FOURTEEN

"Ha, caught you," Carth muttered to the ship's engine. He tugged out the windback mechanism and saw the faint fraying of the connective wires that confirmed his hunch—the hyperdrive was taking too long to spool down after a jump. It wasn't an urgent problem, but over time, the drive would wear down faster than it should. The diagnostic computer had claimed no problems. "Thought you could fool me, huh?" he said, unbolting the mechanism from its case so he could replace the wires.

He let the intricate work keep his mind off of Dustil and Pellek, who were going to investigate the source of the comm ping they had received on their third day in orbit. The signal was too weak to permit a voice contact, and they couldn't risk using the Force to confirm the source, so they were walking blind into the gods knew what. Pellek and Dustil had both assured him that they would be fine. Though Carth was glad to see the newfound ease between them, he still felt a bit like the two were reassuring the Force-blind old man so he would get off their backs and let them find their companion.

Carth heard the entrance hatch creak open. Returning so quickly meant they had either found Bastila right away, or had found evidence she had died. "Well, what did you find?" he called out of the engine room.

There was no response. The hair pricked up on the back of Carth's neck. He carefully set down the engine part and unholstered his blasters. He moved silently to the hallway, his back against the wall, and slid into the common area. He saw movement to his left and swung around, blasters up.

Case was standing in the room like she'd never left. "Hello, Carth," she said softly.

Carth stared at her, unmoving, unable to form words, barely able to form thoughts. He eventually noticed that his hands were shaking so badly he thought he might drop his blasters. He reholstered them without looking away from Case. "I thought you were dead," he managed. Carth didn't realize until the words were out that he had believed in his heart she was gone.

Tears filled Case's eyes and she walked toward him, arms out. Carth backed away, hand up to stop her. She froze, fist coming to her mouth. "Carth," she whispered.

"I thought you were dead," Carth repeated, voice rising to a near shout. "I thought you were dead! You left, you left with my son, and I didn't hear anything from you in five years. It's too long, Case. And now you show up here—" he choked on his anger.

"I did it for you, Carth, for everyone I love. I couldn't have lived with myself if I had led the Sith to you. And besides, Dustil knew I wasn't—" Case started.

"But I didn't!" Carth shouted. "I don't have a gods-damned Force Bond with you! I'm just a man, Case, and it's too much."

Case's eyes narrowed. "What's too much?" she asked quietly. "Being with a Jedi? Or being with me? Because you told me once that you knew very well what it meant to choose duty over love. Did you have a choice to fight the Mandalorians? Did you have a choice to fight me when I was Darth Revan? I had the same duty to fight the True Sith. And if you don't understand that, if you don't know that I thought about you every single day of those five years, then you're not the man I thought you were."

Carth was reminded of the last terrible argument he'd had with Ana, when he'd renewed his commission after promising he would not. He had a greater duty to the Republic than to himself, he'd told her. He remembered the dreams Case had after they destroyed the Star Forge, the look on her face when she told him she had to leave. He heard his own voice, urging her to go. But he couldn't forget the despair he felt as the weeks apart turned into years, the pity on his friends' faces as he attended another event alone. The long nights spent staring at the ceiling in an empty bed.

He stood still, unable to speak as forgiveness battled with pride.

The hope in Case's eyes dimmed. Her voice was barely a whisper. "I'm sorry," she said as she turned to go.

"Wait!" he blurted. She'd promised to come back to him. He couldn't let her leave him again. "I—I still love you, Case," he said. And he knew as soon as he said it that this, too, was true.

Then suddenly she was in his arms, and they were both crying and laughing at the same time. Carth ran his hands over her hair, down the sides of her face to her shoulders, along the sides of her body to her hips. He wanted to feel all of her to prove to himself that she was really here, that he wouldn't wake up in a cold bunk without her. He kissed her mouth, her throat, her collarbone, and reveled in her familiar smell. There were too many clothes between them. Carth backed her toward the port dormitory, still kissing her and unclasping her shirt with anxious fingers. She shoved his jacket over his shoulders before they got to the room.

He flipped her off her feet and onto his bunk in a quick move. Carth kissed his way down her body to the top of her trousers. "I've missed you, beautiful," he breathed against her stomach.

"You have no idea," Case gasped. She wiggled out of the rest of her clothes and pulled him down to her.

Their first lovemaking was like a supernova, full of heat and light and pent-up energy. Their second was quieter and more intense as they reacquainted themselves with each other. Afterward, still slippery with sweat, Case lay against his chest with her eyes closed. "I do love you, flyboy," she sighed.

Carth, on the edge of falling asleep, wrapped his arms around her. "You bet," he mumbled.

