Star Wars Jedi: The Haunting

Chapter 11

Cal panted heavily. That was a close one. Too close. He would make Merrin pay for that. He angrily walked back towards the Mantis with murder in his eyes. Why was Merrin trying to reveal his secret to Kata and Greez? Hadn't he told her not to tell them? Why did she not listen? Did she not love him? He didn't deserve this unfair treatment.

His powers had grown a lot recently, and he was now able to use the Force to enhance his speed, which he used to get to the Mantis quickly. Much better than having to walk the whole way.

As he landed there, Greez turned around and noticed him.

"Wow, Cal. You arrived quickly. How did you travel so fast?"

"I used the Force, duh," Cal said.

At that moment he heard Locker laugh.

"What?" Greez asked.

"Why are you suddenly concerned?" Cal asked.

"You looked like you'd just seen a ghost-"

Cal didn't want to engage in that conversation, so he pushed past Greez and walked towards Merrin. He needed to confront that Nightsister.

He sensed her presence inside her room. It felt nervous. Scared, even. He tried to open the door but found that Merrin had locked it. Just what he expected. He used the Force to break the lock and then walked in.

"Cal," Merrin addressed him calmly, in spite of her emotions. "What brings you here?"

"You tried to lock me out," Cal said. He held Merrin in the air, but did not choke her. "Why?"

"I didn't," Merrin answered innocently.

Cal began to twist Merrin's neck. "I could disconnect your head from your body if I wanted to," he growled. "And you are not powerful enough to stop me doing so."

Merrin's eyes widened as, in that moment, she seemed to truly realize the power advantage Cal had over her. Once upon a time, recently even, they were pretty evenly matched. But Cal had used the Force a lot more lately, and his power level had skyrocketed. She was no match for him anymore.

"Why did you lock me out?" Cal repeated, more slowly this time.

"I was scared of what you'd do to me," Merrin said. "Because I was going to tell Greez and Kata your little secret."

"And why would you do that?" Cal asked, gently putting Merrin down. He had got much better at masking his anger now, and Merrin didn't seem to pick up on it this time. Her fear began to dissipate.

"They deserve to know, Cal. Why are you so intent on keeping this ability a secret? I don't understand."

"No, you don't," said Cal. "You don't know how Greez reacted when I told him. He looked at me like I was crazy, Merrin. I could feel his anger and hatred. I could sense right then that our relationship would never be the same again if I didn't act quickly. So I acted. Erased his memories. I had to. To preserve our relationship." Cal looked at Merrin. "And it's time that I do the same to you."

"N-" Merrin started, but Cal used the Force and her vocal cords shut.

"I could damage them beyond repair," Cal said, shaking his head. "You would never speak again if I did."

Merrin furiously shook her head, but Cal walked up to her and pinned her, just using his physical strength. Merrin tried to Force push him off but he easily resisted the power and stayed on her.

"Don't resist. It'll only make things worse for you," said Cal. He began preparing to wipe her memory again, getting into her head. He felt some resistance, and then shook his head. He still loved Merrin, and he would not risk another Kata situation. He thought for a second before deciding that he would just knock Merrin out with the Force. It would make his job much, much easier.

After knocking Merrin out, Cal started scouting around her mind. He removed everything in her mind concerning his memory wipe ability. As long as she remembered that, she would resist him. He couldn't have that happening. She was his and his only.

He looked through her mind quickly and effortlessly, altering her bad memories of him to be more positive. He felt a little guilty, but she was his, and she couldn't forget that. He would not let her forget that. He quickly and expertly got out before she came back to consciousness.

Merrin felt herself waking up and as she opened her eyes, she saw Cal kneeling over her, looking worried.

"Are you OK?" he asked, worriedly.

Merrin appreciated Cal being there for her. "I feel... strange but I think I'm alright."

"Strange? How so?" Cal asked.

"It feels like... well, I just can't remember what happened before I was out."

Cal sighed. "You fainted."

Merrin felt surprised. "Just like that?"

"Yes. Hopefully it's a one-off. It was quite shocking. Thankfully I caught you before you fell on anything."

Merrin felt so grateful to have Cal there. It sounded like he had saved her from being hurt.

"Well, I'm just grateful you were here. I love you, Cal. You're the best," Merrin said, hugging him.

"Anytime," Cal said, ruffling her hair.

Cal didn't really know how to feel right now.

On one hand, he felt happy. Happy that Greez and Kata didn't know. Happy that Merrin was now his – and hopefully for good this time. Happy that his strength had returned and he no longer felt that barrier blocking him from tapping into the Force. He could do it at will now.

On the other hand, he felt guilty. For wiping Greez' memory. For what happened to Kata. For keeping his ability a secret from Merrin. For wiping her memories. After all, memories were part of what made you you. He had deprived Merrin of some of herself when he did his handiwork. Was she Merrin anymore? Mostly, but not entirely. Then again, he couldn't leave her memories untouched.

As Cal continued to ruffle Merrin's hair, he pondered his situation. It was a mess. A pretty colossal mess. He had wiped memories so many times just to preserve relationships. Did that mean that he wasn't worthy of the relationships he had? After all, if he was truly a good friend, he wouldn't have had to wipe Greez' memory to preserve the friendship. If he was truly a good lover, he wouldn't have had to wipe Merrin's memory to get her to love him. And he hadn't needed to before. But now he had needed to. Was he really that bad as a romantic partner that he needed to bend the universe to his will? He loved Merrin. She was his. And if Merrin wasn't his, he saw no reason to exist. Their relationship was about the only good thing Cal had in his life right now.

He had dug himself into a hole. A hole that was too deep to climb out of. So his only option now was to keep digging.