Author's Notes: Dantooine... the point of no return... and the most important choice of Malak's life, EVER. Chocolate awards this week go to whoever can tell me where Cassie's mythological roots are.
RollingSkull: Yeah, well I was listening to Rocky Horror songs while I wrote it - what else do you expect? Everyone has darkness in them, it's just certain places (like Korriban) seem to draw it out more than others. The sisters weren't planning on "taking Revan's team down" - they just liked having sex with random people. FYI, Skull darling, my vacation injury (you know the one) inspired half of chapter 12!
Rascarin: Thanks - here's more.
Dark Lord Daishi: Interesting is definitely the right word.
Kosiah: Thank you ::bows:: I figured it'd break the cliché of writing from Revan's POV. Kinda Dracula-y, yeah... Buffy's version is my favourite, btw - the Dracky-babes, I think Xander called them.
Firera: Yes! Medusa is right! ::gives you more chocolate:: glad you liked it - I was trying to think like a typical male, when I wrote Malak's reaction to Stheno... I found it easy to write... d'you think I got it right?
Darth Arachne: Yeah... you're the second person to mention the Dracula-brides parallel - it wasn't intentional, but I'm pleased with the result. I am a pyromaniac myself, so setting characters on fire is fun. If Bandon's gonna become Malak's apprentice I need to explore his character to find out why... he is fun, though.
HK-48: Well, I'm an evil woman, and it just wouldn't do if I didn't take some opportunity to use all my skills of sexual innuendo to seduce my male readers, now would it :p
F-15 Eaglestrike: Yeah, that was based on one of Dorak's questions for your Jedi class... I thought it was cute, since so many people think the "knock" option is stupid. Yes, though the bond gets annoying, for me as the writer... and I will be portraying that annoyance through Malak... which I think you'll find humorous.
Niliav: I'd not mind an orgy with those three women and Jedi Malak, either :p ... and yeah, Bandon is very susceptible to mind-tricks, makes him a fun character to play with, though.
ether-fanfic: ::bows:: thank you - I take pride in being twisted and evil. I think Uthar would be a fun character to develop further... he has so much potential, and we know so little about him.
yeth: Yes, that was just a warning-sign... it'll rear its ugly head again in chapter 11... but it'll really shine later on (though I can't quote numbers because I've not written that part in detail yet.
Cantankerous84: Thanks for spotting that... I fixed it. Glad you liked the chapter, though.
Whisper: Hi, kiddo. Just a bit? I was aiming for "very disturbing" :p
Trunxluvr82190: No, Revan did not put the acid pool there... SCHVch9: ""Who put that there?" I demanded, staring at the pool of acid across the central chamber of the tomb"
Prisoner 24601: Glad you approve of what I've done to the boy - I try to avoid the blatant clichés (though you really cannot beat black leather), but Bioware's thrown so many of them at me... and look what they did to poor innocent Malak's dress-sense, it's appalling! Glad you liked all the cameos... the mask, well, it felt important to me that it be Mandalore's, I don't know why. Yes, Revan thought that line was funny too, it's why she said it. Jorak would do well to meet Frank-N-Furter... now that would be a scary crossover to write... maybe Erin'd be willing to help me ::ponders:
Ryu (ch1): Glad you're liking it. Welcome to the Dark Side - this is one morbid fic - if you make it this far, I shall be very pleased ::insert evil maniacal cackling here::
"Heaven help me, I don't believe in man,
I never talked to god, the devil won't shake my hand,
Heaven help me, I will not live in fear,
But it's too much truth to take when you are not sincere.
So what is it on Earth, you ask, that isn't out on a limb?
When a fat chance in my mind, in yours could be so slim.
Well, this is to say that's a Nobel Prize right there,
You can ask me where I've been, please don't ask me why I care.
Heaven help me, I don't believe in words,
When I don't use the right ones, my thoughts cannot be heard.
So I string up the clichés, across the windowpane,
What's that I always say? Oh yeah, 'no pain no gain"
-Common Rotation, Heaven Help Me.
P.S. I had trouble choosing between three of this band's songs to use for this chapter. But either way, they're a bloody brilliant band, and I highly recommend that you listen to them (they're even better live, but check out this website: ).
x x x
Chapter 10 - Power
The Defiant was headed for the Dantooine system. Malak had decided, after much persistence from Revan, to keep the black clothing he had found on Korriban, though he had added some of his own armour to it, which made it look slightly more presentable than it had while they had been on Korriban.
Revan had dyed her robes black... she said it was to match his clothes, but he had suspicions otherwise... the fact she had started wearing a diamond necklace under her robes didn't help to allay his suspicions at all. She was still heartbroken over Genie's death, and had finally gotten around to changing the colour of her robes... she was mourning. Well, that and Euryale calling her 'scarlet' seemed to have really rubbed her the wrong way.
