Chapter 8

Shiro gasped in fear. In his mind, the terrible memories of the past, his experimentation and his first bout with Tremayne, flashed before him. He pointed at Tremayne, turned to Marik and his group and yelled out, "This is the foul fiend Flibbertigibbet who pursues…!"

Amelie stopped him, "Shiro, please relax! I'll handle this!" She looked over at the bounty hunter Kubla and gave him a friendly wave. "Hey Kubla, what's going on here?" Kubla pointed his blaster at Amelie. Amelie's expression fell. "Oh come on, Kubla, Tremayne can't be paying you that much for my head!"

Tremayne coughed, drawing Amelie and the group's attention back to him, "Ahem! As I was saying, greetings. We meet again. Now before we all lose our heads I have a proposition for you."

Amelie blurted out again, "Tremayne, I told you before, I don't do business with cowardly Imperial murderers like you."

Alanna nodded at Amelie's words and scoffed, "I do no business with the gorram Empire, or its scum!"

Marik put his hand on Alanna's shoulder, "The same goes for me!" Alanna looked over at Marik's hand, annoyed.

Tremayne's smile turned to a frown. "You may change your minds when you hear my plans."

Amelie continued, unabated. "Frack it! I'm calling Boba to see about this! This has to be a mistake!" She pulled out her comlink and attempted to make a call. Tremayne rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers. One of the Stormtroopers fired his rifle at Amelie's comlink and blasted it. Amelie fell silent.

Tremayne sighed. "Now, this can go quite smoothly. I ask for two simple things. The Empire will let all these Jedi go in exchange for the highly skilled Marik Horn and Shiro." He looked over at Shiro, who shivered. "Shiro, you must have known this would happen. Come, it's time to return home. You've caused enough trouble. This is the only way."

Marik called out, "I will never go to the Empire!"

Shiro recovered some when he heard Marik's brave words. "You're right, Marik. This is milching Malecho. It means mischief."

Suddenly, Melkior used all his strength and bit through his gag. "Tremayne!" he yelled out. "Please, don't do this! Let me handle this! You're going to get people needlessly killed! I can sense it!"

"Steady now, Melkior," Tremayne said. "I know what I'm doing. No one need be harmed today."

Tremayne turned to look at Marik. Two former colleagues gazed at each other, now polar opposites and enemies. Marik looked at Tremayne with furious intensity, as Tremayne smiled cruelly. "Marik, be wise. We both were Jedi. But I have chosen the stronger path. The right path. The path that leads to power and glory."

"Tremayne, I knew you as a Jedi. That is true. I would have never believed that you would have turned into such a monster." Marik lowered his head for a moment.

Alanna looked at Tremayne. "Tremayne," she said. "You want them, you go through me!" She reached for her blaster. The hunters leveled their rifles toward her.

Tremayne turned to Shiro. "Well, Shiro, what's it to be? Are you ready to accept the true path? Make the right choice. The only choice. Save these people. Return to the Empire. There is no other place to go."

"Sith lie, Shiro! They lie! Remember what the Sith did to you and the Jedi?" Amelie reached for her blaster.

Menace noted the action and brought his armored hand up and withdrew two whirling blades, grinning evilly. "That's it, Ame. Be stupid, please. I'm begging you."

Mulann moved forward a little and put a hand on her lightsaber hilt. "Shiro, don't go back! Don't become mindless!"

Marik was the most fearful of the whole group. He looked around the room. He realized that they were clearly outnumbered. If he could somehow release the Jedi police officers from their cages then they might have a chance. That was assuming that they decided to fight back. The odds were not in their favor. Marik gulped. His fears had come true. All his hopes, all his work would be for nothing if they were taken by the Empire. Still, Marik remembered his Jedi teachings and how he had been taught not to listen to fear but to trust in his strength in the Force and boldly stand up for what was right. He had escaped worse moments than this during the Clone Wars. He was surrounded by able-bodied allies. They just had to hope. But it all depended on Shiro's decision. He prayed that Shiro would not falter.

