Forever Home: A Luke and Callista Story
Part 3
Deep in the jungle, along the banks of the Massassi River, where the garbage from the Great Temple was deposited in on a daily basis, a dark figure emerged from the murky water. A single hand shot out, breaking through the surface, covered in filth.
Slowly, a disfigured shape crawled out of the river and curled up at the shore under the star-filled night sky. Within minutes, its wounds began to heal. Its twisted, mutilated limbs pulled themselves straight, popping back into their sockets. Its torn skin mended itself, once again becoming clear and whole.
By the time ten or fifteen minutes had passed, the Human Replica Droid was back to normal, thanks to the technology of internal self-repair units.
In silence, she headed toward her destination.
"I can't believe this is truly happening," Callista said, now fully clothed, as she wrapped her arm around Luke's waist, resting her head on his shoulder. "Suddenly everything I've ever wanted in my life is happening all at once...I feel like I'm living in a dream. That I could wake up at any moment and none of it will have happened.
"But it has," Luke replied softly, kissing the crown of her head. She could feel his emotions pouring into her, feelings of joy and love. "Callista, I love you more than anyone in my life. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me. And nothing would honor me more than being able to call you my own.
Callista almost began to cry at that point. All her life, she had longed for this. Not just to get married, but also to finally be happy, start a family, her greatest wish apart from becoming a Jedi Knight. Her life had been burdened with so much sorrow and death, and to spend the rest of her life with this man, who had saved her life so many times, and loved her every bit as much as she loved himit was a dream come true for her.
"And nothing would honor me more than being yours," Callista said as she wrapped her other arm around his waist and embraced him. He returned it with equal ardor, and at that point, neither of them could have been happier.
"Sodoes that mean it's a yes?"
Callista chuckled. "Of course it's yes!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him again.
I would love to have a huge wedding, Luke said. With all of our friends, our family. I want to show you off to the whole galaxy.
Callista blushed, and smiled at him.
You in a marvelous white wedding dress," Luke said, playfully twirling Callista around, as if they were dancing.
"And you in the finest suit the Republic can afford," Callista put in. "It would be a wedding of galactic proportions."
"Sounds a lot like Han and Leia's wedding," Luke said with a chuckle.
Or we could settle for an old-fashioned Jedi wedding," Callista said, as she couldn't help but smile at their fantasy wedding. "You know, have all our closest friends attend. You and me side by side, our hands intertwined as we recite our vowsthat would be my ideal wedding."
"Have you ever been to a wedding, Callista?" Luke suddenly asked.
Callista sighed as she struggled to recall the events in her life before the Eye of Palpatine. Most of them were vague and clouded in mystery, but some things stood out almost clear for her"I had two close friends; I can't remember their names. They were engaged to be married, buthappeneed, it never came to be" She trailed off, not wishing to divulge everything that had happened during the time of the Jedi purges, especially not to Luke. That only brought more painful memories for her, of friends long gone
Luke could sense her distress; he brought her closer to him, his presence enough to soothe some of her emotions. "I'm sorry, Callista, for everything that happened to you. I can't promise to undo thembut I will promise to give you a happier life than what you've known." He smiled. "And no matter what, I'll always love you."
How does he do that? She thought as she embraced him again. Make me forget everything? "Thank you, Luke. You have no idea how much that means to me."
As they both smiled and began to seal their joy with another kiss, Luke heard the sound of frantic footsteps out in the hallway.
"Did you hear that?" Callista asked him, before he could even say the words himself.
"Yeah," he said. "Let's go check it out."
As they both headed out into the corridor, their joy of getting married momentarily interrupted, Kirana Ti stepped in their way, a look on concern on her face. "Where is Kyp?" she asked.
Luke and Callista exchanged confused looks. "We haven't seen him since the incident in the garbage chamber," Luke replied. "Why?"
"I had a terrible premonition," Kirana Ti said. "I was meditating in my room, and I sawblood. Kyp's blood."
Luke's hand tightened around Callista's. "We better go look for him."
Kyp slammed full force into the cafeteria wall, sliding slowly to the floor, relearning how to breathe. He wiped blood from his mouth and looked up at his nemesis, unable to disguise his fear.
"Where is Skywalker?" the HRD demanded for the hundredth time, her voice climaxing into shouts.
Rather than answer, Kyp struggled to get back up, and threw a swing for the droid's head. But she moved too fast for him, swerving her head to one side just in time. She ducked a second blow, and shoved Kyp back against the wall, hard enough to loosen several bricks.
"I am losing my patience, Jedi. Tell me where he is, or I will break your scrawny little neck."
Kyp said nothing. There was no way he was going to let this murderer within even a hundred feet of his Master—
Finally losing her temper to the fullest extreme, she rushed him in a breathtaking blur of swiftness, launching a furious stream of blows for his head and gut, intent on wringing any and all information out of him, even if it meant beating him to a bloody pulp.
Kyp let the Force flow through him, controlling his actions, obeying his commands, and his hands came up to block the flurry of fists that sailed in his direction. For a long time, the Jedi and the droid were locked in deadly combat, throwing blow after blow after blow. Kyp managed to parry the HRD's attacks, but his own punches were fruitless. The HRD may not have been Force-sensitive, but she was strong and fast, ten times more so than a human.
They were evenly matched.
In the midst of the incoming blows, Kyp lost his focus for a brief second as a thin layer of salty perspiration slid into his eyes. He was caught off guard for only a second or so, but it was all the time the droid needed. She threw her fist, catching him directly in the ribs, knocking him back against the wall.
Kyp was breathless, a sharp pain running through his chest. He was not exactly sure, but he thought that the blow had cracked at least one or two of his ribs. As he took in several deep breaths, wincing at the quick pain that followed, he aimed a roundhouse kick for the droid's head, backing it up with enough power to break the neck of a human being, or even a Wookiee.
The droid easily evaded the kick, ducking and come back up in the space of two seconds, leering at the Jedi. Kyp gritted his teeth, unwilling to admit defeat, and swung a powerful jab for her throat—
And ended up getting snatched by the droid in mid-swing.
"Very well!" she all but roared, squeezing his upper arm hard enough to leave bruises. "If you won't tell me anything, then I have no further use for you."
Master Skywalker! Callista! If any of you can hear me, get to the cafeteria quick. The droid—
His message was shot as the droid threw him into the air. He sailed at an uncontrollable momentum until his body smashed into a cafeteria table, completely demolishing it. He laid there, on the verge of unconsciousness, coated in stone and wooden shards. Blood flowed from dozens of shallow wounds all over his body.
