Shadie focused her energy in looking as Sith-like as she could. She had fooled Kromus once before, Knarf had fooled Relsor and Darth Gourd. She could convince Relsor she was Darth Shadie for more than mere minutes. After all, she had once been Sith.
            Relsor and Perce entered the room and motioned the hallway.
            ‘Come with us, Shadie,’ said Relsor.
            This was it, Shadie would find out why Relsor wanted her to summon Kromus, she’d learn another cryptic secret, and she would leave this place. The Force was in motion, and she could feel it.
            Shadie clipped her lightsaber to her belt. She took a quick look around the room, making sure she had everything she needed: comlinks, datapad, anything she had come here with. It was all secure on her person. She stood tall and followed the two True Sith lords out.        Shadie was escorted to the command chamber that also served as a viewscreen room. A number of True Sith and Sith stood nearby. She recognised a few of them by now: one who wore a hood and mask, another with many face tattoos, another who looked more Jedi than Sith-like. Shadie noticed that Jassahmi was not present.
            Trylia stood close to the centre of the room, waiting. She clocked her eyes towards Shadie and nodded.
            ‘What is this?’ asked Shadie.
            ‘It is time for the grand debate and for me to prove myself to Trylia,’ said Relsor. ‘She will obviously choose me over that pathetic Jedi friend of yours, but I decided to humour her and to allow him to speak his case.’
            ‘This is not what you need me for,’ said Shadie. ‘I demand that you show me so I can make good use of my powers.’
            ‘Patience, Darth Shadie,’ said Perce. ‘We simply need the others to arrive first.’
            The Sith Awgro, whom Shadie had let live, arrived with Brenum, who had both his lightsabers clipped to his belt. He looked wary.
            ‘We only await one more.’ Relsor motioned the doorway, from where Knarf arrived. Knarf walked cautiously into the room. He wore his beskar armour; his helmet was clipped to his belt, as was his lightsaber. ‘I am glad you are here, Knarf.’
            ‘I admit, I was unsure why I was all of a sudden out of your trap and allowed to leave my cell.’
            ‘I was hoping you would sense my request,’ said Relsor.
            ‘I am here now. I took the liberty to don my armour on.’ Knarf looked at Brenum. ‘Should things get out of hand again, I will be prepared to fight properly this time.’
            ‘So will I,’ replied Brenum. His voice was threatening, though Shadie knew to whom his threat was actually directed, even though Brenum was looking directly at Knarf as he spoke.
            Perce chuckled. ‘Settle down now and remain calm.’
            ‘Oh, I am very calm, Perce.’ There was menace in Knarf’s voice.
            Perce took a seat at his usual spot, next to the command chair and motioned Relsor forward.

Continue reading Chapter Eleven

Read the Epilogue

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Warning: The following chapter contains mature subject matter, which may be triggering to some readers. Reading discretion is advised.

Shadie cleared her mind and sent her thoughts as an imprint in the Force to the others; it would soon be time. She wanted Brenum and Trylia to remain vigilant. She also sent a brief thought to the Sphere. Now with everyone allowed to be in their cells without any stasis holding them in place, it would be easier to gather what they needed when the time came.
            A monitor in Shadie’s cell came on. She looked up and her heart sank when she saw Knarf in stasis in his cell. She sighed; Relsor had trapped Knarf, probably to punish him for previously disobeying his orders. It didn’t matter, it was a minor setback. They would find a way to free Knarf. In fact, Shadie could use her powers now and go free him this very moment.
            Shadie marched to the door of her cell and gathered her arms close to her and used the Force to try to open it. Instead, a bolt of dark side energy flew towards her; she bounced back. She tried again, and again she was blasted with dark side energy emanating from the door itself. Shadie cursed under her breath; Relsor had set a very nifty trap for her, getting out would require more effort than anticipated.
            She tried focusing with the Force and found that every time she did, she felt ill and dizzy. She tried to use the Force to heal herself, to ease the malady she felt, but it only worsened. She extended her senses and realised that her entire cell felt like it was coated in the Force, coated with the malady of Relsor’s being. This was recent, this had been done the moment the holomonitor had powered on.
            Shadie hated feeling sick, but she would be sick before she gave up on freeing her husband-to-be.

