Tython

[Aira Cadan]

I shook my head. "Then I'm not saying it right," I replied to her comment about the deity. "Some people out there believe that is the case, and that's why there is an entire mysticism surrounding the Jedi. The Force makes people nervous sometimes. But it's not really like that." I shook my head. "I can't explain it really. It's just something you'll have to experience yourself. When you hear the Force speaking to you, you'll know."

 

When she asked a series of rapid fire questions about emotions, I chuckled. "Ah, the classic objection. I know I asked Onderin the exact same questions when I was in your shoes. It's the line in the code that people have the most struggle with. But it's not like that. It's not that we don't feel emotions. If we cut ourselves off from them, we might as well be droids! They still affect us, and to some extent influence our actions, but we are not controlled by them, not let them cloud our judgement. Also, we don't let our emotions influence the way we use the Force. That is one of the biggest differences between the Jedi and the Sith. The Sith use their emotions as a lens through which to focus the power of the Force. They use the Force to do what they want, what they feel. The Jedi on the other hand, are selfless. It's not about what we want, or what we feel, but rather what the will of the Force is."

 

"So that's why you opened my cell back on the space station?" Apollo asked.

 

I shrugged. "Well, it was the Force that led us to your cell. We actually detoured out of our way, because we felt the Force drawing us in that direction. It made no sense to us at the time, but Master Dashel and I have both learned to trust the Force's leading. But it was quiet about setting you free or not. That was my personal choice."

 

We came to a river that I remembered from my last journey to the Temple, and motioned to a wide log that the Jedi used to cross the river. "Over there," I said. We headed to the log. We had to cross one-by-one, but it wasn't particularly treacherous, just narrow. The feet of many Jedi passing before us had worn the log into the ground on both sides of the river, anchoring our make-shift bridge.

[Aelyn]

Aelyn tried to soak in what Aira was explaining, but it did sound like she would have to experience it for herself... however that worked. How could the Force have a will if it didn't have an intelligence? How could it lead a Jedi somewhere without it having a destination? Aelyn pondered on these questions as they came upon the forest stream.

 

She started the cross the log easily, imagining the hundreds of other Jedi that had passed this way, no doubt many of them students struggling with the same questions that she was now. There was a high probability that among them had been some names she would recognize, but also an enormous diversity of sentients from every race and walk of life whose names she could never learn. Although the path was new to her, it was well-trodden by the many generations of Jedi Knights that had come before her. It was comforting to think that she could never ask a question that had not been pondered in depth by her countless predecessors.

 

As she crossed she looked downstream, an idea forming in her head. "Is the Force like a river?" she asked. "Rivers have a source and a direction, but no intelligence or concept of good and evil. They simply are, and always find the right path unless something or someone should act on them."

 

Around the middle of the log, she paused carefully as though to test her theory. She loved the sound of running water. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to mentally dwell on the sense of life and unity that had originally caught her attention when they landed on the planet. With the water flowing beneath her and filling her ears, she could see it in her mind's eye. She imagined herself reaching out to touch it, and suddenly it was as though she had joined the current and it flowed around and through her. Within it was all the complexity and power of the ecosystem, and it lit up her brain as suddenly it felt like she could comprehend the entire wilderness, like pulling back the veil to an unseen world.

 

"Whoa," she said, opening her eyes and waving her arms to keep herself from falling off the log, barely succeeding in doing so.

[Aira Cadan]

Aelyn followed me across the river, but paused halfway.

 

"That's a solid analogy," I answered. "Many Jedi refer to it as such. Like all analogies, it breaks down at one point or another, but it's still a helpful way to think about it."

 

I watched as she continued a few more steps, then felt her tentatively reach out to the Force. "Whoa!" she exclaimed, suddenly losing her balance. I started to reach out with the Force to catch her, but she caught herself and continued walking. I smiled at her when she arrived on the bank. "I felt that. You just felt the Force for the first time, right?"

 

Apollo followed her over, and we three struck off again. "Tell me," I encouraged her. "What did you feel? What was it like?"

[Aelyn]

Eyes wide, Aelyn made her way across the bridge to the far shore. "That was... unlike anything I've ever felt," she said. She was almost at a loss for words -- another usual sensation for her. Describing what she just experienced would be almost like explaining color to a blind man, and yet she herself hadn't known it existed just minutes before.

 

She looked at Apollo once she had her feet on solid ground. "It was like the river was running through me, but instead of water, it was, like, an awareness of everything around us. Like all of life is suffused with a warm energy and by opening myself to it I could feel the heartbeat of the planet and the network of living things around us, including the two of you." She was slightly flushed. "There was a tranquility to it all, like the feeling you get when you sit under the stars in the middle of the night."

 

Aelyn grinned at Aira. "Jedi can do that whenever they want?" What kind of enlightened scholars could this power create?

 

If she could get back to that state, she felt like a whole life time spent studying it wouldn't be enough. She wanted to use it in a crowd of people, see how they fit into everything, feel the impression they left in the Force. Were they all the same, or did everyone appear different? What would she be able to tell about someone by their Force presence? She could hardly contain her excitement to find out.

[Aira Cadan]

I grinned at Aelyn's attempt to explain what she had just felt. "I remember the first time I touched the Force," I said. "It was like...the cool fresh breeze of autumn, the smell of baking bread, the electric jolt you feel when something you've worked hard on goes off without a hitch, the feeling you get when you bow before a cheering audience after a triumphant performance." I smiled again at the memory. "It felt right and good and pure."

 

We headed off, keeping to the path that my memory told me to follow. "Yes, we can. And it's like that most times," I replied to her last question. "But remember that the while the Force has a light side, it also has a dark side. The dark side feels completely different. Powerful, yes, and deadly. Seductive. It's almost oily, and...well, the first time I really felt it permeating a place, I wanted to vomit. So it's not all fun and games. When you can feel the people around you, sometimes you are opened to things you'd rather not experience. Desperation, panic...and death." I had felt death through the Force way too often during my time with the New Republic. "But in a way, those things can encourage you to be better. To understand people, and to understand why they need to and deserve to be protected. And it makes you value life more."

 

We continued to walk and talk for the next several hours, not stopping for lunch, just eating as we walked. The sun was starting to set and we were getting closer to our destination. I could just begin to sense the congregation of Jedi up ahead. "Aelyn, why don't you try again to touch the Force?" I stooped down and picked up a twig. "Reach out and see if you can lift this twig."

[Aelyn]

Aelyn looked a little embarrassed. "Honestly, I've been trying to ever since the bridge," she said. "I was hoping I could get right back into it, but for some reason it's just not coming."

 

She had no idea what she was doing wrong. The first time, she'd drawn on the river as inspiration and somehow it had just clicked. Even now, she could still sort of sense it there -- the deep thrum of the harmony of life around them as the planet breathed in and out. But no matter how she focused on it, he wasn't able to immerse herself in the current again like she had. "Maybe if we can afford to stop for a minute..."

 

It was starting to get a little later in the day. She had no idea how long days and nights were on Tython, how cold it was going to get, or even if there was dangerous wildlife that would be out at night. But thinking about all those little details which she had to keep track of when traveling alone just put her further from the state of mind she'd had on the bridge, and that was what she was trying to recreate. How the Jedi managed to touch the Force even in stressful situations was completely beyond her, but she'd always found that, no matter her approach, when she practiced something for long enough it eventually got easier. Still, inner peace in a dangerous situation... that was a defiance of natural instincts which served a very important purpose in survival.

 

Aelyn took a deep breath, trying to push away her concerns and focus on the task. Supposedly if she could just tap into the Force again, she should be able to move the twig, right? It seemed like a big leap from just opening her eyes to a new world to making an object move without touching it. One was like trying out a new sense and the other was what conventional wisdom would label magic.

 

After a few moments she sighed, a little frustrated and tired from the several-hour hike. "I don't know, Aira, it's like it keeps slipping away from me."

[Aira Cadan]

I wasn't concerned. "Let's take a break, have some food. We're not far from the Temple now, but it'll still be a couple hours."

 

There was a lovely copse not too far from where we were standing. We made our way over to it. Apollo got out some rations, and we munched on them and chatted about insignificant things. After about twenty minutes, I turned the conversation back on the Force. "Alright Aelyn, I'd like you to try again. Relax. Clear your mind of distractions. It's when you are calm and centered that the Force will come to you the most easily."

 

I scooted over until I was sitting across from her. "Try this. Breathe, in and out. Match my breaths." I breathed slowly, filling and emptying my lungs completely with each one. I picked up another twig and held it in my open palm. "Close your eyes. The Force is always there, inside you. You just have to listen. Let it fill you, and when you're ready, try to move the stick."

 

I knew she could do it; it was just a matter of her overcoming her own natural mental barriers.

