DISCLAIMER: Star Wars and all publicly recognisable characters, names and references, etc are the sole property of George Lucas, Lucasfilm Ltd, Lucasarts Inc, 20th Century Fox, Timothy Zahn, Barbara Hambly, YKW and the other writers of the expanded Star Wars Universe. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author.
"This is impossible," Drianna said, a touch of frustration entering her voice as her usually calm and optimistic nature began to crumble. "The computers won't tell us anything. I've tried everything, and nothing works!"
"They've really got her well-hidden, then," Derrin murmured. They had followed their Masters' advice and left the ventilation shaft, and were temporarily holed up in a deserted corridor. Derrin was doing his best to surpress the curiosity of whoever might be passing by, and it was a trying job because they were in a quiet sector and he had to keep a steady watch to prevent himself from being surprised. He continuously had to scan, and had a bad feeling that it wouldn't be much longer before one of the sith lords caught on to him. "She must be really important to them."
Drianna nodded, wiping a bit of sweat from her brow. "You know, when those sith lords showed up, one of the Elders of the temple told me that they were from the Cult of the Destroyer. I did a bit of checking on our way up here."
Derrin grinned at her, affectionately. "That's my Dri," he sighed. "Always doing research."
"Damn skippy. Who else is going to take Tionne's job when she retires?" Drianna returned his grin. "But seriously, I think that Vaiya is in some serious bantha dung. According to what little I could pull up, these guys believe that their leader is supposed to sire some kind of ultimate destroyer---"
"Hence, the name, Cult of the Destroyer," Derrin offered.
Drianna continued, non-plussed. "They've been around for about a hundred years or so. When Palpatine first came into power, he had trained an apprentice who was from their cult, Darth Maul. Maul was young and power-hungry, so he deserted the cult to serve Palpatine, and they had to put someone in his place. This guy isn't their natural leader--he got it by default. But he's screwed up big time. The cult had been rather known for killing female Jedi, as their prophesy demanded. They were told to find a Jedi woman to mother their destroyer, and if the girl they picked wasn't willing, she had to be killed, because if they forced her, her kid would destroy the cult, and if they didn't kill her, she would destroy the cult. But they haven't killed anybody since Maul...they were thought to be gone and buried until recently. Now, this leader has taken Vaiya, and he hasn't taken anyone since he started his reign. He must really think she's the one."
"So what you're saying," Derrin said, dead serious, "is that Vaiya is in some serious bantha dung."
"And we had better get to her fast."
He sighed, considering. It wouldn't be much longer anyway before they were discovered if they continued at their current plan, and they were having no success at locating her. The only way was a full-out probe, and that would be a dead giveaway. Unless Luke and Mara caught it too, and were smart enough to figure it out, and by some chance were able to distract the sith lords---
"Then we don't have a choice," Derrin sighed. He reached out and took Drianna's hands. "We're going to have to run pretty fast," he said.
She nodded. He was right. "I'm ready when you are."
He shut his eyes, and their minds touched. Then, with a huge burst, they reached out to all the station.
Luke felt it first, but Mara was right beside him. They were in between the walls of the main power generator, and Mara was refreshing her old skills at shorting out systems on Cal's beautiful switchboard. She was rather enjoying it, too, feeling quite safe and confident behind her barriers, knowing that Cal wasn't too far away and that he was completely frustrated at her disappearance as well as the havoc she was wreaking upon his home. But the second that Derrin and Drianna, in a last ditch effort to find Vaiya, sent out their mental probe, she looked at Luke, and knew.
There was a time for everything. This was their time to fight.
Quickly, they scrambled out of their safe little hiding place and found themselves on one of the giant catwalks overlooking the oblivion of space below. Mara had never really looked down on space--it was a rather uncomfortable experience.
Luke was beside her in a heartbeat, and they ran as fast as they could toward the main room, which bulged out over the core of the station like some kind of giant pod, fully equipped with a transparisteel window to watch the victims fall to their death. Surely Cal would be there, and possibly that sith lord who was leading this little band. If they could just distract them long enough to get Vaiya out, and then escape themselves, they might have a chance.
In a Sarlacc's eye, Mara thought, her old cynicism rising up on her. Luke sent her a reassuring touch, and she drew from his confidence. He was used to throwing himself into suicidal missions, she remembered, and he was quite good at coming out of them alive.
Of course, it was mainly because she was always there to rescue his stupid Jedi butt from the melting pit. And this time it was different because she wasn't at a safe distance away where she could reach in with her mighty Hand and pluck him from certain death--she was right there beside him, her neck stretched as far out as his.
Funny...right now, she couldn't think of a better place to be.
They felt them before they saw them. "You take the sith lord and the boy," she growled. "I want Saphringer."
"Be careful," Luke warned. "Don't give in to your anger."
"I won't give in," she assured him, and then gave him a wicked grin. "But I may toy with it a bit."
Vaiya lifted her head from her arm, which she had been using as a pillow. She felt them, and was suddenly overjoyed. They weren't too far away! HERE! she sent out frantically, jumping up and running to the forcefield that held her back. I'm HERE! Right above you!
