Star Wars

Jedi Quest

Book 10

The Final Showdown

by Jude Watson

source: IRC

uploaded: 09.I.2006

CHAPTER ONE

"Power cell?"

"Check."

"Reserve?"

"Check."

"Blade crystals?"

A glowing shaft buzzed to life.

"All check," Tru Veld said. He turned his lightsaber  around,  looking

at the flame-colored ray. It gave his silvery skin a rosy tint.

"I adjusted the flux aperture for  you  and  rebalanced  the  handle,"

Anakin Skywalker told him.

"Feels great." Tru deactivated the lightsaber and tucked it  into  his

belt. "Thanks. I may have built this light-saber,  but  you  sure  keep  it

humming." Tru looked down at his  utility  belt.  "Liquid  cable  -  check.

Comlink - check. Aquata breather - check. And..." Tru reached into a  small

slit in his belt and withdrew a small bag. He swung it in the air. "Mmmm...

some Terratta to eat on the ride."

"Check." Anakin caught the snack Tru tossed to him and  popped  it  in

his mouth. "Obviously, you've thought of everything."

The two teenage Padawans eased down on the floor and passed  the  food

back and forth. They had checked each piece of equipment  five  times  now.

They knew everything was functional, but they  kept  on  checking.  Routine

kept their nerves steady.

Many Jedi now  had  to  be  ready  to  leave  at  a  moment's  notice.

Throughout  the  Temple,  Jedi  Knights  were  finishing   up   last-minute

assignments and gathering their gear for new ones. Apprentices  said  good-

bye  to  friends  and  fellow  learners.  Information  was  uploaded   onto

datascreens. Starfighters and cruisers were standing by, ready and fueled.

Just days before, there had been an attack on the  Senate.  Twenty-one

Senators had been killed, along with  twenty-four  aides  and  guards.  The

numbers would have been higher if the  Jedi  had  not  been  alerted.  Even

Supreme Chancellor Palpatine had been in danger. His life had been saved by

Ferus Olin, Tru and Anakin's fellow apprentice.

The attacks had been carried out by Granta Omega and Jenna Zan  Arbor,

notorious galactic criminals. Yet the Jedi Council believed that a Sith was

the real power behind the terrible plan and the  Senate  feared  that  this

first attack was only the beginning of a much wider plot. They did not want

to simply wait for the next attack. The idea was  to  spread  a  wide  net,

check out old sources of information, and develop new ones to lure  in  and

trap the criminals.

Chancellor Palpatine urged restraint. Galactic politics were volatile,

and he needed a period of calm to steady the mood of the Senate, which  had

grown ugly since the attack. He cautioned the Jedi to be discreet.

Whatever the next  step,  Anakin  felt  confident  that  he  would  be

involved. His Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, had been the first Jedi to  warn  the

Council about Granta Omega's plans. His Master knew the evil villain better

than anyone, and he would be on the team sent to bring  Omega  to  justice.

Tru was hoping that he and his Master, Ry-Gaul, would be sent as well.

Suddenly a  head  peeked  around  the  corner  of  Anakin's  quarters.

"Terratta strips? And nobody invited me?" Darra Thel-Tanis held out a  hand

and the bag sailed into it, with the help of the Force.

"Show off," Tru said, grinning.

Darra slid down onto the floor next to her friends.

She  chewed  on  the  candy  with  vigorous  appreciation.  Darra  did

everything with gusto. She had always  been  a  vivid  presence  among  the

apprentices, with the bright bits of fabric she weaved through  her  auburn

Padawan braid and her wisecracking manner.

But Anakin could feel a new maturity  in  her,  a  hardened  sense  of

purpose. Ever since she'd been wounded on Haariden, she seemed to  carry  a

sense of gravity along with her humor. She'd told Anakin that the  incident

had brought death so close that she'd made friends with it. The remark  had

been a joke, but a joke that vibrated with a seriousness Anakin had trouble

accepting. He sometimes wanted the old Darra back, whose jokes were  simply

jokes, not keys to her own sorrows.

"Something's up," Darra said. "Your Masters are both  in  the  Council

room."

This was news to Anakin and Tru. They exchanged a glance.

"Soara is in there, too," Darra continued, speaking of her own Master.

"I have a feeling we'll be leaving the Temple before the day is  out."  She

stretched out her legs. "I'm ready."

"Was Siri Tachi there?" Tru asked.

"I saw her go in with  Ferus,"  Darra  said,  nodding.  "With  Ferus?"

Anakin asked. A jolt of jealousy made him straighten. "Why is  Ferus  there

when we're not?"

Darra shrugged. "They  asked  for  him.  Rumors  are  going  around  -

something about the apprentices. I don't know what."

"But why is Ferus there?" Anakin asked again.

Darra shot him a curious look. "Do I look like a Council member? Moons

and stars, I hope I'm not that grim. You're just going to have to wait  and

find out."

"I don't think it will be long," Tru said, trying to reassure  Anakin.

Tru was Anakin's best friend, and he knew that Anakin and Ferus had clashed

in the past. Although they got along better now, there was still a  rivalry

between them.

Just then, all three of their comlinks buzzed at the same time.

Darra consulted her message. "Well, whatever it  is,  we're  about  to

find out."

Anakin was used to standing in the Council  room  by  now.  He  wasn't

nervous, the way he'd been as a ten-year-old refugee from Tatooine. He  was

almost nineteen now, close to being a Jedi Knight.  Yet  still,  this  time

something was different. He felt a heavy presence in the room. The  Council

members sat in their various chairs, waiting for the three Padawans to step

forward next to their Masters. Usually Anakin could count on  a  nod  or  a

smile from a Council member or two, but today everyone looked, as Darra had

said, grim. He felt the Force in the room, humming underneath  and  through

them. He imagined that this concentration of energy was similar to  what  a

war council might feel like.

Ferus stood to one side, next to Siri. He did not look at  Anakin,  or

at the other Padawans. Something trickled down Anakin's neck, a  foreboding

he didn't want to name. Suddenly he had a feeling that he wasn't  going  to

like what he was about to hear.

"And now, to begin," Mace Windu said,  once  the  Padawans  had  taken

their places. "First, the Council wishes to apologize to Master Kenobi, who

has warned us many times of the danger of Granta Omega. We did not take the

warnings as seriously as they were given. You were  right,  Obi-Wan.  Omega

should have been our first priority. He is now."

Obi-Wan nodded.

"You will be the first Jedi coalition to go  after  him,"  Mace  said,

looking at each of the Masters and Padawans in turn. "You may  contact  the

Temple at any time to ask for any degree of help or any number of  Jedi  to

join you. We leave these decisions to you. The Council feels that there  is

Sith involvement, but to what degree we do not know. Therefore we urge each

of you to weigh every move you make with care."

Mace steepled his fingers together. "We have located Granta Omega  and

Jenna Zan Arbor."

Anakin saw his Master give a start.

"They are on Korriban."

Anakin felt the dread in the room. He knew of  Korriban  only  through

legends. Thousands of years before, it had been the seat of Sith power. The

tombs of the ancient Sith Lords were there, and it was still  a  source  of

the dark side of the Force. It was a place no Jedi wanted to go.

"Of course," Obi-Wan said. "He has strived to be noticed by the  Sith,

and at last he has succeeded. Now he goes for his reward."

"Whatever that may be," Mace agreed. "Certainly protection is part  of

it." Mace's intense gaze moved from Tru to Darra until it came to  rest  on

Anakin. "And now we come to a piece of news for the  Padawans.  Because  of

our concern for the state of the galaxy and evidence that the dark side  of

the Force is gathering, the Council has made a decision  to  speed  up  the

process of apprentices becoming Jedi Knights."

Anakin found it difficult to  keep  his  face  neutral  as  excitement

surged through him. He knew what was coming. He was going to be allowed  to

undertake the trials!

He was ready. He was more than ready.

"This is  a  major  decision,  and  so  we  have  decided  to  proceed

cautiously, with one test case," Mace went on.

Anakin's heart swelled. Of course it would be him. He was  the  Chosen

One, the one with the greatest skills, the greatest Force connection.

"After much discussion, and consultation with all  Jedi  Masters,  the

Council has chosen Ferus Olin as the first Padawan to undergo  the  trials.

After this mission, he will begin the trials."

For a moment, Anakin heard nothing, just a blank where his name should

have been. The words Ferus Olin seemed to have no meaning, like  they  were

part of a language he hadn't learned. That was how unreal it felt.

He wanted to move, wanted to  cry  out.  This  couldn't  be  true!  It

couldn't be happening!

He glanced at his Master. Obi-Wan was looking at Yoda.

"We want to make it clear that our decision, while unanimous,  doesn't

reflect on any Padawan's fitness to be a Jedi Knight. We believe in each of

you. Yet we had to choose someone, and this is a way  to  begin.  You  will

each be ready in your own time."

My time is now! Anakin wanted to shout. Disbelief  and  anger  coursed

through him.

Mace rose. "The ships are ready for your journey to Korriban. May  the

Force be with you."

Anakin did not know how he was going to get out of  the  room  without

exploding. His emotions were too wild to control. It was only by hanging on

to the habit of a life of discipline that he was able to  turn  and  follow

his Master out of the room. Ahead of  him  strode  Ferus,  the  thick  gold

stripe in his hair catching the light of the glow rods overhead. First  out

of the Council room. First on the list.

Ferus.

CHAPTER TWO

"Don't say anything," Obi-Wan said in a low tone. "Follow me."

Anakin's face was hot. He followed his Master through the hallway  and

onto the turbolift. He watched the  levels  count  off  as  he  slowed  his

breaths, fighting for control.

Obi-Wan led the way out of the turbolift and  into  the  Room  of  the

Thousand  Fountains.  Anakin  knew  his  Master  had   chosen   this   site

deliberately. The soft splash of the fountains were a calming  aid  to  all

Jedi. The room smelled of green growth, and  the  refracted  light  of  the

water gave the air a soft radiance.

None of this worked to calm him. He wanted to fight against it.

"How did it happen?" Anakin asked, as soon as he was  sure  they  were

alone. "How could it happen? I don't understand!"

"Anakin, of course you're disappointed," Obi-Wan said. "It is  natural

to want to be first."

"I am first!" Anakin exploded. "I was always first in my class.  First

in lightsaber training. First in the Force."

Obi-Wan frowned. "There is no such thing. We don't  rank  students  at

the Temple."

"That is what is said," Anakin answered. "But it's  not  the  reality,

and you know it."

Obi-Wan took a breath. "How good you are is not the point."

"What makes Ferus better?"

"That is not the point either. The fact is  he  is  ready!"  Obi-Wan's

voice was raised, and that didn't happen very often. Anakin could see  that

he was pushing his Master to the limit.

But he couldn't stop. Not on something that was this important to him.

"I'm ready!" he insisted. "I'm just as ready as he is."

"That is something you cannot know," Obi-Wan said, shaking  his  head.

"It is not for the Padawan to know. It is for the Master and the Council."

Obi-Wan's words stopped Anakin  in  his  tracks.  A  sudden  knowledge

seared his brain.

"You agreed with them," he said. "You voted for Ferus!"

"It was not a vote..." Obi-Wan began.

"You agreed - "

"It was a discussion," Obi-Wan interrupted. "To which all Masters were

invited."

"You're not answering me."

Obi-Wan paused. "Yes. I agreed with the Council's choice."

Anakin  felt  as  though  he  had  received  a  sharp  prod  from   an

electrojabber.

"Anakin." Obi-Wan made a move to put his hands on Anakin's  shoulders,

but did not actually touch him, knowing somehow that Anakin would push  him

off. "This is not about your skills, your commitment,  or  your  abilities.

This is about whether you are ready. There is a difference."

"You don't think I'm ready." Anakin could hear how  wooden  his  voice

sounded.

"I think Ferus is. That does not mean I think he will  make  a  better

Jedi. It only means that I think he is ready now."

Ferus had manipulated them. Ferus had somehow made this happen. He had

voiced his doubts about Anakin aloud, sometimes in front of his Master, and

somehow he had corrupted their opinions of him.

Anakin's fury grew until it was something wild, something he  did  not

know if he could contain. He looked at his Master, and suddenly Obi-Wan was

a stranger to him

"I can feel your anger," Obi-Wan said. "Take care." He did not want to

take care. He wanted to punch something.

"Your focus on who gets to be Master first  is  only  reinforcing  the

rightness of the Council's decision," Obi-Wan  went  on.  "You're  treating

this like a contest. You are not emotionally ready to be a Jedi.  Decisions

like this must be accepted."

"You do not need to quote Jedi teachings,"  Anakin  said  through  his

teeth. "I know them well. Better even than Ferus, though that doesn't  seem

to make a difference."

Obi-Wan's face was tight. "You need a little time to compose yourself.

We can discuss this further if you like. I'll leave you now."

Obi-Wan turned away. His shoulders were tense. He took  a  few  steps,

then relented. He turned back. "I believe in you, Anakin," he said.

Anakin had turned, too, and now kept his back to his Master. He  could

not answer him. He could only think of Ferus. After a moment, he heard Obi-

Wan leave the room.

Ferus had plotted. Ferus had beaten him. Ferus had won.

And now he had to work with him on this mission. He had to help  Ferus

achieve what he, Anakin, deserved. He imagined  Ferus's  smug  face  as  he

accepted the praise of the Council. As he took his place as a Jedi  Knight.

He imagined Ferus as a Knight and himself still a Padawan.

It can't happen that way.

Anakin took his anger and focused it. For a moment, the water from the

many fountains around him hung suspended in the air. He used the  Force  to

keep the water frozen in midair, just to prove he could do it. The  silence

filled his ears. Then he let it fall, all the fountains gushing, trickling,

racing once again. The noise seemed enormous now, a torrent. As  though  he

could hear every drop of water hit every pebble.

Anakin felt a surge of power. This was only a  part  of  what  he  was

capable of. Soon they would all know it. He would show them that  they  had

made a serious mistake. He should be the first apprentice  to  move  up  to

Jedi Knight. He knew it. And soon everyone else would know it, too.

He would make them know it.

CHAPTER THREE

The Jedi assembled in the vast hangar in front  of  the  two  Republic

cruisers they would take to Korriban. They split up the  teams,  with  Siri

and Obi-Wan in one cruiser with their Padawans, Soara and Ry-Gaul and their

Padawans in the other. That way, the two best pilots in the group -  Anakin

and Ry-Gaul - would be in different ships.

Obi-Wan wished it could be otherwise. He didn't think it wise  to  put

Anakin and Ferus together in a small cruiser until Anakin had cooled  down.

He had no choice, however; every decision they made from now on could be  a

crucial one. They had to think every step through. It was entirely possible

that they would be attacked on the journey. They couldn't take anything for

granted anymore.

While Anakin and Ry-Gaul did a flight check on their vehicles, Obi-Wan

studied his fellow Jedi. It had been six years  since  they  had  all  been

together on a mission. The past years had been long and hard, and they  all

looked more focused, more intent, than they had all those years before when

they went to patrol the Galactic Games.

Obi-Wan knew that Tru and Ry-Gaul had  been  on  a  series  of  highly

dangerous missions and that Soara and Darra were  recently  caught  in  the

middle of a fierce interplanetary war.  He  saw  the  changes  in  all  the

Padawans, how their faces reflected the seriousness of  their  purpose  and

the things they had seen. He saw in them the same recognition that  he  had

once faced, as he had come to the end of his years of  apprenticeship.  You

started out as a Padawan thinking you would lead  a  life  of  service  and

adventure, and you pictured your successes  to  come,  not  your  failures.

Successes could be daydreamed about in a vague way, but failures were  more

particular. They couldn't be envisioned. With the years you accumulated not

only satisfactions  but  also  disappointments  and  heartbreaking  losses.

Imprinted in your memory were things you wished you had not seen. The  Jedi

path was more complicated than you'd ever  dreamed  as  you  polished  your

lightsaber hilt and yearned to be chosen.

Siri was leaner, if that was possible. Her edge was  sharper.  Obi-Wan

saw less of her humor and more of her frustration.

Ry-Gaul's bleached gray eyes seemed even paler, as if his  experiences

had leached out the color. Now they were almost white. He spoke  even  less

now. When Obi-Wan had asked him about  it,  Ry-Gaul  had  fixed  his  moon-

colored eyes on him and said, "There is less to say."

Soara Antana, oddly, had grown  softer,  almost  tender,  with  Darra.

Darra herself seemed the same, though the exuberance  that  danced  in  her

unusual, rust-colored eyes would sometimes shift to a shadowy sadness.

And what of himself? What did his fellow Jedi think of him? He  caught

sight of his bearded face in the reflection of the windscreen. He  was  not

old. He was younger than Qui-Gon had been when he took him on as a Padawan.

Yet he felt old. In his bones, he felt a  strange  weariness.  It  was  the

concentration of all the  effort  he  placed  in  vigilance.  In  watching.

Waiting for something he could not name.

They all felt it. A gathering of the dark side of the Force. They held

out their hands, pushing against the darkness, the chaos. They were  tired,

and they had so much farther to go.

And now, Anakin. He had to count on Anakin's maturity,  the  integrity

of his core. Anakin would forgive him for supporting  Ferus.  It  had  been

difficult for Obi-Wan himself to admit that Ferus was the  best  candidate.

Naturally he'd wanted Anakin to be chosen, but something had held him back.

He couldn't have done it if he hadn't felt the times were too perilous  for

the Jedi to make a mistake.

In time, Anakin would find acceptance. Obi-Wan was confident this  was

so, because he knew Anakin so well. He knew that Anakin was struggling now,

and he knew that he could not help him. He knew Anakin's better side  would

win.

To Obi-Wan's surprise, Yoda himself suddenly appeared, gliding in  his

repulsorlift chair from the turbo-lift. Obi-Wan walked forward  quickly  to

greet him on the landing platform.

"Master Yoda, is something wrong?"

Yoda did not answer him. Instead, Obi-Wan watched as Yoda's  gray-blue

eyes moved from one Jedi to another in turn, lingering on the faces of  the

Padawans.

"Felt I did that look upon you all before you left I must," Yoda said.

"And tell you..."

"Yes, Master?"

Another pause. Then Yoda leaned on his gimer stick and frowned.  "Like

Ry-Gaul, I have become. Nothing to say, I have." Now he  gazed  with  great

affection at Obi-Wan. "What I would say, know you do already."

