(A/N) Ok here comes the return of someone you've seen before, in fact more then one. R&R, open to suggestions.
Chapter 5:The Black Grove
Bastilla angerly marched ahead through out the rubble, stomping over what was once probally a building hundreds of times larger then her. She was clearly upset with Atris and the others, she thought they would back her up on this one, try and save Revan, but she supposed that they didn't have the same feelings for Revan, nor share the same bond. Bastilla could feel Revan, she knew he need her help, he knew she need him to go and aid him in some battle, or some escape, something was wrong. He was not at all safe. But then again he was after The True Sith to destroy them. How safe could that be?
Bastilla was the commander of this mission yet she had no clue where they were going she just realized. She had been marching them on for hours with no leads, no ideas, no clues, she was failing them. Bastilla suddenly forgot about Revan for a moment, forgot about her forbidden emotions and thought about her crew, her team that she was supposed to be leading, yet only leading into nothing. Bastilla suddenly stopped and looked back at the others, marching loyaly without question, without doubt in there step. Bastilla admired there loyalty. She had to lead them on right.
But she began to feel something, something in the force was drawing her to another direction, to north west.
"Guys! Squad! C'mon! We've got something, Jolee can you feel it?" Bastilla spoke fast.
"Y-yes... I feel it... She's right guys, lets get this moving!" Jolee yelled then turned to see that Bastilla was already ahead of them, running quite quickly towards the direction.
Jolee rushed to catch up with Atton and Mira close behind him. Bastilla slid down a large hill of rubble leaning back with her knees bent. Jolee rushed to catch up but atton tripped over a large piece of a former wall and fell the whole way down earning his own share of scratches and scrapes. Mira passed him up quickly and ran into the back of Jolee.
"Hey watch it you-" Mira stopped dead when she saw what they were looking at.
"Ouch! What was that! I just rolled down all the way and I-" Atton cut his complaining the second he looked up at the sight they all were staring wide eyes at. They were all staring at a large building, completley black durasteel coverin it. It looked abit old and tattered, but other than that it was nothing compared to the monsterous disaster around them of what was once a great planet. It was nothing compared to the broken down building with only one corner area still barely standing.
"What do you think it is?" Bastilla managed to say in awe.
"I don't know, but whatever's going on here will probally be answered in there... And we may even find Juhani." Atton spoke.
"Yes you're right Atton," Bastilla nodded as she spoke, still staring out at the wonder in front of her.
"Well," Jolee spoke. "Let's get moving if we plan on getting any-"
"Aww great," Bastilla sighed. There were two more swoop bikes piloted by skeletons came out from the unseen side of the building, this time weilding long swords on each end of there vehicles.
"Atton, Mira, get back! I won't have-"
"Hey what are you talking about?" Mira exclaimed. "I'm a warrior just like you! I can handle myself!"
"Hey, yeah Mira's right, just because we don't push things without touching them or use lightsabers doesn't mean we aren't capeable of fighting for our selves! Other wise Drendan wouldnt've chosen us to join you now would he have?" Atton seemed mad for being singled out again by the Jedi.
"No you don't understand there speeds are far more superio-" Bastilla was cut off by Jolee.
"Quit your complaining, if you've got a wepon use it, end of story, move move move!" Jolee rushed ahead, saber already activated and ready to strike. Bastilla just looked on in awe. Once again she seemed to have proven to herself how terrible her leadership skills were. And not only on this mission, even on Taris when this first began, when she first met Revan after his memory was wiped, his identity stolen.
She thought she was far more superior then Carth or Revan, yet she still was proved wrong time after time as the former Sith lord and Republic pilot fought and put themselves in danger to help her escape. Jolee didn't care if you were a Jedi, everyone fought diffrent. Some needed to take cover and blast away, while some needed to go head first dive in, swinging a lightsaber. Jolee didn't care as long as you could handle a wepon and strike a blow to the enemy. Was Jolee foolish? No no, or was Jolee simply trusting of his crew members?
"Bastilla what are you waiting for!" Jolee screached. Atton and Mira had already taken place and taken shots, one taking an arm off of one of the skeletons, the other made one of the bikes smoke. So maybe she was wrong.
