Star Wars: Heroes of Another Kind

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 66: Daylight's Coming

It would be daylight soon. Jen wasn’t sure if she preferred the cool night to the hot day. Both were far to extreme for her taste. It was humorous, though, that the heavy robes worked for both weather just perfectly. She had been surprised that Voort had decided not to go directly to Haladin. But now, standing near the edge of the plateau far to the west and looking to the distant lights, she was glad they weren’t going there. Turbolaser blasts were seen about ten minutes earlier, aimed low and outside the city. Thankfully, not in their direction.

Voort had explained he was just following instincts by taking this ‘long way around’ Haladin. At first, Jen had been a bit worried by this, but after seeing the turbolaser fire and rush of activity near the city, she decided that Voort’s instincts were good to follow. They had not spoken much at all, as carrying packs while trying to stay out of sight was taking most of their focus and lighthearted conversation just didn’t seem right. So they walked in relative silence.

That is, until of course they caught sight of movement coming their direction. Voort identified it as a landspeeder, which Jen soon agreed on. The fact that they could identify the object coming towards them was worrying because it meant whoever was inside probably knew they were there. They took the precaution of dropping low behind some smaller rocks anyway, hoping. Or at least, Jen was hoping. Voort was looking determined and ready to do what was necessary.

Her heart sank when the speeder stopped. It was probably only forty or so meters ahead of them and was not enclosed like the one Hansen had. Instead, this older model was open to the air, which seemed like a bad idea on a planet like this. But then again, this was more the time to worry about the two getting out of the speeder than the pros and cons of the mechanical design. Not two getting out...well, there were two, but they were quickly joined by another three. All five of them wore what Jen had come to recognize as the usual Narani robes. From a distance, it was impossible to tell the sex of the individual. Not unlike stories of Tusken Raiders on Tatooine. However, unlike the Tuskens, these Narani were most definitely human, and the robes were not nearly as tightly rapped or expansive. Three of the five carried large rifles, while the other two were holding smaller pistol sized weapons. Slugthrowers, from what Jen could tell. Or at least, they didn’t look like any blaster she’d ever seen.

As the five Narani slowly began to spread out, looking around and obviously trying to find the two of them, Voort reached over and squeezed her arm gently. Jen turned her attention to him, and he motioned towards the speeder. When she raised an eyebrow, he motioned again. She managed another glance around the rock, noting that two of the Narani were heading their direction. And then she figured out what he was trying to tell her. None of the Narani were close to the speeder. A grin grew on her face as she thought about it, and nodded to Voort.

He smiled and quietly unhooked the large lightsaber hilt from his belt. As he did this, Jen got out her blaster pistol and got ready to run. His only signal came in the form of his movement. By the time Jen was on her feet and raising her blaster, Voort had already activated both ends of his lightsaber, bathing the area in a soft orange glow. One of the Narani started to yell, but was cut off. Literally. Well, at least his head was. A back swing from the other end of the saber took down the Narani’s companion. All the while, both of them were running to the speeder.

Of course, this did not in any way go unnoticed by the three others. Yelling was heard and one of them knelt to the ground, stabilizing their large rifle from that position. He fired off two quick shots, one landing all too close to Jen’s foot and sending a spout of sand up into her eyes and face. So that’s why they wore the masks...The second shot hit the rock behind them, digging in deep instead of deflecting off. Jen fired off a shot of her own, but the blaster bolt veered off to the side(nearly hitting Voort who was slightly ahead of her).

The two remaining Narani were firing also, many of their shots landing far too close. Jen felt at least one shot graze her shoulder and tear the robe, and did her best to return fire while keeping her balance. Voort had already deactivated his lightsaber, and in a quick jump was in the speeder, ducking down low to avoid the shots now coming his way. Jen was right behind him, climbing into the back of the speeder instead of trying to crawl over him. Two shots rang off the speeder’s hull next to her, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin. Instead, she ducked down behind the low cover that the speeder provided while still being open air. The second she was down, Voort had the speeder rocketing off. Jen managed to look over, seeing the Narani fade away to the horizon. Deciding a last shot at them was pointless, she allowed her body to relax, and slumped down in the seat.

“We’re not out of this yet,” Voort said, motioning to a small comm unit near the controls. The thing was going crazy, and when he switched the volume on, Narani could be heard speaking their native tongue frantically. While neither of them could actually understand what was being said, both got the idea. The Narani knew they had stolen a speeder, which meant they’d probably be pursued...or worse. The thought of the turbolasers came to Jen’s mind just as Voort said over his shoulder, “Scanners are picking up three objects coming at us.”

Pointing off towards the distant city, he did his best to keep the focus on avoiding the larger rocks that would end this escape very quickly. Glad she hadn’t put it away, Jen raised her blaster pistol after looking to the scanner. She reoriented herself in the speeder, not even asking what needed to be done. As the sun slowly crept up over the horizon, Jen caught sight of three objects catching the predawn light. Holding on as best she could and getting ready to fire her blaster, Jen knew that she was more a distraction than anything. It would be up to Voort to pull this off.

A very small part of her mind wished Akan was there. Voort was a good shot, and a vicious fighter, but Akan was a pilot. And it was piloting skill they were seriously going to need in the next few minutes. She hoped Voort could do it.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 67: Dark, Light, and a Little In Between

It was slow, constant, and growing. The sun was up, just barely above the horizon, when it came to both of their attention. As the sun slowly rose, so did the...presence. No, that wasn’t right. Or maybe it was. Partly, at least. Neither Shadow nor Akan would speak with each other about it, but they both knew it was there. Where, though? Everywhere? No. No, it was concentrated. Following them? Maybe...

Akan’s eyes traced the horizon ahead, noting that they had walked the entire length of the plateau. The drop off was in the distance ahead of them, and then the horizon was even farther off, looking below the plateau’s edge in a strange way. They were not followed. There was nothing around them. No rocks. No caves. Just sand. Sand, air, an Alraxian, and a Human. And then...that thing. Feeling. Whatever it was. Nearly tangible around them. An invisible cloud of thick malevolency. Or perhaps just...no, malevolent was right. When Akan’s mind latched onto that description, Shadow caught his eye.

She said nothing, but the feeling was clear. That line of thought was dangerous. If he was right, and most likely he was, then identifying it would simply lead to fearing it...then feeding it. This was all theory, but Akan understood the Force well enough to know the dangers of the Dark Side. How it fed off the fear, turning it into a force more easily manipulated. But this...this was beyond anything he’d ever felt. Beyond even Voort. Beyond Sadrak...

It was not, however, the Force. Shadow was sure of that. Dark Side, Light Side, the Force was all encompassing, but it did not feel like this. The Force bound everything together, but it did not do this. It did not probe. Search. Hunt. Stalk. The Force had no intelligence driving it. The Force simply was. This was different. Any probing she attempted was easily...deflected. But not I any way she’d ever felt. She knew enough about the galaxy to know that the Force was not the only great power in the universe. But that knowledge did not explain this. Or did it?

Her mind started working in overdrive, connecting small instances that she had simply passed off as nothing. For the last seven or so hours, she’d seen flashes. Short, quick, but memorable in the way that one would never want to remember them despite them being burned into one’s mind. Most often, she saw the face of the child she’d...murdered. No, the Darkwing had done it. But she...she was the Darkwing. All of those people. All of them dead. Murdered, not just dead. Not assassinated. They should not have been killed...she should not have been alive. Why had Akan not killed her when he had the chance? The one time she could have died without taking him with her, and he’d not done the job. Why?!

She growled suddenly, reaching over and throwing Akan to the ground. He yelped in surprise, rolling across the sand to his feet ready to ask her what had gotten into her. He had no chance to ask this. By the time he’d gotten his head up, the tangible cloud of nothing around them suddenly imploded in on...Shadow. There was a painful scream from her, and the robe and morphsuit she wore was suddenly torn apart by two large, Darkwing like wings that didn’t morph so much as explode from her back. When she fell to the ground on all four, crying out in pain with blue colored blood coating the sand around her, Akan found himself suddenly terrified.

The Darkwing was coming back. He’d failed. Again. First Mare, killing her with his own carelessness. Then Shira, murdering her because he was too concerned about things he couldn’t deal with. Now Shadow...becoming that horrible thing again. It shouldn’t be possible, but then again, he never got things right. He’d just delayed the inevitable. What next? He couldn’t fight her. Not again. And then there was Jen...left with that bastard Voort. Akan should never have allowed her to get involved, never allowed things to come to this point. Her death would likely be more painful than any of the others...the worst. And all because of Akan.

He let out a noise that, if he’d been Alraxian, would have been a growl. Instead it sounded awkward and much more forced than it was. His eyes opened from the visions running through his mind, and with his teeth gritted he looked to Shadow. But he saw nothing like the Darkwing. As his mind was composing itself, bringing back rational thought and pushing back those that would kill him, he watched something more disturbing occur to Shadow. Her mind was...all wrong. Split. Literally. He could hear two sets of thoughts. One set loud, violent...angry. Murderous. The other...too quiet to tell. And then, as the louder thoughts seemed to gain more and more force over the quieter ones, the wings on her back started to rise.

And with them, rose another body. Out of her. Out of her?! But that was the only explanation. It was similar to what one would have seen when she had first created his Alraxian body, except instead of a small formless mass becoming two, here were two forms becoming...two. There were cracks, painful noises, and groans, but all came from the Shadow that now lay face down in the sand. She looked exactly the same as always, though her skin was much paler and she was completely unconscious. The other though...the other stood up, stretching new arms and legs, wings flaring slightly as they were gotten used to.

