Chapter XI – Leaving Taris

Eventually, things grew quiet, the lights stopped scanning the trees, and the action moved off toward the Jedi enclave. We waited and rested in the tree for a long while. Occasionally, something passed under us or flapped by above, but the Jedi searchers never returned.

Ashara stirred against me. "Do you think they left?" she whispered. We were pretty cramped together against the trunk of the tree, and with the panic fading, my aversion to physical contact began to re-emerge. At least Ashara was a girl and did not have an unpleasant presence. Regardless, I attempted to re-assert my personal space, shifting against the trunk to give her the impression that I was uncomfortable. She gave me space, moving to sit on the large limb about a foot from the trunk.

"I don't know; the woman with the green lightsaber was very persistent."

"Drya," the padawan responded with a whisper as she looked down into the darkness below. "She's a visiting master. I think she might even be on the council."

"I want to wait a bit longer to be safe," I commented.

While we waited, the medication wore off on my wounds, and they began to sting with pain again. I reached for the hypo-spray, and the padawan watched as I exposed my wounds to apply the medicine.

"Those are bad wounds," she said with a look of concern.

"Yes, don't play with the sparkly end of a lightsaber," I replied. The spray helped deaden the pain, but the wounds would need treatment soon.

"You need help," she stated as she looked into my eyes.

"Yes," I agreed.

"What are we going to do now?"

"Well, let's see." I pulled out my com and pinged Andronikos, turning the volume and lumination down as low as possible. Thankfully, we were outside of any com interference, and the call went through.

It took a while for him to answer, but then the holo gloamed, and his face appeared. "Glad to hear from you," his rough voice echoed softly through the com. "Everything go all right with the mission?"

"The mission is complete," I replied, "but there were complications."

"Are you ready for pick-up?" Andronikos asked.

"Yes, but I need to get farther away from the military positions to avoid air defenses, which will probably take me an hour or more. Is there anything to worry about from Dromund Kaas?"

"Nothing from Dromund Kaas, but you shook Khem up pretty bad with your message this morning. I wish you would have taken the monster with you; he's been a real hassle. I tried to get him to take another extended nap, but he refused. There is activity on the Republic coms; seems like you stirred up a beehive in the Jedi Enclave. Our geosynchronous orbit puts us on the opposite side of the planet from you, and it will probably take me over an hour to get to the surface. There's an increase in Republic orbital activity with their ships making reconnaissance sweeps; it could be tricky to make it down undetected."

"I don't want to risk the ship," I complained.

"We've got to get to you somehow," Andronikos replied. "I'll monitor the activity and see if I can find an opening. I could divert to a polar entry where there's less attention, though that will delay our arrival even more."

"Keep me posted. I will begin moving to a better extraction point." I clicked off the com and looked over at Ashara. "That was my ship and its captain, Andronikos," I explained.

There was a thoughtful moment of silence before the padawan spoke again. "Are you going to take me with you?" she asked nervously.

I did not want to answer that question at the moment. "We need to move out; I can't stay here." I had a strange sense of conflict in me about the padawan. She was a complication, and I would be taking her into danger, but at the same time, she seemed to have an affinity for apparitions, or they had one for her, which could prove invaluable in my search for more power. "I sense your fear."

"I don't know," she replied, "everything is so confusing all of a sudden, I feel conflicted, and part of me thinks I've made a terrible mistake."

"I can sense the conflict in you."

She paused, and her eyes looked at me. "I can sense conflict in you, too. What was your mission? The one that the captain asked about. Did it involve me?"

"Not the way you are thinking," I replied, "I was after the Force ghost."

"What do you think . . . I mean, how do you know what I was thinking?"

"Your eyes indicate that you fear me. Maybe you think I stole you from the Jedi to corrupt you to the dark side and make you my apprentice."

"Oh," she responded awkwardly. "There are rumors about the Sith."

"Yes, there are, and some of them are true - but not true of me. I have not lied to you, Ashara, even if I haven't told you everything. I meant you no harm and didn't want to hurt your master." We sat in silence for a moment, each processing thoughts that we did not want to share.

"Let's climb down," I suggested as I began to shift away from the trunk of the tree.

"Do you think it's safe now?" Ashara asked as her eyes scanned the darkness below us.

"It's been a few hours, and I don't sense anything. Besides, we can't stay in this tree forever." My strength had recovered a bit, but my limbs were stiff and sore as we quietly climbed down out of the tree. The feeling of fatigue had not gone away as I had hoped, leaving me tired and slow to think. I used my wrist com to plan a trajectory away from both the Jedi enclave and the Crater Command Bunker, not wanting to return to the Imperial position. It would be complicated to cross their perimeter in the dead of night, especially with a Jedi padawan in tow.

"Do you know where you are going?" Ashara asked after minutes of picking our way through the trees and debris on the ground.

"It may not seem so in the dark, but yes."

