Gods, but he hoped these guys knew he was a friendly. And he hoped Graysith and her party showed up soon. The sooner this was over with, the better.

And Actar better be good on his word.

Resigning himself to wait, Aaron started to prop his feet up on the dash--then thought better of it.

Terrin would just die if he knew he wasn't treating his ship in first-class style...

Instead he put his arms behind his head and leaned back in the pilot's chair, keeping a continual eye on the space that filled his viewscreen.

He was certain the others would show up soon...

"Take care in revealing ourselves to this group, my ally," she said softly. "Convert to realspace at a safe distance away; I shall board the infiltrator Mr. Danner used to join with us, and with that ship bring Galen and the babe to whatever awaits us.

"Which, by the way..." She continued in an apparently off-tangential manner, brightening visibly as the Glyph on her forehead ravened into life to bring the information to her. "...is an Imperial destroyer."

Those rather ominous words finished, she rose and began to leave. At the entry to the bridge she paused.

"I shall be waiting for your signal to leave," she finished, then left altogether.

In moments she was back in the medbay. "Mr. Danner, if you will," she began as if nothing untoward had passed between them, indicating the silent duo curled together upon the med-bed. Still glowering a bit, Danner rose in silence, reaching out to scoop his family into his strong arms, then turning to see what the Chosen Daughter would have him do with them.

She merely turned from him and led him away from the medical wing, hurrying along the vast number of winding and mysterious corridors until she finally returned to the hangar bay where Retribution overshadowed the little infiltrator like a hawk overshadows a fly. She went up to the latter, opening its hatch with a wave of her hand, and indicated Terrin lay his charges therein.

Standing at the top of the gangway, she then waited to hear any last minute remark he might have to make, as well as any from the group of others who had hastened along in their wake.

Terrin took in the scene quietly, sending a prayer to whatever gods would listen that Actar would prove good on his word. Then, planting a gentle little kiss on both Galen's and Darra's foreheads,he gave them one final longing look then backed out of the Inflitrator, turning to Graysith.

He didn't know what to say. Especially not after their last exchange. Then he realized that there really wasn't anything except, "Thank you in advance," he said quietly, but not without conviction. "I wish you a safe journey, and hope that all goes well."

With that, Terrin nodded to her then backed away from the infiltrator, his heart heavy with worry and his mind full...

Of hopes, and dreams, and on fragile lives...

Ahead there suddenly loomed a glistening jewel, brighter by far than the myriad stellars which formed its backdrop: the city-planet of Coruscant. The only darkness to blight its impressive splendor was the uncountable number of orbiting ships, unbelievable in their combined strengths, which laid blockade to it and prevented any and all from coming anywhere within spitting distance of the planet.

Anyone with the sole exception of the infiltrator in which she now flew, and the Ubrikkian yacht which she now discovered waiting for her there. The looming presence of an Imperial destroyer hovered in the vicinity; Graysith nodded to herself, satisfied to have found their quarry.

She reached out a hand to her communication board, and flicked the hailing sigil. It sent out an electromagnetic greeting to the orbiting yacht, in which she could clearly sense the somewhat concerned presence of Captain Aaron Barnes.

She opened her mouth--

Oh, my Sire... under what strange circumstances do I now announce our presence to the universe which we so desire to assist by the resurrection of our own! The thought flashed fleetingly through her mind, but did not deter her.

"This is Graysith," she said smoothly and without falter, keenly aware that the pronouncement was headed not only into the ears of Captain Barnes but into the myriad sensing devices and communication arrays below and all about her.

"I have arrived with Galen Jhin'Dar Danner, according to specifications. We await further instruction."

Then sitting comfortably back, she left the receiver open and waited, placing her ship in synchronous orbit with the detroyer and the yacht as she did so. A small smile came to her lips when he felt the slight thoomp of a tractor beam latching onto her....

Tractor beam. Oh joy. This was gonna be fun. Real fun.

Frowning to himself, he simply resigned himself again to waiting for his nearing meeting with Graysith and Admiral Actar.

And oh, how he hated waiting.

As the four guests of the Admiral walked into the courtyard, he sat waiting, and watching from a dark corner in an pen room adjacent to the courtyard.

"Wait," she breathed unnecessarily. Then she took a few steps closer to Actar, coming to a halt directly in front of him. The Glyph on her brow bathed him in its harsh violet glow.

