Chapter 16
Drake found himself waking up in the early hours of the morning. This was not because he couldn't sleep but because he chose to. With the Ebon Hawk landed on Kashyyyk before dawn, now was the best time to go to the Shadowlands to find the star map, that way the more dangerous creatures would still be sleeping.
Drake looked down to see Bastila still fast asleep, her head on his chest and her right arm wrapped around his waist. Her angelic face had a contented smile planted on her features and her breathing was calm and tranquil, as she lay undisturbed, her body pressed to his, as she had done during the night not because they did anything but because she needed to feel him close to her.
Carefully and quietly so as not to wake her, Drake manoeuvred out of the bunk and silently got dressed into a black-form fitting t-shirt, with a black leather jacket, dark leather trousers and boots. Picking up his black knuckle gloves and clipping his lightsaber to his waist, he looked towards the bunk as Bastila shifted in her sleep and she faced out of the bunk.
Smiling softly Drake knelt down and gazed at her for a few seconds before brushing the back of his hand down her cheek softly. Bastila gave a small sigh mixed with a tired moan, and she shifted a little more, but did not open her eyes, though Drake could tell she was awake.
"What time is it?" she whispered slightly. Drake smiled lovingly as he continued to stroke her face.
"Not yet dawn…" he replied as he went to stand but her hand grasped his gently.
"Where're you going?" she kept her eyes closed but he could hear the anxiousness in her voice.
"Down to the Shadowlands, to find the star map…" her grip tightened slightly as he spoke and he could feel her reluctance for him to leave, as clearly as he could feel the grip on his hand.
"At this time?" she pressed softly.
"The more dangerous shadowland animals will still be asleep…" he knelt back down and kissed her hand. "I won't be long…" she nodded but continued to hold his hand.
"Be careful…" Drake smiled and lent down to kiss her lips softly.
"Go back to sleep…" he whispered against her lips. Bastila sighed with a smile and he withdrew his hand from hers, planting a kiss on her forehead. Drake then stood up and left the dormitory slipping on his knuckle gloves as Bastila drifted back into peaceful slumber.
Drake silently moved through the ship making sure that the souls on board remained undisturbed but was surprised to see the entrance ramp already lowered. Moving down it, he saw Falcan standing on the landing pad looking over the forests, his red-leather trench coat flapping in the breeze, his black scaled shirt and dark red trousers fluttering in the wind. His two heavy zabrak pistols were at his waist and his sword sheathed on his back. Drake approached and Falcan turned to him.
"Morning…" Drake nodded as Falcan returned his attention the forests.
"Something wrong?" Drake asked.
"Nothing's wrong brother…" a friendly term that had developed between the two as they were both Deralian's and former slaves "Just in need of some distraction"
"Well how about we find the star map and get out of here?" Drake replied as he telekinetically raised the boarding. Falcan smirked.
"Sure I could use the exercise but what about the force field in place in the shadowlands?"
"Don't you worry about that after seeing Jolee do it, I'll be able to manage that" With that the two Deralians headed down the walkway towards the exit of the former Czerka landing pad.
The bounty hunter and Jedi made their way over the numerous walkways of Kashyyyk heading to the shadowland. The kinrath they encountered were nothing more than pests and were quickly dealt with.
Drake was able to work the basket down to the shadowlands with ease, but that still didn't mean that the twos breath wasn't taken away by the beauty of Kashyyyk's wildlife even if this was the second time they had descended into the depths of Kashyyyk. It was the kind of beauty that one would remember yet always be in awe of no-matter how many times they saw it.
After reaching the bottom of the descent they began moving through the shadowlands. Drake was right, none of the carnivores they had encountered before when they came to Kashyyyk were roaming the area. Falcan kept a careful leather clad hand on his sword hilt all the same as they moved through the shadowlands.
Reaching the "subtle" barrier Czerka had placed during their time here, Drake approached it and calmly and slowly moved his hand over to the left. Within a couple of seconds the barrier disappeared and simply left a void for them to walk through.
"Shall we?" Drake asked.
"After you" Falcan replied knowing Drake would have it no other way.
Upon entering the deeper shadowlands they noticed two mandalorian poachers waiting for them, vibroswords ready.
"You've got to be kidding me…" Falcan groaned "Canderous should've got them all"
"Obviously not" Drake replied.
"May I?" Falcan inquired as he drew his long sword from his back, Drake smirked.
"All yours brother" Falcan nodded and moved forward. The mandalorian hunters attacked. Falcan neatly parried the first strike, and then leaned back to avoid the second one's sweep for his skull then using one blow parried both their attacks.
