without warning, the ballasts released themselves from the ceiling with a slight pause between them. Now each of the weights had a velocity a kin to Jaina's previous failed Force waive. Tired as she was, Jaina was fueled by her hate, and less than fifteen seconds later, all six ballasts were suspended from the ceiling again.

After a short break, Jaina hung the other four ballasts and magnetic plates and went back to work. She spent more time juggling them this time before she sent them to the ceiling. After her initial failures with only six, Jaina had thought ten to be impossible. But now, standing in the middle of ten swinging ballasts, she was able to control them with relative ease.

Jaina analyzed the angle and speed of each ballast and began to tangle their threads as they swung and then untangle them just as easily. She could juggle them with her eyes closed and with her lightsaber in either her left hand or right hand. Jaina practiced well into darkness, and when she was done, dealing with only Jacen's two swords did not seem so difficult. She was actually looking forward to it.

* * *

The next day was a good one for Jaina. Classes did not seem as long as normal and the afternoon sparring session came right on schedule. Jaina was paired up with Tenel Ka. She could not think of anyone she would rather fight.

Tenel Ka bowed low to her opponent, and Jaina returned the Hapan gesture that wished an adversary a fair and honorable fight. Tenel Ka ignited her weapon and walked quickly toward Jaina, not wasting any time or words. The Hapan princess had always been emotionally withdrawn, which had made her temperament earlier that week even more unusual. She never laughed at Jacen's jokes, and at the same time, Jaina had never seen her cry before this week.

Jaina met Tenel Ka with her weapon and the two fought in the traditional style. Tenel Ka had many similarities with Jacen in the way she fought, and at the same time had many differences. Both used their athleticism very well, often performing incredible feats of coordination that left their opponents in awe. Jacen's were a little more spectacular, because he allowed the Force to augment his movements, something Tenel Ka still did not feel comfortable doing.

Tenel Ka was of the mind-set that the Force should not be used in excess. Some students at the Academy had become so lazy that they no longer did any physical activity, refusing to get up to retrieve anything, but simply beckoning to it. Tenel Ka was the opposite.

She was, then, similar to Jacen in the fact that neither of them used the Force to directly fight their opponents. Luke frowned on the practice of hurling sticks or stones at your adversary when fighting. The thought behind such reasoning was that it was far too easy to do such actions out of anger. Jaina now knew that it was almost impossible not to use anger to perform those tasks effectively.

Jaina and Tenel Ka fought steadily for a minute, neither trying anything bold, but both content to loosen up first. Surprisingly, Tenel Ka made the first daring move. She took a step back in a feigned retreat, and then took a strong step forward, swinging at Jaina's extended leg.

Jaina flipped forward over the attack and landed behind Tenel Ka, back to back. They both turned around at the same time, and their blades intercepted each other right in front of their faces.

"Who did you love, Jacen or Garri?" Jaina asked as she shoved hard.

Tenel Ka went sprawling backwards, almost as much at the question as at the shove. "What?"

"You heard me," Jaina replied, not relenting in the attack. She walked up to the seated Jedi and swung down. "Whom did you choose?"

Tenel Ka rolled out of the way and swiped at Jaina's exposed knee. "That question is absurd."

Jaina easily stepped away from the low attack. "No it isn't. It is a simple question." Jaina swung three quick attacks at Tenel Ka as she rose from the ground. "And it requires only a simple answer."

"I was in love with neither of them," Tenel Ka said curtly, taking up the offensive herself. She spun two complete pirouettes, slashing out twice as she did so.

Jaina easily intercepted both attacks and reversed Tenel Ka's spin with two quick strikes against her exposed flank. "You are lying. You loved Garri."

Tenel Ka barely parried Jaina's well placed attacks, surprised at how easily her opponent had not only foiled her attack, but also turned it against her. She was also amazed by the path their conversation was taking. "I don't know what you are trying to imply. But I was not in love with Garri. We were friends. That was all."

Tenel Ka went back on the offensive, but Jaina barely noticed as she was deep in thought. She easily repelled the excellently performed jabs and swipes, thinking about what Tenel Ka had said. It suddenly all made sense. Tenel Ka and Jacen had been in on it together. They had wanted to be a couple but Garri was getting in the way. Jacen had removed an obstacle that was as much in Tenel Ka's way as his own.

