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Into the Dark Side
Chapter 4
Pain. White hot throbbing pain. That was Jacen Solo's world as he slowly opened his eyes, the dim light of his holding cell only seeming to amplify the hurt. "What happened?" he asked, his throat dry and his voice thin. Jaina Solo rested on a pallet across the room, oblivious to his trivia.
Suddenly, the memories came flooding back to him. He had parted ways with Master Skywalker so he could ride to Rogue Squadron's headquarters in a hovercar with Lowbacca and his sister. They never made it. They were ambushed in the sky, kidnapped in the galactic capital.
Jacen rose from his pallet before collapsing. That had been no stun blast that had hit them. It had been a cruel display of the Dark Side. One quick burst of power that had led to his captivity.
Not able to see Lowbacca, Jacen concluded that the Wookiee was being held in another cell. He briefly considered waking his twin, but decided against it. Using a simple Force technique that Cilghal had taught him, Jacen flushed the weariness from his system. He wanted to be able to think before waking Jaina.
"Haste makes waste," Jacen muttered as he raised himself to a seated position. He expanded his Force sense outward, only to find that it bounced off the cell walls, almost as if there were some sort of invisible barrier.
He immediately panicked, fearing that ysalamiri had been employed. Just as quickly as he despaired, Jacen dismissed that possibility outright. Ysalamiri were snakelike tree dwelling creatures that exuded an aura that repelled the Force. It was not mere lines like the walls of the holding cell, but bubbles. Something else was at work.
Curious, Jacen rose from his pallet and walked to what he believed was the door, growing colder upon approach even though his brown flight suit usually kept him warm. The Jedi apprentice placed his hand on the door and immediately recoiled. It was like a frozen flame that swallowed the Force.
The door suddenly slid to the left, revealing a woman and a man on the other end. The woman wore form fitting black armor and had a cape with spines attached to it. Her thick raven hair flowed down her back, framing her pale face. Violet eyes pierced Jacen's soul as her wine colored lips twisted in a smirk.
The woman's companion wore turquoise robes that Jacen immediately recognized as Hapan. He had a bald head and his grey gaze was predatory.
"So, you are awake, young Solo," the woman said. "I am Tamith Kai and this is my esteemed colleague Korderan."
Korderan nodded only slightly, but only out of a grudging courtesy.
"Why have you kidnapped us?" Jacen snapped.
"You are being taken to a place where you can learn the true nature of the Force," Korderan said coolly, his demeanor intimidating.
"You're Dark Siders," Jacen said. "I'll never learn from you!"
"The Master said you would be the feisty one," Kai said.
Jacen glanced to his sister's sleeping form. He had hoped she would have stirred and began to regret not waking her.
"Regrets, Solo?" Korderan goaded.
Jacen glanced back at the Hapan, trying to maintain his center of calm, immediately finding the task difficult to sustain. He noticed the man carried a lightsaber. If only he could get it.
Using what he remembered from his Uncle's lessons, Jacen quickly expanded his sense of the Force, using invisible hands to wrap around Korderan's lightsaber and yank it from the man's belt. It tugged towards Jacen before flying towards his right hand. He caught it and quickly activated the weapon, which spewed out a cool green blade.
"Let me out," Jacen said.
Korderan felt embarrassed, but Tamith Kai could only laugh. "You'll have to cut us down to do that," she said, her voice dripping with encouragement. "Of course, if you do that, my master won't have to introduce you to the Dark Side."
Jacen hesitated for a moment, realizing the truth in her words. But during this moment, he dropped his guard. He could feel a dark power weighing down on his brain, urging him to sleep. Korderan was using the Dark Side and doing it well.
Falling onto the metal floor, Jacen dropped the lightsaber, its blade disengaging after losing contact with his hand. He fell into a deep sleep as the Dark Jedi left the doorway. The cell door shut after Tamith Kai used the Force to activate the closing mechanism, leaving the Solo twins alone in darkness.
The sea was a powerful entity. Some poets in the galaxy believed that the oceans had more awe-inspiring power than the vacuum that separated the planets. On the planet Ceto, the world-spanning ocean would have left most poets with writer's block as they attempted to find words to describe the ocean's power.
Ceto was part of a double planet system. Her sister world Phorcys, had some dry land, but was mostly ocean. The system was located on the edge of the Hapes Cluster, worlds devastated by the Clone Wars, the Hapan Civil War and the Imperial invasion. Ceto's wealth had been in exotic pearls and the Cetons, an eel-like race that could have easy developed on Mon Calamari, were renowned keepers of the great underwater fields. But now their floating cities were lifeless and falling into disrepair, their inhabitants destroyed by a virus that specifically targeted their species. As a result, the world had a strong presence in the Dark Side.