The fight was fast-paced and quick; Falcan had it won from the get-go. The final exchange was over in a heartbeat. Falcan ducked a strike at his head and slammed his foot into the man's knee breaking it, before slicing the fallen man through the neck. As he dropped Falcan turned round to parry a stab, his blade angled towards the ground. He viciously left hooked the final poacher causing him to spin round, and then drove his sword through the man's back, severing his spine and killing him.
Falcan flicked his blade and the blood whipped off of it and then he spun it backwards around his hand before sheathing it on his back.
"Impressive" Drake commented as he approached. Falcan shrugged and then both began to sense the powerful dark presence of the star map.
"Feel that?" Falcan asked as he looked around the area, unable to see too much but knowing there was something out there.
"Yeah…that way" Drake said pointing to the pathway in front of them.
The two walked down the pathway they saw the shimmering hologram of a strange looking alien on the platform. Next to it stood the unmistakable form of the star map.
"What do you reckon there's probably some kind of test involved?" Falcan muttered. Drake nodded and stood up to the platform.
"Life forms detected, neural scan complete…preliminary match found" Falcan and Drake looked at each other.
"Match found?" Drake muttered "How do I access the star map?" he asked.
"Access to star map denied, restriction 100 per cent, you do not fit the exact memory patterns in my database, you must first be tested" the hologram replied.
"Told you" Falcan said smugly Drake rolled his eyes
"Great and if I pass your test"
"I can't say, memory corrupted"
"And if I fail…"
"Then you will be dealt with…" Drake inclined his head to Falcan who drew his sword.
"Very well you may begin your test" Drake replied,
"Evaluation commencing: You and Zaalbar are captured. You face charges of murder and treason. If you accuse Zaalbar, face either two years in prison if he is innocent, or none if he is found guilty. If you both stay silent, you face either one year in prison, or five if you are guilty. What do you do?"
Drake thought for a second, he did not know much of Zaalbar's family and despite his loathing of it, he knew the answer the machine sort "I'd accuse Zaalbar just to be safe" Falcan raised an eyebrow but remained silent.
"Correct: Treachery is common in Zaalbar's family and you have wisely traded two years for none…evaluation continuing…Hypothetical: you are at war. Your spies intercept a transmission that says there will be a weakness in the enemy's forces in ten days. The enemy will attack your city in five days. What do you do?"
Drake thought quickly sizing up every option and calculation quickly "I attack the enemy forces in ten days"
"Correct: By attacking in ten days you have achieved victory and stopped further loss of life. Had you evacuated the city the war would continue and more lives would be lose" Falcan nodded seeing the logic in the strategy.
"Hypothetical: Same situation as before, but you are not at war. Your Republic has stagnant and decaying, and your people have grown complacent. Your enemies are small and weak, but you learn that they will attack you in five days. What do you do?"
"I let the attack happen" Drake replied bitterly.
"Correct: In doing so your people would rally against the common enemy under you leadership. Evaluation complete, match to memory banks found, commencing opening of star map system shutting down" with that the hologram flickered and died.
Drake cracked his neck in frustration as Falcan copied the data from the star map again being new space-roots.
"You made those decisions and people died" Falcan stated, "that's the price of war" Drake nodded sadly.
"Yeah…those decisions are hard to make…but try not to get anybody killed… and you end up getting everybody killed" Drake said somewhat wisely. Falcan nodded.
"Let's get outta here…Manaan is next" the two left the machine in the forest, dead and untamed as the star map slowly died down into nothingness.
The journey back was not very eventful, not even a stray kinrath to bother them. The Delarians walked off the basket when reaching the walkways and then Drake sensed something near the Ebon Hawk.
"Something's at the Ebon Hawk" He stated Falcan looked at him and then sensed it to.
"Who is it?" Falcan asked as they broke out into a run, heading for the landing pad. Drake's eyes narrowed.
"Xor" Falcan snarled as the two pelted for the Ebon Hawk.
Bursting through the door of the landing pad, Drake unclipped his saber as Falcan drew one of his blasters. Reaching the landing pad they saw Bastila, Juhani, Mission, Jolee and Zaalbar standing confronting Xor and his rodian thugs.
"There is she is boys!" they heard Xor utter "Remember I want the Cathar alive" Drake suddenly just vanished from Falcans side. The bounty came to a stop at the end of the landing pad, as Drake remateralised in front of Juhani much Xor's shock.
"I guess you never learn" Drake growled, "Juhani is my friend and if you want her, you'll have to deal with me as well" Bastila stepped next to him.
"And me" she joined in unclipping her saberstaff from her belt. The rest of the party stepped up as well, apart from Canderous and HK who content just to watch. Falcan whipped up his pistol in one hand and felled one of the rodain's with a shot through the skull from behind.
