An Enemy Within
A Story by LCM Mitth'raw'eana
Chapter Three
Thelea lands on a swamp close to a big statue. She jumps off from her Z-95 and looks around her. All she can see is swamp and that statue.
She can sense the Dark Side here, so she leaves her blaster in her fighter's cockpit and instead of it she decides to take her lightsaber with her. This weapon she inherited from her ancestor, Jedi Master Arca Jeth of Arkania.
Then she turns to face that statue. She senses a some kind of field in between herself and the statue. She almost touches the field but just before she would've touched the field, she pulls her hand back.
She thinks about her situation. She might risk her life by trying to pass this field. On the other hand, if she turns back now, she would be dead for sure.
Suddenly she hears an engine's roar. She looks up and sees an A- wing. It looks very familiar...
After the A-wing has landed and its pilot stepped out from its cockpit, she recognizes the pilot. "What are you doing in here?"
Wellen Carlan smiles. "I guessed that someone has to keep you from getting into trouble... So I just followed you."
Thelea's laughter sounds relieved. "I'm glad you came, Wellen"
"You seem to be in trouble already, my young Arkanian friend." He gives her a warm smile.
Thelea glances at the statue. "True, that statue creates a some kind of field. I'm not sure how to pass it..."
"You're Jedi aren't you?"
She glances at him, then she suddenly understands her friend's thoughts. "Oh, true enough. Let's try this."
They walk through swamp. Surprizingly they don't meet any opposition. After walking about half an hour they arrive to an area of swamp.
After exploring the entire area, they realize that there's no path leading away from there, except the one they used to get in here.
"Great! Now what?" Thelea's voice sounds frustrated.
Wellen walks around two statues. Suddenly he notices a face carved in stone or something like that. He walks toward the face, but suddenly he steps on something that could be a hatch made from durasteel. "Thelea, come here, I found something!"
Thelea rushes to him. "What is it? A some kind of way out of here?"
Wellen nods. "I think so. It could be a hatch. All we have to figure out now is, how to open it."
Thelea walks to the carved face and runs her clawed fingers on the surface. Then she realizes how to open that hatch.
After a lot of swimming, some more swamps and some kind of rooms and stairs made from stone, let alone small, hairy, and cute creatures, who block the Force somehow, they reach the temple. In front of the entrance itself, there's a pond. Unfortunately they happen to be on the wrong side of that pond...
Wellen looks at the pond suspiciously. "We could swim. It's not that large." Thelea glances at the pond. "There's something in there. I don't know what, and I'm not sure I even want to know..."
"No swimming, then. Too bad we don't have any jetpack with us."
Thelea smiles dryly. "There's an alternative..." She explains her plan to him.
On the other side of the pond Thelea approaches the entrance guarded by two statues. When she gets close enough, the door slides open.
They look at each other and Thelea steps in followed immediately by Wellen.
When the door shuts behind him the corridor in front of them loses its last source of light and becomes dark. Thelea activates her lightsaber and its purple blade gives enough light for them to walk.
Wellen follows her down the corridor, pass two statues carrying lightsabers to a yard (or something) with a hound-like creature. It notices them, but doesn't attack. On the contrary it goes back to sleep.
"What was that about?" Thelea wonders.
Wellen shrugs. "Who knows? Or cares? At least it didn't attack!"
After more swimming, statues with lightsabers, and non-hostile creatures, they find themselves in a front of huge door.
Both are soaking wet and they leave wet trails as approaching the door, which opens before them.
Thelea leads Wellen into a chamber. It could be just a normal room, if there wouldn't be a huge hole in the floor.
"Now what?" He is frustrated.
She looks at him, and then she leans over the hole. Then, without a warning, she jumps into the hole. With a heavy sigh, he follows.
An hour later they are in a room. Though neither has any idea how they got there. On the other side of the room there's a throne made of stone. On the wall opposite the throne, there's a carving of a kneeled Jedi Knight.
Thelea studies the carving and finds a carved text near the figure itself. She translates the text and turns around.
The expression on Wellen's face is curious, but he says nothing.
She walks to the throne and presses a certain part of it. This causes a datacard to pop out from the throne's seat. "Finally. Coordinates to a place I've been looking for so long..." She says these words quietly, more to herself than Wellen, who hears them anyway.
"What coordinates?" he asks her.
She turns around. "To the Lost Planet of Jedi..."
He looks at her with disbelief. "You've been looking the Valley of the Jedi!" He can't obviously believe his ears.
She nods slightly. "So?"
"Why?" he insists.
"I... I'm not sure-"
"Come on, tell me."
She looks in his eyes for a while before replying. "You deserve to know the truth, my friend." She sits down on the floor. He follows her example. "You know about my past, don't you? You know I'm an orphan. But I never told anyone about the man who raised me. His name was... No, it doesn't matter. Not now. Anyway, he told me about an object, the Arkanian Holocron. He said that, according to what he knows, it contains all the knowledge in the galaxy. I need to find it. It might be the only thing containing the information about my parents." Mostly true.
"Why this man upset you?" Quietly.
A sigh. "He's a Dark Jedi. Probably even a Dark Lord of the Sith. He began to teach me his dark art when I was young. It took me some time to realize what he was doing, but when I did... I left. Ran away. Unfortunately he continues bugging me. "Bitter laughter.
He pulls her to her feet. "Let's go. Or are you planning to go somewhere else?"
She gives him a faint smile. "As a matter of fact... I am. I'm planning to visit the Valley of the Jedi."
He nods. "Fine with me... But at first, let's go home."