On her, the black stripe was much blacker than before. Her entire complection was darker. Build was stronger. Her hands ended in long, extremely sharp claws. Slowly, this dark Shadow turned to Akan, radiating that feeling that had once been in the air. From inside Shadow then?! But no, it was in the air before! It had to have been! She was stepping forward, ignoring the other Shadow on the ground and simply moving towards Akan with a horribly dangerous fanged grin on her face.

Somehow, Akan managed to scramble to his feet and back away as the dark Shadow continued her simple approach. Seeing he was afraid, her grin grew and she extended a single clawed hand towards him in a disturbing and almost friendly gesture. She spoke, although in an almost twisted voice when compared to Shadow’s, “You know you can’t run from me.”

“S-S-Shadow...” Akan couldn’t believe he found his voice, speaking as best he could as he also somehow got the lightsaber off of his belt, “Stay back!!”

The radiating menace grew slightly and she growled violently, “I am not Shadow! I am Dark! Shadow was a fool! She tried to balance forces that could not be balanced! Now come...you will join me. You cannot run.”

It was amazing that Akan managed to grasp what Dark was saying. Despite the chaos, he suddenly found himself trying to calm. Calm was the key. Dark and light. Everyone fought with them internally...that force they’d felt. Malevolence. Dark. Trying to manipulate them? Him? Her? Who?!

As she spoke, though, her speed was increasing slowly. Akan didn’t know when he’d activated the lightsaber, but he found that his speed was increasing too, backing away quickly with the blue-green blade in front of him and shaking with his hands, “No! Get back!”

The smile simply grew on her face as she continued to approach, “Come, now. It will not hurt. And the more you fight, the more you give him strength.”

Him. That word triggered a sudden flash of more of those thoughts. More of the death. More of it his fault...more of it...no! No! The effort he was taking to fight back the onslaught of anguish had him stopping in his tracks. This was not a good idea, but by the time Akan realized he’d stopped moving, Dark was nearly on him. He had a short second to attempt swinging the lightsaber at her(and truthfully, he was amazed he could attack Shadow, no matter if she called herself Dark or whatever). This was too late, though. Dark’s upped arm slamming into his hands holding the weapon, crushing his fingers and forcing him to lose his grip. The lightsaber flew off to the side and Akan stumbled back slightly. The same instant that the weapon hit the sand and deactivated, Dark’s other hand curled into a fist and rose up towards Akan’s chest.

It did not, however, impact. In fact, it hurt a thousand times worse than any punch ever could. Her fist moved inside him. Deep inside. Akan felt her tighten on something...not an organ or anything physical. But something not truly there. Something science could never measure. It was him. It was everything that made him who he was. It was his soul. His spirit. His Core, as Alraxians called it. Dark’s hand grasped his Core tightly, ripping at it in a way that was much less physical as it should have been. Akan’s screams of pain suddenly ended when she wrenched her arm out. He fell back onto the ground hard, eyes closing a moment as something felt...wrong. Wholly wrong. When his eyes opened, this was confirmed.

Standing there facing the other direction, he did not see Dark. He saw...a figure slightly taller than Dark, with much the same complection. The figure had the same wings, but the hair was shorter, scruffier, and just a bit lighter. When the figure glanced over its shoulder at him, Akan looked into his own face. This would not have been such a disturbing experience if he hadn’t know that he was not looking into a mirror. If he hadn’t known that his face was never that cruel or pained looking. His own Dark smiled suddenly, revealing those same fangs as his two Alraxian ears flattened.

“Leave them,” spoke Shadow’s Dark flatly. She turned and started a slow walk towards the edge of the plateau. Akan’s Dark seemed to hover over him a long moment, then kicked Akan hard in the side before turning and following. By the time Akan managed to get to his feet, for some reason thinking he would go after the two Darks, he could see the two figures above the ground off on the horizon. In the air...so those wings weren’t just for show.

But the pain was...distant still. Still trying to comprehend what had happened, Akan suddenly realized that the other Shadow was still there. He scrambled over to her and pulled her up off of her face. Dusting the sand off of her, Akan tried to mentally push her to wake up. As usual, it worked. But not like usual, he didn’t receive a fist.

Instead, she just opened her pale purple colored eyes slowly. In a soft, very timid voice, Shadow spoke, “A...Akan...?”

He nodded, hoping she could at least see straight, “What...what just happened?”

“She’s gone...” Shadow said quietly, in a voice he’d never heard from her before. It was one filled with relief, “She’s finally gone. They’re both gone...”

Akan helped Shadow to sit up straight, then said, “I hope its not what I think it is.”

She just smiled, a genuine smile for once, “Finally...that horrible creature is gone from me,” she smiled suddenly and said, “From you, too...”

“Shadow...” Akan trailed off, wanting to say that it was likely that this was not a good thing. That it was likely that this would be causing far more problems than they already had. And the fact that if what he thought had happened, had really happened, he should be feeling different. But he didn’t.

Shadow shook her head, “Call me Light. Shadow is a blend of both Light and Dark...that isn’t possible to exist. It is better now.”

That confirmed it. Something was wrong with this. Very wrong. Akan had known Shadow had always been balancing two uneven forces. It wasn’t her fault, and something she couldn’t seem to deal with for long. That...whatever had preyed on it. Expanded it. Then lived through it. It had attempted the same with Akan, but no matter how many mental troubles he had, he was much more stable than Shadow ever was. He was much more balanced...so much so that his ‘dark’ and ‘light’ did not divide as much as blend into one another. Shadow had split...but Akan. What had happened? He still felt the same. Still felt all those things he probably shouldn’t be feeling...what did that mean for his other? The other had seemed to be very ‘dark’ compared to him. Yet...he was the same.

When Akan got Sha...no, Light to her feet, he walked over and got his lightsaber. He did not, however, put it back on his belt. He looked to Light and motioned for her to follow him as he started towards the plateau. She followed without saying much until her mind worked out where he was going. Quickly, she grabbed his arm and tried holding him back with a strange lack of strength, “No! Leave them! They won’t come back!”

Akan shook his head. For the first time, he’d really have to be the one to make the decisions. No more reactions based on Shadow. He took a deep breath, and gave her a serious look that indicated to her that little at all had changed with him, “They will. You would, wouldn’t you?”

She paused to think about this, and her mood dropped suddenly. That proved he was right. Quietly, she said to the ground, “I don’t want to.”

“We have to,” Akan said firmly. Light looked back to him, and seeing the determination in him, stopped fighting. Again, nothing like she should have. No longer stubborn. Too easily giving in...avoiding confrontations. As Akan started towards the cliff face again, for the first time he found himself wanting Shadow back. The real Shadow. Not this Light. This wasn’t Shadow...but what did that mean for him? And how was he supposed to fix all of this? Pushing these questions out of his mind, he focused on the best thing possible. He focused on what he’d do. And that’s how he began his first real hunt.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 68: And its Only Our Second Date

The ground flew past beneath them at an incredible speed. They were up high enough that sand was not causing any problems. It had taken only a couple of minutes, and now the two Darks were so far beyond the plateau that it wasn’t even a speck in the distance. Good. This would be sufficient for the moment.

Dark stopped, wings flaring out and then keeping her up. Akan’s Dark, who she still thought of as Akan, stopped a moment later, giving her a confused look that did not go with the rest of him. She picked up on why immediately, and said simply, “We have more important things to do than waste time with them.”

He studied her for a long moment, obviously trying to figure out if he could challenge her. She could kill him easily, and he soon realized this, and simply nodded. Dark smiled to herself at this acknowledgment of superiority, and turned towards the West. There. Distant...but strong. Calling still. Calling to them. Just as it had been before. She and Akan exchanged short looks, both knowing where they needed to go. There was no choice, really. Not yet. But soon...

In the now dawn light of the sky, the two dark figures flying across were easy to see. However, one had to be looking. And currently, neither Jen, Voort, or the Narani within the three speeders after them were paying any attention to the sky. Two of the speeders were directly behind them, having as much trouble as Jen was with lining up shots. The ground was getting rockier and more uneven as Voort was slowly being forced towards the edge of the plateau by the third speeder. Jen was doing her best to fire off shots behind them, then to the left to keep all of the Narani down. This was not doing well, though, as it was currently about five shooting on them compared to Jen being the only one to return fire.

Voort was ducked down low, barely able to see over the protective screen of a viewport as he wove around the larger rocks that the repulsorlifts would not have helped them to get over. This constant sliding around was causing Jen as much trouble as the Narani were. Thankfully, the two speeders behind them were having the most trouble with their shots. This allowed Jen to reached over the right side of the open speeder and fire off a few shots at the third speeder.

They only impacted the side of it, and she immediately had to duck down to avoid the return fire from three slugthrowers. There were a few loud ding sounds against the hull, though she also heard a few whiz over through the air. They were all missing, but Jen knew that these Narani had a much better chance of getting in that one lucky shot if only because of their number. Most people didn’t like odds, but this was one of those times that odds were very likely to catch up with a person if they weren’t careful.

That’s when the pilot of the third speeder attempted something that Jen had been waiting on. He tried to slide the speeder in to close the distance between them Voort managed to catch sight of this maneuver, and also saw that this was timed exactly when there was a large rock wall to the left side. No way to pull away...