"One down…" the hunter snarled as Xor turned to him "three to go"
The fight that ensued was short and brutal. Xor never really stood much of a chance as his thugs fell rather quickly to Falcan's blaster leaving him to face Juhani alone. To his credit he was able to put up a decent fight but Juhani soon had him at her mercy, his left arm completely severed and he was fast losing blood.
"Well you have defeated me… but I still have victory …over you" he struggled as blood oozed from his mouth.
"What are you talking about?!" Juhani demanded. Drake looked between them and saw where this was going.
"Juhani leave him…he's dead anyway" he called over to her.
"He was asking for it you know…." Xor continued Juhani stiffened and her blue saber roared to life.
"No Juhani!" Drake moved to them, Bastila looked on worriedly as Falcan and the others watched holding their breath.
"He wanted a fight…so I gave him one…you should have seen him cry for mercy when I had him beaten" Juhani snarled.
"Shut up!"
"Juhani ignore him, don't give into your anger! It'll accomplish nothing!" Drake stated.
"Do it!" Xor spat "Kill me! Take your revenge!" Juhani looked ready to slaughter him, her eyes a cat-like golden and her rage pulsating in every vein. Slowly she began to raise her saber.
"No! You're better than that! Don't do it Juhani!" Drake pleaded as Juhani grasped her saber in both hands, her muscles coiled like a snake, ready to strike.
"You should have heard him…. beg for his life" Xor goaded seeing how close she was now "Let your anger rule you… strike me down!" Xor spat some blood to the floor "Kill me! You father was a…coward!"
Juhani screamed in rage and went for the strike, Xor had a triumphant grin on his face but Drake appeared in front of her just as the blade fell. To the shock of his companions and more Bastila's horror Drake yelled in anguish letting her blade connect with his shoulder, but he grabbed Juhani's hand to stop it from going through and held it firmly the blade hissing in his flesh as Bastila made to move forward.
Stay there Bas…I'm fine he said through the bond.
Are you sure? The worry in her voice was evident
Yes Juhani won't fall, she's letting her anger go now, it was my chose to take the blow, don't blame her Bastila nodded as Drake looked at her.
Juhani's eyes were wide and the saber died out and clattered to the floor and rolled off the landing pad into the abyss below. Juhani looked at Drake who hissed in pain and broke. Tears cascaded down her cheeks and unto the deck.
"I'm sorry… please don't let me fall again" she was choked out uncontrollably "Don't let me give in again… don't let me…don't please" she collapsed onto his chest sobbing as Drake gently went to crouch holding and hushing the tear stricken cathar as she cried while at the same time healing his shoulder, leaving no trace of the saber blade that embedded itself with it. Bastila sighed in relief as the others finally allowed themselves to breath.
"You weak little coward!" Xor spat drawing a knife from his belt but this would prove to be his undoing.
A blaster shot sang as the knife flew from his grasp. As he turned a second bolt caught him in the throat. As blood began to pour from the wound he staggered back Falcan slowly advancing on him, Zabrak pistol levelled on him.
"See what your race has done to me?" Xor choked as he hit the railing and toppled over it plummeting towards the shadowlands. He was dead long before the shadows claimed him.
Juhani continued to cry as Drake encouraged her to stand. Falcan walked over and Juhani feeling him approach moved away from Drake and to Falcan's arms, as she felt closer to Falcan. Falcan rubbed her back soothingly and hushed her as she sobbed.
Bastila moved to Drake and touched his shoulder. He smiled and nodded signifying he was ok. Realising no one was remotely paying attention to them, Bastila pecked him on the cheek and turned back to Juhani who had stopped crying and remained in Falcan's arms for comfort.
Drake's eyes suddenly snapped wide for a second as that dark, sadistic presence he'd felt on Tatooine decided to return. Knowing no one else was in much of a condition for the battle ahead he made a spilt-second decision now as he saw a figure approach the ship.
"Everyone get on board…" they all looked at him as he eyed the Sith's approach, "Don't argue with me, get on board and close the ramp." Falcan turned to see the Sith approaching. He quickly nudged Juhani to move onto the ship. She had sensed the presence and quickly moved onto the Hawk. Mission, Zaalbar and Jolee followed suit. Bastila hesitated.
"Drake…don't fight him alone" she pleaded as the figure came to a stop at the end of the pad.
"Bas I'll be fine…" Drake turned to her "Go!" he said very forcefully, a tone not to be argued with. Bastila looked between him and the Sith and then retreated onto the ship.
Be careful she sent through the bond, as she raised the ramp. Drake nodded as he disappeared from view as the ramp went up.
Drake waited until the ramp was fully raised before he turned to face the form of Malak's apprentice: Darth Bandon.
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