The Revenant Saga - Chapter 5 - Endgame.

The crew had all gathered back at the Ebon Hawk, and Raven had done what explaining he was able to do about what had happened on the Temple. Thankfully, Jolee and Juhani had not tried to volunteer in front of the others about either of his little stunts keeping them out of the fight with Bastila. He made a mental note to thank each of them privately - as badly as Carth was reacting already, it would have been a fine line before he really lost it completely. As it was, Raven needed to make damn sure that Carth had something to keep him busy and pronto, before his 'I've been betrayed!' spinout got any further out of control.

'Carth -- we were able to find the parts we needed. Why don't you take T3 and go see about repairing that hyperdrive? I'll be in the entertainment area working on a bit of a project. Everyone needs to get themselves ready this time. When we get to the Star Forge, everyone's going to have to pitch in. There's a lot we need to get done, so we'll need everyone at full capacity. Let's get moving, the man was right -- we don't need to give her time to organize a bigger welcoming committee.'

Raven came out of the entertainment area just as the ship began to lift off from the planet's surface. He looked around at his gathered companions, reading each one of their resolute faces in turn. He could tell that they were all waiting for him to speak, to bring forth the wisdom that had guided them all thus far on their mission. Raven sighed a bit inwardly at that thought. He'd never meant to lead this little quest of theirs... it had just seemed to happen. Of course, given what they'd learned in the past few months, it seemed he'd been doing that for a long time. He frowned slightly at that crumb of introspection, knowing full well that he was likely to disappoint all of them with the decisions he was preparing to make. Nothing for it, he told himself as he took a deep breath - there was no time for second-guessing his plans now.

'When we get to the Star Forge, we're going to need to break up into three teams. Carth, Juhani, Canderous and I will go as the primary strike team. I'll need you all with me to a point, but whenever we locate Bastila your orders will be to turn and make back for the Hawk with all speed.' Seeing the rebellious looks on their faces, he continued hurriedly: 'When we get to Bastila I'll need to face her alone to have any chance of turning her, and if I can't turn her I may have to kill her. If that happens, there won't be time for me to make it back to the Hawk and there's no point to all of us dying if one of us fails... at least not since in this case we can avoid it.' He saw acknowledgement of what he'd said between the lines in each of their eyes. They knew if he couldn't save Bastila, then he'd stay with her until the end. He even allowed himself a small, self-deprecating smirk that none of them argued with him on the point -- they all knew him well enough by now that none of them even seriously considered arguing the point for more than an instant. Swallowing down the lump in his throat, he had to admire the continuing excellence of the people he called friend. Hastily, he continued on before emotion could interfere with the necessary planning. 'The second team will consist of Mission, Zaalbar, and T3. T3 has been loaded with a program he is going to load into the Star Forge's main array that will transmit tactical and structural data back to the Hawk where team three, Jolee and HK can transmit it out to the Republic fleet where hopefully they can analyze it and find a weakness in its construction to exploit. HK and Jolee will be on Hawk defense -- they should be all we'll need, since Jolee can convince people she's not anything interesting and I trust HK to vaporize any non-crew that do notice her.'

'Affirmation: I will not let any non-crew meatbags aboard the Ebon Hawk for as long as I function master.'

Raven smiled at the eager tone to the droid's response. 'Thanks HK, I knew I could count on you.'

Jolee nodded his assent to the plan as well. 'Bah - Better that than out there swinging a lightsaber with you young yahoos. It's just as likely that one of you'd lop me in half with your sloppy technique while I was doing the real damage.' A ripple of pleasant laughter filled the room at that, despite the tension they were all feeling. This was it -- the fate of the galaxy that had been the subject of much nebulous dialog and theorizing was suddenly upon them, here and now, and the fate of the galaxy actually did rest in their hands in a measurable and concrete way.

'Team, this is what we all came on this ride to do. Get yourselves ready. Carth, as soon as you're finished preparing yourself, get whoever's in charge of the Republic Fleet on the comm.' He thought a moment longer. 'And if you can, see who commands whatever Jedi the Fleet has with them and get them on that comm as well.'

