It took a long time to tell it all. Sitting in one of the meditation halls, we took turns giving brief retellings of our adventures. Throughout the entire account, not a single muscle on Mom's face twitched; only sometimes did she nod or ask leading questions. The only one who didn't take part in any of it was Hadiya. Sitting on a desk a little off to the side, she glanced from us to Mom, showing absolutely no signs of concern.
"Well, everything's clear with you," she said, indulgently closing her eyes as she shook her head. "But I'm proud of you. All of you. Well done. Even if you learned it the hard way, you learn fast—and you don't break up an already well-coordinated team."
"Thank you, Master," Vess bowed.
"Now then. About your little adventure—what do you need in the Old City?"
"This concerns Father."
"Riiight."
"Mom, hear me out!" I bristled immediately. Without that, arguing with her was impossible. "We have accurate information that the Starwatchers want to retrieve something from the Old City. We have a map and an approximate time when they'll start operating. And we also understand they'll throw everything they have into it. Before it's too late, we want to understand what exactly they need there."
"Hm…"
"And also, I still want to find out what Father was involved in."
"Right. I won't ask how you learned all this or where it came from. I won't ask what side of this you're on," she glanced at Hadiya. "I'll only ask: what exactly have you come up with in your plans?"
"Nothing yet. Gather reinforcements, Hadiya will send her guys, gear up, and then—together with you—develop a plan. The place is dangerous."
"I see," she exhaled with undisguised relief.
"Mom?"
"So here's how it is: it's all cancelled!" In time with her words, she tapped her nails on the table all at once.
"Huh?"
"What?"
"Arg?!"
"Quiet!" She slammed her palm on the table and pinned all of us down with the Force. "This is doomed to fail."
"But why?"
"Because it's all mined and littered with traps, Shade."
The astonishment hanging in the room could probably have been scooped up with a spoon. Even Hadiya lost her composure and blinked in confusion.
"More than ten years ago, a Je'daii pathfinder named Lanori Brok saw in her dreams how something devoured all of Tython—and then the entire star system. The council members didn't take it seriously back then, and it stayed that way until these days. About half a year ago, we learned that the Starwatchers Order managed to assemble a special ancient Gree artifact—of the first inhabitants of Tython—and using Maroniy somehow charged the artifact with dark matter."
"Hells…" I whispered, realizing what those geniuses—real geniuses and, at the same time, lunatics—had managed to do.
"This information was gathered from their activity at the Sunspot, because that's where the artifact was assembled. Where it is now is unknown—once we tried to locate it, all activity there shut down immediately."
"So that's why they delayed," Hadiya commented.
"What-what?"
"They recently pushed their plans back. Now it's clear why."
"Hm. In any case, they want to use that artifact on a device hidden in the Old City. According to legend, somewhere in the Old City there are Kwa hyperspace gates. Many tried to find them—nobody succeeded."
"So Dad did find them after all…"
"I thought the same. But it was already too late to do anything. Now, with new data… If the Starwatchers try to carry out their idea, it could create a black hole, and in that light Lanori's warning plays very differently. That's why we were tasked with finding the hypergates, but because of disturbances in the Force we couldn't find them. Instead, we set traps there and laid down signal contours. Even if someone survives, we'll know for sure about an intrusion into the ruins."
"Yeeah…" Closing my eyes, I rubbed the bridge of my nose.
Well, that's something. Good thing Mom was brought in. And now it's clear why she got so angry. If we'd gone in there, we wouldn't have gotten out—Mom's talent for making and hiding nasty surprises is something to trust one hundred percent. How many times she hid even the same candies from me—too many to count. And the fact that I found them didn't exactly comfort me.
"Hadiya, have you heard anything like this?" I asked.
"Not at all. We don't have any points on the Sunspot. Besides, I wasn't very interested in Tython's history—clan showdowns on Chikagu worried me a lot more."
"Yeah."
"All of this is in the Temple of Knowledge, Shade," Mom replied.
"Which we haven't reached yet. Somehow I didn't even think of it in that light."
"If you don't know something, go to the library," she smirked.
