“The cave,” said Vestara, peering at the tracking device. Sweat beaded her face, and tendrils of dark hair clung clammily to her cheeks and neck. They were all baking in the blue sunlight. Under other circumstances, Luke suspected that the Sith would waste the Force by creating cool breezes and lowering their body temperature. But not now, not here. There was no place for trivialities here. There were twenty of them who had fought their way through the voracious plant life lurking on the shores and in the red river itself.

Twenty of them left, anyway. The yellow water plants and the funnel-shaped trees claimed two Sith before they were finally beaten back. Blasted with Force energy, sliced by lightsabers of three different hues, and cut by glass parangs, the damaged foliage hung back almost sullenly as the group stood at the base of the cliff.

“It seems too obvious,” Taalon said. He frowned as he regarded the small dark shape about a kilometer up the shoulder of the volcanic mountain. “Even if Abeloth is unaware that we placed a tracking device on Dyon, which I doubt, she knows that this is the place Vestara first encountered her. Why would she wait here to be attacked?”

“It could be more of a stronghold than Vestara realized,” Luke said. His voice was doubtful. “This could be her ultimate seat of power, somehow.” To Luke, this whole place reeked of the dark side. It was strong where the cave was, to be sure, but there were other places on this world where dark-side energy gathered just as strongly—even more so. “Or there could be a nice little trap waiting for us, which seems more likely.”

“A trap is only a trap if it takes one by surprise,” Gavar Khai said. “Otherwise, it is merely an obstacle to be overcome.”

“On that, at least, we are agreed. Let’s find out which.”

They moved quickly despite the heat up the trail to the entrance to the cave, weapons in hand, senses alert.

It was no trap. It was no attack. Abeloth was not here, but her cat’s-paw was.

Dyon lay on the floor of the cave, his face and arms pale and visible even in the dim lighting. A quick check, both with conventional tools and in the Force, revealed that he was alone, and Ben raced up to him.

“He’s still alive,” Ben said, “But only just.”

Dyon opened his eyes. Luke expected him to struggle, but instead he reached out and clasped Ben’s shoulder.

“Ben … so sorry …”

Ben and Luke exchanged glances. “You know me? You don’t think I’m an imposter?”

“She—she’s not what she seems,” Dyon gasped. “She tricked me. You still seem—seem wrong to me but I know that’s her influence. She tried to kill me. She sensed you coming and left me for dead.”

“Let her fear us,” Taalon said. “Hundreds of Sith, powerful in the Force, come to take her down. She should know fear.”

“I believe that she left, but not because she was afraid,” Luke said. He and Ben helped Dyon to his feet. Color was starting to return to his face. “You all right?”

“I am now. Good timing,” he said, and gave Luke a weak grin. “She tried to—to drain my life energy somehow.”

“Looks like once the contact is broken you’re all right,” Ben said. “Good thing to know if she tries that kind of attack on us.” He smiled at Dyon, who seemed to grow stronger by the minute.

“Where did she go?” Luke asked.

Dyon pointed to the back of the cave. In the red glow of several lit lightsabers, everyone could easily see the mouth of a tunnel that opened onto utter blackness.

“There,” Dyon said.

“Do you know where this tunnel leads?”

“I haven’t the faintest idea.”

Luke turned to the others. “I think she went through here to better her attack position, and it was a smart move. There could be all kinds of traps or dangers in that tunnel. She’ll certainly be waiting to pounce the second we emerge on the other end.”

“I cannot sense her in the Force,” Taalon said, and the admission clearly pained him. “Now that Dyon is no longer with her, I think that this is, unfortunately, our only option.”

Unease rippled through those assembled. Vestara took a step closer to her father, who reached out to squeeze her shoulder briefly. It was, Luke mused, likely certain death. Abeloth held every advantage now. But if they were slain, or taken, there were at least several hundred other Sith who would come. It was not an even fight, but it was a fairer one than he had had any right to expect.

“I think so, too,” Luke said. “Ben and I can go first, and if it’s safe, we can let the rest of you know.”

Taalon flushed, his lavender cheeks turning dark purple. “Are you calling us cowards, Master Skywalker?”

“No,” Luke said. “You’re the one who used that term.”

“I am not afraid, nor is anyone else here,” Taalon growled.

“Then you’re an idiot,” Luke said. “You should be afraid. Lack of fear makes one careless, and being careless here will get you killed.” He gave Dyon a comlink. “You stay here.”

“I’d like to come with you,” Dyon said.

“You’ve already helped a great deal,” Luke said. “But I need someone here I can trust if this backfires and she comes back this way. Taalon, pick some of your people to stay here and give Dyon some backup support.”

Taalon’s eyes narrowed. Luke knew he was pushing the Keshiri by continuing to angle for control of the situation, but he also knew that showing anything that could be perceived as weakness to this Sith would be fatal. Luke was significant, in some way, to Abeloth, although that thought disgusted him. Taalon knew it. He might dislike Luke, might take joy in attacking him, but he would not until his own purposes had been achieved.

“It is wise to cover all avenues of her possible escape,” Taalon said, instead of what he no doubt wished to say, and nodded to two others. “Let us know if you see anything out of the ordinary here,” he told them, then turned back to Luke. He offered a completely false smile.

