"17"^^ . "Jaina Solo\u2019s eyes shot wide open. She tried to get up, but soon realized she was unable to move. Looking down, she saw that her feet were bound together while her arms were held above and behind her in an iron grip. She was in a dirty and tattered pilot\u2019s flight suit, replete with fresh cuts and bruises. Then, she managed to look up and saw what was restraining her arms. A pair of enormous Yuuzhan Vong warriors was flanking her, each one gripping an arm. She heard a voice call something in the harsh Yuuzhan Vong tongue and the warriors started forward, dragging her along the ground. She was surrounded by throngs of shouting Yuuzhan Vong as she was roughly hauled up some kind of ramp. Looking at the horizon, she saw shattered buildings, a skyline that looked vaguely familiar. She was on Coruscant, Coruscant during the Yuuzhan Vong War, when it had fallen to the alien invaders and renamed Yuuzhan\u2019tar. After Anakin had died. There was a robed figure, a bit smaller than the other Yuuzhan Vong, walking behind her. She tried to struggle, but the vise-like grips of the warriors held her fast. When the warriors reached the top of the ramp, they came to a halt, as Tsavong Lah, the grotesque warmaster of the Yuuzhan Vong armada, strutted forward triumphantly. With one clawed hand, he grabbed her chin and turned her head, showing her off to the triumphant crowd. Jaina got a good look at the massive courtyard packed with Yuuzhan Vong from her view at the top of some kind of platform. Then, Lah raised his other hand and shouted triumphantly. \u201CBehold! The infidel who would call herself Yun-Harla, the trickster!\u201D The Yuuzhan Vong quieted down. Another Yuuzhan Vong whom she recognized as Harrar the priest came up and began doing some kind of ritual on her, sprinkling her with some kind of substance and muttering. Her eyes widened in fear. She was about to be sacrificed to the bloody pantheon of Yuuzhan Vong deities. \u201CThe twin sacrifice!\u201D cackled Lah victoriously. \u201CYun-Yammka and Yun-Harla! I give this victory to you!\u201D Suddenly, the robed figure\u2019s cloak was pulled away to reveal his identity. It was Jacen! The sight of her twin, however gaunt and scarred his bare upper body was, filled her with hope and elation. They had gotten out of worse situations before! Surely he had a plan-his set jaw and stern expression told her as much. She looked at him for a signal, but he didn\u2019t return her gaze. In fact, his face looked rather alien. The warriors hauled her to her feet as Jacen walked around behind her. She looked over her shoulder to see that her back was up against a sizable altar. Then, she was hauled to her feet and dumped onto the altar. To her surprise, Jacen was already lying on it and she was tossed right on top of him. Her head was lying on his chest, and he spoke calmly into her ear. \u201CIt\u2019s okay, sis. Everything\u2019s going to be just fine,\u201D he said, and his voice, the same one he\u2019d used to reassure her when they were kids, calmed her. She relaxed involuntarily, though she was still aware that they were still on a sacrificial altar. Jacen wrapped one arm around her, pulling her close to him in a protective embrace. He did have a plan after all. They were about to escape! She craned her head up to look at him for some kind of signal. However, the look she got was a cruel smile from an alien mutation of Jacen. He leered at her, his eyes yellowed and his face somehow changed. This was not the face of her brother. A cold feeling swept through her, nestling in the pit of her stomach as she realized that Jacen was now a complete stranger to her. \u201CIt\u2019s going to be just fine!\u201D he said fiercely, but it was not his voice she heard. Then, with his left arm, he jerked her flight suit open while his right arm lifted a writhing amphistaff high and plunged it straight through both of them. Jaina gasped in pain and shock as the weapon was rammed through her body. Blood spurted out of the wound and the agony was incredible. \u201CJacen . . . it hurts . . .\u201D she wheezed. \u201CSo die already,\u201D Jacen whispered fiercely in her ear. Then blackness took her. Cruiser Knightfall \u201CAll is going according to plan, Mistress,\u201D a sibilant voice told her as she strode into her darkened sanctum, her private room on the ship. Ariada said nothing in response, walking over to a locker and retrieving a medkit to treat her injured nose. The Thisspiassian who had addressed her slithered across the floor to follow her. The serpentine alien was her trusted right hand and had provided considerable guidance before, but even having saved her life years before did not make him immune to her wrath. Having finished applying the bandage, Ariada whirled on him, eyes glinting angrily. \u201CDon\u2019t patronize me, Aspra Serpaddis,\u201D she warned him, traces of the fury displayed at the detention center leaking through the iron emotional control she normally exhibited. \u201CIf all was according to plan, Cal Omas would be dead and we would the Jedi over Belsavis, because the Yanibar Guard would not have appeared!