Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ten years after the Battle

of Endor, the IMPERIAL

REMNANT continues to

be driven back by the

NEW REPUBLIC, forcing

the Imperials to adopt

increasingly desperate

tactics in the ongoing

struggle.

Meanwhile, Jedi Master

LUKE SKYWALKER

moves to restore the

JEDI to their formal place

as peacekeepers of the

galaxy at his JEDI

ACADEMY on Yavin 4.

JADEN KORR, a

promising student from

Coruscant, is en route to

the Academy after

achieving the impossible:

creating a lightsaber

without any formal Jedi

training…

PART ONE: THE STUDENT

“We’ll be arriving at the Academy in just a few minutes,” First Officer Bradley Nuss, a crewman aboard the shuttle The Yavin Runner II, called back to its eight passengers. They’d just picked up their last student on Coruscant and were finally headed back to the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV. They were ahead of schedule and everyone aboard, especially the passengers, were giddy with excitement.

Luke Skywalker had started the Academy a little over three years ago, about seven years after the Battle of Endor and the destruction of the Second Death Star. He’d set about finding those who were sensitive with the power of the Force. And now, young and old were being discovered across the galaxy and brought to the Academy to foster their unique gifts in a safe and secure environment.

Rows of seats lined the passenger area, barely a third of them filled, giving the Academy’s newest students room to spread out. Most of them, save one, were around the same age, from their early teens to early twenties. Some rested with their backs to the wall, chins dropped on their chests, exhausted from their journey. Others chatted excitedly with each other about what they hoped to do at the Academy, especially what kind of lightsaber they would build.

“That would be so great!” Rosh Penin called up to Nuss. Out of everyone he felt he was the most excited about getting the chance to attend Skywalker’s Jedi Academy. He sat leisurely in his seat, having the whole row to himself. After chatting up nearly everyone around him, his seat neighbors had expressed their need to get some rest. One by one they moved away from the boy, using excuses that the seats were just not comfortable enough to sleep on. But Rosh didn’t think so. He had tried all of the seats after the other students left and they felt perfectly fine. No matter, he’d needed some time to think by himself anyway, there would be time for making friends later. However…

Rosh spotted a girl about his age, probably eighteen or nineteen, seated on the row across the aisle from him. In all the busyness of chatting with other students when they were docked at Coruscant, he’d hardly noticed the quiet new passenger. Now that he was alone he got a better look at her. She had fair skin with grayish blonde hair pulled into a ponytail. There was a simple loveliness about her that was hard to describe. Rosh grinned to himself as he slid over onto the seat next to her.

“Aren’t you excited? We’re going to be Jedi! Learning the ways of the Force, building a lightsaber…” He suddenly noticed something sitting against her gray pant leg on the edge of her seat. He knew by the shape what it was. It looked to be a custom design, from the dark blue and copper carved handgrip to the salvaged pommel and activator switch. He peeled his eyes off the object, realizing that he’d been staring, and looked her in the face again.

“…Ah, of course, you already have one. I’m gonna get one of those stupid training sabers and then…”

“I wouldn’t worry about that,” the girl said, looking at him for the first time, a shy smile gracing her lips. Rosh noticed she had hazel eyes. He dropped his gaze, blushing.

“I can’t help it. I want to make a good impression when I arrive. And showing up with your own lightsaber is definitely a way to do that.”

“You sure seem really nervous about it,” she observed. She glanced sidelong at his simple black pants and reddish orange garb that hung from his slight frame, sand colored wrappings covering his arms as well as cinching in his waist where a black utility belt secured it in place. There was something kind of boyishly charming about his short spiked raven black hair that faded on the sides of his head. And his brown eyes… As slightly annoyed as she was for having her peaceful quiet interrupted, she couldn’t help feeling sorry for him. She’d noticed when the other students politely moved away from him.

“Aren’t you?” Rosh asked. “I mean, well, why would you be? You already have a lightsaber so you’re probably way ahead of me and all I have is a blaster…” He paused, suddenly realizing something. “I’m Rosh by the way.” The girl didn’t answer, she seemed like she’d tuned out or was staring into space. Figuratively. “Um… what’s your name?”

“Huh?” She shook her head. “Sorry, I’ve had a lot on my mind today. I’m Jaden.”

They shook hands awkwardly.

“So, where’d you get that lightsaber?” Rosh asked.

Jaden suppressed a sigh. She’d have to find a good thinking spot later. She started to fidget with the embroidered hem of her blue-green shirt. “Well, it’s kind of a long story. I found myself on- Oh!”

There was a sudden jolt and the whole ship shook. Rosh cried out and grabbed the edge of his seat. Jaden gripped a handhold on the wall next to her. Somewhere First Officer Nuss shouted for everyone to ‘Hold on!’ and they all felt their stomachs drop. The ship was going down.

Through the atmosphere of the moon of Yavin IV, the shuttle glided, smoke emitting from a damaged engine. Below a figure stood, perched atop a nearby structure that was hidden in the thick of the forest. A smile on their lips and a cruel looking scepter in their grasp. A perfect shot. Everything was going according to plan.

The Yavin Runner II hit the ground hard, crushing trees and throwing dirt and other debris in every direction. Rosh and Jaden were thrown forward. An image of metal and flames, followed by a swirl of bright daylight edged their vision. Then it all went black.

“Academy to Yavin Runner II. Do you copy?” Luke Skywalker held the comlink up to his mouth, praying there would be an answer.

“Loud and clear,” answered the voice of First Officer Nuss. “We made an emergency landing several clicks west of the Academy.”

Luke released a sigh of relief. “Is everyone all right?”

“I think so.”

“Good, we’ll send a shuttle to pick you up.” He stepped out of his personal quarters and hurriedly started down the hall for the hangar. “Can you lead the students to the nearby Massassi Temple?”

“Affirmative, Academy. We’ll meet you there.” Nuss answered. Luke pocketed his com and quickened his pace.

Some distance down the opposite end of the hall, across from Luke’s private quarters, a figure lurked. She was a red Twi’lek dressed in blues and greens. At the sight of Skywalker’s retreating form, she made her move. Gliding silently along the floor, she slipped into his room and made her way to a computer console. She swiftly produced a datapad from her pocket and plugged it in. It took less time than she’d expected to find what she was looking for.

“There you are…” She smiled, revealing neat rows of sharp teeth as white as Krayt Dragon Pearls. She unplugged her datapad and was out of the room in the blink of an eye.

Rosh stood up slowly, brushing himself off. He felt shaky, but miraculously he was unhurt and alive, considering that he landed several yards away from the ship on a little hill that was flanked by a small river that forked around it. He saw Jaden laying face down, closer to the ship. She wasn’t moving.

“Jaden!” He had to get over to her, but the river was wide on both sides and he, ashamedly, didn’t know how to swim. He checked his person for the comlink Officer Nuss had given him when he first boarded but couldn’t find it. “Dank farrik!” He swore. Thankfully his blaster was still secured to his holster he wore on his hip.

Jaden slowly stirred, her body aching all over, but otherwise unharmed. A sound was coming from the front pocket of her pants. She pulled out her comlink that they’d given her when she was picked up all those hours ago on Coruscant.

Coruscant. Home. The planet without many green trees or grass unless they were planted in a public garden or decorative plaza. How unappealing it seemed then. Now she was surrounded by green, but felt that she’d rather be back there walking its streets with its bright lights. Listening to her uncle -the man who raised her when she had no one else- tinkering in his workshop. Or sitting in her favorite cafe, drinking her favorite caf…

“Jaden, we can’t get to you,” Nuss was saying. “Make your way to the temple. The shuttle will meet us there.”

Jaden pressed the talk button. “I hear you sir, but what was that last part? What temple?”

“It’s…. Massas-..... Just…..click….. away.” Static filled the empty air and didn’t stop.

“Dank farrik,” Jaden muttered.

“Jaden, hey! I’m stuck! Can you help?” Rosh yelled across the way. Jaden turned to see him trapped on a hill across the river. How he’d gotten there and not been seriously injured, she would never know. But she was glad he wasn’t dead.

“Hold on Rosh, I’m on my way!” She made sure her lightsaber was secured to her belt and hurried over to the water’s edge. “Can you wade through it?”

“I uh…. I can’t swim well.” Rosh admitted, turning red.

“It’s alright…” Jaden said, thinking.

“Wait, Jaden, see if you can make your way around there.” Rosh pointed to where the water forked around the hill, to a narrow section of it that passed directly under the burning remains of their shuttle. Jaden’s eyes followed to where he was indicating and headed towards the narrow part of the river, fording it easily. Ahead, close to the shore on her side, was a small, thick tree.

“Maybe you can use your lightsaber to cut that tree down and make a bridge,” he suggested. Jaden nodded, removing her lightsaber from its belt clip and hitting the on switch. A purple glow emitted from its blade, coloring one side of her face and bathing the ground around her in its violet light. She approached the tree and took a deep breath.

“You okay?” Rosh asked, his eyes wide, he’d never been this close to a lightsaber in action before.

“I’ve… never actually used it,” Jaden said, grinning bashfully.

Rosh grinned back, “Well, there’s a first time for everything. Just make sure to cut it at the base.”

“Got it.” With a huge, clumsy swing, Jaden hit the tree near its roots and it fell right over the river, just reaching the opposite shore.

“Thanks Jaden,” Rosh quickly made his way across the makeshift bridge. “Let’s get to the temple.”

“You heard First Officer Nuss then? Do you know what he’s talking about?”

“Kind of. See, I did a little research about this place before coming. Apparently this moon has more than its fair share of ancient abandoned temples. The Academy’s just one of ‘em that the Rebellion used. I think the one Nuss was talking about is the Massassi temple. It should be…” He turned in circles a few times to get his bearings. “That way!” He pointed more or less in the direction that the helm of their downed shuttle pointed.

“Are you sure that’s the right way?” Jaden asked skeptically. But another thorough look around told her they were trapped from all other directions: From the crashed shuttle to the steep inclines, thick trees and boulders all around them.

“Sure I’m sure,” Rosh said confidently. “Let’s get going, but have your saber ready, I’ll have my blaster out and- Watch out!”

Jaden turned to see two large, dark green monstrous lizard-like creatures leaping towards them with a screeching type cry that grated on the nerves.

“Howlers! Don’t get too close when they sit up to howl!” Rosh cried.

“Why?-” But Jaden had her answer a moment later, the howler closest to them immediately stopped and sat, lifting up its head to the sky it opened its mouth wide and gaping, a loud, echoing cry releasing through the air, shaking the ground beneath their feet. Jaden lost her balance, falling flat and clamped her hands over her ears. She’d never been one for loud noises anyway but this was intrusive, as though the sound itself were crawling around inside her skull. Squeezing her eyes shut, she didn’t realize when she had started to scream in an attempt to drown it out with a noise of her own.

“Jaden! Jaden! Get up Jaden! Get up! I got it!” Opening her eyes she saw Rosh, blaster in hand, then the howler, dead on the ground with a hole in its head. “C’mon!” Rosh’s hand was extended towards her. “There’s another one!” Jaden took his hand and leapt to her feet. In one swift motion, so fast she didn’t even realize she was doing it, her lightsaber ignited and she flew forward. The incoming howler stopped short and raised its head. Swinging her saber with a deftness she didn’t carry with cutting the tree, she severed the howler's head before it could release a paralyzing cry. Panting, Jaden returned her lightsaber to her belt.

“Woah! Jaden, that was amazing! Are you sure you haven’t used that lightsaber before?” Rosh holstered his blaster and nudged the second howler with his foot.

“Yep,” Jaden swallowed, wiping sweat from her brow. “I don’t know, I just, it felt like an adrenaline rush but… different. Like something was guiding my blade. I’ve tried to practice my Force skills but never experienced this before.” She straightened a bit and looked ahead. “Let’s go.”

“Alright, but you’ll have to show me how you did that later.”

“I told you, I’ve never experienced it before, it's not what I did exactly, it's… The Force. I don’t know. I’ll sort it out later.” Jaden started forward without waiting for Rosh. They walked towards a curve in the landscape that formed a grassy trench, it didn’t seem natural, but formed by hands. More evidence of intelligent life revealed itself when they turned the corner and saw a stone gateway built between the trench walls, barring their path.

“What is this?” Jaden wondered.

“This means we’re going the right way,” Rosh exclaimed. “I was right! It’s a gate leading us to the Temple, but they would’ve hidden the way to open it.” They looked all around the gate, it was too high to jump or climb over by standing on each other's shoulders. They spotted a lever behind a small grate with bars so close to each other that Jaden knew she’d never be able to fit her arm, let alone hand, through the bars.

“There must be a way to open this,” she mused.

Rosh strutted up to the grate. “No problem.” His hand came up and pulled in a downward motion. At the same moment, the lever moved down and the door slid open.

“Nice,” Jaden smiled, inwardly kicking herself for not thinking of that, but glad for once to not be doing this alone.

“After you,” Rosh politely indicated the open doorway and Jaden shot him a wry look as she stepped through the gate. A slight movement caught her gaze.

“Watch out!” She cried, pressing her hands to her ears as another howler, sitting not ten feet away, started to howl, its sound echoing in the trees. Jaden braced herself for the paralyzing impact she’d experienced earlier, but it never came. When the giant lizard stopped, Jaden removed her hands from her head and took the opportunity of the lizard's silence.

“Rosh, fire!” She moved out the way as Rosh opened fire on the howler and she came at it from the side with her saber. When it lay dead and silent on the forest floor, Jaden turned to Rosh. “How come it didn’t knock me down this time?”

Rosh blew on the barrel of his blaster and re-holstered it. “It depends on how close you are. The closer the more potent its howl is. It’s better that you waited to attack it. Great job by the way with your lightsaber.”

“Thanks, you too. If you hadn’t covered me, it probably would’ve been harder to kill.”

“I guess we make a good team,” Rosh smiled, rubbing the back of his neck. Jaden noticed for the first time that he had dimples. He started forward. “Hopefully we won’t run into any more trouble.”

They continued in silence for a while. They didn’t come upon any more howlers, but found another outflow of the river, thankfully smaller so they could easily jump across and had to utilize Jaden’s saber again to cut a tree to serve as a makeshift bridge over a chasm. The more they walked through that green jungle of a forest, the more Jaden smelled the earth and the grass, the less homesick she felt and the more she wished to have seen more green in her lifetime before now.

It was another quarter of an hour before they finally spotted the top of the Massassi Temple, towering above the treetops. They’d been walking in a casual way, not thinking of the noise their feet made on the ground, at ease with each other as though they’d been friends since childhood and were just taking a stroll. They neared a clearing, large boulders on either side of its entrance, when Rosh suddenly ducked to the side, hiding behind the boulder on their left.

“Jaden, get down!” He whispered loudly, gesturing wildly for her to get behind the boulder across from him. “There’s stormtroopers in the clearing!” He jerked his head toward the opening between the rocks.

Jaden fell back against the boulder he indicated and they both peaked out to see two Imperial stormtroopers, standing at the far end of the clearing. Their black and white armor stark against the landscape. Their only way to the temple was blocked.

“I think it’s just the two of ‘em,” Rosh said. “Maybe you should uh, check it out.”

Jaden balked at his suggestion, “Why me?” Is he crazy? She thought. Probably.

Rosh shrugged. “You’re the one with the lightsaber after all.”

Jaden resisted the urge to roll her eyes and hefted her saber in both hands. Giving Rosh a single nod, she stepped carefully out into the open.

“Who goes there?” One of the stormtroopers said. Both of them turned their heads, spotting the young Jedi at the entrance to the clearing. Jaden decided to just go for it, rushing at them head on while they stood, shocked and surprised by her sudden appearance. Her saber’s blade came out with a fury and sliced through the nearest stormtrooper’s chest. The second had finally collected himself enough to open fire on her, Jaden deflected the first few bolts almost by luck, then dodged, running zigzag at him and clipping his blaster before inadvertently decapitating him. Jaden didn’t have time to reflect on her actions when the sound of another lightsaber turning on caught her attention.

Jumping down from a tall, nearby tree, was a figure covered head to toe, their face obscured by a cloth mask. A strange, circular symbol formed by crescent moon shapes, cruel and menacing, was on the shoulder of both arms. He held a red glowing lightsaber in one hand. He must be a Dark Jedi or Sith of some kind, Jaden thought. He was just up there the whole time watching his comrades die!

“Who are you?!” She asked, gripping her saber, trying to hold it in an authoritative stance. The figure didn’t answer, but ran at her. She dodged the first swing and blocked the second. Jaden hoped to the Force it would help her. Their two lightsabers crossed and locked together for several intense seconds; Jaden stared into the figure’s face, trying to see past the cloth mesh that covered it from view. The figure pushed her back, causing her to stumble a few feet away.

“Come get me, Jedi!” The figure said in a dark and husky voice, clearly male. He seemed impatient and started toward her again, but Jaden was ready, and hoped that she would succeed. Watching where the Sith held his lightsaber, she tried to anticipate his swing, ducking under it while making a slash of her own at his exposed side. His sudden cry of pain sealed her victory.

The next thing she knew, she was standing by herself in the clearing with the bodies of the two stormtroopers and now the dead Dark Jedi scattered on the grass. She put a hand to her chest, willing her heartbeats to slow down. She felt like she was going to be sick. She knew that as a Jedi, killing was sometimes the only option. It was self defense to be sure, but it was still killing. She’d done some research on the ancient Code of the Jedi, which claimed self-defense was permissible. And while it did give her some relief to know that she’d had no other choice in the matter, that still didn't make the sick feeling go away.

Turning away from the fallen enemies, Jaden called out: “Rosh! You can come out now, it’s safe! Rosh! Rosh?” She looked around, but her friend was nowhere to be seen, he was no longer behind the boulder either. Unsure of what to do and out of options, Jaden turned her head back in the direction of the Massassi Temple, hoping that perhaps Rosh had found a way around it and the rest of the new students and shuttle crew were there too.

She climbed down an embankment to where the river flowed deep and wide between her and the imposing structure of the abandoned temple. Holding her lightsaber up, Jaden waded through the waist deep water to the other side. No one was there. Clipping her saber back to her belt, Jaden walked around the side and climbed up a wall that sloped at a steep angle to ground level. Perched on a narrow ledge, she worked her way around, hoping to see better from her vantage point.

She heard a noise, a blend of fire crackling and the thrumming of a lightsaber blade. Quietly, she peaked around the sharp corner she’d come to, her eyes widening.

Three people stood several yards away, facing the temple, two were large, burly men, identical in every way, from their faces down to their clothing. Jaden saw that their clothing was similar to the Dark Jedi’s, except for the mask, with the same curved symbol on their shoulders. Between them stood a tall woman, clad in dark leathers. The only color on her came from the deep purple tattoos covering her arms in a checkered pattern. The same color covered half of her face from her forehead to the middle of her nose like a mask, looking like tribal war paint. Feathers ranging from green to yellow to orange hung from her done up hair. In her hand she held a cruel looking scepter, with a cross guard on the bottom and two crooked prongs at the top. The woman pointed it towards the temple, a yellow-orange glow emitting from between the prongs, its light fading near the temple wall. Jaden did not like the look of this though she had no idea what was going on. She carefully shifted her weight to get a better view. A small shower of loose pebbles crumbled under her feet and fell over the edge. Jaden bit back a curse.

“What?” The woman said, turning toward the noise, the scepter moving with her as she did. Before Jaden could act, the beam of energy hit her with a flash of bright white light and she was plunged into darkness.

She was floating, disembodied in black nothingness, her mouth open, trying to scream but no sound escaped. The crushing vacuum surrounded her, closing in until she couldn’t breathe. She was going to die and there was nothing she could do to stop it. A sharp, piercing scream, louder than the howler invaded her eardrums and then the deep mechanical breath of a monster, either close or far away, she couldn’t tell. She was in a tunnel, that was what it felt like, because she could just see a tiny pinprick of light ahead, and a voice echoing her name. She ran towards it, hoping she wasn’t too late.

Jaden slowly opened her eyes, the sudden daylight dazzling her, making her head ache. Above, the silhouette of a man knelt over her.

“Huh? What?” Jaden mumbled. “Who are you?” The man came into focus, he was about twice her age, with a kind, handsome, but somewhat life-worn face, brown eyes, brown hair and a short beard laced with gray. He extended his hand to her.

“Kyle Katarn, at your service. Welcome to a day in the life of a Jedi.” He pulled her to a seated position. Jaden rubbed the back of her neck. How long was I out?

“What happened?” She asked.

“We were kind of hoping you could tell us,” Kyle said and glanced to the left. Three of the students from the shuttle approached, two dragged the dead Sith she’d killed and dropped the body on the stone ground a few feet away. They were both human men, one about her age, the other probably closer to Kyle’s; the third who tagged along was a male Togruta with blue skin and orange and white striped montrals. The younger human man nudged the body with his foot, his face twisted in disgust. She turned her face back to Kyle and suddenly saw Rosh in her peripheral rushing over to kneel next to her.

“When you had finished off the stormtroopers and then that Sith, Dark Jedi… person, dropped from the tree, I decided to try and find a way to the temple and get some backup, but by the time I found the rest of our group, that’s when I saw a huge flash of light and ran over to find you just lying unconscious,” he said it all so quickly he was left catching his breath.

A man with dirty blonde hair dressed in all black approached. “Do you recall anything?” He asked her.

Jaden recognized him immediately, her cheeks burning at the sudden attention from him and everyone around them. She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to collect her thoughts. “I… I saw three people.” She looked up at the man. “One was holding some sort of scepter and it was glowing. That’s all I can remember.”

“A scepter? That sounds bad,” Rosh said.

“Are you able to stand?” The man in black asked. Kyle offered his hand to Jaden, pulling her to her feet, waiting a moment before letting go to ensure she was steady.

“Yeah… Yeah, I’m okay,” she said, looking at Kyle she added, “Thank you,” smiling weakly.

“No problem kid,” he winked, then stepped aside at the other man’s behest.

“I sense a disturbance in the Force,” the man in black said.

“You always sense a disturbance in the Force,” Kyle stressed. “But yeah, I sense it too. It could just be residual dark side aura from this temple.”

“Perhaps… Kyle, why don’t you…”

“Stay here and investigate? I’d love to. Why don’t you take the kids back home now?” The men exchanged nods.

“Be careful Kyle.” They parted ways, with Kyle heading back to where Jaden had seen the figures and the man in black going in the opposite direction towards a nearby transport. He called back to the students, “Everyone, follow me to the shuttle.”

“I think that… that was Luke Skywalker!” Rosh stuttered. “I can’t believe it!”

Jaden smiled at his enthusiasm, she wanted to say something like, “A little slow on the uptake huh?” but was too tired for humor. She just wanted to rest. But the idea of closing her eyes and sleeping also scared her. Would she be plunged back into that horrific screaming darkness again? She was glad that she hadn’t been hurt, not physically anyway, but there was something, something not quite right that she sensed rather than felt in her body. Something deep down inside that just… wasn’t… Right.

Outside of the moon, flying past its orbit, an Imperial class shuttle raced away as though it’d never been there. Aboard the bridge, the red Twi’lek stood before the wielder of the scepter.

“Did you recover Skywalker’s records?” The woman seated before her asked, the scepter in her hand.

The Twi’lek chuckled. “Yes. With all the Jedi in the jungle, it was almost too easy.”

“Excellent,” the woman said. “By the time Skywalker realizes what’s missing, it will be too late.”

Rosh sat next to Jaden on the new shuttle that gave them a ride to the Academy. He was repentant and felt extremely guilty about what happened and what she had to face alone.

“It’s okay, Rosh, I’m fine now. Really.”

Was she? She wondered. Somehow the impact of it all was fading into a vague memory, like a dream that you wake up from and can’t remember clearly. But something had definitely changed, that much she could agree on. But what? She didn’t want to remember, even if it was important, the impression of a nightmare was still there and she feared to face it again. What she was right now was tired. What time of day was it anyway? Sure it had been noon when she left Coruscant, but here it seemed to be, what, mid-morning? She turned to Rosh.

“Any idea what time of day it is?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure. Is your body feeling the jump-lag too?” Jaden merely nodded and yawned, which would make matters worse if she was caring at this point how people viewed her, but being tired trumped all that, including her fear of closing her eyes and sleeping. Without realizing it, she leaned her head on Rosh's shoulder. Quickly she pulled back, shaking her head to try and clear the exhaustion.

“It’s alright,” Rosh said, smiling. “I don’t mind, besides, maybe I could atone by letting you rest comfortably.” Jaden relented and gently rested her head on his shoulder again, feeling a little more, what was it? Cautious? Maybe. Awkward? More likely. Either way, Rosh’s shoulder was pretty comfortable and solid. She relaxed quickly and found herself drifting off, not falling completely asleep, but at least resting peacefully.

They soon landed however, forcing Jaden to leave her pillow - Rosh’s oh-so-comfortable shoulder. They filed out with First Officer Nuss giving her and Rosh a smile and a salute.

“Excellent job, Korr, Penin.” They both exchanged pleasantries with him before hurriedly rejoining the group. They’d landed right outside of the Academy on an old landing pad used in the days of the Rebellion. Towering over them, larger than the ancient Massassi Temple, stood the ziggurat that housed Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Praxeum. Comprised of three steps leading up to a crate shaped top, the Academy seemed absolutely impenetrable. Many of the new students had heard of the facility’s size and accommodations but never imagined this great sight before them.

Nuss whistled. “She’s a beauty isn’t she? See that topmost floor that looks like a big box from here? That’s the Audience Chamber, Skywalker will give his lessons and announcements up there.” He moved his pointer finger down. “And that second floor from the top is all the dormitories for both masters and students, though they’re separated so each has their own wing.”

“Do students get their own rooms?” Jaden suddenly asked without thinking, she hoped she didn’t come off sounding selfish or anything.

“Hmm, can’t recall.” Nuss rubbed his chin. “Back in the Rebellion days, we all had to share the space, but now… And especially since there’s not enough Jedi yet to fill up the space… I don’t know, guess you're about to find out.” He gestured to a tall, lithe, greenish-yellow Twi’lek woman who was approaching them.

“Hello students, welcome!” She said cheerfully. “My name is Tionne Solusar, I’m one of the masters here at the Academy and resident scholar of Ancient Jedi History. I heard you had a rough time getting here so I’ll make this quick. Master Skywalker’s Orientation has been moved to later this afternoon. That should give you all enough time to settle in and rest first. Follow me.” She beckoned them and turned, heading for the open blast doors that lead into the main hangar. The new students oh’d and aw’d at the various ships and models that were housed there. The vast space was filled with X-wings, Y-wings, and even an Imperial shuttle that must have been stolen during the Rebellion.

“I wonder if we'll get our own X-wings?” Rosh whispered excitedly to Jaden. She shrugged.

“Maybe, but I’m not sure if they have enough ships to accommodate everyone, they’re probably lent out to students when it's required of them.”

They were led out of the hangar and into a large lift that fit all twelve of them. Many of them were tired from the day's exertion, but Rosh ventured to ask Master Tionne about their room accommodations.

“That’s where I’m taking you now,” she said, then added, “Once you are all settled into your rooms, you’ll have a couple hours to rest, sleep, or just lay back and relax as you unpack.”

“But we don’t have our luggage,” said the young Togruta sadly. He had smooth blue skin and various white tribal markings across his face. His three small montrals that hung just below his shoulder blades were white with bright orange stripes spaced evenly down them.They were quite thick stripes now, but when he got older, they would thin as his montrals grew.

“Oh dear that’s right! You had to leave everything when the shuttle crashed!” Tionne quickly pulled a comlink from her belt. “Academy 3 to Nuss, come in Nuss.”

“Nuss here,” answered the officer.

“I hadn’t realized that the students had to leave their luggage behind in the shuttle. Can you get a team ready to return to it and see what you can salvage?”

“Roger that, I have a team already headed that way, we’ll update you as soon as possible.”

“Thank you so much Nuss, Academy 3, out.” Tionne put the com away and turned to the Togruta. What was his name? Jaden didn’t remember hearing it. “They’re going to do everything to get all of your luggage back,” she assured, then leaned down gently to put a calm hand on the Togruta boy’s shoulder. “What's your name?”

“Goran,” he answered. “I’m fourteen.”

“Goran, well that is a young age to be off on your own, you’re very brave to be doing it.”

“Didn’t have a choice really, the Empire killed my parents and my guardians didn’t really want me. This might as well be my home.”

For a moment no one, not even Tionne really knew what to do or say. Then it passed. Tionne squeezed Goran’s shoulder and said, “I’m so sorry. There’s not really an easy thing to say but, I do hope you feel at home here. Many times it does feel like a second family to me, and I believe if you focus on that, this place and all the people in it, will be family to you too.” Tionne smiled warmly and then something happened that wasn’t planned, without prompting, Jaden and Rosh reached forward to lay a reassuring hand on young Goran’s shoulder and back. Then, an unspoken agreement passed to the rest of them and the students nearest to Goran, the two male humans who’d dragged the Dark Jedi’s body to the Temple, reached out their hands too, and the other students on the outskirts, not wanting to miss out, put their hands on the shoulders of the ones in front of them. A feeling of warmth and reassurance passed from the students in the back all the way to Goran. None of them really knew how long the moment lasted, nor wanted it to end. As if on cue, the elevator stopped at its designated floor with an unceremonious ding! They all slowly fell into line behind Tionne, who kept Goran by her side as she led them down a hall to their right as they exited the lift.

“This is the dormitory floor,” Tionne said. “The hall behind us leads to the master’s quarters. You are not to enter them without permission or unless there’s an Academy wide emergency.” The passage they were following stopped at a wall with another passage running parallel to it. “Alright, this is where we divide the group for now. Girls rooms to the right, boys to the left. You’ll find your name next to your door. Now, I’m going to make sure Goran gets settled in, if you have any questions, I’ll be coming around to make sure each of you is settled in your room. As for your luggage, until Officer Nuss and his team return, we’ll make sure to provide toiletries and an extra change of clothes in case you need it. Also, your bedding is already provided for.”

“Is there a dress code?” One girl, probably her age, Jaden thought, or maybe a bit younger with pure white hair and a slim, short frame asked, raising her hand.

Tionne seemed to think for a moment. “Not necessarily, we certainly don’t condone you walking around naked.” Everyone tried to stifle their laughs. “But, I’m sure that’s not what you mean. You can wear your own clothes as long as you're comfortable and can easily train in them. When you’re out on missions though, that will be up to the Academy because some assignments require a disguise or a certain dress code. But since none of you are going on missions yet, I’d say stick to your own clothes for now.”

She turned to head down the left hand corridor with Goran and the other students dispersed.

“Hey, Jaden,” Rosh called, and she turned. “I’ll see you down in the dining hall before orientation?”

Jaden felt her stomach grumble. “Definitely, I kinda want to rest first though.”

“Sure thing,” Rosh nodded, turned and headed back down his hallway.

Jaden passed the first few doors because she saw or heard some of the other girls already in them. About the sixth or seventh door down, she saw her name on the plaque next to it. “Finally,” she said to herself, “Relief.” She entered and locked the door behind her.

Her room wasn’t very big, but it didn’t need to be. It was spacious enough. A bed in the center with a footlocker next to it and another locker standing in the corner. Beside her bed was a small table with a shelf on the bottom. Yes, this would work, she thought, removing her belt and laying it and her lightsaber on the end table. She flopped onto her bed and fell asleep.

Chapter Text

Jaden stood in line for the caf dispenser down in the dining hall. Back on Coruscant she'd practically lived off the stuff, an addiction she knew she’d have to get a hold of, if only it weren’t so good and gave her energy to get through the day. She glanced around the dining hall. Besides her and the other new students who’d arrived on the shuttle with her, there were somewhere between thirty and forty students who seemed to have been at the Academy for a while.

It was her turn. Finally. Gingerly positioning her plain mug underneath the tap, she pushed the button. That strong, rich aroma filled her nostrils, waking her up just a little. She closed her eyes briefly. 

“Ahh, that’s the stuff,” she said to no one.

“Careful, you’re about to overflow!” Rosh’s voice drifted from somewhere behind her.

“Ooo, thanks!” She let her finger off the button, there was just enough room for some sweetener and a bit of cream. Sadly, the caf dispenser station only had packets of the stuff, but, there! she spotted a small metal decanter labeled: Cream, standing next to the machine. She maneuvered out of the line and headed right to it. Rosh practically slid in from the side.

“So you’re a caf lover?” He asked, generously adding several packets of the sweetener to his mug.

“Yep!”Jaden said as she took careful sips from her cup. She made a face.

“Bad?” Rosh asked.

She took another sip. “Good, not great.” Another. “Subpar at best,” she said in surrender. “I’ve definitely had better.” If she hadn’t missed her favorite cafe yet, she sure did now.

“Well, it’s a good thing I like drinking caf with eighty percent cream and sweetener, and twenty percent, or less, of the actual caf,” Rosh laughed as he poured the cream halfway up the mug, then quickly cut the dispenser line to deposit caf barely to the three quarter line, garnering some complaint from the waiting students. Jaden watched in pained silence at Rosh’s obliviousness to those around him until he finally rejoined her.

“So you only like caf flavored sweet cream?” She asked wryly. Rosh shrugged with a goofy grin playing in the corner of his mouth. There were those dimples again.

“Pretty much. Did you already get some food?”

“Yeah, Arta-Mess, she’s in the room next to mine, has white hair? She invited me down with her and we have a table with a few other people. I think most of them are from our shuttle.”

“Oh,” he said, sounding a little disappointed. “Mind if I join you guys?”

Jaden thought of him sitting all by himself back on the shuttle. “No, you can come. After today, I feel like we’re all a team, because of what happened.”

They steered their way through the small crowd, with Rosh breaking off to grab his tray from an otherwise empty table, and came to rejoin Jaden at the table their peers had chosen. Thankfully, no one objected or seemed bothered by Rosh’s joining them, welcoming him warmly. A conversation that seemed to be going on before they got there continued:

 “-...I mean, I’ve been so used to using a blaster that I hope they’ll let me use both.” Grinning, the younger human man Jaden recognized twirled a blaster and expertly holstered it. He was close to her age, had sparkling green eyes, short cropped reddish blonde hair, and wore a goatee that gave him a charming but roguish air. She whispered to Rosh that his name was Jacyyn Averon.

“I’m sure they’ll let you use your blaster Jacyyn, but I’d be prepared not to, just in case,” said the older human man, about mid thirties. He was dressed in plain, practical clothing all in grays, he kept his graying brown hair short and his eyes were a bright silvery gray, with a spark of youth still in them. 

“I guess you got a point there,” Jacyyn was saying, “It’s just hard the idea of letting my baby go. We’ve been through a lot together.”

Next to him, Arta-Mess rolled her violet eyes. What she lacked in stature she made up for in attitude. As an Echani, a Near-Human species, she had all the features of a human, except her hair was a pure white, as ‘white as the snows of Hoth,’ she’d told Jaden when they had walked down to the dining hall. Her mother was human, father Echani, so her skin was rosier than her father’s people. They’d lived a simple, almost primitive life in the wild-lands and forests in tribal lifestyle. As a result, she had many tattoos as testament to it, running up her arms, across her cheeks, down the center of her forehead, many depicting the various phases of Eshan’s three moons.

Noticing Rosh’s presence, the older man extended his hand and smiled.

“I remember you from the shuttle when we stopped by Corellia. Rosh, isn’t it?”

Mouth full, Rosh quickly swallowed and took the proffered hand to shake it. “Yeah, Rosh Penin. You?”

“Jas Harin,” he looked past Rosh and shook Jaden’s hand. “And you? Aren’t you the one we picked up on Coruscant?”

“You’re the one with the lightsaber right?” Arta-Mess interjected. Everyone at the table looked at Jaden with renewed interest.

“Yeah, that’s me, Jaden Korr.” She shook Jas’s hand, cheeks turning several shades of red. “Sorry I didn’t introduce myself sooner, today was kind of… wild.”

“Yeah, she was about to tell me how she got her saber just before the shuttle crashed,” Rosh said, still talking with his mouth full.

“Could you tell us now maybe?” Arta-Mess inquired, trying not to sound like she was pushing.

“I… It’s kind of a long story,” Jaden said awkwardly. “Maybe later?”

“Understandable,” Jas put in gently. “I’m sure she’ll talk about it when she wants too.”

Jaden let a sigh of relief escape her as Jas changed the subject.

“I’m sure we’ll all get the chance to know each other better in time.” 

“Speaking of which,” Jacyyn began, looking at him. “How did Luke Skywalker discover you?”

“You mean because I’m the Academy’s oldest student?” Jas’s eyes sparkled with humor. “It’s no secret that I'm older while the rest of you in this room are still basically kids .”

Arta-Mess leaned forward, curiosity in her shining eyes.

“If you’re as old as you claim, then how did you avoid the Empire?”

Jas sobered a bit, leaning back in his chair. “Well, long story short, I kept my Force sensitivity hidden during the Empire's reign. I practiced my skills with the Force in a confidential manner only when I felt safe too. When the Empire fell, I still stayed out of sight for fear of the Remnant. But not long ago, I decided enough was enough. I reached out to Master Skywalker about coming to the Academy despite my not being the ‘normal age’ for a student. He was very kind and told me everyone was welcome.”

“But,” Rosh interjected. “If you’ve been training yourself for years now, why are you coming in at our level? Shouldn’t you be starting at a higher rank?”

Jas shrugged. “I suppose so, but I declined. I may have been fostering my gifts for longer than most of you here, I think it’s only right that I start at the beginning. I’m eager to learn and it doesn't really matter to me whether I start at the lowest level or not.”

“I guess so,” Rosh muttered and continued to take bites of his food in order to keep his opinion to himself.

Jaden looked across the table at Goran, who sat quietly next to Arta-Mess. He seemed a bit better and none the worse for wear. He was warming up a bit because on his other side sat a young Kel-dor close to his age. His name escaped Jaden for the moment. After Master Tionne had showed Goran to his room, the Kel-dor youth had dropped by saying that his room was larger and could easily house two instead of one. Not liking being in a room by himself, Goran had asked Tionne if they could be roommates, and it was settled right there. Tionne had assured them that by the time they returned after orientation, another bed would be moved to the larger room and everything would be taken care of. 

As for all of their luggage, the young Kel-Dor quickly related to the group at the table that Tionne had gotten word that Nuss’s team was successful in retrieving everything from the cargo hold of the crashed shuttle. As for the condition of it all, she was still unclear, but it would all be deposited into each of their rooms to inspect later.

“She also said that if anything is missing or damaged, we can file a report with her or Nuss and they’ll try to replace it,” he finished the story and shrugged. “It doesn’t sound promising but it's all we have. I just hope that if something is broken or missing, it’s nothing important or irreplaceable.”

“Most important thing I got is my blaster,” Jaccyn said with a smile.

“I have my parent's lunar crystal, for good fortune,” Arta-Mess said, rubbing the gradient purple and deep pink stone around her neck absently, eyes far off. Jaden noticed it matched the color of her tattoos.

“I didn’t really have anything worth much,” Jas commented. “The Empire had made sure of that years ago.”

“Same here,” the Kel-Dor put in. “I came here from Dorin with nothing but the clothes on my back,” he said with a shrug, as if material things had never mattered to him.

“My mother and father’s Akul tooth headdresses were in my bag on the shuttle,” Goran said quietly. Everyone stayed silent. “It’s the only thing I had left of them. I knew, I just knew I should’ve carried them with me!”

“Oh Goran, I’m so sorry!” Arta-Mess put an arm around his shoulder. Goran looked like he was about to burst into tears.

“What are Akul teeth?” Rosh asked. Jaden lightly laid a hand on his arm, Goran, unable to hold back the tears, turned into Arta-Mess’s arms and she held him.

“I’m sorry,” Rosh said, quieter and seemingly recoiling in on himself.

“It’s okay, you didn’t know,” Jas suddenly whispered beside him. He leaned in close. “The Akul is a great creature native to the Togruta homeworld, the tribes hunt them and only the greatest warriors bring them down. They use the beast’s teeth as jewelry and wear headpieces made of them.”

“Oh,” Rosh whispered, hanging his head, at a loss of what to do, nothing more he could say would help Goran, he simply hoped that the heirlooms would be found unharmed.

As if coming to the rescue, a voice over a loudspeaker silenced the hall, telling all new arrivals to report to the Audience Chamber for orientation. Together they all rose, Goran still holding on to Arta-Mess as they walked, her arm across his shoulders. They exited the dining hall, stopping only to deposit their trays at a station near the door.

The students all gathered in the Audience Chamber, chatting excitedly. Several masters and teachers mingled about, wearing their own style but the logo of the Academy on their shoulders indicated their rank, making it easy for students to differentiate them. Jaden saw no sight of the other master that’d helped her at the Massassi Temple, Master Kyle- Something. She figured he was probably still searching the surrounding area of the forest.

A sudden hush fell over the crowd of students and teachers alike as Luke Skywalker entered, striding calmly and coolly across the top of the stone dais, hands folded behind him.

“Please, everyone, take a seat,” Luke instructed. The floor was hard stone, but smooth, and all eight of the new students sat, some lazily leaning back on their hands with their legs stretched before them as if they were picnicking on the grass outside. The rest, including Rosh, sat cross legged, backs straight, trying to make a good impression. Jaden sat crossed legged as well, but made no attempt at good posture, it was a habit that she’d never quite mastered. It was a good thing then, that Luke seemed to take no notice of the way any of them chose to sit. Six Jedi Masters stood in a row at the bottom of the steps leading up to the dais. Luke was still in all black, a striking silhouette against the light streaming through the gaps in the tall pillars behind him. He continued:

“I’d like to welcome all our new students to the Jedi Academy. Here we will train you in the ways of the Force. You will learn to defend yourself with a lightsaber. You will also study diplomacy, history and more.” Skywalker started down the steps. “It has been the practice of the Jedi to assign each student to a Master. However, since there are still so few of us, we’ll be assigning multiple students to one Master.”

“So that’s how it works!” Rosh whispered a little too loudly to Jaden. “I was wondering.”

Nearby, Arta-Mess shushed him. Luke made no sign that he’d noticed this disturbance, which Jaden doubted he missed. He had three of the six masters step forward. Jaden would later learn that the other three present trained the more advanced students at the Academy and took on other roles such as teaching and acting as diplomats all over the galaxy and with the New Republic. Luke approached the young male Kel-dor.

“So, Raltharan, you will be assigned to Master Horn.” Another male Kel-dor, much older and more mature, stepped forward out of the lineup of other masters and teachers to greet his new student, who stood to shake his hand. Jaden thought they looked as though they could be father and son. 

Skywalker proceeded to assign Goran to Master Horn as well, then Arta-Mess and a female Zabrak named Kalil Streen (Jaden didn’t remember seeing her at all in the dining hall and assumed she’d stayed in her room the whole time) to Master Tionne Solusar. Then came Jas and Jacyyn’s turn, they were both assigned to Corran Dykstra, a tall dark skinned human man with buzzed, snow white hair.

Beside her, Rosh nudged Jaden gently with his elbow. “I can’t wait to begin my training!”

A shadow fell across them as Luke walked up to them. Jaden and Rosh quickly stood up.

“Rosh Penin. You will be assigned to Master Katarn,” he said. At that moment, Kyle Katarn appeared next to him as though he’d just arrived from running around the forest. Jaden noticed the slight disheveledness of his appearance and a half hearted attempt to clean up beforehand.

He probably didn’t want to be late. Jaden thought.

Master Skywalker’s voice snapped her back at attention. “Jaden Korr, you’ll also work with Master Katarn.” Then, loudly so everyone heard him. “Now, let’s begin with your first lessons.” He then drew Kyle aside for a moment, calling over his shoulder, “And may the Force be with you.”

Jaden stood there a moment, processing, her mind just registering what Luke had told her. Her and Rosh. Assigned to the same master? Did she feel disappointed? Annoyed? It wasn’t that Rosh was a terrible person, he was just… Different? That was it, they were just different, and sometimes different personalities just didn’t mix well. She briefly wondered if she could switch, then shook that thought away. That’s just stupid Jaden, trying to get away from someone before actually getting to know them. She then wondered if perhaps Luke assigned them together because they had made their way to the Temple together as a team and had shown promise? We did work somewhat well together. She agreed on that thought. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. If they’d gotten through the forest in one piece, then maybe they would be a good team. She remembered how he’d disappeared on her; to find help yes, but without somehow letting her know where he’d gone. I just thought he’d run off. I guess we’ll just have to work on better communication. No matter, she could talk to him about that later. Her and Rosh moved to stand awkwardly near the two masters as they finished their discussion, catching the tail end of Kyle’s report.

“…and there was nothing,” he was saying. “But the area around the temple felt strange, like its dark side aura was gone.”

Luke’s brow creased, thinking deeply. “Troubling.” He shook his head, turning to see Jaden and Rosh standing nearby, waiting. “But let’s look into this later. Your students are ready to get started.” With a nod goodbye, he exited the room, leaving the two students and their master in a brief, awkward silence which Rosh quickly broke. 

“Master Katarn. It’s an honor to be serving under you.” Jaden cringed slightly at the stress Rosh put on the word honor.

“First off, just call me Kyle. Titles make my skin crawl,” Kyle’s tone was matter-of-fact, but not unkind. “Secondly, you’re not serving under me. I’m gonna teach you, and you’re gonna learn. That’s it.”

Rosh was flustered. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.” His cheeks colored considerably.

Kyle laughed softly. “Don’t worry, Rosh, you didn’t. I’ve been offended by professionals.” He waved them forward to follow him. “Now c’mon, let’s see what you two kids can do. Follow me to the training grounds.” With that, they filed out of the Audience Chamber, the last ones to leave.

Jaden, Rosh and Kyle stood in a small enclosed area of the training grounds. Stone walls rose up around them, torches burning in nearby sconces sputtered with the light cool rain that drizzled around them. Besides the door they’d come in through, there were two others, one on the far wall and the other in the wall next to it. They were standing on a grassy turf with leafy ferns sticking up here and there. Kyle cleared his throat.

“This is one of the many training grounds here at the Academy. I’m going to put you two in separate courses.” He saw Rosh starting to raise his hand. “Any questions?”

“When will I start building my lightsaber?”

“That’ll come a little later,” Kyle replied, fishing a simple and plain metallic cylinder from his belt. “For now, you’ll have to use this.” He handed it to Rosh, “It’s a training lightsaber so it won’t do the kind of damage a normal one would do unless I adjust its-”

“It’s electromagnetic containment field so that the energy it contains in the blade is less steady and can do more damage beyond a scorch or a bruise?” Rosh grinned sheepishly, even Jaden was taken aback at his impressive knowledge of the technology.

“Very good Rosh,” Kyle smiled. “You’re pretty tech savvy I take it?”

“Yep, learned all I could when I attended school back home on Corellia.”

“Well I look forward to seeing what you can do with these skills. For now, let's get back to our first lesson. First, I’ll need to make sure that your saber isn’t in training mode. You’ll need it at full power in the next area. Jaden, I’ll let you keep yours on its regular setting as well. Here.” He handed Rosh a comlink. “Heard you lost yours in the shuttle crash, Jaden I assume you still have yours?” 

“Yes, I do.” She patted her front pants pocket.

Kyle nodded approval. “Good, we’ll need them during the training.” He pointed to the door at the far end. “When you’re ready Jaden, go through that door. Rosh, follow me.”

Jaden entered her designated area, a wide, squarish grassy place with more ferns and a tree growing near her. At the far wall, another door stood shut. Hearing the sound of footsteps above her, she glanced up to see Kyle walking on the walkways that ran along the top of the wall and split over the top of her area and the surrounding training sections so that any Jedi Master could look in on their various students.

“This course will familiarize you with your core Force abilities,” Kyle began. “These are powers that every Force user has. As you progress in your training, you will learn new abilities. Both the light  and dark sides will be open to you. Remember, abilities are not inherently good or evil. It’s how you use them. Every Jedi is naturally stronger in different areas of the Force, and it will be up to you to decide what to focus on.” Rosh and Jaden took in this information. Neither of them had thought of this before, that it wasn’t good or bad to use both sides of the Force, it all mattered on your moral compass.

On the other side of the wall from Jaden, Rosh fiddled with the hilt of his training saber, trying to take in the rest of what Kyle was saying, but itching to use his saber already. Above, Kyle was finishing his speech, causing Rosh to snap to attention. “Alright, let’s get started. In the next area you’ll find some training remotes. These will help you learn how to handle a lightsaber. Ready?”

“Ready!” Rosh called out enthusiastically.

Jaden strode to the far door in her area. “Ready,” she said, then stepped through.

A narrow open air passage opened before her that led to another door at the other end with sputtering torches lining the high walls.

“Here come the remotes!” Kyle announced.

A single, white metal orb dropped down in front of her, making a sound like pressurized air being released from an airtight container. Jaden ignited her saber and blocked the first couple of bolts, getting hit consecutively by the third and fourth ones.

“Oww!” She yelped.

“You alright Jaden?” Kyle asked.

Jaden fumed. “I’ll be fine, just got hit.”

“It’s alright, you’ve got this. Just keep going, this is why we train with low impact remotes, so you can prepare for real blaster bolts.”

Jaden brought her saber down on the remote, it exploded satisfyingly. Rosh called over the wall: “I haven’t been hit yet!”

“It's not a competition, Rosh,” Kyle said.

Behind her, Jaden heard another remote. She tried not to get frustrated and took a deep breath in. Turning, she swung hard, her lightsaber connecting with the remote. Two more appeared.

“Done!” Rosh yelled triumphantly just as she finished off the fourth remote and a fifth one appeared. How many am I supposed to fight?  

“Nice work Rosh!” Kyle called approvingly. Tapping into something similar to what she used against the Dark Jedi earlier, Jaden smashed the final remote to smithereens. Thankfully, Kyle had seen this last move because he said:  

“You did well too, Jaden.” Then to the both of them, “Your lightsaber is an invaluable tool. Even when inactive it can defuse a potentially volatile situation. Trust me on that. As you train, you’ll learn additional fighting styles. Changing styles during combat can surprise your opponent, allowing you to gain the upper hand. We’ll discuss this more with one on one, close quarters dueling, but for now, we continue the course. From here on out we’ll talk via comlink in each area. Let’s move on.”

Taking this as a cue to go through the next door, Jaden entered her new training area.

What she heard upon entering, was not a sound she’d hoped to hear anytime soon. A low, reptilian growl. A howler. Jaden tried to spot where it was. Was killing a howler a part of the test? As if in answer, Kyle’s voice spoke through her comlink:

“Okay Jaden, you need to use the Force to jump across the ravine. It shouldn’t be a problem. If you fall, jump back up to the bridge and try again.” Jaden was confused for a moment, body still rigid in shock as she forced her head to look for this so-called bridge instead of the imminent threat of a nearby howler. The ‘bridge’ was to her right and wasn’t much of a bridge. It had broken in the middle with nothing but stubs jutting out from either side. There was at least a dozen feet of open air between them. 

Jaden commanded herself to take deep, controlled breaths. She’d cross the bridge, but first she would have to take care of the howler. The low cry came again, to her left. She picked her way carefully over the grass, not making a sound, crouching among the ferns, then she spotted them- two howlers, not one. They were sitting back, relaxed and nosing around a patch of grass against a dead end wall. A few stones were missing from the wall to the right. So that’s how they got in, they aren’t part of the course. She considered just telling Kyle over coms about them. It would be easier to have him or another more skilled Academy student take care of them.

“ We believe in learning by doing at the Academy…” Master Skywalker’s voice echoed in her head. And how am I going to learn by doing if I’m going to pawn what I’m afraid of to someone else?  

Rising out of the grass, Jaden went to face her fears. The howlers, who’d been busy sniffing up some other random scent near the wall, didn’t register Jaden until it was too late. Turning her saber on, she decided to try something bold that could end terribly for her. Could. She took aim and threw her lightsaber at both the howlers, the blade missing one but decapitating the other. Small victories Jaden, small victories. She planted her feet and braced herself as she reached out her hand, calling her lightsaber back through the Force, specifically the hilt of it. She was caught off guard at the speed in which it came flying at her, but still managed to catch it. She stumbled and righted herself as the second howler came bounding towards her. Taking quick aim, Jaden managed a successful high to low slash, killing it. She smiled. “Good job, Jaden,” she said to herself, then turned to the broken bridge. 

Rosh was probably way ahead of her by now. She had to remind herself that it wasn't a competition, that Kyle had even said so in the first place. Still, she wanted to make a good impression, or at least show some effort to keep up. She backed all the way up to the wall facing the bridge, trying to focus on the Force and the image of herself landing safely on the other side. She took a running start, leaping at the last second and barely landed on the other side. She rolled to soften the impact and came back up on one knee. Panting, she allowed herself a grin before continuing straight ahead where there was a wall.

She stopped suddenly.

A dead end? What? 

“You’ll have to push with the Force to get out of here and into the next area.” Her com sounded with Kyle’s message. Oh, I can do that.

Holding both hands out in front, closing her eyes she focused on the wall, a damaged, crumbling section in particular. She imagined it being blown out into the open of the next section, its loose stones, bits of dust, and debris. Her eyes snapped open and she pushed her hands forward with all her might. The crumbled section of wall was propelled forward as if by a small explosion, not as forceful as she’d hoped, but still leaving a big enough gap for her to walk through by only needing to bow her head slightly.

*

Rosh ran as fast as he could through the tunnel, unsure of where he was going but hoping it would mean completing the course first. He’d always been competitive in school and couldn’t help the high it gave him when he came out on top. He slowed as he approached two doors.

“Oh, great! Which one is the right way?” He gingerly checked through one, not fully stepping through. It only led onto a narrow catwalk leading to a small control panel overlooking a large training area with bits of crumbled walls and other ruins. He vaguely made out some kind of tall, pyramid type thing erected in the middle of a paved walkway off to the side, partially out of sight due to the door frame.

“Dead end, this must be the one.” He turned to go through the correct door, but hesitated, eyeing an inscription he’d missed on the first door: ASP-19 Battle Droid Training Control Panel Access.

A smile tugged on the corners of his mouth as he contemplated the idea that was forming in his head. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “Oh why not, we can all laugh about it later.” Having made his decision, he reopened the door and ran out onto the catwalk.

As Jaden stepped through the gap and into her next section of the Training Grounds, she took in its size, with many pieces of ruined pillars and crumbling walls. Towards the middle she spotted a tall, gray obelisk in the middle of a paved circle that began a walkway leading to a door at the far end of the area. That must be where I need to go. She started forward.

“Hey Jaden!” She jumped at the sound of Rosh’s voice and looked up to see a short, narrow walkway high above her. He stood near some kind of small control panel. Once he had her attention he called out jokingly, “This should keep you busy ‘til I finish the course!” and pushed a button before she could ask him what he meant. Below the walkway, a door opened and out stepped a large, gray battle droid. Jaden hadn’t seen this particular type before, but it wasn’t hard to guess it was meant for combat of some sort, though she didn’t see a blaster in either of its hands, just a plain looking cylinder… 

“Oh Sithspit.” Jaden muttered, then glanced up at Rosh who was grinning ear to ear. He thinks this is funny. He thinks this is just a joke. Before she could shout some sort of plea to stop the droid, or cuss him out, Rosh dashed back into the passage he’d come from and the droid started in her direction.

“Okay, okay, I can do this, I did it before.” Jaden wasn’t confident at all, but she held her saber out in defense as the droid closed the distance. It took a swing at her and she ducked. The droid's yellow lightsaber blade cut through some tall grass nearby and gouged into one of the ruined walls of the arena.

That’s definitely not a training saber! Jaden thought frantically. Did Rosh know this thing was dangerous?!

Getting more than a touch angry, Jaden struck out at the droid. It turned out that this training droid wasn’t programmed with anything higher than a simple combat skills regime. Which was lucky for Jaden, who severed its lightsaber pretty quickly, then sliced it up beyond hope of repair for good measure. She figured this way was as good as any of venting her frustration at the whole scenario. Wiping sweat from her brow, she headed towards the obelisk and the paved walkway beyond it.

“What took you so long, Jaden?” Kyle’s voice made her jump. She picked up her comlink and sighed.

“Nothing.” She said, hoping her voice wasn’t too gritted.

“You’re sure?” Kyle sounded concerned, which was nice, but Jaden still felt raw from the whole ordeal.

“It was nothing.” She answered a little too bluntly and abruptly for her taste. Thankfully, Kyle didn’t push it further but continued with his lesson. The questions were sure to come later. She entered the door and found herself in a small, stone room with one other door a few feet ahead of her. It was locked. Kyle offered some more instruction:

“To get to the next area, you must pull a lever somewhere in the room. But you can’t reach the lever with your hands. Remember to examine your environment carefully. When you’re out on a mission, if you find a locked door, look for the guy in charge. He usually has a key.”

Jaden took a steadying breath and looked around the room, noticing two small grates, one on either side of the room. This sure looks familiar. She thought of the stone wall with the gate she and Rosh had come across on their way through the woods. The grate to her right contained a single lever unlike the one to the left. Reaching through the Force, she mimicked Rosh’s earlier action and pulled her hand down while the lever moved simultaneously in the same direction. The door opened. 

“Nice!” She smiled to herself and hurried through the darkened passage lit dimly by torches. It sloped down and she found herself in a low room with rumble and sand littering the floor, the odd ferny plant cropping out of cracks in the ground. There was only the door she came in by. About one floor above her was a walkway and a door lit from the top by an electric light. 

But how do I get up there? She wondered. The only ledge of any sort was on top of the door she’d just entered by, and that was still several feet too high for her to jump or climb up without a good foothold.

“Solutions to problems aren’t always obvious,” Kyle said over her com. “Use your Force sense to see if you can find a way out of the room.”

Okay, just use the Force to sense your way out, but how? She considered asking Kyle how to do this. Maybe it's just like with the room with the lever, but tapping into the Force to show me something that’s not there. She decided to try it, then ask Kyle for help if it didn’t work. She also didn’t really want Rosh to hear she was struggling.

Closing her eyes, she envisioned the room, the walls, the torches, the large stone bricks… The bricks. She looked closely at a brick about three feet off the ground to the right of the door as she stood facing it. Something glimmered. She closed her eyes again and focused on it in her mind. A pattern began to materialize, glowing like an ember in a fire. She opened her eyes, a strange boxy symbol glowed faintly on the surface of the stone. Gently, she touched it, feeling her fingers tingle as its light brightened even more. Instinctively, she pulled her hand toward herself and the brick followed, jutting out of the wall. She’d made herself a foothold. Alright! She clamored on top of it and stood facing the walkway, still too high up. And too far. There’s probably another brick loose. She climbed down and looked along the wall with her newfound gift. Locating another brick a few feet away and above the first one, she pulled it out. That should do it! Quickly getting back on the first step, she planned her jump to the next one. Making it without losing her balance, she set her sights on the walkway, looking farther than she’d anticipated it. I’ve got this! She thought and put all her focus into sticking the landing. She almost missed, nearly landing in a torch that hung below the walkway and holding on for dear life as if the fall were a hundred feet instead of a dozen. She scrambled up, dusting her hands off on her pants and headed through the door. 

She found herself running through several tight stone corridors, each looking so alike that she almost got lost in them, coming through one door that led outside onto a dead end platform in the rain. She retraced her steps, focusing on the subtle differences of each passage and finally found the door that led outside.

“You’re almost done,” Kyle was saying. “You’ll need to move fast in this next area. You can use the Force to speed up both physically and mentally, allowing you more time to make decisions.”

Jaden spotted two doors on either end of the enclosure she’d come into, separated by a low wall that split the area down the middle but covering only half the diameter. Jaden took a running start, going as fast as she could. There must have been sensors in the ground because the door she ran toward started to close before she’d even covered half the distance. She picked up the pace but had to come to a stop before she crashed into the now closed door. Okay, so that’s what Kyle meant by using the Force to speed up.

She went back to her starting point, the first door remained closed, so she looked to the second one. Stepping forward so as to kneel in a push off position racers at school would before a competitive race, the door started to close. Dank farrik, I must’ve set off the sensor! She rushed forward half heartedly but gave up and returned to the beginning. The other door was now open. Carefully, she settled herself down, knees bent, her booted toes digging into the dirt, hands spread on the grass. She closed her eyes. “Use the Force to speed up both physically and mentally,” Kyle’s voice echoed through her thoughts. She envisioned the door. “...allowing you more time to make decisions.” She saw herself running towards the door as it was slowly closing, her having more time to reach it…

Suddenly, she was speeding up. The world moved in a blur around her, going so slow though she was going so fast. The door up ahead was closing slower than before, but still going rapidly. In a fit of inspiration, Jaden pumped her legs hard and fell to her back into a controlled slide, passing under the door as it closed. For half a second she saw the bottom of the door in front of her face, then, the gray sky above and the feel of rain on her cheeks.

Jaden was on her feet in the next second in an all out sprint towards Kyle who stood several yards away, standing on a large stone terrace, arms folded, waiting for her and Rosh. And there he was too, running at Kyle from a different direction. They were both running at top speed and came to a stop on either side of Kyle at the exact same time.

“So, did I win?” Rosh asked eagerly.

Kyle cut him a side glance. “It wasn’t a competition,” he said plainly.

“I’m sorry, I…”

Kyle gestured to Jaden, “I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.” 

He knows about the droid then. Jaden put her hands on her hips. “It’s no big deal. You said yourself this wasn’t a competition.” Her voice tried to sound casual.

Rosh threw up his hands and shrugged, trying to play it off. “Hey, it was just a joke. I didn’t think it would-”

“If that droid was set to Luke’s training regimen, it would have killed Jaden. What were you thinking?” Kyle’s tone was serious, no trace of warmth.

Rosh’s eyes widened in realization and looked at Jaden imploringly. “Jaden, I’m so sorry. I can’t believe I… I mean I wasn’t trying to-”

Jaden turned her back, fighting tears. “Save it Rosh!” She said sharply, crossing her arms. She felt so angry, and sad, but wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was because the first “friend” she’d made turned out to be some highly competitive guy who would do almost anything to win. And she felt raw, vulnerable because of it. Used was a better word. But overall she just felt confused and wanted to be someplace private to sort out her emotions. An angry tear threatened to spill over and onto her cheek. Behind her, Kyle spoke in a softer voice, but still edged in a firmness that told her she should hang onto every word he said:

“Jaden, you have a right to be angry, but believe me when I say you don’t want to feed that emotion.”

Biting her lip, she nodded, quickly dashed the tear away from her eye and turned to face them.

“I understand, Master Katarn.” She paused, then slowly looked at Rosh. “Apology accepted Rosh,” she said softly, seeing in his eyes that he’d truly been sincere.

Kyle nodded at her encouragingly. “Good, that’s settled. And remember, it’s Kyle.”

Jaden choked out a laugh. “Yes Mas- … uh, Kyle.”

Rosh recovered from the sobering moment with an energetic: “Sure thing, Kyle!”

“Okay,” Kyle said, “We’ll keep you two on a strict training regime for the next few days or so, then see about putting what you’ve learned to use in the real world. We’ll mix your training here at the Academy with some real life missions. We've been getting some requests from all over the galaxy for assistance and I’d like to take you one at a time with me on a few of them for some one on one training. But I’ll be making my decision on exactly who after I’ve had a few days to observe your progress.”

The two students both stood up straighter, having noticed Luke, who entered through a door to their left. 

“Kyle. I did some research on that strange mark from the clothing we found on the Dark Jedi at the temple. It is the symbol of Marka Ragnos, a Sith Lord that died almost five thousand years ago.”

Kyle looked shocked. “Five thousand years, are you serious? Oh, wait, of course you’re serious…”

“While you’re out training your students, be on the lookout for information regarding a group affiliated with Ragnos.”

Kyle gestured at nothing in particular. “Sure thing Luke.”

Master Skywalker nodded, then looked to Jaden, “Great work with the course by the way.”

Jaden stammered, “Um, thank you, Master.” How’d he know? Maybe he’s been secretly watching the whole time. She caught a glance at Rosh who looked disappointed, or in the very least dumbfounded.

Luke exited, leaving the trio alone again. 

“Well, I’d think after a day full of excitement you’d be ready to get some sleep. You kids head back to the dorms ‘kay?” Kyle dismissed them.

As tired as she was, sleep came hard for Jaden that night. Dark images swirled before her closed eyes that frightened her and made her brain work overtime trying to put them away. Another part of her mind wanted to remember just what had happened the moment after she spotted the three strangers with the Scepter. Both sleep and memory still evaded her until she finally gave up and pushed herself into a sitting position on her bed. The sheets were a mess from all her tossing and turning but she didn’t care to fix them. Instead she stood, crossed the room to her door, then paused. She went to her small closet for a loose fitting robe she’d brought with her to cover her bare shoulders; she felt sure it would be chilly in the passages of the Academy. Stepping quietly from her room, the swish of the door closing sounded a hundred times louder in the dead of night. She started back down the corridor Master Tionne had led them through mere hours ago and found the lift. She had no idea where she was going but thought perhaps a little exploring would do her good.

She went up to the top floor. No one was around, but she suspected there would be security monitors surveying the halls. 

I hope I don’t get in trouble for exploring. She was in the Audience Chamber. It was so silent now except for the muted padding of her bare feet on the cold stones, making her wish she’d donned a pair of foot coverings. 

It was dark in the chamber except for the light of another of Yavin’s moons shining through the floor to ceiling pillars. She scanned the room with her eyes, thinking of going and sitting between the pillars to look out at the view when she suddenly spotted a door almost hidden in a corner of the room near the entrance. She went over to it, thinking it’d be locked, but it opened when she stepped right up to it. Without a moment's hesitation, she went through and found a narrow set of spiraling stairs going up. It went up so high Jaden could barely make out the shape of a door in the roof high above.

Curiosity trumped her feeling of getting in trouble and she started climbing the steps with renewed energy. At the top, she saw that the trapdoor was unlatched. Is someone else up here or do they just forget to lock it? Jaden pushed it open before she could talk herself out of it and was met with a big, wide, sparkling world. She climbed the few steps on the ladder that led through the trapdoor and pushed herself out and onto the Jedi Academy’s roof at the very top of the ziggurat. The wind caught her by surprise but wasn’t strong or too cold, though she pulled her loose robe around her as she took a few steps forward to gaze in awe at the strange and beautiful sights that surrounded her.

As far as the eye could see, the panoramic view from the roof showed countless stars blazing in the night sky, casting a dim light in which to see the tops of the trees that seemed to spread out for miles and miles around the Academy.

How did Rosh and I even make it through that forest? She thought, lifting her eyes now to see the full moon, quite awestruck by the fact that she was on a moon herself, wondering if someone else was on that other moon, looking at the one she was on.

“Jaden? Is that you?” The sudden, quiet voice made her jump and she turned to see Rosh standing near the trapdoor. He was dressed in loose breeches and an even looser fit night shirt that hung from his frame. The front of it was opened a little more than was necessary for a venture outside on a cool night. Jaden forced herself to look at his face instead of the glimpse of his bare, lightly toned chest.

“What are you doing up here?” She asked.

“I could ask you the same,” Rosh smiled, then realized it wasn’t amusing. “I, uh, couldn’t sleep.” He rubbed the back of his neck and ducked his head shyly in a way that Jaden almost found adorable.

“Same,” she replied, looking away before she stared too long. “The view is incredible.”

“I bet it’s even better at sunset.” He moved to stand next to her.

“True.” They were silent for what seemed to Jaden a long time, but it was peaceful, nice even, to just be standing there with someone, looking out at the stars.

Rosh broke the silence. “So, who do you think Kyle will bring with him on his mission?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t really thought of it. Today was wild enough, or yesterday I guess sense it’s probably early morning now. Besides, we still have several days before that and lots of training in between…” She sighed, it all felt like a lot to take in.

“Hey,” Rosh reached out to put a tentative hand on her shoulder, making the skin beneath the fabric of her robe tingle. She started to feel warm all over starting at that place, it was the first time they’d really touched besides her using his shoulder for a pillow on the shuttle. “I’m sorry again about what happened today, all of it. The temple, the Training Grounds. I promise I’ll try not to be as competitive and win -or lose- fair and square.”

“Like I said earlier, all’s forgiven. But thanks for the promise. If either of us gets to go on this mission, let’s promise not to be jealous of the other’s opportunities?” She looked him in the eyes.

Rosh smiled, but it felt forced. “Deal.” He finally removed his hand from her shoulder and headed towards the trapdoor. “Well, I guess I’ll try to get some sleep before another day of training. Do you want me to leave the door open for you?”

Jaden took one last look at the stars and dark forest landscape of Yavin IV. “No, I’m gonna head back down too.”

Once they’d made it safely back down to the Audience Chamber, they rode the lift back up, going their separate ways at the split in the hallway and headed to their own rooms.

Jaden went right to sleep dreaming about stars and watching them while she rested her head on the shoulder of someone solid and dark haired next to her.

That week, Jaden and Rosh’s real training began. Every student awoke early, some before dawn, others just as the sun rose and they all congregated in the dining hall for breakfast. The new students ate together, not because they had too, but more out of a feeling of comfort. Also out of habit. Jaden always helped herself to some caf as did Rosh, though his was usually sweetener and cream with a hint of caf flavoring. That first morning Jaden saw that Goran wore a headdress made of Akul teeth. It lifted her and everyone else’s spirits that his belongings, as well as the majority of the others, got back to them safe and sound.

After breakfast, the students would disperse and meet up with their masters to follow them to whatever training hall or ground they wished to teach their students at. Kyle led Jaden and Rosh to an interior room of the Academy he told them was used for lightsaber combat and proceeded in running them through several drills, even facing them off against one another and at times, himself, but more to exhibit a particular move he wanted to show them and to go through every motion. 

After lightsaber training, he’d sometimes bring them to an outdoor training arena and set them loose inside to face various obstacles and learn to hone their Force abilities. On other occasions they would meet with the other new students for weapons training. This included learning the ins and outs of handling a blaster, thermal detonators and other types of weaponry, not to mention explosives safety and bomb diffusion. After this was over, it was about time for lunch and they were dismissed. Rosh and Jaden would hurry back to the dining hall and join their newfound friends for a hearty meal prepared by the Academy's chief chef, Ched.

In the afternoons they had a measure of free time, though some masters required more attention with their students. Everyone often went back to their rooms to relax, or outside to explore the surrounding forests (though after the incident of the Massassi Temple, many students stayed as close to the Academy as possible), some continued their training by practicing what they learned that day or using an unoccupied section of the Training Grounds. Rosh could often be seen training with the well seasoned pilots and Officer Nuss in the Academy’s hangar, learning the ropes and finer points of flying a real starfighter. Jaden got in a little training too from Kyle, who took her out most afternoons in his ship, the Raven’s Claw and even let her switch seats to pilot it while they stayed within the moon’s atmosphere.

But Jaden soon found that her favorite thing was the Hall of Archives, a library started by Master Skywalker and aided by Master Tionne who helped fill it with all kinds of reading material from all over the galaxy. It was full of all kinds of histories on the Jedi and the Force, with some texts locked away and requiring permission from both Tionne and one’s master in order to read them. Jaden made quick work of many of the histories during her afternoons that first week at the Academy. She read first hand accounts from Luke Skywalker on the destruction of the First Death Star, tales of Jedi from millennia ago during the Old Republic, stories about Darth Revan, once a great Sith Lord who was reformed and soon did what was right for the galaxy and the Jedi.

Kyle also began to tell them stories as they trained, both as a way to help them manage their focus during a mission and also to help them get to know him better. And it worked, both Jaden and Rosh enjoyed hearing his exploits during the Rebellion.

“Though I wasn’t always a Rebel. I was a mercenary too, me and Jan. And before that, well, I was an Imperial.” Both of his students stopped what they were doing. One of the training remotes that was circling them took a cheap shot at Rosh who yelped and made a swipe at it that was just out of reach. Their master smiled.

“That’s why focus is the main thing when facing any enemy, even a low impact training remote.”

“But what do you mean you were an Imperial, Kyle?” Jaden asked, still feeling strange at the notion of calling her master by his first name when everyone else did the complete opposite for theirs.

“That’s another story for another time. Besides, we’ve just completed week one of your training. If I don’t save some of my stories for later, how will I keep you all entertained? Especially during those long flights to and from our missions together come to think of it.” He stroked his beard then looked at his students in turn. “That’s enough for now.” He pushed a button on a nearby podium that deactivated the remotes. “It’s time I let you know which one of you will come with me out into the real world for some real life experience. I wasn’t sure until today which of you it would be, but after this newest report I just got…” He reached over and grabbed a datapad from a table that stood next to the podium.

“We've been receiving a number of reports that a group calling themselves The Disciples of Ragnos has been trying to hire mercenaries and smugglers to haul some cargo. Luke thinks that if we can contact one of these mercenary groups, maybe we can find out the Disciple’s base of operations.” Kyle looked up at Jaden and Rosh who stood quietly at attention, curiosity and concern plaster across their faces. “We’re gonna be going to Mos Eisley, it’s where one of the smuggling rings that we know of is based at. Jaden, I want you to come with me on this one.”

Jaden could hardly contain her excitement, but looked over to Rosh to see his reaction. The disappointment was evident, but he didn’t look annoyed from what she could see.

“Congratulations,” he said, shaking her hand, albeit a bit stiffly, as if trying to be happy for her.

“And don’t worry Rosh, I want you to join me on another mission soon,” Kyle said. “For now, have the rest of the day, and tomorrow while we’re gone, keep up your practice with the pilots in the hangar.”

Rosh nodded stiffly and exited the room. Jaden briefly watched him go, hoping that he’d be alright. Her mind flooded with so many questions about their mission that she didn’t have time to worry about Rosh further.

“So, the Disciples of Ragnos, that’s some of the group who I saw at the temple?”

“It seems like it. Though I’d use the term ‘group’ very lightly. ‘Cult’ is a more appropriate term for these types of people.”

“Are we going to come across any of these people on our mission to Mos Eisley do you think?” Jaden asked with a twinge of concern in her voice.

“Don’t worry,” Kyle assured her, “this one already sounds like it could be nasty, and that’s why I'll be going with you. And with any luck, hopefully we’ll be able to find out something.”

“Is Mos Eisley really that bad?” She asked skeptically.

Kyle made a sudden guffaw type of sound in his throat, then his brow darkened. “Oh you'll find some of the galaxy's worst lowlifes on Tatooine. It’s definitely better to go there in numbers.”

Chapter Text

Kyle landed the Raven’s Claw in an empty docking bay of the Mos Eisley Spaceport. Jaden traded the cool interior of the Claw for the harsh, blistering twin suns of Tatooine. She shielded her eyes.

“Master Skywalker grew up here ?”

“Yep, not exactly the ideal spot to spend your childhood but, he had no choice. When his mother died in childbirth, Obi-Wan Kenobi took him and hid him here with his uncle and aunt, while Princess Leia was adopted by the king of Alderaan.”

“That’s very sad,” Jaden said, and almost added “unfair” that Luke had to be raised in harsh conditions while his sister was raised in the cushy life of a princess. But then again, none of her fellow students had it lucky either.

“Of course, Alderaan was sadly destroyed by the Death Star, so Leia’s not really the princess of anything now. Her official title with the New Republic is Senator Organa, but to us Rebels, she’ll always be our Princess.”

Jaden smiled at the sweet sentiment. She’d heard countless tales of the heroes of the Rebellion and often wondered what it was like to serve under them, to watch them lead in the fight against the Empire.

They entered a docking bay where smaller vessels were parked, lined up in a row.

“Luke’s info was good,” Kyle commented. “These are definitely freelance cargo ships.”

They made their way to another docking bay door and came upon a sight to behold.

A large, gray, YT series Corellian light freighter, with several modifications (mostly illegal) was parked in the middle of the docking bay. The ship was old and had seen many planets and countless fights, but she still held, standing like a scarred and glorious old war hero who still had plenty of fight left in them. The loading ramp was shut and all things considered looked to be locked up tight.

Kyle whistled. “Well I’ll be, the Millennium Falcon!”

Jaden’s eyes widened. “I heard about that ship! I mean, this ship. It's the one that made the Kessel Run in less than, what was it? 11? No, 12 Parsecs?!”

“Yep, that's her,” Kyle answered, then raised his voice to call out: “Han? Chewie? Anybody here?” All was quiet, no answer. “I guess they’re out.”

They turned to leave but a sudden sound, like someone knocking on a window came from behind. By the time they turned around, Jaden just saw a flash of something, a hand maybe? moving away from the cockpit window. A moment later, the loading ramp lowered.

“I guess someone’s home after all.” Kyle folded his arms and watched as two small feet, then legs appeared at the top of the gangway, then made their way down the ramp. It was a child. Jaden and Kyle took in the sight with astonishment. He couldn't have been more than ten, with feathery dark brown hair and brown eyes. He wore knee high brown boots, dark navy pants with a red stripe running up the side of each leg, and a cream colored shirt under a black jacket with a hood. How he wore all that in this heat, Jaden would never understand. She guessed it was why he stayed inside the ship.

“Hey! Are you Jedi?” He asked, trying to look grown up and serious but failing.

Kyle grinned. “Yes we are. We thought your dad and Chewbacca were here. I’m Kyle by the way, I work with your Uncle Luke.”

Dad? Jaden didn’t know the legendary Han Solo had a son.

“Cool!” The boy said. “I’m Ben! Dad and Uncle Chewie stepped out for some business, but I’m not supposed to talk about it, he told me to stay in the Falcon and wait.” Ben groaned. “He never lets me have fun!”

“He probably had a good reason to have you stay here. You know that Mos Eisley is a swarming hive of scum and villainy don’t you?” Jaden could tell Kyle was thoroughly amused by this child.

“Exactly! That's why I didn't wanna stay inside the ship!” 

“Well, you should get back inside, Jaden and I here need to get going,” Kyle said.

Ben begrudgingly made his way back up the loading ramp, turning only to wave goodbye to them. Jaden almost felt sorry for him, it wasn’t hard to sense that he was already strong in the Force. 

“If his parents know what’s good for him, they’ll let Luke train him, and soon. He’s got more than enough feistiness to go around,” Kyle said as they made their way back to the docking bay door. He shook his head. “I’ve got a bad feeling about all this. The cargo ships, Han and Chewie MIA on business.” He glanced back at the Falcon, rubbing his chin in consternation. “Listen. Stay here and guard the entrance to the docking bay. If anyone tries to enter or leave, detain them. I’ll head over to the Krayt Cantina and ask around. I know some people there.” 

Jaden nodded. “I can do that.” I hope. Kyle exited through the door, leaving Jaden all by herself. She stood in front of the door, unsure of what to do, should she just stand like that or in a different way? She looked behind her at the Millennium Falcon, wondering if young Ben was watching her. She went and stood to the side of the door, unclipping her lightsaber from her belt. She held it in her hand at her side, ready for (almost) anything. As the minutes passed, she found herself leaning against the wall, arms crossed. It was really fifteen minutes after Kyle had left when the sound of blaster fire startled Jaden out of her calm, heat induced stupor.

She leapt away from the wall, igniting her saber and stepping to the side, waiting to confront whatever was behind the door. Sure enough, the door slid open, and a huge, furry creature wielding a bowcaster emerged, roaring the instant it saw her. It was a Wookie, Jaden realized, and its roar was a question, not a threat.

“A Jedi? Me? No, not yet.” She felt relieved at having learned a little of some of the galaxy’s many languages. “I’m one of Kyle Katarn’s students. He’s talking to some locals. We’re investigating a cult that’s been cropping up everywhere.” Realization suddenly dawned on her. “You must be Chewbacca. Why are you here?”

Chewbacca responded with a series of growls and grunts. Jaden’s eyes widened at the words she was able to pick out.

“Leia Organa? Wow… it must be important business.” The Wookiee simply nodded his big shaggy head, turned and smashed the control panel next to the door, barring anyone from getting in.

At the Cantina…

Kyle entered the low lit room of the Krayt Cantina, the smell of death sticks and hard liquor a permanent staple. He walked with ease and swagger down the steps, eyes gliding across the room for anyone familiar.

“Katarn!” A voice, half slurred, shouted from the bar. 

Kyle put on a big smile, “Al! Didn’t think I’d ever set eyes on you again! How long’s it been? I woulda thought you’d been swallowed and digested by some Krayt Dragon or tossed by the Hutts into the Sarlacc pit already. How’ve you survived in this town for this long ?”

“‘It’s a long story.” Al slurred, he had a greasy mop of dark hair and wore even greasier clothes. But he was the best greasy informant Kyle had ever known. When he wasn’t drunk, that is, sobriety was something he rarely saw on Al. “Why dontcha ‘ettle dow here and I’ll tell ya ‘bout it? And ‘ow’s Jan by the way?”

Kyle ignored that last question. “Hmm, tempting, but you see Al, I’m here on business, a bit of a hurry too, I’m looking for information about a-” Kyle looked this way and that, then leaned in, trying not to inhale Al’s stench. “About a cult. A Sith cult to be exact, associated with the name of one Marka Ragnos. Heard they might be tryna hire some mercs here.”

“Ooooohhh,” Al said, leaning in and grabbing the front of Kyle’s shirt. “Then boy do I have ‘some news for you!” He pointed his big greasy finger at Kyle. “But firs’ let me buy ya a drink!”

Kyle pulled back slightly, trying his best to control his gag reflex. “That sounds nice but I really can’t-”

“No! I ‘nsist! Bartender!” Al raised his hand and waved wildly. Kyle sighed. This was going to take awhile. 

“One Ruby Bliel please.” He told the bartender.

Jaden and Chewbacca approached the Falcon. The loading ramp opened and Ben Solo came flying down it and into Chewie’s arms. “Uncle Chewie!” He yelled and the Wookie picked the boy up in one arm, the other still holding the bowcaster and spun him around. Jaden stepped back to give them space. Their relationship was something very close and truly sweet to behold. The Wookiee set him down and Ben turned to Jaden.

“So what’s going on? How can I help?”

“It seems like some mercenaries who are docked nearby don’t like that Chewbacca is poking around for your mom,” Jaden said. “And if I had to venture a guess, I’d say they’re connected to what my master and I are looking into.”

“And that is…?” Ben asked. Jaden shook her head, remembering she was talking to a child, not a grown up. Not that she thought kids weren’t smart but, she didn’t want him involved more than he was now, and there was no way she was putting him in harm's way.

“Sorry Ben, I can’t talk about it now, Chewie and I need to check out the rest of the facility and make sure everything’s okay.”

“Maybe I can help!” Ben pleaded, "I won't get in the way, I’ll do what you tell me just please let me do something fun for once!”

Chewie put a furry hand on his head and made a series of sounds only a Wookie could make. From what she could understand, Chewie seemed to be telling Ben to do what Han, his dad had said and being in a dangerous situation wasn’t ‘fun.’

Jaden looked around the outside of the ship, her eyes settling on the cockpit. “I may have a solution.” Ben looked up at her hopefully. Jaden looked to Chewbacca seeking permission. He bade her to continue. “Well, if you have a comlink of your own Ben…”

“I do!” He said excitedly, immediately understanding.

“...Then we could all tune to the same frequency and stay in communication with each other. Ben can stay in the Falcon, with the doors locked, safe and sound up in the cockpit. You can be our lookout and let us know if anything changes or if someone unsavory enters the area that could be a threat.”

“Got it!” Ben said, “Shouldn’t we call your master? You know, for backup?”

“Hmm, well he’s looking for information right now…” Jaden wasn’t sure, she felt that maybe she and Chewie could handle themselves okay. Things didn’t seem to be too extreme that required his help. Yet.

 “Chewie and I can handle this,” she decided. “We can always call Kyle as a fail safe.”

Gesturing to the Falcon she said, “You should go ahead and get inside, don’t forget to lock it up tight.”

“On it!” Ben turned on his heel and ran back up the ramp. A moment later it closed, another minute and a call came on Chewbacca’s comlink. “Chewie are you there? It’s me, Ben. Or should we use call signs?”

Jaden smiled and tuned her com to the same frequency. “I think we can use our own names, Ben. Chewie and I are headed out. Stay in touch only if something changes. We’ll check in every ten minutes.”

“Okay! Over and out!” It was quiet for a second and then, “This is really cool by the way. Thanks for letting me be a part of your team, over! I mean over and out!”

Chewie made a grunting sound, and said something about kids and how much you gotta love ‘em. Jaden smiled, the kid was bursting with energy, something that her nineteen year old self wished she had a little more of. He also reminded her of a certain someone back at the Academy. I wonder if this was what Rosh was like at this age.

They moved inside of the corridors connecting the various docking bays to each other, coming across no one until they came to a staircase going up… 

“E chu ta!” A deep alien voice said, followed by the sound of something dropping down the stairs. Jaden had seconds to recognize what it was. “Detonator!” She yelled and hurried back through the door they came in, Chewie following, barely clearing the doorway for cover when it blew.

“Holy-” Jaden began, but was cut off as baster fire rained down. Igniting her saber, she deflected as Chewbacca fired back, it was thankfully a small group of mercenaries. But how many other groups like these posed a danger to them? 

The way clear now, they hurried up the stairs, coming out onto a long walkway above the Millennium Falcon’s docking bay. Ahead, as if to answer their unspoken question, a door opened and out ran a Rodian Bounty Hunter, armed with a rifle of some kind that Jaden had never seen before.

