Rain slipped through the canopy in cold, scattered drops.
For several minutes, none of the Jedi moved.
They remained where they had collapsed among the roots and wet earth, listening as the distant ruin continued to tear itself apart. Each new impact rolled through the forest like fading thunder.
Khan sat beside Kit with two fingers pressed against the Nautolan's neck.
The pulse remained steady.
Weak, but steady.
He lowered his hand and released a breath he had not realized he was holding.
A few meters away, Aayla rested on one knee. One hand remained pressed against her ribs while the other supported her against the trunk of a tree. Rainwater ran over the blood along the side of her face, thinning it into red trails across her cheek.
Coleman had positioned Yarael against another tree. The long-necked Jedi Master's eyes were closed, his breathing shallow as he attempted to gather himself through the Force.
It did not appear to be helping.
The darkness of the planet still surrounded them.
It was weaker here than within the ruins, but it remained present—an unrelenting pressure against their senses that made even the simplest connection to the Force feel distant.
Coleman finished examining Yarael before turning toward the others.
"We cannot remain here."
Aayla raised her head.
"No disagreement from me."
Her attempt at lightness carried little strength.
Khan looked through the trees toward where the ruin had disappeared behind dust and vegetation.
They could no longer see the ancient structure.
He could still feel it.
Not the ruin itself.
Something within it.
The presence had receded, but it had not vanished.
Coleman noticed where Khan was looking.
"Can you still hear him?"
Khan remained silent for a moment.
"No."
Aayla watched him carefully.
"But?"
Khan's eyes stayed on the forest.
"I can still feel something."
The rain struck the leaves above them.
Coleman exchanged a brief look with Yarael.
The weakened Master opened his eyes.
"Is it attempting to reach you?"
"Not like before."
"Then do not search for it," Yarael said. "The connection has already proven dangerous."
Khan looked toward him.
"I wasn't searching."
Yarael inclined his head.
He accepted the answer, though the concern did not leave his expression.
Khan looked down at his right hand.
He remembered the lightsaber leaving it.
The chains breaking.
The suspended prison falling.
He remembered every movement, yet none of it had felt like his own decision.
For one fraction of a second, something had reached through him.
Something had found the darkness he carried and used it as an open passage.
His fingers curled into his palm.
Aayla's voice broke the silence.
"What do we do?"
Coleman stood slowly.
The movement revealed more of his injuries than his expression did. One side of his robes was torn, and dried blood darkened the skin along his brow. His left arm remained held slightly closer to his body than the right.
Despite it, his voice remained firm.
"We return to the ships."
"And then?" Khan asked.
"We attempt to contact the Council."
Khan glanced toward the storm.
Blue and violet lightning flashed beyond the canopy, followed by a low rumble that seemed to pass through the earth itself.
"You think a transmission will get through that?"
"No," Coleman said. "But we make the attempt."
Khan looked back in the direction of the ruins.
"We still have almost nothing to report."
"We have enough."
Coleman's answer came without hesitation.
"We discovered a structure built to contain an ancient Sith. We released him, and another Sith was concealed within the ruins."
His expression hardened.
"That confirms there may be others on this planet."
Yarael slowly raised his head.
"And the coordinates recovered after the events on Tatooine led us here."
The group fell silent.
The children on Tatooine had been saved before they could be taken from the planet. The Jedi had followed the only destination left within the kidnappers' erased navigation records.
They had come here to discover why.
So far, the planet had provided no answer.
Only more questions.
Khan looked in the direction of the ruins.
"We still don't know why they intended to come here."
"No," Coleman said. "And in our current condition, we are unlikely to discover it."
Khan's jaw tightened.
He knew the Council Master was right.
That did not make withdrawing any easier.
Yarael spoke from where he rested.
"Answers have little value if none survive to deliver them."
Khan looked toward him.
"We return to the ships," Yarael continued. "We send what warning we can. If communication is impossible, we leave and report directly to the Council."
"And if the ships cannot fly?" Aayla asked.
Coleman looked toward the storm.
"Then we solve one problem at a time."
Another distant crash echoed from the direction of the ruins.
The forest answered.
Low calls moved between the trees. Branches shifted high above them as creatures disturbed by the collapse began returning to the area.
Coleman reached for Yarael.
"We move now."
Khan slid one arm beneath Kit's shoulders and the other beneath his legs.
