Author's Notes: This song felt appropriate... it brings to mind the little sister, if you're a Buffy fan... and very dark, which suits Revan's attitude to the Mandalore duel. Very fleeting cameo from our favourite pilot, here. And, after that, we have a brief meeting with a certain other familiar character, to lighten the mood a bit. Mini-chocolate products for anyone who can name the "Phoenix" (from the Mandalorian mythology Revan mentioned in chapter 5 - he is in this chapter... and someone out there already got this one, and is in for some easy chocolate :p ). Real chocolate for anyone who spots the Riddick references here - there's two of them.
Ozziegrl: Thanks. I came up with the Bandon plot-gizka because I was trying to think of a really good reason for Vrook to be so bitter towards Revan... and corrupting his offspring to the DS seemed a better reason than being his student before going DS :p
snackfiend101: Still beautiful spelling (the word you were looking for is "screwed"). Yes, I am shameless. Well, since the whole aim of that chapter was to make people laugh... it looks like I've done my job pretty well, doesn't it? Sure, you can use the Bandon-as-Vrook's-son idea... it's not like I'd be able to sue you for it, even if I wanted to.
ether-fanfic: Thank you ::bows:: ... and his downfall won't disappoint you... very evil, it is.
Darth Arachne: Derrin only lived through that incident because Revan said she liked the tattoos... but yeah, there's still some LS left in Malak. Hell, no, I would never stoop that low, Harry Potter is not welcome in Star Wars, the crossovers would be hell! On the other hand SG Atlantis is just ASKING for the crossovers to begin ::mutters about "Ancients" that looks like humans, that comes from another galaxy and have some cool ESP-type abilities:: ... sorry, random plot-gizka, someone please use it! Yeah, Vrook doing that thing that's kinda essential to make a kid... scary mental pictures (though I could happily conjure worse, if you wanted me to... in fact, I probably will, later in this fic :good: ). Well, if I go past Malak's discovery that Revan isn't dead, then it'll be mindwipeville... otherwise, assume this girl is Kira :p
Rascarin: Thanks.
F-15 Eaglestrike: Ulic Qel-Droma defeated Mandalore and forced him to pledge allegiance to Ulic, he didn't kill him (I actually have the Sith Wars book - only SW comic I own - so I'm sure I'm right about this). Besides, when one Mandalore dies (and the one who pledged himself to Ulic did die later in that book, on the Dxun moon), another takes his mask and his title as the next Mandalore. My fics-in-progress (note, I may or may not successfully complete any of these): one's about Dustil at the Sith Academy, one's a parody-fic like so many people seem to be writing these days, one's about Mission's childhood on Taris, one's an AU based on this fic, a couple of others are just plain sick even compared to this fic, and one's just me being mean to Carth.
Dark Lord Daishi: No more turning-Mandalorians-to-stone, I'm afraid... it was only in her rage at the moment of grief that she was able to summon the immense raw power needed to do it. Korriban, chapter 9, and yes there will be much evillness there (I contemplated having Jorak appear in a fuzzy pink bathrobe, but that was too evil even for me.
Trunxluvr82190: Heh, I thought they looked alike... don't tell me I'm the only one who noticed the resemblance (and I don't just mean that they're both bald :p ). Not quite three weeks... more like about thirteen weeks :p still frelling spectacular, and more than a little ridiculous... but this is Revan we're talking about, and the mortal laws of logic do not apply to her.
RollingSkull: Um, yeah... Derrin's supposed to be a nut-case :p lol. What's silly about that idea? I demand you tell me! Yes... "insanely" is probably the right word to describe it, you're right about that one.
HK-48: Thank you. Yeah, well Bastila's not what I'd call immune to Jumping To Conclusions (Bastila: I didn't jump! I just took a tiny step and there conclusions were!) ::glares at Bastila:: quoting Buffy is MY job, Jedi. Ahem, as I was saying, I did it on purpose, because a: I don't 100 trust Bastila's judgement, and b: to go against popular theories.
Firera: Thank you. Yeah, that's right - he never did find out the pilot's name. And, again, thanks ::bows:
Prisoner 24601: Thanks. Lol, glad you liked it. So far, I hadn't planned anything really for my Bandon-bunny, beyond the fact it was a good reason for Vrook to be pissed at Revan... but you never know, I may think of something. What exactly is clichéd about Bandon, anyway?
"I touch the fire and it freezes me,
I look into it and it's black,
Why can't I feel?
My skin should crack and peel,
I want the fire back.