'You got it partner.' Carth's ruggedly handsome features were set into tight lines around the eyes and mouth, evidencing more tension than Raven would have expected even given the gravity of the situation. He sighed inwardly, wondering what Carth could possibly be so wound up about this time. Of course Bastila's betrayal had him tense, but it seemed like something more than that, and different somehow from Carth's normal repertoire of emotions, was bothering the pilot this time. Tentatively, Raven scanned Carth with the Force, checking to see if he could determine what was bothering Carth in particular - and it didn't take long for it to be found. Carth was in quite a bit of inner turmoil as usual, but the cause of it was something new entirely. Indeed, the cause of this new turmoil caught Raven completely unawares - Carth was feeling something that was so alien to his standard way of operating that he hadn't yet figured out how to deal with it. Raven spun on his heel and left the gathering hastily to hide the rapidly spreading grin on his face from the crew, mostly just to avoid having to explain its source to them. Raven was smiling uncontrollably all the way back to the cargo hold where his equipment was stored, thinking just how significant it really was that Carth finally believed implicitly that no matter what else happened Raven wasn't going to betray them.

Carth sat silent, alone in the cockpit watching the shining form of the Star Forge drawing closer. He could see explosions all around it, and the lights of distant starship weapons fire. Slowly, methodically, he strapped himself into his heavy exoskeleton armor, taking time and care with each fastening and making sure he was as fully protected as he could be while his mind processed the events of the past several months. He still could hardly believe any of what he'd been through since the destruction of the Endar Spire. Everything that had happened to all of... them, this unlikely crew of mismatched adventurers was so improbable, so far from anything he'd ever dreamed. As he strapped on his heavy black servo-powered boots, he realized that the concept he was searching for was family... He had a family again. He truly felt like he belonged here, and Raven... Raven had done so much for him over these past months. He'd helped Carth avenge Morgana, reclaim his long-lost son, and so many more things besides; despite many opportunities and reasons to not do so. Carth pulled his twin Baragwin Assault Blades from their resting place behind the pilot's seat and tested their weight, going through a few experimental swings and stretches to warm up his muscles for what was sure to be heavy fighting ahead. His face creased again with a spasm of sadness as another thought washed over him. If half of what Juhani claimed Bastila had said and done on the roof of that temple was true... he couldn't even imagine that would have done to Raven -- and yet Raven had somehow, beyond imagining, stayed the course. Carth straightened, sheathing his blades with unconscious fluidity and put on a determined scowl. Raven needed and deserved to know what Carth believed of him, that Carth trusted him. There might never be another chance, and after everything Raven had done it was the very least he could do to make sure his friend knew how much it was all appreciated. Sweeping his gear together, Carth headed to the cargo hold with determined strides. As he approached, he could hear the sounds of rhythmic, thumping music emanating from his destination. He recognized it as an old Mandalorian blood-feuding song... well, not really a song so much as a rhyming chant to an aggressive beat that could be fought to. A grimace of exceeding distaste spread across his rugged features as he listened. As much as he hated Mandalorians, he'd hated what they called music even worse. When he rounded the corner, he saw that the rest of the crew except T3 were already standing there, staring into the cargo bay with various degrees of admiration and fascination. Picking up his pace, he arrived just in time for the first lyrics of the song to spill out of the open doorway, and he stared at what he saw there, as entranced as the rest of them.

