Chapter 6
"Bounty hunters," muttered a computer tech. "We don't need their scum."
"Watch your mouth," Piett advised. "Kain was once a hunter, I'm sure you're aware."
"I don't care about Kain," the tech snapped. "Hunter or not, he's scum all the same. Besides, he never kills techs."
"There's a first time for everything," Piett replied balefully, remembering the detention block officer.
Kain glided past, completely at ease with the motley collection of beings following him. Piett recognized a few of them – Bossk, the reptilian alien infamous for hunting down and exterminating escaped Wookie slaves; Dengar, the bio-mechanically enhanced, emotionless human with a mysterious hatred toward Corellians; IG-88, the weapon-laden assassin droid; Zuckuss and 4-LOM, the Gand-droid duo that had somehow never lost a hunt in their joined careers; and Aurra Sing, the slender, pale femme fatale and ex-Jedi.
Then, of course, there were the lesser-knowns, seeing this as their chance to break into the business. A human woman garbed in battered stormtrooper armor stroked a sniper rifle like a beloved pet as she passed. A lanky gray Gungan with a scar down his throat and two blaster carbines and a supply of grenades on his belt spoke in low tones with a laser-cannon-wielding Rodian, no doubt negotiating a joint hunt. Three Dugs, each so laden with guns and knives that they clattered with every step they took, laughed and joked in raucous, drunken voices. A scarlet female Twi'lek gripped a meter-long vibro-sai as if she itched to use it, a human boy barely into his teens strolled by with so many blasters strapped to his arms and legs it was a wonder he could walk, and a Whiphid-Nautolan duo conversed in a coded language as they readied poison-dart guns for the hunt.
Piett relaxed a touch as the last bounty hunter, a particularly vicious-looking Zabrak cyborg, vanished down the hallway. But that didn't last long.
"Lord Kain wants you in the conference room," a stormtrooper reported.
Piett paled. "Why me?"
The trooper gave a shrug that plainly said "I don't make the news, I just report it."
Wincing, the Admiral followed the hunters into the chamber. The criminal refuse were all sitting around the gleaming black conference table in a twisted parody of a meeting of the Grand Moffs. One of the Dugs had promptly engaged in a screaming match with the Rodian, the human boy was brazenly hitting on the trooper-woman (who was growing more disgusted by the second), Bossk was picking his teeth with a vibroblade while the Zabrak used his to carve at the zekkwood table… in short, it was total bedlam.
Then again, he supposed it wasn't THAT different from a meeting of the Moffs. Especially when said meetings were held directly after a heavy banquet. His mouth quirked in a grin as he recalled the night over three years ago when Madam Grand Admiral Olie had decked Grand Moff Tarkin after he'd overindulged on Bakuran wine and lewdly propositioned her.
"I will have your attention," Kain grated.
No one paid him any mind. Only the human went silent, and even then not of his own accord. The trooper, finally fed up with his advances, had planted a force-shivv between his shoulder blades. Not that such an occurrence was unusual in this room – especially when a Sith was in attendance.
Kain, having lived among slime like this for years, spoke their language. He yanked a blaster from the Nautolan's shoulder holster and fired once into the air. The noise eventually tapered off.
"Better," he rasped. "Now to business."
"What's the matter, Fett?" demanded Aurra. "Too high and mighty to hunt for yourself now?"
"That will be Darth Kain to you," he snarled.
"She's right," the Twi'lek replied. "You were once one of us – the best of us, in fact. Why not catch whatever fugitive you're chasing yourself?"
Piett listened, curious. This was entirely unlike a bounty hunter. Why would they try to talk him out of hiring one of them and lose potential credits?
Kain ignored the question. "There will be a substantial reward for the capture of the Millennium Falcon and its passengers Han Solo, Princess Leia Organa, and Chewbacca. You are free to use any means necessary, but I want the alive. No skinning them as you're so fond of doing, Bossk."
The Trandoshan humphed but didn't complain.
"Go," he said in dismissal.
A few hunters obeyed instantly, heading for their ships. Others stayed behind to negotiate last-minute partnerships, peruse information on hand-held computers, or continue arguments. Two stormtroopers hauled away the dead human. Piett waited a few minutes to be sure his presence would not be required.
