"Safe?" Crystal spat. "That thing isn't safe anywhere! And more importantly, you're not safe with it."

She increased the strength of her mental push. "Come back to me, Kira. Release the shard. Put it back around your neck..." She paused for a moment and frowned.

You can, Crystal's voice echoed through Kira's mind. You can and you must. If you don't, that thing will destroy us all.

I know that! But that doesn't make fighting this...thing any easier!
The air pulsed, and Kira stopped for a moment, a look of surprise on her face. "What the..." There was another pulse, and Kira's eyes flipped from gold to blue, and back again in a split second. The Exile seemed to come back to her senses.
Blinking hard, she looked back at Crystal again. "Nice try, schutta." without any more warning than that, Kira leapt into the air, her saber cutting an arc through the darkness towards Crystal's head.

Patience. You will overcome it.

Without a word, Crystal extended her right hand in Kira's direction and suddenly, Kira was stuck in midair. Crystal examined her for a moment, seeming slightly amused.

"Ah, the joys of telekinesis," she murmured. Then, louder, she said, "I'll hold you here 'till the galaxy ends if I must. But Kira can and will overpower you... especially if I'm helping."

With that, she pushed hard on the... thing with her mind. "You will back down!" she screamed.

((Whether this works or not is up to you, FFWM. If it works, Crystal gets knocked unconsious. Feel free to post that part too, if you'd like :) ))

"You will back down!"
"You think you can force me to back down?" Demon-Kira said, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Fool, you've given me the tool I need to be free of you tricks."
Suddenly, a power surge was sent through Crystal's connection with Kira's mind, and the Shard-fueled Exile ruthelessly assulted her mind, bashing at her defenses with crippling strength.
No! Leave her alone!
A vibration went through the air, much like it had before, and the mental attack stopped as the Exile was forced back into the confines of her own mind as her eyes flashed blue again.
Wreched girl!
Bastard demon!
Kira cried out, whether in pain, or strength, or both. After a moment, the body of the Exile collapsed, hanging limply in the air...

The Doctor ran to Nyssa's side. She was still breathing, and her pulse was steady - she was just unconscious. Satisfied that she would be alright, he stood and chased Karda, running through the branches of the jungle. He broke into a clearing, and there was Tegan, Karda, and Jasra, who had the Shard in her hands.
*Karda, Jasra; take the Shard back to the Ebon Hawk. Tegan, come with me. Nyssa is injured, and I'll need your help getting her back to the TARDIS. Quickly now.*

Kira felt herself crash to the ground, gaging, and spitting out the dirt that had gotten into her mouth as she did a face-plant.
I'm sure I look such the powerful Jedi right now...
She brought her head up to look around with a groan, spotting Crystal. She had passed out.
"C-Crystal?" the Exile called, trying to force herself up. As her palm met ground, she felt something sharp pressing against her glove. She removed her hand to see a Shard laying in the dirt. She quickly scooped it up into the small container and retied it around her neck, careful not to touch it. She didn't want to go through that nightmare again.
Returning her attention to the fallen woman before her, Kira crawled over to Crystal's limp form and shook her foot. "Crystal? Crystal, wake up."

"Ki-Ki went oops..." Crystal murmured, balling her right hand into a fist without opening her eyes. Slowly, her eyes opened and she looked up at Kira. "Didn't you, Ki-Ki?"

"Yeah..." Kira said breathlessly, "Ki-Ki went b oops."
The Exile fell back on her legs, kneeling, before forcing her aching body up to stand. She extended a hand to Crystal. "C'mon, let's get out of here."

Karda, Jasra; take the Shard back to the Ebon Hawk. Tegan, come with me. Nyssa is injured, and I'll need your help getting her back to the TARDIS. Quickly now," the Doctor said.

Jasra started back for the ship, every once in a while giving a wary glance over her shoulder at Karda following behind her. She hoped that he wouldn't say anything about Brax to anyone when they got back, but it was a fool's hope. She knew it was only a matter of time. But even if everyone knew he had been teaching her, she knew that without Brax's help they wouldn't complete their mission to find the shards and bring them together. If only she could make Karda understand that.

