Private Fate of Chaldea

[Starlin Rand]

Chapter 1: The Shadows of Chaldea

​

Ruined City of Pirivena, Chaldea
Inner Rim

Kyla Nimdok stood in the cockpit of the Bright Knight, gazing out through the viewing window. They had just come out of hyperspace, and were now rapidly approaching a blue-green globe orbited by a purple moon. It was odd, she thought - from the way Master Rand had described what happened there, she didn't expect it to look so... peaceful.

About ten years ago, Chaldea had suffered what could only be called an apocalypse. Dragons had attacked the inhabitants with gnashing teeth and fiery breath, burning every settlement and killing every sentient being they could find. The loss could be felt in the Force even across a vast distance of billions of light years. Now they were going to see the ruins up close and personal.

Starlin had received a personal request for aid from one of the few surviving remnants of Chaldean civilization, the Mer. Normally isolationist, the fact that they had felt compelled to ask a Jedi for help indicated that they were dealing with a serious threat. Apparently there was a Dark Side cult operating near Pirivena, the remains of a coastal city that was now partially underwater.

Though she was endeavoring to hide her excitement, Kyla was intrigued at the prospect of meeting the Mer. She wasn't so happy about the investigative work involved. But she supposed not every mission could double as a vacation...

"Landing in T-minus ten minutes," Master Rand's voice interrupted her thoughts. He was sitting in the pilot's chair, steering the ship. "Do you know where Lara is?"

"No," Kyla replied, sinking into the co-pilot's chair to indicate that she would not be willing to go look for her sister. "She's probably in her room reading a book or something."

A moment later, Lara stepped into the cockpit. "Sorry, I was in the 'fresher," she said. "Did you guys start without me?"

Starlin chuckled. “Well, whaddya want me to do? Call you up on the intercom and tell you to shit faster?”

Lara groaned and flopped into her seat. Starlin’s smile faded almost immediately, his expression growing distant. Resting her cheek on her hand, Kyla studied their master’s bearded face. Though he still smiled and joked, something had been off about him for the past few weeks. Whatever was bothering him, it must've been a pretty big deal for it to dull his undying light.

"Is that Chaldea?" Lara asked, looking out the window as she buckled herself into her crash webbing.

“Yeah,” Starlin answered. “I’ve already started landing procedures. Are you girls ready to go?”

The twins answered in affirmation. Kyla's attention was brought back to the planet as they began to descend down toward its surface. Now that they were up close, she did see some signs of destruction visible from orbit. Her brow furrowed. Nobody seemed to have a definitive answer as to why the dragons had burned the world down. But it had brought an end to everything.

"We don't want to land too close," Starlin said. "If the cult's operating in the ruins of the city, it'll be dangerous for us. I'll set us down on the outskirts.."

 

[Starlin Rand]

Despite the faraway look in his blue eyes, Starlin was doing his damnedest not to think too much. Because if he did allow himself to contemplate his fate, to face the reality of his current situation, he would lose it. Even now, as he parked the starship and prepared for their mission, a voice rose up from his subconscious, taunting him throughout his routine.

Everyone who has ever cared about you is dead. Everything you spent all these years building is gone. All the ideals you stood for are broken. Your shining examples are false idols. You are alone.

He ignored the voice, getting into the driver's seat of his speeder. Once Lara and Kyla had buckled in the back, he hit the accelerator and sped off toward the city proper.

They blazed past overgrown ruins and empty streets, the only sound the gentle humming of the speeder engine. Pirivena was in a state of urban decay that was both unsettling and beautiful. Nature had reclaimed all the manmade structures, the towers and towns and homesteads green with plant life. Starlin had never had the chance to see Chaldea before the dragons destroyed it all, but from what he understood they had been in economic and social decline for decades before their cities burned. At least their civilization got to go out in a blaze of glory, rather than suffering a slow and agonizing death...

He shut down the path his thoughts were taking. “We should be coming up on the meeting spot now,” he announced, turning a corner.

The coordinates the Mer had given him turned out to be the site of an abandoned opera house. The building had been intentionally constructed half on land and half on water, and it appeared to be less overtaken by wildlife than the rest of the ghost town.

Kyla was the first to climb out of the speeder, looking around while she stretched her legs. Her brow furrowed as she spotted another speeder parked nearby. “Are we not the only ones here?”

“Well, yeah. The Mer are gonna meet us,” Starlin said.

“Do the Mer use speeders?” she asked.

"Probably. They aren't true merfolk, you know - not like Melodies. They have these special suits called Atargatis Skins which let them swim underwater. If they want to walk on land, they just take them off." He closed the door on the driver's side. "Let's get inside. We're running a bit late as it is."

 

[Starlin Rand]

He pushed open the entrance to what had once been the opera house's lobby. With no windows to let in natural light and no electricity, it was very dark inside. He turned on his lightsaber so that he could see better.

"Halt!" a voice commanded. The owner of the voice stepped out of the darkness; it was a woman in full armor, her face obscured by a golden helmet, wielding a magnificent lightsaber. "State your names and your business here, strangers."

Nodding reassuringly to Lara and Kyla, Starlin raised his hands in surrender. "Greetings," he said. "My name is Starlin Rand. We've come on behalf of the Jedi Order, to answer the Mer's call for help."