And Obi-Wan did. A great dread lay inside Yoda. He needed to  look  at

them in case they did not all come back. He needed to stand here and  watch

them go so they would know how deeply he felt for them. He  wanted  to  see

them off, see the last glint of sun on a wing as they flew.

Obi-Wan nodded.

"Checks completed," Anakin called, and Ry-Gaul gave a thumbs-up.

The Jedi turned to board.

"May the Force be with you," Yoda said. He lifted  one  three-fingered

hand in good-bye.

CHAPTER FOUR.

Obi-Wan sat in front of the nav computer. There  was  nothing  to  do;

they had been in  hyperspace  for  days  now,  and  they  were  approaching

Korriban within the Horuset system. He knew their position exactly, and how

far they needed to go. Still he continued to check coordinates and  try  to

foresee potential problems. It was  what  he'd  always  done,  even  as  an

apprentice. He found comfort in the routine of it.

The journey had passed without incident. Ferus  had  kept  a  delicate

distance between himself and Anakin,  delicate  because  he  gave  distance

without seeming to. Obi-Wan appreciated this effort. Ferus had given Anakin

space, and that was not easy on such a small cruiser.

Siri came up behind him. "If you check that  space  chart  once  more,

you're going to burn out the screen."

Obi-Wan spun around in his chair. "It never hurts to triple check."

"It hurts me," Siri said. Her keen blue eyes glinted at him. "All that

precision gives me the shivers."

Obi-Wan grinned, then pressed the button for holo-mode. The star chart

hovered in the air. "There  it  is,"  he  said,  indicating  Korriban.  "So

isolated that it makes up its own system. Marooned in space, as though  the

other planets have chosen to hide from it."

Siri sat astride a chair, planting her hands on her knees.  "Don't  be

so poetic. It's just a planet."

"More than a planet," Obi-Wan said, gazing at the chart. "A source  of

evil that still calls evil to come meet it."

"I don't believe that," Siri said. "It's just a place where  some  old

Sith bones lie."

"The Valley of the Dark Lords," Obi-Wan said. They had  heard  of  the

valley from their earliest days as students at the Temple, had  used  tales

of the valley to scare each other as younglings.  "The  dark  side  of  the

Force still lives in that valley. Korriban has  never  recovered  from  the

Sith occupation. That was thousands of years ago, and yet  the  planet  has

never formed a government or attracted  settlers.  It's  not  part  of  the

galactic alliance. It has never joined the Senate."

Siri rose to study the holo-chart more closely. "Even freighters won't

stop there," she murmured. "And freighters stop everywhere." As  she  moved

to the opposite side of the chart,  briefly,  the  image  of  Korriban  was

reflected on her face. She shuddered and moved away.

Siri sat back down opposite Obi-Wan. "The Commerce Guild has opened an

office there," she observed.

"They're offering incentives to get corporations to open  branches  in

the Dreshdae spaceport," Obi-Wan said. "I've been studying  the  files.  Of

course it is a world with no taxes, and that's a Commerce Guild issue,  but

it's still strange."

"They are just trying to gain influence on major  corporations,"  Siri

said. "Keep them in their backyard so they can control them. It's the  same

old dance."

"But Korriban?" Obi-Wan mused. "There has to be a reason...  the  Sith

might be behind it, even if the Commerce Guild doesn't know it."

Siri waved a hand. "Then they'll get what they deserve."

While they were talking, the Padawans slowly drifted  closer  to  join

the conversation.

"So who is living on Korriban?" Ferus now asked.

"Three types of beings,"  Siri  replied,  checking  them  off  on  her

fingers. "One, those who are forced to live there  because  of  work.  Two,

those who have been stranded there. Three, those who choose to be there."

"Those are the dangerous ones, no doubt," Obi-Wan said

"How are we going to find Omega?" Anakin asked. "Dreshdae isn't large,

but he and Zan Arbor will be in hiding. And Korriban is huge. They could be

hiding out anywhere."

"I don't think he's come to Korriban to  hide,"  Obi-Wan  said.  "He's

come for a reason. My guess is that he's been invited.  He's  succeeded  in

his goal - he's attracted the notice of the Sith. He's going there for  his

reward."

"More wealth?" Siri asked. "He certainly doesn't need it."

"Maybe help with his next plan," Ferus said. "He could  need  weapons,

ships, droids... we don't know." Obi-Wan nodded. "True."

The instrument panel showed they were about to come out of hyperspace.

It was time to enter the coordinates for landing at Dreshdae.

Obi-Wan drifted to the front of the cockpit and the  others  followed.

They stood, looking out into dark space. There were few stars out here, and

no planets. Korriban loomed in their vision, a large planet with  blood-red

clouds obscuring its surface.

"I've heard it called  the  cradle  of  darkness,"  Obi-Wan  said.  He

realized that he had lowered his voice.

He felt it now, the dark side of the Force emanating from the planet's

surface. Looking at the faces of the Jedi, he knew they felt it as well. It

had a sick sweetness to it, something  that  seemed  to  pour  through  his

veins, attracting and repelling him at once. It was  the  most  complicated

surge of the dark side he had ever felt.

He struggled to meet it, struggled to clear his mind.

Warily, Obi-Wan moved forward and entered the coordinates into the nav

computer. His fingers hesitated even as they entered the data.  It  was  as

though making the commitment to land was sealing their fate.

He stood and joined the other Jedi at  the  cockpit  windscreen.  They

couldn't turn away. The ship flew into the atmosphere, straight through the

blood-red clouds, and dread entered their hearts  as  the  surface  of  the

planet grew closer.

CHAPTER FIVE

He would have to wear a mask. A mask of friendship. Anakin had decided

this before he'd left the Temple. Ferus could never know his true feelings.

He would defeat him without Ferus ever knowing they were in competition.

That had been his plan, but it was hard to follow through  when  faced

with Ferus himself. Anakin could feel his resentment  leaking  out  like  a

gas. It was only a question of time before he exploded.

No. I will prove I am a better Jedi. I will not explode in anger.

They flew over the planet, over mountain ranges and  desert  and  deep

canyons.

"Where is the Valley of the Dark Lords?" Ferus asked.

"Invisible from the air," Obi-Wan told him. "The valley is  narrow,  a

slit hidden in the mountains  some  distance  from  Dreshdae.  Plus  it  is

constantly under heavy cloud cover."

"There's the spaceport," Siri said, as it loomed closer.

Dreshdae had been built on a plateau in  the  middle  of  the  largest

mountain range on the planet. From the air, the Jedi could see a huddle  of

buildings cramped together with no effort at orderly design.

The landing platform  was  deserted  except  for  a  small  number  of

cruisers behind an energy fence. There was no one to check them in  and  no

one to care. The landing area itself had been recently refurbished, but  it

had been a hasty job and already the platform was pitted and scarred.

Soara, Darra, Ry-Gaul, and Tru came over to Anakin's  ship  once  they

had landed. The Masters huddled in the cockpit, going over some last-minute

details. The Padawans stood on the ramp, looking out over the spaceport and

preparing their equipment. Dreshdae looked as grim at ground  level  as  it

had from the air.

"Not exactly Belazura," Darra said as she  stuffed  her  thermal  cape

into her survival pack.

"I've seen worse," Ferus said. "I hope."

Ferus might have meant the remark as a joke, but Anakin took it  as  a

challenge. Ferus was showing off again.

"We all have," Anakin pointed out.

"I don't think so," Tru said. "I'd say we've finally made  it  to  the

worst the galaxy has to offer." He said this cheerfully  as  he  wound  one

flexible arm around his back to fasten the strap on his survival pack. As a

Tee-van, Tru could bend his limbs backward and  twist  them  in  surprising

angles. It was one of the things that made him such an excellent fighter.

"I don't think you'll be finding  any  Terratta  strips  here,"  Darra

teased Tru. "I have a feeling we'll be living on food capsules. I  wouldn't

trust the food on this planet."

"I never get the good planets," Tru whined, making a comical face.

They were joking now, wanting to displace the  odd  tension  they  all

felt.

"We've come a long way from the Galactic Games, that's  for  certain,"

Ferus said. "Remember how nervous we were on our early missions?"

"Sure," Tru said. "I still am." He looked out  at  Dreshdae,  and  the

humor drained from his face. "Especially here."

"What about you, Ferus?" Anakin asked as he bent  over  to  tighten  a

strap that didn't need tightening. "Nervous? Or is that not allowed  for  a

Jedi Knight?"

"I'm not a Jedi Knight yet," Ferus answered.

"But you're closer than any of us," Anakin said, straightening.  "Does

that make you more nervous or  less?  I  mean,  let's  face  it,  the  Jedi

Council's eyes are on you."

Ferus frowned as he picked up the taunt buried in Anakin's easy  tone.

"I'm not thinking about that. I'm thinking about the mission."

"We're all thinking about the mission, Anakin," Darra said.

"Of course, we all want to capture Omega," Tru added.  His  eyes  told

Anakin to back off.

"But Ferus wants to be the one to do it, I'll bet," Anakin said. "Once

you start impressing the Jedi Council, you have to keep on doing it."

"It doesn't matter who does it," Ferus said.  "It  matters  that  it's

done."

"Spoken like a true Jedi Knight," Anakin said.  Ferus's  neck  flushed

red. "Just what are you trying to say?"

"Anakin - " Darra murmured warningly.

Anakin took a step closer to Ferus. He couldn't help himself.  Despite

his best intentions, the words spilled out in a torrent.  "That  you'll  do

whatever you can to succeed on this mission, but not because  you  want  to

catch Omega. You want to be a Knight."

"Anakin!" Tru exclaimed.

But Ferus and Anakin were past listening  to  their  fellow  Padawans.

They were careful to pitch their voices low, however, to  avoid  attracting

the attention of their Masters.

Ferus's dark eyes flashed with anger. "That's a serious charge, and an

untrue one."

"I've got news for you," Anakin said. "You won't be the  one  to  find

Omega. I will. I'd bet on it." The  remark  seemed  to  burst  out  of  him

without his directing it.

Darra sucked in a breath through her teeth. Tru shook his head.

Ferus turned away. "I'm not going to bet on a mission."

"Because you have too much riding on it? If you lose, you  might  lose

the Council's favor," Anakin said. "No wonder you won't take me up on it."

Anakin had gotten to Ferus at last. He could see  it.  Suddenly  Ferus

spun around and came within centimeters of Anakin.

"Okay, sure, I'll take the bet," he said. "Whatever you say, Anakin. I

wouldn't want to stand in the way of you and your ego."

"Ego? You're the one who spends all his time showing off!"

But if Anakin was heat, Ferus was ice. He buckled  his  utility  belt.

"Someone has to teach you that you are not as powerful  as  you  think  you

are."

Anakin saw the Masters looking over. He bent  over  and  pretended  to

tighten the same tight strap so that Obi-Wan could not read  his  face.  He

had to control himself. He had gone farther than  he'd  meant  to,  but  he

didn't care. Now it was out in the open.

They  followed  their  Masters  out  onto  the  main  thoroughfare  of

Dreshdae, a narrow unpaved street. A light gray rain was  falling,  and  it

had an acid taste. Anakin felt foreboding settle on his shoulders.

Dreshdae was a hodgepodge, a drab spaceport that had grown and  shrank

without regard for  utility  or  beauty.  Until  recently  it  had  been  a

collection of temporary buildings made of plastoid blocks or cheaper metals

that rusted with age. The Jedi could see these buildings in various  states

of disrepair. Sprung up around them was a collection  of  newer  buildings,

most of them clustered near the Commerce Guild's Dreshdae Headquarters. The

Guild had spared no expense, building a multistoried edifice with durasteel

facing in a multicolored  iridescence  that  was  supposed  to  sparkle  in

sunlight but instead looked cheerless in the drip of rain

Although Dreshdae tried to present itself as a typical new, brash city

struggling to grow, the strain showed. There was  no  disguising  what  the

spaceport had been and would slide back into again  -  a  dark,  dangerous,

lawless place. Undercurrents of its evil past bubbled up through the cracks

in the stone facings and  the  hastily  erected  walkways.  Beings  hurried

through the streets as if anxious to find shelter. No one lingered  in  the

caf©s. Anakin didn't hear one snatch  of  conversation,  or  one  burst  of

laughter.

"Our contact is a businessman named Teluron  Thacker,"  Obi-Wan  said.

"He's done favors for the Jedi in the past, and he agreed to help us if  he

could. The meeting place isn't far."

Anakin felt a touch on his shoulder and turned. No one was behind him.

Perhaps it had been a leaf brushing his shoulder - but he knew, of  course,

that there were no trees on Korriban.

Another touch - Anakin whipped around. He looked at  Ferus,  wondering

if he was trying to play a trick on him, but Ferus was several meters back,

talking to Soara.

He began to pick up a whisper. Then another. He couldn't make out  the

words, only the intent. Someone was baiting him, cajoling him, laughing  at

him... or was it his imagination? Was it just the wind  whispering  through

the stones?

They crossed the street and he thought he saw a flash of  something  -

blood coursing down a stone wall. When he blinked, it was gone.

"Master... "

"It is the dark side of the Force, Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "I'm picking

it up, too. Ignore it."

But Anakin couldn't ignore it. There was something insistent about the

voices. Something that urged him to answer. Although the feeling  made  him

anxious, he also wanted to face it. He wanted to get to the  root  of  this

dark power... to match himself against it... to prove, once  and  for  all,

that he was as strong as it was.

CHAPTER SIX

Obi-Wan stopped outside the small caf©. It fit the coordinates he  was

given, but still he hesitated. Was it even open? The caf© was small, dingy,

and in serious disrepair. Half of the roof was caving in. It was  a  wonder

anyone would go inside at all.

"What is it, Master?" Anakin asked.

"Teluron Thacker is a  prosperous  businessman,"  Obi-Wan  said.  "Why

would he frequent this kind of place?"

"You think it's a trap?"

"I'm not getting a warning. But still..." Obi-Wan shook his head.  The

problem was the energy on this planet. Dark waves buffeted him  from  every

side. It was like swimming in an evil sea. All that darkness made  it  hard

to distinguish what was a true threat.

"It could just be a case of not wanting to  be  seen  with  us,"  Siri

pointed out. "One of us should go in first to check it out."

"I'll go." Anakin and Ferus spoke the words together.

"I will." The words came from Ry-Gaul. He strode forward, pushed  open

the rusty metal door, and disappeared inside. No doubt Ry-Gaul's height and

size would serve to deter anyone who wanted to challenge him.

The rest of them waited, every second wearing on their nerves. Finally

Ry-Gaul emerged and said, "He's there. All clear."

They followed Ry-Gaul into  the  caf©.  Apparently  the  sagging  roof

scared off customers, for only one man sat inside,  at  a  table  near  the

door. He hugged a mug with one hand and kept his eyes darting from the door

to the roof, as if expecting it to crash down at any moment.

Teluron Thacker was a tall humanoid with pale skin and the  soft  look

of a being used to spending time indoors, sitting down. He greeted the Jedi

with a nervous nod and drew his red cape around his body.

"Thank you for seeing us," Obi-Wan said.

"The Jedi helped my home world of Eeyyon," Thacker said. "I pledged to

help whenever I could."

"How do you find yourself on Korriban?" Siri asked.

"Just lucky I guess," Thacker groaned. "I  angered  my  boss.  Such  a

little thing, but she was so touchy. So I didn't check references  and  the

deal went bad. What's a few million credits? The next thing I know,  I  get

handed an assignment to open an office on Korriban." Thacker shuddered.  "I

haven't slept through the night since."

Obi-Wan signaled to the bartender to bring a round of drinks. In  such

a place, it was better to place an order, even  though  he  wouldn't  touch

anything they were pouring. He waited until the bartender  slammed  down  a

pot of grog that slopped over the rim, then dropped a pile of not-too clean

mugs onto the table.

Thacker leaned over and whispered. "I wouldn't drink that  if  I  were

you."

"Thanks for the tip," Siri said. "What can you tell us about  the  two

beings we're pursuing?"

"Only that they are here," Thacker said. "A human man and  woman  have

been seen. They match the descriptions perfectly. I checked the  one  hotel

and several guest houses, and they aren't registered."

"They wouldn't use their real names,"  Obi-Wan  said.  "Did  you  give

descriptions?"

"Well, I said a man and a woman, traveling together," Thacker said.

"Did you try anything else? Is  there  a  database  for  arrivals  and

departures?"

Thacker shook his head. "Nobody really keeps track."

"Have you looked into whether any businesses  here  are  a  cover  for

Omega's enterprises?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Well, no," Thacker said. "Naturally I want to help the Jedi.  But  it

is not wise to ask too many questions on Korriban."

"Why?" This question came from Ry-Gaul, and it stopped Thacker in  his

tracks.

"Uh, because." Thacker shrugged. "Because that's what everyone says."

Obi-Wan exchanged an exasperated glance with Siri. It was  clear  that

Thacker wasn't going to be much help. He was too intimidated  by  even  the

rumor of possible problems.

"I should warn you about something. You know that the  Commerce  Guild

has its own army? Well, there's a division here," Thacker said.  "They  say

it's out of necessity, to protect the business workers  from  petty  crime.

But spider and surveillance droids are everywhere. If Omega and  Zan  Arbor

have any contacts in the Commerce Guild, they could have access to all  the

surveillance information. Which means they could see everything."

At last, a piece of information they could use. But  what  else  could

Thacker tell them? Obi-Wan didn't want to leave the caf©  without  a  solid

lead. Then a thought occurred to him.

"Zan Arbor has expensive tastes," he said. "She is most likely not too

thrilled to be here. There doesn't seem to be much luxury in Dreshdae."

"It's a stinking rot," Thacker agreed.

"Yet there are business executives here, creatures used to having  the

best of everything," Obi-Wan said. "There must be something  for  them.  If

you're looking to buy special items, where would you go?"

"There's a loose kind of black market," Thacker  told  them.  "Run  by

thieves, of course. Supplies are low, there are no stores, and it's hard to

even find essentials, like blankets or thermal capes, even though this dump

of a rotting death-hole freezes your bones. They rob when they can  -  from

the better buildings, the offices. No hotel room in the spaceport is  safe.

