After their visit to the Czerka camp, Jolee had lead Venar and Bastila back to his hut. He had explained that the particular part of the Shadowlands they needed to go to was especially dangerous at this time of night. They would get some much needed rest and head out in the morning.

Jolee had started a fire outside his hut and had made a mushbloom stew. He had assured them that it was a delicacy of the planet, yet Venar found them to be a bit of... an acquired taste. Nevertheless, the three Jedi sat around the fire, eating and getting to know each other.

Jolee, they discovered, could talk a lot. Venar surmised this was likely due to the hermit not having had a meaningful interaction with any others of his kind in quite awhile. He would often ramble and prattle on about some of his various adventures back as a young Jedi. He dropped names and locations as if they should know exactly what he was talking about. Of course, they didn't.

"Tell me, is Master Vrook still a member of the Jedi Council?"

"He is," Bastila said. Finally, a name they recognized.

"Fah! I bet he's still got a lightsaber up his rear!"

"Even back then huh?" Venar smirked as he listened to this old seasoned veteran talking trash about one of the Order's esteemed Masters.

"I swear the Jedi found him that way! So judgy! You should've seen his face when he found out about Nayama," he said shaking his head and chuckling.

"Nayama?"

"Oh, yes... Nayama," he said his eyes suddenly growing distant. "She was my wife. I lost her a long time ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Bastila said.

"You broke the Jedi Code?" Venar asked incredulously.

"Now, don't you go getting all judgy on me," Jolee said defensively. "I've never been a big fan of the Jedi's take on love and attachment. Love leads to the dark side... bah! What do they know? I found love! I got married! ...And now I'm older than most of the human Council members at least. Haven't become a Sith yet!"

"What happened?" Venar asked.

"Eh... that's a story for another time... I don't really feel like talking about that right now and to be frank, all this yammering has tired me out." He stood up and headed towards the door of his hut. "When you're ready I made the floor as comfortable as possible. I had a few extra pillows I traded some mushbloom for awhile back. You can use them."

He started back towards the door again before adding, "Oh, but don't get too comfortable now. Wouldn't want your Jedi Masters worrying you've gone to the Dark Side... hehe..." He raised an eyebrow and glanced back and forth between his two visitors.

"I... I don't!" Before Bastila could finish her protest to Jolee's crude joke he had closed the door and disappeared inside.

She sighed and looked over at Venar sitting across the fire from her. He met her gaze and she knew she could no longer hide from the subject she knew he so desperately wanted to discuss.

"Is it really that obvious?" She asked.

"I don't think so," he said. "I don't think any of the others have caught on."

"Venar... we need to keep it that way..."

"You're conflicted," he said more as a statement than a question.

"Yes," she said looking down at her feet, unable to meet his gaze. "I... I admit... I... I'm attracted to you... It wasn't always that way... Maybe it's the bond we share... or I don't know. It's been growing for some time."

"I know. It's been the same for me. At first, I just thought it was fun to tease you. We became closer... it's hard to explain. I can't pinpoint when exactly these feelings developed, or even when I first noticed them. It feels now like they've always been there... sometimes I feel as if I owe you my very life."

As he talked, Bastila found herself smiling at his confession to her. She had even managed to make eye contact with him again, until he said that last part. Her eyes darted back down and she was sure he could sense the wave of guilt rising up within her even as she tried to suppress it.

"What's wrong?"

"I... I just... I can't..." She told him. She couldn't tell him the full truth, but she could tell him enough. "We're Jedi. We swore an oath to the Order. We can't indulge in these emotions even though we may want to."

"What about what happened before? When we kissed-"

"That was a mistake!" she said rising to her feet in a sudden burst of conviction. Her face twisted into a stern expression as she talked. "We can't do this. It's forbidden. We would be expelled from the Jedi Order if we were to give in to our passions. We would sacrifice our duty to the greater good for selfish desires."

"Selfish?! What I feel for you isn't selfish," he shot back. "I would think the Jedi would understand that love, that compassion, are the very roots of selflessness. How can they deny their members the basic right for all to experience love and affection. Without those things we have nothing."