Finally reaching the Ebon Hawk, Jasra found the box in the spot in the TARDIS the Doctor had reserved for keeping the shards. She looked longingly at the shard in her gauntleted hand before placing it inside the box. It was indeed beautiful--hard to believe that it contained only Dark energy. For a brief moment, she felt an urge to touch it with her bare hand. She removed one of her gauntlets, and her hand hovered dangerously over the glimmering golden crystal for an instant, then it reached for the top of the box and shut it. Giving a quick glance at Karda, she shoved the box inside its protective cubby hole in the TARDIS.

She moved past Karda carefully and quietly. She hadn't said a word to him since they had left the jungle, but she didn't want to be on bad terms with him. Unfortunately, she didn't know what to do or say to fix things between them.

She went to the loading ramp, standing just at its base, and waited for the others to come back.

Crystal accepted Kira's help to stand. "Back we go," she murmured.

Kira strode over to the spot that the light she saw poured from. Looking up, she saw a hole in some kind of fiber-looking substance, and leaves above.
"Think we can jump up there?" Kira asked.

Tegan walked along beside the Doctor. She noticed that he was walking fairly slowly, and his breath was coming in shallow gasps. She looked at him, concerned, then spoke.
"Doctor, are you alright?"
*Yes,* he said breathlessly. *Yes, I'm fine. Just a little tired, that's all.*
They walked into a clearing, Nyssa laying on the ground on the opposite end. She was stirring slowly, rubbing her head.
"Doctor? What happened?"
*Brax. He knocked you unconscious. Most likely attempting to get past us and Karda to get to Kira. Karda chased him to Jasra and Tegan, where-*
"What?" said Tegan, confused. "I don't remember seeing him!"
*He must have altered your memory. I wouldn't put it beyond his power - he was able to defeat Revan, after all.*
"Doctor, about Revan... Kira seems to have taken his death rather hard."
*He was a great Jedi,* said the Doctor evasively.
Tegan didn't buy it. "But even Karda hasn't taken it as hard."
"They also served together in the Mandalorian Wars," added Nyssa. "Perhaps she thinks of him as more than a role model - maybe they were friends."
"Maybe they were more," said Tegan.
"But Jedi aren't allowed that kind of relationship. It's against the Code: There is no emotion, there is logic."
*Peace,* said the Doctor. *There is Peace. And not all Jedi uphold that particular ideal of the Order. Some find it to be... old fashioned. Revan was one of them. He and Kira not only had a short relationship in the beginning of the Mandalorian Wars, but when she was exiled and his memories were lost during the Jedi Civil War, he and Bastila Shan pursued a relationship. It lasted for almost a year and a half, when Revan abandoned known space and journeyed to the Outer Rim.*
"You mean... Kira and Revan were..."
*Yes. For quite a while. But Kira began to see what she percieved as a corruption in Revan's soul near the end of the war. She refused to leave Republic space with him and his fleet after the Mandalorian Wars, and they broke apart. She was exiled, and he eventually lost all memory of their relationship when captured by the Council. He only remembered her being one of his Generals in the war - memories of the later battles were no doubt clearer than those of his days at the Academy.*
He stumbled for a moment, then continued.
*I don't know whether Kira attempted to talk to Revan about their past or not. It would have been the healthy thing to do, but this galaxy has never been much for psychiatric health. Revan most likely would have known that they needed to talk about it, but if he didn't retain his memories of the events, then it would be entirely up to Kira.*
"Why didn't you talk to one of them then?" asked Tegan. "If they needed to talk about it..."
*Because it wasn't my place, Tegan. Interfering to save the universe it acceptable, but that kind of interference is never appropriate.*
The Ebon Hawk loomed ahead of them, the cockpit empty, if the view from outside the ship was accurate.
*Well, let's get back ot the TARDIS. I don't know about you two, but I could use some rest.*
They walked up to the docking ramp. Out of nowhere, the Doctor screamed in pain, and his skin began to flash gold. He grabbed the landing struts, falling to his knees.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A man stood before him, a familiar man wearing black robes, his hair styled in the fashion of a raven. He had a cruel, crooked nose, and his eyes were like pits. He laughed maniacally as the Doctor struggled against a crystal prysm encircling him.
"You cannot stop me this time, Doctor! You will die in this prison, and I will DESTROY THE GALAXY!!" He continued to laugh diabolically, the Doctor struggling to escape. The Black Guardian vanished, replaced with the last person he expected. Kira. She ignited her lightsaber - her red lightsaber - and walked towards him. He tried to escape, but the crystal prysm held him tight. He could still hear the Black Guardian's laugh echoing around him. Kira was getting closer. Her lightsaber was cutting through the prysm, inches from his face.....

