Revan walked forward, into the main government building at the rebuilding Deralian capital. She marched in, her blood boiling with anger. She marched in, and none dared stand in her way. The look in her eyes, and the lightsabers on her hips, told the few locals to get out of her way.
She marched in, a guard began to move towards the furious Knight. As he did so, she walked up to a secretary, and said, "Tell your leaders to gather in their meeting chambers and to clear out all civilians and security personnel."
The secretary trembled under the Jedi's stare. He looked around the room, glancing at the stained, reinforced glass doors. When he did so, Revan said, "I mean you no harm. I just want to talk to your leaders."
He stuttered, "Ma'am... I'm afraid you can't just walk in and demand that the government bend to your will. Even though you are a Jedi."
Revan sighed, then said, "Very well. Tell your leaders this. The last surviving Tremaine is here, and wants to talk with them."
The man's eyes bulged, and said, "You're a Tremaine?"
"Not just a Tremaine, the last of the line."
"My apologies. I shall alert them immediately." he said. "Is there anything else?"
"Yeah. When another Jedi comes in, make sure she reaches me."
"Of course, Ms. Tremaine."
"The name is Revan." the Knight replied, walking away, staring at the sterile white walls that she had seen only a few times in her youth. When she had last gazed upon them they had been a soft, off-white. Now they were as pale as the moon, it was as if the mandalorians had killed even the walls of Deralia. Trying to doom the world to never recover.
The blue haired Jedi sat in a chair in the corner for five minutes, before the secretary said, "The governor is ready to speak with you, Ms. Tremaine."
"Excellent." Revan said, "Lead me to him. And, I warn you, if this is a trap, the mandalorian raid all those years ago will be nothing compared to my fury."
Inside the governor's chamber it was as if nothing had changed, despite the horrors of the day years prior. Not a single stone was out of place. Not a single painting was even a degree off where it had been. It was as if Revan had found the one sanctum of her homeworld that had been unscarred by the past.
As she stepped in the governor said, "Ms. Tremaine, this is truly an honor. What brings you back home?"
"The truth of my being here is a secret that if I told you would seem like a lie." Revan replied, sitting across from him, her eyes burning with rage.
"Is there an issue, Knight Tremaine?" the governor asked, his voice nervous.
"Yes there is, Governor. How much do you know of me?"
"Only what I was told upon receiving this position. Your family has held much influence here on Deralia ever since they first put foot down on its soil. Your mother and father were Deralia's finest. An example others strove to match.
"As for you, Revan, you fit what all of the youth would have seen as a leader of their group. But instead of leading the bullies, you stood up for the weaker children. An example for parents to use when trying to raise their children properly."
"So you know the stories. That's good. They were accurate once. But not any longer. The last of those I defended died by my hand less than two months ago.
"Less than two weeks ago I liquified a man for harming someone who I have known for less than six months. I reduced him to nothingness, then wielding the power of the Force I reduced the liquid that had once been a mandalorian sniper into a pile of ash and some vapor.
"I have earned the ire of Mandalore himself. Annihilated an entire mandalorian camp for merely endangering someone who I should not care for as I do.
"I slew one who was once my best friend because she endangered this woman I have sworn to protect. There is little that I wouldn't do for her. She was the one who talked me into coming back to Deralia.
"And what do I find, upon returning to the place that had once been my home. The plot of land that was once my house? Do you know?"
"I do not, Knight Revan." he replied, swallowing nervously and looking everywhere but at Revan.
"Then why can't you look at me? Why is the deception in your words so thick that even an untrained Force Sensitive would be able to identify it?" Revan asked, slamming the hilt of her sabre into the wooden desk of the governor.
"Knight Revan, please put your weapon away. I would rather not need to call the guards."
"No guards will come to your aid." Revan growled. "Now tell me the truth. Do. You. Know. What. I. Found. Where. My. House. Once. Was?"
"No, Knight Revan." he replied, trying to sound calm.
