Chapter XXXIV
Leading the charge against the Shadows and Mandalorians, Bao started to see faults in their tactics. When they had collapsed the tower, the Shadows had the perfect opportunity to break apart the Jedi formation. They could have scattered the Jedi into ones and twos and picked them off one by one. Instead, they had forced the squads closer and closer together, keeping them surrounded and clustered together. While that might spell doom for most armies, it only made the Jedi stronger. As a phalanx, they were able to bat aside blaster bolts, overwhelm enemy Shadows with multiple opponents, and use the Force to redirect rockets, flamethrowers, and whatever else the Mandalorians could offer. The failure was subtle, but the enemy commanders had erred grievously.
"We have incoming!" Emdee declared over comms as the Nomad's turbolaser opened fire on the nearest cluster of Mandalorian snipers. They vanished in a fiery explosion that forced Bao to shield his inner eyelids.
"Vreet-Deep!' Artoo warned, "Beet-dreet-beep!"
"Hold them off until we get there!" Bao ordered. He turned back to the Jedi formation.
"Use the Force to push them back!" he commanded, "Stagger them, then make for the Nomad!"
Bao turned towards the padawans at the rear of the formation. He sent feelings of inspiration through the Force, telling them to follow his lead.
Turning back to the battle, he extended his hand. The Shadows anticipated his action and threw up Force-shields around themselves and the Mandalorians. But they could not withstand the power of every Jedi in the formation. They were all thrown back by the force of a hurricane, wind howling as stone turned to dust around them.
"Follow my lead!" Bao instructed, running towards the Nomad, which opened fire upon the scattered Mandalorians and Shadows. Staying in formation, the Jedi group hurried towards their only chance of escape.
Suddenly, Bao felt a spike of danger in the Force, and realized what was coming.
"Shield yourselves!" he ordered as he felt the force of a typhoon impact him. Shielding himself in the Force, he was merely slowed instead of thrown back, with the other Jedi showing limited degrees of success. The Shadows had turned their tactics back on them.
"Ergh!" Lowbacca warned, his voice overlapping with the sound of clashing lightsabers, "Rrrruuuaaa…" His comm line was silenced by the hiss of a lightsaber slicing through flesh.
"She's too close!" Emdee warned, "The anti-intruder cannon's gone! Wait…Something's wrong!"
Bao turned to see the Nomad rise into the air, its engines still cold. Looking more closely, he saw the robed profile of a Shadow, their fingers outstretched, clutching the gunship in a giant, invisible fist. He realized with alarm that the Shadow was going to throw it overboard. Beside her lay Lowbacca, stirring weakly on the ground, his lightsaber cut in two.
Bao tried to run, to push through the massive telekinetic storm holding him in place, but he felt as if he were moving through a hurricane, he couldn't stand up to that many Force-users at once…
Suddenly, missiles and turbolaser blasts impacted the Shadows' position, sending duracrete, robed figures, and Mandalorians flying. Their trajectory was different, they didn't come from the Nomad.
The hurricane lessened until Bao no longer felt it pressing down upon him. With no time to lose, he sprinted towards the Nomad.
Any questions he held as to the identity of his savior were answered when he saw a red, arrow-shaped corvette flying through the sky. Kali'sto's ship.
"This is the independent corvette Skysprite," Orra Jen's voice issued from his comlink, "Glad to see we weren't too late to be useful."
"Your help is appreciated," Bao said, "Land on the surface just up ahead. I will hold off any stragglers."
"I copy," Orra Jen replied.
With no time to lose, Bao turned back towards the Jedi squads and yelled, "The corvette will land just up ahead! Get onboard and leave!" Then, trusting Akarta and the Jedi Knights to lead the group to safety, he moved to engage the Shadow about to destroy his best friend's ship.
For the first time in hundreds of years, Kali'sto walked within the Jedi Temple. Once, the ancient bastion of the order. The place where he had been raised, had lived until he had become a Padawan. Despite all he had endured and how much this place had changed, he couldn't help but feel sentimental; after all, he had returned to his childhood home.
Though he was alert and focused on finding Riko, he couldn't help but reflect on his memories of this place. His favorite spot had been on the rooftop above: a lone tree that had likely been removed centuries ago. There, he often liked to ruminate, looking out upon the frantic city ahead.
What Kali'sto remembered most about his years as a Jedi youngling was Master Yoda. Within these halls, Yoda had instructured and nurtured generations of children. Kali'sto remembered him as a kind, insightful being, with a sense of mischief and humor that manifested at unexpected times. Though he preached nonattachment and letting go of the fear of loss, Yoda had loved his students as if they were his own children.
Vie'vantae matured slowly, their formative years spanning decades, and thus Kali'sto had seen the children he lived alongside grow up faster than him, become padawans. The eldest was a Jedi Knight by the time that Kali'sto had finally become a Padawan himself, something which had always bothered him. He had shared a unique bond with Yoda over this, a mutual understanding of the gift – and curse – of a prolonged life. Time had always been something Kali'sto had in great supply: he had lived for three centuries, and might live a century more. He had been a student, soldier, traveler, spacer, merchant, farmer, gardener, historian, teacher, father, and much more. Most beings he knew: Rays, Dal, Tau, Míranda, Riko...their short lives made him cherish every moment he had been given.
He ceased his reflection. Now was no time for rumination. A battle was being waged, and Riko was coming.
He made his way down the hallway towards his son. He and Val were in a hurry, making their way towards the ancient shrines at the heart of the ancient Temple.
"Do you even know where we're going?" Val asked.
"I don't know our destination," Riko replied, "I'm just following Jade…"
Suddenly, the boy was halted in his tracks, and he looked down the hallway as Kali'sto approached.