Now through the smoke she calls to me,
To make my way across the flame,
To save the day,
Or maybe melt away,
I guess it's all the same.
So I will walk through the fire,
'Cause where else can I turn?
I will walk through the fire,
And let it"
-Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Once More With Feeling, Walk Through The Fire.
x x x
Chapter 8 - Vengeance
More time passed, and the Mandalorian fleet made a desperate lunge for the Malachor system - the only Republic system within their range that wasn't too heavily guarded. Mandalore himself headed the fleet. His flagship wreaked havoc with the Jedi on the Republic vessels. The Mandalorian fleet took the initiative, and began to push the Republic back.
'It's too early, Revan.' Malak warned, as they watched the battle from the bridge of the Defiant, 'We should concede Malachor... it's not an inhabited world, anyway.'
'No, Malak. I'm not giving up any more ground to him.' Revan replied. Even her mind sounded colder, now.
He frowned at her, but didn't argue with her, 'It's your choice... just be careful... don't get yourself killed.'
"Hail Mandalore's flagship." Revan said aloud.
Captain Karath did a double-take, before asking, "What? Why?!"
"Just do it!" Revan snapped.
The Captain nodded, and gave a gesture to the comms officer, saying to do as Revan ordered. A holoimage of a man wearing the armour of a Mandalorian leader, and the distinctive mask of Mandalore himself, appeared on the comm system, "What do you want, Republic vermin?" he demanded, his voice coarse and harsh.
Revan stepped into view of the holotransmitter. Even though she held herself in a posture of defiance and authority, her head tilted back, her hood still concealed her face. "I am Revan. I believe you have heard of me?"
"Oh, yes. I have heard of you, Revan." Mandalore answered, suddenly showing an interest in this situation, "What do you want?"
"A duel." Revan said calmly, "Just you and me, to the death. Vibroblades, no armour." she smirked, "What do you say?"
"What are your conditions?"
"If you win, the Jedi surrender to you. If I win, your warriors surrender to me." she declared, "Do we have a deal?"
"I think so, yes." Mandalore said, amusement in his tone, "Board my ship, fight your way to me, and we will duel. You may bring as many warriors with you as you wish to get you to me, but you face me alone."
Revan nodded, "I will see you soon, Mandalore." the communication cut at that point, and Revan turned to face the rest of the bridge.
Captain Karath spluttered, "You just offered the Jedi surrender if he won!"
Revan smirked, "Technically, all those of us who joined you in this war disobeyed the rule of the Jedi Council. If you follow that logic, we are no longer Jedi."
"In other words." Malak added, "We won't surrender." 'Hell, if you get killed, Revan, I will fall to the dark side... then I'll definitely not be a Jedi.'
'Don't think that sort of thing. You'd be amazed how often idle thoughts become prophetic.' Revan retorted in his mind. "We board his ship, now." she turned and swept off towards the docking bays.
x x x
They took small fighter ships, and a strike team of Jedi and soldiers. There hadn't been that many Jedi on the shuttle from Coruscant - they seemed to fear the Jedi Council's disapproval - but Bandon had rounded up quite a few from Dantooine, more than two dozen, which made a significant difference. The fact the young man was a Padawan, and had convinced Knights to join him, was saying something for his persuasive skills - Revan and Malak had only managed to convince a small group to disobey the Council, but that had been before news of Revan's success in the war had reached the other Jedi. More Jedi had also joined them, from other enclaves - Bandon and his friends were far from unique in their decision to follow Revan into the fray.
Now, the small squad of Jedi and soldiers flew for Mandalore's flagship.
"Ready for this, Bandon?" Revan asked over their commlink.
"Never felt it before, how can I be ready for it?" Bandon retorted.
"Just don't fear it. It could be worse." Malak noted.
As he said it, they flew close enough to the bow of the ship to feel the debilitating effects of the Ysalamiri on Mandalore's ship. All three of them, by all reports. Malak shivered, but his hands remained steady on the controls. Bandon's ship wavered, but not significantly - evidence the Padawan had also shuddered from the sudden loss.
Then the Basilisks flew out. "Time to party, children." Revan whispered... she was speaking to the Mandalorians, Malak realised, even if they couldn't hear her. Her ship accelerated, zooming past the line of the Basilisk droids - dangerously fast, considering they couldn't sense the Force - and she discharged her engine's waste in their faces, swooping round again to shoot them down while they were stunned.
"Neat trick!" Bandon cheered.