\u201D \u201CAll of our primary objectives were still met,\u201D Aspra Serpaddis told her patiently. \u201CManaan was a success. Belsavis was a partial success\u2014with Jaina Solo slain, the survival of the other pilot and Yanibar Guard intervention is irrelevant. Coruscant was a success aside from Omas\u2019 survival, and he was a secondary target anyway.\u201D \u201CDon\u2019t get ahead of yourself,\u201D Ariada said. \u201COmas needs to die in order to throw the Galactic Alliance into true chaos. Then we can strike at the Jedi. Also, nobody confirmed Jaina Solo\u2019s death.\u201D \u201CShe was shot down and her fighter crashed into a glacier. We did not sense or detect any life forms on the planet.\u201D \u201CNeed I remind you that a little trauma and an inhospitable icefield can be overcome by a skilled and determined woman?\u201D Ariada answered scathingly. She herself had surmounted such odds years earlier, escaping from a Yanibar prison designed to hold Force-sensitives. \u201CI do not want to deal with one of the Skywalker bloodline in open combat,\u201D she told him. \u201CParticularly not the twins. Tsavong Lah and Shimmra learned that fatal lesson too late.\u201D \u201CGarnet hasn\u2019t detected any craft leaving or departing Belsavis since we left. It is a dead world.\u201D Ariada ignored him, stalking over to the command console and transmitting a series of orders. \u201CSet a course for Belsavis,\u201D she said. \u201CWe\u2019ll delay the next phase and tie up some loose ends. Are Diamond and Durindfire ready for the other Solo?\u201D \u201CThey are,\u201D the Thisspiassian assured her. \u201CThe other six await your commands\u2014and if I may add\u2014your commendation for their skilled performance today at the extraction.\u201D \u201CThey deserve it,\u201D Ariada replied, taking a seat in the expansive chair that dominated one end of the room, a throne-like piece of furniture largely obscured by shadows. \u201CI will visit them later to bestow on them my thanks. Despite the setbacks, today was a glorious first strike against the corruption of the Jedi.\u201D \u201CYes, Mistress,\u201D Aspra Serpaddis intoned. \u201CThere is one other thing.\u201D \u201CWhat is it?\u201D she asked. \u201CWe have located a ship that might be of some interest to you.\u201D The Thisspiassian called up a display and a wireframe holo of a small light freighter shimmered into existence above the armrest of her throne. \u201CThe Hawk-bat,\u201D she breathed. \u201CIt is here, on Coruscant,\u201D Aspra Serpaddis told her. \u201CAnd you know what that means.\u201D Ariada sank back into her chair. \u201CThey\u2019ve followed us here,\u201D she whispered. \u201CI suspected as much, but not this soon.\u201D \u201CWe do not know how many of them there are,\u201D Aspra Serpaddis said. \u201CWe only know the location of the ship.\u201D \u201CIf the Hawk-bat is here, you can bet at least either Selu or Milya Kraen is here,\u201D Ariada replied. \u201CAnd probably Morgedh too. You remember Morgedh?\u201D The Thisspiassian shuddered. He and Ariada, along with two other Dark Jedi, had run afoul of the Noghri warrior ten years earlier. Morgedh had easily slain the other two Dark Jedi and Ariada and Aspra Serpaddis had only barely escaped him. \u201CAll too well,\u201D the Thisspiassian answered darkly. \u201CThen you know we must deal with this quickly,\u201D Ariada said. \u201CWe can\u2019t have the Yanibar Guard nipping at our heels the whole way through. It\u2019s time for a change of plans.\u201D \u201CWe could have the six join us and attack,\u201D Aspra Serpaddis suggested. She shook her head. The Force-using young women she had raised and trained as assassins were capable and skilled, but they were no match for Jedi Masters or Elite Guardians in a straight fight\u2014and neither was Ariada herself. Instead, they prided themselves on striking from the shadows, hitting unsuspecting and vulnerable targets. Stealth and deception were their tools, terror their ally, and mystery their strength. \u201CMorgedh alone could deal with three of ours, and he won\u2019t be alone,\u201D she replied. \u201CI have something more discreet in mind. They need to realize that just as they can find us, we can find them.\u201D \u201CAs you wish, Mistress,\u201D he replied obediently. \u201CNow leave me,\u201D Ariada instructed. \u201CI must rest before we can deal with the Yanibar Guard.