[Aelyn]

Nodding at Aira, Aelyn tried out the breathing exercise, but what had really put her at ease was the break and light conversation. Apollo had talked about some of the ships he'd worked on when he had been a mechanic and reflected on the methodical simplicity that was repair work once you were comfortable with it. Aelyn wasn't much for machines, and indeed she could admit she wasn't even a good pilot, but she could relate to the kind of zen state that came from doing a simple, familiar task. The kind of thing where if you overthought it, it could actually hinder your ability to do it correctly.

 

Aelyn drew in another breath and let it out, feeling the air enter and exit her lungs and listening to the sounds of the woods. She closed her eyes and sifted through the different layers of sound, trying to distinguish each one. There were birds chirping. Below that, another type of bird with a lower, less regular call. Below that, the noise of the insects. Here on Tython they reminded her of a tiny strings section of an orchestra, rhythmically scratching out their tune in pleasant harmony. Beneath even them there was an almost-silence, perhaps the sound of something far away that she could not distinguish. Deeper still, there was a reverberating note she could only describe as the background hum of the universe.

 

Whether she was hearing the Force, imagining how it would sound, or merely allowing the mental exercise put her surface thoughts to rest, she felt herself slip back into the current she'd first experienced hours before.

 

This time she held the state. She could feel the trees, connected by a vast network of energy that flowed between them, the earth, and the setting sun. She could feel the insects and birds, tarried just out of sight of their eyes, their sounds like a symphony, the wilderness their concert hall. Aelyn reached out towards Aira and Apollo. Aira was bright in the Force. There was a certainty about her. She knew her role in the orchestra and was willing and able to confidently play whatever part was handed to her. Apollo was still searching for the right role, hoping that he had found the right one, looking to serve his people... and what he felt toward Aira was a bit more than gratitude...

 

Aelyn blushed a little and her bright blue eyes flicked open, but she held her connection with the Force. Her gaze came to rest on the twig. The whole planet seemed to be breathing out, a long, slow climate shift toward a colder future, but she was somehow certain that this was just one breath that would take eons to complete before it again breathed in and warmed once more. With the Force telling her all of this, it seemed that lifting the twig would be a trivial task, a mere parlor trick for the limitless well of energy that flowed through and around her.

 

The twig floated up a few centimeters, and she felt Apollo react. He was pleased for her. After all, she was just a brand-new Jedi student, and this was a big step for her.

 

Suddenly becoming aware of her incredibly small, human self again, Aelyn tumbled back into mundane world and the twig conceded to the pull of gravity and fell to the earth. She looked up from it to Aira. "I think I get it. Even without realizing it, I've been trying to pull the current to me instead of just finding it," she said. "What did the Jedi Code say about peace and serenity again? Maybe I should write it down this time." She pulled a small datapad out of her pocket, ready to take notes.

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

Xae nodded to Jaina, "It is hard to take care of the galaxy at large if we don't first take care of ourselves. I am more than happy to help you. I feel that's why I was drawn to the library when I was. I don't know what greater shifts are in play, though suffice to say that bringing some of us back from the beyond is no mean feat."

 

Part of that unfinished business, Xae knew, was to complete her trials.

 

The auburn-haired woman turned towards Tobias, a mischievous smile crossing her heart-shaped face. "I was merely teasing Vos. Though you are right about that crystal's origins. It did come from my lightsaber, but that foul beast transmuted it. I think that's part of the reason I was called back to help put an end to it. My trials and tests have changed me much and that crystal has chosen its new bearer."

 

Xae looked at him curiously as he set about briefing her on a mission that Tobias had for her and her former padawan, Trushaun. Tracking down relics lost to the Order seemed straightforward enough, but where did Tobias suddenly get the idea that he could be putting the members of the Jedi Order to task? Sometimes it was best to go along with things (Xae had found during her days in the war) since sometimes that was the only way things became clearer.

 

So she went along with what was surely a return jest on his part and accepted the datapad. "I'll take Jaina and get started right away then..."

 

Right after I reach out to Master Kirlocca and get some answers of my own... she thought to herself, before motioning to the other woman to follow her back into the temple.

 

Xae led the way back to the habitat area and spoke to Jaina in hushed tones as they quickly strode past the cafeteria entrance, "Something isn't right...I can sense it and I feel you do as well. I need to meditate on this for a bit. If you'd like you can stay in my quarters or return to your own. I've got a research terminal if you'd like to continue whatever research you were doing in the library. Despite all of your turmoil, I feel I can trust you."

[Aira Cadan]

As Aelyn immersed herself into the Force, I smiled. I could feel her; in a way, within the Force, I was her. We were all connected in the great web of life the Force spun. There was a moment when I sensed she got it. I was pleased, very pleased. She was making great progress.

 

Slowly but surely, the twig rose from my hand. Aelyn held it there for a few seconds, and then it tumbled back down, and I let it fall to the ground. Aelyn looked up at me, and asked me to repeat the lines of the Jedi Code. I could feel her sudden sense of occhiolism. That too, was familiar. It wasn't uncommon for me to feel that way even now, even when I was used to having the Force flow through me. Nodding, I repeated the Code for her.

 

"There is no emotion, there is peace.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.

There is no passion, there is serenity.

There is no chaos, there is harmony.

There is no death, there is the Force."

 

Seeing her jot the notes down reminded me that everyone learned differently. One didn't usually see Jedi hopefuls taking notes. But that was a perfectly acceptable way to learn, especially for the more educated and highly literate of the Jedi. "Anyway," I added. "Your Jedi Master will be able to explain everything in more detail. These are just your first steps, and I'm happy to guide you along them."

 

I glanced at the sun. "I think we will have no trouble reaching the Temple before sundown. Shall we go?"

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

Whatever the gist of the mission was, there seemed to be a lot of subtext in what otherwise looked like a simple conversation, she reflected as she followed the petite Jedi back into the Temple with a parting bow to Master Vos. A great deal must have gone unsaid, or even hidden, in the exchange that just took place. As Vos had handed Xae the datapad with a hushed verbal instruction, Jaina thought she had detected a flicker of surprise and doubt coming from the other woman. Her suspicions were confirmed when Xae began to speak.

 

"Something isn't right...I can sense it and I feel you do as well. I need to meditate on this for a bit."

 

They passed doorway after quiet doorway, and the function of this place as a hall of study and contemplation, not sparring and traditional training, felt eerily apparent in the absence of the normal sounds of life. There was, however, a distinct hum of voices coming from down the hall, and as Xae offered to share her quarters, they came upon a wider doorway that led into what looked like the central cafeteria.

 

Pausing for just a moment, letting the buzz of conversation and the chatter of children wash over her, Jaina smiled briefly. In one of the far corners she spotted a duo of apprentices chatting over their meals, one with tawny blonde hair and the other with dark, curly hair. The thought of carefree days within the Jedi Temple brought forth a flood of memories. Kindly conversation with Grandmaster Tinova in the Great Hall of the Jedi, mischievous explorations with her sister Ashley, and the first time she laid eyes on Andon...

 

Tearing her gaze away from the pair of girls, she picked up her pace behind Xae just as she finished her sentence. "Despite all of your turmoil, I feel I can trust you."

 

A wave of instant affection washed over her. Every ounce of vulnerability she had shown up until this point had garnered her nothing but casual disregard or blatant distrust. To hear that her own doubts and experiences had engendered the confidence of this Jedi Knight who burned with a fire of justice, inexplicably, put that same fire within Jaina. Silently, she resolved to show that she was worthy of that trust.

 

"Thank you, Xae," she said, a kindly smile flickering across her features. "If you don't mind, I'd much prefer to stay with you. This is a big place for someone who's not used to it. And they weren't handing out maps at the door."

 

Her eyes glinted with amusement for a moment before she continued. "I think my research is completed, but if you have access to the communications relay, I do have a message I need to send."

 

The conversation around Quietus' return, the realization of the time she had been away, all of it pointed her back to the one lead she had on her family that hadn't proved to be an utter dead-end. Emily. If it had truly been Emily's voice that spanned the distance of space to reach out to her, it was foolish not to reopen that conversation. She had tested the waters with a toe, and now it was time to step in ankle-deep.

 

They arrived at Xae's sparsely furnished quarters, where the sunset across Tython flickered in with a stunningly beautiful orange glow. It was obvious that she hadn't spent much time here, beyond simply treating it as a crash pad. But a Jedi Guardian who stays in one place isn't an effective Jedi Guardian, the thought came wryly. An adjoining suite attached to Xae's room, and it was here that the Knight led her. She wandered in, depositing her meager bag of belongings on the bed, before taking a seat at the comm station. The door hissed shut behind her.

 

If she was going to send a message to Emily, she had to do it now, before she lost all incentive to do so. Plugging in Sirvani's old comm frequency, she waited for the relay to hum to life, rerouting through all of its encryptions and redirections, before speaking.

 

"Emily, if you're out there, it's Jaina." She paused as if to gather her thoughts, but the swirling mass of questions in her head, a figurative Pandora's box, had proved unhelpful so far. "I have so many questions I want to ask you, and I'm sure you have questions of your own. But they'll have to wait until we meet." Her eyes flooded with tears, and her wistful gaze dropped to the floor. "I'm desperate to see you again, but it's not safe for me to broadcast my location."