Now, they were a few hours away from Dantooine, and there was a knock on the door of Malak's room. He had been trying to meditate again, but he looked up and said, "Enter."
The door opened, and Cassie stepped nervously into the room. She surveyed the junk piled around the room with some distaste, but didn't comment on it. "Malak... I wanted to talk to you."
"What about?" he asked, standing up, and walking slowly into the middle of the room.
Cassie closed the door, and took a couple of steps further into the room, her eyes carefully on what little of the floor was visible, "It... it's about Revan."
"What about her?" Malak asked... he glanced around the room, but there were no seats he could offer Cassie... all the chairs in the room were buried under various forms of junk.
"I... I'm worried about her." Cassie said, frowning, "She... both of you, actually... you've been acting differently. I... fear that you may both be in danger."
"What do you mean?" Malak asked, confused.
"I had a... a vision." she admitted, "It was vague... all I saw was that something bad could happen to you... both of you... if you keep trying to find this... this thing you're looking for."
"And what do you want me to do about it?"
"Stop Revan from searching for it. We don't need it. Not really."
"Yes we do." Malak said flatly.
Cassie looked up at him, her green eyes glittering, "Please... at least think about what I've said. Bad things could happen if you ignore me."
Malak frowned, "I trust your judgement, Cassie... you have uncanny foresight... but I agree with Revan on this one."
"Just think about it. That's all I'm asking." she said, her eyes pleading.
Malak nodded, "Very well. I'll think about it."
"Thank you." Cassie smiled weakly - a smile that didn't reach her eyes - then turned to leave.
x x x
Malak did think about it. Cassie had never been wrong, yet... but he trusted Revan more. So it was that he and Revan went down to Dantooine, taking two small fighter-sized ships down to the location Revan was certain the map would be found in.
They weren't far from the Jedi enclave, so they made a point of landing at night, about half an hour before dawn, when there was a fair amount of cloud-cover, and they could go unnoticed. The ancient ruins here were much better preserved than they had been on other worlds.
On Tatooine, they had been eroded beyond recognition. On Manaan and Kashyyyk, they have been lost completely to the elements. On Korriban, they had probably been ripped down by the Sith to make way for the Sith temple and tombs. But here, the so-called ruins stood in near-perfect condition... most of it had been covered over by earth and grass, but it was still clear by the cartography readout that the building was intact.
By starlight, it looked beautiful, if incredibly eerie, as they approached the ruins. The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon, casting a crimson glow over the clouded sky. The grass was dry, as the winter season approached for this part of Dantooine, and it made a satisfying crunching sound as it broke underfoot.
Revan led the way to the entrance of the ruins. The air of power around the doorway was... delicious. "The dark side is strong in this place - I can feel its power!" Malak said, aloud.
'Of course you can... a Force-blind gizka would notice it.' Revan thought coldly, examining the symbols on the doorway intently.
Malak watched her carefully, as she read the symbols. She was translating them, he could hear her thoughts... the problem was she was thinking in an alien language, which it seemed like this writing corresponded to. It sounded like the same language she had conversed with the computer on Kashyyyk in.
He could sense the darkness in her, now... even if she tried to conceal it from him, it was too strong to miss it. Power, pure and simple. But she said it herself, power corrupts. He watched intently, as she reached out to press one of the stone tiles inset in the door. A grinding sound could be heard from within the ruins.
What if Cassie was right? "Is this wise? The ancient Jedi sealed the archway." he said warily.
Revan did hear him, but she didn't answer. Instead, she pressed a second stone tile, which caused more grinding sounds from within the building.
Suddenly, he was afraid. Revan really was behaving differently. Colder, as if she didn't care anymore. Almost heartless. "If we pass beyond this door, we can never go back. The Order will surely banish us." he said plaintively.
'And I look like I care, why?' Revan thought, emotionless... like she were carved from ice... and not in the way a normal Jedi was, this was much darker, more frightening. She pressed the third stone tile, and the door opened, flowering out as elaborately as the maps themselves did. It reminded Malak ominously of a gaping maw, looking to swallow them whole.
Revan entered the ruins, with confidence, and a certainty that she would come to no harm. Malak closed his eyes for a second, took a deep breath, and followed her, "Are the secrets of the Star Forge so valuable, Revan?" he asked warily, as they walked through the eerie, dust-covered hall of the ruins, "Can its power truly be worth the risk?"
Revan stopped, as they reached another door, and looked up at him, "Risk? What risk?"
"Who knows what lies in these ruins? And even if we safely find the map, who knows what it will lead us to?" Malak protested.
