As the Arrowhead flew through hyperspace, both Mara and Avlis sat at the lounge table of the ship studying the symbols on their hands. Using a piece of paper, they attempted to draw the symbols and put them together in a way that made sense. The details on their palms were intricate and almost too small to make out. As they drew the map out, T.R-07 couldn't help but glance back from the pilot seat every now and then.

"Do you need any help?" Asked the droid.

"We have it under control, T.R-07," Mara insisted.

Avlis put down his writing utensil for a moment and glanced at their pilot with a raised brow, "Isn't that a maintenance droid? Why is he the pilot?"

"He knows the ship better than any pilot droid," Mara answered, "At least that's what he tells me."

Since coming aboard the ship, Mara seemed more relaxed than when they last met. It was strange not having her try to kill him, but he appreciated the peace none the less.

"So, what does Vader think we're doing right now?" Avlis asked, "Does he think you're torturing me for information or something?"

"You're chatty, today," Mara pointed out, "Can't we focus on the map?"

"I'm just trying to get to know my new partner."

"Don't push it, Jedi."

Though they established peace, she was still resistant to allow him closer to her, despite the fact that their emotions were still connected. He could easily feel her restraint and unease. Perhaps he couldn't blame her, since he felt that same sense of unease for her.

"Here we go," Mara put their two pieces of paper together. The illustrations formed a pattern of lines and dots, mimicking that of a star chart. From what she could make out, it was a map to a planet she hadn't been to before, "The chart leads to a planet called …Tatooine."

"Never been. What is it?" He asked.

"I don't know; I haven't been their either. Whatever we need to find is there, though, so that's our next destination," She got up and collected the papers before bringing them to their pilot, "Take us to Tatooine, T.R-07."

"Uh," The little droid seemed uneasy for a moment, mimicking the human action of twiddling his fingers as he struggled to keep his gaze on her, "If you want, Ms. Dane, you can uh …you can call me Troy."

"Troy?"

"Yeah! You know …T-R-0-7 looks like Troy. I figured since we're spending all this time together, we should start calling each other by our names."

"…Okay then," she shrugged, "Take us to Tatooine, Troy."

"Aye aye!" he shouted excitedly before punching in the coordinates and taking off at hyper speed.

…

The planet they arrived on wasn't what they had expected. The first planet where they met was one of whimsy; temples on small islands in a planet of water. This was the exact opposite of that, with most of the planet being covered in sand and dust and caves. This motivated Avlis to change into something a bit thinner considering the intense heat readings. His outfit looked the same mostly, just with less layers. Mara, however, chose not to change out of her sleeveless outfit, claiming it was made to be breathable and usable in any environment.

When Avlis saw her equip her lightsaber to her hilt, he knew he had to say something, "Mara, don't bring that."

"Excuse me?" She scoffed, "Why not?"

"Because I'm thinking we'll have to talk to some people here to figure out where we are going, and no one trusts someone from the Empire."

"Or—and this is a big one— I talk to my Empire friends stationed here and THEY tell us where to go."

"I thought we were doing this for US?"

She almost forgot they had sworn that this journey wasn't for the benefit of either side. Destiny brought them together and that's the reason they would see it through. Yet, she didn't understand why they couldn't at least use all the resources they have available.

"Avlis," She spoke, "I can contact someone here who can help us. The Empire wants me on this trail so they'll be more than happy to help."

"Yes, but—"

Mara approached him, getting right up in his face, "Do you want to find your master, or not?"

"Why, so you can kill him?"

"I just might kill YOU if you don't do things MY way."

"Hm," He smirked, "You know what you are? You're difficult."

"I'm a glass of wine, hun."

"Whoever you marry is gonna have a hard time."

"I'm sure she'll love the challange."

Troy couldn't help but look back at them awkwardly. Though he was a robot, he could still feel the tension between the two warriors, "We've been hovering in the town landing zone for some time … should I bring us to ground level?"

"…Yes," Mara answered, "Bring us down and I'll contact the sergeant Storm Trooper in this area."