* * *

            Relsor entered Trylia’s cell, his Force energy felt invigorated, determined, yet calm. Trylia braced herself; she wanted to try to reach the part of Relsor that was vulnerable again, but she knew there would undoubtedly be much resistance from him. Trylia wanted to be his friend, she wanted to help him. 
            ‘Relsor, please, let’s talk.’
            ‘I cannot.’ His tone was apologetic. He extended his hand for her to take, keeping the other behind his back. She took it. ‘You will be pleased to know that I have made a sacrifice for you. I have sent away the only other person who fuelled remotely a bit of my passion. Jassahmi and I are no more but a lord and his follower. She will no longer be a problem.’
            ‘Was she another who could understand you?’
            ‘Yes, and no. Not like you. No one has ever penetrated my personal defences thus, and succeeded, and whom I did not kill for doing so.’
            ‘I guess that makes me lucky.’ Trylia smiled. ‘Or foolish.’ Relsor smiled back at her and she saw in him something she had seen in Shadie when they had first met: the longing of something to fill a void inside a heart that had been hurt, and the beginnings of a deep friendship. Trylia knew Relsor was not Shadie and that he could never turn to the light side, not unless he needed to. ‘You see, I can get you to feel those nice emotions that are of the light side.’
            ‘My dear, some emotions are not of the light side nor of the dark side, they merely exist.’

Continue reading Chapter Ten

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Fane marched into the bunker where Lian and Talyc were sitting at the lounge talking about Pazaak. They looked up at him. He could tell they knew something was amiss, as he himself felt his own heart palpitate with fear.
            ‘Something’s wrong,’ he said. ‘I can feel it. Something isn’t right with Shadie. We need to try to establish a connection with Relsor again. Maybe I can help her.’ Lian nodded.
            ‘It’ll be all right, Fane,’ said Talyc. ‘How do you know something’s gone wrong?’
            ‘There is a foreboding sensation in the Force whenever I reach out to her,’ said Fane. ‘There is a lot of fear. And just now, when I reached out to her, I sensed darkness.’
            ‘The dark side?’ Lian stood and walked over to Fane.
            Fane shook his head. ‘Not from Shadie, but around her. It’s not the Pure-Blood Sith either. This is something created and caused by Relsor. I can sense doubt in my former master and she is afraid of something. I think she’s scared of herself.’
            ‘Herself?’ Talyc shook his head. ‘Of all the years I’ve known Shadie, the last person she’d be afraid of is herself.’
            ‘Talyc, when Shadie joined the Order, she feared herself the most, more than she feared anything else,’ said Lian.
            ‘I thought she was Knarf’s Lady of Light though,’ said Talyc.
            ‘For the way she defeated Kromus the second time, yes,’ said Lian, ‘but she herself knows the dark side is as much a part of her as it is a part of anyone.’
            ‘Right, dark and light coexisting,’ said Talyc.
            Lian turned back to Fane. ‘What else do you sense when you reach out to her, Fane?’
            ‘That’s it. She’s afraid and I feel as though I’m afraid of myself. That’s how I know.
            ‘Then let’s try to establish a connection with Relsor and see what you can find out.’
            ‘I’m going to push this time. I’m going to try to enter his mind, his thoughts, and take control of him if I have to, if I can.’
            He sat down on the lounge and right away began to clear his mind, as Lian took his usual position in front of him and Talyc put his hand on Fane’s thigh.
            Fane sensed Lian find Relsor’s malady in the Force and Fane jumped right in. He regretted it quickly, but he didn’t let go of his connection. He felt a bit sick and wished he had braced himself beforehand instead of being too hasty. No matter, he was in now.

Continue reading Chapter Nine

Catch up on previous Star Wars Fan-Fiction from the Shadie story series.

Perhaps you’ll also enjoy Stardust Destinies I: Variate Facing; fantasy action-adventure taking place in a realm strong with magic where prophecies are dictated by dragons. https://binkyproductions.com/stardustdestinies