Family Found: Chapter One

Rhen Var

For all of recorded history, Rhen Var has been a planet of ice and snow. Subject to colds so intense that it is nearly inhospitable, nevertheless, scientists know that it was at one time inhabited; the structures of an advanced civilization can still be seen poking their spires up out of the snow drifts. Buildings older than the Old Republic locked in this eternal ice age by some atmospheric cataclysm.

Stepping off the Stolen Star into the wide expanse of ice and snow, Noelani tugged harder against the drawstrings of her heavy parka glancing at her Master as she stomped through the snow. Tahiri stood still, watching the sky as the thousands of snow flakes drifted down towards them. Her navy blue parka already had a number of flakes on the shoulders. Grinning mischievously, Noelani ducked down and scooped up a handful of the loosely packed snow, compressing it into a tight ball. She threw it and then called out, "Master!"

Tahiri turned around in perfect time to receive the snowball to the face.

Noelani giggled uncontrollably as Tahiri calmly wiped the snow from her face. Then piles of it slammed into Noelani from behind, knocking her off her feet, and covering her in a drift. She heard Tahiri's voice in her head through their training bond; next time less giggling and more paying attention to the warnings from the Force.

Noelani sighed, and began digging herself out from the snow drift. She broke through, and looked up just in time to receive a snowball to the face.

Sputtering she looked at her Master, who had once more taken to watching the sky.

Noelani stood up and brushed the snow off of her parka and face, and began to rub her shoulders, trying to warm herself up.

"Why are we here again, Master? It's cold."

"The Force will keep you warm enough. Just focus."

"Still doesn't tell me why we're here," Noelani muttered under her breath.

Tahiri sighed, and turned to face Noelani. Spreading her arms wide open, she once more looked into the sky.

"Have you ever seen snow? Like this I mean, in person."

Noelani looked up, watching the powdery flakes as they alight on her eyelashes. After a second she had to blink away the drop of water that hey had become.

"Not really. I think I like rain better. Rain's warm."

Tahiri chuckled slightly. "And that's what we get for placing our new academy in a temperate zone of Ossus. Don't you believe that I could have come here just to see the snow?"

Noelani wondered for a moment if Tahiri had lost her mind and then shook her head. "If you had wanted to just see snow, I could have programmed the holoprojectors to show it to you."

Tahiri dropped her head, sighing slightly as she shook it from side to side. "You and your machines. You're hopeless you know."

Without waiting for a reply, Tahiri turned away and began trudging up the mountain, heading towards the ruins visible through the snow flurries. Noelani glanced once back towards the Stolen Star.

"Hey! The ship is back this way!" She stood still and watched for a moment, finally sighing and beginning to follow Tahiri up the mountain.

They found themselves on the steps of a shrine – blue marble and blue stones surrounded them both. At some time in the past, the ornate doors had been cut away; the edges held the flowing look of metal that had been melted with either a fusion torch or a lightsaber. Tahiri stepped into the room, and pulled a handlight from one of the pockets of her parka, turning it on, and slowly moving the light over the various surfaces within the inner room. Noelani pulled out her own light, and began looking in the other direction.

In the middle of the room was an oval shaped table. A gold-colored plate was attached to one end, the swirls of Old Republic Jedi script visible. Noelani scampered forward, and knelt down to read the words.

"In memory of Ulic Qel-Droma. He held the heart of a Jedi."

She turned slightly to find Tahiri once more, keeping her light directed towards Tahiri's feet, so that she will would able to see Tahiri without blinding her.

"What is this place?"

"According to records, it's the tomb of Ulic Qel-Droma. A Jedi turned Sith from about 4000 years ago."

Noelani slowly turned in a circle, allowing her light to play out on the various artifacts and statuary within the chamber. "Why did we come here?"

"For you."

Startled, Noelani turned back towards Tahiri. "Me?"

"Yes. Ulic fell because he wanted revenge over the death of his Master. He was arrogant and wanted to gather as much power to himself as possible. He tried to infiltrate the Dark Side – and was corrupted by it. In the end he threw away everything he loved; sacrificing everything he held dear on the altar of his hate."

