Ahsoka Trilogy Book Three: Forgiven

Chapter 15

"You're face is still cut." He said pulling her up.

"Is it bleeding bad?" Meraki asked grabbing her sabers and hooking them to her belt.

"No." Luke said looking at her.

"Then it's fine." Meraki pulled her jacket on and started to run.

"Where are you going?" Luke called after, Meraki stopped and looked back.

"I'm going after him, try to get that door open." She called before she turned around and started running out and up a lift.

"Do you know where you're going?" Luke asked over the com channel.

"No do you know what you're doing?" Meraki laughed.

"Not a clue." He laughed back.

"Good so we're both on the same page." She nodded.

"I feel him moving around, I just don't know where. He kind of split himself all over the place. I can't sense him in one area." Meraki said closing her eyes.

"Feel don't think." Luke reminded.

"You're going to have to think about that damn door." Meraki laughed suddenly the lift stopped and the lights went off.

"Meraki? Meraki what happened?" Luke asked nervously. Meraki patted the ground for the communicator, finding it on the other side.

"I'm alright the lift just stopped, there's no power in her anymore. I cant go anywhere." She said taking out her lightsaber and using it as a light source.

"Just get out of there." Luke said persistently.

"Calm down I'm working on it." Meraki said hooking the comlink onto her belt. She cut a hole into the top of the lift and watched as it fell to her side, using the force she flew up onto the top of the cart.

"I'm out." Meraki said deactivating her lightsaber with the emergency lights blinked on and off.

"There should be a door somewhere if you look up." Luke said.

"I see it." Meraki didn't take one step when the cart started falling. Meraki was pinned down to the top.

"What is going on?" Luke asked, Meraki couldn't reply.

"Meraki what's happening?" Luke asked the second time.

"I'm falling." She yelled over the stale wind the pushed her hair as she fell. She reached back to find her grappling hook and throwing it. It wrapped around a pipe and she was lifted off the cart. Moments later it crashed at the bottom.

"I think I found the first floor." She said her voice echoing off the walls.

"Are you hurt?" Luke asked.

"Just winded, ill be fine. How's the door coming along?" Meraki asked as she slowly lowered herself down.

"The middle isn't sealed any more, at least on the front side." He said. Meraki cut a hole in the door to the bottom floor. The first large room when she walked in was empty.

"Luke, I have a bad feeling about this." Meraki said walking in with both sabers lit.

"What do you feel?" He asked.

"That thing, it's here... But it's not." Meraki looked around.

"Where is he, can you feel it?" Luke was confused, so was Meraki.

"He's everywhere, but nowhere at all." She turned around constantly. Light flashed around her.

"Show yourself!" She yelled feeling the hair on the back I her neck stand up.

"I'm not afraid." She reassured herself not expecting an answer, but that's exactly what she got.

"Yes you are, I can feel the terror etched through your body." A man's cold voice echoed off the darkness. Meraki grabbed her comlink.

"Luke, get down here!" She yelled. There was nothing but static echoing back.

"You precious companion can't reach you with that thing now that I'm here." He hissed.

"Show yourself damn it! I'm not afraid of you!" She yelled.

"Seems like you're right." Silver objects flew at Meraki who ducked and slashed both of them.

"You're not going to get me again." She said clutching both her hands tightly around the hilts.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Meraki couldn't say anything before a sharp pain exploded in her leg, she fell to the ground and gripped the handle of the dagger pulling it out dripping with blood.

"Luke you better get down here." Meraki though before standing up and getting herself ready, despite the pain in her leg and arm. Daggers flew from all sides at once, she turned and spun her blades slicing all but one which made it under her jacket and slicing her side.

"Afraid now child?" The voice echoed.

"Not at all." She said without hesitating. Footsteps echoed from far back.

"Finally deciding to show yourself?" She asked readying the lightsabers. Suddenly a green light opened up the dark behind it. He ran at her except it was Luke that ran at her clashing his lightsaber with hers.

"What the hell?" She saw Luke's scarred face with glowing yellow eyes before she kicked him and backed up as it stabled itself.

"Do you fear me now?" It hissed twisting its head ninety degrees before running at her again swinging just a little but faster, but Meraki was ready. She angled her blades forward a bit and hit back the thing. She whipped her blades around backing him up and hitting it with a wave of force sending him flying back into the darkness. Silence as she stare into the black, out came a sharp object that nailed her right in the shoulder. She fell backwards due the the force of the dagger. She landed quietly and begun to sit up and move back against a wall breathing deeply.

"I can sense your fear, use it as strength." Its hiss echoed, bouncing off the walls.

"That is the way of the dark side, I will die before I follow that path!" She retorted gripping onto the handle but she didn't have the strength to pull it out.

"That can be arranged." Meraki saw the green light appear far down and quickly move closer and closer, seconds passed as Meraki looked terrified at the on coming demon. She closed her eyes waiting for the lightsaber to cut her in half but all she heard was the electric clash. She opened her eyes seeing Luke in front of her, lightsaber pressed harshly on the creature that stood in front of him.

"Show your real form." Luke said pushing the thing back. It smiled evilly before disappearing.

"We need to leave, now." Meraki said faintly from behind him.

"What do you feel?" He asked.

"We need to leave, now." She urged again. Luke looked back before putting away his saber and picking Meraki up being careful of the dagger in her shoulder. He used the force to send the grapple hook up to the main floor.

"Hold on." He said as they started going up.

"Do I have a choice?" Meraki laughed through the pain emitting from her shoulder. As soon as they were out of the lift shaft, Luke laid Meraki down on the floor. Her black jacket was stained with blood.

"This is going to hurt." Luke said gently wrapping his hand around the handle. Meraki nodded and he pulled it out and throwing it to the side. Meraki gripped her shoulder watching as blood slowly dripped through her hand. Luke picked her up and carried her to the speeder, sliding her in next to him as he took the controls and raced back.