Chapter Seven
Arden Lyn was impressed by the speed and efficiency of the attack the stormtroopers had put in. It had surprised the raiding party of Sand People and allowed her the means to challenge Hoar to face her on her terms. He had been called out in front of his people and if he was still alive and/or had any value left for his honor, he would not deny the challenge. Sure enough, a Tusken Raider more fiercely clad than the rest of his kind emerged from the clutter of warriors that remained.
"All this trouble for a challenge I would have accepted right away? You'll pay dearly human," he answered. "Hand-to-hand, no blasters or weapons of any kind. If I win, your people surrender to Imperial custody and you surrender to my personal arrest until further notice," she stated.
"What if I win?" he asked. I should have known that the son of a whore would have wanted something in return for winning. But then I did just lay down some stakes for him losing she thought silently. "Free spice for everyone for all time and as much as you want," she said.
"Alright human, you just made yourself a deal that has sealed your fate! I am the greatest warrior of all the tribes of Tusken Raiders in Tatooine!" he shouted. "Good, then your fall will be the loudest to be heard by all," she mocked calmly. Several of the stormtroopers and even some of the Sand People chuckled at that remark. Hoar decided, angered by the mockery, to immediately charge right into Arden in the hopes of landing a blow.
Instead, Arden simply channeled her energies towards the Variant of Anger (she would have used the Variant of the Assassin had she desired to prolong this duel and wear him out). The result was him not only missing but having the whole of his spinal cord attacked by a series of superhuman blows. "I have seldom needed the Force for dealing with garbage like you," Arden said while he was on the ground. "We'll soon see about that, you don't scare me!" he retorted after rising back up for another dose of pain.
I never did intend to scare you, rabble. Only make you look like a fool in front of your people she thought but didn't say. She was too focused on the fight at hand to really care about scaring him as much as angering him. Anger made him stupid, that much she could tell as had been the case with his partner in crime Thok.
Both of them were strong and more than capable of taking down most normal humans with their bare hands in combat like this. However, Arden sensed the Variant of Anger beginning to take its toll on his body as was to be expected since each blow clouded the victim's senses. It didn't kill, it wasn't meant to do that, but it dull the wits and intellect of a fighter until they became raw anger itself. At that point, the opponent who had used the Variant could finish them off with relative ease and quickly.
"You cannot fight with your senses dulling, Hoar. It's only a matter of time before I beat you so you might as well surrender now and save some humiliation," she warned. She knew this warning would fall on deaf ears, it always did whenever she used this Variant on someone. But she was only aiming to use to further antagonize him and bring him down to madness faster than the normal rate for this method.
"I'll show you power like none you have ever seen in your whole miserable life!" Hoar exclaimed. Then he charged her again and began throwing a series of random punches and kicks that Arden evaded or deflected with relative ease. It was after he began to further wear out that she decided to lay down the finishing moves that would end this duel just as quickly as she desired. When he raised fists for boxing again, she merely smacked both sides of his head in martial arts fashion.
The result was that he was rendered dizzy for several critical seconds that she used to knee him in the stomach and grab the back of his mask. "Let's see the true face of our enemy, shall we?" she asked jokingly. The Tuskens gasped, a sign that the removal of the mask was a great dishonor to their people and something Arden could use to her advantage. She ripped the mask off his face and tossed it aside to see a somewhat humanoid (though deformity stood to make Hoar unique) face.
"How dare you!" he exclaimed. Arden smiled, kneeing him again and then grabbing his head before ramming it right into a nearby wall and throw him around their arena. He crashed on several items, including part of a fuel canister which gave him a concussion when he landed his head there. "The fight is over, Hoar; your people view you as a disgraced, fallen member of their society," Arden said.
"Your death will redeem me!" he exclaimed. "No Hoar, she's right. It's over, we need a new leader now that you have been disgraced. Sorry Hoar but it is time we left," a young warrior spoke up.
And just like that, the rest of Hoar's Tusken Raider tribe surrendered to Imperial custody and Arden was able to take in Hoar. "It could have gone a lot worse for you, you know that right?" she asked him as she pulled him over to her shuttle. "How? You unmasked me and now my people would kill me if given the chance," he asked.
