Summary:

Jinn goes to meet Ventress.

She has a proposition.

He has a proposition.

A Sith appears.

Fives discovers Ahsoka and Rex.

11.

Jinn had never been to Dathomir. It was a strange foggy place with barren landscapes. However, the coordinates that Ventress had given him had landed him near a swampy terrain. It wasn't exactly the most pleasant atmosphere. He got out of his ship and walked towards a temple. He noticed right away that there was a great deal of malevolence in the Force surrounding the place. He found it strangely exciting and he could sense other Force-sensitives in the area.

A strange group of women appeared from the temple. The leader of the women approached him. She wore an elaborate red robe with a hood. Her face was white with dark marking. The others made no secret that they were warriors. They brandished their weapons openly.

"Greetings Jedi. I am Mother Talzin of the Nightsisters. Tell me, why have you come here?"

Jinn bowed and said, "Greetings Mother Talzin. I am Master Jinn. I was invited to come here by a woman named Ventress. Do you know here?"

"Tell me, Master Jinn. Why did you agree to meet with this woman?"

"It's only natural for a gentleman to come when a lady calls."

Mother Talzin closed the distance between them and stared into Jinn's eyes intently. He sensed her trying to read his thoughts. He smiled and decided to give her a good look. He lowered his Force-shields and drew her in.

The world around Mother Talzin disappeared. She was surrounded by darkness. Then, in the distance a light glowed so brightly that she had to shield her eyes. The light rapidly grew. The sound of roaring flames began to leap and surround her. She was trapped in a fiery ring. The flames were white and hungry. The sound of a heartbeat throbbed in her ears. It grew louder and louder. It drowned out all other sounds. Her tongue suddenly felt swollen as an insatiable desire to eat consumed her to the point that it was terrifying. It was the bloodlust of a beats. A demon with golden eyes.

Mother Talzin turned away with a gasp and said, "What are you? You are not a Jedi."

Jinn reached out and grabbed Mother Talzin by the throat. The Nightsisters drew closer with their weapons, but Jinn said, "Step back or I will burn Mother Talzin where she stands."

She grabbed his arm and said, "Do as he says."

Jinn drew her close and said, "Now, no more games. Where is Ventress? I know she is here."

One of the Nightsister shot a green bolt of Force-lightening at Jinn. He raised his hand and absorbed the lightening into the palm of his hand. He then Force-pushed the others away. He then drew his black sword and let it go. The sword remained suspending in mid-air before flying towards the Nightsister's chest like an arrow.

"Stop!"

The sword hovered in front of its target. Ventress stepped out of the temple and pulled back her hood. Jinn released Mother Talzin and approached Ventress with a polite bow.

"Hello, Miss Ventress. I hope you've forgiven me for my rudeness since the last time we met."

"Let's go somewhere private."

"After you, Miss Ventress."

Jinn gestured for the assassin to lead the way. He fell into step behind her. As he began to walk, he raised his hand to summon his sword back into his palm and quickly returned it to its sheath.

"Neat trick."

"Thank you."

Ventress snarled. She did not want to give the Jedi a compliment. She was hoping that the Nightsisters would be able to subdue him. She didn't think he'd stand a chance. It seemed like she underestimated him. She knew that Jinn was holding back during their duel, but she had no idea just how much. She was convinced that he had been taught the ways of the Sith. The bloodlust she felt from him while he intimidated Mother Talzin was real and scary. He could have slaughtered the Nightsisters gleefully.

"If they mean something to you then I'm sorry for frightening them."

"Never mind that."

Ventress narrowed her brow at how easily he had read her thoughts. She led him over large twisted branches and roots through the swamps till she was convinced they would not be overheard. She turned around to face him and crossed her arms over her chest.

"So, like I said, I have a proposition for you."

"I'm all ears."

"How about we work together? I'm sure with the two of us can overthrow Count Dooku and take his place among the Separatists."

Jinn rubbed his beard in thought and said, "Tempting offer, nightingale. However, I have no interests in becoming a Sith."

"Why not? You're more Sith than Jedi."

"I don't consider myself a Sith or a Jedi. How about we join forces, but you join my team?"

She raised her brow and said, "You can't be serious? You really think your little Jedi friends are going to just let me join them?"

Jinn folded his arms into his sleeves and said, "Then, what about a compromise? I'll agree to help you take down Count Dooku and in exchange you can help me find evidence on the Sith Lord's identity."

Ventress narrowed her brow and said, "That's not a compromise. The Sith Lord is dangerous. He isn't someone you want to cross."

Jinn said, "Alright then how about agreeing to be my official sparring partner?"

She gave him a distrustful look and said, "What's the matter? Don't you have anyone to play with on your team?"

"None like you, nightingale."

She titled her head as she closed the distance between them and said, "Tell me, why are you so interested in me?"

Jinn said, "I thought it was obvious. I like you."

Ventress was stunned. Nobody liked her. She was an assassin. Jedi weren't supposed to like anybody. They didn't form attachments. It was one of the things they had in common with the Sith. Attachments were a weakness. She learned that the hard way.

"I don't believe you."

