Chapter 26
I would like to thank my reviewers, those who added my story to their alerts and favorites, and to all anonymous readers.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or Prototype.
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He got a sinking feeling with each step he took down the uneven path, Kinrath remains sprawled the ground before them and webs hung down from the ancient Wroshyr trunks. The last shafts of light were now long behind them as they moved deeper into the Lower Shadowlands. How anyone in their right mind choice to be down here was a complete mystery.
"It's freezing down here." Canderous said, under his breath.
Voren nodded in agreement, the temperature had been decreasing since they moved passed the force field.
"Well," Jolee began. "There's a reason why Wookiees have thick fur."
Canderous grunted in response. Noticing that he wasn't going to continue the conversation, Voren spoke up.
"Back when we first met, you said that my destiny might show you something new."
"Yes?" Jolee said.
"What did you mean by that?" Voren asked.
"Nothing in particular, " Jolee shrugged, "I've been down here for over thirty years, it's been relatively peaceful and quiet. But now in my old age, my bones are starting to itch. Following you might be my last chance for some excitement before I pass away."
Through the force he felt it wasn't the complete truth, What are you hiding old man? But he chose not to press any further, it wasn't the right time yet. When the Star Map was found and Zaalbar rescued, then he would get his answers.
A flashing light appeared in his line of vision, followed by the sound of clattering metal. The trio nodded to each other and rushed to the scene. What they found was nothing short of a battlefield. They could see burn marks all over the ancient trees from miss guided blaster fire, and Voren could taste the dirt in the air from where a grenade had gone off. Tracing his line of sight forward he could see two bodies on the ground with Mandalorian armor, the combined smell of burnt flesh and armor assaulted his nostrils as he approached them.
Voren stretched out his arm towards their throats, No pulse.
He barely had time to react before a very large and enraged Wookie charged towards him, ready to cleave him in two as he yelled something about Czerka scum. Rolling out of the way, Voren pulled out his lightsaber and formulated a plan of attack.
"Calm down!" Jolee yelled. "We're here to talk!"
The Wookie didn't seem to register the words or simply didn't care as he charged towards them again, blade raised high and ready to strike. He stopped in his tracks and dived towards the right as several blasterbolts exploded on the ground where he once stood. Canderous stood back in the distance with his heavy repeater, laying down fire and keeping the Wookie busy.
Voren glanced at Jolee and nodded, before summoning the force and pushing their hands out in unison. The grey-furred Wookie stopped dead in his tracks and was now hovering above the ground helplessly. Trying his hardest to break free of the invisible force now holding him, after a minute of struggling he accepted defeat and let his blade fall to the ground.
"Hi there." Voren took a step forward. "Now that you've calmed down we can finally talk. If we let you down, will you behave?"
The wheezing Wookie nodded and slowly descended to the ground.
"We don't want to hurt you," Voren said soothingly. "Do you know a Wookiee named Zaalbar?"
The Wookiees eyes got a new sharpness to them. "You speak of my son. Why do you speak his name? Tell me!"
So this is Freyyr. "My name is Voren. I came to Kashyyyk with Zaalbar."
"To my great shame, Zaalbar was exiled and enslaved." Freyyr loosened his posture. "Do you claim to be my son's owner, outsider?"
"No," Voren stated as a matter of fact. "He follows because of a life-debt"
"Does he? Then he sees something of worth in you." Leaning closer, he continued. "I will listen… cautiously. Gullibility has hurt me in the past." Freyyr gave a long exhale. "If I had seen the lies of Chuundar. He would have been exposed as a slaver. Zaalbar would not have been exiled… I did not believe Zaalbar's claims. I believed the elder boy, as tradition dictated. The shame of Zaalbar's attack blinded me."
"Why would Chuundar want you dead now?" Voren asked.
"Well, if Zaalbar is back, perhaps Chuundar is worried the people will realize things are not as they seem." Freyyr mused. "Chuundar has established himself as a leader that succeeded despite the 'tragedies' that have plagued his family."
"If it was shown that he conspired with the slavers, his honor would be gone." Freyyr traced his jawline with his paw. "I wonder…"
"Then we need you to challenge him."
