Power and Betrayal: Chapter 21

By the next morning, near the time when the trial of Dianiss was scheduled to begin, the standing-room-only crowd of the previous day had mostly not returned. Instead, there were less than one-fourth of the number of people inside. The main reason for this was the Jedi Guard who were stationed outside the entrance to the room, and only allowing people to enter who were on a list that had been provided by Master Gwyniss.

That list consisted mostly of names that were originally provided by Satele Shan of people who were granted the necessary clearances to hear all about Dianiss' past, her origins, and--most importantly--the existence of the ancient Sith spirit that was bound to her since birth. Among them were Satele herself, Master Annanya, Master Casei, and soon-to-be-Master Galadina.  Gwyniss added several other names that were formally essential to carrying out the trial: her own name, Kinnan and Dianiss, Satele and Annanya, and Galadina, along with one of the Battlemasters of the Jedi Guard.

There was a second series of names that would be permitted to enter only because they had legal Necessity of Presence and would be required to testify and/or answer questions, such as Kari, Galadina, and now Zarvell. This group was further divided into two groups.  First was those who were additionally vetted by the High Council and granted clearance to remain present, apart from the legal requirement, since they were already aware of Dianiss' secret.  Anyone else in the second group would be directed to wait in another nearby classroom, where a makeshift waiting/seating area had been set up.  Oddly, there was no one who needed to be redirected to that room since everyone involved was cleared by the High Council.

Just as she did the day before, Master Gwyniss entered ceremonially, followed by two members of the Jedi Guard, and made her way to the podium to initiate the holo-connection with Dianiss on Bogan. After a few seconds, the translucent-blue image of Dianiss appeared at the front of the room, again wearing full dress uniform and kneeling respectfully.

Gwyniss stood and ignited her lightsaber over her head just like before. "The trial of Jedi Dianiss will now commence. May the Force guide us toward Truth, Justice, and Harmony with its will."

The Jedi Guard activated their sabers, and everyone in the room responded "May the Force be with us." All lightsabers were deactivated afterward.

Gwyniss remained standing. "As of this moment," she said, "this session will be restricted in compliance with the orders of the High Council. The Jedi Guard is directed to leave the room and take up your posts outside. Anyone who is not a material witness or otherwise approved by the High Council is also ordered to leave now."

There was a lot of general looking around the room to see who would stay and who would leave, but thanks to the earlier diligence of the Jedi Guard outside the door, no one in the room except three of the four Jedi Guard actually left. In the mean time, Satele and Annanya took the seats that had been prepared for them at the table at the front of the room.

Master Gwyniss, meanwhile, took this opportunity to do a quick rundown of the approved-personnel list and match the names to the faces in the room. She let out a sigh of disbelief as she came across one name in particular. "Miss Kariharra, it appears that the High Council has granted you--for whatever reason--the necessary clearance to stay here, despite my advice to the contrary. Please comport yourself in a manner befitting of the Jedi Order."

"Yes, Master Justice." Kari said, and in an effort to demonstrate that she was NOT some barbarian from the outer rim, executed a perfect formal Jedi ceremonial bow of the sort a Padawan would use before her Master. Afterward, she did a quick shake-and-curl of her lekku.

"No, Miss Kari'arra, despite your show of respect, I assure that I am NOT made of ice." Gwyniss said with a stern look.

Kari just quietly sat down, and didn't even look straight at Gwyniss, too embarrassed by having just been caught trying to be sneaky.

"The Accuser may begin his case." Gwyniss said, ignoring Kari altogether.

Kinnan stood up and looked directly at Zarvell. "Before I begin, Master Justice, I must strongly protest the presence of the Sith Lord Zarvell, a.k.a. Darth Imperius. He is an enemy of the state, and an enemy of the order . . . and he's been granted security clearance? This is ridiculous, and I move to have him excluded from this venue until it is his appointed time to speak."

Zarvell looked over to Galadina with a smile, and gave her a quick wink. Then he stood and faced Kinnan. "So, to be clear, you are questioning my legitimacy to be a part of a classified Jedi legal proceeding?"

"I most certainly am!" Kinnan responded.

"Starlight." Zarvell said.

"What?" Kinnan asked, confused.

"Are you familiar with the ancient Order of the Starlight, Master Sig-lapp?"

