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Ossus


Tarrian Skywalker

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Aidan scratched his head at the remark that his father's credentials were needed, almost like it were twisted fate he'd even come along on this mission. What if it were given to someone else? But it wasn't...it was his, just as it was everyone else's in their little band of misfits.

 

"That shouldn't be an issue. I used to, ah...use his login all the time. Hopefully, it still works. I think it worked back on Gala because the systems hadn't been updated in forever, but...you never know."

He turned, watching Frond leave the group. Honestly, it was the one person - or rather, being - he was highly curious about. He'd never encountered a Neti before, and the large tree thing had really caught Aidan's attention. Sure, the prophecy of doom and struggle was nice and all, but the Jedi were always on about their doom and struggle. In the here and now, people mattered. He leaned over to Sandy, pointing it out.

"Is he going to be okay? I...I think I should go and check on him."

He quickly keyed out a message to her with his father's login credentials, before following after wherever Frond had disappeared to. It took a few minutes and a bit of his Force senses, but Aidan finally caught up to Frond outside the Temple grounds. A small tornado of dust and dirt swirled about, and it was painfully clear the Force was tumultuous here, uncertain of itself. For a moment, Aidan stood there, uncertain himself what he should do. His training with the Exorcists told him he needed to extinguish the darkness present. His experiences with the Jedi told him that nothing what he did here would ultimately matter. And then there was his experiences with Sandy in his own self reflection...

Aidan instead made a choice that he hadn't made in a long time: he needed to be himself.

"You know, you could just ask for help. Trees withstand storms by relying on the ground to hold them in place. You feel like you need a friend who can ground you a bit."

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"Uhh..."

Aidan didn't exactly know what to do, nor what specifically it was that Frond held out to him. He spied some kind of metal poking out one end, and realized it might have been a kind of lightsaber. Aidan didn't really understand how Frond spoke all that easily, but it was clear that the big tree-thing wasn't really in the best of moods.

"Look, you don't need to give me that. Not if you don't want to. I'm not quite sure what you're going through right now, but I just figured...well, sometimes it helps to have someone to talk to. You know, to work all this stuff out. It helps. Well...helped me, I guess. Do you understand?"

Aidan caught the patronizing look that told him Frond understood him just fine.

"So...uh...do you want to talk about it? Maybe sit down on that log over...uhh...is that even okay? That's not like a relative or anything, right? Look, I'm just trying to not be offensive and I've never encountered one of your kind before or anything..."

He stopped, grasping for words, realizing he probably looked like an idiot. A while back that would have frustrated him, he wouldn't have tolerated it and he'd loathe himself for it, but right now he just felt silly. Taking a deep breath, he centered himself, continuing.

"I'm sorry, let's start over. I'm Aidan. You're Frond. Nice to meet you. What's troubling you, bud?"

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Frankly, Aidan didn't really understand much of what Frond was trying to say. The tree-thing spoke in riddles with a strange vocal pattern. He'd heard stories of some species who had to speak that way even when they knew Basic simply because that was how their brains worked, but witnessing it firsthand was something else. He sat on the log with Frond in confused silence, trying to piece together what he meant. At the end, though, when he brought his hands together, or rather...branch-hand-things, Aidan finally got it.

"Balance must be found."

 

"Aaaaaahhh. One of those things. Well, I'm not going to presume I know your problems or what you're going through, but um...I kinda went through something similar lately."

Aidan shifted uncomfortably, hesitating before he continued. He hated talking about this, even admitting he'd had issues, but deep down he knew it was okay. It was just a wound that needed time to heal, was all.

"I had, well, have...anger issues. Not exactly kosher for an Imperial Knight, or a Jedi. I'm lucky master Kyrie decided to try and work with me instead of excommunicate me from the Order, which would have been her right. But finding balance, even within ourselves, it isn't easy. I think...I think we can fight back the darkness and be righteous in our cause without falling to it. We make mistakes, and we get back up. It's part of life. I had a hard time accepting my own imperfections for a long time, always being held to a standard that didn't fit me, and I internalized a lot of it I think."

He sighed, picking up a rock and throwing it at a much larger one a little ways away, trying to fight through the urge to keep his problems to himself.

