A/N: Alright, the moment you've all been waiting for! The final chapter is here! This chapter is dedicated to my mother who helped proof read this final chapter and gave me a couple awesome ideas along the way! Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter and please review! There will be a sequel so look for that!

Disclaimer: I own Mical...and that's final.

Chapter 20: The End Becomes the Beginning

Sweat trickled down Amira's brow. She had been searching for days, and there still was no sign of Atton Rand. Carth had told her that he had received an anonymous tip that said where Atton was last seen. So Amira had decided to take a chance on that tip and head to Ansion. Now here she was running down a muddied trail in search of the man who killed her husband.

The last three villages she had stopped at had no clues and no one had even seen Atton. Amira was starting to lose hope, and that was the last thing Amira needed to lose at the moment. Amira could still hardly believe the revelation she had received. Atton Rand, her friend, her ally, had betrayed her and brutally murdered her husband. It was almost unfathomable. She couldn't believe it, nor did she want to believe it.

Atton was the last person that she felt she had some real connection to. He was like a brother to her, and Amira loved him. The only question that remained was could Amira kill someone that she loved? Then she remembered that he had killed Mical, who she had loved more than herself, more than anything in the galaxy. Her path, which had been clear and simple, was now undecided and fraught with trouble.

She leaned against a tree for support as she tried to catch her breath. The pace she had been going at was gruesome...and she honestly didn't know how much longer she could keep it up. The feeling of sickness washed over her again, but she managed to keep it contained and continued on. Night was approaching and she was still pretty far from the next town.

Amira shook her head; this had been such a foolish plan. What did she expect to accomplish by going alone? Then she thought that maybe Carth's tip was false and was just a way to lead her to the wrong place. Atton may never have even visited here! Her heart rate spiked and she started breathing harder. She had trained as a Jedi since she was young, she should be able to take this much physical abuse to her body, yet she was extremely tired and could barely stay awake.

Black spots crawled at the edge of her vision, and she knew that she wouldn't be able to go any farther. The last thing she saw as she blacked out was the bottom of someone's robes and a cane.

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When she awoke, she was in a warm, nicely lit cabin. It smelled like something good was cooking as well. Amira looked around and noticed nothing out of the ordinary; it looked like someone's home. The only question that remained was how did she get here? She moaned and sat up; her legs were weak so she decided to just sit there. Hopefully, she would regain all of her strength soon.

"Oh, it is good to see you are awake, dearie." A gentle voice said from behind her.

Amira whirled around and saw an old lady standing behind her; she had a cup of what looked like soup in her hands. "Who are you?"

"My name is of no consequence, but you may call me Hannah, if you wish. You should take it easy, it would seem you had quite a day yesterday." She said while nodding.

"Hannah, how did I get here...and where is here, anyway?" Amira said, still confused.

"Worry not, my dear. You are safe. Here have some soup." She said as she stuffed the bowl of soup into Amira's hands. "So what were you doing out there in the middle of nowhere anyway?"

"I was searching for-" Amira noticed then that the elder lady had her eyes covered by a cloth. "Are you a miraluka?"

"Yes...I believe that is what they called my race. I hear that my home planet was destroyed. It's a pity really." She said sadly.

"So you are a seer, correct?" She asked, a pang of hope leapt into her heart.

"Yes, dearie. I can see through the Force, if that is what you mean." She laughed. "Although I haven't done that in years. I prefer to stumble around with my cane...it proves more adventurous. And they give discounts at restaurants!"

Amira smiled at the kindly old woman. "Do you think that you would be able to help me find someone, a man to be certain?"

"Of course, dearie, it would be my pleasure." The kind woman took a seat near Amira. "I have to ask though, who is this man you're looking for and why do you want to find him so bad?" Hannah asked curiously.

Amira hesitated at first. She couldn't tell the old lady that she was searching for Atton to kill him; she doubted the Hannah would help her if that were the case. So she lied. "I am looking for my Fiancé. He was suppose to meet me here but I can't seem to find him."

The older woman smiled. "Ahhh, I remember being in love. Those were good times...good times..."

"So...do you think you can help me?" Amira asked cautiously.

"Oh yes, of course I can. He shouldn't be hard to find, anyway." Amira took a sip of her soup. "So is he the father?"

