SIX
Message deleted unopened by recipient. The notice flashing on her datapad mocked her. Case stabbed the acknowledge button and flung the pad onto her bunk. She should be relieved that Carth wasn't trying to track her down or repair their relationship. She would be able to leave Korriban when she found what she needed without worrying about him coming after her. But the sight of his rejection still made her stomach clench. He didn't want her anymore, never mind that she had intended exactly that.
Case shook her head at her own thoughts. She had to stop doing this to herself. Case perched on the end of her bunk and tried to clear her mind of all thoughts. She focused on the Jedi Code. There is no emotion. . .but the words seemed to lead her to new thoughts that spiraled into other new thoughts, and soon enough, she was back where she started. She opened her eyes and sighed in frustration. The Jedi Code wasn't helping her meditate. The Light had been increasingly elusive since she had found the book in the secret cave two weeks ago. It was becoming harder and harder to immerse herself in the Force, and its absence was beginning to make her anxious. She pushed down her fear and made her way to the practice ground.
"Up! Down! Across! No, no, no!" Case flipped the student's lightsaber away from him. It whirled away with a whining hum and clattered to the stone floor of the practice arena. Case sighed dramatically. "Never hold it that far away from your body! It's a weapon. You can't use it if it's way out here! Are you scared of it? Go, pick it up and do the exercises until I tell you to stop."
The student, a Rodian, stared at her, wide-eyed, for just a second before chasing down his weapon and retreating to a corner to practice. They all still expected her to strike them down with lightning. Even the older students, like this one, still cringed away from her when she walked by.
"Why do you allow them to make such mistakes, Revan?" Case managed to keep herself from startling. Huntak could move very quietly when he wanted to surprise her, which he did frequently.
Case twirled her saber and extinguished it. "Huntak, if we kill every student who makes a mistake, we'll quickly run out of students."
"They are weak. The Sith do not need weaklings coddled by their instructors."
"Everyone deserves a second chance, I think."
"But a third? And fourth? That boy will never wield a saber with authority." They looked over at the student, now shadow-fencing with his saber. He was still holding it wrong, his fingertips barely touching the weapon.
"Iman!" Case called. "Come over here."
The Rodian extinguished his saber and trotted over. He blanched when he saw Huntak standing next to Case. "Masters Revan, Huntak, I am at your service." Despite the fear in his large eyes, his voice was steady. Case peered at him—it was so hard to tell how old these Rodians were. She sensed some deception in him, but couldn't quite place it.
"I'm no one's master, Iman, but that is not why I called you over." Case looked sidelong at the headmaster glowering beside her. "Huntak, put up a Force Shield."
"I hope this is worth my time, Revan," he growled, but dutifully put up a Shield. It crackled around him. The other students on the practice grounds stopped what they were doing and looked on.
Case turned back to the Rodian. "Iman, put Master Huntak here into stasis."
Iman stared at her with wide eyes. "Master Revan! I could not dare—"
Case's patience was thin. She ignited her saber and pointed it in his direction. "Do it."
Iman took a deep breath and then flung his hand toward the dark Twi'lek. The Force Shield shattered and Huntak was suddenly frozen, hand still raised to defend himself. Gasps echoed around the room.
Case felt a stab of triumph and. . .was it vindication? from Iman. An interesting reaction that she would have to explore later. "Release him, please, student," she requested.
Iman waved his hand to drop the Stasis and almost faster than thought, Huntak's lightsaber was in his hands and arcing toward the Rodian's neck. Case Bursted her saber upward and stopped the blade centimeters away from Iman. The two blades crackled and sparked against each other in the now-silent chamber. Sweat pricked Case's scalp under her hair as she tried to keep from showing her strain. Huntak was strong and it was all she could do to keep his saber up. Iman finally recognized his danger and scrambled away.
Huntak, bent over, pressing down against his saber, glowered up at her. "You raise your blade against me, woman?" he growled through clenched teeth. They were oddly bright against his dark blue skin.
Case quirked a grin. She extinguished her blade and Boosted herself backward before Huntak's blade could crash down on her. Her weight suddenly gone, he stumbled forward, barely catching himself before he fell.
The room was absolutely silent. Huntak stared at her, his dark eyes glittering dangerously. She could feel the black cloud of anger surround him, but unlike her own, he controlled it, in a sudden burst toward her. She gasped and staggered backward, coldness suddenly surrounding her.
"Mercenary," he growled in Twi'leki. "You sold yourself to the highest bidder, didn't you? First to the Jedi, and now to me. You think you can turn the Academy against me? Against me?" She could hardly hear him. "You should go back to your Republic lover and leave the real business of ruling to those with the ability." He paused for a second, then smiled, his teeth disturbingly even. "He has gone, hasn't he?" he asked.
"No." Case held her voice steady.
Huntak raised his blade and circled slowly around her, his boots scuffing loudly on the stone. "Foolish woman, you drove him away. You denied yourself your last chance at redemption, didn't you? No wonder you came here—there's no one to save you now. He hates you, Revan, can't you tell?"