\u201D The serpentine alien bowed and left, leaving Ariada alone in her dark sanctum, a fairly small chamber lit only by a faint blue glow emanating from the corners of the floors and ceilings. She perused the desks loaded with laboratory equipment, banks of computers, and displays that showed rotating wire-frame holos of ships and planets. All of it represented the culmination of years and planning that was now being unleashed on an unsuspecting galaxy. A cruel smile spread across her face as she contemplated the results of today\u2019s work. A ripple of shock had traveled through the weighty Galactic Alliance, and who knew how many more its structure could take before it collapsed under its own ineffectual bulk? Soon, she would have the government destabilized, the Jedi spread thin, and then, they would be vulnerable. Once they were out of the way, their defunct organization could be replaced with a more responsible group of Force-users, who both knew their strength and embraced it, for the good of the galaxy. And then there would be peace and justice. Her peace. Her justice. Her way. Jedi Temple Selu Kraen slowly returned to consciousness, blinking back waves of pain. His vision blurred at first, the haze gradually resolving into a view of ceiling tiles and overhead glowpanels. A darker object\u2014perhaps a face\u2014swam into a view, and he felt the sensation of being touched. Realization swept over him and his eyes jolted open from the drowsy half-closed state they\u2019d been in just a second before. He looked around to find himself lying in a bed with a female Mon Calamari looking down on him, with a small Chadra-Fan by her side. \u201CHello there,\u201D she croaked. \u201CI am Master Cilghal. I am a healer.\u201D By now, Selu recalled the urgency of his mission and realized that he had fallen unconscious before he could deliver his message. He sat up quickly, gasping in agony as pain exploded through his body. His vision swam as the Mon Calamari steadied him. \u201CRelax,\u201D Cilghal said. \u201CYou have been severely injured. You must rest and let your body recover.\u201D \u201CNo time for that,\u201D Selu persisted, struggling to sit back up again. \u201CI must warn the Jedi.\u201D Cilghal blinked, then let out the burbling Mon Calamari imitation of a sigh. \u201CTekli,\u201D she addressed the Chadra-Fan, \u201Cplease let Master Skywalker know that our patient is awake.\u201D \u201CWait,\u201D Selu told her. \u201CThere was another\u2014a woman who helped me when I was hit.\u201D \u201CThat would be Jedi Knight Tyria Sarkin Tainer,\u201D Cilghal informed him. \u201CReally?\u201D Selu asked, smiling in surprise. \u201CI\u2019m glad to hear that. Can you send her as well?\u201D \u201CCertainly,\u201D the Jedi healer said. \u201CAnd one more thing,\u201D Selu told her with firm determination. \u201CI\u2019d like my clothes and equipment back. I am getting out of this bed.\u201D Twenty minutes later, Selu was fully-dressed and cleaned up. He was wearing a set of Jedi robes provided by the Jedi Temple\u2014his previous garments had been ruined when the healers had snipped them away to treat his wound. However, all of his other personal effects had been delivered by an unhappy-looking Tekli, who was quite displeased for his insistence on being up and about. He slowly walked over to a table in one of the healing wards and eased himself into one of the chairs there, trying not to aggravate the wound in his side any more than necessary. It hurt to breathe, much less move, and despite his control over the Force and modern medicine, Selu knew that a wound that deep couldn\u2019t simply be ignored, particularly for a man of his age. Finally, the doors to the healing ward slid open, admitting four Jedi. Cilghal entered first, followed by Master Luke Skywalker, his wife Mara Jade Skywalker, and the Jedi Knight who had saved him, Tyria Sarkin Tainer. Selu gestured at the other three chairs and the others sat. \u201CWelcome,\u201D Luke told him. \u201CWe\u2019re glad to see you up and about.\u201D \u201COver my objections,\u201D Cilghal put in. \u201CI owe my life to your care, and to Jedi Tainer,\u201D Selu said humbly, his gaze coming to rest on Luke. \u201CI have an urgent warning for you.\u201D Luke\u2019s eyes narrowed as he looked at Selu. The man looked familiar\u2014they had met before, many years earlier. They were both older now and it showed in the crow\u2019s feet, the graying hair, the deep creases and additional scars, but Luke knew that this wasn\u2019t their first encounter. \u201CWe\u2019ve met before, haven\u2019t we?\u201D \u201CYes. On Coruscant, nearly seventeen years ago, at the Galactic Games, though I was using an alias at the time.\u201D Luke nodded sagely. \u201CAt the time, you said you were part of the Zeison Sha, but now you come claiming to be a Jedi Knight?\u201D \u201CI am both,\u201D Selu said simply. Luke leaned in closer, placing his hands on the table. \u201CTell me.