Stories and wisdom on life and more with Jedi Deean Kett.

Deean's CodeI am a Jedi Knight.I am dedicated to an understanding of life, and the mystery of the Force.My heart is sworn to valour.My word speaks only truth.My might upholds the weak.My lightsaber defends the helpless.My skill undoes the wicked.

1. Post messages on the Academy Courtyard

2. For private matters send your letters directly to me.

I will also be hosting training clinics from time to time here in my room. Subjects will include any thing that would concern a knight errant including science, mysticism and philosophy. I'm sure that we can push the furniture back and make room for all of you. Keep alert for future postings." - Deean The Jedi Academy Would Like to Announce the Winners of our Third Official Contest!It is with much difficulty that a winner has been chosen in our third official contest. As you know the much coveted prize was a metal replica of Luke Skywalker's blaster from The Empire Strikes Back. It has a real scope, non-working handgun parts and a machined aluminum and steel emitter nozzle. I want you to know that it was nearly impossible to select a single winner out of the fifteen entries we received. For this reason, we have chosen a second and third place winner who will each receive a small token for their participation. For the rest, I hope that my thanks and admiration will suffice. First Place - Alcander Caedmon, with a lengthy tale about trusting the mind, the heart, and the ForceSecond Place - Padaway Poh, who reminds us that we are to evil as water is to the stone, powerful only in our persistenceThird Place - Nalus, reflecting that in order to feel fulfilled, we need only lessen our desiresIn order to ensure that you get your prizes, please e-mail me your real names and addresses. I will deliver your prizes to the post office after New Years. Thanks again to everyone who participated. You are all wonderful, gifted, and highly spiritual people.~ Jedi Deean Kett Deean's short story 'Betrayal on Coruscant' is still available!See it as a flat text file hereView Deean Kett's Earlier Version of his Chamber Here!This site was forged in Valhalla. Achieve web immortality.1999 The Jedi Academy. Stories and wisdom on life and more with Jedi Deean Kett. Jedi Deean Kett, when not roving the galaxy promoting Jedi ideals and sharing wisdom, resides here at the Academy doing the same.See bottom of column for Jedi Kett's hand crafted Yoda!Just south of the Academy campus a series of ecologically conceived adobe buildings blend softly into the terrain. The weather worn clay structures harmoniously mingle with numerous trees, connecting to enclose a small pentagon of pavement where visiting spacecraft are permitted to park. Extending from one enclosure, the giant prow of Deean’s spacecraft pokes from the shadows beneath a slanted tin roof. A short corridor leads from Hangar-3 to Deean’s Chamber, the first door on the left. A glowing blue neon hand print recognition cipher secures the door. Immediately adjacent to the corrugated portal is a large oval window through which a warm light emanates. You peer into Deean’s Chamber. It is minimally decorated. One wall has a fully stocked bookshelf upon which you can see a crystal ball, a glass jar containing a brain, a stack of scrolls, and a model x-wing. Across from this, a neatly made futon with several round pillows shares a wall with a nightstand, and a nylon strung harp. Various potted herbs hang from every possible ledge. Upon the floor is a rug, a meditation pillow, and a small altar decorated with an incense burner, a silver chalice, and two blue candles. "Hello students in The Force. Please make yourselves comfortable. As you can see I’ve completely moved in. I view my role here as a person who gets to answer questions that you may have about anything that concerns you regarding life or the Way of the Jedi - especially those kinds of questions where you think that your friends aren’t being very helpful. You can get a hold of me in two ways:

1. Post messages on the Dark Side Forum (where I get a kick out of their postings).

2. For private matters send your letters directly to the Academy and they will be forwarded to me.

Click for larger imageI will also be hosting training clinics from time to time here in my room. Subjects will include any thing that would concern a knight errant including science, mysticism and philosophy. I'm sure that we can push the furniture back and make room for all of you. Keep alert for future postings." - Deean The contest for a Jedi Robe like the one Obi-Wan wore in A NEW HOPE and other great Star Wars prizes is over! Read the story for the outcome. The Great Lightsaber Tournament(by Jedi Deean Kett)The bright hall was decorated with the insignia of the New Republic. Outside, Jedi Academy Flags proudly waved in the strategic illumination of four gigantic spotlights. The Coliseum where the tournament would be held had clearly taken its architectural cues from similar structures on Coruscant. Inside, the steel grated floor was surrounded in tunicate by step-like bleachers that looked ominous beneath the searing arena lights. All the seats were filled with various classes of students in attendance at The Jedi Academy. In addition, mystics and warriors from the farthest reaches of the galaxy assembled to watch the special tournament between the Academy’s bravest. Both dark and light Jedi were in attendance and the crowd hummed in excitement over the event that was to follow. Silver 3-PO class droids, laden with popcorn and hot-dogs strolled amongst the crowd distributing their wares as two red pit droids droids made their rounds on the coliseum floor, picking up pieces of trash. Beneath the floor of the amphitheater, five young Jedi prepared for battle. Spirits were high and the contestants looked up with the whites of their eyes as Master Legato and Jedi Kett descended the staircase, their brown robes lifting behind them. Deean glanced at a liquid crystal notepad in his hand. He took attendance, and each student answered in turn,"Jedi Popocho, Jedi Delphi, Jedi Flastif, Jedi Walker and Jedi Pedro, do you take this challenge willingly?""Aye sir," responded Pedro."I’m not here by accident," added Walker.Master Legato walked around behind Delphi, assisting him by pulling on a strap that held his armor in place,"Now get this perfectly clear. I will have no injuries here at the Academy. Lightsabers are to be set to inflict second degree burns only. I don’t want to see any serious injuries...and no disintegrations! To ensure that you have done this, each of you will turn your blade on yourself before the tournament. If I don’t see blisters on your forearm, you’re not going to enter the fight. Am I clear?"The students answered in unison, "Yes, sir!"Deean heard the hiss before the smell of burning hair reached his nostrils. He turned just as Jedi Flastif lifted the glowing blade from his arm. A bright red mark was clearly visible,"That smarts!"Deean and Baal chuckled between themselves as Baal retrieved five straws from his pocket. Deean explained,"Okay guys, this is fairly straight forward. You will fight whoever has the same length stick as you pull. Got it?"The students nodded their heads and crowded around where Deean and Baal were standing.Above ground the crowd became restless - chanting and throwing popcorn. Anxiously they waited, their voices raising to a fevered pitch. The midnight hour approached, and was marked by the ring of an electronic bell. All at once the racket died down and a single pin spotlight followed Deean as he emerged from a dark doorway and walked to the center of the coliseum. In his hand he held a slender microphone. He tapped it with his finger, which reverberated loudly through the auditorium. Blowing twice he spoke,"Testing, testing...is this thing on?...okay great. Let me begin by thanking all of you for coming today. As you know this is our first lightsaber tournament...the first of many to come I’m sure. Five brave Jedi answered our call and volunteered to enter in order to compete for the greatest prize that a Jedi can win, that is, the holy robes of the great Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi himself, which I procured during my recent travels to Coruscant. So, without further delay, it is my pleasure to announce the first competition pair of the evening."Deean extended his open hand to the dark doorway from which he himself emerged moments before. A shadow stirred, then Jedi Flastif and Jedi Popocho emerged to the cheers of the crowd. No sooner did Deean evacuate the arena than Jedi Flastif ignited his smokey weapon. The crowd groaned as the men spring together in rabid combat. Out of the midst of the fray, two light beams emerged from the hands of Jedi Popocho, one green and one purple. The older Jedi seemed non-affected. With a double movement that looked easy he easily deflected both blades and immediately scored a direct hit. The crowd jumped as Popocho leapt back, his shoulder in flames. Deean arose to declare the winner, but Popocho quickly beat out the fire with the hand clenching the purple saber. The young man made eye contact with Deean and a message was sent telepathically,"Not yet!"Deean sat back down. The crowd roared.The two combatants circled one another like sand crabs as pulsating claws of light waved before each other’s faces. No two people would agree on what happened next. In a flurry of neon Flastif descended upon the boy driving him into the ground. All he could do was defend himself. Flastif left not a second for offensive action. Popocho retreated across the auditorium, his fate sealed. His entire body exhausted form the onslaught, he lost his composure and prepared to flee in his mind. His posture folded as his fighting spirit departed. Just then, Flastif made a grave error, unknowingly stepping into a kata that Popocho had practiced a hundred times. The smokey blade of Flastif’s saber circled above his head and descended for the final kill. A purple blade met it in mid-air. The boy cross-stepped to the left and pivoted at the precise moment. In the blink of an eye Flastif leaned forward, striking the empty spot where Popocho had been. Drawing momentum from Flastif’s blade, Popocho’s purple fire arced then descended across the back of Flastif’s neck. The man screamed, siezured and collapses on the floor, his extinguished saber landing several meters away with a clatter. The crowd became livid as the boy stood over the unconscious man, both sabers held in the air in a proud display of victory.Up in the bleachers, Bross Karte turned to Lord Mal'kith and said,"That wouldn’t have happened to me."Mal'kith turned to Karte with a look of dark contempt,"Must you ruin even this occasion for me with your incessant prattling? Is it not enough for you to watch the lightsiders hack one another to death for the privilege of wearing some old man’s bathrobe? Shut up and do not address me further."To that Bross Karte shrugged and shoved a hot-dog into his face.In the ring, a medical droid assisted Flastif to his feet. Delirious as to what happened, he shuffled out of the ring, clutching his blistered neck.Baal turned to Deean in the press box, laughing to himself..."You sure this is a good idea? It will take him a year to grow his hair back."Deean ran his fingers through his long silky mane,"You don’t see me down there do you?"He picked up the microphone and looked down into the coliseum, depressing the button on the hand piece, he spoke, and seconds later his words echoed throughout the massive structure,"A winner has been declared...Jedi Popocho!"The crowd cheered. Deean continued..."Send in the next contestants, Jedi Delphi versus Jedi Pedro!"All eyes turned to the gallery door, Jedi Delphi emerged with a smile on his face and his hands in the air. He ran a lap around the arena while the crowd did "the wave." With more humility, Jedi Pedro walked from the shadows and quietly took his place in the center of the ring. Jedi Joat and Sahar cheered their favorites.Jedi Pedro ignited his saber and waited like a hunter, the ominous and searing hum quieted the crowd, whose eyes turn to Delphi, still clowning around in front of the press box.Deean buried his face in his hands,"Oh brother...what a ham. I didn’t know he had this much charisma!"Jedi Delphi turned around to face his opponent. His blue lightsaber jumped from his belt and into his hand and ignited immediately. He charged Jedi Pedro, spinning the saber like a helicopter blade. The crowd, immensely pleased by this display of artistry went absolutely wild. Jedi Joat stood up and raised her fists into the air,"Yeeehaaaa!"Bross Karte cleared his throat,"Hey, sit down, woman-child I can’t see."Lord Mal'kith spoke to Kartre from the corner of his mouth,"Why don’t you move her behind with a bolt of hatred?"Meanwhile on the floor, the two young men cut at one another savagely. Clearly an even match, they covered every inch of the floor. After several minutes, both breathed heavily from opened mouths, each strike met with a counterstroke, each block turned into an offense. The nail biting battle continued while the crowd grew impatient.Darksiders began to chant in unison, stomping their feet as they shouted,"Trip him...trip him...trip him...trip him!"The rest of the audience stood upon their seats as the two warriors retreated to opposite corners. Their hands upon their knees, the men panted wildly. Delphi extinguished his lightsaber and hung his head low to catch his breath. They were both spent. He was so exhausted he tasted the blood in his lungs.In the press box Deean asked Baal what he makes of the situation."I don’t know. Is he quitting?"Deean scratched his bearded chin,"I’m not sure. Let’s wait and see. I don’t think Delphi would quit."At that very instant Pedro skillfully threw his lightsaber as if it were a javelin. The roaring crowd became silent in disbelief as the saber flew through the air at the bent-over Delphi. Through sheer luck it missed the boy’s head and struck the wall loudly. Being exceptionally talented in telekinetics, Pedro extended his open palm to retrieve the saber which scampered across the floor to return to its master. Delphi angrily leapt at it and pinned it beneath his foot. The crowd began rhythmically stomping their feet like a drumbeat. Reaching down, he picked it up and calmly began to walk in the direction of Pedro. The crowd spoke in whispers as he slowly crossed the floor, step by step. Seconds seemed like minutes, minutes like hours. The crowd was on their toes.Deean and Baal leaned forward in astonishment, filled with anticipation.Jedi Delphi walked within a meter of where Jedi Pedro huddled then stopped. He sneered, then in an act of chivalry, tossed the saber to his opponent who caught it and mistakenly ignited it backwards in his zeal to turn the situation to his favor. He screamed loudly as the growing blade burned the sleeve off of his arm. Delphi reacted without