Night fell on Taris before Ursbrung returned. As activity at the Imperial encampment died down, strange, almost human cries howled and cried through the night, unnerving the soldiers on watch and piercing the ears of those trying to sleep in tents.
Devon heard none of it inside the ship. As the hours passed, he spent time reading, practicing with his lightsaber, and preparing two meals. After each meal, he spent half an hour silently, thinking and meditating. After he went over his lightsaber forms in the cargo bay, he stood in front of Lilija's prison, saber humming in his hand. He watched her breathe for long moments before he turned off the weapon.
He brought a book to the cargo bay, sat on the floor, and read for hours until he heard the cargo bay loading ramp opening. He heard the howls and cries that fill the Taris night coming up the ramp with Ursbrung, followed by another person with his hands cuffed.
Devon set the book down and stood up as Ursbrung closed the ramp behind him and his new prisoner. The prisoner bled from his nose and mouth and one of his eyes squinted because of swelling. Sullen, with unnaturally silver eyes and pallid skin, he looked around the cargo bay with a frown.
Ursbrung pointed to another cell and the prisoner walked, limping, and stood inside. Ursbrung looked no worse for the wear, besides having his hair wet with sweat. He turned on the energy field and caged a second prisoner in his cargo bay. "Let me introduce Groll. He slew his master and fled."
"Is it a crime now for a Sith to kill his master?" Groll glowered at Ursbrung.
"If you kill your master, you should replace him, take his power, and wield it for the benefit of the Empire, not run like a stuck womp rat." Ursbrung locked eyes with Groll until the younger man looked down.
"My master lost his mind. He attacked his own. Paranoid. It was only a matter of time before he tried to kill me."
Ursbrung raised his eyebrow. "And?"
"And what?" Groll snapped.
"Why did you run?"
"He still had allies." He snorted. "Some friends. I knew the minute he was gone, they would try to take everything and kill me as they plundered his power base. I had no choice."
Still calm, Ursbrung said, "Were any of these friends true servants of the Empire?"
Disgust flashed across Groll's face. "They were Sith. Sith only serve themselves."
"What did you do after you arrived on Taris," Ursbrung asked.
Groll glared at Ursbrung, "I killed some soldiers and an acolyte."
"Who were only following orders to detain you if they saw you." Ursbrung paced in front of Groll's prison.
"I had no choice. A Sith takes what he wants."
"You killed loyal servants of the Empire to perpetuate your crime. Their blood is on your hands."
"Blood? Don't tell me your hands are clean. The Sith stand in an ocean of blood. My master slew hundreds with his own hands. He ordered the deaths of hundreds of thousands more. Maybe millions."
"Devon," Ursbrung waved at his apprentice, "come closer. As I said, you will help me judge. Darth Cavum will die if she cannot feed on the Force. The only Force user that I can find and spare," he gestured at Groll, "is here."
"What?" Groll put a hand on the energy field, receiving a nasty shock that sent him to his knees.
"Interview him and tell me what you decide." Ursbrung took a few paces back, leaving Devon in front of the prisoners.
Groll, still on his knees and breathing heavily, said, "I should not be judged by a child. Make the decision yourself, Ursbrung, or face me again. Or do you want blood on his hands, too?"
Ursbrung looked down his nose at Groll, turned his back to him and walked to the far side of the cargo bay, leaving Devon alone in front of the wounded Sith.
So far, Devon avoided killing and had mostly succeeded, except for his inaction while someone, a friend, died on Korriban. He tried to control his emotions and calm his mind as he looked at Groll.
Attempting to mimic his master's demeanor, Devon said, "What do you believe in, Groll?"
"What do I believe in?" Groll looked from Devon to Ursbrung and back. Then he looked at Lilija, who lay still on the floor near him inside her own prison. "Who is she? I can serve you better than she can. I swear it. I will serve you and your master, Devon. Give me a chance to prove myself. I served my previous master faithfully, even when he asked terrible things of me, but I fought back when he threatened my life. I had no choice. His paranoia made him insane, he no longer knew friend from foe."
Devon nodded, but continued to watch Groll's face. He asked, "Who were you before you went to the Academy?"
Groll looked down at Devon, who stood a head and a half shorter than him. "I grew up on Dromund Kaas. I wasn't anyone before I went to the Academy."
"I'm from Dromund Kaas as well. How old were you when you went?"
Groll frowned. "I was twelve."
Devon said, "So was I. What did you hope for when you went to the Academy?"