Canderous hadn't taken long to get ready -- one of the benefits of his Mandalorian clan upbringing was that it didn't matter the size of the battle, he was already ready for it in the time it took him to put on his armor and gather up his weapons. Those actions alone were all the ritual and preparation he needed to gird his soul for battle. He smiled a little realizing that for all their warrior culture, bred to battle from birth with blood on their hands from the time they could walk, the Mandalorian clans had been bested by a man that took himself longer than the battle did to fight to prepare himself for it. Maybe there is something to be said for taking your time on that after all, the grizzled veteran mused to himself. Helmet tucked under one arm, the sword of Ajunta Pall resting securely in its back-scabbard, he wandered the ship in search of that very man. He found Raven alone in the cargo hold, staring numbly at a pile of weapons, robes, items, and armor. Canderous had seen this look before on other men -- the look of someone that can't care what they carry into battle because they are already expecting to lose that battle regardless. Canderous' face twisted into a snarl as he advanced into the room. 'What's wrong Revan, can't decide which weapon would be the most uncomfortable crammed up your old apprentice's ass?' Raven rounded on him, trying for a snarl to match Canderous' and failing miserably - he was actually cracking a smile even as he answered. 'You caught me Canderous, I give up. I'd figured my lightsaber was too quick, and unfortunately we don't have any of those damnable gizka left.' Canderous broke into a broad grin at that comment. 'All right, now there's the Jedi that defeated Mandalore. Now, based on what I know of you what you desperately need right now is some focus, and focus is something I know about.' Canderous reached into a pouch on his hip and brought forth a data disc and tossed it to Raven with a flick of his wrist. 'Put that in your music pad and have a listen. The way you work with music, this oughta put you back into a killing mood.' Raven caught it deftly and with a wry smile on his face slapped it into his player.6 He closed his eyes as he listened through the entire piece once, and when he opened them they were glowing with their inner fire once again.

'Thanks Canderous... I think I can pick my outfit for the big dance now.' Canderous laughed, a rich and hearty sound, as Raven turned and cranked the volume up on his player and reached right past the Qel-Droma robes he'd been wearing and picked up the black fiber armor he'd worn on Korriban after taking it off Darth Bandon. As the music played, he began stripping down to put the armor on. As he began to armor up, and select the weapons, grenades, and stims he would be carrying for this final confrontation, he subconsciously began to move to the driving rhythm of the angry Mandalorian song.

Raven swayed and rocked back and forth, powerful muscles rippling with the beat of the music. As he pulled on the armored leggings, he was even snapping the catches and tightening the straps in sharp, punctuated motions.

Clad only in the tight-fitting black armor leggings, he stretched toward the ceiling cat-like, drawing out the tensions and doubts that had been plaguing him since Bastila's capture.

During the stretch, he started to focus and gather in Force power to recharge his drained reserves. He focused on Malak's face in his mind, slowly tapping into the deep reservoir of his fury and letting it fill him, this time filtered through the cleansing fires of his newfound power.

Canderous started a bit, then grinned savagely as Raven's exposed skin slowly began to be illuminated by a lapping white fire of visible Force energy covering him from head to toe, wreathing him in purifying flame like an angered god incarnate.

He paused a moment and contemplated the massive piles of grenades and stims in the various containers. With a dismissive wave of his hand he closed the containers and instead picked up only his custom double-saber and a few various strengths of medpacks.

Now fully equipped but having apparently forgotten the top half of his armor, Raven ignited his weapon and started to spin and dance through an intricate series of warm-up exercises, still focusing on the beat. As he went into the first of the spin routines, he closed his eyes, sinking completely into the welcoming arms of the Force, letting it flow through him unimpeded by his own perceptions. The flames dancing across his chiseled body intensified again, seeming to almost take on a life of their own as he executed his favorite pre-combat routines in double-time, trailing wisps of white flame as he moved.

He twirled his weapon faster and faster, swirling it in increasingly complex patterns until it seemed that he was still, standing inside a cage of green--white light, dripping living flame from all sides. The fires lined each ridge and ripple of his wiry, cord-like muscles, making them look even more impressive than they would have under normal lighting.

He continued in his combat trance for several minutes, dancing and whirling to the beat of the Mandalorian tune. As the song ended, he broke out of the pattern with a dramatic flourish, allowing the flames to break and cascade down off of his frame as if they were water. He held the pose for several seconds, letting the last of the buzz fade, then opened his eyes and turned to say something to Canderous. Whatever it may have been was lost, though, when he caught sight of his entire crew standing in the doorway of the cargo area staring in various degrees of open fascination at him. With a sheepish grin, he combed the fingers of his right hand through his sweat-dampened hair as he fumbled for something to say. The stares he was getting right then unnerved him far more than facing down an entire pack of rancors had -- especially the looks on Mission and Juhani's faces. Unexpectedly, Carth relieved him of having to find words by speaking up first.