Jinn wasn't surprised. He couldn't fault her for not believing him. They didn't know each other, but he sensed her muddled Force-presence. She was dark, but not completely. There were bits of light among her pain.

"Then let me prove it."

"How do you plan to do that?"

He smiled and offered her his hand and said, "There are benefits to being born Force-sensitive."

Ventress stared at his outstretched hand curiously before meeting his gaze. She didn't like his smug look. She didn't trust the golden glint in his amber eyes. It reminded her too much of a Sith.

"Are you afraid?"

She sneered at him and said, "Of you? Never."

She took his hand. She felt his strange mix of Darkness and Light. It warred inside him, but it didn't tear him apart. Instead, it fueled a strange power inside him. She never felt anything like it before. She decided to look a little deeper. She felt his attraction for her. He liked her power. He liked her grace. He liked her blue eyes.

They reminded him of another pair of blue eyes. They belonged to a human face. A girl with black hair and a Padawan braid. He loved this girl. He missed her.

Jinn abruptly grabbed her shoulder and said, "Stop."

Ventress smiled. She finally hit a nerve. She leaned closer and lifted her head to whisper into his ear, "Who is she? Should I be jealous?"

He softly said, "She's not in this world."

"Is she your Padawan?"

"No, she's my sister. She had lovely blue eyes. They reflected the light like mine, but you, your eyes don't shine." He moved his hand off her shoulder and moved it under her chin to lift her gaze up to meet his. "I could drown in your eyes, nightingale."

"Forgive the interruption."

Jinn turned away from Ventress and saw that they were surrounded by droids. One of the droids was holding a holo-comm that showed the blue holo-image of Count Dooku. The Count looked displeased and his hands were folded in his sleeves.

"Well, I didn't think you'd be foolish enough to come alone, but apparently I was wrong. Please, allow me to introduce myself. I am Count Dooku and you are already familiar with my associate, Asajj Ventress."

Jinn silently observed the droids. He thought about his options. He could fight. He could get to his ship, but then Dooku would get him out in open space. They would likely destroy his ship in the process. The ship was better off on Dathomir. With luck, they hadn't found it. Any clue to his whereabouts was better than none. He turned on Ventress with pretend fury.

"I thought we had an understanding. I should have known better than to trust you, assassin."

He spat the word out with venom and snatched her wrist and pulled her close. Ventress glared at him and shoved him back. Jinn kept his hold and pulled her harder. He needed a distraction. He wanted to cause a scene. He sent her all his feelings of warmth and longing right before he brutally grabbed her by the throat and whispered into her ear.

"Hit me."

At first, Ventress was confused. Jinn's actions didn't match his feelings, but as his fingers squeezed, she came to her senses. She punched him in the face and kicked him in the gut. Jinn wheezed and fell onto the ground. Oddly, this was what he wanted. He pulled the comm she had mailed him and buried it into the ground beneath his robes.

"Enough of this nonsense," said Dooku. "Take him back to the ship."

XXX

Count Dooku stared disappearing at the young man suspended inside the gravity field. He looked remarkably like Kenobi. He could have passed for his twin if it weren't for the eyes. Though, it didn't go unnoticed that he called himself Jinn, which was the name of his former apprentice, Master Qui-Gon Jinn. It seemed too great of a coincidence.

Then, there was the man's weapons. Dooku walked over towards a table and examined the lightsaber. It was black and ornate with a design of a bird. It was much too flashy and intimating to belong to a Jedi. He switched it on. The laser was blue. He half expected it to be red. He gave it a swing and tested the grip in his hand.

"The balance is excellent. Though, it's rather heavy."

Jinn glanced at the table and said, "Why don't you try holding the sword?"

Dooku glanced at him cautiously before deactivating the lightsaber and moved towards the sword. He pulled it from the sheath and saw that it was also black. It had a matching handle to the lightsaber. He picked up both and ignited the lightsaber again. He gave both sword and saber a test swing.

"Ah, I see now. The weight matches the sword, but the lightsaber is far superior."

"What can I say? I like antiques."

"So, who are you really?"

"Well, since you kidnapped me. I assume you already know that my name is Master Jinn."

Count Dooku deactivated the lightsaber and put the weapons back onto the table. He then turned to stand in front of him with his arms crossed over his chest. He tried to read the young man's mind but discovered that he had very strong Force-shields. He had a very strong will.

"Yes, but until recently there has been no record of you, Master Jinn. Your presence is rather curious. Now, save yourself from some rather unpleasantness and answer my questions."

"Well, you asked such a vague question. Who am I? Well, that's a rather existential question. Who is anybody really?"

"I see you don't just share Kenobi's looks. You also share his ability to be an annoyance."

"Couldn't we talk about something more interesting, like Miss Ventress?"

"Ventress? What about her?"

"Can you tell her something for me?"

"Perhaps, what is it?"

"Tell her, I can't wait for our next match."

Count Dooku gave Jinn a smug look and said, "There will be no next time for you, my friend. My master has other plans for you."

XXX

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the Separatists ship, Ventress stared at her reflection in the refresher. She stared at her ice blue eyes and reached up and curled her fingers around her throat. His fingers had left a mark on her pale skin. She remembered the hard, callous feel of his hand. Yet, she also remembered the feelings of warmth and tenderness he had sent her. He didn't want to hurt her. He wanted her to hurt him.

