Obliques: The Path

"In an hour this dark we must all must stand together, or we will all fall separately."
Je'daii seer Tasha Ryo during the Rakata invasion of Tython, 10,660 TYA

112th Year of the Five Brothers
11,347 TYA

The last time the door to Vediah's cell opened, a trio of pirates had charged out of blinding light, snarled questions in a language she couldn't understand, and ended up kicking their frustration out on her. The memory of their blows was still fresh on her mind and body both.

But when the cell opened this time and the light spilled in, she knew she was in better hands. She closed her eyes against the glare but felt Koltatha's warm, relieved presence as he knelt beside her and cut her binds.

When she finally opened her eyes she saw the Noghri's face, almost gentle, looking down at her. "Are you all right?" he asked. "Can you run?"

Now that the door was open she could plainly hear the crack of gunfire, echoed shouts, the pounding of feet not far away. She was amazed that just two Jedi had made it so far into the pirate's nest.

"I'll be okay," she said, though Koltatha had to help her to her feet. "The UPFS… are they here too?"

"No."

"It's not just you and Moorai… is it?"

"No," he repeated, and pulled her by the hand to the exit.

As soon as she stepped into the hallway, Vediah froze. Standing there was not a human or Selonian pirate but a towering alien with blue-green skin, long powerful limbs, a cone-topped head, and eyes jutting from short stalks on either side of its skull.

A Rakata. In its hand was a sword of blazing energy. She'd heard of those legendary weapons; the Masters had called them Forcesabers, powered by the dark energy of Bogan.

But that tall ominous alien said, in perfect if accented Tythan, "I am Shen. The others are rescued. Come, we must hurry."

Vediah looked to Koltatha for guidance. The Noghri grunted, "He's right. Let's go."

Shen turned and hurried down the corridor in long fast strides. Koltatha darted after. Cautiously, Vediah followed them through the maze of the asteroid's interior. Gunfire and shouts continued to ricochet through the maze of metal halls but none of the pirates came in sight.

Until a pair of striped Selonians stepped in the middle of an intersection. One hefted a heavy repeating rifle; the other, a heavier tube-mouthed weapon connected to a generator on his back.

A flamethrower. It was like Devaron all over again.

Shen and Koltatha skidded to a halt too close to the enemy. Vediah grabbed them both in the Force and wrenched them back just as the flamethrower belched its first gout of fire. The cold metal corridor was suddenly hot; the machine gun cracked and spat bullets into the confined space.

This time there was no place to run; no roof they could tear through. And because of that, the others didn't hesitate. Shen threw his blazing sword; not just threw it but guided it with the Force, through the swirling flame and into the weapon from which it sprouted. Suddenly the corridor shook with an even greater explosion; Vediah covered her ears and a burning heat washed through the hall.

And just as fast as it had come, the heat was gone. At the far end of the hall was a blackened wreck, among it two fallen bodies. Shen stood among them, barely singed, that saber aglow in this three-clawed hand.

"What are you?" Vediah gaped at the Rakata. "A Jedi?"

Shen considered. "I am on the path," he said.

It was, Vediah sensed, an honest answer. For her as much as him.

They hurried again through the maze until they reached the mouth of a sealed landing bay. Two separate Jedi ships sat, almost identical with their smooth ovoid hulls. Neither appeared to be the Found Horizon but Moorai stood at the base of the Dawnchaser and waved at them.

Vediah, Koltatha, and Shen hurried up the ramp. As soon as they were aboard Moorai slapped the controls and brought the ramp up. "The others are on the Hand of Light," she said. "Hurry, we must leave.'

By the time the four of them reached the cockpit, Vediah could see pirates inside the landing bay. Some were firing ineffective handguns at the parked Jedi ships but a few hoisted shoulder-mounted rocket launchers.

Moorai worked the Dawnchaser's controls and warmed engines. Vediah fell into the seat on her right and began to bring weapons online, knowing it might already be too late.

"No need," said Shen. "Watch."

She looked out the window just as the cockpit started to shudder. The pirates were slipping on their own deck, drawn toward the Jedi ships as though by magnet. Then she felt a tug of the Force, coming from minds on the other ship, and realized what was happening. Someone was wrenching the doors open, exposing the entire bay to the vacuum.

Some pirates struggled for the exit. They didn't have a chance. Air flooded out of the chamber too fast, sweeping them and their weapons away.

With a small sigh and great relief, Moorai turned on repulsors and kicked the Dawnchaser off the deck. She pivoted them around in time to show the second Jedi ship surging into space on two blazing engines.

"Is this it?" Vediah asked. "Did we rescue everyone?"

"Let us be sure," Koltatha said as he sat down at the comm station. He slapped the controls with one hand and announced, "This is the Dawnchaser. I am aboard with Moorai, Vediah, and Shen. Do you copy?"

"We read you, Dawnchaser," said Master Kayn's relieved voice. "We've got everyone else aboard here."

"I'm so glad." After the despair of capture and madness of escape, Vediah was almost giddy. "Where's the Horizon?"

"I accessed their computers," said Moorai. "It is in the second bay."

Both Jedi ships stopped outside the asteroid and turned to face the other sealed doors. It took Vediah a moment to realize what this meant. There were still pirates aboard that asteroid, including Two-Claw herself probably. She could not be allowed to have Jedi technology.

Victory went cold in Vediah's stomach. The Horizon had been her home for two years now. It had carried her through mortal peril. She thought of the lush garden inside the cold metal ship where she and Master Sohr had engaged in deep meditation surrounded by life.

Sohr was gone. In a moment his ship would join him. She felt like she was losing a part of herself as well.

The Jedi ships angled toward the second landing bay doors and opened fire. Plasma bolts tore through the flat metal surface. Once they ripped the door open, air and equipment belched into space. They kept firing, pouring devastation into what lay inside. Vediah squinted into the mouth of flames and could see the Found Horizon's familiar curves right before they were torn to fiery shreds.

The Jedi kept firing for over a full minute, then ceased in perfect unison. They hovered outside the asteroid for minutes more as smoke and debris cleared, just to make certain there was nothing salvageable left. Vediah didn't want to see the wreckage, but she forced herself to look. The garden had become metal and ash, black and tangled beyond recognition.

Softly, sensing her grief, Koltatha said, "Let's go."

"Yes," Moorai agreed, and pivoted the Dawnchaser away from the asteroid. The Hand of Light followed on their flank as both Jedi ships began maneuvering through the field of slow-tumbling space rock.

After minutes of silence, Vediah asked, "Where do we go now?"

Shen, who'd not spoken since coming aboard, said, "We will meet with the Hand to discuss this. And much more."