Lehon - Jedi Temple

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

Immediately after the shuttle touched down on Lehon, Tirzah's senses set her on edge. The Temple, normally teeming with life and as calm and constant as the lapping waves, was stagnant as a standing pool of water. The short walk from the hangar to the entrance of the Temple did nothing to help her initial impression, their footsteps ringing out in the silence as neither sight nor sound of another sentient crossed their awareness.

 

"It shouldn't be this quiet here," she murmured to the dead air as they stood in the Temple's lobby courtyard. Her memory was full of the bustle and chatter of Padawans, the hum of lightsabers and the sizzle of training remotes, the calm but droning voices of teachers in endless lectures, the glimmer of the Force contained within each and every life that brought it near through meditation and communion with one another.

 

Looking behind her towards the bright centers of Jax and Alana Trevelian, Tirzah shrugged. "Why would the Force lead us here when everyone else has left?"

 

They would have no choice but to confess their deception to Tyko, the nanny droid, and return to Ossus with only the memory of her failed idea. She had gotten Jax and Alana's hopes up for nothing, and her attempt to release her mother from obligation would come to nothing.

 

Or...

 

A slow grin stole across her face. The Temple was all but deserted. Maybe this could be the place that they were finally able to be a family. Maybe for a moment, Tirzah herself could be the Grandmaster, and this could be her own little Jedi Order, the two kids that straggled along after her. Maybe if Jaina had to come looking for her, and found her happy here, they could stay. The thought brightened her countenance considerably.

 

"Let's go to the beach," she said impulsively, darting into a sprint down the familiar corridors that would lead her to the beach trail.

[Jax Trevelian]

To Jax, Tirzah's idea failing was crushing. He had tried not to get his hopes up, but the journey here had been long enough that he had dreamt of seeing his dad again. But now it looked like whoever Tirzah was hoping to find was gone, and with that, her idea.

 

Alana's spirits bounced back quicker. She was the more skeptical of the twins, and hadn't really expected Tirzah's idea to work. But she had been excited for the adventure, so had gone along with it. So when Tirzah suggested going to the beach, she shrugged, grabbed Jax's hand, and dragged him to the beach, ignoring Tyko's pleas to slow down and come back and her demands to know where Darla was.

 

The three children made it down to the beach in no time. The white sands lay unsullied before them, surrounded by the lush green of the jungle. The water was a crystal clear, sparkling turquoise. Alana immediately pulled off her shoes and ran splashing into the water with a shout of laughter. Jax, however, sat down on the sand. He did take his shoes off, letting his toes dip into the water when the tide brought it close enough, but he was clearly feeling let down and disheartened. We came all this way for nothing... he thought.

 

But as the girls splashed and played in the water, Jax suddenly heard something. Not with his ears, but through the Force. It was the same sensation they had felt back on Tython, but stronger; much stronger. "Alana! Tirzah! Stop! Come here!"

 

Alana ignored him at first, but he shouted their names again. Finally, she rolled her eyes and came over. But when she saw her brother's face, she sobered. "What is it, Jax?"

 

"Listen!"

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

Salty spray ran down her raven curls as Tirzah sprinted back up the beach at Jax's insistent beckon. His voice ushered in a wild sense of alarm; Tirzah was already tiptoeing, feeling as though she was breaking some rule by even being here. But when she arrived at his side, she saw wonderment, not horror, echoed in the countenance of the boy.

 

Closing her eyes, Tirzah let her spirit join with the natural eddies of Lehon, which commanded a certain rootedness in the Force even in its current state of sparse inhabitation. As the currents grew stronger, not unlike the steady pull of Lehon's tides, she could hear it: the echoing whisper of a voice that seemed somehow familiar. The word, echoing over and over, which they had heard on Ossus grew even louder now.

 

Ocean...

 

Excitedly, she turned to Jax and Alana, co-conspirators in this grand game, and instinctively reached out for their hands. "What do we do now?"

 

Together, the three children joined hands. As soon as their skin touched, surety flooded through them. As one, they knelt at the edge of the sea and reached out with the Force, calling, serving as an anchor. A focal point for something bigger that was about to take place...

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

As clearly as the formerly blind girl had ever seen anything, she saw it.

 

Taking shape above the crest of the waves, she blinked several times, wondering if it was simply a mirage. Perhaps she was malnourished, some mental projection appearing on the heels of unabated hunger. Maybe it was just wishing. But Tirzah could swear that where before there had only been horizon, she could make out the form of a man kneeling amongst the waves. His white robes dazzled in the afternoon sun, bathing everything in an ethereal glow that seemed to warm her down to her sandy toes. Seafoam curled around him as though in a welcoming embrace. Finally, she could no longer reasonably doubt what her eyes perceived--what the Little Fairy showed her. He was unlike anyone she'd ever seen before, or, at least, she didn't recognize him.

 

"Who is that?" she asked quietly, releasing Alana's hand to point a solitary finger.

 

The Trevelians turned in tandem, and then they were gone, sprinting down the beach as fast as their legs could carry them.

[Darex Trevelian]

Darex took a deep breath. The smell of the ocean filled his nostrils. He breathed out, and suddenly, he heard a shout of joy that made his heart skip a beat.

 

He rose steadily to his feet and looked around. There, running down the beach, were the two most precious beings of all the beings in the universe. A huge smile broke over his face, and he stumbled in his haste to reach them, sending up large splashes of water. They ran to each other, and the twins threw their arms around their father's neck. "DADDY!"