 

The sweet-and-sour regret finally overtook her as the vision of her tiny niece, dressed like a miniature princess for her parents' wedding, tugged at her mind. Jaina choked back a sob, but the teary timbre of her strangled cries bled into her words. "I'm so sorry I haven't been there for you. There's so much about me you don't know. So much I should have been around to tell you, to show you. Please, let me know you're well. I'll come for you when I've righted my wrongs. Give my love to your parents," she finished as her hand reached out to slap the comm off, not willing that her sobs should be broadcast across the lightyears.

 

When the tears subsided, she picked herself up from the comm station and sat cross-legged at the end of the bed. The deep sadness within her lingered, an icy hand that gripped at her heart. With a handful of heaving deep breaths, she fell into meditation, seeking the Force for clarity, calm, and comfort. Reaching out a tendril of the Force, she opened the door, as a signal to Xae that she could be interrupted if it came time to move out.

Edited December 22, 2016 by Guest

[Aelyn]

As Aelyn wrote down the code, saying it quietly to herself as she did so to help it take hold, it started to sink in that she had just moved a twig with her mind. To the huge majority of people in the galaxy, that was the kind of thing a stage magician did with carefully-hidden strings or repulsor fields. Certainly the exploits and powers of the Jedi and Sith were related to the public, but it was a totally different thing to hear about these mental powers and to actually start learning to use them. Like with magic tricks, it didn't seem quite as mystical now that she had a grasp on how it worked, but to her it didn't change the impact of the fact that not only was the Force real, but it was something with which she could interact. She wished she could glimpse the future and see what was waiting for her after a few years of practice.

 

The only way to get there was one step at a time. Right now the steps were putting away the datapad, trying to let the Code sink in, and walking the rest of the way to the Jedi Temple, where she would get a chance to meet more people with these gifts. It was an exciting prospect -- she'd never met a Jedi until Aira and now she was going to meet a lot of them.

 

"Yes, let's go," she said. When Aira mentioned that she would be getting a Jedi Master, she realized how little she knew about how the Order was organized and how they brought in new members. It would make sense that they would have dedicated teachers, though.

 

"So, how does Jedi training work?" she asked casually. "Is it going to be classes? Some kind of mentor program? Who was your Jedi Master?"

[Aira Cadan]

We continued on our way, tramping through the wilderness, and I tried to answer Aelyn's sudden influx of new questions. "Well, usually a new person who comes, like yourself, is called a Jedi hopeful. Often times, especially when there are many other hopefuls, one of the Jedi will hold group classes to teach the basics. A lot of the stuff I already taught you, actually, plus usually some self-defense basics."

 

I jumped over a small brook so that I didn't get my boots wet. "Other Jedi visit these classes and choose an apprentice from the group. That person is formally apprenticed to the Jedi, and their training begins in earnest. My own master was Onderin Starlisk, which is mostly why I ended up entwined with the New Republic in the first place. It just made sense to give me an officer's ranking since he was still the Admiral at that point in time. A lot of my training was done on the fly between battles." I winked. "That's not normal, although it is normal that the apprentice accompanies their master in whatever business the master is doing. It's a hands-on learning approach. The apprentice gets lessons both in between missions and during missions, and gets to see what the life of a Jedi is like firsthand.

 

"Eventually, the master will decide that their apprentice is ready to take the trials, a set of tests designed to see if the apprentice is ready to be a full Jedi Knight. The trials usually test the apprentice in body, mind, and spirit, seeing if they really understand how to live life as a Jedi."

 

We walked a bit further, continuing to talk, and not long after, the Jedi Temple came into sight. "There it is," I motioned. "The Jedi Temple. Welcome."

[Dahar Raikanda]

Dahar took a long pause before answering. It felt like a twelve day pause to be honest. He could sense how much Adenna had changed. Long ago she had a mission in her heart to help the people on Thalassia. Adenna had always been proactive. Dahar hoped that perhaps some of that had rubbed off from him in her training. He had started her off and she had grown much since them. The Grandmaster could sense great power in her. He could also sense that she had achieved her mission. She had the feel of someone who had been through a lot, that it had taken a toll, but that she had not failed.

 

"Adenna, as I'm sure you can tell by where we are, much has changed." Dahar looked at the council room, the room that was now his to lead. "I didn't ask for this. When we all came here, not that long ago, I thought Kirlocca would lead us. I thought wrong. Up until Master Dashel contacted us, me and Kirlocca were the only two masters I was aware of that were left. Kirlocca left abruptly and left me with the Grandmaster title. It wasn't something I asked for. But it is something I will do.

 

I have... plans. I feel the whispers of the Force breathing into me. It's telling me to move. Not to react, as the Jedi have so often done, but to act. I have learned much of the Force since we were last together. I've learned that the concept of balance is an illusion. The Dark and the Light will always be forever swirling in an elegant dance. It's arrogant of us to think anything we can do can tip the scales.

 

However, that's no excuse to just exist without purpose. There is a difference between the Dark Side and evil. There is evil out there. There are those who use the Force purely for selfish reasons. For the pursuit of power at the expense of everything else. We must take that power from them. We must take everything from them. We must destroy them.

 

The Sith order have been a plague on this galaxy for thousands of years. And for thousands of years we have fought back, responded, tried to tip the balance towards the light.

 

I have been awoken to the truth. There is nothing but the Force. And in that is everything. The first line of the Sith Code states that "Peace is a lie". That is what they want, how they've lived for millennia. We're going to give it to them. We're going to war against the Sith. We will seek them out, hopefully take them by surprise, and annihilate them."

 

Dahar took a breath after his windy monologue. There were numerous seats in the room reserved for council members. He waved his hand over them. "Master Vos is no longer the agent of evil that we both knew him as years ago. He has embraced a deeper understanding of the Force. We are on the dawn of a new age and a New Jedi Order. I have faith in him, I trust him with my life. That is why he is a member of my council and now a Jedi Master.

 

It has been a long time, Adenna, but I still feel the same way about you. I would trust you with my life. And I can sense how much you've grown. The formalities of old serve no use to me. You have proven yourself in your own personal trials. I grant to you the title of Jedi Master, and I'd like to ask for your help. For your wisdom and counsel. I'd also request that you choose one of the new recruits here at the temple to take on as your padawan."

[Aelyn]

Aelyn was a bit surprised by Aira's answer. "Oh! I hadn't realized you studied with Admiral Starlisk. That must have been quite an experience," she said. "I'm sorry, it must have been hard when he died."

 

That was still the tough part about getting her mind around all of this -- that call to sacrifice everything in battle. If the rumors of what Faust had tried to do were true, he and Master Trevelian had died doing something very important, and the whole galaxy was in debt to their memories. Aelyn understood that sacrifice was essential to truly being a good person, and had faithfully given of her time and money to help those in need. But to fight, even be willing to kill... that seemed the opposite of her purpose. When you killed someone, you took from them everything they ever were and everything they could ever be. How could any crime deserve that kind of punishment, and what would it do to the person who dealt it out? Aelyn thought she would be more willing to die than to kill.

 

She did like the sound of the apprenticeship program, though. She looked forward to meeting whoever would be her Master.

 

Finally they reached the Jedi Temple. The structure was built right into a rocky cliff face, a large multiple-structure compound of round facilities of brown and gray that made the whole place seem almost like a rustic retreat. Aelyn immediately calmed her mind again, putting aside her intense curiosity about the people she would be meeting here in order to touch the Force. It came swiftly to her this time, to her delight, and she reached out to the area around her to see what it felt like with her new senses. The place seemed old to her, lived-in. Full of solemn tradition and the echoes of countless hours of philosophical discourse and meditation. This was a place of strength, reflection, and study. It was intensely fascinating to her that some of what she felt had so permeated the place. It seemed to her that the Force could reflect more than what was just happening right now. That impressions could be left in the energy field.

 

And she felt Jedi! Not all of them felt like Aira did, but their presences shone brightly in the Force. Some of them were colder than Aira was, others felt older and even more in tune with their environment. Some experienced total peace, others were seeking answers. Some she couldn't read at all, but she had no idea why.

 

The Temple was unlike any place she had been, and she doubted there were many places like it. "It's wonderful," she said breathlessly, her grasp on the Force slipping away again. It seemed like she would need a little more practice to hold onto it and talk at the same time. "I can't wait to meet everyone."

[Aira Cadan]

I thanked Aelyn for her condolences. "Yes, at times it is especially hard, but I know he gave his life fighting for what he believed. He saved the entire galaxy. There is no higher honor."

 

I grinned at the looks of awe on Aelyn and Apollo's faces as we approached the temple. And this wasn't even the most impressive of the Jedi Temples. As we entered, a male adept greeted us. "Hello, welcome to the Jedi Temple."

 

I gave him a traditional Jedi bow. "I'm Jedi Knight Aira Cadan. This is Aelyn Talis--a new hopeful--and Ambassador Apollo Antilles Vine of the Tilaarian people to the Jedi Order."

