Disclaimer: You can skip this. You know it's only going to say I don't have rights to any of the brilliance below. That the idea isn't mine, nor the characters. Why are you still reading this?
Chapter Thirty-Eight
CARTH POV
The entire crew had been on the edge of their seats all day after Mission had relayed Aithne's message to them, despite Canderous' and Zaalbar's assurances. They were sitting in the living area now, staring at their chronos and com-links intermittently, completely unable to watch the bad holovid Teethree was showing.
Everyone jumped up at once when Mission's com-link buzzed. She snatched it up immediately. "Aithne? You're back?"
"Yes, Mish, I'm back," came Aithne's voice. "That's the good news." Carth's stomach dropped.
"What is the bad news?" Juhani asked for him.
The speaker crackled with Aithne's sigh. "The bad news, Juhani, is that I'm in jail again for the detonations I set off in the Hrakert Rift."
"Seriously?" Mission asked. "Now this is just getting ridiculous. Are Big Z and Canderous alright?"
"Yes, they're fine. They're with me. They're considerably better off than I am, actually." Carth's stomach knotted, and Mission opened her mouth, but Aithne continued, "No, Mish, I'm not seriously hurt and tell Jolee to stop going through his healing supplies."
Carth looked over at Jolee and almost laughed. Jolee's hand was half out of his medical bag. He looked like a cat caught with its paw in the bird-cage.
"When's the trial?" Carth asked.
"The trial's in half an hour," Aithne sighed. "If you want to come, fine."
"We'll be there," Jolee said.
"Aytchkay?" Aithne spoke out of the speaker. "You are not to come, you got that?"
"Resignation: As you wish, master."
When the crew filed into the court room, the judges looked askance at them. Carth didn't blame them. He supposed Aithne and the Ebon Hawk crew had stirred up more trouble on Manaan than anyone had dared to in years. Aithne, Canderous, and Zaalbar were led in to the courtroom in energy cuffs. Aithne looked bored.
Head judge Shelkar read the charges, and as she did, she began to look worried. The other judges began to murmur amongst themselves. /These are serious charges, Aithne Morrigan,/ Shelkar finished at last. Carth began translating for Mission again. /Even more serious, if I may say so, than the ones you were brought before us with yesterday. The Hrakert Rift is our most sacred place. Anything that threatens it or the kolto it produces threatens our entire species./
Aithne's jaw tightened as the other judges took turns yelling at her. This was less of a trial than a demand for an explanation, Carth noticed. They didn't know what she had done down there. Depending on how she answered, she could get off completely or get herself, and all of them, and the entire Republic into very, very hot water. But they had to know what she and her thuggish companions had done to the Rift.
The corner of Mission's mouth lifted just a little as Carth translated this last bit. "You gotta admit," she whispered, "Big Z and Canderous together look pretty thuggish."
Carth wanted to smile as he looked over at the Wookiee and the Mandalorian, but the situation was too serious. "Shh," he whispered back.
Aithne drew in a breath finally. The judges quieted. /The explosions, your honors, were at the research station both our governments set up there,/ she said carefully.
The judge on Shelkar's right immediately demanded /What are you talking about?/ But Shelkar herself nodded.
/We know of this,/ she said. Carth frowned. He hadn't pegged Shelkar for a Republic supporter. But the other judges argued a bit over this, until they remembered Aithne was still there.
/But…but what caused the explosions?/ One of them asked finally.
/The machinery there had woken up an enormous firaxa,/ Aithne explained. /This firaxa was wreaking havoc upon the base's human and Selkath inhabitants. I destroyed the machinery./
The Selkath had another rapid conversation in their croaking, gurgling tongue. Carth didn't catch most of it. They seemed to be impressed by something, a legend of sorts.
Sharply, Shelkar demanded, /Did you kill this shark, Morrigan?/
Aithne shook her head. /I did not./
One of the judges burst out, /The Progenitor! It must have been!/
Shelkar raised a webbed hand. /Enough! Off-worlders are not to hear of such things!/
The same judge continued. /But she spared it! She destroyed the machinery to save it, perhaps?/
/Indeed,/ Shelkar said quietly. /This casts your actions in a new light, Morrigan./
"She's going to get off again!" Mission hissed, squeezing Carth's arm. And indeed, after a brief discussion, the judges did let Aithne off. After the guard had released the energy cuffs from the party, Aithne bowed ironically to Shelkar.