"That's one way it could have been worse: you could have been betrayed by your own sense of honor. Another way things could have been worse is that you could have been immediately put on trial before Lord Vader and the Emperor. They would have targeted you for execution already, the trial being only a formality to ease the tension," she answered. "And how am I better off with you than that?" he demanded.
"I offer you full pardon for your crimes and freedom to live as you choose in exchange for training in the ancient martial arts known as Terras Kasi. After all, I used it to defeat you but you do have the potential to become an even greater warrior than you already are," she explained calmly. "But what if I don't agree to this training?" he inquired. "Then you die humiliated and disgraced in front of all the galaxy, it's as simple as that," she explained bluntly.
"I accept your training on the condition that Thok join up with me, then," he said. "He's already been given the same pardon terms as you. You'll be seeing him again for sure," she replied. And she replied just in time for Shira Brie and the Gamorrean prisoner to greet her and her Tusken prize.
"I knew you'd be able to capture him, Mistress Arden!" Shira exclaimed. "Calm yourself apprentice, we're not through with our prisoners just yet," Arden replied calmly. Nonetheless, Shira's confidence in her and the enthusiasm behind it did make her laugh slightly and half smile. "What do you think the Emperor will allow us to do with these guys?" Shira asked when they were alone.
"I've already petitioned for full pardon in exchange for Terras Kasi training and full responsibility for any actions outside of the training," Arden answered. "Is that really wise, Mistress? If they try to rebel against the Empire again, it could be our necks that the Emperor cuts first," Shira inquired. "I highly doubt he'll go that far but he will hold us responsible for our actions and that's my last word," Arden replied.
"Very well Mistress, I just wished for a little caution to be aired is all," Shira stated. "I understand your concerns Shira, I truly do. Which is why I'm going to request Palpatine to examine your potential in the Force and see if you're worthy of the lightsaber," Arden said. Shira paled in surprise and she nearly fell to her knees in gratitude for what her Mistress had told him.
"I don't... I don't know how to thank you enough Arden," Shira said after a moment of silence. "Make no attempt to thank me, Shira. I don't need any repayment except to see you become a Master of Terras Kasi and a more than efficient servant of the Empire," Arden said with a smile. "Thank you, you're the best friend that I've had in my life," Shira exclaimed whilst hugging her Mistress.
"I can tell it's been your dream to wield a lightsaber for quite sometime," Arden offered. "Yes, most of my life actually," Shira admitted. "Then I'll see what I can do to have the Emperor see to the beginning of your dream come true," Arden replied. "Thank you Master, thank you very much," Shira stated.
"You have done well Arden Lyn, Hoar and Thok have evaded the other servants for some months but you manage to capture them in a single day. Once again, the Emperor's Hand has pleased the Emperor and his executioner Lord Vader. Is there anything the great Arden Lyn can request of me besides what she put in before the mission?" Palpatine asked. Arden had arrived and her hostages had been sentenced to the training that she planned to give them in the martial arts Terras Kasi immediately.
"Just one, your Majesty. I didn't capture Hoar and Thok single-handedly, I had the help of my pupil Shira Brie who brought down Thok by herself while I dealt with Hoar. She has proven herself more than capable in the Variant of the Assassin with this and can serve you well," Arden explained. "You request some kind of reward for her for her efforts in the mission?" Palpatine asked tonelessly. "Yes of course, your Majesty: I would like you to examine Shira Brie for Force potential, she has dreamed of this all her life," Arden answered.
"Very well, bring her forth," he said. He looked as though he was already disgusted and was hoping for a failure in her Force abilities. Why he was so disgruntled was beyond her but when he began to telepathically examine Shira's potential, his disgust melted away. "This is indeed quite a surprise: your pupil is powerful in the Force and will need training in order to harness her attunement," he said.
"Then she is capable of wielding a lightsaber?" Arden asked. Shira's excitement mounted and Palpatine flinched, possibly from sensing the excitement in her at this revelation. "If trained well, more than capable of wielding a lightsaber, yes," he answered at last. "In that case, with your permission, I shall personally see to her training in the arts," she suggested.