 

"You are all welcome among the Jedi," the Gran replied. "If you follow me, I will give you a brief tour and show you to some quarters."

 

The Gran showed us all the amenities the temple had to offer, and then lead us to three rooms all next to each other. "You'll want to set your chronos to local time," the Gran said. "It is just after sunset here, making it equivalent to 1930 hours. There will be food served in the cafeteria we passed until 2100 hours. Tython's day cycle is 23 hours, so its not that much different than Galactic Standard Time."

 

I thanked him. I had remembered most of the rooms that he had shown us--areas to train in and meditate in, mostly--but I hadn't remembered the layout of the temple, so it had been good to have the tour. I turned to Aelyn. "Well, Aelyn, thank you so much for the ride. We would have been stuck without you. Hey..." I paused. "Would you want to join me for breakfast? Say around 0800 hours?"

 

I was hoping I could check in with the Grandmaster tonight, but I was also pretty tired from the long walk from Ashla.

[Tobias Vos]

After the duo left, Vos found a window and paused for a moment letting his mind go blank. A minute passed- just long enough for a couple very deep relaxing breaths. A brush of wind fell on his neck. He didn't open his eyes, he knew what was behind him. Well, who was behind him.

 

"How'd you do it?" He said- his voice steady.

 

"It was not a pretty departure. Blood was spilled in an obscene fashion- but I got here. A lot of my blood, a lot of the other's." Sarah's voice was cool, quiet with a bit of sourness to it. "What have you been doing? Update?"

 

His arm fell back to his side, from the wall he was bracing himself on. The night was here- the sunset was magnificent. Tobias enjoyed it for just a few more seconds, then started walking with Sarah right on his heels. "I'm in. I had a hard time remembering what we were supposed to do- but I do now. I think the new Grandmaster is in line even without pressing the issues. You were in charge of the task force to getting back here- now the tables have turned. Dont take that as a sign of I'm going to repent and falter. I know what's at stake here. I think it would be best that we don't work in the same department- show some distance. The Sith have woken up too- literally. Reports are coming in slowly, but the same. I am basically the Hand of the Grandmaster. The galaxy is waking up- and balance will return."

 

They walked down a flight of stairs, down a hallway or three. Her red hair was down to her ears, shorter than it had been- a product of the blood letting. "Good. I'll get into position then."

 

He stopped in his tracks. "Refresh my memory."

 

"I will go to the other side- and wait for your signal to take them out. It's just two of us- is that not the plan?" It wasnt exactly a question, Vos determined. Her tone was set in stone. Had he forgotten? Was this her own concoction?

 

"Whatever we thought of before getting here is so far gone. I need you to find the Imperial Remnant. Whomever is the leader- and deliver a message."

"Are you joking? What Remnant- it's all Alliance."

 

"Not anymore, a faction has broken off- the Remnant is now a factor. We need to be in position- The Jedi need to be in position as well. They are not our enemy, at least I hope not."

 

"So I am your envoy? Do you forget the field? Did you forget Rhen Var? Hoth? Naboo?! I saved your butt more than once!" Her tone was getting sharper and louder. He wasn't going to react- that is what she wanted. She had been a Sith after all, before she moved onto the next Realm.

 

"Not at all." Vos turned to face her- connecting eyes. "Things have changed. You are the only one I can trust with this, and if it's a trap- you are more than adapt at getting out of any situation. It needs done. Forget about your ties to the Sith, you are something more than that now." They were closing in on the hanger- a light shone through the doorway and faded in and out in rapid succession. Sparks were flying- multiple cords and lines were scattered about. The mechanics were still working on the shuttle. He keyed a comm link, and dismissed them for the night. Thanking them for the work- they finished up and returned to their quarters. Tobias and Sarah hid in the shadows.

 

Sarah's eyes beckoned for a reason why they were hiding from Jedi- or at least workers of the Jedi. "It's because I have to keep my tracks hidden. I am still an outsider to most of these people, and my activities need to be kept hushed up. We were tasked with saving the galaxy from this impending threat- and our work has to be kept in the shadows. You know that, trust me."

 

"I know. But you better not make me a glick."

 

"K'ir nah can'a nah csarcican't vacosehn batevit." The soft alien language rolled off his tongue.

 

"Vah are ch'a rect'rcin'i'ecot, Tobias, rab cseo vacosehn hah." She replied, reached out to squeeze his arm- took the datapad he offered, then drifted back to the shadows.

 

He couldn't see anything, but he watched the darkness anyways. Idle noises fell upon the hanger as Tobias turned to enter. This was the best way, at least that he knew. How he wanted to talk to Adenna, or his old squad. He missed Sooba something awful. Sniffing back a tear, he ascended the shuttles ramp. Carefully stepping over the wires and parts. After a second of manuvering- he found a blanket, and a chair. Wrapping up- after setting his bag aside, he drifted off to sleep- but had put down alarms so he would know when someone was approaching. His butt hit the chair and it was as if he melted into the seat. He was asleep in a split second. If Adenna searched for him, she would have an easy time finding him. Anyone else, save Dahar and Xae-Lin, would not know where he went.

[Aelyn]

Glad to finally have a room where she could drop the travel bag she'd been hauling all the way from the Open Road, Aelyn glanced from the bed to the window. Her brain was telling her to head out there and explore, see who else in the Order was around and willing to talk. But her body was exhausted. She hadn't slept since Chandrila and most of the day had been a hike through uneven wilderness. Even though she was in pretty good physical shape, travel was draining even without the physical exertion that came with it this time.

 

But first she had to say goodnight to Aira. Returning to the door, she gave a genuine smile to the older woman. "The ride was nothing -- you opened my eyes to a brand new world," she said. "I would love to meet you for breakfast."

 

Impulsively she hugged the Jedi Knight before heading back into her room. "I'll see you in the morning."

 

After she closed the door, Aelyn drew the curtains and started undressing. The room had a shower in the attached refresher and nothing sounded more appealing to her. She'd dressed for a day in Hanna City and got a long walk in a warmer, more humid environment, and now a layer of dried sweat clung to her and her long hair was a mess. As she washed it off she leaned against the tiled wall and drew again on the Force, the sensation of the water on her skin mirrored in a way by the current of energy that she seamlessly joined. She must have stood there for several minutes before finally shutting off the water and trying to remain connected to the Force as she toweled off and got dressed in her sleepwear.

 

Finally, feeling totally relaxed, she sat cross-legged on the bed and started to practice slipping into and out of the Force, putting her datapad with the Jedi Code on it in front of her, determined to work on the skill until sleep finally took her.

[Aira Cadan]

"Goodnight, Aelyn! Sleep well," I replied, returning her hug.

 

Her door slid shut, leaving Apollo and I alone. "Can I get a hug too?" he asked with a smirk.

 

"Sure," I replied with a wink. I gave him a big hug. Suddenly, I realized he felt lonely and overwhelmed. I gave him a playful elbow in the ribs. "Hey, don't worry. You'll be fine. Perfect for this role, actually."

 

"It's not that, not really. More of the fact that starting over always so hard to do. New faces, new places...having to make new friends."

 

"Don't worry," I replied. "You'll still have me. Goodnight, Apollo."

 

"Goodnight, Aira."

 

Once his door slid shut, I headed to a nearby inter-base comm unit and had myself patched through to the new Grandmaster. "Grandmaster Raikanda," I said, "I'm Jedi Knight Aira Cadan. As you requested, I have returned to Tython. Sorry I wasn't here sooner, but Master Dashel Illioni and I were in the middle of a mission. Regardless, I'm back now, and would appreciate knowing why you recalled all of us. Is there something you need from me? I'll be here for the next few days at least. Feel free to find me, or contact me back, at your convenience. I know you must be very busy. May the Force be with you, Master."

 

I wasn't quite ready for bed yet, though. Instead, I headed to a nearby meditation room. It was good to be here among the Jedi again, but there were other things I had to get to. For one, I still had that invitation from Raven sitting in my comlink data drive. I really wanted to take her up on her invitation, but I wanted to make sure I understood the position and state of the Jedi first, especially if Raven was expecting me to speak on the Order's behalf.

 

Taking a deep breath, I cleared my mind. The Force could give me guidance...all I had to do was listen.

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

The Force brought no such clarity to Xae as she paced her room, ignore the growing tingling feeling in the back of her mind. She'd tried to meditate but found her thoughts racing far too fast to calm the stream. Something was clouding things, whether that was her own body still healing mentally from the time rift or something more sinister lurking in the hallowed grounds of the temple, she wasn't sure. As an Exorcist and having grown up amongst such darkness, she was uniquely attuned to such disturbances. In some ways, it felt as though the ghosts of the past were restless, and Xae remembered what had happened last time that'd occurred on Tython - she'd been pulled into the past and found herself on the path of the Exorcist with Kyrie.