"Shiro!" he called out. "Don't listen to him. He has no intention of letting the others go."

Shiro spent a minute deep in thought, looking around the room, analyzing the situation. He then turned and looked at Tremayne and smiled a cruel smile. He laughed and moved forward, swinging from side to side.

"Yes," he said. "It is time to make a choice. Will you, won't you? Will you? Won't you? Won't you join the dance?"

Mulann gasped. Shiro was giving up. "Shiro, wait!" she called out.

Shiro swayed a little and turned around to look at Marik and the others. He winked. Marik and the others relaxed somewhat but then they prepared themselves for what was to come.

"That's it, Shiro," said Tremayne. "The Empire offers security. And truth."

Marik scoffed, "The Empire knows not what truth is. They prefer to experiment on and destroy mere children."

Off to the side, Melkior looked up and thanked the Force. "That's it, Shiro, follow your heart. Yes, end this safely."

Alanna angrily nudged Melkior with her blaster. "You be quiet. I'm just looking for an excuse to get rid of you."

Shiro came up to Tremayne. He held out his lightsaber toward him as if in offering. "We are all tossed by the sea. Only the strong and wise can ride the surf to shore."

Tremayne grasped the handle of Shiro's lightsaber. Shiro held on tight. He looked at Tremayne and said, "Time to ride the wave!"

Then Shiro suddenly pulled himself up in the air with the Force, swinging over Tremayne with his lightsaber. He came to the ground, turned around, and knocked Tremayne down with a leg sweep. He turned to the Stormtroopers and Force pushed them over like dominoes. He yelled out, "Marik, NOW!"

Marik didn't hesitate for a moment. He had already planned out his steps. He used Force push to knock over the bounty hunters in the rafters. "Cover me!" he yelled over to Alanna and the rest. Alanna, Amelie and Frell fired at the bounty hunters, knocking some of them down from the balcony. Marik ran toward Tremayne. He moved as fast as he possibly could. Tremayne glared at Marik, he reached for his lightsaber and braced himself. But then Marik suddenly passed Tremayne and headed straight for a cortosis cage. He scrambled to unlock the cages while Shiro sliced the barrels off some of the Stormtroopers' rifles. The bounty hunters picked themselves up and fired back at Alanna and the group, who returned fire.

Using Jedi speed, Marik tried several turns until the cage door gave away. Tremayne pressed a button on his gauntlet that sounded an alarm. Sweeping the cage door open, Marik called out, "Come, my brothers, I need your help!" The Jedi jumped out, igniting their lightsabers as the Dark Jedi moved to engage them. Marik called out, "Mulann, I need help over here!"

A door opened and more Stormtroopers filed in. Two of them picked up Tremayne. Tremayne yelled out to them, "Don't just stand there! Kill them! Kill them all!"

Several Stormtroopers turned to fire at Marik. Alanna yelled out, "Hey!" The Stormtroopers turned around and Alanna fired at them, killing a few. Mulann ran over and opened the other cage while the Jedi covered her.

Drakk Menace grinned and shot four spinning blade wheels at Amelie. She quickly dodged them. Drakk pointed a finger at Amelie and whispered, "I'll get you!"

The Dark Jedi sprang at the Jedi. As he led the charge of Jedi, Marik cried out, "For the Order!" Lightsabers flashed back and forth.

One Dark Jedi jumped over to attack Mulann. Shiro flipped and Force pushed the Dark Jedi across the room. Mulann smiled and said, "Shiro!"

Shiro nodded and smiled, "Mulann. Shall we?" Shiro, Mulann, and Marik turned as one and fought the Dark Jedi in unison, crossing blades and Force pushing many. Two Dark Jedi came from two sides toward Mulann. Mulann jumped up and did a roundhouse kick, sending them flying. She moved with such grace and skill, it seemed more like dancing than fighting.

