The shadows in the background spit out an even darker one who had been standing in an aloof and haughty manner in their depths. His vibrant turquoise eyes blazing in complete and indefatigable self-assurance of the strength and sure success of his plan, Dark Lord Roan approached the cloaked form of his old and wizened, but nevertheless extremely dangerous, new ally.

Desolist turned round from the great crystal polyhedron into whose depths he had been peering. He clasped his vein-besotted hands together as a cackle of glee escaped him.

"Ahhh, my young friend! Such a marvelous device you have created here for me!" He indicated the crystal with one wave of his hand, then folded both members deeply into the sleeves of his cloak. In less than a heartbeat his evil grin had transformed into a thin line of cruelty.

Lord Roan merely shrugged. "It is an easy enough device to create, Desolist," he offered in an offhanded manner. Then he fell silent, not really caring if the old dark jedi found his creations amusing or not.

He only cared for one thing. And nothing would stop him from achieving it.

Now he raised his voice to Desolist once more. "As you skim the goings of the galaxy, have you determined if your hunter has yet procured his prey?" he inquired, his voice like the caress of raven's wings upon the night.

Desolist cackled again. "All is proceeding according to our plans, my young friend," he chortled. "None can stop us this time!"

"Our" plans... stop "us".... Roan's enigmatic yet somehow charismatic and fem-attracting features creased into a momentary frown of annoyance. Then he smoothed his innermost thoughts from his face altogether and spoke up once again.

"We will succeed, Old One." Though his voice was mild and there wasn't so much as a hint of expression on his face, somehow the very atmosphere of this dark and secretive place became imbued with a sense of... of sneering.

He turned away from Desolist and walked away, knowing there was nothing strong enough in the entire galaxy to stop them. Not even his so-called brother and that woman he secretly and so pitifully loved, "the Chosen One," as he called her. Their combined strengths would be as nothing in comparison to those of the children he planned to breed... to raise to call him Father and assure the ushering in... oh yes indeed! ...of a truly new and glorious Age of the Sith.

My booted footfalls sound like the dirge of death as I approach the wrinkled form of my Master. His pale and watery eyes stare deeply into my own, seeking to find the strength he sees there and take it for his own.

He will not succeed in this, but at least for the time being....

"Yes, Desolist," I say with a bow of my head. Never humble; all the while my golden eyes remain affixed to his own. He looks at me with a sneer, then waves his hand.

"It seems our dear Mr. Tarnus has made a slight change in course, my friend." The darkly evil whisper comes into my ears like the soft kiss of an assassin's blade. I frown and smile all at once; the hunter always was a slippery dianoga when it came to evading me. Time and again he had always managed to escape, but that was before I had come into even greater strengths of my own.

That was before--

My thoughts I cut off with a mental snip. I bow my head again, then straighten it.

"I will see to things, Desolist," I say in an offhanded manner just shy of one being deferential. His eyes alight with anger, but there is nothing he can do.

Really he is lucky I choose to remain with him. But as things stand, if I hadn't....

I smile, turn and clump away, heading to where my own sleek and highly modified little infiltrator lies in wait. Mr. Tarnus shall not elude us -- me -- again...

...and neither shall that infuriating unretainable woman he has chosen to marry.

Sorben leaped to his feet at the same time I did, trying to look at me, at the navigation board, and the viewscreen ahead of us all at the same time. The navigation board was lit up with red lights like a certain district in the Corporate sector; I was looking as innocent and as puzzled as I possibly could; and the view screen was gradually filling with a drably ochre colored planet which got larger and larger as we approached. This apparent growth slowed and finally settled into a hemisphere as the onboard computer checked it's final default settings, set us into orbit around the closest inhabitable planet it could find, let out a gasp of cybernetic frustration, and gave up the ghost.

I turned and pinned Sorben with my eyes, still maintaining my innocent look.

He didn't buy it for one second.

I got to my feet and beat a hasty retreat away from anything looking remotely like a control as he bore down upon me. I'd never seen the kind of look in his eyes before that he was shooting at me now, and I hoped to Khaandon I never would again. It was a combination of the deepest and most soul-filling rage that I had ever seen... combined with a fear rooted just as deeply. He raised his hands as he approached me, actually crooking them into something like claws as though he wanted to rip out my throat right then and there.

Ok, so the innocent look wasn't getting me anywhere. At this point, I realized, any little bit of energy saved was energy able to be delegated elsewhere; I dropped the look and gave him a cautiously assessing one. He didn't even pause, but took another step in my direction, his eyes ablaze.

Yet... somewhere in the depths of that glacial glare, I read one pitifully raised word. Why??

I took yet another step backward, then came to a crashing halt against the bulkhead. Damn, I'd forgotten how small the bridge actually was. Now my hands were raised defensively.

"Sorben--" I began, then bit off anything else I was considering saying with the sudden knowledge that I had overstepped some undeclared line.

Well, yeah... but what else did he think I was going to do?

I just stood there, letting him come closer, letting my eyes widen and fill with moisture, pleading silently with him, shooting myriad excuses and reasons into his mind with the mere power of my look...

...until he was within kicking distance, where he made a fatal error.

My leg lashed out in a hooking roundhouse and slammed into the side of his face. His head jerked to the side; I'll give him credit for staying on his feet. Then I settled the score by lashing out yet again, following this with a simple roundhouse to his upper ribs. I met his chin halfway with the heel of one hand, flinging his head in a direction totally opposite to the way momentum had been taking him mere seconds before.

You should never have taken off your helmet, babes....

He fell like a stoned dewback, remarkably only stunned. I knew I didn't have much time. Whirling, I shot from the bridge, heading toward one of the escape pod bays I had seen somewhere along the way. In moments I had manually control of it, and in a likewise manner sent it shooting out of the orbiting Aftershock.

A few seconds more, and I was losing myself in the stagnant atmosphere of this unhealthy planet, flicking the onboard computer system into "search and find" even as I piloted her down in a gently increasing spiral.

"Search for the Aftershock," Terrin told Matt, who had resumed control of the copilot's station. Behind them were Shawn and Jasyn, while everyone else was still back in the living area.

"She's orbiting," he said. "And she's dead."

"Galen's on the planet," Shawn said flatly, out of the blue.

"What?!" Terrin said, whirling in his seat to face the Jedi. "Where's Tarnus then?"

Shawn's eyes grew distant a moment. "Aboard the Aftershock, for the moment."

Terrin frowned. For the moment.

But better a moment than none at all.

"Go to ground," Shawn said. "Tarnus isn't going anywhere from here unless he goes in an escapepod. And he'll know where Galen headed to. We'd best beat him to the punch."

Terrin nodded, turning and removing the ZZ'Shzq from orbit.

As space began to lighten into atmosphere, he hoped like hell that he could remember to land a ship this size...

Damn you to hell, babes! I thought with a grimace. So this is the way you want it?

Placing my hand in support over what was at least a bruised rib or two, I now focused my attention on my ship. My jaws clenched in another rush of anger as I realized what Galen had done to her.

Damn her! Damn her to hell! I gritted my jaws in icy determination to find retribution for the damage she'd done to Aftershock and... well, face it hunter.

To you.

That last little thought didn't hang around long; I refused to let it. Now my teeth were gritted in a different sort of determination as I moved off-bridge, stiffly at first, then with greater confidence and smoothness as my conditioning leapt in to take over from the pain I was feeling. Without any further thought but one, I came to our quarters -- MY quarters -- where I donned armor and helmet, checking to see all my various and sundry devices were still with me and workable.

All was good; she at least hadn't sabotaged my personal equipment.

Probably didn't have the time, or--

Swallowing back any sort of feelings I might have, I reached into a particular pouch and brought out a private communications device. I hit a sequence on the tiny keyboard, then closed it up and replaced it. The message whirled out over the spaceways at the speed of light; it would get where it was meant to go soon enough, I decided. At least in enough time to let me hunt down and take my wayward wife into hand once again.

Double checking my equipment a final time, I hurried to an escape pod. Thank the fates she hadn't taken my personal one! In but moments I was planetbound, my private pod shielded from any sensors or force snooping, thanks to yet another one of Seus's mysteriously procured devices. I never have found out where he finds these, and frankly, I really don't want to know.

Shawn suddenly stopped, bringing he and Matt and Jasyn to a hault. They'd left Yaoksi and Nasrail'en on the ZZ'Shzq for saftey measures.

"What now?" Terrin asked worriedly.

"Sorben Tarnus's Force signature just fizzled.

"As in dead?" Terrin question, confusion covering his features.

"No...kinda like when Shayla disappears in and out..."

"Oh this is not good."

"On the up side, I think you tracked the possible destination of Galen's escapepod fairly well. She's very close."

"Good then, let's move," Terrin said, motioning onward.

"Agreed," Shawn said simply, turning and starting forward once again.

It could have been a few minutes, or an hour, but at length, amongst the rocks and craters, Terrin could have sworn he saw a rather familiar figure not too far in the distance.

Great. NOW you are seeing things.

Still, he couldn't help but ask. "...Shawn?"

The Jedi, with his hood over his head to keep dirt from his eyes, nodded a yes.

Quite suddenly, this all seemed too easy. Shawn must have felt this as well. "We better make it quick. With a little bit of speed, we'll reach her in fifteen standard minutes. I sense we haven't much time to waste," he continued, quickening his pace and at the same time sending a mental niggling out to Galen that he didn't know if she'd get or even recognize. But it was there should she be able to. Then he continued, "Tarnus has been out of contact too long."

Although Cella couldn't say she was glad to be on Keel Doba, she was glad that Galen had been found, and something told her the baby wasn't far from being found either. She whistled softly to let Terrin and his crew know she was with them, and sent a brief message to Shawn. You were right, she thought at the other Jedi. Together is safer...and I'm thinking this is going to be a job for two Jedi.

We're right behind you, Galen...

Joy burst through me like an erupting volcano, spreading heady warmth throughout my entire body. Oh Khaandon, that was the Jedi! I'd know that whisper anywhere; that meant they were close to me!

And that means that Terrin--

I didn't think I could feel any more joy than I had, but I found out it was possible to exceed even what I thought to be its upper limits.

They were here. They were going to find me. We would find my -- OUR daughter. Somehow I'd get this farce of a marriage anulled, and marry the man I really loved, if he'd still have me after all this mess.

I frowned a bit at that, then spurred myself into motion. I had to get down to the bottom pronto, and see if what I hoped was there still was....

Slipping and sliding in haste now, not caring what noise I might be making, I pushed myself downward into the kilometer-deep crater some ancient asteroid had blasted into the skin of this blighted place. I was in such a rush that I slipped and actually fell more than once, skinning my face and the palms of my hands, but never so much as making a scratch on the strange and impervious fabric of which my Sith suit was made. Downward I went, sending scree scrabbling ahead of me almost as if in introduction, half bounding, half sliding, moving sideways as quickly as I could, not even bothering to make certain one foot had a good foundation before the other was lifted and yet another three or so slippery feet were gained.

I was soon at the bottom. Breathless, I pushed onward, an instinct telling me to hurry, to rush, not to waste one moment.... I aimed for the dead center of the crater, my eyes searching the ground frantically. I knew it had been over a year, but...

Then I caught it: the twin glints of metal flashing in the meager sunlight. I hurried forward, crowing out in silent victory as I picked up the two devices and scrutinized them in glee. Then I unzipped the front of my suit, stuffed them in securely, zipped it back up.

They were still here. I found them. And these were certainly going to prove useful to us.

She was up to something...

"She's done whatever she went to do," Shawn said, motioning to the slope.

"Oh come on, there has got to be a faster way than going down there and climbing back up."

Jasyn pulled something from his hiking pack.

Synthrope. Always count on your outdoor expert to think of these things...

"Throw her the rope," Shawn said. "And I'll give her a Force-boost."

Then, he comminicated what they were doing to Galen, fairly certain now that she could sense his words to her.

Terrin nodded as Jasyn began to lace the rope down the incline. Suddenly something popped in his head, and he placed a hand on Jasyn's shoulder, sending him a meaningful look. Jasyn took the hint, and handed Terrin the rope.

Dear gods after all the hell they'd been through and might still face, he wanted to be the one at the pulling her out of the valley...

Sheesh, what the heck were they mucking with that for? I couldn't help but wonder as I hauled myself to my feet. Do they think I'm going to be hauled up a kilometer by that thing?

Must be the galaxy's longest rope....

Then I was running toward the upslope as fast as I could go, one hand against my chest to hold my secret toys safely within the confines of my suit, the other pumping at my side and sending added impetus to my legs and feet. Soon the ground beneath those feet began to slope uphill, gently at first, then at a steeper and steeper degree.

My free hand reached down ahead of me in support as I began scrabbling up the way I had come.

If only the ship had been closer, they could have just landed in the crater...

As it was, he honestly didn't want to risk going back to the ship.

His thoughts were cut off as someone suddenly gave the rope a little pull.

She'd made it.

Now with a firm grip on the rope, Terrin dug his heels into the ground and began to pull her up. He was immediately thankful for the added assistance coming his way via Shawn. What might have taken a few minutes was only going to take a few moments.

Hope you're ready for this ride, sweets, he thought.

At length, he could see her in his line of vision, those two wonderful big brown eyes looking up at him. Jasyn took hold of the rope and Terrin walked to the edge of the slope, lying down so as not to tip into the crater himself to pull her up and onto the side of the slope...and into his arms.

For the moment all he could do was gaze into her beautiful brown eyes and hold her...

Hmmm... now this certainly looks familiar, doesn't it buddy?

--my thoughts going back to a happier time when I had played the part of the cavalry coming over the hill and with the help of K'kihl--

Sure do wonder whatever became of the Verpine....

--I had snatched Galen into my arms and whisked her from the jaws of that witch Graysith, her hidden Lord, and had killed, or thought I had killed, my nemesis Mr. Gravin Dark. Sure wish I had; my mistake for dragging him along with us at the time....

Now following a moving source of body heat which simply had to be her -- no other soul alive on this boring blotch in the eye of the universe -- I looked up from my sensory device to find the crater's lip a mere 50 meters or so ahead. I pressed on, ignoring the pain in my side, secure in the sudden change of plans.

I just might be able to pull us out of this in one piece after all. The thought lent me added impetus, made it easier to ignore the knives which were stabbing into my side. My latest little communication had assured me of that....

With a final grunt I hauled myself up to the top of the lip...

...only to see her on the far side, going up, another pair of specks standing out upon the far rim like gleeberflies on rotten fruit. Even as I watched, the tiny speck that was Galen Tarnus seemed to take wing and fly to the top of the crater. The three specks merged into a larger blot, then disappeared from sight.

I stood there, my jaw clenching in mingled disgust and annoyance and anger, breathing heavily as I tried to get myself calmed down enough to talk. Then I reached for my communication device again.

After a little chat which was most enlightening, I turned and scrabbled back the way I had come. Soon I was back in my escape pod and heading heavenward, aiming for a set of coordinates I had been issued where I would find succor and a place to take the time to make my next plans.

You may have outfoxed me this time, darlin', I scowled to myself as the viewport darkened to encompass a million stars beyond it. But don't count your banthas yet.

And be sure to watch your back....

My little pod, ensconced safely in its Force-blanketing cocoon, howled on. Inside, I could only press my lips together in sudden bitterness.

This wasn't over yet.

OOC: Follow Sorben Tarnus into the Back on Coruscant thread in the "Empire and New Republic" forum. Thank you.

At least that's what some stupid med-droid would try to have me believe. No way.

Then I threw my arms around Terrin and pulled him to me with more strength than I thought I possessed.

"Get me out of here, love; oh please! Just-- just get me out of here!"

I pulled back to look up into his eyes... and couldn't stand it any longer. Sudden waves of conflict rose up within me in a threatening manner, but I merely pushed them all aside as reaching up, I laced my scuffed and bleeding hands into the hair on the back of his head, and drew him down in a kiss that was sweeter than I ever had remembered it being.