/I hate to leave you,/ she said. /I mean, I bring you all so much business. I'm afraid you'll be terribly bored without me. But I have to be going. There are Jedi princesses to save and Sith Lords to defeat. Away from Manaan of course. I wouldn't dare to infringe upon your neutrality./ Then she actually winked. Carth wasn't sure how she dared. But Shelkar only raised a single brow bone. Carth thought she almost smiled.
/Indeed. Well. Farewell, Aithne Morrigan. Good fortune follow you in your endeavors, however galaxy shaking they might be, and all the better fortune if you carry them out, as you say, very, very far from Manaan./
Aithne waved, and turned to leave with the crew. She pulled a datapad out of her pack then and handed it to Carth.
"Decipher that and plug in the coordinates," she ordered tersely. "That's the Star Forge system. We'll find Malak there. And the Star Forge. And Bastila."
She slowed her pace to walk beside Juhani. "Come with me," she said. "We need to get supplies. We're going to fill the Hawk up as full as we can. I don't know how far this system is."
She halted. Carth stopped and turned to face her. Then the rest of the crew realized she'd stopped and turned, too. "There will be a group meeting tonight at nine," she said quietly. Then she nodded once, and walked off with Juhani.
Carth sighed. Her face had gone stiff again, and it was clear that however charming she could be in front of a Selkath court, however quickly she had accomplished their objectives, Aithne was still not alright. He really did have to talk to her. Preferably before the group meeting.
He waited for several hours- until Aithne and Juhani had gotten back with the supplies and Juhani had left to meditate. Then he made his way to the cargo hold. He stepped through the doorway, and Aithne stiffened. "Go away, Carth," she said, without even looking up from her datapad. "The crew meeting isn't for half an hour."
Carth kept walking. He stopped about two feet away. "I'm not going away until you talk to me," he said. "I told you we need to talk. You've been avoiding me."
"I can't handle you right now," Aithne said. But she put the datapad down on a nearby crate.
"Handle me?"
Aithne turned. Her shoulders were stiff. Her arms were crossed. Annoyance stood out in every line on her face. Carth might have gone away, if he hadn't seen something like fear in her eyes.
"Look," Aithne said. "I'm trying, here, for the others' sake. But I can barely handle myself right now. Honestly. Saving Bastila? Defeating Malak? Oh, and let's not forget I second-guess myself at every turn now lest I develop a sudden desire for a long black cloak and galactic domination." She laughed, and Carth winced.
He didn't doubt her. No matter what she had been feeling throughout their journey she had told him. He remembered. And now the harsh, bitter quality of the laughter that had used to be one of his favorite sounds nearly overwhelmed him. It was almost worse than her silence.
She stepped close to him. "You know, you always see what everyone else misses," she said quietly. "How the Jedi were holding out on me. How I wasn't to be trusted. Now, you're the only one on this tub that seems to realize exactly what I am." She stared at him, daring him. "You said once that you'd like nothing better than to put a blaster to Darth Revan's head. Well. Here's your chance."
"Stop it," Carth told her.
"I led the army that blew Telos sky high," Aithne said in a low voice. "I betrayed your precious Republic, and for all either of us knows I might do it again. You want to put a blaster bolt through Darth Revan? Do it, Republic!"
"Damn it, Aithne!" Carth cried, grabbing her hands. Aithne's eyes locked on his, and she shuddered. "I don't hate you!" he finished, more softly.
Aithne started shaking. Her lip trembled, and her knees buckled. Carth swung an arm around her and caught her to his chest. That horrible emotionless mask broke, along with that hideous silence and the imposed 'I'm fine' image she'd been maintaining for a week and a half. And she was all Aithne again. She sobbed, clutching at his flight jacket.
"Say it again," she cried.
"I don't hate you," Carth repeated, but Aithne shook her head against his shoulder.
"My name."
Carth rubbed her back and kissed her hair. "Shh," he said. "It's alright, Aithne."
She shuddered, receiving the name like a benediction. He held her for a while, and eventually she quieted. Then she stepped away, looking at the floor.
"I hate me," she whispered.
"I can't," Carth told her.
She laughed. "Why? I deserve it."
"I know," he said. "I tried to hate you." He shrugged. "I got my revenge when Saul died. But I still don't feel peace. All I can think of is the promise I made to protect you from what's to come. It's given me a reason to look past simple revenge."
She flinched, and her eyes bored into his face, the long eyelashes still wet around them.