"You will bring Galen Jhin'Dar Danner from her mind-cage first," she said with a sweet smile, her eyes boring into Actar's own, nonflinching. "Since, after all, it was you who approached us with this most generous offer."

She stopped, waiting.

"A matter of trust, Admiral...."

Time ticked by....

He turned his head to Aaron, his hand still on the baby, and said, "Lay the datacard in the table, Aaron."

"And if you were as all powerful as you state you are, my esteemed Admiral," she began as she swiftly but firmly took hold of his hand and removed it from the baby's soft flesh, "you would divine the information you desire so much without us having to bring it to you at all."

She smiled sweetly, but that smile didn't come anywhere close to reaching her eyes.

And who was to say that Actar wouldn't blast off with the information and not heal Galen? He was at a slight advantage here in Imperial City...

Aaron then looked at little Darra, while Graysith looked to Actar, just...waiting.

Better be glad Terrin's not here. He'd be having an absolute fit over all of this.

Pushing that thought to the back of his mind, Aaron stayed where he was, simply waiting...

He turned his head back to Graysith, removing his hand from the baby, and said, "Never have I "stated" my power."

He walked to the couch Aaron had laid Galen on, and knelt beside it. He rubbed Galen's head the same way he had her child. He closed his eyes and entered her mind, free from the prying senses of Graysith, and spoke to Galen. She couldn't see him, but could only hear him. "Take your child far far away. Teach her to fear the force, and to never use it, or she will meet the same fate as your sister. Save her."

He opened his eyes, and Galen's simultaneously did the same.

He rose to his feet, looked towards Aaron and freed him from parylyzation. "Leave." He said.

The walls. They are moving. They are backing up, retreating. Suddenly-- oh blessed relief! --I can stretch out my legs... I can turn my head...

I can take up my daughter and cradle her to me. Oh my little Darra....

WHA--??

My eyes flew open with a start, and I grunted. Around me was an scene straight out of insanity for its sense of totally wrong deja vu that it filled me with:

The couch certainly seemed to be the same as the last one I remembered. This courtyard certainly looked familiar, but where I expected to be viewing a certain bounty hunter all I managed to lay my eyes upon were Aaron Barnes...

What in Hell's Seven Circles was HE doing here???

...my tiny daughter...

Shock mingling with incandescent joy at that revelation... time to scrutinize it later, though....

...and my ex-sister.

Her. And that was not all.

HIM.

I immediately rolled off the couch into a crouch, my daughter held defensively to my chest, my eyes widening at the words Admiral Actar...

Oh, YES Admiral, how WELL I remember YOU!

...was saying to me. Something about teaching my daughter to fear the Force.

Hell's Bells, if I had anything to do with it she's going to learn to COMMAND IT. Because I know YOU are out in the galaxy sliming around...! As is the one who now calls herself Graysith.

I couldn't help it. I don't know why Aaron was standing around so silently for, but I wasn't going to remain in this cauldron of danger any longer. But I wasn't going to run like an ikopi, either. Only an idiot bolts; that's what predators are keyed to respond to: panic.

My head held high, striving with all my might to put on a good offense despite the growing conviction that I would probably end up smack back in some horrible straits once again, I just couldn't help myself.

I walked right up to where the Admiral was standing so disconcertingly quiet, and slapped him fully in the face.

Then I turned on my heel and, cradling Darra to me, made myself walk out of the courtyard. On the way out I shot my most deadly glare to the one who had once been my sister.

I had no idea how far I would get....

This man was powerful, that she could clearly sense. She had borne him no personal grudges, yet now....

The snarl of disgust transformed to one of slight amusement when Galen awoke and had the nerve to approach and actually slap him across the face. It remained planted on her face, now dimming somewhat to stonily hold back the Beast within her, which was slavering for the freedom to rip into Actar both tooth and nail and All.

With some effort she held the Beast at bay, forcing herself to stand in cool silence while Galen marched past her, the look in her big brown eyes fairly daring her or Actar to follow. Her jaw worked as she sent a tendril of herself out into his mind, seeking to read his thoughts on that subject, but reaching a powerful inner shield which prevented her from completely scrutinizing his innermost psyche.

Yet something was there, something niggling deep in a well of blackness... a young boy, at a swimming hole....