"Riko!" Kali'sto called out. As Riko ran towards him, Kali'sto could see that he had been hurt; there was a bandage on his cheek, his lip was bleeding, and there was a subtle hint of pain in his movements. Kali'sto could sense he was drawing on the Force to keep himself moving.
Despite his injuries, surprise, joy, anxiety, and many more emotions were visible on the boy's face.
"Dad," he exclaimed, "You're here!"
"I came back to help you," Kali'sto replied.
Val glared at Kali'sto, tightening his grip on his concussion rifle.
Kali'sto chose his words carefully. There was so much he wanted to say, but he lacked the time to say it all. He had to be brief.
"Riko," he said, "I was wrong. I was wrong to try and stop you. Orra Jen is above, providing air support to your allies on Skysprite. I want to help you however I can."
He spoke with the same conviction Riko had held when he declared himself a Jedi. As certain as Riko was of his calling, Kali'sto was certain of his.
"I…" Riko smiled widely, stammering, "I'm glad you came."
Nothing made Kali'sto happier than to hear those words.
"Okay," Riko's smile faded, "We don't have any time to waste. Asharr is here, and she's trying to manipulate Jade. I can't tell where she is, she wasn't being held in the Sith prisons."
"I believe I might know," Kali'sto recalled, "There was a chamber in the heart of the old shrines in the Temple's core. It was a small prison meant to house Jedi who had fallen. It was one of the first structures the ancient Jedi built on the mountain, before the Temple was constructed over it."
"Just like the Sith prisons," Riko mused, "Only the opposite. Are you sure about this? This Temple is strong with the dark side, why would Tau hide Asharr in a place like this?"
"This temple bears a wound in the Force," Kali'sto replied, "But over time, with aid, wounds can be healed."
"Alright," Riko said, "We should get going, then."
As they resumed their sprint towards the shrines, Val stared at Kali'sto with the ferocity of a vizkwasp guarding their larvae.
"I'm watching you," he was serious, but there were indications of amusement and relief beneath his suspicious, intimidating exterior.
"I shall accept that," Kali'sto decided that it was best not to argue.
A few corridors away, elsewhere in the depths of the ruined palace, Niner tried to map his way through the corridors, but found them all to be the same: huge, empty, and grand. Wide corridors with massive pillars built against the walls. His comm link to Riko was mysteriously blocked, he couldn't raise him or Artoo or any of the others. Seeing as there was a forty-nine-percent likelihood that someone had discovered his comm line, his sensors scanned the corridors for signs of motion, fearful of an ambush. Without guidance, he attempted to find his way to the rooftop alone, following an incomplete and ever-expanding map of the vast palace his processors were assembling from the areas Niner had traversed…
"Nin…," Riko's voice was distorted by static, "Ca…ou hear us?"
"Riko!" Niner replied elatedly, "I is here!"
"I'm g…terference, Riko said, "I kno…re close. Whe…re you?"
Niner examined his self-constructed map, analyzing his location in relation to the core…
"I is nine corridors away from the roof," Niner explained, "I is transmitting my location to you now."
"Grea…," Riko replied, his voice becoming somewhat clearer, "We're coming to you."
"Meet us in the northwest atrium," Val instructed as a set of coordinates were transmitted into Niner's processor. The little droid eagerly continued down the corridor, racing to reunite with his friends.
He reached the atrium, another large, empty chamber filled with broken pillars and dust, probably cleared of all its valuables. Niner's photoreceptors sweeped the room, looking for any signs of his friends…
Something felt off about his readings: upon closer analysis, Niner realized they were distorted, somehow. His motion sensors registered a faint, electronic broadcast emanating from the room. There was an eighty-percent likelihood that a device was scrambling his sensors, probably used by someone hoping to ambush him…
The hiss of an igniting lightsaber halted him in his treads, and from behind a pillar leapt an armored warrior, who brandished a wrist-mounted lightsaber towards Niner's head.
Terrified, Niner quickly raised his arms upward, his photoreceptors visually scanning the warrior's armor.
It was Míranda. Riko's mother.
"Wait!" Niner pleaded, "I is Riko's brother!"
Míranda paused. Even beneath her armor, she appeared dumbfounded.
"His...brother?" Míranda asked.
"Riko is my older brother. He built me," Niner explained, terrified, "He – he is here."
Míranda's fist tightened as she held the saber to the little droid's throat. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
No one – save for Tau and Illa – knew about Riko, or Míranda's connection to him. And even if someone did find out, no one would ever come up with a lie that ridiculous. The little droid had to be telling the truth.
"Did…Riko really build you, droid?" she asked.
"He did," the droid replied, "I just said to you. My name is Niner."
Míranda couldn't help but focus on the wide, round eyes that gave the droid's expression the wonder and curiosity of an innocent. They were a vivid green, the same vivid green as her own. And Riko's.
She heard the sound of footsteps, as a familiar voice called out, "Leave the little hodgepodge alone!"
Míranda gasped as Val slowly advanced down the corridor. She saw fury in his stance as he trained his blaster rifle on her, a bleeding wound painted on the left side of his helmet, a yellow T-visor resembling the glare of a demon as he prepared to open fire.
On the surface, Míranda had changed very little since the last time Val had seen her. She wore very similar armor – armor she had forged herself using beskar salvaged from dozens of graves. Her lightsaber was different – wrist-mounted and black-bladed instead of the ornamental one Riko carried.
The differences were subtle. Beneath her armor, her clothing was more robe-like, not unlike the robes of a Jedi. Her black lightsaber was mounted on her wrist, suggesting it would be used more aggressively than a normal saber. Val could see weariness in her movements, in the way she carried herself. Still, beneath all that, he still saw many traces of the creative, idealistic young woman he had once fallen in love with.