thought, his cool blade striking Jedi Pedro repeatedly across the head. Instantly, Pedro fell to the stadium floor amidst the roar of the crowd. Smoke rose from the fallen warrior as Delphi began a victory dance before the cheering masses.Baal and Deean applauded. The schools founder turned to Deean,"They just love him don’t they?"In the stands, Mal'kith grinned and clapped his hands,"A truly underhanded ploy turned sour! Splendid!"Jedi Pedro was loaded onto a stretcher by medical droids and carried to the bacta tank for facial rehabilitation. Just then, Deean’s voice echoed through the auditorium,"He’ll be all right. A winner has been declared...Jedi Delphi."The crowd grew ecstatic as popcorn rained upon Delphi, who was now beating on his chest like a Wookie. Deean continued to speak,"Okay, that’s enough Delphi... It has been decided that the final contest will be a three way battle until only one man is standing. Enter contestant number five, Jedi Walker!"From the entryway on the coliseum floor Jedi Walker emerged, followed by Jedi Popocho. Popocho was clearly bandaged across the shoulder and walked with a limp. The crowd cheered for Walker.Lord Mal'kith shook his head,"Insects and hypocrites."Bross Karte piped in, reaching to Mal'kith’s lap where a box of popcorn rested. He snatched a handful hoping that Mal'kith wasn’t looking,"Yeh, bunch of morons they are!"Mal'kith shot Karte the darkest look he could muster (which is pretty dark),"Karte, when I open up your stomach I had better not find one single kernel of popcorn."Karte gently opened his hand and let the popcorn fall to the floor, then looked straight ahead like a guilty animal.Back in the ring the three Jedi faced one another in a triangular pattern. The crowd hushed, everyone thinking the same thought...who will win first, second and third prize? One at a time, sabers were ignited, first Walker’s fucia, then Delphi’s blue, then Popocho’s green and purple. Delphi winked at Popocho. The three looked like a splendid flower, rotating about a center point. The crowd waited with bated breath.None can say who struck first, only that the colors merged into a spectacular rainbow. Occasionally explosions of sparks would jump like tiny star systems, to sprinkle to the stadium floor. Soon, however it became apparent to everyone that Delphi and Popocho were both targeting Walker. He defended himself beautifully prompting Jedi Joat put her soda down,"Wow!"Meanwhile in the press booth Baal noticed the same thing,"Deean, they are targeting Walker. That isn’t fair at all"Deean shrugged,"Well, the three way fight was Walker’s idea. He pulled the short straw and told me that this would be the best way. He knew these guys might do this, but wanted to fight them both anyway. Said it was the honorable thing to do, to fight alone. Delphi and Popocho disagreed. I told them to go ahead thinking that maybe we could all learn something from this. Too late for me to do anything about it now."At that instant Walker’s ruby blade struck Delphi across the chest plate. The crowd moaned as the armor fell away in smiling pieces. Delphi stumbled back and fell onto the seat of his pants, thoroughly dazed. This left Walker the freedom to pursue Popocho. He backed him into a corner with an onslaught of fierce blows that would have tired a sand person. Through fast body work alone, Popocho slipped from Walkers snare and ran to where Delphi was on his knees preparing to rejoin the fight. Seeing that Delphi was weakened, Popocho anticipated striking him down and seizing first prize, waiting only for him to return to a regulation fighting stance. Delphi foresaw Popocho’s sneaky plan and hesitated long enough for Walker to reengage Popocho’s, which required his full attention.When Delphi returned to the fray he found Walker pounding Popocho against the wall again. Popocho was defending himself admirably, but was running out of floor space. Without delay, Delphi entered a low "horse stance" to Walker’s immediate left. With a large circular swing his blade struck Walker beneath the right arm in the soft flesh of his side. Walker screamed and huddled to the floor whereupon both Delphi and Popocho released a shower of blades upon their fellow student. In a show of combat brilliance, Walker defended himself long enough to roll away, but his energy was spent. He stumbled halfway across the stadium and collapsed on the floor, unconscious. The crowd went ballistic.Only two Jedi remained... Delphi versus Popocho. Equally matched in talent and speed, the two friends now became adversaries. Only one would win the robes of Obi Wan Kenobi. However, they too had used up all of their energy. Their strikes were tired, their stances weak and unbalanced. The only consolation was that they were equally matched in their exhaustion. They extended the fury of combat for a few minutes more, but never had two of such equal talent faced one another. Delphi’s blade seared the front of Popocho’s uniform, catching it on fire. He dropped the purple blade, but held onto the green one, staggering back in excruciating pain. It became clear to Baal and Deean that there would be no single winner, that even if there were it would be a matter of luck. Master Legato arose from his seat and punched a circular button on his console."This has gone on long enough Deean."A loud electronic bell marked the end of the match, just as Delphi’s blade of blue fire struck and bounced away from Popocho’s green blade. The green lightning skid down to Dephi’s hand and burnt the saber from his grip. He screamed in agony, shaking the flames from his fist, but both had heard the bell ending the tournament. They fell where they stood, happy only that it was over.After what seemed like half an hour both Jedi Deean Kett and Master Baal Legato walked into the center of the coliseum. Baal held the microphone to his lips and spoke,"We applaud the warrior spirit that has been demonstrated tonight. Judging the final moments of this contest has been difficult to do. On one hand, we feel it was unfair that Jedi Walker was singled out. On the other hand, both Jedi’s Delphi and Popocho demonstrated to all of us, the importance of teamwork and the advantage that it gives a knight in battle. With much consideration, we, the Jedi Council of the Academy have decided to award TWO equal first prizes, one second prize, and consolation prizes to all contestants"The crowd stirred with interest, murmuring like a bee hive."To Jedi’s Flastif and Pedro, we offer Official Jedi Academy T-Shirts!""To Jedi Walker, we offer the Second Place prize, a box brimming with Star Wars relics for his enjoyment as well as other surprises.""To Jedi Popocho, we are proud to offer a special First Prize of startling proportions...which shall remain a surprise. We can only wait to hear from you when you receive it. It will be beyond your wildest Star Wars dreams!!!"And lastly, but certainly not least. To the honorable Jedi Delphi, whom we deem the clear winner of this competition, we are proud to offer our premiere First Prize, the holy robes of the great hero Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi himself!"The victors bowed to the standing ovation of the crowd. All participants knew that it would be a night to remember.Baal and I want to send you prizes just for being such good sports, allowing me to use your name, etc. Malkith, Joat, Sahar, and Karte, that includes you too. My friends at Toys R’ Us have offered coupons that can be redeemed for the purchase of Star Wars Toys of your choice. I need your addresses.Especially to the heroic five, send your complete mailing address to Dianncecht@aol.comand I will mail your prizes to you immediately!Click image to see full sized version of Jedi Kett's hand made Yoda. The eyes move and blink, and the ears and mouth move as well.This site was forged in Valhalla. Achieve web immortality.1999 The Jedi Academy.Click and contact usShort Novel BelowSTAR WARS Betrayal on Coruscant A Short Novel by Deean Kett A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away… STAR WARS Episode 1.5 Betrayal on Coruscant It is a time of upset in the galaxy. The droid army of the Trade Federation, under the leadership of the Neimoidians, has been defeated on the planet of Naboo. With the Senate in arms over the recent vote of no confidence in Supreme Chancellor Valorum, news of upheaval within the Republic's governing body spreads across the galaxy. Baffled by the reappearance of the Sith, the Jedi Council votes to send a specialized reconnaissance team of individuals trained in the Force on a top secret mission…one that is hoped will provide information about this new phantom menace. A Short Novel by Deean Kett Chapter 1 As waves of heat rose from the cooling steel, the city planet of Coruscant appeared to sparkle like the inner rim of the galaxy itself. As night descended, the bustling air car traffic had begun to turn on its running lights. It was often said that Coruscant was the brightest planet in the universe. Especially at night, it was clear why it had been chosen to be the Capital of the Republic. One of its most striking landmarks was an artificial mountain of staggering proportions crowned by a holy place. Within this large no-fly zone the five spires of the Jedi Council Temple jutted into the evening sky. From the window of one such tower, Jedi Deean Kett watched pensively, his hands clasped behind him. It had been twenty-eight years since he had been brought there by his mother to be given away to the Jedi. His hand was tiny in hers and the day was filled with awe. He would have been eligible to work in the Executive Advisor Council by now had he not left his formal training fifteen years ago to pursue the life of a pilot and officer in a war that he could no longer make sense of. He sat impatiently in the waiting area, frustrated by the reality that this grand palace of knowledge would have been his home. Kett had been blacklisted by the political body and only now after many trials had regained the trust of Master Yoda. He wondered why he had been summoned here. It had been fifteen years since he turned his back on his vow to give his life for the Council. He surmised that it surely had something to do with the death of Qui Gon-Jinn, a man of legendary stature whom he recalled fondly from his childhood here. Deean sensed an approaching squire and stood to straighten his uniform. A cute boy with blue eyes entered the room. "My name is Anakin. I have been sent by Master Kenobi to inform you that the Council is ready to see you." Deean followed the boy across a richly carpeted hallway to a turbo lift. The ride was quick and the door rushed aside to reveal a glass enclosed waiting area in which two other Jedi stood, one male, the other clearly female. The three greeted each another knowingly. "So much for my vacation on Malistare with Angelicone, Baal. She is very upset with me about this. We had reservations on a deep space cruise liner and I couldn't get our money back without a heavy penalty." Deean smirked. "She told me not to come around until I could make it up to her. Well, the positive side is that it looks like the Academy finally is getting the respect we've hoped for." He smiled and shook the man's hand firmly. "We shall see soon enough. Deean, you've met my wife Jedi Keddar? Keddar, this is Deean Kett our the Academy's new Counselor." "Yes, we've met, but only briefly at that dinner for the Neimoidians." Deean greeted the beautiful woman formally. "Got any idea why we have been summoned here? Must be something serious to be this secret." "I'm thinking there's going to be some kind of trouble with the Trade Federation. Remember how rude they were over dinner that evening? Well, they declared war on Naboo while you were gone. This political situation doesn't look good to me. They were beaten, but we won't know for sure how this is gonna blow up or what it all means until the election is held. Supreme Chancellor Valorum was booted out of office and several people including Palpatine are running for the position. I'm not sure about him. You know I don't like politics, especially these days. Word has it the Sith are back. One of them killed Qui-Gon Jinn, or so I'm told. Jedi Windu summoned us here with a contingent of our best students, so it looks like we are finally going to get some action." "WAR, are you kidding? I leave town and look what happens! Sith? That's not good." Deean looked ill. Baal nodded uncomfortably. "Well, Baal, you always wished that we would get an assignment like this, looks like your wish came true." "We are never given a wish by the Force without also being given the power to make it come true. We have all worked very hard for this." A dark feeling overcame the long haired knight. Deean inhaled deeply and all three turned to face the opening chamber door. Inside Deean caught a glimpse of a room he had not seen in over a decade, the exalted Jedi Council chamber. Night had settled fully and the ocean of city lights twinkled behind the elfin Jedi Master himself, who shifted in his red chair. The smell of flowery incense filled the air. All three straightened their backs and walked into the center of circular mosaic on the floor. Jedi Mace Windu leaned over the side of his red seat, in deep conversation with the ancient master. He finished abruptly, acknowledging the three standing before them, and settled into his most noble posture. The Jedi Council members made a formidable and intimidating group. Master Windu and Yoda probed the pair with their minds. Both Deean and Baal could feel it. