Kidan's Fan Fic: Jysella

Showing posts with label Jysella. Show all posts

Saturday, March 28, 2009

I Want to be Your Knight - 37

After a long, uneventful ride, we were separated and pushed into interrogation cells. Mine was a moderately sized room, with a one-way transparent window, a large metal table bolted onto the floor and two plastic, non-conform chairs.

It was as unappealing room as possible, one designed to affront the sensibilities as wide of a range of beings as possible.

I could feel the girls' Force presences. Their emotions were cold, black stains on the Force. A mixture of anger, frustration and impatience. They worried me a bit, but after a wait of two hours, I was less concerned about them, and more about what was going to happen. As the door opened, I brought my focus back to the here and now.

The being that entered through the door was another Chadra-fan. The diminutive alien laid a datapad onto the desk, as well as a folder thick with flimsiplast documents. He looked at his datapad for a moment, before focusing on me.

"Well, Mr. Skywalker, it seems that you have a problem."

I arched an eyebrow at that. As far as I was aware, I didn't have any problems at all. "And how do I have a problem?"

"Well, first there's the breaking and entering at the academy, the destruction of private property, and accosting Administrator Koo. Oh, yes, and I can't forget the counterfeit identifications."

I chuckled. "Now I know you're just reaching. I don't carry any counterfeit identities."

"So you're Ben Whitesun?"

"No, I am Ben Skywalker, but that doesn't make those identities counterfeit."

I felt a twinge in the Force from Seha, and looked off to my right where I could feel her presence. My danger sense suddenly shifted into overdrive.

"We'll see," the interrogator replied, as he consulted his notes again. "Tell me again, why you accosted Administrator Koo?"

i sighed, and leaned back slightly in my chair. I knew he knew all of this. I also knew that he was hoping that my story would change. "He was using them as navigation computers in order that he could find that legendary treasure that the school's founder had hidden."

"See, this is what I don't understand. Why wouldn't he just use his ship's navicomp?"

I laughed. "If you're trying to trick me, you've got to work harder than that. As planetary security you should be aware that all Navicomps are required to record the destinations that they travel to."

I fought to keep a frown off my face as Seha's Force presence twinged again.

"That's interesting, as the Investigators noticed that yours lacks that particular feature."

"And I'm sure that you noticed I have an Official Variance signed off by both the Director of Intelligence and the Jedi. Order."

The Chadra-fan grunted and opened up the folder as that twinge in the Force shifted to an inferno.

I focused on the interrogator, knowing that whatever was coming, was nearly here. "So, tell me why you're protecting Administrator Koo's abuse of those two girls?"

The Chadra-fan immediately started sputtering. "I-I resent the impli-"

"Enough!" I interrupted, as I pushed back in my chair.

The Chadra-fan's eyes widened at my sudden movement. Just as a blast of red plasma erupted through the one-way transparisteel slashing through where I had just been.

I felt a feral grin come to my face. "You resent the implications, huh?"

The Chadra-fan's eyes widened, and I flicked my fingers at him, sending him tumbling against the wall. Hard enough for his body to leave an imprint.

Then the Force wailed and Seha's Force presence erupted in pain.

Growling, I reached out with the Force and grabbed the being on the far side of the mirror. The one who had taken a potshot at me. Once I had him, I pulled him to me.

The Nikto arrived on my side of the mirror unconscious and sporting a dozen wounds bleeding freely. I dropped him, and then turned my attention to the door. With another flick of the Force it was off its hinges and I was running down the hall.

I turned a corner and saw two stormtroopers of all things, in dark, reddish armor, standing at the end of the hallway by the lift. One was carrying Seha.

The other one opened up with his repeater and realizing that I lacked my lightsaber, I dived back around the corner.

A few moments later the blaster bolts stopped. I peeked around the corner and saw nothing. Frowning, I reached out and found Jysella and went to get her out of her interrogation room.

She was standing there, her arms crossed, a bruise forming on her right temple and a scowl on her face as I ripped the door from its hinges.

"Took your kriffing sweet time I see," she snarled at me.

I shook my head. "Sorry, I was trying to get to Seha."

Pushing past me, she walked towards the lift. "And you let them take her?"

I followed, feeling my frustration growing. "It's not like I had a blaster or a lightsaber, and they were shooting at me."

She didn't even bother to look at me as she responded. "You're a Jedi, you shouldn't let something like blaster bolts stop you."

"Well, not all of us can absorb them you know," is what I wanted to say. What came out, was, "The next time someone's shooting at us, why don't you show me how it's done then."

We got on the lift, and she finally looked at me. The anger bright and clear in her eyes. "I just bet you'd like that. You'd finally get to finish the job that you started all those years ago."

I felt like someone had kicked me in the stomach.

Actually, a kick in the stomach would have been a step up from what I was feeling.

"Jys..." I began, but let it trail off with the realization that there was nothing I could say.

With a ding, the lift doors opened, revealing a dozen planetary security officers circling around three idiots playing with our lightsabers.

I glanced over at her. "Should we save them before they cut something off of themselves?"

She glowered at me for a moment, before turning her attention to the guards. "Nope. Let them cut off a leg or something. They'll be more cautious for it."

I chuckled, and turned back to watch the three, just as the alarm, probably announcing our escape, blared. True to my expectations, one of the men slipped, and sliced off the leg of one of the guards as they panicked.

I pulled Jysella to the side, and hid us in the Force, as most of the guards rushed to the lift and the stairs. That left us with three to take care of, plus the injured one.

Two took up stations near the door, while the third was giving first aid to the idiot without a leg.

I glanced at Jysella, and nodded. Subtly I used the Force to bring us the sabers as she moved closer to the lift.

I Want to be Your Knight - 36

A voice intruded into my nice comfortable darkness.

"Ben!"

Groaning, I lifted my head and opened my eyes, frowning at how blurry the world was. Wiping my forehead, I pulled my hand away and saw it covered in blood. I looked over my shoulder and saw Seha and Jysella in the backseat, both safe and none the worse for wear.

"I'm okay," I mumbled as I pulled my lightsaber and slashed the gate which was wrapped around the driver's side of the speeder. I pulled out my comlink, clipped it to my collar and set up an autofeed to the Scion, programming the ship to send the data to the Jedi and Uncle Lando, if the com-connection shut off. Then I was climbing out of the speeder. As I rushed up the steps, I called over my shoulder, "Come on you two."

I kicked in the door, and there was the protocol droid, it's arm folding away to reveal a heavy repeating blaster.

My saber came up, as the blaster let loose, sending the bolts right back at the droid.

Then Jysella was dancing around me, her silver blade slashing in, and she cleaved the droid into two. I didn't give it a second thought, but instead reached out with the Force, hunting for Administrator Koo.

I felt her Force presence a short distance away, and began running down the hall. "This way," I called out, and then used the Force to really run.

Within moments, I had burst into a hanger. I noticed a few things as I entered. The first was the yacht that was obviously warming its engines.

Next was Casa and immediately to her right was another girl about the same age. Both were obviously frightened as they were sitting perfectly still in chairs, and right behind each were two security droids.

Droids which began shooting as soon as I stepped into the hanger.

I cursed, as I dove to the side with the realization that I couldn't risk deflecting the bolts back because they might hit the girls. I rolled behind some crates, and glanced at the door noticing that Jys and Seha hadn't come through yet.

I sent them an image of what I was seeing over our training bond, and hoped they'd catch onto what I was doing. Then Koo was standing on the edge of the gangplank, and called out, "Bring the girls, and kill Whitesun."

"No!" I screamed as I jumped to my feet and threw my saber towards Koo. The Chadra-fan yelped and dropped to the ground as my blade slashed through the support struts for the gangplank--knowing that would be enough for it to fail launch protocols.

I was running after the saber, when a series of bolts stuttered across my path. I threw myself backwards, and away from the bolts. Where are you two? I sent over the training bond.

To get a wave of amusement, tinged slightly with Jys' sense of humor coming back to me.

Then one of the droids let out an electronic squeal. I looked that way and saw Seha behind a droid the one immediately behind Cassa, her saber extending from its chest.

Then Jysella took out the droid holding the other girl.

With a grin, I stretched out my hand and flicked with the Force. The two remaining droids flew against the wall, slamming into it hard enough to break.

Recalling my saber, I turned on Koo. "Hello Administrator. It's a pleasure to see you again."

I forced myself to not laugh as the diminutive alien glared at me. Koo's gaze flicked from me towards the girls and then back. "How... who?"

I shrugged, ignoring her questions as I slipped a pair of stun-coughs on her wrists. Then I turned and walked over to Seha and Jysella. "How're they?"

Seha looked at me, concern flickering over her face. "Physically they're fine, but they just keep repeating hyperspace coordinates."

I sighed. "I was afraid of that. Apparently, Koo over there has been shoving, at least Cassa's head full of astronavigation programming instead of the standard primary education that she was supposed to be getting."

Both Jys' and Seha's faces hardened, as their eyes flickered over to the administrator. I chuckled as I felt Koo's Force presence flare in fear.

"Freeze!"

We turned and saw a squad of the planetary security forces entering the hangar, their blasters drawn.

Koo began to chuckle, and I shot a glance at her. She instantly quieted.

Jysella spoke. "Hello Officer, we're Jedi Knights."

The officer in lead didn't drop his blaster. "I know what you three are, what I don't know is why you're here."

"To find and rescue this child," I quickly explained. "Administer Koo filed an missing persons report on her, despite the fact that he had secreted her away from her parents. Additionally, he modified her education program, in effect turning her into an astromech."

Still, I found myself staring down the barrel of that blaster. "I think we'll just take all of you down to headquarters to sort this out."

"As you say, Officer," I replied as I nodded my head, and with the Force, shut off my comlink.

I Want to be Your Knight - 35

Let me let you in on a secret.

It's a secret to investigations which no one ever tells you about. A secret which is never shown on those crime holodramas. A secret that's glossed over in fictionalized accounts of crimes.

