Reading Time: 166 Minutes

Title: A Guardian’s Path
Series Title: The Genesis of a Jedi
Series Order: 1
Author: Keira Marcos
Fandom: Star Wars, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
Relationship: Jaro Tapal/Eeth Koth, Obi-Wan Kenobi/Quinlan Vos
Genre: Alternate Universe, Science Fiction
Warnings: Canon Typical Violence, Explicit Sex, Character Bashing, Violence, Homophobia, Intersexphobia, Grammarly Beta, Discussion-Slavery, Discussion-Mental Health Issues, Discussion-Sex Slavery, Discussion-Child Slavery, Discussion-OC Character Death, Discussion-War, Discussion-Collateral Damages, Discussion-Terrorism, Discussion-Child Death, Discussion-Child Soldiers, Discussion-Child Murder
Word Count: 80,835
Author’s Note: The author has no respect for canon or legends content. Canon is full of slavery. It’s disgusting. Star Wars is darker than the Hannibal TV show. I swear. Droidspeak is used in this fic and it’s always italicized rather than represented with a series of beeps or whatever that would depend on translation. I’m, in fact, going to leave you assume that my entire fic has been translated for you from Galactic Basic since no one in Star Wars would actually be speaking English to begin with.
Summary: Obi-Wan Kenobi has no interest whatsoever in being Qui-Gon Jinn’s emotional support animal. This comes to quite a shock to several people. When Force influences him to make his wishes known, Obi-Wan is taken down a path to knighthood he’d have never imagined possible under the careful and gentle hand of Jedi Master Jaro Tapal.

* * * *

* * * *

Chapter 8

The six-hour trip to Dathomir passed quickly enough. Master Tapal had checked the little seeker droid out and approved her activation, so Obi-Wan had turned her on then followed her around the ship as she explored the whole thing curiously. Within an hour, he’d started calling her Evie and she’d seemed pleased with the name. Once she was satisfied with her survey of the ship, Evie tucked herself into the interior pocket of his robe like that was her spot and Obi-Wan figured it was.

“I think Quinlan has basically made me a nanny droid.”

Master Tapal laughed as Obi-Wan sighed from the pilot seat. “Shadows are prone to doing such things to those they hold dear. How is his apprenticeship going?”

“He seems thrilled,” Obi-Wan said. “Despite the whole unwanted conversation about masturbation.”

“Ioan has always been a thorough educator,” Master Tapal said with a laugh, which Obi-Wan took as a good thing and hoped that mentioning it wasn’t going to lead to him having a similar experience. “Do you need that conversation?”

“No.” Obi-Wan glanced toward his master. “I’m good.”

“Thank the Force,” Master Tapal said as they left hyperspace.

Shortly, Dathomir loomed large in front of them. The red planet was fascinating, and he could feel the Force shifting inside of him as he stared.

“This is important,” Obi-Wan murmured.

“Yes, it seems like if we get this right, the Force will be very pleased,” Master Tapal said. “It’s rare to feel such a thing.”

“So, we’ll be careful.”

“Very careful,” Master Tapal agreed. “Enid?”

“The planetary scan is nearly complete. The population is concentrated on one continent, but they’re spread out in distinct groups that indicate territories. Based on historical data, I’ve identified the likely location of the Nightsisters. From intelligence reports in our archive, a Nightsister named Talzin is the current Great Mother of the Nightsister clan and the de facto leader of the planet,” Enid reported. “It is currently night in the area presumed to be Nightsister territory, and I’ve identified a place to land.”

“Time to sunrise?”

“Ten hours.”

Master Tapal stood from the pilot seat and stretched. “Not far off from our own clock. You’ve free time, Padawan, until 0800. Get at least ten hours of sleep.”

“Yes, sir,” Obi-Wan said and stood as well. “Have a good night.”

Jaro watched his padawan shuffle off to bed and wondered what the mood was in his own quarters. They weren’t really arguing, but Eeth was clearly out of sorts. His partner was meditating when he entered, so he secured the door and went into the refresher to have a shower. When he exited, Eeth was sprawled on the bed, naked.

