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Chapter Ten
"You're sure you want to do this?"
Arden looked back at the now empty common area of the safe house. Ulin had already said his goodbyes and retreated to the kitchen. Sure, staying behind would definitely be the smart thing to do. But the right thing? She wasn't so sure. Besides, she'd told Elias she would stick with him, even if it meant going on a crazy mission to yet another Sith world.
"I'm sure," Arden replied, slipping her hand into Elias's. "Can't let you go running all over the galaxy without me."
Elias smiled. "No, we can't have that."
Myri interrupted by placing a hand on Arden's shoulder. "All right, kids, let's head out. Don't wanna miss our own party."
They followed Myri outside, back into the heavy Nar Shaddaa darkness. Without the haze of rain, Arden could make out a bit more of the moon's skyline. It wasn't distinctive or remarkable in any way. She noticed more people roaming the walkways, and she wondered if any of them could be spies for the Sith. She assumed that was part of the reason why Myri had sent Kohr, Ames, and Allana on ahead to the ship.
If truth be told, Arden didn't really know much about the intelligence business. She generally just followed orders and collected her credits.
Myri's ship was similar in design to the Daybreak, but it appeared to be a newer – and smaller – model. Arden wasn't an expert on ships either, but she knew enough to recognize that this ship was built for stealth and probably had a few modifications to boot. As she walked behind Elias and Myri into the secluded hangar, she noticed the cockpit lights were already on. Kohr was sitting in the pilot's chair, flipping switches overhead.
"All aboard!" Myri said in an almost song-like manner. Arden smiled at the woman's apparent cheerfulness as she followed Elias up the open ramp.
"What kind of freighter is this?" Arden asked.
Elias smiled over his shoulder. "YT-5500 bomber. Kind of like a freighter and warship in one neat little package."
Arden looked at the curved interior walls, admiring their sleekness. "How'd she get her hands on one of these?"
"Myri's got quite a few connections."
She decided not to ask what kinds of connections those were. "It's nice," she said.
"Thanks."
Arden twisted around to see Myri closing the hatch behind them. She tilted her cap to the side and patted the walls with a reverence usually reserved for religious ceremonies.
"She's a good, fast ship," Myri continued. "We'll be a little cramped with six of us, but we'll make good time." She eyed the open cockpit door. "Excuse me while I regain control of my ship."
A moment later, Arden heard a disgruntled noise that sounded just like Kohr. When she and Elias approached the cockpit, they found Kohr sprawled in the co-pilot's chair, a very indignant look on his face.
Myri glanced over at the boy. "Oh, come on, Tredo. Did you really think I was going to let you fly?"
Kohr crossed his arms over his chest and sank lower in the seat. "Elias let me fly Ulin's ship."
"For maybe five minutes," Elias interjected.
Myri swept a stray lock of blonde hair behind her ear and readjusted her cap. "This ship is my baby, Tredo. And there's only one other person I'd let fly her."
"Who?" Kohr asked, waving one hand in the air.
Myri leaned back in her seat and grinned as the ship's engines came to life. "My big sister."
Kohr groaned.
Arden leaned toward Elias. "There's two of them?" she whispered.
"Oh yeah," he answered. "You'll get to meet her pretty soon, too."
"That's right," Myri said from her chair. "Syal is coming to Vjun with us."
As Nar Shaddaa gave way to the darkness of space, Arden shook her head and wondered if she would ever be able to keep up with the Jedi and all their allies.
.
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Anakin stood over Ben's shoulder, watching the stars rush past. He wasn't sure how long he'd been standing there. Five minutes, maybe ten. Neither Ben nor Valin spared him so much as a glance. There hadn't been a whole lot of eye contact since they'd boarded the Daybreak.
Anakin finally broke the silence. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"
Ben exchanged a look with Valin. "Sure," he said. As he pulled himself out of his chair, he placed a hand on Valin's shoulder. "Take over for me?"
"You got it, boss."
Anakin led Ben back to the dejarik board where they'd had their first conversation as grandfather and grandson. He sat down on one side and waited for Ben to take the other. Ben was noticeably slow to do so.
"I take it this is going to be more than a minute."