"Yes. According to legend, at the close of the Great Hyperspace War, thousands of years ago, there was a group of Sith who rejected the dark side and who were shown mercy because of it. But there's no evidence that they still exist, . . . or, for that matter, that they EVER existed."

"Well, lack of evidence of the existence of a thing does not disprove the existence of a thing, as I'm sure you're aware. Also, you were incorrect on one very important detail: it wasn't just mercy that they were granted, it was clemency along with full restoration of their membership in the Jedi Order."

"How is this at all relevant?" Kinnan asked.

"That's a valid question, Mister Zarvell." Gwyniss interjected. "I hope you have a valid answer."

"Master, Sig-lapp, almost all of the things you've said of me yesterday and today were entirely correct: I am an Imperial Citizen, I am a Sith, and I am even a Darth. The question of being your enemy is a bit more complex. But you left out something crucial, an omission that I can correct now that we are in executive session: I am also an Elder of the Order of the Starlight. That makes me, by unbroken tradition, a member of the Jedi Order."

"That's preposterous!" Kinnan responded, in a tone that bordered on angry. "And besides that, none of this fantasy of yours can be proven."

"Master Justice," Zarvell said, turning his attention away from Kinnan and over to Gwyniss. "I call your attention to the Accused's evidence submission, file number 46."

"Mister Zarvell" Gwyniss answered. "I suppose it would be more correct to address you as Lord Zarvell now, given the statements you just made. I remember file 46 because it was the one file that, when I was reviewing all of the documents, I was unable to read due to the encryption."

"I can remedy that right now, if I may be permitted to use the computer console."

"And if I allow that, just what will I find?"

"Proof." he answered. After a quick glance over to Satele, he added, "...and corroboration."

Gwyniss looked over to Satele herself and simply asked, "Grand Master?", after which Satele nodded her head. "Approach." she said to Zarvell.

"Either Mister or Lord are equally acceptable, by the way." Zarvell said casually, as he walked up to the table where Gwyniss, Satele, and Annanya sat. "I should ask you not to use Darth, however, as it is a position I rose to out of necessity and not of ambition. It also carries a certain inflammatory tone that I believe is best avoided in this forum, wouldn't you agree?"

"You make an excellent point." she responded as he spun the console around to the front of the table and began typing. "I must tell you, Lord Zarvell, I personally look forward to reviewing file number 29 with you--if only to learn how such an extraordinary piece of documentation came to exist."

Zarvell did not respond immediately, but instead was staring directly into a retinal scanner. "She will never be a weapon." he said to no one in particular. Then, looking back up to Gwyniss, said, "I shall endeavour to answer all of your questions in due time."

When Zarvell spun the console back around so that Gwyniss could see the unencrypted file, she was initially speechless. "Satele, . . . is this for real?"

Satele looked briefly at the computer display, and quickly recognized what she was reading. "Yes, it's authentic, and so are those sections that have my signature: I did sign-off on those reports."

Zarvell gave Gwyniss a few more moments to read further before speaking. "So as you can see, Master Justice, what was once a splinter group of the Jedi has evolved over the centuries into a covert organization dedicated to opposing the tyranny of Sith who embrace the dark side, and quietly acting to prevent war between the Empire and the Republic. Regrettably, we have failed in that mission in recent years, so we have instead been assisting the Jedi Order by providing intelligence--covertly--in the interests of peace. What you have before you is a series of classified reports that resulted from some of those covert operations."

"The Accuser will need to see this document as well." Kinnan interjected.

"No." Satele responded immediately. "Even with full White-level clearance, Master Kinnan, there are some things that are still compartmentalized--and you do NOT have the need-to-know."

Kinnan looked to Gwyniss. "Master Justice...?"

"Matters of internal security are outside of the scope of authority of a Master Justice," Gwyniss immediately replied, "so the decision of the High Council stands. However," she continued, "Lord Zarvell has indeed provided ample justification for his claim to . . . honorary . . . membership in the Jedi Order."

"Thank you, Master Justice." Zarvell responded. "If I may clarify one procedural point, am I correct in observing that the Accuser has not yet begun making his case, and as such, we are still technically within the pre-trial phase?"

"I suppose that is correct, Lord Zarvell." Gwyniss answered with a curious look on her face. Something about the way he asked the question told her that he was up to something.

"Then in light of the new information that--for the protection of the Jedi Order--could not have been presented in open session, I should like to appeal the Master Justice's ruling on the matter of my standing as Advocate for the Accused."

