Chapter Text
Turning her back to the mural of the Ghost crew Sabine Wren took her first steps into the future.
The Empire has been defeated some weeks prior over Jakku, which was now seen as the final Battle of the War. No news of attacks or battles have reached Lothal since then.
From the moment Sabine has heard this news, she had been thinking about her promise to Ezra. She had protected Lothal ever since the fateful day he disappeared along with Thrawn and his starship amidst a flock of Purrgil and saw to it that the planet had its rightful place among the rebellion and subsequently as a founding member of the New Republic.
Lothal was as safe as it could be, which led her to the other part of her promise.
“I will bring you home, Ezra.” she whispered before walking over to the balcony where Ahsoka was already waiting for her. She looked mysterious, much different than Sabine knew her. With her white robe and a staff in her hand she looked like a Jedi from the past; wise and powerful.
The T-6 Shuttle behind her gleamed in the sunlight.
Grabbing her bag that sat against one of the pillars she made her way over to the waiting shuttle.
“Are you ready?” Ahsoka asked with a smile.
“More than ready. It’s time we bring Ezra home.”
The Togruta nodded solemnly before boarding the shuttle. Once inside, she put her robe away and leaned her staff against the hallway wall.
“Already ditching the ‘Mysterious Force-Wielder’ look?” Sabine teased as they settled down in the cockpit.
Ahsoka laughed as she steered the Shuttle into orbit.
“Well, I have to ‘dress to impress,’ as Leia would say. But since you already know me, I don’t have to impress you anymore.”
Sabine laughed again while looking out of the front window. The sky slowly turned to dark blue and then black, stars appearing one by one. When they reached a low orbit, she turned towards the Togruta.
“Well, you said in your answer to my message that you already had a first lead on where the Purrgil might have gone, so tell me.” She asked.
Ahsoka nodded and rose from the pilot’s chair.
“Aren’t you eager to finally find Ezra.” She teased while leading Sabine towards the small sitting area at the center of the ship. A round bench in one corner, a table and a chair were all that fit in the small space, two doors leading to the cabins on each side of the ship.
Sabine blushed a bit. “Well, I promised him to find him, and I guess five years in whatever corner of the Galaxy with only a lunatic Chiss as a companion might be enough to make him humble.”
Ahsoka hummed in agreement and gestured Sabine to sit down.
“I guess that might cool his temper a bit. Wait here, I will get the object that gave me my lead.”
She went into one of the cabins only to reappear a few seconds later. In her hands she held a box made of leather, cubic and each edge around 20 centimetres long. Sabine rose an eyebrow at the object but did not ask. Ahsoka would certainly explain what she was up to.
The Togruta sat down opposite of Sabine, placing the object between them.
“This was found in a hidden vault under the Imperial Palace on Coruscant.” She started to explain “The last 20 years, the Emperor ruled the Galaxy from there, but before that, it once was my home, the main temple of the Jedi Order.”
Sabine nodded, this was common knowledge and even taught in the Imperial Academy she had the joy to visit for a few years.
“The Emperor obviously tried to open the vault, there were burn marks and carbon scoring on the door, but he could not open it. It was one of the most secure places in the Galaxy, only one in tune with the light side would be able to open the door and bypass the security. The Emperor obviously was not quite in tune, so he buried the vault under tons of durasteel-concrete. It was unearthed a few months ago, and Luke Skywalker and I managed to open it while meditating in front of it.”
Sabine nodded again. The explanation was quite long, but it must be important, if the former Jedi Padawan decided to tell it.
“When the door opened, it was like stepping into the past of the Order. Inside the vault were books, real ones made from paper and even leather, dating back to the founding of the order. There were ancient Jedi blades, before Lightsabres were invented, even an old Jedi Battle Armour. They were the oldest and most precious treasures of the Order. But the most important and most valuable treasure were the Holocrons.”
Sabine looked at the cube on the table, and it dawned to her what she was looking at.
“This is one of them, the only one among them that held information about the Purrgil.” Ahsoka finished her explanation and opened the leather box. It was made from single leather flaps, tied together with strings. After untying them she lowered the flaps from the sides, revealing the object inside.
The Holocron was almost as big as the box itself, much bigger than the one she had seen Kanan and Ezra with, all those years ago. It also looked a bit different, like a giant crystal cube inside a metal cage. It was beautifully made, the bars forming shapes and symbols that looked somewhat familiar. The Holocron glowed faintly from the inside in a light blue, almost turquois.
“I don’t know how much you know about Holocrons, but they are normally a device to store information. They form the holographic image of the creator that reacts to certain speech patterns or questions to give the appropriate answer. A rudimentary AI if you want to call it. This one though- “she placed a hand on the Holocron in front of them. Its glow started to intensify. “This one is quite different, as well as the other ones we found. They are ancient, dating back to the height of the Old Republic, around 3500 years ago.”
Sabine could not help but ask.
“But why would information that is 3500 years old help us find Ezra?”
Ahsoka smiled and let the Holocron float over to the floor next to them with the Force.
“I didn’t think so too at first, but listen to what the Holocron has to say, ok?”
Sabine crossed her arms over her chest and nodded curtly. Any lead was better than nothing.
When the Holocron was set on the floor, Ahsoka closed her eyes and seemed to concentrate. It didn’t take much to activate it, and true enough, the faint glow from the Holocron turned brighter. A flickering light appeared above it and took the life-sized form of a man.
The man looked old, but still impressive. He was around 1,90, with long white hair tied back in a bun, cropped short on his temples.
Sabine had to smile, this hairstyle that looked like the one Kanan used to wear seemed to be en mode for a few millennia.
His face showed his age, wrinkles around his eyes and his mouth indicated he had been someone who smiled and laughed a lot. The eyes were of a light colour, but it was hard to tell from a holographic image. A small goatee and moustache completed the grandfatherly vibe the ancient Jedi gave off.
He wore robes over an armour that looked like it was of Mandalorian origin, but Sabine has heard stories of old Jedi battle armour, so she guessed this must have been the style a Jedi wore 3500 years ago. On his side a long pole dangled from his belt, and only after a moment she recognised it as a double-bladed lightsabre. An image of Maul and his version of that weapon came to her mind, but she guessed the Jedi must have used double-bladed lightsabres as well. She should ask Ahsoka about them.
The image looked at her, and then at Ahsoka, a small smile forming on his lips. It didn’t look like a rudimentary AI to her, especially not after he started to speak. His voice was deep, almost life-like, as if she were not talking to a long-dead man, but merely to another person via holocall.
“Ah, the ‘not-longer-a-Jedi’ former Padawan Ahsoka Tano again. It is nice to be called on by you again.” He greeted the Togruta before turning towards Sabine.
“And this must be the young woman you told me about, the one looking to find the Purrgil that abducted her friend and an enemy of yours.”
Sabine was startled to be addressed directly from the man, even more so after all Ahsoka told her about Holocrons and how they worked. But she had also said that this was no normal Holocron.
Ahsoka saved her from answering.
“You are correct, Master. This is Sabine Wren, a Mandalorian Warrior that worked together with the Padawan Ezra Bridger and his Master, Kanan Jarrus. They fought the Empire and helped bringing the Emperor down,”
The face of the man lit up, displaying a mixture of emotions for a second each. At first, he looked at her fondly, before his face turned dark and finally a smile formed on his lips.
“I see. A Jedi and Mandalorians working together, a rare sight, even in my times, when Jedi and Mandalorians were both much more present in the Galaxy.
I was one of the few Jedi to have the pleasure finding myself on the same side as the Mandalorians. And it is sad to hear that history repeats itself. An Empire formed by the Dark Side, a Sith Emperor… I will be looking forward to learn more about it.”
Sabine was so stunned to hear the bit about Jedi and Mandalorians, she didn’t even pay attention to what he said after that.