 

Darex embraced them fiercely, kissing them and squeezing them so tightly he was almost suffocating them. They in turn clung to him. Both the twins were crying, sobbing their joy into the salty waves, and he was grinning so broadly he thought his face was going to crack in two. Sheer joy coursed through them and over them and around them, spilling haphazardly through the Force all over the area.

 

They stayed that way for a long moment, savoring their reunion. Finally, Darex laughed and pushed Jax down into the waves. His son shrieked with laughter, and Alana quickly joined the fun, splashing her father. They roughhoused in the waves for a few more minutes, until all three of them were soaking wet and glowing with joy.

 

Belatedly, Jax turned to beckon to Tirzah to come closer. "Tirzah! It's Dad! It's really him! We did it! He's alive!"

 

Darex and the twins straggled out of the water. Pushing back some of his hair, Darex smiled warmly at Tirzah. "Tirzah? I remember you. How is your mother--Ashley, right?"

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

It was like a scene out of a holovid. Tirzah's eyes did not move from the figure of the man in the center, but somehow, he seemed to change as the children wrapped their small arms around him: the blinding light emanating from him seemed to retreat back into the center of his being. Not gone, but as though his very skin absorbed it, as though he was made of pure light himself. But it wasn't until Jax called to her that she really understood who it was.

 

Darex Trevelian, back from the other side of death. Had he simply always been there, waiting in the water, or had they truly summoned him from the other side?

 

Tirzah looked down at her hands, felt her heart pounding, her ears ringing. As much as she was driven to recall Darex Trevelian and ask for his aid, she had never truly believed it was possible, but was so done waiting for the grown-ups to set her somewhere safe like so much baggage and run off to save the galaxy again. What had she done but listen to the Force? What had she done to recall him? What had she done that the twins could not do in all their wishing and longing and yearning to have their father back?

 

More importantly, what did that mean for her father?

 

Guilt welled up in her throat. You don't want him back, the accusation came. You're glad he's dead. Punished for abandoning you.

 

Defenses rose in her mind, but as she watched the children's happy tears, pummeled by their waves of joy in her senses, Tirzah could not bring herself to join in. Heartsick, she simply watched them, paralyzed by her own grief, fighting back tears of her own that were not released at the hands of joy. When the Grandmaster addressed her, Tirzah offered a smile that she hoped was convincing, but even his question drove daggers into her heart.

 

"Ashley was my aunt. She left a few years back. My mom--my real mom--is named Jaina Jade Skywalker, and she's on an errand from Master Kirlocca. I came here with Jax and Alana on my own." Looking up in sudden realization that she may have said too much, she added, "Please don't be mad at us. We were trying to find you."

[Darex Trevelian]

Tirzah's reactions were quite interesting. Her reticence seemed to indicate she felt a much greater sense of responsibility than Jax and Alana did, and Darex could sense grief mingled with surprise. He gave her a warm smile. "I'm glad you found your real mother. I'm not familiar with her name; I doubt we've ever met. But I look forward to meeting her in time."

 

He glanced at all three children. "You came here on your own, did you? How did you manage that?"

 

Jax squirmed a little. "Well, umm, we...Tirzah said there might be a way to bring you back. And we didn't mean to break the rules..."

 

"We made Tyko bring us," Alana added.

 

"What made you come?" Darex asked them. He was genuinely curious as to why they had traveled to Lehon. Clearly, they felt they had had a part to play in his return, and he wanted to discover what that was.

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

Tirzah dropped all semblance of a smile. "They're saying Faust is back. I thought that if he could come back, maybe you could too." She shrugged. "I guess I was right."

 

Her mouth went suddenly dry. This man had only ever shown her kindness: why did she now feel so self-conscious and guilty? Tirzah's jaw settled into irascible stone. "The Temple here has been evacuated. Everyone left for Tython in the Core, and then Ossus. We were on Ossus when we heard someone saying 'Ocean' over and over, so we came to the place that felt like home."

[Darex Trevelian]

Darex considered. He remembered little about the other world of the Force he had come from, but he did remember the scenes he had seen leading up to his reappearance on the shores of Lehon. And he remembered making a choice. But at the same time, it appeared the Force had lead these children right to where he would come back, so that he didn't come back alone. Had it really been his choice then to come back? Or had the Force known all along what would happen, as was evidenced by it guiding them here?

 

Oddly, it seemed it was quite possibly both. After a moment, he decided it didn't really matter. He put a hand on Tirzah's shoulder, then reached for Jax and Alana. "Thank you," he said seriously, "for being here. For listening to the Force and letting it guide you. You acted as true Jedi."

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

A war erupted within her, inwardly longing for the affirmations Darex offered, but her own words to Master Quietus rang in her ears.

 

"I'm glad you're back, but I don't think I'm a true Jedi, Master Darex," she said quietly. "The only thing I've heard about the Force that's made sense to me lately has come from a Sith Master."

 

She turned away, down the beach and into the sun, blinking as though the tears forming in her eyes were the result of the hot white light and not her own self-doubt. The faces of the Trevelian twins would likely be plastered with shock and a bit of fear; the Sith were not exactly painted lovingly in the teachings given to Jedi younglings. Tirzah avoided their faces and shrugged off Darex' hand, consigning herself to her conflicted torment.

 

"We should probably get going back, everyone in the galaxy will want to know you're here," she changed the subject abruptly.

