Jade Shadow, Hyperspace; 44 ABY
"Will you tell us now?" Vestara asked. They were, once again, seated at the Dejarik table while the Shadow made its way to the coordinates where Mortis was supposed to be located. She and Ben had asked as soon as they could for more information about the being Abeloth enlisted to her cause.
"I'll trade you information," Luke bargained. "You still haven't told me everything."
"Deal," Ben said. "You go first."
Luke looked tied, older than his age, as he thought back to the last time he'd encountered Palpatine's pseudo-apprentice, that was the incident that caused him to resign his military commission. "Cronal was many things, honestly I don't know all that much about his early days in the Empire. He moved around often and to new positions. He was the head of Intelligence for the Imperial war machine when I destroyed the first Death Star. He bridged the short gap between Armand and Ysanne Isard, though no one knew it at the time."
Both Ben and Vestara looked on intently, knowing that anything they learned about the enemy would be useful later on. Luke knew he had them, so stopped his recollection. "Tell me how you undid the changes that you'd undergone, you look like you did before."
Wanting him to continue his story, Vestara decided to just answer as short and quick as possible. "We didn't."
"You didn't?"
Ben and Vestara looked at one another briefly before relaxing their forms. They underwent a rapid change. Their eyes sparkled red and blue, ear-to-ear grins concealed needle-like teeth. They didn't extend the change past their faces. After a beat for it to sink in, they forced themselves to retake their human forms. Ben was the first to break the silence. "We can look different, if we want to."
Luke's heart had sunk when they changed. He'd naively hoped that they somehow undid what the Font of Power and Pool of Knowledge had done to them. What he'd seen was merely a front. "How?" He asked.
Vestara shook her head. "You continue first."
Conceding that it was going to just become a back and forth until one side told all they could, Luke continued. "I told you Cronal had served as the Intelligence Director, but he was also an Emperor's Hand."
"Like Mom?" Ben asked, unable to stop himself. "I thought all the Hands were girls."
"The Emperor used many people, Son," Luke noted Vestara giving off a strange feeling at the mention of Palpatine. "Cronal didn't do the same things Mara did, he did things remotely and generally those things revolved around his experiments. He used Sith sorcery to corrupt and warp creatures into monsters." He saw Vestara frown at the mention of Sith sorcery and decided it was time to send the ball back to them. "How can you change shape?"
"Underneath the Pool of Knowledge—"
"Ves, I know we shouldn't be talking about that, it's not safe." Ben interrupted.
She looked at him. "I think your father can resist the temptation even though we didn't," she turned back to Luke. "But you must not tell anyone of this."
"I cannot promise, if I don't know what you're talking about." Luke answered honestly.
Vestara considered it and continued anyway. "There's a room under the Pool, filled with crystals of all shapes and colors," she brought her hand up, palm upwards. "When you touch them, they impart knowledge on different Force techniques."
"But not all of them are good," Ben spoke up. "There are light and dark abilities there, it's not something anyone should access."
"But you two did." Luke already knew the answer.
"Yes."
"And one of these gave you the ability to change your appearance."
Vestara gave Luke a hard look. "Believe us when we say that it shouldn't be utilized. There are some things in there that I never want to see used on others."
"Yet, by your accounts, you both know them now." Luke wondered if they understood their double standard, how slippery a slope they were on. That was to a dangerous place.
"We understand," Ben said, responding to Luke's thoughts. He felt that it would be better to end the conversation here instead of risk it dissolving into an argument. "Why don't call it a day? I think Ves and I really should get some sleep."
Luke thinned his lips, he knew what Ben was doing. There was a part of him, however, that knew it would be better than getting into an argument. "Fine."
Abeloth's Planet, Maw Cluster; 44 ABY
Cronal brushed a fallen leaf off his shoulder. This planet hummed with life, pulsed with the plants and animals that made it their home. He longed to burn it down. Abeloth's voice had led his ships through the cluttered expanse of black holes to her prison world. He'd taken a number of his pirate drones down to the planet with him. After all, one must sacrifice pawns to protect those of genuine value.
You must be strong to defeat my children.
As annoying as it was, Cronal was slowly beginning to understand her mad ramblings. Near as he could tell, she considered Skywalker's offspring and some girl her 'children;' how depraved. She ordered them through an overgrown path, trees and vines cast shadows over the small group.
