Chapter 8
Hitting Bottom
Wann's eyes lit up as he saw the data module placed before him. "Excellent! It does not appear to have been tampered with, so the Sith did not manage to copy its contents yet."
"We have you what you want," Canderous said. "And we expect our payment."
"Yes...your information." He dropped his voice, almost a formality. "We are not supposed to speak of this, but we have exhausted all other options. I think we can entrust you with this."
"What's gone wrong?" Carth asked.
"As you know, the Republic is fighting for its very existence against the evil of the Sith Empire. As you undoubtedly know, we are doing very poorly. We need much in the way of supplies and material to stem the tide of battle and bring us victory. Manaan is the sole source of kolto, the most powerful medical substance in the galaxy. Frankly, we need as much of it as we can get."
"What has the Republic done?" Kairi asked, though she seemed to suspect the answer already.
"The Selkath conservatives with their neutrality treaties seek to treat the Sith and Republic equally. This includes kolto exports. But a few of the more far-sighted Selkath see that if the Sith are allowed to win, the galaxy would be plunged into darkness and there would be nothing to stop them from taking Manaan anyway." Wann pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "So, we made a deal..."
"You violated the treaty," Juhani said, scowling.
"Not so loud! Yes, it is a technical violation of the treaty, but it is sanctioned by elements of the Selkath government."
"Dangerous..." Kairi muttered.
"I know, but to the Senate, it seemed to outweigh the risks. We need only keep it secret from the Sith. We recently began construction of a secret underwater facility to harvest kolto directly at its source. We also hope one day to be able to synthesize it effectively. Current techniques are insufficient for the task, so we must mine it for now. The amount we take would hardly be noticed, since most of it is lost naturally before it reaches the surface anyway."
"And?" Kairi asked.
"We were nearing completion of the base when the digging teams reported some sort of obstruction, an ancient building or artifact. It's possibly your 'Star Map.' Transmissions from the base were cut off abruptly after that, and we haven't heard from the station since."
"What happened down there?" Kairi asked.
"We don't know. We just don't know. As you may have noticed, we are hiring a lot of mercenaries around Ahto City. Ostensibly, they're being shipped off-world to aid in our fight against the Sith, but they really are for another purpose. When we lost contact with the station in the Hrakert rift, we sent our contingent of Republic soldiers to investigate. None returned. We tried hiring mercenaries and sending them down as well, but none of those expeditions have returned, either."
"And no further contact at all?" Kairi asked.
"None. The reason we really sent that droid underwater - and the reason we needed its data back so badly - was to find out what had happened to the Hrakert Rift station. But now that we have the data back, our operation is no longer in danger of exposure to the Sith. And now I must live up to my end of the bargain."
"How are we to get down there?" Juhani asked.
"I took the liberty of having a submarine prepared for your departure. Merely use this card to get past the door behind our kolto packing room and enter the sub therein. It has been programmed to take you down to the station. It has also been programmed to take you to the surface once your mission is complete."
"Very well," Kairi said.
"I would send soldiers to assist you, but we have lost many of ours, and nearly exhausted the mercenary population of this planet. The soldiers we have are barely enough to keep this base secure. Worse, the Sith have noticed our interest and begun to bribe mercenaries away from us. Please, find out what happened to the facility. There may be some survivors left down there, perhaps even the head scientist - Kono Nolan. Good luck in your efforts."
Armed with construction blueprints, Kairi plotted a possible strategy through the base. There were four seats on the submersible. She and Bastila would have to go, of course. And because she suspected that whatever was down there might require firepower added to the lightsabers, Canderous and HK-47 were added to the roster.
If she hadn't known it before, hearing Kairi plot the strategy confirmed it. Bastila was in charge of this in name only. True command was with Kairi, and she hadn't even intended it. If one told her about it, Bastila thought, she would shake it off and insist that the Ebon Hawk was a true anarchy - all using their talents support the greater entity that was their crew. She was simply a translator, a good listener, and had a talent for strategy. She and Jolee both would place "Jedi" low on the list of descriptors for themselves.
Small wonder she and the old man got on so well.
They all retired to the Ebon Hawk for a bit of rest before their big day tomorrow. Most everyone was bone weary. Kairi was making more notes on the plan when the ramp opened and Jolee stepped in. Kairi looked up.
"I heard. You found Sunry innocent?"
"Innocent, mm? I don't know what to make of it, to tell you the truth. But that has little to do with the law, does it? A sad state of affairs, that. Too bad, really. Sunry was a good man once."
"You say you defended a guilty man?"
Jolee sighed. Kairi didn't want the answer to that question, she decided. "Speaking of going bad, it looks like the rest of us will be busy with a mess the Republic's made." She sighed. "The Sith try to subvert the government and the Republic makes and end run around it. Neither party has any respect for the Selkath - and this is their world."
"Careful, my dear. Keep that up, and you'll be a bitter old person like me."
A smile out of her. "Thank you, Jolee. I've missed your voice, even if you never did say why you decided to come along..."
"No, I never did, did I?"
Kairi laughed again. "Are you always going to be so elusive?"
"Me? Elusive? Heh, obviously you've never tried to grab a Twi'lek dancing girl after drinking too much Ondaran willek juice! At any rate, I told you why I wanted to leave. I'd seen all I wanted to see on Kashyyyk. Time to go, time to move on."
"To anywhere in particular?"
"To bed!" Jolee said. "I'm old and tired, you know."
This sent Kairi into a fit of laughter.
"Sure, laugh! I'll bet you can't stay in one room fifteen minutes. I mean, how many kilometer high trees can you see before you decide you've seen enough? And all the critters in the Shadowlands...I'm just happy to be back in space, doing something new. Is that too much to ask?"
"Not at all."
"There now! Was that so hard? An old man has to be allowed some petty eccentricities. Nice to see you agree." He shrugged. "I'll admit, for all its flaws, Kashyyyk was home enough, but when I saw the destiny you had before you, I couldn't help but be intrigued..."
This made Kairi very uncomfortable, like facing the Masters before her training began, or those times she swore she could sense Bastila hiding something..."Why?"