He had to shunt that aside if Míranda was truly against them, now. And if she threatened Niner, Val wouldn't hesitate to fire.
Frozen in shock and doubt, Míranda watched as two additional beings joined Val, both readied for battle. Kali'sto, his shoulders slumped, his eyes somber as he brandished his quarterstaff. And beside him…
A scrawny teenage boy wearing goggles on his head, his face badly bruised, a fiery orange lightsaber in his hand mirroring the determination in his stance. He shared her tan-brown skin, jet-black hair, and vivid green eyes.
Míranda gasped, stepping back. A million emotions warred within her as she set eyes upon her son, on Riko, for the first time in so long.
Riko wasn't sure how to react. He recognized the shape of her visor, and quickly inferred from her robes and lightsaber who this woman really was.
Míranda Nai-Jal. His mother.
His shock turned to determination as his mind processed the fact that she was threatening Niner. He held his saber up and closed his eyes, letting a mental diagram of the inner workings of Míranda's wrist-mounted lightsaber fill his mind, ready to destroy her weapon at a second's notice. He didn't care if she was his mom: if she tried to hurt Niner, Riko would not hesitate to fight her.
Suddenly, Míranda lowered her lightsaber, deactivating it. She turned towards Niner, whose fearful trembling gave way to wide-eyed curiosity.
"Go, droid," Míranda commanded, "Back to your brother."
As Niner hurried back to the group and tightly hugged Riko's waist, Val's grip tightened on his rifle. Riko kept his lightsaber ignited, yet a trickle of hope started to break through his guard.
"Separated from your troops, Mand'alor?" Val asked, "What are you doing here alone?"
"I suspected a saboteur," Míranda's voice was a touch older and wearier, but still recognizable as that of the woman in the old holorecording, "I've made a horrible mistake. Tau isn't making the galaxy a better place. He's only causing the next war. And I dragged my people into it."
Riko froze. He wasn't sure what to make of this. He didn't know whether to be happy that his mom was seeing reason or wary of another deception.
"You is a good person now?" Niner asked.
"I'd like to help you defeat Tau," Míranda replied, "But I can't just change sides on a whim. My clan will rebel against me, Tau might even destroy what's left of Mandalore. I need time to prepare before I can openly defect."
After a moment, Kali'sto lowered his staff and smiled.
"I am glad you have come back to us, Míranda," he said warmly.
Riko felt...he wasn't sure how he felt.
"How can we trust you?" Val asked.
"I don't know," Míranda shrugged, "I never wanted it to come to this. I've just been trying to unite my people and the Outer Rim for the last fourteen years, eight months, and five days."
With a jolt, Riko realized she had been counting the days since she had given him away.
"I believed in Tau's words," Míranda's voice grew heavy, "About balance, about peace. But this isn't balance. And here I am, threatening my son's little brother."
Riko paused, letting her words sink in.
"I trust you," he extinguished his lightsaber.
Val said nothing, but his grip on his rifle eased just slightly, though he kept the barrel trained on her.
As Riko watched, Míranda moved her hands to her helmet. He heard a faint click as the helmet depressurized, allowing her to remove it from her head. Her dark hair was short, though Riko noticed one single lock — near her temple — woven into a thin braid. Her face was pale, with dark circles underneath her faded green eyes. But still, it was the same face he had seen in the holo.
She smiled––if for a brief moment. Riko did feel a faint hint of pride, and couldn't help but smile back.
"Shoot me across the breastplate, graze my arm," Míranda instructed as she placed her helmet back on, "We need this to look convincing."
Val nodded. Riko solemnly reactivated his lightsaber, as did Kali'sto. Niner tilted his head in confusion.
"What is we doing…?"
"Get back, Niner!" Riko yelled, shielding the droid with his arm.
Val opened fire and Míranda cried out as the blaster bolts impacted her left side, leaving black scorch marks across her breastplate and charred, smoking wounds across her arm and shoulder. Stepping back, she slowly retrieved a grenade from her belt.
"Behind me!" Kali'sto commanded. Riko grabbed Niner's arm and ran as Míranda threw the grenade. The ancient master used the Force to hold the explosive in the air and keep it back as it unleashed a fireball, the force of which caused Riko to stumble as a wave of heat left him uncomfortably warm.
As the flames dissipated, Riko turned back towards the ruined corridor, looking at both Kali'sto and Val. No one had been physically hurt, but Míranda was gone.
"Come on, we have to find Jade," Riko decided to reflect on this later. They had suffered enough delays already.
Temple Rooftop
As he rushed towards his opponent, Bao sensed alarm and shock from her.
She turned her gaze back towards the Nomad and gestured her arm, preparing to hurtle it away and deprive the Jedi rebellion of at least one reliable ship. Bao knew she would kill Lowbacca next.
He could not allow that to happen. Extending his hand, he grabbed the Nomad in the Force, refusing to let it budge a micrometer. She struggled to break his hold on the Nomad, her grip tightening upon the vessel. Its hull began to buckle as invisible pressures began to crush dents into the metal.
Then, the Shadow let go. As Bao gently set the Nomad down upon the ground, he sensed frustration from his opponent, eclipsed by anger and grief. Fresh anger and grief.
The Shadow turned her gaze towards the weakly-stirring Lowbacca, her hand moving towards her lightsaber. Letting the Force flow through him, Bao prepared to rush in and block her blade if she attempted to kill him.
She shook her head and left Lowbacca's body where it lay. Instead, she walked towards a relieved and slightly confused Bao, lowering her hood and revealing her face.
Yanas Illa had sharp eyes, a round face, and dark hair tied back elaborately with beautiful beads. Many lines adorned her face, though none were more prominent than the furrows of her brow.