"Admiral."
"Yes, my lord?"
"See to it that these beings receive whatever it is they need to fulfill their tasks. Credits, weapons, maps, provisions, personnel, whatever. Give them your head on a platter if you have to." He lowered his voice to a deadly whisper. "I will have the Falcon if it takes the entire Imperial fleet to catch it."
"Y-yes, my lord."
Kain nodded slowly and swept out.
Piett shook his head. Kain was mad – ferociously intelligent, but mad nonetheless. Vader would never have resorted to this collection of freak show rejects, no matter how desperate the cause.
"Howsa you like havin' Fett as yousa boss?"
The Gungan stood beside him, looking distastefully in the direction Kain had taken.
"He's definitely not Darth Vader," Piett replied, forcing a smile.
The Gungan scowled. "The hunters no likin' Fett. Wesa no likin' da Sith. And when a hunter goes and becomes one…" He bared his teeth. "Datsa real low."
Piett stared at the Gungan. He'd always thought of hunters as moral-less criminals, willing to kill and destroy to catch their quarry. To find that they had their own code of honor, however bizarre or seemingly meaningless, fractured all he'd once thought to be fact.
Then again, Kain had certainly done plenty of that himself.
He made his way toward the Dug trio, who were loudly insisting that their hunt somehow required two Twi'lek masseuse slaves and a case of Huttese whiskey.
-------
Luke completed his warm-up stretches and looked back at the lean-to, where Vader was packing up the sleeping pallets. He'd never been the type to camp out in the open, but there was no choice. Yoda's house would hardly hold Luke, let alone the two of them. At least the lean-to provided protection from the elements – such as the rainstorm that had been plaguing this part of the planet for the last forty-eight hours.
"Ready?" asked Vader, ducking out of the shelter and into the steadily increasing rain.
"Ready when Yoda is." Luke wiped his soaked hair back and glanced in the direction of the hut. "What's keeping him?"
"Perhaps Obi-wan's having a chat with him," said Vader.
"I have an idea," Luke suggested. "Let's go spar while we wait. Get some saber practice in."
"In this weather?" demanded Vader, rainwater dripping from the edges of his domed helmet.
"Why not? Kain's not going to hold off attacking us on account of rain."
"Infallible logic, Luke."
The ground of the training arena squished under their feet as they walked. Facing each other, they removed their sabers from their belts, saluted, and assumed battle stances. Rain hissed and spat against their blue and green blades.
"Much better than a training weapon," Vader marveled, giving Qui-gon's weapon a few test swings.
"I wonder if Qui-gon knew Obi-wan," Luke mused.
"Wouldn't that be ironic?" Vader replied.
Luke swung, his blade meeting Vader's with a resounding crack. Vader retaliated with a slash toward his legs, which he blocked with ease.
Together they dueled, their moves following some innate choreography. The muddy ground made footwork tricky, but their swordsmanship was as polished as a well-rehearsed dance. Their gray-blue uniforms were soon soaked with both sweat and rain.
Luke gave a little laugh of exhilaration as he lunged forward. Vader knocked the blow aside and struck. Blocking with ease, he began a complicated drill, which Vader parried swiftly. One strike, two, three…
Then Vader inexplicably froze, weapon held uselessly to one side. Before Luke could stop himself, he'd slashed a long burning gash across his chest.
"NO!"
Vader fell to his knees with a grunt, dropping his saber and clutching his wound. Luke flung his weapon aside and kneeled in front of him, prying his hands away to inspect the damage.
"Thank the Force it's not deep," Luke gasped. "I'm so sorry…"
"It wasn't you," he groaned, struggling to his feet. "I… I suffered another flashback."
"Oh stang, not again," Luke moaned.
"I was fighting a Jedi," Vader went on. "He wielded a blue saber much like yours. I… I cut him in two." He looked away in anguish. "And I enjoyed it. Good stars, Luke, what kind of monster was I? And why?"
Luke shook his head, not having an answer. Then he wondered. "The Jedi. What did he look like?"
"Nothing like you," Vader replied quietly. "It wasn't your father, of that I'm sure. I think it was Obi-wan."
The undergrowth rustled, and Yoda stepped onto the training ground, a sober look on his face.