On an investigation, you spend 1% of your time doing stuff, 5% of your time talking to people and 94% of the time working on the computer, holonet or doing some type of forensics.

What all those numbers mean, is that after the thirty or so minutes I spent at the school collecting stuff, I had a good six hours of working through the collected data.

So, I was quickly engrossed in it.

First I looked at the forensics that were collected, and did not find anything.

Which I found really odd. Lando's reports stated that she had been disappeared at night from her quarters while she was in the learning pod.

There should have been something in the forensics, unless Cassa had left willingly. Or at the least with someone she knew well.

So, I opened up the data that had been on her console, and felt a frown forming on my face.

Cassa was at a high-end, primary education facility. One of those places where they take the kids for a few weeks, and when they return them, they know basic maths such as algebra, trigonometry and geometry, as well as how to read and had been given a dozen aptitude tests. The really good ones also tossed in a few languages onto the mix--and this was one of the best.

I should know, it was the same school where I had my primary education when I was four. It was three months of playing with other kids my age all day, getting information shoved into my brain at night, and finally going home and just knowing trig.

But what was causing my frown was the sheer amount of astronavigation theory that was on her console, as well as hyperspatial physics and starcharts.

I wasn't certain what to make of it.

All I knew was that there was something there. I could feel it, a niggle tugging at my memory, as my mind tried to bring something together.

I looked through the data that was on her console. One thing I was certain of, was that there was no way that that data should have been on her console, as even with the data imprinting of trigonometry, she shouldn't have enough higher-order maths to understand it. She would be able to plot a hyperspace course manually, but wouldn't know what that meant.

This was the data I was staring at when Seha commed me at 1300 hours.

I answered, "Whitesun here."

"Ben," came her response. "We've not found a single thing out here. There's no smuggling, no drug running, there's not even an unsolved murder for us to find."

I frowned, that bothered me, but I wasn't sure why. "No matter, why don't you two get back here. I think we need to get a closer look at that education facility."

"Did you find something?"

"I'm not sure. I'd like to get yours and Jys' opinions on what I'm looking at when you get here though."

"Copy that, Ben. Be there in ten."

Then the comlink went dead and I was once more watching the console screen, struggling to figure out what was niggling me at the back of my neck. What Seha had said on the com had made the niggle of unease worse. Something about there not being anything to attract a Jedi's attention.

Suddenly, everything shifted and I understood all the disparate parts: Cognos, Koo, an asteroid and astronavigation.

It all made sense. I jumped out of my seat and rushed from the room grabbing my saber as I did.

Instead of going to the gangplank, I ran into the cargo hold. With a flick of the Force, I opened the cargo doors, as I ripped the canvas off of my speeder. It was a sporty, open air model, and I jumped into it, quickly activating its repulsors.

The speeder's engine growled, and I feed it power. With a rush of wind, I was out of the ship. I saw Seha and Jys walking towards me, and I slashed to a stop in front of them.

"Get in," I yelled, and for once they listened to what I was saying, as they both climbed into the rear seats.

Once they were in, I stomped on the accelerator, and the speeder jumped forward. I knew I was breaking a dozen local speed ordinances, but I was past caring.

Jysella leaned forward. "I thought you wanted us to look at something."

I shook my head, and yelled back at them. "No time."

"Why?" Seha asked.

"Because I think I know what's happening, and I'm afraid that I might've spooked them by showing at the Academy earlier. It's already been hours since I left, I just hope it's not too late."

"Too late for what?"

I shook my head, and wove through the traffic, focusing intently on getting back to the academy. I didn't want to really think about what it could be too late for.

After all, I owed it to Cassa and Lando both to make sure that she was okay.

Then we were nearing the academy, and I noticed that the massive iron gates had been closed. Rather than breaking, I pushed the throttle harder. The speeder jumped forward again, gaining speed, and Seha and Jysella screamed as the speeder slammed into the gates.

There was a harsh metal squeal and I jerked hard against my restraints as the gate crumbled around my speeder.

The speeder continued moving forward until it slammed hard against the a waist high pillar in front of the steps that led up into the building.

As the front of my speeder crumbled around the pillar, there was nothing but darkness.

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 33

I stared at her for a moment, and then hung my head. No matter how much I wished otherwise, there was only a single answer for that.

"Yes," I whispered, hating myself the entire time.

Of course, I'd gotten good at that.

I felt Seha's shock roll across me in the Force, and the pain as Jys' tears flowed freely, her body shaking.

"If I had seen you, I would have taken you over to the Anakin Solo. I obeyed orders, Jys. I was a Lieutenant in the Guard. That doesn't excuse all the things I did, but at the time I didn't know..." Frowning, I paused. I had been about to say that I didn't know better. But that would have been a lie. "No, I knew better, I just... I just trusted Jacen."

I leaned back in my seat, gingerly touching my nose where Jys had hit it.

Jysella cried there on the deck of the cockpit, and I watched, wanting nothing more to comfort her, to tell her that everything would be all right.

But that would've been a lie.

I knew better.

I'd lost a mother to Jacen as well.

In an ironic twist of fate, I was the cause of her death as well. She went after Jacen because he was corrupting me. I think she would have known even then that it was me that turned Mirax over to Jacen, even if Jysella hadn't still been hiding out on the Errant Venture.

So, I knew that it would never be all right again. That there was nothing that would ever quite feel the same now that her mother was gone.

I glanced over at Seha, and found her staring at me. Her face white as she chewed at her lower lip.

"Seha?"

She blinked, and then shook her head. "No... I... I'm sorry Ben, this...I... no... I can't..."

She got up and headed towards the door, stepping around Jys as if she was afraid that she would get burned by touching her. I stood up, and Seha's head snapped towards me. She looked terrified--kind of like an animal trapped in the lights of a landspeeder.

She gave another one of those quick, abbreviated shakes of her head, and then fled, literally running down the corridor. I clenched my jaw as she disappeared, and dropped back into my seat. Leaning forward, I put my head into my hands, propping my elbows on my knees as I felt the tears wanting to fall.

I forced them back, slamming the door on my emotions, locking them behind the durasteel walls where I kept them.

Why had I let her in, I thought to myself. Why? I didn't deserve any happiness. I knew that I wasn't worthy of it, I knew that I'd just end up hurting her, so why did I do it?.

As was the case so often, I didn't have an answer. All I knew was that I hated myself as much now, as I did while working for Jacen.

I'm not sure when Jysella left, but when I lifted my head she was gone. I glanced at the navicomp, watching the inevitable scroll of numbers.

Finally, it reached zero.

Absentmindedly, I reached out and grabbed the hyperspace levers, and pushed them forward.

The swirls of hyperspace fell away, replaced by the cold pinpricks of light that was a starscape. I reached out and grabbed the controls, pushing the ship around until I could see the blue and green orb that was Sinteria.

I glanced at the datapad on the pilot's console, and noted that I needed to go to the city of Cythin in the tropic region.

As I requested landing clearance for Cythin, I stretched out with the Force.

The first thing I came across was the cold, hard diamond of Jys' anger.

I reached further and found the smoldering embers of Seha's sorrow and fear.

I almost dropped out of the Force, as it hit me once again just how much I've damaged those girls.

Instead, I reached out further.

I stretched, reaching out and touching all of the Force presences on the planet below, allowing every being's sense of self wash over me, just getting a taste for the web of life, allowing it to entangle me.

The console in front of me beeped, drawing me back to the here and now. I confirmed my receipt of the landing instructions, and then sent the ship into a dive; plunging into the atmosphere.

I wanted to get this mission over with, and then see about finding an appropriate hole where I could hide out for the rest of my life.

Maybe a nice little house out in the middle of nowhere on Dagobah or Tattooine.

My danger sense flared, and my head snapped over my shoulder to find Seha standing there. Her glare was hard and dangerous.

Two adjectives I had never thought would apply to her.

I nodded my head, and turned back to the console. When I spoke, I was surprised at how even my voice sounded; especially since my stomach was doing backflips. "Why not strap in, we'll be landing in a few minutes."

She sat down in the co-pilot's station, and stared out at the clouds we were flying through.

"Are you going to leave? Run away again?"

I looked at her, and the hardness was gone. All that was left was broken edges, and a tear slicing down her cheek.

"Do you want me to stay?"

She looked at me, chewing at her lower lip. Another tear tracked down her face. "I... I honestly don't know..."

First Kiss; Last Kiss

Once in a great while lips meet and two spirits merged for a time and the universe was right and complete and the planets wheeled in their proper places.

And despite everything else that was happening, this was one of those times.

Or at least that was what Jysella Horn told herself, while her lips were pressed tightly against Ben's.

That eternal moment, that second, in which they were able to ignore the sounds of the dying. They could ignore the searing heat of plasma that flickered by centimeters over their heads. It was a blessed moment, when they could ignore everything and everyone in this crazy, mixed up place that most folks called the real world.

For that single, blessed moment, in the midst of the death and destruction of the unending war, they were at peace. They, two halves of the same soul, were reunited and made whole.

Even though she knew that he could die, or she could, or any of their soldiers, at that second in time, none of that mattered. She was happy, and in love, and with the boy she loved. Nothing else mattered.

She poured everything that she felt, that she was, through their bond, and into him, the same way that he poured all that he was into her. This was their ritual; as essential to going into battle for them, as checking their lightsabers' power packs. That heady feeling they needed, wanted, desired even.

The feelings as they kissed--lust, love, compassion, need, longing, and a thousand others--were just as bright, just as intense for this kiss, as they were for their very first kiss, which had occurred on a battlefield just like this one a thousand systems ago.

But as always was the case, their moment, their kiss, was over way too soon. He pulled away with the roguish grin he worked so hard to perfect and keep on his face. After all, their soldiers followed him not because of who his father was, but because of who his cousin was.