"WHAT?!?" Kinnan yelled out incredulously, leaping up from his seat. "This man is making--"

Gwyniss ignited her lightsaber over her head, cutting Kinnan's outburst short, and gave him a stern stare. Lord Zarvell, I wonder: are you that lucky or that manipulative? Gwyniss thought to herself. How did you know that Kinnan would immediately object to your presence here, so that you could leverage it to create this opening for yourself?

After a few moments of silence in the room except for the hum of her saber, she deactivated it. "As an adjunct member of the Jedi Order, it is clear that you have legitimate standing. Similarly, the appeal itself is valid due to the nature of the evidence, and the legitimate reason for not presenting it sooner. Your appeal is granted and the previous ruling is hereby reversed. I know that there are educational transcripts among the Accused's evidence submission, but based on the way you've conducted yourself thus far . . . I am already convinced that you meet the requirement of competency. All that remains is the requirement of approval." Gwyniss looked over to the holo-image of Dianiss.

That holo-image was mildly blurry at that moment because Dianiss looked so excited by this recent turn of events that she was unable to sit still. "YES!" she immediately shouted out, without waiting to be asked the question.

Gwyniss asked the question anyway in a stiff tone of voice, while shooting Dianiss a disapproving look for speaking out of turn. "Jedi Dianiss, do you approve of Lord Zarvell as your Advocate for the Accused?"

"Yes." she repeated, in a calmer and more respectful tone, having understood the admonishment.

"So be it." Gwyniss responded. "Let the record show that Lord Zarvell, the Accused's father, has been named the legal Advocate for the Accused. Make no mistake, this is a highly unusual circumstance, but it is plainly in the best interests of truth, justice, and harmony with the Force that the Accused--no matter who she is--has an advocate. Lord Zarvell, you may return to your seat."

Kinnan had a genuine look of anger on his face, but said nothing.

Zarvell turned around and walked back to his chair. As he did, he looked over to Galadina a second time and gave her a smile and a quick wink.

"The Accuser may begin his case." Gwyniss said, and then with an amused smirk added, "...and might I suggest that you actually DO IT this time, before Lord Zarvell produces evidence that he is also the Supreme Chancellor."

Kinnan composed himself and simply responded, "I will." After he moved toward the front of the room, he continued. "There are a number of facts that are not in dispute. Dianiss was born an Imperial citizen. She is the daughter of two Sith Lords--both of whom are now Darths--and was trained from early childhood to be a Sith."

"So stipulated." Zarvell confirmed.

"It is also true that Dianiss can trace her lineage back to the Sith Lord Aloysius Kallig--a contemporary and rival of Tulak Hord--by both her paternal and maternal bloodlines. This is important to note because the spirit of Kallig--existing still as a powerful ghost in the Force--is bound to Dianiss, though this is generally kept secret."

"Also stipulated." Zarvell again confirmed.

"These facts are not the basis for this accusation, although one could argue that they would be enough. The basis for this accusation is that the presence of Kallig's ghost within Dianiss is a constant influence to her, continually pulling her towards the dark side with the promise of extraordinary power--a temptation to which she has already succumbed on multiple occasions. Given the presence of this power and her history of giving in to this power without fully being able to control it--with disastrous results--she is a danger to herself and to all those around her, not to mention a liability to the Jedi Order."

The blue image of Dianiss from the holo-projector was mercifully devoid of the red tint in her eyes that one would have seen if face-to-face with her in that moment.

"Very well, Master Sig-lapp." Gwyniss responded. "Make your case."

"At this time, the Accuser would question the Jedi Master Casei Church." Kinnan announced.

"Master Casei, would you please stand and give your testimony." Gwyniss said.

Casei stood up, as instructed, and announced "I am Master Casei, here to represent Truth, Justice, and Harmony with the will of the Force."

"May the Force be with you." Gwyniss said.

"Master Casei," Kinnan began, "what is the nature of your relationship with Jedi Dianiss?"

"When Dianiss was an Initiate, I was one of her instructors in the techniques of healing through the Force. Later, I took her on as my Padawan to continue her training, until she passed her trials and became a Jedi Knight and a member of the Medical Corps."

"Why did you choose Dianiss as your Padawan?"

"Satele asked me to train her. I was told about her past, plus everything we knew about her . . . condition at the time."

"And what was your top priority when it came to training Dianiss?"

