The halls of Drake's fortress were wider and longer than even those back at the monastery, just overflowing with detail and objects. Priceless vases and expensive china were cased in towering oak and pine wood cabinets, sheltered behind inches of glass. The floor itself was covered by a host of animal skins sewed together, and paints studded with rare gemstones made the walls a reflecting beauty. Everyone's shoes were taking off at the front though. Shiva and the monks surveyed the scene awestruck, but Yoda knew this was a diversion. Drake was planning something. So he pretended to be interested in the thousand year old artifacts and hand-written scriptures of the Roman Ruler Diocletian, all the while keeping one hand inside his robe, finger on his light-saber button.
That was when Yoda noticed that Drake was not leading the tour. No, only James was here. Closing his eyes, he let the Force well up from within him. Soon everyone's skin, clothing, they all melded into a color. Some had spiky outlines, others were like an unstable blob, growing out in any direction at any time. But, he felt a dark gap upstairs. A place where the good souls of the Force avoided. "Drake..." Yoda surmised. As they neared a set of stairs, Yoda started to climb them. Shiva started to follow, but Yoda raised his hand. "Keep the monks safe Shiva. and keep James within your sight. If this goes south, and it will soon, drop him." Yoda continued to climb the stairs while he spoke to Shiva to make it seem like nothing had transpired. Wordlessly, Shiva changed his direction and rejoined the crowd. "Is something wrong Shiva?" a fellow monk asked. Shiva batted it away with a hand and a small laugh. "No. Just enjoy the view. It is something is it not?"
Yoda made it to the second landing and followed the vortex, reigning in his instincts. He needed to control the good side of the Force too, because it wanted to vanquish the Dark Side, no matter the ramifications. And Yoda had the burning urge to go into that room and rage light-saber mayhem against a Sith. He needed to keep up the facade a little bit longer, and then he would give himself over to it.
He saw an open door, although he was suddenly torn in half mentally. Half of him wanted to charge into there, but it had such a foreboding sense of death that his hair rose, and goosebumps began to prickle his flesh. But, he had to endure. Taking a deep breath, Yoda turned the corner. and walked in.
"Ah Yoda, you made it. Did you get lost?" Drake asked. He was seated behind a massive desk, clad in only a black muscle shirt, and jeans. His head was now covered in shaggy blonde hair, and a stubble gave him handsome sideburns.
Yoda took note of the things in the room, anything that could be used as a weapon. So far, he had the desk, Drake, and some sharp china. But that meant Drake probably had another trick up his sleeve.
"What do you mean, 'get lost' Drake?" Yoda remained standing, but the goosebumps returned as Drake began to drag his finger against the lining of a cup. "Why Yoda, surely finding your way through some hallways is not the limit of your power?"
"I do not understand Drake. Are you implying something?" Yoda asked with naive curiosity. Drake crushed the cup in his hand, ignoring the blood from the cut.
"You hid something from my view outside when I looked out into the foothills. I want to know why."
"Drake, why can you not believe I'm your side?" Yoda asked with fake exhaustion. Drake thought about it. "Actually, I was hoping you'd ask. James, please come in."
Yoda closed his eyes, praying what was happening wasn't happening. But when he turned, James came in, and he had Shiva.
The monk was unconscious and bloody, with a swollen eye and without a left hand. Yoda's anger flared up, and he drew his light-saber in a whirl. But a fraction of a second later, and James had his up too.
Yoda kept his brown eyes on James, staring daggers into the Sith Apprentice. But his next words were at Drake. "Let him go Drake." he warned. Drake shrugged. "You wanted to prove to me your loyalty. Then here it is: Kill him.
"You can't be serious!" Yoda yelled. Drake actually laughed, it made Yoda want to take his head off. "I'm absolutely serious. If you wish to get close enough to kill me, then you'll have to do it without your Death Stare friend right there. Otherwise," he took out a longer than normal length hilt with two ends to it. "You hope your skills as a Jedi eclipse the three of us as well as you did when you and I first fought BD."
"The three of you? Power must have gone to your head Drake, you've forgotten how to count." Yoda sneered.
"Not at all." Crislin said. Yoda spun around, and saw Crislin seated on a couch exactly one meter from him. Their long-time benefactor smiled. "Looking good Big Daddy, although I have Botax for your wrinkles if you need some."
Yoda looked to Drake, lost for words. "What? You honestly thought you were the only one who could hide people? Once I realized what you did, I decided to see if I could replicate it. Crislin sitting within stabbing distance of you while we had a pleasant conversation for about 3 minutes? Pretty damn good replication I'd say. Now, are you going to kill Shiva?"
He turned on his blade. A teal-colored rod three feet long extended from the bottom side of it while four feet of energy bloomed out the other side until it grew into a spear's point. Gold stripes ran through it into a continuous line. Drake twirled it once, and then let it rest towards Yoda.
"Or do we have to kill you?" he smiled again.