She frowned and smashed the mirror with her fist.

She hated Jinn and how he made her feel. She hated herself for letting him lift her chin and for gazing up into his eyes. She hated that she felt drawn to him. She hated that she hung onto his every word as he described the beauty of her eyes.

Most of all, she hated the fact that his feelings for her were real. He as genuinely attracted to her. He meant it when he said he liked her. When he looked at her, he saw something. Something she didn't see in the broken glass.

XXX

Ahsoka was pleased with herself. She was glad she had assigned Fives to babysit Jinn. It was one less thing to worry about and hopefully would keep the two men out of trouble. She decided to go find Rex and tell him about Fives' new assignment. She used the Force and found her Captain in his office talking to Vaughn.

Their conversation abruptly ended when she entered the room. They were probably discussing the clone network. It was supposed to be a clone secret, so Ahsoka wasn't surprised when Vaughn made his excuses and left them alone.

Rex gave her a scolding look and said, "You could have come back later, Soka. I know you knew Vaughn was in here."

She sat down and said, "Yes, but I'd rather the men believe I'm not part of the network. I want them to speak freely with each other. Being a commander and a Jedi will make them feel like the network isn't their own."

"Maybe your right and it will help them loosen their lips, but I still want to be able to finish hearing a report. Now, I know you didn't come here just to keep the men on their toes. Tell me, what's going on?"

Rex sat back down in his chair behind his desk. Ahsoka smiled mischievously and moved to sit on his lap. The Captain was startled at first, but then relaxed. He wasn't about to complain if his girl wanted to cuddle. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and reached up to play with the end of one of her lekku. She shivered at the touch and leaned into him.

"I wanted to tell you that I gave Fives a new assignment."

"Yeah? What have you got him going?"

"I made him Jinn's assistant."

Rex laughed and said, "Oh, I'm sure he took that well."

"Not really, but I'm worried about Jinn. He's been working so hard researching the cure that he's been neglecting his own health. He doesn't even train with the men in the mornings anymore."

Rex said, "I know. There's a betting pool going around for his matches. Fives is in on it, but no surprise there. Though, he'll have his hands full babysitting his own Jedi."

Ahsoka sat up and shouted, "Hey! I'm a Jedi."

"Present company excluded, of course."

Her expression softened and she said, "No, it's alright. I've got you to watch my back."

He smiled and said, "That's right, cyare."

Suddenly, the door opened, and Fives ran in and exclaimed, "Captain! It's Master Jinn. I think he might be a Separatists spy."

Fives froze in his tracks when he saw the scene in front of him. Commander Ahsoka Tano was sitting on Captain Rex's lap. Her arms were wrapped around the Captain's neck. He had one of his hands curled around one of her lekku.

"What the kriff is going on here!"

Ahsoka nearly fell off Rex's lap when he stood up. He grabbed her arm to catch her. The minute she was upright, she moved to shut the door and locked it. Fives noticed her actions and fumed. He didn't like it. He turned to Rex and shoved his finger to his face and shouted.

"You! So, help me, you better not be taking advantage of her!"

Rex said, "It's not what you think."

"Not what I think? She was sitting on your lap while you had your hands on her head-tails. She's a kid for gods' sake. You shouldn't even be looking at her that way. I thought I knew what kind of man you were."

Ahsoka marched up to him and said, "Fives, leave him alone."

Fives' expression crumbled as he looked at her. He placed both his hands on her shoulders and bent down to her eye level. With a voice full of emotion, he said, "Kid, just tell me. He didn't do anything else, right?"

Rex buried his face in his hands while Ahsoka simply smiled. Fives' reaction was both touching and uncalled for. She reached out and patted Fives' shoulder and said, "Don't worry, Fives. Rex didn't do anything I didn't want him to."

He frowned at her response. He let her go and slowly got to his feet. He didn't understand the coy smile she was wearing nor the shy blush on Rex's face. Then, like blaster fire, it dawned on him that it was the other way around. Fives placed his hand on his head in shock.

"Oh, my gods, so it's the Commander that's been taking advantage of the Captain?" He then wrinkled his nose and asked her, "Why Rex?"

"Hey!" objected the Captain.

Fives said, "Come on. There are plenty of other brothers more impressive than him. I mean, Cody-"

"Cody!"

Ahsoka laughed. Rex frowned and looked away as he crossed his arms over his chest. He could not believe that Fives thought Cody was better than him. Rex always considered himself slightly better than his vode.

Irritated, he decided to get things back on business and barked, "That's enough. Fives, what did you come here for?"

Fives straightened up and replied, "Right. I came to report that I think Master Jinn is a Separatists spy. I overheard a transmission he received in his room. A woman asked to meet him. I had my suspicions, but once we got to the Mess, he said he had to go tell the Commander something. I followed him and saw that he went to the docking bay and took a ship."

Ahsoka shared a look with Rex before turning back to Fives and asked, "Did you overhear where he went?"

Fives narrowed his brow and said, "Yeah, Dathomir."

XXX

TBC

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