Anakin shrugged. "Probably."
Ben propped one arm up on the table. "Okay. What's on your mind?"
Once again, Anakin found himself awkwardly silent in the presence of his grandson. He knew what he wanted to say, but as it was in his many debriefings before the Jedi Council, he could already feel the right words slipping away.
"Do the Jedi in your time… do they have a lot of visions?"
Ben looked him square in the eyes. "Are you having a lot of visions?"
Straight to the point, as always.
"I've had them before. This one is new." His thoughts returned to that day, not so long ago, when he'd sat in the shade of Yoda's meditation chamber and listened as the old master advised him to let go of Padmé. To let go of the child – the children – growing inside her.
Ben was not Yoda, and he was not Obi-Wan or Mace Windu or any of the old Jedi. He was Anakin's flesh and blood. He would understand, wouldn't he? He would know what to do.
"What do you see?" Ben asked.
Anakin closed his eyes. "I dream of a cliff. I can't see anything around it, but I know I'm standing on the edge. And I can hear water, like there's an ocean below me. Padmé is there, somewhere in the darkness, calling to me. She's… she's dying, and I can't go to her. And then I fall."
Anakin opened his eyes to find Ben staring at him.
"Is that all?"
Anakin's gaze fell to the tabletop. "I think I'm jumping."
"Off the cliff?"
Anakin nodded.
"And you're worried it will happen for real."
"Yes."
Ben let out a long breath. "And the visions you said you had before. Did they all come true?"
"More or less. With my mother it was almost exactly as I saw it in my dreams. She was tortured by the Tuskens, and she ended up dying in my arms."
"Did you…?" Ben stopped and swallowed before continuing. "Did you see anyone else? In your other visions?"
Anakin rubbed his left thumb against the edge of the table. "Up until a few days ago, I kept dreaming of Padmé's death." He looked up at Ben, and he couldn't help the cynicism that crept into his tone. "And she is dead, isn't she?"
Ben's response was barely above a whisper. "Yes, she is."
"So is this my death I'm seeing? Is it my turn now?" Anakin stood up and paced across the room. He wanted to hurl something, rail against the Force for not being clearer, or perhaps for being too clear in its message.
Ben ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I don't know. Do you honestly expect me to know? Like I'm the authority on visions? My dad's the one who had them all the time, not me."
Anakin stopped pacing. He'd done it again, letting his emotions take over. How was he ever going to deal with the dark side if he kept running to other people to solve his problems?
"I'm sorry," he said after a moment. "I just thought maybe you'd have some insight that I missed."
"You want my insight? Okay." Ben turned in his chair to face Anakin. "I believe in visions, and I believe in the Force; but I also believe in making choices. If you don't want to go flying off some cliff, then don't jump."
"It's not that simple."
"It is that simple, Anakin. Maybe the Force has some grand plan for us, but we still have to choose. Don't try to tell me this is the only way things could have turned out. Because if it is, then I'd say to hell with the Force."
Anakin was dumbstruck for a moment as he stared unblinking at his grandson. "I'm glad Obi-Wan isn't around to hear you say that."
Ben scowled. "I don't mean it literally. That's my point: we all have our choices to make, and the future is not set in stone. The Force guides us, but it doesn't control us. We're supposed to control it."
Anakin felt himself deflate, as though all his anger and frustration had lost their power. Instead of feeling less burdened, he felt emptier, less sure of himself. Everything Ben said to him made sense. So why did he feel worse off?
The sound of footsteps distracted him for a moment. He turned to see Valin entering the room.
"We're coming up on the others," he said, looking at Ben. "You want to do the honors, or should I?"
Ben stood up and glanced at Anakin. "We're finished here. I'll be right there."
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Allana Djo liked to think of herself as a reasonable, patient human being who others saw as wise beyond her years. Sure, she was prone to occasional bouts of adolescent moodiness, but at her core she was a calm, intelligent, introverted girl.
At least that was what she liked to think.