Revan sighed, exasperated, "Malak, you should not let fear cloud your judgement. Nothing can be gained without risk."
"But certain risks are greater than others... and I..." his voice lowered, so she only heard him through his thoughts, even though he spoke it aloud, "I don't want you to get yourself hurt."
"I can take care of myself, Malak." she opened the door, and stepped through. In the next room, they encountered a droid, which spoke to them in an unidentified language.
"Sounds like Sand People." Malak muttered.
Revan frowned, "I don't understand you." she informed the droid.
It spoke again, in a very different language. A sequence of clicks and hisses, which Malak had no idea the meaning of.
Revan's eyes widened, "That's an ancient insectoid language... originating on Korriban, before the native species died out. I... I can make out some of it." she produced a few clicking noises in the same language, and the droid switched to another language.
It sounded like the language she spoke to the machine on Kashyyyk, and Revan proceeded to converse with it. Malak folded his arms, and looked around the room, trying to pretend that he didn't really care what they were talking about. The room was thick with dust, and felt like no living thing had set foot in it for millennia. He could sense the aura of power from the next room, through the door opposite the one they entered through.
Slowly, he walked over to the door, and examined it. The locking mechanism was more complicated than that of the main entrance, which made sense. An inner sanctum would be more secure than the temple itself. There were two symbols on the lock; one was a serpent eating its own tail, the other a pair of bones crossing each other.
Revan finished her conversation with the droid, and walked over to Malak, "The serpent symbol is called Ouroboros, it means life, specifically eternal life. The bones mean death. The two locks can be unsealed through these doors." she indicated to the left and right, "One for each room."
"Sounds simple enough." Malak said, examining the intricate design of the serpent symbol. Every tiny scale seemed to have been carved with detailed care and precision. It looked almost alive. "What's the catch?"
Revan walked over to the door to the left, and looked at it carefully, "There's a test in here. I'm not sure what it is, but it sounds dangerous. The droid spoke of the temple's own defences killing those who are unworthy."
"Maybe we should just turn back now?" Malak suggested, his fear returning with this concept.
"I think I'm more than worthy, don't you?" Revan asked coldly.
"Depends on how you define worthy, Revan. If it defines 'worthy' as a trait you do not possess, it could kill you. I don't want to-"
"Shut up." she snapped, "I'm going into this room, now are you coming with me, or not?"
"I..." Malak stared at her for a moment, then nodded, "Yes. I would follow you to hell and back, angel."
Revan smirked, "Of course you would." she said, opening the door. Immediately, she ignited her lightsabers, deflecting blaster bolts, which Malak quickly realised were coming from a droid in the room. A single droid, but its blaster fire was intense enough to have been from a dozen crack-shot Mandalorian warriors. Revan barely deflected it, even with both blades moving so fast they blurred in front of her.
Malak leapt over her, using the Force to enhance and guide his jump, reaching to the Force to shield himself, as blaster fire turned on him. He saw a flash of lightening from Revan, aimed at the droid, which froze for a moment, just long enough for Malak to land in front of the droid, and drive his 'saber down through its core processors. That fight was over.
Revan walked slowly up to Malak, and looked him over carefully, "You are uninjured?" Malak nodded. "Good." Revan replied, before walking over to the only other fully intact object in the room. Malak followed her, and looked over her shoulder as she examined the console.
She read it fairly easily, "The language of the Builders." Revan informed him, at his curiosity about the language, "Those who created the Star Maps, and the Star Forge."
"Star Forge?" Malak asked her.
"The Star Forge is the glory of the Builders, the apex of their infinite empire. It is a machine of invincible might, a tool of unstoppable conquest." Revan quoted, a snide tone making it obvious she was mimicking someone else's words, "That is all the droid in the central chamber could tell me of it. It appears to be the power source these Maps point to."
Malak nodded, "So what does this console say?"
"It's a pop-quiz. Name three primary death-giving planet types." Revan pressed three symbols on the touch-screen, and the screen beeped, and lit up with a different symbol, "Barren, volcanic, and desert. That new symbol means the seal is now open." she explained. She then turned on her heel and left the room, headed across the central chamber, to the other door. Malak followed her closely.
Revan opened the door, and Malak immediately threw a wave of the Force across the whole room. It threw off the droid's stabilizers, and he leapt at the droid, again. It was taken enough by surprise that it didn't get off a single shot. Revan threw lightening at it, which kept it stunned, until Malak could run it through, exactly the same way as he had done for the first droid.
Revan immediately made her way over to the console, and quickly pressed the screen three times. It beeped an affirmative. "Life-giving planets." Revan murmured as she passed Malak. He fell into step with her, and she continued, "It's a bit blatant, when I was given a multiple choice of six answers... the same choices for both questions. The answers for one will automatically not be the answers for the other. Almost too easy."