“You worked together with Mandalorians? Didn’t you live only a few decades after the Jedi-Mandalorian war? How was that possible?”
The old Jedi looked at her again with a fond smile.
“I am not quite that old, the Jedi-Mandalorian Wars were around 300 Years before my birth. But you are right, normally a Mandalorian would shoot at a Jedi before asking questions. Happened to me as well, more than once.”
He rubbed his shoulder, as if reliving the feeling of being shot.
“But nevertheless, I found myself as a member of the Alliance, an Organisation that united people from all over the Galaxy against a common enemy: The Eternal Empire.”
Sabine was confused.
“It couldn’t have been that eternal, since I’ve never heard of it.”
The old Jedi laughed and nodded.
“It was toppled by the leader of the Alliance; the propaganda of the Eternal Empire called him The Outlander, a name that stuck, as well as his title as Commander of the Alliance.
He united both Sith and Jedi under his banner after the Republic and the Sith Empire were defeated by the Eternal Empire. The Jedi council was disbanded, and the Sith had to bow to the rule of a new Emperor. The Mandalorians were also under the rule of the Eternal Empire, having lost many men and women to their droid army.”
Ahsoka perked up at that, now also listening intently to what the Holocron had to tell.
“The Outlander met up with the Mand’alor Shae Vizla, you might know her as Mandalore the Avenger. He could convince her and the other Clans to join him in his fight against the Eternal Empire, and even after the Empire was not so Eternal anymore, the Mandalorians stayed as trusted and valuable Allies. I joined the Alliance during that time.”
Sabine was flashed from the information she learned from the Holocron, the reason why they asked the Holocron in the first place forgotten.
She really has heard of Mandalore the Avenger, but only in bedtime stories her father has told her, more myth and legend than reality. It was said that Clan Wren was founded under Mandalore the Avenger and has been in an Alliance with House Vizla ever since. And now this Holocron told her he had fought side by side with that legendary figure from the past?
“Did you know someone from my Clan? Clan Wren?” she asked in a low voice, having to ask the question that has popped up in her mind.
The Jedi looked at her, again with a smile on his lips, and nodded.
“I did, I knew the founder of your Clan, Lady Laiyla Wren.”
The image of the Jedi flickered, and the figure of a woman clad in Mandalorian Armour of ancient design appeared. She held her helmet under her arm, a blaster rifle in her other hand, with a fierce look in her eyes. Her hair and eyes were dark, her skin tan and if Sabine saw correctly, she even had a dash of makeup on. She took in all the details, not wanting to forget the face of her ancestor. She would definitely feature her in one of her future works, to honour her.
The voice of the Jedi could be heard as if he were standing next to the image of the warrior woman.
“She was a fierce warrior, a foundling from the great war between the Sith and the Republic. She was raised in Clan Vizla by Gen Vizla, one of the best gunslingers and father to many foundlings.
During her time in the Alliance she earned the respect of everyone fighting alongside her, and eventually formed her own clan with the blessing of the Mand’alor. She rallied many friends and comrades around her and built a settlement at Krownest, which had been given to her as a gift from the Outlander himself. Eventually, she married one of her battle companions and settled down, becoming a just and fair ruler over her people.”
Sabine had to lean back. She had learned more about the ancient history and origin of her Clan in the last five minutes than during all the times in the archives of the Wren stronghold on Krownest. The archives were quite detailed, but during the last big fight between the Mandalorians and the Jedi around 800 years ago, much of the ancient history of the Mandalorian clans was lost, the history of Clan Wren as well. The only thing that remained were stories, legends and myths told to the children by the elders.
Ahsoka used the silence that now engulfed them to ask a question herself.
“Master, I have to ask, how can it be that your Holocron seems so… alive? Normally, they are mere interfaces, but you seem almost as a copy of your mind.”
The Jedi reappeared, looking thoughtful.
“You see, young not-a-Padawan, the technique to build a Holocron like this is a complicated one. The crystal matrix must be of the highest quality, the encasing must be attuned to the Force, and the creator must carry the Holocron around with him from the second he creates it until he dies.
Whenever I had time, I meditated, synched with it an poured my thoughts, memories, and knowledge into it. It is a copy of my very being, an image of myself for the world I left behind. But what makes this kind of Holocron different is its core. In the very center of the crystal matrix my lightsabre crystal has been placed after my death, sealing it, and connecting it to the Force. It is the focus that connects me to the Holocron, even after I became one with the Force.”
Ahsoka looked astonished, and even though Sabine only understood half of what he just told them, it sounded incredible.
“So, like the stories of Force ghosts, this is another way of interacting with the living, even after becoming one with the Force?” Ahsoka asked with awe in her voice.
“Correct. It is much less devious than the mind traps of the Rakata, where the soul of a person could be trapped and transferred to a new host body even millennia after its original body has crumbled to dust, but the principle is the same. I have made a copy of my soul, or mind as the Rakata called it, and placed it inside this Holocron, to interact with people and help them with my experience and knowledge.”
He winked at them with a smile.
“And it is also impossible to take over the body of another living being, so do not worry about that.”
They both nodded slowly. Sabine couldn’t help but wonder what this Jedi could tell her about the history of her people, or teach Ezra about the Force…
Kriff, Ezra!
The reason why they even activated the Holocron, and she had completely forgotten about it.
Silently apologizing to the boy who they were looking for, she finally asked:
“That is all fascinating, Master Jedi, and I would like to learn more about the Mandalorians and the Jedi of the past, but the reason why we activated your Holocron is the knowledge about the Purrgil you possess.”
The Jedi nodded.
“I do know about the Purrgil, I came across them during my travels across the Galaxy. They travel the Galaxy in a migratory pattern, following old hyperspace lanes the first space travellers later discovered by watching them.”
A map of the Galaxy appeared instead of the form of the Jedi, a criss-cross pattern stretching over it. The routes looked random, often intersecting with each other, and even more than one route leading from one planet to another.
“A fellow Jedi of mine, Jedi Knight Danaya Kyrado, was researching them and their travel pattern. It is not perfect, but she could map out most of their hyperspace routes. She even discovered some new, safe routes across the Outer Rim in the process.”
Sabine studied the Map and finally found the planet they were now hovering above.
“We are now above Lothal, but the Planet is not on the migratory route.”
Ahsoka nodded.
“It isn’t, but Ezra called them here using Frequency Zero. Which travel route of the Purrgil is the closest one to Lothal? They couldn’t have diverted too far from it.”
The spiral arm of the Galaxy that held Lothal expanded as the voice of the Jedi Master could be heard again.
“The closest route would be the one from Archeon Nebula towards the Chommell Sector.”
Said route was highlighted, spanning almost across half the Galaxy.
Sabine continued to think out loud.
“So, if the Purrgil still follow their old migratory route, they would travel from the Lothal Sector towards the Chommell sector but were rerouted by Ezra’s call. That means, when they jumped into Hyperspace again, they would continue their travel towards the Chommell sector?”
Ahsoka agreed with her but pointed out a problem.
“The Chommell sector is huge, it has over 300 Million stars. Do we know where the Purrgil travel exactly?”
Now the Chommell sector enlarged, the focus falling onto a system close to the border of the sector, the Master’s voice audible again.
“Considering the Purrgil have to eat before they continue their travel, and the gas they inhale, Clouzon-36, can only be found in this system, ergo, this must be their next destination.”
Sabine simply nodded at that information from the Jedi Master, but Ahsoka’s eyes widened when she read the name of the central planet of the system.
“I know that system, I have been there quite often during my time in the Order. It was where the Sith first reappeared after 1000 years. My old master really liked the planet, as well as its senator.”
A small smile played on the lips of the Togruta as she stood up.
“I will set our course to the planet, you can talk to the Master if you want to, Sabine. It will be at least 14 days before we arrive there.”