Groll stared at the boy in front of him. "You know what it is like. Hope had nothing to do with it. I survived. I killed my classmates in the trials, and I've kept killing in the name of the Empire. What more do you want to hear? That I'm a loyal Sith? That I kill for the Emperor? If I have to, I'll kill for you, too." Groll's upper lip twitched as he frowned down at Devon.
Devon stood still and looked away from Groll.
"That is your future, acolyte. That is the future for every Sith. Kill in the name of the Empire, in the name of your master. If you are privileged, you kill in your own name. Yes, I killed to save my own life. I took no pleasure in it. But I am Sith. What else am I but living death? What else are you?"
Taking a deep breath, Devon looked back at Groll with determination in his eyes. He asked, "Why did you serve your master?"
Groll gave Devon a quizzical look. "What other choice did I have? What other choice do you have? Serve or die."
Devon resisted the urge to look back at Ursbrung. He swallowed, "What did your master believe?"
Groll began to breathe heavily again, his eyes flicked between Devon and Ursbrung and Lilija, his hands twitched uncomfortably at his sides. His eyes locked on Devon. "He believed in himself."
"And you?"
"What do you want me to believe in?" Groll stood very still, his shoulders stiff.
"I am not looking for a specific answer, I really want to know."
Groll stared at Devon. "Power." He spat out the word.
Devon considered Groll. He frowned and his gaze became unfocused for a moment as he thought. Groll stood silently before him, his eyes fixed on the young man. Devon looked up with pity in his eyes, "I am sorry for what your master did to you."
"Do not pity me, boy." Groll began to shake with anger. "You will have my fate, as all Sith will. Killed by our own ungrateful, murderous brothers and sisters. Judge me! You judge yourself!" Groll held his face and fists just shy of the shimmering energy prison.
Devon stepped back, still looking Groll in the face. Now Devon clenched his fists. He frowned and looked at his feet. Groll slowly sank to his knees. He whispered, his eyes pleading, "Please, boy, I beg of you. Spare my life."
Ursbrung stepped forward. "Devon, I would hear your thoughts."
Devon looked Groll right in the eyes. "I think we should save Lilija Kenna."
"Why?" Ursbrung knelt next to Devon. He spoke softly.
Groll looked at Devon like a man betrayed.
"He lives for nothing. I think Lilija might live for something." Devon frowned and looked at Ursbrung.
Groll roared and then slammed his fists on the floor. "I will not die like a beast to slaughter. Face me again, Ursbrung!"
Ursbrung, ignoring Groll, gave Devon a half-smile. "You are wise beyond your years, apprentice. I agree with your assessment." He stood up. "For your crimes against the Empire, Groll Diffid, I sentence you to death," Ursbrung raised his hand and Groll began to choke, cutting off his shouts. "But know that in death, you save a life. Have hope that your life may finally mean something." Groll's eyes started from his face as he struggled. His face turned blue and then he fell limp.
Moving quickly, Ursbrung shut down both of the energy fields. He picked up Groll's unconscious body and lay it next to Lilija. Gently, he shook Lilija awake. Lilija slowly opened her eyes.
"Devon and I choose to give you a second chance at life, Lilija Kenna. You may feed." Ursbrung stepped back.
Lilija, not quite comprehending at first, looked around and saw Groll lying next to her. Her breath rattled in her throat. She didn't move, but golden tendrils extended from her hands and slithered around Groll. He gasped, opened his eyes, but before he could move, Groll's eyes went blank.
She sat up. With her hood off, she looked more human, despite her grey skin and red eyes. Silvery grey hair, messy and tangled, fell around her shoulders. She still looked far too thin, but she moved with new energy.
Devon tried to focus on Lilija, but he couldn't help staring at Groll's wide open, unseeing eyes, his face pale and drawn.
"You saved me. Why?" Lilija spoke in her gravelly voice.
Ursbrung knelt before Groll's body and gently closed the corpse's eyes. He said, "Devon, why did you choose Lilija over Groll?"
Devon tore his attention from Groll and looked at Lilija. Still a bit pale, he said, "I felt that Groll's life, that Groll, had no purpose." He looked at Groll again. "But I hoped you might."
"You made the boy make the decision?" Lilija raised an eyebrow at Ursbrung.
Ursbrung said, "I doubted my own biases. More importantly, Devon asked shrewd questions and Groll answered Devon more truthfully than he would have answered me. And Devon is far more capable than you imagine."