To be continued
A Story by LCM Mitth'raw'eana
Chapter Three
Thelea lands on a swamp close to a big statue. She jumps off from her Z-95 and looks around her. All she can see is swamp and that statue.
She can sense the Dark Side here, so she leaves her blaster in her fighter's cockpit and instead of it she decides to take her lightsaber with her. This weapon she inherited from her ancestor, Jedi Master Arca Jeth of Arkania.
Then she turns to face that statue. She senses a some kind of field in between herself and the statue. She almost touches the field but just before she would've touched the field, she pulls her hand back.
She thinks about her situation. She might risk her life by trying to pass this field. On the other hand, if she turns back now, she would be dead for sure.
Suddenly she hears an engine's roar. She looks up and sees an A- wing. It looks very familiar...
After the A-wing has landed and its pilot stepped out from its cockpit, she recognizes the pilot. "What are you doing in here?"
Wellen Carlan smiles. "I guessed that someone has to keep you from getting into trouble... So I just followed you."
Thelea's laughter sounds relieved. "I'm glad you came, Wellen"
"You seem to be in trouble already, my young Arkanian friend." He gives her a warm smile.
Thelea glances at the statue. "True, that statue creates a some kind of field. I'm not sure how to pass it..."
"You're Jedi aren't you?"
She glances at him, then she suddenly understands her friend's thoughts. "Oh, true enough. Let's try this."
They walk through swamp. Surprizingly they don't meet any opposition. After walking about half an hour they arrive to an area of swamp.
After exploring the entire area, they realize that there's no path leading away from there, except the one they used to get in here.
"Great! Now what?" Thelea's voice sounds frustrated.
Wellen walks around two statues. Suddenly he notices a face carved in stone or something like that. He walks toward the face, but suddenly he steps on something that could be a hatch made from durasteel. "Thelea, come here, I found something!"
Thelea rushes to him. "What is it? A some kind of way out of here?"
Wellen nods. "I think so. It could be a hatch. All we have to figure out now is, how to open it."
Thelea walks to the carved face and runs her clawed fingers on the surface. Then she realizes how to open that hatch.
After a lot of swimming, some more swamps and some kind of rooms and stairs made from stone, let alone small, hairy, and cute creatures, who block the Force somehow, they reach the temple. In front of the entrance itself, there's a pond. Unfortunately they happen to be on the wrong side of that pond...
Wellen looks at the pond suspiciously. "We could swim. It's not that large." Thelea glances at the pond. "There's something in there. I don't know what, and I'm not sure I even want to know..."
"No swimming, then. Too bad we don't have any jetpack with us."
Thelea smiles dryly. "There's an alternative..." She explains her plan to him.
On the other side of the pond Thelea approaches the entrance guarded by two statues. When she gets close enough, the door slides open.
They look at each other and Thelea steps in followed immediately by Wellen.
When the door shuts behind him the corridor in front of them loses its last source of light and becomes dark. Thelea activates her lightsaber and its purple blade gives enough light for them to walk.
Wellen follows her down the corridor, pass two statues carrying lightsabers to a yard (or something) with a hound-like creature. It notices them, but doesn't attack. On the contrary it goes back to sleep.
"What was that about?" Thelea wonders.
Wellen shrugs. "Who knows? Or cares? At least it didn't attack!"
After more swimming, statues with lightsabers, and non-hostile creatures, they find themselves in a front of huge door.
Both are soaking wet and they leave wet trails as approaching the door, which opens before them.
Thelea leads Wellen into a chamber. It could be just a normal room, if there wouldn't be a huge hole in the floor.
"Now what?" He is frustrated.
She looks at him, and then she leans over the hole. Then, without a warning, she jumps into the hole. With a heavy sigh, he follows.
An hour later they are in a room. Though neither has any idea how they got there. On the other side of the room there's a throne made of stone. On the wall opposite the throne, there's a carving of a kneeled Jedi Knight.
Thelea studies the carving and finds a carved text near the figure itself. She translates the text and turns around.
The expression on Wellen's face is curious, but he says nothing.
She walks to the throne and presses a certain part of it. This causes a datacard to pop out from the throne's seat. "Finally. Coordinates to a place I've been looking for so long..." She says these words quietly, more to herself than Wellen, who hears them anyway.
"What coordinates?" he asks her.
She turns around. "To the Lost Planet of Jedi..."
He looks at her with disbelief. "You've been looking the Valley of the Jedi!" He can't obviously believe his ears.
She nods slightly. "So?"
"Why?" he insists.
"I... I'm not sure-"
"Come on, tell me."
She looks in his eyes for a while before replying. "You deserve to know the truth, my friend." She sits down on the floor. He follows her example. "You know about my past, don't you? You know I'm an orphan. But I never told anyone about the man who raised me. His name was... No, it doesn't matter. Not now. Anyway, he told me about an object, the Arkanian Holocron. He said that, according to what he knows, it contains all the knowledge in the galaxy. I need to find it. It might be the only thing containing the information about my parents." Mostly true.
"Why this man upset you?" Quietly.
A sigh. "He's a Dark Jedi. Probably even a Dark Lord of the Sith. He began to teach me his dark art when I was young. It took me some time to realize what he was doing, but when I did... I left. Ran away. Unfortunately he continues bugging me. "Bitter laughter.
He pulls her to her feet. "Let's go. Or are you planning to go somewhere else?"
She gives him a faint smile. "As a matter of fact... I am. I'm planning to visit the Valley of the Jedi."
He nods. "Fine with me... But at first, let's go home."
To be continued