The tide of the battle turned quickly. Tenel Ka was so suddenly over matched that she did not even realize she had been defeated until the fifth swipe of Jaina's weapon sliced harmlessly through her torso. Tenel Ka was in shock. She had never been so thoroughly beaten in her life. Not even against Jacen with two swords. She began to bow in her customary fashion, but Jaina was already walking quickly away.

Hiding in the doorway of a nearby building, Tionne watched the battle with growing concern. Luke had come to her the other day and said that Jaina was okay and her fears were misplaced. The female Jedi Master was not convinced, and after watching Jaina handily defeat one of the best fighters in the Academy, she did not feel comfortable approaching Jaina on the subject. Instead, she would do more research to back up her claim and would then approach Luke again.

* * *

Jaina sat at Jacen's table in the cafeteria only after she made certain Tenel Ka did not. Alex and Kalina were there too. Neither of the two students had won their fights that afternoon and Jacen was joking by saying he was willing to take them both on at once. The Masters of the Academy would never dream of paring Jacen against either of the younger students, fearing what the battle would do to their confidence.

There were few people left in the Academy who could give Jacen a decent fight. He had fought against Master Streen this afternoon. He had been forced to use both his lightsabers during the middle of the fight, but he had won.

Jaina could see Alex and Kalina were seriously considering taking Jacen up on his challenge. Jaina hoped for their sake they would not. They would not stand a chance. Jaina, on the other hand, felt like she could fight all three at once without breaking a sweat. Everything seemed easy to her after last night with the ballasts.

"So, Sis," Jacen said, having finished his boast session with the other two people at the table, "Uncle Luke is going to let me have my bikes back tomorrow. Do you think you can help me get them working this time?"

Jaina knew exactly what was wrong with them and had already fixed them once in her dream. "How about right after lunch?" she offered.

Jacen nodded. "And then maybe a little race?"

"What," Jaina forced a smile, "you don't feel confident with your lightsabers? You have to resort to something else?"

"Well, I figured the result of a lightsaber fight was a forgone conclusion."

Jaina came within a heartbeat of killing him right there. Her hand was millimeters from her lightsaber handle. All she would have had to do was aim it at her brother under the table and press the button. Instead, Jaina used Palpatine's tactics, of which she was becoming a master. "You're probably right, you'd go down without much effort. It's better to compete on a more level playing field."

"Oh really," Jacen said, laughing. "We'll see about that in a few weeks at the end of the tournament."

We'll see a lot sooner than that, Jaina thought to herself.

* * *

"I'm going to do it tomorrow. Everything is set."

Thincar hovered in the darkness in front of Jaina's bench and nodded. "After the deed is done, what will you do? All of the Jedi will be after you."

"Not to mention my parents," Jaina chuckled, surprised that she did not feel concerned about what they would think. Luke had been forced to kill his own father because of what he had become. Jaina could kill her own brother. It was what needed to be done. "I will deal with them. If they will not accept the truth, then they are active participants in the lie. Several of them are just as guilty as Jacen." Jaina thought of her uncle and Tenel Ka in particular.

"By this time tomorrow you will be free."

Thincar nodded and faded into the darkness, allowing Jaina to continue her dream alone. Jaina continued to play with the medallion around her neck. "I am justice."



Part V: "After Dark"


Dawn bathes earth in purest light,
Warding off the deepest night,
Ending dreams of hellish fright,
Making evil turn to right.

In the light men run and play,
Living lives full, rich, and gay,
Minding not what prophets say,
That soon will come time after day.

Dusk arrives against men's hark,
Wreaking wounds that wear no mark,
Leaving future looking stark,
Relief comes only after Dark.

After Dark
--David Pontier

Jacen was crouched in front of his broken speeder bike. The scene was unfamiliar to Jaina, for Jacen had not brought the bikes outside yet. The weather outside looked to turn stormy any minute, and he did not want to get caught outside if the rain decided to come down suddenly.

"You need to put those stabilizer chips into the other side of the bike," Jaina said when she was still several paces from her brother.

