Please, Please, Please Review. I worked really hard on this chapter and I really like the way it came out. I'd really like to know if other people like it.
Summary: Rogue Squadron heads back to Hoth to defend an Intelligence Unit. But they get more than they bargained for.
Disclaimer: Star Wars, Rogue Squadron, and the rest are not mine. I write this for my own amusement. Jesina is my own, original creation.
---------------
Chapter 20: Dark vs. Light
---------------
Tycho drew a deep breath. Corran's Dark Side…manifestation, as it were, had chilled him to the bone. Despite all the time he'd spent with Luke and Leia, he hadn't realized that it was possible for non-Force sensitives to feel the Force. But he couldn't think of any other way to explain the sensation he'd just experienced.
The Jedi was calm now, leaning against the wall. His eyes were open but he didn't move, didn't even blink. It was incredibly unnerving.
He dragged his eyes away from him and looked at Jesina. "We need to get out of here," she said, mouthing the words, "Before he loses it."
He nodded and glanced around. Corran's display of telekinesis had benefited them, though he had the distinct feeling that the benefit would be outweighed before long. The vibroblade might – might – now be within their reach. Their captors – the five men in hoods and masks – had been smart. They hadn't just bound their hands. They'd tied them to metal pins in the rock wall.
Another look around told him that if they wanted to get a hold on the vibroblade without the aid of the Force Teril was their best chance. He opened his mouth to tell the younger Rogue to see if she could reach it but she'd already apparently come to the same conclusion. He watched as she wriggled around, working her arms so they were above her head to give herself a little extra distance. The effort was not without pain, however – she nearly dislocated her shoulder. But she managed to lay flat against the ground, arms raised slightly because of how she was secured to the wall. Her face a mask of pain, she continued to stretch even further until she was able to put the toe of her boot onto the blade.
Just as she reached it, though, that same chilling sensation returned. He watched as Teril slid back toward the wall, clearly not under her own power. She let out a little whimper and tried to sit up before hitting her head on the wall but missed. Tycho winced when her head connected a little too hard with the rock and she cried out softly.
Then the vibroblade rose again, this time more controlled, and danced through the air as if suspended by an invisible string. It floated over to Tycho, landing within his reach, as Corran, somehow freed, rose from the floor.
---------------
Corran watched Tycho look around, watched his eyes settle on Teril, and watched her start to move. He reached out to Iella, feeling her life waning. No!! Iella!! As he mentally called out to her, he felt the dark shroud beginning to settle over him again and welcomed it, settling into its icy embrace. He could almost see the Force surround him, could hear it calling out to him. I must save her, he thought desperately. Taking another look around the room, at the faces of the other pilots and of Iella's team, he closed his eyes once more, allowing the dark energy to overtake him, pulling him down.
He heard the voice again, pleading with him. "Corran, you betray her life and her memory. And you will destroy yourself and all those you seek to save. You must listen to me. I know your pain. I have felt it, in you and in myself. But you cannot let it control you. The Dark Side is strong, and it feeds on your fear and pain. But you can fight it. You must fight it. You are strong enough for that. If you yield to its influence, there will be no turning back. The Light will forever evade you." He did not answer back, ignoring the being that sought to sway him from his chosen path.
He pushed Teril back against the wall, sensing her surprise and fear and reveling in it as it strengthened him. Fear really did feed the Dark Side. He reached out for the vibroblade, lifting it and controlling it with much more ease than before and guiding it to Tycho. As he lowered it by the Rogue's bound hands, he turned his attention to the cords that bound his wrists. Mentally grasping one end, he loosened the knot enough to pull one hand out and shook the ropes off, then rose. He walked by the others, not noticing their bewildered stares, and pressed his hand to the door. He envisioned the locking mechanism and manipulated it until he heard a click and used the Force to slide it open, then slipped out the door, leaving his friends to their own devices.
---------------
Wes watched Corran go, his heart sinking to his feet. "Tycho, what I think just happened, um, didn't, right?"