She seemed satisfied with the answer and did not ask anything more as we continued walking slowly in the darkness. I stopped moving after a while of fumbling through broken terrain and thick undergrowth. The moon had set, and the night sky offered no light for us to see. It seemed like the journey would be impossible until dawn, but then I remembered the HUD glasses linked with Pez. I searched my pack until I found them and slipped them on. Ashara gave me an odd look when I donned the shaded glasses, but I was pretty sure they had an enhanced vision mode even if the droid was not active. It took a moment to work the controls on the temple part of the frame, but eventually, I was able to activate a rudimentary infrared overlay on the lenses.

The infrared vision was dim, and there was little differentiation in the undergrowth, so our progress was still slow, but it was better than complete darkness. We moved on in silence for a long time. Something large got spooked by our approach and huffed off into the night with the clumping of footfalls and snapping of branches. It put a fright into both of us, and we ducked down against a large rock and waited for the sounds to fade into the distance. While we were waiting, my com chimed softly and surprised me. I looked at my wrist and saw it was Elios. Glancing toward the padawan, I became unsure about talking to him in front of her. The chime sounded again, and I decided to risk it. I opened the channel and saw his smug face light up in the holo.

"There you are," he smirked.

"What do you want, Elios?"

"It's nice to hear your cheery voice, my Lord."

"I don't have the time or the patience to deal with you," I snapped, "and watch what you say over this com."

"Of course," he sighed, "discretion might as well be my middle name . . ."

"Not likely," I retorted, "is there a point to your call? I'm a little busy."

"I've forgotten how charming you can be," he mocked. "I assume you completed your mission, based on the panicked activity we identified around the enclave. You look like hell. Are you okay?"

I cursed inwardly for not turning off the outgoing video. "I didn't ask for your opinion, Elios. My condition is no concern of yours."

"Actually, it is," he countered. "Watcher One and his team arrived on-station a bit ago, and he introduced himself to me; explained your whole rescue affair in detail. He's quite impressed with you. He also told me you mentioned me favorably, which I am grateful for, by the way . . ."

"The point, please."

There was a pause as Elios' face gave me a frustrated look. "He asked me to contact you and offer assistance."

"I don't need any assistance," I complained.

"Really? Based on your current travel path, you will soon enter an area called The Sinking City, a nasty place that holds many dangers. It's not an area one should take an unplanned hike into during daylight, let alone complete darkness."

I should have known that he was tracking me. Damned Imperial Intelligence! I complained inwardly. "I'm trying to get away from military anti-air defenses," I countered.

"A wise idea, and one I can assist you with."

I thought about Andronikos, who was probably beginning his descent to the planet. I did not want Elios and Watcher One to know about my ship or my plans. "Just tell me if I'm far enough from the Republic position to avoid complications?"

"Why would I do that if I can simply provide you a safe extraction point? I'll send it to you immediately . . ."

"Just shut up and listen," I complained. "I don't want your extraction point, and I don't want you tracking me."

"Chippy, as usual," he sighed, "I told the Watcher that his gestures of gratitude would be wasted on you. How am I supposed to drop a ship to you if you won't cooperate?"

"Ship?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes. A long-range recon ship Watcher One has in his travel group. He insisted that I try to drop it to you so that you can get off-world."

My mind began to spin through ideas quickly. Taking the Watcher's ship would prevent Andronikos from trying to sneak the Intrepid down to the surface, and it would give us some flexibility when trying to get out of orbit. The Watcher's ship would likely have a tracker on board, but I could have Andronikos deal with that later.

"Are you still there, sweetheart?"

"I'm here!" I snapped. "How big is the ship? Can it hold more than one person?"

"The gratitude," he mumbled, "I suppose you want to know what color it is too?" He expected me to retort, but I remained silent. "You've got to be kidding me, right? It's a ship, something I presume would come in handy to you at the moment."

"I'm not kidding you, Elios. I've had a hell of a night and really can't deal with you anymore."

"Shit," he sighed, "I haven't seen the ship and don't have any idea what size it is. Watcher One wanted me to help you, and that's what I'm trying to do. Why do you have to make things difficult? You just covered your debt by connecting me with Watcher One and now you're going to go and make me look bad."

"Elios, try to stay focused."

"I'm focused like a laser, honey. Watcher One is preparing his team to leave orbit, and you better believe I'll be with him. I'm not hangin' around for the hammer to fall. Do you want my help or not?"

I glanced over at Ashara, who was observing the conversation with a baffled look. I did not trust Elios or the Watcher completely, but I also did not want to risk the Intrepid. "Send me the coordinates."

"I already have," he answered, "it should be in your com. There's a map that will keep you out of harm's way if you follow it. I'll have the ship prepped and waiting. When you're near the extraction point I'll send it down."

"This better not come with any strings, Elios."

"So distrustful, after all I've done for you? You know, the one good thing you said about me to Watcher One doesn't wipe away the sting of your skepticism."

"I'll have more good things to say about you when the ship lands and I'm safely away from here."

"You'll get the ship, but it will cost you a lot more than some cheap flattery, sweetheart," he countered. "I've stuck my neck out for you several times now, and that's not really in my nature."