'You know a while back when I said that if I were Malak I'd be a little nervous to have you on my tail? I never had any idea how wrong I was.' The entire crew pivoted to face Carth now, mixed looks of uncertainty crossing their faces. Before anyone could interject, Carth broke into a wide smile and continued. 'I'd be utterly terrified. Malak has no idea what he's done, and my only regret from this entire trip is I know I won't be there to see it personally when he finds out just how big a mistake he's made.' Smiles and good-natured giggles emanated from the entire crew as Raven blushed crimson to the tips of his ears, completely uncertain of how to respond. Carth grinned widely as he stepped forward and clapped Raven on the shoulder. 'C'mon partner -- we need to get that comm set up so that the rest of the guests at your big show can have their dance cards. And -- you might want to put a shirt on before the curtain goes up.' Good-natured laughter filled the Hawk as Raven went as scarlet as a Sith's lightsaber before finally fumbling himself into the body armor. Still blushing, he followed Carth hastily to the communications area.

Raven had long since stopped listening to the side of the conversation that involved Admiral Forn Dodonna and Carth. All his attention was focused squarely on the holographic image of the diminutive Jedi master that had started him down this road so long ago on Dantooine. They spoke only mind-to-mind, but that didn't soften the words being used in the slightest.

:Did it just completely fail to occur to the vaunted Masters of the Order that sending me up against my own former apprentice without either telling me who I am or performing major reconstructive surgery on my appearance might have been a bit... stupid?: Raven's mind-speech dripped with scorn and distaste as he berated Vandar again and again. :Or, perhaps, that cornering a young Jedi with a Force-given lifebond to me into lying to me and trying to lead me around by my nose might just wear away at her emotional strength from within and leave her vulnerable to the temptations of an easier path? Despite all the alleged wisdom of the Jedi and our Masters in particular, this whole scheme plays out like you didn't think at all before sending us out to face Malak!:

Vandar's shoulders slumped forward as he responded. :We did what we had to do, Revan. We had no other options and very little time to make difficult decisions.:

:First, don't call me that EVER again! That name belongs to a past that I want no part of.: Raven allowed himself a moment's indulgence in seeing his verbal riposte strike home as the wizened Master flinched at his words and the weight of emotion behind them. :And second -- Haven't you listened to any of the speeches you yourself have made about the tragic fall of Darth Revan and his apprentice, Malak? Was it not their haste and impatience that you rail against so continuously? Where was your patience when you made this plan? How can you know that Revan... that I didn't feel just as strongly as you that we were out of time?:

Silence hung thickly between them for several moments.

Hey Schutta, I'm hooome! Raven's face was twisted into an inscrutable combination of smile and scowl as he exited the Hawk and stepped onto the decking of the Star Forge for the first time -- that he could remember, at any rate. However, he'd been able to tell Carth exactly where the docking bays were, and even given him tips on the spacing and patterning of the turbolaser batteries. It seemed that either some memories were more powerful than the mindwipe, or this was another omission of the 'convenient' variety by the Jedi council... leaving the physical memories and the mental map in place while not letting him remember a blasted thing about what he had done here. He was almost a spectator in his own mind as his mouth spoke with a stranger's voice and told Mission and T3's team the most secure path to a data terminal for the astromech to use to start his slicing. He listened in fascination to information he didn't even know he had spilling from his lips, preparing his team for the path they would be taking to the command center, where he was certain Malak would have placed Bastila to use her Battle Meditation to help the already overwhelming Sith Fleet guarding the Star Forge. Raven was just starting to teeter on the edge of a mental breakdown from the sheer strangeness of it all when a small party of Dark Jedi came into the docking bay via one of the maintenance doors. He grinned savagely at the pretty young Jedi in front of him that told him to hurry after Bastila, that she and her strike team would handle the Sith. His only outward response was the smile. Behind it, he thought acidly to himself: I don't think so little lady... fighting I understand. Fighting, I am at least sure is really part of me -- something I'm good at and that makes sense. You're not going to do ANY of this fighting for me.