Chewie let out a warning, firing off several rounds to keep the Rodian from aiming properly. Jaden decided to try out her skill in the Force. Running hard, she plowed forward, lightsaber held in front defensively. As she reached him, the Rodian dropped to his knee and fired. The laser blast almost landed, singeing the fabric of her upper arm before she swung the killing blow. She kept going, jumping over his body, looking back to see Chewbacca coming up behind. They raced into the room, some kind of control center, stopping short when they realized it was empty, but voices from behind a corner told them otherwise.

“Is it just me, or are the Rodians kinda creepy?” Said one voice, Jaden’s hand flew to her mouth to keep from laughing, the statement had caught her so off guard.

“I know what ya mean, those weird antenna things right?” A second voice answered.

“Yeah, that and the nose. Pretty spooky.”

“Yeah, what is that?! On second thought, I don’t wanna know.” Jaden choked on another laugh, releasing a chortle that sounded like a dying Womp Rat.

“Who’s there?” The first voice called.

“It’s the Rodian guy, I just know it!” The second said in a not so quiet whisper. Jaden looked up at Chewie who just gave a furry shrug and they came into view of the two mercenaries who looked very confused. Jaden’s lightsaber glowed purple on the walls. “Care to explain what’s going on around here and why you mercs are attacking us?” The only answer she got was blaster fire. 

After taking care of the mercs, Jaden turned to Chewie. “We need to check the rest of the facility and see just how many of these mercs there are!”

Chewie huffed in agreement and they hurried down into an empty docking bay. They startled a Rodian who stood near the door. He cried out and ran for cover behind a nearby crate. All around the bay, human, Rodian, Gran, and Trandoshan mercs turned at the disturbance.

“Sithspit!” Jaden muttered, and the mercs opened fire. They ducked behind some nearby crates and cargo that was spread out across the bay.

“Jaden, Jaden can you hear me?” Ben asked over their coms.

“We’re a little busy here!” Jaden said, popping up from behind a crate, deflecting a blaster bolt, ricocheting it into the far wall. 

“I know, I can see you and Chewie are pinned down in the mercs docking bay.”

Jaden rolled behind another bit of cover, Chewie following after. “Wait, you can see us? How?”

“I um… hacked into the spaceport’s security monitors,” Ben answered tentatively.

Before Jaden could even question the ethics of it or how a kid his age had learned such a thing he continued. “Look, there’s about five mercenaries in that docking bay with you. I’m checking the rest of the cameras to see just how many more of them there are in the facility.”

“Grrraaaaagghhhh!” Chewie said.

“Good idea! We won’t be such easy targets inside!” Jaden spotted a door nearby. Holding up her saber, she covered Chewie as they raced across the bay, managing to take down about half of the mercenaries. 

Instead of inside, they found themselves in the docking bay that housed the cargo ships she and Kyle had seen. It was mysteriously empty and quiet. Suddenly, from the walkway above, a thermal detonator came flying at them. Jaden and Chewie dove in opposite directions. 

“We need more cover!” Jaden shouted. “Let’s get back to our ship!”

Chewie roared in agreement and fired on the grenadier, the Gran fell forwards and landed hard on the sand. As they headed across the bay towards the door Jaden remembered coming through earlier with Kyle, they heard a sound from above. Looking up towards the central tower in the middle of the complex, Jaden saw a strange blue and white light emit from one corner of the round tower. It was shining on the bay the Raven’s Claw was parked in. The same sound came again, but she couldn’t see where it came from.

“Guys, you’re not gonna like the sound of this…” Ben said. “Someone activated a tractor beam on the Falcon! I also saw on the control tower’s monitor that someone’s messing with the controls to the doors of the docking bays on this side!”

“So that’s what it is, I think there’s one on the Raven’s Claw as well.” Jaden said. She looked up at Chewie, “We can’t get to the ships, then. The whole place is locked down!”

“Try to get into the control center at the top of the tower,” Ben suggested, “It's the only way to turn off the tractor beams.”

“You mean you can’t hack them from the Falcon?”

“Hey,” Ben said, and Jaden got a mental image of him shrugging in defense, “I’m only nine and a quarter, I can’t be expected to master all of technology yet!”

“Grrr Aaaahhhh,” Chewie said, meaning “Kid’s got a point.”

They both headed to another section of the docking bay, towards a door leading back inside. A couple of crates stood near it.

“Grraaaaaa,” Chewie cautioned Jaden with a fuzzy hand on her shoulder, meaning the crates were explosive.

“Got it,” Jaden stepped back and made to move far around them and to the door. The sound of another door opening made her and Chewie turn around. Several mercenaries entered the docking bay.

“Get down!” Jaden hissed. Chewie ducked behind a non-explosive crate while Jaden blocked and deflected blaster fire that rained freely. Finally, she jumped to the side, somersaulting to a stop beside Chewie.

“I’ll disengage the tractor beams if you think you can hold these guys!” Chewie responded he could and Jaden counted to three. She jumped up and sprinted across the exposed area, through the door and passed the explosive crates. Behind her, a Trandoshan hefted a rocket launcher onto his shoulder and fired at the crates. They blew up, causing debris to fall and block the door.

Jaden found herself in a room alone, a set of stairs to her right. Saber at the ready, she made her way up the stairs and through the door at the top of them. The first thing she saw was blue laser tripwires set between some stacks of crates. She carefully moved around the crates, realizing they didn’t continue but were for show. She hurried through the room, looking around different boxes. She took down the three mercs who tried to take her by surprise. 

After taking down a Rodian who stood guarding one of two doors at the other end of the room, she passed through into one with a single lift in the middle of it. She brought her comlink to her lips. 

“Ben, do you read me? I found a lift into the tower, I should have those tractor beams down in no time.”

“Awesome! Let Chewie know when you do, it looks like he’s almost down taking care of those mercs.”

“Got it, over and out.” Replacing the com in her pocket, Jaden stepped onto the lift.

It took her to the very top of the control tower. It was a circular room split in half by a dividing wall with a door in each one on either side of the elevator. Large windows in each of the four sections looked out on each of the four docking bays. Jaden glanced at the control panel in front of her then looked out the window. An overhead view of the Millennium Falcon was spread out below her, a beam of that pale blue light casting down onto it. She flipped a switch on the control panel and the light disappeared.

“Okay, that’s it for the Falcon. Now for the Raven’s Claw,” Jaden said to herself, she turned and, if she was correct and not completely turned around by this place, headed through the door behind her where the controls for the Raven’s bay hopefully were. She almost bumped into someone as she entered, a person clad in coppery colored fabric, the impression of a curved symbol on their shoulder…

Jaden jumped back, saber out. The figure, clearly a cultist like the one she’d faced on Yavin IV, ignited a lightsaber of his own, crimson and menacing. 

“Come on, fight me!” He taunted. They crossed sabers, dueling in closer quarters than the wide open grassy clearing where she’d had her first battle. A few close calls kept Jaden on her toes as she looked for an opening, a chink in her opponet’s armor, just like Kyle had taught her. 

Damn, I wonder what he’s up to.

Meanwhile, at the Cantina…

“Hahahaha, ha!” Kyle slapped Al on the back. “And then Jan and I swooped down and got the hell off that planet! And that’s the last time I ever messed with spice!” Kyle downed the rest of his drink, his third Ruby Bliel. He could hold his liquor better than anybody, but boy, was it taking its toll on him. If he wanted Al to give him any info on the cult, it’d have to be soon.

“Ah well, ‘tha’s the ‘stuff Kyle!” Al hiccuped, “Now you ‘slaid you wanted some info on ‘his cult?”

Kyle became serious. “Yes, Al, I do. It’s important.”

“Okay okay, ‘slo, the one you’re gonna need to talk to is Ol’ Jim over there.” He raised an inebriated finger to indicate a middle aged man sitting off in a corner by himself. He wore light colors and tough fabrics, dirtied from an honest day's work. A moisture farmer no doubt.

“Him?” Kyle asked skeptically. “I thought you said you had the info?”

“I do!” Al said loudly, “And I just happen to know of ‘someone who can ‘elp you!” 

Kyle put his face in his hand. “Thanks Al.” He got up to approach the man who’d been pointed out to him.

“Hey, what about another drink, for the road!” Al called, but Kyle didn’t answer, he’d had enough Al-cohal for one day.

Jaden turned off the second tractor beam, not glancing down at the corpse of the Dark Jedi she’d finally managed to overpower.

“The tractor beams are down Chewbacca, I’m on my way!” She said into her com, then headed back to the lift. It took her all the way down to ground level. The room was empty, four different doors leading to the hallways connecting the docking bays were spaced evenly around the room. Jaden paused, trying to think of which one led to where she needed to go.

A soft, “Grrrrrrrrerrrrrrrr” came from behind a door facing the back of the lift. She ran to it as it opened up, revealing Chewie, bowcaster in hand, still in one piece.

“Good to see you too! Let’s go!” Jaden rushed past him and they headed through the door into the Falcon’s docking bay.

She looked from the left to the right, her com grasped in one hand, lightsaber in the other. “Ben, whaddya got, are there more mercs in the facility?” 

“I don’t think so, I’m not seeing- Look out!!!” He screamed.

Jaden caught a flash of metal hidden among the nearby crates. Twisting her body in that direction, she dodged the onslaught of laser blasts. Chewbacca opened fire on another merc that made an appearance. Rushing at the mercenary while running in a zigzag formation, Jaden easily took down the merc. Together, she and Chewbacca made short work of the remaining mercenaries.

“Ben, it's okay to come now!” Jaden called, still panting from the exertion she felt. The loading ramp lowered a few seconds later, the boy hurrying down it.

“That. Was. Amazing!” He cried.

“Well, we couldn’t have done it without you.” Jaden smiled down at him, tousling his thick dark locks. “You also saved my life back there. Thanks.”

The door to the bay opened, and Kyle entered, joined by a man close to his age, probably a few years older, sharing a resemblance to the boy standing next to her. 

Ben’s father.

  They stepped over a mercenary's body and looked around.

“Oh, did I miss something?” Kyle looked over to Jaden, a gleam in his eye.

Chewie stopped what he was doing repairing a small part on the side of the Falcon that was damaged by blaster fire and greeted Kyle with a wave. He and Jaden closed the distance between the two men and themselves.

Kyle laughed. “Good to see you, too, Chewie! Guess these mercs didn’t want us here.”

“Dad you’re back!” Yelled Ben as he came back down the gangway. He dropped whatever part Chewie had sent him up to get and ran to his father’s side. 

“Hey! Did ya stay outta trouble?” Han gave him a brief hug then a noogie. Suddenly, as if inspired by Han, Chewie grabbed Jaden from behind and hugged her tightly, the air going right out of her as he rubbed her head with his massive, hairy hand. Jaden didn’t know whether to be frightened or to laugh at the hilarity of the gesture. It didn’t last long and she shrugged away rather quickly. Kyle just chuckled.

“Heh, that’s high praise, coming from a Wookiee.” Jaden made it to her master’s side, then, not wanting to be rude, turned back to face Chewbacca.

“Thanks… I think.”

Kyle looked to Han. “Oh, Han, Jaden.” He gestured to her. “Jaden, Han Solo.” Then back to Han. “We ran into each other on my way back from the Cantina.” Jaden noticed a not so great smell around Kyle when he spoke. Had he been drinking? He lightly hit his chest with his fist as though to break up air bubbles trapped there and burped slightly. Either that or he’d been drinking too many translucent sodas. She left it alone for now and reached out to shake Solo’s hand.

“Pleasure to meet you,” she said.

“Mine as well, Kyle told me a lot about you, at least in the time it took to get here from the Cantina.” For someone more than twice her age, Han had a charming smile and Jaden didn’t realize she was blushing.

“These mercs aren’t cheap; someone in this cult must have a lot of credits. Or worse, it’s backed by the Remnant.” Kyle looked around at the small battlefield. “What you told me from Leia’s end really helps, turns out the problem we’re dealing with is one and the same.” 

Han nodded, “Looks like it.” Jaden waited for them to elaborate. They didn’t.

Kyle turned to her. “Listen, we gotta get word back to Luke and tell him what’s going on.” He looked at Han. “Can you and Chewie tell Leia about the cult?”

“GRRrrrrrraaagghhh!” Chewie replied for them. 

Jaden shifted her feet, looking up at the large beast, “If he hadn’t shown up when he did, I’d have been in a whole lot of trouble.” She smiled at the Wookiee.

Kyle put his hands on his hips. “Yeah, well, the way Chewie tells it, you held your own. Nice work.” He then glanced at the young Solo. “And I have a feeling you weren’t just held up inside the Falcon either.”

Jaden spoke up for him. “Actually, he was on the ship the whole time with the doors locked. He was our lookout.”

“Yeah and I hacked into the security monitors and saved Jaden’s life!” Ben piped up.

“You did what?” Han looked at his son in confusion, then to Jaden.

“He really was a lot of help,” she shrugged. “But to be fair I didn’t ask him to hack the cameras.”

Chewie intervened to tell Han he should be proud of Ben’s initiative and a job well done.

“Well…” Han said, not fully convinced. “I guess no one got hurt.”

“Except the bad guys!” Ben said. “Now can I get to go to Uncle Luke’s Academy and train to be a Jedi like Jaden? Can I please, Dad?”

Han looked uncomfortable, Jaden saw, like they’d had this talk before. “We’ll see. We should probably get you home and talk to your mother about everything that happened today.” He carefully guided Ben towards the Falcon and up the loading ramp, stopping only to wave goodbye, with Chewie being the last to go, giving a big roar of thanks and a furry wave. 

As Jaden watched them disappear onboard the Millennium Falcon, a cold sensation ran down her spine and settled into the pit of her stomach, twisting it in knots, a feeling of clammy darkness wrapping itself around her, then dispersing as quickly as it came. She wondered what it was about. Ben and his dad maybe?

“Well, that’s gonna be an awkward trip home,” Kyle said, breaking her out of the frightening moment, completely unaware. “Let’s get back to the Raven’s Claw, we’ve gotta get to the canyons west of here.” He turned and strode quickly towards the exit. Jaden ran to catch up.

“Wait a minute! What about what you and Han were talking about? What was that? And did you get the info you needed and more importantly, have you been drinking and should I drive?” She stopped suddenly, wondering if she crossed a line. Kyle just laughed.

“I’ll tell you on the way what we were talking about. Yes, I got the info I needed, and yes, I did drink three Ruby Bliels. Though, while not enough to inebriate me, definitely gave me a small headache. Trust me, I know how to hold my liquor and three of those sweet things isn’t enough to get me buzzed.”

“Um, okay? But, uh, should I be….” Jaden wasn’t really sure if she should say it.

“Should you be worried? No,” Kyle said. “I don’t have a drinking problem if that’s what you're concerned about. I was following a lead with a so-called friend. I thought getting a drink would expedite the process but it did not. I guess I got carried away because he didn’t have squat, but he did know somebody who did so I guess it wasn’t a total loss. Still, I am sorry to have given you cause to worry.” He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and she nodded. 

“Thank you,” She said and they continued onward to their ship. 

“Anyway,” Kyle called back. “I talked to a moisture farmer who told me he’d recently overheard a group of smugglers talking about a Sith cult in another local bar the other day and he had his R5 droid record the conversation.”

“Great!” Jaden exclaimed. “So are we going out to meet him and listen to it?”

“Unfortunately, no,” Kyle replied. “He got scared and sold the droid to some Jawas yesterday. He happened to be in the bar because he was getting one last drink before leaving Tatooine for good, but he did tell me which group of Jawas he sold it to and where they were. We need to get a hold of that droid before the Jawas wipe its memory. They shouldn’t have gone too far in the last day. But we’ve got to locate those Jawas, purchase the droid, and get it back to the Academy.”

“Okay, sounds easy enough.”

“Not really, we may know the direction they went, but those canyons are still a labyrinth of twists and turns and dead ends. We’re gonna need some more help on this one.” He pulled up short as they reached the Raven’s Claw. “I sent a message to Rosh with the coordinates of the spot we’re heading to and he’ll meet us there.” They both climbed up into the cockpit and lifted off, Kyle turned to Jaden to add, “This should be a total blue milk run, kid. But it'll give you a chance to pick up some negotiating skills!” 

As they flew over Mos Eisley, Jaden secretly hoped it would be a long time before she ever had to return to that wretched place again.

Chapter Text

Kyle landed the Raven’s Claw just inside the opening of the canyon. It had tall, curved walls with thousands of layers of dirt in varying shades of red, orange, and brown. Nearby stood a lone sandstone hut, typical of the types of houses built out in the Tatooine desert. Jaden had read that the dome roofed huts were actually built as the entrance and led underground into the real living space. 

Cooler underground instead of burning up above. Smart. 

They’d seen more of them surrounding the outside of the canyon. While Kyle went to the lone hut inside the canyon entrance, Jaden sat atop the Raven’s Claw, binoculars in hand, watching for Rosh’s arrival to make sure he knew where he was headed. The X-wing he’d been lent from the Academy appeared shortly and he landed almost expertly close to the Raven’s Claw. Jaden jumped down from the roof of the ship and hollered, “Kyle, Rosh is here!”

Rosh hopped out of the cockpit with a rehearsed swagger, the wind catching his short dark locks and hurried over to her and Kyle. He looks cool, I'll give him that, Jaden thought. “Hey, how was it?” She said aloud, pointing to the X-wing.

Rosh waved his hand dismissively. “Aww it was nothing! Especially for my first flight in a real ship on my own.”

“You’ve never piloted a ship before? I thought you’d been training in the hangar this whole time?”

“Well,” Rosh shrugged. “I've driven plenty of speeders before I came to the Academy and I got to pilot a Y-wing one time a few days ago, but that was while I was still in the planet’s atmosphere. I’ve apparently been doing so well that I finally got the go ahead from Officer Nuss to take an X-Wing out. And perfect timing too, seeing as how Kyle needed me to come help today.”

“That’s pretty impressive. Kyle’s been showing me the controls on the Claw, I’ve piloted a few speeders too but never a ship. I’m gonna have to learn quickly though if I want to pilot a ship for my own missions soon.” Jaden put her hands in her pockets, it felt good to catch up with Rosh, because even though they had the same master, they trained so much when they were together that they hardly seemed to have a moment to really talk, even in the dining hall they were usually just waking up or too tired from training to do anything but eat or make the occasional comment when their fellow new students talked or asked a question. Come to think of it, their conversation on the Academy’s rooftop that first night had been their longest. The memory of it made her feel warmer, amplifying the planet’s twin suns heat beating down on her. 

She suddenly looked away from Rosh in the direction of the Claw. Where was Kyle?

“Well, maybe not too soon, I don’t wanna get ahead of myself,” she added hastily, wiping away the sweat that beaded on her brow. “Do you have enough water with you?”

Rosh scratched the back of his neck. “I think so, Master Tionne gave me a bottle before I left, hold on, it’s in my X-wing.” He ran back to get it.

Kyle sauntered back up into the heat, “No one’s home,” he said. “No Jawas either. Never around when you need them.” Rosh returned with his bottle of water. “Ah, Rosh, glad you’re here, it’ll make this search a lot easier. Good to see that you got here in one piece.”

“It was no problem,” Rosh said easily. Kyle bent down to examine something he noticed in the dirt.

“Tracks… maybe they’ve already come and gone.” He straightened up and looked at both his students. “Follow these tracks through the canyon and see if you can find their sandcrawler; they might have stopped further in. I’ll talk to the moisture farmers around the area, see if they know anything about this cult.”

Jaden looked sideways at Rosh then back to Kyle. “All right,” she said, not sounding particularly confident.

“Don’t worry. Jawas are pretty friendly,” Kyle chuckled. “You kids have fun, this’ll be a great way to build teamwork.” Without another word, he turned and headed towards the exit of the canyon. Rosh glanced at Jaden, Jaden glanced at Rosh.

“So, I,” Rosh’s voice lacked the casual confidence from earlier. “I guess we just… go that way until we find the sandcrawler? Not that hard, right?”

“I guess so.” Jaden lifted her shoulders. Seemed easy enough, but Kyle had given them no other instructions, no advice on what to do if… if what? He was basically throwing them off a metaphorical cliff to see if they’d fly without his help. Seemed reckless, but then again, nothing about Kyle was like the other masters, he’d already shown himself as unorthodox. Not necessarily unprofessional, just… different.

Jaden started walking forward, the tracks stretching out in front of her as far as she could see until they disappeared around the corner where the canyon curved. 

“You coming?” She turned back. Rosh looked as confused as she felt, then picked up the pace and came jogging after her, a smile spreading across his face.

“We’ve got this, just like our first day! Rosh and Jaden, against the world!” They both chuckled.

“More like Rosh and Jaden against the blistering heat,” she commented. More laughter.

Rosh added, “Or, Rosh and Jaden against a Dark Jedi and two stormtroopers!”

Jaden sobered a bit. “Well, that was more like ‘just Jaden’ against all that.”

“True,” Rosh muttered quietly. “You know I am sorry about that, I was looking for help, honest! I’d found a way around the clearing and I… I was just doing what I thought…”

“What you thought was right?” Jaden said quietly. “I’m sorry for holding a grudge, I had just wished I didn’t have to face it all by myself but… I mean, even though you had your blaster, there wasn’t much you could’ve done when that cultist jumped down from the tree.”

“I could’ve used the Force to help you, instead I ran away. I… I was… kinda scared, you know?”

“Me too.” Jaden stopped a moment and looked Rosh in the eye. “Still friends?” She extended her hand.

He smiled, took her hand and shook it. “Still friends.”

“And training buddies?” She tilted her head, smirking playfully.

“And training buddies… When I’m not trying to kill you,” he said. They both laughed. “And don’t worry,” he added as they trekked along. “I promise to never try anything that stupid ever again.”

“Which part? Leaving me to find help or sicking a training droid on me?”

“Both. Not ever. If that helps paint a picture for you. Oh, last one I promise, Rosh and Jaden against the dark side!”

“Rosh and Jaden against the dark side!” She agreed and they continued on in relative ease, taking sips from their water bottles, that feeling of being lifelong friends returning, even though they’d first met over a week ago. As they went, Jaden caught Rosh up on what happened in Mos Eisley.

“ You got to see the Millennium Falcon and meet Han Solo? Wow.” Rosh shook his head. “Talk about lucky! What were they doing there anyway?”

“Kyle said that Han and Chewie were on an assignment for Senator Organa. They were sent to investigate some unknown organization that’s been contacting various mercenary groups, but she had no idea that it was a cult, and a Sith one at that!”

“Wow,” Rosh said again, “I’m just glad we’re all on the same page. By the way, you mentioned getting to work with the Senator's son? How was it?”

“Well, considering he’s nine -and a quarter- I’d say it went relatively well. I didn’t put him into a dangerous situation that would cause him bodily harm so I’d say that it was a roaring success for my first time babysitting!” 

Rosh laughed. “Wish I could've seen that!”

“He kinda reminded me of you actually.” Jaden cut her gaze at him.

“Really? What part? Cute and intelligent?” 

“More like energetic and a bit reckless,” she said playfully. “...And pretty tech smart… and a little bit cute,” she added. Rosh ran his hand through his short raven hair, looking away to try and hide the fact that his already ruddy cheeks were coloring even more. 

After about twenty minutes of walking, they came to a fork in the path of the canyon. Looking down on the ground, they realized they hadn’t been checking the tracks regularly and apparently they’d been trampled over by footprints, several of them, in the past day and a half. 

“Let’s check the right hand path first,” Jaden said.

“Shouldn’t we split up and save time? Isn’t that what we’re supposed to do?” Rosh asked. But neither of them wanted to admit they didn’t want to go alone.

“Let’s stay together,” Jaden answered for them, and they picked up the pace. They didn’t have to run far, because not thirty yards down the path, they were met by a tall stone wall blocking their path.

“Can’t go that way,” Jaden said. “C’mon, we’ve gotta make up for lost time!” Tapping into their reserves of Force Power, they sped back, retracing their steps and continuing up the left hand path.

A short time later the canyon opened up a bit more and they started noticing homes and other domiciled structures built into the cliff sides above them and on ground level. 

“Hey, let's stop and see if anyone’s home,” Rosh suggested and they approached the nearest doorway in the side of the canyon wall. 

Jaden knocked. “Hello! Anyone there?” Then she saw that the door was cracked open slightly. She looked at Rosh and jerked her head at the door. He nodded, lightsaber at the ready. Jaden quickly slid the door open and entered the room, looking around, Rosh at her heels. No one could be found. Now that she was inside, she realized this place was more a cave than a house. The “room” they were in just extended backwards into a narrow passage and seemingly onward. Junk and boxes were scattered around them on the sandy floor.

“Hello?” She called softly. “Is anyone here? Are you hurt?” They carefully stepped around broken droid parts. What are these doing here?

 “Hello?” She called as they walked further into the cave, large rocks with stalagmite and stalactite formations surrounding them.

“We’re here to hel-” Out of nowhere someone with a large staff swung at Jaden’s face. With a scream, her lightsaber came up and severed it in two. Behind her, Rosh’s saber lit up the assailant in a golden yellow hue.

“Tusken Raiders!” He yelled, swinging his saber and slicing the Raider’s arm off before stabbing it in the abdomen. “C’mon we have to go!” Together they ran through the cavern, passing more crates, droid parts and random weapons. They were met by more Sand People, armed with gaffi sticks, but they weren’t caught off guard this time. They had dispatched about a half dozen before they came to their first door in the strange cave home. It only opened into a small, enclosed space, maybe a storage room? A crack ran horizontally along the wall, too thin to fit through but wide enough to see daylight and the environment outside. There were more droid parts. Jaden bent down to examine a R series droid.

“You’re not an R5 unit though,” she muttered, then glanced up at the crack. “Can’t go that way either.”

“I found where the Jawas are at least,” Rosh said, pointing through the crack. Sure enough, the hulking square figure of the Jawa sandcrawler sat stationary not far from wherever they now were.

“We just have to find a way out of here.” Jaden left the room with Rosh right on her tail as they hurried through the cave. “What do you think happened here?” She asked.

“Looks like the Sand People took over, and it seems like they’ve been here a while. They might have stopped the sandcrawler and that’s why it's not moving. I mean, I didn’t see any Jawas around it.”

“You’re probably right. This is really bad! And if the droid we’re looking for is still on that thing, it’s only a matter of time before the Tusken Raiders find it and…” 

They ran faster. A door stood up ahead, wide open, and the war cries of the Sand People reached their ears. Sabers ready in defensive positions, they leapt out into the open, surprising their would be attackers. Jaden took the two that stood to their left, Rosh handled the ones on the right. The first one Jaden went for was holding a long rifle at close range. She ducked, slashing its legs, then was up and finishing off the second one when she suddenly heard Rosh.

“Jaden! Look out!” Something hard connected with the back of her knees and she fell hard, rolling onto her back, blinking as a dark shadow blocked out the suns above her. The monstrous Tusken Raider lifted its gaffi stick above its head in celebration, roaring at the top of its lungs before delivering the killing blow. But it never came. A bright yellow blade burst through the Tusken’s chest, and for one frightening moment, the Raider gasped, dropping its weapon and clutching at its chest, its horrible hands getting caught in Rosh’s lightsaber blade, severing fingers and parts of its hands. Then, it fell as its killer shoved it to the side, landing hard on the course, dry ground.

 Jaden was now looking into Rosh’s face, it was twisted and distorted with something she could only describe as unchecked rage and aggression, almost animallike. And it scared her. She shrank back.

His face slowly softened back to his calm self. He reached out his hand as he put his saber away, "Jaden, it's okay, I got him. He's dead."

Jaden took a slow, steadying breath. Had she really just seen what she thought she saw -no, knew she had seen- pass across her friend’s face? I did see it. That unbridled anger…

She slowly lifted her hand and took his, allowing him to help her up. Back on her feet, she hoped she wouldn’t start shaking, hoped Rosh wouldn’t notice how scared she was. But he’d already started walking towards the sandcrawler. They were in a box canyon. There were no signs of Sand People lurking around that they could see, so they set their sights on finding a way into the crawler itself. Walking around the far side of it, they saw that the large rear door was open, forming a ramp to walk up, but the doors on the bottom level were all locked. They looked up to a higher level that had no visible way of getting up except through the locked door.

“I wonder if we can get up there,” Rosh said. He looked up to see a crane holding an old landspeeder several feet above them. He got an idea. 

“Jaden, see that small landspeeder up there? Help me lower it and we’ll use it to ride up to the higher level.”

They stood side by side, with Jaden putting some space between herself and Rosh. If he noticed it, he didn’t show it, and together they called on all the Force they could muster and focused on pulling the speeder on its pulley system down from the top of the sandcrawler. It came down to hover a few feet from the ground. Rosh hurried to it and gestured for Jaden to step into his cupped hands. She almost didn’t want to, she felt an aversion just being near him after what she’d witnessed. Just shake it off, you have to work together to complete this mission! Stop treating him like he’s diseased, it’s not like he’s gonna turn rabid on you! She put her boot into his hands and jumped onto the hood of the speeder, then pulled him up after. They then used the Force to make it lift back up until they were even with the upper level of the sandcrawler. It wasn’t a far jump for them to make and they were soon searching for a door that would lead them deeper into the crawler.

“Is there any way we can check the computers for records to see if these are even the right Jawas?” Jaden asked, checking some of the control panels.

“Not really, I’ve heard that Jawas keep sketchy records at best, none if worst. We’re just going to have to find one of the cargo rooms,” Rosh replied. “Let’s try this lift here.” 

Thankfully, the lift wasn’t locked and led to another higher level, with a catwalk leading to a door that would hopefully take them inside. It did, and they rushed down a passage and into the sandcrawler’s belly. They found no living Jawas, only their bodies, confirming Rosh’s earlier suspicions. Another lift took them down a level and into what Rosh had described as the Jawas’ “cargo room.” It was chalk full of crates and pieces of droids.

“How many droids do these Jawas have?” Jaden said in amazement, her mouth on the floor.

“If they didn’t sell droids I’d have said they were hoarders,” Rosh commented and stepped further into the room. A roar like cry sounded from the side and the two young Jedi instantly stood back to back, sabers out. The Sand People were coming in at both sides and the two found themselves swinging wildly and trying not to get hit with the gaffi sticks. It was all heat and adrenaline and sweat and then… at least a half dozen, give or take of the Tusken Raiders lay dead all around them. Jaden and Rosh simultaneously leaned back against each other and sagged to the floor, panting. Jaden could feel the heat radiating off Rosh’s back and was glad she hadn’t seen his face throughout the whole ordeal.

Rosh could feel the cold fear coming from Jaden’s side but thought it was because of what just transpired. They sat like this in cold silence, the stuffy air of the inside of the sandcrawler seeking to suffocate them with the scent of body odor, filth and death. 

Finally, they stood shakily and stepped over the bodies, quietly searching the dimly lit hull. Jaden stepped around a large black box and spotted a red and white R5 unit. She nearly cried out with mad joy. Wiping sweat from her brow, she kneeled down in front of it; the poor droid must have been through a lot, because it backed away, beeping quietly. It must have been hiding from the Sand People…  

“Hi there, don’t be afraid. I’m a Jedi- err, Jedi student. You must be the droid we were sent for. My friend and I are going to get you out.” She waved Rosh over. “It doesn’t look like there’s any Jawas left to negotiate with,” she said to him and shrugged, turning back to the droid. “Well, I guess you’d better just follow us.”

The R5 beeped cheerfully and then rattled off some more beeps and sounds.

“Or we can just… follow you. Okay.” Jaden stood up and she and Rosh followed it to a small door across the way, where it tapped into the locking mechanism. The door opened and the droid shocked them by going through it and dropping down.

The Jedi students hurried to the open doorway and looked down, the droid sat several feet below, safe and sound on the sand. It bleeped up at them to follow, that it was perfectly safe; Rosh and Jaden exchanged a glance.

“Ladies first.” Rosh gestured. Jaden rolled her eyes and leapt through the opening, clearing out of the way before Rosh landed soon after.

“Great, now let’s get this droid back to Kyle.” They made their way back towards the path they had been taking before going through the cave. As they went along, the R5 unit started alerting them to lifeforms it was sensing.

“Where are they at?” Rosh questioned. The R5 didn’t know exactly, but they seemed to be high up. “Snipers,” Rosh murmured, glancing at the ridge, he saw a flash of something metal. His blaster was out in a second and they were ducking for cover, trying to keep the droid safe. Rosh managed to shoot the sniper on the ridge and then they were being rained on by blasts from the others. By this time they were near the doorway into the caves.

“Hold them off, I’ll be right back!” Jaden yelled and rushed inside, the droid close behind. She came out a minute later with an old, but working rifle on her shoulder. In no time they’d finished off the Tusken snipers and were booking it as fast they could back to the start of the canyon.

“I was starting to get worried, any problems?” Kyle asked when they returned, tired and thirsty, to the Raven’s Claw. Both their water bottles were spent and they took turns gulping from Kyle’s.

Jaden let out a forced laugh. “Not unless you count the Sand People we ran into.”

Kyle grinned mysteriously. “Well! You’re both still in one piece, so you must have handled yourselves all right.”

“And you? You said you’d check with the moisture farmers?” Rosh said, swallowing the lukewarm water as though it was the freshest, coldest in the galaxy.

“None of them would talk, and most seemed awfully scared. But I wasn’t too concerned about the both of you succeeding.”

“Well, it wasn’t an easy assignment after all. Turns out a lot of people who lived in that canyon have either been turned out of their homes or murdered by the Sand People.” Jaden narrowed her eyes at him. “Did you know we’d face that kind of trouble?”

There was that smile again, then a sober look crossed Kyle’s face. “No, I honestly thought it would be easier for the two of you.” He crossed his arms over his chest and his voice grew more serious. “Look, I’m supposed to train you, to prepare you for anything so that when I’m not with you, you can handle yourselves and solve problems on your own.” He sighed. “I’m sorry that I threw you both in the deep end today, but I’m not sorry that you two learned to grow and work as a team. That’s what’s important, relying on each other. And did you learn to work as a team and make hard choices?”

“He’s got us there.” Jaden looked at Rosh who looked like he was either about to cry or punch Kyle in the face. Or both.

“Yeah,” Rosh muttered, then more loudly, “We did work as a team.” The teens smiled wearily at each other. 

Yeah, we made a pretty great team, Jaden thought.

Kyle unfolded his arms. “Good. Now let's get this droid back to the Academy.” 

They went their separate ways, Rosh to the borrowed X-wing, Jaden and Kyle to the Raven’s Claw. The R5 unit, who was really glad and expressed its relief at leaving the desert planet hopefully for good, was loaded into the droid compartment. As they exited the planet’s atmosphere, the image of Rosh’s face, twisted with anger, flashed before Jaden’s mind. She couldn’t forget it, that mental picture. It made Rosh look like a monster and it scared her. She hoped she would never see her friend like that ever again.

“Kyle told me about what happened in Mos Eisley. It's a good thing Chewie was there, but you did well regardless. Thank you for also looking out for my nephew,” Luke said. “I’m sure my sister slept better knowing he wasn’t hurt.”

“No problem!” Jaden smiled, clasping and unclasping her hands behind her back. She was trying hard to stand still with her back straight, to look professional. 

Luke and Kyle addressed her and Rosh in one of the Academy’s conference rooms. They had been used previously during the Rebellion as war rooms or to debrief missions. Which, come to think of it, Jaden thought it poetic that they were still being used in more or less the same capacity.

“It looks like this cult and the Imperials may be working together more closely than we thought…” Luke mused, then shook his head lightly and smiled. “I need to commend you both for a job well done recovering the droid in the canyons. It’s too bad about the Jawas, but I’m proud of both of you for working together and protecting each other. Kyle tells me you did it all by yourselves and worked as a team. Well done, well done.”

It was Rosh’s turn to say, “No problem!”

Luke turned to the side and gestured to a nearby console. “There’s something I want you two to hear. Artoo has scoured the R5's memory banks to see what information it has and found the moisture farmer’s recording.” He pressed a button on the console and a faded, scratchy image of a table at a cantina with three men sitting at it appeared. Kyle crossed his arms. “We couldn’t get Artoo to clear the image that much, R5 units aren’t known for their quality hologram imaging but we did get slightly better audio.”

The lights in the room dimmed as the hologram’s image started to move a bit as the figures did and the sound kicked in as one of the men ended a sentence he was saying, an indication that the farmer had just hit the record button. 

“-telling you, that Twi’lek’s crazy but she assured me the pay’s good, alright?”

“I don’t know Marc, the Remnant’s one thing, but Sith? And a group of them? Sounds like a cult if ever I’ve heard one. I’ve heard the Sith are like sorcerers, but worse.”

“Keep your voice down, why don’t you? As long as we do our job right, there’s no need to worry a bit about them, sorcerers or no. What about you, Girgis?”

“Eh, I go where the credits take me, and if this job is as lucrative as you’re saying it is, then I’m in.”

“Good, and you Cal?”

“Fine. If you’re both in, then I’ll go too.”

The image suddenly faded and the lights came back up.

“Well, it’s not much, but it’s at least something,” Kyle said.

“I wonder who that Twi’lek they’re talking about is?” Jaden wondered out loud.

“No clue, but it’s a lead,” answered Kyle.

“We believe she might be someone important in the cult, not the leader, but someone who the leader trusts,” Luke said. “What do you think, Rosh?” He asked, turning in the young man’s direction. Rosh held a hand to his chin as if thinking, or hoping to look like he was deep in thought.

“Hmm, not sure yet,” he mused. “But I agree with you, she’s definitely gotta be someone important. Thank you for trusting us to show us this.”

“Of course.” Luke turned back to face Kyle and Jaden. “In the meantime, I want you all to keep your eyes and ears open for anything else regarding this cult and the Twi’lek that the smugglers mentioned; including anything to do with the smugglers themselves now that we know what they look like and what their names are.”

“Of course, Master,” Jaden said and they were both dismissed.

That night after dinner, Rosh passed by Jaden in the crowd of students heading back up to their dorms, and whispered, “Meet me on the roof in three hours.” And then moved on without any further explanation.

Once Jaden made it to her room she realized how late it was and that he meant for them to meet at midnight. She felt her stomach churning as she laid down, thinking back on the events of the day. So much had happened, Mos Eisley, the canyons, Rosh… The memory of his eyes as he killed the Sand People still burned into her mind. She was almost afraid to meet him alone, especially so late that she considered not joining him, or perhaps bringing her blaster or lightsaber, just in case.

C’mon Jaden, you’re being ridiculous!

“Are you? Do you know what kind of power one’s anger is capable of?”

She shot straight up and looked around, the dark, mechanical voice was so deep and clear it was like it spoke right into her ear. She trembled at the nagging, faded memory from the Massassi Temple and looked at her chronometer. She now had thirty minutes. How long was I laying here thinking? Did I doze off?

She got up without taking her saber, and went out to meet Rosh on the roof.

Without running into anyone, Jaden was able to climb to the roof and lift the trapdoor with no issue. Rosh was waiting, sitting near the edge some distance from the front of the trapdoor, holding a carton of something in one hand and a small object she couldn’t see clearly enough in the other. It looked made of metal by the way it reflected the moonlight.

“Hey,” Jaden said softly once she’d pulled herself up through the hole and started towards him. He startled slightly and pocketed the object quickly.

“Hey,” he replied, then held up the carton which was open at the top. “Want some Mantell Mix? I swiped some from the dining hall.”

“Sure, I love that stuff, used to get it as a treat on my birthdays.” She sat next to him, not too close, but close enough to reach over and grab a handful of the salty, crunchy snack, popping several pieces into her mouth. “Thanks. So why did you ask me to meet you up here?”

“I wanted to… apologize for today.”

“About?”

“I know I scared you, I could see it on your face after we fought that tough group of Tusken Raiders,” he said, slightly ashamed. Jaden couldn’t think of what to say. “Don’t deny it either.”

“I won’t, it’s okay. I don’t think you're dangerous to me or anyone else.” Don’t you Jaden?

“Well, I could still sense it, your fear and I’m sorry. I’ll try to control my emotions next time. It’s just it was my first time actually fighting real enemies, I was…”

“Afraid?” Jaden offered.

“A little, I was full of adrenaline and didn’t know what to do with it, I felt angry and took it out on them.” He sighed.

“Have you talked to Kyle about it?” She suggested gently.

“I know I need to. I will, soon, I just… I wanna have a little time to sort things out myself first, okay? Promise you won’t tell?”

Jaden didn’t like this agreement, but she did it anyway. It wasn’t her place to go telling on him to their master; they’d already had a shaky start to begin with, she didn’t want to put a wedge in their friendship now. But she couldn’t help but wonder if that decision was truly the right one to make after all.

Rosh smiled wearily and switched the subject. “Hey so I have something for you!” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the shiny thing from earlier. Now that she was closer she could see it was a round piece of metal with a hole in the middle like a washer, but bigger, maybe three inches in diameter.

He might have made it out of a large washer, she realized. It was polished smooth and silvery in the moonlight. As Rosh handed it to her she realized it was attached to a leather cord. Engraved in Aurebesh letters around its circumference were the words: “Rosh and Jaden against the dark side!”

Jaden looked up at Rosh and felt her heart soften at the pleased boyish look on his face. He averted his gaze as he reached up to rub the back of his neck, his cheeks coloring bashfully.

“I… made it for you this afternoon down in the Academy’s workshop.” His rich brown eyes met hers.

Jaden’s heartbeat quickened and she looked away, her fingers closing around the pendant. “Thanks Rosh, I really like it.”

“I hoped you would.” 

Jaden swallowed, shoving down feelings that were springing up. Feelings that felt foreign and she wasn’t sure she entirely trusted. Rosh is my teammate. We have the same master and that’s it. We’re friends. Just friends…

But as she made her way back down to her room a while later, she couldn't shake the thought that she was just lying to herself.

For a few days, Jaden felt like she was able to relax a bit and sort out some of her feelings surrounding Rosh and their run-ins with the Sand People. As well the other feelings that were cropping up. She’d thought about telling Kyle some of her concerns but felt that was overstepping her bounds. Besides, Kyle was Rosh’s master, not her. And she’d made a promise, though it was getting harder to keep. She wasn’t even sure if Rosh had even told Kyle, and she didn’t want to push him by asking if he had, that felt like she was intruding more than she already had at this point. And Maybe Kyle already knew, he could sense stuff she didn’t know was there; or perhaps Rosh had actually spoken with him about the mission… 

Or perhaps not. Rosh didn’t seem the type to want to talk about issues that involved himself, it made him uncomfortable. Talking about things he was great at, that was a subject he was more than comfortable discussing.

She walked past the common room early one afternoon, where most students gathered in their free time to study or hangout. She spotted Rosh standing near a table talking with Jas, who was seated. The room was empty for the most part with only a few of the other tables occupied.

“So how’s your training going? I’ve been sent on a few errands, nothing exciting.” Rosh didn’t sound like he was in the best of moods given his crossed arms and jaded tone.

“Same here. I guess that’s just how the training works,” replied Jas, ever the optimist.

“Huh, I thought it was just me.” Rosh looked up as Jaden approached but continued to address his fellow student. “Ever wonder if your master is holding you back? Y’know, making sure you don’t become too powerful?”

Jas’ brow furrowed. “Why would you say that?” 

“Well… Kyle doesn’t seem to really foster my talents. I’ve gone on a couple of missions with him, but he doesn’t let me do any of the really important stuff.” Rosh huffed like an annoyed child.

Jaden felt confused, she’d only gone on one mission with him to date and what they’d done seemed pretty important. Even Luke let them both listen in on the R5’s recording. But then again, he’d gone with just Kyle more times so maybe he had a point? Or maybe he’s just venting to get it out of his system. After all, his behavior seems pretty cavil for the most part .

“Hmm, maybe he’s observing you, ya know, seeing how you accomplish your missions. I wouldn’t worry about it,” Jas said.

Rosh dropped his arms to his sides and stepped over to an empty chair near Jaden, resting his hands on the back of it, he leaned forward a bit. “I’m not so sure,” he said, then glanced at her. “What do you think Jaden?”

“Well, I…” She began, a bit caught off guard. She wasn’t expecting to get called out about such a subject. Various answers ran through her mind, all of them in positive favor of Kyle. He’d done a great job with her training. But all that was just her opinion on her experience, right? She had no clue Rosh thought this about his training. Thankfully, she didn’t get to open that can of kouhuns further because Kyle entered the common room a second later.

“Ready to get back out there?” He said cheerfully as he approached, then stopped, clearly noticing the strange expressions on his students' faces; slightly guilt ridden, the same look he’d had on his own face as a child when he had his hand caught in the treat jar. “Did I interrupt something?”

Jaden and Rosh shared a quick glance and then looked back at Kyle.

“No, not at all,” Rosh answered for them, dropping all hints to his previously cavil behavior. “Well I’m ready, let’s go!”

“Well slow down a minute,” Kyle grinned, holding up a hand. “I’ve gotta fill ya in first. Jas, do you mind giving us this space?”

“Of course not, I need to check in with my master soon anyhow.” He stood and left the room. Kyle, Rosh and Jaden each pulled up a chair around the table.

“Alright here’s what I got. Rosh, you and I have to get to Naboo to help settle a small political dispute there, - believe me, no one dislikes putting their hands in anything remotely resembling politics as much as I do - so this should be an in and out operation. We leave within the hour.” Jaden couldn’t help but notice that Rosh seemed a tad disappointed at this latest news and saw his cheeks heat at the memory of his words just a moment ago.

“Jaden,” Kyle snapped her back to attention. “You’ll head to Bakura first thing in the morning.”

“Bakura?”

“Officials from the planet have requested our assistance. They tell us that an unknown party has taken control of a power station up in the mountains. They’ve sent a team of their own to investigate, but they haven't reported in. Their concerns are two-fold: they want to stop whoever has taken over the station, and more importantly ensure that the station itself remains undamaged.”

“Why is that?” Jaden asked, leaning forward, noticing that Rosh did the same.

“The station is built over a dormant volcano, and if the facility is destroyed, the volcano could destroy a heavily populated city.”

“Oh,” Jaden and Rosh said in unison without meaning to.

“The Bakurans' need someone to infiltrate the facility and thwart the group's plan. So, Jaden, what I need you to do is head there in the morning and wait for me once you get there so we can investigate the station together.”

“Would it be okay for me to scout the station if I get there ahead of you?” She asked.

“No, I sense there’s more to this situation than it seems and if it gets out of hand, I don’t want anything happening to you if it is. Wait to hear from me before you do anything. My mission to Naboo shouldn’t last more than half a planetary rotation, so keep your com on for any updates from me. Okay?”

Jaden nodded. “Alright, sounds good.”

“Okay, Rosh, let's get moving. Jaden, get some rest and if all goes well, I’ll see you on Bakura.” And with that, Kyle and Rosh rose from the table and hurried out the door to head to the Raven’s Claw.

Jaden sat a moment longer at the table, contemplating her newest assignment. Kyle was so insistent that I wait for him instead of doing anything without him. Does he fully trust me? Rosh’s words about wondering if your master was holding you back echoed in her mind and she began to wonder if maybe there wasn’t some sliver of truth to it.

Chapter Text

Jaden leaned against her X-wing that stood on the landing platform deep in the mountains of Bakura. The power station she’d come to check out rose ominously in the distance. She itched to go inside, as it looked deserted, but still she waited. She was waiting for Kyle to show up and help with the mission. She checked her com again, no answer.

“Where are you, Kyle? I’ve been waiting here forever,” she whispered to herself, crossing her arms to lean back against her X-wing again. It’d been like this for nearly two hours. She had been standing, waiting, pacing, and stretching on occasion, all the while trying to check in with Kyle, but still there would be no answer. She knew that one of the virtues of the Jedi was patience, but this? 

She straightened up and threw her hands in the air in frustration. “Well, I can’t wait around! I’ve got to do something.” She looked up at the imposing form of the power station. “This can’t be that hard to check out. In, out, twenty minutes, thirty tops.” She stopped, she was talking to herself again. “Whatever,” she muttered, checking that her blaster was fully loaded, her lightsaber secured to her belt. It was warmer here in the mountains. Probably because of the dormant volcano. She left her jacket in the cockpit. She wore a pair of gray pants with a reddish brown stripe running down the outside of the pant leg. They had come with a set of new clothes that the Academy had provided. Her shirt was something she’d brought from Coruscant and had worn on her first day. It was short sleeved, a blue-green color with grayish-silver trim and accents. It was kind of plain compared to the newer fashions and out of date; but it was still one of her favorites, having once belonged to her mother. When asked by Arta-Mess why she’d want to wear it on missions she’d simply replied that it was what her mom would want instead of being stuffed inside a trunk, perfectly preserved. It could go on all her adventures, and in a strange way, so could her mom. It kept her close rather than distant.

She plucked her way along the wide walkway of the landing platform leading to the station’s entrance. Not far from the door, she saw the body. Running the last few yards, she knelt beside the lone figure. He was older, probably in his fifties, wearing maintenance coveralls. He was cold and stiff, he’d been dead awhile. There were blaster marks on his chest. She looked away, the sight of it making her feel cold, clammy, and nauseous. Should have brought the jacket. She took long, slow breaths to try and calm her pulsing heart rate. Slowly, more quietly, she stood up. Not far away, close to the door, was another body, it was in the same condition as the first; it also had blaster marks on it. They must have been part of the team sent to investigate the station. This has to have something to do with the ‘unknown party.’

She approached the door, hand on her saber hilt. Inside was a small room with a door on either end of it. Near the door to her left was a set of computer monitors. Going up to them, she pressed a button that would turn it on and the image of a room full of tanks containing various liquids colored red and blue was shown. Two armed men in what appeared to be military uniforms stood next to each other as a third messed with something she couldn’t see at his feet, he was blocking her view. She couldn’t just see, but hear what they were talking about. The third man straightened up, turning to address the others.

“The charges are set sir.”

“Good!” Replied the man on the right of the screen. He was taller than the others, his uniform seemingly of higher rank. His well groomed blonde hair shone in the dim light. “The Republic is getting complacent. They underestimate us. This will remind them what happens to traitors.”

Jaden didn’t like this, not one bit. The thing that that man had been tinkering with on the floor was a bomb! Quickly, she checked the other video feeds throughout the whole facility and sure enough, four other charges, similar to the first, were seemingly spread out in different areas of the power station. Turning off the monitor, she stepped away from it. They’re going to blow the whole installation! I have to stop that countdown!

She fumbled with her comlink and called for Kyle, still no answer. “Oh Kyle, where are you?!” Glancing at the door, she made a decision, Okay, no one knows I’m here, I can probably sneak around and diffuse the bombs, that should give Kyle enough time to get here… or answer back.

Suddenly, a loud voice called out from somewhere behind the door in front of her. It sounded like the officer who’d said that the Republic was getting complacent.

“We have an intruder! Take positions!” 

Oh, Sithspit.

“Ready!” This one sounded like the man who’d set that last charge.

The door opened and stormtroopers poured out. Blaster fire filled the air, but the intruder they were after was missing. They lowered their weapons, looking around the empty room in confusion. One, two, three… I take em.

From above, perched on top of the narrow ledge of the doorframe, Jaden leaned back against the wall, saber hilt gripped in her hand. She silently counted.

The troopers were as confused and caught off guard as Jaden had hoped they’d be. They barely got off any shots and those were either way off mark or an involuntary response from their fingers as they fell down dead beneath Jaden’s lightsaber blade. She took a moment to catch her breath. No one else came through the door but surely everyone in the station knew she was there.

No wonder I was supposed to wait for Kyle. It’s the Empire!

She ran through the door the troopers had come in by. Clear. Then up a flight of stairs, through a door on the landing. She nearly slammed into an equally surprised stormtrooper. Her blade flew up, gutting right into his abdomen. He dropped dead to the floor, barely stalling her. No problem Jaden, just keep going.  

To the left was a short hallway and in front, a steep ramp leading up to a door. She decided to take the ramp first, but stopped. Soft blue lines spread out before her. Tripwires. There were four of them lined up the wall. Now why would they be trying to protect this route? She took several steps back, glancing over her shoulder to be sure she was still alone, and one by one shot the tripmines with her blaster. All clear, she passed through the door at the top with caution. What more booby traps had the Imperials set, she couldn’t tell, but wasn’t about to risk her limbs for it. The door led outside onto an elevated walkway to a platform with a lift that went down. Looking down, Jaden realized how high up she was and staring at the platform she saw that underneath it was a large, cylindrical container. For refining minerals. Very volatile. On top of the platform in front of her stood the first bomb, she recognised it immediately from the camera feed. Kneeling down, she examined it. It wasn’t a complicated thing like others she’d learned about at the Academy. She figured the Imperials never thought that someone was going to try to ruin their plans because of how isolated they were here. It didn’t take long to turn it off.

“Okay, four more to go.” Jaden closed her eyes, seeing the images on the monitor showing her the locations of the other explosives. She didn’t know where they were, but at least knew what the surrounding area looked like. Standing up, she tried to call Kyle again on her comlink. “Kyle, hello? Kyle? Please pick up, it's an emergency!” 

Nothing. She was on her own. Was Kyle and Rosh’s mission really that important for him to miss her calls? Or had Rosh somehow gotten ahold of Kyle’s com and was keeping him from- Stop it Jaden, that’s stupid and paranoid! Rosh would never, not with life or- The training droid was life or death. But he didn’t know that. Focus Jaden, Rosh is your friend and Kyle’s your master, they’re indisposed for some reason and you’re gonna have to do things on your own. There’s five bombs and you’ve just successfully disarmed one of them, now, let’s take care of the last four!

Jaden raced silently back down the ramp and took the left hallway. Sensing stormtroopers in the next room, she moved stealthily, then struck. Once they were all down, she took in her bearings. It was a control room with a window to the outside, a high platform like the one she’d just been on, except the bomb that sat there was guarded by someone. Two someone’s in fact, but they were hard to see, at first they were solid, black in their dark tactical gear, then one of them disappeared entirely. Jaden cocked her head. What in the galaxy…? It had to be some kind of camouflage. Probably illegal too.

She ducked down, hoping they hadn’t seen her and snuck through the door at the end of the room. A door to the right told her that this was probably the right way to that second platform. The door opened, and she saw no one.

“Well, who’s this?” Came a voice to her right. She lashed out quickly, saber piercing through flesh she couldn’t see, then, he appeared, at first a kind of translucence shimmering in the dull sunlight, then solidifying as he fell to the ground dead.

“Stay where you are!” This time in front of her, near the bomb. That translucent sheen catching her eye as the lone figure turned around and opened fire. She deflected easily, the bolt hitting her target square in the chest. 

“Three more.” Jaden tried to call Kyle again. Nothing, but she decided she would keep checking in, if only for the sake of her nerves and sanity.

Captain Issak stood in the refinery room with his hands clasped behind him. Everything was going according to plan. Almost. If it wasn’t for that nosy intruder. He should have realized that the rotten Republic would get involved somehow. Though his agents hadn’t positively identified the interloper, he was sure they would be back on schedule soon. And he wasn’t going to leave until they were caught, only then could his plan continue smoothly. He lifted his comlink from the breast pocket of his impeccably pressed uniform.

“This is Captain Issak calling for Commander Dravus. Come in.”

“Dravus here.”

“Have you any news on the interloper?”

“Not yet, sir.”

“What do you mean? Surely one trespasser isn’t too hard for you to handle?” Issak’s tone was clipped, but he managed to keep it calm.

Dravus was silent for a moment.

“That’s just the thing sir. She’s been taking out my troops and striking quickly. She’s too fast to catch!”

“She? What do you mean the intruder’s a ‘she?’” This was the first he was hearing about this and he was not pleased.

“That’s all I heard from one of my officer’s before we were cut off.”

“Do you have any idea who she is at all?”

“No sir, but some of us are speculating.”

“Speculating? I don’t pay you to speculate Dravus, I pay you to inform and execute!” Captain Issak was flustered now, to say the least. His face was red, his fist clasping the comlink a little too tightly. He resisted the urge to run his hand through his expertly trimmed short blonde hair. He breathed out slowly, smoothed a wrinkle on the front of his uniform and spoke with steady, even words, masking the rage that was boiling beneath his carefully preserved persona. “And what exactly have you been speculating about this intruder, Dravus?”

“That she might be a Jedi, sir.”

Before Issak could think of a response, a sound, like distant blaster fire, came from somewhere around Dravus.

“Wait, hold on-” the commander started, his voice quavering, then rising to a fearful shout, the blaster shots getting louder. “Don’t just stand there do someth-” Issak lost the connection. He didn’t need an explanation, he already knew what had happened.

“Just two more left!” Jaden was feeling excited, elated in fact. She had been left to finish the mission on her own and was doing well!

  I just hope Kyle is proud instead of angry with me, she thought. 

She’d made her way through the facility rather quietly and had just diffused the third bomb. The Imperial officer that she’d killed lay a few feet away next to a large storage tank. He and his stormtroopers had tried to hide this bomb behind a cluster of four, she never would have found it if she hadn’t remembered the image on the security monitor. She leaned down and grabbed the key card off his belt. 

This might come in handy.

  She was on her feet and racing across the area up towards a small building separate from the rest of the power station in seconds.

Captain Issak watched the spry, small figure of the Jedi expertly blocking the blaster fire of his troops and officers, watching them fall to the ground and her stepping over them to reach the charge they’d been guarding.

“Only one more.” He heard her say to herself over the feed. 

“So, you’ve disarmed all my charges, little Jedi.” Issak rubbed his hands together, then formed them into fists, cracking his knuckles in rage. Slowly, he pulled his gloves from his pockets, carefully putting them on one by one, adjusting the fit, then, he turned and grasped the longstaff held by a low ranking officer to his left. He held it upright and in one swift motion brought it down, the entire staff illuminated a pale purple color, with sparks of it pulsing heavily from either end. The Jedi would pay for disrupting his carefully land plans. The Jedi would fall.

Jaden made her way back to the main building, having searched everywhere for the last bomb. Then she remembered a door outside of that control room that was locked, maybe there was something to it after all. Especially now that she had the officer’s key card. There was no one to hinder her now as she reentered the main building. Approaching the door, she inserted her keycard, silently hoping that there were no more stormtroopers. There wasn’t. It was much, much worse.

“We have you now!” The elegantly accented voice of the Imperial captain reached her ears before she really saw him. He was the man who’d made the remark about the Republic earlier, he looked younger than Kyle, and had eyes that were as cold as ice and blazed with a steely blue hatred. Two officers flanked him on either side, blasters ready.

“So you’re the one who’s behind all this trouble and ruining my perfectly laid operation,” he said.

Jaden couldn’t think of much to say to that and just shrugged. “Yep, pretty much.”

  That was dumb, Kyle would’ve said something way better and definitely snarky.

Issak’s cold gaze never left her as he commanded his officers: “You may fire when ready.”

Jaden took the officers down with just two swings of her saber. She’d gotten pretty good at blocking their shots and diverting the direction of blaster bolts over the course of this whole ordeal. It was hardly a challenge anymore.

It was just her and the captain now. The room they were in was the one with the tubes of red and blue liquid she’d seen on the monitor. They stood on a platform made of metal grates which allowed them a dizzying view below of what looked to be a very long fall into darkness.

No words were exchanged as electrostaff met lightsaber. Jaden could just see the final bomb over his shoulder, but in order to have the time to disarm it, she’d have to incapacitate him or kill him, which she didn’t really want to have to do unless it was necessary. He probably had information that was vital to the Republic, if she could question him, or somehow bring him… But she’d cross that bridge when she came to it.

Or maybe Kyle will finally get here and can help me.

She raised her saber to parry a strike that never came, instead she received a sharp jolt in her left shoulder from the business end of the captain’s staff. She cried out in pain, her arm going limp. Her right hand gripped her saber, if he hits me again…

She blocked his next two strikes, tiring with each one.

“You’re getting weak Jedi! Soon I’ll be known all over the Remnant as the captain with no magical powers to kill a Jedi!” Issak laughed and advanced on her. She knew she couldn’t keep this up for long. That staff was a formidable challenge to her lightsaber. 

“Find a way, no matter how creative, to find the chink in your opponet’s armor, and then get at that chink anyway you can…” Kyle’s teaching voice reverberated through her head. Then she saw it. Dropping down, avoiding the captain’s right to left swing aimed at her useless left shoulder, she let go of her saber and drew her blaster in her good hand, firing at Issak’s exposed side. The two bolts hit him in his right side and he fell down, releasing the staff from his grip, it rolled across the grated floor towards the edge.

“No!” He screamed, Jaden thrust out her right hand and the electrostaff went flying over the edge and into darkness, clanging loudly as it went, finally landing at the bottom with a sharp thud. Jaden flexed the fingers of her left hand as she holstered her weapon and picked up her lightsaber, the feeling slowly coming back as if it had fallen asleep on her.

She approached Issak, the point of her violet blade aimed at his neck. “Okay now, this is how it’s going to work, I’m gonna diffuse that bomb, and you’re going to come with me and tell me everything you know about the Remnant and a Sith cult that’s associated with a Sith Lord named Marka Ragnos.”

“Ha! Never heard of them!” The captain smirked. Jaden didn’t like that look. Left hand feeling a lot better, she grabbed him by the collar and put the blade horizontally across his neck.

“Oh I think you have. And trust me, you’d be better off telling me than waiting until I get you to my superiors.” Was she lying? Jaden didn’t like lying. Ever. And she knew her words were as empty as they sounded. They lacked conviction and meaning, and Captain Issak knew that.

“Oh I don’t believe you, but so that you won’t have the satisfaction of trying to bring me in, I’ll do your ‘superiors’ a favor.” He bit down hard on something in the back of his mouth and his face suddenly lit up with blue lightning, grunting before falling deathly silent. Jaden jumped back, aghast and covered her mouth with her left hand, a single sob escaping her throat. 

That cold, clammy feeling claimed her again as she dragged herself away from the dead captain. I failed, I can’t even intimidate an enemy into believing me. What use am I if I have to lie in a true life or death scenario where someone else’s life is on the line? She shook her head. It wasn’t all about intimidation but presence. A Jedi’s job wasn’t to instill fear, but to bring peace to the galaxy. But was some fear needed in order to bring that peace?

She walked over to the bomb and disarmed it, then sank to her knees, exhausted.

“That does it!” She muttered to herself, taking several deep, trembling breaths before standing up. 

“Better get back to my ship.” She was sure the facility was empty now, she’d explored practically every inch of it. She headed back to the entrance, having to retrace her steps a few times before finally finding it. She stared at the ground mostly, feeling exhausted, not looking up until she got back to her ship, which was why she was surprised when she saw the Raven’s Claw standing behind her X-wing. Kyle was leaning against her ship, arms crossed, an eyebrow raised. She didn’t have many memories of her real father, but that look was unmistakable.

“I see you waited up for me,” he said evenly. There wasn’t much she could say. Yeah, sure, everything had turned out alright, she disarmed the bombs and saved the station and the local population, but she’d disobeyed a direct order.

“There’s not much I can say that will excuse my actions.”

“You got that right,” he said, “But in this case I’d say your actions excuse everything.”

“Excuse me?”

“I land here several hours late, ready to give you the lecture of the century, then see you walking out of that power station, head down and exhausted. I don’t have to know what happened in there to know that you did the right thing. But of course I’m gonna need you to fill me in on everything.” He heaved a sigh and nodded his head towards the facility. “Is anyone left in there?”

“No, I combed every inch searching for some bombs that the Remnant planted in there. I confronted their leader, a captain I think. I tried to get some information out of him but he… Well, I don’t know what he used, but he killed himself with it…”

“Sounds like he used an electro shock pill,” Kyle guessed.

“I guess that’s what it was.”

“You don’t fight Imperials and expect to not see them use stuff like that. When I was an Imperial, we used to have to carry them around with us before they started implanting them before every mission. Luckily I’d stopped being an Imperial by the time that was required. Us Rebels used to call ‘em Lullabies. The main point is that the captain was a coward either way.”

“Yeah, I guess so. Anyway, I got all five bombs. But I’d send in a cleanup crew to secure the station and make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

“Good idea Jaden, now you’re thinking strategically. I’m proud of what you accomplished here today. Let’s get back to the Academy and get some rest huh?” He started back towards the Raven’s Claw.

“Oh hey, how was the mission on Naboo?” 

Kyle stiffened. “It uh… took longer than expected. I also lost my comlink, that’s why I couldn’t check in with you. Sorry about that, I’m sure you were concerned.”

“I was, I called you several times, but it’s alright.” Jaden put her hands in her pockets. “But how was it out there on Naboo? What was it about again? A small political dispute right?”

Kyle looked away, clearly uncomfortable.

“Well… not exactly, it ended up being more than that.”

“And…?” Jaden didn’t have to have the Force to sense the embarrassment Kyle was clearly feeling at some memory that was making him squirm. “You don’t want to tell me, do you?”

“Rosh and I promised each other.”

Jaden threw her hands up. “Rosh too?! Am I never gonna know?”

“Not if we can help it.”

“You know it’s just going to make me want to know more! C’mon it can just be between us three?”

“Not on your life Jaden.” Kyle actually was walking away now. Frustrated and tired beyond her strength, Jaden turned toward her ship.

“Sithspit!” She cursed under her breath as she eased into the cockpit. “Now I’m not going to get any rest knowing something probably more exciting than today happened on Naboo! And with Kyle and Rosh of all people!”

“Jaden?” She jumped suddenly, then saw Kyle just outside of her window. She reopened the cockpit.

“You feel guilty and want to tell me about your mission?” She asked hopefully, putting on a showy smile.

“Nope, I meant to tell you this earlier but sense I’ve already told Rosh, I want you to know too. It’s about the shuttle crash, I've been looking into it.”

Jaden felt her arms get cold and goosebumps start to spread. “What is it?”

“It doesn't look like laser damage or a mechanical failure was responsible.” Kyle paused, seeming at a loss. “It's almost as if something just... tore apart the engines.”

The memory of the flash and the screaming void flooded back. “What if it was that… that thing I saw those people carrying at the Massassi Temple.”

“The scepter?” Kyle touched his chin, his brow creasing in concentration. “That is a possibility. I bet it's some kind of a weapon or a power source. I’ll have to get back to Luke and talk to him about it.” He paused again, as if weighing a decision. “By the way, you’re the only one I’m telling this too but while Luke and I attended to the crashed shuttle, someone broke into his quarters and sliced into his records. Luke has Artoo trying to figure out what they may be looking for, but so far nothing that he’s told me yet.”

Jaden nodded slowly, proud to have been included in an Academy secret.

“What about the cult?” She asked, “Do you have more info on them yet?”

Kyle shrugged. “Well, it's definitely getting more serious as each day passes. We’ve been receiving numerous reports of a Sith cult or a cult called the Disciples of Ragnos appearing all over the galaxy. Although some of them are just rumors.”

“But it could be true?”

“Maybe, our job is to try and separate fact from fiction. We can’t answer every call based on a rumor so we have to pick and choose our battles. I wouldn't worry about it now. 

“Also,” Kyle said before turning to go again. “If you happen to remember anything more of that day, even the smallest detail, please let either me or Luke know as soon as you do okay?”

“I will.” 

“Good, I’ll see you back at the Academy.”

Jaden watched him return to the Raven’s Claw, a feeling of shame filling her. How could she tell Kyle about that empty, screaming darkness at the Massassi Temple? It seemed a distant memory now. A long lost nightmare that one quickly forgets when awakened to the light of day. It seemed lunacy even to her that she’d experienced it. What would Kyle think? Take her out of the field? Especially if she told him that she felt the darkness hadn't truly let her go, even when she had regained consciousness? No, too dangerous, she’d figure out how to deal with it on her own, the Academy’s archives was a rich library of information. She’d find her answers there first before resorting to telling Kyle or Luke. She flew back to the Academy, head full of thoughts and memories that she really didn’t want to think of.

She tried but didn’t get a word out of Rosh about Naboo, not even when she told him all the gory details of that day at the power station. Well, not all the details. Witnessing someone use a suicide shocker was not something she’d share with anyone else, at least not with the other students.

The red Twi’lek brushed her head tail off her shoulder as she approached the door to the bridge. Her master was not going to like this. Not that she was afraid of her, but there was a certain… apprehension when it came to delivering bad news to her. She stepped on deck and followed the pathway where on either side, officers busied themselves at the various monitors in the trenches that lined it. She stopped a few feet behind the ship’s captain, who was gazing out the window into deep space, not acknowledging her.

The Twi’lek cocked a brow at the dark purple peeking out from under a slightly askew bandage along the upper part of her master's left arm near the shoulder. Another tattoo? She already had a matching checkerboard pattern on both forearms, she wondered what this one was of. Not that she’d get an answer if she asked. She’d have to wait until it healed for that.

“Progress report?” Her master asked, still facing straight ahead.

“Captain Issak’s operation on Bakura… has failed.” There was no response so she continued, “someone infiltrated the facility and killed all our troops. The charges were set but disarmed. My scouts tell me that the Republic has sent in a crew to secure the station.”

“Who?”

“Pardon?”

“Who was it that foiled Issak’s plans?”

“We don’t know who exactly, but my sources are certain it was… a Jedi. One of Skywalker’s students.”

“Under him or someone else ?” Her master turned her face only slightly in her apprentice’s direction.

“Uncertain at the moment.” She paused, trying to sense whether or not her master would be set off by her lack of information. The moment passed and her master spoke.

“Very well. Come to me when you have more information.”

The Twi’lek bowed her head. “Yes, Master.”

Chapter Text

“C’mon Rosh! You’re not going to tell me anything? Not even how Kyle lost his comlink?” It’d been days, almost a week since Bakura and the mysterious mission to Naboo, and Rosh wasn’t budging one bit.

“Nope, Kyle and I swore we’d never speak of it again.” At this point she was convinced that Rosh enjoyed dangling the story over her head, like some private in-joke that she’d never be privy to. She’d let it slide. For now.

They walked together into one of the dueling rooms on the Academy’s third floor. Kyle stood waiting below the dueling platform, raising an eyebrow at their approach.

“You’re both late.”

“Sorry,” Jaden said, shooting her best glare in Rosh’s direction.

“She was asking about Naboo. Again.” Rosh stressed.

Surprisingly, Kyle ignored the subject altogether and asked for their lightsabers. After a moment of readjusting their settings to non-lethal training mode, he gestured to a small lift on the side of one of the dueling platform’s stone pillars. Both students stepped onto the narrow space, their arms and shoulders brushing against each other. At the top they stepped onto the high platform with a see-through floor that looked down on the ground several feet below. On the ground, Kyle stood off to the side to watch them.

“You ready for me?” Rosh said coyly, gripping his yellow training saber out in front of him. Jaden rolled her eyes as he adjusted his stance like Kyle told him, then looked to her, waiting. 

Jaden flexed her fingers around her lightsaber’s hilt, wary of swinging it at her training partner even though it’d just been adjusted to be non-lethal like any other training saber.

“Begin!” Kyle called out. Rosh was the first to move, aiming a high to low swing. Jaden blocked it, returning the strike a moment later. They went back and forth in this same way while Kyle called out instructions.

“Remember your forms, but also know that they can only get you so far. You have to rely on instinct as well as your trust in the Force.”

“How do we do that?” Rosh asked, parrying Jaden’s side swing.

“I suppose it comes down to another question: What is the Force to you? Is it a safe place, somewhere you find peace? Or is it a power source from which you can draw even more power again and again?”

“I guess the power source doesn’t sound too bad.” Rosh grunted as he and Jaden locked blades.

Kyle merely nodded thoughtfully. “What about you Jaden?”

“I don’t know.” She caught Rosh’s blade with hers and they locked eyes for a moment before breaking away again. “I guess having inner peace sounds more… well, peaceful.”

She frowned when Rosh stifled a laugh and took a risky swing at him for it.

“Is there an actual answer to that question?” Rosh asked Kyle.

“Like I asked, it depends on what the Force is to you. Although one thing to know is when we need to go to the Force for guidance and peace. Or when to go for the strength we need to fight whatever battle has come our way. And most importantly, we need to know when to hold it all in balance together. There’s a give and take that comes with communing with the Force. The Sith tended to be takers for the most part, with Jedi keeping to the opposite end of the spectrum.” Their master shrugged. “Like I said, it’s a balance that we all strive for to achieve.” His comlink suddenly started to beep and he called for them to keep going while he stepped away.

Rosh smiled mischievously at Jaden. “Whaddya say we put a wager on this duel?”

“Like what?” Jaden asked.

“Like… the loser has to clean the winner’s lightsaber.” He took a practice swing at her purple blade and she blocked one handed.

“Or…” She tapped a finger from her free hand on her chin as if thinking. “Loser, meaning you, has to tell the winner, me, what happened on Naboo.”

“Not gonna happen. I’m pretty sure you’ll be too busy cleaning my lightsaber to listen to some long, boring story about political intrigue.” Rosh pushed in close, forcing Jaden towards the edge.

“Hey! Not fair!” Jaden gripped her lightsaber with both hands, pushing against her partner to keep from falling.

“I mean, you’re gonna have to learn how to duel in tight spaces like this anyway, so…” Rosh pushed in even closer, their faces inches away between the two crossed lightsabers. 

Everything seemed to go still for a split second as Jaden looked with frustrated eyes into her partner’s mischievous ones. Something seemed to shift in their stances, their eyes, the longer this went on. Jaden could feel her heart beating faster but it wasn’t for fear of falling off the edge of the dueling platform. It was the closeness of her friend and his dark, caf brown eyes, his ruddy cheeks, his smooth mouth…

“Hey! Let’s call it a day, I need you two down here stat!” Kyle called up.

The moment passed. Jaden felt the tension snap. She glanced down at her feet, then back up at Rosh. For a moment, he looked as if he were about to try some trick that would technically let him win the fight, then he dropped it. Backing away, Rosh gave her enough room to pass him and they both got back on the lift with no elbow room again. Only this time, they tried to keep each other’s shoulders from touching.

Kyle met them at the bottom.

“Looks like I’ve got an assignment for the both of you. We just received a distress call from a merchant ship that crashed on the planet Blenjeel. They were pulled out of hyperspace when they crossed paths with an Interdictor cruiser. Damn Imps.” Kyle spat out the last words.

“Imps?” Rosh raised an eyebrow.

“An old nickname us Rebs gave ‘em during the Rebellion days.

“They apparently didn’t want their presence known, so they fired on the merchant ship. The merchants managed to make it to the planet's surface and call for help. As far as we know, the planet is uninhabited, so going to pick them up should be a blue milk run.”

Jaden and Rosh exchanged looks. “And you want us to go pick up the merchants? By ourselves?” Rosh asked.

“I believe you two are qualified to handle this on your own, especially you Rosh, after what happened on Naboo,” Kyle chuckled.

“Seriously?” Jaden’s hands went up in disbelief. Kyle continued as if he’d said nothing of importance. 

“I sent the coordinates of their distress beacon to your datapads. Take a shuttle, and pick up any survivors. You got that?”

“Sure do Kyle!” Rosh said excitedly.

“Alright, see ya when you get back and may the Force be with you,” Kyle said, backing away.

“May the Force be with you,” they said in unison without meaning to.

“So,” Jaden said, “I’ll go get my datapad and meet you in the hangar?”

Rosh nodded. “Sounds great! We have my datapad too, just in case. Will you get it from my room, I’m pretty sure I left it on my bed?” He slipped her a keycard.

“You want me to- I mean, you’re okay with me going into your-?” Jaden couldn’t believe she was acting like this, even with his permission the idea of going into a guy’s room, his room , felt weird, like an invasion of privacy.

Rosh noticed her discomfort and held back a smile. “It’s okay, just run in, grab the pad and run out, I promise I cleaned up in there. I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t trust you, you’re my friend, remember?”

“Yeah,” Jaden nodded. “A friend that won’t tell me what really happened on Naboo.” She looked him in the eyes and smiled sarcastically.

Rosh laughed, spinning on his heel and heading towards the lift that led to the hangar. “See you down there.”

Jaden stood outside Rosh’s room, feeling her cheeks getting hotter and hotter. She nervously glanced up and down the hall, hoping no one would see her going in or out. Why it mattered so much to her if someone did or not was still something she was trying to figure out. Maybe because this was the closest she’d be to a guy before, not that she had romantic feelings for him, it was just… The closeness. The closeness and the trust was something new and unknown to her. Back home on Coruscant, she’d mostly kept to herself, none of the boys in school paid attention to her, she was just the person who went through the motions, kept her head down and did the work. That was it. 

No. She straightened up, threw her shoulders back. She wouldn’t worry about what to say or how to explain herself. She swiped the keycard over the sensor next to the door and went in swiftly, intending to locate the datapad and then get out. There, it was on the bed like Rosh had told her. Grabbing it up, she meant to just turn and walk out but… On the bedside table, a mess of metal and wire parts, an object in the middle that needed a lot more attention and work. 

He’s building his own lightsaber already?  

She didn’t even realize that she’d started moving in closer, reaching out to lightly run her finger over the cool, smooth surface of the work in progress hilt. She smiled, I wonder what color it’s going to be. Then she heard voices. Coming down the hall. She couldn't make them out but it might be Goran and Raltharan, and maybe Jacyyn, definitely Jacyyn, she’d recognise that laugh anywhere.

Moving quickly, she raced out of the room, closing and locking it before heading up the hall, nearly running into the boys on her way out.

“Hey, Jaden, what’s the rush?” Jacyyn said, then glanced over her shoulder. “Were you just coming from down our hall?”

Jaden hoped they wouldn’t notice her cheeks redden, “Yeah,” she said as casually as she could muster. “Rosh and I were about to be sent out on an assignment, a rescue mission and he asked me to get his datapad while he gets the shuttle ready.” She held up the datapad as proof.

“Oh, sweet, well have fun!” Jacyyn said and Jaden tried not to run as she headed towards the lift. Before the doors closed, she heard their laughter drifting down the hall. That was… embarrassing.

They headed to Blenjeel in mostly silence. Jaden sat in the copilot’s chair while Rosh captained it. She didn’t tell him about running into the guys, and she never would. As they neared the planet, Jaden noted its similarity to Tatooine. 

“The whole thing’s a desert!”

“Then let's make this trip quick, I’m still not over the sunburn I got.” Rosh directed the shuttle towards the planet’s surface, following the beacon to the coordinates Kyle had sent them. But as they entered the atmosphere, they passed a patch of darker clouds silhouetted against the bright landscape and a large bolt of lightning shot out of them, hitting their shuttle. Some of the lights went out, the sound of numerous alarms began going off. 

“Hold on!” Rosh shouted, his knuckles whitening on the steering controls. Jaden gripped the armrests on her seat, This sounds familiar. 

Rosh fought to keep the shuttle steady, but the truth of the matter was that they were going down and there was nothing to stop it. Jaden braced herself for impact as Rosh pulled on the steering handles.

The landing wasn’t near as bad as the one on that first day, but when they got up and started checking around the ship, things went from bad to worse. Rosh stood looking skeptically at the control panel near the main door of the ship that led outside, shaking his head miserably. “Nice work, Rosh. Some rescue mission.” Jaden thought he might punch the wall, which wouldn’t help anything given their predicament.

“Hey,” she said gently, reaching a hand out to touch his shoulder. “It wasn’t your fault that we got struck by lightning. You’re a great pilot, but Nature isn’t something you can avoid all the time.”

“Maybe if I was stronger with the Force I could,” Rosh muttered, eyes downcast. 

Since when did this become about being powerful? She changed the subject.

“I checked out the window, we landed close to that merchant ship. Let’s head outside, see if there are any survivors and go from there. Maybe they have some spare parts we can use to fix the shuttle.” Rosh nodded, and they silently headed outside, shielding their eyes from the bright sun. They walked carefully across the unsteady sand to a large rock and, after helping each other onto it, looked out over the merchant vessel. It was worse than they thought. Large pieces and small were scattered across the nearby landscape, the ship itself was torn in two, its rear and its helm raised slightly in the air, the parts where they’d broken off from each other sinking slightly into the sand.

Jaden and Rosh cupped their hands over their mouths and shouted, “Hello? Hello? Anybody there? We’ve come to help you!” At first there was no response, then, Rosh nudged Jaden’s arm and pointed. There, in the wreckage, peeking out his head, was a man.

“Hey, you there!” Jaden yelled. “Are you alright?”

The merchant looked around as if someone other than the two young Jedi were watching him. Then he darted out from his hiding place as if someone were going to give him chase, onto the sand towards the rock Jaden and Rosh stood on.

“Oh thank the Force you’ve come, this place is-” The ground began to shake, the merchant grunted and fell backwards. It was so violent that Jaden and Rosh had to kneel on the rock to keep from losing their footing. All of a sudden, a large, long, creature rose up out of the ground. A worm, with a giant open mouth and thousands of teeth lining its mandibles. With a terrible roar that shook the earth even more, reminding Jaden of the cry of the howlers, it plunged down into the sand, devouring the poor merchant whose last cry was cut off forever. The beast disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. Jaden and Rosh recoiled. She lost her balance and was falling forward, towards the sand and that monstrous, ugly creature. She suddenly felt strong arms grasp her waist and she fell back instead. She and Rosh went down hard, falling into each other and landing roughly in a sitting position on the rock. For several moments they stayed like that, breathing heavily with fear and adrenaline. Jaden realized she was practically on his lap and gently maneuvered herself to sit just beside him, but still very close. Their arms and legs were brushed against each other. 

“What was that?” Jaden whispered, voice raw, her face pale. She thought she might vomit. Rosh thought he might too. They looked at each other with an equal amount of fear in their eyes. This was serious, and seemingly so much worse than being on Tatooine with a bunch of Sand People trying to kill them. Rosh slowly stood up, his legs shaking. He reached down and helped Jaden to her feet. They watched the patch of sand where the merchant had once stood, minutes passing, waiting for something to happen. 

“Is it gone?” Jaden asked.

“I don’t know,” Rosh said. Realizing they were still whispering, and holding hands, he slowly pulled away from her grasp and drew his blaster. “I have a theory.” Before Jaden could object, he fired several rounds at a spot of sand several yards away. At first, nothing happened, then, a rumbling occurred under their feet, but they stood firm as the ground shook harder. The surface of the sand began to shift and move, and they found they could track the movement of the worm as it made its way over to the spot where Rosh had fired. But it didn’t surface. Rosh nodded his head.

“Just as I thought. That thing senses vibrations in the sand above it and probably has a great sense of smell too, hence why it didn't surface.”

“And how is that good for us besides distracting it for a few moments?” Jaden asked.

“It gives us enough time to run across the sand and find what we need in the merchant ship,” he replied. “Look, I checked our ship and the communications are out. I can try to fix it but it could take a long time before someone comes to rescue us, and then what? They get struck by lightning too? No, I think we can find the parts necessary to fix the shuttle.”

“Well, you are pretty good with technology.”

“Exactly,” Rosh said, some of his confidence returning. “From what I can tell we need five parts to fix our ship and this merchant vessel isn’t too far off from the kind of ship that ours is. Look, if you’re up for you, you can scavenge the ship and bring me back the parts we need. I’ll stay on our shuttle and work on trying to fix the communications array just in case all this fails.”

“By ‘fail’ you mean if I get eaten?” Jaden crossed her arms.

“If you think you can fix the ship, go right ahead and I’ll scavenge,” he said, crossing his arms too.

They stared at each other in silence. Finally, Jaden relented, it was the best plan and less of a risk for just one to go out and search. And that way one person could be installing the new parts as they came in.

“Okay,” she said reluctantly, shaking his hand. “I’ll find the parts, but you'll have to tell me what to look for. Also, give me your blaster.”

“Why my blaster?”

“I’m gonna need extra ammo in order to distract that thing!” She patted her own blaster strapped snugly at her side.

“Oh, I’ve got something better than my blaster.”

Using their Force abilities to run fast back to the ship helped in their favor, as well as shooting the sand in the opposite direction. They stood just inside the doorway, glancing out at the shifting sand. Rosh handed her a belt from which hung six round objects.

“I found these thermals in the weapons locker,” he said. “These will cause some pretty big vibrations on the sand, so use these sparingly.”

“Got it,” Jaden slung the belt over her shoulder, then a large bag made of strong durable fabric over the other. “I’ll try to use my blaster as much as possible.” She smiled and poked him in the chest. “I have the feeling you just wanted me to get sunburned too.” 

“Exactly!” Rosh turned on his heel, a big grin plastered on his face and headed towards the front of the ship. Jaden stepped over the threshold onto the ramp that jutted out from the door. 

“Start looking in the main hull of the merchant ship before checking the parts scattered around it. And try to find a power converter first if you can,” Rosh called from behind. “I’ll get to work on the communications array.”

“I’ll try!” Jaden answered and stepped close to the edge of the ramp. She unholstered her blaster and fired as far as she could onto the sand, about fifty yards away from the merchant ship. The sand under their shuttle moved at a fast pace towards the vibrations. Jaden shuddered at the thought that that thing had been underneath them the entire time, waiting. She bent her knees, ready to run, counting as the worm moved farther and farther away until it was almost at the site of her blaster shots. Then she ran, focusing her Force power into running fast and efficiently at the rock she and Rosh had stood on. Panting, she leapt from rock to rock, debris to debris until she found herself inside the shell of the merchant vessel. There wasn’t much to find, several parts on Rosh’s list were missing. Most of all that was missing were the bodies of the merchants. They all got eaten. The raw memory of the last man getting swallowed whole, his last cry and the sandworm’s roar. She shivered and moved into another room, where, in the floor that would’ve been covered by a panel, was the power converter. And thankfully, it wasn’t damaged.