He took it for an invitation. Jaro crawled onto the bed and over his lover. Eeth’s gaze was dark as he accepted his weight and curled a fist into Jaro’s unbound hair. He brushed fingertips over Jaro’s mouth in a gesture that demanded silence. Jaro settled between the spread of Eeth’s legs and pressed the head of his cock against his lover’s slick and already worked open asshole. Eeth clearly wasn’t in a patient mood, so he pushed right in.

“Fuck,” Eeth hissed as he arched under him and wrapped long legs around Jaro’s waist. “Yes.”

He took his time, moving with long, slow thrusts that he knew would drive his lover right over the edge. Eeth had never been the sort to want it quick and hard. Jaro relaxed into the pleasure and let himself get lost in it for a bit, as it was a rare opportunity for them and had been since Eeth had joined the Council.

Their connection, intensified by a Force bond, had always been intimate, and the sex had been astoundingly good from the start. Despite the fact that they’d never be able to make a child between them, the desire to breed his partner welled inside of him, and his knot swelled. He pressed in deep, and Eeth shuddered even as his muscles clenched around him. Jaro’s knot caught on the rim of Eeth’s asshole, and they both groaned harshly.

Eeth came messily between them, cock pressed between their bellies, and shuddered. “I love you.” His hands gentled in Jaro’s hair. “Darling.”

Jaro pressed his cheek against Eeth’s as he came, shaking through an intense orgasm. His body relaxed even as his knot hardened in response to coming, then slowly receded. They shared a long kiss, and he ran one hand down the side of Eeth’s body with a contented sigh.

“No one would ever guess that getting you off is the easiest way to get rid of your temper.”

Eeth laughed and let his legs fall to the bed as Jaro pulled free from his body. “Probably wouldn’t work for anyone else.”

Neither of them appreciated being dirty, so they left the bed together, cleaned up, and changed the sheets in companionable silence. Once they were dressed for sleep, they settled back on the mattress, and Jaro prodded him.

“What’s wrong?”

Eeth sighed. “Yoda’s machinations are next level, Jaro. I never realized it, and it’s galling how often he manipulates the situations around us to serve whatever he believes to be the will of the Force. Moreover, he often ends up creating deeply unfortunate situations because he outright ignores the warnings that the Unifying Force gives him and others.

“Yaddle is in the process of replacing him as the Grand Master of the Order.”

“She said she didn’t want it,” Jaro said with a frown.

“She has to protect the Order from him,” Eeth said quietly. “It’s that bad, Jaro.”

“Did something specific happen?”

“A special request came from a planet called Galidraan—the Senate gave the Order permission to investigate and respond. But Yoda just wanted to send Dooku with a task force to act on the unverified intelligence. Yaddle interfered and said that Dooku should stay on Coruscant and deal with Qui-Gon. She suggested that Jocasta send someone else. In a move that I believe to be genuinely snide, Yoda suggested that you be made to go. He said that a little reality might make you and Obi-Wan both reconsider the apprenticeship.”

“And?”

“I volunteered to go,” Eeth said. “The task force is being gathered, and you’ll take me to the rendezvous after we return the child to Dathomir. I wasn’t allowed to tell you until after we left the planet for security purposes. Yaddle suggested that I keep you with me and that you should act as my second for the mission.”

“Why?”

“Because the situation involves Jaster Mereel. The governor of Galidraan has accused him of sending a large force of Mandalorians to murder political activists on his planet. The entire situation is off, but Yoda dismissed my concerns regarding the intelligence and said that analysis of the material was unnecessary as the source could be trusted.”

“Do you have all of the data?” Jaro questioned.

“Yes, of course,” Eeth said. “I told Jocasta not to send any Jedi with a discipline problem for the task force, and she promised that every single one of them would be ordered to follow our orders to the letter under threat of expulsion from the Order.”

“The last thing we need to do is start a war with Mandalore by executing the Mand’alor or anyone under his authority,” Jaro said. “Let’s give the data to Enid and let her go over it.”

“Enid, you can retrieve the materials from my datapad,” Eeth said.

“Retrieving now,” Enid said. “I’ll wake you both when the time comes.”

* * * *

Obi-Wan was seated on the holotable eating a bowl of hot cereal when Jaro entered the bridge with Eeth. Ky and Asajj were on a bench nearby, watching the holotable display various images.