Bastilla leaped straight foward and landed perfectly on the front of the bike. She stared into the empty eye sockets of the skeleton head and ignited her lightsaber, but only one blade was activated, which was all she needed to cut straight through the skeleton's neck. Jolee finished off the other skeleton and the two bikes collided behind them as the two saber weildiers rushed to the building, Mira and Atton tagging behind.
Or maybe she wasn't wrong...
The gorup barged in through the door roughly and immidietly felt the dark pressence inside. It was gloomy, barely enough light to see by. But what they could see wasn't much better than what they had watched outside. Rubble, except you could actually see the ground in front of them. There were many turned over objects, some with holes through them. Perhaps it was some sort of battle, but it would have to be ages ago seeing as there was much dust and nothing seemed to have moved in a couple of years. All seemed quiet, yet evil.
"Bastilla do you feel that.." Jolee looked at the ground a couple of yards in front of him , seemingly paralyzed. "Can you feel the darkness this place brings..." Jolee seemed uneasy.
"Oh my... Yes.. This darkness has never... I haven't... Felt it... Not before... Somethings deeply dark and wrong..."
"I... I can... I can feel the..." Mira began to speak hushed and nervously, in fear. "The darkness... I can even feel it.."
"Same here.." Atton tried to hide his fear but it was clear to the force sensatives, even to Mira but she feared as well so she kept quiet.
"Whats going... On.." Atton began to shake and sweat heavely. He looked up and saw a headless warrior weilding a red light saber in one hand, the other hand on the strap of a boga, holding on to keep balance of the boga with red eyes that seemed to glow red just. The rider appeared to have lightsabers coming out of his side, all igniting one by one untill there were six, three on each side. The boga began roaring and spitting fire all over the room.
"Ughh! Ahh!" Atton screamed in terror and crawled up against the wall seeing this horror in front of him
"What is-" Bastilla thought slowly. She looked up and saw nothing but a wall and a door. "Whats the matter Atton, what is it?"
"The headless man on the boga! The fire! The sabers! Please, do something! Don't let him kill me!" Atton was shaking in all out fear now, no doubtedly frightened out of his mind, sweating and screaming in the silence.
"Mind control." Jolee spoke.
"Yes, fear transmissions sent in through the force. Something else is in here..."
"A dark jedi?"
"Yes-no... A Sith Lord."
"Do you really believe so Bastilla? I mean here?"
"Yes... We'll talk more later.. Atton, don't believe it, it's not real! whatever you are seeing Atton, it's an illusion! A mere trick caused by the Force!"
"But- No!" Atton wasn't convinced. "It's real! It's right in front of me!"
"You only think it is! Reach inside you! Feel it! Can you feel it Atton? Can you feel the darkness? Push it away! Push the darkness away and you will see!"
Atton sqiurmed and turned for a few more moments before looking up at the blank wall in front of him. Panting. he looked horrified still. Mira stared from a corner, looking almost as frightened as him.
"It... It wasn't real?" Atton questioned.
"Yes Atton, all fake." Bastilla said.
After a few more minutes Atton stood up, ashamed and embaressed.
"I uhh..." Atton seemed to glow almost as much as the boga's eyes in his head. "I'm sorry... I just.."
"Don't worry about it, lets just get-" Jolee began when his head jerked to the side, looking at another wall. "Why do these things always pop up when I'M talking?"
Jolee and Bastilla activated there Sabers and stood ready as Mira and Atton reached for there blasters. They stood waiting untill they saw another shadow go by to the left. Atton blasted off half a round at empty space. Slowly Atton began to realize the patterens, but he didn't say anything. The Force didn't even warn Jolee and Bastilla of the creatures tactics.
Atton turned up to the ceiling and fired off a quarter of a round at the creature nailing it in the back and lower back. The creature hit with a loud thump in front of Atton, dead. It seemed to be some kind of Imp, a greyish-brownish creature, only two feet tall, long pointy ears at the top of its skull and a long thin tail longer than its body.
