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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 1824430" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 21: The Plot Thickens...again...“We took the wrong left,” Jen said flatly, standing with the other two in a small room that was once most likely a closet.    “How could we have taken the wrong left?!” Akan growled, having had this argument when they’d past two left corridors that were right next to each other. He and Shadow had said one way felt right, but Jen had insisted on the other. By rule of voting(and the fact that Shadow and Akan were bigger, stronger, and didn’t like being wrong or lost) they went with Akan and Shadow’s way. This, after many turns, led them to three small offices that were empty, and the closet.    “Obviously you two were wrong!” Jen said harshly, turning and starting back the way they’d come.    Akan grumbled something under his breath and stalked after her. Then he realized Shadow hadn’t followed, “Hold on...where’s Shady?”    Shady? Ah, why not. Jen seemed to take notice of the name and instead stopped and looked around. The two of them searched some, and Akan found that he could feel Shadow’s mind but she was...he couldn’t figure out where exactly she was. Then, from the back of the closet, a door slid open to a turbolift. Within it, was Shadow, a huge grin on her face an standing with her hands on her hips, “You two coming or not?”    Akan managed a ‘hah, I was right’ noise and strutted back to the turbolift. Jen didn’t care as much about being right as the other two, and simply followed, not bringing it up so as not to encourage the two of them. They were like children. Very annoying children that made you wonder why the parents had let them live more than three months. Once in the turbolift, the door closed and it started down. They didn’t seem to have much control where it went, but assumed it simply only went to one place.    The turbolift stopped, and Akan stepped in the front. Shadow stood behind him, and next to her, Jen had readied her blaster pistol. The door slid open, and they found themselves looking into a large, circular room. There was an outer section around it, with the inner section separated by pillars and a few computer consoles. It was a strangely disturbing design, and the soft red lighting didn’t help at all. Seeing no one, Akan carefully stepped into the room, moving to the side to see into around a pillar and into the center.    It was worrying. Everything felt wrong. The Force itself was oppressive. The center of the inner section of the room held a slightly raised section on the floor, and on that was a large metal sheet. It was humanoid shaped, and had obviously held someone. Torture? Maybe, but there was no other evidence. It looked more like some form of a prison complex. Very high security. Akan took another small step, and then noted that there were restraints on the metal. They were broken.    [Something is watching us...] Shadow ‘said’ in a strangely quiet voice in his mind.    Akan nodded slowly, and took one more step, nearing the center section. [Keep Jen in the turbolift if you can.]    Then a smell started to rise. A strong one. Something he knew but didn’t know...his nose was obviously more sensitive than before, and he knew what this was but couldn’t seem to put a name to it. [I smell fresh blood...] Shadow answered his thoughts. This was confirmed by a small amount of blood he could see on the floor. Fresh was right.    As Akan took another step, this time pacing him at the edge of the center of the room, he got the lightsaber off of his belt. Everything in him was telling him something was very wrong about this place. Shadow was right...something was watching. But something else was there. Something searching their minds. But Akan could see nothing. But other senses were more acute in this body...    His ear suddenly caught a sound off to the far left. Quiet, but as he heard the noise of metal being torn from something else, the Force sent a quick, almost violent warning. Akan reacted without thinking, finding himself spinning towards the sound and activating his lightsaber. The snap-hiss echoed throughout the disturbingly quiet room, and the second that he had gotten the blue-green blade into the usual defensive position in front of him, a large sheet of metal(most likely from the wall) was sliced cleanly in two and fell past him    Recovering from the shock, Akan was suddenly hit by a strong fist. It wasn’t physical. It was the Force itself. He grunted painfully as he slammed into him like a wall strapped to a landspeeder, sending him into one of the pillars hard, and then to the ground. He could hear Shadow whimper from the pain, but then he heard a noise he hadn’t expected.    Jen yelled out, “SHADOW!”    Akan felt Shadow’s movements distantly, turning to react to a threat that Jen had seen. Suddenly, a wave of pain shot through Akan from his head. He felt like passing out, but managed to stay conscious. Shadow didn’t. He heard her thud as she slammed into the floor Akan’s head was spinning as he heard Jen yell something else, then another loud thud. In blurred vision, he saw a dark cloaked figure move into the turbolift. It was holding...Shadow. He could tell because his arm ached from the way she was being dragged. Jen had been thrown out of the turbolift, and he could see her just barely, crumbled on the ground against a pillar.    Before he could do anything, the turbolift door closed. He heard it leave. Whoever it was had gone, and taken Shadow with him. Starting to get up to go after them, Akan suddenly realized he still could feel the same person watching him. The attacker wasn’t the one watching them? Or rather...he was better at hiding. On his feet again, Akan got his lightsaber up in front of him and carefully looked around the room. He could...hear breathing. It was Jen’s though. If there was someone else, he couldn’t tell beyond the feeling through the Force.    