"There is a way I might challenge Chuundar, but it would take a lot to convince people they have been lied to. I'll have to appeal to the traditions of my people." Freyyr straightened his posture. "I might just be able to gather support."
"Great!" Voren exclaimed. "What can we do to help?"
"There is a legend of a great warrior from the old times. Bacca was his name, and he is greatly revered." Freyyr lifted his chin. "Bacca found a crashed starship, our first hint of life elsewhere. He was a cautious old wook, and feared the taint of invaders. He constructed a vibroblade from the wreckage. It has long symbolized our independence. Only destined leaders have held it. Find the blade and together we might just be able to sway the people."
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He had been moving around the Lower Shadowlands for a while now, searching for something that could be of use for his newfound abilities. There was still a lot of testing to do to get a hold of this new power, to see how far he could push himself. Beyond the Kinrath and Tach there wasn't that much else down here of worth. Alex was almost about to give up his search when he entered a part of the forest devoid of animal life. Which could only mean one thing, something very dangerous lived here. Something the other animals knew to stay away from. Smiling, Alex forced himself to go faster.
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Freyyr had informed them of where the blade could be found and given them advice of how to lure the Terentatek to them. They needed Kinrath corpses to get the beasts attention, a whole lot of them actually. Which meant they had to walk back and get some, a tedious task but one completed fairly quickly as they had already slayed some when they first got here. The old Wookiee even pointed out the most suitable area to place the trap.
"What kind of creature is a Terentatek?" Canderous asked the older Jedi.
"Some say they are products of Sith alchemy." Jolee informed." Others think they are simply rancors twisted with dark-side energy. Regardless, they are aggressive and deadly. So be careful."
What he saw next would forever be burned into his soul. A man, no larger than himself, was having a fist fight with the very beast they were looking for. The man must have a death wish to do such a thing, even hardened Jedi Knights would have trouble with even surviving against an Terentatek. Its large tusks dripped with poison and they were powerful enough to rip a man in two. You don't fight a Terentatek, you are the prey, not the other way around. If you find yourself against such a beast, survival should be the only thing on your mind, all other thoughts could cost you your life. Which was why Jolee began to sweat. The hooded figure was not dodging left and right as he should have been, nor was he trying to escape the deadly beast. In fact, the beast was slowly moving away from him. This monster which was enormous, venomous and specifically bred to kill Jedi, was backing away in fear.
"Ridiculous, " Jolee whispered, his voice shaking, "Utterly ridiculous."
An unearthly roar escaped its enormous jaws and it charged forward. Not one to back away from a challenge, Alex's body convulsed with biomass. Shrinking until he was completely covered in black plates of hardened biomass. Humanoid tank versus enormous jedi killer. The two collided with each other, releasing a shockwave which blew away up large amounts of dust, covering the area from view. When the dust cleared Alex stood firmly in place, while the Terentatek lied on the ground several meters away trying to get back up. Alex set his jaw, and rushed the beast. A giant claw swept his side. Outright threw him a few meters back. Powerful tusks gripped around his midsection, with power comparable to a hydraulic press. He was only saved by the activation of his armor otherwise he most likely would have been cut in two. Alex actually felt some remorse as he plunged his claws into the beast eyes and watched it howl in pain and fear. After a few spasms, the Terentatek stopped moving and was completely swallowed up by Alex's tendrils. All that remained of the beast was a blade that had somehow been stuck in its hide.
"What kind of abomination are you?" Jolee asked and pointed his ligthsaber at Alex.
"The worst kind." Alex said, barely acknowledging the approaching trio.
"Where have you been Alex?" Voren asked, gritting his teeth.
Alex shrugged. "Well first I met this shapeshifter. He wasn't much of a nice guy so I had to hunt him down and kill him."
"Don't make up stupid shit." Canderous crossed his arms. Not acknowledging the Mandalorians words, Alex continued. "And then I tracked down this beast to have a friendly… bout."
Jolee's eyes nearly popped right out of their sockets. "Friendly bout!"
"If you don't want to tell us what you were doing its fine." Voren raised a brow and gave a blank expression. "Like Canderous said, don't make stuff up. I bet the only truth you told us was you fighting the Terentatek."