Lilija read Devon's drawn face and, for a moment, her own face softened, but her voice was harsh, "Just because he is capable doesn't mean he should bear the burden."
Ursbrung watched Lilija carefully. "We must all carry as much as we can bear. I am confident that Devon can stand by his decisions. But you, Lilija, Lord Cavum, I have questions for you. Seeing that I have spared your life, and that Devon has saved it, I hope you will answer honestly."
Lilija's face hardened again. She gave Ursbrung a measured look but said nothing.
So Ursbrung asked, "Do you love the people of the Empire?"
"I do."
"But you hate the Sith.".
Lilija paused and drew herself back. "I do."
"So you are a sort of heretic. As am I." Both Devon and Lilija gave Ursbrung their full attention. He looked at them with a half-smile and a benign look in his human eye. "What if your love of the Empire fueled you, instead of your hatred of the Sith."
Surprise flickered across Lilija's face. "That is not the way of the Sith."
"What do you care about following the laws of the Sith?" Ursbrung continued to smile.
"Love is selfless. The Dark Side cannot be tapped with such an emotion." Lilija frowned.
"There are two sides to the Force," Ursbrung said. Devon leaned forward.
Lilija twisted her head and stared at Ursbrung. "What are you saying?"
"What do you hate about the Sith?"
"Stop playing games, Ursbrung. I've lived on the edge of death too long to put up with it. What are you getting at?"
"Why should I limit myself to one aspect of the Force?" Ursbrung sat down, so that he could be at eye level with Lilija. "Why should you?"
"I…" Lilija was speechless.
"Master, are you saying that you use both sides of the Force?" Doubt and hope mixed on Devon's face.
Ursbrung gave Devon his knowing half-smile. "I do."
Devon blinked, trying to process this information. He'd never heard of anyone using both sides of the Force. He wasn't sure if it was possible.
"Lilija, I love the Empire more than I hate her enemies. Could you see yourself doing the same?"
Lilija looked at Ursbrung through slitted eyes. She reached out through the Force, attempting to sense Ursbrung's emotions. Many Sith learned to hide their emotions to avoid being read by their enemies and manipulated. Ursbrung, sensing what she was doing, opened himself up.
As Devon saw before, Lilija now sensed the swirl of emotions in Ursbrung. Hatred and anger were easy to sense, but underlying it all, mixing with it, lived a desire for the well-being of others. Devon noticed Ursbrung's defenses drop and he, too, read Ursbrung's emotions.
"Impossible," Lilija said. "The Dark Side itself rejects altruism. You cannot feel love and hatred at the same time. It is too great a contradiction."
"There are many great contradictions in the universe. For example, those who are cruel to others are cruel to themselves." Ursbrung gave Lilija a hard stare. "Or, in positive terms, the less you care for others, the less you take care of yourself. So, by loving the Empire, I am fulfilling the edict of the Sith to exalt the individual. My concern for the Empire cannot be separated from concern for self. Where the Empire succeeds, I succeed."
Lilija shook her head. "It cannot be done. You will go insane." She looked at Ursbrung with anger and contempt.
A wry smile crept up the human side of Ursbrung's face. "Some say I went mad." He touched the robotic side of his face. "After I was betrayed." Lilija cringed, but tried to cover the twitch with an increase of contempt as she stared at Ursbrung.
"Some say I still am." Ursbrung's expression became serious. He leaned forward, "Can you deny that the Dark Side makes you insane? That you lose control, damn the very ones you wish to save?" He relaxed and took a deep breath. "By balancing love and hate, I can improve the Empire instead of destroying it. Can you say the same, Lord Cavum?"
Lilija's anger only seemed to grow. "You are doomed."
"We are all doomed. But I will serve the Empire and its people before I die. I will have true friends instead of pawns and peons or, worse, the death of all I love. If eventual madness is the price, then I will gladly pay it. Think of your children. Don't you wish to feel love for them again? Love, not possession."
"Do not speak to me of my children." Lilija shook with rage.
Ursbrung smiled ruefully. "The Empire belongs to its people, not to me. Your children belong to themselves, not to you."
Devon watched Lilija's anger grow and the Dark Side swelled within her. He edged backwards, expecting her to attack Ursbrung at any moment.
Her chest heaving, Lilija said, "You know nothing. Nothing about me. Nothing about my family."