Ah, this power converter should do.  

Jaden slipped the large piece into her bag. She’d return it to Rosh, then go in search of the other parts.

Maybe some of them had been knocked loose and are close by, she thought.  

Getting back to the large rock wasn’t hard, it just took awhile because of the weight of the power converter in her bag. She looked out over the empty space between her and the ship, knowing that the sandworm might be lurking underneath its surface. She removed a thermal detonator from its belt. Firing her blaster at a distance she thought she could throw to, she set a time for the thermal to explode, then turned away from the direction of her ship and threw with all her might. It landed a dozen yards away, not too far from the place that she’d shot. She prayed that when it exploded, it might hurt the worm or kill it, but she highly doubted that after seeing its segmented armored body. The ground moved, it was working. As soon as it was close to the detonator, she made her move and at the same time, the small explosive went off, bringing forth a pained roar from the sandworm. Jaden ran faster, just clearing the threshold of the ship as the worm, having realized there was actual prey out on the sand, started following her.

She landed on the hard floor of the shuttle just as the creature rose out of the ground outside and roared. Rosh, hearing the commotion rushed into the room and manually closed the door.

“Jaden, are you okay?!” He hurried to help her up. Jaden brushed herself off and pulled the spare part from her bag.

“One power converter, just like you ordered!” She handed it to him and followed as he went to a panel on the floor, opened it and started installing it.

“Great work Jaden! Now we just need a power coupling, an energy cell and a damper.”

“Alright.” Jaden leaned over and rested her hands on her knees. “I need to rest for a moment. That sandworm is right outside and I’m not sure it's going to keep being fooled by our blaster shots or the detonators.”

Rosh, never taking his eyes off his work, nodded. “Maybe wait five, ten minutes and then head back out. Hopefully it's dumb and will move after a bit. We’re not exactly pressed for time here.”

“You got that right. How’s the communications array coming along?”

“So far not good. Thankfully I don’t think I need a part from the merchant vessel, it’ll just take some time.” He looked up from his work to grin at her. “Probably never thought you’d hear me talk about taking time for anything uh?”

“No.” She shook her head. “I think you’re coming along nicely with your training. I think patience is a hard thing for everyone, even Kyle. But don’t tell him I said that.”

“My lips are sealed.”

“Like they are about Naboo?” She said teasingly.

“I think it’s been enough time for you to get back out there.” Though he didn’t look up, Jaden knew Rosh was on the verge of laughter. She also knew it hadn’t even been five minutes yet, but decided it wasn’t worth trying to press Rosh for answers about his mission with Kyle. She made certain her bag and the thermal detonators were secure, then headed back out.

She fell into an easy rhythm, a routine with collecting the parts Rosh needed, and was able to find an energy cell for their ships cooling unit among the wreckage closest to the merchant ship wreck. Next up was a power coupling for their acceleration compensator; this one had been tricky as she had spotted it out in the open on a patch of sand. She’d sacrificed two detonators just to get it and had to relinquish another to get back to the ship since her blaster marks didn’t seem to be providing the sufficient vibrations needed to distract the worm. She took breaks in between bringing each part in for Rosh, who’d been doing expert work installing all the spare parts in record time. 

Before heading out for the last part Rosh said they needed - a damper that was (hopefully) compatible with their shuttle’s hyperdrive motivator; she took an extra long break while he worked on their communications array.

“So,” Jaden said. “I noticed that you’re building a lightsaber?”

“Oh, you saw that?” Rosh sounded a little embarrassed and pleased.

“Yeah, I think that’s awesome, then you won’t have to have the training one anymore. Any idea what color it's gonna be?”

Rosh kept tinkering with some wires. “Not sure, it's a delicate process but… I’m hoping for blue, or green, or maybe like a greenish blue y’know? Something in between, like the color of the oceans back home on Corellia.”

Jaden had never heard him talk about his home before except to say where he was from on their first day of training. She settled gently down onto the floor next to him, being sure to give him space while he worked. “Did you live there your whole life?” 

“I just grew up there. Funnily enough, I was born on Naboo. But I was too young to remember it when we moved to Corellia.” 

“This last trip must have been your first time back then?” Rosh nodded, but offered no further information and Jaden knew already that he wouldn’t answer if she asked what happened there. Instead she tried a different subject. “So, Corellia, was it a nice place to live?”

“I guess so. It rained a lot and we lived in the city, but I still enjoyed some things there. There was this sweet shop my mom would take me to every weekend, they had the best ice cream and glowing treats in the galaxy! Maybe I’ll take you there sometime!” 

Jaden felt her stomach do a small flip at Rosh’s suggestion. Yeah, I’d like that very much.

“And what about you?” Rosh glanced her way with a dimpled grin and a light in his eyes. “Aren’t you from Coruscant? That place is the biggest city in the galaxy.”

Jaden smiled, “It ought to be, it's the whole planet, and not one bit of its natural surface is showing anymore, except Umate that is.”

“What’s that?”

“It's one of the highest peaks of the Manarai Mountains. The locals call it KnobHead. I remember seeing it as a child once, in the middle of Monument Plaza. It’s forbidden to touch it, but you know what? I did.”

“Ooo so you broke the rules.” Rosh’s mischievous grin told her that he would’ve done the same thing.

“Yeah, there’s this group of monks that looks after it and they’re allowed to touch it. They say it helps one ‘connect with the planet’s inner spirit’ or something like that.”

“And did it? Connect you with the planet?”

“I don’t think so. I feel kind of indifferent to my home planet, and there doesn’t seem to be any legend about gaining incredible powers by touching it either.” She shrugged. “I guess the place I miss the most is The Hyperspace Lane Cafe. They have the best caf in the entire galaxy and no one can tell me any different.” She sighed, then glanced at Rosh with a wry half smile, “Maybe I’ll take you there someday. I used to spend hours there, studying for school, reading, or just hanging out with the owner and her usual customers.”

“What about your home, where you lived?” Rosh had stopped working altogether, riveted. “Don’t you miss your-” He couldn’t remember who she’d been raised by, he wasn’t even sure if she’d mentioned her parents or not. “-relatives?”

“It was fine. My uncle Orn raised me. He’s a nice man, he was the only family I had left. He and my aunt Thisa, they’d divorced long before I came along, but she’d come around now and again to help with my upbringing and they were friendly to each for my sake.”

“But?” Rosh sensed there was more, and Jaden almost didn’t hear him, she was so lost in thought. He scooted a little closer to her.

“He wasn’t the most emotionally present person, nor was aunt Thisa. They gave me food and shelter, and I suppose that’s the most some people are even blessed to get in their life.”

“I guess that’s true.” Rosh turned back to his work, but only half focused on it. “My father wasn’t exactly the most ‘loving type’ either. He fought in the Rebellion. Now he works all the time for the New Republic, never has time for me, not like he ever did anyway.”

“You know it's strange,” Jaden said. “I know Kyle’s our master and nothing else, but… I don’t know.” She released a heavy breath, and spoke so quietly Rosh had to strain to hear her next words, even though they were so close to each other. “I’m scared of disappointing him, and I can’t help but wonder if… if that’s what it's like to have a dad.”

“Yeah, that’s it.” Rosh spoke in the same tone, his voice dangerously close to crying. “Sometimes I feel like I’ve disappointed everyone in my life: my dad, even my mom, friends… And now… I just hope Kyle and Luke aren’t next.”

Jaden quickly dashed a tear from her eye and looked down. This revelation made all of Rosh’s actions make sense now.

Without even realizing she was thinking out loud, she said, “Is… is that why you’ve been acting so confident all the time? That’s why you’ve been seeking Kyle and Luke’s approval?”

Rosh looked down, red rimming his eyes, but he would not let her see him cry. Her words had not been said harshly or with a dual tone, but they’d hurt all the same. He moved away from her and set himself to fixing the communications with extra vigor. “No,” he said quietly, trying to calm the emotion in his voice. His tone sharpened with his next words. “Don’t you think it's time to go look for that last piece?”

“Rosh, I’m sorry I-”

“There’s nothing to be sorry for, I’m fine!” Still not looking up, “Now, please, just go get that last part so we can get off this crazy rock!” Jaden stepped back, feeling stunned, then slowly turned and headed towards the back door. Right as she was about to step out she glanced behind her, noticing Rosh shoving his palms against his eyes. She sighed, then stepped out of the dimness of the ship and into the contrasting brightness of the planet.

Jaden fired off more than enough shots to distract the worm. She was upset and if taking her emotions out on a desolate planet with nothing but gross evil sandworms inhabiting it was what she needed to do, then so be it. The creature took the bait and she sprinted in record time to the large rock, gazing around her, wondering where she should look. Instead she sat down and buried her face in her hands. This was the first time she’d opened up to Rosh, to anybody really, and she’d messed it up by insulting him when he did the same. She’d never seen him this vulnerable, he was different, he looked different and… nicer? Not that he wasn’t nice already. But he always had some performance of confidence he was putting on, a mask of arrogance that grated on her nerves and patience. But this Rosh…  He seemed like the real Rosh and that was the Rosh she wanted to be around more. The memory from earlier when he’d pulled her back from falling into the sand came back with a vengeance. She’d been so frightened and he was right there to catch her. She realized that was the longest time they’d sat so close together, touching. Well, besides when she’d rested her head on his shoulder that first day. But her mind hadn’t been very aware at the time.

She stood up suddenly and shook her head. She had to go. She didn’t have time to think about Rosh or being so close to him that his arm felt warm against hers. Or when he’d held her hand… Sithspit. These foreign new feelings towards Rosh were getting out of hand.

She decided to scour the area beyond the merchant ship. It was further out than she’d been before but if she could keep to the rocks and bits of debris, then maybe the worm wouldn’t follow her. Maybe she’d be safe. But is there more than one worm out there? She shook that thought away and jumped from one rock to another and continued in that way until she was several yards out from the merchant vessel. Several parts of the ship were littered all over the ground, but they weren’t within close proximity to the rock she stood on.

  I’ve got to get over there!

  She thought she spotted what she was looking for, she leapt onto the only rock closest to the debris field, it was lighter in color than the others with defined segments running around it. She waited, wondering if she should shoot the ground a distance away or just go for it with a Force empowered sprint. There! She spotted a damper she was sure would work.

  Now to get over there safely…

The rock underneath her moved. A shift really, and suddenly she felt it was slowly sinking underneath her feet. She reacted. Jumping off the rock, she landed on the ground and tried to set her focus on running towards the damper. She quickly grabbed it, bagged it then booked it towards the larger, more solid rock she’d stood on before. 

That’s so strange, none of the rocks have done that before! 

The image of the rock entered her mind, details that she’d noticed but dismissed. The segmented details on the side… 

Oh Stars, it’s another worm! I was standing on a sleeping sandworm and I woke it up!

She kept to the rocks and debris as much as possible until she finally landed on the one closest to her ship. She wished she could communicate with Rosh. They didn’t have their coms on them and at the moment she wasn’t sure if he’d hear her or want to. She pulled her last thermal from its belt and concentrated hard on throwing it as far as she could, aiming for a far out dune that might have been a mirage. The exertion, plus everything she’d done that day and not having drunk enough water, took its toll on her. She ran, seemingly in slow motion towards the door of the shuttle. Then the ground started to shake, causing her to lose her balance and fall to the sand just feet from the ramp.

Rosh heard the deafening roar of the sandworm outside the door, wondering why it’d surfaced if Jaden hadn’t run across the sand and inside the ship already. On instinct he grabbed his blaster and something he’d kept to himself in case of an emergency and rushed outside onto the ramp.

Towering above Jaden as she lay on the ground, was the worm, its mouth open, about to strike. He had seconds. Jaden seemed to come to herself and screamed. She tried shooting the creature, but all that came was several desperate clicks from her blaster. Rosh aimed swiftly and threw the thermal detonator in his hand square into the sandworm’s mouth. It exploded, causing much damage, spewing slimy pieces of the monster all around them and on them, inciting more awful sounds from the horrid creature.

Jaden was still on the ground, stunned and covered in worm guts, wondering where the thermal had come from. Then she felt strong arms hook their way under her armpits. She was being dragged backwards. She found her footing and scrambled to her feet. Pushing Rosh ahead of her, they made a mad dash the last foot or so to the ramp and inside the ship. Outside of it, another monstrous sandworm rose out of the ground with a roar. Not finding the prey it’d smelled earlier, it decided to turn on the one that lay injured on the ground, it wasn’t going to live very long anyway.

Safely inside, Jaden and Rosh leaned against each other on the floor, trying to block out the horrible sounds coming from just outside. They were propped against the wall, breathing heavily, waiting for their adrenaline to settle down. When they’d rested enough to realize how close they were, and both plastered in worm guts, they unanimously moved apart.

“Thanks,” Jaden said awkwardly. “You saved my life, I don’t know what I would’ve done back there. Thank you.” 

Rosh merely nodded and she added, “And I wanted to apologize for earlier, I don’t know why I said that, that wasn’t nice and please believe me when I say I wasn’t trying to-”

“It’s okay,” Rosh held up a hand. “It’s fine, it really is. All’s forgotten, I forgive you.” He seemed to squirm with that last part and Jaden decided to leave it at that.

“By the way, where’d you get the thermal detonator? I thought I had them all?”

“I saved one just in case, you know, for emergencies. Turns out I was right.” There was that smile, that mask of charmed arrogance again.

Then why didn’t you tell me? She wanted to ask, but knew that would just upset him again. Instead she found spare cleaning rags for them to at least wipe their faces and hands clean from the slimy worm substance coating them.

Rosh installed the last part in record time and soon they were back in the air, leaving behind that godforsaken dust ball and its cursed creatures. They didn’t say much the rest of the flight back to the Academy, and when they did it was forced small talk and forced smiles. Jaden sensed the tension between them wouldn’t be easy to cut, even with a lightsaber. She wondered where they stood now and if ever, Rosh would feel safe enough to open up to her, or anyone for that matter, again.

“That's too bad about the merchants. Sounds like those sand burrowers must have gotten them all… Nasty critters.” Kyle had stood in the hangar waiting for them when they got back and listened as they told him the whole story, taking turns as they each told their respective parts, of course leaving out the vulnerable conversation they’d both shared. If Kyle suspected that they were holding anything back, he didn’t show it and didn’t ask. “Glad you two got back safe and sound. We'll let Coruscant know to mark the planet as hazardous. Nicely done.” He gestured to the nearby door. “Go, get some rest, maybe a shower first.” He held a hand to his nose, gesturing at their clothes, still covered in worm bits. “Then meet me in one of the training rooms first thing after breakfast tomorrow. I think you're both ready for the next stage of training.”

Jaden tried to catch up with Rosh as he hurried to get back to his room.

“Rosh, Rosh wait!”

“What?” He slowed down but didn’t stop or turn around.

“Rosh, I’m sorry again for what I said back there on Blenjeel.”

“This again, it’s whatever, water under the bridge.”

“Then do you still want to meet on the roof for some Mantell Mix?” Rosh actually stopped and turned around, Jaden nearly stumbled so that she wouldn't bump into him and immediately felt foolish for even suggesting the idea. “I mean… It’s kind of our tradition now after each mission.” She shrugged and laughed nervously. Rosh’s expression was hard, unreadable, but softened a bit. His walls stayed up though.

“I… don’t know yet. I’m tired. We’ll see.” He spun on his heel and continued towards his room at the same fast pace.

Jaden watched him go, feeling even more foolish. Did you really think some silly tradition would matter to him, Jaden?

“Yes, I did,” she said aloud to herself.

“Did what?”

Jaden jumped at the voice behind her coming up the hall and saw Arta-Mess and Kalil Streen coming back from the training grounds for some much needed rest.

“Oh, Kalil, Arta-Mess, hey. How was training?” She deflected.

“You can just call me Streen,” Kalil stated. “Everyone does.”

“Isn’t that your last name though?” Jaden asked.

“Yeah, but most everyone calls me by it. Even Master Tionne.”

“Oh, well I think Kalil is still a nice name.” Jaden offered a kind smile to which Kalil simply shrugged.

“How was training?” Jaden asked Arta-Mess.

The white haired girl lifted a shoulder. “The same as always. Long and tiring.”

Kalil nodded in agreement, then said, “What were you saying a moment ago? When we were walking up?”

Shocked that the Zabrak had circled back, not missing a thing, Jaden tried to wave it off. “Oh, it’s… nothing.”

Arta and Kalil shared a concerned look. Then Kalil said:

“You sure? It didn’t sound like it was.” Kalil was asking the pressing question Jaden had wished Kyle would’ve asked that day on the training grounds, the question that she wished, but also dreaded other people would ask when she felt miserable or something was wrong between her and Rosh. She wanted to, needed to, talk about it, but wasn’t sure if she really could trust someone to process all that was swirling around in her mind.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just… tired is all. Rosh and I went to Blenjeel to rescue some merchants. It didn’t end well.”

“For the two of you, or the merchants?” Arta pressed.

“I guess both. We were having to repair our ship and deal with giant sandworms that wanted to eat us and could sense our movement when we walked on the sand.”

“Sounds scary, and gross,” Arta-Mess said, then brought a hand to her nose. “I didn’t wanna say anything but is that smell and what's on your clothes related to the-”

“Yeah.”

“Do you wanna get cleaned up first, then come to my room and we can all talk about it?”

Jaden felt a feeling of fear twist her stomach.

Do I want to talk to them, or do I just need a shower and some sleep?  

As tired as she was, she didn’t want to be alone. Alone was already a scary feeling. She looked up at her friends and said, “Sure, I can talk for a little bit.”

Freshly showered and in clean, comfortable clothes, Jaden joined Kalil and sat in Arta-Mess’s room for nearly half the night, at first talking about her mission. She didn’t go into much detail about what happened between her and Rosh, just that the mission had brought some tension between them, which wasn’t entirely wrong, but not entirely truthful either. They eventually got onto other subjects, finding themselves laughing hysterically, and soon Jaden found she was having a good time just in her friend’s company. She and Kalil soon stumbled off to their own rooms so that they could try and get some amount of sleep.

It wasn’t until she woke in time for breakfast the next morning that she realized she had forgotten to go up to the roof.

Chapter Text

“Alright Jaden, Rosh, Scenario: Spaceport, a cultist has a hostage and is using them for cover. He’s almost to the nearest transport. You’re twenty yards away. Whaddya do?” Kyle crossed his arms in silence. They were inside one of the many training rooms, this one with square platforms that rose out of the floor and one could never be sure of exactly when they would move. Kyle had instructed them to answer his made up scenarios -an exercise he long insisted on employing- as they crossed the room, jumping from platform to platform. He’d started them on opposite ends of the room facing each other. 

Jaden had no time to apologize to Rosh. He hadn’t been at breakfast that morning and only showed up to their training right as Kyle did. She felt extremely guilty for telling him to meet her on the roof, just to go and forget herself. She couldn’t read his expression and decided to talk to him as soon as their session was over.

“Whaddya do?” Kyle asked again. “You’ve gotta be thinking as you move because out in the field, there will be moments when you have to make a snappy decision and you might actually be on the move.”

“Quick question!” Rosh asked.

“No,” said Kyle.

Rosh asked anyway. “What about our lightsabers?”

“You don’t have ‘em.”

Rosh jumped shakily to the platform in front of him. “That’s ridiculous! We’re Jedi. I’d never forget my lightsaber.” Jaden cringed at Rosh’s tone and words. He was still very testy and had been getting more loose with his attitude around Kyle.

“But this time, you did,” Kyle said, even his patience wearing thin. “You have to be ready for any situation, even the ones you swear you’ll never find yourself in. Now, what do you do? And, you only have a blaster and the Force to rely on.” Rosh and Jaden simultaneously jumped to the respective platforms in front of them.

“Shoot the hostage,” Rosh answered. Jaden nearly lost her balance.

“What?” She and Kyle said in unison, they were so shocked, even the moving platforms seemed to stop for a moment.

“Yeah,” Rosh said. “Takes ‘em out of the equation. Go for an easy, non-fatal wound and the cultist doesn’t get a chance to make it to the transport because now you’ll have a clean shot at him.”

Kyle rubbed his bearded chin. “Not what I would’ve expected, but creative. Though, we Jedi try our best not to harm innocent civilians. Jaden, how ‘bout you?”

“Rely on the Force.” She was nearly halfway across the room, practically side by side with Rosh. “Use it to trip him up, when he stumbles, he’ll loosen his grip on the hostage. I can then pull them away to safety with the Force and take out the cultist with my blaster.”

“Very interesting,” Kyle observed. “What I’m doing is teaching you both about balance. Relying on the Force, yes, but also your weapons, skills, and intuition. It’s something that’s very hard to master and I know for a fact that you fail many times before you get it right, and even then, it’ll never be perfect.”

Rosh released an exasperated breath. “But as our master, isn’t it your job to make sure we don’t fail?”

Kyle raised his voice slightly, taking on a more stern tone. “My goal for you is for you to not fail one hundred percent of the time, but also not to succeed all the time. Failure is the best teacher. Luke once told me, ‘Kyle, if you haven’t failed at least three times in your first year of being a Jedi, then I would have done something wrong.’ And I say the same to you. Your job isn’t to fail all the time, or to be perfect. It’s to find the balance between failure and success and do your best to stay in that place.”

“But,” Rosh said feebly, stopping to kneel for a short rest, a few platforms away from finishing. “I didn’t come to this Academy to learn to fail.”

“That’s not what I’m saying, Rosh.” Kyle’s voice took on a gentler tone. “Don’t be afraid of failure, Rosh. Fear is your worst enemy.

“And I don’t mean failing like someone falling to the dark side or anything. Failure can be a mission gone wrong or a miscommunication. It’s seeing if you can pick up the pieces afterwards and learn and adapt from it. If the two of you can use what I’m teaching you and apply it to whatever scenario you find yourselves in to get the best outcome you possibly can; if you can grow from your failures, and become better Jedi because of it, then I would have done my job as your master. Remember, every mission is a chance to learn more about being a Jedi. Sometimes you must fail in order to succeed. Success will exalt you, but failure will humble you.”

Rosh and Jaden made the final leap to their finishing platforms and stood tall. Kyle clapped his hands slowly. “Good job! You both did that in record time…” They started to celebrate before he added, “...My mother’s record time. Jan could do better than that. Let's try it again.” He whirled his hand above his head, indicating that they should get ready. “Go! Okay you two, Scenario…”

As soon as they breaked for lunch, Jaden caught up with Rosh on the way to the dining hall.

“Rosh, hey, I’m so sorry I didn’t meet you on the roof last night! Arta-Mess and Kalil asked to hangout and I lost track of time.”

Rosh stopped to face her, his expression going from unreadable to nonchalant. “Hey it's okay.” He waved a hand as if to add that it was nothing to be concerned about. “I was so tired that I fell asleep and didn’t remember til this morning. Apology accepted.”

Something in his tone didn’t sound quite right, but Jaden, being clouded by her own feelings didn’t think of it until much much later.

They sat with their fellow students from the shuttle and didn’t speak another word about it.

The next morning, Rosh and Jaden sat silently at their usual table in the dining hall. Ever since their first day, they’d made a habit of sitting with everyone from their shuttle almost everyday, at least at one meal. Jaden was trying to wake up with the same sub par caf she drank every day now, but was determined at all costs to convince Ched to start ordering better stuff. Rosh, on the other hand, was wide awake as usual and drinking his heavily creamed and sweetened caf. 

“So, your master has you both run through ‘Scenarios’ as your training to help with staying focused?” Arta-Mess was saying. “Tionne just has us read a lot.” She shrugged, “guess I shouldn’t expect less from a scholar.”

“Kyle has us read too,” Jaden said, “just not as much. He says he wants us to ‘find the balance’ in our training.”

“Yeah, and fail,” Rosh interjected. He’d been in a mood since their training the other day. Well, moodier than usual.

“Fail?” Jacyyn asked, an eyebrow raised.

“That’s not all the context,” Jaden said quietly and all eyes turned to her. It was much too early for this. Ignoring Rosh’s stink eye, she slowly explained to the best of her ability what Kyle had taught them. There was a long silence. Jas, who this whole time had been mostly silent, spoke up.

“Your master is very wise to be teaching you this.” He glanced around the table. “Not that all of our master’s aren’t doing a good job, I think they’re teaching us a similar lesson except in different words. But Master Katarn-”

“Kyle,” Rosh and Jaden said together, then looked at the other, embarrassed.

“He likes just being called Kyle,” Jaden said, it didn’t make the moment less awkward.

“-Kyle,” Jas said, it sounded weird coming from him. “I guess it’s straight and to the point.” He shrugged.

“I’m not sure how I feel about failing,” Goran spoke up, “I hate to think that that’s something they’re all expecting us to do.”

“Me either,” Jaccyn murmured.

“See what I mean?” Rosh said. “How can we be set up to succeed when they're setting us up to fail?”

“Rosh, you know that’s not what Kyle was saying.” Jaden started, but was interrupted by a sudden silence, the other students glancing over her shoulder. She didn’t have to turn to see who it was. She already knew.

“And what was it that I wasn’t saying?” She turned at the familiar voice. 

Hands on his hips, just as I thought.

“We were discussing your lesson on failure and success, maybe you could explain it again better than we could. Everyone’s curious about it.” She barely met his eyes, but realized they weren’t angry, they sparkled with humor.

“Well, that is a good lesson. Hard earned too, and while I’d love to teach it to all of you, I can’t right now, but maybe talk to your masters about it, and maybe I’ll stop by and give a short lecture on it.”

“Or we could try switching masters for a while.” Rosh suggested. Everyone seemed to tense at that and Jaden felt genuine concern, not only for his emotional state, but what kind of private confrontation he and Kyle were surely to have later. But Kyle didn’t appear mad, he seemed to actually consider the idea.

“That might be an interesting experiment, but that will have to wait. Jaden, let’s go, I’ll need you down at the Raven’s Claw in ten minutes. We’re heading to Coronet to investigate some rumors of activity in the area that might be caused by the Disciples of Ragnos. I still have a few contacts in Coronet, so we'll hit a few of the local cantinas and see what crops up. We'll also be following up with some of the people who reported this so-called cult activity.” Jaden nodded, and moved to get up.

“Coronet? That’s the city on Corellia where I grew up,” Rosh said suddenly. “Could I go instead? Please.” He added. The whole table was quiet again.

“I’m sorry Rosh, but I’ve picked Jaden for this assignment. If you're homesick, we can arrange for you to go back for a visit when you have a break, okay?”

Rosh merely nodded. Under the table, Jaden barely glimpsed it but he was crushing the disposable cup he’d gotten caf and cream in.

Outside the dining hall, she promised Kyle that she’d be down after she changed clothes.

After Jaden and Kyle left, everyone in the dining hall made excuses for places they had to be, classes and training they had to attend. And Rosh was left once again, alone.

*

“Then Jan punches the Weequay right in the-”

“…Can anyone hear me? We’re under attack! Somebody’s trying to take over the tram!”

It was raining heavily on Corellia when they arrived, thunder and lightning flashing intermittently. Kyle had been regaling Jaden with a story about one of his many adventures with Jan, most of them usually involved bar fights in which they were severely outnumbered - but always escaped. This particular one took place in a casino, but Jaden was half convinced that the vast majority of these stories weren’t true, no matter how entertaining. Kyle had just gotten to the good part, when someone cut through on their coms. Kyle pushed a button on the controls, but the signal had disconnected.

“The message is coming from that cargo tram down below!” 

Jaden strained to see it through the rainy haze but there it was, a tram running along two blue laser rail tracks. Hovering close by were several ships. Freelance mercenary ships. Jaden could barely make it out that the ships were dropping off people on the tram. The Raven’s Claw moved in behind the last car.

“Kyle, those ships just dropped off a bunch of mercenaries onto that tram!”

“Hmm, that’s definitely not good. Okay, let’s divide and conquer, I’ll take care of those ships if you’re alright taking the tram!”

“Yes!” Jaden said without stopping to think twice. It wouldn’t help in this case.

Commander Reev stood in front of the wall of security monitors, watching everything that was happening with meticulous interest.

He watched one screen closely in particular as it broadcasted exactly what was happening. He had to make sure they were doing things right. He looked at another screen that showed the back of the tram, the image causing him to freeze. There. A small ship that wasn’t one of his hired vessels, lowered itself close to the tram, keeping an even speed with it. The cockpit opened up and a small figure, a young woman, leapt from that ship and onto the tram. A thin, shiny cylindrical tube swung from her belt, a flash of lightning reflected on its smooth surface. He gripped the comlink in his hand so hard he almost crushed it. No matter, he still had other tricks up his sleeve.

“Head towards the front and clear out each car.” Jaden barely heard Kyle on her com over the roar of the wind and thunder and the movement of the tram. “Keep the enemy in front of you so you don’t have to worry about your flank.”

“Okay, I’ll do that!” She yelled over the background noise, then pocketed her com. She pulled her hood over her head farther and secured it as best she could. So glad I thought to bring my water resistant jacket, she thought, remembering what Rosh had said about it raining often here. She wondered what he was up to. 

Probably sulking in his room or working on his lightsaber.

She made her way around the side of the car. There were pallets of crates strapped down and she easily weaved her way through them as they provided the best cover. So far she hadn’t come across any enemies.

“Hawk, do you read?” A voice said out of nowhere.

Jaden stopped cold. The voice had come from her right, on the other side of a pile of cargo. She inched closer and peaked around the corner. There stood a man, armed with an illegal blaster rifle holding a comlink close to his lip.

“I read ya John,” answered the aforementioned Hawk.

“Meet me at station 6E.”

“Copy that.”

John moved forward and Jaden followed quietly behind him, checking to make sure no one else was with him. John walked to the front of the car where there was an enclosed control room of sorts. Beyond it, she saw as she moved stealthily around it, was an energy coupling connecting it to the next car. It hummed loudly with electricity, small spider veins of power crawling along it, signaling to Jaden, and anyone else who wanted to pass, to not touch it.

“How do I turn that off?” She whispered to herself frustratedly. She turned back and made her way back to the outside of the control room door. Inside, she could just make out the muffled voices of John and Hawk. It’s just two of them. She looked around, there had been no one else, now was her chance and maybe she could turn off the electricity to the energy coupling. She burst through the door, catching the mercs by surprise, lightsaber on.

“Let’s make this easy,” Jaden said, looking from one man to the other. “Tell me what's going on here and turn off that coupling outside and we’ll call it a day.”

Of course, scum are not that smart and they opened fire. Jaden took them down and found the switch for the coupling. Two down, I have no idea how many to go.

Commander Reev stared at the monitor in disbelief. His plans were beginning to unravel and he couldn’t have that. He turned to a control panel nearby and started punching different buttons. Once he had what he wanted, he pulled his comlink out of his pocket.

Jaden leapt to the next car and was greeted by a few mercs that weren’t too hard to handle. Then she walked up a ramp that led to the roof of the car. If she’d thought she would be able to see better from this position, she was dead wrong. The wind blasted her hood back from her head, whipping her hair around her face. The rain plastered it in various places, making it even more difficult to see. She pushed the most troublesome pieces of hair out of the way. As she stood, squinting and trying to see with the Force, her comlink beeped. Dank farrik, Kyle can probably see me loitering like an idiot! She started forward again, bringing the com to her lips.

“I know, Kyle, I know, I’m moving!”

“Who’s Kyle?”

Jaden froze. Even if it was a joke Kyle had decided to play on her, she knew beyond the shadow of a doubt, that was not Kyle’s voice.

“Who are you?” She growled.

“Just a concerned citizen who’s worried about a Jedi doing who knows what on a public tram.” His voice was cool and collective, sounding older.

“Ahh,” Jaden said, regaining her composure. “So you’re the one behind this and you don’t like that I’m spoiling your plans, well don’t worry, I’ve spoiled another scumbag’s plans before.” She was bragging a little too much and she knew it.

“Oh isn’t that nice, I don’t care!” The voice paused, Jaden thought she heard it muffled, as if he’d put his hand over the com so that she couldn’t hear what he said. But she did. She caught the last words: “When ready,” then his voice was clear again, talking to her, “Goodbye Jedi!”

Jaden knew instantly she’d made a mistake, she’d allowed him to distract her. In the distance, she heard the sound of a blaster of some kind firing, knowing that whatever it was, it was aimed at her, and it was lethal. 

She dropped to the ground just as the reddish orange blast passed over her. She looked up, she couldn’t see the sniper. She’d been lucky, but he could probably still snipe her on the ground. She whipped out her saber, the next blast came and this time she was ready. It was strong, but she stood her ground and deflected it back. A moment later she heard the almost comical cry of a Rodian. 

“Touche.” Came the mysterious voice of the mastermind from her com.

She ignored it and contacted Kyle. Before he could say a word, she just said, “Ruby Bliels.” On the other end Kyle flipped a switch, knowing exactly what she meant. It was their established codeword in case their coms were compromised. She switched her com to the new frequency on her end.

“What’s going on Jaden?” Kyle’s voice soothed her raw nerves and she told him what happened.

“I don’t know but I have a feeling that it's some higher up Imperial that’s pulling the strings on this operation. I know we’re supposed to be looking into these rumors about the cult but I think it’s just Imperial driven here, same as on Bakura.”

“I don’t doubt you there kid, just keep your eyes out, you never know until you know.”

She leapt onto the next tram car, no enemy in sight, except the dead Rodian sniper and his illegal blaster.

“Is this another one of your lessons?” She asked, smiling.

“Maybe, if that helps you get through this mission.” He was silent for a moment, then, “Okay Jaden, Scenario: You’re in a casino and your contact has just been poisoned, but he hasn’t drunk anything…”

Jaden made it through two more cars, thankfully only running into a handful of mercs altogether. This next car she’d entered, she was sure it was her fifth or sixth car. 

How many cars are there? She wondered. 

There were more stacks of crates, but other things as well. On one wall was an enclosed space, a small room that was protected by a blue forcefield. She approached it, trying to see what was on the other side.

“How can I get through here?” She felt like it was important, glancing side to side, she saw the power conduits that powered the forcefield. Taking several generous steps back, she pulled out her blaster pistol and fired point blank at each of the conduits in turn. They sparked and sputtered like a dying ember and then the forcefield powered down.

Jaden entered the room, more like a storage closet than anything, and was shocked by what she saw. Guns, tripmines, thermal detonators, crates marked with explosives, and blasters of all shapes and sizes cluttered the room. Her eyes widened as she took in each item.

“Uh, Kyle, I found a munitions car and there’s A LOT here!” She said into her com, which she’d strapped to the front of her jacket so as to keep in touch continually.

“That’s not good,” he answered. “Just keep going and try to stop that tram. If you can take out everyone trying to take it over and slow it down, we’ll get the authorities on board to take care of it.”

“Okay.” Jaden glanced up and, noticing there was a skylight above her, she climbed up the highest stack of boxes, carefully lifted the window open.

Suddenly she was startled by the sound of a ship whooshing by overhead, firing on another one nearby. It was Kyle.

“Ha ha ha ha! Too easy!” He cried over their coms, probably not realizing his talk button was on. Jaden held back a laugh, settling for a big cheesy grin and kept going.

She’d barely made the jump to the next car, when she saw it. A dark silhouette against the flashes of lightning.

 A cultist. His lightsaber glowed red, illuminating his form even more.

“Uh Kyle,”

“Yes Jaden?” 

“I think I found our connection with the Cult of Ragnos.”

“Really where-?” Kyle cut short his remark because he’d doubled back in the Raven’s Claw and had seen the glow of the red lightsaber. “Oh, listen kid I’m not down there to help you right now but just know that you can do this, you’ve done it before so I believe you can now. Be careful, remember your surroundings and how the elements affect what’s around you. I’ll see you on the other side. You’ve got four more cars to go.”

All was silent, the cultist hadn’t moved. 

“How polite of you to wait for me to finish my conversation,” she shouted to the cultist as she slowly walked towards him.

He nodded. “Every Jedi should be filled with hope from their master before they die, bringing about the greatest shame and disappointment on their head. It’s a fun tradition.”

“Lucky for you my master isn’t traditional, nor does he like being called ‘Master!’”

“Then maybe you’d both be better suited for the dark side.”

“Not a viable option. For either of us.”

Purple met red and their fight began, the rain hissing off their hot lightsaber blades. They were close now, neck in neck, neither giving the other an opening to strike an exposed area. Jaden waited until they were less than a foot away from the edge. The cultist believed he was winning and made a bold swing, which Jaden suddenly grabbed his hilt with her right hand, the cultist let go with one hand and grabbed her saber hilt. She had anticipated this. She maneuvered them around so that his back was to the open air near the edge and yanked her saber from his grip. With all her might, she pushed him away from her. His saber came out of his hold and he went flying over the edge. Jaden stood there a moment, looking down at the glowing crimson brilliance in her right hand, a strange hum of power calling out to her, an echo, a flash of an audible memory, the screaming in her mind at the Massassi Temple. For a single, solitary moment, the red saber felt good in her grasp, better than her homemade one which seemed like sloppy work in comparison. 

Then she snapped out of it, and threw the enemy’s lightsaber over the edge without a second thought.

Jaden finally landed on the tenth car, the last one before the engine; it seemed to be split up by two rooms, one in front of the other. Just as she had nearly made it halfway through the first room, her comlink beeped. Wary it might not be Kyle, she slowly pressed the button.

“Do you think if you take out every mercenary on the tram, it’ll make a difference?”

The Imperial. The Mastermind. He’d hacked their frequency again.

“Bastard,” she muttered.

“I heard that,” he said. “Now listen up, Jedi. Did you seriously think I’d be unprepared for anything that came my way? Did you? I’ve been planning this operation for months, probably way longer than you’ve been at the Academy.”

He may be right on that one.

“And if you think you can ruin a man’s life by messing with his work then you’ve got serious blinders on to the galaxy kid.” 

Kid? Seriously?

“I’ve got a big promotion coming up and Ol’ Reev is about to get everything that’s due him, at my age you have to think ahead.” Jaden was tired of hearing him talk. She decided to try a different tactic of threatening.

“When my master and I find you-” Reev cut her off.

“Here’s a Scenario for you hotshot: There’s a bomb on the tram, once this tram enters a heavily populated area, it blows up. You’re still several clicks away from its target. Whaddya do?”

Jaden had frozen. Her face paled. He’d been listening to her and Kyle the entire time. He’d hacked their frequency and heard all their plans. Everything. And now she was going to die and thousands of people with her.

“Whaddya do?” Reev asked again, this time more harshly. She swallowed slowly, and took a shaky breath in. She racked her brain, she’d been in every tram car, she hadn’t seen anything closely resembling a bomb. She decided to play along.

“I’d wanna know which car it was in.” She said, hoping her voice sounded stronger than she felt.

“Ha! Very good. There are rules Jaden.” His first use of her name sent shivers down her spine. “Stop killing all my men. If you so much as kill one more, I will detonate the bomb.”

“But aren’t you gonna kill them anyway, when the bomb explodes?” Jaden thought his logic was more than flawed, it was insane.

“That’s between me and me alone, and they signed up for this, besides, they had signed up for a different plan, before you showed up. But since I know that you’ll do anything to keep that bomb from going off, I guess you’ll just have to play by my rules. So where was I? Yes! You can’t kill anyone. Second, if you want to disarm the bomb, I’ll give you one chance, but you cannot use your hands.”

That’s unfair, what does he expect me to do?

“Now, I’ll call back soon but I’m sure you need to get going, I’ve stalled you long enough.”

“Sithspit!” Jaden turned off her com and shoved it in her pocket, and raced through the next door.

She stopped short. In front of her was the bomb. She knew what it was because it was the same model she’d disarmed on Bakura. The next thing she noticed was a cultist, who, to be fair, leapt out of nowhere at her. Jaden’s lightsaber came out and on in a matter of seconds. She wasn't sure if it was the Force or pure luck, though at this point she was beginning to view luck as a mere superstition, she was able to cut the cultist’s saber hand clean off, then destroy his lightsaber before he could try and grab it with his other hand. He kept coming at her, using the Force to try and trip her up.

These Disciples have a big pain tolerance. He finally fell to his knees, his adrenaline starting to wear off. He groaned as the pain started to take over.

“Stay down, and stay quiet,” she told him.

“Aren’t you going to kill me?” He hissed in a pained voice.

“Not the Jedi way,” Jaden said. “You’re disarmed, just like how this bomb is about to be. But since I can’t have you trying to stop me.” She struck him on the head with the hilt of her saber and he crumbled to the floor, unconscious. 

She noticed the camera for the first time. She could take it out, but who knew what Reev would do. She decided to risk it and called Kyle, it couldn’t be any worse than before. Could it?

“Kyle! There’s a bomb on the tram!”

“Disarm it, quickly! You’re about to enter a heavily populated area!”

“But, Kyle, he knows!”

“Who knows?”

“The guy behind it! He’s listening to our frequency!”

Kyle didn’t reprimand her for speaking freely. He knew in the tone of her voice that no frequency was safe at this point. “What did he say to you?”

“He gave me a bunch of rules, one was that I couldn’t kill anymore of his men, I found a way around it. And the second one is that I can try to disarm the bomb but I can’t use my hands!”

There was a long pause in which Jaden could hear as well as feel, her heart hammering against her chest. Her eyes stayed glued on the bomb, anticipating its explosion at any second. “Then don’t use your hands.” Kyle simply answered. Jaden looked back at the bomb in frustration. What does he expect me to do, use my mouth? My feet? The For- Wait a second! Jaden smacked her forehead with her palm.

Biting back self-deprecating remarks towards herself for not thinking of the solution sooner, she pinned her com back to her chest, and quickly settled down on the floor. She closed her eyes and pictured the bomb in her mind, and, through the Force, used the invisible hands of her mind to quickly, but efficiently move the various parts of the bomb until… Click. She opened her eyes. She’d done it! She’d disarmed it! She smiled big. You seem to have forgotten about the Force there Reev!

“That wasn't so bad! Okay, mission accomplished!” She leapt up and almost lost her balance as the tram suddenly jolted forward as if someone had just hit the accelerator to full throttle.

“Bad news Jaden,” she heard Kyle’s voice from her com. “The tram is speeding up! I think they’re going to ram it into the station! You have to get to the control room and stop that train!”

That was it. Reev’s back up plan. If he couldn’t kill thousands, he’d settle for hundreds and still get paid to do it. What he’d said about the mercs and cultists joining because they didn’t know the full plan made her think real hard. What was the plan they signed up for? She thought as she ran through the exit. It was pouring rain harder and harder and the wind was a menace. She had to concentrate with the Force to keep from being knocked off. What if these thugs got on the train because they thought they would be getting off at the station? And if they did, they wouldn’t be afraid of the bomb. They would just get off the tram after it made it to its destination safely or they could be lifted off by their own ships and then… Then the bomb would blow up at the station.

But clearly Reev didn’t care for any sentient life forms but himself. They were merely pawns in all this. 

She made a leap for it and landed just barely, but slipped. As she fell over the edge, she grasped it as hard as she could, trying not to panic. For several precarious moments, she dangled there, trying to lift herself up. There were no footholds to speak of. A mercenary, stationed inside the engine, peeked outside as part of his patrolling duties and spotted her struggling on the edge.

“Well what do we have here?” He said.

Dank farrik.

Kyle watched as he kept up in the Revan’s Claw. He couldn’t shoot the merc down, the guns on his ship were too powerful and he didn’t want to risk blowing up the tram, or Jaden. He felt helpless, and wondered if he should have taken the tram instead.

“No,” he whispered. “I trust you.” He decided to help her the only way he knew. 

He gave her a lift.

“Woooaaaaaahhhhh!” Jaden yelled as she was suddenly lifted into the air by an unseen force and placed safely on the back platform of the tram's engine car. The merc in front of her was so shocked that she had the upper hand and pulled his blaster away from him. She rushed him and slammed his head against the wall. He crumpled like paper and was on the floor, alive, but fast asleep. She wasn’t going to take any chances killing them.

Inside, the control room looked empty, but that wasn’t what she sensed.

“Die Jedi!” A voice somewhere above her yelled. Turning, she barely had time to bring up her lit saber before he brought his down on hers. There was no one else in the room, he was her last obstacle between her and potentially hundreds of deaths.

“You know he’s just going to kill you anyway!” Jaden said.

“Who?” Growled the cultist.

“Reev, he’s been taunting me, he doesn’t care about you or anyone else, he plans on ramming this tram into the station with or without you on it!”

Their sabers locked and the cultist’s eyes flashed with doubt.

“But… We had a plan!”

“Plan’s changed,” groaned Jaden, he was very strong. “If you help me stop this tram, you can make it out of this alive and I’ll make sure you’re well treated!”

“Oh, yeah right! And be a prisoner of the New Republic, I don’t think so!” The cultist’s red rimmed yellow eyes flashed, not with anger, but fear.

Jaden tried a different tactic. When their sabers locked again, she sought his eye contact. She found it, and held it.

“Hey, I’m scared too. And I have a feeling that you don’t want to be here any more than I do. Let’s make sure we both get out of this alive, and not let anyone else die in the process.”

There was a long pause, a dangerously prolonged moment where Jaden watched her opponent's eyes. Those frightening yellow orbs were like the eyes of a monster. The cultist blinked, and as if by some miracle, they softened, their color diminishing to something similar to hazel. Her opponent stepped back and extinguished his lightsaber, holding it out to Jaden.

He sighed heavily. “Please, just get me out of here alive.”

Jaden blinked, then swiftly took his saber and cut it in half just in case he changed his mind.

“I will. I promise, but I’ll need your help first. What’s your name by the way?” She asked and the cutlist removed the mask covering his mouth as well as the wrappings around his head. He had short black hair that fell in waves halfway to his shoulders.

“Devvyn,” he replied. Jaden nodded and put a hand to her chest.

“I’m Jaden. Now Devvyn, please, I need your help stopping this tram.” Without a word, Devvyn started towards the controls. Jaden followed close behind, saber poised defensively. But Devvyn was true to his word. He pulled a lever and pressed a sequence of buttons and the tram started to slow down. He backed away from the controls and Jaden heaved a sigh of relief.

“That was too close! Thank you, Devvyn. You made the right choice.” He actually smiled at her, something nice and genuine. He didn’t really want to be on the dark side did he?

“Great work Jaden!” Kyle said over coms. “I took out those ships so I think we’re in the clear now.”

“Awesome Kyle, I’ve got a cultist here that’s agreed to come willingly.”

“Traitor.” It wasn’t Kyle’s voice this time. Jaden looked up at Devvyn and screamed.

His face and body convulsed as blue veins of electricity spread across him. He groaned painfully. It was like a vision of the captain back on Bakura all over again. Suicide shockers, it had to be, except she knew that Devvyn wasn’t the one who’d triggered them. He barely made a sound as his body slumped to the floor.

“Come on Jaden, you should know by now what the Empire does to traitors,” Reev said. “Normally we implant the shockers in just our officers but for this mission, I wanted to be especially prepared. Oh, and good luck trying to help the other one you maimed back in the other car.”

Jaden fought back tears of rage. “You bas-”

“I know I know, I'm a worthless bastard and I don’t care. You’re right. At my age you’ve got to learn to look out for yourself. You see it's the principle of-” Jaden had heard enough, throwing her comlink down to the ground, she crushed it to bits under her heel.

“Excellent work on the tram. It's lucky you two showed up when you did. If that tram exploded in the city, it could've killed thousands of people.” Luke’s face glowed faintly from the screen of Kyle’s datapad in the dark cockpit in the silence of space outside of Corellia’s atmosphere.

“Thanks, Luke, we couldn't have done it without each other, although Jaden did pretty well on her own.”

“Thanks to you for guiding me every step of the way.” She put in. Kyle shrugged in surrender.

“You also put my teaching to good use, and were excellent at fast paced decision making. Well done.”

“Well done, both of you,” Luke said. “We’ll also be looking into this Reev character you told us about Jaden. We’ll get to the bottom of it and beef up our frequency security. Also, did you manage to take any of the mercenaries or cultists prisoner?” 

It was dead quiet for several seconds before Kyle answered. “Well, Jaden had to kill many of them in self defense, and when Reev gave her a ‘no kill’ rule, she knocked several out, even cut off one of the cultist’s hands, but when we went back through the tram with the authorities…” Kyle took a long breath and let it out.

“They were already dead.” Luke finished.

“Yeah, Reev meant it when he said he’d thought everything through. He didn’t want anyone being questioned.”

“That’s terrible, our only hope is to find him and bring him to justice, you don’t think he has a Lullaby implanted for himself, do you?”

“No,” answered Jaden. “He cares too much about his own skin. It’s his lackeys you have to worry about.”

“Then we’ll keep that in mind. I’ll see you both back at the Academy.” It was quiet for a long time after Luke signed off.

“Well, that about does it, let’s head back,” Kyle said, getting ready to make the jump to hyperspace, then looked over at Jaden. “Something wrong?”

Jaden didn’t want to cry, she breathed deep to steady her emotions. “That cultist I told you about? Devvyn? I did it Kyle, I had helped him, his eyes changed and he helped me stop the tram, but Reev killed him anyway. Was it even worth saving him in the first place?”

“Yes Jaden, no matter what happened, it was worth it. He’s one with the Force now, and that’s the best some can hope for in most scenarios.”

Jaden shook her head slightly. “To think, if Reev hadn’t given me those rules, I would’ve had to kill Devvyn in self defense, and he would’ve been lost.”

Kyle rested a hand on her arm and squeezed gently. “‘If’ is a very harmful word to a Jedi. To anyone. It wasn’t that scenario today.”

“But what if it’s the scenario tomorrow?”

“Ah, you said ‘if’ again, and tomorrow is not our concern. Let’s both focus on now , today is all we can handle most of the time. So let’s not complicate it more, huh?”

Jaden blinked back her tears that threatened to spill over. “Okay,” she whispered. She busied herself with using a bit of spare cloth Kyle had lent her to try and dry off her hair. But it was a hopeless task, it didn’t help that she’d already dripped all over the Raven Claw’s seats with her wet clothes as well. 

Sighing with resignation, Jaden wrapped the cloth around her damp head and leaned back against the headrest. Closing her eyes didn’t help much, sleep wouldn’t come, not with the image of Devvyn being electrocuted flashing through her mind. Nevertheless she still sought the peace of the Force, no matter how elusive it seemed. And with that, they flew back to the Academy in silence.

Reev wasn’t happy, but at least they hadn’t been compromised. For the past several hours since his mission’s failure, he’d been drawing up another plan, this time foolproof, or at least, Jedi-proof. The door behind him opened and he turned to see that bratty little red Twi’lek that was always lurking around and looking over his shoulder, micromanaging him like she even had the same kind of genius he possessed. She had two stormtroopers flanking her.

“You’ve failed us, Commander Reev,” she said, arms crossed, one eyebrow raised.

Insolent little-

“I can assure you it was a small mishap in the grand scheme of things. And besides, the important thing is that no one was compromised.” Reev put on a fake winning smile. The Twi’lek was not amused.

“But yet you still stand before me, empty handed. Another plan failed.”

“With another, more detailed plan already started.” Reev tried to stay calm. He hated this Twi’lek more than anything, besides her master, but if he wanted to have any shot of a promotion, or another six months of life, he had to placate her somehow.

“You worked under Darth Vader’s command, did you not?”

“Yes,” Reev said through gritted teeth. The Twi’lek seemed to consider this a moment.

“Then I’m going to do what he failed to do in the first place.”

If anyone happened to be passing Reev’s door at that moment, they would have heard the ignition of a lightsaber, Reev’s final, pathetic yelp, and the Twi’lek ordering her handlers to “take this trash out immediately.” And hopefully, if anyone did pass by that door and heard all of this, they’d have the sense to keep going and get as far away from there as possible.

Chapter Text

Some days after returning from Corellia, Jaden was headed to the archives to get some extra reading done in the Ancient Jedi Texts. She passed the Meditation rooms, set aside for students, Jedi and masters alike to have a quiet place to reach out and connect with the Force. Masters often used the rooms to help teach their students the value of meditation and finding inner peace in the midst of anxiety or a stressful environment. But now, the sound and sense of this particular room she was passing was anything but peaceful or quiet. From what she could tell, Jaden was sure Kyle was in there, trying to teach this valuable lesson to Rosh. Trying, but not necessarily succeeding.

“Focus, control your emotions, Rosh,” Kyle was saying.

Though she couldn’t see his face, Jaden could sense Rosh’s growing frustration. Feeling uncomfortable about standing near the door and listening in on such a private training moment, Jaden moved to go.

“Uggh! I’ve been sitting here for weeks and all you’ve taught me is how to sit still for hours on end! I’m getting nowhere!” Rosh roared. Suddenly, the door slid open and Rosh came barreling out, not looking where he was going he bumped into Jaden. She knew he knew it was her, but to spare himself further embarrassment, he kept on going without acknowledging her except to mutter a brief “Sorry,” and continue hurriedly down the hall. But he wasn’t fast enough to hide the extra flush burning in his cheeks. She stared at his retreating back in utter disbelief. She’d known he was getting increasingly frustrated over Kyle’s teaching and most likely his “lack” of fostering Rosh’s “talents” but this had built up farther than Jaden had thought it would. 

Rosh had given them both the cold shoulder after they returned from Corellia. Jaden wasn’t sure how it had been with Kyle, but Rosh barely spoke to her and had lately been extra confident in his behavior around the Academy. And it was getting more than a little annoying.

When she turned and saw Kyle standing in the doorway, her own cheeks colored. “Kyle, I’m-” she tried to explain, “I’m sorry, I wasn’t purposely eavesdropping, I was just headed to the-”

“Don’t sweat it kid.” Kyle held his hand up. “You’re both under my tutelage so at least it wasn’t like you were standing outside of Luke’s door. But in the future, try not to linger outside of conversations that are meant for other’s ears only, okay?”

“I will.” Jaden nodded.

Kyle tried to laugh it off, “Well, that could’ve been worse.”

“Worse? From what I did hear it sounded pretty bad. What are you going to do?”

Kyle put a hand on her shoulder, “I appreciate the concern for your fellow student but that’s something for me to worry about, not you. It’s up to Rosh to find his own path and choose what he’s going to learn, I can only take him so far.”

Jaden bowed her head in agreement, “You’re right, Kyle. Well, I guess I’d better get back to my studies. I was headed to the archives, unless you need me for something?”

“As a matter of fact, yes,” Kyle said. “Luke has an announcement for the whole Academy and wants us in the Audience Chamber in two hours, so go and study, but keep an eye on the time okay?”

“Sure thing!” She answered and they parted ways.

Jaden rushed into the Audience Chamber, practically sliding to a stop beside Rosh. She’d decided to rest in her room instead of studying and had dozed off, nearly missing the time.

“Whoa, what’s the rush?” Rosh said, looking at her sidelong, a cocky grin plastered on his face that was meant to be charming but only served to sour Jaden’s mood. If she hadn’t felt somewhat rested, she might have smacked Rosh across the face. Maybe I should confront him about his attitude? She wondered. But not now. 

Aloud she said, “Just wanted to be punctual.” She put on a smile and turned to scan the crowd. Every student and master seemed to be gathered in the Audience Chamber, some milling about and talking to each other in low tones; most likely gossiping or exchanging theories about what Master Skywalker was going to announce. They all grew quiet as Luke entered the room at the top of the dais above them.

“I have called you all here to relay some disturbing news,” he began. “Someone sliced into my personal records and accessed some highly sensitive data about places where I felt a strong connection to the Force. Places like Cloud City, Hoth, and Byss.”

Rosh chuckled, “What could they get from that, besides a tour?” He said sardonically.  

“Something nasty!” Jaden nearly jumped at Kyle’s sharp tone. She didn’t even notice when he’d walked up to stand beside them. Rosh however, was as cool as a dead star and didn’t give Kyle even a sidelong glance.

Luke ignored the interruption and continued: “I believe that the scepter Jaden saw was somehow used to drain the residual Force power from the Massassi Temple.”

Everyone glanced at each other, especially at Jaden, muttering quick comments to their neighbors.

Jas Harin spoke up. “Drain the Force? How can anyone do that?” 

“I’m not sure,” Luke answered. “But I’ve learned from the Jedi Holocron that devices were created in the past that could absorb and store Force energy.”

“Those people Jaden saw may have discovered some way to harvest Force power with that scepter,” Kyle mused.

“Which could be dangerous indeed,” Luke agreed.

“So what are we gonna do Master?” Jaden asked.

“We’ll have to investigate any locations from my records,” he announced. “That includes all of you students. Corran, you’re going to Wayland. Kyle, I need you to look at the Valley of the Jedi…” Luke continued to give out assignments, but Rosh could hardly pay attention; he was ecstatic.

“Finally, some real action!” He said to Jaden.

“But why would they be stealing Force power?”

“I don’t know. You worry too much, Jaden. I bet that these cult guys can’t take on a Jedi!”

Jaden scrunched her lips doubtfully, “Well, we’re not Jedi yet. We’re just students.”

Kyle, who’d stepped away momentarily to speak with Luke about his assignment, rejoined them, the grandmaster in tow.

“You may be ‘just’ students, but you’re both well on your way,” Kyle said encouragingly. “So don’t rush it.”

“Jaden,” Luke said. “I’m sending you to Hoth, where I had a vision of Obi-Wan Kenobi. I imagine there is a pretty strong aura there. Rosh, I’m sending you to the remains of the planet Byss. It’s very remote, so I doubt the cult has been there. Don’t stay too long; the Imperial Remnant may still be operating in the area.”

Rosh shrugged. “No problem,” he said smoothly.

“That’s everyone then. May the Force be with all of you.” Luke tilted his head to each of them in turn, then exited, hands clasped behind him. Kyle did the same, wishing them luck and ‘May the Force be with you.’

Jaden turned to leave as well, but Rosh placed a hand on her shoulder and she tensed slightly, wondering if he wanted to talk. Maybe he’s noticed there’s tension too. She felt her shoulder warm to his touch and turned her head slightly in his direction, hopeful.

“Good luck,” he said. She could hear that usual pep in his voice, telling her that his smile was probably back on his face. “Call me if you need any help.” 

Nope, guess not. Jaden lightly shrugged him off, trying to tap down her disappointment. She walked out of the room without a word, knowing that if she spoke, she wouldn’t say anything worthwhile. Her shoulder felt cold now where his hand had been. I’m not in the right frame of mind for calmly talking to him about his lousy behavior anyway. I’ll talk to him after I get back from Hoth. That’ll give me some time away to clear my head before clearing the air with him. She didn’t even wonder until much later why Rosh didn’t try to stop her when she hadn’t replied.

“Enter!” The red Twi’lek’s master called from inside her chamber.

The door slid open slowly and she stepped inside. Her master had her back to the Twi’lek, which was not new, however her left arm was now bare of the bandage it wore not too long ago. A violet circle with a spike sticking out of the top, bottom and sides in the same color were tattooed there. In the center was an eerie red vertical slit that, combined with the spiked circle, gave off the appearance of an evil eye that bored into your soul. The Twi’lek was impressed, if not a tad bit unnerved.

“Did you take care of Commander Reev like I asked?” The master questioned her apprentice, who shook herself off and stood straighter.

“Yes my Master, he’s floating out with the asteroids as we speak.”

“Good, good.” There was a moment's pause. “I have another assignment for you, something important that only I can trust you with.”

“Anything, my Master.”

“I need you to go to the last place mentioned in Skywalker’s records. I, meanwhile, have business at the Emperor’s former throne world.”

The Twi’lek bowed her head. “As you wish, my Master.”

Jaden flew to Hoth that afternoon after checking out an X-wing from the hangar and grabbing herself some warm winter clothing, which Master Skywalker himself helped her pick out.

“Trust me,” he’d said. “You don’t want to freeze like I nearly did.” He seemed to almost shiver with the memory. “If Han hadn’t found me and used my lightsaber to cut open his dead tauntaun, I wouldn’t have lasted five more minutes.”

Jaden’s eyes had widened at that and she grabbed some more thermal undershirts, probably more than was necessary. “You’re gonna have to tell me the rest of that story later, Master.”

Luke had just smiled and wished her well.

On the flight in, Jaden had turned the cabin's cooling unit all the way up, she had bundled up so much and was sweating through her layers. When she finally landed and exited the cockpit the cold was an immediate relief. Almost. For about half a minute. It was snowing and the sky was overcast. It was hard to see more than about ten feet in front of her, but thankfully it wasn’t a full on blizzard. Not yet anyway. She walked out onto the snow, holding her datapad, hoping its circuits wouldn’t freeze. She hoped she wouldn’t freeze. The place was as cold as Tatooine was hot. She’d landed a couple of clicks from where Luke said Echo Base would be and approximately where he’d had his vision of Obi-Wan. 

She stopped and raised a hand, trying to sense any Force energy that might be nearby. There was nothing but the swirling snow. She shook her head doubtfully.

“Hmmm. Nothing.” She looked at her hand as if something was wrong with it. “Is Master Skywalker wrong about this place?” She turned towards her ship, considering leaving, which would be a welcome excuse to get out of the cold, but something in her periphery caught her eye and she looked back quickly, having noticed a faintly glowing light in the distance. “What’s that?” She squinted, it was a pale, cold light that was faintly blue but mostly white and it was slowly blinking in the swirling snow that drifted all around. “Guess I’d better check it out.”

She happened to glance over to her left and nearly jumped out of her skin at the sight of three big, hulking creatures coming towards her. Walking on two legs, with short arms sticking out in front, covered in white fur, curving horns going from the back of the head behind the ears to just under their chins. Jaden instantly calmed down. They’re just tauntauns. She’d seen images of them in the archives, but never thought she’d see one up close. They seemed to be wild, but friendly, as one of them broke off from the pack and came right up to her. She reached out a gentle hand, careful not to frighten it, and remembered something Kyle had told her not too long ago. 

“The Force is another way to communicate and reach out to other creatures that don’t speak the same way we do. It can also help defuse a potentially dangerous situation. You just have to have the patience and understanding to do it.”

As Jaden’s hand touched the soft, white fur of the tauntaun’s nose, she felt the connection, a kind of weaving bond through the Force, a trust building itself between her and this creature. She slowly moved around the creature as she patted its neck and then back. She wasn’t sure how she knew, but she felt that this particular tauntaun was female.

“You sure are sweet aren't you girl,” Jaden said. The tauntaun responded with a low ‘ Waahhh.’

Jaden glanced around, finding the slow blinking light in the distance. She guessed that if there was one, there were probably others as well, and they seemed to be her best clue as to what was going on. 

“I guess I should follow those lights, huh?” She told the tauntaun, who replied the same as earlier.

“I can probably cover more distance with one of you, maybe you could give me a ride?” The tauntaun actually made another noise and turned so that its back was better accessible and even bent a little lower. Jaden stood there stunned for a moment before actually trying to climb onto its back. According to Luke, the Rebels had used saddles and bridles, but she’d have to make do with riding bareback. And besides, with their Force connection, she doubted she’d have trouble staying on. Checking her pockets and belt to be sure she had all the supplies she could possibly need, she got the tauntaun to turn in the direction of the beacon in the distance. 

“Alright, girl, let’s go.” And off she went, at a steady pace. They passed the first light, seeing it truly was a sort of beacon that’d been deliberately set out, and recently too from the looks of it. They passed another and another, until…

“Who goes there?” It was the technically augmented voice of a stormtrooper.

Imperials… here? Maybe Master Luke was right after all.

In the billowing snow, she could just make out a shape, almost completely camouflaged in all white, elemental garb to match and protect against the harsh environment. Snowtroopers. Jaden’s blaster came out in a flash and quickly took down the trooper, then another appeared. She shot again, the falling white snow obscuring her view, but also providing the perfect cover as she engaged the enemy. Half a second later, the last trooper's body thudded heavily to the ground.

She and her mount kept going, following the beacons until they neared the entrance to a cave, large enough for them to fit provided that Jaden dismounted. She led the way in, glad to be out of the cold for a bit but wary of stillness. Something was there, but it wasn’t a human or other intelligent life form…

“Rraaaagggghhhhh!” Jaden looked up ahead and saw it, a large, monstrous creature, at least two times the size of Chewbacca and covered in white fur, with two horns that curved around its skull similar to the tauntauns. She reached out her hands in front of her, trying to calm it with the Force, but with her own heart beating fast, it was proving very hard to concentrate.

“I don’t wanna hurt you!” She said to it, but the creature wouldn’t listen, intent on eating both her and the tauntaun, it kept coming, swiping at Jaden with its large, clawed hand. Jaden ducked under its arm and swiftly turned around. It was headed towards her tauntaun.

“No!” She screamed and shot at its back with her blaster. She injured it, clearly, but not enough to kill it. If anything, it made it madder. It turned around and rushed toward Jaden. Her saber came out, then she sliced its arm off, followed by a cut at the back of its legs. The creature went down, moaning and groaning with agony. She felt sorry for it, and quickly ended its suffering, sad to have caused such pain to a living creature but happy that she’d saved her tauntaun. She went over to her and patted her neck to calm her.

“Let’s go girl.” They moved on. They found an exit to the cave not far away, along with a small encampment of snowtroopers and a couple of saddled tauntauns nearby. 

Blaster fire filled the air as Jaden goaded her mount forward. One snowtrooper fell beneath her lightsaber as she rode by, then, switching it to her other hand she took a swing at a second one on her other side. She missed. Putting pressure on the tauntaun’s side with her knees, she turned her around and galloped straight at the snowtrooper, trampling him and cutting down another in her path. The last snowtrooper came out of nowhere on his own tauntaun, slamming into Jaden and knocking her off her own animal. 

She landed face down on the ground, her face getting caked in fresh snow, making her feel even more frozen. She pushed on her gloved hands and found herself looking down the barrel of the mounted snowtrooper’s blaster.

“Any last words, Jedi?” 

“Yeah. Go to hell!” Her hand came up and the snowtrooper flew off the back of his tauntaun by the massive Force push. He landed in the snow several yards away, got up shakily, as quick as he was able to and started blasting in Jaden’s general direction. Her lightsaber came back out, deflecting each bolt with precision. She didn’t stop until she heard the trooper cry out and saw his dim form in the flurrying snow fall to the ground.

She freed the other tauntauns, her own seemingly telling her kin that they were free and they ran off through the cave to freedom. 

After observing her surroundings, Jaden saw there were only two options, to go either to the right or to the left. She tried the right way, which at this point, as far as she could tell, they were in some small canyon. All she found was a dead end with some kind of man made wall. She wondered if this was a part of the base, but it looked like it’d been blocked off.

“Doesn’t look like they got in this way. There must be another way in,” she said, either to herself or her tauntaun, she wasn’t sure, but at least it didn’t feel as weird.

Retracing her steps, she and the tauntaun took the left route. They passed odd shapes half buried in the snow, large chunks of some kind of machinery. Jaden reckoned it was debris from some battle long past, much of the metal was rusted. 

Up ahead she saw that the snowtroopers had mounted a heavy repeating blaster on top of a large piece of some debris half buried in the ground. Around it were several snowtroopers. Her lightsaber came out in a flash as she rode her tauntaun around the makeshift platform, her saber held out defensively as she took down each trooper in turn.

All was silent. Then… Thhaaoommpp! Jaden turned, straining to see in the swirling snow that was both falling and being kicked up in the gale-force winds. There it was again. A strange, ominous metallic thumping, getting closer and closer. She couldn’t see her arms but she could feel goosebumps spreading all over her. There, a dark speck coming towards her, right where she needed to go, in the distance where the beacons led. She instinctively dismounted and led her tauntaun around the back of the platform to keep it safe, then mounted the platform.

She got behind the heavy repeating blaster and looked for controls. She accidently fired it. A return blast came from the direction of the big, loud thumping thing and she ducked. Thankfully, it wasn’t close enough to have a good aim. Jaden got back up and aimed in the direction of it again, waiting for it to get closer, her heart pounding, blood going cold when she got a better look at it. It was a two legged AT-ST Walker, she’d heard about them of course, seen images too and had always hoped that she would never have to come close to one.

Life’s never fair.

She aimed at its hideous, scary face and fired with all her might, not caring if she emptied the entire magazine. Fortunitally, the walker went down with one last loud Thhaaoommpp before she’d used even half the mag. All was silent again when she suddenly heard shouts, then streaming around the sides of the fallen walker were more snowtroopers. She glanced at the remaining ammunition and went for it, shooting down as many of them as she could. Nearly two dozen fell, not even reaching half the distance to the platform on which Jaden stood.

Once all was quiet again, she sat atop the platform for several agonizing minutes, listening. Fear and adrenaline coursed so fast through her veins that she started muttering scenarios to herself that Kyle had given her and Rosh during training to try and calm herself down before slowly sliding down to the ground. She put her hand on her faithfully waiting tauntaun’s flank.

“Let’s keep moving, those troopers couldn't have come far and by the looks of their numbers, were guarding something pretty important.” They walked side by side, past the downed walker, which was still a frightening sight, and the bodies of the snowtroopers. She continued muttering scenarios to herself, even mimicking Kyle’s voice. “Okay Jaden, Scenario: You’re on a cold planet with no warm clothes and only a blaster. You have minutes to survive. Whaddya do?”

Her tauntaun made a disapproving noise that made her laugh before she put a hand over her mouth, hoping she didn’t make too much noise. She leaned down to whisper to her mount.

“Sorry, I guess I’m not good with imitating voices. That was probably disrespectful.” The tauntaun made another noise that was more of a snort and they continued their journey in silence.

As they got closer to where the walker had come from, Jaden saw a high wall, with cross shaped gaps in them to look out of or fire a blaster through. There was a door, but it seemed to be locked and she felt quite sure that there were more snowtroopers inside. She glanced to her right, noticing a snow bank going up and a couple of crates sitting as if abandoned there, on the short slope, right up to the top of the wall.

“See that, that’s my way in,” Jaden said to her tauntaun, realizing that even if she got the actual door open, taking the tauntaun through the maze of corridors that were sure to be in there seemed like a nightmare. No, it’d be better to say her goodbyes here.

“I have to go girl, but I’ve taken care of those troopers and that wampa, so the way is clear for you to go back to your friends or family or pack or whatever it is that tauntaun’s do socially.” She looked up into the snow lizard’s soft, furry face. She felt it responded with not so much as words, as through the Force. She turned around and, with a sad cry, started off back towards the direction they’d come.

Jaden turned back to the embankment and slowly worked her way up, hating every step into the deep, cold snow. She used the random crates as hand and footholds, praying the wind was masking her struggling effort to climb towards the top of the wall. Once she made it, she peeked over and to her relief saw only two snowtroopers milling about. 

They probably sent most of their forces guarding this gate to come fight me.  

She slowly crouched on top of the wall and looked for a way down, hoping beyond hope that they wouldn’t look up. No such luck. They opened fire and she had to leap down and finish them off before the main door inside opened and a few more snowtroopers came to provide backup.

A few deft swings of her weapon later, Jaden reattached her saber hilt to her hip and went inside. It wasn’t much warmer, but it was better than the blistering wind. The heater must not work anymore. She approached the only other door in the room, lights on the front glowing red.

“Locked,” Jaden groaned to herself. She turned and examined the room. It wasn’t much to speak of but a few boxes of supplies and a lift in the corner. She tried the lift and it took her up.

She reached a control room that was nearly empty except for two Imperial officers dressed to the nines in cold weather gear. They didn’t want to talk and tried shooting her, which by now was almost exhausting and annoying for the young Jedi. 

Jaden stepped over their limp forms to one of the control panels on an interior wall and pulled a lever that was labeled for the main interior door on the first level. This has to be it. She started back towards the lift and stopped, approaching another control panel near a large window and looked out. Towering above was a large, round object with what looked to be a large gun mounted on it. An ion cannon. She remembered hearing tales of how the Rebels tried to distract the Empire by firing that same cannon so that some of them could escape the planet during the assault on Hoth all those years ago. 

I was just a kid trying to keep my head down and avoid any attention from the Empire. It’d been a hard time for both her and her uncle. But they’d survived, others hadn’t been so lucky.

She made her way back down and found with satisfaction that the door’s lights now glowed green. 

Open access. Jaden smiled and stepped through. An icy hallway lit by dim lights illuminating cables strung along the wall, and more crates stacked here and there. Tiptoeing her way down the hall, she stopped just outside a door on her right and tried to sense if there were snowtroopers behind it. She nearly jumped back when she heard voices right on the other side. She reasoned they were stationed there to guard it.

“You know I used to race on the Swoop Circuit,” the first one said.

“You did huh? Were you good?” Asked the second.

“One of the best! Top three every race!”

“So how come you’re not a Scout Trooper?” There was a pause after the second voice asked this question, then:

“Once I put the helmet on I couldn’t see. I sideswiped another cadet and caused a pileup that destroyed twelve speeder bikes. I was kicked out of the Trooper Corp,” the first voice said shamefully.

“Oh, tough.” Was all the second one could say and an awkward silence filled the space between them. Jaden felt tense just from secondhand embarrassment and couldn’t bear the conversation anymore. She didn’t really want to hurt them when it came down to it. 

Acting on a developing idea, she moved to an alcove to the left of the door and used the Force to pull down one of the crates stacked at the other end of the hallway. There was a loud crash. Frenzied voices came on the other side of the door saying “What was that?!” and “Go check it out!” followed by the doors opening and the two snowtroopers closest to the door running in and looking up the passage with their backs to Jaden. She crept behind them and into the room, quickly locating the door controls, she let her hand hover over the button as she surveyed the room. It was large and mainly empty, with another door at the other end and a ramp leading down into a shallow trench that housed control panels and supplies… and snowtroopers that were looking right at her. She didn’t have much time. Looking back through the door, the troopers had returned from checking out the fallen crates, stopping short when they saw her at the door. She waved, grinning nervously and said, “Good luck with your Swoop career!” 

She slammed the door shut, severing the controls with her lightsaber and turning just in time to deal with the other troopers that were hurrying up the ramp towards her.

Behind the door, the snowtrooper who’d failed his Swoop Career removed his helmet and sighed, shaking his head. He started towards the other end of the hallway despite the reprimands and pleas from his companion. He crawled over the fallen crate and exited through the door. He’d never really wanted to be a stormtrooper anyway.

A little while later Jaden was out in the cold again, tiny icy flakes pelting her face.

“Great, guess that wasn’t the real base,” Jaden grumbled, starting to get pretty tired of this important mission Luke had sent her on. She’d walked through several different hallways and then taken a lift up into a large room with a lone door that led back outside. In the distance, she spotted the familiar glow of more beacons. 

She sighed. “I guess I should keep following the beacons.”

But as she journeyed outward, the lights became more spread out and less like a guide. She realized with despair that she’d probably have to search the entire area which was NOT ideal especially in the growing cold and darkness. It seemed that daytime was slowly turning into evening and with it, more freezing temperatures. She kept going, keeping the beacons in sight but staying close to the many pieces of debris that were scattered everywhere, hoping to stay out of sight of any Imperials. She came upon a large bay door set into the side of the rocky hillside that was covered in snow. The pieces of information fell together. This debris field must be the remains of a battle and… She glanced up at the large doors, knowing that they lead inside the main hangar of the Rebellion’s former hideout. 

“There! Echo Base!” She whispered in awe. She hurried up to the main doors, sensing snowtroopers nearby but they hadn’t seen her. It didn’t seem like there’d be any luck opening it and besides, opening a door this size would certainly cause a stir and attract all kinds of unwanted attention. She got closer to it. 

This entrance is blocked too. How did they get in?

She snuck away and almost collided with a snowtrooper. She froze. His back was facing towards her and he didn’t seem to have heard her. Her eyes grew wide as he began marching forward, disappearing into the winter landscape as he went. She let out a breath of relief, then decided to trail him.

He might lead me to the entrance.

She made a wide circle past the main Echo Base entrance and, following the beacons around, spotted what looked to be a fallen AT-AT, almost completely buried in the snow, its head and most of its back still poking out on top. Jaden stopped and crouched behind the broken piece of another AT-AT, a foot sticking out of the snow from the looks of it. She watched the trooper she’d been tailing join a group of four, maybe five snowtroopers standing on top of the AT-AT, nearly blending into the falling snow around them. Hovering close by was a black, insect-like droid that spouted bits of some Imperial code. On the top of the AT-AT’s back was another mounted heavy repeating blaster.

Why would they be guarding this pile of junk? Jaden wondered. But she figured it was her best lead, so she acted. She first took out the droid with her blaster and then, moving from cover to cover, made her may over to the “pile of junk” and leapt on top of it, jumping over the head of the snowtrooper at the heavy gun and taking him down before he could swing it around to fire upon her. As the others came to their comrades aid she took another shot, shielding herself behind some metal debris. Each shot rewarded her with the sound of a thud, and once again she was alone in the snow next to the fallen walker.

Around the back, she found it. A segment in the wall of the AT-AT had been cut into and was protected by a Shield Generator. Inside, through the blue haze of the shield, she could barely make out two more troopers guarding the inside. Easy, if I can get in. She tried standing back and shooting the side panels of the Shield Generator. They blew up, fizzling out easily enough, and she quickly dropped down with her lightsaber. The small space filled with its purple light, mixing with the small, warm radiance of a nearby glow-lamp.

The troopers fumbled with their blasters and took sloppy aim at the lightsaber wielding interloper. Only one barely got off a shot before Jaden rushed forward, slicing the barrel off his blaster before impaling him on her violet blade. The other fell just as quickly with a slash across his chest just as he fired a blaster shot that Jaden barely dodged. 

She walked over to the glow-lamp and sat on the crate beside it, soaking up as much warmth as she could, sighing contently as she warmed and flexed her cold, stiff fingers inside her gloves. She noticed some nearby rations and ate a quick, not so tasty meal to keep her strength up and downed every drop of water in one of their canteens, saving the second for later. She’d save her own rations that she’d brought in case of an emergency down the line.

She stood up, feeling the new aches in her muscles as she stretched and looked around the room. Spotting a hole in the floor with a ladder leading down it, she approached and peeked down. Nobody. She descended the ladder and found a bigger, empty room with, on the other end of it, a large crack in the floor. She quietly approached it, it was dark and she wasn’t sure exactly how far down it went.

“What should I do?” She asked the air around her. No answer. “There’s nowhere else to go, at least not that I could find.” Still no answer. She wished desperately that Kyle was with her. Or even Rosh, at least then she wouldn’t be alone to decide what to do. She took in deep and steady breaths, focusing on the Force around her, and asked the question again, What should I do? The answer came as more an inclination than words or a feeling, but yet it felt right. Without any hesitation, Jaden jumped down into the crack, into darkness.

Chapter Text

Jaden landed not too far at the bottom of a narrow tunnel that led continually downward. It was lit with lights strung throughout by cables. She moved silent and swift, keeping an ear out for more snowtroopers. 

Suddenly, she saw the end of the tunnel, a big round hole in the floor with a short drop down onto a large storage container. She sat on the edge of the hole and gently let herself down a few feet to the top of the container, her feet not making a sound. The room she found herself in was huge, filled with boxes, containers and all kinds of other items being stored there. She moved to peek over the edge of it but stopped short at the sound of footsteps and gingerly laid herself flat, face down and listened.

A voice just below her spoke. “Anything to report?” She chanced a peek over the side and sure enough, there was one snowtrooper walking towards the container she laid on. Below her were two snowtroopers gathered around a glow-lamp. As the conversation continued, Jaden shifted around on top of her hiding spot to get a better look at the troopers.

“No sir,” said the trooper who approached.

“Keep sharp,” said the first, “we’ve lost contact with the perimeter patrols. Could be the storm, or wampas. You don’t want one of those things surprising you.” Jaden had to smile at that, So, no one knows I’m here. That could work in my favor.

“I’m glad we’re guarding this hole and not the command center,” said another voice, the other one by the glow-lamp no doubt.

“Why? It’s probably nice and warm in there,” said the second.

The third one paused and then answered in a lower tone. “I don’t wanna be anywhere near those Sith fanatics. They give me the creeps!”

The first and second snowtroopers chuckled in agreement. “Yeah, I know what you mean,” the second said, and Jaden’s skin went pale and clammy. Sith, here? Oh Force what if it’s a whole crowd of cultists, or worse, their leader? Luke hadn’t given her instructions on what to do if more Sith were there, just to determine if the Force energy had been drained, which was what she was sure she’d figured out already. She hadn’t sensed any residual Force aura the entire time she’d been there, but she felt she couldn’t just leave, not until she found out exactly what was going on. She decided she’d keep going, but would be extra careful. She mulled over what to do about the snowtroopers below her and considered either the extreme route: Jumping into the middle of them, catching them by surprise and killing them before back up came. Or, the less extreme: Sneak around and try not to be seen. She was about to choose the former when below she heard:

“Well,” the first trooper spoke rather awkwardly. “You’re not gonna like this but I’ve just gotten orders to switch guard posts. We’re to report to the command center in a quarter of an hour.”

Collective groans followed, but there was no use defying orders, the snowtroopers gathered their supplies and walked single file through the space behind the storage containers and boxes littered throughout the large room. As Jaden watched them go, she gradually stood, and moved to the far edge, looking for a safe way down without making much noise. Another box, shorter and smaller, was only a few feet below her. She eased herself down on top of it and then leapt the short distance to the ground, landing softer and quieter than she’d thought she would. She glanced around the corner of the crate she used for cover and watched as the last snowtrooper exited. She wondered if their replacements would come soon. Doubtless they would, she had an idea. Weaving in and out of the supplies and crates, she came close to the main door the troopers had used to go out of. She stationed herself behind some crates and waited. Five minutes later, the door opened and three troopers entered to replace the old ones. Jaden waited for the right moment, then, just after the third one passed, she slipped behind him and through the door before it closed.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Jaden continued down the passage. It was better to not draw too much attention to herself. She went down a few twisting icy corridors, these worse off than the others she’d been in, with debris scattered everywhere and piles of snow built up from years of neglect.

This must be where the main attack happened. She recalled that her research on the Battle of Hoth had mentioned that Vader had come during the attack himself. Then if that’s true, wouldn’t these hallways be reeking with his dark aura? Why hadn’t Luke thought of that too? Unless he just had the vision of Kenobi on his mind.

She neared a door and, sensing no immediate signs of lifeforms inside, she stepped through it, looking from side to side, checking all her surroundings. Clear. She was in some kind of Med Bay. There were Bacta Tanks, bunks, stations that held old medical equipment and supplies. She tiptoed to an open doorway. 

Empty .

 She kept going, hoping that this good fortune would continue. There were other Med Bay rooms, but she kept straight, hoping to exit them and find the command center. As she went down another icy hall, she heard footsteps and ducked behind a crate. The footsteps weren’t coming towards her, but retreating in the distance up ahead. She stepped out of hiding and followed the snowtroopers until they entered a door. On impulse she entered behind them, silent as a ghost, and pressed herself against the wall. Nearby on her right was a large round tank of some kind and she hid behind it, looking out now and again to see where the snowtroopers were. She watched as the three troopers went down a short ramp into a trench with control panels. If she hadn’t found a hiding space, they most definitely would have seen her by now. She waited until they were down in the trench with who knew how many others and slowly stepped out of hiding, pressing herself against the wall. Over the next nerve racking minute or so, she inched along the wall, not making a sound as she watched the pit in front of her, barely seeing the tops of the snowtroopers helmets, willing them to not look up. She couldn’t help hearing them talk to each other, glad their conversation seemed to be capturing all of their attention.

“Have you been by Auxiliary Hole B?” Asked one.

“Yeah, why?” Said another.

And the first answered: “I thought I heard something down there. Could be a wampa…”

“We cleared this place out when we got here, there are no wampas inside the base,” said the second one matter of factly, as if reassuring a frightened child who should know better. The first trooper didn’t seem reassured.

“I don’t know… I don’t like going down there alone.”

“Let’s go check it out right now. I’ll prove to you there are no wampas.” The first one sounded annoyed, but willing to prove a point. Jaden heard them gathering their stuff. She started to panic. There were no more hiding places and they would definitely see her now, not that they probably would’ve heard her go through the door, and now she could hear their footsteps. They were coming! Any second now and they’d see her.

So much for stealth.

“Jaden, Scenario: Imperial stormtroopers have you surrounded, you’re weaponless with no way of escape. What do you do?” Kyle had asked Jaden during one of their early training sessions, before she’d even gotten her first mission.

“Die, I guess,” Rosh had muttered off to the side, arms crossed.

“This isn’t your Scenario Rosh. C’mon Jaden, I know you’ve got it, whaddya do?” Kyle had pressed.

She’d shrugged, unsure. “I guess I’d try to do what Master Luke would.”

“Which is?”

“I heard somewhere that the Force can be used to bend the will of the weak minded, is that true?”

“To an extent, but it’s not a power to be misused. To do it you have to focus on the person's will and make them think that what you want them to do is what they want to do.” This last sentence echoed in Jaden’s mind. She’d never actually tried Mind Trick on anyone, but now seemed to be as good a start as any, and who knew, maybe she, Kyle and Rosh would be laughing about this in their next training session.

The snowtroopers had started up the ramp now, Jaden began to focus on their wills, the two pliable minds before her, and by the time they spotted her and hurried up the ramp further to investigate her and call for their comrades, just two others, she felt she could do it. Though the two new minds did complicate things a bit.

“Hold it right there!” Said the first snowtrooper who’d suggested going to check out Auxerily Hole B.

“You hold it right there,” Jaden said, focused mainly on his mind. He merely stopped walking. His partner seemed confused. The other two troopers came up behind them.