Avlis felt defeated, knowing it was probably the best option anyway. The Empire controls this planet; it makes sense they would know everything about the landscape and what was on it. He just didn't like getting too close to the empire considering his past with them, and the men who lead them, "Ok, fine," He said, "I'm hiding my saber though. Only thing worse than being with the Empire these days is being a Jedi."

"For once, I HUMBLY agree."

Avlis moved his saber from his hilt to under his top, where no troopers would be able to see it. He wasn't sure how many of them were aware he was working with Mara, and he didn't want to take that chance.

Mara lead herself and Avlis out into the scorching suns of Tatooine. They wore cloaks over their bodies that were designed to avoid the harsh rays, but that didn't stop them from sweating. Mara kept ahead while Avlis struggled just to keep up. She walked with purpose, and he couldn't help but admire that despite how annoying it was.

The towns structures and buildings were made from some kind of material likely mined from local caves; different rocks and minerals were used as the base and colored to look like the sand. It you were flying overhead then you wouldn't notice the town at all, as long as you weren't looking. Different aliens and species roamed, standing rather far apart from each other. No one trusted one another—that much was clear. They'd fit right in.

Mara lead them to a local bar, where music was being played by a band and drinks were served in the center. There was a small magnetic field in the front entrance that didn't allow droids in the bar. It was a good thing they left Troy behind on the ship, or they would have caused a scene faster than they could clean it up. After telling Avlis to hang out by some empty tables, she approached the far corner of the bar, where a Storm Trooper was waiting.

He wasn't wearing his helmet, having taken it off to enjoy his meal. This was the time she had messaged him about, including the inquisitor emblem in that message. That's when he knew it was serious. Though, when she approached him, he expected one of the more well-known Inquisitors, and not one in training.

Still, orders were orders and she outranked him.

"Mara Dane," Said the Storm Trooper, "How can I be of service today?"

Mara sat down across from him before answering his question, "Lord Vader sent me on a mission and I need your intel. Anything about this planet—specifically this area—that I should know about, you need to tell me."

"Quite vague, isn't it?"

She lowered her brow, "Don't question my orders, sergeant."

"I know you're trying to be scary, but it won't work as well until you get a few scars on your face," he joked, "I know all about your little quest from Vader."

"Do you know anything or not?"

He sighed, leaning back on his chair, "Just one thing. We continue getting weird frequencies from a set of caves not far out west of here, but every time we investigate, we don't find anything. I suggest following the signal and starting there. Maybe the Force can find something my men can't."

"It's the Dark Side," She corrected, "The Force is used only by Jedi."

"Like THAT one?"

The sergeant pointed to Avlis, who was leaning on a wall discreetly in the corner. He tried his best not to attract any attention, but oddly enough, looking NORMAL Is what got someone eyes on them in places like this. The only thing he could do when people stared was to look at his own feet.

"He's doing a terrible job at hiding in plain sight," Said the sergeant, "We heard that you forced a Jedi to help you on this little mission. You know what Vader plans to do with him after?"

"'Break his spirit' were the words."

"Which probably means 'make him an inquisitor'. Better get used to working with him, because it may never end."

She had suspected that was what Vader had meant, but truthfully, she didn't want to think about it. She had the choice to become an Inquisitor and reveal her force-sensitivity to the empire, but some Jedi who get caught are forced into the practice. They are tortured and broken until they have no choice but to submit. If that happened to Avlis, would she feel it?

The sergeant wished her well as she got up and left the table. She wasted no time rushing out of the building as Avlis hastily followed her.

"So?" Avlis asked, "What did he say?"

"That you're terrible at hiding in plain sight."

He stopped for a moment in offense before continuing to walk with her, struggling to push through the sand, "I meant about where we need to go."

"OOoooh, of course, obviously," She sassed, "There's a series of caves west of here that give off a strange frequency; best place to start, he said."

"Should we take the Arrowhead?"

"He said it isn't far," She stopped suddenly, making him stumble, "And we don't wanna waste fuel on something like that. We can rent some speeders."