"Don't try it - they won't fall for the same stunt twice." Revan replied, her voice the picture of calm.
The half-dozen Jedi, and half-dozen soldiers, were still desperately outnumbered. That is, until another two capital ships - the Chronus and the Quantum Star - dropped out of hyperspace dangerously close. "Did we miss the party?" Cassie's voice asked from the Chronus.
"That's the last time I let Matt fly." Sam added from the other ship.
"Just take out the snakes!" Malak snapped.
"With pleasure. I'm already on guns." Tyr called from Sam's ship.
"Ditto." Derrin, on Cassie's ship.
The rain of blaster fire took out most of the Basilisks, but a small number circled to the far side of Mandalore's ship, guarding the docking bay.
"Defiant, give us some more Force-blind fighters." Revan ordered.
They waited for the new gold squad to fly out around them. Malak recognised the gold-leader's voice on the comm, "You asked for help, Jedi Revan?"
"Yes. Shoot down the snakes around Mandalore's docking bay." Malak answered for her. If this pilot survived this fight, he really would have to learn the man's name.
"You heard the Jedi, boys." the gold-leader said to his men, "Let's get 'em!" and off they flew. Revan followed, and the other Jedi stayed close behind her. Malak did notice gold-leader's fighter waver ever-so-slightly, as it approached Mandalore's ship... it could have been his imagination, but it looked a lot like the way Bandon's fighter had done when he felt the Force leave... but that was ridiculous - Malak hadn't sensed the Force in this pilot the last time they met.
Gold squad was still the elite, in spite of most of their number being replaced at least twice throughout the war, and they made short work of the Basilisks. "We'll take it from here." Revan said flatly, "Thanks for the help."
"Anytime." gold-leader replied, "Good luck." and they returned, rapidly, to the Defiant.
The Jedi landed in Mandalore's docking bay.
The first door they came to was sealed. Malak set about trying to slice it.
"This is taking too long." Revan muttered. She drew her crimson lightsaber, which earned her a few disapproving glances from some of the Jedi, who saw the colour as a sign of the dark side. Malak had never even considered that before, mostly because the first time he saw her wield a red blade he had been too grateful to see her, to care either way.
She ran the blade through the door - it was thin enough that she cut a smaller doorway through it within less than a minute. She then stepped through the door, and Malak followed just in time to spot several Mandalorian warriors bearing down on them.
"Here's where we see how you fight without the Force." Malak told the other Jedi.
He didn't bother with his lightsaber - it had only hindered him the last two times he fought under the influence of a Ysalamiri. Instead, he drew two small curved daggers, one from each boot, and lunged at the nearest Mandalorian. He never fought with two swords, but these blades were short enough for him to handle them well enough. He could kill men with his bare hands, and these daggers just gave his punches that bit more bite.
Malak stabbed the enemy in the neck, and turning in time to block the vibrosword of a warrior who thought he could hit Malak while his back was turned. Malak then stabbed him in the gut below the breastplate of his armour. He pulled the still-alive Mandalorian, dragging him by the dagger still lodged in his gut, into the path of another vibroblade, which finished him off. Malak then took the second to pull both blades out of his victims, and them spun to kick another Mandalorian in the side of the head.
Revan was also holding off the enemies successfully, using her lightsabers surprisingly well considering she was unable to touch the Force.
Bandon, wasn't doing so well. He was the only Padawan in this group, and had no idea how to fight without the Force. One of the Mandalorians had disarmed him, and was about to finish him off, when one of Malak's daggers suddenly found itself in the offending Mandalorian's throat. "I thought you were supposed to be a Guardian, kid?" Malak asked the younger man.
Bandon scowled, "Those demonic little pets of Mandalore's are affecting my fighting skills." he said, picking himself up. The rest of the swarm of Mandalorians had been dispatched.
"He isn't going to make this easy for you, is he, Revan?" Malak asked flatly.
"That much is obvious. Let's go." Revan led the group through the corridors, in the general direction of the bow of the ship.
"Someone should try to find and take out those Ysalamiri." Bandon noted.
"True." Revan said, nodding, "Take two soldiers, and get on it, kid." she ordered.
Bandon blinked, surprised Revan was giving him that much responsibility, then he barked, "Darien, Claire, you're with me." and he ducked into a side corridor. The two soldiers whose names he had called followed him.
Malak scowled, "He just took the two stealth-ops." he informed Revan.
