Chapter Eight

Malus awoke from his dark side trance. His eyes adjusted to the gloom of his chamber. A single candle he had set upon the floor was now a stuttering lump.

He stood up and examined his wrist. He twisted it. There was no sign of the wound where the blasted Jedi's blade had burned him. But, Malus also knew he didn't have much time. Soon this body would start to break down and Malus wasn't sure he could stop its full deterioration the next time he had to heal himself. The professor's disease continued to progress at a rapid pace the longer Malus' dark side energy possessed the body.

Malus made his way down the passage that led to the temple's entrance. The Jedi should be dead by now. After he had taken the female's body he would then cut off the head of the Jedi and display it as a trophy in whatever palace on whatever system-wide kingdom he forged for himself in this brave new galaxy he was about to enter.

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Cian opened her eyes and took a deep breath. She looked at her wristchrono. Two hours had passed since she had fallen into the healing trance. She was terribly exhausted and all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and go to sleep, but she picked up the medcoder and placed it on Qui-Gon's neck.

He was still unconscious, but was no longer in danger of going into shock. Cian hadn't been able to rid his body of all the poison; there was just enough of it remaining that he was still quite weak. But he would live.

Cian sighed in relief. She gently stroked his forehead. She wished he would wake up. She wouldn't even mind if he started asking her all those nosy questions about her Force abilities just as long as he was awake and talking to her.

She softly hummed the melody from her music box and, as she did so, one of the stories her nursemaid used to tell her popped into her head; it was the one about the magical kiss which would awaken the sleeping prince.

Cian leaned down and lightly placed a kiss on Qui-Gon's lips. She watched, hoped--foolishly she knew--but he didn't wake up.

She sighed. It was a silly thing to have done and she was glad Qui-Gon hadn't been awake to feel it. And it was probably best he get some rest.

Cian leaned wearily against the cavern wall. She would rest for a bit herself, then go down to the base camp and contact the Republic for help.

She rubbed her arms. The cavern was cold and she had wrapped her blanket around Qui-Gon to keep him warm. Then she remembered there was an extra blanket in the professor's tent.

A soft gasp escaped her and her eyes widened. The professor. Cian hadn't seen nor heard anything from him for hours. She had been so focused on saving Qui-Gon's life she had forgotten about him.

Qui-Gon had warned her to be wary of him, but she couldn't believe Professor Landru had attacked him. And even if he had, it probably had something to do with his illness. For all Cian knew Professor Landru was lying somewhere helpless and in need of her.

She was about to get up and go look for him when she saw movement in the darkness. Someone was coming out of the temple.

Cian reached for her blaster and pointed it at the figure. As it came closer she saw that it was Professor Landru. Relief flooded through her. She lowered the blaster. Then she saw the professor's eyes and she screamed.

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Aalea's awareness had finally found Qui-Gon's Force signature along the matrix and it had led her here, to the very edge of Republic space, to this small, desolate planet. Her consciousness flowed down through its dust-choked atmosphere and streaked across its blasted plains towards a line of dark mountains. Her awareness moved through a tunnel and into a large cavern.

She had found him.

Then Aalea noted that there were two other Force signatures near Qui-Gon. One was very bright, like a river of silver, but it was terrified and its fear was like the edge of a sharp knife. The other was dark and thick, like a towering thundercloud.

Aalea felt herself drawn to that dark Force signature. It was powerful and ancient and Aalea felt herself drawing closer and closer to it. Then she remembered. Master Qui-Gon. Aalea's awareness darted away from the dark force.

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Malus sneered as the female raised her pitiful weapon at him. With a casual wave of his hand he plucked it from her grasp and threw it against the cavern wall. The female tried to back away from him, but the cavern wall was behind her.

Then Malus saw the Jedi lying on the ground near her. He also saw the Jedi was still breathing, but unconscious.

Malus' eyes widened. So, he was still alive. Interesting. Malus moved towards him.

The female crawled in front of the Jedi and blocked Malus' approach with her body.

"So, you care for the Jedi," Malus said to her. "Good. Once I have your body, I shall let you remain alive long enough inside it to watch as I flay the flesh from his bones."

He grabbed her arm and placed her palm against the amulet he held in his hand. He began chanting the spell which would transfer his spirit to her body. The female screamed. Malus smiled.

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Aalea's awareness slipped into Qui-Gon's mind. She saw before her the mental landscape which represented his present state of unconsciousness. Long golden plains stretched before her. A rose-colored sky arched overhead and saffron tinted clouds floated serenely across it. Then she saw Master Qui-Gon. He was walking slowly, his hands behind his back, his head down.

Aalea ran to him.

"Master!" She pulled hard on the sleeve of his tunic.