"Doctor!" Jasra ran down the ramp to his side, just as Tegan and Nyssa were kneeling beside his unconscious body, both looking confused and deeply concerned at the same time.

Without thinking, Jasra laid a hand on his head, closed her eyes and began to concentrate, letting the Force guide her mind to the problem.

In her mind's eye, she began to see strands of gold, intertwined with the multi-coloured fibres that made up the Doctor's essence. While as Crystal's inner self had looked similar when Jasra had been attempting to heal her from the effects of the shard, the Doctor's thought strands were much more colourful, intricate and tangled.

Crystal had warned her that the shard strands were dangerous, but undaunted, Jasra began to separate the glimmering gold strand from the jumble of other colours, trying to help the Doctor by alleviating the shard's hold over him.

Karda ran over to the Doctor as he fell, hoping that this didn't have something to do with the shard. Using the Force to try and find the reason for his collapse, he saw Jasra trying to do something that looked a bit the same. "You cannot stop me this time, Doctor! You will die in this prison, and I will DESTROY THE GALAXY!!" The voice that had flashed through the Doctor's mind flashed likewise through him, and he staggered back.

More images came through, of Kira slashing through a crystal prism, a demonic laughing from this same evil man. Was that the Black Guardian, or whoever the Doc spoke of earlier that created this shard? He looked at Jasra for a moment, then looked around for Kira and realized she hadn't returned yet. Hoping that Jasra could help him by herself, he ran toward the exit to try and find the two.

"Jump?" Crystal echoled. "We appear."

Without offering any further explanation she touched Kira's hand and suddenly, they were just outside the Ebon Hawk. Crystal smiled.

"Big ship has little ship inside," she said. Then, she frowned. "Doctor's not good... Jazzy's helping."

She entered the ship, calling, "Jazzy?"

Inside her mind, Jasra could sense that Crystal, Kira, and Karda were near, but she was too busy to do anything about it at the moment. The strands of gold she was releasing from the Doctor's essence were beginning to entange themselves in her own. A pull here, and somewhere the thread tightened. Loosen it here, and it tightened there. A gentle tug caused a seizing tightness in another place. Under and over and through and around and up and down...it was difficult and tedious work.

She knew she had to stop, but found she couldn't. It was as if the strands she had released from the Doctor were now strangling her own essence, repressing it, holding it captive. Her own thoughts were becoming weighed down, distorted, oppressive, and dark. She imagined that this is what Kira had been experiencing.