"The Council decided that the most important factors in training Dianiss as a Jedi were to treat her like any other student, but also keep her away from the dark side at all costs. She'd had a little bit of Sith training by the time she came here, so we had to undo THAT right away--before Dianiss, I'd never seen a nine-year-old create Force lightning before. But most of all, we wanted to keep her from using that power of hers."

"And why was that?"

"Dianiss is very strong with the Force, even without using that other power. I think she's still the highest-scoring Jedi we've ever tested since we started using the S.S.C. blood test--the one that YOU introduced, Master Kinnan. So like any exceptional student, it was especially important to teach her control--including self-control. The more natural power a Jedi has, the greater the responsibility to keep that power under control."

"I couldn't agree more, Master Casei." Gwyniss interjected.

"So we encouraged her to take up healing rather than combat, especially in her early years." Casei continued.

"What kind of student was she?" Kinnan asked.

"She was a good student, definitely curious, and enjoyed experiencing a lot of different things--one of our more happy-go-lucky younglings." Casei looked over to Dianiss' holo-image and gave a wry smile. "She was also kind of a show-off, and was getting herself into trouble an awful lot. I'm not sure little Kari was the best influence on her."

Dianiss shrugged and smiled back, but said nothing.

Kari looked around the room with a shocked What-did-*I*-do? look on her face.

"Shocking...." Gwyniss remarked, with obvious sarcasm in her voice.

"But we figured out that she really just craved attention, and didn't like being alone." Casei added. "Since she wasn't really getting the social contact that she needed from the other Jedi her age, we allowed the friendship to continue. Dianiss knew she was strong, and knew she was different, and unfortunately that alienated her a lot from the other younglings. We kept the Sith business a secret from her at first, not that we understood it very well ourselves, and kept an eye out for any signs of her using it."

"DID she use it?"

"There were times when she almost did, but we were very strict with her about that, and it was never coming from really deep negative emotions like rage or hatred. Mostly, it came from frustration. Since using the Force normally came easy to her, she'd get really discouraged whenever she DID have trouble accomplishing some task, and that frustration would sometimes spill over. That, and she had a mischievous streak where she'd try to do things just to see if she could . . . like this one time when she created momentary amnesia in a guest lecturer when she came into class late." Casei was grinning ear-to-ear.

Annanya was unable to suppress a giggle, and just barely managed to keep it quiet.

"Yes." Kinnan responded with an annoyed tone that confirmed that he understood the not-so-subtle dig at him that Casei had just made. "I'm familiar. But there was a well-documented time when she DID use it, without holding back, wasn't there?"

Casei sighed. "Yes. The Boulder Incident. I wasn't an eye-witness to it, but I was with her right after it happened. Dianiss had gotten into an altercation with Galadina--they were both Padawans at the time--and in her anger she launched a very large rock into the sky by telekinesis, while Galadina was trying to hold it down telekinetically. Galadina was put in a coma from the Force power alone."

Galadina took a deep breath to remain calm as she thought back to that incident herself.

"So Dianiss got angry, and someone else got hurt because of it." he said with emphasis. "What did you discuss with her when you were with her afterward?"

"She thought she had ruined her chances of becoming a Jedi because she had fallen to the dark side. I sat with her and explained that what happened was not that she had fallen, but that she had just unleashed this thing inside her--really for the first time. Shortly after that, we told her what we knew about her and what was done to her before she born, and the burden that she carries as a result."

"And how would you describe this 'thing inside her' that you mentioned?"

"Before Dianiss was born, her mother did something to bind the spirit of one of her long-dead Sith ancestors--Aloysious Kallig--to hers. As a result, she can tap into his power at will. We believe that the reason for doing this was so that her mother could somehow take that power for herself."

"Master Justice, I have no further questions."

"Master Casei, you may be seated." Gwyniss announced, and Casei took her seat.

"Master Justice, the Accuser would question the Jedi Master Galadina."

"Jedi Knight Galadina, please stand and give your testimony." Gwyniss said, emphasizing once again that Galadina had not yet been officially granted the rank of Master.

Galadina stood and and said, "I am Galadina, here to represent Truth, Justice, and Harmony with the will of the Force."

"May the Force be with you." Gwyniss said.

"Galadina, you have been present on more than one occasion when the accused used her Sith power, were you not?"

Zarvell spoke up immediately. "Master Justice, I must object to the use of the term 'Sith power', as prejudicial, particularly in the midst of a trial to determine if the accused is or is not a Sith."