They've made some hits on ships coming in with supplies  for  the  Commerce

Guild executives."

"So how do you get in touch with this black market?" Obi-Wan asked.

"It's on the outskirts, in a plaza that's in ruins - that is,  if  you

can tell ruins from the rest of these  crumbling,  cracked-up  excuses  for

buildings." Thacker's darting gaze flicked to the ceiling. "I can give  you

the coordinates. If you want something, go at dusk. Ask  for  Auben.  She's

the best of a bad lot - she won't cheat you and she knows everything that's

going on. I've bought a few things from her myself. But watch out  for  the

army - the executives in the Commerce Guild are tired of buying back  their

own items. They want to smash the black market."

The Jedi stood.

"One more thing," Thacker said. "The army  isn't  your  only  concern.

Auben might be less than  cooperative.  She  won't  trust  you.  And  she's

heavily armed."

"That won't be a problem," Obi-Wan assured him.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Dusk on Korriban lasted for hours, beginning in  midafternoon  as  the

weak sun slowly made its descent. The shadows  cast  by  the  buildings  on

Dreshdae seemed thick and full of menace. There  had  been  an  attempt  to

install glow lights  on  the  streets,  but  they  were  staggered  in  odd

patterns. As the Jedi walked toward the plaza, they  moved  from  light  to

shadow. They knew it was dusk only because the light was failing. There was

so much cloud cover that they could  not  see  the  sun.  The  clouds  just

deepened to a dark red.

"I have a suggestion, Master," Anakin said.  "This  Auben  might  feel

less threatened if she's  approached  by  one  person.  Especially  someone

young."

Obi-Wan nodded. "That's not a bad idea."

"We can't surround her, we'll spook her for  sure,"  Siri  said.  "Why

don't Anakin and Ferus go?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "You can say that you're  brothers,  and  you've  been

stranded here. Sounds plausible."

Brothers! Anakin swallowed his groan. Being teamed with Ferus was  bad

enough.

They approached the plaza. It was surrounded by pillars that had  once

held up some sort of roof over the plaza. Part of the roof still hung  over

the space. Behind the pillars were the ruins  of  a  building.  There  were

plenty of places to hide, which was no doubt why it was chosen as the  spot

to conduct illegal business.

"We'll stay here," Obi-Wan said, stopping a good  distance  away  from

the plaza. "Whatever you  do,  don't  reveal  that  you  are  Jedi.  That's

information that can be sold. We know Omega is expecting us, but he doesn't

know when we'll arrive."

Anakin and Ferus took off for the marketplace in silence. The  tension

hadn't lessened between them. Anakin had hoped to  gain  information  about

Omega before Ferus did. He wished he were meeting Auben  alone.  It  wasn't

that he would jeopardize the mission in any way, but he wouldn't mind being

one half-step ahead.

They didn't say a word as they walked. They didn't make a plan. Anakin

wanted to complete the assignment as quickly as possible and return to  the

others.

They cruised once around the plaza. They could see a few beings in the

shadows. It wasn't until they'd made one circuit of the area that they were

approached.

A young woman dressed in a tight-fitting gray tunic and leggings  came

to them. She wore a leather headpiece that fitted snugly over her ears, and

she carried an enormous satchel on her back without strain.

"Looking for something, friends?"

"Are you Auben?" Anakin asked.

Her eyes flicked over them. "Who wants to know?"

"Thacker sent us. He said you had things for sale."

"I've got it or I can get it. What's your need, friend?"

"Blankets and handwarmers," Anakin said.

She dumped the satchel on the ground and held up two  handwarmers.  As

she crouched, Anakin saw two blasters in her belt. "Let me see the  credits

first," she said.

Anakin held out his hand. She took the credits from  it,  then  tossed

the handwarmers to Ferus. "No blankets today, but I've got a  tip  on  some

plush thermal capes. You can meet me here same time tomorrow and I'll  have

them."

"How much?" Ferus asked.

Auben named the price. Ferus raised his eyebrows. "I  said  they  were

plush. Top quality. I'll have some other luxury stuff, too." She  shrugged.

"If you don't want them, someone else will."

"You have a lot of customers?" Ferus's gaze roamed  the  empty  plaza,

pretending skepticism.

"I've got the whole spaceport as customers,  friend."  Auben  shrugged

the pack back onto her shoulders.

It was clear she was about to take off.  Anakin  spoke  quickly.  "Our

parents marooned us here on Dreshdae. They said they'd be  back,  but  it's

been a few weeks now, and we don't know where - "

Auben's face was expressionless. "I don't need your story,  just  your

credits."

"We heard that a couple landed  at  the  spaceport  recently,"  Anakin

continued. "A human man and woman. Maybe you've seen them - "

Auben's eyes grew hard. "I don't discuss my customers."

"But I just - "

" Ever."

Anakin knew they were at a dead end.

"So you only find things, not beings?" Ferus asked. "Seems to me  that

there's not much  difference.  You  need  the  same  skills.  Contacts  and

discretion."

She stopped in her tracks. "What do you mean?"

"It seems to me that for the right price, you could help us with  more

than handwarmers."

Auben hesitated. She gave them an appraising look, as if wondering how

much they could pay.

But before she could speak, a blast  of  artillery  fire  shattered  a

column behind her. The explosion of rocks sent her flying toward Anakin and

Ferus. All three landed on the ground.

"Commerce Guild droids," she panted. "Run!"

CHAPTER EIGHT

Auben took off. Anakin dashed after her. She had placed herself in  an

exposed position, her back to the blaster fire, thinking she  could  outrun

it. She was wrong. Anakin had no choice. The Force slowed down time, and he

could see the blaster bolts streaking toward her emanating from  a  phalanx

of spider droids. He withdrew his lightsaber and leaped to deflect them.

He twisted in midair and landed on the  top  of  a  pillar,  where  he

leaped again, this time next to Auben as he swept his lightsaber to deflect

more fire.

"Who are you?" she yelled, but there was no time for Anakin to answer.

Ferus dashed forward, covering their  retreat.  Anakin  hustled  Auben

into the shelter of the dark ruins. They paused a  moment  to  catch  their

breath.

Auben looked at the lightsaber. "Where can I get one of those?"

Ferus ran in, already sheathing his lightsaber.  "They  have  tracking

droids. We've got to get out of here."

"We don't know which way," Anakin said to Auben.

She blew out a quick, exasperated breath, then nodded her head. "Okay,

okay, seeing that you saved my life, I'll save yours. Come on."

She led the way through the ruins, twisting through narrow passageways

and climbing through blasted-out holes. Anakin knew  that  the  other  Jedi

were following them. He could feel them close.

The noise of the blaster fire faded, but Anakin knew the  army  hadn't

given up. He could feel their presence, too. They were heading  toward  the

outskirts of the spaceport now.

Auben led Anakin and Ferus out of the  ruins  and  into  a  series  of

narrow, twisting streets. The street dwindled into a lane. The small hovels

and buildings were spaced farther and farther apart until they  were  alone

in a rocky landscape. The lane turned into a narrow dirt path that  twisted

and turned sharply upward. Anakin guessed that they were climbing  the  lip

of the plateau that cradled the spaceport. Sure enough, they soon scrambled

over a last obstacle of huge boulders and reached it.

Anakin looked down. Below them an ancient structure rose  out  of  the

steep mountainside and spilled out into a narrow valley. The mountain  made

two-thirds of the  structure  impenetrable.  The  entrance  was  in  ruins,

blocked by huge toppled columns and blocks of crumbling stone.

Anakin felt the peculiar stomach-turning wrench  he  experienced  when

faced with the tremors of the dark side of the Force.  He  knew  what  this

wreck of a building was.

The  ancient  Sith  monastery  spread  out  below  him,  deserted  for

centuries, and still a presence of evil. Here was where thousands  of  Sith

had once trained - and thousands of hopefuls had once disappeared forever.

"Is that where we're going?" Ferus asked.

"Creepy, huh? Don't let it bother  you,"  Auben  said.  "Nobody  lives

there. Everyone's afraid to go inside, except for me. We won't be followed,

that's for sure."

"What was it?" Ferus asked, even though Anakin knew he  was  perfectly

aware of its history. Ferus was too good a student. He had  read  the  same

briefing material that Anakin had.

"Just an old monastery. They blasted out the side of the  mountain  to

build it. Will you two hurry up?" Auben started down the steep path  toward

the monastery. It wound through the boulders and crags.

Something in Anakin suddenly revolted. He rarely  felt  fear,  but  he

felt it now. A deep voice within him was warning him not to enter.

And yet another voice, deeper than fear, told him to go inside.

CHAPTER-NINE

Obi-Wan lowered his electrobinoculars. "The Sith monastery," he  said.

"Why is she going there?"

"She doesn't want to be found," Soara answered. "I'd guess very few go

in there if they don't have to."

They stood on the lip of  the  plateau,  looking  down.  Thousands  of

standard years ago, the original  inhabitants  of  Korriban  had  all  been

killed after toiling for years  to  build  the  monastery.  Nothing  living

thrived there now. Not a bush, not a blade of grass. If the ancient  stones

could speak, they would talk of blood and terror.

"It could be a trap," Siri said.

"Every step we take on this planet could be leading  us  to  a  trap,"

Obi-Wan said.

Siri gave a half-smile. "So let's go."

They   climbed   down   the   steep,   rocky   path.    Through    the

electrobinoculars, Obi-Wan had seen Auben lead Anakin and  Ferus  into  the

monastery through a crevice in the stones. He led the team there. The rocks

that made up the giant walls had shifted over the years. Some  large  slabs

leaned against each other, while  others  had  toppled  and  crumbled  into

boulders.

Darra and Tru slipped through the crevice  easily.  Siri,  Soara,  and

Obi-Wan followed - Obi-Wan with a bit  more  difficulty.  Ry-Gaul  had  the

worst time. He was tall and solidly built, and even the Force couldn't  get

him through the crack. "I'll find another way in,"  he  said  when  it  was

clear he couldn't make it.

"I'll come with you, Master," Tru said, starting to slither out again.

"No. I'll catch up." Ry-Gaul disappeared.

Obi-Wan went a few steps ahead into the darkness. He felt the dread of

the place. They were in a vast chamber, as big as the  Great  Hall  of  the

Temple. Massive blocks of stone formed the floor. The  last  of  the  light

came through the crevices in the walls like bony fingers.

They heard footsteps echoing as Auben led  Anakin  and  Ferus  farther

into the ruins. The Jedi followed silently. The oppressiveness of the place

where Sith had lived and trained was a burden they had  to  fight  against.

Obi-Wan heard voices, but he knew they were ancient ones. He thought he saw

shadows move. When he turned a corner quickly, he saw a  vision  -  a  Sith

student on his knees, begging..

He averted his eyes.

Siri's face was pale. Darra and Tru looked shaken. Soara moved  closer

to her apprentice, to give her support.

In the distance, Auben climbed through  a  ruined  doorway.  The  Jedi

moved to follow, keeping out of sight.

They stopped outside a small chamber. They could see through the half-

ruined wall that this had once been a small enclosure, perhaps a  reception

room. Auben had turned it into a combination  hideout  and  storage  space.

Along the walls were bins filled with what Obi-Wan had no doubt were stolen

goods. There was a bedroll in the corner and a couple  of  durasteel  boxes

stacked to form a table. On it rested a glow lamp. Auben  leaned  over  and

switched it onto a low setting. Shadows sprang up, dark and ominous, as  if

the Sith hopefuls who had trained here had returned.

Auben turned to face Anakin and Ferus, her hands on her hips. "So. Who

are you really?" Her voice echoed against the walls.

"We told you," Anakin said. "We're stranded."

"I think you are Jedi," Auben said. "I've never seen a Jedi, but  I've

heard of them." She waited,  but  Ferus  and  Anakin  did  not  speak.  She

shrugged. "Fine. Jedi credits are as good as anyone else's, I guess. If you

wait a little while, the army will stop tracking and you  can  leave.  They

won't come inside the monastery."

"Do you live here alone?" Ferus asked.

Auben leaned toward the light as though it would give heat as well  as

illumination. "I live many places. But yes, I'm alone here. Sometimes I get

spooked. I hear things... but it's just this old place."

"Maybe we should look around for you," Ferus said. "Make  sure  you're

safe."

"I don't need any help," Auben said. "I have my friends to  help  me."

She patted her belt, where her two blaster pistols were. "So, tell me.  Are

you really looking for a man and woman? And  don't  tell  me  they're  your

parents."

"Yes, we're looking for a couple," Ferus admitted.

"Do you think you can help us?" Anakin asked.

Auben crossed her arms. "If you're Jedi, you  can  make  it  worth  my

while, right? I hear the Jedi control a vast fortune."

"Who says that?" Ferus asked sharply.

She shrugged. "It's just what they say."

"Well, it's not true," Anakin said. "But we can  make  it  worth  your

while, anyway. Do you know something?"

Auben was in the middle of her usual evasive shrug when  an  explosive

blast rocked the walls. Sand spilled from the  ceiling.  Auben  was  almost

knocked to the floor. Anakin and Ferus rose.

Behind the wall, Obi-Wan and the Jedi team ducked with the  explosion,

keeping their balance with difficulty.

Suddenly  they  heard  the  sound  of  pounding  footsteps   and   the

unmistakable clack clack of spider droids snapping into attack position.

Auben had been wrong. The Commerce Guild army had followed them.

Inside the chamber, Auben jumped up, blasters already gripped  in  her

hands. "They're coming through the main chamber. There's only one other way

out. Follow me."

Obi-Wan waited until he saw Auben kick open a  small  opening  in  the

wall. He leaned over to  Tru  and  Darra.  "Stay  with  Anakin  and  Ferus,

whatever happens. We'll take care of the droids and come find you."

Darra and Tru nodded. Quickly, they slipped into the now empty chamber

and followed the others.

Obi-Wan, Siri, and Soara charged back to the main chamber, prepared to

meet an army.

CHAPTER TEN

Anakin wasn't about to let Auben out of his sight. He  had  a  feeling

she was the key to finding Granta Omega. She knew so much  about  Dreshdae,

and there was something in her eyes when they told her  they  were  looking

for a couple. His instincts told him she knew something.

Unfortunately, Ferus felt it, too.

Anakin could feel Ferus behind him every step of the  way.  They  were

moving close together in the narrow passage, Ferus's breath on his neck.

As Auben pushed  forward,  he  realized  that  they  were  now  moving

parallel to the great hall. Despite the thick blocks  of  stone,  he  could

hear the clatter of droids and the steady, fast ping of blaster fire.

Auben moved more quickly as the noise of the blaster  fire  faded,  no

longer afraid of being detected. The passageway led downward in  a  gradual

slope. The stones were damp and slippery.

"Where are we going?" Ferus asked.

"Just follow me," Auben snapped. "And hurry!"

The passageway made a sudden  turn,  and  they  came  to  a  partially

demolished wall. Auben stepped over the stones and jumped into a chamber  a

little larger than the one they left.

"There's a whole system of passageways that  were  once  hidden,"  she

explained. "I guess the big monks used to spy on the rest."

That sounded like standard Sith procedure to  Anakin.  Trust  was  not

part of Sith doctrine. It seemed to Anakin to be a bleak way to live.

Auben led them down a bigger hallway.  They  went  steadily  downward,

deeper and deeper into the complex. The walls began to weep with  moisture.

Anakin guessed they were now in the part of the  monastery  buried  in  the

mountain.

They went through so many twists and turns  that  Anakin  wondered  if

they'd have to use tracking devices to get out again. Even  with  his  Jedi

memory skills, he was beginning to feel disoriented.

At last, Auben paused. "What I'm about to show you isn't visible  from

above." She pushed open a rotted door.

Anakin followed. An ancient ship stood in the middle of a large space.

He had never seen anything like it. Crude and clunky,  it  must  have  been

state-of-the-art at one time. The afterburner tanks were huge.

"This was probably from before the  sublight  engine  was  perfected,"

Anakin said, half to himself. Under normal circumstances, he would love  to

investigate the ancient technology of the ship.

Around it, various decaying parts of  what  looked  like  droids  were

littered, models so old he couldn't identify them. He saw sheets and shards

of durasteel and other metals on the floor and realized they had once  been

servodrivers, valves, and pumps, the hoses long decayed.

"It's a service bay," he said. "We must be near a landing hangar."

"You got it," Auben said. "Look."

She led them through the open arch, into the darkness. Anakin  stepped

out and released a breath. The hangar was so vast, it  ended  in  darkness.

Service bay after service bay ran down each side of the hangar, waiting  to

repair the ships that no longer arrived.  Hulking  wrecks  of  ships  still

littered the floor, bits of metal that had once been droids, decayed tanks.

Huge statues of terrifying creatures from many  worlds  marched  on  either

side down the hangar. The statues had crumbled and cracked over the  years.

Some were headless, and the huge heads had fallen and crumbled into  blocks

of stone.

There was a smell of  rust  and  rot,  and  the  air  seemed  full  of

something thick, something like memory. Here the Sith had  sent  off  their

attack ships.  Here  their  blood  lust  had  pooled  into  technology  and

aggression. Here they had thought themselves invincible. Here disaster  had

overtaken them, their vengeance ending in defeat as their greed tore  their

order apart.

"It's huge," Ferus said. He walked forward a  few  steps.  "You  could

dispatch an army from here."

"Yeah, a lot of ships for a bunch of monks," Auben said.

"The Sith were more than monks," Anakin told her. "So I've heard.  The

original evil guys, right?" Auben looked around. "Well,  they're  all  dead

now."

All except for one, Anakin thought. Maybe two. If Auben knew  as  much

as they did about the Sith, she wouldn't be so casual.

"So where's the exit?" Ferus asked.

Auben waved vaguely toward the  darkness.  "The  landing  platform  is

completely blocked off. From what  I  can  tell,  it's  buried  behind  the

mountain again, probably blasted with artillery a couple of thousand  years

ago or so. But you can get out through one of the hangar bays.

It's a tough climb down the mountain, but it's  better  than  tangling

with the army."

Anakin suddenly felt a surge, a feeling that seemed to rise up through

the soles of his feet and blast out the  ends  of  his  hair.  His  stomach

turned. His nerves screamed an alert. He could feel the dark  side  of  the

Force, lurking deeply in the vast hangar.

"Anakin," Ferus said softly.

"I know."