When he woke, the dim light falling from the porthole told him it was night. Case was still sprawled across him, her body beautiful and relaxed in sleep. He traced the line of her shoulder blade to her spine with his fingers. Even now, he could hardly believe she was real, that any of this was real. He wanted to ask her everything, tell her everything that had happened in the last five years, but he knew that there wasn't time. They had a mission to complete first, and as usual, their duty came first.

Case stirred and rolled away from him. She stretched her arms in front of her and Carth could barely stop himself from pulling her onto him again. She grinned, fully aware of her effect on him. "I guess you've kept in pretty good shape for a man of your age, Admiral Onasi."

On the pretense of stretching his legs, he slid a knee sideways and pushed her off of the bunk. She thudded to the ground and looked up at him with outraged eyes. "I can't say the same for your reflexes, Jedi Lanatal," he remarked.

Case huffed good-naturedly and flipped herself to her feet with the Force. She walked to the edge of the bunk and began rummaging through his footlocker. "Do you have anything my size in here?" she asked.

"I don't think so," he replied. "I'm sure Bastila or Pellek wouldn't mind if you borrowed something of theirs."

She grumbled something derogatory about Jedi robes and went across the hall to the starboard dormitory. She came back in wearing one of Bastila's robes, fumbling with the ties. Carth, who had by now rearranged his own clothes, walked to her. "Let me," he said, deftly knotting the cloth. Without looking up from his work, he asked softly, "What happened to your hands, beautiful?" He had noticed them the day before.

Case flushed and shoved her hands under her arms. Carth finished with the ties and gently took one of her hands in his own. He rubbed his thumb across her palm, feeling the calluses from her lightsaber. He stretched out her fingers slowly, stopping when she flinched away.

"I can't—I can't hold a lightsaber," she said quietly. "They used kolto without setting them first so the bones knitted this way. Startol—"

"Startol?" Carth interrupted. "He did this to you?" Anger rose in his throat, followed quickly by horror as he remembered the holo Startol showed them of Case. "We were on Vintar at the same time," he said. To think that he had left her for the Vintari to hurt—

Case shook her head and ran the back of her hand across his cheek. "It's not your fault. I pushed Dustil toward Espol because I couldn't risk him being captured, too. The Vintari are very powerful in the Force, especially their leader, and it wouldn't have done any good for us both to be in a collar. And, speaking of, we should go back to the camp. There's lots to discuss with everyone, and it will take some time to assemble the right sentients."

Carth looked at his chrono. "It's the middle of the night out there, beautiful. I don't think anyone will appreciate us waking them up. But," he stood back and grinned, "I can think of a way to pass the time. You look pretty good in those robes."

Impatience flittered across her face, but she looked at the ship chrono and then smiled. She raised a hand and the next thing Carth knew, she had Pushed him halfway across the room and back on his bunk. "Only if I get to use the Force," she said, walking toward him.

"Oh, by all means."

"No, hold your wrists like this," Bastila said. She swung her arms in an exaggerated arc to demonstrate the lightsaber form.

"Like what? That's what I'm doing." Gellan looked intently at her hands and tried to copy her movement. Unfortunately, his stance was out of alignment and he nearly flipped himself over.

"No, it's your feet—lean forward onto your toes."

"My feet? I thought it was my wrists!" Gellan said, exasperated. Bastila couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up. Gellan glared at her for a moment, then burst into laughter himself. He carefully held the lightsaber out to her. "The double blade doesn't seem to suit, Master Jedi. I think I'll stick with a blaster rifle—I'm much less likely to lose a limb."

"It takes a great deal of practice to become proficient," she reassured him. Bastila couldn't resist spinning the blade with a bit of flourish before extinguishing it and clipping it to her belt. She flushed at Gellan's open admiration, admonishing herself for soliciting it. Now that she could see Gellan with the Force, it was apparent that he had feelings for her, and she had to admit that she enjoyed the way his attention made her feel. No matter how sternly she told herself to stop doing it, she still found herself smiling at him and seeking his company at the Resistance camp.

"Look, there they are," Gellan observed, looking over Bastila's head at Case and Carth walking out of the Elder's tent. The air of authority around them both was nearly palpable. "It's not hard to believe she was Revan," he said. "Look how everyone in the camp is watching her."

Bastila looked sharply at Gellan. "How did you know that?" she asked. Only a very few at the highest level of the Fleet and the former Jedi Council truly knew of Revan's redemption. Dustil certainly wouldn't have told him, which left only— "Pellek told you, I suppose?" Bastila couldn't quite keep the peevishness out of her voice. Pellek had been in the Resistance camp for only a day and already she was causing trouble.

Gellan raised his eyebrows at Bastila's tone. "I think I should keep my sources to myself," he said, a smile playing on his lips. "But rest assured that I know enough to call Jedi Lanatal by her new name."