"The Jedi have clearly stated-"

"Well the Jedi are wrong!" Now it was his turn to stand up and make his point.

"The Jedi are not infallible! The Jedi almost lost the war with Mandalore, and they're losing this one! I'm not saying they're wrong about everything, and I'm not saying I want to go join the Dark Side. But that doesn't mean that they're right about everything!"

She stood there speechless for a moment. Her expression had softened and she seemed to be pondering his words.

"What if... what if something happens to one of us," she said finally. "What if the Sith use our relationship against each other?"

"There's no use fearing something that may never happen," he said, stepping forward and putting his hands on her shoulders. She looked up at his with soulful eyes. "Besides, I get the feeling this bond we share isn't easily broken."

She kissed him. She did it before she even realized what she was doing. She wrapped her arms around him and allowed him to pull her close into his body. They enveloped each other in a deep embrace that they both desperately didn't want to end.

"I love you, Bastila."

"I love you too."

--------------------------------------------------------------

Darth Malak strode across the field of war. His cape fluttered behind him in the wind. Smoke filled the air around him, blaster bolts whizzed by him in both directions. His eyes glowed like embers as he led his army towards the crippled and smoldering structure ahead, the Jedi Temple on Dantooine.

Standing defiantly in front of the temple was a force of about fifty Jedi Knights and a platoon of temple guards armed with blasters. The Jedi focused on deflecting incoming blaster fire while the platoon had taken cover by makeshift barricades erected at the entrance of the temple in a semi-circle.

Malak normally would have had many Sith adepts and apprentices join him on the battlefield but this operation was of a particularly sensitive nature. Only Sith troopers armed with blasters and battle droids had been allowed to accompany him on the siege. Overhead, Sith fighters periodically sweeped over the temple firing down on the Jedi forces below.

As Malak approached the enemy lines, his hatred grew. He could feel it seething up within him, steadily growing until it was a blazing inferno. He ignited his lightsaber and deflected a flurry of incoming shots. His red battle suit stood out as a challenge to his enemies on the battlefield.

The enemy focused all of their fire on the incoming Dark Lord, walking steadily towards them. Unbeknownst to them, that is exactly what he wanted. He focused on deflecting the incoming fire as he began to gather his power, feeling it well up within him.

The air around him became distorted and hazy as he reached out with both hands, and commanding the Force, he seized the incoming blaster shots in place. The glowing thin lines of pure energy froze in the air, still sizzling and cackling. The enemy force ceased firing as they watched in both amazement and horror.

Then the blaster bolts were released, sent flying back to where they had originated. Half the platoon, couldn't react fast enough and we're struck down by their own shots. Even some of the Jedi had attempted to block the reversing blaster fire too late and fell to the ground.

Malak seized the opportunity, and in their confusion he unleashed a deadly torrent of lightning from his fingertips. To the Jedi's credit, most of them were able to deflect the incoming attack with their lightsabers. The remainder of the platoon, however, fell to the ground writhing in pain until the last bits of life ebbed out of them.

The rest of the Jedi stood defensively in front of the temple, bravely steeling themselves for another onslaught. It didn't come. Malak held up his hand, signalling his troops to cease fire. He stood, coldly regarding the defending Jedi, his eyes glowing as well as his lightsaber.

"The Masters have already escaped!" One of the Jedi Knights stepped forward. He was probably a little younger than Malak himself, his dirty blonde hair tied up in a bun atop his head. "Leave! Your attack has failed!"

"Then I will have to settle for you..."

Malak sprung into action, moving with a blinding speed in a zig-zag motion, quickly closing the remaining gap between him and the Jedi defenders. In the unexpected blur of motion, two young Jedi were caught by surprise, one with Malak's red lightsaber in her gut, and the other with his hand around his throat with crushing force.

The other Jedi moved in to attack, but Malak was out of the way, leaping into the air before the two bodies even hit the ground. The Dark Side was coursing through his veins, only amplified by his growing rage.