Pain immediately pulled through his chest.
He ignored it and lifted.
Kit's body hung limp in his arms.
Aayla pushed away from the tree.
Her first step nearly sent her back to the ground.
Khan turned toward her.
"You shouldn't be walking."
"And you shouldn't be carrying him alone."
"He's unconscious."
"I noticed."
Despite the pain in her voice, she moved closer and reached for Kit's arm.
Khan shifted away.
"You can barely stand."
"I can still take some of his weight."
"And if your legs give out?"
Aayla looked down briefly.
"I don't want to slow everyone down."
The admission held no irritation.
Only frustration with herself.
Khan's expression softened, though his answer did not change.
"You'll slow us down more if you make your injuries worse."
Aayla looked as though she wanted to object.
Coleman stepped between them before she could.
"Aayla walks on her own for as long as she is able. Khan carries Kit. I will help Master Poof."
Yarael opened his eyes fully.
"I am capable of walking."
"You were thrown into a wall by an ancient Sith."
"A distinction I had not forgotten."
Coleman offered him an arm anyway.
After a moment, Yarael accepted it.
They formed around the wounded.
Coleman moved near the front with Yarael beside him. Aayla remained behind them, one hand close to her lightsaber. Khan followed while carrying Kit, keeping enough distance that falling debris or an ambush would not catch the entire group together.
No one spoke as they began their return through the forest.
The journey toward the ruins had been marked by unnatural silence.
The journey away was different.
Life had returned around them.
It moved through the canopy in restless waves.
Small creatures scattered beneath roots as the Jedi approached. Winged shapes passed between the branches. Distant cries echoed from directions they could not identify.
None of it was comforting.
The forest no longer felt empty.
It felt watchful.
Khan adjusted Kit's weight against his chest.
Each step pulled at his injured shoulder. The ground was uneven, covered by roots and vegetation made slick beneath the rain. With the Force offering little guidance, he had to watch every step to avoid losing his balance.
Ahead of him, Aayla stumbled.
She caught herself against a tree before she fell.
Coleman glanced back.
"I can continue," she said quickly.
No one challenged her.
They all understood why she had answered before anyone could ask.
They continued.
For some time, the only sounds came from the storm and their movement through the undergrowth.
Then Yarael stopped.
Coleman immediately raised his free hand.
The others froze.
"What is it?" Aayla whispered.
Yarael's eyes moved toward the trees on their right.
"We are being followed."
Khan slowly lowered Kit until the Nautolan rested against the base of a broad tree.
His hand went to his lightsaber.
"How many?"
Yarael closed his eyes.
The muscles along his face tightened.
"I cannot tell."
The forest shifted around them.
A vine hanging from one of the trees moved against the wind.
Then another.
Aayla drew her lightsaber but did not ignite it.
Coleman carefully guided Yarael beside Kit.
"Stay close to him."
"I am not helpless."
"No," Coleman said. "But you are injured."
Yarael did not argue further.
Coleman stepped forward.
Khan moved to the opposite side of the group.
Their lightsabers ignited at the same moment.
Blue and green light spread across the rain-darkened forest.
Nothing attacked.
For several seconds, there was only movement beyond the reach of the blades.
A branch bent.
Leaves trembled.
Something large passed between two trees without revealing its shape.
Khan kept his breathing controlled.
The Force gave him fragments.
Movement.
Hunger.
A sudden burst of intent—
"Above!"
Coleman turned.
A large feline creature dropped from the canopy.
Its body had blended almost perfectly with the hanging vines, green and brown patterns shifting across its hide as it descended toward Aayla.
Khan moved before she could raise her weapon.
He crossed the distance and struck upward.
The blue blade cut through one of the creature's forelimbs.
It twisted in the air with a shriek and crashed beside Aayla.
She ignited her lightsaber and drove the green blade through its chest before it could rise.
Another creature burst from the vegetation behind Khan.
Coleman intercepted it.
His blade swept once.
The animal's body struck the ground in two pieces.
More shapes shifted among the trees.
At least three.
Perhaps more.
Coleman raised his lightsaber, placing himself between them and the wounded Jedi.
Khan stepped beside him.
The hidden predators did not advance.
Their bodies moved through the vines, testing the edge of the light.
They had expected weakness.
They had found resistance.