 

Looking over the data pad Tobias had handed her, the confusion and disquiet only got worse. To her knowledge, Tobias wasn't a Master or a Jedi, yet he'd handed her information from the highest levels of the Order, he'd even "mastered" her in what had seemed at the time some kind of twisted joke. What had happened in the hours she'd been out? Was Kirlocca legitimately called to other duties?

 

In the years that she'd spent among the stars with her original master, Kyp Durron, he'd taught her to trust her instinct to question and trust her judgment. Right now she had a hell of a lot of questions and found there was no one she trusted for counsel, save the one who was conspicuously absent from their numbers.

 

A small brush in the Force from Jaina broke her thoughts as she looked up from the datapad, as her next steps seemed to clarify in front of her, at least the immediate ones. Exiting her room, she saw Jaina meditating quietly, more calm about her than before, but Xae could feel the echoes of the emotions that had run deep several long minutes before.

 

Keying up Kirlocca's comm number, she added additional encryption to the line beyond the standard measures. "Master Kirlocca," she began hesitating, as she wasn't sure how to put into words what was happening. There was no proof, no basis for her feelings, yet they were there just the same. "I hope this finds you safe as Tobias said you were called away to help an old friend. I can't explain it and I have no proof, but I feel something is greatly amiss with the order. Dahar has bestowed the rank of Master on Tobias, who's conferred the rank on me in turn and handed over command of the Eternal Vigilance to me directly. I fear the Jedi are girding for war. That is not the way of the Jedi I know who's mission is to protect life not seek out and destroy it unprovoked. Please," she beseeched, "I need your council. We need you or I fear the Order will lose its way. As Guardians it is our duty."

 

Xae didn't care that Jaina was there to hear every word. The woman deserved to know what she'd be walking into once her trials were over. If sides were to be chosen, Xae would rather her know as much of where the Exorcist stood. Even if Jaina disagreed and stood with Dahar, Xae felt it was better to be open. She'd seen far too many secrets ruin lives.

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

There was no rest to be had in the Force tonight. The energy field was alive, shifting, teeming with the energy of Tython. Calm as she appeared, Jaina knew that if she let go of her focus for even a moment, her thoughts would slip back into the maelstrom of questions. So, like a dancer holding pointe, she narrowed her mental energy toward reaching outward rather than inward. Life emanated from this place, its hallowed walls seemingly intertwined with the heart of the planet. However, there was a haze, a blockade, even, between her senses and the will of the Force. Like an electrical current whose wiring was tampered with, it didn't follow the path she expected. Every time she reached the end of her foresight, the trail evaporated. She was getting nowhere.

 

And neither, it seemed, was Xae. Her lilting voice, carrying a hint of an accent, rang out into the silence, bringing Jaina fully out of her meditation. Her comm to Kirlocca was short and to the point, neither overdramatic nor underplaying the gravity of what seemed to be brewing here on Tython.

 

When she had finished, Jaina put aside her hesitation and spoke. "You're right, you know. About the Order."

 

She looked down at her hands, folded neatly in her lap, before continuing. "I've seen a lot of war, from behind Sith lines and behind Jedi lines. These missions that Master Vos has in mind for you, for us, may seem like the typical Jedi hunt-and-gather. Being dead really ruins your tolerance for nerfsplat." She snorted and looked back up. "I'm sure you can relate. I've been to darkness and back, and I know what it looks like. There is more going on here than meets the eye. I couldn't say whether or not the Grandmaster and his new regime have an evil intent, but I know the Jedi way, and our strength is intended to keep balance. Keep the peace."

 

Given the serious nature of what they were discussing, the smile that crossed her face felt odd, but the trust she had in her erstwhile master grew by the moment. "Besides, Master Kirlocca has enough wisdom to fill every council chair, or at least, he did when I knew him. I'd be interested in hearing what he has to say."

 

Stretching her legs to the floor, she stood and released a heavy sigh. "My meditation is proving to be pretty unproductive. What's next?"

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

Xae laughed at Jaina's candor. "Our job has always been to keep the peace, not shatter it. The thought of us going militant...does not sit well with me. I agree that we should be out in the greater galaxy upholding that goal, instead of being cloistered here like a bunch of hermits."

 

She smiled at the other woman, very much understanding what she meant about unproductive meditations. "Perhaps, we could try again together. I feel that the greater concerns over the Order won't be resolved overnight, but perhaps we could make some headway on yours. You seem as wide awake as I."

 

The auburn-haired woman took a seat on the bed and crossed her legs, already having shod her boots in her own room, and motioned for Jaina to do the same. "You fall in first, I'll follow behind to help guide you where I can."

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

With a slow exhale, Jaina did as Xae asked. Taking a seat opposite the other woman on the bed, she folded her legs and rested her palms gently on her knees. Guided meditation had never been a successful practice for her either, but she wasn't about to let her inhibitions from a previous life come between her and answers.

 

She closed her eyes, turning her mind to enter the ocean of the Force. Without a moment's hesitation, her mind's eye exploded into color. Faces, shapes, planets, whizzed past in a whirlwind of memory. She tried to sort through them, hold onto them, follow their path, but the ghosts of her past seemed dead-set on elusive leading.

 

Then the spinning stopped, the questions quieted. Her mind's eye sharpened, and Jaina felt herself tense against what she saw. The jewel of the Hapes Cluster, the central city of Gallinore, grew ever-larger in her vision, heavy stormclouds obscuring the landing pad. Distantly, she could hear a woman screaming in agony, a man's soft reassurances, the concerned twittering of an astromech droid. It took far too long for her to realize that the voice in pain belonged to her.

 

What is there to see here? I remember all this, she thought dimly. As if in response, the image changed, to contain the stark white walls of the birth suite they had been cloistered in. The sound of a newborn's lusty squall filled her ears, and then the vision went dark. A cold fog like ice descended into her spirit, and she gasped instinctively for breath. She was struggling to stay afloat in waves of power, dark energy that tasted familiar and yet, somehow, wrong.

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

As Jaina fell into the Force, Xae reached up in the space between them and gently placed her fingertips in the center of Jaina's forehead, calling on the Force to guide them both through this journey together. Her other hand rested on Jaina's knee and she felt the woman's body tense as she began to process what the Force had brought to her.

 

Xae watched, unseen, in Jaina's vision to the point at which the darkness engulfed the young woman. The darkness soon parted and they were back in the room just as the last several moments played out as Xae sensed there was more to the scene than the other woman wanted to dwell on.

 

The child was delivered and handed to a man who'd stood fretting at Jaina's bedside. As the man peeked inside the squirming and mewling bundle, a hard look set on his face as two tiny dark brown eyes peered back at him. All joy seemed to rush from the man as the darkness wreathed around him as he turned and moved the child closer to the light. There was no mistaking what he saw there. These were not his eyes, nor were they Jaina's. Anger flashed through him sooner than he could repress it. Jaina had betrayed him in the most unforgivable way. This was not his child. He could feel it in the Force as well as the physical evidence before him.

 

Raynuk's eyes.

 

Unable to control himself, his hand passed over the child's eyes as the darkness enveloped them both for a moment and they became blank. He forced concern into his voice as he turned back to the medical droids who were busily trying to save Jaina's dwindling life. "Something's wrong with the child! Her eyes! Could this be because she came too early?"

 

The droid took the child to the natal unit built into the wall of the birthing suite and began its examination as the monitors screamed the end of Jaina's life. When it turned back to address the father, he was nowhere to be found.

 

Xae couldn't help but be shaken at the similarities to the test Il'Andon put her through in order to prove herself worthy of being trusted with the mantle of Exorcist.

 

Andon... The Force told her the man's name she'd just witnessed leaving the child. "Who is Andon, Jaina? Tell me more about your relationship with Raynuk?" Xae felt these two men were the key to settling whatever past demons this woman held within her. The question remained of how much truth remained in the visions and how much the dark forces fabricated to test Jaina's mettle.

[Jaina Jade Skywalker]

Xae's hand, cool to the touch, rested on her forehead, and the instant it did, the darkness changed. Light erupted into her vision again, and there she was again, on the cold table in the medical chamber. It was a strange and utterly abnormal feeling to be privy to her own labor and delivery, watching the experience as an outside observer. As the baby was delivered into Andon's hands, Jaina was momentarily distracted by the way her vision-body fell back onto the nest of pillows. Strength utterly spent, her last gift was given to the galaxy, and all the jagged lines representing her heartbeat fell flat. The crash cart came tumbling into the room, and a team of medical droids led by a stoic, chiseled Hapan physician began frantic exercises to bring her about.

 

The cry of the baby brought her attention back to the other side of the room, where the nurse gently laid the tiny, fussing bundle in the scarred and strong arms of Andon Colos. With a flutter of joy in her heart, Jaina waited with anticipation to see the reaction of her husband to the miracle that they had created. His face was awash with an overwhelmed gratitude, and she could almost sense the anxiety rolling off of him. Then the icy darkness crept in, like heavy rainclouds across the sun, and his smile faded. Visceral anger erupted in his Force presence. Something's wrong, Jaina thought, as her perspective changed, peering over Andon's shoulder into the eyes of their newborn daughter. Blindness had been the diagnosis on the medical form she had obtained on Hapes, but the man that she married wouldn't feel this kind of anger at a birth defect. No, if anything, she expected broken-hearted sadness, that he would never get to show his daughter the galaxy through his eyes.