“Hold on!” he called over his shoulder and hit the tried redirecting a little more power from the senors to the engines. Jen felt them gain a bit more speed, but when she looked up over the side, saw that it had done them no good. The other speeder slammed into them, jerking them to the side. In that moment, both Jen and the three Narani leaned over the sides to fire at point blank range. Jen got a shot off that hit the Narani aiming for Voort, and managed to duck back down as the speeder’s pulled away from each other and the two Narani took shots at her.

She’d definitely lost a few hairs from those shots. Voort’s mind was racing as fast as the speeders were. Currently, he was trying to keep up with the distance to the edge of the plateau, which they were being driven towards. He could easily slow down and head the other direction, but it was likely that they were expecting that. So...do exactly what they wouldn’t expect. As the rocks started to level out again, Voort allowed his eyes to dart across the interior of the speeder. His eyes caught sight of what he was looking for. With a free hand, he reached over and pulled the small box over to him. He tossed it over into the back with Jen, “Open that and see what’s in it!”

Jen fired off two more shots to keep the closest speeder back, then dropped down to do what he’d said. The box opened easily, revealing a small collapsible tent, a pair of medpacs, a grappling spike launcher, and two glowrods. She relayed this to Voort, who then told her to get out the grappling spike launcher and attach it to her blaster. Not liking where this was going, Jen did this anyway and ignored the fact that the launcher was nearly bigger than her small blaster.

By the time she’d gotten it out, Voort had done something that surprised everyone except him. He pulled the speeder hard to the left, now speeding straight off the edge of the plateau. Voort then hit a couple of switches, and jumped over into the back of the speeder with Jen. The Narani were too busy reorienting themselves to continue firing for the short moment. He took the gun from Jen, handing her the box and giving her a long look. Neither of them said anything, but Jen quickly wrapped an arm around him.

How she knew what he’d planned to do was simply instinct. It was crazy...insane...and would work. And besides, it was too late to turn back. Literally. They were no longer running a half meter above the ground. The speeder had shot off of the plateau, and because the repulsorlifts could not handle this height, they were plummeting. Quickly, knowing that the distance down would not be far, Voort jumped out of the speeder with Jen hanging on. He immediately fired the grappling spike towards the cliff face. It latched in somewhere not far away, and the cable suddenly tightened. Voort managed to hang on despite the violent jerk. He payed no attention to the speeder now below them, focusing on the quickly approaching rock wall.

Knowing it would hurt, but having no other choice, Voort extended his legs towards the wall. Then they hit. Or rather, Voort’s legs did. He cringed from the shock of pain and nearly lost his grip on Jen from the force of the stop. Slowly, he allowed his legs to fall down to a more relaxed position. He allowed a glance to the cliff top above, but it was Jen’s voice that got his attention.

“...and how are we supposed to get down from here?”

It was a valid question. In fact, he’d expected for some reason that there would be a ledge near. There wasn’t. Instead, there was still a long drop below. Thinking about this, he knew of only one option, “Let the box drop...if it doesn’t make it, oh well...we’re going to have to climb the old fashioned way.”

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 69: Tales of Dark and Light

Two Alraxians stood in the middle of the desert. One, slightly taller than the other, was looking off towards the west while running a hand through its hair. The other sat on the dune, looking the other direction. Akan was getting tired of this. Not the walking into no where. That actually wasn’t all that bad once you got to ignoring the sand...of which he was trying to ignore was coating his tail. No, the real problem was Sha-...Light. Whatever her name was this day. Suddenly, he was glad that he’d gotten a completely different life through his name change. At least then he hadn’t left people confused.

Truthfully, the name thing was just a small annoyance. It was her attitude that was really driving him crazy. The only reason they were standing...no, he was standing, she was sitting and sulking. But the only reason for this stop was her claim of being tired. He knew that wasn’t completely true. The link showed that, even if it was slightly strange. From what he’d managed to figure out in the past two hours, the link was still there. It was with Light as strongly as usual, but he could still feel Dark...distantly, but there. It was what he was following not very successfully. This, of course, was avoiding that very awkward feeling that he knew was his other self. That wasn’t the best thing to think about, as it brought far too many questions that just plain hurt.

So instead, Akan had decided that he was following the feeling from Dark. Which...he was. Technically. He sighed and looked back to Light. She was ignoring him...or trying. And failing. Badly. Every few moments she’d look over her shoulder covertly, but each time he saw. She wasn’t in any way good at this. Yet again, he wanted Shadow back. What was he supposed to do now? This wasn’t an equal to his wit anymore! This was just...just...some terrified little girl. If he’d known more, Akan would have found this an interesting look into who Shadow(and by default, Marix) really was. But he didn’t. Not now, at least.

“Break’s over,” he said sounding more annoyed than he really was. Light made a whimpering noise, but had figured out not to fight with this. Or maybe she just didn’t want to fight him. Probably both. Either way, it just plain didn’t feel right.

Light was soon on her feet, dusting herself off and following Akan down the dunes and across this endless desert. Behind them, the plateau was long gone from view. It had only been two hours, but Akan had managed to keep a very fast pace, and Light had been forced to keep up with him or be left behind. From what he could tell, the Darks were too far ahead to catch up with anytime soon, but they were going somewhere. Somewhere with a purpose. And despite everything, this just felt important. Part of that was likely the fact that Akan wanted to get the two of them...no, four of them, back to normal. How to do that, he didn’t know. But Light did. She was, however, refusing to speak of it at all. Every single time he brought it up, she started getting panicky and impossible to speak with. He thought about bringing it up again, but quickly decided that would have to wait.

His eyes soon caught sight of movement. In the distance...faint, but definitely movement. What it was, though, he could tell. Not yet. But he’d soon find out. And he wasn’t going to like it. How he knew this, Akan wasn’t sure...it was just the feeling. This feeling of impending annoyance. Whatever this was, he’d be kicking himself about it.

...if only Akan knew the real irony in that thought.

* * * *​

“You will go and bring them to me.”

Dark looked at the hooded figure, examining the nothing within closely. So this was that nameless thing...interesting. Her curiosity was not satisfied, however. It was obvious that this figure was powerful. Immensely so. She would not be able to challenge him yet...it would take time, and it would take the assistance of her pet. Whether she liked it or not, this Akan was going to be necessary in this equation. Hopefully he wouldn’t get any ideas. So far, he’d been smart enough to listen to her, but it was likely he’d start pushing her limits soon.

Carefully, she looked over her shoulder to where her Akan stood. He looked annoyed. But he was keeping his mouth shut. Good. Dark turned her attention back to the hooded figure across the room from her and said simply, “You wish both of them?”

There was the slightest of movements to indicate a nod. A feeling raised in the air, and both Dark and her Akan recognized this as their dismissal. The two turned and left the chamber without a word. But once the door had closed, and they started down one of the long hallways, her Akan growled a curse and said, “Why are we doing what that freak says?”

At that, Dark couldn’t help a smile. He was too predictable. Though it was interesting that he did not seem to see anything wrong with doing what she said. Good. Waiting until after one of those strange guards passed by, she said, “It will serve us. Besides, it is time for you to prove yourself.”

That got a smile out of him. He interpreted what she’d meant perfectly, though stated it anyway, “You will allow me to face him?”

“Yes,” Dark said with a simple nod, “Bring my Light back, as He wishes. As for your own. Do what you will. But do not fail. He will tolerate that less than I.”

Her Akan nodded as they finally started towards the outside, “Then you will find the human woman?”

Dark did not respond until they’d reached the desert again. Such an interesting planet. Her wings twitched slightly in anticipation, and she looked off across the sands. Feeling. Reaching out...finding. Not even looking to her Akan, Dark said simply, “It will not be hard to find her. It will be interesting to learn what he wishes with her, though.”

Without giving her Akan a chance to respond, Dark’s powerful wings took her into the air, and she shot off into the distance. For a long while, he just stood there watching. Thinking. But no, it was not his place to think of these things. He had a job to do. Perhaps once he’d killed his Light and returned with Dark’s then he would be awarded the respect he deserved. If not...well, if not it was likely he would not live very much longer.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 70: Never Again

There was a first time for everything. There was also a last time. This was going to be both for Jen. Sure, she’d nearly finished the climb down, but it would be the last time she’d ever do anything like this even if she did live through it. Voort didn’t seem to be having all that much trouble, but then again, he was a soldier. Good at this kind of thing...roughing and such. No matter how hard she tried, she’d always be a scientist. Sure, she could fight, even pilot some, but Jen was truly in her environment in a lab.

Perhaps that was why she had felt so out of place the last few months. But this was not the time to reminisce. This was the time to focus on not falling to one’s death. And, thankfully, she soon no longer had to worry about it. Her feet found sand below them, and Jen couldn’t help a smile as she stepped back from the rock face. There was a smell in the air, though...turning around, she saw the source of it. The landspeeder. Well, what was left of it. The thing had taken a nosedive straight into the sand at such a speed that the repulsorlifts didn’t have a chance to do anything about it. Behind her, Jen heard Voort step down from the rock face before saying, “Looks to me like the long way was worth it.”

A grin appeared on Jen’s face and she turned to look to Voort, “Worth it or not, you owe me.”

“Oh, I do?” he raised an eyebrow, fighting back a grin, “Why is that?”

She poked him not too gently in the chest, “Just tallying up all those near death experiences I’ve had since being around you when compared to before.”