It didn't help that for the last six months she'd been dragged all over the galaxy and handed off from one family friend to the next, all so that her cousin – her supposed master – could go gallivanting across Sith territory. Not to mention the latest injustice: being dropped in a hole for three days with Myri Antilles, who could be so unrelentingly cheerful at times that it made Allana want to gag. If she stopped to think about it, she knew it wasn't Myri she was upset with, nor the fact that she'd had to spend three days listening to the woman's wisecracks. It was Ben. It was always Ben.
Allana stared at the wall opposite her, where Geridan Ames and Tredo Kohr were playing a children's card game. "Ha!" Kohr shouted, slapping his hand down onto one of the cards before Geridan could even react.
"Too slow," Kohr added, sweeping a pile of cards toward him while Geridan shot Allana a sullen look.
Allana shook her head, trying not to laugh at her friend's misery. "Aren't you supposed to be some kind of Jedi Knight? What kind of reflexes are those?"
Geridan placed one hand over his heart and frowned. While he wasn't looking, Kohr started to steal cards from his friend's quickly-dwindling pile.
"Hey!" Geridan turned and snatched his cards away, sending several flying through the air. "Cheater!"
Kohr grinned and laid the rest of his cards on the deck. "I quit. This isn't even a challenge."
Allana rolled her eyes as the boys started to argue over the game and Force knew what else. Boys could be so ridiculous sometimes.
A soft clicking caught her attention, and Allana looked up to see Elias walking down the corridor. "Get your stuff together, kids. We're coming up on the Daybreak."
Allana and the others moved out of the way as Elias stepped in front of the docking ring controls and began to tap in a combination. There was a hiss and clicking sound against the hull. Elias's hand hovered over a lever just above the keypad. The ship's comm unit buzzed.
"Okay, they're extending their docking tube." Myri's voice was calm. "Lock it in on my command."
Allana felt the faintest tremor as the docking tube – she assumed – made contact with the ring.
"Lock."
Elias pulled down on the lever, and there was a clunk and an even louder hiss as the tube locked and pressurized. A moment later, someone was knocking on their door.
Myri and Arden Veiss joined the rest of them at the docking ring as Elias pressed another button. The door slid open, and standing on the other side was Valin Horn, the stranger from the Heibic datatape, and Allana's master, Ben Skywalker.
Her cousin quirked one eyebrow and smirked. "Didn't I tell you I'd be fine?"
Elias shook his head before reaching out to embrace his friend, while Geridan and Kohr started talking over one another, each one claiming he'd known all along that Ben would make it out okay. Myri and Arden stood back, the former taking it all in with a wistful smile, the latter staring at the reunion a bit vacantly.
As much as Allana tried to focus her attention on Ben and how he'd abandoned her six months ago to roam the stars, she couldn't keep herself from glancing every few seconds at the stranger from Heibic, the one who had claimed to be Anakin Skywalker.
She probably should have been deeply offended by the fact that this man was posing as her long-dead great-grandfather, but she wasn't really. A little bothered by the fact that Ben had given him a lightsaber and let him tag along for the past few days? Yes. But she wasn't offended. If anything, she was curious. She hadn't met many legitimately crazy people in her fifteen years.
"You all remember our guest," Ben said, interrupting Allana's thoughts with a gesture toward the imposter. "This is…" He hesitated before dropping his hand. "You know what? I'm tired of introducing everyone. You can introduce yourselves. Myri? Could I talk to you for a minute?"
Myri pressed through the tightly packed group and gave Valin a friendly pat on the shoulder as she edged past him. She and Ben retreated to the Daybreak.
The crazy stranger was forgotten for a moment as Allana stared at the back of Ben's head. Six months and he hadn't said a single word to her. He hadn't tried to reach out mentally – hell, he hadn't even looked at her. Allana's fists curled around the fabric of her robe while she struggled to maintain her composure.
It took a moment before she realized the man from Heibic was staring openly at her. While Elias, Geridan and the others gave Valin a proper greeting and listened to him talk about his children back on Tatooine, Allana took a few steps toward the stranger and held out her hand.
"Hi," she said. "I'm Allana."
The man looked somewhat more comfortable than he had on the security tape, but not by much. In fact, he looked a little sick. He reached out to take Allana's hand; he wore a leather glove over his right hand, and his grip was strong.
"Hello," he said quietly. Allana liked his voice. He didn't sound like a crazy person.