"Whoa, what the-" Mira said looking at it, but broke into a screech of pain. Another one of the creatures jumped from the shadows and bit into Mira's lower neck. It clung to her, even through all of Mira's punches and smacks to the creature, simply sucking on the skin of Mira, creating long thin lines of blood to move down her back.
Atton moved his blaster up to take aim but refused to shoot, afraid of hitting Mira. Jolee leaped in the air and spun around, slicing straight through the creatures torso, leaving it to drop to the floor in half, blood pouring from it's little body onto the old dusty floor. He spun around to slice at the leg of another that jumped towards Jolee's back. Bastilla sliced through another heading for Atton, then through another with the Force all the way into a wall, leaving a large shape of the monster implanted. Atton fired off what was left of his clip at another, wounding it, but ran out of ammo as the creature leaped at Atton. Atton ducked and the creature was stabbed by Jolee's lightsaber.
"C'mon! We've gotta' keep moving!" Jolee lead the way through a small door and into an even greater peril than before. The room was filled with skeletons, just like the ones on the bike, only this time they had no bikes, they had blaster rifles. Disruptors, outlawed on many planets due to the damage that they could bring.
"Let's do this!" Mira angerly shouted after quickly recovering from the bite, clearly very furious with the dwellers of this building. Mira rushed ahead, firing off as many shots as she could, nailing shots through the skulls and sternums of the skeletons. Bastilla barreled through the air, slicing in half many skeletons. Jolee summoned the Force to push away and shatter many of the old skeleton bones and slicing an occasional little creature like the ones that bit on Mira.
The evil skeletons were soon nothing but a pile of bones, however slowly they would be ressurected, bones being put back together just to fire off more shots.
"We have to figure something else out!" Bastilla shouted through attacks.
"Atton, go to that door, I can see that it is big but with no ways out.." Jolee commanded. "If we can trap them in there, then we can continue!"
With in a minute Atton had opened the door and made sure there was no way out of it. Jolee and bastilla began to focus on the Force around them do lift the bones and full skeletons into the air and to move them. Bastilla's pile was nearly into the room when a shot fired off at her. Quickly she lost her focus and leaped out of the way, dropping the pile. The next shot fired off was sent right back at the skeleton arm, destroying it into many pieces. Bastilla then assisted Jolee in moving both piles. After the pile was dropped in the room, and after many of the ressurected skeletons fired off more shots, the door was shut tight.
"Atton, Mira," Jolee turned. "You two go move that... That dresser I suppose. Yes
move it infront of this door, Bastilla and I will aid you through the Force." Soon the half destroyed dresser was pushed infront of the door, making it quite hard for any escapes.
"Jolee..." Bastilla whispered. "Do you feel that... Dark Jedi.. In the next room.."
"Yes... I feel it too.. What about Mira and Atton? How will they survive against them?"
"They must stay behind.."
"Very well commander.. Atton, Mira, there are dark Jedi beyond this door, we suggest you stay back and take cover. Let us handle this."
Mira and Atton didn't complain, handling a pair of speeding speeder bikes controlled by evil and possesed skeletons? Maybe. Dark Jedi? No way. The two hid behind two turned over tables and sighed, looking at eachother.
Bastilla steped foward slowly, saber activated. Jolee stood ready in battle position as Bastilla turned to look at him. Jolee gave her the signal and nodded. The door came crashing down, splintering into pieces because of Bastillas Force push. The dark Jedi and there blood red lightsabers stood as if they expected the two. Bastilla and Jolee rushed into battle, sabers blazing.
Bastilla immidietly recognized them as the Sith dark Jedi controlled by Malak, however Malak was dead, she couldn't see why they were still together. Bastila thrusted down but was blocked a head shot by the dark Jedi's lightsaber. Quickly she gave him a kick to the stomach, causing him to bend over in pain, and lost his head as a result. Blood poured down on to Bastila's feet but she had no time to worry, she quickly blocked a shot coming for her throat and stabbed at the torso of the attacker. Another took a stab straight at Bastilla's forehead, but she tilted her head to the left easily. The dark Jedi stabbed at her again, but Bastilla tiled again. It continued untill Bastilla quickly shot a foot at the man's chin, causing him to stagger back. Bastilla cut cleanly through the torso of the man, leaving him to fall to the floor bleeding.