Sabine nodded and the image of the Master reappeared. He smiled at her.
“Well, young Mandalorian, I am sure you have questions for me. How can I help you?”
Sabine thought for a moment, but then smiled.
“First, I would like to know your name. Addressing you as Master Jedi seems so… impersonal.”
The Jedi nodded.
“A wise first question, even though it is not the first one you asked me. But nevertheless, your intentions behind the question are wise.”
He bowed in an old-fashioned way, a hand on his chest.
“My name is Master Flysch Kasavras, Jedi Archaeologist and Historian. I will be at your service during your search and will keep helping you to plot out your way from our first lead: Naboo.”
Sabine sat on the bench, contemplating what to do. The holo of the old Jedi, Master Kasavras, looked at her with a faint smile, waiting for her to ask a question.
But that was Sabine’s problem. She had so many thoughts about to ask, so many questions have popped up in her mind during the short talk they had before. He was there when her clan was founded, he had lived in times that were now only known by legend, when Jedi and Sith were fighting each other in greater numbers than nowadays.
She could ask him if he knew more about the Jedi’s stance on attachments, and if there were examples of Jedi having relationships that didn’t end in disaster, or if there has ever been a Mandalorian that wanted to do something with a Jedi that didn’t include killing…
She shook her head, her thoughts wandering off to a totally different topic. Normally, she would only let her thoughts wander in that direction late at night, but a second opinion on that topic might help her.
She didn’t like to admit it, but she had been a bit foolish to not think about how she felt about Ezra when he was still around. Only when he and the 7th Fleet disappeared along with the Purrgil, and she felt as if something more important than her best friend was gone, she realised her feelings were running deeper than she had realised before.
In the weeks after Lothal was free, when the celebrations slowly died down and everyone started preparing for the suspected return of the Empire, she had more than enough time to sit in Ezra’s tower and contemplate what to do.
Ezra had been infatuated with her from the moment he had met her, and at the beginning it had peeved her quite a bit. During her bounty hunter days with Ketsu, she had had her run-ins with more than one male that tried to impress her with his “glorious” deeds and “manly” features, so when Ezra tried to impress her by playing cool, all he did was annoy her, but certainly not capture her attention. Only when he realised that he was not going to win her over with the act he dropped it, and instead became the best friend and battle companion Sabine could have wished for.
They got closer, and by the time she left for Krownest to be with her family, she had to admit she missed him. She managed to talk herself into believing she was just missing his company, his lame jokes and his never faltering optimism, even though her father teased her how the young Padawan was more than flustered by the ambiguity of his statement of ‘being with her, but not WITH her.’ She had just rolled her eyes and shrugged it off.
At least her mother and brother hadn’t noticed, she didn’t dare to imagine what they had to say about her budding feelings for Ezra. At best, they would make fun of her, but it would have been more along the lines how she dared allow herself to feel sympathy towards a Jedi.
Only after the Liberation of Lothal she thought about it more. If he had acted so flustered, could that mean he still had feelings for her? And did the feeling of being lonely without him, missing him and just wanting him back at her side mean that she had developed feelings for him as well? When he said goodbye to her, before leaving for the Chimaera, Thrawn’s ISD…
Over the last five years she found herself thinking about him quite often, mostly along the lines of what he would say in that situation, what he would do, or how he would react, and about a year ago she finally concluded that there was no point in denying it anymore, as hard as she tried: She definitely felt more for Ezra than friendship.
The following months had been harder than she thought. Initially, her heart felt lighter than before, finally allowing herself to think about what she truly wanted from Ezra. She found herself wondering what it must feel like to kiss him, or how relaxing it must be to just snuggle up to him, talking about everything and nothing at the same time.
At night, she found herself thinking about how doing other things with him would be like, and needless to say she didn’t get much sleep during those nights. But the problem was, Ezra wasn’t there. He was still somewhere in the Galaxy, probably waiting for her to find him.
A month ago, Ketsu talked her into a double date, one of the officers of the Lothal Defensive Forces had asked her out, and since Ketsu may know her way around men more than well enough, when it came to something like love and relationships, she was as clueless as Sabine. So, she asked Sabine to accompany, a sign that she really fancied that Officer, and not to make it awkward for her, she asked her new beau to take one of his friends as well.
Sabine couldn’t say no, so she had tagged along. She hoped her ‘date’ would also be just there for moral support, but her hopes were crushed when he started to flirt with her the minute he had laid eyes on her.
While Ketsu and her Officer had a great evening, Sabine had to suffer through what felt like the whole book of bad pickup lines and even worse flirting. She suffered through it and only managed to not blow up the whole restaurant by thinking about how nice it would be if her date were Ezra, hoping she could repay Ketsu by dragging her along on a date with the Padawan as soon as she had brought him back.
That was also the evening she had contacted Ahsoka, deciding that the date was the final straw. Lothal was more than ok, since the Empire never returned, and the Battle of Jakku had managed to bring down the Empire. She could now start to look for the young man that had managed to invade her thoughts without feeling bad about leaving the planet behind.
“Well, young warrior, you seem to contemplate quite a bit.”
The voice of the old Master brought her back to the present, making her blush. She really had to pull herself together, she couldn’t just fall silent for minutes when she thought about a certain blue-haired boy.
“I’m sorry, Master Kasavras. I was thinking about… something.”
The Master nodded, a smile playing on his lips.
“From your smile I guess it was more about someone, hmm?”
She blushed deeper but nodded courtly. If there was someone to talk about all the technicalities of a possible future with Ezra, it was this old Holocron-Jedi. He was as far removed from the topic as one could be.
Master Kasavras continued, his voice sounding playful.
“And if I have to guess, I will say the someone in question is the same lost Padawan we are currently looking for…?”
Sabine nodded again, looking at the Master closely to see his reaction. All he did was smile.
“Ahh, to be young again. I remember the first time I felt love, it is a wonderful feeling.”
He looked dreamy, and when the Holocron flickered for a moment, his image changed to that of a much younger man, it looked more like a boy around 10, but the eyes and the smile on the face made it clear that this was just a young image of Master Flysch Kasavras.
Sabine was confused, and finally found a question to ask.
“But I thought the Jedi were not supposed to love? Or have feelings at all?”
The Jedi laughed, the image turning back to his old self.
“I guess no Jedi has ever managed to not love or have no feelings at all. What the Jedi of old condemned were attachments, which is a much broader field than one would think.”
He sat down in the air, in a pose that resembled the one Ezra and Kanan would take while meditating so much, Sabine couldn’t help but smile. His eyes were now on level with hers.
“Every being that has even a rudimentary nervous system has feelings, be they lust, hunger, anger or friendship, and all sentient beings feel love. Many would not call it that, but there is no species that does not feel love towards another being. There were discussions that the ability to love should be used as a threshold in the classification of sentiency.
Every Jedi has felt love, many the first time as a youngling towards one of his or her clanmates. That is only natural, spending every waking hour with the same group of people makes you fond of them. Later, when the younglings are chosen as padawans, this first love is often forgotten, but there have been cases when clanmates have been closely connected for the rest of their lives.
Love can mean many things, romantic love towards another Padawan, the parental or sibling love a master has for his protégée, or the love for a field of knowledge, like history, or the art of lightsabre combat.
Every Jedi has feelings, and he even has to. Without compassion, love or sympathy we would not be known as guardians of peace.”
Sabine was surprised but nodded in understanding.
“I guess that makes sense. But in my case, it is more of a… romantic-love thing.” She lowered her voice towards the end of the sentence, feeling a bit ashamed to admit it out loud what she felt towards Ezra. It probably was the first time she actually said it aloud, sending a tingle down her spine. She was glad that Ahsoka was still in the cockpit programming the following hyperspace jumps, otherwise she was sure she would have something to say about it. Probably something snippy, if Rex’ stories about how the Togruta had been during her time as a Padawan were true.