He released her hand, but kept his extended for a microsecond longer than she did. She stared at him expectantly, waiting for the rest of his introduction.
"Oh," he said, realizing he'd left something out. "I'm Anakin."
Allana raised both eyebrows. "Anakin what?"
He shrugged. "Just Anakin."
So was he telling the truth, or was he crazy and smart enough to try to hide it? Allana sighed. "That was my uncle's name. And my great-grandfather's. It's a good name, I guess."
"My mom seemed to think so."
She saw the faint smile on his lips and realized he was trying to be funny. Strange, that she was already warming up to him. It usually took longer for that to happen.
Or maybe I just like crazy people.
Allana smiled back, and she felt something slip through the mental barriers she'd sensed around Anakin, something bright and happy and – she was a little embarrassed to admit it – kind of beautiful. It reminded her of her mother.
"Well," she said, "it's nice to finally meet you, Anakin."
"It's nice to finally meet you, too." His smile grew until it lit up his whole face. "Allana."
.
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"What's this about, Ben?"
Ben motioned for Myri to join him inside the cockpit of the Daybreak, and once she was inside, he closed the door. Then he mentally counted to five before turning to face her.
"I told you to leave her with Ulin."
Myri looked at him with a mixture of disbelief and annoyance before folding her arms across her chest and widening her stance. "You try telling a Solo what to do. We're lucky she didn't chase after you when you left in the first place. She doesn't need a babysitter, Ben. She needs her master."
Ben shook his head and looked out at the stars. "Not you, too."
"Good, so I'm not the only one who's telling you so."
"She's my apprentice. Not yours, not Tahiri's, and not anyone else's. I want what's best for her. Why is that so hard for everyone to understand?"
Myri's eyes widened for a second, a look that suggested he was losing it. "What's got you all fired up?"
Ben replayed the last part of the conversation in his head, groaned, then fell into the pilot's seat. He covered his eyes with his hand and started to massage his forehead. "Nothing. I don't know, I'm just tired." He peeked at her from between two fingers. It seemed ridiculous that he should be mad at Myri Antilles, of all people. She was one of the most optimistic people he knew, and besides, non-Jedi allies were increasingly hard to come by. Alienating her now would accomplish nothing.
"I'm sorry, Myri."
She gave him the same look she'd been giving him since he was a teenager, the one that told him exactly how juvenile his behavior was. "Apology accepted, kid. But don't ever talk to me like I'm one of your students. I'm too old to put up with that stuff."
Ben laughed. "Why does everyone over thirty think they're old?"
She gave him an incredulous look. "What are you talking about? I'm not old."
Ben opened his mouth, thought better of it, and snapped it shut again. The Daybreak's comm unit beeped with an incoming message, and Ben swiveled in his chair to check it out. "Looks like Syal is almost here. Tell her to open herself up to our frequency. She can stay on her ship while we go over the plan."
Myri winked and offered him a mock salute. "Aye aye, Captain."
Ben opened the cockpit door and headed back to Myri's ship to gather the others. He found them where he'd left them, huddled around the mouth of the docking tube. The first thing he noticed was that Anakin had separated himself ever so slightly from the rest of the group; the second thing he noticed was that Allana was hovering close by, watching him.
Or perhaps more accurately, watching over him. Ben sensed something strangely protective in her body language. Before he could reflect on it further, Elias turned to him and nodded.
"Ready?" he asked.
Ben looked around at the others. "Yeah. Let's use the Daybreak's main hold. This ship's getting a bit cramped."
He avoided Allana's gaze as he spun on one heel and went back through the tunnel. He knew she was mad at him, and she had every right to be. But that didn't change what he had to do.
One by one, the Jedi and their allies filtered into the common area and found seats where they could. Ben pulled the holodisc of Château Malreaux from his pocket and inserted it in the room's holoprojector. An image of the estate materialized at the center of the room.
"By now I think you all know the situation and what's at stake. At this moment, there are nearly two dozen children being held on Vjun in this building." Ben nodded toward the hologram. "Château Malreaux. About half of these children were kidnapped from the Denon enclave; the others were most likely picked up for their higher than average Force sensitivity. They are all part of some experiment being conducted by Doctor Gabriel Mezzon."