As Kyp fought through the painful haze that clouded his eyes, he looked up to see the droid pounce.
Despite the residual pain left in her body, Callista sprinted to Kyp's chambers, her heart throbbing in her ears in a terrified pattern. When she paused in the doorway, she saw that Kirana Ti's premonition had come true, such as it was.
Blood was splattered all over the walls. The room had been turned upside-down, as if a storm had secretly raged inside it. Apparently, the HRD must have crept in through the window while Kyp had been sleeping and attacked him. Judging by the ramshackle sight, they had taken their fight to another area of the Great Templebut where?
She silently cursed under her breath, and then hushed herself. For a brief second, she had heard something, emanating—from the kitchen!
Before she had even consciously realized that, she was running in that direction.
The HRD lifted Kyp over her head like a rag-doll and just as easily tossed onto the kitchen counter. Kyp grunted as he landed, and rolled to the floor, smacking against one of the cooling units used to store food.
The HRD chuckled. "Nothing changes, does it? You went from beatings on Kessel and the Maw to beatings on Yavin 4."
Fighting through the blackness closing on his vision, Kyp managed a stifled, "What?" How had she known about the Maw? Unless
Her foot smashed his face, sending him reeling into darkness.
Callista bolted into the kitchen just in time to see the droid render a bleeding Kyp Durron unconscious.
Okay, I've had just about enoughshe thought. "Hey!"
The droid turned, unperturbed by the unexpected appearance of her new "guest". Her human face formed a sneer. "Back for more, are you? Well, you were fun. I like fun." She took a few steps toward the real Callista, her eyes resembling those of a cat about to pounce on a fat, lame mouse.
Callista touched her lightsaber, readying herself to fight her to the death. "You just don't know when to quit, do you?" She beckoned the droid forth with her fingers. "Come on, let's finish this, you and me. Let's see which one's the better Callista."
The droid's smile melted, transforming into an animal snarl. "You know, I would, but this mission is really starting to bore me. I would like to finish it as soon as possible." With almost magical speed, she produced two blaster pistols from what seemed like out of nowhere, one in each hand, both pointed at Callista. "So, no more kid gloves."
Her snarl widening—if such a feat were possible—the HRD began to press the triggers of both weapons—
"NO!"
Kyp rose to his feet, his face and arms badly cut up and seeping with blood. He rushed forth to disarm the droid.
The droid did two things at once. First, she spun around, focusing momentarily on the dark-haired young man. At the same time, her finger squeezed on the trigger of the left blaster. A single red bolt lanced out of the weapon, striking Kyp directly in the left side of the chest. Kyp screamed in pain and staggered against the wall, falling to his knees.
"Kyp!" Callista cried out, horrified. Was he dead?
The HRD turned her attention back to Callista, unleashing a salvo of laser bolts in her direction. Callista immediately retreated, seeking refuge behind one of the cafeteria tables. She Force-pulled several chairs in the room to pile before her, creating a shield before her and the hail of lasers.
"Oh, come now, Callista!" the HRD called out, her voice thick with scorn. "Don't tell me that a Jedi as powerful as you is afraid of two puny little blasters. How pathetic."
Callista could hear the droid coming closer, still shooting. One bolt exploded the table leg to her left, almost slicing her ear completely off. Callista cursed and did a shoulder-roll that landed her behind another table.
The HRD followed Callista's movement, and opened fire. Callista stood from her hiding place and used the Force to deflect the bolts that sizzled in her direction. Most of them were redirected into the walls and floor, but Callista managed to send one back toward the HRD, catching her in the abdomen. The droid staggered back.
Callista watched in fascinated horror as the burn on the droid's stomach began to heal, disappearing within seconds. The droid looked down at the hole made in her jumpsuit, and back up at Callista, grinning.
"You never learn, do you?" she snapped, pumping more shots in her direction.
Callista ducked and hugged the cold stone floor for cover. The bolts flew over her head, tearing fresh new holes into the wall behind her. Footsteps, and then the droid was atop the table Callista was using for shelter, staring mercilessly down at her.
Callista thought fast, and directed the Force at the table, lifting it upwards and causing it to tip over, with the droid still on top of it. The HRD shrieked as her feet left the table, and landed none too gently on her back.
She was up within seconds, and the two opponents glared at each other across the upturned table, Callista with her still-deactivated lightsaber, the HRD with her blasters. For a moment, neither of them spoke or moved, just glanced at each other as if they were looking at a mirror.
"Give it up," the droid snarled. "You're not going to win."
"We'll see about that," Callista shot back, as she prepared to activate her lightsaber.
Use the Force, Callista
Djinn's voice echoed through her head. A grin of satisfaction spread across her face.
An excellent idea, Master. She called upon her regained powers and raised her hand. One of the far cupboards flew open,revealing a healthy supply of culinary knives. Slowly at first, then all at once, the knives flew from their racks and into the HRD's back, where they stuck firmly, held in place by circuits and wires.
The droid jolted in shock, dropping her weapons, but it was not enough to stop her.
Which Callista knew.
Which was why she went for the Bothan's arsenic store next. Rather ironic. The murderous Bothan taking revenge, even in death
The bottles flew over the HRD's head, and exploded all at once. The acidic liquid cascaded over the droid's synthflesh, sizzling with the contact. The droid finally began to slow down. The real Callista had overloaded the self-repair unit.
The HRD no longer even had a prayer.
"Now for the fun part, you motherless piece of machinery." Callista raised her lightsaber and lit the topaz blade, relishing the moment for just a second. Then, with every ounce of her strength and rage, she swung the blade without hesitation and sliced through the falling droid like butter.
In a split second, the most frightening scream of terror Callista had ever heard tore into the air. She pulled out her blade from the trembling droid's body and looked at her.
She felt her hands shake uncontrollably as she watched her mirror image crumple in pain, balled up in an embryonic position. A strange, whirring noise escaped her mouth as her damaged self-repair unit strained to mend her wounds, but its effort was fruitless. Within seconds, the droid's movements had begun to slow down, and eventually stopped.
And it was over.
The next few seconds went by in a blur as Luke and the others came in. She felt him rush to her side, and she gladly collapsed in his arms, letting the emotions she had fought to keep at bay while fighting the doppelganger pour out of her like water from the sky.
"Callie, are you all right?"
She tried to will herself not to shake, but even as Luke held her, she trembled uncontrollably. "I'mfine," she stammered, knowing that her own voice betrayed her.