He continued, carefully. "Despite whatever part of Revan is inside you, the…the darkness that must surely be there, it isn't who you are. I've thought about it." He smiled.
"You're the woman that always has my back in a fight," he began.
Aithne closed her eyes, drinking in his words. He went on. "You're the woman that crossed the galaxy to save my son the Sith. You…you're the woman that smiles that crazy smile just before a fight where the odds are way against us. You're the one that drives Canderous insane singing at the workbench."
Aithne opened her eyes and smiled a real, warm, happy smile. Carth put a hand on her shoulder. "You…you can be so much more than Revan," he told her. His voice was a little unsteady. "Whatever the Jedi did to you, they gave you that chance. You have this huge destiny waiting for you, and I just fear that if you're alone it could swallow you whole. I mean, is there room in there for me? Will you let me help you?"
Aithne swallowed. She removed Carth's hand from her shoulder gingerly, as if he were burning her. "You're right again, Carth," she said carefully, with a bitter smile. "Going into this now- my chances aren't good. I'm going into the heart of the Dark. You're a good man. You deserve better than what may just be a suicide run, and I don't want you hurt protecting me."
She looked down, but Carth didn't take his eyes off her face. "I think I would be hurt worse if I didn't try."
Aithne half turned to him again, pained. "Carth…"
"Whatever's happened up until this point," he continued stubbornly. "There's going to come a time very soon where you're going to have to make a choice, and there won't be any turning back. I want you to make the right choice. I want to give you a reason to."
Aithne drew in a breath. "What sort of reason?"
Carth swallowed. "You gave me a future," he said. His voice shook. "I want to give you a future, too…with me."
Aithne went as still as a statue. "Future," she repeated. "As in today, tomorrow…" she swallowed. "After Malak?"
Carth nodded slowly and unmistakably, keeping his eyes locked on Aithne's. "As long as you'll put up with me," he confirmed. "I think I could love you, if you give me the chance."
Aithne gazed at him. Finally, she stepped up, put a hand on either side of his face, brought it down to hers and kissed him, softly and sweetly. She retreated just a few centimeters. "Are you sure?" she asked, her hands still warm on his face. "You should know, Carth, that there's no 'could' about this for me. I've tried to stop a hundred times, but I love you, and I have for a long time. You can stay and welcome, as long as you will, but just as sure as there's a point-of-no-return coming for me, there's one coming for you. If you come much further into this, you'll be stuck with me forever."
It was a warning. But Carth turned his head to the side and kissed Aithne's palm. "Understood."
"Carth?" her voice shook. She was still expecting him to back away, still giving him that chance.
Carth took her hands and looked her in the eye. "Face the future together with me?"
She nodded, looking slightly dazed.
"Aithne?" came the very much unwanted voice of Mission Vao. "Have you logged the supplies yet? It's time for the meeting."
Aithne tensed all over, but Carth was not about to let her leap away. As Mission rounded the corner, Carth retained her hands. Aithne blushed all over, and Mission raised a painted eyebrow. "I think I'll go call the others to the conference room," she said simply. She turned away, but Carth saw her smile.
Aithne picked her datapad up awkwardly. The mood had been effectively shattered. "Um…and three packages of dried fruit…we'd better go."
Carth laughed at her. Her face was still red. "C'mon, then, beautiful."
AITHNE POV
Aithne and Carth were the last ones to the conference room. When they entered together the entire crew looked up. Jolee looked a little surprised. Zaalbar seemed to smile.
Canderous nodded once at Carth, and Carth smiled a bit. Juhani looked down at the table, though, and Aithne sighed. Lately the Cathar had been throwing herself more and more into the Jedi Code, meditating for hours together. Aithne hoped that it was helping her, but she guessed that it would be some time still before they could really talk as they had towards the beginning of the voyage, and even then it would be different. That is, if Juhani came at all.
Aithne placed both of her hands on the table. "The Star Map is finally complete," she announced to the group. "Carth has plugged the coordinates I retrieved from the Hrakert Rift into the Ebon Hawk's navigational systems. There will be no further stops between here and Malak." She paused. "There will undoubtedly be legions of Sith facing me. I don't even know if I'll come back. This is a do-or-die mission. Those of you who were here for Dantooine remember that I asked you then if you wanted to search for the Star Maps with me. Now I'm asking you again. You know the risks. You know what we're facing, and I'll tell you right now that I have no plan whatsoever. Considering this, do you want to come with me all the way?"