Voort couldn’t help a short laugh at that, “I’m almost afraid to ask what the count’s up to.”

“At least five now,” Jen said with that grin still there. To his surprise, she then stepped closer and kissed him gently on the cheek. Quietly, she spoke into his ear, “...and life’s never been more interesting.”

“Well, you’re welcome,” Voort responded with a smile, “Hopefully these experiences continue to only be near death.”

“I trust you,” she said quietly, stepping back some before looking up to the cliff above. Thankfully, there was nothing looking back down. She was about to ask where they should start moving to next, but was silenced when Voort put a hand over her mouth. She gave him a confused look, but noticed he was looking past her. Keeping quiet, she turned to follow his gaze.

It took a long moment to identify what it was, but soon the thing that had caught his attention was obvious. There was something near the horizon. No...above it. Moving. The movement was hard to detect but the fact that it was slowly moving higher and becoming easier to identify proved that it was moving towards them. And quickly. Very quickly. She looked to Voort, speaking quietly, “I haven’t seen any native life here...or anything that flies.”

“Yeah...” Voort moved to stand in front of Jen, drawing his lightsaber as Jen got out her blaster pistol again. From one thing to another, it seemed. Interesting, though, that while she still considered herself a scientist, Jen was starting to react like a warrior. Of course, there was very little on this planet that had proved to be friendly to strangers so far. With the track record as bad as it already was, even the most peace loving pacifists in the galaxy would start picking up blasters and shooting at anything that moved.

Voort’s thumb was resting on the lightsaber’s activation switch., ready to activate the weapon in half a second. This feeling was growing. It was similar to Sadrak, but there was something else much different. Not stronger, but just as deadly. That, Voort managed to figure, was the approaching thing. A single minded hate. He could understand this only because it reminded him of himself, years ago. It was almost like this planet had a way of bringing out one’s past in one form or another. This did not bother Voort, though, as he’d dealt with his past long ago. It was his future that was in doubt.

“Jen,” he said quietly, watching the thing getting closer and closer, “Be careful. This isn’t like the Narani...”

She simply nodded, worried at the feeling she was also picking up on. It was strange as Jen had no way of explaining it. Her mind tried to, so many ways, but there was no scientific way to explain a feeling. Especially on like this. Hate. Anger...rage? All of it and more. Built up like a small projectile shooting their direction. But something was wrong. The feeling was closer than the object...much closer.

Something just clicked in her mind, and Jen found herself reacting. Quickly, and without yet understanding why, Jen dove to the side and rolled across the sand. When she looked back Jen caught sight of a figure there. Or rather an arm with long claws that was exactly where she’d been. Her eyes followed the hand back across the dark colored arm, then realized she was staring at a strange image of Shadow. Shadow with wings, that is. Black wings...like the Darkwing but Alraxian.

A sudden snap-hiss that Jen recognized as a lightsaber blade igniting cut off her thoughts. In a flash of movement, Voort spun around, one end of the lightsaber activated and cutting horizontally towards this strange Shadow. But Shadow reacted just as quickly again, jumping back and out of the way before pushing off with her feet on the rock face behind her. Voort was bringing his lightsaber around to swing at her as she dove forward, but was much slower than Shadow. The claws latched onto his wrists, digging in deep and forcing him to let go of the weapon. Her free hand backhanded him hard across the jaw, and just as her claw relinquished its grip on his writs, Shadow spun around to kick him across the face.

By the time Voort was down on the ground, Shadow was bearing down on Jen. The woman attempted to raise her blaster to fire, not even thinking that this was Shadow but simply trying to stop whatever was happening. She did not, however, have a chance to even get the blaster up all the way. Shadow’s foot kicked her arm hard, sending the small blaster sliding across the sand and far out of reach. Trying to ignore the pain in her arm, Jen next attempted to crawl back enough to get to her feet and do...something. Anything. What, exactly, would be decided in the moment.

But she did not even get a chance to do this. Shadow’s clawed hand shot down and grabbed Jen’s neck. With a strength that surprised the human, Shadow lifted her to her feet and then stared her in the fact. For what seemed like too long, Jen looked into two dead looking, red and silvery eyes. Those were not Shadow’s. Then what was this thing?! What was it do–

Her thoughts were cut off by a quick hit to the back of her head that Shadow delivered. Jen’s world plummeted into blackness. Dark smiled and threw the woman over her shoulder. As she turned to leave, Dark heard a sudden movement behind her. That was Voort, no doubt. She turned around and extended an arm, catching the man in a similar way that she had grabbed Jen. By the neck. Except with him, she was much rougher, not trying to avoid killing him. Instead, she allowed her claws to dig in ever so slightly to extend the pain. Grey eyes looked into red-grey eyes for a short while, and Dark said simply, “You die today, human scum.”

Then, Voort kneed her hard in the stomach. Her arrogance at his ability to retaliate had provided an amply opening. Though as Dark stumbled back, her claws raked across his neck. Not enough to kill him, but enough to leave scars. He didn’t take the time to think about them though. Of course, Dark didn’t take the time to worry about him anymore. Deciding he was more trouble than he was worth, she turned, and took to the sky. Voort had gotten to his lightsaber, activating the primary end of it and turned around just as Dark was flying off. In a desperate attempt to do anything, he hurled the saber at her.

Dark was too fast, though, and already too far away. The orange blade fell to the ground, deactivating as it hit the sand, and Voort watched in horror as Shadow...no, that wasn’t Shadow. As whoever that was flew off with Jen. Taking her deep into the desert. To Sadrak. Knowledge of things like that was something Voort had learned not to question years earlier. He simply accepted that it was the truth, and acted on it. Pushing aside grief and worry, Voort moved to get his lightsaber before starting the long trek across the sand. He would track them. The trail left in the Force was too strong for anyone to miss.

Voort was not going to lose now. For the first time in years, he could feel light returning to his life. He’d be damned if it was going to be taken away again. He’d be damned if he was going to lose Jen the way he lost Calina and his daughter. Never again.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 71: Questions and Mirrors

The movement that Akan had seen faded into nothing, and he paid it no more attention. This was his first mistake, but not one to become apparent yet. Instead, he turned his attention to Light. There was something else bothering him. She knew much more about what was going on that she was saying, or even allowing to be hinted at. Yet he could feel it. Continuing the slow march over another dune, Akan grabbed her arm so she couldn’t drop back like she’d done so many other times, “What is going on here?”

Light tried doing the same thing from before. She shuffled her feet and stared intently at the sand, but because of his grip on her arm, was nearly pulled down onto her face. Stumbling to keep up on her feet, Light looked to Akan with a confused expression, wondering why he was trying to fight with her. At least, that’s how she saw it.

Akan stopped, turned and looked her straight in the eyes, “Tell me what’s happened, or I leave you here.”

For a quick second, Akan could tell that she was going to attempt her usual dodging of the subject, but with that glare he was giving her it was near impossible to not melt and hide. He’d learned it from Shadow. He’d learned it well. Quietly, Light said, “I...its...she...”

Sighing, Akan lessened the glare, “Slow down, and just explain it. I know it won’t make sense, but I need to know what’s happened here beyond what I think.”

She nodded slowly, trying again, “She...Shadow, was not balanced. Or...she was too balanced. Or..no! No she wasn’t balanced! This wouldn’t have happened otherwise!” pausing, Light realized that Akan had no idea what she was talking about. Biting her lip, Light tried a third time from a different angle, “The Force. Light and Dark...yes?”

Akan nodded.

“They balance each other,” she went on, “You can’t have one without the other. When one becomes to strong, things go wrong. But two things like that can’t balance themselves on their own. They’re too much at odds...wanting more power over the other. So there’s a third that holds the balance. Keeps them together whether they like it or not. Light...Dark...and the Shadow between.”

Part of Akan wanted to argue this, knowing how much against the teachings of the Jedi these words were. She had essentially said that the Force could not exist without the Dark Side, while Jedi all had a strong belief that the Dark Side was evil and should be destroyed. But if Light was correct, then destroying the Dark Side would in turn destroy the Light Side. No Jedi would ever believe this...but somehow, Akan found it to be true.

Seeing he wasn’t going to say anything, Light continued, “It’s the same with living beings. Light...Dark...and a little in between. Imbalance is different in living beings, though, as it does not result in the same kind of destruction. But...with...her...um...me...sort of...the training that Alraxian Tam-Day-U receive blended with whatever the Imperials did to...Marix. It...it did something. Maybe its more a side effect of the cloning technique. But she was always...I mean, I was always. We...were always at odds within one. And something. I don’t know...something happened. Split it.”

“But why me, too?!” Akan threw up his hands and glared in the general direction of the sky above. Amazingly enough, that all made sense to him, except for the fact of himself. If he’d thought about it for only a second, he’d have known, but Akan was angry at the universe.

So, Light explained it, “You’re part of her...me...us.”

Akan couldn’t help a growl at that, “I really got myself into more than I bargained for...” he sighed and tried to calm himself, “But why am I me? Why not split like you?”

She shrugged, “Bodies are the same, minds are close but still different. Maybe that’s it?”

“But then what is that other me?” Akan asked, suddenly noticing that movement off on the horizon again. He watched it over her shoulder but did his best to look like he was still paying attention to what she was saying. Which he was...distractedly.

Light shrugged again, but at least tried suggesting, “He could still be Dark...but likely more balanced and sane.”