A low growl moved between the trees.
Then one shape retreated.
Another followed.
The forest slowly swallowed them again.
Coleman did not lower his weapon.
"They're still nearby."
"They'll wait for another opportunity," Khan said.
"Then we do not give them one."
Khan returned to Kit.
Lifting him a second time was harder.
His arms trembled beneath the Nautolan's weight, and pain spread from his shoulder into his neck.
Aayla stepped toward him.
"Let me help."
Khan looked at the blood running along her side.
"No."
"I'm not trying to prove anything."
"I know."
"Then let me take some of the weight."
Khan studied her for a moment.
Her legs were unsteady. One arm remained pressed against her ribs, and the other trembled from the effort of merely holding her lightsaber.
"You are helping by staying on your feet."
Aayla looked away.
Khan shifted Kit higher against his chest.
"We need you able to move if they attack again."
That gave her a reason to stop arguing.
She nodded and resumed her position.
The creatures continued following.
Occasionally, Khan caught sight of a pair of reflective eyes between the leaves. Each time, they vanished before he could focus on them.
No second attack came.
The predators seemed content to wait for one of the Jedi to fall behind.
Hours might have passed.
The storm made it impossible to judge.
The clouds never changed, and the forest remained caught beneath the same dim, violent light. Rain came and went in sudden bursts. Lightning illuminated the trees in sharp flashes before darkness closed over them again.
Coleman attempted his communicator twice.
Both times, only static answered.
On the third attempt, the device emitted a high burst of distortion and shut itself off.
He returned it to his belt.
"The ships may have enough power to transmit through the storm," Aayla said.
"Perhaps," Coleman replied.
The lack of confidence in his voice said more than the word.
Khan shifted Kit again.
The Nautolan made a faint sound.
Khan stopped.
"Kit?"
There was no answer.
But his breathing changed.
Aayla moved closer.
"Is he waking?"
"I don't know."
Kit's eyes remained closed.
Khan continued forward.
At last, the trees began to thin.
The familiar clearing appeared beyond them.
Relief moved through the group.
It lasted only seconds.
Coleman stopped at the edge of the tree line.
The others gathered behind him.
The starfighters had been torn apart.
One rested at an angle where part of its landing gear had collapsed. Long claw marks ran across the cockpit, deep enough to expose wiring beneath the hull. The transparisteel canopy had been shattered, and rainwater had collected inside the seat.
The second fighter had suffered worse.
Part of its engine housing had been ripped open. Metal plating lay scattered across the clearing, bent and covered in tooth marks. One wing had been pulled low enough that its edge rested against the mud.
Aayla stared at them.
"What did that?"
A heavy call echoed somewhere beyond the clearing.
Khan looked back toward the forest.
"Something that didn't like them being here."
Coleman moved cautiously into the open.
The predators following them did not emerge from the trees.
The T-6 remained where they had left it.
At first glance, it appeared intact.
Then lightning flashed overhead.
The damage became visible.
Claw marks covered the lower hull. One of the landing struts had been bent inward, leaving the ship tilted slightly to one side. A section of plating near the rear engine had been torn away.
Aayla limped toward it.
Khan carried Kit after her while Coleman helped Yarael across the clearing.
Aayla placed one hand against the damaged engine housing.
She examined the exposed components through the rain.
Coleman looked toward the fighters.
"Can either of them fly?"
Aayla glanced back.
"No."
The certainty of the answer silenced them.
She turned toward the T-6 and continued examining it.
Khan lowered Kit carefully near the boarding ramp.
"What about this one?"
Aayla followed the damage along the hull.
"The frame is intact. The main engine housing took damage, and the landing strut will make takeoff difficult."
"Difficult or impossible?"
"I won't know until I get inside."
She looked up at the storm.
"But I wouldn't attempt to leave the atmosphere like this."
Coleman approached the ramp controls.
The exterior panel flickered when he activated it.
For one terrible moment, nothing happened.
Then the ramp lowered with a strained mechanical groan.
Dim emergency lights came to life inside.
The Jedi moved quickly.
Khan carried Kit into the central cabin and placed him across one of the benches. Coleman helped Yarael into the seat opposite him.
The interior of the ship was cold, but it was dry.
For the first time since entering the ruins, solid walls surrounded them.
Aayla sealed the ramp.