The Font of Power will give you what you need. To stop them and take your place as my own.
He carefully kept it off his host's face, but the revulsion he felt made his puppets cringe. "And what is it you wish me to do?"
They walked out onto a clearing of paved stonework. Steps and a half destroyed ruin of a tower sprang up in the center.
Drink. Drink and become strong.
He felt it, like a pulse of longing from the top of the steps. Leaving the pirates at the bottom, he ascended to the top. Perfect in its black sheen, the marble vessel dominated the plateau. The power within was tempting, but Cronal was no fool. All power came with a corresponding price, and following this Abeloth did not mean he'd waste a perfectly good host. "You," he pointed to one of the pirates. "Drink."
Blank look on the grizzly man's face, he lumbered up after his master. Cronal picked up one of the twin goblets beside the Font and dipped it beneath the waters. Shadowy muck convalesced within. He shoved the cup to the pirate who gulped it down.
He screamed, not out of natural reaction to stimulus, but one that belied a mind he should no longer have. He fell to the ground and contorted in agony. Cronal stooped down and watched passively as the man thrashed before him. The pain was academic, but Cronal did find something particularly interesting. He could feel the man instinctually reaching out with the Force, an ability he lacked not thirty seconds before. More interesting that that, the power of the water vessel morphed into what the Jedi would foolishly call Light energy. "You," he pointed to another pirate. "Drink."
Much like before, the drone climbed and fell away after drinking. He, too, gained a connection to a power he'd not had before. Most curious. Cronal felt the waters darken in power again, seemingly creating pairs. Roughly grabbing the first one to fall, Cronal picked him up. A flash of vibrant blue, and the pirate's head fell aside. The second one howled in anguish on the ground before he joined the former in decapitation.
Over the next hour, much to Abeloth's displeasure, Cronal tested the water on all twelve of his drones, poking and prodding them to see the extent of the connection. In the end, and a dozen summary executions later, Cronal was finally ready to try it on himself. The water level in the Font never dropped, but its dark power was what Cronal wanted. Like the others before him, he drank the murky water.
The Jedi he inhabited cried out inside his own mind, but Cronal kept him on his feet. It was pure ambrosia, the power, the strength. He reached out a single hand and sent a bolt of lightning into a headless corpse. Flesh fried and limbs jerked as nerves were lit up.
He almost turned his power on the Font, to destroy it and keep the power for him alone. Tempting, but what if he should need a new body? The power resided in the flesh, not his spirit. How disappointing, he so longed to crack the stone pillar in two . . .
Now you must go to the Pool of Knowledge and confront them, that is where they will be.
The journey was quick, now that he didn't have a group of ambling servants behind him. He stopped where she indicated, but there was nothing here. "Where is this pool?"
There is a cavern here, concealed by them, hidden so they will remain so.
Cronal eyed the surrounding forest and came upon the wall. It looked much like the rest, but this area had an air of artificialness to it. The vines woven too carefully, not letting anything get past them. He reached out with his newfound power and ripped it down. Trunks snapped and creepers broke, revealing a cave opening hidden behind them.
Carefully making his way inside, he found the Pool of Knowledge. It was ruined, white stone split and the bottom missing large chunks. More importantly, there was no one here.
They are gone.
Inclined to agree, Cronal still wanted to explore the area. The Font had been far more useful than he'd initially thought, who knows what things he could find here. The cavern was remarkably sparse, so he moved to the bottom of the Pool quickly. Peering over the edge, he could see a rainbow of light from below. With a moment's consideration, he jumped down.
Below he found himself in a room of colors and shapes, crystals scattered about. Fascinating. The mound of dirt on the ground led him to believe the two he hunted had fallen in. Cronal could feel the shining stones sing with power. He ran his hand over a blue one that had a light mist cascading off of it. Before he knew it, the stone had been frozen solid, he'd done that. Touched it and knew. Intriguing. He sent a shard of marble that had fallen in from above at the crystal. Made brittle by the ice, it shattered. Slivers of the ruined column scattered. The glow from within faded.
Cronal looked around at the other crystal, all this knowledge waiting for him. Unlike the Font of Power, however, he need not save them after he took what they offered. With a gleeful abandon that he'd not felt since his time with the Sorcerers of the Rhand, he consumed it all. By the time he left the hidden recess, the cave was in darkness, every since gem shattered and ruined and oh how good it felt.