Within ten minutes, she saw a lightsaber stab its way up through the metal floor, and tear through the material like it was paper. Drianna lept up first, her feet clearing the steaming metal edge by a good foot, and Derrin followed her. In one swift stroke, Drianna brought her blade up and slashed it through the controls, and the barrier that had kept Vaiya in vanished.
"Thank Yejion!" Vaiya cried, and hugged her. She even turned and hugged Derrin, who was a bit surprised at the enthusiastic greeting, but returned it, laughing. He was actually pleased to see her, and it shone on his face. But as soon as she pulled away, the guards came, tearing at them down the hallway. So Cal had his own private army, eh? she thought. Well, let them come. She guestured for them to follow her.
"Where are we going?" Drianna asked as she bounced blaster bolts off her lightsaber.
"Up," Vaiya said as they rounded a corner. She turned a bit, letting Drianna catch up with her, then closed her eyes, and with a guesture of her hand, she pushed.
To the astonishment of her companions, the first line of guards fell back, completely knocked off their feet. They tumbled into the second row, and soon the entire squad fell back like a row of dominoes.
The effort left Vaiya's brow covered with sweat. "Never had to do it before," she said as she turned and caught the looks from Derrin and Drianna. "Seemed like a good idea, though." They dashed into a sideroom and jammed the door shut behind them. "Either one of you willing to loan me a lightsaber?"
Derrin detatched something from his belt. It was golden in color, and of a rather odd shape, but familiar nonetheless. "Valeris asked us to give this to you when we saw you," he said, his voice slightly nervous. He handed it to her. "He said it used to be his, and that you'd know what to do with it."
Vaiya took the object from him. It gleamed in her hand, and while the design was slightly alien, she knew how it worked. She flicked it on, and a brilliant, pure white lightsaber blade extended into existence. "Wow," she whispered. "I guess it will have to do."
This was impossible.
Seth's blade clashed with the one who called himself Luke Skywalker, who fought like he was two men. In one second, he had managed to push Larin back a few feet, and in the next he was locking blades with Seth again.
It was a stalemate, and it shouldn't have been. Skywalker was only one man with one blade. Of course, Larin wasn't that skilled, and he was under the influence of that drug Saphringer insisted on keeping him pumped full of. He stumbled several times, and Skywalker was easily able to protect himself from him, even protect Larin from himself.
Seth resisted the urge to shove Larin out of the way, but he couldn't. Skywalker kept putting himself between them, letting Larin get in his way, sensing the weakness there. Seth didn't dare kill Larin--just as Saphringer didn't dare kill Vaiya, even though Seth knew he wanted to, desperately.
He also resisted the urge to pull Vaiya's blade from his belt and use its double-ended saber to give himself the advantage. Not really resisted the urge, actually. More like, couldn't bing himself to do it. Even as he watched Cal with his own new creation, his own double-ended lightsaber that he had made from his old, inferior one, its bright orange blades clashing hard with the red-headed woman's single blue-green one. She was very skilled, that one. Seth could see from where Vaiya had gotten her strength of will.
And her calm obviously came from her father. Skywalker's face was completely dispassionate, as if his only purpose were to keep them from getting in the way of the other fight taking place. But it was going badly for him. He was getting tired. As was Larin...in fact, Larin was getting a little more than tired, and Skywalker could sense it as well. He stumbled, as if being gnawed from within by some terrible pain, and Seth pounced upon the opportunity to send him out of the fight. Larin crashed into the nearby control panel and stayed there, his entire body beginning to contort as he struggled with whatever was going on side of him.
Skywalker was looking at Larin in deep concern, but Seth took the chance to recenter his focus. He knew that the adreneline that Larin had produced from the fight was driving the drug out of the system. Cal felt it, too, and in the few seconds he turned his attention from the red-head to Larin, she was able to gain the upper hand.
Seth, for his part, gained the upper hand over Skywalker, and in a few hard strokes he had managed to pin the man onto one of his knees, their blades locked but Seth's pressing hard into his, forcing him down.
Cal saw it, too. "KILL HIM!" he growled, and the woman--Mara--stole a glance at her husband.
"NO!" she screamed.
It was almost amusing, Seth thought as he mulled the scene over. Mara had gotten her blade over Cal's, and Seth had gotten his blade over Skywalker's. It was a complete standoff. But he had a feeling that the stakes were not going to remain even for long.
"Don't!" Mara cried, her eyes seeking out Seth's, but her focus remained--incredibly, it remained. She still had Cal pinned down hard, her blade close to his neck. "Let him live, and we'll surrender."
Cal just grinned at her, disbelieving but enjoying the sight of her squirming. "Really?" he mocked. "And exactly how many seconds after Tatooinee freezes over will this happen?"
"You heard me!" she cried.
"Mara, don't!" Skywalker rasped.
Seth felt himself begin to grin. Maybe this would show Vaiya who she was dealing with, he thought, and he even stretched out his mind to her, to show her what was happening.
