Swiping the sweat from his brow, Jasyn Lancaster eyed his and Matt Stanza's dwindling water supply. Then he looked to his commrade. "To hell with this waiting around, pal. If we don't go back to the hidden Kaminoan lab and get water, we're gonna be dead men."

Stanza nodded. "There's also the possibility that there is water under the ground."

"But how far under? Could be quite a dig..."

"Well," Matt reasoned, "It's either that or risk heading off to that lab and going the wrong direction. It's worth a shot, at least."

Jasyn frowned. "I suppose it is worth a shot, all risks considered."

He paused a moment then, rubbing his stubbly chin. "I sure as kriffing hell hope Stargazer keeps her word and comes back for us, and that she lasts long enough in the Darker Realms to come back at all."

Stanza shrugged. "She gave her word," he then said.

"Yeah," Jasyn said, getting on his knees. "Guess we should take that shot at digging for water now, while the sun is down and we still have some water of our own. This will take a while. And speaking of shots...

...I she as hell wish I had one about now..."

"Reversion is coming up soon, keep your robes on," Shayla said, turning to Panthar and at last breaking her silence. Although she had been fairly quiet throughout Panthar and Galen's most recent exchange, she HAD been listening intently. "And I'm less concerned about our possible...
..."space" issues than I am about the welfare of Jasyn and Matt. It's been quite some time since I left them waiting back there on Korriban, and even if they use underground sources for water or go back to the Kaminoan hideout we found to get more water and nourishment, conditions will still be bad for them. I do have my healing abilities, if they are required...

...but I certainly hope they are not."

Shayla paused, glancing to Galen then turning back to the navboard. About that time a sigil began to flicker red.

"We're ready to revert," Shayla said, looking over her shoulder momentarily. "You may want to sit down and strap in...

...and for at least your safety you may want to turn your Sith belt on, Galen."

With no further ado than that, Shayla turned her attentions completely to the navboard, hitting the glowing red sigil. The mysterious wonder which was the star-streaks of hyperspace almost immediately cleared, and as Shayla reached out her senses picked up on the two links she had created; one with Jasyn Lancaster and one with Matt Stanza.

"The links I made with the two men are still intact...

...which means they are at the very least still alive," Shayla stated aloud, some relief evident in her words. "What their condition is, I don't know however."

Shayla reached out to the navboard once more. "We'd better hit some atmosphere and get to them, now."

Kriffing hell, he thought darkly to himself, his mind on the border of shut down, A damn ration bar would even look good about now. A bug would, for that matter...

At last though, he hit pay dirt, little as it was. A small pool of water formed over his sandy hands. He didn't bother to even look up to see if his companion had also found water; his basic survival instincts had taken over. So, partially leaning over and partially raising his cupped hands to his lips, Jasyn drank the water, sand and dirt combined. It just really didn't matter at this point.

But as he raised his head, Jasyn Lancaster swore he saw something strangely shaped and nearly unidentifiable against the harsh sky. He blinked, and it was still there. And something about it was damn familiar to him.

But I followed her suggestion, finding yet more of my earlier distrust toward her fading through ambivalence toward acceptance.

She at least is concerned for my well-being, I thought as I sat down next to the hulking form of Big Red and buckled in.

Is that of her own doing, or Jharmeen's?

Myriad questions popped into my head at that thought as I recalled the connection this one had with my flighty sister.

I wonder if I'll ever see her again. I wonder if I'll ever see Terrin again.

I wonder if I'll ever be able to hold Darra in my arms again....

I sat in a gradually increasing cloud of silence, staring off into the innerspace mere meters in front of me, and waited for Shayla's announcement that we had hit dirt.

Or that she might need my help, I followed that with. I spoke aloud.

"There are roots on the planet which are edible and offer moisture, but there is damned little to nothing in the water department. I sure hope they've managed to find something...."

My hand then slipped down to touch the strange sigil on my belt. The light warping field promptly popped about me, stretching out in a sphere approxomately 100 feet or so from the point where I sat, and thus neatly snipping the fighter from the vision of anyone who might be looking at us from below.

Or behind.

What is Sorben up to? the non sequiteur whispered silkily in my mind. I reached out and touched the strange non-metal of the bulkhead next to me, suddenly reminded of the fact that I was piloting this very same kind of ship when I first met him, and my adventures began growing in leaps and bounds.

Which prompted me to speak aloud again.

"There's kind of a trick to landing these things, so let me know if you need any input from me."

I quieted again, and waited for us to land.

Jasyn closed his eyes in utter exhaustion, trying to block out the blinding sun even as Matt tried for a light-hearted rebuttal. "You are hallucinating pal, and with not even a lick of Sith brandy in your system," he quipped, his words still somehow heavy.

Jasyn groaned. "Did you have to bring brandy up at a time like this...?"

Then he leaned over, trying his best to gain more water from the hole which he had dug, but to no avail.

And she hung with Jharmeen... er, perhaps, had, I thought as I went to where she had politely stepped aside, amending the thought even as I sat down in the cramped area forward of the ship. I reached out hands that trembled once, then steadied.

Galen ol girl, it's been a long time now, hasn't it? Far, far too long.

But just like in the case of riding a speederbike, it all came rushing back to me the moment my fingers hit the navigation board. Strange sigils lit and winked, glowing in a mute dance of power. Some in perfect synchronization with others, others in a definite pattern, and yet others seemingly at random.

I smiled, and played a little tune of my own devising upon them.

"If you're not careful about how you direct this baby, she'll land when you tell her to... literally. I mean, there's no gentle coasting; this ship will smack the surface like a rock dropped from orbit. I think it's some kind of emergency landing sequence; heck if I've ever figured out why the Sith would have their ships doing that, but there you have it.

"Step by step you have to convince the ship to be gentle -- it's kind of alive, you know -- and to remember to engage its inertial dampener, and to modify that to the specifications of a human being...."

Strange. That the modifications included specs for humans. On a Sith ship.

Why hadn't I ever noticed that before?

I mentally shrugged, and continued to pilot the little fighter through the thickening atmosphere of the sere and forbidding world beneath us. Finally satisfied that the majority of intricacies was at last taken care of, a portion of my mind was free to go back to something Panthar had stated not too long ago, something I had ignored in the growing heat of our discourse.

I turned my head a bit to one side, calling over my shoulder.

"Hey Big Red, you said you can read Sith. Great--"

Why?? How--??

I shrugged off rising question. Maybe it came with the territory... Turning a direct look to him over my shoulder, I continued.

"Can you find out anything about this place? I mean, it might be helpful to be able to anticipate what condition the guys might be in, so we can bring what supplies that are necessary along with us.

"Just to augment Jedi healing capabilities, of course."

The latter was directed toward Shayla, who I quite suddenly found I did not want to estrange from me.

I then turned my concentration to a particular golden sigil, now strobing like a visual metronome.

"I'm picking up lifeforms-- hmmm. I think we shot over them once; lemme see if I can coax this baby into landing somewhere in their vicinity."

I did just that, letting the ship then inform us of when we had finally come to rest. One certainly could not tell by any appreciable impact; it was like a feather landing on water.

I powered down a bit, letting the fighter mull to itself, and turned to the others.

"We don't know who those lifeforms are, actually. I just picked up life. Stands to reason it's the guys, though; Panthar, is there anything you found about the possibility of indigenous life forms?"

I turned back to the panel in front of me.

"I'm not popping the hatch until we're certain it's not some weird critter out to eat us..."

“Well,” he called up, “it mostly talks about the Valley of the Dark Lords, and how it used to be here in some lush valley. But I guess now it’s all just desert and rocks and secret Kaminoan labs. Oh, there was a brief mention of native tuk’ata, but it was vague as to whether they were native to the planet as a whole or just lived in the valley. So I guess unless it's a whole bunch of life signs, it's probably our boys.”

He closed the log an placed it back into its nook.

They aren't all that easy to deal with, pal, she couldn't help but think, Especially not the wild ones...

Shifting from that line of thought then, Shayla closed her eyes, stretching out to sense the lifeforms in the area.

"Our boys are nearby," she observed then, eyes still closed, "Other than that...

...I do pick up an occassional lifeform, though I couldn't tell you what they are. If we get out there and get to them quick...

...I'm thinking we can get out of here in one piece."

“Yeah,” he said. “Let’s go get them. I can carry both of them if I need to.”

He looked up to Galen.

So, it was Korriban, I thought, shaking a little at the term "Kaminoan labs" he had stated so blithely. The mere thought of what might have happened to me there, not to mention what actually had, and what Rhua and I had to do to get out of there, was a vivid scar that burned like hell; I could only hope that one day it too would be put aside as had the other horrid things I had lived through in the past four years.

I jerked back to what they were saying.

"Tuk'ata? You have a tuk'ata buddy?"

I gaped, remembering the fearsome thing that hung with Jharmeen, winding about her constantly like some sort of cat while easily shredding apart anyone else at her merest command.

I shuddered.

"Send him a postcard, pal; we don't need him here!"

My mouth snapped closed around that ridiculous comment, and I fidgeted a little. Ok, so I'm nervous as hell about being back on the same planet where I spent far too great a period of time slogging across endless dunes and rock and hardpan, dying for anything remotely resembling liquid...

...and that after managing to wriggle out of what at first seemed certain doom...

...only to face it again when we stumbled upon that horrid non-ness which led to where He lurked.

I don't care what Panthar said; the creep was still on the same planet we were about to step foot on... sort of.

But then, so were Matt and Jasyn. Now my head snapped up as another thought struck.

"Oh hell, I hope the guys didn't stumble on that Valley... thing," I said, giving all a wide-eyed look.

"It leads straight to hell, you know."

Then I shook my head, and got a grip on myself. Then I frowned, harkening back to something else he had said.

"You guys do realize that this ship is small."

I waved a hand about in support of the obvious.

"I don't know if we can really get two more people aboard her. We might have to make two trips or something; at least we can leave supplies for the one we have to momentarily leave behind."

I turned a look straight at Panthar.

"They wouldn't fit even if I did sit on your lap all the way back."

One hand still hovering on the sigil that would pop the hatch, the other ready to drop the shield, I waited. Even though I knew every second counted, the last thing I wanted to do was to rush out in hero mode without having a firm plan outlined spec by spec in my head.

Not the hell on this world.

“I’ll stay behind,” he stated flatly. “I’m big enough that we might be able to get both men aboard in my absence. Shayla can show me the lab she found and I’ll stay in there. You need to get back to K’eel Doba and find the young lady who could somehow be your daughter, then someone can come back and pick me up. I’ll give you the access codes to my account in case you need to access funds.”

Giving a wink to Galen, he smiled and half-rose out of his seat.

I paused, my hand centimeters from engaging the hatch.

He wrinkled his nose in thought.

"Yeah, don't I wish there had been..."

I sat quiet a moment longer, thinking. Shayla and Erik seemed to be pondering the quandary as well.

At last I spoke.

"Ok, I suppose we can draw straws or something, but the point is that someone is going to have to stay here and be retrieved later. End of the story.

"Now that that is resolved, I'm with you guys. Let's blow this popstand and go find the guys."

With that I hit the sigil and my belt, and in a wink of an eye the invisibility shield dropped, revealing to anyone who might be looking a strange ship, particularly difficult to look upon, in which a black orifice was now beginning to disgorge its passengers.

I jogged down the ramp and onto the hard stone of the desert floor, where I stood, hand raised to shield my eyes from the sun, and gave a quick three-sixty look about.

I sighed as the others came down to join me.

"I don't see anyone; I think we're in for a bit of a walk. Does anyone have a sensor, or do I have to go back aboard and use those of the ship, or--"

I turned to Shayla and Erik.

"Can you guys get a bead on them with the jedi powers you have?"

On the otherside of the planet....

I watched as the ship that had brought me here took off.Well, now i'm just stuck here. This really helps. I thought.

I thought about which way to go and it didn't really matter so i headed north, or atleast i thought it was north. I didn't know which way was which. I began walking slowly.Maybe i'll be lucky and something will kill me before I die from dehadryation. I thought as i continued onward for no reason.

Quieting at this then, Shayla continued to scan the area as she waited for a reply, noting to herself that her innate Force abilities were picking up on next to nothing in the way of life on this planet. There was just the something ahead of them, which she knew were the two EE employees...

...and then there was that speck of something other which touched her Force senses sporadically. And it was that something other, which was probably none other than the aforementioned tuk'ata, which disturbed her...

Frowing in curiosity, I played a little tune on the controls, and was promptly rewarded with the information that there was another lifeform, moving steadily north, situated about 165 degrees of longitude away from us.

My frown turned to a genuine one as I wondered to myself how in Hell's Seven Circles could the ship inform me of a moving lifeform that was beyond the local horizon...

...and why it would bother to do so in the first place.

Leaning over the controls, I studied them further, struggling to read the strange characters of the Sith lettering. It had indeed been so long....

I rose up with a jerk, my eyes widening as I quickly memorized the coordinates. Then I grabbed a scanner, raced out of the ship, and rejoined my companions.

"Hey!" I exclaimed as the hatch rang closed behind me.

"The ship's sensors were set not to hunt for human lifeforms, but humanoid. So I guess what it was trying to tell us is that yeah, the guys are fairly close... and at least still alive.

"But there's another humanoid on the far side of the planet; maybe we'd better scope it out after we pick up Matt and Jasyn?"

I drew in a deep breath, and ran the scanner around me, nosing it back and forth before finally holding it steady.

"According to this, the guys are maybe, oh... I'd say about 28 kilometers or so due ESE from our present location."

I eyed the sun, which was hovering somewhat close to the horizon.

But then he had more to say, more which he had been thinking upon as the others discussed just how they were going to fit 5 people aboard the little Sith fighter. "And you know," he then added, his words very serious, "I should be the one to stay behind."

That statement grabbed the attention of Shayla, as Erik had expected. She turned abruptly to him, the look in her eyes clearly concerned...

...but somehow seeming to also read his logic. "After all," he then explained, now that he had the attention of everyone, "You will need Shayla's healing abilities, will possibly need Panthar's connection to the Sith, and will need Galen to of course find her daughter, if indeed she is on K'eel Doba as we all suspect."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. 28 klicks is a pretty far distance to go to find the guys; I guess I can make a hop and get to them in the ship.

"We might as well all get back aboard then."

Giving the scanner a little toss and then catching it, I turned and began climbing the ramp once again.

"Guess it's too late to go back to the Kaminoan lab," Matt interjected then.

"I'd say that's a fairly decent observation, considering I don't think I can even walk right now. But if we don't try..."

"...we won't make it anyway," Matt finished for him.

...but she still didn't like it. After all, if he was going to stay behind everything within her cried to stay with him as well even though this time she absolutely knew she couldn't. For in the short span of time they had been on Korriban, she'd been able to zone in more clearly on the links she shared with Jasyn and Matt.

"Ok, guys; grab onto something. This is gonna be short n' sweet!"

Not even waiting for the others to take a seat, I slammed the hatch and lifted off. The little ship rose to an altitude of about five hundred meters, traveling in a nice parabola the apex of which we hit before I could even draw a breath.

Seconds later, and the ship descended to make landfall in a flurry of sand and grit and dust.

Once again I reduced power, but kept her running should we have to take off in a rush. I popped the hatch, turning and taking a look outside as it opened.

About 300 meters away was an extremely familiar sight: the lip of an immense canyon seemed to smile spitefully, holding its horrendous secrets to itself like some miser gloating over his hoards.

I shuddered.

I didn't know that this was where they were!

"Let's go!" I cried then, leaving the controls and heading for the open hatch. I ran through it and down the ramp, this time grabbing a scanner and a nearby medkit in passing. At the bottom I waited impatiently for the others.

"I know that canyon, and believe me it's not with the fondest of memories!" I called up to the others, who were clambering down the ramp in my wake.

He trotted to Galen, winked, and headed out away from the ship to allow the others room to pass. He ran a few steps, then stopped dead in his tracks.

Before him, just meters from his feet, was the edge of the most awe striking sight he had ever set eyes upon. A wide, monstrous canyon, carved into the desert and gaping like the maw of the planet itself lay in his path. It stretched for miles in all directions, and Panthar suddenly felt very, very small.

He stood transfixed on this wonder for what seemed like eternity. Then he finally looked downward, not fully able to see the bottom amidst the mist and haze. Yet something down there called to him, almost beckoned him to take just a few more steps.

Just a few more…

He barely noticed his feet moving…

Man this heat is way to strong. No wonder nothing lives out here. I thought. I cotinued slowly for a few meter or so befoe falling to my knees.

I can't do it. I can't go on anymore. i'm just not as strong as I used to be I thought as i slumped to the ground.

"Hey, guys! I think they're just over that dune over there!"

I smiled, thankful to have finally found our quarry, and in turning to wave the others on caught a blur of red in the corner of my eye.

Intrigued, I turned... only to see, much to my horror, that Red was not only standing on the very lip of that cursed canyon but was actually beginning to move down into it.

"Hey!" I cried out a warning, smack on the heels of Shayla's; then without even thinking about it took off running as fast as I could.

It's only 300 meters, Galen; you can reach him, just like in PE back in school, you know you can run and reach him before he goes over the edge; how in Hell's Seven Circles did he get there so fast...?

To my horror, I still had about 100 meters to go when he disappeared entirely over the edge....

And the bottom wasn’t really all that far…

And something waited there, something that called…

Panthar stepped once more, then his foot connected with nothing. He went tumbling head over heels off the edge, rolled, then stopped as his back struck a rock. He flung out a hand to whatever was near and grabbed hard. His fall came to a stop, and as the dust cleared around him he felt the strange desire to descend further disappear.

“Ah, crap,” he panted. “What the bloody silly hell was that all about?”

He looked up and around. He was resting on a short cliff, just a few meters from the top. The slope below was not steep here, but the climb back up would be rather difficult. He groaned and rolled to his stomach, still grasping the jutting rock that broke his fall. A sharp pain shot through his side, and he winced.

“Hey!” he called out. “Anybody up there?”

Panting, I fell on my stomach at the edge, for here there was a fairly sheer drop of about 45 feet before a talus slope gave feet something easier to walk upon, and I sure as hell didn't want to fall over the edge as Panthar had apparently done.

Filled with trepidation, I peered carefully over the edge; to my great relief I saw him sitting upright, shaking his horned head and letting dust fly from it.

And hopefully some sense into it!

My earlier fear and concern for his safety evaporated in a cloud of relief, which soon spun into anger at his apparent stupidity.

"Great move, Ace!" I called down, shaking my head and snorting.

He looked at the steep wall he would now need to climb.

“Well, I guess I’ll need to climb.”

He carefully stood, struggling for balance until he finally felt sure he could move. He took a step forward and stopped as searing pain blasted through the side of his back once again. He clenched his fists and waited until the pain stopped. Then he took another step.

The pain this time was no less intense, but he found it a little easier to tolerate. Another step brought him to the cliff wall. He looked up and saw Galen’s head silhouetted by the sun behind her, and smiled broadly at her. The pain was intense, but he suddenly felt determined to not let it show.

“Well,” he muttered under his breath. “This is about the stupidest predicament you’ve ever been in. Down here at the bottom of a cliff, probably with a broken rib, about to climb up 50 feet and smile about it, just to keep some red-headed woman from calling you a coward. That has got to be the most…”

He dug his right hand into the stone wall, grasping at whatever would give him purchase.

“…bone-headed…”

He lifted himself a little and grabbed the rock with his left hand. His powerful punch chipped away bits of stone and allowed his claws to dig in around the jutting stone.

“… bantha-brained…”

He released his hold with his right hand and brought it up again, grabbing another stone in the wall and pulling himself up. The pain flared again, and the smile on his faced evaporated like water hitting the heat transfer on a Star Destroyer. He paused, hanging 10 feet above the stones below, and almost 40 feet from the top.

“Oh, this is gonna hurt like a son of a—“

He continued with the left hand, letting a sound utterly Sith in nature escape his throat. He continued to roar as he let fly hand over hand, claws digging into the rock as blood began to pour from his fingers. Almost to the top, his left hand struck the rock hard and did not penetrate or find purchase on a jutting rock. He growled deeply, the pain intense, and hung from the rock with his right hand.

His eyes, blurred from sweat and sun, looked upward. He blinked to try to clear is vision, yet images remained blurry. He thought he could make out the image of Galen, and tried to focus on her.

"Hey guys, you're jedi, aren't ya? Can you do anything to help Big Red down there?"

"Yeah," she then said, "I can definitely help."

Then, stepping a little bit closer to the lip of the canyon, she got a good eye on where Panthar was before she called out to him. "Hang on, ok? I'm gonna pull you up the rest of the way telekentically."