 

"I mean, we're all here to lean on each other. Not like literally, you'd probably crush me, but I mean help out with what we're feeling and going through. If you bottle that stuff up and make rash decisions it usually just hurts you and those that care about you."

Aidan looked back at Frond, taking a moment to look into the big tree's eyes to try and tell if Frond understood him. He put a hand on Frond's saber, and knew a bit better what he meant, the darkness in the saber reaching out to him. Dipping into the Force, Aidan pushed his senses out like he had when he went through the mental exercise with Sandy. In Aidan's exercise, he had pruned a mental tree that represented his own thoughts and mind. Not to kill it, but to trim away the bad branches so that the rest of him would be healthier.

"I don't think the darkness in this was just naturally here. I think it's yours. It belongs to you. You can try to deny its existence, forsake it, cut it away from you, but you're still just cutting off your nose to spite your face. Sorry, human expression...uhh...hurting yourself more than helping. But that's okay. It's okay to know yourself, what you're capable of. For me it was a manifestation of something else, a pain I wasn't even aware of. And as I became aware of it, I learned to know myself better, and how to heal that pain. My balance comes from accepting who I am and what I can be, as well as what I can't and must never be. Sure, the dark side tempts me. Anger and rage are easy outlets to deal with it all, and in the wrong settings like this galaxy is so full of it's easy to just give in."

He sighed again, pulling his hand back.

"But that's not me. I don't think that's you. We can embrace our pain and be defined and consumed by it, or we can fight it, get ourselves to a better place, and help others get there too. We're all in this together, anyways, and it helps to have friends to lean on."

Aidan looked up once more into Frond's big eyes, smiling. Whatever happened, he wanted the Neti to know he wasn't alone.

"Gods, I hope you understood all that."

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Aidan's brow furrowed, and he pulled away. Clearly what Frond had shown him the big tree fully believed in, but it wasn't a vision the Imperial Knight shared.

"I'm sorry...I just...don't agree."

It saddened Aidan to know that nothing he'd really tried had had any effect on Frond's problems. It also hurt him a bit to think that Frond would rather him feel the tree's hopelessness rather than try something, anything different to drag himself out of his emotional pain.

"If you want me to hold onto that, I guess I can. I just don't think such a small action like that will stop what's going on in that head of yours. Of course...I guess what I said didn't either."

Aidan stood, looking back to the temple. He could feel Sandy back there where he'd left her, and he suddenly had an urge to spend some time with her. When he first met her she was overbearing and annoying, but it became clearer over time that she actually cared about him in more than just the capacity of a simple crush, and that was refreshing. Right now, he could use that refreshment. Hopefully Frond understood Aidan was fine being there for him in the same capacity, to reinforce and to calm.

"Just leave it in my things on the ship if you're serious about getting rid of it. I'll take care of it. I, uh...I need to go for a walk."

Giving the tree-thing one final look, Aidan walked back towards the temple. He'd tried, and he hoped that it mattered to whatever cosmic entity that was keeping score of things.

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What is on your mind?"

 

There was a long pause of hesitation as Aidan struggled to get the words out. He was thinking heavily about what had just happened, but frankly he wasn't quite sure what exactly happened.

"I don't know. Frond, I guess. I thought he needed a bit of help, and I tried to be there for him like you were there for me. I guess I didn't really do a great job, though."

Aidan sighed, trying to clear his thoughts. He really thought he had made a bit of headway reaching out, trying to understand what Frond's problem was, but the vision he shared was fairly clear: he didn't understand. Aidan knew Frond was struggling with the pull of the Dark side, he'd felt it just talking with Frond, but nothing he'd said had helped. And Frond had even tried to give him his saber...a very strange spontaneous act with almost no explanation. Maybe eventually Aidan would understand, but right now he simply didn't, and it gnawed at him.

"He tried to give me his lightsaber. I've barely known him...it...what, a few hours? I think he's just going through some rough stuff. I'm kind of worried about him, to be honest, but he seemed pretty set on the idea that I wasn't helping. At least I think that's what he meant...he's a little hard to understand. Maybe you can talk to him later? He seemed to recognize you and Master Vos when we were back on Gala, so I'm guessing you guys have history?"

 

Aidan's eyes wandered, scanning the temple, looking for something, anything to get his mind off this, but it would likely just take time. 