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Mace spoke. "Jedi Kett, you seem well preserved, although it is clear that you are traveled. I no longer sense that boyish naiveté. To what miracle do we owe this development?" "Master Windu, what is a miracle but a change in perspective?" Deean pressed his heels together and bowed, his hands buried piously within the sleeves of his robe. Mace smiled then gave a respectful nod to Baal. "Let us not waste time then." He turned to Yoda who picked up the conversation and spoke aggressively. "Clouded is the future." Other Jedi on the council whispered in agreement. "Talk of Sith we have heard, and now the death of our own." Yoda shook his head sadly. "Concerned for the future, am I." He then looked to Mace who picked up the conversation. The dark, handsome man leaned forward wisely, his hands clasped in a triangle. "We will say no more at this time other than that we have a mission for you and your students if you will take it. You will find a Corelian Republic cruiser prepared for you on hover platform twenty-seven. You will be accompanied by an astromech droid who will relay the secret coordinates of your destination to the ship's onboard navicomputor. We can say no more at this time without risking the compromise of your mission." He leaned back in his chair, exhaled deeply, then continued. "The Senate has not authorized this action and we are taking advantage of the current lapse in leadership." Pausing thoughtfully Mace continued. "We trust that you will return the ship on one piece. You know what happened to the last one. There is much distrust between this council and the Senate as a result." Jedi Kett smirked uncomfortably at Baal, then back at the masters before them. "Master Yoda, we are to agree upon a mission of which we have no understanding?" "Lost your faith have you in your travels?" Yoda looked disappointed, piercing Deean's soul with his hazel eyes. "If one begins not with right attitude, little hope is there for right outcomes." "No sir…I mean, we will do this for you…" He turned and looked to Baal who was already prepared to follow the wishes of the Council before the last word had left Mace's mouth. Yoda smiled at Baal, then closed his eyes. Jedi Mace waved his hand. "Then be gone and may the Force be with you all." Before the orange sun could paint another renowned Corsuscant sunrise, the elite students of the Academy waited patiently on platform twenty-seven for their leaders. A thousand feet beneath them a city slowly awoke. They stood in a row, their brown cloaks flailing in the fierce, warm, morning wind. Each student wore a new lightsaber, one that they had constructed that summer. It was the final lesson in their first level graduation and they had passed the trials with flying colors. Behind them rested the burgundy colored sister- ship of the one that had been destroyed by the Trade Federation weeks before. Two power droids meandered busily behind the giant landing gear. They mumbled last minute instructions to one another. "Gonk, gonk." Delphi Oracron leaned upon the rail next to a large landing light post that colored his face blue with each rhythmic flash. The young man braced himself on the pole and balanced himself precariously over the railing in order to get a better view. He strained his eyes to see far down the avenue of skyscrapers where the congested air traffic had never slowed. Jean-Luc came up from behind and peered over the railing to the abyss below. He slid the belt around his waist clockwise until a large waist pack rested over his belly. Opening it he revealed a grappling hook and several hundred meters of reinforced polymer cable. "I bet you two hundred credits that I could rappel down to that taxi platform there." Delphi scoffed at Walker's bragging. "No way, this is far higher than the valleys on Dantooine. How much cable do you have?" "At least two hundred meters." Jean-Walker was offended. Delphi responded sardonically. "Then I suggest you get back in your Z-95 Headhunter and fly home. You would get half way before you ran out of cable. I know you pride yourself on your mountain climbing skills, but this is something different." Jean-Luc began to argue just as Delphi stiffened. In the distance an air car pulled out of the traffic and headed straight for the platform. The two students ran across the tarmac shouting. "They're coming, come to attention!" The Jedi lined up at the base of the ship's steep gangway with their other schoolmates, forming a loose rank and file. They included Jedis Popocho, Flastif, Jerrah, Trad, and Methoss. Occasionally one would break military decorum by excitedly glancing to the gap in the railing where Baal's car would dock with the platform. All were very excited at the prospects of being sent on their first real mission. Within moments the yellow, elongated air taxi slid into view, magnetic binders locking it to the platform's side with a dull thump. The door slid open and Jedi Legato, Keddar and Kett emerged, stooping to clear the opening in the car's side. Behind them a green astromech droid clattered over the threshold, whistling as it rolled with a carefree gait toward the Republic cruiser. Baal and his wife acknowledged the students with a brief wave and proceeded directly up the gangway. Led by Flastif, they crowded around Deean. Popocho badgered Deean. "So, what is it? A princess need saving? A dragon need slaying? Where are we going?" Deean kept walking, "Padawan, the spiritual world is not interested in displays of power." "Come on Deean, level with us. Where are we going?" Deean pointed up the ramp to the open doorway into which Baal had ascended. "Up there!" Popocho grimaced as Delphi ribbed him. "Up there, he he he." The two friends followed the group into the ship. Popocho queried. "Deean, how come you never pick on Delphi?" Deean shook his head and narrowed his eyes playfully. "Quit complaining Popocho, Jedi Master say laugh longer, live longer." The entire entourage moved through the spacecraft's interior. Lark Keddar led the students Jean-Luc, Jerrah, Flastif, Delphi and Popocho to the cruiser's forward diplomatic salon pod. Entering through an airlock, Jean-Luc couldn't help but comment on the elegance shown by the ship's designers. The pod was engineered to house meetings held by alien Ambassadors and Republic Representatives. Popocho ran his hand along one of the plush black Rhinor leather seats and promptly sat down. It squeaked as he buckled himself in. Each followed suit and found a comfortable seat around the large aluminum table with a holographic dome in its center. Meanwhile, Deean and Baal entered the lift and ascended to the flight deck. A short hall made up of a series of doorway arches led to a cramped cockpit where two pilots wearing a flight suits performed their preflight checklist in front of large emerald view screens. The cockpit purred with electronic sentience. A blonde female on the left turned in her seat and pulled her headset down to her neck. "Hi, I'm Kess Lendra, I'll be the pilot in command of this party. This is my copilot." She motioned with her hand to her colleague. Deean braced himself between the seats, then shielded his eyes against the glare of the rising sun. Behind them the twin moons of Coruscant were setting, being nearly full. Looking out the rectangular windshield he could see the enormous skyscrapers casting gargantuan shadows of cool night into the endless alleyways a thousand feet below. For a moment he was speechless. The wonder of the natural world coupled with such monuments of human achievement could still take his breath away. The copilot, a woman with short blonde hair and a braid powerfully extended her hand. "People call me Hellflower. What's your call sign?" Deean replied, catching his own fleeting attention. "I've been called a lot of things in my life, although I prefer Deean." He smiled. "Your's is an interesting name, I'm sure there's a story there somewhere." The woman continued with her preflight chores. "I grew up in these streets, down where the enlightened laws of this city fail to show their countenance. You don't even want to know the things I have seen. Hold on a second…" She leveled the headset to her lips and keyed the microphone. "Roger platform control, Republic Cruiser Radiant Eight on the numbers with all systems go." The speakers in the ceiling sputtered a garbled reply in pilot-talk to which Hellflower responded. "Got that control, cleared for immediate takeoff outbound vector 738 yankee x-ray." Deean backed off to give them room amidst the growing noise of the engines. He had always heard about the gangs and crime on the planet core. It was widely known that the lower one descended into the city foundations, the more one risked becoming a crime statistic. He looked at Baal, who had made himself comfortable in the Flight Officers chair behind the pilots. Baal snapped his safety belt into place then spoke to his friend. "That would be your cue to sit down I think." He slapped his friend across the back as he passed. Making his way back to the empty seat at the navigator's station, the Jedi strapped himself in. He eyed the green astromech unit suspiciously as it rolled up to the interface console. A panel on its barrel-like chest sprung open and a short arm extended. The droid plugged into the central computer with a small spark and began downloading the top secret flight plan. Deean felt his ears pop as the airlock sealed and the cabin began to pressurize. Within moments the three cylindrical Dyne 577 radial atomizer engines groaned and shifted against their mounts as they activated and gained energy. A large blue flame licked the pad and the scarlet Republic cruiser gently lifted into the air. It spun gracefully then sailed through the congested traffic, soon becoming a tiny speck of white light in the morning Coruscant sky. Shortly after making the jump to light speed the students in the salon pod had kicked back to relax. Roughly an hour had passed and Delphi and Popocho played cards, while Jerrah, Jean-Luc and Flastif talked to Jedi Keddar about her space adventures. The large frame of Methoss was slumped over upon the table, the sounds of blissful sleep emanating from his crossed arms. Flastif yawned, then commented plaintively. "I'm hungry." Just then, an electronic chime sounded and everyone raised his or her heads. "Ah, that would be dinner!" His boots dropped from the table to the deck with a sound. The box on the wall spoke flatly. "Attention on deck, this is Baal. Deean and I have downloaded the secret mission orders from the R2 unit. I am requesting that we all meet at oh-eight-hundred hours in the lounge area for your mission briefing. For those of you who still can't figure out military time, Jean-Luc, that is eight o'clock, exactly fifteen minutes from now. That is all." The students all laughed at Walker who, doing a comic imitation of Baal's walk, jumped from his seat shuffled out the door. The lounge area was located in the belly of the starship adjacent to the formal dining room. Accompanied by Lark Keddar, the students helped themselves to a small ice chest and soda dispenser. They formed a semicircle when Deean and Baal came through the sliding doors. Baal addressed the group in a very serious voice. "What you are about to be told is classified Top Secret, Multiscan. By now you have all heard about the plight of brother Qui-Gon and the treachery of the Trade Federation. The rumors that you have heard regarding the Sith are true." The room filled with anxious mumbling as Baal paused for effect. "Well, fortunately Obiwan Kenobi, Qui-Gon's apprentice, dispatched the darksider, whose name we are told was Darth Maul. Now listen carefully, because this is where we get involved. Neither the Theed Guard of Queen Amidala, nor the intelligence units of the Republic have been able to retrieve this dark lord's starship. That means that it is still somewhere in the forest of Naboo, probably camouflaged. As you can imagine, it is of great interest to Master Windu and the Jedi Council that we find this thing and bring it home. Master Windu believes that this ship will provide the clues he seeks to unraveling the mystery of the Sith. If you will direct your attention to the screen on the wall, I will show you what we are looking for." Jerrah raised her hand impatiently, speaking without waiting to be called upon. "Who will fly this thing back to Coruscant?" Deean joined into the conversation. "I'm glad you asked that Jerrah. That appears to be the only reason that I am here. A manufacturer by the name of Raith Sienar is suspected to have built this starship." Deean turned to the screen and pointed a small hand-held controller. Just then a three-dimensional computer diagram of the starship emerged from the wall in green light, spinning in its vertical axis. As Deean spoke, respective areas of the ship became highlighted in red. "We believe it is an armed star courier of some kind…a Sith Infiltrator with an ion drive system, probably the works…you know, cloaking generator with a stygium crystal system, thrust trace dampers, they probably threw in the kitchen sink. I flew something very basic, but similar to this once during my work with military intelligence. Mace knows about it, that is probably the only reason I am here." Lark broke in. "I'm not clear on how is it possible that you have handled this ship before if it is so top secret?" "Oh I haven't. In fact, I haven't flown in years, but Sienar Design Systems, like all military contractors, sells to the highest bidder. While much of their work is now shrouded in mystery, I have seen their hardware in the field of battle and can, with the help of a couple of you, probably fly this thing from Naboo to Coruscant." Upon speaking those words Deean looked at Jean-Luc, Delphi and Popocho who revealed their excitement at the prospect of flying in the Sith craft. Baal piped in. "Our only other instructions were that the team who flies the Sith Infiltrator must take the R2 unit with them." Delphi looked confused. "Something doesn't make sense. So why the Academy? Why did they ask a bunch of students to do this if it is so important?" Flastif crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. "Snowflakes are one of the Force's most fragile creations, Delphi, yet look what can happen when they all stick together." Baal looked proudly at Flastif, then the students and replied. "Well put. Actually there are a couple good reasons. One, because we have a great reputation. Don't sell yourselves short. Two, because they want us to use our Force skills to locate the missing ship. We will scatter, and position ourselves throughout the forest, reporting the direction in which we each believe the ship lies. It's called "triangulation". If each of you look in the direction that your senses tell you and I draw an imaginary line from each of your noses, all lines will converge in a single point and that will be the spot we are looking for!" The room nodded in unison. This was the moment that they had trained for, and everyone knew it. "So get some rest, we will be arriving at the capital of Naboo in Theed City at fifteen-hundred. That's seven hours from now." Baal winked at Jean-Luc who smiled warmly in response to the teasing. * * * * * * * * * * Chapter 2 Five yellow Naboo starfighters intercepted the Republic cruiser at 10,000 meters altitude. After the confetti had been swept up and the official peace treaty signed with the Gungans things began to return to normal on Naboo, as they always do after a war. However, nerves were still sensitive and the Theed interceptor force was on constant alert. Deean awoke to find Methoss standing above his bed in the stateroom. "Master Kett, wake up!" Just then the entire ship shuttered as the fighters fired a volley across the bow. Deean sat up and quickly pulled his boots on. He and Methoss ran to the lift and exited onto the flight deck. The morning sun could be seen breaking through the cockpit windshield at the end of the narrow hall. They hurried to find Kess and Hellflower busily engaged with the duties of combat pilots. Hellflower shouted into her comlink. "What the hell is wrong with you idiots? Don't you know a Republic diplomatic starship when you see one? Yes, we are unarmed." The radio crackled. "Queen Amidala has no knowledge of your