"The hell you are," Luke said, throwing a glance over at the fallen body of the HRD. He looked away in disgust and rested his eyes back at her. "Is this thing ever going to be over?"
She forced herself to look at the droid, remembering the wicked hum of her blade when it had sliced through her body, then she looked away again. "I think," she whispered, "I overloaded her regeneratorOh, stars, please let this be over"
She staggered to her feet and pulled Luke gently to where Kyp's slumped body lay. He had succumbed to unconsciousness again during the fighting. "Kyphe needs our help."
Luke's eyes widened when he saw Kyp on the floor, and he waved the others in the room. "Call Cilghal!" he yelled, gathering Kyp up in his arms. His student's body was limp and lifeless, but Callista could hear his shallow breathing.
"He's lost so much blood," Callista whispered, seeing the pool of blood underneath him.
Luke looked up at her, his eyes grim and somber.
Luke and Callista waited outside the infirmary as Cilghal tended to Kyp Durron. The Calamarian had hurried to the cafeteria moments after Callista had destroyed the HRD, and immediately ministered to the young man. The remains of the Human Replica Droid were incinerated, and the ashes poured into the garbage chamber, where she would never pose a threat to the Jedi again.
So far, it had been four hours. And there had been no change in Kyp's state.
Maybe if I'd gotten there sooner... Callista whispered.
If I'd gotten to the kitchen sooner, she wouldn't have been able to hurt him so badly.
"You know that's not true," Luke said, pulling Callista around so that her eyes met with his. "Kyp would've died if it hadn't been for you. You destroyed the HRD. If anything, you should be commended." He brought her closer to him, kissing her atop the crown. "Djinn would've been proud of you."
"You don't understand, Luke," Callista said, her voice thick with emotion. "I killed that droid, and felt good about it.I enjoyed killing herand when I realized what I was doing, I became so frightened. It was like I was someone else altogether"
Luke will die
"Master Skywalker?"
Luke and Callista turned to see Cilghal exit the infirmary. "Yes, Cilghal?"
"Kyp's awake now," the Calamarian reported. "Just barely, though. It took several dips in the bacta tank, but it looks like he's going to pull through."
Luke and Callista heaved a simultaneous sigh of relief. "Can we see him?" Callista requested.
Cilghal nodded.
Together, Luke and Callista went into the room. Kyp laid on the operating table, his face still streaked with cuts from the attack. He had taken a very severe beating from the HRD, but he had made it. The worst was over.
"Hey, Kyp," Luke whispered, stroking the young man's black hair.
"M-Master" Kyp wheezed out. His eyes met Callista, and he recoiled in fear.
"It's okay, Kyp," Callista soothed. "It's me." She gently kissed him on the forehead, careful not to touch his wounds. "You're going to be all right."
"Thank you," Kyp whispered, his voice barely audible. "Yousaved my life."
"Kyp, did the droid say anything to you while you fought?" Luke asked.
Kyp managed a slight nod. "YesDaala."
"What?" Luke had barely heard it. "What did you say?"
"D-Daalashe sent the droid"
With that, Kyp closed his eyes.
Cilghal said softly. "It's best for you two to leave now, Master Skywalker."
Luke nodded, and he took Callista by her hand and left the room.
Who's Daala? Callista asked
Imperial Commander Kelron had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Admiral Daala had just given him a new set of instructions, for the first time since the HRD had been unleashed upon the Jedi Academy. Apparently, Skywalker had foiled the HRD's assassination attempts—much to Daala's disappointment; she had been looking forward to seeing the droid bring back a "trophy" of Skywalker's.
That left Daala no other choice but to eliminate Skywalker the old-fashioned way. Kelron had been left with a small group of soldiers, which would hopefully be enough to keep the Jedi at bay before the main fleet arrived.
He was more than confident it would suffice.
Kelron stood before the gathered stormtroopers in the jungle. "My friends, I regret to say that the Human Replica Droid has failed in her mission. She fought bravely, but the Jedi prevailed in the end.
"But we will not fail. Admiral Daala's orders are to proceed immediately to the Great Temple and exterminate every last Jedi. She and Vice Admiral Pellaeon will bring the entire fleet here soon and obliterate the Jedi Academy from orbit."
He glanced at his entire army—stormtroopers numbering in the dozens, AT-ST scout walkers, Flying Fortresses, it was an awesome sight, and a force to be reckoned with. Even the Jedi would have a hard time dealing with them.
"Find Skywalker and bring him alive to me," Kelron continued. "Or his head. Either way, Daala will be satisfied." He raised his fist into the air. "For the glory of the Empire!"
"For the glory of the Empire!" the stormtroopers shouted in unison, raising their blasters into the air.
Kelron waited a moment, and then said, "Let's go."
With that, the entire army of Imperials marched through the jungle, heading for the Great Temple.
After the initial commotion had died down, Luke walked with Callista to her room, doing his best to reassure her that everything was under control, and failing in the process. "Trust me, Callista, you need to rest."
"But I can's sleep, Luke," Callista protested as she opened the door and went inside her private quarters. "Not with the possibility of Imperials attacking the Academy. There has to be something I can do."
"Don't worry," Luke assured her, kissing her on the cheek. "There'll be plenty of time for that tomorrow. I have scouts patrolling the outskirts of the Academy. If they see any signs of trouble, they'll notify us immediately."
He kissed her again, feeling some of her spirits lift, as she lay down on her bed. "Now, go to sleep, my love," he whispered in her ear. "If you need anything, let me know."
Before Callista could reply, he was out the door.
Callista sighed and rested the back of her head on the pillow, staring up at the ceiling, watching as the faintest streaks of sunlight indicating the coming of dawn slipped through the tiny crevices in the stone. How could she possibly sleep at a time like this? Especially when the Academy was being threatened by the Empire, and under the leadership of Daala, whom Callista had heard enough from Luke and Han to deduce that she was a formidable opponent indeed.
As she tried to sleep, the events that had transpired in the past few days—the assassin, the dreams of Djinn Altis, Kyp's injuries, the HRD, Admiral Daala, the mysterious way in which she had regained her powers—ran hauntingly through her mind, not allowing her a moment of peace. And through it all, she could feel that strange, dark presence she had felt on the night the Force had returned to her
Still, despite all that, Callista eventually drifted off into blackness.