Aithne was quiet for a moment, letting her words sink in. She wasn't going to beg anyone to come along. From what she could tell, the chances of survival were pretty remote.
Finally she turned to Zaalbar. In the formal Shyriiwook style, she addressed him first. /Zaalbar. You have fought nobly and well. You have defended me against many foes, and you saved my life down in the deeps. I shall count your life debt resolved should you wish to return to Kashyyyk now./
Zaalbar nodded gravely. /You are good,/ he said. /But you are my life-debt, and my friend. In this last hour I shall not desert you. When I have helped you vanquish Malak, I may return home. But not before./
Aithne smiled at his confident optimism. /I thank you,/ she said, bowing.
She turned to Mission, then. "Mish," she said, "I'm going to be honest and say you're probably the last person I want going with me to the Star Forge. As amazing as you are, as much of a help as you've been, you have so much life ahead of you. I don't want you killed. But I don't want to break my promise and leave you on your own, either."
Mission was quiet for a moment. "It's not up to you," she said finally. "Sure, flying into the great unknown, lots of Sith, no plan. Seems impossible. But I never thought I'd get off Taris or do the things I've done since, either." She took in a breath. "If you think you're getting rid of me, Aithne, you got another think coming. You, Big Z, Carth," she smiled at the crew, "All of you guys, you're family. And family has to stick together. Even and especially against Malak. I'm coming!"
Carth smiled approvingly at Mission, and even Canderous granted her a respectful glance. Aithne bit her lip, though. If Mission got hurt, she'd never forgive herself. Mission stared at her, though, resolute, and Aithne nodded at last. She turned to Juhani. She'd been fairly certain Zaalbar and Mission would come, as much as she didn't like it. She wasn't sure about Juhani. "Juhani?"
The younger Jedi traced patterns on the conference table. "I have been assigned to see this mission through to the end," she said. "Until the Jedi Council assigns me elsewhere, I am coming. Also, there is Bastila yet to save."
Aithne went still. She nodded respectfully. "Thank you, Juhani," she said. "I am glad of your assistance."
Juhani shrugged. "I must confess I do not see the purpose of this line of questioning," she said quietly. Aithne was a bit taken aback by the criticism the comment implied, however slight and well-meant, but not displeased by it.
Canderous made a noise of assent. "Me neither. You're asking if I want to pass up an opportunity for greater glory than any I've faced since the Wars?"
Aithne rolled her eyes at him. "Okay, so it was a stupid question as far as you were concerned," she admitted.
Canderous gave her a contemptuous glance. "You think, Morrigan?"
"Aytchkay will want to come, and Teethree," Aithne thought aloud.
Teethree beeped in cheerful agreement.
"Statement: It should be a bloodbath of most pleasing proportions, master. I look forward to it."
"Yeah, yeah," Aithne muttered. She turned to Jolee. "What do you say, Jolee? Fool suicide quest to save the galaxy. You in?"
Jolee chuckled. "I don't really want to return to my camp in the Shadowlands," he said. "What else am I good for? Besides, I must admit to an idle curiosity as to how your destiny plays out."
Aithne smiled at him. He wasn't fooling her with his mask of nonchalance. She knew he cared, and she appreciated it, too. She swallowed. "I thought all of you would probably go," she said quietly. "I had to give you a chance, though. I- I love you all. I don't want you to die."
"Yeah, well, we don't want you to die, either," Mission shot back. "Idiot. Like we'd bail on you and let you do this alone."
Aytchkay swiveled his head. "Query: What about the meatbag beside the master? Is he not to have the option of 'bailing', as the small blue meatbag puts it?"
Carth walked up beside her and took her hand. "She gave it to me, before the meeting."
Aithne was glad of him, but desperately afraid for him, too. "He was even more idiotic than the rest of you," she muttered, not looking at him. But she squeezed his hand anyway.
Carth was beaming. Mission made a face. "Oh, please don't tell me you're going to be disgusting now. I have to live here, you know."
Aithne frowned. Mission had a point, however annoying she was about making it. She smiled at Carth apologetically and reclaimed her hand. He shrugged. It was true that there were nine of them on this relatively small freighter. They had to keep that in mind.
Aithne drew herself up then. "Right. Captain Onasi," she said loudly, "When will the ship be prepared to take off for the Star Forge?"