"All the better." she said blithely, "I hadn't planned on being stealthy, anyway. This way, Bandon stands a better chance of actually taking out the Ysalamiri."
x x x
The four soldiers that stayed with Revan and Malak's group were picked off one by one, by wave after wave of Mandalorian warriors that they had to face down to get to the throne room. When they did get there, the five Jedi were faced with five Mandalorian generals, and Mandalore himself.
"Jedi Revan..." Mandalore said, amused, "So nice of you to make it." The five generals attacked Malak and the other three Jedi, to keep them busy, as Mandalore approached Revan. Malak took on two of them, as the other three Knights fought one each. Without the Force, they didn't stand much chance against the generals - they were much more powerful than the average Mandalorian grunts.
Revan drew a Mandalorian vibrosword she had taken from the base on Siraun, when they had captured Rangar. "This war ends here." she said coldly. The dark smirk she wore - even if he couldn't see it, he could feel - sent a chill down Malak's spine.
"Ready to die, Jedi?" Mandalore jeered. He drew his own sword - a shining silver blade, with a jet-black hilt. It was a beautiful weapon.
Then Malak felt it... the Force returned to him, 'Remind me to thank that kid.' Revan's thoughts sang in his mind, grateful for their restored connection.
'It's still not fair to fight Mandalore with the Force... but it's your choice... you're not bound by his honour code.' Malak replied, before drawing his lightsaber and making short work of the two generals that had almost pinned him before the Force had returned to him.
"I don't fear death. And I don't regret to inform you that it's not my time yet." Revan said aloud, in answer to Mandalore's taunt. She flourished her blade, using the Force to allow her to perform that show-off-trick - one she still couldn't do without the Force.
Mandalore beckoned her to make the first move, and she lunged at him. He wore his ceremonial mask, but simple trousers and shirt instead of the armour they had seen him wearing on the holocomm. He blocked her first blow, and the fight began. To call it intense would be an understatement... Malak worried on several occasions that Revan wasn't ready for it. More than once, he spotted weaknesses in her defence, but Mandalore clearly didn't see them, which was a great relief to Malak.
Out of the corner of his eye, Malak saw one of the other Jedi Knights killed by one of the generals. The other two Jedi had finished off their opponents, and backed the last general into a corner, though, so Malak wasn't too worried about killing the surviving Mandalorian general. He was more concerned with Revan. If Mandalore hurt her, he would kill the masked fiend himself.
But she seemed to be holding her own very well, considering. As he watched the fight, Malak actually wondered if he would have been able to fight this man, had he tried. The student surpasses her master, he thought to himself... careful not to project it for Revan to hear. Revan was now a better sword-fighter than Malak, and after so little time training. It just wasn't fair!
"Need a second, Revan?" Malak asked, jokingly. A 'second' was a duelling term for one who would take over if you were incapacitated in a fight. He knew perfectly well that she didn't need it.
"No. I don't." she answered, not losing her concentration.
More time passed, and neither Revan nor Mandalore managed to touch the other with their swords. It was an elegant and deadly dance, and the first to tire would be the first to fall. Mandalorians are notoriously tireless... but so are Jedi. This could take a while.
Then, Malak sensed malicious intent, and looked up to see a Mandalorian warrior - low-ranking, judging by the armour - in the doorway. He wore Katzof clan insignia... one of few of their clan left in the fight. Most of Katzof clan had fled the war after the battle for Deralia. The Mandalorian hurled a grenade at Malak, who threw up Force shields just in time to protect himself.
It turned out to be a plasma grenade... this became obvious, as flames started licking the banners hanging near Malak's feet. "Can't believe he thought I was weak enough to be killed by a measly plasma grenade." Malak muttered, throwing his lightsaber at the offending Katzof, slicing the Mandalorian neatly in two, from waist to shoulder.
The surviving general hissed an insult that translated as 'Bastard moron!' at the now-dead Katzof... it seemed clear he had no love for Katzof clan. Malak could almost like that general, just for that reason alone. Almost. But that thought was quickly rejected, when the general in question took down a second Jedi. Malak leapt across the room, using the Force, and with a single swing of his lightsaber, the Mandalorian general was grievously wounded, and unable to fight... but still alive.
A yell of pain from the duel drew his attention. Malak turned to see Mandalore, with a blade through his heart, fall to his knees before Revan. It seemed to take almost a minute for his life to slip away... and he eventually collapsed to the floor, dead.
