YOUNG JEDI KNIGHTS 04:

DESTINIES

by PJ

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Tenel Ka sat back against the wall on her bunk, idly closing and opening her left hand. Even after all this time she could still feel the Dark Side burning within the artificial limb, poisoning her body, filling her with hate and unreasoning anger. She struggled to resist the Dark Side, used every scrape of Master Skywalker's training to maintain control. There were sounds of movement behind the cell door, Tenel stiffened when the portal slid open.

"Time for dinner," announced the black-uniformed Imperial guard, setting a bowl of gruel and a cup of water on the floor of the cell near the open door. A second guard stood in the hallway, aiming a blaster rifle at Tenel Ka's chest.

"You know, if you were nice to me, I could get you some better food," suggested the first guard with a leer, running his eyes over Tenel Ka's slim, bare legs.

Tenel regarded the Imperial soldier with revulsion at first, then she smiled warmly.

"Come closer so I can show my affection," purred Tenel Ka, pulling off her thin grey prisoner tunic, revealing her lithe, naked body to the amazed guard.

"That's not a good idea, she's a Dark Jedi," warned the guard in the hall.

"Close the door, I want some privacy."

The guard in the hall shut the door, frowning disapprovingly. The guard next to Tenel ran his hand up her right thigh, grinning with excitement.

Tenel Ka leaned against the guard, placed her left hand between his legs, fondling his crotch. She unzipped his trousers, slid her hand over his cock.

"That's nice," groaned the soldier, stroking Tenel's pussy, caressing her warm labia with his fingers.

Tenel Ka hunched over the soldier's lap, placed his stiff prick inside her mouth. The guard moaned softly while Tenel sucked on his member, her tongue caressing every throbbing vein. The young woman's head bobbed up and down, her lips slurping on the soldier's quivering shaft. Tenel removed her mouth, licking her musky pink lips. She straddled the guard's crotch, sat down upon his erect pole. Tenel moaned deeply, rising and falling slowly, forcing the guard's cock up into her vagina. The guard panted weakly, grasping Tenel's firm tits, crushing them in his fingers as he pushed up with his pelvis, driving his meat deep into the naked girl's cunt. Tenel kissed the guard hotly, massaging his tongue with hers, entering his vulnerable mind. The guard became limp, his arms falling to his sides, his body becoming still. Tenel kept fucking the senseless soldier, the Dark Side driving her into a lustful frenzy. She held onto the guard's shoulders, pumping her crotch against the man's, his hard prick ramming into her belly. Tenel closed her eyes, moaning softly, sweat breaking out over her body as the fever of passion raged within her. Tenel threw back her head, moaning sharply from her orgasm. She grew still, sitting on the limp guard's lap, catching her breath and regaining control of herself.

Tenel removed the guard's black uniform tunic and trousers. The uniform was a little loose, but would pass most casual inspections. She withdrew the guard's cap from the back pocket of his trousers and slid it over her red mane, angling the bill down over her face. The Jedi girl buckled on the soldier's weapon belt, then drew the man's blaster pistol with her right hand. She knocked on the cell door, waiting.

When the hallway guard opened the door, Tenel shot him in the chest. The guard groaned before dying, slumping down against the far wall. Tenel checked both ends of the hallway for more guards before leaving the cell and running to the left, letting the Force guide her.

Another convoy of four freighters leapt into Hyperspace, leaving only Luke Skywalker's command ship, one light carrier, and the squadron of TIEs patrolling the Byss system.

"We're the last, Master," reported Eris from her bridge station.

"Good," nodded Luke from the command chair. "Set course for Bastion."

"Aye," replied the Dark Jedi girl, tapping instructions into her board.

The TIE Defenders returned to the carrier, allowing the large starship to follow Luke's vessel into the storm of Hyperspace.

The Imperial shuttle landed smoothly, wings tucked up out of the way while landing gear deployed beneath it. The landing ramp hissed down, and two brown-cloaked forms descended onto the landing pad.

"How are you doing?" inquired Jacen from beneath his wide hood.

"Okay, but this Aversion field takes a lot of energy," replied Jaina through gritted teeth.

"Keep it up, I'll look for Tenel," said Jacen, opening his mind to the Force, searching for his imprisoned friend.

Four Stormtroopers marched down a hallway past the twins. Jacen tensed, right hand lowering to his belted lightsaber. The soldiers passed the twins without a glance, disappearing further down the passage. Jacen breathed a sigh of relief before continuing his search for Tenel Ka.