Elias made a very unhappy sound. "Mezzon's alive?"
Ben hesitated. Apparently Myri hadn't told them everything about the Vjun project. Ben tried not to react to the pain he sensed in his friend. Instead, he focused his eyes on the hologram. "Yes, he's alive."
Elias shook his head, more upset than Ben had seen him in years. "But we blew that whole place sky high! There's no way he survived!"
Ben was about to respond when Myri stepped forward. "I know it's hard to accept, Elias, but the data from Ossus confirms it. Official reports, video logs… make no mistake, he is alive." She glanced over at Ben. "However, there's no evidence to suggest that any of his research survived the explosion on Yalena. You boys may not have killed him, but you definitely destroyed his work."
Elias rubbed a hand over his face and stared at the floor, defeated. It wasn't exactly the mood Ben had been hoping to set before they even got to the actual rescue plan. He wished he could say he had been as affected by the news of the doctor's survival, but it didn't really surprise him. The Sith had a talent for surviving against impossible odds. It wasn't the first time.
"We can handle Mezzon," Ben said firmly. "I'm not worried about that. What I am worried about is getting into this place and finding the kids. Now…" He rotated the hologram and enlarged an area at the base of the estate, where its rocky foundation met a body of water. "Château Malreaux butts up against this harbor. The coast is riddled with caves and tunnels. Most of them have collapsed, but Myri says there are a few that probably still lead directly into the cellars of the château. This place was once a very heavily fortified mansion, and I'm sure the Sith have made use of at least some of the old security systems. Those tunnels are our best hope of getting in without casualties.
"Myri and Syal will provide cover from the air during our escape. Arden, you're with Myri in her ship. Syal?"
The ship's comm crackled for a few seconds before a new voice filtered through. "I'm here, Ben."
"I want you to fly the Daybreak. We can leave your ship here and come back for it later."
"Oh, no worries; it's just a rental." Ben didn't miss the sarcasm in her voice.
"Right. So that leaves the rest of you to come with me. Once we're inside, Elias and Valin will find the kids while we cover for them." He raised his hands in the air and glanced around the room. "Any questions so far?"
Kohr and Ames exchanged a somewhat bewildered look while the others shook their heads slowly. In the farthest corner of the room, Anakin's face was unreadable as he continued to stare at the hologram.
"Perfect," Ben said. "Now, let's go over specifics."
.
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Didn't think I'd be going back there anytime soon.
Anakin studied the hologram, looking for anything else that might have changed in the seventy years since Count Dooku made Château Malreaux his personal fortress. It was hard to tell from here; the image wasn't as detailed as it could have been. Anakin had the feeling there would be an awful lot of improvisation once they hit the ground. He also had the feeling that Ben was perfectly aware of that fact.
His grandson was going over the layout of the building with the others, but Anakin could still see so much of it in his mind's eye. It had only been what, six months since he'd been there? Give or take. As for the collapsed tunnels, well… he wondered if Ben knew who to thank for that little inconvenience.
His memory of Vjun was not an unpleasant one. He could still recall the powerful surge he'd experienced upon entering its atmosphere, the sound of the Force singing to him rather than whispering. Everything had been clearer, fresher, more potent. He remembered feeling invincible.
The thought of it made him sick to his stomach. He wasn't sure if it was guilt over experiencing the dark side so freely, or anticipation at the thought of returning to such a Force-rich world.
Maybe it would be better for everyone if he sat this one out.
No. They needed him, whether they realized it or not.
He half-listened as Ben and Myri finished going over the plan with the others. The deep sense of foreboding he'd experienced on Tatooine – though it hadn't really gone away – was growing stronger. Anakin closed his eyes and tried to trace the feelings to something tangible, some element of the future that might be causing it. But of course, the Force was reluctant to reveal anything other than the cliff and the water and Padmé's desperate screams.
I won't jump, I won't kill myself, just tell me what I'm supposed to do…
When he opened his eyes, the room had started to clear. Ben had turned the holoproj off and was steering Allana in the direction of his private quarters. Curious, Anakin waited until they had moved out of sight to follow them. He ducked into the corridor and stilled his breathing, straining to hear the conversation between his two grandchildren.
