7

Celiph was cold and empty.

When the exit ramp pulled back, miles of untouched craggy terrain stretched in each direction. To the west, a massive mountain range loomed, nearly twice as high as the others to the east. White against the slate grey sky, they looked indomitable. Like sentries standing guard over the barren landscape.

A bitterly cold wind blustered across the empty plains, slicing straight through Saedii's leathers. She gave a little shiver. Beside her, the others were unmoved by the temperature.

The ground itself was rocky beneath Saedii's boots. Thin patches of snow crunched, revealing rocky ground covered in thin, sparse bits of coarse greyish-green grass. Only a few small clover-like bushes grew in the cold wasteland, though Saedii was sure the dark line near the edge of the mountains might have been trees of some kind.

If the landscape of Celiph was sad, its people were even sadder.

A short, thin man stood nearby, holding to a spindly cane that curled high over his head like a horn. Thick furs piled around him made him seem bigger than he really was, but the face that peered out between them was gaunt and emaciated. Rough from a lifetime of weathering harsh winds and abysmal cold, and creased like old leather.

Ten massive woolly animals clustered around him. One of them threw back its head and brayed into the air – a high-pitched, gentle sort of sound.

Krell gave the man a look that forced him back a step. "Where is K'huin?"

A single shaking hand rose, pointing towards a dark smudge off in the distance. Grey smoke hovered above like a low cloud.

"Thank you." Krell's tone wasn't thankful at all.

Wisely, the man turned his herd and hurried off in the opposite direction.

Krell charged ahead, eyes intent. Saedii followed meekly behind him, hiding her unease behind her helmet.

K'huin was little more than a collection of small moss-covered huts. A worn path along the rocky ground designated some sort of main avenue, but there were no shops or vendors. Life appeared to be startlingly simple here. Holes at the top of the huts spewed smoke into the air that smelled of charred meat and woodchips, while a few huts had hides stretched out to tan before them.

Several curious faces peered out from the doorways. Mostly children with red chapped faces. At the center of the village, standing around a central hearth, several men and women were waiting.

"You are not welcome here," the oldest man among them called. His face was nearly as lined and creased as the rock beneath Saedii's feet. "Celiph has no stake in the war."

"The war is over. The Empire now reigns," Krell answered.

Out of the corner of Saedii's eye, a woman was watching them down the shaft of a plasmabow, knocked and ready. Saedii pitied her if she thought that would protect them.

"We are not a part of any Empire," another man said. A Lasat male with silvery fur. That same coppery wool from the herd they'd spotted was draped across his shoulders.

"We are all part of the Empire," the Second Sister said smoothly.

The Lasat held his ground. "We are a free planet. We govern ourselves."

Beside them, the First Brother raised his hand. The plasmabow was ripped violently from the woman's grasp, rocketing towards him. With a quick slash of his lightsaber, he sliced it in half.

More than one person screamed at the sight. A few took startled steps back.

Krell smiled at the terror that was quickly leaching into the air. "Don't be so sure about that."

The Lasat man was looking at them like they were monsters that had crawled up from the deepest pits of Mustafar. At his side, a Tholothian woman clutched desperately at his arm.

"You are Jedi," the oldest man said. He limped forward, holding tightly to a cane.

"The Jedi are traitors," Krell said. "We destroyed them."

Saedii was glad that her expression was hidden. She wasn't sure how well she could have hidden her ire at that statement.

"Most of them, anyway," the Second Sister purred.

Krell stalked forward. He was just as tall as the Lasat, who held his gaze uncomfortably as Krell approached. At his side, the Tholothian woman's fingers had gone white along his shoulder. Holding him in place.

"As Inquisitors, it is our duty to rid the galaxy of the Jedi. We have pledged ourselves to protect the citizens of the Empire from their treachery. A duty we take seriously," Krell explained.

One of the flaps of the huts fluttered beside Saedii. She glanced down, catching a small, slightly hairy face and large yellowed eyes staring back. A child.

"We have heard rumors that a Jedi has taken refuge here among you," Krell finished, glancing at the people behind him, who cowered around the central hearth. "We have come to eradicate them."