Raven turned to face the onrushing Sith, a group of four -- all Dark Jedi. He closed his eyes for one split second, and reached down deep inside himself. In and in he went, past the half-felt laughs and the plastic smiles, past the faked camaraderie and playfulness, through the layer of ice around his heart and into the core of his feelings. He let himself hear the cries of the men and women he'd seen suffering on this journey. He let himself hear the death-cries of the wookiee he'd been too late to save from Czerka slavers. He let himself smell the blood of innocent Selkath children tortured to death because they weren't evil enough to be Sith. He let himself hear Bastila's agonized screams as the torture fields on the Leviathan inflicted blinding agony on her on the whim of Admiral Saul Karath. He let himself see Bastila cut off from him, sacrificing herself with the intent of saving him from Darth Malak. He let himself see the anguish on Dustil's face when he read the datapad that so coldly described the fate of his beloved Selene. He let himself hear Bastila's damning words on the roof of the Rakatan temple. As he recalled each of these memories, he unblocked the contained and repressed emotions associated with them, letting them each flow freely until he was filled with a raging river of wrathfulness. As that river flowed, he spoke words of power inside himself.

I will no longer stand by and let the Sith continue their war that destroys Love.

He gathered the raging flow of fury into a swirling ball in his gut, and as he did, he repeated a chant from long ago -- but this time he did so with complete clarity of mind as he used it as a mantra with which to focus the Wrath of The Guardian.

Morgana. Carth. Selene. Dustil. Duron. Shaeela... Bastila.

And with his beloved's name, he released the gathered power. His eyes snapped back open, and when they did they were no longer human eyes - they were twin orbs of glowing starflame blazing forth from the sockets, and his body was once again wreathed in white flame. Raven looked over at the Dark Jedi with his inhuman eyes and smiled at what he saw. Rather than registering their physical forms, he could see the dark side energies flowing through them. They stopped dead in their tracks -- literally -- as Raven raised his open right hand, palm facing them as he spoke a single word: 'Incinerus.' With that word, Raven converted the dark side Force energies within the Sith into kinetic heat energies, causing the quartet of Dark Jedi to flare up like a set of magnesium torches, burning so hot and intensely that they seemed to disintegrate, leaving behind only thin wisps of ash and their blackened boots smoldering on the decking.

Raven let the power recede slightly so that he was no longer dripping flame and so that his eyes were again human before he turned to face the pretty young Jedi that had wanted to save him the time of dealing with the Sith. Smiling with all his charisma by way of apology, he ran one hand through his shoulder-length brown hair in a now-habitual gesture as he spoke. 'Thanks for the thought -- I've got it covered.' Raven turned quickly and led his team down the ramp into the first of the maintenance corridors, leaving the young padawan behind him in the docking bay stunned utterly speechless by what she had just seen, and what she had not felt - any trace of the dark side - while seeing it. She still had not recovered her powers of speech several minutes after Raven and the rest of the crew had vanished from her sight.

Ektra Sayeen smugly surveyed the swiftly cooling corpse of the Jedi she had just defeated. She turned her head away from the grisly trophy for a moment to verify that each of her companions had also finished their respective opponents. Confirming their victories, Ektra turned back to the lifeless form of the Jedi and toed at it almost regretfully. Not that she regretted killing the young Jedi -- Quite the contrary, actually -- killing Jedi was one of the only pleasures she found in life. Instead, she mourned that this one had fallen so easily and provided her with such little sport before dying. She sighed to herself as she remembered draining the life essence of the fallen Knight as his wounds had bled dry, consuming what passed for his soul as his body had failed. That experience, normally an intoxicating rush for her, had barely provided a moment's buzz from this pitiful youngling. Petulantly, Ektra kicked the body a bit more forcefully as if to punish its former resident one last time for his incompetence, then pivoted on her heel to address her two companions.