"Admitted. I'm an idiot."
"So everything's cancelled?" Ramiry looked from me to Mom.
"Hold on, Rami. Mom, tell me—doesn't this feel strange to you?"
"What exactly?"
"The Starwatchers may be fanatics, but they aren't idiots. They want to return to where our ancestors came from, not destroy our star system. Besides, those developments are older than I am. And Dad—by your words—was never a fool either. Which means they fully intend to pull it off for real."
"No, Shade. We are not going to the Old City. Period," she pressed me down with her gaze.
"And what does the Old City have to do with it? I'm not even talking about it!" I answered in kind, matching the pressure. "This uncertainty pisses me off. One person saw something, others are doing something, and third parties—operating off those two muddy facts—started cooking up their own mess. I want to know exactly what the hell is going on in this story! Precisely, clearly—and point by point! Why did Father get involved with the Starwatchers? Why did he leave us if he loved you? Why are the Starwatchers sacredly sure of their plan? And in general—maybe Lanori's vision wasn't for this reason at all, maybe some other disaster is nearby and we don't even know about it!" I was getting worked up. What kind of calm life can there be when passions like that are boiling around you?!
"And what do you propose?" Mom tapped her nails on the table again.
"Nothing yet. We need to think…"
"Excuse me…" Hadiya cut in. "Um… why not ask the Starwatchers themselves?"
"Hm?" We all turned at once.
"I have contacts, you have leverage," she looked first at Aala, then at me. "Besides, you're the son of the adventurer who got tangled up in this—you absolutely have the right to know the details. You, Aala, are his spouse, and you have every right to go up to Dalien and give him a little shake. Especially since you have something to press him with. And if that isn't enough, you can always talk like this," she joked, pressing a knife playfully to her own throat.
"Wait-wait. You said 'Dalien'? Dalien Brok?" Mom tensed.
"Yeah."
"But he's dead!"
"No, he just changed his name and address," Hadiya smirked. "And he changed it very successfully—I had to work very hard to find the people who changed that 'address' for him."
"Your acquaintance?" I glanced at Mom.
"He…" Mom reddened and clenched her fist, looking away. For a moment I even thought her eyes yellowed. "He studied under your father, Shade. A good man—kind, but a little lonely and beaten down. Something bad happened to him once; I don't know exactly what, but after that he became disillusioned with the Force and tried not to use it. It got to the point that Dalien renounced it. He had almost no friends, at least here on Tython. Saros replaced both a friend and a father for him. But… because of his beliefs about the Force, Dalien left the Order. And then there was an accident in which he died."
"Looks like he didn't," Hadiya shrugged.
"Are you sure?" Mom looked at Hadiya seriously.
"I'm ironclad sure. Dug like it was for myself."
Mom bit her lower lip…
"Ma, do you think Dad knew about his 'friend'?"
"Absolutely."
"Now that would be something—if Shade's father also helped found the cult," Feng smirked, but then realized under our looks what he'd just said and broke into a coughing fit.
"It can't be. Saros would never do that. And besides—he told me straight up about a find that would turn the world upside down. He didn't care about the cult; he was interested in the hypergates."
"Then let's ring Dalien and politely ask for a meeting. Mm?"
"I can help with that," Hadiya joined in. "There's no direct contact, of course, but indirectly I can get the message through. And then… it'll be news so big it'll—whew."
"Then it's like this," Mom said, tapping her nails on the table and looking at Hadiya. "Hadiya, arrange the meeting. Say it straight, as it is…"
"Aala…" Hadiya grimaced. "Don't doubt it—I will arrange the meeting. He won't be able not to show up for it. The only question is: who am I arranging it for?"
"Me and Shade."
"Good."
"Ar gru-uu?"
"And you—study," she pressed the others with her gaze.
"Ah…"
"Study!"
"Yes, Master," the humanoids replied out of sync.
"Right, we've dealt with that," she rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Hadiya."
"Hm?"
"Tell me please—how did someone like you end up in this group?"
"Simple!" Hadiya said. "Shade is my husband, so naturally I decided to come see him. And help, within my strength and means."