Sheesh, and you a married woman....

A small frown of nothing more than annoyance crosses my ebony features as the Force signature of a Mr. Sorben Tarnus fuzzes into obscurity and disappears from the universe entirely. I sigh; how absolutely stupid of the hunter to try to outwit this Hunter.

I sense outward... and find the woman's mental scent. She is now surrounded by others... abruptly, their signatures fade into nothing as did that of the bounty hunter.

Now I smile, sending a brief transmission to he who probably ought to know of these events. How wonderful; now I may once more stretch my hunting prowess into the apparent unknown, as I have done so many times with this man and his lady.

Only this time I shall not fail.

I sit back and regard the stars without as my infiltrator orbits in silent mastery this dreary world below, its sensor-repellent hull keeping me just as safely hidden from prying eyes and ears as the strange devices Mr. Tarnus always manages to get his hands on.

That has no meaning to me; there are ways to track him of which he is unaware. My Master has assured me of that.

Now I send out my equally sense-repellent probes, seeking the nearest craft in hyperpace or without, in which the woman and her companions may be fleeing. Mr. Tarnus can wait... this female is of the utmost importance to my Master, although what he needs with her when there is another, stronger. one is beyond me.

That, however, is his choice. Mine is to make sure he gets it. I continue my course, following in the screaming darkness behind the woman who at the moment is feeling as far from danger as she could possibly imagine....

Not that he wasn't overjoyed to have Galen back with him, he thought, cutting his eyes to the side to look at her a moment. But this was just all too easy. What the hell had happened to Tarnus? What about all their baddies?

He forced himself to lighten up. They could only take things one step at a time.

But it'd be rather nice to know where they were stepping next.

And hell, where WERE they going next? Where could they be safe from these demons and this bounty hunter? Terrin couldn't help but know that sometime, probably a hell of alot sooner than he would like, Sorben would pop up again. After all, he'd be looking for his wife...

Eesh. Forgot about that one, didn't you buddy? a shoulder devil sputtered out of nowhere.

With a mental slap, the little imp popped out of existence. And the question still remained. Where could they go that was safe?

Safe...

Oh dear gods, they STILL hadn't looked for the baby. And Galen had said she thought she was on Khar Delba...

...and so maybe this wasn't a Sith ship, but it certainly was a shielded one. And why not take advantage of their location?

Turning to look at Galen, Terrin quirked a brow, tilting his head a bit as the ship began to hit atmosphere and glide into space. "Think the baby is still on Khar Delba?" he asked.

Then he let the question hang, completely ready to step into yet more danger to help her find her baby...

Something wasn't right here. Sorben Tarnus's force signature was gone. Dark and Desolist had yet to show their faces...

Yet.

His Jedi premonitions were all but literally screaming that something horribly dark even still awaited them.

The really disturbing thing about this premonition though was that, if the dark was headed their way, he couldn't feel a lick of it.

Folding his hands in his Jedi robes, Shawn stood, knowing the ship had just slipped into hyperspace, and somehow even aware of their next destination. Quietly, he moved away from the living area and slipped into the ship's cabin, the door whooshing open then closing in the same manner behind him as he stepped inside.

Terrin and Galen turned to face him at about the same time, while Matt, who was sitting in the back, just simply...waited.

"We need to talk," Shawn opened with.

Terrin quirked a brow, indicating he should continue.

"I sense something very wrong here. We had reason to believe that two very evil individuals were behind all of this, and we haven't seen hide nor hair of them. And Mr. Tarnus's Force signature has become completely untraceable. He could still be behind us. His employers are probably still after you," he continued, turning to Galen. "We'd best proceed with caution. I assume we are headed to Khar Delba?" he asked, the question directed at no one in particular.

Terrin simply nodded, then added. "ETA twelve hours. I'm thinking we should all get some rest, then talk through whatever might be going on, as well as take care of a few...things...while we still have the opportunity. I tend to agree that this was all too easy."

Shawn nodded. "Allright. I'll meet you in the living area in four standard hours. Comm me if you need me before then, I'm going to do some meditating to see if I can clear some of this fuzz from my mind."

With that, the Jedi exited the cabin for his quarters, hoping to seek and find some answers to his concerns...

His and Galen's quarters.

She stood there, gazing out into the blur that was hyperspace. He wondered what she was thinking about, then quietly stepped in behind her and wrapped his arms about her waist, laying his cheek against her head for a moment in a gesture that was almost...protective. She turned in his arms to look up at him, and he leaned down and planted a small kiss on her forehead.

"I've missed you so much," he opened with, searching her brown eyes with his blue ones. "I took the liberty of making a few calls," he continued. "It will be no great difficulty to have your...marriage to Mr. Tarnus anulled."

Here he paused, waiting for her to understand that he knew about this. As well as giving her a moment to understand that he understood why she'd agreed to it to in the first place.

But there was something of far more importance to him that he wanted to say to her now, before something of this nature happened again. He took her hands in his, searching for the words. "Galen, I know this is sudden, but after all of this...I just don't want to wait another day to have you at my side as Mrs. Terrin Danner. We've struggled through so much to make it here--and there's possibly so much more to come. I want to go into it as husband and wife. I have it on good authority that a Jedi Knight can legally wed two people...

He knew! The tangled rush expanded out into coherency. He knew what you did... what you had to do, and why!

And he still wants to go through with marrying you!

Now my face grew hot and flushed as tears burst into being from absolutely nowhere. The strong planes of Terrin's face wavered before me as I just stood there, staring up at him, my mouth working like an opee out of water as I struggled to put everything I could into my answer: my heart, my soul...

Embarrassingly enough, I could scarcely garble a single syllable. I just buried my face against his chest, gripping him fiercely to me, letting my actions speak far, far louder than any words I could possibly speak, and remained in that position until I finally got myself under some semblance of control.

I tilted my head back, letting myself drown in those wonderful blue eyes, and finally managed to whisper,

"Yes, Terrin. And soon."

Then the joyous expression on my face clouded with my eyes, as I realized I had more to say. Suddenly my mouth was dry as the deserts of Tatooine; I tried to wet my lips but only succeeded in chewing on them. All the while Terrin stood waiting, his brow crooking now as puzzlement rose up in his face.

I couldn't stand it; I buried my face against his broad chest again, sniffling a little and refusing to look up anymore. I just didn't want to see his expression at what I had to say next.

"Terrin," I murmured in a sad little whisper. "I- I slept with him."

Then I let my voice trail off, and merely waited to hear his response.

And that day Terrin had talked with Shawn, the words had come from his own mouth. Sorben Tarnus was using the marriage as a reason to make advances on her. And gods knew what would have happened had she refused...

Damn him. Damn him to HELL for using her like that. For treating her like that.

Gently, Terrin took her chin in his hand so that her eyes met his. The sadness in that look was enough to break his heart, so he spoke the words to drive that sadness away. "I know, love," he whispered softly. "Shawn and I had suspected Sorben Tarnus intended to use the marriage as a way to get you pregnant and make Force-babies all along ," he explained, shuddering a bit at this very diabolical conclusion. "As far as the anullment, with the circumstances surrounding the marriage to begin with, it's not going to be a problem, Galen. And our two Jedi friends understand, so there's no problem there either," he said, wrapping his arms about her once again. "And it doesn't change how I feel one bit, sweetheart. You did what you had to do to stay safe, and I completely understand that," he finished, pulling her closer to him as though to offer her all the warmth and assurety he could. Then, he quieted, simply waiting to see what else she might have to say.

In each and every aspect I could possibly think of, the bounty hunter kept falling short. Oh Khaandon, I don't know what I ever did right in my life, but I thank you so much for sending this man to me! the words shot through my head, provoking another onrush of tears to blind my eyes.

Sniffling a bit, I drew back, tossing my head in a vain effort to clear my vision. I sent a moist smile up at Terrin.

"You know, love," I managed at last. "When I was speaking those vows, I wasn't speaking to... to him. I was speaking them to you. And somehow... I just knew you would hear that."

Now my hands found themselves reaching upward, seeking to lace about my love's neck as I stood up on tiptoe to reach him. "Let's make it for real this time, ok?

"I do so love you, Mr. Terrin Danner."

Then I spoke no more. There simply wasn't any need for it... at least not for the moment. Now was the time to reacquaint ourselves, to rediscover ourselves and our love...

...and most definitely not the time to worry about a little statement which had dropped from his lips in so brief a manner. The little logical part of my brain began urgently waving its figurative hands, trying to give warning.

Breed Force-babies?!? Yeesh....

How did he know there was danger coming near them yet he couldn't sense a lick of it? Why couldn't he feel the evil of this Desolist and Gravin Dark heading towards them? Why couldn't he sense it at all?

Something was oh-so-terribly wrong about this, and the possibilities presenting themselves did little to settle Shawn's mind.

The way these guys had themselves hidden was so similiar to the way Shayla had disappeared in and out of the Force lately. Was so similiar to how she was missing even now. And Shayla had chosen to become part of the Sith...

...was the Sith somehow behind all this then? Were they the source of this mystery?

Shawn frowned to himself, the answer to that question still a negative one. Granted, the Sith had been after Galen's baby, and might even think of something as utterly horrible as using her to produce more of these powerful children.

But there was just one little thing that didn't fit. Why would the Sith, who could pop in and out of everywhere with disturblingly offhanded ease, choose a bounty hunter to come for Galen? Let alone a bounty hunter who had once been involved with her?

Did they think she'd regain her feelings for him and totally miss their threat until it was too late?

Even if it wasn't the Sith, the fact someone had chosen to send the bounty hunter who was once Galen's significant other seemed like a bad tactic all around.

A piece of this very horrible and possibly very deadly puzzle was still missing, lurking.

About this time, Shawn's comm beeped. He scooped it off the nightstand and pushed the accept button. "Shawn Petrolu here."

"This is Jasyn Lancaster. Terrin wants everyone to meet in the living area in three standard hours. And he said for you to give him a comm in about an hour."

"Allright," Shawn said. Then he added, "In the meantime, if you have a stash of Whyren's Reserve around here, I could use a glass..."

When the comm finally beeped, Terrin was about half asleep, his arms around Galen. He rolled over, pulling the comm from the nightstand. "Terrin here," he said, stifling a yawn.

"It's Shawn. Jasyn said you wanted me to comm?"

"Yeah," Terrin replied, glancing over to a quietly resting Galen. "The anullment came through about thirty minutes ago."

Terrin could practically hear Shawn's jaw drop across the frequency.

Hey buddy, you don't sell big ships to the big guys just for the profit of it. There's always the possibilty of later being able to ask a favor or two. Nice to have friends in high places, occasionally.

"Does this mean you are going to ask me to do something for you?" Shawn replied, his tone lightening with a gleam of humor.

Terrin simply smiled into the darkness of the room. "Yeah, it does," he responded. Then he added, a touch of humor creeping into his eyes, "I knew I needed you Jedi on board for some reason."

Shawn laughed a small laugh at that. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"You know me," Terrin replied.

"Okay, you pirate, I'll see you in a couple of hours. Comm if you need anything else. Petrolu out."

With that, the comm went quiet and Terrin laid it back on the nightstand, once again wrapping his arms around Galen. She shifted a bit in his arms, those big brown eyes of hers peering into his own.

He smiled at her. "Looks like you and I are going to be Mr. and Mrs. Danner really soon, sweetheart," he said. Then he fell silent, simply basking in the warmth of being with that one person in the Universe who would ever make him feel so...complete.

The sheer fact that he could look into her eyes and say "I do" was enough. The fact that he could hear the same little statement come from her lips, with that beautiful look on her face, was far more important than all the frills in the Universe.

Because he truly knew this was the one person he wanted in his life til death parted them, and even beyond then, if there truly was anything to the belief in an afterlife.

And he'd known she was the one from that day seemingly so long ago when he'd run into her on Ambria and his life had turned upside-down with one look. He simply couldn't imagine, and didn't want to imagine, for that matter, where he'd be now if the Maker hadn't blessed him and dropped her into his life.

Sure, they'd faced horrible danger, and they'd face more. And it wasn't that he took any of it lightly. Rather, Terrin found that these difficult times were when they truly had grown together and drawn support from each other. And that's when he'd learned just how deeply he loved her and how deeply she loved him.

No person, no event, no danger forseen or unforseen would ever change the fact that he loved her.

In this small yet significant way, he could show her just how completely serious he was in his commitment to her. To offer her all that he had and would ever have, if that was only his love for her, in front of friends.

So that they could be husband and wife...

...at last.

Leaning over, he gently met his lips with his new wife's in a sweet connection to seal the joining of their two lives into one.

Nothing, not even death, would seperate them ever again.

This just simply was not over yet. And the moment they stepped off this ship they would be immediately open to discovery by any Force-users searching them out. For that matter, the moment they slipped from hyperspace, they'd be up for discovery. The ship had a nice enough design to narrow the possibility of visual contact, but that didn't mean it was impossible.

Shawn shifted his blue-green gaze outward, looking over at Terrin and his new bride. Somehow he knew that she and Terrin both had finding the baby not too far from their immediate thoughts.

Now how to address this carefully...

...Sithspit, there was no way to address this carefully.

So Shawn decided he'd throw out what he'd been thinking into the lull in conversation and see just what thoughts anyone here had on the subject. "So," he started, "How do we plan on finding and retrieving the baby safely once we reach Khar Delba, if that is in fact where she is?"

Conversation wound to a screeching halt as all eyes turned in his direction.

Well, that got everyone's attention...

"We've gotta face it. Sorben Tarnus and his employers will still be on our tail, and going to Khar Delba will open us to more danger in the form of Graysith and her allies..."

...and my sister...

"...We simply have to think this through. We have a couple of Jedi here, but we're going to be up against several evil beings. The only way we'll face that successfully is if we have a plan, and I've never been to Khar Delba and faced these Sith, so anything you have to offer will be of help."

With that, Shawn quieted and waited to see if anyone had anything to say.

She smiled to herself, thinking how wonderful a gift had been bequeathed upon her. Once she and Shayla had determined which prey to follow, it had taken only a moment's concentration to reach out and seek Galen's signature through the All. Granted, she had been a bit surprised to find it where she did, so close to the planet upon which the Great Sith Temple lay securely hidden; shrugging then to herself she dismissed her brief moment of surprise and continued to play with her hair. Knowing her blood-sister, K'eel Doba would actually be a logical choice upon which to hide... if one knew the possibility existed that one's kidnapped offspring was... retained ... upon the neighboring world. From what better spot to hide while figuring out a scheme of action than almost beneath the enemy's very nose?

But for the fact that Graysith and her group had the All on their side, such a daring scheme might have actually worked. And then only if the child had really been where Galen so obviously thought it was.

That thought brought a smile to Graysith's lips. Then it faded a bit as the thought of one babe led her to another.

My dear little ShaRhylla, she sighed inwardly. Why has that hideous turncoat Maladius taken you where he has? I have seen where you are, but why can I not sense you with the All? Is it I have not the power? Need I return to Aelvedaar, seeking forgiveness for my anger no matter how justified I feel it to be, so that together we might be able to go to her aid?

Why has my Dark-- Lord Roan--

She drew in a breath, cutting off the direction in which her mind was heading, now turning abruptly onto another path.

But when we do reach my daughter, there will be powerful foes to do battle with. This much I know. I need that Claw....

The All operates always for the Greater Good, no matter from whose viewpoint one happens to be looking out upon the universe. From another's, the second following upon the heels of Graysith's silent declaration might have been seen as serendipitous. To her, however, it only provoked a great uprush of startled puzzlement and growing anger.

She sat bolt upright in her seat as Galen's easily targeted signature just blinked out of existence.

Quickly, she reached out to the navigation board, and sent a command for a full vector sweep at last known coordinate, clearly aware of the surprised look Shayla was now sending her. Gritting her teeth in growing rage, she then turned to her Adept.