So, Ben did things to encourage that following. He grinned like his Uncle Han. He led from the front lines like his Grandfather. Even that kiss was part of the act. The soldiers enjoyed the fact that their two leaders were married and loved one another; it made them all remember a loved one back home for who they were fighting. And he was always, always, the first into the most dangerous situations.

A couple of ancient soldiers from the Clone Wars said that his Grandfather used to be just like that. The Hero Without Fear. She knew that Ben hated that name. He had fear, and a lot of it, he just refused to let it show, or to let it affect what he knew had to be done. Ben played the part of the Hero Without Fear.

And he played the part perfectly.

Jysella though, she hung back, and watched with her heart in her mouth. At least for a moment. Ben knew that Jys would be up and over the ramparts moments after him. She had to watch his back after all. But that initial charge, the first burst, that was all him.

It was what was required and expected of him.

And though she hated it, hated seeing him put himself into danger in that way, she loved him for it as much as the rest of their squad, their army did.

He stepped away from her.

"I love you," she said to him with a smile.

Her grinned, and replied, "I know." Then he turned towards the rampart, and drew the Force to him.

With a quick glance over his shoulder, he winked at her, and then his blade was ignited and he was throwing himself over the bulwark, and towards the enemy below. Her heart plunged as she began her five-count, listening to his blade as it changed pitch and tone based on what he was doing. Jysella knew those sounds by heart.

One.

That pitch was him redirecting a laser blast.

Two.

That pitch was him swinging the sword through an infinity arc.

Three.

That tone was him catching a slug, or maybe a black-market thud-bug, on his blade.

Four.

Then the unmistakable happened. A sound she wasn't prepared for. One she had never heard on the battlefield before. Then silence. That unmistakable sound of a lightsaber was just... gone. Despite the noise and the explosions, all Jysella heard was the nothingness which the battle now lacked.

Five.

Her blade flared to life at the same time that the sound of Ben's name erupted from her lips. Her powers surged, and she threw herself forward, scrambling over the rapport, and then tossing herself into the fray, even as her eyes shifted about, hunting for him.

Her brain refused to believe what her eyes were telling her. He was just not there. Their soldiers streamed past her, sending waves of coherent light towards the enemy, but she did not care. They fell by the hundreds as the enemy returned fire, but she did not care.

All that mattered was that lack. That nothingness which was all she could feel of Ben.

Her blade moved of its own accord, protecting her when needed, slashing at the enemy whenever one got to close. That was happening in the mundane world though. Jysella was beyond that, her focus, her consciousness was deep within the Force.

She screamed into the velvet folds of the battle that waged around her, hunting, searching for some speck of Ben.

Finally, her foot touched something round and metal, and the mundane world crashed back into her awareness with all the explosions, smoke, grit and dirt of the battle.

She hunkered down, and found his lightsaber. Tears instantly sprang to her eyes, as she cradled the weapon to her chest.

She looked around, hunting for any sign of him, not really able to see a thing through the blur which the tears had made her vision become.

So intently was she looking, so focused on just finding Ben, that she never heard the sound of the battle stop. The first she knew that it was over was when a hand fell onto her shoulder; heavy, armored.

She stopped, and blinked back her tears. There was a cold, oiliness to the Force presence behind her. He, and it was definitely a he, wasn't one of her soldiers.

She stood, and turned around, keeping Ben's blade hidden from the soldier's view.

He stood there, watching her. His black GAG armor held an almost reddish tint from the dust and grim which still hung in the air at waist height, his helmet was gone--probably discarded at some point in the battle due to damage. He was young, maybe five years younger than Jysella, maybe ten; but that didn't matter.

He was the enemy. She poured her will into the Force, and flung it at him. Making him see her as a superior officer of the Guard.

"Do we know what happened to Ben Skywalker?"

The soldier's entire stance changed. He snapped to parade attention and instantly stopped pointing his carbine at her. "No ma'am. He disappeared during the battle and we've not found him yet."

She fought to keep a snarl from her voice. "Then go see if there's an update and report back immediately."

The soldier jogged off, and she once again took up looking for Ben's body. Hoping and praying that she finds it, even while dreading that she will. It was an odd feeling, an emptiness and a pain; one that threatened to consume her very sense of self. She had to know his fate, she had to find him.

Of that she was certain.

Then, suddenly, she was certain, and in that moment, she would give up that clear, hard certainty for ambiguity and not knowing.

She had found him. His body rested in the dirty, hidden among the smoke and dust which still hung heavily on the air. She waved away the dirt, and looked at him, her eyes, taking in his form, flickering from one feather to another, from his reddish-blond hair, cropped close to his skull, to his brilliant blue eyes which were lackluster and dull.

Finally, Ben had lived up to his moniker, he truly was the Hero Without Fear.

She knelt down into the dust, and pressed her forehead against his, trying to not smell the stench of charred flesh and plasteel armor. They had always known that sooner or later, one of them wouldn't make it back from one of these battles. Of course, they had always assumed it would be later, but that knowledge of encroaching death was the real, unspoken, reason that they had always kissed right before every battle. Just to make sure that there would be a last kiss.

She saw her tears splash against his slack face. "You just had to play the part. You couldn't let the rest of us go over at the same time as you, and you wouldn't ever hear of staying back for a moment. No, you had to be the Hero without Fear. You kriffing schutta."

She saw his saber resting next to him, where she had unconsciously laid it. She snatched the blade up, and placed the emitter next to her heart. There was no need to be here anymore. She couldn't do this by herself. She wasn't strong enough. Not without him.

Her thumb began pressing on the activator.

The standard lightsaber activation plate requires seven pounds of pressure to activate. Ben's took 6.9 pounds.

Jysella had applied 6.8 pounds of pressure before she opened herself to the Force and stopped. She kept the pressure applied, but she listened. It was whispering to her, in his voice. Telling her that she could go on, that she needed to.

"Why?" she cried out. The sound echoed back to her across the now empty battlefield.

In response, she remembered an old, old lesson. A lecture she had heard well over a decade ago, maybe even two, right at the end of the Vong War. Master Tionne, was talking about the Force, and had said, "Life sustains it, makes it grow. When we kill, we destroy the Force. We weaken ourselves and all other life. With every death, the Force itself dims. But, with new life, the Force is renewed. With each and every birth, the Force glows and grows and becomes stronger than it was before. That is the balance that we must protect. That is the balance of the Force."

Jysella's eyes snapped open. They had not been abstinent, but they had been taking precautions against pregnancy. All of the standard anti-pregnancy tricks which were available to all of soldiers under their command. The same ones which GAG used, and the Imperial Remnant, and even the GAR, decades ago.

She touched the Force again, but instead of reaching out, she reached in. She hunted, and search, and then found. A nugget of something that was not her, and was not Ben, but was them both at the same time. She gulped at the air, trying to understand.

Ben's voice seemed to laugh through the Force. "The Force wills to happen, what it will."

She finally released the pressure she held against the activator plate, and dropped back onto her haunches. This is real, she thought to herself. I'm going to have Ben's baby..

Standing, she looked about at the death and destruction and suddenly knew. She knew with the certainty that only the most fanatic of fanatics ever manages to achieve. It had never been her job, or Ben's job, to fix things. They were never there to end the war. There were not there to win. They were just a stop-gap measure. Something to ensure that it didn't get too bad before the person who was supposed to fix everything showed up.

Their real job had always been to create the person who would.

Ben had lived up to his name. He had stepped forward time and time again, doing that which the Force willed. And as always, the Force used and then took him back into itself. His job was complete. Now, hers was just beginning.

She knelt down again and took Ben's nexu-tags and gripped his saber tighter in her hand. These would be the only remembrance their child would have of Ben. But, Jysella knew they would be enough.

As the tears flowed down her face, she watched Ben for another long moment, memorizing his face. Closing her eyes, she slowly exhaled, letting go of the anger that she felt towards him.

She knew it was time to go now. She had over a klick to walk in order to get to the retrieval point, and it was probably all hostile territory by now. But she also knew that it would be all right.

Standing, she turned away from Ben, and realized that she was facing the setting sun. It seemed appropriate somehow. The end of day, plus the promise of new life around the corner. It was representative of her. She knew that she was facing a new world. Her love, her life, her Ben, was dead, but their child was healthy and would be born in just a few short months.

Without looking back, she took her first step into this new world. A world which was at once both larger and smaller than the one she had left behind.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Decisions

The decision to leave behind the only life they had ever known in exchange for one of running and fighting began as most decisions do; over selecting the best kind of appetizers. At least Ben Skywalker thought that the most important decisions should be made at that time.

He wasn't certain where exactly he had picked up that particular thought, but he knew that it did one of two things to most people; drove them to distraction or amused them. After all, he was the son of galactic heroes, people expected him to put more thought into his decisions, and actions.

As stated, most people reacted in one of those two ways. Occasionally, Ben had found some beings who reacted differently, but they were few and far between. The only other exception he knew, was the one person who reacted with both distraction and amusement.

Jysella Horn.

So, as the fried krill claws arrived at the table, he tossed his best "Uncle Han" grin at her, and waited for her answer. As he waited, he watched. She was a beautiful girl, just a few years older than himself. Her heart shaped face, was constantly framed by thick, wavy black hair, and intelligent blue eyes flashed with warmth and amusement.

Well, usually, they were filled with warmth and amusement. At this particular moment, they shone with what could only be described as incredulity.

"It really is a big decision," he said as he picked up one of the claws and started removing the shell and pulling out the meat. "It's only fitting that I give you at least until dinner arrives to think it over."

She sighed as she watched him for a moment, the incredulity sliding to something a good deal harder emotion-wise. After a few moments, she rolled her eyes, shook her head and said, "Ben Skywalker, this has got to be the craziest, stupidest, most inane idea ever. What makes you think either or our parents would agree to it?"

He chuckled, and allowed his grin to grow a bit wider. "Why in the Force would we tell them?"

"Well, someone has to tell them when we run off and become pirates, forsaking our Jedi heritage. Otherwise, they'd try and come find us."