Now the smile burst out fully on her lips as she filed that item away for future use. She turned her head gracefully to watch Galen's departure, knowing fully that the young woman would be stopped in her tracks, then moved to stand before Admiral Actar. He tilted his head, looking down upon her from his considerable height, the look in his eye inscrutable, his left cheek reddening from the force of Galen's blow.

Cocking her head to one side, she reached up one finger, slowly tracing around the perimeter of that mark. Then with a quick use of the All, she healed the slight injury he had sustained. At least she healed the physical one; she let the slight emotional one remain to niggle at him for as long as it would.

"You are not aware of all that is occurring beyond your nose, my dear Admiral," she breathed in a soft whisper. "So wrapped up are you in your own devices, you do not fully understand what threat is lurking in the darkness of the imminent future.

"For threat there is, Actar, and one which you will pay heed to, if you are wise.

"You could have had an ally in us."

With that she let her hand drop from his face. Then she turned on her heel and, utterly dismissing both he and Captain Barnes, hastened from the courtyard to catch up with Galen.

She doesn't know about the Alliance...

This could be a shocker. More than that, even..

Aaron put that thought to the side as he turned his attentions to the exchange Graysith was making with Actar, arching an eyebrow as he did.

This was getting weirder by the moment. He was ready to leave, now.

Darra wasn't letting a soul get close to her mama. Wave after wave of pure All wafted from her innocent body, not harming anybody, but in creating a solid yet invisible "wall" of incredibly dense molecules about Galen, not letting the Reborn get any closer to them than about four meters.

Galen stood in silent defiance within that little "box," the look on her face a cross between utter daring... and confused terror. Graysith approached the group slowly, keenly aware of the fragility of the moment, and as keenly aware of how easy it would be for her to shatter it. She stopped before them, facing the Reborn in a silent defiance of her own when as a man they turned their gazes to fix them upon her slender form.

She merely blinked in response. "I have come to take this one away, as your Admiral has... commanded us," she said briefly, her manner cool and held aloofly above the impeccably militaristic one presented by the men. She gave them a pleasant smile, which only widened when, passing a quick look between them, they parted ranks long enough to allow her passage into their midst. They closed in as she came up to Galen, now holding them both apparent prisoner.

Graysith proceeded to utterly ignore them, directing her full attention now not to her blood-sister, but to the babe she held in her arms.

Her niece. The one destined to assist with the Upcoming Resurrection. One of a pair who would thereafter be held in the highest esteem by the Sith, destined to go down in their new history as the salvation of their world...

...and the one who now was blasting forth every ounce of primal defense for her mother that she had at her disposal.

The strength of the little one was a bit surprising... but not overwhelming. Though this Child was born inherent to the All, it's wonder and power had been purposely placed within Graysith as well. Not to mention she had been trained by One who quite possibly was one of the strongest Sith ever born. Pulse for pulse, she held the energy blasts at bay, now sending forth tendrils of herself into the soul of her little niece.

Shhh... little one, this is no manner in which to act. You are quite safe with me, as is your mother....

Bit by bit, her soothing ministrations wormed their way into the essence of JhinDarra, calming her, persuading her, bathing her in sensations of well-being and something akin to familial unity. Bit by bit the blasts of protection lessened in their strength until they finally stilled altogether and the little one closed her eyes in exhausted slumber.

Graysith's right hand immediately shot out and placed itself alongside Galen's cheek. The Claw of S'slan tickled lightly against her sister's ear as she spread her fingers, encompassing as much of Galen's face as she could in her one hand. Her violet eyes drilled into Galen's brown ones, held her in a silent and quite unbreakable link to herself.

A portion of herself reared back to address the Reborn.

"Your Admiral has desired we depart from this place," she whispered to them almost as an afterthought. "We would extend to you all our utmost... gratitude ...if you would be so kind as to return us to our ship."

A moment passed in which her words were considered by the group, analyzed from every angle, and deemed to be correct. In but moments more the Chosen Daughter, still linked eerily to her sister, found herself "escorted" back to the waiting shuttle, in which she found a somewhat surprised-looking Captain Aaron Barnes. Once more she ignored his presence, focussed completely on the link she was maintaining, a link which was preventing her sister from screaming out in fear against her, which in turn would set Darra's protective shields once more into action.

Graysith dared to once let her eyes drop from Galen's. In her arms, the babe slumbered on.