Shayla glanced at the navboard, and her eyes rose in puzzlement and curiosity as something popped up on the little Sith ship's monitor.

"There's a ship in orbit around K'eel Doba," Shayla said, furrowing her brows in thought.

Could be nothing. But then, how many visitors did this system normally receive? There had to be something they could take advantage of here...

Shayla reached for the navboard and keyed a series of commands in with her right hand to sweep the orbiting ship. Then she frowned.

"The ship is dead. And no passengers are aboard."

She bit her lip in thought as a tiny inward niggle that she knew was more than idle pilot's curiosity tugged her towards that ship.

She paused for the barest of moments, stumbling over the name.

"--and Lord Roan, the only way others would be able to find this place would be if they were affiliated with the Sith, or had at some point come or stumbled upon this place on their own. Few there are to my knowledge who have actively sought this place, save for Darth Wicked and Gravin Dark."

Now she paused, tilting her head a bit as she frowned at her own words. "Gravin Dark," she purred in a whisper. "He had once been sent here at Desolist's behest, seeking after the bounty hunter Sorben Tarnus whom Galen had joined up with. I wonder if there is a connection here?

"Yes, my Sister." Now she nodded with assurety as she abruptly pulled back from her musings. "This ship must be boarded and investigated. There will be files we may investigate; I suggest we not download them from here, but go there in person and see what they have to offer. We do not know what killed this craft, after all.

"According to my sources that ship belongs to Sorben Tarnus," Shayla said after sifting through the information she had just received.

Then, carefully backing out of Stargazer's computer system, she stood. "Let's see just what Mr. Tarnus has been up to."

Then, opening a doorway through the All for both she and Graysith with minimal difficulty, Shayla stepped off the Retribution and onto the ship which she now knew was the Aftershock, keenly aware that her Sister was right behind her.

Whoa buddy, someone really tampered with this system!

Shayla knew this substantiated her conclusion that Galen had been taken against will. And hopefully it meant then that Terrin Danner was in fact lurking somewhere around the fringes of all this. She was just certain they could find the Claw if they could find him...

But back to the matter at hand. Someone had clearly sabatoged Mr. Tarnus's ship. And Graysith had clearly stated that wherever he was heading was not discernable by the All, and that Galen played some central role in this whole thing. Shayla's conclusion regarding all of that was that Mr. Tarnus was somehow connected to the evil that she and her sister had been sensing heading for Galen Jhin'Dar. And if that were the case, Mr. Tarnus had to have certain connections...

Now, Shayla, some little inward voice said as a little being in her head wagged its finger at her, You are on the man's ship. What could possibly be aboard to help you know just what Mr. Tarnus was up to, and where he was headed?

Two things came to mind at once. The computer system was basically riddled with a virus, but if that could be cleared a bit, she might be able to get into some recent transmission files. And it was also possible, although probably more difficult, that she could clear up the brain of the ship enough to find out the ship's recent logs detailing destinations.

Keying in a number of commands on the navboard, Shayla went to work. In no time flat her information smuggling skills came back to her, but it did take her quite a while to clear the ship's computer system enough to find the files of recent transmissions. Some of the memory was still mucked up, but she could get enough of the conversation to have a pretty good idea of who was talking to whom, and about what.

She tapped into the most recent file. A very distorted image of a yellow-eyed humanoid flashed on the screen, flickering in and out.

"I see you...your little task, Tarnus," the muddled transmission started.

"...bring to us...which we have paid such a high bounty for."

Then came the reply, equally as garbled but still understandable. Dark...what you want...you'll get it...we're married now, so don't you think you can give a guy a break-"

The yellow-eyed humanoid would have none of this. "Bring her...NOW, hunter...would hate to ...relieve you of her myself."

End of transmission.

So Mr. Tarnus was in league with Gravin Dark? And...

Shayla's thoughts screeched to a halt as the obvious presented itself.

Dark and Desolist were somehow connected with Lord Roan. Sorben Tarnus was taking Galen to Gravin Dark. And that particular destination was being blocked by the All...

...Sorben Tarnus was not only in league with Dark and Desolist. Desolist and Dark were...

...in league with DARK LORD ROAN.

Suddenly everything began to come together in a most disturbing reality.

Dark Lord Roan's familiar had taken Graysith's child. Said Dark Lord has aligned himself with two other evil beings who are ALL somehow connected to the disappearance of Graysith's daughter. And now there was this bounty hunter, highered or commandeered by Gravin Dark to find and bring Galen Jhin'Dar to him.

One thing was clear. There were Dark forces after Galen Jhin'Dar, and those same Dark forces had taken Graysith's daughter. Therefore, if she and her sister kept an eye on what was occurring with Galen Jhin'Dar and her companions...

Shayla's thoughts cut off with one very interesting conclusion. She turned at the navigational board, her greeny-blue gaze falling into the violet pair of her Sister's. She knew she didn't have to say a word about her conclusions on this matter for Graysith to know what she thought, so she simply waited to see what reactions the other woman might have.

She came to a halt. Of course not....

Now she whirled about, the Glyph beginning to raven upon her forehead, illuminating the interior of the bridge with a brilliant ultraviolet light, making the commonplace surreal by the very force of its energy.

"So all are indeed connected, my sister, just as revealed to us in the Valley of the Dark Lords," she began, trying to likewise connect all the mental dots now flashing before her eyes and scrolling across her mind. "This dark one, this Gravin Dark, is not one to be taken lightly. And neither is his Master, Desolist.

"Under normal circumstances it would be nothing to discover their hiding place, and to get us hence in all due haste, there to use our... unique persuasions to obtain the information we need from them. But for two hindrances:

"I still need the Claw of S'slan, or I cannot use the All overtly against them. And the last two people it was associated with were Galen Jhin'Dar and Terrin Danner... both of whom have conveniently disappeared from the tracking abilities of the All."

She paused, her frown deepening. "Only the All may block the All, my sister," she finally said in a soft and somehow sad little voice. "Now that it is obvious that we have an All-user as a foe, I cannot help but wonder why it is the All is blocking our quarry and the only means through which we may vanquish that foe. This is greatly disturbing to me, not to mention a bit frightening to contemplate. For does this mean that Lord Roan has already captured Galen and her companions?"

Her eyes widened as she spoke the words, as though startled by where her own conclusions had led her.

"There must be a means by which we can find what has happened to either Galen, or Terrin Danner, or both. Otherwise I am at quite a loss as to how we will find the Claw.

"And the only obvious connection I can make between all parties is Mr. Sorben Tarnus. What say you, Shayla?"

How very true that Mr. Tarnus seemed to be the only possible connection in any of this. But then Shayla wondered why it was that someone of Dark Lord Roan's character would, had he actually succeeded in retrieving Galen and her companions, block them and not Sorben Tarnus as well. For certainly he must know that connections could be made.

But then, perhaps the Sith Lord faltered there in that he was too self-assurred of his plan. And THAT could be the weakness they needed to succeed.

But then, there was the little issue of the Claw...

Suddenly, a very disturbing thought crept into the corners of Shayla's mind. IF Roan had in fact captured Galen and her companions, had HE found the Claw?

Shayla shuddered at the very thought. Such an event would surely damn all of them.

She again looked outward, considering. Graysith was correct. Regardless of whether Galen and Terrin and their friends had been captured by Lord Roan, Sorben Tarnus was the only person who knew of all that was occurring in this Dark web of evil.

"We must find Mr. Tarnus and assess what he knows, at once..."

She cut herself off with that, the sigil now brightening as she sent forth a tendril of her abilities through the all to seek out that of another. In but moments she found him; she smiled to see him huddled in the tiny escape pod as it trundled through space, thinking himself free and clear of his adversaries, whether they be far or nearer to him than he thought.

"I have him," she whispered in quiet triumph. "He is but a sitting womprat, not too far from here, but on a direct course to the Coruscant system. And," she continued, now opening her eyes and turning once more to Shayla. "It is due to happenings within that very system that Lord Aelvedaar took us from Khar Delba, that we might be safe while this new threat overpowers other worlds. But--"

What she was going to say never left her lips, for another thought pushed it abruptly from her mind.

Khar Delba. Sister planet to K'eel Doba. Right next door to them, comparatively speaking.

And a planet encompassed by an All-blocking chronotic shield. Could Galen have possibly, improbable though the thought might be, somehow have managed to get herself and her party to the surface?

Again her thought was abruptly truncated by yet another.

Hadn't she already done so, once before?

Graysith's violet eyes deepened to umber as memory pushed to the surface. She raised her right hand, wiggled her slender fingers, contemplating one of those members....

"We shall keep Mr. Tarnus in reserve, my sister," she said, suddenly changing her mind. "But now we must hurry to Khar Delba, and quickly."

With no other explanation, she reached out and opened a pathway through the All back to where Retribution orbited in mute patience. In parting, she left a pleasant surprise for Mr. Sorben Tarnus, should that clever bounty hunter manage to ever regain his ship again.

I sighed to myself as I sneaked a peek down at the ring, retrieved from where I had kept it hidden on my person the moment I had rid myself of that damned Kaladorian spidersilk. It glinted up at me with a little sigh of happy finality of its own.

Then my glowing mood darkened as I tuned back to what the Jedi was saying. Oh, Great Khaandon's Ghost, can't the universe just go away for a little bit so I can bask in the newness of this joyous occasion?

Of course it wouldn't. That was our lot in life, something I really ought to just sit down and stare in the face and get used to.

For as long as you remain alive, Galen Danner, there are going to be baddies after you just because happenstance transmuted the very genes within your body to something able to produce offspring everyone wanted.

Sheesh, I could always get myself spayed....

I sighed again, then segued my attention back to the others. They were still debating amongst themselves the potential success rate of this plan or that, comparing them together from practically a statistical standpoint.

Yeesh, I shivered at the cloud of glumness which was beginning to settle upon everybody. Didn't seem like there was much we could do...

Then it struck me.

I turned abruptly to my new husband. "Terrin!" I announced a bit excitedly. "Maybe we do have a weapon we can use against them! Remember what happened last time we were there?"

Now Terrin turned those deep blues upon me, for a moment clouded with puzzlement, then gradually growing clearer as recollection dawned. He brightened visibly... then sagged a touch.

I held up a pre-emptive hand. "I know, I know; this is all based on the assumption that Darra is actually on Khar Delba," I spoke up before he could. "Well, I just know she is with them. If not here, then somewhere else.

"The point is that whenever we find them... we'll find her. And I'm just willing to bet that whatever it was she shot out with to protect her mama and her..." I paused a bit, momentarily stymied by the next logical word use.

Daddy? How would an unborn baby sense a man not of her own blood as being her father?

Treasure on Roon, she had though! I just knew she did. I pressed onward, neverminding the strange looks the Jedi was casting my way.

"I know she will... help us, Terrin. I-- I have no proof, but I just feel this to be true. She's not happy where she is, and she wants to be with us.

"I think if we just go and make ourselves known, we'll get... ummm, well, captured, and then...."

Now I let my eyes darken at the thought of who and what lay ahead along that particular pathway into the near future.

This was indeed risky. But what alternative did they have? He knew from experience that all the planning in the Universe didn't mean a kriffing thing considering what they were up against.

And it was true enough, little Darra HAD managed to shoot out SOMETHING to protect them that day on Khar Delba. Had knocked those two Sith senseless, no less.

Terrin grinned a bit in amusement at that. Got her mother in her already. Then he sobered. They just had to go through with it and roll with the punches, as risky as it was. And if Galen said that she knew the baby was with the Sith, then Terrin was certain she was right. This was way beyond even just a mother/daughter connection...

Terrin then frowned to himself as another thought came wondering into his mind. What the Sam Hell was wrong with Sorben Tarnus? Granted, he might be furious with Galen, and he might be out to get even with her, but why the kriffing Hell did he not seem to care about his own daughter, who was very obviously missing? Or did he know where she was?

Terrin bit his lip at that thought. If he did, he was a poor excuse of a father, having to be fully aware of what the Sith intended for the little girl if he truly knew where she was.

That little thought carried him to a rather obvious conclusion. You're the Daddy now, Terrin. Not that he hadn't already realized this on a subconscious level, but Terrin had always thought that Sorben Tarnus would at least be concerned about his little girl. Now...things seemed to be quite to the contrary. After all, if Sorben Tarnus REALLY cared about Darra like he should, he would be hunting her out himself. Or at least assisting in the effort to find her, and not instead causing hinderance to it.

Yes sir, Mr. Danner. You're the Daddy now. And you've known on a gut level that you were going to take whatever risk you must all along to find her, because this is your little girl...

Snapping from his thoughts, uncertain as to how long he'd been caught up in assimilating all this, Terrin draped an arm across Galen's shoulders and looked to Shawn. He was looking a bit...unsure of this "plan of action" to say the least.

Terrin at last spoke up. "She did knock two really powerful Sith on their backs that day on Khar Delba. Knocked them out long enough for us to...retrieve the Claw and the Nar Khelba," here he winced a bit at the memoryand pushed back those more unpleasant ones associated with it into the far corners of his mind. "I don't doubt that if we can find her that this could in fact happen again. And you know the power of a blood-link through the Force," he added, drawing an almost...sad nod from Shawn. Then he continued on. "If she isn't on Khar Delba with the Sith I think that link will lead us onward."

Here he paused once again, biting his lip to find the words he was looking for. Blunt honesty was the only thing, however, that would get across the point. He looked to Shawn again. "Doesn't matter how much we plan this out, buddy. The moment we land on the surface of Khar Delba and step off this ship, we're open to whatever the Sith decide to do. And nothing we plan can stop them. We simply have to rely on the strength of the baby and Galen's instincts, along with our own logical thinking to pull this off."

That particular bombshell fully dropped, Terrin simply quieted and pulled Galen closer to him, waiting to see if anyone else had anything to offer on this issue.

They were about to step on a world controlled by Sith, with dark guys already after them, to find a baby that was wanted by ALL those dark forces.

An errant but somewhat accurate and actually amusing thought peeped about in Shawn's mind.

With the particular importance of this kid, would this Dark and Desolist lose interest in them when confronted with the possibility of getting their hands on the baby? And would the Sith fight against Desolist and his allies to keep the baby? Would these Dark beings actually be somewhat distractable by their own greed and desire...?

The answer to all this was rather obvious. You bet your lightsaber they will be.

Which followed to a rather interesting thought. Might Desolist and the gang choose to back off and let them find the baby in hopes of them succeeding, so they could then take the baby for themselves?

One thing was for certain if the Sith on Khar Delba were at all knowledgeable about any of this regarding Desolist and Dark. They were gonna be absolutely staunch in keeping the baby for themselves. This wasn't going to be easy AT ALL.

"Allright, I understand your point," Shawn said finally. "But we've gotta consider still that we have baddies coming at both sides of us now. I think there's a chance this actually could play in our favor, however, since having one bunch of baddies busting in to grab the baby could put the other bunch on gaurd and possibly distract them from our presence. I'd think they'd see having the baby in our hands of less of a threat than having them in the hands of their evil counterparts.

Of course it could also make them even more defensive. And there's always the possibility these guys are all in cahoots, in which case the strength of that little girl is the the only thing we truly can rely on..."

Desolist whirled from where he was viewing events in the Great Crystal Roan had created. His watery eyes narrowed back to their former bleary glare; it was quite obvious that Roan's reappearance was surprising to him. For a moment he didn't say anything, but just peered at the Warrior Sith Lord. Then his focus went over that one's shoulder and pinned itself upon the shadowy figure standing behind Lord Roan.

"I see we have a visitor," he wheezed as he clasped his hands together and came forward. "Who is this one Roan?" He came to a stop directly afront the silent statue before him, one who up until now had remained absolutely still, the only thing indicating the brilliance of life within him being the almost overpowering radiance coming from his turquoise eyes.

The Sith Lord stood in continued silence, considering what he would reply. At length--

"This is not a visitor, Desolist," he finally purred in a death's-head voice. "It is a new ally. Through him our strengths may double; while this is of no consequence to me, perhaps you would find the inherent abilities of this one to be of some small interest to you.."