Jade Shadow, Hyperspace; 44 ABY
Luke was sitting in the galley, hunched over a small meal. It had been several hours since they'd ended their conversation, the way it ended looped through Luke's mind. He just didn't know how to handle the situation. No matter what he wanted to happen, their choices troubled him.
"Morning, Dad."
The voice cut through his thoughts, which had kept him from getting much sleep, hence his presence now. Luke glanced up to see Vestara, alone, in the doorway. "You're up early."
"Ben's still asleep, I thought you'd want to talk alone," Vestara took the seat across from the Jedi Master. "To say the things you want without him here."
"You're pretty sure of yourself," Luke commented, though he did actually want to do just as she'd said. "Do you want some breakfast?"
A look of vague disgust washed over her face. "I can't."
"Can't?"
"It's part of our . . . metamorphosis," Vestara answered uneasily before her resolve hardened. "That's not what you want to talk about now, though."
Luke really wanted to ask. Since they'd been in the Temple, they clearly learned more about what was happening to them. But such questions could be asked just as easily with Ben present. He had other things he wanted, he needed, to know from her. "Not now, no," he admitted.
"You want to know about Ben," she prompted.
"You're relationship seems to have evolved." Luke said in an exacting tone.
"By my feeling haven't changed," Vestara reassured, "I've always loved him."
"Yet that didn't stop you from betraying the Jedi on Coruscant," Luke pushed away his food tray. "How can I trust what you say, you've tricked me before."
"You should trust Ben. Whatever I was before, my priorities have changed," she toyed with one of her nails idly.
"And how can I trust him? You said your priorities changed, then why not his?" Luke folded his hands before him, looking intently at the young woman.
"We only ever change as much as we want to, Master Skywalker." Vestara's face didn't betray anything, but Luke felt her thinking about what he'd said. "I did what I did out of self-preservation, and that's not a issue any longer. The life I thought I needed to have before is no longer possible. Ben is still who he always was."
"He's helping you," Luke pointed out. "Fled the Jedi with you."
"You're helping me, helping us," she countered.
"That may be true," Luke gave a resigned sigh, "but I don't trust you."
"I understand," she looked sad to have to say it, "but please believe me when I say I truly care for him."
Luke was curious, Vestara seemed more insistent than she had when she was acting as a double agent. "Why do you concern yourself so much of what I think?"
She rose and moved to the door. "Because Ben does."
Turning and moving to her room, Luke was left alone with his cold meal.
"Hello, Dad."
The feeling if déjà vu was unsettling to say the least, but it wasn't exactly what Vestara had said. Meal long gone, Luke hadn't the will to leave his spot, maybe he was waiting for this? It was hard to tell, the Force was muddied. The mixture of Light and Dark energy was distracting. "Good morning, Ben," Luke straightened. "I'd off you some food, but I'm given to think that you'd decline."
"I see your talk with Ves went well," he said, taking a seat.
"Talk?" Luke asked, Vestara had said she didn't want to include Ben in that, another lie?
"She didn't lie," Ben picked up on his father's thoughts again an d answered them. "She thinks she kept it secret, I'm just a little too good at reading her now."
"The two of you are certainly closer." Luke commented lightly.
"I—I didn't want you to find out like that," Ben lifted his hung head slightly. "But it is true."
"Why, Ben?"
"She already told you, I feel the same way," Ben tensed slightly. "You don't approve."
"It's not my place," Luke said carefully, his thoughts on what Vestara had said right before she left.
"You're concerned because of what she was?"
"She's still Sith, Ben, I can feel it in the Force."
"She's more than that now." Ben's eyes look off to the side in thought. "Just like I'm not really a Jedi anymore."
Luke had heard this before, but he wouldn't let it go unchallenged again. This was his son, he would not lose him. "How can you say that?"
"A Jedi wouldn't have done what I have."
"Everyone makes mistakes, Ben."
"They aren't mistakes, that's what I know now," Ben insisted. "With the Son and Daughter gone, Ves and I have to take their place."
"How do you—"
"I can see your thoughts, Dad, just like reading a book." Ben looked stricken. "A Jedi shouldn't look, but I can't help it."