mission do not deviate from your course or we will destroy you." Two more flashes of laser fire sailed overhead, searing the cockpit with brilliant light. Everyone shielded their eyes from the burst. The explosions of water vapor that followed were deafening. Deean held on to the back of Kess' seat as Methoss climbed into the Flight Officer's chair. The cockpit shook violently as the radio spoke again. "Queen Amidala wishes to address your captain." Over the sound of shaking steel Deean leaned to Hellflower's ear. "Put her through!" All at once a remarkably beautiful young woman, astonishingly dressed in a deep blue nightgown appeared on the view screen. She spoke in a voice of surprising authority. "We are friends of the Jedi. To what credit do we owe a surprise visit, Commander?" Appearing from nowhere, Baal pushed Deean aside. "Let me handle this my friend." He addressed the view screen before him. "We are here to discuss matters regarding the death of Qui-Gon Jinn. It is in the interest of all of us that our diplomatic mission proceed. We wish to seek audience with you, your highness." "Then I will expect to see you at my breakfast table. I cordially invite you and your entourage to join me at seven o'clock." The screen went blank before Baal could reply. Methoss leaned over and whispered into Deean's ear. "She was beautiful. What I wouldn't give to…" Deean adjusted his brown cloak, interrupting the young man. "Beware Methoss, only age and time can make a real woman. That was a child." Methoss disagreed, kidding playfully. "Child or not my heart almost leapt out of my chest." Deean grinned. "Regrettably, it is desire itself with which we are often in love." Hellflower chuckled in her seat, continuing with her landing checklist while she cynically mumbled to herself. "You forgot the importance of experience. It takes experience to make a woman out of a girl. Trust me on that one." Kess turned to her copilot and in her most burlesque voice cooed. "Sister, only a real MAN can make a real woman." The two laughed knowingly. Deean put his arm around Methoss guiding him out of the cockpit and back to the lift. "Come now my friend, before this deteriorates further." The Naboo starfighters broke formation, permitting the crimson diplomatic shuttle to enter the cliffside hangar. Collateral damage was evident from the earlier battle with the Federation droid army. As the cool shadows of the hangar swallowed the starship, the students of the Academy readied themselves in the lounge area. Deean entered the room swiftly with Methoss and addressed the entire crew, Jerrah, Trad, Flastif, Delphi, Popocho, Jean-Luc. All right, listen up you space pirates. Let's all be on our best behavior. That means you Popocho and any one else here with the table manners of a Bantha. Do not address the queen unless she addresses you first. That includes asking her out on a date." Methoss made a performance of frowning. Deean scratched his bearded chin, then looked at Baal. "Are there any other protocol details I forgot?" Baal shook his head. "That should just about cover it, Deean. Keddar, I want you to stay here with the ship in case any transmissions come in from the Jedi Council." Keddar nodded. Delphi licked his lips. "Master Flastif, can we eat now?" Flastif smiled broadly. "After me, rank has privilege!" Deean rolled his eyes and the entire group made their way down the ramp and into the hangar where Darth Maul had engaged the Jedi mere weeks before. The men made small talk with their welcoming party, which included Captain Panaka. However, Baal, Deean and Flastif felt the Force so strongly that they turned their heads simultaneously toward the entrance to the city power core where Qui-Gon had died. The experience shook Deean deeply and it took considerable discipline for him to regain his composure. He tuned back into the conversation in time to hear Panaka offer his hospitality. "Follow me, this way." The Academy's finest followed the team of Theed guards into the palace itself. Methoss commented to Trad about the blaster marks on the walls and columns where fighting had clearly taken place. The group walked through several different halls with endless painted ceilings and romantic arches. After a long walk on burgundy carpet two sentries pulled open a pair of hinged doors that were over 10 meters in height. A long set table including an ice sculpture, flowers, and foods of every variety greeted their eyes. The table was set formally and the smell of exotic coffees wafted on the air. Deean and Baal lingered long enough to be outside the hearing range of the guards, then approached Flastif. Baal whispered to him quietly. "While we're eating breakfast Deean and I want you to go to the power recycler core and check out the spot where Qui-Gon was killed. Both of us are getting very powerful vibes from that place. Be careful. Take Jerrah, Methoss and Jean-Luc with you. Be quick about it, we'll try to keep the queen and her guards occupied over breakfast as long as we can. Go now!" Flastif summoned Methoss, Jerrah and Jean-Luc with his mind and excused himself from the gathering, feigning an important call from the ship. "If you'll excuse us, Jedi Keddar needed help with the onboard computer." Panaka offered to walk them back to the cruiser, but they insisted that they could find their way and quickly vanished down the hallway. Mildly influenced by Baal's mind manipulation, the guards directed the remaining Jedi to their seats and remained in the room. A silver droid walked around the table filling the china cups with aromatic brew while the entire dinner party awaited the arrival of the queen. Flastif, Methoss, Jerrah and Jean-Luc quickly made their way through the maze of hallways to the hangar where the large Republic cruiser was parked. Looking up, Jerrah saw at least a dozen yellow Naboo starfighters hanging from the rafters in launch position. Flastif radioed Keddar and requested a diversion. She walked down the ship's ramp and summoned help from the hangar crew who turned their backs on the Jedi to offer their assistance. Taking their cue, the group ran into the adjacent hangar, which led to the power core control room. The control box that opened the doors was smashed and the doors were stuck open. Probably the work of Maul, Flastif thought. The power station was an immaculately clean and monstrous machine inside. The narrow walkways were made of black steel, which shined in the light of columns of white energy. All of the Jedi could feel the battle than had taken place here between Darth Maul, Obiwan and Qui-Gon Jinn. The crisp smell of ozone filled the air as a hot breeze blew out of the bottomless pit to caress the expansive catwalks. Flastif pointed to a distant height. There a towering walkway fed into a dark entrance. The Force was very strong and everyone immediately knew that Qui-Gon had entered never to exit again. Methoss found a thin steel stairway that circled the round chamber and led lift that would get them there. Quietly, the entire group made their way up the precarious steps and into the maintenance lift. When the gate opened they walked to the place where Qui-Gon had breathed his last. Meanwhile, back at breakfast, the morning sun hung low in a blue, cloudless sky. The entire scene was like a fairy tale. From his seat at the table Deean stared out the window. He found it hard to believe that he wasn't dreaming the entire affair. All at once Captain Panaka shouted. "All rise for Her Royal Highness, Queen Amidala!" The group stood as formally as they could muster. With much pomp and circumstance Delphi's chair stuck in the shag carpet and fell loudly backwards. His jaw dropped and he shot Baal and Deean an embarrassed look. Baal ignored him and Deean smirked. The Queen walked past the chair as though nothing had happened, much more painted than she had been in her morning transmission. Popocho found himself wondering if she actually slept in that gorgeous blue nightgown. Now, her face was painted solid white, with Naboo markings. Her gown must surely have weighed more than she did and Deean felt a little sorry for her. She stopped at the head of the table and two servants pulled out her chair for her. She sat gracefully with complete faith and confidence that her chair would be there. Looking directly at Baal she spoke in a monotone voice that Deean could sense was a diplomatic formality. "I owe much to the Jedi. How can we be of assistance to you this morning?" Baal set his coffee cup onto a saucer. "We're looking for a spaceship in the forest, a secret weapon that was part of the Trade Federation invasion force. All we need from you is a landspeeder that can clear the tree tops so that we can drop our people out there." Deean listened carefully while eyeing a ripe orange in a large silver bowl of fruit. Without knowing why he picked an apple instead, polishing the bright red fruit on his sleeve. Watching the queen's response to Baal, he bit into the apple. It tasted strange, so he looked at the apple in his hand, finding its core to be writhing with worms. With an enormous amount of composure, he spit into his napkin. His thoughts turned to Jean-Luc for reasons unexplained. The beautiful and stately young woman paused for a minute, perhaps acknowledging Deean's strange behavior, then responded. "Your request is easy to fulfill, Baal. However I must inform you that you are not the first to come looking for whatever it is that you seek. In the past week my fighters have heroically destroyed two separate intruding spacecraft with Tatooine markings, one in Huttese. I think it is time that the Republic informed me what this is all about." Back at the power generator Flastif, Methoss, Jean-Luc and Jerrah stood on the edge of the power-recycling pit where Qui-Gon had died. The field generator switches had been turned off allowing for easy access and the group had no problem attaining their goal. Staring into the black pit where Maul had fallen in severed halves, Flastif somberly addressed the group. "Now would be a good time for a Jedi platitude, if anyone has one." Flastif tilted his head to the side and inhaled deeply. He looked at the others and cautiously asked. "Ever so faint. Do you smell that?" "Smell what?" Jerrah inquired. "Smells like a rat crawled somewhere and died." Flastif's eyes lit up. "Or fell somewhere and died!" "Tell me you're not thinking what I'm thinking," Jean-Luc pleaded. "Even if you are, there is no way to get down there." Jean-Luc immediately realized that what he had said was untrue. He was a mountain climber of the highest degree, scaling the cliffs of Dantooine for the sheer thrill of it. Rappelling down the wall of an oversized pipe would be child's play, he knew it. He just wasn't keen on the idea of finding the corpse of a dead Sith warrior. Within half an hour Jean-Luc Walker found himself at the end of a spiders web dangling two hundred meters into the depths of hell. Since the power had been turned off, the chasm was pitch black inside. Jerrah had fastened the grappling hook firmly to a handrail on the surface and slowly, Jean-Luc lowered himself into the darkness. His skin bristled with the presence of evil and the smell of Maul's severed corpse was unbearable. Although the shaft seemed bottomless, there was no longer any doubt that some part of Darth Maul had become impaled on a protuberance in the tunnel's side. Jean-Luc's grip slipped and he fell a meter before catching himself. He bounced, then kicked the steel wall with a thud. A cloud of flies engulfed him and he struggled to hold back a wave of vomit. "Oh Gods, this sucks! Something is down here." Flastif, Jerrah and Methoss peered down into the shaft, they had long since lost site of Jean-Luc to the inky blackness below. All at once they heard a sickening snap and saw the cable sail into the air like a squirming snake, settling to hang loosely over the side of the pit. Flastif gasped and put his hands to his face and shouted. "YOU OKAY DOWN THERE?" There was no reply. Jerrah quickly switched on her pocket comlink. "Jean-Luc, what happened? Can you hear us?" Jean-Luc couldn't hear his own breath over the sound of his beating heart. He had run out of cable, falling a full two meters in total darkness only to land on a narrow ledge. With his fingers he groped in the dark, feeling a sharp spike that nearly killed him where he landed. The palm of his hand tingled and he knew that he had been seriously cut. He closed his fist and felt the sticky blood and sliding skin, making him wince. Locating his communicator, which cried with Jerrah's voice, Jean-Luc replied. "Yeh, I'm fine I think. I just ran out of cable. Cut my hand pretty badly though. Hold on while I find my flashlight." He located the hand held device then switched it on. "AHHHHHHHHHH!" Jean-Luc heard the scream before he realized it had come from his own throat. The rotten face of Darth Maul stared at him from sunken eye sockets. A cloud of flies filled the air as the dark lord's cheeks squirmed from the maggots that now poured from his broken mouth. Maul's upper body somehow had wedged itself behind the short rail lining the narrow ledge. Jean-Luc panicked. "GET ME OUT OF HERE!" He shined his flashlight up the shaft, only to find the cable far out of reach. Collecting himself, he realized at once that his only hope would be the iron grate behind his back from which he felt a draft of air. Pulling his lightsaber from his belt he ignited it and cut the rusted bolts clear with a shower of sparks. The violet and fuchsia blade retracted, and the rusted airshaft cover fell into the pit, clanking for another thirty seconds as it fell. Jean-Luc held the comlink to his mouth. "I guess I'm going to be leaving here a different way than I got in. This really stinks. Now that I'm down here what do you want me to do, Flastif?" The speaker in Jean-Luc's hand crackled and spoke. "Check the body for any identification or clues to the Sith. Field strip him!" Jean-Luc answered angrily. "Great idea, you want me to frisk half of a dead guy in the dark. I will never forgive you jerks for this! You guys had better find out where this shaft goes and get back to me. I'll wait right here…and hurry the hell up! This guy is gonna make me spew!" He switched off his flashlight to conserve batteries. All he could smell was the larvae of the flies as they feasted on Maul's liquidating flesh. Jedi Flastif, Methoss and Jerrah looked visibly shaken as they emerged into the hangar without Jean-Luc. They had not but entered the hangar from the power generator when Deean, Baal, Trad, Delphi and Popocho returned from breakfast. They converged at the ramp leading into the Republic cruiser. Trad eagerly shared the success of their diplomatic meeting. "They're giving us a landspeeder and a bunch of speeder bikes to find the Sith Infiltrator!" Flastif looked white, the color had drained from his cheeks. Deean and Baal feared the worst. Without any spirit he