Akan had started to think of a response to that. It was going to be sarcastic, flat, and generally out of place in the serious conversation. However, his mind clicked with the movement and he made another comment, equally bad but much more serious, “We can ask me...here I come.”

Turning around to see, Light only got a quick glance at the black object streaking just above the sand towards them. Her eyes weren’t able to focus because Akan forced her to the side, knowing she wasn’t going to be any good in a fight. And this didn’t like a friendly hello. Didn’t feel like it either.

Akan had time to also dive to the side just as his Dark shot past where he’d stood, claws extended and slashing at thin air. Hopping to his feet, Akan looked to the back of his Dark, grinning, “I always thought I’d look good with wings. The black leather is a little too stylish, though. You think about changing that?”

His Dark just spun around and growled a curse, diving at him again. Akan had no trouble spinning to the side out of the way of the Dark’s strike. Two more strikes aimed at him were again easily dodged. Akan was understanding why it was easy. He was fighting himself. He knew his actions...he knew his weaknesses. And the interesting part was that his Dark seemed to be showing these weaknesses very strongly. Not thinking before its next attack, giving time to tell where it would be placed, and then two slow on the recovery. But Akan was getting arrogant, a trait that everyone had and always came back to bite one in the tail.

In Akan’s case, it didn’t bite him, or reach his tail. Instead, it took the form of his Dark’s fist, and impacted hard with the left side of his face. Sprawling back onto the sand below, Akan was surprised that he wasn’t having to dodge another attack while he was on his feet. In fact, his Dark wasn’t even there. A yelp was heard from Light. Damn! By the time Akan made it to his feet, his Dark had grabbed Light and was starting to take to the sky. Akan ran. He ran as fast as he could to reach his Dark before he was out of reach.

And he made it. A hand grabbed onto his Dark’s ankle, and Akan was able to yank the flying Alraxian down onto the sand. This also got a second yelp from Light, who’d been fallen on and was panicked. His Dark growled and kicked back at Akan, forcing him back and having to let go of the ankle. Quickly getting back to his feet, and dragging Light up with him, Akan’s Dark attempted to run forward again before taking to the sky again.

“You’ve already got one of her, you don’t need two!” Akan called out and charged forward again. This time, though, he didn’t reach his Dark in time. The winged Akan was in the sky, well out of reach and flying at an amazing speed. Damn...Akan ran. Again. Thinking all the while. Well, not thinking as much as his mind was racing insanely for anything that might stop his Dark. He was nearly to the point of throwing sand...but not yet. There was another option.

Continuing to run and watching as his Dark was quickly pulling away, Akan drew his blaster from its holster and fired. The bolt was too slow. A first, most likely. It flew off behind hid Dark, and before Akan could fire again, his Dark was just too far away. Fatigue suddenly washed over him, and Akan dropped to his knees. Tiredly, he holstered the weapon and looked to the figure disappearing far off on the horizon. No choice but to follow. Again. But this time speed truly was important. Who knew what the Darks were planning. But why just her? Why leave Akan? That’s what worried him.

Slowly, he got up to his feet and started in the direction his Dark had gone. This planet was really starting to annoy him. Not one good rest. Not one. Being unconscious did not count. He’d been running too much. And here he was, running again. Chasing the horizon. One day, he was going to stop trying to be such a hero all the time. One day, he’d stop trying to help anyone at his own expense. One day, he’d die. Akan truly hoped it wouldn’t be today. He was only twenty two, and there were far too many questions about his life that had already happened. Before he died, he wanted those answered. And Shadow could. Not Light. Not Dark. Shadow. So he put more strength into his run to get her back and put his mind at ease.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 73: We Fight Together

Eventually, no matter where one lives in the galaxy, they will encounter something that someone will label as a coincidence. Chance. Just a stroke of luck. Some people simply accept this as such. Chance. But others won’t. Akan fell into the latter group. Only twenty two or so standard years of living, and he didn’t believe in coincidence. He’d seen far too much otherwise. And no, it was not his strength in the Force that encouraged that belief. If it was, he’d make a perfect Jedi Knight. But instead, he simply knew that some things were meant to happen. Certain things were easier to accept than others. For instance, Akan knew that Shadow killing him was not simple bad luck. It had happened for a reason. That reason, he didn’t yet know. And he likely wouldn’t until he also accepted that Mare had not died from his own bad luck and bad thinking.

But currently, Akan was applying this thought pattern to the situation presenting itself to him. The situation was in the form of a person. Voort. Voort had found him. Coincidence? In a desert of this size? No way. Even if you believed in that kind of thing, it was a stretch. So, the first thing Akan said when he saw the tired looking human was, “What in the name of the Sith are you doing out here?”

Strangely, that got a smile out of Voort, even if it looked slightly forced, “Probably the same reason you are.”

Strangely, Akan found himself nodding at that. A moment later he knew why. Pulses through the Force helped him to figure out the course of events. Most notably, he could see Dark, “Where is she?”

“Which one?” Voort asked simply.

Honestly, Akan didn’t know who he was asking about. Probably both Jen and Dark. Definitely both. Strange that he hadn’t even thought about that when he’d asked it. Silencing the strange stream of tangent thoughts, Akan looked back to Voort, “You saw Dark, then.”

“Cliched name, but I assume you’re talking about the winged Shadow,” commented Voort. He looked distracted. In fact, he was. He hadn’t stopped following that trail left in the Force, and was starting to walk along with it anyway.

Akan caught up with him and tried to think of something productive to add. He couldn’t. It was another thing that was so odd. They’d exchanged only a few words, yet both knew the situation perfectly after that. While Akan was slightly suspicious of this, Voort was simply focused on the task at hand.

They walked in silence for near an hour before Voort finally spoke, “We’re a lot more similar than you think.”

That caught Akan off guard. Not because the comment was out of no where, but because it was exactly what he’d been thinking about. He’d studied this Imperial and was finding himself worrying that he was so much like him. Akan knew that Voort was a killer. Akan also knew that he wasn’t any better when things got right down to it. In fact, Akan was arguably worse. His three months with New Republic Spec Force, though short, were very active. He’d taken every mission that could possibly have come his way just to always be doing something. To forget the pain. But it had only helped him to develop a stronger hatred for Imperials, and the day he’d quit and left completely was when he’d realized how much he enjoyed killing them.

“I never enjoyed my kills,” Voort said, chiming in on Akan’s thoughts again. However, he’d said it before Akan had finished thinking. Not reading his thoughts, simply having parallel thoughts. Warriors think alike. The former Imperial looked Akan in the face as they walked across the endless sand, “But they weren’t faceless either. I still have the datapad with all of their names and profiles. Family. Age. Everything. I keep it with me to remind myself that they aren’t cruel and horrible people. Simply the enemy.”

It was almost as if Voort was just talking to himself. Akan was continually not saying anything, just amazed at the man’s words. At how...how compassionate he sounded. Yet this man had worked as the Emperor’s personal assassin. A perfect sniper. A user of the Dark Side of the Force. Evil in every definition. Yet...yet Akan found that he, himself, was more of an evil person. Voort had done what he thought was right. He had fought for the side he believed was the correct one. Akan...Akan had been like that. But something happened to him when Mare was killed. Perhaps its why relationships are discouraged within the military. Perhaps its why the militaries rarely recruit such young pilots. But they had. And that day that Mare was killed Akan had made two decisions. He’d decided that her death was the fault of him for being careless, and the fault of the Empire for all the suffering it had caused. He’d decided that day that everyone who’d caused her death was going to die. And he was going to do it. That was why he’d joined Spec Force. It was the best way to kill Imperials. And once they were dead...he could deal with the other one at fault.

He’d never reached that point. He realized his mistakes and messed himself up even more by completely cutting himself off from his past and burying all of those dangerous emotions deep. Here, though, was an Imperial who was everything Akan should have been. This man had lost his wife and daughter and had somehow come out of it strong. Akan could not imagine that kind of strength.

Voort suddenly broke off Akan’s train of thought by reaching through his robes and pulling out two small objects. Datapads. Switching one of them on, he held it out so Akan could see it. On the datapad was an image Akan knew far too well. It was that holo of him and Mare the day she’d died. Flight suits on, chaos of the hangar behind them. A strange mix of emotions ran through Akan when Voort said, “Jen told me that you were very close with this girl.”

For a moment, Akan found himself growing extremely angry. It felt like Voort had been digging in places he shouldn’t have been. But the moment passed as quickly as it had appeared and Akan just nodded. He couldn’t find any words. If Jen had told him about it, there was a reason. And Akan trust her judgement.

“She’s very beautiful,” Voort said quietly.

Akan’s tail twitched at that. He fought back a tear unsuccessfully, and managed a small nod. Finding his voice, Akan spoke towards the sand, “Was.”

Seeing the effect this had on Akan, Voort switched off the datapad and replaced it with the second one he’d gotten. Switching that one on, Akan looked over to see another holo. It was of a woman. Probably in her mid twenties. She had shoulder length red hair, bright green eyes, and one of the most genuine smiles Akan had ever seen. Standing with an arm around the woman was what had to have been a young Voort. He wore the olive green Imperial officer’s uniform, yet it only held the rankings of a newly enlisted Cadet.

“Your wife?” Akan asked carefully, not wanting to provoke and kind of anger from Voort. This was foolish, as he knew by now that Titus Voort was not one to act like a child. Akan was the child.

Smiling, Voort nodded, “Yes. I keep this with me. It’s a reminder of times long gone.”