 

And then she saw them.

 

Absent the hazel glow of Andon's playful gaze, absent the green-flecked brandy-brown of her own, the dark and brooding eyes that haunted her memories from across the galaxy stared back at her in the face of her tiny, otherwise perfect infant.

 

No, came the panicked utterance, but she was here as an observer, and couldn't reach Andon. It's not what you think! We didn't--I never--this can't be possible!

 

His hand, trembling with rage, passed before the infant's face. Dread grew within her, permeating the image with a haze of red light. The beauty, the light that Jaina had felt emanating within her vision seemed to drain with the color from Tirzah's eyes. The man who was supposed to be, and yet, somehow, was not the father ripped the sight from the infant in a cruel blow against vision-Jaina who had betrayed him. She tried to scream, to stop him, protective mother instinct winning against the yearning she still felt for him. Andon, no! Don't do this! She's my daughter! I would never have betrayed you! It was like beating on a soundproof window. How could this have happened?

 

Then she wasn't so sure. Anything that wasn't happening here before her seemed so distant, so utterly forgettable. Shrinking and stretching, her mental image changed, until she could almost feel Raynuk's breath on her neck, his hands pressing into the bare skin of her spine, her face flushed with the heat of passion, his dark hair falling around her like a curtain. Flashes of silhouettes danced before her, secret trysts that sustained her, even her wedding vows taken with false intent as she walked the halls of the Jedi, a spy in her husband's bed...

 

Husband.

 

The word startled her back to the scene before her. The baby couldn't be Raynuk's child. She hadn't even laid eyes on him since their wedding.

 

The wedding. Her stomach lurched, and helplessness flooded her senses. John and Sirvani's wedding. The touch of Raynuk's presence within her--taking immediate flight to escape--induction of labor too soon--how had he managed this? There was no sorcery in the Force that she knew of that could accomplish what Raynuk had done. Yet somehow, he had found a way. He had succeeded at taking everything from her, just as he promised he would. Despair clawed at her throat, strangling her, as she watched Andon hand the child away, attempting to mask the fury that rolled off of him in waves with false concern.

 

A fraction of a second later, all of her questions came screaming back. Where is Andon? What happened to Tirzah? Why didn't he care for her when I couldn't? Why didn't he come for me? Why is Raynuk hunting me?

 

The answers the Force was giving her in this vision turned Andon's fury into a hurricane in Jaina's soul. It ripped through the image before her, shattering the vision, until all she could see was hatred. Instead of remaining with her, asking for an explanation, caring for the daughter he said he had wanted, he had abandoned them. He had left her in a Hapan grave, ripped the very sight from her daughter's eyes, and disappeared without a trace. Lust for vengeance burned hot within her. She had wanted answers when she awoke. The endless current of the Force didn't tell lies.

 

The red cloud obscured her vision, till all she could see was the barest outline of her own still form, prone on the stretcher. She lifted an ethereal hand to pull Andon back into the room, to rip the life from him as he had ripped sight from the infant, as he had ripped himself out of their lives. If it was Raynuk's child, he deserved what she must have done to him.

 

Then she heard it.

 

"Jaina."

 

Faint, it barely cut through the screen of red hot hatred that filled her mind.

 

"Jaina."

 

The sound reverberated, somehow gaining momentum and volume as the soundwaves rushed about the inside of her mind.

 

"Jaina."

 

It was getting louder, but still bore the quality of being utterly soft.

 

Soft. Strong.

 

"Jaina," it became a whisper, and yet seemed to fill her consciousness. That voice had drawn her back from the brink of the Dark Side of the Force once before. Suddenly, she felt ashamed of the cloud of darkness that she brandished as a weapon within. Withering, her resolve morphed into the reflex to hide: to ignore the anger within, to bury it under layers of piety and good intent.

 

"Jaina."

 

It echoed one last time, and with it, came a second projection. Andon, nestled beside her still form on the hospital bed, cradling their newborn daughter, sobbing over them both, his voice barely able to whisper her name. Suddenly, she knew what she had to do. Reaching out an ethereal hand, she swiped at the haze of red that filled her vision. Like cobwebs, it came free in her hand, dissipating as soon as she touched it. As she did so, she felt the hatred bleeding out of her soul, leaving nothing but remorse and deep grief.

 

This isn't real...

 

Whatever she had just witnessed, it was not Andon. The softness of his love, the strength of his heart toward her had never been in doubt, even under fire of Raynuk's pursuit across the stars. It was an uncanny valley. Somehow, the Force knew she wanted answers badly enough to invent them herself. Grief lay on her like a blanket as she realized that she still had no answers concerning his absence. Was this otherworldly wrongness, this false projection, surreal answers coming from within her? It had to be.

 

Instantly, as though the thought were not her own, she knew the answer. Stillness. She had to put away her striving for answers, and trust that in time, the Force would bring her what she needed to know.

 

Stillness. There is emotion, and yet, there is peace, she thought, the sentiment washing over her, cleansing the wounds the hot fire of anger had left.

 

There is ignorance, and yet, beyond, there is knowledge. No, the knowledge she could absorb would never be enough to soothe the discontent soul within. Whatever answers the galaxy held for her, whatever mysteries remained to be unraveled concerning her family, her impatience was only a wound. And yet, the peace that passed understanding filled her, with every gentle ebb and flow of the Force. Only by understanding her own ignorance did she truly find knowledge.

 

There is passion, and yet, there is serenity. The fire of Raynuk's lips pressed to hers sprang from memory unbidden. She held it in her mind as one would cup water in their hands, inhaled the fragrance of it, and released it to be absorbed into the cooling cascade of quiet power.

 

There is chaos, and yet, there is harmony. The resuscitation crew swarmed about her unmoving figure, shouting instructions, moving equipment. Above it all, a single note rang out, the cry of the pulse monitor as her heart fell silent. As it grew louder in her mind, the vibrant energy of the Force seemed to sing along, till the galaxy itself was singing her requiem.

 

There is death, and even in death, there is the Force. She could distantly make out the sound of the maelstrom that had cracked the door of her tomb. As it grew louder, she let go of the vision, falling into its current, letting it carry her back to the place where she had returned, in the darkness on Hapes...

 

Eyes snapped open. The deafening vortex had gone silent, and her ears were ringing with its absence. Xae sat before her, in the darkness of Tython night. Hot tears ran down her cheeks, but these were not tears of sadness or regret. Relief flooded every aspect of her body. The Force was carrying her. The Force was carrying Andon, and Tirzah, and if he stopped fighting it long enough to listen, the Force was also carrying Raynuk, wherever he roamed in the galaxy, carrying his demons with him.

 

Jaina, Force willing, wouldn't make the same mistake.

 

She could feel the question Xae had before her mouth even opened. "Who is Andon, Jaina? Tell me more about your relationship with Raynuk."

 

Lifting a hand from where it sat limply in her lap, she swiped at the tears running down her face before she answered. "Andon Colos, Jedi Master--he was--is--my husband. When I was under the apprenticeship of Raynuk Montar, Sith Lord, he was the reason I came back to the light."

 

There were so many words she could use to describe Andon, but they all scarcely seemed to do him justice. A cocky fireball of a human being who yearned for peace and wholeness in the galaxy, he was larger than life, even in her memory. So she left her description at that, and turned to the second question.

 

"My relationship with Raynuk is deep and complicated. Like I said, I was his apprentice once, a long time ago. Then we were more than that." She let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. "He was dead, but he can't be. I can feel him in the deepest places of my soul. Somehow, I am bonded to him. My very blood calls out his name. I feel flashes of his emotion. Rage, anger... tenderness, regret."

 

Her eyes met Xae's. The fearful tears of the past few days were replaced by cool resolve. "I need to know what to do."

[Tobias Vos]

Vos launched up from his chair- WHAT?! He screamed inside his head, and let out a tiny flex in the Force as he got combat ready. He reached out to layout a mental map of the dark room. In the jump the blanket fell to the floor, and his hip shot into the table that was nearby sending the contents spilling to the floor in a dark crash. Something was there- just standing there.

"act bada to nama" a mechanical voice came out through the darkness.

 

"What?" his face wrinkled in confusion.

 

"Ka kaylay bem lapa nunu to." Again, the mechanical gibberish came through.

 

It didn't pose a threat- so he activated the lights and enhanced his vision. Before him stood some sort of bi-pedal droid. A pit droid?! What was a pit droid doing here? Two at that, the one that spoke was standing on top of the other. What were they doing? The one jumped down off the other one- then they started arguing. Vos relaxed a bit, but remained skeptical. They squacked back and forth for another minute- then the one that was the base for his his partner punched the other- and the droid collapsed into storage mode.