"There are no Jedi here," the Lasat said at the same time as the elder man.

The Second Sister smiled at the sound.

So did Krell. "This Jedi arrived here two and a half years ago, as a child. He would have come alone, on board a transport ship with a stranger. From Coruscant."

The child in the hut beside her cocked its head. Long hairy ears brushed the top flap above them.

"There is no one here that matches that description," the Lasat man insisted.

"It will do you no good to hide the Jedi. He is a danger to you and your people."

"There are no Jedi here."

Krell's smile turned sinister.

Suddenly, the Lasat man let out a terrible gurgle. His hands reached desperately for his throat as his body was lifted straight into the air, claws fighting against the invisible bands of the Force that held him.

The Tholothian woman screamed.

"Stop!" the old man said, shocked by the sudden show of violence. "Please, we're telling you the truth!"

"I don't believe you," Krell crooned, hand raised.

"Please, there are no Jedi –"

The harsh buzz of Krell's lightsaber coming to life quieted the village. The child peering out from the hut gave a small squeak at the sight.

"Someone here knows something," Krell insisted. "Two and a half years ago, a child appeared at your village alone. Some of you may have helped him – clothed him or fed him. You may have even taken him in."

The Lasat rasped – a terrible sound of lungs desperate for oxygen.

"There is no one here like that!" the woman cried.

The Second Sister leaned forward eagerly.

"Stop!"

From the hut behind her, the child burst out. He was an odd mix of Lasat and what appeared to be Tholothian – covered in short, fuzzy fur, except for his rounded head which appeared scaled. Long fleshy tendrils fell around his shoulders, covered in a silvery down.

"Vallen!" the Tholothian said sharply. Half in worry and half in warning.

Saedii moved in front of him, holding him back before he could run to Krell. She was afraid of what the Inquisitor would do to him in his current mood. Krell was never more dangerous and unpredictable then when he scented violence.

"Vallen, go back inside," the woman urged as the Lasat man's head began to droop onto his shoulders.

The little boy didn't move, eyes on the Lasat instead.

Quietly, Saedii said, "Listen to your mother. You don't want to see this."

"I've seen the one you're looking for!" the little boy suddenly cried. He shoved Saedii's arm out of his way so that he could look at Krell. "I'll tell you about him if you let Papa go!"

At once, the Lasat man dropped from the air, crumpling onto the frozen ground. A wet breath sucked into his mouth as his eyes blinked open, dazed and disoriented. The Tholothian woman went to his side, propping his head off the ground.

"You have my attention," Krell said, voice like silk.

The little boy faltered beneath Krell's scarred gaze. His eyes were on his parents – on his mother, who was frozen in fear as she watched him, and on his father, who coughed and slowly blinked awake.

"Speak, boy. Before I lose my patience," Krell ordered.

"He-he came with a trader from Coruscant. Just like you said," the boy said quickly. "Two years ago."

The Second Sister and First Brother perked up, scenting a new trail. Saedii's stomach felt like it had dropped straight off a cliff.

Krell was intensely focused. "A man?"

"A boy. Around my age."

That terrible feeling in Saedii's gut grew worse. One of the younglings...

The little boy swallowed. "He said his name was Wen. Mom and Dad let him stay with us for a few weeks. They gave him warm clothes and showed him how to find food out in the Barrens."

"The Barrens?"

"Out there. Away from the village."

The Tholothian woman and Lasat male were watching in despair. Looking between their son, who was trembling and stuttering, and Krell, who was starting to smile.

"And what did this Wen look like?"

"He was Nautolan. A bit taller than me." The little boy pointed to Krell's lightsaber. "And he had one of those weird blasters."

"Vallen!" his mother warned. The Second Sister stepped between them, blocking her view to her son.

Krell's smile grew wider. "You saw it?"

"Wen showed it to me when Mam and Papa were out hunting one day. It was green though," the little boy said, suddenly unsure as if he'd said something wrong.

"How interesting." Krell's attention turned back to the parents, who flinched under his gaze. "I thought you said there were no Jedi here."

"He's not a Jedi," the woman said fiercely. "He's just a boy. A little boy."