The sounds of the storm became distant against the hull.
No one called the ship safe.
But for the moment, it was shelter.
Coleman moved toward the medical storage compartment.
"Khan, help me with Kit."
Aayla headed toward the cockpit.
"I'll check the systems."
"You should sit down," Khan said.
She did not turn.
"The others are in worse condition."
"That does not mean you are uninjured."
"I can still do something."
Aayla reached the cockpit entrance.
Her hand missed the frame on the first attempt.
She caught it on the second and remained there, breathing through the pain.
Khan crossed the cabin and placed a hand against her uninjured shoulder.
"You are not a burden."
Aayla's gaze remained lowered.
"I know."
The answer came too quickly.
Khan waited.
She released a quiet breath.
"I don't want everyone else doing more because I can't."
"You made it back here on cracked ribs."
"So did you."
"And now you sit down before you collapse."
Aayla glanced toward Kit.
"He needs treatment first."
"He will get it."
Coleman stepped past them with the medical kit.
"Aayla, sit."
There was no impatience in the command.
Only concern.
After a moment, she obeyed.
Khan returned to Kit.
The scanner flickered as it passed over the Nautolan's head and chest. Several warning indicators appeared across the display.
Aayla leaned forward from her seat.
"What does it say?"
"Concussion. Two cracked ribs. Heavy bruising along his spine."
"Internal bleeding?"
Khan ran the scanner again.
"Nothing severe enough for it to detect."
"That is not the same as none."
"I know."
He applied a bacta patch along the worst injury near Kit's temple, then secured a support wrap around his ribs.
Kit shifted slightly but did not wake.
Across the cabin, Coleman treated Yarael's injuries.
The Jedi Master's robes had been pulled aside to reveal dark bruising across his chest and shoulder. His long neck remained stiff from where the ancient Sith had seized him.
Yarael endured the treatment in silence.
Once Kit was stable, Khan carried the scanner toward Aayla.
She began reaching for it.
"I can do that."
Khan held it away from her.
"You cannot see the side of your own head."
"I can manage the rest."
"You could."
He knelt in front of her.
"But you don't need to."
Aayla slowly lowered her hand.
Khan passed the scanner over her injuries.
"Three cracked ribs," he said. "Possibly four."
"I've had worse."
"You have a concussion."
"I've had that too."
"And your shoulder is partially dislocated."
Aayla glanced down at it.
"That explains the arm."
Khan looked at her.
She offered a tired smile.
It disappeared when he took hold of her shoulder.
"This will hurt."
"I assumed."
Coleman looked over.
"Hold still."
Khan repositioned the joint.
Aayla bit down on a cry and struck the side of the seat with her fist. Her lekku tightened behind her shoulders as the joint shifted back into place.
When it was done, she remained bent forward, breathing through clenched teeth.
Khan secured her arm against her body.
"You're not repairing anything until you've rested."
"We may not have time."
"We will have even less if you pass out inside the engine housing."
Aayla did not argue.
Coleman finished treating Yarael and moved to the cockpit.
The main console activated beneath emergency power.
Several systems flickered on and immediately failed.
A burst of static filled the cabin.
Coleman adjusted the communications controls.
"This is Jedi transport Aurek-Seven requesting emergency contact with Coruscant."
Static answered.
He changed frequencies.
"This is Jedi Master Coleman Trebor. Any Republic vessel receiving this transmission, respond."
Nothing.
Only the storm.
Aayla accessed a secondary panel from her seat.
"The communications array is damaged."
"Can it be repaired?" Coleman asked.
"Possibly. The storm is interfering with everything, but the array isn't drawing enough power to compensate."
Coleman checked the engine display.
The results were no better.
One primary engine showed severe damage. The second remained functional but unstable. The hyperdrive registered as intact, though it could not be used unless they first escaped the planet's gravity.
The emergency beacon activated.
Its signal vanished almost immediately.
Coleman shut the console down before it wasted more power.
"We cannot transmit."
Khan looked toward the sealed hatch.
"And we cannot leave."
"Not yet," Aayla said.
"How long to repair it?"
She studied the system reports.
"With proper equipment and no injuries? Several hours."
"And as we are?"
Aayla did not answer.
Coleman did.
"We rest first."
Khan turned toward him.
"Every hour we remain here gives that Sith time to leave the ruins."
