Abyss: Star Wars Legends (Fate of the Jedi) (Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi - Legends Book 3)

Peace is the way of the Jedi. But with deadly enemies on every side, war may be the only way out. On Coruscant, an epidemic of madness is preying on the ranks of the Jedi Order—driving the Galactic Alliance to martial actions. As Han and Leia Solo, along with their daughter, Jaina, join the fight to protect more stricken Knights from arrest, Jedi healers race to find a cure for the rapidly spreading affliction. Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker continues his quest to find the reasons behind Jacen SoloвЂTMs dark downfall and to win redemption for the Jedi Order—a journey that draws Luke and his son, Ben, to the forbidden reaches of the Maw Cluster. There dwell the Mind Walkers: those whose power to transcend their bodies and be one with the Force is as seductive as it is potentially fatal. As Luke and Ben push their Force abilities beyond known limits, they draw closer to a nexus of dark-side energy unprecedented in its power, and to an explosive confrontation from which only one Master—good or evil—can emerge alive. About the Author Troy Denning is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Tatooine Ghost; Star Wars: The New Jedi Order: Star by Star; the Star Wars: Dark Nest trilogy: The Joiner King, The Unseen Queen, and The Swarm War; and Star Wars: Legacy of the Force: Tempest, Inferno, and Invincible –as well as Pages of Pain , Beyond the High Road , The Summoning , and many other novels. A former game designer and editor, he lives in western Wisconsin with his wife, Andria. From the Hardcover edition. Excerpt. В© Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. In the Jade Shadow 's forward canopy hung twinВ black holes, their perfect darkness surrounded by fieryВ whorls of accretion gas. Because the Shadow wasВ approaching at an angle, the two holes had the oblongВ appearance of a pair of fire- rimmed eyes– and BenВ Skywalker was half tempted to believe that's what theyВ were. He had begun to feel like he was being watchedВ the instant he and his father had entered the MawВ cluster, and the deeper they advanced, the stronger theВ sensation grew. Now, at the very heart of the concentrationВ of black holes, the feeling was a constant chillВ at the base of his skull.В "I sense it, too," his father said. He was sittingВ behind Ben in the copilot's seat, up on the primaryВ flight deck. "We're not alone in here."В No longer surprised that the Grand Master of theВ Jedi Order always seemed to know his thoughts, BenВ glanced at an activation reticle in the front of the cockpit.В A small section of canopy opaqued into a mirror,В and he saw his father's reflection staring out the side ofВ the canopy. Luke Skywalker looked more alone andВ pensive than Ben ever remembered seeing him– thoughtful, but not sad or frightened, as though heВ were merely trying to understand what had broughtВ him to such a dark and isolated place, banished fromВ an Order he had founded, and exiled from a society heВ had spent his life fighting to defend.В В Trying not to dwell on the injustice of the situation,В Ben said, "So maybe we're closing in. Not that I'm allВ that eager to meet a bunch of beings called the MindВ Drinkers."В His father thought for a moment, then said, "Well,В I am."В He didn't elaborate, and he didn't need to. Ben andВ his father were on a mission to retrace Jacen Solo's fiveyearВ odyssey of Force exploration. At their last stop,В they had learned from an Aing- Tii monk that Jacen hadВ been bound for the Maw when he departed the KatholВ Rift. Since one purpose of their journey was to determineВ whether Jacen had been nudged toward the darkВ side by something on his voyage, it only made senseВ that Luke would want to investigate a mysteriousВ Maw- dwelling group known as the Mind Drinkers.В What impressed Ben, however, was how calm hisВ father seemed about it all. Ben was privately terrified ofВ falling victim to the same darkness that had claimed hisВ cousin. Yet his father seemed eager to step into its depthВ and strike a flame. And why shouldn't he be? AfterВ everything that Luke Skywalker had suffered andВ achieved in his lifetime, there was no power in theВ galaxy that could draw him into darkness. It was aВ strength that both awed Ben and inspired him, one thatВ he wondered if he would ever find himself.В Luke' s eyes shifted toward the mirrored canopy section,В and he caught Ben's gaze. "Is this what bothered youВ when you were at Shelter?" He was referring to a timeВ that was ancient history to Ben–the last part of the warВ with the Yuuzhan Vong, when the Jedi had been forced toВ hide their young at a secret base deep inside the Maw.В "Did you feel like someone was watching you?"В "How should I know?" Ben asked, suddenlyВ uneasy– and unsure why. By all accounts, he had beenВ an unruly, withdrawn toddler while he was at Shelter,В and he recalled being afraid of the Force for years afterward.В But he had no clear memories of Shelter itself, orВ what it had felt like to be there. "I was two. "В В "You did have feelings when you were two," hisВ father said mildly. "You did have a mind."В В Ben sighed, knowing what his father wanted, thenВ said, "You'd better take the ship."В В "I have the ship," Luke confirmed, reaching for theВ copilot's yoke. "Just close your eyes. Let the Force carryВ your thoughts back to Shelter."В "I know how to meditate." Almost instantly, Ben feltВ bad for grumbling and added, "But thanks for theВ advice."В В "Don't mention it," Luke said in a good- naturedВ way. "That's what fathers do– offer unwanted advice."В Ben closed his eyes and began to breathe slowly andВ deliberately. Each time he inhaled, he drew the ForceВ into himself, and each time he exhaled, he sent it flowingВ throughout his body. He had no conscious memoriesВ of Shelter that were his own, so he envisioned a holographВ of the facility that he had seen in the Jedi Archives.В The image showed a handful of habitation modulesВ clinging to the surface of an asteroid fragment, theirВ domes clustered around the looming cylinder of a powerВ core. In his mind's eye, Ben descended into the gaudyВ yellow docking bay at the edge of the facility . . . andВ then he was two years old again, a frightened little boyВ holding a stranger's hand as his parents departed in theВ *Jade Shadow.В *В An unwarranted sense of relief welled up inside BenВ as he grew lost in a time when life had seemed so muchВ easier. The last fourteen years began to feel like a long,В terrible nightmare. Jacen's fall to the dark side hadВ never happened, Ben had not been molded into an adolescentВ assassin, and his mother had not died fightingВ Jacen. All those sad memories were still just badВ dreams, the unhappy imaginings of a frightened youngВ mind.В Then the Shadow slipped through the containmentВ field and ignited her engines. In the blink of an eye sheВ dwindled from a trio of blue ion circles into a pinpointВ of light to nothing at all, and suddenly Ben was aloneВ in the darkest place in the galaxy, one child amongВ dozens entrusted to a small group of worried adultsВ who–despite their cheerful voices and reassuring presences– had very clammy palms and scary, anxious eyes.