 

"Apologies, Kind Sir. My counterpart is mostly right, however. We have been searching for you." It said, moved forward in some sort of bow. Vos narrowed his eyes and saw that they droid had been modified it looked like. Ergo the ability to speak Basic. "His name is Knight, and my name is Ni. Our third is analyzing the hyperdrive of this vessel- his name is Ekky"

"Don't droids usually have... designations instead of names?" He kept looking over the droid- why had they been looking for Vos? What was Ekky doing? The whole situation was peculiar.

 

"Oh, yes. But we've been modified, and our memories haven't been erased in years- ergo- the Basic language, and several other traits you will find useful." Ni said.

 

The little droid was energetic, there was no denying that. "Who sent you?"

 

"All we are aware of is 'A mutual friend.' He said you would know what that means." The droid's head angled, as if confused.

 

Vos called over the datapads to him- and the bag came through the air with balance and grace. Floating in midair, datapads crossed his field of vision, but the droids had not moved. There was a message addressed to him- from an unknown source. The other pads rested on the-now corrected table. Scrolling through it, his eyes read over the letter.

 

"How cute." He muttered. "Ekky!" his voice called out- and a couple seconds later there was a new pit droid in the room. This one's arm was a torch, he saw. Nodding to it- the flame disappeared and the hand rotated on a swivel joint over where the torch had been. "I can't deal with you three right now. Can we do this another time?" He pinched the bridge of his nose with his left hand- and his right tossed the datapad to the table. Tobias was awake, but he seriously could not deal with this now.

 

The droids looked at one another- picked up Knight, and walked out of the room. Just out of eyesight, a loud thud of metal on metal, and then a pop- a thud- and another pop and thud. They deactivated themselves and put themselves away- Vos observed as he took two steps forward. How bizarre... His mind froze on that for a moment, then back to his datapads. He looked over what time it was, and all the reports that had come in overnight. Not much had happened, or came in so it was basically light reading. Letting his mind wander- he filled his time with some idle chores- adjusting the shuttle to his liking, adjusting monitors- getting familiar with the launch controls- where basic systems were- key components were life support and artificial gravity. With ten million things on his mind, he gradually worked his way through a number of plans.

 

Getting back to work on the datapads he sent out a work order for a surveying company for a set of asteroids. Materials were bought from Thalassia in exchange for medical suppiles. Where he procured them from Manaan, who accepted a shipment of datapads and droids. So on and so forth down the line it went. Always keeping something for the Jedi and their stockpiles. Trushaun had remarked that the Lehon Temple had been taken over by Cultists- who were not open to outsiders visiting, it seemed. He would have to ask the Fosh- he looked at the record again- was she really a Fosh Naturalist Jedi? Interesting, much like Master Roen, who had been mentioned in his reports, but nothing outside of who he was, what, and rank. No accomplishments. That wasn't saying anything against Roen, the record itself was incomplete. There was a long list of people he wanted to meet, but knew he couldn't.

 

Now that three temples he knew about were off limits to casual shipping, he had to venture elsewhere. He scratched his stubble and looked over the Galactic Map. Coursant was off limits, as was- he stopped. A name scrolled across his screen. Even Sarah had mentioned it. Earmarking it, he would send a probe droid out to scan the planet he identified. Then he punched up some shipyards, and started a communication with them about purchasing their services in building a space craft.

 

He already had a design in mind for the station, pulling key factors from notable factions into play- strengths and weaknesses considered and placed accordingly. The armor and shielding alone would cost a fortune. But- he had something that the shipyard would want. Or at least he hoped.

 

SPECTRE was coming to life. Something he tried before- but now that he had time, resources, security, and a solid cause to build it up and back it- he would. More dealings would happen on the market today, and in the following week. There were some in the Jedi Order that would frown at his induction- if they knew about it. But what would they do when they found out what he was doing- what he had done? To the shipment of blasters he sent to the Security Forces that were overworked on the mid-rim, to the medical supplies to the former slaver world, to bolstering the economies of backwater planets. Not only was he doing this to ready the Jedi, but the galaxy was now moving- security, knowledge, and resources were being shared. Soon, hospitals and relief stations would have adequate supplies. Shipping lanes would be secured from pirates. Planets could locally help incase there was a pirate attack on a vessel in their vicinity. Vos was not blind to the temptation he presented to seedier individuals, and corruption was a factor to consider. So far, though, things were going smoothly. Time would tell if it was an actual difference.

[Kala Ianauria]

Kala Ianauria possessed the single commodity she’d desired without knowing what she desired in the first place. In the middle of Tython’s busy Jedi temple, she found that commodity in this small meditation room known as the Roaring Lion. A strange name for an odd room most of her fellow hopefuls avoided. Here she found peace and quiet.

Here she found the Force flowed easiest for her.

 

She sat cross legged, dressed in pale green robes with tan borders, among a room with white marble walls shot through with silver. Amber colored trim bordered those walls with the same white marble on the floor.

 

The circular room sat under a dome that consisted of panels of the same white marble as the floor, alternated with amber panels that captured Tython’s sunlight and bathed the room in a warm glow.

Four of the five amber panels contained a bas-relief portrait of a Jedi from the first few centuries after Revan. Inscribed at the base were the dates of their lives, otherwise no information existed concerning their deeds or contributions to the order.

 

The fifth panel brought her the most comfort despite the image engraved there resembling an older her. Eyes lined with too many suns stared out from a face molded by experiences she could only guess at. A single scar marred the features, dropping in an angry line from the woman’s left eye to her jaw line. A person that could not be her, for the dates came from the Jedi Order just three centuries after Revan’s time and indicated a time of service even shorter than her seventeen years.

 

While the room did not sit upon the temple’s tallest tower, the view outside still managed to take her breath whenever she looked. Tython’s snowcapped mountains lay in the distance, while the temple and its grounds sat within a small, tree filled valley. She knew parts of those mountains intimately, having spent the last three months helping to build and maintain a small settlement there for the support of training Jedi Padawans and Hopefuls. Weeks of outdoor living and hard work left her with light, golden tan and experience in treating various injuries.

 

Kala watched as a old scount landed at the nearby spaceport where the fighters and freighters belonging to individual Jedi rested. The motley group of craft lay in neat lines, being maintained and guarded by droids and sentients. Out there, at the farthest point from the temple lay her personnel transport. Its pristine silver, blue and green paint meant her craft stood out as a swan among ducks, grounded until as such time as gained a Master who gave her permission to fly her freighter.

 

Closer in, the courtyard of the temple with its pale gray stones reflected the day’s light. Small figures moved about, scarce when they should have been plentiful, just now beginning to be replenished by the massive effort of the surviving Jedi and their supporters in the galaxy. More numerous were the non-Force sensitive staff that greatly outnumbered all the Jedi combined.

 

Amazement still flooded her thoughts every time she thought about many of the people who served the Jedi of their own free will and accord. The came from all over the galaxy, were of all age groups and all strata of life, and served without thought of recompense. If the Jedi were the face of the order than the support staff were the beating heart. They did everything the Jedi did not, often giving orders to Padawans and Knights serving punishments or training at the behest their master or at the behest of the much reduced Council.

 

She knew all too well how severe those punishments could feel. One of those below and whom she did not see was a creature named Rose. Ostensibly human, the massive woman continuously sweat from between multiple rolls of fat and came from a culture that abhorred personal hygiene as vanity. The result was a gap toothed walking cloud of stench that turned her stomach whenever she got to close.

 

Yet she served the Jedi and served the Jedi well. Kala shook her head at the arrogance that had landed her a month of service with the woman and the hell she went through because of it. She remembered finishing her punishment and vowing to never get within arm’s reach of such a foul and disgusting member of the lower classes ever again.

 

A flash of yellow hair far below caught her attention. She recognized Master Illioni’s droid, one that wore a face like hers but resembled a slightly softer version of the one in the bas-relief. They had not been in the temple long but somehow managed to avoid her whenever she tried for an audience with them.

 

The droid, however, had sought her out just a few nights ago.

 

She remembered the night well, waking to the droids barely illuminated face hovering just above hers. A small secretive smile twisted the droids lips upward but did not wrinkle the dead flat eyes that barely reflected the room’s scant light.

 

When the droid spoke, she had recognized her own voice far matured.

 

“Why hello there,” the droid had said, “I find this amusing even if you predicted it would happen. I hope Dash lets us have some time to talk when you get back. There are a few things we definitely need to talk about.”

 

The droid shut off the small illuminator she’d been using. She turned in silhouette to add one last thing before she left, “Say hello to Bao Dur for me and don’t piss off Mandalore.”

 

After the alarm woke the next morning, she took a moment to figure out whether or not the visit had been real. She learned it had been when she found a small box resting on her small desk, locked and with a timer counting down to a point in time years from now.

 

Dutifully, she notified temple security whom inspected the package for harmful or explosive substances. Heavy scanning indicated it was her and indicated she should keep it as her name was predominately etched on its exterior.