Akan couldn’t help a slight smile, himself, and spoke very quietly, “She’s beautiful.”

“Yes. She is,” responded Voort, and Akan didn’t miss that Voort had said ‘is’ and not ‘was’. He’d not corrected Akan. He’d not been insulted. He’d not done anything that Akan would have done...or had done.

Voort then withdrew the datapad back into the folds of his robe. He switched the first datapad to his other hand, then reached over and held it in front of Akan, saying, “We both fight for lost love. Don’t let it kill you. Let it strengthen you,” Akan listened to the man’s words and found himself taking the datapad. He put it in a jacket pocket and was surprised to see Voort pull out a third datapad. The former Imperial then placed this in front of Akan, “They’re still with us. They always will be. She’ll always watch over you.”

Akan then took the second datapad, finding that Voort’s words were strongly affecting him. Akan stopped walking to look at the datapad. He had never actually looked at the contents before, and was surprised to find that it was already switched on. It was Mare’s diary. The other thing he’d kept. And the page that the document was on read:

“Sometimes I wish that I could wait to love him. Wait until we get out of this war. Wait until we both know we’ll be alive. But I can’t. Its so hard to live with, going out and flying with him as my wing. Hopefully one day we can look back at how insecure I am and laugh. But I’m worried we won’t be able to. I’m worried this will be it. I just wish I could have said more. Done more. He’s so much more fragile than he likes to admit. So much more afraid. I can’t stop worrying about what he might do if I die. There’s something in him that’s dangerous. He can hold it back...but something like that might trigger it. I don’t want him to become some kind of killer. He’s capable of it...I wish I knew why. Then I could help him. But I can’t. It’s the one thing I can’t do for him. The one thing I’ll never be able to do for him. Someone out there should be able to. I just wish it was me...

Maybe after this battle I can ask him to resign his commission with me. He’d do it, though I don’t he’d ever think of it himself. Yes. I’ll ask him when we get back.”

The entry was dated three hours before the assault on Coruscant. It was the last entry. Slowly, Akan closed the datapad and put it away. He stood there in the middle of the desert for a long moment with his face buried in the palm of his hand, not even trying to fight back the tears anymore. He’d made all those mistakes after she’d died. And all those mistakes were an insult to her. When Akan finally opened his eyes again and looked forward, Voort was three dunes beyond him. Slowly, Akan began to understand what the man had shown him and why. So he followed Voort. He was far enough behind, though, to have never seen the tears on Voort’s face. And by the time Akan caught up, any evidence was gone.

They’d had their time to grieve. Now it was time to move on. Time to deal with what had to be dealt with. In the distance, the small black structure that was coming into view showed Akan the future. It was time to make Mare proud of him. He’d done exactly what she’d feared he would. How right she’d been...but no more. He couldn’t die anymore. He wasn’t allowed to. Akan wasn’t allowed to, because Shadow wasn’t allowed to. The importance of that was still not completely apparent to him.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 74: Strange Forces at Work

Dark stood outside of the complex, watching the horizon for any sign of her Akan. He was taking his time. He should have returned by now. She knew he hadn’t failed...then it was likely he was simply trying to prove something. Idiot. Obviously, he knew that she still had use for him and wouldn’t get rid of him, allowing a certain level of defiance. This did not, however, account for the fact that this creature they were serving may not take it so lightly. And if her pet got himself killed like that, she’d be stuck. Dark growled to herself, kicking at Jen’s body which was laying in the sand at her feet.

Truthfully, Dark had not reported the woman’s capture yet. In fact, she’d been standing outside(and in one of the blind spots for the scanners) since arriving ten minutes earlier. She’d simply dropped Jen’s body onto the sand and waited. He was taking more than just his sweet time. She growled again, and took a short look back towards the entrance to the complex. No guards still. And she couldn’t feel that wandering menace either. Silence. Emptiness. A strange thing near this place. He was up to something...

But that wouldn’t matter if her pet got them both killed. More trouble than he was worth. She reached out through the remnant of the link between them and said. [If I have to come out there and get you, you’re going to regret it.]

She didn’t get a response. No surprise. He’d likely at least speed up. But there was something else. A distant feeling...two of them. Dark soon identified them as the two Lights. That presented a problem. If she could feel them through the link like that, then it was likely they could hear her. Which meant...

Outwardly, Dark cursed and kicked at Jen’s unconscious body again. A moment later, she detected an amused feeling through the link. This was quickly followed by her Akan’s voice. [Not very smart. Now they know where you are. You shouldn’t be so arrogant all the time.]

That idiot! Accusing her of arrogance while giving away his own position in the process! He was inviting trouble! Dark paused a moment in her thoughts. He was inviting trouble...literally. She’d made a mistake in assuming that the link was simply dead, but he’d figured it out. He couldn’t possibly be stupid enough to chastise her and make the same mistake. So there was a reason behind it...yes. But what? Think...feel. There. A trap? Yes...he was feeling vindictive at having to run from himself. Amusing.

Amusing, but stupid. He’d lost once and that meant he could screw up again. Dark growled to herself for the third time and picked up Jen. Tossing the unconscious human over her shoulder, Dark took to the sky and shot off towards her Akan. After she helped him not get himself killed she was going to bring him as close to death as was possible. He was playing games when they shouldn’t be played.

* * * *​

“So you’re telling me you’re standing right over there?” Voort asked, sounding a little sarcastic though he was being completely serious. More trying to analyze the situation than anything. They were laying down behind a dune, with Akan peeking over the top to look at an object they’d seen flying across the sky. It had stopped, and then dropped down. They had done the same. With a short argument, Akan had pointed out that his Alraxian eyes were better, meaning he should be the one to have a look.

He crawled back down the dune and looked to Voort with a nod, “Yes. Sort of. I already explained that. But yes, I’m over there. So is Shad...um...Light. I think he knows I’m here.”

“And then why is he just standing there?” asked Voort as he thought about stepping up to have a look for himself. Soon...but not yet.

Akan was thinking. He opened his mouth and attempted to explain something, “Well. If it was me...and it is. Then...I’d be angry for having gotten my tail whipped by myself. And I’d probably not be thinking straight, so I’d be putting priorities all wrong,” he paused a moment to make sure Voort was keeping up. Akan wasn’t even completely understanding all of what he was saying anymore, “I bet I’m standing there waiting for me to come out so I can get some revenge.”

Voort raised an eyebrow, “Not very Jedi like.”

“But very me like,” Akan commented. That got a slow nod from Voort. Smiling, Akan looked back to the top of the dune, “But we’ve got an advantage here.”

“Me,” responded Voort, idly waving the blaster pistol that he was now carrying.

Akan nodded, “Exactly. Or at least, I hope. Hopefully I’m too blinded by annoyance to try seeing if I’m alone or not.”

“You could just say ‘he’ instead of all those I’s, Akan,” Voort said, finally pointing out something that had been bothering the both of them for the last twenty minutes. At that, Akan grinned and shrugged. Without another word, Akan stood up and started over the dune. Voort carefully made his way over to the left side of the dune before finding a spot where he could watch carefully from. A spot where he’d also be able to attack from if necessary.

Casually, Akan walked over the dune towards his other. He had a smile on his face, though that was sharply contrasted by the scowl on the winged Akan’s face. That Alraxian really needed to learn to control his emotions more. His Dark allowed Akan to get within about ten paces before he spoke up, “What took you so long?”

Akan just smiled and shrugged, “Oh, you know how I am. Always late. Too cautious...annoying.”

His Dark simply glared. Then, Akan heard something. It was from where the link should have been. He...heard a voice. Distant and not very clear. But it was a voice. And it was familiar. Akan’s eyes widened when he realized he could hear Dark’s voice through the link. A moment later, he heard his own Dark’s response. Akan was just about to make a sarcastic and rude comment when his Dark rushed forward.

Akan was thrown to the sand below, his Dark pinning him and clawing at his chest. When one of the claws raked across Akan’s chest, he caught sight of a slight hint of pain in his Dark’s face. Interesting. Kicking his Dark off and to the side, Akan rolled away and got to his feet. He quickly remorphed the wound and said, “You know as little as I do about this. For all we know, killing me could kill you.”

“It could be worse,” his Dark said flatly, charging again. This time, Akan grabbed his Dark’s wrist and threw the winged version of himself onto his back. It could be worse. Those words. Something about them was much more important than it had seemed at first. Akan no longer found himself wanting to die...yet those words from his Dark showed the difference between them. All of his failure within this one. Not aggression like with Shadow...but failure. This Dark would not beat him. It wasn’t possible. Physically, maybe, but not mentally.

Suddenly, Akan found himself feeling sorry for his Dark. When those feelings were balanced with others, they were bearable. But alone? That was something he couldn’t imagine. And before Akan could speak up, knowing that at least saying something would help, there was a flash of movement. Coupled with this, an arm impacted with Akan’s chest, sending him sprawling across the sand. He looked up in surprise, attempting to get his breath back and saw Dark. Not his...but the Dark. She was much more dangerous, and he knew why now.

Over her shoulder, Dark growled, “Get back with both of them, NOW!”

It was strange to see Akan’s Dark cower like that. But then again, anyone would have cowered at the coldness in that voice. Even Sadrak, probably. As Akan’s Dark scrambled to pick up both Light and the body of Jen(which Akan had not seen Dark even drop), Dark took a few steps towards Akan. She looked down at him, tilting her head curiously and holding a disturbing half smile on her face. Quietly, and far too calmly, she said to him, “You know I can’t kill you...but then again, you also know that death would be a release from pain. And we can’t have that, can we?”