"What?"
"Allana, keep your voice down. Just listen to me for a second—"
"You think you can dump me on your friends for six months and then expect me to stay out of this?"
"You've gone six months; I don't think a few more hours will kill you."
"But it's not just a few more hours! You never take me on missions! What's the point of naming me your apprentice when you don't even want me around?"
"I'm not doing this for me, I'm doing it for you. I can't keep you safe down there. You're better off with Syal."
"Being useless!"
"I told you, I need you to man the guns. There's going to be a lot of enemy fire, and Syal will need help."
"Isn't she an ace starfighter pilot?"
"Aren't you a Solo and a Djo and a Skywalker?"
There was silence for a moment as Allana seemed to lose her momentum.
"I've made my decision, Allana. You're staying on the Daybreak, and that's final."
Anakin straightened up as Allana stormed out of Ben's room, not even giving him so much as a glance. A very tired-looking Ben followed a few seconds after, but he stopped upon seeing Anakin in the corridor.
"You heard all that, I suppose?"
Anakin nodded. "Sorry."
"Don't worry about it. She'll be fine in a day or two." Ben leaned against the wall opposite Anakin and gave him a weak grin. "Teenagers are hell."
Anakin shook his head. "I know I was."
"I believe it." Ben's grin faltered for a moment as he looked down the corridor. "I don't know how we got to this point," he said with a sigh.
"What do you mean?"
"You know. She acts like I'm the enemy. Like I'm trying to be her father, and that's not what I'm doing."
Anakin thought of Obi-Wan, of all the times they had bickered about training and missions and whether Anakin was ready to tackle a new challenge on his own. He thought of Obi-Wan alone in his hut on Tatooine and of black body armor and fire. His throat constricted as he tried to push the images away.
"She loves you," he said. "Don't let her forget that you love her."
Ben stared at him, a wry expression spreading slowly across his face. "Part of me wants to ignore you. Maybe that's my own rebellious streak showing through, huh?" He shook his head. "But you're right. And it's what I've been trying to do, but…"
"There's always that feeling," Anakin murmured, "that you're not doing enough."
Ben leaned his head back against the wall. "That you'll never do enough." He looked at Anakin through half-closed lids. "You've turned me into a moping, pathetic fool, Gramps."
Anakin was acutely aware that this might be the last moment of normalcy before everything went to hell. He tried to smile. "You're welcome."
.
.
The team of Jedi touched down a little more than a kilometer from Château Malreaux, landing in a deep depression that appeared to have been formed by whatever had caused the collapse of the surrounding caves. Myri and Ulin hadn't had ample time to gather all the details of the Vjun countryside, so finding the right tunnel into the mansion was going to take a lot of guesswork.
Ben waited for the others to disembark before he finally stepped off of the Daybreak. The air was cold, and there was a light drizzle that stung his skin like a thousand tiny needles. Acid rain. Perfect.
If he was completely honest with himself – and he was trying to be – it wasn't the rain or the cold or the gloominess of the planet that was putting him on edge. The whole planet was saturated in the dark side; every so often he caught a hint of something in the air, something that felt like madness, like everything he associated with the Sith. Myri said the people of this planet had attempted to enhance their Force-strong population with genetic experimentation, ultimately resulting in a near-global insanity. Sounded like the perfect place for Doctor Mezzon's research.
They had gone a few meters when Ben turned back to face the Daybreak. He pulled out his comlink. "If they spot you, find somewhere else to lay low. We'll call when we're ready."
Through the cockpit window, he saw Syal give him a nod and a wave. "Will do. May the Force be with you."
Ben tucked his comlink away and looked out at the ridge in the distance. "There used to be an entrance up there."
Anakin appeared at his side. His face was pale. "That whole network collapsed the last time I was here. We'll have to look for one of the smaller side tunnels. I know there's still a way in."
Ben frowned and lowered his voice. "What makes you so sure?"
"Because I can feel it up there, on the southern slope."
Startled, Ben examined the hillside, probing it with the Force, and sure enough, there was a void on the southern side that ran deep underground.