"Those droids weren't 'too easy'."
"They went down fast."
"The first one put up a good fight."
"Hmm... true." Revan made her way to the door that contained the two seals. The two symbols had moved higher up the door, and the door opened as they approached it. At the far end of a long hall, with statues of the species he had seen on the Kashyyyk hologram lining the walls, was the Star Map. Its wicked black spires flowered out as they approached, releasing the glittering image of the galaxy... and a wave of dark power with it. Malak closed his eyes, and allowed the sensation of this darkness to wash over him. Beautiful.
Revan examined the Map, carefully. "This has the final coordinates." she announced, "The Star Forge is in the Outer Rim, beyond Mandalorian space... only a few parsecs from the borders of Korriban's territorial space. Neutral ground, though close to hostile territories."
Malak nodded, "Are you certain you wish to go there?" he asked.
She held her head high, "Of course I'm certain."
Malak half bowed his head, "I trust your judgement, Revan." I just hope we're not making a big mistake.
x x x
When they returned to the Defiant, they were immediately informed by Tyr that Cassie had disappeared.
"She's gone to tell the Jedi on Dantooine what we're up to." Malak said distantly.
"How do you know?" Revan asked him, giving him a suspicious look.
"She tried to talk me into stopping you from searching for the Maps." Malak told her, "She thought they were dangerous. It makes sense that if she went AWOL around Dantooine, she would go running to the Masters to rat on us."
"Well, we should leave before they locate us." Revan said, nodding to the Admiral, "Take us to these coordinates, Admiral." she said, handing him the datapad with the Star Forge coordinates on it, "And signal the rest of the fleet to follow us." the Admiral examined the coordinates, then nodded. He wasn't sure what to make of this, but he trusted Revan - she had effectively won the war for them, after all.
"Why are we avoiding the Jedi Masters, Revan?" Captain Karath asked nervously.
"Because they would disapprove of what we are searching for." Revan said blithely, "They disapproved of us joining the war, too. Shows how good their judgement is, doesn't it? Trust me, Captain." she added, with the very faintest hint of the Force in her words.
The Captain nodded, conceding that what Revan said made sense.
Revan turned to get one last look at Dantooine, 'I'll get you, Cassie... you'll pay for betraying me.' she thought, glaring at a specific spot on the planet... Malak couldn't sense it, but he knew Revan had located exactly were Cassie was on Dantooine, and was aiming her glare straight at the foolish Padawan.
x x x
They found the system that contained the Star Forge. They could see the Star Forge itself from the outer rings of the system... it was beautiful. It was glittering silver metal, so large it could have been a small planet... or built around one, if you look at the spherical core of it. Even at this distance, Malak could feel the darkness emanating from it. Purest power... when that droid told Revan the Star Forge was 'a machine of invincible might, a tool of unstoppable conquest', it wasn't exaggerating. Ultimate power... and it beckoned to him.
"Wait here with the rest of the fleet, Admiral." Revan ordered, "Malak and I shall go to the Star Forge ourselves."
"Yes, Revan." the Admiral said obediently.
Revan beckoned to Malak, and made her way to the shuttle bay.
The shuttle trip was much shorter than they expected, however. As they passed through the orbital path of the fourth planet from the star, the shuttle decided to throw a hissy-fit. It pitched at an odd angle, and its main engines failed.
"What the hell?!" Revan yelled.
Malak, who was at the engineering readouts, was pretty stunned, "This shouldn't be happening. All power systems have been totally fried! Unless we can find a planet to crash on, we'll end up falling into the star... if our life-support systems don't fail before that."
Revan rolled her eyes, "Are manual controls available?"
"Yes."
"Aim for the fourth planet."
Malak took the controls, and tried to wrestle the shuttle in the vague direction of the fourth planet. To call it a bumpy ride would be a great understatement. The angle they hit the atmosphere at was too steep, and the shuttle started falling to pieces, bits of the hull sheared off by the intense heat. They only survived by the small mercy that the cockpit was reinforced to withstand just such a horrendous attempt at a landing... it was the only intact part of the ship left. And it landed in the ocean.
Revan was thrown out of her seat, as they landed, and a piece of what once was a control panel left a nasty gash on her mask. Malak didn't even want to contemplate what might have happened if she hadn't been wearing it... it would probably have gouged out her eye. The remains of the shuttle started to sink.
Revan slowly picked herself up and looked around, "Nice landing, Malak." she hissed, one hand moving to her side, the other to her face.
Malak clutched his right arm to his chest. It hurt like hell, and there was blood on the controls, which appeared to have come from his arm.