Revan slowly knelt next to Mandalore's body, and picked up his sword... much more elegant than the one she had fought with... and also not bloodstained, as hers now was. She sheathed his sword on her belt, instead of retrieving her own sword. Then she carefully unbuckled Mandalore's war-belt, and took that, too... and finally, his mask. Interestingly enough, she covered his face with a piece of half-burnt cloth, before taking off his mask, so no one could see his face... a show of respect to Mandalorian honour and culture... something Malak had not expected at all.
The general Malak had wounded tried to stand. Malak wasn't sure of his intentions... whether he intended to bow to Revan, or fight her... it was irrelevant. Malak knocked him unconscious, regardless.
The war was over. Revan had won.
x x x
The surviving Mandalorian warriors conceded defeat, when they saw Revan wearing Mandalore's mask. They bowed to her. "You keep what you kill." the surviving general had informed her calmly, as he was held in the brig on the Defiant.
Revan nodded, "And I can do whatever I want with what I now have." she said. Malak could sense the cruel smirk she wore, even though he couldn't see it.
She brought the surviving Mandalorians, in chains, to the viewing deck of the Defiant (there were few enough of them left, after the battle of Malachor, that they could all fit into this one room). They were over the gas giant of Malachor VII... the remaining Mandalorian warbirds circled the planet, loaded full with all their worldly possessions, Basilisk droids, and anything that could not be seized for the benefit of the Republic.
The warbirds were unmanned. Ghost ships. And Revan gave the order to fire on them, sending them spiralling into the gas giant... burning up in the atmosphere. Many of the Mandalorians expressed their horror at this. Absolute defeat was one thing... but they had expected to be allowed to serve under the banner of the warrior who had slain their leader. Instead, they found everything they had fought for, everything they had owned, destroyed.
Only one of them didn't seem to flinch... the only surviving general of Mandalore's fleet. An older man, with a face that could well have been carved out of granite, for all the emotion it showed. Malak heard him whisper in Mandalorian... "/If there's nothing at stake - your possessions, your life, your world - then the battle's meaningless./" It sounded as if he was trying to convince himself of this. "/Win or lose, as long as the fight is worthy, then honour is gained. And we lost.../" he looked up from the view of their burning warbirds, and saw Malak watching him. He smirked darkly, "/This time./"
Malak raised an eyebrow. Beaten, but not broken. Interesting. It seemed these warriors were much stronger willed than the Republic had given them credit for.
When the show was over, the Defiant flew to the nearest mercenary outpost - which, unfortunately for the Mandalorians, was Nar Shaddaa. They ditched the Mandalorians, with direct orders from Revan to, "/Stay the fuck away from the Core Worlds... and only enter Outer Rim Republic territory if you actually intend to obey the Republic's laws./"
They weren't about to argue with her, after she had slain their leader. You keep what you kill... she was now their leader, even if she didn't want to waste her effort on them. And the fact she said it in their own language seemed to illicit yet more respect from them (and confuse the Republic soldiers standing next to her).
After that, Revan called a private conference with Malak, Admiral Zordoc, and Captain Karath, the two Republic officers she seemed to actually trust (Admiral Var had never really gained that honour, before he died).
"I have a proposition for you, Admiral." she said calmly. She now wore Mandalore's mask, as the trophy it was... and it seemed to unsettle the Republic officers, no end.
"What sort of proposition?" the Admiral asked, confused.
"Malak and I discovered an ancient artefact, during our brief stop on Tatooine." she explained calmly, "A map, which claims to lead to a source of great power. If we could follow the map, and find this... source... we could be able to use it to keep enemies like the Mandalorians at bay, in future. Even the threat of such power would scare off most potential enemies."
"If we have bigger guns than them, they're not going to be stupid enough to try to invade us." Malak added flatly, "And if they are that stupid, then we can blast them out of the sky fairly easily."
"That prospect has its merits." the Admiral said, smiling faintly, "Where might we find this 'power source'?"
"We're not certain, yet." Revan said bluntly, "We know there are more of these maps on Kashyyyk and Korriban... we believe that all the maps together will guide us to this power source."
"We don't even know the thing's name." Karath said bluntly, "How do you know these other maps will be any better than the one on Tatooine?"
"We don't." Revan answered honestly, "But with the war over, what have we to lose?"
x x x
Most of the fleet returned to the Core Worlds. Revan only took about a third of the Republic's ships for their search. She claimed they were hunting down remnant Mandalorians - Katzof made excellent scapegoats - because she didn't want to get people's hopes up of some magical weapon that may not exist anymore. Most of their fighters returned with the main fleet, for the celebrations. It was safe enough to do so, now that the war was over.