"Then why do you sound so nervous?" Revan asked, igniting the violet blade.
He looked horrified, and shifted to press a silent alarm, but Revan interrupted, "Press that button and all you do is sign the death warrants of every guard that comes to your aid."
"You're a Jedi, you can't do this!"
"I'm not here as a Jedi, Governor!" Revan roared. "In this room, you will not think of me as a Jedi Knight. In this room you will think of me as your judge, jury, and executioner."
"You are behaving as a Sith!"
"Though I act as a Sith, I feel no corruption of the Dark Side. What you see, Governor, is righteous fury. Now answer my question honestly or I shall do to you what I did to Davik Kang."
"What did you do to him?" the governor asked, his voice soft and laced with fear.
"I severed that piece of meat between his legs. Now answer the question truthfully, Governor."
"You found a large structure on top of your old house?"
"Yes. Do you know who built that structure? Do you know who ran it?"
"No, I swear to the Force that I don't know!"
"I believe you." Revan said, deactivating her sabre.
"You aren't going to hurt me?"
"I never intended to do any harm to you or your people."
"Then why the threats? Why the acting as a Sith?"
"It was a test."
"You were testing me?"
"Not you, a member of the Jedi Council." Revan said. "I apologize for my harsh behavior, governor. I mean you no ill will. No true Deralian would have knowingly let mandalorians build a fortress on their world."
"Mandalorians? Here?"
"No need to worry about them. I have dealt with that issue."
"Please tell me you killed every last one of them. The last thing I need is people panicking because of the risk of mandalorian presence on Deralia."
"Your people have nothing to fear. They will leave upon learning of my departure from Deralia, the few that survived. And that is assuming they are not already gone."
"What of the things you mentioned? Were those all lies like your threats?"
"Some was true, some false." Revan replied.
"What was true, and what was not?"
"That's for history to decide." Revan chuckled, "But do not fear, as long as I am on your world, no mandalorians shall do what they did before. Should they try, their lives will end... very quickly."
The governor nodded, and said, "Should I be correct in assuming you will want this conversation to remain off the record?"
"Of course, if you ever tell anyone, I might have to actually do some of the stuff I threatened."
"Was it true that you... injured a member of the Exchange that way?"
"Ask him." Revan replied, "But I need to go, my student should have shown up by now." walking out of the room.
-=0=-
Bastila looked up from her datapad to see Revan walk up, followed by a pair of women. Each one had a blade, and Revan seemed to be aware of their presence, and quite irritated.
Bastila asked, "What's wrong?"
"I'm sure you've noticed them." Revan replied. "You have a pair of these tails too?"
"I had to kill mine."
"What did they do?" Revan asked, curiousity in her voice.
"You'd just get angry and want to kill your tails if I told you."
"I suddenly have an urge to kill them in a horrifically brutal way, and I don't even have details as to why." Revan replied, a small smirk on her face.
"They tried to kidnap me. Something about Mandalore."
"Oh, then I'll just have to deal with my tails in a professional, stealthy manner. Not draw any unnecessary attention." Revan replied, as she drew, ignited, and threw her lightsabres into the heads of her followers.
Once she recovered the weapons, Revan said, "I think that was subtle enough. Once the corpses are rotting I may have to answer a couple questions but we'll be off world by then. Assuming I can find us a lift."
"Do you have any idea where to find such a thing?"
"One thing you learn, the best way to find transit from one planet to another without questions asked is go to the bar that is the closest to the spaceport."
"Where did you learn that?" Bastila inquired.
"There are various options. I learned it both from the soldiers in the vet center and Kreia."
"Why is the bar the best place to find transit?"
"The kind of individual we are looking for will never want to be more than a kilometer from their ships if at all possible."
"You want to get a lift back to Dantooine in a smuggler's ship?"
"Well... not really want to... more like I'm resigned to getting back that way. We can't afford to have anyone asking questions."
"Will these people even take Jedi?"
"No." Revan said, "We're going to have to hide that little detail."