\u201D Selu took a deep breath. He was violating a number of Yanibar\u2019s most sacred precepts\u2014including a vow never to reveal the true nature of their refuge to an outsider without permission of the Ruling Council. He had not spoken to a member of the Jedi Order in over ten years, much less their leader. For years, Selu had long been suspicious of Skywalker and his dangerous lineage. Yet now, here he was, about to reveal the truth to the Jedi Master. \u201CMy name is Selusda Kraen. I was a Jedi Knight of the Republic,\u201D Selu told him slowly. \u201CI grew up in the Jedi Temple. My master was a Kel Dor named Plo Koon.\u201D \u201CWe\u2019ve heard of him,\u201D Luke said, prompting Mara to lay a hand on his arm, signaling to let Selu continue. \u201CI served in the Clone Wars, when the entire Jedi Order was duped into fighting a three-year distraction while the real enemy prepared to stab us in the back. I was here when it happened.\u201D Selu\u2019s memory shot back to that fateful day, when thousands of white-armored clones had marched on the Jedi Temple, led by a furious demon in human form, a traitor from within. He remembered the smell of blood and burned flesh intermingled with ozone, the sound of children screaming amid blasterfire. In his mind\u2019s eye, Selu watched Skip, one of his childhood friends, gunned down by blasterfire. He recalled cradling the lifeless body of Serra Keto, a fellow Knight, slain by Vader, who had died in his arms after telling him she loved him. In that instant, all those memories flashed before his eyes in perfect clarity. The ruthlessness and horror, the sacrifice and slaughter of that day all played out in front of him were too much. A single tear rolled unbidden from one eye. Selu\u2019s gaze dropped to the table and he took a deep breath, trying to maintain control and get the words out. \u201CI was there when the Jedi Temple was attacked,\u201D he said, trying to blank out the images of the burning structure floating through his mind. He looked up to stare directly at Luke Skywalker. \u201CI was there when your father betrayed the Jedi Order and massacred the Jedi at the head of a clone legion.\u201D Luke blanched, and the other Jedi were similarly ashen. \u201CWhat happened?\u201D the Jedi Master asked quietly. \u201CThey took us by surprise,\u201D Selu told him. \u201CIf the Jedi Council knew it was coming, they didn\u2019t tell the rest of us. We couldn\u2019t have beaten them anyway. Anakin was our best Knight, a war hero and an example for all the other Jedi\u2014until that day. Until he cut down every Jedi in his path, even the younglings.\u201D \u201CI\u2019m sorry,\u201D Luke said, folding his hands, clearly distraught. He shook his head. \u201CI never knew my father did those things,\u201D he answered. \u201CI knew he betrayed the Jedi Order and attacked my mother and Obi-Wan Kenobi . . . but the Jedi Temple . . . the specifics were hushed up. I never met anyone who was there . . . until today.\u201D \u201CLuke also isn\u2019t his father,\u201D Mara pointed out. \u201CHe saved him, brought him back to the light at the end. You can\u2019t blame him for the horrible things Vader did.\u201D Selu nodded slowly. \u201CAnd I don\u2019t,\u201D he answered, \u201Cbut he should know the truth about his father. \u201CI made my peace with my father a long time ago,\u201D Luke informed him. \u201CWhat happened to you?\u201D Selu shook his head ruefully. \u201CFor some reason, I escaped. I don\u2019t know why the Force chose me over all of the friends I lost that day, but it did. My biological brother found me and took me in. We left Coruscant as crewmembers on a light freighter, escaping the Mistryl Shadow Guard who were after him, and spent the next three years\u2014,\u201D \u201CWait,\u201D Mara said. \u201CThat timeline doesn\u2019t make sense. The Mistryl were nearly wiped out a year after the Empire rose.\u201D \u201CYes,\u201D Selu admitted. \u201CI unknowingly delivered the death blow to their world.\u201D \u201CYou? How?\u201D Mara asked. \u201CThe Car\u2019das Syndicate tricked me into smuggling a fission bomb into their headquarters, disabling the shield relays and destroying much of the city,\u201D Selu admitted. \u201CI had no idea it was a bomb. If my crewmembers hadn\u2019t come for me, I would have died in the blast. Instead, thousands perished out of my desire to protect the family I had just met.\u201D Selu looked back at Luke. \u201CYour father was not the only one to carry a dark secret,\u201D Selu said. \u201CMy hands are stained with the blood of innocents as well.\u201D \u201CIt was war,\u201D Mara pointed out. \u201CA convenient excuse, but morally bankrupt,\u201D Selu answered bitterly. \u201CWhile we were roaming the spacelanes, we made a blind jump to escape Imperial pursuit and ended up in a remote world in Wild Space, where the ghosts of ancient Jedi gave us a new mission, infusing my friends and I with the Force power to accomplish it.\u201D \u201CWhat was that?