"The Probots we sent into the Byss system report that Skywalker is evacuating the planet. Over twenty transport ships have entered Hyperspace in the last week," reported an Imperial officer from his station next to the War Room's holo-tank.

"What's their course?" asked Disra, biting a fingernail.

"Beyond the Outer Rim, into the frontier," replied the officer.

"What's he doing?" muttered the Moff, bloated face frowning in thought.

"Sir!" exclaimed a security officer, rushing into the War Room. "One of our prisoners has escaped!"

"Which one?" demanded Disra, even though he knew the answer.

"The Jedi girl, Tenel Ka."

"I want a full security lock-down on this complex! Find and re-capture that girl immediately!" snapped Disra.

"Yes, sir!" stiffened the officer, nearly running out of the room to relay the orders.

Tenel Ka deflected another salvo of blaster bolts with her left palm, returning fire with her pistol and knocking both Stormtroopers off their feet. She raced past them, ascending a spiral staircase to what she hoped were the landing pads where she might find a ship to escape. Entering another wide corridor at the top of the stairs, Tenel raised her pistol when she heard more blaster reports coming her way.

The Jedi girl was amazed to see two strangers dressed in Jedi cloaks blocking a violent stream of blaster fire. One of the strangers threw out their left hand, hurling a Force wind down the adjacent corridor that silenced the incoming laser fire.

"Who are you?" demanded Tenel Ka, aiming her pistol at the cloaked Jedi.

The strangers spun to face Tenel, lightsabers burning in their grasps.

"Tenel! It's you!" grinned Jacen beneath his hood, extinguishing his weapon and running forward to hug the warrior girl tightly.

Tenel's left hand snaked towards Jacen's neck, fingers outspread and quivering.

"No!" snapped Tenel, jerking out of Jacen's embrace, snatching his lightsaber with her right hand.

Jaina rushed forward, ready to cut Tenel down, knowing she would be too late to save her brother.

Tenel switched on the lightsaber, and aimed it at herself, screaming as she severed her own left arm.

Jacen stumbled back, shocked by what Tenel Ka had done.

Tenel Ka turned off the weapon, falling to her knees, shaking uncontrollably. The severed arm continued to twitch and grasp, until Jaina slashed it with her own lightsaber, stilling the limb.

Jacen knelt in front of Tenel, took the weeping girl into his arms.

"We should get out of here," whispered Jaina.

"C'mon, Tenel," murmured Jacen, helping Tenel to stand and holding her as he followed his sister back to their waiting shuttle.

Skywalker's warship flashed back into Realspace, followed a moment later by the carrier ship. TIEs launched immediately, forming a screen before the slower cruisers.

"System defenses?" inquired Luke.

"A line of defense platforms, nothing too powerful," replied Eris from her station.

"Ships?"

"Fighters are scrambling from the planet's surface, no cruisers that I can detect."

"They'll be nearby, we'll have to move quickly," said Luke, lacing his fingers together. "Order the Defenders to cloak and break a hole in the defense line. We'll follow after them and establish orbit of Bastion."

"Master! I'm detecting a single shuttle leaving Bastion, it's trying to leave the system."

Luke closed his eyes, he smiled after a moment.

"There you are. Eris, tell the Defenders to forget the defense line, capture that shuttle!"

"TIE fighters incoming!" warned Jacen from the co-pilot's station.

"I'll try to lose them!" replied Jaina, turning the shuttle hard to port, pouring every ounce of power into the sub-light engines.

Tenel Ka sat in one of the rear chairs, strapped tightly in, her face pale from the pain of her lost arm.

"Computer's plotting our jump into Hyperspace!" reported Jacen.

The cockpit shook as laser fire splashed against the shuttle's weak shields. Jaina began a series of evasive maneuvers, green laser bolts snapping across the cockpit window. Jacen kept his attention on the nav computer, biting his lip, urging the machine to work faster.

The cockpit swayed drunkenly to starboard, all the lights went out before emergency power activated.

"The controls are dead!" cried out Jaina, slamming her fists onto her console.

The shuttle rattled violently, then became still.

"One of the fighters has a tractor beam on us, they're taking us toward those two cruisers at the edge of the system."

"Do we surrender or fight when they board us?" asked Jaina doubtfully.

Jacen glanced at Tenel Ka's unconscious form. "We fight."

Darlina stood in front of the shuttle flanked by four other Dark Jedi. She unclipped her lightsaber from her belt, ready to ignite it in an instant. The shuttle ramp cycled open, lowering to the hanger deck.

All the Dark Jedi activated their lightsabers, blades humming as they waited for the shuttle's occupants to emerge.