"And where will he go?" Coleman asked.
"We don't know."
"Exactly."
Khan rose.
"There may be more Sith on this planet. They could know why those coordinates were stored aboard the kidnappers' ship."
"And pursuing them in our current condition would give us no opportunity to learn it," Coleman said. "They would finish what the warrior began."
The words stopped Khan.
Coleman stepped away from the cockpit.
His exhaustion was visible now that the immediate crisis had passed.
"We have one unconscious Knight, another who can barely stand, and a Master whose connection to the Force was directly attacked. You and I are the only ones currently capable of defending this ship."
"That is why one of us should remain awake."
"One of us will."
Coleman removed his outer robe and placed it beside the cockpit seat.
"I will take first watch."
Khan shook his head.
"You're injured."
"So are you."
"I can still fight."
"You carried Kit through the forest after fighting longer than anyone except me."
Coleman looked directly at him.
"That is precisely why you will rest."
Khan glanced toward the viewport.
The forest waited beyond the rain-covered transparisteel.
Something moved near the edge of the clearing.
The predators had followed them all the way back.
Yarael spoke from the cabin.
"Listen to him, Khan."
Khan looked toward the Master.
Yarael had settled into a meditative position beside Kit, though fatigue weighed heavily on his features.
"You will be of little use to anyone if exhaustion leaves your mind open again."
The words carried no accusation.
They still struck hard.
Khan's hand moved unconsciously toward the lightsaber at his belt.
The same hand that had cut the chains.
Aayla watched him.
"He's right."
Khan looked at Kit.
Then at the damaged displays.
They had no communication.
No functioning starfighters.
No certainty that the T-6 could leave the ground.
And somewhere beyond the hull, an ancient Sith walked beneath the same storm.
Khan finally lowered himself into the seat beside Kit.
Both his lightsabers remained attached to his belt.
Coleman took his position in the cockpit, facing the viewport with his weapon resting within reach.
Aayla leaned back against the wall, her injured arm secured across her body.
Yarael closed his eyes and entered a shallow meditation.
Emergency lights cast the cabin in a dim red glow.
Khan rested his head against the metal behind him.
He did not expect sleep to come.
For several minutes, he listened to rain striking the hull.
The low rumble of the storm.
The occasional movement of something circling outside.
He waited for the voice to return.
For the ancient presence to slip through the wound inside him and whisper from the darkness.
Nothing came.
Eventually, his eyes closed.
For the first time since entering the ruins, Khan heard no voice within his mind.
Somehow, the silence was worse.
Time passed beneath the unchanging storm.
Coleman remained in the cockpit, watching the forest while the others rested. The rain never eased. The lightning never moved farther away.
During the next flash, a faint shape appeared at the edge of the clearing.
Coleman's hand settled on his lightsaber.
The figure did not advance.
It simply stood among the trees, watching the ship.
Coleman rose and reached for the ramp controls.
The boarding ramp began to lower.
The strained machinery pulled Khan from sleep.
His eyes opened beneath the dim red emergency lights. For a moment, he did not remember where he was.
Then pain returned to his chest.
The ruins.
The ancient warrior.
Kit lying unconscious beside him.
Khan's hand moved toward his lightsabers as cold air entered the cabin.
Coleman stood at the top of the ramp, staring out into the clearing.
Beyond him, through the falling rain, someone waited at the edge of the forest.
Khan pushed himself upright.
The movement sent pain through his shoulder, but he remained silent as Coleman descended from the ship.
The ramp did not close completely behind him.
Khan could still see the clearing through the narrow opening.
The stranger appeared young.
No older than eighteen.
Dark hair lay wet against his forehead. His clothing had been assembled from worn fabric, hide, and pieces of scavenged material. A long staff rested in one hand, though he held it loosely rather than preparing it as a weapon.
Coleman stopped several meters away.
He positioned himself between the stranger and the damaged T-6.
"You should not approach a vessel silently."
The young man glanced toward the ruined starfighters.
"I didn't know if anyone was alive."
Coleman studied him.
The planet's darkness muddied the Force around them, making the stranger's intentions difficult to read. Coleman sensed no immediate hostility, but after what they had found beneath the ruins, that offered little reassurance.
"You know what these ships are?"
"No."
The answer came without hesitation.
The stranger looked toward the T-6 again.