As if fate made it so, they heard the voice of a man calling out sales as he stood before a set of seven speeders. That sort of coincidence was not something to ever be ignored, not when one is connected to the Force.

"How many imperial credits do you have?" Avlis asked.

She froze with a tight expression as she squinted her eyes. It had only now occurred to her she had not brought any credits with her, having left them on the ship with the rest of her stuff. She didn't need to say anything since Avlis could feel her self-pity.

"Oh, come on!" he shouted at her, "We come to a town known for its odd sales and you don't bring any credits?!"

"I left them in my other pants! I was in a rush!"

"Your 'other' pants, that is rich. Too bad we AREN'T. You gonna flash your lightsaber and just take the speeders?"

The fact that she actually considered that for a moment was astounding, and Avlis has to put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from doing so.

"No! No! Just …lemme try something," He asked desperately.

This time it was Avlis leading her as they moved to the man selling speeders. They were greeted politely, which they knew was only because the man wanted their money. The moment he would find out they didn't have any, he'd probably just shoo them away. Still, Avlis greeted him with a smile as he shook his hand, "What can I do for you?" The man asked.

"Those are some great speeders!" Avlis complimented, "You're running a pretty great business here!"

The man was flattered and put at ease, "Why, thank you! I only get the best!"

Having now lured the man in, Avlis waved his hand left to right and said "You want to give us these speeders, for my kindness."

"I want to give you these speeders, for your kindness," The man said confidently.

"You're so grateful we're taking these speeders," he waved his hand again.

"I'm so grateful you're taking these speeders."

"You're gonna go on your break now."

"I'm gonna go on my break now."

After giving Avlis the keys to two speeders, the man happily went on his break and left the area completely unattended. Mara knew he had used the Force on him, but she had never actually seen it used like that, or at least, the Empire never trained her to do it. What had he done? Mind control? Inception? "How did you do that?" he asked.

"Old Jedi mind trick," He said, "Only works on those with a weak will, or those who let their guard down. Notice I complimented him before doing it? Made him feel safe and open, so I could make him say and do whatever I tell him to."

"…I'll give you credit," She grinned, "That was good. You're gonna teach me sometime."

"Maybe."

"No, you will."

After rolling his eyes, he tossed her one of the keys and they hopped on the speeders, turning them on and driving off as a cloud of dust was left behind.

…

Their two speeders flew across the ocean of sand, leaving a trail of dust in their wake that burned the air. They must have been riding for but fifteen minutes before finally finding the caves spoken of by the sergeant. It was a small mountainside, with many different cave entrances. Where were they supposed to start? What could they find that the Storm Troopers didn't?

"Can you feel that?" Asked Mara, as she had begun feeling a strong source of energy the moment they had arrived, so much so that she could feel it in the tingling of her fingers.

"It's the Force," Said Avlis, "It's really strong here."

The marks on their hands began to burn again, now changing their inscriptions just like they had before. Instead of a star map, it was now two lines that came together and pointed in a specific direction. When they would move their hands, the arrow would move as well to remain consistent.

They got off their speeders and approached the caves, staying in the direction they were being led in. They brought themselves to a single cave entrance, where the symbols on their hands vanished at the very moment they entered it. It was too dark for them to see anything, yet they continued to press forward. The further In they went, the stronger that energy became to them. It was almost like a scent so strong that it made ones nose twitch from the strength of it.

Again, their hands changed their symbols into those they saw in the previous temple, this time glowing like flashlights. Their signal cued the falling of rocks that closed the entrance behind them, covering them in complete darkness, where only the light of their palms could guide them.

At the end of the cave was a dead end, at least that was how it appeared. The glowing symbols on their hands had responded to the cave, and identical symbols appeared on the save walls, illuminating the tunnel with red and blue light. The tunnel began to open further in as the boulder covering their exit lifted.

They entered the deepest part of the cave through the new entrance and found a much larger room. This one was beautifully carved out of the inside of the small mountainside. Pillars kept the ceiling up as statues surrounded the room. It held the same energy as the temple on Tanqua. Fascinating that the sergeant never found this, not even with seismic scanners. Then again, it seems as though these temples are only found when they want to be.