“Hey, get moving! That’s not one of the Sith, I think that’s a Jedi, take her down!” Said one.

“No!” Jaden said firmly, looking each snowtrooper in the face in turn. “No, you will all forget that you’ve seen me and go back to your positions and stay put until someone comes to get you.” The troopers were quiet a moment, the ones in back shifted uncomfortably as if given an instruction from their parent they didn’t really want to follow. Jaden repeated her order, looking at each of them, putting all of her focus and will into their minds, willing them to want to do this as much as she wanted them to. Then, as if by some miracle, they each turned and walked single file down the ramp, almost mechanically, and all sat around the glow-lamp, not moving. It slightly unnerved her, but Jaden would be forever grateful for the teaching of her master coming at the eleventh hour to help her out of a bind. The Force truly did some mysterious things. She backed slowly out of the room and rushed through the door as if the snowtroopers would change their minds, hoping the effect would last at least an hour. The hallway was empty of troopers and she kept going at a quick and even pace. She found a lift that went down and took it, seeing how it was her only option. At the bottom she found three snowtroopers caught by surprise, these she had to kill. Hoping she hadn’t made too much noise, she hurried through the room's only exit.

She moved silently along the icy passage, concentrating on what was ahead to try and see through the Force what awaited in the next room. A voice. Jaden slowed, taking purposefully careful steps to stay as quiet as possible. At the doorway she reached, she silently peaked around the corner. It was a control room, or what was left of it. Several large monitors filled the room, most of them crushed or destroyed by debris from the Battle of Echo Base years before. Piles of snow and icy rubble were strewn about. Though she couldn’t see him, Jaden could sense the presence of a cultist just around the corner, standing before a monitor. Judging by the hum it made, it was one the only ones in the room that worked. She heard the sounds of buttons and switches being pushed and flipped.

“Command center to Alora,” he said. Jaden felt relief that he didn’t seem to know she was there.

“Alora here.” Responded a female voice. Jaden didn’t like it. It sounded cold and arrogant.

“We’ve just finished downloading the data.” The cultist went on. “The Rebels must have erased everything during the evacuation. Fortunately, the computer kept logging their flight information.”

“And…?”

“...And we found Rogue Leader’s flight trajectory when he left Hoth.” The cultist was sounding proud of himself now. “From it, we’ve been able to determine that Skywalker went to Dagobah.”

“Dagobah?” Alora said, suspicion coating her snobbish voice. “That sneaky little Jedi.”

The hair on the back of Jaden’s neck stood out and waited as they finished up their conversation, her mind racing with questions. Why were they looking up places that Luke had visited? And more importantly, had they already drained the Force energy from here? 

Well, she wasn’t going to get answers by lurking in the doorway. Brandishing her saber, Jaden stepped into the room and rushed around the corner of the monitor she knew the cultist to be behind, hoping to catch him by surprise.

“A Jedi?!” He blurted out in both surprise and vehement hatred. Their sabers clashed.

“Wanna tell me what’s going on here?” Jaden asked as she parried a strike, there wasn’t a lot of room to move around in due to the monitors. She felt a bit cramped but didn’t let up.

“You’ll learn NOTHING from me, Jedi !” The cultist spat the word like a curse, bringing down a barrage of strikes so that Jaden had to stay on the defensive. She really didn’t want to have to kill him, she needed answers, but he wasn’t giving her much choice. Her first opportunity came when the cultist took a side step to avoid her right to left slash aimed at his leg, he stepped on some piece of a broken console and lost his balance, arms flinging out to try and regain it. That second he took to correct his stance was all she needed. Jaden swung her saber at his exposed side and it was all over. The cultist slumped down, dead.

Jaden stood over him momentarily, chest heaving, whole body feeling clammy and  weighed her options. “This isn’t good.” She shook her head. “I’d better find this Alora.”

Sheathing her saber, Jaden turned around, finding the exit -the only other doorway in the room- and ran as fast as she dared without being too loud down the corridor. They might have drained the Force energy already, she thought, but if there’s some way I can stop it, I have to try!

And if not, at the very least, if she could get answers to Luke and Kyle’s questions from Alora, then this mission wouldn’t be a complete loss either.

The next few corridors held no other enemies or anything of interest, except in a small room she came to, which was more like a cave with icy stalagmites and stalactites poking out of the floor and ceiling, some even meeting together. At the far end stood a saddled and bridled tauntaun. Jaden felt some relief, Maybe I can ride this one back to my ship. She gave the tauntaun a consoling pat as she went into the next chamber which was small, with a large rectangular door at the end. It was different from the others she’d seen and something about it, maybe what was behind it, filled her with a strange, cold ominous feeling. She looked back at the tauntaun, who seemed oblivious to her discomfort. 

“No sympathy huh?” She asked the snow lizard, then set her shoulders and faced the door, taking in deep, calming breaths. “I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.” She approached the door, somehow deep down knowing that whatever happened, she’d be okay.

Jaden entered what proved to be a large room, taking in the crates and various supplies scattered around it, all hastily abandoned during the evacuation over a decade ago. Natural pillars dotted around, holding up the ceiling and looking more like a cave rather than a bunker. In the center of the room stood a large boulder covered in snow. High above it, Jaden spotted a large ventilation shaft that went far up into the ceiling. 

Then she saw her. Ducking quickly behind a nearby pillar, hoping she hadn’t been seen, Jaden peaked out at the red Twi’lek, clad in warm garments varying in shades of blue and bluish-green half sat, half crouched atop a lower section of the boulder. Jaden’s skin prickled with goosebumps. A Twi’lek? Is she the one the smugglers from that recording of R5’s was talking about? She had to be! Thankfully, she didn’t seem to have noticed Jaden, as she was seemingly distracted by a conversation she was having via comlink. As she spoke to the unknown individual on the other end, her voice was already annoyingly familiar to Jaden.

“Yes, Master. Dagobah. Skywalker didn’t mention it in his journals; he must have been trying to protect something.”

“Well done, my apprentice,” the cold sultry voice of a woman answered. “Meet me there.” 

Alora lowered her comlink and returned it to her belt. When she looked up Jaden was standing out in the open, lightsaber in hand, fingering the on switch.

Alora straightened up. “Ah. You must be the saber-wielding troublemaker who neutralized our perimeter guard. Are the Jedi stretched so thin that Skywalker sends children to battle the Disciples of Ragnos?” Her scarlet blade lit up the space around her, casting eerie shadows, coloring the snow covered spots around her like blood.

Well that’s a bit harsh, I can’t be that much younger than her, thought Jaden as her saber lit up her surrounding area in a less threatening color as she waited, measuring her opponent the way Kyle had trained her to, pulling her back to the last time he’d drilled her and Rosh together.

Rosh . Jaden briefly wondered how his mission was going. Probably less exciting than this, for once she wished they could trade places, he’d enjoy this for sure. Jaden wasn’t quite liking the churning in her stomach as Alora rushed toward her faster than she’d expected, almost catching her off guard.

Their sabers met with a loud clash that echoed throughout the cavern. “So, wanna tell me who your master is?” Jaden asked, staring down her opponent over the crossed blades. Alora said nothing but made a loud noise like a war cry and pushed Jaden to the floor, preparing to pounce. Jaden pulled a nearby crate with the Force and hurled it at her with all her strength, which Alora easily dodged, but hitting her wasn’t what Jaden intended anyway. It gave her just enough time to jump back up and get her bearings. Jaden didn’t have to sense it to know that Alora out-skilled her, but she still had a few tricks up her sleeve. 

They only crossed blades a handful of times during the course of their fight, with Jaden resorting to using rocks and crates, as well as a fistful of snow to distract or hurl at her opponent. Kyle would probably have called it a sloppy fight, but hey, she was still alive for the chance to hear him tell her that.

Alora was tiring, but so was Jaden. Something had to give. Jaden decided to give it one more go. A burst of adrenaline came over her as she rushed headlong at Alora, and made a slash at her feet. The red Twi’lek leapt into the air, landing on a higher section of the rock. Jaden jumped after her, frustration building in her chest as she slashed again. Alora leapt effortlessly and perched atop a set of pipes that ran along the bottom section of the giant ventilation shaft high above. Jaden’s shoulders dropped a bit, she didn’t have the experience or the energy to try and follow her. Alora jumped to another set of pipes, higher than the first, she didn’t even seem to be breathing hard.

“We’ll meet again, whelp.” She hissed and practically flew out of sight, disappearing into the darkness of the vent above. 

With nothing else to do and no hope of following her, Jaden leapt down from the boulder, extinguishing her lightsaber.

“I can’t wait,” Jaden muttered. “And next time I’ll be ready.”

Back at the Academy, Jaden stood with Kyle and Luke at the top of the dais in the Audience chamber. She filled them in on everything that happened on Hoth as she sipped a warm mug of caf and steamed blue milk Kyle had brought her. She finished with a generously short account of spending the night hiding in a cave just outside the room she’d dueled Alora in. Then in the freezing early morning, she finished off what was left of her rations and rode back to her ship on the abandoned tauntaun. Thankfully, her ship was fine and what's more, the tauntaun she’d initially befriended had waited nearby with her herd. She’d freed the tauntaun that took her back to her X-wing. The memory of sadly watching them disappear into tiny specks outside her cockpit window as she lifted off was still fresh. She felt like she wouldn’t exactly mind coming back again for a visit. As long as there were no Imperials or cultists to mess with that is.

“So they know about Dagobah,” Luke said grimly. “Master Yoda hid there, knowing his presence would be masked by the planet’s strong dark side aura. If they find it…” He didn’t finish his statement and went over to look out at the view between the stone pillars behind him, lost in his thoughts, hands ever clasped behind his back. Kyle and Jaden watched him a moment before looking back at each other.

“Did you find anything else on Hoth?” Kyle asked.

Jaden shook her head, taking another sip of the creamy, rich confection. Ah, perfection . “Nothing,” she answered aloud. “I did overhear this Alora talking with her master. It sounded like another woman, but there’s no way to know who she is without a name.” Luke merely nodded at this information. “Anyway, Alora must have already taken the Force energy from there before I got to her.”

Skywalker spoke without looking back. “Just as others have reported. Bespin, Endor, Coruscant, everywhere…” He turned around and rejoined them. “Kyle, what about Byss?”

Her master folded his arms. “Rosh hasn’t returned. He’s long overdue and we haven’t heard from him.”

Jaden felt something twist inside her, she glanced down at her cup. Empty . She felt sadder. Luke bowed his head, eyes closed, brows knitted in concentration. He then slowly raised his head, opening his eyes. 

“I sense he’s still alive…”

Kyle unfolded his arms. “I’ll go to Byss tomorrow to look for him. I know some people that can get me into some of the outlying Imperial outposts. I’ll see what I can find out.”

“Very well,” Luke said.

Jaden felt helpless, useless. “What about me? I want to help. Rosh is my friend.”

Kyle put a hand on her shoulder. “You can help by staying here and completing your training.”

“Kyle’s right. There are still missions for you to undertake and we can’t neglect the training of one of our most promising students.”

Jaden perked up at Luke’s words, completely astonished. “Promising?” She stuttered.

“Yes. Due to your heroics on Hoth, we are promoting you to Apprentice.” Luke smiled slightly.

“Thank you Master Skywalker,” Jaden said as solemnly as she could, bowing her head to each of them. “Master… uh, Kyle.”

Kyle just grinned and slapped her on the back, then headed out so he could prepare for his search for Rosh.

Jaden returned to her bunk, feeling lighter than air and excited and nervous about her promotion. As she leaned back to close her eyes she felt a sudden fear take hold of her. Where was Rosh? Was he okay? Did the cult find him? She sat up straight, crossing her legs to sit in an impromptu meditation pose. Please let him be alright. Please let him be safe. 

Memories of their last interaction burned into her mind, bringing with them feelings of guilt. Why didn’t you just talk to him? Was he really that much of a nuisance to you?

“I didn’t want this to happen,” she whispered. “Please, I just want a chance to get to know the real Rosh. To get past the part of him that masks what he’s really thinking.”

That was it, that was the part of Rosh she actually disliked, the mask of false confidence that made him hard to be around. But the real Rosh, the vulnerable, authentic Rosh that she’d glimpsed on Blenjeel, that was the Rosh she liked being around. That was the Rosh she wanted to get to know better. To sit up on the roof and talk more with.

“Please, just give me one more chance.”

12 Hours Earlier…

Rosh was scared, of that much he was certain. His “no problem” mission to the ruins of Byss had gone terribly wrong. An Imperial ship had shown up out of nowhere and now he was caught in its tractor beam. On the verge of panic, he fumbled with the buttons on his X-wings console, trying to get a distress signal out, but they had already jammed his transmissions.

“‘No problem?’ Rosh you idiot, now you’re gonna get captured and they’re gonna kill you!” His breaths came out as frantic sobs, he’d never felt more afraid or alone in his life. He tried to calm himself, repeating a mantra he’d heard Jaden say to herself often, “I’m one with the Force and the Force is with me. I’m one with the-” He tried something else to make himself feel less vulnerable, “I’m strong with the Force, I am a powerful Jedi!” But his words felt hollow. He thought of Jaden, how scared he’d felt on Blenjeel when she’d almost fell from their rock. How close they’d sat, when they’d held hands. Her skin was rough like his from training but he felt he wouldn’t have it any other way. He shook his head as he remembered the last time he saw her, how she walked away without saying a word. Was she mad at him? Probably. He’d always managed to screw up whatever relationships came his way, why should his teammate be any different? He thought of how jealous he’d been that Jaden got assigned a planet where Master Luke himself had seen a vision. They always give her the cool missions and she’s always currying their favor. He stopped that train of thought. What if their roles had been reversed and she’d come to Byss instead? Whatever it was, she was probably having more fun than he was as usual. But would I want this to happen to her? He thought as he stared up into his coming doom. Maybe I would? But that wasn't a definite answer. 

I just wish this didn’t happen at all. He thought as the feeling of unimpeded fear coursed freely through his veins.

Just as his ship was pulled into the Imperial Cruiser’s hanger and its bright lights blinded him, a darkness seemed to engulf his vision. A voice spoke in his mind that was not his own, but sounded as clear as if it was: “I’ve been waiting for you Rosh Penin. Come to me my dear.” The echoing laugh of a seductive female voice was the last thing Rosh remembered before passing into unconsciousness.

END OF PART ONE

Chapter Text

PART TWO: THE APPRENTICE

Jaden awoke with a start. She was laying in an uncomfortable position on her bed and realized that she must have fallen asleep meditating. She stood up, stretching and hearing parts of her body crack satisfyingly, easing the stiffness. She rubbed her eyes and glanced at her chronometer on her bedside table which told her it was morning, but too early for anyone else to be up. Then she saw the pendant Rosh had made for her lying next to it, the cord warped neatly around the medallion. She reached out and picked it up carefully as though it were a precious and fragile treasure. She gently ran her finger over the smooth surface admiring the words carved in Aurebesh there. She tied it around her neck.

Still in her clothes from yesterday, she changed into something more comfortable but didn’t lay back down. She felt wide awake, the thoughts and information of the previous day racing through her mind. She couldn’t stay in her room any longer, she needed air and space outside. 

Without any preconceived direction, Jaden turned left out of her room and headed down the hall, intending to go straight to the lift, but stopped, staring down the hall leading to the men's dorm. She made a choice and went straight. She stood outside of Rosh’s door, similar to a moment not too long ago, but this time didn’t hesitate. She examined the keypad, it was standard, nothing special someone with basic Force or hotwiring capabilities couldn’t handle. She let her hand hover just over it, willing its mechanisms and wiring to work and do as she asked it. It beeped faintly, and the door slid open, creaking once. Not too loudly, but in the silent hallway Jaden winced and stepped inside, promising herself she’d leave quickly before too much time had passed.

She walked quietly over to Rosh’s bed, which was a mess and hadn’t been made the morning he got his assignment to Byss. Without knowing why, she started adjusting the sheets by hand, making it as nice as she could, setting the pillow at the head and fluffing it a bit. Next she moved around the bed to his small table, which was still filled with all kinds of junk and spare parts, but his new lightsaber hilt was missing. He must have finished it and took it with him. But why didn’t he show it to me? Guilt and shame filled her. You were too busy giving him the cold shoulder Jaden, that’s why he didn’t trust you to show something precious he’s been working on. And besides, he probably thought it wasn’t good enough to compare to yours, he was always commenting on it. He was probably jealous.

“No!” Jaden whimpered aloud. Sometimes her own thoughts were her own worst enemies. She tasked herself with lining the spare pieces on Rosh’s bedside table up in neat rows and making it look somewhat organized. She didn’t even hear when the door behind her opened until it creaked softly. She froze, one hand still on the last piece she was lining up on the bottom shelf. A male sounding sigh was released behind her.

“I kind of figured I’d find you here since you weren’t in your room.” Jaden almost sighed with relief, still holding the last scrap piece, she stood, feeling stiff in her back from kneeling for so long. Kyle’s arms were crossed, something he usually did when upset about something, but his eyes were soft, just as his tone had been. He let his arms drop to his sides. “How are you holding up?” Jaden held herself together as best she could.

“I miss him, I- I’m just worried something terrible has happened and that I’ll never see him again.”

“You two didn’t part on good terms after Luke’s meeting in the Audience Chamber, did you?”

“How’d you know? You left before we did.”

“I can sense guilt a mile away. Look, something I learned, when I was heavily tempted by the dark side, is that often, self-hatred, rather than just hatred of others, is often the quickest path to the dark side.”

Jaden bit her lip, she didn’t want to cry in front of Kyle, or anyone. She just nodded her head. “Thank you.” Her voice was a strained, gravelly whisper. 

Kyle noticed she was holding back, but knew all too well that pushing someone to let things out was often more destructive than good. 

“Well, listen,” he said, staring at his feet a moment before looking her in the face. “I’m taking the Raven’s Claw to go look for Rosh, I’ll be gone for a few days and I think you should take it easy. Get some training in, I already talked to Tionne about having you join her and her students, they’re doing really well and you’ll be trained on the same level. They’re excited to have you join them. I’ve also told Tionne that you have permission to access more of the archives now that you’re an Apprentice. So learn all you can, alright? Cause as soon as I get back, I’ve got some more missions for you.”

Jaden agreed, she knew it was useless to argue about going with him to look for Rosh, and having a few days to train with her friends seemed like a good idea. Kyle said goodbye one last time and Jaden quietly exited Rosh’s room, placing the last spare part back on Rosh’s end table. 

Back in her room, she rubbed her fingers against the smooth metal of her custom pendant, the only thing from Rosh she felt she had left. No, he’s not gone. He’s just… missing.

She wasn’t really one for jewelry, but she did like the comforting feel of something there that she could grab onto, and it had been so long since she’d had a pendant of her own. 

She let go of the necklace and took out her lightsaber, feeling the smoothness of it. She looked at it as if she were staring deeper into its heart and said fondly:

“It reminds me of when you were just a tiny crystal on my neck, and I had no idea the trouble you would cause me; or the adventures you’d pull me into.”

Jaden trained with Tionne and her apprentices the next few days, and she slowly began to feel better. She also got to do a lot more reading and studying than she’d ever done before. But mostly, she became closer friends with Arta-Mess and Kalil, who was referred to by her last name by her master and everyone else except Jaden. Since that night after Blenjeel when Arta-Mess ana Kalil had invited Jaden to spend time with them and talk, Jaden just stuck to calling her by her first name.

They started doing nearly everything together and not just by eating at the same table. At first Jaden wondered if they hung out with her because they knew she was missing Rosh, but that proved a worthless anxiety the more they spent time with each other. From studying in the archives, cleaning equipment together, to practicing combat skills; Jaden was almost never alone at any given moment. The others who’d ridden the shuttle in with her that first day seemed to stick close as well. 

That first morning after Rosh was declared missing, they all gathered at the same table she sat at in the dining hall and expressed their sorrow for her and wished for Rosh’s safe return. Jaden had merely smiled and thanked them, but secretly wondered if they felt relieved now that their prime source of annoyance was gone and really wished he’d never come back. It was a harsh thought, but she remembered how they left him sitting alone on the shuttle. Things had definitely changed and they had become more friendly and tolerant of him, but… was that just it? Tolerant? Maybe not.

Jas had given her an awkward hug and pat on the shoulder, telling her how he enjoyed working with Rosh down in the shop, tinkering with wires and mechanics and helping him design his lightsaber.

“He wanted it to be a surprise for you and Kyle,” he’d said. It was nice that someone else enjoyed Rosh’s company. She wondered if maybe Rosh had opened up to Jas, and if Jas had gotten to see the real Rosh too. She wanted to ask him this, but wasn’t sure how to breach the subject, she didn’t feel as close to Jas yet.

“C’mon Jaden! You’ve gotta pick up the pace if we’re gonna beat Jacyyn’s team!” Kalil yelled from several paces ahead of her. 

“Coming!” They were in a small arena-like training room, with obstacles and things to hide behind as the midmorning sun streamed through the arena’s open top. They had split into teams: Jaden, Kalil and Arta-Mess versus Jacyyn, Jas and Raltharan. Their goal: To capture their opponent’s flag and return to their respective starting point with their own flag safe and secure. Jaden had managed to get Jacyyn’s flag, a bright red bearing the Academy Insignia, and now she and Kalil were racing as fast as they could back to their team’s base.

“The red team has stolen the flag!” Announced Master Horn from the observation box, the sound of other students behind him cheering. It had become a bit of a spectator sport at the Academy with nearly every available student who didn’t have any prior obligations standing to watch the game unfold.

“Kalil, take the flag, I’ve got Jacyyn!” Before she could protest, Jaden shoved the flag into the young Zabrak’s hands and rushed off to where she spotted a speck of blue flashing above the arena’s obstacles.

Jacyyn meanwhile was smiling coyly to himself, it was the perfect plan, really, he’d take the blue flag while his teammates searched for Jaden and Streen to get his flag back. Easy.

Not ten seconds later, something slammed into him from the side and he hit the ground hard, rolling onto his back with someone on top of him. He stared up as his blue lightsaber and Jaden’s purple one crossed in front of his neck. He never lost his grin. At least their sabers had been turned down to stun by a master before entering the arena.

“Way to go Korr, way to go.” Jacyyn laid on the charm. Jaden rolled her eyes.

“Do you ever stop trying to charm your way out of something?”

“It hasn’t not worked before.” His brows arched, amused, bringing on a bigger eye roll from Jaden.

“Just hand over the flag Di’kut.”

“Since when did you pick up Mandalorian slang?”

“Since the time I met you and needed a term to best describe you.” Jaden turned off his saber, briefly admiring the work he’d done to make it his own. It was subtle, but having seen his blaster on their first day at the Academy, Jaden recognized the barrel had been repurposed for the blade’s emitter, the handle cut into long strips and spaced out evenly along the bottom of his saber’s handgrip, the trigger made smaller to become the activation switch. 

Jaden stopped her unintentional admiration of her friend’s work and held it over her head. “You want it? Fetch!” She tossed it as far as she could, quickly Force wrenching the flag from Jaccyn’s hands and full out sprinting away as soon as she did. 

That was another thing that seemed to be happening, their witty and playful banter. Arta-Mess and Kalil had teased her about it, saying that it was because he liked her, but she always denied it, hoping it wasn’t true. She didn’t like him. Not in that way at least. He was more like the brother she’d never had. Besides, if she ever did want to be with someone like that, she wanted him to be a bit more mature and have something else in common than just sassing each other.

She glanced at the time she had left, they’d been given thirty minutes and it was down to the wire. She ran up the steps and down a corridor that’d been the perfect spot to set up their base and crossed the threshold, placing the flag staff into its holder just as the timer in the arena went off.

There were cheers and rapturous applause from all. Even the competition cheered for them as they entered and gave each other slaps on the back as well as veiled, playful threats to “get them” next time.

Tionne came down to congratulate her students and Jaden.

“Good job everyone! Now go on, you all have the day off, so relax!” She turned to Jaden and whispered, “Kyle messaged me to say he wants to talk to you, I’ll empty out the box so you two can have some privacy.” 

Jaden entered the box, expecting to see Kyle in person, but instead was taken aback when greeted by a blue, hologram version of her master from the torso up.

“Hey Kyle,” she said awkwardly, remembering their last encounter. “Any news about Rosh?”

“I’m afraid not kid, not yet anyway. But listen, we have a new assignment, and since I’m close to the area it comes from, I’ll be assisting you,-” Something like an elbow jabbed him in the side, “-err, we’ll be assisting you.”

“We?”

“Uh, yes, um Jaden, meet Jan. Jan, meet Jaden.” Jaden had never seen Kyle behave so strangely or awkward, in fact she believed it almost impossible, except for his reaction to her questions about the mysterious Naboo assignment that is. And here he was, scratching behind his head, almost not sure what to do with his hands. If the hologram didn’t show only blue, she’d be convinced he was blushing.

“Hi Jan, I’ve heard a lot about you, Kyle’s told me a lot of stories about your adventures.” She squinted at the hologram, still only seeing Kyle until the image expanded and she could see a woman, close to Kyle’s age but fairly pretty and good humored looking, came into view. She was dressed simply, in pilot fatigues with goggles perched above her forehead.

“I bet he has,” Jan said. “It’s lovely to meet you too Jaden. I really wish I could’ve met Rosh as well, but that’s why I’m here. When Kyle reached out to me about who I could contact, I volunteered to join him in the search. I’ll also be joining you two for your assignment.”

“Oh,” Jaden wasn’t sure what to say really, “Okay, that’ll be great! What’s the mission?”

Kyle finally seemed to find his voice: “We’ve received word from a mining guild on Nar Kreeta that a number of elders are being held captive by a local Hutt crime lord. The slimebag’s name is Grutta, Grutta the Hutt. These elders had gone to negotiate a treaty with him, but never returned, and now Grutta’s claimed that no one ever came to see him.”

“Despicable,” Jan spat.

“I’ll say, what are we gonna do?” Jaden asked.

“You’re gonna meet us on Nar Kreeta and we’re to meet with some locals from the town, one of the elders' sons I believe, and discuss a plan of action, though Jan and I have already been brainstorming a bit.”

“Alright, so you want me there immediately?” 

“As soon as you can get an X-wing checked out of the hangar,” Kyle affirmed. 

Jaden nodded. “Done, I’ll see you as soon as I can.” She was out of the room before the hologram had fully dissipated, barely hearing a snatch of dialogue from Kyle:

“Nice save hon-” Jaden stopped short just outside the door. She leaned back and glanced inside. Nothing, the hologram transmission had ended. Had Kyle thought that they were off the transmission? And what did he mean? What was he about to call Jan?

Something secret was going on with those two and this time, she was going to find out. Having Naboo as a forever secret was hard enough. Well, I guess I’d better get going. Maybe I can find out what’s going on with Kyle and Jan when I get to Nar Kreeta.

“ This is my father’s rescue team?” The son of the mining guild’s head elder said as soon as he set eyes on Jaden. He was somewhere in his mid forties with a semi permanent scowl on his face. He cocked his eyebrow and looked her up and down, clearly unimpressed with what the New Republic had sent.

Jaden clamped her mouth shut in a hard, firm line, determined not to say anything unpleasant. If you’ve got nothing nice to say, then don’t say it at all. She repeated the mantra her aunt always spouted again and again in her head.

“Well, if you’d like no help, then I can just take my apprentice and go,” Kyle said. It was better to leave the saying of not so nice things to him.

“What my partner here is trying to say,” Jan interjected, putting her right hand (Jaden noticed it was her only hand that was covered by a black glove with copper wires crawling over it. A cybernetic enhancement no doubt) on Kyle’s arm and stepping in front of him. “Is that a small team is just what’s needed to execute this rescue mission.”

“How do you mean?” The son, named Otiss, asked.

“Our plan is to drop Jaden-,” she gestured to the young apprentice who fought to not look stunned. “-off at an access pipe that comes out the side of the canyon wall the Hutt’s Palace is built into.”

Otiss was still skeptical. “And you know of this pipe how?”

“We know a guy who once escaped with his life through it after getting caught cheating. Kyle and I scouted the area before Jaden’s arrival and… well lets just say that we’ll be picking up the elders in our ships because it’s a pretty nasty drop.”

Otiss was silent, considering. “Well, you’d better be, and be extra careful! Our elders are advanced in years and shouldn't be jumping off anything!”

“Understood,” Jan said. “Now, we’ll leave you. If all goes well, you shall see your father this evening.”

Otiss simply grunted and turned to walk away with the other elders' sons and daughters, who were worried out of their minds.

“Well that was… Unpleasant,” Jaden said.

“Exactly why I let Jan do all the talking,” Kyle said, smirking, eyes practically glowing. Jaden clocked this. He’s almost giddy! She wanted to laugh but knew that would lead to questions she wasn’t ready to answer, and she certainly had a few of her own. She hoped she’d get to spend more time with Jan and maybe learn some juicy details about Kyle or unfiltered versions of their adventures. 

Now that Jan wasn’t some blue holographic image, she saw that she was much prettier in person, with brown eyes that sparkled with humor, hair so dark brown it was almost black. Jaden decided she liked her, it was nice to have three in a team again.

“Okay, here’s what’s gonna happen,” Kyle said once they were alone. “I’ll take you in the Raven’s Claw and drop you by that access pipe. Jan can take your X-wing and will be standing by for your signal, that way we can save a couple of trips and pick up the elders quicker.” Jan and Jaden nodded, glancing at one another to share a friendly smile, then they moved out.

The sun was making its descent in the sky, lengthening the shadows over the valley as Kyle flew the Raven’s Claw low, heading for the pipe Jan had mentioned. Jaden spotted it and he hovered closer. She stood up, lifting the cockpit window, the wind whipped up through the valley and off the canyon walls, causing her to struggle slightly for balance. 

“This is as close as I can get her!” Kyle shouted, and Jaden made a leap for it. The pipe opening was large but her nearly ten foot leap was almost too much distance and she hadn’t compensated with Force power. She missed the pipe, her fingers grasping and scrambling. Finding purchase, she grunted as she strained to get higher. She closed her eyes and focused. Kyle watched speechless, in shock before moving to help her, but by that time, Jaden had righted herself and used the Force to push up and swing, almost like a backflip, onto the pipe’s inner edge, safe. She turned to face the front of the Raven’s Claw, still hovering close by. She crossed her arms as she stared Kyle down from the inside.

Kyle chuckled as he called on their coms. “Y’know, normally I’m the one going into danger while Jan flies the ship. But this’ll work too. Once you find those prisoners, bring them back here for pickup.” 

Jaden waved at him and turned to walk into the pipe's tunnel. It wasn’t very long and she soon found a very old and rusted looking fan at the back of the tunnel, she guessed it was once used for circulating air but had long been in disrepair. 

Leave it to a Hutt to not get things fixed around his own palace.

Noticing an even more decrepit vent off to the side, she bent to pry it away from its hinges and looked into the duct. It was large enough for Kyle, or someone even bigger than him to crawl through. She got down on her hands and knees and crawled through it, coming very quickly into a small section that she could stand up in. She stopped the moment she saw that the grates in the floor had a view of the top of someone’s head below. She was in the ceiling of the Hutt’s Palace, or some section of it. She silently crouched down to get a better look. There were two men, mercenaries of course.

“Did you put your bet in?” One of them asked with a gruff voice.

“Heh why bother? The odds are terrible. Most prisoners don’t even get ten meters before the rancor eats em. It’s a waste of credits.” The second one had a voice with a tone that tinged on constant boredom. Jaden felt all the warmth go out of her. A rancor? The monster Jabba the Hutt would feed his dancers or anyone he was bored with or didn’t like to? There’s one here?

“Maybe, but if one of them ever does get away, I’m gonna be rich!” Gruff Voice said.

“Yeah, yeah, keep dreamin’,” the King of Boredom answered.

Jaden weighed her options, these men probably knew where the prisoners were kept, but more than likely were just patrons of whatever sick game Grutta the Hutt had set up here. The mercs started to move and Jaden thought that perhaps she could jump down through the vent. The moment her fingers touched it, it dropped onto the floor below, landing with a crash!

“Hey! What was that?” The gruff voiced merc turned and stared into the ceiling, looking right at Jaden. “Hey, we got ourselves a pretty little caged bird up here. Looks tough too.” An ugly, slimy smile spread across his face.

Jaden ducked to the side as the merc fired at her. There wasn’t anywhere for her to run really, but she stumbled upon another vent and took advantage of the opportunity. She dropped through it, saber drawn and deflected their bolts, followed by a move that she’d taken some training to get used to, she threw her lightsaber. It came at them horizontally, end over end and sliced right through their abdomens. She caught the hilt in time to turn and see some newcomers, a couple of Trandoshan bounty hunters.

The place she’d found herself in was a long hallway with two open doorways further down, the closest one was what the Trandoshans had come through. After clearing them out she headed down the hall and looked in the second open doorway, also noting a closed door at the end of the hallway. She opened it. 

Inside was a large arena with walls creating pathways that had arrows of different colors painted on them. There were piles of bones in some of the corners, picked clean. Jaden shuddered and went back to check out the first doorway. It led into a hallway that went up and stopped at a door guarded by two Gran grenadiers. 

They immediately threw a pair of thermal detonators at her. She reflexively pushed them back towards the Grans and took cover behind the corner. Once the coast was clear she came out of hiding, not looking down at the carnage as she tried the door. There was a keypad. Maybe one of these scum has a keycard. She sighed and had to look down, finding it on the bottom half of one of the grenadiers and opened the door. To her surprise, it led right inside the pipe tunnel. Guess they learned their lesson after Kyle and Jan’s friend escaped. She called Kyle on coms.

“Kyle, I’m in, and I found a hallway leading right into the exit pipe! It’ll be so much easier to get the elders out this way.”

“Great work Jaden! Keep us posted once you’ve found the elders.”

“There’s just one problem.”

“Problem?”

“I overheard some mercs saying that the Hutt feeds prisoners to his pet rancor for sport and people bet on it!”

“That slimy Hutt! And I thought Jabba was the worst of them!” Jan interjected.

“I’m worried the elders have already been put in the arena,” Jaden continued.

“That is a sad possibility,” Kyle said after a moment's thought. “But we don't know for sure yet. Keep looking around and see what you can find. I believe in you kid!”

“Me too!” Jan called.

Jaden swelled with pride and a new feeling of confidence. She’d do her best. She signed off and made her way back through the hallways and to the second doorway at the end of the hall near the arena entrance. It was only one room and there was a lift that went up a shortways to a door at the top. Another door in the room was locked that seemed to be another lift as well, but she needed a security key to open it. She decided to check every guard, mercenary and bounty hunter she came across for it.

She took the small lift which led up into a small viewing room that she assumed looked out into the arena, but there were shutters over the slits in the wall. There was no one in the room, just chairs, tables covered with Pazaak cards, and leftover booze bottles that hadn’t been cleared away. And by the smell of it she didn’t think cleaning was a top priority here anyhow. A video monitor in the corner near the shutters caught her eye and she turned it on, giving her a view of several rows of cells just off the arena along a wall closest to the entrance she’d found earlier.

“There are the cells, but how do I open them?” She mused aloud, looking around the room. On the other end, almost hidden by an overturned table, was a lever. She went and pulled it, hoping her hunch was correct.

The metal shutters opened, then down, near the arena’s open entrance, four prisoners were pushed out of their cells automatically. Jaden guessed grimly that that was what happened when guests paid for a box. They got their own block of four prisoners to force into the arena whenever they saw fit.

She went up to the open viewing slat, deciding it was the quickest way to get down into the arena to meet the prisoners. She squeezed through easily and dropped several feet to the ground, landing gracefully on her feet. Turning towards the prisoners, she rushed over to where they gathered, close to the entrance, but probably afraid they’d be shot down if they tried to go through it to safety.

As Jaden ran over to them, a man who seemed to be the lead prisoner called out to her, “Hurry! Get us out of here before the rancor comes!” Now that she was closer Jaden could see the family resemblance between him and Otiss. But his skin was wrinkled and far more pale than it should have been. In fact being kept prisoner, waiting to be thrown in the arena to certain death had taken a toll on all of them.

Jaden glanced around nervously. “Rancor?! Where is it? When do they-” But she was cut off. Somewhere off in the distance, behind the many man made walls, there reverberated the sounds of low growls and large claws scratching at something, begging to be let out. Then…

Boom!

Boom!

Booom!

Footsteps, like a giant walking towards them from some invisible place. Jaden turned towards the sound and spotted it first. A large, brownish-black four clawed hand reached around the corner, gripping the wall as it pulled its body forward and around, giving Jaden her first sight of a real life rancor, far bigger and more frightening than any images in the Jedi Archives could’ve prepared her for.

“The rancor!” Another of the elders yelled and, afraid of being shot or not, they ran for their lives shouting “Run!!!!” “Look out!” and “Help us!!!!” as they rushed through the entrance of the Arena and into the safety of the hallway. Jaden shook herself off and followed close behind, counting the four prisoners again and again to be absolutely certain she had them all safe and sound.

Behind, the rancor growled, ripping off pieces of the walls. It took several steps forward and let out a massive roar, then rushed the arena door, sticking its arm through but not able to do much. Jaden and the elders backed far away and Jaden used the Force to close the door, inciting a cry of pain from the rancor as it was forced to retract its hand. The door slid home, cutting them off from the hideous creature, its howls still loud through it.

“Thank you,” the first elder, Otiss’s father, said. “That was too close. Listen, there are three other cell blocks full of prisoners, we have to free them!”

Jaden nodded, knowing the original plan was to just get the elders out. But she would not leave others to the fate of that monster.

“Okay,” she said. “ I’ll get them out. You all go and take the access tunnel down the hall and someone will be there to pick you up.”

“Is the way clear?” The head elder asked.

“Yes,” she answered. “Now go, I’m sure your son would be happy to see you safe and alive.”

“You’ve met Otiss?”

“Yeah.”

The elder smiled. “He can be a bit much can’t he?”

Jaden shrugged, not wanting to insult him. “I don’t think he was very impressed by our rescue operation.”

“He isn’t impressed by anything. Exactly why I had to arrange his marriage!”

That poor woman.

The elders turned to go, but their leader turned back again. “My name is Mathiss by the way, and here, I swiped this keycard from a guard. I hope it comes in handy.”

“Thanks Mathiss, now go, all of you!”

The elders took off down the hall towards the access tunnel and Jaden ran back into the room next to her, with the lifts, wondering if the keycard could unlock the other lift.

“Jaden, what’s your status?” Kyle asked through her comlink. She pulled it from her pocket.

“The elders are on their way to the access tunnel, but there are other prisoners here that I need to rescue.” There was a pause after she spoke. 

“Alright, Jan and I will pick em up as they come. Be careful Jaden.”

“I will.”

Jaden swiped the keycard over the pad next to the door and it opened up into a lift with luxurious designs inside it. This is obviously for the more credit heavy clientele. She stepped into the lift and her stomach dropped as it suddenly lurched down. When it reached the bottom she was greeted by a bright and colorful sight. A bar wrapped around the half moon shaped room, stools pulled up to it, tables lining the outer wall. Cards littered the ground where fights had broken out over cheating individuals. 

This whole place is set up as a betting parlor! At the moment, the bar was mostly empty. Mostly. Its few clients stood staring in shock before fumbling with their weapons at their sides. 

There were very few of them and Jaden had the element of surprise. When she cleared the room she suddenly heard whimpering behind the counter. Approaching slowly, fearing a sneak attack of some kind, she leapt over the counter and aimed the tip of her lightsaber at the blue skinned Chiss bartender's throat.

“Pleeeaaaaasseeee doonn’t huuurrrrttt meeeeeeee!!!!” His high pitched voice dragged out. She pulled her saber away a few inches.

“I won’t if you stay down and tell me how to free the other prisoners,” she said.

“B-b-but the Hutt! He’ll Keeeeeeellllll me!”

“Oh calm down, if you stay put then maybe, after I’ve freed the others, I’ll come back for you. Deal?” The bartender nodded slowly and pointed to the door at the end of the room.

“Through there.”

“Very good. Now stay down, and don’t forget that stabbing a Jedi in the back is worse than poking a rancor in the rear end.” She hurried to the door, not very proud of her empty threat. Revenge was not the Jedi way, but she didn’t like the idea of trusting this guy and had a feeling that it might come back to bite her.

Just inside the door, to her immediate left, was a lift. She decided to take that one first.

This viewing box however, was not empty like the first one. A couple of human and Rodian mercenaries had settled down with their drinks ready to watch the show. They never even got close to opening the shutters once the young Jedi entered the room.

Jaden glanced at the monitor which showed where this batch of prisoners would be released, she knew she wouldn’t have much time to get down to them and figure out how to distract the rancor. She went for it and threw the switch, waiting until the shutters were barely open to squeeze through.

She landed harder than anticipated, nearly knocking the wind out of her. She stood and half stumbled over to the prisoners, wasting no time with pleasantries.

“Head to the arena entrance!” She yelled. “Follow me!”

The prisoners hesitated, but after seeing the lightsaber at her hip, realizing she was a Jedi, they started following her. After several twists and turns in the arena Jaden stopped, unsure which direction to go. There were numerous arrows painted on the walls that pointed in different directions. 

Some rescue this is turning out to be.

“Shut up!” She muttered to herself.

“What?” Asked the prisoner behind her.

“Nothing, I’m trying to remember where the entrance is.”

“Some rescue this is turning out to be!” One of the prisoners further back said, echoing her thoughts.

"Follow yellow and not be a dead fellow!" A man in the back cried. Jaden whipped around, staring at him. 

"What?!" She cried. 

"It's something I overheard a guard say!" He said quickly.

Jaden glanced up at the wall, a bright yellow arrow with some chipped paint pointing to the right. She took it, the prisoners in tow. As they rounded the corner that put them in sight of the arena entrance, she skidded to a stop at the sight of the rancor, waiting as if the door would open back up again. 

The door! I forgot to reopen it! She hurried the prisoners back behind the wall and peeked out again. The rancor hadn’t noticed. 

“If you are a Jedi, can you open the door?” The first prisoner asked.

“I think so, does it open from this side?”

“Supposedly, if a prisoner can reach it before the rancor gets them, that button should open the door, allowing them to win their freedom.”

“I’ll try it!” She reached out her hand towards the button near the door, hoping, praying it would work. It pushed in seemingly by itself like magic. The rancor growled in confusion.

“Quick! I’m going to distract it, as soon as I lead it out of the way, go through the door, down the hall to the access tunnel. My master and a friend will be there to pick you all up!”

The plan worked. Jaden ran towards the rancor, shouting and yelling at it as she ran past it and down a different path of the maze. By the time it started following after her, Jaden had already looped back around and made it just inside the safety of the arena entrance.

When she went back through the betting parlor bar and lounge, the bartender wasn’t there. This isn’t good. She didn’t have much time and picked up her pace. She ran past the first lift that she’d already taken and went to the end of the hall towards two other lifts, one on the left and the other to the right.

“Loth-rat, Loth-cat, Loth-wolf, run. Pick a path and all is done.” She recited a Lothalian poem she remembered from one of her classmates years ago. 

This is stupid. She thought. I’m on a mission reciting nursery rhymes! She looked down at her finger, it’d landed on the left hand route. She shrugged and ran to the lift it pointed to.

The Raven’s Claw lifted off from the mining platform. Kyle and Jan had just dropped off Jaden’s second batch of prisoners.

“We make a good team, us three,” Jan said over their private frequency. “Your student’s come a long way from where you said she started. You must be proud.”

“I am,” Kyle agreed.

“But?”

“But what?” Kyle said, exasperated. “Who said I had more to say?”

“I should think that I've learned your cues by now, my love.” Jan gave him a raised eyebrow and her winning smile through the cockpit windows of Jaden’s X-wing.

“You know, if we were in closer proximity, I’d almost be tempted to kiss you.” Kyle’s face looked twenty years younger and Jan swore he was blushing like a schoolboy.

“Almost?” She teased.

“Almost.” The silence that followed was palpable. Kyle was almost tempted to have them land the ships right there and pick up where they left off before he’d received that damned transmission about the assignment here.

“Kyle! Kyle, are you there!” The silence was shattered. Kyle and Jan became serious again as they switched back to a frequency Jaden could hear them on.

“I hear you Jaden! What’s your status?” Kyle said.

“I got the next batch of prisoners, we barely got out of the arena and came upon some mercs waiting for us. I was ahead of everyone so thankfully they didn’t shoot any of the prisoners. We’re about to head up the access tunnel to make sure that Hutt hasn’t placed more guards there. Please say you and Jan are there and ready for another pickup?”

The couple shared a look. “Yes, Jaden. We’ll be there,” Jan said and they moved out, flying faster than they would’ve deemed safe.

Everything was starting to fall apart. Jaden knew the bartender had betrayed her. That slimy blue bastard, if she saw him again… She didn’t finish the thought, too dark, too dangerous. She had to keep going. The access tunnel was blessedly clear and she left the prisoners with some weapons that had been scattered on the floor from the surrounding dead bounty hunters and mercs.

“Hold onto these until help comes,” she’d instructed. She was now back on the fancy lift, headed back down to the hopefully still empty beating parlor. The sight that greeted her was less than ideal. Blue laser trip mines were spaced evenly along the bottom of the bar as well as at least half a dozen mercs and bounty hunters. I don’t have time for this, the Hutt’s just gonna send more and more until I’m overwhelmed!

Staying inside the lift, she looked at the back of the room. There, crouched behind the bar, holding what looked to be a sniper rifle, was the bartender. She narrowed her eyes at him. I’ll deal with you later. She glared at the mercs in front of her as they raised their blasters to shoot. She Force pushed them into their own trip mines. Jaden closed the lift door as everything went to chaos. The small mines set off an explosive chain reaction around the room. 

Jaden was thankfully shielded from the blast. The lift automatically took her back up. She waited, and let it take her back down. As the doors opened a destructive scene came into view. The bar was certainly emptier and in desperate need of repair, but there were still living enemies, less than half now. Her saber came out as the bartender tried to snipe her. The deflected blast didn’t hit him back. She took down the others that tried to shoot her down and then walked head on at the Chiss bartender who repeatedly fired at her and she deflected, pulling his weapon out of his hands with the Force. The rifle came into her free hand and she fired without a second thought, sending several bolts right through his chest. The annoyance and anger of being betrayed made her bristle and she stared down at him with anger bordering on hate filling her eyes.

“Consider yourself lucky,” she spat. “I could’ve fed you to the rancor!”

This did nothing to calm the former bartender, he breathed his last as he stared up at her with a horrific expression on his face, as if he were looking up at the rancor. 

Jaden stumbled back, a half sob choking her throat. What have I done? She dropped the rifle and her lightsaber. She looked at her open palms, as if she’d find answers there. What is wrong with me? What is all this anger and hate? Where’s it coming from?

“WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME?!?!?!?!?” She was up and screaming her lungs out. Every single bottle behind the bar that hadn’t been broken, shattered into a million pieces and Jaden fell back to her knees, utterly exhausted, unsure if she could keep going, not sure if she wanted to.

“Come on Jaden!”

“Come on, you've got this!”

“I believe in you kid.”

“Get up, come on, let’s go!”

Voices, all familiar but none she could place for some reason, floated around her. Did they belong to her friends? Maybe. She felt she was in between sleeping and waking. Then, there, an unfamiliar voice, mechanical but fading slowly into human:

“Stand up Jaden, that’s it, stand up.” The voice was soft, kind, but sorrowful.

She couldn’t feel her legs but was somehow standing. She was in a bar. Why? She didn’t drink. She didn’t even like bars. Oh wait, that’s right, she was trying to save the Hutt’s prisoners and got sidetracked. There, there was the body of that slimy bartender that’d betrayed her. But did he deserve that gruesome fate? Probably, but it hadn’t been up to her to decide. 

“Revenge is not the Jedi way.”

Then what do I do with all this pent up anger? Her internal voice asked.

“Just release it, just let it go.” 

How?

“That, my young Apprentice, is a part of the long journey of being a Jedi. Listen to your master. Trust him and you will go far.”

Okay, I will.

“But now, you must go, get back and help who you can. Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”

Jaden gasped as if she’d just surfaced from deep water. Somehow she’d made it through the bar and down the hall to the last lift. She shook her head to clear it and stepped onto the lift with a determined stance.

The mercenaries at the top were waiting for her, but so was she and they didn’t stand a chance. She rushed over and pulled the lever without even checking the monitor’s screen. As soon as the shutters opened, a huge, clawed hand reached in. Screaming, Jaden sliced it clean off and, in a fit of inspiration, grabbed up two blasters that lay nearby, slinging their straps over her shoulder and quickly squeezed through the open space, making a hard, but better landing than earlier. The rancor was roaring with pain and clutching its severed hand. There wasn’t much time. She ran towards the last batch of prisoners, screaming for them to run, to follow the yellow arrows to the arena entrance and handed out the guns to those who said they could fire a blaster well enough to hit a target. She un-holstered her own and shoved it into another’s hand. They made all speed through the winding maze of the arena, the loud stomps of the rancor’s feet close behind. 

When they were twenty yards from the entrance, two things happened. First, a small group of guards waited at the open door, ready to fire upon them. And second, the rancor managed to grab the lone unarmed prisoner that’d fallen behind Jaden who took up the rear. She slowed, shouted for the rest to fight and shoot, then turned back to face the rancor. The hideous creature had the prisoner by the arm and was tugging and pulling. It let him go, only to grab him around his waist and bring him close to its large, disgusting mouth that dripped saliva. This prisoner looked to be her age, his brown hair getting in his eyes. He screamed in terror. Jaden ran behind it, thinking hard. The poor boy screamed again, but this time from pain as the rancor bit right into his arm, severing it from the shoulder blade. Jaden screamed too and leapt into the air, landing on the rancor’s back and held on for dear life as it began to flail. Holding onto the creature's shoulder, Jaden jammed the front of her lightsaber hilt to the monster's head and turned it on. The rancor screamed and fell silent, slumping to the floor with a heavy crash.

Jaden tumbled off and hurried to the young prisoners' side. His shoulder was bleeding profusely, he’d be dead soon if they couldn’t stop the bleeding.

“Please be alive, please, please!” She begged. The young man was semi conscious. She looked up to see one of the other armed prisoners running back to her.

“We must go now! More are coming!” He saw the wounded prisoner. “Astor! No please! No!”

“Help me!” She yelled. The man rushed over, looping an arm under Astor and helping him up. He groaned, more blood poured from his gaping wound.

“He’s bleeding too much,” the prisoner cried. Jaden got an idea, it was risky, but she had to save him, she had to try.

“Quick put him down again.” They set him back down and Jaden grabbed the strap from the prisoner's blaster and put it between the young man's teeth. “I’m so sorry, this is gonna hurt.” She turned her saber on and slowly dragged the edge of the blade across the open wound, barely grazing the skin. The young prisoner screamed in agony as the glowing blade cauterized the wound and he passed out. Jaden and the other prisoner nearly passed out from the smell of burning flesh, a scent that planted itself firmly in their brains. Jaden replaced her saber to her side, grimly checking over her work.

“Done, now let’s go!” She and the other prisoner picked him up and hurried to the arena entrance where the others waited and they hurried through the hallway to the access tunnel where several armed and dangerous bounty hunters waited. Jaden released her grip on the young man and hurried forward to help the others. Shots were fired on both sides, they were outnumbered, but having a Jedi to help evened the odds a bit. She cut down all the bounty hunters and mercs in their way. 

Got to get them out. Have to get them all out. She called Kyle on coms.

“Kyle, this is Jaden, that’s all of ‘em.”

“Good! Get back to the access pipe. I’ll pick you up there.”

Jaden turned to her last group, elated. She’d done it. Then she saw him, one lone merc hidden crouched behind a crate. Before she could process her next action, he moved, firing off one shot. She didn’t have her blaster, instead she shoved him back with the Force hard into the far wall, hearing a loud crack.

She returned her gaze to the prisoners. One, two, three… She looked to her fourth, the one who’d been holding up his wounded brethren. He had a blaster mark right over his heart. Jaden yelled something incoherent and rushed to his side, pleading that the others help the still unconscious one. She held his head in her lap.

“Go,” he said faintly. “You've already freed me.” He breathed his last. Jaden didn’t have time to react, the others were urging her onward and she did the last thing she’d wanted to do. She left him behind.

  I couldn’t save them all. I lost one. That single digit was all it took to take what was otherwise a very successful rescue mission, and make it all seem worthless in Jaden’s mind. 

She sealed the access tunnel door and hurried to the edge of the pipe, helping the others load their wounded brother into the extra seat of her X-wing where Jan waited. Then came Kyle in the Raven’s Claw and the last two squeezed into the small area behind the front seats. Kyle quickly beckoned Jaden into the copilot's chair beside him. It was an already tight fit, but they managed as they flew back to the mining guild’s colony. 

“Nice work, Jaden!” Kyle said as they landed. “The elders have been returned and you got all those prisoners out safe and sound. I wish I could've seen that slimy Hutt's face when he found out all his prisoners had escaped and that his pet rancor had been killed! Hahaha!”

“Not all of them,” Jaden muttered quietly and they stayed silent even as they unloaded the rest of the prisoners, who gave their names: Ashner, Astor, and Arto. Jaden learned from Arto that Alder was the name of the one they’d lost. Lost. Like how I lost Devvyn on that tram. How I couldn’t save him.

She stood off by herself near her X-wing as the last of the rescued prisoners were ushered to the clinic or to food and shelter and a change of clothes rather than the dirty green jumpsuits they’d been forced to wear. She rubbed her arms as if to ward off a chill that wasn’t there, as if holding herself and squeezing could keep her from falling apart. Astor’s face, twisted in agony from his arm being bitten off, flashed before her eyes, reminding her of… something… something familiar about his face, his… Well it wasn’t his appearance but something about him reminded her of Rosh.

  Rosh. Devvyn reminded her of her friend too but he was different as well. Maybe I’m just missing him. She felt sadder, lonelier. She sank down onto a nearby crate and let the tears stream down her face, still restrained. She would not break down, not here.

“Hey kid.” Kyle’s gentle voice followed by a reassuring hand. She looked up, tear stained cheeks and all. Jan was there too, holding out a clean and dainty handkerchief, something she didn’t expect her to own but somehow, it made sense. Jaden took it and gingerly wiped the tears away, not able to keep the white cloth clean from the dirt and grime from this long, hard day. Jan came around to sit beside her while Kyle settled on the other. 

“What’s wrong Jaden?” Jan asked. Jaden took a long, steading breath.

“Astor, he got his arm bitten off and… and, I tried my best but, I don’t know if he’s gonna make it. There was so much blood. And, and Alder. We… I… I lost him. I couldn’t save them all.” It was almost too much to bear. 

“Look at me, Jaden,” Kyle said. She slowly looked up, afraid she’d fall apart, but somehow, having Jan there at her side helped strengthen her in some way, like the mother she never knew. “Listen to me, I once told you and Rosh that you’d fail and that it’s my job as your master to help you learn from your mistakes so that you can get back up again. Failure may not seem like the best teacher right now but it is. This is what I meant by failing.” Jaden squirmed under his eyes, those intense, kind eyes, but she kept contact with them. “You didn’t do it intentionally, you did your absolute best and instead of being stuck in thinking about what you could’ve done, should’ve done or would’ve , I want you to focus on applying what you learn from failure into whatever it is you do next. Can you do that?”

Jaden nodded slowly. “I don’t think I can do it alone.” She wiped her eyes with the handkerchief to hide from his intense gaze. Holding during his monologue had been the longest she’d ever done so and it was draining, vulnerable. Kyle clapped a hand lightly on her shoulder, bringing her gaze back to his. “It’s what I’m here for. Now, why don’t you come with me? There’s something I’ve gotta show you.”

Jaden stood stiffly, Jan did too and embraced her before she handed back the handkerchief. As Kyle led her to the clinic, Otiss passed by and stopped them.

“I wanted to um… to thank you, for your bravery and leadership today,” he said awkwardly. “Without you, my father wouldn’t be here now. Thank you.”

Jaden didn’t know what to say, she felt just as awkward and undeserving, but at Kyle’s gentle nudging, she said, “You’re welcome,” and followed her master into the clinic.

Inside was a small but organized operation of rows of beds and cabinets of medicine. Kyle took her down to a private room at the end of the rows of beds, letting her in first. The sight of Astor, alive and breathing and awake startled her. The stump of his shoulder was banaged and color had come back into his face. Tubes of medicines, including one pumping new blood into his veins surrounded his bed, a sight that would’ve been horrific if he looked the same as he’d been earlier.

“Jaden? That’s your name right?” He said, his eyes brightening at the sight of her. Something about that gesture made her heart skip a beat, the similarity to Rosh flooding back.

“Yes,” she said shakily. “I’m so glad to see you’re alive.”

“I’m more than that. I’m gonna be okay. Because of you. I’m alive because you saved me.”

She was in trouble of tearing up again. “Thank you. I needed to hear that.”

“I’ve also been told that they’ll be able to get me a cybernetic arm, I think that might actually be cooler than a real one, so I have you to thank for it.”

“You’re welcome, I guess,” she laughed. Astor laughed too and then Kyle. A release of relief settled over her. Kyle started to guide her out of the room, she needed to return to the Academy and he and Jan had to get back to searching for Rosh.

“Jaden?” Astor called and they turned. “I won’t forget him. Alder I mean. He saved me too.”

Jaden bobbed her head. “I won’t forget him either.”

“That’s how we keep them alive, the fallen. We remember and carry them with us.” Astor’s eyes were misty. “Please don’t blame yourself.”

“Did you get to know him while you were trapped in there?”

“Didn’t have to.” Astor shrugged, trying to bring in a little lightness to the mood. “He was my older brother.”

Jaden thought she was going to lose it again the way she had back in the beating parlor, but a voice, the voice spoke again as clear in her mind as if it were spoken right beside her. 

“Young padawan, it was not your fault. He was glad to give himself in place of his brother. Let it go, and the Force will guide you.”

“Kyle?” Jaden pulled her master outside of the room.

“What is it?”

“Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“That voice.”

“No.” Kyle shook his head, then seemed to think twice. “Who is it you heard? What did they say?”

“It was a man’s voice, encouraging me to stay strong in the Force. I heard him earlier as well… back in the palace, I’d…” She’d already shown Kyle enough of her pain. “I’d felt like I didn’t know what to do and a voice spoke to me and helped me to keep going.”

Kyle nodded slowly. “It’s always wise to be careful of the voices that speak to us. But sometimes the voices of Jedi past, those who’ve become one with the Force, they return to advise us and show us the way. They always have a lesson to share if we’re willing to listen.”

Jaden sank onto her bed and sobbed. This information from Astor had both relieved and cut her down. It wasn’t her fault, she knew. Kyle’s words of comfort and encouragement, as well as the voice of the mysterious Jedi were racing through her mind trying to bring her back down to earth and sooth the panic.

She also knew that Astor was not the least bit resentful or angry. But she still needed an outlet for her pain, and letting Kyle in on her process would only distract him. He needed to focus on finding Rosh, another loose end that she felt guilty about. Unsaid words screaming to be let out, she screamed them into the pillows muffling as much sound as she could. 

It was the middle of the night when she finally slept fitfully, dreams filtering in and out of her stream of consciousness. Dreams of the arena, of Astor, but he looked like Rosh and his arm was being bitten off, then sliced off with a lightsaber, hers. Then she was back on the tram in Corellia with Devvyn, but he also had Rosh’s face. She pushed a button and his whole body was consumed by blue electricity until there was nothing but a burnt, blackened husk.

Chapter Text

“Are you the Jedi?” The graying older man asked.

“Yes,” Jaden said, not correcting the man's assumption of her rank in favor of the urgency of her mission. “Tell me everything you know about the Disciples of Ragnos. Please make it quick, though, I ran into some trouble back there and it might be following me.” She glanced over her shoulder to ensure that no one was following her.

“We should go inside, it’ll be safer,” the merchant said, gesturing to the door of the nearby structure, one of the many ancient sandstone ruins that littered the planet, a testament to grander days and now just shelters for those who claimed them. Jaden eagerly followed, ready to not be out in the open. Suddenly, the familiar blast of a disruptor rifle flashed out of seemingly nowhere, going right through the merchant’s chest. Startled, Jaden quickly caught him before he hit the ground, she could sense the life draining from him and realized he had only seconds to live, seconds he tried to make worthwhile. 

“Cult… Must… be st-” He sighed, his eyes closed. Hating to leave him there but needing to survive herself, Jaden rested him on the ground. She jumped up to run inside, glancing back briefly at her beat up swoop bike she’d rented just an hour before. So many credits the Academy had lent her, gone. 

“Sithspit!” She cursed as soon as she was inside. “I have to get out of here!” She guessed that that sniper blast came from somewhere far back from where she’d come, so that meant that those mercs were still on her tail, but a long way off and had resorted to dirtier tactics. She found a back door to the house and to her good fortune, there were two swoop bikes parked out back, one green and one purple. She disliked stealing, but seeing as how their owner had just been murdered, they would have to help her make her escape. She checked the fuel levels on both, they were full. She chose the purple one as it was somewhat close to the one she’d ridden before and cut the fuel line on the green one, she could never be too careful with these mercs.

  Maybe I can haggle with this one and trade it in. If it stays in one piece.

“The Force is with me and I am one with the Force,” she whispered to herself as she revved the bike’s engine and off she went.

“Kalil, abort mission! Get me outta here!” She shouted into her coms as she raced away from the dwelling.

“Copy that, Jaden, what happened?”

“Mercs on my tail, too close, they sniped my contact before I got any info!” She weaved her way through narrow passages through the canyoned countryside, behind hills and down valleys, through more canyons and deep gorges. Kalil had been sent with Jaden as back up to guide her remotely through the absolute labyrinth that was the wild countryside of Zonju V. Their mission had been simple. Meet with a spaceport worker on the planet that had information pertaining to the cult's connection with the Imperial Remnant. She was to meet him at the abandoned outpost three clicks outside of Zoronhed. Their plan had failed.

Kalil Streen sat inside a cafe in the capital city of Zoronhed, tucked into a hidden corner as she stared intently at her datapad, locating Jaden and finding the best path to lead her back safe and sound.

“Okay Jaden,” she spoke into her headset as she took the last sip of her warm caf, looking longing at the dredges. It was the best caf she’d ever tasted, she’d have to thank Jaden later for getting her hooked on the stuff. “There’s a big jump coming up, I’m not sure how big exactly, but you’re gonna need to use the turbo boost on your swoop bike, and maybe a little Force to help it along, I’m not sure.”

“Okay, thanks for the heads up.”

“No problem, I’ll have a to-go cup of some delicious caf waiting for you when you get here.”

“That would be fantastic!”

“Of course, and may the Force be with you!”

Jaden revved her engine, she was newly motivated to get back in record time and kept her pace.

“Okay Jaden you’re still several clicks from that chasm but you’re doing good!”

Jaden was so close, then she heard the sound of blaster fire, but not quite, it sounded like they were firing with the guns attached to their swoop bikes, and gaining. She risked a glance back, two, no, three bikes were coming and coming fast and were already firing at her. Steering with one hand, she pulled out her saber and waited. Slowing down a bit, the first mercenary over shot his swoop’s speed and raced right past her -then realized that the front of his bike was missing. He spun out of control and crashed into the nearby wall of the gorge they were in.

The others saw and adjusted their direction in time. Jaden revved the engine and raced off, knowing she had to beat them to that chasm jump. But they persisted with firing upon her. She could only go so fast while driving one handed and deflecting with her lightsaber.

“Jaden you’re just one click away, you’re gonna need all the speed you can get!”

Jaden chanced it, she secured her lightsaber to her belt and dodged as much as she could, picking up speed, channeling as much Force as she could muster, then…

She was airborne, flying so many feet in the air she couldn’t see the bottom of the chasm, she looked straight ahead at her goal instead and landed, a little hard but without damage to her bike and silently rejoiced when she heard the last two mercs screaming as they undershot the jump and fell to their deaths in the seemingly bottomless chasm.

Jaden pulled her swoop bike to a sudden stop in front of the outpost just outside Zoronhed where she’d rented her bike. The proprietor was not happy about her losing and damaging his other bike, but softened a bit when she told him about the dead spaceport worker and his other swoop bike that was in near perfect condition except for a mysteriously cut fuel line. She checked in with the city authorities about what had happened as well and they promised to go collect the poor dead man’s body and give it a proper burial.

Exhausted and ready to be back home, she almost dragged herself into the cafe Kalil had stationed herself in. No words were exchanged, just weak smiles and Kalil handing Jaden a hot cup of caf, which she took with her to her X-wing that she’d nicknamed the Far Wanderer. At this point Luke had designated it for her use alone since she was now an apprentice and getting to do so much outside of the Academy’s walls.

Rest was something scarce for Jaden and many of the Academy’s students. It had been two months since Rosh’s disappearance and the most recent news came from a video message Kyle had sent to Jaden’s datapad:

“Hey, Jaden. I'm not sure if Luke's discovered anything about the cult being on Dagobah yet, but I found out that Rosh has been captured. I tried to find out where they've taken him, but those blasted Sith Cultists are covering their tracks pretty well.”

Kyle, and sometimes Jan, had searched high and low for him after this latest update. But so far no luck except the promise from distant contacts to “be on the lookout” or “keep their eyes open” for any information. Even rumors at this point were welcomed. It was starting to look bleak. But Kyle and Jaden, as well as Luke and some close friends, never gave up hope that he was still alive. It was a fact that Luke assured the master and apprentice many times, particularly on this last occasion. 

“I still sense that he is alive, but he is very afraid,” Luke had said, and Jaden had no choice but to hold onto that bit of hope.

Jaden had taken to going on several missions and training a lot with Tionne and her apprentices, even sometimes joining her other friends and their masters since Kyle was away so much. She almost began to feel like she didn’t have a master anymore. Not that he didn’t care, but his time was almost fully dedicated to finding Rosh and that, she’d convinced herself, was the most important thing right now, not her training and helping her find the balance between failure and success. She’d come to peace about the matter, or so she told herself.

Everywhere she looked it seemed, she saw things that stirred up memories of Rosh, and, instead of letting it bring pain and the feeling of guilt and grief, she decided to look at it positively, as a way for the Force to communicate to her that her friend was still alive and alright. More than that. That he was safe and sound. She clutched her necklace often, reminding herself that Rosh was still out there somewhere. She liked the slight weight of it in her hand as she rubbed the smooth metal. It soothed her and brought her a small sense of peace by wearing it. When she could, she’d climb up to the roof of the Academy, the very top of the ziggurat above the Audience chamber and look out at the stars, wondering where among them her dear friend was or even which one them her master was at, searching for him. 

Thinking of Kyle also made her think of Jan, who she’d gotten to meet again a few more times and interact with, but never alone. Kyle probably knew that she’d try and ask some questions about him, and them, from her. It made her smile. She couldn’t prove it, she just had expressions and body language to go off of, but she was over ninety percent sure Kyle and Jan were a couple. She hadn’t really thought of it before, Jedi being in love. She knew that in the old days, when the Old Republic still stood as did the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, that attachments of any kind were forbidden, including romantic ones. But now… Luke didn’t expressly forbid attachments, such as masters and their students having a fondness for each other and growing attached, but he also made it clear that their attachment should not blind them to the greater good of their missions or compromise it. He was rebuilding the Jedi order, yes, but he was determined to rebuild it for a new generation.

She wondered about her fellow students and if any of them liked each other. She still wasn’t certain that Jacyyn liked her or not, but then again, she’d made sure not to encourage him. It did seem as though he’d been spending a lot of time with Arta-Mess lately, but that didn’t really mean anything. Jas was the same as ever and dedicated to his training, he seemed content with bachelorhood, except when she’d seen him around Tionne. He didn’t act any different, but seemed eager to help her, and she seemed just as eager for his assistance and his company. She wasn’t sure about her other friends. She laughingly thought of Rosh and who he’d like. 

Probably Arta-Mess as well, she seems to have all the boys taken in a bit. The thought made her laugh a little, but also feel a bit jealous. 

No, she thought, Rosh and I wouldn’t work, we share the same master and he’s been pretty competitive with me since the beginning.

She thought of one time when she was in school, how the little boys teased the girls and sometimes, the girls, if they were brave enough, either teased back or challenged the boys to a race of some kind. They didn’t win often because boys that age ran like the wind, but it’d occurred to her much later that boys that teased and accepted the girls' challenges, did so because they, in one way or another, liked them. 

Could that be what Rosh was doing? Does he… like me like that? He certainly seemed stuck in that age because of various things he’d gone through in life, looking for attention, affection and affirmation. He needed maturing that was for certain but she couldn’t help wondering, Do I like him too?

“Making another run!” Yelled the voice of General Wedge Antilles through their coms. Jaden and Goran raced side by side as they bolted to the lift, taking it down and rushing as far away as they could get from the command center. They panted, hands rested on their knees as they watched Wedge take out the small building they’d just planted the homing beacons for his targeting computer to follow. The top of the building exploded, raining debris in the middle of the mining platform that floated high amidgest the orange skies of Kril'Dor. The New Republic had recently gathered intelligence of the existence of this Imperial tibanna gas platform just days before. And General Wedge Antilles of Rogue Squadron was the one to approach his old friend Luke about his bold plan to capture the entire facility.

“If the Republic could take control of the platform, it would deal a severe blow to the Imperial Remnant, I just know it!” He’d told Skywalker. “And I believe that having one or two Jedi as the ground troops will be the key to success in this mission. They’ll plant the homing beacons, and I can take out the defensive structures on the platform without completely destroying it.”

Jaden was immediately recommended and Goran was chosen to accompany them seeing how it was a light mission and, after going on a few missions with his master, was confirmed ready to go on a more daring mission with a high ranking apprentice. And things had gone very smoothly with Goran following Jaden’s lead. She’d come to enjoy his quiet, but intelligent input and value to the mission. She looked at him now, he’d come a long way from the shy, sad boy who’d ridden on the shuttle with her. He looked positively warrior-like, wearing his parents Akul tooth headdress.

Overhead, Wedge’s X-wing soared past them, then Jaden’s com came alive again.

“Jaden, a number of troops are making their way to the storage tanks to sabotage them. Stop them or this mission will be for nothing!”

“Roger that, General,” Jaden said and turned to Goran, “Let’s divide and conquer, you take that storage tank on the left, I’ll get the right and we’ll meet at the last one, okay? Can you do that?” She didn’t want to push the young Togruta out of his element, but knew that the situation was severely urgent and that he needed to step up in order for it to not end in disaster. To her relief, Goran nodded and raced off to disarm the bomb. Jaden went her way, not bothering with fighting the stormtroopers closely with her saber, instead, she’d taken to merely pushing them off the platform to save time as they tried fruitlessly to shoot at her.

She met Goran at the third charge and got to work.

“Wedge I got it!” She called into her comlink, cutting the last of the wires.

“That did it! Get back to your ship Jaden, we’re outta here! The New Republic forces are about to arrive and take over!”

“Roger, I’ll see you at the debriefing later.” She and Goran made their way back to the small platform outside the hangar where they’d landed. Goran stopped and Jaden followed suit after seeing what. A small line of stormtroopers, the platform’s last defense, stood in their path. At their head stood a cultist, clad in the similar garb she’d come to recognize on them.

“Goren, take the troopers,” she said calmly. “I’ve got the scary one.” She glanced at him sidelong and winked, he returned it with a weak smile but nodded. He had this.

Lightsabers were ignited and blasters were drawn. The cultist already seemed to know that Jaden was the one in charge and didn’t even bother with Goran. Their sabers met in flashes of red and purple.

“Surrender, New Republic forces are coming and there’s no place for you to run!” Jaden urged him.

“Then I’ll take you down with me before then!” He hissed. Goran had finished off the stormtroopers and seemed to be on the fence about whether or not he should join the fight. He’d never fought a Sith before, only his master and fellow students in training. The cultist noticed this hesitation and saw his opening. He turned and elbowed Jaden before she could bring her saber up and she staggered backwards. She righted herself, bringing up her saber for an attack that never came. Instead, she saw him glance back with a wicked smile and head straight towards Goran.

“Gor, remember your training!” She yelled, which seemed pointless, but it brought Goran to the present. He put up his saber, catching the cultist’s first strike, then another which came at his feet. Jaden rushed in as fast as she could. Now the cultist was against two Jedi, albeit one being far more advanced in saber dueling than the other, which the cultist put to his advantage, always making Jaden come to Goran’s defense. Something that would fail if they kept this up.

“Goran, run!” Jaden shouted, aiming a slash at her opponent’s side while he was distracted, but he easily blocked it. The action gave Goran time to run away. The cultist’s hand flew out to trip up the young Jedi and he fell to the floor, then he caught Jaden’s blade in time and caught her off guard by pushing her back too. She landed on her rear and lost her grip on her lightsaber, the cultist neared.

“Once I kill you, who’s going to protect your scared little friend?” He taunted. Jaden glanced sadly in the direction of her saber, knowing she’d be dead before it reached her hand. She stared into the Sith’s eyes, the only thing showing from behind the set of wrappings and cloth mask around his head, and smiled, so suddenly that the cultist was confused. Then, the sound of another lightsaber igniting sounded directly behind him and the bright green of Goran’s blade pierced through his chest.

“Oh,” Jaden said, still keeping eye contact. “I wouldn’t call my friend scared or little.” The cultist slid off the verdant blade and into a heap on the ground, dead. She looked up at Goran, a proud grin spreading from corner to corner. “Great job Goran, you just won your first fight against a Sith adversary.”

Goran nodded, looking completely exhausted. “Can we go home now?” He asked wearily. Jaden stood up and put her arm around the young Togruta.

“Yes, Goran. Yes we can.”

Some days later Jaden sat alone at a table in the dining hall. Her friends had said they were busy with training or studying and so would be late, but from the looks of the commotion at the entrance doors, they’d clearly been fibbing. All together, they proceeded towards her and the table, Arta-Mess at the head, carrying a large frosted confection that was surely the work of Ched, the kitchen master. They all sang as one and ended as Arta-Mess rested the cake down on the table in front of Jaden.

“Happy twentieth birthday Jaden!” They all chimed in unison. Jaden blushed, feeling all of their attention, as well as the attention of the other few students in the hall, but smiled nonetheless. She’d never had a birthday celebrated by more than two other people before, it’d only ever been her, Uncle Orn and Aunt Thisa. This felt nice, and made her feel warmer inside.

The cake was delicious and everyone in the small party got a piece, including seconds. Masters Corran and Tionne even dropped in to wish her well and steal a sliver of the sugary goodness. Jas and Jacyyn handed her something wrapped in a coarse cloth.

“A new holster for my blaster!” Jaden exclaimed when she unwrapped it. It was almost too much, the dark handtooled leather was freshly cleaned and oiled, with unique designs carved along its edges, highlighting the craftsmanship. It must have been expensive. “You shouldn’t have, this looks…” She trailed off, not wanting to sound ungrateful.

“Well…”Jacyyn started.

“...We all pitched in to make it,” Jas said, gesturing to the entire group. “Jacyyn and I got the leather and prepared it, Arta-Mess and Kalil helped with carving the designs, Ral worked on sewing it together…” 

“And I helped cut out the pieces!” Goran piped up.

Jas smiled. “Yes, Goran helped with that. But…” He quieted a moment and they all looked somber. 

“But?”Jaden encouraged him.

“But it was actually Rosh who commissioned it. He came to me a few days before, well, you know, and asked me if I knew how to work with leather. He wanted to make it himself because he knew your birthday was a few months away, but he wanted to be sure he’d have enough time to make it and he’d drawn out some ideas…” Jas looked at his fellow students and smiled sadly. “We were gonna get started after we both got back from our missions but…” He trailed off again, the absence of one member of their group filling the silence. “Anyway,” he continued. “I still had his sketches and decided to make his idea come true, so I got some help. And here, I thought you might like to have his original drawings.” Jas handed her a piece of worn, crinkled paper, folded up four ways. She took it as if it was the most precious gift of all. 

“And,” Jas added, pointing to the holster's belt. “We all added our names in Aurebesh along the inside of the belt strap.” 

Jaden took up the holster and looked closely. Sure enough, all of her friend’s names were embossed there in a long line, including Rosh’s. She had to fight hard to not cry. Shedding her Academy issued holster, she buckled the newer, better one onto her hip.

“ That looks incredible!” Arta-Mess squealed. “Maybe we should all have one to match, so that we’ll be set apart?”

Jacyyn laughed and ran his hand through his hair. “I think we’re already set apart from the other students, but that’s not a bad idea, it would just take some time to make them.”

Jaden agreed, the idea sounded like fun and she offered to join in and help. They could work on them in their free time.

“Looks like I’m late to the party.” Everyone but the two lingering masters jumped, bringing forth snickers from Tionne and Corran. The gathered students parted so that Kyle could come through. 

“Sorry I’m late, but I couldn’t make up my mind what to get you so I let Jan help me pick out your gift.” He spotted his apprentice’s new holster and smiled. “Well I’ll be, the Force moves in mysterious ways.” He handed her a glossy, brand new blaster, military issue and slightly better than the ones given out by the Academy. Jaden’s grin grew as she expertly twirled her new blaster, a maneuver that rivaled Jacyyn’s, and holstered it. 

Kyle grabbed the last slice of cake and addressed everyone. “I’m really sorry to put a damper on the party, but I need to talk to Jaden now, master to apprentice.” Everyone reluctantly agreed and filed out, getting in one last “Happy Birthday” to Jaden before the dining hall became quiet. Kyle settled down in a chair across from Jaden.

“Luke learned that some of the Disciples of Ragnos were on Dagobah. They siphoned the dark Force energy from a cave there,” he said in between bites of cake. Jaden simply nodded. It was important info, she knew, but to her, it didn’t feel as important, not after receiving such a beautiful gift that'd been commissioned by her missing friend. “I’ve also got a lead on a new mission.” That got her attention.

“On Rosh?”

Kyle shook his head, “No, not yet. A crime lord named Lannik Racto has been supplying illegal assassin droids to the Imperial Remnant as well as to the cult. A real sleaze bag but you should be able to handle this no problem. Small-time thugs like Racto are usually very intimidated by the sight of a lightsaber. I’ve gotten word of where he keeps his private office and you’ve been tasked with bringing him in.”

Jaden tried to manage her feelings of disappointment. “Okay,” she breathed out a sigh. “Where’s he located?”

She could see the weariness taking its toll on her master, in his face and the new patches of gray in his hair and felt sympathy rather than frustration at his seeming lack of concern or news of Rosh.

“I know you’re disappointed,” he spoke somewhat dryly, but not unkind, just tired. “I want Rosh back too, he’s my student and I’m supposed to take care of him. But the closer we come to finding out who’s behind all this, the closer we are to taking it down for good, and, hopefully, we’ll find Rosh in the process.”

“I know, and I understand,” Jaden replied, then summoned all of her energy again, touching her new blaster and holster tenderly, drawing joy and comfort from them. “So, where am I going this time?”

“Coruscant,” was the reply. Jaden’s eyes widened, she hadn’t thought of when she’d return, if ever, back to the planet of her birth. “It looks like you’re getting to go back home for a visit.”

Chapter Text

Part 1: Homecoming 

Jaden flew over her home planet of Coruscant, the city lights twinkling in the dark night like stars. She landed her X-wing, the Far Wanderer, on a platform near the coordinates she’d received from Kyle. Across a long, wide bridge stood the office building that Lannik Racto was believed to conduct his illegal business in. Jaden hopped out of the cockpit, sizing up the building and its gigantic front door. 

Get in, capture the crime lord, and contact the New Republic authorities as soon as you’ve got him, she thought, remembering Kyle’s orders to her. Can’t be that hard, right?

She carefully started across the bridge that led towards it. She was barely a quarter of the way over when the door opened and a bearded man with trimmed hair, dressed in fine clothes and wearing a permanent scowl on his face stepped out. He matched the description Kyle had given her of Racto right down to the scowl.

“Did you think you could just barge in here and take me into custody, Jedi?” He asked, clicking a button on a small device in his left hand. There was a sound of steady beeping. 

Almost without thinking, Jaden turned and ran back towards her ship, jumping for cover, landing face down as the bridge blew up behind her. She stood up shakily, looking across the now wide chasm separating her from her quarry. Racto stared back, a triumphant smile on his face, then returned inside the building.

“Yes,” Jaden said in answer to the scumbags question. “As a matter of fact, I did.”

She brushed herself off and looked around to find another way to reach his headquarters. This platform she had landed on was more or less a private one, no access to the streets, just one way out. Up. But if Lannik Racto thought he was going to get away that easily, then he had another thing coming. 

She shuffled behind the Far Wanderer to get a better look at the back of the platform. There, a nearby ledge leading around a building close to the streets. She held back a groan. She’d have to take the long way.

  But I know these streets like I know the back of my hand. I’ve got this. Hopefully.

She made the leap to the ledge without harm and walked to the streets, pausing briefly before coming out to be sure her lightsaber was in full view hanging off her belt and peeking out from under the edge of her jacket. Kyle had always told her and Rosh that sometimes just the sight of a lightsaber was enough to make someone leave you alone, and she needed to get through the busy Coruscant streets quickly in case Racto was planning to run. But the streets were scarce of people at this time of evening, it was night, though not late and no holidays were on the horizon. People just wanted to be indoors and home, safe and comfortable. The main hustle and bustle of the city’s noises were coming from the traffic above, below and alongside her. All kinds of ships and speeders alike were zooming through the lanes of organized chaos, weaving between the countless buildings and skyscrapers that made up Coruscant. Exactly the reason Jaden had never learned much flying skills until the Academy.

She felt she was going in more or less the right direction, checking her datapad, but found no other main entrances or access from the streets at all. It’s not hopeless, not yet, maybe I can find a back alley or a short jump from a ledge. But the issue now was finding the building again from another angle and even her map of the city wasn’t helping much, especially now that her datapad was running low on power.

“I thought I just charged this!” She groaned and put it back in the large interior pocket of her jacket and kept walking. She couldn’t get upset, not here. She had to succeed, she had too.

She was making her way across a big square with a fountain that was very familiar to her. She was close to her uncle Orn’s neighborhood where she grew up. Who knew this scumbag Racto lived so close to my own neighborhood?

“Jaden? Is that you?” She turned at the sound of the familiar voice. It was her uncle Orn. His grayish blonde hair, similar to hers, was becoming more gray and white with age. His face was hard and rough from years of work tinkering and welding as well as the fear from living under the Empire for two decades. He smiled big, the wrinkles and heaviness lifting a bit. Jaden felt such a relief that she ran the short distance and hugged him. Though he’d never been a very physically affectionate man, he did hug her back, however briefly before Jaden felt the need to let go.

“By the Force, what are you doing here uncle Orn?” She asked.

“I could say the same of you, my girl!” He said. “I was out buying some parts I need for a project I’ve been commissioned for by a wealthy businessman. I’d forgotten one of them and decided, ‘it's a nice night, I might as well go out again, there are no stormtroopers to enforce curfew!’”

Jaden lowered her voice. “I’ve been sent here to hopefully capture a crime lord that’s been operating in the area.”

Orn became grave and lowered his voice as well. “Oh I think I know to whom you’re referring and if you need it, I can show you the way to his office.”

“You can?” She was shocked. “You know who Lann-” Orn shushed her, something she’d never really liked him doing when she was younger and particularly now that she was twenty. But she quieted, sensing the urgency.

“No, no questions, not yet,” Orn carefully glanced around. “Let’s go somewhere I know that’ll be safe.”

He guided his niece out of the square and down winding streets, going more or less away or towards Racto’s building; she wasn’t sure. In the space of nearly six months she’d been away from her home on Coruscant, and now she felt lost in it. 

Like the back of my hand huh?

She’d gotten so distracted by how lost she was that she nearly ran into her uncle when he came to a stop in front of the most familiar place to her on the whole planet. She looked up at the neon sign that had some letters which weren’t lit up. The Hyperspace Lane Cafe. 

Welcome home, Jaden. She could smell the fresh caf.

“I remember you’d visit this place almost everyday,” Uncle Orn said. “I’ve tried it a few times, not bad at all. Shall we?”

“Well… I don’t have much time.” She looked at her uncle’s expectant face, remembering the years of food and shelter, and kindness yes, but not a lot of being there for her. Maybe it’s time that changed. It can’t hurt to meet him halfway and try. She nodded. “I have some time.” She grinned and he opened the door for her. The cafe wasn’t busy at all, there were a couple of locals she knew sitting around finishing their drinks; it had maybe an hour at most until closing time but she recognized all of the staff, they’d stayed the same.

“Jaden!” Several of them cried in unison when she entered. She blushed as they all crowded around her, asking questions and complimenting her new look and especially her lightsaber.

“So that’s the lightsaber you made in your old uncle Orn’s workshop that won you the spot in the Jedi Academy?” Sali, the owner and head waitress said in awe.

“Well, it didn’t necessarily get me a spot there,” Jaden started to say.

“How many Imperial’s have you killed with it?” Asked Verra, the barista who had about five more years on her than Jaden. She tossed her long brown braid over her shoulder.

“Well…” Jaden said uncomfortably before uncle Orn clamped his hands on her shoulders and guided her to a more private corner of the cafe, telling everyone to leave her alone and let her answer one at a time. He insisted on their ordering first and turned to Jaden.

“My treat, for the local Jedi.” He winked and Jaden ordered her usual in a large while Orn got a small decaf. “Or else there’s no sleep for me tonight, but I suppose you’re young and still have a lot of work to do?”