"I don't know. I just wanted to help, is all. I think I'm going to get a bite to eat if you want to join me. The rations you guys have on the ship don't quite sit right with my stomach, so I'm hoping they have something a bit better here."

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Aidan looked up at the hopefuls Sandy had pointed out, stifling a chuckle.

"Uh, not really. Believe it or not, most of my youngling training was conducted by my grandmother and Master Kirlocca. I was never officially part of the Order, my parents were careful to not allow the Order to dictate the future of their child. Which makes sense, the Jedi often take children that show potential simply so they don't learn the wrong way, but they're still taking kids from their parents. Mom was the Grandmaster, at least for a bit, so it was easy to get others who might disagree to back down."

Aidan reached out in the Force, gripping at the fork on his plate, trying to poorly get a bite of food to his mouth, eventually managing. As he finished the bite, he continued.

"And then I ran away. The next actual training I had was with the Imperial Knights many years later. Most of what I know is more...instinctual? It's certainly not the orthodox methods of either the Jedi or the Knights. Maybe my last name carried weight somewhere it shouldn't. I feel like I've been in a lot of situations I wasn't really prepared for, and I've had to unlearn a lot of adapted habits."

He took another bite, this time using the fork in his hand instead of the Force. His gaze returned to the hopeful, still struggling at their task.

"Maybe I should have been put through that kind of stuff. I don't know. I'm really starting to understand how I don't know a lot of things I thought I did. It's getting easier though, I think."

 

He paused, reflecting, before a sly grin crept across his face.

"You never told me much about your apprenticeship. What was the worst thing they made you do?"

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Sandy's question caught Aidan off guard. In all the time that he'd spent since joining the ranks of the Imperial Knights, he hadn't done much self reflection or care...except when he ran into her before their mission on Nar Shaddaa. That was probably the thing that kept drawing him back to her instinctively, she allowed him to be himself. Encouraged it, even. No other member of either Force order treated him that way.

"I...don't really know. I haven't thought about that much; I guess I've kind of just been going with the flow of things. It feels like I'm doing okay, but it's more like I'm finally figuring out who I am. Who I want to be, and more importantly, who I'm comfortable being. And it's a slow process that's just starting, but any kind of progress is okay, right? So, uh...yeah."

There was a long awkward silence as he didn't really know how to follow that up. He'd appreciated her asking, but when it came to small talk Aidan always fell a little short. As he finished his food however, he felt a sort of pressure building up in the back of his mind. A familiar feeling, but not a great one. It was hard for him to even localize it, but it was unmistakable: a sudden surge in the energies of the Dark side, at the perimeter of the Temple grounds near where he was moments ago. If he had felt it, likely others would have too.

"I think we should check on Frond sooner rather than later. Like, now."

 

Leaving the rest of his plate, he stood up from the table, waiting for Sandy.

"I might have seriously underestimated Frond's problem."

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It was overwhelming, the temptation laid at the feet of Aidan. Aidan thought he knew darkness, but nothing quite as powerful a focus as this had ever presented itself, the longing and hunger from the dropped lightsaber whispering sweet nothings in his ear. He wanted it so badly, or did it want him? Either way, he only realized that he had taken several steps closer to the saber only after a Pit droid scooped up the saber, scampering off with it. Momentarily rage flashed across his thoughts, everything he'd ever wanted was just at his fingertips and now it was lost. But were those his thoughts? It took a few seconds, but Aidan eventually managed to shake his head free from the influence the saber had tried to exert.

So that was the power Frond had been fighting against...and he'd almost given it to Aidan. It seemed to have a will of its own, attempting to manipulate things to its benefit, and it nearly succeeded. Aidan shuddered at the thought of what would have happened had he actually taken the saber from Frond instead of reject it out of sheer chance and misunderstanding.

As they walked back, Sandy remarked how defeated she felt over the ordeal, remarking how she failed Frond. Aidan remained silent, but reached out to her, reinforcing and bolstering her. Aidan wasn't sure if they had failed or narrowly succeeded or what had happened, but it was clear their trials and tribulations on this mission weren't going to be nearly as straightforward as he thought.