В В Two- year- old Ben reached toward the Shadow withВ his free hand and his heart, and he sensed his motherВ and father reaching back. Though he was too young toВ know he was being touched through the Force, heВ stopped being afraid . . . until a dark tentacle of needВ began to slither up into the aching tear of his abandonment.В He thought for an instant that he was just sadВ about being left behind, but the tentacle grew as real asВ his breath, and he began to sense in it an alien lonelinessВ as desperate and profound as his own. It wantedВ to draw him close and keep him safe, to take the placeВ of his parents and never let him be alone again.В Terrified and confused, young Ben pulled away,В simultaneously drawing in on himself and yanking hisВ hand from the grasp of the silver- haired lady who wasВ holding it.В В Then suddenly he was back in the cockpit of the JadeВ Shadow, staring into the fire- rimmed voids ahead.В Scattered around their perimeter were the smallerВ whorls of half a dozen more distant rings, their fieryВ light burning bright and steady against the starlessВ murk of the deep Maw.В "Well?" his father asked. "Anything feel familiar?" В В Ben swallowed. He wasn't sure why, but he foundВ himself wanting to withdraw from the Force all overВ again. "Are we sure we need to find these guys?"В В Luke raised a brow. "So it is familiar."В В "Maybe." Ben couldn't say whether the two feelingsВ were related, and at the moment he didn't care. ThereВ was something hungry in the Maw, something thatВ would still be there waiting for him. "I mean, the Aing-В Tii call them Mind Drinkers. That can't be good."В В "Ben, you're changing the subject." Luke' s tone wasВ more interested than disapproving, as though Ben'sВ behavior were only one part of a much larger puzzle.В "Is there something you don't want to talk about?" В В "I wish." Ben told his father about the dark tentacleВ that had reached out to him after the Shadow departedВ Shelter so many years ago. "I guess what we're feelingВ now might be related. There was definitelyВ some . . . thing keeping tabs on me at Shelter." В В Luke considered this for a moment, then shook hisВ head. "You were pretty attached to your mother.В Maybe you were just feeling abandoned and made up aВ 'friend' to take her place."В В "A tentacle friend?"В "You said it was a dark tentacle," Luke continuedВ thoughtfully, "and guilt is a dark emotion. Maybe youВ were feeling guilty about replacing us with an imaginaryВ friend."В В "And maybe you don't want to believe the tentacleВ was real because it would mean you left your two- yearoldВ son someplace really dangerous," Ben countered.В He caught his father's eye in the mirrored section again.В В "I hope you're not going to try to psychoanalyze thisВ away, because there's a big hole in your theory."В В Luke frowned. "And that would be?"В "I was two, " Ben reminded him. "And by all accounts,В I didn't feel guilty about anything at that age."В Luke grinned. "Good point, but I still don't think weВ should worry too much about this tentacle monster ofВ yours."В "It's not my tentacle monster," Ben retorted, miffedВ at having his concerns mocked. "You're the one whoВ made me dredge it up."В Luke's expression hardened into admonishment.В "But you're the one who's still afraid of it."В ... ISBN : 9780345509192 Formats : AZW3, EPUB, MOBI, PDF Following a trail of clues across the galaxy, Luke Skywalker continues his quest to find the reasons behind Jacen Solos dark downfall and to win redemption for the Jedi Order. Sojourning among the mysterious Aing-Tii monks has left Luke and his son Ben with no real answers, only the suspicion that the revelations they seek lie in the forbidden reaches of the distant Maw Cluster. There, hidden from the galaxy in a labyrinth of black holes, dwell the Mind Walkers: those whose power to transcend their bodies and be one with the Force is as seductive and intoxicating as it is potentially fatal. But it may be Lukes only path to the truth. Meanwhile, on Coruscant, the war of wills between Galactic Alliance Chief of State Natasi Daala and the Jedi Order is escalating. Outraged over the carbonite freezing of young Jedi Knights Valin and Jysella Horn after their inexplicable mental breakdowns, the Jedi are determined to defy Daalas martial tactics, override Council Master Kenth Hamners wavering leadership, and deal on their own terms with the epidemic of madness preying on their ranks. As Han and Leia Solo, along with their daughter Jaina, join the fight to protect more stricken Knights from arrest, Jedi healers race to find a cure for the rapidly spreading affliction. But none of them realize the blaster barrel is already swinging in their directionand Chief Daala is about to pull the trigger. Nor do Luke and Ben, deep in the Maw Cluster and pushing their Force abilities beyond known limits, realize how close they areto the Sith strike squad bent on exterminating the Skywalkers, to a nexus of dark-side energy unprecedented in its power and its hunger, and to an explosive confrontation between opposing wielders of the Force from which only one Mastergood or evilcan emerge alive. Features a bonus section following the novel that includes a primer on the#160; Star Wars #160;expanded universe, and over half a dozen excerpts from some of the most popular#160; Star Wars #160;books of the last thirty years! Following a trail of clues across the galaxy, Luke Skywalker continues his quest to find the reasons behind Jacen Solo's dark downfall and to win redemption for the Jedi Order. Sojourning among the mysterious Aing-Tii monks has left Luke and his son Ben with no real answers, only the suspicion that the revelations they seek lie in the forbidden reaches of the distant Maw Cluster. There, hidden from the galaxy in a labyrinth of black holes, dwell the Mind Walkers: those whose power to transcend their bodies and be one with the Force is as seductive and intoxicating as it is potentially fatal. But it may be Luke's only path to the truth. Meanwhile, on Coruscant, the war of wills between Galactic Alliance Chief of State Natasi Daala and the Jedi Order is escalating. Outraged over the carbonite freezing of young Jedi Knights Valin and Jysella Horn after their inexplicable mental breakdowns, the Jedi are determined to defy Daala's martial tactics, override Council Master Kenth Hamner's wavering leadership, and deal on their own terms with the epidemic of madness preying on their ranks. As Han and Leia Solo, along with their daughter Jaina, join the fight to protect more stricken Knights from arrest, Jedi healers race to find a cure for the rapidly spreading affliction. But none of them realize the blaster barrel is already swinging in their direction--and Chief Daala is about to pull the trigger. Nor do Luke and Ben, deep in the Maw Cluster and pushing their Force abilities beyond known limits, realize how close they are--to the Sith strike squad bent on exterminating the Skywalkers, to a nexus of dark-side energy unprecedented in its power and its hunger, and to an explosive confrontation between opposing wielders of the Force from which only one Master--good or evil--can emerge alive.From the Hardcover edition.