[Darex Trevelian]

The girl was clearly conflicted. How had the Jedi not taken the trouble to care for this girl well? Unfortunately, children were often neglected, even by those with the best intentions. Darex himself had experienced that firsthand. "The Force is more complex than the Jedi as a whole care to admit," he said quietly. "But I wonder if you've taken the opportunities presented you to truly consider what you believe. Regardless of what you think, a Jedi listens to the will of the Force and does it, no matter what consequences they may have to deal with. In running away from Ossus and stowing away here because you felt the Force drawing you to, you were acting as a Jedi should. And that, I think, matters more than much."

 

Rising to his full height, he nodded. "But you're right, we have lingered long enough. You three need to get back to your classes, and I have some comm calls to make."

 

The group headed off towards the Temple, Darex and Alana taking the lead. Jax lingered behind until he could walk quietly with Tirzah. "What did you mean about the Force not making sense?" he asked. He paused, then gave her a friendly nudge. "And don't be sad. You're not alone."

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

The boy's face was so sincere that Tirzah could not help but soften. Offering him a wistful smile, she sighed out her tendency toward melodrama before responding. "Thanks, Jax. Sometimes I wonder if the Force is really all the Jedi teach it is, because nothing in my life has ever gone the way it was supposed to."

 

The cry of the seagulls and chattering of sandpipers punctuated her statements as they made their way up onto the lava-hot sand. "My dad abandoned me, my mom died, my aunt adopted me but then she left me with the Jedi, everyone's always avoided me because I was blind, I was kidnapped by a cult and healed by a Sith, and I just sometimes feel like I'm not doing any good where I am."

 

Her Little Fairy seemed to shine through Jax's eyes as she glanced at him once more. "It's nice to know I have a friend, though," she finished quietly and with as much nonchalance as she could muster.

[Jax Trevelian]

Jax couldn't help but laugh a little. "You think your life was supposed to go a way? Who ever said there was a way? Isn't it just life?" He frowned, trying to put his thoughts into words. "Yeah, that stuff about your family is bad. My dad died, too, and while my mom loves us, she doesn't really want anything to do with us anymore. 'Lana and I have had to figure things out on our own, mostly. But...look at it the other way. You had an aunt who cared about you when you were a baby so you didn't grow up in an orphanage. You found your real mom. And you did good by helping bring my dad back."

 

He shrugged. "One of the Masters once told me that the Force doesn't work like it's a trained nexu. We can't predict what it will do or where it will tell us to go or what it will tell us to do. It's a wild nexu. Life is not all good, and it's not all bad. I think it's both."

 

He blushed. "I mean, I don't know. Maybe it'll all make more sense when we're grown ups."

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

"You're really smart, Jax," she said, obviously cheered by the boy's sentiments. "Or wise. I never really know what grown-ups mean when they say 'wise', though."

 

They walked a little ways further in silence, breathing the salt air, when Tirzah stooped to the ground as though examining something in the sand. Suddenly, she sprang up, reaching out to tap Jax on the shoulder. "TAG!" she yelled, and, augmenting her footsteps with the Force, began sprinting back towards the Temple.

[Darex Trevelian]

Walking the halls of the Lehon Temple again felt familiar. Darex had been the one to order this temple's construction, and as such, it felt like part of his legacy to the Order. He hadn't ever spent a long amount of time here, but he had been here enough to know his way around. He and Alana were just crossing into the coolness of the Temple when Jax and Tirzah ran up, laughing, playing a game. Alana immediately joined in the fun, and Darex watched them run off with a smile.

 

The first being he met in the temple was Tyko. The old nanny droid looked like she hadn't had an oil bath in a year, and her joints were moving creakily as she moved through the temple grumpily calling the twins' names.

 

"Hello Tyko," Darex said.

 

It was almost comical to see the droid's double take. "Master Darex? I had heard you were terminated."

 

"The Force has returned me to the realm of the living," he replied mysteriously.

 

"Your children told me their mother was here, but I can't find her anywhere. Has she contacted you?"

 

His heart gave a wild leap at the thought of Darla being near, but it settled back in his ribcage as he reached out with his senses and couldn't detect her. "She's not here, Tyko. I believe the twins pulled the wool over your eyes. The Force was calling them here, but they didn't know how to communicate that."

 

She almost looked astonished, her photoreceptors glowing. "They tricked me? Those little...they certainly won't be getting any dessert tonight!"

 

Darex hid his smile. "I'll watch them, Tyko. Why don't you go down to the droid bay and get some work done? It looks like an oil bath and a few hours powered down would do you the world of good."

 

The droid was off like a rocket. It appeared her joints weren't quite as frozen as they had appeared.

 

Darex continued making his way through the Temple, and a minute later, he came across an old friend. "Knight Platt," he said warmly.

 

"Grandmaster Trevelian!" Jaren Platt exclaimed. "Is it really you? You're back?"

 

"Indeed," Darex replied. "I need to inform the Jedi Council. Could you take me somewhere where I can have a look at the roster, the state of the Order, and make some comm calls?"

 

"Of course, master," Jaren replied. "Right this way."

 

He led Darex to an office normally reserved for Council members. Darex started to protest, but Jaren rasied a hand. "Please. There is no one here who needs it, and you have a right to it."

 

Darex thanked him, and sat down to get to work, keeping his presence bright in case his children needed to find him for anything.

[Darex Trevelian]

His call to Darla was painful. She had had a rough time of it without him, and he knew he had deserved every word of the verbal tongue-lashing he received. Once again, he found himself sorely tempted to stay out of things and run to her side and do everything he could to repair their relationship. If he was going to do it, there would never be a better chance. The galaxy didn't know he was back; he could go and live out this new life as a father and husband. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. The Force had told him that he was needed. His duty came rushing back to him, and he couldn't abandon it. No matter how much he loved her.