He could feel the small force of Jedi reaching out, aiming to sieze him with the Force. Being outnumbered so severely, the Jedi posed a severe threat to himself. But he was not unprepared. He landed on the ground in a crouch, sending out a powerful shockwave that rippled out from around him in all directions.

The stronger Jedi, weathered the attack, standing their ground and bracing themselves in the Force. The weaker, less trained Jedi, were sent flying backwards and thrown against the walls of the enclave. Many of them died from the impact alone, skulls and bones cracked as their bodies hit the stone surface.

Malak looked up from his crouched position and surveyed the remaining Jedi. There were still about thirty left. Even with all of his power their combined strength might be enough to subdue him. So he decided to use every advantage he had. He raised his fist, signalling his army to once again open fire.

The remaining Jedi instinctively began blocking the incoming blaster fire, deflecting the shots with their lightsabers. Now they would be too preoccupied with defending against the blaster fire that he wouldn't have to worry about them combining their strength in the Force to subdue him.

He went on the offensive. Standing, he unleashed another onslaught of Force Lightning. This time, instead of a prolonged steady stream of lightning he focused the energy into short precise blasts. He ran forward, blasting several Jedi square in the chests before throwing his lightsaber in a short violent arc that decapitated three more Jedi.

The Jedi were falling quickly, but Malak was suddenly aware of one of the Jedi, a young Padawan with dark braided hair, breaking from the rest to rush towards him. Malak turned and unleashed a blast of lightning at the incoming Padawan but was surprised when his foe managed to dodge the attack.

The Padawan leapt into the air, arcing down towards the Sith Lord, his face twisted into a scowl. He came down with a powerful but clumsy chop aimed at the Dark Lord's head. Malak brought his lightsaber up and blocked the attack, their blades momentarily sizzling.

He ducked under a wide horizontal slash from the Padawan and lunged out with his foot, kicking the younger man square in the chest. The Padawan staggered backwards his feet giving way in the muddy ground.

Malak reached out and pulled the assailant violently towards him with an invisible grasp. The Padawan was unprepared and left himself wide open. With a quick precise strike, Malak severed the young man's arm, his lightsaber falling to the ground and extinguishing.

As the Padawan fell to his knees screaming, Malak bent down and grabbed him by the hair.

"You showed promise using the Dark Side like that," the Sith Lord said. "Unfortunately, you are too weak to be considered as a viable apprentice."

"I... will never join you!"

"Then I've made the right decision."

Malak swung his lightsaber, and the young Padawan's head rolled back and onto the muddy ground.

Malak wouldn't waste his effort trying to turn this pathetic Jedi to his side. He briefly remembered his own fall to darkness. He had resisted it at first, even fought his friend even as he pleaded with Revan not to go down that path. In return, Revan had taken his jaw and broke him.

Now, he was consumed by the Dark Side. He saw no way out, no hope of ever returning to the light. Some days, he wished Revan had simply shown him the same mercy he had to this Padawan...

Malak never chose to waste his time with individuals who did not want to join his cause. He saw no reason to try persuade them or even force them to his side. Either they saw the merit in it, or they didn't. There was only one he deemed special enough to warrant that kind of effort... and only time would tell whether it would be profitable.

It took less than a minute after he had struck down the Padawan for the remaining Jedi to be dispatched. They were utterly weak and hopeless. He walked across their bodies without a hint of remorse as he strode into the now empty and battered enclave.

He made his way inside, the corridors empty but mostly preserved from the beating the compound had taken. There were some deep cracks in the ceiling and some slabs of stone that had fallen onto the floor. He paid it no mind and began his search of the enclave. He found no Jedi as roamed the ground level halls.

After a brief search, he knew anyone left had run or died outside fighting. True to what the Jedi told him outside, he saw no sign of any of the Jedi Masters. A shame, for he would have enjoyed gutting them.

He made his way to the lower level of the temple, walking down a spiral staircase to the bottom. The first room he came on was the training chambers. There was an array of training droids and practice sabers lined up on the wall closest to the doorway, and in the center, a large circular stone dueling ring. Curiously, there was a large impact crater that looked like it had been patched up not terribly long ago.