As she slept, she dreamed. The familiar crashing of waves upon the shore jerked her awake. As her eyes slowly fluttered open, she gasped as a cold rush of water flowed underneath her, soaking the back of her clothes and hair and sending a freezing shudder through her body. She sat up, the scent of saltwater strong in the air. As her eyes adjusted to her new surroundings, she saw with a sudden, horrific realization that she was no longer on Yavin 4.
She was home again.
On Chad.
Callista stood up—she had been lying on the shore, and was covered in wet sand—on shaky legs and allowed her eyes to drink in the watery landscape, mournfully gazing at the calm blue ocean that surrounded the island she had once called home. She saw her father running with their pet mooka, Jeebie, along the coastline of the beach. She saw her younger brother fishing on the dock near their little beach house. She felt the cool wind slap gently at her face, a sensation she had relished as a child. Her older sisters were nowhere to be seen; perhaps they were already at school. And her mother—
Mama
Tears began to streak down her eyes as she gazed at the wonderful, familiar sight. How she missed this place. It had been her home for seventeen years. Neither the humid jungles of Yavin 4, nor the bustling metropolis of Coruscant, could ever hope to match the beauty of the oceans of Chad. This place would always have a special place in her heart, despite what had happened
And as Callista stood there, watching with a stony face masked with tears as her brother cheered as he caught a tiny silverfish, and her father laughing and smiling with approval and pride, the memories came back to her. Despite her love of the sea, and of her childhood home, her life on Chad had been among the worst years of her life. Her mother's suicide, and the aftermath, when everyone had blamed her for what had happened. She remembered her sisters alienating her, her father distancing himself as the years went on, her stepmother's growing depression, and her final day on this world, when her father had kicked her out, telling her to never return
Something caught the corner of her eye, and she looked up to see a lone figure staring down at her from a cliff face, the tallest point on the island. Callista stared back, unable to get a good look at it. For some reason, the way its silent, hidden eyes remained upon her chilled her to the bone.
Callista
Her curiosity aroused, she began running toward the steep path that led up to the cliff. As she ran, she saw a pack of salt-birds flutter from a bush, surprised by her unexpected presence. She could hear the roar of a sand-dragon that had just caught its most recent prey, its yellowed teeth now caked with fresh blood and bits of flesh.
Callista ran, away from her home, away from her family, from the comforting beach that beckoned her, from the world she had once known. Thunder erupted from the sky, and tiny raindrops poured from the clouds.
Callista's brown hair was matted, and her clothes were soaked. Still, she pressed on, determined to find out who this mysterious figure was. She ran past the Twin Caves—where she and her brother had used to play in when they were children—and past the lagoon where she had sheared wander-kelp with her father, and where Master Altis had first found her, thus setting her forth on a path that had forever changed her life.
Past her childhood.
Who was this person staring down at her?
She looked up and saw that she was getting closer. The sky was darkened with black clouds. The rain became more violent, and a bolt of lightning flashed over her, illuminating her in harsh, white colors. Still, despite the chaos, a deadly beauty remained in it.
A beauty she had not seen for years now.
She finally reached the cliff face, ragged and panting, and headed toward the mysterious figure. It was cloaked entirely in black, staring down at the ocean, paying her no heed.
Suddenly, as if by a silent command, the specter turned and removed the hood that concealed its face. Callista gasped at the mane of black hair that came into view, the green eyes that had stared up at her with no life left in them when she had been seven years old.
"Mama?" she whispered.
"Callista," she said, in a bitter and tired voice. "You have come back to me."
For a long time, neither spoke, the only sound the crashing of waves against the cliff, the long, thunderous crackles of the storm, the harsh pitter-patter of the rain as it hit the ground. Callista stared, speechless, into her mother's eyes, a pair of eyes she had not seen for over forty years"Why did you do it?" she finally asked. "Why did you have to leave me?"
"Because I loved you," her mother said. "Because it was what you had always wanted."
"What?" Callista said, unable to believe what she was hearing. Overhead, the rain continued pouring down. "What do you mean?"
"All your life, you looked up to your father," her mother explained, anger now evident in your voice. "You loved him, as he loved you. It was always Papa you wanted. Whenever you had a secret to keep, you shared it with him. Whenever you had a problem, you always asked him for help. Never me. No, you never cared much for Mama, did you? My only purpose was to give birth to you, and after that, I was just there to fill up empty space, isn't that right?"
"That's not true!" Callista snapped. "I loved you both very much. It was just—"
"Just what? You loved him more than me!" her mother shouted, her voice rising even above the storm. "He was your entire life! And Iwas nothing. You could have cared less what happened to me. That's why I killed myself. I fulfilled the one thing you ever asked of me!"
Callista covered her ears. Already, she could envision the bottle of arsenic clutched in her mother's lifeless hand"I won't listen to this anymore." She looked up into those green eyes, accusing. "You are not my mother! My mother would never say such things!"
"Oh, really?"
Her hand suddenly reached out, snatched Callista by the arm. As Callista struggled, she watched, terrified, as her mother's face started to melt, the skin falling off as if struck by a rotting disease, revealing the bone beneath. Her body began to fall apart, and she began to laugh.
The burning stench of death and decay seeped into Callista's nostrils, choking her. "No!" she screamed, trying to break free. "No! No! Get away from me!"
"But I'm your mother, Callista," the corpse cackled. "I'm never going to leave you!"
Callista screamed as the demon shoved her off the cliff. She plummeted down toward the ocean, her shrieks drowned under the raging storm, which grew more and more intense as the seconds passed. Her mother's laughter echoed in the dark sky as Callista crashed into the sea
"Callista! Callie, shhh, it's all right, it's all right"
Luke's voice tugged her out of the dream. Slowly, the grogginess and disorientation faded, and she found herself in his arms, Luke pressing her close to him, stroking her hair.
"What are you doing back here?" Callista whispered in the darkness.
"I heard you scream," Luke said. "I had to come find out if you were all right."
She gently shrugged out of his arms and rose from the bed, making her way to the lone window in the room.
"Are you all right?" Luke asked.
She shook her head. "I don't know." She heard him walk up behind her, felt his warm hands on her shoulders, and she turned around to face him. "I don't know how to say this, Luke, but"
"But what? What's wrong, Callie?"
"I just have this feeling that the danger isn't over, Luke. And it's more than just the Imperials, it's" She sighed and unfolded her arms from her chest, running a hand through her disheveled curls. "Just now, I had a dream that my mother came back for meonly it wasn't my mother, Luke. It was someonetrying to kill me"
His hands reached for her immediately, as if he were afraid she would slip away from him now if he did not hold onto her. "What happened? What happened in your dream?"