Carth looked at his chrono. "Commander, it's nearly ten o' clock at night!" he said in mock outrage. "We are prepared to leave immediately, but I better be getting paid overtime."
The tension was officially broken. Aithne, Canderous, and Juhani burst out laughing, and Carth smiled smugly. "As if!" Aithne managed between hoots of laughter. "Get on it, space-brain."
Mission groaned as Carth left. "Aithne, we really are going to have to work on your insults," she said severely. "Honestly, if you insult Malak like that, I'll just want to cry of embarrassment."
Aithne was sitting alone in the living area. They were well within hyperspace en route to a system unknown. Everyone slept. Even Carth had put the Hawk on autopilot to turn in.
Aithne couldn't sleep. There was too much going through her head. They were going to the very heart of Malak's war- the war she had started, could she only remember- without a clue what they would find there and only the vague imperative to put a stop to it. One or all of her friends could very well fall in the effort, friends so close to her that she thought Mission's label 'family' wasn't too far off the mark. No matter what Carth said, every drop of blood spilt in this war had been her fault, and there wouldn't be a convenient Jedi Council around to expunge her of the guilt and memory of anyone that died in the upcoming battle. Aithne was never going near the Jedi again, after this.
She thought there might have already been a casualty in this mission. After the crew had separated and begun to go to bed, Aithne had sat in the living area and opened her mind. She had let down the wall she had erected between her consciousness and Bastila. She wanted to tell Bastila that they'd found the Star Forge, that they were on their way. But when she'd looked to go through her own mental wall, she'd smashed up against a wall of Bastila's own.
Aithne probed it now, but the wall didn't relax, even for a moment. The barrier had a cold, steely quality to it. She could sense Bastila alive behind it, but there were only two reasons that Bastila would put up a wall, and only one she thought very likely. Bastila might have built the wall because she was in so much pain that she didn't want even Aithne to feel it. She might have built it to spare her. But aside from one time when Aithne had been able to grit her teeth and tell Bastila they were coming about a week and a half ago, Aithne had kept well out of Bastila's mind, and Bastila had to know it.
No. It was much, much more likely that Bastila had succumbed to the Dark Side at last, and was now keeping Aithne out so she couldn't gain an advantage. Aithne closed her eyes. Just thinking it was hot iron in her spirit. Bastila's high ideals twisted…if only Aithne had been stronger back on the Leviathan. Smarter. If she'd only been just a little quicker on Manaan.
As Aithne leaned back in her seat, a single image popped into her head.
A black ship stood out against a clear blue sky. A red lightsaber was lifted high for the strike…
The image didn't have the feel of her Revan-memories, and Aithne didn't need one of the other Jedi on board to tell her that she was having a glimmer of foresight. A knotty lump of ice seemed to settle in her stomach. A choice, Carth had said. Oh, that man had more than a little bit of the Force in him.
She heard someone sit beside her. She turned.
"I thought everyone was asleep," she said.
"Well I was," Jolee Bindo said. "But I felt your disquiet, and I had to come out and see."
Aithne looked the old Jedi over. His robes were rumpled, and his eyes were still unfocused.
"I'm sorry I woke you up," she said. She stared down at her hands again. "I can't feel Bastila anymore," she confessed.
Jolee sighed. "It may not mean what you think," he offered.
"But it probably does," Aithne said.
"It probably does."
The silence stretched between them. It occurred to Aithne that Jolee probably understood exactly what was going on in her head right now. She licked her lips. "Tell me about the war you fought against Exar Kun," she said.
Jolee stared at the wall for a long time. "I suppose you're going to nag me until I cough it up, aren't you?" he said finally. "Nothing is private anymore, it looks like."
Aithne was quiet, waiting. Jolee drew in a breath, still not looking at Aithne. "My wife's name was Nayama," he told her. "She was the Ukatis officer that shot me out of the sky, if you remember."
Aithne didn't see what Jolee's wife had to do with anything, but she was intrigued nonetheless. "I remember. Go on."
Jolee smiled oddly. "I knew she was strong in the Force the moment I met her," he related. "That's why she was able to shoot me down. Nayama was a marvel of a woman. Fiery, determined, smart. She dragged me to the capital and foiled three of my attempts to escape prison. Oh, and that body…"
Aithne cleared her throat. "Jolee. I'm still here."