"Just get on with it," I complained, "and Elios?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm not your sweetheart." I clicked the com off, and we were left alone in the dark again.

"Who was that?" Ashara asked thoughtfully after a moment of silence.

"That was my Imperial Intelligence contact on Taris. He's kind of a pain, but he's useful."

"You don't seem to like him very much," she observed.

"He's incorrigible, and he's a spy, so I don't trust him." I checked my com and noticed Elios' message with the map attached. I hated having to read maps, but this one seemed simple enough. Our location blinked green in the flat halo image, with a line showing me the direction I should go. After moving slowly in the dark for a bit, I realized that I needed to contact Andronikos about the change in plans. Opening the com, I waited until he answered.

"Sorry, I haven't headed towards you yet; some Republic scouts are making a sweep in a lower orbit near us."

"That's okay," I replied, "there's been a change in plans anyway."

"Oh?"

"I rescued a Watcher earlier today, and he's sending me a ship."

"Can you trust him?"

"I think so, and using his ship keeps us from risking the Intrepid."

"They'll be tracking you," he muttered.

"They already are, but I get what you mean. The ship will likely have a locator on it but we will have to deal with that later. Stay in your safe orbit. I will contact you when I'm off-world."

"What timeline are we on? I'm not liking all this military activity."

"I should be off-world in less than two hours."

"Very well. We'll lay low till then and await your contact."

I cut the com and headed out through the darkness, following Elios' map which I loaded into the HUD glasses. Despite my infrared vision, it was a difficult hike in the dark, taking well over an hour for us to make what looked like a short journey. The ground was growing more rugged, and the sounds of large animals made us stop and hide several times. Finally, we grew near the objective and my com chimed.

Elios' face appeared when I answered. "I see that my guidance has brought you through safely. I hope the hike wasn't too difficult." His voice droned through the speaker. "The map was my handiwork and I don't want you to think it was easy . . ."

"Elios," I interrupted.

"Okay," he sighed, "you take the fun out of everything. The ship is on its way and should reach you shortly."

"It's mine to command?" I queried. "No questions asked?"

"Of course. I don't want to have anything to do with you, remember? You're toxic, lady."

"Watch your tongue," I spat, "I could mention to your new boss about what a pain in the ass you are, and that despite your competence, working with you isn't worth the effort."

There was a pause. "You don't have to keep your guard up with me; I know you care. Watcher One is confident that he can protect me and keep my position at Intelligence, thanks to you."

"I told you that you could trust me," I replied.

"Trust a Sith. Are they throwing snowballs in hell?"

"Very funny," I said snippily.

"Say what you want," he went on, "I sense your true sentiment. You aren't going to forget me easily, are you, sweetheart?"

"You do realize you're talking to someone who can crush your callous heart inside your chest, right?"

"You Sith are all alike," he drawled.

By the Force, he had a way of infuriating me. While I paused to consider why I had to deal with the Imperial spy, my thoughts drifted to Brand and Delba Company. "Elios, I've got a feeling that Commander Pillus' position at Crater Command will become untenable. You should talk to Watcher One and Commander Yelka; have Delba Company withdraw; the sooner, the better."

"Wow, a Sith with compassion. Who would have thought?"

"Are you listening to me?" I hissed.

"Of course, my Lord, and I appreciate your thoughts on Crater Command. I will talk with Watcher One and the station commander about it. You take care of yourself. I've heard some nasty rumors swirling over the coms. I'd hate to find out something bad happened to my favorite Sith."

"I intend to, Elios. You take care of yourself too, and don't mention anything about me."

"That sounds like good advice. Goodbye, my Lord." With that, Elios clicked his com off and was gone.

"Nasty rumors swirling over the coms? What does that mean?" Ashara eyed me nervously.

"It means we need to get far away from here." I cut the conversation off there, unsure what else to say. There was a lot that the girl did not know, much of it useless and liable to cause anxiety, and some things she deserved to know but I did not want to divulge. It was too soon to explain anything to her, and I was unsure how much the padawan fit into my plans. After a brief wait, the sound of an engine whine could be heard coming toward us. The small craft maneuvered smoothly as it landed, making me fear for a moment that there was a pilot aboard. I stood up and approached the ship with Ashara in tow. Elios must have transferred control to my com because as I approached, the ship's hatch hissed open, and interior lighting washed out into the rough ground of the clearing. I saw Ashara hesitate when we reached the ramp, and I looked over at her.

"I don't want to leave," she sighed. "My whole life is here."

"That life has been lost; you know that."

"No, it hasn't. You told me earlier that they shouldn't blame me. I can tell them you forced me."

"That was before you disobeyed direct orders from your master and then stood by while he was cut down. It doesn't matter anyway because I won't let you go."

"What?"

"You know too much; I can't let you walk back to the Jedi and tell them everything. You are my prisoner. Now get in the ship." She looked shocked and hurt by my words. I took a step onto the ramp and realized she still had not moved. "I told you not to test me, padawan, or there would be consequences," I spoke as sternly as I could.