"I don't remember muchI just" She let out a sigh of frustration and banged at the wall. "Blast it! Why can't things just be simple with us, Luke?"
He gave her a crooked smile, one that made her laugh out loud in spite of herself. "Because this stuff seems to follow us around wherever we go."
She nodded. "Well, one thing's for sure," she said, walking into his arms. "Life will never be boring for us, will it?"
"No, it won't be." He pulled away from her and took her face in his hands—a gesture that always made her melt. "We never did get to finish our conversation from earlier."
She smiled slyly. "And what would that be, Master Skywalker?"
"Hmmlet me refresh your memory" He pulled her closer and gave her a kiss that made every cell in her body come alive.
"Oh, yes," she murmured, "I vaguely recall something about that."
A bone-crushing sound rang out in the next instant, jolting them both.
Callista held her breath, and looked automatically to Luke. "What now?" she whispered.
Cilghal burst into the room at that moment, panting.
"Cilghal," Luke asked, as Callista pulled away from him. "What is it?"
Cilghal took a deep breath. "The Imperials. They're here."
In just under five minutes of the initial wave of alarms, the atmosphere of the Jedi Praxeum had changed from peace to panic. Students rushed from their quarters, having been jarred awake by the encroaching threat, and rushed to arm themselves. Luke and Callista fought through the crowd of frightened and excited students, their destination the hangarbay.
"Luke, where are we going?" Callista asked, running side by side with him, already running out of breath at the sheer effort of trying to keep up with him.
"The Shapeshifter," Luke said through ragged gasps. "We need to get up into orbit."
The temple bay, once housing dozens of starfighters in the early days of the Rebel Alliance, when they had launched their desperate attack on the Death Star, was now empty save for a single ship, the Shapeshifter. A G-37 freighter, and about half the size of the Millennium Falcon, although in much better shape and with a sleek, chrome-colored hull, the Shapeshifter had been a gift from Leia two years ago on Luke's lifeday. He had seldom needed to use it before—but now seemed like a very good time to try it out.
"Nice ship," Callista said with a whistle, as Luke extended the boarding ramp. She stepped up and headed inside, when Luke grabbed her arm.
"Callista, I don't want you up there with me," Luke said firmly.
"Who died and made you Chief of State?" Callista said back, half-joking, half-angered. She knew that Luke meant well, and could see the concern he had for her in his eyes, but a small part of her was offended that he thought she could not handle herself in battle.
"Callista, do you have any idea what we'll be going up against?" he said, still not determined to give in. "Daala has an entire fleet up there. Destroyers numbering in the dozens. This mission is going to be very dangerous, and I can't risk you."
"It's my decision, Luke," Callista said, penetrating his gaze. "If you go up there, I'm with you every step of the way."
"Callista, I won't let you—" But even as the words left Luke's mouth, he knew that she was incapable of saying no.
"You can't stop me, Luke. I'm a big girl, remember? I can take care of myself!" Her voice softened, as she began to calm her slowly growing frustration. "Look, I know you're worried about me after everything that's happened, but I'm a Jedi, too. I've seen things in my past life that you can't even begin to comprehend. I've gotten back my connection to the Force, and as long as I have that, I'm not backing away from any threat. Whether it's the Imperials, or assassin droids, oreven some deranged, all-powerful god bent on destroying the entire universe!" She looked into his eyes again and entangled her fingers around his hand. "I love you, Luke, and I'm not letting you face Daala alone."
Luke remained silent for a moment, and finally sighed. "I don't agree with it at all, Callista, and I wish I could change your mindbut your stubbornness is one of the reasons why I love you so much." He finally gave her a smile, and led her up the Shapeshifter's ramp.
As the first main Imperial bombardment began, the Shapeshifter left the Great Temple and headed into space.
Now all we have to do is figure out what to do once we get up there, Luke said, and Callista smiled.
I think I have an idea.
Kirana Ti leaped from the north watchtower the moment turbolasers began raining from the early morning sky. "Kam!" she called, unbuckling her lightsaber, the walls around her shuddering from near-direct hits. "Streen! They're here!"
She emerged into the main hallway, where students were filing out of the Great Temple. A thousand conversations flooded in the corridor, most of the voices laced with fear. Several of the younger children were sobbing, while the older ones did their best to comfort them. Already, Kirana Ti could hear the first faint stirs of TIE fighters circling the ancient Massassi structure.
Kam pushed through the tangle of people his eyes wild and frenzied. "How many, Kirana Ti?"
"A lot," was her answer. "There must be over a hundred stormtroopers marching through the jungle. We may have ten minutes at the most before overrun the temple."
"Then we don't have much time," Kam said, and yelled over to Cilghal over the roaring din, "Cilghal, get to the infirmary! Protect Kyp!"
"Never mind that!" Kyp Durron yelled.
Kirana Ti turned and saw him running toward them, his head bandaged but his eyes bright with the anticipation of battle. He brandished his lightsaber high in the air. "Let's kick some Imperial tail, kids! The fun's not over yet!"
"Callista, I don't like it." And he didn't. They were two people, all alone and relatively unarmed. And Callista wanted to land on the Knight Hammer itself and disable it from the inside. "It's suicide."
"My favorite," she said with grim humor. "Luke, I know it sounds crazy, but look at that thing." She pointed at the black behemoth looming before them. Even as they looked at it, they came under a barrage of TIE fire. "The armor is impenetrable."
"And so is the security," Luke countered, as he worked furiously to avoid the horde of laser bolts that slammed against their shields.
Callista grinned. "Not really."
Luke looked at her. "Oh, great. What are you thinking?"
She glanced back into the cabin. "This ship is equipped with spacesuits. We suit up, eject from the ship, and land on the hull. We find a breach, or make one. Either way, it's our only chance to take this thing out."
Luke nodded. "Okay. What if it doesn't work?"
"Let's only worry about that if it doesn't. Come on. Let's get started."
"Imperials?" Han Solo said with surprise. "Oh, great! What kind of trouble has Luke gotten into, now?"
"We're about to find out," replied Leia, in a strangely calm voice. It had been over an hour since Coruscant had received the call from Yavin 4 of the threat of an Imperial attack looming over the horizon. Apparently, Daala had acted much sooner than any of them had anticipated. The moment they had received the distress signal, Leia had ordered the deployment of the entire Republic fleet, which would hopefully arrive within the hour. Meanwhile, she, Han and Chewbacca had left on the Millennium Falcon, while Mon Mothma remained on Coruscant to manage affairs in Leia's absence.