\u201D Luke asked. \u201CTo hide and preserve the Jedi Order and any other Force-sensitives in exile until the dark time had passed,\u201D Selu replied. \u201CAnd for that, I owe you my thanks\u2014for defeating Vader and the Emperor when I couldn\u2019t.\u201D \u201CIt seems you saved many lives by your actions,\u201D Cilghal answered. \u201CNobody could fault you for that.\u201D \u201CTrue. The Zeison Sha, the Jal Shey, the Matukai . . . even a few Jedi, they all came to our refuge and found safety,\u201D Selu said. \u201CAnd yet I made a choice that prevented me from ever taking an active stand against the Empire.\u201D \u201CWhat was that?\u201D Luke asked. Selu gave him a wan smile. \u201CAttachment,\u201D he said. \u201CI married the most beautiful woman in the galaxy, and on the day I did, I knew I couldn\u2019t risk her life, or the lives of my family, in a struggle that would demand exactly that.\u201D \u201CSo you sat out the war,\u201D Tyria remarked. \u201CFor the most part, yes,\u201D Selu confessed. \u201CWe funneled some supplies to the Rebellion and built up our defenses, but for the most part, we watched, and we waited. A disastrous attack by Tyber Zann nearly overwhelmed us.\u201D \u201CTyber Zann? The crime lord?\u201D Mara inquired. \u201CWe lost track of him after he helped raid Kuat.\u201D \u201CIt\u2019s a long story,\u201D Selu responded. \u201CSuffice to say he met his end over Yanibar.\u201D Luke shook his head. \u201CIt\u2019s hard to believe that were so many Force-users still alive during the time of the Empire,\u201D he said. \u201CWe were carefully hidden,\u201D Selu replied. \u201CSurvival and preservation were our number one goals. Occasionally, we found a few from the outside galaxy that we brought in to help and shelter. Some of them left again, their memories altered to forget about the refuge of the Force exiles. You knew one of them.\u201D Luke was startled. \u201CWho?\u201D \u201CHer name was Callista,\u201D Selu answered. That name jolted Luke\u2019s eyes wide open. \u201CCallista? You knew her?\u201D \u201CShe came to us in need of help. We helped restore her connection to the Force, and then she left suddenly.\u201D Selu smiled thinly. \u201CShe broke my nephew\u2019s heart in the process.\u201D \u201CSeems like a recurring trend,\u201D Mara put in acidly. \u201CShe was not the only one we helped,\u201D Selu said, his eyes shifting to Tyria. The younger Jedi looked startled. \u201CWhat are you looking at me for? Wait . . . you don\u2019t mean?\u201D Tyria sucked in her next breath in surprise. \u201CYes,\u201D Selu said. \u201CYou were on Yanibar for three years.\u201D \u201CI don\u2019t remember any of that,\u201D she told him, her eyes narrowing. \u201CHow about this?\u201D Selu asked her, holding up a smooth metal coin. Her eyes widened in recognition. \u201CA token,\u201D she said. \u201CI got one . . . back when I was in the Wraiths. It was important.\u201D \u201CIt helped you find Yanibar,\u201D Selu told her. \u201CIt helped you complete your training as a Jedi. And a good thing for me, too\u2014you saved my life today.\u201D \u201CActually, it wasn\u2019t today,\u201D Cilghal put in. \u201CIt\u2019s been three days since you were brought here.\u201D \u201CThree days?!\u201D Selu exclaimed, jumping up. \u201CNo, that can\u2019t be!\u201D \u201CIt\u2019s true.\u201D Selu\u2019s eyes darted around as pain flooded through his body from the sudden motion. He gasped, clutching at his side. \u201CThat\u2019s too much time,\u201D he exclaimed in a hoarse whisper. \u201CIt might be too late.\u201D Cilghal rose and helped him back to his seat. Opening his cloak, she peeled back his hand and saw the dark stain beginning to spread across his tunic. \u201CYou\u2019ve re-opened your wound,\u201D she told him. \u201CI need to treat this.\u201D \u201CJust stop the bleeding and patch it back up later,\u201D Selu instructed her. \u201CMaster Skywalker needs to hear the rest of this.\u201D \u201CFine, but quickly,\u201D Cilghal said. \u201CYou need to rest and heal.\u201D She knelt down at his side, pulling open his tunic and working on the dressing while Selu continued. \u201CAnyway,\u201D he managed while grimacing as Cilghal probed the injury. \u201CI owe you my life\u2014thank you.\u201D \u201CYou\u2019re welcome,\u201D Tyria said uncertainly. \u201CThough it feels very strange not remembering so much time.\u201D \u201CMaybe we can help you remember it\u2014later,\u201D Selu said. \u201CAs for the rest of our story, the next chapter begins in the Yuuzhan Vong War.\u201D \u201COn Rishi,\u201D Mara put in. \u201CYou were the leader of the \u2018Guard\u2019 that showed up to defend the planet from the Yuuzhan Vong. I recognize you now from Master Katarn\u2019s report, the secret one.\u201D \u201CThat was us,\u201D Selu admitted, \u201Cand while we held off the Yuuzhan Vong and saved the Rishi Maze from invasion, that was our undoing.