Tycho didn't answer. Despite the ill means by which he'd been given a way out, he was going to take it and deal with the consequences later. He grasped the handle and twisted it up, feeling the cold metal against his skin as he pressed the blade to the ropes and began to saw through the strands. More than once his grip slipped and he cut his hand or wrist instead. He winced and bit his lip as blood dripped down his hands, but a few tense minutes later it had paid off and he was able to pull his hands free. He rubbed his raw wrists for a moment before turning his attention to Jesina, who was closest to him. "Are you okay?" she asked, seeing the blood on his hands.
He nodded. "I'll be all right." He knelt behind her and cut the ropes with a few quick swipes, then nodded toward Wes, Myn, and Teril. "Untie them, and check her head, will you?"
She nodded and headed over to Teril first, freed her, and checked for any significant injuries. The woman protested that she was fine and, when Jesina was satisfied that she was, she moved on to Wes and had Teril untie Myn. By the time they finished, Ooryl and the Intel team were standing. "What now?"
"We hope Corran didn't lock the door behind him," Tycho answered, walking cautiously toward the door. But when he was about a meter away, it opened, and he stepped back quickly. And froze when he saw who stood beyond it.
---------------
Corran had made his way down through the tunnels, pursuing Iella's weakening presence. She was no longer on the ledge – they'd found her and moved her, though he didn't know how they'd reached her. It didn't matter, though. Her current location made it easier for him.
As he went, he reached out through the Force in an attempt to identify the Dark Jedi that he knew was somewhere in the asteroid's depths. A voice danced through his mind. "You need not look very far for a Dark Jedi." It was the same Force signature as the voice that had haunted him earlier.
Quiet! he shouted in his mind. You did this. And you'll pay for it.
"I did nothing. This time. And yet, I am paying for it, paying for it more the deeper you go. I don't want to see you do this, Corran. But I fear it is too late to stop you."
Too late indeed. I will find her. And I will save her. And then I'll come after you.
"I don't recommend that. And you'll need help saving her. The Dark Side's healing power is not as strong as the Light. And you've tainted yourself now, Corran."
He slammed his mental shields down, unwilling to be preached to any longer, and wondered why he hadn't done it before. Stay out of my head, he thought to himself as he continued to travel ever deeper.
After a few minutes he cautiously reached, surrounding himself with the Force once more, searching for Iella. But he could not find her.
---------------
"You," Tycho hissed at the man who stood before him. The familiar figure was swathed in a black cloak, the hood nearly hiding his face. But only nearly. Even in the dim light, Tycho recognized him. Just as he recognized the woman he cradled in his arms.
The Jedi brushed by him without a word and lay Iella on the floor. He knelt over her, placing his hands on her, one on her head and one over her heart. He murmured softly to her as the pilots and NRI gathered round them. After a long, tense silence, Kyp Durron looked up at them, and Wes swore under his breath as he got his first clear look at their visitor. Jesina glanced at him, confusion written all over her face. "You need to get her out of here. I'm not as skilled with healing as I'd like to be, and I can't keep her alive much longer. They have little here for medical supplies, and nothing that would help her."
"What are you doing here?" Tycho asked, eyes blazing with barely contained fury. If Durron was at all responsible for this, he'd pay for it. Wedge would see to that - if he himself didn't.
"We haven't time for that now. I will tell you how to get out of here, and you must go. I don't have the strength to keep this up much longer. She'll survive the trip back to Hoth. Barely, but she will. Provided you aren't delayed."
"Will someone fill me in?" Jesina asked. She didn't know who this man was, why Tycho looked like he wanted to kill him, or what he was doing with Iella. Her agents murmured their agreement.
"Later," Tycho muttered. He looked back at the Jedi. "Our ships are on the surface. They took our vacuum suits. We have no idea where we are."
"The suits are in the chamber next to this. I'll show you how to get out – we actually aren't far from where you entered. And you needn't worry about anyone stopping you. I have them chasing ghosts."