Jolee looked at her, and his lips tightened. "Um, well. I eventually won her over. That was after I kidnapped her upon being broken out of the Ukatis prison, mind you. But, uh, that's another story entirely. At any rate, I wanted to train her in the Jedi ways. The Council refused my request, naturally. I was still a Padawan at the time. I was an experienced Padawan, surely, but not yet ready to be a knight, and surely not ready to train an apprentice of my own. Especially not one so old as my wife."
Aithne was beginning to see where this story was going. "You disobeyed, then. Like me."
Jolee nodded. "I did. I wasn't the first and I won't be the last. The problem with self-righteous folk," he observed, "is that they think they're more right than everyone else. I believed in her, and I trained her in secret. I ignored her willful nature. I loved her too much to see any fault in her. And she loved me too, I know she did."
Aithne knew this story wasn't headed anywhere happy. "What happened?" she asked.
"Exar Kun is what happened," Jolee spat bitterly. "Nayama was inspired by his promises of a new Golden Age. She wanted to join him. She came to me, begging me to throw off the decrepit trappings of the Jedi. She wanted me to join her."
Aithne put a tentative hand on the old man's shoulder. "Oh, Jolee. She fell?"
Jolee smiled sourly. "I hadn't thought so. Not right then. I was too proud to believe it of her. I had trained her myself. I loved her. I pleaded with her to reconsider, to think of all that she would be throwing away…to think of what she would become. She would have none of it. In frustration, she attacked me. She drew her lightsaber and attempted to strike me down. It was a scene being repeated everywhere throughout the galaxy. Pupil against master. In my case, it was a long and terrible battle, but I defeated her."
His face had set into hardened lines of misery Aithne had seen before on his face. But she had never yet discovered to what they pertained. "You killed her?" she guessed.
Jolee shook his head. "No. I had her at my mercy. Disarmed. Defenseless. But she looked up at me…and she knew I couldn't do it."
Aithne had been feeling a horrific sense of respect. Now she felt a kinship for the man, and a sadness that she knew was the merest echo of the regret and agony Jolee Bindo had lived with for years. "I couldn't have, either," she said softly.
"I should have," Jolee said in firm self-loathing. "Sometimes I convince myself otherwise, but it's no use. She had fallen to the Dark Side when she drew her saber on me. I let her go. To my shame, she went on to kill many Jedi during the war until she, herself was slain in the final battle. I grieved for her death, inevitable as it was, even as the Jedi Council put me on trial for my actions once the war was over."
"And?" Aithne asked.
Jolee laughed mirthlessly. "They found me innocent. I...I deserved every punishment and more for my actions, but they let me go. 'Mitigating circumstances' they said. I deserved compassion, they said. They said I had learned wisdom the hard way. For all I had done during the war, they wished to grant me full Jedi status at last. That…" he finished. "That was when the Jedi left me. That was when they failed me."
Aithne sat in silence. "They forgave you…" she said at last. "But…"
Jolee nodded. "I never forgave myself."
Aithne tilted her head. "And you still believe in love?" she asked.
Jolee looked at her. "I…yes. Does that surprise you?"
Aithne thought for a moment. "Not really," she said.
Jolee shook his head. "Ah, it was all long ago. Lost in the winds. Nobody cares about the thoughts of an old man anymore."
Aithne put her hand on his shoulder. "That's not true, Jolee. I care. And, if it helps, your own story has been far more instructive than any of the other stories you've told me. It- it may turn out to have very real application for me, and soon." She looked down. "I'm glad you told me."
Jolee looked at her, an odd, questioning look in his eyes. "You are, are you? Well, maybe you'll be able to sleep. Get out of here, anyway. I wish to be alone."
Aithne nodded. "I understand. Jolee, I'm sorry."
And she left. And though she felt sad, as Aithne made her way to the dormitory, she noticed that the cold knot in her gut had shrunk, just a bit.
The journey to the Star Forge ended up only taking ten days. Carth called her up to the cockpit at about noon on the tenth day when they came out of hyperspace.
Aithne looked out of the front window and gasped.
"I know," Carth agreed. "I've never seen anything like it."
Hundreds, maybe thousands of ships stretched out before them. Squadron upon squadron. The tiniest precision fighters to the most magnificent of starships. They buzzed black against the stars like hive insects.
The Station itself, the Star Forge they had been seeking for so long, was a giant needle of a thing orbiting a planet down below. As Aithne and Carth watched, a doorway opened. Ten new Sith ships flew out like grotesque eggs. Aithne bit her lip, wondering what the Jedi could have been thinking to send ten, now nine, galactic misfits up against that.