Akan had a quick second before Dark did to hear and see Voort. This second had given Voort just enough time to get to his feet, start running, and fire off one shot. The shot caught Dark in the back, sending her to the sand next to Akan. One last glance towards Voort showed that he was actually running toward’s Akan’s Dark. This meant that Akan had another job. Not even getting to his feet, Akan moved enough to deliver a strong kick to Dark’s jaw. A moment later, Akan was getting to his feet and drawing his lightsaber. The second he thumbed the activation switch at the blade appeared, Dark was up and had gotten a hold of his wrist.

It was no real fight over dominance of the saber. Dark was simply stronger than he was. So when she kicked Akan back and tore the weapon from his grip, Akan had been ready for it. He had been kicked back close to Voort, who was just running past towards Akan’s Dark. Voort took a quick look at the situation, and did something Akan wasn’t ready for. The former Imperial tossed his double bladed lightsaber to Akan, said nothing, and continued his run to stop Akan’s Dark, who was just picking up Light.

Akan didn’t take any time to think, he simply activated one of the orange blades just in time to deflect a vicious strike from Dark. He spun around and blocked another quick strike, this one aimed towards his lower torso. She wasn’t playing around. In fact, despite her comment on not killing him, she seemed bent on making sure he existed in more than just two bodies. Akan was finding it strange to wield the much larger hilt of Voort’s weapon, but was doing his best to not let that effect his defense. Defense. For once, he was on the defense and not trying anything else. All he had to do was by Voort time, and then get out.

But Dark would likely detect such a ruse. So Akan found an opening, and pressed his own attack. He swung the orange blade across towards Dark’s shoulder. She parried this easily, but her spin which was quickly followed by an attack showed an interesting advantage to Akan. She was slower because of the two large wings. A grin appeared on Akan’s face and he parried two more quick strikes before taking advantage of this. Attacking in a way that would seem foolish to anyone else, Akan swung the blade up and towards Dark’s side. She wasn’t there, but when she moved to spin out of the way of his strike, her wing found its way to his blade. There was a loud scream of pain, and Dark quickly dropped Akan’s lightsaber. This surprised Akan, but not as much as her next reaction. In a flash, her fist slammed into Akan’s face, and then Dark was gone.

He’d blinked and cringed from the pain...and then his eyes had opened to emptiness. Akan turned to the other sound, seeing Voort. The man had taken two more shots at Akan’s Dark, who had by now dropped both Light and Jen and was nearly running. Whatever Voort had done...wait, no. Voort had done nothing but shoot at him. Then, why?! Suddenly, in a quick blur of movement, Akan’s Dark was plucked off the sand and two dark blurs shot off towards...towards no where.

Akan watched in disbelief, then turned to Voort. The man looked back and shrugged, “That was too easy.”

Walking over to look to both Jen and Light, Akan nodded, “They were going to win.”

“But they just dropped and ran,” Voort finished, kneeling down next to Jen and wiping the sand off of her face.

Akan sighed and looked around, unsure of what to do. He bit his lower lip for a moment, then walked over to Light. She was half awake, starting to sit up, and looking dazed. Akan stepped over and helped her to her feet, then looked back to Voort, “Think we can worry about it later and just get out of this desert? I could use a rest.”

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 75: Well Earned Rest

At first, they’d tried to simply follow their path back. Neither Voort nor Akan could really reorient themselves after everything happened, so they wandered in a direction they’d hoped was right. Maybe it was, but the growing heat of the new day was starting to wear down on all of them. Voort seemed the most able to hide it, though he was still looking tired. Jen, who was doing better after regaining consciousness, was still feeling beat up and truly needed a long break from life. Akan hadn’t had a break for the well over thirty standard hours, and he was having trouble walking straight. Even though his Alraxian body was stronger than that of a human, he’d also not eaten much. The constant remorphing he’d had to do had used up even more energy, and the lack of enough food was just causing more troubles. Light seemed to be the wildcard of the group, though. She had not spoken at all. She’d not really done anything but start walking when they did. It would have worried Akan if he wasn’t so exhausted already. Instead, it just confused him.

But they hadn’t made it far when it had been decided that they were simply going to have to stop. This was possible, not because they found shelter. Actually, they tried looking, but failed miserably. They couldn’t see any kind of rock formation anywhere. Just sand. Thankfully, though, Voort had been intelligent enough to bring the survival kit from the speeder before going after Dark and Jen. The kit contained a tent. It was a small tent, but could provide room for two of them. Currently, Akan and Jen were passed out in the tent. Well, Akan was passed out. Jen was more resting with her eyes closed and trying not to laugh at the strange noises that Akan would make ever few minutes. Mostly they were noises one would expect from a much smaller animal. Obviously a feline one. But coming from something so much larger, it was humorous. Especially the purring sound. That was the rarest one, but something Jen was going to taunt him about when he was conscious again.

Voort sat next to the side of the tent that was currently shielded from direct sunlight. He’d had his rest already, and was both on watch and thinking. Ten minutes earlier, he’d attempted to use the emergency comm to get contact with Hansen and Landau, but after trying nearly fifty different frequencies, there was no response. Obviously, he was going to try again later, but right now he was watching Light. The Alraxian girl a good thirty meters away, sitting on top of a dune and watching nothing in particular. As she was facing the other direction, he couldn’t actually tell what she was doing. Though he could see her tail swish across the sand every few moments.

Only a few years ago he would have hated her just for having that tail. Alraxians were so close to human. Take away the ears and the tail, and they would look just like well tanned humans. Yet that tail...the ears...even the different eye shape and sharper teeth. All of that made them inferior. Different. Evil, even. It was Marix who had taught him how wrong that was. She hadn’t even tried. It was simply being around her that had shown her to be so very similar to him. To all of them. In fact, she’d even expressed the same disdain for humans that he’d learned for non-humans. Or at least, he’d thought it was disdain. Eventually Voort had learned that it was more like a form of pity. To Alraxians, humans were a very violent and volatile race of being who needed to be cared for. Almost like pets. Almost.

That had been barely a year before Calina had died. It had been a very happy time in his life. Even Marix had expressed a want to see his daughter when she was born. But that day never came. Calina had been killed just a month before she was due. Marix had then been moved to another location, and Voort found himself alone. But now things were changing. Hopefully, for the better. And despite being able to show Akan how similar the two of them were, Voort could still tell that the young would-be Jedi held a hatred for him. Hatred was the only word for it. Perhaps Akan would attempt to go through with their ‘deal’ once Sadrak was gone. Voort didn’t care anymore. He wouldn’t go through with it. He had at least one reason not to die now. At least one reason to hang on. So if he had to kill Akan, so be it. But that would likely just ruin everything Voort had changed. He’d be back to the same person he’d fought to lose. It would be a no win situation. There was a way out of it, but it was up to Akan to decided on his own. That boy would have to grow up on his own.

The comm beeped. Voort nearly jumped in surprise, but kept his composure and picked the small device up. He hit the switch and heard a familiar voice, “Titus? Titus are you there?”

“I hear you, Arik,” Voort said, smiling to himself and glad to hear the voice of his old friend.

Landau sounded relieved, “We picked up your transmission but it was too broken up. Sounds clear now, though. Where are you?”

Trying not to laugh, Voort looked up. Then all around. Then back to the ground, “Landau, I think I’ve finally found the middle of no where.”

“That bad?” asked Landau, a bit of amusement in his voice.

“It could be humid and raining,” commented Voort as he stood up and looked over towards Light again, “You think you can come pick us up?”

A pause. A long pause. Then, “If you keep the comm on I should be able to trace it.”

“You’d better come alone,” Voort said, starting to walk towards Light slowly, “All four of us are here and the speeder will probably be cramped.”

“Right,” another pause. Then, “I can’t say how long it’ll be but I’ll get out there as soon as I can.”

“Thank, Arik.”

There was no pause this time. Instead, Landau said quickly, “Titus.”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t ever try that stunt again.”

This time, Voort did laugh, “What’s wrong with running off in the night?”

“What’s wrong is that you left me behind,” Landau said, a bit of a laugh in his own voice, “But I’ll deal with your insubordination later. Landau, out.”

The comm did not click off. Voort also didn’t switch his off. It was going to have to stay on. Thankfully, there shouldn’t be any other use for it out here. He pocketed the comlink and stopped his walk a few steps behind Light. Her ear turned towards him slightly, but she made no other acknowledgment to his presence. For a short while he just stood there, looking across the open nothing. But then, he said quietly, “Landau’s on his way to pick us up.”

Slowly, Light nodded.

“You don’t talk anymore?” he asked, stepping over and sitting next to her.

Light sighed and spoke quietly, “Akan’s right.”

Voort had no idea what she was talking about. All that Akan had said to him was explaining what had happened to the best of his knowledge. There was nothing that needed to be ‘right’. So this had to be something else. Time to ask the obvious question, “Right about what?”

She looked over at him like he hadn’t even heard what she’d said. Or at least like he wasn’t listening. For the first time, Voort said in Shadow a lot of Marix. He’d always seen Shadow as a much more violent Marix, but here...here he could see at least a mirror of the original. But there was too much fear. And her voice was so timid that it almost seemed like she was afraid of getting yelled at. But she must have seen something in him, as Light looked back to the sand which she’d been idly drawing little faces in and said, “Can’t go on like this.”