Jolee rushed at two dark Jedi, slicing through the hilt of one of them, then slicing at the shoulder of the other. Jolee stabbed behind him, straight into the stomach of another dark Jedi. Jolee leaped back wards and flipped behind the stabbed victim and another dark Jedi. Jolee stabbed into the back of the one in front of him and tossed them into two other dark jedi.
Bastilla and Jolee tried to stay close together as the Sith closed in around them. A red lightsaber came spinning up at Bastilla. Bastilla simply held out her wepon and the Sith saber spiraled out of control into a near by dark Jedi.
Bastilla and Jolee got back to back, dodging attacks and slicing through weak spots. Two dark jedi both made a stab at Bastilla and Jolee from opposite sides. Bastilla ducked and Jolee leaped into the air letting the two Sith clash wepons. Bastilla cut through the knees of her attacker and Jolee sliced open the head of his. Blood squirted through the top of the dark Jedi's head and sprayed onto Jolee's face partially. The man didn't care or worry, he had to get through to the end of this.
Sweat poured down Bastilla and Jolee's faces, nearly exhausted by taking down the evil Sith. Blood covered the floor as the last of the dark Jedi fell. One managed to burn Bastilla slightly on her fore arm, but lost both of his leg's for it. Jolee was nearly knocked unconciouns by a hit to the head into the wall caused by a very strong Force push. Atton and Mira peaked up from their cover to see Bastilla and Jolee had gotten the job done.
"What," Bastilla paused after one word, struggling to catch her breath. "What.. Is going on? Those were... Malak's... Men."
"I know Bastilla," Jolee panted. "Malak's been dead for years! How did his fleet survive? They're must've been small gorups hiding out far far on the outer-rim.. But then who's there leader?"
"I'm afraid to find out." Bastilla seemed to be troubled.
"Look if we keep going we may find out the answeres," Atton stated. "But we may never come back I mean what if what ever is controlling these things happens to be a Sith Lord? A powerfull one? One more powerfull then Malak, or Traya, or even Sion!
"Now Atton that's just rediculous!" Bastilla seemed shocked at her own response. "Or maybe I just want to think it is.. Well whatever it is, it is our mission to find out and to find Juhanni. Once we find her, we can get out of here, and if she's here, then she surely is in here in this.. This... This Hell!"
"You know Atton, Bastilla's right," Mira nodded slowly. "We've got a mission, we've got a duty to do, to save the galaxy and to save the Republic. Without all the help we can get we're doomed. We still maybe even with all this help!"
"There's no time for this, we've got to keep moving," Jolee shouted. "We're waisting time! Wait... I'm... I'm... I think I am getting a vision.. Follow me!" Jolee ran towards a door and felt around it with his hands, eyes closed trying to see the vision more clearly. He found the knob and yanked the door open and ran through. The others followed close behind trusting the former master's vision. They ran up stairs and through long narrow hallways, all untill they ran into one large door.
"It's in here, the evil, the darkness I can see it!" Jolee stopped and opened his eyes staring up at the large door.
"Yes I can feel it, we must take this with great caution, or it may mean the end of our lives.." Bastilla gripped her lightsaber tightly. Everyone got there wepons ready and took deep breaths. Jolee pushed the door open as they all stared into what seemed to be a dark black throne room. Pillars with only a few yards space between them with strange ancient alien markings on them started near the wall then moved on both sides of the room all the way towards the throne. But what was truly terrifying was the occupant of the throne chair.
"Juhani!" Bastilla shouted. She ran into the room and rushed towards Juhani.
"Bastilla, NO!" Jolee tried to warn her.
Juhani seemed to be unconcious or something. Her head was tilted to the right and her arms rested on the arm rests peacefully.
Bastilla rushed towards the throne but when she was only about 5 yards from the throne, she was thrown back and electrecuted greatly, and for a breif moment a white/transparent bubble like dome was seen covering the throne. Bastilla hit the ground and screamed loudly.