"That's the beauty of being pirates," he replied with a shake of his head. "They can't find us."

She raised a hand to her head, and closed her eyes for a moment. "Did you forget who our parents are again? Former assassin? Corsec? Rogues? Generals? A smuggler from a long line of them? And then your dad."

He chuckled, and waved his hand in the air. "Unimportant. We can hide in the Force. Besides, we learned all our tricks from them."

"Exactly!" She replied as the wait droid came by and refilled their wine glasses. "We learned everything we know from them. I doubt for a second that they've taught us everything that they know though."

Ben grinned again and ate another of the krill claws before saying, "I'm counting on it."

"Counting on it?"

"Yep, it's all part of my plan," he said as she took a bite of one of the claws. A comment timed perfectly so that she would cough over it.

She glared at him for a moment, a wry twist appearing on her lips. "A Skywalker with a plan? I do believe this is a first."

"Maybe," Ben said as he grinned mischievously. He leaned back in his seat and watched her for a moment. "So, what's your answer?"

"You're serious? You want us to quit the Jedi and run off and join the Morlick Pirates?"

"Right."

"The same pirates who are wanted in about forty systems for murder, piracy, and other very non-Jedi like things?"

"Right."

"You do realize that they are pirates."

He chuckled. "What, you didn't want to be a pirate when you were younger?"

"No, because I knew pirates when we were younger. I learned early, that Pirates tend to not groom themselves very well."

"Well, I'll make sure to continue my grooming habits once we become pirates."

"To be clear, one, your grooming habits could use some sprucing up at their current state and you want us to be pirates rather than Jedi."

Laughing, he nodded his head. "I'll try to remember to take more baths and yes."

"And you don't think that either of our parents will have objections to this?"

"What the baths?"

She barked a laugh. "No, the pirate thing."

"Oh, I think they would, but that's part of the plan you see."

"Ah, yes, this mythical plan. So, tell me Mr. Skywalker, what is this plan of yours?"

Ben glanced from side to side theatrically, before leaning in close; she instinctively moved closer to him, smiling slightly.

"We move to Tatooine," he whispered.

Ben could actually see the vein in the middle of her forehead start to throb. Closing her eyes, she rotated her neck, as if she was under a lot of tension.

"You're giving me a headache Ben," she muttered. "Why do you think that our parents wouldn't be able to find us on Tatooine?"

He grinned. "Well, there's a precedent."

Her eyebrow arched slightly. "A precedent?"

"Yep, a precedent. After Vader killed all the Jedi, Obi-wan took Dad to Tatooine. Once there, did he change Dad's name? Nope. Yet for all those years, no one, not even Vader, ever found Dad."

She laughed as she shook her head. "There's a flaw in your plan."

Ben frowned. "What's that?"

"We'd have to stay on Tatooine. Can't be pirates if we stay on Tatooine. We could be moisture farmers or moisture farmers, but we can't be space pirates."

Ben scratched his chin for a moment, thinking. Then he nodded his head sharply. "I see you're right. It might be time for a new plan then."

A look of incredulousness appeared on her face. "A new plan? Does it still involve us being pirates?"

"No, no, no," Ben replied, waving his hand in the air. "That was the old plan! This is the new plan."

"Then tell me, oh great maker of plans, what is the new plan?"

He grinned and pulled out a small piece of jewelry. A simple ring with a moderate sized precious stone--an item which Mirax had both helped him pick out, and had told him was an appropriate symbol of betrothal for Corellians.

"The new plan is you marry me and we spend the rest of our lives together."

Tears lined her eyes as she took the offered ring and slipped it onto her finger. "I think I like the new plan."

"So, that's a yes?"

She leaned across the table and kissed him. When their kiss ended, she replied, "Of course it's a yes."

The droid rolled up and delivered their entrees, and Ben's grin grew even wider, breaking out into a full-fledged smile. "See, another life-altering decision made over appetizers."

Friday, July 25, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - 32

A few hours later, we were leaving Coruscant airspace. Seha had still not talked to me, and every time I looked at Jysella, I felt like she wanted to skin me alive. So I did what any sensible man in my position would do. I ran and hid.

In this case, it was to the cockpit, as we were on my starship, the Jade's Scion. It was a Baudo-class star yacht. The same class of ship which Jysella's mom used, and which in theory Jysella herself owned, though the rumor was that the Pulsar Skate was in dry dock on her grandfather's Star Destroyer.

Frankly, I'd always been too scared to ask her, and I could only guess that the reason she was so angry on this voyage was because I was flying a Baudo-class. I hadn't told her, so it did come as something of a nasty shock.

But in my defense, I hadn't thought of it either. When I bought it I did so so that it would be a reminder of my own stupidity. That every time I flew somewhere, I would be reminded explicitly of my own implicitness in the death of Mirax Horn. I didn't think about how it would affect her.

Just one of those stupid things I seem to do around both of these girls.

I sighed, as I settled into the pilot's seat, my eyes flicking across the array of controls and indicator lights. Seeing nothing abnormal, I leaned back in my seat, waiting until the navicomp told me that it had calculated the jump to lightspeed. Finally, the navicomp beeped in notification, and I grabbed the lightspeed control levers, and pushed them forward.

A part of me soared as the stars elongated and jumped towards me, before collapsing into the swirling blue madness of hyperspace. I stared at it, wondering what other people felt when they did so. I remember, there used to be a superstition that humans would go insane if they stared too long into the abyss. It was so bad in fact that ships made a little over a millennium ago came equipped with viewports that instantly opaqued when the ship made the jump.

"What do you see out there?" Seha's voice came from behind me, and I closed my eyes.

"I see ghosts of the past," I replied. "Of course I know that's just my mind trying to make sense out of the fog and swirls, but..."

I heard the co-pilot's seat shift, and opened my eyes, to look at her. She was folded into it, staring out the canopy, her feet resting on the chair, arms wrapped around her legs, and her chin resting on her knees. She gazed into the distance, her eyes haunted, filled with pain.

Kriff, I thought as I frowned. How can I help her?

"Seha..." I began, trying to figure out what I should say next. Wondering what I could do. Not knowing what else to do, I played dumb. "What... what do you see out there?"

A shiver raced through her, and she lifted her chin up, and turned away from the viewport and the scar of colors on the far side of it. A tear was rolling down her right cheek.

"Why did you do it Ben? Why did you follow him for so long?"

I frowned and shook my head. "For the same reason you did things for him for so long. He was charismatic, and I thought he knew what was best. I thought he deserved my loyalty."

She turned away from me again. "That's not a good enough reason Ben. You... you turned them over to him, knowing what he'd do to him. How many other times did you do that?"

"I..."

How could I answer that question truthfully? Every Corellian I arrested, every Corellian I snitched on. When I arrested Aunt Mirax. When I slashed Zekk with my saber while trying to arrest Aunt Leia and Uncle Han. Sacrificing Cal Omas for my revenge. Sacrificing Kashyyk.

How could I tell her all those things that I had done.

I didn't want to know about them myself.

I hated myself for doing them.

In the time between Nelani Dinn's death and my walking away from Jacen, I had done, or allowed to be done, countless terrible things.

During that time, I did two good things. One was saving a little girl while on Kiost and the other was saving Uncle Lando and his family.

And both of those I considered myself as having failed as what I did at first was to effectively sentence them to death.

"Yes, Ben," Jysella said, her voice cutting through my thoughts from behind me. "Why don't you tell us all those things you did while being Jacen's Vader?"

I shifted my seat around to face her for a moment. Her face was cold and hard, and I merely shook my head. "It won't do us any good. I'm not proud of what I did back then, and I'm trying to make up for it."

"Shavit Ben!" Seha snarled. "I don't care about you making something up. I just don't want to know how people suffered under you. I don't want another one of those visions kicking me in the stomach."

I sighed, and scrubbed my hands across my face. Out of a whole year's worth of actions, there were two worthwhile things I done, and she had just described half of those actions as a kick in the stomach because of the evil I had caused.

"I'm sorry Seha," I whispered. "I don't have control over what the Force decides to share."

I glanced over at Jysella, and realized she was watching Seha, frowning slightly. Finally, she spoke, "You really didn't know, did you? You had no clue about everything he's done."

Seha frowned as she shook her head. "I knew he worked with Jacen Solo and was trained by him, but none of the Master's told us what that meant."

This won't end well, I thought as I shook my head, trying to cut Jysella off. "It meant that I did a lot of things that I regret now. Most of which I'll never be able to make up for."

I felt Jys' staring at me. It was a hot, prickly sensation at the nape of my neck--one I'd often associated with imminent danger. The type of danger that could very well leave me dead.

I ignored it, and kept my focus on Seha. She had been rattled enough by her participation in the vision. She really didn't need any more details of what I had done while being Jace's lapdog.

"Regret? Amends?" Jysella hissed out. Her voice low and dangerous, and I felt myself cringing. "Is that what this is all about? Is that why you came back?"

I closed my eyes and exhaled. Opening them back up I twisted the seat around until I was facing her and then I stood up. I had known that this was going to happen sooner or later. In fact I'd been expecting it since I had returned to the Jedi.

I just didn't expect it on this mission.

In front of Seha.

"Jysella... Jys, you know I wish I hadn't-"

She interrupted me with her fist. Stars flared across my vision as I dropped back to my seat, blood pouring from my nose.

The Force was a maelstrom around her, raging, as she snarled over me. "Then why the kriff did you?"

I felt Seha's confusion, and from the corner of my eye saw her looking between us.

I had no answer. I didn't all those years ago when I did it. I didn't all those years ago when I finally left Jacen and went to the Jedi. And I still didn't. I probably never would have an answer that would satisfy her.

Or myself.

I merely shook my head. She knew all of this. I had told it to her the day she put me in the medward after I had confessed to the Council everything I had done as Jacen's apprentice.

She dropped to her knees, her hands covering her face as her body shook with tears. Her voice lost that edge of anger, replacing it with a deep vein of pain. "Why did you turn my mom over to him?"