"What happened?" he asked quietly.
"We were fighting – I mean dueling – I mean… sparring…" Luke stammered. "I hit him by mistake…"
"A memory returned to me in the middle of the duel," Vader added. "The memory of killing a Jedi."
Yoda nodded. "The further your training progresses, more memories it will trigger. Unavoidable it is." He pointed at Luke. "Into your ship go and your first-aid kit bring. Vader, stay here. Dressed your wound must be."
Luke couldn't retrieve the item fast enough. Nor could he relax fully until Yoda had treated Vader's injury and declared him good as new.
"But no more duels without my supervision," he admonished. "Next time your head it could be."
They both winced. "Yes master," they replied at once.
"No more training today," he continued. "Come, with me walk."
They followed Yoda along a solid path through the forest. The journey was silent, but not oppressively so. A welcome peace settled over them as the rain tapered off to a light misting. Luke lost himself in the beauty of this wild planet, the dense foliage, the bright sense of life every plant and creature exuded.
Yoda stopped and hauled himself onto a fallen log. Vader sat next to him and assumed a meditative trance. Luke began to sit next to Vader, but an eerie chill seized him. Something dark lurked in the corner of his awareness, drawing away light like a black hole.
"What is it, Luke?" asked Vader.
"I'm cold." It sounded like a stupid answer, but it was the only one he could think of.
Yoda lifted his cane and pointed at a cave that opened up in the base of a tree. "In there. A domain of evil it is."
"There's a Sith in there?" Luke asked.
"No. Common are gatherings of the Force. Jedi Temples and sanctuaries abodes of light were. The Emperor and Kain's palaces places of darkness are. Gather in pools and springs like water the Force sometimes does."
"Like the Sky Cave on Hoth," Vader realized.
"Yes. A refuge of light and peace that was. But here darkness lives." He gazed at Luke. "In there you must go."
Luke stared at Yoda. Was he crazy? "Why?"
"Ask questions do not. Go."
Luke stared into the cave, shivering. The darkness within beckoned, taunted, teased him, seductive and repulsive at the same time. What did Yoda want him to do in that wretched place? Defeat the dark side? Gripping his lightsaber, he stepped in.
"Your weapon," Yoda warned. "Need it you won't."
He stared disbelievingly at his Master, then continued in. Of course he would need his weapon! He wasn't stupid. If this was a lair of darkness, he'd need all the help he could get.
Brushing through sheets of hanging moss and threads of spider silk, he plunged forward. The damp chill of the cave melted through his skin and settled like ice in his bones. The dry slither of scaly bodies whispered in his ears. Somewhere ahead, liquid trickled over stones, somehow reminding him of a bleeding wound.
The crunch of a boot on stones startled him into igniting his lightsaber. His eyes widened in shock. Blue light illuminated a slick black helmet with a silver T-slit visor less than a meter in front of him.
"At last we meet, Skywalker," Darth Kain snarled.
"I won't ask how you found me," Luke retorted, forcing himself to remain calm.
"You won't live long enough for it to matter," came the reply, and his saber hissed to life in a flare of bloody light.
Their weapons clanged harshly as they dueled, the narrow passage making it difficult to maneuver. Kain quickly gained the upper hand, hacking at Luke's defenses. This was no training duel – Kain intended to kill him!
He backed against something slimy like raw flesh. Terror flooded through him. That wall wasn't supposed to be here! He was trapped!
Kain raised his saber to cleave Luke in two.
At that instant he saw an opportunity. With his weapon held high, Kain was relatively defenseless at the moment. Luke could take him down! He drove his saber forward, piercing the jet-black breastplate and searing through the Sith's heart.
Impossibly, Kain remained standing. His arms fell to his sides, his weapon retracting with a sucking hiss. As Luke watched, stunned, he reached up and pulled off his helmet.
He bit back the urge to scream. He knew that face – he'd seen it enough times in a mirror.
"Look well, Skywalker," the apparition bid him. "And learn."
He jerked his saber back, still staring at this ghost of Kain that wore his face. Yet it was no longer wearing the modified Mandalorian armor. Instead, the ebony life-support suit Vader had once worn encased its body. The face, however, remained unchanged.