"You're right." He couldn't hide the surprise in his voice.
A smirk, and a laugh that was a bit too confident. "Of course I am."
Ben studied his grandfather for half a second, wondering how deeply the Vjun atmosphere was affecting him. Anakin had mentioned coming here not too long ago on a mission. His description of the Force's potency here… well, Ben hadn't been able to figure out whether Anakin was afraid of the planet or a little in love with it. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea, bringing him along.
Then again, he had found the tunnel. Ben took a deep breath.
Time to see where it led.
.
.
Lord Dominius watched the vidscreen carefully, waiting for something worthwhile to happen.
"I have never understood your fascination with the doctor's work," he said slowly, eyes never leaving the human child on the screen.
Darth Festus's voice came from behind him. "The man is an artist. I admire his creativity."
"Don't you mean butchery?" The second voice belonged to Darth Ferrus, and Dominius sensed that this was an ongoing argument between the brothers.
He liked it when they weren't getting along.
Festus responded to his brother's taunt with an even tone. "I mean creativity, my dear brother." The smaller twin sidled up next to Dominius. "You must appreciate what we're doing here, Lord Dominius. Mezzon's methods may be unorthodox, but if he can find new ways to enhance our connection to the Force, isn't it worth it?"
Dominius frowned. As distasteful as he found the Vjun project, it had been condoned by Lord Krayt; and when one looked past the use of children in the experiments, Festus's argument actually made some degree of sense.
The human child – a female – was sitting upright on the operating table, watching something offscreen. Her face was unusually thin for one of her age and species.
Dominius turned his head just enough to catch Festus's eye. "Are you trying to tell me you don't get any personal satisfaction out of watching the doctor work?"
Festus smirked and looked away. Behind them, Ferrus cleared his throat.
"He'd be content to stay here forever if it meant watching this sort of thing all day."
"Don't be ridiculous," Festus replied, but there was a hint of amusement in his voice.
Such a strange boy.
The door to the chamber slid open, and Darth Misra stepped inside.
"My lord," she said. "The master wishes to speak with you."
Dominius turned away from the vidscreen as Doctor Mezzon came into view, blocking the child on the table. He gave Festus and Ferrus a stiff nod before exiting the room.
Once he was outside, Misra led him back to the private conference room he'd requested upon his arrival. Darth Raze was off in one corner of the room, going through a series of martial arts techniques unique to Iridonia. As soon as he saw Dominius, he bowed and left the room. Misra shut the door behind her, leaving Dominius completely alone.
The Sith Lord crossed the room and activated the holoprojector at the far end. A slightly less than life-size image of his master materialized above him. Dominius kneeled before Darth Krayt.
"Everything is in place, just as you ordered."
The Sith Master stared down at him from behind his vonduun crab mask. "You have done well, Lord Dominius. If things proceed as planned, your reward will be great."
Dominius bowed his head. "I won't fail you, my master."
"I have great faith in you, my apprentice. When the Jedi arrive, make sure you give them a proper welcome."
.
.
It was after they reached their fifth dead end that Ben realized someone was following them. Up until now, their tail had taken care to be silent, but a single loose stone tumbling into the underground lake had let him know they were not alone.
The Jedi were walking sideways along a narrow bank, moving slowly to avoid slipping several meters down into the still, dark waters. With little more than a few glowworms to light their way, they had to rely on handheld lights and their enhanced Force sensitivity to map a path through the tunnels. They had just turned away from the dead end when Ben felt the tremor of a pebble rolling into the water.
A second later, Anakin's lightsaber sprang to life, illuminating the darkness. Standing millimeters from the blade was Allana.
"It's just me," she whispered, hands raised defensively.
Ben released an angry breath. "Emperor's bones, Allana! What are you doing here?"
Anakin lowered his lightsaber, and Ben saw him take a step toward Allana. His cousin stared up at him with big, concerned eyes.
"I couldn't let you go without me."
Ben thought about telling her he was safer without her here, but he held his tongue. He also thought about demanding an explanation as to how she'd given Syal the slip; he decided that could wait, too.
"Stay in the middle," he warned. "And when the fighting starts, don't take on anyone by yourself."