"But a Jedi nonetheless."

The Second Sister's expression had turned deadly. She stalked a step forward, brushing dangerously close to the parents on the ground. "You lied to us. After we asked so nicely for your help."

The Tholothian woman cowered closer to her partner as she said, "We don't want him to be hurt. Whatever has happened between you and the Jedi Order does not involve him."

"We will be the judge of that," the First Brother said.

The old man suddenly lumbered forward, standing bravely between the couple on the ground and the Inquisitors. Holding his chin high as he insisted, "The boy in question moved on. We have not seen him, nor do we know where he went."

"Is that so?" Krell was looking at the little boy again.

A divot appeared between the boy's brows. He said nothing.

"You do not want to lie to us again," the First Brother said. "It will have consequences."

"We don't know," the woman swore.

The Second Sister's blade leapt to life. The old man flinched as she swung it up beneath his chin to taunt, "Are you willing to bet your life on that, old man?"

Despite the cold, sweat broke out on the back of Saedii's neck. Don't say anything, Saedii silently begged. Please.

"What about dear mam and papa?" The Second Sister's voice was mocking as she swung her blade down towards the couple at her feet.

The Tholothian woman flinched and edged away from the blade, eyes reflecting bloody red light. The Lasat man closed his eyes but his hands shook low where Krell couldn't see them.

Krell inclined his head to the little boy. "Well, boy. Do you know where the Jedi went?"

Don't say it. Don't say anything.

The little boy's anxious eyes were on his parents and the red light that played along their faces as he said, "Wen went into the Barrens – to live on Mount Dh'karis. He said he found a cave system there to stay hidden. Sometimes, he still comes into town to buy supplies."

Behind her mask, Saedii let out a soft breath.

Tears were glistening in the Tholothian woman's eyes. She glanced back and forth between her son and Krell, lips shaking. She, too, knew what was about to happen.

"Thank you," Krell said, deceptively sweet. He turned back to the three figures behind him, smiling as they all flinched. "Now was that so hard?"

No one said anything. Discretely, the First Brother loosened his lightsaber from his belt. Saedii edged closer to Vallen.

But the little boy was oblivious to the tension. He looked expectantly at Krell. "Will you let my Mam and Papa go now?"

"I have no further use for them," Krell said lightly.

It was a signal.

Saedii moved just as the Second Sister and First Brother pulled out their blades. She pulled the little boy into her, hiding his face in her chest as the sharp sounds of lightsabers igniting filled the air. Someone screamed behind them as she did her best to shield the boy from the massacre she knew was happening only feet away.

"Mam!" the boy cried, struggling.

"Don't look," Saedii muttered.

There were three muted thumps. The sounds bodies make as they fall in pieces. In her grasp, Vallen struggled harder, trying to see his parents.

"Let these three stand as a warning to you all," Krell's voice boomed over the now silent village. "As citizens of the Empire, it is your duty to comply. Failure to do so carries severe consequences."

Finally, Vallen managed to wriggle his way free, shoving aside as he looked towards his parents.

Only to find them dead in a puddle of their own blood.

Beside them, his head far away from the rest of his body, the old man was still clutching his cane. The expression on his face was frozen in perpetual shock, as if even in death he couldn't believe what had befallen his village.

The little boy let out a wail.

Saedii's chest felt like it was cracking in half as the boy collapsed into a screaming pile at her feet. Crying for his mom and dad who would never wake to comfort him.

"Let's go." Krell turned and walked in the direction of the windswept plains beyond the village. In the distance, the looming figure of the mountains were shadows along the landscape.

The First Brother and Second Sister sheathed their weapons and followed obediently.

Saedii lingered, looking back to the frightened villagers who stood around the hearth. Several were crying, hugging each other. But a few were deathly silent as they watched Vallen crawl towards his mother, grasping for her limp hand.

"I'm sorry," Saedii said, quiet enough that Krell wouldn't hear. She turned towards the wailing figure of the boy, feeling tears prick at her eyes. "Take care of him."

Then, with the boy's grief-stricken calls for his mother behind her, Saedii followed after the others.