Jacen looked up at her voice, and smiled as she approached. Jaina smiled back, barely. "These," Jaina said taking the two chips from her brother's inept hands, "go here." She walked over to the other side of the bike. "Now you need the main repulsar lift modules. I suppose you salvaged them off some wrecked TIE, and they are full of sand."

Jacen looked curiously at his sister as he held up the said modules. "Yes they are," Jacen said slowly, rather confused.

Jaina smiled genuinely as she received the module from her brother. "And the brand new power couplings?" she asked, knowing what Jacen would say already.

"The best money can buy," he said, handing one to his sister.

Jaina felt very confident in what she was about to do as she fitted the module to the bike. The fact that her dream about these bikes had been as accurate as it had only supported her claim that Jacen was a murderer. When Jaina had proven to be better at riding the bikes than Jacen, he had killed her. He could not have anyone challenge him. This current reenactment of the dream only supported the validity of that portrayal of her brother.

After Jaina walked around to Jacen's side of the bike to correct his improperly attached module she climbed onto the other bike. "Ready?"

Jacen looked at his sister. "I don't know," he motioned to his bike, "is it?"

Jaina nodded as she fired up her bike.

"Are you sure you want to go out in this weather?" Jacen asked, motioning now at the darkening sky.

Jaina knew that if Jacen thought it was going to rain, it would. She might hate him, but she still respected his Force skills. "Scared of a few rain drops?"

"It will be more than a few," Jacen said.

"I'm game," Jaina answered. She gunned her engine and her bike leaped out of the hanger into the cool afternoon air. "Make sure you remember to put it in gear first," she threw over her shoulder as she shot away.

Jacen shook his head at his sister. He was supposed to be the reckless one. Instead, he felt apprehensive about riding in the rain while his sister was gung-ho. He saddled onto his bike and started it. He revved the engine excitedly, remembering he was going to have to thank his dad for the gift. He prepared to leave the protection of the shed, and just caught himself before he tried to go with the bike still in neutral.

Jacen shook his head at his sister's apparent ESP, put the bike in gear, and tore out of the hangar to chase his sister. The twins were not out of the protection of the hangar for more than a minute when the raindrops started. It was a light sprinkling, but Jacen knew it would get much worse in a few minutes.

Jacen pulled up along beside Jaina - not an easy task. "We should head inside. The rain is about to get much worse."

"Wuss," she said. "You want to stay dry, follow me." Without warning, Jaina turned her bike directly into the woods bordering the clearing.

"Crazy," Jacen said, swallowed hard, and followed his sister.

* * *

Tionne walked into Luke's quarters with a very concerned look on her face.

Luke put down the datapad he was reading and looked up at her. "What is it?"

"I've been doing a little more research into the Sith and came across something you need to see." Tionne handed Luke a datachip so he could read as she spoke. Luke put the chip into his recently discarded datapad and listened as the data was called up.

"Five thousand years ago, was the Golden Age of the Sith, and while very little is known for certain, rumors abound. One of the rumors speak of a Sith named Torqa Drestrifen. He was from the planet Wertricle. Rumors say that Torqa was pursued by the Jedi and Sith alike and was finally killed in his own treasure room buried deep in a mountain on Coruscant long before the construction era."

Tionne paused so Luke could find the pertinent data on his pad. "This is a stretch, so bare with me. After his death, his treasure room was ransacked and his collection of valuables was spread across the galaxy. It does not go into any great detail about the treasure itself, only to say that the majority of it was made up of gauntlets, amulets, rings, and other such jewelry.

"I was also able to bring up some information on his home planet of Wertricle. About 1500 years ago the population of the world was wiped out by a terrible disease. Archeologists have dug through the remains of the ancient society and found that it was very rich in the literary arts. Particularly, poetry."

Luke snapped his fingers. "Of course, the Wertricle Sonnets. I knew I recognized that name from somewhere."

"There is one more very important piece to this puzzle," Tionne continued. "I researched the language spoken by the village on Drenkon that the students visited over a week ago now. In Jacen's report to you, he said that the people referred to their deity as The Thincar of Death. I wanted a literal translation. The word for 'The' is 'Si.' They are a very superstitious people, as you know, and relate their gods to many different things in nature. 'Nite' means 'of Life.' 'Naut' means 'of Fire.' 'Note' means 'of the Sky.' 'Nute' means 'of the Sea.' And 'Nate' means 'of Death.'"