It was then that he realized that she was not where she was supposed to be. His smile started to fall, and Skywalker's eyes met his, matching him in defiance.
"I mean it," Mara said, her voice steady as a rock. "Let him live, and we'll surrender."
"Surrender first," Cal demanded, "and I'll let him live."
A long moment passed, and Mara's muscles shuddered. "If you kill him, Cal, I swear that I will make you destroy me, too."
"I doubt that very much, Mara my love," he cooed. "But why don't we find out?"
"Very well," Mara said, her voice as cold as stone. She pulled away and deactivated her lightsaber, setting it down at her feet.
Cal sneered at her. "Kill him, Darth Seth," he said.
In reply, Seth deactivated his own lightsaber.
"I said kill him!" Cal raged, glaring at the sith lord.
"You are a fool, Saphringer," Seth declared as Skywalker deactivated his own lightsaber and set it aside in surrender. "Don't you realize they attacked us for only one reason? So that Vaiya could escape."
"Then kill them for it!" Cal said, his voice low but deadly. "You are the leader of the Cult of the Destroyer, and you cannot kill your enemy? You are weak, Seth! If you do not take care, you will soon loose your place."
Seth paused and glared at him. "Is that a threat?" he asked, his voice even lower than Cal's.
"Kill him and show me how strong you are, Seth, and I will show you no disrespect again."
"There is no reason," Seth said, feeling uncharacterisically stubborn. "Not when I should be elsewhere." He turned away, glancing at Larin. "And you as well have better things to do. If you do not wish to loose your grasp on this one, you had better see to him quickly."
Cal, as if he had forgotten about Larin, jumped, and then activated some controls on his sleeve. Within a few minutes, some guards had entered, and Luke and Mara were siezed. "Take them to my ship," Cal ordered. "And make ready to head for the planet below. Either one or both of you will die today, Mara dear, if you make me loose my temper again."
Mara, for her part, simply stared at him as they dragged her and Luke away. Cal turned his attention to Larin, but they were out of the room before they could see anything else.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Drianna whispered.
"This is going to be rough," Vaiya said, her voice close in the cramped space they had jammed themselves into. "The catwalks are beside us, and we're going to have to go out onto them. I hope no one here is afraid of heights."
Drianna took a few short breaths. "Not that I remember," she said.
"What is it that you want us to do?" Derrin asked, confused.
"Attend to Larin," Vaiya said, her voice distant, filled with pain. "Saphringer is trying to pump him full of drugs again. His adreneline keeps trying to push it out but Cal won't let it. You're going to have to fight him, but don't hurt him. Let him wear himself out, and then capture him as quickly as you can."
"And then what?" Drianna asked, her voice slightly small in the closed space. "Sit on him until we find a way out? What if more guards come? What if Saphringer comes?"
"Saphringer isn't going to come. He's heading down to the planet. He's going to try and find a way to kill my parents." Her voice was so dispassionate that there was a moment of silence before they knew exactly what it was that she had said.
"Aren't you worried?" Derrin ventured.
Vaiya looked at him. "First things first, Derrin. My parents can take care of themselves until we get out of here."
"But Cal wouldn't try and kill Mara," Drianna objected. "I mean, after all this---"
"That's exactly why he would try and kill her," Vaiya pointed out. "This obsession he has for her...it's going to end badly, I know it. He's going to try and kill her when he finally realizes that she will not live without my father." Her face turned expressionless and distant for a few seconds, and then her eyes returned to them. "Jedi hunch," she offered. "Or just plain knowing the human condition. You pick."
She slashed the saber into the floor, and within a few seconds they had dropped onto the catwalks. The ventilation system was on full blast, and Vaiya felt a burst of what seemed almost like cold wind rush past her, fluttering her clothes. The heavy velvet that the Durranian's had given her--leggings, and a button-down tunic with slightly puffed sleeves that tightened at her wrists and came to a point on the back of her hand--was barrier enough, but it wasn't exactly the sturdiest fabric. Already the knees and elbows were starting to wear. Good thing they made high-quality boots. They made no sound at all as she prowled down the catwalk, her senses stretched to the fullest.
He was near. And he would be coming for her soon.
Vaiya saw that there was a large room that swelled over the giant mouth of the space station's core below. It had a large window, and she could see a shape moving.
A very familiar shape. She headed for the room, her feet acting without the benefit of her mind, and on pure hopeful instinct she entered the room.
Only to be blindsided by a heavy red glowing blade.
She managed to block the blow in time with her borrowed white saber, but her emotions got in the way as her senses focused on the attacker's face.
"Larin," she whispered. He sneered down on her, as if not recognizing her at first, but then with a lustful familiarity that frightened her. He casually activated the controls to the main door, and it slid shut, locking Derrin and Drianna out, and Vaiya in.
"I never liked them much, anyway," he said, and his glowing eyes focused on Vaiya. "But you," he said, "I think I liked you very much. Too bad I have to kill you. What a waste."