"No," she tried to shout, but her voice was more a strangled squeak.
"Yes, yes, he does hate you. I can feel it in your mind, in your connection to him. He turned away from you when you needed him most, and now he won't acknowledge you at all. Like you never existed. He carried the memory of his dead wife like a cloak for four years. How long did it take for him to wipe you away? Only a week? A day? An hour? Feel his hatred, grow strong from it." His voice was full of Persuasion.
"No!" She leapt at him, their lightsabers crashing together. She swung her blade back and forth, around his blade, always keeping him moving backward. She would defeat him, she would destroy him, she would—"
What are you doing? Her thoughts finally reached the arms attacking Huntak. Abruptly, she extinguished her blade. Huntak stood before her, his grey saber held up defensively before him. He looked—frightened, almost. He covered it a second later with a slow grin. He clapped. "Very nice, Revan, very nice. The best blade work I've seen in years."
Case realized she was dripping in sweat and panting like she'd sprinted two klicks. How long had they been fighting? What had happened to her? She'd almost let him taunt her to the Dark side—her own thoughts, thrown back against her.
Case forced herself to clip her blade to her belt calmly and bow. "You are truly an honor to battle, Master Huntak," she said. "Your command of the Force is impressive." Slowly, the silent crowd of students began applauding. Other students joined in, and soon the room echoed with their approval. Case waved and made for the door. She could feel Huntak's laughter behind her. The students thought it had been a spectacular demonstration, but she knew what had actually happened.
Huntak had almost dragged her down to the Dark Side. She had almost fallen—over what? Over her petty jealousy and hurt feelings? She was stronger than that!
Case practically ran the rest of the way to her quarters. Unlike the student rooms, hers had a door and a lock. She fell inside and locked the door behind her. She closed her eyes—it didn't matter that she had closed the door. The Dark Side was everywhere in this forsaken place: hiding in the cracks between the rocks, permeating the air, filling her soul with the breathy promise of power. A sob escaped from between clenched teeth. Case buried her head in her arms.
"Well? Report you have found!" a voice in her room barked. Case glanced up and saw her younger self again before her. The girl wasn't nearly as substantial as she had been in the secret room. She looked harder, her face starkly pale against her light hair. Her arms were crossed tightly across her chest, her fingers tapping an impatient rhythm on her arm. Revan was addressing someone else and didn't seem to see Case.
Case couldn't see the other person, but Revan was looking up. The sentient was tall. Whatever he or she was telling Revan obviously pleased the girl, because she smiled widely. "Past the archaeological digs? Are you sure they spoke the truth?"
The girl swept past her invisible companion. "Only one map left," she called behind her, and disappeared from view.
Case rubbed her eyes. The cold, gray stone of her sparse quarters reminded her of a tomb. Her dreams were becoming more and more real, and more difficult to shake when she woke. And the ghosts—she could almost see her younger self falling to the Dark side before her, and there was nothing she could do about. And she couldn't find the damn cave, the cave that had the answers that would let her leave this terrible planet. She could feel the wrongness in the place swirling around her, tempting her with easier paths. The Sith Code was right there, just outside of her mind. Reciting it had given her a burst of clear-headedness the last time she was here. She had been faking her adherence to it, of course, but the power of the words was such that her subterfuge had not mattered. She could do it again, not meaning it, but just using its power to help her on her mission for the Jedi. Maybe she could reach Revan with it, find the cave. It would be far easier than trying to reach the Jedi center of calm in this place. She just had to start. . .
No. She wrenched her mind away from those thoughts. That was a path which could only lead to the Dark Side. She shuddered to think how close she was, how easy it was to take the easier path. Case knew she had to do something soon to protect herself from the awful power of Korriban. She couldn't let the Dark overpower the Light, but the Light was getting harder to find. What if she lost it? What if she could never find it again? What if there was only the Dark to take her back? Within her mounting panic, Case had a moment of clarity. If she couldn't embrace the Light, then at least she could keep the Dark from embracing her. That was it. That was how she would protect herself.
Case closed her eyes and concentrated on weaving the Force around her. She wrapped it around, over, above, criss-crossing the lines of power into a hedge that kept her protected. Nothing could reach her while she was inside the hedge. She wrapped it tighter and tighter, thicker and thicker, until the pounding of the Dark at her ears ceased. She opened her eyes and took a breath. It was a little frightening that she couldn't feel the Light, either, but at least the creeping sense of dread was gone. The Dark was at bay, and if she had to keep the Light out to do it, then so be it.
Case felt a smile on her lips for the first time since before she left Coruscant. The Force, normally a hum around her, was silent. It was shocking and a little frightening, but at least she was finally safe. She left her chambers in the direction Revan had been walking. Perhaps she had found the cave while looking for the Starmap. She had to try.