"How? It's not exactly easy to hide lightsabres and the fact that we're wearing Jedi robes."
"Yeah, we're going to have to get some other clothes, I figured as much."
Bastila asked, "With what money are we going to purchase these clothes?"
"I'll just say that it's of utmost importance that we are able to hide our identities as Jedi to infiltrate a group of dangerous smugglers. Odds are the store owner will donate the clothes for free that way. And if not... I guess I'll have to sell him one of my spare lightsabres."
"You have spares?"
"Of course, Bastila." Revan said, "Didn't Quatra ever teach you rule number one of survival? Always have a spare. You'll never know when it'll come in handy."
"Do you know of anywhere to get these clothes?"
"I know a place."
"At least that's a start. Though I suppose I should be glad this is the most ludicrous thing you've done this trip. I half thought you were going to blow up that base built on top of your old house."
"I was really considering it. But, that just seemed like it would be difficult to explain. I just want something to be simple for a change.
"That and if Vrook was spying on me, he'll be aware that I suspect him of such things and will probably give me hell when we get back."
"Won't they be suspicious why we come back in a different ship than we left in?"
"The journey was all handled by our most generous kidnappers. We don't have to worry about the Council asking too many questions on that front. They'll want me to report anything of import that happened, but beyond that we're fine."
"What are you going to tell them?"
"The truth, to a certain extent. I'm not going to say that I made a reckless stunt and nearly lost one of my lightsabres to those bastards, but I will tell them about the rest. Hopefully they won't mind me describing each and every meal we have on Deralia in excruciating detail."
"Going to try and get them to quit being so nosy by boring them to tears?"
"Nah, more hoping to help the cooking. It wasn't terrible, but it could be so much better without getting any more expensive."
"What would you do differently?"
"I don't know. You act as if I'm actually a cook. I can cook, but I wouldn't try to tell the professionals how to do their jobs. I just know it could be done better since the temple uses the same ingredients but has better food. Maybe it's the order they prepare things in that makes a difference. Have some residue from item A seep into item B, making that better."
Bastila shook her head, and said, "You clearly don't know what you're talking about."
"Like I said, I can cook, but I'm not very good at it. If you wanted to count on someone to cook, don't look at me. I'm a warrior, a teacher, and Meetra insists that part of me is a lover just waiting to be released. I'm more of the opinion that I'm just the first two. You know how fucked up I am, not exactly that great of a candidate for anyone to take as a lover."
"I don't know that. I may know basically nothing about such things because they're forbidden for Jedi, but you have qualities that I imagine some would find appealing."
"Such as my tendencies to lose my shit and brutally kill mandalorians? Or my willingness to sacrifice myself for complete strangers? Maybe my fondness of doing stupid things such as getting the attention of Mandalore himself?"
"When you put it that way it sounds so much worse than it actually is. Others could look at it as you being selfless when you show willingness to die for others, even strangers. Your brutally killing mandalorians has only really happened when one of your friends has been in danger or wounded, so they'd see you as someone they can count on to keep them safe."
"What about the Mandalore bit?"
"You proved your strength and effectiveness as a protector by earning Mandalore's ire."
A man walking by said, "Go ahead and kiss her already, brunette!"
Bastila blushed a deep red and glared at the man, while Revan said, "You do notice the lightsabres, right?"
"I don't tend to look at people's hips. That just seems like it's weird to check and see what kind of weapons they may or may not have on them."
"What about the Jedi robes?"
"Honestly I tend to ignore everything below neck level on people, just talk to the face. Makes people less likely to call me a perverted old man."
"Is that really so a serious problem you've had that such extreme measures were the only way to prevent it?" Revan asked.
"These people are crazy at times."
"Fair enough." Revan replied. "Anyways, besides your highly inappropriate comment my student and I need to find a place to get some normal Deralian clothes and then if you could point us towards the bar closest to the spaceport, that'd be great."
