Mara Jade glared down at the green-gray planet before her. Of course Dagobah couldn't have been a tropical paradise planet or a green agricultural or ranching world. Kriff, she would have taken an oceanic world like Dac or Manaan but no. It had to be a swamp planet covered in grey clouds. She could already almost smell it from the cock pit of her TL-1800 freighter. The transmission from the tracking device she had placed on Luke Skywalker's Incom T-65 X-wing starfighter had cut out shortly after he had entered atmosphere. If that was any indication, Mara guessed that landing down there would be no mean feat for any decent pilot. Lucky for her, Mara Jade was an exceptional pilot with the force as her guide. Taking a deep breath, she reached out with the force, trying to find Skywalker's consciousness. She was very skilled at identifying and finding individuals' consciousness' from a decent distance away thanks to the training that Emperor Palpatine had given her. Even so, she could barely find the two points of bright light because it was shrouded in so much dark side energy, all emanating from a single area. Touching it made Mara's skin crawl. Focusing on the two points of light, she pointed her ship in that general direction, silently praying that there would be a suitable landing spot somewhere close by to them. As they entered atmosphere, her R3 astro droid tweatled. Mara muttered, "I know the sensors are being scrambled, thanks."

Visual scanning and sensors were all utterly useless. All Mara could see was dusky gray fog out her viewports and static on her sensors. The force was the only thing that guided her. She closed her eyes and reached out in all directions with her senses. The amount of life was astonishing. She sensed plants, fungi and animals in the millions below and, thank the force, a patch of bare, soggy dirt large enough to fit two of her ships. With a small smile and her eyes still closed, she started the landing cycle. Within minutes, she lowered the ship onto the ground. Mara didn't realize she had been holding her breath until she let out a relieved sigh. She had never done that before. Reaching out with her senses again, she plunged her awareness into the darkness, seeking the twin points of light. Mara hadn't had the opportunity to wonder why there were two points of light instead of just one. Standing from her pilot seat, she made her way to the boarding ramp and said, "Lock the ship down, R3. Be ready to fire her up as soon as I comm you. I'll be back in a few hours."

The droid whistled its reply and Mara Jade strode down the ramp. The planet was disgusting. Tatooine had been sandy, gritty and dry but this place was wet, rotting and humid. At the bottom of the ramp, Mara did a quick check of her weapons. Her lightsaber was secured to her hip as was a holstered DL-44 heavy blaster pistol and in the left sleeve of her black leather jumpsuit was a small but powerful hold out blaster. When she was satisfied, she quickly began to make her way towards the twin points of light in the midst of the darkness.

Several hours and at least a half a dozen kilometers away, Mara was beginning to get antsy. She was getting close to the point of origins in the nexus of dark side energy and she hated the feeling. It felt so cold and sickly. The only thing that kept her going was the knowledge that she was very close to her target. In fact, she was now less than a kilometer away. It was no time at all before she heard voices. One of them she recognized as Skywalker's. The other was strange. It was a gravely croak and talked backwards. "Calm you are, Luke and yet many things you have on your mind, is that not so?"

"Yes, Master Yoda. Something's happened. During everything that happened to save my friends I – well I guess it would be accurate to say that I met someone. I ran into a force sensitive who, though she didn't use the dark side of the force, was intent on killing me. She let my friends escape but came directly after me. I'm just trying to understand what it means, Master."

Mara was shocked. Did Skywalker just say 'YODA'? As in the last Grand Master of the Jedi Order? But Imperial records stated that he was dead decades ago. How was this even possible? She shook her head. It didn't matter. She had her mission and she would complete it. Slowly, she unclipped her lightsaber and stalked forward. Suddenly, the voices stopped and Mara froze. She reached out with all her senses but couldn't find them of a sudden. She resisted the urge to curse allowed and continued forward slowly. They had to be around here somewhere, they had been there less than a minute ago. She was about to ignite her lightsaber when she felt herself jerked into the air and pulled to the ground, her lightsaber leaping from her grasp at the same time. She lay there on a patch of mostly-dry moss looking at a tiny creature, less than a meter tall with a cane and beside him, a pair of black boots. Slowly, Mara looked upward and saw herself looking into the chiseled face and blue eyes of Luke Skywalker. In one hand was her lightsaber and in the other was his. "Away, put those, Luke. Harm us, she will not."