"If you don't like my answers then don't ask." Alex said as a matter of fact.
"Anyway," Voren leaned down and picked up the blade. "We have what we came for. Time to head back to Freyyr and to find the Star Map."
"Yes," the older Jedi began. "The map is not far from here. Follow me."
In less than ten minutes he'd led them to the Star Map. Voren saw it there, but more importantly, this close he felt it radiating with the dark-side.
"Yes, there's the thing," Jolee remarked. "Obstinate machine. I've no doubt it holds what you seek, but good luck getting it to respond."
Voren approached the computer interface beside the star map and was greeted by a holographic interface in the image of an alien the likes he had never seen before.
"Life forms detected. Determining parameters. Initiating neural recognition." The alien continued. "Primary neural recognition complete. Preliminary match found."
"Match found?" Jolee gasped. "What the… it always muttered something about 'rejected patterns' for me."
"Begin socialized interface. Awaiting instruction. Greetings. This terminal has not been accessed for quite some time."
The machine continued on about having to perform a 'Behavioral Reconfiguration' before granting access to any information. But Voren did learn some things, he was able to determine that the interface was probably installed by Revan, which seemed to agree with the dreams he's experienced. Among other things, the machine told them that Jolee had tried to access the databanks a hundred and fifty-two times.
"Then let's get started." Voren said.
Alex simply nodded in agreement, this will be interesting.
The computer began. "You travel with a Wookiee and have encountered complications," it informed, "Hypothetical: You and this Zaalbar are captured and separated. If you both remain silent, one year in prison for each of you. However, call Zaalbar a traitor, and he will serve five years, while you serve none. He is offered the same deal, but if you both accuse the other, you both serve two years. What do you do? What do you trust him to do?"
How does this machine even know about Zaalbar? Voren thought.
"I'm unsure what Zaalbar would say. I would accuse him to be safe."
"The temperament of a companion is unreliable at best." It began. "You wisely trade the threat of one year or five, for none or two."
Jolee scratched his beard. "This machine certainly seems to want a very specific type of response."
"In this instance, the Wookiee is unreliable. His family has been a mire of treachery. I judge the answer correct." It paused for a second before continuing. "You display the proper behavior to match the pattern in memory. Evaluation will continue."
"Why are you pitting me against my companions?" Voren inquired.
"They are already against you." The machine stated. "Anything that corrupts your strength and efficiency is against you. I merely serve to illustrate the proper patterns. You must be guided to think in the proper manner."
Alex couldn't help but smile, this machine might just be the perfect tool to help Voren grow in the right way.
"Hypothetical: You are at war. Deciphering an intercepted code, you learn two things about your enemy. A single spot in their defense will be its weakest in ten days, and they will attack one of your cities in five days. What do you do with the information?"
This machine seems to favor answers that benefit myself the most. Voren thought. "I prepare my forces to attack in ten days. I do nothing in the city."
"Very good." The machine proclaimed. "If you had moved to evacuate the city, you would have alerted the enemy to their lost codes. Ultimate victory required the deaths of those people. You wisely ignored sentiment in your decision."
"Hypothetical: remove the ongoing war from the previous example. Consider enemy states to be weak and remote. With no external threat, you empire stagnates. Your people become complacent and begin to question you. Same scenario as before; you discover an impending attack, but also a weakness that will come after. How do you react?"
"Let the attack happen." Alex whispered while holding thumbs up.
Voren cleared his throat. "I let the attack happen."
"Of course you do. It makes the most strategic sense. Your people will rally beneath you against the common foe." The holographic alien pointed towards Voren. "As their eyes turn outward, your rule will strengthen. The trappings of war grant many opportunities. You have matched the pattern in memory. I recognize you, and will fulfill my designated function."
Voren didn't ask why the machine recognized him now, he didn't have to. The dreams he's had about Revan and Bastila, about the Star Maps and now that the machine recognizes him could only mean one thing.
Either he was someone very close to the former ruler of the Sith.
Or he was the Dark Lord himself.
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AU
Don't know if anyone is still interested in this story anymore but by the dark powers I've been summoned back to bring another chapter.