"Do that and remember that if either of your other pupils make a wrong move, they will be plucked immediately," he warned. "I understand Master, they will remain in servitude to me until further notice," she replied calmly with a bow. When Palpatine dismissed the four of them, Shira whispered a thanks to Arden though this was again rebuffed by Arden stating that she needed no gratitude. "Lightsabers, so I've heard, require a crystal as a focusing lens right?" Shira asked.
"That's what my last apprentice told me, yes. However, these lightsabers at my belt were not originally mine so I wouldn't know how to help you with making a lightsaber. For that, I think I'm going to have request information from Lord Vader on the matter," Arden admitted. "I await the information to form my own lightsaber, I have a purple adagent crystal that I can use as a lens," Shira said.
"All this talk of lightsaber making bores me, when do I begin learning how to use Terras Kasi to beat people up?" Thok asked. "Soon enough but for now, we need to arrange your sleeping chambers and Hoar's if we ever hope to make you comfy for your stay," Arden answered. "I don't need sleeping quarters, I'm a disgrace to the name Tusken Raider!" Hoar exclaimed. "But you're not a disgrace to the name Terras Kasi, not yet anyways," Arden replied.
That shut up Hoar immediately since that was a point to consider for them all except Arden who had already figured it all out. "Here are your rooms gentlemen, make the most of them that you can," Arden said when they arrived. "You're not going to yours for the night, my Mistress?" Shira asked. "Not yet, you need your information as well as a little training in the Force though the latter will be for tomorrow," Arden answered.
"Then what do you intend to do tonight, Mistress besides getting the information I'll need?" Shira inquired. "A little more training, suffice it to say, for myself," Arden replied. Thok and Hoar scratched their heads but Shira understood what her Mistress meant but saying that. "You need your rest Arden, you can't go on much longer without at least some meditation or sleep," Shira stated.
"I slept for twenty-five thousand years, went into a trance for fifteen years, and meditated for six months. You, more than anyone, should know that's more than enough rest for anyone," Arden replied. "Gentlemen, can you go into your rooms and let us be?" Shira asked. She's going to try and persuade me that I need rest Arden thought as she marched off to the sparring room.
"Wait Mistress, wait," Shira said after seeing the men obey. "Shira, every time I rest I suffer from the memories of my past coming back to haunt me and drive me crazy. Even when I'm wide awake, some of the visions haunt me but I'm especially consumed when I rest," Arden replied. "Tell me Mistress, what pains you so and maybe I can help," Shira suggested.
"There is nothing you can do Shira, my husband and I tried to advocate for the research of the Dark Side so that the Jedi could prevent beings like Palpatine and Vader from existing," Arden said. "Your... husband? I didn't know," Shira asked. "I wouldn't have expected you to: he's as dead as the rest of those who fought in the First Jedi Schism," Arden answered.
"Tell me what happened between the two of you, tell me where is your pain so that perhaps I can take it away," Shira begged. Arden sighed as she set up a punching bag to blow off steam when they arrived in the sparring chamber. "When I was a little girl, my mother died giving birth to my brother who died minutes after. My father abandoned me with my aunt and uncle to help with the colonization efforts of the then-newly formed Republic after that and for years I never knew him," Arden began.
"Go on, Mistress, what happened after that?" Shira asked. "The normal cliche life of a Jedi back then: I was trained to become a Jedi sentinel and lived all my post-teenage life with the Order. However, I met a special man named Xendor who showed me a whole universe full of possibilities and even proposed to me with one of them after obtaining the blessing of my foster parents. I had loved him for years before and we had been friends since childhood which made it seem natural for us.
"We went on to attempt to decipher the code that gave the Dark Side, then known as Bogan, its strength and its ability to manipulate and ensnare anyone who fell under it fully. Xendor and I were both prestigious members of the Council by then and hoped to use our prestige to persuade. But the Council was greedy and corrupt, lusting only profit and thus they had no desire to understand Bogan. In many ways, it already possessed them under those circumstances though we didn't know it then," she continued reluctantly.
"So the Council turned against you two which caused you to splinter and form the Legions of Lettow in protest?" Shira asked. Arden nodded and added that the Legions were doomed to fail even with the help of the criminal underbelly that the Republic was already forming. "But the biggest blow that revealed their corruption was when they chose to hire an assassin previously defeated by Xendor. His name was Loki the Destroyer and the Council's strategy (and hope) was for them to kill each other.