Mara couldn't help but be on guard seeing the statues that surrounded them. Thankfully, she and Avlis had brought both their own and the white sabers with them. This time, they're prepared.

Hopefully.

Once more, they found two doors on the other side of the room, leading into two different rooms. One had red symbols drawn on the door, and the other had blue. It was obvious the temple wanted them to separate again; it seemed to be the theme of these tests.

"What are we trying to prove to it?" Avlis asked as Mara gave him a strange look, "I mean, it's putting us through these trials but why? To prove we're strong enough? Smart enough? What is it about us that the temples want to see?"

"I think you're reading too much into it."

"One thing the Jedi taught me is that everything has a hidden meaning, and those with the Force can discover it."

"They sounded pretentious."

"…Yeah," He shrugged.

There was no wish of luck, simply a nod to one another before they approached their respective doors. The runes written on them responded quickly and opened for them, revealing different rooms for each of them. As they entered, the doors closed, separating them for the time being.

…

Mara found herself in an empty room; no statues, no tests, and no other doors. The only way out was the way she came in, so whatever this test was, it was going to happen right here. The lack of pulley-systems or other devices told her she only had to wait until something happened, and she hated waiting. Impatience was one of the many traits of an Inquisitor.

All the light of the room faded away and everything became pitch black. She could feel the Force all around her, hugging her body with a warmth that wasn't there before. In the void of darkness, she heard a faint and familiar voice, one that sent shivers down her spine.

"Execute Order 66."

The light returned but she was no longer in the temple, at least not the same one. Now, she was in a new room, much smaller than the last. It was a training room held high above a large city. She recognized it now as Coruscant, the Imperial Capital of the Empire. Except, it didn't look as she knew it. The design was very different; older.

She could hear the whispers of children, hidden behind the chairs in the corner. After approaching them, she found many younglings and padawans hiding in fear, fear that she could sense like a powerful aroma. Was this another vision? Is this the past, present or future?

Looking outside, she saw lasers firing on the walkways below as lightsabers were swung, illuminating the night with their neon glows. One by one, however, the sabers went out and dropped into the city below as the bodies of their owners fell. She could feel every one of their deaths as though it were her own, but it wasn't her own.

It was his.

Hidden in the back behind all the younglings was a boy she recognized. He was younger and smaller than she knew him, but it was him none the less; it was Avlis. He was wearing a training uniform, clutching his saber like his life depended on it. The sheer amount of fear coming from him was unbearable.

"When will master Malga come back?" Asked one youngling.

"She'll be back!" Said a padawan, "She wouldn't leave us like that!"

All while the little ones chatted, Avlis remained silent in the corner. She couldn't help but approach him and kneel down. Seeing him as a child made her feel more pity than she had for the real him. It wasn't enough to just see his tears crawling down his face, but she felt where those tears came from and it made her heart ache.

"…It's OK," She whispered to him, gently taking the boy into her arms, though he had not noticed her presence, "You're OK."

It was strange, but the little Avlis seemed to actually calm down as she grasped him. He didn't know why he was feeling calmer, only that he felt protected and safer than a moment ago. That rush of compassion she felt shed tears from her own eyes as well. She hadn't felt something like this for a very long time, not since joining the empire. Is this how they made EVERYONE feel? When the Empire takes a planet over, is this the true fear they feel? She knew they scared people, and that no one liked them, but this amount of grieve and dread was one she never could have imagined.

And this all came from just one person.

The door to the room opened behind them as she let young Avlis go, and a man in a dark cloak appeared. As he entered the room, the younglings and padawan emerged from their hiding places and approached him, suddenly feeling safe now that a Jedi master was here. One boy, young and naïve, came the closest and begged the man "Master Skywalker, there are too many of them. What are we going to do?"

The man just looked at him with those horrible orange eyes as his saber ignited.

