He was hunkered down behind a camouflage blind hidden in the trees that surrounded the construction site. Located atop a small bluff that overlooked the site and armed with night-vision goggles, he had a clear view of the entire area. The first two nights had passed without incident, and Johun had begun to fear that whoever was behind the attacks must have known he was there. If something didn't happen tonight, he decided, he'd have to try some other course of action.
Nearly two hours later his patience was finally rewarded when, through the goggles, he saw a single figure creep out from the trees less than a hundred meters from where Johun was hiding. At its side was a long, thin object that could have been a weapon, a walking stick, or possibly even both.
Johun scanned the surrounding forest, looking to see if the person was alone. The only companion showed up in the night-vision goggles as a small green blob, hovering in the shelter of the branches. Johun recognized it as one of Ruusan's indigenous bouncers, and he felt an involuntary shudder as he remembered the terror the species had inspired in the Jedi after a powerful Sith ritual had destroyed their forest homes and driven them mad.
It would make sense if the bouncers turned out to be behind the vandalism. To protect his troops, Hoth had, in the last days of the war, given standing orders to shoot the creatures on sight, and hundreds had died at the hands of the Jedi. Though the surviving members of the species had returned to their peaceful, healing ways, it was possible they still bore a grudge against the order for what had happened. But that still didn't explain the involvement of the humanoid figure making its way slowly toward the camp.
Johun broke from his hiding place. He knew the bouncer would flee at his approach, launching itself on the forest limbs high into the air where he couldn't follow. Short of killing it-which he wasn't about to do-he wouldn't be able to bring it down. But the bouncer's companion would have to escape on foot, and Johun was confident he could outrun any non-Jedi.
He raced toward his prey and the figure turned its head, alerted by the loud crunching of Johun's boots in the snow. Johun caught enough of a glimpse of the face beneath the hood to know he was chasing a young man. The man threw down the walking stick and bolted for the trees, the long robes he wore to protect against the cold fluttering out behind him.
Johun had fifty meters of ground to gain; with the power of the Force flowing through his limbs he had expected to make up the distance in a matter of seconds. But his adversary moved with surprising speed, and the Jedi realized that his quarry was, at least on some small level, attuned to the Force as well.
Across open ground Johun was still faster, but he was a good ten meters behind when the man reached the forest's edge and plunged into the undergrowth. He cut a path that would have shaken off almost any pursuit: weaving and darting in and out of the densely packed tree trunks› ducking under sharp branches, and leaping over thick, protruding roots at a breakneck pace. Drawing heavily on the Force, however, Johun was able to match his progress, swatting away the limbs and leaves that threatened to smack him in the face and nimbly avoiding the roots that would have sent him crashing to the ground.
They sprinted through the forest for several kilometers, neither able to gain ground in their contest. The chase ended when they broke into a small clearing with a tiny mud hut built in the center, and Johun realized that his quarry, blinded by panic, had instinctively run for home.
The man raced to the door, as if hoping to escape by locking himself away inside. Then he stopped, suddenly realizing the mistake he had made. With slumping shoulders he stood by the door, making no attempt to flee as Johun cautiously approached.
"I didn't think anyone could keep up with me through the forest" he said, defeated as he opened the door to his small hut. "You might as well come inside and get out of the cold."
The interior was simple but clean, and just large enough for the two men to share the space without feeling cramped. The only furnishing was a small sleeping mat in the corner. Glowing embers in a pit at the room's center threw off enough heat that Johun was able to remove his thick winter robe and lay it beside him as he sat cross-legged on the floor.
His host also shed the heaviest of his garments, peeling away multiple layers before kneeling across from his uninvited guest. Johun guessed the man was in his early twenties, only a few years younger than the Jedi himself. He had dark scruffy hair and a long scraggly beard; there was a wildness in his eyes. But it was only when Johun noticed he was missing his right hand that he recognized him as the famed Healing Hermit of Ruusan.
"Do you know who I am?" Johun asked.
"I know you're a Jedi," the hermit replied. "That's why I couldn't shake you."
"My name is Johun Othone. I'm in charge of the project to build a monument to those who sacrificed their lives here on Ruusan."
Johun waited, giving the other man a chance to respond or reply. But the hermit simply stared at the ground, his good hand resting in his lap, clasping the stump of his right arm.
"Why did you wreck our equipment at the construction site?" He half expected the hermit to make some type of denial; after all, Johun hadn't actually caught him in the act. But instead he freely admitted what he had done.
"I wanted to stop you. I figured if I cost you enough time and credits you would give up and go back where you came from."
"Why?" Johun asked, puzzled at the venom in the hermit's voice. "We don't want your kind on Ruusan," the younger man snapped. "You have no right to be here!"
"I served with General Hoth in the Army of Light" Johun answered, trying to stay calm despite the righteous indignation he felt. "I saw my friends die. I saw them sacrifice themselves to save the galaxy from the Sith."
"I know all about the Sith" the hermit sneered. "And the Jedi, too. I saw the war with my own eyes. I know what happened.
"Look at what your war did to this world!" he shouted, his voice accusing. "Every year the snow falls, and with each winter more and more animals die from the cold. Ten years after your so-called victory, entire species are still being driven to extinction by what you caused!"
"I am sorry for the suffering this world has endured " Johun said. "But the Jedi cannot be held responsible for everything. The greatest harm to this planet was done by the Sith."
"Jedi, Sith, you're all the same" the hermit spat. "You were so blinded by your hatred of each other you couldn't see the consequences of what you were doing. And in the end your general marched down into the underground caverns to face Kaan's followers, knowing he would unleash the devastation of the thought bomb on this world."
"Hoth sacrificed himself so that others could be saved," Johun protested.
"The thought bomb was an abomination! Hoth should have done everything in his power to keep Kaan from using it. Instead he intentionally forced his hand."
"There was no other choice" Johun answered, defending his former Master's actions. "The detonation of the thought bomb destroyed the Brotherhood and forever rid the galaxy of the Sith."
The hermit laughed loudly. "Is that what you believe? The Sith are gone?" He shook his head and muttered, "Poor, deluded little Jedi."
"What do you mean?" Johun demanded. He felt an icy fist closing around his guts. "You don't believe the Sith were wiped out?"
"I know they weren't wiped out," the hermit answered. "One of the Dark Lords survived, and he took my cousin as his apprentice."
Johun's head snapped back as if he'd been slapped. "Your cousin?"
It sounded crazy, completely implausible. But the hermit, despite his wild eyes, didn't strike Johun as mad.
"How do you know this?"
"After the thought bomb exploded, I went down into the tunnels to see what was left," the hermit whispered, his expression grim as he dredged up dark memories from his past. "I saw them there, my cousin and Lord Bane." He held his stump up before his face. "They gave me this."