"Yeah, just go east for the clothing store. As for the bar, why would you want to go to that place? It's the most dangerous place in all of Deralia."
Revan laughed, and said, "You clearly haven't seen the wilderness. Just point me to the bar."
"Alright, it's just north of here. Once you get close it should be easy to figure out." the guy said, walking away.
"Well that was... strange." Bastila said, "But at least we know where to go now."
"Yeah. Though if what he said about the bar was even close to accurate it's going to be a bit dangerous going in there appearing unarmed."
"We might be able to pick up a couple swords before going there."
"That could work, but something tells me there's a better way."
"Such as?"
"Simple, we carry the blasters that I looted off the mandalorians and shoot anyone who causes trouble."
"We won't be officially Jedi, killing people will be a lot harder to explain."
"True, but if we do things smart there won't be an issue."
"And how would you describe doing things smart?"
"Simple, shoot the troublemakers so fast that it doesn't seem possible one of us could have done it. Make it seem like the shot came from someone else, who was just looking for an excuse to shoot the troublemaker."
"Wouldn't they be able to check to see if the weapon was fired?"
"Obviously we'll dispose of it. People will be distracted for a moment, you and I put on the shocked young women who have never seen a corpse before act, and we'll be fine. They'll never suspect a thing."
-=0=-
Half an hour later, Revan and Bastila walked into the bar. It was dark as night, and the air had the stench of alcohol and illegal substances. Revan placed a hand on Bastila's shoulder, and whispered, "If anyone acts suspicious, get out of here and wait outside. I'll find us a ship off this rock."
The younger woman nodded, as they continued to walk through the dark building. In one of the slightly less dimly lit corners was a man drinking a glass of some blue alcohol. Revan saw him, and said, "He's got a pistol aimed right at us."
"You're sure?"
"He's drinking with his off-hand. Only reason he would do that in a bar like this where anything could push it out of your non-dominant hand is if you're prepared to fire."
"So what do we do?"
"Simple, we say hello." Revan replied, walking towards the man. As she did so, he noticeably stiffened up and put his drink down.
She sat down across from him in the booth, and he shifted slightly. Once he had done so, the man- who Revan could now see had several scars along his face- said, "I don't take kindly to people sitting down at my table uninvited."
"I don't take kindly to people pointing their blaster at me the instant I walk into a room." Revan replied.
He laughed, and said, "I knew you weren't like the other people here. That's why I lined up a shot, just in case you've come to cause trouble."
"The blue hair make you suspicious?"
"You walked in here and clearly told your companion to leave if things started looking dangerous. You've got the confidence to say it after walking in, so you wanted people to see it said. My guess is you're used to people leaving the kid alone because she's under your protection.
"That was suspicious enough, but you also move as if you don't think anyone here could hurt you. Anyone walking into the roughest bar on all of Deralia with that kind of confidence is suspicious."
Revan chuckled, and said, "You're pretty good. Pretty much all of your deductions were correct. A couple were wrong, but it was still quite impressive."
"Where was I wrong?"
"I didn't tell my companion to leave if things went south because I wanted people to see it. Historically her being under my protection has made her more of a target. And, I don't think no one here can hurt me, I know they can't."
"I've got a blaster aimed right at you still."
"No you don't." Revan replied, holding the weapon up for him to see. Shock filled the man's eyes, and he said,
"How did you do that?"
"While you were so pre-occupied explaining why you were lining up your shot I was replacing your weapon with a blaster that wouldn't hurt anyone."
"You're good, but just because you're a good thief doesn't mean you should stay in a place like this. I recommend you and your little friend go to a bar in a more upper-class part of town."
Revan shook her head, and said, "Not an option. If I show my face in there odds are that at least seven people will try to kill me."
"You can't handle seven of those pretentious old wastes?"
"I could, but then more would come."
"So you want off-world, and you think I can help you?"
"An old friend once told me the best way to sneak off-world is to go to the most dangerous bar that's the closest to the spaceport. That's where all the people who will fly anyone off world, regardless of their history, are."