As Frond spoke to Sandy, Aidan remained silent. He tried to help once, and stuck his foot squarely where it didn't belong. There were others present who could handle things far better than he could, and he was more than fine with letting them handle things. He still felt badly, but that would subside with time. Nothing could erase what had happened, they could only move forward and pick up the pieces. Sandy could use his help with that. She doubted herself, but she also knew far more than Aidan did. And he doubted himself, but he knew that mistakes happened, and what mattered was how he'd recover.

All they had to do now was push forward. This was supposed to be a short stop on Ossus, but it had turned into so much more. While Aidan was concerned with finishing their task for the Empress, common sense said the Eternal Vigilance could wait, as if the Jedi hid it well then it would probably be waiting wherever it had been left.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Aidan was glad to have stayed silent through all that. Maybe he shouldn't have been explicitly glad, but the fact that he didn't have to deal with a lot of the pressure Sandy and the others were put under was a weight off his mind. It didn't relieve him blaming himself in part over what had happened to Frond, but at the least it hadn't added to it, either.

Aidan still followed Sandy, silent. They would have time to talk later, they would have words to say. But right now, it was simply convenient for Aidan to quietly shadow along. He felt the anxiety of continuing their mission, but that too would come to pass before long.

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  • 10 months later...

Landing the shuttle near the temple grounds was rather uneventful. There were some small pleasantries as a few of the acolytes and groundskeepers recognized him from his visit a few months back, but Aidan met them with a simple nod and smile, declining to engage in small talk. Instead he went quickly to the medical ward, to the reserved cloning chambers. Aidan had seen these only once before, but once was all it took. His credentials were verified by the computer systems, and it took only a few moments to bring up the medical records for one Sandy Sarna. He went through the proper steps to log her as deceased, which allowed access to begin the cloning process.

 

Machines hummed and buzzed as electricity once again trickled through veins that had gone unused for some time. A medical droid entered to monitor some readouts, Aidan paid it no mind. Instead, he took a cross legged sitting position in front of the cylinder, and began meditating, reaching out through the Force for traces of her.

 

He would be the anchor, the beacon to guide her back. A clone was only a clone, a blank slate, the essence of a person was something much more, inexorably tied to the Force. Seconds bled into minutes bled into hours; Aidan lost all sense of time in this singular focus. At some point, the border between the metaphysical meditation and the unconscious dream blurred, and the young Darkfire finally got some much needed rest.

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An infinite ocean, not a planet in a solar system in a galaxy in some tucked away pocket of the universe, but an entire existence of water and air and darkness and storm. Like a speck of dust he floated in the turbulent waves, not tossed about but effortlessly afloat. At peace, even. The expansive ocean roiled and churned, but the speck rode its crests and troughs, uncaring of what the waters did. It simply existed, he simply existed. It was all he could do, the only thing to do. So he did.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

The D0-K medical droid lumbered into the cloning chamber, alerted to several klaxons and alarms. It noted that the process had taken much less than the usual time, something it could not account for, but that information was filed away to be studied later. It initiated the cylinder drain process, and powerful turbines began removing the bacta and other various liquids through grates near the cylinder's floor, leaving the humanoid to float down with all of it to rest at the bottom. Seconds later the transparisteel tube raised up, and D0-K met the female with a towel and assisted with her standing.

 

"Jedi Master Sandy Sarna. Please remain calm. The fluids in your lungs are oxygen-rich and have been responsible for maintaining proper O2 levels in your bloodstream. Expectoration is normal, but resist straining to eject the fluids as your muscles are new and weak and prone to overuse injury."

 

D0-K waited for her to take the towel, realizing she was looking at the unconscious man nearby.

 

"Ah, Imperial Knight Aidan Darkfire. Refused to leave. He has been here since the cycle started, approximately one hundred twenty two hours, forty three minutes, seventeen point one six three seconds."

There was another moment of hesitation and visual evaluation before D0-K assessed her ready to be left alone.

 

"I will leave you to recover. Clothing can be found in the drawers on the wall to your left. Please signal using the door panel should you require further assistance."

With that, the droid left.

Edited by Aidan Darkfire

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Aidan slowly opened his eyes. It took him a moment for the grogginess of sleep to wear off, to remember where he was, what he was doing, and why his chest felt so heavy. Wait. He looked down, and there she was. This wasn't part of the dream, nor some cosmic manipulation of a quasi-physical energy field on some metaphorical intergalactic chessboard, no, this was real. For a moment, he relished it. Truth be told, this was something he'd wanted and thought about intermittently for some time. However, he inevitably opened his mouth.