He tried to use the Force to heal his wound, but it wouldn't cooperate. He could feel the Force, he just... couldn't heal himself. He frowned, "It's not like I deliberately intended to crash into the ocean." he muttered. He looked out the window, and saw the rising water level, "We should get out of here." he noted.
Revan looked up, "Crap."
"My thoughts exactly." Malak noted. He decided it might be a good idea to rescue the medical supplies, as well... and maybe some food rations, if they could carry them. Revan stumbled to the exit, which was already half underwater, and opened it, allowing the salty water to rush into the shuttle, bringing it down faster. Revan scrambled out onto the top of the shuttle, and reached a hand in to help Malak out.
Malak accepted the offered hand, holding the supplies he had managed to scavenge in his probably-broken right arm, and felt the Force wrap around him, pulling him up onto the roof of the shuttle. It was still sinking, though. "There's land over in that direction." Revan said, pointing. Malak looked in that direction, and saw that the land wasn't too far away. About half a mile.
"How do you propose we get there?" Malak asked flatly.
"Well..." Revan looked down, as their feet were beginning to be lapped by the waves. "It looks like we're going to have to swim for it, don't you think?"
Malak scowled at the water, "Yes... it looks like our only choice."
Revan took off her mask, and threw it in the direction of the shore, using the Force to keep it in the air until it actually reached the beach. "What else do we want to save and not get wet?" she asked.
"I scavenged a few supplies from the ship." Malak hurled the bag of medical supplies and food rations towards the shore, and Revan used the Force to make sure it landed right next to her mask.
They were now knee-deep in the ocean. Revan shed her cloak and robe, leaving her wearing only trousers, boots and her undershirt. She even took off the gloves she usually wore. Her skin was pale, like she hadn't seen sunlight in years... she had a few faint veiny lines on her face, which was probably a typical trait of darkness... and her eyes were that golden colour he had seen them briefly turn on Deralia.
Malak took off the armour shoulder plates he wore, and dropped them in the water. Revan stepped to the edge of the shuttle, and glanced over her shoulder at him, "Race you to the supplies." and with that, she dived into the water, and started swimming for the shore. Malak dived in after her.
x x x
Revan made it to the shore first, but Malak was hot on her heels. She was a few feet from their supplies, when he caught her by the waist, and wrestled her to the ground.
"Hey! No fair!" Revan protested, struggling playfully. If she'd really wanted to throw him off her, she was more than capable of it. She squirmed underneath him for a moment, and he grinned, enjoying the game. But then she froze, scowled, and actually did push him off her. "Ewww!"
"What?" Malak asked, picking himself up to his feet and brushing sand off his clothes.
"I've got sand in my hair." Revan explained, sitting up and trying to comb her hair out. Malak laughed - for a second, he'd thought she had been offended by something he'd done. "Let's get off the beach." Revan suggested, "There are certain places sand should never get, and my hair is only one of them."
Malak raised an eyebrow at her, and she smirked. She picked up her mask, and clipped it to her belt next to the lightsaber on her right hip. Malak automatically checked his own lightsaber hadn't fallen off in the water, and was relieved to find it still attached to his belt.
Revan looked at the bag of supplies Malak had rescued from the ship, then glanced up at him, "Why did you bother bringing medpacs?"
"I tried to heal my arm, on the ship. It didn't work." Malak answered honestly.
Revan looked at his arm, her expression looked more calculating than anything else, "Hmmm... then perhaps you should tend to it." she handed him a medpac.
He frowned at the medpac, for a second. He had taken the medical training at the Jedi Temple - all Guardian class Jedi were taught field medicine, exactly how to use antidotes and kolto... but Malak had never used them on himself before - he had always used the Force to heal his own injuries. He didn't quite understand why he hadn't been able to heal the relatively minor wound on his arm.
He opened the medpac, and injected the kolto shot into his arm, next to the cut. It would take a while for it to heal properly, but the injection was all it needed, really. Revan then shoved the bag of supplies at him, effectively an order for him to carry it - she never carried heavy objects, when Malak was around to be chivalrous. He took the bag, and followed her as she walked up the path to the less sandy ground there.
They walked along the line between the beach and the grassland. Revan's reasoning being, if they could find the mouth of a river, they could follow it upstream to find fresh water. Her primary reason for this being the desire to wash the sand out of her hair... though drinking water would be high on the list of reasons for finding fresh water, washing her hair seemed to be of greater importance to Revan.
Malak followed her silently, as they headed around the island's shore, the ocean to their left. He was still puzzling over why he could not use the Force to heal himself. The last time he had really used the Force to heal had been to prolong Rangar's suffering. That hadn't been particularly long ago - a couple of months at most.