"Only that they came from above."
Coleman's hand remained near his lightsaber.
"What is your purpose here?"
The young man met his gaze.
"I came to see what you brought."
Coleman's expression did not change.
"What did you expect us to bring?"
A brief silence passed between them.
"Children."
Inside the ship, Khan became completely still.
Coleman's attention sharpened.
"Why would you expect children?"
The stranger glanced toward the sky.
"Because that is what ships usually bring."
Lightning spread through the clouds above them, illuminating the damaged vessels and the rain-soaked clearing.
Coleman took one measured step forward.
"How many ships have you seen?"
The young man looked back toward the forest.
"Enough that I know where they prefer to land."
The answer carried no pride.
Only familiarity.
Coleman examined the worn clothing, the mud covering the stranger's boots, and the staff polished by years of use.
"Who pilots them?"
"Different people."
"Explain."
"Some wear armor. Some carry military weapons. Others look like thieves."
The stranger shifted the staff in his hand.
"The ships change. The crews change."
His gaze returned to Coleman.
"What they bring does not."
Coleman allowed the silence to remain.
The stranger appeared uncomfortable beneath the scrutiny, but he did not retreat.
"And who receives the children?" Coleman asked.
"I don't know."
"You have never seen them?"
"I have."
The young man's eyes lowered toward the lightsaber at Coleman's belt.
"The ones who come to collect them carry weapons like yours."
Coleman's fingers moved slightly closer to the hilt.
"Like mine?"
"Metal handles."
The stranger gestured toward it.
"Blades made from light."
"What color?"
"Red."
The rain continued to strike the clearing.
Coleman's expression hardened.
"Have you spoken to them?"
The young man shook his head.
"They would kill me before I got close enough."
"You have heard them speak."
"Sometimes."
"What language?"
"I don't know."
The answer carried frustration.
"It isn't Basic. I've heard several languages since coming here, but theirs is different."
"Different in what way?"
The stranger searched for the words.
"Old."
Coleman watched him carefully.
"How do you know that?"
"I don't."
The young man tightened his grip on the staff.
"That is only how it sounds."
Coleman accepted that without comment.
The red blades were enough.
Whatever those people called themselves, there could be little doubt that they served the dark side.
"Did we bring children?" the stranger asked.
"No."
The answer came immediately.
The young man studied Coleman's face, searching for hesitation.
Coleman gave him none.
"We followed a group attempting to abduct children from Tatooine."
The stranger's posture changed.
Only slightly.
"You followed them here?"
"We recovered these coordinates from their vessel."
"And the children?"
"Safe."
For the first time, some of the tension left the young man's shoulders.
"You stopped them?"
"Yes."
The stranger looked toward the T-6 once more.
"Then you are not with the others."
"No."
Coleman's answer remained calm.
"We came to discover why they intended to bring the children here."
The young man's gaze returned to the Jedi Master.
"If you came looking for an answer, you chose the wrong planet."
"Why?"
"Because this place gives nothing back."
Coleman narrowed his eyes.
"What does that mean?"
The stranger glanced upward as another line of violet lightning crossed the clouds.
"You intend to leave in that ship."
"When it is repaired."
The young man shook his head.
"Repairing it will not matter."
Coleman's hand settled against his belt.
"Explain."
"Ships come down."
The stranger's eyes followed the shifting light within the storm.
"They do not go back."
Coleman looked toward the two destroyed starfighters.
"The creatures damaged our vessels."
"I'm not talking about the creatures."
The young man pointed toward the clouds with his staff.
"The crews who bring the children always try to leave."
A distant rumble moved across the sky.
"I've watched their ships climb."
He lowered the staff.
"I've watched them burn."
Coleman stared at him.
"Every ship?"
"Every one I have seen."
"Destroyed by the storm?"
"I don't know."
The stranger's voice remained matter-of-fact.
"They reach the clouds. The sky lights up. Then pieces fall back into the forest."
Coleman looked toward the T-6.
Their damaged engine was no longer the only obstacle standing between them and Coruscant.
They might have entered a world that did not permit anyone to leave.
The boarding ramp moved behind him.
Coleman turned.
Khan descended into the rain.
His movements were stiff, and exhaustion remained visible beneath his eyes, but both lightsabers hung from his belt.
"You should be resting," Coleman said.
"I heard enough."
