fairy goatmother – Time really got away from me on this one. Sorry.

Chapter 4

Darkness.

"Only that which is possible … that which is shrouded still … that which is yet to come."

Yoda's words reverberated in his mind. Nothing he would see here had happened yet and he wasn't sure if that comforted him or not. Xanatos ignited his saber but the crimson glow did little to light his way.

The fog was thick and chilled him. His legs felt sluggish as though he was being pulled down into the muck. Panic began to set in. He was wandering in the darkness with no idea where to go. The damned troll had sent him in here to die.

Xanatos sunk down to his knees. It was so cold … an empty darkness that ate at one's very soul. Suddenly he sensed a brilliant star that shone brighter than any other in space. He rose to his feet and hurried that way. As he approached the fiery presence, he finally began to be able to see.

A small, sandy-haired boy sat cross-legged on the ground. He looked up as Xanatos approached, offering a lopsided grin. "Hi there, Mister."

"Hello," Xanatos offered hesitantly, thoroughly searching the area. Apparently, the boy was the fierce presence he had sensed. "I assume you are here to guide me through the future."

"The future hasn't really happened yet, so I can't really guide you though it," the boy said, scrunching his face up.

"Then how do we do this," Xanatos asked. He was ready for this last journey to be over.

"Take my hand."

Xanatos half wondered why the Force had chosen a common street urchin to show him the future. Qui-Gon Jinn would have admonished him that appearances can be deceptive. There was one worry that seemed to nag at the back of his mind – if this was the future, why was it so dark?

Despite Xanatos' misgivings, he accepted the grubby hand offered to him.

At once, the Force jolted through him furiously, unleashing a crashing cascade of images.

He saw a horned demon as though a child's nightmare had awakened and come to life. The being's eyes glowed with crimson as it stared down two cloaked figures. One Xanatos recognized as Qui-Gon Jinn. The other was a padawan – the boy – Kenobi.

The battle was epic, one that had waited for a thousand years … good versus evil … light versus dark. When the Sith pierced Qui-Gon's body, Xanatos felt as though it had torn through him and when the apprentice triumphed, Xanatos felt tears pricking his eyes. Victory … hope … but it had come at such a cost.

Why should Jinn's death bother him so much? Was it not what he wanted with every fiber of his being? Suddenly, he wasn't so sure anymore. Xanatos bowed his shoulder against the chill that ate away at his soul. The darkness was growing.

He next saw an angry young man filled with unspeakable power – one who had become a slave of darkness. Eyes filled with hatred stared down at a man who had once been a friend. Xanatos recognized the man – Kenobi - though aged and looking very much as though the weight of the galaxy rested on his shoulders.

Another battle required of him … light and dark clashing again. Xanatos saw the arrogance and folly of youth fall to wisdom and light. Yet he was left with the hollow feeling that victory … that hope … had come at a great cost.

Arrogance and folly – was he any different than that angry young man, Xanatos wondered. He found it hard to breath … so cold … so dark.

His eyes widened at the sight of a mechanical monster clad in black. There was something familiar about the rage and the arrogance.

Xanatos found himself looking for Kenobi this time, somehow knowing he would be there. He was, though considerably aged. Yet something twinkled in the old man's eyes … wisdom and light. Xanatos gasped in shock as Kenobi surrendered, raising his weapon high and giving himself to the Force.

There was a cry of denial ripped from a young man's throat as he was left to wonder why victory … why hope … had come at such a cost.

Xanatos lay on the cold ground. He felt as though his heart barely beat. Slowly, he opened his eyes. He was back on a street in Telos. A woman screamed suddenly spurring him to complete awareness. Xanatos quickly rose and hurried toward what he now recognized as Soren's house.

Tessa was gray now. Two soldiers dressed in white armor pulled a struggling young boy from her embrace.

"He's my grandson!" The voice belonged to Soren. Oh, the years had not been kind. "He wasn't even taken as an apprentice," the elderly man continued. "He was to go to Agri-Corps but we brought him home. Just leave him be."

"He is a trained Force sensitive," a man dressed in official clothing sneered.

"What will happen to him?" Tessa cried out.

"No," Xanatos cried out. He had no idea who Lord Vader was but sensed with every fiber of his being that this was wrong. Soren's family meant everything to him. Xanatos lunged out at the soldiers holding the boy, but his saber passed into nothingness as the scene vanished.

"Where am I in that scene?" Xanatos demanded from the presence he sensed standing behind him. "If Soren's family were in danger, I would be here to help them hide."

"What makes you think you are alive?"

The voice was deep – not that of a boy - punctuated with the hiss of mechanical breath. Xanatos had heard that hideous sound before. He turned, his breathing ragged, to face the monster.