"The compassionate elements of the Force dislike being abused, Malak." came Revan's soft voice, intruding on his thoughts.
"What do you mean?" Malak asked her.
"If you misuse the powers designed for mercy and kindness, you will be denied them. Oddly enough, the darker powers do not refuse to be used for kinder purposes." Revan looked at him intently, "Proof, if ever we needed it, that the dark side is more flexible, more powerful. Greater. Better."
Malak's lip twitched, "I suppose so." he agreed.
"And you can sense, even from the outskirts of the system, that the Star Forge is a source of dark energy." Revan added, conversationally.
"Yes..." Malak said, now warily.
"Well..." Revan stopped and turned to face him, "Don't you think I already knew that?"
"You're saying you're deliberately seeking out a tool of the dark side?" Malak asked. Somehow, he wasn't surprised... he probably should have been, but he wasn't.
"Yes." Revan smirked, "I knew from the moment we found the map on Kashyyyk. The conversation I had with the hologram there was most enlightening. The Star Forge is a source of great dark power. And we can use it to do whatever we want." the excitement in her tone seemed... inappropriate. She sounded like a small child being told she would be getting the birthday present she'd always wanted. Her face looked almost scary, but this glee was so childlike... the contrast was unsettling.
He might have asked her what she planned to do with the Star Forge - the unnecessary glee with which she had said 'whatever we want' did beg the question - but he was interrupted by a primitive wooden arrow suddenly appearing in Revan's chest. The source of said arrow was a bizarre looking alien, with its eyes on stalks on either side of its face... it looked very much like the aliens depicted in the Kashyyyk hologram and the Dantooine ruins. It held a primitive crossbow, now reloaded and aimed at Malak.
Malak threw a bolt of lightening at it, killing it instantly. Revan crumpled to the ground, and he knelt next to her. "Revan." he said urgently, clutching her hand. This sort of wound was fatal without Force healing, and he knew it.
"It hurts." she whispered, gripping his hand tightly.
"It's going to hurt a lot more in a second." Malak muttered, "If I remove the arrow, you're going to have to use the Force to heal yourself. Can you do that?"
She nodded weakly, still gripping his hand with all her strength. Malak used the Force to snap off the feathering from the tail of the arrow, then he gripped it by the bloodied end just below the tip, and pulled it out of Revan's chest.
He felt a sudden icy chill run up his arm, and the hand Revan held went numb. The chill ran right through his body, and he started shaking. When he recovered, Revan's wound had vanished, and she was sitting up, watching him intently. "Thank you." she said quietly.
"What did you just do?" Malak asked. He felt weak, like he'd just run a mile, and while he had stopped shaking he was still catching his breath.
"I cannot use the healing elements of the Force... just as you cannot." Revan said quietly, "There are darker powers which steal energy from other living things to regenerate and heal wounds, however."
"You could have warned me." Malak muttered.
"I wasn't sure you would agree to let me do it." she answered.
"It was either that or let you die. I would have been more than willing to let you do... whatever it was, exactly, that you did to me... but you should have told me." Malak hissed angrily.
Revan sighed, "An error in judgement. I was mortally wounded, can you blame me for acting rashly?" she asked.
Malak looked at the ground. He really couldn't blame her. "You're right." he whispered. He was still tired, but it wasn't as bad now. It wasn't like she had done him any permanent harm.
Malak picked himself up, and offered Revan his hand to help her stand. She accepted it, and smiled at him, "I would never try to hurt you, Malak."
"I know." he answered, smiling back.
"Let's go find some water, now..." Revan suggested, still holding his hand. She led him along the edge of the beach, and he followed her willingly.
x x x
Unfortunately, it wasn't long until they came across more of those aliens. This time, however, Revan was ready for them, and used the Force to catch the arrows in midair. She levitated them to her hand, and snapped each one in half, making a dramatic show of it for the aliens.
The aliens responded to this by charging at them with swords. Some of them even wielded double-bladed swords, which showed some degree of skill in swordsmanship, to be able to use such a weapon without accidental self-decapitation. Revan drew her crimson lightsaber, and held it defensively, as the aliens charged down the slope.
Malak drew his own lightsaber... the blue colour contrasted sharply with Revan's red 'saber, but he really didn't need to be distracted by that sort of thought right now.
Revan grabbed the nearest alien, with the Force, around its throat, lifting it off the ground, and throwing it back towards the other aliens. She then conjured a whirlwind in the sand, blinding the aliens. She threw her lightsaber into the fray, and they heard gurgling death-cries from within the sandstorm.