The Holo of the master only nodded, again smiling fondly.
“I understand, but I guess you have nothing to fear. If I gathered correctly from what Knight Skywalker and Lady Tano told me, the Jedi Order has not been around for roughly 25 years, and thus had no chance to instil their flawed opinions on your Padawan.”
Sabine rose an eyebrow, a move that the Master chuckle.
“I guess that must be surprising, an old Jedi-Holocron openly criticising the Order and its dogmas. There is a reason I was locked up in the deep vaults and not up in the temple library talking to younglings and padawans looking for knowledge. I was deemed to be too far off the Jedi code. But the council came for my input during certain times of crisis, when a less orthodox approach was needed.”
He chuckled again.
“Nevertheless, let me get back to my explanation. During my lifetime, the Order had its own dark time. There were many years where no formal council was present, the Jedi Knights were left to do whatever they saw fit and to interpret the codex on their own. Many Jedi broke one or more of the dogmas and teachings of the Order during those times but were later recognised as some of the bravest and most valiant men and women of the time. What they didn’t do is let their attachments influence their judgment or their actions.”
Sabine nodded; slowly understanding what he meant.
“When Kanan, the Master of Ezra, gave his life to save us, he also saved the one he loved. He protected us, even though he could have escaped with his mate and mother of his child. But then, we might have all died, the Empire would not have taken such a heavy blow and we might not have managed to drive the Empire away. It was a loss, but in the long run, his sacrifice saved thousands, if not millions of lives.”
The Jedi smiled and nodded.
“I see you understand. The point is to not let yourself get influenced by your attachments, and still do what is right and for the greater good, even if it means leaving those behind you love the most.
The grand master during my time as a Padawan, Master Satele Shan, had a son with a soldier from the Republic Army. It was an open secret, one that everyone knew, but no one talked about. She loved her son and his father, but never faltered in her decision to let her son be raised by another Jedi and return to a professional relationship with the soldier, who later became the Supreme Commander of the Republic Military. It was hard on her, but she knew what was best for the future of herself and everyone evolved. If she had left the Order, maybe the Jedi would have been wiped out 3500 years ago, and not 25. It was a sacrifice, a hard one, and she had my deepest respect for it.”
Sabine was thinking about what he had said. When even the Grand Master of the Jedi Order had a secret relationship, did that mean that this was even more common than she thought?
“Did many Jedi have relationships?” she asked after a moment of hesitating.
That obviously amused the old Master, making him chuckle.
“Well, I cannot speak for the whole 25.000 years the Order has been around, but I guess around half the Jedi were pursuing a romantic entanglement during one time in their life. Rarely it was more than a fling or a one-night stand, but if it was, there was even the possibility for two Jedi to get married. You must know, Jedi weren’t sworn in to be a celibate, they were only forbidden attachments.”
Sabine looked at him in disbelief, but he carried on.
“Jedi in a relationship or marriage had to get tested every year by the council, to see if their attachment clouded their judgment, but I know of no instance where that was the case. Many of those couples worked together like a well-oiled machine, complementing each other, and fulfilling more than one great deed for the Galaxy. Some of these couples even had children - if the species were complementary of course.”
He winked at her with a smirk, making her smile as well.
“I hope I could ease your doubts about pursuing a relationship with the Padawan and end your fears of leading him onto a path to the dark side or whatever you thought would get in the way. I can say from experience that patience may be the right course to win someone’s heart and not mess up things by moving too fast, but at some point, you have to take the leap and trust the Force.”
He smiled at her warmly, which Sabine returned.
“Thank you Master. I guess I will follow your advice.”
He winked at her.
“A last advice on that topic: More often than not, a kiss says more than a thousand words. I am fairly certain that the Padawan would be more than happy to be greeted with one after being apart from you for five years.”
Sabine blushed at the thought of that.
“But what if his feelings for me changed over the past five years?” she whispered, more to herself, but the Holocron answered, nonetheless.
“There is an old Jedi saying: Do or do not, there is no try. And personally, I like to think everything through properly. In your case, there are several possible outcomes:
You either can surprise him and kiss him, and he will kiss you back, which will be a rememberable start to a relationship. You can kiss him, he will pull away and you might be heartbroken, but I doubt he would hold it against you. It might be a bit awkward, but you will get through that and back to your friendship. And the last possibility, you don’t kiss him, and wonder for the rest of your life whether you should have done it or not. I guess I don’t have to tell you which outcome is the least favourable for you.”
Sabine nodded again but staying silent. She had a lot to think about, and by the speed she feared this search would be going, she would have a lot of time for that.
“Thank you for your opinions, Master. I will make sure to let you know how it went.”
Master Kasavras smiled at her.
“I hope so, and if you trust in the Force, you will see that more often than not, it is with those who actually do something about their situation.”
At that moment Ahsoka returned to the common room and sat down next to Sabine.
“Our course is set, we have to split the jumps a bit, but we should be fine without refuelling until we reach our destination.” she explained. “It takes us 91 hours to get there.”
Sabine thanked her, before turning back towards the Holocron.
“I have another question, Master.”
He smiled and gestured her to go on.
“You said you met a few Mandalorians over the years. I would like to know how you met your first one.”
Master Kasavras looked thoughtful for a moment before he turned towards Ahsoka.
“If you would be interested as well, I could show you both. That would be far easier than just explaining everything.”
Ahsoka nodded, but Sabine was a bit confused.
“Show us? Like in a Holo-Movie?”
He shook his head.
“No, I mean really show you. As I made the Holocron, I saved most of my most important memories in it. If you touch the Holocron while I activate that memory, you can relive them as if you were there.”
Sabine was still confused, but Ahsoka explained.
“Like one of those immersive Holo-Movies that were a fling on Coruscant when I was a Padawan. It is a room where the latest holo-tech is installed. You feel as if you are part of the movie.”
Sabine still didn’t really get what she meant, since she had never been to Coruscant, or even a holo-movie.
Nevertheless, when Ahsoka floated the Holocron up on the table and gestured her to place a hand on it, she did as she was told. The surface of the metal was warm, but the crystal matrix felt cool, like the glass of a window at night.
The holo-image of Master Kasavras, that has moved from hovering over the Holocron to standing on the floor next to the table, looked at them when Ahsoka placed a hand on it as well.
“Are you ready?” When both nodded, he continued. “It might be a bit confusing at first, but I will be there with you and can explain some things to you that aren’t clear at first. It has been 3500 years, I guess a few things have changed.”
With a last look at them, he closed his eyes, and Sabine suddenly felt as if she was falling asleep.
When she opened her eyes again, Sabine saw the inside of a living quarter. A dresser, a table with a chair, a single bed was all that was in the room. A figure laid in the bed, the covers rising and falling slowly with each breath.
Next to her she saw Ahsoka, and on her other side the tall figure of Master Kasavras stood. He was now present in full colour, wearing the same outfit he did as a holo-image. The robes were of a light brown, the armour beneath shone in a silvery colour, with yellow highlights around the edges. It remembered Sabine of something, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.
“Where are we?” Ahsoka asked curiously, looking around the room.
“We are in my room aboard the Jedi Praxeum Ship Zephyr.” the Jedi explained, “After the Jedi Enclave on Alderaan, where I spent my time as a Padawan, was disbanded over internal quarrels among the enclave council, a few of my fellow Jedi, parts of the enclave guard and most of the Padawans and Younglings were transferred there.”
Sabine had no idea what a Praxeum Ship was but guessed it must be something like a moving Jedi Temple.
“And what does a Jedi Praxeum Ship have to do with you meeting a Mandalorian?” she asked instead.
The Jedi looked sadly, walking towards the bed.
“That day, a lot happened. But one thing after the other. First, I have to wake up and then start the morning training with the Jedi and soldiers.”