"Come, let us start toward the Ebon Hawk," Bastila said. The leaders of the camp and the Jedi were meeting to discuss Case's plan to attack the city. "Did you know her on Deralia?" she asked.

Gellan shook his head. "You Jedi take your initiates young, don't you? I'm sure she left Deralia before I was born. Lanatal is a fairly common name, and I imagine her family didn't advertise the connection once she became Darth Revan."

"Well, if it isn't the lovebirds," Atton interrupted, strolling up with Pellek. "And I thought we had something special, Princess," he drawled. Pellek snickered.

"I think not, Atton," Bastila huffed.

Atton and Pellek fell into step beside them, heading toward the Hawk. Atton mimed nudging Gellan in the side. "She told you the Jedi are celibate, didn't she?" he said. At Pellek's cough, he grinned. "Well, most of them, anyway."

Bastila flushed and looked sidelong at Gellan. He was doing the same to her, and winked. "And I suppose you're in high demand, Atton?" he asked lightly. "With your. . .insubstantial assets?"

Pellek burst into laughter at the look on Atton's face. After a moment, Atton joined in. "This one's okay," he said.

They continued toward the Hawk in companionable conversation. Pellek and Gellan pulled somewhat ahead, discussing something about the Ithorians and the restoration of Telos. Bastila found herself next to Atton. "Thank you," she said quietly.

He glanced at her with raised eyebrows. "For what? Razzing your boyfriend?"

"He is not my—" Bastila cut herself off. He was just trying to get a rise out of her. "No, thank you for telling me about your struggles with the Dark side of the Force. It was a great help to me while I was captured."

"Ah. Well, I wasn't worried about you, Princess. I knew you'd do right." Atton walked silently next to her for a few moments. "You know," he said, "love isn't a bad thing."

"What?" she asked, pretending she didn't know what he was talking about.

"You know all that nonsense they feed you at the Academy about love leading to the Dark side. Pellek told us that stuff, too, but it didn't stop her from loving Mira. And I happen to know that love can lead you to the Light." He kept his eyes on Pellek's back, and Bastila could see the affection on his face.

She thought of Case's forgiveness when she learned she was Revan, the look on her face when she persuaded Bastila to come back to the light, the way she smiled when Carth was near. Bastila closed her mouth on the pious aphorisms that came to her lips. Perhaps.

They reached the Ebon Hawk to find the Vintari leaders, Carth, Case, and Dustil already standing around a map of the city. The common area was crowded by the time they all packed into the room. "Welcome, everyone," Carth began, leaning casually against the far wall. "We're not here for a military briefing—we're just sorting some things out. Bastila, why don't we start with what you've discovered about the Vintari."

Bastila nodded. "As you know, the Jedi Council was destroyed on Katarr and then the last remaining Masters died on Dantooine, leaving only a few Jedi scattered around Republic space." Bastila felt a spike of pain from Pellek. "That was not where the trouble began, however. Years ago, even before the destruction of the Star Forge, the Jedi were losing young Knights. They would disappear while on missions and never be heard from again. I have been studying this problem for several years and my research led me to believe the 'True Sith' had something to do with it."

"What are these True Sith?" Royei asked. "Are they the Dark ones who enslaved our people?"

Case spoke up. "That's a good question. The Sith who conquered your planet were not the True Sith." Bastila saw the hard line of Case's jaw and realized she hadn't told the Vintari that she had been the conqueror. "Dustil and I have been seeking the True Sith for the last several years, and we found traces of them all over the Unknown Regions. I don't know how, but Vintar has something to do with them."

"The True Sith are a belief," Bastila said slowly, remembering Follani's words.

"What did you say?" Pellek asked, color draining from her face.

Bastila didn't understand Pellek's fear. "That's what Follani—Tepai, really, told me in the prison. They have some kind of device that they use to take the Force from the sentients there." And abruptly, Bastila was back there, staring at the collection device, unable to do anything, unable to feel the Force. She gasped for breath.

She felt a hand on the small of her back and then Gellan's presence warmly in the Force. "You're all right," he said quietly, to her alone. "We're not there anymore."

Bastila caught her breath and calmed herself. The others in the room were watching her with concerned expressions. She smiled brief thanks to Gellan and clasped her hands hard in front of her. "My apologies," she said. "It was a. . .difficult experience. As I was saying, Tepai and Startol are using the Force they take in the prison for something, but I was not able to discover their purpose."

Carth spoke up. "I may be able to contribute something here." He played a recording of what sounded like Mission reporting from Telos. After the recording finished, he explained, "The transmission of energy or whatever it was came from Vintar. Is it possible that they're sending the Force energy they take from the prison into these holocrons? And why would they do that?"

