CHAPTER NINE
Relin Druur watched as the Mon Calamari Jedi healer studied the scanners that showed his vital signs. Off to the side stood Jaden, Toah, Khedryn, and Marr, the latter two looking nervous about being the only non-Force users in a Jedi Temple.
After several minutes of silence, Master Cilghal looked down at the ancient Jedi. "I have healed the worst of your injuries, though you will need to spend a few days here to recover. Would you like a prosthetic replacement for your hand?"
"No," Relin murmured. "A Jedi should not let the loss of flesh hinder him; to replace what has been lost would be a sign of weakness. Though that's probably not what they teach nowadays, is it?"
"As you wish," Cilghal said, ignoring the mildly condescending tone in the ancient Jedi's voice. Putting away the scanners, she walked over to Jaden and the others. "He's in good health. However, I must question your claim of him being over five thousand years old."
"You've heard the way he talks," Jaden said. "He mentions things like the Sith Empire and the Great Hyperspace War as if they are recent or current."
"He could be delusional," Cilghal said, quiet enough so that Relin would not hear her. "But I could not find nor sense any mental illness."
"And even if he was delusional, how do you explain the Sith dreadnaught he arrived in?" Toah noted.
Cilghal slowly nodded. "That is true. I shall speak with the others on the High Council regarding these events. In the meantime, stay here with him and try to find out more on how he got to... our time."
With that, the Jedi healer left. Jaden and Toah started to move over to Relin's bedside, but were stopped by Khedryn.
"Er, if it's all the same to you," the smuggler said, "Marr and I will be leaving. We've done what you've asked, so...."
Jaden smiled. "The credits have already been transferred to your account."
Khedryn blinked. "That fast? Well, then, uh... thanks."
"Don't mention it. Fly safely, and may the Force be with you."
"Right, sure." With that, Khedryn and his Cerean companion headed out of the room. They were barely a few feet away when Khedryn turned back to them and smiled sheepishly.
"Uh, could someone show us the way out?"
* * *
Impatient finger taps echoed through the Harbinger's second bridge. Saes flickered his gaze anxiously at the communication officer, who was attempting to contact the Sith Empire on Korriban. He could not handle the wait any longer. The Kaleesh rose from his command chair, ignoring the pain it gave him in doing so.
"What's taking so long?" he snarled.
"No one's responding," the officer replied. "All I'm getting is static."
The tribal mask of Saes' people concealed the worried expression on his face. Why was the Dark Lord not responding- or anyone, for that matter? Usually, if Lord Sadow was too busy to answer calls, someone like his regent Shar Dakhan would do so instead.
"What about Captain Korsin?"
A moment passed as the officer tried to contact the Omen. "Negative."
Saes slumped down into his seat. No communication, no hyperdrive... they were all but lost to the rest of the galaxy.
Hour passed by, with no one saying a word. Saes knew that the crew had all accepted their fates; they would die here, out on the edge of the galaxy. No one would notice their absence. No one would come to-
"Captain, look!"
Saes lifted his gaze to the viewport. Dropping out of hyperspace was a ship unlike any he had seen before; sleek yet vast, it was thousands of meters in length and shaped like a dagger.
"They're hailing us," the communications officer said.
"Answer them," Saes ordered.
The voice of a male soon spoke through the Harbinger's intercom. "Unidentified ship, this is Vanguard of the Imperial Remnant. State your name, allegiance, and business."
"Harbinger of the Sith Empire, transporting Lignan crystals to the Dark Lord Naga Sadow. Our hyperdrive is damaged, so we can not reach Korriban."
Silence reigned for a long time. Finally, the Vanguard's commander said, "The Sith Empire, you say? As far as I know, the Sith haven't had an empire for over a millennia."
Saes was taken aback by this. Was this man stupid? Or had he been out for longer than he thought...?
Before he could respond, the Vanguard's commander continued. "However, we have been expecting you. Prepare to be boarded; my men will transfer the Lignan and your crew from your ship to ours."
Expecting us? Saes was skeptical about the man's statement, but he nonetheless agreed to it. As he watched the larger ship slowly come up to become parallel with the Harbinger, he said to his Massassi warriors, "Be wary of them. If I give the order, kill them all."
* * *
"It would appear your hunch was right," Admiral Vin Borgas said to the cloaked man standing next to him. "Consider me impressed."
"It was never a hunch," the other man hissed. "The dark side willed it to be so."
Borgas shrugged. "Nevertheless, the results are the same. What is to be our next destination after you speak with the Sith captain?"
"You are to take the Lignan to Borosk. Meanwhile, I shall take my fighter into Sith Space. Until you hear from me again, speak nothing of this."
Borgas nodded. "As you wish, Master Krul."
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