Star Wars_ Darth Bane 03_ Dynasty of Evil - Drew Karpyshyn [112]
Each time this happened, Bane had to retreat and regroup until he was able to evaluate and properly react to the changes. But if the Huntress could learn to properly harness her power, the Sith would no longer be limited only to reacting. They could anticipate and predict these random changes, preparing for them long before they happened.
And there was an even greater possibility. Bane knew fate was not preordained. There were many possible futures, and the Force allowed her to see only examples of what might be. If she could learn to sort through her visions, separating out the various divergent timelines, was it possible she could actually control them, too? Could she one day have the power to alter the future simply by thinking about it? Could she use the power of the Force to shape the very fabric of existence and make her chosen visions become reality?
“In the hangar you said you were waiting for me,” Bane noted, anxious to get a better understanding of her talent. “Your visions told you I was coming?”
“Not exactly. I had a sense of … something. I could feel the significance of the moment, though I didn’t know what would happen. My instincts told me it would be to my benefit to wait.”
Bane nodded. “Are your instincts ever wrong?”
“Rarely.”
“Is that why we’re here on Ambria? Your visions—your instincts—told you Caleb’s daughter would come here?”
“The princess met me here when she hired me to find you,” the assassin replied. “This place haunts her. I didn’t need a vision to know this was where she would run.”
The Dark Lord smiled. She was smart as well as powerful.
A few minutes later the ship touched down on the edge of Caleb’s camp, landing beside a small escape shuttle.
Disembarking from the craft, Bane was reminded of the power trapped within Ambria’s surface. The Force had once devastated this world before its power was trapped by an ancient Jedi Master in the depths of Lake Natth. Now the planet was a nexus of both dark and light-side power.
He noticed a freshly dug grave a few meters off to one side, but he didn’t give it a second glance. The dead were of no consequence to him.
With long, purposeful steps he made his way across the camp toward the dilapidated shack. The Huntress followed at his side, matching him stride for stride.
Before he reached his destination, however, the princess emerged from the hut to confront him. She was unarmed and alone, but unlike their last meeting in the prison cell, he didn’t sense any fear in her this time. There was a sense of serenity about her, a tranquillity that reminded Bane of his first meeting with her father.
Bane’s own mood had changed as well. He was no longer driven by an unquenchable desire for bloody vengeance. In the Stone Prison he had needed to draw strength from his anger to survive and defeat his enemies. Here, however, he was in no danger. Afforded the luxury of careful consideration, he had realized that there was no need to kill her … not if he could make use of her skills.
They stood face-to-face, staring at each other, neither speaking. In the end, it was Serra who broke the silence.
“Did you see the grave when you landed? I buried Lucia there last night.”
When Bane didn’t respond, she slowly reached up and wiped a single tear away from her eye before continuing.
“She saved your life. Don’t you even care that she’s dead?”
“The dead have no value to the living,” he told her.
“She was your friend.”
“Whatever she was is gone. Now she is nothing but decaying flesh and bone.”
“She didn’t deserve this. Her death was … pointless.”
“Your father’s death was pointless,” Bane said. “He had a valuable skill; twice he saved my life when no other could have healed me. Had it been my choice