Gwyniss turned to Kinnan. "Rebuttal, Master Sig-lapp?"

"The source of the power is Aloysius Kallig, a Sith Lord." Kinnan responded. "I think the description is accurate."

"The power exists separately from Kallig's ghost, and the accused is at this time not the only one in possession of that power." Zarvell retorted. "The source of the power is in the DNA of Annie . . . I'm sorry, the Accused . . . herself. The intimate contact with Kallig's ghost merely how it was activated."

"I've heard enough." Gwyniss said, interrupting them both. "Your objection is refused. Even if everything you say is true, Lord Zarvell, it still comes from DNA that originated with a Sith Lord."

Zarvell bowed his head respectfully, but said nothing in response.

"So . . ." Kinnan continued, "you've been a witness to the accused using her Sith power on multiple occasions, correct?"

"That's correct." Dina answered.

"We've already heard about the first time, and the results. The second time came on Ilum, correct?"

"That's correct."

"Tell us what happened."

"First off, Dianiss was not herself at that time. She was being controlled by an outside influence, which we had learned was her mother, Lady Sianid, also known as Darth Nox."

"Noted." he said. "But you fought with her."

"Yes."

"What happened during that fight?"

"It wasn't just me, it was a strike team of 4 Jedi--Masters Casei and Annanya, Padawan Zedemm, and myself--along with support from Jedi Major Kendsel and Captain Kariharra. We were there to intercept a rendez-vous between Dianiss and Sianid's support crew and prevent her from being taken into Imperial custody. Unfortunately WE were intercepted by another Sith--Synzia--who's probably one of the ten most powerful living Sith in the galaxy."

"I'd go so far as to say she's among the top five." he said in agreement. "So you engaged Synzia?"

"She engaged US, forcing down our ship and attacking us immediately. Combined, we fought her to a stand-still, but she delayed us enough that Sianid's crew were able to arrive on the scene and extract her."

"Is that when you engaged Dianiss herself?"

"As I said before, it wasn't Dianiss. Dianiss had been killed in the crash of her own ship, and that was what allowed Lord Kallig to completely take over after Master Casei had revived her--or maybe reanimated her is a better term. It was HIM that I engaged, in her body, not Dianiss herself."

"Again, noted. Go on."

"Kallig was too much for us, even though he was still new to controlling Dianiss and I think he was still figuring out what he was capable of doing through her. But even then, we couldn't hurt him and he quickly defeated us."

"So she had not only lost control of herself, but also quickly--your word--defeated a strike team of some of the finest Jedi in the..."

"...AND one very talented pilot-slash-combat medic!" Kari blurted out.

"QUIET, or I will expel you." Gwyniss scolded.

"...a strike team of Jedi and their allies." Kinnan finished with the same emphasis as before.

"That's . . . correct." Dina said, with a note of shame in her voice.

"Then later," Kinnan continued, "...you went on an unauthorized expedition to Dromund Kaas, of all places, to face her again--according to a recently-filed report."

"I did."

"And when you did face her again, she severely wounded everyone involved, and--if this report is to be believed--actually killed you?"

"Again, that was Lord Kallig, not Dianiss. Our efforts allowed Lord Zarvell's apprentice to use a Sith ritual to shut off the Force within her body, which severed Kallig's control. But prior to that, Kallig used that same ritual on me, which nearly killed me. It was the efforts of Dianiss--the real Dianiss, not Kallig--that revived me."

"I'm sorry, how can you know this if you were incapacitated at the time?"

"It's TRUE!" Kari blurted out. "I was there and I saw it! Hell, it was MY IDEA."

"MISS KARIHARRA." Gwyniss said in an icy tone that quieted the room more effectively than her lightsaber. "This is your FINAL warning. You will have your chance to speak in due time. Until that time is upon us, SHUT. YOUR. MOUTH."

"My apologies, Master Justice. I won't do it again." Kari said, respectfully, like a Padawan, and this time with no extraneous Ryl Lekku-language.

"Master Justice," Zarvell interjected, "the accuser is quite correct to object to testimony that the witness could not possibly have witnessed. However, I too was there at the time as a witness to these events--as the report no doubt indicates--and I can personally corroborate the testimony."

"Isn't that exactly what *I* just said?!?" Kari whispered to Zarvell.