Their next stop was Kashyyyk.
Most of the fleet stayed outside the system. Revan didn't want the Tradoshans thinking they were being invaded, or anything stupid like that. So Revan and Malak took a small shuttle from the Defiant, to Kashyyyk.
They circled the planet for some time. Eventually, Revan - who was manually controlling the ship the whole time - brought the ship into a synchronised orbit. "It's directly below us." Revan said definitively.
Malak closed his eyes and tried to reach out through the Force to find the map, himself. It took a few minutes for him to sink deep enough into a meditative state to detect the waves of power and darkness at this distance... but she was right. They were directly above the map. He opened his eyes, "How do we get down there? There's no such thing as a clearing in the forest, on this planet."
"I'm detecting cauterised wounds on some of the trees to the northwest." Revan informed him, "It looks like a much larger vessel crashed down in that direction." she frowned, "Years ago... the wroshyr trees have grown back quite effectively, but a small shuttle like ours may still fit through."
"Sounds fun." Malak said sarcastically.
He felt the ship lurch as Revan angled it down for the gap in the trees. Not only was this like threading a needle... but she had to do it at ridiculous speed, just for fun. And she did enjoy the ride, even if Malak's knuckles were turning white from gripping his seat so tightly. The woman was crazy.
x x x
As the ship's engines whined down, deactivating, on the forest floor, Revan smiled innocently at Malak.
"Are you trying to get us killed, Revan? That was bloody dangerous!" Malak said, through gritted teeth.
"It was fun, though." she noted brightly.
Malak shook his head, "You are incorrigible." he muttered, "Next time, I fly."
Revan gave Malak a look that made her appear so innocent and adorable that he literally could not argue with her, "But I like flying."
He rolled his eyes, "Whatever you want, Revan." he said, with total honesty.
Revan stood up, and pulled up the hood of her cloak... she gave a cursory glance to the mask that sat on a console nearby, but decided not to wear it. No point wearing a mask in the lower levels of this world. The ground of Kashyyyk was only inhabited by non-sentient wild beasts, and visited occasionally by Wookiee hunting parties... Czerka slavers steered clear of the lower levels. Wookiees tended to avoid outsiders whenever possible, so they shouldn't be a problem.
Malak followed her off the ship, instinctively checking his lightsaber was still where it belonged, on his belt.
The forest was in total darkness, aside from the light shining out from inside their ship. As soon as the door hissed shut, and Revan sealed it, there was no way to see anything at all with his eyes. So Malak reached out with the Force to see around him. He could sense Revan doing the same. Trees rising as far as he could sense, in all directions, above their heads. It was phenomenal, really.
"Not natural at all." Revan whispered. She was analysing the trees' Force-composition, rather than simply sensing their presence as Malak was.
Malak glanced into her mind, to see what she saw wrong with them... too uniform... grown too fast. 'It's not impossible, though... just because it's unusual, doesn't make it false.'
'True...' she scanned around her, and then pointed to the east. "This way." she started walking, and Malak followed her.
Constantly tapping into the Force like this, to see where they were going, was exhausting for Malak. He wasn't used to prolonged use of the Force, and it was showing. Eventually, he stopped, dropping all his Force senses, and sat down on a nearby low root.
Revan stopped, and then Malak heard her light footsteps on the dirt ground, until he felt her hand touch his shoulder, and she knelt next to him, "Is something wrong, Malak?"
"I'm not used to using Force sight for long periods of time. I've never been somewhere quite this dark, before."
"The problem, Malak, is that we cannot bring glowrods out into the forest. Light may repel many of Kashyyyk's lower level beasts, but it attracts the more dangerous of them." Revan responded logically, "Like waving a red rag to a kath-bull... shining a light at a katarn will enrage it. Not to mention the photosensitive kshyy vines... show them light, and they'll strangle you to get a hold of it."
Malak shivered at that thought, "I suppose we're better off without it... but I need time to rest, before I can use the Force to see, again."
Revan shook her head, "See through my eyes." she said flatly.
He looked up at her, confused... he couldn't see her, but he knew her expression without needing to see it... knew it through their bond. She was perfectly serious, "I don't understand."
"You have reached into my mind, through our Force bond, before. So, just use that to see through my eyes. It will likely be a bit disconcerting, at first, but it will allow you to see where you are going."