No one appeared. Darlina frowned darkly.

"Go inside," ordered the Dark Jedi girl.

A young male Dark Jedi obeyed, cautiously approaching the open ramp. The boy's lightsaber glowed violet as he slowly ascended the ramp into the shuttle's belly.

The Force wind blasted out of the shuttle's open hatch, hurling the Dark Jedi boy through the air to slam against a bulkhead on the far side of the hanger. The wind grew stronger, raging over the other Dark Jedi, knocking them off their feet. Jacen and Jaina ran out of the shuttle, attacking the Dark Jedi while they tried to stand up. Three fell quickly, unprepared for the twins' lightning swift assault. Darlina parried the Jedi boy's slashes, trying to make her way back to the exit hatch. Jacen slammed his booted foot into the girl's stomach, opening her chest with a vicious uppercut with his weapon. The twins lowered their lightsabers, catching their breath.

"Should we try to leave?" asked Jaina.

"They'll just lock another tractor beam on us, won't they?" retorted Jacen.

"Yeah, we'll have to disable the ship," nodded the Jedi girl.

"You take the engine room, I'll go for the bridge," said Jacen.

"Sounds like a plan," agreed Jaina. "Watch yourself."

"You too," smiled Jacen.

When the twins had left the hanger, Tenel Ka walked down the shuttle ramp, breathing heavily, sweat dripping from her face. She retrieved one of the dead Dark Jedi's lightsabers, then followed the twins' path.

Jaina entered the large engine room, the central core dominating the immense chamber. The engine techs fled after Jaina activated her lightsaber and coaxed them away. She climbed to a second tier catwalk, activating a console facing the core to explore the control system and find a way to shut it down.

The Force warned Jaina, giving her the second she needed to activate her lightsaber and spin around to parry the downward slash of Eris' humming weapon. The two girls hacked and stabbed at each other, Eris driving Jaina towards the catwalk ledge. Jaina jumped into the air, spinning over Eris and landing behind her. Jaina slashed down, cutting deep into Eris' left calf. Eris grunted, cutting up at Jaina, beating at the Jedi girl's strong defenses.

The bridge hatch hissed open, the double doors sliding into their wall slots. Bridge techs glanced at the Jedi boy, then did a double take when they realized a hostile intruder was in their midst. A black-cloaked man rose from the command chair, turning slowly to face the Jedi boy.

"Nephew," greeted Luke with a warm smile.

"Uncle," nodded Jacen, silent lightsaber clenched in his right hand.

"You think you can fight me?" grinned Luke, leaving his station, unclipping his own lightsaber.

"I don't want to, but I will if you make me," replied Jacen, perspiration gleaming on his forehead. "Just let the shuttle go so I can leave."

"Where's your dear sister, and the lovely Tenel Ka?" asked Luke with an arched eyebrow.

"You leave them alone!" snapped Jacen, eyes flashing.

"Ah, anger! Beware the Dark Side, nephew! It is seductive, quick to join you!" mocked Luke, walking closer to the Jedi boy.

Jacen activated his weapon, brandished it before him.

Luke switched on his lightsaber, the blade hissing hungrily.

"Let's see how well I trained you, dear nephew," smiled Luke before he lunged at Jacen.

Eris' lightsaber bit into Jaina's stomach, making her gasp at the sharp pain. Jaina backed away, knocking aside Eris' follow-up slashes, clutching her wound with her left hand.

"You are weak, Jedi!" sneered Eris, ducking quickly to Jaina's right, the tip of her weapon gouging into Jaina's side.

Jaina groaned, doubling over. She pinned Eris with her pain-filled eyes, opening herself to the Force.

The wind smashed into Eris, throwing her over the railing and out into open air. Eris screamed as she hurled towards the massive engine core, bouncing off and falling down the long distance to the deck below.

Jaina leaned against the rail, using her training to block the pain of her wounds. She switched off her lightsaber and restored it to her belt, returning to the engine console to resume her work.

Lightsabers snapped against each other, hissing angrily as Luke fought Jacen. The Jedi Master moved with the speed of thought, Jacen struggled to keep his uncle's weapon from impaling him, already he suffered from several minor wounds to his arms and torso. After the first few minutes it was obvious that Luke was playing with Jacen, making the boy suffer as much as possible before he inflicted the killing blow. Jacen wheezed for air, his lungs seared from the strain of keeping up with his more skilled opponent. The techs had left the bridge, only Luke and Jacen remained to continue their duel.