She and Bao circled each other, silently analyzing every facet of the other. Her gaze turned towards the lightsaber in Bao's hands.
"That lightsaber belonged to my former padawan," her voice was sharp, angry, yet sad.
"K'yan Makarr," Bao held the weapon in a Form V stance, "I am sorry I had to take his life. K'yan was a good Jedi."
He smelled a hint of anger from Illa, but it was tempered by regret.
"He was," she said softly.
She reached for her belt and grabbed her saberstaff, igniting it. She had replaced the crystals since their encounter on Nyr'itz: the identical green blades were gone, now a deep blue blade protruded from one end of the hilt and a crimson red from the other.
She held her saberstaff defensively, waiting for Bao to make the first move.
In the heart of the ancient Temple, beneath layers and layers built over millennia, lay a complex of ancient meditation chambers, shrines, and chapels, buried within the massive ziggurat. They had been built to study and commune with the Force nexus that permeated through the mountain over which the Temple had been constructed. The energies of the vergence somehow felt fiery, yet ice-cold, the shrines now nigh but tombs, monuments to an era long past.
The muted lighting of the shrines was cast in a fiery incandescence by the blade of Riko's lightsaber while the shamrock-hued T-visor of Val's helmet and Niner's circular, bright green eyes stood out like beacons. Riko was reminded of both the Jedi Temple on Atarashi'ie and the ruined temple on Nyr'itz: ancient stone halls and chapels that almost seemed to naturally grow out of the mountain they were built upon.
Leading the way, Riko let the Force guide him as they followed Jade's trail, sensing faint impressions of her throughout the ruins as they traveled deeper and deeper…
"Kid," Val whispered, grabbing his shoulder, "Stop!"
"Get off, Val!" Riko yelled, "You're slowing us down!"
"We're not alone, Riko," Kali'sto said in the same hushed tone.
This time, Riko reluctantly followed their instructions.
"More bad guys?" Niner whispered.
"There's impressions in the dust," Val explained, his yellow T-visor examining the ground, "Fresh footprints. Not Jade's."
With his hand, Kali'sto gestured ahead, and then behind him. Riko realized he was referring to the two archways that surrounded this particular chamber.
Val nodded, whispering, "It could be an ambush."
Riko nodded, his grip tightening on his lightsaber as his heart beat loud in his ears. As much as he needed to hurry after Jade, he realized he'd run to his own grave unless he proceeded carefully.
He calmed himself and stilled his breathing, examining the chamber for signs of a possible attacker. As he surveyed the caverns for any sign of their ambusher, Riko couldn't help but think of Kali'sto's mantra for finding echoes in the Force.
Make your mind into a cave, so you can hear the echoes.
Here he was, in a cave, listening for any sign of his quarry.
Riko extinguished his lightsaber.
"Kid, what are you doing?" Val whispered.
"Make your mind into a cave," he replied softly, "When all is quiet, one thinks it is safe."
Kali'sto nodded in understanding. Val seemed to muse over Riko's words, before nodding as well once he evidently pieced Riko's plan together.
"Be quiet?" No sound came from Niner's vocabulator, his voice only issuing from Riko's earpiece. Riko nodded.
Closing his eyes, Riko peered outward…and listened, waiting for the slightest sound, the slightest hint of approach.
Without their movement, almost all was quiet here, the only sound was Riko's own breathing. He sensed nothing. He realized his plan was foolhardy, he was only human, he couldn't possibly hear something that acutely.
No. He did hear something. A faint fracturing sound.
Stone cracking.
He looked up to see dust dropping from the ceiling as cracks formed in the stone. The chamber was going to collapse!
Pieces of the ceiling began to break off and streak towards the ground with the force of missiles.
Kali'sto extended his hand, directing them away from the trio where they harmlessly impacted the floor.
"I sense Asharr!" Kali'sto yelled, "One of her victims is here!"
"I see him!" Val opened fire towards a pillar to the right, where Riko could make out the silhouette of a tall, broad-shouldered humanoid illuminated by Val's blasterfire. The figure dispelled the darkness as he ignited a white-bladed lightsaber to block Val's blaster bolts, revealing himself to be a Cerean man with dark eyes, an elongated cranium, a chin covered in stubble, and sallow features that made him look like a corpse in his blade's bright incandescence.
"Harkaq?" Riko could barely believe it. Harkaq Oqeiro had once been an Imperial Knight, one of Thalia Fel's closest friends...and one of Asharr's victims. He had accompanied Riko and the others on the mission to Taris, and Riko had watched as Asharr's spell took hold and horrifically turned the poor, loyal knight into a hollow vessel of Asharr's will, an agent of the Dark Side.
"He's bringing down the shrine!" Riko said as he ignited his own lightsaber, "Stay behind us, Niner. Let's try to take him alive!"
He charged towards Harkaq, weaving through ancient pieces of duracrete which impacted the ground with the force of bullets, tremors rippling through the ground and almost staggering Riko's stride.
Deflecting Val's blasterfire with one hand, the possessed Harkaq extended his hand as bolts of energy began to crackle at his fingertips. Riko quickly raised his saber as lightning flew from Harkaq's fingertips. A storm of deadly energy impacted the fiery orange blade, staggering Riko back as he struggled to hold his ground. He thought back to Bao's lessons on the nature of Form V and tried to draw strength from his example, planting his feet and firmly rooting himself into the ground, refusing to give way.
Harkaq lunged, only letting the lightning storm abate at the last second as he swung his saber in a heavy strike. His blade impacted Riko's with the force of a sledgehammer, knocking the boy to the ground.
As soon as Riko hit the floor, Harkaq stabbed his saber downward towards the boy's stomach. Riko's fiery blade clashed against Harkaq's, deflecting the shaft of white light into the ground to the boy's left. As Riko prepared to parry again, the possessed Imperial Knight raised his saber for another strike.