Ursbrung continued to smile at Lilija. "I know." He stood up. "Now, it is your turn. Admit that you know nothing. Nothing of yourself. Nothing of your children."
Lilija shot to her feet, "You condescending fool, how dare you!"
Ursbrung let the smile fade from his face, but continued to look at her with a mild expression. "You may still be able to help them, Lilija. They need you. You and I, we are doomed, but perhaps we can save the children. Come, Devon, I have some questions for you."
As Ursbrung and Devon walked out of the cargo bay, Lilija shouted, "You leave my children alone, Ursbrung! Or I swear, I will end you!" Once alone in the cargo bay, Lilija slumped to the floor like a dropped marionette.
Ursbrung walked into his cabin. Paintings still covered the walls, some hung up and many more leaning in stacks against the walls. A new painting sat on the easel. In this painting, a man, masked and hooded, stood in deep shadow.
The cabin had a small table with two seats. Ursbrung gestured towards one of the seats and Devon sat down. After Devon sat, Ursbrung did as well. "I am sure you have many questions, apprentice. Speak freely."
"You don't want me to tell you about Leannon?" Devon's mask disappeared, replaced with open curiosity.
Ursbrung chuckled. "In due time. First comes our relationship."
Devon thought for a moment. "How do I use the Light Side of the Force?"
"Do you care about something more than you care about yourself?"
Devon nodded. "My parents."
"Good, they are your window to the Light. But first, you must let them go. They do not belong to you, they belong to the Force. You do not own them or control them, cannot decide whether they live or die, whether they love you or hate you. All you can do is care for them. Can you feel this way?"
"I think so."
"Try now."
Devon closed his eyes and thought of his father, caring, intelligent, and talented, his mother, attentive and funny. He felt his love for them and then focused on letting them go. He felt a surge of something in his soul. A calm strength that he'd never felt before.
"Yes, good, apprentice. Now expand that feeling. Expand it to me, even to Lilija. Care for those that you are not certain you can trust, that may not wish you well, but without seeking control."
Devon did. He felt his soul expand. Later, when he would describe the feeling, he would say it was like his soul entered hyperspace. A new dimension of unlimited possibility and great mystery and power.
"Good, now come back to me."
Devon opened his eyes. He still feared Ursbrung, but now he also felt something else. A kinship, as if he was almost family.
"Both the Light and the Dark have their limitations, Devon. The Light would often leave us passive, where the Dark drives us to go too far and take too much. I believe that by tapping into both, I can serve the Empire more fully."
Devon nodded. "How come no one else does this?"
Ursbrung smirked. "It is difficult. Lilija spoke the truth. I constantly war with conflicting desires. When should I show mercy, when should I take a life? It is difficult to know. Besides this, who knows if there are others who have mastered both sides of the Force? Few Sith or Jedi would admit to it. On that topic, I would ask you to speak to others about my philosophy with great caution."
"I understand," Devon said.
"Good. What else would you like to know?"
"Should I be like you?"
"That is for you to decide. I only require that you love the Empire and that you direct your emotions instead of letting them direct you."
"I promise, master." Devon stood up and put his hand over his heart, "I swear it."
Ursbrung's face grew grim. "Do not make this oath lightly, Devon. The service of the Empire is trying and the Dark Side is devious. It will seek to seduce you."
Devon stood up as tall as he could, his chest out, his hand still on his heart. "I swear."
"You choose a difficult path, apprentice." Ursbrung stood. "But it is the only path worth walking."
Lilija woke from a nightmare. Her breath caught in her throat. She felt pain and hunger. For a moment, panic filled her and she took quick, shallow breaths. She closed her eyes and brought her hands to her neck and focused on her hatred of the Sith. Their atrocities across the millenia. Personal betrayals. She shivered with anger and began to breathe more normally, though her breaths still wheezed in and out.
She sat up, her irises red, and focused on the fading images from her nightmare. Thick trees. Golden eyes. Fire. Her daughters chased by an army through the snow. Leannon in front of Ahlea, defending her from a barrage of blaster bolts and explosions.
Her hands still on her throat, Lilija looked around the cargo bay and remembered that Ursbrung held her captive. She hated him, but even in the strength of her hate, Ursbrung had mastered the Crown of Sitis-and her. And now, weakened as she was, she had even less chance of overpowering him.
