The Legion Renewed

Chapter Thirty-Three

Luke's hearing was the first thing to penetrate the fog of unconsciousness and pain as he struggled back to his senses. He could hear Briande talking. It sounded like she was talking to herself, but the sound of her voice came from two different places. His head hurt too much to open his eyes yet, so he decided just to listen.

"I thought I was choosing between him and you, when I killed him. I know now that I was choosing between you and me."

"Ayyris was brave. He came to Kalmyr knowing that it was a Rebel stronghold. He didn't expect to leave alive."

Suddenly he realized what it was. Brenna! She was talking to Brenna! A split second after that realization hit him, he remembered that Brenna was also Palpatine. Luke struggled to clear the fog out of his head and block the pain, remembering that there was no way Briande could handle Palpatine alone.

"I'm sorry, Bren. I didn't kill him for you. I didn't even kill him for the Rebellion. I did it for myself, because I didn't want to lose you."

Luke opened his eyes. The light was blinding, but he forced them to stay open.

"It's the same reason I begged Luke not kill you a moment ago. I still love you. I love you more than Ayyris ever did, more than Palpatine ever could, but it's a selfish love. And I beg you now for Luke's life for the same reason, because it's what I want, because my love for him is selfish, too. And I ask you to forgive me for being the way that I am, for putting my own wishes above yours."

Luke could see them both now. Briande was on the floor, half-dead with energy burns and exhaustion. His heart ached to see so many ugly scars, but she was still alive. Brenna was standing with her back to Luke, amazingly unaware of his presence.

Luke's lightsaber lay nearby. He called it to him silently and raised it, preparing to strike. He didn't want to take any chances.

Then something astonishing happened. On the floor, Briande's face relaxed, as if some private communication had taken place between her and her sister. Even more astonishing, Brenna slowly lowered her guard.

Luke kept his own weapon ready, alert for any sign of a trick, but Briande seemed totally at peace.

Luke exhaled in relief and let his guard drop. Briande had done it! She had turned her sister back from the Dark Side! And for an instant, he thought that the battle was over. Then...

Brenna's scream echoed around the cavern walls.

Palpatine. For an instant, he had forgotten about Palpatine!

Luke had thought in that brief space that if Briande succeeded in turning her sister back, that would be the end of it. He had forgotten that Palpatine would simply find another Dark host, and then another, until the Evil spirit found a vessel that they could not stop.

Brenna's ear-piercing scream continued as the Emperor sought to regain his previous hold on her. On the floor, Briande somehow found the strength to push her knees under her. "Bren-" she said. "Stay firm...Resist him..."

"Brie-" her sister responded. Then Brenna went rock-still. A vapor seemed to form around her as the Emperor, driven out by the unwillingness of his former host, began to separate himself from her.

And just as suddenly, Luke knew what he had to do. All the visions, all the Dark Dreams, all the prophecies made sense now. The puzzle he had been looking at was like a mosaic. He had been looking at the individual parts too closely and hadn't been able to see the complete pattern. But stepping back and looking at it from a different perspective, he could now see the whole picture.

As a spirit, Palpatine was unstopable. But if they could find some way to kill his spirit...

But how did one kill a spirit? It was impossible to kill something that wasn't alive, but it might be possible to divide a spirit from itself, just as the spirit had been divided from the body.

Luke had said once that he trusted Briande with his life. But did he trust her enough to take it? It was the only chance they had of destroying Palpatine. If Briande didn't do it, they might never have another opportunity. It all depended on which was stronger, her love for everything Luke was and everything he believed in, or her need to have him by her side.

The division had to be made while Palpatine's spirit was in transition. Luke dropped his weapon and sent it away, knowing that Briande wouldn't stand a chance against LukePalpatine if he were armed. He raised his hands to his head and pressed his fingers against the sides, to help him concentrate to do what had to be done. "Brie-" he said. "Move away from her."

Briande looked up at the warning, seeing that he was awake. But she didn't comprehend yet what he was doing.

Time was short. He had to make her understand. "I know how to stop Palpatine," he said.

"Luke, no!" she shouted, finally comprehending what he meant to do.

"Only one chance," he said. "I'm sorry, Brie. You'll have to kill me..."

Luke felt a black flicker of Palpatine's spirit, questing, entering his mind like a finger to taste an unknown food. He thought back to the time on the Death Star II, when the Dark Side had held him in its strongest grasp. He remembered the exultance, the feeling of glory... He had to convince Palpatine, convince himself, that he wanted the Darkness.

He could feel Palpatine. He could feel the Power. Luke tried to encourage the heady feeling and bury his revulsion deep inside. He knew that Palpatine's spirit would eventually find that secret place, but if he could just hide it long enough...

"Kill me..." he whispered.