replied. "We lost Walker in the shaft." * * * * * * * * * * Chapter 3 Jean-Luc carefully walked down the center of the pipe, gently talking to himself in order to ward off the demons of his imagination. His efforts at adding levity to the situation were failing. "Adventure, excitement, a Jedi craves not these things," he told himself sarcastically. In one hand he held a comlink, and in the other a flashlight. The pipe into which he crawled had fortunately widened from the girth of a coffin, to the manageable height of his shoulders. The tunnel he found himself in was just short enough so that he could never stand up fully. Walking this way for the last hour had given him a pinching back pain. From the comlink, the voice of Deean instructed him slowly. "Okay, now turn left…no, turn right…okay now left". Back in the lounge of the Republic cruiser, Baal sat cross-legged on the floor in a deep state of meditation. Intermittently he would speak directions to Deean who shouted them into a communication device. The entire entourage of Jedi stood around him looking anxious. All at once Baal interrupted his trance and opened his eyes. "I sense someone else! HOLY MACKERAL, HE'S NOT ALONE DOWN THERE!" Without provocation Jean-Luc's flashlight went black. He stopped walking in the pitch darkness and banged on it with his fist. "Shit!" All at once a red lightsaber lit up the pipe. Instantly Walker kicked the attacker in the face, making him stumbled backwards. This bought him enough time to ignite his own sword. The light of both swords cast a hellish purple glow onto the tunnel walls. Jean-Luc saw the face of his opponent. Darth Swaney laughed, then lunged with speed and precision, driving Walker backward in the ankle deep water. Back in the ship everyone crowded around Deean's communicator from which the sounds of a lightsaber duel emerged. Everyone was shocked to the point of paralysis. Baal grabbed the comlink from Deean's hand. "WALKER, WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON DOWN THERE?" There was no response. Walker's communicator was floating in wastewater where he had dropped it. The young man ran as fast as he could with Darth Swaney in hot pursuit. He was in a total panic, cursing as he ran. Everything had just happened too quickly. He decided that he would turn and face the mysterious darksider, but was counting on a better, more open section of pipe in which to fight. All at once, his wish came true. The tunnel came to an end, but where steel bars had once obscured the opening, a gaping passage welcomed him where someone had cut them away. He leapt through the hole and landed in a large underground cavern through which a rushing underground river flowed. The only light was provided by his saber blade, which reflected violet off the choppy, roaring water. He barely had time to turn around on the wet gravel when Darth Swaney sailed through the opening, his saber swinging. The darksider spit at him. "You will never find the scroll. We have sacrificed too many lives to let you walk in here and take it!" Walker was completely clueless, he attempted to reason with the dark warrior. "I have no idea what you are talking about, what scroll, what do you mean?" Both men stood face to face at saber's length, for a moment they searched one another with the Force. Walker could feel the telltale tingle inside his head. Like lightning Swaney launched a volley of saber strikes, all of which Jean-Luc repelled. He had the moral high ground. There was no reason to be attacked like this. Darth Swaney paused, then laughed. "If you are going to play dumb with us, then we will cut it from you!" Walker thought to himself. "WE?" Then, from the opening in the pipe grate, darksider Lizerd Mot'e emerged, hissing. "Jedi scum!" Two darksiders were more than Jean-Luc was willing to face alone in the damp and unfamiliar cave. Lizerd jumped down onto the cavern floor and lit his saber. The two slowly advanced toward Jean-Luc, who backed away toward the underground river. He could not imagine what the darksiders were talking about, but found their single- mindedness unsettling. The two leapt at him with the intent of cutting him to pieces. Wise enough to seek better odds, Walker dove into the cold waters of the rushing river. The freezing current tore at his body as it quickly swept him away from the dark bank where the students of the Sith were standing. He saw them fade into the distance as he was speeded by frigid waters into the cold heart of the mountain. He swam as best he could, but the unrelenting arms of the current soon pulled him under. Early afternoon was unfolding upon the glorious Theed Palace, a structure conceived upon a breathtaking cliff that offered a vista unknown to any capital city in the galaxy. Somewhere beneath this magnificent building, a flock of birds gently entered a misty cloud of water vapor that marked the cave opening where over twenty million liters per second of fresh water poured into the sunlight, falling a thousand feet to the bottomless lake below. At two o'clock in the morning Jedi Deean Kett awoke to a nightmare and made his way down to the galley of the Republic cruiser to fix something to eat. There, he found Baal Legato sitting at the circular dining room table in his boxer shorts. Everyone else, save the two men, were in their staterooms presumably sleeping. Deean poured himself a cup of hot nerf milk. Baal spoke. "That stuff will clog your arteries you know." "Angelicone is a nerf herder on Alderaan. She grew up on a farm out in the middle of nowhere. It's not on any map; true places never are. I've been spending a lot of time there lately. It is so nice out there." "I love the country too." "Yeh. I try to be a vegetarian, but I will never give up cheese or milk. She swears that it will give me strong teeth and a shiny coat." Both men laughed as Deean pulled a chair and sat down. "Thinking about Walker, huh?" "Yeh, I've never lost one before. Who knows what he ran into down there. I just can't get it out of my mind. What do you suppose we are up against here?" Just then Kess Lendra entered the room. She looked cranky, as though someone had interrupted her sleep. "You guys won't believe this. That broad, the queen-child, wants to see you." Both men looked up from their drinks. Baal replied without inflection. "Well, tell her we'll see her at breakfast." Kess shook her head from side to side. "No, I mean she is here to see you now! She is at the foot of the ramp." Deean sprung from his seat and ran a hand over his facial stubble. "Damn. Okay, tell her we're coming. I need to shave first." A quiet voice projected from the hall behind Kess. "That won't be necessary gentlemen." Kess pressed her back against the wall to let the short matriarch through. Deean and Baal rose to a stately attention. Baal was the first to speak, slightly annoyed at literally being caught with his pants down. "How can we help you your highness?" The girl looked upset, her beautiful face contorted into a frown. "You can begin by explaining why my people are finding dead Jedi floating in the rivers." Baal betrayed his concern as well as his deception. "He's DEAD?" "So you do know about it? Well, he's not dead really, but he is unconscious, we are holding him at the infirmary. A fisherman pulled him from the base of a waterfall. We barely saved his life." Deean and Baal stared at each other in astonishment. Then Deean broke the silence. "Queen Amidala, we don't understand what is happening here aside from what we've told you already. If you take us to Jean-Luc we may find the answers you are looking for." The queen had a pure soul, plagued to be a leader in a time of turmoil. It was clear that she was barely convinced, but after a moment of pained thought she led the men to a convertible speeder that waited in the courtyard at the base of two dozen steps. There, under a starlit sky they sped off down the avenue to the hospital only to find Walker unconscious and badly injured. Amidala stood next to Baal on one side of the bed and Deean on the other. Walkers breath labored under an oxygen mask. Amidala commented aloud. "He looks terrible." Baal replied. "At the Academy we teach the Jedi that experience is seldom a gentle master. However it is, we believe, the best one." Deean turned to the medical droid who had been charged with Jean-Luc's care. "Did you find anything in his possession?" A medical droid spoke in a comforting voice that sounded like it was emanating from the bottom of a glass jar. "We found only these two things, a computer chip, and an electronic key." Amidala looked confused. "What are those for?" The mechanical hand extended and Deean snatched the contents. "Jackpot!" He held the key into the air and joked. "Daddy Maul, can I borrow the car tonight?" Baal laughed. "And the computer chip?" Deean shrugged his shoulders. "Your guess is as good as mine, but I promise you the answer is to be found in Maul's starship!" Queen Amidala looked tired. She scratched her head and spoke in her most official sounding voice. "Then I shall order that you receive all the help you need in the morning to find that ship. I am putting my trust in you. Promise me I won't find any more Jedi floating face down in our rivers." Baal and Deean both bowed. "We give you our word." * * * * * * * * * * Chapter 4 It was another beautiful morning and the sky had nary a cloud. Methoss delighted in flying over the treetops. From his vantage point atop the sleek speeder bike he could see the entire forest canopy. In the far distance Trad Davin banked sharply and settled his bike into an assigned clearing. Popocho and Delphi rode tandem, gently gliding their bike to a smooth landing on top of a green hill in the vicinity of the great battle of Naboo. Elsewhere, Jerrah hopped from her bike in a misty fog at the edge of a swamp. The entire group pulled their comlinks from their pockets and checked in. "Trad here at position alpha." "Delphi here at position bravo." "Jerra at checkpoint charlie." "Methoss signing in at delta." Deean, Baal and Flastif rode in a metallic blue skycar with a large laser cannon on the rear. Flastif drove the vehicle while Baal and Deean flattened out a large map of the forest floor. Baal spoke into his comlink. "Okay, alpha check in." Trad clasped an electronic compass in his hand, closed his eyes and extended his arm like the hand of a clock. Slowly he turned his body, his brown cloak winding around him. He sensed a strong disturbance in the Force. All at once he stopped, opened his eyes and looked down the length of his arm. He found himself pointing directly to the heart of the forest. Looking at the compass in his hand he read the azimuth aloud into his comlink. "One hundred and ten degrees southeast." One by one the others checked in similarly. Each time Deean would draw a black line on the map. As they had hoped, all lines converged roughly on a single point in the forest. Deean etched the map deeply. "X marks the spot!" Baal took the comlink from Deean. "Looks like we've found it boys and girls. Your senses have served you well, you all get an "A" for the semester. We'll meet you back at the ship. Tell Kess and Hellflower to prepare to leave." Within fifteen minutes the three men were at the proper geocoordinates. As soon as the numbers matched up the geolocator alarm pulsated loudly. Deean and Baal leaned over sides of the craft to see if they could find Maul's spaceship. Baal was the first to see it, haphazardly covered in a large camouflage net. In spite of Maul's attempt at hiding his ship, the gray arrowhead shape was clearly visible in the forest. Soon, Baal, Flastif and Deean stood beneath the rectangular exhaust vents. The hatch was closed and the ship looked asleep, except for a small red light that flashed to indicate that the security device was active. Flastif turned to Deean. "We have to be careful. It might be booby trapped." Deean nodded. "You are right. Here you open it." The Jedi handed Flastif the black key, who looked at Deean like he was crazy. Deean smirked. "Flastif, don't take your life so seriously. You'll never make it out alive." Flastif begrudgingly approached the craft, which suddenly looked, to him, like a gigantic spider. He shuddered in its shadow, eyeing a small access panel near the door where it looked like the key might fit. Deean and Baal held their breath as Flastif raised the smooth black device to the slot. It seemed to fit perfectly. Flastif pushed it in. A loud tone was heard and the three men jumped. The ship swallowed the key, a motor powered latch was heard and the light turned green. Suddenly, the key popped back out and the hatch began to lower with a hydraulic hiss. The men smiled at one another as the ramp telescopically unfolded coming to rest gently on the moss covered earth. The ship glowed red inside. Flastif was the first to step onto the ramp. No sooner had his foot touched it that a "Dark Eye" probe flew out of the ship's interior like a black fly. Before it even registered consciously, Flastif's saber launched from his belt, cutting it cleanly in half. It landed in shattered pieces against the trunk of a tree. Deean exhaled deeply, laughing uncomfortably. "Flastif, I can only move like that after my first cup of coffee in the morning." The three men made their way into the craft , and one by one rode the lift to the flight deck. Deean seated himself at the ship's controls. He pulled a lever to his right and the hatch quickly closed, startling Baal who uttered an expletive. Sliding the key into another slot the entire panel before them lit up like a Christmas tree in a large arc. One by one, each screen sprang to life, scrolling data in numbers and geometric patterns. Baal shook his head. "This must be our lucky day gentlemen. I would say our mission is accomplished." The entire group of Jedi waited anxiously in the Theed hangar for the arrival of the Sith Infiltrator. They were not disappointed. It was an intimidating beast that roared like a lion under Deean's piloting. It circled the sky like a hornet, then gently ducked into the hangar. It's landing gear reached out like the feet of a bird of prey, steadying the arrowhead-shaped ship as it settled down next to the Republic cruiser. Hellflower looked out the right cockpit window of the cruiser and the words fell from her mouth. "As caffeine is my copilot, I can't believe they found it." Queen Amidala and Captain Panaka joined the spectators. Several Theed pilots and numerous security personnel were ogling over the distinctive design of the Sienar Fleet Systems top secret ship. Before the engines could wind down, the ramp extended and the three Jedi exited. They met with Amidala between the two ships. Baal extended his hand to Panaka, while speaking to the queen. "We are very grateful for your help and will gladly share any insight we discover, as soon as it becomes available." "The Jedi have been good to the people of Naboo. My security officers will look