"Juhani?" Bastilla asked lowly. Just then Juhanni's head tilted back up right and her eyes open, revealing that they were a shade of glowing evil red. A sudden presence of evil and darkness was felt throughout the room and a loud booming voice that seemed to be amplified, low, raspy, deep, evil, almost robotic voice was heard.
"You pathetic fool!" The voice shouted.
"What?" Bastilla seemed surprised and hurt, mostly scared.
"Bastilla," Jolee began in a murmer, coming up behind her. "That is not Juhani." Jolee reached out to her and Bastilla grabbed it, standing up. "Juhani is dead!" Jolee said loudly.
"Dead? No no no," The voice shouted. "Not dead, simply full of power."
"Your possesing her!" Bastilla realized.
"No wrong again Jedi, Juhani has given into the dark side, she accepted me as her master, she learned I was true power and together we would be unstoppable. She gave into the darkness and aloud my spirit into her body, and now I control her, she doesn't care anyways, she is consumed by darkness! I have all the power needed!"
"Malak!" Bastilla shouted.
"Ha ha ha, you are right foolish Jedi."
"You're the reason why those skeletons attacked! You're the one who did this to this planet!" Bastilla realized what had happened.
"Yes and my old troops are spreading far and wide across the galaxy, only to find your pathetic fool friends, Drendan and Revan. My apprentice is leading them into a trap as we speak! But you won't be able to get out of here alive and in time to warn anybody, you will die in this place you peasent!"
And with that the Juhani's hands rose slightly and electricity poured onto Bastilla.
"Not so fast!" Jolee's lightsaber intercepted the electricity but slid backwards while still standing. Bastilla took the oppertunity to stand up and get her saber ready. Atton and Mira rushed behind two pillars and took cover as sparks flew. The electricity stopped and Juhanni's hands rose once more, this time in the palms of her hands, red blaster fire began to form and shot out at the two behind the pillars.
"Why don't we settle this in a fair manner you scum bag!" Bastilla screamed.
"Very well mortal." Juhani's body flew out of the chair, yellow saber activated. Bastilla and Jolee stood ready with there lightsabers humming. As Juhani came close to landing, Bastilla rushed foward spinner her lightsaber at her. Juhani began to faint away as only a few lines of her were seen and she disappeared in under a second. Bastilla struck air and stood surprised.
"What-huh?" Bastilla seemed confused. Juhani reappeared in the air behind Bastilla and her foot came down hard on Bastilla's head. Bastilla flew foward into the ground, hitting her nose and causing bleeding. Jolee ran foward, lightsaber held high. But Juhani's free hand swung towards Jolee and he flew back.
Bastillla looked up and threw her light saber at Juhanni. Juhani dodged out of the way and backflipped when the Saber came back at her. Juhani still seemed to hover a yard above the ground. Jolee had already gotten back up and was running straight at Juhani's back. Jolee swung his saber and Juhanni simply moved her hand holding her saber behind her and dodged it, then back flipped landing behind Jolee, feet touching the ground.
Blam!
Mira had fired off a shot at Juhani and nailed her right in the back as she landed.
"Why you little!" Juhani turned but made a foolish move as Bastilla stabbed her right in the back smiling. Juhani choked out a few odd sounds and screams but then grabed the hilt of the double-bladed saber angerly.
"Raghh!" Juhani spun around, breaking Bastilla's grip. Juhani swung the saber
straight at Bastilla. Bastilla moved her head, but recieved a hard hit by the hilt of the lightsaber, sending Bastilla flying through a pillar. The pillar broke in half and shattered. Some pieces fell onto an unconcious Bastilla. Jolee swung down on Juhani trying to get the upper hand. Bastilla's light saber flew to the other side of the room and Juhani's saber came up to protect her.
"You fool! I am Darth Malak! You can never beat me!"