Before Mara could understand what was happening, the cloaked man brought his saber down on the boy. The youngling had died instantly as the blade passed through his body, and Mara could only watch in horror. The younglings screamed and tried to run away as the man slashed through them. Only a few managed to get away.

The cloaked man now approached Avlis who hid in the corner. Mara tried to stand between them, yelling at him to stop, but he passed through her like she was a ghost. The young Avlis was too scared to even ignite his saber as the man raised his own. Mara shouted Avlis's name, begging him to run.

As the saber was brought down, it never made contact with the boy. Instead, his scream of terror unleashed a Force reverb that shattered all the windows and shoved the man back. This was not the Force that Mara felt from him. This was fear and anger and remorse that fueled his power in ways she saw from very few.

This was the Dark Side.

The ground crumbled and the walls cracked from his rage, and it forced the man to retreat back to the door as he used his saber to cut through debris that came flying his way, thrown from the child's angry mind.

"Avlis!" Mara tried to approach him, "It's OK, Avlis! You can stop now! Avlis!"

Another man came in with a lightsaber in hand, using the Force to push the cloaked warrior away. The newcomer quickly carried Avlis into his arms and brought him out of the room, observing the destruction he found with horror and awe, knowing it came from the boy.

When he carried Avlis away, the vision had ended.

Mara fell to her knee's, now back in the temple.

In all her torture and training, never had she felt anything like that. Her anger and remorse were not her own, but it felt so strong that it might as well have been. She knew Order 66 was what kicked off the Empires rule, but she never imagined it looked anything like that. The amount of pain he was in, seeing all of his friends die by the hand of someone they seemed to have trusted, she never thought he had endured something like that.

If this is what she was shown, what was Avlis seeing right now?

…

Avlis entered the room as it closed itself off and the lights went out. He could not see anything in front of him, or even feel the room in the Force. The room felt cold, like something was jabbing at his skin. It wasn't cold like the planet Hoth, but the air was stiff. He could hear echoes coming from the void and voices he didn't recognize.

"You have to, Mara."

The darkness faded away and he found himself in a small house. It was cold and metallic, like a cheap apartment building on a city planet like Coruscant. Sitting on the kitchen table was a young girl, a younger version of the one he knew as Mara Dane. Her hair was longer, and she was dressed in grey clothing. In front of the young Mara were two adults, likely her parents.

"You have to hide your power," Said the mother, "We don't want the Empire to find you."

"I'm not scared of them!" She shouted, "They can't hurt me!"

"Yes, they can!" Said the father, "You aren't like other children, Mara. You're special, and the Empire don't like people that are special. When they come today, you have to behave. Understand?"

She didn't want to behave; she hated that. She was stronger than any of the kids in her classes but she always had to hide it. Being a child, she felt unstoppable, like she could take out the entire Empire if she wanted. Yet, that possibility made her parents scared. Why were they scared, and what of? Of her power? Of HER?

A knock on the door made them jump in fear. A voice called out, "Imperial Inspection!" as two Storm Troopers came in without warning. They kept their guns pointed at the family as they approached them. Avlis's instinct was to stop them, but he knew there was no point. None of this was real; it had already happened and he couldn't change it.

"There have been rumors of a force-sensitive in this apartment building," Said a trooper, "If you know anything, you are required to report any and all suspected individuals to the Empire or face the consequences."

They knew that if they lied, and then Mara was discovered, the punishment would have been death. Mara knew this two, even if she didn't realize this. "Stop yelling at them!"

"Stay out of this, kid," he said, pointing his gun at her.

The father tried to step in front of him to protect her, and the trooper instinctively pulled the trigger. The bolt hit his shoulder and sent him to one knee, holding it in agony. In a fit of rage, Mara used the Dark Side and choked the trooper from afar. The other trooper kept his gun pointed at her, but didn't dare fire. The trooper she choked tried to hold his neck and ease the tension, but found it just wasn't possible. "Mara! Enough!" The mother shouted.

Her mother's voice made her flinch and release the trooper quickly. Seeing the fear in her eyes only brought shame upon Mara, knowing what she had done was exactly what she was told not to do.

