The Quixotic

The Vaapad was silent. The only thing that could be heard throughout the vessel was the humming of a man and the occasional clanging of metal against grid paneled flooring. The tunes that were being hummed were only recognizable to those who had served in the Mandalorian wars.

He was polishing the durasteel chest plate on his armour. The shrapnel and carbon scoring, from battles long since past, had finally taken its toll on the rustic blood coloured armour. His face gleamed with oil and polish and beads of sweat. Battle wasn't the only way a Mandalorian could work up a sweat.

He found some measure of pride in maintaining his armour. It was a part of him, a second skin. For all intents and purposes, it was. Some would have found it highly amusing, relating the fanatically equipped Mandalorian clans to the self-righteous and noble Jedi when it came to armour and lightsabers. Sometimes, the comparisons would go on to add the bloodlust and hunger for war.

Dierak Hessian could care less what other people thought. He enjoyed the fight with the Jedi, any Mandalorian who participated in the war would undoubtedly agree. But, like the Jedi, the Mandalorians were fast becoming an obsolete and extinct group. The only difference was the measure of time between the two groups. The Jedi would nevertheless struggle to hold on to its life. All things do when they look death in the eye. The Mandalorians did it and shrugged, taking as many other things as they could with them. In the end, the Mandalorians collapsed and the Jedi are trying to cling to deceased ideals. In the end, the Republic would know life without the Jedi for several—if not more— millennia.

He rubbed the final stain out of his silver polished armour, eager to throw it on and relive the glory days of the Mandalorians when he would face the young Knight. He could care less about the Jedi, but he had found his fate somehow entwined with this particular one. Dierak let out a sigh, remembering his first encounter with Dante. He had enjoyed telling Lotus of his own encounter with the young man.

He knew that she had faced him too, and like many before her, had not anticipated he would be capable of improvising during combat. Many of those who did, either ended up dead or had joined the Mandalorian wars, inevitably becoming Dark Jedi. Unlike the other Jedi, who had stayed back, Dante and his Master seemed to find a middle ground where they could serve both the Jedi and Revan.

He shook his head, focusing on what he had to do and why. He lifted up the torso of his armor and smiled as his reflection stared right back. "Perfect." Picking up the rest of his armour, Dierak Hessian went to don his armour, eager to relive the glory days long since past.

He couldn't center himself. Something was troubling him. He found himself drawn to some of the things Rin had said earlier when she was angry. The Unifier and its existence. Whether or not it was merely a ploy by Darth Malak. But if that was the case, then why were the Sith after it for as long as the Jedi?

He wasn't sure if the holocron might actually be weapon designs for the Sith. Or new ways to restore planets that have been destroyed through war. For an artifact that certainly claimed it would bridge the gap between the Jedi and the Sith, it hadn't proven so thus far. What's more, Dante had found his thoughts wandering towards the situation with Xavier. Xavier had been taken in by the teachings Revan had uncovered. He was responsible for the death of Nathaniel and Xavier ultimately became the man known as Darth Seth.

Dante could feel the rage swell within him, urging him to strike down his brother, tempting him to take vengeance and feel complete. But there were questions that lingered within. His training fought down the rage, the temptations of the Dark Side, though he couldn't help but wonder whether or not joining the Unifying Force meant having to forsake the ideals that were associated with the Jedi. If that were the case, would the Galaxy know true peace?

He knew that from the knowledge that was gathered about the Unifying Force, it was already in effect, to some lesser degree. Many Masters, including Alec, had chosen to defy the will of the Council at times, eager to let go of the ignorance and arrogance that plagued the Jedi Order over the course of time.

Alec, like many of his companions, had chosen to listen to the will of the Force; to explore and to seek out what the Force required of them. There were times when flirting with the Dark Side or even joining it at times, had allowed the Masters to gain a better perception of the Force. But many that had joined the Dark Side, found that they could never return. The lust for power had consumed them. Those who did return, however, found great knowledge—most commonly, they had found that the Jedi were often too powerful for their own good.

Dante couldn't help but wonder if it were the edicts of the Jedi that may have caused so many of his brethren to fall to the Dark Side. There had to be some way to bring Xavier back. Perhaps some way to bridge the gap, be it the Unifying Force or something else.

Once more, the young Jedi breathed in deeply, focusing himself and throwing all other thoughts away from his mind. He let his mind focus on the flowing river that was the Force.

The water flowed rapidly, crashing against rocks—obstacles that had presented itself--, preventing the river to flow smoothly as it banked into a waterfall. Dante let himself fall into the river, eager to touch with the rocks that separated the flow of the river.

He became one with the river and let it guide him towards the rocks that had split the river in twain. He gradually came closer, picking up speed as the river continued to push him.

The flow became frantic, eagerly overflowing and rising over the rocks. The flow began to overcome the rocks, shredding it with raw force, pulling the Jedi further and further into the stream, further away from the bank, closer to the fall.

A hand touched his shoulder.

The waterfall appeared closer. A dark object formed a spoon around the edge of the waterfall. Dante looked at it, his eyes opening wide as the object revealed itself as an ivory bird, its wingspan reaching that of over 15 feet, radiating a soothing white light as it encompassed the Jedi.

"Dante," it called to him.

He could only marvel at the sight of the large airborne creature. Its hooked beak was ivory as well. Its eyes were gold, staring right into the young man's own dark brown eyes.

"Dante," it called to him once more.

"Yes?" He stared in awe as the bird carried him on its back, throughout the puffy white clouds, taking him far, far away.

"We have to go."

"Go where?"