She looked at me, surprise and anger in her eyes, and I looked back with confidence and determination in mine. There was a moment of tested wills, and then she moved, climbing the ramp into the ship. I followed her and closed the hatch quickly, discouraging a change of heart from either of us. The ship looked clean and formidable but small, with only one room separate from the main cabin. I moved to the cockpit and sat in the pilot's seat, looking over the control panel to quickly orient myself because I wanted to get airborne as soon as possible. Ashara came forward and stood behind the copilot's seat, staring out the front window. The controls consisted of numerous touch screen panels and a heads-up display over the front window. The holo-com sat in the middle, sticking out of the console between the two seats.

There was a green flashing button on the holo-com that seemed inviting, so I pressed it. A holographic image of the planet Taris was projected above the dash, including the location of the Imperial station and the Republic fleet. It was a highly sophisticated display that seemed to show ship orbits in real-time. I found the navigation controls and punched in an ascent trajectory that kept us away from orbital traffic and engaged the autopilot. We lifted off, and I glanced at the padawan, watching her gaze out the window at the landscape falling away below her. Everything that she had known was being left behind. Remorse clouded her countenance, and tears flowed down her red and white cheeks.

I watched our ascent in the pilot's chair, wanting to make sure we stayed away from Republic patrols. I was also worried that Imperial Intelligence might send someone to shadow us. The engines whined as we accelerated upward, and the rush of atmosphere could be heard as it buffeted the ship's hull. A wave of relief washed over me as the planet diminished beneath the ship and I felt free of its frustrations and the danger of being caught by Darth Thanaton. As the ship reached outer space, the sun appeared over the horizon, forcing the window to darken protectively. We seemed to have avoided unwanted attention as the ship continued to climb higher above the green and brown planet. The padawan slipped into the chair next to me; eyes staring out thoughtfully and tears still wet on her cheeks. I got up to give her some space and went to address my wounds.

There was a small kitchen on the side of the main cabin opposite the exterior door, and after a bit of searching, I found a lockable drawer beneath the counter, so I put both our lightsabers and the padawan's com into the drawer for safekeeping. I found the medical cabinet and flicked it open. It took a bit of effort to pull off my black cloak, noticing large gashes in the shoulder and side where the lightsaber wounds were. Tossing the cloak on the counter, I looked over my shadow-silk shirt. The same burned gashes in the cloth exposed my bare shoulder and side, the cauterized wounds raw and red. Gingerly, I tugged my shirt up and slid it from my shoulders. The ship reached its orbital position, and the engines droned down, leaving only the quiet hum of electronics and some control panel tones as ambiance.

I caught the padawan looking at me as I checked my wounds. There was a mirror on the inside of the medical cabinet, so I glanced at myself to see what she might be observing. I looked a wreck. My black, ordinarily wavy hair was a puff of frizz and cluttered with knots and debris, and my face was smudged and swollen from exhaustion. Seeing that my appearance was hopeless, I returned to my injuries. Both wounds were worse than I thought, and I was suddenly worried that bacta-patches would not be enough. The bone of my shoulder was exposed, the covering muscle and skin having been burned away by the glancing lightsaber. I sprayed antiseptic over the wound and then wrapped the shoulder in a self-adhering bacta-patch. My side was not as bad; the lightsaber took a gouge out just below the last rib, mostly skin and a little muscle. I sprayed the ointment over it and then applied a bacta-patch.

Bacta was a bacteria in a medicinal fluid, and the combination enhanced the body's own healing capabilities. Even so, the wounds looked more severe than I expected, and I worried that they would not heal properly without the attention of a medical droid or doctor. With the pain of my wounds lessened, I turned my attention to exploring the rest of the ship. The main cabin included the cockpit, which had two seats, and the small kitchen area that I was standing in. There was also a table with two seats just aft of the exit across from the cabinets. As I wandered aft, beyond the bulkhead, there was a small quarters with a privy that doubled as a shower. The bulkhead could be secured, which left me wondering who would take the accommodations. I did not feel that I could trust the padawan while I was sleeping, so it made sense to lock her in the sleeping quarters since all of the vital equipment was in the main cabin, but that would mean I would have to sleep in a chair.

I looked over at the girl and caught her watching me again. She glanced away quickly, looking instead out into the darkness full of stars. She was probably sizing me up and wondering about the same things I was. I did not really know her beyond what I had learned from the mission, and even though I had the sense that we could be friends, that possibility was still a long way off. A brief moment of panic washed through me; what was I thinking? my mind yelled as reality began to sink in. What was I going to do with this girl? I was a loner most of the time. People hurt and betrayed me, so I had little use for them. The Intrepid already had two occupants who were dependent on me, and I did not really know them very well either. I was uncomfortable, tired, and quite possibly moments away from another horrifying duel with Darth Thanaton. What I wanted most was to relax, crawl into bed, and sleep, yet I felt like that was not possible with the padawan nearby.