Carth stared a while. Then he said in a tight voice, "I'm transmitting these coordinates to Admiral Dadonna. Maybe a quick strike by the Republic can cripple the Sith fleet."
It'd take everything the poor Republic has left, Aithne thought privately, but all she said aloud was "Good thinking. In any case, we can't take on all that alone."
Carth nodded grimly, fiddling with the console for a moment. "Message is away. Now we can just wait for the Republic to show up. We should be safe here…" he started, but then the instruments started beeping.
"Fighters," Aithne growled. "You jinxed it." Pressing the button for the intercom she yelled, "Canderous! Get your Mandalorian butt up to your turret! We can't let the fighters report our position!"
She ran to her own turret, and as she situated herself behind her guns she heard Canderous scramble up behind her. She fired quickly and accurately, focusing with the Force to better feel where the fighters lurked. She had neither time nor troops to show mercy. She took out four of the fighters in thirty seconds.
"Aithne, you've been holding out on us," Canderous praised her.
Aithne scowled. "Those other times we were trying to escape," she snarled at him. "Now we're trying to survive."
Canderous polished off the last fighter. He and Aithne climbed down from the turrets, and the ship shook. "More ships?" Aithne demanded of Carth.
"Negative," he replied. "We've got problems, though. We've flown into some kind of disruptor field." He sounded very annoyed, and the most like a pilot that she'd ever heard him. "All my instruments are jammed! We've got massive overloads in all systems!" He made a small noise of disgust. "I'm picking up a single planet in this system. I'll try to put us down there. Hold on. This may be a rough landing."
It was a testament to Carth's skills as a pilot that no one threw up, and only Big Z fell over when they crashed on a white beach beside a clear blue sea. With all of the instruments jammed and all systems overloaded, Aithne was actually impressed. But the crew, who, besides Canderous, hadn't heard of the problems, was not.
They emerged into the living area after the crash looking shaken and generally irate.
"Whew," Mission said when Carth came out. "Talk about your rough landings, Carth! What's the matter? You're flying like you've been on an all night Tarisian ale drinking binge!"
"We flew into a disruptor field trying to get away from those fighters," Aithne said, unruffled. Mission, to her credit, looked slightly abashed.
"That disruptor field fried our stabilizers," Carth said, still in angry pilot mode. "We're lucky we made it down in one piece! But if we can't find the salvage to make repairs I won't even be able to get the Ebon Hawk airborne again!"
Juhani spoke up. "During our rather rapid descent I noticed the hulls of many crashed ships scattered across the landscape. Perhaps the parts you need can be found among their wreckage."
Canderous nodded. "Juhani's right. This planet's a technological graveyard. I saw dozens of downed ships out there. That disruptor field must have wiped them all out. But where could it be coming from?"
Carth made a noise of frustration, running his hands through his hair. "Even if we get the stabilizers fixed, we'll have to find and disable the source of that disruptor field before we can take off. Otherwise we'll just crash again."
Aithne frowned. "So will the entire Republic Fleet."
Carth looked at her in horror. "You're right," he said. "The Sith Fleet must have some type of protection against the disruptor field. We have to disable it or the Republic will be slaughtered!"
T3-M4 suddenly rolled into action. He beeped what seemed to be a command, and plugged into the Ebon Hawk. He whirred for a moment, then beeped at Mission.
Mission went to the living area console, and odd schematics began to appear. "Teethree's picking up massive power fluctuations on the ship's sensors," she reported. "They seem to be coming from some type of large stone structure to the East…it looks like some kind of ancient temple."
"Where do you think Bastila is?" Aithne asked the droid hopefully. Teethree beeped a sad negative. He hadn't picked up anything.
Carth walked up behind Aithne, and put a hand on her shoulder. "We haven't forgotten about her, Aithne," he assured her. "But we can't do her much good stuck down here. We have to help ourselves before we can help her."
Juhani frowned. "I only hope we are not too late," she said. "Bastila has been Malak's prisoner for a long time. If he can turn her to the Dark Side she will join him and the Sith will be invincible."
Aithne sighed. "Thank you, Juhani, for that sparklingly optimistic assessment of the odds. I really hope you're wrong. But…" she hesitated, then went ahead. "She's been silent in my head the entire voyage here."
