4: Serenity
Setting their course for Hoth, hoping to gain the protection of the S.A.S, Xenos and the other Jedi were roaring through hyperspace. Luckily, the blockade had once again failed to assemble in time, and they'd had the luxury of an unsuspecting ship. The Raven's Claw had no doubt been taken by either the Sith or Willow, but Xenos was more concerned about Dakriel. He'd been in shock upon seeing her, and was fighting Darth Mira on pure instinct of self-preservation, but now he was silent.
"Dakriel," Xenos said after a long silence had filled the main hull, "Are you alright?"
"Yes, master," Dakriel replied, but knew he wasn't.
The sight of what Willow had become terrified him, but he also wondered how she'd survived. He missed her, or at least, the woman he knew back then. It was clear now that she had changed for the worse, and his greatest fear was being faced with the choice of death, or killing his former surrogate. He pushed the fear from his mind, and for now at least, he would rather focus on other things.
"You guys really are amazing," Keith muttered after yet another long silence, "The way you managed to hold your own against the Sith? The Jedi truly are great, just like the legends say!"
"While your admiration is noted," Xenos replied, "We are not Jedi yet, seeing how I am only a knight, and Dakriel is merely my padawan learner."
"Dakriel," Keith began, "You knew that woman once, didn't you?"
"I," Dakriel began, then paused, reflecting on his memories again, "She protected me, and helped raise me. She's the closest thing I ever had to a mother, but she's also a lethal bounty hunter…and right now, we're her targets."
"Oh," Keith replied darkly, realizing the situation, "I'm sorry…"
"We've arrived," Xenos said as they came out of hyperspace, and hovered just over Hoth's icy surface.
Just a few seconds later, a beacon appeared hailing the Jedi. A tall, fit S.A.S General was on the comms link, and after Xenos gave them his codes for the system, allowed the Jedi to descend to the frozen planet below.
xxxxxxx
Aboard the command ship of the blockade, Malik sat quietly, strangling the general with the force, who was a short, balding, middle-aged man. Malik had a sort of emotionless expression about his face as he did so, but he was both passing the time, and punishing him for allowing the Jedi to escape. He wanted it to be clear that failure meant death, or at least brutal torture. However, he found he felt nothing but uncertainty about Athaliah, and the distraction made him ease his grip on the general.
"Kneel," he mumbled, finally releasing the fat man, "Next time you fail me, you will die. Return to your transmissions, and track that ship."
"Y-yes, m-milord," the general sputtered back, clumsily standing back up and returning to his station rubbing his neck nervously.
"I want those Jedi scum hunted down and annihilated," he bellowed while striding off to the medical bay.
Not far from the command deck, stretching down a long, metallic corridor, Malik arrived in the medical bay. Athaliah was in the southern-most room, being scanned and checked for any internal damage. Were it not for Malik's lack of practice with his more advanced force powers, he wouldn't even waste the time and effort to check her, but alas the last thing he needed was a wounded apprentice. As he slowly approached her from behind, ignoring her figure as his blood boiled slightly, she covered herself with her robe.
"Oh, hello master," she said, blushing wildly with embarrassment, "I didn't sense you approaching. Is everything okay?"
"That's what I'm here to find out," he replied dryly with a forced scowl at her, "Have they reported any injuries? What about internal bleeding?"
"No, master," she said shaking her head, then she touched her visor gently, "I'm normal as always…"
"Good," he replied darkly then began walking off, "Return to me when you are cleared for combat. Soon the Jedi will be ours…"
Although he'd done his best to hide it, she could sense the conflict within him, and a part of him that truly cared about her. She almost snickered, but she as well had felt this within herself, noticing a glimmer of the emotion as he stormed back towards the command deck. Something about the way he walked struck something inside of her, but it defied all of the Sith within her. In a way, she despised herself for being so weak when he was near, yet she also relished in the feeling that swelled within her.
xxxxxxx
Aboard the dark lord's star cruiser, Willow had finally awakened in what appeared to be a holding chamber. In the cells next to her, she saw a variety of sentients and humans; all prisoners of the Sith Empire. She had already guessed whose ship it was, and wasn't surprised when Malik's dark figure appeared down from the stair way.