"Let's... go back. Quietly."

They backed up, stepping into the service bay again. The  cool  shadow

calmed Anakin's tripping heart.

Auben looked at both of them. "What is it?"

"Something worse than the army," Anakin said. "And  it's  coming  this

way."

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Obi-Wan quickly assessed the attack. The first and second  lines  were

made up of dwarf spider droids and homing spider droids, skittering  toward

the Jedi with laser tracking devices sending thin blue lines bisecting  the

space between them. Behind the droids were the army troops, locals  dressed

in full plastoid armor with battlefield helmets. The sophistication of  the

force was surprising. Obi-Wan wondered why the Commerce Guild  needed  such

an awesome security operation.

The blaster fire from the spider droids was fast  and  accurate.  They

marched on spindly legs toward the Jedi. Obi-Wan and  Siri  moved  forward,

lightsabers moving like pinwheels of glowing light, cutting down the  first

droids who moved forward to engage them.

They had fought together so many times that they had  learned  how  to

merge their styles. Siri was the flash, Obi-Wan the strategist. He set  her

up, and she closed the deal. He maneuvered, she struck. They  moved  faster

than the droids could track, and, with Soara entering from the other  side,

they mowed down the first two lines easily.

Soara was a renowned fighter, and Obi-Wan always appreciated a  chance

to watch her technique. She was a fluid force, moving like wind and  water.

Each stroke of her lightsaber was calculated, yet there  seemed  to  be  no

calculation in her style. There was only movement. She took out five droids

with one steady arc,  knocking  off  their  heads  and  sending  the  metal

clanging to the stone floor.

Smoke filled the air and drifted to the vast  space  above.  Deflected

blaster bolts shot back at the startled officers, who found it hard to hold

their line. They soon realized that they were  not  dealing  with  straggly

thieves with a few blasters in their belts. They grabbed blaster rifles off

the holsters strapped to their backs and fired. Two dozen of them advanced,

while the third wave of droids moved in. Obi-Wan  began  to  break  into  a

sweat. He did not see the possibility of defeat,  but  the  last  thing  he

needed was to get clipped by blaster fire and have to  deal  with  a  wound

while chasing Omega.

Then, from behind the officers, Ry-Gaul appeared out of  the  shadows.

His silver-gray lightsaber hummed as he held it straight for  a  moment  in

front of him, gauging what he was up against.  He  moved  quickly  for  his

size, rather like  Qui-Gon  had,  his  grace  surprising  while  his  great

strength never flagged.

The officers who turned to engage him couldn't get away  fast  enough.

The remaining squad took one look at three Jedi to the front and one to the

rear and began to retreat, firing as they did so.

They let them go. The presence of Jedi on the planet couldn't  stay  a

secret for very long. Jedi did not take a life if they didn't have to.

As soon as they  were  safe,  Obi-Wan  whipped  out  his  comlink.  He

couldn't reach Anakin. Siri tried as well, then shook her head.

"Too much interference here," she said. "We'll have to find them."

Obi-Wan felt something then. A flicker that started on  the  edges  of

his consciousness and then grew, a dark shape inside him.

He spoke quietly despite the dread in his heart. "He's here."

The others turned to him. "Who?" Siri asked.

"The Sith. He's here, in the monastery. Somewhere."

Then he saw the knowledge flash in Siri's face,

Soara's posture, Ry-Gaul's wintry eyes.

They looked at each other for a moment, deep worry now ticking  inside

them.

A Sith was here, and their Padawans were by themselves.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Anakin heard the flurry. It was like a flock of birds. But instead  of

the whisper of feathers, he heard the mechanical clatter of metal on stone.

"Stay here," Ferus ordered Auben.  "And  hide!"  he  yelled  over  his

shoulder.

Together Ferus and Anakin moved to the front of the service bay.  They

peered out into the vast hangar. At first  they  could  see  nothing.  They

could hear only the menacing clatter.

Then out of the gloom rose the battle droids. Line after  line.  Maybe

thirty... forty?

"Wait," Ferus said. "Those aren't ordinary battle droids."

"They have  reinforced  armor,"  Anakin  said,  swallowing.  "And  the

control center is lower... you can't cut off their heads."

"Too many," Ferus said. "We have to  retreat."  "We  can  take  them,"

Anakin insisted.

"Anakin, this is no time to play hero. The two of us can't  do  it  by

ourselves."

"That's your trouble, Ferus," Anakin said coolly. "You always look  at

the odds."

He stepped out into the darkness of the hangar. He  saw  the  infrared

tracking devices on the droids move over the space. They would find him. He

had seconds.

Ferus moved out next to him. Of course if Anakin went out to meet  the

droids, Ferus would have to as well. He wouldn't  leave  him.  Anakin  knew

that.

"We should attack from above. They won't be expecting that," he said.

"How - "

"Follow me."

Anakin gathered in the Force. He leaped onto the  gigantic  statue  to

his left, landing on its knee. He began to climb rapidly  up,  looking  for

handholds in the crumbling stone. He heard Ferus behind him.

He balanced on one shoulder of the huge statue, Ferus on another. They

were high above the floor now, but even so, the ceiling of the  hangar  was

lost in the darkness above them.

"Wait for the first wave, then drop," Anakin said.  "We  can  use  our

liquid cable launchers. The statues can be cover and - "

"I get it," Ferus said.

They waited for  the  precise  instant  their  attack  would  be  most

effective. It was seconds away when  two  dark  shapes  ran  out  from  the

hangar.

Darra and Tru.

"They  think  we're  down  there,"  Ferus  said  in   horror.   Almost

immediately, the droids locked onto Darra and Tru's positions.

Ferus and Anakin took off in midair, the liquid  cables  holding  them

secure. They bounced off the statue and then swung out over the first  line

of droids.  Their  lightsabers  moved  in  slashing  circles.  Due  to  the

unexpected angle of attack, the droids  were  unable  to  lock  onto  their

position at first. Sweeping out over the line, they managed to take  out  a

dozen droids between them. Racing forward, Darra and Tru engaged the rest.

The eerie space and the darkness, the glint  of  metal,  the  pull  of

battle. Anakin saw nothing, felt nothing,  but  what  was  before  him.  He

wasn't a fool. He knew their chances of beating so many droids were slim to

none. But he also knew that it was only in gestures like this that  a  true

Jedi would be revealed.  He  Force-pushed  a  droid  and  it  slammed  into

another. He slashed them both into one smoking pile.

Compared to him, Ferus's hold on the Force was  puny.  Anakin  reached

out for it in the way he knew, reached for the Force in the stones and  the

dust and very air he breathed. The Force was part of him  and  around  him.

His vision was sharper now, his control perfect. He didn't count the droids

he dismantled. He didn't hesitate or second-guess his choices. He just kept

moving.

Even while he moved, he kept track of the Padawans behind him and next

to him. In battle, his problems with Ferus  went  away.  They  were  fellow

Jedi, and they had to cover one another.

The droids split off in a different formation. Darra,  who  had  swung

wide to attack, was suddenly surrounded. She whirled  in  an  arc,  keeping

most of them at bay. Tru, who was closest, Force-leaped to  help  her,  his

flexible arms reaching out to slash his way toward her.  Darra  buried  her

lightsaber in the lead droid's control panel and it wheeled crazily astray,

spraying blaster fire in random, dizzying circles. The  stray  fire  caught

Tru in mid-leap. He was wounded and fell, his lightsaber clattering to  the

floor. A droid stepped on it and kept going.

Anakin started to rush to help, but out of the corner of  his  eye  he

saw a flicker of movement. Something sinuous, flowing. Not the movement  of

a droid.

A cape. A  dark-robed  figure  was  moving  quickly,  keeping  in  the

shadows, heading into the shadowy end of the hangar.

Granta Omega.

Tru was down. Darra had leaped to protect him. Now Ferus was moving in

that direction.

The situation was covered.  And  Omega  was  getting  away,  no  doubt

heading for the same exit that Auben had told  them  about.  This  was  his

chance, his only chance. With a last glance at his friend, Anakin  ran  off

into the darkness.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Ry-Gaul led the way. "When I couldn't get in, I followed the wall back

into the mountain. There's an old landing hangar. It's enormous -  maybe  a

hundred service bays on each side. I got in through one of  the  end  bays.

That's where they are."

"The Padawans won't know it's a Sith," Soara said. "Until.   ."

They all finished the sentence in their minds. Until it's too late.

Ry-Gaul led them steadily downward. Obi-Wan could feel the mountain as

if it were pressing on his back. The closer they got,  the  more  dread  he

felt.

They were deep in the monastery now. Even though it was in ruins, Obi-

Wan could see how different it was from the Jedi Temple. Although the  Sith

monastery had the same goals - study and training - it was clear that  this

had been a place ruled by fear.     The Temple had grand rooms,  but  it  also

had quiet spaces, light-filled classrooms, gardens. The Jedi believed  that

beauty was a part of the Force, and encouraged it. The sound of water,  the

play of light, the grace of a  curving  stairway  -  the  Temple  had  been

planned as a place of comfort as well as rigor.

The lines of this place were harsh. The walls were high, but  narrowed

slightly as they rose, in order to create a sense of being trapped.  Angles

were slightly off in a  way  that  Obi-Wan  realized  was  deliberate.  The

monastery was designed to intimidate, to  keep  beings  off-balance.  There

were no openings to air or light. There was only cold gray  stone,  massive

columns, hard floors. Amid the weeping stones, Obi-Wan could still feel the

fear that had ruled there, the many beings who had come to learn evil,  the

ones who had come naively, hoping for some kind of enlightenment,  and  had

been trapped by their own desires.

He shuddered. It was as though he could feel each  wasted  life.  Each

terrible death.

The rest of the Jedi were silent. He knew they felt it, too.

At last Ry-Gaul stepped through a doorway into what had  once  been  a

service bay. They saw  Auben  cowering  behind  the  wreck  of  an  ancient

vehicle. Wordlessly, she pointed to the curved arch that led to the hangar.

It was the silence that frightened them.  They  rushed  out  into  the

hangar.

It was littered with the remains of droids  -  so  many  that  Obi-Wan

staggered. Had the Padawans destroyed them all?

They could see that the battle had just ended seconds before. Tru  lay

on the ground. Ferus leaned over him, tending a  wound  with  bacta.  Darra

whirled around and saw them, her lightsaber still activated.  She  shut  it

down as Ry-Gaul moved toward his wounded Padawan with his  usual  efficient

speed.

Fear welled up in Obi-Wan.

Where is Anakin?

Darra saw the question in his eyes. "He ran that way - I think he  saw

something." She pointed to the darkness at the end of the vast hangar.

Obi-Wan started to run. He would have to rely on  the  Force  to  find

Anakin. He opened himself up to it, hoping it would reveal to him  what  he

needed to know. Was his Padawan wounded? Had the worst happened?

He had no doubt  what  Anakin  was  chasing.  No  matter  what  Anakin

thought, he was not equipped to deal with a Sith.

Obi-Wan ran into the darkness. He could not risk a light, not even his

lightsaber. The darkness seemed to invade his lungs, making it hard for him

to breathe. He scrambled over fallen blocks of  stone,  engine  parts,  the

shreds of machines and the skeletons of vehicles. It was difficult to  keep

his footing but he made no sound.

He saw movement ahead and realized he had found Anakin. Relief flooded

him, rendering him weak for a moment. He had been so  afraid,  and  now  he

wondered momentarily at his fear. It seemed out of proportion  to  what  he

knew of Anakin's skills. All he knew was that he had an  overwhelming  need

to protect his Padawan from the Sith, to stand between Anakin and the  dark

side. Natural, he supposed.

Anakin was moving quickly, hugging the wall of the hangar.  His  focus

was so intent that he did not sense Obi-Wan behind him. Obi-Wan noted  this

with alarm. How many times had he warned Anakin to never focus on the  goal

ahead only, but to cast his attention like a net, as far around him  as  he

could? He should have sensed his Master. Obi-Wan  quickened  his  pace.  He

felt the dark side of the Force grow and gather, and he wanted to call  out

to Anakin, but didn't want to give away their positions.

He needn't have worried. Whoever the Sith was, he knew  exactly  where

Anakin was, for, to Obi-Wan's horror, his apprentice  was  suddenly  lifted

like a doll and flung into the air. Anakin's body slammed into the wreck of

a cruiser. He fell to the ground.

Obi-Wan raced forward, his lightsaber activated and ready for  battle.

He kept his focus wide, just as he had taught Anakin. He knew the Sith  was

aware that he was there, and no doubt was aware that he would rush to  help

his apprentice.

No attack came. Anakin was already recovering  as  Obi-Wan  bent  over

him, quickly checking for breaks or contusions.

"I'm all right." Anakin grunted. "Just... embarrassed. I've never felt

anything like that."

"Did you see him?"

"Only from behind. Tall. Dressed in a black-hooded cape  that  trailed

all the way to the ground. I didn't see his face. He didn't  even  turn.  I

felt the Force come at me like an autoblaster cannon...." Anakin  struggled

to his feet. "It could be a Sith."

"I know."

Anakin started forward.

"Where are you going?" Obi-Wan asked.

When he turned, Obi-Wan could see  Anakin's  face  undergo  a  change.

Every muscle tightened, and his eyes turned flinty.

"We have a chance to make a stand," Anakin said.

"We need the others."

"It will be too late."

Obi-Wan hesitated only a fraction. Anakin was right. They had to  try.

He started forward, and together they moved farther into the darkness.

"Keep your focus loose," Obi-Wan warned him in a low  tone.  "He  will

come from anywhere when he comes."

"This time I'll be prepared."

"Don't be so confident," Obi-Wan answered. "You probably won't be."

They were nearing the end of the hangar. He sensed it rather than  saw

it. The corroded vehicles were more numerous now, lined up like dark, giant

phantoms.

Like phantoms..

Phantoms that move...

Obi-Wan wrenched his gaze away. He could have sworn the ancient  ships

were moving.

Then he knew.

"This way!" he yelled, as the first vehicle suddenly flipped over.  It

would have crushed them if Obi-Wan hadn't dashed to the side with Anakin on

his heels. He flattened himself against the wall as another vehicle  moved,

its jagged wing a lethal weapon, capable of  slicing  them  to  ribbons.  A

cruiser suddenly zoomed toward the wall, straight at them.

"Drop!" Anakin and Obi-Wan hit the floor, hugging the  stones  as  the

cruiser passed over them and smashed into the wall.

Vehicle parts began to fall like rain.  The  crashes  were  deafening.

They leaped, twisted, and dived to avoid them, using the Force  to  deflect

them when they could. Finally they came to rest in the shadow of one of the

giant statues. Obi-Wan leaned against a clawed foot and squinted  into  the

darkness.

He could not see the Sith, but  he  felt  the  Sith's  amusement,  his

triumph.

The vehicles now smashed into one another, creating a  solid  mass  of

screaming metal, effectively blocking them from the front of the hangar.

Anakin ran to the mountain of metal and tried to climb over  it.  Obi-

Wan felt the dark side rise in a crest and  then  fall,  leaving  a  vacuum

behind.

"It's no use," he told Anakin. "The  Sith  is  gone."  "Gone."  Anakin

repeated the word dully.

"Don't worry." Obi-Wan sheathed his lightsaber. "I have no doubt  that

we'll meet him again."

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Anakin immediately hurried to Tru's side while Obi-Wan went to  confer

with the Masters.

"You all right?"

Tru smiled wanly, but didn't look up. "Just a few bruises. Ferus fixed

me up."

Ferus tucked the med kit back into his utility pouch. He  didn't  look

at Anakin, either. Darra studied the hilt of her lightsaber.

"I saw someone trying to escape, so I had to  go  after  him,"  Anakin

said. "It turned out to be a Sith. Obi-Wan is sure of it."

"Well, that's not surprising," Darra said. "We're on  Korriban,  after

all."

There was an unfamiliar hard note in Darra's voice, as if she resented

Anakin.

"Our mission is to find Granta Omega," Anakin said.  "You  had  things

under control, so I went after him - or, who I thought was him."

"So  you  were  sure  we  had   everything   under   control?"   Ferus

straightened, wiping his hands on his tunic. "That's what I said."

"Tru was wounded, I was helping him, and Darra had to face off against

a dozen droids, but everything was under control?"

"Obviously I made the right  call,"  Anakin  said,  gesturing  at  the

fallen droids.

"And you were only thinking of the mission, of course," Ferus said.

"Of course." Anakin knew what Ferus was getting at. He felt  his  neck

heat up, and he turned away before the flush could  reach  his  cheeks  and

betray him. The truth was less certain than his words. He was  thinking  of

the mission, but he was also thinking of himself. He had been in a position

to capture Omega without help. He had  left  Ferus  behind  with  a  secret

satisfaction. He had wanted to win.

He sneaked a look back at Tru. His friend looked strained and unhappy.

Anakin resolved to talk to him as soon as he could do so  privately.  Tru's

friendship was very important to him. But Tru had to  understand  what  was

important to Anakin, too.

Anakin joined the Masters. Ry-Gaul and Soara were examining the battle

droid wreckage.

"These are the super battle droids we've been  hearing  about,"  Soara

said. "A complete violation of Republic regulations."

Obi-Wan looked grim. "We are lucky to all be standing. This could have

been much worse. I think our next step is to trace the route of the Sith if

we can. He most likely used the exit that you used to get inside, Ry-Gaul."

Ry-Gaul  nodded.  "That's  why  he  blocked  it."   "There's   another

possibility," Siri said. "The landing pad could be functional."

Anakin shook his head. "Auben said it's buried."  "So  maybe  it  just

looks buried," Siri said.

"Let's ask Auben," Anakin said. "She can show it to us, at least."

They walked inside the service bay. It  was  empty.  "She  was  hiding

behind the old cruiser," Soara said. "Where could she have gone?"

"I doubt she'd return to the monastery," Ferus said. "She  was  afraid

of the Commerce Guild army."

"She must have sneaked behind us when we were tending to Ferus,"  Siri

said.

"Most likely heading for the other exit." Ferus swallowed.  "She  went

toward the Sith."

The Jedi exchanged glances.

Without a word, they moved back to the dark front of the hangar. Using

the Force, they searched each service bay as they ran,  making  sure  Auben

hadn't hid there. Finally they ended at the pile of vehicles and debris the

Sith had used to block his escape. Grimly, they  set  to  work  with  their

lightsabers and cleared a smoking hole through the pileup. One by one, they

crawled through.

