[Legacy Of The Force] - 03(44)

“I doubt that very much,” Jacen said. Like all Jedi Knights, he had been trained from childhood to conceal such obvious signs of his feelings-and he was far better at it than most. “I’m not troubled at all.”

“Oh-I can see that,” Lumiya mocked. “Then your pupils must be dilated because you are so excited.” She looked out the viewport and allowed her gaze to linger on the face of the planet. “Is there some reason visiting Hapes would make you happy?”

“I’m always happy to come to the aid of an old friend,” Jacen said carefully. The last thing he wanted was for Lumiya to keep probing and discover his feelings for Allana and Tenel Ka. “Tenel Ka and I were classmates at the Jedi academy.”

“I see.” Lumiya’s voice assumed a knowing tone. “Now I understand why you are so concerned.”

Jacen’s heart leapt into his throat, and he began to worry that he had given away too much already. He had promised Tenel Ka that he would never reveal the secret of Allana’s paternity to anyone-and when it came to Lumiya, he considered that promise doubly binding. The Sith regarded love as a blessing that must be sacrificed in order to balance the attainment of power, and there were some things Jacen would never be willing to sacrifice.

Jacen met Lumiya’s gaze. “Actually, I don’t think you do.” He had to give her something else to think about, something that she would find even more engaging than whether or not he had a relationship with Tenel Ka. He exhaled slowly, then said, “I saw faces.”

He went on to recount his vision, describing how the cowled heads had covered a little more of the galaxy each time he saw them. When he finished, Lumiya arched her thin eyebrows.

“And this future frightens you?” she demanded.

“I have a hard time thinking of a Sith dynasty as a good thing,” Jacen admitted. “Call it family prejudice.”

“Your family’s opinion has been shaped by Darth Sidi-ous.” Lumiya’s tone was surprisingly patient. “And he cared more about personal power than his responsibility to the galaxy. That is not the Sith way-as I had believed you to know by now.”

“I know what you claim,” Jacen said. Despite his tone, he was relieved to have changed the subject. “That the Sith way is the way of justice and order.”

“The Sith way is the way of peace,” Lumiya corrected. “To bring peace, first we must bring justice and order. To bring justice and order to the galaxy…”

“First we must control it,” Jacen said. “I know.”

Lumiya ran her fingertips down the inside of Jacen’s arm. “Then why do you worry about what you saw?”

“You know why I worry.” Jacen pulled his arm away-not sharply, but firmly enough to let her know he would not be distracted by her games. “You saw what Palpatine and my grandfather became.”

“And that is how I know you won’t fall to the temptations that undid them.” Lumiya paused to think, then added, “Vergere certainly didn’t think so, either … or you wouldn’t have been the one she chose.”

Jacen raised his brow. “There were other candidates?”

“Of course,” Lumiya said. “Do you think we would select someone for such an important role without considering all our options? Kyp Durron is too stubborn and unpredictable, Mara too committed to her attachments, your sister too ruled by emotion…”

“You considered Mara’}” Jacen gasped. “And Jaina?”

“We considered everyone. Your mother was too frightened by Darth Vader’s legacy, your uncle was …” Lu-miya’s voice turned hard and cold. “Well, he wouldn’t have listened. He was too bound by Jedi dogma.”

“And old grudges,” Jacen added. The long history of malice and betrayal between his uncle and Lumiya was one of the reasons he still had doubts about his decision to become a Sith. He was well aware that all Lumiya’s talk of saving the galaxy might be a ploy; that turning him and Ben into Sith would be a vengeance on Luke that surpassed even murder. “What about you or Vergere? Why bother making me a Sith when you were Sith?”

“Because we wouldn’t have succeeded,” Lumiya said. “I’m as much machine as human, and you know how that limits me.”

“I know the theory,” Jacen said. “The Force can.be tapped only by living beings, so people with largely cybernetic bodies can’t use it to its full potential. But, frankly, your Force powers don’t seem all that limited.”

“Neither did your grandfather’s-except to the Emperor, whose power had no limit,” Lumiya replied. “You have the potential to succeed. I don’t.”