CHAPTER SEVEN
Jaden groaned as he came to his senses. His head weighed like a thousand tons of duracrete and his arms moved like a lifeless puppet's when he tried to move them. Eventually he managed to shake off his body's numbness and slowly sat up.
The last thing he remembered was the ship heading straight into the Maw. Now he was a dark cave, moonlight pouring in from its mouth. No bird sang, no bugs chirped, no water rushed; he was in complete silence.
And he could feel himself wading in the dark side.
Whatever this planet was, it felt like a nexus of darkness. Fear, anger, hatred, and despair flooded through him; no positive thought or feeling could banish these emotions. If the dark side of the Force was living being, he was at its very heart.
As he tried to resist the temptations of the darkness, a voice sounded in his head. It spoke no intelligible words, but it did beckon him to turn away from the cave's entrance and towards its abyss.
Standing there, clad in ancient armor, red eyes blazing with malice, was Darth Vorath.
Jaden's hand shot for his lightsaber, only to remember it was gone. He then lifted his gaze to meet the Sith Lord's and saw that the red eyes had gone out. Darth Vorath stood as erect and lifeless as a statue.
Thousands of questions rushed through Jaden's head, though they were all pushed away by the voice's next command: Approach him.
Jaden wanted to resist the order, but his body seemed to have other ideas. He slowly stepped towards the long-dead Dark Lord of the Sith. As he did, those red eyes came back to life.
"Why do you fear the darkness?" The ancient, grating voice of the Sith caused Jaden to cringe. "The darkness soothes you with its cold air, while the light scorches your skin."
"But you can't see in the darkness," Jaden said. "And it might be cold enough to give you frostbite."
Vorath said nothing-- and Jaden didn't blame him; that had to be the worst comeback he had ever come up with. The two men stood in eternal silence, staring at each other. Then, the voice in Jaden's head spoke again.
Remove his helmet.
No thanks, Jaden thought back, but his hands were already moving to do just that. They grabbed either side of the Dark Lord's helmet and slowly lifted it.
He saw the face of the monster. And screamed.
Regaining control of his body, he threw the helmet aside and pushed Darth Vorath back into the abyss. He then turned on his heel to flee the cave but was stopped by a tendril coiling around his ankle.
Don't leave your Mother.
His blood ran cold for a moment before shaking off the tentacle and running out of the cave's gaping maw at incredible speed.
* * *
"I keep telling you and you never listen."
"Shut up, Yin," Arek muttered to the Kel Dor trudging behind him, Natia, and Arila. The four of them were traversing the strange jungle planet they had somehow arrived on.
"Bad things always happen to us!" Zarn exclaimed. "We always get jinxed! We can't have a peaceful day to ourselves!"
"Especially if you keep yelling," Arila retorted, rubbing her large ears.
"Focus, guys," Arek snapped. "We have to find Commander Zanab and the others. They could've ended up anywhere on the planet."
"Speaking of, this place is giving me the creeps," Natia said. "I just saw that plant move."
"Ignore it and maybe it won't eat you."
They continued their trek, their path illuminated by the moonlight. None of them noticed it at first, but the jungle landscape was slowly starting to fade away. By the time they reached a shore, any hint of the jungle had vanished.
"Well, that's bizarre," Arila murmured.
"Yeah, jungles usually don't disappear like that," Arek said.
"That, too. But I was referring to the fact that you don't hear anything on this planet. No birds or bugs chirping, no wind howling, and ocean isn't even moving."
Arek frowned. "I have a--"
"Don't say it!" Zarn hissed. "You'll just make our predicament worse!"
"Oh, I highly doubt that's possible, children."
The four of them spun around to see a twisted figure standing rigidly before them. Humanoid and vaguely female, she had straw-like hair cascading down her back, kissing the ground. Her stubby arms extended no more than ten centimeters from her shoulders and ended in tentacle-like fingers. Her wicked grin crossed her mouth from ear-to-ear. Silver lights twinkled in empty, black eye sockets.
She was more than just something from a horror flick Arek recalled from his childhood. She was a horror flick unto herself.
While the troopers were too stricken with fear to speak, Natia said to the monstrosity, "Are you Mother?"
The entity bared its teeth-- sharp and crooked. "To some, yes. But you are not my children. You may call me... Abeloth."
A cold wind passed over the group as she spoke the name. A mist began to surround the twisted woman, giving her an ethereal aspect.
"I'm gonna call you dead if you don't tell us what's going on," Arek growled, drawing his blaster.
Abeloth let out a horrible laugh, sounding like nails scratching on steel. "Do you truly believe that you can harm me with that toy?"
She lashed out with a tentacle and snatched the blaster away. At the same time, a dark fog began to surround them.
"Naughty children deserve to be punished," Abeloth hissed. "Let Mother teach you your ways."
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