The Stormtroopers gathered together and advanced toward Alanna and her group. Alanna called out, "Fall back, guys!" Amelie and Frell retreated behind some pillars in the back under constant fire. They recharged their blasters. Alanna pulled Melkior in front of her. She growled at him, "I suggest that you don't move or try anything!" Alanna used Melkior as a shield and ran back over the steps, firing at the troopers. Frell tossed a grenade, blowing up some of the troopers and driving them back.

The Dark Jedi unleashed Force Lightning on Shiro and the Jedi. They were amazed as Shiro held out his hand and blocked the lightning and turned it back toward them, a rare Force talent. Marik looked at Shiro and said, "You didn't tell me you could do that!" Shiro grinned and shrugged in response.

Some bounty hunters zoomed down from the rafters. A Rodian came up and threw a small knife into Alanna's shoulder. Alanna cried out in pain. Amelie turned and blasted him. Alanna pulled out the knife and turned and saw a bounty hunter hurl an axe towards Amelie's head. Using all her strength, Alanna blasted the axe, knocking it off course. Alanna pulled out a quick healing bacta patch and put in on her wound. A Klaatu, Barrada and a Nikto came at Amelie with swords. Frell jumped up and grabbed the Klaatu, picked him up in the air, turned him upside down and smacked his head down onto the floor. The Barrada ran at Frell, who swung a punch and a kick at him, knocking him down. The Nikto came up behind Frell. Frell backhanded him, turned around and punched him many times hard in the chest. He finished with a Mandalorian fighting stance. "Alright, Frell!" Amelie exclaimed and continued firing at the troopers.

A Quarren suddenly pressed his rifle right up against Amelie's chest. Amelie turned and gasped. Before he could fire, a vibroblade edge sliced straight down through the middle of his head. Drakk Menace stood over him. "No!" he said. "Starkiller is mine!" The Quarren fell over to the side. Alanna pointed her blaster toward Menace but Menace threw a boomerang that pierced the blaster and sent it flying into the wall. Before Amelie could react, Menace reared his mechanical leg back and kicked Amelie hard into the center of the room and the firefight.

Coughing, Amelie quickly grabbed a fallen wall panel and held it in front of her as a shield. Amelie shook all over as blasts rocked the panel in front of her. She closed her eyes and whimpered, "Somebody help me!" Alanna and Frell stood and watched, helpless to aide her. Mulann looked over at Amelie and ran toward her.

Menace threw a shockwave device that rocked the room and knocked the Stormtroopers back. He went up and sliced Amelie's shield in two. Amelie looked up at him defiantly. "This time, Starkiller, you die!" he said. He reared back with his blade.

Mulann arrived just in time and Force threw Menace across the room, smashing him into a wall. Mulann helped Amelie up. "Are you okay, Ame?"

Amelie smiled, "Never better, old friend."

Menace shook his head, cracking his neck and stood up. His arm unfolded, revealing a cannon. He said, "Deal with this!" He fired a small missile at Mulann. Mulann raised up her lightsaber to block it. Then she gasped as she saw the missile come apart and split into many tiny blades she could not possibly block at the same time. Amelie cried out, "Mulann, NO!" The blades rammed into Mulann and she fell to the floor with a thud.

For a moment, all the action seemed to stop. Everyone's eyes turned in shock to watch the fall of the noble Tusken Jedi, Mulann Fennixx.

Amelie clenched her fists and tears came to her eyes. She whimpered, "No, no, no, no!"

Shiro screamed and raced toward Mulann's fallen form but was blocked by Dark Jedi. "Blow winds!" he cried out. "Crack your cheeks!"

Melkior stood gasping in horror at the sight.

Menace chuckled. He nudged Mulann's body with his foot. He looked at Ame. "My, how the tables have turned. Guess this makes us even, eh Amelie?" Amelie looked up at him with cursing eyes. Menace smirked. "Okay, maybe not really. Well then… how would you like a little payback?" He handed her back her weapon.