 

In the end, there was a softening, but no true reconciliation. For now, they'd stay separated. As for what the future held...both of them were willing to wait and see.

 

It was as much as Darex could have realistically hoped for, but it was still painful.

 

His second task was to pull up the list of the current standings of the Jedi Order. Kirlocca was still the Grandmaster. Darex smiled. The Wookiee was a great Jedi, and would have the Order in good paws. His Council consisted of three masters and a knight--Dashel was a solid choice, and Darex glowed with pride seeing his old master Skye's name on there. He didn't know Jaina outside of her being Tirzah's mother. But the name that puzzled him was Tobias Vos. Wasn't he a Sith Lord? Darex was a firm believer in redemption, but he still found the appointment of someone who had very recently been Sith to the Council a curious move. Oh well, I suppose Kirlocca knows what he is doing.

 

There were several knights, all of whose names he knew. He had met several of them in person. And he was glad to see a smattering of padawans, although seeing that Trushuan was still a padawan caused him to shake his head. Every padawan went through training at a different pace, but Trushuan had been an apprentice for a long time. He wondered what had been the hold up in her training.

 

It was odd; he suddenly realized he had subconsciously been looking at the list as one of the leaders of the Jedi, making plans, seeing connections. Old habits die hard, I suppose. I was on the Jedi Council for too long. But he wasn't on the Council any longer. No, he was simply another Jedi Master, and it was time to take his place in the Order once more.

 

He reactivated his information in the system, providing the requisite fingerprint and retinal scan. He was glad to see that his IDs still matched; apparently the Force had 'grown' him this body, or something, but it had done a good job.

 

Darex's plan had been to then reach out to the Grandmaster or Jedi Council, and as he had also wanted to contact Skye, he figured he'd kill two mynocks with one hydrospanner and message her directly.

 

Once his message was sent, he heard a growling sound. With a start, he recognized it was his stomach rumbling. Laughing at himself, he rose and headed off to find the kids, and some lunch.

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

As she and the twins scampered through the corridors, an odd sense of belonging rushed back to Tirzah. In some ways, it was the closest thing to home she had ever known. There were memories of abandonment that were seated deeply in her psyche, but even those could not compete with all of her accomplishments since being here. The quickest learner in her classes every step of the way, her utter reliance on her extrasensory perception had given her an advantage over the others, who had a much more difficult time of detaching from their physical senses.

 

But nothing brought back strange memories like walking into the dining hall side-by-side with Jax and Alana and seeing the former Grandmaster's back, as though she were entering through these doors for the first time as an eight-year-old under the watchful eye of her amnesiac aunt. How small she had felt then; how utterly out of her element. The years had brought her confidence, she thought proudly to herself, as her hand fell to the shoto saber that hung from her hip.

 

The years had also brought her a renewed appetite. Lunch had better be good.

 

"Hello, Master Darex," she said as she sat opposite him.

[Darex Trevelian]

"Hello there," he replied. Jax and Alana both hugged him tightly, then the four Jedi sat down to eat.

 

Darex took a large bite of his hamburger and savored the juiciness of the meat. He hadn't realized how much he had missed food. Dipping a strip of fried root vegetable in a red sauce, he popped it into his mouth with satisfaction. He glanced over at Tirzah and winked. "I hear there are plenty of cupcakes for dessert."

 

Not knowing whether she remembered the incident or not, he changed the subject. "So what have the three of you been up to since I saw you last? Taking hopeful classes?" He noticed the lightsaber at Tirzah's hip and gestured to it between bites of his burger. "Are you a padawan? Who is your master?"

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

At the underhanded cupcake comment, Tirzah giggled to herself, the first real laugh she could remember in a while. The incident was not one she would quickly forget: dumping a whole tray of cupcakes on venerated Grey Master Aryian Darkfire stuck in the memory like stink to a Jawa. Hastily finishing her bite of the battered root vegetable, Tirzah's hand fell instinctively to her saber.

 

"Oh, this? No, my mom made it for me. I, uh, left Tython on my own and so I never got assigned a master, and once I found her, I stayed with her ever since." The incident on Raxus Prime occurred to her, and she added on, "For the most part."

 

She shrugged. "When Master Kirlocca asked her to go to Kashyyyk, she said I couldn't come, so she left me behind on Ossus. I haven't resumed classes, but I passed my form one proficiency exam, and I can do a lot of basic things."

 

A lingering insecurity nagged at the back of her mind, one that she was reluctant to give a voice to, but since he had asked, it seemed to have a place in the conversation. "I don't think I'll ever have a master because I ran away."

[Darex Trevelian]

The girl was very insecure. It didn't take a Jedi Master to sense that, but as he was one, her emotional state broadcasted very clearly. Carefully, Darex considered her statement. "What do you know of the Jedi, Tirzah? What have you learned? What does it mean to be a Jedi?"

 

She didn’t readily meet his eyes, instead opting to stare down at her plate. It seemed obvious that she was not proud of what she was about to say. “I mean, the Jedi are the closest thing I have to a family. I’ve learned everything I know here. But it seems like all the grown-up Jedi do is run around frantically obsessing over everyone else’s problems. No one seems calm, no one listens to the Force, and for all their emphasis on the Code, there’s not a whole lot of serenity. I know what the Force is to me,” she trailed off, excusing herself to another bite of her food.

 

Darex chuckled a little at her response. “It does seem that way sometimes, doesn’t it?” he asked rhetorically. “The galaxy is a big, dangerous place, and the Jedi are the ones who have to stand for light in the darkness. And there aren’t many of us. But you’re very perceptive; the Jedi these days aren’t at peace with themselves or the Force. At least,” he amended, “they weren’t when I last was part of the Order.” He ate another fried vegetable. “So what is the Force to you?”