The royal governor of Ceto had resided in the Ocean Palace, a floating structure with a smoothed base akin to stone and tall, jagged spires. The royal governor no longer occupied the facility. Darth Gorgon had made it her home for years. She had been born on Phorcys during the Imperial invasion, a bastard child of Khan Mord. Though she was the sole heir to Khan's estate on Phorcys, she refused to claim it. She was no longer Reilan Bly, but an heir to the legacy of the Sith.
She sat at her desk, watching her holoprojector as another one of her subordinates droned on about matters concerning the Sons of Liberty. Gorgon had taken it upon herself to bring the group under her wing to cause as much strife in the Hapes Cluster as possible. She sneered at the report that yet another assassination attempt had been unsuccessful. The Sith quickly silenced the subordinate, deactivating the holoprojector so she could think.
Zekk sometimes hated procedures. The trip to Hapes had been slowed by the border guard insisting on escorting the Dragon Heart to the capital world of the Consortium. Luckily, the trip wasn't very long. But the delay had lasted an hour.
When the ship exited hyperspace, the blue and green jewel that was Hapes was visible through the ship's windscreen. "Have you ever been here?" Zekk asked Doc, leaning towards the co-pilot's chair.
"Once," Doc said.
Kirana Ti and Tenel Ka entered the cockpit of the ship, taking seats behind the pilot and co-pilot. "Home," Tenel said with a slight tinge of sadness.
Zekk picked up on the Hapan's despair. "Don't worry about it," the pilot said. "I don't really like my homeworld either. Seismic activity reaches critical every eight years and tears the surface to shreds. No one would even bother settling there if the rampant precipitation after every renewal period didn't break down the rock into fertile soil."
"Ah," Tenel said. "That is not very settling."
"No it's not," agreed Zekk. "I never want to go back."
"I do not have a choice," Tenel said.
"Quite right," Kirana stated. "When possible, you should try to hone the lessons you learned on Yavin 4." The Dathomirian turned to the princess. "I sense that the Force has been clouded in this cluster. Be mindful."
"I will, Master," Tenel said.
"Dragon Heart, this is Hapan Space Control," a female said over the subspace frequency. "You have been cleared to land at Docking Bay 4 of the Palace. Stand by for fighter escorts."
"Acknowledge, Hapan Control," Zekk replied before he began waiting.
A few minutes later, two sai-shaped crimson fighters soared towards the Dragon Heart. Zekk recognized them as Drake fighters. The two Drakes soon cris-crossed behind the ship and flew to the rest on the right and left of the Dragon Heart.
"Dragon Heart, please slave your navicomputer to me," one female pilot requested.
"Affirmative," Zekk said before complying with the request.
The three vessels passed through the atmosphere of Hapes, the surface growing ever longer as they made their approach towards the palace. Zekk took a moment to gasp at the splendor of Hapes. Beautiful grassy plains, unfettered forests, cities built in harmony with nature. Master Organa Solo had said that Hapes reminded her of Alderaan. Seeing the beauty of Hapes brought the crime of Alderaan's destruction home to Zekk.
The Hapan Palace was made of weathered dolostone, its pink spires having faded over time. But the curves of the structure were still elegant, having not been consumed by a tremendous amount of wear and tear.
Waiting in Docking Bay 4 as the Dragon Heart landed was Prince Isolder and a scarlet clad honor guard. Led by Kirana Ti, the Jedi descended the boarding ramp of their ship. The others followed, with Tenel Ka taking the rear.
Another group of honor guards entered the docking bay. Suddenly, Kirana's danger sense tingled.
One of the approaching honor guards pulled out a blaster from her scarlet cloak and began to fire at the Jedi. The five accompanying guards pulled their blasters and began firing.
The Jedi were too quick, swifting dodging the blaster bolts. Zekk, Kirana Ti and Doc quickly drew their lightsabers and activated the energy blades: one blue, one violet and one green. Tenel Ka reached out with the Force and ripped one of the blaster rifles away from the attacking guards.
The loyal guards quickly ushered Isolder out of the Docking Bay as the Jedi rushed towards the renegades. Doc stayed close to Tenel Ka, deflecting bolts with his green blade as she took a shot, nailing a guard directly between the eyes. Zekk and Kirana rushed at the guards, deflecting every blaster bolt fired in their direction. One deflected shot from Kirana pierced a guard's abdomen, sending her crumpling to the floor.
The remaining guards wisely took defensive positions behind crates and resumed firing. Zekk and Kirana Ti dove for cover behind a stack of crates. Master and apprentice stared at each other, communicating only through their eyes.