When Revan caught her lightsaber again, and the sandstorm cleared, there were three aliens left. Malak leapt with the Force into the middle of the small group, and lashed out with his lightsaber. He cut down two of the aliens, but the third dodged his blade, and made a run for it. Malak tried to stop it, but it disappeared behind a rock formation before he could catch up.
"Leave it." Revan said, walking slowly over to the dead bodies of the aliens. She knelt, and examined the bodies, "They're primitives. They're not worth the effort to hunt them down." she then stood up, giving the corpses a look of distain, and continued walking along the shore.
Malak took the time to look in the direction the surviving alien had gone, one last time. It had seemed terrified, and he couldn't blame it really... but they did attack first, so it shouldn't be so surprised that some of their would-be victims eventually fought back. Still, he was certain they hadn't seen the last of those aliens.
"They look like Rakata." Revan said. This drew his attention to the fact that she was a fair distance away and still walking.
Malak jogged to catch up. "What are Rakata?" he asked.
"The alien form on the hologram on Kashyyyk." Revan said calmly, "They have some basic physical deviations from the hologram, but that can be attributed to evolution... they're probably the same species."
Malak nodded, "Are the Rakata the Builders?"
"More accurately, the Builders were Rakata... a small cult of their species, the overlords of their kind." Revan corrected, "But these Rakata certainly don't look up to anything involving high technology, don't you think?"
"I'd put nothing past a species I don't understand." Malak muttered.
Revan smirked, "Too true, Malak. But at the very least, they are Force-blind. The Builders wielded the elements... translated into modern terms, they were Force users."
"Wait a second... you're effectively saying the Builders were the Sith of their era."
"Something akin to that... but with very different technology and codes of conduct." Revan explained, "The only genuine similarity was that both ruled through fear and power."
Malak shrugged. He really didn't want to have this conversation right now. Had he known all this before Dantooine, he might have listened to Cassie... now, however, he was willing to follow Revan anyway. He knew approximately why she wanted the Star Forge, and he didn't see a reason to stop her... he found the offer of that much power just as alluring as she did.
Soon, they found themselves surrounded by yet more of these aliens. "They're like bounty hunters." Revan muttered, "First one takes a shot at you... then a small group... now a small army."
Malak eyed the Rakata warily, "They're not attacking."
"I noticed... otherwise they'd all be dead." Revan replied calmly.
One of the Rakata stepped forward, and spoke in its alien language, addressing both of them equally.
Revan scowled, "I don't understand them." she said, "The language has evolved a great deal... it could take me hours to relearn it."
"There's a chance they still understand some of the ancient language..." Malak noted.
"A vague chance." Revan said, "No human can speak the archaic language of pre-industrial Coruscant... I doubt this species would know their own linguistic roots... but it is worth a try." She spoke a few words in the ancient Rakatan language. The Rakata looked at each other for a minute, before the one who seemed to be the leader of the group shook its head and said something else.
Revan groaned, "I think that means they don't understand me." she muttered.
"The fact they're trying to communicate is, at least, promising." Malak noted.
"I suppose it is." she conceded, "As there is life on the island, perhaps we can ask for their help... it will likely take me a while to learn to communicate properly, however."
The lead alien beckoned for Revan and Malak to follow it, and started walking along the beach. The other Rakata still surrounded them, and Malak got the feeling they wouldn't be allowed to leave peacefully, unless they followed the Rakata wherever they were headed.
"You're probably right, Malak." Revan told him calmly. She followed the lead Rakata, keeping her entire demeanour free from all signs of hostility. Malak followed her. This was not at all what he had expected when he had learned what the Star Forge was, and he would be happy just to get off this primitive world.
x x x
The leader of the Rakatan tribe gave off an aura of power... Force-blind, but strong in other ways. It seemed to have the same charismatic power over its followers that Revan could exert so naturally over those whose help she wanted. It was clear instantly that this one was the leader of its tribe.
It greeted them, but Revan sighed, "I get the feeling that wasn't a simple 'hello'." she muttered to Malak.
"Why?" Malak asked.
"Because... one words seems not to have changed in all the millennia... 'murder'."
"Crap."
"I don't have time to learn the new language." Revan said flatly. She stepped forward, to stand directly in front of the leader of the Rakata tribe, and held up her right hand towards him, "May I?" she asked, projecting the question as an emotion - a simple query for permission to touch the Rakata leader.
It nodded, and Revan touched the side of its face. She closed her eyes, and locked Malak out of her mind. Whatever she was doing, it seemed to be causing some pain to the Rakata leader... but her frown indicated it wasn't exactly comfortable for her either.
After a few minutes, she stepped back, lowering her hand, "Can you understand me now?" she asked.