 

"Hey, long time no see. I like what you've done with your hair."

The goofy sentiment was doubled down with a goofy grin. Immediately a tiny voice in the back of his mind shouted way to go, ace, you ruined the moment. If Aidan were truly honest with himself, however, he was simply glad she was back, bad humor aside.

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Aidan's heart thumped like a war drum as blood rushed to his face. She'd caught him off guard. But had she really? He pulled back, but his mind and thoughts began melding with hers.

"Well, you know, there's this one Jedi Master who makes it all worthwhile. I'll have to introduce you to her sometime."

 

It was all he could do to muster a semiserious face before cracking a grin, and leaning back in. Aidan lost track of time again, but this time because nothing else in the universe mattered.

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"Yeah. Come to think of it, I'm pretty hungry. Feels like I haven't eaten since yesterday."

 

He stretched and stood, waiting on her, and wondering what the temple meal hall was serving that day. And then he saw the look on her face. And then he put two and two together.

 

"Or, uh, you know, I could probably put off eating for a couple more hours. I don't have the Inquisitors breathing down my neck anymore, so I'm pretty free to spend time...uh, doing whatever..."

 

Smooth as gravel, Casanova.

 

"...and I think I could use a shower?"

 

Better.

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Right. Super slick, Slick. You should open a sandpaper store.

 

Aidan relaxed a bit, not objecting in the slightest as he followed her, his stomach reasserting its pangs of hunger the closer they got to the mess hall. Of course they had a vegetarian meal that day, but food was food and Aidan was practically starving. He tried to maintain a level of decency, but the truth was he was practically shoveling bites of salad down his throat, and hadn't even noticed he'd forgot the dressing. 

 

“So what do you think? And not about the salad. About us?”

 

Aidan had stopped mid chew, the question caught him a little off guard. He finished and swallowed, the salad now at the back of his mind. "I mean, what's there to really think about? My parents were both Jedi, one was even a grandmaster. Granted, I'm sure the Imperial Knights will frown on it a bit, but most of them could learn to pull the rod out of their orifices. I'm pretty sure I've proven myself capable of handling my emotions by now which was their biggest fear anyways. I guess...I mean, it's a little weird that you're an accomplished Jedi master and I'm a middling Imperial Knight, but for me that's kind of where the awkwardness stops."

 

He paused for a moment, loading up another bite on his fork but hesitating to put it in his mouth. "Before...Serenno...I was very honest with how I felt when you helped guide me through the meditation. I do have feelings for you, deep feelings. I was lying to myself about that before, but I'm okay with admitting it now. Even if nothing comes from it, it's important for me to be honest with myself, and with you. I used to be so angsty, but I'd like to think I've grown away from that, and I'd also like to think a large part of that was because of your presence."

He finally took the bite, chewing thoughtfully. "Why? What were you thinking?"

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Aidan grimaced as she mentioned Kashyyyk. 

 

"I actually try really hard to forget I was like that. I mean, it's good to remember where you came from, but what's far more important is who you are and who you want to be."

 

It was actually a bit amusing watching her try to rush to eat her salad. Aidan was just hungry, and he'd completely forgotten any sense of propriety about that. He wouldn't have minded waiting on her, but still, this was a bit more entertaining.

 

“Now let's finish your lunch, then you were saying you needed a shower?”

 

"Uh, yeah. And probably a change of clothes. They probably have some spare robes in my size, but I seriously doubt the Imperial Knights bothered to stash any spare uniforms here. Honestly, I really wonder if they even have a sonic shower here, probably just an old water-based one."

 

And again, there was that twinkle in the eye. Oh.

 

"You know, you probably know this temple far better than I do, I don't suppose you could show me where the Jedi put up their guests? The med bay floor was nice and all, but it wasn't cozy at all."

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Aidan was a bit skeptical of the shower. He'd grown up around the Jedi and had a bath every now and then when he was very little, but all his life he'd been using sonics. There was a bit of reassuring feeling to how the dirt and oils literally vibrated off his skin, leaving him fresh and clean every time. But water? Aidan always thought water just smeared everything around. Of course, there was a first time for everything. 