Case looked thoughtful. "That explains a lot of what Dustil and I found," she said. "I'm willing to bet that there are silos like the one on Telos on each of the planets we found. It sounds to me like Tepai is providing Force power to other Sith and letting them do her dirty work. These new Sith that are just voids in the Force would need that power—by controlling their energy reserves, Tepai can direct them to do whatever she wants."

"That explains why the Sith we found on Espol told me that he had sent you to his masters," Dustil observed. "But how long has this been going on?"

"I have known Tepai for a very long time," Royei said. Her headfur was a somber dark gray. "She is very strong in the Force, and very strong in her harva, you say perhaps pride. She believed strongly in the Jedi when they came, and their betrayal was devastating. Startol was raised to take a place on the darjuki council and the people of Vintar are his highest concern. I think they truly believe they are protecting our people."

"By enslaving and killing sentients?" Pellek asked, outraged. "How can you justify what those animals have done?"

Royei raised her hands. "Peace, Jedi. I do not endorse this evil. But we cannot make decisions with incomplete knowledge. Even if Tepai believes she is protecting our people, this has turned to madness. She will not stop until all of the Force-users are destroyed."

"All right," Carth summarized, "if I understand things, Tepai and Startol were looking for a way to defeat the Sith, found a holocron, fell to the Dark side, and started capturing Force-users to harvest the Force from. They send the collected Force power to storage areas on a few Dark planets, and then direct the new Sith that feed on the Force on various attacks."

"It won't work," Pellek observed darkly. "They'll eventually lose control of the Sith. Those new Sith won't stop until they've consumed everything in the galaxy."

"But where do they come from?" Case asked. "These new Sith are real, believe me. They didn't appear from nowhere." No one had an answer for that. Case frowned and pointed to the map. "Well, let's at least talk about something concrete. We have to destroy the prison, now, before they realize that we're planning to attack."

"Now?" Bastila asked, surprised. It was one thing to plan a quick attack when they were cut off from the Republic, but it was foolhardy to rush in alone now. "Why would we not wait for the Fleet?"

Case waved a hand dismissively. "It'll take months for the Senate to decide to do anything. We can't wait that long. Can't you feel it in the Force? We have to stop it while we still can!"

"She's right," Pellek agreed. "We're on the cusp of something here."

"I do not disagree with you," Bastila said, "but how are we to defeat them? They have an army, or at least a police force, and we have twenty untrained Force Adepts, a Fleet Admiral, and a handful of Jedi. Suicide helps no one."

"You'd be right if there weren't rooms full of Force Adepts waiting to be liberated," Case retorted. She had that determined grin on her face that Bastila had become very familiar with. "We'll make a dual strike, one to the headquarters where Carth has been, and one to the prison where you and I have been. If we hit the headquarters first, they should drop their guard at the prison, and we'll be able to get in and release the prisoners. If even a few of them are trained Jedi, we can use them to finish the attack. Once Tepai and Startol are out of the picture, the rest will fall."

"There should be enough weaponry on the Hawk to outfit the attack decently," Carth said. "But I'm concerned about using civilians for this mission. Elder Royei, I respect the Resistance, but if your people panic under fire, they'll put us all in jeopardy."

Royei nodded respectfully. "Your concern is valid, Admiral, but we are not wholly untrained."

Limae burst into the conversation. "We train, we fight," she said angrily. "You not see fear. Do your job, we do our job."

"My Battle Mediation should help keep the fighters together," Bastila contributed reluctantly. She knew that Case was right—months would go by before the Senate finished debating and authorized a Fleet strike. And as much as she personally wanted to see the prison destroyed, she knew that removing the Dark threat from the galaxy was her duty as a Jedi.

The group fell into discussion about the potential outcomes of the attack and the best means to accomplish it. Out of the corner of her eye, Bastila saw Pellek's other ghost, the Zabrak, appear next to her. He and Pellek began an intense whispered conversation that was drowned out by the group's discussion. Pellek began angrily but the anger was slowly replaced by a blankness that Bastila couldn't read. "We have to destroy the new Sith at the same time," Pellek announced. "It'll be distracted if its masters are distracted."

Case looked up from the map, respect in her eyes. "You're right," she said. "I didn't think of that. How many will you need?"

"I can do it alo—" Pellek began.

"I'll go with you," Dustil interrupted. "I have a score to settle with that Sith."

Everyone went back to the maps, satisfied that the problem was solved. But Bastila saw both Atton and the Zabrak standing to the side, watching the Exile with worried eyes. Pellek had something planned, something her ghosts didn't like at all. The Force shimmered around Pellek the way it often did around Case. Destiny was hovering around her.

Bastila wondered if Pellek would return from Telos at all.