Mara sneered angrily and rolled before leaping to her feet. She tried to yank out her blaster pistol but it wasn't in her holster. The holdout blaster was gone as well. Both of them lay at the little green creatures feet. The little thing smiled at her and chuckled. "No need for weapons, I think. Why are you here, child?"

Skywalker was about to answer but Yoda silenced him with a wave of his tiny hand. Mara didn't answer. She glared at the two Jedi and knew that she had failed. Even if she could defeat Skywalker, there was no way in Correllian hell she could beat this little creature. The amount of rigidly controlled power that radiated from him was astronomical. She was surprised to sense that, though it was less controlled, the power radiating from Skywalker was just as great but it was less refined and seeped from him like an inefficient fuel system wasting tibanna gas. Skywalker spoke then. "She was the one on Tatooine who tried to kill me, Master. She ignored my friends and the guards and came straight after me."

Yoda nodded, considering this. After a moment, the little creature sighed. "Go to the hut and meditate more, you should, Luke. Speak to this would-be assassin alone, I will."

Skywalker was hesitant. Yoda chuckled again. "Worry about me, you should not. Her lightsaber, give to me. Hurt me, she will not."

Skywalker handed the little creature the lightsaber, though his small hand couldn't even fit around the cylinder. With one final glance at Mara Jade, Skywalker headed out into the swamps. Yoda hobbled over to a rock and sat down on it with a tired sigh. "A great Jedi he will be some day, like his father before him. Now tell me, young one, why do you hunt Luke Skywalker?"

Mara still refused to answer. She would die before giving any information away just as her master would expect her too. The little creature sighed again and said, "Loyal to your master you are, whoever they may be. No Jedi are you. Train assassins, Jedi do not. A Sith Lord, you are not, for there are two Sith Lords already and the dark side I do not sense in you. But a dark master you have. Over the millennia, force using servants the Sith have had – both trained in the dark side and not."

Mara tried to take a step but the little creature waved his hand. "Sit down, you should. Be here awhile, we will until the answers I have. Too much at stake there is for me to allow you to go free. Now, a powerful master you have. Neither adept, nor inquisitor nor dark knight trained you to get so close without us sensing you."

Mara felt herself forced over to a large stump and set down on it against her will. She didn't think Jedi were the kind of beings to do that. Yoda continued, "Search your mind, I could. See your thoughts, I could. But have a conversation with a lovely young lady, I would rather."

Mara was getting tired of this and the backwards talking of this little creature was beginning to make her head hurt. He continued slowly, "Clear it is to me, that the Emperor, your master must be or at least the one who commands you, he is. Only his agents to carry lightsabers are permitted. Hmmm..."

With a snap-hiss the weapon ignited. It's blade was maroon in color. The aged master examined it. "Not scarlet like the Sith Lords' or the inquisitors or the dark knights. A special mission, you had I think. A special purposed were you trained for. It matters not at this time. Know, you must, that kill Skywalker you cannot. Powerful is he, skilled is he."

Mara brushed back a strand of her golden-red hair and resisted the urge to tell the creature to shut his mouth and stop talking to her or to just let her go complete her mission. The little creature deactivated the lightsaber and used the force to give it to her. Mara was surprised. He also gave Mara her blasters. She clipped the lightsaber to her belt and put the hold out blaster back in its sleeve holster. She made as if to put her heavy blaster pistol in its holster but suddenly jerked up and fired from the hip at the little creature. Yoda simply lifted his hand and absorbed the rounds as if they were nothing but lights from a glow rod. Mara was stunned. She had heard rumors that Darth Vader was capable of such power but to see it was something else. She resignedly holstered her weapon. The little creature lowered his hand and grunted. He stood slowly and began to walk towards her. He hobbled, bent double with age, making him appear even smaller than he really was. When he was less than a meter away from Mara, he said, "Kneel down, young one. If hurt you, I wished to, hurt you I could."

