Jedi Under Siege

by Kevin J. Anderson

  Rebellion and its Jedi, and they would make room for the Second

  Imperium.

  But something had gone wrong.

  Now he heard something. A clicking.

  Shaking his head again, he looked in the direction of the strange sound.

  It came from the timing device across the stone platform from him Timing

  device!

  He blinked and finally managed to bring his vision into focus. His eyes

  burned, but he

  ^ could see the string of descending numbers on the clock display.

  Twelve eleven . . . ten . . .

  He launched himself to his feet-but too quickly. Dizziness swept through

  him again and he fell into black oblivion.

  Nine . . . eight . . .

  ^ -----------------THE BUZZING HUM of ZekICs lightsaber filled Jaina's

  ears as her former friend brought it slowly down toward her neck.

  "You never understood, Jaina. . . . You can't understand. You've always

  been so protected. The dark side is like a scar that's on the inside."

  Zekk's eyes locked with hers. His hand remained steady, and he began

  speaking in a low voice, his words barely audible. "But these are scars

  that can't be healed," he went on. "You can try to cover them up'hum;

  buzz-"but they're still there . . .

  underneath." A swarm of angry insects buzzed near Jaina's right ear-but

  it was only the lightsaber, no longer above her head but continuing its

  excruciatingly slow descent.

  Then, as if from a distance, Jaina heard new sounds: a crackle of

  static, and then a booming voice coming from a comlink.

  ^

  ^

  "This is the Lightning Rod, callin'anyone who can hear me. Better clear

  everyone from the landing field real quick. We're coming' in. Oh, and if

  you got any of those energy shields back up, you better put 'em down

  now-we've had more'n our share of problems already today. My arm's

  broken, so the young Solo kid is flying-but our wings're clipped, and

  I'm not sure how maneuverable this baby is."

  In that moment of delight and surprise, Zekk's lightsaber wavered and

  lifted away from her. A droning sound caught his attention, and Jaina

  glanced back over her shoulder to see the Lightning Rod coming into view

  above the treetops, sputtering and wheezing.

  "Come on in, Lightning Rod," Jaina heard Luke say into his comlink.

  "You're clear to land."

  Zekk stared in amazement to see the battered old ship still intact, then

  shook his head. He reached out his free hand toward her. "Jaina, I

  didn't mean to-" Just then, a concussive boom split the air,

  obliterating all other sounds. The ground vibrated beneath Jaina's feet,

  lurching with tremors and shock waves.

  "Get down!" Zekk shouted.

  ^ She dove toward the courtyard wall and hit the ground, gasping at the

  jolt of pain that speared through her. She rolled, looking upward to see

  the gouts of smoke that erupted from a huge explosion inside the Great

  Temple. The crumbled remnants of massive stones tumbled down its sides

  in an avalanche.

  Zekk ran for cover, too, but the hailstorm of rock moved faster than he

  could dodge. A large chunk of stone struck him in the head, while other

  fragments pummeled his body.

  As Jaina watched the dark-haired young man sink to the ground, it came

  to her in a flash: he had known.

  Zekk had known the temple was going to blow up.

  And he had saved them all.

  ^ -----------------OUT IN THE unexplored jungles of Yavin 4, on the far

  side of the moon from where Luke Skywalker had established his Jedi

  academy, the wrecked TIE fighter smoldered after the crash.

  The cockpit hatch opened, and Qorl crawled out, coughing and wheezing.

  With a heave from his human arm, he raised his shoulders, then worked

  the rest of his body free. His droid arm sparked and sizzled from damage

  it had received in the crash.

  Qorl felt no pain, though. He was still functioning on adrenaline as he

  hauled himself out of the ship. His legs were numb and stiff, but they

  still worked. He dropped down from his ruined TIE fighter, then

  staggered into the protection of the trees just in case the craft

  exploded.

  Alone in the jungle, Qorl watched the TIE fighter smoke until he was

  confident that none of the engines would go critical. The

  ^

  ^ wrecked ship gradually heaved its last sigh and died.

  The damage to his craft was severe: its outer hull had been punctured by

  iron-hard Massassi tree branches, its two planar energy arrays ripped

  askew; one had even been broken off.

  As he had flown in, pummeled by the Rebel forces, dodging turbolaser

  bolts until the fatal strike that had caused him to reel out of control,

  Qorl had seen the Star Destroyers defeated. While wrestling for control

  of his TIE fighter, he had watched the Shadow Academy explode behind

  him.

