Part 7 (1/2)
The answer was far from satisfying - and the words echoed long after the wind had erased them.
Yun had kicked the covers off his bunk. They lay bunched on the deck. His limbs twitched in reaction to the horror of what he was about to do. The rain splashed onto the already saturated ground. A layer of what looked like mist or ectoplasm hovered over the well-churned mud. Twenty men and women knelt before an open grave. They were guilty of something - he couldn't remember what. A few prisoners had tears streaming down their cheeks, others snarled their defiance, but most bore no expressions at all. They simply stared into the trench and awaited their fates.
Yun hefted the lightsaber over his head, felt it grow heavier, and realized it had been transformed into an old-fas.h.i.+oned sword. The curved blade had a razor-sharp edge. That's when the Jedi remembered that he had dreamed this dream many times before. He struggled to wake himself, was unable to do so, and knew what would happen.
For perhaps the thousandth time, the face of Nij Por Ral, a somewhat portly professor of linguistics looked up at him and begged for mercy.
”Please! I beg of you, spare us!”
One aspect of Yun's personality felt no particular animosity toward the man and wanted to grant his request, but another part, the shadow that dwelt within, hungered for status and recognition. Status and recognition that could and would be granted by Jerec and Sariss if he lived up to their expectations. Gleaming steel began its downward course. Yun regretted the blow even as it fell. Not because of the injury it would cause, but because it was flawed, and everyone would know it. He winced as the blade sank into Por Ral's shoulder. Metal grated on bone as the linguist bellowed in pain and Yun struggled to pull his weapon free.
Finally, having wiggled the sword back and forth, the sword came loose. Sick with shame, the Jedi put an end to the prisoner's anguished screams. But the horror wasn't over - not by a long shot. Yun moved down the row. His mother, father, and sister knelt before him. They beseeched him with their eyes, but to no avail. He had already cut them down, if not with steel, then with words. But no matter how many times he killed them, they always came back. The blade rose and fell. Heads rolled, tumbled into the ditch, and were followed by the bodies to which they belonged.
The rain, combined with the blood of his victims, had soaked through the Jedi's clothes.
He s.h.i.+vered, struggled to raise the sword, and was surprised by its weight. It was heavy, too heavy, as if each life had somehow added to its ma.s.s...
Light flooded the compartment, and Yun jerked in response. The Jedi rolled off the bed, activated his lightsaber, and rose ready to fight.
Boc, who stood in the hatch, laughed mockingly.
”What's the matter, boy? A little nervous, are we? Well, pull yourself together. It seems Jerec has need of your scrawny presence.” Yun took a step forward, lightsaber in hand, but the other Jedi laughed.
”Save your energy, boy... it's my guess you're going to need it.”
The already Spartan cabin looked even more bare as Jerec placed the last of his meager belongings into the case. While the Jedi had no interest in quant.i.ty, he was choosy about the possessions he had and didn't like others to touch them. There was a knock at the door.
The way each person interacted with the Force was unique, and this disturbance was typical of Yun.
A promising student - but filled with self-doubt. Ah well, Jerec thought to himself, a bit of seasoning will fix that.
”Enter.” Yun entered cautiously, wondered what the older Jedi had in store for him, and hoped the Master was in a good mood. Jerec nodded to acknowledge Yuri s presence.
”Thank you for coming... I need your a.s.sistance.”
Jerec needed his help! The younger Jedi felt his heart swell to at least twice its normal size. He couldn't wait to tell Sariss. ”Yes, my lord, how can I help?”
”Phase two of the survey is now complete. The tower is in the final stages of construction. That being the case, the real work can begin. I leave for the surface in an hour.”
Yun nodded.
”Yes, my lord.”
The two men ran into each other in the main corridor - and walked shoulder to shoulder toward the launch bay. Stormtroopers jumped to get out of the way, officers came to attention, while Yun basked in the reflected glory. It was at moments like this that his doubts disappeared and the price seemed worth paying.
The shuttle was waiting, the bay door opened, and a pair of TIE fighters escorted them down. The trip to the surface was uneventful, for which Yun was thankful. Jerec had many unpleasant qualities, but there were exceptions - he could be very charming when he chose to be. The Master regaled Yun with amusing stories, the younger Jedi laughed in all the right places, and the trip was soon over.