"Aalea." Qui-Gon frowned down at her. "What are you doing here? Are you traversing the Force matrix without me? I've warned you how dangerous that is."

"Yes, I know, Master, but there's no time." Aalea pulled frantically on his sleeve. "Hurry! You must wake up! She's in danger!"

"Who is in danger, Aalea?"

"Cian. The dark one almost has her. We must help her."

The sky above them darkened. Lightning lashed across the heavens and thunder, which sounded disturbingly like a woman's scream, tore through the air.

Aalea pointed upward. "See, Master! You must wake up!"

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Cian screamed as the amulet burned against her hand. She struggled to free herself, but Professor Landru, or what had once been the professor, was too strong. His grip on her arm was like iron.

Cian then shrieked as she felt something hard and hot and dark move into her. It tore into her soul like a ravenous beast and pain, unlike anything Cian could ever have dreamt of in a thousand nightmares, ripped through her.

Cian wanted to die; she screamed for death, begged for it, but she didn't die, because the thing now sharing her body had done as it had threatened. It was keeping her alive long enough for her to watch it torture and then kill Qui-Gon.

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Qui-Gon struggled toward consciousness. He opened his eyes. He saw Cian struggling with Landru who was pressing something against her hand and rapidly speaking harsh, guttural words over her.

Qui-Gon tried to move, but he was still weak and his access to the Force was blocked by the poison which remained in his body.

Don't worry, Master. I can help.

Qui-Gon felt Aalea in his mind. She was here with him. He hadn't dreamt it. Somehow, on her own, her awareness had found his along the matrices of the Force.

No, Aalea. It's too dangerous. You shouldn't even be here. You must leave. Now!

I can help, Master. I can do it. Hurry! There isn't much time.

Cian screamed again. Qui-Gon pushed himself from the ground. Landru had closed his eyes as he continued to chant over Cian.

Qui-Gon felt Aalea's Force strength flowing through him. He looked over and saw his lightsaber a few feet away from him on the ground. With Aalea's strength supplementing his own, he used the Force to reach for it. It soared towards his hand and he ignited it.

He leapt up and ran to Cian and Landru. He raised his lightsaber above his head to strike Landru a killing blow but, before he could, Landru crumpled lifelessly to the ground.

Cian screamed one final heart-rendering scream, then dropped heavily to her knees, her head bent over her heaving chest.

Qui-Gon leaned over her.

"Cian. Are you all right?"

Cian slowly lifted her head and her eyes were now as dark and red as dried blood.

"Oh yes, Jedi," hissed Cian, or what had been Cian. "I am quite all right. And you, I fear to say, are quite dead."

Qui-Gon leapt back, anger surging through him. This thing had killed Cian and now it dared to pervert her body by possessing it. Qui-Gon drew his lightsaber back and prepared to strike.

Aalea screamed in his mind.

NO! Master, don't! She's still alive! Cian is still alive!

Qui-Gon stayed his swing, his heart pounding in his chest.

Aalea, are you certain?

Yes, I can feel her, Master. She's alive, but in great pain.

"Ah, you hesitate," the thing inside Cian whispered. "Yes, the female is still alive. I've kept her alive long enough to watch as I destroy you, Jedi."

Qui-Gon kept his lightsaber high. "That will not be as easy as you think."

"Oh, but you are wrong. It has always been easy for the Sith to kill the Jedi," the thing said as it reached over and quickly pulled a lightsaber from the tunic on the lifeless body of the professor.

Qui-Gon's body immediately shifted into battle stance. Then he heard Aalea's voice in his mind.

Master, I'm going to Cian.

Aalea, no! It's too dangerous!

I can help her, Master!

No, Aalea! I forbid it!

Qui-Gon felt Aalea move quickly from his mind. She was gone. And with her went Qui-Gon's access to the Force. He felt his body trembling with weakness from the Sith poison that remained in his body, but he kept his lightsaber high.

The Sith looked at Qui-Gon with what had once been Cian's beautiful dark gray eyes, but were now as red as death. His vulpine leer twisted her lovely mouth into a horrible mockery of her gentle smile. Qui-Gon's insides twisted at the sight of the Sith's perverted possession of the young woman's body.

"Prepare to die, Jedi," the Sith hissed with Cian's soft voice. "But remember, kill me and the female also dies."

Qui-Gon's heart lurched at the Sith's words. For if Aalea was right and Cian was still alive, Qui-Gon would have to use all of his fighting skills to defeat his enemy without destroying the body he possessed.

The Sith ignited his lightsaber and darted forward, his lightsaber clashing against Qui-Gon's. And once again, as had happened thousands upon thousands of years ago, Jedi and Sith were joined in the ancient battle between the Dark and the Light.

To be continued....