To avoid those complicated thoughts, I continued to explore. Aft of the privy was a small hatch that led to the mechanical room, a tight space with life support equipment and the engine's internal components. I noticed a weapons locker and a supply box in a dim recess and made a mental note to check them later. Being away from the padawan gave me the privacy I needed to contact Andronikos. Since my personal com was connected to the ship, it patched the call through to me.

Andronikos answered immediately, "That was longer than a few hours," he lamented.

"Sorry," I replied, actually a little relieved that he cared. "The journey was more difficult than I expected."

"Are you safely in orbit?"

"Yes, we just reached a stable high orbit and I don't think we caught anyone's attention."

"I'm trying to locate you," he mumbled. "Damn, you've got a tiny signature. That must be a pretty sneaky ship."

"It's small," I replied, looking around the cramped mechanical chase.

"I dredged up a computer spike I've used in the past to gain control of ship systems. We should run it on that ship to ensure no one else has access through a back door or pre-coded override."

"Will it harm the controls?"

"I haven't had trouble with it in the past."

"Okay," I replied nervously, "how does it work?"

"Your com is linked, so I'll send it over now. It will take about fifteen minutes to process and will give you options before making any changes to the ship's system."

"Go ahead. Elios mentioned a lot of com activity when I talked to him. What have you heard?"

"The Republic has got a pretty exhaustive search going on, which is probably the reason for the orbital sweeps. They seem pretty angry. I've been listening to their unencoded chatter about a wounded Jedi master and missing padawan. Imperial Intelligence is going off on their Taris office and the station commander; I assume that's due to your little adventure with the Watcher who went missing. Is that a med-patch on your shoulder?"

"Yes, but I'm okay." I cursed myself for not flicking off the video before the call.

He was going to say something but then changed his mind. "I hope my friends don't get caught in any fallout. They stuck their neck out for us to help the Imperial station."

"Watcher One and Commander Yelka should look out for them. I've done the best I can to make allies."

I could see by the look on his face that he was not convinced. "What happens now?"

"I guess we leave the system, though I'm not sure what the best destination is."

"Let's let the spike complete so we know you're safe on that ship."

"I should get checked out by the Intrepid's medical droid. The absorption of this last ghost was more difficult than the previous ones, and I've got a few minor injuries."

"I can come to you," Andronikos replied.

"It would probably be better for me to move to your position since this ship is harder to detect."

"Okay, so we wait twenty minutes and reconvene?"

"Contact me when the spike is finished." I cut the com and left the mechanical room. With Andronikos contacted and my wounds tended, I was able to calm myself enough to notice I was hungry. Ashara was still sitting in the cockpit when I returned to the main cabin. I did not have the energy for cooking and was happy to find packages of energy bars, ready meals, and nutritional drinks in one of the cabinets. I ate several bars and drank one drink while I continued to explore, wandering into the bedroom again to search drawers. I found some standard unisex nightclothes, sheets, pillows, and blankets in the drawers under the small bed.

I felt dirty and uncomfortable from all the wandering around on Taris, so I shucked everything, my boots, shadow-silk skirt, tights, and underwear, and stepped into the privy. The toilet slid into the wall, but the space inside the plexi-panel was still very cramped for a shower. It was a pressurized mist to conserve water, which was common on spacecraft. It took a while to wash out my hair and smooth the knots before I shut the shower off. There was a drying option on the controls, so I flicked it on to get the water off my skin. Once I felt dry enough, I pulled the privacy panel back and put on a silky pair of night pants and a shirt. Luckily the shirt was front clasp because I would not have been able to get it over my shoulder otherwise. I piled the dirty clothes on the small counter next to the privy and used the mirror to arrange my wet hair, thinking about what I would give for a hair tie at that moment.

Back in the main cabin, Ashara was looking back when I stepped through the bulkhead, and her eyes caught mine. There were multiple alert sounds coming from the control panel, and she seemed anxious, so I walked quickly to the cockpit to see what was happening.

"Some kind of warning popped up," she noted nervously as she pointed to a flashing red sign on one of the touch screens.

I sat down in the captain's chair and checked out the warning. "It's because of me," I replied as I glanced over at her. "We are running a check on the control system to make sure the ship is under my control."

She gave me a curious look. "You don't trust your own people?"

"It's complicated," I sighed, looking around the controls to see how to stop the alert.

"That chiming has been going on for a few minutes, too," she said as she leaned forward.

"It's a message on my com," I replied, wondering why it did not forward to my wrist com. "Leave it alone . . ." I added just as a bleep rang out and the chime stopped.

"Oh, sorry," Ashara stated. She had already activated the recording.

The holo-com lit up, and Corrin's form appeared. "Master, Kaal and I are in trouble and need help . . ." I was reaching to cut off the recording but paused, "we've fled to the Quesh system, but I'm afraid that we've been followed. We have items vital to defeating Lord Thanaton, but . . ." I clicked the recording off before more information was divulged. My life and the events surrounding it were a tangled mess, and I did not want to get into a conversation about it with the padawan.

"Who was that?" Ashara asked in surprise.