Confused and frightened, Luke backed away – and realized the wall was gone. He looked back to make sure. The barrier had vanished, and welcome light beckoned from the cave's mouth.
When he turned back to the ghost, it had disappeared also.
-------
Vader watched Luke disappear into the cavern. "What's Luke going to do in there?"
"Face the dark side he must," Yoda replied, stirring at the mud with his cane. "Learn valuable lessons from it he can if careful he is."
"Will you send me in there?"
"No. Faced the dark side you already have."
He turned to face the Jedi Master. "The wampa cave?"
Yoda shook his head. "Twenty years have you served the dark side. Left scars it has, but a valuable lesson it has taught you."
Vader snorted. "What good is a lesson I can't remember having been taught?"
"Remember you will," Yoda replied. "Eventually."
Vader stared at the ground. "I'm not sure I want to remember, Master. The memories that come to me are so painful. If I were to regain my memory totally, I'd go mad."
"That is why slowly it returns to you. Comes it does when prepared you are. And tell you more I will when right the time is."
He scraped a line in the mud with his heel. "Master?"
"Hmmm?"
"Can I ever repay what I did to the Order?"
"Repaying you are now. Repay you do every day you train. And repay you will when teach Padawans of your own you do."
"What Padawan's going to want an ex-Sith as a teacher?"
"A warning of the dangers of the dark side you can impart upon your students, Vader." He smiled unexpectedly. "Right Luke is. Negative your attitude is. Focus on the good you should."
He rolled his eyes. "If one more person tells me that, I'll scream."
"Good. Learn something you might."
Luke emerged from the cavern at that instant, eyes wide, limbs shaking.
"Luke!" Vader exclaimed, standing. "Are you all right?"
He nodded, gulping in air.
"Learned something, have you?" inquired Yoda.
"I… I think so," Luke replied.
Yoda waited expectantly.
Luke took a few deep breaths to calm down. "As Kain is now and Vader once was, so I could be if I'm not careful."
Vader watched Yoda carefully. The aged Jedi seemed to ponder that reply awhile. Then he nodded in satisfaction.
"Come, Padawans. Let's go home."
"Bounty hunters," muttered a computer tech. "We don't need their scum."
"Watch your mouth," Piett advised. "Kain was once a hunter, I'm sure you're aware."
"I don't care about Kain," the tech snapped. "Hunter or not, he's scum all the same. Besides, he never kills techs."
"There's a first time for everything," Piett replied balefully, remembering the detention block officer.
Kain glided past, completely at ease with the motley collection of beings following him. Piett recognized a few of them – Bossk, the reptilian alien infamous for hunting down and exterminating escaped Wookie slaves; Dengar, the bio-mechanically enhanced, emotionless human with a mysterious hatred toward Corellians; IG-88, the weapon-laden assassin droid; Zuckuss and 4-LOM, the Gand-droid duo that had somehow never lost a hunt in their joined careers; and Aurra Sing, the slender, pale femme fatale and ex-Jedi.
Then, of course, there were the lesser-knowns, seeing this as their chance to break into the business. A human woman garbed in battered stormtrooper armor stroked a sniper rifle like a beloved pet as she passed. A lanky gray Gungan with a scar down his throat and two blaster carbines and a supply of grenades on his belt spoke in low tones with a laser-cannon-wielding Rodian, no doubt negotiating a joint hunt. Three Dugs, each so laden with guns and knives that they clattered with every step they took, laughed and joked in raucous, drunken voices. A scarlet female Twi'lek gripped a meter-long vibro-sai as if she itched to use it, a human boy barely into his teens strolled by with so many blasters strapped to his arms and legs it was a wonder he could walk, and a Whiphid-Nautolan duo conversed in a coded language as they readied poison-dart guns for the hunt.
Piett relaxed a touch as the last bounty hunter, a particularly vicious-looking Zabrak cyborg, vanished down the hallway. But that didn't last long.
"Lord Kain wants you in the conference room," a stormtrooper reported.
Piett paled. "Why me?"
The trooper gave a shrug that plainly said "I don't make the news, I just report it."