Yet, he'd saved her. She remembered a time when they worked together, before Ahlea and Leannon were born. He'd been one of the good Sith, treating Lilija, Eric, and even Monte with respect as they fought the Republic together. But Ursbrung's former master, Darth Vargas, was a cruel ogre who had left Lilija to die, not to benefit the Empire, but himself. With Eric's help, she'd survived. Then she'd betrayed Vargas's secrets to the Republic and, without meaning to, betrayed Ursbrung as well. Ursbrung proceeded to hunt her down across the years. They fought. She thought she had won.
Could he be what he said he was? A good Sith? She shook her head. Impossible. There were no good Sith. And there was her dream.
A nightmare or a vision? Those eyes, gold flecks floating over strings of gold, she'd never seen anything like them before. A figment of her imagination, or a message through the Force?
Ursbrung fed that Sith to her. Could he be trusted? Of course not. Could he be useful? She shivered. She'd been playing with fire for so long. Manipulating people around her to their deaths. Something inside her wanted it all to end.
Lilija licked her lips slowly. Why keep playing the game? She knew now that her dreams of destroying the Sith had failed. She'd been defeated easily by Ursbrung and, though he had significant strength, he was nothing compared to the true powers of the Sith order. Her embarrassment turned to anger. Anger at herself.
She felt self-hate growing. She usually shifted her anger towards her enemies, but she allowed herself to sink into self-loathing. Such hubris. Such a fool. To think that she could take the Crown of Sitis from Ursbrung and control the Dark Side. How could she hope to come to the Dark Side late in life and deny its temptations without training? The Dark Side ate her up and spat her out. She couldn't stand her own reflection. A monster. A failure.
Perhaps her family was better without her. They got along just fine without her. Better. Eric spoke the truth. She should have been there for her children. Now they hated her. There was no defeating the Sith. She'd sacrificed her soul for nothing and her self-hatred was all that kept her breathing.
Lilija looked at her gloved hands. She had robotic hands and forearms now. Her own daughter had cut them off. Lilija no longer blamed her. Had the Crown reached all the way down her legs yet? She knew its silken chains wrapped down her arms. After devouring the life of that Sith, it grew stronger, but she only grew more addicted to its power. The Crown owned her now.
Doubly a slave. No, three times. The Crown, the Dark Side, and Ursbrung.
She could stop breathing. It wouldn't be hard. Just remember her love of her children, let the strength of the Dark Side fade, and her breath would catch in her throat. She thought of Ahlea and Leannon, but found the memories hazy. A few images, like pictures in her mind, but with the faces blurry and washed out. They were smiling, laughing in the snow, but she couldn't imagine it. Her children used to give her great joy. Now she felt sad and empty. She had no love to give.
The door behind her opened and Ursbrung stood in the doorway. Lilija tensed, but Ursbrung said nothing.
"What do you want?" Lilija hated the sound of her own voice.
She sat with her back to the door, her hood down around her shoulders. Ursbrung walked around her and sat in front of her.
"I want to help you."
Lilija narrowed her eyes. "Why?"
"You were once one of the Empire's best spies. You can be again."
No regret for what he'd done to her. She seethed silently. He'd planted the Crown on her. Manipulated her into killing his enemies for him. She saw it now. He was better at the game than she was. "I'm of no use to you," she paused, "anymore."
"Recently, you showed considerable skill in manipulating the Sith at the Academy and, of course, your victims. You still have talent."
Lilija thought of the Academy and Bakim. She'd cared for Bakim at first, helped her become an Overseer, but as Lilija's ambition grew and the Dark Side took root in her heart, hatred overwhelmed her concern for Bakim and her good intentions turned, at best, into indifference. Then Bakim became yet another victim. How close had she been to devouring her own daughters? She shook her head. "I cannot help you, Ursbrung."
"Why not?"
Lilija could sense his earnest goodwill. A week ago she would have sneered at it. She felt a need for something. Death. She took a leap. "I am broken. I cannot control the Dark Side. The Crown is eating me alive. It is best, it would be best, if you killed me."
"Yes." His white, electronic eye surveyed her dispassionately. His human eye bored into her.
Lilija frowned and stared at Ursbrung, pulling away from him. She needed death. She feared it. She saw her end in Ursbrung's eyes.
"Yes. Part of you needs to die, but there are parts of you that are worth saving. Tell me, Lilija Kenna, what do you need to shed so that you can be reborn?"
Her breath caught in her throat. She clenched her fists and fought with her lungs and throat for a moment. When she finally burst into laughter, it was a terrible cackle. "My body. My soul. All of me."