Then Menace reached back over his metallic spine and pulled out a small device and pressed it to the wall. The device beeped and the wall exploded. Menace looked over at Amelie and motioned at her with his head and then zoomed through the hole.

Amelie watched him leave and took a long look at the fallen Mulann. Frell called, "Ame, wait!" But it was too late. Amelie ran through the hole after Menace.

The Stormtroopers turned back toward Alanna and Frell. Alanna cursed, "J'katha!" She saw a fallen Stormtrooper rising off the ground. She kicked him back into unconsciousness and grabbed his rifle. She cocked it to get more force out of it. As the Stormtroopers ran up to her, she picked them off, one by one. Frell looked over at her and they smiled at each other.

Then Frell yelled out, "Look out!" A Stormtrooper jumped over in front of Alanna and hit her hard in the head with the butt of his gun. She cried out and fell back. The Stormtrooper grabbed Melkior from the corner of the room and carried him on his back. He stopped and aimed his gun toward Alanna to fire.

From the other side of the room, Marik saw. He called out, "No!" and threw his lightsaber into the trooper's back. The trooper fell dead. Marik ran over, retrieved his lightsaber with the Force and shook Alanna. "Alanna! Wake up! Wake up!"

The hole in the wall led to an empty row of prison cells. Amelie walked cautiously, holding her blaster ready. She heard a crash from down in the hall ahead of her. A layer of fog flowed down the hallway toward her, enveloping her. Menace had probably broken a radiator. Amelie took a deep breath. You wanna play? Amelie thought. Let's play.

Amelie walked through the halls, pausing and looking into each cell. Suddenly she felt a blade quickly move past her and side-swipe her. She winced and swooped around, holding her blaster out in front of her. Nothing. Silence. Then another swipe to her back and she turned quickly again. Another swipe and another. The fog was too thick for her to see him coming. He was playing with her like a cat with a mouse. She held her side. Thankfully, she was bleeding only a little. She turned around and around, firing and yelling. She stopped. Silence.

"Menace!" she yelled. "You coward! Face me! Where are you?"

From behind she heard a faint whisper. "Here!" She turned and found herself face to face with Menace. She punched him hard in the chest. Then she grabbed her hand in pain. He held still and felt nothing.

Menace smiled. "I owe you for that." He punched her in her chest, knocking her down and knocking the blaster out of her hand. "Don't you remember, Ame? You hit me there before. Your wound started off the whole process of cybernetics. I guess I should thank you for that. You made me what I am today." Amelie spat indignantly. Menace grinned wickedly. "Don't move and I'll show my appreciation for you!"

Another Stormtrooper picked Melkior up and carried him toward Tremayne, set him down and opened his cuffs.

"Tremayne, you idiot!" Melkior yelled. "Look what you've done! I told you that people would be needlessly killed! You've fracked this all up!"

"Oh, shut up, Melkior!" Tremayne said. "They're only Jedi anyways! That Mulann got what was coming to her!"

Melkior growled at Tremayne. Tremayne turned and saw Marik cradling Alanna. He glared and reached out his hand, using the Force. Marik felt a sudden strong pull on him and, dropping Alanna, he was jerked though the air toward Tremayne. He was swept right up to him and then stopped mid-air. Tremayne reached down and slowly pulled out his lightsaber. He smiled wickedly and ignited the saber. He dropped Marik to the ground. Marik picked himself up, baring his teeth at Tremayne, and he ignited his lightsaber.

Tremayne laughed, "I've been waiting for this!"

Marik yelled, "Betrayer! I shall cut you down and spare the galaxy of your cruelty."

Marik swiped at Tremayne. Tremayne twirled and blocked from his back. He turned back around and advanced, twirling his lightsaber. Marik blocked again and again, fully aware that he was taking on an opponent much stronger in the Force than he was. Tremayne raised an eyebrow and pointed his hand at Marik. Marik was raised up in the air. He felt a strong pressure on his throat. Tremayne was Force choking him.