Just as he finished, the person in the bed moved and stood up. It was a younger version of Master Kasavras, looking around 25. He had dark brown hair, his eyes a startling blue, which reminded Sabine a bit of Ezra’s eyes. His hairstyle was not the same his older self-had, he wore it cropped short, a bit longer on top. A small goatee and subtle moustache completed his look.
The young man got dressed in plain, brown robes, and left the room, the trio following behind. The corridor outside was as impersonal as the sleeping quarter had been, simple durasteel walls, a plain red carpet on the floor, more doors like the one he had come out every few metres.
They followed him down a long row of corridors, until they reached a door from which the sound of voices could be heard. When they entered, Sabine realised that this must be the mess hall, on long tables robed figures and people in uniforms sat and had breakfast. At the far end, a buffet and kitchen were staffed by droids, serving more lined-up soldiers and Jedi. She was amazed by the sheer amount of Jedi she could see, counting at least fifty. What was even more astounding was the way they interacted with the uniformed people. They were talking and joking, like old friends.
“We were a lot like a family here on board.” Master Kasavras said as he led them after his younger self. “Many of us knew each other for years, and we have fought many battles together. If I had known that this would be the last time, I saw many of them, I would have talked to more of them.”
The young Kasavras nodded to the soldiers and Jedi as he passed them before sitting down on a table with only three other people.
They were a rather strange collection of people:
The tallest one was a Zabrak, built like a Rancor, Sabine guessed he would even give Zeb a run for his money. He laughed at a joke one of the other two had told, clapping his upper leg in amusement. He wore a lab coat over his uniform, a nametag on his chest told her she was looking at Captain M.O. Dorian Dorien, MD.
The woman who had told the joke was like the complete opposite of him, a tiny Mirialan with light-green skin, dressed in a uniform like the other soldiers around them, her nametag reading “Captain Nira Zariss.” She had her hair bound back in a tight bun, smiling at the reaction of the Zabrak.
The third woman didn’t look amused at all, she only sighed and continued with her breakfast. Her eyes were startling white and looked a bit mechanic, Sabine guessed she had implants. There were other signs she wasn’t fully human anymore, her right hand was a robotic claw, in her face a few implants broke her skin and when she moved the right leg, it seemed a bit stiff.
The young Kasavras sat down opposite of her, nodding a greeting before digging into his breakfast, staying silent otherwise.
“That is Knight Arydine Al ’Herat, a Kuati that showed her emotions as much as your average protocol droid.” The old Master explained. “I met her when we were both Padawans and became close friends. She went through a lot, lost her hand to a Sith, her eyes were badly damaged when a grenade exploded right in front of her face, and her leg was also hurt a few days before the scene we are looking at in the moment.”
He pointed at the Zabrak.
“That is Captain M.O. Dorian Dorien-Di Thales, to me simply known as The Doc. He was the heir of one of the biggest medical suppliers of the Galaxy at that time, married to a baroness of Alderaan. He has been the primary enclave physician on Alderaan, and later came with us on the Praxeum Ship to be closer to his daughter, who was Force sensitive and trained on the ship. He saved my life a few times, I owed him a lot.”
Ahsoka looked at the man with interest.
“Dorien? I know that name. Dorien Surgical Supplies was still around during the Clone Wars before the Empire Forced all the suppliers of the military under their rule. Di Thales is the name of one of the noble houses of Alderaan that joined the Rebellion.”
The old Jedi looked at her, raising an eyebrow.
“How fascinating. I am sure it would have pleased the Doc to hear that his bloodline survived many years after his death.”
He then pointed at the Mirialan.
“And last but not least, Captain Nira Zariss, or simply Cap. She was the latest addition to our quartet, and her skill in leading her troops and her marksmanship were unrivalled. She could hit any target within a kilometre with her sniper rifle.”
Just as he finished, the recently introduced stood up and went for the exit.
“Now the only thing that happens until the afternoon is the training of the younglings Arydine and I oversee. I guess we can skip that…”
The scene dissolved, before reforming as the image of training room. It was circular, and in the middle stood Arydine and the young Knight Kasavras. They were surrounded by children that looked around 6 years old, each one holding a small lightsabre. They obviously had just come to an end of a lesson, since they were all laughing and joking around, a few of the kids battling with their lightsabres. Flysch smiled at them and participated in their joking around separating those who were going at it a bit too enthusiastic, while Arydine just rolled her eyes and tried to stay away from the kids. She was obviously not a very sociable person.
Sabine smiled at the sight and looked at her companions. The old Master smiled as well, but Ahsoka had tears in her eyes. Sabine didn’t need to ask, she guessed it reminded the Togruta too much of everything that had been lost by the destruction of the Order.
Sabine placed a hand on her arm, and when Ahsoka turned towards her she smiled encouragingly. The Togruta returned the smile gratefully.
Before they could say something, an explosion shook the whole ship. An alarm blared, emergency lights flickered to life and bathed everything in a dim red light.
“Attention, attention” a robotic voice came from a speaker over the door. “We are currently under attack, please prepare for emergency hyperspace jump and possible evacuation! I repeat, we are under attack. Every passenger, follow emergency protocol 89-1”
The two knights acted quickly, herding the frightened children together and leading them out of the room. At the end of the corridor Arydine nodded to Flysch before racing off in one direction, while he and the children took the other direction.
“Arydine was among the best pilots the Jedi Order had at that time, so naturally she would lead the defensive fighters against our attackers.” The old Jedi explained as they followed the Knight and the Younglings to the sleeping quarters, where they gathered their stuff and headed out again. More Jedi joined them, a few carrying infants or smaller children that couldn’t walk that fast. It was eerily calm, no child was screaming, only the sound of distant explosions could be heard.
“They are really disciplined, almost like Mandalorians.” Sabine noted as they followed them through the corridors.
“They were, growing up with the Jedi does that to you. I’d say they are even more disciplined than the Mandalorians since Jedi have a more… diplomatic approach to difficult situations.”
He smirked a bit when Sabine huffed, but she had nothing to dispute his argument.
They passed through a corridor with large windows on the side that stretched up to the ceiling and continued on to the hull on the other side. Outside loomed the wide expanse of space, a greenish glow lighting up the hull beneath the window from time to time. Looking up to the ceiling, she saw what was attacking them. A huge ship was floating in space above the Praxeum Ship, reminding her a bit of a Star Destroyer.
“We were attacked by a Harrower-Class Dreadnought, the capital ship class of the Sith Empire. They had thousands of those ships at their disposal, built to rain death upon enemies. And that day, the Praxeum Ship had been their target.”
The old Master has been looking up as well, before he gestured them on. The group of Jedi had reached the end of the corridor. When they followed, Sabine could see squadron of starfighters launching from a hangar she assumed was below them. They headed right towards the dreadnought.
The Jedi had almost reached their target when an explosion shook the whole ship. A few shrieks could be heard from the children, but they quickly calmed down and continued on.
“The shields have been breached, I repeat, the shields have been breached! Prepare for boarding!” the voice from the speakers said while the group of Jedi picked up the pace.
“The target of the Empire was quite clear: They wanted to board the ship and capture the Younglings and Padawan, to train them as Sith.” The old Master told Sabine and Ahsoka. “Their ranks have been thinned out by the constant war, and they assumed a Praxeum Ship an easy target.”
The group must have reached their target, a big double door that led to a huge hangar. Three big starships stood in it, painted in red and white. They were bigger than the Ghost, but not by much. Their weaponry and thick hull made it clear that these were not freighters, but ships made for war.
The group of Younglings were herded towards the ship in the middle, while the Padawans were boarding the ship on the far left. A few crewmembers were loading big crates on hover lifts in the ship on the right.