Then she did just that, reaching out with the Force to get a hold on Panthar, who then found himself smoothly ascending out of the canyon then onto the ground near the rest of them. Shayla gently lowered him, but still Panthar winced as a pain overtook him, so she stepped closer to him, squatting. And although he hadn't said as much, Shayla knew he was hurt, as did everyone else.

"What hurts?" she queried, knowing that they were going to need a little first aid, whether out of the medkit or via the Force before they continued on.

Then something he had said sent shivers racing up and down my spine, and my arms instinctively flew about myself as I whispered,

"Hey, what did you mean, 'something weird going on' down there?"

Dear gods, was it Him again, now somehow able to reach out from that awful place of roiling nothingness which lurked in the nethermost regions of this canyon?

Or something else entirely?

“Oh, yeah,” he said at last, “and maybe a little bruise on my side.”

The pain let up a little, just enough to allow the feeling from his hands slip into the fore-front. He grimaced at the burn from his fingers.

“And maybe I chipped a nail.”

He leaned back, suddenly very tired, and forced his eyes to move to Galen.

“I don’t know what the heck happened. One minute I was looking out at this gorgeous scenery, and the next I’m walking into it. It’s almost like something was… well, calling out to me. Wanting me to come join it down there.”

He opened his eyes fully and looked directly into Galen’s.

“Where the heck are we, Little Red? Am I going crazy?”

This has got to quit, Galen! A tiny part of the ol' tough me reared up inside to chastise myself.

You've met plenty of other nasties in the universe, and you don't melt into a puddle of mindless goo everytime you think of them, do you? What is it with this one??? True, He-- He--

I let that thought snip closed then as, with a little sigh I let my body plop sideways from my knees so I was sitting half on my haunches, my folded legs to one side. My hands fell limply to the force of gravity, one of them unconsciously dabbling in the sand and grit upon which I was sitting.

"You're not going crazy, Panthar, believe me," I finally whispered back.

"Somewhere at the bottom of that canyon is... well, all I can describe it as is a weird kind of nothing that leads to a an even weirder, horrible place where demons live and where-- He--"

I gulped, then forced myself to say it.

"Where somehow, Dark Lord Roan is still impossibly alive. Or at least a reasonable fascimile thereof. Reasonable enough that he still has his powers, and somehow, as improbable as it seems, he's able to reach out into this reality from there and lure one inside.

"To Him."

I shuddered, and shifted to sit cross-legged. Brushing my hands together a bit, I then drew in a deep breath.

"When I was last here with Rhua, we were camping on the edge of this very canyon; maybe not exactly here, it's kinda big; but it was this canyon. Somehow He drew me to the edge, and then down... I-- I ended up in that nasty place where I saw-- where he had--"

The image of Roan holding Terrin flashed in front of me, then blurred as tears popped into my eyes.

"He had my husband, and in order to free him I had to give myself over... which is how I ended up with you guys on Khar Delba.

"I think I already told you that."

Now I firmed.

"But, don't for one minute think you're nutso, pal, 'cuz you're not. This is an evil place, with a link to evil lurking down there, and in charge of it all, or at least in very much command of whatever forces are here, is one of the most evil blights the galaxy has ever known."

Shayla trailed a moment, shaking her head. Then, "How is it even possible?"

"Wha--? Of course I know who it was, it was Terrin! I don't know how in Hell's Seven Circles he got to this planet in the first place, but obviously once he did he fell under the influence of Roan and wound up in that-- in that other place, the place that by all the gods in all the universe shouldn't exist at all!

Terrin was dead, and she had no idea how Galen had come to believe that he wasn't. Still, this wasn't the time or the place to address such issues, and doing so might cause more damage than could be repaired. And yet another little part of Shayla had to wonder if this wasn't somehow possible. After all, the person a woman knows best, other than her own children, would be her husband. Just maybe Galen had encountered Terrin, somehow...

"So," Shayla then stated, turning back to Panthar and breaking the moment of silence which had suddenly fallen upon them, "I can give you a little healing boost so we can get to the guys and get off this planet. Granted, I can't completely heal you, especially not with the short span of time I feel that we have to complete our mission here...

...but this should at least help so we can get moving."

And get the hell off this planet, a came her mental addendum as she reached out to lay a hand on Panthar's shoulder, closing her eyes and reaching out to the Force to channel healing energies into him.

"Here, let me help... a little."

Moving to where Panthar was receiving ministrations I settled beside Shayla, giving her a flash of a smile as I did so.

“Hey, that feelsh good,” he blurted. He shook his head to try to clear the fog from his eyes. “Now we should go find… um, Matt and Erik… no, the other guy. Fred? Jasyn? Anyway, let’s go find ‘em.”

Panthar propped himself up on an elbow, the pain still there but nowhere near as intense. He rubbed his eyes and gave his head another shake.

“Why am I so sleepy?” he asked.

As he waited for an answer, his vision drifted back to the edge of the canyon, hanging just a short distance away. So quiet, so non-assuming, so… tranquil. If he just could get up, he could crawl….

He shook his head again and focused on Galen. Someone had said something, he was sure, but he had no clue who had spoken. He saw her sitting next to him, medkit in hand, her face outlined by the sun behind her, flame red hair blending with the sunlight to cast a fire around her. For a moment she reminded him of something from mythology, and as the world swam around him he thought of how she would look in a toga.

His eyes rolled back and darkness overtook him.

"Good, he's asleep," I commented upon the obvious. "Did you do that?"

I turned to Shayla, then continued. The medkit folded back into itself and found its way into my pocket as I went on.

"He's right; we really ought to get going and find the guys. Do you think one of us should wait here with Red while the other goes off after Jasyn and Matt?

"Sensor indicates they're over that dune somewhere...."

He stopped and looked to his left. Two men, dusty and sunburned, were on their knees scraping damp sand from a hole in the ground. Panthar heard the sound of a low growl and saw a shape moving in the rocks behind the men. The men didn’t seem to see him or the shape in the rocks, so he walked across to the rocks. There he saw a snarling tuk’ata, parched and hungry, lurking in the shade. It paid him no attention as it intently watched the two men.

Panthar walked back to the men and kneeled beside them.

“Hey,” he said. “There’s a beast over there about to eat you. Just thought I’d let you know.”

The two men looked up to him from their hole, sand encrusting their mouths. One tried to speak, but the words sounded distorted, as if being played backwards on a recorder unit. Panthar shrugged and stood, and continued on his way.

He came to a hill, and when he reached the top he saw a deep valley stretching out before him. The ground seemed to move, and then he realized that it was completely covered in creatures that were bobbing and writhing. They stretched for miles, down into the valley and up the other side. At the top of the hill stood a large, hooded figure. Panthar could hear a snarl, which turned into a dark laugh, come from under the hood. The figure then threw its hands upward and was greeted with the deafening cheer of millions of demons. Panthar frowned and turned the other direction.

He came to the bottom of the hill and paused beside a long, flat stone. A Sith, large as the day, tied sprawled to the huge stone, gutted from end to end, his tattooed face staring blankly to the dark sky as his dead hand still clutched a long lock of flame-red hair. Panthar cocked his head and examined the Sith more closely.

“Phal?” he said to no one in particular.

He stepped back as realization took hold.

“Oh, where the hell am I now? Is this a dream? Is this that damn Eye trying show me things again? Stop it, will ya? I’m just a stupid damn archeologist! Leave me alone!”

He closed his eyes and clutched his head. His nails scraped against his horns, and he wailed mournfully. Footsteps from behind caused him to spin, and his eyes flew open to greet the mad, grinning visage of Lord Roan. Roan’s eyes danced with delight as Panthar’s fear was plain on his face. Roan’s eyes shifted to the right, and as Panthar eye’s followed the beast’s hand rose to reveal a severed head, long flame-red hair dripping with blood. Roan then stepped to the side to allow Panthar view of the struggling Galen, tied with barb-wire to another stone, stripped naked and bleeding everywhere. Her eyes were pleading, almost for death, and Panther felt his feet sink into the ground.

“You bastard!” he shouted. “Phalomir didn’t kill you dead enough the first time! You do not touch her, do you understand?! I’ll kill you myself, you low-life yellow scum-sucking worm! I’ll kill you, then I’ll kill you again, and again!”

Panthar let out a blood-curling roar as he sank deeper and deeper into the ground. As the strange black soil crept over his chin, he heard Roan shout back.

“I’ll be waiting!”

Panthar’s breath gave out as the ground rose over his head.

Panthar’s eyes snapped open and he shot straight up. He looked around, sweat pouring from his body. He looked to Shayla, wild eyed, then frantically searched for Galen. He found her next to him, hand halfway in her pocket. Both women were looking at him as if he were stark raving mad, both reeling from the words he had shouted in his brief sleep.

Eyes still wide, but breathing coming under control, he merely said “We need to find them now, there may be a tuk’ata. Then we need to leave this planet, and never come back.”

...and those words in turn sent shivers up and down her spine. First she sat numbly, unable to move, then at length she started to reach out a hand to shake him awake when he sat bolt upright, a look of horror filling his eyes and his words.

Chill bumps began to cover Shayla's skin, and the Eye hidden on her person glowed a somehow warning red.

"Yeah, she whispered as she stood and then she and Galen and Erik helped Panthar to his feet, "Let's hurry."

Then with no further ado they all began to head towards the dune which Galen believed the two EE employees were just over, the step in their walk faster yet somehow heavier at the same time.

It had to have been the Eye. It shows things to Phal, it was always telling him things back when we were all together. But if it was the Eye, why would it show me these things. Why ME? All this is done is piss me off! Maybe I should be afraid of Roan, but right now all I want to do is find a way to get rid of him forever. I’ve never felt so much hate in my life. I can’t let a monster like that be able to reach my friends, I can’t let him do that to Phal or Gray, and REALLY can’t let him get his claws on Galen… That thought alone, standing there helpless while he… he… Whoa, maybe that’s it…

Panthar paused a moment to allow the others to catch up. He looked to Galen, then to Shayla.

"Oh really?" she said then to Panthar, her eyes darkening ever the slightest, "Weren't you the one that was insisting you were the most logical choice to stay behind only a few minutes ago? Why the sudden change? Is it something you were dreaming back there?"

As she waited for a reply to this, they made their way to the peak of the dune, where she paused momentarily and hooded her eyes with her hand to search the area. It didn't take long for her gaze to focus on two very familiar specks at the bottom of the dune.

"Down there!" she called to the others, pointing with her other hand. Then, a clearly determined look in her eyes and in her step, Shayla began to descend the dune towards the place where they now knew the two EE crewmen were.

Two specks that were about fifty yards from a pile of large, familiar stones.

Panthar stopped, holding up his hand.

“Shayla,” he shouted. “Wait!”

He turned to Galen.

“This is exactly what I saw in my dream,” he said. “Except I was standing over there by those rocks, and there was a tuk’ata watching the guys. Stay here, I’ll try to draw it away if there is one!”

He looked up to Galen, eyebrows raised in hope.

My mouth hung open with nothing coming out of it in those frozen, interminable few seconds it took me to access all data possible, analyze it, and come to some kind of reasonable conclusion. I directed an assessing gaze directly into his eyes, searching deeply. For what did I really know about this guy?

You don't, Galen. You just met, and in a Sith temple where He threw you to boot. Him and the one who used to hang around your wacko sister... or maybe she still does?

A precious nanosecond marched by as summary dismissal followed directly on the heels of that possible assessment.

Nah, too improbable. Too convoluted; why the heck would they help you escape, then come here to get the guys? I mean, they already knew where the guys were, they could have gotten rid of me from square one, or left me back in that nasty temple.

Occam's Razor... so scratch that once and for all, kiddo.

Logic dictated the possibility of only two other reasonable conclusions. Either this guy was wishy-washy nutso, or he was telling the absolute truth as he knew it, however in Hell's Seven Circles he came into that knowledge.

What to do? What were the risks?

Well... I could totally ignore this, end of the story... and if it happens to be true, then the guys are dead, and possibly Shayla as well, and Erik, and oh cripes, us too; I bet those nasty canastas can climb.

If I act on it and it happens to be a false alarm, then all I risk is looking like seven kinds of fool... for which I'm sure I can take recompense out of Big Red's hide.

Another nano-second. I narrowed my eyes, reading his.

Then--

"Shayla, guys... WAIT!!!"

With a final parting glance at Red, I shot down the dune as quickly as I could, one hand ready to hit the device on my belt. It could only reach out to a particular distance, gads though, even if the guys couldn't be seen, the beasts could smell them...

"Roll in the sand and dirt, guys! HURRY! Cover your scent!"

I waved frantically as I caught up with the rapidly descending Shayla. Jedi she might be, but thank Khaandon she wasn't augmenting her approach with those weird powers they have; I was able to catch up with her.

Panting, and still moving downward, I clapped a trembling hand on her shoulder.

"Pan-Panthar says there's a tuk'ata hiding around those rocks."

The quavering hand raised and pointed.

"I'm gonna hit the switch here, but I think they're still out of range--

"Guys! Roll in the kriffing dirt!"

Hitting the switch, I kept slipping and sliding as fast as possible down the shifting slope, hoping to all the gods that behind me Big Red had flipped out of sight along with Shayla and me.

For down in the vicinity of this monster dune's base, Jasyn and Matt sure as hell hadn't.

...and saw running towards he and Matt were figments of his imagination. And when they suddenly just popped out of existence, he was sure of it.

"Matt, I think I'm dying," he then said, his voice heavy, "I'm seeing..."

"Someone that looks like Galen running toward us and telling us to roll in the dirt?" Matt queried.

Though his movements were sluggish, Jasyn jerked his head to face his commrade. "You saw it too? It can't be, it just can't. After all, I swear I saw Stargazer and a Sith with her. It can't be...

... can it?"

He trailed at that, his brown eyes locking on Matt's perceptive greens. Then, "Oh what the kriffing hell, might as well do it. Either they are there or they aren't...

...but if they are there must be a reason they are telling us to roll."

Matt nodded at this, clearly agreeing. And without any further hesitation, the two men did as the words they were hearing screamed their way and got to the ground, rolling in the dirt which they had only minutes before been digging in. Jasyn they probably looked pretty insane, and he sure hoped that they weren't.

After all, how much crazier could they get than seeing Galen and Shayla, as they had been hoping for all along?

Jasyn frowned, still rolling as a shoulder devil popped up. Hell buddy, you know the answer to that. If this is the beginnings of insanity fueled by seeing the things you've been wishing for, the next person you'll see coming across that dunetop is the Boss...

“Hey big ugly beast!” he shouted, still running full steam. “Come eat me, I taste much better!”

Panthar thought he heard a low rumbling from behind a rock and headed for it. As he rounded the turn around the boulder he lost his footing on a loose bit of sand and went sliding on his rear. He came to a stop and fratically wiped at his eyes, which had filled with sand. The pain in his side renewed as his arms worked, and as one eye cleared enough to focus, his heart nearly stopped at the sight of the large tuk’ata eyes staring at him just inches away.

“Nice kitty…” he whispered, trying to keep some semblance of composure.

The tuk’ata did not move, but continued to stare at the helpless Sith.

Panthar swallowed hard.

“Maybe I got a biscuit…” he hoarsed.

The tuk’ata kept its gaze fixed. Panthar could feel the sweat pooling on his brow, and continued to keep still as it trickled down his face. It channeled around his eyes, and dripped onto his nose. This small disturbance somehow signaled his nasal passages to itch, and before he could react he found himself in the middle of a huge sneeze.

He closed his eyes and waited for the claws and fangs to rip into him. But nothing happened. He opened his good eye again and saw the tuk’ata still staring. In fact, it hadn’t moved at all.

He slowly moved his hands to the ground and eased himself backwards. No movement from the tuk’ata. He retreated further, and still nothing. He paused, then picked himself slowly to his feet. Still the tuk’ata remained motionless.

Panthar looked in wonder at the large tuk’ata. It stood Panthar’s height, it’s head bowed to the ground as if sniffing for prey. It’s claws were extended and its face set in a snarl, eyes looking upward. But it was perfectly still, as if frozen. Panthar stepped closer, then waved his hand in front of its face. There was no reaction.

Panthar stared for a moment in wonder, then backed out into the open. He looked around, and seeing only the two parched men, headed for them. The men stared at him blankly, as if they didn’t believe he was there.

I started, nearly falling on my butt.

Panthar-- what the--

What in Hell's Seven Circles does he think he's doing?

I didn't have time to wonder; it seemed I had only traveled another twenty feet or so, when the big red lug came sauntering casually around from behind the group of rocks he had made such a beeline for.

Still some fifty meters or so below and ahead, the specks that were Jasyn and Matt looked up from the soil upon which they lay.

I bet they're surprised; hope they don't have a blaster on 'em or anything; Jasyn can be a touch wee trigger happy...

I raised my arm, momentarily forgetting that Shayla and I were still gripped within the confines of the invisibility shield. Figuring we needed it no longer, I turned it off.

Beside me, Shayla quickened her pace. And as for me--?

Well, you know what they say about the sandcat!

Nodding to myself as Red and Shayla converged on the guys, I altered my own route a tad and headed for that group of rocks that the big Sith had found interesting enough to haul hiney for. I figured it was safe enough, hadn't he just emerged from around them without so much as a scratch or bite?

Slowing to a saunter myself, I made it to the rocks and went around.

There I froze, literally nose-to-nose with the biggest and ugliest and hungriest looking tuk'ata I had ever seen....

"Matt...?" he queried, his voice sounding as dry as his throat really was.

"Yeah, I see," the other replied, immediately understanding.

Even so, Jasyn continued to stare, as if he were just waiting for the vision to disappear. But then Galen--

--or at least, the person or figment of his imagination that looked like Galen went off behind a rock pile not too far away from them. Jasyn frowned, cocking an eyebrow in that general direction for a long moment until at last he became aware of a rather large shadow falling over him. He redirected his gaze and realized that Shayla seemed to be right in front of them.

But hell, she wasn't that big. This had to be a mirage or something.

But then a big booming voice grabbed his attention, and he turned to see the towering form of a Sith not far from him. Jasyn scrambled to a sitting position. Unsurprisingly, the first words that popped into his head then popped out of his mouth.

"I sure as kriffing hell hope this is a rescue party," he said first to Shayla, then looking to the Sith, "And if you don't mind my asking, who the hell are you, and what the hell happened to the other person who was with you, cause she looked a heck of alot like someone I know..."

Panthar looked to Shayla.

...hurry and go get her. And if you need help..."

She paused a moment, turning and looking to her husband, "Have Erik holler."

Once more she paused, her eyes only for Erik as if silently asking permission to say what she was about to. "He'll go with you. In the meantime, I'm going to do a little healing...

...but not alot, cause as soon as you get Galen, we need to get out of here."

Saying this, Shayla then turned and began following through on the words she had just spoken, knowing that behind her Panthar was likewise acting on his own.

Man, I wish I had something to eat or drink on the long voyage here. That might have helped me. I thought.

I kept walking ever so slowly. Falling to my knees every 5 minutes, but slowly getting right back up and continuing.

Then once when I fell to my knees, I didn't get up. I streched out with the force searching or calling for anybody.

Someone help me. Someone.... I called.

I'll just take a little nap. I thought as i closed my eyes.

Graysith waited impatiently for Phalomir to react to her startling double revelation. On the one part of it, the lack of any signature of Sith physiology upon the planet below could well be due to the fact that they simply had arrived at Korriban before Aeylmaar.

But what in all the fates would humans be doing on this blasted and highly secret world of the Sith?

For a moment something flashed through the block in her mind; an image. One of an older human, white haired and bearded, leading two young redheaded women into another desert, just as drear as what this planet promised to show them. Nothing much was in that desert, but at a particular point a tiny bit of rock thrust up from the hardpan, one which after months and months of careful excavation proved to be a portion of a weather-pitted and ruined statue.

A humanoid statue, one bearing tattered remnants of royal robes, one weighed heavily with weaponry of an elegant and exotic nature, one with claws and horns and faded leftovers of color yet emblazoned in its eyes.

A Sith. Uncovered by her own father. Who then was to say that another xenoarcheologist could not have found his way to this place, via hint and nuance and ancient whisper echoing through time, to perhaps even now be stepping foot into the vast and wonderful and sacred Valley of the Dark Lords, where she and Shayla and Recinis had--

She stopped with a jerk as that inner door slammed closed. Frowning, she was turning back to Phalomir with further inquiry as to this place when yet another sigil flashed for attention. She stared at it a moment before its meaning finally sunk in.

"Phalomir," she said as she flipped on the aft view screens, ones whose visual input devices were situated close to the warship's only docking bay.

"There is another ship here, a Sith fighter, and it is coming to us."