"That would make the literal translation of The Thincar of Death, 'Si Thincar Nate,'" Luke said. "Si Thincar Nate. Sith Incarnate!"

"Exactly," Tionne said. "The students were trying to use the Force to translate a Basic phrase into the Drenkon language."

"What's your explanation?" Luke asked, suddenly very anxious.

"Sith Incarnate, means Sith made flesh. This implies that the Sith was in some none human form before taking the shape of - for lack of a better name - Thincar. Jaina said that Thincar appeared very young, much younger than would seem possible, given how long the villagers had been plagued by this deity.

"The reports are that several villagers climbed the hill where Thincar lived and did not return. What if this Sith spirit kept jumping from one body to the next, looking for a Force strong host. From Jaina's report, Thincar did not seem to have a strong presence in the Force. This could be explained if the body Thincar was inhabiting was not Force strong. The Sith was somehow able to use the Force, but not able to use it well."

"What about all the stuff you mentioned earlier about this ancient dead Sith and his home planet?" Luke asked.

"This is merely a guess, but an educated one. We know that our Sith speaks in verse. We know that the ancient Wertricle people were very heavily into poetry. We know of an ancient Sith from Wertricle who was killed thousands of years ago. We know he kept a very extensive collection of body jewelry. Finally, I saw Jaina wearing a very peculiar amulet the other day when I went to visit her. She tried to hide it as soon as I entered, but I caught a glimpse of it."

"Let me get this straight," Luke began, not knowing if he should be terrified or humored by the speculation. "You think that the ancient Sith, Torqa Drestrifen, placed his essence in one of his amulets when he was killed. The amulet was spread across the galaxy for thousands of years, finally ending up on Drenkon, where Torqa took over the soul of anyone who wore this cursed necklace, calling himself Sith Incarnate."

Tionne nodded, thinking the claim did seem rather preposterous when Luke laid it out like that.

"And now you think my niece is wearing that necklace and what . . ."

"And I think Torqa is slowly taking control of her mind."

"I don't know, Tionne," Luke said. "I've had several conversations with Jaina. She seems very much in control of her emotions."

"I've had a conversation with her also," Tionne said. "I've also been watching her, and I have to say that I am worried."

"I can't say that I agree with you," Luke said finally, "but I didn't place you here at the Academy so I could just ignore everything you have to say. I suppose there is only one way to put this thing to bed. Where is she now?"

"I believe she and Jacen had plans to work on his new speeder bikes."

"Well, let's find her."

* * *

Jacen had no idea where Jaina had gone.

Jacen had followed his sister into the trees, but in the fading light and the increasing wind and rain, the forest was very dark and mysterious. The sights and sounds reminded Jacen too much of the night on Drenkon.

Jacen moved his bike slowly through the woods, letting his Force instincts guide him toward his sister. He heard noise above him and knew the rain had increased to its predicted downpour status. It was only a mater of time before the rain filtered through the thick foliage above and deposited itself on the lost Jedi.

Yelling for Jaina made very little sense. Not only would the noise of the wind and rain drown out any sound Jacen could produce, but he could call out much more clearly through the Force. Right now neither call was being answered, and Jacen continued his slow search.

If this was Jaina's way of saying she was better on the speeder bike than he was, it did not make much sense. This was more a game of hide and seek than any type of race. Jacen's slow wanderings finally brought him to a small clearing he had never seen before. Nestled in the middle of the thick woods was a very old and run-down Massassi Temple.

The similarities between this situation and the one on Drenkon were starting to make Jacen's skin crawl. By now the rain had made it through to the forest floor, and Jacen was soaked to the bone. He dismounted the bike and removed his suddenly heavy cloak. He called out for Jaina mentally and vocally but got no response.

As he walked up the cracked and broken steps to the temple, Jacen's hands hovered over his lightsaber handles. The inside of the open walled temple was very dark, and Jacen could not see the heavy ballast that came hurtling toward him. He could not see it, but he did sense it and sprang out of the way just as it smashed into a stone pillar beside him.