"Thought I caught your stench," Willow said angrily, refusing to struggle against the magnetic binds holding her in place.
"Silence," Malik said as his hand shot out and forced her mouth to close, "You may speak when I permit it. Now, you will help me track down the Jedi, and you will bring them to me alive."
"Why would I even consider it," she said growling, "Screw you, Sith!"
"Your mind will change," Malik said walking away, "Or you will die of starvation. Your choice."
Then he was gone, vanishing like the shadowy presence that radiated from him. She gritted her teeth, cursing under her breath, but realized this might actually benefit her. She could do as he said, and when he lowers his guard to kill the Jedi, she could strike. He might see it coming, but naturally the Jedi would be the bigger threat. It was almost too perfect.
"You've got nerve for someone willing to stare that one in the eye," one of the prisoners said to her.
She stared at him for a moment, but realized that he bored her. He was a human with dark brown eyes and long brown hair. He'd been here for a while, from the looks of him, and she merely shrugged.
"Yeah," he said nodding, "You're cold blooded alright. I can tell you're gonna take a long time to break."
"What do you want, worm," she snarled in annoyance.
"Oh," he said dryly, "I want the same thing you want sugar: a way out of this place."
"Impossible," she said darkly, "We'd never make it."
"Don't be too sure," he replied, "See that flashing red button over there," he said gesturing to a panel near the stairs, "When he let's you out, get close and push it, and it'll unlock the cells."
"Whatever," she said blankly, and then attempted to sleep.
xxxxxxx
As the Jedi's ship struggled to land through Hoth's savage blizzards, echos of an ensuing battle could be heard just a few clicks east of their target landing site. The sounds of Imperial and S.A.S fighters could be heard ripping through the harsh blizzards, firing at one another. Just before reaching the landing dock located on the north face of the base, two fighters came roaring past them in a whirl of blaster bolts.
"Rough morning," Xenos jeered with a half smile as the general approached with two guards at his side.
"Welcome to Hoth," the general replied eyeing the trio warily, "State your business or be on your way; we're in the midst of a battle here."
"We've come to seek your protection," Dakriel butted in, "We're outrunning-"
"Some Sith Imperial forces," Xenos finished, shooting Dakriel a scolding look.
"You shall have it," the general nodded, "For so long as we remain alive and well that is. What are your names?"
"I am Xenos; Xenos Starkiller," he said and then gestured to his padawan and the boy, "This is my padawan, Dakriel, and our adopted friend, Keith."
"I can sense that you are not Sith, and yet..." His gaze fell upon the two Jedi's sabers.
"We are Jedi," Xenos responded with a kind smile.
By now the group had already arrived in the central command center of the base. A large screen displayed 3-D images projecting the ongoing battle outside. Xenos never ceased to be amazed by technology, and as time passed, his admiration only increased. He watched as holograms of fighters flew around the middle of the room, chasing one another, tanks fired in various directions, and even speeders and troopers could be seen huddled together in their respective squadrons.
"They had us cornered," the general finally said, "We've managed to pull them into a metaphorical lure. We've got a secret weapon which will disable their machines, leaving them open for a full on assault."
"Master," Dakriel muttered, "This battle may serve to help hide our presence from the Sith, and we could also assist the S.A.S in kind."
"Yes, I agree," Xenos nodded, rubbing his chin in thought, "We will protect and prepare this secret weapon of yours, if you would allow general, so you can send the troops you would use to battle instead."
General Tarrka pondered the offer for a moment. Though he knew little about these newcomers, no one had seen a Jedi in almost one hundred years. They were a legend; a myth; a bedtime story told to children so that their fear of the Sith would be lessened. Yet these two did not seem as harsh or violent as the Sith were. Maybe, just maybe...
"Okay," General Tarrka nodded, his srong jaw clicking as a gust of snow unfurled his wavy blonde hair, "Take these and await my command. You will know when to fire the disruptor cannons."
Xenos took the comm links with haste, and the trio followed one of the guards to the secret weapon. Again Xenos was smiling, admiring the technological advancements surrounding them all. It truly amazed him what normal sentients were capable of when not being slaughtered by the Sith. Dakriel gave no pause, however, and Keith was still too young to appreciate any of it. Alone, Xenos thought, alone in my own mind.