And far away in the distance, she heard the slow rise of manical laughter. Diabolical. Evil. Dark.

~~~~~~~~~

Outside of her thoughts, in the real world, with her eyes still closed and her hand still resting on the Doctor's forehead, Jasra frowned, then whimpered and flinched in pain.

Kira's eyes flashed in the direction of huddled group, and she saw the Doctor unconcious, Tegan and Nyssa nearby, and Jasra kneeling next to the fallen man, her face distorted with pain. Half of her brain had already figured out what the cause was. The other half was already taking action.
Jogging up to the loading ramp, Kira quickly placed both her hands over Jasra's, her fingers brushing the Doctor's forehead. With a tug, push, and call, the golden strand of the Shard's effects left both man and woman, rushing through Kira's fingers and hands, up her arm, and into her body. She staggered backwards, sweat beading her forehead, and collapsed against one of the struts. Gasping for breath, she forced her eyes open, unwilling to give up without a fight.
Back together again, eh, Exile? came the all too familiar voice in her head.
Not this time, asshole.
Still greedily sucking in air, Kira fought off the weak sensation of the Shard with more difficulty than she had hoped, but she was soon standing straight again, free of its effects. Her eyes, however remained the same, golden color.

The Doctor opened his eyes suddenly, but they were still glowing with fire, as they had when he had regenerated. He released a strangled gurgle - the Shard still had a powerful hold over him, but with Jasra's help, he could now speak - though still with difficulty.
*Guardian..... Shards.....* he screamed in pain, his skin luminescing gold again. He began to shake, and the fire in his eyes deepened.
Nyssa and Tegan were knelt down on either side of him. Tegan grabbed his hand. "Hang on, Doctor! You can't die on us!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Doctor could see Tegan's lips moving, but couldn't understand her. Her words sounded like a language he didn't understand - which was odd in it's own right. He suddenly heard Tegan's voice in his head.
What was it that you always told me, Doctor? 'Brave heart'?
He thought he was a familiar face floating above him, and a soft male voice spoke to him.
You musn't die, Doctor. Too many enemies would delight in your death
*Turlough....* he muttered, but he couldn't sit up. *Help.....me.....*
Nyssa's voice filled his head. You're needed. You musn't die, Doctor.
A young male's voice resounded through his mind next. You know that, Doctor....You know that, Doctor....You know that, Doctor....
*Adric...?*
No, my dear Doctor... you must die! Die, Doctor! DIE DOCTOR!!!!! The laugh of the Master echoed through his mind, and his old nemisis' face loomed in front of him, taunting him. Then the faces of his past companions joined it, encircling it, repeating their messages. His mind became a swirl of colours, and he wasn't able to focus on the sounds of their voices, or their faces. The became a blur, spinning around, and around....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The fire covered the whole of the Doctor's body, but it didn't burn as it had when he regenerated. His skin, however, lightened slightly, the dirt seeming to burn away. His hair shortened to the length it had been when he first regenerated, and the celery even seemed to reverse in age, the drooping leaves becoming more green, and the limp limbs stiffinging. The fire ceased, and the Doctor opened his eyes again, and slowly sat up.
"Doctor?" said Tegan.
*You were expecting someone else?*
"I.... I... I just..."
*That's three 'I''s in one breath, Tegan. Makes you sond like an aqfully egotistical young lady, don't you think?

Jasra shook her head to clear it, not sure what had just happened. The Doctor seemed to be okay, well...as okay as he ever was to start with, but Jasra wasn't sure if she had helped him or if it had been Kira, who was standing before them.

"Thanks," she said to Kira, as she picked herself up off the ground.

Her experience with Crystal, and more recently the Doctor, had given Jasra a taste of the shards, but without having them take total control as it had earlier with Kira. But although she wasn't yet hungering for the pure power the shards contained, her appetite had been whetted. The next shard might be very difficult for her to resist, gauntlets or not.

Her brow wrinkled as she met Kira's golden eyes. "Under control?" she asked, cocking a wondering eyebrow.

Karda watched as Kira put her hands on both Jasra and the Doctor, and the ensuing result to her. When she fell back, Karda felt the tug of the Shard again and ran to help her. Kira, however, got up quickly, and Karda stopped and headed over to the Doctor.

"Yeah...I'm fine. At least for now." Kira said, her breath finally returning. Well...I'm sure that's enough adventure for one day...
"Do I even want to know what's going on out here?"
Kira looked up to see Atton standing at the top of the loading ramp.
"The engines are prepped. We're just waiting for everyone to get settled." he explained.