"It's not a vested interest, Kairi. It's more like...idle curiosity," he assured her. "You've got that Force hurricane about you, yes, but there's much about you that's unclear. Everything I see about you is odd...slightly off as though my eyes are tricking me. Something...something very dark about you."
She sighed and rolled out the blueprints. "Yes. No matter how hard I try, I fall so short. To hear Bastila say it, I'm already doomed."
"I wasn't meaning so much the Dark Side, really. It could be that..." he said. "Don't get me wrong. But there's a lot about you that doesn't quite read correctly. What did you say you were again?"
"Bastila's translator," she said. "Just a diplomatic aide, trained in languages and protocol. That would explain some of my abilities, at least."
"Ah." he said. "But no memories. I heard about that from the rest of the crew."
Kairi didn't say anything, continuing to study the charts sadly.
"What's eating you, dear?"
She sighed. "I make a terrible Jedi, Jolee. I've succeeded in bringing the crew together, but I have failed in other ways. How can there be no emotion when I am constantly hearing the emotions of others? How can I call myself a servant of the Light when the dread of Darkness doesn't guide my actions?"
Jolee cut right to it. "And Jedi know not fear, nor anger, nor love." He sighed. "It wasn't always this way. Please know that. For what's it's worth, Kairi, I think you make a fine Jedi. You even remind me a bit of Nomi."
"Nomi?"
"Nomi Sunrider. She was a good friend – albeit not a close one. She came late to the Force and became one of the greatest Jedi in the Order's history. Whether you'll follow the same path...well, that's to be determined. But know this, it was love that sent Nomi down the path she traveled, and love that almost destroyed her."
"I'm not certain I understand."
"Nomi was an ordinary woman – just like you were. She married a Jedi Knight, and they had a beautiful little girl. She was a pain in the rear to baby-sit, but that's another story altogether. Point is, Nomi saw brigands slay her husband right in front of her. She had to protect herself and their child, so she picked up his lightsaber and killed them in self-defense. The Council decided that they would train her, and she agreed to it, if only out of the memory of her husband."
Kairi closed her eyes. What would happen if Carth had perished from that Dark Jedi's attack? She shuddered to think of what could have been.
"She found companionship with one of the Qel-Droma boys. Again, really good Jedi. But, this being Exar Kun's time, things went very badly. He got captured by some very bad people...and fell to the Dark Side. In fact, he was Kun's apprentice. Broke her heart. I don't think she ever recovered from it, fully."
"A sad story."
"Sadder to see it twice in a lifetime. Almost too much of a strain for this old heart. Apprentice fighting master, friends and lovers turned to mortal enemies. Even if I don't agree with the Jedi Council of now, I can certainly appreciate their fear." He bowed his head. "To some extent, all Jedi knew the heartbreak she did." His eyes stared into nothing, his voice heavy and pained. "Some of us more than others, but all of us did."
Kairi wanted to ask him his story, the way she had cozened stories from the others – stories of great battles, great tragedies, upbeat survival stories, and crushing tales of bigotry and abuse. However, there was something in Jolee's heavy voice that stopped her. After a moment, curiosity got the better of her "I'm sorry, I shouldn't pry, but..."
"Oh, but you want to pry. You may mean well enough, but my private affairs are just that: private. Let me tell you something, Kairi. You may not have much for memories now, but if you live to be my age, you'll have yourself a long, long list of ones to call your own." He walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "If you're lucky, most of them will be good. If you're not, some will be bad. If you're really unlucky, some will be so bad you never want to be reminded of them again...ever. You'll go far away, to a place that doesn't hold any memories at all. And there you'll be happy just to forget and be forgotten."
"Kashyyyk," she said. It wasn't a question.
"Heh. Partly, maybe. I doubt I could ever explain it fully, even if I wanted to." He pulled up a cargo crate and sat on it as he spoke to her. "Let me ask you this: have you ever been in love? Truly in love, I mean, and not simple infatuation?"
Kairi could not help a moment's glance towards the cockpit. What reference did she have for answering Jolee's question? She racked her wearied mind and heart and no answer came to her.
"Exactly," he said. "You're still at the beginning of your life. There will be men in your life...perhaps many men...but if you're fortunate, you'll find love once. The Jedi, with their damnable sense of over-caution, would tell you love is something to avoid." He shook his head. "Thankfully, anyone who's even partially alive knows that's not true."
"That's...what I've come to believe, yes," she answered. "It is why Bastila is so disappointed in me, I think. Jolee, I cannot stop this...this weakness of mine." Another look towards the cockpit, and another nod to the sleeping quarters. "The Jedi would have me know that I rely on a false strength, that it will corrupt and destroy me in the end. But, I love, Jolee. All of them and each of them, in ways as different as they are."
"Love doesn't lead to the Dark Side," Jolee reassured her. "Passion can lead to rage and fear, and can be controlled, but passion is not the same thing as love. Controlling your passions while being in love...that's what they should teach you to beware. But love, itself, will save you, not condemn you." She looked up at him, feeling hope for the first time since they arrived. "Ah, but listen to me go on as if I had all the answers. I'm just a lonely old man who's not even a Jedi."
"You are more a Jedi then you think. Either that, or we're both the bad examples," she joked weakly. "Thank you for your wise words."
"I wouldn't listen too closely. I'm no authority on anything. I just think that the greatest things in life shouldn't be avoided because they come with a few complications. Love causes pain, certainly. Inevitably, love will lead to as much sorrow and regret as it does joy. I suppose there are perfect, eternal loves out there, but I haven't seen any. How you deal with the bad part of love is what determines your character, what determines the Dark Side's hold over you."
Kairi mulled over his words. Joy and sorrow, two sides of the same cutting blade. Perhaps she would be taken from them, but surely she would remember them. It would be highly unlikely that she would lose these memories, too.
Jolee had a caveat, however. "I'll tell you one thing: sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you and the one you love simply aren't meant to be together. The trick is to know when it's time to fight and when it's time to part ways." He stood up and brushed off his robe. "Hmph...there I go, waxing philosophical again. Someone blast me, already!"
"Jolee...thank you."
All he did was pat her shoulder before heading off to bed.
