DOOM!

Enter stage right, sirs. Synje makes his first appearance in this chapter. I really like writing him for some reason. O_O Almost as much as Gadell and Kaidin -- maybe because he's the exact opposite of either of them. I'm not sure. But he's fun. Alright, I'll get on with it and quit rambling. XD



part VI: THE FIRST

A shuddering breath sounded in the dead night air as Tenel Ka's heavy lidded eyes ripped themsleves open. She couldn't tell if the breath had been hers or Jacen's, who was currently laying beside her, his head nuzzled against her side. Her right arm was snaked around him, her hand suddenly back up, fingers absently toying with his messy auburn locks.

Wherever the breath had come from, it alarmed her a bit. Now that Jacen was here, and had dragged his comforter in with him, they had the sheets, two heavy blankets and most importantly, each other to keep themselves warm. There was no reason for a shivering breath to escape either one of them.

Turning her head lazily to Jacen, she watched him for what seemed like minutes. His lips were pursed slightly and the breath that drew in and out of them was slow, rhythmic -- it matched his heartbeat, which Tenel Ka could feel against her side. She shifted downwards a bit, her face now on the same level as his and turned on her side, towards him. As she slid her right hand under her cheek, she nestled herself into the blankets, keeping her open eyes locked on his closed ones. The movement under them was rapid and sporadic, letting Tenel Ka know he was in quite a deep sleep. She could feel a small smile crossing her lips. Maybe using the extra bedrooms wasn't such a bad idea after all. She could easily admit that it was quite refreshing to be out of her lonely, oversized bed and her Hapan silk sheets - and to be beside someone who cared, someone she wouldn't mind sharing a bed with for the rest of her life. Tenel Ka knew she could be sleeping on the duracrete floor of an empty hanger and still be happy as long as Jacen Solo was right there beside her.

Jacen stirred against her as she continued to watch him, twisting his neck a little so his face was towards the ceiling. His profile was outlined in the moonlight and Tenel Ka could feel her heart skip a beat at the sight. Jacen Solo had definitely grown up.

She had lost track of time after that, her eyes roaming back and forth over his jawline, through the curls of his hair, down his neck to where his chest was rising and falling. The tan expanse of his chest was broken though, by a white hand.

Tenel Ka felt her breath catch in her throat as she stared at the hand, which was calmly laying in the middle of Jacen's form, below his sternum, almost over his stomach. Slowly sitting up, her right hand behind her, palm splayed out on the bed for support, Tenel Ka tightened her lips into a thin line. Was she seeing things now?

The hand was white, a bit transparent -- the fingers danced over Jacen's stomach and over his ribs, up to his neck where it rested. Tenel Ka could see the beginnings of an arm down on the other side of Jacen, leading to what she assumed was a body on the other side of him. Steeling up her nerves and scowling at her sudden lack of action, she leaned forward and choked up at what she saw.

As white as the hand and just as lucid, Tenel Ka saw a woman. Her wide hollow eyes moved from their place on Jacen's face to Tenel Ka and the woman then sat up, mirroring Tenel Ka's position on the other side of Solo's sleeping form.

Stay calm.

"Who are you?" Tenel Ka inquired, letting her eyes linger on the parts of the room she could see through this woman.

She didn't answer. She seemed to be wearing some sort of robes, almost as pale as herself -- and they floated around her like they had flitnats holding them up. Her hand finally moved from Jacen's neck, sliding back down his skin to his chest, where it looked like she put pressure on. She was wispy, she was nothing...

But Jacen, still in a deep sleep seemed to wince from the pressure under her fingers.

Tenel Ka could feel her eyes widen and without thought she reached out, grabbing the woman's wrist, attempting to pull her away from Jacen.

She got a fistful of nothing.

Smirking, Tenel Ka jumped out of the bed, the cold air suddenly sliding over her skin. With a quick shiver, she rounded the bed and stopped in a sliver of moonlight, staring down the woman who was still seated on the edge of the bed. "What do you want?"

Finally moving off of the bed, the spectre began to shift, letting it's weightless feet float to the ground. Her legs moved, as if she was walking, but Tenel Ka noted that she was a couple standard inches off of the floor at least. Motioning to Tenel Ka by beckoning her with a slender index finger, the spectre moved towards the bedroom door.