*I think it's best for all involved if we were to get out of here,* said the Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan helping him stand. *The sooner we escape this planet the better. And I know I need rest - before I lapse into regeneration comatose. That would be extremely inconvinient, given the circumstances.*

Brax watched quietly, back in his ship. They were leaving now, the shard recovered. he wrote up quick report to Togo, and sent it off. Nothing important had happened, Kira had another shard, he would report in again later. He rose through the crowds, his ship sliding into place inside of the larger version of it. The tiny sword ship sinking into the not much larger shell, the small ship could do all this on it's own. But the larger one gave him leg room, he slid from the cockpit silently. "Follow them" He murmured to his droid, as he stretched his arms and legs. The small room he occupied was large enough for him to move around some, and he did.

It is time for me to talk to them, I think. They want me dead, I know ... The exile, Karda, they want me dead. The others ... the others, would probably nto care if I died, but it is those two that seek it. A slow and long sigh slipped through his lips, If only Revan had not ever come to Omwat, if only. Brax closed his eye's, and let his mind drift back to that day.

Zedai Kedria Ariax was the leader of the order of the Zedai, the Omwati people knew nothing of the order. The planet was a society of low technology, the general populace had electricity, but no space travel. No real desire for it either, their sciences were advanced, but the drive to reach into space was low, for Omwat was in a nebulea, and there were no stars in the night sky. Nothing to inspire poets to speak of the twinkeling lights of the night. The sun had been thuroughly discovered, as well as the moon that was around the planet, and the two neighboring planets. But neither held much intersted to the Omwati.

Kedria was different, he had left Omwat. Each generation, since the landing of the ancient Jedi Master who had started the Zedai order, two people were chosen from the order, to leave the planet. To enter the galaxy and spend a time learning what they could of other worlds. When they returned, the pair took his place their places the Leaders of all Zedai. But this time things had gone different, this time when Kedria returned, he did not come as partner to the one he had left with. He came as apprentice, with a master, a thing not heard of in the ways of the Zedai. Kedria returned with Revan, a Jedi.

Brax did not realize how close his mind was becoming to Jasra through their partnership, how easy it was to reach out and share with her. He didn't even know he did it this time.

(In other words Jasra received everything in italics in this post.)

Back inside the Ebon Hawk, and with Atton preparing to leave, Jasra sat quietly in a corner of the cargo bay/garage area, legs crossed and eyes closed.

She was thinking about the Key to the Galaxy. Someone long ago had split the Gayat crystal into shards and hid them. Why? Why would they have wanted to destroy something that could give them such power and control? Surely in the right hands it would benefit the Galaxy. End wars, poverty, slavery...with such power, all things were possible. Why had they tried to destroy it? She had seen how Kira had been corrupted by the first three shards they encountered, but now she seemed under control. Surely, it just took a little getting used to having the power, and then everything would be fine.

Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted. She could hear Brax, speaking softly in the background. As she listened, she frowned slightly. He sounded sad. Almost regretful.

So, Revan had come to his world as a conqueror. And had killed his apprentice. But why? If Revan had been a Jedi, he wouldn't have done that. Her only conclusion could be that he had been Sith, bent on conquest and destruction. No wonder Brax had been so bent on revenge. Revan not only destroyed his people's leader, but had destroyed any potential teaching partner for him as well.

Which made her wonder.... Had Brax chosen her to be his partner? To travel the Galaxy only to return to his world to rule? The thought intrigued her. What also intrigued her was how Brax was able to track her movements so easily. Was that due to their growing connection, or something else?

And then, there was the problem of Karda and Kira. They hated Brax. And now that Karda knew that Jasra was learning from the Omwati, it was only a matter of time before Kira knew. Karda already hated her for what she had done. Would Kira hate her, too? Hate her enough to kill her in revenge for Revan's death?

The thought worried her.

Kira leaned against the cockpit wall, her eyes closed and arms and legs crossed. She breathed the recycled air in, trying to regain control of her breathing, and clear her mind.
She heard the engines fire up, and asked Atton, "Where to now?"
It was a moment before he answered. "Anywhere you want. You can head to the next Shard, or we can take a break. Maybe head to...I dunno, Dantooine or somewhere peaceful."
