Shadow Academy

by Kevin J. Anderson

  said, filled with savage intensity, "but you must learn discipline." The

  master of the Shadow Academy looked to the stormtroopers. "Return

  them to their quarters, and keep them separated! We have great work to do

  here and cannot be distracted by unchanneled displays of temper."

  Then Brakiss adjusted his handsome features until he looked calm and

  soothing again. He raised his eyebrows in admiration toward Lowie. "I am

  pleased to see the strength in your anger, young Wookiee. That is something

  we must develop. You have great potential."

  White-armored guards crushed Lowie's hairy arms in their unfeeling grip. The

  stormtroopers marched the three young Jedi Knights out into the corridor and

  toward their cells.

  * 11 *

  Dathomir sparkled like a rich topaz jewel, welcoming Tenel Ka as Luke

  piloted the Off Chance down into the atmosphere. Anticipation tingled

  through her. Regardless of the unhappy circumstances that brought them here"

  Tenel Ka could not help the feeling of pleasure and joy that throbbed

  through her veins with every beat of her heart.

  Home-home. Home-home.

  Turbulence buffeted the blockade runner as they descended. Luke studied the

  displays on the navigation console and adjusted their course from time to

  time.

  "It's been a long time since I made a visit to the Singing Mountain Clan,"

  Luke said. "I don't remember exactly how to get there. I think I can get us

  close, but unless you happen to know the coordinates-"

  Tenel Ka rattled off the numbers before he could finish his thought. At the

  same time, she leaned forward and entered the coordinates into the navicomp.

  "I come here often," she explained. "It is my second home in the galaxy, but

  it is the first home of my heart."

  "Yes," Luke said, "I can understand that."

  As the Off Chance carried them to the home of the Singing Mountain Clan,

  they passed over shining oceans, lush forests, vast deserts, rolling hills,

  and wide fertile plains. Tenel Ka felt strength and energy flow through her,

  as if the very atmosphere of the planet had the power to recharge her.

  "Look," Luke said, pointing down at a herd of blue-skinned reptiles racing

  at incredible speed across a plain.

  " Blue Mountain people," Tenel Ka said. "They migrate every dawn and

  every dusk."

  Luke nodded. "One of them gave me a ride once."

  "That is a rare honor, Master Skywalker," she said. "Not even I have had

  that opportunity"

  The pale pink sun was high above the horizon by the time they reached the

  wide, bowl-shaped valley of the Singing Mountain Clan, Tenel Ka's second

  home. A green and brown patchwork of fields and orchards spread beneath them

  in the pinkish sunlight. Small clusters of thatched huts dotted the valley,

  and morning cooking fires glimmered here and there.

  Luke pointed to the stone fortress built into the side of the cliff wall

  that rose high above the valley floor. "Does Augwynne Djo still rule here?"

  "Yes. My great-grandmother."

  "Good. We'll go directly to her then. I'd prefer to tell only a few people

  why we are here and keep our presence as secret as possible," he said, then

  he brought the Off Chance to a smooth landing on the valley floor beside the

  fortress.

  "That should not be difficult," Tenel Ka replied. "My people do not speak

  unnecessarily."

  Luke chuckled. "I can believe that."

  Tenel Ka paused halfway up the steep path that led to the fortress. She was

  not at all fatigued; she was simply savoring the moment. Luke, who had been

  following behind her with unwavering steps, halted without a word and waited

  for her to continue. He did not seem the least bit winded, his breathing

  slow and regular, no small feat considering the rapid pace Tenel Ka set. The

  longer she knew Master Skywalker, the more she admired him, and the better

  she understood why her mother - who did not often speak highly of any man

  except her husband, Isolder, had always held Luke Skywalker in high esteem.

  Tenel Ka drew in a deep breath. The air was delicious, but not just from the

  mouthwatering odors of roasting meat and vegetables that wafted from the

  cooking fires. It was late summer in the valley, and the warm breeze was

  redolent with the scents of ripening fruit, golden grasses, and early

  harvest. Despite the intermingled odors of the lizard pens and the herd of

  domesticated rancors, there was a freshness to the air that lifted her

  heart.

  Tenel Ka set off again as if there was not a moment to lose. Finally, she

  stood before the gate of the fortress, where she announced herself as a

  member of the clan. The gates were thrown open and Tenel Ka's clan sisters

  welcomed her with warm embraces and low murmurs of greeting. All were

  dressed in lizard-skin tunics of various colors, like the one Tenel Ka wore.

  Some wore elaborate helmets, while others simply wore their hair in

  decorated braids.

  One clan sister with black hair that fell to her waist drew the two

  travelers inside. "Augwynne told us you would come," she said. Her

  expression was grave, but Tenel Ka could see the smile that lit her eyes.

  "Our mission is urgent," Tenel Ka stated, not bothering to greet the woman.