"I fear Bastila has found the lure of the Dark Side difficult to resist," Jolee said. "She is strong in the Force, but she is also impulsive, willful, and proud. Like you, I might add." His eyes contained a dark worry.
Aithne shifted. "I've been there," she murmured. "I'm not going back." She looked up at Jolee. "I may be impulsive, willful, and proud, but I'm also for you. Everything I've done since I can remember has been to the good of the Republic."
Canderous laughed. "Except for blowing up their kolto harvester," he pointed out.
Carth grimaced. He hadn't been so amused when the details as to exactly what machine Aithne had blown up on Manaan had come out. Aithne waved it off, though. "With one minor exception." She looked from Jolee to Carth to Juhani steadily.
Juhani blinked.
Carth nodded in acknowledgment. "You know I believe you can do the right thing," he said.
Jolee smiled. "I'm glad to hear you both sound so sure." He focused on Aithne. "Now that you know your true identity, I was afraid you might slip back over to the Dark Side. If Bastila feels as you do, there may yet be hope for her."
Aithne bit her lip. "There is," she said, not quite believing it, especially if she was Jolee's assurance. "There has to be."
Carth squeezed her shoulder. "We won't be able to rescue her until we disable the disruptor field," he said. "She'll be with Malak, on the Star Forge, Dark Side or Light. The sooner we investigate that temple the better. We can probably find the wreckage of a downed ship along the way. If we're lucky we can salvage some stabilizers from it to get off this planet."
"I hope everything works out as smooth as you make it sound, Carth," Mission said skeptically.
"So do I, Mission," agreed Carth in a low voice. "So do I."
Aithne stood up straight then, taking charge. "Right then. Presumably the Republic's on their way, and we've got no time to waste. We'll split up into teams of three to scout the land out. Jedi, soldier, and techie. Our objective is double. We're looking for parts, and we're trying to figure out what's up with that temple."
She looked the crew over. Finally, she said, "Jolee, you'll go with Teethree and Aytchkay. Got it? HK-47, you are to obey Jolee Bindo just as you would obey me."
"Appeasement: Of course, master. Anything you say, master."
Aithne glared at him. "No appeasement. I want agreement."
"Resignation: Fine," he said. For Aytchkay, it was downright sulky.
Aithne hesitated. She wanted to take Carth with her, of course, but she knew that putting Canderous in a group with Juhani without her was a very stupid idea, tantamount to using dynamite as candles in a birthday cake.
"Carth, I want you to go with Juhani and Zaalbar." The Wookiee, Aithne had discovered on her journey, was nearly as good with machines and mines as his Twi'lek best friend, probably as a result of years spent with her on Taris. And if he didn't know what parts they needed to find, Carth would.
Carth frowned at her. Aithne's gaze darted from Canderous to Juhani. Carth nodded once. The Cathar and the Mandalorian rarely interacted at all, and when they did, it was always tempestuous at best, probably because the latter's people had nearly wiped out the former's.
"Mish, Canderous? You're with me."
"Keep your com-links on," Carth said as the three groups geared up and made for the door. "And watch for Sith. The whole fleet's above our heads somewhere. It wouldn't surprise me to find the animals down here."
The crew of the Ebon Hawk stepped out into the bright sunlight on some unknown world. The landscape was completely clear of any type of being, but Aithne felt that sentients dwelt here. The blue sky and the sun on the white sand was almost blinding. On impulse, Aithne took off a boot and placed her bare foot down on the beach. She flexed her toes, and yes, she remembered this place. Her head suddenly throbbed and once again she saw the black ship against a blue sky, this blue sky, with the red lightsaber poised to strike against it.
"I've been here before," she said.
"You remember?" Mission asked sharply.
"Not exactly. It's more like a feeling. I remember the sand, and the sky, and the sea. But I don't know what I did or why I came." Aithne answered. "I don't know now, either. But something important is going to happen here. Soon."
A/N: We're entering the final curve of the story. I must warn you that as this comes to a close, it goes AU. I suppose it might be considered AU already, what with the fem-Revan (though if Revan wasn't female, he totally should have been), but I'm talking more than that. We will be leaving the established Old Republic storyline because it doesn't make sense to me and I don't like it. So there. Fair warning. If you want to give up on me, I'm giving you your chance, just like Aithne gave the crew of the Ebon Hawk their chance to bail in this chapter. But unlike she did, I will beg you to stay. Please keep reading. And reviewing. Never forget reviewing!
May the Force Be With You,
LMSharp