“Enid, do we have a copy of the Supercommando Codex that Jaster Mereel wrote?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Mand’alor Mereel believes that Mandalorians should be honorable mercenaries and follow the tenets of the Resol’nare, which dictates that a True Mandalorian will shroud their body in armor, speak the language of their ancestors, defend themselves and their family, raise children to follow the way of Mandalorians, dedicate themselves to the welfare of their clan, and follow the Mand’alor into battle. These principals are to ensure the survival of the Mandalorian culture,” Enid supplied.

“And what is the known and accepted policy regarding the killing of children by the True Mandalorians?”

“It is an action worthy of being declared dar’manda. Such an individual is considered soulless and ignorant of the way and would be denied a place in the Mandalorian afterlife.”

“So, basically, a Mandalorian purposefully murdering a child would go to hell,” Obi-Wan said and nodded. He focused on Eeth then. “Enid had some questions for me, then I had some questions for her. I hope that’s okay, Master Koth.”

“It’s more than okay, I gave her the data for analysis, and I know she has a habit of seeking outside opinions during that process. I didn’t tell her she couldn’t,” Eeth said. “Why are you discussing child murder?”

“The governor of Galidraan has accused the Mand’alor’s forces on his planet of killing the families of his political opponents in violation of their agreement,” Enid said. “That includes twenty-two children. I deemed that statistically improbable after Obi-Wan questioned it, even as a matter of collateral damage based on records of previous altercations with the True Mandalorians.

“That being said, it is in the wheelhouse of Death Watch, which is being led by Tor Vizsla. Vizsla and his followers are wanted on many worlds in Mid and Outer Rims for various acts of terrorism. The civilian death toll has been high.” She paused. “Obi-Wan is a very good sounding board. He saw right into the heart of the manufactured evidence when I’d overlooked it.”

Obi-Wan shrugged.

“Some adults don’t care about dead kids,” Asajj interjected, and they all focused on her. She leaned on Ky, who put an arm around her. “And we get ignored in big fights. Ignored and hurt.”

Jaro took a deep breath. “Let’s go try to find your mother, little one.”

“If she’s not here, then what?” Asajj said.

“You’d be safest in the crèche on Coruscant with other Force-sensitive children,” Obi-Wan said when the adults around them hesitated. “Without your mom to protect you…well. The matron in the crèche at the Jedi Temple is the next best thing.”

Asajj took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay. That’s the plan.”

“Oh, speaking of Dathomir, Enid found a starship down there in a cave.” Obi-Wan motioned toward the holotable, and the scan results were revealed.

* * * *

Jaro watched the group of Zabrak females approach them. They’d left the boarding ramp open, but he and Ky were standing guard over it. Eeth had chosen to stand in front of them by some distance. A clear distinction that he was on the world to speak with them specifically.

The oldest of the females stepped forward with a glare. “What brings the Jedi to Dathomir?”

“I am Jedi Master Eeth Koth,” Eeth said. “I’m here on behalf of the Galactic Senate and the High Council. We seek a peaceful dialogue and clarity on an issue recently brought to our attention.”

“I am Talzin, the Great Mother of the Nightsisters,” the woman said stiffly. “What does the Galactic Republic want with my world? Resources?”

“The Republic seeks an alliance, and the Senate would see your world join them as a junior member. Due to your reported population size, you don’t qualify to join them as a full member, but with junior status, we could open up dialogues regarding immigration, population growth, and full membership at a later date.”

“And the Jedi would not protest this? Do you not view us as dark?”

“You appear the darkest of all of those present,” Eeth said pointedly. “And you are merely a shade of gray. The Jedi Order recognizes the need for balance within the Force, Mother Talzin. We simply cannot tolerate, however, the Sith who seek to dominate and control everything around them. A Sith is the destroyer of worlds—they can’t even be loyal to each other and should never be trusted with anything.”

Her eyes widened, and her gaze drifted briefly toward a woman next to her before she focused on Eeth again. “What clarity do you seek?”

“How many of your children have been stolen from this world?” Eeth questioned. “And why haven’t you reached out to the Republic for help? Based on scans, there is at least one space-worthy vessel on this planet.”