 

The girl’s lily-white cheeks went scarlet, and her pale chocolate eyes peered out from under thick lashes sheepishly. “Well, when… when I was a kid, I thought it was a fairy. It would paint things for me so that I could see them. Not everything, but most things; especially people. Some of them would light up brighter than others, but the Little Fairy always led me to where I needed to go or who I needed to see. It’s how I found you when I first came here. It’s how I found my mom back on Tython, I think. It’s how I found Jax on Ossus. When I listen to it, I know what to do, and things don’t feel so big or so scary.”

 

“I know what you mean,” Jax piped up. “I think it was the Force that told us to come here. It was like, a feeling. Like we were...supposed to come here, even if it was against the rules.”

 

Darex smiled at all of them. “To be a Jedi means to always be listening to the will of the Force. It guides us, gives us wisdom, and tells us what we should do. Sometimes that means doing something scary, or something that might not be fun. But if the Force is truly leading you, as a Jedi, you need to listen to it. You seem like you have already learned that lesson better than most padawans twice your age.” These children were indeed remarkable. Of course, he would always think that about Jax and Alana, but even Tirzah was impressing the Jedi Master greatly. “So, Tirzah, you know how to listen to the Force and follow it’s will. You said you ran away. Why did you run? Were you following the will of the Force then? Or something else?”

 

“I felt something through the Force that was familiar to me,” she said distantly, as though seeing far away. “Like a bright light within the Force that I knew, somehow, so I followed it even when it left Tython. It turns out it was my mom. That’s how I found her.”

 

He nodded slowly. “So even then, you were following the guidance of the Force. It drew you to your mother, reconnecting you. So then, tell me, Tirzah, why do you think the Jedi would punish you for doing so, to the point of making you unable to become a Jedi yourself?”

 

For the first time in the span of the conversation, Tirzah met his eyes directly. “Attachments, Master Darex. They always told us that being a Jedi was easier without attachments. They always said my parents gave me a gift by not being there for me. A gift. But I had to find out, at least. I had to know who they were.” Her face fell, and she seemed utterly disinterested in the substantial amount of food still left before her.

 

Darex sighed. Here now, they got to the heart of the matter. “Listen to me carefully, all of you.” He waited until he had the attention of all three children. “It’s true. Being a Jedi is much easier without attachments. As Jedi, we’re called to be willing to sacrifice everything to save others. Not having attachments makes that easier. If you’re not losing anything besides your own life, your own happiness...well, it’s an easier burden to bear.

 

“For a long time, I lived that way. I had attachments to my friends, but nothing beyond, and I reasoned with myself that I would be able to make those sacrifices if I needed to. But then I met your mother,” he said, looking directly at Jax and Alana. “She changed everything. I had never known what I was giving up. I was an orphan, myself, and never knew any family outside the Order. But suddenly, I had a woman I loved, who loved me back. It felt like...coming to life for the first time. I wrestled long and hard about it, though. I knew that by letting her in, I was risking much. I was risking my duty to the Order and to the galaxy. But at the same time, I knew it was right.

 

“Once I made up my mind, I never looked back. And then you two came along,” he said, reaching over and affectionately ruffling their hair, “and I was a goner. I never knew someone could feel so much love in all the universe.” He sighed again. “In the end, when I was at that memorial, and I realized I wasn’t going to make it out of there alive...it was the hardest thing I ever had to do. If it had been simply my life I was giving up, I would have done it easily for the sake of the galaxy. But I knew that my death would bring pain to the three people I loved more than anyone else in existence.” He fell silent for a moment. “So I know why Jedi have often forbidden attachments outright. But despite everything, and despite all the pain I’ve caused you and your mother,” he said, directing that bit at the twins, “I don’t regret it for anything. I would still make the choice to love her and you. Balancing you and the galaxy was insanely hard, but it’s a price I’m willing to pay.” He sighed. “I only hope that you can someday forgive me.”

 

Jax stood up and ran around the table so he could throw his arms around his father. “Oh, Daddy, yes. I forgive you.”

 

Alana joined after a moment. “I’m just so happy you’re back.”

 

For a long moment, they held each other. Finally, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye, Darex turned back to regard Tirzah, who was absent from her space across the table, instead standing halfway across the room with her back turned, clearly hightailing it for the door, her frustrated grief echoing through the Force. “Tirzah,” he called out. “All that to say...believe me, I understand. And I don’t condemn you in the least, Tirzah. Jedi are not droids; our emotions are part of who we are. You simply lack control, and that, a master can teach you.”

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

When she turned, slowly, Tirzah’s eyes were swimming with tears. “I’m not going back,” she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. “I don’t want to go back. Everyone belongs somewhere. Everyone waits to be chosen. I just wanted to be with her, but now that she’s on the Council, even she’s too important to waste her time with me.”

 

The words were unfair; she knew it even as they cascaded from her lips. Her mother had offered to renounce her task. But Tirzah had been raised with a strong enough sense of duty that she knew what was at stake. It didn’t mean she had to like it.

 

“I don’t know where to go,” she sniffed, carefully holding back the emotion that threatened to choke her, “but since this is the closest thing I have to home, I might as well stay here.”

 

Darex rose and walked over to her. “Tirzah, that’s not true, and you know it. Sometimes we must let go of what we want, and do what is requested of us. I’m sure your mother longs to have you with her at all times. But our duty comes first...and I know she would rather do anything than put you in danger.” He was making assumptions, of course, but he couldn’t imagine a Jedi not feeling that way about her daughter, especially one as bright as Tirzah.