 

"I really wish they had a sonic. Getting wet sucks, and I don't see how the water is supposed to clean you."

 

He squinted with a confused scowl, pointing at three bottle like containers in the shower. 

 

"And what are those? Some Jedi decoration thing?"

 

He really wasn't trying to be a wet blanket, but he also wanted a real shower. He knew he was grimy and gross not just from Kuat, but from essentially wearing the same clothes for a little over three days. He was just anxious about not being like this around Sandy.

Edited by Aidan Darkfire

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Skepticism turned to brief shock to understanding. It was absolutely a new way of doing things, but the hot water also did its part to ease aching muscles and relieve tension. Combined with the aromatic essences of the cleaning agents the Jedi had stocked the shower with, the overall experience was incredibly pleasant. Not at all like a sonic, but at the same time just as good if not better. After as he began to dry off, he felt a very similar sensation of clean that a sonic shower provided, but instead of an unpleasant sopping wet feeling it was a soft sort of moisturizing soak that he hadn't expected. His skin was smoother, healthier looking even, a notable improvement over a sonic shower's dry-clean feel.

 

Of course, the extracurricular activities hadn't hurt the experience either. Somewhere in his subconscious he made a mental note: he needed more of these hot water showers in his future. Despite initial skepticism, they were indeed incredible, just like the person who had introduced him to them.

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Every second of this felt so incredibly right to Aidan. His life had been chaos as long as he could remember, a series of bad things one after another, but when he was with Sandy everything came together and made sense. Nothing else mattered more to him. All his doubts had washed away with the cleansing waters, anything anyone in the Order might have thought of their relationship, any fears of the future; the only thing Aidan clung to was the woman he had come to love. He had thought he knew what love was before this, he'd heard flowery epithets, lovers gush about what it meant, but it took until he'd felt it himself to truly understand.

 

No matter what happened, what twisted chaos the galaxy could ever throw at them, they were each other's anchor. That thought made him more joyous than he had ever thought he'd be, that she would be there for him. Everything could change, but she was his constant, and even death couldn't keep them apart. Mentally he reached out, intertwining his consciousness with hers, sharing his feelings with her through the Force. In the back of his mind he knew this moment was temporary, but for the time being, he wanted it to last as long as possible...

 

-----------------------------------------------------------

 

He wasn't sure what time it was when he opened his eyes, and honestly he didn't care. For the first time since he was a kid, he was genuinely happy. And this wasn't the kind of happiness he'd experienced when getting a new game or finding something new and fun, this was a lasting happiness, which made it all the more better. There was security and comfort in knowing this wasn't transient like most other things.

 

He looked down at her, her hair in a half-ponytail that had mostly fallen out at some point during the night, splaying across his chest like blonde ripples of sunlight. Her arm hung loosely over him, devoid of tension. Part of him wanted to try to use the Force to reach out, see what she might be dreaming about, but instead he simply let her rest. His eyes drifted back toward the ceiling as thoughts rushed through his head, each a tangent of his newfound happiness. He wasn't sure how long he'd been staring at the ceiling when she awoke, but time was meaningless as long as she was by his side.

Edited by Aidan Darkfire
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The words lit him up like the Coruscant nighttime skyline. They sounded so natural to his ear, and yet it still carried a strange feeling. Aidan decided to roll with it, what did he have to lose? 

"I love you too," he whispered back. "Why are we whispering?"

 

A mischievous grin crossed his face as he nearly blurted out in laughter. He was about ready to shout it from the temple rooftop, though given that would likely irritate a large number of people he probably wouldn't. But he wanted to. Still, while the euphoria of the last 24 hours still lingered in his brain via rushing endorphins, he knew that at some points they should probably be responsible adults and actually live their lives and fulfill their responsibilities. At the present moment, Aidan guessed those were few and far between, he still hadn't received marching orders from the Imperial Knights, possibly because Hunan hadn't filed his report yet, but he wasn't about to question his fortune. As for Sandy, she was a Jedi master, there were very few people who could forcibly assign her responsibilities as most Jedi masters were autonomous in their activities, and trusted as such. However, it was probably for the best to at least keep up appearances.