“Ten in the last eighty years,” Talzin said shortly. “And the Republic has never been interested in helping us. And neither has the Jedi Order. I don’t understand what has happened to change that.”

“Ten,” Eeth said. “All Force-sensitive?”

“Yes,” Talzin said. “Six returned to us when they were adults and could fight their way free of their circumstances. We know that at least one died—his mother felt it happen.”

“And the other three?”

“One sent a message through another, reporting she was alive but living on Iridonia with her mate and several children. The other two—nothing is known.”

One of the women made a soft, shocked sound. “Don’t lie to him, Talzin!”

“Shut your mouth, Kycina,” Talzin hissed.

“No, she’s right,” another shouted. “Don’t lie to him. Tell him the truth!”

Jaro saw the violence coming, and he was relieved when Eeth did as well because his partner backed up and kept his hands tucked behind his back as the second woman to speak launched herself at Talzin. The fight was quick and brutal. Talzin, who was much older, was wholly unprepared for the attack. Jaro exchanged a startled look with Ky when the younger woman unceremoniously tossed Talzin’s body off the side of the landing platform.

Eeth exhaled noisily as the young woman straightened her clothes and wiped blood from her mouth with dark, furious eyes.

“I am Nomi, Great Mother of the Nightsisters.”

“Congratulations on your ascension to the position of Great Mother of Dathomir,” Eeth said mildly, and a teeter of shock drifted through the group at her back.

Nomi lifted her chin and took a deep breath. “We are missing two children. We don’t know where the boy is, but we can look through Talzin’s possessions for clues. I’m so sorry, Kycina. I couldn’t let her lie to them.”

“No,” Kycina said. “Apologize for nothing, Great Mother. We are honored by your strength.”

“And the second child?” Eeth questioned.

“Her name was…I called her Asajj. Hal’Sted, a Siniteen pirate, decided that we owed him. His price was my child. He threatened to destroy us all if we didn’t give her to him. I don’t know where he took her.” Her mouth trembled. “She’d be five years old by the standard calendar.”

“Ky,” Eeth murmured.

Ky walked up the ramp and quickly returned with Asajj, who had both of her arms wrapped around his neck. Obi-Wan followed them but stopped to stand beside him. Jaro let one hand fall onto the boy’s shoulder to keep him in place.

Nomi stared in shock as Ky walked toward her and tears streamed down her face as Asajj held out a single hand to her. She took it with gentle fingers. “Hello.”

“Hi,” the little girl said. “I’m Asajj.” She leaned forward. “I think you’re my mother. I remember your face.”

“I am,” Nomi said hoarsely and took her when Ky offered. She pressed her face against Asajj’s hair and sank to her knees. “I remember your face, too.”

The other women moved close, each touching Asajj with trembling hands.

Obi-Wan leaned against him, and his hand curled briefly in Jaro’s robe. Eventually, Nomi was pulled to her feet by the woman calling herself Kycina. Jaro watched them move away and speak quickly amongst themselves, then Nomi came back to them, still clutching Asajj, which was just as well since the girl was clutching back so hard that her little hands were turning red.

“Talzin has a large home, and it will take us a while to find everything,” Nomi said. “The boy’s name is Maul, and he was taken five years ago. Kycina, tell them what you know.”

“A Human male came,” Kycina said. “And Talzin was excited.” She paused when Nomi cleared her throat.

“Tell them about your sons first, Kycina,” Nomi said quietly.

“I have three children,” Kycina said. “Talzin took all of them from me and claimed them as her own as they were born. I vowed, after the third, that I would never have another child for her to steal. I didn’t intend on even having any after she stole my first son, Savage. But she threatened to kill Savage if I didn’t keep trying to have a girl. After Feral was born, another male, she declared me worthless. But she kept my boys. When the Human male came, she thought he was evaluating her for an apprenticeship. She wanted to learn something from him, but he chose Maul. My son was five years old when he was taken from Dathomir. He would be ten now. I have no idea where he is.”

“Do you know what the Human male’s name was?” Eeth questioned.

“Talzin called him Darth Sidious.”