A pregnant pause followed his words. The woman didn't speak for several long moments. Then she reached up and removed her helmet, revealing her face.

Starlin's eyes widened. No way. It can't be... "Isolda?" he whispered.

"Starlin." She stared at him, her stunned expression mirroring his. "By Ashla, it's been so long..."

"Twenty years, give or take a few."

"You've grown a beard."

"Your hair's going gray," he said. Though his lips curled in a smile, his eyes were full of pain. Here was his lost love, the one who got away. All it took was seeing her again to bring back the deep and abiding yearning he had felt for her in his youth. The beautiful knight who couldn't be with him because they were from different worlds.

As the initial shock of recognition faded, Isolda slipped back into a more professional persona. "I apologize for the... poor welcome. The Mer also requested my help. They didn't mention that anyone else would come."

"Have you met with the Mer yet, or heard anything from them?" Starlin asked.

"No." Her brow furrowed. "I've been waiting for nearly an hour. There's been no word from them in all that time." She turned her attention to the twins. "Who are your companions?"

"Oh, uh—these are my apprentices, Lara and Kyla Nimdok," he introduced them. "Girls, this is Isolda of Ession. She's... an old friend."

The girls exchanged confused glances, then bowed politely to her. "Nice to meet you, ma'am."

Starlin checked his datapad. “The Mer haven’t sent me any updates either. Do you think something happened?”

"It is possible." Isolda gestured toward the doorway behind her. "Come, we can talk more in here."

 

[Starlin Rand]

Starlin followed her into the auditorium, Kyla and Lara trailing close behind. The massive chamber was partially submerged in ocean water, the waves lapping at what remained of the seats. Every now and then he spotted a colorful fish tail flashing amid the seafoam.

Isolda led them up onto the empty stage, where a table and chairs had been set up for the meeting which had yet to take place. The sight of the empty seats was eerie in light of the Mer's unexplained absence. "Please, have a seat," Isolda said before taking the chair across from Starlin. "I'm sure you have questions for me, as do I for you."

Starlin nodded and sighed. "Well, for starters - what are you doing all the way out here? Chaldea and Ession aren't exactly neighbors."

"Many Essonians no longer call Ession home," she replied softly. "I have become what you might call a knight-errant. I wander the stars, rendering justice to evildoers and helping the weak and wronged. Chaldea called for aid, so I answered." Pausing, she added, "This world reminds me of Ession in many ways. It has seen the end of everything, brutalized by a stronger force which destroyed its civilization. Yet there are survivors. Perhaps I see myself in them, a spirit of resilience similar to that of my own people."

"That's admirable of you," Starlin said. "I don't have any personal connections to this planet, but I'm willing to do what I can to help."

"I was going to ask you," Isolda began, shifting in her seat. "Did no one else in your Order hear the call across the Force for aid?"

"Uh, not that I'm aware of," Starlin replied. He didn't mention that the Order as he knew it no longer existed, or that the Core had been abandoned to the Sith. He was in no mood to broach the topic, so he changed the subject. "Since the Mer have failed to show up, I suggest we organize a search party."

"I agree. Though I am not sure where to begin looking for them." Her gaze darted toward the water, and her face seemed to drain of color. "Do you think... they are somewhere down there, beneath the waves?"

"I mean, it's possible." He shrugged. Was she afraid of the water? "We don't need to go diving, though. I have a better idea."

 

[Starlin Rand]

Removing a piece of enchanted chalk from his pocket, Starlin drew the Jedi meditation symbol across the stage. Then, kneeling within the circle, he closed his eyes.

The beauty of the sorcery Syd had taught him was that it could be improvised on the fly. Each spell had a premade structure, a simple formula for success, but beyond that it was malleable as clay. He was a songwriter, accustomed to penning lyrics with an ear for rhythm and syntax. He could come up with a catchy rhyme in his sleep.

"The Mer have disappeared; Ashla, reveal their path, make it clear!"

Power surged through the chalk lines. Starlin's eyes glowed a pure white, his vision changing. He watched as ghostly figures fled the space - a vision of the past. Wordlessly, he got up and followed their path, his companions trailing behind him.

The route led outside of the opera house and along the shoreline. Gradually the land grew upward, becoming rocky and cragged. Finally, the spectral Mer ran into a cave in the cliffside. Starlin's eyes returned to their normal color as the vision faded. "They went in there," he announced.

"But why?" Lara asked. "Was something chasing them?"

"It would seem so," he answered, brow furrowing. "But I couldn't see who or what it was."

Isolda was staring at him in awe. "You've grown more powerful since we last met," she murmured, eyes wide.

Starlin looked away, a blush make his cheeks grow warm. "I'm nothing special," he deflected, rubbing the back of his neck. "But yeah, I was uh... promoted to Master. Happened in the field, during the invasion of Coruscant a couple years back." Which didn't really narrow it down, since his homeworld was constantly being invaded, but whatever.

"Something similar happened to me." Her gaze grew wistful. "I was promoted on Ession when the Sith attacked. Right before my master died in battle."

His stomach knotted, remembering the day Syd had mastered him. How radiant she had looked. How could she be gone? "My master is dead too." Clearing his throat, he faced the cave mouth. "We should head inside and start looking for the Mer. There's no time to waste."