 

“Yeah, I know,” she muttered in a breathy, not-quite-there voice, begrudgingly assenting to his admonishment.

 

He put a hand on her shoulder. “How about coming with us? After all, family is more than blood.”

 

There was a gasp of excitement from the twins. “Really, Dad?” Jax squealed. “She can come with us?”

 

“Only if she wants to,” he said, his eyes trained on her.

 

Tirzah’s pale gaze flickered from the sincere face of the Jedi Master to her excitable friends behind him, back and forth multiple times, as though she were weighing something in her mind. After a long deliberation, she asked timidly, “You’re not just going to drop me back on Ossus to continue my training?”

 

Darex’s eyes twinkled. “Absolutely not. Who wants to go to Ossus? What a boring place. And besides, I think tagging along with a Jedi Master for a while would satisfy your teachers.”

 

The pre-teen shifted her weight, unsure about what it would mean to be the outsider palling around with such a close-knit family. “If my mom comes back looking for me…” she trailed off. It was clear she was running out of excuses.

 

“I feel certain our paths will cross with hers soon enough,” he replied. “But I’ll comm her and let her know, if it would make you feel better. Perhaps I’ll tell her…” he trailed off, considering. “Well, let’s just say, I may have something to ask her. Something about making this arrangement a little more permanent. After all, I will be needing a padawan...”

 

Her chin turned up to him sharply. “Me?!” she blurted in astonishment. The sparkle of amusement in the former Grandmaster’s eyes seemed to have caught fire in Tirzah’s, however, and a slow grin spread across her face, gratitude mixed with hope.

 

Not until that moment had she realized how badly she had wanted to move on in her training, the stagnation of her classrooms and forced friendships weighing on her like an infection. To become the apprentice of Darex Trevelian? That was something she could be proud of.

 

Finally, after she had calmed her leaping heart, she answered quietly, “I would like that very much.”

[Darex Trevelian]

Darex spent the rest of the afternoon back in the study, continuing to attempt to discover what the Jedi were up to. He also did a system-wide search for the location of the Eternal Vigilance, but the ship-temple had completely dropped off the Order's scopes. He hoped nothing had happened to it; it was the closest thing he had to a real home in this galaxy. There were also some discrepancies in the accounts that he couldn't explain; resources diverted, skimmed off the top of various accounts, and funneled to dead-end drops. He resolved to ask the Council about it when he saw them.

 

In the meantime, he had something else he needed to take care of. He needed a new lightsaber. His old one had been destroyed, he assumed, at the Memorial, and even if it hadn't, he had no desire to return there to look for it. He regretted losing the crystals--after all, he had chosen them during his trials to become a Jedi Master--but at the same time, a new lightsaber for a new life was rather fitting. So before he went to dinner, he gathered the necessary components to build his hilt. For once, he had access to many options, and he spent some time choosing pieces that would create a simple, practical weapon that would fit his hand perfectly.

 

After dinner with the kids, he retired to a suite with the twins. They stayed up past their bedtime talking and playing and enjoying each other's company. Darex marveled at how much they had grown up. They were real little people now, full of their own hopes and dreams and personality. It was astonishing and wonderful. But eventually, all three Trevelians went to bed, and slept quietly and deeply.

 

***

 

The next morning, the four Jedi met for a quick breakfast, then headed to the hangar, accompanied by Tyko. Darex had filled the children in on his plans. "We need to go find my old master Skye. She's on the Jedi Council. I don't want to get involved in much until I hear from the Jedi Council to see where they assign me. I don't know enough about the state of things to just plop right into something." He left out the part about the message he had gotten from I-Nine. "And we might stop and get lightsaber crystals on the way," he added.

 

Fifteen minutes later, a small shuttle blasted off Lehon, carrying it's occupants into the stars.

[Raynuk Montar]

Weeks had passed since Gretchen last heard from Darren, the ill-fated attachment message, which had still gone undiscovered as malware and a serious security breach, marking the end of their conversation as far as she knew.

 

Slowly but surely over those weeks, Gretchen had gotten back into the swing of her daily routine, which after her time off world, seemed dull and lackluster. The emotions of her last contact with Darren -- or lack thereof -- was still an open wound to her, but her routine and duties within the temple kept her mind mostly distracted from thinking about it. It was only in the quieter moments at the beginning and end of her day that the depression and sadness crept into her life. But she continued on regardless, because she simply didn't know what else to do; working in the temple was the only thing she had really done in her life. It was familiar, it was comfortable, and there were few surprises in being a cafeteria worker. To Gretchen, the surprising whirlwind that had been her trip to Coruscant was behind her now, and had taught her the harsh lesson that wanting for more would only leave her broken and hurt. She was safer just living out the life she had been given by the Jedi.

 

Her life continued on without much incident, until the day that Darex Travelian returned. The entire Temple was suddenly abuzz with activity, rumors, and stories from Jedi, apprentices, hopefuls and staff alike. Gretchen of course had met the man in passing a number of times as he came to get some food, and like so many of the other Jedi, he had always treated her kindly. The rumors about his apparent return confused Gretchen initially; even the Jedi’s own children, who were clearly beyond ecstatic to have their father back, seemed to be sewing a tale that was too fantastical to believe; “He walked right up out of the water onto the beach!” she had heard Jax exclaiming to someone in the hallways as she passed.