Eeth took a deep breath. “I see.” He glanced back toward Jaro briefly but then focused on the women. “Mother Nomi, with your permission, we will place a comm relay and HoloNet repeater in orbit. I have another mission that I must attend to, but I will return as soon as I can. In the meantime, if you find anything about Darth Sidious or Maul’s location, you can contact Master Jaro Tapal or me.”

“You can place the device in orbit, but we don’t have any technology to interact with it,” Nomi said. “And I have no idea where the ship is you spoke of.”

“We’ll get you a location,” Eeth said, and she nodded. “And you’ll be given the equipment to use the comm relay. The Republic’s offer is sincere. Protecting Force-sensitive children is part of their agreement with the Jedi Order. They’ll do quite a bit to ensure that the Jedi remain loyal to them.”

“Currently,” Nomi said.

“Yes, currently. Governments come and go,” Eeth said. “But the Force is eternal, and the Jedi Order has always been guided by the Force. We would be honored, going forward, to share that journey with the Dathomiri.”

Nomi focused on him then her gaze dropped to Obi-Wan. “Who is the boy?”

“That is Jedi Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi,” Eeth said. “He is apprenticed to Jedi Master Jaro Tapal.”

“He’s learning to be a Jedi.”

“Yes,” Eeth said. “He’s been learning to be a Jedi since he was younger than your own daughter and is in the final stage of his formal educational journey.”

“May I speak with him?” Nomi questioned.

Jaro released Obi-Wan after a moment and nodded when Eeth glanced his way. Eeth held out a hand, and Obi-Wan went to his side. He settled his hand on the boy’s shoulder.

“Hello,” Obi-Wan said.

“I’m uniquely gifted with the magick of our world,” Nomi said. “I can discern the truth. Is this a gift common amongst the Jedi?”

“No, but it’s not unheard of,” Obi-Wan said. “I have Force visions and an advanced ability with Force sense. It allows me to discern predictive outcomes from events.”

“Do the Jedi treat you well?” Nomi questioned.

“Yes.”

“They never hurt you? Ignore your needs?” she pressed.

“No, of course not,” Obi-Wan said. “Within the Jedi Order, children are treated as precious. I was given away by my parents when I was much younger than Asajj and taken to the temple on Coruscant. I’ve never wanted for a single thing in all that time. I grew up with other children and we were encouraged to explore our path within the Force by all the adults around us. We had rules, of course, to protect us and to make sure we grew up to be good people.”

“You carry a weapon.”

“Yes,” Obi-Wan said. “The galaxy is dangerous. At the heart of our Order, the Jedi are peacekeepers. But sometimes, we must fight for peace and to ensure the freewill of others. It is a great honor to be trusted with that burden by the Force.”

Nomi nodded and kissed Asajj’s cheek when the girl whispered in her ear. “Asajj tells me that you were very kind to her and had your droids make her clothes. Thank you for your kindness. It is not what we’ve been taught to expect from the Jedi.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “I’m learning that expectations can be dangerous and create more problems than anything else.”

“I believe I am learning the same,” Nomi said quietly.

* * * *

“I did okay?”

“You did very well,” Master Tapal said as he sat down at the table. “We need to speak about what you heard.”

“About Darth Sidious,” Obi-Wan said, and his master nodded. “Have the Sith returned?”

“They’ve been believed extinct for a very long time,” Master Tapal said. “And we can’t afford to make any mistakes with this information. Eeth is currently having a private conversation with Jocasta Nu and Yaddle but will avoid directly mentioning the Sith issue for security reasons. We’ve already told Ky that he can’t share this information with anyone. The Sith can’t find out that we know about him at this point. It would be very dangerous for everyone involved.”

“How will we rescue Maul?”

“I don’t know, but please be assured that we would not leave a child in the hands of a Sith.”

“He’s been gone for five years. Is it too late?”

“That’s for his mother to decide,” Master Tapal said. “Darkness isn’t necessarily a problem on Dathomir. I hope that we can contain him without hurting him and bring him home.”

“Maybe Twobit can investigate a substance to sedate a ten-year-old Zabrak male with,” Obi-Wan suggested. “But, hopefully, just being rescued from wherever he is will be enough to put him in a better head space. I hope they aren’t…torturing him. It’s what the Sith would do, right?”