Tremayne grinned. "You're such a weakling, Marik. You know you'll never be able to protect him. Accept it. He is mine. You are mine. Give up now. To fight is futile." Tremayne dropped him and then turned to a Stormtrooper behind him. "Call my ship," he said. "He's coming with us."

Tremayne turned and was immediately confronted by Marik, who rose up and sliced at Tremayne's legs. Tremayne narrowly avoided the slash. Marik looked up at Tremayne and said, "I'm not done yet!"

Menace stepped forward and raised his leg up to step on Amelie. Amelie rose up quickly and kicked Menace in the face. Menace yelled. She got up and ran through the fog, pursued by Menace. Then suddenly she tripped and fell to the ground. Menace came toward her. She looked up and faintly saw a metal bar above her. Amelie jumped in the air and grabbed the bar. She swung into a roundhouse kick at Menace, crying, "HIYAH!"

Menace staggered back and Amelie jumped onto his back. As he reached to grab her, Amelie pressed a button and activated his jetpack. She jumped off and he rocketed into the ceiling, hitting it hard and busting his jetpack. He fell to the floor, dizzy.

Amelie walked slowly over to Menace and stood over him, looking with cold eyes. "I'm going to be merciful to you, Menace."

She picked up his double-vibroblade off his back and used all her strength and broke it in half. Then she raised one of the broken ends over Menace's head. Menace looked up with fear. He couldn't believe this was real.

"I'm going to give you… death!" She swiftly brought the blade down, decapitating him. A fitting death. Death by his own blade.

Tremayne unleashed Force lightning toward Marik. Marik flipped to avoid it. Shiro rushed toward the fight.

"Goblin lead them up and down!" Shiro cried. He and Marik swung their lightsabers in unison at Tremayne. Tremayne used Force speed to fight both of them, back and forth. He was too fast for Marik to catch, but not too fast for Shiro. Just as Tremayne was about to run Marik through, Shiro blew him back with a Force push. Shiro and Marik smiled at one another. Tremayne jumped up and Force pushed Marik across the room. He grabbed Shiro from behind and threw him to the ground, knocking the wind out of him.

"Foolish boy!" Tremayne hissed, holding the struggling Shiro down. "You'll never be free of us! You bring this pain upon yourself!" Tremayne raised his lightsaber up in the air over Shiro's head. Marik's eyes went wide. He reached his hand up and Force pushed Tremayne back.

Shiro recovered quickly and jumped in the air, twirling and stopped in mid-air, his blade clashing with Tremayne's. Shiro struck Tremayne's blade again and again, harder and harder. "YOUR KIND TOOK EVERYTHING AWAY FROM ME!" he yelled.

Marik ran up to help Shiro subdue Tremayne. Tremayne blew them both back with a mighty Force push. As they tried to get back up, they heard a sound from above and looked up. The ceiling began to mechanically open up by remote control. An Imperial Shuttle settled down to hover over the floor.

Shiro said, "No!" Tremayne hustled into the maw of the ship. Melkior directed a mournful glance at Mulann's body and at Shiro, then ran into the ship. The Shuttle flew up above the room. Tremayne hung onto the outside of the ship looking down at Marik and Shiro.

Marik called out, "This isn't over!"

"Of course not!" Tremayne said. "Oh, Shiro, I would try looking up Senator Osma on that disc of yours. You may find your next clue!"

The ship ascended into the sky. Shiro used all his Force strength and lifted himself straight up toward the ship. But the ship was too high and too fast and Shiro fell back down. He lowered himself slowly to the ground with the Force. He looked back up at the sky and cried out, "Well flown bird! In the clout! In the clout!"

The group stopped fighting and looked around. The battle was over. All their opponents were dead. Bodies lay strewn across the blasted training room. And among the bodies was their dear friend, Mulann. It was a hollow victory.