 
Peace is the way of the Jedi. But with deadly enemies on every side, war may be the only way out.
 
On Coruscant, an epidemic of madness is preying on the ranks of the Jedi Order—driving the Galactic Alliance to martial actions. As Han and Leia Solo, along with their daughter, Jaina, join the fight to protect more stricken Knights from arrest, Jedi healers race to find a cure for the rapidly spreading affliction.
   
Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker continues his quest to find the reasons behind Jacen Solo’s dark downfall and to win redemption for the Jedi Order—a journey that draws Luke and his son, Ben, to the forbidden reaches of the Maw Cluster. There dwell the Mind Walkers: those whose power to transcend their bodies and be one with the Force is as seductive as it is potentially fatal. As Luke and Ben push their Force abilities beyond known limits, they draw closer to a nexus of dark-side energy unprecedented in its power, and to an explosive confrontation from which only one Master—good or evil—can emerge alive.

Following A Trail Of Clues Across The Galaxy, Luke Skywalker Continues His Quest To Find The Reasons Behind Jacen Solo's Dark Downfall And To Win Redemption For The Jedi Order. Meanwhile On Coruscant, Han And Leia Solo, Along With Their Daughter Jaina, Join The Fight To Protect More Stricken Knights From Arrest While Jedi Healers Race To Find A Cure For The Rapidly Spreading Affliction. And Deep In The Maw Cluster The Sith Is Poised To Strike Against The Skywalkers And The Forces Of Good. Troy Denning. Lucas Books. Del Rey.