Mara knelt and looked into his large eyes. Her mental shields were firmly in place so that the master could not see into her mind. After a few moments, he sighed a long, sad sigh. "Not the good man, you think he is, your Emperor. Evil, he is. A Lord of the Sith, he is. But believe my words, you will not. Show you, I fear I must."

Suddenly, Mara felt a powerful, bright consciousness surround her own. Even with her shields firmly raised, she could feel his presence. She wasn't sure how he was doing it but the aged Master was somehow getting feelings and images past her walls even though she doubted he could see what she was thinking. She saw images of peace and war. She saw people she assumed were Jedi leading white-armored clone troopers against Separatist battle droids on ten thousand worlds. Humans, twi'leks, zabraks and countless other sentient beings wielded the green and blue lightsabers of the Jedi order against the red lightsabers of Count Dooku's Dark Jedi acolytes and against the cybrog General Grievous. Almost like a puppet master above, the dark figure of Emperor Palpatine leered, cackling evilly. Suddenly, everything went dark. Ten thousand clone troopers in white armor with blue streaks marched into the Jedi Temple lead by a figure in dark robes. Anikan Skywalker was a famous Jedi Knight, a hero who was so well known for doing the impossible. Mara saw him now, cutting down fellow Jedi from the children to the aged librarians. The scenes changed. Mara saw Anikan Skywalker walk into darkness, a blue bladed lightsaber in his hand. For several moments, all she saw was the swirling darkness but then, she suddenly heard the sound that filled her very existence with fear and dread. It was a mechanical respirator that worked at a single, constant pace. With it was the sound of heavy duraplast boots, out of the darkness, wielding a red lightsaber now strode the figure that haunted every one of Mara Jade's nightmares - Darth Vader. Throughout everything, the Emperor stood before, laughing madly, looking for all the world like a massive puppet master. Mara felt tears in her eyes as she understood the small master's message. Flashes of images appeared in her mind's eye - worlds destroyed, species annihilated and a child, a little red-golden haired girl taken from her parents' burning home by a man in dark robes.

Mara snapped back to reality and was shocked to find herself weeping. The little green Jedi Master had tears in his eyes too. He hobbled forward and placed a small hand on one of hers. "See now, do you, young one? See now what your master is?"

Mara spoke for the first time. "Yes I see, Master but I - I can't believe it. I just - just can't. The Emperor helped raise me. He taught me everything I know about the force."

Yoda nodded. "A shock, this must be, to find out what your father-figure truly is. Meditate you should, young one. Over there, a cave there is. Surely, sense it you do. Hurt you it will not. I must go to Skywalker. My time with him is short."

He smiled and patted her kindly and Mara stood. Wiping her eyes self consciously and taking a deep breath, Mara went into the cave. The feeling of the dark side around her made her lightheaded. After a just a few minutes, she found a flat stone and sat down on it. Mara had never meditated before and wasn't quite sure how to proceed. She started with a deep breath and closing her eyes. She tried to quiet her thinking but her mind wouldn't relax. Impatience flooded her and she stood and began to pace when suddenly, two figures materialized from the mists. One was tall, in black armor and a black cloak while the other was covered from head to toe in black robes. Mara recognized them both with ease. The Emperor looked at her and said, "Well done, my child. You have killed Luke Skywalker and the Rebel Alliance has been utterly crushed, but I am afraid that means your usefulness to has come to an end."

The Emperor then turned to Lord Vader and said, "My friend, kill her."

"With pleasure, my Master." With a snap-hiss, the Dark Lord ignited his crimson blade and approached her. Instinctively, Mara lit her own blade and readied herself for the fight of her life - most likely the last fight of her life. The first blow was hard enough to numb her small hands and she was able to slip out of the way of the next blow before it bisected her. It was a short duel. She couldn't avoid all his blows and she could block even fewer of them. Within minutes, she was on her knees, her arms numb. She glared up into the mask of Vader as he looked down on her. "At last you learn your place before you die, FORMER Emperor's Hand."

He brought the weapon down but just before it removed Mara's head from her shoulders, she found herself alone. She stood and whirled around. With a sigh of relief, she turned back towards the entrance to the cave. "My child, make your report."