In the other visions, Kairi had been a mere observer, watching the small glimpses into the journey of Malak and Revan with no more involvement than watching a holovid. This time was different. This time, she was walking the same steps.
The research station was only half-finished. The lighting was minimal, and the tight corridors were claustrophobic. The Star Map they sought was here – close. Passing like a ghost through the airlock doors, Kairi found herself hobbling slowly along the ocean floor.
She passed a gigantic machine that undersea construction droids were buzzing around like insects around carrion, picking and twisting the skeleton of the machine near them. Past it was an underwater cave. It held no use to the station's residents, but the sunken ruins held exactly what she had been looking for.
She shuffled into the cave where the Star Map waited, already open and displaying its brightly-lit map of the galaxy. Kairi gasped and started to push towards it, but that's when she saw she wasn't alone.
Sitting before it, in a perfectly-still meditation pose was what looked to be Darth Revan. The garb – a combination of duelist's fiber armor and black robes – was unmistakable. Kairi did not draw her blade – yet.
It was then that the Revan-figure acknowledged her presence. Jumping up, the figure drew a violet blade and moved like wind, slamming her against the cave wall, the energy from the blade burning her skin.
"There is no comfort – there is suffering. There is no love- there is loss. There are no noble acts – only futile ones. There is no salvation – there is oblivion."
Revan threw Kairi to the ground, and she landed on her back. One hand held the violet blade to her chest while the other reached up to the mask that covered all of the face. With a smooth motion, it was pulled away and fell to the ocean floor.
Kairi was looking up at a face that was far too thin to be healthy. Sunken eyes and ashen skin only added to the death-mask appearance. The eyes were heavy with pain, anger, and embittered resignation, but Kairi could not deny the truth she saw within. She was looking at a dark mirror of herself.
The saber raised and cut...
Kairi awoke, screaming.
The submersible was claustrophobic and did little to ease the tension. Kairi found herself watching out of the viewports at the astounding array of life in Manaan's calm oceans. Phosphorescent fish darted among dark beds of kelp. Giant firaxan sharks as big as their submersible passed within meters of them. Rock formations were akin to high-rise apartments, layering many crustaceans, water insects, and tentacled life forms in a discernible pattern that changed gradually as they descended.
With the pressures at the depths, only the firaxan sharks and a few hardy fish made their home here. Some sea plants had adapted as well, clinging to the depths and swaying with the current. Bastila coolly piloted past the wreckage that used to be the station.
"The south side is flooded, but I'm reading two sets of life forms," she said. "One is near to the kolto processing at the south-east corner. The other set is in the northern half of the station. Much of that part is surprisingly intact."
They pulled into the docking bay and rose to the submersible berth. Applying the anchoring gear, Bastila opened the hatch, allowing the four of them to exit the craft.
It was like a watery grave in here - the life supports barely functioned, and the station was dying by millimeters as its pressure seals leaked slowly, like the walls were crying. Small creaks and groans were amplified, and the sound of distant Selkath voices could be heard. The air was breathable, but bitterly cold. Stale air reeked of ocean water and rotting flesh. It did not appear to affect Canderous, and it certainly didn't matter to HK-47, but Bastila and Kairi shivered through their robes.
There were several bloodied bodies in the docking bay. The poor souls looked like they were set upon and literally torn into pieces. It was barely a taste of things to come.
The door on the far end opened. A shaking, green-skinned Twi'lek pointed his blaster at them. "How...how did you get in? Did they send another submersible? Quick, we have to get out of there. We have to get away!"
Kairi put up her hands. "My name is Kairi. Please, slow down...calm yourself."
"No!" he stammered. "We have no time, we have to leave now! I managed to close the door after they killed everyone else, but I don't know how long it will hold."
"What happened here?" she asked.
"The Selkath, they went crazy! They started killing anything that moved! Someone must have triggered the defense systems, too, because all the droids activated as well. I was one of the mercs the Republic sent down here to find out what happened."
"Some excuse for a merc," Canderous said.
"What became of the scientists?" Bastila asked.
"They're dead! All dead! We came down and secured the first couple rooms. There were bodies everywhere. And the Selkath came out - screaming and croaking their fishy little war-cries." His eyes were wide with horror. "They swarmed out and over us. There was no way we could stop them. So, we ran, but hardly any of us made it. I locked the door behind us, but...but the others had already left in the submersible! The sharks...the firaxa out there and...worse...I heard an explosion shortly after the submersible left. They didn't make it. Just food for the sharks and the Selkath...like us."
Kairi nodded. "Let's get you back to the surface."
"Back to the surface? Yes...NO! there's something out there. It got the other submersible already. "
HK-47 turned his metal head to Kairi. "Suggestion: Perhaps we could dismember the organic? It would make it easier for transport to the surface."
This made the mercenary shake even harder. Kairi doubted he could fire, even if he wanted to. "Hey! Y-you can't just rip me to pieces! I'll die!"
"Amendment," said the assassin droid grudgingly. "I did forget that. Stupid, frail, non-compartmentalized meat-bags!"
"We can't leave until you do something," the Twi'lek insisted. "Blow up the entire station, maybe. That might distract whatever it is long enough for us to escape to the surface. But all the machinery and stuff is in the southern half, and that's already flooded. There might be environmental suits around but...but...the Selkath might have laid their eggs in them!"
"Wait here, then. We have to get into the station," Kairi said.
"No! I locked the doors so that the Selkath won't get in. If you open it, we're done for."
"We'll deal with that. You get in the submersible and wait for us."
He stared at them like they had gone mad. "If you go in there, you're dead - you're all dead! If you want to die, then go! You won't hear me mourning for you. I'll stay here and be safe until some kind of real rescue comes!"
Canderous pushed past the frightened man in disgust. "Don't get your hopes up too high. I have no intention of dying."
While the cold had kept the stink of death to a tolerable level, it still infected every corridor of this place. Bodies were crumpled in the halls - human, Twi'lek...many Selkath. Blood and wounds spoke of vicious, nasty ways to die. Flickering, yellowish emergency lights cloaked the hall with thin illumination and hazy shadows, buzzing with a annoying electric hum. The station was too utterly quiet for Kairi's nerves, too.