Stricken thus by a strange and mutual silence, the group felt themselves lighten as bit by bit gravity lessened its chains upon them. Soon they were floating mere millimeters above their seats, knowing that ahead of them lay the destroyer in which their ships might be found. Moments later, a distinct thump bespoke of their docking in that sleekly deadly battleship.

And in mere moments from their arrival, Graysith found herself back in the little infiltrator in which she had come, still holding Galen silent, allowing JhinDarra the sleep which the child so desperately needed, now fleeting back to where the Sith ship hid its wondrous glory from prying eyes, and from a certain inscrutable pair in particular....

Before her now the forward viewscreen flared into life, showing the sudden appearance of the Sith ship in which she and her party were formerly en route to Korriban, then so unexpectedly diverted. It hovered in greeny-golden splendor, difficult to observe visually, a literal haven floating amidst the vast array of stars. Graysith allowed a small smile to soften her expression as she sent the vessel an alert piggybacked atop a frequency none other than the Sith ship could discern. A welcoming signal flowed back simultaneously with the opening of a black rectangle in the underside of the glorious and mysterious ship.

The infiltrator made a swift bee-line to that rectangle, and soon disappeared into its maw. Moments later, the golden vessel disappeared into the mystery of hyperspace, even as within its docking bay the craft holding Graysith and her small party settled to rest on the deck, it's hatch popping open to reveal it's compact interior and the physical attitude of those it carried. Then it began to hiss and steam slightly, outgassing as it hunkered down into mechanical slumber, awaiting the next moment it would be called upon for duty.

Within, the Chosen Daughter remained settled back against her seat, waiting in motionless expectation for the arrival of others. Her hand still planted firmly alongside Galen's face, she now tilted her head and continued to watch the quietly slumbering baby held protectively in her sister's arms.

Frozen in this strange tableau, they all simply waited.

As Shayla stood, he looked to her in question. She didn't say anything in reply, but merely took the lead and motioned that he follow.

His heart was pounding.

Wordlessly, they worked their way through a maze of winding corridors that seemed to never end. At length, however, they reached the ship's main hanger bay. At the entrance, Shayla paused and waved him onward. Hesitantly, but with growing hope, he proceeded forward.

As he stepped towards the infiltrator, he quickly noticed that the hatch was open. A lump began to form in his throat that he couldn't even begin to stop as his pace began to quicken without him consciously being aware of it.

He knew what his eyes were seeing. But after such a length of time, and after such a close call, his mind was still sending doubts. He stepped up to the open infilitrator, looked inside, and was at length able to cast his deep blue eyes into the most beautiful pair of brown ones he'd ever seen in his life.

Those deep blues deepened further with an upwelling of emotion.

There sat Galen, quite alert and quite healed, with the bundle that was their little daughter JhinDarra snuggled close to her. Beside her, Graysith held a hand to Galen's face, as if to keep her quiet. Terrin looked over to the violet-eyed woman and frowned in spite of himself.

Then he looked back to Galen and their daughter. Reached out to place a reassuring hand on her arm.

Sure the whole incongruity of this situation was gonna floor her. Graysith, her daughter, Sith ship...her husband. Some of these things would just seem to completely NOT belong.

Then, Terrin knew that she'd have to trust him on this, as much as he'd had to learn to trust himself on the matter. Was still learning.

Still, he saw the confusion and terror in Galen's eyes. And he didn't like it.

He turned again to Graysith, who was still inexplicably holding Galen from saying a word. Then, in quiet opposition to the intensity of the words themselves, he said, "Let her speak."

Graysith considered the words the man had just tossed in her direction, debating with herself the probability of his realization of exactly how demanding he had sounded.

Undoubtedly he was totally unaware of the razor's edge he was teetering upon, her thoughts rose smoothly to the front of her mind. As well as where that infinitesimally narrow pathway was in fact going to lead him....

Not a speck of this crossed her features as she leveled a calm look upon him. Then she turned back to Galen, her eyes flicking down to encompass the sleeping babe one final time.

"I am not blocking her from speaking, Mr. Danner," she said at length. "I am merely holding her instinctive fears at bay. This child is in great need of rest, and has not yet connected with the familial ties inherent in me."

With that she fell silent, then rose to her feet and in one smooth movement guided the still-silent Galen from the infiltrator. Leading her in this manner to a comm-unit, she contacted Erik Kartan.