Noelani frowned at her Master, trying to figure out the lesson that the elder Knight was attempting to teach her. "I, I don't think I understand."

"The Alliance and Corellia are nearly at war, and for all intents and purposes they are. War is a dangerous time for a Jedi. The death. The fighting. The sheer overwhelming sense of hopelessness and helplessness, of despair and desolation. It is easy," Tahiri paused here, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. After a few seconds, she opened her eyes again, and continued speaking. "Too easy, to embrace the Dark at times like these. As you become a Jedi, I want you to consider this room. This cold, broken place. This…" She gestured around her at the ice covered walls. "This is the legacy of a dark choice."

"Do you think I'll join the Dark Side? Or the Corellians?"

Tahiri lifted an eyebrow as she watched the girl. "Those two are not necessarily the same thing."

"But I thought the Corellians were the bad guys."

"It's just a point of view."

Another voice intruded upon them at this moment. "Luke has been saying that for nearly forty years now. I think he needs to find a new line."

Noelani's and Tahiri's lights flashed over to the doorway, highlighting Han and Leia Solo. Tahiri advanced and threw her arms around them, clinging to them. Then she gave them each a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm happy that you're both all right. When I heard what happened at Hapes I was so worried."

Leia gently placed a hand on Tahiri's shoulder. "We're doing as well as can be expected. Thank you for doing this for us by the way." Then she glanced over Tahiri's shoulder, catching sight of Noelani sitting near the stone oval. "Hello Noelani. How are you?"

Noelani stood up, and performed a half bow. "I'm doing all right, Knight Solo."

Noelani frowned slightly as the adults once more returned to talking among themselves in slightly hushed tones. She was trying to figure out what was happening – the last rumors she had heard were that the Solo's were working with the Corellians.

But they're too nice to be the bad guys, she thought as she watched them in silence. Finally giving up, she walked to the far side of the room, away from the adults and their frustrating conversation. She found herself staring at a blank wall. Yet something felt off in the Force. A subtle niggle – as if there was a machine here, one that had long since fallen into disuse and disrepair.

She pressed her hand against an outcropping of stone, and pushed against it hard. With a low rumble, a section of the wall rolled backwards creating a doorway leading into the dark.

Noelani glanced back over her shoulder, to see the adults still talking, and with a mischievous smile plunged into the opening, her light shining down the steps which she followed.

The stairs ended in a small room; the walls were covered with shelves filled with holocubes and very old datapads. A small cot took up one corner. She walked over to it, and noticed the Jedi robes, lightsaber and a thin gold chain amidst the dust which coated the cot. She picked up the saber, admiring the construction – the octagonal hilt, the dark, burnished steel, and four clawed tines around the emitter array. She gave the hilt a slight shift, and then activated the weapon, watching as the green blade flashed into existence. Seconds later, it sputtered and died, the power cell fully drained and Noelani tossed the weapon back onto the cot.

She turned away from the bed, and noticed a metal and crystal cube which appeared to have been placed in a position where it would be the first thing seen by the person who slept on this bed. She walked over to it and picked it up. The machine hummed to life, a cool blue glow coming from the crystal sides and suddenly a blue hologram of a human female resolved itself above the cube and Noelani recognized it for what it was. A holocron.

The holocron spoke in sharply accented basic. "I am Nomi Sunrider, and act as the gatekeeper for this holocron. Do you have a question for me?"

Noelani shook her head and replied, "Not right now I don't."

The image flickered away into nothingness and Noelani darted from the room, recklessly running up the treacherous stairs to where she had left the adults.

Grinning madly, she interrupted their conversation. "Hey, look what I found!"

Tahiri took it, the holocron coming to life in her hands once more, and she smiled for Noelani. "This is a great find. Was there more?"

Noelani nodded her head. "Yeah, a whole room filled with stuff."

Tahiri smiled, and glanced at Han and Leia. "Great. Now we have an excuse for making this journey again." She turned to Noelani. "Tionne would love to have this and the rest of the items. Do you feel up to going down to the ship and getting a crate or two so we can take a load of this find back to her?"

"Sure!" With a grin, Noelani began making her way back to the ship.