  He knew now that all hope for the Second Imperium was gone. The Emperor

  himself had been aboard the Shadow Academy, as had Lord Brakiss. The

  remaining Dark Jedi fighters on the surface would no doubt be rounded up

  and taken to Rebel prisons.

  Qorl had much to regret. Rather than let one of the Solo twins die, he

  had made the choice to sacrifice his twisted student Norys. That had

  been a betrayal, and he was ashamed of it. Surrender was also betrayal.

  . . .

  But Qorl had never surrendered.

  He found himself stranded in the jungle again. His ship was beyond

  repair. The

  ^ Second Imperium was defeated. Qorl had no place to go, no orders to

  follow . . . no reado anything other than search for a son to new place

  to live.

  Perhaps it was best this way.

  He could make a nice home for himself here. He knew this jungle, the

  fruits that were good to eat, which animals were easiest to hunt. Qorl

  realized that, despite the glory of returning to the Second Imperium and

  fighting once more for his Emperor, he had enjoyed those years of

  solitude, the quiet peace of living alone in the jungle.

  In fact, he decided that this fate was not so bad, after all.

  Qorl trudged off into the jungle to search out a new home. This time, he

  intended to spend the rest of his life there.

  ^ -----------------THE MORNING AFTER the great battle on Yavin 4 dawned

  cool and clear. Within hours, the bright sunlight dispensed with the

  lingering tatters of lacy mist that clung to the rubble-strewn base of

  the Great Temple and to the trees around it. Overhead, the giant orange

  planet Yavin filled much of the sky.

  Waiting with Lowie and Jacen on the landing field, Jaina marveled at the

  difference a night's rest and a good meal could make on her perspective.

  After Luke, Tionne, Lando, and a couple of GemDiver engineers had

  determined that the lower two levels of the Great Temple were

  structurally sound, the remaining trainees and staff had made their way

  back into the pyramid, retrieving an ecstatic Artoo-Detoo, who had been

  waiting below. Admiral Ackbar's transports had evacuated the most

  seriously injured students, while those with only minor wounds had been

  treated a
nd

  ^

  ^ returned to their own chambers in the temple.

  Jaina felt fortunate-and a bit guilty that she had emerged from the

  battles almost completely unscathed. She had a few cuts and bruises from

  where stones had hit her after the explosion, but that was all.

  Jaina ran an appraising eye over her friend Lowbacca. His shoulder was

  back in position again, his arm supported by a wide cloth strap, his

  broken ribs wrapped. The Wookiee normally wore only his webbed belt made

  of syren plant fibers, so the sling and the thick white bandaging around

  his midriff seemed oddly out of place.

  She heard a warble and bleep behind her, and turned to find Artoo and

  her uncle Luke coming across the landing field to join them.

  The Jedi Master's face held a look of serenity and determination, but

  his eyes showed a glint of humor.

  "I think I looked even worse than that," Luke said without preamble,

  "after my encounter with the Wampa ice creature on Hoth."

  "Yes, but @wier's looking a lot better this morning," Jaina agreed.

  Luke chuckled. "Actually, I was referring to the Great Temple itself."

  Jaina turned to study the ancient Massassi pyramid. The topmost level

  had collapsed where the detonators had exploded, and part of the sides

  had slumped downward. The broken, jagged walls of the grand audience

  chamber could have been mistaken for crenellations atop the battlements

  of some ancient fortress.

  "At first I thought we might have to move the academy to some other

  temple," Luke said, "but now . . . I'm not sure we need to.

  "You mean we could rebuild it?" Jacen asked with a groan. "Great-more

  practice exercises, lifting rocks, balancing beams - - ."

  Artoo-Detoo twittered and beeped, as if excited at the idea. Lowie

  rumbled thoughtfully, then growled in pain, holding his aching ribs.

  "Yes," Luke said. "In one way or another we've all been hurt through our

  encounters with the dark side. I think rebuilding the Great Temple might

  be a part of healing each of our wounds."

  "Like Zekk," Jaina murmured, feeling her heart contract painfully. "He

  needs a lot of healing."

  "That reminds me, Uncle Luke," Jacen

  ^ said, "what will you do with the Dark Jedi trainees we captured?"