Abruptly, she was caught up in the rush of a massive disturbance in the Force. One that was nearby, and if her senses told her correctly approaching her position at incredible speed. Ektra's eyelids fluttered in near-ecstasy as she savored the power of whatever was approaching her, physically salivating as if she had caught the first sniff of a fine banquet being served. She smiled viscerally as she realized that there had been at least one more of the Jedi assaulting the Star Forge powerful enough to have gotten past Lord Malak's army of Forge droids. Her eyes flicked to a distant doorway leading onto the walkway she and her companions stood on. Despite the distance of over a hundred meters, she could see clearly the form of the approaching Jedi, and as she extended her senses, she was nearly intoxicated by the power flowing from the man. Her face lit with murderous glee as she concluded that this one would at long last give her the chance she had so long desired; to prove her ultimate worth by dispatching one of the Masters of the hated Jedi Order that had turned her away so long ago. Her eyes lit up in rapt eagerness over her concealing face mask and she addressed her companions in a predatorially eager tone: 'Ah, more victims to Sl-'

Whatever else Ektra would have said was lost along with her life as Raven's boot crushed in her face at the culmination of his nearly one hundred and fifty meter Force Jump. Her lifeless body sailed clear of the walkway to ricochet repeatedly through the interior supports and mechanisms of the Star Forge, head compressed into a bowl like a lumpy spoon from the devastating impact.

Raven lunged forward at the second of the trio, the ferocity of his unarmed attack having left the Sith floundering for a few precious seconds too long. Before the Dark Jedi could even raise his blade, Raven delivered a Force-amplified kick to his right knee, shattering bone and bursting muscle as if it were rotted wood. When the Sith opened his mouth to scream, Raven's right hand darted out and grabbed the lower jaw of his enemy and yanked it downward, breaking the jaw in several places. Without relinquishing his grip, Raven spun in place, whipping the unfortunate Dark Jedi over his head in a whistling arc that ended in a fountain of gore when the Sith crashed headfirst into the mesh of the durasteel walkway. As the fountain of Sith bits still splattered in a horrifying rain around him, Raven turned to the third Dark Jedi, extended his index finger to point at him, and then curled it twice, signaling the Sith to bring it on in universal terms. The Sith, being both smarter and less brave than either of his companions, turned and attempted to run away from the walking maelstrom of death that was Raven Skywalker.

It didn't do him any good.

Juhani surveyed the wreckage of the three Dark Jedi as she and the others caught up to Raven several seconds later. In turn, she marveled and fought retching as she canvassed the area and scavenged for medpacks among the pieces of the fallen. She barely understood what had happened to Raven at the temple, but it didn't take a genius to see how thin a line he was walking on his path of vengeance. She looked long and hard into the eyes of the man she called friend as she tried to sense which side of that line he was closer to at that moment. Her judgment where he was concerned was clouded and she knew it though, and for just a fleeting moment she indulged herself in a spark of the jealousy she felt of Bastila. She'd admitted to herself she was in love with Raven apparently just a day or two too late for it to have had any chance of making a difference. Ruefully, she recalled that the realization had come to her as she held Raven as he cried when he'd discovered Bastila's recorded message after her capture. What frightened her most about it was that when he raged like this, rather than make her want him less, it amplified her feeling and desire for him many times over. Swallowing around a lump in her throat, she put that feeling back away and hid it behind a playful, feline smile. Grinning, she cuffed Raven lightly on the shoulder before she spoke. 'Vut are we here, ornamental? Not that I haven't been told I'm decorative before, but I'm used to being more useful than this at least.' She let the ripples of laughter from her three companions wash over her and applied it like a salve to the raw edges of her hopeless love for Raven. 'Alright, Skyvalker - the more time we give your lady love to use her power, the less of the Republic there will be left for us to save. Let's get moving.' Juhani smiled sadly to herself as the group mobilized again, watching Raven move with grace and speed to make even the greatest of felines envious. As she watched his powerful muscles ripple beneath his black fiber-mesh armor, her thoughts again drifted into shadowy corners of her mind. Bastila, I swear that if you don't come back to us and take care of this man, then even if he saves you from Malak he won't be able to save you from me. After all he's been through, he deserves someone to make him happy... and because of you, that person can never be me. Force praise you for being there for him, and Force damn you for it all the same.