Ursbrung leant forward and stared at her with his one eye almost glowing as brightly as the other, "Then give them to me. The Force will purge you and give you a new life. You will be reborn like the greatest heroes of the past."
Lilija shivered. She instinctively wanted to do it, but the analytical part of her mind rebelled. "What do you mean? Purge me?"
"You will come close to death. Your heart may stop as I take the Crown from you." The eager energy in his face became more subdued. He remembered the pain of giving up the Crown. "You are damaged, Lilija Kenna. As I am." He touched the metal half of his face. "I will need to heal your body, but you will no longer be fully human. You will be like me. You must do this willingly."
She looked at the silvery metal half of Ursbrung's face with dread. It gazed at her without emotion. The human half, though calm on the surface, vibrated with energy and emotion.
Lilija shook her head. Fear and doubt shook her. "I don't know."
"Don't you want to go back? Go back to making a difference? To living a life of meaning? To be rid of that terrible Crown and the corruption of the Dark Side? To remember what it is to be loved?" Ursbrung's eyes caught Lilja's and held them.
Lilija's red eyes faded out of focus. "I do."
"You already wish for death. I will give you rebirth. The Crown will be gone. The Dark Side will be gone. You will have a second chance." With the touch of a button, the energy field flickered away. He stretched out one hand towards her. "Take my hand."
Lilija's arm slowly raised, her rovotic hand reaching toward Ursbrung's. She felt like she watched her body act on its own. She stopped, her fingers almost touching Ursbrung's hand.
"Wait, my girls. I had a vision. They are in trouble." She withdrew her hand slightly.
"What would you have me do?" Ursbrung's hand remained outstretched.
"Find them, save them."
"How can I find them?"
Lilija paused. A good Sith? What was she doing? She reached down into her robes and pulled out a communicator. "Channel five. My husband, their father. He may still answer." She set the communicator in Ursbrung's hand.
"I will contact him and, if I can, I will protect your daughters."
"Do not give them to the Sith. Save them from Korriban."
"I swear it." He pocketed the communicator and put his hand out again. "Will you take my hand?"
Lilija looked at his hand and then at his face. His spell over her seemed broken and a strange sense of calm filled her. She hadn't felt peaceful for years, but as the Dark Side left her, she could no longer command her broken throat to function.
Her lungs burned for oxygen. She could turn to anger and hate and force her body to obey. Or she could take Ursbrung's hand.
Lilija, with her strength waning, took his hand. She fell forward into his arms.
Realizing that she was dying, Ursbrung picked her up in one arm and ran to a large, coffin-sized box with several instrument consoles on its top and sides. He opened the box and laid her gently in it. Her vision dimmed. Ursbrung whispered, "This will preserve you until you can be reborn." He closed the box and entered a code into the console. The carbonization process issued a hissing noise and water condensated and froze on the outside of the casket.
Ursbrung stood over the long, metallic box until the freezing finished. He checked the instruments and nodded.
Then he walked up through the ship and found Devon. "Now, Devon, I need your help. Come with me to the cockpit."
Setting down a holobook and standing up, Devon said, "What can I do, master?"
"We need to save Leannon Kenna and her sibling. Tell me everything you know about her." With that, he walked up to the command center of the ship, Devon following him. As Ursbrung set hyperspace coordinates into the ship's console, Devon told Ursbrung about his time on Korriban with Leannon. Ursbrung mostly listened, only interrupting two times to ask questions about what Devon thought of Leannon's motivations. They entered hyperspace as Devon told the story.
Devon finished, saying, "The last time I saw her was from a distance. She'd beaten Batu and walked behind us into the valley. We entered the cave without her. I wish I'd said goodbye. I guess she isn't dead?"
"It seems not." He pulled the communicator out of his pocket and considered it. He handed it to Devon. "Channel five may reach Leannon's father. We can find out."
"You want me to call?" Devon examined the communicator, finding the simple on switch and two buttons to change channels.
Ursbrung gave a half smile. "You know her and," he chuckled, "many find my looks off putting. But before you call, know that Lilija told me that she'd seen a vision of her daughters in danger. She made me swear to help them."
"Is she alright?"
"She is very ill. We are taking her to be healed."
Devon nodded. He looked the communicator."Now, then?"
Ursbrung shook his head. "If her husband even answers, we only have one shot at this. Think it through. If Leannon is truly in danger and we can help, what you say will matter."