Revan waved to the crowd like some kind of holovid star and left the practice grounds. Master Huntak stared after her for a long moment before sweeping out in the opposite direction. Dustil had seen the look on Revan's face and recognized it as the same kind of blind anger he'd felt when he'd fought her in this same place. She covered it well with her crowd-pandering, but Dustil knew she'd almost lost control. She would have killed Master Huntak in another moment. He slowly released his death-grip on his saber and felt the blood rush back to his fingers. He had been ready to jump in. To stop her or help her? He wasn't sure.
"She's a helluva fencer!" someone exclaimed behind him, and the room was suddenly back to normal, crowd sounds and practice duels swirling around him.
"Is she really the Dark Lord like they say?" a female student asked.
Dustil turned, finally, and saw who was speaking. It was Melan and Torvim, two students widely known to be matched. Dustil had seen Torvim Choke a Novice into unconsciousness for getting too friendly with Melan at the Czerka bar. Dustil didn't particularly care for either of them—Melan was pretty but sneaky as hell and Torvim had all the Force control of a bantha in heat. He was about to leave when Torvim waved him over.
"Hey, Dustil, haven't seen you around in a while. Whatcha been up to?"
Dustil resisted the urge to make a smartass comment. "You know, fencing, fighting, gaining prestige. That's all we do on this backwater rock."
Melan's smile reminded him of a pellcat playing with its prey. "Not cosmopolitan like Telos, right?" She was trying to goad him into talking about his time on Coruscant, he knew. Uncommon knowledge had always been a guaranteed route to increasing prestige.
Dustil shrugged and pretended he didn't know what she meant. "Well, at least there's work to be done on Telos. Since Revan and her minions took the loot out of the caves, there isn't even any archaeology to do here."
Torvim looked sidelong at Melan in what was probably supposed to a covert glance. Melan rolled her eyes. "Fine, tell him," she sighed.
He grinned conspiratorially and looked around exaggeratedly. Dustil fought the urge to roll his own eyes—anyone looking their way would know that they were up to something. Fortunately, those still in the room after Revan's performance seemed to be concentrating on their practice duels. Torvim whispered, "We found a new cave."
Dustil's eyebrows raised. This was the kind of information the Council wanted him to find out. "Really? Anything good inside?"
Torvim grinned. "Well, that's what we were about to find out. But we need some help to do it. You're supposed to be pretty good with your blade, right?"
Dustil shrugged. "I'm all right." Wouldn't do to look too interested in their little scheme. "What's in it for me?"
Melan leaned in and wrapped her arm around Torvim's waist. She smiled seductively. "Torvim and I would share whatever we found, of course. If you're as good as you looked against Revan a few weeks ago."
"Well, then what are we waiting for? There's no class scheduled til tomorrow—we have plenty of time to see what's in the cave." Dustil didn't want to lose this chance—if Revan heard about it, she might try to stop him or do it herself. If there was something to be found worth showing to the Council, he wanted to be the one to do it, not Revan.
"We're waiting for one more," Melan said, looking around the room. "Ah, here he comes."
Dustil looked up and nearly dropped his saber. The Rodian who'd just tangled with Master Huntak was heading their way.
"Him?" Torvim exclaimed. "You didn't tell me that's who you wanted! Do you want to get us all sent to the punishment chambers? Iman can hardly hold his blade!"
Melan laughed. "You saw him wield a stasis field. And it's not like you or Dustil here can put a crawler into Stasis. You don't think that would be useful in a cave?" There was an edge to her voice to which Torvim was apparently oblivious. So, Dustil noted, Melan doesn't like to be contradicted. Interesting.
Iman came up to them, looking around nervously. "What is it you want?" he asked in accented Basic. "I must return to lightsaber practice. I am to be evaluated in two days, and I must not fail. Nine months without a fencing credit will be too long, I think."
Torvim rolled his eyes. "Haven't you noticed? There's only, what, ten instructors here? And they're leaving all the time. I heard they were going to start replacing classes with computer tutorials. No one is going to notice that you don't have a fencing credit."
Dustil looked at Iman a little closer. Nine months was how long Kaltona said her husband had been inside. It was hard to tell how old Iman was. In truth, Dustil had not done anything to check on Rodians at the Academy—he'd actually been avoiding the Drunk Side so he wouldn't have to deal with Kaltona. If Iman came with them, Dustil might be able to find out if this Rodian was the one in question.
Melan explained about the cave. "So, Iman, we could really use your talents with a stasis field. I've never seen anyone better here. Will you come?"
Dustil, concentrating his Force senses on Iman, felt a slight surge of triumph. But was it because he had earned the acceptance of his peers or because he, too, was looking for the new Sith artifact?
Iman nodded slowly, displaying a reluctance which did not match his aura. "I suppose I can practice tomorrow. I will come with you."
Torvim clapped the slight Rodian hard on the shoulder, almost sending him into Dustil. "Great!" he exclaimed. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"