 

Indeed, Gretchen didn't believe the rumors until she saw the man herself walking the halls, and even then didn't even attempt to try and understand how or why he had returned. The Force had always eluded her, and understanding that was something she had given up on a very long time ago. Still, with Darex’s return, the Temple seemed more alive with activity. Yet, after spending only a few days within the temple, word circulated that Darex was setting to depart, yet no one seemed to know where he was going when the topic came up in casual conversations. So once again the Jedi Temple on Lehon was left without a prominent Jedi to look to for leadership.

 

Three days after Darex departed the planet, Gretchen’s trip to Coruscant caught up to her.

 

Despite the secluded nature of Lehon, it wasn’t uncommon for a ship to be seen approaching the temple. Mostly delivering supplies from elsewhere on the planet and indeed the galaxy, such an arrival usually only merited a ‘Oh look our supplies are here’ kind of response. Gretchen was in the middle of her midday shift when one of her coworkers mentioned that a ship was spotted on approach. The regularly scheduled delivery for supplies had been the day before, so unless it was a special delivery of supplies, she knew it likely didn’t concern her. Perhaps it was Master Trevelian returning, she thought as she returned her attention to her duties.

 

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

 

By the time the CSS-1 shuttle, tagged as entered the lower atmosphere of Lehon, it’s clearance codes, generated from the massive data leak and security breach of weeks before, had been accepted and the shuttle was given a course to land on one of the outer docking pads. It was as generic and unmarked as shuttles could be, giving no outward indication of what or who was aboard.

 

The shuttle would land without any activity of note, and as the ship finished settling in, it was a tall, slim, dark haired man who was the first to step off the shuttle. He was dressed in a dark green suit, more fit for the upper levels of Coruscant than a hidden Jedi Temple, but also walked with a confidence that was just on the edge of being intimidating. A member of the grounds crew approached the man, and greeted him.

 

“Hey there, did you need any help offloading?”

 

The tall slim man simply smiled in response, and extended an arm behind him towards the shuttle. “Certainly… my crew is just getting started removing the restraints.”

 

The crewmember nodded and took off jogging to and then up into the shuttle, as the slim man continued walking towards the temple. He spotted another of the grounds crew, and apparently on a whim, gestured the man over.

 

“It has been a while since I was last on Lehon; I was hoping to touch base with the administrator; tell me… who is overseeing the temple now?” he asked.

 

The member of the grounds crew looked around, appearing slightly perplexed and at a loss for words.

 

“Well...uhm… Headmaster Chal’lar is, but he has been off planet for some time… and Jedi Master Trevelian was here a few days ago, but has likewise left on business, so I’m afraid there’s no one of leadership present at the moment.”

 

The tall slim man feigned disappointment, but nodded.

 

“Would you like me to inform you if any of them should return while you’re still with us Mr…?”

 

The slim man let a grin spread across his face. “Darren. And no thank you. I don’t expect to be here long. Now, do me a favor and help my crew and your friend with my cargo?”

 

The other man nodded and, like the first member of the grounds crew, took off jogging to the shuttle. This time however, the slim man, now self-identified as Darren, watched as he jogged up the ramp.

 

That’s two to dispose of… Darren thought, before turning back to look at the Temple.

[The Jedi Order]

“Now breath out slowly, let the air flow from your lungs in rythmic cycle as you being to feel the stirrings of the force touch and surround you.”

 

Jaren Platt, the leader of the Jedi Institution on Lehon explained to the group of kneeling hopefuls that were doing their best to look like jedi. All straight backed, well groomed, and some in the finest reproduction Jedi garbs found at costume stores throughout the galaxy. He sighed, his hand scratching at the bit of unshaven stubble that had persisted on the underside of his chin. Out of the group of 20 or so hopefuls, only one, a young barabel, showed any promise. He shook his head and held out his hands.

 

“Okay, I think that is enough for now boys and girls, if you could please grab some refreshments and huddle with Knight Hallin for some more training exerc-”

 

Danger sense shot up his spine like the blaster bolt that had just ended a life outside the fortress gates. As time seemingly slowed down around him, Knight Hallin jumped up from a kneeling position and drew her lightsaber with a flourish. The Barabel hopeful howled and Jaren Platt let the force flow over him like a wave, reaching out with his presence he could feel the cold killer's instinct coming from the landing pads a hundred meters away. Darkside energy released from the pleasure of killing. There was murder on the wind and all around the Jedi Temple, knights, masters, and apprentices were springing from their beds or meals lightsabers in hand. The force flowed through the temple like a rushing wind as the jedi within drew on the force to begin their battle preparations.

 

Jaren Platt reached out with his presence to account for the Jedi and found the full staffing was up and rushing towards the main entryway. He could sense seven jedi knights, three other jedi masters, and eight apprentices and though some wished to rush out and begin a full scale war before the gates of the temple, Platt knew otherwise. Summoning the force to guide him, he used the force to flip the alarm system in the central command room. Lehon Jedi temple had been designed as a fortress, built during the height of the last galactic civil war, its defenses were still very much operational, and designed to hold off any Sith warriors that decided to attack it.

 

When triggered, the temple went into lockdown, the main gates slamming shut and the automated defenses switching from passive standby to assess and destroy mode. On the top of the temple, the tightbeam holo transmitter pulsed off a long awaited message to the jedi council and grandmaster. Even if no reinforcements came, the temple, its droid staff, and its jedi occupants were very much ready for battle. Some, though they knew it was wrong, wished for it. Behind the main gates, a team of eight, four knights and their apprentices prepared to charge the landing strip and stop any would be attackers from escaping and to save as many lives of innocents as possible.