Doc protected Tenel Ka, guiding her to the turbolift being protected by the loyal guards. After the other Jedi sensed that the princess was safe, Zekk nodded before using a Force assisted leap to vault over the crates and soar into the air. Kirana rushed from her cover, deflecting poorly aimed blaster bolts.
Zekk landed behind the guards, cutting down two surprised women. The remaining guards moved out of the way. One was unlucky and met the power of Kirana's laser sword through her chest.
The last guard backed away, continuing to fire with her blaster rifle. Zekk rushed her, swinging his blade swiftly. The blue energy blade sliced through her right arm. The guard fell onto the ground, clutching her cauterized stump and howling in agony. Zekk pressed the tip of his blade to her throat, letting her know that she had been defeated.
"You're under arrest," he told her.
"You have no authority!" she spat defiantly.
"No, but I do," Prince Isolder said as he, Tenel Ka and a group of security officers approached the wounded guard. He turned to the captain of the guard and ordered, "Take her away."
The officers quickly lifted the traitor from the floor and escorted her to the turbolift. When they had gone, Isolder turned his attention to Kirana Ti.
"Thank you," he told her. "I didn't expect to greet an old friend this way, but now that the terrorists have infiltrated the Palace, maybe the nobles will finally see the threat as real."
"You mean to tell us that the nobles haven't even responded to the attempted assassination on the Queen?" Zekk inquired.
"My wife's ascent to the throne was never popular with the nobility," Isolder said. "No doubt, they are uncomfortable with what they perceive as Luke's puppet on the Crystal Throne."
"We really shouldn't talk here," Kirana recommended.
"You're right," Isolder said. He looked to Tenel Ka and ordered, "Escort them to the throne room." Returning his gaze to the Dathomirian, he said, "I need to go down to the prison and be present for the interrogation. I won't tolerate an attack on my daughter."
Moments later, the four Jedi had entered the throne room. In contrast to the outside of the palace, the room was lined with white marble. The long hall was home to many marble statues featuring the line of Hapan rulers. The Crystal Throne sat on a second level that could be reached by a set of marble steps. Two scarlet clad honor guards flanked the set of stairs.
The Queen Mother of Hapes Teneniel Djo sat on the Crystal Throne. She rose as the Jedi approached. She was clothed in the most elegant of green gowns and the crystal crown sat atop her brunette mane. Her gray eyes gleamed at the arrival of Tenel Ka and Kirana Ti. She slowly made her way down the stairs, arriving at the bottom just as the Jedi reached the stairs.
"My daughter, has Master Skywalker been taking good care of you?" the Queen inquired.
The princess replied, "Yes mother."
The other three Jedi bowed their heads in respect to the Queen.
"I do not request such pleasantries from friends," Teneniel said as she looked to the Dathomirian. "It has been a long time, Kirana." Her gaze then turned to the old engineer. "Welcome back, Doc." The Queen then looked at Zekk and asked, "Who are you?"
"Your Highness, I am Zekk" he said, doing his best to speak formally. "I am a pilot and apprentice to Kirana Ti."
Teneniel raised an eyebrow before looking to Kirana. "So you are training a male?" she asked, amusement creeping into her voice. "You were one of the most vocal supporters of keeping men in their place back on Dathomir."
"When I became a Jedi, I severed all ties I had with the Singing Mountain Clan and Dathomir's traditions," Kirana said. "Zekk has made a fine pupil and he will become a great Jedi Knight."
Zekk inwardly appreciated the praise, but did not show it in his face.
"We have come due to your request," Kirana told her friend. "We have returned the Princess to your care."
"That is not the only reason I asked for Jedi assistance," revealed Teneniel. "Terrorist activity in the cluster is increasing. I have just been informed on the attack in the docking bay, so you can certainly see the crisis for yourself."
"What would you ask of us?" Doc questioned.
Teneniel replied, "I need you to launch a probe to discover the whereabouts of the terrorist headquarters."
"Anything for an old friend," Kirana said, accepting the duty.
"Then it is settled," the Queen said. She looked to one of the honor guards and ordered, "Escort the princess back to her quarters. She must prepare for the royal banquet I am preparing to honor my old friend."
Boba Fett stared at the scenery in Crystal City from atop one of the many buildings in the city. Thanks to the advanced cloaking device his client had given him, he had been able to land undetected outside the city. The bounty hunter had received word of the assassination attempt on the princess.
Amateurs, he thought. Fett had fought and killed Jedi on a few occasions. He knew that one didn't rush headfirst into danger without the appropriate tools. He would be a bit more subtle. But before he did anything, he would have to meet with one of his contacts in the city. He took one last look at the Hapan Palace, its structure perched high on a hill, before turning away. He had work to do.
Author's Notes: Due to unforeseen health problems, my updates may be more sporadic. Keep patient. I won't abandon this story if I can help it.