Amira spat her soup out right onto her robe. "Pardon me?" she choked.

"I was wondering if your fiancé is the father of your child? You are expecting, are you not?" She said warmly.

Amira felt her heart leap into her throat. "Are you saying that I'm...that I'm pregnant?"

"Why yes, dearie! You have that glow around you." She paused. "You didn't know?"

"Are you sure? You must be mistaken..." Amira could not believe it. She was pregnant...with Mical's child?

"Oh, I am never wrong. Haven't you been feeling ill as of late?" She asked.

Amira thought back to before Mical died...then she thought back to all those times recently when she was feeling sick. It all made sense. Everything connected. She was pregnant...this was the purpose she had been looking for. The purpose to continue to live. This also meant that she had to be extremely careful now, before she was willing to risk her life...but she couldn't risk her child's. Color began to creep back into Amira's face.

"Actually, I have been feeling sick." She admitted.

The older woman chuckled. "I told you...I'm never wrong. I also know that it will be a strong child, a strong and healthy child."

Tears sprang to Amira's eyes. "Thank you. Thank you so much!"

"For what, dearie? I merely told you that you were with child." Hannah said, still smiling.

"Oh yes, of course. We should probably try and find-" She said, blushing. The woman didn't know it but she had given Amira her life back.

"Yes...let me see." Hannah put her hands together and Amira could sense the Force swirling around her. This woman was strong in the Force, but the Force was untamed within her.

"Do you seem him?" Amira whispered.

"Grab my hand, dearie, it will take both of us to find him." Amira grabbed her hand and it was as if she had entered a new world. Planets flew past them until they were in empty space...and then they were on a wild planet. A planet with not much life...just a lot of darkness. Amira immediately knew where they were. They were on Csilla. The planet where it began...would be the planet where it ended.

Amira let go of her hand and everything disappeared; they were back in the old little cabin. The miraluka took a breath and sighed. Amira could see how much energy it had taken out of the older woman. She felt awful for placing the woman under such stress, so she placed her hands on the woman's hands.

"Thank you, you have helped me more than you know." The Force flowed between them easily and the woman's energy returned. "I will return the favor one day."

"Don't bother, my dear. It was my pleasure." Hannah stated as Amira prepared to head back to her ship and leave for Csilla.

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Amira could feel the darkness on this planet. It was almost overwhelming. The darkness pleaded and begged Amira to surrender to all its devastating power, but Amira ignored the pathetic attempts to sway her from the path of the light. She had almost lost herself once; she would not do so again. She touched her stomach gently...she would not fail. This child depended on her success.

Her steps echoed loudly as she continued on her way to the spot where Mical was wounded. Atton was on this planet. She could feel it. She was also certain that he could most likely feel her presence as well. This meant she had to be ready for anything, and she was. Her whole life was now boiling down to this moment. The moment that would determine her and her child's fate.

Part of her screamed to run back to the ship and leave this dreadful planet, but she knew that if she did, and Atton was still alive, she and her child would be forever in danger. All of her emotions battled each other inside of her, each trying to become the dominant, but hatred won over all of them. The hatred for Atton that now burned within her like a raging fire. Like Mical's funeral pyre.

Everywhere around her was silent, there was no movement, and no sound. It was a lot like the day Mical was wounded. Oh, my sweet Mical...I wish the price of my failure had not been so high. I am doing this for you, for our child. Amira thought sadly. This was her last chance to make things right. Atton would die on this planet, she was certain of it.

Atton. The man who had once been one of her closest friends, one of the few people that Amira admired and loved, had now become her enemy. The enemy that she would strike down no matter what. He had his chance to be redeemed...and he had wasted it on murdering Mical. The drowning man had now become the drowning enemy; the one that she would let drown, or hold him under until he did drown.

There was suddenly movement all around her and a bunch of Sith assassins stepped from the brush. Amira's lightsaber was in her hand and ignited before she even could think about it. The red blade cast an eerie glow across the masked faces of the Sith. They walked up to her and kneeled down, as they had done before at the Trayus Academy. This time she was taking no chances.