Malak closed his eyes, and tried to reach out to Revan's mind. She smiled faintly, and guided his thoughts, until he was able to sense through her Force sight. It wasn't any more tiring for her to do this, than for her simply to see without him... and it didn't put any strain on his Force abilities, either.
The seriously creepy thing was she was looking straight at him, and he could actually see his own Force aura... something even the deepest meditative trances had never allowed him to see before. To say he saw colours would be a bit of an exaggeration... he had never sensed auras in this way before... it was partly tactile, partly visual, but mostly extrasensory. Impossible to put into words, beyond the fact he instinctively knew its meaning... he now knew what she saw every time she looked at him. A shining, light, good heart... surrounded by darkness, but not penetrated by the darkness he wore like a protective cloak. He had never bothered to analyse himself so deeply, before... it was interesting.
He tried to ask her what she saw in herself, this way... but she shut him out of that part of her mind, with such force that he may as well have just run face-first into a durasteel wall. It startled him so much he lost his connection to her Force sight, and fell back into total darkness again. 'Don't ask what you don't want to see, love.' Revan's mind whispered to him, sounding pained to even think it.
Warily, Malak re-established the Force sight connection. Revan took his hand, and started to lead him through the forest, in the direction of the Star Map. Malak could now sense it, as well... the waves of its darkness seemed to affect Revan, even at this distance. Drawing her to it like a moth to a flame.
But suddenly, she stopped, turning her Force sight to the south. They both sensed a sentient presence, there... strong in the Force. "Who's there?" Revan demanded, aloud.
A slight rustle, in the trees... but no other response was forthcoming. Revan ignited her crimson lightsaber, holding it in a defensive stance... its dim glow lit up their surroundings enough to actually see the figure, which ducked behind a nearby tree. It looked human... or at the very least, humanoid. Certainly not a Wookiee.
The presence masked itself, and melted into the forest. "Looks like we're not alone, down here." Revan said, deactivating her lightsaber. "We should make haste. I don't want to hang around to see how much trouble that person can make for us."
x x x
An hour of uneventful walking passed. There was very faint light filtering through from the upper branches, now... and since Malak's eyes had adjusted to total darkness by now, he could see almost perfectly clearly, in this new lighting. It must be morning on this part of Kashyyyk, now.
Suddenly, Revan stopped dead. "No." she said aloud. "And if you thought that, why are you following us?"
Malak tried to listen through Revan's mind, since she could obviously hear something he couldn't. He barely detected the thought, 'I don't believe you.'
"I don't lie." Revan answered flatly.
'Yuhuh... I know what you are, I can read auras too, kid.'
Revan's eyes narrowed, "I am not a kid!" she snarled.
Mental sniggering, from whoever it was that watched them, 'Compared to me... I've been adventuring across the galaxy since before you were born, kid. So you're a kid.'
"Just leave us be, and we'll leave you be. Fair?" Revan asked.
'Now why would I do that, Sith?' the presence masked itself, and Revan glared in the direction she had sensed it from.
'Why did it call you a Sith?' Malak asked in her mind. He couldn't sense the gender of the unidentified person, so in spite of the derogatory meaning of the gender-neutral word, it was better than accidentally choosing the wrong gender.
'It's delusional.' Revan's short reply sounded unconvinced... but Malak didn't dwell on it.
They walked a little further, before Revan stopped again, looked left, then right... then turned right, and led them into a deeper, darker path. It was almost icy, here, in the denser area of forest... and the faint light filtering down was much dimmer here, too. Malak could still see where they were going, though.
Suddenly, a howl from the north-east caught their attention. Revan focused through the Force, "The Force-adept is still to the south-west... the source of that howl feels..." she looked up in the direction it came from, her eyes wide, "Dark... and Force-resistant, I can't probe it."
"What sort of creature can do that?" Malak asked her.
"I can only think of one..." she frowned, 'The mythical Terentatek.'
"You have got to be kidding!" Malak said... the thought of that type of beast scared him more than the Ysalamiri, "Maybe this isn't such a good idea." he took a few steps backwards, away from the source of the howl.
Revan shook her head, "I'm not going to just leave, after coming all this way. I'm sure if we're careful, we can avoid it."
Malak scowled, but nodded, "Whatever you say, Revan." he said, his voice apprehensive, though he drew himself up straight, determined not to let his fear control him.
They continued on... after a short while, however, another howl emanated from the opposite direction. A slightly different pitch, but it sounded similar enough to be of the same species.
"Oh Force, no." Malak muttered.
