Chapter 15

Mara and Luke laid motionless for several minutes, straining their ears for any sound of approaching enemies. Through the trees, they could see the bank of the creek they had just fled from. Suddenly, Mara caught sight of something that made her stomach drop. The tattered remains of her dress lay in a shapeless heap between two rocks. Instinctively, she moved as if to retrieve it, sprained ankle be damned.

It's too late, Luke whispered to her through the Force.

As if on cue, the low-hanging branches on the far side of the creek swayed slightly before three bulky men with heavy blasters broke into view. Luke and Mara tried to make themselves as invisible as possible while still spying on their pursuers. Mara's jaw twitched in helpless frustration when the men immediately spotted the forgotten clothing. Mara could see the leers spread across their faces, but they were too far away to make out any words.

The men fanned out over the bank looking for other clues as to their prey's whereabouts. Mara's entire body tensed like a coiled spring under the pressure of this game of hide-and-seek. She was sure they would find them, but she was not going to go down without a fight.

Calm down, Luke said gently through the Force. They won't find us.

"Don't -" she hissed, but was silenced by Luke's warning look. If we can't hear them, then they can't hear us, Skywalker, she sent him and tried to shrug off the claustrophobic feeling she always got whenever he was in her head. Isn't it more likely the dark Jedi might hear us through the Force?

She can't hear us, he replied, refusing to look at her.

She? Mara looked at him sharply and threw up her mental barriers. There had been an almost undetectable note of sadness in his thoughts. This wasn't the first time during the morning she had noticed it, but she had assumed that he was just feeling guilty about the night before. Did he know this dark Jedi? Was she one of his former students?

She grabbed control of her thoughts. She was about to ask him about his connection to the dark Jedi, but the tired and worn look on his face stopped her. He was sweating even though the temperature was still at comfortable, almost cool levels. Making sure her movements were hidden from sight, she reached over and gently touched his cheek. His skin was clammy and colorless.

He jerked slightly at her touch.

A splash brought them abruptly back to their precarious situation. One of the men had begun to cross the creek. Mara tensed, aimed her blaster over the edge of the small cliff and waited for the man to come into range.

If you hit him, the others will call for back-up, Luke warned.

I know, but we could take down these three and make a run for it before the others arrive.

We'd never make it. I'm still too weak, and you can barely walk.

Well, then what do you suggest? Surrender? Mara spat.

Patience, he replied calmly.

Mara was about to explode when the approaching man suddenly halted mid-creek. The leader gestured for him to return and began pointing downstream. The three men moved out of sight, and Mara saw Luke visibly relax. She narrowed her eyes at him. I hate it when he does that, Mara thought petulantly, making sure to shield her thoughts from him. They remained prone on the ground for several more minutes in case Guru's men decided to come back.

"Do you know who the dark Jedi is?" Mara asked, remembering her earlier surprise.

Luke was silent for moment, and there was no mistaking the pained look that flitted across his features. He glanced up to meet Mara's penetrating gaze, but he could not hold it. Finally, he simply nodded.

"Callista," he replied just above a whisper.

Mara felt a shock explode through her body. She struggled to keep her emotions from bubbling to the surface. A thousand questions posed on the tip of her tongue. "How do you know?" she asked calmly.

"I saw her. Last night. On the bridge."

An uncertain wave of relief washed through her. "I saw the woman on the bridge, and that wasn't Callista. It was Guru's assistant, Auria."

"No, it was Callista," Luke insisted. "Didn't you see her disguise dissolve? It was all an illusion of the Force."

"Are you sure? You were pretty far gone last night, Farmboy."

"At first, I thought maybe it was the poison playing tricks on me," he admitted. Finally, he mustered the strength to look directly at her, and she tried not to look too concerned about the deepening circles under his eyes. His eyes told her everything. He was certain he had seen Callista, but at the same time he did not want to believe it.

"And now?" she asked.

"I felt a dark presence just now, searching for us. It felt so foreign, yet so familiar at the same time. Callista has turned to the Darkside, and she is more powerful than ever."

Mara fought down her anger. She knew that look that had entered his eyes. He felt responsible for her loss of the Force, for her leaving him and now for her turning to the Darkside. And he wouldn't rest until he had turned her back to the Light. Even if he had to sacrifice himself to do it.

"This isn't your fault, you know," she said. "Callista made her choices, she has to deal with the consequences."

"I can't just leave her and let the Darkside consume her," Luke argued. "If she can be saved, then I have to do everything in my power to help her."

Mara let out a resigned sigh. "I know."

Just then, Annaïse burst through the trees behind them with a wide grin on her face. "No need to worry about those buffoons Guru sent after you. I left them a trail that will have them walking in circles for days!"

"Good work," Luke congratulated her.

"How did you manage that so fast," Mara asked, slightly incredulous.

Annaïse merely shrugged modestly.

I should've known better than to ask, Mara reproached herself.

"They won't be back this way for a long while," Annaïse continued. "So you can rest in one of the huts in the village."

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Mara argued. "What if they decide to backtrack?"

"They won't," she replied. "Trust me, you'll be safe. Besides, from the looks of you two, I doubt you'd make it very far."

Mara grudgingly admitted she was right, so the three of them limped and trudged back across the creek and up the path to the village.

* * * * *

Mara passed the day at Luke's side as he slumbered. He had offered to put her into a healing trance, but she refused. If those goons did come back, both of them would be needed to fight. And she just plain didn't like the idea of being completely vulnerable to attack. So, he made her promise to rest and stay off her feet.

Annaïse came and went at will. Somewhere she found more food and some dry wood for a small fire in the hearth. She really was an amazing little girl, Mara thought.