The Queen Mother watched the woman's back as she moved away from her. The white of her skin and robes was cut through with gashes, four criss-crossed scars along her back -- sharp lines of red shattering the ivory curves. As her stone gaze traced the gashes, Tenel Ka could see the open mouth of the hallway through the spectre, who stopped and turned, motioning to her again.

"You want me to follow you?!" Tenel Ka inquired, trying to mask her incredulous tone and failing a bit.

The woman just stared at her, her pale vaguely blonde hair swirling around her visage like untrained crystal snakes circling their prey. Her left hand hung by her side as her right was grasping the edge of the bedroom door, her neck turned so she could watch Tenel Ka.

"You want me to follow you..." Tenel Ka repeated, in a lower more sincere tone.

The spectre nodded fiercly and shifted back towards the door, exiting the bedroom.

Throwing a quick glance to Jacen, who was now sleeping quite peacefully, she padded across the floor back to the bed and leaned down, planting a quick kiss on his forehead. She had no idea what the spectre wanted or where it was going...

...or why exactly she had decided to follow it...

But she emerged out into the hallway, peering carefully from side to side. Tenel Ka instantly regretted not putting her boots on, or her jacket -- as a shudder passed over her. Once she saw the spectre down the hallway though, she quickly forgot all that and dashed after her, barefeet slapping the stone floors. Once she caught up with it, she stayed at a steady pace behind it, her eyes always drawing themselves back to those scars.

They were bigger, Tenel Ka noticed, as she got a better look at them. The edges were fairly jagged and they didn't look like they were healed all the way. She peered back up to the back of the spectre's head, watching where they were headed through her translucent skin. Ocasionally, as she paced down the hall behind the drifting woman, Tenel Ka scanned her surroundings. They passed the third floor landing of the Grand Hall, down a dim corridor and to a nondescript door at the end. It was wooden, scratches all over, the handle was lopsided.

It was where the spectre stopped and turned, drilling her empty eyes into Tenel Ka. One motion towards the door and the woman vanished through it, leaving Tenel Ka alone at the decrepit doorway.

Instantly grabbing the handle, Tenel Ka held the button down and pulled, hearing a low clank. Locked.

She released a tired sigh. She was exhausted, stressed and now she was seeing things. She had to be. A spectre, right -- that led her all the way to this door that was locked, for no particular reason.

Good one, Tenel Ka.

Spinning away from the door, Tenel Ka allowed herself an annoyed chuckle at her stupidity -- how could she be so---

Creeeeeeeeeeeak.

Tenel Ka jumped at the sound, spinning around, the echoes still ringing in her ears as she stared at it. That door had definitely been locked when she checked just seconds before. The interior it seemed to lead to was very dim and Tenel Ka could only see faint traces of moonlight and a warm glow coming from somewhere further into the chamber.

Stalking up to the door frame, she peeked inside, part of her mind wondering if she should go back and get Jacen -- or just wait till morning to explore this door that seemed to have opened itself.

The room looked nothing like what the door of it suggested. The ceilings were a couple times higher than her and the floor was a beautiful tile, strange drawings of animals sketched into a pattern on the surface. A pit sat in the middle of the room, a black grating over it. A fire burned inside of the pit, its heated glow reaching the far corners of the quarters. Potted plants were here and there and paintings hung everywhere -- along the walls, from the backs of the ornate chairs that decorated the chamber, from the curtains -- none were framed, they were just there. And most of them were of people, a few here and there of animals and plants. There were seats around the firepit, facing the flames -- all but one.

There was one seat, no -- two seats turned sideways. In one sat an almost empty canvas and in the one beside it sat a person. Squinting slightly, Tenel Ka peered to the person in the chair.

"Come in," His voice was soft, and it echoed slightly as it drifted across the chamber to her. It was inviting, friendly -- Tenel Ka knew everything there was to know about deception... she was the Queen Mother of Hapes after all. She knew all of the Hapan's sneaky tricks. But there was something genuine about that voice. "It's cold, you should come warm yourself by the fire."