  "We must see Augwynne alone at once." She had never used such a tone of

  command in Master Skywalker's presence before, but she knew her clan sister

  would not be offended. At times like this, pleasantries were an unnecessary

  luxury among her people.

  The woman inclined her head slightly "Augwynne has guessed this much. She

  waits for you in the war room."

  The ancient woman stood as they entered the room. "Welcome, Jedi Skywalker.

  And welcome great-granddaughter Tenel Ka Chume Ta' Djo." She embraced each

  of them in turn.

  Tenel Ka groaned. "Please," she said, "do not use my full name. And do not

  send word that we are here."

  Luke interrupted. "We're following a trail that has led us from Yavin to

  Borgo Prime to Dathomir. Our need for information has brought us to you.''

  Tenel Ka took a deep breath and searched for words. She looked directly at

  her great-grandmother. Augwynne's wrinkle-nested eyes were attentive,

  cautious. "We are searching for the Nightsisters. Do any remain on

  Dathomir?"

  Augwynne's heavy sigh told Tenel Ka that they had come to the right place.

  The old woman fixed her gaze on Luke. "They are not Nightsisters as you and

  I knew them," she said. "Not wizened crones with discolored skin, who rotted

  from the nightspells they spoke." She shook her head. "No, they are a newly

  formed order of Nightsisters, young and fair, and allied with the Empire."

  She lifted a finger to stroke Tenel Ka's cheek. "Their evil is subtle. They

  tame and ride rancors as we do. They dress as warriors, if they choose. They

  are not even all women . . . but they are children of darkness. They are

  dangerous, with new goals. Do not seek them out."

  "We must," Tenel Ka said simply. "It is our best hope for rescuing my

  closest friends."

  Augwynne gave her great-granddaughter a measuring look. "You pledged

  friendship with th
ese people you must rescue?"

  Tenel Ka nodded. "With full ceremony."

  "Then we have no other choice," Augwynne said with finality. "You must

  present your case before the Council of Sisters."

  * 12 *

  Brakiss had a private office on the Shadow Academy , a place where

  he could go for solitude and contemplation.

  Now, as he pondered, he stared at the brilliant images surrounding him on

  the walls: a waterfall of scarlet lava on the molten planet Nkllon; an

  exploding sun that spewed arcs of stellar fire in the Denarii Nova; the

  still-blazing core of the Cauldron Nebula, where seven giant stars had all

  gone supernova at once; and a vista of the broken shards of Alderaan,

  destroyed by the Empire's first Death Star more than twenty years before.

  Brakiss recognized great beauty in the violence of the universe, in the

  unbridled power provided by the galaxy or unleashed by human ingenuity.

  Standing alone and in silence, Brakiss used Force techniques to meditate and

  absorb these cosmic catastrophes, crystallizing the strength within himself.

  Through the dark side, he knew how to make the Force bend to his will. The

  power stored within the galaxy was his to use. When he captured it and held

  it with his heart, Brakiss could maintain his calm exterior and not be prone

  to violence as his fellow instructor Tamith Kai so often was.

  Brakiss eased back in his padded chair, letting his breath flow slowly out.

  The synthetic leather squeaked as his body rubbed against it, and the

  warmers inside the chair brought the temperature to a relaxing level. The

  cushions conformed themselves to his body to give him the greatest comfort.

  Tamith Kai refused such indulgences outright. She was a hard woman,

  insisting on privation and adversity to hone her skills for the Empire that

  had recognized her potential and taken her from the bleak planet Dathomir.

  Brakiss, however, found that he could think better when he was at ease. He

  could plan, mull over possibilities.

  Brakiss switched on the recording pad on his desktop and called up the day's

  records. He would have to make a report and ship it in an armored hyperdrone

  to their powerful new Imperial leader, hidden deep in the Core Systems. It

  had been some time since the encampment he founded in the Great Canyon

  on Dathomir had provided any strong new students, but the three talented

  young trainees kidnapped from Skywalker's Jedi academy were another story,

  worth the risk of stealing them. Brakiss could sense it.

  But their focus was all wrong. Master Skywalker had taught them too much and

  in the wrong ways. They didn't know how to turn their anger into a sharpened

  spearpoint for a larger weapon. They contemplated too much. They were too

  calm, too passive-except for the Wookiee. Brakiss needed to train those

  three. He and Tamith Kai would employ their separate specialties to work on

  them.

  Brakiss drummed his fingertips on the slick surface of his desk.

  Occasionally, he felt twinges of sadness for having left the Yavin 4

  training center. He had learned much there, though his own mission for the

  Empire was always uppermost in his mind.