[Raynuk Montar]

Darren had begun walking towards the temple entrance when by all accounts, hell broke loose. He heard an alarm in the distance from within the temple a split second before the main entrance gates that he was walking towards slammed shut with enough power to crush a starship. If the sudden thunderous slam hadn’t made him jump in surprise, Darren might have felt a flash of worry or fear course through him, but as things were, he did not.

 

The sound of mechanical, automated defenses shifting and winding up reached him next, and he froze, looking up towards the emplacements to find he was looking down their barrels.

 

“Oh wonderful...” He muttered and then sighed, raising his arms over his head.

 

“UHM, HELLO? I THINK THERE’S BEEN A MISUNDERSTANDING OUT HERE…” he called towards the main gates, knowing he probably shouldn’t take another step. “I’M JUST MAKING A DELIVERY… AND HOPEFULLY VISITING A FRIEND WHILE I’M HERE!”

 

-----

 

 

Gretchen had finished her shift in the cafeteria and was walking back to her small room, passing through the massive hallways of the temple lost in her own thoughts when the alarm klaxons scared her half to death, letting out an audible yelp before her feet touched the ground again. She frantically looked around, trying to get some idea of what was going on. She saw a group of Jedi dash across her path down the main hallway a good twenty meters, and she suddenly felt fear bubbling up in her stomach.

 

The Jedi wouldn’t be reacting like this if it was something minor, that much she knew. And that meant she should go back to her room until the alarms stopped or someone with authority told her to move.

 

But Gretchen had longed for a shred of excitement like she had experienced on Coruscant, even if it was a pale imitation and dangerous. So, in the end, her curiosity got the better of her. Looking around again, she took a breath and continued walking, only a tiny bit faster than before, making it look like she was indeed heading back to her room. But once she had reached the spot where she had seen the Jedi run past towards the main entrance, she turned, and headed in that direction as well.

 

Gretchen told herself she would stay back. She just wanted a glimpse of what was going on. And so as the eight Jedi stacked up at the main entrance gates -- which she noticed now were slammed shut -- Gretchen hid herself behind a giant pillar, some fifty meters back from the nearest of the Jedi, and simply watched, far enough away to run if something terrible happened, but close enough to see.

 

-----

 

As innovative and forward thinking the process of triggering a tight-beam transmission to sounding the alarm was, the message never even had a chance. The security of the temple had been compromised from within, and still lurking within the systems, the malicious code redirected the transmission from its intended destination of the Jedi Council, instead sending it to the main base of the Cult of Morthos, and then altered the logs and data on the holo transmitter to show a false positive.

 

There would be no Jedi reinforcements to Lehon on this day.

[The Jedi Order]

The Jedi at the gate spread out in a fan pattern behind it, their lightsabers up and ready. The automated antimaterial rifles spun up around the gate. Dsigned originally to handle the Krath War Droids of the old Sith Empire, they were perfectly able to decimate whatever this new threat was. Jaren Platt walked to the wall console and activated the external comms to the intruder.

 

“You stand accused of murder, drop whatever weapons you hold and surrender.”

 

In the command center, the Jedi at work did not notice the change in locations but checked off the box for received. The exterior defenses, being isolated to their own console, were not effected by the virus

[Raynuk Montar]

“You stand accused of murder, drop whatever weapons you hold and surrender.”

 

Darren's jaw actually dropped for a moment.

 

"WHAT?!" He yelled out, sounding as surprised as was possible. When no further response came, Darren sighed again, and slowly lowered one hand to his waist, pulling his small blaster out of its holster and tossed it on the ground in front of him.

 

Meanwhile, behind him, the two groundscrew emerged from the ship with a cargo container, but stopped just at the bottom of the loading ramp as they spotted Darren with his hands up, in the sights of the temple's defenses.

 

----------

 

From her spot, Gretchen continued to watch as the Jedi fanned out on this side of the gates, and Jedi Platt activated the external comms.

 

Murder?! she repeated to herself, How did someone get murdered here of all places...

[The Jedi Order]

“The force, and holocams have informed us of the murder that has just taken place on the loading docks, please slowly approach the gate.”

 

One of the apprentices behind the sliding door, opened a small hatch and prepared a series of stun grenades acquired from the armoury, The rest of the Jedi in the temple preparing for things to go sideways. Knuckles turned white around silver handles, and the force was thick with apprehension. The Jedi knights and masters reaching out around them to sense any further danger, ready to respond. Most of the apprentices and hopefuls radiating confusion and some feeling sick with danger sense. They sensed the two groundscrew and relayed their presence to the jedi at the gate.

 

The Jedi at the door stood ready, the gate defenses still prepared to gun down whoever this man was.

[Raynuk Montar]

Darren sighed again and shrugged as well as he could with his hands still over his head, and began walking towards the gate, pausing for a moment before continuing slower than before. The entire time, Darren was muttering under his breath about the whole situation. Eventually, Darren did reach the gate, spying the apprentice behind the small hatch. He bent down slightly, still keeping his hands held high and tried to meet the apprentice's eyes.

 

"So... do you put all your delivery pilots through this kraff?!" He asked, sounding far more annoyed now than scared considering they hadn't shot him yet.

[The Jedi Order]

The apprentice suppressed a grin. Her pointed Twi'lek teeth showing behind red lips.

 

"Of course, the Masters say that you are accused of Murder."

 

She levitated a pair of force cuffs to the man.

 

"Put them on and we will solve this whole matter swiftly."

 

The other knights and masters still stood around the entrance focusing on the force, preparing for whatever would come next.