Drew Karpyshyn - Darth Bane - Rule of Two

"We've got movement on the ground," Johun called out as unidentified blips popped up on his screen. "Transmitting coordinates."

"Give me details," Irtanna ordered, banking the shuttle around in a wide arc that brought them in line with the people on the ground.

"Two walkers on foot" Johun informed her. "Can't tell if they're friendly from up here."

"Taking us down," Irtanna replied.

Locating and helping injured survivors was the team's first priority; providing reconnaissance reports to Fleet Command came second, and accepting the willing surrender of enemy troops was a distant third.

The shuttle nose dipped, and the acceleration pushed Johun back into his seat as they dived in to get a closer look at the figures. Irtanna took them in low and fast, a military maneuver that pushed the civilian vessel to her limits.

"I've got a visual," Johun reported as a pair of tiny, indistinct shapes on the ground became visible through the shuttle's cockpit viewpoint.

Bordon lifted himself up out of his seat and leaned forward over the back of Johun's chair to get a view as the shuttle plunged toward the rapidly growing figures. As it drew closer the details came into focus: a man and a woman, each wearing light armor and running hard.

The roar of the rapidly descending shuttle's engines caused the two on the ground to stop running and turn back to look up at them. An instant later they threw themselves face-first to the dirt as the shuttle swooped in less than ten meters from the ground and buzzed them.

Cursing under her breath as she struggled with the clumsy controls, Irtanna veered around sharply and brought them in to land less than fifty meters away from their quarry. Through the window Johun saw the pair slowly climb back to their feet as the pilot cut the engines. The woman said something to the man, who nodded in agreement. Then they raised their hands and began marching slowly toward the vessel.

They were dressed like members of Kaan's Brotherhood. But Johun didn't feel the presence of the dark side about them.

"Minions of the Sith," he said. "Mercenaries, probably."

"Could be a trap," Bordon warned. "Kriffihg mercenaries have no honor."

"I don't think so," Johun replied. If there was any danger here, he would have felt some kind of disturbance in the Force. "I think they just want to surrender."

"Slag-sucking scum," Bordon spat. "Fire the engines up and run them over!"

"No!" Johun exclaimed when he saw Irtanna reaching for the ignition switch. "We need to question them," he reminded her. "See what they know."

"Then what?" Bordon demanded darkly.

"Then we take them to Farfalla and lock them up with the rest of the prisoners."

Bordon slammed his hand against the cockpit wall. "These schutta-spawn came to my world-my home-to kill my people for profit!"

"They'd cut our throats without a second thought if they had the upper hand," Irtanna agreed.

"We're not like them," Johun said. "We don't kill prisoners."

"My wife died fighting munk-whelps like these!" Bordon shouted. "Now you want to show them mercy?"

"Hate leads to the dark side," Johun replied, reciting the wisdom of the Jedi. But the words lacked power coming from the mouth of a nineteen-year-old Padawan, and even as he said them he knew how empty they sounded.

Bordon threw his hands up in frustration, then let himself fall back angrily into his seat, "Is that why you're here?" he grumbled in Disgust. "To keep us in line? To make sure we don't stray from your Precious light-side ways? Is that why Farfalla sent you along?"

He didn't send me. I came on my own, Johun thought. He turned in his seat to look back at Bordon, who stared intently at the floor, refusing to meet his gaze. His two sons, however, glared at the young Jedi with venom in their eyes. He understood their anger. The Sith had brought war to Ruusan, a war that had taken everything they knew and cared about: their homes, their livelihoods… and, of course, their mother.

What Bordon and his sons didn't see was that these nameless soldiers couldn't be held responsible for all the horrors and tragedies that had brought their world crashing down. Whatever their crimes, these two didn't deserve to be made accountable for the actions of Kaan and his Brotherhood. It was the Sith Masters, the followers of the dark side, who were truly to blame. Yet as he looked into the boys' hate-filled stares, he knew there was no hope of making them understand. Not while all that they had suffered was still fresh in their minds.

Johun had come to Ruusan to hunt down any members of the Brotherhood who might have survived the thought bomb. He intended to continue the work of General Hoth-his Master and mentor-and eliminate the Lords of the Sith, ending the threat of the dark side forever. Now, however, he recognized a greater mission: He had to save Bordon and his sons from themselves.

These were honest, decent people. But driven by hate and anger, they would butcher their helpless foes in cold blood if he didn't stop them. Johun knew that once their anger faded, the memory of their bloody vengeance would haunt them. Guilt and self-loathing would eat away at Bordon and his boys until it eventually destroyed them. Johun wasn't about to let that happen.

Turning his attention back to Irtanna, he saw hate in her eyes as well. However, hers was a cold, calculated emotion-a professional soldier regarding an enemy. He recognized she wouldn't kill prisoners on her own, but she also wouldn't do anything to stop the others. And he knew what he had to do.

"This isn't why Farfalla sent you," he reminded the pilot in a low voice. "You're supposed to be helping the survivors."

Irtanna eyed him suspiciously but didn't say anything. Johun was reluctant to use the Force to bend her will to his own again. Subconsciously she might be more aware of his interference a second time and more likely to resist. Besides, it was important that she truly believe in what he was telling her. Compelling her obedience was a temporary solution, and one that could ultimately cause her to resent or mistrust him and the rest of the Jedi.

"Let me out and I'll take the mercenaries into custody," Johun said, offering up a plan. "Contact the fleet, and they'll send another ship to pick up the three of us."

The words weren't easy for him to say. He'd defied Farfalla-a Jedi Master-to come to this world. The last thing he wanted was to leave Ruusan now, so soon after arriving. Yet he was willing to make that sacrifice if it would prevent Bordon and his sons from giving in to their rash and reckless emotions. It was his duty as a Jedi to protect their lives, even if it meant abandoning his own personal crusade.

"You and the others should take the shuttle and head south to the battlefield" he continued. "Go help the injured. That's what you're here for."

Irtanna hesitated, then gave a curt nod of acknowledgment. Johun was barely more than a boy; the long thin braid in his hair clearly marked that he had not yet completed his Padawan training. But he was still a member of the Jedi Order. That counted for a lot among the Republic troops. He'd been relying on that to help her see the wisdom of his words.

Confident that Irtanna would keep Bordon and his sons out of trouble, Johun got up from his chair and made his way to the rear of the Star-Wake, He did his best to ignore the accusing eyes of the two angry young men as he waited for the shuttle's exit hatch to open. When it finally did, he leapt out and landed nimbly on the ground, then made his way quickly toward the pair standing patiently nearby, their hands still raised high above their heads. Once he was clear of the vessel, the engines roared to life and the ship lifted into the air and took off… much to the dismay of the two mercenaries.

"Where are they going?" the woman demanded, her voice a high-pitched squeak of panic. "No! They can't leave us here!"