\u201D \u201CWhat happened?\u201D Luke asked. Selu groaned as Cilghal touched a particularly tender part of the wound, then shook his head to clear the pain and continued. \u201COne of our own fell to the dark side and escaped Yanibar,\u201D Selu said. \u201CShe lured the Yuuzhan Vong to Yanibar and doomed our world to a slow death. We thought she had disappeared during the later stages of the war, but now she\u2019s resurfaced. Her name is Ariada Cerulaen, and I think you\u2019re probably familiar with some of her handiwork by now.\u201D Selu brought out his compact datapad and activated the holoprojector, showing a holo of Ariada. Mara gasped. \u201CLuke, that\u2019s the woman who bombed the convention center and then escaped from the Isard Detention Center.\u201D \u201CShe did what?\u201D Selu exclaimed. \u201CWe knew about the bombing, but the rest?\u201D \u201CShe surrendered, was taken into custody, and then promptly escaped from the most secure facility on Coruscant that\u2019s not the Jedi Temple,\u201D Mara told him. \u201CIt was about three days ago.\u201D Selu winced. \u201CThat\u2019s sounds like something she would do,\u201D Selu said. \u201CBut I doubt that was all. We believe she was behind biological attacks on Manaan and Belsavis as well.\u201D \u201CWhat about the assassination attempt on Chief of State Omas?\u201D Mara asked. \u201CSomeone fired on us while I was in a meeting with him.\u201D \u201CIt\u2019s possible,\u201D Selu admitted. \u201CAnd I doubt she\u2019s done.\u201D \u201CBelsavis?\u201D Luke asked. \u201CI sent two Jedi to investigate there a few days ago.\u201D \u201CHave you heard back from them?\u201D Selu asked. \u201CNo,\u201D Luke admitted. \u201CI was getting ready to send another team after them.\u201D \u201CI sent some of my Elite Guardians there as well,\u201D Selu responded. \u201CI\u2019ve been out of it the last few days\u2014they should have reported in by now. If I can borrow a transceiver, I\u2019d like to get in touch with some other associates of mine who are on the planet.\u201D \u201CCertainly,\u201D Luke said. \u201CJedi Tainer, would you have one brought for us?\u201D Tyria nodded and slipped out. \u201CI came here to warn you, but the time I spent recovering has delayed me,\u201D Selu said remorsefully as Cilghal finished with his wound and sat back down. \u201CYou might have been able to secure her if I hadn\u2019t been unconscious.\u201D \u201CYou did the best you could,\u201D Luke said. \u201CShe\u2019s still at large, so your help in tracking her could be vital.\u201D \u201CWe\u2019ve been trying to track her for ten years, without much success,\u201D Selu replied disconsolately. \u201CAs for my help, my associates and I are here without permission. Yanibar is in the midst of an evacuation effort to leave before our planet is completely devastated and we\u2019re here against the will of our Council. We will help you as we can, but we won\u2019t have the full resources of the Yanibar Guard.\u201D \u201CWe\u2019ll make do. The Jedi have resources of our own,\u201D Luke told him. \u201CWhat can you tell us about her?\u201D Selu paused, gathering his thoughts. Ariada was a complicated subject. She had fallen to the dark side, betraying her people and committing multiple atrocities in the process, only to resurface as a terrorist. Yet, Selu had also raised her like a daughter, had helped train her, and had watched her romance with his son Ryion. \u201CShe\u2019s a highly-trained Force-user,\u201D he said at last. \u201CVery intelligent, skilled, creative, and driven.\u201D \u201CA little more detail might be helpful,\u201D Mara suggested drily. \u201CShe\u2019s a rationalist,\u201D Selu admitted. \u201CLike many darksiders, she believes the ends justify the means. She\u2019s able to plan strategically and tactically on multiple levels, and a cunning planner. She\u2019s technically savvy, specializing in computers and biology. She\u2019s also well-trained in infiltration, stealth, and psychological warfare.\u201D \u201CWhere is she getting the resources to pull off major attacks?\u201D Mara asked. \u201CWe don\u2019t know,\u201D Selu answered. \u201CWe know she was in the company of several Dark Jedi with considerable financial assets when we last encountered her ten years ago. We don\u2019t know how many operatives she has working for her. We don\u2019t know what kind of resources she has at her disposal, or what her plans or objectives are.\u201D \u201CMaster Kraen,\u201D Mara put in. \u201CWhat you\u2019re telling me is that you don\u2019t have much of anything on Ariada Cerulaen other than she\u2019s out there with malicious intent.\u201D \u201CThat\u2019s exactly what I\u2019m telling you,\u201D Selu answered ominously. \u201CAnd apparently, she has the resources and skill to simultaneously launch attacks of considerable impact.