Now she smiled, albeit a bit hesitantly. Could this be Aeylmaar, arriving at last?

This time not waiting for Phalomir's input about it, she sent out a hail, her smile evaporating even as she opened transmissions with the unknown ship.

"Unidentified Sith ship, explain yourself."

Her message swift, and as imperious as her nature, she followed it by reaching for silence once again, waiting for a response from any quarter before deciding whether or not to actively hunt down the humans whose unexpected presence was still marring the planet below.

"Did not Ayelmaar state the purpose in meeting us here on Korriban was to divulge information concerning some danger?" she asked simply, frowning a bit as she let her thoughts drift back to the last time they had spoken.

"Something about a Cult Assassin-?"

She paused, letting her expression darken as she strove to bring meaning to this title.

"What is that, Phalomir, a 'Cult Assassin?' I know of no such clan or cult; what is this?"

Now her frown segued into a darker one, one of disgust at her own intermittant memories. She pursed her lips, and raised a hand to her temple. Then she snorted, and went back to the controls. There she read out the signature of the ship again.

"This is a Sith ship, and the hail is most definitely not from Ayelmaar.

"Could something have happened to him, and he has now sent someone else in his stead?

"What think you?"

He stood up, gathered his sword and poisons. For the first time in many years, he would be fighting against those that were definatly a match for him. He knew that Raegolosh would have trouble by himself, but perhaps both of them would be able to defeat such a powerful being. The poisons he caried were of a sacred art, and took years to make. He only carried three doses at once, which was, at least in the past, always enough. Just a small amount would kill, but Sa'kal'ishaalas alway prefered to use his sword. Realizing that the assasination of these two would probably get rough, I raise my magical defenses.

Stepping into the cockpit, "Are they going to allow us in master?"

Raelgosh thought, Would aelvedaar betray us? Just to rid himself of us? Or mayhaps...

Raelgosh thought back to the horrified expression the younger sith, Ael-something had had when Aelvedaar had told them their mission. Could he be the one to betray us, if that so is the case?

“Ayelmaar has great power,” he said, looking off into the viewscreen. “I am sure of it. If something would have happened to him, he most likely would have found another means to deliver his message. I am wary of our visitors, my lady. Furthermore, our arrangements called to meet upon the surface, not aboard our ship.”

He looked to the Dark Lady.

He walked slowly to her and touched her on the shoulder. Her head snapped in his direction, eyes wide with panic. He put his finger to his lips and let his arm slide around her waist, then gently tried to pull her away from the still beast. When “gently” didn’t work, he gave more force and dragged her away quietly.

Around the other side of the rock, he turned Galen to face him. Her face still showed the panic, and he tried to flash a big Sith smile. That didn’t help. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came. Instead he placed both hands on her shoulders, motioned with his head for Erik to come, and bit at his lower lip.

...all we need to do is get the heck out of here. It is not a good idea for you to stay behind here and investigate, that's the very reason I'm here to begin with. So just forget about the tuk'ata, and let's get going...

The look on Erik’s face made Panthar pause. The curious grin Panthar wore turned quickly to a smile, then faded into a frown.

“Maybe you’re right,” he whispered. “We came here to get the guys, let’s get back to the ship. Maybe Galen can buzz back over here and I can look from above.”

Panthar turned to Galen.

“Sound like a plan?” he asked.

Galen did not answer, but continued to stare at him.

“Um,” he said. “This doesn’t seem like a good thing. You OK, there, little red?”

Galen did not speak, but began to tremble slightly.

“OK, this is enough. I hope she doesn’t kill me.”

Panthar swiftly swept his arm under her and lifted, catching her in his other arm in a bridal carry. “Let’s go see how Shayla is doing, then I’m getting her back to the ship.”

Without waiting, he turned and trotted to where Shayla was working with the two men.

"I just did some minor healing til we get back on the ship and do a healing trance..."

She trailed, turning to the guys, "...if you'll permit me to, that is."

Then, turning back to Panthar, "But I agree, we need to get out of here. I'll also see what we can do about Galen once we get onto the ship...

...maybe she is in a bit of shock, since she's allowing you to actually carry her at the moment. That's definitely not something I'd invision her doing. But the problem remains, how are we all going to get back to the ship, since three of us won't be able to handle the walk back there?"

...so he was very surprised when he heard Shayla mention that she didn't think they could handle the walk back.

"Whaddya mean we can't walk?!" he blurted. You just worry your pretty little head on makin' sure Galen's allright. After all, she just saw..."

Jasyn paused, something just registering in his thought processes that hadn't up until now. "Did you just say tuk'ata?!"

That word tattooed across his mind's eye, along with images of what such a beast could do, spurred him into motion.

Well, that is, almost into motion. Try as he might to get on two feet he couldn't.

...or the sudden realization that I really couldn't move a muscle if I wanted to.

Er, that is, at least at the time of said plucking of my body, which was at the time, or maybe place, as motionless as the beastie whose presence triggered the tumbling about of the abovementioned events.

I could only stare fixedly toward the rocky horizon as I was carried away from the potentially dire predicament. But as I was toted farther and farther away, I found that one toe had the ability to wiggle, as did my nose.

Now I could see Shayla's blonde tresses in my peripheral vision, and a blur of something red-- Matt's hair? Big Red's ugly face?

Whatever.

My nose wiggled more. A lip jerked fractionally.

"Ooh ahn oot ee own ow," I managed, trying to make my entire foot, and then leg, follow the minute motions of the toe, so I could kick Red in whatever body part happened to be handily close. No such luck; I remained as immobile as the tuk'ata, although the farther and farther he carried me, the better I seemed to be getting.

When Shayla came into full view, I found to my delight that I could cock an ankle a bit.

"Ey, Ig Ed, I ed oo ahn oot ee own!"

Inside my stubbornly nonmoving lips, my tongue was finally beginning to function again; with great effort I licked my lips and tried again.

"Ut nee down!"

I would have glared at him, but my eyes were directed Shayla's way; all I could do was send her a pleading glance, one which I tried to fill with as much surprise and effrontery and disgust as I could.

I was not in shock, as Big Red thought. Damn if I wanted anyone here to think that.

What I was, though, was strangely unmoving.

Just like that damned tuk'ata.

Frustrated, I could only lay in Red's arms like some kind of reluctant bride, and hope to Hell's Seven Circles that mobility would soon return to me, so I could join forces with everyone again not only in finding out what the hell was going on, but in getting us off this rock to figure from a far safer place what we were going to do next.

He sighed, and stared out across the open stretch of unbroken hardpan. It stretched out below him, as flat and featureless and white as a frozen pond. This was the Field of Discourse, upon whose uncaring surface many a Sith had come to his timely, or as the case might be, untimely end. For it was here that the clan sub-lords would come in the Old Times, when there was need to meet and join forces. More than likely, such meetings would end in bloodbaths; the Sith, while actually being of high integrity, were fiercely stubborn when it came to their clans and personal beliefs.

He sighed again, musing upon this history while he waited for the arrival of the Lady and her companion.

How useless, to fight and kill and bluster... when a simple joining of forces would serve to strengthen the parts into a united whole. Unity brings stability; segregation nothing but squabbling and separation from each other.

He shook his head, then leaned back with a sigh. A blotch of cloud passed across the face of the lowering sun; the silhouette it presented suddenly reminded him of the beast he had found to be a potential threat when the Lady would arrive. It had been a simple procedure to reach into the tuk'ata and play with it's inner clock, slowing it down to where what would seem like a mere second of life from its perspective would in fact actually be the passage of years realtime.

Strange to find it away from the Valley, he mused further.

I wonder who or what could have lured it there?

He shrugged to himself, and shifted against the rock, now turning his thoughts to the Chosen Daughter of the Sith, wondering again when she would arrive.

He hoped when she did, she would have the foresight to scan the planet for his life-signature, and in the doing realize that he was not the only living humanoid currently on the planet.

Saying this, Shayla stepped in closer to Galen, her eyes and ears and Force senses now keenly attuned to some obvious variables as Galen tried for the life of her to speak and move, but to not much avail. "Galen is not in shock," she then observed, "And we know for a fact that frozen tuk'ata back there isn't. I wonder if there is some sort of strange Sith magick at play here, something to perhaps keep the unwanted from getting too close to this place."

She paused at this, pursing her lips. Then, "I think we will go back to the ship, and do a fly-over of the area. And in the meantime, I think I'm going to consult the eye. And yes," Shayla finally said, turning fractionally to Jasyn Lancaster, "If the only solution to our problem is for me to levitate you back to the ship, then that is what I'm going to do."

She turned back to Panthar and Erik. "Now let's get out of here, and now."

It did not take long to arrive at the most logical of conclusions.

"If this unknown who hails us is indeed sent by Aeylmaar, then certainly he would have been directed to meet with us upon the surface, as Aeylmaar himself was to do. In this, I heartily agree with your assessment, Phalomir.

"And-"

Now she raised her head, tossing back her locks as she stared him straight in the face.

"If it is not Aeylmaar, I am led to wonder just how it was we have been discovered here, to thus in turn be hailed. Who would have known this was our destination, other than Aeylmaar himself?

"No, I believe there is something afoot; we should proceed from this point with the greatest of caution."

Turning away then, she opened the connection with the fighter.

"Identify yourself," she said tersely, her hands ready to activate weapons at the merest touch of a sigil. To Phalomir she concluded with,

"I hope nothing has happened to Aeylmaar."

While at first that comment was meant lightly, primarily from a viewpoint of self-preservation, for some strange reason she found it the reflection of a feeling growing more and more sincere by the minute.

"Tell me of this Field of Discourse, and where we might find it. Perhaps Aeylmaar is already there, and knows there is something wrong, and has used his strengths to hide himself from he who would harry us, and thus would not be easily found. Perhaps we must track his location with greater intensity and care."

"I am Ralfarth, a servant of a, peculiar, sith. My personal guard goes by the name Sa'kal. We request permission to dock with your ship. If not, then to meet at a neutral location of your choosing in the immediate area."

Raelgosh paused.

"Otherwise, they would have requested we meet upon the Field of Discourse, where he had intended. Unless--"

She paused, chewing on her lip again.

What if Aeylmaar had been found out? What if those who might have prevented him from coming, if indeed that had happened, had laid a trap for her at the Field of Discourse? Is that why this Ralfarth was requesting she choose the place where they would meet?

But then, if that were the case, he would not have had the time to send someone in his stead, would he? If it was dangerous for him to come, he would have contacted her, explaining there would be another, would he not have?

She frowned, her mind circling about this dilemma like a vulture circles fresh meat. Speaking her conclusions aloud to Phalomir, she gave the unidentified craft one last chance to prove itself.

Her hands reached out and danced upon that section in which communications and its various controls lay. Nodding, she hailed a final time.

"Ralfarth, I thank you for your patience. You must understand it is something of a surprise that you have found me here; I applaud your tenacity in this.

"I have created a highly secured communications link between our two ships. If you would be so kind as to divulge this information which is of such great importance to me, you would receive my thanks."

Phalomir thought of the beings he had encountered in his time here, their motives, and abilities. Who could have known their location? The Master, indeed had the ability, but it would be illogical for him to send assassins since all he had made it clear he wanted Phalomir alive. Roan could possibly have known were he alive, but his existence in the Darker Realms took away much of his power.

“Aelvedaar,” he mused aloud. “If anyone could have known, it would be him. And to send assassins after us instead of staining his own hand, either to distract, delay, or test us, fits within his profile so far. While we await a response, let us scan for Aeylmaar.”

A wry smile briefly crossed Phalomir’s lips.

But then Raelgosh had to wonder. We did pick up another ships ion trail, and he's the only other one aside from Aelmaar that could have tipped them off. So was it he that betrayed us? But then they have refered to a contact, so that must be Aelmaar. But what message would he deliver? Of course. Us.

Raelgosh turned to Sa'kal. "Keep quiet." He turned to the com sigil, and made his recording.

"Very well. We have been sent by Aelmaar, to inform you of a plot. Aelvedaar is sending assassins to kill the both of you. He told us that he believes that Aelvedaar wishes to conquer the other Clans, and take total control. He has given us a tablet with more specifics, that we were not to read, and were to give it to you directly. As I have requested before, I request you allow us onto the ship or that you designate a meeting place for us to give the tablet to you."

“Yes, let’s,” he said. “And don’t worry, I can handle two.”

He shifted Galen around to put her over his shoulder. As he moved her head past his, however, he caught a glint in her eye that hadn’t been there before, something almost fiery. A look like she was calling forth the seven hells and focusing them on Panthar…

He paused, holding her in front of him and staring into her eyes. He held her there for what seemed like an eternity, focusing on that look. She looked so intent, so focused, like she was trying to tell him something…

He shrugged and continued to swing her over his shoulder. He bent his knees and held out a hand to the men.

"I don' need no kriffin' Sith."

That said, he actaully managed to struggle to his feet...

...but not very steadily. He was suddenly feeling so sleepy...

And that was about the time the mild healing trance took full effect, and Jasyn fell forward into the depths of slumber. Somewhere nearby him, Matt had already given in and slipped off.
What a ride indeed...

She paused, eyeing the two EE men. "I'll get Lancaster and levitate him. ou take his red-headed buddy, Matt Stanza."

That said, Shayla followed through on her words and got a lock on Jasyn in the Force, levitating him.

Allright, she then thought out to th Eye, What now? What is this which has happened to Galen?

Then, reaching out to Galen, she stretched out with this thought: Galen, can you tell me what is happening with you? I know that you aren't in shock, and that you are mentally with us...

...so maybe if we can get a picture of what has happened, we can figure out exactly what to do about it...

Then, keeping her senses open for a reply from both the Eye and Galen, Shayla redirected her gaze on Panthar, who had hoisted Matt Stanza onto his other shoulder. "Okay," she said, "Let's go."

...but there was still the little matter of how to prove those words were true.

She turned to Phalomir, her lips pursed, every red flag of warning still waving within her being.

"What think you?" she asked. "Do you think--

"Wait."

She interrupted own words, drawing herself upright as a slight smile began to curl about her features. Reaching out once again, she flipped open the channel between the two ships.

He turned to his scanners, and began scanning the surface. A few moments later, it brought up results. Interesting, a party of humanoids in a group nearby a sith fighter. But, over here, a single life signature. Aelmaar possibly? But it would take to long to find the name of the place. That whole planet is named, almost every rock has a name given to it.

Raelgosh brought up a geographical readout of the planet, and set a marker around the place where the single life signature had been. Then he paused, and placed another marker where the party of signatures was.

He began a search for the name of the place, while he sent the data and a transmission. "We were to meet here, but as a note, we have found something of interest here." The readout would bring up the location of the lifeforms. "Humanoid lifeforms are here, they may be our enemies, but we should be able to avoid them if we meet at the location quickly."

The readout had almost found the name, it had eliminated 9,805,000 locations down to 4,536 and going down. If that is Aelmaar, we'll have to push him to the side, or kill all three of them. After all, if he's betraying Aelvedaar, I doubt he'll mind.

Graysith remained silent, her lip beginning to curl more and more as it seemed her suspicions would be justified.

"This one takes an inordinate amount of time to reply to us, do you not agree, Phalomir?"

She snickered, tossing her head a touch, knowing in her heart of hearts that the one trying to contact her was not who he claimed to be.

“Indeed, my lady,” he said. “They show us coordinates. But why would they not speak the name instead? One set of coordinates is the same as another to me on this planet, I am unfamiliar with its geography. It was not – inhabited – in my day.”

Phalomir worked the controls on the sensors.

“There is a humanoid at that location, my lady. But not Sith. If we meet there, and it turns out to be a deception, then we are alone far away from anyone.”

Phalomir turned from the controls.

“Perhaps we should meet our friend aboard the ship, but it would not hurt to first know who and what else is on the surface. There is another group of humanoids far from that location, and…”

A blip from the sensors interrupted Phalomir. He turned to it.

“And they seem to have with them a very powerful energy source.”

"Can you tell what this energy source is?" she asked Phalomir, now turning herself to focus the ship's scanners more precisely. They revealed nothing more than a glare of white noise, which in effect simply stated that yes, there was an energy source at that location and yes, it appeared to be a powerful one.

Her frown deepened, then she sighed.

"All is a mystery, indeed," she finally admitted. "Lifeforms where none should be, an unexpected guest claiming to come from the only living soul we should expect to find here...

"...and he in turn not putting in an appearance as of yet."

She chewed her lip a moment, then looked up into Phalomir's eyes.

“Allright, I’m right behind you.”

As Shayla turned to walk, the small lump in her robe seem to twitch and then cast out a bright red light, shining briefly through the fabric and then settling back to nothing. Panthar’s eyebrows raised.

Phalomir took a deep breath and allowed his body to relax.

He whispered as he exhaled, “Only please do not send my spirit into the Darker Realms this time.”

His spirit drifted, leaving his body and floating into the cabin of the ship. Though this was invisible to the eye, the Dark Lady would still be able to sense him. His body slumped slightly in the chair and became motionless.

He floated for a moment, then darted for the hull of the ship. He passed through it and into space, and soared towards the planet’s surface.

“It is fortunate that spirits carry no mass,” he thought.

Within a heartbeat his spirit was skimming the sand and rocks, and as he approached the enormous valley he suddenly remembered the vivid scenes from his childhood terrors. He paused, regrouped, then scanned around. A small cloud of dust over the rocks caught his attention and he shot through the stone and out the other side.

There he saw a small procession of travelers, instantly recognizing Shayla. In front of her was hovering an unconscious figure, and behind was a large Sith carrying what appeared to be Galen and another male. Phalomir vaguely recalled the features of the drunken Jasyn, the hovering figure.

Satisfied, he sent his spirit upwards once again and back to his body.

He sat up with a gasp, then proceeded to suck in a deep breath.

“My lady,” he panted. “The group with the power source… it is Shayla.”

He finally caught his breath.

“She has with her the lost men, and Panthar. He is in a Sith body, yet he did not register at all on the sensors. And, my lady, she has Galen.”

...and spur him into action. He barely even thought about the fact he'd be interrupting whatever Phalomir might have yet to tell Graysith as he pushed his way into the forefront of Phalomir's mind so that he could take control of his body.

All he knew for the moment was that Galen was down there on that horrible planet.

"This is Terrin," he said briefly, at least bothering to identify himself although he knew that his next words would have probably done so anyway, "We need to get the kriffing hell to the surface of this planet. Those men...my men and my friends, have been down there for a very long time, possibly without food and water. And I don't know how long Galen has been down there...

...but I do know that the last time I saw her Dark Lord Roan had her. There's no telling what has happened to her since then..."

"I agree, Mr. Danner," she said simply, nodding in Phalomir's direction.

"Your wife, my sister, is after all the reason we began this hunt so long ago. But with the end of our quest in sight, we must not now hurry forward in haste, heeding not the very real danger yet present with us."

She focused deeply into the green eyes in front of her, then spoke again.

"Phalomir, do you not find it strange that while a Sith is present in that group, none registered in our scanners?"

Her lip struggled as she fought to keep it from curling upward once more.

"Perhaps Aeylmaar is on the surface yet waiting for us to arrive..."

She trailed a moment, thinking, then opened the connection with the lurking Sith fighter once again.

"Thank you so much for the information which you have divulged to us, my friend," she said smoothly into the mike. "I believe being forewarned is being forearmed; we should be able to take care of whatever adversary Fate would deign to throw our way. This is, after all, as you can so plainly see, a Sith warship, and we have other... defense maneuvers at our disposal.

"You need not remain here longer; pray, go from this place before these enemies of which you speak find you here. I shall have no difficulty in protecting myself, my crew and this ship."

With that she closed the connection, and turned once again to Phalomir.

"Shall we go join our friends?" she asked simply, then turned toward the controls and set into motion the procedures to make it exactly so.

She is suffering the effects of the All. She stepped partially within a loop, established by a user of that force. In time she will be once again fully in our time. Her mind is active, her body is not yet.

"Very well. Use the information well, though if we get the chance, we will insist on giving you the tablet."

Raelgosh pressed the sending sigil, and turned to the controls, setting a course towards the location where the mass of people were. I doubt Aelmaar would go alone, it is most likely himself and his entorage at the location.

As their fighter turned towards the location, and began moving for the surface, he could imagine the warships guns turning to blow them to oblivion. However, they did not, and they slipped toward the surface.

But before she told anyone else what the Eye had said, she had yet one more question for it.

The Ghost? she queried. Are you speaking of Phalomir?

Then she spoke up to the others, voicing her very real concerns. "The Eye says that Galen is suffering from the effects of the All, and has stepped partially into some sort of time loop," she said, virtually repeating the Eye's explanation. "The effects should wear off eventually...