Jaden answered as many questions as she felt comfortable answering. “It was Uncle Orn who enrolled me at the Academy. He saw my potential after I built my saber and how my Force abilities had been growing, so it only made sense. And yes,” she looked at Verra, “I have, uh, taken down many stormtroopers from the Remnant.” Mixing her old life and her new one was as strange as it was awkward. They just didn’t belong together somehow. Not after everything she’d been through.

“And what about your master, is he handsome?” Sali asked with a wink. Jaden laughed.

“Well, yes, but he’s much older than me and he’s also my master. Pretty sure the Jedi don’t approve of those types of attachments. Not that I’d want to get involved with an authority figure like that…” She trailed off, this conversation was going in an awkward direction and she needed to change that, fast. “Anyway, my master is in a relationship.” I think. She still couldn’t prove Kyle and Jan were a couple, and she didn’t like lying, but this was just what she needed to shut down any connotations these people might have about her and Kyle.

“But I’m sure they’re not as stingy as they used to be when they were here on Coruscant?” Sali said emphatically.

“I guess not?” Jaden shrugged. 

“Then is there someone you, you know, like?” Sali urged. The woman loved a good bit of gossip, especially of the romantic kind. Jaden couldn’t help but tease her a little.

“Maybe.” She played it coy even as uncle Orn raised an eyebrow. She ate it up, seeing how he'd never cared to know before whether or not she was into someone else. Nevertheless, she still felt heat rise in her cheeks as a brief memory of Rosh came to mind, when they were so close that they were barely touching. That’d happened a couple of times come to think of it. On the roof, on that rock on Blenjeel, even that small lift when they were practicing saber combat…

“And what’s his name? C’mon, we need details!” Verra begged as she placed their drinks down in front of them. Jaden shook her head.

“Not until after my uncle and I have caught up on some business and I-,” she took a sip of iced heaven, “-have had my caf. Ahhh, Verra, you are an artist.”

“Thank you, good Jedi!” Verra swept herself into a curtsy and spun around to head back behind the counter to start cleaning up.

Jaden and Orn were finally left alone. She talked briefly about her training and being promoted to Apprentice, she asked him about the cult and if he’d heard anything, to which he said he had, but not anymore than the next person who was just trying to carve out a living in the galaxy.

“And Lannik Racto, what do you know about him?” Jaden brought her voice down to a whisper.

“I… well… He’s the wealthy business man I was talking about,” Uncle Orn admitted almost shamefully.

“What?!” Jaden whisper-shouted, causing Verra to look their way suspiciously, though she knew the barista could be trusted in a pinch.

“I know, I know. I should’ve known it was too good to be true, all the secret meetings about the metal sculpture he’d commissioned, having me come by a secret way to his office to give him updates. I just… thought this was my chance to finally make it rich.”

“Uncle,” Jaden said firmly, “You have to tell me where his secret entrance is. He’s been selling illegal assassin droids on the black market to the Remnant. What even is it that he’s commissioned from you?”

Orn produced his own datapad and showed her a picture of his rough sketch. Jaden grew pale. “He… he told me he wanted a replica of some relic he’d lost the chance to purchase recently and wanted it to be as exact as I could make it. Jaden, Jaden are you alright?”

Jaden slowly nodded her head, still staring at her uncle’s crude drawing of the scepter that she’d seen on her first day. What it was for, she and everyone else at the Academy still weren’t sure, but if Racto was commissioning her uncle to weld and build an exact replica, that meant he was somehow directly involved with the cult. He’d probably even met with the leader and that’s how he’d seen it. She looked up at her uncle.

“Uncle Orn, this is far more serious than I thought. Look, you have to show me where this secret entrance is. Please. I’ll make sure you’re well compensated by the New Republic and well protected.” Orn shook his head.

“I don’t care about all that, I just want this man stopped and you to be safe.”

“I can’t promise that I’ll be safe, and besides, I think it’s a little late for you to be worried about my safety.” She hadn't meant to sound harsh, but that was how she felt after years of emotional distance. She stood up, ready to get going, her half finished iced caf still on the table. The bell above the door rang as three new customers entered.

“We’re fixing to close!” Sali called from the back, but the newcomers didn’t take the hint, they were young, still in their teens and looked like trouble. They sauntered over to the counter and started heckling Verra.

“C’mon sweetheart, how about a little caf for the road, huh?” Their leader said. He was tall, but gangly and had oily hair that fell in long locks over his face and down past his shoulders.

“Hey,” Jaden stepped forward. “You heard Sali, it’s closing time, we don’t want trouble.”

“Oh, ‘we’ don’t, do we?” The guy said, his breath was putrid, even from a few feet away. He and his comrades slightly pulled their jackets back to reveal illegal blasters tucked away in old, worn holsters. Verra backed away, fear in her eyes, even Orn tensed up. Sali, who’d heard the commotion, came in from the back, eyes wide, a spoon in her hand. She froze as she took in the stand off.

Jaden cocked an eyebrow and pulled up the edge of her own jacket, exposing her lightsaber which swung lightly as if in a breeze from her hip. The thugs’ eyes widened as they registered what it was and backed away.

“That, that’s not real is it?” The leader asked, pointing at it.

“You wanna wait and find out?” Jaden asked calmly, trying to channel Kyle’s ease at potentially volatile situations. The teenagers stepped back some more, a couple of them raising their hands.

“We don’t want any trouble,” one of them said in the back of the group.

“Me either, but that’s your choice.”

One by one, the troublesome teens backed out of the cafe, but before they closed the door, Jaden took several steps forward and said, “Now I don’t want to hear of you boys ever making trouble here again, understand?” They all nodded and closed the door, then turned tail and ran down the street.

Everyone released a big sigh as if all the air had been let back into the room, then they cheered, coming up and patting her on the back. Jaden exchanged more pleasantries than she ever wanted to in her life, saying it was nothing and just something her master had taught her to do. She retrieved her half drunk cup and downed the rest of it before saying a quick and heartfelt goodbye, promising to visit again sometime soon.

As she and Orn walked down the street in the direction he’d indicated led to Racto’s secret entrance, he beamed as he complimented her work. “I’m proud of you, you know,” he said. “I still think of that day when I walked into my workshop and there you were, you had fallen asleep at my work bench and there was your lightsaber. You were shy about it but you showed it to me and…”

“And I remember you got freaked out by it,” Jaden said dryly, remembering that day differently.

“I am sorry about that,” Orn sighed, coming to a stop. “It’s just… I’m a man of simple means, I’ve never aspired to greatness beyond myself. I’m not meant for that. I never was. But you. You were, I saw it the day you came to stay with me and your aunt Thisa. I got a really good look at it that day when you showed me your lightsaber. I was afraid I admit, how does one foster greatness in someone when they’ve never had it themselves? I’m sorry for letting you down, but I feel… I hope that sending you to the Academy was the best choice I made.”

“It was Uncle,” Jaden said finally, after considering his words. “And you shouldn’t sell yourself short on greatness. You did what you could with me, and that’s the most I could have ever asked for.”

Orn shrugged and made some noise that was in between a huff and an “eh,” and that was the most she could hope for from him. They walked the rest of the way in peaceful silence.

Part 2: To Catch a Crime Lord

“It’s here.” Orn stopped, gesturing to a crack between two buildings that neither Jaden, or anyone else would’ve noticed as important in a million years. Jaden looked at it skeptically.

“This is the way?”

“Yes, just follow it, take a right and there’ll be a door. Usually, I give a password, but I’m not sure they’ll open it to a Jedi.” 

“If it’s all the same, I’d like to hear the password.”

Her uncle shrugged. “It’s Marka. Just that one word. I don’t understand it, but it gives me the creeps.”

Jaden felt a shiver run down her spine. This confirmed it. The scepter replica and the password. Lannik was definitely in league with the cult. She turned to her uncle. 

“You need to go back home right now.”

“But-”

“There’s nothing you can do to help me now that you’ve shown me the way. I don’t need you getting hurt in the crossfire. Get home safe and I’ll send someone to be sure you’re alright and compensated for your help.”

“I don’t want money, Jaden. I want you to be careful. I know I haven't seemed to care much, but… Well, I don’t know, I just don’t want to disappear completely from your life.”

Jaden softened a bit. He’s trying. She gave him a quick hug. “You won’t, now get home. That’s an order.” They both smiled.

“You’ve grown up so much my girl.” Uncle Orn shook his head, laughing to himself as he went on his way. Once he’d disappeared from sight, Jaden ducked down the alley.

“What’s the password?” Hissed a voice through a slit in the door Uncle Orn had said she’d come to. Jaden was grateful that the guard behind the door couldn’t see all of her, especially her lightsaber.

“Marka.” She spat out and the guard slid the cover back over the slit. A moment later, the door opened.

“Hey, you’re-” But the cultist who’d been stationed to guard the door never got past those two words as Jaden slammed into him and through the door. He hit the floor hard and passed out. Good, maybe the New Republic can question him later. She raced through a hallway that she guessed at one time was some kind of staff corridor. This way they wouldn’t have to be seen by the clientele or the elites who rented office space. She took a wrong turn and ended up inside a large foyer that led to the giant front doors she’d been making her way towards not two hours ago.

“Hey! Jedi! Stop her!” Yelled a voice from behind. Up ahead, standing partially hidden behind one of the many pillars in the hall, a cultist stepped into the dim light and drew his red lightsaber into an offensive stance. Jaden came to a stop, looking at him briefly before turning to face the person behind her. He was also a cultist, but was surprisingly unarmed. This might be easier than I thought.

But the armed cultist didn’t come forward to challenge her. She was suddenly pulled off her feet and dragged along the floor towards the armed cultist, like a Womp Rat to slaughter. She tried to get a good look at her executioner, he didn’t seem to be the one dragging. The other cultist. The Force is his weapon! 

She focused on the cultist behind her and as if seeing invisible strings before her eyes she cut them, but not with her saber. She pushed back with the Force against him, then she was up and running head long at the saber wielding cult member. She aimed a strike at him, and missed. The fight went on in this way with Jaden having to take the defensive just to stay alive. The Force only using cultist had come closer but stayed his distance. I have to find an opening, this is getting exhausting!

She blocked a blow from the red saber, and, glancing over at the unarmed cultist, flexed her fingers and sent him to the floor. The quick distraction offered just enough time for her to gain the advantage and slice into her enemy’s exposed side, killing him. Then she turned on the other one, who’d gotten back to his feet. He tried tripping her, even attempting lightning which he’d clearly never tried before and was something Jaden was just learning to do. She bounced it back at him with her lightsaber but it was so weak that he was only slightly shocked. It weakened him enough though. Jaden didn’t like the idea of killing an unarmed opponent, but with the Force as a weapon, was he technically unarmed? He tried sending another volley of lightning her way, which she tried sending back with a mighty Force push instead of her saber. The cultist cried out as he was sent flying backwards into the nearest pillar, snapping his neck. 

Jaden left them there, adrenaline draining, feeling more tired after that fight. She was ready to end this by finding Racto and dragging that slimy scumbag to justice.

Jaden finally entered Racto’s office after locating his private elevator, a very luxurious thing, even more so than the one in the Hutt’s Palace on Nar Kreeta. She took in the grandeur of the large, square room and its furniture, its decor, her eyes resting on a strange statue in the opposite corner from where she’d stepped off the lift. It was the bust of a man wearing some odd headpiece that angled towards the sky in a wicked and crooked fashion. This strange crown reminded her of something that she couldn’t quite place . To her left in front of a huge window that looked out on the city and wrapped around three quarters of the room, was a large desk with a comfortable looking chair. The scumbag was sitting in it. As she walked further into the room, Racto looked up from whatever work was on his desk, a look of shock, horror and anger all crossed his face. He stood up.

“How did you get up here?” He said in disbelief. “No matter. If it’s trouble you’re looking for, you came to the right place, Jedi!” He pressed a button on his desk and down came a hollow rectangular box made of metal, some kind of protection barrier Jaden reckoned, over the small area around his desk. Directly in front of the desk, a panel in the wall opened revealing four droids, all armed, that activated as soon as the panel opened. Oh Sithspit.

One of the droids stepped forward, around each of them a round, blue force field glowed and they all carried blasters. Jaden felt the weariness of her previous fight but knew that to succeed in this mission, she had to keep fighting. Then an idea struck her. She extended her hands and breathed.

“Come on, come on!” At first there were indiscernible sparks, then, as she stared down the assassin droids, the lightning that she tried to harvest came to fruition and cracked from her fingers and into their shields, disabling them, for how long, she didn’t know, but she wasn’t about to find out. Racing forward she dodged their blaster fire, sliding under one while simultaneously slicing straight through it with her lightsaber. The other three followed suit and were nothing more than piles of scrap metal. Very expensive piles of scrap metal. Breathing heavily, she stood up straight and glared at the bunker over Racto’s desk, then had another, more brilliant idea than her destruction of the assassin droids.

Lannik Racto raised the bunker after several minutes of silence. His droids had done their job, they’d killed the Jedi. He thought with glee how’d he’d display her lightsaber on his desk for all to see, and fear. He rubbed his hands, excited to pry that lightsaber from that meddling Jedi’s cold, dead fingers.

“That’ll teach a Jedi to break into…-” Purple light engulfed his vision. To his immediate right was the petite figure of the Jedi. And the blade of her lightsaber was being held inches from his neck by her very much warm and alive fingers. He caught sight of the parts of his beloved droids littering the floor in front of his desk.

“Now,” Jaden said coolly, “let’s talk about these assassin droids.”

Racto slowly looked up at her, the warm, buzzing blade an ever present threat.

“Ummm… Okay.” He relented, grumbling. The lightsaber came slightly closer.

“Where is your factory?” Jaden pressed.

Racto spoke frantically, all pretense gone. “Hidden on Nar Shaddaa. If you don’t hurt me, I’ll tell you where it is.”

Jaden pulled her saber away from his throat, but didn’t turn it off; she let him lean forward to pick up his datapad that lay on top of his desk. He looked back at Jaden, a worried frown stretched over his face. She grabbed him roughly by the arm to lead him to the elevator.

“You’re coming with me.”

Jaden was forever thankful to her uncle who called the New Republic guards. They met her with the captive Racto at the entrance to the narrow alley. Unfortunately, the cultist she’d knocked out earlier had slipped away, disappearing somewhere into the impossible maze of Coruscant’s backstreets. They helped her escort the pathetic crime lord into custody and, with her present, got him to squeal on everything. Based on the information they got from Racto, New Republic agents soon raided the droid factory on Nar Shaddaa and shut it down.

When she returned to the Academy, Kyle was actually there to welcome her and clap her on the back for a job well done.

“This is good, this is very good,” he said. “You also mentioned that some New Republic agents went back and took inventory of everything on display in his office?”

“Yep, I asked them too, I had a hunch, there was this statue there you see and, well, I had a feeling about it.”

“Good, following a hunch could mean the difference of learning more about this cult than we thought. Do you have the list yet?”

“They just sent it over, now that my datapad is charged I can review it. Oh, and before I forget, the New Republic agents mentioned that on the manifests for each of these items that have been delivered to Racto over the past several months, they were smuggled in by the same team of three smugglers.” Jaden looked up from her datapad, smiling. A knowing grin broke out onto Kyle’s face as well, his apprentice continued. “We’re ninety-nine percent sure it’s the smugglers from R5’s recording! They had been hired to smuggle stuff for Racto by Alora.”

“Then that means he hasn’t been a connoisseur of dark side paraphilia for long,” Kyle mused.

“Not at all, I think he was bought by the cult not long before the shuttle crash and he decided to jump fully onboard with the whole ‘cult’ thing. Maybe as part of his ‘payment.’ And as for the smugglers, the agents have no leads on them yet, but have our full cooperation to be on the lookout for them. I even had Artoo send them the recording.”

“Well done.” Kyle sat back in his seat and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Hmm, well let’s see what all Racto had collected in such a short amount of time.”

Jaden skimmed the list of items on her screen taken from the two display cases that had lined the space on either side of Racto’s desk between it and the great windows. “Here, the first item is what I’d first noticed. Turns out it's no ordinary bust. It’s a bust of the head of Marka Ragnos, dating back a thousand years or so.” She paused, scrutinizing the image, trying to remember what it was that it reminded her of; it tickled at the back of her brain until it became an itch, but still she couldn’t quite place it. She decided to move on. “There was a stuffed ysalamir…” She struggled to pronounce the word correctly.

“That’s a lizard that’s known to create a Force repellant bubble around itself.” Kyle put in.

Jaden nodded and moved on to the next item, its name also difficult to say. “Several vornskr statues…”

“The vornskr are beasts that can hunt using the Force, they come from the same planet as the ysalamir, hence why they could repel the Force.” Kyle rubbed his chin, deep in thought. “Seems like Racto was a connoisseur of artifacts pertaining to the Force as well, not just dark side items. Anything else on that list?”

“Yeah, just a small display of…” Jaden squinted at the name. “Artusian crystals? It says they’re similar to lightsaber crystals, but they’re this pale green color. Never heard of them honestly. You?” She glanced up at Kyle but her master’s face had gone pale. “Kyle? Are you okay?”

He didn’t respond, he looked lost in a dream, a dark look in his face. 

What could those crystals possibly possess that they’ve made him turn so white and look so haunted?

“Master?” Jaden tried, thinking how it was almost silly that she wasn’t the only one keeping secrets and hidden wounds to herself.

“What?” Kyle finally seemed to awaken. “Yeah, yes, I’m fine. Just need some rest. And you too. It’s been a long day.” He didn’t even seem to notice that she’d used his official title or care as he stood stiffly and began to walk out of the conference room they’d settled in. He stopped when he got to the door and turned, one hand on the doorframe.

“By the way, how was it? Visiting with your Uncle?”

“It was… Fine,” Jaden said. She’d never really talked about him to Kyle before. “We’re not that close but I think the visit did us some good.”

“Good.” Kyle nodded, as if satisfied with her answer and made to turn around again, but something about her and her uncle’s conversation brought a different memory to light. It was first day on the Academy shuttle all over again: 

“So, where’d you get that lightsaber?” 

“Well, it’s kind of a long story. I found myself on-”

“Kyle, wait,” she spoke up. Her master, weary though he was, looked back at her, perplexed, searching her face for some unknown problem before she even told him what it was. 

A couple of students getting in some late night studying passed by the open door, one or two glanced their way before continuing down the hall. Jaden waited until she couldn’t hear their footsteps.

“Can we go somewhere a little more private? I have something important to tell you. Something I’ve been holding onto.”

Kyle nodded and smiled. “Thought you’d never ask, but first, let me grab us something to eat and drink, I’ll meet you up at your ‘secret thinking spot.’” And he winked at her.

Jaden sat on the roof of the Academy, legs crossed, looking out at the silhouettes of the trees against the dark horizon dotted with millions of stars. A small noise behind her caused her to turn and then get up to help Kyle, who carried two steaming cups of caf and a bag of presumably scraps from the kitchen leftover from the dinner she didn’t get to eat. Her stomach growled.

“Why don’t you use the Force to help carry things?” She asked, giggling at Kyle’s full arms.

“You know what kid? I just don’t think to do that.” They both laughed as they settled down on the smooth rock surface of the Academy’s peak. Jaden tore into her half of a sandwich Kyle had brought as he sipped his hot drink in silence, waiting patiently for her to start her story.

“So, how’d you know I had something important to tell you?” She asked.

“I sensed it.”

“Really? I was starting to wonder if all the master’s could sense our thoughts or emotions.” She wandered around a mouthful of food.

“Oh we can sense your emotions, but we don’t always recognize them as yours, sometimes we might think it’s our own emotions or frustrations or whatever feeling may be flowing around the individual students. It’s only when we quiet our minds and recognize that it's not us, when we can accurately pinpoint where the stray emotion is coming from. It takes a lot of practice and we, yes even we masters, can get it wrong a lot.” Kyle shrugged and took a bite of his sandwich. “Now, enough about Force sensing, what is it you wanted to tell me?”

Jaden instantly felt guilty for dragging him up here and keeping him up late when he should be sleeping and getting ready to search for Rosh some more. Then she wondered if Kyle could sense what she was feeling at this moment. The big goofy grin plastered on his face told her that he could and she smiled awkwardly.

“Where to begin?” She said, but Kyle remained silent, only giving a brief gesture of the hand as if to say, ‘go on.’

“When I was visiting with my uncle, he told me how proud he was of me, how, though he didn’t show it at the time, he was amazed at how I’d built a lightsaber in his workshop. It just got me thinking how… How I’ve never told anyone how I got my lightsaber. Rosh was the only one who asked me, on the shuttle, and I was actually gonna tell him. That’s when we crashed.”

“Did he ever ask you again?”

“No. I think after that day on the training grounds he got scared and didn’t want to push his luck with me since I was so angry with him at the time and… and he never asked again.”

“And you would like to tell someone now?”

“Yes, I would.”

“How did you get your lightsaber?”

“I found myself on a walk through Monument Plaza, they were having a market there. Lots of vendors, but Uncle Orn had sent me to a different area of town with a list of parts to get for his shop. I don’t know why I walked that way but… Then I heard it. A voice. But not a voice with words, a voice with… I don’t know. It almost sounded like music to my mind. I’d been sensitive to the Force since birth, but my Uncle and Aunt had made sure I’d suppressed it as we were still under Imperial rule until I was ten. I hadn’t done much with my gift and I thought the Force was dangerous. Until I heard that voice. It seemed to tell me that everything in the Force was safe and beautiful, like I’d been scared of the dark all my life and finally someone had turned on a light. I was safe, I knew I was safe, for the first time ever.

“I followed the sound of that voice past many stalls, knowing I had to find the source of it. I came to the outermost stall, it was bursting at the seams with all kinds of fabrics and jewelry and colors. And, on the counter, the vendor had placed a little bowl that she’d filled with all sorts of bits of broken jewelry and other junk and nicknacks. I was drawn to it and started digging through it as casually as I could, but I remember this kind smile on the vendor's face as if… as if she knew. I still wonder who she was.” Jaden shook her head. 

“I got to the bottom of the tangle of metal and jewels and found it. A small, clear crystal, wrapped in copper wire, hanging from a copper chain.

“‘That’s a special one, that is.’ The old lady told me. ‘The same kind used in Jedi laser swords they are.’

“‘How much?’ I asked without thinking.

“‘As long as you promise you’ll follow the Force, I’ve no use for payment,’ she told me.

“And again, without thinking, I said ‘yes.’ I felt like I was in a trance and when I took the crystal and turned around, I woke up and remembered I had to do some shopping for Uncle Orn. I looked down at the little necklace in my hand and turned to talk to the vendor again, feeling like it was wrong to take something for free even though she’d encouraged it. But when I looked behind me, the stall was gone.

“I searched every inch of that square but the mysterious vendor was nowhere to be found. So, I put on the necklace and went off to finish my uncle’s errand.” Jaden paused to take a swig of her caf. Kyle was quiet and patient as ever.

“I went back to my Uncle’s and that was that. I wore the necklace to bed because it felt like a good luck charm almost, I liked the feeling of it, the sense of safety it brought me. That night, and I can’t rightly remember, though it was like a vivid dream that stays with you even after you wake up; I got up sometime during the night and went down to my uncle’s workshop.

“I just started grabbing pieces and parts of things, tools and metals. I warmed up the small forge my uncle has and just started… Building. I worked who knows how long far into the night. When the sun rose uncle Orn found me, fast asleep at one of his workbenches, my lightsaber…” She pulled the handmade hilt from her belt, “-This lightsaber lay beside me. Orn was speechless, he didn't know what to say at first. I was afraid that he’d be angry at me for using his tools and materials, but he wasn’t. He asked me if it worked. It did. I remember the way I felt the first time I saw that violet blade appear as if out of thin air. I felt free. I felt like me for the first time in my life, like something that I’d been missing… finally fell into place. 

“But I saw the fear in his eyes, the way he pressed me for the whole story, I’d thought it’d all been a dream, but it was real. I’d actually done it. He was scared, not that someone would come looking to kill me, but of me, of what I could do.” She took a deep breath. “He came to me a few days later saying that he’d reached out to Master Skywalker and enrolled me at the Academy, saying that my gifts would be put to good use here. I was upset but didn’t push it, I figured getting to learn more about my abilities and seeing the galaxy wouldn’t be so bad. And now, I guess I understand that he didn’t mean any harm, he just didn’t know what to do with me and thought that maybe you all would.” She looked Kyle in the eye, smiling wryly. “Do you?”

Kyle chuckled, shaking his head. “Not all the time, but those who’ve got a firm grasp on their power in the Force do have a clearer vision of what a young Force user needs. But not a perfect one.” He gazed up at the stars, his face seemingly free of all the stress she’d seen there earlier.

“Joining the Academy is the best decision I’ve ever made in my life,” she said. Kyle didn’t respond, he didn’t need to. He and Jaden let it sink in between them for the moment.

“I’m glad you joined too,” he agreed.

“I wonder if Rosh feels the same.” Ever since she’d been told of his capture, she feared for his life, his soul, his allegiance to the light. Kyle didn’t reply immediately, but simply dipped his head.

“We’ll find him,” he said matter of factly, standing up. “Is there anything else you wanted to tell me?”

Jaden shook her head though her mind raced with a myriad of other issues that poked at her heart. “I’m gonna stay here for a few more minutes if that’s alright?”

“Yeah that’s good, I’m giving you the day off tomorrow to rest, meditate or study or do whatever you’d like. You’ve earned it kid.”

Once Kyle was gone, Jaden looked back up into the sparkling void of beauty that blinked at her from all sides. She squeezed her eyes tight shut and made a wish as if she were still a little girl sitting on her uncle’s balcony, trying to spot a single star hidden in the glare of a million city lights.

“Rosh,” she whispered. “If you’re out there, if you can somehow hear me. I will see you again, and I pr-...” she choked on a light sob, cleared her throat and tried again. “And I promise, I will tell you how I got my lightsaber. I will, I promise, my dear friend I promise. And I will see you again. I promise .”

Back in her room, she laid down to sleep, but it didn’t come. She tossed and turned, thinking about everything they’d found in Racto’s office, especially that bust of Ragnos’ head. She sat up suddenly, inspired.

“Why didn't I think of this before?” She threw off the sheets, slipping on her only pair of shoes that were the closest thing to slippers, put on a loose fitting overshirt and made her way down to the Archives.

She swiftly made her way to the back, to the restricted section, punched in a special code Master Tionne had given and began her search. A librarian droid named BK-5 hovered nearby.

“May I offer any assistance, Apprentice Korr?”

“Yes, I need any and all material you can give me on Marka Ragnos, a Sith Lord that died about 5000 years ago?”

“Marka Ragnos, you say? I will see what I can find.” The droid lifted up and away and began scouring the shelves. Jaden found a table and chair to sit at to make her homebase just as BK-5 came back with a single datacard.

“That’s it?” Jaden asked, disappointed.

“This should suffice,” the droid said. “We have histories dating back to the Golden Age of the Sith when Marka Ragnos was the Dark Lord of the Sith, all on this datacard. It’s all we have but it should help you in your studies at least.”

“Dark Lord of the Sith?” Jaden echoed.

“The ruler of all the Sith, a title held in high regard by one who is powerful enough to claim it. But I’m sure you’ll learn all about it, happy reading.” The droid floated out of sight and Jaden got to work inserting the card into a slot on the table. A holographic image page appeared and she began to read. Soon, it felt like all the information began to swirl around her head the further she got.

“Marka Ragnos ruled over the Sith for over a hundred years, successfully ensuring that there were no threats to his throne. In the year 5000 BBY, he died naturally, marking the end of the Sith Golden Age. It is said that his spirit rose to witness the dueling of two powerful Sith Lords who were fighting for the title of Dark Lord of the Sith and granted the title to one of them before the duel was complete, marking the other with the title of apprentice, the Right Hand of the Dark Lord.

“Many resurrection attempts have been made by various Sith Lords, all ending in failure, or the short term calling up of his spirit by Sith relics. The relics belonging to Ragnos have been presumably lost to the ages: A hand written epistle, believed to have been destroyed. A pair of gauntlets that pulsed with Dark Force power disappeared from his tomb sometime during the Jedi Civil War. And his greatest weapon, a Sith sword made with cortosis, hidden within the hollow shaft of his-”

“Wait, what?!” Jaden exclaimed. The datacard’s entries ended there. “But, but how? Did someone erase part of the datacard?” She looked around, no one in sight. She called out as quietly as she could, “BK-5? BK-5?”

“Please, not so loud.” The droid suddenly hovered before her eyes and took the datacard from her hands.

“But the card, someone erased important information from it! Is there any way to get it back?”

“That’s impossible, no one would dare erase anything from my library. Unless…”

“Master Luke’s records. Someone sliced into them when we were all in the jungle the day I and the other new students got here. You don’t think that person erased part of this datacard too, do you?”

“It’s possible, but I’ll have to sort it out with Master Tionne, she’s the head scholar. I’d suggest you get back to bed, Apprentice Korr, there’s nothing else to be done tonight.”

“But-” The droid was already flying out of sight. Jaden released a hot breath of air and banged her fist on the table. Nothing. With a smaller sigh she pushed herself up and out of the chair and went back upstairs to bed. She already had a theory of who the intruder from the day of the shuttle crash was. It was probably that sneaky little red Twi-lek Alora that I fought with on Hoth. She seems to be the type to do her master’s dirty work.  

But with any hope Tionne and BK-5 would find the answers. For now she would sleep, and in the morning, keep training so that when the time came, she’d be able to face whatever this cult threw her way, even if it was Ragnos himself.

Chapter Text

Jaden landed her X-wing some distance outside the outpost on the planet Dosuun. Her mission was simple: to follow up on some New Republic intelligence about intercepted transmissions coming from the planet. They believed that suspected cult members were sending these messages from a base on the planet and since there were no New Republic fleets in this area of the Outer Rim, they asked the Jedi to investigate. 

“Master Katarn asked me to inform you that you are not to engage the members of the cult. He would like you only to determine if the Disciples of Ragnos are on the planet and using it as a base,” C-3PO had told her practically. She’d resisted rolling her eyes at the droid’s ‘as you should already know’ type of tone. But she’d assured him she would be careful. 

It looked empty for the most part but she didn’t want to take any chances, so she decided to sneak up and do some reconnaissance. She thought she was doing rather well as she made her way carefully and quietly through some trees, silently approaching the wall of the compound. 

That was when she finally sensed that something was wrong. 

She looked rapidly to her left and right, but saw nothing. Regardless, she knew something or rather someone was there. The glow of her purple blade illuminated the dry grass around her and finally, she saw outlines of several men, outfitted with some illegal cloaking armor like the kind she’d seen used by the officers on Bakura. A doubtless connection, Jaden thought.

“Drop your laser sword, Jedi, and maybe we’ll spare your life,” came a voice from the top of the wall above her. She looked up to see a man, dressed in military issue clothing, but in a very unkempt state: from his uncombed, greasy looking hair, to his open military jacket revealing the stained white shirt that stretched over his paunchy abdomen. The other officers that flanked him and the sight of a large, strange rifle that Jaden had never seen before, was the only indication that this guy was the man in charge. The man seemed to be studying her and it was unsettling. “Or perhaps you’d like to take your chances?” He gave out a cold laugh. The officers surrounding her materialized holding disruptor sniper rifles. Jaden knew she was outnumbered. But if there was anything Kyle had taught her, it was to play the long game. She reluctantly extinguished her saber and placed it on the ground, then straightened up and put her hands behind her head.

“Good choice, Jedi,” the pudgy man called out. “Take her away and bring her laser sword to me!”

Great! Jaden thought, I just polished it this morning and he’s gonna get his greasy prints all over it!

She glared up at the man as they took her lightsaber and her blaster -including the holster she’d just received for her birthday- and led her inside the outpost and to the detention facility, putting her into one of the many empty cells. They left her there alone, and she started work on her escape plan.

She spent the next hour in silence, pacing her cell and going over all her options. They’d taken her comlink, so she couldn’t call for help. They probably knew where her X-wing was, seeing as how they were ready to surround her when she’d gotten to the wall, which meant that though the outpost was small, they weren’t blind to the comings and goings of ships in that system. She wondered if they would destroy her ship, or maybe set guards around it. Or even move it to another location within the outpost. The latter seemed more likely but there were too many options. Trying to get out and steal one of their ships might be the better decision, she also considered trying to send a distress signal, but how long would it take for Luke or Kyle to come rescue her? And what would they do to her if she could get out a distress call? They’d probably kill her before anyone came and if she stayed, they’d try to get as much info out of her before killing her anyway. 

She shook her head, there was an answer to all this, she just had to keep tugging on all the loose threads. But for now, what she needed was quiet, not a racing mind. She settled down to a seated position on the floor, legs crossed, hands resting gently on her knees, the classic meditation pose that Kyle had taught her. She breathed in and out, focusing on the Force and its safety and peace. Suddenly, her reverie was rudely interrupted by loud, heavy and uneven footsteps approaching, accompanied by softer, more uniform ones. She stood and looked up through the red ray shield that blocked the roof of her cell. It was the Big Guy in Charge, both literally and physically, escorted by two stormtroopers.

“So, my Jedi friend. What do you think of our accommodations?” He said as he kneeled to peer into her cell. Jaden spotted her lightsaber in his hand.

“Why don’t you come down here and find out?” Jaden didn’t try to hide her annoyance.

“Ahhh… feisty. Good, good,” he said, his droll tone sounding incredibly bored. He was casually tossing her lightsaber, catching it lightly in his hand like it was nothing but a child’s toy ball. Now that he was closer she could see the medals from military service on his jacket but she highly doubted he earned them. “I apologize for not introducing myself sooner. My name is Rax Joris, I’m the commander of this outpost and I have a proposition for you. You see, it can get dreadfully dull around here, so I’m up for a bit of sport. I’m going to let you out. If you can make it back to your ship, you’re free to leave. But, if I catch you, I’ll have to shoot you… after all, you are an escaped prisoner. Hopefully, you’ll prove more of a challenge than the bounty hunter I had to kill a few days ago. Of course, I’ve never hunted a Jedi before.” Jaden’s interest peaked and the gears of her mind started turning, but she didn’t show it.

“And if I refuse to play along?” She asked, crossing her arms.

“Well then, you can rot in your cell.” Rax’s voice gained a little volume but no change in the half-interested, almost leisurely timbre he used. But he did flash her a cold smile. “I’m sure someone might come looking for you, eventually.” He stood up, turned on his heel and walked away.  “Let the games begin!” He said, this time Jaden could hear amusement in his voice and it sent a chill down her spine. She listened to his heavy feet echoing into silence along with the stormtroopers that followed him. Jaden now had a new option, offered to her by her captor no less. It was a trap, she knew, but he was right, there was no guarantee of anyone coming for her anytime soon despite her masters knowing where she’d gone. She thought of Rosh and all of Kyle’s failed attempts to glean information on his whereabouts. 

“I am not gonna be another issue for Kyle to worry about!” Jaden said to herself. “I refuse!” She glanced up and saw that the ray shield was no longer active. It hadn't taken them long at all to deactivate it. “I can do this,” Jaden breathed in. “I am a Jedi.” She exhaled. “My lightsaber is only an extension of who I am.” She inhaled again, “But I am going to get it back!” And exhaled. “And I’m getting out of here!” She took another steady breath. “I am one with the Force…” Then exhaled, “...And the Force is with me.” Her breaths came in a rhythm now, “I am one with the Force…” balanced perfectly with her exhales, “...And the Force is with me!” 

With a sudden, deft leap, Jaden cleared the top of her cell and landed gently on the floor above. “Let the games begin!” She echoed Rax’s words, but this time, she was going to play a game of her own, and win.

She glanced through some windows that looked into a small, enclosed room at the entrance of the lockup. She spotted her blaster and new holster on a table near the door. She sighed with relief. At least I can have something that’s mine! She checked the ammo cartridge. Full, just how she had it when she arrived. She buckled the holster back in place and grabbed a standard issue blaster from a rack by the door. She tied a strap to it and slung it around her shoulder, then grabbed several more cartridges of ammo, stuffing them into her pockets. She looked to the door, took one last deep breath before diving in. The Force is with me…

The sun was bright outside, she stood on a paved walkway near some more dried grass that grew everywhere it seemed and hoped she could remember the places she’d passed when they brought her here. A stormtrooper immediately spotted her and opened fire, but she was ready. Careful not to overuse her ammunition, she relied on the Force to trip up some of her enemies, then used her weapons. 

A lesson from what seemed so long ago flooded back to her: “What about our lightsabers?” “You don’t have ‘em… You have to be ready for any situation, even the ones you swear you’ll never find yourself in. Now, what do you do? And, you only have a blaster and the Force to rely on.” 

Okay Jaden, she thought to herself, it looks like this day has come so listen up. Scenario, you’ve been captured by a big ugly Imperial guy who wants to hunt you for sport. He has your lightsaber and you only have the Force and a blaster. What do you do?

She’d finished off the stormtroopers, and now looked around for where to go. A door leading inside a building just across from the detention lockup was the closest option she had.

“Hah! You Jedi certainly are quick!” She whirled around to see Rax standing on a high platform across the walkway from her, holding his big, heavy rifle she didn’t recognize. He raised it and she did the only thing she could think of: Run. A powerful, blue blast of energy hit a mark so close she almost lost her balance as she ducked through the door to safety. Scratch that, he’s also armed with a giant, powerful rifle that could knock you off your feet at best or obliterate you at worst. What do you do?

“Attention! We have an escaped prisoner inside the main garrison! Initiate security lockdown!” Rax’s voice carried out the order over the building’s PA system and an alarm began to blare. For a moment she felt like she was going to panic.

The main garrison, okay, so that’s where I am. That means I can find extra weapons here and maybe, just maybe, figure out a way to turn off the lockdown.

She tried every door. All locked. She retraced her steps and noticed a door blocked by trip mines. After blasting through them the door revealed a small room with a trooper and an officer. The trooper didn’t last a second and as for the officer, she lifted him off the floor in a choke hold, something she hadn’t decided to try until today. But this was a desperate time.

“How do I stop the lockdown?” She asked.

“You think… I’m gonna tell you, Rebel Scum?!” The officer coughed out. Jaden tightened her grip a bit, careful not to crush his windpipe, this maneuver was tricky, one wrong misstep could be fatal and she didn’t want to have to kill him if she could help it.

“Okay okay!” He cried, she loosened the hold slightly. “On, my belt. Keycard. It- …unlocks the lift at the end of the hall. Take it up to the security office. The lockdown can… only be stopped there. There’ll be plenty of stormtroopers waiting for you.”

“Leave it to me to worry about them,” Jaden swiped the keycard from his belt and released him. He dropped to the floor with a thud, unconscious. He’s sure going to have a big headache when he wakes up. Jaden picked his pocket and took the comlink she found there, exited the room and shot the controls so that he was locked in. He’ll get out. Eventually.

She started firing as soon as she stepped off the lift and into the security office. The stormtroopers fell one by one and many were Force tripped so that her odds were more even. She stalked up to the head officer, flinging his blaster from his grasp with the flick of her hand. She aimed her blaster at his head.

“Shut off the lockdown, now!” The officer was more accommodating than the other, but as he reached for the lever, he pulled a concealed blaster from a hidden drawer in the desk. Jaden cracked the butt of her blaster on his head and he went limp. She rolled her eyes. Why would you even try that? She pulled the lever herself. 

“That should take care of the lockdown. Now, where’s the hanger?” She muttered and searched the monitors. It was on the other side of the compound in a different building.

“But…” She murmured, “If I go out through here then I can… That’s perfect!” She smiled big for the first time that day. Things were finally looking up. Now, if only she could make it there, she’d be home free.

Taking the lift back down, she was pleased to see all of the green lights on the unlocked doors. She took a guess and went through one. Empty. Another door stood close by, she cautiously approached it.

“Not that way!” Rax laughed mockingly over the PA. Jaden jumped in alarm. Could he see her? Catching sight of a security camera she shot it down, prompting another laugh from Rax. She decided to go a different way and this time, the door she took brought her right into what only she could conclude were the barracks. Bunks lined the walls and in the middle of the room was a smaller room with openings on both sides. She heard voices coming from it and felt relief that the rest of the stormtroopers must be spread out over the compound. She crept to the open doorway and peaked inside. Rows upon rows of weapons racks lined the interior walls and two stormtroopers stood loading several blasters. They didn’t look her way as they kept talking.

“Have you seen the new BlasTech E-19’s?”

“Are they any good?”

“I just got one. I’m gonna try it out at the firing range when my shift’s over later this afternoon.”

“Well let me know how it goes. My E-15 could use an upgrade.”

“My shift’s over at 1600, why don’t ya join me?”

“I’ll clear it with my squad later and let ya know.”

Finished with their work, they put up their supplies and exited through the other doorway. Jaden watched them carefully as they exited through a door at the other end of the room. The firing range eh? Sounds delightful!

She entered the weapons room and searched for an upgrade to the standard blaster she’d found in the detention facility, something that could at least compete with Rax’s big gun. Her results were an Imperial heavy repeater and a Tenloss disruptor sniper rifle. One packed a good punch, especially at close range and the other, at least from what she’d heard, was deadly and painful when accurate. She only hoped that her long hours at target practice would pay off. Shedding the blaster from over her shoulder, she replaced it with the two new weapons, displacing her pockets with their new ammo instead. Now she was ready.

Rax Joris watched and waited, as any good hunter would. That was the difference between winning and losing. A hunter that was eager to kill too quickly lost before the hunt even began. He’d learned to live in the moment, to relish each and every kill. He felt as though he’d finally reached his limit of excitement and the thrill of the hunt, until today. 

None of the other Imperials really treated him with the respect he deserved anymore. They either laughed at him or didn’t take his love of sport seriously. But that would all change when he delivered the body of the meddlesome Jedi to their commander’s ship. He had a feeling it would not only get him in good with the upper ups, but earn him a promotion and all the respect he deserved. Perhaps he’d be called in to hunt more Jedi? But glory and fame would have to wait. He still had to finish this hunt successfully. 

The Jedi had disappeared off the radar, for now. It was expected for someone of her station to perform some level of sorcery and illusion, but in the end, the logic and patience of the hunter would win out.

“Sir?” His first officer approached.

“Hmm, yes?”

“We still have no location on the Jedi. Should we sweep the facility once more?”

“No, let her come out of hiding by herself. She needs to have a sense of security, of-”

“Sir?” This time it was from his comlink.

“Yes Admiral?”

“I think we found the Jedi, outside the All Terrain Scout Transport garage.”

“Excellent work Admiral, nothing less than I expected of her. It’s time to finish this hunt!”

Rax pocketed the com, then hefted his prized Stouker concussion rifle and stepped out onto a balcony that overlooked this side of the compound. He could see the entrance wall where they’d caught the Jedi, the detention facility, garrison and barracks, and directly below, he knew the building that housed the facility’s AT-STs that sat right across the way from the firing range. But something was wrong. Smoke was coming from the side wall of the firing range where a gaping hole was, and across the way a low window on the side of the garage was shattered.

“What in the-”

Thhaaoommpp! Thhaaoommpp! Thhaaoommpp! Thhaaoommpp! Came the all too familiar mechanical sound of an AT-ST’s stomp. At first Rax was confused as to why one of his men would go to such an extreme because of a Jedi. But the next moment, when the AT-ST cleared the opening garage door, he got it. It was not one of his men operating it. It was the Jedi. The monstrous machine turned its frightening metal head in his direction, as if examining him, sizing him up, and Rax didn’t like it. He raised the Stouker, ready to blast right through the AT-ST’s head and kill that pesky little Jedi.

“Sir! The rockets! Run!” One of his men left his side and Rax was forced to dive out of the way as a rocket sailed over their heads, missing the building entirely but still too close for comfort.

Rax let out a deep bellied laugh. “She doesn’t even know how to shoot with it!” He stood again, ready to take aim, then another rocket followed by several precision shots from the AT-ST’s canons came towards him, forcing him to retreat indoors where he took to swearing egregiously.

Jaden was having way too much fun. AT-STs sure were scary if you’re the one on the ground, but up in its cockpit? Extremely satisfying! She’d stolen some thermal detonators and opened a big hole in the wall of the firing range, then did the same to get into the garage. She’d had no guarantee that Rax would be anywhere near, but figured it couldn’t hurt to try and get to her destination in a safe, armored vehicle and thin the ranks while she was at it. Rax appearing on that balcony was just a bonus. She lightly tossed the stolen comlink in the air and caught it, grinning. She’d been able to hear everything those Imps said, especially all of their chaos and confusion over her having stolen a piece of their heavy, armored machinery.

“Bet he wasn’t expecting that! ” She looked to the balcony again, Rax had peaked his big ugly head out again. She was still getting the hang of operating this large, hulking thing but had the basics down. She fired another rocket, they were running out but she was determined to empty this machine of ammo on Rax until he was no longer a threat. The balcony was starting to look less like a balcony and more like an open door onto thin air and Rax was no longer in sight. Guess I scared the big guy into hiding.

There was a sudden Bang! and the entire AT-ST shook violently. Jaden peered out the windows, trying desperately to see what it was and where it came from. She got the clunky walker turned around and saw another platform jutting out from above a walkway leading inside the building Rax had gone into and the man himself was there on the platform, grinning ear to ear. Before she could aim properly, he got off another shot, this time hitting the cockpit.

Controls and other electronics caught fire. Jaden knew it was time to go and had an escape plan she hoped would work. Opening the hatch at the top of the walker’s head, she glanced back at Rax who was taking aim again. She thrust her hand in his direction and he stumbled backwards. Wasting no time, Jaden clambered to the roof of the AT-ST as it teetered backwards and forwards, it was close to the walkway so she made a leap for it, rolling as she landed and ducking behind a box of supplies that had been scheduled to be moved into the nearby building before she’d gotten turned loose in the compound. Rax’s shot came not a second more after she found her cover. She fumbled with the sniper rifle in her hand, trying to figure out how to use it. She’d never used this kind before because the Republic had banned them, for why, she’d never found out. She put the scope to her eye and aimed between some boxes. She couldn’t get Rax in her sights but decided to test her skills on another officer that stood on the balcony close by. She tried a secondary mode, holding down a button on the side and pulling the trigger when the red meter she saw in the scope filled up.

The officer disintegrated into ashes that floated away in the wind. Jaden’s eyes widened and she put the rifle down. No wonder the Republic banned these!

The rifle’s blast had been so powerful that it broke down every single cell in its victims body, pulverizing it into nothing more than ashes and dust in mere agonizing seconds. Rax had watched it happen with fear in his eyes for the first time that day, not with sympathy for his fellow officer, the Force forbid, but with a realization that this… this Jedi might actually win his game, and that he could not let happen.

“You’re doing well, Jedi…” he said just loud enough for her to hear.

Jaden was too shocked to try using the rifle again and just listened, hoping that Rax would see reason and let her go. Maybe this is his surrender and I can escape this hell. But Rax’s next words shattered this hope. “Too well!” His voice was its loudest and filled with rage, a far cry from his bored tone in the lockup. “It’s time to end this game!” He shouted and fired another shot that blew up some boxes a few yards away from Jaden. He spoke again, this time his voice was more even. “If you want me, Jedi, come find me in the hangar, it’s not far.” 

The sound of his receding footsteps and the swoosh of a door closing told her that he was gone and she confirmed it by glancing out cautiously. She let out a deep breath she’d been holding, and looked at the sniper rifle. She had to win this game, she had to, but something about resulting to hiding and using dirty tactics felt beyond her and wrong. She pulled the rest of the ammo out of her pockets and laid the rifle on the ground. Securing the heavy repeater’s strap, she left the other behind, deciding that if she was going to win this game, it would be by her own tactics and strategies, not his.

Looking this way and that to be sure that no surprises awaited her, Jaden took off and sprinted to the door below the balcony. She instantly felt that something was off, the presence of someone, several someone’s, around her. The cloaking armor. She didn’t have time to mess with them and raised her hands, palms facing the floor.

“What are you gonna do, Jedi?” Asked a voice to her right.

“This.” Lightning poured out from her fingers, crackling and popping in the air around her, blueish purple and deadly. All the figures materialized and fell to the ground convulsing, paralyzed for now. Jaden rushed down a hall that curved around a room she could see into via multiple windows and soon found the door. She ran along a catwalk above a hangar that held rows of TIE Fighters tucked neatly away along the high walls. Any stormtrooper that rushed her got flung violently off the edge and plummeted to their deaths on the floor below. Jaden located a lift that went down and raced across the floor. Where is he?

Up ahead were large, tall doors that ran from the floor to the ceiling and were almost dizzying to look up at from where she was. They slowly opened at her approach. Jaden gripped her heavy blaster tightly, her stomach twisting in knots at a feeling of finality as she spotted her X-wing parked on the other side of a metal staircase that started in front of her and zigzagged up and up to even higher levels of catwalks and walkways. 

So they did move it. At least I won’t be flying home in a TIE fighter. She didn’t let the word “if” become a part of her mental dialogue.

She cautiously stepped from the TIE filled hanger into the next room where her X-wing was. As she looked to the dizzying heights of the topmost walkway, she saw him, standing at the edge of the highest platform, arms behind him, casually holding his gigantic, deadly rifle. Her lightsaber dangled from his belt, sending a surge of anger through her. She forced herself to breathe, to calm down. She’d won, hadn’t she?

“Well played.” His dull voice echoed throughout the hangar, its tone so devoid of emotion it sent another chill down Jaden’s spine. “Tragically, I can’t allow you to tell anyone about my little operation. Farewell, Jedi.”

Jaden wanted to argue, to scream that it wasn’t fair, it wasn’t what he’d promised. But this was what the Imperials were like, they dominated and took over. Whatever they said went and there was nothing anyone could do but suffer. But she wasn’t any ordinary person. She had the power to do something.

Rax wasted no time in firing upon her. She ducked into a corner and tried to plan her next action. She had to get close to him, which meant getting all the way up to the highest walkway, if she could do that, then maybe her Force powers at close range could even the odds. It was worth a try. She peeked out of her hiding place. Rax was nowhere to be seen. Speed, I have to be fast. She silently counted to three, and ran for her life, racing up the steps, two and three at a time until she reached the first catwalk, which was when Rax fired another round. The shot decimated the grate-like floor behind her, cutting her off from going back down on that side. She continued running, glancing up at him now and then, trying to find a clear shot to try and send him into hiding with her heavy repeater. 

She reached the next set of steps which she cleared with a high jump and kept going. She finally got a clear shot at Rax but missed because he either ducked in time or she hadn’t been accurate due to her running, she couldn’t tell. Powerful blue blasts echoed close by, destroying pieces of the walkways and stairs as well as barrels and crates and other supplies littered around. Jaden suddenly stopped, aimed, fired. Rax cried out and she kept moving, foregoing a staircase and leaping to the next platform entirely. One more level to go.

Rax kept shooting at her, proving that though her shot had been successful, it was probably just a flesh wound. She stopped momentarily, taking shelter under the platform above her, trying to locate Rax, but couldn’t see him. She fumbled with an ammo cartridge as she struggled to reload.

Suddenly as if out of nowhere, a blue ball of energy came barreling toward her. She barely jumped out of the way before it thundered into the wall behind her, making a permanent black mark against the gray metal. Her ears rang and she felt disoriented for a second before shaking her head. The ammo she’d been trying to load was gone. She felt frantically around in her pockets. Only one left.

 She had to get out of this alive, it could not end like this. Another blast came right toward her but she didn’t move this time.

Up above, Rax thought was sure he’d fired the killing shot, watching as it hurled towards its victim who this time didn’t move to avoid it. That feeling of triumph lasted all but two seconds as the concussion blast came barreling towards him and hit the wall a few feet away to his left. 

Oh Krik.

Using that Force push to her advantage, Jaden quickly reloaded, cleared the platform and set on an all out run towards Rax, firing until her heavy repeater was out of ammo. But the pudgy man was slippery and hid well, ducking and dodging, taking shots at her when he could, forcing her to hide too and then continue her sprint. 

She slid to a stop behind another hiding spot behind a pillar, she checked her pockets just to be sure of herself. She was truly all out of the spare cartridges she’d grabbed for the heavy repeater. But she felt she was finally close enough.

“This is your last warning Rax, let me go and give me back my lightsaber, or die. Your choice,” she called out to him, quietly shedding the empty repeater and carefully laying it on the cold, metal floor.

“Are you really trying to bargain with me, Jedi?”

“So you’re choosing death then?” The answer came with another shot dangerously close to her hiding spot. Okay then, I can at least tell Kyle I tried. Closing her eyes for a brief second, she summoned as much Force power as she felt she needed, then ran .

The world around her seemed to stop, the blast of Rax’s rifle moving in slow motion towards her. He was closer than she’d anticipated. Only twenty yards away. She sidestepped the blast and prepared for the next one. Rax never saw it coming. One second the Jedi was behind the box and the next, she was fifteen feet away, he didn’t even process the thoughts running through his head. He just fired, realizing a half second later that he’d just made a grave mistake.

Jaden stood where she was, watching the bright blue blast coming towards her, almost hypnotizing really. Dropping her gun, she thrust her hands forward, releasing a Force push more powerful than the one she’d used before, her mouth opened wide in a terrible battle cry as she deflected the shock wave back on Rax.

Rax Joris lay face down, life draining out of him, the Jedi’s lightsaber lay a few feet away before his eyes. He lifted a withered hand to grab it, jerkily, painfully, his limbs wouldn’t work right. In his periphery, the Jedi approach, bending down to take what was hers.

“It… Seems I underestimated you… Jedi…” Rax gasped out his final words before finally giving up.

Standing over him, Jaden shook her head, then bent down to pick up his concussion rifle, perhaps she’d take it back to the Academy and see what Luke and Kyle thought of it. She’d never taken trophies before, but it wasn’t like that. She figured that maybe her masters should know about this dangerous weapon, to study it. She hefted it in her arms, it was pretty heavy. Curious, she aimed at the far wall and fired. The unexpected kickback pushed her to the floor. She took a minute to re-orientate herself before checking the amount of ammo left. Coincidentally, it was empty. Standing up, she took another look at it, thinking of all the victims Rax had claimed with it. That thought alone sent a disgusting feeling across her body and she held back the wave of nausea that came over her. She couldn’t get it out of her hands fast enough as she threw it to the ground beside its owner.

She patted her lightsaber, safe and secure again on her belt, looking down at her captor one last time.

“Goodbye, Rax Joris. I’m honored to have won your ‘game.’” She said bitterly before beginning the long descent down to her ship.

Jaden didn’t have to look for Kyle or Luke when she landed at the Academy, in need of fuel and food, completely exhausted. They stood in the hangar, debating on Kyle going after her since she hadn’t checked in with them all day.

“Jaden!” Kyle exclaimed. “We were getting worried, I was about to come find you. What happened?”

Jaden looked Kyle in the eyes, then Luke. “It’s a long story, can we talk in the dining hall?” They all nodded and hurried her into the hall which was empty as it wasn’t mealtime yet but Ched obliged. He gave her a heaping bowl of delicious, mouth watering stew and a tall cup of iced water for her trouble, which she downed in three gulps, then asked for more. In between bites of stew she told Kyle and Luke everything.

“I’ll be sure to inform the Republic of this hidden Remnant operation and they should be there to clean it up soon enough,” Luke said after she’d finished. “Good job on being resourceful and leaning on the Force for guidance.”

Jaden nodded. “It was all I had to get through it. That and my training. It taught me a very important lesson indeed.” She looked to Kyle, who smiled knowingly.

“Too bad Rax didn't have any useful info, the sick, twisted bastard, but I'm proud of how you handled yourself, Jaden, well done.” He gave her a hearty pat on the back and glanced at Luke, Jaden waited patiently, feeling like more was going to be said. Surprisingly, it was Kyle who did the talking with a gesture of approval from Luke.

“We figured we’d tell you this before everyone but, be ready these next few days, Luke's got a plan to find the cult leaders and he’s getting ready to present it soon.”

She looked at Luke. “Really? You think you know who’s behind this?” She felt a new energy. They were close to finding Rosh; she just knew it!

“Well, no,” Luke said. “I only have a plan of how to possibly find them. We do also hope to be able to figure out why there’s been so many of these Force wielding cultists around that you’ve encountered.”

“You think maybe someone is doing what you’re doing here? Gathering a bunch of Force sensitives from around the galaxy but putting them through some kind of Sith Academy?” Jaden asked, the very thought was disturbing to her.

“Hmm, I’m not sure, but we won’t stop looking for answers. That’s all for now. I wish I had something more but, this is all I have for the time being. We just wanted to let you know what we know because besides Rosh, you’re the closest student to this case. Keep up the faith, and be ready.” Jaden’s shoulders sagged a bit, but she nodded and Luke took his leave. Kyle got up as well, then, remembering something, turned to his apprentice again.

“Oh, Tionne asked me to tell you that she and BK-5 scoured the archives and security footage to see who deleted that section of the records. It seems that the security footage from Luke’s chambers wasn’t the only ones that were scrubbed, but the footage of the archives as well. They’re fully certain that it was a cultist who stole info from Luke’s journals and is the same person who deleted the footage and that section of the Ragnos archive. The dates matched up.”

“I thought so. I think it was Alora, that Twi’lek I met on Hoth that did it. But I’m not fully sure, it’s just a feeling.”

“You do huh? Well, I wouldn’t see why not, she’s our best lead and closest connection to this cult’s leader that we have. And from what you’ve told us, she definitely seems the type to do her master’s sneaky, dirty work.”

Jaden smiled at how similar her and Kyle’s assessment of that annoying little wench was. “For sure, hopefully we’ll get something solid, I don’t wanna just go off what I’m feeling.”

“Well I wouldn’t discount what you’re feeling. Feelings are a good indicator of what’s going on around us and inside of us. The Force works in many strange ways and feelings are definitely one of them. I wouldn’t try to figure anything out now, though.” Kyle came closer and lightly squeezed her shoulder. “Time to get some rest huh?”

Jaden suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion hit her and she nodded sleepily, her eyes barely open. What she needed now after food, water, and good company, was sleep.

Chapter Text

Three days later, Jaden stood up straight next to Kyle and the rest of the Academy’s students and as Luke addressed them and their masters in the Audience Chamber. He stood at his usual place, hands folded behind his back in a stance Jaden and all of the students by now were used to seeing him take.

“The Disciples of Ragnos are getting bold,” Luke announced. “They’ve managed to siphon Force energy from every site that was mentioned in my journal. However, we still don’t know what it is they’re planning to do with the energy though.” There was a short pause as this information sank in, the students glanced at one another nervously. “It’s imperative that we track down the leader of this cult.”

Jas Harin was the only student to speak up, which no one questioned because he already seemed a higher ranking member due to his maturity. “But how? If they’ve already hit every place in your journal?”

Luke inclined his head towards Jas. “There are several places I didn’t mention by name that they’ve discovered, like Dagobah. My fear is that they may use clues in my journals to discover other places and we need to beat them to these locations.” Realization set in, and Jaden knew she’d be going on a mission similar to her assignment to Hoth. She looked up to Luke and saw that he was looking sidelong at her, sadness in his eyes, almost an apology, but what for, she didn’t know until he spoke again. “Considering how we… lost a student last time, we must be very cautious.” Rosh’s absence hung over all assembled there. “Everyone will travel in pairs. Kyle, Jaden, you’ll be going to Vjun.”

Kyle’s arms were crossed as he registered just what Luke had said. “Vjun? Isn’t that just a big, dead rock?” He asked skeptically.

“It also happens to be the location of one of my father’s strongholds,” Luke replied casually.

“Ooookay, so it’s a big, dead, important rock.” Kyle cut his eyes at Jaden who’s own had widened considerably. So, she wouldn’t be traveling alone, thus eliminating the worry of losing another student, but they were going to a stronghold that belonged to none other than Darth Vader? It was still difficult to think of such an evil man being the father to such a kind one. She’d heard the stories of Vader’s redemption by Luke, but knowing all the evil caused by him and the Empire, it was a scene that was still hard to picture.

Luke began to assign other students in pairs, Streen and Tionne, Jacyyn and Corran, Jas and Arta-Mess, though Jacyyn didn’t seem to like that arrangement much. But Jas had been given the rank of Jedi Knight the week before, and thus was allowed to lead his assignment. Luke knew he’d be wasting his talents by staying the same rank as the other newer students and had given Corran permission to knight his promising apprentice. 

Goran and his master, Axel Horn were paired up. He was the only one of Jaden’s peers who hadn’t risen in rank around the same time she had. His training had gone slowly since the beginning and he seemed content to move at his own pace. Then Raltharan was paired up with another student who’d been there a few months before they came, a Rodian named Beedo Quinn.

Kyle looked out over the small crowd and shook his head in wonder and disbelief. “This ought to be interesting. I’d heard rumors that Luke had been to Vjun, but he never really talked about it.” 

As if on cue, Luke approached them, all business. “Vjun is dangerous. The dark side is strong there… oppressive. It will try to weigh down on you, be extremely careful.”

Kyle nodded assurance. “Sure, Luke. Don’t worry, we will.”

“Very well then, may the Force be with you both.”

Jaden changed into a pair of brown pants and a long sleeved gray shirt, pulling a sleeveless leather tunic over it that extended down the front to cover the top half of her thighs. She cinched it up and secured her belt that held her lightsaber, then donned her new holster. Her hair, she braided long and simple down her back, something that Arta-Mess had to teach her to do properly if she didn’t want stray pieces falling out. It felt nice having someone who was like a sister in her life to teach her simple things like that. Her finishing touch was the necklace Rosh had made her, so that she still carried him with her, until they found him. They would find him, she was sure of it. Kyle called her down to the hangar on her comlink and, after pocketing that in one of her tunics many small pockets, she hurried downstairs with a small group of her friends who had also been getting ready.

“This is it,” Jacyyn said. “This is what we’ve been training for. I just know it, can’t you guys feel how big this is?”

“Of course Jacyyn,” Arta-Mess said. “But we figured we stay broodily silent to make the moment more epic.” 

Everyone laughed at her sarcasm, lifting a lot of tension they all felt. Jaden smiled at the sight of them all wearing their matching holsters. This last week had been a rush for them to get all six done. Now the Shuttle Crew, a nickname only used by Jacyyn, had identical holsters. Slight imperfections because of the handmade quality truly set them apart for each owner, and they all bore the names of the Shuttle Crew. Including Rosh.

“Oh, by the way,” Jas said, nudging Jaden’s shoulder lightly. “I have something for you, remind me to give to you when we get back.”

Jaden nodded, her smile less genuine now as worry turned in her stomach. When we get back. Weren’t those words similar to her own thoughts some months back? Thinking she would Rosh again? This time will be different.

When the lift opened up into the hangar, they all turned to one another, giving hugs and pats on the back. Jaden felt the difference of this assignment, though she knew deep down that this wasn’t a forever kind of goodbye, she hoped it wasn’t. There was a layer of seriousness and sobriety that hung over the whole affair and she knew that in that moment, when they all returned, some of them would never be the same, especially her. Why though, she couldn’t tell, but she knew she’d be a part of that latter group and it both scared and excited her.

They all went their separate ways and Jaden climbed into the cockpit of the Raven’s Claw to take her seat beside Kyle in the pilot’s chair, ready and dreading this new adventure with every fiber of her being.

Kyle and Jaden flew to Vjun in relative silence, both of them going over the specifics of the mission in their minds. Make your way to Bast Castle, find a way inside, determine if the Disciple of Ragnos are there and if so, stop them from draining the Force aura from there. All of it was easier said than done. A statement proven as soon as they flew through the planet's atmosphere and past Bast Castle itself. Kyle released a sigh of frustration and reluctant resignation before he spoke.

“Great, looks like somebody’s home. Luke sure knows how to pick ‘em. We’ll set down in that canyon and try to sneak into the castle.”

A steady rain fell as they landed the Raven’s Claw as inconspicuous as possible in a low canyon. Jaden thought there was something off about the rain, its color was a pale dirty green, which was off putting, but she ignored it. Maybe that’s how rain looks here.

As soon as they hopped outside of the cockpit, it became instantly clear that her original feelings on the rain’s appearance were something to be concerned about. Any part of exposed skin that the rain fell onto began to feel irritated and turn red, burning and developing painful red rashes that continued to burn. 

“Eck! This rain’s like acid! Find some cover! Fast!” Kyle said and they ducked underneath The Claw. “I’ve got a small med-pack but it’s not going to have enough burn ointment to last us if we keep having to apply it and by the looks of it, we’re going to be out in this rain for a while.” He looked ahead, trying to judge the path before them. “We’ll just have to run from cover to cover and keep out of the rain as much as possible. We’ll have to use the Force to create a barrier of protection over us, it’ll take some concentration provided we don’t run into too much trouble out here.”

“That sounds good and all but…” Jaden winced, gritting her teeth at the pain shooting up her arms from the red welts on her hands and the heat of them on the back of her neck.

“May I?” Kyle reached for her hands. The rashes made touch a very sensitive matter and sharp stabs of pain shot through her again. Jaden bit her lip to keep the tears from falling. Kyle held her hands gently and closed his eyes. A pale, violet light, similar to her lightsaber’s blade, emitted from his hands and floated around them. Slowly, soothingly, her hands turned from red to pink to her normal pale, flesh tone; the feeling of heat on her neck turned cool and less irritated until she felt completely well. Even Kyle, who’d gotten some rashes and welts looked better. He opened his eyes and looked up at her, smiling.

“Better?”

“Yes thank you,” she sighed with relief.

“Then let's get going, we’ll put up the protective barrier together. On three, okay? One, two, thr- Looks like the welcome wagon’s arrived!”

In the distance, thirty yards away, Jaden spotted them. Troopers, but unlike stormtroopers, these were large, armored soldiers, their hulking mass covered in silver metal with tubes attached to their backs traveling over their shoulders and connecting to large breathing masks on their helmets. In their hands they grasped an oddly familiar shaped weapon.

“What are these things?” Kyle gasped. “Must be some kind of trooper designed for nasty environments like this.”

The troopers thankfully hadn’t seen them crouching under the Raven’s Claw yet, so they had the element of surprise.

“Alright, time to multitask a little, you think you can handle holding the barrier above us and fight these guys?” Kyle asked.

“I won’t know until I try.”

“Good enough, let’s go!”

They took off side by side in the acid rain as it bounced off the invisible shield above their heads. As they closed half the distance, two things happened: First, the troopers saw them. And second, Jaden got a really good look at their weapons.

“Kyle watch out!” Knowing, and hoping, Kyle would keep the barrier for the rain intact, she threw a powerful shield in front of them as the blue energy blast of the trooper’s Stouker concussion rifle barreled its way right towards them. Jaden’s shield held and it hurled back on the trooper who’d fired it.

Apparently their armor, while protective to hazardous environments like this, couldn’t quite stand up to the rifle’s blast as the blue bolts slammed into the soldier's helmet and he crumpled to the ground. A second hazard trooper stood behind him ready to fire.

“Take the shield!” Kyle yelled as he charge forward and Jaden was left with centering her focus on making sure the barrier above them didn’t falter, however she hesitated slightly before readjusting, allowing two drops of rain through, one landing on the top of her head, seeping down, seeking skin and burning her scalp, the second splashing harmlessly onto the top of her boot. She bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out as she ran forward to aid Kyle, who needed no help from the looks of it and seemed to be really enjoying himself. 

“You’re joking right, thinking you can take me?” He was taunting the trooper, ducking and dodging him at close range so that his enemy had no ability to fire at him and would have to resort to swiping at him with his arms until finally, after messing with him enough, Kyle found his opening and sliced right through the trooper’s armor and he too fell to the ground in a heap. Kyle looked back at Jaden.

“Let’s hurry to that outcropping of rock over there and regroup!”

They ran another twenty yards or so, the shield over them not faltering in the least even though Jaden’s head burned from that single drop. 

“I let the shield slip and got some rain on me, can you fix it?” She pointed to the top of her head and Kyle nodded.

“Only if you fix me too.” He smiled weakly and pointed to his cheek where a single drop of the stuff was already bubbling the skin red into pustules. 

“Okay, just help me a little, I haven’t had much practice in Force healing,” Jaden said. 

Her master nodded. “Just follow my lead.”

Between the both of them, they’d been lucky, and soon, that healing purple light shone from both of them as they quickly healed each other. Jaden found Kyle’s guidance easy enough. It was all a matter of focus really, of finding a feeling of sympathy and a strong desire to see the injured person well and whole. They stood up straight and looked at the rest of the way they had to go.

“There,” Kyle said, pointing deeper into the canyon, a small, narrow valley that led up to the castle. “We need to go that way.”

They continued relatively undisturbed as they ran through the canyon, twisting and turning this way and that, making good time as there were no more interruptions. When they neared the valley Kyle had indicated, he stopped short, pulling Jaden back suddenly.

“Take cover! Guess they’re expecting us now…” He trailed off as he peeked from around the corner, Jaden did too as tentatively as possible. 

Hovering back and forth through the narrow valley as they patrolled it were two TIE bombers. Close by they could see that they were guarding the entrance to a small facility not connected to the castle, an outpost of sorts with a balcony hanging over it. Kyle noticed immediately something very useful resting on top of it. A turret gun used in previous years to defend the way to the castle.

“Okay,” he said, pulling back and facing Jaden. “We’ll have to get to that turbolaser and take out the bombers first.”

They watched and waited for the TIEs to turn and patrol the other way before throwing up their protective barrier again and booking it to the door under the balcony that led into the facility.

They entered a long hallway lit by floor lights all the way down. Kyle told Jaden that going up was their only objective to get to the turbolasers. They had to get to the castle and not waste their time going any other direction. The hallway ended in a door that opened into a large room with steel pillars and computer monitors- and enemies clutching red lightsabers. Four of them to be exact.

Kyle grinned. “Hehehe,” he stared down the two cultists on their right. “This one’s mine.” He rushed the already hesitant Sith, leaving Jaden still standing, facing her group of two cultists. She shrugged at them and their bewildered stances.

“What am I gonna do with him, right? Can’t question what my master does.” The Sith regained their composure and Jaden fought the two of them, which she was thankful to have trained for and was able to take advantage of their shock at her and Kyle’s sudden arrival. She’d barely taken down her first cultist before Kyle jumped in to aid her.

“How?” Was all Jaden could ask, then added, “You know, I’m glad I’m on your side!” She didn’t want to waste more time and tripped her last opponent up with the Force, sending him spirling back into Kyle’s waiting blade. The cultist slumped down to the floor in a heap.

“We do make such a great team, bet you wish more missions were like this.” Kyle said, his words invoking a now heart wrenching memory to Jaden’s mind. Kyle watched her expression fall, causing his smile to leave. “Or not?”

“No, it’s not that.” Jaden shook her head, replacing her saber at her side for the moment and making sure the room really was empty now. “It’s just… Rosh said something like that to me once, ‘we make a good team,’ it was when we first arrived at the Academy and were making our way through the woods to the Temple.”

Kyle stepped closer, putting a hand on her shoulder to squeeze for a brief second before moving forward. No words were needed, they both were thinking the same thing: Don’t worry, we will bring Rosh home.

They rushed through more rooms and hallways than they cared to have encountered, fighting off only Imperial officers and stormtroopers until finally, they found a lift going up, then a few more turns and stairs, past a control room and up a steep ramp to a door at the top of it.

“Okay, the turbolaser should be on the other side of this door.” Kyle sounded slightly winded but more excited as he tried the door. It didn’t budge. “Ugh! It’s locked!” He stepped back and looked around, another door sat further down the ramp towards the bottom and on the left, but it too was locked. “There was a control room back there. Wait here and let me know if I get it open.” Kyle raced back down the hallway, leaving Jaden by herself at the top of the ramp to wait.

The sound of the door at the bottom of the ramp opening alerted her to a dark presence. She turned around to face a tall, broad shouldered individual, cloaked in dark blues and grays, a similar cloth mask like what the cultist’s wore around his head. But this was no cultist. There was something darker, more corrupt and sinister about him. He ignited a red lightsaber and went on the offensive, leaping up the ramp to where Jaden was. She was barely able to get her saber out before he struck.

The architecture of the hallway made it very hard for Jaden to gain an upper hand and her enemy was strong, very strong.

“Jaden, I think I got the door open, go ahead and give it a try,” Kyle’s voice said over her com.

“I’m a little busy here!” She grunted, gripping her lightsaber tightly in both hands, trying desperately to not get decapitated. All of a sudden, the blue glow of another lightsaber pierced through the Sith’s chest. His fingers loosened around his saber and it fell harmlessly to the floor. Kyle nodded to Jaden and she ran through the door to the balcony outside, acid rain falling steadily and relentlessly as it pelted her, catching her off guard but she persisted, running to the turret.

Inside, Kyle stooped down to look at Jaden’s opponent. “You’re no cultist, what are you doing here?” He murmured. “But yet you bear the mark of the Disciples of Ragnos, so who’s your new master?” He straightened up, he’d have to think about this particular mystery later and hurried outdoors, remembering to put up the protective barrier against the rain.

Jaden was still firing at the bombers, who quite literally didn’t know what hit them until it was too late. Making quick work of them, she shot down the last one just as Kyle stepped out onto the balcony.

“Great shot! Now let’s get to the castle!” He yelled over the crash of the TIE as it fell to the canyon floor. “Hurry, under the barrier, we take this lift down and I’ll heal you up!”

Jaden needed no further encouragement. The turbolaser was set under its own small awning, which helped, but didn’t sooth the already painful welts and rashes that were rapidly forming on her head, neck and hands.

“Kyle, what kind of Sith was that?” She panted as she rushed to take her place next to him and they took the lift down to the ground under the balcony.

“They’re called Reborn, I’ve crossed paths with them before but had no clue that they’d fallen in with the Disciples of Ragnos. Tough to beat as you could see. If you encounter another of them and I don’t doubt you will at this point, do not give them an inch or they will take the upper hand. Understand?”

Jaden nodded, a hundred questions dying to be asked, but Kyle made it clear they needed to move and move fast. Questions could wait.

It was pretty much a straight shot through the canyon valley after Kyle patched her up. There were no more interruptions as they continued their journey for the remaining couple of clicks to where Kyle said the entrance of the castle should be. What they approached was not what she expected. Its construction was similar to the outside facades she’d seen so far and there was a single door. This can’t be that easy, can it?

“Kyle, is this a back door of some kind?” She asked when they neared the door.

“Pretty much, just follow my lead.” They stepped inside, Jaden gripping the hilt of her saber, expecting more hazard troopers, cultists and those other Sith that made her skin crawl. But what greeted them was the complete opposite. It was a small hangar garage, and it was empty. She recognized the high platforms and spaces between them where AT-ST walkers would’ve been parked, remembering the garage on the Dosuun compound.

“Grife it’s good to get out of that rain!” Kyle said almost too loudly but it was really the stillness and quiet of the place that made it so, and Jaden flinched. “Now we need to get up into the castle, there’s a turbo lift over there.” He pointed across the room, in the corner and they ran towards it.

“Hmm, locked down. You ever feel like you’re not welcome?” He muttered sarcastically. “Let’s see if we can find another way out of here.”

They spread out and began to search every inch starting at the end of the room with the lift. Kyle offered his dry commentary every now and then, making Jaden smile in spite of her frustration that they were at a dead end and would probably have to go back through all that rain.

“They always lock the door. You think they’d have learned by now.” They kept searching. “Doesn’t look like there’s a key. That would be too easy.” And searching. “Y’know the console to unlock the door’s probably hidden in some room twelve floors up or something. How does that make sense?”

They were back on the side of the garage from which they’d entered and came together to search one last section on the floor before they figured they should check the top of the platforms where access to the AT-STs were, even though there seemed to be no doors at the tops of them, with only metal spiral staircases leading up to them. They approached a small panel in the wall that seemed slightly discolored compared to the others and looked to have a latch at the bottom of it. Kyle and Jaden both got their fingers under it and lifted. It swung upwards, creaking loudly as they set it gently against the wall, its latch securing to a small hook they hadn’t noticed before to keep it from swinging back down.

“I wonder where this leads…” Kyle leaned it, trying to see into the small tunnel, but recoiled as a stench unlike anything nearly knocked them out and made them gag. “Ugh…” Kyle pulled his face far back and waved his hand in front of his nose. “Of course it has to be a garbage pit, doesn’t it?” He looked at Jaden with sympathy as she pinched her nose tightly. “Well, let’s go.” Jaden made a face at him and he shrugged apologetically. “It’s our only option; no one ever said being a Jedi was glamorous.” 

Without another word or looking back to see if she was following him, Kyle mounted the edge of the garbage chute and slid down it, holding his nose as he went. At the top, Jaden took the deepest breath of semi fresh air she could, and leapt in, feet first, descending into the dank, smelly darkness after her master.

Chapter Text

Jaden landed with a soft thud on a pile of something soft and squishy that broke her fall. She resisted the urge to vomit. The smell down here was even worse. She quickly stood up, looking around at the pit she and Kyle were in. She’d landed in a smaller section that connected to a round part in the middle with two other narrow sections branching off of it.

“Jaden, run to the middle. You can jump out from there!” She suddenly saw Kyle standing above the pit, urgency in his voice and she saw why: Panels were slowly pushing their way towards the middle, pushing trash and all manner of junk and disgusting debris towards it. Above the circular center section, a round object with blunt spikes slowly began its descent, its function was to crush and pulverize the garbage. Panic gripped Jaden and she rushed to the middle, aiming a high jump to the ledge where Kyle stood, any more time and the pulverizer would trap her under it, blocking her escape. She leapt for it, missed, grasping for the edge and found Kyle’s hand; he pulled her upwards so fast and easily, her foot just clearing the gap between the ledge and the giant crushing head. 

They both sat motionless for a moment, the reality of what had almost happened settling over them. He stood up, gently helping her up too and let go of her hands.

“That was too close. We’ve gotta get outta here.” Kyle glanced around, noting the chute they’d just come from and clocking the two others nearby. “Take that chute and I’ll take this one, with luck we’ll meet up on the other side.” Jaden nodded, trying to shake the nerves and hurried to the chute her master had pointed out, flinching at the sounds of the trash compactor behind her, focusing her Force energy on not slipping backwards.

With some momentum, she cleared the top of the chute and entered a small control room guarded by unsuspecting stormtroopers and their commander, a small man with a balding head he was desperately trying to cover up.

“Where did you come from?” He yelled in shock and tried to shoot Jaden, missing miserably. She hacked her way through the stormtroopers until it was just the two of them.

“Activate all the lifts, now!” Jaden demanded. “And be sure to kindly point me to the nearest one.”

“Y-y-yes, of course.” The little man had his hands up as he went to the control panel and pulled a switch then pointed to the only door out of the room. “I-its through there! Please don’t hurt me, I didn’t even want this job with the trash compactor but they made me!” 

Jaden shook her head and stepped forward to examine the door, fearing no harm from her enemy without his blaster. She sighed with relief. That’s pretty convenient that the switch to activate the lifts is on the control panel for the trash compact-

“Wait!” She whirled around to see the small man holding a blaster he’d kept hidden. In the next second he fired off a round and Jaden had no choice but to deflect it back at him. He crumpled to the ground and Jaden exited without a glance back. Never turn your back on an Imperial.

She entered a small hallway that only led one way and took a right at the end of it when she saw that going left was a dead end with crates shoved in the corner. At the end of the hall were two doors, one with red lights signaling it was locked, the other green. She took her only option and heard the sounds of lightsabers clashing. She breathed more easily, knowing Kyle had made it too.

“You should run!” Kyle was taunting as he fought not one, nor two, but three armed cultists at a time. Jaden was so amazed and shocked that she almost sat back and watched the whole thing, but shook herself and jumped into the fray.

Between the two of them it wasn’t much of a fight and soon all three Sith lay dead on the floor. Kyle looked up at Jaden, grinning, the excitement of battle ablaze in his eyes, he looked almost ten years younger.

“That worked out well. I thought I’d have to search high and low for you.”

“Funny, I was thinking the same about you,” Jaden quipped and they both chuckled as Kyle led her out of the room, which had been the one he’d come into through a broken vent and only led back to the compactor. Jaden showed him the locked door.

“I’ve got this one,” Kyle said, starting to mess around with the control pad. “I learned how to hotwire these kinds of things a long time ago, takes some skill, doesn’t always work but sometimes…”

The door slid open.

“Got it!” He exclaimed and they entered the room. “I see why they locked it.”

The floor was covered with water. 

“I guess a pipe burst or something, follow me.” Jaden followed Kyle, the water going up to her mid calf at its deepest point and then down again as they approached the lift door on the other side. Kyle tried to open it.

“This lift is locked down, too.” He glanced around them and saw a switch several feet away against the wall. “Maybe this switch…” He used the Force to throw the switch, but it flipped back up. “Oh, come on…” With a note of frustration, he pulled the switch down harder this time, forcing it to stay, but sparks began flying from it. “Uh-oh.” Kyle followed the chain reaction with his eyes as the circuits in the switch panel overloaded and looked up to the ceiling above them at the power conduits that hung there. He could see it all before it happened. “Jaden, watch out!” There was a small explosion and one end of the conduit fell out of the ceiling, Jaden jumped out of the way and Kyle held the conduit up by the Force grunting with the effort. “Jaden, find a way to drain the water. If this power conduit hits the floor we’re both gonna be fried!”

Jaden looked frantically around the room to find something, anything, to drain the water. She looked to the wall on the left hand side facing the door they’d come through and saw the pumps, recently installed by the looks of them. I guess the Imperials had better stuff to do besides immediately draining out this room.

 The switches for the pumps sat a little too high for her to reach physically so she reached out through the Force. It worked and they began to make a soft, almost calming noise as the water level slowly shrank until there were only tiny puddles here and there.

Kyle let go of the conduit and eased it down to the dry floor. He was looking up into the ceiling when Jaden returned to his side.

“Well look at that. Guess we made our own path.” He pointed into the ceiling and suddenly leapt high and into a huge, black gaping hole that had been made when part of the conduit exploded. Jaden didn’t like that she couldn’t see very far into the hole, but Kyle had gone first, so she wasn’t afraid to follow him. She failed her first jump attempt, then resorted to shimmying up the conduit, balancing about halfway up and aiming a jump to the small ledge she could now make out that Kyle was standing near, his boots barely an outline in the dim, red light that she could now see in the vent space of the ceiling.

In the next moment she was there beside her master and he gestured to a small corridor barely high enough for him to stand up straight and they followed it.

“How are we going to get up into the Castle this way?” Jaden asked.

“Well, when you’ve been to as many places and done as many things as I have, you really start to figure out where things are and the secrets they contain. Also, I was an Imperial officer once, remember?”

“I still find that the craziest fact about you to date.” Jaden shook her head, it was hard to imagine Kyle as a stuffy officer in, of all things, a uniform and taking orders.

“Well believe it, but that was a lifetime ago and I changed my ways pretty quickly.”

“Then, how did you become a Jedi?”

“Have I not told you this story?”

“No old timer, you haven’t.” Jaden stopped, Kyle did too and glanced back at her. She wondered if she’d gone too far, but Kyle’s lips cracked into a smile and he chuckled.

“You know, I think I’m starting to rub off on you.”

“Corrupt is more of a better term.”

“Scratch that, I think you’ve spent entirely too much time with Jan.”

Jaden thought of using this opportunity to ask about the questionable status of their relationship, but second guessed it; he might not tell her anything and then she’d get no backstory whatsoever. She went back for her first question.

“So, how did you become a Jedi?”

“Well, that’s something of a long story, but I think I can give you the bullet points while we’re figuring out where to go. My father, Morgan Katarn, was a Jedi who escaped the slaughter of the Jedi Knights during Order 66.” Jaden nodded to herself, she’d read about that event. Terrible, tragic and saddening were too cheap of words to describe what had happened. “I was pretty young at the time and my mother and I were his only secret he kept from the Jedi Order, and when he escaped, he laid aside his saber to become a family man on our little farm on Sulon. 

“Much to his chagrin, I joined the Imperial Academy when I got older. I hadn't known about his past, but I knew he disliked the Empire. Still I felt betrayed by him, that he hadn’t been there for my mother or I for some years until the Empire suddenly came into power. But he didn’t judge me, he knew how hard it was for a farm boy like me to get an education and at the time, the Imperial Academy was the best there was. My father disappeared again from my life, it was only years later that I discovered he’d become a member of the Rebel Alliance. I found out he was murdered not long before I graduated. 

“Some time later, I had become a stormtrooper and led my first assignment: To capture and kill Rebels. That’s when I met her.”

“Jan?”

“Yeah, I was supposed to execute her and the others she was with but...” Kyle sighed. “I couldn’t do it. I wouldn’t. Well, long story short, those Rebels got away and Jan offered me a chance. And I took it. That’s how I became a Rebel myself, and then, after the war, a mercenary. Jan and I have worked together ever since. She was my co-pilot.”

They came to a cross way and Kyle took a guess at which passage to take.

“Did you ever find out who killed your father?” Jaden asked.

“Yes. You see, it wasn’t until after his death that my father arranged for his lightsaber to be sent to me, believing I was finally ready to accept it. He encouraged me through a message he’d recorded years before that he wished for me to follow in his footsteps. To become a Jedi and use the Force. 

“That’s how I met Luke and started my basic training, then started helping him with some problems that sprang up, one of Vader’s leftover Inquisitors for starters. A man named Jerec. He was my father’s murderer.”