 

Try as she might, she never found a way to ask the droid or Master Illioni about the gift. Her persistence in the matter eventually earned her an order delivered by a young Padawan that told her to leave the Triani master and his associates alone.

 

Sighing, she closed her eyes and began eliminating the extraneous thoughts one by one. She found herself calming, drifting to that central place that lay within the flow of the Force. Under orders to not access the Force without someone present she was acting under orders to meditate and observe the flow of the Force around her. She failed to comprehend the difference, but she tried to follow the orders as best as she could after researching, studying and attempting to define exactly what the order meant.

 

Simply put, she needed to fill herself with the Force without tapping it for knowledge or using any of the powers she knew or might have seen. It was an odd order, but she supposed it had a purpose and decided to continue to keep following it.

 

Easy enough in thought, harder in practice. Sitting there in the meditation room, with the Force in its glory and power flowing through and not doing anything often became maddening. She sensed a whole new understanding of the galaxy lay just beyond her consciousness, lay waiting for her to take and use as she saw fit.

 

That thought stopped her every time she reached it. The power of the Force always gave her pause. She might not be a practiced Knight or Master of awesome powers, but the Force’s potential always awed her. There was so much there, so much waiting yet she was not allowed and the Jedi always spoke of serving the Force.

 

She wandered which path was the right one. The Jedi seemed sure that all paths except service represented something wrong and corrupted.

 

Kala reserved judgement on that issue, until as the Jedi code dictated she had the knowledge to understand the ramifications of her choices. That felt contrary to her own desires, her own youthful impetuousness dictating she plunge in, damn the consequences.

 

She resisted that impulse, feeling to do so otherwise would be an irrevocable decision.

 

Eventually, she ended her meditation because of a growling stomach. Opening her eyes she found the room bathed in moonlight. She knew from her research that powerful Jedi often lost track of time while meditating. A few Padawans throughout history had done so, but usually of external circumstances.

 

She wondered a moment before attempting to rise. Legs, numbed with sitting for so long threatened to collapse from under her as she attempted to leave the Roaring Lion. Stumbling, Kala reached out to find the wall to prevent herself from falling.

 

Her hand missed and she fell to the cool marble floor. Kala layed there, sprawled and twisted as the blood returned to her legs. A tingling sensation announced the progress of its return. Once her strength returned, she rose and left the room suddenly exhausted and needed her quarters.

 

Kala never reached them. As she walked towards her quarters, she found herself taking a half dozen turns following an intuition she never knew she possessed. After a few turns, she found herself in an empty quarter of the temple.

 

Following the intuition, she continued along her path searching for what called her. Eventually, her wanderings took her to a blank wall at the end of barely illuminated hallway. That same intuition guided her hand to some faint markings on the wall. Her fingers found grooves that fit her hand like a glove.

 

Her hand glowed, illuminated by a light that shone from symbols. A rumbling announced some mechanism coming to life and the panel before her moved upward revealing a small room beyond what was once a blank wall. A glance inside show several doorways leading from that room.

 

A hologram of a blue skinned Zabrak immediately activated in front of the door.

 

“Hello Lady Kala. Here is the suite of rooms you ordered built. If you are seeing this, then you should return to your rooms this night, knowing this suit will be here for when you need them.”

After having said that, the hologram vanished and the doorway closed. Kala turned, confused and tired, and stumbled back to her quarters.

 

When she awoke the next morning, she wandered if the whole thing had been a dream. During a break in the training schedule, she attempted to find her way back to that particular hallway, but none of the security systems recorded her nightly foray nor did she remember any landmarks from her walk.

 

In the end, she decided this time it had been a dream. Had she been more experienced with the Force, she might have found her way back to the truth.

[Wookiee Jedi]

A transmission came in to Xae's comlink. Although the signal was weak and not very strong due to the singular communication array dish, it was complete.

 

..<<:: "Xae, While I am not there to asses the situation, and your words do seem to paint a bad light, ... caution is also a factor a Jedi must have. I urge you to meet with me before you do anything. I am finishing up with my old friend now. I will not be returning to Tython, as there is nothing to do there. I am going to go to Cardia to meet with this new Imperial remnant. Meet me at Chandrila. It's a neutral ground for us to meet before going on the Cardia. Remain on your focused path until then. Kirlocca out." ::>>..

[Tobias Vos]

After a few hours of playing with a schematic, it was time to take a break. Leaning back in his chair, he rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers. His left hand played at his robes, and produced the viridian crystal. Laying it on the table, he opened his eyes to gaze upon the shining gem. After what felt like a back handed remark- Tobias was eyeing the crystal with some guilty thoughts. She said he scavenged it from her body? Then tried to save face after he pointed something out? Thoughts raced around in his head. Briefly considering one, then passing it along after the first flaw that came to mind.

 

Was he moving too fast? He was, there was little doubt to that. The Pit Droids were a sign of that. Now I have to get an Ion Blaster... A joke inside his own head. Laughing to himself, he leaded forward, elbows on the table, chin resting on the table as well. Greenish light reflected in Vos's own eyes, what should he do... He came into the galaxy two months ago. He was broke, naked, and unclaimed. But he had a goal that, granted took time to remember, but his whole role in the universe was now called into question. Even his placement of Sarah, who was his partner. By the stars, he wanted to tell someone. If he did, they would be marked for death as well, best to take the whole responsibility. He wanted to talk to the Exorcist, and get her honed view of the Force on the situation. She would have been able to handle it. This gem was proof of that too- not to mention the Dark Relic that he had kept on him since Gala. That was for his own sanity- Slicer was dead. That was the end of the story. But he was basically Hand of the Grandmaster, that was a giant elevation in rank.

 

But why was the relic bit still bugging him? He ghosted the signature as best he could- but he thought there had been some that he let go- that is why he tried to avoid Kirlocca. That, and a wookiee with a lightsaber? Let alone the Legendary Kirlocca? Vos wasn't stupid- if Kirlocca attacked for whatever reason- Vos needed space. Jedi or not, he knew his place in the grand scheme. He respected that place, but that also did not stop Dahar from attacking without provocation. The new Grandmaster... who had named him a Jedi Master, and given him a very militaristic goal. He was on the council. That statement sent shivers down his spine. Right then the gem glowed brighter. A sense of calm washed over him- and he sat back to quiet his mind.

 

His fingers interlocked, and the world tuned out. It was him and the Crystal. It was calling to him, as always, but now this was different. It wasn't something Tobias could explain the feeling in words. Loose pieces of metal floated together- a piece of clear glass, and a battery all formed together in and around the crystal. Slowly they pivoted into one another, his right hand started to tremble. And almost as on autopilot, his hand started to reach out to the now forming cylinder. It was hot just nearing the cylinder- but it didn't hurt. A tiny wink from the viridian crystal, and it was sealed away. The pieces formed to become interlocked. It wasn't anything amazing- but it was what he needed- he held his new saber in his hand. A reassuring feeling washed over him. As if it was confidence was resorted in himself.

 

The mask called out in angst. It was jealous. As if this was the choice between two paths, and Tobias had now turned his back to the mask- to Slicer. Moving the table aside, and standing, he reached out to maneuver the lens just right. The viridian blade shot into existence. The all too familiar snap-hiss, to the gentle hum of the energy. This hilt would not be his forever, probably not even last the month- but by the Force, this was as if a piece of him had fallen into place.

[Sandy Sarna]

Sandy raked her fingers through her blonde hair, tugging at the knots left over from a not too intense brushing. She liked this girl quite a lot, though her eyes had been offsetting at first, it was an easy thing for Sandy to overlook, not like she could blame the poor girl for being blind. She took a bite of the cafeteria dessert and blanched at the taste. It was supposed to be chocolate, but the cafeteria lady Rose, Was not all that interested in filling the taste requirements as well as the nutrition requirements set down by the council. But what was it they said? A jedi’s life is sacrifice. Yeah that was it, but did they really have to constantly sacrifice, even in their own temple. The girl spoke in response to her question.

 

"But the past is boring and depressing. You're a Padawan now aren't you? I'm not old enough yet...but soon...maybe...What's it like?"

 

Sandy let a grin stretch her thin lips over her white teeth, remembering all the fun times she had with her master Adenna. “It can be very fun, quite the workout and takes a good amount of endurance…” Her voice trailed off as memories of her capture and torture at Thalassia. Her thin fingers traced the faint pink scars that cut across her arms, around and down the fingers, to where her fingernails had been ripped from their cuticles. Those scars went everywhere, cutting through pale freckled skin into her heart and soul beneath. She shuddered. “It can also be very hard, and...deadly at times. But we all persevere. Either way, I don't know if she'll even take me back.” She coughed lightly and then smiled again.

 

“I am Sandy Sarna, sorry I am bad at introductions. My master was Adenna, she got called before the council, so who knows. I'm kind of back in the market for Masters. What about yourself? How goes your training?” She began to distractedly pull at her hair again, “I hope i'm not bothering you too much, I am kinda lonely to be honest.”