"Your not Darth Malak, your just an old angery spirit who's lost his power, so he has to-" Jolee stopped as to swing high at Malak."take a poor Cathar's body and power-" Jolee dodged a low swing aimed at his knees then brought his saber to the right for a low side swing. It was blocked by Juhani, and the two both swung straight on, locking up there lightsabers, creating sparks. "You must feel like such a big and powerful man your so powerful!" Malak was getting angered, and Jolee could tell by the way that Juhanni's body seemed to be troubled, pushing more agressively, but less acurately, losing focus.
Juhani swung to Jolee's left shoulder but he quickly ducked down. The blow was so powerful however that it was quite slow, taking Juhani a small fraction of a second to recover from the clumsy missed strike. Jolee had just enough time to swing at Juhanni's knees, cutting her but not too deep. Jolee quickly leaped to the left as Juhani swung down hard, grimacing in pain. Just as the blade hit the ground, Bastilla's saber came flying through the air, activating just quick enough to cut deep into Juhani's right arm. Jolee was getting the upperhand, and giving Bastilla enough time to recover and get out of the spot she was in. Juhani gave a loud feral roar and charged at Jolee. Jolee leaped up just in time and flipped in the air, pushing off of Juhani's head to fly down to the ground.
Just then the rubble from the broken pillar began to move about and Bastilla began to stand up. Jolee, Mira, and Atton all stared in awe as Bastilla rose, seeing her injury. A large rock had pinned her arm, leaving Bastilla's arm a bloody mess, completely unable to fight.
"Bastilla!" Jolee shouted.
"Jolee we have to get out of here, he's holding back, he's holding his true power! You must escape!"
"Bastilla what about you!"
"Don't worry about me Jolee, I'll be fine, you can't sacrifice this mission for me!"
"Atton, Mira, go and get Bastilla carry her back to the ship!" Atton and Mira made a mad dash as Jolee taunted Juhani. Juhani pushed Jolee through the Force, but Jolee countered with his own Force push. The two seemed to be locked in battle as the Force pushes rocked the room. Mira and Atton ran out of the room, stopping shortly to look at the two Force weilders continue in their battle.
Suddenly Jolee stopped pushing, he flew back but darted to the side, letting the wall behind him crumble, revealing nothing but darkness behind it, unable to see what it was. Juhani seemed confused. Jolee gathered all of his energy and shot it straight into one Force push straight into the ceiling above Juhani. Before Malak could figure out what was going on, the ceiling began to crumble and fall. Juhani's possesed body tried to move out of the way but was too late. The rubble crashed ontop of Juhani.
Jolee knew it wouldn't kill off Malak, but it would stop them. Jolee took the oppertunity to summon as much of the Force as he could to burst out of the room, not even looking back. Quickly Jolee jumped down flights of stairs, leaped quickly throughout the halls, desperate to escape. Finally Jolee came into the room where the skeletons had attacked, through the first room, and finally straight out the door into daylight.
Jolee ran up the giant trash heap that Atton had tripped down. He kept running untill finally he saw the others. He zipped past them and motioned for them to hurry up. Eventually they got to the Ebon Hawk after intense running. They boarded on and got to the cockpit.
Jolee and Mira strapped in Bastilla safely and took there seats as well, making sure they were strapped in tight. Atton took the main pilot seat, strapped in as well.
"Where to," Atton spat out quickly.
"Anywhere," Jolee shouted quickly. "Anywhere but here. How far are we from the closest civilized planet?"
The ship began to rise off the ground and Jolee felt something in the Force, a dark ripple.. Jolee realized Malak must be unleashing some great attack, some powerfull Force wave.
"About three hours." Atton said as his fingers typed in codes and punched in commands, sending them high up into the air.
"Then get us there, hurry!" Jolee commanded. "This planets going to explode! The power Malak is summoning is far too great for this planet to hold!" Slowly on the planets surface, the grounds began to crack in various places, many metal scrap heaps would fall into the cracks as the cracks widened. Some of the smaller cracks began to shoot small beams of red light through the metal and up into the sky. Some came close to the Ebon Hawk, but only two hit the ship, and one chiped the edge. The ship soon came through the atmosphere and straight into space. Atton punched in the hyperspace coordinates and the gorup spun out into hyperspace, just as the planet began to crumble onto itself, exploding into the unidentified star system.