They walked into the last bay on the line. A new cruiser stood  there,

its ramp down.

"Did you see this when you came in?" Obi-Wan asked Ry-Gaul.

He shook his head. "It must have landed after I left." As  they  moved

closer, they saw a body on the ramp. It was Auben.

She was dead.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Anakin rushed forward. He checked her vitals, even though he knew  she

was gone. "What happened?" he asked. "There's not a mark on her."

"Her heart just stopped beating," Siri said. "It's said that the  Sith

were capable of stopping a heart without even touching their victim."

"The question is, what was she doing here?" Obi-Wan asked.

Ferus had climbed up the ramp into the cruiser. He poked his head out.

"That's easy to answer. Stealing." He held out two thermal capes. "She told

Anakin and me that she could get her hands on some luxury goods."

"While you check out the ship, Darra and I will see if we can find the

landing platform," Soara said.

Obi-Wan ran up the ramp. Quickly, he moved through the ship, searching

for clues. It was evident that the ship had been left  bare  of  everything

except essentials or items that couldn't be traced. He quickly checked  the

nav computer. Even the archives were wiped.

"This is the Sith ship," he said.

"Expensive tastes,"  Ferus  said,  dropping  the  thermal  capes  with

distaste.

"Auben must have found the ship sometime  earlier,"  Obi-Wan  guessed.

"She wanted to nab some items on her way out."

"Never got the chance," Ferus said.

"Maybe," Obi-Wan murmured.

He started out of the cruiser. "Something I learned from Qui-Gon. When

you catch a thief, he'll always pretend he was on his way in, not out."

Anakin followed closely on Obi-Wan's heels. Obi-Wan bent  over  Auben.

Gently, he reached underneath her body and withdrew her hand.  He  uncurled

her fist.

"We just got lucky," he said. "The Sith was  in  a  hurry.  He  didn't

check."

"What is it?" Anakin asked.

"A holo-recorder," Obi-Wan said, holding it  up.  "One  of  the  micro

versions. She'd get a good price for it on the black market. And there's  a

received message here in the archive."

He pressed a button, and a miniature image of Granta Omega appeared.

Omega bowed. "Greetings, Master. We are grateful that our  failure  to

complete our  mission  at  the  Senate  did  not  disappoint  you.  As  you

generously said, the intent to disrupt and  demoralize  was  achieved.  The

Senate is more divided than ever. It gratifies us that you have decided  to

entrust us with your secret. We  have  received  the  coordinates  for  our

meeting. At last you will reveal yourself to us. We will then truly be able

to further your cause throughout the galaxy." Omega bowed again. "Until  we

meet, I, Granta Omega, and Jenna Zan Arbor,  servants  to  no  one  in  the

galaxy, remain servants to the Sith."

The hologram fragmented into a shimmer.

"Whew," Anakin said. "What a toadying dungcreeper."

"So they came here to meet the Sith, just as you thought," Siri  said.

"He's going to reveal his identity to them."

"Which means if we can find out where the meeting is, we'll  find  out

as well," Obi-Wan said.

Siri pressed her lips together. "We have a whole planet to search."

A faraway look was in Obi-Wan's eyes. "No. There is only one  possible

place for them to meet," he said softly.

Soara and Darra appeared. "We found the landing platform," Soara said.

"It's still completely functional. We found new access controls  hidden  in

the ruins. Works like a charm. There's evidence of a recent takeoff. By the

looks of the scorch marks, I'd say it was a small airspeeder."

Obi-Wan looked back at Auben's body sprawled on the ramp. He tried  to

reconstruct what had happened. "He's been using this place as a hideout. He

bumped into Auben - and he killed her. Then he left the  cruiser  and  took

the airspeeder. More maneuverable. Harder to track."  And  the  airspeeder,

Obi-Wan thought, would get him where he needed to go.

Obi-Wan felt  a  tug,  as  though  a  string  had  been  tied  to  his

breastbone. He walked down the ramp, across the remains of the hangar,  and

stood out on the landing platform Soara and Darra had found.

The chill wind knifed through his clothes as he stood outside. He  was

deep in the mountain. He could see the valley far below, and a vast expanse

of gray sky.

He felt Omega. For the first time,  he  felt  his  energy.  Though  he

wasn't a Sith, Omega had sought out the dark side of the Force. He had been

unable to harness it for himself, but he had lived in it. Obi-Wan was  tied

to him, energy to energy. He could track him now  without  instruments.  He

didn't need clues, or tips.

"Master?" Anakin drifted to his side. "What is it?"

"I know where Omega is," Obi-Wan said. "He's in the Valley of the Dark

Lords. And the Sith has gone to meet him there. We can uncover them both."

CHAPTER SIXTEEEN

Obi-Wan contacted Jocasta Nu. They  needed  more  information  on  the

Valley of the Dark Lords. Superstition, legend, anything  that  could  help

give them an edge. The problem, of course, was that no  one  had  dared  to

enter the valley for centuries. Or, at least, had lived to report on it.

Soara and Darra saw to Auben. They couldn't  move  her  yet,  so  they

wrapped her carefully in the thermal capes.

Anakin looked for Tru. He had disappeared, and so had  Ferus.  Feeling

uneasy, Anakin headed off to see what they were up to. Would Ferus  try  to

steal his best friend? He might fill Tru's mind with  his  version  of  why

Anakin had left them to fight the droids alone. He would twist the facts to

make Anakin look bad.

Tru and Ferus were  sitting  in  one  of  the  service  bays,  talking

quietly. Ferus was busy working on Tru's lightsaber. Anakin paused  in  the

shadows. Were they discussing  him?  He  thought  he  heard  his  name.  He

concentrated fiercely.

"I noticed it," Ferus told Tru "That droid must have  pulverized  your

power circuit."

"It slips back into half-power without warning," Tru said in a worried

voice.

Tru's lightsaber must have been damaged in the battle. But why  hadn't

Tru told Ry-Gaul? An apprentice was obligated to tell his or her Master  if

a lightsaber was damaged.

As if Tru had overheard Anakin's question, he said, "I know  I  should

have told Ry-Gaul. But he's so correct. He might leave  me  out  of  battle

situations, or even send me back to the Temple."

"If your lightsaber is permanently damaged, Ry-Gaul would be right  to

do so," Ferus said.

Typical, Anakin thought. Ferus always had to inform you of  rules  you

knew by heart already.

"After all," Ferus continued, "you don't want to meet a Sith without a

lightsaber."

"No kidding," Tru said. "This mission is crucial. That's why  I  can't

be sent back. I just thought if I could fix it without having to  tell  Ry-

Gaul..." Tru wound one flexible arm around his back  to  hug  his  opposite

elbow, a gesture Anakin knew well. It was something Tru  did  when  he  was

especially nervous. "Look, I  know  I  wouldn't  be  the  first  or  second

candidate to enter the acceleration program - you and Anakin  will  be  the

first. Maybe Darra would be third. But I don't want to be left behind."

Ferus frowned. "Tru, your advancement is not the reason we're here."

"That's not what I mean!" Tru said, upset. "I want to  stand  with  my

fellow Jedi because we all know that the darkness is growing. We need every

Jedi. I want to be there."

"We all do," Ferus said. He bent over the lightsaber, fine-tuning  it.

Anakin couldn't see what he was doing, but he was itching to  get  his  own

hands on the lightsaber. He was sure he was a better technician than Ferus.

"All right, I fixed it." Ferus put the handle back together and handed

the lightsaber back to Tru. "You shouldn't have  any  more  problems.  Your

power cell is boosted."

Anakin started to step forward. If Ferus had worked on the power cell,

that meant that Tru needed to check the flux  aperture  again.  Anakin  had

tweaked it before, but it might need an adjustment to  compensate  for  the

power boost. Anyway, it would be wise to double-check.  Anakin  had  better

tell him. But he stopped when he heard his name.

"Why didn't you ask Anakin to fix it?" Ferus asked.  "He's  better  at

this than I am."

"He was busy with Obi-Wan," Tru murmured.

Anakin realized that Tru had evaded the question. He could have  asked

him to help. He frowned as he watched the two Padawans, their  heads  close

together.

Tru was drifting away from him. He could feel it.

Ferus stood. "I don't see any reason to tell Ry-Gaul,  now  that  it's

fixed. We'd better get back."

Angrily, Anakin retreated back  into  the  shadows,  then  turned  and

headed for the others. He felt betrayed. Tru had chosen  Ferus  to  confide

in. He was Tru's best friend - he should have been the  one  to  help  him!

Obviously, Tru was holding a grudge against him for not coming to his aid.

Well, if Tru didn't want his help, he certainly wasn't going to  offer

it. Most likely Ferus had done a perfect job. After all, he  was  almost  a

Jedi Knight.

What was strange, Anakin reflected, was that Ferus had agreed to  keep

Tru's secret. He would have  expected  Ferus  to  tell  Ry-Gaul  about  the

damaged lightsaber, or at least encourage Tru to do  so.  Instead,  he  had

fixed it himself. Technically, it was a breach  of  the  rules,  and  Ferus

never broke the rules.

Anakin smiled. So the perfect Padawan wasn't so perfect after all.

He paused by the wreckage of the vehicles that the mysterious Sith had

moved so easily. There was a disturbance in the air,  as  though  the  dark

energy of the Force still pulsed around the wall of debris. As if the  Sith

had vanished, but left a pool of his darkness behind.

He felt something new inside him, but he couldn't put a name to it. He

looked out into the grayness of the valley,  just  visible  past  the  dark

outlines of his Master and the other Jedi as they conferred on the  landing

platform. He concentrated hard. What was he feeling?

A beating heart. A being out there - somewhere - reaching out to  him?

It wasn't a connection... it was a call. It was something he  didn't  want,

but something that drew him, pulled him....

Granta Omega? Did he have the same connection as his  Master  did?  He

didn't think so. Not this time. It didn't feel right.  It  felt...  bigger.

Hidden.

The Sith.

Anakin faced out to the valley. He felt the cold wind blow against his

face. The Sith was calling him.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Obi-Wan turned to the others. "We need to get to  the  cruisers.  It's

too far to hike to the valley. We only have about an hour of dusk left.  We

don't want to go in at night. Madame Nu gave me coordinates  for  the  best

approach."

Obi-Wan saw both relief and trepidation on  the  faces  of  the  other

Padawans. They all wanted to go. They wanted it and feared it.

He saw no fear on his Padawan's face,  however.  He  wasn't  sure  how

Anakin was feeling. There was something going  on...  underneath.  Korriban

had unsettled them all, Obi-Wan knew.

Even the Masters were not eager to enter the valley.  They  knew  they

were heading into great trouble.  They  knew  there  would  be  difficulty.

Traps. Attacks. Surprises. The dark side of the  Force  could  snare  them,

confuse them. But they each felt strongly that this was their only  chance.

The hidden darkness every Jedi felt was here. They could find it and expose

it. End it. Here. Now.

Back at the Dreshdae landing platform, they hurried to their cruisers.

Anakin sprang into the cockpit. He  entered  the  coordinates  Obi-Wan  had

given him for the Valley of the Dark Lords. They  would  have  to  find  it

through instruments, since it would not be visible. Then they would  survey

the area before deciding on a landing point.

Anakin did a preflight check, working quickly but carefully.  All  the

indicator lights turned green. It was a go.

Except...

He tapped on an indicator. The light had shone green  immediately.  It

should have cycled from orange to yellow first.  Just  a  small  thing,  an

indicator for the portside fuel baffles. If the  light  was  red  it  would

indicate a clogged baffle. Even that wouldn't prevent takeoff. He could fly

with a clogged fuel baffle.

But why hadn't the indicator cycled through the colors?

"Problem?" Obi-Wan looked at him.

Anakin turned in the seat. The toolkit was clamped to  the  bottom  of

the counter. One of the clamps hadn't engaged all the way. It would  rattle

during turbulence. He would have noticed it on the flight here.

Someone had been aboard.

Through the windscreen, in the ship next to him, Ry-Gaul  gave  him  a

thumbs up.

"No!" Anakin shouted. He jumped forward and hit the comm. "Don't start

the engines!"

Ry-Gaul looked at him, puzzled, and nodded.  "Anakin,  what?"  Obi-Wan

asked, frowning at the urgent tone in Anakin's voice.

"Not sure yet." Anakin quickly disengaged the hatch and  climbed  down

into the engine. He only a needed a few seconds before he saw it.

He vaulted out of the engine bloc. "We've got to get  out.  The  other

ship, too!"

Obi-Wan hit the comm. "Evacuate! Now!"

Anakin hit the ramp control at the same time.  He,  Ferus,  Siri,  and

Obi-Wan charged down. They met Ry-Gaul, Tru, Darra, and Soara.

"Take cover!" Anakin shouted.

The Jedi raced to the opposite side of the landing platform and  dived

behind a cruiser as the two star-ships exploded in a fiery blast. They felt

the heat on their faces. A wall of air hit them.

Slowly, Anakin rose. He regarded the skeletal frame  of  the  starship

with regret.

"That was one sweet cruiser," he said.

"What happened?" Siri asked.

"I saw an indicator light malfunction. It didn't cycle through."

"Which one?" Ry-Gaul asked.

"Fuel baffles. Then  I  noticed  that  someone  had  used  the  stowed

toolkit. When I looked at the engine, I saw that  someone  had  rigged  the

main reactor to blow on ignition. Then I noticed a small timer.  I  figured

that after the preflight check if takeoff didn't take place, it would  blow

anyway."

"Well done," Ry-Gaul said.

"Very well done," Soara seconded, gazing at the burning ships.

"We're running out of time," Obi-Wan said. He took out his comlink.

"What are you going to do?" Anakin asked.

"I'm afraid that Teluron Thacker is going to find his courage."

"I doubt he'll want to give us a hand," Siri said.

"He doesn't have to give us a hand," Obi-Wan said. "Just a ship."

Within minutes, Thacker pulled into the landing platform  in  a  large

airspeeder with a bright orange shell. He looked at the  smoking  hulks  of

the cruisers.

He shuddered. "I'm not going to ask."

"Thanks for this," Obi-Wan said as Thacker quickly hopped out  of  the

vehicle.

"It's the company airspeeder. For clients." Thacker  looked  worriedly

at the smoking cruisers. "I'm not supposed to lend it out."

"We'll take good care of it," Obi-Wan said.

Anakin looked at the large speeder with disgust. "This  will  be  like

driving a gravsled." He knocked on the decorative fins on the  outside.  "A

gooped-up gravsled, at that."

"It will fit all of us and  it  will  get  us  there,"  Obi-Wan  said.

"Drive."

The Jedi  climbed  into  the  airspeeder.  Thacker  remained  outside,

watching them.

"At least it has a couple of sniper blasters," Anakin said approvingly

as he surveyed the instrument panel. "They might come in handy."

"You've been a friend to the Jedi," Obi-Wan told  Thacker.  "We  won't

forget it."

Thacker swallowed. "I'm sorry."

"About what?" Obi-Wan said as Anakin powered up the engine.

"It isn't very fast, or agile..."

"It's all right."

"I'm sorry!" Thacker yelled as they took  off.  "Jumpy  fellow,"  Siri

said, settling into her seat. "Everyone's jumpy on Korriban,"  Darra  said.

"Can you blame them?"

Anakin guided the airspeeder  high  above  Dreshdae.  He  entered  the

coordinates into the computer. "Estimated arrival in ten minutes," he said,

pushing to the maximum speed.

Siri twisted around. "Hey, looks like security cruisers on our tail."

Suddenly, the comm unit crackled on the emergency channel.

"Attention, Koro-1 Deluxe Airspeeder.  Land  and  show  documentation.

Stolen vehicle check. This is the Commerce Guild Army Patrol."

Obi-Wan pressed the transmission button. "Correction. Owner loaned the

vehicle. Please check with owner Teluron Thacker."

"Negative. Owner Teluron Thacker  reported  vehicle  stolen.  Land  or

undergo firepower from laser cannon."

"Thacker betrayed us," Obi-Wan told the others. "That's why he was  so

jumpy. Somebody got to him."

"Someone he's more afraid of than the Jedi," Soara said. "Anakin,  can

you outfly those security vehicles?"

"Thirty seconds to land," the comm unit thundered. "In  this  bucket?"

Anakin gripped the controls. "If I have to."

"Then do it," Obi-Wan said.

"Hold on."

The words had barely left Anakin's lips  when  the  Jedi  were  nearly

plastered to the cockpit canopy as the ship went into  a  screeching  dive.

The army speeders struggled to keep up.

A blast from a laser cannon thundered by, shaking the ship. Anakin put

the ship into a tight turn.

"Come on, come on," he muttered. "You can do it." The second blast was

closer.

"Use those sniper blasters," Obi-Wan directed. "If we give  them  some

firepower they might back off. Just don't hit anything."

Anakin flipped on the sniper blaster controls. "They've been disabled.

"

Obi-Wan groaned. "Great."

"We've got to outrun them, then," Siri said.

"Head for the monastery," Ry-Gaul suggested. "The  canyons  will  give

you cover."

Anakin pushed the speeder into a climb that  slammed  them  back  into

their seats. He tried a corkscrew turn, a movement that he could make  with

his eyes closed in a decent speeder. This one groaned with the effort.  The

controls shook in his hands as blaster bolts skittered across the hull.

"This isn't going to work," he muttered. "Ry-Gaul, can you take over?"

Ry-Gaul quickly slid into the pilot seat and  Anakin  transferred  the

controls. He crawled past the others to the rear.

"What are you doing?" Obi-Wan asked.

"If I can reduce the air drag, it can go faster." He spoke  to  Soara,

who sat near a small toolkit built into  the  cabin  wall.  "Hand  me  that

fusioncutter, will you? It's going to get  windy,"  Anakin  warned,  before

flipping open the canopy.

The wind whipped through the  cabin.  Anakin  used  a  servodriver  to

disengage the canopy completely. It flew off the airspeeder,  smacking  the

first security speeder straight  in  its  windscreen.  The  blow  sent  the

cruiser careening downward to the planet's surface.

"That was lucky," Anakin muttered.