“Let us go to Abeloth then, Master Skywalker. And since this is again your plan …” He left the sentence unfinished, instead extending a hand mockingly toward the yawning black mouth of the tunnel.

Luke did not put walking through a dark, tight tunnel with several Sith behind him at the top of his list of highlights of his life, but it was not as bad as he had feared.

The tunnel was clearly artificial. It was almost a perfect circle, and was wide enough to permit everyone to walk erect, even to have some freedom of movement. It went slightly downward at first, leading them through the mountain. Roots, powerful on this world, had forced their way through the sheer stone in clumps, slicked with some kind of ooze that dissolved the corpses of the small animals clutched in their grip. Abeloth apparently had not had time to rig any elaborate traps for them. Nor did the tunnel suddenly abruptly collapse. The greatest threat came from the occasional root that came to life, pushing through the top of the packed soil passageway attempting to wrap around a throat, or from the bottom to seize an ankle. The ooze was not acidic, although it was likely toxic, and there were no injuries. The roots were quickly repelled with the glass parangs each Sith appeared to carry, or a quick, precise lightsaber stroke.

“It seems our luck is holding,” Gavar Khai said.

“For now,” Luke cautioned. He and Ben led the way, with Taalon, Vestara, and Khai behind them. “She may simply be conserving her strength.”

“For a Jedi, who is supposed to be so positive, you are quite the pessimist,” Khai said. Confidence radiated from him. Luke mentally shook his head. Khai was strong in the Force, as was his offspring. He was, Luke was certain, well trained in combat. But there was a naïveté about these Sith that confounded him. As if they were at once ancient and new. He hoped he’d live long enough to get to the bottom of it.

“A realist, Khai. I’ve seen quite a lot in my life. I know to expect the unexpected. Your Sith underestimated Abeloth once before. How many did you lose last time, Taalon?”

The Sith High Lord did not reply. The tension increased, and the rest of the way through the tunnel was spent in a silence that was broken only by the sound of errant roots being slashed.

Finally, Luke halted. “Extinguish lightsabers,” he said.

“What?” exclaimed Taalon.

“Just do it,” he said. There was some muttering, but one by one, the red lights went out.

And up ahead, they could all see the bright blue smudge of light that showed the end of the tunnel.

Luke extended his thoughts in the Force, but again, could sense nothing. He frowned, perplexed. He had no doubt that Abeloth knew exactly where they were. If she could reach his consciousness aboard the Jade Shadow in his sleep—a thought that still turned his stomach—surely she would know how to find them here, where her power was the strongest. He couldn’t imagine she wouldn’t be out there waiting for them, ready to pounce.

“Activate lightsabers,” Luke said. “And be ready for anything.”

There were several sounds of the snap-hiss of the lightsabers in the underground corridor that was no doubt about to deliver them right into Abeloth’s hands—or tentacles. He held the lightsaber in his right hand and counted down: “three, two, one.”

And then they rushed forward into the blue light of day.

Into the empty ruin of an old courtyard, overgrown with vines, tree ferns, and other plants. It was contained by steep walls on all sides. Pillars jutted up, blue-green with moss. In the center of the courtyard was the basin of a fountain. The sound of its bubbling floated to them on the still, hot air that stank of sulfur. And from the fountain, buffeting him in the Force as the sulfur was assaulting his physical senses, rose dark side energy.

Luke knew the place at once. He had been here, Beyond Shadows. This was where he had seen Abeloth for the first time. Had seen her grotesque face in the dark cloud formed by the sulfur, had felt her tentacles wrapping around his leg, trying to wriggle their cold way inside of him. Whispering his name.

Luke, it had said.

Come.

He had refused her then. Mara had warned him not to continue pursuing her.

He couldn’t see her, couldn’t feel her, but he knew she had to be here.

“Abeloth,” he called. “Abeloth, I’m here.”

“So am I.”

Luke whirled. As he turned to face her, out of the corner of his eye he saw his companions all stiffen suddenly, expressions of stark terror on their faces. But he had no time for them, not when she had finally appeared.

Standing before him was not the monstrous, hideous form he had seen Beyond Shadows. No being with long, strawlike blond hair, tiny eyes like deep-set stars, a too-wide mouth and arms that ended in writhing tentacles. No, this being did not present that form to his eyes.

She was tall, true, but looked human. She had long, curly dark hair, thick and heavy. Her eyes were gray, and crinkled in a smile. And then she shifted again, the hair shortening, becoming straight, the color of honey, the eyes turning a slightly silvery shade of gray.

“Luke,” she said, stepping forward. Her eyes were bright with tears, and the arms that she extended to him trembled. “You’ve come for me. You’ve finally come for me. I knew you would. All this time, I had faith.”

For the second time that day, Luke was sent reeling in shock. He stared at Abeloth, at this being that had done so much harm to so many. Who had driven young Jedi mad, who had taken so many lives. This ancient, evil being of whom even Mara Jade was afraid.

And he knew her.

He suddenly, sickly understood why it was she had been able to touch him so profoundly, so tenderly, aboard the Jade Shadow. Why it had been so easy for him to confuse that contact, which should have been so reprehensible, with that of the loving touch of his mate.

Because he had once loved her with his whole heart and being. Loved her more than anything in the universe. Had once intended to breathe his last breath in her arms.

“Callista,” he whispered.