"Plot a return course to K'eel Doba, and with all due haste," she said succinctly. Then dropping her free hand from the operative sigil, she turned her head to once again look Terrin Danner straight in his baby blues. Her Claw-wielding hand remained affixed to Galen's face like a dianoga's tentacle upon its prey.

"She... prefers to not speak to me, Mr. Danner. Perhaps she will respond to you."

Instead of returning his gaze directly into Galen's, he cast his blues on their sleeping daughter, noting how peaceful she looked. Then he turned his eyes into Galen's quizzical pair.

Then he made the decision to just be up front with everything. Galen had a right to know. So he began from the very top of the entire sordid tale.

“Gravin Dark and Desolist...” he started, an aching pain rising up in his eyes as he remembered the images Graysith had placed within his mind, “...are in league with Dark Lord Roan, who is now working against Graysith.”

He stopped at that, his eyes full concern and worry and utter fright...as well as a little bit of something else

If Galen put two and two together concerning Sorben’s role in this whole thing like Terrin knew she would, this was really going to hurt...

...but maybe not so much as the next admittance he had to make. He hoped she’d understand...

He turned, unable to look her in the face at the moment. “I...made an Oath with Graysith to assist her in return for the safety of you and Darra,” he said at length. She needed to know the truth; he’d just have to trust that she would be able to see past his words to his reasons for doing such a thing. “She would have had us all killed if I hadn’t agreed to this. As it stands, we nearly lost you to Admiral Actar and later to Lord Roan, who had you for a time but dismissed you because of Actar's mind trick. Our daughter is in danger Galen...and you as well,” he continued, turning back around, agony radiating off him at the thought of either of them being hurt—at the thought of how close he’d already come to losing Galen. “If sacrificing myself and everything I own...everything I’ve ever wanted...will protect you and her, then that’s what I’m going to do...”

...it’s just not about me anymore...

“There is just so much evil headed this way, evil that I wasn’t even aware of until now. There is so much at stake...” he paused, trying to sort out his cluttered thoughts. “There’s no other way I can protect either of you. Lord Roan’s little pet has already taken Graysith’s daughter...and he wants ours. He wants you. He’s out to create a Sith Empire of his own brand, with the children he hopes to produce with...”

Terrin took in a deep breath. He couldn’t say it. He just couldn’t. Starting to feel a bit shakey he leaned against the bulkhead, now looking into her eyes with his deep blue ones. “I know it will be difficult for you to ever trust...her. But please believe that you can trust me, just as you always have. I love you and I love Darra, and I just couldn’t bear seeing either of you hurt when I can stop it...”

"Search your feelings, my dear. You know this to be true...."

This just was... was...

WASN'T RIGHT!

Deep shudders welling up from my very soul began wracking me as, on the heels of the words I was being bombarded with after too lengthy a stay in that hellish wherever-it-was I had been in, I instinctively tried to cringe away.

No no no no NO!

Tears welled up with the visceral shudders.

What happened? What in Hell's Seven Circles was he talking about?! This wasn't like Terrin, he would never... NEVER... ever ally himself with this ex-sister of mine! Oh dear gods, she must have done something to him, she must have gotten into his mind, messed around in there like a dewback wallows in the sand-holes of Tatooine, made him believe her, turned him into this parody of who I thought he was, giving him the words to speak so she could finally get her slimy claws on me and little Darra....

My own mention of Darra's name brought a sudden uprush of defiance skating through me. I clenched my teeth, dragging my eyes from Jharmeen... from Graysith ...into Terrin's and back again. My grip about my daughter tightened; I struggled to break free of the weird mental hold Graysith yet had on me, so I could trigger that wonderful strength I knew Darra was somehow able to wield, power she had once before lashed out with sending this particular witch tumbling head-over-heels.

To no avail. Graysith's mental grip only tightened on me, as though she was trying to force me to say one thing in particular, follow but one narrow road of her own choosing....

My eyes widened to see yet another Sith enter into the docking bay and come up respectfully behind her. That only cemented my fears.

I did my best to stifle them, now facing the words which had been revealed to me by my love, picking through them and subjecting each and every one of them to careful scrutiny. Much of what he said did make sense, but ally himself with the Sith... with HER...?

He KNEW how I felt about her. He KNEW she had killed our father, had on more than one occasion tried to kill me. He knew this, yet still he "allied" himself to her.