Before any of the Sith had a chance to react, Amira put them all in a stasis field and decapitated each. Someone knew that she was here. She silently walked away from the corpses. She would show no mercy to anyone today...anyone who tried to stop her would face his or her own death. Amira frowned at her conclusion. She prayed that she would not turn into the very thing that she swore to destroy.

Amira ran for a couple minutes before she noticed that she was being followed, she didn't know by whom, but she was determined to not let them get the upper hand and ambush her. Slipping into the shadows of a massive tree she used the Force to make a sound off far to her right, after that she continued on until she finally found the place that she was looking for.

Her hair whipped around her face madly as the wind began to pick up. Rain started to pour down from the clouds and Amira could sense a man approaching. Atton. She thought bitterly. He was close...and she knew that he was coming towards her. He knew she was here...and he knew that he was in danger. Amira smiled...it was so close to ending. Atton's death would bring her the peace she was desperate for.

The dark-haired man stepped out of the brush and stood in front of her. He wasn't the Atton that she remembered. His face was now pale, and bright purple veins could be seen. He had changed; the darkside had changed him. Atton's hands were on his two lightsabers. Amira knew that Atton was gone; there would be no way to redeem him this time, which validated her reason to kill him. Amira then had a frightening thought.

She had failed her brother, Mical, and now Atton. They were all people that she had loved and they had all been lost to her. Everything that she hungered for, whether to protect or help or love would be gone. This was her fate...a fate that Amira never asked for. But Amira would no longer allow fate to control her life, she would fight with all her heart to protect this child.

"Amira, I knew you'd come. It was only a matter of time." Atton said, his voice dark.

"Why, Atton? Why did you betray me?" She asked, and she found that her voice was quaking slightly.

"Betray you? No, Amira, it was you who betrayed me." He sneered. "I loved you and you...you chose him!"

"I did love you, Atton. I loved you like a brother, nothing more." She paused. "And now...now I hate you. I hate you, Atton Rand." Amira said with pure hatred. This man had caused her so much pain...and now he would die. It was a satisfying answer.

"Don't make me kill you, Amira." Atton said with his back to her. His lightsabers were already in his hand and ignited. The red blades cast shadows across the ground.

"You sealed your fate the moment you struck down Mical." Amira grabbed her own lightsaber and ignited it. "Now...you will pay for that crime with your life."

Atton noticed her red blade. "Ahhh, so my Master was right. You have fallen, Amira. You were always weak."

"That is where you are wrong, Atton. The red crystal in my blade will be removed once I kill you. Right now...it symbolizes how you are to me, just another enemy. You are nothing more than dirt beneath my feet. It signifies how I will show you no mercy like a Sith. And the red coloring? It will be the color that the ground will become once your blood is spilt over it." Amira said, letting the threat hang in the air.

The tension between the two was immense and continuing to build. The silence was deafening as the two former companions faced each other. Each holding their blade pointed towards the other. Trusting friends had now become bitter enemies. Anger and fear shown in Atton's eyes. Amira was surprised that he had the strength to even face her. The Atton she had once known would most likely have run. The Atton she had once known...no longer existed.

Atton shook his head. "Mical's death was necessary."

Amira looked at him with disgust. "Necessary? Atton...I loved him! If you had truly loved me, you would have left Mical and I alone." Amira cried.

"Why did you choose him, Amira? You were supposed to love me!" Atton said back angrily.

"The time for words and talking is over, Atton. I don't care what your excuse is...you killed an innocent man! And his blood will forever be on your hands!" Amira yelled at him as tears spilled down and over her cheeks.

"Then you will die, Amira. If you choose to fight, you will lose and you will die." Atton said; Amira could hear some regret in his voice, but she would show no pity.

"I'm already dead, Atton. You didn't just kill Mical that day; you killed me. My heart died that day, Atton. And for that...I will always hate you." Amira said bringing her lightsaber up and into an offensive position.

"Goodbye, Amira." Atton said confidently as he made a leap and began to attack Amira.

Atton attacked Amira's side but she blocked it and turned around blocking another blow to her back. Atton was trying to flank her. Amira twirled her lightsaber and began a flurry of attacks that caught Atton by surprise but he quickly recovered and managed to block every blow. Their lightsabers moved every which way, in a flurry of red light.