The air was heavy with the weight of Kyle’s story, but Jaden didn’t want to even breathe the wrong way for fear the spell of it would be broken.

“I helped keep the Valley of the Jedi safe from Jerec who wanted to use its power for his own nefarious purposes. After I defeated him, shunning the dark side and killing him in a fair fight, Jan and I were the only ones who knew its location. Luke even asked me not to tell him. I also helped train a few new students when Luke was getting the Academy started, but…”

Jaden waited in rapt silence, with nothing but the sound of their footsteps echoing in the ventilation duct.

“But I was tempted, nearly corrupted by the dark side, I’d found a Sith artifact and was possessed by it. One of Luke’s students, a girl I’d helped train, she came after me, she brought me back. I was free but the powers of that artifact I’d found, and the dark place I’d sought out…” He took a breath to calm himself, the memories were still somewhat raw, that much Jaden could tell. “She… she died for her efforts; she died to save me.

“After that, I put down my lightsaber for good, swore off the Force, and went back to work with Jan again. If not for her… She really helped me through that time.”

“But…” Jaden said quietly. “You’re a Jedi now , you train students… How…?”

“How did I return? That’s a story for another time, and it looks like we’ve found the end of this tunnel.”

Jaden looked ahead. Kyle was right, the passage they’d been traveling down ended abruptly at the inside of an enormous air tube where gusts of wind traveled up, providing fresh air to the whole facility. She gasped when Kyle suddenly stepped off into the tube and flew upwards.

“Kyle!” She screamed, running to the edge and looking into the dark, windy tube, gripping the side of the wall for support.

“Relax kid!” Echoed Kyle’s voice. “I’ve seen tubes like this before! We can ride them to the top!”

“Oh, Sithspit!” Jaden squeezed her eyes shut and let go of the wall, stepping into blackness and thin air. The current of wind caught her immediately before gravity had the chance to pull her down and she was swept up, tumbling and turning until she got the hang of it. Looking up, she saw the top of the tube and huge fans sucking air towards them. She gulped, not wanting to be cut to ribbons inside those large blades. But she then noticed another passage, this one lit with white light and Kyle was standing on the edge waiting for her!

“C’mon kid, you’ve got this!” He yelled down and she focused on using the Force to control her flight upwards. Kyle extended his hand and she reached for it, pushing herself forward. Their hands clasped and Kyle pulled her into the safety of the passage.

“Pretty fun, right?” He grinned, raising both eyebrows in delight.

Jaden couldn’t see it but knew pieces of her hair had come loose from her braid and were wildly sticking up like crazy. She nodded and started laughing, all the nerves spilling out. Kyle gave her a minute to re-orientate herself.

“It’s okay, I did the same the first time I rode something like that.” He winked, giving her shoulder a gentle pat.

They continued their journey through the narrow corridor until it opened up into a small room with a dead door on their left, its lights no longer shining, its control pad useless. To their immediate right a bright green laser suddenly blasted through an opening, with its beam’s power hitting a containment unit attached to the wall. The two Jedi stopped and stared as the beam stopped, then a few seconds later shot through the short doorway again. Kyle and Jaden looked around for another option out besides the ‘doorway of death’ as Kyle soon dubbed it.

“I wonder where this leads?” He said looking up to a walkway above their heads, not ten feet up and jumped. Jaden followed and they managed to find a doorway to a ledge that ran in a circle above the strange machine that spat out the green laser. Whenever the laser wasn’t firing, they could just make out the conversations of the stormtroopers that guarded the area.

“Boy, I could sure go for a death stick right now.”

“Those things’ll kill ya, you know.”

Jaden looked at Kyle, trying to hold back laughter and whispered, “You sure you made the right decision in quitting Imperial life?”

Kyle cuffed her arm lightly and walked along the walkway towards another access door. They entered another control room filled with Imperials, a cultist standing in their midst.

“How about you take the guy with the lightsaber this time around, I’ve got the Imps,” Kyle muttered to her.

“I take it you have some unfinished business with your former coworkers?” Jaden teased.

Kyle didn’t answer but Jaden saw a slight smile form before he hid it and jumped into the fight as well. Two Imperials fell at the end of Kyle’s cobalt saber before Jaden’s blade ever crossed with the cultist’s. The red bladed enemy momentarily took his eyes off of Jaden to watch with morbid fascination as her master proceeded to cut down three more of the Imperials within the blink of an eye. Jaden’s eyes followed the cultist’s and grinned.

“Gotcha.” The cultist looked back at his opponent too late. Jaden’s violet blade bashed away his weak attempt at a parry and he was rewarded with a fatal slash across his midsection. Jaden looked away to see Kyle fell four more Imps before the cultist’s body thudded to the floor.

Afterwards, they stood panting and took drinks of water from their canteens.

“Well, wasn’t that fun?” Kyle said in between gulps of water and deep breaths. He started looking for a way out and found another lift, this one in the open, it’s round platform able to fit four people easily. Master and apprentice stepped onto it, praying it wasn't like all the others that’d been shut down. A second later it shot up so suddenly that they both nearly lost their balance.

“Finally…” Kyle said under his breath. “A lift that works.”

“What do you think that thing was?”

“What thing?”

“That… machine down there? What does it do?” His apprentice asked.

“If memory serves correctly it provides power to a part of the facility sense it’s inside a power column. However, that type of laser belongs to a turbolaser turret, which makes me believe that somewhere above us, at the top of the Castle, is a large turbolaser used for the Castle's defenses.”

“Oh,” Jaden said, “That might make it hard if we try to fly out of here and they know that we were here.”

“Well, one thing at a time.”

The lift came out into the open of another control room and some very surprised Imperials. The way the two open doorways on either side of the room and the curve of the walls indicated that they were in a rounded tower of sorts.

“Jaden, take the left way and I’ll take the right, clear out the enemy as we go and meet in the middle,” Kyle said and was off quick as a flash.

Jaden went through the left way and crept along the crescent shape of the passage, confronting no one until she heard the voices of stormtroopers nearby.

“This place is creepy! Was this really Darth Vader’s castle?” One said.

“That’s what I heard,” replied the other.

“Sure glad I wasn’t stationed here when Vader was alive. I heard he liked to use stormtroopers for lightsaber practice.”

“I’ve never even seen a lightsaber.”

“Let’s hope we never have to.”

Jaden chuckled and showed them hers when she stepped out to show herself.

At the end of the corridor she entered through a door that opened into the middle of this round tower they were in. It was a section further up in the power column that housed the machine which went on hundreds of yards below, intermittently spitting out its powerful beam of verdant light. She was so high up she was close to the roof of it where wires and pipes and vents interconnected with each other.

This is it? A dead end? She saw Kyle and ran to meet him.

“We’re at a dead end, Kyle!” She lamented. “What are we going to do?”

Kyle looked around. “We’re still technically in the underbelly of the Castle, not the Castle itself. Somewhere above us should be the main rooms but, we’d have to have entered a different way.” His tone held hints of dejectedness, though he was trying not to show it.

Jaden hung her head. It would take hours to double back and they didn't have much time, the Disciples of Ragnos were probably draining the Force power from this place at that very moment. She looked back up at the ceiling, remembering how they’d made their own way back in the flooded room with the power conduit. Along the wall just below the vaulted ceiling were four panels that seemed to be stabilizing the machine’s energy.

“What if we made our own way?” She asked Kyle, he followed her gaze to the panels and grinned.

“Good idea! We can feed the energy back into the machine and overload it!” They split up again and ran along the ledge, using the Force to pull the panels down, forcing the energy to become unstable. They backed up as close to the wall as they could as the machine overloaded, followed by several small explosions, parts of the ceiling began to fall apart all around them. It was all noise and explosions of light, they struggled to stay on the ledge. As some of the debris and rubble fell, a large chunk hit the walkway near where Kyle was standing and it crumbled beneath him. Jaden watched in horror as the floor fell away and Kyle with it, his scream echoing loudly throughout the chamber. 

“KYLE!!!” Jaden’s scream mingled with her master’s. 

She bit her lip to hold back another scream as wet tears poured down her face, her legs screaming to get away from the destruction raining down around her, but her head refusing to look away. There was no time, only adrenaline and unsorted thoughts. 

Jaden looked for a way out and saw it, a hole just big enough for her to jump through had opened in the vault of the ceiling just as she had hoped and she leapt for it. She crawled through rumble as she pushed her way past the weakened parts of the roof and higher into a more stable section. She sat inside an undamaged part of a vent and curled her legs up, hugging them with her arms and resting her chin on her knees to keep herself from falling apart as sobs threatened to spill out. 

Kyle. Where’s Kyle? Where are you Kyle? Are you dead? What do I do? What should I do? What do I tell Luke? What do I tell Jan? Oh Stars what do I do?

Breath came ragged and harsh, she leaned against the wall even as the others seemed to close in on her. She picked a spot, a speck of the wall and focused on that instead of the image of Kyle falling, panic and sheer terror pasted on his face that mirrored her own, the whites of his eyes.... Breathing very slowly became normal again as she sorted out her raging storm of thoughts and emotions. She didn’t have much options, and trying to go back to look for Kyle was nigh on impossible. She reckoned she could eventually find a way out, but what then? What of their mission?

She decided to make a very hard choice. One that she knew without Kyle’s training, without all those Scenarios meant to teach her about failure and persevering, she’d never be able to make it. She hated it as much as she felt she could hate anything, but she did it anyway.

With a heavy resolve, she chose to move on and complete the mission alone.

Chapter Text

Jaden wiped some blood away from a cut on her hand as she crawled up through the narrow vent space, always moving higher through the cracks that the machine’s overload had caused. It wasn’t bad, just a scratch, but it stung and she considered healing it since their medpack was long gone with Kyle… But she left it alone, for some reason glad to feel pain that wasn’t on the inside, and she strangely liked it, embraced it, let it fuel her to keep moving, to stay alive.

She finally pulled herself up into a space occupied by broken power conduits that’d burst during the overload, avoiding the hot steam, her sights set on a bright light above her, coming from what she hoped was a room inside the Castle proper. She paused for a moment to catch her breath, hoping the room would be empty, which she figured if there were people in the space above, there’d be quite a bit of frantic sounds from people about the literal hole in the floor.

“Jaden, are you okay?” Goosebumps covered her flesh and her whole body started to shake at the voice coming from her comlink. She fought against sobs of relief as she held the com up.

“Yeah, I’m fine Kyle,” she choked out, a stray tear falling over her dirty cheek, causing a streak. “Where are you?”

“I’m not really sure. I’ll have to catch up with you. Go on ahead without me, you’ll be fine, I believe in you kid.” All these familiar words of his that she felt only moments ago she’d never hear again washed her with relief and she silently vowed to never take them for granted again. She nearly signed off when she heard voices from above. Whatever room it was, people were entering it to investigate what had happened.

“What’s going on, Jaden?” She realized she never released the talk button.

“Nothing I can’t handle,” she spoke quietly.

“Good, I ran into some trouble, but I’m almost to the top of the core. I’ll see you soon.”

Jaden shoved her com in her pocket. With new resolve and revitalized energy thanks to Kyle still being alive, she leapt the final few feet inside a large, open room into which stormtroopers were quickly filing.

There were too many, even for her alone, so she did the only thing she could think of to even the odds. She threw forth her empty hands and lightning spewed from them, tackling at least half of the force before her. They went down screaming and she released more crackling blue and violet bolts at the rest of them. Once they were all down, she took stock of the room, round with four doors around the perimeter. Only one appeared unlocked and it was the one from which the troopers had come in from. She took it, thankfully not running into anyone else on the other side as she passed down a hallway.

She slowed halfway down however, at the sense of something, the dark presence of a cultist. As she neared the end of the hall where it turned a corner into another room, she heard him speak to someone, another cultist by what she could sense.

“Are you new here?” A soft, almost hypnotic voice asked.

“Yes,” replied his companion.

“You made a wise choice. The Master will soon return to lead us to glory.”

Master? Is he talking about Ragnos? Jaden wondered.

She took another step forward and a metal tile in the floor squeaked. Sithspit.

“Ahh, a little mouse has come to play,” said the first voice who took a few steps in her direction. “Come out little mouse.”

“First of all. Don’t. Call. Me. Mouse! Or any other pet name. Creep.” Jaden leapt out from behind the corner, brandishing her lightsaber. The two cultists smiled, she could see it in their eyes since their mouths were covered. But it was a dark, evil humor she saw there, not joy.

Dueling in a tight space was not preferable at all. She twisted around, Force pushing one cultist into the nearby wall and focusing on the one in front of her. She managed to grasp his saber hand, digging in her nails and wrenching it from him, striking him to the ground before returning to the other one who’d gotten up and was especially angry. 

She now fought with two lightsabers in her hands, purple and red flashing back and forth, trying to gain the upper hand. She struggled with the feeling of using a new fighting style, something that only a few Jedi at the Academy knew how to use properly. She stepped back, stumbling on the dead cultist’s body and began to stagger. Her opponent rushed forward, the anticipation of the kill blazing in his fiery eyes. She barely caught the blade with the red one she held, planting one foot behind her. 

Before he knew it, Jaden swung her violet blade up, severing her opponent's saber and he was history. Though, as she stood over him, she recognized the feeling of satisfaction at killing someone who’d taunted her and called her a name she didn’t particularly like and she felt cold all over. I struck him down in anger. That’s not the Jedi way. What have I done?

She threw down the red lightsaber she’d been dueling with and cut it in half. She moved on, resolving to not kill an unarmed opponent again. Besides, fighting with two lightsabers was a new challenge all its own, even though Jaden rather liked the feel of another lightsaber and being able to block and gain advantage. On the other end it was difficult controlling two sabers and not having one hand free, but she decided that perhaps when she got back to the Academy, she’d request Kyle and Luke to let her start on the path towards making another lightsaber for combat.

She stepped onto a small, nearby lift and took it up. At the top was a door that led out onto a wraparound balcony that stretched half of the perimeter of the large room she’d come up into. She ran across it and found a door on the far side leading into some barracks belonging to stormtroopers who were very much present, but there weren’t very many of them to deal with.

Jaden wondered exactly where she was going. They’d been sent to determine if the Disciples were here to drain Force energy and hoped She and Kyle wouldn’t have to search the entire Castle. But by the looks of all the Imperials and cultists she was facing, they seemed to be leading her somewhere. At any rate all the lifts she encountered went up, so that’s where she would keep going.

She exited the last barrack room and entered a short hallway that emptied out into a room with a wide, circular lift in the middle. She heard voices on the other side of it and stopped to listen.

“We’re wanted up in the Throne Room,” said one voice, strangely hypnotic, like the cultist from earlier. Did they all sound like that?

“For what?” Questioned a second one.

“I guess they’re almost done up there. We’ll be leaving soon.”

“Too bad, I would’ve liked to stay a little longer. I hear there’s a statue of him that I’d very much like to see.”

Him? Throne Room? Jaden didn’t know Vader had a Throne Room, but seeing as how this place was his Castle, it made sense, and even more importantly, she had a location to aim towards. It had to be where they were siphoning the Force energy! She just had to take out her opponents on the other side of the lift. She didn’t want to be dueling enemies all day, she didn’t have the strength for that, but she did have another secret weapon. Tiptoeing around the side of the lift as the cultists continued their conversation about Vader and the paraphernalia around the Castle, she saw that only one was armed, assuming that the other was wielding the Force as his weapon, just like the one in Racto’s office building on Coruscant. She took a deep breath, she’d have to be quick.

She leapt out of hiding and struck them both with Force lightning, down they both went to the floor, convulsing as if in a seizure. She rushed back around the other side and took the lift up. It opened up onto a balcony above a small hangar where TIEs hung from the ceiling, with large windows along one wall that looked out onto the dismal landscape of Vjun. It was still raining and a weak light streamed in through the windows, but Jaden felt a strange happiness at seeing any daylight after being inside vents or in the underbelly of the Castle for hours on end.

She found a staircase leading down into the hangar and looked around. No one, good.

“Jaden,” Kyle said and she quickly grabbed her com. “I just got into the castle. Looks like you took care of everything down here. Where are you now?”

“I’m in a hangar, but the lift I took to get up here still has a couple of cultists near it, this place is crawling with them so I had to go on the offensive to get through.”

“Okay, that’s alright, I’ll take care of it. I’ll catch up with you soon.”

“And Kyle?”

“Yes?”

“I heard one of the cultists mention something about a Throne Room and that they ,- I guess the cult leaders- were almost done up there.”

“Good work! Alright, keep going and I’ll be there as soon as possible, but do not engage whoever’s up there okay? Try your best to stay out of sight and observe what’s going on and wait for me to arrive, we have no idea what these cult higher ups are capable of.”

“Will do, I’ll see you soon.”

Jaden did a sweep of the hangar, finding a corner that led into a maintenance repair room for TIE Fighters, various spare parts hanging everywhere or leaning against the walls. Another short lift brought her up to a small platform and a door that led into a droid repair room, pieces of protocol droid arms, assassin droids and astromechs littered the floor and workbenches. Past this was a hallway that opened up into a room lit with eerie red light and closed doors in the four corners. The door behind her suddenly shut and a button on a nearby control panel in the middle started to blink. I have a bad feeling about this.

With no other options, she pushed the button.

One of the corner doors opened and chaos broke loose. Two round shaped, hovering sentry droids burst out and started blasting a barrage of yellow bolts in her direction. Jaden somersaulted to the side to avoid being hit. Coming up on one knee, her lightsaber came out to block the next onslaught from the droid's corrected aim.

One sentry fell from a deflected bolt and Jaden launched herself at the remaining droid, slicing it perfectly down the center. She panted, glancing around, hoping to spot the exit.

Another corner door opened. But nothing came out of it, it was just an empty room. Jaden went to have a closer look, wondering if her way out was hidden within. Nothing. Then why-

A door set into the next corner down opened. Out stumbled something similar in design to Lannik Racto’s assassin droids, but it looked old, like it hadn’t had maintenance done on it in a very long time. It jerkily raised the blaster in its mechanical hand at Jaden and fired. She could’ve stayed standing perfectly still and even then the bolt wouldn’t have hit her. She made quick work of the droid and happened to glance towards the control panel she’d pushed the button on. Three short pillars had risen out of the floor around it at the corners. Only three.

Oh Sithsp-

The last corner door opened and out stepped a singular lightsaber combat droid. It was like the ones Luke used at the Academy, but another outdated modal just like the previous droid. It all finally clicked for Jaden.

This was a training room—Darth Vader’s training room!

The combat droid was now advancing swiftly toward her, she shook her head and braced herself, holding onto the thinnest hope that the blade it carried was set to training mode. When she blocked its first strike, she pushed against it and the droid stumbled back, the yellow blade cutting a deep rent in the metal wall nearby.

Okay, so that’s a very real lightsaber!

Panic tried to root itself in her, flooding her mind with memories of her first day of training, of the dangerous prank Rosh had played on her. She could still remember Kyle’s reprimand to him: “If that droid was set to Luke’s training regimen, it would have killed Jaden. What were you thinking?”

Luke’s training regimen. That’s gotta be one of the toughest levels of lightsaber combat to face at the Academy. But what about this droid? What level was it set to if it was meant for Vader?

Panic wove more of its icy threads around Jaden’s insides. But she knew giving into it would mean the death of her. Continuing to cross sabers with this droid wasn’t an option. So she went on the defensive.

Backpedaling quickly, Jaden turned around once she was a safe distance from the swinging yellow blade and ran for her life. Once she’d gained as much distance between herself and the combat droid, she turned quickly on her heel and implemented her tried and true method of dispatching droids and blaster wielding enemies: She used her lightning.

The droid tried to parry at first, but it wasn’t programmed for defense against this type of attack. The blue and purple bolts of high voltage energy crawled their way across the droid's limbs and body, overloading and eventually short circuiting it until it crumbled to the floor, now a pile of junk and scrap metal.

A silence fell over the room, broken only by the sound of that last short pillar rising into place at the corner of the control panel. The torture was over.

A door at the end opened and Jaden ran through, fearing the room would reset, vowing to never complain about Kyle’s training methods ever again.

A lift took her down a short distance and she entered into a wide, open room with stairs on one side leading up to a walkway and a door. But what commanded her immediate attention was, up ahead, standing before a small dais of sorts, was a man clad exactly like her strange opponent from earlier. A Reborn.

He merely stared at her, red eyes glaring, as if they could set her ablaze.

“Umm, hello?” Jaden said, feeling very uncomfortable. The Reborn didn’t respond. He ignited his lightsaber, whose hilt was very long for a normal saber, she thought. That is until he ignited the other end, revealing it to be a staff lightsaber. Jaden had only seen one person use such a saber and that was Master Tionne, but she’d never actually dueled her, just her students. I guess there’s a time to learn and that time is now.

She had a feeling she could get the upper hand with this one because of her free range of motion and movement. But she wasn’t about to underestimate his skill, remembering how tough the first one was.

She rushed him, turning to the right at the last second to avoid his saber moving to block a strike that never came. With his saber up he was exposed, but he side stepped her slash. He’s smarter than he looks. She leapt into the air, expertly vaulting over him and landed on the other side, their blades crossing. It wasn’t very hard to block him, but Kyle was right, she could not give him an inch or he would take the advantage. He was much bigger than her and she used this to her advantage, letting him make swings with entirely too much power behind them and side stepping at the last second with her opponent losing his balance. But again, he regained it before she could make a good slash at him. Suddenly, he started spinning his lightsaber, creating a shield of protection in front of him. Jaden took her chance. She jumped and flipped high into the air, landing softly and slashed her blade across the Reborn’s back without a second to spare. He sucked in one final breath and fell to the floor.

Jaden breathed out slowly through her nostrils. 

It’s over, I did it, I killed my first Reborn and didn't need help doing it. 

She glanced behind her at the huge window through which streamed weak light from outside, providing what would be a pleasant view of the canyons if the place hadn’t been so dismal and coated with the presence of the dark side. In front of the window laying toppled on the dais, was the debris of a statue. Jaden stepped in for a closer look. From what she could make of the broken pieces, it was of a black, robed figure. She moved towards where the top of it had fallen and stopped short, her breath stopping with her feet. A black helmet, still shiny, made of the blackest obsidian, with even darker eye sockets that threatened to drown her, choke the life out of her. She imagined she heard its breathing and had to shake her head to keep from returning to that dark vision from her first day. Darth Vader’s statue. She thought back to the conversation she’d heard from the cultists. It wasn’t them who’d done it, or anyone else here for that matter, but someone else, some time before this, she could feel it. 

Hm. Someone didn’t like Vader much…

Kyle’s words from earlier that morning filtered back through her mind. “I’d heard rumors that Luke had been to Vjun, but he never really talked about it…” Had Luke done this?

“Are you here as a curious pilgrim, an admirer of Lord Vader as well? Or are you just here to disturb my brethren while they do the work of the Master?” A cold voice from behind asked. Goosebumps formed on the back of Jaden’s neck and she turned to face another Reborn, standing just at the top of the stairs, his approach had been deadly silent. She shivered at the thought that he could have snuck up right behind her. How many of these guys are there? She thought, I’ll bet the Throne Room’s right through there at the top of the stairs.

“You tell me,” she said in answer to his question. “Do I look like a brainwashed Sith to you?”

The Reborn chuckled, but it wasn’t a warm laugh with any humor in it. “Very funny, you look like a brainwashed little Jedi.”

“Hurtful.” Jaden and the Reborn’s sabers were out a moment later, with her enemy bearing two of them. Jaden had a clever idea after having tried dueling with two lightsabers earlier. She was going to use the issues she knew she dealt with against him and hoped it worked, in all probability it might not, seeing as he was most likely highly trained. But this plan was all she possessed, and she had to try. Red met purple and the sound echoed within the large room. This Reborn was agile and seemed to enjoy using his athleticism and Force assisted acrobatics to try and overwhelm Jaden. This worked to her advantage. She was not impressed or intimidated in the slightest and searched for an opening whenever he would cartwheel or flip away to avoid her strikes. She set about pretending to come at him. As soon as he began a form of acrobatics, she pushed hard to trip him up, but he would easily recover as if it was his plan the entire time. 

“Not going to work, Jedi. I know all your tricks!”

Okay then, time to switch tactics.

She let him come her way, ducked a slash that nearly took her head off and grabbed him violently from behind in a Force grip. He choked and sputtered, then pushed her off him. Jaden fought to regain her balance, and shot lightning towards him to distract as she reset herself. It hit him in an exposed part of his side and he cried out as he was shot backwards, toppling over the broken pieces of Vader’s statue. Jaden leapt into the air, flipping once for extra flair but almost second guessed it knowing it was purely for showing off and brought her saber down on his crossed ones. He was half sitting, half lying on the floor and she saw an opportunity. She stomped her foot as hard as she could where it hurt him the most. His hands weakened their grip on their hold of his sabers and Jaden broke through, slicing him from head to groin.

She stood up straight and turned around so that she didn’t have to see her gruesome work a second longer and looked up the stairs to the passage he was guarding. 

The Throne Room.

She wasted no more time in running up the stairs and through the short passageway to the large door at the end of it. This was it, this was why they were here.

Jaden entered Vader’s Throne Room, it was long and narrow with tall gray pillars lining either side leading up to the only interesting thing in it: a large, hexagonal pod that loomed tall, its gleaming black sides opened like crooked teeth to reveal an immaculate interior that so starkly contrasted the outside. The center of the chamber was just big enough for a person to sit comfortably inside of, an object more fit for meditation than as a functioning throne. 

But Jaden didn’t take all of this in until much later, because something much more pressing was happening in front of the throne-like meditation chamber. Up three short steps stood three people, two were identically dressed individuals in reddish-orange robes with their arms folded, facing the door and in the middle was the third, wielding the all too familiar shaped scepter at Vader’s Throne…

“I sense your presence, Jaden,” the figure holding the scepter said, turning slowly to face her.

Jaden came to a sudden stop, for the moment she saw nothing else in the room but him. “Rosh?!” So many emotions from relief to shock to confusion raced through Jaden’s mind as well as a myriad of questions. “What are you doing here?”

Rosh stepped away from the throne and came right between the twins, for that was what Jaden realized they were, and lowered the scepter to his side.

“The Disciples of Ragnos brought me. At first, I thought they were going to kill me, but I was wrong about them.” He glanced at each of the twins, sounding genuinely thankful much to Jaden’s confusion and chagrin. “Do you realize how much power there is in the dark side? Kyle was holding us back, Jaden.” He held the scepter out in front of him, grasping it in both hands. “You should feel the power. It’s beyond anything you’ve ever imagined!” Jaden saw his eyes sparkle with something bordering on crazed drunkenness and it frightened her, it reminded her of their mission on Tatooine when he slaughtered the Sand People while protecting her.

“Rosh, what are you saying?!” She threw her arms out in disbelief. “You’re a Jedi!”

Rosh hesitated, he looked overwhelmed and fell unexpectedly to his knees, placing the scepter on the floor and holding his head in his hands as if to shut out conflicting voices. That’s it! Jaden felt it, she hadn’t fully lost her friend to the dark side. 

“No…” Rosh mumbled. “No, I…”

The twin on Rosh’s left stepped forward. “Enough talk!” He growled. “Rosh! Destroy this puny Jedi so we can complete our task!”

Rosh slowly stood to his feet, pulling a lightsaber from his belt. Jaden noticed it wasn’t his. A bitter resolve spread over his face. “Yes…” he said slowly, pointing his saber hilt towards her, “if you're too weak to join us, Jaden, then we can’t let you stand in our way.” This last word he growled out as the crimson blade in his hand illuminated his face, seemingly splitting it in two as he held it perfectly out in front of himself.

Jaden brandished her lightsaber, standing ready for Rosh’s first attack.

“You ready for me?” He said playfully, the way he used to when they trained. It definitely pushed a button for her as all kinds of emotions bubbled up to the surface and she jumped into action. But rather than going for Rosh, she caught him and the twins off guard by going for the one on his left, the one who’d egged him into fighting her. She sliced him across the chest and he fell with a blood curdling cry, the smell of burnt flesh filling the air.

His twin screamed in rage, “You will pay for that Jedi!”

Jaden was knocked to her knees, but not by Rosh, he was nowhere near her she realized. She saw the living twin’s eyes blazing red, he was the one who Force pushed her. As she started to get back up he did it again and she was thrown across the room, narrowly missing a pillar.

  Woah, this guy is powerful! Jaden shook her head to clear it, then saw Rosh coming at her, full speed. 

“Rosh…” she said but he didn’t stop, he was resolved. She rolled quickly to her feet, barely avoiding his saber and ran for the other twin. If I can take the other one out, maybe I can reason with Rosh. She prepared to jump to avoid the twins' attempt at pushing her but he tumbled out of her way instead and shot a bolt of red lightning from his fingers. Jaden caught it on her saber, deflecting it back at him. But he didn’t cry out in pain. Wait, where’d he go?

Rosh’s blade came from behind and Jaden was forced to cross blades with him again. “Come on Jaden, Kyle is holding you back! What’ll it take for you to finally see that?”

They exchanged several strikes, ending with Rosh catching Jaden’s low to high slash. She tried to reason with him. “When are you going to see that this cult is lying to you! They’re using your fear to control you!”

“No, they helped me use my fear to become more powerful than you and Kyle and anyone else at the Academy!”

“Then what about our friends?! Jas and Jacyyn, Arta-Mess and Kalil, Goran and Ral? They miss you. I miss you.” She parried his next strike and they locked eyes. 

“What friends? Last I checked, those were your friends who barely tolerated me!” His eyes wandered down to something that sparkled on her neck that’d caught his eye. His brows knit together, eyes narrowing.

“I see you finally started wearing it. How long did it take before you did? After I’d been missing a week? A month?”

“Rosh that’s stupid of course I wore it before you went missing!” Jaden urged even as guilt filled her. She’d worn it once before he disappeared. Once.

“Liar!” He raged. “Oh you’ll pay, you’ll all pay for underestimating me and pushing me away!”

Jaden couldn’t make any sense from what he was saying. “When did I ever push you-?”

“ALL. THE. TIME!” Rosh yelled with each strike. He struck at her so hard that it sent her backpedaling. There would be no reasoning with him even with the other twin dead. She had to figure out how to incapacitate him. “Remember when you told me to meet you on the roof?” He said, his voice lower, filled with pain and resentment. “I told you I never went up there, but I did.” He shook his head sadly, forcing a bitter laugh. “I waited all night for you and you never came! I wanted to be your friend but you pushed me away!”

“No Rosh, I told you I was sorry! Why didn’t you tell me? I didn’t mean to-” Slash after slash which Jaden had to parry came her way, keeping her on her toes.

“As far as I can see, we’re no longer ‘friends,’ we never were.” Rosh spat after their lightsabers connected and lingered for a moment.

“Then you leave me no choice. I’m sorry Rosh.” Jaden shot out her hand, willing power to release from her fingertips. The Force lightning struck an unprepared Rosh and he was thrown back, landing in a heap near the throne. 

Jaden turned around, glancing wildly around the room, trying to find the remaining Sith twin before Rosh came to. A sound from behind brought her back and she whirled around. The twin stood near Rosh, arms outstretched, orange-yellow beams of energy passing from him into Rosh. 

“By the Force…” Jaden whispered in horror, the purpose of the twins dawning on her. They weren’t just escorts or bodyguards, they were here to ensure Rosh, who wasn’t as powerful or fully trained as he boasted, didn’t get hurt or killed. An idea came to her.

Sneaking around the side of Vader’s meditation chamber, Jaden summoned as much will as she could into a powerful Force sprint as she rushed the twin to try and take him by surprise. The twin suddenly cartwheeled out of the way, dodging her attempt completely. Jaden was fed up at this point and didn’t care if she was getting just a bit frustrated, or angry.

“I am unbeatable!” The twin cried, thrusting out a hand to try and trip her up, but Jaden had gotten used to this trick by now.

“You won’t get away from me!” Rosh yelled from behind, fully revitalized. Jaden stretched out a hand in his direction, throwing him off balance and went for the twin.

Suddenly her saber wielding arm was grabbed, the twin was right there, his ugly face right next to hers. “You’re no match for us, Jedi!” He squeezed her arm so hard she cried out in pain and dropped her saber. It clanged to the ground behind him.

Jaden felt herself lifted into the air, hovering above the floor, an invisible hand like a vice held her throat. She choked, sputtering a cough. The twin was laughing.

“Rosh! Come take care of your little friend!” He looked Jaden in the eye. “You are truly pathetic!”

“Dasariah… maybe we shouldn’t…” Rosh’s voice sounded like his again, trembling slightly, unsure.

“Prove your allegiance, or are you as weak as we thought? Avenge Vil, avenge my fallen brother, or I’ll do it myself and leave you to pay for the consequences of your weakness!”

“No… I’ll… I’ll do it!” Jaden could hear the steely firmness of his voice, she was losing him. She was fighting unconsciousness and for breath, she was running out of time. Spotting her lightsaber laying on the floor, she made one last ditch effort, one more attempt.

“You are weak Jaden.” Rosh's voice came from behind, a hint of sadness marking his tone.

The sound of a lightsaber turning on by itself made Rosh stop and stare in amazement, because one second Jaden’s saber lay helpless on the ground, then before he could process what he was seeing, it flew with blinding speed past Dasariah and into Jaden’s open palm. She was ready as the Sith twin fell to the floor, releasing his Force grip on her and she landed on her feet unharmed. Dasariah had been nearly cut in two through the chest, his arm lay on the floor, severed at the elbow. Rosh looked like he was going to be sick. 

Jaden turned to face him. “This isn’t you Rosh, this isn’t who you are.”

“And how would you know?! Huh! You never really bothered to get to know me!” Rosh shot back.

“Yes I did!” She exclaimed, her hazel eyes pleading. “I wanted to get to know you better, the real you, the you that you barely showed me when we were on Blenjeel together. That’s the real you Rosh, not this, this cultist! You’re better than that!”

“No.” Rosh shook his head. “I was weak! But not anymore!”

“C’mon Rosh, it’s over! You don’t have to be afraid of them anymore. Kyle and I can take you back to the Academy and get you some help.”

His eyebrows furrowed at the mention of Kyle, his blood clearly boiling beneath his red cheeks. Just one look in his eyes told Jaden everything: Going back to the Academy, with them, and his tail between his legs to face Luke and all their friends was the last thing Rosh wanted to do. He’d rather die, or so it seemed.

He came at Jaden so forcefully that it almost caught her unawares. Almost. She swung her saber and connected with his, continuing to dodge and parry his strikes and attacks. Something had snapped inside him, that much she could see, his eyes were rimmed with red, unhinged.

“OOooOoo!” He taunted when he struck so hard that it sent her spirling backwards, barely keeping her footing. “I’ll show you! I’ll show you all!” He struck again, but she was ready for it this time. Without the twins, Rosh wasn’t exactly a match for her, but with blind rage, it did give him an edge and Jaden wasn’t resigned to killing him, determined to somehow knock him out or disarm him.

“Come on Jaden, you might as well stop!” Their lightsabers were locked, faces so close, closer, Jaden noticed, than they’d ever been before on either side of their crossed lightsabers. Another memory, another duel, another time, sprang back unbidden to the forefront of her mind. But she pushed it aside, there was no time for distraction. 

“Come to the dark side…” Rosh pleaded, his eyes softening a bit. Jaden held his gaze, he was right where she needed him. Her one hand held her saber and the other came up quickly. With a great exertion of Force power, she pushed Rosh back, sending him and his saber flying, stumbling onto the three small steps below Vader’s Throne.

In the next second, Rosh was on the ground, his lightsaber lay several feet away from him. He frantically pulled it towards himself with the Force but was too late. Jaden’s saber sliced through Rosh’s as it flew through the air and the two halves dropped uselessly to the floor. Jaden turned her attention to Rosh and approached him, lightsaber held high in the strong stance Kyle had taught her. 

“Jaden…” Rosh stretched out his left hand as a gesture of defenseless surrender. The heat of battle had worn off, his mind was seeing things more clearly. He fumbled for the right words to say, but nothing he could think of seemed to be the right thing. Their relationship could never be patched up with a simple apology.

Jaden wasn’t sure herself of what to say or do for that matter, anger burned within her at his betrayal, whispering to strike him down right there, and that thought scared her. But whatever she was about to do, or even say, was lost in the next instant.

“Jaden!” Kyle ran into the room. Jaden felt relief as soon as she heard her master's voice, he would know what to do. 

Inexplicable shame filled Rosh at the sight of Kyle. He was too embarrassed to even look his former master in the eyes. 

“Kyle… I-” He began, but that explanation fell flat. There was an audible silence.

Out of nowhere, Jaden and Kyle fell to their knees in agony as veins of red lightning coursed through their bodies.

“Oh.” The sound of a tongue clicking against teeth came out of the shadows of a hidden doorway and a tall woman clad in leather entered. Purple tattoos covered her arms, the top half of her face was painted the same color like war paint, her hair done up in a bun at the top of her head with green, yellow and orange feathers sticking out of it. She strode in with a swagger that exuded from her swaying hips and the sultry, cold smile on her lips.

“Did you really think I would give up my new apprentice so easily?” She pulled the scepter to herself. Suddenly the image before Jaden made it all clear. Her eyes widened.

She was the figure holding the scepter at the Massassi Temple! And those twins…

“Tavion!” Kyle exclaimed, shock and horror covering his face, causing Jaden to glance at him in confusion. 

Kyle knows this woman? How?

“You should have killed me when you had the chance, Katarn. Your pathetic Jedi mercy is a weakness that shall cost you your life…” She casually raised her hand in Kyle’s direction and the Jedi Master, who’d finally managed to stand to his feet, was violently thrown back against a nearby pillar. “...and the life of your Academy’s students.” She turned her attention to Rosh. “But not you, my dear Rosh. Come.” Jaden thought she was going to be sick. The way Tavion looked at and spoke to Rosh as though he was her pet was unsettling and turned her stomach.

Rosh stood mechanically to his feet in response. “Yes, Tavion.” His voice was eager and obedient as he walked over to her.

“Rosh, no!” Jaden begged.

“Fool!” Tavion looked at Jaden with venom in her eyes. “Your petty friendship cannot compare with the power of the dark side!” She laughed as she placed a hand possessively around Rosh’s waist as Jaden watched in disgust. But she was able to catch the briefest of expressions on her friend’s face, a tightening of the jaw muscles, a tension that spoke volumes of his not being fully comfortable or consensual to this… whatever this was between him and Tavion.

Kyle was standing now, brushing himself off. “So, is this what it's come to, Tavion? Stealing scraps of the Force like some sort of intergalactic parasite?” 

“Spare me your self-righteous pity Katarn! You may have shamed me when you spared my life, but that was before I found THIS…” She thrust the scepter forward for them to see. The curve of the two prongs of the scepter suddenly lit up a nagging thought, a lingering memory in the back of Jaden’s mind. The statue of Marka Ragnos from Racto’s office! Its horns match the shape of the scepters!

Almost as if in further confirmation, Tavion said, “Now… I have a new Master, one who promised me the power to destroy you and all the Jedi!”

Kyle shook his head, “Ragnos? What can a dead Sith Lord give you?”

“Everything I have ever wanted…” Tavion’s wicked smile returned, “not that you’ll be around to see it!” Jaden suddenly felt her arm gripped by an invisible hand and yanked forward, her saber flying out of her palm unwillingly, igniting on its own and wheeling up towards the ceiling. 

As her lightsaber cut into the roof, Tavion sent a blast of energy from the scepter, destroying Jaden’s precious lightsaber and collapsing more parts of the ceiling over their heads. Jaden didn’t have enough time to process the sinking feeling at the loss of her lightsaber or to take notice of where Tavion and Rosh ran off too. She threw up her hands as debris fell all around them, and Kyle didn’t miss a beat either in joining her. Together they created a Force barrier similar to the one they used to protect themselves from the acid rain, but far stronger.

“We have to find a way out of this!” Kyle groaned. “I can’t tell how much of this place she brought down on us!”

“Down?” An idea struck Jaden. “Kyle! It’s down! Quick, give me your lightsaber, I’m gonna cut a hole in the floor, it’s our only way out!”

“You’re… gonna have to grab it yourself, it’s taking all I have to hold this up!” Heavy beads of perspiration glistened on his forehead, Jaden reached for his belt and took his lightsaber, then set to work carving a sizable hole in the floor big enough for them to fit through, praying there was a space under them and that the floor wasn’t too thick. It wasn’t, but it took longer than she expected.  

“I can’t… keep this up for long!” Kyle’s voice was strained from the amount of focus and exertion of Force power he had to wield.  

“Look at how weak your master is. Use my knowledge and you will become more powerful than any Jedi. Including him.” Tavion’s voice filled her mind and she almost lost her concentration.

“Jaden!” Kyle’s voice cut through the fog.

“Hold on,” Jaden said, shaking her head. She was almost there! Suddenly, the circle was complete and fell through to the floor below. “Got it! Let’s go!” She exclaimed, then jumped down through the hole. Kyle, still concentrating on holding up the heavy pieces of the roof, slowly rose to a half crouch, and moved towards the hole. He leapt through and rolled away from the opening as soon as he landed. Bits of heavy debris that were small enough to fit fell through the gap above them, master and apprentice stood facing each other, breathing heavily, exchanging nods of understanding and appreciation. Jaden lifted Kyle’s lightsaber up, extinguishing it before handing it back to him. He took it gratefully, then looked down. Noticing something shining amongst the dust and debris, he bent down to pick it up.

“Hey, what’s this now?”

Jaden had tried asking Kyle the questions burning in her mind on the way back to the Academy, but all he answered was, “Not now, later. It’s a long, complicated story.” But in the end, Jaden was glad of the silence, it gave her time to think and process things through, particularly regarding the Scepter of Ragnos. Soon enough, they were both standing in front of Luke in the empty Audience Chamber, filling him in on everything.

“We looked everywhere after getting free, but Tavion had already taken Rosh and fled.” Kyle finished their story.

“So now we know who is leading this cult. But that doesn’t explain why there are so many Dark Force users,” Luke mused.

“Some of Desann’s leftover Reborn were with her,” Kyle answered grimly, Jaden cocked her head at this. 

Who’s Desann?

“As for the cultists, Jaden has a theory.” 

“I was thinking on our way back, if the scepter can store the Force, maybe it can release it too. Tavion could be using it to empower her followers.”

Luke rubbed his chin. “Corrupting disciples with the dark side of the Force… that would explain a lot.” He looked up at Kyle. “Did you get a good look at the scepter?”

“Yeah, I’d bet it belonged to Ragnos. We need to figure out what Tavion plans on doing with it if we’re going to stop her.”

Luke nodded. “Agreed.” He then turned to Jaden. “You are going to need to build a new lightsaber to replace the one you lost.”

“Already ahead of you sir,” Jaden said as she produced a tiny object out of the small pocket of her vest and held it up for him to see. “Kyle spotted it in the rubble that fell through the hole of the Throne Room’s floor!”

Luke smiled. “You’re Kyber Crystal! Jaden, that's wonderful, it’ll help put you a step ahead in the process for sure.”

“I was devastated when Tavion destroyed my lightsaber, but having the Crystal back makes it a little less painful because I’ll at least still have part of my old saber with me. I do have some great design ideas though that’ll be a major improvement!” Jaden was almost giddy like a child, the thought of a new lightsaber the perfect distraction from thinking about Vjun and all that had happened there.

Luke chuckled, “I can’t wait to see what you come up with. While we try to figure out what Tavion’s next move is, I’d like you to take a more active role at the Academy.”

“Sir?” Jaden looked up at him, confused.

“Jaden, you handled yourself exceptionally well on Vjun. To confront three Dark Jedi and defeat them took bravery and skill. For your efforts I feel you are ready to join our ranks as a Jedi Knight.”

“Congratulations.” Kyle lightly smacked the back of her shoulder blades affectionately.

Jaden could hardly contain the emotions bubbling up in her. “Me?! You think I’m ready?”

“We believe you’re ready Jaden,” Kyle said.

“That’s right, we do,” Luke agreed. “Now, normally from what I understand there’d be more ceremony to this, but since we’re still rebuilding the Jedi Order and there’s a cult out there that needs to be stopped soon, this will have to do. Kyle, step forward and present your lightsaber since Jaden is without hers.”

Kyle removed his saber from his belt and stepped forward, then turned to Jaden, who was still in shock at this new promotion and had no idea how to act. “What should I do, Master?” She said without realizing she’d used his title.

“Just follow my lead and do as I say.” Kyle winked. He turned to Luke and nodded. The Jedi Grandmaster bowed his head in consent. Kyle ignited his lightsaber and continued, “Jaden, step forward and kneel.” She did so. “Jaden Korr, as your master and with Grandmaster Skywalker as witness,” he lowered the saber to hover just inches above Jaden’s right shoulder, “by the rite of this Order…” he moved the blade over her head to rest just above her left shoulder “...and the Will of the Force, I dub you, a Jedi Knight.” He slowly raised his saber, its indigo blade returning to its source as he placed it back on his belt. “Rise, now Jaden,” Luke said. “You did wonderful.”

Jaden rose to her feet, feeling lighter and heavier all at once. “Yes, Master Skywalker. Thank you both.”

Luke gave her a warm smile, turned and walked out of the room. Jaden moved to go, she wanted to get started on her design for a new lightsaber as soon as possible, but Kyle’s hand on her shoulder held her back a moment:

“Jaden, after the battle, I felt the anger seething inside you. You may be a Jedi Knight now, but you still must beware of the dark side.”

Jaden turned to look her master in the eye. “Yes, Kyle. I’ll try not to fail you.”

Kyle sighed. “You’re alright kid. Here, come sit down for a moment, your new lightsaber can wait a little longer.” He led her a few feet back to the steps of the chamber that went up to the dais where Luke often addressed the Academy. “You asked about how I knew Tavion, well, I figure now’s as good a time to tell you.”

Jaden sat, attentive and ready to listen, bursting with curiosity; she gave him a slight tilt of her head and he began.

Chapter Text

“Like I’ve told you before, I wasn’t always the upstanding Jedi Master you know me as today,” Kyle said, his dry humor never lost on Jaden. “Jan and I were mercenaries for the New Republic after the destruction of the second Death Star, this was after I’d laid my saber down. We went on this mission to investigate an Imperial outpost on Kejim that was reported to be doing some pretty nasty experiments on living subjects. Jan and I snuck in no problem and found that not all of their ‘experiments’ lived. I still remember the sight of all those poor souls in that laboratory… We also came across some strange green crystals in the lab.” This detail tickled the back of Jaden’s brain, but she struggled to figure out why.  

“When we brought our findings to Mon Mothma, she told us these crystals were not dissimilar to Kyber crystals, and that she believed the experiments were being carried out by an Imperial scientist named Galak Fyyar, to see if he could infuse Force power into a living subject. Those poor souls in that laboratory were colonists from a mining world called Artus Prime.”

“Artus… Like, Artusian crystals?” Jaden gasped, realization dawning. “That’s what those crystals we confiscated from Racto’s office were! That’s why you looked so…”

“Shocked? Haunted? Yes, and more.” Kyle looked down at the floor for a moment, the memory's weight was very heavy. “Jan and I went to Artus to investigate and discovered that a fallen Jedi named Desann, was the one behind it all and had employed Galak. He and his apprentice-”

“-Tavion?” Jaden ventured a guess.

“Tavion,” confirmed Kyle. “They ambushed us at the mining colony where the crystals originated. I had renounced the Force at this time and didn’t have my lightsaber…”

“I have a prisoner for you, Master Desann,” Tavion said gleefully as she tightened the bonds on Jan’s hands, nearly cutting off her circulation. Nearby stood her master, a large Chistori male. Lizard-like in appearance, his scaly skin a blend of yellow and purple pigments, he smiled as only someone with a snakey mouth full of sharp teeth could.

“Well done, Tavion. Secure her in the cargo hold, and prepare her for processing.”

“At once, Master.” Tavion shoved Jan forward up the ramp of the Imperial shuttle. Jan glanced about frantically, her peripheral vision catching sight of a familiar, beloved figure running towards her to save the day.

“Blast ‘em, Kyle!” She shouted as she disappeared inside the ship with a final shove from Desann’s apprentice. Hearing this name, Desann turned to take in the newcomer.

“Kyle? Kyle Katarn?” He paced forward to get a better look at him, squinting hard. “You? You’re the legendary hero who destroyed Jerec at the Valley of the Jedi? You look like nothing more than a Bantha herder.”

Kyle came to a stop, looking his adversary up and down, not impressed either. “Well, you look like an overgrown Kowakian monkey-lizard, so I guess looks don’t count for much. Hand her over.” He raised the blaster in his hand level with the Chistori’s face. It’d be a clean, point blank shot.

Desann did not reply, but merely waved his clawed hand. Somewhere behind him, Kyle heard a great crash. When he turned he saw that a large metal bridge leading to some higher point above the mines had collapsed. Did he just use…? Kyle’s thoughts raced to comprehend how much this adversary was capable of. 

“You desire this woman?” Desann hissed, pulling an all too familiar weapon from his belt, its red glow illuminating his scaly face. “Come, take her.”

“Aww, Sithspit…” Kyle muttered and opened fire. Desann’s lightsaber easily deflected them away harmlessly. He then took to playing with Kyle, knocking him to his feet with the Force, taunting him for being a coward whenever he ran, dodged or hid. 

“A Jedi should never run from a fight!” Desaan yelled, his raspy voice grating on Kyle’s ears.

Finally, the giant Chistori tired of toying with his prey.

“Enough of this charade.” Desann put his saber away and knocked Kyle to the ground again with the Force. He lifted him up, flexing his clawed fingers to close the invisible vice around his victim’s throat. Kyle sputtered and coughed, trying to breath. Desann laughed coldly.

“You’re pathetic, Katarn. As a Jedi, you might have proven a worthy adversary. But without the power of the Force, you’re not worth the effort it would take to strike you down.” He glanced back at his ship and smiled with all of his teeth. “Perhaps your woman will prove to be of heartier stock… she certainly couldn't be any weaker than these colonists…”

Kyle grasped at his own throat, fighting for breath, his blood boiling. “Don’t you touch her!”

Desann laughed again and called back to the shuttle, “On second thought Tavion, kill her!”

Kyle heard the sound of a lightsaber turning on from inside the shuttle and his eyes went wide with terror.

“Kyle!” Jan screamed, grunting something else nonverbal, then there was silence.

“Jaaaaaaaaan!” Kyle cried, he felt his heart being squeezed even harder than the invisible hand on his throat until it shattered into a million pieces. Desann released his grip on Katarn and tossed him to the ground like a ragdoll, landing with a grunt, the pain on his inside more harsh than what his body felt in that moment. He was battered and bruised but none of it mattered. Jan was gone.

Desann turned and walked back to his ship, his steely laugh echoing long after he vanished inside of the hull. Kyle painfully looked up slowly as the ship lifted into the air and flew away. Shakily, painfully, he stood up, glaring after the ship as if his hatred of that overgrown lizard and his accomplice could burst the ship into flames and crash it.

“You want a worthy adversary? I’ll give you a worthy adversary!” He spat.

“Let’s grab something to eat,” Kyle said suddenly.

“What?!?!” Jaden exclaimed. “You can’t just stop there!”

“I can, and I will. I’m hungry, you’re hungry I assume, so let’s see if Ched got that shipment of Mantell Mix in yet and we’ll finish this story up on the roof, okay?” Kyle got up and started towards the door.

Jaden rolled her eyes and reluctantly followed him.

“But, I know Jan’s alive, so… what the heck happened?” She hurried to catch up with his long strides.

“I thought she was dead. Desann was playing a charade of his own and Tavion carried it out pretty convincingly. I’d heard her lightsaber, Jan’s scream… for all intents and purposes, I believed that they’d actually killed her and my rage blinded me after he left me defeated and alive. I thought that my anger was all I had left. Anger and revenge.”

They entered the empty dining hall, it was late, most people had gone to bed but Ched was still there. He greeted them warmly and handed them both their own cartons heaped generously with the delicious, crunchy snack. Jaden and Kyle made their way to the Academy rooftop which by now Jaden felt a special kinship with, that it was a place to go with people she was close to. Her heart ached when she remembered sitting up here with Rosh. Where was he now? Did he really hate her?

She and Kyle settled down near the edge, looking out at the stars. Kyle picked up his story without being asked or missing a beat.

“I went to the Valley of the Jedi not long after and used it to get my powers back to full strength. Heh, I’d forgotten how it felt, the Force coursing through my veins… The spirit of my father even tried to stop and reason with me, saying that Jan wouldn’t want to be remembered with anger or vengeance, but I went ahead anyway. 

“Afterwards I went and got my lightsaber back from Luke, he’d been holding onto it for safekeeping. But little did I know that I’d played right into Desann’s hands. He followed me to the Valley so that he could use its power to infuse his followers with the Force. It proved more successful than his failed experiments on Kejim.”

Kyle took a deep breath before his next words. Jaden got the sense that this was about to get harder for him to talk about, that he was getting to the true crux of his story.

“Thanks to some friends of mine, I tracked Desann’s movements to Bespin. He wasn’t there when I arrived, but I found his apprentice on one of the landing platforms. I still remember the power my anger had over me as I went to confront her…”

“Ah, the prodigal Jedi.” Tavion smiled wickedly at the sight of Katarn as he approached her on the Cloud City landing platform, high above the planet's core. She’d been about to enter the hull of a cargo hauler. “Have you come seeking vengeance? Oh,” she tsked , “that’s not very Jedi-like.”

Kyle had long since lost his patience and would waste no time with this witch’s games. “Where’s your Master, apprentice?” He ground out.

“Desann sends his regards, but is far too busy in the Valley of the Jedi to personally dispose of his pawns,” she answered smoothly.

“What?!”

“You still don’t know, do you? Desann followed you to the Valley of the Jedi. Even now, hundreds of Desann’s loyal followers are drinking deeply from the Valley’s power, becoming Reborn in the glory of the Force.” Tavion explained it all as if she were talking to an ignorant child. “And we owe it all to you.”

Kyle stared at her in disbelief, his rage nearly consuming him. “Then… you killed Jan.” It wasn’t a question, just a statement.

“That’s right,” Tavion said smugly. “We killed your woman to make you angry; angry enough to cast aside your promises and rashly seek out the power of the Valley. Just think of it: her death and your failure will be celebrated for eons to come as the events that brought about the Era of Desann. Congratulations.”

Kyle pulled out his lightsaber, its blade a fiery blue. “Stop… talking!” He growled as Tavion pulled out her lightsaber as well. In a heartbeat he was laying down blow after blow, his only thought: Avenge Jan, avenge Jan, avenge Jan…  

They dueled across the platform, dodging crates and boxes that surrounded them, trying at every turn to trip each other up and take the advantage. Kyle tried Force pushing Tavion off the edge of the platform, but she ducked to the side and rolled up to a crouch to catch his incoming strike. 

“I don’t think so!” She hissed and pushed away from him. The fight went on in this way, with Kyle nearly catching her off guard and Tavion finding a way to escape his tricks, until one small moment. Tavion brought her saber up to parry a high to low slash, but Kyle grabbed her saber arm tightly, nearly crushing it in his grasp. Tavion cried out and let go of her lightsaber. Kyle pushed her down and tossed her saber over the edge.

Tavion grunted as she fell to her knees, disarmed and defeated. Kyle stood over her, saber ready for the final death blow, but he didn’t use it. He had a better idea to dispose of this filth.

“D-d-don’t! M-m-mercy!” Tavion cried as she was lifted into the air by the Force, an invisible hand wrapping itself around her throat, squeezing the life out of her. Kyle, his free hand raised, maneuvered her over the edge of the landing platform. There was no telling how far she would fall before she either hit something or passed out from the panic.

“The kind of mercy you showed Jan?” He growled, blood red rage coursing through his veins. He hovered her a little farther out into the open air past the ledge. There was nothing but clouds below.

“She lives!” Tavion croaked. “I can tell you where she is!”

“Liar! I saw her die!” Kyle’s voice grated, eyes blazing.

“Think! What did you really see? What did you really hear? Do you believe we’d risk killing one of the only two people who knew the location of the Valley of the Jedi?”

Kyle paused to think, a tiny seed of hope beginning to glow in the darkness. He hadn’t actually seen Jan die, he’d just heard her scream. He let up ever so slightly on his Force grip. “Where is she?”

“That…” Tavion coughed once, then twice, trying to breathe. “… hauler… will take you to our base in the Lenico Belt. That’s where Galak’s ship, the Doomgiver, is docked, it’s also where he’s keeping your woman for further interrogations.”

Kyle wasn’t fully convinced, the seed of hope had grown a little bigger in the past few seconds, but he was still wary of it. “Why should I believe you?” He said through gritted teeth.

“Beca..-” she gasped softly, “Because I’m not brave enough to die!” Her voice rose to a fever pitch.

This cry, this declaration of visceral fear took Kyle aback. He knew fear well, how it festered and grew, spreading like a disease, giving birth to more fear, to anger and hate, bubbling over into rage until you were blinded by it. He felt all of his anger evaporate like a lanced boil. The seed of hope had grown even more, and he could sense the truth in Tavion’s words.

He sighed. Releasing the pressure on her windpipe, he pulled Tavion back over to the platform and released her to the ground a few feet behind him. He didn’t look back as she landed, grunting and breathing heavily, absently rubbing her throat gingerly as she sat up, shaking.

Kyle released one last angry breath, shoulders sagging, not once glancing behind. “Get out of my sight.” His voice was low, heavy with spent indignation. 

“What?” Tavion stared at Kyle’s back in disbelief. 

He stood up straighter, turned his head slightly in her direction. “You heard me,” he growled. “Go, and pray that I find your Master before he finds you.”

There was a shuffling as Tavion rose unsteadily, then ran for her life as far away from Katarn as she could. Only when he heard her receding footsteps did Kyle finally turn around and make all speed to the ship she’d indicated that would reunite him with his beloved Jan.

“I went to the Doomgiver, I found Jan, alive. She’d been tortured but she’d held on, she didn’t relent one bit.” The emotion in his voice was heavy, Jaden could hear his struggle to hold back tears. “It was like my life came back to me when I saw her alive in that cell. She didn’t lose her humor either after everything that had been done to her. I remember how she told me I’d certainly taken my own sweet time in rescuing her,” he chuckled softly.

Jaden thought now was probably as good as ever to ask her most burning question.

“Jan means a lot to you, doesn't she?”

Kyle turned his head to show her a shy grin. “More than anything.”

“I know that in the old days of the Jedi Order, attachments of that kind were forbidden but, I think you two make a great couple.” She winked. “Your secret’s safe with me.”

“Well, it’s not that secret, Luke knows. He’s not really as stingy or firm about preserving some of the old ways. Something he learned from his time fighting the Empire is that love for one’s friends is your strength, not a distraction or a weakness. 

“But Jan and I aren’t the flashy sort to go around parading our relationship. Although we did make it official not long after helping Luke take down Desann, just the two of us and an Elder on the quiet beaches of Spira. Not a big ceremony, but a nice one.” Kyle sighed, it was good to revisit the better memories of the past. “You know Jan’s truly the best thing that ever happened to me? And now, that includes you and yes, Rosh, as my students. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to make sure you two get the most out of this Jedi life. Besides marrying the woman of my dreams, becoming a Jedi Master was the best decision I ever made.”

Jaden couldn’t help her  growing curiosity. “Is it difficult not having Jan live here with you?”  

Kyle didn’t skip a beat. “Sometimes. Other times it’s nice to have my own space. And no students gossiping,” he said, cutting eyes at her with his last sentence. “Jan and I have almost entirely separate lives, but we make it work. She’s an agent of the New Republic now, often working with Leia. Kinda ironic seeing as how I work with her brother.”

Silence filled the space between them. Jaden stared out at the dark expanse glittering with stars, watching them get fuzzy as her eyes filled with tears as all kinds of emotions from the past twenty four hours began to wash over her. She blinked them away and turned to face her master who was looking away, he seemed so vulnerable at this moment.

“You made the right choice. Sparing Tavion I mean.”

“For better or worse. Yeah,” he laughed morosely. “I would think about her from time to time over the last two years, wondering what she was doing, if she was still alive, if she’d turned her life around… if she was plotting my demise. Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision.”

“You did, you didn’t give into hate, it’s what you're always teaching me. Tavion’s choices after you spared her life are not your fault. I hate what she’s done to Rosh, but that’s not your fault either, it’s hers.” It was clear that Tavion had it out for her master, but that still didn’t make it Kyle’s fault, he’d only done what he thought was right and didn’t give into anger or revenge.

Kyle nodded at that. “Thank you, Jaden. You’ve become so wise in your time here, I wonder where it all came from.”

They both smiled contentedly and stared up at the stars for another moment or two before Kyle cleared his throat somewhat uncomfortably and stood.

“I think it’s high time we got some sleep, I’ve got some leads Jan and I are planning to follow up on tomorrow. With a little help from the Force, we’ll hopefully have some good news about Tavion and Rosh’s whereabouts.”

He helped Jaden to stand and she stretched, yawning profusely. Kyle walked ahead of her to the trapdoor leading back down into the Academy.

“Kyle?”

“Yes?” He glanced up from the open door.

“Thank you, for telling me your story, it couldn’t have been easy to tell.”

“It never is, but I’m glad I did. And don’t worry, we will find a way to bring Rosh home.”

“Thanks Kyle,” Jaden practically whispered. She climbed down the narrow ladder to the floor and the small, hidden stair that led back down to the Audience Chamber.

“Kyle, one more thing,” she said before they parted ways.

“Yes?”

“Back at the Castle, as I was trying to cut a hole in the floor and I nearly zoned out of my concentration; well, Tavion spoke to me, in my mind. I don’t know how she did it but she did. She told me that you were weak and tried to say that I should come join her.”

“Did she now?” Kyle said, his tone was neutral, no hint to what he was thinking.

“And, well, I just thought I should tell you that. And also that you don’t have to worry about me. I know she’s a liar and that the dark side only leads to death.”

“I’m proud of you for saying so. And just so you know, I was never worried.” He gave her a wink and headed down the hall towards the lift to his sleeping quarters, Jaden still standing there, staring after him, hoping to all things that Kyle wouldn’t ever have any reason to worry about her.

As she headed back to her room, Jaden’s mind spun with all this new insight on her master. She wondered if he regretted sharing his story with her, it was so raw and open, it almost felt like an overshare. She remembered how Rosh had behaved when they’d opened up to each other on Blenjeel, but Kyle wasn’t like that at all. If anything, his vulnerability inspired her, making her want to desperately open up to him about everything, the visions, the darkness, the guilt, the shame, the anger and rage she felt at being betrayed by Rosh, her closest friend. But something held her back, a cold blackness that showed her visions of embarrassment and humiliation, misunderstandings if she told Kyle, let alone anyone else, anything she felt or thought.

So she held back, she didn’t speak up, even though it did nothing to ease her raw, sensitive nerves. But somehow, speaking up felt so much more frightening than facing an army of Reborn and cultists combined. So she decided that, for the time being, she’d stay silent until perhaps maybe, Kyle asked her what was the matter.

Suddenly all of her concerns about Rosh, that day when he fought the Sand People, Blnejeel, that conversation in the common room with Jas… It all added up and it all pointed to one concerning factor. Her. 

If I had just told Kyle my concerns instead of not wanting to meddle… Maybe Rosh wouldn’t have been so angry, maybe he wouldn’t have been captured, maybe he wouldn’t want to kill me… Maybe, maybe, maybe…

It all felt too much for Jaden and as soon as she entered her room, she threw herself down on her bed and wept into her pillow until she had no tears left to cry. She cried for herself, for Rosh, for everything and everyone involved.

In her dreams the Reborn twins that protected Rosh assailed her, moving away at the last second before she could strike, but her saber swings and even attempted throws felt like moving through sludge. The twins continued moving in their dance of flips and acrobatics, ducking and dodging, taunting, always taunting. They told her that her efforts to save Rosh were futile. Then Tavion appeared, the red Twi’lek Alora standing behind her at the ready.

“Rosh is mine, did you seriously think you could take him from me? You?” Her eyes moved over Jaden, judging, assessing.

The twins stopped and moved aside so that Tavion could step between them.

“And do you know what is the best thing about your failure?”

Jaden felt tangled in invisible strings and knots, struggling against bonds that weren’t there, desperate to get free and slash this tattooed demon before her.

“I will save Rosh! I will! I will bring him home and I will stop you!” She screamed.

Tavion giggled and sidestepped so that Jaden could see something going on behind her. It was Rosh with Alora behind him, he was bound too.

“You know what is the greatest thing about being me? I can dispose of my pawns very easily, and I don’t have to get my hands dirty.” Tavion snapped her fingers, Jaden’s eyes locked on Rosh, there was fear and terror in his eyes…

“Jaden! No! I’m sorry, please don’t do this!”

“I’m not, Rosh, I’m coming to save you, I-!” 

She was standing in front of him now, but his eyes were filled with hate, yellowed and rimmed red, and she felt nothing but his betrayal. But still he begged for his life.

“Jaden, wait, please, I was wrong.” It was so strange to hear the vulnerability in his voice while his eyes conveyed so much anger and darkness.

“No Rosh, you were weak.” Her saber ignited, glowing red as it stabbed through Rosh’s chest. His death cry filled the air as he fell to the ground and Jaden woke up screaming.

Kyle and Jan sat together in the Raven’s Claw. They’d been checking in with their numerous contacts from their mercenary days, people from the criminal underworld that operated on the Black Market, hoping to find some shred of information about Tavion, the Scepter of Ragnos, or Rosh. But so far, it’d been a very disappointing day.

“Well that was a waste of time!” Kyle huffed as he flipped switches and controls on the Raven’s dashboard.

“It’s alright, we’ll find something eventually,” Jan said calmly.

“When, Jan? When Tavion’s taken over the whole galaxy? When Rosh is too far gone or dead?”

Jan put a gentle hand on her husband’s tensed up shoulder. He closed his eyes, took a steadying breath and met his wife’s sympathetic gaze. Two years wasn’t a long time to be married, but it’d felt like a lifetime with their long history of friendship and being partners as mercenaries.

“I’m sorry, Jan. I’m just… I feel like this is all my fault, what happened to Rosh. He wasn’t ready to go on that mission to Byss, I knew that, and I could sense the anger and frustration building inside him towards me. If I’d only given him more attention, more encouragement instead of pushing him… I'd thought that maybe if he had a mission all his own…”

“And there’s nothing you could have done to prevent his capture,” Jan said. “Just like you couldn’t prevent mine.” She smiled weakly. “And look how fine we turned out.”

“Yeah, you got tortured, I almost fell to the dark side and allowed a powerful Sith to become even more powerful,” Kyle said bitterly.

“And you owned up to your mistake and made it right. I’m here, we’re here today because of that. So maybe cut yourself some slack.”

Kyle sighed, “You’re always right, you know?”

“Have I ever been wrong?” Jan raised her eyebrows in a genuine question mark.

“Trick question, you’re never wrong, even when you are. Which you’re not.” Kyle quickly added on the last few words before leaning back in his seat and staring up at the ceiling. “You know, sometimes I wonder if you know more about the Force than I do?”

Jan cocked her head, a wry smile teasing her lips. “Sometimes I wonder about that myself, I guess being married to a Jedi helps with that.” 

Kyle chuckled and Jan laughed, a beautiful snorting sound that Kyle wouldn’t have had any other way. Feeling somewhat better, he leaned across the center console, he’d missed her lips so much, but Jan pushed him away lightly.

“Please, Kyle, we’re not here to make out, we’re here to find answers.”

He frowned. “I’d like to think we had a little time, right?” Jan rolled her eyes at him.

“I’m serious, what with Rosh still lost out there and my almost-murderer on the loose leading a Sith cult, I’d say the galaxy’s going to hell in a landspeeder.”

Kyle’s eyes sparkled at his wife’s dark humor, settling for a gentle kiss on the back of her hand. She winced slightly at the prickly feeling of his whiskery beard against her bare skin, but smiled at the memories of getting used to being kissed by it and how long that process had taken her. But she wouldn’t have it any other way, she even loved the smattering of gray throughout it and the rest of his hair. Stars knew how her own hair was sprinkled with it.

“Jaden looks up to you, you know,” Jan mused aloud.

“I do,” Kyle said reflectively. “She told me that Tavion spoke to her through the Force after the battle in the Throne Room, she’d told Jaden that I was weak and that she should join the Disciples. Jaden told me not to worry.”

“Then don’t.”

“I’m not, I just… I don’t want to see anything happen to that kid is all. I make no effort to suppress the attachment we’ve formed as master and apprentice but…”

“You're afraid you’ll lose her too.”

“Yes,” Kyle said hoarsely.

“Then don’t be afraid of that connection, I’ve only been around her for a short time but I can tell that girl looks at you like you’re the father or at the very least, the big brother she never had. She seems lost without you. She needs your encouragement and attention. You said you regret not giving Rosh those things, then don’t hold them back from Jaden. And, maybe, when you bring Rosh home, it won’t be too late to start fresh.”

“Let’s hope so, in the meantime I think I have a new idea, but I’ll need to head back to the Academy to fetch Jaden.” Kyle seemed to have a renewed vigor as he set about punching up the coordinates for home.

“That sounds like a wonderful idea,” Jan said brightly and fixed Kyle with a longful gaze, caressing the side of his face and brushing his beard with her delicate, strong fingers. Kyle recognized that look right away and leaned in for the kiss he’d been hoping to steal earlier, enjoying it now more than ever that it’d been offered free of charge.

“Till the stars go dim…” Jan murmured after their lips parted, foreheads close together, just touching.

“And all of the suns collapse…” Kyle replied huskily. 

“You know I…” she started.

“I know.” He finished.

END OF PART TWO

Chapter Text

PART THREE: JEDI KNIGHT

“What do you mean we’re going to Byss?” Jaden asked with confusion to her master’s unexpected mission statement. “I thought the Disciples of Ragnos already siphoned Force energy from there when they took Rosh?” 

“We… don’t actually know that,” Kyle said awkwardly. “I wasn’t able to find out if he was captured by a Remnant vessel operating in the area or if it truly was Tavion with them. At any rate, when I went in search of him after you returned from Hoth I didn’t go directly to the planet’s remains like he did, I had some friends sneak me into some outposts near that area to get information. I was far from focused on whether or not the Force aura had been taken, but now we have the chance to complete his mission and determine if that’s the case. From what I’ve heard, the Emperor spent a lot of time there, so it would be a huge source of power for Tavion. If it has been taken, we'll have an idea of just how powerful she is now. That’s why I'm going with you on this one. Since Rosh disappeared there, it's too dangerous for anyone to go alone. We go as a team and we’ll look for clues to his disappearance as well, perhaps there’s something I’ve missed.”

Jaden folded her arms, she hadn’t gotten nearly enough sleep in the past few days, partly because she’d been having terrible nightmares, but also because she’d been working around the chronometer to finish her lightsabers she’d been training to use. 

And things weren’t going so smoothly with her friends either. Jas found out first because the day after her return, he presented Jaden with the finished holster the group had made for Rosh, although Jas had done most if not all the work. It had taken all of Jaden’s willpower to tell him the basics of what had transpired on Vjun without going into too much detail, particularly without invoking too much emotion on her part. Poor Jas hadn’t known quite what to say, which was a change for the mature Jedi. He merely gave her some hastily searched for words of comfort and reassurance, followed by an awkward pat on the shoulder. At Jaden’s insistence he left the holster with her for safekeeping.

Arta-Mess and Kalil were next after Jas to approach with comments of sympathy about what happened to Rosh. The news sure got out fast and though she didn’t want to open any wild can of information about it, she had to tell them a little. This of course spread to the rest of her friend group and eventually the whole Academy like wildfire. Most were sympathetic and comforting, which wasn’t comfortable and felt awkward at best, but it showed that they cared. And then there were the others, including Jacyyn and Goran specifically, who seemed to distance themselves from her. It was fear she knew, a discomfort at what happened to their fellow student and a probable worry that it would happen to her, or them, if they weren’t careful. Arta-Mess tried to say that it was because Jacyyn and Goran didn’t know how to express their feelings on the matter, but Jaden knew that wasn’t true. She saw the fear in their eyes. Raltharan seemed to be the only one who was indifferent to the subject and would say nothing on the matter. The mere mention of Rosh was nonexistent except in whispers when they thought Jaden wasn’t listening, or attempts at compassionate conversation by Arta-Mess, Kalil or Jas, but other than that, it seemed the whole Academy regarded Rosh as dead.

“Do you at least want to review my new lightsabers before we head out?” Jaden asked, a little too sharply, but Kyle didn’t address it and merely nodded. He seemed to sense the weariness in his apprentice. She led him down to the Academy’s workshop where thousands of pieces of metal and other manner of materials and objects were housed for crafting things, particularly lightsaber hilts. 

“Did you say lightsabers, by the way?” Kyle asked. “As in, plural? More than one?”

“Yep,” Jaden threw over her shoulder in confirmation. Some of the harsh edginess she had was dropping from her demeanor as she excitedly crossed to her recent workbench.

“I talked to Master Skywalker about it and he signed off on my training to use dual sabers. Kalil got approval for another saber as well and we’ve been training together. Master Luke attended a few training sessions and sparred with us a couple of times but Corran’s been our most frequent trainer seeing as how he has two of them and knows Jar’kai like the back of his hands. He kept trying to convince me to get one of my sabers green but I held out.”

She picked up two gleaming hilts from the workbench and held them out to Kyle, who took each one carefully in his hands to examine them closely. The first was a sleek design, thin, and tapering from the blade emitter to a point at the end, masterfully crafted with a mix of gold and silver metals with a decorative black band wrapping itself in a curved, almost scrollwork way around the hilt. The weight was balanced and it was overall a beautiful piece of craftsmanship. He pressed the activation switch and a golden yellow blade shot forward. He smiled.

“This one’s beautiful Jaden, excellent job. Which one has your original crystal?”

Jaden smiled and merely dipped her head towards the saber in his hand.

“I don’t know how it happened either, I didn’t do anything but the blade came out that color. I guess the crystal knew it was time for a change.” She shrugged.

Kyle turned the saber off and placed it back on the table, reaching for the other one. It was thicker than the first, with a similar taper design, but with metal rings encircling the pointed pommel. A little glowing blue sensor and other instruments added to the overall design and practical use of the saber, such as blade length and power adjusters, diagnostic system knobs, etc. Kyle turned it on and a luminescent orange blade glowed as bright as a sunset over his face and hands, its length somewhat shorter, but that was how Jaden liked it. 

Kyle turned it off, handing it to her and she took her first one as well, igniting them and whirling them in a blinding swirl of light, performing the various stances and exercises Corran had taught her.

“You know, Master Corran told me to keep in mind that these are dual swords, two halves of a single weapon; that I shouldn’t think of them as separate because they’re not, they’re just two different parts of the same whole.” She somersaulted past Kyle and without missing a beat Jaden came up in one fluid motion and crouched; stretching her arms out, the lightsabers spun away, rotating around her freely, a vortex of light and magic. Kyle marveled and clapped for her as the sabers returned to her hands and she stood, securing them to her belt and bowed to her master.

“Jas helped me make them,” she said. “In fact he, Kalil and Arta-Mess helped design and shape some of the pieces for the sabers too but, I made sure I was the one who assembled it all.”

“They’re true works of art, Jaden. Good job. You’ve taken your first step into being a true Jedi Knight, and now, you’re about to go on your first mission. Are you ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Jaden sat in the passenger seat of the Raven’s Claw, eyes closed, concentrating, focusing.

“I don’t sense the dark side here, Kyle,” she said after a few more moments.

“Me neither,” Kyle answered. “That’s not good. Tavion must have been here already.”

Jaden shifted uncomfortably, peering out of the window into the darkness of space at the floating chunks of the dead planet surrounding them. She caught sight of something moving above them and craned her neck to look. A large, Imperial class ship hovered into view above them, it’s imposing size dwarfing their ship like a bantha standing next to a womp rat

“An Imperial Dreadnaught!” Kyle exclaimed. “I’m gonna get us out of here!”

He started managing the controls as quickly as he could, preparing for a fast getaway. The Raven’s Claw shuddered, jolting them in their seats. Kyle cursed.

“They’ve got a tractor beam on us. I can’t break free!” He tried several more controls. Jaden felt her stomach open up into a pit, a strange sense of deja vu settling over her. Is this how Rosh felt? Scared and alone as a ship drew him in, completely helpless to do anything about it?  

Next to her, Kyle let go of the controls and turned to her. “Okay here’s the plan: I served on one of these ships back in my Imperial days. You disable the tractor beam and I’ll trigger the ship’s self-destruct. Ready?”

Whatever Jaden had expected Kyle to say, this wasn’t it. She hadn’t been prepared for him to quickly jump into action with a plan that involved taking on an entire Imperial ship! But there didn’t seem to be any other options, and she didn't have a better plan so…

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Jaden gulped. 

Kyle put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “You got this kid, you’ll be fine. Once we’re on the ship, try to keep a low profile, and sneak around as much as you can. After all, Luke did this once and it was on the first Death Star, and that place was huge. Let’s be glad this ship isn’t any bigger.”

Jaden nodded, her jaw set in a wordless reply. Let’s do this.

Kyle was shocked when they weren’t greeted by a “welcoming” party, but figured they wouldn't be too long in coming.

“Jan told me there would be days like this,” he sighed, and headed towards a short hallway up ahead of him, a large round door that looked promising. Jaden started to follow, unsure of exactly what to do, the hangar held a doorway on ground level as well as a couple up above on platforms, but Jaden was at a loss as to which one of them she should take. Kyle reached the door and ignited his lightsaber, noticing Jaden he gestured back to the hangar. 

“What are you wanting for an invitation?” He said, then suddenly realizing she didn’t know which route to take he added with a jerk of his head, “Go through the door on the ground floor of the hangar and keep going up, you’ll find it, now get going!”

Nodding, Jaden took off down the hall and through the door Kyle indicated.

The whole ship was chaos, Jaden moved around corners, through hallways and up lifts as fast, and quietly as she could, using Mind Trick to her advantage, resorting to fighting if necessary. She tried following signs and hoped she wasn’t getting desperately lost.

“What’s with the increased security in Sector 7?” She heard suddenly from around a corner, stopping to keep from being seen.

“Last week's break in,” another stormtrooper replied.

“I hear they captured the insurgents.”

“They did but they refused to talk. There’s no way of telling if they acted alone or if it was an inside job,” the trooper said casually, Jaden got the feeling that this unit of stormtroopers would not be leaving anytime soon.

“Eh, they'll talk. The Admiral will see to that,” the first who asked the question said. “Besides, we’ve got more to deal with now, what with these intruders on board.”

“Intruders?! I thought there was just one?”

“We’re not sure, but I thought I glimpsed two on the security monitor. In the meantime, Captain says to stay put and guard the tractor beam controls. We don’t want these Rebs or whoever they are getting out of here.”

“Do we shoot them on sight?”

“Hmm, not sure.”

Jaden had heard enough, timing her movement well, she shot past the small group of stormtroopers when they weren’t looking, putting a Mind Trick on them as she passed, You didn’t see anything, being the prime message. She cringed a little when she overheard them repeat aloud what she had silently said in her mind. Ahead was the door that would surely lead to the controls for the tractor beam.

When Jaden came to the door, it was sealed. She wondered if she should cut through it like she saw Kyle doing, but that would probably take too long. Instead, she kicked it, mostly out of spite, none of the doors so far had been locked, but then again, if those stormies she’d heard back there were correct, then this would be the door to lock against intruders. She moved on to the control pad next to it to see if she could hot wire it.

“Who goes there?” Came a voice from the other side of the door. Jaden almost jumped back. She had hoped no one would be inside.

“Hello?” She said tentatively. 

“I said, who goes there? We’ve locked down the ship, we have an intruder in the hangar! Now identify yourself!” The voice was commanding, elegantly accented. An Imperial officer no doubt.

“I’m Jaden… The um…. Radar Technician…” Jaden didn’t even believe her own lie, but she said it so dryly she couldn't help but reluctantly agree that some of her master’s personality was finally rubbing off on her. What other habits have I picked up from him?

The door opened and there was an Imperial officer, flanked by three stormtroopers, one on either side and one behind. “That’s ridiculous! We don’t have a Radar-” The officer stopped cold, seeing Jaden, her lightsabers on her belt, the Academy insignia on the shoulder of her jacket and the mischievous gleam in her eyes.

“You’re not a Radar Technician! You’re the intruder!” The officer shrieked.

“You got that right, what tipped you off, the outfit? It was the outfit wasn’t it?” Jaden’s sabers lit up the small space, turning the stormtroopers armor the color of sunset just as they and their Imperial charge openfired on her. They fell quickly to the blaster bolts Jaden deflected back on them and soon she was standing over their still forms, bending over to grab the officer's security keycard not one minute later.

“And that’s two intruders, by the way, not one,” Jaden corrected under her breath as she moved on to the next door, making good use of the purloined keycard. It opened a lift that brought her into a vast room with many dizzying walkways, but she was only interested in one area of interest. She found the tractor beam controls surprisingly easily and set to switching the power down on it.

“Tractor beam disabled!” She said into her coms.

“Good! Head back to the ship. I just need a little more time!” Kyle answered.

Jaden made her way back down, catching sight of a sign that pointed to the ships main cannons and another that vaguely gave directions back to the hangar, she started to run when Kyle came back on her comlink.

“Jaden! Someone must have sent a distress signal. We’ve got incoming fighters!” 

Jaden turned on her heel. At least I know where to go! Out the windows into space that she passed, she could see the TIE fighters coming, and some were already firing on the ship. But why? Do they think the ship’s been taken already? The entire hull of the ship shook with each blast as she ran down the hall towards the turret guns.

“Jaden, I still need more time!” Kyle said urgently. “Get to the guns and hold off those TIEs! They’re sending TIE bombers!”

Jaden didn’t need to see, she felt it with every rock of the ship. She entered the turret room, which was mostly empty of troops except…

“Take her down!” Shouted an Imperial and four stormtroopers started shooting. She took down the Imperial sense he was closer to her and then the stormies. She saw a nearby turret and jumped into the seat. She’d never had to operate the guns of a ship before except in basic flight training and these guns were definitely different from an X-Wing’s.

She started shooting anything that flew past her sights, missing several times until she hit one. But how many more are there?

The ship rocked again, nearly throwing Jaden from her seat. She saw the rows  of different turrets and blanched at the thought she’d have to go around the room to fire various ones at numerous angles until she got all of the TIEs, but if that's what she had to do for her and Kyle to get out of here alive, then so be it. She ran to another turret. The ship got hit again, this time closer to her side of it.

“Jaden, we want this bucket of bolts to explode after we get off it!” Kyle said so harshly she almost yelled back at him but stopped. It’s not you, it's the situation. Do your part and you’ll both get out alive.

She moved faster than she thought possible of herself, using the Force to slow everything but herself down. She ran from turret to turret, including going down a nearby lift and shooting the guns on the level below. She was getting fairly good at shooting them.

“This isn’t good!” She heard a voice nearby. She glanced over and saw a stormtrooper hiding in a corner, holding on for dear life as the ship continued to shake with each strike of the bombers. He didn’t seem to notice her, or if he did, he didn’t care. She was still moving very fast and decided that destroying the TIEs was more important. She felt fairly confident that there was one more left. She jumped to the seat of another cannon and waited. Something gray shot past her sights. Slow down, slow down, steady, steady…

There it was again. In the space of a millisecond, Jaden fired and the TIE blew up

“Good shooting!” Kyle called out. He must be near a window. “I’m done. Meet me back at the Raven’s Claw.”

“On it!” She got up to go, the world around her slowing down to normal. She saw the stormtrooper, still crouched in the corner. Her hand went to her primary saber hilt. “What are you waiting for?”

“You… you defended the ship. Why?” He asked, his voice wavering even through the augmented coms of his helmet.

Jaden mulled over this trooper's behavior, she sensed something different about him. I don’t think he’s going to try to blast me. “It’s not for long,” she finally answered, choosing her words carefully. “This whole thing’s about to explode, and I get the feeling that you don’t really want to fight me or stay here another second for that matter.” She kept her voice firm, taking a step forward to emphasize her authority in the situation. “So if I were you, I’d get myself to an escape pod, you hear me?”

The stormie merely nodded, shrinking back slightly.

“No one has to know that you let me go, and no one has to know that I let you go, alright?”

The stormtrooper nodded again. Still cautious, Jaden Force pulled his blaster, which rested harmlessly on the ground next to him, to herself and tossed it away. If a stormtrooper could look confused with a mask on, this one did.

“So that you don’t shoot me in the back, I’ve had this problem before.” Jaden’s eyes blazed, thinking of the bartender on Nar Kreeta, of Rosh… She turned and walked away.

“Thank you,” the stormie called so quietly Jaden almost didn’t hear it.

“You’re surrounded!” An officer called out triumphantly from the top of the platform overlooking the hangar. He wasn’t very triumphant for long. Jaden came through the door behind him a second later and cut off his next taunt.

Below, stormies and officers alike were fighting for their lives as Kyle cut through them like paper, laughing and moving around like an acrobat as he dodged blaster bolts. Jaden hardly joined in the fight at all, he was doing so well, she was mesmerized.

“Let’s go!” Kyle yelled after cutting down the last Imperial.