Well, there was simply no way in Hell's Seven Circles I was ever gonna believe THAT. Yet there HAD to be something I could do....

The answer came to me in a rush.

I had to know. Yet to truly achieve this, I did indeed have to do that which every iota of my being was spelling out in blazing red letters that I NOT do:

I had to trust them. Truly, and not superficially.

A short cry of despair rose up within me with this realization, for before I could lay plans to trick the next in my series of captors, I had to somehow fully trick myself.

Graysith smiled a bit, then directed her attention to Terrin.

"She yields not," she whispered softly, "for she believes us not."

"You see, my... ally," she continued. "This is not so easy a task as one is first led to believe. Perhaps it would do you good to go and obtain a modicum of rest, and I shall do my... utmost to persuade your wife of our true intentions."

She fell silent, her hold on Galen never lessening, the Glyph now beginning to flare just a bit on her forehead.

But he slammed it at bay.

There just had to be some way, some way that Galen could learn to trust that he hadn't lost his mind. That he didn't intend any harm to come to her. that this was the best way, however horrible it seemed.

There just has to be some way for her to understand...

He listened to Graysith's words then nodded just once, a bit reluctantly. Then, stepping forward, he reached out and did the one thing he'd hesitated to do since Graysith and Galen's return. He reached out and touched his wife, placing his hand gently alongside her cheek, forcing her to look directly into his eyes.

Her eyes radiated with despair.

In the stillness of the moment, he spoke, his words soft yet full of conviction. "Galen, please, trust me." Then he quieted, his blue eyes never leaving her brown ones for a long moment.

He could only hope she'd read in them what she knew deep down would always be there.

At length he stepped away once again, gazing a moment at the sleeping Darra. Then he silently departed the hanger, sending a silent prayer heavenward for Galen to truly believe.

Graysith merely sighed, a bit annoyed as time continued to extend itself in this impasse. She had expected Galen to resist to some extent, but had actually been surprised to see how she recoiled from her husband's words with such complete disbelief. Shaking her head, she reached out her other hand to Galen, and touched her lightly on her forehead.

"As much as it does pain me to say this, my dear, the words your husband has said to you are in fact true," she began, her violet eyes darkening a bit in inverse proportion to the suddenly brightening Glyph. "Whether or not you believe them is indeed entirely up to you; I don't expect a rancor to change its spots.

"But!" she went on, her tone of voice darkening, utterly belying the sweet smile she now let spread across her face. "It would do you good to believe them in their entirety. Whatever you think of me or the path I have been privileged to set out upon-- and yes, sister mine, it is a privilege and an honor I would not expect one such as you to ever truly understand --you at least are aware of what that path entails. As well as what pitfalls and destinies lie scattered along it.

"As much as you would dislike it, Galen, you are yourself now bound up upon that path, as is your daughter. There is nothing... NOTHING IN THIS UNIVERSE OR BEYOND ...which will alter that pathway now it has been set into motion. And how you choose to face this particular future, again, is entirely up to you."

She drew back a bit, lessening the pressure of the Claw-wielding hand just a bit, and allowed the other hand to lightly stroke across Galen's forehead. For a moment her eyes flicked over her sister's head and into the eyes of the waiting Shayla; then she dropped her gaze back to Galen and spoke up for a final time.

"This has gone on long enough. I cannot allow this silliness to impede my path any longer."

With that, and before the sleeping Darra could be awakened, she sent a tendril of the All into Galen's brainstem. There it met and coiled about the sleep centers hidden deeply within the protection of tissue and bone, and niggled them gently.

Galen's wide eyes promptly fell closed, and her body relaxed into the first true rest she had had in months.

Graysith reached out quickly and plucked the still-sleeping JhinDarra from her sister's arms even as Galen fell, and then handed her to her Adept, who had quietly approached her. Then stooping, she picked Galen up, the All boosting her physical strength, turned, and carried her from the docking bay. Leading Shayla, a contemplative Recinis trailing behind, she hadn't traversed but a couple of the winding corridors when she came upon the unexpected presence of Terrin. He was hovering there as though not quite certain if he should continue on as directed, or return to Galen as he so deeply desired. In fact he was just in the process of actually turning about when the presence of the Chosen Daughter and her Adept stopped him in his tracks. She likewise came to a halt, and held Galen out to him.

Their eyes met in silence over her sleeping form.