No, not quiet...it was silent to her ears, but not to her mind. There was something screaming outside, and it only seemed to get louder. Even with her mental blocks as strong as she could make them, the effect was little better than plugging one's ears at a swoop championship. It wasn't painful, but it was still enough to be very uncomfortable.
She noticed Bastila could perceive the psionic pain, and there was always a slim chance it would affect Canderous, though the Mandalorian had an average connection to the Force. She was rather glad she had brought the assassin droid, however. Being made of circuits, the constant psychic noise would have no effect.
Kairi sucked in a deep breath and continued through the macabre corridors of the station. Halfway to the scientists' offices, Canderous decided to break the tension.
"So, Bastila, I heard that back on Taris, the Vulkars captured you without much of a struggle. It must be embarrassing to be bested by a handful of street thugs," he teased.
Kairi groaned softly. She knew where this could be going. Unfortunately, she wasn't going to be able to stop them.
"There were...extenuating circumstances," Bastila snapped. "And I can assure you - it took far more than a handful of Vulkars to subdue me."
He laughed heartily. "Whatever you say. All I know is that if we had more Jedi like you fighting against us in the Mandalorian Wars, Bastila, my side might not have lost."
She gave it right back as hard as he could throw it. "Bold talk from a broken-down mercenary that was serving at the heel of a petty crime lord. I'd call you Davik's pet kath hound, but they've more loyalty than to turn on their masters."
"Insults?" That got another good laugh out of him. "Maybe if your Master had trained your lightsaber to be as quick as your tongue, you could have escaped those Vulkars, you spoiled little Jedi princess."
"I was not spoiled. I received the same training as everyone else in the Order! You are nothing but a..." Closing her eyes and talking through her teeth, she repeated the words from the Jedi Code. "There is no emotion; there is peace. I must not do this..."
"That's the problem with you damn Jedi. Always chanting peace and control, and never up for a good fight. Well, except for Revan, I guess."
"Enough, Mandalorian. I'll not rise to your bait any longer. The game is over, and there's work to be done."
As she walked out of sight and down the corridor, almost breaking into a run, Canderous leaned in and whispered to Kairi. "All right, I admit it. She is quite the sight when angry." He smiled again. "Almost makes me wish I was back at the swoop track, seeing her fight in that outfit the Vulkars put her in."
Kairi shot an incredulous look at him, but managed a chuckle. "I'll do you a favor and pretend I didn't hear that."
"Actually, you can do me a bigger one by letting her know," he said with a leer.
At the end of the hall was a scientist's office. Like everything else here, it was in shambles – like something had attacked in a fit of blind rage. Datapads were thrown against the wall, lockers of equipment overturned. There were large scratches on the walls and the furniture was broken into wood shavings and scrap metal. The only intact furniture was a desk. Opening the desk's drawer, Kairi saw three strange devices mounted to large armbands. Canderous picked one up and examined it. Kairi found a datapad – damaged, but serviceable - on the floor next to it.
I whipped up a little something that will stun the firaxa sharks. These emitters use a frequency most humanoids won't be able to detect, but that will stun the sharks for good couple of hours. So when do I get my raise?
-Caal Jordan
"Take those," Kairi said, putting the datapad aside. "We strap them on the envirosuits when we go out. Come on, I think I can remember the plans well enough to find us the airlock."
Behind them, the door slid open and the four of them whipped around. A dozen Selkath flooded into the room, shouting and screaming. Kairi was struck by the collective madness, almost a physical blow.
"HK, protect!" she ordered.
Bastila's gold saber was already ignited, Canderous charged into the fray with his heavy cannon, and HK-47's voice synthesizer let out a maniacal chuckle as he fired. Kairi took a few seconds before she was able to block out enough to light her own saber and charge in, her green blade swiping and dodging. There was no sentience to these Selkath – only madness and frenzy. Their clothing was torn and stiff with blood – both Selkath and human.
What could have done this to them?
It was easy to see how the mercenaries could have been overwhelmed. The only thing that was saving them were Bastila and Kairi using their Force abilities to split the horde of Selkath into smaller groups – stunning some while they busied themselves with others, or using telekinesis to push another group against the wall.
The wave of Selkath seemed to be endless. Kairi and Bastila were nearing exhaustion, HK-47 had sparks coming out of several junctions, and Canderous was slumped, his implants working slowly to knit his wounds by the time the waves of insane Selkath stopped barging in the doors.
Kairi took a moment to look at the horrors they beat back. Great Force! Three-dozen Selkath at least had fallen – most of them armed only with fists or debris wielded as crude weapons. HK-47 and Canderous's armors were stained with green-yellow Selkath blood. Some of it had spattered onto her and Bastila's robes as well.
Bastila must have noticed Kairi about to become ill and pulled her away from the scene, into what had once been the lavatory. Canderous and HK-47 no doubt heard her losing her breakfast, but she didn't care. Between the blood, the slaughter, her empathy...it was overload. Bastila had held back Kairi's hair during it, and offered her a gulp from the flask on her belt to wash out her mouth afterwards.
"Are you better?"
Kairi nodded shakily. "Can you hear it? The screaming?"
"I can, but not as loud as you probably can." Bastila admitted.
"Thank you," Kairi said.
Bastila knelt and took Kairi's shoulders. "I have always felt a certain responsibility to you, Kairi. In many ways, I've created what you are now. What does surprise me is how much the responsibility to look after you doesn't feel like one. It's...it's not something I'm used to."
"I never meant to be a burden to you, Bastila. But is it only duty and responsibility?" She looked up, meeting Bastila's blue-gray eyes. "I would consider you otherwise if you would allow it."
Bastila sighed. "In that, you worry me. You are so deeply connected to the rest of the crew and they to you. It worries me greatly. What if one of them was to be killed or betray us, Kairi? Say Juhani fell again to the Dark Side. Jolee's halfway there already -"
Kairi did not break from Bastila, but scowled at her. "Bastila, if you haven't noticed, we have been extending our hands to you this entire journey, and each time, you turn away – why?"
"I told you, Kairi, and I've also warned you. We are Jedi. We cannot afford these attachments. We must stand apart from those who are less gifted."