However, a third lightsaber ignited with a warm hiss, a vivid gold blade which interposed itself between Harkaq's white blade and Riko's body. The boy's initial confusion faded as he realized that the blade protruded from the tip of the staff wielded by Kali'sto, his eyes brimming with silent fury.
"Step away from my son, you monster," the soft tone of his voice barely contained his rage.
Kali'sto forced Harkaq's blade away. As Val helped Riko move back to his feet, Kali'sto met the possessed Cerean's heavy strikes with an impenetrable shield of golden light, using both the blade and blunt end of his lightspear to wear down his opponent slowly. Harkaq attempted to stab Kali'sto in the chest, only for the old wanderer to redirect Harkaq's blade with his own before whacking Harkaq in the stomach. Harkaq unleashed a flurry of swings and strikes, Kali'sto left his arm, knee, and hand bruised. The Cerean dropped his lightsaber, staggering back.
Another lightning storm materialized from Harkaq's fingertips, lighting up the air as it shot towards Kali'sto. Kali'sto raised his own hand, and the lightning spread across an invisible shield of energy that materialized in front of him. Riko's nostrils were filled with the smell of ozone as Kali'sto gritted his teeth, lightning crackling all across the room, singing walls and the floor around the two.
"I have him!" Kali'sto grunted, "Go!"
Riko shook his head. He turned towards Val, who was adjusting his rifle to stun. He then raised his blaster and opened fire on Harkaq.
With all of his attention directed towards Kali'sto, Harkaq was caught off guard and fell to the floor. The lightning storm dissipated as he collapsed, grunting with pain.
"No!" Harkaq's voice bellowed with the undertones of another, "You will not reach her!"
He extended his hand, unleashing a wave of energy which staggered Riko and Val back, only Kali'sto was able to maintain his footing. The possessed Imperial Knight then raised his hands, and the ancient shrine began to crumble around them.
"Go!" Riko yelled as he instinctively started sprinting towards the fracturing archway ahead. He had to get to Jade.
Suddenly, the ground gave way beneath his feet, and he tripped. Behind him, a fissure opened up in the floor, chunks of rock and dirt collapsing into a rapidly-forming abyss, separating him from Kali'sto, Val, and Harkaq.
Riko refused to give up. Scrambling to his feet, he ran faster than ever before. The world seemed to move by in a blur as he sprinted towards the crumbling archway, as the entrance began to cave in.
Soon, he passed the crumbling archway and collapsed to his knees, his muscles strained and aching, his breathing heavy. He turned back to see the chapel collapse into a mound of rubble.
Riko's first instinct was to activate his comm channel.
"Val!" he yelled, "Niner, Dad! Are you okay?"
"We're alright, kid," Val replied. Looking through the Force, the boy sensed both of his fathers on the other side of the collapsed chamber.
"We is all here," Niner added, dispelling Riko's panic.
Musing on the situation at hand, he was reminded of Nyr'itz, and wondered if his experience there had somehow been a premonition for this, some kind of warning from the Force.
"I can't find Harkaq," Kali'sto reported, "I can shift through the rock with time. Wait for us…"
"There's no time!" Riko replied, "Get back to the Nomad! I'll get Jade!"
"Riko, wait!" Riko tuned out Kali'sto's words and sprinted at full speed into the darkness.
There were several massive indentations in this part of the catacombs that could only be windows, once meant to fill this region with vast quantities of natural light, now blocked out by layers upon layers of structure, leaving the room in shadow.
Jade kept her lightsabers alit as she reached a pair of massive doors. Raising her white saber, she could make out its surface, dotted with ancient inscriptions and glyphs. The Force felt different here: it felt more soothing, warmer. However, there was something else, marring the light of these shrines like a rusty anchor dropped in a river.
Every fiber of Jade's being knew that Asharr awaited on the other side.
Taking a deep breath, Jade touched the tip of her blade against the door's surface, the blade burning against the stone with a hiss. She attempted to press her saber further in, but the surface resisted. Moving her weapon away, Jade saw no sign that the door had ever been touched by a lightsaber.
Examining the stone closely, Jade felt that Riko would have a field day trying to understand the mechanisms of this door.
A wave of guilt crashed through her determination. For a moment, she wondered if she had made the right decision to leave him behind and come here alone.
Echoes of the unnatural horror and pain Asharr had inflicted as she had dived into Jade's mind flashed through her memory.
No. Jade had to do this without him. She couldn't let that happen to Riko, or anyone else ever again.
Her mind clearer and more focused, Jade closed her eyes, tapping into the currents of the Force. This place felt…different.
This structure must have been designed to trap darksiders. Just as the Sith Prisons were designed to turn Jedi captives to the Dark Side, the ancient Jedi must have built this place for a similar purpose: to redeem those lost to the dark. Even though the Temple was tainted by the Sith, this small monastery in the heart of the gargantuan structure had survived all these millennia. A light in the dark.
The ancient mechanisms of the door began to activate, the doors beginning to shift and move in response to her commands. Jade's heart hammered as stone blocks retracted into the wall, forming an aperture which gave way to a large chamber.
Her sabers held aloft, Jade entered the shrine, slowly taking in the ancient structure. The chamber was smooth and circular, built out of raw stone, almost resembling some ancient castle. Around the walls of this place lay a mural, coated with dust. Jade couldn't quite identify its details, as they had faded from neglect. In the center of the floor, a motionless figure sat, meditating within the heart of the chamber.
As Jade approached her, the glow of her sabers illuminating more of the room, she saw that the figure was clad in some kind of robe, its arms and legs chained by shackles, stumps in place of its hands, its features hidden in shadow. It remained still as Jade continued to move closer and closer, the green and white glow illuminating more and more of its form...