"Your friend's a wise man. And, you've come to the right pilot. My name's Razol, best pilot in the Outer Rim. Who are you?"
"My name is Naver. My companion is Verina."
"Why's a woman with a traditional Deralian name in trouble on Deralia while accompanied by a woman from Talravin?"
"Verina's father originally hired me as her bodyguard... oh three years ago. She was born on Talravin, but eight years ago her family moved here."
"That wasn't too long after that mandalorian raid."
"I still remember that day. I was fortunate enough to be off hunting with my father. If we hadn't been away, we'd be as dead as so many others."
"I'm guessing your mother was not so fortunate."
"I lost my mom three days before. Dad took me hunting because he couldn't stand staying in the house after mom passed."
"Fortunate for you."
"Indeed."
"But it doesn't tell me why you and Verina are leaving."
"Her parents didn't like the fact that we were together. He fired me and ordered her to never speak with the 'common rabble' again. Though it was probably just her crazy mother wanting grandkids so badly that the idea of not getting any drove her crazy."
"So you two need to get away from the overbearing parents, I can help you with that. But, it will be costly."
"Money's not an issue." Revan replied, "If it were, I'd have killed you and taken your vessel already."
"You're definitely a violent woman."
"Try working as a bodyguard for a month, you'll understand why."
"I started out as one. I killed the previous owner of the Ebon Hawk to make it mine."
"Sounds like a fast ship, when can we leave?"
"First I'll need to see my payment. Let's say... fifteen thousand credits."
"That's an exorbitant price." Revan said, "I'll pay no more than eight thousand."
"You don't like my prices, I guess you'll have to find another way to get off world."
"You say you killed the previous owner of the Ebon Hawk to make it yours. What's saying that I can't just do unto you as you did your former employer?"
"Do unto me? What are you, a Jedi?"
"Once upon a time I was. The Order didn't appreciate my 'radical' views."
"So a former Jedi and her lover. The price just went up. Twenty thousand."
"Twenty thousand credits? You do realize that you're talking to a powerful wielder of the Force, right? One no longer bound by the Jedi Code? One who could, if she wished, break your mind in a single instant. Make you nothing more than an insane slave with no will of his own."
"There is no way to break a strong mind with the Force."
"That's just what the Jedi say, to assuage the fears of the public. They limit themselves to only applying enough pressure to push weak minded individuals into following commands. Because, if they did enough to make a strong willed individual obey, it would break them."
"Why should I believe you?" Razol asked.
"Because," Revan said as she stood up, and used the Force to make herself appear larger, "you do not want to mess with me. I have shown you mercy up to this point by not crushing the life from you with a stray thought.
"Razol, I do not have any grudge with you. Verina and I simply need a flight out of here, and you are the best option we have. So, will you take eight thousand credits and my personal protection of your vessel on our way to Dantooine?"
"Eight thousand credits for a trip on the fastest ship in the galaxy? You think I'm some kind of idiot who can be easily conned into working for sub-par wages?"
Revan sighed, and said, "You force my hand, Razol. This is an ultimatum. You either take the eight thousand credits to transport Verina and I to Dantooine, or I'll let your employer now that you've been sampling the spice you smuggle."
"How do you know that?"
"It's clear, in your left eye." Revan said, sitting back down, and leaning back.
"You can't tell him! He works for the Exchange! They'll kill me! I'll take you and your girlfriend, free of charge!"
"Sounds good." Revan said, "When do we meet you at the Ebon Hawk?"
"Half an hour."
"We'll be there, and if you try to double-cross me you'll lose your head faster than you can react."
"There is no need to worry, Ms. Naver."
Revan nodded, and walked out of the bar, followed by Bastila. Once they were outside the building, Bastila laughed, and said, "I can't believe he actually believed that your name is Naver."
"Revan and Naver are both traditional Deralian names."
"How uncomfortable do you think the accommodations are going to be on the Ebon Hawk?"