"Sorry—what did you just say?" Mom leaned forward. "Husband?"
"Yes."
"Shay-ee-e-ade?" Under that look, I shivered nervously, while the others, on the contrary, started smiling. Bastards. "Wasn't that story a farce?"
"It was, Mom. Totally."
"Then I don't understand…" She looked from me to Hadiya. Neither of us was lying, and the poor Togruta caught cognitive dissonance.
"Hadiya is just twisting the facts a bit, sacredly believing I'm her husband, when in fact I'm not."
"Yes, but only for now!"
"What love triangle?!"
"There is no triangle," Vess cut in. "I just have a problem, you know which one, Master. I pushed Shade about it and waited for the moment when he'd find a second on his own—I even thought I'd go looking for him myself, because this isn't right. And then Hadiya appeared. Well, I checked her, gave her a couple tips on how to build bridges with Shade, because he does like her, and in general she's a very serious ally from a purely practical point of view. So now I'm calm, Hadiya is happy because she has a future husband who even agreed, and Shade has me and her."
"(O_o)"
"Something like that."
After Vessira's matter-of-fact monologue, a suspicious Silence hung in the room. Exactly like that, with a capital letter. Both Mom and the others looked equally stunned. Mom, probably more—my lot had already more or less gotten used to the weirdness around me.
"Uh… two at once?" Zeng looked at Ramiry, and she showed him a fist.
"Grau-rar-grue."
"Agreed, Gris. Vess, is your 'feature' racial?" Feng asked businesslike.
"Yeah."
"Hm… And where do Cathar live?"
"Feng!"
"I just asked!" the Zabrak puffed in indignation.
"Well, I mean…" Mom looked from me to Vess scratching at the table with her nail, then to Hadiya—who was just Hadiya, as usual looking down on everyone. Well, except me.
"Is something wrong?" Hadiya tilted her head.
"No-no," Mom shook her head quickly, even her voice changed timbre. "On the contrary. I used to worry so much that Shade wasn't dating anyone, just comprehending the Force around the clock. Then Vessira appeared, and a weight fell off my soul. And now there are two of you," she brushed away a tear that had appeared. "I'm so happy… That's it. I can be calm about grandkids."
"Mom!"
"Well done, Shade. Just be careful from now on—either one of them could kill you," she said instructively, completely ignoring my outrage.
"Right, that's it, I'm leaving," I stood up from the table.
"Where?!"
"To settle in!" I shouted, heading out the door.
The others followed after me. The guys were smiling, Ramiry was embarrassed—though why should she care? Vess… she just didn't care, while Hadiya, on the other hand, was getting some pleasure out of all of it. Kriff, what a madhouse… Did I really land in "those very" Star Wars? Because something is gnawing at me with doubts.
Meanwhile, Mom took us to the Temple Master, and there we parted ways. She went off on her business, and one of the local masters / scientists / science maniacs—pick the correct one—met us and gave us a tour of Enil Kesh itself.
Unlike the other temples, Enil Kesh is the hardest to classify as one. In essence, it wasn't even a temple—it was one huge laboratory. And it stands, kriffing hell, over a massive, deep abyss that literally has no bottom. Or at least, nobody's found it. However, in the depths of that abyss lies one of the most powerful sources of the dark side on the planet. Which, just as an aside, nobody's been able to reach—and they can't even get close, the background is so strong it blows your brains out completely. And the pinnacle of this absurdity is three not-very-reassuring "legs" the laboratory is fastened to. And this is, blast it, on Tython. Where storms, earthquakes, hurricanes are an everyday thing. SHOW me the GENIUS who decided to build one of the temples HERE?!
"Shade, are you okay?" Vess asked with concern when I stood by the railing and stared down.
"No… I'm not okay, Vess. I'm very, very not okay. I'm seriously thinking about writing a dissertation on the effect of the Force on the human mind. Otherwise I can't explain the location of this particular temple."
"And what's wrong?" Vess came closer and looked down too.