...which is a relief, even if it takes a little time. I am, however, very worried about the possibility of an All-user nearby. After all, if that tuk'ata back there is in a time loop, someone who has usage of the All was nearby to do this. And the Eye is telling me that it senses someone, someone it calls 'the Ghost.' I don't know what this all means...

"Well Raegolosh, how about letting me have a chance now?" Sa'kal'ishaalas spoke as he prepared for a long journy ahead, "this will definatly be fun."

They glided towards the atmosphere, it's flames licking at the cloaked ships frame. They suddenly burst through the cloud layers. As they approached the surface at bone crushing speed, shapes began to come to them.

My dearest Dark Heart was an exemplary teacher, she thought in idle retrospect as her hands danced along the console in front of her.

I do not recall him actually teaching me how to pilot such a ship, nor how to land one of this size. His teachings must have--

Her thoughts were broken into as a sensor bleeped for attention. Frowning at the intrusion, she reached for it, studied the Sith characters scrolling along its accompanying screen.

Which then went abruptly blank.

She whirled in alarm to Phalomir.

"My Lord!" she gasped, her eyes wide with concern.

"Sensors have just indicated that Sith fighter in apparent short-range approach to the very coordinates toward which we are heading, coordinates where Shayla and Galen and their companions are located!"

Alarm filled every cell of her being... along with a niggling little question of why exactly it was that she should be feeling such alarm regarding the safety of this "Shayla," whom she had never heard of in her life....

She brushed that quandary aside like a gnat, and stared at the screen again. It took awhile for what it showed her to sink into her awareness.

"My Lord!"

Again, a deeply buried niggle, an inner question raised:

Why do you address this one thus? He is no Lord to you....

She shook her head, blinked, and hurried on.

"The readouts of the Sith fighter have-- have disappeared. But their last known trajectory still places them on the prior heading coinciding with the location of Galen and her companions, where we are heading.

"I only fear the worst... brace yourself, my Lord."

With that she turned back to the console, let her fingers perform a tarantelle upon it. She was immediately rewarded by the thunderous cacophony of groaning metal and creaking joints as the ship shuddered, picking up its own inertia and placing it aside so it could make a high-speed trajectory change at what a normal pilot would consider as far, far too acute of an angle.

The great warship roared in anger when, finally sighting its targets on the passing surface below, it turned tail to the sky and dove down upon them like a stooping hawk.

Within, Graysith stood completely unaffected by the battle physics was engaging in without the ship. She bit her lip, and accelerated the ship, knowing by some subtle intuition that the group was in terrible danger, knowing she had to at least land, if not before, than at the same time the fighter did.

Seconds stretched by... and all went suddenly quiet. Graysith shot Phalomir a peculiar glance, then touched a particular sigil. The bridge emergency escape hatch popped open; without hesitation she hurried through, and soon found herself upon the strange greeny-golden surface of the ship, her feet tingling from it's strange molecular arrangement, Phalomir appearing like magick at her side.

A lift of one hand, and the air molecules beneath their feet gathered together, becoming more dense, and swirling about in an invisible dance of their own then formed a platform down which they quickly descended. Moments later, the tingling sensation was replaced by the gritty feel of sand beneath their feet.

"Come, let us hurry!" she said, hastening toward a group some hundred meters ahead of them. A wayward ray of the setting sun touched off a glint of gold.

Shayla! she thought, without understanding why or how. But understanding that alacrity was of the essence.

Behind her, the warship disappeared into a shroud of dark as, almost as an afterthought, she created a protective chronotic shield about it, that nothing and no one would disturb it during their brief -- at least she hoped so -- absence.

...and it wasn't necessarily because of the words the Eye had directed her way.

"Something's wrong," she breathed simply as the others around her turned and stared quizzically. "Something's wrong, and..."

She paused, something else tremoring from within the Force as she reached out her senses to investigate, something familiar and something terribly inviting...

...or rather, someone.

"...I think I know what to do."

Even as the words escaped her lips, a couple of figures appeared on the horizon.

"We need to go that way," she said, pointing and indicating the figures ahead, "Trust me."

"They must have noticed us heading this way," Sa'kal'ishaalas told Raelgosh as they exited the ship. "We're going to have to be quick."

Gathering the magicks in him, Sa'kal'ishaalas prepared to run the short distance in a very short period of time. Although they were only a short distance away, if Graysith had seen them land, it would be a short matter of time until she attempted to get to the group. It would have to be very quick indeed.

"Come on, lets go."

...that being two of his employees and closest friends looking very much immobile, and, and...

His thought processes simply stopped when his mind registered what Phalomir's eyes were seeing.

Someone, who looked very much like Galen, the one person he would die a thousand deaths for, slung over the shoulder of a Sith...

...and very much motionless as well.

Instinct simply took over...

...and Terrin pushed to the forefront of Phalomir's mind once more for control. He gained it...

...and the urgency in his heart of hearts gave wings to Phalomir's feet.

"Galen!!!!" he cried out, even as he neared the group.

Completely forgetting then what and whose body he was in, something very deeply rooted and very real taking over, he approached Shayla Stargazer and the Sith.

"Are they going to be allright?" he queried, indicating his two friends. Then, looking to Galen, his heart aching with worry and concern, "Is she...?"

But something deep inside her made her want to reach out and touch--

She jerked, snorting at herself. Her eyes shadowed, and she cast a quick glance around.

"My friends," she said in a low voice.

"Something is coming. Someone. I believe it to be the occupant of a Sith ship who tried to gain access to our ship.

"We must be wary."

Phalomir then heard the voice of his Lady, the sweet sound bringing his own senses to bear, and resumed control of his own body. Terrin resisted, but Phalomir was the master. He shot Panthar a quick glance of recognition and reached to take Galen from him.

But paused.

The shrill cry of something inhuman reached his keen Sith ears. He turned his head to the left, the direction Panthar was already turning himself, and saw a strange flight of stone and stick hurtling towards the group. With the speed of a Sith Lord, he stepped in front of the Dark Lady.

“Jharmeen,” he shouted, not thinking of it. His powers leapt to attention, his hands tingled and glowed with the deep inherent magick he had spent his life honing. He gathered a ball of red energy between his hands, and eyes set in a solid stare, he sent the ball bursting outward in front of him. It immediately expanded into a shimmering wall of light. The stones struck the wall, mere meters from the group, and stayed motionless for a brief moment in the red air.

Phalomir grimaced and shoved his hands forward. The wall surged ahead and sent the stones and twigs flying backwards up the hill. He growled deeply, is if in challenge, and awaited the next move.

“Panthar,” he said between clenched teeth. “Get them to the ship.”

"No," she stated. "We do not separate. We go as a group; my abilities will protect us, when assisted with those you possess, my Lord."

Deep within her the Beast opened its flat pewter eyes and roared a challenge to those who dared attack. Within its claws, a particular kernel, hoarded there for years, changing often, cracked as those claws closed reflexively upon it. It's eyes slitted then, seeking to see. to see out, through those violet ones which scanned their perimeter seeking the tiniest of movement. It roared again, seeking to persuade...

"This worked against a great Dark Jedi of my- my former acquaintance," Graysith murmured then; now her head dropped back and the Glyph on her forehead flared into incandescent life. The tendrils of black and white writhed and intertwined about them, protecting them; above their heads a small rock, knocked against by Phalomir's efforts, dislodged and fell toward them.

That tiny missile exploded into powder when it struck the writhing bands.

"Come, we are safe within this place," she went on.

"Let us continue to the warship as quickly as we can; we have yet to find Aeylmaar, although now I fear we need not learn more of what he had to tell."

She smiled grimly.

...and curious about what had brought Graysith and Phalomir back. But of the most interest to Shayla was that Phalomir was back in one piece...

...or at least, he appeared to be so. She didn't know what to make of how he had acted when he first approached them. It was almost as if...

Shayla dismissed the thought for the moment, finding their current situation demanding her attentions...

...and her questing senses registering yet another Force-signature approaching them from yet another angle.

For although the body that had directed flaming green eyes so briefly into my own was huge and horned and red...

...that was not what I was seeing.

No... those eyes are BLUE. That hair is BLONDE. That voice--

"'Errin?" I tried, screaming at all the Fates for my inability to scramble down from Panthar's grasp and shoot straight into Phalomir's.

"Oh 'ods, ih at ooh?!"

I wriggled, I strained, I cursed and sweat and swore.

Meanwhile, back in reality, all I could do was hang like a lump over Big Red's shoulder and bob up and down, as he suddenly took off running in the direction my sister was pointing.

That got my attention as well.

Jharmeen?

I tried to shake my head; nothing. At least not at first. Then, a tiny victory:

My lips finally closed completely together. My right knee bent slightly.

I let out a whoosh of relief, which was immediately followed by every cell in my body rising up in a tingling salute to the most humongous red flag of warning I had ever felt in my life.

"Watch out!" I finally managed, kneeing Red in the ribs, as I struggled to get down and to my rapidly reviving feet.

Indeed, something wicked was this way coming...

And fast.

For the moment, anyway.

Realizing there was a very real danger at hand, Terrin still struggled forward in Phalomir's mind, mentally promising the Sith that he would only need a moment.

And a moment's reply was indeed all it would take to answer the question Galen had directed his way.

"Yes, Galen," he then replied, "It's me, Terrin. After Roan took you in the Darker Realms...

...I had to make certain you were safely recovered from him."

He paused. Then, "You've already suffered far too much at his hand."

“Wha-”, he started. “Who? Huh?” He spun around, trying to take in the scene around him. Phalomir seemed to go back into his stance, holding the weird red wall thing in front of the group like a huge shield. Graysith was standing near him, spinning some sort of – something – out of her hands. Shayla was there, still levitating the other guy.

“OK,” he muttered, “Sure. It all makes sense. We’re under attack. Yeah, that’s it. Phal and Gray are here, we’ll be all right. They have a ship, and now we just need to get to it. Yeah. Easy.”

He smiled and turned back to his passengers. But suddenly only one was where he had put him. He snapped his head to the head to the side and saw Galen on her feet and running towards Phalomir.

“Eh?’ he asked the air. He turned back to the man on the ground, but paused again when he caught glimpse of the large tuk'ata, now definitely not frozen, bounding towards them about a hundred meters away.

A pouncing tuk'ata, bearing upon him. Those monstorous claws and teeth...

"RUN!!!!!" he suddenly blurted, fighting with the images that were even now haunting him, images that he hadn't even known were part of his memories until now...

"M'wonBo'o..." she breathed, taking a tiny step forward.

Then she stopped abruptly, shook her head. Turning now to the towering Sith Lord, she placed a delicate hand atop his shoulder.

"Please, Mr. Danner, calm yourself. We are quite safe--"

Any further words she might have spoken were nipped in the proverbial bud as a red-headed blur shot past and barreled into Phalomir, knocking her thoughtlessly aside.

She started to speak sharply... then quieted, and for the barest of moments allowed herself the luxury of enjoying a minute bit of peace as her sister was finally rejoined with her spouse.

Then her lips pursed, and she turned to the oncoming beast. It charged in impossibly long leaps, its talons seeming to grow in both size and edge the closer and closer it came.

For some reason, she was not afraid. She took a step toward it, and then another, and another. A portion of the writhing snarls of black and white parted like a curtain before her, and she stepped through.

She reached out a tentative hand to the beast.

The Glyph burst into joyous recognition.

He sat down.

He turned to the still unconscious man next to him.

"A sudden depressurization and resultant raising of the crust due to the release of overhead load..."

Whatever that meant. I never really knew at the time.

But now, it was suddenly all too clear.

It was as if a weight lifted from my heart along with the chains from my muscles, as the big red Sith wavered a bit, the wall of whatever he was holding blinking and then disappearing like smoke. I swear the eyes he turned upon me really were blue....

"Oh, Terrin, Terrin!" I sobbed as I just up and threw myself into those red-muscled arms, disregarding the slicing little pains in my back as claws dug into me in return.

"How-? Why-?

"Oh, nevermind; all I know is that it's you, it's really you! I'm so sorry, so sorry; Terrin, oh gods, forgive me, I'll never leave you again, never, never, never--!"

The world and all the aches and pains it had dealt me over far too lengthy a time suddenly dwindled into obscurity, as the red face in front of me turned serious, and lips descended upon mine, quite effectively stopping me from saying anything further.

Her smile slowly segued into one of pain.

"My friend," she repeated, her voice softer and more musical now. She accented those words with the slightest and most innocent of movements: her hand, now reaching out and coming to a feather-light halt atop the great animal's head.

Its hide was warm and sleek beneath her touch.

She closed her eyes then, still very much aware of the reunion behind her--

That shall not end now! Not this way!

--still very much aware of the howling approach of the ragged assassin who had tried to bar their path by tossing rocks at them like an angered young boy.

Something tiptoed into her mind then, something warm and wild and willing and loyal, and her eyes flew open just in time to register the tuk'ata bowing before her flaring Glyph before it turned and bounded off toward the approaching Raelgosh.

She closed her eyes them, not needing to see what was coming, and quickly whirled to rejoin the group and reset her tendrils of strength before the tuk'ata was killed. Behind their protective wall, she watched as the huge beast ran faster and faster, finally ending his run in a gigantic, twenty-five foot leap that ended in an impact upon Raelgosh's chest they could actually hear.

Roars and gutteral snarls accompanied the distant ripping of flesh as the beast had its brief way with the assassin... and then all became quiet.

"Please, we must go while we have the opportunity," she said softly, her eyes welling with tears for the death of the beast, a death given willingly to assist them in recognition of the Greater Good.

Which was something she just didn't understand... not quite....

or rather, in Phalomir's arms.

Putting that little thought aside, he let himself drown in the moment, in her touch, and in her...

...but then at length, he drew back, realizing that Phalomir's claws were digging into Galen's back.

"Oh sweetheart, please tell me that Roan didn't do anything to you after he snatched you in the Darker Realms, please..."

He trailed, the concern clearly evident in the look he now directed her way. Then, "As to the hows and whys..."

He trailed once more, aching to tell her, "As I've said, I had to be certain you were recovered safely from Roan, and the only way I could do that was for someone to take my spirit upon their person...

...and that is how I am with you now. You'd fought so many battles alone when you shouldn't have had to...

...and I didn't want you to have to do it again. Please forgive me for the times you needed me, and I wasn't there..."

he trailed, his eyes never leaving hers. "I never would have come back this way other than to help you, not if it brings you even more pain...

Jharmeen.

A woman who, out of the corner of the eye he no longer controlled, he could see suddenly outside of the protective circle and standing with a huge tuk’ata.

He barely heard Terrin speaking to Galen. He found himself fighting for control of his own body, and wasn’t sure if he could win. But the horrible sounds of a nearby tuk’ata broke through the scene, and as the sounds shifted from wild savagery to sudden silence, Phalomir managed to once again control his body.

He blinked and turned away from Galen, trying to keep down the untimely resentment he suddenly felt.

“Another time, Galen,” he said. “We are still in great danger.”

He inhaled deeply, then spun around to find the Dark Lady. He saw her enter the circle, the strange ribbons of black and white rejoining around her. Phalomir felt his powers surging once again in preparation. He raised his head and walked past Galen.

“My lady,” he said, perhaps too eagerly. “I feared the worse, but should have known you would have a power with tuk’ata. But I fear we are still in danger.”

He stopped short of reaching for her, just barely.

It will be a cold night here on Korriban. she thought, not entirely in non sequiteur, and hastened them past those grim shadows even more quickly.

Then she came to a sudden halt.

Ahead of them a great black blob lurked against the sky, seeming to hover above the gritty sand and hardpan. Behind its ominous silhouette, she could see stars beginning to wink on, one at a time.

In front...

She squinted a bit, peering out into the encroaching night, straining to see, to listen, to discover what she was intuitively feeling.

Her body trembled with the effort to sense the insensible.

She felt the queries rising off the others, and turned to them. One arm lifted, pointing with Rora'Kessh.

Strange... that this has come into my hand. I do not remember; loyal Rora'Kessh.

"There is the ship, and there--"

She paused, looked to Phalomir, then to Shayla.

"Did you not say you sensed another, off in this direction?"

Silent she stood then, now turning her gaze to her empty hand.

RoraKessh?

The query came to mind, one concerning a name she no longer really remembered. Troubled, she remained silent, knowing there would be a more opportune time to speak of it, and waited for Shayla's response.

He staggered up, and was ready to continue fighting it, but suddenly realized. It's dead....

He turned towards the Black/White bubble, and activated a strong Stealth Magick, wincing at the claw marks. I'd be dead had we not prepared. Fortunate we are to have Aelvedaars blessing.

"Yes," she said, stretching out to sense that which she had before. As she did this, however, a frown grew on her features. And her next words explained what had prompted such a change in her demeanor.

"But now, whomever was out there, is gone...

...or perhaps he or she is instead simply doing a very good job of making it appear that way..."

Raelgosh remembered what Aelvedaar had said about the female human being a somewhat competent All user. Could it be that she had created this? If so, how could she have known to do such a thing?

Acting as a sort of ping, Phalomir’s own powerful Sith magick circled out from the center of his energies, and radiated outwards past the chronotic shield and ranging several hundred meters. Any user of Sith magick would feel this energy pass by, but more importantly, Phalomir would feel their magick in return. Except for the hole left by the magick touching the chronotic shield and dissipating forwards and backwards along the space-time continuum, Phalomir could feel the circle extend like a spider's web. It did not take long for the ripples to appear in the perfect circle.

He walked slowly away from the group, letting the circle change its angle in relation to the chronotic sheild. As he moved, the circle picked up another ripple.

“There is Sith magick in use nearby. I cannot determine where, but I feel two tremors. I believe one is near the chronotic shield.”

Phalomir opened his eyes and held the circle in place. He walked back to the group. The second ripple disappeared.

“Assassins? With Sith magick?”

She frowned, and turned a concerned look back and forth between him and Shayla. Then, remembering the effect she was able to once impact upon a certain threat to her dear Dark Heart, she let her lip curl in a snarl.

"Sith magick or not, nothing can hold out against the wonder of that which my Si-- of that which Aelvedaar has taught me."

For a moment her lip wavered.

Somehow, it seemed there should be more she could do with the All....

She shook her head and refocused on the others. Took in the steady form of Shayla, the powerful one of Phalomir. Cast a quick glance down upon herself.

"We are three of diverse magicks and strengths," she said at last.

"If our adversary is using Sith magick only, perhaps our combined talents will be enough to break through his or her shielding, and at last we might be able to see who it is who plagues us so."

She cast a glance around again, from Sith sorcerer to Force user, and back to herself, the holder of a budding, but very much not to be dismissed, ability to use the wonder of the All.

Phalomir frowned again.

"And zeroing in on what you called their 'Force signature' lies within the arena of your expertise, does it not?"

Before the young woman could respond, she turned smoothly to Phalomir, and spoke to him in the tiniest of whispers.

"Are the... targets moving, Lord, or not? And if not and they begin motion, can your magicks tell us of this? Certainly as adept as these apparent assassins are, they would be able to discern our plans; if they begin to either attack or flee, would we be forewarned of this prior to our own retaliation?"

He turned to the Dark Lady.

"My lady," he said quietly. "Your powers are vast, as shown by the shield you placed around the ship. Do you not recall how powerful you are?"

He then turned to Shayla.

Once more, Shayla pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Perhaps I could, if I can be assisted in targeting this ripple you have referred to. After all, I can't sense this person through the Force on my own abilities...

...but if you could help me feel the ripple, I should be able to track the movement once I know what I'm sensing out for. In fact..."

She trailed, her Force-senses still stretched out and tuned in to all which was around them, "I should be able to zero in on a blank in the Force and track it just as well as I could track a Force-signature. Thus, if the Sith magick which this being is using causes a noticeable blank in the Force which you could direct me to...

...I should be able to get a lock on him. I think it's a very viable option, especially since we are probably running out of time. And--"

She paused once more, turning to eye the still-hovering Jasyn Lancaster, "--If someone can attend to him so that I don't have to, I will be able to attune my Force-senses even more."

Suddenly, he felt something ripple out towards him. Magick? But what could the purpose be..... no.....

He remembered how on one mission that he had been sent on, and how his force had almost reached their target in their small citidel, only to have their forces counter ambushed. At the time, he had not cared for it, he had assumed their target was using large quantities of magick, and had merely sent out large amounts. But now that he felt something similar again, he wondered.

Phalomir sighed and close his eyes. “I may be able to blend my magick with your abilities, perhaps I can tune to your thoughts. It would be easier, I think, if I had the Eye, but that I fear is lost.”

Phalomir tensed as one of the ripples in his circle of magick diminished. Phalomir's eyes snapped open.