 

[Starlin Rand]

Given the fact that there were no coincidences when it came to the Force, Starlin had his suspicions that the Dark Side cult here on Chaldea might be connected to a certain one he had encountered many times before. He wouldn't know for sure until he came face to face with them. But the vague distress call, the Mer's disappearance, and his vision of them running away as if they were being pursued were certainly all very ominous.

So was the cave. As they headed inside, picking their way over rocks and sand, he cast a worried glance over his shoulder at the girls. They weren't ready to face a Coven. Although he supposed they needed some exposure to these things. Keeping them in the dark about the horrors of the galaxy would just leave them unprepared. And that was far more dangerous than bringing them along on a mission like this, where he could at least supervise their first contact with the worst the galaxy had to offer.

It made him all the more grateful that Isolda was with them. She was a devout Ashlan and a seasoned veteran well-accustomed to dealing with Dark Siders. Between the two of them, no threat was too great to be overcome.

The cave mouth swallowed them whole, plunging the heroes into darkness. All four ignited their lightsabers: Starlin's blue, Kyla's violet, Lara's orange, and Isolda's silver. Silver, like the streams in the Room of a Thousand Fountains on Coruscant...

"All right, everyone stay close," Starlin whispered. He led the group forward, stretching out his senses with the Force. It was just as he feared - there was a definite Dark Side presence nearby. And the further they went, the closer it moved--

A flash of red dropped down from above, landing in front of him. Lit by the glow of her crimson saber, the figure who rose to her feet was a female Togruta dressed in white. Her eyes burned with corruption, the power of the Dark Side coursing through her blackened veins. Her lips pulled back in a snarl. "Starlin Rand. I should have expected to find you here."

Starlin suppressed a sigh. The white outfit gave it away. Yep, definitely the Cult with a Capital C. And where there was one, there were bound to be more. "Sorry, have you and I met before?" he asked sardonically. "The whole multiple personalities thing makes it hard to keep track of you freaks."

"If we had met, I would have already absorbed your essence," she sneered. "I am the Hive. Your allies will make fine additions to my Collective."

She's a Collective? Ah, shit...

They were swiftly surrounded by more red lightsabers, more white-clad figures in the dark - members of the Hive's Collective, personalities which had been absorbed and repurposed by her to serve the Cult. The figures rushed at them from all sides, slashing and stabbing. With a nervous grin, Starlin unleashed a torrent of Force Light which rippled outward. Those caught in the wave were either thrown backwards or vaporized on impact, their ashes mixing with the sand.

The Hive lunged at Starlin. He parried her attack, his blue blade crashing into her red with masterly finesse. Isolda fought the worst of the cultists, keeping them away from Kyla and Lara. The twins watched each other's backs as they picked off the weaker fodder.

Soon all that was left was the Hive. Isolda joined the duel, fighting alongside Starlin, while Kyla and Lara watched for reinforcements. Outnumbered, the Hive began chanting in a dead language as she fought. Starlin could feel the power surging as she called upon ancient forces. I knew it couldn't be this easy, he thought grimly, his lips moving as he fired up a counterspell: "Ashla, show this two-bit enchanter--"

The ground rumbled beneath their feet. A roar echoed through the caverns, not animal but a force of nature so incredible, it could only spell doom. Then, as Kyla and Lara looked around, unsure of what to expect, it happened. Saltwater flooded the tunnels, flushed in from the ocean at the Hive's summons. Starlin's eyes widened as he saw a wall of water headed straight for them, gushing in from outside.

 

[Starlin Rand]

Isolda's barrier went up just in time, the wave crashing over the bubble of protective energy. But as they huddled together beneath the shield, Starlin sensed it beginning to waver. "I can't hold it!" Isolda cried out, arms raised heavenward as she tried to keep the ocean at bay.

"Hold on!" Starlin exclaimed, rewriting his half-finished spell: "--She can be strong without anger!" The rhyme worked immediately, strengthening the barrier. But it wasn't enough. Whatever horror the Hive had conjured, it was more than just water which flooded over them. It was the anguished final moments of the dead, the endless suffering of the survivors in the aftermath, a hurricane of trauma and destruction. It took Starlin's breath away, leaving him gasping for air as hot tears ran down his face.

Mom. Dad. Syd. Professor Nimdok. Miri. Eliphas. Tenn. Ceri. Kai. The Jedi Order. The Alliance. Coruscant. Home.

All gone.

The barrier shattered. Starlin's last sight was of Kyla and Lara huddled together, their screams of terror rending his heart. Then there was only the roar and rush of the water as it slammed into him and swept him away.

 

[Starlin Rand]

He had already lost consciousness by the time his limp body was spat out onto the beach. There he lay still and unmoving, unable - or perhaps unwilling - to get up. That is, until he felt pressure against his chest, and the sensation of cold, wet lips pressed against his, forcibly filling his drowned lungs with air...

He spat up saltwater and bile, coughing. Isolda leaned over him, her silver hair and golden armor matted with wet sand. "Are you all right?" she asked.

"I'm sore," he replied, which was an understatement. "But I'll live. Where are the girls?"

She didn't respond. Starlin leaped to his feet, frantically scanning the shoreline. "Kyla! Lara!" he screamed, his voice hoarse and his throat raw. But no matter where he looked, there was no sign of the twins.