The Rakatan leader stared at her, awed, then spoke in its language. Revan smiled, and slipped into the Rakatan language as if she had always known it. Malak sulked, and tried to pretend that he didn't care what they were talking about. He really hated when Revan did this. It made him feel such a fool, that he didn't understand what she was saying.
It took hours before Revan finally finished her conversation with the Rakatan leader. During which time, Malak had found somewhere to sit, and might have considered falling asleep if he hadn't been in a potentially hostile encampment. When Revan finally did finish her conversation, she bowed to the Rakatan leader, and then grabbed Malak by the collar and muttered, "Come on, we can leave now."
The second they were outside, Malak asked, "What was all that about?"
"The Rakatan leader is known as The One." Revan said flatly, "Which is really fun when you're calling him by name, to his face... I mean, what do you call him? Your Oneness?"
Malak sniggered, "Cute. But that cannot be all you talked about."
"Actually, I carefully didn't mention it... but I thought you might find it amusing." Revan said blithely, "The conversation circled around the fact they're bloody terrified of us. We 'murdered' some of their greatest warriors, apparently. And in their culture, this isn't something to scorn, but rather something to revere. They wanted our help. One of the other tribes on the island has been causing trouble for them, and they want said tribe 'eliminated'. They told me there is some sort of 'mystic field' around this world, which can be brought down within their sacred temple. They can get us into the temple, if we can acquire some ancient document from the other tribe."
"Sounds awfully complicated to me." Malak muttered.
"I agree." Revan said flatly, "It seems a lot of trouble to kill a whole tribe for a book. I think perhaps I should try to reason with this other tribe... ask to borrow the book, myself."
"If that's possible... it would be simpler." Malak agreed. He suddenly realised they were crossing through the main grassland of the island, instead of going around the beach. "Do you know where we're going?"
"The One said that the other tribe is across the plain from them." Revan said flatly.
Malak shrugged, and looked up at the slightly turquoise sky overhead. The star of this system was high in the sky, and a glitter of silver, like one of the stars of the night sky visible during the day, shone next to it. He couldn't really look directly at it, as it was so close to the star itself, but he could sense the dark power from it, even as it sparkled so brightly.
"It's just waiting for us." Revan said quietly, "All we have to do is get off this rock, and go to it."
"How do you keep doing that?" Malak asked bluntly.
"Doing what?" she asked innocently.
"Reading my mind."
"I could always tell approximately what you were thinking... reading your face was never difficult, really, Malak." Revan explained, smirking, "But with our connection, our Force bond, everything you think I can... well, hear isn't really the right word, is it?"
Malak sniggered, "Probably not."
"Every surface thought that passes through your mind... unless you consciously block me from it, I can sense it. Although, when you intentionally project your thoughts, they are much clearer." she smiled at him, "I know everything you think, Malak."
"Then why don't I know everything you think?" he asked immediately, "You can block your thoughts from me, and you do so often."
"You can block me any time you wish, as well, Malak." she said blithely.
"But I have no desire to." he said pointedly, "Why would you block me? What have you to hide? I thought that a lovers bond was designed to be shared between two who had no need for secrets."
Revan smirked, "That is its purpose. I only hide certain things from you because I don't think you would like to know them."
"Such as."
"You don't want to know."
"I'm asking, aren't I?"
She stopped walking, and turned to face him, "All right. You really want to know?" she asked. The coldness in her tone made it deadly serious... she genuinely thought he wouldn't like what she had been hiding from him. Malak nodded warily. Revan closed her eyes, and dropped her mental barriers. She consciously projected what she had previously been hiding. As the torrent of emotions washed over him, Malak closed his eyes, too.
Righteous anger, so justified and true... pain turned it into bitter hatred, vicious loathing of the Mandalorians. She froze her heart, to let her go on, after Genie's death... almost emotionless, but not in the way a Jedi should be... heartless, hateful, vengeful. Venom and loathing her only feelings for a time, the only thing sustaining her until the duel... the duel she had won, and now... empty. She needed a purpose, something to give her the belief she was making a difference. Killing Mandalore only eliminated one enemy, but there would always be more. The Star Forge was ultimate power... with it, she could rule the galaxy, and no one could ever hurt her again. She needed it.
Malak opened his eyes slowly, and looked at Revan with some degree of fear. He had never felt hatred like that before, and it terrified him. "Revan... why do you need it?"
"It... it calls to me... beckons me. And I don't want to resist it." she said quietly. She sighed, and then turned sharply on her heel, heading across the field. Malak followed her... he was beginning to think maybe Cassie had been right... but he wouldn't let Revan know he thought that... they did need to get off this world, whatever way you looked at it, and trying to argue with the only person here who could translate the local language was a Really Bad Idea.
x x x