"That was a private call that shouldn't concern you," I said shortly as I got up and paced away, wondering what the apprentices had done to draw attention to themselves. "I need to deal with some private matters," I said as I spun back to Ashara, "so why don't you collect some snacks and a drink and rest in the bedroom for a bit." She remained seated and gave me a bewildered look. "Come on!" I urged, "up you go."

"If there is a problem, don't I have a right to be involved?"

"No, and I'm not going to argue about it." I waved my hand to get her up and moving, then followed her to the kitchen cabinets and opened the doors where the food was stored.

"This isn't right," she complained as she collected a few bags and a bottle.

"Well, it's just the way it has to be. Go on," I pointed to the bulkhead.

She walked slowly, eyeing me with frustration. When she stepped into the bedroom, I raised my hand to the door activator. "You're going to lock me in?"

"It won't be for long," I replied as my finger activated the door. Her incredulous face stared me down until the door came between us. I rushed back to the controls, wondering what the rest of the message contained.

". . . he has become aware of Kaal's intrusion," the message continued after I re-activated it, "and is trying to get back what was stolen. Kaal feels that we have covered our tracks, but I'm unsure. I'm sending you an encoded tracking frequency so that you can locate our position. Please come as fast as you can."

I sat back to think about Corrin's message. The fools had brought attention to us, and that angered me. Elios had mentioned nasty messages over the coms, and I wondered if Imperial Intelligence had an early lead on the news. Nasty messages seemed to have a more ominous context than simply activity around the Jedi enclave. There was a small hope in me that I could stay away from Imperial Intelligence, especially Elios'. Still, if they had prior knowledge of things coming from Dromund Kaas, access to them might be invaluable. As I thought about what that might mean, the com chimed again, this time for an incoming call from Andronikos. I quickly hit the receive button.

"The spike isn't done yet, but we've got trouble," he complained in his rough voice.

"I just heard the message from Corrin," I interjected.

"Me too," he grumbled, "and I also intercepted some incoming Imperial messages. Thanaton's locked down his personal offices on Dromund Kaas, and word is out that he is looking for thieves. It seems your apprentice Kaal broke into his private chambers. Not sure what Kaal was thinking, but he's raised quite the Kraken behind him. Apparently, Thanaton is cutting his Malachor visit short and returning to Dromund Kaas immediately. There're coms flying everywhere about major activity in Imperial Intelligence and the mercenary market. There's a good chance he suspects you're not as dead as he thought."

"Great," I sighed. My moment of anonymity was gone.

"It's not going to take the intelligence network long to connect us with Taris. We need to find a safer location."

"Agreed. I don't want to rendezvous in orbit here; it will take too long. Pick a place you feel safe and head there."

He looked surprised. "I thought you needed the Intrepid's medical droid?"

"It will have to wait," I sighed.

Andronikos got a suspicious look on his face. "What are you planning now?"

"I'm going after Kaal and Corrin."

"That's a bad idea," he said with a shake of his head, "the coms chatter is heating up fast. Thanaton took Kaal's intrusion personally. There are probably multiple lower Sith Lords hunting the apprentices, and who knows how many mercs and assassins. If they didn't get off Quesh without detection, they're as good as dead, and if you go after them, you'll be dropping into a rabid gundark den."

"I have to do something; the Empire is watching Thanaton rip Zash's base apart; my base. It is not something I can simply ignore."

"Ignore it," he countered, "find a place to lay low and let things blow over . . ."

"No," I snapped. "If I leave now, I can get to Quesh first and pull them out before Thanaton's assets can converge."

Andronikos shook his head slowly, "they've got a head start on you."

"I've made up my mind," I asserted.

Andronikos kept silent a moment and eyed me. "At least take all of your resources . . ."

"No, we aren't enough to counter Thanaton. This needs to be surgical. Find a place to lay low until I contact you."

"They'll be waiting for you," Andronikos countered, "don't use the hyperdrive routes in that Intel ship, or you will likely jump into a trap."

"What do you suggest?" I agreed with him on that point.

"I can get you some smuggler's jump charts, but it will take some time, which is something we don't have."

I looked down at the navigation panel to see if I could pull up the galactic map while we were talking. While scanning the touch screens, I noticed that the warning about unauthorized access to the ship's computer was gone.

"Looks like the spike is complete," Andronikos mentioned.

"What does that mean?"

"I'm checking the results now. There was a back-door access code and a pre-coded return to Dromund Kaas navigation override. I also see two active tracer signals on board."

"It seems like they really wanted to keep track of me," I complained.

"I'll set it to wipe everything," he stated.

"Wait," I countered, "leave the tracking signals."

"Why would you want that?"

"This was a gift," I sighed, "if I cut the tracking signal, it will be an insult to Watcher One. It will prove to him that I don't trust him, and it will tell him that we are capable of altering his intelligence systems, which will make them try harder the next time."

"Yeah, but they will know where you are. Thanaton can get his hands on that information."

"I don't know," I thought, "Watcher One didn't sound like any friend of the Darth's or the Dark Council. Maybe he will keep the information to himself."