Please, don't do this to me, he begged the Force, or God, or whoever was listening. They're all I have left.

"I am sorry." He heard Isolda mumbling behind him and whipped around to face her. "It's my fault. My barrier failed. I should have--"

"We need to find them," Starlin interrupted. Now was not the time to cast blame. Brow furrowing, he focused. "I can't sense them." In fact, he couldn't sense anything at all. "What about you?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. There is nothing." She shivered. "I feel so cold and empty. Like I've been... cut off. What did that woman do to us?"

Starlin took a deep breath, then wrapped an arm around Isolda, pulling her close. "Come on. I have some supplies in my speeder. Namely, dry clothes." Starlin may not have been able to feel Kyla and Lara, but he knew they were still alive. He wouldn't waste a single moment until he found them again.

 

[Starlin Rand]

deleted

 

[Starlin Rand]

Chapter 2: A Morbid Taste For Bones

​

While Starlin and Isolda were swept out to sea, the current pushed the twins deeper into the caves. Lara managed to reach the surface, gulping down air. Unable to sense her presence, she called out to her sister until her throat was raw. There was no response.

At last, the water spat her out of a tunnel and into an underground pool. Lara swam to the edge, hoisting herself up onto dry land. Almost immediately she began searching for Kyla, finally spotting her floating in the water. She dove in, pulling her body to the shore.

Kyla was limp and lifeless, her skin pale and lips blue. Lara began CPR, but her twin remained unconscious. "Wake up!" she pleaded, shaking her. "No... No, no, please - please don't die. Please, Kyla!"

Nothing. Lara kept going until she was too tired to do compressions and couldn't draw enough air to give breaths. A strangled wail escaped her throat, the pain raw and visceral. Her sobbing echoed through the empty caverns.

Something splashed in the water. Lara turned her head, her vision blurred by tears. Even after rubbing her eyes, she couldn't see anything in the murky depths. But she could hear a voice.

<Jedi.>

It was inside her head. "Who's there?" she asked, frightened. Without the Force to aid her, she was handicapped against a threat.

<Lara. Lara Nimdok. Nimdok...>

Another splash, this one louder than the first, heralded the emergence of a figure from the water. Lara leaped back, stifling a scream.

 

[Starlin Rand]

deleted

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Out of the bubbling depths arose a figure. Though implicitly male, he possessed an otherworldly quality which was far beyond that of anything merely human. No water clung to his pale hair or dripped from his fair flesh. Lara was struck dumb by the sight of this creature, kneeling frozen beside the pool.

He approached the edge, reaching one graceful hand toward Kyla. Lara thawed at once, throwing herself over her sister's body.

<Do not be afraid. We mean you no harm.>

The voice was inside her head again. "Who are you?" she asked hoarsely, trembling in fear.

He did not immediately answer. Lara's eyes darted, catching sight of other shapes in the water. Heads bobbing just beneath the surface, staring at her with luminous eyes. They were Mer!

<Close, but not quite,> the voice said. <They are Qalu. Offshoots of the Mer who isolated themselves in deeper, darker waters.>

Was he reading her thoughts? Lara shivered.

<I'm sorry for the intrusion. Telepathy is the fastest and easiest way for me to communicate.> The beautiful androgyne moved away from her, heaving himself over the edge of the pool. She glimpsed a flash of iridescent scales before his merman's tail split into legs. But don't Finfolk get their tails and fins from skinsuits? He must be some sort of shapeshifter...

<My name is Kai.> Turning toward her, he met her gaze. Colors swirled within his eyes like a crystal prism. <Are you with Starlin Rand?>

Lara hesitated, unsure if she should tell him. "Yes," she finally said. "We're his Padawans."

He nodded in understanding. <I was the one who called your master here. I've fought the cultists before, but I was unable to defeat them on my own. I sent out a beacon in the Force to Starlin specifically, because I know he is strong in the Light. But I think my message was a little too broad. I ended up summoning Starlin and anyone who had ever been closely tied to him.> His expression grew sad. <Which isn't very many people these days.>

That explained why Isolda had been drawn there. "Starlin thought it was a distress call to any Jedi who would listen," Lara said.

<I designed it that way on purpose. I was afraid he would be wary of me otherwise. After all, he thinks I died years ago.> Kai studied her. <You're a Nimdok, aren't you?>

"How do you know?"

<Many years ago, I was kidnapped by a Sith Lord called Darth Transitus. He made me into a Sithspawn.>

"He kidnapped our mother when she was a child, too," Lara blurted, her brow furrowing. "He gave her artificial Force Sensitivity." Miri Nimdok had struggled with the volatile, unpredictable nature of her unnatural connection to the Force all her life. Luckily her daughters had seemingly taken after their father in that department.

Kai gave her a somber nod. <He had many victims.> Then, turning toward Kyla's lifeless body, he added, <I can help her, if you'll let me. But it may bring out changes in her. The altered DNA you inherited from your mother has lain dormant in your lineage until now. That is the cost of restoring her life. You must decide quickly, before it's too late.>

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Lara didn't hesitate. "Save her," she answered, the consequences be damned.

Kai knelt beside Kyla and laid his hands upon her. There was no flash of light or rush of air, no explosion or fanfare. Cut off from the Force, Lara couldn't even sense her twin's revival. Nor did she have any idea of the gravity of the decision she had made, or what it would do to Kyla. She only knew that she loved her sister and couldn't let her die.