Desolist nodded to Entaris, then dismissed him. He turned back to the Crystal. Now it was Roan's turn to make a query.

"Has the Hunter delivered the whelp yet?" The words rang harshly in the dimly lit place in which they stood, a place lit only by the eerie green phosphorescence coming from the viewing crystal.

Desolist frowned. "This one has... married the female!" he spat with distaste. "And now both have eluded even my best efforts to track them, even with the assistance of this wonderful device--" He cut himself off, waving a hand toward the crystal.

Roan came forward, a frown creasing his charismatic features. Then his face smoothed to inscrutability.

"This is of no great concern, Desolist," he offerred at length. "The whelp shall be found; the hunter knows what will keep him alive and what will not, and our friend Mr. Dark is, ohhh... how did he put it?

"So eagerly delighted to make certain of that... and to duly reprimand him should he suddenly sway from our contract with him.

"We shall have no problems, I can promise you that. Soon the whelp shall be in my hands again--" His voice cut off as memory of another day rose to the forefront. A great and evil smile exposed his sharp fangs, and his brow lowered with a special sort of promise which arrowed out into the void.

"You must forgive my ill manners, friend," he spoke in a deceptively quiet voice. He waved a hand now in the direction of Darth Desolist. "This is Desolist, a Dark Jedi once of some reknown, who would have that back again."

Now he tilted his head slightly, totally ignoring the glare the wizened Desolist was casting his way. He continued.

"This place is yet another stronghold of my kind, hidden from prying eyes for over four thousand years, its coordinates known only to the Sith and passed from one to another verbally. Few there are who have ever found this planet in my time, and not many since." He paused, his brow darkening as he let a delicious thrill of purely evil delight ripple through him. "And those who have... have not left again."

He turned about, gesturing to Desolist. "My old companion, please find this new one quarters to his liking that he may rest."

With that, he turned away from the others, striding forward to the viewing crystal where he halted and remained in contemplative immobility.

Desolist scowled, mumbling beneath his breath as he made a somewhat impatient gesture of his own toward Entaris. "Strange that one who would increase our own powers needs to refresh himself," he muttered as he moved ahead, not even bothering to see if Entaris was following or not. Without giving the hooded form another look he led the way from the mysterious room into passageways even more enigmatic, his boots echoing hollowly off the stone walls on either side and making a sharp tattoo upon the series of steps they occasionally traversed as they progressed through the ancient stronghold. Deeper and deeper into the bowels of the old edifice they went, ever moving downward, until at length Desolist stopped before a tiny door. The wood of which it was made was black and greasy with age, the metal braces and hinges tarnished and dull. With no more effort than if he were plucking a flower, Desolist pulled upon the handle. The door opened slowly, complaining with a creak that grated harshly upon the oppressive silence of this place, silence marred only by something hideous dripping somewhere down the distant hallway.

The old Dark Jedi waved toward the inky gloom within. "Here you may find total lack of light, my-- friend." Still not certain as to this newcomer, he made a point to stumble upon the word. Then he turned about and went back to join Dark Lord Roan where, at his side, he could do nothing but wait to see how the events they had put into motion would progress.

Entaris enters the dark room and closes the door behind him...

This could be one Hell of a struggle facing them.

But now was the time to regroup. Rest up. They knew what laid ahead; no use dwelling in it when they'd be there soon enough.

And sheesh, wasn't this supposed to be a celebration of a wedding anyway? No need for the doom'n gloom...

After all, Terrin thought with a slight grin, Isn't this the part where the happy couple gets to hang the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door and shut the Universe out for a while?

Somehow, Terrin knew they needed exactly that, if only for a few short hours.

Terrin cut his blues over to Galen and spoke up, to Hell with what everyone else might think. "So, Mrs. Danner," he started, a smile playing about the corners of his mouth, "What do you say we get some husband and wife time in for the occassion?"

Not really waiting for or needing an answer he stood, taking her hand in his and departing with her from the living area altogther.

Just a little more time to drown in those beautiful brown eyes of hers...of his wife's!...before they dedicated themselves to the next very important task...

"I just don't see why we really need this new friend of yours," he muttered, coming to a halt beside Lord Roan. "With your strength in this 'All' of yours, there is absolutely no need...."

He was cut off quite abruptly as the Dark Lord whirled to face him. His eyes flared, then narrowed, and he stuck a clawed finger beneath Desolist's nose.

"Take care in your grumbling, old man," he sneered in a whisper. "I can dispatch of you as easily as my servant has dealt with another." With those words he stepped off to one side, indicating the image now being displayed within the phosphorescent glow of the crystalline sphere. Desolist snapped his lips closed, and moved forard just in time to observe as the demonic familiar of his companion yanked the braid off of a young man who appeared to be some sort of Jedi, eluded the defensive attack of a nearby man who appeared to be a bounty hunter, and disappeared into the All once again.

Desolist stepped back with a snort. "That is nothing I myself would not have been able to accomplish, Roan," he spat, his lip curling into a sneer. He glared once more toward the crystal, then returned his attention to Roan.

The Dark Lord smiled darkly. "Ahhh, yes," he purred in reply. "But using my servant leaves you free to take care of... other matters."

Now he nodded at the crystal; the image darkened and segued into another, one brought back from the past. The violet eyes of the Chosen Daughter and the greeny-blue pair of her young Adept shone with a light of their own from within the crystalline depths; Roan stared for a long moment at Graysith, remaining absolutely silent, as though pondering something.

This perked the interest of Desolist. "What shall I do to further seal my alliance with you, my friend?" he wheezed, clasping his hands together eagerly as he eyed the forms of the two women. A bit of saliva speckled his lips in anticipation; it had been long since he had confronted the violet-eyed woman, and he was actually looking forward to "making her acquaintance" once again.

Roan's hand fell heavily on the old dark jedi's shoulder. "How easily do I sense your... eagerness, my friend," he intoned darkly. "But that one... none may touch her but me.

"She once was mine... and mine again she shall be. Both she and her sister. But as for the one my once Dark Heart calls Adept... that one has always been an annoyance to me, Desolist. Perhaps you would like to toy with her?"

Desolist threw back his head, the black hood falling back to fully reveal his wrinkled and pasty features as he let out a great laugh. His momentary picque with Roan was forgotten.

"Indeed," he purred again, bringing his hands up to replace the hood. "I should like that very much...."

"I knew you would, friend," Roan chuckled. "And this is why I have accepted the offer of this newcomer. Graysith is fast becoming Mistress of the All... and her Adept learns from her with equal speed. But with Entaris' help, your Dark Strengths will at double at the very least, enabling you to quite easily overcome All abilities of the Chosen Daughter's student."

Desolist nodded his head in agreement, then cocked it to one side. His rheumy eyes narrowed.

"Doesn't this concern you, my friend? My soon-to-be ability to defend against the All?"

Now it was time for Roan's eyes to narrow in turn.

"Not in the slightest bit," he whispered.

Then he turned back to the crystal, reaching out with his mind to the newcomer who hunkered in the pitch-dark in the bowels of this place, letting him know what had transpired elsewhere, and offering him the chance to take action of his own accord and prove his alliance with him and the Dark Jedi.

"YES, my powers are once more at there maximum strength" the dark ones form seemed to flex, and as it did so, a chill ran through the room. "Did you call to me my...." entaris paused as if considering something, then his eyes flared once more as he continued to say "Friend"
Entaris's burning eyes came forth, looking deep within the hearts of roan and desolist. Then he said slowly and darkly towards roan "you would align my powers with this one?" as he said the final word he glanced towards the ancient form of desolist. "Very well, if it must be, what is it you wish done?" he once again paused as if considering something.

"but remember, roan, it is you i have allied with, i will not do anymore than you request, i have already told you i do not trust anyone that can not withstand my evil, and this ones ancient body would be destroyed, or at least crippled, by the darkness within my mind, and within what beings of light would call, my heart."

"Ahhh, my friend," he purred in a dark and seductive manner. "Perhaps there has been misunderstanding. For indeed, 'I' do not need you, per se... but rather, we need you."

He paused now, moving over to Entaris and deliberately placing his strongly muscular grasp about that entity's shoulders. His hand seemed to somehow...sink into something not quite approximating flesh, and a chill of ice rippled into his arm at the contact.

He delighted in the touch.

"You see," he continued as though nothing had happened at all beyond the ordinary. "It is not merely that my evil strength must be enhanced. This threatens the use of the All I command; while increasing the darkness I hold so close to my heart would more than double the strengths which I now command, there is a fine line which must not be crossed lest I lose that ability altogether.

"But as for this one...." Now he waved his other hand to the silently grumbling Desolist. "Here is where true evil needs the succor of yet more evil. Do not be misled by his wizened and decayed form, my friend; his soul is darker even than my own, and would gladly take you in your entirety to his own heart."

Now he let his arm drop, moving once again to the crystal and bringing forth the image of his gibbering familiar as it once again ripped the jedi braid from Ahmad's head. His eyes widened and his heart quickened at the sight, one bringing sadistic feelings rushing through him like the waves of the tsunami crashing upon a rocky shore.

"These two really ought to learn who their Masters are, would you not say, my friends?" he queried, turning back to the others. "They play like children at the very doorway to the rancor's den; for their own good, would you not say they need to be placed somewhere else for safekeeping? Or at least be... watched over."

...and then it dropped, gaining form and substance as it did so....

...directly into the midst of the bridge crew composed of Matt, Jasyn, Yaoksi and Nassy.

The Twi'lek let out a reflexive scream as the gibbering form of Maladius landed on her right between the lekku. His evil claws grasped them like a rider grasps the reins of a recalcitrant mount, and sinking his claws deeply into their sensitive flesh he gave a great and vicious yank. Naisra'len screamed again, this time in agony as her delicate lekku were nearly plucked out by their roots. In one great motion she swept to her feet, her head flung back as she tried to lessen the tension the demon had upon her lekku, her hands scrabbling frantically to discover just what in all the universe was happening to her.

All this in but a mere second.

The others now leapt to their feet, horrified, each one looking round to find a weapon that could be used against the demon. One man refused to waste the time: uttering a cry of mingled pain and outrage, Yaoksi let his heart be his guide, and rushed to Nassy's aid with his bare hands, keenly aware as to the effects a blaster bolt could have upon the interior of a craft in space. Yet even as he was about to lay hands upon the drooling and clawing nightmare, a long segmented and armored tail lashed out, it's sharp point unerringly finding its mark in the flesh of his leg.

Yaoksi fell to the deck with a soundless cry of pain, clutching his leg. He lay there a moment stone white, then passed out altogether.

The others paused momentarily, now warily encircling the thrashing Twi'lek and her hideous rider. This apparent attempt to surround him didn't bother Maladius in the slightest; he merely sank his fetid claws even further into Nassy's lekku and tugged harder.

Nassy moaned and great beads of sweat burst out upon her brow as the skin of one lek began to tear....

Now all the other crewmates stopped, afraid to move in lest the demon press his attack any further. They remained frozen in a stalemated tableau, agonizing for their mate, afraid to go forward, yet unwilling to back entirely down.

Maladius cast his blood-red eyes about himself, taking in the quiet form of Yaoksi and the hesitant ones of Matt and Jasyn. It was to the latter that he finally spit something approximating an explanation.

"He's going to have her you know," he hissed evilly, great gobbets of drool sliming from his flaccid lips and dripping directly into the wounds he had made upon Nassy. "I'd think about handing her over if I were you, and maybe... just maybe he might let you live...."

With that, the diabolical familiar let out a gibbering yodel of insane glee, gave both Nassy's lekku a final tearing yank...

...and disappeared back into the All from whence he had come.

Behind him, Nassy dropped like a stone... one falling into a well of disbelieving silence and fear and anger.

These people would need healing, and that was his gift, but judging from the extent of the Twi'lek's injuries...

...she'd need some time. And that couldn't be shortcuted, not even by the Force.

Shawn went to work while the stunned crew members waited, making sure the two injuried parties were resting comfortably. Then he turned to them.

"What happened?" he asked.

"She was attacked by a Sith demon. We've had a couple of brushes with whatever it is before," Jasyn explained, a disgusted and altogether dark look crossing his face. "We thought he was dead, killed by Master Rean while trying to attack Galen in the lava tubes back on Sullust. Before then...the thing blasted in and took Terrin's right arm."

Shawn crossed his arms and his look turned thoughtful. Matt and Jasyn exchanged looks, somehow knowing what the Jedi's next words were going to be before he ever said them. "We need to talk with Terrin and Galen. We're soon coming up on Khar Delba and the situation has suddenly become much more complicated."

The two crew members eyed each other again, a strange sort of look passing between them. The Jedi caught it. "What is it?"

Matt answered. "The demon left us a message. He said to hand her ove and we just might live. And I can bet every credit I own I know who the imp is talking about."

Shawn frowned, his look turning dark even for a Jedi. "We'd better get together and talk right away..."

And there was something his employee and friend wasn't telling him too.

Terrin knew well enough, from what Jasyn had briefly told him that Nasrai'len had been attacked by that Sith monster from Hell, and he was more than a little on edge about that.

Wasn't this ship supposed to be All-shielded? What if, after all this time, they'd been falsely lead to believe that it was? They were about to go to Khar Delba, and such a "surprise" would go heavily against them. They needed every advantage they could get, and that was one of the few ones they had...

Terrin's thoughts cut off as they reached the sickbay and he cast his blues on the pale form of Naisra'len, her lekku severely damaged. In the sickbed next to her lay a yet unconscious Yaoksi, his leg visibly wounded. Between the two of them, Shawn worked at relieving their wounds while Jasyn and Matt stood to the side.

Only one word popped in Terrin's mind. Why? Why these people of all of them?

A warning of sorts, perhaps?

Terrin pushed that one smaller question aside, knowing the answer already. Instead he went to the bigger question that had been on his mind since the chain of events had taken its toll on his friends. Jasyn hadn't asked he and Galen to come to the sickbay just so they could see the extent of the injuries on Naisra'len and Yaoksi. There was something he and the others thought they needed to hear in person. To no one in particular he asked, "What part of this whole thing are you not telling me yet?"

There was obvious compassion and concern radiating within.

"Seems the Sith imp did have a message to deliver," Shawn began quietly, as if he'd somehow read Terrin's mind. Then, pondering how to address the next issue delicately, Shawn bit his lip in thought. He turned to Galen, stepping closer to her and placing a hand on both her shoulders. "We must find your daughter quickly and find a way to protect us all. I have reason to believe the Sith are actively looking for you. We must proceed with the greatest caution on Khar Delba."

Then his hands dropped to his sides, and he stepped back, allowing Terrin to place protective hands about her and pull her noticeably closer to him.

Entaris spoke in an evil and mocking voice, "very well, Desolist's power shall be increased"

As he finished the sentance his red eyes shot forth streams of gleming fire that searched out and connected with Desolist's ancient eyes, as the flames entered the Dark jedi's mind desolist was lifted from the ground. Dark fire sourounded his body, burning away the ancient skin, corresing the skeleton of what had been desolist, after a few moments of this the skin returned, but desolist looked slightly younger, most of the wrinkles were now gone, and for a moment the gleaming red eyes that had once belonged to entaris shone forth from Desolists eyes, then the fire shot back and returned to entaris's dark hood once again at home in the hoods cool shadows.

"it is done" entaris said looking at the new and improved desolist, "he now holds the fraction of my power, i will have to regenerate this energy later...hrmm..but i am still be strong enough to take care of a few tasks"

Entaris's dark laugh echoed throughout the room and then he spoke again, this time directly to desolist "Be warned though, dark jedi, the power you now hold is greater then any evil you could ever know, if you missuse this power, your pysical form will shatter, and unlike me, you will not survive..." he stoped as wondering if he had said to much then reasumed, "yes, i once had a physical form, my power destroyed it when i tried to envoke it fully, but my spirit remained, and i am as powerful as ever...but remember, you will not be so lucky should you go beyond your limits. You have been warned"

once again looking at roan entaris spoke again.
"what exactly do you need done?"