"This would eliminate two of their biggest pests at the same time and without dirtying their hands before sending my own father to deal with me. He had only been reunited with me once or twice before and neither time had he revealed his association with me," Arden answered. "Then I'm guessing he's the one who put you into the hibernation?" Shira inquired. "No, his intent was to kill me by stopping my heart with a powerful Force technique now lost to all, I put myself in the hibernation to cheat death," Arden said.
"You then woke up to see that everything you had loved was considered a myth to the galaxy, not even dust remaining of the monuments built to honor them. Loneliness consumes you at every turn, slowly and painfully, but I know what it's like to lose family. I can't relate to having slept for twenty-five thousand years and lived to tell the tale but I can relate to loss of family and all I had," Shira explained. "I suppose you could and you are, without a doubt, one of the few people in this alien galaxy that fears and hates people like us that I would call a friend," Arden confessed.
"Then let me help you," Shira begged. "It's too late: if the insanity that my loneliness brings doesn't destroy me first my desire to have a normal life will," Arden replied sadly. "I don't believe that and I'll continue to help you as long as I possibly can," Shira snapped as she placed a hand on Arden. Arden fell to her knees and closed her eyes in an attempt to hold back her tears but she was no unable to thank Shira for her kindnesses.
"We are two of a kind Arden Lyn, whether you are a fallen Jedi and I am not or the other way around. It is people like us who live through our deeds even when our bodies have long gone to dust like all that came before us. Seldom do two people like us cross paths as we have and we need to stick together, treasuring that in the process," Shira explained. Arden took a moment to register that as well as wipe away the single tear that had escaped from her eyes during this conversation.
Then, when she had calmed herself and was ready to do so, she spoke to tell Shira that she would need to see Lord Vader if she wanted the information she needed. "I will but I'd much rather stay with you until I know you won't go whacko when I leave," Shira replied. "Trust me child, I will not," Arden promised. "I'll check for destroyed punching bags after you leave if that's the case," Shira teased.
Arden smiled and bade her apprentice goodnight before deciding that maybe it was better just to meditate instead of destroying things that didn't belong to her. But she wouldn't get much out of it before the familiar breathing of Lord Vader came into the room like a noisy snake. "You wish to see me, Lord Vader?" she asked immediately. "Yes Arden Lyn, there is the matter of your apprentice learning to use the lightsaber that we must speak of," he answered.
A quick reading of his pulses told Arden that he had not come to talk about the lightsaber training. "Bullshit, why are you really here?" she demanded. "I have a mission I wish for you to attend to when you can," Vader began, pausing after that. "Well get on with it, I can't go on a mission for the Emperor's executioner without details," she requested.
Agitated, Vader decided it was probably for the best that he did continue with the details. "A rogue Jedi, wielding a double-sided lightsaber has been attacking several critical Imperial bases. Her most recent attack has included a Kuat Shipyard that is essential to operations in an entire system. Destroy her and bring me her lightsaber whether in pieces or intact though I'd prefer it intact," he explained bluntly.
"I will leave at once, Master Vader," she said as she rose from her meditative stance. "Remember this also, Arden Lyn: the woman is old and relies purely on Force Valor whenever she strikes. If you have that ability then you can counter her application of it and neutralize her long enough to finish her off," he added. "Of course, I've done it before and I am more than willing to do it again if I must," she retorted.
"Then we are agreed?" Vader asked. "Of course, I long to begin my revenge against the descendants of the Jedi that imprisoned me so long ago. Why would I not be eager?" Arden answered. Vader shrugged and he watched as she left to begin packing up for a mission that she didn't doubt would be solo which he confirmed to her when she asked.
"She'll underestimate you when you arrive alone, figuring that her years of experience will be more than a match for any young opponent that can be thrown at her," Vader said. "She'll find that she's not the oldest person in the world and that the woman she confronts is though still in good shape. Don't worry, she'll be taken down in a matter of hours at most upon my arrival to her next location," Arden vowed. I am hardly worried about that, Arden though I am worried if you are not realizing that the Emperor does not intend to give you your desire Vader thought but didn't say as she left.