I closed my eyes as realization sunk into Seha. I glanced at her, and saw the horror on her face. Grimacing, I turned back to Jys.

"All I can do is say I'm sorry. I know I'll never make it up to you, I know it, but you're right. It's why I'm here. I have to try."

She pulled her hands away, and looked at me as the tears continued to roll down her face. "Tell me Ben, if I hadn't been hiding in the Force, would you have turned me in as well?"

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 31

Yes, I knew my duty, and for the first time since I had became Jacen's apprentice, I purposefully didn't do it.

Quickly assessing the security system, I turned off the security sensors for the ship, and as I was erasing my tracks, left indications in the system that it was system damage from the Confederate attack. Satisfied, I left the observation chamber, and stormed through the halls, until I came to the Interrogation room. I unlocked the door, and Lando stumbled forward, a snarl on his face as he saw me.

"What? Did you come to finish the job?"

I frowned at him. "No, It's not like that. Look, I had my job to do, now you're both coming with me."

"Like hell."

Ignoring Lando's response, and protests, I reached out with the Force and lifted Tendra up. I moved quickly through the ship, Lando following me, his suspicion a black poison at the back of my awareness. Finally, we arrived at the Admiral's gig. I gestured Lando inside, and floated Tendra in towards one of the benches. Strapping her down, I reached out with the Force and put her into a healing trance.

I stepped back to find Lando pointing a blaster at me. I had no idea where he had gotten the weapon from and I didn't really care. "Are you going to shoot me Uncle Lando? If so, do it fast, you don't have much time."

Lando sighed and lowered the blaster. "No... I'm not."

I nodded and gestured towards Tendra. "I've put her into a healing trance. If you say her name that will bring her out of it. The baby feels alive in the Force, but I can't promise how much longer she'll stay that way. We're currently in orbit around Denon." I frowned, not sure what else to say. Finally, I sighed. "I'm sorry, Uncle Lando. You were right. I shouldn't have done this. I'll make it up to you and your daughter one day. I promise."

Lando's brown eyes bored into mine for a moment. Then he nodded and turned towards the cockpit. I took one last look at his back and then at Tendra, before I fled the shuttle.

I stepped onto the metal deck, as the hatch closed behind me. Klaxons blared again, and with a slight backwash of ion reflux, the shuttle was gone. I stood still for a moment--my mind racing in a dozen different ways. I had disobeyed Jacen. I had broken protocols, and broke the law. I even wondered if that made me a bad Jedi.

Lekauf's words raced through his head. "Our job's about helping the good guys; sometimes that means a protocol needs to be nudged a bit."

That kicked me into high gear and I went forward, knowing I only had a few more moments before the security protocols came back online. I entered the bridge, to find Jacen snarling at the gunners, ordering them to increase their efficiency in killing those attacking his ship.

And just as suddenly as the vision assaulted me, I was once again back in reality. Seha crumpled. I blinked and was up and by her side in moments. She was unconscious, her breathing shallow. and I looked around at Jys to find that she was curled up on the floor, her body shaking. I frowned, wondering why they were being subjected to my Force visions.

Even more confusing was why they were affecting them so badly.

Part of our team exercises involved building a training bond between us, so I knew they had something of a quick shortcut into my head. Yet they had never before seen any of the visions the Force inflicted on me. Of course, they hadn't ever been this close while I was on the receiving end of one either.

I leaned back against the couch, one hand resting gently on the top of Seha's head, as I closed my eyes. Exhaustion claimed me and I was asleep within moments.

I felt the toe of someone's boot tapping against my side, and my eyes popped open. I craned my neck backwards and found Jysella standing over me, her eyes were tear-stained and bloodshot.

From the grainy texture of mine, I assumed mine were the same.

"Yeah?" I said, even my voice sounding grainy.

She shook her head. "We just need to get going. If we're still going to."

I nodded my head, and focused on Seha who was sleeping soundly. I shook her, and she bolted awake; nearly jumping off my lap. She stared at me, a wildness in her eyes that seemed at odds to the peace she had exuded while asleep.

Finally, she seemed to realize where she was at, and calmed down while exhaling heavily. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I was having a bad dream."

Jysella barked a short laugh. "We've all had it. The Force was projecting Ben's memories."

She blinked and stood up, fleeing to her room.

I watched as she disappeared, and then yelped in pain as Jysella kicked me again. Hard this time.

"What the kriff did you do to her this time, Skywalker?"

I shook my head, wondering the exact same thing.

I Want to be Your Knight - Chapter 30

I dropped to my knees, fighting the urge to vomit. I didn't remember Force visions being quite so demanding on the body. Finally, I opened my eyes and lifted my head slightly. Sounds crashed against my ears; harsh gagging noises. I glanced over at Jys to find her clutching the handrail of the turbolift. Turning to the left I saw Seha--who happened to be the source of the gagging noises. She was curled in a ball, tears streaming down her face.

"W-what t-the kri... kriff was that?" Jysella's voice was bitter and broken.

Ignoring her for the moment, I reached out and touched Seha's shoulder. She lifted her head, the pain shining brightly in her eyes. She stared at me for a heartbeat and then lunged forward. I wrapped my arms around her as she once more broke down into tears.

I looked over at Jys, and finally responded to her question. "It was a Force vision. I get them occasionally when I'm trying to not remember something. First time it's been a shared experience though."

Through her tears, Seha spoke into my shoulder. "It... it was like the worst moments of my life played out before me. But it wasn't my memory."

I saw Jysella nodding her head slowly. "Yeah..."

Frowning, I brushed my hand through Seha's hair. "I know... it was my memory, and I'm sorry. I'm sure it's because of our training bond that we all suffered the same sort of vision. I... I don't think it's a good idea for you two to go with me."

Jysella scowled at me. "Get over yourself Skywalker. We're all going, or none of us are."

Seha nodded her head. "Yeah."

I sighed and shook my head. "Does anyone know why the two of you both got that vision?"

Both of the girls shook their heads no.

I frowned as I stared at the doors of the lift. They parted, and I struggled to my feet, helping Seha up in the process. We finally made it to our shared quarters, and dropped onto one of the couches. I closed my eyes, trying to regain my composure. A stillness formed between us, soothing and calming. It was the quietest I had ever heard either girls, and most definitely the quietest that I'd ever heard when both were right there together. Later I learned that they were taking that time to process what they had seen in the vision.

Finally, Seha broke the silence. "What happened with Lando?"

I frowned, and shook my head. "I... I'm not sure I should tell you."

Jys punched my shoulder hard. "You're a kriffing idiot, Skywalker. Obviously the Force wants us to know, or why else would we have all participated in the vision?"

"I..." Sighing, I shook my head again.

I could feel the disappointment from both the girls. They wanted to know. Yet, I still didn't want to face my past. It scared me. I didn't like to think about it, dwell on it, or even remember that I had a past.

Which, I guess why the Force loved to poke and prod at my memories. One would think that one would learn that the Force won't stop picking at your wounds until you've figured out how to heal them. Despite the promise everyone always claimed I showed, I was quite often a slow learner.

As I opened my mouth to tell the girls that I couldn't tell them, the Force dropped the past back on me again.

I sat in the observation chamber overlooking Interrogation Room 1. I found it odd that Jacen had put both of them in the same room, as standard operating procedure would be to separate them. Being alone for hours on end can often work wonders at loosening tongues. I kept the sound off, as I didn't want to hear Aunt Tendra's crying. Finally, Jacen walked in. Lando's head snapped towards him, and I could feel the blast of anger and disgust roll across the Force.

Jacen threw his head back and laughed. It was odd watching that without the sound.

Then he began his special interrogation.

I cringed as he plucked Lando up off Tendra. Lando's head threw back, his mouth opened in a silent scream. I could even see the blood vessels and tendons straining in his neck.

My mind provided Mirax's and Ailyn Vel's screams as a soundtrack.

After what seemed forever, Lando dropped to the ground, panting.

Then he turned his attention to Tendra. Bolts of greenish lightning flashed from his outstretched palm, striking her on her legs. I flipped the sound switch as my stomach clenched, and clearly heard Tendra's howls of pain.

Suddenly, the lightning stopped.

"Tell me where my parents are, Lando. I'd hate to move this lightning up," Jacen said. His voice was cold and calm, yet I could feel an edge of hate and anger beneath the controlled demeanor.

Lando shook his head, as his shoulders hitched with his tears.

Jacen's hand shifted upwards slightly, and for a second, lightning flashed across Tendra's stomach.

Tendra rolled into a ball, her cries frying into my brain right next to Mirax's and Vel's.

Lando shook his head again. Jacen lifted his palm towards Tendra, and then the Anakin Solo lurched. An all-hands klaxon blared throughout the ship, and Jacen yanked out his comlink. "Bridge, report!"

"Sir, a Confederation battle group has dropped out of hyperspace."

Jacen lowered the comlink for a moment, and then stormed from the room, lifting it towards his lips as he left.

I stayed in the observation bubble, watching Lando as he hobbled across the floor, to comfort his wife who was clutching at her stomach. My own stomach twisted, and I dropped to my knees, and vomited. After a moment, I got up, and looked down into the room, and noticed that Tendra was surrounded by a pool of bloody water. My eyes widened in shock as I belatedly saw Lando slamming his fist against the door, screaming uselessly at it.

Indecision gripped at me. What should I do? Standing rules demanded that no one be allowed out of Interrogation rooms no matter what. But this was not some nebulous threat, or some hardened criminal here; this was an innocent child's life hanging in the balance.

My duty was clear.

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 29

I spun on my heel and walked from the Council chambers. Behind me, I could feel the more or less confusion coming from the two girls. As I stormed through the doors, I could feel them following behind me, their interest in my past bubbling over; sharp enough that I could imagine the taste of their emotions on my tongue.