She cracked an eye open, looking at him. He had turn the pilot's chair round, and was gazing at her, his worry poorly masked. She sighed in frustration.
"I'm fine, alright? You don't have to keep watching me like that. I won't explode, trust me."
"Look, I just want to make sure." he said, standing and approaching her. "Sorry if that's a crime, but I love you." he ran a hand along her cheekbone and let it rest beneath her ear as his other went to her shoulder. "And I'm worried about you."
He took her in his arms, and she rested her hands and head against his chest. However, when she looked up, it wasn't Atton Rand's face that looked back at her.
Revan...
Tears came to her eyes, and she burried her face in his shoulder, the tears staining his jacket.
He had held her, just like this, years ago on Onderon. But now...
She backed out of Atton's arms, stubbornly drying her eyes. "Just...Just get us into orbit." she told him and, bewildered, the Scoundrel sat back down, and plotted a course into orbit around Dagobah.

The Doctor collapsed onto his bed, breathing heavily. Nyssa and Tegan stood on either side of the bed, both looking worried. Nyssa turned to the table and passed the Doctor a water bottle, which he drained. *Thank youm* he said horesly.
"Doctor, what exactly happened to you?" asked Tegan.
"Yes, I was worried that you were regenerating again - which wouldn't have been healthy at the moment, I understand?"
*No, it wouldn't. Two regenerations so close together would surely introduce long term complications with the new body. I might have had two heads. Or no head,* he let out a laugh. *Can you imagine me with no head? And don't say that's an improvement.*
"But Doctor, why did you... what did happen to you?" asked Tegan, confused.
*I'm not sure. I believe my current regeneration began to reverse. Probably due to exposure to the Shards. If it had continued...*
"Would you have reverted to your original form?"
*I'm not sure. It's possible. It's also possible that the regeneration would simply have reversed, and I would have become nothing more than a corpse with a bloody gash in my back. There's no way to tell, really.*
"Then we have to keep you away from the Shards," said Nyssa matter of factly. "They're too dangerous to you."
*Tegan, I don't have a choice. It's very likely that this body will die shortly after this mission is complete.*
There was a silence, in which Nyssa and Tegan looked at each other fearfully. "But.... why did this... 'reversal' occur?" asked Tegan. "What could have caused it?"
*I'm quite sure it's my exposure to the Shards. I can't be sure without studying them further, but they I believe they generate soltaricite radiation.*
"What on Earth is that?" asked Tegan.
"Yes, I'm afraid I haven't heard of it either, Doctor?"
*It's fairly uncommon. It breaks down the chemical bonds of most molecules. But without getting a Shard from Kira to study, I'll have no way of knowing for sure. And I doubt that asking her for one of the Shards would go very well.*
"So is there some way to stop this radiation from tearing you apart? I want to get back to Hethrow at some point," said Nyssa jokingly.
*No, I'm afraid not. Soltaricite radiation is extremely difficult to counteract. But I believe I can delay the effects with regular shots of tetrathyanine. Possibly compunded with cordracite. Nyssa, do you have any of those?*
"I think so... I know I have cordracite, but... tetrathyanine is rare. I might have some, but not a lot. Certainly not enough for more than four doses."
*I believe I'll only need two,* said the Doctor. *One as soon as possible, and the other once we've found the second to last Shard. Thankfully, the effects seem to be cummulative, and not progressive - being exposed to one, my condition will not deteriorate until I am exposed to another.*
"I'll go get the tetrathyanine and cordracite," said Nyssa.
*Thank you,* said the Doctor, laying his head on the pillow. *Then I suggest you two get some rest. I have no doubt that Kira will lead us to the next Shard fairly quickly.*
With that, he closed his eyes, and drifted off to sleep. Tegan lingered at his side until Nyssa administered the drugs, then the two of them left him to his sleep.*

Feeling Tegan and Nyssa leaving the TARDIS, Jasra ended her meditation and opened her eyes.

"Is the Doctor alright?" she asked them. She wondered if her interface with the Doctor's essence had done any good or not.

"I think so," said Nyssa worridely. "He went into some kind of regeneration reversion... he had almost reached a regenerative level of cell re-production."
"If you hadn't been there, then the Shards would have killed him. Reversed his regeneration to a point where he would be dead."
Tegan took a step closer to Jasra and threw her arms around her. "Thank you," she said into her shoulder.

Jasra didn't know what to do, Tegan having suddenly, and in Jasra's opinion, uncharacteristically, decided to hug her in appreciation for what she had done for the Doctor.