Allana glanced at the others before giving Ben a hurt look. "Okay. But I just wanted to tell you, I think I found the way in."
Ben exchanged a look with Valin, then Elias. "What?"
"Back here," Allana said, gesturing toward a crack in the rock that they'd already passed. She hugged the wall, moving back in the direction of the crack. "Take a look."
Anakin, who was closest to Allana, followed her and held his saber up as he peered through the crack. "She's right. There's a short tunnel and a door on the other side of this wall." Without waiting for the go ahead, he started to cut away at the rock with his blade.
"Careful!" Valin said, looking instinctively toward the ceiling. "This whole cavern could collapse."
"It survived a concussion grenade," Anakin quipped, intent on his work.
"How would you—"
"Valin," Ben said, cutting off the older man's protest. "It's fine."
Anakin stepped aside as debris fell from his cuts. He used the Force to shove the rest of the loose rock into the tunnel he'd revealed. The hole was just big enough for a grown man to squeeze through. He crawled into the hole. Allana followed, and then the others. Ben was the last to go through.
Allana was right; it was a door on the other side. On the rock next to it was a control pad with numbered keys. Ben went to the head of the group and inspected the keypad, waving Kohr over as he did so. "Do your thing, genius."
Kohr plugged a cable into the side of the keypad and attached the other end to his datapad. He gently removed the cover and whistled at what he saw. "This model is ancient. They don't even use this type of wiring anymore. It could take me a while."
Anakin grunted something unintelligible. Ben glanced at him over his shoulder. "Keep at it, Kohr."
He patted the boy on the shoulder before moving to the back of the group where Anakin was standing silently. He stopped at his grandfather's side. "Something you'd like to share with the group?"
Anakin turned away from the others and bent his head toward Ben's. "Does he realize that door is on hinges?"
"What?" Ben frowned up at him. "You mean…?"
"The keypad's not connected. It's a dummy."
"You're sure? It looks like a regular sliding door and security system to me."
Anakin smirked. "I'm positive. The hinges are on the inside. Don't worry, it probably fooled the Sith, too. I'm sure they thought their cellar was secure." He shook his head and laughed. "It's amazing what a few decades will do to your perspective."
Ben tilted his head and studied his grandfather. "Right, I keep forgetting – you're ancient, too." He ignored the look of mock hurt on Anakin's face and returned to the door. "Hold on a second, Kohr." Ben leaned his body against the door and pushed. The door creaked open, though not too loudly, and a layer of dust rained down from the frame.
On the other side of the door was a room that might once have been beautiful, but was now only a filthy, broken mess. Furniture was overturned, some of it in pieces. The carvings in the wall had been burned by blaster fire and… were those lightsaber burns? Ben crossed the room to another open archway and looked around the corner.
Two Sith soldiers were standing guard, chatting idly. Ben ducked back into the room and motioned for the others to join him. He felt the Sith students start to move; perhaps they had sensed something was wrong.
Here we go.
The soldiers turned the corner, and Ben saw their eyes go wide a split second before Kohr and Ames knocked them upside the head with the hilts of their sabers. The two men crumpled to the floor.
"Nice work," Ben said, stepping over the soldiers. Kohr and Ames bumped elbows together before bending over to retrieve their enemies' weapons. Anakin and Allana followed after, with Elias and Valin bringing up the rear.
"I thought there'd be more down here," Elias whispered, looking around.
Valin shrugged. "Maybe we should count ourselves—"
"Jedi! The Jedi are here!"
Ben pulled out his blaster – set for stun – and shot the Sith soldier who had been yelling into his comlink. The man tumbled down a flight of stone stairs at the end of the hallway and landed awkwardly at the bottom.
"—lucky," Valin finished. He sighed, drawing his lightsaber as he did so. "Oh, never mind."
Somewhere above, a siren started to go off, its high-pitched wail piercing straight to Ben's core. He winced and covered his ears for a moment before looking back at the others.
"Let's go!" he shouted over the alarm. Several lightsabers ignited, filling the gloomy darkness with turquoise, emerald, and silver light. He took one last moment to meet first Allana's eyes, then Anakin's; finally, Ben faced the stone staircase and plunged forward.
.