The ballast was not meant to hit him. It was only meant to draw attention from the second ballast, which slugged him in the side. Jacen went sprawling to the stone floor under the blow, certain that at least two of his ribs were cracked. As he struggled to his feet, he heard the telltale "snap-hiss" of a lightsaber from deep inside the temple.

"Jaina?"

Jacen saw the purple blade long before he was able to make out his sister's features. When he could see her face, it was not one he recognized. It barely looked female. She was still wearing her Jedi robe, miraculously dry, and had an unusual medallion hanging around her neck. Jacen's hands were on his lightsabers now, though he was still unsure of his sister's intent.

"No one will come to end our fight this time. I will punish you for your deadly crime."

The rain was pouring down heavily all around the small temple, but unlike on Drenkon, the roof of this ancient building was mostly intact. The wind occasionally gusted into the open temple, spraying Jacen with cold, rain mist.

"Jaina," Jacen said weakly, as he rose, leaning heavily on a stone pillar behind him, "you're talking like Thincar. What's going on?"

Jaina said nothing as she walked up to her brother and swung at his prone form. He stumbled out of the way and watched as Jaina's weapon bit hungrily into the stone pillar.

"Jaina!" he shouted above the wind and rain. "Your filter isn't working." A second look showed Jacen that his sister's lightsaber did not have a filter. "What's going on?!"

Jaina walked slowly over to her petrified brother. He was lying on his back with his feet toward her. Without speaking she cut down on him. Jacen's twin blades sprang to life in an "X," catching Jaina's blade in their crotch.

"Jaina stop this! This isn't funny!"

"Do you think that I am playing a game?" Jaina asked. "You think I don't know Garri's killer's name?"

Jacen scrambled up from under Jaina's blade. "Thincar killed Garri," Jacen said. He tried to run from Jaina, but winced as pain shot through his side. "You were there. You saw it."

"I know what I saw. I know what is true. I know Garri died. His killer was you."

Jaina came on in a fierce attack now, and Jacen reacted quickly. Her blade twirled about so fast, Jacen could hardly track its movements. His blades, still equipped with filters, intercepted each attack flawlessly. His arms worked in perfect motion, but his legs were sorely out of position, and his injured side kept him from reacting fast enough when Jaina lashed out with her foot.

The kick struck hard into Jacen's injured side and he went down in serious pain. Jaina could have killed him right there, but she did not. "Get up you worthless piece of trash. I'm going to show you who the best fighter in the Academy really is."

Jacen noticed Jaina's words carefully. They did not rhyme. He did not know what was going on, but it seemed that the spirit of Thincar was controlling Jaina, claiming Jacen was responsible for Garri's death. Whatever hold this dead Sith had on her, it was not complete and there was still a little bit of his sister showing through.

Jacen had dropped one of his weapons, and called it back to him as he rose slowly, pretending to be worse off than he was. The pain in his side did not hurt nearly as much as the realization that the only part of Jaina's psyche that was not controlled by Thincar, was the part that felt jealous of Jacen's tittle as the best fighter at the Academy. He had no idea Jaina felt that way.

Jacen half wanted to let Jaina win, but he knew that if he did, she would kill him. Jacen had to win. If he did, that might disrupt Thincar's hold on her long enough to allow Jacen a chance to help her fight against him.

Jacen's slow movements did not fool Jaina. She knew he was hurt, but he was not the invalid he was pretending to be. She was proved correct when Jacen exploded into action. Despite his side, his feet moved incredibly fast, closing on Jaina faster than the tree in her dream. Jaina did not move.

Jacen's blades tore into Jaina, swiping through her body a dozen times a second. Jaina calmly ignored the harmless, filtered blades and swung at Jacen's head. Jacen was almost too busy "killing" his sister to see the lazy swing at his vulnerable head and barely ducked out of the way, rolling a few meters to safety. Jacen's face went ashen when he realized she could have killed him again if she had wanted.

"Please, Brother, take your filters off first, to see who's the best and who's the worst."

Jacen was not happy to hear that Thincar was in control, and was even less happy to have to remove the filters. He did so, and quietly asked for forgiveness if he ended up hurting his sister.