forward to a full report, Jedi Legato. In the meanwhile we shall take good care of Jean- Luc Walker until he can be transported." The queen replied. Deean bowed to the queen and her guard. "If you will excuse me, I must prepare the Infiltrator for our return journey to Coruscant." He joined Delphi and Popocho who were already carrying their belongings to the Sith Infiltrator. "Make sure you load that green R2 unit on-board." Popocho hesitated. "Excuse me master for asking, but what will we be needing the droid for?" "Beats me, my friend, I'm just following instructions. He probably has some intelligence program onboard that will enable him to do unique repairs on this kind of ship once we are spaceborne." Deean pulled the black computer chip from his pocket and tossed it to the young man. "Guard that with your life, we'll try to figure out what it is for on the way." After saying goodbye to his friend Baal and the other passengers of the Republic cruiser, Deean ducked into the Sith Infiltrator. The lift door opened to the flight deck where Deean found Delphi, Popocho, and Trad buckled in. The Jedi Master laughed. "I didn't know you were joining us Trad, but I guess you can take Walker's place." Deean sat in the pilot's seat, his hands sweeping over the controls like piano keys. "Welcome aboard gentlemen, what you got here is a real live piece of haunted hardware. So, sit back, buckle in, pay attention. Be prepared for the unexpected! Remember, readiness for anything prepares one for everything." The green R2 unit whistled and tooted like a bird. The two ships gently lifted off, cleared the hangar and launched into the sky. With the swamp world of Naboo growing ever smaller behind them, Deean's thoughts turned to resuming his vacation with Angelicone. Everyone looked forward to an uneventful flight back to Coruscant. Shortly after jumping to light speed, Deean swiveled Maul's seat one hundred and eighty degrees. Thus, he joined the other passengers who sat in a circle, each facing a cylindrical column in the center of the flight deck. Upon this column was a clear dome, a sort of holographic communication device. Trad found a button that flipped open a seamless compartment beneath the rim of the center column. A small spot was evident into which Trad placed his finger. "I wonder what this hole is for?" Popocho jumped from his seat. "I know. Let me see if the computer chip fits!" He fell to his knees and pulled the chip from his pocket. It snapped perfectly into the key-shaped slot. The globe lit up with a beautiful neon blue light. Everyone jumped back as a life-sized bust of Darth Sidious materialized. He began to speak, having a conversation with Darth Maul, who's replies could only be heard as whispers. Deean put his feet up and adjusted his seat so that he could relax and watch the show. Trad inquired. "Who is that old fart? He looks like Palpatine. That's not Palpatine…or is it?" Deean looked at Popocho. "How come I can't hear anything? Where is the volume knob?" Popocho reached under the console and the room filled with the deep and intimidating voice of Darth Sidious and Darth Maul. As the conversation unfolded, the crew of the ship stared in awe. They couldn't believe what they were hearing… Sidious: "So, the great Yoda has turned to the dark side then. This cannot be so." Maul: "Yes Master, it appears to be true. He has sent a reconnaissance team under the leadership of one Jedi Master who goes by the name "Wellfriend." Their secret mission was to locate the Sith Scrolls of Nexus…a map depicting the darkest place in the galaxy, a place flowing with a spring of evil so dark that no good can dwell there." Sidious: "You speak of a legend, my apprentice." Maul: "It is not a legend, Master. The manuscript is real, I had it in my hands. Jedi Wellfriend stole it before I could inspect it. I know that this man has since betrayed his master, having tasted of the power. Sidious: "What does the Jedi Council think about this turncoat and his little suicide mission? The little elf does nothing without approval of the entire committee." Maul: "I have captured and tortured three of them to death. I can assure you, Master, from the dying accounts of those Jedi, the Council knows nothing of Yoda's treacherous plans. He sent them out for purely selfish motives." Sidious: "And the others, have they found this mystical place?" Maul: "Only one has the scroll, but I will find him. Sidious: "So they are Jedi then?" Maul: "No my Master. If they ever were Jedi they are disciples of the dark now. That much I know for certain. Sidious: "Yes...when you believe the galaxy is evil, it becomes inevitable that evil is all you will find. You must locate these amateurs and kill them all. You are my only apprentice." Maul: "I will return to Coruscant after destroying Qui-Gon Jinn and Obiwan Kenobi. There, I will seek out and kill the most dangerous of these renegade darksiders, the one who has stolen my property. Sidious: "You serve me well. I must go now. The Senate is about to hold a debate on this upcoming historic vote. I don't want to miss it." Maul: "Forever your humble servant." The bust of Darth Sidious vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Deean was speechless. The students looked at him, hoping that he would say something that could restore their shattered faith. It was soon clear that Deean was equally shocked by what he had heard. Yoda betraying the Jedi. He felt the need to say something, anything to stop the suffering felt by all. He stared beyond the far wall and mumbled. "Such is the danger of uncovering secrets…once revealed, forever they change your destiny." After what seemed like a long stretch of silence Delphi looked perplexed. "Master Deean, something doesn't make sense to me. Why would Yoda want us to bring this ship back to the Jedi Council? It seems to me that this information would doom him to being found out. Surely he knows that Maul was picking off his agents one by one!" The Jedi Master snapped out of his daze and thought about Delphi's remark. "That is a very good question. What role do we play in this, I wonder." Deean pulled on his chin and paced the floor while the three students looked on with anxiety in their eyes. Deean asked aloud. "What would you do if you were Yoda and you knew that somewhere the truth about your evil deeds was recorded in the memory banks of Darth Maul's starship?" Trad rose to his feet while waving his hand. "I know, I know. I would have some damn fools find it and fly it into space with a thermal detonator whereupon I would blow it to smithereens!" A cold chill crept up everyone's back. Popocho looked at Deean in a panic. "Don't look at me. I don't have a thermal detonator on me!" Delphi abruptly stood and opened his robe, the same one that he had won in the lightsaber tournament. "Me neither!" All at once the truth became clear to everyone. Deean's jaw dropped open. "We've been set up." Slowly Deean, Trad, Delphi and Popocho turned their heads and looked at the innocently beeping green R2 unit…a droid who, within his cylindrical body contained a one megaton thermonuclear detonator set to go off in exactly three seconds. * * * * * * * * * * Chapter 5 Baal could not trace its source, but there was an extraordinary amount of concern in the darkened room of the Jedi High Council chamber. As though they had not heard his words, they asked him to deliver the last part of his report again. He cleared his throat and spoke once more, this time the way an adult speaks to a child, with the intent of being understood. "Deean never came out of light speed. It is possible that the ship had some sort of self-destruct mechanism. I just don't know at this time, it has been over twenty- four hours." Mace grilled him. "Was he piloting the craft alone?" Baal Legato looked down to the floor. This was painful to him, "No, no. He wasn't. I lost three of my best students…they vanished with him." Just then Baal felt the level of disturbance skyrocket. His eyes darted upwards toward the source just in time to see Yoda wince. Jedi Master Ki Adi-Mundi noticed as well and turned his conical head to look at Yoda. In his most comforting voice he gently spoke. "I sense that they came to foul play as well. It is probable that they have died as Baal suggests." He paused, then spoke in the direction of Baal. "I remind you all that we are warriors before we are monks. People die in the service of higher good. The Republic is grateful for their sacrifice." Yoda interrupted. "Sad are your tidings, Baal. Think on them we will." He turned his face to his friend Mace Windu, who disappointedly shook his head. "I have no further questions. I agree with Master Adi-Mundi. We have no idea what was on that Sith Infiltrator." Windu replied. Yoda looked exasperated. His last words to Baal were not so much a command as they were a release of breath. The aged master looked exhausted. "Valiant are your men. Proud must you be." Baal didn't stir. Yoda looked at Windu, then Adi-Mundi, then returned his gaze to Baal. "Go you may, finished are you with your mission. " The entire grim scene was rapidly becoming a memory beneath the spinning lights of the lowlife Coruscant disco "The Dungeon". It was Hellflower's favorite hangout, and with the help of Kess Lendra and Sahrin, she literally dragged poor Baal out of his quarters, shouting "Ladies night out!" all the way to her speeder. Even so, he didn't share their enthusiasm that a change of environment would cheer him up. Baal felt the alcohol begin to dance with his senses, so he shoed away the bar droid, a six- legged platform with various arms and bottles circling an ice chest. He strained to look at Hellflower mostly because of the dim flashing light and thick smoke of the alleyway bar. "I just can't believe that they are dead. Deean was a good friend. Something is not right about any of this. I smell a rat." Kess returned from the dance floor, sweating from dancing. Sahrin laughed and joked. "Those Jedi senses are as keen as ever. I smell one too!" Kess wiped her hand across her forehead and looked at Sahrin blankly. "Say what? What is everyone giggling about?" Giving up, she put her arm around their beleaguered schoolmaster. "Baal. Life is often filled with sorrow and conflict until we know the ways of the Force, whose course may be confusing our egos." Sahrin queried Baal. "Yeh, I mean can we even be certain that they are dead? I mean maybe they just had some engine trouble." Baal shook his head shouting over the music. "No, not Deean. If they had trouble they would have contacted us by now." Hellflower protested. "Would they now? Tell me Baal, what do all little boys do when they feel scared or get into trouble?" He looked up. "Fight?" She shook her blonde head. "Come on, Baal, it's Hellflower you're talking to here not a bunch of guys in a locker room." She waited for a moment, but Baal was unresponsive. "Since you are having difficulty with this I will answer it for you." Baal smirked in response to the narcissistic injury. "This should be good. It always is when you get on one of your diatribes." Hellflower captured the attention of everyone at the table. "Okay, listen up. I used to date this guy named Dash. He was a total babe, but all true roses have thorns you know? Now, we were a real hot item except for the fact that he had this strange fetish for non-human species. Well, to make a long story short, we broke up when he started dating this whacked out insect chick. But you can bet the story doesn't end there!" "It never does, Hell." Baal rolled his eyes and everyone at the table laughed. "No…this is my life you know? So who does he call at three o'clock in the morning when it turns out that dinner-and-a-movie means that he is on the menu? "Let me guess…you?" Baal was playing along. "ME! That's right…so there I was, the neighbors are threatening to call the cops. Dash is trapped in this cocoon thing. I was beating the slime out of this tramp, which wasn't easy because she had an exoskeleton and…" Baal looked up from his drink. "Is there a point to this?" Hellflower looked self-satisfied. She put her arms behind her head and leaned back in the seat. "Well, yeh, there you have it. That is where Deean is." "Wait a minute. So you're telling me that Deean was eaten by a sexy alien?" Baal scratched his head. "And you are the founder of the great Jedi Academy? Geesh! No! What I am saying is that I don't care how great a nomad Deean thinks that he is. As the saying goes, the secret of a woman's charms is lying in your mothers arms. At the first sign of real trouble, all boys run to and hide behind their girlfriend's skirts." Sahrin and Kess laughed hysterically. Baal stood up to leave. "That is the most preposterous piece of feminist crap I have yet heard come out of your mouth. Deean is a great warrior, believe me, coddling with his girlfriend is the last place you will find him." Elsewhere in time, across the galaxy, a large set of lock cutters pinched a steel padlock. Quietly, it snapped and fell from the enormous barn door, which it had secured. In the kitchen of the small farmhouse in the Alderaan countryside, Deean placed his hands on Angelicone's hips and kissed her. "Fuzzynose, that was delicious. No one microwaves frozen pizza the way you do. You have a true appreciation for the fine art of late night snacking." Delphi wiped his mouth and laid his napkin down, joking. "You two stop that! It's not fair to have dessert unless you brought something for everyone." Deean walked to where Delphi sat and cleared away his dishes. "If anyone here deserves dessert that would be Trad." Everyone laughed. "By the time I realized you had pulled your saber that droid hit the deck in two pieces." Trad walked to the counter where a cardboard pizza box lay. "Speaking of two pieces, can I have another?" "Help yourself." Angelicone said through a smile. Then she put her hands in her hands on her pockets and directed a question to Deean. "So, Bunny, how long do I have to hide that ugly thing in my barn? The nerfs are out grazing right now, but when Winter comes I need to herd them indoors." Deean set the dishes into the sink and stared into the drain in deep thought. He slowly turned and looked at the group sitting at the table. "Well, not a moment longer. I have decided what I am going to do." "What adventure are we off to now? Tell us Deean." Popocho asked. "I must go alone this time. I plan to confront Yoda…If he admits to betrayal, and he will have to, I will separate his head from his shoulders. This is a matter between warriors now." Angelicone looked worried. "You mean kill him? Isn't that dangerous? You will be killed for sure! You might as well hold up a gun shop!" "Yeh, Deean. What are you saying?" Delphi was upset. "Betrayal is one of the most serious things a person can do to another, Padawan. I want to ask him what happened, and if the answer is not satisfactory I will kill him on the spot. The Jedi are an honorable