Suddenly, the being raised its head towards Jade, who gasped as she saw her tormentor's face for the first time.
Asharr's face might have once been beautiful, but it was instead pale and gaunt, her skin drawn upon her skull and her features distorted by fading burn scars, her scalp dotted by clumps of short black hair. A strange, sleek device wrapped around her throat; Jade wondered if Asharr's larynx had been damaged, only to decide she didn't want to know. Only the eyes––as red as those of her old mask's––were still full of life. Jade's breathing grew rattled as the eyes lit up with joy.
I have waited for you, Asharr's voice whispered in Jade's mind, far more intimate and real than it would ever have sounded from her vocal cords,
Welcome, Jade Skywalker.
"You're a monster," Jade snarled, "And now, I've come to end you."
This place is remarkable, isn't it? Asharr mused, The ancient Jedi built it to imprison those who had fallen. Over the millennia, this temple has grown so large that even they have forgotten it. What other wisdom lies lost in the heart of this gargantuan palace?
Attempting to regulate her breathing, Jade began to circle her prey in the hope of projecting an image of strength and intimidation.
Even chained, Asharr showed no sign of fear, instead simply gazing upon her adversary. Her body began to shake with what Jade assumed was laughter, but no sound uttered from her.
Jade saw her opening. She could swing her sabers, right now, and end Asharr immediately. A strong part of her was tempted to do so.
But she didn't, she couldn't. Not yet.
You have questions, Asharr observed, Many questions. You seek to understand.
Jade hesitated before answering.
"Yes," she hated the words as soon as they came out of her mouth, "I want to understand. What are you? Why did you do this?"
Asharr's red eyes gazed upon Jade with smug satisfaction.
I know what it means to have what you cherish taken from you, Asharr's voice grew more sympathetic, I learned that one must be strong to survive. I once merely desired vengeance, but then I learned the truth.
"What truth?" Jade was wary of Asharr's words, but the emotions beneath them felt…genuine.
The Force is balance, Jade. Your father speaks of the word, but he does not understand what it means. The Jedi believe that balance means eternal peace, to create a stagnant, unchanging galaxy. That is not the nature of life, nor the Force. Balance is conflict, within and without. Conflict burns away decay and rot and allows the strong to flourish, to claim what is theirs by right.
"Like someone's mind?" Jade could barely stop herself from screaming her words, "You have the right to enslave their being?"
We took from you, Asharr's laughter bellowed around in Jade's head, Your father and I. And there was nothing you could ever do to stop us. For you are weak.
"NO!" Jade raised her saber and swung, only for her arms to stiffen right as the blade began to cut through Asharr's head. For one frozen moment which felt like an eternity, the only sounds were Jade's loud heartbeat and the hiss of the lightsaber as it caressed the skin of Asharr's scalp. Asharr would be dead if Jade could just tilt her arms one inch lower.
There is no need for such crude devices.
Suddenly, Jade's thumb began to inch towards the switch upon her lightsaber. Jade's eyes widened as her hand acted of its own accord, deactivating and releasing the saber. As the weapon dropped to the floor, its emerald glow faded.
Thank you for setting me free, Jade, Asharr declared, Now bow before me, slave.
Blinded, Jade struggled as her body prostrated itself, resisting her commands as she moved to the floor, kneeling to her tormentor. The memory of Asharr's violation echoed in her mind once again, the pain flooding her consciousness as she felt powerless to resist.
"No!" Jade yelled, letting the storm of all her suppressed emotion rage through her once again, empowering her. Jade suddenly saw Asharr's wraithlike visage in the Force, her shadowy figure and her lined mask with its glowing red eyes.
With great effort and will, Jade reached out, clutching Asharr in a giant, invisible fist. Asharr's sense of triumph faded, and she began to writhe in Jade's grip.
Empowered by the conflagration within her, Jade fought against Asharr's mental intrusion, mentally chaining the dark being. In a cruel twist, she started to weave her way into Asharr's mind––her soul––just as Asharr had with hers.
Asharr began to scream: a mechanical screech that reverberated through the device on her throat and in Jade's mind, deafening to both the physical and mental.
Jade began to rise back to her feet, looking down upon her helpless prey, any power Asharr still held carved away. Raising her hand, Jade forced Asharr to look up at her, painfully craning her prisoner's neck to stare into Jade's eyes.
Jade extended her hand, and her lightsaber flew back into her hands. The green blade reignited, casting a ghoulish glow upon her victim's wide-eyed features. Asharr looked like the demon she was. As Jade looked into her red eyes, she saw fear and awe.
At that moment, Jade knew that she would never be powerless again.
She raised the lightsaber and thrust it into Asharr's throat. The emerald blade pierced the underside of her chin and emerged through the back of her neck. Angling her blade downward, she tore it through Asharr's body, leaving a deep cut that ran the height of her torso. Asharr fell to the floor, twitching and gasping in an attempt to draw breath that would never come again.
You are strong, Jade, she whispered, I am glad I could help you find that strength.
Jade's desire wasn't satiated. She reached out and delved deeper into Asharr's mind. Even if her powers still worked, Jade doubted that she'd be able to heal Asharr under any circumstances, she would be dead in moments. Jade had to hurry if she wanted any answers. She only had one question.
Who are you, Asharr?
Suddenly, Jade felt an outpour of emotion, finding betrayal, pain, anger, hatred, a festering wound in her psyche that never healed…all directed at one man: Tau Skywalker.