Raising his saber, he began to back away, aware that the ground was rocky beneath his feet. He remembered the Sacred Pools of Telos. It was one place his father had brought him to as a child.

Xanatos inched up the incline, battling the armored beast furiously every step of the way. Panic filled him as he reached the cliff's edge. He was trapped … there was nowhere to go. He glanced over his shoulder – only down.

Perhaps it was better this way, he thought. Closing his eyes, his took a deep breath hoping to at least appear as peaceful as the aged Kenobi had in his final moments. With arms outstreched, he fell backwards, allowing himself one last glance. Instead of looking into the monster's armored face, he found himself looking into Qui-Gon Jinn's grief stricken eyes as a young Kenobi looked on from beside.

He wasn't prepared for the water to burn. He struggled, eyes squeezed tightly shut, holding his breath to not draw the toxic liquid into his lungs. When he could hold his breath no longer, he inhaled … air … and sheet.

His eyes snapped open and he pulled the covers off his head to find himself dry, not burning, and back in his own bed. The darkness was gone and bright light seeped in through the curtains. Morning had banished the night … light over darkness … hope.

Xanatos sat perplexed for a moment, wondering if he would ever understand exactly what had happened. The chiming of his comlink drew his attention. He looked at the angry device for a moment before clutching it off the stand by his sleepcouch.

"Yes?"

"Sir, your ship is prepped and ready to depart to Bandomeer."

The comlink tumbled from Xanatos' grasp to his lap. He ran a shaky hand through his hair. There were obviously choices to make but so little time. Well, he wasn't getting anything accomplished sitting here.

He quickly dressed, putting on the same rumpled clothes from the day before. His wardrobe for the trip was already onboard so he could make himself look presentable later. Time was of the essence. Throwing his cloak over his shoulders, he paused at a nearby desk and scrawled out a simple word on a piece of flimsi before departing out the door. He had a couple of stops to make before the hangar.

The halls of Offword were thankfully empty; most of his employees had taken leave for the holiday. Only Soren – the damned stubborn man - was there to greet him at the ship. Soren said nothing, though there was a question in his eyes when he took in his employer's appearance.

"I thought I told you to take some time off," Xanatos grumbled as he passed by and boarded the ship. Soren followed.

"I should come. You may need help."

Xanatos allowed himself a chuckle inside. It was unlikely Soren could help him on this one. There were few who could.

"Not this time," Xanatos said pointedly. "I have another assignment for you."

"Of course, Sir," Soren said, practically standing at attention. Xanatos shook his head slightly. Loyalty like this was rare and he had never truly appreciated it.

"I want you to go to Iesa province," Xanatos announced.

"Iesa?" Soren's expression was suitably baffled, and Xanatos reveled in the slight enjoyment that at least someone else was as perplexed as he was at the moment. "What business is there in Iesa – I mean, with the lantern festival and all?"

"You may take your family if you wish. In fact, I insist you do. It's quite beautiful this time of the year."

"To find lodging there on this notice …"

"I have a home there – that is where you will stay. I just made arrangements." Xanatos shoved a pouch into Soren's hands. "You will find it stocked for any needs you may have. There are droids there to serve you."

"What is my assignment?"

Xanatos stretched out his hand and dropped a folded piece of flimsi with the one word he had scrawled – hope - into Soren's waiting palm. "Send this up in a lantern for me – it's my wish for the future. You can send it when you take your son to send his own."

"I don't understand."

Xanatos grabbed Soren by his shoulders and gave him a slight shake as though it might be possible to knock some sense into him. "Take some time off and spend it with your family," he enunciated. "We are going to be busy when I get back. I see a new direction for Offworld."

"Sir?"

"The first thing we have to stop is the strip mining operations planned on Telos … especially those around the Sacred Pools of Telos." Xanatos suppressed a shudder at the very real memory of his burning skin. "I have a hunch the risk assessment might be right about the waters taking on an acidic property if we proceed."

"You've invested rather heavily in that operation …"

"And I can afford to lose it if that becomes the case," Xanatos assured him. "I think Offworld will be better for it in the future.

"I really think I should come with you," Soren said with evident concern. "With all due respect, you don't seem in your right mind."

"Or perhaps I am for the first time in a long time." Xanatos allowed himself a smile. When was the last time Soren had actually seen him genuinely smile - maybe never? "I told you. This trip will be very personal. I need to go on my own."

Xanatos hurried aboard the ship, leaving a bewildered employee in his wake. As he lifted the ship away, he made the necessary modifications to his course.

"If change this path does not, a dim light I see in the Force where hope once stood."

He wasn't going to Bandomeer – not yet, at least.