people. What has transpired here is simply unacceptable. He nearly killed four people for his own selfish gain. That will not stand." Trad chimed in. "I think Deean is right. If we hadn't viewed that recording we wouldn't have learned of Yoda's treachery either. People need to know about this, and Master Deean is just the man to do it." All at once the group heard a noise in the night. Angelicone looked like a ghost. "That sound came from the barn!" Within seconds Trad, Deean, Delphi and Popocho drew their lightsabers. Deean whispered to Angelicone. "Switch off the lights!" Angelicone immediately complied and the farmhouse went dark. The four men crouched behind the curtain that hung on the kitchen window. Trad whispered. "Can you see the barn from here?" "Yes, the door is open wide. I can see it in the moonlight. WAIT, there is someone there standing guard. It looks like a Gungan." Delphi replied. "Deean, it looks like someone's trying to steal Maul's ship!" Deean snapped commands. "Trad, you stay with Angelicone, Delphi, Popocho follow me out the back!" Deean and the two young men ran into the cellar from the kitchen, then heaved open the flat doors leading outside. The sky was black and filled with stars. Just as Popocho made his way out onto the lawn, the old iron hinges gave very loud cry that sounded nothing like the crickets of the cool evening. "SQUEEK." "SHHHHHH!" Delphi held his fingers to his lips. Instantly a black coated darksider descended from the house roof, his trenchcoat flaring with saber blazing crimson. Popocho and Delphi jumped to combat, their sabers flaring to meet his. Just as Deean turned to enter the fray, he heard Angelicone shriek. He shouted to Popocho, then ran around the side of the house and up the front steps. By this time the marauders in the barn were aware of the fighting and began to fire their weapons. Red laser beams cut the air, splitting the trim off the front of Angelicone's whitewashed farmhouse. Deean made it to the front door as two laser blasts shattered the front window and blistered the wall. He kicked in the door, and the frame sailed in pieces across the room. Deean made it to the kitchen in time to see Trad getting up off the floor. "WHAT HAPPENED, WHERE IS SHE?" Deean shouted. "There is a darksider, he blasted me into the cabinet with a Force throw." Trad climbed to his feet as the glass crunched beneath his boots. "It all happened so fast. They went upstairs!" "COME ON THEN!" Deean and Trad ran up the stairs, frantically searching every room, but Angelicone and the darksider were gone. Trad noticed the curtains on Angelicone's bedroom blowing in the wind. He motioned to Deean who followed him through the window onto the cedar-shingled roof of the farmhouse. Both warriors froze at what they saw. There, standing near the edge of the porch roof Darth Swaney held his sword hilt beneath Angelicone's neck. "GIVE US THE SCROLL JEDI, OR THIS PRETTY GIRL DIES." Just then, Trad looked off the roof and saw two dozen thieves running toward the spot where Delphi and Popocho battled Lizerd Mot'e. "Deean, they've got us this time. We had better surrender." Deean shouted and sheathed his saber. "OKAY, OKAY WHATEVER YOU WANT! WE GIVE UP! POPOCHO, DELPHI, ITS NOT WORTH IT. GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT!" All four Jedi dropped their sabers and put their hands above their heads, Popocho and Delphi on the ground, and Deean and Trad on the roof of the house. Deean addressed Swaney directly. "Listen, I don't know who you are or what you want but we don't have it." "Lie to me, you bastard, go ahead. I will part her like a loaf of bread. There was a scroll in Maul's starship. WHERE IS IT?" Swaney pushed Angelicone to the edge of the roof and raised his saber as if in preparation to execute her on the spot. It hummed loudly in the crisp night air. Just then the side of the barn exploded. All eyes turned to see a sleek starship burst through the rising ball of flame, laser cannons blaring. Angelicone jumped from the roof, spraining her ankle as she fell into a pile of hay. The scene fell into utter chaos. Deean and Trad both charged Swaney. Their lightsabers met with their outstretched hands, immediately igniting. It was a clash to the death. The neon blades scoring the night, the Jedis cursed and engaged Swaney vigorously. Most of the thieves ran in the direction of the barn as the starship turned and made another pass, strafing the ground. Clods of dirt and flame erupted from the dew-covered grass as laser bursts cut down several men. Lizerd Mot'e parried Delphi's saber strike and sidekicked him into the air. Delphi flew horizontally, and smacked loudly against the side of the house, breaking away several boards of siding. His broken body crumpled to the ground. Popocho screamed. "NOOOO!" and unleashed his power upon the darksider. Pushing him across the lawn with strike after strike, the darksider hissed and swore, barely keeping Popocho's blade at arm's length. In a flash of skill, Popocho's blade met the flesh of Mot'e's shoulder. "AGH!" A burst of smoke emerged and the darksider's arm hit the ground next to his saber. He clutched the stump, turned and ran toward the burning barn with Popocho in pursuit. Reaching the wall of the blazing building, the heat became unbearable. Popocho backed off as a wave of hot hair blasted his face. The flames from the barn towered into the night sky. Lizerd Mot'e screamed in agony, being pinned by Popocho against the oven like wall of flame. He turned to charge his attacker just as the wall collapsed. A shower of sparks plumed into the sky and Popocho was blown backward by the wave of flame and scalding air. Lizerd Mot'e lived no more. By this time the attacking starship, piloted by Kess Lendra and Hellflower, had landed. The hatch dropped and a wave of Jedi poured onto the lawn. Joat, Chychy, Baal, Conal, Sahrin and Alcander Caedmon fanned out as they met with the mass of thieves. Laser rifle shots showered upon the advancing wave of Jedi, but were immediately reflected by swinging blades. Alien thieves dropped like flies, their weapons landing in the grass beside them. Alcander cut the barrel off of a large rifle, spun on his heels and severed a three- eyed alien down the middle. Elsewhere, Joat and Chychy chased a screaming Gungan across the lawn. Baal and Conal advanced across the yard, cutting a swath through the teeming mass of burglars as they advanced toward the house where Trad and Deean fought the darksider. Above the volley of laser fire Darth Swaney took note of the advancing Jedi, he climbed to the highest gable, his boots slipping on the steep roof. Deean and Trad were close behind. He reached the crest of the roof and balanced upon the edge, steadying himself with his arms. "We will see the death of you all, Jedi pigs!" He then lost his balance and fell out of sight, clattering down the other side of the roof. He tore the gutter from the eaves of the house as he tried to slow his fall. There was a dull sound, like that of a body hitting the ground. Baal and Conal ran around the side of the house to find the body of Darth Swaney. As quickly as it had started the sound of firing blaster rifles ceased. The fire had burned itself out and beside the occasional pop or crackle of the cinders, the sound of crickets resumed their symphony. In the blackened cage that had been the barn, Darth Maul's starship stood, impervious to the flames. Just as Deean and Trad came down the front steps of the house, the voices of Joat and Chychy greeted their ears. "OVER HERE, EVERYONE, WE CAUGHT ONE. COME QUICKLY!" Baal and Conal met up with the two Jedi. "There is no sign of that darksider. He vanished into thin air." Conal said disappointedly. Deean replied while running toward the growing crowd of Jedi. "We'll get him next time!" They arrived to find Angelicone, Hellflower, Kess Lendra, Sahrin, Joat, Chychy, Popocho and an injured Delphi circled around a frightened Gungan sitting on the ground. He waved his arms in the air, shielding his head as if he had been struck. "Mee'sa no wantin' crunchin'. Workin' for Jabba da Hutt. Mee'sa called Shnubby Noss, no important, just a smallen-town critta'ganster." Delphi limped forward, then kicked the Gungan twice, shouting. "If that is so, then why are you keeping company with darksiders?" Popocho held him back, sensing that Delphi was sadistically angry. "No, no! Darksider be followin' us! Meetin' wit dem in swamp we did. Wee'sa not knowin' what day want! Weesa here for takin' crystals from you'sa spaceship. No should be gettin' angry! Findin' ship first, we did! Puttin' tracer on it, follow you'sa here to Alderaan." Trad pondered aloud, "Crystals? Could he mean the stygium crystals from the cloaking device?" He looked at Baal, who stood over the Gungan looking very serious. "Yah, huh. Jabba much afeard of new crime big daddy boss on Coruscant…Mal'Kith. Hee'sa doin' much dealin' wit Jabba. Man is c-r-a-z-y-evil! Hee'sa tellin' Jabba people must find him purple stygium crystals! They'sa tellin' him no such crystal as purple crystal so hee'sa gettin' angry and killin' dem all with flashin' finger lightnin'!" Popocho muttered to himself. "Force lightning? A dark Jedi with great powers?" Deean reached down and grabbed the Gungan by his collar, shaking him. "How long has Jabba known this Dark Jedi on Coruscant?" "Mee'sa tinkin' not so long! Poppin' up over night hee'sa did. Mee'sa askin' who'sa deesin before dat. Nobody hear'ed of him before, but hee'sa crazyevil now. So bad Jabba no'sa like upsettin' him." Hellflower wasn't believing a word. "How did you know the Sith Infiltrator had purple stygium crystals?" "Big daddy boss Jabba much afeard. So wee'sa sent askin Jabba friend at Sienar Space Systems and hee'sa say for sure hee'sa seen crystals shinin' purple. Hee'sa tellin' us these was only crystals like dat innin' whole galaxy. Hee'sa should know, puttin' on spaceship for scary one darksider wit horny head. Makin' cloaker for darksider. When Jabba hear'ed dat crystals more priceless than treasure, hee'sa wantin' dem for his'self, so hee'sa makin' us findin' Sith Spaceship." The Gungan held his hands up to shield his face. He was clearly terrified. "Ple-e-e-ase! No'sa killin' Shnubby Noss!" Kess Lendra shook her head and looked at Hellflower. "Sounds complicated. I don't buy it." Deean disagreed. "Not really. Criminal elements have associated with defense contractors since the beginning of time. The Gungan's story is possible." Kess was suspicious. "Then how did he know that Maul's ship was on Naboo when we had to look all over the forest for it?" "Hearin' story of Jedi getting' crunched! Mee'sa smarty, you'sa know, puttin' two and two togeder." The Gungan showed his teeth as he smiled. He pointed a long finger at the center of his own chest. "Mee'sa knowin' everyting about how you'sa sayin' home sweetie swamp!" The Gungan paused for a moment then looked up at the Jedi with a cocked head. His frog eyes dilated, looking very anxious. "Exqueeze me? Shnubby Noss already tellin' you everyting hee'sa know. You'sa lettin' Shnubby go now?" Everyone looked at Deean and Baal. There was a pause, then Deean sternly answered, "No." The Gungan cried. "Oh, huh, huh, huh, huh, mee'sa gonna die." "No! Take me to this Mal'Kith and I will let you live." The Gungan gestured a pinch with his fingers and spoke, "How's for gettin' gettin' one teeny crystal for mee'sa trouble?" Angelicone laughed, "You're cute as hell, but you better do what Deean says." Later that same evening Jedi Apprentices Chychy and Joat pushed the bound and muffled Gungan into the cargo hold of the Sith Infiltrator. Across the lawn, Popocho and Conal were throwing bodies of dead aliens onto a pile of wood while Delphi looked on, leaning on a makeshift crutch. Deean embraced his girlfriend and kissed her on the forehead. "Take care of that ankle now. I'll make all of this up to you, I swear." "I don't want you to do this, it is dangerous." "Sweetie, a starship is safe in the hangar, but that is not what starships are for." "So help me Bunny, you are nothing but trouble. If you get yourself killed I will never forgive you. Remember, you need to come back here and build me a new barn." She kissed him on the cheek. Deean looked at Baal, Sahrin, and Alcander. "I need you to stay here and protect Angelicone from that darksider just until I get back. He's probably a million light years from here by now, but I want to make sure. I have business to take care of on Coruscant." Alcander looked concerned. "What are you going to do, Deean?" "Go back to Coruscant and find this Mal'Kith. He knows the truth. Before I cut Yoda's head off, I want to know that I have all the information. A Jedi never acts out of anger. We must always seek the most information we can, then act rationally. Even if the end result is violence." Baal frowned. "Deean, you know I disagree with you on this one. Anger is one letter short of danger." Deean solemnly bowed, then turned and walked up the ramp of the Sith Inflitrator. Pulling a lever on the console, the hatch sealed behind him. The entire entourage assembled in the field in front of Angelicone's farm. They waved as the blackened starship rose into the air, turned and blasted into the sky on a column of fire. After jumping to hyperspace, Deean turned the pilots seat around, stood up and walked to the holographic communicator in the center of the deck. He inserted the computer chip and listened to Maul's recording once more. "Only one has the scroll, but I will find him" Deean hit the fast forward button, "I will return to Coruscant after destroying Qui-Gon Jinn and Obiwan Kenobi. There, I will seek out and kill the most dangerous of these renegade darksiders, the one who has stolen my property." * * * * * * * * * * Chapter 6 It wasn't difficult, with the subtle persuasion of Jedi mind manipulation, to enter the sprawling palace that Mal'Kith had built for himself. Deean's escort, Shnubby Noss had long since abandoned his companion at first opportunity. Nonetheless, Deean found it easy to follow the dark and foreboding feeling that revealed Mal'Kith's presence in the house. After mystically distracting several minor security personnel Deean soon found himself in the heart of the compound. Pushing open two gigantic doors, he walked through the center of the foyer as if he owned the place. An alien pulled his pistol from his holster and quickly moved across the room to intercept Deean. Kett chuckled to himself. The look of surprise upon the Rodian's face was worth a million credits. The creature held a blaster at Deean's face and shouted excitedly. "Manua kon- koru, patu pishta krentay!" Deean waved his hand before the aliens face. "I have an appointment with Mal'Kith, your master will see me now." The Rodian's spirit caved in. "Ah, tye-wanee ootanya teen-tee-oo-ah." The alien motioned for Deean to wait right there, then opened a large door and entered. After waiting another fifteen