He crawled out on the airspeeder. Buffeted by air currents and hanging

on for his life  whenever  Ry-Gaul  swerved  to  avoid  cannonfire,  Anakin

crawled to the port fins. Using the fusioncutter,  he  sliced  through  the

fastenings and kicked off the decorative fins. Laser bolts made the hair on

the back of his neck stand at attention as the charge shuddered through the

air. Anakin held on with his knees as he  made  deep  cuts  in  the  bright

plastoid shell and kicked it off into space.

He crawled back inside the speeder. "Better?" he asked Ry-Gaul.

"Better. I can get it up past maximum speed."

To Anakin's surprise, Ry-Gaul inclined his head toward  the  controls,

even as he made a hard left and went into a dive. "Take over."

Feeling pleased, Anakin slipped back  into  the  pilot  seat.  A  Jedi

Master had passed the controls to him! Ry-Gaul was renowned as a pilot, and

he thought Anakin better able to handle  the  evasive  flying.  Take  that,

Ferus!

Anakin kept pushing the speed. Even when the mountains  loomed  ahead,

he didn't slow down. The air-speeder screamed  down  into  the  valley.  He

looped around a peak and dived into a  canyon  dotted  with  boulders.  The

three remaining army security speeders followed.

Anakin kept the craft close to the ground. This kind  of  flying  came

naturally to him. After all, he'd trained on Podracers.

He whipped through the canyon as if it were a racing course.  He  flew

over boulders,  squeezed  through  natural  formations,  sensing  obstacles

before they appeared. One speeder behind him clipped a wing and spun out of

control.

"Another one down," Obi-Wan said. Anakin allowed himself a  moment  to

look at his Master. He always enjoyed making Obi-Wan pale.

A tall formation grew out of the canyon floor. Anakin headed  straight

for it.

"Anakin, you're pushing it - "

"That's the idea."

"This speeder doesn't have that kind of maneuverability - "

"I guess we'll find out."

At the last possible second, Anakin wrenched the controls. Instead  of

turning, he went straight up. The bottom of the  airspeeder  skidded  along

the formation. The sound of screaming metal blocked out the  sound  of  the

engine. Smoke  rose  around  them.  Obi-Wan  saw  licks  of  flame  on  the

airspeeder's body. He closed his eyes.

The security speeder behind them tried the same maneuver  and  crashed

head-on into the rock. The second veered off, only to clip a wing. The wing

dragged on the canyon floor, slowing the craft until it ground to a halt.

Anakin kept going straight up. When he was high above the surface,  he

straightened out the airspeeder. The fire on both wings  died  out  in  the

rush of air. Nobody said anything for a moment.

Then Obi-Wan cleared his throat.

"And now, for the hard part," he said.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

They decided they could not risk flying over the valley. The Sith Lord

had been a step ahead of them since they'd arrived  on  Korriban.  He  knew

they were coming. They would just have to arrive in a way he didn't expect.

They would walk in.

Anakin landed the now-battered speeder  on  a  rocky  mountain  ledge,

squeezing it between the mountain wall and a sheer drop. The Valley of  the

Dark Lords was a short distance down the mountainside.

They descended the cliffside,  hiking  quickly  but  conserving  their

energy for what lay ahead. The mountains were steep  and  crowded  together

like spiteful beasts, with cliffs pressing in from both sides. Occasionally

boulders would crash down without warning, sending them leaping for safety.

The extended dusk was still holding, but the light  was  gradually  fading.

The coming darkness was faintly tinged with red.

When at last they saw the Valley of Dark Lords ahead in the  distance,

their steps slowed and then stopped. The wave that came at them  made  them

pause. It fractured the Force they felt around them, tore at it.  They  had

expected to feel more of the  dark  side,  but  they  hadn't  realized  how

concentrated it would be.

They knew the Sith tombs that inhabited the valley  were  designed  to

amplify dark energy. It was a physical presence that the Jedi  could  feel,

pressing against their chests. It made them instinctively reach  for  their

lightsaber hilts.

The wind picked up, grabbing at their cloaks  with  icy  fingers.  The

red-tinged clouds collided, rolling across the sky  with  a  new  velocity.

They were alone in the middle of a harsh landscape, and even the rocks  had

warned them to stay away. The sand seemed to suck at  their  footsteps  and

the wind was blowing them backward. The air tasted rank and spoiled.

Obi-Wan wanted to say something. There had to be a phrase  to  bolster

them, to make them feel less marooned in this land of gloom and shadows.

It was Ry-Gaul who spoke.

"May the Force be with us."

And, of course, it was this phrase that renewed them, the one they had

spoken so many times - to each other, to their Padawans -  the  words  that

felt so comfortable in their mouths, the words that were more  than  words,

that lived in their dreams.

They walked on.

They paused just outside the entrance to the valley. The  cliffs  were

so close that they could not all stand in a  row.  Shelves  of  razor-sharp

rock protruded from each cliff face in a staggered pattern, all the way  to

the top, so that a craft could not possibly maneuver  to  get  inside.  The

rock shelves created deep shadows, gray shading into black.

Obi-Wan examined the sides of the entrance carefully. He could see  no

evidence of weapons or security measures. It seemed impossible to him  that

they could just walk in.

"There has to be a trap," he said. "Madame Nu says that legend  claims

that the tombs were guarded by tuk'ata beasts. They were at the service  of

the Sith."

"Tuk'ata?" Ferus asked.

"Gigantic creatures. Triple rows of teeth, six inch claws,  and  three

horns," Obi-Wan explained. "They can move on four legs or two, and have two

winglike extensions - not functional wings, but  poisonous  stingers.  Very

fast."

"Let's see," Darra said. "Stingers, claws, teeth, horns.  My  favorite

kind of creature."

"It's a legend, remember?" Anakin  said,  trying  to  keep  his  voice

light.

"I... don't... think so," Tru said, his eyes on the cliffs.

There, the shadows formed into beasts  that  slowly  rose,  stretching

long necks and sniffing the air.

They were certainly tuk'ata, and they reared up - four, then six, then

ten. Their cries seem to split the clouds open. Blood-tinged saliva dripped

from their triple rows of teeth. With a flex of their powerful  legs,  they

leaped down from ledge to ledge, and then made the final  drop  with  ease,

landing easily and rearing up once again on their hind legs in  preparation

to attack.

"Did I mention they can jump?" Obi-Wan asked.

The Jedi raised their lightsabers.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

The vicious tuk'ata moved at lightning speed. They  did  not  have  an

attack strategy. They didn't need one. They charged with flashing teeth and

claws and whipping stingers.

Anakin jumped toward the lead tuk'ata. He wanted to be  the  first  to

bring one down. The beast whirled, its yellow eyes flat  with  menace.  One

massive claw swiped through the air. Anakin caught it with his  lightsaber.

The beast howled. He had only angered it.

He needed to hit a vulnerable spot. He saw Ferus  and  Siri  attack  a

tuk'ata together, moving in rhythm. Perhaps he should have waited  for  his

own Master, but with a quick look over his shoulder Anakin saw that Obi-Wan

was occupied with two tuk'ata at once, while Ry-Gaul and Tru were racing to

help.

The creature swiped at him again, and, anticipating the  move,  Anakin

ducked and rolled, trying to strike up into the  beast's  chest,  where  he

assumed a blow would kill it. To his surprise, the stinger  landed  on  his

arm. He had not expected that range of motion. Instantly, his  arm  was  on

fire, though  the  stinger  had  barely  licked  him.  Anakin  flipped  his

lightsaber to his other hand, cursing his luck.

The tuk'ata struck, no doubt following up on his advantage. While  its

prey was immobilized by the poison, the beast would  finish  him  off.  But

Anakin was able  to  flip  backward  and  strike,  this  time  burying  his

lightsaber in the middle of the creature's head. He heard  the  sizzle  and

smelled the smoke. The yellow eyes rolled, and the creature fell dead.

Ry-Gaul and Tru had been outflanked by two tuk'ata.  Obi-Wan  had  his

hands full with one massive beast, bigger and fiercer than the rest. Anakin

leaped on the back of the tuk'ata bearing down on  his  Master,  hoping  to

distract it. The beast reared up, both stingers waving, while Anakin did  a

quick and elusive dance to avoid their sting.

Obi-Wan advanced, striking the tuk'ata with a series  of  hard  blows.

The creature staggered. Anakin was able to slash  at  the  creature's  neck

before he was thrown off. The tuk'ata screamed,  rearing,  and  Anakin  and

Obi-Wan leaped out of its way. It toppled and thrashed and then was still.

They were already moving, turning to charge one of the tuk'ata who was

after Tru. With a roar, it turned on them instead, circling  and  striking,

trying to get claws and teeth  embedded  into  Obi-Wan.  Obi-Wan  used  his

liquid cable launcher and anchored it on the  creature's  horn.  Using  the

cable, he swung up and out, his lightsaber a blur of motion as he  attacked

again and again. The creature howled, trying to claw Obi-Wan  away.  Anakin

was able to deliver the death blow in the chest.

Obi-Wan swung off the creature and landed, his boots thudding  on  the

dirt. The cries of the tuk'ata mingled with the buzz of lightsabers as  the

Jedi met their attacks with moves and counter-moves. The tide of the battle

was turning. Five tuk'ata lay dead, and two were mortally  wounded.  Anakin

and Obi-Wan were able to team up with Ry-Gaul  and  Tru  first  alternately

feinting to confuse the creature, and then slicing it into several  pieces.

Soara and Darra, working together in their  usual  flawless  teamwork,  had

somehow kept two tuk'ata at bay.  Wounded,  the  two  counterattacked,  but

Darra and Soara were too fast, too agile, and too strong.

At last all the tuk'ata lay dead or dying, their cries echoing off the

stones of the mountain.

"So much for legends," Anakin said, sheathing his lightsaber.

Now they were able to simply walk through the narrow passage and enter

the valley. But the dark side slammed into them, a body blow. For a moment,

they paused to fight the feeling, pulling in the Force to cushion it.

The mausoleums marched down  the  valley.  Hewed  from  slabs  of  the

mountain, polished by slaves,  and  then  battered  by  the  elements  over

hundreds of years, they were still enormous, high and  wide,  with  columns

and turrets. Mammoth statues, similar to those in the landing hangar, posed

like guards outside the tombs. On the cliff  summits,  ancient  statues  of

horrible creatures perched, appearing ready to  strike.  It  was  a  valley

designed to strike fear into every heart.

"We'll have to search every  tomb,"  Soara  said.  "Oh,  good,"  Darra

breathed under her breath. Obi-Wan glanced at  Anakin.  "You're  hurt,"  he

said, concerned.

"It's nothing."

"This is only the beginning of the  battle,  Anakin,"  Obi-Wan  warned

sternly. "Let me treat it."

Anakin bared his arm. Quickly, Obi-Wan administered bacta. The burning

sensation lessened somewhat. Anakin felt the coolness of  the  medicine  on

his skin. Gratefully, he shrugged his arm back into his tunic.  He  thanked

his Master with his gaze.

He heard something - whispering voices, just as he'd  heard  upon  his

arrival. He could see that the  others  heard  them,  too.  Low,  guttural,

insistent. Yet what were they saying? It was impossible to tell.  Something

evil. Something he did not wish to hear.

"They are waking," Ry-Gaul said.

"They know we're here," Siri agreed.

The dead Sith Lords, slumbering inside the huge stone mausoleums,  had

felt the Jedi presence. The dark energy poured out  of  the  tombs.  Anakin

could taste it all, anger and cruelty and pain.

"Let's try the first tomb," Obi-Wan said.

He's not there! Anakin wanted to cry. But he didn't know how  he  knew

it. He couldn't trust it. It could be the Sith, trying to confuse him.

Frustration coiled inside him. He hated this feeling. He wanted to  be

able to trust what he knew. And he wanted to know everything. That would be

true power.

"Stay together," Soara said.

The tomb was massive. Two stone creatures  guarded  it,  teeth  bared,

claws in attack position. Now Anakin recognized them  as  tuk'ata.  Obi-Wan

pressed against the stone door, and it groaned as it  opened.  They  walked

inside, keeping close together, their lightsabers held in position, serving

as illumination as well as defense

The tombs ran along the wall, slabs of stone  with  life-sized  carved

stone figures resting on top representing the dead Sith Lords. The whispers

in the air grew louder. Anakin felt them against his skin like little puffs

of foul air.

Trespass don't we power Sith darkness command merciless...

Anakin heard random words, hissed in hate. He called on the  Force  to

help him turn the words into meaningless static.

The darkness was  absolute.  The  glow  of  their  lightsabers  barely

penetrated it. They walked another few steps.

Suddenly, Darra cried out. A human  skeleton  rose  out  of  the  dark

corner and slammed into her, knocking her to the floor. The  bones  trapped

her like a cage. She tried  to  slash  at  them  with  her  lightsaber  but

couldn't move her arm.

Soara's lightsaber whipped through the air. In seconds, the bones were

dust. She stepped forward to help Darra.

"Careful - " Obi-Wan began.

It was too late. An energy net fell from the ceiling,  trapping  Soara

and Darra. At the same time, blasterfire pinged throughout the  tomb  in  a

zigzag fashion. They couldn't tell where it was coming from.

Obi-Wan leaped to protect Soara  and  Darra.  Tru  and  Ry-Gaul  moved

forward, trying to detect the source of the  fire.  Anakin  followed  while

Ferus and Siri slashed at the energy net, trying to release them.

From the rear of the tomb, a fireball erupted. It rolled toward  them,

fast and deadly.

"We have to get out of here!" Obi-Wan shouted.

Soara began to kick free of the net, grabbing Darra's arm and  hauling

her out. The Jedi hurtled toward the door. It was sealed tight.

They were trapped.

CHAPTER TWENTY

There was nowhere to go but up. The heat of the fireball  singed  them

as they leaped. It hurtled under them and smashed  against  the  door.  The

Jedi were able to hang in the air, using the Force, for the crucial seconds

they needed. They watched in astonishment as the fire blasted  through  the

closed door. Corrosive, annihilating, the fire ate through stone.

The Jedi landed on the still burning ashes and made  it  outside.  The

fire burned itself out until it was just a pile of ash on the floor.

"Are you all right?" Soara asked Darra.

Darra nodded, but she still looked shaky from the electrical pulses in

the stun net.

Obi-Wan knew one thing. They could not search every  tomb  like  this.

They would lose their energy, lose their focus.

He faced the tombs. He reached out, feeling each dark  place,  sending

his concentration to every corner.

He felt him again. Omega was close now to his  goal.  Obi-Wan  smelled

his triumph.

He turned. "There." He pointed down the row. "Zan Arbor and Omega  are

in there. They've gone to meet the Sith."

Singed by the fire, bloodied by the tuk'ata, they moved  as  one  body

toward the tomb Obi-Wan had indicated.

Anakin knew he was there. The Sith was somewhere in the vast tomb.  He

was waiting. He was watching. But Omega didn't interest him. The Jedi did.

When they entered, it seemed even darker than the first tomb had been.

The air was close and smelled of decay. The tombs here were in worse shape,

crumbling, some of them decayed so much that  they  could  see  the  bodies

inside wrapped in shrouds.

Obi-Wan  held  up  his  lightsaber.  From  its  glow  they  could  see

pictographs on the walls, images scrawled in red that had faded. Images  of

deeds done by the Sith. Wars. Massacres. Anakin turned his face away.

Join us darkness conquer dominance glory..

Anakin saw one of the shrouds rise. The layers of gray, shredding rags

fell away. He gasped in shock. It was his mother, Shmi.

"Annie," she called. "Annie."

"Mother." The word was wrenched out of his  belly.  How  much  had  he

longed to say that word again, to see her again? It was the Jedi  who  kept

him from her, the Jedi who had taken him away....

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan's voice was sharp. "It's a vision. Nothing more."

Anakin swallowed. The shroud was back in the crypt. He  gazed  at  the

others, embarrassed. Ferus looked at him with pity. Pity!  His  hatred  for

Ferus flooded him again. He had embarrassed himself in front of Ferus!

The visions came to all of them  then.  Sith  Lords  rose  and  walked

toward  them,  their  mouths  gaping,  their  hands  grasping,   and   then

disintegrated onto them with foul smells and tastes. The  Jedi  walked  on,

through the corpse visions, through the whispers, through the taunts.

You are blind and you are fools and you understand nothing....

The dark side of the Force was like a thick  curtain  Anakin  couldn't

draw aside. It got in his mouth and eyes and felt as though it  could  slow

his hands, stop his legs. Still, he kept on walking, kept on moving.  There

was nothing else to be done. They had to get to the end of it.

The creatures carved from stone that sat on the ledges took flight  in

shimmering images of fire and destruction. Tru ducked as one of  them  flew

directly in his face, but the creature  became  nothing  but  particles  of

dust. Anakin saw Tru grip his lightsaber more tightly.

Tru's lightsaber! He had forgotten to tell him to  check  the  readout

for the flux aperture! He had walked away, angry and hurt.  Why  hadn't  he

remembered?

Had he wanted to forget?

He couldn't do it now. If he did, the Masters would  know  that  Tru's

lightsaber had broken and he hadn't told Ry-Gaul. He would get himself  and

Tru in trouble. And Ferus probably had fixed it perfectly, the way  he  did

everything else.

What you are and what you do mean nothing next to what we are and  can

do....

Thinking of Ferus made anger spurt through Anakin.  It  was  something

hard inside him. It filled him up. It felt natural, it felt right, to allow

his anger to grow. Why had he tried to quell it? He had every right to feel

it! Just feeling it now gave him strength.

Obi-Wan held up a hand. "Stop. Energy trap."

Anakin could see nothing. Everything was dark  except  for  the  light

from Obi-Wan's lightsaber.

Obi-Wan spoke in a hushed tone. "Concentrations of  dark  power.  They

are capable of immobilizing a Jedi for a time."

"I don't see anything," Ferus said.

"Look away, then look back. Use the Force," Siri instructed.

Anakin looked away, then looked back. He caught the  faintest  shimmer

of purple in the air. It appeared and disappeared. You could miss it if you

blinked.

"I see it," Darra said.

"There will be more," Obi-Wan  warned.  "The  Padawans  must  be  very

careful. You most likely won't be able to escape alone. Stay close to  your

Masters."

They moved forward, avoiding the trap.

The chuckle split the fetid air.