"Is that how you view us, Bastila?" Kairi said darkly. "You wonder how it is that I can walk in the light? It's not in spite of them – it's because of them."
"You lean on them like a cripple with a crutch."
Kairi sighed and stood up. "I feel very sorry for you, Bastila."
They left the room, both of them doing an elaborate job of straightening their robes. Kairi nodded to Canderous, who said nothing, and they continued into the depths of the base.
Envirosuits were easy enough to find. Three intact ones were stowed in a storage room in the base's northwest corner. Dragging the heavy suits back to the airlocks, the Jedi and Canderous put them on. HK-47 regretted that he could not follow, but agreed to guard the airlock in case there were more insane Selkath running about the base.
The depths were murky, but enhancements to the suits allowed them to detect movement and gain a rough idea of the terrain. The Hrakert Rift – a long, narrow canyon with no visible bottom – ran along the edge of the station, a narrow walkway between the station's wall and its edge.
Movement in the suits was slow and ponderous, the murky water limiting visibility to a meter or two at best. The recirculation systems pumped stale-smelling air to breathe. The emitters were strapped to their wrists as they made their way through the flooded southern half of the station towards the rift. Up ahead, they saw another suited figure.
"Who's there? You aren't Selkath, I can see that much. Are you another rescue crew?"
Kairi took care of the introductions. "I'm Kairi Niko. The Republic sent us down here to investigate."
"Oh, I'm a merc the Republic hired a couple days ago to investigate, but all we found were a bunch of insane Selkath killing everything that moves! All my companions are dead. The Selkath swarmed over us - there were dozens of them! And they...they looked wrong somehow. Like something had changed inside them. Insane or something..."
"Yes, we found those, too. I have a guess as to what might be the cause. Why are you in the underwater section of the facility?
"Oh, I'd have gone back to the surface long ago if this whole complex hadn't been overrun by all those crazy Selkath! There's no way for us to get back to the submarine docking bay.
"I can escort you to the docking bay," Kairi said. "We'll have to make a couple trips, but we do have a submersible."
The mercenary shook his head and took a step back. "And risk all those crazy fish-folk? No way! Besides, I discovered a way to get to the bay and seal off the rest of the base. I just have to find the kolto harvester they built on the edge of the Hrakert rift. It's got an emergency override to open the doors on the submarine docking bay and I could get in from the outside." Kairi more felt than saw his shrug. "I figured my only chance was to slap on an environmental suit, head out on the ocean floor and check out that harvester by myself. Besides, it's got to be safer out on the ocean floor than back in there with all those crazed Selkath mutants running around looking for dinner."
"We'll come with you, but it isn't safe out here, either. My party's secured the north end of the base already."
"I'm not spending another moment in this place - not with those psychotic fish people all over the place! I'm heading out on the ocean floor right now - it leads to another complex of buildings. Going through them is the only way to reach the kolto harvester."
"Your blasters and my saber won't be very effective down here. We need to –"
The mercenary interrupted her. "Good idea. We should probably stick together, but I won't wait around here with the Selkath. You can catch up with me if you want - down the hall and through the doors on the right. I'll be waiting on the ocean floor where it's safe."
He had a good head start on them, and was obviously more comfortable in the environmental suit than they were. He was already at the Rift's edge by they time they saw him next. He motioned to them to follow. Kairi was about to step from the base's wreckage when she held up her arm to stop her party from going any further. She sensed danger. The mercenary, however, urged them forward.
"Come on, hurry up! Don't just stand there. We have to keep moving!"
"No, come back here. It's –"
"The water's filled with –"A firxan swooped towards them like a hawk on mice. Kairi activated her sonic emitter, and the shark faltered in the water, swimming away from the trio, but the mercenary was not similarly protected. Snatching him in its massive jaws, it darted away with him. The mercenary's final scream blasted over their headsets before it silenced altogether.
"He was right. Let's get moving," Canderous said.
The emitters worked almost as a shield to keep the firaxans avoiding them until they reached the southwest airlock. "The life support's on inside," Bastila said. "Two people inside from what I can tell."
"I sense them, too," Kairi said. "But I can't be certain if they're any saner than the Selkath by now."
The airlock opened to admit them, and as soon as they were able, they peeled off the environmental suits.
This place was a little better then the main part of the station. The rotting fish smell indicated that Selkath had met their end here, but there were no bodies in sight. Before Kairi and Bastila could step forward, Canderous put a hand out.
"Minefield. They've booby-trapped the room. I'll go first and disable the mines. Afterwards, you two follow."
With small and careful steps, Canderous paced the room, stooping every half-meter or so to disable the small shrapnel mines that had been placed flush with the floor and were hard to detect, especially in the dim light. He took the disabled mines and placed them against the far wall. He followed it by turning his cannon to the lowest power, no more than a stun blaster.
"Find cover."
Ducking behind a pair of environmental suit lockers, Canderous let out a couple shots from the cannon, detonating a mine he had not previously detected. Taking cautious steps towards the door on the far end, he motioned to Kairi and Bastila.
"Follow in my footsteps. There may be more that I didn't detect earlier."
Kairi was right behind Canderous, Bastila bringing up the rear. Fortunately, they encountered no surprises on their way to the door. The door's broken controls left it unlocked, easy to open, leading them inside the central room of the southwest corner.
The two life signs they had read earlier were waiting for them behind a high-level forcefield. Unfortunately, Kairi's suspicions about them being only slightly saner than the Selkath were also confirmed. The man was wild-eyed, looking like he hadn't slept much in days. The few days' growth of beard and clothing stained in Selkath blood added to his feral appearance. He carried a stained vibroblade. Equally animalistic-looking was a disheveled looking woman of Kairi's approximate height and build, clutching a blaster in her slim, dark fingers.
Upon seeing them, the man shouted. "No - no, you can't come in here! You'll let the firaxa and the Selkath in! No. Stay out! Stay out! I won't let you open the doors for those monsters to get in."
"Sir –"Kairi tried to speak to him, but he was past reason. The doors around them slammed shut, trapping the party inside. The man continued to rant.
"I'll stop you." He laughed unsteadily. "I'll suck all the pressure out of the chamber! That'll stop you."
"Kill them. Kill them all!" shrieked the woman.