Nothing of interest here, he moved on deeper into the bowels of the Jedi temple. None of the structure down here had been damaged by the assault, it all remained intact. He passed by a room dedicated to lightsaber construction.

He was getting closer to his goal, the archives. That was the real purpose of his attack. He had, by chance, discovered in a very small section of one of Calo Nord's reports, that he had tracked Bastila and her companions to Tattooine. But in the report he had almost missed the detail that Calo had discovered they had went to Dantooine before that.

At first, he hadn't thought much of it. He put together the pieces that Bastila was somehow following the trail of the Star Maps. He wished he had had the foresight to have destroyed the maps so this scenario could've been prevented. It was too late for that now... What he hadn't realized at first, though, was that the Jedi had established a secret enclave on Dantooine, the very halls of which he now walked. When his spies and scouts reported back, he knew he could catch the Jedi unaware.

Now, as he neared the archives, he could sense a presence... one that felt familiar. There was someone still here... and they were more powerful than the Jedi he faced outside. Perhaps one of the Masters stayed behind...

His suspicions were confirmed when he walked in to see Master Dorak seated at one of the many computer terminals throughout the archives. The old Jedi looked up from the screen as Malak walked in and regarded him with a level gaze.

"Ah... Alek. I was hoping I'd have more time before you arrived," the Jedi said getting to his feet.

"Trying to turn me back to the light by using my old name?" Malak spoke the words with disdain.

"Hardly," Dorak said with a sigh, "Just reminding you of who you used to be. I know there can be no redemption for you."

"I assume you've purged the archives of the knowledge I seek?"

"You will not find them."

"Oh but I already have... Admiral Karath is en route as we speak. I simply wanted to confirm what I already suspect."

"You will find no such satisfaction here," Dorak said defiantly.

"We will see about that."

Malak ignited his lightsaber.

--------------------------------------------------------------

"We need a way to contact Venar and Bastila," Juhani said, pacing back and forth in the Ebon Hawk's lounge area. "If we're going to make a move against Czerka they need to know."

"And we need to be sure that the Wookiees will be ready to sieze the opportunity as well," Carth said. "We won't be able to fight all of Czerka alone."

"I'm not even sure we will be allowed to fight per se... But maybe we can tip the scales to favor the Wookiees. Maybe we can supply them with the opportunity they need."

"The key is taking down those sonic emitters I'm sure," Canderous said. "The problem is once they go the alarms will sound and Czerka is going to rush in and fix them."

"Unless we take them all out at once," Juhani said. "If we can take them all out at once and then coordinate with a Wookiee resistance force, perhaps they can storm the outpost and run Czerka off before they even have a chance to fix their emitters."

"Then it's all important we contact Venar," Canderous said, "He can signal the Wookiees to be ready as soon as we take down those emitters."

"There's no way to contact him down on the forest floor," Carth said. "The foliage is too thick, or something is hindering transmissions from reaching down there."

"Then I recommend we send the droid," Canderous said, throwing his thumb back over his shoulder, gesturing to HK-47 standing silently against the wall.

"Exclamation: Indeed, I am most capable of traversing this inhospitable world and locating our Master. I am quite eager to see what various kinds of wildlife might provoke me to violence."

"Right..." Carth sighed. "Can you deliver a message detailing our plan?"

"Affirmation: Of course! I am significantly more capable at the facilitation of communications than most meatbags of even your status."

"Charming," Carth rolled his eyes.

"It would be good if we could somehow silence the alarms from sounding," Juhani suggested. "The moment those emitters go down and the alarms sound, every Czerka guard is going to know something is up. It would be better to give them the element of surprise."

"Good idea," Carth said. "We need to give the Wookiees every advantage we can. If we can take down the emitters without them knowing ahead of time, then all we have to do is send the message to Venar and Bastila to fulfill their part of the plan, and as long as we have those emitters down before the Wookiees arrive we'll be in good shape."