With another nod, Graysith sent a silent directive to Shayla, who now complied by bringing Darra up and laying her once again upon her mother's exhausted body. Then she stepped back, waiting along with her Teacher to see what Terrin Danner would now do.

You're losing her, it whispered darkly. She doesn't understand. She cannot see. All that you've fought for has been for nothing...

Then, his eyes falling on the tiny form of his sleeping daughter, that little thought went poof! and this one was left behind:

You have NOT fought in vain. You've found your daughter. She needed her mother. Through the events that have so recently occurred, daughter and mother are now reunited. Though your involvement in that may seem questionable to Galen--beyond questionable--you did the absolute ONLY thing you could to bring them together.

You have NOT fought in vain.

On the heels of that, a rather strange thought presented itself to Terrin--something he hadn't really had the opportunity to consider, but something that seemed oh so blessedly possible.

Little JhinDarra. She KNEW him. And not from just since he'd been reunited with her and her mother aboard the Sith ship. She knew him before then...

...had protected him that fateful day so long ago on Khar Delba in the Temple. Had again recognized the danger later on the Devil May Care when he'd lost his arm.

Darra knew him. Knew him as Daddy. Gods, but he was just certain of it.

And she knew his intentions even now. She had special gifts...

...could probably read him like a book with her primeval yet highly sofisicated senses. She would be the link.

Quietly yet gratefully, Terrin scooped up his family from Graysith's eeriely strong arms. Held them closely to him, "I think we all could use some rest," he said.

Then he silently stepped away to find quarters where he and his wife and daughter could find some rest.

And hopefully a bit of understanding as well.

Settling Galen and Darra in a bed in some rather plush quarters, Terrin nestled in beside the two of them, striving for sleep yet struggling to gain it.

Sighing at that, he reached out to stroke Darra's forehead, his arm draping over Galen's slumbering body in the motion. He let it rest there as a solid reassurance to Galen that he was still there, his fingers barely brushing the soft skin on Darra's arm.

How he wished their lives would slow down for more simple moments like this. How he wished life wasn't always so complicated.

But then, nobody ever said life was easy. And nobody ever said personal growth didn't hurt; that sacrifices you made were always understood for what they were.

Only those with the keenest of senses, such as little Darra, could truly see. As well as those who knew a person so well they'd somehow eventually come to understand their true intentions, as Galen knew him.

Terrin resigned himself to waiting for the moment when that understanding was gained. When the realization that he truly had done the only thing he possibly could have to save them all arose.

It just HAD to happen. He HAD to believe it. Or else the shattered person that was the Terrin Danner of old might just have his way and resurface.

And THIS Terrin Danner wouldn't let him do that.

As these thoughts progressed, Terrin's wife and little daughter slept on...

Then she thought to her Teacher, Strange that she notes not the incongruity of the situation. Strange she does not see how very easy it would have been for us to leave the Child in safekeeping, far away from her. And strange that she has not considered that we allowed the Mother and Daughter to link, knowing full well what the consequences of that action might entail. Seems as though she believes her husband to have handed the Child over to us, when indeed the complete opposite is true.

Shayla paused at that, her eyes defocusing as she considered this. Then, The Child DOES seem to equate Mr. Danner as her blood father--at least, she does not seem to sense him as a threat to her Mother. Perhaps the family indeed needs some time alone to consider these incongruencies. What think you my Sister?

The little entourage moved quickly onward, Graysith preferring to remain silent for the length of the journey. At the hatchway to the command center she came to a stop, turning to peer into her Adept's face.

"Your observations are only as I expected them to be, my Sister," she said softly, "and keen they are indeed. What you do not know is the relationship I have had over time with this blood-sister of mine, all that she has suffered as a result of my actions. This is what is goading her now to disbelieve our intentions, whether or not her child is with her. For you see, she knows me. And deeply within her she feels the presence of the child to be yet another ruse, I believe."

She paused, bringing a finger up to brush against her lips thoughtfully, studying Shayla and then sliding her eyes to encompass Recinis as well.

"It will be interesting to see if she in fact does know me to the extent I believe that she does."

Saying nothing more, she opened the hatch and entered the large and geometrically wrong command center. There she settled herself in the seat next to Erik, to await their arrival at K'eel Doba...

...and sent a final comment quietly into Shayla's mind:

"Personal and deeply held beliefs are the most difficult to persuade one into changing, are they not, my Sister?"