They started up their ship so fast it could’ve beaten a record and they were off. The Raven’s Claw flew away from the Dreadnaught with two TIE fighters that managed to scramble an escape from the hangar on its tail. Not one minute later, the Dreadnaught exploded, creating a shock wave that destroyed the TIEs. Jaden and Kyle breathed sighs of relief. They told each other their sides of the story, laughing at the moment where Jaden called herself a ‘Radar Technician’ and when Kyle apparently disturbed someone in the refresher. 

“Oh, Stars!” Kyle roared with laughter, wiping away tears from laughing so hard. “That was a close one to be sure, you’ll have some stories to tell for a while.” They braced themselves for the jump to hyperspace. “I'll relay the information about Byss to Luke. Good work, by the way.”

She nodded, her smile a mile wide. Funny how just an hour ago, she’d been nervous of their almost capture and now she was exuberant. She stared out the window at the blur of stars as they passed by at light speed. She and Kyle continued to exchange stories, but Jaden kept her word however, and said nothing about the stormie she’d let go.

“Find your anger, feel your rage… C’mon Rosh, focus! Concentrate and channel it until you must release it!”

Rosh held his hands outstretched in front of him, muscles straining, perspiration beading on his forehead, fingers tensed and twisted as he tried to summon all of his anger. Ever since Vjun he’d felt conflicted, and Tavion knew it. She often left him with Alora to continue his training and lately she’d been pushing him to his limits so that he was often tired and spent at the end of their sessions. He knew he must prove his allegiance to the dark side, to Tavion, but every time he closed his eyes he saw Jaden, the sadness and pained betrayal in her eyes. 

Then there was something else that bugged him. It’d taken him a while to remember this small detail, but for some reason the holster she’d sported on her hip looked vaguely familiar…

“Hey Jas?”

“Hey Rosh, how’re you doing?”

“Good, I actually um, have a question, well it's more of a favor but you don't have to if you don't want to.”

“I’ll do it, whaddya need?”

“Well you see Jaden’s birthday isn’t too far off and I had an idea of what I could give her and um, I was wondering if… do you know how to work leather?”

“Sure I do, but I’m not the best at curving designs if that's what you’re looking for, but I know Streen is pretty good…”

“I want to make sure it stays a secret…”

“Don't worry, we won't say a word…”

“Okay, here’s some sketches I’ve made, they’re not perfect but the idea’s there.”

“No Rosh, these are amazing! Jaden’s going to love it!”

The memories of their conversation tumbled down like a waterfall. The holster was his idea. Jas and Streen must have taken his notes and made the holster without him. How could they do that? Steal his idea? It certainly looked that way and it made him just a bit more than perturbed.

He shook his head, if he couldn’t pull it together and focus, soon enough he would be a pin cushion for Alora and her two sabers. She’d trained hard to earn an extra lightsaber, he could tell her defeat to Jaden on Hoth had really rubbed her the wrong way. That made Rosh smile a little and find the strength he needed. With that and his anger towards Jas and Streen for stealing his design for Jaden’s gift, along with added hatred towards Kyle for never appreciating him and even Jaden herself, for… well, for just being better than him; this extra pulse of energy rose up within him. With a loud cry exiting his lips, he pushed his hands forward and down, the large, useless cylinder before him that had once been an empty storage tank collapsed in on itself and looked like nothing more than a crushed can. He fell to his knees, more exhausted than he ever was after any particular hard day of training at the Academy. 

“I’ll never understand what Tavion ever saw in you,” Alora stood behind him, arms crossed. “Besides company on a lonely night or two.” Her mouth curled into a disgusted snarl.

Rosh panted, bringing a hand up to touch his upper lip, wiping away the blood he found there under his right nostril. Alora was only partially right, Tavion had certainly come on strong to him several times, but nothing had ever come of it besides a few, discret make out sessions in a secluded hallway of the Star Destroyer the cult used as a base of operations. But afterwards he’d get sick to his stomach. For a little while, he’d convinced himself it was just something he ate, but it was really the feeling he got when he was with her, the feel of her lips on his. It wasn’t that she was unattractive or not seductive, she was that and more. It was really the feeling of absolute darkness and dread that came over him the closer he got to her that turned and twisted his insides until he felt so sick he would nearly vomit. But he still didn’t stop Tavion from speaking to him in such a sultry tone, or from touching him, the grip of her hand on his arm or shoulder was enough to make his entire body tense up and he had no idea how to tell her no, the thought of which scared the living daylights out of him. She would probably kill me.

All of what he felt towards Tavion was, he realized, the complete opposite he felt about Jaden. She was light, sunshine and beauty… Beauty? Yes, that’s the word. She’s beautiful. And kind and fun...

The recollection of a dream from about three days before his mission to Vjun resurfaced. At least, he’d assumed it was a dream…

“Rosh… If you’re out there, if you can somehow hear me. I will see you again, and I pr-... The voice stopped, sounding like it was choked up, then it continued, And I promise, I will tell you how I got my lightsaber. I will, I promise, my dear friend I promise. And I will see you again. I promise .”

He still wasn’t sure it hadn’t just been a dream. What was all this business about telling him how she’d got her lightsaber? It was just weird, and yet… The pain, the sadness and eagerness in her voice, it sounded so genuine…

“Rosh!” 

He broke out of the fog of wonderful memories and looked up into the frowning face of his new master.

“Tavion, I…”

“You’re distracted my dear Rosh, why?” Her voice dripped with mock concern.

“Well, I…”

“Do not forget how weak the light side is, it will do all it can to pull you back. It’s false, it will only bring you pain. You think any of them will take you back after you betrayed them all?”

“No…” Rosh hung his head but Tavion knelt in front of him and tipped his chin up roughly with her long fingernails.

“That’s right. They’d rather kill you than accept you back, that much is certain. Remember how Jaden marched toward you? The anger of being betrayed?”

Rosh wasn’t very clear of that detail, yes she looked ready to strike him down, but once she’d cooled and Kyle showed up, she seemed honestly sincere about bringing him back.

Tavion let go of his chin and struck his face so hard that her nail cut a gash across his left eye.

“Do not forget, you are not one of them anymore. They will never forgive you.” Her words were a cocktail of poison mixed with venom.

As she walked away, the sound of her boots echoing through the vast chamber, Rosh hung his head in defeat.

She’s right. The Academy can’t forgive what they cannot forget. There’s no going back. It’s hopeless.

“Would you like me to kill him in his sleep?” Alora asked smugly.

“No, I have a better idea.” Tavion crossed her arms. “His devotion is faltering, he won’t last long but we can still make good use of him. Keep a close watch over him and report back to me. I will let you know when the time is right, and have a cell prepared for him in case he becomes more… unaccommodating.”

“Yes, Master.”

“And Alora?”

“Yes?”

“I’ve just received news that one of our Dreadnaughts, The Night Weaver, was destroyed after pulling in a lone fighter carrying two Jedi near Byss.”

Alora set her jaw. “Who?” She ground through her teeth.

“You know who, it seems the little Jedi whelp that bested you on Hoth was one of them, which means Katarn was with her.”

“She nearly bested me, Master, but I left. You’ve always taught me to be careful of which fights I chose.” Shame filled her cheeks, her crimson complexion thankfully hiding it.

“Yes, but to not let your cowardice show, there’s a difference. She’s resolute, she doesn’t back down from a fight no matter how difficult. That’s class. And besides, no matter your history with this one, I will need your help in securing her downfall. Just think of how sweet my revenge on Katarn will be when both of his students fall to the wayside. He won’t be able to live with himself, which will make our final confrontation even more delectable. He’ll be a broken man.”

Alora bowed her head, barely containing her anger and humiliation. 

“It’s time to put all of the final pieces of my plan into place. And who knows, perhaps you will finally succeed where you failed,” Tavion said triumphantly, a smile gracing her lips as she walked away from her bitter apprentice, leaving her to ferment in her shame and festering rage.

“This isn’t you Rosh, this isn’t who you are!” Jaden was saying.

“And how would you know?! Huh! You never really bothered to get to know me!” Rosh shot back.

“Yes I did!” She exclaimed, her hazel eyes pleading. “I wanted to get to know you better, the real you, the you that you barely showed me when we were on Blenjeel together. That’s the real you Rosh, not this, this cultist! You’re better than that!”

“No.” Rosh shook his head. “I was weak! But not anymore!”

Kyle was suddenly there too.

“Vulnerability is not weakness, Rosh,” he said. “It’s your strength.”

“Then I’d rather die.”

“We can arrange that,” The two said together, their eyes suddenly dark and red, lightsabers now crimson as they cornered him, searing heat entering his body.

Rosh awoke with a start and sat bolt upright, covered in sweat. He knew it was too late for him, he’d thrown in his lot with the enemy and now he would pay the price. Was vulnerability so hard that I had to run from it in the opposite direction?

Yes, it apparently had been.

He curled back up on the small cot in his room, which felt more and more each day like a cell than a room, and looked out the tiny window into the cold vacuum of space. He shivered. He longed for the feel of the sun, the smell of the forest on Yavin IV, not this cold, dark vacuum. Oh how he’d taken it all for granted. He tried to huddle under the thin covers for warmth, feeling only the cold seep in even more. His left eye stung as a salty tear leaked out onto the cut Tavion had given him. He began to cry miserably, but not just for himself.

Oh Jaden, if you’re out there, please, I can’t expect you to forgive me, but please, please… I can’t die here, I can’t die alone.

Jaden stood in the open doorway to Rosh’s room. She hadn’t visited since the day he’d gone missing. She’d been upset then, but hopeful for his return. Now that she knew what had become of him, what his anger had led to, she wondered if he could ever truly come back. 

Is he even really Rosh anymore? She thought. 

A memory suddenly washed over Jaden, blurring her vision as her mind’s eye became clearer and clearer:

It was months ago, a few weeks before Rosh went missing at Byss. She’d just stepped into the workshop looking for Rosh to let him know that Kyle wanted them for… something, she couldn’t remember. She’d stopped in the doorway when she heard crying. Peeking from around the corner, she’d spotted poor Goran sitting alone in the workshop, his head in his hands. She’d almost come out to comfort him when Rosh suddenly came into view.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Rosh had said. He looked unsure of what to do or say. He must have been thinking of when he’d inadvertently made him cry on their first day.

“I… Just… Can’t… do things right!” Goran cried with every sniffling sob. “I’m… not… as good… as the other… students!”

Rosh slowly bent down to eye level with the young Togruta. He tentatively put a hand on his shoulder, seemingly copying Kyle’s way of encouragement.

“Well I…” He started. Jaden had figured he was trying to search for the right words. She’d considered joining them, but already felt uncomfortable at having stood there for so long. And she was too fascinated by what she saw to leave.

Rosh stopped trying to say words for seemingly the first time since she’d met him. Instead she watched his face soften, to the point where she’d thought he was going to start crying himself. And then he leaned forward, pulling Goran into his arms and embraced him. The Togruta’s crying increased, but only because it seemed to be working better than any words that could have been said.

Just as Jaden’s eyes had filled with tears at her friend’s tender display, she felt her eyes misting over again at the memory. She came back to the present and felt her heart softening for Rosh all over again.

“That was the real you, Rosh. That was the real you,” she whispered through her tears. 

Little did she know how her words carried through the air and into the fabric of space, propelled by the Force, onwards and forwards and in all directions to the ears of one who was finally ready to listen.

Chapter Text

The rancor’s claw missed Jaden by an inch. It collided with the wall instead, breaking large chunks off of it. How do I always get myself into these messes?

With Kyle out, and Jan to assist him, he said he would search for information regarding how Tavion came into possession of the scepter. And now that Jaden was a Jedi Knight, she was given what Kyle called “more challenging missions” and had been sent to search a small spaceport on Tanaab to investigate a cult sighting. When she got there, everything went smoothly, she connected with a pilot who pointed her toward a cargo hanger where he’d seen the cultists.

Everything went downhill from there. 

She spotted a cultist and confronted him, but instead of fighting her, he ignored her and ran to a control panel next to a large containment cell usually reserved for storage. This was no normal cargo.

The door opened revealing a large, greenish-gray rancor, with tubes and metal stuck all over it. It was an experiment, she recognized. Something made or mutated in a lab. She’d done the smart thing and ran as soon as the rancor exited its cage, going even faster when the cultist cried out in pain when the creature, apparently having no sense of who was good or bad, snatched him up and swallowed him whole.

She jumped over cargo containers and other large objects, tried closing several doors to the room but had to reevaluate her plan when the rancor broke through the door and surrounding wall with no problem whatsoever. And to make matters worse, this mutant rancor breathed out toxic gas, a horror Jaden witnessed firsthand as the green fog claimed innocent spaceport workers that were trapped in the area and couldn’t run fast enough to escape it.

Jaden had even crossed paths with a few members of the cult, but decided that not engaging them was a much better plan as the rancor continued to gain on her.

I have to keep it from leaving the spaceport! But how?

The rancor slowed a few times to reach out and gobbled up some poor worker or even an unfortunate cult member who was unlucky to not get out of its way fast enough.

Jaden ran into a seemingly dead end with a conveyor belt leading towards a blue forcefield. I can’t stop it!

She looked left and right, above, for anything, anything at all that could help her. Spotting a crate above her, a light suddenly went off inside her head. Maybe I can trap it between the container and the door!

She ran to the conveyors control room and located the release switch for the box to drop it onto the belt. She spotted the rancor in the distance, it was distracted by a Reborn who tried zapping it with lightning in order to leave him alone, but this only served to make the monster even angrier and it smashed the Reborn underneath its giant hand. 

She stepped out of the room, aimed and fired her blaster to get its attention. The creature's black, unfeeling eyes turned their attention to her and it let out a deafening roar and stomped towards her. She rushed back inside to the control panel.

“C’mon c’mon c’mon a little closer, just a little closer,” Jaden muttered under her breath, her hand trembling on the switch.

The mutant rancor stepped onto the conveyor belt in front of the box and peered through the glass right at her, raising its paw to strike. Jaden threw the switch and the conveyor started moving. She increased the speed and the rancor couldn’t move much as the gigantic crate and the walls on either side kept it trapped, the only way for it to move being towards the forcefield. 

Jaden shut her eyes tightly against the sound of the rancor’s painful, grating shriek when it was pressed against the laser shield, crushing it until it fell silent. The only sound that came after was that of the rancor’s limp body falling forward onto the crate. Only then did Jaden open her eyes again.

“We think these cultists were planning on releasing that mutated rancor into the city and using the ensuing chaos to steal supplies, credits, and whatever else they could get their hands on. Good work putting a stop to it.” Kyle and Jaden stood in one of the Academy’s war rooms, going over their notes from the past several days they’d been away from each other. He patted Jaden on the back, making her wince. 

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay, I’m just sore, that thing nearly had me at one point and my muscles are still tender,” Jaden said as she absentmindedly rubbed her shoulder.

“I've been tracing Tavion's movements over the past couple of months now and discovered that she acquired the scepter from a collector on Commenor. Then she killed him.” He added the last detail grimly. “Luke and I have been trying to find out what Tavion could be hoping to do with Ragnos' scepter, but so far no luck. Keep your ears open for any rumors, okay?”

“No problem, keeping my eyes and ears open is all I've been doing besides training,” she said dryly, earning a tired grin from Kyle.

“Sometimes that’s all we can do. Don’t get yourself down kid.” Kyle was gentler when he patted her shoulder again and left the war room.

Jaden couldn't be sure she believed Rosh to be sincere. Ever since she’d heard his voice echoing in a dream, pleading with her to forgive him, that he was terribly sorry, she felt divided on whether or not he might be conflicted. He sounded so lonely and miserable.

Please… I can’t die here, I can’t die alone.

Dreams were something to pay attention to, she knew that much, but were they ever true? She’d read that some Jedi learned the art of connecting through a Force bond which included seeing another person in their dreams and that person experiencing the same thing, but yet it seemed so convoluted, the stuff of fairytales. And yet…

“Jaden, would you join me please?” Jaden startled and stood at attention as Luke approached her. She’d been practicing her drills that Master Dykstra had taught her. She replaced her lightsabers on her belt and bowed lightly.

“How can I be of service Master?”

“I have an important call from my sister, Senator Organa about a matter of great importance and discretion,” Skywalker said quietly, then leaned forward a bit to add, “And I would like you to join me in that meeting, I think you would be the perfect fit for the assignment she has in mind.”

“Yes, of course, I’ll be there sir.” Jaden grabbed her jacket from a nearby bench. “Are we going now?”

“Yes, as soon as we can get up to my private conference room.”

Jaden was taken aback. This must be extremely important if there’s all this secrecy.

“It is of the utmost discretion that I bring this request to you and your student, Luke.” Senator Leia Organa, the last Princess of Alderaan, stood before them, the picture of dignity and grace even as her holographic image crackled and popped with static at the occasional change in the call’s signal.

Luke tilted his head in respect, Jaden followed suit, awestruck by the sight of the two siblings. She’d always wished to have a brother or a sister of her own. Maybe I have that already in Arta-Mess, or Kalil, or Jacyyn?

“Information has surfaced in our archives from the time of the Rebellion about a large stockpile of old weapons hidden in the wastes of Ord Mantell.”

“Ord Mantell?” Jaden interjected. “Isn’t that close to what used to be Imperial space?”

“It is,” the Princess confirmed. “Though still a part of the Core Worlds, it is on the edge of that map and must be approached with caution. Our records indicate there should be seven caches hidden in the ruined city. Your mission is to destroy the stockpiles so they don't fall into the wrong hands.”

Jaden bobbed her head slightly. “Sounds easy enough I guess. Do you happen to know if the cult is involved in this somehow? If they’re after the weapons?”

The Princess was silent a moment, seemingly measuring the strength and quality of the young Jedi before her. Jaden felt like she was stuck under a microscope. But finally, Leia spoke.

“We haven't received any new reports about cult activity in the last few days, but I don't think they've decided to go into hiding. My brother here believes they must be close to completing their plan. But for now, we think it’s best to take care of this stash of weapons. We haven’t any information yet on who any other interested parties might be, but I feel it's better to be safe than sorry, don’t you?” Senator Organa’s eyebrow raised as she scrutinized Jaden. 

Jaden gulped. “Yes Ma’am, er Your Highness, milady.”

Luke chuckled beside her. “I think Jaden has all she needs, Leia, I’ll call you back with a progress report. Jaden’s one of my top students, she can handle this.”

“I certainly hope so, may the Force be with you both.” She inclined her regal head to the two of them, then her image faded into nothing.

“Don’t worry about my sister, she has to be that way, helping to run the New Republic is no easy feat.”

“I can imagine,” Jaden said. “But don’t worry Master Skywalker, I won’t fail you.”

“I believe in you Jaden, now go, and may the Force be with you.”

“And you as well.”

“ This should be easy. Just plant some charges, watch the fireworks, and come home. What can go wrong?”

“Anything, but thanks for the vote of confidence Kyle, I’m about to land in the ruins,” Jaden said as she maneuvered the Far Wanderer over an open, empty space in the middle of an ancient courtyard that once belonged to a grand city hundreds of years ago on Ord Mantell. The place looked like nothing more than a dump, a hollow ghostly shell of its once grand designs and architecture.

“Well then, who am I to keep you from your mission any longer. I’ll see you later for the mission debrief. Good luck and-”

“May the Force be with me? I already got it from Luke and his sister. Having a Princess say it to me gave me all the confidence I need.”

“You sure about that?” Jaden sensed a note of teasing in Kyle’s voice.

“Yes, I am and if you don’t mind Master, I just landed.”

“Oh, all right, goodbye. And may the Force be with-” Jaden cut the transmission, laughing to herself that Kyle had tried to say it fast, as if he knew she was going to do just that.

Her spirits high, she set to work searching for the weapons caches, a new energy flowing through her veins. She’d get this done in no time. She didn’t have to even leave the area she landed in to spot the first cache, hidden in an alcove some yards safely away from her ship.

“Huh, there’s some of the weapons right there.”

She approached the cache, planting one of the charges from her pack slung over her shoulder, then ran out of the way as fast as she could before it exploded. Stepping out from behind a corner, Jaden brushed off her hands. One down, six more to go. I guess I’d better get going.

Jaden started off towards a doorway directly behind her X-Wing, referring to a vague chart she’d been sent by Leia. It indicated that three of the seven caches hidden in the city were somewhere in that area. She hadn’t gone far, the sound of the flames engulfing the first destroyed cache barely audible when another sound, very similar to it could be heard. She thought she was hearing things, but when she turned around, looking this way and that, then, of all places, up, she found her answer. A lone figure wearing a jetpack hovered in the air several yards away and landed on a broken structure. The armor it wore gleamed silvery in the moonlight. The helmet it wore was unmistakable. 

“Who are you, Mandalorian?” Jaden asked, hand hovering close to her lead saber which was positioned behind her new holster.

The Mando tilted his head as if to ask, ‘Are you serious?’ But aloud he answered in a tone so even and cold that it might as well have come from a droid. “This doesn’t concern you. Just walk away.”

Jaden tried to remember everything she could about Mandalorians, they were an ancient enemy of the Jedi, often employed as bounty hunters. Could this be an interested party Leia was worried about?

“Look, I can’t do that…” Jaden began, but the Mandalorian fired off a warning shot, she knew that that’s what it was because they were notorious marksmen. He fired again, closer, Jaden ducked to the side behind a pillar.

“Can’t we talk about this?! There is literally no need to fight!”

“If you leave now we won’t have too,” Mando said. “Like I warned you, this is no concern of yours."

“No,” Jaden said firmly, grasping one of her sabers. “This is no concern of yours, Mandalorian. I have a mission, and I intend to complete it.”

“So do I, I guess that means we will have to fight over it.”

“Fine,” Jaden said. “You’ve made your choice, I didn’t want it to come to this.” She slipped her second saber from her belt, keeping them hidden in the shadows, she wanted the element of surprise when he started firing.

The Mandalorian gave a humorless chuckle. “Funny, I was gonna say the same thing.”

The glow of Jaden’s lightsabers illuminated her face as they ignited and she leapt out from behind the pillar just as the Mandalorians’ first blaster bolts reached her. She deflected them easily, but as quickly as their fight started, the Mandalorian suddenly stopped shooting and called out, “Wait! Stop!”

Jaden stopped, still keeping her lightsabers up in defense in case the Mandalorian was tricking her, but he had stopped shooting, had used his jetpack to safely hover to the ground and laid down his weapon. It could still be a trick, Mandos have lots of weapons hidden at their disposal.

But he seemed rather sincere, putting his hands up, even reaching behind him to remove his jetpack. 

Jaden finally relented, she put away her sabers, but kept a close eye on him and had a variety of Force tricks ready and waiting. She’d been betrayed before.

“What’s your mission here Mando?”

“I could ask the same of you, you’re a Jedi right?”

“I’ll ask the questions. And yes, I’m a Jedi.”

“Then you too, work for the New Republic?”

“Correction, I serve the New Republic as it needs but my first allegiance is to the Force and the New Jedi Order. If you must know, I’m one of Luke Skywalker’s students at his Academy.” If the Mando’s helmet had been off Jaden was sure she would have seen his eyes go wide.

“I’m here for the New Republic too, off the table, that is.”

“That’s impossible, Senat- my contact with the New Republic assured me that no one knew about this place or the weapons here. I was sent to destroy them.”

The Mandalorian was silent for a moment, then, “Sense I know you Jedi tend to find out everything, I might as well tell you the whole truth. I’m an independent contractor. No one besides my contact with the New Republic knows I’m here. Like I said, it’s strictly off the table.”

“And who’s your contact?” Jaden suspected it was probably someone dirty if it was off the table. Another interested party no doubt disguised as the New Republic. The Mandalorian didn’t seem dirty though, there was something about him, a presence that surrounded him that intrigued her.

“That information, I’ll take to my grave. But I assure you, it’s not of malicious intent. I’m here to collect some of the weapons and bring them in, they’ll go to a good cause and help a portion of the Republic’s army. Maybe we can work out a deal. You can destroy those three caches near here and I’ll take the other three. None of us need tell our contacts about each other.”

Jaden thought a moment, she didn’t like this, not one bit. How could the New Republic be so divided if one party wanted them gone and the other wanted them for use? None of it made sense. She decided to risk something big.

“My contact is very high up in the New Republic, how about yours?”

Mando shook his head. “I believe you, Jedi, and no, my contact is not so high up.” He released a frustrated breath. “I suppose my contact thought that the Republic would like to have these weapons and not want them destroyed.”

“Well,” Jaden shrugged, “things are a lot more dangerous out there at the moment, we didn’t want them to fall into the wrong hands.”

“I can understand that.” He waited a beat before continuing. “Well, then, if you permit me, I can help you with your mission. Where are the next caches you need to blow up?”

Jaden raised an eyebrow. “Ah no, if you’re gonna help me, then you’re coming with me. I don’t want you out of my sight, Mandalorian.”

He nodded. “I figured as much.” He turned and bent to pick up his jetpack, then reached for his blaster, Jaden pulled it towards herself. Mando quickly stood up to face her again.

“Let’s get one thing straight,” Jaden said. “You betray me, I’ll kill you and tell my high up contact all about you and then whoever your contact is, we will find them and make sure they are put behind bars. Forever. Get the picture?” Jaden surprised even herself with her threat, but the anger that bubbled near the surface was very real, the anticipation of betrayal already there though it came unbidden and unwelcome. The Mandalorian seemed to be looking her up and down.

“Understood,” he simply said, then bravely decided to add, “I didn’t know Jedi were one’s to threaten, I thought it was the other way around.”

“Well…” she stammered. “When you’ve faced betrayal enough times, you learn to be more careful.”

Mando’s helmet tilted to the side. “On that, we can agree.”

“So, I guess we should introduce ourselves? Or do you think that’s a bad idea?”

Mando shrugged. “I’m fine with it. My name is Din Djarin, I am the head of Clan Mudhorn and follow the Way of the Mandalore.”

“I’m Jaden Korr, and I follow the Path of the Jedi,” she said, adding that last bit so that it didn’t seem so dull compared to his.

Mando bowed his head slightly in respect and said, “Then what are we waiting for?”

“Let’s go.” Jaden bobbed her head in response and they set out towards an area where she was sure a cache had been hidden. It was in their sights and Jaden was ready to hand Mando a charge when suddenly a voice came out of the shadows behind them.

“If all you’re doing is destroying perfectly good weapons, then you might as well hand them over to someone who’ll put them to good use.”

Jaden froze, Din Djarin turned around, saying, “I know that voice. Come out and we will discuss things like civilized people.”

When Jaden turned in the same direction the Mandalorian had, she saw… yet another Mandalorian?! But his armor was more colorful, dented and scuffed up, painted in greens, yellows and reds that sometimes chipped away to gray. He was tall and broad shouldered, and behind him, she realized, stood a tall, lithe figure all in black with the occasional bits of red trimming its outfit. They both removed their helmets: The other Mandalorian was a man, about mid to late forties, with tan skin and a shiny bald head and prominent eyebrows under which an intense, piercing gaze shot forth. The other was a woman with long black hair tied into various braids. Her face reminded Jaden of Jan, except its features spoke of a harder life and rougher lifestyle filled with pain and sealing herself off from much feeling. Not to say it wasn’t a pretty face, but it lacked the softness and gentleness that Jan’s had. Not to mention the warmth.

Jaden looked closely at the new Mando’s armor and almost gasped. She’d read the stories, she’d seen the archives.

“Boba Fett?!”

“In the flesh young Jedi, but I’m not here to fight. I just want those weapons.”

Jaden sighed, Not this again.

“Look, Din Djarin and I have come to an agreement, the New Republic wants these caches destroyed. It’s what’s best for everyone.”

“Exactly why they’ll be safe in my hands.”

“No offense but I don’t exactly trust you, you’re a bounty hunter! At least, you used to be, and didn’t you fall into a Sarlacc pit? That’s what Master Skywalker told me.”

“And I hold no ill will towards your master, what’s past, is past,” Boba said. “But I was able to free myself from the pit and start a new life. I have forsaken my old ways and started new by righting old wrongs. I am now cementing my place as the head Daimyo of Mos Espa, Jabba the Hutt’s former throne and I need weapons with which to arm my growing militia. We are changing that city, for the better, and I’d heard from some reliable sources that there was a secret cache of weapons here, untouched and forgotten by the New Republic, or, not so forgotten as I had hoped. I swear I would not misuse them.”

Jaden’s lightsabers came out, she was done trying to negotiate, especially with someone who’d taken the place of a notorious crime lord like Jabba the Hutt.

“You know, if you wanted me to trust you, telling me that you took Jabba’s place did not help your cause.”

“I said I took his throne, not his place and you’d be wise, girl, to believe me and not act so hot headed.”

Who is this guy, my father? The woman next to Boba had drawn her blaster but Boba put a hand on her arm and she lowered it again.

“Please,” Boba said, looking at Mando. “For old time’s sake, to honor old alliances, let us negotiate and not shed blood.”

Mando was still, unsure. “I don’t want violence either but we are in a bit of a stalemate,” he said. “We’re,” he gestured to Jaden who still hadn’t put her sabers away, “here because we were both petitioned by the New Republic by different contacts to come here. Her’s is higher up than mine, who wanted me to collect the weapons and return them to the Republic. But because of the seniority of her contact, I made a compromise and seeded her the mission.”

Silence reigned for several moments, tension hanging in the air so thick Jaden could’ve cut it with her lightsabers. Finally, Boba started to speak.

“Perhaps some arrangement, half of the weapons in exchange for silence on all ends-?”

“No,” Jaden said and they all looked at her, giving her a feeling of prey caught in a trap, but she didn’t give ground. “My masters,” she explained, “will know if I lie, I can’t go back and tell them a different story, I’d have to tell the truth and I don’t plan on telling them anything else.” 

Boba’s intense eyes bored into hers. Mando stepped between them.

“Boba, I know you’d use these weapons for a good cause, but think of the relationship you’re trying to have with the New Republic, last I heard you were in negotiations to open up previously closed space lanes to them. Do you really want to hurt that partnership if they find out you took these weapons?”

“They needn’t know,” answered the Daimyo.

“I don’t trust you period.” Jaden said behind Mando, who turned to look her in the face, which was hard sense she couldn't see his. Why doesn’t he take his mask off? Is he scared I’ll reveal his identity?

“I can vouch for Boba Fett, Jaden. I was there when he took Mos Espa as his own, he’s doing a good work there, better than any of the Hutt’s have done for eons.”

Jaden lowered her lightsabers slightly, conflicted. “That still doesn’t get us anywhere. What about the weapons? I don’t want to have to tell a lie or half truth.” Aren’t you already doing that though? Whenever you say that you're fine or don’t need to talk about what’s really going on on the inside? You’re worse than Rosh.

“Shut up!” She whispered harshly, closing her eyes.

“Excuse me?” The woman said from Boba’s side.

“Nothing, I’m trying to think,” Jaden said. She wished she could call Kyle or Luke, but they hadn’t wanted any contact until the mission was finished or unless it was an emergency. Did this qualify as an emergency? And besides, none of the people present would want her calling anyone.

“Look, I don’t want it to come to having to hurt either of you,” Boba began. “I think the best way to avoid a fight is to negotiate. There are four of us, so it’d only be fair we split the caches in half. I saw that one has been destroyed, which means there are six more out here in these ruins somewhere. If you, Din Djarin, are still set on helping the Jedi, then by all means, work together to destroy three of them, and let Fennec and I take the remaining three.” He fixed his eyes on Jaden and said, “And you Jedi, so that your honor is not tainted, you have my permission to tell your master’s about me and I will deal with the New Republic accordingly and accept whatever consequences my actions may incur.”

Jaden could see his reasoning, she recognized she would be outnumbered by very skilled adversaries ( Would Din really fight against his friend with me? Probably not ) if this came to a fight even though she was at that moment thinking up some Force tricks to use. But most importantly she did not want it to have to come to a fight, and almost above that her wounded ego dictated that she tell Boba Fett exactly where he could shove his so-called ‘permission’ to her.

But she never had the chance to tell him anything, because Mando’s comlink beeped suddenly, a string of binary beeps and sounds from some kind of Astromech droid.

“R5, I’m a little busy, what’s so-?”

“BEEEEEEEEPPPPP, WHOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!” The droid said so loudly it hurt Jaden’s ears and Din had to turn the sound down.

“R5, slow down, what’s happening?” 

The droid continued to give off commands and various noises, Jaden thought she heard other sounds in the background, like a strange cooing and whining, but R5 was so loud she wondered if it was just her imagination. Between the four of them, they all got the message.

“Imperials,” Jaden said grimly. “At the outskirts of the city.” She looked Boba dead in the eye with a glare that matched his intensity. “Daimyo Fett, please, now do you see the need to destroy these weapons? If we keep bickering the Imperial Remnant will catch us divided and kill us. Now, I don’t like this idea I’m about to give but it’s the only option where we come out on top and hopefully alive.”

“We work together to fight the Imperials and destroy the weapons?” Boba said. “Agreed. We will leave you to finish your mission, young Jedi, you’ll be much more swift. Din Djarin, Fennec and I will hold them off unless or until they breach the walls of the city, then, we’ll need your lightsabers.”

Jaden looked at Mando who nodded his agreement, then at the woman beside Boba, Fennec he’d said so she assumed that was her name and they both nodded at each other. 

Jaden looked at Boba again. “It’s Jaden by the way, and, may the Force be with you all.” Then she turned and started setting her charge.

Two explosions later and Jaden was setting the fourth charge. Just three more to go. She hoped she’d be able to find them as easily as she’d found these. She jumped clear of the next explosion behind a pillar and set to running as fast as she could back towards her ship, taking another way that led out from beyond the tip of the X-Wing and into more ruins.

“Hi!”

What?! Jaden skidded to a stop, panting, looking around. It was a strange, slightly high pitched type of voice, almost like a child’s.

“Hello?” She called quietly. No answer. She had a mission to complete, she could figure this out later. She picked up the pace and kept going, even after the voice tried again and again in that same tone, it was almost annoying, “ Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi!” and then, “ What’s your name?”

“I don’t have time for this,” Jaden loudly whispered. “Please be quiet! I don't know who you are or what you want so please, leave me alone!” She hadn’t meant to sound harsh, but the stress was getting to her.

The voice stopped, then sadly said, “ Okay… bye.”

“How many did you say there were?!” Called Boba to his right hand, Fennec Shand.

“I said it was about fifty, probably a whole platoon plus a little extra!” She adjusted the grip on her rifle and proceeded to shoot five stormtroopers in a row before adding, “If we stay out of range and hidden as much as possible, we have a definite chance of winning this thing.”

On and on they continued to gun down the enemy, making much use of the ruined city’s architecture and moving occasionally so as to throw off the enemy and keep them second guessing where the next round of shots would come from.

Mando had gone to check on his ship, which he’d landed in a different part of the city, making certain it was secure and firmly telling its occupants to stay put until it was all over.

“I see about twenty left!” Boba called out.

“Good, this’ll take no time at all.” Fennec lined up another shot, but didn’t fire. Something else had caught her eye.

“Last one! Finally!” Jaden almost slid into the last cache she had been practically flying through the ruined city. She fumbled with the last charge, almost too excited, but at last it was set and she ran for cover, but the charge didn’t blow.

“Sithspit!”

“Jaden, come in.” It was Din Djarin. “We’ve got a situation.”

“I’m a little busy here! The last charge won’t blow up!”

“Well, we’ve got a slightly bigger problem.” His voice urged.

Jaden looked back at the cache, irritated. “What is it?”

“He’s like a Jedi, but not. He came with the Imperials.”

“He? Oh no!” Jaden’s adrenaline shot into overtime. A Jedi but not. There was no real way of knowing if it could be Rosh or not, but either way, even if it was just a regular cultist, they would need her help. It’s just one more cache of weapons, I can deal with them after the battle. 

And she took off running again.

But the Dark Jedi was not Rosh, nor was he any old cultist either. The scene Jaden came upon was this:

Both Mandalorians flying or hovering as far out of reach as they could on their jetpacks, taking shots when they were able but always having to dodge or let their armor take the blow of the deflected bolt. They were also avoiding heavy streams of Force lightning at all costs and Fennec, well, she’d stayed hidden, taking as many shots as she risked taking, always moving stealthily to a new spot after each one. But none of that mattered in the face of the adversary they were trying to fight.

The figure was dressed like the twins she’d fought on Vjun, but his face was different. Jaden sensed he was higher up than the Reborns even, perhaps one of Tavion’s top lieutenants or something.

“Finally!” He shouted. “A worthy adversary!” He looked her up and down, a gaze that in any normal situation would’ve made her uncomfortable. “Or not.”

He then lifted his face to the sky, as if he’d just caught a whiff of some amazing smell and was savoring it till the end.

“Ahhhhh, you’re not the only one here, are you, Jedi?”

“Of course I’m not you Di’kut, look around, you’re the one harassing my friends here!”

“Don’t you feel it?” The strange Reborn said, looking at her so earnestly she almost wondered if he’d call off the fight to stop and figure out exactly what it was that he’d sensed. But she had her walls up, this had to be a trick.

“Oh no, oh no, oh no…” The small child’s voice came again. Then it clicked. There was another Force sensitive here somewhere, why they were here was anyone’s guess, but Jaden knew that now, whatever or whomever it was, she had to protect them. She felt it then and it was not another dark presence, it was pure and light. 

Above and behind her, the Mandalorians landed on a broken balcony. The Reborn hardly noticed, he was too busy looking about, as if he would spot what he was looking for in the cracks of the stones around him.

“Don’t you sense it too?” He asked. “It’s a young one, I can feel it. Forget about the weapons, they’re yours. What I want now is…..” He took another deep, inhaling breath, and let it out. “The child.”

“Dank farrik,” Din Djarin muttered, then the Reborn finally seemed to notice him.

“Oh, is the child yours Mandalorian? Heh, his talents are wasted with you. I shall gladly take him off your hands.”

“Over my dead body.” Mando and Boba’s blasters were aimed at him now, somewhere off to the side, hidden very well by bounty hunter’s standards was Fennec Shand who took her chance and fired a round at the Reborn. He sidestepped them as if they were nothing and shot blood red lightning at the place she was concealed in. Fennec cried out in pain and Boba ran to her. Din stayed put, blaster still trained on his enemy.

“Din, help Boba get Fennec out of here and check on your son,” Jaden said firmly. “I will handle this. Now go!” None of them argued, when they were gone it was just her and the Sith.

“Fun,” he said. “I get to kill you and bring another promising young student before Tavion.”

This statement snapped something inside Jaden. “I suppose then you helped her capture Rosh didn’t you?” She spat.

“Oh, he was your friend? That’s rich. I hope the two of you weren’t close because it’s only a matter of time before Tavion tires of him or makes him face you, then you’d be forced to kill each other, so I’ll spare you that bit of heartbreak.”

Jaden gripped her sabers tighter, he was getting a rise out of her, she had to stay cool and level. “Then give my regards to Rosh you piece of Sith filth!”

“Oh I don’t think-”

Jaden was on him faster than even he’d expected and he was thrown off his rhythm, but only for a millisecond. 

Yellow, orange, and red, the colors of sunset in a beautiful sky battled and fought against each other for the victory of complete opposites: Light and darkness, day and night. Her adversary was much larger and broader, which should have made him slower than her normally, but Jaden sensed he was using some Force speed to be lighter on his feet. Everything she learned from Kyle and Corran about lightsaber duels, fighting with two sabers, with a bigger opponent, flooded to the front of her mind and was the only thing keeping her alive. She kept mostly to the defensive, only risking a Force trick if she knew it wouldn’t cost her much. But something had to give, they would both tire and only then, would it be known who was the better opponent.

Mando and Boba Fett held Fennec between them, she was unconscious, but alive and very weak from the shock she’d received from the Sith’s lightning. They carried her to Din’s starfighter and set her down gently. Din opened the cockpit expectantly.

“Dank farrik! I told you to stay put!” He turned to Boba, “He’s gone, I need to look for him!”

“Go!” Boba said, “We will be fine here!”

Din Djarin nodded and took off running back towards the fight he knew he couldn't win.

Jaden was struggling, of that much she knew. If she couldn’t find an advantage, then it was only a matter of time before this Reborn bested her, which by now she’d decided he was some kind of master. 

Blaster bolts came out of nowhere and she looked back briefly to see Din Djarin running in, guns literally blazing.

“So you’ve returned to help the Jedi win? That’s very ironic considering.” The Reborn Master laughed at the Mandalorian. “Or, you’re here for another reason? Let me guess…” He blocked an attack from Jaden. “Your ward is missing.” And another. “And you think he’s around here?” And another. “This will be the death of you both!” He struck at Jaden so hard she was sent backwards, backpedaling to try and retain her balance. Mando took to the skies with his jetpack and started firing several rounds at once to cover Jaden, which saved her life long enough for her to get her feet planted again. But now the Reborn Master was deflecting all of Mando’s blasts back at him. He began readying a bout of Force lightning when he was thrown off balance so violently and suddenly, that Jaden took the risk and jumped in, stabbing both sabers into his chest while exposed with his saber hand thrown back to try and catch his balance. The next second it was all over.

Hearing a cooing sound behind her, Jaden turned to see a tiny green alien, dressed in a dirty tan covering that looked more like a sack, standing just outside the shadows of the ruins. He looked exactly like the holographic images of Master Yoda from the Academy’s archives. Funny, I didn’t know there were more of his species.

“Hi,” The tiny voice in her head said shyly. Guilt and remorse filled Jaden and she turned off her sabers as she approached the small creature.

“Hi there, my name’s Jaden. I’m so so sorry I snapped at you earlier.” She kneeled in front of him and extended her hand. Their fingers lightly touched and she felt his strong Force ability tingling and humming all around her. “So, you were the presence we felt earlier. What’s your name?”

“His name is Grogu,” Mando said, having landed softly behind her.

Jaden turned her head to smile at him. “You know about his gift then? He could be trained further if you allowed it.”

“He was. Briefly. Skywalker, I believe his name was, came and took him with him some years ago. But Grogu chose to come back to me. He chose to walk the Way of the Mandalore under my teaching as my son and apprentice.”

Jaden nodded. What a story this’ll be to tell Master Luke then. She gently picked up the child and handed him back to his father, wondering what Din Djarin was behind that helmet. It was strange to her that Boba would remove his.

“Are you afraid of your identity being revealed?” She asked. “You know, your helmet.”

“No. The Way that I follow dictates that I not remove my helmet in the presence of any living thing.”

“Boba Fett, I’m guessing he’s not a true Mandalorian then?”

“His father was Mandalorian. Not all Mandalorians follow the Path that Grogu and I do. Ours is a small group called Children of the Watch.”

“Does that mean that Grogu will someday have to wear a helmet all the time, never taking it off, never letting another person see his face?” Jaden asked worriedly.

“This is the Way,” Din Djarin replied.

Jaden held her tongue. None of what the Mandalorian had told her made any normal sense and didn’t seem like it was in the best interest of his adoptive son. She thought about how lonely and isolating it must be, to wear a mask and never take it off in front of people, even if you still got to spend time with them. How lonely that must feel.

“Is everything alright?” Boba’s voice carried from the shadows, echoing through the ruins.

“Yes,” Jaden called back, facing him as he approached, Fennec weakly holding onto his arm.

“She is very weak, I don’t know what that sorcerer did to her but if we don’t get her help soon…”

“I’m… fine. So come off it already,” Fennec said weakly. Jaden had to smile, she and Jan had one thing in common.

“Here, set her down,” Jaden said, helping lower Fennec to the rocky ground, Boba practically cradling her to keep her somewhat comfortable.

“Can you help her?” Baba asked, eyes pleading, the most soft he’d looked all evening. He cared deeply about his friend and Jaden couldn’t just stand by.

“I think so.” She reached out a hand to Fennec’s arm and let her hand hover over it. Seeking through the Force, she looked for external injuries, eventually going inward. Her heart was weak, and something in her brain was making it run strangely. Whatever that Sith had trained in, he’d learned to harass a very deadly type of Force lightning. She thought she could at least heal her some, but it wouldn’t be strong enough.

“Grogu, I need your help. Mandalorian… Din, please, let your son use his gift, he can help me heal Fennec.” She reached out her arm and Din, without hesitation handed her his son.

Cradling him in the crook of her arm, she extended her free hand again. “Just follow my lead Grogu. Focus on putting everything to rights inside Fennec’s brain and heart. What that bad man did to her messed up some things and made them go slower or glitch.”

Together, the Mandalorian Foundling and the Jedi focused and a pale purple light pulsed all around them, engulfing them, even Boba who later found some of his minor scratches and injuries were mysteriously gone.

Pulling back, they waited. Fennec seemed to have fallen asleep but Jaden could tell she was better.

“Take her back to your ship and let her rest,” she said to Boba. “And, you might wanna consider giving her a pay raise.”

The Daimyo smiled, picked up his partner and began carrying her back through the ruins. Jaden and Mando followed, with Grogu trotting alongside them. When Boba had returned from his ship, they gathered near the last cache of weapons.

“So, it didn’t go off hmm?” Boba said, scratching his chin.

“That’s right, I think that last charge was faulty or something.” Jaden crossed her arms, glaring at the bomb as if she could will it to do its job.

“Then I suppose we’re back where we started?” Mando asked.

“No,” Jaden interjected. “We’re not. Boba can have them. He earned ‘em. Besides, we can just tell our contacts that it looked like ‘someone’ got to one of them but we were able to blow up the other six before they could return to finish the job. Sound okay to you?” She looked at Boba whose mouth split into a huge grin.

“Now you’re talking like a diplomat, Jedi. Good job. But what about your-” The cache exploded, sending tons of debris and shrapnel their way. They were so close they could feel the intense heat of the flames as they lapped at them. But none of them were burned.

Boba and Din looked with utter shock and relief at Jaden and Grogu, hands outstretched, creating a shield of protection around them, invisible to the eye, but much welcome.

“I suppose then, you won’t have to lie to your superiors,” Boba said.

“You know what,” Jaden looked at Mando. “We don’t have to tell them everything that happened do we?”

“The caches blew up no problem, no outside interference. That’s all the New Republic needs to know,” he said simply. “I can come up with something to tell my contact.”

“Yep, sounds good!” Jaden dropped her arms and brushed her hands together. The flames had subsided and they prepared to leave.

“Perhaps,” Boba said to Jaden. “The ships that the Imperials came in on, I don’t think they’ll be needing any of those supplies they brought with them.”

Jaden shrugged. “What supplies?” And he laughed.

“Good girl, talking like a bounty hunter now.”

“Please don’t call me that. But good luck anyways, and may the Force be with you.” She walked with Din Djarin back to his starfighter with little Grogu.

“Listen, I know you won’t give up your son to the training of the Jedi, but I have to warn you, if you don’t know already. There’s a Sith cult out there. That man that I fought tonight, he’s one of them and there’s a bunch. Please, for his sake, keep him as far from this fight as you can, and keep an ear out for news or rumors about the Disciples of Ragnos.” She dug around in her pocket and pulled out her comlink. “I could get in trouble for this, but here, I want to send you my private frequency. Send me anything you hear. Will you do that?”

Din Djarin slowly nodded. “Yes, anything to keep Grogu safe.”

“Good, believe me, these people are not to be trifled with. I’ve experienced them firsthand and they… they took my friend from me.” She dropped her face and concentrated on exchanging frequencies, feeling the Mandalorian’s gaze the whole time.

“I’m sorry they did that,” Din said and Jaden felt something touch her leg. Looking down she saw Grogu and bent down to shake his tiny little hand.

“May the Force be with you young one,” she said, tears rimming her eyes but expertly kept them in check. She still didn’t think that staying with the Mandalorian was the best for Grogu, but his attachment to him was so strong, it didn’t make sense to part them. She shook her head as she stood up. “And now I can say that I’ve seen it all. A young Jedi that’s also a Mandalorian, that walks both paths no less.”

Back at her ship, Jaden jumped in, muscles sore and achy, tired to the bone. As she flew away, the ruins of the city fading in the distance, her thoughts turned again to the Mandalorian’s dedication to wearing his helmet, and started to wonder if perhaps, there was something to it.

Perhaps hiding from everyone’s faces, all those prying eyes is the ideal escape. Perhaps not having to be vulnerable, to be fully known by anyone around you is why the Watch started the practice in the first place. Maybe Rosh would’ve made a better Mandalorian than a Jedi.

The thought was silly, but it had some merit. Somehow, she could picture her friend in all that armor, flying around with a jetpack strapped to his back, blaster in hand, he was a pretty good marksman after all. But would he have been better off? All that hiding?

Somehow, no matter all the mental shuffling or logical thinking, the answer would always be no.

“So, that’s it? You blew up the weapons no problem?”

“Yep, though the last charge had a delayed reaction, it eventually blew up too.”

“And that’s it? No other hiccups?” Kyle crossed his arms and eyed her suspiciously.

Jaden cracked. She hung her head and let her shoulders droop. “No, I mean… Yes. There were… some, hiccups.”

“Such as?” Kyle spread his arms, gesturing to Luke who stood quietly next to him. “Anything else you’d like to share with the class?” Jaden was silent, mulling over the entire story in her head, weighing exactly how much she should tell and what to leave out. Kyle sensed it immediately.

“You’ve already split most of the blue milk here, Jaden, so you might as well spill all of it.” Kyle’s arms were crossed again, even Luke did the same, but the look on his face was unreadable, whereas Kyle’s was as plain as if he’d shouted the words written there.

Jaden spilled everything, from the Mandalorian, to Boba Fett and Fennec Shand, the Imperial’s, the Reborn Master and even little Grogu himself. Her masters stood silent, their faces hardly giving any of what they were feeling away, though Jaden was sure she’d noticed their eyes widened at certain points in her story. At the end of it, there was silence as everything sunk in for them. Kyle and Luke looked at each other, a silent exchange, then they looked back to Jaden.

“So, you met Boba Fett. I'm impressed!” Kyle finally said, sheer shock and amazement coating his voice. “I ran into him once myself back in the Imperial days, not someone you want as an enemy, but, well... I guess it’s good to hear he’s turned over a new leaf.”

“I’m glad to hear about Grogu,” Luke said, a slight smile teasing the corner of his mouth. “As for your mission, I think it’s best for my sister not to know all the details, though I think it would be wise to put in a good word about Boba Fett’s leadership to the New Republic and open up talks of negotiation with him about his hyperspace lanes.”

“And Mando? What about his contact hiring him for independent contracts?” Jaden asked.

“Hmm, it doesn’t seem to be doing any harm necessarily, but…” He put a hand to his chin and thought for a moment. “The Mandalorian has a good heart and pure intentions, he too, like Boba, is turning over a new leaf for the good of his adoptive son. Let’s leave them be, but please, let us know if you receive any transmissions from him regarding the Disciples of Ragnos.”

“I will, Master.” Jaden bowed her head and like that, the debriefing was over.

Five days later Jaden’s faith in the Mandalorian came through.

“Kyle, I’ve just received word from Din Djarin, he says that he’s been getting secret reports of Imperial ships moving through Republic space. He thinks they may be mobilizing to assist the Disciples of Ragnos.”

“That’s great work Jaden! Be sure to tell him thank you, that may be the information that we need. Keep yourself available, Luke’s real close to a breakthrough about what Tavion and the cult might be doing with all that Force energy. Something big is going to happen… soon.”

Chapter Text

Jaden fell through the crevice, landing on her feet.

“If my info’s correct, this small passage should lead right outside…” Jaden stopped, seeing the giant boulder blocking the cave's entrance.

“Seriously?” She wondered how long it’d been since the Chandrilans had actually checked this area. She sighed. Time to get to work. Jaden took a stance, feet planted firmly, legs spread, knees slightly bent and concentrated. She pictured that the boulder in front of her weighed nothing more than a small pebble from the training grounds, her hands came up and in one swift motion pushed them forward as if she were shoving someone down. The rock propelled forward with more force and momentum than she’d meant. A sudden cry echoed as the boulder flew over the platform outside the cave, colliding with someone standing in front of it. Jaden realized that Tavion had put sentries further out than expected.

“Whoops,” Jaden mumbled, shrugged, then tentatively stepped out onto the stone shelf jutting out from the cliff. Maybe Tavion does intend to come herself.

She looked around her for the first time in wonder of the vast, deep canyons that surrounded her. Known as the Crystal Canyons, a great gallery of natural formations cut into the planet’s surface with a trench going miles deep served as the ancient burial site of Jedi Knights for millenia. Just earlier that day, Luke had received word from officials in the area that some cultists had been spotted breaking into one of the tombs believed to belong to someone known as the Barsen’thor, a Warden of the Jedi Order from over three thousand years ago. The perfect spot for Tavion to get an extra boost of Force energy.

“If they are indeed attempting to steal Force power from that tomb, Tavion might be there.” Luke had told her. “Be careful and call for assistance if you find her.”

“No problem Master, I’m not exactly looking forward to our next encounter,” she’d replied. 

Besides, she wasn’t sure whether or not she’d strike that witch down in anger or not for everything she did to her and Rosh. She needed more time to get her emotions in check for that to happen, especially if she ever saw Rosh again.

There was no clear path through the Crystal Canyons. Bridges, ledges and balconies jutted out from the stone walls of the trench, making it very hard to find a straight way through it all. And to make matters worse, many of the bridges were cracked, broken or crumbling, as Jaden experienced firsthand in a harrowing moment of panic, but made it to safety at the last second. Large double doors cut into the sides of the canyon led into either more mazes of passageways or tombs, which added to Jaden’s growing confusion. And many of these doors seemed either locked, stuck shut from all the years of unuse or sealed by some powerful force.

She made her way by leaping from ledge to ledge, bridge to bridge, occasionally running into an armed sentry, usually mercenaries. This further backed her theory that Tavion was coming or was here already and had extra security placed around the canyons. Either way, it helped her to know she was going in the right direction because after finding the boulder in the passage, she wasn’t entirely sure she could trust the Chandrilans directions. She also saw why they were called the Crystal Canyons. Throughout them, built into the architecture of the place as either light fixtures on either sides of doors or balconies, or set into stone along the bridges were large, pale purple, blue and white crystals. They cast a pale, cold light on her path as she traversed the strange landscape.

She jumped to the top of another ledge and perched there like a bird of prey, listening as two mercs below her talked and made their rounds on the bridge they’d been placed on.

“I can hardly see in this thing! It’s like being a stormtrooper all over again!” One said about the helmet he was wearing. The other seemed perfectly fine in his.

“You were a stormtrooper?”

“Yeah, but I couldn't stand taking orders, so I jumped ship first chance I got.”

“Smart move. By the way, the boss gave us orders to patrol the North Hall.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

They began walking away with their backs to Jaden. Ahead, she saw that off in the shadows, there was a narrow path along a ledge off to the side leading to a much larger set of doors which were open. She could just see the grandness of the hall beyond them, with glowing crystals casting their pale light on high pillars and ancient stones. She jumped to the ground, landing several feet behind the mercs.

“Is someone there?” The one who complained about his vision asked, turning. It was the last thing either of them said.

She entered the grand hall and immediately sensed that something was wrong.

Two cultists came from behind the many pillars but only one was armed. Jaden knew how this worked by now. She was stronger in the Force and managed to keep the unarmed one off his feet and unable to concentrate long enough to use the Force against her. His downfall came when he Force pushed Jaden to the ground, and instead of pushing him back, she pulled him closer. The cultist’s scream of agony was cut off before it had really begun as Jaden impaled him on her golden yellow blade.

As for the saber wielding cultist, he was no issue once his companion was dealt with. Only lightly trained and his reflexes not honed to be fast enough, he fell to one of Jaden’s blades as he missed a parried strike.

Returning inside the hall, she stood before the only door, but it didn’t budge no matter what she did, even her lightsabers refused to go through it.

“Okay, okay, let’s take a step back, focus,” Jaden said quietly, she stepped back and closed her eyes. Then, something that hadn’t happened since her very first time on the training grounds. A strange symbol started to appear on the floor in front of her. It glowed like an ember catching fire as it spread across the floor, shooting up the door to its center and creating a matching symbol. Jaden instinctively held her hand towards the floor and the other at the large door and focused on what she wanted it to do. 

Open.

It did, in one smooth motion. Ahead was a passage that turned to the right, and at its corner, stood one of the Reborn.

This place is practically infested! Jaden had hoped to make her way through the canyons as stealthily as possible. 

This one carried two lightsabers. Good, we’re evenly matched. I hope.

The fight went on longer than Jaden had hoped it would. Her opponent, it turned out, was a very big, tough man.

“I am stronger than you!” He hissed when their sabers locked, his eyes blazing red and orange. They dueled out of the passage and towards a broken platform. They practically danced around cracks and holes, trying to avoid calamity, trying to gain the upper hand.

Jaden shot lightning at him, he caught it with his lightsabers and she tried another trick: She pushed forward as hard as she could with her hands and before he could counter the maneuver, the Reborn was sent flying over the edge and fell who knew how far to the bottom, his screams echoing until they were swallowed up by the dark blue void of the chasm.

Jaden looked over the edge and had to step back, sit down to get her bearings. Her head spun just from looking down all those limitless feet, yards, miles, it seemed. She couldn’t see the bottom, maybe there was none and it just swallowed you up?

Jaden was shaky, not wanting to experience the same fate the Sith had, but knowing that she needed to continue. She also had a new way of dealing with her enemies.

Her journey continued rather quietly, she kept on from ledge to ledge and bridge to bridge, traveling through passages and doors that were open, She came to a passage that went up and another that went down. She checked out the upward passage first. It was blocked with rubble after she turned a corner.

“Can’t go that way.” She sighed and went back down to the other passage which led to a bridge that was fully broken, the gap between sides too big for her to jump even with all her combined Force strength.

How am I supposed to get over there?

Looking to her left, she found it, a narrow trail leading down to another crossing, a bit precarious, but it would have to do. It turned out that crossing the bridge wouldn't have made a difference, it wasn’t the door on the other side she had to get to anyhow, it was another trail. 

After jumping from a gap in the ledge to another large platform, she encountered a cultist, her first one in a while, but at least she knew she was going in the right direction. He proved easy to dispatch. Forcing him close to the edge, she Force pushed him off like the one from earlier, closing her eyes and ears to the sight of him falling and the sound of his screams. It was gruesome, but effective.

She opened her eyes and looked all around her, gasping at what she beheld as if really seeing it for the first time since her arrival. The architecture, the pillars and carvings, large pale blue crystals that were stuck in the canyon’s walls, emitting their cold, but somehow comforting, beautiful light; to the statues of mysterious robed figures holding more crystals that she was starting to notice more of. It was all so dazzling and dangerous. 

“This place is amazing!” She whispered in awe. “Seems like it goes on forever.” And she truly wondered if she would ever make it to the tomb she was looking for. She almost didn’t care if she didn’t. It was a strange place she didn’t mind getting lost in, even though it still frightened her. It’s the atmosphere, she thought, there’s a type of peace and sacredness I’ve never felt before, but… it feels like the time when I built my first lightsaber… Like… like a dream.

That realization was almost dangerous, dreams were good, but not being stuck in one was also good. She had to focus on the reality of the situation and keep moving forward, her mind concentrating on her mission.

She pressed on, making it to a balcony of sorts and seeing her only path, a long platform far below her, an armed mercenary standing guard, that’s how she knew it was the right way to go.

Great! How am I going to get down there without breaking my neck?

She un-holstered her blaster first, looking to be sure that the lone merc was the only one, and killed him in one shot. She then set to work looking for a way down to the platform he was on.

Getting down safely involved a lot of courage and precise leaping down onto a small bridge. Then to a ledge and finally onto a part of the platform that was broken, but the gap was not very large, so Jaden jumped for it. She found her way up the other side to another high bridge, this one having a sense of great importance and, according to the Chandrilans descriptions, was the tomb of the Barsen’thor.

All was quiet outside of the tomb, Jaden took it all in, the sights, the lack of hardly any sound, just the strange peace that hung over the place, that is, besides the presence of the dark side that she sensed was nearby. She couldn’t be sure it was Tavion, but she was determined to be careful at all costs. She was sure she had a good plan to keep Tavion from sucking the Force energy from this blissful place.

I should reseal the tomb so no one else can disturb it.

She cautiously approached the tomb and slipped inside the entrance. She realized she wasn’t even in the main burial part of it, just a large entrance hallway with giant pillars and long, shallow steps leading gradually up to what looked in the distance like a smaller chamber. That’s where he’s buried.

She took several cautious, quiet steps up the stairs, when suddenly her whole body began to shake as painful jolts shot through it. Her brain felt like it was being jump started as the pop and cracks of red lightning edged her vision. She fought for control of her violently shaking body, barely staying conscious, falling to the ground like she and Kyle had on Vjun. And then they were on her, two, three large Reborn and several cultists surrounded her, lightsabers drawn, ready to end her life right there and make this tomb her own.

“Halt!” Yelled someone from beyond the group of Sith. Another male Reborn, dressed like the twins and the master on Ord Mantell. A Reborn Master. “Bring that Jedi brat here!”

She was dragged by the arms by two cultists into the smaller chamber where the master waited. She did not see Tavion. That allowed some relief to flow through her.

Jaden willed her anger to slow down as she watched the Reborn Master confiscate her lightsabers and place them on his belt. The hands of the two cultists gripped her arms like a vice, forcing her to her knees.

“Excellent,” the Master said. “I’d love killing you myself, but it just so happens that Mistress Tavion will be here soon and… I wouldn’t want to spoil the lovely surprise of giving her the opportunity of vanquishing you herself.”

“Terrific,” Jaden muttered. “Just lovely.” The Reborn smacked her across the face, stunning her.

“You’ll do well to keep your mouth shut, or I may just gut you myself.” Jaden didn’t reply, she knew better than to get into an altercation at this stage. She remembered what Kyle taught her, “Know when you haven’t got the upperhand Jaden. That’s when you’ve gotta know to keep your mouth shut and your eyes open. Look, and wait for the opportunity to gain the upperhand back. That’s the difference between a live Jedi and a dead one.”

Jaden let out a shaky breath, and closed her eyes. The Reborn chuckled and turned away. She willed her breathing to even out and focused on the Force, it wasn’t the best time for meditation, but she had no other option, not when she was surrounded by Tavion’s followers. Right now, using whatever precious time she had until their master arrived to find an answer through the Force was her only option.

“What are you doing here Child?” Jaden’s eyes shot open and glanced around, but no one was looking at her, and none of the cultists and Reborn seemed to have heard what she had. Jaden closed her eyes again, sending out a question with her mind.

Who are you?

“The one whose resting place has been disturbed.”

Jaden cracked her eyes open to glance at the stone casket not ten feet from her.

You’re really the dead Jedi? Jaden had heard tales of dead Jedi appearing to people, especially fellow Jedi, but to have one actually talking to her? Of course there’d been the mysterious voice when she’d nearly had a mental breakdown in the Hutt Lord’s betting parlor but… It all just seemed too good to be true.

“Yes.” Was the only answer. It was strange how the voice sounded as though it was spoken out loud, but she was the only one to hear it.

“You must help me. That is why you are here, isn’t it?” The voice was gentle, melancholy.

Yes, but I’m pinned down as you can see. Or can you? Anyway, they also took my lightsabers.

“You won’t need them for this. Now listen, remember your training, if you are going to seal my tomb to keep these Sith from defiling it, you must look, not at what your eyes are drawn to, but at the unassuming things.”

Jaden resisted the urge to reply out loud, instead she carefully popped her eyes open one at a time, making sure she wasn’t noticed. She glanced at the coffin, at the pale blue and purple crystals that cast a faint light around them, then at the ornately carved pillars and statues surrounding the Jedi’s resting place. No, look for the unassuming. She turned her attention to a part of the walls on either side of the casket that she hadn’t noticed before. Two sections that looked like they used to be alcoves were bricked up by plain, solid gray stone; they didn’t fit with the rest of the room at all.

“That’s it,” the Spirit of the Jedi Master said. “You’ve got it. Behind those false walls are switches that will trigger the tombs' collapse, sealing it for good. It is a safeguard in most of these tombs in case…”

Something like this happens?

“Yes. You must reach out with your mind and pull them, it is the only way.”

Alright. Jaden shut her eyes tighter.

“Wait, I must tell you, after you flip both of those switches, you will have only seconds to start running before the tomb will start to collapse, and less than a minute before the bridge outside, the only means of entering this tomb from any direction, starts to crumble. You must hurry, do you understand?”

I do.

“Good. And don’t worry about these Sith. I have some power and influence left on this natural plane. I will do what I can to help you escape. Don’t do anything but run.”

Got it. Jaden exhaled slowly, then focused with all her will on the two bricked up alcoves, then beyond them, to where the hidden levers were, just like that first day of training, right after Rosh had sicced a training droid on her…

“Focus,” the Master said. “It’s just you and me, Jaden. It’s you and me. That’s it, focus on that, not on the past.”

Sorry. Jaden pulled her thoughts back to the present. She found the first switch. There was an audible click.

“What was that?” A cultist asked, his voice laced with fear.

The Reborn turned around to look at Jaden. “Probably a Jedi trick… Using the Force to distract us.” He started to walk over, Jaden had no time, she flipped the second switch, and all hell broke loose. She acted faster than she’d ever done before, with a huge concentrated effort, she Force pushed the cultists who held her arms to the side, slamming them into stone pillars, cracking both bones and marble. In the next second, she leapt up, shot out her hand and pulled her lightsabers to herself before the Reborn Master could even register what had just happened. In front of her, a long, hollow stone tube lowered from the ceiling, encasing the stone coffin and pushing it further into the earth. Jaden landed on her feet just as the ground began to shake and pieces of the ceiling started to fall.

“Time to go!” The Master’s voice urged. “Come on, Jaden!”

Jaden needed no further prompting, she turned on her heels and ran. She was surprised by her own speed, wondering if the Master’s influence had something to do with it. She gained more speed as she raced through the cavern, cultists and Reborn alike who stood guard, looked stunned and afraid, then they saw her. She resisted the urge to slow down, even when some who were further ahead started to run toward her to bar her escape. 

“Keep going, do not slow down!” The closest Reborn who was running right at her up ahead, saber at the ready, turning the crystals around him crimson, was suddenly thrown back and shoved up into the high ceiling, disappearing from sight. Jaden gulped, I’m glad you’re on my side! 

She picked up her pace, staring straight ahead and not watching as other members of Tavion’s cult were grabbed by unseen hands and thrown either into the walls or the ceiling, out of her direct path.

Jaden cleared the tomb entrance even as one of the giant pillars fell behind her, causing a tremor under her feet, shaking the earth; but she still had to clear the bridge which was already starting to crumble.

“Go! Jump!”  

Jaden sucked in a breath and took a flying leap over the vast chasm, nearly coming short, but landed safely on the other side. She landed hard, though none the worse for wear as she rolled to a stop, then looked across the expanse to the tomb's entrance. Colossal boulders piled up in front of the opening, sealing it off for good. Nothing remained of the bridge on that side, a minuscule stump barely jutted out from the small ledge that Jaden had landed on. The robed statues holding crystals were either gone or deformed beyond recognition, their pretty light disappearing into the expanse below her. She slowly stood, staring at the tomb. A translucent figure seemed to stand there, hovering over the empty air, casting a pale light of its own on the large stones behind it. It was hard to make out the details at this distance but she could see it was male, with long hair that lay across his shoulders and down his back, some pieces pulled back into a long tail behind the head. He wore the traditional robes of a Warden of the Jedi Order that she’d read about in the Jedi Texts. For a time he seemed to be studying her with interest. Jaden wasn’t sure if she should say something or not, but he made the decision for them.

“Thank you, Young Jedi. You’ve put my Spirit to rest at last, and for that I leave you with this: Do not worry about your friend.” Jaden’s stomach flipped. “Just remember, do not let your anger or fear of betrayal overtake you. It will be your undoing if you let it. Farewell.” He raised his hand and became harder to see as he faded into the stones covering his final resting place.

Jaden swallowed the lump in her throat. “Rest peacefully,” she said hoarsely, then made her way back through the winding canyon to her ship.

Tavion walked to the edge of the cliff that overlooked the tomb of the powerful Jedi Master she’d been told about, feeling somewhat invincible. She gripped the handle of the scepter in her right hand, its power tingling in her fingers. She came to a stop when she saw the tomb's entrance, or rather the lack thereof. 

She tightened her hold on the scepter and turned. “You there!” A nearby cultist shuffled  forward, clearly not happy to be under Tavion’s angry glare.

“Yes, Master?” He said, averting eye contact.

“Is this the right location of the Jedi’s tomb or not?”

“It-it is! This is where our scouts last checked in, this is where they said the tomb was.”

“Well,” Tavion spat, grabbing the cultist by the scruff of his neck and dragging him to the edge, using the scepter to make her point. “Then why, pray tell, is our way in blocked?”

“I-I don’t know!” He stuttered.

Tavion threw him to the side, he quickly crawled away as she screamed in rage.

“Master,” Alora approached, “I’ve just received word from Talion, he and his team swept the Canyons on the far end, and… found the rest of the scouts we sent.”

“And?” Tavion’s eyes bored into her.

“They’re all dead,” Alora answered unflinchingly. “Someone must have come and taken Camyron’s team in the Jedi’s tomb by surprise, then somehow sealed the tomb to keep us from entering.”

Tavion turned back to the closed tomb, mind racing. “Did the team search for the interloper?” 

“Yes, but they’ve determined that whoever it was is long gone now.”

Tavion nodded grimly, closing her eyes. “Oh I believe I know who it was.”

“Katarn’s other brat?” Alora guessed.

Waves of memories crashed unbidden through Tavion’s mind.

“D-d-don’t! M-m-mercy!” 

“The kind of mercy you showed Jan?” 

She could still feel the vice around her throat, pressing, squeezing the life out of her, threatening to crush her larynx. She remembered how hard it was to form the words that pleaded her case to the man blinded by rage for the death of his beloved.

“She lives! I can tell you where she is!”

“Why should I believe you?”

“Because I’m not brave enough to die!”

Tavion squeezed her eyes shut against the visceral memory but its image still smoldered at the back of her mind. She felt the tension in her body again, the way it was brought back to the solid ground behind Katarn when he’d suddenly decided to release her.

“Get out of my sight.”

“What?”

“You heard me. Go, and pray that I find your Master before he finds you.”

That was the worst part. She’d left and never showed her face to Desann. She abandoned him and Katarn did find him first. It didn’t matter that Desann would have killed her anyway, what mattered was that she’d failed him, failed what he’d trained her for and gone against the Sith teaching. Sith don’t fear death… How I made a fool of myself that day, how Katarn made a fool of me. He shall not get away with it.

 Katarn. The growl in his voice, the fire in his eyes, the force to be reckoned with that he’d proved to be… it was all seared into her brain and replayed at the most unwelcomed times, always unbidden. When she laid down to sleep, when she gave orders to her followers, whenever she laid eyes on Rosh…

“Master?” Alora said cautiously. Tavion opened her eyes. She was still here, and she was still alive.

“Yes, I think I know precisely what we need to do in order to ensure her and Katarn’s folly.”

“Oh I can’t wait for this.” Alora smiled.

No, I’ve been waiting too long. Katarn will rue the day he stepped in and upended my life. He will rue the shame he brought upon me and he will suffer a hundred fold. I will take him, I will twist his heart black, and I will break him.

“So you didn't run into Tavion. That's good... and bad,” Kyle told Jaden after she’d reported in. “At least you stopped the cultists. But we can't keep this up forever. We've got to stop Tavion once and for all.”

“And how are we going to do that?” Jaden asked. “It seems like everywhere she’s one step ahead of us.”

“Luke’s coming up with a plan, but he’s going to announce it to the whole Academy when he’s ready. Should be any day now.” He put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Go get some rest huh? You look like the dead.”

Jaden looked at him with no amusement in her eyes, Kyle grinned amiably. “Not literally, I was only joking, but you at least look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“I did.”

“Oh.” Kyle didn’t know what else to say to that. “Wanna talk about it?”

“Maybe later, I… need some time alone.” Jaden felt so far off she might as well be in space, or back in that tomb with that wise Jedi Warden.

“Okay,” Kyle said, trying to decide if he needed to say anything more. “I’m here anytime you need someone to listen, you know that right?”

Jaden smiled tiredly. “I always have.” But even as she left she wondered if that wasn’t more than a half truth.

Rosh jolted awake as the door to his room, or jail cell as it had started to feel like, opened and Tavion entered.

“Ta-Tavion! What-”

“Quiet dear Rosh, talking never really was your strong suit.” She closed the distance between them as he quickly rose to his feet. With a violent motion she gripped the front of his shirt, forcing him to look her in the eyes. “It is time you decided whose side you're really on, to prove your allegiance to me, to Ragnos.”

“What do you mean?” Rosh blurted out. “I’ve served you faithfully the entire time I’ve been here.”

“Served me yes, but how do I know that I have your complete loyalty? Your heart, your will? No, those things must be proven further. You’ve already caused me to doubt my faith in you after that embarrassing display with your little friend at Vader’s Castle. What was her name? Jacen…?”

“Jaden.”

“Nevertheless, what I need to know is if I were to bring her to you and commanded you to strike her down where she stood, would you?”

“What do you mean?” Rosh asked, his voice rising in pitch. “Where is she?!”

“Oh, so I guess that’s a no.” Tavion let him go and turned to leave. “I suppose I’ll let Alora have all the fun of dispatching her.”

“Wait!” Rosh held out a hand.

“Yes?” Tavion turned to face him, triumphant. “Will you do as I ask? Will you sever the ties with your old life and follow Ragnos, follow me?”

Rosh stood up straight, resolved, eyes burning with a new fire. “No.” It was the first time in his life he’d truly stood up for himself, grown a backbone and he was proud of it.

“No?”

“You heard me. As long as I live I won’t hurt Jaden, not again, not ever. And I’ll make sure you never do either.”

“Oh isn’t that sweet, as if you could do anything to stop me. But you should know by now, she’s not here, never has been.” Rosh sighed with relief. “She’s safe back at that repulsive little Academy Skywalker blindly hopes will rebuild the Jedi Order. But now that I know where your loyalties lie, I no longer have use for you.” Tavion snapped her fingers as two large Reborn entered the room.

“No, please!” Rosh said frantically, knowing it was no use to beg a Sith for mercy but he was afraid anyway. He struggled as the Reborn grasped his arms and drug him outside.

“Do be gentle with him,” Tavion called, “We don’t want to damage our bait before it’s been eaten!”

Realization dawned over Rosh’s face. “No, you can’t! It won’t work, Jaden wants nothing to do with me and so does Kyle!”

“You know, it’s cute when you lie.” Tavion smiled wickedly. “But I think we’ll let them decide if they’re done with you or not.” She addressed one of the Reborn, “Talion, take him to the facility.”

As they dragged Rosh away, screaming, pleading, Alora came into the room. “You sent for me, Master?”

“Yes, I need you to go with them to the facility to keep an eye on Rosh, and to send an important message for me.”

“Master, why waste your time on that rabble?” Alora crossed her arms, trying to hide her obvious annoyance. Doing Tavion’s grunt work was really starting to grate on her.

“I’m not.” Tavion raised an eyebrow. “I’m simply drawing in a new, potentially more powerful ally… Come! It’s high time we went forward with the final stage of our plans.”

Chapter Text

“The time has come to put an end to the Disciples of Ragnos. I believe that Tavion is storing Force power in the scepter for one purpose: to resurrect Marka Ragnos.” 

The whole Audience Chamber gave a collective gasp. Luke’s gaze swept the room from the top of the dais as everyone took in this information. 

“Is that possible?” Jaden asked, confused.

“The Force holds a great many secrets. It may be possible that, if a high enough concentration of Force energy is infused into a body, the cells might regenerate, bringing the person back to life.”

Her blood ran cold. “We have to stop them!”

Kyle stood next to Jaden, arms crossed and released a humorless chuckle. “Ha! No kiddin!” He turned and addressed Luke. “So we’re going to Korriban, huh? Not exactly a vacation spot.”

Jaden felt like she’d missed something. “Korriban? I remember seeing it mentioned in the Archives. What is it?”

“It’s the burial place of a whole bunch of Sith lords. It’s where Ragnos is buried,” Kyle replied.

“If Ragnos is resurrected, there’s no telling what he might be able to do. It will take all of our strength to stop him,” Luke said. “We must be on our guard down in the valley there. We’ll go in separate teams, the more advanced students will be sent closer to the burial site, while the apprentices will be more spread out on the perimeter. Your masters will accompany you. The New Republic fleet has agreed to assist us in engaging Tavion’s Imperial ships. We leave within the hour, and may the Force be with you all.”

“We’re not heading to Korriban just yet,” Kyle told Jaden when she joined him in the hangar by the Raven’s Claw. “I just received a distress signal from Rosh.”

Jaden’s felt as though her heart had stopped. “Rosh? Where is he?”

“He’s being held captive on Taspir III. It’s an Imperial controlled planet, a real paradise,” he said sarcastically.

“I’m confused, how did he get a message out?” The gears in her head started turning, something wasn’t right, she could feel it.

“I don’t know. But we can’t leave him there.” 

Jaden wasn’t sure what she was feeling, she’d learned not long ago that her friend wasn’t her friend anymore. She wanted him to turn back to the light, but it seemed impossible. She could never be sure to trust him again after his betrayal. What was stopping him from pulling everything out from under her again? And she was starting to resent the softer feelings she had towards him too. She wondered if Kyle was even thinking of the risks.

“Rosh could still belong to the dark side. It could be a trap,” she reasoned.

Kyle stood up straighter and clasped his hands behind him, giving an imitation of Luke. He looked down at the ground as if considering her words, then looked back up at her. “It could be. But I’m not willing to let him die there if it isn’t.”

He had a point, but…

“But what about Ragnos?” Jaden almost pleaded. “We have to go to Korriban.”

Kyle unclasped his hands and put them on his hips. “Well if we’re lucky, we’ll catch up with everyone else before the fireworks start.” He studied her face with that searching, intense gaze that often made her squirmed under it, raising an eyebrow. “If you don’t wanna help me…-”

“N-No. I’m coming. I want to come.” Her voice came out as a rebellious tremor, her true emotions lapping at the edge, threatening to spill over.

“Do you?” Kyle’s voice was firm, but his eyes were soft.

“Yes, Rosh is my friend and we need to save him, let’s go before we miss everything.” She started to push past Kyle towards the cockpit, but on a hunch, he grabbed her shoulder and swung her back around to face him.

“That’s not all, is it Jaden?” He held her shoulders firmly, looking her in the eye. She was struggling with something, of that much he could see. “What is it kid?” He asked softly.

“Kyle…” Was all she could get out before the tears and the sobs fully escaped her. Kyle didn’t hesitate a second before pulling her into his arms and wrapping them around her like a safety net, catching her as she collapsed into his chest. She was safe, the storm was outside. He stroked her hair like she was a little girl, his little girl. Kyle had never had kids, but he wanted them someday, and this felt like good practice. He’d have to talk to Jan about that soon.

Jaden felt safe. It felt good to be held by something solid, someone whose presence always made her feel appreciated, accepted and challenged her to be better. The smell of Kyle’s starched shirt, the feel of his heartbeat against her cheek, the hand rubbing her back, this was the care she’d so desperately wanted, needed.

“Hey, kiddo,” he said softly into her hair. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

“Everything,” Jaden said miserably.

“Can you narrow it down for me?” He asked gently, but his dry delivery made her choke out a laugh. How was she crying like a baby one minute and laughing the next?

She took a deep breath, and tried to tell him.

“Rosh, I… I had suspicions, feelings about him from our first mission on Tatooine, the way he killed the Sand People we ran into, his eyes… I was afraid and worried about him. I wanted to tell you but didn’t want to interfere and I’m sorry. And now he’s with the dark side, with Tavion and I hate it. I hate it, I hate her, and I hate him!”

“No you don’t,” Kyle said gently.

“I do! I hate him because I, I…”

“C’mon Jaden, it’s okay, it’s just me.”

“I love him.” Her breath escaped like a sigh of relief and a gasp for air all at once. “I love him and I don’t want him to die.” She cried even more, somehow, the feeling of complete relief at finally admitting those feelings freed her from all the pressure, all the pain. “And… and there’s something else too…”

“Tell me.”

“On my first day, when I saw Tavion at the Temple with the scepter… I was spying on them and she must’ve heard me and pointed it in my direction… I got hit by all that Force energy… I felt… Something happened inside of me, this great darkness and pain entered me, somehow it’s all clear but I’ve had nightmares from it since, images of darkness, the sound of mechanical breathing, like… like Darth Vader, I just know it was him. I’ve been more irritable and angry since then and it's been so hard to control…”

More choking sobs ensued. Kyle held her tighter, wishing he could squeeze the darkness out, ward it off with his comforting embrace, but he couldn’t, he knew enough about facing off with the dark side to know that it would be her choice, not his, and she still had a long way to go.

“Jaden.”

She finally lifted her head and looked Kyle full in the face, holding his eyes with hers, he felt his own brim with tears. “Uh,” he cleared his throat. “Listen, this fight, this internal darkness, I have a feeling that it’s going to get stronger the closer we get to Rosh and Tavion. The closer we get to defeating her. If you’re going to come with me, I have to ask, can you put your feelings for Rosh aside, can you fight your anger and hold this darkness back for us to complete our mission?”

Jaden took a deep breath, the fresh air from the moon blowing through the hangar. She still felt the darkness, it was there, just below the surface. But somehow, having her master know it was there, knowing that she was with him and that he’d given her the tools to fight it, she didn’t feel so alone.

“I’m coming,” she said.

“You can fight this Jaden, but it will be the greatest challenge of your life. The closer you get to betrayal, the closer you get to the cliff's edge,” the image of the handsome Jedi said. She’d heard his voice on Nar Kreeta, and now here, in the cockpit of the Raven’s Claw, where Kyle had told her to mediate, she could see him as clear as if he were there with her. And now she could finally put the pieces together of his identity. She’d seen plenty of hologram images and recordings of him, the scar at the corner of his right eye was unmistakable. He was the Spirit of Anakin Skywalker. Luke’s father.

But beside him, was the darkness, the black helmeted figure robed in darkness. Darth Vader.

“The conviction you lack will be your undoing. The true test of the Force is approaching you, and you shall soon join me.”

“No!” Jaden screamed out loud.

“Jaden focus!” It was Kyle, but his voice was echoey, as if from far far away.

No, we will see. Just you wait. The darkness cannot prevail where there is light. I’ve seen it all the time I’ve been at the Academy, with your son. He saved you. Who’s to say I can’t help Rosh too.

“Helping your so-called friend is not what’s at stake,” Vader said. “It’s your salvation you should fear. Without all of your power, what will you do then? You didn’t think you became so powerful merely because Luke and Katarn were good teachers, did you?”

What do you mean?

“Search your feelings.”

He was right, whatever had happened to her that first day, the blast from the scepter, it was the reason she’d picked up things so quickly, so easily. But yet…

What about my lightsaber? I built it before I was hit by the scepter’s power.

Silence. It seemed Vader didn’t know how to reply. Then:

“What will you do when you lose everything and have no power or strength? You will die.”

Jaden looked around for Anakin, but he had long since disappeared.

Is the dark side truly this powerful?

The Raven’s Claw flew over the volcanic planet of Taspir III, red lava and heat haze seemed to cover the majority of the planet’s surface. Jaden could already feel herself sweating. A large factory came into view and Kyle maneuvered the Claw towards a lone landing platform that was empty and at the side of the facility, well hidden and not well guarded.

“You gonna be okay kid?”

She nodded.

“We don’t have time to talk about it, but did you discover any answers, anything interesting that helped while meditating?”

She shrugged. “I’m not sure. But you needn’t worry about me Kyle. I think now that I’m more aware of the darkness, the easier it’ll be for me to fight it.”

Kyle nodded back. “Just… be careful. Fighting darkness is easier said than done when you’re not in a volatile situation. Keep your wits about you and call me if you need anything, especially if you find Rosh.” He placed his hand on her shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. “I believe in you kid, and that’s the truth. I… I’ve grown really fond of you and Rosh. It almost feels like Jan and I have kids of our own at this point… but she only visits on occasion.” They both laughed lightly, the stress of the situation an ever present weight on their shoulders.

“I love you too Kyle.” Jaden’s voice was hoarse as she vocalized her true sentiments. “And Jan, she’s… she’s like the mom I always wanted. Hopefully I can tell her that someday.” She slipped out of the cockpit and landed on the circular platform below before her master could reply, but she was sure she’d seen more tears well in his eyes.

A moment later, Kyle’s emotion edged voice cleared its throat over the comlink and began to speak.

“I’ll go in the back way. If we enter from both sides, we’re bound to find him. May the Force be with you Jaden.”

“And you too,” Jaden said before securing her com and setting her face towards the door. Even if she had to cut a hole in the side with her lightsabers, she was going to get inside. At all costs.

The door opened easily and she was met with stormtroopers, but there were so few that fighting them was easier than entering the facility. Jaden found a lift and took it up to the next level where she was met with more security and a lone door that led out onto a retractable bridge that wasn’t out. She stared at the large gap wondering if she could jump it, then looked down, getting blasted with a wave of heat from the swirling lava and decided that it wasn’t worth the risk, but spotted a platform below.