Luke spun to Jacen's left, slashing out, cutting a deep rent into the boy's side. Jacen stumbled away, blood flowing down his brown tunic, his flesh throbbing with agony.

"I give you one chance to surrender, nephew. Join me, give in to the Dark Side!"

"Never!" gasped Jacen, his sweating face contorted with pain.

"I tire of this. You die now!" announced Luke, lunging forward like a black-winged demon, red lightsaber aimed at the Jedi boy's pounding heart.

Another body crashed into Luke, knocking him off his feet. There was a punching sound, then silence.

Tenel Ka struggled to her feet, swaying, barely able to keep conscious.

Jacen gazed with amazement at the trembling Jedi girl, then looked at his fallen uncle.

Luke gasped on the deck, Tenel Ka's lightsaber still burning inside his chest. Blood stained the Jedi Master's lips, he turned his head, gazed at his stunned nephew. Luke Skywalker smiled at Jacen, then died.

Jacen walked forward, tugged free the humming lightsaber from Luke's body, and switched the weapon off.

<<Warning! Ship's engines will overload in ten minutes! All personnel please evacuate the ship!>> announced the warship's computer.

"C'mon!" urged Jacen, taking Tenel Ka's cold, limp hand and leading her off the bridge.

The bridge lights flickered, then snapped off, leaving Luke's corpse in darkness.

Jaina was already strapped in when Jacen and Tenel Ka reached the shuttle. The Jedi boy and warrior girl took their seats while Jaina sealed the shuttle hatch and took off, diving down the open hanger entrance into open space.

Luke's warship listed hard to starboard, explosions littering the hull as power lines overloaded and detonated. Larger explosions ripped out of the ship, making the vessel shudder like a living thing. The engine pods tore apart, releasing an angry ball of fire that engulfed the entire craft, reducing it to a blackened husk.

The shuttle sailed through space alone, coordinates unknown since the warship had been forced to leave Hyperspace prematurely.

"Can you fix a position?" asked Jacen, applying sealant spray to his wounds.

"Yeah, I know where we are. We can plot a new Hyperspace jump," smiled Jaina in relief.

"Could you set course for Hapes?" asked Tenel Ka softly.

"Sure," nodded Jaina, swiveling her chair to work on her board. "Next stop, Hapes!"

=====

Jacen stopped in front of the door, tugging on his bright blue tunic. Gathering his courage, he knocked on the portal.

"Come in!" bade Tenel Ka.

Jacen entered the Queen's chambers, closing the door behind him.

Tenel Ka was resplendent in a light blue gown that hugged her young, shapely body. The girl's hair flowed down her back, curly, glistening, and decorated with bright bits of shell and diamond. Jacen gaped, Tenel Ka had never appeared so regal or beautiful in all the time he had known her.

Tenel Ka blushed lightly, clasping her right hand over her new artificial left arm.

"I just wanted to say good-bye before I leave, Your Majesty," bowed Jacen respectfully.

"You can always call me Tenel, Jacen, you're my friend," smiled Tenel, crossing the room to clasp Jacen's arms.

"I..I don't know what to say, we've been together for a long time," struggled Jacen, glancing at the floor.

"I'm honored to have known you, friend Jacen," whispered Tenel Ka, her eyes wet with unshed tears. "I will miss you."

"This is a fact," smiled Jacen softly, looking up at Tenel Ka with sad eyes.

Tenel Ka leaned forward, kissed Jacen warmly. Jacen hugged the girl's slender waist, held her tightly for a moment.

Queen and Jedi parted. Jacen bowed again, his own eyes burning, then he left Tenel Ka's quarters.

Tenel Ka, Queen of Hapes, went to the huge wall to wall open window that looked out over the calm sea. The cool air washed over the girl's flushed skin, soothed the grief within her. She was home.

Jaina and Jacen stood upon a balcony that granted a wide view of Coruscant. The Tower rose behind them for hundreds of feet, restored to its former glory by the surviving Jedi. Shuttles and repulsor-craft littered the dusk-red sky, a constant buzz of activity over the capital.

"Think she'll be alright?" asked Jaina softly, the wind ruffling her long, brown hair.

"Yes, she's a warrior," smiled Jacen.

"What about us?" prodded Jaina, covering Jacen's hand that rested on the balcony railing.

"We're Jedi Knights, sworn to protect the galaxy from evil and tyranny," replied Jacen, wrapping his fingers with his sister's.

"The Council's almost ready to meet, we should go join them," reminded Jaina, drawing close to her brother.

"We will, in a moment," grinned Jacen, taking his young sister into his arms, devouring her soft lips with his mouth.

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