After the trooper had recovered, he spoke again with a raspy voice "We're taking the girl with us."

The parents wanted to argue, but they knew any resistance meant death. All they could do was watch as Mara was escorted out of the room by the Storm Troopers, and the door was shut behind them.

The room went dark again, and though there were no images, he felt unbelievable pain throughout his body as though he was being hit with a dozen shock batons. The screams of Mara Dane filled the void as flashes of her pain filled his mind. He could see the torture chamber she spent so much time in, where Vader would watch her as electricity hit her every nerve, all to make her more powerful, and more obedient.

A finally blood curdling scream eradicated the darkness and sent Avlis back into the temple he arrived in with her. He had just felt three years' worth of torture and pain all in a few moments. It was enough to make him fall to his knees, tears in his eyes from the overwhelming pain. Is this what she had been through after Order 66? Is this what they did to Inquisitors?

No wonder she was so afraid.

…

The wall that divided Mara and Avlis's room had raised, making the two rooms into one. Avlis found Mara on her knees as well, crying just as he was. Seeing each other, they felt their connection once again as they felt each other's hearts and minds. It took no words to understand what they had just been through.

They crawled over to the center before sitting with their knees to their chests.

"I saw …Coruscant," Mara said quietly, "I saw you as a child …and that cloaked man with the orange eyes …"

"Did you …hug my young self by any chance?" he asked.

"I did …why?"

"I remember …feeling a moment of calm before everything went wrong, as though someone was holding me, telling me it would be ok …how is that possible?

She didn't know how to answer him, instead responding by asking, "What did YOU see?"

"You," He answered, "And your parents, the day the Empire recruited you. I felt …so much pain and torture. I never knew that's what they put you through …you never had a choice in becoming who you are."

"I chose to reveal myself to protect my family. I chose the Empire, in a way, so everything that came after was my own doing."

"No, it wasn't," he looked at her with sympathy, "What they did to you was not your fault."

"…Why did that Jedi kill …those younglings?"

It was not a story he liked to tell, but if she had really seen his past, then there was no point in hiding it from her, especially when she could feel what he felt, "Anakin Skywalker. He was a Jedi Knight, one of the best in the order. He was so confident and strong, everyone respected him. He was almost perfect, except that he broke the biggest rule in the Jedi book; he fell in love."

"Always hated that rule."

"So did he. He wanted more than anything to protect the one he loved. When he discovered the Dark Side could give him powers that may protect her …he gave into it, and was seduced by a Sith Lord."

"…Palpatine?"

"Yeah, the Emperor himself. He convinced Anakin to help him with Order 66, and slaughtered the Jedi."

"Where is he now?"

He was surprised she didn't know the truth, but perhaps that's just something the man himself kept hidden for his own sake, "You know him better as Darth Vader."

Mara looked at him now with shock and disbelief. One of the most feared men in the Empire; who brought rein and destruction everywhere he went, was once as Jedi knight? A force for good? "Darth Vader was a Jedi?"

"And he betrayed us …he betrayed us all with his dark deeds."

"Avlis …I'm so sorry."

"…Me too."

They turned their bodies to face one another, and Mara leaned in to hug him for which he responded in kind. The pain they harbored from their visions was too much to hold alone, but it became easier when they had each other. Neither of them thought they'd understand the other, let alone feel empathy, but they do now. They no longer felt like enemies; in this moment, they just may have become friends.

After releasing the hug, they wiped their tears away and Avlis stood up. He reached out his hand for her, and she happily accepted his help.

Their hands began to burn again with new symbols and illustrations. It was a new set of star charts for both of them, leading to a new location. Suddenly, a pillar began to rise out of the ground before them. Inside the pillar was an empty space. Inside they found two pairs of clothes; uniforms in shades of grey. What was strange is that they looked almost exactly like what they were already wearing, only sleeker and in different colors. It was as though they were meant for them.

They each picked up their respective pairs of clothes, carrying them under their arms.

"So," Avlis asked, "Where to now?"