Devon looked at the holo-communicator in his hand before closing his eyes. As the abstract blue lights of hyperspace flowed around them, Devon thought through several scenarios, trying to imagine Leannon's father from what he knew of her. She was very well trained and hard working. Intelligent and focused. Her father probably shared those traits. Devon decided that honesty provided the best path forward. He'd never been a good liar and Leannon wasn't easy to fool, her father wouldn't be, either. "I'm ready."
Ursbrung nodded and Devon set the holocommunicator to channel five and called. For several minutes, no one answered. He called several times and, as the minutes drew out, he started running through imagined conversations in his mind again.
On the seventh call, a holo-image flickered and became clear. The face of an older man with short hair and a severe expression. Devon thought he saw a resemblance to Leannon in the nose and mouth. Perhaps the shape of the jaw.
"Who is this? Why are you calling?"
"My name is Devon. I trained on Korriban with Leannon Kenna. Her mother, who is ill, told me that she may be in danger."
Devon watched the man's eyes flicker wider before he controlled his surprise. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"Lilija Kenna, also known as Lord Cavum, fought my master and lost. She is now seriously ill and we are taking her to be healed. She said your children are in danger. If that is not the case, please ignore this message. However, if it is, and you want my help, call me back on this channel. I will answer." The man said nothing and ended the call.
Devon looked at Ursbrung who looked pleased. "A soft touch. Good." He looked at the instruments on the ship's console. "We will arrive on Nar Shaddaa soon. These are the same doctors who repaired my face. They are," he paused, "unconventional. On a planet rife with criminals like this one, it is best that you conceal your face. Come, I have a mask that may be adjusted to fit you."
The pair went back to the cargo bay. Devon looked at the casket with Lilija inside, watching the console lights blinking calmly. Ursbrung went to a closet along one of the walls and punched in a code. It opened. Inside were several weapons, a suit of spare armor, strange goggles, and other instruments he did not recognize. Ursbrung pulled out a shelf. Inside were a variety of masks, wigs, and other disguises. He pulled out one mask that looked like a metallic Devaronian: red skin, angular cheekbones, and horns. He handed it to Devon, who tried it on. It didn't fit quite right, but with a few adjustments, it stayed put on his face.
Ursbrung suggested Devon practice his lightsaber with the mask on. "I don't expect violence, but if you can fight with it on, you will be comfortable wearing it in almost any other situation." So Devon practiced in the cargo bay. He couldn't breath as easily with the mask on and it blocked some of his peripheral vision, so he relied more on the Force to guide him and tried to conserve energy. As he grew tired, he felt the ship exit hyperspace. Knowing he might be needed soon, Devon went to the food dispenser and ate a quick meal.
Ursbrung came out of the cockpit and found Devon, though his attention seemed focused somewhere else. "I imagine you've heard of Nar Shaddaa, Devon. Even a Sith, caught off his guard, will find many pitfalls here. Keep your wits about you."
They went into the cargo bay and Ursbrung attached some devices to Lilija's casket, causing it to float. He lowered the ramp and pushed the floating box in front of him. As they exited the ship, Devon blinked under the assault of flashing neon advertisements and holographic trees. He kept looking around, trying to see possible threats through the visual noise.
His attention settled on a being dressed in a flat black suit and wearing a long, expressionless silver mask. The being stood still, off to the side of the main walkway from the landing dock towards the rest of the spaceport. Though slight of build, Devon felt a cold menace emanating from him.
As Ursbrung approached, the masked being stepped forward and said, "My lord. I arranged a shuttle for you, as requested."
Ursbrung nodded and the three of them, Ursbrung pushing the casket before him, walked to the shuttle, stored Lilija in the back, and sat down inside.
No one spoke. At first Devon inspected the masked person sitting near him. He did not get the sense that this person was Sith, but that did not make him uninteresting. The mask covered his eyes and he sat perfectly still. Devon instinctively knew that this person could fight by the way he walked and carried himself. However, the black suit told him little. He wore fashionable but unremarkable ankle high boots, black gloves, and he wore a black scarf that covered his neck under the mercurial helmet.
Ursbrung had closed his eyes. The masked being looked ahead, so Devon looked out the shuttle windows. They flew through the crowded, chaotic airspace above and between the skyscrapers of Nar Shaddaa. Known as the Smuggler's Moon and ruled by the Hutts, Devon heard that you could buy anything-or anyone- on the moon above Hutta. Criminals, slavers, bounty hunters, and pleasure seekers crowded the resorts, casinos and cantinas. Many others toiled away in support of the planet's bulky, voracious overlords.