Jacen got up, not bothering to pretend to suffer from injuries he did not have. His blades came up in front of him, filterless. "I don't want to do this."

Jaina came at him, forcing Jacen to take up the defensive. Jaina's attack was pathetic and short, letting Jacen assume the offensive position almost immediately. Before Jacen could rationalize what he was doing, he was attacking his own sister in one of the most vicious attack routines he had ever used. If even one of his strikes got through, Jaina would be dead instantly.

Jacen's attacks were faster than the six ballasts had been. They were even faster than the ten ballasts had been, but like the ballasts, there was only so much he could do before Jaina had seen it all.

Jaina had studied the swinging weights and had seen that with the thread supporting them as long as it was, and with only a few realistic angles open to the ballasts, their motion could be predicted. Jacen was a little more flexible than a simple pendulum, but his elbow could only bend in one direction. His wrists were not double jointed, and his shoulders did not have 360 degrees of motion. Twenty seconds into Jacen's attack, Jaina was effectively juggling his blades.

Jacen noticed the pattern too, but was powerless to stop it. He was a prisoner of his own speed. If he slowed down or changed patterns, Jaina would slip in during the change and kill him. Jacen could barely believe that his sister - or anyone for that matter - was able to keep up with both his blades moving as fast as he could move them.

Jacen's only comfort came in the knowledge that while he could not slip in between Jaina's parries, she definitely could not slip in between his attacks. He could not have been more wrong. The motion of her left hand was almost imperceptible as it left its grip on the lightsaber briefly and struck at Jacen.

Jacen knew she could not punch him through the flurry of lightsaber activity going on between them, and was therefore quite surprised when he felt an iron like fist connect with his jaw. The blow lifted him off his feet and he landed a meter from his sister, flat on his back. The air was momentarily knocked out of him, and he had to roll out of the way to avoid Jaina's skewering blade.

It took Jacen several moments to realize it had not been Jaina's fist that had hit him, but a Force wave. He had never experienced such a focused and concentrated attack before. All other waves he had used or experienced had been more like a gust of wind. This one had been identical to an iron fist.

Jacen scrambled to his feet as his sister charged, glad they had a break in the battle so he could initiate a new, more unpredictable sequence. He did not get the chance. Another Force blast nailed him in the left shoulder. Jaina acted at the same time as her Force attack, knocking Jacen's right blade wide, spinning 180 degrees, and hacking at the handle of the left weapon. With the blow to his left shoulder, Jacen could not bring the weapon to bare in time and had the lightsaber cut from his hand.

Jacen tried to recover with his other weapon, but Jaina spun in the opposite direction as before, catching the attacking with her blade vertically in front of her. At the same time, she kicked out her right foot, catching Jacen square in the chest. He flew backwards again, and Jaina followed.

Jacen was barely able to struggle to his feet under his sister's vicious attacks when he was thrown against a stone pillar by another Force wave. He used the pillar as a crude shield, until Jaina hacked it to pieces. She forced him out from behind it, and he got some distance from her.

Jacen took the offensive for the first time since the opening moments of the battle and charged his sister. An unseen ballast flew into the charging Jedi, catching him in the left knee. A very audible crack was heard, and Jacen fell into a prone kneeling position.

Jaina stepped up to him and blasted his remaining weapon from his grasp with her lightsaber and kicked him swiftly under the chin. Jacen flipped completely over from the Force aided kick and landed on his stomach, weaponless and severely hurt. He struggled to all fours and watched his sister come at him for the killing blow.

Jacen was incredibly naive for thinking he could pull it off, but he tried anyway. He stood quickly, supporting his weight on his right leg. He managed to hop inside the swipe and catch the attacking wrist in his right hand. Spinning around, he wrenched the weapon from his sister and elbowed her in the head. As she stumbled past him, he had only one move open to him, and he had to take it. It was him or her; he knew that.

Jacen spun on his good leg, the stolen lightsaber angled for a clean head-shot. Jaina was not there. Of course she was not stupid enough to fall for the same trick twice. Jacen quickly realized that while the move was very good, it was supposed to be performed on someone who was not expecting it.