The young Knight Kasavras was staying at the doors along with a few other Jedi, obviously preparing against the boarding party. True enough, before the last Youngling could reach the ship, the first blaster bolt flew through the door towards the ships.
Sabine watched in awe how well the few Jedi managed to hold their ground against what had to be a whole squadron of soldiers that had appeared in the entrance. The Jedi activated their lightsabres, their colours ranging from a deep purple to green, from a faint yellow to the startling turquois of the double blade of Knight Kasavras. They all took battle stances and waited for the attackers to come closer.
While a few of the Jedi stood in the front row and deflected almost all the blasterbolts back towards the entrance the rest started to set up barricades by levitating crates and machinery in the space between the doorway and the defenders. One of the Jedi even started to throw some crates towards the attackers, making them duck for cover.
Another doorway to the hangar on one of the side walls opened, and a row of hoverbeds came flying through, accompanied by medical staff. The last one in line was the tall Zabrak, Doc, who, together with a heavily armed droid and another soldier, fired a few shots down the corridor they just came from and then hit the control panel, shutting the door before they could be followed.
“Where is my daughter?” he called over to the Jedi, a haunted look in his eyes.
The young Kasavras didn’t even look away from his task of deflecting the blaster bolts when he answered.
“Inside the Valiant, there should be space for the injured and sick. Board the ship and take off while you still can!”
The doctor looked relieved and ran over to the Ship where the last of the sick beds just disappeared.
“Thanks, Flysch. I will see you on the other side.”
“May the Force be with you” was the only answer he got, since at that moment, a volley of detonators sailed through the doors towards the Jedi. They weren’t even startled by that, sending them back with the Force. The explosions shook the whole hangar bay, and no more blaster shots were sent towards the Jedi.
A door opened on the other end of the hangar, soldiers in white and blue plastoid armour swarming in. They took defensive positions at the doorway, and just as the last one hurried through, blasterbolts were cutting through the air.
They returned the fire, strategically placing themselves at the door, taking turns in firing back towards the attackers.
The ship with the injured and the Younglings took off, the engine groaning at the cold start. It turned on the spot and slowly hovered out of the hangar. As soon as the energy shield that kept the atmosphere inside the hangar was behind them, they jumped to hyperspace, giving the cruiser above no chance of locking onto them.
Sabines attention came back to the group of Jedi when she heard a warning cry.
Inside the dark hallway behind the double doors, red lightsabres had been ignited, illuminating the black robed figures that stood there. They were easily twice as many as the Jedi.
“Now you will see the true horror of the ancient fight of Jedi versus Sith.” The old Master next to her said sadly, lowering his head.
Sabine had seen her share of lightsabre duels between the Inquisitors and ‘her’ Jedi, but they had nothing on the sheer mayhem that unfolded before her.
With a battle cry, the Sith jumped at the Jedi, fury burning in their eyes. A vicious battle unfolded, and soon the first one of the Force users fell.
A Sith was decapitated by a Togruta-Jedi, which was felled by the Sith’s battle companion a few seconds later. The Sith fought with anger in their movements, powerful sabre strikes raining down on the Jedi which found themselves quickly in the defensive.
Sabine had to look away as a human Jedi was cleaved in two by a Sith wielding a double blade, instead she looked at Ahsoka. She looked stoically at the battle before them, a single tear running down her cheek.
“Now I understand why the teachers at the temple spoke of the wars between Sith and Jedi as the darkest times of the Galaxy. This fighting, its barbaric.” She whispered. “A Jedi should not be Forced to fight to kill, they should not be Forced to kill at all.” She shook her head sadly, and the old Master nodded.
“I agree with you. The times when the Sith and Jedi were equal in numbers were horrible times, but this fight is just a small skirmish in comparison to the battles that took place during the war 30 years ago. Legions of Jedi and Sith clashed on planets, which were devastated by the sheer amount of Force power that was released. Worlds were left barren, and battlefields were covered in blood and dead bodies.”
Sabine couldn’t even imagine that, the scene in front of her seemed bad enough with roughly 50 fighters. A whole army of Jedi and Sith fighting must be even more horrible.
Slowly the Jedi were Forced back. They were still outnumbered but had managed to kill more of the Sith than loosing fighters of their own. The soldiers on the far end of the room obviously had managed to defeat their opponents and turned to help the Jedi.
“This is insane.” Sabine said as the soldiers joined the battle, firing into the crowd of Sith, some of them drawing long vibroswords and seeking hand to hand combat. “They stand no chance against a lightsabre-wielder.”
Almost as if to prove her point, one of the Soldiers was hit with a lightning bolt shooting from the fingers of one of the Sith, sending him to the ground twitching.
But Master Kasavras only smiled.
“You have to remember, these soldiers were training with us Jedi for a long time, in times where the battle with a vibroblade was almost as common as fighting with a blaster. They might not stand a chance against a Sith in one-on-one combat, but their strength lies in their numbers and their ability to cooperate with the Jedi and their comrades. The Sith had never been good at cooperation or working together. That led to their ultimate downfall more than two thousand years later.”
Sabine didn’t quite believe him, but soon she saw what he meant: A soldier had a Sith locked in combat, barely standing his ground, when another Soldier just shot the Sith in the back from his position outside the battlefield. She saw the long barrel of the sniper rifle and the markings on the armour and guessed that this must be the Captain she saw at breakfast.
A loud crash caught her attention, and she saw a star fighter that had an “interesting landing” on the hangar floor, as Hera would have called it. It was badly damaged, smoke coming from the engines, but the pilot seemed unharmed.
A blue lightsabre blade cut through the windshield and the Jedi Pilot Arydine jumped from the wreck. She looked around for a moment before she joined the fight.
Fighting back-to-back with the young Flysch Kasavras they managed to push the Sith back to the doorway, and with a combined effort of all Jedi still standing, they pushed them back with the Force and closed the big double doors.
But there was no time for them to catch their breath, the voice from the speakers cut through the silence.
“Warning, reactor safety measurements disengaged, core meltdown imminent. Evacuate immediately. I repeat, core meltdown imminent, evacuate immediately!”
Without hesitating the soldiers and Jedi gathered their injured and fallen and brought them to the ship where the Padawan and other personnel was waiting. But the Sith were not giving up, the door started to glow red before it exploded inwards, shrapnel flying through the air and hitting one of the soldiers. There were still a few injured lying around, so around half the Soldiers and Jedi were turning towards the attackers. Flysch looked at Arydine for a moment, before they both nodded and she dashed off towards the starship, followed by the soldiers and Jedi carrying the last of the injured.
Flysch turned towards the Sith and the battle began anew. While the ship took off behind them, the remaining Forces slowly pulled back towards the last ship. They were severely outnumbered by now, losing ground almost as fast as loosing fighters.
The young Knight Kasavras was fighting like a maniac. He jumped around, slashing at the heads of the Sith with his double blade, deflecting the strikes aimed for him, and retreating before they could launch a counterattack.
“I must say, Master Kasavras, you are quite a skilled Ataru-fighter.” Ahsoka commented as they watched the younger version of the master stab a Sith through the neck from behind before jumping back in a flip.
The old Master smiled sadly.
“I was never one for lightsabre fighting, to me, the Force and it’s mysteries had always been more fascinating, but the times I grew up in made me master Form IV during my time as a Padawan. Fighting against another lightsabre wielder was a daily occurrence, be it a Sith or a Knight of Zakuul.”
Just as the remaining group of Jedi and soldiers reached the ramp of the last starship, an explosion shook the whole hangar deck. Sirens blared, and the lights flickered. Only 3 had survived to that point, 2 Jedi and a soldier, while at least 10 Sith were still in fighting condition. When the soldier was felled by one of the Sith, the Jedi looked at Flysch, who was already standing on the ramp of the ship and smiled at him sadly. Then he stretched out his hands, one towards the Sith, one towards Flysch, and a wave of kinetic energy blasted them back, the Sith falling to the hangar deck, Flysch being catapulted inside the Ship.