It's just that actually hearing my selfsame thoughts being put into words....

I sighed a little, snuggling against Terrin and staring down at the ring on my finger.

There was just no way, no way in Hell's Seven Circles that we'd ever have a moment's peace while those dark forces were after me. First they had ripped off Terrin's arm. Then I had been attacked, my child -- well, I thought it was at first -- taken from me the moment she was born. Now the Beast had returned to scar two friends, maybe for life, and simply because they were trying to help me face the travails which lay ahead....

I sighed again, then firmed. Giving Terrin's arm a loving squeeze I stepped out from their protective circle and approached the medbed upon which Nassy lay. Hesitantly at first, I reached out and lay my hand upon her arm. Her flesh was a pale mint green, and cold as death.

I shuddered, blinking back tears which rushed to fill my eyes at the thought that no matter what I could ever do from this point, nothing would ever take back this terrible injury my very presence had brought to these people. Their staunch loyalty to me was overwhelming; I swallowed shakily, stroking the Twi'lek's cold arm.

Then I pursed my lips, my mind made up. I whirled to face them all, but my eyes were only for Terrin's.

"Whe- when the- the time comes," I stuttered a bit, unwilling to say the words. Then the thought of Nassy eased their passage from my mouth. "When the time comes, you've got to surrender me to them," I finally burst out in a rush. "Trust me, Terrin, you just have to.

"I'm not going to be the cause of any more attacks or injury on anybody. If they have me, they'll leave you alone.

But he would not, could not leave her alone in this. And regardless of the logic, he also somehow knew the Sith would NOT leave them alone, whether they turned her over to him or not.

Opening his eyes again, he stepped closer to her and placed a hand under her chin. For a moment he simply stared into her tear filled eyes. "Sweetheart, I understand your logic," he started with, "But I for one thing don't believe that the Sith would simply leave us alone if we did turn you over.

"And that is something I simply refuse to do. Now, what everyone else here chooses to do is ultimately up to them. But I said til death do us part, and I meant every word of it. There's no need for you to face this alone any longer, Galen Danner."

Then he fell silent, simply waiting for her response as he yet looked into her eyes.

"I don't want anything to happen to you, Terrin," I whispered. "I-- oh, Great Khaandon's Ghost, let's just get the hell to Khar Delba and find my daughter!" I burst out suddenly, not wanting to just stand there any longer with everyone so quiet and serious, suddenly wanting to draw away from Terrin's touch for reasons even I couldn't completely come to grips with.

Should he leave her be for a while? Or would he be risking losing her altogether in an act that she thought would protect them all if he didn't follow her? She had pulled away from him...was she trying to disengage herself from him before she finally decided she had to leave him altogther?

He made his choice in the matter, and prayed to the Maker it was the right one. Without a word, he departed from the ZZ'Shzq's sickbay and found her gazing out the closest viewport. For a moment, he stood back and cocked his head as he gazed at her, debating on what he should say, if anything at all.

She had to know he wouldn't just let her go like that.

Then he stepped in a bit closer behind her. "I don't want anything to happen to you either, Galen," he said quietly. "I know you are used to battling all this alone. And I know your strength and independence...but even the strong need a helping hand every once in a while. I know that you don't want me to be hurt...for any of us to be hurt...but the truth is that I need to be there for you, regardless of the danger. Filling that spot in your life somehow completes me in a way I can't fully explain, and you've got to trust me when I say that I know giving you over to these demons willingly won't stop them. The only thing that will is to destroy them, and the only way we can do that is if we find our little girl and protect her. And she'll need her mother...as will I."

At that Terrin quieted, placing one hand on her shoulder.

Funny how I know we're just blasting through space here, a good 30,000 kps at least, and they don't even move. I thought to myself as I remained unflinching under Terrin's light touch. Then I shivered, suddenly feeling very, very small.

Terrin's hand automatically tightened in response, and I while I did nothing to hinder it the tiniest of frowns came to my face. Glad my back is to him at the moment, I switched rontos in midstream. I understand what he is saying... but what about what I need?

Then I smoothed away all tell-tale signs and turned to him. "And what I need, Terrin, is for you to find my daughter. Promise me you'll find her... my-- our little Jhin'Darra."

For a moment more I stood silently searching his face, seeking to find that which I was so urgently looking for... and finding it not. I blinked, smiled a sad sort of smile, then trying not to make it seem too sudden, I lightly pulled away from his hand, stepped past him, and headed back to our quarters to try and regain the slumber that had been so hideously interrupted by the appearance of that imp from Hell.

___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________

Hours later....

I held my breath, listening to the silence around me, one marred only by Terrin's gentle snores from where he lay beside me. One arm was draped protectively over my torso; I let out the breath I had been holding in the quietest of sighs and wiggled out from underneath his arm. As his arm flopped limply away upon the mattress I held my breath again... but no, he didn't stir.

Quietly, emulating the manner in which I had sneaked away from Sorben's side not too long ago, I slid smoothly to the floor. There I paused, crouching... still no movement from my husband. Taking in another silent breath, I rose upright and stood silently beside the bed.

For a long moment I simply stared down at him, drinking in his dear features, trying to absorb them into my very being as though I would never see them again.

Khaandon only knew if I would.

Then I glided on cat's-feet to our locker, removed my Sith flightsuit I had gotten from my ex-husband, and slid into it. It fitted me like a shadow, and made me nearly as difficult to see in the dark. I reached back into the cupboard, seeking... finding. I removed the two hidden objects, placed them inside my flightsuit, and secured them there.

Then I simply left our quarters, and headed directly to the nearest escape pod bay.

This little yacht really was a top-of-the-line model; it had three of the latest in escape pods. All three, while small, contained hyperdrive engines and could sustain life within them for up to two months per each of the three individuals they could carry.

I didn't even need my fingers to do the math. This baby would do nicely. And better yet: it had absolutely nothing in the way of any kind of shielding whatsoever, save for normal blast ones. To anyone using the All or the Force or whatever, I would be blinking like a beacon.

I just hoped the right individual would find me first.

Refusing to think any more about my comrades or my friends... and most of all, about my husband... I quickly reached out, let my fingers do a dance of deliberation on the navboard...

A tiny green light suddenly began to blink, bringing my raptor's eyes into abrupt focus upon it, bringing a smile even more raptorial for its utter iciness into life upon my face.

I reached out, flicked off the sensor, switched another one on. My smile broadened.

Now I reached out with those talents I have honed over the years, talents far stronger than they were when we had first met. How delicious would this meeting be....

"Hello, Galen," I hissed into the soft night, now sliding my heavily modified Defender into the wake of the little pod and opening my docking bay doors. "So nice to have you aboard...."

The tractor beam latched on with a click of finality, and slowly the little pod was drawn aboard my ship, the Wrath. No sooner had the doors whooshed shut than I turned the ship about its axis, and disappeared into hyperspace.

Behind me, a series of implanted sensor ghosts would muddle the tracking systems of ships the size of a star destroyer, and would bring serious consternation to anything larger. No one would be on our tail for quite some time...

...but there most assuredly was someone waiting for us on the other end.

I scowled back blackly.

Sheesh, Galen ol girl, don't even begin to think of taking up sabaac! I berated myself. With your wonderful luck....

I heaved a sigh and my scowl grew even more black. Sheesh, when the odds were two out of three, you'd think....

The ebony-skinned Hunter sent me a glacial smile. Then, remaining obstinately silent, he nodded his head to me, turned, and stumped out of the hangar bay. The door whooshed shut behind him; somehow I had the feeling that it wasn't going to open until we got to wherever it was we were going.

Ok, ok... so you didn't end up exactly where you planned on ending up. This can still be put to your advantage.

Refusing to give in to despair, bolstered by the fact that Desolist -- it just had to be him yanking on Dark's leash -- at least seemed to want me alive and uninjured, I put all further thoughts of death and gloom and such away from me, and turned to the problem at hand.

This could still work... the thought flicked briefly through my head again, even as my hand reached up almost with a will of its own to pat against the front of my flightsuit.

Thank Khaandon I hadn't been searched, just slammed directly into this Force Cage.

I took courage from all the above points in my favor, meager as they were, and once again settled down to plan my next route of action.

The something wrong was apparently obvious.

He sat up, ruffling his hair with his hand in confusion.

Where was Galen? Where were they? Had they reached Khar Delba...? Why hadn't he been notified...?

He frowned, forcing himself to stand up and face the reality that was suddenly starting to become scarier and scarier by the moment.

Slipping on a flightsuit, Terrin wandered to the cabin. With each step, something more and more menacing began to creep up in him.

Into the cabin...

Matt turned, his eyebrow raised. "You okay?" he asked.

"Have you seen Galen?" he asked instead of answering.

"Last I knew...she was with you."

"Run a systems check," Terrin requested quietly.

Matt arched an eyebrow, but turned to the monitor and complied. In a moment, he turned around. "Everything is normal, excepting one missing escapepod. Has that always been the case?"

At that, Terrin leaned against the bulkhead, his head suddenly beginning to spin, his heart to ache.

"Terrin...?"

Something of the old Terrin began trying to claw and scratch its way out and upward, striving to give himself a voice. She's gone, buddy. And you were stupid enough to think she would stay? You should have really known better. You should have kept to yourself...

Then, quite suddenly, that particular inward door was slammed shut, and yet another opened.

Terrin, if you aren't enough without her, you'll NEVER be enough with her...

That followed on the heels by something she had so recently said to him...

"And what I need, Terrin, is for you to find my daughter. Promise me you'll find her... my-- our little Jhin'Darra."

Completely oblivious to the concerned looks his crew members were giving him, Terrin continued upon this path of thought.

Her daughter. Their daughter. Had she gone alone to find her...?

Then, another thought.

"When the time comes, you've got to surrender me to them. Trust me, Terrin, you just have to."

Somehow, Terrin just knew she was making herself bait for those baddies.

Dark and Desolist? Her Ex-sister? That other Sith demon from Hell who'd had his way with her?

Terrin shuddered.

What if, after all this struggle, he lost her to these demons?

The Universe was spinning out of control...

...Find my daughter...

Quite suddenly, Shawn burst into the cabin. "Galen's Force signature is..."

He cut himself off, glancing over to Terrin, who was still leaning against the bulkhead, not looking so well.

"What happened?" Shawn asked instead.

"She left," Terrin whispered.

And now he hadn't a clue where she was. Or how to find her. Not even a clue where to start. She could be dead...

Terrin shuddered again.

You know what you have to do, buddy, don't you? an inward voice prompted.

...find my daughter...

For a moment, he closed his eyes, trying to calm the raging emotions within and in the same act shoving the old shell of himself as far away as he possibly could.

If you truly love her, you'll do what she needed you to do.

He opened his eyes again, well aware that everyone was waiting for him to say the words for them to divert and seek out Galen.

"Continue the course to Khar Delba," he whispered. "We've gotta find the baby. Everything relies on her," he said, his voice growing more assured as he spoke. "That's what Galen wanted, so that's what we're gonna do. We'll just have to find Galen...after we find Darra," he finished.

Even so, a menacing voice did manage to add, That is, if she's still out there for you to find...

Might just as well begin where I left off, I thought to myself as I powered down. A quick once-over of my personal weapons, and I was ready. Moments later I stood out beneath the pitiful sun this system had, turning my helmeted head around 270 to take in my surroundings.

Yup, this was the place all right....

I tapped a control on my wrist, and the gangway retracted. The hatch tucked it into bed with a clang. I didn't even bother to turn around, but headed off in a beeline for the lip of the crater which loomed ahead of me. After much grunting and sweating -- not pleasant when one is encased in Mandalorian armor -- I gained the lip, and stood looking down upon its interior.

It was about three-quarters of a klick in diameter, and half a klick deep. I sighed as I looked down into the desolation its interior presented to me: it looked absolutely empty of anything other tumbled rock, sand, dirt and scree.

But I knew there was something down there... or at least ought to be down there.

Turning sideways and planting each foot firmly, I began to scrabble down the slope into the crater. Upon occasion my boots would sink up to the ankle in the soft materials, then would strike the tortured upthrust bedrock the ancient impact had sent to the surface. That wasn't pleasant; if I wasn't careful, I could easily twist or break an ankle, or worse.

I slowed down, yet chomping at the bit to reach bottom....

Finally the slope lessened, and soon was relatively flat. Now I could hurry at a faster pace... and hurry I did, whipping my sensor out as I did so and scanning about myself.

C'mon, c'mon... they have to be here, I know they're here somewhere!

Nothing. Not so much as a blip to reward my determination. I sighed, flipping the sensor closed and putting it back on my belt, then began doing it the hard way.

Visually.

Hours later....

I sighed, and plopped down on the harsh surface of the crater's interior. My exhaustive search had resulted in nothing but my own exhaustion. I pursed my lips in disgust then, as I realized why Galen had come here when she had slipped out from me that night.

She got them first. Very well, then. As my great aunt Narala used to say, "Even Imperial clouds have a golden lining."

I might not have found what I was hunting for... but I knew who had it. And simply for the fact that the items were in her hot little hands I knew as well where she was going.

You're going to have a hard time of it, babes.... I thought as I stood up, reaching down to slap some of the dust from this miserable planet off of my armor. You should have stuck with me.

If you only knew....

Taking a deep breath, I turned round, and after another session of serious scrambling gained the lip of the crater once again. From there it was nothing to zip down the outer slope; in less time than one would consider I had reached Ransacker, keying in the code for her to open the hatch and allow me entry. She did so, welcoming me with an automatic powering up of her systems.

...all I thought we had meant to each other.

Now I sighed, keying into my saved files and bringing up my latest contract. I stared at it morosely.

Is this what we have become now, babes? I couldn't help the thought as it flashed into my head. I can always figure a way out of this for us... we always could. We were a great team, babes, practically unstoppable....

That thought triggered another; I jerked out of the darkness into which I had slowly been settling and glanced at the chrono.

About another couple hours... better get ready.

With that I rose to my feet, approached a hidden storage locker the Admiral had built into this ship at earlier specifications I had sent to him. Reached in to where I had hidden a particular object which in the past I had shared with Galen had come in quite handy on more than one occasion...

...and drew out the belt to the Sith flightsuit I had given her to wear. The very same flightsuit she had had with her on Jester II, and one which I had managed to retrieve before Seus had slapped that lien against me and entirely too many guards around that wonderful little ship.

With another sigh arising from memories past, I snapped the belt on. Wonderful item... the last person to wear it had been Galen, and her waist is practically nothing. Yet it now adjusted itself accordingly to accomodate my own, armor included.

My thoughts heavy with the last time this particular item had been put to use, I now reached down a gloved hand and activated a certain control on the front of the belt. There was a barely perceptible thrummm in response, and the atmosphere around me seemed to blink.

Safely hidden behind the weird shield which made me invisible to others, a shield which expanded out to encompass Ransacker as well, a shield which I hadn't a clue as to what made it operate but knew it had hidden Galen and I more than once from her nasty sister and others who had been so hot to nail us, I sat down at the helm, patiently waiting for my proximity sensor to tell me something interesting was about to occur.

I remained seated in the middle of the Force Cage, legs crossed, my elbows planted on my knees, hands dangling between them, and for the eleventy-millionth time cast a glowering look at the yellow-eyed piece of sludge standing silently on the other side. I didn't know why in Hell's Seven Circles Dark kept coming here to stare at me like he did; maybe he was trying to drive me mad, to lower my emotional defenses enough where I would be easier to handle.

A chuckle of dark humor rose up in me at that thought. Buddy, if that's the case, you've got it smack on the bull's-eye! I thought to myself grimly. But I'm on to your little Dark Side mind tricks....