“One of them has stopped using their magick blatantly. I can still sense the faint pulse of the magick within the person, but it is very weak now.”

Outside the protective circle, Phalomir caught the quick movement of something moving back and forth, almost pacing. He brought his hand up and pointed, placing the other hand over his mouth.

...and they were very nearby. In fact, when Shayla glanced where Phalomir's pointing finger indicated...

"That's him, our pursuer," Shayla then spoke in a whisper. She gathered the Force about herself in preparation for whatever he or she might bring...

...and simultaneously looked to Phalomir. "And as for the Eye...

...it is not lost. You see, back on the warship, when your soul was taken from your body, the Eye spoke to me."

She paused, letting the importance of those words sink in before her final bombshell. "I have it."

It took every lick of effort I possessed to keep from running up to Phalomir. Dammitall, but Terrin was inside that big red body of his, and now that I had found him I was sure as Khaandon made little green worrts not going to lose him again. However, it was obvious that this was a shared situation, and while the Sith dude was in possession of his faculties, it seemed he had some mighty handy power to assist us with.

No way was I gonna impede that... but I couldn't just stand there not doing anything, not when every hunch I had ever had in my life seemed to be coalescing into one gigantic one, which was now waving its red flag of warning for all it was worth.

"That's him?" I continued, fisting my hands at my sides.

"Watch out guys; doesn't it strike you a touch wee on the weird side that he's suddenly being so obliging to reveal himself to us?

"I don't trust him, not one whit!"

Ok, why didn't you think of that before?!

"Uhh, yeah."

I could feel my face warm with embarrassment.

Dang, why didn't I think of that?

I shot everyone a rueful sort of grin, then activated the device.

"Well, 'tis a done deal, guys," I whispered then, looking from one to another. For within the little bubble within the larger one woven by my sister, we were all still clearly visible to each other.

From the outside, though...

“You have a Sith belt?” he asked Galen. “If that is what I am familiar with, then we are cloaked. We still have the problem of our friends the assassins and how we now get inside the ship without conflict. We have stealth on our side, but we would need to drop both this shield and the chronotic shield. We could try to blast our way, but who knows what powers these assassins have been given, especially if they are aligned with Aelvedaar. Could we use the All to transport us to the inside of the ship? Wait, we would have to travel first to the Darker Realms…”

Then she continued with, "So, this being confirmed, why don't we use it, and get out of here? Surely there is some way it can help us get back to the warship without us having to traipse into the Darker Realms..."

"I believe that will be unnecessary," she stated as the gesture cut off whatever Phalomir might have been ready to answer. She turned to him, and lowered her hand.

"Your suggestion is a valid one," she continued. From off to one side she could feel the prickling sensation emanating from Shayla's rising objections and concerns; clearly her former adept knew exactly where she was heading, and the Chosen Daughter knew it. Her hand raised once more.

"Hear me out, please," she said, sending her a quick look meant to assure. Then she raised the other hand, and indicated the writhing bands of dark and light force which yet surrounded them.

"Within the perimeter of Galen's shield of invisibility, we are cloaked from sight. Within this ball of opposition, we are cloaked from danger. The ship is likewise cloaked against any and all adversaries, for nothing in the universe can cross a chronotic shield."

She paused a moment before going on.

"The only way that we might traverse such a barrier is indeed if I would make a direct connection there via the Darker Realms, which exist outside the universe as we know it. Furthermore, we should not be followed, even if those who plague us could somehow ascertain what we are doing and attempt to come after us through the rift in the Valley; only those with the All can direct their course through those Realms and return to the universe in a specifically chosen spot.

"This we know to be true. And our foes do not possess the All."

She nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Phalomir.

"Lord, the only wrinkle in this otherwise smooth plan is the presence of Roan in the realms through which we must travel. I know he has not hindered our path the latter times we were forced to go this route; should he attempt something now would this Eye be strong enough to protect us? He is powerful in the All...."

And she knew of this... how?

She trailed momentarily, then shook her head and with a slight movement of her fingers strengthened the writhing ball of light and dark until the tendrils closed in upon each other in a tightly woven knot, preventing anyone on the outside from seeing in. Still cloaked in the protective camoflague produced by Galen's Sith belt, she waited, unmoving but prepared to open a portal through the All into those horrid realms, and from them into the protection of their still-shielded warship.

He decided that while he sat here, he might as well begin to take some measures against their escape. He knew that he had no chance of stopping them if they did something inside their small space, however, on the outside....

"We have no time, Phalomir!" she gasped aloud, knitting the bands of light and dark force even more strongly together.

"We must attempt the crossing...now!"

Without waiting for a reply of any kind from anyone, she ripped open a portal through the all and stepped into the Darker Realms. A heartbeat followed, then another and another, ones echoed by muffling footsteps until all were safely by her side in that horrific place.

Then, before the knotting bands could dissipate, she slammed the portal closed, and turned to face the others.

"I must rest a moment and gather my strengths, before opening another portal into the ship," she announced, a bit breathlessly.

He whirled in all directions, looking for any sign of the treacherous beast Roan, and gripped tightly the only weapon that he knew could help him against that monster.

“Everyone be as quiet as you can while the Dark Lady rests,” he said softly. “If we are attacked, I shall defend us.”

He placed a hand on the Dark Lady's cheek.

"Rest well," he whispered. "But if it comes to it, leave while I stave off an attack."

... anxious to gain the Eye, but for the moment she chose to simply let it pass, knowing that there were other things of far greater import occuring. She knew how Usage of the All could tax Graysith...

...but she also knew that the quicker her energy was restored, the sooner they could get out of this place and to safety. And that was something Shayla knew she could help with. So, taking one smooth step towards Graysith, Shayla let her greeny-blue eyes meet the other woman's violet ones. A heartbeat passed, one filled with a strange mingling of longing and slight uncertainty. Then, with very little effort, Shayla pushed the latter aside.

"Allow me to lend you my energies, so that you may recover yours more quickly," Shayla spoke up then in a barely audible whisper, simultaneously reaching out a hand which she rested upon Graysith's shoulder. Then, closing her eyes, Shayla opened a Force-link to the other woman, sending out healing energies to strenghthen her...

...and realizing just how very much every fiber of her being rejoiced in being able to do so.

Sa'kal also noticed Raelgosh leaving for their ship. Why is he leaving, our job is not finished? questioned Sa'kal. I better find the warship they were in, as he noticed that it had dissapeared shortly before their confrontaion with Graysith and her companions. She must have hidden it with her powers he thought, and sent out a force beacon to search for it, assuming it was cloaked with a simple cloaking device found on most sith starships. Surprisinly, he found a large gap in the Force in an area near him. Damn, she's good, and Sa'kal quickly rushed to Raelgosh to deliver the news.

Her eyes opened slowly, to find a pair of greeny-blue ones directly in front of her.

"Thank you," she said warmly, while deep within herself the Beast rose up on its haunches and whined. From somewhere in the abyssal distance, a gibbering sort of howling whimper emanated; the Beast now lowered its head and growled, deep in its throat.

She turned to the others then, her Glyph alight.

"I feel it is time to depart from this awful place, before they--"

One hand indicated the rapid approach of a roiling mass: demons.

"--are upon us."

Without waiting for any others to make a reply, she turned the raised hand palm down, extending the pointer and little fingers like horns, allowing the others to curl under to meet her thumb. A blackness ripped the black around them, widening jaggedly, expanding slowly, as if with great reluctance. She twisted her wrist, and the Portal snapped fully open, through which she could see the blessed security of the warship's bridge.

"Shall we?" she said, then stepped through the rift, knowing without having to look that the others were right on her heels. Once the final member had boarded the ship, she fisted that hand, and the portal disappeared with a disappointed sort of slobbering cry.

She paid it no heed, but turned to the others.

"We must drop our protective shield in order to depart, else the energies from our thrust be dissipated along the corridors of time. Our vulnerability will only be momentary, however, and since we are safely within our ship, really of only some slight concern anyway."

With that she closed her eyes, focusing her abilities as hard as she could. The Glyph flared into incandescence before escalating beyond the gamma wavelength of the spectrum; from somewhere off to her left she felt a corresponding warmth as the Eye now held by Phalomir burst into fiery life as well.

"Shayla, if you would..." she said, not taking time to question exactly how it was she knew this young woman was capable of piloting a Sith ship.

Outside the warship, the chronotic shield disappeared, dissolving back into the energies held within the very essence of space and time from which it had been taken.

"There is no sign of the warship, save the single life form. I believe we should go ahead and invesitgate it. It may be Aelmaar or someone else who can lead us to our prey."

Sa'kal took the controls of the ship and set the engines to maximum power. "Hold on," Sa'kal told Ralgosh as he switched on the atmospheric thrusters, "this is going to be a rough ride."

"I think we might be in for some uninvited company," she stated aloud, the movements of her fingers then bringing the warship forward and through the atmosphere til at length space began to show herself in the forward viewscreen. "Still, with Galen's Sith belt activated, we should be safely hidden from prying eyes. I don't know where everyone is planning to go from here...

...but I have to mention that there was another lifesign back there on Korriban, and that might be something we need to look into. Still we've got to shake these guys...

...so what's our next move going to be?"

But for now it was over.

Except for the lingering dark feeling of malice that always made its way into his thoughts every time he found himself in the Darker Realms. What he wanted to say to Shayla was a plan to turn the guns on the assassins and blow them into oblivion. What he said instead was less murderous.

“There is a chance that the other life sign is Aeylmaar,” he said flatly. “If so, we owe it to him to find him and tell him of our encounter. He risked much to warn us, presumably.”

Phalomir glanced down at the glowing Eye in his hands.

“Perhaps I can communicate with him.”

Phalomir focused on the Eye, allowing its strange connection with the All to open up to him. As it had done in the past, the Eye channeled the All power it been gathering slowly from the Dark Lady and allowed Phalomir to touch it. It searched, trying to find the object of Phalomir’s queries.

"Maybe we can then shake these guys on our tail," she continued with. "And after all, since we're in a Sith warship, we'll be able to change our course once in hyperspace without ever dropping out. I have the coordinates for a short jump set and locked in, so everybody...

...sit tight."

That said then, Shayla reached gracefully out to the controls of the warship and pushed down a sigil, which in turn made the stars turn into the starlines of hyperspace.

They reached the location and set down. Raelgosh exited the ship, and walked out. He sniffed the air. All those who are not sith, bah. Accursed beasts, all of them.

He walked a few meters, and found a being laying upon the ground. His skin was blue, and he had a strange look. Raelgosh kicked him roughly, his sword to his throat.

...WalknFall, Corellian Ale, Whyrene's Reserve...

...and last but not least, Sith brandy.

Now what made you think of Sith brandy? asked a little demon in his dreams. Might have something to do with that Sith you saw before Stargazer knocked you out...

At this thought, Jasyn frowned...

...and the side of his face touched something cold and hard.

That was enough to wake him up, and put him on the defensive. After all, desert sand was neither cold nor hard.

"What the...???!!!" he blurted, sitting straight up, the world spinning in his line of sight in response. "Oh,kriffing hell..." he started to groan...

...and then he froze, images finally registering in his brain. Images of two Sith, and not one. And images of...

... her...

He became alert enough to realize Stargazer was at the controls, so he shook his head as though he was trying to clear the fuzz.

It didn't work, and there were still two sith and one Graysith in the images he was now seeing.

"What the kriffing hell is going on?!" he queried, his voice still raspy from lack of fluid intake. Then, "And where can a guy get a drink around here...?"

"I... I'm.... Dash..." I tried to say more, but my throat was too dry.

Soon, my vision was back to normal and I noticed the sword to my throat.
hmm. Same as always. I thought.

"I...Don't....know...I...was...off...by ...Sith..."

I hoped the guy beleived me. I was telling the truth and I need the water fast or i was going to pass out again.

"Thanks." I said as I gave him back the glass.

"If you remember, you're the hostage now, so we'll be the ones asking questions, not you. But to be polite, were assassins, and that's all you'll need to know besides the fact that we will finish our job at almost any cost," Sa'kal said as he threw up and caught the stun prod he brought with him, "so the real question is: who are you? And if you don't feel like answering our questions, I'm sure I can change your mind." Sa'kal smirked as the stun prod sparked to life.

Thus while he didn't actually know of the particulars, he was quite aware of the fact that the Chosen Daughter and her companion had probably come under the attack of the assassin he had come to warn her about. He leapt to his feet, chewing upon the inside of his cheek a bit nervously, as he wondered what exactly he should do to try to assist them. While he himself was the adopted son and thus Chosen Heir of Lord Aelvedaar, he was still young, and hadn't the extent of knowledge that his father -- and probably the Chosen Daughter herself -- had of the All, although he did have more than an adept's capability when it came to the manipulation of Sith magick.

So he debated with himself for agonizing moments, while hints of what was happening on the other side of the chasm slammed into him like a wave upon the shore.

Suddenly, everything simply disappeared. He frowned then, stretching out now with his own growing abilities as the whisper of Sith magick grew silent, and the caress of the All lessened...

...and thus it was that he happened to be in this receptive stance when Phalomir's message slipped along the essence of space and time and into his brain.

He jerked, and nearly fell from the rock upon which he had been standing.

Now why in Hell's Seven Circles would I think of it in that light? Oh yes, let me recall: roiling masses of demons and hidden labs of torture and the presence of the most hideous being ever to walk the face of the universe and assassins and dust and heat and rock and not a blasted drop to drink.

Oh yeah...!

--I had been hesitating between the innate need to keep myself plastered against the Big Red Dude's hide, for I knew that Terrin was somehow, inexplicably but oh Khaandon thank you! so blessedly inside...

...and the awareness that in order for the aforementioned Big Red Dude to have the space he needed to do whatever it was he did to keep us safe from the aforementioned planet and escape therefrom, I needed to keep myself away so he could keep a clear mind.

The inner battle that juxtaposition created in me was enough to send a rancor packing; it was thus something of a relief to find myself able to turn away from the Big Boys and Girls and do something rather small and innocuous to help another one of our party.

"I'll be right back with some water for you, Jasyn," I said, turning from him then and heading toward the hatch which separated the bridge of this ship from the corridor beyond.

Where I thought I would actually find something for him to drink was another matter. But I just couldn't stand around feeling useless while every atom in my being wanted nothing more than to punch out the Big Red guy's lights so Terrin could take over again.

"If you travel the corridor to the first intersection, and then follow the right one, you will come to an innership transport. It will take you to the galley; strike the sigil which glows in blue and gold -- it is the only one of this color combination -- and you will be taken there. There you will find water and containers to carry it in.

"Or, something with a bit more... body, if you would rather."

A twinkle came into her eye at the look both Galen and Jasyn shot her; then she sobered and called out to Shayla.

"I would love nothing more than hastening back to K'eel Doba," she said, nodding in approval for the young woman having had the insight to slip them into the protective arms of hyperspace.

"But I agree with Lord Phalomir: if Aeylmaar is indeed yet on Korriban, he deserves our approaching him. We were to meet with him, after all; he would without doubt worry if we did not show.

"There is also the slight chance that whoever was upon our trail might be upon his as well, and he would then need our assistance.

"Assuming, of course, that the entire plan of meeting here was not a ruse to lead us into an ambush."

She quieted again for a bit, swallowing with difficulty for her mouth and throat had suddenly become very dry.

“Wait up,” he called to Galen. “I’ll go with you if you don’t mind.”

Galen had already turned the corner of the first intersection when Panthar caught up with her.

“Thanks for waiting,” he smirked.

Once inside the transport, he waited until the door closed and looked sheepishly to Galen.

"I am well, and on the northeast rim of the Valley of the Dark Lords," he sent back, a soft whicker that travelled at the speed of thought itself.

"I am aware that you suffered some type of altercation; I believe this to be at the hands of a Cult Assassin who was sent by Lord Aelvedaar to murder the Chosen Daughter as well as yourself. Please take care; this assassin does not have the All at his disposal, but he is skilled and cunning in the ways of Sith magicks.

"As for me, at this moment I am whole and hale with a fighter at my disposal; I have not seen the one sent to kill you, but only felt the disturbance his attack sent out via the magicks at his command. Whether or not he will turn his ire at missing his mark against me is yet to be discerned, but I do not fear him.

"I am, after all, Lord Aelvedaar's son, am I not?"

Finally stopped in place and turned to him.

"I- I'm not quite sure what's going on, exactly," I began heavily, biting my lip.

"All I know is that Terrin -- that's my husband, you know -- was ki-"

I paused and had to swallow a moment before I could continue.

"He was killed by a wild tuk'ata on Koris'ian," I said as I lifted my head in defiance against the pure viciousness Fate could disperse so willy-nilly and without so much as a by your leave.

"But somehow... somehow... he seems to have wound up inside your Sith buddy there.

"I'm not asking any questions about it; I'm just happy to have at least this much of him alive-- er, sorta-- to be with again...

"Well, kinda."

I paused, blinking back tears and sudden confusion as the implications of Terrin's position -- not to mention my own -- began to finally sink into me.

I sighed a bit more heavily then, and turning from Panthar continued on down the corridor. I heard his bootsteps hastening behind me, but didn't have the heart to yell him off... nor that enough to invite him to walk at my side as the friend he seemed to be trying to be. So we just continued along in this manner, coming to where another, larger, intersection crossed the one we travelled down.

I turned right and kept on going, until at length I came to a weird oval of a doorway. It appeared open, revealing three rows of two seats smashed into its quite tiny interior. On the bulkhead next to the closest seat was some kind of panel in which myriad buttons and sigils glowed and glimmered and winked.

One of them was bright blue and gold, reminding me of a double star system I had once traveled through.

I ignored Big Red then, and sat down. Then I punched that blue and gold thingy, and was rewarded by the utter disappearance of the opening in the bulkhead. That was replaced by a completely smooth and colorless surface, which somehow seemed to convey the notion that we were traveling at a very high rate of speed. My brain had no sooner assimilated that little fact when another opening appeared like magick beside me.

I cast a look at Panthar, who had crammed into the pair of seats behind me.

"This must be it," I said as I extricated myself from the transport. As he unravelled his imposing bulk from his seat, I took it upon myself to explore what had to be the ship's galley, all gleaming greeny-gold and echoey silence.

"Do you think we can find something for Jasyn in here, like maybe some Sith brandy?" I asked as I came to a halt, for sure as Khaandon made little green worrts, I hadn't a clue as to where to find anything in the unfamiliarity of our surroundings.

...something with some...body did sound really good about now...

...but he had to figure this all out.

"Ahhh...'scuse me," he interjected into the current conversation. "But I seem to have...

...missed out...

...on some things."

He paused there, clearing his throat, trying his damnedest to swallow. "I mean...

...assassins? And Aeylmaar???"

He trailed again, frowning. "Isn't he supposed to be a bad guy? And who's Phalomir?"

Jasyn furrowed his eyebrows a bit at this, as if trying to recall by the sheer movement. "And while we're at it..."

He paused one final time, looking then to Graysith, "When did you get here...

“I’m guessing maybe this one,” he said, walking to the wall.

He touched the small dot on the cabinet and the door slid open silently. Inside was a pair of large bottles. Panthar took the bottles in his hands, turned and flashed a smile at Galen, raising his eyebrows several times.

“Well, my dear,” he grinned. “It appears we shall be able to appease your friend, toast to your rediscovered love, and get generally poo-doo faced for the sake of it all.”

He pointed with his horns towards a sliding door built in to a counter.

The fact that he did not spoke far more than words alone ever could about his knowledge of events concerning the recent past, perhaps knowledge that could in some way assist her in regaining her own faulty memories.

Now, however, was neither the time or place to deal with this; tucking that thought away for further and future pursuit, she came over to him and laid a slender hand on his shoulder. Again, it was much to the man's credit that he did not shrink from her touch, but merely flinched.

His eyes darkened however, twin doors slamming shut in his face.

She smiled, albeit in a somewhat puzzled manner, chewing on her lip as she briefly wondered what she could do to open those doors. Then--

"It would appear that the Heir Apparent has been trying to assist us of late," she replied, deciding that adhering to Jasyn's direct questions would be the best approach.

"We- I may have misjudged him; there is a small, very well hidden cult of Sith who called themselves Cult Assassins; it would seem that this group has survived along with the general Sith populace in their return to that of the galaxy's, and would seem further--"

She paused a moment, letting a shiver race briefly through her as memory fought with the ever more persuasive and logic-based information the others had been providing her with.

"It would seem that Lord Aelvedaar has sent a Cult Assassin to murder Lord Phalomir and myself."

She waved a hand in Phalomir's direction, as if happy to place the burden of that statement upon his broad shoulders and far away from her own.