Wincing, the Admiral followed the hunters into the chamber. The criminal refuse were all sitting around the gleaming black conference table in a twisted parody of a meeting of the Grand Moffs. One of the Dugs had promptly engaged in a screaming match with the Rodian, the human boy was brazenly hitting on the trooper-woman (who was growing more disgusted by the second), Bossk was picking his teeth with a vibroblade while the Zabrak used his to carve at the zekkwood table… in short, it was total bedlam.
Then again, he supposed it wasn't THAT different from a meeting of the Moffs. Especially when said meetings were held directly after a heavy banquet. His mouth quirked in a grin as he recalled the night over three years ago when Madam Grand Admiral Olie had decked Grand Moff Tarkin after he'd overindulged on Bakuran wine and lewdly propositioned her.
"I will have your attention," Kain grated.
No one paid him any mind. Only the human went silent, and even then not of his own accord. The trooper, finally fed up with his advances, had planted a force-shivv between his shoulder blades. Not that such an occurrence was unusual in this room – especially when a Sith was in attendance.
Kain, having lived among slime like this for years, spoke their language. He yanked a blaster from the Nautolan's shoulder holster and fired once into the air. The noise eventually tapered off.
"Better," he rasped. "Now to business."
"What's the matter, Fett?" demanded Aurra. "Too high and mighty to hunt for yourself now?"
"That will be Darth Kain to you," he snarled.
"She's right," the Twi'lek replied. "You were once one of us – the best of us, in fact. Why not catch whatever fugitive you're chasing yourself?"
Piett listened, curious. This was entirely unlike a bounty hunter. Why would they try to talk him out of hiring one of them and lose potential credits?
Kain ignored the question. "There will be a substantial reward for the capture of the Millennium Falcon and its passengers Han Solo, Princess Leia Organa, and Chewbacca. You are free to use any means necessary, but I want the alive. No skinning them as you're so fond of doing, Bossk."
The Trandoshan humphed but didn't complain.
"Go," he said in dismissal.
A few hunters obeyed instantly, heading for their ships. Others stayed behind to negotiate last-minute partnerships, peruse information on hand-held computers, or continue arguments. Two stormtroopers hauled away the dead human. Piett waited a few minutes to be sure his presence would not be required.
"Admiral."
"Yes, my lord?"
"See to it that these beings receive whatever it is they need to fulfill their tasks. Credits, weapons, maps, provisions, personnel, whatever. Give them your head on a platter if you have to." He lowered his voice to a deadly whisper. "I will have the Falcon if it takes the entire Imperial fleet to catch it."
"Y-yes, my lord."
Kain nodded slowly and swept out.
Piett shook his head. Kain was mad – ferociously intelligent, but mad nonetheless. Vader would never have resorted to this collection of freak show rejects, no matter how desperate the cause.
"Howsa you like havin' Fett as yousa boss?"
The Gungan stood beside him, looking distastefully in the direction Kain had taken.
"He's definitely not Darth Vader," Piett replied, forcing a smile.
The Gungan scowled. "The hunters no likin' Fett. Wesa no likin' da Sith. And when a hunter goes and becomes one…" He bared his teeth. "Datsa real low."
Piett stared at the Gungan. He'd always thought of hunters as moral-less criminals, willing to kill and destroy to catch their quarry. To find that they had their own code of honor, however bizarre or seemingly meaningless, fractured all he'd once thought to be fact.
Then again, Kain had certainly done plenty of that himself.
He made his way toward the Dug trio, who were loudly insisting that their hunt somehow required two Twi'lek masseuse slaves and a case of Huttese whiskey.
-------
Luke completed his warm-up stretches and looked back at the lean-to, where Vader was packing up the sleeping pallets. He'd never been the type to camp out in the open, but there was no choice. Yoda's house would hardly hold Luke, let alone the two of them. At least the lean-to provided protection from the elements – such as the rainstorm that had been plaguing this part of the planet for the last forty-eight hours.
"Ready?" asked Vader, ducking out of the shelter and into the steadily increasing rain.
"Ready when Yoda is." Luke wiped his soaked hair back and glanced in the direction of the hut. "What's keeping him?"
"Perhaps Obi-wan's having a chat with him," said Vader.
"I have an idea," Luke suggested. "Let's go spar while we wait. Get some saber practice in."