The hiss of air being sucked out of the chamber...it became hard to breathe very quickly. Kairi pulled back her robe to show them her lightsaber, reaching out with her emotions as well as her words. "Please!" she said between gasps. "Stop this. You'll kill...kill yourselves. We're...we're here to help you...Please!"
Whether it was Force empathy, her words, or both...it got through to the half-crazy man. He slammed the depressurization panel again and slumped to the floor. Welcome, breathable air circulated within the chamber again.
"What...what do you want? Go away! You'll let the firaxa and the Selkath in! They'll get us like they did the others!" He groaned and closed his eyes, starting to babble. "No...the firaxa...the Selkath...I...I can't let you in. they'll get us!"
"I can protect you, I promise. But you're going to have to let me in." Kairi again projected her emotions to try and back up her sincerity.
"No, the firaxan will get us. No, the Selkath are coming...No..." said the man.
The woman was in tears, rocking back and forth. "No...no..."
"Forget it," muttered Canderous. "They've utterly lost their minds."
"Allow Kairi her chance," Bastila said. "She seems to be getting through to them."
"Shh...shhh...they're gone. I'll protect you. You're safe," Kairi's voice was like that of a mother soothing a small child's nightmare. The spell of insanity seemed to break like a fever, and the man shakily rose to his feet.
"I...I don't want to hurt you. I don't want to hurt anyone. I'll unlock the door, but you have to come in quickly!" He lowered the forcefield and the three of them entered what had once been the station's harvest monitoring room. The man made a shaky apology. "I...I'm sorry for what I did. I don't know what came over me. I...I panicked when I heard someone outside the door. Please forgive me. I'm just so scared. I am Kono Nolan, and this is Sami. We were scientists working here on the Hrakert rift project."
"We're both scared," said the woman.
"My name's Kairi Niko. The Republic sent my crew and I to help."
Dr. Nolan shook his head. "When the Selkath went crazy, I thought everybody except Sami and me went mad. We had a few people outside the station when it happened."
"The firaxan sharks just tore them apart!" said Sami. "It was like they were frenzied!"
Nolan continued. "The next thing we know, our Selkath researchers started screaming and...clawing at everything around them. My team...my team was torn apart and eaten before my eyes! Sami and me...I...I thought we were the only ones left. We heard the Selkath outside at the doors every once in a while, and those strange noises echoing through the base."
Sami's voice could barely get above a whisper. "We thought everyone was dead - dead or insane."
"What could have driven the Selkath mad?" Bastila said.
"We don't know...not for sure," Sami said.
"The work teams were outside in the rift near the vent," said Nolan. "Then there was this rumbling and my head felt like it was splitting open..."
"This...this monster rose up from the rift."
"It was a firaxan shark, I think...bigger than any I'd seen before. Bigger than our submersibles..."
Sami put her hands to her temples. "It was like it was screaming inside my head."
Nolan shook his head. "Then all the Selkath started screaming too...and turned on us."
Kairi paused, both digesting their words and using her empathy to listen harder to the presence she felt outside the station. "The shark...it was protecting something..."
"It may...it may have been," Nolan said. "Maybe it was protecting the ruins by the rift. It could have been. It might have a lair in the Hrakert rift near the kolto vent. Hmmm...that might explain a few things, too..."
"Like what, exactly?" said Bastila.
"Like why it reacted so violently when our construction efforts got closer to the vent, and why it is so large. It must be feeding off the kolto. It would have to be ancient indeed for it to reach that size, but with kolto as a food source..." Nolan was back in scientist-mode, analyzing and interpreting what he had seen.
Sami got to her feet, equally back in her element as she talked to Nolan. "And all those other firxan sharks. Those might be its offspring."
Nolan nodded. "This may be why they all swarmed when it called out to them - children coming to protect their mother."
"You mentioned ancient ruins that it may have been guarding. Did you learn anything about them? I've heard of an artifact. It's black metal, three meters tall, has three large spires centered on three smaller spires..." Bastila asked.
"We did find something like that in the ruins, but I don't know anything about it...the ruins were excavated when we were digging the foundations for the last section of the harvesting machine. But we can't go anywhere near those now. Maybe...maybe that's why it all happened in the first place."
"Where is this mother firaxan now?" asked Kairi.
"I don't know," Nolan admitted. "It must still be out there."
Sami held her hands to her temples, the madness starting to drag her back. "Out there...waiting for us."
"Is there anything that can be done about it?" Canderous said brusquely.
"The firaxan sharks have always been a serious problem," said Nolan. "We had some blasters and projectile weapons to defend ourselves against them, but they still got some of our workers from time to time."
Sami elaborated. "We were working on a soluble chemical compound that would drive them away. Something that smelled or tasted repulsive to them, but we never got it working right."
Nolan shook his head. "Oh, I think not! Even flawed like it is, it should be ideal for this situation."
Sami grabbed Nolan's arms, pleading with him. "No! It's not working right, Kono! You don't know what it will do." She turned to the party. "The repellant we made was supposed to drive firaxan sharks away, but instead, was violently toxic to them, rupturing their outer skin and preventing them from drawing oxygen from the water by clogging their intakes".
"Which is exactly what we need in this situation!" argued Nolan "Something to kill that monster shark that destroyed our station."
"But we don't know how the chemical reacts! We only tried it in a controlled environment, and you saw what it did - not just to the sharks, either. In the open ocean, who knows what it can do. It could even affect the kolto."
"We know exactly what it will do: it will kill that shark. That's what we designed it to do!" Nolan folded his arms, unwilling to hear any further appeals.
"Destroy the shark. Sounds like a good plan," Canderous said. "Simple and effective."
"And do Force-knows-what to the Rift and the kolto? Surely there is another option," Bastila countered.
Sami turned from Nolan to float her theory. "Well, the monster seems to have been driven out by the machinery we installed at the edge of the Rift. We've seen it out there on the cameras bashing itself against the machines. I think if you destroy the machinery we installed, the shark would calm down and retreat back into its lair within the rift. You can reprogram the harvesting machines to over pressurize their self-oxidizing fuel so that the fuel tank canisters will rupture and the entire machine will destroy itself."