"That's exactly what I'm talking about," I stepped away from the edge and shivered. Goosebumps ran a timed sprint down my spine, and my hands were sweating hard. Strange, but for a moment some very unpleasant visions visited me—I even shook myself. And it's definitely not the Force. "Well, kriff. No—let's finish our business here fast and get out."
"Mmm…"
I shouldn't have looked down, and I shouldn't have gone outside at all. Now I flinch at any scraping sound and keep listening to the floor. And the laboratory is actually small compared to the other temples. Together with guests, up to a thousand sentients can be here at once, but as the master giving our tour said, there have never been more than seven hundred souls here at one time. I understand everyone who tries to get the kriff out of here.
And yet Enil Kesh has the most advanced equipment in the system—and even beyond it—plus special alchemical labs. Looking at all that, and at the little monsters one level below, it became clear where the roots of future dark side adepts' alchemy come from. Notably, to work in that field, a Je'daii mostly has to break balance toward the dark side. At least, according to the local alchemists, that's where the tastiest perks were.
Though the only thing that grabbed me in alchemy was brewing strengthening solutions. Turns out half our healing tinctures and salves are produced through alchemy. There are also solutions for strengthening metals. Otherwise, I watched it with a kind of disgust. I didn't like the idea of attaching wings to a rancor. Or an extra pair of legs. A second row of fangs. Or scales. Separate question where they even got a rancor here, but whatever.*
On the other hand, research was being done here on pretty much everything—just a little bit of each. Techniques, weapons, medicine; there was even a department for shipbuilding and energy. There was everything except… the Force. The Force wasn't studied here as a main subject. It was an add-on to everything listed above, like a bonus.
After we'd moved from one lab segment to another and gotten a tour of what they did here, we were politely asked whether any of us had taken an interest in any topic. The only one interested was Gris, but he was more into studying what was already invented than inventing something new, and that was Vur Tepe's area. The master nodded disappointedly and complained about how few young people go into science these days. Somehow it feels like the issue here isn't science at all.
And once the tour was over, I went to pester the weaponsmiths. The moment I said "lightsaber," the learned men and women tapped their temples and asked me to leave. Yeah, sure. Like I was going to. Until those geniuses of lasguns and lead gave me the theory of how laser weapons work with all accompanying documentation, I kept chewing their brains out with questions.
By the second day everyone agreed it was easier to hand me what I wanted than to keep sending me away. So they handed it over. And I was even satisfied! All that was left was understanding what "coherent," "monochromatic," and "polarized" flow energy of radiation meant. I went to the physicists. The moment they saw my mug, they tried explaining that abracadabra their colleagues had given me, using their fingers. I felt like a monkey that had decided to bother people for no reason, because at the words "correlation of several oscillatory or wave processes in time," my brain threw a blue screen and my eyes went empty.
My counterparts understood it too, sighed mournfully, and tried to explain it even simpler. On the third attempt, I gave up myself, but then my brains were basically leaking out of my ears. Taking a break and wolfing down a Sweet Joy bar, which Hadiya's idiots had brought, I decided to go from the opposite direction and returned to the weaponsmiths. They immediately redirected me into the mouth of a volcano. Meaning, to Vur Tepe, which stands on the mouth of a volcano. Well… they know better where to send me, so let's go.
Meanwhile, Hadiya did manage to contact the Starwatchers and arrange a meeting. And, surprisingly, directly with Dalien himself. He wasn't opposed to talking to his teacher's spouse and his teacher's son, even without any extra incentives or conditions. The only thing was that we had to leave Tython and arrive at Nox, where a different ship would pick us up. So I still have five days on Tython to distract the locals from their work—and then I'll have to fly out for the meeting.
But I'd already learned that nothing in my life goes smoothly, and now was no different.
Knock-knock-knock.
"Come in, Hadiya," I replied without opening my eyes. I was trying to keep the habit of always monitoring the surroundings.
"Shade, hi," a light-blue—almost slightly grayish—figure slipped in through the half-open door. And with her came the scent of a very tasty drink. "Meditating?"
"Not anymore," I cracked one eye, looking at that miracle. "Did something happen?"