She could say nothing. No reply came to her, she just felt herself padding across that etched tile, her barefeet coming in contact with the cool surface. The man's back was to the door she entered through and her eyes stayed trained on him as she moved closer. He was hunched over slightly, his left hand on his knee and his right holding a brush, the tip covered with a pale cream paint, out towards the canvas ahead of him.

Tenel Ka let her eyes roam over his form as she stopped behind the circle of chairs, across the pit from him. There was a piece of cloth tied around his eyes, the knot in the back hidden in a mess of dirty blonde hair. A simple black tunic was draped over his shoulders, while a pair of paint-splotched black pants completed the ensemble. His barefeet were crossed at the ankles under his chair, she noticed that and then snapped her eyes back up to his face where his tongue lashed out across his lips. He looked quite young, but Tenel Ka had never been good at guessing ages, so she continued to watch him, tilting her head a bit. The boy looked deep in concentration as the paintbrush met with the canvas.

"Go on, sit down." As he moved the brush in a wide vertical stroke, he chuckled slightly. "I don't bite."

Tenel Ka swallowed a mouthful of dry air as she slid around the chair closest to her and set herself down on the edge. The fire was very welcoming, she could admit that to herself, the warmth dancing over her skin as she stared across it. "Who are you?" She tried to ask the question with stength, with a commanding voice -- just to show that she wasn't one to toy with... but it came out practically in a whisper. It floated with the sparks of the fire, over to his ears.

He set the paintbrush down on the edge of the canvas and turned his head in her direction, and she found herself staring to a smooth-skinned pale face that had a horizontal deep blue stripe cut through the middle, where the cloth covered his eyes. "I apologize for my rudeness." His lips pursed into a comforting smile. "My name is Synje."

Tenel Ka couldn't find a response.

"Are you and your companion finding the accommodations here suitable?"

Suddenly words came to her and she found herself stumbling over an apology. "I am extremely sorry if we trespassed on your property. We were ---"

"Oh no no, please." Synje shook his head and threw his hands out in front of him. "It's fine. People come here all the time trying to piece together things that happened after the war. They never make it past the first floor usually."

She found her mouth dry again. "Why is that?"

"They grow bored. They grow tired. They get called off to more important things." His shoulders shrugged in defeat. "I always welcome them and give them use of the bedrooms and such, but they never stay long enough to use them." A pause. "And it's not like there's anyone else here who could use them anyways."

"Do you know what happened here?" Tenel Ka's brow furrowed as she watched him. Even without seeing his eyes, she could discern his expressions... his emotions. It wasn't through the Force, which she felt was particularly weak in this area -- but it was through something else. Shaking the thoughts out of her head, she continued to stare across the fire.

"All in due time." He motioned towards the door. "You should get back to sleep. Your companion is probably worried about you." There was that smile again -- genuine, gentle, innocent.

"What about yourself?"

"I'll go in a few moments," Synje turned back to his canvas, picking up his brush again. "I want to get started on this before I go to sleep."

"Alright..." Tenel Ka turned and left the room, trotting back down the corridors to her room.

What is wrong with me?! She found herself scolding her actions as she moved closer to the bedroom she and Jacen were now sleeping in. Why did I not ask him about the... the ghost...? What about him? Why did I not ask him who he was?!

Her scowl was suddenly vanquished as she entered the bedroom again and saw Jacen. He was sprawled on his side, right arm over his head, leg hanging off the bed.

She told herself she would worry about it all tomorrow. When she had a chance to talk to Jacen -- and when they both had a chance to talk to this Synje fellow. She felt there was nothing wrong with him; her first impression was that he could be trusted. But that's what got her -- why did she feel like that after only talking to him for just a few minutes...

Growling inwardly, she put everything in the back of her mind and crawled back into the bed, beside Jacen. Her movement caused him to shift, throw his arm over her waist and pull himself closer to her, where he sighed contentedly. With a slight lift in her spirits, Tenel Ka closed her eyes and fell asleep, feeling safe in the ever-oblivious Jacen's arms.

The room she had left was all quiet, except for the soft sound of a paintbrush running over a canvas and the cracks and snaps of a fire. The sounds were disturbed by another as Synje turned his head, closing his eyes under the cloth that covered them and whispered...

"It is her, my love."


I'm off to bed now. XD