Through the corridor, Jasra could see Karda staring at her from the main hold with a look of disbelief on his face. Unsure of what to do, Jasra gingerly patted Tegan on the back. "Erm...you're welcome," she said uncomfortably. After a moment, she gently tried to break off Tegan's embrace, looking to Nyssa for assistance by giving her a weak smile. "I just did what I felt I had to do."

With Nyssa's asssitance, Tegan gradually released her hold on Jasra.

"Think we should all get some rest," Jasra said, slowly backing away towards the corridor. "We still have two more shards to find."

With that said, Jasra headed off to find Kira, hoping that she would know where the next shard was to be found. And even more hopeful, that the place they would find it wouldn't have any giant spiders or strange predators. Or Sith.

(((Hey, someone take on Karda for me; Gotta leave just for a couple days)))

((Ya, I'm going away, too... I'll be back on Sunday of next week... unless they have internet cafes in Cuba?))

Past star and moon...past planet and orbit...
Kira shifted through the galaxy, reaching out with the Force, following the faint light of what was the next Shard to its source. She pulled along the thin strand of power, tapping in slightly into that of the Shard around her neck, enabling her to reach out further, faster.
The air shifted around her form as she hovered slightly above the ground, the particles in the air charged as they caused her hair and robes to move and flutter.
It wasn't easy work to locate this Shard...wherever it was must have something masking its power...some kind of pinacle that attracted the Force...or else, something that had attracted the Force.

Jasra paused by the open door to Kira's dormitory. It was obvious that Kira was meditating--one big clue being that she was levitating 30 centimetres off the floor.

She wanted to talk to Kira about the shards. Wondered how she was controlling the Dark urges now. Wondered at the location of the next shard.

And wondered how Kira would react when she found out about Brax.

She sat down in the corner of the room, and waited for Kira to come out of her meditative state.

Kira's senses and hearing alerted her to Jasra's approach long before she actually saw the woman. Without opening her eyes, the Exile 'saw' her companion enter the room, and sit in a corner, obviously awaiting her to finish meditating. In this state, however, Kira could read Jasra's surface thoughts and emmotions, even if she hadn't meant to.
Jasra wanted to talk to her about the Shards. Wondered how she was controlling the Dark urges now. Wondered at the location of the next Shard.
And wondered how Kira would react when she found out about...someone. However, the Exile noticed something else as well.
"Jasra, there's no danger of being attacked here." she said, slipping from her trance as she landed softly back on the deckplates. "You can take off those gauntlets now."

Jasra blanched. Gauntlets? They felt like such a part of her now that she had forgotten she was even wearing them. Then Jasra frowned. How could she see them? They were still cloaked.

"How did...?" Jasra didn't finish the question. Kira's powers had obviously grown in strength since the contact with the last crystal. "I'll keep them on if you don't mind. They're comfortable," she added as a lame excuse.

In truth, she was recalling the time that she and Kira had fought for the crystal shard in Togo's lair. Not that she was planning on using them at the moment, but having the gauntlets on gave her a better sense of security in Kira's presence.

"As I recall, you didn't have those gauntlets during that time." Kira said, sensing Jasra's thoughts. "And I haven't noticed them until now. I wonder why."
She cast Jasra a sharp look over her shoulder, her amber eyes flashing eerily in the gloom.

Jasra started to feel uncomfortable. Kira's powers had definitely increased. Kira was obviously able to read her thoughts very easily, no matter how hard Jasra was trying to hide them.

"Erm...didn't I?" she asked Kira. "Maybe I did, and you just didn't see them then," she lied, swallowing hard.

Suddenly, she found it difficult for her to try and block out the memory of Brax giving her the gauntlets.

Kira was already in a bad mood, and her mood deteriorated even more every time Jasra tried to lie to her or dodge her questions. Standing, she turned to look fully at the woman, her arms at her sides.
"I suggest you tell me the truth, Jasra. And I suggest you tell me it now."
Why was she thinking of that...that...murderer??

"I won betting on the swoop races, and bought them from a trader on Manaan," Jasra said. She paused, hoping that by telling a little bit of the truth, Kira would relax a bit.

"I gave you your chance." Kira growled, then connected to Jasra's mind, and dug in ruethlessly, tearing away the thoughts and memories that kept surfacing on the woman's mind, and examining them. Each one made Kira's anger burn stronger and stronger, her eyes glowing ever brighter.
"Liar." she murmured, "Liar! Brax gave you these! Brax trained you! And you allowed it! Even after he...he..." the rage, coupled with hurt and sorrow, choked her and rendered her voiceless for a few moments. "He...He killed him Jasra, and you..."