<It is done,> Kai said a few moments later. <She is waking up. Stand back.>

Lara rose to her feet and gave her twin some space. Kyla twitched, then began to violently cough. After vomiting up what seemed like an ocean of water and bile, she opened her eyes. "Lara?"

"I'm here," Lara said, moving closer to her. "It's okay. We're okay."

Kyla sat up and looked around, showing no physical signs of having been at death's doorstep only a minute ago. "Where's Starlin?" she asked. Upon seeing Kai, she startled. "Who are you?"

"He helped us," Lara replied. Turning to Kai, she asked, "How do we get out of here?"

Kai inclined his head toward the pool. <The same way you came in. By water. I will guide you across the sea to dry land.> Reaching into the malleable flesh of his torso, he produced two aquata breathers. <We don't have any Atargatis Skins to spare. These will have to do.>

 

[Starlin Rand]

"You put a tracking device on your apprentices?" Isolda asked, her tone incredulous. They had made it back to the Bright Knight, where Starlin supplied the promised dry clothes and then revealed his plan for finding the twins. "Isn't that a little... invasive?"

"Of course," he replied. "My master taught me to plan for everything. People who let themselves be surprised by whatever craziness the galaxy throws at them get killed. Or worse."

He pressed a button on the ship's console. A hidden screen popped up, showing a map of the surrounding area. Isolda walked over and stood by his side, watching the map zoom in deeper, going beneath the planet's crust, honing in on a pair of flashing red dots. "Is that them?"

"Yeah." Starlin studied the map. "Looks like those caverns are a lot bigger than anticipated." He turned to Isolda. She had changed into blue and gold armor. One of Syd's suits. She wore it back when Starlin was her Padawan. Must've been laying around in the armory somewhere...

"Can these devices detect life signs?" Isolda asked, breaking his reverie.

Starlin's breath caught at the thought. He shook his head, hands balling into fists at his sides. "No," he answered, desperate defiance flashing like a blade in his eyes. "But they're alive. I know it. I..." He abruptly deflated, realizing the dishonesty of the statement. Without the Force, he knew nothing. He was nothing.

Sinking into a nearby chair, he held his head in his hands. Isolda stood over him, shifting her weight uncomfortably from one foot to the other. "I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay. You're fine." Starlin rubbed his tired eyes. He felt exhausted, not just physically but mentally and spiritually drained. He couldn't even weep or scream or rage against fate. He was too spent. "It's just... Everyone else I've ever loved is gone. My family, my friends, my master." The loss of Syd had been the most recent calamity, and the deepest wound. He had loved Syd more than she would ever know. "I held two other Padawans in my arms as they faded back into the Force. The girls are all that I have left. If I lose them, I'll be completely and utterly alone."

She touched his arm. He raised his head, looking her in the face. Her gray eyes brimmed with tears. "Starlin, I... I didn't know," she whispered. Her throat bobbed as she swallowed. "We have more in common than I thought."

 

[Starlin Rand]

"We've always had a lot in common," he said softly. "You can talk to me, you know. I'm a good listener." Force, but it would be good to just sit down and have a conversation with her again. To discuss something unrelated to Jedi business or star wars.

"You have enough problems without me adding to your woes." Isolda quickly wiped away her tears. "Maybe sometime soon, after our current ordeal is over."

Starlin's mouth pulled in a tight, sad little smile. She was right. He changed the subject back to more pressing matters. "I haven't seen your sword in a while. Did you lose it in the flood?" She would need a weapon if they were going to go back out there into the unknown.

By now she had donned a mask of stoic nobility, her expression carefully arranged. "I must have," she replied. "I will need a replacement, if I am to be of use to you."

"Well, I've got enough weapons aboard this vessel to arm a battalion." Never mind that most of them were the personal effects and hidden caches of his old allies, now falling to him in a kind of tragic inheritance. Standing up, he pressed his hand to a glowing panel on the wall. It opened up to reveal a hidden passage, at the end of which was a room full of guns, blades, and other gadgets. "Take your pick."

Isolda entered the chamber, her eyes roving over the displays. Almost instantly her attention was drawn to a particular case. Inside was a unique lightsaber, the hilt emblazoned with a blue rose in full bloom.

"The Rose of Ashla." Starlin grinned as he watched her walk over to the display. "I should've known you'd go for that one." It had once belonged to a woman named Themis, an acquaintance of Syd's. Starlin never had the chance to get to know her properly. Now he supposed he never would.

"It calls to me from across a great distance. Its voice is faint, but I can still hear it," Isolda murmured, gently resting her palm against the transparent display case. "It seeks a new master."

"I can't imagine anyone more deserving than you, Dame Isolda." Starlin unlocked the case, picked up the hilt and held it out as if it were on a silver platter.

She took it from him and activated the blade, feeling its weight in her hands - and listening to the kyber within. "Synthetic ankarres?" she exclaimed. "This weapon was made to heal."

"And to incapacitate, if necessary." Starlin gestured toward the exit. "Let's get a move on. I think--"

The sound of the hull creaking caused him to pause. Isolda looked up and around, her expression twitching. Starlin felt it too. The blind numbness of reaching and not being able to touch whatever it was. The Force was everything to them, and without it...