Revan reached out with her Force senses again, "That sneaky conniving creep." she muttered, "The Force-adept made that sound." an ominous pounding, that sounded like the feet of a giant beast, could be heard from the north-east. "/Buggeration./" Revan hissed, in Mandalorian. She grabbed Malak's hand, and took off at inhuman speed, dragging him behind her, heading south-east towards the power of the map, and away from both the Force-adept and the beast.
They must have lost both, because by the time the map became visible, there was nothing to be sensed around them but wroshyr, kshyy, and various other forms of plant life. It was as if the fauna of this world avoided the map diligently.
But what they found near the map was not what they had expected. Some form of machine or other stood towering a couple of stories high, beside the map. Revan approached the map, trying to ignore the machine, and touched the tall spire that had activated the Tatooine map.
Nothing happened. Revan scowled, and tried again, running her fingers down the black metal, lightly... almost sensually. Nothing continued to happen.
"It's broken." she said bluntly.
"Any broken machine can be repaired by someone who knows what they're doing." Malak replied, watching her hand, as she pulled it away from the map sharply, as if burned.
"Yes, you're right." she glanced at him, her eyes glittering darkly, "It's just a matter of learning how to fix it."
"Perhaps that has something to do with it?" Malak nodded to the giant machine. It looked like a computer bank.
Revan looked up at it for the first time, as if she had been so entranced by the map that this giant monstrosity had gone unnoticed to her. She slowly approached it, and started examining it carefully. "Yes." she whispered, "Take a seat, Malak... this will take a while."
x x x
Malak kept watch for Revan... while he did sense that Force-adept, lurking not too far away, no other threats presented themselves, and the wait became tedious. Eventually, he got bored enough that he left her to her tinkering, and wandered back out in the direction of the Force-adept he sensed. Perhaps he could apprehend this threat, and figure out exactly how delusional, or dangerous, it was.
He couldn't sense life in the same way Revan could, so he was much more wary of any potential threats. Without Revan's Force sight to help him know his environment so well, he had to be much more alert to his other senses. He could detect that Force-adept, however. And it didn't seem to be trying to avoid him.
In fact, when he was a fair way away from Revan and the map, he heard a rustling in the trees nearby, and a human man stepped out. He had dark skin, very little hair, and a lightsaber on his belt... and he looked at least as old as Master Vrook. The old man eyed Malak, in the evaluating way of a wild animal deciding if it was looking at a threat or not. After a moment, he spoke, "You got a name, kid?"
Malak scowled at him, "Why were you following us?"
"I asked first." the old man said bluntly.
"My name is none of your business."
"That's an interesting name."
Malak glared at him. "Why were you following us?" he repeated.
"I was curious."
"Why did you call that beast?"
"A test. Your friend passed."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Malak demanded.
"Means I was wrong. Doesn't mean I'm going to hang around to make friends."
"Then why are you talking to me?"
"Because while I made an assumption about your friend, I didn't know what to make of you. You're kind of like me, really... you do things your own way." he smirked slightly, "Besides, I've not seen another human in a good few years."
"What are you doing on this planet?" Malak asked.
The old man shrugged, "Does it matter? Not sure I remember exactly why I came here."
"You are strange."
"Just tell your Sithy friend to stay away from that machine. It's not good for anything, I can tell you that much."
"Revan is not a Sith!" Malak snapped.
"Revan. Ok, now I know one of your names." the old man said smugly.
"And if you're half as senile as you're trying to make me think, you'll forget it in five minutes." Malak hissed.
The old man chuckled, "Heh, you have a point there. So how about you tell me your name, kid?"
"My name is Malak."
"Good, good. Well, I should be off... got some gardening to do... the place is a bit overgrown." the man turned and wandered off into the forest.
Malak wasn't fooled by the senile act for a moment... no senile old coot could survive in a dangerous place like this for long. A mad hermit, maybe... a senile one, not a chance. Malak considered that the old man would be much more trouble than he was worth, if they stayed down here much longer. Especially if he didn't want Revan to get her hands on the map.
Malak turned and walked quickly back to the machine Revan was working on. When he got there, he saw her sitting, cross-legged, in front of a hologram, talking to it in some alien language or other. He watched the conversation for some time, before the hologram faded, and Revan stood.
She walked over to the map, and touched it again. This time, it opened, and showed her the coordinates. She scowled, "It only shows Korriban and Tatooine. It has one more piece of data for the final coordinates, but no new planets."
"Guess we have to go to Korriban, next, then." Malak said flatly, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"One way to find out."
x x x