Jerec made a point of saying good-bye - and the resulting sense of significance followed Yun all the way to his quarters.
The alarm buzzed and wouldn't stop. Yun reached for the bedside console and discovered that the room's recently installed heating module was on the blink. The Jedi was still in bed when a droid entered the room, announced itself in loud, cheery tones, and placed a tray on the table.
”Good morning, sir. Here's your breakfast... Is there anything else I can do for you?”
”Yeah, pump some heat in here,” Yun growled as he rolled out of bed. ”It's freezing.”
”Of course, sir, right away, sir,” the droid said, making for the door. ”I'll send a maintenance droid.”
Yun slipped into the fresher and treated himself to a hot, steamy shower. After that, it was a simple matter to slip into some fresh clothes, consume his lukewarm breakfast, and head for work.
A stormtrooper had been a.s.signed to guide him and stood at the tower's base.
”Good morning, sir. Major Vig sent me... I'll lead the way.”
The stormtrooper set off, and Yun followed. The ground in front of the tower was crisscrossed with tread marks, supplies sat piled on floater pallets, and security was tight. Even more noticeable, to him at least, was the way the place felt. Each Jedi perceived the Force in his or her own slightly subjective manner. For Yun, it manifested as an eternal hum - a gentle vibration that never went away.
But this place was different. The Force felt more intense here, as if it had been amplified, and growled like a ravenous beast. In fact, the activity was so strong it could be perceived by those with little or no talent. They had just entered a ravine and started down a flight of water - eroded stairs, when a banshee-like ent.i.ty screamed by the stormtrooper's head.
The soldier flinched, managed to retain his composure, and turned toward Yun.
”They're starting early today, sir. Looks like a rough one.”
Given the fact that the Force was more concentrated than usual, Yun found that it was easy to shape a thought and hurl it at the obnoxious spirit. The results were dramatic, to say the least. Angered rather than frightened, the ent.i.ty summoned even more spirits to the site and sent them howling around the Jedi's head. The trooper, his mind reeling under the a.s.sault, broke and ran. Yun, relying on his training, stood his ground.
A voice spoke within his head.
”Pain means nothing to such as these. They have suffered for thousands of years. Imagine their plight, understand the horror of it, and communicate that understanding.”
The personality a.s.sociated with the voice seemed familiar somehow, and the Jedi struggled to place it.
”Who are you?” Yun demanded. ”One of them?”
”No, not really,” the voice answered. ”I gave you the key... try it.”
Knowing that both Jerec and Sariss expected him to succeed, not to mention the troopers in the chamber below, Yun followed the instructions. He thought about the spirits who wailed around him, about the extent to which they had suffered, and his anger melted away. He felt a sense of empathy, of understanding, and extended it to those around him.
The change was almost instantaneous. The moaning stopped, the ent.i.ties slipped away, and the Force grew more tranquil. Pleased with the results and confident of his ability to deal with similar situations, Yun sent a message of appreciation.
”Thank you.” There was no answer from his invisible benefactor - just a momentary sense of warmth. The stormtrooper had yet to reappear, but Yun had no difficulty following the path downward, past awall inscribed with ancient hieroglyphics and a spot where a deactivated droid stared into a looted alcove.
One of the machine's arms hadbeen converted to a directional sign. Yun took a right. The side corridor was relatively short and opened into a large chamber. Stand-mounted floods threw light onto the walls, cargo modules stood in untidy piles, and a confrontation was underway.
Major Vig was a big man, with short red hair and a handlebar mustache. It was nonreg, and a constant source of frustration to his superiors, but ultimately tolerated because of his courage and almost legendary competence. Competence that translated to respect - and explained why the stormtroopers were hesitant to ignore both his orders and the blaster in his hand. The officer's voice boomed through the cavern.
”Hold it right there... the first man to move dies.”
There was a moment of silence while the troopers absorbed the officer's words and considered the consequences of what they were about to do. That's when a group of three screamers entered the chamber through the rear wall, pa.s.sed through the middle of a trooper's chest, and dove through the floor.
It was too much. Eyes bulged in their sockets, heads swiveled in every direction, and the mob moved forward.
That's when Yun spoke. ”Good morning, gentlemen. I see you're already hard at work! Lord Jerec will be pleased. Sorry about the somewhat unusual working conditions... perhaps I can help.”