"That's a dangerous maybe," Andronikos grumbled.

"I can only imagine that everyone expects me to head to Quesh anyway, so the tracker will not provide my enemies anything they don't already know. The plan is to get there first and get out before the hammer falls."

The captain remained silent, indicating that he disagreed with me. I found the nav controls and punched in the planet Quesh, letting the computer chart a path through the hyperspace lanes. "It looks like I can make Nar Shaddaa in seven hours. Can you get me the charts by then?"

"That will work," Andronikos nodded as he looked away in the hologram at his own nav map. "Hutt space seems like a good place to lay low; we'll also head there. Our nav computer shows a later arrival time; that must be a pretty advanced ship you've got there. I'll send a hyperspace relay ahead of us with the charts, assuming you aren't going to wait."

"Time is of the essence. Thank you, Captain."

"This is still a bad idea; you need to start trusting us." He made his feelings known again.

"Your opinion is noted."

"What am I supposed to do if I never hear from you again?"

"Then you have acquired yourself a ship. Look for my contact in about two days." With that, I clicked the com off. The nav computer was still on, its holographic galaxy shimmering over the console. I pressed the engage button, and the engines began to spin up. Going to Quesh was not what I had planned, and Andronikos was right; disaster seemed to await me there. The star-scape shifted as the ship banked to enter its hyperspace trajectory. I felt a vibration through the deck, and the engines began to rumble as the ship accelerated. The navigation display blinked a soft yellow as a counter ran down, then it switched to green a few seconds before the ship lurched into hyperspace and the star-field stretched into a strange swirling pattern. The nav display showed an ETA of seven hours, ten minutes, and forty-three seconds.

I leaned my head back against the headrest and stared out the window at the light show. I felt sick inside, and my wounds ached unnaturally. It worried me that my strength had not recovered, and my mind seemed to be in a fog. Those feelings occurred before when I absorbed the Sith spirits Andru and Ergast, but they wore off after a time, and I returned to normal. Now those symptoms were lingering. Darth Zash had warned me about taking on too much Force power too quickly. Maybe the effects were cumulative, which was not good because I could not stop now. I needed enough power to defeat Darth Thanaton.

My thoughts drifted to the padawan. I could not shake the idea that I had made a mistake bringing her along. I could not relax around her, and I knew that she did not trust me; only a gut feeling that I would need her offset my apprehension. How would I get along with a stranger in such close proximity? I was a loner and had difficulty trusting people. Despite my anxiety, I realized that a rapport needed to be reached between us, at least for the short term, so I leaned forward and unlocked the bulkhead door.

"I heard the ship engines engage," Ashara said as she stepped into the cockpit and looked out at the hyperspace light show.

"We entered hyperspace, an eight-hour flight to Nar Shaddaa."

"Nar Shaddaa?" she replied in surprise.

"It's on the way to Quesh, sort of."

There was an awkward silence between us. "She called you master," Ashara spoke while sitting in the copilot's seat, "the girl asking for help. Does that mean you have apprentices?"

"Not really," I replied, "I mean, technically, they're my apprentices, but I don't know them and didn't train them."

"I don't understand?"

I looked at her, sitting across from me with confusion on her face. I wasn't going to tell her the whole story, nor did I want to tell her any of it. She seemed so innocent, so unaware of all the complications that I had to cope with. "They are my former master's apprentices. After her demise, they became mine, so technically, they are my apprentices."

"What happened to your master?"

"She was killed in an accident," which was true. I did not add the fact that I was the cause of the accident.

"Why are her . . . I mean, your apprentices in trouble?"

So many questions, I thought. "That is no concern of yours." I slowly got up to get another drink. My body acted like I was ninety years old as I walked to the kitchenette. I was exhausted and needed to rest.

"Maybe I can help," she said as she followed me.

"I'm fine," I complained as I waved her off.

"No, I mean help your apprentices."

Her confidence annoyed me, especially because she did not know what she was volunteering for. "It's not like their ship broke down, and they need a ride," I responded dryly.

"What does that mean?" she countered, sensing my disregard for her offer.

"It means, youngling, that Kaal and Corrin are competent Sith apprentices. If they are calling for help, it most certainly means something dire has happened that two almost fully trained Sith cannot handle on their own." I popped open a nutrition drink and took a sip. As the words echoed in my mind, I realized they might have been too harsh.

"I'm not a youngling," she spat in irritation, "I'm probably as old as you."

I looked over at her and our eyes locked. She stared at me with an emotional, thoughtful gaze and I wondered if she was right about our ages. "Have you killed anyone?" I asked flatly.

"What?" She replied in shock.

I already had my answer. "As part of your training, have you killed anyone?"

"No, Jedi aren't supposed to use aggression."

"So, you've never gone into battle, never used your lightsaber against a hostile opponent?"

"I have been well trained in Jedi martial arts, one of the best lightsaber duelists in my group."