Amira and Atton continued their deadly, daring duel almost as if it were a dance. The hum of the lightsabers drowned out every other sound including their own rapid breathing. Amira dodged a blow to her right and nicked Atton's shoulder with an uppercut. Amira threw her hand out and sent Atton flying into a nearby tree. Using the Force, Amira jumped and kicked Atton in the face with her heel.

Atton rolled out of the way just as Amira's lightsaber came crashing down. Atton laughed and threw his hand out freezing Amira in a stasis. Just as Atton went in for the kill, Amira broke out of her stasis and rolled to the side slashing at Atton's leg as she went down onto the ground roughly. A drop of blood rolled down out of Amira's mouth, that last hit to her side had done some serious damage.

Amira focused on the wound and healed it briefly; she didn't have a lot of time before Atton was up and again attacking her ferociously. The two were locked in a combat that neither would truly win. If Atton won, then Amira, whom he had loved would die. If Amira won, she would become the very thing she had come to destroy, and Atton, whom she had loved like her own brother, would be dead.

Atton's fist came roughly into Amira's face sending her sprawling to the ground. Her lightsaber rolled across the ground and Atton's foot came on it, nearly crushing it. He smiled triumphantly before noticing Amira's amused look. Her hand went out calmly and the lightsaber rolled right into it, sending Atton to the ground. Amira finally had the opening that she had been looking for. She quickly re-ignited her lightsaber and ran it through Atton. But it did nothing, only sent a shimmering field of blue around him.

"A shield? You cheater!" She screamed at him, frustrated.

"Hey, no one said I had to play fair." Atton said sending lightning shooting from his fingertips.

The attack caught Amira of guard and she was hit with the full impact of the energy. She quickly got up, but held her side gingerly. She didn't know how much more she could take. Atton went to finish her off with a downward blow but it was blocked by Amira's red blade. They pushed against each other's blade for a couple intense moments before releasing and being thrown back.

Amira was the first one up and charged Atton, using every technique she knew...nothing worked. She had trained Atton and had taught him everything she knew. She had never anticipated having to fight him. It was like fighting herself. And to add to the difficulty, Atton was being fueled by the darkness of the planet. The darkside was assisting him in the battle.

Atton hesitated and Amira went in for the kill, but it had been a ploy for Amira to drop her guard. And the ploy had worked perfectly. Atton dodged Amira's attack and turned, slicing Amira's wrists just enough to make her drop her lightsaber. Amira cried out in pain and then collapsed to the ground. She held her wrist gently and tried to heal it but Atton was already there.

The luminescent glow of the red lightsaber brightened Amira's face. The saber was so close; she could feel the heat emanating from it. She had failed. This had been her last chance to set everything right...and she had failed. She had failed Luke, she had failed Mical, and she had failed herself and her child. Amira looked up at Atton in fear and Atton just smiled wickedly, knowing he had won.

Amira waited for that final blow, the blow that would end her life, her child's life, and would make everything she had fought for be in vain. Tears slid down Amira's cheeks. She wasn't afraid to die any longer. She had been dying a little bit each day after Mical had died. Amira continued to wait for the blow...but the final blow never came. Instead, a figure jumped out of the shadows and blocked Atton's final attack.

Surprise and anger appeared on Atton's face as he battled this new opponent. The robed figure fought in a fluid, and almost graceful, way. The orange blade clashed with the red one sending sparks in many directions. Amira tried to get up but could not manage the strength. She was so tired and weak. She feared for her child's life...this had been stupid. She should have left Atton alone and went to raise her child. But instead she had risked both their lives; she hoped the price would not cost both of their lives.

The battle between Atton and the robed stranger continued until Atton lunged in a desperate attempt to kill the stranger, tripped, and fell right into the opponent's lightsaber. Amira watched as Atton stumbled back, holding his stomach. The hooded figure caught him as he fell. Atton looked up into the face of his attacker and slowly smiled.

And with his last and final breath, Atton Rand muttered, "Figures."

The stranger stood up and walked over to Amira. Amira scooted away from the robed stranger in fear at first, but then he held out his hand. Amira figured that the person was on her side so Amira took the hand reluctantly, and was helped up. The person removed the hood and Amira stumbled backwards in pure shock and confusion. It was impossible...

"Mical?"

To be continued ...