“It is but one of many paths used to corrupt a Force-sensitive,” Master Tapal said. “And it is certainly the cruelest.”

“The dark side is cruel, so aren’t all the methods the same?” Obi-Wan asked in confusion.

“No, boy, you can be guided down a path to the dark side that is so beguiling and seductive that you won’t even know where you are until it is too late. Sometimes, a whisper is louder than a scream when it wakes something in you that no one else has ever noticed.” His master’s hand settled carefully on his forearm. “Promise me one thing.”

“Okay.”

“Remember that you can always come to me with anything—no matter how far from the Jedi way you may perceive it to be. One day, you will be knighted, but I will always be here when you need me.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “I already feel like that’s true.” He paused. “I still don’t want to have the masturbation conversation.”

His master laughed sharply. “I must ask Ioan exactly what is in that conversation as I’ve never had to give it.” He took a sip of caf. “Perhaps I should contact Wilaj and ask him if that was a mistake.”

“But not Master Frantar?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Jos would challenge me to a duel,” Master Tapal said wryly. “She might have done so even as a padawan.”

“I’m worried about the Sith stuff,” Obi-Wan confessed. “More than I am the Mandalore stuff, and that was very worrying until she said Darth Sidious.” He shuddered. “Just the name made the Force hurt inside of me.”

“Me, too.” Master Koth sat down at the table and just shook his head when Master Tapal started to get up. “I’d start bouncing off the wall if I had even half a cup of caf.”

“What did the Council say?” Master Tapal questioned.

“Do I need to go?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“No, I’d have called Jaro into his quarters if that were the case,” Master Koth said quietly. “I’ve told them that I believe the intelligence we received from Galidraan is entirely manufactured. Of course, it’s not the first batch of bad intel we’ve gotten on the Mandalorians. We were told that Jaster Mereel was dead years ago, only to find out differently nearly five years after the fact. The potential civil war on Mandalore and the issues with Death Watch have created a lot of hostility on and off-world.”

“What will you do?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“I contacted the Mand’alor,” Master Koth said. “His son, Jango Fett, was on Galidraan, having been hired by their government to help with an insurrection. They had a force of 300 Mandalorians on that planet. But he ordered their complete retreat an hour ago. We were told there were less than a hundred mercenaries on the world, and I created a task force to match that. I’ve sent them back to Coruscant as I’ve been invited to Mandalore.”

Master Tapal nodded. “The twins have launched the HoloNet repeater with a comm relay embedded and it’s in a stable orbit. We’ve tested the system, and Mother Nomi has assigned a team to handle the equipment.”

“I’ve already gotten a message from Asajj,” Obi-Wan said in amusement. “Master Narec got one as well. I’ve been promised at least one message a month that I must respond to as soon as I can. She has some new clothes, so I got treated to a fashion show.”

“That’s very sweet,” Master Tapal said.

“Should I discourage the contact?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“No, it’s fine,” Master Tapal assured. “You represent an innocent and safe part of her rescue. She only has good memories of you, Obi-Wan, and that’s a very good thing for such a young Force user.” He focused on Master Koth. “How furious is Jaster Mereel?”

“So furious that in other circumstances, he’d have declared war on Galidraan,” Master Koth said quietly. “They set his son up to be murdered by the Jedi. It would’ve increased hostilities between our peoples to a degree that nothing would’ve resolved it except the destruction of one of us. Jocasta is already in talks with the Chancellor’s office regarding a response by the Senate. Enid, have you finished your search?”

“The first half is complete, Eeth,” Enid said. “I’ve confirmed communications to and from the planet from the individual known as a Tor Vizsla. I’ve forwarded the new data to Master Nu, as you requested, and I’m still searching through the comm relay network. Now that I’ve identified codes attached to members of Death Watch, it’s easy to track their movements and communications. So far, I’ve verified four codes attached to members of Death Watch. I expect to have at least eight vetted before we reach Mandalore.”