Jaina had ducked, and as the blade passed over her head, she stood back up and took a quick step toward her brother. Jacen had just swung across his body and missed. Long before he could even think about bring the lightsaber to bare in a backhand swipe, Jaina had kneed him hard in the groin and punched him twice in the face.

Jacen tried to keep his balance on his one good leg, but Jaina solved that problem by kicking it out from under him. Jaina easily yanked her weapon back from him as he fell, and she kicked him hard in his injured side as he hit the ground. He was not getting back up.

Jaina stood over her brother with a very supreme sense of triumph. She had beaten him. She had not even thought the victory remotely possible a few days ago. Not only had she beaten him, but he was covered with bruises from head to toe, and there was not one scratch on her. With just a few days of preparation with Thincar, she had done it.

"You did the impossible and have won, now kill him my dear and we will be one."

The voice sounded very strange to her. "I thought this is what you wanted so you could be free?"

"Yes, you will free me from this amulet. Together we will be Sith Incarnate."

Sith Incarnate. This was a new idea to Jaina. Kill Jacen and you and Thincar will live together forever, she told herself. She tried to imagine the handsome young man she had seen in her dreams. He was a tortured soul, and Jaina could free him. Jaina raised her lightsaber above her brother's broken form.

"Yes, kill him now with your hand. Return his body to the sand."

The words triggered Jaina's memory and she faltered. Suddenly she was seeing her dream with the deadly tree. Something about what Thincar had just said reminded her of the dream. Was it something Thincar had said, or what Jacen had said?

"You just gonna stand there or give me a hand."

"Sorry, all these salvaged parts are full of sand."

Hand and sand. Jacen had said that in her dream. Jaina lowered her lightsaber and took a step away from her brother as everything he had said during that dream flashed through her memory.

"Don't stand there, come help me make this thing work."

"Got me, all the circuits are going berserk."

"You just gonna stand there or give me a hand."

"Sorry, all these salvaged parts are full of sand."

"I got them off a crashed Imperial TIE."

"No, these are the best that credits can buy."

"Please, by all means, be my guest and fix it."

"Thanks for your help, but here's where I exit."

"Oh yeah, that's more like it, now we're cooking."

"Are you to join me or just keep looking."

"Se ya later, bye bye."

"You are going to die."

"It was you!" Jaina screamed, deactivating her lightsaber and throwing it aside. She stumbled backwards in terror as she realized what she had almost done. She came up hard against a stone pillar and crumpled into a crouching position. "It was you in my dream, not Jacen."

Thincar was anxious too. He was so close to capturing Jaina, and what a catch she would be! It had been so long since he had been able to wield the Force naturally, that he almost forgot what it was like. He had no recollection of what his name had been or even what gender he had been when he last possessed the Force. He had been passed between thousands of different people, each as pathetic as the one before. Now he had finally found someone with so much Force potential it was mind-boggling. The only problem was that she had a pure heart and would never let him in. All he had to do was convince her to strike down her own brother and her innocence would be lost and she would be his for the taking. He was so close.

"Yes, I admit it was me in that dream. I had to show you truth wasn't what it seemed."

"It was you the whole time!" Jaina screamed, breaking down into tears. "You killed Garri!"

"Jacen committed the deed! In you he's placed doubt's seed! There is still time for you to act. Kill him and we can seal this pact!"

"NO!" Jaina reached for the medallion at her chest and tore it from her neck. "I won't kill my own brother!" Jaina hurled the amulet across the temple and watched as it landed in a pile of dead leaves. She was about to get up to tend to her brother, when an unusual gust of wind swept through the temple. Jaina watched as the pile of leaves that contained the amulet stirred up into the air.

The leaves turned into a pillar inside the tight swirl of wind, and quickly took human form. Jaina could see the mended medallion hanging around the leaf creature's neck. Jaina shook with fear as the monstrosity walked slowly toward her.

"If you will not kill this worthless mole, I will be the one to take his soul."

Jaina watched in horror as the lumbering form moved toward Jacen's motionless body. "NO!" Jaina jumped away from the stone pillar and her lightsaber leaped into her hand. She stood over her brother's body and swung at the leaf creature. Its body was not substantial and her blade passed right through it. She burned a few leaves in the attack, but did no substantial damage.