"I would expect no less of  you,  Obi-Wan."  The  voice  came  out  of

nowhere. Mocking, sure of himself. Granta Omega.

Obi-Wan stopped.

Slowly, Omega walked out from behind a tomb, just meters ahead.

He tapped a finger on his utility belt.  "Did  you  really  think  you

could avoid a few traps and catch me?"

"Get back here, you fool," Zan Arbor hissed, appearing behind him  out

of  the  darkness.  "Why  must  you  always  talk  to  him?"  In  her  blue

shimmersilk, she looked as well-kept as ever, her blond  hair  piled  in  a

profusion of neat braids on her head.

"Because I'm enjoying myself," Omega said. His handsome  face  creased

in a wide smile. He appeared utterly at home in the terrible tomb. "I have,

let's see - one, two, four, eight Jedi, all sent to capture little old me!"

"Are you forgetting I'm here, too?" Zan Arbor snapped. "Typical. I was

a Jedi enemy before you were born, Granta."

"My father was their enemy before me," Omega said.

Xanatos. Omega's father, the former Jedi who had tried to destroy Qui-

Gon. Obi-Wan had told  Anakin  about  him.  His  son  maintained  the  same

arrogance, the same cruelty, the same howling need to  hurt  the  Jedi,  to

make them pay for everything they lacked themselves. Honor meant nothing to

either Xanatos or Omega. Only power. Only revenge.

Zan Arbor waved a hand. "This isn't a contest. I'm going on.  Sith  or

no Sith, I can't wait to get off this planet. Come along. He's waiting  for

us. Come on," she urged sharply. "He'll take care of the Jedi - he promised

us that. He's about to give us everything we worked for. Resources. Secrets

of the galaxy. Wealth. An army of our own, Granta!"

But Omega didn't move. Here would come his  downfall,  Anakin  thought

suddenly. The reward he was about to receive meant nothing in the  face  of

his personal revenge.

"I can take care of this," Omega said. "With his help."

"Can I remind you of something?" Zan Arbor exploded  in  exasperation.

"You are not a Sith!"

"I have surprised you every step of the  way,  Obi-Wan,"  Omega  said,

ignoring her. "And I didn't even know the secrets of the dark side! Can you

imagine what I'm capable of now, in this place, where the  very  walls  are

your enemy?"

Obi-Wan held his gaze. Anakin glanced at him. He saw that Obi-Wan  had

no desire to speak. In his gaze Anakin detected no anger,  no  response  to

Omega's taunts. There was simply the grim will to get this done. There  was

no way Omega was leaving this tomb unless Obi-Wan led him out.

"Don't want to talk to me, Obi-Wan? Giving me  the  silent  treatment?

You're spoiling my pleasure." Omega gave a theatrical sigh and  raised  his

hand, revealing a KYD-21 blaster.  Anakin  recognized  it.  Fast,  precise,

compact.

"I must admit, it's inconvenient that the Jedi found me here. But in a

way, it's such a delicious end. I'm invincible now, you see. I  fight  with

the power of the Sith behind me. And that means I can watch you  die,  Obi-

Wan. You and your apprentice. I can't wait. Do you want to follow  me  back

there, or are you too afraid to finally meet your defeat?"

He had gotten no further than a flex of  one  finger  muscle  to  fire

before Obi-Wan exploded in movement. He raced toward Omega, his  lightsaber

held in a classic offensive maneuver.

The blaster bolts came fast and furious. Obi-Wan deflected  each  one,

swinging his lightsaber in a wide arc.

A horrid stench suddenly rolled out from behind Omega. He  smiled,  as

if he knew what was coming. No doubt he did.

Then the undead came. Korriban zombies, revived by the Sith  to  guard

the tombs. Anakin had read about them, but never thought he'd see them; the

Sith must have activated them to defend Omega and the sacred  Sith  ground.

The zombies were used to eating the flesh from  the  tombs;  now  they  had

living targets in mind. And they had blasters and detonators  to  make  the

kill. They came careening out of the darkness now,  different  species  but

all moving with the same odd, lurching gait...  the  air  came  alive  with

smoke and fire.

Recovering from a moment of shock, Anakin moved to flank Obi-Wan.  The

zombies had strength beyond the living. They were half-rotted, a horrifying

sight. Anakin did not  look  at  their  dead  gazes.  He  went  after  them

ruthlessly, his lightsaber deflecting their  fire  while  he  cut  them  to

ribbons.

They were an obstacle, nothing more. A sorcerer's trick from long ago.

He would not let their gruesome appearance or their grasping bloodied hands

deter him.

He had to be in on the capture of Omega. Working together, he and Obi-

Wan deflected fire while they moved toward a steadily retreating Omega. Zan

Arbor had disappeared. For Anakin, she had ceased to matter.

Then the darkness came alive with visions. The Sith Lords,  mighty  in

their armor, terrifying in their decaying, bloodied faces. They  rushed  at

the Jedi, only to disappear in a shower of splintered shadow. Anakin  tried

not to flinch, to keep his eyes on the blaster fire, but the confusion  was

everywhere.

The dark side of the Force  was  like  a  presence,  interfering  with

concentration and sapping energy. The Jedi  reached  out  to  one  another,

calling on the Force to battle the  dark  side,  the  undead  who  kept  on

coming.

Anakin saw Shmi rise and fall, rise and fall.  He  felt  the  familiar

need, the familiar guilt. The feelings overwhelmed him and Obi-Wan  had  to

leap in front of him to protect him from a detonator heading his way.  Obi-

Wan swiped it out of the air.

They didn't choose me, and yet I fight for  them,  Anakin  thought  in

anger. They chose Ferus, and yet I must fight to protect him, protect them.

My Master didn't protect me, why am I doing this?

A phantom Sith Lord smiled at him. Reached out a hand.

"Anakin." Obi-Wan's voice was close. "Keep your focus."

His focus. Yes. Of course the dark side would go after him,  not  just

with phantom Sith, but phantoms in his brain. Thoughts  that  weren't  his.

Anakin reached out to the Force to help him battle the voices. He felt  his

head clear.

Tru had leaped up on a tomb to fight two zombies.  With  his  flexible

arms and legs, he moved like a rolling wave. He  took  down  three  thermal

detonators that were flying through the air. He swung his lightsaber in  an

arc. It flickered. Anakin  watched  in  horror  as  it  buzzed,  the  shaft

flickering again and again. It was losing power!

Tru was in the middle of them. Obi-Wan hadn't seen it. He had  charged

forward, the way to Omega now clear.

Everything in Anakin screamed to follow  Obi-Wan,  to  be  in  on  the

capture of Omega. Except one thing. Friendship.

But he had hesitated too long. As he watched, Ferus and Tru  exchanged

a glance. Simultaneously, Ferus and Tru flipped their  lightsabers  through

the air. Tru caught Ferus's, and Ferus caught Tru's.

Re-energized, Tru  went  after  the  undead,  hacking  off  limbs  and

disabling the living corpses. Ferus dropped to a backup position  with  the

half-powered lightsaber.

But suddenly Omega appeared again. He had sneaked around the  back  of

the tombs. Zan Arbor reappeared at his side. Anakin realized that they were

trying to trick the Jedi. They had set up most  of  the  firepower  in  the

middle of the tomb. While the Jedi expected them to retreat  to  the  rear,

they were actually about to escape through the front door.

He saw it again, the flicker at the end of his vision, a cape  furling

as fast as a serpent's strike. The Sith stood at the entrance to the  tomb.

Waiting. His face was hidden in the shadow of his hood.

Zan Arbor hurried toward him.

Anakin wrenched his attention back to Tru. Because Ferus was  watching

Tru's back, he was the only one in Omega's path. The Jedi Masters  had  all

been at the fore of the fight. Ferus's lightsaber flickered in the dark.

Seeing that he was in trouble, Darra Force-leaped  toward  Ferus,  her

lightsaber held high, determined to save him.

Anakin saw the smile on Omega's face when he fired.

The bolts hit Darra straight in the chest. She fell, still keeping her

body between Omega and Ferus.

Soara cried out. Anakin felt the moment spin out into impossible time,

time that froze everything, even his heart.

He saw the blue shimmersilk move like  a  breeze  as  Zan  Arbor  took

advantage of the distraction to dash for the entrance. Blue Force-lightning

erupted in the darkness, a barrier shielding her from  the  others,  giving

her space to run.

He saw Tru's mouth open in a howl. He saw Ferus drop to his knees  and

crawl toward Darra, saw him take a blaster bolt in the shoulder and keep on

going. He saw Siri leap forward to  defend  all  of  them,  saw  Soara  fly

through the air in a great Force-leap to be near her Padawan.  Saw  Darra's

head turn toward him, her cheek against the dirt. Saw the  cloudy  film  in

Darra's eyes, the shock of catching the blow. He  saw,  as  if  it  were  a

physical struggle, her gathering her courage to accept the blow.

He saw all this, and still he didn't move.

And then Omega moved, reversing course once again, quickly  retreating

away from the tomb.

Anguish on his face, Obi-Wan turned away from the  Jedi  and  followed

him.

Real time came rushing back, and there was not enough of it.

Anakin turned away from Darra and raced after his Master.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The tomb narrowed at the rear. The stench almost made Anakin  gag.  It

was as though everything foul was concentrated back here. He  could  barely

make out Obi-Wan ahead, running, attacking the undead that  guarded  Omega,

circling him constantly like a cloud of rotting flesh.

Anakin put  on  a  burst  of  speed.  His  Master  was  battling  with

incredible speed and accuracy. Anakin could feel the  Force  like  a  great

pulsing,  speeding,  enveloping  wave  that  barreled  Obi-Wan  toward  his

opponent. Toward his destiny.

My destiny, Anakin thought. Mine!

He focused so much on his Master, on his need to catch  him,  that  he

blundered into an energy trap.

Anakin was caught. He couldn't move. Frustrated, enraged,  he  slashed

at the invisible cage with his lightsaber. He could not  free  himself.  He

kicked. He hammered. Caught.

He had met a power greater than his. Impossible!

"Master!" he called, but Obi-Wan didn't  hear  him.  The  energy  trap

sucked his voice out of the air and imprisoned it.

I just need the Force. Obi-Wan said a Master can summon the Force  and

fight this. I am as good as a Master. I can do this.

Strange, though. He could reach out for the Force, but visions got  in

the way. And not visions from the dark  side.  Visions  of  what  had  just

happened. Tru's mouth, open in a howl  of  anguish  and  disbelief.  Darra,

falling, eyes wide with the shock.

Darra, her head turned toward him, her cheek in the dust of the tomb.

He had seen her like this before, when she'd been wounded on Haariden.

He had felt her wounding then was his fault. Unsure of her abilities,  sure

of his own, he had leaped to protect her and crashed into her  instead.  He

had thought himself the better fighter, and because of that, he had  pushed

her into blaster fire.

She had never held it against him.

He saw her face again, so pale. The  bright  ribbon  she  always  wove

through her braid, trailing in the dust of the tomb.

He knew she was badly wounded. He felt it choke him. He had  not  gone

to help Ferus. Darra had. She was lying on the  ground.  He  tried  to  put

those facts together to have them make sense.

Tru's lightsaber had slipped to half-power.

Anakin had never offered to check the flux aperture, just in case.  He

had meant to.

What is happening to me?  Anakin  wondered.  His  mind  felt  suddenly

clear, sharp. Why didn't I help my friends? Have I changed? Am I  changing?

What am I becoming?

When he had first become a Padawan, he would not have  hesitated.  His

first loyalty had been to them.

Things were more complicated now. There was more at stake.

Maybe he was changing for the better.

Control rule supremacy greatness...

Was he more mature now? A better fighter?  Better  able  to  assess  a

situation, move toward the goal? Was that why  he  had  raced  to  confront

Omega? Or had his own jealousy propelled him? How could he  separate  those

things? Why did he have to?

Power rules by results...

Anakin shook his head. The voices would not leave him.

He thought of Darra. Tenderness filled him, and the voices went away.

Years ago, he had gone to see Darra in the  med  clinic,  filled  with

remorse. She had shaken him out of his  guilt  with  a  grin.  Now  I  have

something to impress the younglings with. I've been wounded in battle.

And then he remembered something he hadn't thought of in years. He had

always thought of her strength during that  time.  Now  he  remembered  her

fragility. He remembered her hand on  the  coverlet.  Her  fingers  had  so

briefly touched his sleeve.

Stay with me until I fall asleep. It's lonely here.

Anakin beat at the trap again. He felt the rage rise  inside  him.  He

knew the rage was interfering with the Force, but he couldn't  control  it.

If only... if only he could use the rage. But that  was  something  a  Jedi

should not do.

The frustration boiled in him. He could not move. His Master was  gone

now, into the darkness.

Obi-Wan shouldn't have been surprised when the  visions  of  the  Sith

Lords faded and he saw Qui-Gon. But he was. He should have known  the  Sith

were capable of drawing his most painful memory from within him.

Qui-Gon, with a gaping wound in his chest where Darth Maul had struck.

"You were always so afraid of disappointing me,"  Qui-Gon  said.  "And

you have."

Obi-Wan stopped. His lightsaber dangled in his hand.

It's not real. It's not real.

"You've failed me, Obi-Wan."

Not.. real.

"And you don't even know why."

Obi-Wan took a breath. He walked forward,  straight  at  Qui-Gon.  The

image disappeared.

Shaken, he continued into the darkness. Now it was easier to walk past

the Sith Lords, the visions who snarled and hissed and  sent  out  grasping

fingers as he walked past. He had seen the worst.

He heard a hiss, felt the dark side surge,  and  barely  had  time  to

prepare when the flash lit up the darkness. A luma blast, sent by a rocket,

designed to blind him.

Obi-Wan threw himself on the floor and rolled. Behind his closed eyes,

he saw explosions of orange and yellow, bright as a double sun.  Using  the

Force, he guided himself alongside a tomb and crouched behind it.  When  he

opened his eyes, he could see nothing.

Then more blaster fire, so rapid he realized that Omega must have  set

up a repeating blaster. From the sound of it, an E-Web,  one  of  the  most

powerful repeating blasters ever manufactured. It sat on a tripod. It  took

two gunners, but one could handle it, if very skilled.

Omega didn't know where he was... yet.  Obi-Wan  was  painfully  aware

that the E-Web had enough  power  to  punch  through  armor  plating  on  a

cruiser. He heard the stone tombs shatter across the  space  as  they  were

hit. He couldn't remain here. He had to keep moving.

He kept himself low to the ground and felt his way around the tomb. He

could track the blaster fire through the Force, could defend himself if  he

had to. It was part of Jedi training to be able  to  fight  without  sight.

Younglings learned with novice helmets that blocked their  vision.  Obi-Wan

was suddenly, fiercely glad for that training.

Omega would expect him to hide. Therefore, he had to  expose  himself.

He had to trust in the Force.

Blinded, Obi-Wan rushed forward. He felt the  air  against  him  as  a

guide. Objects displaced air, and with the help of the Force, a Jedi  could

feel the displacement and adjust. Obi-Wan raced  forward  confidently.  His

vision would return. In the meantime, Omega was close. So  close  he  could

hear the creak of his armor-weave tunic as he moved his arm....

A wrist rocket. Obi-Wan dodged and weaved, knowing the targeting laser

system was working to get a fix on him. He moved like quicksilver,  flowing

from one position to the next. He heard the rocket release and he put on  a

burst of speed, running blind, running straight at Omega now. He  felt  the

whistle as the rocket whizzed by his ear.

"I love watching you run," Omega said. "Ready, set, go!"

Another wrist rocket. Obi-Wan Force-leaped. He felt the rocket  behind

him and he swerved at the last minute. The  rocket  crashed  into  a  tomb.

Splinters of rock showered over Obi-Wan.

"I could do this all day," Omega said.

Blinded, breathing hard, Obi-Wan  allowed  himself  a  fraction  of  a

moment to rest. Inside him blazed the memory of every  battle  with  Omega.

From the beginning Omega had  set  out  to  confound  him,  humiliate  him,

destroy him. He had set out to impress the Sith by attacking the Jedi,  and

he had managed to do it again  and  again,  always  escaping  at  the  last

possible moment. He had even managed to kill  a  Jedi  Master.  Yaddle  had

sacrificed her life for this man's greed and revenge.

It had to end here. It had to end now.

He saw streaks in his vision now, a sign that his sight was returning.

He just needed a few precious minutes.

"You mentioned having the help of  the  Sith,  Omega,"  Obi-Wan  said,

raising his voice to carry without shouting. "How is that you've  ended  up

alone back here?"

"I'm not alone," Omega said. "I have his help."

"Really? Can you feel him? I can't. And remember, I'm the one who  can

feel the Force. Not you."

"You arrogant fool," Omega snarled. "I am to be a Sith! He told me so.

"

"And you believed him." Obi-Wan was beginning to make out the shape of

the tomb opposite him, fragments of shape fracturing the orange streaks  in

his vision. "Flattery will get him everywhere, it seems."

"He wasn't flattering me! Right now I am a Sith without the  Force.  I

can use his power." There was a note of defensiveness in Omega's voice.

"It seems to me that he gets to use you."

"He would not abandon me!"

The shapes took sharper form. His vision wasn't perfect, but it  would

have to do.

Obi-Wan stood. "You'd better hope so."

He could just barely make out Omega standing behind the  E-Web.  "Your

arrogance will bring you down, Obi-Wan!"

"Funny. I was just about to  say  the  same."  Obi-Wan  activated  his

lightsaber again. The blaster bolts were so powerful they sent shock  waves

down his arm as he deflected them. The fire was fast and furious. Where was

Anakin? He could use his help. Or someone's...

He had to concentrate on the moment. Not on what he didn't have.

You have everything you need, my Padawan.

This time, Qui-Gon's voice was kind. The voice was inside him. It  was

true, it was real, and it gave him strength.

His lightsaber whirled, spinning in an arc  to  gather  momentum  with

each strike against the bolts. He could hear Omega breathing heavily.  Obi-

Wan was sending bolts back to him at a steady pace, but Omega was  managing

to evade fire as he deployed the E-Web repeating blaster.

The orange streaks were fading now.  Obi-Wan  could  clearly  see  the

outlines of the last tombs. Omega was silhouetted against the blaster bolts

that sent faint, electric illumination through the air. He was gripping the

blaster on the tripod, intent now in the full fury of his lust to take Obi-

Wan down.

