FORSAKEN - Target: Zero

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Blaster fire flashed through the jungle as frantic orders in Mimbanese were given. The rebels never saw the black Inquisitor's transport approach in the haze, until they heard its cannons clear an area for the Night Dagger to land. Ready to protect the sacred site, Iasento commanded his men to confront the intruders. When they saw the three Inquisitors descend from the boarding ramp, the soldiers were confident the temple would remain secure. The sight of their red energy blades reminded the veterans of the Jedi who once had come to their aid during the Clone Wars, and they feared what would happen if they had to engage them.

What followed could be better be described as a massacre. The dark figures moved with the swiftness of shadows and struck with the lethality of several platoons. Blaster bolts bounced off their blades, many taking out the very men who fired them. Grenades froze in mid-air, detonating among friendlies, and broken logs and splinters from explosions became missiles. Things ended fast the moment an Inquisitor got close to a cluster of men, tearing through them with his burning swords.

Addia and Ilum came out when they heard the commotion. The shock of the carnage they found paled in comparison to the fear they felt when they spotted the Inquisitors. Neither of them was in a position to face them. The First Sister spotted the Jedi running inside the temple and shutting the heavy stone door with the Force.

"Take care of the natives," said the First Sister, killing two Mimbanese by deflecting their blaster shots back, before heading to the temple.

"She lied to us," Ilum said.

"Yeah, well, that's what we get for trusting a dark-sider," Addia said. "That door is not going to stop them for longer than a second, and I can't face three Inquisitors by myself."

"Then what are we going to do?"

"We take our chances with the unknown." Addia grabbed her lightsaber and ran to the portal.

"Are you sure?" Ilum floated beside her.

"I'm sure that's better than staying here." Addia vanished into the portal with Ilum.

The First Sister slammed the door open with the Force and entered the temple with her lightsaber buzzing. The sight of the shrine radiating with energy made her take pause. It was the vergence she felt in the Force. She approached the Splinter of the Mind's Eye and prodded the black archway with her sword, watching it disappear within. Reaching with her hand, the Umbaran confirmed the phenomenon caused no ill effects.

So, this is what you were looking for. The First Sister approached the shrine. Let's see what kind of ancient power you're trying to keep to yourself. She stepped through the portal.

"Where are we?" Ilum wandered inside the strange dimension.

"I can't believe this..." Addia marveled at the mystifying celestial landscape, forgetting their precarious situation for a moment. "I think we are in the World Between Worlds; a mystical plane within the Force containing door and pathways in spacetime. The Chronicles of Brus-bu contains a theory of its existence called the Chain of Worlds Theorem, which is associated with certain ancient Jedi temples. This is amazing."

"Look. Over there."

They spotted the Fourth Sister far away on another pathway above them, talking to what appeared to be a Togruta who was flanked by an Inquisitor and a Jedi Temple Guard.

"What is happening?" Addia said. "What is she doing?"

"I don't know."

The noise coming from a radiating portal—a circle inside a triangle—caught their attention. Addia recognized the ancient symbols for the Ashla, Bogan, and Bendu, inscribed on its edges. A battle raged on the other side.