Disgusted at the slight feeling of kinship she felt for Asharr, Jade delved further. She saw a shadowy figure in the darkness of Asharr's imagination, a being of great power who would change the galaxy and avenge all the pain wrought upon her at Tau's hand. A being who would shatter his dreams of balance and restore the natural order between the Light and the Dark. Asharr had originally thought it would be her, but the will of the Force determined that it would be another. A chosen one, who would bring about the return of the Sith…
Jade staggered back, the triumphant cries of Asharr's dying mind rippling through her own as the dark lady faded into the Force, leaving only a withered husk behind.
In that moment, Jade finally understood the true reason Asharr had brought her here.
She fell to her knees and dropped her lightsaber, the blade shorting out as it hit the floor, leaving her in darkness.
"Jade!" Riko screamed as waves of anger, hate, shock, and then guilt crashed into him. As he leaned on a nearby wall for support, he knew something terrible had happened, he was too late to stop Jade from reaching Asharr. He had to find her, quickly.
He resumed his sprint with a renewed intensity as he ran across long-buried cliffs and bridges towards another stone chapel with an open aperture. Entering the small chamber, Riko saw a body on the floor. And beside it, sitting in contemplation…
"Jade!" Riko ran towards her. Initially, she said nothing.
"Jade, are you okay?"
"Riko," Jade whispered solemnly. Riko stopped in his tracks. Something felt off about her. Riko couldn't quite place it, until he glanced at her eyes. For a second, he thought they were yellow…
Riko blinked. Jade's eyes were the same beautiful sapphire hue they had always been. Though his mind told him they could have just been a trick of the light, Riko wasn't reassured.
"I…" Jade tried to explain, "I killed her. Asharr."
Riko didn't know what to say.
"She wanted me to do it," Jade added, "And I played right into her hands. I saw…my future. I saw a Sith."
Jade's words horrified Riko, rooting him to the spot. He moved to his knees and looked her in the eye.
"That's never going to happen," Riko reassured her, "I know you. You're not a Sith, and you never will be. I promise."
Jade embraced him in a tight hug.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I should have told you. I should have thought about this, what was happening to me."
"It's okay," Riko replied, "I'm sorry I wasn't here for you. Let's get out of here."
Temple Rooftop
The blades of Bao-Sklar Pierce and Yanas Illa clashed with fierce precision, every move a check made with blinding speed. A flurry of red and blue light against aqua. Then they broke off, circling one another, analyzing each others' tactics, before leaping into the fray again.
Yanas Illa fought with calculation, motivated by what she believed to be righteous fury. Bao met her strikes with regret, acceptance, and resolve. She was quick and methodical, pushing Bao's technique to the limit with her speed, dexterity, and strength, while Bao in turn provided those same qualities in different combinations.
They broke off. She extended her hand, and a storm of lightning emanated from her fingertips. Bao raised his lightsaber and met the bolts, letting the crackling energy arc across the aqua light of his blade.
"Everyone's aboard, we're ready to go!" Orra Jen's voice rang over comms.
"Go now!" Bao ordered, "I'll follow in the Nomad!"
Even if he or any of his crewmates didn't survive, the Jedi Order at large had to know what transpired here.
"Very well," Orra Jen agreed, "Hopefully, I'll see you soon. May the Force be with you."
Another flurry of bladework ensued. This time, Illa augmented her attack with a swarm of telekinetically guided rocks, dust, and – cutting most deeply – transparisteel shards. Bao used the Force to halt the projectiles in their path, scattering them apart. He was infuriated by the reminder of when Tau had used the same tactic to maul him. He wondered if that was Illa's intention.
He shunted aside his anger and calculated his options, carefully noting every single one of Illa's strikes. She was precise, methodical. Form II would not defeat her.
So Bao countered Illa's blows with a solid defense, making no move to attack her. Instead, he simply parried and deflected, shunting aside most of her attacks while meeting her more precise blows with strength. Illa couldn't pierce his defense.
So she resorted to aggression, lunging and thrusting her blade quickly and unexpectedly. Bao frantically struggled to meet her strikes, even sustaining burning scratches and cuts on his arms. She had pushed his defense to the breaking point...and left herself vulnerable to the Force.
Bao reached out and let the Force flow through him, channeled through his body and extended through his fingertips, unleashing a blast that staggered Illa back. He charged. Illa frantically parried his initial attacks, until one solid, decisive blow determined the victor.
Yanas Illa raised her saberstaff, only to pause as she realized that the weapon had been sliced in two. It was only a second longer before she saw the deep gash Bao had cut into her chest, staring at it silently. He watched her carefully, wary of any final, desperate attack she might bring to bear.
She did not. Instead, she simply fell to the ground. Bao sensed shock, anger, yet a hint of admiration as she regarded her opponent, the one who killed her former padawan and now ended her life…
Bao extinguished his lightsaber.
"There is still time to save your life," he extended his hand, "I offer you mercy, Master Illa."
Illa seemed surprised at his offer. She was silent for a moment, before offering a slight smile.
"There is no death…" she whispered, closing her eyes, "There is only…"
She exhaled her last breath. A part of Bao silently lamented the death of his opponent.
A rush of air bellowed his clothes and the air boomed with the roar of igniting engines. Bao looked up to see Skysprite rising into the atmosphere. Its engines fired, and the vessel departed.
"Vreet-Bwoot-Deet," Artoo reported. The Wild Nomad's engines were fixed. All that was left to do was wait for Riko and the others to return.
As he returned to the Nomad, Bao's gaze turned towards the rest of the ruined terraces and balconies, eying the bodies strewn across it. Many wore the cloaks and ramshackle beskar'gam of the Mandalorians or even the red armor of the Imperial Knights. But the majority were clad in robes and tunics, be they brown or black and white. Jedi.
Turning away from the battlefield, Bao closed his eyes as he silently lamented every casualty, every Jedi that had died this night.
"The battle is over," he declared solemnly, "It is time we leave this cursed place."