Gwyniss tapped a few controls on her computer console and quickly reviewed the report that Kinnan had referenced. "The report does confirm that he was present, so unless you want to make a rebuttal, the objection . . . if, Master Sig-lapp, that was your intention . . . is refused, and the testimony will stand as that of Lord Zarvell and not Jedi Galadina."

"No rebuttal, Master Justice." Kinnan replied. "Nevertheless, ALL of this was the direct result of the Sith power within her, was it not? The possession, where Masters Annanya and Casei were attacked and defeated; the abduction, where they, yourself, Padawan Zedemm, Jedi Major Kendsel, and Captain Kariharra were again attacked and defeated--leaving Master Casei in a coma; and then the--I guess we'll call it the "recovery", where even MORE allies were attacked and defeated--yourself included--using dark-side Sith methods, no less: it was all because of her Sith power, wasn't it?"

Dina took a deep breath before answering. "Yes, it was. But you are mischaracterizing the reason Master Casei was..."

"Master Justice, I have no further questions." Kinnan said, interrupting her.

"Jedi Galadina, you may be seated." Gwyniss said.

Galadina spent a moment thinking about whether or not she should press on with an out-of-order outburst the way Kari had done, but decided to sit down instead. Maintaining her standing and credibility as a witness would be crucial at the end of this trial, and far outweighed the need to score a point on an otherwise-irrelevant detail.

But as she did, Zarvell brought up the point for her. "Master Justice, I must object to the characterization that Master Casei's condition was a result of some sort of attack by the accused. It was, in actual fact, a result of some quite brilliant medical technique that she performed to revive an otherwise dying patient--the Accused--and that the technique itself was what was so draining that it temporarily left her in a comatose state."

Gwyniss took a moment reading from her computer console before answering. "Master Yaya's report of the incident confirms this. Do you have a rebuttal, Master Sig-lapp?"

"I would clarify that my argument was exactly as I stated it and no more. The incident in it's entirety was the direct result of the presence of the Accused's Sith power, and that Master Casei's coma was one of the many tragic results of that incident. It was not my intention to imply that it was the result of an attack."

"Very well." Gwyniss responded. "With the additional clarification, the objection is refused."

Zarvell nodded wordlessly, and sat back down.

"Master Justice, the Accuser would question the freighter Captain Kariharra."

Gwyniss let out a deep sigh, and stared daggers at Kari as she spoke, practically daring her to step out of line so that Gwyniss could expel her. "Miss Kariharra, please stand and give your testimony." Gwyniss said with all the enthusiasm of a dead bug lying on the ground.

Kari--taking her cues from the previous witnesses and Zarvell's pre-trial coaching--stood and and said, very formally, "I am Kari'arra, here to represent Truth, Justice, and Harmony with the will of the Force." She made a point of pronouncing her name in proper Ryl with the full accent.

"May the Force be with you." Gwyniss said, trying to sound like she didn't really mean it, still staring daggers.

"Captain, how shall I address you?" Kinnan asked. "It must, for legal and archival reasons, be Galactic Basic, which your formal introduction was not."

"Just 'Kari' is fine then." she answered.

"Kari, what is your relationship to the accused?"

"She is my closest, dearest friend. I've known her since childhood."

"And you are aware of the prohibition against Jedi forming attachments?"

"Of course I am. But since *I'm* not a Jedi, I actually *am* allowed to have friends. You should try it. It's nice--really good for centering and inner peace and all that crap."

"Of course." Kinnan said, dismissively. "And, given your medical training, you also consider yourself the Accused's primary physician, is that correct?"

"Yes sir." Kari said proudly. "I field-trained at the Avilatan Regional Hospital on Ord Mantell, and got my degree from the Correllian campus of the First Republic Medical Academy."

"Excellent. So then you can expertly tell us all about the unusual medicine you administered to the Accused on Malachor V."

The pride in Kari's face instantly melted away and was replaced by a look of dread. "I administered a bunch of different medi--"

"Don't dodge the question. You know very well which one I'm referring to." Kinnan shot back, interrupting her. "I believe you called it 'N.N.A.' or something like that."

"The witness will answer the question." Gwyniss added sternly, holding up her hand and staring directly at Kari. "...honestly and completely."

Kari was starting to see where this was headed, and it would not be helping Dianiss' case. She really didn't want to answer the question.