As they descended away from the blinking, garish upper parts of Nar Shaddaa and into the depths of the city, bright lights and signs continued to illuminate the buildings with oranges, pinks, and yellows. The colors didn't change, but the people did. Instead of laughing and revelling, down here, people walked in small groups, their eyes on the ground. A few walked alone, but they were either heavily armed, scanning for threats, or barely aware of their surroundings. On the short flight down, Devon saw two muggings and what looked like a pack of giant cyborg rats chasing a terrified family into an alleyway.
Devon decided that he preferred his homeworld of Dromuund Kaas to Nar Shaddaa.
Lilija's holocommunicator started blinking on Devon's belt. He picked it up and looked at Ursbrung, who opened his eyes. Ursbrung turned to the masked being and made a gesture.
The masked being pulled a headset and two other small devices from inside his jacket. He rapped on the glass separating the driver from the cabin. The driver lowered the glass and the masked being handed him the headset. The driver took the headset and put it on without question and then raised the glass partition. At the flick of a button, the glass frosted and became opaque. The masked being turned on the two small devices in his hands, which emitted a low hum. He set one on either side of the passenger cabin. Ursbrung nodded at Devon to begin.
Devon reached up to remove his mask. Ursbrung turned to the masked being, who turned his face and covered his eyes with his hands. Then Devon answered the call.
A hologram of Leannon's father appeared. "Is Lilija safe?"
Resisting the urge to turn to Ursbrung, Devon said, "I saw her with my own eyes this morning. She is alive, but not well. Her breathing seems labored, perhaps due to the lightning scars on her throat. Worse, she wears some Sith artifact that seems to be killing her. We are taking her to be healed."
"Can I talk to her?" Eric seemed tense, but displayed little emotion.
"Sorry, no, she is near death and in carbonite. Before putting her in carbonite, she asked that we protect her daughters. If you allow it, we would keep our promise to her."
"How do I know this isn't a trap?"
"If you can reach Leannon, you can ask her about me. I won't betray her."
"Who are you coming with?"
This time, Devon did turn to Ursbrung, but he kept the holocommunicator pointed at his own face. Ursbrung said, "Devon will go alone for now. Saving Lilija will take all of my attention and strength. I will come as soon as I can."
Eric tried to see who spoke, but of course the holocommunicator only showed what Devon allowed it to. "Who is that?"
"That is my master." Devon looked at Ursbrung, who shook his head. "He treats me fairly and I believe him to be a man of his word. Anyway, he isn't coming. He has to take care of Lilija."
Eric extended his jaw a bit and frowned into the holocommunicator. "Don't you dare hurt Lilija, 'master.' If you harm a hair on her head, I will make you pay."
Ursbrung smiled, though the smile did not reach his eye. He knew Eric's voice.
Devon glanced at Ursbrung, who gave no sign, then said, "Do you need my help? Leannon is my friend and I want to help her if I can."
Continuing to frown, Eric said, "Aylayl. Metsa spaceport. Someone will meet you there, Devon." He ended the call but didn't see Ursbrung's reaction to the location. He sat bolt upright and looked like he'd been struck by lightning.
Devon put his mask back on: black horns and a red, grinning face. Silence filled the taxi again. As he did so, Ursbrung consciously relaxed before tapping the masked being on the shoulder, who proceeded to uncover his eyes. After a few more minutes, they arrived. They'd found the first dark corner of Nar Shaddaa that Devon had seen. A single, flickering light lit a broad set of doors. Outside stood a droid.
Devon did a double-take. The droid had the head of a human, but the body had no stomach, just pistons and wires. The masked being got out first and walked up to the door.
Ursbrung leaned forward, his eyes shining in the darkness. "The Force guides us, apprentice. You are meant to go on this journey and I am meant to follow. I cannot go with you now. Lilija's rebirth cannot wait and no surgeon can free her of the Sith artifact. That burden rests with me." He reached into a pocket and pulled out several credit chips. "Find your way there. Send me messages when you can, but do not call. Any questions?"
"What do you want me to do to Leannon?"
Ursbrung, already getting out of the taxi, said, "Save her."
Devon stood by the side of the shuttle. The strange cyborg watching them. Devon felt glad of the mask hiding his face. "Nothing else?"
Ursbrung turned and gave Devon a knowing smile. "Serve the Empire."