The ivory creature soared high into the air, its mighty wings taking both of them to greater heights.

"Do you trust me?" It asked the young Jedi.

"Of course," he answered. He had found himself trusting the bird and found immense comfort in the creature's presence.

"We must leave."

"Where?"

"To—"

"—Dagobah," replied a blue-skinned Twi'lek.

"What--?" Dante opened his eyes, realizing that Rin had rested her hand on his shoulder while he was deep in meditating. She had been the ivory bird that had taken him far from the crashing river of the Force. He had found it odd that he hadn't felt her presence through the Force. But then again, he had also found that the bird that came to him was part of the bond the two Jedi had formed over the last 2 days.

"Sorry to wake you from daydreaming, but we have to retrieve that key." She smiled at the confused Jedi. "Or," she added, "we can let the Sith take care of that."

"No, no, that's ok." He rose, extending his arms as he stretched them. He had found himself exceptionally relaxed and much more rejuvenated. "Let's go," he said, clipping his lightsaber to his belt. He was eager to end the war.

The Thunderbolt opened its landing struts as it began to descend onto the dark murky and foggy surface of Dagobah. The planet teemed with life, but of a different sort. Darkness seemed to enshroud the entire planet, the planet's natural humidity gave it a much more muggy and daunting appearance than what it had seemed prior to the crew landing on the planet.

As the landing ramp began to open, its servos and other mechanical components whining seemed to match the overall atmosphere of the planet's inhabitants.

"Remember," Lon started, "if you need any assistance, call us on the comlink."

"We will, Lon," Rin replied. "Just make sure that you and Simon keep an eye on Master Phaete." She eyed the Master with something akin to distrust and contempt.

"You have my word, Rin. May the Force be with you."

"And you too."

"Hurry back, I don't want to stay here for much longer. There is something… dark about this planet."

"Dante and I will hurry back. Just, keep your eye on Phaete. There is something I just don't trust." With that, the Jedi parted ways and Rin joined Dante, who was in front of a bank that led into the murky and fog covered river.

He continued to look at the water, feeling the flow and the darkness that lurked beneath its surface. He smiled grimly. It's funny how appropriate this planet is to us all. The darkness that lurks within us, where a great many of us revel in it. Is it in our nature to fall to the darkness? Or was there ever anything there to make us fall? The Jedi have a pedestal with which to make their choice. Everyone else does not have a pedestal to fall from. He sighed, feeling a slight tingling in the base of his spine. He felt her presence close to him. She had finished her goodbye with Lon, the blind swordsman who has greatly aided the mission, in some form or the other.

"Credit for your thoughts?" She said, smiling at the man she had come to love.

He turned around and smiled back at her. "Oh, nothing really. I was just thinking about how this planet is quite similar to the nature of this war."

"Oh?" This had peaked her curiosity.

"Yes. But I shall tell you another time," he answered, noticing that she was exceptionally curious about his views. Her curiosity would have to wait a bit more. As did a great many things. He held her hand and caressed her cheek softly, looking into her soft brown eyes. "I promise you," he said, kissing her softly on her lips.

"Very well," she said, slightly disappointed that she would have to wait. Patience never was any of Rin's virtues.

"Shall we go?"

"All right. Where to?"

Dante furrowed his brow. The Force didn't give him so much as a semblance of what he really sought. The key to the whereabouts of where the Unifier really was. After a few more moments of tuning in deeply to the Force, he found a small sparkle of light that touched him. The Force opened itself up to him, urging the Jedi to come further. The Jedi embraced the warmth that began to surround him, only to find an image of a rock face between two trees on a flat surface not too far from where he and Rin stood. There came a small opening within that rock face, a tunnel that would allow a person to enter it.

He opened his eyes a few moments later, adjusting his eyes to the dim light that found its way into the planet. He regretted not staying in the warmth of the Force for a bit longer, but he knew it was almost like an ambrosia to him. Something he could never quite understand. There had always been a reinforcement from the Force, something which Alec had taken advantage of and used at times to allow Dante to finish tasks and other forms of exercises. It had almost been as if Alec himself had been guiding the young Jedi to the key, his love for the former pupil bathing Dante in the near amorous wave.

She glanced at Dante. "Have you found it? I can't seem to sense anything, especially since this planet is teeming with the frantic pace of life."

"I have, Rin." He looked up at her, kissing her softly on the lips once more. "It's not too far, we have to go now." He smiled, a twinge of excitement overcoming the young man. He felt as if his training didn't exist, as if he were nothing but a young carefree child again.

They began to leave, eager at the capture of the third key. The Sith were right behind them and it was very likely that the Jedi would run into the Sith.

Dante found his attention falling more and more to how Xavier could have fallen to the Dark Side, killing Nathaniel in the process. It didn't make much sense to him. They had always been close, almost as renown as Revan and Malak. Unfortunately, the Mandalorian wars changed that, resulting in the names that were synonymous for good and noble, being altered to evil and conquerors.

Dante barely noticed their arrival to the rock face until Rin tapped his shoulder. He looked up, and noticed she was looking at him in a very concerned tone.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just… dwelling on my brothers' fate."

"I understand," she answered softly. "I find myself thinking about the fate of my family, the Jedi Order and those who had nothing to do with this war."

"I know. They are all suffering for some reason we all cannot seem to understand. If only Revan were alive to tell us. Malak doesn't seem too intent to talk." He imagined Malak appearing on one of the popular talk shows on Coruscant and within the Republic. Dante grinned.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing." He laughed to himself as they entered the rock face, eager to confront whatever awaited their destinies.