"In this weather?" demanded Vader, rainwater dripping from the edges of his domed helmet.
"Why not? Kain's not going to hold off attacking us on account of rain."
"Infallible logic, Luke."
The ground of the training arena squished under their feet as they walked. Facing each other, they removed their sabers from their belts, saluted, and assumed battle stances. Rain hissed and spat against their blue and green blades.
"Much better than a training weapon," Vader marveled, giving Qui-gon's weapon a few test swings.
"I wonder if Qui-gon knew Obi-wan," Luke mused.
"Wouldn't that be ironic?" Vader replied.
Luke swung, his blade meeting Vader's with a resounding crack. Vader retaliated with a slash toward his legs, which he blocked with ease.
Together they dueled, their moves following some innate choreography. The muddy ground made footwork tricky, but their swordsmanship was as polished as a well-rehearsed dance. Their gray-blue uniforms were soon soaked with both sweat and rain.
Luke gave a little laugh of exhilaration as he lunged forward. Vader knocked the blow aside and struck. Blocking with ease, he began a complicated drill, which Vader parried swiftly. One strike, two, three…
Then Vader inexplicably froze, weapon held uselessly to one side. Before Luke could stop himself, he'd slashed a long burning gash across his chest.
"NO!"
Vader fell to his knees with a grunt, dropping his saber and clutching his wound. Luke flung his weapon aside and kneeled in front of him, prying his hands away to inspect the damage.
"Thank the Force it's not deep," Luke gasped. "I'm so sorry…"
"It wasn't you," he groaned, struggling to his feet. "I… I suffered another flashback."
"Oh stang, not again," Luke moaned.
"I was fighting a Jedi," Vader went on. "He wielded a blue saber much like yours. I… I cut him in two." He looked away in anguish. "And I enjoyed it. Good stars, Luke, what kind of monster was I? And why?"
Luke shook his head, not having an answer. Then he wondered. "The Jedi. What did he look like?"
"Nothing like you," Vader replied quietly. "It wasn't your father, of that I'm sure. I think it was Obi-wan."
The undergrowth rustled, and Yoda stepped onto the training ground, a sober look on his face.
"What happened?" he asked quietly.
"We were fighting – I mean dueling – I mean… sparring…" Luke stammered. "I hit him by mistake…"
"A memory returned to me in the middle of the duel," Vader added. "The memory of killing a Jedi."
Yoda nodded. "The further your training progresses, more memories it will trigger. Unavoidable it is." He pointed at Luke. "Into your ship go and your first-aid kit bring. Vader, stay here. Dressed your wound must be."
Luke couldn't retrieve the item fast enough. Nor could he relax fully until Yoda had treated Vader's injury and declared him good as new.
"But no more duels without my supervision," he admonished. "Next time your head it could be."
They both winced. "Yes master," they replied at once.
"No more training today," he continued. "Come, with me walk."
They followed Yoda along a solid path through the forest. The journey was silent, but not oppressively so. A welcome peace settled over them as the rain tapered off to a light misting. Luke lost himself in the beauty of this wild planet, the dense foliage, the bright sense of life every plant and creature exuded.
Yoda stopped and hauled himself onto a fallen log. Vader sat next to him and assumed a meditative trance. Luke began to sit next to Vader, but an eerie chill seized him. Something dark lurked in the corner of his awareness, drawing away light like a black hole.
"What is it, Luke?" asked Vader.
"I'm cold." It sounded like a stupid answer, but it was the only one he could think of.
Yoda lifted his cane and pointed at a cave that opened up in the base of a tree. "In there. A domain of evil it is."
"There's a Sith in there?" Luke asked.
"No. Common are gatherings of the Force. Jedi Temples and sanctuaries abodes of light were. The Emperor and Kain's palaces places of darkness are. Gather in pools and springs like water the Force sometimes does."
"Like the Sky Cave on Hoth," Vader realized.
"Yes. A refuge of light and peace that was. But here darkness lives." He gazed at Luke. "In there you must go."
Luke stared at Yoda. Was he crazy? "Why?"
"Ask questions do not. Go."
Luke stared into the cave, shivering. The darkness within beckoned, taunted, teased him, seductive and repulsive at the same time. What did Yoda want him to do in that wretched place? Defeat the dark side? Gripping his lightsaber, he stepped in.