I simply leveled my gaze straight back into his raptor eyes, and tried to match his glare nuance for nuance. I knew there was no way I'd manage to intimidate this guy, but the attempt at least made me feel good. And in a weird way, at least I wasn't alone.

Suddenly Dark spoke up.

"We approach our destination... whelp," he said in a grating whisper that sent sudden chills careering up and down my spine.

Whelp?!

Delivering a slow and knowing smile that daggered into my heart, one that finally began to succeed where all his earlier glares and stares had failed, the Hunter turned on his heel and clumped from the docking bay.

I lowered my head between my legs, beginning to shake now with a series of tremors which came out of nowhere and absolutely would not stop....

Thanks again, Admiral, I thought out into the ether, as if he could hear me. Shrugged mentally; for all I knew the guy could. He was weirrrd....

And thank you, Mr. Dark, for not bothering to do a sensor sweep of your slimy ship! The practically nonexistent homing beacon still ticked faithfully away from the place on his hull where Seus had shot it over a year ago; Khaandon's Ghost, but I can't believe Dark hadn't found it yet. Talk about the utmost in egotism....

Well, that ego of his was bound to be his downfall, I thought as I brought Ransacker into a quietly nondescript orbit about this planet hidden deeply in the outskirts of the Galaxy.

Said downfall I was about to do my damnedest to initiate now. Like my great aunt Narala always used to say, "No better way to pick off a pack of nek than one at a time..." and the less nek around, the better chance the hunting sandcat has of stealing their little womprat....

Checking to make certain the orbit I had placed Ransacker in was one not easily discernable by curiosity or mere luck, I now headed off to my modified escape pod. In moments I was shooting down into the noisome green gases this planet called an atmosphere, and soon was trundling along its surface like the sensor ghost I knew I would be taken as.

There. Up ahead.

By brows furrowed to see where Dark had landed his ship, right out in the middle of barren nothing. Hehe... well did I know where all the high-tech stuff existed on this particular planet, and buddy, it wasn't on the surface. I settled down like a whisper, held my breath when his head shot up alertly; even from this distance I could plainly see his yellow eyes narrowing as he glanced quickly about himself.

Then he turned back to his ship. From my angle I couldn't quite make out what he was doing, so I was more than a little surprised when he stepped back again, yanking a familiar -- and very defiant -- short and red-headed form out with him. I winced as he slapped her, scowling darkly now as old feelings flashed into hot life within me.

Buddy, that's the last mistake you'll ever make!

Into the fray once again....

I leapt forward like silent death, hitting my netgun as I did so.

Dark didn't even know what had hit him; he didn't even have time to realize he was being attacked when both he and Galen were wrapped within its steely coils. I reached down to the belt and flicked off the EM-bending device of the Sith, my other gloved hand now stretched out to Galen, fingers waggling.

"If you wanna breath free air, give it to me!" I yelled at her, not even bothering with preliminaries. I knew she had it at one point... hoped like hell she still did.

It would be a much more...fitting ending for this particular piece of grime, after all. Not to mention the savings in wear and tear on my blaster.

Galen turned those wonderful brown eyes my way, clearly stunned . But not too stunned to put two and two together, and come up with a sum greater than their parts. She fumbled with the zipper to her flightsuit, reached within, drew out a silvery object...

...and, straining against the wildly thrashing Gravin Dark, who even now was getting his composure back, tossed it out to me.

A lightsaber.

Gravin Dark's lightsaber.

I didn't give the Hunter the time to come even close to releasing himself from the entangling snare I had placed him in. I just leaped forward, plunging the blade up to its hilt in his black and fetid heart.

Hoping to hell I had killed him for the second... and maybe, just maybe, final time....

I paused, panting, waiting to see if any automatic devices would yank us away as they had the last time I thought I had destroyed him, back to any hidden fortress where his body could again be reunited with his life's force.

Nope. Still here. Looks like the saber still had that stone in it....

I sighed in relief, slashing now with the blade, reaching in and yanking the still stunned Galen out of the remnants of the net with my armored hand, pulling her against me and tilting my helmeted face down to lose myself, just once more, in her enormous brown eyes.

"You're an awfully hard person to hang onto, babes," I said softly.

Then, with no further ado, I whirled. Dragging Galen along, I stuffed us aboard the escape pod. In moments more we were safely back aboard the hidden Ransacker. And in but a few more, safely away into the protective embrace of hyperspace.

Behind him, the younger Desolist showed no such restraint.

"MY HUNTER!!" he whined, reaching a clawed hand of his own to scrabble at Lord Roan's shoulder. "That infernal bounty hunter has killed--!"

"...one who isn't of much use to us if he can be overcome with such ease, old man."

Now the Sith Lord turned round to face Desolist, who stepped back a bit before the molten heat burning in that dark one's turquoise eyes. They remained in this position for a moment longer, before Desolist managed to get his own raging thoughts under some semblance of control.

"Of greater importance, he has managed to retrieve your... whelp." Now it was his turn to laugh to himself, seeing Lord Roan's outrage become even more ungodly. He snickered, presenting himself as an oxymoron on two feet, a young and obviously virile and powerful dark jedi hunched over, twisting his hands together in the senseless manner he was always wont to do.

Roan shot him a look that would have melted iron. Then the sneer on his face segued into a dark smile.

"Indeed, that he has, my friend." His clawed hand raised to come down heavily on Desolist's shoulder. "But it is of no great concern to us."

Desolist frowned in consternation. "What of--" he began, only to be interrupted as Roan placed a single and singularly sharp claw against his lips.

"We can always find her, Desolist. This Galaxy isn't big enough for her to hide from the All, as well you know. And I have other... means... at my disposal."

Now he turned back to the sphere, his lips curling into an even blacker grin of purely evil glee as the green phosphorescence within swirled and coalesced into the gibbering form of a particularly demonic imp. He stood there a long moment, regarding the view of Maladius, before drawing back with a small movement of one hand. Within the sphere, Maladius form disappeared, to be replaced by swirling greenness once again.

Now he turned his attention to the hovering Entaris.

"My friend," he purred, "perhaps you could make yourself of some use to us. Now we are aware of the treachery of the bounty hunter, and indeed, of his cunning. He has managed to... appropriate certain devices of the Old Sith, devices even the All cannot break through, for of the All are they devised.

"Perhaps you would... be so kind as to discover just what the immediate plans are which this hunter--" Here he spat in distaste "--seems to have up his sleeve. He would not dare to act against me-- against us --if he wasn't under the protection of someone else.

"I mean to discover who this is."

"This hunter?you wish for me to discover what his plans are? such things are possible, is there anything else you wish done while i accomplish this?"

Entaris' form shimmers slightly, as if for a moment, he had ceased to be. After which he seemed to be waiting for something, when he seemed to be satisfied about whatever it was he spoke again.

"yes, such things are within my power...What kind of plans is it that you wish to learn of? destination? alliences?"

"Yessss, my friend." His voice seemed to slither upon the air like a snake through oil as he clapped a hand upon Entari's black-robed shoulder. Once more that strange chill wafted through him at the touch; once more he shivered in the pure and evil delight of it. "The more you can discover about the doings of this Sorben Tarnus, the better. Learn everything you can: who he is now answering to, where he is planning on taking the whelp... although somehow I don't believe he is going to go through with whatever contract he has otherwise made.

"But--" He paused briefly, his eyes becoming impossibly darker. "Do take your time and have...fun with it all, my friend. Follow these two, play with them, if you will, and I promise they will fill you with as much fear and pain and anger as you can possibly handle."

He drew back a bit, raising a claw to his lips, lightly scratching his flesh with its sharp tip. "In fact, this would be far better than merely recapturing and dragging them back to moulder here; let us... toy with them for a bit, if you will."

"She was here," he said matter-of-factly. Then his tone darkened. "Yet you did not reach out for her, Roan. Both have now slipped from you!"

The only thing to betray the Sith Lord's black thoughts was a slight movement of his jaw as he clenched his teeth.

"Neither shall get beyond my capabilities to retrieve them, when the time comes."

Now he whirled, his hand flashing out to imprison Desolist's in a grip of durasteel.

"How little faith you have in me, my old friend," he said, his eyes narrowing meaningfully. "You would do good to revive it, for as such it betrays you."

Desolist frowned, then yanked his hand from Roan's grasp with a snarl. Or at least, he tried to; there was a lightning blur, and once again the Dark Warrior Lord of the Sith had his hand firmly about the other's.

Their eyes met across that grip.

Then Roan nodded his horned head, his turquoise eyes deepening to glacial blue, and he released Desolist. In one gracefully flowing motion, he turned about to gaze once more into the viewing crystal.

Suddenly another black form apeared from the darkness and approched the sitting form of entaris. the eager voice of the strange thing came forth, "He has come from hyperspace... I believe that he exited near kashyyk" entaris' red eyes suddenly flared to life apone hearing this, his mind puting the peices of the puzzle together.
Entaris stood and faded into the shadows allowing his form to dissapate and return in a new location...the room where roan and desolist stood watching the strange crystal.

Entaris was silent as night as he entered the room, and then his dark voice shot out calling attention to himself "the wookie home world..." he then faded into the shadows, again, his substance being transferred from one shadow to the next.

the dark intentions and purpose of entaris travled at unmatchable speed through the darkness of space taking him almost instantly into the depths of Kashyyk's forests.

"i return" he said darkly, "but unfortunatly, i have lost track of sorben... im sure you already know that though"

"It is of little consequence, my friend," he smiled. He then turned from Entaris, the powerful muscles of his shoulders rippling and flexing.

"Such fools abound in this galaxy," he hissed, exposing his great fangs and licking them with anticipation. "Such a small universe they dwell in... and oh how they consider themselves its Masters...."

Entaris merely blinked his blood-red eyes, and watched as the powerful Warrior Lord of the Sith now nodded toward the viewing crystal, through which he had been watching events transpire such as he could, following Entaris' doings, watching as his prey had popped in and out of apparent existence like the pulsing emissions of a spinning neutron star.

"They have brought the whelp to me," he commented lightly...

...and opening a portal through the All, reached out and stepped through amidst the flare of sith flames and into the cramped interior of the modified TIE fighter, which even now was fleeing for Khar Delban space.

His turquoise eyes glared at those before him, stopping at Recinis.

"I trust you were delivering her to me," he purred in a deathly whisper. "I would hate to think you were acting as a traitor to the Sith.

"But you need not go out of your way any longer."

Before they could react, he raised one great clawed hand, blasting them with the All from frozen startlement and into utter immobility. Turned his horned head in the confining interior, now reaching out to where the unconscious Galen now lay. And in one great and omnipotent movement snatched her to his chest and held her in a grip of steel. His claws gripped her flesh, and he glared over the top of her head at Recinis and Narcolm.

"Give the Chosen Daughter my greetings," he hissed, "and advise her to be wary. She knows not with whom she is dealing in me."

With that he released them from his control, and disappeared back through the flames which had carried him here, taking Galen with him.

He held the silent form, still draped in the robes of the Sith, out to the dark priest.

"I have seen you enter into the minds and souls of others," he began, his voice strangely respectful. "So you believe--"

"What do you need her conscious for, Roan?" the whining voice of Desolist now interjected as he came up to sniff down his nose at Galen. "For the purpose which you intend to use her for, this state of being seems to be... an excellent one!" He cackled like a crony, rubbing his hands together in hideous glee at the images this statement brought to his mind.

The Dark Warrior Lord frowned, turning his penetrating look back upon the unconscious woman he yet held. One great clawed hand reached out to trace a horrible parody of a caress upon her face.

"It is my desire that she is conscious of all that will proceed, old man," he finally whispered in an icy voice. "There are means at my disposal, but her normal state of mental and emotional health is the best assurance of her being impregnated successfully."

Suddenly galan was lifted from Roan, and set on a bed of pure darkness, which entaris had suddenly conjured.

"Desolist!" entaris hissed, "Lend me your evil!" before desolist could reply, the energies that he had possesed, and had been given, were suddenly transfered to entaris, causing the dark jedi to pass out, needed rest.(the affect was much the same as expending all of ones energies in a force battle.)

Entaris hissed once more, the twin red specks beneth his hood shot forth, and entered galans own closed eyes.

Galans form shuddered violently as the evil entered her body, A vail of darkness then covered her and removed her body from the sight of Lord roan.

--Within Galans mind--

SUddenly the room that held galan grew incredibly dark, and two red eyes peered at her from where she was in torment, unable to sit, unable to do anything, the red eyes peered at her a moment longer, and then shot forth, entering her minds "mind"

Lookign at the jumpled peices of memories, and other memories that lay shattered, entaris began to work, looking for peices that fit, replacing blank spaces with peices of his own being, he worked, expending his energies with unstopable focus, finaly, he finished, the resaults...

--In the room---

Galans body was suddenly re-revealed, the darkness leaving, the body shuddered once more, and her eyes snapped open, she sat up silently, her gaze shifting to entaris's hovering cloak, two red beams then shot out, resting again under the dark cowal. then the body of galan shuddered once more and fell unconcience again, the bed of darkness faded slowly, and the body of the woman floated softly to the ground.

Entaris looked at Roan and a sigh escaped from his hood, "I...Failed, her mind is shattered, only the one that did this can restor her...i learned only one thing, one memory could i put together enough to read, admiral Actar is responsible for this, and only he can fix it..."

"This one is no use to me in her current state, my friends," he began in an ominous tone of voice. "For in this state--"

"I still don't see why you just don't use her as she is," Desolist interrupted, moving forward now to trace a finger along Galen's jawline. Though to all appearances he was young and strong and virile, the motion was reminiscent of an old miser hoarding his wealth. His lips curled into a dark smile as he considered further.

"In fact, if you don't want her--" he began, only to be cut abruptly off as Roan whirled, the skirts of his cloak flying about him, one great hand removing itself from Galen to swing out and strike Desolist fully in the face. The dark jedi staggered back from the force of that unexpected blow.

"Neither shall you touch her, old man!" Roan hissed. Then he quieted, turning his attentions back to the limp form he held. His brow lowered into an even more thunderous frown.

"In the state she is in, she will die. For a shattered mind cannot maintain its host, and I have not the ability to remove this strange curse. I excel in the ways of the Warrior, not in the darker arts of Magick and Sorcery. While I do command enough to act in defense against this kind of attack against us, to free this one's mind takes greater knowledge than I possess."

He paused thoughtfully, then once again approached Entaris, holding Galen out to him.

"Even if I were to impregnate her, she would die before the babe is born. I could force sustenance into her, but it is her spirit we are dealing with here. Nothing would halt her degeneration into death, my friend, and thus she is of no use to us and our plans.

"Deal with her, but fear not.

"There is another...."

The Dark Warrior deposited Galen at the foot of Entaris' shimmering form, then turned from him altogether. He approached the viewing crystal, which at the moment was showing him a spectacular view of a ship-blockaded planet. He shook his horned head slightly as he pondered the brilliant jewel before him, as though thinking of and then discarding secret possibilities. Then a swift move of one clawed hand directed the Crystal to another region of space and time.

A brilliant starfield was revealed.

His sensual lips curled into a meaningful smile....

Looking at galan, Entaris delved into the evil he commanded, finding his own evilness, and looking for the evil he knew was instilled within Galan.

He began finding comfert within the Dark purpose of what had been done to Galan, finding a "second wind" within its dark intentions. The dark shadow delighted in the fear she showed, and also, in the darkness of the power used on her. his power slowly returned to him, aided by the complete darkness of the room. When he had gained all he could from the woman, he then began to think of what should be done about the usless shell of what once was galan.

Fading into the shadows he reapered on the surfice of Keel Doba. Within a small cave he dumbed the body on a alter, that he formed out of shadow energy.

Entaris looked about, the rooms cool shadows where everywhere, making him feel at home, though he truly had no purpose her.

he then looked at galan and said. "you have proved to be a useful batery to me...Perhaps there will ne another use for you some day...Untill then, my alter will let your body, and mind, live for all eternity!"