It slowly rose from the ground, hovering a few metres above the deck, while Flysch looked down onto the Jedi still standing among the Sith. They rose again and charged at him. With a pained look in his eyes the young Knight closed the door, seeing the end of his comrade by the blades of the Sith through the porthole. Only a moment later, fire raced down the open hangar doors, engulfing the Sith, glaring at the departing ship.
“This was one of the worst days of my life, and at the same time, the end of one chapter and the beginning of the next one.” the Master said with a wistful smile. His younger self had made his way up the ramp to the flight deck, heading straight for the cockpit. Just as he entered it, the stars outside turned to the blue of Hyperspace.
An astromech droid with a rectangular head and body was plugged into the flight console, turning his head when he heard the Jedi enter.
‘ND-24 = happy to see at least one Jedi alive and on board.’ He beeped in binary. ‘Course already set for rally point Cresh as directed by evacuation order 89-1.’
The Jedi only patted the head of the droid and murmured a thanks before sitting down in the pilot’s chair.
“I fell asleep shortly after, so there is nothing much to tell. Do you have any questions so far, things you don’t understand?”
Sabine thought about what she had seen, but only had one question.
“What happened to the others? Did they come through?”
The old Master nodded.
“They did, though it took us years for all of us to meet again. The Doc finally had enough of the war and retired back to Alderaan with his wife, concentrating on governing the Barony and performing surgery pro bono if he had the time. He couldn’t quite settle down yet though, but that is another story for another time.
Nira Zariss would eventually become a General, and later led the Special Units Division until her retirement.
Arydine returned to her home world of Kuat, and later re-joined the reformed Jedi Order and taught many Jedi in the art of piloting a ship, eventually earning the rank of Master and leading the Transportation Division of the Order.”
Ahsoka looked at him thoughtfully.
“But you didn’t make it to the rally point, didn’t you?”
Master Kasavras smiled sadly.
“I didn’t, and years passed before seeing my friends again. They never thought I was dead, Ary and I had worked together long enough so she would have felt my death, but the war and other circumstances didn’t allow them to look for me. I didn’t hold that against them, after all, I too had no time to search for them, and when we finally met up again, we were laughing and joking as if no time had passed at all. It was the mentality of those times, to treasure the good moments while they last, and rejoice when you are reunited.”
The scene changed a bit, the droid suddenly was gone, and the sleeping position of the young Knight in the chair had changed, but otherwise it was still the same room.
Suddenly something hit the ship, the light of hyperspace outside the windshield them flickering. Flysch shot up, wide awake, his hand on his lightsabre. The droid came rolling back into the cockpit, beeping something about Purrgil and having hit one, when they started to fall out of hyperspace.
Sitting behind the helm, Flysch activated the manual control and tried to steady the ship as it started to spin, gradually losing control over its movement. The stars started to form again, and soon they fell back to normal space, still spinning. Alarms were blaring, red lights were shining on the control panel, but the Jedi managed to get the ship under control and steady its trajectory.
“We really had hit a Purrgil that had crossed our route, and it sent us out of Hyperspace.” The old Master explained. “I was glad that Arydine had Forced me to learn how to fly, especially since I have never been one for technology or machines. I was more comfortable with organic lifeforms. Her lessons saved my life that day.”
When the ship finally stopped spinning and floated in space, the astromech gave a status report.
‘All life-support systems = intact. Minor hull breach in living quarter B, door = sealed. Hyperspace generator = badly damaged due to unscheduled return to sub-lightspeed. Sub-lightspeed systems operational. Fuel tank = undamaged.’
The knight looked at the scanners. He was half talking with himself, half with the droid when he spoke.
“We are in the Chommell-System, which has been recently discovered, but is uncharted. The scanners indicate we are in a system with a habitable planet.”
The droid beeped excitedly.
‘Repairs of hyperspace generator only possible planet-side. ND-24 advises to land.’
“Then we should do that.”
And with that, he turned the ship towards the planet that could be seen at the edge of the windshield.
It looked mostly water, with a few continents covered in lush green. The scanners indicated it was full of organic life, but without a settlement. When the ship reached the upper atmosphere, the analysis of it told the young man that it was a breathable oxygen-nitrogen mixture.
Sabine looked out of the windshield and marvelled at the scenery below them. The planet was covered mostly in woods, a few patches of grassland spread between them. They flew towards one of those patches, where a tall cliff was looming over the biggest grassy field of the planet. Waterfalls ran down the plateau, creating a rainbow in the light of the setting sun. They sat down close to the edge of the cliff, next to the biggest waterfall. A few tall boulders stuck from the grass, but there was still enough space for the ship to land.
Lowering the ramp, the Jedi slowly made its way to the planet.
“I guessed I must have been the first person to set foot onto that planet.” The old Jedi told them when they followed him outside. “I soon learned that I was not the first, but the second.”
Just as he said that a blaster bolt came from one of the bushes surrounding the clearing where the ship had landed and grazed the shoulder of the Jedi. He had his lightsabre in his hand a millisecond later and his hand stretched out towards the direction from where the shot had come from.
He slowly walked towards the bush, his one hand still stretched out, the lightsabre ignited in the other. A few metres from the bush he stopped and slowly moved his hand towards him.
A figure broke through the bushes, the hand with the blaster outstretched, frozen and not moving. The figure hovered above the ground and slowly made its way towards the Jedi.
“Isn’t Force stasis considered a technique of the dark side?” Ahsoka asked with interest.
“It wasn’t in my time.” Master Kasavras said. “It was considered a good way to stop hostiles from harming themselves or others before they could be contained or questioned. Much better than just shooting back or maiming them.”
Ahsoka nodded, while the young Knight went towards the figure.
“But it must be extremely difficult to freeze the movements of a person.” She added after a moment, and the master froze the scene.
“Not really. You see, you don’t need to freeze the whole body, there are different approaches to it. One is to know exactly where to grasp. There is a point at the base of the brain where most movements in the body have to pass through in humanoid creatures. If you apply light pressure there, you can halt the transmission, and freeze the body. That might be dangerous though, a bit too much pressure, and you can paralyze your target. The most commonly used tactic is to simply freeze the air around the body. A thin layer is enough, holding the target in place while still allowing it to breath. You can even control what part you will freeze.”
During the master’s explanations, Sabine looked at the person that shot at the Jedi closer now, the dim light making it hard to make out the details. But now that the figure was closer, she could see that it was wearing a Mandalorian armour, of an ancient design, but unmistakeable the one of a clansman of House Vizla. But added to the classical blue and silver, a yellow stripe was added to the edges.
“That is not really a polite way to greet someone when you meet them for the first time.” Flysch said with a cocky grin. “In the parts of the Galaxy where I come from, we normally go with a ‘Hello there’ or a simple ‘welcome.’ But I guess the Mandalorian customs are different.”
Sabine snorted, and the old Master Kasavras chuckled lightly.
“You don’t have to say anything, I was just having a bit of fun.” And after a moment he pointed out: “I had been shot at after all.”
Sabine only nodded, watching as the Jedi pulled the blaster from the hand of the Mandalorian and throwing it behind his back. Then he released his hold on the figure, which instantly pulled a vibroknife from the belt and charged at the Jedi.
He simply sidestepped it and brought his blade down onto the knife. Only holding the rest of the hilt in its hand the Mando charged again, this time with the fists.
Sighing Flysch held up his hand again, and the figure froze again.
“Could you stop that? I had to kill enough people today; I don’t want to add another body to the count.”
He walked over to the figure and adjusted his hand gesture a bit.
“How about you start and tell me why you want to kill me so badly?”
The figure shook its head, the only thing it could move, and started to curse at him in Mando’a.