"But we'll lose everything we've built here - all those years of work," Nolan wailed.
"It's better than what your chemical will do to the water," Sami said.
Bastila thought a moment, then decided to take the lead. "It's safer if one of us goes alone," she said, handing her lightsaber to Kairi for safekeeping. "I shall return with the Star Map."
It did not take her long to suit up and be out the airlock onto the rift. Two narrow encounters with the firaxans later, she had managed to get close to the kolto harvester. Her movement was an awkward bobbing motion as she braced herself against the station's edge. The harvester, an enormous machine at the far end boasted, two containers of fuel. Sami told her that the best way to blow it up was to tamper with the gas mixture in the fuel cells – at four million units, it would become explosive. She would have to get away quickly
"Starting to fill injector pod. Three million sangen and counting."
The other two watched her closely on the monitor. They also had suited up – leaving the helmets off should a swift intervention be needed.
Canderous seemed disappointed. "Told her venting the toxin would be easier."
Kairi shook her head. "And if we somehow damaged the kolto? Think of the trouble that would be."
"You may be right," he admitted. "Still, I notice you Jedi never do anything the easy way. Almost makes me want to shoot the lot of you. Unfortunately, you're also too interesting to really enjoy the kill."
Kairi nodded with understanding. "Bastila?"
"I've got one million sangen in the container pod, three million in the injector. Attempting transfer now."
Kairi was suddenly overcome with dread. "Bastila, something isn't right. You've got to set that and get clear – hurry."
"Three point five...three point seven-five..."
"Bastila?"
"Don't worry about me. Four!"
BOOM!
A huge explosion rocked the station, causing their minimal light to flicker and sending the scientists sprawling against the wall.
"Bastila?" asked Kairi. "Bastila, come in."
Canderous looked at the rubble on the monitors and set his jaw. "Damn it. She didn't make it."
"No," Kairi said. "I can sense her. She's still alive, come on."
Moving was slow, painfully slow, since every second meant greater chance that they would not rescue Bastila. Under the shattered remains of the kolto harvester was a fissure in the coral, revealing the old ruins that they sought. They could also see Bastila's yellow envirosuit partially buried under a pile of rock thrown by the blast.
"You certain she is still alive?" he asked. When Kairi nodded, he did as well. No need to waste air.
The explosion also brought something else from the rift. Looming like a shadow as it emerged from the depths to stand between them and Bastila was the largest firaxan shark they had ever seen. Firaxns were normally the size of a man – this one was easily as long as the Ebon Hawk. Kairi knew this one...she had felt its presence before. This was the source of the scream.
She closed her eyes. As Canderous's hands went for the package of toxin on his belt, loading it into his modified cannon. Mandalorian weapons were adaptable for combat in any environment – including underwater. "We don't have a choice."
"Yes, we do," she said firmly. "I can sense the firxan. I'm trying to communicate with her."
"Communicate? With a monster that size? Are you mad?"
She wobbled forward. Canderous almost went for her, but realized that he wouldn't be able to stop her from this, and should the firxan attack, both of them were doomed anyway.
Kairi projected her peaceful intentions, keeping her mind clear of fear. An easier task said than accomplished, but the Mother Firaxan could interpret that fear as hostility and attack. Keeping her moves slow, she looked over to Bastila and over to the Star Map, projecting that she wanted to retrieve them.
What she got were mental images of a firaxan shark school, and a feeling of benign curiosity...understanding. After a few seconds, she called to Canderous.
"Come on. I can't carry Bastila. It's all right, the Mother knows we don't mean her harm."
Canderous must have thought she was completely mad as he walked over to the rock pile and started to dig Bastila out with help from Kairi's hands and her Jedi telekinesis. Finally uncovering her, they hear Bastila's moan over their headsets.
"You're injured, but alive," Canderous told her. Come on, we'll get you back to the station."
"Should have left me...danger out here..."
"You may have refused my mark, but that does not mean I have not already claimed you, Princess. Now shut up – you're being rescued."
She tried to chuckle, but it came out as a sniff. "Barbarian..." and promptly passed out again.
When Canderous looked up, Kairi had emerged from the coral cave. The Star Map was open, displaying its strange display. The small Jedi held up her datapad. "Finished."
With that, the Mother Firxan projected a feeling of gratitude and satisfaction, calmly sinking back into the rift she emerged from.
When they passed back through the airlock and discarded the suits, they were all waiting for her. Kairi was using the Force to get Bastila stable enough for transport.
"That shark..." Sami could barely speak. "Oh, we saw it all on the cameras! That creature...the giant firaxan shark, the guardian of the kolto, or whatever it was, seems to have calmed down."
"More than that," Kairi said. "She's sentient."
"Incredible... " Sami said. "We saw it, but...well, you're the Jedi, not me. Destroying the machinery was the right thing to do for everyone."
"The hell it was!" Nolan interjected. "I can't believe what you did. How could you willfully destroy the kolto machinery? That will set us back years. I will have you know that when we get back to the surface, I'll have the Republic do a full inquiry into your actions! Now, get back to the surface and get the Republic to send a real rescue team down for us."
"We're guests here, Dr. Nolan," Kairi said gently. "File what reports you like, but the planet belongs to the Selkath."
"Arrogant Jedi..." Nolan stormed off behind one of the doors to start swearing.
"It might even be safe to go outside now. But we'll stay here and wait for the Republic rescue crews. In the meantime, I'll attempt to cool him off." Sami said. "Thank you for not making a huge mistake."
"We'll have Wann send them as soon as we get back. Thank you. In the meantime, keep watch on Bastila, please. She'll need proper medical care – and that can come with the evacuation team."
Reuniting with HK-47, they wound their way back through the broken station and into the submersible without incident. When they surfaced, the rest of the crew was waiting. Apparently, they'd become very worried and had been keeping vigil. T3-M4 whistled cheerfully. HK-47 got the first word in.
"Statement: You worry too much for a droid."
That was met with a scolding set of beeps.
"Where's Bastila?" asked Carth. "Did she...?"
"She's all right, but she will need a trip to the medical bay," Kairi explained.
Roland Wann entered the room and walked right up to the three who had come from the submersible. "Did you find out what had happened down there at the facility?"