Frankly, I didn't like that. What had happened with Lando and his daughter was another of those things that I didn't want to think about. One of those things that still gave me nightmares, which would cause me to bolt awake in the middle of the night. Even now, I can feel the chill of what I had almost done racing up and down my spine.

I stopped in front of the lift and jabbed at the call button a few times. Praying to the Force that maybe this time the more I hit it the faster it would arrive. Turbolifts were too contained a place to be with those two girls, and their inevitable questions, at the moment.

Of course, the Force didn't help me out.

The girls stepped up beside me, one on either side. Their interest and confusion and curiosity bubbling over, yet they were silent. For a moment I wondered if my shields were leaking. Finally, the lift arrived, and I got on. Leaning against the back wall, I closed my eyes as the girls also got on, and directed the machine to take us to the floor where our quarters were.

Amazingly, they were quiet, not asking anything. For a moment, I wondered if this was another emotional scab I wouldn't have to pick at.

Of course, the Force didn't help me out.

The vision slammed into me, and I was once more wearing Guard day fatigues. I was in the midst of my squad as we purposefully walked down the hall. We were in a non-descript corridor, our heavy boots echoing in the unnatural stillness. Even without identifying marks, I knew exactly where we were at, and when. The Solar Wind space station, in orbit around Dearius III, and it was just a few short weeks before Mom's death.

Technically, we shouldn't have been there. The Solar Wind was well outside GA space, on the edge of the Outer Rim. We were there for a single reason. The owner of the Solar Wind was a known accomplice of wanted fugitives: my aunt and uncle. If you've not figured it out yet, it was Lando.

We arrived in the inner sanctum to find the final set of guards, Lando and his wife, Tendra. His face was set in hard, precise lines. A small flicker in the eyes as he shifted his view from us to Tendra let me know that he was worried about her. My squad took up positions near the doors, ready to jump in. I stood defiantly in the middle of the doorway, watching them.

"I'm here to bring you in Uncle Lando."

Lando frowned at me, and slowly shook his head. "Sorry Kid, I can't do that."

I sighed, and allowed my gaze to flick back and forth between my squad and Lando's guards. "C'mon Uncle Lando. It's my job."

He shook his head once again. "No. I know it's not. It's just what Jacen has been telling you need to do."

I frowned, snarling slightly. "It's my responsibility!"

"And Mirax was what?" I felt my heart twinge at that. I knew what had happened to Mirax after I had turned her over to Jacen. There was no denying the security recordings. I closed my eyes and turned away. Lando's voice just continued from the darkness. "Valin and Jysella now are missing a parent. Tendra's pregnant. Do you want my daughter growing up without both of her parents?"

I stepped away from the door. "I'm sorry, but it's my duty." I had been using that justification too much lately.

"I'm sorry too kid."

I gestured towards the squad. "Make sure Lando and Tendra are alive. Colonel Solo wants to talk with them."

They nodded their head and then darted into the room. Blasters fired, echoing loudly in the chamber. The weapons fell silent, and I turned back. Lando had a blaster wound on his leg and Kiron was placing shockcuffs on Tendra. I frowned and found I couldn't look him in the eye. I found that I was focused on Tendra's belly. She was even further along than I had expected; somewhere along seven months. Something twisted in my chest, and I imagined Kiara staring at me as I walked away, leaving her to die.

I spun on my heel and took off down the corridor, heading back towards the drop ship. Settling down into the co-pilot's station, I kept an eye on my squad's transponders and wondered what I could say to Uncle Lando when they finally arrived at the ship. Kriff, I wondered what I'd be able to tell Dad when he found out I turned in Uncle Lando. The look on his face when he discovered that I was the one who arrested Mirax was bad enough.

The squad arrived back at the drop ship, and we pulled away from the station. Luckily the guys kept Lando and Tendra in the back and I didn't have to face them. I didn't have to face another family friend giving me the look that said I should have known better. Because let's face it, I should have.

Within a few minutes we had arrived back at the Anakin Solo. Once again, Jacen was waiting us. I stood there, my head held high as my squad brought out Uncle Lando. Jacen just smiled as he looked between the two of them. When he finally spoke, there was no hint of any humor in his voice. "Lando. It's so nice to see you again... and no one has told me that Tendra was pregnant."

Lando lunged forward, but his leg gave out and he crumbled to the floor. Jacen laughed as he turned away and gestured to the MPs. "Put them in Interrogation Room 1."

I watched, my heart in my throat as they were hauled away. The memories I had of Mirax and Ailyn Vel hanging heavy, their screams haunting me.

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 28

I raised the glass of ale to my lips, just as both of our comlinks went off. Sighing, I dropped the glass back to the table, and pulled out the infernal device. Seeing that it was a summons from the Council, I raised my eyes and met Seha's. Interest and concern shone in hers, and I stood up, dropping a few credits on the table. Holding my hand out towards her, I gave her a grin. "Come on, we don't want to keep Kyp waiting to long."

Her hand slid into mine; thin, warm and soft. An almost shy smile touched her lips as I helped her from her chair. Hand in hand, we left the bar and hurried to the Temple which was just a few blocks away.

Together we stepped into the antechamber for the Council to find Jysella waiting for us. Her back was towards us, as she faced the door. I found something odd about her pose, a tenseness that I really did not remember her having before.

Seha called out, "Hey Jysella."

Jys tossed a glance over her shoulder, a smile forming on her face. As soon as her eyes met mine, the smile froze, half-formed. Her eyes flicked down to where our hands clasped, and I suddenly had to fight the urge to drop Seha's hand. That half-frozen smile was only there for a half a second or so before it had once more formed into Jys' usual smile. As she walked closer to us, I even doubted whether or not I had seen the look.

As the two girls chatted, I watched Jysella. Trying to figure out what she was thinking. Yet I couldn't.

I closed my eyes and exhaled lightly, trying to find my center once more. Surprisingly, it was easier than I had expected.

I opened my eyes and glanced over at Seha. Her eyes shifted towards me for a second and then she smiled brilliantly. I felt a smile answer her, and then the doors to the Council swung open. I dropped Seha's hand and the three of us walked in. With a start I realized that something was slightly different. For the first time since we had been paired up as a group, I wasn't standing in the middle.

I broke the usual rules of decorum for the Council and shifted my head to look across Seha and saw Jysella standing on the far side of her.

I stomped down hard on my emotions before they could escape and then looked ahead to where Kyp was sitting. He looked even wearier than the last time I had seen him. Master Veila stood up, and glanced down at Kyp for a moment before focusing directly at me. "Padawan Skywalker. The Council has been given an unusual request. One which we Jedi tend to not honor when we do receive them, as we feel that these tasks are better suited for civil security forces. But because of a family history between the requester and yourself, we have decided to allow you to chose whether or not we should accept this mission."

I nodded my head. "I understand."

Tahiri gestured and I felt someone enter into the chambers. I turned and saw my dad's old friend, Lando Calrissian, walk in. He looked ancient, and lacked the smile that was an almost trademarked image. A far, far different man than the one who had taught me how to play Planetary Poker when I was seven. He was even a far different man than the one I had seen last back when I was still under Jacen's tutelage. Walking beside him was his wife whose sadness seemed to radiate in the Force.

Tahiri spoke. "Mr. Calrissian, you may present your request."

Lando nodded his head. "Thank you Tahiri." He stepped forward as Tahiri sat down and focused on me. "Hey, kid. It's been a few years."

I grimaced slightly, knowing exactly how many years it had been, and what had happened the last time we had been together. "That it has."

"I'm calling in my marker."

I closed my eyes and felt my jaw clench in anticipation. I always knew that this day would come, and I had always feared it. After a moment, I opened my eyes and lifted my head to focus on Kyp. "I accept the mission, Master."

I felt the Master's, as well as Jysella's and Seha's shock at what I had just done. I guess I could understand their surprise. After all, it's rather rare for me to accept a task without hearing the whys and wheres and what nots first.

Lando nodded his head, and then walked over to the computer console that was along one wall. He laid his datapad on the terminal, and activated the system. The holographic generators sprang to life and suddenly before us was the image of a little girl. She appeared to have been around five standard years old, and had cream colored skin and jet black hair. Though it had been a few years since I had seen her, I instantly recognized her. She looked so much like her mother after all.

Lando spoke. "This is a recent image of my daughter Cassa. Six days ago she was abducted from her school on Sinteria. I... Ben, I need you to find her for me."

I nodded, and felt my heart clench tight. "I... I'll need all the information you have." Then I looked towards Kyp. "Master, I'll need a few weeks leave please."

My teammates erupted from beside me. Seha stepped forward, her hand shooting out to my shoulder and twisting me around to face her. "No, Ben. We're all in this together. You've taken this mission, so we've all done so."

I glanced at her, and saw the determination on her face. My eyes shifted beyond her and found Jys, who was frowning and you could feel her stubborn obstinacy even without the Force. I felt my heart clench in my throat. Made cold and heavy by the simple fact that I didn't deserve their loyalty, especially where Lando was concerned.

Jys caught my stare for a moment, and then looked towards Kyp. "Master Durron, we'd all like to take this mission, but if you're not going to approve it, then I guess we'd all like to have a leave of absence."

Kyp sighed. "You are all granted permission for a leave of absence."

I looked at him, and suddenly realized the reason for how troubled he looked. Kidnappings were not the purview of the Jedi Order, but Kyp owed Lando something, but I seriously doubted if he owed him as much as I did.

I looked at Lando. "We'll need all the information you have, and we'll be leaving in the Jade's Scion for Sinteria in a few hours."

Lando nodded his head. "Thank you, Ben."

I shook mine. "No. This is for what I owe Cassa. It has nothing to do with you."

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 27

Previous Chapter

The next week found us being pushed through a battery of medical and academic tests. The medical ones designed solely to ensure that we had recovered sufficiently that our next mission would not kill us, while the academic ones were designed solely to torture us. Or at least that was my guess.

Seha appeared to be enjoying them, and I don't think Jys minded them that much either. At least they did better on them than I did. A fact which Jys took the time to rub in. Repeatedly.