Juhani shook her head and attempted to banish those thoughts from her consciousness. Focusing more on her immediate surroundings, she decided to see if Raven was yet ready to discuss whatever it was that Vandar had said to him during their private conversation during the approach to the Star Forge. 'So, Raven...' she began awkwardly, 'obviously something that Vandar told you either didn't settle with you well at all, or perhaps settled with you entirely too well... care to tell us which to help pass the time?'

'No.' The word was harsh, nearly spit from Raven's lips like it had an exceedingly foul taste to it. As Juhani stammered trying to think of a response, Raven's expression softened minutely for a moment and he looked almost apologetic as he elaborated. 'Not until we're safely out of here at least.' He gave Juhani a half-smile before turning and starting to jog along a path only he knew, leading them ever closer to their final destination.

The companions pressed on in silence into the interior of the Forge.

The diminutive Master looked up at Raven after a prolonged silence, anguish evident in his eyes.

Raven had complete control of himself again when he responded to Vandar. :Really? So that's why the only Jedi that gave us a chance against Darth Malak has fallen to the dark side and is at this very moment working to ensure the extinction of the Republic and the Jedi Order? The results of your decision, in fact, are very near to utterly destroying the Galaxy you intended to save... sounding familiar?: Raven smiled cruelly at the look of dumbfounded realization on his former Master's face. :And, at that, you've taken the selfsame fallen savior and put him right back into the role you just re-iterated that he - that I - failed at. Vandar, you will find you were mistaken about a great many things, just as I was long ago.: It was now Raven's turn to pause and let Vandar digest the words he had just heard. :Now, Master Vandar, what we do have here is a chance to perhaps correct both of our most egregious mistakes in one fell swoop...but I'm afraid you're not going to like at all what it's going to take to accomplish it.:

Raven's mind returned to the present with jarring abruptness as he cleanly decapitated the last of the most recent wave of Sith elite and Dark Jedi. Belatedly, he noted that somewhere in all the fighting, he had separated his custom weapon into the paired sabers, although he had no recollection of doing so at all. Disengaging and sheathing his lightsabers, he surveyed his surroundings and found himself standing in a small room that had that disturbingly familiar feeling of both being brand new and at the same time as if he'd lived there for years. Acting on the same cocktail of intuition and hidden memories that had guided him thus far, he moved forward to the leftmost of the three Rakatan terminals in the room, and logged in to the terminal using a long-ago entered backdoor and then called up the list of items currently in production by the Forge queues. Raven smiled broadly and genuinely as he noticed that T3's team had been successful. Grinning, he turned to Carth. 'Commander Onasi -- this is where you take the rest of the team back to the Hawk.' Seeing the rebellious look on Carth's face, he grinned reassuringly as he continued. 'First, I need you to make sure that the structural data that T3 was able to retrieve from the Star Forge's databanks gets to Admiral Dodonna and that Fleet can figure out a weak point in this station's defenses to exploit in bringing it down once I deal with Bastila. If there's a weakness to be discovered, I know that you can discover it. Secondly, I need you to inform the Admiral that they're about to get assistance from behind the Sith lines in the form of two capital ships with droid crews. You'll be able to monitor them and give them orders through a slave-rig that T3 has already patched into the Ebon Hawk's navigational systems.' Raven granted himself the indulgence of a moment's smugness as the looks of disbelieving admiration played across his friends' faces. 'They'll be an Interdictor-class Warship and a Mandalorian Dreadnaught-class gunship, broadcasting callsigns Revenant and Charon. They'll also be sporting some... unusual paintjobs to help the Fleet make sure they know which ones are on their side. The paintjobs on the support craft and fighters assigned to each should coordinate as well.' His self-satisfied grin turned into a full-fledged smile as he continued. 'The Revenant is my new ship, Onasi -- so I'll expect you to take good care of her and get her through this battle and clear in one piece. Especially if you still think you want to captain a capital ship once we get out of here.' Carth's look of shock at that was so extreme it was utterly comical, resulting in more laughter from the companions. Here we are, in the middle of the greatest battle this galaxy has ever seen, and somehow we are all still able to laugh... I couldn't have had a better set of friends and comrades to attempt this impossible mission with. With a playful shove, Raven started Carth moving back out of the room. 'You three were complaining that I wasn't leaving enough for you to do, anyway -- now get on out of here and back to the ship. Have the engines running and the medical bay ready for two -- just in case.'