Kairi nodded. "At least two scientists and one mercenary are down there still. They're alive and needing rescue, as is the other Jedi that was with us. They're in bad need of medical and psychological attention."
"Well, that's good to know. Good to know indeed."
"I had hoped the ocean's spirits had not claimed you all," Zaalbar said.
"I'll have to tell you all later." Kairi was still overwhelmed by it all. She would have to regain her equilibrium before she could speak of it clearly.
"The construction you were doing down there woke something up," Canderous explained. "Something that wasn't very happy about it. It was a gigantic shark and it drove the Selkath on the base into frenzy. We had to defend ourselves. They became animals and killed your mercenary teams and most of the scientists."
"That's...that's horrible. The entire operation wasted by a disaster we could never in a thousand years foreseen. But what has happened to the facility itself? Was it damaged?"
"The station is likely a total loss. And the harvesting machine had to be destroyed," she reported.
Wann threw up his hands. "No! That is terrible. That will set our work back years! It may even cost us the war. While I am glad that you were able to solve our problems, the cost may have ended up being too high." He shook his head and sighed. "But you have done your job and helped us in our time of need, and for that I thank you." As an obvious afterthought, he finally asked. "Oh, and did you end up finding your Star Map?"
"Yes," Kairi said. "We found it."
"As you can see, by helping us, you helped yourself. Perhaps we can work together again in the future."
The evacuation teams found five survivors in all. Kolo, Sami, the Twi'lek mercenary, another scientist who had gone quite insane and had to be pulled from an equipment locker, and a delirious Selkath who could remember nothing at all, and probably for the better. Bastila was also retrieved and taken on a stretcher to the embassy's infirmary where a plentiful supply of local kolto would have her back to full health in a couple days.
The rest of the crew was making their way back to the Ebon Hawk to make preparations to leave the planet. They'd barely reached the courtyard outside the Embassy before they were surrounded by Selkath guards.
"Not again," grumbled Carth.
"We have detected a number of underwater detonations coming from the vicinity of the Hrakert Rift. You have been known to have asked questions about this, and our spy monitors in the Republic Embassy recorded your leaving in a submersible that descended to the Hrakert Rift. You will come with us immediately to answer for your actions, or we will take you by force!"
"Very well, I will come peacefully," said Kairi as the party was marched back to the courthouse.
"Well, human," Shelkar said. "You find yourself in a most difficult situation. The Hrakert Rift is the most precious resource on Manaan, and anything that threatens it or the kolto it produces threatens our entire species.
"We do not tolerate threats to our neutrality, or existence, or our way of life," Duula said.
Jhosa was in agreement. "As much as we may admire your Republic, and your order in particular, you will have a hard time explaining your role in this incident adequately."
Naleshekan glowered at the party. "We have determined that you were responsible for the detonations that occurred near the Hrakert rift. We demand to know what happened down there."
Duula crossed his long arms. "If the Republic has broken its neutrality treaty with us, the repercussions shall be grave indeed."
Shelkar held up his hands to quiet his colleagues down. "What have you done to the Rift?"
"The explosions were at a research station the Republic and Selkath authority set up there to study the ocean floor," Kairi said.
"Research station?" Naleshekan argued. "What are you talking about? Don't try to lie to us, human!"
Shelkar held up a hand. "We know of this facility."
Naleshekan looked ready to choke. "What?"
Shelkar shot a glance to him "It will be discussed later."
"This cannot be kept silent! The Council will..."
Shelkar glared at him "The Council will hear nothing of this! And you will keep your silence or be ejected from the court."
Naleshekan still wanted to protest "But, we cannot..."
"Silence!"Jhosa decided to continue with the questions. "What has happened to this research station? What caused the explosions?"
"Everyone on the station had been driven mad," Kairi explained. "I'm sorry to bring such bad news, but many Selkath are among the dead."
"Mad?" Jhosa was shocked. "I find that hard to believe, human."
Kota leaned over to her colleague. "We did receive those transmissions just before the station went silent."
Naleshekan stood up, head darting about the room in panic. "Ask the human what happened!"
Shelkar was a study in calm that even Jedi Masters would aspire to. "Well, human, what drove all of the sentients down there mad?"
"I can't be certain, but the Republic's machines woke up a giant firaxan shark...she may have been trying to protect herself and her brood. Her psychic call was perceived as a telepathic scream by the humans, but the Selkath reacted...violently. I'm...I'm sorry, but they attacked the other researchers as well as the rescue teams the Republic sent."
Naleshekan could hardly speak "You accuse us of being to blame for this!"
Shelkar's considerable patience was being tried. "Calm yourself. We are more advanced than that."
Kota was breathless. "A giant firaxan? A mother firaxan? Could it be...?"
Naleshekan looked at Kota with disbelief. "Impossible! It is only a legend!"
Jhosa was worried. "But she said she killed it...didn't she?"
Shelkar shared the worry, but gave an appearance of control. "You killed this giant firaxan, human?"
Kairi shook her head. "No, I destroyed the machines in order to save her. That calmed the firaxan down, and she swam back to her lair. I even got close enough to touch her, and she made no move to attack. She is sentient, your Honor. She knew what I was doing down there and spared our lives."
Shocked silence among the judges as they stared at Kairi. One could hear a drop of water hit the floor in this room. Gone was the din of a few moments earlier.
There is no chaos...Kairi thought wryly.
Kota was smiling happily. "But what if it was the life-bringer...the ancestor of our species...think of what this could mean!"
Jhosa shook his head in wonderment. "If it always laired there, then perhaps the kolto..."
"Enough! Off-worlders are not to hear of such things," warned Shelkar.
"But she says she saved it. She destroyed the Republic's machines to save it!" Kota's green eyes were wide and full of reverence.
Shelkar nodded "This casts your actions in a whole new light, human." He checked his terminal. "Yes...that would be the only explanation..." He looked up again. "We thank you for the destruction of the machinery and the saving of the mother firxan which, we believe, is the source of our kolto...or at least its guardian. We will not detain you any longer. While we cannot show our gratitude overtly, know that you have earned our respect. You may go. Please, human, do not come before us again!"