\u201D \u201CVery well,\u201D Mara replied. \u201CBetween us, Selu, it might have been nice of you to warn us about a brilliant, deranged, Force-using darksider with infiltration, technical, and psychological skills before she decides to go rampaging through the galaxy on a calculated terror spree.\u201D \u201CTo be fair, we\u2019ve been fairly distracted with the evacuation to set up an embassy with an order we have no formal relations with,\u201D Selu said. \u201CBesides, we didn\u2019t know what her intentions were. We didn\u2019t know her motives or her targets.\u201D \u201CWe still don\u2019t,\u201D Mara replied. \u201CAnd that puts her a step ahead of us.\u201D \u201CMaybe more,\u201D Luke said. \u201CShe was able to anticipate you coming here and send an assassin after you on top of her other activities.\u201D \u201CYes,\u201D Selu answered, glancing down at his side. \u201CBut she didn\u2019t succeed in that.\u201D \u201CShe nearly did,\u201D Cilghal replied as Tyria walked back in with a transceiver for Selu\u2019s comlink. \u201CThe slug that hit you shredded through your liver before puncturing a lung and doing considerable internal damage on its way through you. If Jedi Tainer hadn\u2019t intervened . . .\u201D \u201CI know,\u201D Selu said. \u201CAnd I\u2019m grateful. Hopefully my wi\u2014my associates will be able to shed some light on what she\u2019s been doing.\u201D He clipped the transceiver to his comlink and activated the secure channel. The response was nothing but static. Selu frowned and tried again. Still nothing. He switched to the backup channel, but still to no avail. Now he reached out with the Force, trying to sense Milya, Morgedh, and Cassi. To his alarm, he sensed nothing. Selu sat back in his chair, jaw dropping in shock. \u201CSomething very bad has happened,\u201D he said. \u201CWhat is it?\u201D Luke asked, sensing his alarm. \u201CThey\u2019re gone,\u201D Selu answered frantically. \u201CI\u2019ve got to find them!\u201D \u201CHold on,\u201D Cilghal said. \u201CYou mentioned that you were able to hide from the Empire for years\u2014presumably by masking your presence in the Force. Is that right?\u201D \u201CYes,\u201D Selu admitted. \u201CWe know ways of doing so.\u201D \u201CThen maybe they are in hiding,\u201D she suggested. \u201CThis feels different,\u201D Selu countered. \u201CI know something\u2019s wrong, and I need to look into it now.\u201D \u201CNot so fast,\u201D Cilghal said. \u201CYou\u2019ll be lucky to make it out the door without collapsing.\u201D \u201CMaster Cilghal is right,\u201D Mara agreed. \u201CMaster Kraen, you need to rest.\u201D \u201CIt\u2019s not that simple,\u201D Selu argued. \u201CMy wife is out there.\u201D Luke took a deep breath. \u201CI know what you\u2019re going through,\u201D he said, his mind going back to the horrors of Dantooine back in the Yuuzhan Vong War, when his beloved Mara had been sick and hunted without him there to protect her. \u201CCan your wife and her associates defend themselves against Ariada?\u201D \u201COf course,\u201D Selu said. \u201CThe last time Ariada ran into one of the people I have out there, she was lucky to escape with her life. She wouldn\u2019t stand a chance against them in a straight fight.\u201D \u201CThen the matter might not be so urgent,\u201D Cilghal suggested. \u201CYou should trust your wife and friends.\u201D \u201CYou don\u2019t understand, Master Cilghal,\u201D Selu told her gravely. \u201CAriada specializes in creating unfair fights.\u201D Suddenly, Luke\u2019s comlink chirped. \u201CMaster Skywalker, this is Master Katarn.\u201D \u201CWhat is it?\u201D Luke answered the Jedi Master who was \u201Con watch\u201D at this hour. \u201CWe just received a signal from Jedi Knight Zekk. He\u2019s coming into the Coruscant system. His communications and engines are damaged, so he\u2019ll be here in eight hours. He also has . . . guests.\u201D \u201CUnderstood,\u201D Luke said. \u201CWhat about Jedi Solo?\u201D \u201CWe did not receive her signal,\u201D Katarn answered somberly. \u201CThank you, Master Katarn,\u201D Luke said. \u201CAnd stop by the infirmary in eight hours. I think there\u2019s someone you\u2019ll want to see.\u201D \u201CI\u2019ll see what I can do. Katarn out.\u201D Luke returned the comlink to his belt. \u201CThat might be important to you,\u201D he said to Selu. \u201CWhy?\u201D Selu replied, confused and still worried about Milya. \u201CZekk is one of the Jedi I sent to Belsavis,\u201D Luke answered. \u201CThe other one is missing.\u201D \u201CCan you sense him?\u201D Selu asked. \u201CI can\u2019t sense her,\u201D Luke answered. \u201CBut I didn\u2019t feel her death.\u201D \u201CSolo . . . we\u2019re talking about Jaina Solo then,\u201D Selu realized aloud. \u201CThat\u2019s right,\u201D Mara answered. \u201CAnd you better hope nothing happened to her.\u201D \u201CMy son and his team went to Belsavis,\u201D Selu told her. \u201CI can\u2019t sense him either. I do sense two of the others.