 

He spoke up again, this time not whispering. "I've been thinking, while I've certainly enjoyed the time we've shared, maybe we're pushing our luck a bit if we don't at least pretend to be working members of our respective organizations." The thought of leaving this cozy feeling behind wasn't relished, but it still merited saying.

He gave her a quick squeeze with the arm still wrapped around her. "Of course, we probably don't have to hop to it immediately..."

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Damn. He hated it when she left, but there was just something about watching her go...

 

...no. Nope. You had your fun, time to get to business. He gave a short and soft sigh, before rising from the bed himself. "I'm sure that would be fine. The Imperial Knights could use some good PR right now, and they were almost using me as a face for their operations for a while. They likely won't object. And yeah, I've made a saber before, but I had to follow instructions..." He trailed off as he remembered something important. "...from my father's holocron, which I left back on Nar Shaddaa." He'd almost completely forgotten about it, despite learning several critical lessons from it, or was it rather that it set him up to learn the lessons on his own?

 

"I even remember showing it to you, it was a little before the Empress was taken hostage by the Sith, I think. Somehow I completely missed the front lines on that one...still feels a little weird." He called the chromed staff saber to him from across the room through the Force and held it out for her to inspect. Still, she'd likely remember just by seeing it again. After she'd taken a look, he began putting on the grey Jedi robes the Temple had given him, struggling to figure out how they folded together. There had been a lot of firsts on this trip to Ossus, and Jedi robes definitely made that list. He looked up at her with a sheepish grin, "...uh, little help?" 

Edited by Aidan Darkfire

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She made wrapping the robes look so easy, and admittedly it was, he'd just never seen it before. "Thanks," he managed, as he set about tying the rest around the front. That was the easy part. The robes were so airy and light, it felt a little awkward, almost like he was barely wearing anything at all, but he'd get used to it. If the Jedi could do it, so could he. His mind snapped back to the present, to the questions she'd asked, and his memories raced through his conscious.

 

"Uhh, I'm not sure. I know the Jedi prefer kyber crystals because of how they tie into the Force, but I do remember that the holocron said in a pinch there are several materials that will serve the same purpose. Technologically speaking, the tradition of using a kyber crystal is really just a tradition. Granted, I managed to snag mine from a smuggler back on Nar Shaddaa, and even though according to tradition the kyber crystal is supposed to choose you, I haven't had any problems."

 

He hefted his own saber in his hands, pointing out a few spots on the casing, how it used to be part of a power relay assembly. "I mean, it might look nice, but that's just because I'm pretty good at keeping it polished and maintained. Everything except the crystal is secondhand from something. Certain minerals and crystalline substances can be used as the main focal crystal, I just don't know what they are off the top of my head." The last bit came out almost apologetic, Aidan had wanted to be more help than he currently was, but he simply didn't have the expertise. There was something else too, almost an afterthought, and he paused a moment before saying it because he wasn't sure if it would even help.

"Also...the holocron said something about 'if all else fails, trust in the Force,' almost as a fix-all. I don't know how helpful that might actually be, but...I can't imagine my dad would have recorded that information if it wasn't useful somehow. Maybe I can help scour the place for some usable parts if you like?"

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Looking up, a frown crossed his face. He didn't like salvaging tech in use, but...any port in a storm, he supposed. "Just...grab the middle one so the light still looks balanced, like it's supposed to be like that." He held his hands low, indicating for her to step in so he could boost her up. A minute or so later, and she had her power cell.

"Come on, we should head to the shuttle refueling pads, they'll probably have some tech lying around. Maybe we'll get lucky. Worse comes to worse we can probably cannibalize the shuttle I took here a bit. It's small and old and doesn't have weapons, I doubt anyone back in the fleet would care. They probably used it for external maintenance." 

As he walked with her, the thought rang around in his head about what his father's holocron had said. All else fails, trust in the Force. Such an odd thing to mention, especially to a Jedi who practically would have had that as their internalized mantra by the time they got to that lesson. There had to be some other reason. Could the Force somehow be used to manipulate matter at an atomic scale? Could they...create their own crystal?

 

He'd look into it later, but right now they were wistful thoughts of a desperate mind. He was trained never to seek the easy path, rather to take the right path, and the one that made the most sense right now was to try and source the parts themselves.

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