"Not exactly," she handed me the drink. Mmm, delicious. "I just thought: if you're leaving, and I have nothing to do with you at the meeting, then I'm not going to sit here bored without you either. So while you'll be running around there, I'm going back to Chikagu. I'll personally check on things and tidy everything up—everyone's gotten way too relaxed in my absence."
"That's right. That kind of crowd needs to be kept running," I nodded and took a sip.
"Mm-hm. And I'm leaving tomorrow."
"That fast?"
"Why drag it out?"
"Yeah."
"And… be careful, all right?"
"Absolutely," I said, and got a skeptical once-over. "Honestly!"
"Sure. And don't forget to call. Or at least don't forget to give me your number if you switch comms again!" She grabbed me by the chest and shook me a little.
Laughing and sending the glass to levitate onto the table, I grabbed her, sat her on my lap, and started tickling her. Hadiya tried to kick, break free, threaten, but an unrepentant tormentor and emotional addict had no time for mercy—he was enjoying himself. Kriff… if her father could see her now, he'd clutch his heart. Around him, Hadiya never shows weakness. And in public, she tries to be жестокая—but her public is such that… well. It's clear.
"And what are you two do-o-o-ing in here?" Vess peeked in. Must have sensed my happiness.
"Playing. Want to join? We can make it three."
"Shade!!!"
"I meant hanging out. Everything's decent. What did you think I meant?" I glanced at Hadiya, but she blushed first, then squinted and reached toward her knife.
"Pity. I'd be totally in," Vess winked. And I still couldn't tell whether she was playing along or serious.
"Mine!" Hadiya hugged me and pressed me to her chest, completely forgetting about the weapon. "And you—go on, off you go, and close the door. You'll talk tomorrow, after I fly out," Hadiya waved her hand in a "shoo-shoo" motion.
"You're flying out?" Vess tilted her head.
"Yeah. The crown sadly won't fall into my hands by itself."
"You really need that crown?" Vess crossed her arms and leaned on the doorframe. "You really want power that badly?"
"I want order, Vessira. And for my word to be law, because I'm sick of it!"
"What a delight… A skirted tyrant," I spread into an affectionate grin. Though Hadiya doesn't wear skirts—always pants.
"But!" the young tyrant in my arms continued, "To answer your next question in advance: power for the sake of power is nonsense. I understand perfectly that those with enormous power are, in a sense, its hostages. You have to use that force properly—otherwise it will destroy you. My father, because of his position, completely forgot about a personal life, switching between me, the clan, and business."
"And you want the same?" Vess raised an eyebrow.
"Of course not! I have subordinates and deputies for that. And thanks to Shade, I'm more or less confident in them."
"And if those 'trusted people' let you down? Or betray you?"
"Then they'll regret it. Two especially crafty ones tried to get close to me—now their mutilated bodies stand as stuffed warnings to the others."
Vess's face stretched and her mouth fell open.
"But you know how quiet it got? Real idyll. Still, my power isn't held by fear alone. I may be жестока, but I'm fair—and I know how to reward. So in my collective there are those who are sincerely devoted to me and will tear apart anyone I point at."
"Hadiya… you're a terrifying woman."
"That's why even assassins are wary of taking contracts on me. That's a sign."
"True enough."
"Something wrong?" she blinked innocently.
"Nothing… I'm just looking at your closet full of skeletons and can't for the life of me figure out how you can sit this carefree on his lap."
"I can. Because Shade is mine," she petted me. And I didn't care at all—we closed our eyes, smiled, and—having nudged our face a little—meditated. Yes, yes. Meditated.
"Yeah… All right, why I came. Hadiya, sorry, but Shade's being called."
"Who? Where?!" I protested sincerely, because I didn't want to move even a little. It was too good.
"Master Aala."
"Uh… and why?"
"I don't know, but it's urgent."
"Aaall right," lifting Hadiya off my lap with the Force, I stood up from the cushion. "Where, at least?"
"At the Temple Master's."
"Looks like I'll only see peace in a coffin."
"No coffin for you—only a pyre," Vessira winked.
"Even better."
***
Read the story months ahead of the public release — early chapters are available on my Patreon: patreon.com/Granulan