The ship suddenly lurched to one side. Starlin was knocked off his feet, crashing into another display case. He grabbed hold of the edge, hanging on for dear life as the Bright Knight began to roll.

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Chased from her lair deep within the caves, the Hive initially fled inland, only to find herself pursued by an unknown force. It stalked the edges of her perception, unseen but always felt. The presence was Dark and corrupted - a Sithspawn. But it was no subservient drone. No, this thing was fully cognizant, independent, powerful in its own right. And familiar...

The Sith Doppelganger! The last Bamarri!

They had fought once before, when the cult first arrived on Chaldea. He had been weak, a shell of what she imagined had been his former glory, easily driven back by her cult. He was still hostile to her; she could sense his cold contempt. But he was just as weak as before, no match for her strength.

The foolish Jedi and the Ashlan tramp will finish him off, she thought cruelly. Or perhaps not... the Dark Side indicated that fate had other plans. It was no matter. She would kill them all. Then the Jedi's ship would take her away from this dying world, and she would report to the Matriarch that Chaldea was unsuitable for assimilation by the cult.

But as she approached the Bright Knight, a deafening roar filled the air, shaking the ground beneath her feet.

Dragon!

The massive creature dove down, swooping toward the Bright Knight. The collision caused the starship to roll over on one side, and the dragon wasted no time perching atop the vessel. Steam billowed from its nostrils as it stoked the embers within its belly.

The Hive conjured up a barrier with the Force just in time. The dragon breathed fire onto the beach, turning the sand around her into glass. When the smoke cleared and it saw that she was unharmed, it roared with rage and began snapping at the barrier, its massive and razor-sharp teeth scraping the protective bubble.

In between the dragon's lunges, the Hive rerouted the power she had been putting into her barrier into a cold, calculated attack. The energy was funneled into a paper-thin wave that sliced through the dragon's neck like a scythe. The beast barely had a chance to register what was happening before it was decapitated, its severed head falling to the ground with a tremendous thud.

The Hive stood over it, a cruel grin spread across her features. "Perhaps this planet can be brought to heel after all," she said, floating toward the Bright Knight's airlock.

<Witch,> a familiar telepathic voice pierced her mind. <You won't escape me this time.>

She whirled around. At the far end of the beach stood Kai, the last Bamarri. Behind him were the two Jedi Padawans she thought she had killed earlier, and a small army of Qalu warriors wielding lightspears.

<Today you die!>

 

[Starlin Rand]

Starlin and Isolda had crawled through the upended flotsam inside the starship, witnessing the events outside through the cockpit window. Starlin experienced a whirlwind of emotions. Watching the Hive swiftly and brutally dispatch the dragon, he felt in fear for his life for the first time in years. But as soon as Starlin saw the twins, everything else faded into background noise. They're alive! They're all right!

But perhaps not for long against the enraged Hive. The Qalu warriors attacked first, storming the witch all at once from all sides. The flurry of blades moved fast and deadly, but the Qalu were no match for her unnatural abilities. Their bodies soon piled up around her, slain by her lightsaber.

Though he had been robbed of his connection to the Force, Starlin wasn't about to let such a battle be waged without him. He crawled out of the airlock and jumped down onto the sand. Isolda followed close behind, wielding the Rose of Ashla with a two-handed grip. Together they entered the fray, initiating combat with the Hive.

He didn't recognize Kai until the Bamarri wanted him to. He joined the fight, using the Force to immobilize the witch. The paralysis was only temporary, of course - she was already struggling to regain control of her body.

<Use your sword!> Kai telepathically commanded Isolda, his gaze honing in on the Rose of Ashla in her hands. <It can kill her! Hurry!>

Isolda didn't have to be told twice. With a battle cry, she thrust the blade into the Hive's heart. The witch's skin began to bubble and slough off, her flesh burning in the Light emanating from the blade. Her screams of agony turned into inhuman squeals as she melted into a puddle of clear slime, which then evaporated in a cloud of scalding steam that rose in the air and blew away.

Kai stood on the beach, watching as the mist dissipated. A gentle breeze tousled his white hair, an amazing contrast to the violence of mere moments prior. Behind him, Kyla and Lara stood together, their expressions relieved.

"Girls!" Starlin cried, throwing his arms wide open. Kyla and Lara ran to embrace him. "You're all right," he sobbed, cradling them. "You're all right..."

Isolda looked around for any more enemies. Satisfied that they were safe, she honed in warily on Kai, who was checking for life signs among the fallen Qalu. None had been left alive. "They died with honor and bravery," she said. "I am sorry."

Starlin's heart pounded in his chest at the sight of the Sithspawn. "Kai?" he gasped, still disbelieving. "Kai!"

He left the twins and ran across the sand, stopping just short of throwing his arms around his old friend. "I thought you were dead!" he exclaimed. "They told me you were killed fighting a dragon... I-I couldn't feel you in the Force..."

<I did fight a dragon, and I was nearly killed,> Kai confirmed. <But I survived, even as Chaldea died around me. That's why you couldn't sense me.> His gaze slid off of Starlin and he turned toward the ocean. <This world is a wound. An abyss of suffering. To feel it is to die with it. The only way to survive is to cut yourself off from feeling, numbing yourself to the pain.>

"Like Malachor V," Starlin murmured. "But, Kai - It's been years since the dragons attacked Chaldea. What have you been doing in all that time?"