After I had finished my final batch of tests, I once more snuck out of the Jedi Temple and made the short trip to my favorite bar. Well, it wasn't my favorite, but it was the only one within walking distance, and I had already set up a line of credit with them that charged to an Intel account from my Guard days.

Two hours later, and on my third mug of the good Corellian ale which Uncle Han liked, she found me. I noticed her as she walked in. After all, the only thing more noticeable than someone in Jedi robes is someone wearing a Guard uniform.

She paused in the doorway, highlighted by the afternoon sun and all of a sudden I was thirteen again, and she was the older girl coming to chat with me about something I had done during training. She wasn't the first girl that I noticed in that special way, that would have been Nelani Dinn, Jacen's first victim, but she was awfully close to being that. And as she stood there, all those feelings slammed down on me again.

She really was a pretty girl. Great head of hair, a pretty smile, and as our time in Corellia's hospitals had revealed, she did have a killer set of legs.

As I watched her walk towards me, that last conversation with Jysella flashed through my mind again. She had left no uncertain terms that she thought I should accept Seha's advances.

Finally, Seha arrived at my table, and looked down at me, not quite smiling. "Hey Ben."

I gave her my best Uncle Han impression, and gestured towards the seat opposite me. "Want to join me?"

She smiled shyly, and slid into the seat. The waitress droid rolled over, and she ordered something, as I struggled to figure out just what I was feeling. I hated not knowing exactly what I was feeling or thinking. It made things too confusing, and the perfume she was wearing did nothing to help my state of mind.

Finally, she turned those green eyes of hers on me, and said, "We're finally alone, so let's have our chat."

I took another swig of my ale, and set the bottle down, nodding my head. "Yeah, I guess we better."

A tense silence stretched between us for a moment. She sighed, and looked away, one balled fist, propping up her cheek. "Kriff, how many times do I have to throw myself at you?"

I felt a blush begin to burn my cheeks. "I...ahh.. uhm... I..."

Her face shifted, and she started watching me. A smile began to curl her lips. "You're cute when you don't know what to say."

"Ah, thanks," I lamely replied.

She chuckled and then took a swallow of her ale. I leaned back in my chair, watching as she set the bottle back down onto the table top.

"I don't really know what I feel," I said. Her eyes widened as her face snapped back towards mine. "I've got to admit, I had a crush on you the first time I ever saw you. Yet, my mind's been so kriffed over so much since I was thirteen that I honestly don't know what I feel half the time. But, I think I owe it to you and me to find out."

She frowned for a moment. "So, exactly what are you saying?"

I sighed, and lifted my eyes to stare at the ceiling for a moment. "I'm saying that we should give it a shot. That we can try this dating thing and see how it works."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you want to try this dating thing?"

"Well, just because."

She sighed, and I lowered my gaze to lock onto hers for a moment. Finally, she said, "Say it clearly."

"Fine," I replied. "I like you."

I felt her eyes staring at me. Then she pulled out a datapad and tossed it onto the tabletop. "Write it down."

Frowning, I did as she asked, and used her pad to put down the fact that I wanted to take her out on a date, and that I did so because I liked her. She picked up the device, her eyes flicking over the letters I had written. A small smile twisted her lips, as she continued to focus on the datapad.

"I'm happy. I... I had never though I'd actually be happy. It's almost enough to make me cry."

I continued to watch her as she reread the datapad, and slowly came to the realization of just how much she liked me. I slowly realized just how much I had been hurting her by ignoring her feelings.

It was a painful realization, not quite the direct shot to the gut as Kyp's comments after that first kiss, but still. It showed me in no uncertain terms that I still had a ways to go before I would be worthy. It showed me that I still had a ways to go before I stopped being mean to those people around me, even when I was just trying to be their friend.

Next Chapter

Monday, February 4, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 26

I stepped out of the refresher, glad to be out of the hospital gown. I was still drying my hair when I ran into Jysella, who had just stepped out of one of the cabins. She looked at me for a moment, as a bright blush appeared on her cheeks.

I found myself at an utter loss for words. I didn't know what to say or do, all I could think about was the feel of her lips on my cheek. As insane as it sounds, I wanted to grab her, hold her tight to me and spin her around. Maybe let out a yip of joy that we had both survived.

I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Which was probably a blessing in disguise. I remember one time when I was 15 or so when I had that same feeling in my heart at seeing a girl. I ended up comparing her to a fish. To be specific, an Orsa from Arcturus. Which as you may or may not know has been voted the most hideous creature for fifteen years now; one biologist postulates that their appearance to creatures that see in the visual light range is a survival mechanism. They're literally too ugly to eat.

After a few moments, she dropped her head, and then mumbled, "Sorry, excuse me." Then she had darted around me and rushed into the refresher. I stared at the closed door for a moment, wondering what I should do. After all, know that I apparently gotten her to understand that I was sorry for what had happened to her mother, I was still left with the problem of getting her to be my friend again. I missed the relationship that we used to have, and I still wanted it back.

Sighing, I finally turned away from the refresher and went into the common area.

Sitting on one of the chairs, with her back towards me was Seha. Her body was hunched over with her face cradled in her hands. Her shoulders shook and I could hear her cries: soft and heartbreaking. I stepped further into the room. "Seha?"

Like a frightened whisperkit, she sprang from the seat and spun around to face me. Streaks of tears stained her face, and her eyes were rimmed with red. "B-b-ben?"

Another step. "Are you all right?"

She worried at her lower lip for a moment, and then nodded her head. "Yes... no..." Then she sighed and dropped back into her seat. "I don't know... I really don't."

Fighting to keep a frown off my face, I closed the distance and sat down across from her. After a moment, I leaned forward, closer to her. My psychology book told me that that was a way to foster confidences and intimacy while trying to get information. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She looked at me for a moment, her teeth still biting at her lower lip. Finally, she snorted. "You really are as dumb as Jys says aren't you?"

I blinked. How exactly does one answer that question.

She sighed, and leaned closer towards me, delving deep into my personal space, her face less than a dozen centimeters from mine.

"What do you think of me Ben?"

"I..." And that was the question, I really didn't want to answer. Especially since I hadn't thought that hard about it.

"I like you Ben. A lot. Do you think..."

I sighed, and leaned back slightly; scared that if I stayed to close to her then I'd kiss her. "I don't know Seha... I really don't."

My eyes flicked over her shoulder and I saw Jysella standing there. A rock settled deep in my gut. Seha must have sensed my change in mood because she looked over her shoulder, and then glanced back at me for a moment.

"Think about it. But don't take to long, I won't wait forever."

Then she stood up and fled deeper into the ship. Jys stared after her for a few minutes, and then looked over at me; her eyes cold and hard. She turned away and was about to leave, when I called out, "Jys, wait!"

She paused, her hand against the bulkhead, her head lowered slightly. "What?"

"I..." I hated this. Not just asking for her thoughts, but the distance that was still there hanging between us. I struggled to figure out something to try and talk to her about; anything really. Finally, my mouth opened again, and words pooled out. "Do you think I can get some advice from you?"

Her Force presence suddenly shut down. Fast. For a second, I wondered if I should have just let her flee from me. "It's about Seha, isn't it?"

I blinked. There was something a bit off in her voice. "Yeah, it is."

She stood there, with her back towards me for a few minutes. I was afraid that she was about to bolt from the room again; and knew that if she did ourburgeoning friendship would be effectively dead. Then, somewhat to my surprise, she turned around and came over to take the chair Seha had just vacated. "So talk."

I watched her eyes for a minute. They were hard as if she had no desire to be anywhere near me. I began to tell her the various things that had been bothering me about Seha, most of which she knew, and I could tell that she was starting to get fidgety. I had just finished with that last conversation I had just had with Seha, and was about to tell her that I didn't think I was really interested in Seha that way, when Jys interrupted me.

"I don't see what your problem is. Just give it a try."

Jysella looked away from me, her eyes flicking off of mine and quickly jumping from item to item in the room. I leaned back in my chair, frowning. A felt an odd ache in my chest. I knew that that wasn't really what I had wanted to hear. Maybe, I was hoping for Jys to give me a reason not to date Seha. I don't know, but I do know that encouragement wasn't what I was after.

"I... I guess... Yeah, you're right," I replied.

Her eyes flicked back to mine for a moment, and then she looked away again. "She's a great girl, I'm sure you'll be happy.

Then she got up and turned away. Leaving me alone watching her back as she left.

And that was the last time she looked me in the eyes until after we got back to Coruscant.

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 25

I frowned at the door and wondered why conversations with that doctor were more annoying than chats with Kyp.

I turned back to the girls, but before I could say anything the door opened again. A wide-bodied CORSEC officer came into the room. He wasn't wearing a helmet, but you could tell that he was accustomed to doing so. Just a feeling from the way his eyes would dart about the room, and how he would occasionally scrub a hand at his short cropped hair. Little tells that I remembered from my days in the Guard.

Rather than the armor of the door guards, he was in a simple cloth tunic, a day uniform. Stitched in aurabesh above his heart was his name: Kilnore.

I grinned, remembering where I had read that name before. Then I looked over at the girls. "Hey, guess who's come for dinner!"

Kilnore reached out and grabbed my hospital gown, dragging me forward. He snarled at me. "That's enough lip from you, Skywalker."

I laughed.

Probably not the best of things to do, but there it was.

A quick back handed slap from Kilnore cut my laughter short. I felt both of the girls' anger spike in the Force.

Then I looked towards Jys. "Please tell me that your dad wasn't as stupid of a cop as Mr. Kilnore here is."

Her eyes narrowed for a moment, and her anger spiked in the Force again. I could feel it begin to stir; the usual patterns for a punishment from Jys.

Then it stopped and her eyes widened for a moment. She giggled.

"Nope. He definitely isn't as stupid as Mr. Kilnore here."