"He is a Lord of the Sith, a Dark Lord, I believe, and thus of some political power. I am told that I am the Dark Lady of the Warrior clan, although I cannot quite remember--"

Another pause as a pair of brilliant green eyes came floating up to stare accusingly at her. Deep within, the Beast rose to its feet with a hesitant growl.

She gave her head a miniscule shake and continued, tucking that odd moment away with the one concerning Jasyn, to be perused when she could afford the time to do so.

Puzzlement darkened her eyes, shading violet to rose-tinted ebony.

"As for why I left you... I-- I--"

The slender hand removed itself from Jasyn's shoulder to light upon her brow. She frowned.

It seemed so right, so correct, and now so strangely blurred, like remnants of a dream long past....

"I really do not know," she whispered, letting her hand drop as her vision left Jasyn to focus on a middle space existing lightyears between them.

I shot the Big Guy a dagger-edged look, not quite certain if he was being facetious with me or not. He merely raised his brows, the horns above them twitching and raising as he responded with what I'm sure he thought was a most naive and innocent expression.

I cocked my head a little, remembering back to his quiet little attempts to get close, wondering now in hindsight if I had been perhaps over-reacting to him or not.

He gazed at me like a proverbial lamb. I decided I hadn't been over-reacting one iota.

"Just keep Terrin out of this, all right?" I growled as I shouldered past him and stomped over to the cupboard he was indicating.

"You wouldn't know--"

Snipping off anything further I might say before it started another war between us, I ignored him then and opened the cupboard to reveal rows of exotically formed glassware and bottles. The bottles seemed to be sealed, most of them filled with a liquid that was as clear as glass, but a few others glowing with varying colors and depths of hue, some red, some golden-amber, some clear and distinctively purple...

And others the most brilliantly enticing emerald green I had ever seen.

I instinctively reached for the latter, then grabbed three of the clear which joined the pair of green ones I had snatched. Rising somewhat shakily to my feet, my arms full of Sith refreshment, I turned and headed for the door. The bottles were rather large; I could scarcely see over their tops.

"I think this should do it," I said over my shoulder as I maneuvered in what I hoped was the general direction of the door.

"Why don't you grab some glasses. I'll wait for you back at the transport."

“Here,” he said. “Let me take some of that.”

He placed the bottle on the tray and reached his hand out to offer to take another.

“And I’m sorry. I thought you were happy about Terrin. But yeah, it must be hard, having him here but not really, with his spirit stuck away in someone else’s body. But that part I do know a little about, being in that situation myself.”

He took another bottle and placed in on the tray.

“In fact, Phal and I were somehow both sharing the same body at one point – mine, actually. But then we went through some kind of strange magick or something and he got put back in his body, but I sort of got put into this one while another bad guy, Thoran, took off with mine. OK, that all sounds bizarre when I say it out loud, but the point I’m trying to make is that I know what it is like. Say, I wonder if that same magick would work on Terrin? Well, um, I guess he would need something physical to be put into. Sorry.”

I didn't know if my outburst was a simple reaction to his complete oversight of the obvious, or because it was only through his kindness in relieving me of some of the burden I was carrying that I kept from making an ass of myself right in front of him.

I glared at him some more... and then let my expression soften a touch.

"Sorry," I mumbled, staring down at the remaining bottles I held. The green stuff just had to be Sith brandy; I remember the time Terrin and I had some of the stuff, back on K'eel Doba when we had appropriated that Sith dwelling....

Where's the horns, fly-boy?

My lip trembled, and with some effort I managed to hang onto the bottles with one arm while the other freed itself to rub quickly over my eyes. After a bit of this I had regained enough of my composure to face Big Red again.

"I wish we could put him back in his body -- I don't think he enjoys being in someone else's, I know I wouldn't -- but that bod- he's been interred, I guess, back on Koris'ian.

"I'm afraid there wouldn't be anything to put him back into. So I guess I'd better be happy with what I've got."

I smiled, but it was only a facade plastered across my face. Sighing, I turned away again.

...just...

...swell."

Even as he spoke, Jasyn scowled, his look clearly troubled with the news. Beside him Matt began to stir. "And why is it...

...you don't remember you're Dark Lady?"

He paused at this, frowning and licking his dry lips. "This sort of thing has happened before...

...but you're the last I'd expect to be dealing with missing memories."

He trailed then, closing his eyes and trying once more to swallow. "I really need a drink," he then muttered. "I don't know what is going on here...

...but I sure hope it doesn't get any more confusing."

Even as he finished this statement Panthar and Galen re-entered from the galley, the latter carrying a very familiar and beloved bottle of something enticingly green.

Jasyn unconciously licked his lips. "S'at Sith brandy?"

...and intently listening to the conversation which was playing out behind her. The final portion of Graysith's statements, as well as the garbled ones of Jasyn Lancaster, were enough to grab her total attention however; with one swift movement Shayla turned, a blaze of fire igniting in her eyes as a perceived injustice registered in her brain.

"He--Lord Aelvedaar--" she started, her greeny-blue eyes resting on Graysith, "Has he blocked your memories?!" she half-asked, half-growled, her look dark, her eyes like the sea during a storm. Somewhere in the back of her mind, images of Aelvedaar blocking her memories, restoring them, and blocking them more than once played as though these events had just happened the day before. "Fates know that he's done the same to others, and more than once."

Saying nothing more than that, Shayla then fell silent and waited then, the fire in her eyes cooling a few degrees...

...but remaining far from quenched.

The Beast lowered it's head, and growled at those queries.

"I-- I really don't know," she finally said, her voice a soft whisper.

"Truly, from my point of view, I am missing nothing. To my knowledge, my dear Sire is Lord Aelvedaar, through whose efforts I am who I am this day, the Chosen Daughter of the Sith. He has placed before me the destiny in which I am to resurrect his peoples from their untimely death; I was awakened to this in the temple occupied by my dearest Dark Heart, Darth Wicked.

"My Sire took me from him when I was betrayed..."

She paused a moment, her lip trembling fractionally. After a bit, she continued.

"I know nothing of memories of others being taken from them, and so cannot relate this to myself. Indeed, it is difficult when all I have to go by that memories of my own are indeed missing are your statements to that fact.

"It is my hope that the Library of the Sith will hold answers; in the meantime, Shayla:

"Did you not state there is another lifeform on Korriban? Is it possible that this lifeform could be one of an entity associated with those sent to destroy us?

"With this question raised then, who believes it worth the risk to investigate, when the Library will hold answers to all our questions... or so I have been told."

Lord Aelvedaar’s son? Although Phalomir knew this to be true, the weight of that idea had struck him until that very moment. The Eye had told Phalomir that his own father, the being who now referred to himself as The Master, was the son of Aeylmaar. The strangeness of time aside, this meant that somewhere deep inside of Phalomir dwelt the blood of the very man who was his biggest threat – the man he quite possibly would have to kill or die at the hands of.

But it did not feel right… Phalomir felt himself to be of a different mold, alien to the feelings that Aelvedaar gave him. It did not seem possible that he was related. Unless…

“I understand,” he replied.

“Perhaps we may yet meet, safe from the intrusions of such assassins. We seek answers to many questions, and wish to begin where the Dark Lady should be safest. Please, be our guest.”

“Of course, we shall be required to elude a certain blockade..”

Phalomir left the link open with that thought, waiting for a reply. He half-consciously spoke aloud to those in the room.

“Aeylmaar is near the valley,” he said. “He is safe for the moment, but has confirmed that the assassins were sent by Aelvedaar. It is as we speculated, they have control of Sith magick. Aeylmaar has a Sith fighter, and I have invited him to meet us in person. I await his reply.”

He paused, then added:

“Our scanners did not register him, so who was the other humanoid on the planet?”

They would, however, be more than felt, of that he was certain.

"I thank you," he sent back, allowing a moment of silence to ensue. Then before the other could fill that silence, he went on.

"I shall meet you in the courtyard of the Temple of the Warriors, where we can speak further of these things.

"In the meantime, go with the gods, my friends."

With that he simply moved out of hiding, and headed to where his fighter awaited his return. Entering therein, he allowed his focus to turn to the minutia of plotting a correct departure vector as well as that of his destination.

The little ship made no discernable sound but rose into the dim light of the approaching dusk, nosed a moment as if seeking direction, and then flashed into nonexistence. Outside the Sith fighter, the darkening atmosphere shaded into the blackness of space, space in which myriad stars at first sparkled, and then shone quite steadily before smearing out into the lines of hyperdriven space.

It's warning growl deepened to the bass rumble a volcano emits before it erupts.

Graysith stiffened, her sight clouding, filling in from the edges with a strange gray mass that tunneled in from her peripheral vision until she could see nothing at all but gray.

In the midst of that gray there flamed two hell-spawned eyes, which glared and narrowed then flamed into monstrous size until that was all she could see or feel or even think.

And it was through that very link which she began to pour out healing energies once more...

...and in turn sensed something indiscernable--at least for the moment-- within Graysith. Her eyes closed, Shayla shuddered involuntarily.

Then she crashed to the deck with a terrible thud.

I froze a nanosecond -- then was at her side, the bottles I was carrying flung willy-nilly toward Jasyn as I rushed past him. I fell to my knees, unheeding to the pain that little maneuver caused, and reached past Shayla to place a hand on my sister's cheek.

It was clammy and ice cold. My finger moved slightly to a position beneath her nose....

"She's not breathing!" I gulped, swallowing back the panic that was beginning to rise within me, blinking through the tears that sprang into my eyes.

For quite suddenly, all the events of the past three years dwindled into the obscenely ridiculous: her consistently trying to kill me, her actually killing our father, her seeming divorce from humanity to join with that of a race I had never heard anything other than the merest rumors of.

She was my sister, after all.

I blinked more rapidly, struggling to keep my head, to not burst into the distraction of hysterics that I so wanted to give in to.

I could only remain by her side on my knees, my hand on her face, staring into her blind eyes, noting the light fading from them, and hope to Khaandon that this jedi could save her.

For she sure as hell looked to be near death at the moment.

"Erik, Phalomir, I need your strengths as well."

Saying nothing more than that, Shayla knew that the others would join them without hesitation...

...so she continued on with her search into her Force link with Graysith. And it was in this searching that Shayla finally caught a glimpse of the Beast within Graysith...

...one which Shayla somehow knew had been within Graysith for quite some time. The Beast sat zealously gaurding something between its massive front paws, and around the it there was a strange fog of gray...

...and a a pair of flame-colored eyes clouding the entire image.

Shayla shuddered once more, and could then only interpret the images for what she believed they may mean.

"I believe this is the work of Lord Aelvedaar," she surmised. Then, "I fear our escape from the assassins has lead him to take matters into his own hands. But perhaps we can reverse the work of his sorcery."

Dear gods, they had better be able to. If they weren't, she'd never forgive herself...

With no further ado than this, Shayla focused on that gray fog within Graysith which she sensed did not belong, trying with every ounce of her being to pull it from Graysith's essence and into her own.

And beneath its iron touch, Jharmeen Jhin'Dar Qu'taro remained as immobile as ice....

His face darkened, and a feeling of dread crept over him. He inhaled and walked to where Jharmeen lay, Galen and Shayla on either side of her, and he knelt over her head. A familiar feeling permeated from her, and he reached in lightly with his Sith magick to try to sense what was wrong. A pair of red flaming eyes met his efforts.

He gently stroked her forehead and looked to Shayla.

“Shayla,” he said softly. There was no response. “Shayla!” he repeated, sharply. He reached out took her jaw in his hand, pulling her face to him. “SHAYLA!” Her eyes snapped to meet his, a look of shock on her face.

“Withdraw,” he said softly. “But keep her alive, feed her body with energy. I shall try to attend to her mind.”

Shayla continued to stare at him as he turned to Galen.

“There should be a respirator in the infirmary. Take Panthar with you, he tells me he can read Sith and will be ale to locate it quickly.”

He turned his attention back to Jharmeen and closed his eyes. He took in several deep breaths, clearing his mind from the world around him and allowing his spirit to open to her. He had done this once before with her, linking his thoughts with hers, sending his spirit to walk within the confines of her thoughts. And within that realm, he had faced the Beast within the Dark Lady.

He found himself in a dark area, completely black along the fringes but lit dimly by the flame of the eyes before him. Gray mist spread everywhere, the fog spreading in all directions.

Phalomir looked to the great beast, its forepaws covering something.

“Greetings, great one,” he said. “I come before you again, in humility, not confrontation.”

He waited for a response. There was none.

“Before, when we met, I misjudged you. You were protecting the Dark Lady from the truth of her deeds, keeping her from insanity. What are you guarding now, my friend? Is it her memories? And in doing so, are you protecting her?”

Phalomir felt warmer, as if the “air” around him had increased n temperature.

“I wish to protect her as well,” he said. “You should know this. Through my mistake, her repressed memories of her father brought madness upon her, but I took that insanity from her. I keep it still, within my own mind, bound and secured into a ball that threatens always to explode. But know this, great beast, I love her. My soul is bound to her. And if I knew you were causing her harm I would risk everything to bring about your end.”

Before the flame-eyed beast could react too quickly, Phalomir held up one hand, palm out.

“But know this as well. If what you guard shall keep her safe, then guard it well. I feel the strain of your efforts, as if something wants desperately to explode forth. But you must understand, I would give more than my life for her. To keep her safe, I would give up my place in her life."

Phalomir steadied himself and looked directly into the flaming eyes.

“So can you tell me, great beast, are you keeping her from harm?”

I shot out of the bridge area and back into the corridor we had just come in from. Running full blast, I nearly missed the first right turn; as it was I careened into the wall of the side corridor before bouncing off with a shake of my head, and continuing down it full tilt.

The innership transport lay just ahead, and I managed to slow just enough to gain a seat without crashing into its far bulkhead. Not waiting to see if the Big Guy was with me, I turned to the panel in which all the pretty little lights blinked and warbled...

And paused with a grunt of desperation-borne dismay.

"Which the hell one takes us to the infirmary, Panthar?!" I shouted, now turning to see -- to my considerable relief -- that he was in the process of cramming himself into the tiny transport in the seats behind me.

"This ship is a far cry from Jester; and I never had a sick bay, she was too small, I don't know--"

I lurched to a stop, tears dribbling from my eyes and blurring the lights into a weird kaleidoscope that whirled and blinked in front of me.

"Just get us there," I finally ended with, wiping my face with my sleeve and taking in a fortifying breath.

I looked at the new person.

"Um.. Ok. I'm Dash Kelderon."

The transport door shut and the pod shot into motion.

“But I do know that she’s in good hands until we get back. Shayla would do about anything for her, and I’ve been close enough to Phal to know that he would lay his life down for her – maybe even more than that. And they both have powers to back that up.”

The transport came to a stop and the door slid open. Panthar pried himself from the seat and out the small opening. He scanned the room, and as he felt Galen approach from behind he spied a wall that held a myriad of drawers built into it.

“Ah, maybe there,” he said as he darted towards the wall. He scanned the labels on the drawers and quickly came to the one he was hoping to find.

“Dang Sith have it ordered anatomically or something, but here we go.”

He opened the drawer with a bang and pulled out the small device from inside. It was circular in shape, with two short arms that extended to either side. It was completely transparent, except for a small dark oval in the center of the circle. The outer arms and circle were hard but light, while the center of the circle seemed to flow like silk, allowing the dark oval to wobble about.

And that was saying alot.

Then, with a good amount of effort, he managed to get shakily to his feet. The warship's bulkhead swam around him, whether from the effects of a sudden alchol rush or fatique he wasn't sure. Again he found himself trying to make heads or tails of what was going on.

"I don't know, I'm not a med-drone!" I cried, coming over to his side, once again wiping away the uprush of yet more tears so I could take a good look at the thing he held so delicately. It lay in his hulking paws like some kind of weird anachronism.

"I- I'm only good in field aide, I'm not a doctor, my dad was but the Ph.D variety, he wouldn't know a thermometer from a heat sensor, so how would I know--"

I paused with a gulp, realizing I was teetering on the edge of panic. Everything in me was urging me to take the thing and go-go-go!, and it was only with the greatest effort that I did not.

I paused long enough first, in order to justify my actions.

"All I know is that she wasn't breathing, and if she goes without breathing for too long, five minutes, I think, she'll suffer irreversible brain damage, or could d-"

I stopped with that. Too many people in my life had already trod down that particular garden pathway.

No more, not if I could help it.

I snatched the respirator from Panthar's grasp and, ignoring the startled look he shot me, turned round and bolted for the transport.

Time seemed to run as fast as I did...

And perhaps, just a little bit faster.

He stood transfixed as the violet dimmed, his own heart slowing to match the receding pulses. His vision narrowed and the light around him dulled, and a soft voice wafted through his thoughts.

---

“And what of this one, my husband?” she asked, indicating the small Sith boy who sat despondently on the corner stool. Her face was set in a stern frown, but her eyes betrayed the laughter behind her anger. “What punishment shall we render for such a serious infraction.”

Phalomir looked to his son. The scrapes along the boy’s arms were not deep, but the lush clothing was shredded and riddled with bark, the result of climbing and then sliding down a large tree. Honey still clung to the sleeves.

“Indeed,” Phalomir pronounced in a clear, overbearing voice. “It is not enough that the Heir to the Sorcerers Clan would circumvent parental orders of no desert by climbing a honey tree, but to then ruin a perfectly fine set of tailored clothing in the process… and not wipe his mouth, that is unforgivable.”

This was too much. Jharmeen lost her composure and burst out into laughter, Phalomir close behind. The boy looked to both in turn, not sure whether to run or to laugh himself.

---

Another heartbeat, another pulse. Phalomir looked to the beast, a defiantly calm look on its face. A flash of red encircled his vision, and another memory washed over his thoughts.

---

The Dark Lady had fallen, the shock of having so much energy drawn from by the Eye of R’lous and fed into Phalomir. Still within Panthar’s body, Phalomir had redirected the energy into a forceful blast that had sent Lord Roan crashing into the wall down the hall. Phalomir crawled quickly to her side. She was breathing, but unconscious and incredibly pale. He tried to lift her, but the strength was not there. Muffled sounds of shifting rock came from the area behind him, and he felt a soft warmth in his midsection. The voice of the Eye came to him.

in time she will understand her legacy, protect her, my son

With a sudden burst his strength returned, and he gathered up the Lady and sped quickly down the hall, looking for a place to hide.

---

The red shaded his vision completely as Phalomir stared at the beast.

---
"How dare you!" she burst out with, fairly seething. "Who are you to come here as you have, speaking riddles such as you do, and to say such words to me?"

Phalomir felt the words come to him, though he was taken by surprise at the speed in which they arrived, swelling deeply within him and exploding from his throat. He spun back again, as if led by an unseen hand.

“I dare because I must! ” he hissed. “I am who I am! You ask that question of me, can you answer it for yourself? Why do you think you were called forth from beyond the ages? Why would a simple human be given the gifts you were? The Dark Lords made no choices but what they were bid. Your past has led you to this point, as my past has led me to this. The past is but a road to now, your secret plans are mere sidetracks. I am your future!” Phalomir felt more words rising, but caught them. He felt he was spouting random thoughts, knowing only part of the meaning.

---

The Eye, outside of the dim chamber of the Dark Lady’s mind, glowed into life -- a bright red orb within the pocket of Phalomir’s robe as another image came to the sorcerer.

---

Phalomir’s spirit stood in the chamber of the Dark Lady. His eyes glowed a bright emerald, lighting the room in an eerie blaze as his voice intensified. “I am the rightful heir to the Clan of Sorcerers! My body lies on a cold floor as hard as the stone it is itself made of! I am Sith, My Lady! Every fiber of being and thrumming of energy within me screams to reclaim my place and do away with the insanity I have seen on this world! Yet everything I have done I have done for you! You, My Lady! YOU ARE MY HOPE! MY DREAMS!”

With his final words, Phalomir’s expression turned from hurt and rage to one of realization. The light in his eyes dimmed, and he retreated a step back as his jaw slackened.

“My salvation…”

He took another step backwards.

“My love…”

Another step, then a look of astonishment.

“I have known you before...”

---

“… and I give everything for her,” Phalomir said to the beast, his voice calm and steady. He looked down to the dimming violet, its pulse fading. The red shade in his vision turned a deeper crimson, and a sudden warmth permeated him. He felt the magick within him, pooling together into a sphere of energy. It flowed through him, then from him, until it swirled around his spirit in an ever-quickening whirlwind of red light. Faster and faster, increasing in intensity until the chamber glowed.

“She is your puppet no longer, Aelvedaar,” he called out to the wary beast.