Kai faced him again, eyebrows raised. <I stayed behind. Got to know my homeworld better. I lead the Qalu now. They told me about what happened to you and your friends.>

 

[Starlin Rand]

Kai told Starlin and Isolda everything - about his distress call in the Force and why he wasn't there to meet them. <The cultists attacked us shortly before you arrived. I survived, but was badly injured. We retreated. That is why I wasn't there.>

"What about the Mer I saw fleeing the opera house in my vision? The one that led me to the cave where the cultists were hiding out?" Starlin asked.

<What you saw were people who died at the hands of the cult. They were lured to the cave, seeking shelter, only to be trapped and slaughtered there.>

"They probably had similar plans in store for us," Starlin muttered.

"But we defeated them, right?" Lara asked. "The cult has been wiped out. Chaldea is saved."

<No. It is not.> Kai bowed his head, eyelids lowering as he looked away from them. <The cult was only one part of the problem. Chaldea is still a Wound in the Force, a black hole of death and destruction.>

"This planet faced an apocalypse," Kyla pointed out. "We can't change that."

<It's within my power to heal the Wound,> Kai revealed. <I've known that for a while now. But I've been putting it off.>

"Why?" Isolda asked, her eyes narrowing. To refuse to do what the Ashla commanded was blasphemy. Starlin was equally stunned by the revelation that Kai had not done all that he could to save his homeworld. Why, indeed?

The Doppelganger closed his eyes, his expression contorting with sorrow and shame. <I am not a good person. I was forced to become what I am, but I chose to stay like this. I grew to love the power this Sithspawn body gave me, more than I cared about doing the right thing. I should have destroyed it, and let myself become one with the Force. It's the same way with Chaldea. I've enjoyed ruling over the Qalu all these years. Having power without the responsibilities. I'm a coward. I'm afraid to face the dragon again. Afraid to do what needs to be done.>

"You don't have to do this alone," Starlin said, resting a hand on Kai's shoulder. "Let us help you."

Kai shook his head. <I appreciate the offer, Starlin. But this is a path I must walk alone. My failure is what got you into this mess in the first place. You and your companions will not feel the Force again until I fulfill my destiny. I must sacrifice myself so that this world can live again.>

 

[Kai Bamarri]

"Sacrifice yourself?" Starlin echoed, eyes widening. "You can't be serious."

<I am a Bamarri. My fate is tied to this planet's in ways you could never understand,> Kai said sharply. But then his gaze softened. <I'm glad that you care about me. But I have to do this. For all of our sakes.>

He loved all the people who had helped him along his journey. Dagon Kaze had been the first to rescue him. Aeris Lashiec had helped him adjust to the strange new world he found himself in. Damsy Callat showed him what he truly was, and Alicio Organa showed him who he could be. And Starlin... Starlin was his friend. Someone who was there for him after all the others left. It was fitting that he was the one here at the end, witnessing his final hour.

Let it be my finest.

Kai crossed his arms over his chest, each hand clasping the opposite shoulder. He turned inward, then outward, entuning himself with Chaldea's energies, matching his soul to the planet's core. Both were corrupted. Together, they would become whole.

The Bamarri's body began to glow as if lit from within. His flesh crawled and writhed painfully, his Sithspawn body recoiling from the Light. It began to burn up, like a comet disintegrating in the atmosphere. Isolda flinched away at the sight, but Starlin stood firm, wrapping a reassuring arm around her and the twins. It was hard for him to watch too, but if this was what Kai wanted, he owed it to him to be there. <Goodbye, my friend,> he telepathically bid Kai farewell.

When there was nothing left but a haze of pure energy in the air, Starlin held his breath and waited. Then, he felt it. The Force flooding back into him, like a veil being lifted. He let out a long exhale. "Anybody else feel that?"

"We've got the Force back," Kyla said softly. The reunion was bittersweet, knowing what it took.

"It's not just us," Lara chimed in. "The whole planet feels alive again."

"The Wound must be healed," Isolda said, nodding. "It's a pity your friend had to destroy himself to make things right. I confess I don't understand why it had to happen this way... But I am grateful for his sacrifice."

Starlin felt warmth on his skin and turned toward the horizon. The sun was rising over the sea, bathing the world in the colors of dawn. Tears flowed from his eyes and down his cheeks. "Yeah," he murmured, sniffling. "I'm grateful too."

 

[Starlin Rand]

Rather than let Isolda spend the night in her cramped starfighter, Starlin offered her shelter aboard the Bright Knight. She accepted, if only for the promise of a hot meal and a shower. For his part Starlin was glad to put off the inevitable epilogue when they would go their separate ways. He wanted to keep Isolda close for a little while longer.

Physically exhausted but mentally wide awake, he never went to bed. After bidding Kyla and Lara good night, he remained seated at the table in the rec room with his datapad in front of him. He was in the middle of the second paragraph of his mission report when Isolda appeared from the hallway, wearing plain gray pajamas.

"Hello," she greeted him shyly. "I can't sleep."

"Me neither," he said. "Can I get you anything?"

She hesitated, then answered, "A glass of water would be nice."