“Like what?” Voort asked this question already knowing what she meant. However, it was probably a good thing for her to say it herself and really accept it.

“I...” Light erased one of the faces and started drawing a little Alraxian, “I have to be whole again...even if...if I don’t want to be. Akan, too.”

Hearing this, Voort simply nodded. He thought for a moment about what would be the best way to respond, then said carefully, “I know how hard it is. But I can’t help you with this, Marix...not this time.”

It was strange, he’d not even realized he’d called her Marix. Light had noticed, though. She looked up from her little drawing and gave him an almost shocked face. She was obviously about to ask something, but she stopped after opening her mouth. Closing her eyes, Light tried something else, “Please?”

Her eyes had opened again and she was giving him that big eyed look that small children used. It was genuine, but didn’t change the fact that there was nothing he could do. He sighed and put a hand on her shoulder, “No. I can’t.”

“Why...?” she was nearly begging with only that one word.

Voort shook his head, hating that he was having to say this but knowing it was right, “I’m sorry. I can’t help you anymore. You have to do that yourself.”

He then pulled his hand away and stood up. Voort looked down at Light’s drawing one last time, smiling at the small grinning face. It was childish, but strangely relieving. He turned and started to walk back to the tent, deciding to get some rest. He’d only taken a few steps when Light suddenly called to him, “You would have made a good father, Titus.”

That wasn’t Light’s voice. It was too...too. How could she have known? The clones didn’t have those memories. Yet. Yet Light did. When Voort turned back to say something, Light had already turned back and gone back to her drawing in the sand. Standing there and not knowing what to think, Voort just stared at the Alraxian girl’s back. Those were Marix’s words. The last words she’d said to him that lifetime ago. She’d known they were going to be her last words to him. But how was it possible that Light knew? She hadn’t done anything with the Force. She’d just...changed suddenly. And now she was back to being the child. The clone. Sighing, Voort turned back and tried to clear his mind.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Chapter 76: Morale Boosting

“The Topsiders say that a dark power is growing out in the desert,” Landau said as he piloted the speeder across the sands. He’d arrived quickly, finding them without any trouble and being told to ask no questions. Even though they were all rested, talking of the day’s events was just not going to happen.

Voort, who was sitting next to Landau, couldn’t help a slight chuckle, “Yes, well I agree with them. Any actual details beyond beliefs though?”

Landau just shrugged, “Not much that’s useful. Hansen sent out a squad to find some information in Haladin, but that place is a mess. I believe she was also planning on sending out a few groups to search the desert and find the other Topsider settlements.”

“Dangerous work,” commented Voort idly, not really wanting to think too much on any of the implications at the moment.

All that Landau did was nod, noticing that his friend seemed distracted. There would likely be a better time to speak of these things later. There would also be a time to yell at Voort for disappearing like he did. But then again, Landau couldn’t really blame him. He’d plotted doing the same thing. In fact, if Hansen hadn’t caught him taking the speeder, Landau would have slipped out unnoticed. Not that he needed to, but he just found himself not thinking about any hierarchy of command these days.

Sitting in the back of the speeder, Akan was crushed between both Jen and Light. This would normally have not been a problem. Of course, Jen was acting strangely happy and taking every chance she could to tease him. To make matters worse, Light was assisting.

“I do not do that!” Akan growled under his breath, staring intently at the floor and trying to ignore the two of them.

“Awww,” Jen laughed and patted his shoulder, “Its okay, Akan. It was easier to rest with that purring. Kind of cute, actually.”

“I don’t purr.”

“Actually,” Light raised a hand and smiled, “Its quite common. You probably do...especially in your sleep.”

Akan shot her a glare. Wasn’t she supposed to be nice? Dark should be the malicious and cruel one! This wasn’t fair, “Are you sure you’re the ‘good’ one?”

Light just smiled. It was so similar to the worrying smile that Shadow was an expert at. So similar that Akan started worrying. Jen squeezed his shoulder a bit roughly, “Its nothing to be ashamed of. Though I really don’t think you should run in with your lightsaber and do that. It might not be all that intimidating.”

Akan’s glare quickly shifted to his left, intensifying when he focused on the proudly grinning Jen. Her grin grew suddenly, and Akan didn’t realize why until a half second later. A hand was resting on top of his head. It was Light’s hand, and it was resting just behind his right ear. Quietly, she said, “If you like the sound, all you have to do is this...”

And then she started scratching his ear. Akan attempted to curse, attempted to yell some kind of protest...even attempted to move. But nothing happened. His body just froze up and a single sound came out of him. Purring. He’d have cursed if it hadn’t felt so good. In fact, he did start cursing...but that was only after they’d arrived and he’d realized what they’d done to him. Sure it felt good...very good...yes...very good...NO! No. That was cheating. That wasn’t fair play. In fact, it was down right cruel...even though...it was kind of nice...and...NO.

Gritting his teeth, Akan forced Jen out of the speeder so he could escape. The mood changed the second they were out of the speeder, though. Hansen was there with a few of the other former Imperials. She walked over to Landau and said, “Still no word from Shira.”

A sudden knife of pain shot through Akan. He looked over to Light, who met his glance carefully. She said nothing, but nodded. Right. This was his job. Carefully, Akan interrupted Landau’s response, “Shira’s dead.”

Silence. Shocked silence.

Alright...so maybe that wasn’t the best way to breach the subject. In fact, it was likely the worst. Oops. Again, Akan exchanged looks with Light. This time, she looked just as shocked as everyone else. Not as much at the news, but at how plainly he’d said that. Again. Oops. Akan bit his lip and tried again, “She...I met up with her in Haladin. Ligh...Shadow found us and we made a break for it. We got out of the city, but our speeder took a hit. She...she didn’t make it.”

That was better. Of course, it also left out those minor, yet very important details, that put the fault on him. This was probably a good thing, as only Akan really blamed himself. Light knew it was just what happened, and would have occurred no matter what. But Akan was still not being reasonable. Hansen looked at him carefully for a long moment, and managed a slow nod. The woman then turned and walked off swiftly. The silence continued for what Akan felt was far too long. Hating all of that attention on him, he also turned and left. Except he walked out into the desert and found a good rock to sit on and sulk. Back to old times so quickly.

Voort sighed and looked to Jen. She shrugged, and looked back towards where Akan had gone. Still, no one else moved. Finally, Landau spoke up, “Perhaps...perhaps we should leave others to their grieving. In the mean time, we should plan our attack on Haladin.”

That got some surprised looks. He’d not said a thing about any attack on Haladin before. The grin on Landau’s face showed that it was intentional. When he started off, of course the others followed him. More out of curiosity than anything. They found their way to that same large ‘briefing’ room to find Trker-Hon sitting there and curiously toying with a mug. Upon seeing them enter, he stood and bowed politely.

Greetings and hellos were exchanged and the four of them sat down. Landau did not sit. Instead, he stood behind one of the chairs and smiled, “Trker-Hon and I have been talking for the last few hours of the possibility of an attack on Haladin.”

“To what end?” Voort asked casually. He did seem interested, at least.

The Topsider fielded this question, “The ssssettlement issss conssssumed and overrun with Hissss influence.”

“Sadrak,” Jen clarified, though none of them actually needed to say it. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that Sadrak was behind all of this, and that there were a thousand things going on that they didn’t yet know about...and likely would not enjoy learning about.

“Yes,” Landau said with a nod, “The Topsiders were never any trouble at all when I was in charge here. We coexisted by simply ignoring each other. But Sadrak has pushed these Narani into a more militant role. Raids go out every day to destroy Topsider settlements. Though not all of the Narani are within Haladin, I believe clearing up that city will give the Topsiders the strength and morale to achieve the more important objective.”

Voort eyes widened slightly as he realized what all of this was really about, “A full scale attack on Sadrak. You know where he is.”

Again, Landau nodded, “Yes. You were close to his complex, actually. We captured three Narani spies who were attempting to infiltrate this cave. Hansen...interrogated them and we found a series of maps within their equipment that they had attempted to destroy.”

“Are you actually proposing a full scale assault of both Haladin and Sadrak’s complex?” Voort asked, knowing that this was completely foolish. Landau wasn’t telling him something...either that, or Landau had grown senile too young, “There’s not nearly enough of us for both attacks. I doubt there’s enough for even one.”

“One thing at a time, Titus,” commented Landau with a smile. He motioned to the Topsider who was sitting back and looking generally pleased with himself, “With all the personnel here combined with Trker-Hon’s remaining tribe, we have enough to take Haladin. As for Sadrak...”

The Topsider picked up as Landau trailed off, “Once my people ssssee our sssstrength, they will join ussss for any cause. There are hundredsss upon thousssands more Topsidersss more than there are Narani.”

Voort thought about this for a long time, then commented, “It still sounds too easy.”

“Trust me, Titus, it only sounds that way,” Landau said flatly. He then finally took a seat, looking to Light who was still silent, though paying close attention, “We’ll need to take out those turbolaser batteries before the main forces actually get into Haladin. Then, its good old fashioned urban warfare until we push em out.”

Jen looked to Voort, who shrugged, “Its workable.”

“Its doable,” Landau corrected, leaning back and saying, “But we’re going to have to do it soon. Hopefully, by tomorrow, we’ll be prepared to move on Haladin.”