Slowly, his brain came to the conclusion that there was only one way to do this. It was stupid and simple. For some reason, he grinned and then just said, “I know someone’s there...come out.”    He heard movement from the right side. Quickly, Akan turned and faced that direction to show he could tell where the other was. Then, from a section in the wall, he saw a humanoid figure step out. The figure was a little taller than he was, and was wearing a very clean cut uniform. In the red light, it took a moment for Akan to realize it was the olive green of an Imperial Officer. But something...Akan could feel the man strongly in the Force. A voice spoke, sharp and obviously that of a man in the military, “You’re a Jedi.”    Akan forced back a grin. Same old answer wouldn’t work in a stand off, so he held his stance, “Yes. Who was that?”    “His name is Sadrak,” the voice responded flatly.    Something was still bothering Akan. He put his finger on it, and asked, “You were hiding from him?”    “He would have found me if not for you,” the voice sounded strangely happy. When the man took a step forward into clearer light, Akan saw the face of a seasoned warrior. He wasn’t old, but had the look of a man fighting all his life. He didn’t look like the average Officer who was there because of family connections and wealth. This man showed in his stature that he had earned his position. It seemed that the man got a clearer view of Akan, too, as a look of surprised washed over the Imperial’s face, “Alrax...”    “You know what I am?” Akan asked, for some reason lowering his lightsaber slightly and looking just as surprised. Somehow, he didn’t notice the fact that he’d truly accepted no longer being human so easily.    The surprise left the Imperial’s face, and it became one of determination. He looked to his left, and extended an arm. Akan watched suddenly as a small object shot towards the Imperial’s hand. The Force. That couldn’t be good...and that object...    With the small object in his hands, the Imperial started moving forward. A moment later, the object was easily identified by a snap-hiss and a blade of pale orange light extending from it. Akan quickly brought his lightsaber up and caught the Imperial’s blade high. How did he have a lightsaber?!    The two of them stood there, blades locked high for what seemed like an eternity. They were studying the other’s features. Reading. Learning. And the Imperial seemed amazed to at what he was seeing. Suddenly, he pulled back from the deadlock and brought a swing to Akan’s right side. Akan parried the blade and countered with an attack of his own aimed at the man’s legs. The Imperial jumped over the sweeping blue-green blade and landed a few meters away. He gave no time for Akan to recover, diving in with the blade swinging up. Again, Akan parried the attack, but found himself having to step back as the Imperial swung the lightsaber more frantically and dangerously. Each time, Akan had managed to get his blade in the right place just in time, but it wasn’t going to stay that way forever.    Yet again, a stupid idea came to mind. Two so far had worked. So he’d try his luck with a third. As the Imperial’s orange blade swung in from the left at neck level, Akan brought his blade into a position to parry it easily. But the second before they made contact, he deactivated his own lightsaber and ducked. Pulled around by the momentum of the swing, the Imperial was left open for a half second. Just long enough for Akan to punch him hard in the stomach. The man stumbled back after losing his breath, and Akan gave him no chance to attack again. With the Imperial’s lightsaber off to the side in a horrible position for defense, Akan planted a strong punch to the man’s face.    He was sent sprawling against the center of the circular room. The lightsaber fell out of his hand and rolled to the other side. Akan had started to move to get in the way, but the Imperial wasn’t moving anymore. Unconscious. Akan let out a long sigh of relief and put his lightsaber on his belt as he went to Jen. Yet again, that was a fight he shouldn’t have been able to win. Last time he’d been involved in one of those, Shadow had killed him. This time...this time he’d pulled a cheap trick to stay alive.    Whatever works was not the motto of most Jedi, but then again, Akan was not exactly the most exemplary example of a Jedi. Getting over to Jen, he knelt down beside her and helped her to sit up. She was conscious and a little dazed, but thanked him and told him what happened. He had seen it(and felt it) enough to not need the reminder, but let her speak it anyway. Once she’d finished, he explained the later half of the encounter.    Doing her usual ‘are you alright’ drilling of questions at him, Jen looked to the body of the Imperial, “What do we do?”    Akan sighed heavily and helped Jen to get to her feet, “We put him in the cargo compartment like that last one. Then we get Shadow.”    “But what if...” Jen started to say something, but Akan cut her off.    “If she dies, you’ll know. I’ll die too,” he had said it sharply and almost bitterly as he walked over to get the Imperial, “But she’s...distant. Moving away. Far away,” once he’d lifted up the Imperial and gotten the man’s lightsaber(can’t just leave those lying around), he looked up to the ceiling, “She’s already off the planet.”    “I...” Jen was probably about to apologize, though she wasn’t all that sure why. Instead, she stopped herself and got the turbolift open.    “We’ll get her back,” Akan said strongly as he stepped into the turbolift with her, “And I’ve got the feeling we have the key to tracking whoever took her down in this man.”</blockquote>

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