Standing up, Starlin grabbed a cup from a cabinet, placed it inside the drink dispenser and pressed the button. While the water poured, he tried to figure out what to say. He wanted to talk to her very badly, but he didn't know where to start. "So... What are you going to do next?" he finally asked.

"I don't know," she replied, shrugging. "Wherever the Ashla leads me."

"You know, you could ride with us for a little while," he suggested, hoping that she wouldn't see it for what it was: a desperate attempt to get her to stay. "We're always up to something."

"That is very kind of you. But I have my disagreements with the Jedi Order, and would not feel comfortable operating on one of their vessels."

"Oh, the Bright Knight isn't a Jedi ship," he insisted. "It's my own private, uh, personal vessel."

Isolda's gaze was unreadable as she looked at him. "Are you not a Jedi Master?" she said, her tone suggesting it was a statement of fact rather than a question.

Starlin's shoulders sagged. "Never mind," he mumbled, handing her the filled glass of water.

Isolda accepted the water and took a sip. "Part of me feels like Kai did all the work on Chaldea. He's at least deserving of a mention in your report."

"I dunno how well a Sithspawn saving the day would go over with the Jedi Masters." Starlin glanced up at Isolda as a new thought occurred to him. "Did you know that Kai was a Sithspawn?" She wouldn't have been able to sense his aura, being deprived of the Force.

"I believe he mentioned it, yes."

"And did that fact not... bother you, at all?" By all accounts, it should have been a non-negotiable for her. The Ashlan Crusaders were known to be so harsh in their judgment of Dark Siders that they crucified anyone remotely connected to the Sith. The Isolda he knew was no different. It was one of the reasons why they couldn't be together. No amount of attraction could cover up the fact that she was intolerant even of those whose circumstances were beyond their control.

"He saved the lives of your students and killed the witch," Isolda replied. "Though his flesh was damned, he proved by his actions that his spirit walked with Ashla."

Starlin stared at her in wonderment. "So it didn't bother you?"

"I wouldn't say that." She seemed to grow tense under his scrutiny, putting her cup down on the island countertop. "He wanted to redeem himself. If he hadn't, that would be another story. I will not enable someone to continue in defiance of the Ashla."

"I met him when he was at his lowest point," Starlin muttered. "An addict who attacked his own friend. He went to Azrael for his mistakes."

Her eyes narrowed. "I wouldn't call choosing to stay in a Sithspawn body a mistake. Even he admitted such."

"How about crucifying civilians because they dared to live under Sith occupation, rather than committing mass suicide for honor's sake?" Starlin shot back. "Would you call that a mistake?"

Isolda's jaw clenched. "Do you know what your problem is, Starlin? You're too loyal to people. You make excuses for them even when they do unforgivable things. It was the same way with your old master, that fire witch—"

"Syd," Starlin interrupted, bristling. "Her name was Syd Celsius, and I'd advise you not to speak ill of the dead."

Isolda let out an angry huff, but didn't say anything else. In the silence that followed, Starlin had time to regret his words. "I'm sorry," he said. "You're right. I am loyal to a fault."

Her lower lip quivered, then her expression crumpled, and for a moment she looked like she was on the verge of tears. "No, Starlin. I'm the one who should apologize."

"It's okay." He gave her a small smile. "You're lucky, you know. You put your faith in a perfect deity. The Ashla is never wrong. Put your faith in a person, and it's only a matter of time before they reveal their flaws and shortcomings. But hey—they're just people like me. Pathetic, selfish, miserable little beings are we."

"You're not pathetic," Isolda said. "You're human, and so am I."

The steel conviction in her voice sent a shiver down his spine. He almost couldn't believe what he was hearing. Starlin was self-deprecating by nature, but Isolda of Ession? She had always been proud. Yet here she was, showing humility and self-awareness for the first time since he had met her.

"You think my faith in the Ashla is perfect? You think I don't ever have doubts?" she continued, standing strong even as tears began to fill her eyes. "The ideals I was taught didn't stand up against the realities I faced out in the galaxy. I was supposed to kill for the Ashla, but the people I saw on the crosses were just like me. I wasn't supposed to love anyone who wasn't an Ashlan, but Starlin, I love you. I still love you."

He started to reach for her, slow and cautious, afraid he might scare her off. But she practically threw herself into his arms, holding him tight as she buried her face in his neck.

"Why did we do this to ourselves, Isolda?" he whispered. "Hold ourselves to these impossible standards. Why wasn't it ever enough?"

"I don't know anymore. We must not have known any better." She pulled back. “Let's not make the same mistake again. I'll forgive you, if you forgive me.”

It was like the embers of a dying fire were rekindled in him. Starlin let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "I forgive you," he said, then whispered, "I love you."

It was hard to tell who kissed who first. He only knew that her lips were soft and her breath was hot as she eagerly opened her mouth against his, hungry for what they had denied themselves for so many years. It was Starlin who broke the kiss at last, pressing his cheek to her brow as he caught his breath. "Are you sure this is what you want?" he gasped, terrified and exhilarated and wanting more than anything to hear her say it.

"Starlin Rand, I want to marry you," she replied, her voice husky and irresistible. "Do you accept?"

His panting gave way to giddy laughter. He stroked her long hair, grinning from ear to ear as he gazed lovingly into her eyes. "Yeah. Let's do it." Before he could second-guess himself, he kissed her again.