Jasra grimaced from the pain as her memories were forcibly ripped to the surface by Kira. In a desperate effort to get her to stop, Jasra unleashed a Force Wave.

The feeble Force Push effected Kira as nothing more than a wind, her robes and hair flying back slightly as it passed. However, Kira did withdraw, even if it was for no more reason than the fact that she had what she wanted.
"You betrayed Revan, Jasra. You betrayed everone on this ship. You betrayed me. Don't wither on the floor, stand up." she fired a short burst of Force Push, pressing Jasra against the wall until she was in a standing position. "Show that you have at least some decency left."

Jasra's heart was pounding, and she gasped for breath as Kira held her against the wall with an oppressive show of strength.

"I... didn't... betray... you," she struggled to say. "I... did it... for... you. I... needed... to be... strong... to help... you."

"Liar." Kira said, releasing Jasra and allowing her to fall to her feet. "What could that bastard possibly have had to offer you? Teach you how to be an assasin?!" she said as she watch Jasra collapse against the wall.

Jasra coughed, and tried to fill her lungs with fresh air. "He taught me how to focus," she choked. "Taught me that emotions are a strength, not a weakness. Taught me how to do this."

And with that, Jasra cloaked herself, much the same as she had done with the gauntlets, but with all of her fear and anger augmenting her strength. She moved away from the wall, trying to get behind Kira without her seeing or sensing her. She desperately wanted Kira to believe her that she accepted Brax as a teacher in order to gain the strength and power she knew she needed to help Kira get the shards.

Kira stepped back in surprise as Jasra disappeared completely from her vision and senses. Not a bad trick.
She closed her eyes, concentrating for a moment, before finding her sneaking behind her back.
The Exile sent a wave of the Force in Jasra's direction, disbanding the layers she had wrapped around herself to hide.
"Why would you have needed his strength and his skills anyway?" Kira asked, "It wasn't as if you couldn't already handle yourself."

"I can handle myself fine on my own," Jasra said, wincing as she picked herself off the floor from Kira's latest Force Wave. "To hide. To ambush. To avoid. But I don't have the skills of a Jedi. You know this. And I need them if I'm going to help you." She paused for a moment. "I tried to fight Brax when I first met him. After we saw the first shard. He would have killed me if it wasn't for Crystal's intervention. And later, he approached me. He could have killed me then, too. But he didn't. He wanted to train me. Help me understand that there was more to the Force than what the Jedi teach." She looked at Kira's eyes, shimmering gold even in the artificial light. "You feel it, too, don't you? The strength you get from emotions? I know you do. I can see the power of the shard reflected in your eyes."

"I haven't been a true Jedi for years, Jasra," Kira said, "I thought that most everyone I've come in contact with would at least know that much.
"And why Brax? Why not Karda? Why not me? Hell, the Disciple could have even taught you a thing or two! Why'd you go running to that thing!"

"Brax is not a thing," Jasra said defensively. "He's someone that has seen his people suffer at the hands of the Sith Lord Revan, just like thousands of other beings out there! Why did I accept his training? Because... because he is powerful, powerful enough to have defeated Revan in battle. Because he doesn't judge me for my past mistakes, he lets me learn from them. Because he doesn't treat me as a subordinate, but as a..." Jasra paused for a moment. What was the word she was looking for? Student? Friend? Partner? She wasn't sure.

She somehow felt a renewed sense of strength within her as her feelings of loneliness, fear, and anger began to siphon the Force through her like a flood, just as Brax had been teaching her to do. "Because I was tired of learning just 'a thing or two.' You may not be a Jedi, Kira, but you have the benefit of years of Jedi training. I don't. And I want more." Looked deep into Kira's golden eyes. "Just like you do."

Jasra flexed her gauntlets, and prepared to draw her lightsabre, thinking that Kira looked angry enough that she might just launch into a full on fight.

"Brax chose me. He offered to be my teacher freely--not out of obligation, or pity, or in answer to a request or plea from me," she said to Kira. "And that's something you, and Karda, and even Crystal, never did."

"Brax was not strong enough to defeat Revan in battle!" Kira yelled, taking a threatening step forward. It was all she could do to maintain control in her anger, "They didn't fight! Revan hardly even drew his saber! What Brax did wasn't a show of strength, but a show of cowerdice!!"
She paused a moment, taking in a few deep breaths, fighting to keep control. "I can forgive you for feeling the way you did..." she said, the anger in her voice absent for a moment, "I can forgive you for betraying me. But you were the student of the man who killed Revan. And for that, I can never forgive you."