MANAGING THE SHADOWS

"The pieces of the pot shook on the floor. They started to lift- slowly. Traya's mind tried to give in to a sense of healing. She could sense the edges of the pieces, where the weaknesses in the break existed, and how they could fit together perfectly, but the pieces moved so slowly… She couldn't resist fixating on how slow the pieces moved. She could only hold their concentration for so long. The pieces, slow- it felt like they were almost slowing down to spite her. Repair… Fix. NOW!

The pieces of the pot scattered to the floor. Traya punched the wall. "It's no use master! I'm not strong enough."

"It has nothing to do with your strength," Cade cautioned. "You must allow yourself to give in to the wish of the force. The pot is imbued with both light and dark side energy. The will of the of the light side force within the pot wishes to heal. However, the dark side force I have imbued the pot has its own will as well. It feeds on your desire to bend the will of the force to fix the pot. However, these darker urges fuel the dark side energy and will the pot toward destruction and chaos. You can only fix this item when you fully given in to the light, and release your urges to control using anger and hatred."

"Master, I don't have time for these frivolous lessons. We know Darth Nihl, Lady Maladi, and Saarai are still at large. They were nowhere to be found when our forces finally captured Korriban eleven years ago, and they still evade us even now."

"Trust the Jedi, Traya. This is why the Triumvirate have a fleet stationed on Korriban. We will keep a close eye on the Sith homeworld making sure the Sith do not reemerge there."

"Trust the Jedi?!" Traya laughed. "That's rich coming from you Cade. And remind me again why you are not on that Council?"

"Cade smiled. "I am not on the Council, but I hold a vital advisory role. I have made many mistakes in the past that I must atone for. I was offered a seat on the Council, but I chose to remain in a more neutral position. It is as the force commands."

"Sure Cade. But besides what if the Sith have escaped from Korriban? Or better yet, what if they never return to Korriban? You have told me about your fears of what is going on, on Ziost. The Sith know we watch over Korriban. Couldn't they just sabotage the Jedi from the shadows elsewhere in the galaxy, as they have always done?"

Cade paused. He had harbored these doubts as well himself, but he also knew how much of Traya's words weren't completely selfless. She wanted to find and hunt down the Sith. And after what they had done to her, he couldn't blame her. But if anything, this made him even more sure how vital it was that Traya learnt to form a strong connection and bond with the light side of the force, not just focus on her hatred of the Sith.

"I've heard you talk with Morrigan about the Sith on Ziost."

Cade paused. "Have you been listening to my private calls with my mother?"

"Your mother? Cade, she has a spy network unlike anything the galaxy has ever known. She's become a lot more than just your mother, and I know you frequently discuss the state of the Sith."

Cade waited.

"Well they're not personal calls… most of the time. And I tune them out then."

Cade waited again. "I don't hear a denial in there."

"It's less eavesdropping, and more," Traya searched for the right words, "intelligence gathering. Yeah, intelligence gathering."

Cade couldn't help but smile. Fortunately, or not, he saw a lot of himself in Traya, particularly at this stage of her life. She was determined, and sneaky, but good. Yet he worried about the strength of her anger and her deep connection to the dark side.

Traya continued, "you know as well as I do that they are hiding and biding their time. The Sith flourish in the shadows. You know as well as I do that it is where they are most dangerous."

Cade looked down, pensively. "Traya, the truth is this. The Sith are making moves as they always do. But even now, I can feel your motivations. Your interest in the Sith is not to save the Galaxy. You want revenge. Believe me, if there is anyone that can understand that feeling it is me.

"But I can also tell you from experience, revenge is a poison. It is a path that will lead to harm, not just for yourself, but danger for those around you. You must master yourself, before you are ready to fight the Sith."

"If we don't bring the fight to them and crush them one by one then the galaxy will never know peace! How will this," Traya motioned to the shattered pieces of Cade's training device scattered across the ground, "help me crush my enemies?"

"Traya the peace you seek is not for the Galaxy. Are you still hearing him?"

Traya looked down, "all the time… Sometimes it's difficult to sleep."

"I know what it can be like to have his voice in his head."

"Don't even try, Cade! You don't hear his whispers. Constant whispers. They are always commanding me to obey, to act, in his will, in hate. Even now, I have the furious desire to slay you where you stand."

"Are you sure how much of that is just Krayt?"

Traya huffed and turned away. "Don't mock me." She hid her presence from the force.

"I'm sorry, Traya. I didn't mean to mock. But you must understand you cannot fight his voice with hate. I had a bond with Krayt too. I was ready to kill myself to silence that voice. But what I realized in the end was that the strength that the light side offered me; well, Krayt could never compare to that power."

Traya paused, trying to take in what Cade was offering, but her mind was still awash with other thoughts. "I hate this waiting, Cade. I know the stories of your father. Kol was a great man, but his complacency allowed the Sith to re-emerge and throw the Galaxy into chaos. He allowed them to rise again."

Cade paused, sensing Traya's deflection from his point. "I understand your fears, Traya. We know the Sith will attempt to rise. We know they will do so in the shadows. You are right to say that it is in their nature." He felt Traya's presence coming back to him.

"But we are ready this time. We are not just waiting, we are preparing movements of our own. Morrigan's network runs as deep as the underworlds of Coruscant. We are also, so, so very close to finding Zonama Sekot. Hopefully, this time we can get a better sense of the rogue Yuuzhan Vong left in the galaxy who would attempt to conspire with our enemies.

"We are making sure the Sith cannot work with rogue Vong again to sabotage the Wayland Venture the way they poisoned the Ossus Project. Our work now is repairing the scars that still remain in this galaxy, while not forgetting to keep a watchful eye on the shadows."

"I hate this, Cade. I really do. Why are we sitting on our hands and letting them make the next move? We know the Sith have a large contingent holding out on Ziost. Why not go there to wipe them out?"

"We have gone over this before. Ziost is a heavily populated world. It is not easy separating the Sith from the general population, especially on a planet so steeped in dark side energy."

"And do the Triumvirate have a fleet there?"

Cade looked down, "no… no, they don't."

"So let's go down and do some research of our own. Bust some Sith baddies. Uncover and destroy their schemes!"

"Ah, you remind me so much of myself." Cade chuckled. "The only good Sith is a dead one," he said, remembering the mantra of a younger self. "No, Traya. I- We still have work to complete on Wayland. We can't just beat the Sith on the battlefield, we must win over the hearts and minds of the Galaxy. This is our first step.

"The Sith did a number on the galaxy last time around. There's no doubt about it. But unfortunately, the memory of the galaxy runs short. Many in the galaxy hate them for their genocide on Mon Calamari and vicious attack on Napdu, but we can't win the battle we want to win on hate alone. We must provide positivity and hope for the Galaxy to keep forging a brighter future.

"And this future begins on Wayland. Come on now, Nei Rin needs our help."

Traya accepted Cade's decision, but was not happy. "When we are done though- Ziost. Cade, he calls me there."

"We will see," Cade said turning away, walking towards the Mynock "if it is what the force wills."

"When he was out of earshot, Traya began muttering to herself. I will rid the world of all your followers, Krayt; Nihl, Maladi, Saarai. They will all die at my hand. And when they are all dead- Let's see you try to control me then!

"You ready, Traya?" Cade yelled from the base of the Mynock?

"Coming Master!"

We'll finish this later, Krayt.

A shiver ran down her spine as a laugh echoed through her mind, Of course young apprentice. We will most definitely continue this discussion later.