Entaris then exited the cave, delving into what little power remained, he shattered the entrance of the cave, stop all entrance from anyone not able to enter, and exit through the shadows.

"What the...?" she started, oblivious to the curious looks the two men might be giving her.

The ship was going somewhere on it's own...

Shayla didn't know if she dared do this, but she knew that she had to if she was ever going to get anywhere.

She dropped the chronotic shield about her ship...

...and instantly was struck with something...or rather someone...that was so faint but even so a little bit familiar...

Her eyes suddenly became hardened with determination. She wasn't about to say anything to Terrin or the others just yet...

...so she sensed for a moment or two longer while she worked at the navboard. At length, she had them completely under her control.

The ship suddenly stopped from the cruising speed it had been maintaining without so much as a hint of deceleration.

It was just...still.

She turned to Narcolm and Terrin, only explaining briefly.

"Lord Roan has apparently--disposed of her--I have a lock on her. I'm going to go retrieve her. Be wary in my short absence."

Terrin opened his mouth to say something, but before he could get so much as a syllable out, Shayla was just...

...gone.

In the blink of an eye, Shayla found herself standing before a red-headed woman lying on a shadow of an altar. Shayla could sense her distress...

...and yet, there was a tiny spark of something else there.

Shayla reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, channeling healthy energies of her own into the woman and at the same time seeking to somehow calm her distress.

Don't give up, she thought.

With that, she opened a door through the All, this time taking both herself and Galen to the little Sith ship.

Drawing a chronotic shield around the ship once again, she took to the atmosphere and made a bold move in the little uncanny ship of hers.

A hit and fade, with Sith technology.

In what might have been a mere second she had them back near the Khar Delban primary.

Dropping her shield, she instantly flew her little ship through the small hole in the chronotic shield...

...back into the atmosphere of Khar Delba.

(((OCC: Follow Shayla and the gang back to "Cry of the Sith" in the Jedi Praxeum and Sith Temple forum. Thank you!!!)))

--The univers is dark, evil wins out...all will play into my hands-- the thought to himself.
Suddenly he felt something about the univers change, the small trace of himself that was left within galans mind had suddenly been tweaked, and then purged by galans own mental return.
--She awakens-- he then thought.
Entaris then returned to the shadows, exiting within the cave he had placed galan in earlier. Looking about entaris soon purged the alter, not daining to waste the energies of such a bed without a need.
Looking about the room entaris soon gave thought making the area his own.
reaching within his darkness entaris called to the Shadow beings of the other realms.

How at any time he could easily have reached out and plucked any one of his prey from their would-be rescuers like one would pluck fruit from a tree. How he could at any time have easily penetrated Admiral Actar's blockade, and in fact probably have snatched up the very admiral out right from beneath its sensor-ridden nose.

I could even now have them all here, in my hand... he thought darkly to himself, now curling one great hand into a steely fist until his own claws sliced flesh. That was the only thing to persuade his focus from departing the Crystal; those uncanny eyes now turned to watch his own blood boil hotly down his arm as he held that hand up before his scrutiny.

Behind him, Desolist's own claws picked at him like those of an annoying bird.

"You've let them get away from you again, oh dark and strong One!" he snarled in a pitiful attempt to raise his own estimations of himself. "Even now they are in an unshielded ship, Sith though it may be. And as for this Admiral Actar--"

Desolist's cackle was nipped in the bud as Roan's indomitable hand now closed about his throat like a vice. For a moment Roan refused to grace the babbling one with so much as a look; then he slowly drew Desolist's face up to his own.

"I prefer to remain unnoticed at this time, my friend," he sneered with a smile. "Let as much be accomplished as possible before taking advantage of the situation, which we most certainly shall."

Desolist struggled, trying to speak. "But they shall soon reach haven beneath the shield..." he gasped, his fingers now plucking at the durasteel which gripped his throat. "The woman...."

Roan merely smiled.

"Yess-sss," he hissed, oily as a snake. "Indeed. But beneath that shield nothing may be done against us, or in their own favor. And she shall eventually come to believe herself protected from me... as well as from the Fate I certainly shall deal to her when I deem the time right for it."

"We shall remain here in patience, old man."

With that he fell silent and Desolist, only too aware of the benefits of doing so, did the same.

But yet, he was never alone.

A portion of his evil reached out, carrying the souls of the sith which flooded this place along with it, those misguided ones who once felt the Dark Ones coming to destroy them ought to have been turned upon as a rancor turns upon its prey. That plan had been entirely dismissed by the other two Ruling Lords -- he spat in disgust as he considered the weakness of the Light in them.

Look where it had taken them. Into the grip of death, and those who would give allegiance to me as well. Now how He struggles to retain that which light and love has made us lose... does not He see where that had led Him? How serendipitous for Him it was indeed that He was alive, even now....

His great brow lowered, sending the shadowy tattooes upon his face rippling and washing over him like a roiling Charybdissal pool.

He would have first had her oh so easily... and the Coming of the Sith would have been undertaken by now. But no, Fates had determined His way would not be overcome, even though He had fallen into death, and Roan's designs were then practically assured fruition. Instead, that wondrous All had determined they travel the convoluted pathway set before them all four thousand years ago...

...and one which he now vowed to lay siege to if it was the last act he performed in this misbegotten galaxy.

He blinked now a bit, bringing himself back to his current reality, sending a tendril of oily tenderness out to where his familiar would recognize and sieze hold of it.

"I commend you for your latest action, my friend," his thoughts slimed through the ether into the ears of Maladius. "The shadows were well pleased with the soul you have presented to them."

He paused a moment, now cocking a figurative ear in another direction. His smile broadened, deepened as faint sounds came whispering into his mind.

"Indeed, they are still pleased with her, and with the enjoyment she is yet bringing to them...."

Now he straightened inwardly, firming into indomitable will, sending another directive out into the ears of the shadowy imp.

"Go ye hence, my friend, and join with my child. I would have nothing come close to the attempt at giving her respite from the path I have chosen to place her on. She will follow her own destiny...

"...as shall the cousin of hers I choose."

The shadows of the sith roiled about him even more fervantly at his words, stretching out with their clawed hands and dark hearts, caressing him and seeking to enter into his being that they could somehow join with him there and be given new life. He would have none of that; with a knowing nod that his command would be obeyed, knowing the outcome of the plans he was yet forming, he brought himself out of the particular direction in which his essence had been travelling and focussed entirely upon another.

His attention was brought up short by the activities of his new friend, Entaris.

He smiled darkly, reaching out an evil tendril, and placing the question into that being's awareness:

"Tell me of this Temple you are constructing, my friend." The whisper echoed like black silk through the ether, alerting that dark entity to the knowledge that Lord Roan was watching and waiting for an answer.

Tucking the tiniest speck of a particular something yet more deeply into his being, that Entaris could more easily communicate with him, the Dark Lord of the Warrior clan waited for the obedient response.

"Why, my dark friend, the plan has already been implemented!"

Tilting his head back, he let a roar of victory rush forth from his throat like a black and roiling river. It crashed into the very atmosphere, bringing bits and pieces of itself tumbling down about their ears. The evil that was Entaris seemed to cringe a bit beneath that barrage of delight; Roan raised his hands and basked in it.

"I have Her now, where I want Her, and most importantly how..." He turned brilliant turquoise eyes to flash at Entaris, enflaming that being now with the closest thing he could offer as being purely dark. "She will learn the error of her ways, and in due time will come to call me Lord."

With that he drew himself upright, closing his eyes to envision more easily the sight his familiar had brought to him through the All: the limp form of Graysith at the foot of Abaddonis, brought there by Maladius but not before first making a little visit to Lord Roan's hidden ramparts....

Roan's eyes slitted like those of a great cat at the thought of that little visit, and yet one more chuckle broke loose from between his lips. His tongue followed shortly thereafter to lick them in a predatory kind of... satisfaction.

"She will eventually be brought to me, my friend. But in the meantime, she is in a place and position where none may offer her succor.

--Serve...dig...build...serve...dig....destroy...
---

They had already completed the entrance area, and a few other minor rooms...and were curently working to make an alter room.
Excelent, all comes along as planned. his inner voice was a hiss, those thoughts comming forth above the madness of the other jumbled voices within his being.

KILL! DESTROY! CORRUPT!
the thoughts suddenly broke out from the madness, and his form shuddered a bit, resisting the urge to fulfill -his- inner desires.

a bolt of black lightning rippled from his fingers, striking the ground at his feet, and causing the rock to blast to pieces.
he then supressed his power with a slight snarle, and turned his gaze into the univers, looking for places he could corrupt, needing to realese his inner demons, wanting his power to spread through out the galaxy.

Desolist, sensing his dark mood, had made himself scarce, no doubt to drive his anger into greater paroxysms. So the Dark One had decided to call once again upon the devices of his familiar, to show him again the pitiful picture the One who would have been his Lady now presented.

The One who yet would be.

But when that image coalesced in the Great Viewing Crystal through the magickal machinations of the malodorous Maladius, the image was not what he expected to see.

She looked enough like his intended to fool most sentients aboard the ship. But the Vong were not Sith, and the Vong did not have the All at their command.

He snarled as he recognized the familiarity of that signature, knowing that he had blocked the All from Graysith's use. It was not strong enough to be Aelvedaar.

It had to be that cursed Adept.

He let out a massive roar, his silken robes whirling about like the wings of a raptor in flight as he turned from the image he had just seen. He closed his eyes, letting out yet another roar as that image remained taunting his inner lids.

"ENTARIS!!!"

Now his eyes flew open, their turquoise hue slashing the very air of the chamber like the electric dance of St. Elmo's fire. Those eyes locked briefly on those of his new ally; then he whirled and pointed a shaking claw at what appeared to be Graysith.

Entaris was not one to take "commands" but in this instance, he was only to pleased to comply, his inner madness screaming at him once again. DESTROY! PURGE! KILL!
and this time, he was not going to deny them.

"graysith is with her allies and...Shayla... pray's to be saved, her pitiful sacrifice to save her beloved Graysith, it has undone her...she knows not what to think, constant confusion racks her brain..."

The One might be currently beyond his reach, this was true. But in recompense....

The Adept would never be the same again.

His sensual lips curled in a smile of dark delight at the thought. Then he slowly drew back from the crystal, letting his hands fall along his sides once more. Behind him, a strange slippage of...something announced the arrival of Entaris; Dark Lord Roan gave the dimming crystal one final and lingering glance before turning about to face that even darker entity, even as Entaris's calm but horrid words came into his ears.

Under normal circumstances he would have clapped a hand upon his shoulder in acknowledgement. But he knew even a semblance of anything other than evil would weaken this one, however remotely. Instead he directed all the rage and hatred he now felt toward his erstwhile "brother," Dark Lord Aelvedaar into Entaris's being.

"There shall be more of such sustenance for you in the very near future, my ally," he promised in an oily whisper. "And uponthat I give my word as Dark Lord of the Sith."

With that he turned, robes flying, and departed the room altogether, in order to begin plotting not merely how he would proceed to get Her in his hands once again, nor merely the equally black actions he vowed the Adept would undergo at his very whim...

...but what he planned to do with his "brother" once he got his claws upon Him.

Upon the walls where placed black torches, that while emiting no light, aloud a being of evil to see perfectly, and doomed a being of good to stumble blindly.
His evil then reached out, and finished carving the rest of his temple, creating a black alter, a dark thrown room, and three or four dozen chambers equiped with strange beds, that seemed to be constructed of shadows.
After he had burned out his temple, expendign a great amount of evil energy, entaris retired to a room that held a special circle, which would connect him with the shadow plain, alowing him to regenerate his dark powers with rabid speed, alowing him to reach a state, that to a human, would be sleep.
--

To entaris, sleep was simply blackness, with no intrusion from the multi-awarness of the chaos in his mind. it was simple peace, were power flowed through him, and aloud him to draw upon the shadow's of the shadow realm.
but suddenly, a voice rhapsed through his conciousness.

I....am your being... I am all that need exist...Truth now, comes to you, through shadow, in lack of light...

the voice seemed strange to entaris, for very seldom did he hear that of one, rather then that of many, and he was not sure how he was to take this intrusion.
destroy the light entaris...destroy it... a second voice rhasped to him.
Then, both voices joined together in unison with one word.
Graysith

2 beings, one becoming a willing servent to the darkside, the other believing he was the master of which he saught to create.

he released yet another dark cackle, as he considered the images. This was the power of his temple, all evil came to him here, within its walls he could view everything the darkness had to tell, and it had only cost him the simple sacrifice of the shadowlings, that had once served him so well...there would be others, His power was great, they could not resists its allure.
but for now those truths were none important, what he now wanted, to show the simple idiots the true power of evil...

They would not be servants of the darkside... they would be slaves. His slaves.
Reaching out a gloved hand through the power of evil, unknown to the unwitty fools presented to him, he tagged there very being, a tag of the purest evil, inwhich, should he desire it, he would be before them, whether in person, or within there minds. should he desire it, they would learn the true potence of that which they sought to command.
his hood came back a third time, letting yet another dark cackle escape his being.

Yes...this Taehun, and this Bane...they were his now...whether they knew it, or not.

So-- he mused to himself as one razor claw now lifted to lightly tap against one of those hideous fangs. My dear, dear brother has switched the accursed adept for the choice morsel, has he? So now he is aware of more than I wish him to be; damn his soul into living hell but he is more cunning than I take him to be!

A low growl seeped forth from the bowels of his being, as Dark Lord Roan now considered his error... or perhaps the fact that his new ally was not as powerful as he had been lead to believe. In either case, he chose to learn from it.

His "loving consort" may yet be taken as well...

With this he reached forward through the All, seeking, ripping the very fabric of spacetime asunder that he could likewise reach out and set events into motion which would rip away Her soul, and force Her to yet join with him...

...only to come up against an impossibly blank spot.

The roar which came from his lips would make a volcano quake; his head tilted back and he raised his fisted hands to shake them in complete and soul-consuming rage. His own blood ran freely down his arms where his claws had pierced his own flesh; now opening his eyes, he lowered his hands and glanced at that blood.

Yet more would surely flow....

That this ruse had failed was more than obvious, and had no need to continue. H scowled even more blackly to himself.
Indeed, brother, let slip the dogs of war.... he thought as with a sudden thrust forward he burst farther into the wonderful mysteries of all the forces known to exist, easily ripping that portal wider, and stuck both hands into that searing cold. His seeking hands found and took hold of that which he sought.

Spacetime closed with a little "pop" as in one fell swoop he wrenched the young Thea and his daughter back into his presence. The human was immediately discarded; a quick thought sent for his crony Desolist to come deal with her, as for the moment Entaris seemed to be nowhere about. Instead, he only had eyes for his daughter.

Turquoise orbs stared down into violet-ringed ones which otherwise matched his own. The little babe considered him in uncanny recognition... and then reached up her tiny arms toward him, her fingers wriggling in something akin to delight.

"Da-," she said, then fell into paroxysms of cooing and bubbling laughter in the arms of her father, the Dark Lord of the Warrior clan of the Sith.

Who had every intention of maintaining that title.

This child accepted him, and had done so without any outcry or any need on his part to "coerce" her into doing so. As she recognized that darkness within him, so did he in her; his chest swelled with sadistic pride with the manner in which they complemented each other.

And so strong....

A great clawed hand reached out to lightly touch ShaRhylla's forehead. Then, ever so gently, ever so insidiously, he pressed the tip of one claw into her flesh. A tiny wound appeared there, red with her young blood.

Immediately Roan slashed the flesh of his wrist, directly over the black tattoo which was there. He then laid that wrist against the child's forehead, that their blood would mingle.

"Flesh of my flesh, and now heir to my Empire," he murmured, before pulling that hand away. Throughout this all, ShaRhylla slept quietly on, dreaming her own strange brand of dark dreams.