"Your weapon," Yoda warned. "Need it you won't."
He stared disbelievingly at his Master, then continued in. Of course he would need his weapon! He wasn't stupid. If this was a lair of darkness, he'd need all the help he could get.
Brushing through sheets of hanging moss and threads of spider silk, he plunged forward. The damp chill of the cave melted through his skin and settled like ice in his bones. The dry slither of scaly bodies whispered in his ears. Somewhere ahead, liquid trickled over stones, somehow reminding him of a bleeding wound.
The crunch of a boot on stones startled him into igniting his lightsaber. His eyes widened in shock. Blue light illuminated a slick black helmet with a silver T-slit visor less than a meter in front of him.
"At last we meet, Skywalker," Darth Kain snarled.
"I won't ask how you found me," Luke retorted, forcing himself to remain calm.
"You won't live long enough for it to matter," came the reply, and his saber hissed to life in a flare of bloody light.
Their weapons clanged harshly as they dueled, the narrow passage making it difficult to maneuver. Kain quickly gained the upper hand, hacking at Luke's defenses. This was no training duel – Kain intended to kill him!
He backed against something slimy like raw flesh. Terror flooded through him. That wall wasn't supposed to be here! He was trapped!
Kain raised his saber to cleave Luke in two.
At that instant he saw an opportunity. With his weapon held high, Kain was relatively defenseless at the moment. Luke could take him down! He drove his saber forward, piercing the jet-black breastplate and searing through the Sith's heart.
Impossibly, Kain remained standing. His arms fell to his sides, his weapon retracting with a sucking hiss. As Luke watched, stunned, he reached up and pulled off his helmet.
He bit back the urge to scream. He knew that face – he'd seen it enough times in a mirror.
"Look well, Skywalker," the apparition bid him. "And learn."
He jerked his saber back, still staring at this ghost of Kain that wore his face. Yet it was no longer wearing the modified Mandalorian armor. Instead, the ebony life-support suit Vader had once worn encased its body. The face, however, remained unchanged.
Confused and frightened, Luke backed away – and realized the wall was gone. He looked back to make sure. The barrier had vanished, and welcome light beckoned from the cave's mouth.
When he turned back to the ghost, it had disappeared also.
-------
Vader watched Luke disappear into the cavern. "What's Luke going to do in there?"
"Face the dark side he must," Yoda replied, stirring at the mud with his cane. "Learn valuable lessons from it he can if careful he is."
"Will you send me in there?"
"No. Faced the dark side you already have."
He turned to face the Jedi Master. "The wampa cave?"
Yoda shook his head. "Twenty years have you served the dark side. Left scars it has, but a valuable lesson it has taught you."
Vader snorted. "What good is a lesson I can't remember having been taught?"
"Remember you will," Yoda replied. "Eventually."
Vader stared at the ground. "I'm not sure I want to remember, Master. The memories that come to me are so painful. If I were to regain my memory totally, I'd go mad."
"That is why slowly it returns to you. Comes it does when prepared you are. And tell you more I will when right the time is."
He scraped a line in the mud with his heel. "Master?"
"Hmmm?"
"Can I ever repay what I did to the Order?"
"Repaying you are now. Repay you do every day you train. And repay you will when teach Padawans of your own you do."
"What Padawan's going to want an ex-Sith as a teacher?"
"A warning of the dangers of the dark side you can impart upon your students, Vader." He smiled unexpectedly. "Right Luke is. Negative your attitude is. Focus on the good you should."
He rolled his eyes. "If one more person tells me that, I'll scream."
"Good. Learn something you might."
Luke emerged from the cavern at that instant, eyes wide, limbs shaking.
"Luke!" Vader exclaimed, standing. "Are you all right?"
He nodded, gulping in air.
"Learned something, have you?" inquired Yoda.
"I… I think so," Luke replied.
Yoda waited expectantly.
Luke took a few deep breaths to calm down. "As Kain is now and Vader once was, so I could be if I'm not careful."
Vader watched Yoda carefully. The aged Jedi seemed to ponder that reply awhile. Then he nodded in satisfaction.
"Come, Padawans. Let's go home."