Mara slept on and off, trying to conserve her strength, but Luke's earlier revelation had left her feeling wired and anxious. She could feel something ominous on the horizon and felt helpless against it. And Mara did not cope well with feeling helpless.

She withdrew into her protective mental shell and tried to admire Luke's bravery and selflessness, but she could not shake the feelings of emptiness, loss and pain that would follow if he chose to sacrifice himself for Callista. Not just Callista, she reminded herself, but anyone special to him. Luke may get on her nerves from time to time, but she had to admit that she would miss him if he were gone forever.

Mara mentally shook herself. This was no time to be worrying about what ifs and possibilities. But she swore to herself that if she got to Callista first, Luke wouldn't have to worry about saving her, because she was going to throttle that girl into the next galaxy for all the pain she had caused.

Luke's exhaustion had knocked him out cold for the entire day. But he must have felt as anxious as Mara, for his sleep abruptly changed from blissful to fitful without warning. He never woke, but sometimes Mara caught wild thoughts from him as he dreamed. He must have felt every emotion in the spectrum at some point during the day. She felt happiness, sadness, fear, panic, excitement, nervousness, hopelessness and more come from him. She couldn't make much sense of them, and she didn't really want to. It felt like an invasion of privacy, so she tried to ignore them.

Mara itched to do something active. She gazed out the small, broken window wishing she could explore this ancient village they had stumbled on. But she had promised to "stay put", and honestly, her feet enjoyed the rest. However, she felt guilty for sitting on her bum while Guru and Callista were planning the demise of the Jedi, and probably the New Republic as well. They needed a plan. They couldn't hide out forever.

Through a broken window she watched the sky grow dark as night descended on them once more. She looked around for something to do, but the hut was sparse in offering anything to pass the time. Her right leg had fallen asleep from inactivity, and the tingling pinpricks were about to drive her crazy. She inspected her feet. The bruises were still bright and discolored, but the cuts had healed to small pink scars. Annaïse had left again to find dinner, so she gingerly got up and began walking around the room. Walking was still uncomfortable, but at least she wasn't limping and hobbling like some old crone. The circulation felt wonderful to her.

She had just completed her fourth lap when Annaïse entered with an armful of vegetables. She gave her a disapproving look, but Mara glared back at her defiantly, picked up a log and tossed it on the fire. She was tired of playing the helpless invalid. Annaïse could play house with someone else. The young girl just shook her head, handed her what looked like a yellow root and sat down in front of the fire pit.

"Should we wake him up for something to eat?" Annaïse asked nodding at Luke's softly snoring form. "He hasn't eaten all day."

"No, I think sleep will do him more good than food," Mara replied. "I think by tomorrow he'll be as good as new."

Silence filled the hut. Mara could tell the girl wanted to say something, but was either trying to find the words or the courage to do it.

"Sometimes it helps if you just spit it out," Mara said impatiently.

"He loves you," Annaïse declared without hesitation.

She burst out laughing. She wasn't sure what was funnier, Luke being in love with her, or an eight-year-old telling her that it was so. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Annaïse's brow furrowed, not quite getting the joke. She looked old and wizened as she contemplated Mara's reaction.

"He's in love, but not with me," she explained. "Sith, I spent most of my life trying to kill him!"

Annaïse's eyes took on a faraway look that made her look almost Jedi. Mara could feel a small tremor in the Force coming from the young girl. "Callista hurt him deeply," Annaïse murmured almost to herself.

Mara's eyes narrowed dangerously. "How do you know about her?"

"Gaeriel, too," she continued seeming not to hear Mara. "Every woman he's ever loved has either left him or died." She leveled her gaze directly at Mara. "I've seen you together. I've heard how you talk to each other, how you look at each other. You trust and depend on each other. You can't tell me that he doesn't love you, or for that matter that you don't love him. Last night-"

"Last night," Mara interrupted her, "Skywalker was poisoned. He didn't know what he was doing or thinking."

This time it was Annaïse's turn to laugh. "You think he's oblivious?! I saw it long before he ever ate that fruit. But if you want to talk about the poison, fine. Do you know what kind of poison it was?"

Mara had to admit that she didn't. But why should that matter as long as he didn't die? "You said it makes people act drunk. Drunk people don't know what they do," she insisted.

Annaïse shook her head impatiently. "Excuses, excuses. Others think you're drunk because the poison strips you of your inhibitions. Guru sometimes uses it as a truth drug. You say and act the things you want to with out thinking. Luke was doing what his heart wanted to do all along, but his fear wouldn't let him."

"Well, let's not make it sound too dramatic," Mara retorted sarcastically.

The girl bristled. "Maybe Guru should've poisoned you. I wonder how much it would've taken to get you to let down your barriers. You're just as scared as he is. Personally, I think the both of you cowards are being ridiculous!"

"What does a little girl like you know about love anyway?" Mara countered viciously.

Annaïse laughed scornfully. "Always so quick to judge what your eyes tell you. When are you going to take the blinders off, Mara?"

Without saying another word, she hopped up and wandered outside. She didn't say where she was going, for how long, or if she would be back, but then Mara didn't care much at that point. It had been a disturbing conversation, one that she didn't want to think about. She and Luke were friends at best. Obviously, for all of Annaïse's eavesdropping, she had not discovered that Callista and Auria were the same person. And now that Callista was back in the picture, Luke was rapidly becoming caught up in trying to save his one true love.

Mara snorted at the idea of her and Luke. But the seeds had been planted in her mind, they only needed time to germinate. She stared thoughtfully into the fire and didn't see Skywalker's eyes open to curiously regard her back.