Leia took another deep breath, trying to apply a Jedi relaxation technique Luke had taught her so many times before. She had managed to quell the terror that threatened to spill, but just barely. She cursed herself the umpteenth time for not having spent more time devoted to her Jedi training as she awaited the Falcon to leave hyperspace.
The starlines finally became pinpricks in the black canopy of space as the Falcon entered the Yavin System. Chewbacca roared at the sight that awaited them. Leia's reaction wasn't that much different.
It seemed that Daala—whom they had assumed died in the battle for Maw Installation—had put together an impressive force. One Super Star Destroyer, two-dozen Imperial Star Destroyers, and twice as many Skipray blastboats. One of them—having picked up the new arrival on its sensors—fired at the Falcon.
"Why do they always insist on doing this the hard way?" Han quipped, as he returned fire, reducing the Imperial ship into sparks and incandescent particles of hull.
"In the name of Alderaan," Leia whispered. "I didn't think it would be this bad."
They landed hurriedly on the jungle moon, and were greeted with the heat of battle in progress. TIE fighters roared across the sky, pummeling the Great Temple with their laser cannons, while AT-ST scout walkers marched through the foliage, firing at anything that moved. At the base of the Massassi structure, Jedi trainees regrouped and headed off in different directions, ready to do battle with the enemy.
Kyp Durron ran to meet them as they exited the Falcon. He was breathless and sweaty, but he smiled. "Han, Leia, you really picked the right time to drop in, he said as they ran for the shelter of the temple.
Despite the chaos around them, Han grinned at his friend. "Yeah, Leia and I were actually beginning to enjoy a normal and uneventful day—haven't had one of those in a while—when all of a sudden, Daala decides to rear her ugly, bloated head again and cause some more trouble for us." He looked over at Leia. "You think she's still upset that I trashed one of her Star Destroyers?"
"Well, judging by what we saw up there, she's more than made up for that loss," Leia said. "So, how bad is it down here, Kyp?"
"It's a complete mess," the young man said gravely, the humor now gone from his face. "There are Imperials everywhere. Stormtroopers, scout walkers, TIE fighters, you name it. They've got everything but the refresher unit." As he spoke, an explosion rang from the jungle, shaking the once-still ground. "What are we gonna do?"
"We need to hold out for as long as possible until the fleet arrives," Leia said. "Until they come, we'll have to make do with what we have."
"Sounds like pretty bad odds," Kyp added.
Han said with a lopsided grin. sounds like we have a chance then.
"Where are Luke and Callista?" Leia asked Kyp.
"They went up into orbit with the Shapeshifter," Kyp said, pointing up toward the sky.
"Let's hope they can take care of themselves," Leia prayed.
"Chewie and me'll take the Falcon," Han said. "I figure the kid's gonna need some help."
Leia's first instinct was to argue with him. But instead, she reached over and gathered him in a tight embrace. "Han, if anything happens to you, I'm gonna kill you."
Han laughed and kissed her. "Hey, it's me." With that, he and Chewie headed back for the Falcon.
"Some things never change," Kyp said with a warm smile.
"They sure don't," Leia said in agreement, and sighed. "Show me the weapons you've got in the temple."
Together, they ran amidst the explosions and laser fire.
Imperial ground forces advanced through the jungles of Yavin 4, leaving a massive trail of devastated ground in their wake. Speeder bikes made up the front of the attack, racing ahead to check for any possible ambushers or traps.
AT-STs followed close behind them, with TIE fighters and interceptors providing air support, although their solar panel wings made them extremely unwieldy craft in atmosphere. The TIE bombers were being held in reserve for runs on the Great Temple. They would be used to pound it into shards of stone, and then the survivors would be hunted down and wiped out.
In the command Flying Fortress, Kelron studied the sensor displays. He would have much rather been in the more advanced and considerably better armed AT-ATs, but they would have been useless in this terrain, and the Flying Fortress gave him an excellent view ahead.
In the distance, he could see the top of the Great Temple rising above the trees.
Kirana Ti could see the Flying Fortresses, too, as small silvery specks in the distance, as sunlight glinted off them. She tightened her grip on her lightsaber and glanced around at Streen, Kam Solusar, Tionne, and the dozen other students standing around her on the temple roof.
She did not have anything to say to them. She could see what they were thinking from the expressions on their faces.
"Come on," she said loudly, knowing that reflecting on the approaching Imperial force would not do them any good. "Let us go and show them what they have taken on." She ignited her lightsaber and raised it above her head. "We are Jedi Knights. They are not going to know what will hit them."
She turned and strode down the steps leading from the temple roof. For a few moments, the others stood motionless, and then Streen headed after her. That broke the deadlock, and the other students followed en masse, ready for battle
From the Shapeshifter, the Knight Hammer was daunting in the extreme. The closer it got to the Super Star Destroyer, the more Callista's idea began to look like extreme rashness. The SSD could blow the Shapeshifter into another galaxy in a second.
It would be an exceptionally easy way to dispose of the only Jedi Master in the galaxy, Luke reflected, but then he felt the Shapeshifter shiver as a tractor beam locked onto them.
He glanced at Callista. "They must be confident about what they're doing if they want us alive."
Both of them reached out toward the Knight Hammer with the Force, to have their suspicions confirmed. They could sense no life aboard the entire destroyer.
"Ysalamiri," Luke said softly under his breath.
"Hey, kid, d'ya hear me?"
Luke did a double take on the console before him as he heard Han's crackling voice fill the cockpit. "Han? What are you doing here?"
Han laughed on the other end of the comm. "We heard about your little party here. No fair not inviting us, Luke."
Chewie joined in with a wild roar that caused Luke to remove the earpiece, his eardrum throbbing.
"I'm glad you're here, buddy," Luke answered him.
"Han?" Callista mouthed to him as she watched him,
He nodded and heard Han's voice again. "What's the plan, kid?"
"Why don't we let my lovely copilot here give you the briefing"
Callista smiled and took the earpiece he handed her. "Han, it's Callista. ListenI've got a plan"
"Hmm," Han groaned. "I've learned not to like those wordsGo on"
"Those shields are impenetrable. There's nothing anything short of a whole armada of ships can do right now, and we don't have a lot of time—"
"So, what do you have in mind?"