I was still thirsty, so I dug into the cabinet to get another bottle. "That's not what I said." I turned around to see her standing defiantly. "There is a difference between skill, training, and experience. I've seen highly skilled Sith hesitate when the moment counted; some of them lost their lives because of it. No one knows how they will react in the moment where life or death matters. I don't know what to expect of you, how you will perform when my life is on the line. That is what I am saying."

"I'm not a coward," she challenged.

"No, but you might be too compassionate." I let my words sink in as I drank the second bottle. She looked hard at me, but I could see the thought tainting her confidence. Most of my experiences since meeting the padawan included her advocating for peace and helping others; me, the Jedi Master, and probably even the Sith ghost in the ruins. She had a kind heart, which was a good thing. She was a better person than I, except possibly when a life-or-death decision was at hand. She was also unaware and that innocence could make her hesitate at the worst moment.

"I know I would do the right thing," she replied.

I walked away from her. The conversation was going nowhere, and I needed sleep, so I went to the bedroom to collect a pillow. The pain I felt had lessened, but the wounds still throbbed distressingly. Usually, the bacta-patches did a good job of medicating the wound as it healed. The fact that the injuries were so painful despite the patches concerned me. I sensed there was something wrong, something more than simply absorbing another apparition and the exertion of fighting the Jedi. I did not feel right, and now, because of my apprentices, I was rushing into yet another conflict. Ashara followed me and stood looking at herself in the mirror thoughtfully as I rummaged through the drawers. She glanced at me harshly when I stepped past her with a blanket and pillow in hand. I went to leave but paused at the door.

"I'm sorry about calling you a youngling. I feel like crap, and it's made me snippy." She looked at me but did not say anything. I strode to the front of the ship, and Ashara followed me, looking like she wanted to continue the argument. She hesitated when I dropped the pillow and blanket on the pilot's chair.

"Here's the deal," I stated, trying to cut off any further arguing because I was too tired. "I don't know you very well, and honestly, I don't trust you. I'm exhausted and need to rest, and I can't do that while worrying if I am safe. So, I'm going to lock you in the sleeping cabin for about six hours. Gather whatever food and medicine you need."

"You're giving me the bed?" she asked in surprise as she made her way to the cabinet where the food was.

"Yes," it's the best solution I could come up with at the moment."

"That doesn't make sense. You're injured and should sleep in the bed to recover more quickly." Despite arguing, she gathered some drinks and snacks into her arms.

"I know, but I told you I can't be comfortable with you out here on your own."

"I'm not going to hurt you," she replied.

"Everyone hurts me; you just haven't been around long enough." She seemed stunned by my statement. "I honestly don't have the energy to discuss this further. Please do as I ask."

She took her food and walked back to the bedroom. I arranged the blanket and pillow and was going to collapse into the chair when I realized that the bathroom would be locked behind the bulkhead with the padawan. In frustration, I moved back to use the privy and walked in on the girl removing her long coat. She looked over at me in surprise.

"I need to use the head," I stated as I stepped past her. A plexi-film wall slid across the small alcove with the toilet in it, giving very little privacy to the person using it. When I was finished, I slid the wall open and noticed Ashara gently folding her coat neatly on the bench next to the bed. Without the cover of her coat, I could see her figure. She was taller than me and heavier set with wider hips. Her montrals stood tall over her head, and her lekku were long, draped down her front with a distinctive white and gray-blue striped pattern. I followed them up her figure to her face and found her eyes watching me.

"There should be another pair of sleeping clothes in the drawers," I stated as I moved to the doorway. "I'm going to lock the door now." She didn't say anything to me, so I stepped through and activated the switch to close the door.

At the front console, I ordered the ship to lock the bulkhead and alert me of any change in course. The command chair reclined, so I put it back as far as it would go and wrapped the blankets around me. My whole body ached, with sharp pains radiating out from the lightsaber wounds, but it did not matter because I was so exhausted that sleep engulfed me quickly.

I could not remember having a more disturbed sleep. It seemed that in my exhausted state, the Sith spirits had free reign to romp around in my subconscious, reliving their best and worst moments. It was hard to separate the disjointed scenes or know which Sith Lord was reliving them. At one point, the brutality was so vivid that it pulled me out of my deep sleep, and I realized I needed to use the head again, having drunk too much before falling asleep. Wandering back to the bulkhead, I opened the door and relieved myself, not awake enough to slide the privacy door closed, but not worried either because the padawan was sleeping quietly in her bed.

In the soft glow of the cabin, I could see Ashara's lekku moving subtly on top of the light gray covers, making a sort of rhythmic sway. I moved to leave, and she shifted, rolling to her side with the sheets accentuating her curves. I locked the cabin door and went back to my chair. My dreams shifted after that, and I could tell the source of these new dreams. Lord Zavros filled my subconscious with all things Togruta, his experiences becoming a Sith Lord, his desire for women, his conquests, and even his demise during the bombardment of Taris. The dreams were very disturbing, especially for a woman viewing other women through the eyes of a man. The possessiveness, objectivization, lust, and need were raw and overpowering. My subconscious fought to pull away from the memories, but somehow, I was trapped in them.