Gradually, Riko and Jade navigated their way out of the darkness of the ancient shrines, running back into the haunting ornateness of the outer corridors. As they made their way back to the rooftop, Riko explained the situation.
"Kali'sto's ship has evacuated most of the Jedi," he was saying, "Bao and the others are waiting for us. We don't have long."
Jade said nothing. Instead, she silently reflected upon all she had done. She had endangered their mission by keeping the knowledge of Asharr's survival to herself. She had exposed them before they were ready, jeopardizing their efforts. She had deserted the group and left the Nomad vulnerable. And she had given into her pain, her hatred, and let it consume her until nothing was left. She had almost fallen to the dark side.
Bao had been right. Jade wasn't ready. She had to clear her head, make sure it wouldn't happen again.
As she settled on her new decision, she sensed growing concern from Riko.
"Jade," Riko said softly, "It's okay. It's okay."
Jade began to feel tears well up in her eyes, sniffing.
"Riko," she declared, "I...I can't go back. Not yet."
"What?" Riko replied, shocked, "Jade, what are you saying?"
"I have to go," Jade repeated, "I have to meditate on this, clear my head, and figure it out for myself."
"Jade," Riko replied, "Tau will find you, the Shadows will hunt you down. You can't just be out there all alone…."
"I know the risks," Jade insisted, "But I can't stay here. I can't keep fighting, and I need to get away from everything else and just…think."
"Jade, " Riko said slowly, and calmly, "You can't just turn away from everybody, you won't get better by going off by yourself…"
"I don't know who I am anymore, Riko!" Jade raised her voice.
Riko's eyes widened. Jade took a deep breath before she resumed. She reached out and gently brushed against Riko's mind. She opened herself completely, refusing to allow any more secrets between them.
I've been letting others run my life for too long, Jade explained, My mom, my dad, Bao, Asharr. Everyone expected me to be a princess, a Jedi… I just ran away from a battle where I was needed, and I fell to the dark side for a moment. I'm lost, Riko, I've become a liability.
Are you sure you need to leave everyone? Riko asked, Go out there all by yourself?
I need to figure myself out, Jade replied, And to do that...I need to get away from everyone. I need to figure things out for myself.
Riko silently contemplated Jade's words. She could practically see the gears turning in his head as his expression ran the gamut of indecision, dread, doubt... He was considering something, something he wasn't happy about.
I could go with you, Riko finally declared, You don't have to do this alone.
Riko, Jade protested, You're a Jedi. Your friends need you. Your family needs you. And you need them. Please, don't throw that all away for me.
I don't want to go, Jade, Riko took her hands in his own, But I couldn't live with myself if you got hurt again.
For one moment, Jade considered Riko's words, entertaining the idea that, maybe, they could flee into the galaxy together…
I can't, Jade realized, It means everything that you want to come with me, but I can't drag you away. You're where you need to be. I need to do this on my own, I need to find out who I am on my own.
Jade caressed her hand against Riko's cheek. Tears running down his face mirrored her own as he understood. She sensed he didn't want her to do this, but he was letting her make this choice for herself.
Promise me you'll be okay, Riko pleaded, Please.
We'll find each other again, Jade assured him, When we're ready.
She leaned in and kissed him. For one blissful moment, they allowed themselves to forget. The ruined temple, the smoke and fire, the dark days that lay ahead for both of them...all of it was gone for a moment so Jade and Riko could spend these last few seconds together, before the end.
When Riko returned to the Temple's rooftop, he did so alone, forcing himself to take every single step forward. He felt like his emotions had shut down, that he was running on autopilot.
Looking directly ahead, he saw the Wild Nomad, its engines on standby, its turbolaser aimed at the sky, presumably for incoming fighters.
He ran towards the ship, trying to regulate his breathing as his eyes and sinuses were irritated by clouds of dust and the smell of smoke. As he approached the boarding ramp, he saw Val and Kali'sto waiting within the gunship.
"Kid!" Val extended his hand and grabbed Riko's, pulling him onboard.
"Are you alright, Riko?" Bao asked, joining the group, "Where is Jade?"
Riko wasn't sure how to phrase his answer.
"Wait," Val said, "Is...is she…?"
"No," Riko forced the words out, "But she doesn't want to come with us."
"She found Asharr," Bao concluded somberly.
"Yes," Riko nodded, "But she hasn't fallen to the Dark Side. She killed Asharr, but she realized what she was doing, and decided to go off on her own."
Bao processed Riko's words in grim silence.
"Come on," Val placed his hand on Riko's shoulder, "We still have a minute, let's go get her."
"We are out of time," Kali'sto replied from the cockpit, "We have incoming craft. Fighter and shuttles, too many to fight our way through."
"I can sense them," Bao added, "Tau is coming. We have to leave now."
"Come on," Val replied, "We can find her in that time, right? Let's find her."
"Activate your telepathy thingy, Riko!" Niner encouraged, "We can do this!"
"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do, Niner," Kali'sto said, joining the group, "We can't convince Jade to come back. She'll have to make that choice herself."
"We'll watch for her," Bao added, "When Jade wants to be found, we'll be there. Right now, we're out of time. We must get out of here."
For several seconds, Val hesitated, his visor glancing between Bao and Riko. Eventually, he moved to his feet and rushed to the cockpit. Bao followed suit, leaving Kali'sto alone with Riko.
"Do you think she made the right decision?" Kali'sto asked.
It took Riko a long time to answer that question.
"I really don't know."
The Wild Nomad raised its landing ramp and rose into the air. The last of Riko's emotional walls broke, and he cried. Kali'sto hugged him tightly as the Nomad soared beyond the atmosphere and entered hyperspace, leaving Coruscant, the ruined Temple, and Jade behind.