Mara whirled again. Behind her stood her master. She bowed and stuttered. "M - my master. I - " She had to take a deep breath and calm herself. "I have tracked Skywalker to the swamp planet of Dagobah. When I arrived, I also found something unexpected - an ancient Jedi Master of great power. He calls himself Yoda."

The Emperor recoiled slightly and snarled, "Yoda? Impossible! The withered creature could not possibly still live." He looked at Mara and smiled again. "You have done well, my child. Finish your mission and then return to me."

Mara stood and said, "Wait, Master..." before she could cut herself off. The old man turned back to her. His face was not angry. If anything, there was a touch of concern in it. "What is it my child? Is there something you aren't telling me." Mara was silent, trying to find a way to reveal what she had learned. The Emperor took her opportunity to do so. He hissed, "You were discovered and the Jedi spoke to you, didn't they, my child?"

Mara suddenly felt resentment and feelings of betrayal rising in her. She tried to remain respectful but could not keep all of the bitterness out of her voice. "Yoda showed me things. He showed me the Clone Wars and - and he showed me..."

The Emperor's face grew hard. "He showed you too much, it would seem, Mara Jade. He showed you the foundation of the Empire - such a pity. It would appear you know too much to be of use to me, Mara Jade. This war will be over soon and when we are finally at peace, I'm afraid I cannot allow one with so much information to live."

Mara was shocked. Was this real or was it a vision - an effect of the dark side energy surrounding her. "Master, wait. Even after this war, how will you maintain control over the Empire? Who will seek out the corrupt?"

The Emperor shook his head. "That is no longer your concern, Mara Jade."

The feelings of hurt and betrayal welled up within her - to have the one man who had ever meant anything to her cast her aside like a spent powerpack. "I know who you are, Darth Sidious. I know WHAT you are. I know how you came to power. I know that you used me. I thought of you as a father and you USED me. After a lifetime of service, of being a slave to a megalomaniac, I am to be tossed aside like a broken tool."

The Emperor's face was hard and angry now. "How dare you assume you know me, Mara Jade. Run while you can, child. After I have killed Skywalker and ended this pitiful Rebel Alliance, you will be found and I will see to your execution personally."

Mara felt her own rage building. "No, you won't. I know more secrets than almost any other agent in your Empire. I will find the Rebel Alliance and tell them EVERYTHING! I will go to Skywalker and fight with him against you. I will not stop until I am dead or YOU are, Emperor Palpatine."

Mara reached into her mind and found the link that connected her to the Emperor. With a massive exertion of will and no small amount of pain, she destroyed the bond between her and the Emperor. The last thing she heard from him was a shriek of pain and rage. She found herself alone again in the cave. Again, she was weeping. She was alone. While she had never had any friends, she was never alone. The Emperor was always there, bonded to her. Now, however, she had nothing - no friends, no master, nothing. She was absolutely, utterly, alone. The pain and loneliness were almost too much. It took all her will power to stand again and stagger out of the cave. Mara remembered everything she had told the Emperor. She would go to Skywalker, to the Alliance and do everything in her power to help them. Now that she understood what her master was, she knew he had to be stopped, his rein brought to an end.

Outside the cave, Mara looked around. She had no idea what direction the tiny Jedi Master's hut was. All she could see around her were trees and fungus and mud and mist. Taking a deep breath, Mara Jade reached out with her senses, looking for the bright spots of light that would identify the Jedi. It was a matter of moments before she found one. Even with the shields firmly in place, Mara could tell it was Skywalker. Something about his consciousness was so honest, naive almost and so very earnest. She tried to get through to him but the shields kept her out. Instead of trying to batter her way through, she gently caressed his consciousness. It was strange, a little awkward to do something so intimate with someone she had been trying to kill. After several minutes, and when she was only a few dozen meters away from where Skywalker was, she felt his mental shields lower cautiously. Though he couldn't quite send direct messages, his mind was inquiring and Mara understood. She sent him a direct message. Skywalker. My name is Mara Jade. We need to talk. Master Yoda showed me something. I promise I won't try to kill you.

Update May 23, 2016