  Long ago, the Empire had selected Brakiss because of his untapped Jedi

  ability He had undergone rigorous training and conditioning so that he could

  spy on Skywalker's academy, gathering precious information. No one was

  supposed to know he was a scout, planted there to learn techniques that he

  could teach to the Second Imperium. The new Imperial leader had insisted on

  developing his own Dark Jedi, a symbol that those faithful to the Empire

  could rally around.

  Somehow, though, Master Skywalker had immediately seen through the

  deception. He had realized Brakiss's true identity. But unlike previous

  clumsy and unpracticed spies who had come to Yavin 4 with the same mission,

  Brakiss had not been expelled outright. Skywalker had shown little patience

  for those others-but apparently he had seen real potential in Brakiss.

  Master Skywalker had begun working on him, openly teaching him those things

  he most needed to learn. Brakiss did have a great talent with the Force, and

  Master Skywalker had shown him how to use it. But Skywalker had repeatedly

  tried to contaminate Brakiss with the light side, with the platitudes and

  peaceful ways of the New Republic . Brakiss shuddered at the

  thought.

  Finally, in a private and supremely important test, Master Skywalker had

  taken Brakiss on a mental journey within himself-not allowing him to look

  outward through the rivers of the Force, but turning the dark student inside

  to see his own heart, so he could observe the truth about what he himself

  was made of.

  Brakiss had opened a trapdoor and fallen into a pit filled with his

  self-deception and the potential cruelties that the Empire could force him

  to carry out. Master Skywalker stood beside him, forcing him to look-and

  keep looking-even as Brakiss scrambled to escape from himself, not wanting

  to face the lies of his own existence.

  But the Imperial conditioning ran too deep. His mind was too far lost in

  service to the Empire, and Brakiss had nearly gone insane from that ordeal.

  He had run from Master Skywalker, taking his ship and fleeing into the

  depths of space. He had remained alone for a long time before finally.

  returning to the embrace of the Second Imperium, where he put his expertise

  to work . . .just as it had been planned from the beginning.

  Brakiss was handsome, perfectly formed, not at all corrupted as the Emperor

  had appeared in his last days, when the dark side had devoured him from

  within. Brakiss tried to deny that corruption-to comfort himself with his

  outer appearance-but he could not escape the ugliness in the darkness of his

  heart. He knew his place in the Empire would be reborn, and he had learned

  to be content with that service. His greatest triumph was his Shadow

  Academy , where he could oversee the new Dark Jedi being trained: dozens

  of students, some with little or no talent at all, but others with the

  potential for true greatness, like Darth Vader himself.

  Of course, the new Imperial leader also recognized the danger in creating

  such a powerful group of Dark Jedi. Knights who had fallen to the dark side

  were bound to have ambitions of their own, tempted by the power they

  themselves controlled. It was Brakiss's job to keep them in line. But the

  great leader had his own protective measures. The entire Shadow

  Academy was filled with self-destructive devices: hundreds, if not

  thousands, of chain-reaction explosives. If Brakiss did not succeed in

  creating his troop of Dark Jedi, or if the new trainees somehow staged a

  revolt against the Second Imperium, the Imperial leader would trigger the

  station's self-destruct sequences. Brakiss and all the Dark Jedi would be

  destroyed in a flash. A hostage to darkness, Brakiss was never allowed to

  leave the Shadow Academy By order of the great leader, he would remain

  there, confined, until he and all his trainees had proven themselves.

  Brakiss found that sitting on a huge bomb made it difficult to concentrate.

  But he had gr
eat confidence in his own abilities and in Tamith Kai's.

  Without that confidence he could never have become a Jedi in the first

  place-and he would never have dared to touch the teachings of the dark side.

  But he had learned those ways, and he had grown strong. He would turn these

  new students. He was sure he could do it.

  Brakiss smiled as he finished the report encapsulating his plans. The lanky

  Wookiee's anger was something to take advantage of, and Tamith Kai was the

  best at that. The new Nightsister was a born tormentor, and she carried out

  her duties extremely well. Brakiss would let her train Lowbacca.

  He, on the other hand, would work with the twins, the grandchildren of Darth

  Vader. They were too calm, too well trained, and resisted in subtle ways

  that would prove far more difficult to deal with. For them, he had other

  methods. First, he had to find out what Jacen and Jaina really wanted, and

  he would give it to them.

  From that point on, they would be his.

  * 13 *

  The Shadow Academy 's training chamber stood large and empty, a

  yawning, vacant space walled off on all sides. The doors sealed behind

  Jacen, imprisoning him with Brakiss, leaving him to face whatever the

  teacher had in store. The walls were a flat gray, studded with a grid of

  computer sensors. Jacen saw no controls, no way out. He looked up at the

  beautiful man, who stood in silvery robes watching Jacen with a calm,

  patient smile.

  Brakiss reached into his shimmering robes and withdrew a black cylinder

  about half the length of Jacen's forearm. It had three power buttons and a