“Protect her, make her live,” he whispered. The whirlwind struck out from him and entered into the violet kernel. For a brief moment there was nothing but the soft violet glow of the kernel and the silence of the space between Phalomir and the beast. Then the violet deepened, growing a darker shade as the red mingled within it, brightening and pulsing faster and faster. The kernel grew, pulsing harder and deeper, and then shot forth a brilliance that caused Phalomir to shield his eyes as he was knocked backwards. He heard the beast roar in protest as an incredible heat spread out all around him.

--

Graysith shuddered yet again, her eyes wide and glassy and fixed.

They closed then, and she let out a long, drawn-out sigh. Then she curled up into a fetal position, her heart beating threadily, her breathing rapid and ragged, and lay still.

"Fool!" whispered the Beast, knowing that the determined -- if love-struck- sorcerer would hear him. I'ts eyes glowed like the fires of hell.

"Do you think this shall defeat me? It is but a small annoyance in my path.

"Clearly you both desire this one, for whatever reasons you might have."

Its lips curled into a snarling smile as it sent this message out into Shayla's mind as well as Phalomir's.

"How badly--? Well, that yet remains to be seen, does it not?"

The smile on the Beast's maw was horrid, amplified by the next words it spoke.

"But -- I must thank you, after all, for your assistance to me in the death of Roan."

Its eyes flashed, lighting up Jharmeen's inner being, flaring out through the Glyph on her forehead, which suddenly turned the color of fresh lava.

"I give her back to you as she was when I found her, but you must depart from your self-appointed task of seeking to destroy me. Depart from our worlds, our space; join with the other wretches who have no knowledge of our presence here, say nothing and return here never again.

"I shall rule the Sith as one, and no piddling interference on the part of a would-be Dark Lord shall stop me. If I need travel this path through the shadows of your own pitiful loyalties and honor, then so be it."

"Here--" I gasped, grabbing my side with my other hand...

Khaandon's Ghost, but I was out of shape! Gotta do something about that!

...but got no further.

My sister was still laying on the deck, her head in Phalomir's lap. From where I stood I could tell she was breathing: weakly, threadily, but blessedly breathing. I could only assume that her heart was keeping up its end of the bargain as well.

But that wasn't what made me drop the device from my hand.

It was that thing on her forehead, now transformed into the semblance of a tiny and ferocious sun.

I blinked against the brilliant light it exuded as my suddenly nerveless fingers opened, releasing the now-unnecessary respirator. It hit the deck with a tinny, unnoticed tink.

"Wha--?" was all I could manage then, and just stood there, feeling for all the world like a useless big ol' gandy rak, wondering what in Hell's Seven Circles was going on now.

Phalomir rose to his knees and lifted Jharmeen into his arms. She curled up into him, the glyph still glowing brightly. He held her close to his chest, his size making her seem more like a child than a grown woman. For the first time really he felt the power of his own physical body rather than the force of his energies, and he stood to his full height.

“But my cares matter not, for I am still Lord of the Armorers, as she is Dark Lady of the Warriors. Even you do not yet control the will of the gods. There is a storm approaching, Aelvedaar, you shall need us.”

Phalomir looked down to Jharmeen, now seeming to rest even as the glyph glowed.

I took a short step forward, then stopped. Truly I was at a complete loss, probably as much of a loss at the others around me, judging by the looks I saw plastered on their faces.

All save for Phalomir and Shayla, that is. Their expressions reflected much more.

Much, much more.

"What's happening?" I asked, letting those whispered words carry me a couple feet into the bridge. I stopped again, squinting against the light pouring out from Jharmeen's forehead.

"Is she ok?

Something hideous flashed deeply within those fiery eyes, spreading out to combat the red glow Phalomir had placed within the essence of Jharmeen Jhin'Dar Qu'taro. It flared out and blanketed that red light, covering it for a moment or two before it receded back into the Beast and disappeared.

The flaming eyes narrowed.

"Enough delay, fool!" The commanding voice was little more than a gutteral growl.

"You have but two simple choices before you: remain in defiance of me, or depart forever with the restored human you now hold so desperately in your arms.

"Make your choice, now!"

The Beast quieted then, no further words forthcoming. It simply waited.

Any further action on its part would clearly be resultant upon that taken by the pitiful beings before it.

"Do we have the right to not make this choice for her? After all, Aelvedaar will certainly take her if we do not make this choice, and what right has he?"

Then she turned to a befuddled Galen, hoping that her next words would clear up some of the confusion, for better or for worse.

"We have been given the option to take Jharmeen back, as she was before Aelvedaar took her...

...but only under the agreement to take her and and never again return here."

Quieting at this then, Shayla pursed her lips, the inward battle within her evident on her face. She knew what could lay ahead if the Sith were left to their own, and she knew whom and what would be left behind...

...but she knew that in spite of all of this she simply couldn't sacrifice Graysith...

...Jharmeen...

...in exchange for continuing a battle within the Sith worlds. Jharmeen deserved the right to live her own life as she would have chosen to live it. Granted, the Jedi way would have dictated that the needs of the majority far outweighed the needs of one...

...the Greater Good, etc...

...but as far as Shayla was concerned, the Greater Good and the Jedi way could be damned at the moment.

"As much as I am keenly aware of what we risk and what we will leave behind, I just can't bear sacrificing her life for it all. She has the right to live her own life..."

My head whirled, filled with images and words and whispers and innuendo and hints of this or that, all flying about willy-nilly, clashing discordantly together.

Reaching my hand out to a nearby bulkhead to steady myself, I finally managed to focus upon one of the words mangling about in my brain.

"Option-- what do you mean, 'an option?'"

Saying it brought strength, of a sort; I found that when I removed my hand from the wall I was able to remain upright. The wild rush in my head seemed to be settling down to a dull roar, like a small waterfall.

I shook my head, and stepped forward. casting glances back and forth between Shayla and Phalomir.

Then I heaved a sigh.

"Look, there's nothing more I'd like better in this universe than getting my sister back, but sheesh, you gotta understand something."

I paused, the very thought of what I was trying to say squeezing my heart, painfully. I gulped to soften the blow, and went on.

"Jharmeen killed our father... and I, well, I sorta sold our lands and home on Garos IV. To buy some clones.

"Umm--" I trailed, pursing my lips grimly.

"Long story. Anyway, where would she go? To a penal colony? To get 'rehabilitated?' Hmmph-- more like getting mind-swiped, and all because of that bastard--"

Again I came to a shaky halt, but this time fighting down anger. It took a few long moments of inner struggle to gain enough control and continue.

"Look, as much as I don't really know what in Hell's Seven Circles happened to her, or why she became who she is now, I do know that a lot of good has come out of her transformation."

Terrin, Darra, meeting everyone, even saving an entire race, which suddenly didn't seem quite as ridiculous as it sounded when spoken aloud.

"She gave four years of her damned life to the cause of your people, at least that's how I understand it, and now you would let this-- this-- this slime on the underbelly of the universe win by casually yanking back all she had, all she was given, all she ever fought for--"

And killed for.

"--and toss her back to spend the rest of her life who the hell knows in what rehab center and without understanding truly why she was put there?"

Hot tears of anger flooded my sight; grimacing, I knuckled them away and stood before the pair, giving them a look that spoke far more than anything else I might have to say.

Almost.

"You'd just let everything she has gone through be for nothing."

...and for a moment, she simply turned away from everyone, closing her eyes.

What is it that Graysith would have wanted? You were a Sith adept, Shayla...

...and a Jedi padawan. There is no way you can truly turn your back on all that you have come to learn and accept as truth. And admit it, if you simply went with what your heart longed for and yanked Jharmeen from here, would you ever forgive yourself for leaving behind all that must still be fought for?

Even as the answer to this question sprang forth in Shayla's mind, a large lump grew in her throat, and even more tears sprang to her eyes. With effort she turned once more, making no effort to cover her emotions. She then rose a shaky hand to lay on one of Jharmeen's shoulders, and gazed steadily into her quietly resting face.

"Oh my dear friend," she spoke softly then, "All that you have fought for will not be thrown to the winds. All for the Greater Good indeed..."

Trailing then, Shayla let her hand simply drop, and looked up then to Phalomir, the tears in her eyes clearing as her determination was bolstered. Even so, the lump in her throat remained.

"Galen is right," she then spoke up softly to him, "We cannot leave behind all that she has fought for in exchange for giving her a life in which she will never understand just who and what she is."

And both Shayla and Galen were correct, she deserved more than what Phalomir could offer her in Aelvedaar’s “deal”. Whether of her own will or not, she had sacrificed her father’s life for the Sith and had her own life severely rearranged. Galen’s life was also thrown to the winds because of the Sith.

Phalomir’s first instinct was to take Aelvedaar’s offer, to give up on the Sith and wander the galaxy, and leave the race to its fate. But what sort of life would this bring to him and the others? Jharmeen would have no knowledge of him, he would be a stranger to her. She would have no memory of killing her father, lose all of the experience she had gained in her years. Nor would she remember her son. Indeed, all she had been through, everything she had done the past several years, would have been only to serve Aelvedaar.

And that would be unforgivable.

He looked up to Shayla, her face echoing her words from a moment ago. He glanced to Galen, then held her eyes in his own gaze.

“He will not rest until we are dead,” he said. “As long as we carry the symbols of entitlement, his goal of a single ruler of the Sith will never be fulfilled. Though she now has my power, if Aelvedaar can somehow break through those defenses then he can strip her of the All. It will be perilous.”

He turned his attention back to Shayla.

I pursed my lips and suddenly held my arms out to either side.

I shrugged.

"Hey, you know I'm in. I mean, what the hell is life anymore if not filled with the fear of impending death and/or doom lurking around every corner? Boring, that's what.

"But-- option? You said that 'one option' was to hit space with her and she'd be restored; what's the other option open to us?

"Unless that's this defiance thing you mentioned, well. If so, hey, like I said, in for a credit, go for the crown. If I'm gonna be up against someone against his wishes, hey. Better the Big Boys, right? I mean, you've got this power--"

I stopped in mid-sentence as Phalomir's words fully and finally soaked in. I blinked, and looked at Shayla.

"And you're a Jedi--"

Again, I paused, chewing on my lip, remembering the powers my sister had and then amplifying them one hundredfold in my brain. Added an entirely new variable into that equation: that of Sith magick.

"We're dead men walking, and don't even realize it yet. But..."

I took a breath.

"You know I own... er, that is, Terrin and I own Eagle Enterprises."

I sent Phalomir an apologetic look, but it wasn't meant for him.

"We've got something in the way of ships and power, yeah. And in a pinch, maybe I could persuade Sorben to--"

Again I paused, closing my eyes now. The backs of my eyelids flamed with the fiery horror of full-blown war. I shuddered a little to blink that image away, and then continued.

"Well there's that. I don't know if any of this would be enough to stand up to Aelvedaar; we do have Aeylmaar on our side, and he seemed to be using this weird magick stuff that Jharmeen has, too.

"Can anyone think of anybody else who might come to our assistance? Anyone who would wish Aelvedaar dead, someone with power, who might be coerced into helping us?"

I stopped then settled to the deck in a cross-legged position, feeling every bit as if all I had been doing was babble improbabilities in order to stave off the assured death I knew lay ahead for us.

I thought of one thing more, and jerked up my head.

"What about the Sith themselves, the warriors?"

"Ahhh," he started out, unsure of just how to voice the question in his head, "You and Terrin own Eagle Enterprises?"

He trailed, cocking a brow. Then, "I think I've had too much to drink, cause it sure as hell seems like I'm suddenly missing something. And in the 'who else might be able to help' category, what about Yaoksi Joao? Or that Petrolu guy--Shawn? Granted, he's one single Jedi, but he's been of assistance before, and he knows about the Sith already. Not to mention he's one of the few Jedi I think I've ever been able to stand..."

“There is another,” he whispered grimly.

Two others, in fact. He thought. Each of which appear to have been betrayed by Aelvedaar, though in what form their assistance would come in I cannot say. But they are powerful beings, and perhaps do not share in Aelvedaar’s dreams for the Sith. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. This could hold true even for the likes of the Master and Lord R—

He opened his eyes and looked to Galen. He shook his head and looked back to Shayla.

No. Some enemies are too horrible to befriend in any means. I will attempt to contact my father, the Master, somehow, and leave Roan out of this.

Shifting Jharmeen’s light weight, he reached into his robe and clutched the Eye of R’lous.

This mysterious object, so secretive in its motives, yet so powerful, must be of use here.

Phalomir could feel the warmth pulsating from the sphere as he wrapped his long fingers around it. He felt sparks fly betwen his fingers as they moved around the smooth surface. Though his magick was apparently gone, he could still feel the power emanating from the Eye.

Help me, he thought, trying to focus on the Eye itself. It was so much simpler using Sith magick to send thoughts, but if the Eye was still somehow attuned to him then perhaps this could work. Help us.

And then Phalomir's one single spoken thought grabbed her attention.

"Another?" she queried. "Are you referring to the Eye?"

Falling silent at that, she let the words fall for a moment. Then she turned to Galen once more, addressing her final question. "As for whether the warriors might aid us...

...perhaps it is possible. They have already been seasoned to feel angst against Aelvedaar--they may feel even more if they knew he has tried to take their leader from them. How we would approach them about this, however..."

A grunt of annoyance escapes me at the interruption. I am so close, so close, and now to have to deal....

I now sigh, and after settling my thoughts to a state of icy blandness, send reply to the Cult Assassin.

"Indeed, it would appear that your companion does not live up to the expectations of your type," I send across the ether.

"Nor of mine. Deal with him as soon as possible; his continued ineffectual presence may otherwise end up being more of a hindrance to me than any help."

I turn away from this line of thought then, and once more focus everything on the drama being enacted on the Sith warship.

So close...

With Phalomir's lips he then spoke, now struggling for the words he must use to convince a man who would no doubt be difficult to convince concerning his strange existence.

He pursed Phalomir's lips. "Jasyn," he began, "This is Terrin...and my spirit is within Phalomir. It's a long story, but the long and the short of it is that I knew Galen was in danger, and came across Phalomir and Graysith in the Darker Realms. I wanted to be certain Galen's safety was achieved, since at the time I last saw her she had been taken by Roan."

He trailed then, "I know you will find this difficult to believe...but you must know that it is me. After all, how many others would know about the ysalamiri farm you once maintained on the Hornett?"

He paused once more, allowing the words he had spoken to sink in. "And, concerning all that has happened...

...no matter what form I remain in, I'm in this with you too, no matter what you decide to do." His look then darkened. "Aelvedaar is a clever deceiver, and was clever enough to even fool me into trusting him with the two people in this universe I would die a thousand deaths for. If he's that convincing...

...convincing enough, in fact, to deceive almost every single one of us on this warship...

...he simply has to be stopped before he has the whole galaxy at his fingertips. So, in whatever way I can help...

Or sanctuary, Galen; maybe some day...

I jerked away from that line of thought as if it was a branding iron ready to burn me.

No use getting your hopes up, kiddo; even if the ability existed to put Terrin into another body, which obviously does exist, where in Hell's Seven Circles can it be put?

So instead, all I said was, "Yeah, Jasyn, believe it. That's him in there."

And hunkered down into an even smaller little ball on the floor.

...which, once again, was saying alot considering he almost always had a comeback to everything, usually of the sarcastic nature. But now he was truly at a loss for words. No one, save Matt, Aaron, Terrin and perhaps Galen, would have known about that ysalamiri farm. And aside from that, Jasyn knew Terrin's words simply by the length of time he'd worked for him and with him.

The move totally purposeful, Jasyn upturned his brandy bottle and drank every last drop of the remaining contents.

"Oh kriffing hell, it is you, isn't it?!" he erupted with then, throwing a sidelong glance at Matt Stanza. Then he turned back to Phalomir, uncertain as to whether Terrin was still in control. "But this is all so weird..."

He trailed as another memory then registered. He turned to Shayla. "If Terrin's spirit could be placed in Phalomir's body, couldn't he be returned to his own?" he queried to her. "After all, Lord Recinis put something on his wounds that healed them, I saw it with my own eyes. And I'll bet some of that stuff Recinis used also preserved his body...

...that's not uncommon. Hell, he wasn't even buried...just laid out on a stone pillar and covered in satin sheets. I know it's a long shot, and it's probably crazy...

...but I really don't kriffing care. After all, with all we're talking about facing here, I have a gut feeling we're really going to be needing the Boss..."

I leapt to my feet, neatly and quite figuratively side-stepping to avoid tripping on my jaw, which was laying on the floor now right smack where I had been sitting.

"What?!" I croaked, somewhere between a fierce and joyous shout and a cautionary whisper.

"You mean that his bo-- that Terrin is still in his all-together back on Koris'ian? Why didn't Recinis say anything?

"Why didn't you?!"

I turned a look something of a cross between the most demanding hope and angry disbelief first upon Jasyn, and then Shayla. But it was to the strangely quiet Phalomir that I directed my next words.

"Is this true? I mean, is this a Sith thing? Can his body exist in a state that can receive his spirit...

"Can he be put back together again, the way he was?"

Sa'kal stepped out of the ship and quickly realized that Raelgosh was returning to the ship. Without hesitation, Sa'kal unsheathed his blade and walked to Raelgosh, knowing that he had not found the traitourus Aeylmaar. As Raelgosh neared him, Sa'kal said, "Aelvedaar is not pleased with your efforts. He has giving me the order to kill you." With that, Sa'kal'ishaalas' blade cut through Raelgosh's arm. "You should have followed my lead, and you might of been allowed to live." Sa'kal said as he spun the blade around through Raelgosh's other arm. Raelgosh fell to his knees before Sa'kal'ishaalas, his arms losing blood at a rate that would leave him dead in minutes.

"Before I kill you, I'll tell you that there is another assassin out there. My brother. I will seek him after this, once you are dead." Sa'kal said as he took his blade behind his soulder, "And know this; with your death, the Cult of Assassins will not end, but will be forever changed."

Sa'kal brought the blade around and cut off Raelgosh's head. A great pain seared through Sa'kal as he killed him master, and his rnes began to glow more intensly, eventually turning white. He stumbled onto the ship and fell over, thinking only of reawakening the lost powers in his brother, and slowly slipped into darkness as he realized something. I am no longer compelled to do Aelvedaar's bidding, in fact, I feel fre...

I have been here before, he thought.

“Of course you have,” came the reply from the elderly Sith suddenly sitting across from Phalomir. “We have spoken thusly before. It has been some time indeed, what is it you wish to discuss on this occasion?”

“What is it?” asked Phalomir. “Do you not know? Lord Aelvedaar has laid siege upon the spirit of Jharmeen, and unless we agree to relinquish our claim to anything Sith and leave the Sith worlds forever, he shall…”

“Shall what?” asked the stranger. “Shall strip her of her powers? Take away her title? Kill her? Tut tut.”

Phalomir stared at the strange man in disbelief. The man held out his hand and a small colorful butterfly landed on it. He stroked it gently with a finger.

“How can you be so calm and light-hearted about this? Don’t you see what this means?”

“Phalomir,” the man said. “One thing that you must learn, and I have tried to show you this over and over again, is that in the All, there must exist a balance. There is a greater purpose, a harmony that must be observed.”

“Even if she dies?” cried Phalomir.

The old man sighed as he caressed the butterfly.

“Leaning too much in any one direction brings the entire structure down. While I stroke this insect, it brings joy to me. But what does the insect feel? Indeed, does it feel at all? Am I merely depositing harmful oils from my finger upon its wings?”

Phalomir looked again at the old man.

“If you have a point, please come to it. Time is of the essence.”

The man laughed. “Oh, dear boy, how impetuous you have become. Time means little here in the meadow. But what does have meaning is the balance of all things. You deem yourself good? Perhaps then Aelvedaar is evil? Have you always done good, sir? And from what perspective? Indeed, perhaps a unified Sith would be mean much more for the greater harmony. Do not be hasty to judge.”

“But,” said Phalomir, “what of Jharmeen’s perspective? What is fair to her? She has no say in this, she has been used, duped, and now is to be discarded. Aelvedaar has no right to do this.”

“As you have no right to decide for her. Yet here you are, wanting me to interfere. There is always another side. What if things were set to where you wanted them to be? Is it fair to have two clans united?”

“You don’t understand, I—“

“Of course I understand! You love this woman. You would do anything for her, even give up your magick, your title, your people. Would she do the same for you? Would you want her to?”

Phalomir was quiet for several moments. “No,” he said at last. “I would not want her to do that.”

“Then you have your own answers, Phalomir. What will you do with them?”

“What can I do with them? Even in deciding, how am I to back these decisions? My powers are gone.”

“Are they?”

Phalomir found himself suddenly standing in the battleship, holding Jharmeen in his arms. He looked around and saw everyone looking at him, especially a very intent Galen.