I focused on Kilnore again, a feral smile touching my lips. I saw the confusion on his face, and could tell that we weren't the cowed interrogation subjects he had been expecting. The confusion was quickly replaced by shock as I pushed him with the Force. He flew away from me, ripping my gown in the process and slammed against the wall. I watched him for a moment, as he stared at me.

Then the door opened again, and a guard stumbled into the room. I frowned as I watched him, until a voice from the doorway drew my attention.

"Ah, here are our wayward, eloping Jedi."

I looked over at Kyp, my eyes narrowing in anger as exactly what he said crystallized in my head. I watched him walk into the room, and then saw Kilnore stand upright, bringing his blaster to bear.

"That's far enough, murderer."

We all looked at Kilnore, wondering if he really was as stupid as he was acting. Personally, I had no doubts, but that was just me.

"Do I know you?" Kyp responded coldly.

"I doubt it, but I know you. My grandfather was on Carida. One of the billions that you killed."

A sad look flickered across Kyp's Force presence. "I'm sorry for your loss. Did you know that my brother was one of those I killed as well? He was a conscript, sent there unwillingly after our parents were arrested and then executed for treason."

I watched Kyp for a moment. He didn't often talk about Carida, and I guess we now knew why; at least a little bit of the why.

Kilnore though, was unimpressed. He raised the gun a bit higher, aiming towards Kyp's heart. Kyp sighed, and then stretched out his hand, yanking the gun from him. The Force flared and he dropped a crumpled metal ball. After a moment, Kyp turned back towards us, then in a soft voice said, "Report."

Years of training overtook Jysella and Seha as they both began to verbally vomit the winding story of how we ended up here. I sat back on my bed amused, as I listened to their narrative, some of which I had never heard before.

Finally their recital ended, and Kyp looked at me. "I didn't hear your report in there."

I shrugged my shoulders and smiled at him. "Well, the girls were doing a great job, didn't think you needed to hear my big mouth."

Kyp snickered. "Oh, if only I didn't have to listen. Why don't you fill me in on the gaps in the story."

I sighed, an quickly told things from my point of view. Luckily there wasn't a lot that was left unsaid by the girls, so I was only talking a few minutes.

Once I was done, Kyp looked over at Kilnore. "Now, Mr. Kilnore, I assume that that is enough information for your reports; if you'll excuse us, we need to return to Coruscant."

I could feel the hate oozing off of Kilnore as Kyp turned from him and left the room. I smiled at him, pushing the knife in a bit deeper as I walked past, the girls quick on my heels. The hallway beyond our room was empty, and Kyp set off down the hall, making turns seemingly at random. Finally we arrived at the front doors and went through them to find my starship, the Jade's Scion sitting on the grass in front of the medical complex.

I scowled at Kyp's back. "Couldn't find your own starship?"

He laughed. "Nope. Besides, yours was lonely."

Then he disappeared up the gangplank. Shaking my head, I followed him onto my ship.

Within a half hour we were in hyperspace, heading towards Coruscant. Kyp came back to the common room and dropped onto the couch, hanging his head slightly.

I looked over at him, somewhat amused by the air of annoyance that hung to him.

Seha was less than amused, actual worry tinged her voice as she asked, "What's wrong?"

He looked over at her, a scowl on his face. "I'm just getting old." He sighed, and leaned back on the couch, closing his eyes. "Used to be, when folks said one of their loved ones was on Carida, it was their brother or cousin, even the occasional father. But his grandfather?"

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 24

I felt myself wincing at the iciness of Jysella's voice, and turned my head towards her. She was staring at us, her brow knitted together in a scowl and an odd coldness in her eyes that I could never remember seeing there before. It was something of a scary sight, and for a moment I wondered what evil torture she was devising for me beneath that expression, even as my face started to grow warmer from embarrassment.

I looked above me to find Seha staring wide-eyed at Jys. For a moment, it looked like she wanted to launch herself at our friend. I closed my eyes, and rubbed at the bridge of my nose for a moment.

My eyes snapped open, as Seha started yelling happily. "Jysella! you're awake!"

My eyes following Seha around my bed and towards Jys', I found myself frowning. If they weren't watching us, we could have pretended that Jys was still out of it. That was now pointless, as I'm certain that the guards had heard Seha's squeals. Not that I didn't understand it, I was happy to see Jys awake as well.

I sighed, glanced at the cheap ceiling for a moment, then at the four corners, noting that I couldn't see anything that resembled a spy-eye. Not that that mattered really. It could have been microscopic in size, a floating spec of dust, or they could even have had infrared sensors pointed through the wall at us. Giving an internal shrug of the shoulders, I looked back at the girls, to see Seha happily chatting at Jysella, whose eyes kept flickering towards me; that alien coldness never really leaving.

For a moment, I remembered the touch of Jys' lips against my cheek. Especially as those hard eyes focused on me.

I looked around, and noted that there was no cabinets or anything that could have held our belongings. I focused on Seha. "Where's our stuff?"

Seha looked at me for a moment, and then shrugged. "I don't know. None of it was in here when I woke up, and I've not been out of this room yet."

I frowned and then glanced out the window. "Are we even still on Corelllia?" I shook my head, deciding that it didn't matter at the moment. It was more important to get us armed, and out of the hospital. "Seha, I know your saber was destroyed, and I'd hazard that mine was as well. Jys, can you feel yours anywhere nearby?"

Jysella closed her eyes, and I felt the Force moving around us. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and shook her head. "No, I can't. But there are a lot of Ysalamiri bubbles out there, and it could be in one of those."

I sighed again, and leaned back against the headboard, closing my eyes.

I began one of the simple breathing exercises which my parents had drilled into me when I was about four. I needed the focus, the simplicity. There were too many things that had gone wrong on this mission, right from the beginning, and I was sick and tired of that. I wanted, needed, things to be simpler. There was some fact that I was overlooking. Something which would bind all of this together, and we'd be able to get out of here.

I bolted into a sitting position, grabbing my hair, as I let out a low growl.

In the Force, I could feel spikes of concern flowing from both of the girls, a concept which just furthered my frustration at the situation.

I rolled out of the bed, the sheets trailing after me. Standing, a wave of vertigo washed over me, and I staggered slightly as I took my first step.

"Ben?" Seha called out, concern evident in her voice.

I looked over at the girls, and noticed the matching looks of concern. For a moment, the frustration fled as I felt the warmth of acceptance. Grinning, I said, "I'm fine."

I watched as Jysella watched me for a moment longer, and then she seemed to realize that she had been staring. Or maybe that I had. Her eyes grew cold again, and she pointedly looked away, and out the window.

I sighed, and straightened up, feeling the world waver for a moment. I blinked a few times and then the world stabilized, and I took my first, hesitant step forward.

The door snapped open and our Drall doctor bound in, I could feel his excitement flowing in the Force, and he rounded on me. "Now, Jedi Sky-... Mr. Errissta what exactly do you think you are doing out of that bed? Did I not tell you that you should rest?" He then turned towards Jysella. "Ah, Jedi Horn, it is good to see that you've awakened. We were beginning to grow worried over your continued sleep."

I felt the flicker of annoyance from Jysella. "How exactly do you know my name?"

The Drall laughed. "You may have commanded new identities for the political and security systems, but medical systems tend to be both different and out-of-date. When the identities associated to your retinal scans failed to provide medical data, we searched via a genetic one. We accessed your information a dozen times before it flipped over to your false identities."

I sighed. "Fine, when do we get out of here?"

The doctor turned towards me, his mouth opening wide, revealing rows of flat teeth. "After I have given the three of you clean bills of health, and seeing that you are now up and about, that will be soon, CORSEC really does wish to discuss with you the particulars of the explosion."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "When do we get our belongings back."

The doctor laughed again. "I'm sorry, none of your personal belongings seemed to have made it through the explosion. Truth be told, none of us are entirely certain how the three of you did. By all rights, you should all be ashes floating on the wind."

Stunned, I looked over at the girls, to find that their expressions matched what I was feeling. I shook my head, once more trying to focus on the present. Without thinking, I muttered, "The Force is with us, Doctor."

I blinked my eyes a few times, and looked over at the girls. They had schooled their faces, keeping their emotions from showing, but in the Force I could feel them. Chewing at my lower lip, I finally found my voice. "Exactly how big was that explosion? How long have we been here? And how bad were we hurt?"

The Drall sighed, and walked over to Jysella and began his examination of her. For a moment, I thought he wasn't going to answer my questions.

Then he began to speak. "As I told you earlier, the explosion destroyed about three blocks of the Sal-Solo Industrial Complex; and by destroyed, I mean it was rubble and ashes. Two kilometers in all directions suffered damage from the shock waves, and last I heard the fires were still raging on the east side of the complex. Preliminary reports indicate that the explosive device was baradium in nature." He then patted Jysella's knee. "You, my dear are quite healthy." Then he turned back to me. "You lot have been under my care for about a week now. Most of that time in Bacta. Your injuries included burns, concussions, and a host of broken bones."

Seha's voice was wavering, as if she was not sure if she wanted to cry or not. "H-how did we survive?"

The doctor turned towards her, his arms spread wide, a happy smile spreading his lips. "As I said earlier, we do not know. It is probably as the young man there said, 'the Force was with you.'" He dropped his arms, and turned away from us. He walked from the room, waddling slightly. As he neared the door, he paused and glanced back at us for a few moments. "CORSEC will be with you soon."

And then he was gone.

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Saturday, March 28, 2009

I Want to be Your Knight - 37

Sunday, March 15, 2009

I Want to be Your Knight - 36

Saturday, March 14, 2009

I Want to be Your Knight - 35

Friday, February 20, 2009

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 33

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

First Kiss; Last Kiss

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Decisions

Friday, July 25, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - 32

Sunday, July 13, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 31

Monday, March 31, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Chapter 30

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 29

Monday, March 3, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 28

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 27

Monday, February 4, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 26

Monday, January 28, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 25

Monday, January 14, 2008

I Want to be Your Knight - Ch. 24