"I'm guessing terrible. He'll probably just shove us in some cargo hold."
"I guess it could be worse, since he is smuggling us out."
"Much worse. Smugglers keep their cargo holds in prestine condition."
-=0=-
When Revan and Bastila walked up to the Ebon Hawk, Razol said, "I know you're actually Revan Tremaine."
"I don't know what you're talking about, Razol." the Knight replied.
"You can cut the act, Revan. I may work for the Exchange who wants your head for what you did to Davik, but I hate that old man. You did everyone a favor by cutting off that old fuck's dick. I thought it was Tremaine, but I didn't have time to check the Exchange database in front of you. It would have been bad for business."
Revan leaned back, and said, "You're a smart man, Razol."
"In this line of work you've gotta be smarter than the smartest, and faster than the fastest."
"You'll take us back to Dantooine, no issues?"
"You're a hero in my book. Doing what you did to Davik and fighting for the cathar against the mandalorians."
"I didn't think you'd be the kind to have an issue with the mandalorians."
"I'm a Deralian just like you, Tremaine. I just happened to be away when those sons of bitches attacked."
Revan nodded, then said, "At least I won't have to pretend to be Bastila's lover for the entire trip. That would be awkward."
"I bet it would be. You strike me as the kind of woman who's so focused on her work that she could never settle down."
"An accurate estimation."
"Anyways, we should get going, it's a long way to Dantooine, and I'm sure you've had enough of this rock."
"A lot of memories best left forgotten here." Revan replied, a grimace on her face.
"For everyone that went through the attack." Razol said.
-=0=-
Revan walked along a path of dark metal. And yet, she could not feel her legs move. She marched across through a corridor of the same dark metal. But she could not feel any movement.
The sapphire haired woman moved through some structure of darkest metal. She entered a room, where six men and women in dark robes and face concealing masks sat.
They stood up, and bowed before her. It felt as if they were speaking to her, welcoming her back. But the woman could not hear their words. On the far side of the room, a flag with the emblem of the Sith Empire hang.
The sight of that ancient symbol of evil told Revan that she should fight the men and women gathered before her. She tried to reach for her lightsabres, but was unable to control her body.
The Jedi struggled with the strange inability to control her own limbs, desperate to strike out against the followers of the Dark Side. She could only see what her body deigned to look at. It moved, against her will.
Her head turned to the side, and thrown naked into the room was Bastila. A pair of guards in blood red armor threw her into the center of the room. Revan's body walked towards the clearly injured Jedi, and motioned for the others in the room to leave.
Once they were gone, Bastila looked up at her. The Jedi's eyes begging for freedom. A faint glimmer of hope only barely visible.
Revan attempted to reach for the younger Jedi's bonds, to release her, but again she could not control her limbs. She could faintly her Bastila beg for the Knight to remember their past.
And then, Revan's weapons were removed from their position on her hips. She ignited them, and kicked Bastila onto her back. As she did so, the woman who both was Revan and was not raised the blades to strike.
The Padawan begged for mercy, and Revan could not stop the other in control of her body. First the Padawan's robes were cut away and thrown aside. Then the other brought the weapon down upon the humiliated Jedi, severing her head.
It was at that moment Revan awoke aboard the Ebon Hawk, covered in a cold sweat. She looked to her right to see Bastila stirring. The younger woman looked at Revan's troubled eyes, and asked, "What's wrong, you look terrified."
"Don't worry about it."
"You know that I can't help but worry when someone of your strength is terrified."
"I had some weird nightmare. It's just got me a bit shaken up. I'll be fine in a moment, get some sleep." Revan said.
"Alright." Bastila replied, lying back down.
Once Bastila was asleep, Revan thought, 'That was like a vision... but if it was the Force showing me the future, that one can't come to pass.'
-=0=-
A/N: Here's the latest chapter. Hopefully you all enjoyed it. And, if you did please leave a review detailing what you liked. :-)