Sabine was impressed, the curses were quite creative, along with a few suggestions to where he could stick his lightsabre.
Sighing again, Flysch adjusted his hand gesture again and the string of curses broke off.
“I am sorry, but I am not fluent in Mando’a, I only know a few swear words. And since I recognised almost all of those I know in your rant, I guess you were just cursing me from the core to the rim and back. Let’s try again, and this time you really tell me why you wanted to kill me, in Basic please.”
After allowing the Mando to speak again, the figure took a deep breath before saying:
“My ship crashed here a few days ago, I had a run-in with Purrgil, blasted creatures. Now I need your ship to get back to my clan with the intel I gathered that is important to their survival, and since I doubted you would just hand it over to me, I decided to cut right to the case and shoot you.”
Ahsoka chuckled, and so did the young Knight.
“Quite straight-forward, aren’t you? First of all, I had a run-in with Purrgil myself, and my hyperdrive is badly damaged. If it can’t be repaired, I am as stuck here as you. And second, you just had to ask, I would gladly have given you a lift to wherever you want. As a valiant Jedi I couldn’t let a stranded Lady be left behind now, couldn’t I?”
He flashed the Mando, obviously a woman, a cocky smile.
Sabine rolled her eyes, and she was sure the female warrior did the same.
“What is it with you Jedi and flirting with Mando women the moment you meet them?” she asked the old Jedi next to her.
He laughed and shrugged his shoulders.
“I guess it’s the thrill of danger. There is nothing more dangerous than a peeved off Mandalorian Warrior. Jedi crave the danger, the competition.”
Ahsoka snorted.
“You sound a lot like my old Master.” she explained at the inquisitive glances Sabine and Master Kasavras shot her.
“If you promise not to try to kill me again, I will release you, ok?” the young Knight proposed to the Mando, and after she nodded, he lowered his hand again. She really didn’t launch herself at him again but took a step back.
At that moment, the beeping of the droid could be heard from the ship.
‘ND-24 = checked hyperdrive. Without new motivator, no chance of hyperspace travel.’
Flysch sighed, but the Mando perked up.
“Well, I just happen to have an intact hyperdrive, about the only thing in my ship that is still functioning.”
She seemed to swallow hard and then sighed, before continuing.
“I guess if we work together, we can both get off this planet, as beautiful as the scenery might be.”
Gesturing towards the cliff she walked over to it. The sunset really was beautiful, birds were singing in the trees behind them. Water glittered in the last rays of light, the sky ablaze in red and orange. Sabine had to admit, it was a beautiful sight.
“My ship is down there somewhere in the grass, half buried in the dirt. We could get down there with your ship, replace your broken motivator with mine and be off this planet in under an hour.”
Flysch had stepped next to her, nodding at her words.
“Sounds like a plan. But we should commemorate this moment, a Mando and a Jedi working together is quite rare.”
Again, he had a cocky grin on his face when he pulled his lightsabre. The hand of the Mando went to her empty holster, but the Jedi just walked over to a bolder standing up, and with one blade ignited, he carved letters into the surface of the rock:
“At this place, in 27 ATC, a Mando and a Jedi decided to work together, for the mutual benefit of surviving. Knight Flysch Kasavras, and Mandalorian Warrior…”
He looked over to the woman, standing behind him and looking what he was writing.
“I am sorry, I didn’t introduce myself. My name is Knight Flysch Kasavras, at your service.”
He bowed to her with a flashy smile, while she only huffed at that.
Sabine elbowed the older version of Flysch.
“You really know how to present yourself to the ladies.”
He only laughed, gesturing her to pay attention.
The female warrior seemed to contemplate something for a moment before she sighed and pulled of her helmet.
Sabine was surprised when she recognised the face, she had just seen it a few hours ago, when the Holocron had shown her…
“My name is Laiyla Wren of Clan Vizla. And I will not be at your service, even though I guess I will owe you my life if we manage to get off this rock…”
She cursed and rolled her eyes.
“Well, I guess the fact that I owe you my life, I will be at your service. I am honour-bound to do so.”
She sighed and shook out her long hair. It was a beautiful shade of dark brown, almost the same Sabines natural hair colour was. Her eyes were brown, and her skin tone a bit darker, so she must originally come from a sunny world.
When the Knight didn’t say anything for a while, she looked at him and found him staring at the female warrior, eyes wide. She couldn’t help but laugh.
“I guess you had it bad for her from the first moment you saw my ancestor, didn’t you?” she teased the old Jedi.
“You have no idea how bad.” He said wistfully, looking at Laiyla with a fond smile.
The younger version of him seemed to have found his ability to speak again.
“Well, since I will owe you my life as well, I guess we could call it even?” he proposed with a light smile, before turning back to the rock and finished the inscription.
Laiyla seemed to contemplate that.
“I guess so, but I have to ask my clan leader. It could also mean we are to serve each other, since we are both in each other’s debt… but you are a Jedi, what kind of honour could you possess?”
He looked at her with an offended look, but when he saw her raised eyebrow and slight smile, he smiled as well.
“You have no idea what kind of honour I possess.” He shot back and gestured towards his ship. While still bantering, he summoned her blaster to his hand and handed it back to her just as they walked up the ramp.
“There must be something about male Jedi and female Mandalorians getting along at an instant.” Ahsoka commented as they watched the ship’s doors close. “It reminds me a lot about you and Ezra, Sabine.” The Togruta winked at Sabine, who managed to only blush a bit.
“Well, I guess it has something to do with being naturally competitive, many Jedi and all the Mandos seem to have that character trait.” She answered, still a bit flustered.
The ship now rose from its parking spot, hovering lowly over the ground towards the edge of the cliff. The landing gear was still extended, scraping over a few of the boulders on the ground. It also hit the boulder with the inscription, toppling it over so the engravings were pressed into the ground.
The old Jedi commented on that:
“Needless to say, Laiyla insisted on flying down to the wreckage of her own ship. Considering she tried to kill me half an hour before that, we got along quite well. We were able to repair the hyperspace generator and could leave the planet.”
The scene around the dissolved, and they found themselves sitting in the common room of the shuttle again.
Sabine and Ahsoka pulled back their hands and stretched a bit, feeling as if they hadn’t moved for quite some time.
The holo-image of Master Kasavras appeared again next to them.
“I hope you forgive me for stretching our stay a bit, I guessed it must be easier to relive the past with me in a faster pace than normal.” He said, smiling apologetically.
Just when Sabine was about to ask what he meant, a ping sounded from the cockpit, indicating their return to normal space.
“We were watching for four days? We are already at our first stop?” Ahsoka asked astonished, but she didn’t seem mad. Sabin wasn’t mad either, sitting around all day in such a small space drove her up the walls, if she didn’t have the space to paint back on the Ghost, she would have gone nuts sooner than later.
The Master nodded.
“Indeed, since the principle of the retelling of memories is to pull your consciousness into the Holocron, it is disconnected from normal time. I can control how fast or slow you relive the memories, while your bodies go in a kind of hibernating state, using only a tenth of the energy it would normally need. There should be no damage to your mind or your body if your consciousness is returned in under 10 days.
In ancient times, this technique was used to give severely injured people more time to be healed.”
Ahsoka and Sabine nodded.
“It is ok, but a heads-up the next time you do something like that would be appreciated.” Sabine said before standing up and stretching. Around her, she felt the ship vibrate, before jumping to hyperspace again, bringing them closer to their first goal.
“I’m going to bed. Wake me if when we reach Naboo. All we have to do there is ask space control if 5 years ago a flock of Purrgil came through.” Sabine said while walking towards her cabin, making Ahsoka and the Master chuckle.
“I doubt you will sleep for 11 days, but sure, I will wake you up.” The Togruta said, laughing at the look Sabine shot her before closing the door.