“Ah Sithspit,” she muttered and went back inside to take the lift back down. She found an outside door and a ramp leading to the platform below. The heat of the lava was much more intense here. Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

“Whew, it’s really hot here.” She wiped her brow and located a switch, throwing it. Far above her, she watched as the bridge extended, locking the two opposite pieces together. Jaden worked her way back up, running across the bridge in case it decided to retract again and stealthily entered the door at the far end. The room she’d entered was a kind of tower with a ramp that spiraled downward, with small control rooms or lifts off the side built into the wall. No one was visible on this top floor of sorts, so she snuck down, hiding behind metal pillars or tubes filled with lava that presumably would be sent to some other part of the facility to be mined for its minerals. She heard two stormtroopers as she crept along behind them as they patrolled rather lazily. 

“Anyways, that Bith was really getting on my nerves, so I shot him. How was I supposed to know he was a friend of the Admiral?” The first said as if giving a perfectly good reason.

“You’ll be executed for sure.” His companion replied matter-of-factly.

“No way. They don’t know it was me.” His friend argued.

“Sure they do, your pistol has a tracking device in it. The higher ups can trace when your weapon was fired and where.”

There was a tense silence. Jaden had been sneakily walking behind them, matching the sound of her footsteps with theirs. She stopped when they did. Blessedly, they didn’t notice her, she was partially behind a pillar, but even if they looked in her direction, she’d be caught. She reached towards one of her sabers. Finally, the first stormtrooper said:

“You’re kidding? Um, I-I have to go check on something.” Then he turned. Both stormtroopers hesitated, then raised their blasters.

“Wait!” Jaden said, holding up a hand, hoping their minds were susceptible to Mind Trick. “Tell me where your prisoner is being kept if you want to live.”

“In the Refinery,” they both replied in monotone.

“And how do I get there?”

“Outside, take the long bridge, can’t miss it.”

“Good, now forget I was here.” Jaden slipped past them, adding over her shoulder, “Get back to work!” They repeated her words back to her and went about their routine.

Jaden stood at the edge of the long bridge that crossed a wide expanse of lava that flowed into the refinery. It was unguarded and seemingly safe to cross. But she knew better. These Imperials had to have something up their sleeves. On either side of the bridge were dark colored buildings with ramps leading down into the lava and doors that were tight shut. It all gave Jaden a very ominous feeling as she stepped onto the bridge and began to cross it, looking from side to side, even up and down to ensure that nothing was going to come at her.

A small sound, like a door opening to the side and behind her, Jaden stopped and turned, seeing the first door in the building on her left slowly open, and a large Hazard Trooper, like the ones on Vjun stepped out. It was several yards away and it began its descent from the ramp. Jaden’s heart skipped a beat as it took a step right into the lake of lava. She fully expected the trooper to catch fire and start screaming, but it didn’t, it kept going and then she realized that the other door in the building on the other side was opening.

“Hold it right there!” The first Hazard shouted and Jaden took off before their concussion rifles started firing. She ran and kept going, even as more Hazards appeared on either side of her. The bridge began to shake with the impact of their missed shots. One hit a space in the bridge farther ahead and Jaden had to skid to a stop. She watched helplessly as large chunks of the bridge sank into the lava. Some pieces stuck out like small islands, the gap was too large to jump. She’d had to risk it with the broken pieces.

How am I going to get to the other side without getting boiled?! She thought frantically.

“Focus,” the voice of Anakin Skywalker echoed again and again in her mind. “You can do this. Just Focus.”

Jaden focused on the closet chunk of bridge in front of her even as the bridge beneath her feet trembled and shook. She jumped, landing perfectly in the center. The heat was even more intense down here, nearly blinding her with each wave that swept across her face. She leapt to another pile, made it, and another and another, getting farther from the slow moving Hazards who, even with their masks, could not see their target properly to make a clean shot and soon enough, the firing ceased.

She looked across to her goal, the farthest jump she’d have to make so far without much room for a running start. She knelt down anyway into a starting position and focused on her goal. She thought of all the times she’d focused like that: In training, her cell on Dosuun, the big jump over the chasm on Chandrila, to name a few. She closed her eyes, trusted the Force, and jumped.

She landed on her feet, stumbling, but catching herself and ran towards the large door of the refinery. It opened into a large room with a short lift up to a high platform surrounded by a railing. And on that platform was a large statue, a bust of the head and shoulders of Marka Ragnos.

Just like the one in Racto’s office! Jaden realized.

Suddenly, a figure jumped out from behind the statue and started shooting a blaster at her. Jaden crouched and rolled to the side, easily avoiding the bolts. She looked up and saw why. They weren’t serious shots, they were just meant to mess with her. The figure standing on the platform was Alora.

Chapter Text

“You!” Jaden’s lightsabers ignited the dark space around her, crowning her whole body in a halo of golden-orange light.

“So, the itty-bitty Jedi has come to rescue her friend… that’s so sweet,” Alora’s sickly sweet voice said.

“Where’s Rosh?” Jaden commanded. 

“What makes you think he wants to be rescued? Tavion turned him to the dark side. Just. Like. That.”

Jaden could feel herself losing her patience as her anger built. “Where is he?” She snapped.

“Ooo, someone’s getting awfully angry, aren’t they?” Alora leaned forward on the railing, flashing a smile. “Forgetting your Jedi training?”

Jaden willed herself to calm down, to reason with her adversary. “Look… Alora. Why serve Tavion? It’s not too late to join us and fight her-” Alora’s high pitched lilting laugh interrupted her.

Jaden kept going through gritted teeth. “I’m taking Rosh out of here. Make it easy on yourself and tell me where he is.”

“Oh, he’s around.” Alora chuckled and turned on her heel. “I think I’ll go look for him…” She stopped a moment to press a button on a small detonator in her hand. Explosives in the ceiling went off and Jaden narrowly escaped being crushed by the large pieces and chunks that fell all around her. She rushed to the lift and took it up, pausing only briefly to glance at the statue. A shiver ran down her spine at the sight of the Sith Lord’s monstrous face. It was a reminder of what she, and all the Jedi would have to face if Tavion’s plan came to fruition. She swore that after getting Rosh out of here, she’d do just that.

In the hallway that the door at the top of the platform led into, she encountered the first cultist she’d seen so far. She was no longer afraid of fighting in tight spaces and triumphed easily by being the first to corner her opponent, overwhelming him with non stop strikes from her two lightsabers. 

She ran around the twisting corridors until the passage opened up into a room filled with heat. The grated floor looked down on a chamber below that held five large tanks, whose tops were open through the floor of the room Jaden was standing in. And pouring into these ginormous containers from tubes in the ceiling, were streams of lava. Then Jaden saw her. Alora was standing on a walkway above the room, laughing.

“Ooh, but you are persistent, Jedi. But let’s see if you can get past my boys. Not everyone is worthy enough to fight me, you know.” Then she was gone, and the two darkly cloaked figures of Reborn jumped down to confront her.

These two were hard, tougher than almost any opponent Jaden had faced so far. They wielded dual sabers and a staff lightsaber respectively and it was difficult to fight just one. Jaden was soon pushed to a corner near one of the lava pits.

“What happens when a predator is forced into a corner?” She heard the mechanical voice she now knew to be Darth Vader say inside her head.

No! She resisted, but the more she was forced back on the defensive, the more agitated and desperate she became. I can’t die here! Those were Rosh’s words and now they were her own. No. This would not be her last stand.

A collection of reserved Force energy sprang anew and she pushed her opponents forward. One stumbled and fell directly into the lava, his painful screams suddenly cut short as he disappeared beneath the surface. The Reborn who was left, holding his staff saber out in front was blinded by rage and this was to his detriment. Jaden severed his lightsaber and kicked him back into another one of the lava tanks.

She half expected Alora to show back up, she didn’t. She’s leading me into a trap, I know it, but I have no choice. I’m playing her game, I started the moment I stepped through that door. She’s either leading me to Rosh so she can kill us both or… An unwelcome thought sprang forward, but she shook it off. No, Rosh is a victim here, not the perpetrator.

Doubts still clouded her mind but she pushed on, taking a lift down to a chamber beneath the one she was just in. A walkway led her past cold pools of water that regulated the heat of the lava above.

The room she entered next was large, its vaulted ceiling so high above her to make room for the large machine that stood in the center of it. It was solid and made a loud humming noise. Jaden wondered if the lava was circulated through it once it was cool. 

Aiming for a pipe high above her, Jaden leapt up, barely landing, then jumped to the top of the machine where she finally saw a higher platform that held several control panels for the machine. Alora appeared with a cultist right behind her.

“Are all Jedi as weak as Rosh, or just Katarn’s personal brats?” She snarled and backed away as her escort moved past her and jumped down to meet Jaden. Their blades never crossed. Jaden gave an enormous Force push and the cultist was slammed into the opposite wall, limply falling the rest of the way to the ground, dead.

“Is that all you’ve got, Alora?” Jaden shouted. No answer, she’d disappeared as quickly as she’d appeared. 

Jaden leapt up to the platform, a lone Imperial officer stood there, defenseless, fear in his eyes of the fierce Jedi before him. He shakily pointed to a set of two doors set into opposing walls in the corner.

“S-she t-took the one to the right,” he trembled. Jaden nodded, then stepped towards him, he stumbled back.

“If you don’t want to be here, then get out while you can,” Jaden said as calmly as she could, trying not to be too threatening, but trying to be cautious as well. Fearing betrayal she searched his brown eyes, but saw none, just a weary man beaten by life. She then made a choice. 

“The New Republic will spare you. Just tell them Jaden sent you.” The officer nodded, swallowing nervously. 

“T-thank you,” he whispered, glancing around as if someone would hear him. “There are others, but… they keep us here.”

“The Sith?” Jaden asked. The officer looked as if he were about to faint, he nodded slightly. “Then get out now, there shouldn’t be any left back there. If all goes well, Alora won’t be around to bother anyone else either.”

Jaden ran to the door, then looked back at the officer. “Thanks, um…”

“Hobson, Jac Hobson.”

“May the Force be with you Jac Hobson.” Then she left in pursuit of Alora.

Jaden stood at the top of a room with many moving conveyors with all levels and stages of refining going on. It made her feel dizzy, particularly when she looked down. She heard that shrill laugh again and spotted Alora far below next to a door just past a transparent blue forcefield. 

“You’re a tough one, Jedi! But you should be sparing your blade for Rosh. Just a thought!” Then she disappeared through the door.

What the hell is that supposed to mean? Is she just trying to get a rise out of me? Or is she…? No.

Jaden took off across the conveyor, relying on the Force to move fast because she was running against its current. It was going to take awhile to get down to where Alora was and she’d have to be extremely careful.

Blocks of volcanic ore traveled down the conveyors, passing devices that intermittently shot steam. Jaden either ran or jumped to avoid being burned by them. She glanced down and saw the nearest conveyor below her and took the short jump down. She jumped to another control platform and another conveyor, continuing until she landed safely at the bottom, near the force field the door Alora had gone through was behind. Jaden searched quickly, finding a control switch at the far end of the room. She threw it and took off for the door. The Force field suddenly came back online and Jaden skidded to a stop inches before the field.

“Sithspit! She put it on a timer!” Jaden ran back, hand hovering over the switch, eyes closed, taking deep breaths. “I can do this.” 

She threw the switch again and, fast as lightning, almost as fast as when she ran through that tomb on Chandrila, Jaden practically flew down the conveyor belt, past the large doorway just before the blue force field came back online. The door Alora had taken led into a long hallway that twisted and turned so that she had almost no sense of direction. 

As she came up to another corner, she heard voices. Two men were speaking in low tones, their topic of conversation immediately identifying them as members of the cult.

“Our goal is near.”

“Yes! Soon Ragnos will be risen and he will guide us to a new age!”

“Too bad the Master decided guarding that piece of Jedi scum was more important for us than being with her on Korriban. How I’ve longed to go there, the history and power that haunts that place…”

“Indeed, but it cannot be any worse than what Lady Alora must be feeling.”

“She was weak, if Tavion is right, then her replacement will more than make up for the lack of real power Alora has.”

Jaden decided to act on her element of surprise, questioning them further would do no good and they’d grown awfully silent. Jumping out from behind the corner, she released lightning from her fingers and they fell to the floor convulsing. Her sabers came out and cut theirs to pieces, then she shot through the door they were guarding. 

She entered a room with a large blue forcefield to her right and a large machine to her left that looked like what it was: a death trap. Used to refine and shape the blocks of ore passing through on the conveyor, Jaden saw that it was the only way through to the other side, though she highly doubted Alora had come through here. That witch had to have had a secret way that was locked somewhere, but doubling back now would mean wasted time and Rosh’s certain doom. So she entered the machine, ducking and dodging moving objects, prongs that electrified at a particular moment, hiding in a safe crevice until a part of the machine lifted, timing her run through and past it with perfect timing and Force speed. She came out of the confined space safe and alive, faced only with Imperials armed with blasters. 

She took the only door and ran through its empty hallway, coming out the other side into a large room with lifts moving across the ceiling, carrying the hunks of refined, reshaped ore heading to who knows where. On top of a high balcony that seemed to lead into a room with an open view of the outside, stood Alora. A large, heavily built muscular man wearing the robes of a Reborn Master stood next to her. Jaden felt a twinge of fear lace through her. I can’t take them at the same time. Where’s Kyle?

Alora chuckled. “Perhaps you, too, will learn to serve Tavion…” Jaden didn’t fully process what her adversary just said because the Reborn ignited his double-lightsaber and jumped down to confront her as Alora backed away into the room.

Jaden threw a barrier of protection around her as the master advanced on her, she waited until he raised his saber and struck. Not seeing the shield, the double red lightsaber bounced off the shield, Jaden struck out with her dual sabers, cutting his staff in two and slashed at his feet, but he managed to backpedal and reorient himself. Their fight was evenly matched and neither gained the upper hand for long. 

Jaden decided to try a trick that Corran had taught her. As the Reborn Master pulled back, she crouched and raised her lightsabers into the air. The master lunged and they began to spin at a dizzying speed. It was too late, the Reborn was caught in them and his torso slid free of the rest of his body.

Jaden wrinkled her nose and looked away. Instead she put her sabers back on her belt and leapt onto a lower platform and then another to the top where the ore lifts were passing through an opening in the ceiling. She jumped onto one and rode it to the other end of the room. Timing her jump, she leapt to the platform Alora had taunted her from.

Taking a deep breath, she entered the room cautiously, looking all around for Alora. But the red Twi’lek was nowhere to be seen. She saw only Rosh.

“Rosh!” Jaden exclaimed, the sight of her friend filling her with relief.

“Jaden…” Rosh’s voice was like one trapped in a dark tunnel, finally seeing the light at the end. He stood only a few yards away from her.

Jaden glanced around the large room, it was open, with a platform extending outside, with boxes scattered around the immediate area. Four tall tanks stood, two on either side of the room like sentries with steep ramps leading up to them. But she did not see Alora, not even a single cultist or stormtrooper. Suddenly, everything that Alora had said to her fell into place.

“What makes you think he wants to be rescued? Tavion turned him to the dark side. Just. Like. That. …You should be sparing your blade for Rosh.”  

The dark doubts and suspicions that she’d pushed away came flooding back.

She’s been leading me into a trap, and he was in on it.

Jaden stepped further into the room, advancing towards Rosh. She wasn’t going to do anything, yet. She needed answers. The truth.

“You don’t look like much of a captive, Rosh. Did you dream this up or was it Tavion’s idea?” She hated having to say that witch’s name much less associate it with Rosh.

Her friend’s eyes grew wide. “No, Jaden- wait! I-I was wrong! Please! Take me back to the Academy. I need… help.” He sounded pathetic begging like this, but the way Jaden’s eyes blazed told him he wasn’t out of the woods yet. “Jaden, stay back! Please…” He used the Force to pull three large boxes into Jaden’s path. “...don’t hurt me.”

“You tried to kill me!” Jaden exasperated. “And now you’ve lured me into a trap!”

Rosh looked cut deep at the reminder of Vjun and what happened there. Shame filled his cheeks. “Jaden, I was… scared. You have to believe me. We’re, we’re friends, remember?” It was a high hope to believe that calling on their friendship would help, but he could think of nothing else. “Let’s get out of here before Alora comes back.” He backed away several feet as Jaden threw aside the boxes so forcefully, one of them landed in an open pit off the side of the platform, disintegrating into the lava below.

Jaden came around the side of a large crate Rosh hid behind, frightening him as he stumbled back, falling to the floor. Jaden crossed her arms, trying to control the flood of hurtful memories and anger that bubbled beneath the surface.

“How do I know you won’t betray me again?” She raged.

Rosh quickly stood up and backed away. Jaden’s voice rose til she was almost shouting, emotion threatening to spill out. “You’re always trying to beat me. How do I know this isn’t just another trick?” Suddenly, without knowing, without caring why, her primary lightsaber turned on, its golden yellow glow pointed directly at Rosh’s chest.

I thought I could do this. I thought I could face him without getting angry, without feeling… Everything. But… I can’t.

Standing in the room where lava poured from tubes into large tanks that refined it, Kyle stopped, his heart aching, a pain sensed by a disturbance in the Force. He’d prayed this day would never come and yet it had. Weary and tired, but moreover bridging on heartbreak, he knelt to the ground, pressing a hand to his forehead in concentration.

“Jaden! Don’t do it!” He projected again and again.

“Finish him, Jedi!” Alora called from the top of one of the tanks nearest them. She’d been so sneaky that Jaden hadn’t noticed her entrance from a door at the top of a catwalk and her silent leap onto the tank. She stood there now, watching them with her hands clasped behind her back, a mockery of Luke Skywalker and an amused smile on her face.

Rosh raised his hands slightly, extending them as Jaden backed him up against a large crate. “Wait, listen to what you’re saying! You’re… you’re angry! Don’t give in to it, that leads to the dark side, right?” It was silly and ironic for him to be giving such a lesson seeing as how he himself had fallen so hard, but Rosh felt he was never good with words and right now, with a lightsaber pointed at his heart, he did what he could.

Jaden, anger brimming, grabbed the front of Rosh’s shirt and shoved him up against the crate roughly. She wasn’t entirely sure what she was doing but the pain her friend had caused her hurt too much to let him off with nothing. She just wanted to shake him up a bit.

“Jaden! Don’t do it!” Kyle’s voice flooded into her mind and she let go of Rosh. He fell hard onto the ground and groaned, but managed to stand again. “He only fell to the dark side because he was scared. Afraid of dying. Put away your saber!”

“Strike him down!” Alora screamed. “Give in to your anger!”

“Jaden, you’re better than that! Don’t give in to your anger! Rosh is telling the truth!” Kyle persisted in a firm, authoritative tone.

It seemed to Jaden that voices clamored from all sides, not just from Kyle and Alora. It was like other voices rose to back them up. Anakin and Vader were among them, with Vader’s seeming the loudest, calling for justice and the striking down of the weak.

She looked her former friend in the eye and saw his fear. She stepped closer and he cowered, but had nowhere to run. The sting of his betrayal and attempt to kill her still burned as strongly as if it were still a fresh, raw wound.

Guided by the blind rage that seemed to wrap its tentacles around her, she raised her saber as Rosh instinctively raised a pleading hand toward his friend.

Chapter Text

Rosh raised one last pleading hand, awaiting the kill, the moment where his flesh would feel the searing heat of Jaden’s lightsaber. He couldn’t blame her, but he thought of the wonderful times they’d had, of their late night talks up on the roof, of how she’d gotten him to open up on Blenjeel... Oh how he wished things could have gone differently there, how different he would react now.

“You were right about me, Jaden. All of it. I should’ve been more open and honest with you.” He closed his eyes and focused on the memories, he had no guarantee it would work, but still he hoped.

Jaden’s eyes saw red and hatred, the darkness within her nearly consuming. The voices of Vader and Alora mixed together in a frightening array that almost drowned out Kyle and Anakin’s. 

Then, a pinprick of light, a doorway opening up into a memory, a bright spot in her and Rosh’s friendship:

Them meeting on the shuttle on their first day. Another memory quickly sprang up to take the first one’s place. They were walking through the Yavin woods fighting howlers together as a team, getting along as if they’d known each other their whole lives. The memories kept coming. Faster and faster. They were sitting on the roof eating Mantell Mix, laughing, then resting her head on his shoulder. Rosh giving her the necklace he made for her. Going on missions together, sitting close to him in their shuttle on Blenjeel as he fixed the communications array, his red rimmed eyes so close to crying but too afraid too… 

Afraid. Funny how fear could have such a hold on a person, twist their emotions into something different. Into anger and frustration. Into Hate. Rosh wasn’t the reason for this darkness. Neither was Tavion when Jaden came to think of it. It was that damned scepter and the spirit of the Sith Lord attached to it. She’d have to get rid of it, destroy it somehow. It was the only way, but first she had to win this battle over the anger that raged within her.

With one hand still grasping her lightsaber, she pressed both hands against her temples as if to keep her head from bursting. The saber’s pommel dug into her skin while her free hand clawed into her scalp, the palm pressing, pressing, trying to alleviate the pressure burning behind her eyes. Please, help me, please, help me. Please!!!!

“What is the Force to you?” Kyle had asked before their mission to Blenjeel. “Is it a safe place, somewhere you find peace? Or is it a power source from which you can draw even more power again and again?”

Peace or power. Power or peace. The real question was which did she need right now? 

A new voice spoke out amidst the familiar ones that still clamored for attention. It was a deep, throaty voice that cracked and broke occasionally, but carried with it infinite wisdom. “Courage leads to peace. Peace leads to love. And love leads to healing.”

“Just. Let… Go. Take that first step forward. That’s all you need to do, Jaden.” Another new voice spoke this time. It sounded slightly accented like some of the Imperial officers, but softer, kinder. 

While this battle had raged in her mind, she knew she still held the lightsaber that’d been aimed at her friend’s heart. As long as it was active, it was still a danger, still a temptation… She knew what had to be done. Jaden took a shaky breath, this felt like the hardest thing she’d ever had to do in her life.

With great effort, she put away her saber.

Jaden’s shoulders drooped and she shook her head heavily. “I’m… I’m sorry Rosh. You’re right.” She looked at him with tears flooding her eyes and saw that he did the same. She took a shuddering breath. “I… I almost let my anger get the best of me.” She straightened up. “Let’s get outta here.”

“Thank you, Jaden.” Rosh sighed with relief, tears falling freely down his ruddy cheeks.

Alora sat crossed legged at the top of the tank watching the whole ordeal, thoroughly disgusted. “You Jedi are blandly predictable. Tavion thought that turning you would gain us an ally. But since you won’t be turned, I guess it’s up to me to clean up her mistake.”

Jaden pointed the tip of her saber at her. “Stand down, Alora. You were no match for me on Hoth, and now I am a Jedi Knight!”

Alora laughed. “Tavion has taught me many things as well, you sanctimonious fool!”

She leapt into the air, igniting her twin blades as she slid down the ramp off the side of the tank. Jaden pushed Rosh behind her. 

Jaden and Alora’s sabers clashed. The Sith knocked the Jedi down only a second before she leapt up again. Jaden and Alora crossed blades again and again, jumping over boxes and avoiding obstacles they tried to throw in each other’s path. Their duel lasted a few seconds more before Alora suddenly jumped back, sailing over the boxes Jaden had pushed away from Rosh. Jaden wasted no time in pursuit but saw immediately why Alora had retreated. She was heading directly towards Rosh who’d been hiding behind a crate, using the Force to knock boxes and other obstacles into her path.

Jaden’s eyes widened as Alora leapt into the air, quicker than Jaden could react, quicker than she could’ve gotten over to them to stop what was about to happen.

Alora brought one of her sabers down on Rosh’s left arm, right at the shoulder. 

“Rosh!!!” Jaden cried.

“Aaahhhhhh!” Rosh’s screams of pain filled his beloved friend’s ears as he fell to the ground unconscious. Jaden thrust out her hand, Force pushing Alora away from Rosh.

The Twi’lek looked up from several feet away, stunned. Then, a wide crazed smile broke across her face. Jaden wasted no time in leaping into the fray once more, ready to fight to the death to save her friend.

Blades clashed as Jaden forced Alora back, intending to keep her as far away from Rosh and as busy as possible. 

“You’ll never win, Jedi!” Alora taunted as their lightsabers locked, but Jaden didn’t say a word. Instead she brought down her boot hard on Alora’s foot, breaking the lock and Force pushed her back, slashing from left to right, clipping her opponent’s left saber, barely grazing the hand that held it.

Alora gritted her teeth against a groan of pain and kept going as if nothing had happened. But Jaden knew she’d gotten to her and that would be her undoing. Her near defeat on Hoth had bruised her pride and now, after she’d trained for months on end, she was getting whipped in their rematch and her boiling rage was sure to lead to a misstep of some kind.

It was now two lightsabers against one. Poor Rosh was between consciousness and blissful black out. He could feel the searing heat of phantom pain up and down the arm that wasn’t even there anymore. Fighting the urge to vomit, faint or both, he cracked his eyes open, seeing only blurs of orange, gold and red, hoping against hope that his friend would not lose.

Alora’s right hand saber twirled and blurred as it struck at Jaden’s blades again and again, she suddenly stopped spinning it and lunged for a fatal stab wound that never landed. Jaden unexpectedly dropped her orange saber, turned and, with two hands gripping it, pushed her yellow blade backwards with all her strength into Alora’s abdomen. 

The red Twi’lek’s eyes widened with pain and shock. She’d been beaten, and by what she’d believed all her natural life to be a weak little Jedi. Perhaps Tavion had been right about Jaden’s prowess. But she had no time to reflect on anything else, just that she had been beaten and ahead of her eyes there was nothing but darkness.

Jaden extinguished her lightsaber, looking down over Alora’s body and shook her head. She quickly pulled her other saber to herself and ran to Rosh’s side.

“Rosh!” The tears threatened to fall again and she didn’t care as she helped her wounded friend weakly to his feet. She held back bile at the unnatural sight of his severed arm laying lifeless to one side.

“Unggh…” He groaned.

“Rosh!” A voice cried out from behind them. It was Kyle, his voice like music to his student’s ears. He ran the rest of the way towards them as Jaden helped her friend, stumbling over to Kyle who put his left arm under him. Rosh weakly gripped his master’s shoulder with his right arm.

Rosh gasped, speaking weakly. “I’ll be… fi-” His head lolled to the side, blacking out once more.

“Oh Sithspit! He’s in shock! I need to get him to a bacta tank.” Kyle adjusted his weight and began hauling Rosh across the room. Jaden moved to help and they started up the ramp of the tank Alora had been perched on, aiming towards the door she’d used. 

Kyle said, “As soon as we get into space, I’ll steer us towards the New Republic fleet. As soon as we get onto a warship, go to Korriban and help Luke and the others. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Jaden hesitated, but nodded and helped Kyle carry Rosh back to the Raven’s Claw, which was thankfully a much closer distance than going back to where she had started.

She sat in the passenger seat as Kyle lifted off, slightly cramped while holding Rosh’s still form, a moan of pain escaping his lips. She closed her eyes, more tears threatening to fall and focused her Force healing energy into Rosh, hoping, praying, it would make a difference between life and death.

Everything happened so fast as soon as they landed on one of the New Republic’s dreadnaughts, repurposed from Imperial days. Rosh was immediately taken from her arms, loaded onto a gurney and whisked away to a med bay somewhere. Oxygen was quickly applied while the medics swarmed around him and pushed him full speed through the hangar doors. 

Kyle moved to follow them but turned back.

“Jaden. I sensed your struggle with the dark side back there. I know it must have been difficult, but I’m glad you made the right choice.”

She smiled and nodded. “Thank you… but it was Rosh who made me see what the right choice was.” More tears flowed down her already wet cheeks. “Tell him that when he wakes up.”

“I will. And I’ll follow along shortly, I promise. May the Force be with you.”

“And you as well. Master.” Somehow saying his title meant something different now when she said it. It was sacred.

Kyle merely nodded, he wasn’t about to ruin the moment with sarcastic humor.

Jaden watched him disappear behind the doors and ran to find the nearest available X-Wing. To her surprise, First Officer Nuss approached from a group of pilots, a wide grin on his face with two other officers in tow. 

“Jedi Knight Korr, a pleasure to see you.” He gave her a salute and gestured briefly to his small entourage. “Officers Andress and Prins here, along with myself, can escort you to Korriban with the rest of the fleet.”

“That’s not necessary, Officer Nuss, but I appreciate it,” Jaden said. “I have to get to Korriban as soon as possible. Just point me in the direction of an available X-Wing.”

“Will do,” Nuss said, giving another salute and quickly assisting her to a nearby craft. It wasn’t her personal X-Wing, but beggars couldn’t be choosers and soon she was flying past the fleet, preparing for the jump to hyperspace. 

A craft that didn’t fit with the rest of the fleet caught her eye and she turned her head to examine it further. It was a Firespray-31 class craft and next to it, waiting for the order to get moving, was a very familiar looking modified starfighter.

She found their frequency and opened her coms up.

“Long time no see. What are you guys doing here?”

“Just thought we’d lend a helping hand to our New Republic allies, you know, as a show of good favor,” Boba Fett’s deep voice replied. “Fennec is here as well.”

“And alive, thanks to you and Mando’s kid,” Fennec cut in.

“And I was hired,” the Mandalorian said.

“Grogu’s not with you I hope?” Jaden asked.

“No, I got a babysitter.”

“Good, because what I can tell, the battle in the stars above Korriban could be just as deadly as the battle on its surface.”

“Oh I do not envy the job you have, Jedi. No one could pay me enough to traverse the surface of that planet, not for all the credits on the galaxy,” Boba responded.

“Then it’s a good thing we’re both good at our jobs,” Jaden chuckled. “With any luck, I’ll see you all at the celebration afterwards. Enjoy the fireworks and may the Force be with you.”

“And with you,” they responded just before the stars grew blurry and Jaden’s X-wing blasted into hyperspace.

Chapter Text

PART FOUR: A TRUE JEDI

Jaden flew her X-wing around the outside of the planet, careful not to alert Tavion’s ships as she passed. She landed in a remote area close to the Valley of the Dark Lords, the burial site of countless Sith Lords spanning millennia. As she hopped out of the cockpit, she was greeted by a familiar and welcome sight.

“Jaden, you made it!” Jas Harin, accompanied by Jaccyn and Master Tionne rushed forward from an arch set into an ancient stone wall they’d been guarding. “Did you find Rosh?”

“He’s hurt, but safe. Kyle’s taking care of him on one of the Republic cruisers. Any sign of Tavion?”

“Not yet,” Jas replied. “We’re trying to locate Ragnos’ tomb. Master Skywalker’s group landed in another part of the valley to search for it.”

“Then I’d better get going,” Jaden said, starting towards the arch, feeling it was the best direction to go before Tionne placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

“Hey be careful, this place is crawling with dark Force users. We all go together.” Jaden nodded and let the Twi’lek Master Jedi walk ahead of her into the passage, into the catacombs.

The passageway was pitch black, they used their sabers to light the way: The dim glow from Jaden’s yellow saber mingled with Jas’s orange, Jacyyn’s blue and Tionne’s purple to create enough light to see several feet ahead of them. It created a beautiful sunset effect on the ancient stones of the wall, perhaps the only thing of beauty this site had seen in centuries. 

The passage started to go downward, turning into large steps that descended into blackness. They kept their ears open, their Force senses on the alert, but there was nothing.

They soon saw a dim light ahead and entered a large room with a vaulted ceiling. In each corner, Jaden immediately noticed the tarnished gold statues of robed figures holding perfectly cut crystals above their heads that glowed amber, reminding her of similar statues in the Crystal Canyons. Torches along the wall were lit so that they didn’t need the light from their sabers anymore. In the center of the room lay a coffin and there was no visible way out.

“How do we get out of this room?” Jacyyn said, a little too loudly for his own good in the dim, eerily sacred silence of the place.

No one immediately answered, but they quietly spread out and carefully searched along the walls, bringing their lightsabers back out so as to get a better look. Jaden slowly approached the coffin, standing directly in front of it. As evil as the Sith could be, they buried their dead with some amount of respect and care, but that was just an outside observation. On the inside, Jaden disliked the dark, oppressive feeling of the place; it felt like a crushing weight had been balanced on her shoulders, reaching towards the darkness inside her that wasn’t hers, but put there by the scepter of Ragnos. She nearly jumped when a hand reached out and touched her shoulder.

“I know my dear, I know.” Tionne’s voice was soft. “It’s alright, you don’t have to hold onto it, it's this place, not you. Once you recognize that, it's not yours anymore.” The Twi’lek Master’s eyes were misty, gentle, totally and completely different from that of Alora’s. She, and everyone else for that matter still hadn’t heard the full story of what happened on Taspir III, but the kind look on Tionne’s face told Jaden she knew all she needed to and that was alright. Jaden didn’t try to stop the tear that rolled freely down her cheek as Tionne gave her shoulder one last squeeze before moving on to searching the room again.

“Look for the things your eyes will deceive you in, use your Force sight instead,” Tionne instructed.

Taking a freeing deep breath, Jaden looked up and side to side, noticing again the statues in each of the corners. She turned around to get a better look at the ones behind her. Wait a second…

“Master Tionne, do you see this, the statues.” She pointed to the ones closest to the door they’d entered in by. “Do those look closer to the coffin than these?” She turned and indicated the ones behind her. Tionne and the others stepped forward, squinting. Jacyyn’s eyes widened.

“I think you’re right Jaden! These closer to the door are further out, but what does that mean?” 

Jaden didn’t answer right away but rushed forward to examine the floor behind the statues nearest the door. “See these scrape marks, that means these statues have been moved! And more than once!” She then examined their crystals, then looked back at the other ones. The statues behind the coffin, their crystals seemed to line up with a circular hole just above their heads.

“This one’s the same!” Jas called out from the other statue.

Jaden moved to the middle of the room again and held out her hands towards the statues in question. “Okay! Then in that case, this might just be our way out of here.” Her companions gathered around her in front of the coffin as she simultaneously pushed both statues back into their places, lining their crystals back up with the circles above their heads.

Something must have worked because after the sound of the statues scraping across the stone floor back into their rightful place ended, the sound of more stone scraping against stone commenced, and the small group of Jedi found themselves suddenly plumenting downwards.

Rosh writhed on the gurney, in and out of consciousness, delirium making him see and hear things he knew deep down were not real. Medics and doctors swarmed around him, trying to administer medicine without hurting their patient further.

“Hurry!” Someone near him shouted, or at least, that’s how it sounded to him. “We have to get this all off before he goes into the tank!”

More people surrounded him, the sound of cloth tearing and medical shears cutting something near his shoulder.

Rosh panicked. He didn’t know who these people were or what they were doing, but he didn’t like it.

Rosh, calm down! It’s okay, they’re trying to help you! 

Rosh stilled. That was Kyle’s voice he’d heard in the midst of the fog surrounding his brain. From what he could see, Kyle was nowhere in the room with him. Despite that, and the myriad of deliriums swirling around his mind, he listened to his master and let the doctors do their work without resistance.

 Kyle stood behind a wall of glass, watching everything, making sure his student was treated fairly. He’d reached out through the Force, sending a message of calm and peace to Rosh, hoping the shock would fade and he would stay still long enough for the doctors to do their job.

It seemed to be working. The medics were having no trouble stripping Rosh down to his undergarments, preparing to submerge him in the nearby bacta tank. The thick, gelatinous substance would get to work instantly, accelerating Rosh’s healing process.

A New Republic officer entered the room. “Sir, you’re needed on the bridge.”

“Sorry, but I’m a bit busy now. That’s my student on that table in there and I aim to make sure he’s gonna be okay before I leave him.”

The officer shifted uncomfortably on his feet. “Sir, it’s urgent. It's Senator Mothma. She… wants to talk to you about your student.”

Kyle raised an eyebrow, then reluctantly followed the officer out, glancing back once more to whisper, “Hold on, Rosh. Hold on.”

And Rosh heard it. It was the last thing he heard before finally slipping into a peaceful slumber as his body was lowered into the bacta tank.

The coffin finally stopped moving. Jaden and her friends had been standing on some kind of movable platform on which the sarcophagus was laid. Once she’d pushed those statues back into place, some kind trigger for the platform sent them plummeting several stories down. They were in a vast room filled with pillars and lit torches. Statues of robed Sith stood like gilded sentries also carrying burning censers. 

Real, live Sith from Tavion’s cult were there as well, their dark gazes immediately drawn to the Jedi intruders. They stood guard at two doors on opposite sides of the room.

Jaden and her companions lost no time in recovering from their sudden drop and got to work. Jas teamed up with Jacyyn to fight the Reborn stationed behind them at a large door, and Jaden and Tionne took on the ones directly ahead of them. Jaden rushed up a short flight of stairs that led to a landing. She met the nearest Reborn at the top and took a swing at his middle. When he brought his saber up to parry, she dropped to a crouch and stabbed him in the gut. Out of the corner of her eye Jaden saw Tionne’s blade coming right for her.

“Jaden down!” The Jedi Master screamed as she stabbed her violet blade forward.

Instantly dropping, Jaden watched two blades cross mere inches above her face. She realized that the Reborn Tionne had gone after must have broken away and come at her from behind. Tionne pulled her opponent's saber up with her own and pushed him back, stepping over Jaden. Once she was in the clear, Jaden jumped up to join the fight.

Tionne and the Reborn fought near the edge of the landing and its twenty or so foot drop to the hard stone floor. Jaden and Tionne swung at the same time, their sabers locking in front of each other. The Reborn caught both and struggled to push back. Jaden and Tionne locked eyes and nodded in unison. With each taking a hand off of their sabers, the Jedi and the scholar Force pushed at the same time, sending the enemy flying off the edge. He landed with a thud several feet away and an even louder crack , then there was silence.

Jas and Jaccyn looked up from their fallen enemies across the room and nodded grimly to their companions. They regrouped in the middle near the coffin, but kept off the platform.

“Where do we go from here?” Jacyyn asked. “The door back there is locked.”

“Same with the one Jaden and I were near,” Tionne confirmed. “We must do as we did back in the tomb. We need to spread out and look for secrets not seen with the eyes, but with the mind and the senses. Remember your training.”

They all moved methodically around the room, searching. A large grated section in the floor around and under the central coffin revealed an entire room below them, filled with coffins lining the walls, a ‘burial vault,’ as Tionne called it. But there seemed to be no way in there. 

Jaden came back to the door she and Tionne had fought their Reborn at, up a flight of staircases that converged at a landing before a great door. Several large stones framed it, some off color and sticking out at odd places. Jaden closed her eyes and saw them, golden orange like embers, glowing symbols like the ones in the training grounds and the tomb on Chandrila, but more twisted and angular. She moved her head down towards the floor and saw a pattern, a sequence, in her mind’s eye.

“I think I found it!” She called out to the others.

“Us too!” Cried Jacyyn.

Jaden hurried down the stairs and met them at their door, using her sense to see a symbol glowing at its base. Tionne examined it, then straightened up.

“This door will not open without first opening and going through the other. That symbol I believe means ‘The Journey.’”

“What does that mean for us?” Jacyyn asked.

“It means that in order to unlock this door, we must first take a journey before the reward of our destination. We must follow where that door on the landing behind us leads, and hopefully we will find the answer that will open this door. We all go together.”

When they raced back across to the other door, Jaden looked again with her Force Sight and matched the sequence of symbols on the floor with the ones around the doorway and quickly pushed them in. The door opened, its ancient stones scraping the sides of the frame as it rose. The four Jedi looked into a torch lit hallway and the sounds of a duel drifted up to them.

“I thought Jedi were powerful, guess I was wrong!”

“Oh please, just put down your weapon or it’ll be worse for you!”

“That sounds like…” Jas began. No one said anything else but rushed down the passage to aid their friend and ally, battling a staff wielding Sith with two blades of her own, glowing light blue and yellow-green in the dimly lit space.

“Streen, look out!” Tionne cried to her apprentice.

“Look, Senator, I appreciate you wanting to talk to me, but I’ve got an injured student back in the med bay that needs me.”

“It's that very student, Katarn, that I’m worried about.” Senator Mon Mothma looked as regal as Princess Organa herself, standing as straight as an arrow, her formal white robes pressed and clean, her auburn hair arranged in a practical, but lovely fashion that complemented her age and status. “I’m also worried that you’re not taking this seriously.”

Kyle crossed his arms. “He’s not part of the cult anymore if that’s what you're wondering.” 

“And you know this, how?”

“Look, when you’re a Jedi, you know, you sense it. Rosh has changed and for the better. Jaden was there too.”

“That’s all good for you Katarn, as you are a Jedi. But I am not. Where is Jaden Korr now?”

“She went to Korriban to aid Luke and the others.”

“Then she cannot help in vouching for him.” Kyle didn’t answer, he could already see where this was going. The Senator continued. “Bringing a member, even a former member of Tavion Axmis’ cult on board this ship is no small matter, Katarn. I hope you realize that.”

“I do,” Kyle ground out. “But I wasn’t about to just let him die either. He’s a good kid, he only joined the cult because he was afraid of being killed by them. He no longer belongs to the dark side.”

“Be that as it may, a change of heart does not wipe out the crimes he may have committed.”

“ ‘May have committed?’ Are you kidding me?” Kyle exasperated. The Senator raised her eyebrow at his tone and he adjusted. “Please, Mon, we still don’t know if Rosh did anything criminal or treacherous.”

The Senator sighed. “That is true, but we can’t just let our guard down. We’ll have to have his room put under heavy guard until this situation with him, and the one on Korriban is resolved.”

Kyle bowed his head slightly. “Of course, Senator.”

“Update me when you capture Axmis. Perhaps then, we’ll know the full extent of Penin’s involvement.”

Kyle merely nodded, then took his leave. He checked in on Rosh one last time before he left, peering in through the window on the outside of the room. The poor boy was still fast asleep, floating in the bacta liquid, but was already looking far better than he did an hour ago. Several New Republic officers, all armed, stood around the room and outside the door. Kyle sighed heavily, praying that Rosh wouldn’t be guilty by association and that he’d truly done nothing worthy of capital punishment.

He finally tore himself away from the glass, he’d been away from Korriban long enough, it was time to end this once and for all.

Jaden watched as her Zabrak friend blocked a blow from the Reborn in front of her with one saber and, per her master’s warning, immediately brought her second behind her just in time to catch a strike from one who’d appeared there. Jaden, Tionne, Jas and Jacyyn all hurried down the passageway to aid Kalil. With five Jedi against two Sith, the battle was hardly a battle at all. They soon were panting and patting each other on the back, and Tionne quickly asked her apprentice how she'd gotten down there.

“There’s a tunnel up there,” she pointed towards the room’s high ceiling where they could just make out the silhouette of a doorway near the top. A large, thick cylindrical stone column rose out of the center of the room and looked to be level with the doorway. “I think there used to be a walkway between the door and this column, but I just jumped it, and around here,” she walked them around the column to the other side, “There’s hidden bricks that I pulled out to make a staircase. The Sith were the worst architects.”

“You could say that again,” Jacyyn said and they all laughed, tension they’d been holding in evaporating.

“Wait, Streen,” her master said in a serious tone, “where’s your partner? Where’s Goran?”

Kalil’s face wore a shocked expression at first, then it loosened up as she gestured casually as if it were nothing serious. “Oh, he’s fine! He didn’t want to follow me in but I knew there had to be some big secret down the tube we’d found so I left him up there to stand watch, that’s all.”

“You what?!” Tionne barely kept her voice in check. “You know Goran needs to have someone with him, to be patient with him and have grace for him. You left him behind because you thought he was slowing you down didn’t you?”

Kalil tried to shrug it off but ended up hanging her head in shame. “Yes,” she replied, voice barely above a whisper. “I’m sorry Master.”

“Then take us back to where you got in here and left your charge behind,” Tionne ordered. “Better together, remember?”

“Better together,” Kalil repeated. They climbed the hidden staircase and followed her to the top, jumping over to the tunnel. They entered another big room with a gaping hole in the floor. Kalil took them right to it.

“See.” She knelt down near it and pointed inside. “The cult members have been here for awhile, they’ve rigged electrical lighting down some of these tunnels that don’t have torches.”

“Lead on, Streen. Perhaps also, the mystery of the door we found will unveil itself.” Tionne gestured her onwards and the rest followed close behind.

The tunnel led slightly up, coming out into a room lined floor to ceiling with hollowed out shelves built into the walls and on those shelves, were coffins.

“Another burial chamber,” Tionne said grimly. “But not the one below the room we had dropped down into.” She turned to her student. “Streen, was this where you got in? How many cult members did you run into?”

“It was further on,” she said. “We have to keep going through this room. There weren’t many cultists or Reborn around but I did have to deal with a few of them, not very challenging.”

She led on through that room, passed under a huge arched doorway that led into a grand looking hallway, lit by more torches on the walls or held by more robed statues, until they entered another burial chamber, this one holding its dead inside two large stone blocks out of which were carved the shelves for the coffins. To Jaden, she realized it was probably meant for slightly more important persons because of the lack of space to store coffins. Many pillars and statues also bedecked the room in the same style or Sith architecture she’d come to recognize.

Someone could get very lost here, she thought.

“Over here, at the back of the room!” Kalil called. They all converged in a back corner where Kaili stood near a huge gap in the wall. “This is where I got in.” She gestured for them to look inside. “But be careful, one wrong step and you're dead.”

Tionne ducked into the gap, then Jaden. The stone ledge they stepped onto was only big enough for the both of them. Below was the unmistakable red glow of lava far below in the earth, the view somewhat blocked by thick beams of obsidian. The view above was much the same except the glow of lava was exchanged by bright daylight.

“This is why Goran didn’t want to follow,” Kalil explained. “One wrong move on an untimed jump…”

“And you thought leaving him alone up there was better?” Tionne asked.

“There were no cult members in sight, I don’t even think they knew about that opening.”

“Nevertheless Streen, you never leave your partner.” Tionne stared her student down, a battle Kalil always lost at, particularly when paired with the use of her last name, so she looked away.

“No excuses,” she muttered. “I’m sorry, Master.”

“Stay here,” Tionne said. “I’m going up to get him. Jaden, take Jas and Jacyyn down this tube, I spotted another tunnel down there. Go and see where it leads, call me on your coms if you find anything. I still sense Sith in these catacombs and we must make sure to rid all of them if we’re to have a chance to defeat Tavion. Streen, you wait for me.”

Jaden inhaled deeply before taking the plunge. The looks of encouragement from everyone wasn’t so much a “you’ve got this” statement but more of a “please don’t die on us” but she’d take whatever pat on the back she could. She landed on the first beam about ten feet down without incident and carefully took her time in lining up her next descent. Jas and Jacyyn had decided to follow her one at a time, waiting until the person ahead of them moved so as to have as much space as possible. With this method, they successfully, and safely, made it down to the chamber Tionne had spotted.

It was a very dark, narrow tunnel that went slightly up and twisted and turned, leading into a small room lined with coffins along its walls. Two cultists were there to greet them.

Lightsaber met lightsaber and soon two more Sith were laid to rest inside that tomb. They passed through two more chambers identical to this one and dispatched four more Sith: Two cultists and two Reborn. The room they entered immediately after the last small burial chamber was vast and wide. More coffins locked away as if inside a vault. The first thing the three Jedi noticed was that part of the ceiling was a large grate that looked into…

“Guys!” Jaden whispered excitedly to her friends. “We’re under the room with the locked door!”

Both men looked up and squinted hard, their eyes widening.

“You’re right!” Jas replied. “We might find the answer to unlocking that door down here, I can sense it.”

“And I can sense you, Jedi,” a dark voice from some corner of the room ahead of them growled. A dark dread tried to settle itself on the three Jedi as the voice made its appearance, flanked by two others. It was a Reborn Master, and his two apprentices.

“Jacyyn and I can take them, find a way to open that door,” Jas whispered. Jaden tilted her head ever so slightly to show her acknowledgment, then they made their move. Both men rushed forward and engaged the enemy while Jaden held back a moment, then rushed past to the other end of the room. With one eye on the duel behind her and the other searching the walls on this end, she spotted two chains on either side of her, bolted to the floor and leading up to the ceiling. That’s one of two problems down. She slashed through the first chain, dodged one of the Reborn who’d broken away from the fight and threw her lead saber into the other chain.

“Lookout!” Jaden yelled as the large grate that was a part of the ceiling collapsed. Jas and Jacyyn barely jumped clear as it smashed into the floor, pinning one of the Reborn under it, killing him instantly. His master and fellow Reborn raged and rushed at Jaden, who barely escaped a strike from one of their sabers.

The men came to her aid, keeping the Sith busy as she glanced around for something, anything else might be a secret. She blocked another strike, then saw it, on the back wall, two narrow stone pillars that looked like some kind of counterbalances going up into the ceiling.

Jaden ran towards it, sensing one of the Sith on her heels. She threw her secondary saber straight at the counterbalances and turned, just parrying the Master Reborn’s strike. Behind him, Jacyyn’s blue blade pierced through his back and out the other side. Further back, Jaden spotted Jas, breathing heavily, standing over the body of the other Reborn. They’d won this fight, and they’d opened the door. It was more than what they could’ve asked for and they were grateful. 

Climbing up the sides on the shelves in the walls, they managed to jump through the large hole now in the ceiling and into the room they’d started their journey in.

“Oh!” Jaden slapped her hand to her forehead. “I need to tell Tionne what we found!” She pulled out her comlink and pressed a button. “Master Tionne, we found a way to open the door. Do you copy?” There was static, then, finally, an answer.

“Yes, I copy, I think we found the entrance, come outside! And hurry!”

With a questioning look plastering her face, Jaden went through the now opened door, followed by her two companions and into bright sunlight.

Jaden, Jas and Jacyyn came out of the tomb onto a wide, sandstone ledge that dropped down several hundred feet to the valley floor covered with sand and ruins. A narrow sandstone staircase ran down the front of the ledge down the side of its wall all the way to the sandy ground below. But what had immediately grabbed their attention was the hulking figure of a Reborn Master locked in combat with Tionne and Kalil. Goran’s orange saber was drawn but stayed off to the side, letting the more advanced in skill Jedi fight until he found an opportunity to jump in without interfering.

Jaden and her friends advanced forward, striking when they could, but this Sith, he was stronger, faster. With one fell swoop he pushed Tionne nearly off the edge with a blast of Force power, lightning crackling as he shot it towards Jacyyn and Jas, knocking them to ground as they writhed in pain. Jaden barely avoided the lightning, remembering what happened to Fennac, praying the same wouldn’t happen to the guys. Kalil was struck in the face with the Sith’s free hand as he advanced on Goran.

“Why do you hang back, little Coward?” He growled, his heavy footsteps an omen of doom.

“Goran!” Kalil screeched, pushing herself up and running with all her might that the Force could aid her with.

“Kalil, no!” Jaden let out the scream too late even as she also rushed to join the fight.

Kalil had barely put herself between Goran and the Master Reborn before his saber, meant for the young Togruta, was stabbed through her abdomen.

No one had time to process what they’d just seen, Tionne had just enough presence of mind to get up and join Jaden, and, before he even turned around to gloat, the Reborn was stabbed twice in the same way as Kalil had been. Jaden watched the red light in his eyes fade to black as his heavy body slid off of her and Tionne’s sabers.

Jaden extinguished her lightsaber and rushed to her friend’s side. Kalil had fallen into Goran and he’d just managed to fall somewhat gracefully against the wall of the tomb, holding her upper body partly in his lap.

“Kalil, no please!” Jaden said as she pushed closer, grabbing and holding her friend’s face in her hands, trying to pass Force power into her, to heal her despite the fact that she already knew it was too late.

“No, Jaden, don’t,” Kalil whispered weakly. “It’s… it’s okay. I’ll be… alright.” 

Goran’s face was a mess of tears. “But it’s my fault Kalil, if I had just followed you. If I wasn’t such a coward…”

“No!” Kalil coughed heavily, blood beginning to trickle out of the corner of her mouth. “No. You’re no… coward. I was- wrong to leave you behind. B-b-better t-together, right?”

“Oh, Kalil.” Tionne was beside them now, Jaden realized this was the first time she’d ever heard the Twi’lek call her apprentice by her first name instead of Streen. “Forgive me, please.”

“It’s nothing, Master. Don’t have to for-'' She coughed again so forcefully that Jaden was afraid her friend would never speak again, but she gathered herself after a minute, and continued. “Forgive. Nothing to… forgive, Master. I’m the one th-that’s sorry.” Her eyes were starting to glaze over as she looked up at Goran. Jaden felt Jas and Jacyyn behind her now. “Gor, nothing here- is your fault. D-do you… hear me?” Goran nodded through his tears. “Good. Good.” Kalil rested her head back against Goran’s chest, her own barely rising, a rattle beginning in her throat. But before they thought all was over, her eyes fluttered open once more to look over Tionne, Jas, Jacyyn and finally, Jaden. Memories of their mission together on Zonju V came flooding back, of speeding up on that damned swoop bike, Kalil waiting for her, fresh cup of caf in hand. In spite of her tears, she smiled. Capture the Flag and all the times she’d trained with Kalil and Arta-Mess, it was all precious time she hadn’t known was slowly running out and she decided she would never take it all for granted again.

Kalil’s eyes brightened for a moment at the sight of her friends. She couldn’t speak, but Jaden heard the words loud and clear in her mind: “Tell Arta I said ‘Farewell for now. You were my best friend, and I loved you like a sister in arms. Better together.’ And Jaden, tell Rosh I’m glad he’s back.”

Jaden nodded, tears streaming more and more freely as her friend, one of the eight students brought all those months ago on The Yavin Runner II , took her last breath.

Chapter Text

Jacyyn removed his old, worn brown leather jacket and draped it over Kalil’s body as a makeshift burial shroud until it could be properly recovered. Goran was silent and refused to speak, grief hung over them like a cloud and the bright warm sun of Korriban mocked them as they forced themselves to stand up and move on through the valley.

“Tavion’s mission will not wait for us to grieve.” Tionne’s voice was heavy, but she willed herself to stay strong as she led them down the sandstone staircase to the sandy floor of the valley.

Jaden was tired of crying. She thought of how, only several hours ago she cried in Kyle’s arms as he held her like she was his own child. That had felt good, safe. It’d been her first time ever fully letting her guard down and letting someone see her for her, for who she really was. Then she’d let herself be vulnerable for Rosh’s sake and that’d felt good too. All the tears she’d cried until now had been authentic, happy ones. And now, she was experiencing something even harder than the losses she’d experienced in the months since joining the Academy. Even more so than watching an innocent, reformed cultist being executed before her eyes on a Corellian tram. More so than even watching her best friend, the man she’d come to feel maybe a little something more about, betray her and try to kill her. One of her friends she’d known since day one at the Academy, was dead and absolutely no one could’ve saved her.

And then there was Arta-Mess. Oh Stars, how was she ever going to tell Arta-Mess that her best friend, her training buddy, was gone? How was she going to tell her what her friend’s last words were?

Jaden knew it wasn't her fault, but that didn’t stop her from searching endlessly for a solution. As if in answer to her grief filled thoughts, the dark, mechanical voice of Darth Vader came unbidden into her mind: “The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be... unnatural.”

“No,” replied the gentle voice of Anakin. “ No. I tried that. I turned to the dark side to save the one I loved. It was all a lie and I lost her. I almost lost my son, my daughter because of my foolishness. Don’t lose the rest of what you have now, Jaden. Hold on…”

Jaden clenched her fist, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment. Her eyes burned from all the tears and the mix of dirt and hot desert air that had gotten into them. I will find Tavion. And I will make her pay.

“Then the dark side will have already won. Revenge is not the Jedi way, Jaden. Don’t forget that. Hold on…”

To what?! Hold on to what?

“Jaden?” She opened her eyes and looked beside her. Goran’s ashen blue hand was on her shoulder, his eyes reflected her own, and her anger evaporated into the valley’s dry air. She took his hand, squeezed it, and held it as they continued across the sand.

They’d been walking for almost half an hour. Nothing in the valley had changed much except for a few times they’d come upon deep pits in the sand where debris from nearby tombs had fallen into. In the first of these pits they’d found a relatively safe way down and discovered a hidden tunnel that took them up, seemingly leading to the other side.

“Kalil was right about the cult being here much earlier,” Jaden said as they passed through the tunnel, indicating the same electric lights strung along the walls.

“They must have been searching for Ragnos’ tomb as they went and setting guards so that Tavion’s plan would be undisturbed,” Tionne commented.

They traveled along even ground after coming out of the tunnel and found another pit. The only way across was either a thin ledge of hard packed sand and stone that hugged the shear wall along the side, or the risk of a long jump across. 

“Wait,” Goran said and pulled away from Jaden who’s side he’d not left. He stepped up to one of two tall obelisks that towered over the group. In a most surprising way to all of them, even Tionne, he gathered himself and thrust his arms and hands forward with all his might. The shock wave of power that flowed from him was so forceful that the obelisk cracked and broke at the base, shot forward and landed cleanly across the gap, creating a bridge for them to pass over on.

“Wow! Goran I didn’t know you could do that!” Jacyyn came forward and slapped the young Togruta on the back of his shoulder blades. Jas approached and did the same, but more gently and Jaden and Tionne simply rubbed his upper arms and congratulated him.

“I’ve been practicing is all.” Goran shrugged humbly, his spirits seemingly higher now.

Once across, the group stopped at the sudden barrage of sounds in the distance.

“That sounds like blaster fire,” Jacyyn said.

“And lightsabers,” Jaden added.

Without another word they all took off at a sprint. As they turned the next corner they saw the battle instead of just hearing it. Two Imperial shuttles had landed between two pyramid-like structures with long, narrow ramps leading up to them. Dotted across the surrounding area were at least twenty to thirty stormtroopers armed with not only blasters, but Merr-Sonn Missile Systems that shot powerful rockets, including guiding missiles towards their targets. Cultists and Reborn alike were interspersed throughout the groups of stormtroopers and they were all fighting a group of no more than twelve Jedi, most of them a higher rank than Jaden’s group, having been at the Academy longer than a couple of years. But Jaden managed to spot Arta-Mess, her staff lightsaber a few shades redder than Tionne’s, a lovely deep magenta color, flashing back and forth among the enemy; and Raltharan, his golden yellow that matched his master’s. She kept looking and spotted Master Horn as well as Master Corran among the small number of Jedi fighting Sith and Imperial both.

Jaden’s group had only stopped for a moment to take this all in before rushing forward to join in the fight.

“Arta-Mess!” 

“Jaden! Hey! So good of you to finally join us. Run into any trouble?” The small Echani girl asked.

“Some,” Jaden said grimly. “But we’re here now. Where’s Master Skywalker?”

“He took a small number of students to search another section of the valley that branched off the path we were taking. I think it was a decoy, I’m pretty sure Ragnos’ tomb is one of these tombs near us, but these Imperials and Sith are making it hard to get even close to entering either of them.”

Jaden inclined her head to look at the tombs surrounding them. Nothing was really different about them. Statues of vornskr beasts caught her eye on either side of each of the tomb's entrances, but what really stood out was the broken and crumbling statue of a horned humanoid figure that stood atop the tomb behind the Imperial shuttles. Its shape was a large version of the one from Racto’s office, as well as the one in the factory on Taspir III.

“That’s the tomb!” Jaden called to Arta-Mess. “We have to find a way to get inside, fast! Tavion may already be trying to resurrect Ragnos!”

“Then let's go, we’ll try to sneak around the side while everyone’s distracted.” Arta-Mess suddenly looked around as if realizing something for the first time. “Wait, where’s Streen? I see Goran and she was supposed to be with him.”

A shadow passed over Jaden’s face as she fought a fresh wave of grief and the decision to tell Arta what happened.

Arta-Mess saw her friend’s hesitation and frowned. “Where is she, Jaden?”

Jaden took a deep breath to steady herself. She blinked back tears and tried swallowing the lump forming in her throat. “Arta…” She swallowed again painfully. “Arta she… I’m so sorry she-”

“No… no, no…” the white haired girl said quietly, disbelief fighting the truth. Her voice slowly rose in volume. “No, no NOO!”

Jacyyn and Jas, having just taken down a group of about five stormtroopers, rushed over. Jacyyn caught Arta-Mess in his arms to keep her from flailing and held her tightly as sobs racked her body.

Jaden felt her own tears spilling over but knew this wasn’t over yet. She turned to Jas and pointed up to Ragnos’ tomb.

“I have to get in there. That’s where Tavion is, I know it. But there’s still plenty of cultists and Reborn guarding it.”

Jas nodded. “Jacyyn and I could distract them while you slip inside but… There may be many more inside.”

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take, I’ll have to go in alone because-” She glanced back at Arta-Mess, still in Jacyyn’s arms, her weeping quiet and still now. She stirred and looked at Jaden, then up at the imposing statue of Ragnos atop the entrance of his tomb. Her eyes burned with a new fury that was both frightening and inspiring. She looked back to Jaden.

“I’m going with you,” she said firmly, her voice raw.

“Arta, I don’t think that’s such a good-” Jacyyn started.

“I’m going, Jacyyn.” She pushed out of his embrace. “They killed my best friend and they are going to pay for it!”

“Arta-Mess, think of what you’re feeling,” Jaden said. “I’m angry about Kalil too but you can’t let your anger guide you right now.”

Arta looked like she was about to start a string of words she’d regret. Jacyyn gently took her hand and she didn’t resist. She squeezed her eyes shut just as her hand was squeezed reassuringly. Jaden’s heart tightened, wishing someone could do the same for her. Her friend looked up and nodded, releasing a heavy breath.

“I can do it.”

“Okay,” Jaden said. It would be alright. She whispered her plan to Jas and Jacyyn. 

They both nodded, and took off towards the bottom of the ramp, taking the attention of several cultists and Reborn with them. Jaden and Arta-Mess slipped around the side of one of the shuttles, and made their way up the ramp as steadily as possible. Arta watched their backs as Jaden looked forward and side to side, expecting someone to jump out at any moment to stop them from reaching the top.

“Arta-Mess, we’re going to make it-” Jaden turned her head back forward just in time to see the Reborn guarding the entrance and whip out her lightsabers.

“Go Jaden! I’ve got this!” Arta-Mess yelled from behind and pushed past her, taking the Reborn off guard. 

“I’m not leaving you!” Jaden said. I’m not risking another friend’s life.

“I said I could handle this, now go!”

“But-” 

“GO!”

That’s when it happened. Out of nowhere the missile from one of the MSMS’s hit a vornskr statue close by causing Arta-Mess to lose her balance as the entire structure shook. The Reborn sneered, having prepared himself and thrust his saber forward. Things went slowly for Jaden’s eyes. Her sabers reached out to catch the Sith’s just before it pierced her friend’s side. She forced the blade away, but it still seared a painful wound into Arta’s side. The young Echani girl fell, rolling down the steep ramp, a fall that would most definitely snap her neck if she landed the wrong way. Jaden lost no time in killing the Reborn, whose side was completely exposed. She rushed to the edge of the ramp to try and slow her friend’s fall with the Force, but to her great relief, Arta-Mess had reached out her hand and grasped one of the notched steps of the ramp. She was in bad shape, but still alive. Just below, racing up the ramp and calling her name with much emotion in his voice, was Jacyyn. He checked her wound the moment he reached her. He whispered something to her that might have been an ‘are you alright?’ and looked up at Jaden when she’d responded to him. Jaden smiled with relief and mouthed that she was okay and pointed to the tomb’s entrance behind her. Jacyyn nodded and picked Arta-Mess up, he would get her to safety and tell their master that Jaden was entering Ragnos’ tomb. Before she turned to duck inside the tomb’s great black opening, she watched as Jacyyn cradled her friend like a child in his strong, gentle arms and carried her down the ramp despite the blaster fire that filled the air all around them.

Once inside, Jaden’s eyes worked to adjust to the dim torch light along the narrow passage, her senses alive and alert to the presence of any cult members. The corridor opened up into a vast chamber with a long, narrow bridge that hung several hundred feet above a large pit of lava down below. On the bridge, about halfway, stood two Reborn. The bridge was just wide enough for them to stand shoulder to shoulder with barely a few inches to spare on either side of their feet. 

Jaden stepped cautiously onto the bridge, knowing this would be extremely tricky to do. She’d barely made it ten feet when she felt the power of something like a strong wind grip her, pushing her backwards. She planted her feet and looked straight ahead at the two Sith, who stood unmoving in the middle.

Two can play at that game.

She pushed forward, pressing her hands out and pushing with her power against their Force push, readying a surprise attack for when she got close enough. 

At about ten feet away from her enemies, they suddenly stopped pushing and Jaden almost fell forward, trying to catch her balance as the Sith started to laugh and rush towards her at once. Jaden gathered herself up and shot her hands out, willing blue lightning to spew forth, crackling and wrapping itself around the Reborn. One of them fell twitching and convulsing to the ground right on the edge while the other just got his dual sabers in the correct position to bank the lightning back at her.

Her sabers came out, catching her own lightning and deflecting it across the room until it smashed into the wall. Debris crumbled and fell into the lava below.

Jaden and the Reborn fought, staying as far from the edge as both could manage. The other Sith had stopped shaking and was just getting to his feet when Jaden suddenly leapt over the one she was fighting. She kicked the recovered Reborn right before he ignited his saber and continued her duel as his screams echoed off the walls, cutting off abruptly when he hit the lava at the bottom.

The last Reborn bristled with rage and pushed hard against Jaden’s defenses so much that she turned and retreated across the bridge towards the end where she saw large, stone double doors. She had no doubt what was behind them and knew it was do or die if she couldn’t defeat this enemy before entering to confront Tavion.

She stopped suddenly, pivoted and pushed as hard as she could with the Force. The Reborn held out an arm like a shield to block it and kept coming. 

Why didn’t I learn that one?! Jaden thought with annoyance, parrying a strike, trying to throw her opponent off balance whenever she could.

Finally, she pushed him to the edge, she kicked his shin as hard as she could and when he cried out in pain, she Force pushed again and this time, he went tumbling over the edge. She didn’t even wait to hear his scream die out as she ran to the doors. With the will of the Force she pulled them open to confront the woman who’d ruined not only her life, but the lives of all the people she knew and loved.

“Tavion! This stops here!” Jaden yelled as soon as she cleared the doors. Up ahead, standing near a base of steps leading up to a dais with an image of Ragnos upon a throne, was Tavion. She held the scepter in one hand, shooting as much Force energy into the statue as she could.

  That’s not his sarcophagus, is it? Jaden thought with disgust.

Tavion turned her head slightly in Jaden’s direction, speaking with a voice dripping in sarcasm. “Ah, Kyle’s ‘good’ student. You’re too late.” She fully turned and lifted the scepter higher, caressing it with her other hand as if it were her most valuable possession. “Soon, Marka Ragnos will return and obliterate the Jedi. The Sith shall rule again!” 

“That’s delusional, Tavion. Kyle told me what happened. How he defeated you on that landing platform on Bespin.”

Tavion’s face turned a bright shade of red. “Silence, whelp!” She practically screamed. “I will make Katarn’s failure complete!” She lowered her voice slightly as well as the scepter and brandished her lightsaber from her belt. “My victory, Rosh’s corruption, and now your death will drive him to the dark side.” 

Jaden shook her head. “But why? Did Kyle’s action of showing you mercy really cause you so much harm?”

“Mercy,” Tavion spat, “Is for the weak, it is not the way of the Sith, who welcome death. It is a transcendence to the Force, the way it has always been and I failed that test.” Jaden saw it was getting hard for Tavion to maintain her composure, she was letting her guard down ever so slightly. 

“And Katarn,” her voice filled with venom and bitterness, “killed my master before my training had been complete. But it will not be incomplete for long!” Tavion’s face broke into a victorious smile, any vulnerability Jaden had glimpsed disappeared as soon as it’d come. Tavion raised the scepter, a gleam in her eye. "Oh, but you want this don't you? Admit it, Jaden, there’s a piece that you've been missing, something inside of you needing to feel complete. It happened that day at the Temple on Yavin didn’t it? The day we first encountered each other.

"No. You're wrong!"

“Aren’t I? I at first thought it was a mistake, a slip up on my part for accidentally releasing all that power onto a silly Jedi whelp. But you proved me wrong. You’re more powerful than even my Reborns or their masters, and they've been with me since my first master, Desann.”

Jaden stood her ground. “You’re wrong, Tavion,” she said through clenched teeth. “The darkness inside me will be purged, make no mistake about that. As for Rosh, I just thought you should know that he’s alive and well, with Kyle .”

“Perhaps I am, or maybe not? I always knew Rosh was a weak little boy, it was you I was hoping to take a place at my side instead of him but no matter. My victory over Katarn is what I’ve really been after.” At Jaden’s questioning look, Tavion laughed. “Oh I don’t think I’ll kill you immediately, no. I might chop off one or two of your limbs or find another way to incapacitate you, but I will relish the moment when Katarn enters, hell bent on aiding his most promising student only to be met with your failure. Only then will I kill you in front of him.” She tapped a sharp nail against her chin. “Perhaps he’ll even beg for your life, oh that’d be rich! Then I’ll leave him to his dark thoughts, with the promise of power if he’ll only join me. Maybe he’ll even surrender just to save your life. That’d be even better!

“Why not kill him? Wouldn’t that be revenge enough for you?” Jaden fingered both her sabers, ready at any moment.

“Oh I don’t intend to kill him at all, it wouldn’t be satisfying enough. But turning him, watching him continue to suffer the rest of his life, that’d be much more satisfying.”

Jaden’s lightsabers came to life. “He’d never do that just for me. Kyle knows he has much to live for!”

“True, but perhaps you’ve forgotten someone else, one more card I have left to play. That woman of his. Never understood what he saw in her, but perhaps threatening her life will be a good incentive. And who knows, maybe he’ll even prefer me after a while.” Tavion raised an eyebrow and flashed a seductive smile. “Rosh certainly did.”

With her anger flaring, Jaden screamed and rushed at Tavion. The witch was going to pay for that statement and for what happened to Kalil. The scepter was extended and a blast of pure Force energy propelled straight at Jaden. She leapt high into the air, clashing her blade across Tavion’s when she landed, was forced back and watched as Tavion brought the scepter up momentarily, an eerie purple and red glow beginning to emanate from it as she brought it down hard on the surface of the floor.

Jaden went flying back from the shock wave of energy, landing hard on her back and quickly rolling to the side as Tavion tried to jump on top of her and stab her. Jaden was up and running, trying to put as much distance between her and the madwoman as possible, if only for a short time to strategize. The bright yellow-orange beam of light from the scepter caught her periphery and she jumped as it swept across the room and passed under her, causing damage to the nearby torch pillars, statues and other bits of architecture and grand decor that’d been commissioned for Ragnos’ burial place over millennia before.

“Only cowards run and hide. Are you that cowardly?” Tavion called out as she ducked behind an untouched pillar, fighting to catch her breath.

 “I know you’re right there…” She continued to taunt.

Jaden suddenly leapt from behind the pillar, hoping she had some element of surprise and shot lightning from her fingers, then ducked behind another pillar, waiting. Tavion had used her lightsaber to block the lightning, so she knew she’d have to try something else. She put up a shield around herself like the ones she and Kyle had used on Vjun and forced herself into Tavion’s personal space, giving her hardly any room to defend her saber strokes. Her shield protected her from Tavion trying the earthquake move with the scepter again, but was still fragile against a direct blast from the thing itself.

“Is that the best you can do?” Tavion hissed, preparing another strike, but as she was focused on the scepter, Jaden suddenly switched to one saber and reached out, pulling with all her might and used the Force to grab her enemy’s lightsaber right from her hand. 

The blast from the scepter came, but Jaden tumbled out of its path, tossing Tavion’s saber into the fiery beam. The explosion the lightsaber made was far more volatile than Jaden had expected, the blast throwing her forward violently. She caught herself against a nearby pillar with a torch on top of it as bits of rock and metal rained around her. 

She quickly turned, gripping her lightsaber, brandishing her second one again, ready for another attack. But Tavion was lying on the steps of the dais, either wounded or dead, Jaden couldn’t tell. Just as she started across the room to check, Tavion came to and used the scepter as a support in order to stand up. She was shaky and weak, but her eyes blazed with rage and determination.

“I will… not cower as I did before Katarn!” She moved as if to kneel, then, all of sudden leapt high into the air, landing on the head of Marka Ragnos’ sarcophagus. She spun the scepter around and drove it with all of her strength into the statue's head, forcing as much energy into it as possible. Jaden put her arm across her eyes at the bright flash of light that followed, then looked to see Tavion jump down to the foot of the dais. With another wicked smile on her face, she looked back up at the sarcophagus just as something blue and translucent rose from among the stone of the hollow resting place.

Goosebumps formed over Jaden’s skin, a shiver tickled the back of her neck at the utter impossibility of what was happening right in front of her eyes. The specter was big, clad in ragged robes, clinging to a once grand and imposing frame. Its face was its most imposing feature left with hollow eye sockets and sharp fangs for teeth as well as its strong looking arms covered in metal gauntlets. Its skin was worn, somewhere between a blue and dull gray hue. It wore a crown atop its head in the same shape as the scepter which once belonged to it, jagged horns like two prongs. A massive chain bearing a large pendant hung from its neck, broken in places. Jaden wondered if the spirit's appearance reflected what little was left of its physical one, begging the second question of if Luke’s theory was only half correct in thinking Tavion could really bring Ragnos’ body back to life when she’d only summoned his spirit.

“I shall not be denied!” The specter of Ragnos spoke with a deep, gravelly voice that echoed centuries of cruelty and malice.

“By the Force!” Jaden whispered, in awe of what she was seeing.

Tavion gasped. “Marka Ragnos!” Her plan had finally worked, Ragnos had come back from beyond the grave.

Kyle angled the Raven’s Claw downward towards the Valley floor, with just enough room to spare considering the nearby Imperial shuttles and countless bodies of stormtroopers and cult members. He suddenly clutched at his chest, his breath stolen from his lungs.

By the Force, help me!

He closed his eyes against the storm of panic threatening to overtake him and pictured Jan’s face in front of him, the feel of her hand on his shoulder, the smell of oil and grease that usually surrounded her after a good day's work of tending to the Raven Claw’s repairs. It was all pure peace and comfort to him that he soon found himself breathing properly, looking with the Force, asking what had disturbed the balance. 

Ragnos, that has to be it! I have to get to his tomb, now! Kyle leapt from the cockpit, and was greeted by one of Corran’s students. “Jas, what’s going on? Where’s Jaden and Luke?”

“Master Skywalker just called Master Tionne on coms and says he’s coming from another part of the valley. I don’t know when he’ll be back.” Jas gestured behind him to the shuttles. “We’ve got a lot of wounded here and we’ve only just finished off the remaining stormtroopers and cultists. That up there,” He pointed to the tomb behind the shuttles, “is Ragnos’ tomb. Jacyyn says that Arta-Mess went up with Jaden but got hurt trying to help her get inside. Master’s Tionne and Dykstra are planning on taking a group inside there.”

“No,” said Kyle, putting a hand on Jas’s shoulder. “No, not yet. We don’t know what’s in there and we don’t want to put many more lives at stake. Tell them that I’m heading in there, and if I or Jaden don’t come out in a quarter of an hour, then they should come. Unless Luke is back by then, he and one of the other master’s need to go inside. Got that?”

“Yes sir.” Jas turned and hurried back towards the Academy’s temporary set up.

Kyle craned his neck to look at the massive structure above him and the imposing figure carved by stone that sat on top of it.

“May the Force be with me, and with Jaden.” Then the Jedi Master went where many Jedi feared to go, hoping against hope that his apprentice was still alive and staying strong.

The menacing specter of Marka Ragnos looked at Tavion and slightly bowed his head. “You, the one who was faithful to summon me will be greatly rewarded.” Tavion preened under his gaze and stood up straighter. The spirit turned its head to examine Jaden, looking her up and down. More chills ran across Jaden’s shine.

“A mere Jedi child will not undo my return!” Ragnos hovered just in front of Tavion, moving closer to Jaden with every second, his eyeless sockets boring into her, as if searching inside her mind. Jaden felt cold talons of ice beginning to grip her heart. In an act of stupid courage, she waved her primary lightsaber in front of her, its blade almost bridging the gap between her and the spirit.

“That’s Jedi KNIGHT , Ragnos!” She snapped.

The Sith Spirit laughed a humorless, grating roar. “You will kneel before me, Jedi.” Ragnos turned, Jaden’s eyes widening in horror as she watched the specter go straight into Tavion, feeling a stab of pity for the woman who’s own eyes seemed to widen with realization just before her body was possessed. She was thrown back as Ragnos entered her. A blue light surrounded her body as she groaned, then slowly rose. 

Jaden watched as the possessed Tavion reached out her hand, and the scepter, which had remained lodged in Ragnos’ sarcophagus, began sparking and moving. It finally shot out and came to her hand by way of the Force. Another shiver shot down Jaden’s neck when she heard Ragnos laughing, not through Tavion’s lips, but through her insides somehow, as though the sound were coming through the wall of a house. Tavion’s eyes were glazed over as she turned the scepter upside down and pulled on the bottom, revealing an ancient blade hidden within a hollow of the staff. It crackled to life with a red glow of sparks and lightning as Tavion Ragnos pointed it straight at Jaden. Her eyes widened with realization, her mind racing back to that night she couldn’t sleep, and had gone to read in the Archives: “And Ragnos’ greatest weapon, a Sith sword made with cortosis, hidden within the hollow shaft of his-”

Scepter! That was the secret that Tavion had Alora wipe from the archives!

Cursing under her breath, Jaden held both her sabers into a fighting stance, her primary held in her right hand, with the secondary in a reverse defensive grip in her left. The two opponents moved slowly toward each other, the atmosphere changing to something much more somber and serious. Even though she was looking at and would cross blades with Tavion’s form, Jaden knew this wasn’t Tavion she was fighting. It was a person far more skilled and gifted in the Force than anyone she’d ever faced or probably would face again. Provided she even lived to tell the tale.

Tavion Ragnos struck first, red bolts met golden yellow and bright orange, locking together momentarily.

“Oh, Katarn’s little brat! You really think you can defeat me?” Tavion Ragnos hissed. The sabers pulled away from each other then met again and again. Shades of red sparks swirled around Tavion from the Sith sword she carried, a weapon of power and fear and fighting against it was the hardest thing Jaden had ever done, not just because of the skill of its wielder, but of the darkness that clung inside her, still vying for her favor and attention, still voicing its dark invitation to give in, to join it in the depths. It hurt her every time her sabers clashed against that cruel, red blade, where each hit was a screech that sent a jolt through her mind, racking her brain. It was taking all of her consecration and training to stay focused and not get overpowered.

Tiring, Jaden turned and ran towards the door, still open, the narrow bridge in the distance.

“Don’t make me chase you, Jaden.” Tavion’s voice melded with Ragnos’ sharp, scraping one, sounding so distorted and unnatural that Jaden quickened her pace out of genuine fear that filled her, feeding the darkness within. “Stop and face me!” Their voices called again.

Suddenly Jaden was pulled to the side by invisible, clutching hands. Rolling onto her back she knew she was too late to move out of the way or even react, only to shut her eyes tight as Tavion Ragnos leapt through the air, landing almost on top of her, bringing the Sith Sword down for the killing stroke.

The sound of a lightsaber meeting the Sith Sword caused Jaden to open her eyes. Pure blue against corrupt red filled her vision and the voice of her master filled her ears.

“No,” Kyle growled, the sound coming from somewhere deep in his chest. He brought his lightsaber up, forcing the Sith Lord back a few paces, giving Jaden enough room to get to her feet.

“Kyle, right on time!” Jaden joined her master’s side and they took turns exchanging blows with the Sith saber.

“I couldn’t let you have all the fun you know.” Kyle grinned. He faced Tavion’s possessed form. “So, is Ragnos really in there?”

“Oh Katarn, Tavion was right to hate you, but I think I’ll just kill you and your pathetic apprentice. Her plans for you were fraught with weakness.” The distorted voice seemed to get worse and more demonic with every word. The passive mention of Tavion made Jaden’s skin crawl at the thought that she was probably dead and her body now the puppet of a monster.

“Ignore him, just fight and don’t stop!” Kyle urged, teeth gritting, muscles tensing. 

Master and apprentice dueled the Dark Lord across the floor of the tomb. When they neared the dais, Tavion Ragnos struck out, pushing Kyle back, while he tried to recover, Jaden rushed in only to be backhanded with Tavion’s free hand, sending a jolt through her entire body, knocking her secondary saber from her hand and she found herself flying backwards into the hollow statue of Ragnos, and crumpled to the ground.

“Aaaghhhh!!!” Kyle cried out, his voice making a choking sound.

Jaden blinked, looking through bleary eyes, her clouded mind trying to make out the scene before her. Kyle was hovering in the air several feet above the stone floor, clutching his throat, the possessed form of Tavion laughed her demonic laugh.

“Remember this, Katarn?” She said, “Remember when you shamed her? You failed to take revenge and chose mercy. And now you will pay!”

Jaden pushed herself up on her hands and knees searching, her primary lightsaber lay nearby and she grasped for it, ready to leap into action and strike down Tavion from where she stood. Then she saw Kyle’s face. His head shook ever so slightly from side to side and then looked from her to something else on the floor. The scepter, discarded at the foot of the dais mere feet away.

“Destroy it, it’s the only way…” Anakin’s voice drifted into her mind.

“No, its power is the only way…” Vader’s voice argued.

Stop it! I get to choose and I choose the light!

Leaping forward, Jaden somersaulted over the steps with her lightsaber in hand which held the Kyber crystal that had set her on this path, this journey with the Force. Tavion Ragnos turned, too late, to see the Jedi’s golden-yellow blade slice through the scepter, severing it in two. A moment later it exploded as all the power it contained was released, throwing Jaden several yards onto her stomach. She quickly pulled herself up and looked to see Tavion’s body begin to convulse and Kyle drop to the floor, having been released from the Force grip. At that same moment inside of her, Jaden felt something break loose and vanish, she was herself again. She and Kyle watched as Tavion began to levitate, clutching her head with both hands and screaming at the top of her lungs. 

“NAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

Chills covered the back of Jaden and Kyle’s neck and arms as both voices of Tavion and Ragnos mingled and finally, the Sith Lord’s spirit exited Tavion’s body, her limp form fell to the ground.

“No!!!” Ragnos’ specter bellowed. “This is impossible!!!” A change came over him and he seemed to be struggling to stay present. Ragnos pointed a crooked bony gray finger menacingly at Jaden. “I will return, Jedi! One day I shall return and annihilate you all!” 

Then, as if he couldn’t hold onto the mortal plane a second longer, Ragnos’ spirit turned and fled. Jaden watched as Marka Ragnos retreated back into the sarcophagus, sensing nothing further from him as his presence faded into the fabric of the universe, lost and wandering forevermore.

Jaden closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting tears of relief wash down her face. The darkness inside her was gone. The darkness outside was gone too. She started to turn around. “It’s gone Kyle, it’s finally gone…”

She saw Kyle, thankfully unharmed by Tavion Ragnos’ Force grip, approaching Tavion’s still form. She hurried to join him now kneeling down beside the cult leader, shocked to realize she was barely alive and struggling for breath. She was even more shocked by Kyle’s next actions. He gently took Tavion’s head, cradling it like he would a child in the crook of his left arm, holding her hand with his right. He didn’t say a single word, but his eyes gleamed with compassion for this broken soul who’d hated him with every fiber of her being. 

Tavion couldn’t say anything for the lack of energy in her dying body, but she looked and looked up into Kyle’s eyes that spoke no hatred or judgment. She blinked tears and tried to speak, coughing violently, a thin trail of blood escaping the corner of her mouth. It almost mirrored the scene with Kalil earlier. She tried once more, “Ka- tarn. I-”

“Don’t speak, Tavion. It’s alright.” Kyle’s voice was low and husky with emotion, Jaden had never seen him like this. She remembered when he told her about Bespin, the regret he had, the wish to have treated her differently, the worry that he would never have the chance to make things right.

“No… Lis…Listen,” Tavion was determined now. “I… was wrong. He… Ragnos had… He c-couldn’t- be set free!” Kyle saw it in her eyes, Jaden sensed it in her tone. Ragnos hadn’t just possessed her body. Tavion endured something horrible for those few minutes, enough trauma to last a lifetime.

“It’s alright now,” Jaden said, coming closer, kneeling and taking her other hand. “He’s gone now. For good.”

Tavion smiled painfully. “Good.” She looked into Kyle’s eyes again, she’d never imagined that she would find such comfort in the eyes of the man she’d hated most in the galaxy. She saw and felt love, compassion, a vulnerability that she had never been brave enough to embrace in her life; and most of all, she saw forgiveness. She felt it wash over her and clear away the immense corruption Ragnos had left behind. She reached up with her right hand, barely brushing against his beard before her fingers fell back onto her abdomen. “Ka-Kyle,” she whispered hoarsely, but couldn’t say anything more, her voice had gone for good and she now had seconds left to make this right.

“I know, Tavion,” Kyle choked. “I forgive you. I’m so sorry for the pain I caused you.” He only saw the response in her eyes, but it was enough. “Rest now with the Force, and be free.” Kyle laid his right hand softly over Tavion’s eyes, Jaden could feel the emanating peace of the slumber he was putting over her body, she would rest and pass away peacefully.

Kyle waited for several, silent moments until he was sure Tavion was gone, then carefully scooped her still form into his arms and stood to his feet.

“C’mon Jaden, let’s get out of this place. Can you seal the tomb while I get her out?”