"What do you want me to say, Ben?" Luke didn't know, all the answers he'd had didn't seem to work anymore.
"I don't know, I wish I did." With that, he left.
Dreadnaught-class Heavy Cruiser, Pugilist, Maw Cluster; 44 ABY
Cronal basked in his power and knowledge, the thrill of it all. How much easier it would be to spread his gospel of destruction now. Like an annoying gnat, however, his benefactor wouldn't leave him alone.
You must find them and stop them.
Cronal suppressed the urge to kill something, or someone. "Where are they going?"
To the world my family fled to. To find the weapon.
"The coordinates?"
I know not where they hid it.
Cronal rolled his white eyes, though it appeared nothing happened. She was useless, sending him on errands and then unable to provide even a semblance of a plan. He was enslaved to a neophyte. He walked along the bridge walkway, command crew hiding as best they could in his wake. "Are the two you seek alone?" Even if she was useless, she might be able to at least give him some information.
No, they travel with Luke Skywalker.
His frowning visage lit with an idea and he walked over to the communication's console, Cordy Herf noticeably absent. "Scan for a passive relay pod."
"Y-yes, my lord." The technician hastily hit the necessary keys, "There's an encrypted module broadcasting on a rolling frequency. We can't decode it."
"Nonsense, my friend," Cronal gently laid his hands on the trembling technician's shoulders. "Use this cipher."
Cronal rattled off a long string of letters and numbers his Jedi host knew to be the private Jedi security code.
"It worked, sir—ahhh!" His scream cut through his words. Cronal stood over the unfortunate man, youthful fingers cackling and spitting azure lightning. He fell off his chair and curled up in a fetal position, body blackened and smoking.
Cronal looked down on his victim with scorn. "Don't doubt me again." He leaned over the now empty chair and read the beacon's message.
Jedi,
If you receive this message relay it to the Temple. I have made contact with Ben and Vestara Khai. We are journeying to the Mortis Monolith. If we should fail, send all available Jedi to the coordinates included in this message. May the Force be with you.
~Luke Skywalker
A feral leer dominated the Jedi's face as Cronal turned back to the rest of the bridge. "Weapons: destroy the pod. I want nothing left of it. Navigation: I have a new destination for us."
Jade Shadow, Hyperspace; 44 ABY
Luke didn't see either of them for the rest of the day. Despite what they wanted, he just couldn't bring himself to put trust in a Sith, and that's what Vestara Khai was. When he did come upon them, they were hunched over the Dejarik table in the middle of a game.
"We're just about to the coordinates." Luke called as he entered. "I think it's time to finish my side of our agreement."
Vestara perked up, despite losing her Ghhhk and the game. Ben looked conflicted, his mind clearly on the last talk he'd had with his father. Luke took his seat and began. "The last time I encountered Cronal was on Mindor." Upon seeing neither of them recognize the name, he elaborated. "Mindor was a world that hosted hive-minded life forms called Melters. They could communicate and control the local meltmassif, make it flow and harden like lava."
"Cronal had found a way to control them, to use their control of the meltmassif to transfer consciousness from one body to another. He wanted to do it to me." Luke looked off to the past, harsh memories of regret for all the lives lost, lives he was responsible for. "I killed him there."
Vestara found this to be something of an anti-climax. "That's it?"
"He was an evil being, Vestara."
"Fine, but that's all you know about him?" Vestara demanded.
Luke nodded. "That's more than most, he was secretive by nature."
Ben spoke up for the first time. "And how is that supposed to help us fight him—"
The helm sounded a warning and they all moved to the bridge immediately, the conversation dropped. Luke took the pilot's chair as they jerked out of hyperspace. Before the Shadow, like an ancient space citadel was the Mortis Monolith. It was angular and rotated on its axis. Bronze and golden inlays created a web over the slanted faces.
"Pretty, but I don't see a landing platform," Vestara commented.
"Nor do I," Luke added. The spinning upper portion slowed, splitting the structure into two pyramid-like halves. Brilliant like shone from inside, burning their eyes. "Looks like we found our entrance."
The Shadow flew straight into the brightness. Luke submerged himself into the Force to react to whatever obstacles he couldn't see. When it finally faded to a high noon sky, they'd arrived at Mortis.