For the first time since they had reached Bast Castle, Anakin was very glad that he had come.
Uldir raced down the tunnel at full speed, intent on catching the thief Orloc. Something about the lightsaber called to Uldir. In his mind, there was something almost magical about it. And he knew the other Jedi would be impressed if he managed to get the blade back from Orloc, all on his own. Lightsabers had always been the weapons of the Jedi, and this one had belonged to a famous Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Somehow, deep inside, Uldir thought that maybe if he could get the lightsaber back and hold it, turn it on, it might awaken in him the Jedi powers that he was searching for. His muscles still ached from the long climb up to Bast Castle, but Uldir turned off the part of his mind that felt pain. He concentrated on his goal-getting that lightsaber back. He had to have it.
Uldir heard an electronic squeal behind him.
“I can’t slow down, Artoo,” he called. “If you don’t catch up to me before I find Orloc, I’ll come back for you.”
The little droid beeped once to show he understood. Uldir continued to pelt down the tunnel. He couldn’t tell for sure how far he had run. It seemed like at least half a kilometer before the tunnel broadened and fed out into a bright, high - ceilinged room. Moving more carefully now - and watching for holographic traps-Uldir entered. Inside were a dozen land speeders and air speeders, a couple of Imperial shuttles, and three beautiful spaceships that must have been hundreds of years old. Uldir guessed he had found the docking bay at the front of Bast Castle. He decided to be bold.
“Come out and show yourself. I know you’re there,” he said, although he knew no such thing. “I am a Jedi; you cannot; hide from me.”
It was a bluff, but it worked.. The Mage Orloc stepped out from behind one of the Imperial shuttles.
“All right, you’ve found me,” the Mage said. “Now, what do you plan to do with me? I am the Mage of Exis Station, and unless I miss my guess, I have a lightsaber and you do not.” To prove his point, Orloc held out the weapon and turned it on. Even in the well-lit hangar bay the pale blue beam appeared bright.
Uldir looked longingly at the glowing blade. He wanted so badly to hold it, to try it. Master Skywalker had said Uldir showed very little Jedi potential. But Uldir would prove to Luke Skywalker and the rest of them that it wasn’t true.
“What’s it like?” he asked finally. “So.”
The Mage looked shrewdly at the teenager and chuckled slightly.
“You’re not really a Jedi, are you?”
Uldir shook his head and took a step closer.
“But you want to be one,” the Mage guessed.
Uldir nodded.
“To answer your question, the lightsaber feels wonderful,” Orloc said, turning the blade this way and that-although it seemed to Uldir that the magician was rather clumsy at using the weapon. “This is true power,” the Mage went on. His hand shook slightly as he drew an arc in the air with the glowing blade.
Uldir was surprised and took a step backward again.
“Are you sure you know how to use one of those?”
Orloc faltered for a moment, blinked his tawny eyes several times, and then recovered.
“Why, yes. Of course. Why, if you’re truly interested, I could teach you the mysteries of the galaxy. Come with me to Exis Station. I’ll teach you everything you need to know to become more powerful than a Jedi. You don’t really need to study hard, you know. There’s an easier way. I’ll show you.”
Uldir was definitely more interested than he wanted to admit. He had always suspected that there were easier ways of learning to use power. He thought for a moment.
“You mean, you could teach me to lift that crate?” he asked, pointing to a box near an Imperial shuttle.
“Why, boy, I could teach you to lift that entire shuttle,” Orloc said.
“Could you teach me to sense the thoughts of people?”
“Sense them?” Orloc said, laughing. “Why, I could teach you to read their minds just like a computer display screen.”
Uldir found that hard to believe. If the Mage could read thoughts so easily, wouldn’t he know what Uldir was thinking right now-that Orloc must be exaggerating? But the Mage did seem to know a lot. He might know something worth learning. Some shortcuts, perhaps. After all, Orloc had outwitted two grown Jedi and a few Jedi trainees with his magic, hadn’t he?
“How do you know so much about this place-the passages and trapdoors?”
“Three reasons.” The Mage swirled his cape out, bowed, and flashed a knowing smile.
“First of all, I’m incredibly powerful. Second, I have great skill with mechanical things. Third, I also located a map of the fortress in a maintenance bay just after I arrived here. My special powers helped me to use the plans and the castle’s own defenses to dispose of my… enemies.”