Khan stopped beside him and looked toward the stranger.
The young man's eyes passed over Khan's torn clothing and injuries.
Then toward the second lightsaber at his belt.
"You carry two."
"One belonged to my Master."
The young man did not ask anything further.
Coleman gestured toward him.
"What is your name?"
The young man looked up for a second.
"My name is Xavier."
Khan studied the young survivor.
"You said people bring children here."
Xavier gave a small nod.
"Where do the ones with the red blades take them?"
"I don't know where all of them go."
"But you know something."
Xavier's expression became guarded again.
"I know the paths they use."
"Where do those paths lead?"
"Different places."
"Settlements?"
"Some."
"More ruins?"
Xavier hesitated.
"Yes."
Khan stepped closer.
"Can you take us to them?"
Coleman turned toward him.
"Khan."
"We finally have someone who knows this planet."
"We also have three injured Jedi inside that ship."
"I know."
"Kit is still unconscious."
Khan's expression tightened.
He looked briefly toward the T-6.
"I'm not suggesting we all go."
Coleman understood before Khan finished.
"No."
"I've rested."
"For a few hours."
"It was enough."
"You were barely standing when we reached the ship."
"And now I am standing."
Coleman lowered his voice.
"That does not make you recovered."
Khan looked toward Xavier.
"If this has been happening for years, then what happened on Tatooine was not the beginning of it."
Xavier said nothing.
His silence confirmed more than an answer would have.
Khan continued.
"He knows their routes. He may know where they stay or where they take the children after the ships land."
"We cannot know whether anything he has told us is true."
Xavier's expression remained unchanged.
Khan met Coleman's gaze.
"Then let me find out."
Coleman looked at the damaged ship behind them.
Yarael could barely use the Force.
Aayla could stand, but little more.
Kit remained unconscious.
The ancient Sith they had released was somewhere beyond the forest.
Sending Khan away with an unknown survivor was the last decision Coleman wanted to make.
But the urgency in Khan's voice was impossible to ignore. The need to act burned through his exhaustion, the same fire that had kept him standing against the ancient Sith—and the same fire that could carry him beyond caution.
It might also be their only opportunity to learn what was happening on this planet.
"You cannot leave the others unprotected," Khan said. "Stay here with them."
"And you believe you can protect yourself?"
"I fought that Sith and carried Kit back here."
"That does not answer my question."
Khan held his gaze.
"Yes."
Coleman looked toward Xavier.
"What exactly can you show him?"
Xavier remained silent for several moments.
"A place where they pass through."
"Who?"
"The ones with the red blades."
"Is it occupied?"
"Sometimes."
"How far?"
"Close enough to reach before the storm changes."
Coleman looked upward.
"The storm changes?"
"It always changes."
The explanation ended there.
Coleman did not like the uncertainty in any of Xavier's answers.
But uncertainty was all this planet had given them.
Khan stepped closer to the Council Master.
"Let me go with him."
Coleman looked again toward the ship.
Then toward the dark forest waiting beyond Xavier.
"Observation only."
Khan nodded.
"You do not engage anyone."
"Understood."
"You do not enter a structure without first reporting what you have found."
Khan hesitated.
Coleman's expression hardened.
"Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Master."
Coleman removed a short-range communicator from his belt and handed it to him.
"The storm may interfere with the signal, but remain within range."
Khan attached it beside his lightsabers.
"If communication fails, I return."
"Immediately."
Coleman turned toward Xavier.
"If you are leading him into danger—"
"There is danger in every direction," Xavier interrupted.
The answer carried no threat.
Only exhaustion.
"I can show him how to avoid some of it."
Coleman studied him for another long moment.
Then he stepped aside.
"Go."
Khan turned toward the forest.
Xavier did not move immediately.
He looked at Khan's clothing, his lightsabers, and the injuries he was attempting to ignore.
"Can you walk quietly?"
Khan met his gaze.
"Yes."
"We'll see."
Xavier placed the staff across his shoulders and entered the trees.
Khan followed.
Within several steps, the forest began swallowing them.
Coleman remained beside the T-6, watching until both figures disappeared into the rain.
Every instinct told him to call Khan back.
He did not.
The answers they had crossed the galaxy to find were somewhere within that darkness.
And for the moment, an eighteen-year-old stranger was the only guide they had.