Tassadar straightened, and his eyes gleamed. "I will learn what you will teach to save all our people.. .my friend."

Jake shook his head in silent wonderment. "Remarkable. Both of them. As much as Khas or Adun. Tassadar—he died to save Aiur, right?"

"That is only the barest hint of his sacrifice and what it did for our people—the blow it struck against the zerg—but yes. Tassadar eventually turned against the Conclave, to the point where he engaged them in combat when they refused to listen to him. They were all slain."

"What? He killed the Conclave? All of them?"

"Yes. Members of the Judicator caste still survive, but there is no longer a Conclave. Tassadar did this with deep regret, but it wasnecessary. They would have imprisoned him at a time when his actions were desperately needed, and Aiur and the entire protoss race would have been destroyed. Tassadar learned what Zeratul had to teach him, about the energies and powers the dark templar had learned after centuries of exploring the mysteries of the Void. Alone, we could never have destroyed the zerg Overmind. Tassadar used both kinds of skills in order to defeat the Overmind and save our people. And it is because of his understanding and compassion to the dark templar—his befriending of Zeratul, and Zeratul's of him—that we were welcomed on Shakuras at all."

Tassadar was remarkable indeed. He had opened a mind that a millennia of lies had endeavored to seal shut, and not only accepted but actively embraced beings who were reputedly attempting to destroy what it meant to be protoss. He had chosen to see what was truly there, rather than what he thought was there, and had saved his people.

Perhaps even more extraordinary was Zeratul and the dark templar. Jake was pretty sure that if one branch of terrans had been rounded up, threatened with execution, and exiled into the unforgiving Void, they wouldn't feel all warm and fuzzy toward their oppressors.

I did not spend much time on Shakuras. I do not know what has happened over the last four years. But Zeratul and Tassadar have given me hope, that in my absence Aiur protoss and dark templar have reunited, and we have become one people once again. We will need to be if—

Jake was instantly alert, but Zamara had shuttered her mind to him again.

Are you ever going to tell me what's going on, Zamara ?

I hope to be able to, Jacob. You have earned the right to at least know what it is you 're being asked to perhaps die for. But I must wait until we find Zeratul, or someone else who can help us.

That could be a long wait.

The mental blast that sang through his thoughts almost caused Jake to black out.

Trespassers and thieves! Who dares violate my sanctuary? Then again... it might not be such a long wait after all.

CHAPTER 8

ZAMARA RESPONDED QUICKLY TO THE DISTANT mindcall. "Zeratul, my old friend. It is I, Zamara. You once told me of this world, though not its name, and I have come, seeking your aid and wisdom."

Pain lanced through Jake as Zamara shared the memory. He knew she needed to, knew she had to make it crystal clear and unquestioning quickly if Zeratul was to be mollified and help them. But still...

Zeratul kicked at the dust beneath their feet, sending a lazy gray puff of ash up in a little cloud. Jake looked around, curious to finally see this place aptly named Char with her own eyes.

"Is it a burden, holding these memories? Does it tax you?" Zeratul asked.

"It is an honor and a duty, and yes, occasionally a burden. The memories themselves are easy to hold. It is only when—when the memories are passed to me that there is pain."

"Passed to you?"

She regarded him evenly. "I receive a protoss's memories when he or she dies. It is never pleasant, and if many die somewhere at once... then it is painful to integrate."

He nodded his comprehension. "That must be difficult indeed." "Most of the conflict comes when I know something and am unable to share it. I am glad you and Tassadar found your own paths to peace with one another."

He regarded Jake thoughtfully. "How do you find your own peace, Zamara? Does it not threaten to overwhelm you, being the bearer of so very much?"

"As Tassadar has explained, we do not completely lose ourselves in the Khala. Iam renewed and refreshed by contacting so many other minds in such a nurturing place. But because there are so many things I am not permitted to share freely, I find I must make time to meditate, channel my emotions and thoughts, and calm them with the crystals. "

He half closed his eyes and tilted his head. Humor, at least, was conveyed identically whether one was an Aiur protoss or a dark templar, Jake thought with warmth. "Amusing and intriguing. Preservers are perhaps the epitome of what we turned against. You not only require the Khala to hold the memories, but you are even intimately joined with others via these memories. In a way, you become them.... They live through you. And yet you find comfort in pulling back from that, from being with the crystals, as we do. "

Jake, too, titled her head, smiling at the accurate assessment. "Is that what you do, then? Surely you and your people have burdens of your own to bear, and you cannot share them with others in the Khala when they become too great. "

"I meditate. I sit in the quiet stillness that is the Void. And there is a small world that no one else knows about. The hue of the sky, a comforting pink, soothes, as do the energies of a certain place nestled in the mountains near rushing waters. It is there that I go when I am... uncertain or unhappy. The natural world heals."

"...Zamara... it is you... and yet it is not. There is another's mind —by the Void, it is...human?"

Jake whimpered then gritted his teeth against the weakness. Zeratul, for he knew now that it was that powerful individual, was still distant. Zamara was having to work hard to project her thoughts so far, and the strain was making his head throb.

"We are in the place you spoke of, so long ago, by the rushing water. Come to us and I will tell you more about why I am here, and what we seek from you."

".. .1 would you had not come here, old friend." And with that cryptic message, Jake felt Zeratul withdraw from his mind. Zamara gentled her presence immediately and the pain eased. Jake gulped some of the delicious, refreshingly cool river water and splashed some on his flushed face. He despised his weakness, but it was both impossible and foolish to deny it.

Zamara—he will help us, won't he?

I have no doubt that he will. Zeratul is not one to run from the truth, no matter how unpleasant or difficult it may be to face. He was indirectly responsible for the destruction ofAiur, but he accepted his part in that and strove to do what he could to save the rest of his people.

Jake blinked, startled. What? Zeratul destroyed Aiur? I thought it was the zerg.

Zamara didn't respond, and Jake realized that he could now see the approaching ship. It was similar to the one he and Zamara had... borrowed, but it was larger and presumably capable of space flight as well as atmospheric travel. Still, it was obviously of dark templar design—purple-black with glowing green energies dancing around it, larger and bulkier than a comparable vessel of traditional protoss design. Jake got to his feet, both excited and uneasy and chafing at the fact that his question about the destruction of Aiur—a pretty major event—had not been answered. Zamara sent him calm, but no explanations.

The ship landed and the green, pulsating glow that danced about its hull subsided. A ramp unfurled and a door irised open, and there stood the first dark templar Jake had ever seen.