\u201D Luke\u2019s face paled. \u201CWe need to get more people there,\u201D he said. \u201CI\u2019ll contact Chief Omas. Mara, can you put together a team for Belsavis?\u201D \u201COn it,\u201D she replied, slipping out the door. \u201CMaster Skywalker, you might want some escorts to meet up with the incoming party from Belsavis,\u201D Selu suggested. \u201CIf Ariada attacked them, she could try again here.\u201D \u201CGood idea,\u201D Master Skywalker agreed. \u201CJedi Tainer, recruit some pilots and take StealthXs up to meet them. See if Master Horn or Master Durron is around to help.\u201D \u201CYes, Master,\u201D she said, heading out the door briskly, comlink already in hand. Selu looked at Luke. \u201CI know there\u2019s still a lot to talk about between us, but I\u2019ve done you a disservice for so many years. I was afraid of you\u2014afraid of what you represented and what you might do. I couldn\u2019t bring myself to trust you. Too many things happened in those early years, and then there was the memory of your father and . . . what I\u2019m trying to say is that I\u2019m sorry, Master Skywalker. Our two peoples could\u2019ve lived in peace years earlier if I hadn\u2019t been so stubborn.\u201D \u201CYou went through a lot, hiding the Jedi for so many years during the Empire,\u201D Luke said. \u201CYou had good reason to be suspicious and distrustful\u2014and not all of my actions represented the ideals of the Jedi well. Consider any misdeeds towards me or the Jedi Order forgiven.\u201D Selu felt a wave of relief wash over him. He offered his hand to Master Skywalker, who shook it. \u201CThank you,\u201D he said. \u201CNow, if you\u2019ll excuse me, I need to go find my wife.\u201D \u201CNot so fast,\u201D Jedi Master Cilghal interrupted. \u201CI spent several hours closing up gaping holes in you. I\u2019m not about to have all that hard work undone so you can go chasing around Coruscant.\u201D \u201CThere isn\u2019t time,\u201D Selu persisted. \u201CThis situation is time-sensitive. Master Skywalker, tell her.\u201D Luke shook his head. \u201CIs your bandage supposed to be soaked red like that?\u201D \u201CIt\u2019ll be fine,\u201D Selu persisted, trying to rise. \u201CI appreciate your efforts, Master Cilghal, but I don\u2019t answer to you.\u201D \u201CYou do in my infirmary,\u201D Cilghal protested. \u201CYou need to be in a healing trance now, for at least ten hours.\u201D \u201CWhen I find the people I\u2019m looking for, I will rest all you want,\u201D Selu told her as he rose. \u201CThat is your choice,\u201D Cilghal fumed, turning to Master Skywalker for support. \u201CWhat\u2019s your wife\u2019s name?\u201D Luke asked him. \u201CMilya,\u201D Selu said. The image of her face in his mind and the thought that she might be in danger spurred him to greater haste and he began walking to the door. \u201CWe\u2019ll use her name to wake you up then,\u201D Cilghal told him. \u201CIn eight hours, once the pilots are back, after a healing trance.\u201D \u201CDon\u2019t be ridiculous,\u201D Selu snapped, striding past her stiffly. The Mon Calamari Jedi sighed, then slapped his wounded side with one of her webbed hands. Selu\u2019s eyes bulged as overwhelming waves of pain exploded through his body. His knees buckled, and while he tried to augment himself with the Force, he had already been drawing on his reserves just to keep walking. His vision began to swim as he sank towards the floor. Selu tried to protest as he felt the blackness of unconsciousness approach, tried to stay awake, but his body wasn\u2019t strong enough to keep him on his feet and resist the calming Force sensation that Cilghal was applying. \u201CI hope he will forgive me for that,\u201D Cilghal said. She extended a hand and Selu floated up from the ground towards the bed. \u201CIn time, Master Cilghal,\u201D Luke told her. \u201CI just hope we have enough left.\u201D"@en . "Jaina Solo\u2019s eyes shot wide open. She tried to get up, but soon realized she was unable to move. Looking down, she saw that her feet were bound together while her arms were held above and behind her in an iron grip. She was in a dirty and tattered pilot\u2019s flight suit, replete with fresh cuts and bruises. Then, she managed to look up and saw what was restraining her arms. A pair of enormous Yuuzhan Vong warriors was flanking her, each one gripping an arm. She heard a voice call something in the harsh Yuuzhan Vong tongue and the warriors started forward, dragging her along the ground. She was surrounded by throngs of shouting Yuuzhan Vong as she was roughly hauled up some kind of ramp. Looking at the horizon, she saw shattered buildings, a skyline that looked vaguely familiar. She was on Cor"@en . "5"^^ . "3"^^ . "1"^^ . . "15"^^ . "13"^^ . "10"^^ . "8"^^ . "22"^^ . "Force Exile VI: Prodigal/Part 2"@en . . "19"^^ . .