minutes Deean became impatient. He hated that sinking feeling he got when things failed to go smoothly. Cautiously he crept over to the door where the Rodian had entered and opened it. He had barely stuck his head into the crack to shout. "Hello? Is anyone in there?" When a battered and scarred battle droid came to the door, pushing him backwards at the tip of his laser rifle. In a raspy and monotone electronic voice, the droid intoned. "No one sees Mal'Kith, You are unauthorized in this area. Freeze, you are under arrest!" Startled to the core, Deean caught his breath. Thinking quickly on his feet he pleaded. "Then tell him I am here to see Jedi Wellfriend." The droid thought for a millisecond, tilted his insectoid head, then pointed and buzzed. "Stay right here. No funny business." The droid left, then returned moments later. "Mal'Kith will see you now." The droid lowered his rifle and enjoined Deean to follow him up a long corridor of stairs. The room where they entered was hot like a spa, and immeasurably vast. A voice echoed out of the darkness. "Droid, leave us now." Deean found Mal'Kith's chamber to be a magnificent demonstration of gothic architecture in steel. To one side of a large raised platform, a fireplace burned, casting an orange and hellish light across the room. In the middle of the stage, Mal'Kith sat in a large throne reminiscent of the claw of a crow. Dressed in black fabric, he blended into the shadows of the dimly lit room. The fire crackled and shadows danced. All Deean heard was a deep voice, emanating from the large throne that dwarfed the man seated therein. "Amazing how cheaply one can purchase a killer droid after the Battle of Naboo, don't you think?" Deean didn't answer. The dark lord paused for a considerable length of time, sizing up Deean. Finally, he resumed speaking. "So you figured out that my name was a play on words. Very clever. You might say I have been…born again." Deean straightened his spine and projected his voice. He reminded himself that he was a Jedi on a mission of diplomacy, remembering that one never negotiates out of weakness. "You mean "Mal'Kith" being the antithesis of "Wellfriend"? As much as I would like to take credit for it one of my pilots pointed it out to me. Let's cut to the chase, Lord Mal'Kith. You once followed the orders of Master Yoda, embarking upon a secret mission to recover the Scroll of Nexus. Now you have the scroll and you have turned on Jedi Council, am I correct?" Deean detected movement in the chair. "How utterly novel. A Jedi appears at my door asking questions despite my effort at remaining anonymous. I see you have read my autobiography." The shadow that was Lord Mal'Kith stirred. "It is true that I have turned on Yoda, I recommend that you do the same. He clearly does not have your best interest in mind." Mal'Kith rose from his chair, and Kett could make out a large man more from his Force sense than the dark blur before him. "You read me wrong, Deean Kett. I am no "darksider"." He qualified the word by forming quotation marks in the air with his fingers. " Nor am I an idiot like your master, Yoda. I am neither here nor there, neither a part, nor separate." "Why is Yoda doing this…secretly betraying the High Council?" The darksider opened a flagon of brandy, and poured himself a glass. "What you mean to ask me is why Yoda is betraying YOU, isn't it. I mean, that is where the pain lies, I think. Kett, what you see is as much what you don't see. I avoid politics, I suggest that you do the same." "You can't avoid politics. Even when you do nothing you are taking a political stance." "No, no, you have been misled by your teachers. Like God I sit, quietly, watching and waiting. I drink of the truth, liberally. I am not interested in ruling the galaxy. There are others with this rather narrow minded ambition." Mal'Kith removed his saber from his belt, which erupted with a volcanic hot blade of deep red plasma. He spoke, almost capriciously. "No. I am only interested in existing with red hot intensity. Perhaps with the intensity of this blade, forever and ever." He emptied the brandy glass into his mouth, held the weapon horizontally and kissed the blade. A gigantic flame erupted from Mal'Kith's mouth, and for an instant Deean saw not a man, but a dragon. In the light of the flame, Deean could make out the body of the dead Rodian sprawled in the corner, his head lying near by. "Be cautious, Mal'Kith. Too much sun makes a desert." Mal'Kith ignored him. He sheathed his saber, chuckling to himself evilly. "The sinister Darth Maul was an amateur. Some drink from the fountain of knowledge; he only gargled. Frightening to look at, he was more invested in appearances than in possession of gray matter, I'm afraid." Mal'Kith chuckled again. "I appealed to his sense of anger. Like the moron that he was he accepted the dual. Of course it was a dual of minds, a detail completely lost on him. While he was waiting for me in a distant courtyard I removed the scroll from his possession. Far too stupid a man to have custody of so treasured a document, don't you think? I did." Mal'Kith walked to the fireplace where the light was better, pulling the ancient scroll from beneath his black cloak. He released one of the spools and it unrolled like a curtain, snapping flat when the spool reached its end. Hanging beneath is outstretched arm, Deean could see the Sith script, written in alchemical characters in darkened blood. Mal'Kith turned and tossed the document into the fireplace. It burst into flame, smoking fiercely, then, in a blinding flash burnt completely up. Deean's appreciation for antiquity cried out, a protest escaped from his lips, "BUT...!" "Don't worry. What I need to know is in my memory…and not, I might add, in yours." Deean composed himself. "I have something important to ask of you. That is why I am here." "You have nothing that I want, Jedi. Although I have enjoyed your visit, our conversation is nearing its end. Out of respect for you I think I will let you live. I trust you will offer me the same respect. I prefer to remain hidden to the Jedi." "I am clear on that Lord Malkith. You are a gentleman. I find you to be a surprisingly open and honorable man. Please accept this gift as evidence of my resolve to keep our secret." Deean knelt and reached behind his back, beneath his brown robe. He produced a bundle of cloth, unrapping it to reveal a purple teardrop shaped crystal, roughly the length of his forearm. It made a sound like a shunted bell as it rolled to its side on the floor, shimmering brightly. "I thought you might be interested, but never mind. Like you said, this conversation is over." Mal'Kith flowed to the edge of the platform, his black robes meeting with the floor like the trunk of a tree. He picked up the stygium crystal and ran his hands over its smoothness. "Wait…Kett, what exactly did you have in mind?" He grinned impishly, "I trust it doesn't involve a bizarre fetish, you are after all a Jedi, psychologically repressed and alien to your own desires." Deean didn't take the bait. He fearlessly looked the dark knight in the eyes. "There are twenty-nine more of these where this one came from. What I desire is this. You tell me what I want to know and I'll give you the keys to Darth Maul's starship no questions asked." Mal'Kith held the crystal to his chest, narrowed his eyes and emoted. "Who is mightiest? He who makes a friend from an enemy." He met Deean's eyes with vigor, "You have yourself a deal, Jedi." * * * * * * * * * * Chapter 7 Deean had no problem entering the Jedi Temple through the front door. No problem, that is to say, beyond the hour-long journey to the top of the pyramid itself. To the most part, he was well liked as an apprentice and had made many friends in what they affectionately called, "the towers." Deean knew that now would be the best time to discover treachery. Those who engineered his death would show fear, rather than joy at his "resurrection." As he entered the grand hall at the base of the spires, old friends Renora Kenobi, Adrie, Syl and Col Mar ran to meet him. Renora spoke effusively, "Deean, we heard you had died. What a lovely surprise to see you here in the flesh!" Deean simply smiled and walked on while waving his hand. "I'll tell you all about it later." He cloaked the enormous concern that weighted his soul. At various checkpoints, he was granted passage by guards who were none the wiser, most of whom knew or remembered his family. Only the squire, Anakin Skywalker, protested at the lift shaft, but Deean pushed the boy aside. With surprising ease, The Jedi found himself in the elevator about to confront Yoda in a life or death match of truth and honesty. He was prepared to give up the spirit to set this record straight. The lift opened and Deean charged to the entrance of the Council chamber. The door detected his approach and slid aside to reveal the shocked faces of the highest minds in the Jedi protectorate. Before them stood young Obiwan Kenobi. "What's the matter Yoda, seen a ghost?" Deean walked within a meter of the masters chair. Obiwan backed off, sensing Deean's intensity. Yoda stirred in his chair. "Surprised, are we, to see you alive" "I'll bet you are." Deean's voice was monotone, with a hint of disgust. Everyone in the room detected it, and Kenobi excused himself to the foyer. Yoda was clearly nervous, but remembered his office and chided Deean. "A right have we, at times, to be angry. But never, have we, a right to cruelty." Yoda rose from his seat and motioned to the others in the room. "Leave us, all of you. Much have we, to discuss, Deean and myself." Mace looked dumbfounded, "Master Yoda. What is going on here?" "DO AS I SAY. NOT IN THE MOOD FOR ARGUMENT, AM I!" The ancient creature's voice broke, and for a moment Deean thought he was crying. It was startling to see Yoda exhibit such anger. It simply never happened. Everyone in the room sensed the gravity of the situation. One by one they followed their master's command, although with great reservation. Mace Windu was the last to leave, and shot Deean a warning glance. When the door closed behind him Yoda asked honestly. "I am wondering. Why are you here?" Deean respectfully kneeled before Yoda where he sat. "I am here to kill you, Master." Deean placed his hand on his lightsaber. This was considered extremely rude in Jedi culture, but he had great fear of Yoda's powers. Yoda became remarkably composed. "He who from retaliation refrains, his own faults will be forgiven, young Deean." Yoda mused to himself. "I remember when you were a boy. Impulsive, taken to whimsical acts, you were." Deean listened with due respect. "Mastered these things, have you? Before my life you take, tell me what you have learned. If I have, in any way, wronged you, my own life will I offer willingly." Deean began to speak, but his voice betrayed a flood of tears. He choked them back, composing himself honorably. "You tried to kill me and three of my friends. You lied to us. You BETRAYED us." Whatever power fathers have over their sons, Yoda had perfected this art. All aggression lifted from the interaction, as if by magic. He spoke to Deean as one would to a son. "Always hard was this this for you to understand…even in death you go on. No one can kill you, not me, not you. An illusion is your flesh, a Jedi you are. But, faith in your convictions, I have. Perhaps more faith, than you. Willing, am I, to sacrifice your life to a cause in which I know you believe. So much faith, have I, that require your permission, I do not." Deean had gone to great lengths to prepare himself to end Yoda's life. Yet a single tear collected in the corner of his eye. With great embarrassment, he wiped it away. Killing Yoda was like killing the source of life itself. "I sense much anger, you feel that I would deal your life casually? Strong is your Ego, Deean. Forgot, have you, that your blood stains the Jedi altar? Now your word you must keep, for the truth you seek is at hand. No one can know, what I am about to tell. But tell you, I must." Yoda slid to the edge of his chair, then jumped down. Deean heard his toenails click on the tile floor. The highest Jedi Master in the galaxy hobbled as he walked the circle on the floor in a clockwise direction. Deean, still kneeling like a Samurai, shifted to keep him in sight. He wasn't completely under Yoda's spell. Yoda continued. "The future have I seen, more clearly than I reveal. Come, will the day, when go into hiding, I must. Train a great savior, will I. Upon it, depends the fate of the galaxy." He paused, then stopped. The green alien then turned his head and caught Deean's gaze. "So continue to live, I must. So strong with the Force, am I, that a dark place I must find to hide, if not to be detected by this unknown evil that awaits. Important is it, that no one discover my secret plan, for when this day comes. Therefore, willing to give your life, was I, for this cause." "And the lives of my students and friends?" "Bared my tired soul have I. Perhaps, a mistake it was, your lives to offer, the galaxy to save. I pray, Deean, that never, upon your shoulders, fall the decisions I must make." Yoda sat cross-legged on the floor. He closed his eyes in deep trust and meditation. "Kill me if you must. Already know you what hangs in the balance." Deean's anger fled him. He remembered when he left his training so long ago. At the time he was depressed, didn't care to live anymore. That is why he became a mercenary, for the best quality a soldier can have is the lack of will to live. The words flowed out of his mouth without any consideration. "I have obtained the information that you sought. Your top secret reconnaissance crew was destroyed…all but Jedi Swaney, who has converted to the dark side and lives. However, I can assure you that he does not know the secret. The Scroll of Nexus was destroyed, but not before I could see it." Yoda looked up. "I know where the darkest place in the galaxy can be found." Hope had returned to the features of his tired face. Deean could tell that he was truly sorry for the decision he had made. Both knew that somehow in the furthest reaches of Yoda's mind he had awareness that this was precisely how events would unfold. Deean stood, straightened the creases in his slacks and clipped his saber on his belt. "When the time comes, you must flee here and go to the Degobah system. There you will remain hidden, Master. I have been assured that you should be able to live on the planet surface. However, I can promise you no one will ever detect you there. The darkside is very concentrated in certain places of that solar system." As quickly as the words left his mouth, his heart felt lighter. "To cry over the past is not the way of the Jedi. With your permission Master Yoda I would like to put this matter behind us and return to my duties at the Academy." Yoda smiled. "Help me to my feet, and my heartfelt permission, you will have." * * * * * * * * * * 1 4