Star Wars: The Untold Adventures of Kajin Savaros

Chapter 9

Vader had been probing his thoughts. Kaj knew this for certain. He had sensed the dark presence trying to sneak a glimpse into his mind. That had been enough reason to rebuild his mental shields that had fallen temporarily. He had learned the trick from Jax: Keep your enemies out, and your location—and presence—hidden.

He had no clue what they had drugged Jax with to make him not appear in the Force. Jax had taught him that the Force was like a river, with currents: Jax was one of those currents, and the current was not there. Where it had been was murky, muddy.... Like it was being washed away, slowly but surely.

And Kaj needed Jax more than ever. He may not have known the Jedi very long, but he knew there was a bond between them—a very strong bond. And he didn't want it to be shattered or washed away.

The Padawan couldn't help it. He grinned in spite of his situation.

It was time for an escape.

He glanced down at the restraints currently keeping him hostage. He shut his eyes and focused on harnessing the Force. He reached out for it....

And grasped it. He felt the familiar current surround him. He held onto the rope the Force provided and focused his attention on the metal bands around his wrists and ankles. He had never broken durasteel with the Force before, but if he wanted out of here, which he did, he needed them to break.

The Force is all around me. It is with me. He told himself.

Kaj felt the metal start to bend and pull. He pushed himself harder. The resistants were almost completely broken when he felt the Force start to slip from his grip.

No! Come on now, just a little further! He urged. Just a little more!

He grimaced, holding the Force tightly and using all of his remaining strength to try to break his bonds.

Do or do not, there is not try. Do it for the Whiplash. Do it for Laranth. Do it for Jax.

Those words gave him fresh strength and he pushed forward, almost completely opening himself to the Force. Any further would make him vulnerable to the dark side. Memories of the last time he was awake flooded his head, but he pushed them away, determined to break free.

But he didn't know how much more of this he could take....

Then Kaj heard the loud snap and his eyes shot open. He looked down and found himself free. He sighed in relief—and exhaustion.

He eased himself slowly off of the bed he had been placed on. He stood, feeling partly shaky. He looked around and saw only grey. He rolled his eyes. Would a little color kill anyone? Classic Imperial style. He chuckled at this thought.

Kaj used the Force to sense for activity outside his grey prison. Two Inquisitors on guard. The same two from earlier. Great.

He reached out quickly with the Force and threw an invisible punch at one of the guards. He felt the life signs drop, but not completely fall. Unconsciousness.

He took out the other Inquisitor the same way, barely a second later. That takes care of them. Now to unlock this cell....

The Force told him that the door was passcode guarded. He knew he was taking a huge risk by doing this, but he took a deep breath and dove into one of the unconscious Inquisitors minds.