“We must speak with Aelvedaar,” he said calmly.

It fell to the floor again with a crash of sheer disbelief.

"What?!" I cried, not even noticing that my hands were clenched. I did feel sudden warmth in my suddenly sweaty palms, however.

"You're crazy. You've gone space-happy or something, hell!"

I took a step towards him, and then another until I was right up into his personal space and glaring up into those intense green eyes he had.

Somewhere therein, I saw a flash of blue.

"No way, buster, no way in Hell's Seven Circles. You've got Terrin there inside you; there is no way in all the universe I'm going to let you go anywhere near that bastard as long as you hold the key to his spirit and possibly his life!"

I knew it sounded a bit on the dramatic side, but I didn't care. I had finally found Terrin, and I wasn't going to let any harm come to him.

Not again.

"Yeah," she started with, "I have to agree with Galen...

...at least partially. I realize that Terrin is a spirit within your body...

...but as such, he is a living entity whether he has a body of his own or not. He has stated his decision to fight with us, but is it any more fair to drag him into a hasty confrontation with Aelvedaar than it is to decide the course of Jharmeen's life from this point?"

She paused then, letting the words sink in. Then she continued with, "Need I remind you that I, Graysith, Galen, Matt, Jasyn, and Terrin have already had dealings with Aelvedaar, ones which lead to strings of deception? How could we trust him now, by his word alone? Perhaps part of our strategy should be to talk with or confront Aelvedaar...

...but we should be ready for whatever results such may bring. I for one think it would be a good idea to travel to Kori'san...

...not only to see if something can be done so that Terrin is totally in control of his decisions and actions, but to arm ourselves for whatever may lay ahead. After all, you are the Dark Lord of the Armorers, are you not?"

"Ahhh...speaking of Kori'san," he spoke up then, the entrance of his voice into the conversation seeming to suprise some of the others, "When Panthar and I were left there alone, right before the Master dumped us on Khar Delba with Galen, we saw something which might be of significance now. There were a couple of life-size blocks of ice in the final room we entered before the Master appeared, and inside them looked to be a frozen Phalomir...

...and a frozen Graysith. Now I am just wondering, if the Master has been in cahoots with Aelvedaar, and Aelvedaar had been planning all along to kill Graysith...

...then what exactly would he need to have a frozen Graysith for, unless he still has further plans for her, and desires for us to all believe she is dead?"

((OCC: Sa'kal'ishaalas and Dash (now a captive of Sa'kal), zoom off to The Flame Triumphant Burns in the Jedi/Sith forums

“But before he did that, he said that he was working with Thoran and Aelvedaar, but they no longer saw eye to eye. All he wants to do is find Phalomir, they left him for dead or something and he wants to destroy them. Maybe we can go to him for help?”

Panthar paused a moment.

"Why in Hell's Seven Circles do you want us to go to Aelvedaar now?"

...it'd be stupid to just jump into this unarmed. We've already said this is going to be dangerous business...

...so why would we, after coming to this conclusion, just go blasting on our way haphazardly to 'speak with Aelvedaar?"

He paused a moment at this, eyeing another bottle of unopened brandy. With effort, he returned his gaze to Phalomir and finished with, "I sure hope we're operating in a democracy here, pal, cause as it stands, the decision on what our next move should be is at least three to one..."

At Jasyn’s words he shook off the look and faced him.

“The Eye represents balance in the All. It was unwilling to do anything to help, and just spoke of different perspectives. It asked me of my intentions, and if I would want Jharmeen to do for me what I intended to do for her. Of course, I would not. We cannot simply give up, but we cannot continue in an eternal struggle with Aelvedar. If the All requires balance, then perhaps Aelvedaar’s perspective is not entirely the evil as we see it. Perhaps he can be yet reasoned with.”

He smiled slightly.

“It is only my life I shall be risking, not anyone else.”

I crossed my arms emphatically, and leaned against the nearest bulkhead, muttering to myself under my breath.

...at least, he is for the moment...

...and we're all currently with you too. And you have still not answered one thing...

... Why the kriffing hell are we rushing into this with no ammo? No plan? No safety measures? If you are the Dark Lord of the Armorers as Stargazer says, then why not pay Kor'isan a little visit and see if there is anything that may assist us in this task? Not to mention that I really think Terrin would like his body back...

...but isn't that what the Dark Lord of the Armorers should do? Arm the unprotected?"

"You mean, he's the head mucketty-muck of the Sith Armorers?"

Not that I understood too much of their politics, but at least I could figure out what Jasyn meant.

I jerked a thumb Phalomir's way, then followed with another glare.

“You do not understand. The beast, the thing inside of Jharmeen-- it is him, or at least a link to him. He has control of her life right now, if it were not for my magick protecting her spirit she would most likely be dead. Perhaps we could make it to the temple—either one—before he broke through, but do we take that chance?”

And then through clenched teeth, “But Aelvedaar is inside of Jharmeen’s head right now! It is there I shall speak with him.”

I held up my hands until everyone was looking my way. Then I took a deep breath.

"You mean you're going to go into my sister's head and when you're in there, you're going to have a nice little mano y mano with Aelvedaar?

Oh hell, sometimes I really, really think it's a scary thing to ask for anything, let alone joke about it, you just might get it on down the road, one way or another.

I stated as much.

"Oh, he'd love that, wouldn't you, Terrin?"

"Phalomir, I know you can hear my words, whether you are choosing to listen to them or not," he opened with, glancing to Galen a moment then, the look in his eye clearly understanding the look in hers. "Need I remind you that I too once had dealings with Aelvedaar...dealings which I had thought to turn out well...

...when the whole deal turned sour? Dare you risk bargaining with Aelvedaar, considering his past record? How could you ever believe a word that he speaks?"

I slammed a fist against the bulkhead against which I had been leaning. Then straightening up, I whirled on Phalomir.

"All you can think of is my sister, buddy; well, there are other players in this game too!

"You don't know that Aelvedaar will 'break through and kill her,' whatever that means. What we do know is that if your spirit dies, then my husband is stuck in a Sith body for Khaandon knows how long! And I think he'd enjoy that about as much as your pal Panthar does!

"Look, my sister is out of it. Aelvedaar is our enemy. You're the only Sith with any real power that we've got--

"Who in all the universe do you suppose we're going to get to replace Terrin's spirit in his body?"

I paused a moment to catch my breath, and then added a small caveat,

"If it can be done at all, that is."

An uncomfortable sort of silence followed, and I broke it with a final concluding statement, actually more of a strong suggestion, to be honest.

"We're going to need everything we've got; can't we go on to Kori'sian first, and see if we can get Terrin back--"

There. I said it.

"--and then you can go off and face your own personal demons-- or demon?"

He sighed.

“I can feel his impatience. If I could somehow reinforce my protection of her spirit, if we had another source from which to draw power, I could use the Eye. It has answered my call before, but there would need to be an All user nearby. And I dare not tap into Jharmeen’s power.”

He looked down at Jharmeen, eyes open and still. She was still curled up in his untiring arms.

I slammed my fist into the bulkhead again, biting my lip to keep my temper somewhat at bay. The pain worked, sort of; I did manage to keep from blurting off the first words that came to mind, but didn't get anywhere close to staving off the feeling of captaincy now rushing over me.

Too many years with "Jester," I suppose....

"Shayla, belay that order. Set a course for Kori'sian, now. This is just crazy, 'what do we have to offer...'

"Well!"

"We've got-- we've got..."

I dwindled down to a silent squeak as I realized we didn't have diddly squat that Aelvedaar could possibly want, or need.

"We've got our lives, and our souls, and our own private destinies...

"And it's not up to him to dictate to us how or when we'll use 'em!"

"Maybe at Kori'sian we'll figure out a way to get Terrin's spirit back in his body--"

I dwindled again, suddenly realizing how strange that sounded.

...but the look in her greeny-blue eyes clearly reading just how she felt. "Couldn't you let Aeylmaar know we've changed courses?" she queried. Then she followed it with, "And what would you have to offer Aelvedaar once you reenter Jharmeen's mind? He's already stated he'll use whatever meaningless loyalties he must...

...and however he must. What more do you need to know? We can't go at this by battling in Graysith's mind, as much as it hurts me to know that we could possibly lose her. You just spoke to me about not giving in on all Jharmeen fought for in exchange for her life...

...and now you are doing exactly that yourself. And if we don't want to deal with Roan by the reason that, even though he has a prospective, what he has done is simply too evil...

...then why would we proceed to deal with Aelvedaar with his deceptive nature? At least Roan's actions prove to us he is evil...

...Aelvedaar's actions can't even be taken at face value. We need to arm ourselves, and get all the help we can...

...but what we don't need to do is go waltzing into Aelvedaar's lair, whether it is in the known universe or in Graysith's mind. He's simply too clever of a deceiver for us to even think such a thing would work. We need to fight for what Jharmeen spent her whole life fighting for, remember?"

She trailed a moment, then firmed, the her greeny-blues icing just a bit. "We're going to Kori'sian."

Then paused.

Something was amiss. It was much too quiet here. Where the onrush of power from Phalomir, a last moment effort to send Thoran back to his prison? Where was the ever-present red glow of innate magick within this mind? Where indeed….

Thoran listened, felt, and soon understood Interesting. He smiled slyly, then propelled his way into the forefront, like he done many times previously when he shared a body with Phalomir. With his magick tied up, Phalomir was powerless to stop Thoran from assuming control, and Terrin was ruthlessly shoved aside as well.

--

Phalomir stepped forward, away from the group and turned to face them. His eyes seemed to twinkle somewhat, and he looked lovingly down at Jharmeen. A broad smile snaked its way across his face and he looked up to a startled crowd.

“Hey, folks! Got a little problem, eh? Well, isn’t that something? I was just thinking to myself how could I possibly make up for the things I’ve been accused of, and it just hit me. So, hey, what kid of assistance can I give you?”

Silence.

...and clearly understanding. "Forget it, Thoran," she growled. Then, reaching under the navboard, she pulled the Sith logbook from its storage location. "Hey Panthar, could you help me with the coordinates to Kori'sian, I don't know them offhand..."

She trailed at that then, as something finally dawned on her. She turned back to Phalomir, her look darkening even further. "Thoran, how did you get inside Phalomir?"

He looked down at Jharmeen.

“But now all of his magick is stuck away in her, keeping her safe from Aelvedaar. Funny, isn’t it? How something as silly as the love for a person can push you into doing things against all common sense? Poor idiot.”

He looked back up to Shayla.

Now, who in Hell's Seven Circles is this bozo?!?

--but the words now erupting from Phalomir's mouth brought a fast and verbal response of my own.

"No way, buster, whoever the hell you are!" I growled, now taking a step forward and staring up into Phal's eyes. Somewhere within those depths I once again thought I saw a flicker of blue, followed by something that was...

Well, indescribable.

I shuddered, and took a reflexive step backward.

"You said there was another option; what is it?" I asked brusquely and then stood quiet, glaring and crossing my arms in front of my body in the attempt to appear impatient with all this nonsense.

“Now you, I like. Direct, to the point, and mouthy. Alright, the other thing I can do will require a bit of explanation first. You see, way back when I was working for a certain individual, he had struck a bargain with our friend Aelvedaar. You see, my old boss had a certain agenda which had nothing to do with the Sith, and Aelvy had an agenda that had nothing to do with the Master, so they were perfect partners. Of course, neither one trusted the other, so after the Master worked his part by maneuvering Phalomir into certain actions, like killing Roan, mucking with the Revealer, distracting Graysith, setting up an incident with Recinis, trapping you all in the temple – all with my help, mind you, because that was my job – well, after all that Aelvy sort of betrayed the Master and sent him away.”

Thoran chuckled.

Dad always said the least complex answer is probably the truest one; Occam's Razor and all...

...and this was beginning to sound way, way to complicated for my liking.

Not to mention that I wasn't too happy about tossing our fate into the hands of someone I hadn't heard hide nor hair of prior to moments ago.

I took another step but forward this time, speaking to Shayla as I did so.

"I think we need the input from all parties present before we go off on another wild goose chase, and I do mean all parties. Shayla, what do you think; Matt, Jasyn, your thoughts would be appreciated.

"Phalomir, you of all people should have some say so in this, after all, it's your body that is carrying all these peeps around inside, and speaking of which--"

I stopped a moment, now smack dab in Phalomir's personal space again. Ignoring the limp form of my sister who he was still holding, I stared up into those green eyes again, seeking blue.

...and push Thoran back enough...

...to respond to Galen's query. But at length he managed to push Thoran back at least long enough to voice a reply with Phalomir's mouth.

"This is Terrin," he stated first, almost seeming to have to take a few deep breaths after the effort he had to put forth to gain control of Phalomir's body, "And there is no kriffing way I trust Thoran, including his plans and his promises. This is a fellow that both Phalomir and I brushed with in the Darker Realms, and at that time he adamantly refused to have anything to do with his Master, insisting that he would most certainly be killed. But now he speaks of this same Master as someone who may help us against Aelvedaar...

...and would go so far as to even suggest we should go to this Master and ask for his help after Thoran refused to assist in doing precisely that when we were all trying to get out of the Darker Realms? This guy is speaking with a forked tongue, which does nothing in the way of leading me to ever trust him. Not to mention that, when a possible out presented itself to him in the Darker Realms...

...Thoran took it, and left the rest of us behind to whatever fate gave us. Who's to say he wouldn't do something of the sort once more?"

"And regarding this Master," Erik then spoke up, "He is the one who promised to rescue Panthar and I and bring us to safety to speak with him when we were stranded on Kori'sian. He instead dumped us into the Temple of Khar Delba, and granted this lead us to finding Galen...

...why do any different now? I vote we continue course to Kori'sian."

He smiled crookedly.

“Oh wait, that’s right. You don’t believe me. Let me ask you this, then. Why would I betray my presence to you? It’s obvious I have been forgotten. Why would I not take advantage of Phalomir’s lack of powers and simply assume his persona? I could easily have eradicated Terrin from this mind and none would be the wiser. In fact, I could still easily do to both of them what Phalomir had done to me. But I do not wish to spend my existence trapped inside the body of a Sith, especially not one that is hunted.”

He sighed deeply.

"Now, wait just a minute," I snorted, uncrossing my arms to slap my hands against my hips.

"What do you mean, 'you're the last source of Sith magick we've got...?' You just said that you didn't want to spend the rest of your existence trapped inside the body of a Sith -- sorry, Phalomir;

Well... ok; maybe half an iota....

"And just how in all the known universe do you think you can use Sith magick when you yourself are not Sith?

"You did, after all, state you didn't want to be trapped for the rest of your existence in a Sith body... unless, of course, you were lying to us about that too!"

I clamped my mouth shut on that, before I could say anything further that might anger this guy; not that I really cared one whit about his well-being, but just on the off-chance that he did happen to have some powers stashed away to help us with.

"That's where it still looks like we're going, in spite of your offer to help us. Which I still find a touch wee on the peculiar side, don't you guys?

"I mean, here we are stuck between a rock and a hard place, and up gallops ol' Thoran-poo to the rescue. If we just go help his so-called 'Master,' I suppose; well!"

I paused a moment, still fighting back the urge to kick this creep. However, common sense rose it's wary head, explaining very matter-of-factly that all I would hurt would be Phalomir -- if indeed he could be injured in that manner at all -- and would only be showing myself as being even more of an, what was it?

Ill-tempered slugworm, oh yes.

I shook off another bout of rising ire, and blurted on.

"Well, buddy... what's in it for you? What is it you want out of all this? We didn't exactly ask for your help now, did we; you kind of rushed up pressing it on us now, didn't you?

"Hmmm..." I went on.

"This must mean that we in turn have something you need, or want.

"Well!"

Another pause, a girding of mental armor--

"What say we just head on over to Koris'ian as planned; you use your Sith magick you're so chock-full of and put Terrin back together again...

"...and then we go off and help you and your 'Master.' Whoever in Hell's Seven Circles that is! That is, if Terrin agrees to this at all!"

He shook his head quickly.

...how exactly is it that we can help you get freedom from Phalomir's body if you would have the power to return Terrin to a body? I still sense something very unusual about your appearance here, even though you never had to make yourself known. Just seems a little too convenient, I suppose. And as far as the priorities here...

I lifted a finger, utterly and completely sarcastic.

"Ahh-- how is it that we are to help you save this so-called 'Master' from Aelvedaar; what the heck happened to this Sith magick you're supposed to be so full of? And how can you guarantee this guy will help us; out of charity? Oh but you guys are so full of it--!"

I bit my lip for a moment, pushing down any further sarcasm, then continued.

"Why can't we just go to Koris'ian, get Terrin back together and then get ourselves armed, like Matt here is suggesting? Seems to me like we'd then have something to maybe use against Aelvedaar, like we both want.

"And... just who the hell is this 'son' you're talking about? I don't know anybody who has a son...."

...while we're on the subject of Kori'sian and the Master," Erik added, "Might I mention that there is some sort of device there that allowed Panthar and I to speak with the Master? That is how he found us there and dumped us on Khar Delba with Galen to begin with, after all. So, considering that, Kori'sian may be the most logical destination for us either way we decide to go with this...

...and just what is this about bartering? What are we bartering exactly?"

"Like we're supposed to trust anyone with whom we have to barter, ye gods!"

I snorted and fell back against a handy bulkhead, irritated beyond words that this slippery eel was simply refusing to answer the question-- no, rather an extremely pointed suggestion-- that had been put to it over and over and over again.

Time to take the horse by the reigns.

"This argument is doing little but waste time in which we need to be taking action. We now know there is probably a way to contact the Master from Kori'sian...

...that is, if we do so at all...

...and we know that Terrin's body is there, and there are weapons there. Sounds like that's enough to make it our destination."

Saying this, Shayla turned to the navboard, quickly altered courses...

...and without so much as even dropping out of hyperspace, the warship reoriented herself, on course for Kori'sian.

Only then did Shayla turn back to the others, having a few final words to speak. "And as to just who or what Thoran probably wants to use to barter with the Master...

...I would assume he is referring to Phalomir. Phalomir is, after all, the one thing that the Master wants...

...and he is the Master's son."

Someone or something whom Thoran referred to as the Master was trapped by Aelvedaar somehow, who in turn was in the process of killing my sister. The thing which this Master wanted more than anything, at least to hear Thoran tell of it, was his son, who happened to be the tall red dude who was supposedly fending off Aelvedaar's probably fatal attack on my sister-- unless he was just off in lala-land for whatever reason, who knows, he'd fallen out of our conversation long ago....

I jerked fractionally, yanking my thoughts back on the rail again.

So-oo-ooo, Phalomir was the Master's son, he wanted my sister alive and well, the Master wanted his son alive and well...

And I wanted Terrin alive and well. Period.

Terrin, dear god, Terrin... who was likewise stuck inside the body of Phalomir.

Hmmm.

My eyes went a bit on the vague side then, and I slipped down to sit on the deck and think.

If this Master was everything Thoran said, and he wanted his son safe and well... well, that at least would be keeping Terrin well too, as long as his spirit was stuck inside Phalomir....

My head began to seriously hurt from all these essences of different peeps all hanging around trapped in this thing or that; I looked up again and sighed.

"All I want is Terrin back, and Jharmeen; all I want is to find my daughter; I don't care about the Sith, you guys can just go off and conquer the universe if you want.

"Just keep me and mine out of it... that is, once I have mine back together again."

I looked up to where Thoran was looking at us all through Phalomir's eyes.

"Seems to me that that is the final victory now anyway, don't you guys think? This Master gets his magickal son -- well, what of everyone else? I mean, in the universe?"

My voice dwindled a bit as something hit home, something from very, very far away.

"Weren't these guys the bomb around the universe, back in the day? I mean, that's what every little clue dad had ever found seemed to point toward. They were the Big Dogs, the Head Kahunas, the Godfathers...

"...and peeps like that don't care diddly squat about us little peons.

"Well!!"

I climbed to my feet and approached Phalomir.

"You can just forget it, buddy. We'll fight Aelvey baby on our own terms; I'll find something on Koris'ian that we can use against him, to either make him put everyone back the way they belong or just kill him; there has to be something that these armorer dudes made that can do something to help us out!

"I mean, there's this Shartak thingy you spoke of, there's this Eye thingy that was mentioned earlier; there just has to be something we can use.

"But anyway--"

I paused for a gulp of air.

"Here's the deal, buster. We're going to Koris'ian, everyone's happy. Once we're there...

"FIRST you use your Sithy spells and get my husband put back together again!

"Then we talk turkey about how exactly you think we can help you!"

((OOC: Follow this thread and everyone in it to The Razor's Edge in the "Jedi/Sith" forums, thank you.))