Jesina frowned. "Who are you?"
He glanced down at Iella and then back up. "My name is Kyp Durron. I'm a Jedi. And I'm helping you get out of here. If you want to know anything more, you'll have to wait. You need to go."
"What about you?" Wes asked.
"I wish I could go with you. She'd have a better chance of surviving the trip if I could. But I need to go after Corran. If we lose him, we're in trouble. He's much more powerful than you might think, especially with the Dark Side at his command."
"A little late for that," Wes muttered.
Kyp turned his full attention to the pilot. "Look, Janson. I know you don't like me. But you don't have any choice but to trust me. Leave Corran to me. You need to worry about Iella. Get your vacuum suits. They're all there. And then I will show you the way out." He returned his hands to Iella's chest and closed his eyes.
Tycho met Janson's angry gaze and shook his head. "Later, Wes. He's right. We need to go. And none of us is anywhere near capable of dealing with Corran."
"We can't leave him here."
"I'll get him back to Hoth for you," Kyp said, breaking his concentration for a moment. "Now, you must hurry, or she won't have the strength left to survive the flight back."
Tycho motioned for them to get their gear – vacuum suits, helmets and knapsacks. "You'd better be right, Durron. Or no one will be able to protect you from Wedge."
"I am right, Celchu. I know what's happening to Corran now. And, out of everyone in this system, I'm the only one who can bring him back. You have no choice but to trust me."
"I know," Tycho said finally. "That's what bothers me."
---------------
Corran could feel the men approach long before they reached him. The Dark Side gave him a much clearer vision than the Light ever had. He drew on its power, its energy, and waited for them to come. They had killed her, and they would die for it. And then he would deal with the Jedi.
---------------
"She's not breathing," Tycho said as Kyp handed Iella off to him at the mouth of the cave.
"She is, just barely. I've put her into a healing trance. It's not very deep, and she'll come out of it when her body is no longer so weak." Or when she dies, he thought, but didn't say that part aloud.
"I didn't know you could do that," Wes said. He'd warmed slightly to Kyp after the man had gotten them out without incident. He still didn't like him, but he had saved Iella's life – so far anyway – and he felt he owed him something for that.
"It's very difficult, and often not effective. But it's her only chance. It will take the strain off her body, hopefully long enough to keep her alive. It's her only chance," he said again. Then he turned away. "I have to go."
Jesina watched him leave for a moment, then shook her head. She didn't have the slightest clue what had just happened, but she didn't have time to wonder. "Come on," she said, breaking into a run as she headed for the Nightwind.
---------------
As the men came at him, three from one side and four from another, Corran dispatched them effortlessly. A flick of his wrist sent two of them flying, their bodies colliding with the wall with a thud that echoed through the cavern.
Three of them stood side by side and drew their blasters. They opened fire on him but he simply raised his hand, never flinching. He absorbed the energy for a moment, reveling in the almost physical current of power that flowed through him. Then he deflected a few of the bolts, sending them back into the men who had fired them. They dropped one at a time, screaming in both fear and pain, and then lay still.
As the two remaining faltered, he drew his lightsaber and, activating it, advanced on them. They were the ones who'd sought to turn him, and now they would pay for their mistake. "Who leads you?"
The one on the left put up his hands in a defensive – but altogether useless – posture. "It's not me. It's him. It was all his idea."
With a wave of his hand, Corran pushed the man back against the wall. Not throwing him this time – just pinning him in an invisible grip. The man struggled against the unseen barrier but his effort was in vain.
The Jedi turned his attention to the leader. "Why? What did you seek to gain from this?"
"You'll never know," came the defiant response.
"Indeed." Corran deactivated his lightsaber, clipping it to his belt again. Then he raised both hands, again summoning the Dark Side's lethal energy, and Force lightening shot from his fingertips. He watched with a sick satisfaction as the man fell, screaming his anguish, and writhed on the floor at his mercy.