"If you are willing to take his place, I would love to think behind your face."

Without thinking, Jaina embraced the leaf pile and fell with it to the ground. In the tumbling of limbs and leaves, the necklace found its way back onto Jaina's neck. The black sapphire was still imbedded in her chest, and she could feel it pulsing as it tried to penetrate past her skin and into her soul.

Jaina fought the battle of her life. The darkness of Thincar's will consumed her and she used every ounce of strength she had left to fight back. She pressed the medallion into her sternum as hard as she could, willing the sapphire - Thincar's essence - back into the cursed necklace.

Jaina hated what Thincar had done to her. She hated that he had killed Garri. She hated that he had almost made her kill her own brother. As long as this hate coursed through her, Thincar kept a tentative foothold. Jaina realized this, but also saw that she was not going to easily remove these feelings of loathing from her thoughts. Instead she tried to disguise them. By using the mind focusing techniques of Palpatine that she had used to fool her uncle so many times in the past few days, she slowly began to convince herself that she did not hate this evil Sith that was trying to take over her mind, body, and soul.

While she did not hate him neither did she want him. She convinced herself that the best thing for this poor soul would be to end its sad existence. There was enough truth in this thinking that Jaina could slowly feel the wretched sapphire receding from its vise grip on her chest. She coaxed the gem like she was urging a scared cat out from under a land speeder.

In one last, mighty tug, the sapphire leaped back into the medallion. Jaina slammed the metal circle onto the stone floor, brought her lightsaber above it, and pierced the black eye of the sapphire. Instead of an explosion of power, Jaina heard a very sharp hissing as the millennia old spirit was finally laid to rest. Jaina pushed her lightsaber down to the hilt, burying the blade into the floor and securing the amulet in the stone.

Jaina stood over the dying Sith, watching as the dark gem melted under the heat of the Jedi weapon. She watched for over a minute until the black smoke disappeared and the hissing stopped. Jaina pulled her blade out of the ground and examined her work. The medallion had been reduced to a smoldering piece of warped metal, totally unrecognizable from what it had been. Jaina tossed it aside, not worried that it might turn into another animated beast. Thincar was dead.

Jaina heard Jacen moan, and she moved quickly to his side. He had passed out from the pain and fright, and was not relieved to see Jaina peering down at him. Jacen was about to scream out, but he noticed a very visible change in her facial expressions. "Thincar?" he asked.

"Is dead," she confirmed. "I'm sorry. I'm so terribly sorry. I should have never let him take me ov-"

"It's okay," Jacen said. He tried to sit up. He failed miserably. "It's okay," he said again, though he did not mean it this time. "So how's it feel to be the best fighter in the Academy?"

"You just can't stop, can you?"

"Stop what?" Jacen asked.

"Stop making jokes. I never would have beaten if I hadn't . . ." she trailed off.

"Hadn't what?" Jacen asked, insanely curious to see if there was some extenuating circumstance that would allow him to keep his tittle.

"Just never try that move again," Jaina said.

Artificial lights bathed the two Solos, and Jaina looked up to see Luke and Tionne coming toward them. They each held electric torches, and Luke had his lightsaber in hand. He quickly returned it to his belt when he saw that what ever fight had taken place was over.

"What happened?" Luke asked.

"Jaina kicked my ass," Jacen said, the tone of his voice betraying any animosity the words might have carried.

Still, Luke gave Jaina a stern look.

"Thincar is dead," was all she offered.

Luke seemed to understand this, and he turned his attention to his injured nephew. Tionne pulled Jaina aside. "We need to talk."

Jaina looked at her with sincere respect. "I'm sorry for the way I acted I was totally ou-"

"Put that behind you. You need to move forward now. I want to talk to you so I can close out a little piece of history I've discovered. Who knows, I might even include you in one of my lessons."

Jaina hugged her teacher and together they carried Jacen back to the landspeeder Luke and Tionne had brought with them. Before getting into the transport, Jaina looked back at the temple.

"Do you need to go back there?" Tionne asked.

Jaina shook her head slowly. "I'll wait till morning, after dark."

THE END