But at the same time, she felt a subtle tingling in her lekku accompanied by a sudden appreciation for how important it was to answer honestly and completely. Dianiss had long ago taught her to recognize this sensation for what it was: Jedi Force persuasion. Dianiss also taught her how to fight it, but Zarvell had warned her that she shouldn't.

"So, then you mean the Neural Necrotizer Agent." she admitted. She felt a pleasant rush of endorphin release as she complied. "It's a cocktail of five different neurotoxins designed to slowly increase in potency the longer it's in the patient's system, attacking the nerve cells. It's based on something used in the Empire for torturing prisoners."

"And why did you administer THIS to the accused?"

"She asked me to." Kari couldn't help but smile with smugness over her literally-true-but-still-evasive answer, even though it gave her the tiniest of headaches.

Kinnan almost suppressed a groan. "But for what purpose?"

"Because Dina had been using the Force to help keep him under control, but got cut off from her when she was trapped inside that giant barrier that blocked out everything, including the Force."

"And how do YOU know that it blocked out the Force?  Are you a Jedi now?"

"Well you were there, Genius! Am I wrong?!?" Kari blurted out and felt the headache start to return. She decided she'd better start again with a more cooperative tone.  ". . . because she told me so when you were unconscious--and she can confirm that this is true." she soon added, and felt better. "...and without Dina's help, she thought she needed another way to keep him under control."

"So even the Accused herself acknowledges that this power is not completely within her ability to control. How does this . . . poison . . . work, exactly?"

With the new endorphin release, it all suddenly came spilling out. "So you see, there's this thing about dead Sith lords that, y'know, aren't really dead but are supposed to be: they really REALLY REALLY don't want to be dead. That's . . . basically how they got that way to start with. So because Ziveri'Sinya doesn't want to be dead, he also doesn't want Annie to be dead."

"By Ziveri'Sinya you're referring to the spirit of Lord Aloysius Kallig, and by 'Annie' you're referring to the Accused, I take it?"

"Yes to both. Now, normally he can't do anything without her allowing it, but at the same time, she can't stop him from doing things that are, essentially, in cooperation with normal biological functions. So even without her permission, he can and will act to keep her alive because HE doesn't want her to be dead, and because normal survival instinct lets him. So he'll boost her immune system, heal her wounds, and sustain her systems all the way down to the cellular level."

"How is this relevant?"

"I'm getting there! One of the things we learned from the knock-down-drag-out we had with him--WHEN ANNIE WAS BEING CONTROLLED BY HIM--was that wounds that would otherwise have been fatal to anyone else weakened his hold on her. We think it's because he has to divert a lot of his power and attention into keeping her alive. So, we figured out that poisoning her would be an effective way to control him--and attacking the nervous system in particular would be the most effective way because it would actively interfere with his ability to fight the effects."

"So even the accused herself acknowledges that this power is not completely within her ability to control." he emphasized. "Did this poison work?"

Kari frowned. "It did at first. It was supposed to overwhelm him to the point where I would have to administer an antidote in controlled doses to keep her alive. But . . . instead he just kept getting stronger, and was able to completely purge the toxins all on his own. She might even be completely immune to it now . . . kinda like that other poison YOU gave her."

Zarvell raised an eyebrow in curiosity at Kari's last statement, but said nothing.

"One last question." Kinnan said. "On Malachor, after the Sith apprentice that we encountered was defeated, isn't it true that the Accused attacked . . . well, me?"

"Well you're the one who threat--" Kari started to say, but the headache came back strong. "Yes. Yes she did." she admitted. "But it was only because her Jedi mojo was all thrown off because of Ziveri'Sinya, and the way you--"

"Of course it was." Kinnan interrupted. "Master Justice, I have no further questions."

"Miss Kariharra, you may be seated." Gwyniss said. As soon as Kari sat down, she felt much better.

"Master Justice, in summary, we have a heard a great deal of circumstantial evidence about the Accused's background and history, but--more importantly--we have heard first-hand testimony from persons with favorable biases toward the Accused that she is unable to truly keep this power of hers under control. We've even seen evidence that the Accused herself is fully aware of this fact by taking drastic action to control it, . . . which failed. The presence of this Sith power makes her a danger to herself and to any others who might have the misfortune of just being around her when she loses her temper--let alone make her angry. Therefore I recommend a finding of: guilty."

"The Accuser has made his case." Gywniss said, formally. "The Advocate for the Accused may begin his defense."

Continue to Chapter 22 . . . .