As the trio turned to leave, Juhani hesitated a moment, then turned and without preamble threw her arms around Raven's neck and squeezed him tightly. Raven recovered enough to return the embrace awkwardly, and as he did so he wondered if it was only his imagination or if she truly was intentionally gripping him in such a way to make him pointedly aware of the curves of her sculptured body against him. Almost as if specifically to confuse him further, as she leaned closer to his ear to speak he couldn't quite tell if her grinding the soft, warm, and very feminine area of her lower abdomen against his hip was by design or a simple coincidence of movement. Before he could contemplate either possibility overmuch, she whispered her farewell frantically, barely a breath in his ear. 'Be careful, my friend, and may the Force guide you safely home to... us.' Raven's forehead wrinkled minutely as he realized that Juhani had ad-libbed that last word, but before he could ask what she had meant to say, she had disentangled herself from him and was nearly out of sight with Carth and Canderous by the time he remembered to breathe again.

Rubbing absentmindedly at the tingle left on his cheek by the cathar's silken fur, Raven turned back to the console and focused on verifying that the more personal uploads he'd given T3 had also been made. He nodded to himself as he saw the additional program uploads had been completed, and was just about to sign off when he saw an entry in the list of available items the station could create that gave him pause. 'Custom Jedi robes, created by user analysis, hrm?' he muttered to no one in particular. Shrugging, he activated the matter generators almost as a matter of curiosity. The generation station in the corner sparked and whirred for several moments as sensor readings flashed by at speeds even Raven was unable to completely process. After several seconds, the terminal changed its display to 'Matter Generation Completed.' Raven opened the generation chamber and stared in disbelief at what he saw. Gently, almost reverently he reached into the bin and drew forth the robes. The cloth was a vibrant emerald green silk, cross woven so as it moved the color fluctuated from almost black to pinpoints of brilliant emerald light. The cut of the robes was one of pure Talravin design, combining the traditional armor of an emerald magistrate with the flowing design of the Jedi robes. He could also see that the material was no simple cloth, but rather as he tugged and twisted in his hands, he could feel its impressive strength and durability. As he began to put on the marvelous robes over his armor, he saw in the bottom of the bin a headband of a design very similar to the Verpine, but with an emerald green visor instead of the more traditional red. He donned the visor as well, making note of the various tactical functions apparent in its design. Once bedecked in his new regalia, he left the room swiftly, prepared to head up to the command center where the two most important conflicts of his life awaited him.

Once Raven arrived at the elevator that would take him to the command center, he activated the comm unit built into his new visor. 'T3 do you copy?' He listened to the excited series of beeps and whistles that passed for an affirmative where the droid was concerned. 'Carth and the others are on their way back to you now. Once Carth arrives, give him control of the slave-rig for the Revenant and the Charon, copy?' He paused as T3 replied with a series of affirmative-sounding beeps and whistles. 'Ok, good. All right, T3 -- execute uploaded program Skywalker One... and go ahead and explain it to the others when they ask.' Raven terminated the comm session and began tapping his feet anxiously as the elevator continued its steady ascent. By fate, coincidence, or the will of the Force, program Skywalker One began execution the instant the doors of the elevator opened into the command center, to Raven's boundless amusement.