Callista looked at Luke, and could not help but smile when she heard his thoughts: Go ahead, it's your crazy plan, Callie
She gave him a wink and whispered back, Where's your sense of adventure, flyboy? "Han, Luke and I are gong to go in there ourselves. We've got lifesuits here—those will hold us long enough in space for us to find some sort of an opening to sneak into—"
"Are you crazy?" Han said. "And, supposing you do get in, how do you think you're going to survive the several hundred stormtroopers that'll be on your tail in a second?"
Callista remained unfazed. I managed to infiltrate the Eye once, and this one'll be no different"I'm not worried," she told him. "I've done it before."
"Yeah, and remember how that turned out?"
Callista rolled her eyes. "We don't have much of a choice here, do we? We don't have the Republic fleet at our disposal at the moment, and their ships are getting ready to descend on Yavin 4. It's either this or be killed, Han."
"Great," Han said grimly. "Suicide or get killed. What a choice."
"If they want a fight," she said, her voice taking a lower tone, "then we'll give em a fight"
Leia and Kyp found Cilghal in the hangar bay of the Great Temple, along with several dozen of the older students. Artoo-Detoo was busy herding the younger ones into the basement, to make sure they would not be in harm's way of the Imperials. Many of them were crying in fear, while others tried desperately to use their calming technique as their Master had taught them, having little success.
After Artoo followed the children into the basement, and the door was shut and locked behind him, Cilghal went over to Kyp and Leia. "Madam Chief of State," she said with a small bow. "We are grateful for your assistance."
"Looks like you guys have been pretty busy," Kyp said.
"Have any of you seen Master Skywalker or Callista?" the Calamarian asked.
"They're up in orbit," Leia said. "They plan to take out Daala's Super Star Destroyer."
"Then may the Force be with them," Cilghal said gravely. "The Imperials are coming. Hordes of them. I can feel it."
Leia saw that the other students were working at assembling a wall of weapons near the hangar entrance, all working with a diligence and calmness present in only the best-trained Jedi. Using large pieces of stone and scraps from disassembled starfighters, the Jedi were able to construct a rather clumsy-looking wall, and mounted a succession of laser cannons behind them. Others were armed with detonators, ready to use them when needed. "Is this everything you could find?"
Cilghal nodded. "We searched every corner of the temple for these weapons. Most of them were left behind by the Rebels. I'm not sure if even half of these still work." Despair slowly grew in her voice as she spoke.
"It'll have to do," Leia said, her eyes quickly scanning their defenses. "How long before the Imperials reach the temple?"
"Not long now," Cilghal said solemnly. "Five minutes, ten at the most." She glanced over at the sealed entrance. "Over a hundred of them, and more are coming."
Kyp whistled. "Daala must really be determined to wipe us all out."
"And she won't succeed," Leia said. "Not as long as we have the Force on our side." She raised her voice, so that everyone gathered could hear her. "Everyone behind the wall now! We need to be ready when they come!"
The Jedi moved without question, positioning themselves behind the barrier among the blaster cannons. Leia stood close to Kyp and Cilghal, and unhooked their lightsabers. The others followed suit, and soon the entire chamber was droning with the hums of dozens of lightsabers. The sounds of battle continued to rage outside, as TIE fighters pounded the Yavin 4 jungle, accompanied by bursts of laser fire and small explosions. The Star Destroyers fired from orbit, and Leia felt a series of shudders as the turbolasers found their targets.
For a long time, it was quiet; the Jedi waited tensely for the Imperials to arrive.
Moments later, they came.
The Falcon blazed in toward the Knight Hammer, its quad lasers firing at the shields, despite the uselessness of the gesture. The SSD was not slow in responding. Turbolasers opened up on them, proton torpedo explosions shook her from side to side, and a squadron of TIEs emerged from the destroyer's underside and headed straight toward the Falcon.
The TIEs opened up as they came within range, green laser blasts pounding the Falcon's shields. They swept past, raking the ship with laser fire, and then turned for another strafing run, only to break off and veer away as one blew up spectacularly.
"Hey, you didn't wait for us to join in the festivities?" a familiar voice drawled from the comm as X-wings swept past the Falcon.
Han grinned. Trust Wedge and the Rogues to show up at the right moment. "How'd you get here?" he asked.
"Lando found out where you'd gone so hurriedly, and told us, so here we are."
"Why is it always so hard to keep a battle under wraps?" Han sighed. "Well, let's do some damage, shall we?" He put the Falcon into a tight turn to blow a TIE out of space.
Daala watched on her display as the Shapeshifter was drawn closer to the Super Star Destroyer, then turned to the figure standing behind her.
"Are you prepared?" she asked.
The Sith Witch nodded absently. Exceptionally gifted in the Force, and having been trained by a Sith Lord as a child, Daala had encountered this woman shortly after having taken command of the Imperial fleet. She had somehow known of Daala's execution of the chauvinistic warlords, and offered her services to the admiral, and in return was offered a high position in the ranks of the Empire. It had been her idea to construct the assassin droid, using the features of Skywalker's lover. Daala did not know the Witch's true motivations for joining her, but she had a distinct feeling that the only reason she did so was for a chance to engage the Jedi in combat.
And the first one she intended on taking on was Skywalker.
The Sith Witch was truly a fearsome being to look at. Her red hair hung down in braids over her head and face. Her eyes were hard and merciless. She had rarely spoken to anyone, even Daala. Daala knew nothing about the woman—not her age, her previous whereabouts, or even her name—but she knew that this was not a person to be trifled with. She almost felt a twinge of sympathy for Skywalker.
The ysalamiri had been used to prevent Skywalker and the Jedi from detecting her. The Sith Witch herself was unaffected by the Force bubble generated by the furry creatures—her Master had taken her through the long and grueling training of overcoming an ysalamiri's Force-negating abilities. It would give her a distinct advantage over the arriving Jedi, one that she planned to use to the fullest.
"The woman will be interesting prey," she said in a voice that sent shivers down Daala's spine. She curved her mouth in a gesture that, though it was a smile of anticipation, was indistinguishable from a grimace. She grasped her lightsaber firmly, and then stalked from the bridge.
Daala smiled in anticipation as she watched the Sith Witch leave. "The HRD was just a warm-up for Skywalker and his woman, compared to her," she said softly under her breath.
"Almost got it"
Callista struggled into the tight lifesuit, which seemed to be made for a Jawa—certainly they must not have had a tall girl like her in mind when they had designed it.
"You all right in there, Callie?" Luke said, watching her.