  "Tionne and I are working with them.

  We'll do our best to turn them back to the light side, but if it's not

  possible . . ." He spread his hands. "I'll have to discuss that with

  Leia, and-"

  "Oh, Master Lowbacca, look!" Em Teedee interrupted from his clip at

  Lowie's waist.

  Jaina noticed that the tiny droid's speaker grille had been straightened

  and meticulously polished.

  "Hey, they're back," Jacen cried.

  Lando's shuttle, with Lowie's battered T-23 in tow, arrowed toward a

  corner of the landing field well away from the blaster scarred hulk of

  the Lightning Rod.

  Uttering a joyous howl, Lowie gave Em Teedee a grateful pat.

  '-Well, what are we waiting for?" Jaina asked as the shuttle and the

  T-23 touched down.

  Jaina, Jacen, and Lowie hurried forward.

  By the time they reached it, the shuttle's landing ramp had extended,

  and Lando Calrissian strode down it with Tenel Kaon his arm. Lando's

  cape swirled behind him and he flashed his most charming grin.

  ^

  "Your friend here is quite a tough young lady," he said approvingly.

  "This is a fact," she said, without the slightest trace of humor.

  "I could have told you that," Jacen said.

  "Did you find it?"

  Tenel Ka nodded, a satisfied look on her face. She pulled her arm free,

  plucked something from her belt, and held it out to show Jacen. It was

  the rancor-tooth lightsaber that she had lost during her clash with

  Tamith Kai on the battle platform. "It was not as difficult to locate as

  I had feared," she said. "Perhaps because I knew the rancor whose tooth

  this was, I was able to sense its location."

  Tenel Ka no longer appeared feverish, and Jaina was amused to note that

  the warrior girl had braided her red-gold hair carefully around her face

  so that her bandage looked like a primitive warband across her forehead.

  "I've invited Tenel Ka to come and visit GemDiver Station, since she

  missed it last time," Lando said. 'We have some good bacta tanks there

  that'll fix up that cut on her head no time. Lowbacca, looks like you

  could use a few days in one of our tanks, too."

  ^ Lowie barked his acceptance and a thank you.

  "Oh, that would be exceedingly kind of you, Master Calrissian," Em

  Teedee said.

  "Master Lowbacca is most anxious to complete his healing and begin

  repairs on his incapacitated vehicle."

  "His little skyhopper ain't the only vehicle that's incapacitated."

  Jaina jumped when Peckhum's loud voice boomed out behind her.

  "I know just what he means, though. The boy and I can't wait to get

  started fixing the Lightning Rod. But I think Zekk is going to be

  laid-up here for a while recuperating."

  Old Peckhum stood by the damaged Lightning Rod, one hand on Zekk's

  shoulder, the other arm heavily bandaged.

  Zekk's face was as pale as the dressing that wound around the base of

  his skull. His eyes seemed curiously empty, his face expressionless. He

  did not meet Jaina's gaze.

  "I think you've got two more candidates for your bacta tank, Lando,"

  Jaina said.

  "Can Jacen and I go along with them, Uncle Luke?"

  Artoo-Detoo twittered.

  "Oh, indeed! That's a marvelous idea," Em Teedee said.

  "We promise not to get kidnapped this time," Jacen added with a lopsided

  Solostyle grin.

  Luke chuckled. "All right, I think that would be good for all of you.

  You young Jedi Knights are stronger together. If you have some time away

  to heal, then you'll come back ready to help us rebuild . . . ready for

  a new beginning."

  "Thanks, Uncle Luke," Jaina said.

  "Jacen, my friend," Tenel Ka said. 'Perhaps we had better leave soon. We

  do not want all of the injured students to come away with us and leave

  Master Skywalker here alone."

  Jacen gave Tenel Ka a quizzical look.

  "What do you mean?" he said. '@y would you worry about that?" -Because,"

  Tenel Ka said solemnly, "a Jedi must have patients."

  Jacen blinked at her, uncertainty written on his face. Then a shy grin

  lit Tenel Ka's face. It was the first time he had seen her smile so

  broadly.

  'I don't believe it Jacen began.

  Jaina shook her head in wonder.

  "Sounded to me like she just told a joke."

  'This is a fact!" Jacen said.

  ^ Lowie chuffed with delight. Jaina giggled.

  Soon the entire clearing rang with laughter.

 

 

 
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