Something Anakin had once said floated through his mind.  Anakin  knew

more about machines than Obi-Wan ever wanted to know.

Funny. No matter how advanced, a weapon always  has  a  flaw.  It  can

always turn against itself.

The flaw. What was the flaw?

The E-Web needed two operators because it was liable  to  overload  if

one operator didn't keep track of power flow. If  overloaded,  it  wouldn't

simply shut down - it would backblast.

Obi-Wan put on another burst of speed. He went after each blaster bolt

with skilled parries. But instead of advancing he moved laterally. He  only

appeared to advance.

Out of rockets now, Omega tore off  the  wrist  launchers.  They  were

heavy, and he was getting tired. Sweat was pouring down his face. The E-Web

was smoking now, and he didn't notice.

Obi-Wan's arms began to  shake  from  the  effort  of  deflecting  the

blaster bolts. He was tired. His  vision  was  still  faulty.  With  sudden

clarity, he realized that he could lose this battle. He was calculating  on

the failure of a machine he wasn't terribly familiar with. He was  counting

on a bit of luck.

It took all of his concentration. One stumble could send him  straight

into a blaster bolt that would rip through him like pudding.

Through the smoke, across the haze, Omega's  blue  gaze  was  hot  and

burning. Hate blazed at Obi-Wan. Omega was screaming incoherently now,  his

voice barely heard over the sound of gunfire. The E-Web pounded and smoked.

Obi-Wan stumbled and hit his knees. Omega smiled. He leaned forward to

aim.

The weapon gave in. It shuddered and stopped for  one  small  instant.

Omega shook it.

The blast was tremendous. A concentration of energy blew  Omega  back,

his body dangling in the air, a shocked expression on his face. He  slammed

into the tomb wall. Broken. The shock on his face faded as his life drained

from him.

"You..." It was all he managed to get out. Obi-Wan heard pounding feet

behind him. Anakin ran up and stopped. "Master - "

"It's all right. He's gone." Obi-Wan deactivated his lightsaber. "It's

over."

"I was caught in an energy trap."

"You got out by yourself. That's good. Come, Padawan." Obi-Wan turned.

"Let's see to the others. We

A gathering roar came from behind him. Omega threw himself forward,  a

blaster firing in his hand, his teeth bared. "You killed my father!  You...

will... not... win!"

Obi-Wan activated his lightsaber as he turned. The moment he  had  not

wanted to come had arrived. No matter how much he had wished to stop Omega,

he had never wished to kill him. He  remembered  how  Xanatos's  death  had

haunted Qui-Gon. He did not want the same fate.

But fate had taken away his choices.

His lightsaber rose, as if in slow motion. Yet it moved faster than an

eyeblink. It came down and cleaved into Omega.

He fell to his knees.

Instead of retreating, Obi-Wan walked forward. He did not want to  see

Omega die, but no one should have to die alone.

Omega looked up into his face. His lips were drawn back over his teeth

in a gruesome smile. A spasm of something crossed his  features.  What  was

it? Satisfaction, Obi-Wan realized. What did it mean?

"Do you think you won? You didn't," Omega  said.  Every  word  was  an

effort. "I know... who he is." He toppled over, curling up  like  a  child.

"You will wish... you did."

Still smiling, still holding his hatred and rage, Omega let go of  his

life at last and collapsed into the dust.

Something rushed out, as if a great power had removed  its  protection

from Omega.

The visions of the Sith Lords  faded.  The  dark  side  of  the  Force

retreated. The Sith would not be found. Obi-Wan knew he had withdrawn  both

his presence and his protection.

Obi-Wan tucked his lightsaber back into his belt. "Let's see to Darra,

" he said.

Soara cradled her in her arms. Tru had wrapped his cloak  around  her.

Ferus sat on the ground, his head in his hands, and did not look  up.  Siri

and Ry-Gaul stood on either side of the group, as  if  guarding  them  from

harm. But harm had come and done its work.

Darra was dead.

Obi-Wan knelt in front of her. Her eyes were closed, her face composed

and impossibly calm. Anakin watched as Soara very gently unraveled  Darra's

Padawan braid. She plucked the bright ribbon from the coils  of  soft  hair

and held it in her fist. Tears streaked down her face. Anakin  could  never

have imagined seeing Soara Antana, fabled warrior, in tears.

Anakin heard Darra's voice rise like a cry inside him.  Stay  with  me

until I fall asleep. It's lonely here.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

The Great Hall seemed more vast,  the  journey  to  the  Council  room

longer than Obi-Wan ever remembered. His legs had never felt so  heavy.  He

walked without seeing. He felt strangely numb. He had never felt so tired.

He knew about the rumors at the Temple. He knew that Tru's  lightsaber

had been faulty, that Ferus had fixed it secretly, that neither of them had

told their Masters. He knew that  Tru  had  been  censured.  Ferus  was  in

seclusion but would be facing the Council directly after Obi-Wan.

He knew these things, and he knew that in the eyes of the Council, the

mission had succeeded, in part. They had caught Granta Omega. Zan Arbor had

escaped, but the Council felt she was easier to track.

Without Omega's wealth, she would not find it easy to hide.

They had missed uncovering the identity of the Sith, but  the  Council

did not fault them. They had been close to him. They had uncovered  one  of

the planets that sheltered him. They had taken a small step forward.

He should feel some sense of satisfaction, but  he  did  not.  Obi-Wan

found himself wondering about things he had not thought  about  since  Qui-

Gon's death.

Was the loss of Darra's life worth what they had obtained?

Was there something he should have done that he did not do?

Had the first vision of Qui-Gon in the tomb come  from  the  Sith,  or

deep within him?

Had he failed?

Darra's death would once have been an aberration. Why did he  feel  it

was a portent? With every second that passed, he felt more death  approach.

Time and again he had to shake off the memory of Granta  Omega  curling  up

like a child as he let go of life. What could he have been, if he  had  not

been in the grip of his obsession? The Sith found  weakness  and  exploited

it. They took a flaw and twisted it into a weapon. Whoever the Sith was, he

had goaded Omega, used him, and abandoned him. How could the

Jedi fight someone who had no mercy for anyone or anything?

Over the last few days, Anakin had retreated to the Map Room where  he

liked to meditate. Obi-Wan couldn't put his finger on it, but he felt  that

somehow Anakin was involved in what had happened to  Darra.  Not  directly,

but somehow...

He hated himself for having this feeling. Of course, if that were true

his Padawan would have told him.

Obi-Wan found himself outside the Council  Room  doors.  He  tried  to

clear his mind before he entered. Some days it  was  difficult  meeting  so

many Jedi gifted in Force-sensitivity at once.

The doors slid open. The full Council had assembled. The  members  all

acknowledged Obi-Wan as he took his place in the middle of the room,  where

he had stood so many times.

"A sad conclusion to the mission, it was," Yoda  said.  "Grieving  are

all of us."

"Darra Thel-Tanis has joined the Force," Mace said. "We will celebrate

her life."

"Uneasy we are with the conduct of the two Padawans,  Ferus  Olin  and

Tru Veld," Yoda said.

Adi Gallia nodded. "We have reconsidered our decision to speed up  the

trials for chosen Padawans. We fear we put too much pressure on them."

"We need additional Jedi, it's true," Oppo Rancisis said. "But we  see

now that we cannot rush readiness." "Our mistake, it was," Yoda said.

"Mistakes we cannot afford during these times," Mace added,  and  then

said, "We will commend your Padawan for his bravery. To face a Sith is  the

hardest task for a Jedi. Anakin showed ingenuity and bravery throughout the

mission."

Yoda peered at Obi-Wan. "Something to share with us, you have?"

Obi-Wan hesitated. He had doubts. He had fears. He  had  sorrows.  But

this was not the place.

"No, Master Yoda," he said.

"Disappointed your Padawan will be, to hear that we have cancelled our

plans to accelerate Knighthood," Yoda said.

"Yes, Anakin will be disappointed," Obi-Wan said. "He is not  good  at

waiting."

"Then wait, he should," Yoda said, nodding.

"Thank you, Master Kenobi," Mace said. "You may send in Ferus Olin."

Obi-Wan bowed and retreated. When he walked into  the  outer  chamber,

Ferus stood.

"They are ready for you," Obi-Wan told him.

Ferus turned a face to him full of such  misery  and  heartbreak  that

Obi-Wan was moved.

"You are not here to be punished, least of all by  yourself,"  Obi-Wan

told him.

"I must go on living," Ferus responded. "That is my punishment."

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Anakin waited until he saw Obi-Wan leave the outer chamber. He  wasn't

ready to talk to his Master yet. He waited until  Obi-Wan  was  gone,  then

slipped inside.

He didn't want to see Ferus face-to-face, but he had to find out  what

was going on. What would the Council do? Now, of all times, Anakin  felt  a

strange attachment to his fellow Padawan.

The shock of Darra's death hadn't worn off. He  still  couldn't  grasp

it. He still couldn't believe it wasn't possible to see her again, to  hear

her voice. If the Force was so powerful, why couldn't it  stop  death?  Why

couldn't he break through that wall and see his friend again?

He felt a rustle behind him, and saw Tru backing out of the chamber.

"Tru!" Anakin called. Reluctantly, Tru edged in a few steps.  "Do  you

know anything?"

Tru shook his head. He didn't quite meet Anakin's eyes.

"I haven't seen much of you since we've been back," Anakin said.

"I know."

"I'm sorry about the censure."

"I deserved it."

The question burned on Anakin's tongue.  "Why  did  you  go  to  Ferus

instead of me to fix your lightsaber? I would have done a better job."

"I didn't go to Ferus," Tru said. "He came to me. He had noticed  that

it was on half-power at the end of the  battle  in  the  monastery.  But  I

wouldn't have gone to you because I wouldn't have  wanted  to  get  you  in

trouble. You would have kept my secret. Just like Ferus did.  I  was  wrong

not to tell my Master. I was wrong to let Ferus stay  silent.  I  was  just

about as wrong as I could be."

"You were thinking of the mission," Anakin said. "We were all  wrong,"

Tru continued, as if he hadn't even registered what Anakin had said

"We did our best," Anakin said. "And Omega is dead."

"So is Darra."

Tru turned and walked out.

Anakin started after him. Something was wrong. Something  had  changed

between him and his friend, and he didn't know why.

He stopped when the Council doors opened. Ferus walked out. He  almost

walked by Anakin without seeing him,  as  though  he  was  blinded  by  his

feelings.

"Ferus?"

Ferus turned. "Anakin. Well. I think you should be the first to  know.

I have resigned from the Jedi Order."

"What?!" Anakin felt shock ripple through him. "But why?"

"Because I was responsible for Darra's death."

"That's not true! You couldn't have known - "

"But I did. I knew that Tru's lightsaber had malfunctioned. I  offered

to fix it secretly. I did not tell his Master or urge him  to  do  so.  His

lightsaber failed in battle, and Darra was killed trying to protect me."

"But you thought you'd fixed it!"

Ferus stopped. He gazed at Anakin for a long moment.

"You knew?" he asked. "You knew Tru's lightsaber had broken? You  must

have seen me fixing it." "I didn't say that."

"No. You didn't. But there are only the two of us  here,  Anakin.  You

don't have to lie."

Anakin said nothing. As usual, Ferus was trying to trap him, trying to

show Anakin how much nobler he was.

"When we got back, I took it to the Jedi  Master  Tolan  Hing,"  Ferus

said, naming the Jedi who was known for his expertise in the workings of  a

lightsaber. "He told me that that the fusing between the flux aperture  and

the power cell needed a slight adjustment. Nothing major - Tru might  never

have noticed it. Except that in  battle,  the  power  drained  faster  than

normal."

"I don't know why you're telling me this...."

Tru's voice  came  from  behind  him.  "Because  you  fixed  the  flux

aperture. And you would have known that it needed to be rechecked after the

power cell boost."

Anakin turned. "You didn't come to me!"

Tru shook his head. "That's funny. Shouldn't  you  have  said,  But  I

didn't know it was broken?"

"You're trying to trap me," Anakin said. "Both of you," he added, with

an angry look at Ferus. "Tru, I would never do anything deliberately to put

you in a position.."

Tru's face hardened. His silver eyes held a  sheen  Anakin  had  never

seen before. They were icy, as though Anakin could slip off his gaze.

"I wondered," Tru said. "When we got back  here,  I  wondered  if  you

knew. I saw how you froze in the tomb.

'But not my friend,' I said to myself. 'My friend would not do  that.'

But then I thought about how you feel about Ferus, how angry you had  been.

You would want him to get in trouble, even if it meant exposing me."

"That's not fair!"

"And suddenly I realized - yes, Anakin could have done that."

"You're looking at this all wrong," Anakin  said.  But  how  could  he

explain? He couldn't admit that he knew that Tru's  lightsaber  was  broken

because he couldn't explain why he'd forgotten to tell him to readjust  it.

He still didn't know how he'd forgotten something  so  crucial.  Tru  would

think he'd deliberately forgotten it.

There was nothing he could say to convince him otherwise,  because  he

himself didn't know.

"I don't think so," Tru said. "I think I'm truly seeing  you  for  the

first time."

Anakin swallowed. He didn't know what to say. This was  an  unfamiliar

Tru, not the friend of his childhood.

"I'll see you outside," Tru said to Ferus, and walked out.

"Do you see what you've done?" Anakin said, turning savagely to Ferus.

"Yes, I see what I've done," Ferus said. "Do you?" He shook his  head.

"I'm afraid for you. You think admitting you were wrong  opens  you  up  to

attack."

"That's not true," Anakin countered. "I think  you  should  save  your

fears for yourself."

A spasm of pain crossed Ferus's face. Anakin  could  not  imagine  how

awful it must feel, to give up the Jedi Order. It would be like  giving  up

everything he lived for.

"If the Jedi ever need me, I will be there," Ferus said quietly. "That

includes you, Anakin."

Ferus walked away quickly. Anakin looked after him angrily. Ferus  got

the last word. Not only that, but it had been a kind one. The noble Padawan

to the last.

Not a Padawan, though. Not any longer.

Satisfaction soon curdled into frustration. Anakin felt as though he'd

been beaten, but he didn't know why. He remembered  the  helplessness  he'd

felt in the energy trap. He never wanted to feel that way again. Yet he was

trapped in his envy, in his anger, just as surely. Even if Ferus  left  the

Temple forever, he would still remember this feeling.

No. The feeling would fade. He would make it fade. He  would  push  it

down, down with his memories of Shmi. Now that Ferus was gone, Anakin could

fulfill his promise. He would bring balance to the Force.

Tru was angry at him, but he had never  truly  understood  the  burden

that Anakin carried. Maybe Tru had never understood him at  all.  Maybe  no

one did, except for his Master. Tru would come around.

Anakin walked out. At the far end of the hallway, he  saw  Ferus  join

Tru.

He felt as though he was  watching  them  through  the  wrong  end  of

electrobinoculars. They seemed so small, so far away.

Feeling his presence, Tru looked back over his shoulder at Anakin. And

then it hit him like a punch that knocked the air from his lungs. Tru would

never come around. He'd lost his friend forever.

Standing still, he watched Ferus and Tru walk away. He heard footsteps

beside him, and Obi-Wan was next to him.

"Anakin, I've been looking for you."

He turned automatically. "Do  you  need  me?"  "No,  I...  Anakin?  Is

something wrong?"

"Ferus has resigned from the Jedi Order."

Obi-Wan let out a breath. "I was afraid he would do something...  like

that. He feels Darra's death so strongly." There was a lost  look  in  Obi-

Wan's eyes as he gazed down the empty hallway. "The legacy of this  mission

is pain."

Anakin wanted to take away the remote look on his  Master's  face.  He

didn't want Obi-Wan to care so much about  what  happened  to  Ferus.  "The

legacy of this mission is that a great enemy has been defeated. I  saw  you

strike him down."

"That is not an act that  should  bring  you  satisfaction,  my  young

Padawan," Obi-Wan said sternly. "I took a life.

"It was done as a last resort. And it rid the galaxy of a great  evil.

Therefore it was necessary and right."

"Necessary - yes. But right?" Obi-Wan shook his head. "That is  not  a

word to throw around lightly. We cannot say what is right. We can  only  do

our best." Obi-Wan's gaze warmed. "As you do, Padawan. You never give  less

than your best. I'm proud of the Jedi you have become."

Anakin was moved. His Master so rarely spoke  this  way.  "Thank  you,

Master."

Obi-Wan gave him a long look. "And... I wanted to tell you.  The  Jedi

Council has decided that they won't speed up the trials for Padawans.  Your

Knighthood will have to wait a bit longer."

Anakin absorbed this news. So there was no chance, then. He would have

to wait. It didn't matter what he did, how well he performed.

"When the time is right, you'll take the trials, and I have  no  doubt

that you will astonish us all. Until then, we will work together. There  is

so much left to do, and I'm grateful to have you by my side  for  a  little

longer." Obi-Wan paused. "Anakin? Are you all right?"

He was all right, Anakin suddenly realized. The weakness in his  knees

he'd felt when he saw Tru walk away was gone. In a strange way, the mission

had strengthened him. He had a stronger conviction now, a  harder  edge  to

fight with. Everything had fallen  away  from  him  -  his  childhood,  his

friends, his wish to impress the Jedi Council.

He would never be helpless again.

He would only grow stronger.

He had fought with a Sith and seen true power. One  day  he  would  be

able to match it. He would be able to fight it. Not yet. But someday. Soon.

As a boy, he hadn't wanted things to change. He wanted to  keep  those

he loved close to him forever. Yet everything did change. He was  far  from

his mother. He had lost Darra. Tru. And Qui-Gon. He couldn't fight  against

those kinds of losses. So be it. He would have to push them down until they

didn't matter anymore.

One day, he would face his worst loss, the  loss  of  his  Master.  By

surpassing him, he would lose him. He pictured Obi-Wan turning  to  him  in

slow surprise, grasping for the first time the true extent  of  his  power.

Seeing that the student had outstripped the teacher.

On that day, Anakin's heart would break for the last  time.  He  would

feel the weight of impossible sorrow.

He would not be able to bear that sorrow. Unless he no  longer  had  a

heart.