She saw a glint of amusement twinkle in his blue eyes, and she gave him a playful smirk. "Not a word out of you," she said. She tugged one last time at the zipper and exhaled. "Well, that was a blow to my self-esteem. I guess it's showtime, then."
"Now or never," he said, reaching out his hand for hers to take.
"Hey, Luke!"
Callista heard the voice through the comm as well, and she recognized it as that of Luke's friend, Wedge Antilles.
"Yeah, Wedge?"
"We're coming up on the perimeterAll my men are going to surround this thing; you two sure you still want to go through with this?"
Callista nodded at Luke. We've got to try, she whispered to him through the Force. There are not enough of them out there—we've got to make this thing go down from the inside
She saw a flash of protectiveness in his eyes again—for a moment, she thought that he would give in to Wedge and call off their plan. Then he finally nodded back at her.
"We're still going to do it, Wedge. We've got to try and do what we can from inside that ship"
Wedge sighed on the other end of the comm and was silent for a few tense seconds. "I hope you know what you're doing," he said at last.
Luke looked at Callista and smiled. "Me, too."
Callista tossed Luke his helmet, and kissed him before clamping hers into place, trying hard not to let her fear show on her face. "Be careful," she said.
Luke smiled, and gestured toward the hatch. "After you."
Callista winked at him, seated herself in front of the airlock hatch, and launched.
Almost immediately, she felt a horrible lurch in her stomach as she was shot out of the Shapeshifter's airlock. The walls around her became a blurry, incoherent mass as she moved with incredible speed, and finally ejected out into the vastness of space. She heard a swoosh of released air as Luke followed after her.
An overwhelming panic trembled through Callista's body, and she began to flap her arms wildly as she floated weightlessly in the black canopy of stars, afraid that she would soon start to fall, and be unable to stop herself. She felt Luke's mind reach out to hers, soothing her raging thoughts, clearing her mind. She looked over at him, unable to see his face through the black visor, and offered him a grateful smile as they plummeted toward the enormous Super Star Destroyer. Wedge's squadron of X-wings arrowed after them, protectively flanking the two Jedi.
A TIE fighter flew past them, narrowly missing Luke's left leg. The screech of its Twin Ion Engines was deafening, and Callista felt her eardrums almost pop. The urge to vomit in her helmet was so great that she almost succumbed, and yet she somehow managed to fight it back. Stars danced all around her as she drifted through space, barely able to control her movement. So, this is what space feels like
Seconds later, they struck something hard and metallic, and when Callista regained her vision, she saw that they had hit the hull of the Knight Hammer. The gravity suits kept their feet attached to the ship, so they would not be hurled back out into space.
Callista saw Wedge's X-wing hover next to them, close enough for her to see his face. Luke gave Wedge a thumbs-up, and Wedge saluted back.
Slowly, but carefully, they began crawling over the hull of the Knight Hammer, a task complicated by the magnetized spacesuits they wore. TIE fighters kept launching, and space around the leviathan was one roiling dogfight between the Rogues, the Falcon, and TIEs, but none of the Imperial pilots noticed the two Jedi clinging to the hull.
"Whose crazy idea was this?" Luke asked dryly as they struggled toward an airlock on the hull. "Isn't there an easier way of doing this?"
"Well, if you think knocking on Daala's front door is a better way to get inside this tin can, then by all means, feel free todo so," Callista replied in an equally dry voice, causing Luke to grin sheepishly.
They finally reached an airlock, and Callista set to work opening it. She struggled with the controls, cursing her awkward spacesuit, careful not to tear it on the sharp durasteel. Should her suit suffer even the smallest tear, she would be dead within seconds. She felt sweat prickle on her eyebrows as she worked on the locked hatch, feeling an all-too-familiar sense of déjà vu. This was far too much like her breaking into the Eye of Palpatine
She finally managed to open the outer door. The two of them clambered inside at the same time, and Luke resealed the hatch. Callista opened the inner doors, hearing the whoosh as air flooded into the chamber, then yanked off her helmet to take breaths of fresh, unprocessed air and wipe the sweat from her forehead. The two of them swiftly removed their spacesuits, and then headed down a corridor that led toward the main docking bay.
This section of the Knight Hammer seemed deserted, and Callista's unease grew steadily, compounded by the fact that the ysalamiri were blocking her from using the Force.
The two of them entered a large, dimly lit room, and stopped. There were three or four doors at the far end of the room, all leading in different directions, and Callista hesitated, unsure of which to take.
"Perhaps we should split up?" Callista suggested.
Luke shook his head. "I think that's what they want. We should stay together."
"Yes, do, Jedi," a voice hissed from behind them. "It will be more interesting."
Luke and Callista spun around to see a monster standing in the doorway they had just come from.
She was tall, with grayish, leathery skin and long red ropes of hair that fell to her demonic eyes. It was clear to them that she was not there to give them the grand tour. Luke's face was contorted with utter revulsion, while Callista's eyes widened in recognition and horror. The Sith Witch, she realized, as she stared into the creature's disgusting face, now worn and wrinkled with age, but she would recognize that face anywhere. She had been a servant of Palpatine's, a figure always shrouded in mystery and death. Callista had only seen a glimpse of her, just after she had finished her training, during a fierce battle that had cost the lives of many promising Jedi Knights. But she thought she had been killed—
Luke and Callista simultaneously ignited their lightsabers, the green and yellow blades casting a glow in the dimly lit room, and split up, approaching the woman from both sides. They did not bother trying to reason with her. It was obvious that the woman had only one intention in mind.
In response, she moved toward Callista, staring straight into her eyes as Callista adopted a defensive stance. Callista hesitated as the Sith Witch came into striking range of her lightsaber, bemused by the unharmful approach, and the Sith Witch immediately lunged forward.
Her attack was the quickest Callista had ever seen. With a smooth, practiced motion, her lightsaber ignited and crashed into Callista's with her full weight behind it.
The impact knocked Callista back a few steps, and the Sith Witch again came forward, extending her arm as if to punch Callista. Only battle experience saved Callista. She jerked aside, seeing the blur of motion as something dropped out of the Sith Witch's sleeve into her hand, and the Witch struck at Callista with something that Callista could only call a lightdagger.
She leaped back to open some space between them, and the Sith Witch snarled at losing the chance of a quick kill.
She whipped around to face Luke, who was approaching, and countered his blow. The two of them stood staring at each other across their blades for a few moments, and then the Sith Witch spun away as Callista came back into the fight.