Roan's lips curled more fiercely... then that evil grin disappeared as information came slamming into him from the Link he was maintaining with the Crystal. His eyes grew vague, seeking inward to view outward... and another snarl of pleasure erupted from him.

"How foolish of her," he thought to himself as, with an almost palpable snap his focus was drawn back from the images just revealed to him. "As well as being only too obvious. Indeed, She is not as strong as I initially thought She was; my Brother, I think you have erred indeed in choosing this one."

As unlikely as that might be.

He soon came back to her room, into which he glided like a dark ghost, coming to a stop beside her bed, frowning to see she was yet unaccompanied by any guardian. His eyes began to slit in dissatisfaction when it hit him, square between the eyes.

The Sith's great brow lowered as even he felt the strength of that command. Not that it affected him in the slightest; instead, it captured his attention from where he was standing over the form of his newly baptised daughter. He straightened up from her with a jerk, his one claw still wet with her blood, and cocking his head now concentrated his focus on events which were occurring elsewhere.

He frowned more deeply.

Now he sent out a thought of his own: "Desolist!" that oily tendril snaked out. "Come hither and safeguard my daughter! Her well-being is on your soul, my old friend...."

Soon the rustling sigh came into his ears, like dying leaves in an autumn wind. Lord Roan did not bother to acknowledge Desolist's arrival; such would only be a waste of time and energy. Fully satisfied that ShaRhylla was totally secure, not only within this room beneath the careful scrutiny of the dark jedi, but within his entire hidden sanctum, itself safely beneath a chronotic shield, he simply turned about, reached out into the All...

...and tore open a passageway therein, rending asunder that very thing which makes up time and space as they are known. He stepped through...

Taehun dared not displease his newfound master so early. He took off in hot pursuit of the Sith.

Here he had stormed after his confrontation with Recinis Q'utaro in the Valley of the Lords, the gaping hole on his wrist burning with the fires of Sith hell. Determined to seek vengeance upon the young upstart, he had come to his Crystal, to view their whereabouts quickly, to then reach out with his magicks and steal the tiny babe and the Chosen Daughter right out from under their noses, before they could manage to regain the safety of their warship.

But the Crystal remained suddenly aloof to him, blackened and silent. No golden-emerald mists swirled in its depths, neither hint nor shadow of events now occuring so much as poked a figurative nose into being. It remained sere and dead in front of him, and no matter what words he spouted refused to spring into life.

A great roar of complete and utter rage shook the very stones of his sanctuary as he tilted back his horned head, the tattoos on his face seeming once more to swirl sulkily about his features, his fists lifting and shaking mutely as though by that very action he could take the souls of the gods themselves into his hands and destroy them. Then he choked into silence, returning his gaze into the black shadows of the once vibrant apparatus.

He had renounced his clanship. In doing so, he in essence had renounced all kinship to the Sith. And thus, by tradition and pre-set design, following the ways his magickal race had done for centuries in preventing the harm a rogue might do unto them, his magicks had been wrenched from his being and absorbed back into the mysteries of the universe. He was completely emptied of any and all Sith magic, magic which had been readily available for use in any manner whether aggressive or not. And although the All still remained with him, he could only use it for defense as he had not the Claw of S'slan. He had only his great strength, his near immortality, that use of the All... and his soul-crushing sword...

...and his daughter.

Keenly feeling the loss of his familiar -- for now he couldn't conjure up another to enslave -- he now lifted that sword and pointed it to the ceiling. It shone a deathly black, reverberating now to the even louder roar he sent up to join it:

"DESOLIST! TAEHUN!" He cried out his frustration and rage and deep, deep desire for revenge... no matter who that would be wreaked upon. He waited a moment; then repeated the cry, sending it out like black thunder into the ears of his dark allies.

"DESOLIST! I HAVE NEED OF YOU!!! TAEHUN!!!"

His arms upraised, one fist gripping his sword as though it were death itself he were battling against, the other fisted to strike against the laughing whimsy of Fate, he remained quiet for the merest of moments before sending his final command screeching out to them:

"KILL THE PRISONERS! NOW!!"

He then lowered his sword, his grip still hot and determined as, whirling about, his muscles rippling, his skin glistening, he strode from the room to make certain that order was being obeyed.

The sorcerer grimaced as his face hit the floor, and he swore silently.

"Go now, and kill the girl, the useless one I found with my daughter," he now intoned to Taehun, his eyes never leaving those of who appeared to be Freedon Naad.

His strong arm raised then, slowly, that he might relish this moment; then with exquisite grace and utter control he lowered it and sliced a bit of flesh from the cheek of the sorcerer. Up that sword raised... now down again to slice off one of his horns. Up... down, an ear was lost. All minor wounds, all meant to show the absolute power he now had over the Sith whose throat he still held in a grip of steel.

It did not come easily. Roan, infuriated beyond words that his magicks were lost, angered with the knowledge that it would now be extremely difficult if not downright impossible for him to snatch the prey he so badly wanted to, now let that rage fuel the manner in which he brought death to the Sith who he still held by the throat. Slowly, he brought that sword down, leveled it at Freedon's sternum, and even more slowly, millimeter by exquisite millimeter, he forced it into the man's body.

Not enough to penetrate anything vital... not at this point. Just enough to make a good starting point for what he had planned.

Ever so slowly, the hand holding Freedon tightened, the arm slowly raised, the other holding the sword in a grip of durasteel. Bit by bit as he raised Naad's body, the sword sliced down it's length until the man was fully cut from mid-chest to just below his navel. Roan grinned even more cruelly as Naad's eyes rolled back in his head, his breath coming out in a quick little gust and his organs abruptly tumbled from within due to that disemboweling slice Roan had dealt to him.

Roan just held him a bit longer, shaking him to awaken him, enjoying every second of the man's wonderful agony. Then, just when the specter of death was about to reach out and claim the sorcerer as his own Roan yanked out the sword. Still holding Naad by the throat, he drew back his sword-arm, and attacked with every ounce of his more than formidable strength.

The bottom half of Naad fell to the floor in a gush of entrails and blood, while the upper still dangled in Roan's grip. Incredibly, the stalwart strength of the sorcerer kept him alive just long enough to fully realize what it was that Roan had done to him.

And then, he saw it. This was it. Taehun's booted feet made a small squeaking sound as he slid his feet to a stop. Regaining his composure with a deep breath, Taehun uncovered his hood and opened the door.

Nobody was in there.

Frantically, Taehun looked around. Where could she have gone?

"I am not Roan's crony as you percieve me to be. I dont have time to explain this to you in full but I will bring no harm to you. I will take you away from this place, and when we have escaped I will see that you are returned home. But until we are out of the blighted lord's grasp you must cooperate with me." He said with all the tendernes he could muster and then he set the young girl down.

A low growl rumbled in his chest as he now reached out with the all, sensing, seeking to find where they could be...

There, his new adept, tracking wet footsteps, following someone, someone who had taken the girl... but who would dare? Not Desolist, not when the order was to kill....

He stopped in his tracks, his great brows lowering in yet another paroxysm of rage.

The signature of Desolist was nowhere to be found... and the All only brought unto him the merest whiff of someone who most whole-heartedly was NOT his old crony at all.

Roan had not been Dark Lord of the Warrior clan by device alone. He wasn't stupid in the least. Immediately his blackened mind put two and two together as to the artful deceptions now at hand.

BLAST THAT BENIGHTED ROACH OF A SORCERER!

His hand tightening on his sword, he whirled in place, his stride now lengthening as instead of following the footprints, he backtracked the way he had come.

Let his adept now prove himself or not; what punishment for what looked to be certain failure could be planned and doled out at a later time. Now he needed to be with the one who was of the utmost importance to his plans....

With but that sole thought occupying his mind, he at last came upon and burst into the room he had bestowed upon the only thing in the universe that he cherished. Quickly entering ShaRhylla's quarters, he scooped her up in his strong arms, his hand never releasing his weapon. Turquoise eyes ablaze, he turned with her in his arms, and headed out of his sanctum, out to a transport, and away to a spot in which he had room to breath and utilize the All in it's entirety.

He hesitated: for what he had to do, he would have to drop the shield. Indeed, if only for a moment, but...

His eyes narrowed in anger, knowing he might have to sacrifice his prisoners, even as his accomplice had been sacrificed to him.

So be it.

His head threw back, a clawed hand reached out...

Sith fires leapt into being, Sith shadows sobbed and reached out to caress him...

About his sanctuary, the protective chronotic shield dropped just the merest moment, so that he could then step through with the All, as he had when he went to Korriban. At that time no one had realized the shield had momentarily dropped; perhaps his luck would hold out the same in this instance.

Knowing the sorcerer though, deep in his cold heart he knew that wouldn't happen twice.

A snarl on his lips, he hugged his daughter to his breast and carefully stepped through the flames to...

"Sit at the far corner of this room," he instructed the young girl, setting to work tracing an elaborate sigil on the dust covered floor. The rune began to glow lightly and he chanted and the rune grew brighter. He continued his chant until sweat pored down his body and his chest heaved. Finally he sat back, staring at the throbing green light on the floor. When the shield dropped again the gateway would open and he and the little one would step through and enter his ancient house in the middle of the sith home world's wilderness. It had been a long time since he had seen it and he was anxious to return home, but first he had to wait for the Dark Lord's return. He crawled over to sit next to the child as he waited for the spell to take effect, making sure that he kept the two of them cloaked.

"So,tell me about yourself little one. I fear we have a long while to wait before we can leave this place."

She carefully considered his question before answering in the manner she felt was proper for a student to address a Jedi, she tried hard to remember she was back with the Jedi now.
"My name is Thea, Master, and I am 7 years old. My father is a frieghter pilot, though he did fight in the rebellion in his youth. I grew up on his ship with my mother as company. She would care for our quarters and the staff while he ran the business. Daddy always used to tell me stories about the Rebellion, he even saw Master Skywalker himself once in a meeting! And mommy was saved by a Jedi once - right before I was born. That is part of the reason why I want to be a Jedi so much. And when my parents said I could go to the Praxum a little over a year ago I was so happy, I remember it was right after my 6th birthday. The best birthday present I ever got!" Thea paused a moment, not sure if she really wanted to ask what she was thinking.

"I regret to inform you that I am no Jedi, the body you see before you is one a stole from one of Roan's pawns, I am a proud sorcerer of a long extninct race. My name is Freedon Naad," then he closed his eyes as he pressed on to the more sensitive subjects, "I fear that I shall be the bearer of grave news. During your absense a horrible tradgedy befell your order and shattered thier stronghold on Yavin. They are scattered throughout the universe, it is possible many of your friends are dead. However, there are quite a few jedi still remaining. I believe even a couple on this planet, though I will not stand before my Lord in this form so it will be a while before I can bring you before them. I am sure you will be able to find a master amoung the remanents of your order. I am sorry to be the one to tell you this and I fear I have not done so properly, you must forgive me I am not used to," he gestured generally, "this"

Taehun slowly crept up to the startled Sith and girl. He hid his exertions well, for not even a bead of sweat seemed to drip from his forehead. Of course, that was because his forehead couldn't be seen at all. His dark hood covered his face entirely, and all that could be seen was a set of gleaming white teeth.

Taehun removed his hood to reveal his tatooed visage. His eyes locked with the girl's, and he held her gaze banefully for a moment, until she was forced to look away. A small, malevolent smile formed on the corners of his lips.

"Tell me, what are you doing with milord's prisoner, Desolist?"

Desolist turned around to face Taehun, and smiled as well. Slowly, his face seemed to twist in various expressions, and started stretching in various directions. His whole body began to move as if it were getting sucked towards some invisible vortex. It was as if he had been made of some kind of rubber, and not flesh and bone.

What the...

Taehun blinked several times only to see the hallway in front of him, with no girl, and no Desolist.

An illusion! How can this be? Is Desolist capable of this?

Taehun stood in stunned silence as he wondered whether he was in over his head on this one.

"I regret to inform you that I am no Jedi, the body you see before you is one a stole from one of Roan's pawns, I am a proud sorcerer of a long extninct race. My name is Freedon Naad"

So he was a soceror not a Jedi - but he worked for good in much teh same way as they did, she could handle that. But his news about the Jedi...

"horrible tradgedy... shattered...scattered throughout the universe...possible many of your friends are dead...remanents of your order..."

You won't get away this time...

Taehun ran ahead, enraged that he had been tricked by the wiles of the traitor Desolist. He did not seem to mind the slippery floor, nor care that the two figures probably heard his approaching footsteps. He did not care for stealth now, but needed only to satisfy his growing bloodlust.

Taehun ran quickly, and was within a few feet of them before the body of Desolist turned around. Taehun lowered his shoulder and violently ran into Deslolist, knocking him off his feet. Desolist struggled to get back up, and by the time he was back on one knee, Taehun's lightsaber had already been ignited, and was filling the hall's with a dim red light. In an instant the hand was lopped off, with only a melted, orange glowing stump left in its place. Desolist screamed in horror as he held his wrist with his other hand. He did not even see the saber hum through the air and pierce his chest.

Taehun let out a satisfied grunt. He looked at the decapitated body for an instant longer before turning around, and realizing the girl was gone. He turned around again. The body, and it's appropriate appendages, were still lying on the ground. Surely this was no illusion. The girl had run.

Not again, dammit!

Taehun started to run down the hall once more, and was gained sight of the girl. He reached out a hand, pulling the girls body violently back, and then suddenly used the force again to slam her into the wall. She dropped to the ground, and was no longer breathing.

Satisfied that he had completed his master's mission, Taehun slowly began to walk back to the sanctuary. He had felt a disruption in the force earlier, and knew that Roan was gone. He would be pleased with him when he got back. Until then, the dark jedi Taehun would rest, and wait.

I start to understand how the sith work... then I am pushed away... always pushed away...

He then realized what he was thinking about, then quickly fought it from his mind...

Lo-Ban looked around a bit, then sat down to meditate...

When it came to him...

"perhaps you should assuage it in the attempt to rescue Freedon Naad."

But, it was what Aelvedaar said before that troubled him, "as your mind is involved in this matter and not that of the far more pressing one at hand"

Clearly, Aelvedaar did not understand where he was coming from...

Lo-Ban simply mentioned what no one else had... he could care less for Naad, he has interest in all life... even that of the obviously short-tempered sith...

But, he said he was to attempt a rescue of Naad... thus, he must be near by...

After realizing this, Lo-Ban started to calmly meditate... opening himself up to the force, to guide him in Freedon Naad's direction...

With knowledge of this, he rose, and came to a dead run...
Sometime later...

Lo-Ban approached a man, he had sensed as Naad, and a young girl... they were very surprised to see him...

"I don't know what you did, but you are Freedon Naad, I am sure of it... I believe I am here to help... I seem to have enough food for quite some time... I also believe, we are to stay put, and await Lord Aelvedaar to open the shield... and allow us in..."

Lo-Ban started to soften at this thought, he sent him on a mission after all... perhaps he would make a difference, not the difference... but, put together a few differences, and that might prove just as sweet...
I really must trust.... they must think of me as a jerk..

Lo-Ban then looked down to little Thea...

"What's your name?"

Lo-Ban took a seat next to Thea...

"Hungry? What did you say your name was?"

Lo-Ban tossed a protein bar to Thea, and took a bite of his own...

I've had worse...

Lo-Ban sat back, and waited for Thea to speak up...

Taehun shook his head violently to regain his composure. He turned east, the diretion in which the new force signature had appeared. It could mean only one thing...someone was here...and it sure wasn't a dark force signature at all. No, this was not his master...and as far as he knew, he was left as guardian of his master's chambers.

Taehun took off in a dead sprint towards the east. Once again, he was led to the series of hallways in which he had disposed of the traitor Desolist and the girl. He paused for a moment, and searched out the force signature. After what seemed to be only a few seconds, he looked up in its general direction, only to see a dead end.
How can this be...?

Taehun slowly walked up to the wall. It was layered with the brown stone that was on the other two walls of the hallway.
How can this be! Dammit! Where is it?