“I don’t appreciate being set up to do Death Watch’s dirty work,” Master Koth said. “And worse, if Jocasta had sent Yan Dooku as was suggested—he’d have not questioned Master Yoda’s instructions at all. He’s not a warmonger and would’ve been devastated by the results. Jaster confirmed that the oldest Mandalorian on Galidraan was twenty-three, and the youngest was sixteen.”

“I could see Yan leaving the Order entirely over such a thing,” Master Tapal said. “He’s always put himself above the fighting and the actual physical work of peacekeeping.”

“Master Dooku is very rigid,” Obi-Wan said, and they both focused on him. “But I always enjoyed his history lessons. He has a unique point of view and makes you think about the different angles of a situation. Not everyone does when it comes to what they consider to be historical facts. Quin said that Master Dooku made him understand that even what we consider to be facts regarding historical events are merely established and accepted perspectives. We can say that a person died on a certain date, but without context, the fact of it seems innocuous.

“Except then you find out that person was murdered in a political plot that ended up causing a civil war and the deaths of millions. Then, it’s not a benign fact. It’s the beginnings of an immense tragedy.”

“Padawan Vos has a unique perspective,” Master Koth said.

“He’s very analytical,” Obi-Wan said. “He said he has to be because I think with my heart.”

“Do you?” Master Tapal questioned.

Obi-Wan felt his cheeks flush with heat as he took a deep breath. “Maybe I do. It’s probably not a good thing. I almost cried when Asajj recognized her mother.”

“I almost cried, too,” Master Koth said, and Obi-Wan laughed when the man grinned. “There’s nothing wrong with having emotions, Obi-Wan. We just can’t let them lead us to act without thought or reason.”

 

 

 

Chapter 9

Landing on Mandalore was a surreal experience and not one that Jaro had ever expected to have. He didn’t do diplomatic work due to preference rather than lack of ability. Yaddle had always told him he had an excellent disposition for diplomacy, but he found the work ultimately unsatisfying. He certainly saw the value of it, but he liked to see the impact of his work immediately whenever possible.

They’d met with another ship from the temple, and Ky had departed from the Guardian with little fanfare and an air of sadness. Jaro had contacted Mana had let her know that he was a little worried about Ky’s experience on Rattatak and perhaps his attachment to a little girl he’d barely gotten to know. Jaro couldn’t blame him there. Asajj was a charming child, and her circumstances made him feel savagely protective and he hadn’t been on the planet with her the way Ky had been.

Obi-Wan appeared calm, but their bond betrayed a little nervousness that Jaro found more relieving than concerning. It was perfectly normal to be nervous and the calm façade demonstrated a level of control impressive for the boy’s age. They’d been allowed to land at a spaceport not far from the Mand’alor’s palace. If the boy was curious about their surroundings, he didn’t look it as he wasn’t gawking or looking around at all.

Obi-Wan had put his hood up as they’d left the ship without being told to and looked every inch what he was—a very small Jedi Padawan. They were led into a large room. Armored Mandalorians lined the room on either side, leading right up to a throne where Jaster Mereel sat. He motioned them forward. His padawan had a short stride, so he kept his pace sedate so the boy wouldn’t have to hurry.

They stopped a few feet away from the Mand’alor, and Mereel stared at them for several long moments, then nodded. “Thank you for your trust.” He stood. “Most would’ve never brought such a young apprentice to this meeting, especially considering our reputation.”

“I know my padawan is perfectly safe in these circumstances,” Jaro said, and the Mand’alor nodded.

“Master Koth,” the Mand’alor began. “The data you forwarded me has been enlightening. I’ve discovered, since our last conversation, that Death Watch was on Galidraan. They’ve left since their plot has fallen apart. Tor Vizsla has tried to use the Jedi Order to assassinate my son.” He touched one of the Mandalorians close to him and started to pace in front of them. “I’m furious.”

“You have every right to be,” Eeth said. “The Galactic Senate is preparing sanctions for Galidraan and their membership to the Republic is in danger. We’re here to ask you what you want done regarding the governor’s betrayal.”

“I’m curious as to how you knew the evidence had been fabricated.”

“Master Tapal’s ship has an onboard AI who analyzed the material for me when I received it,” Eeth explained. “She is a unique program created by a former padawan of Master Tapal. Due to her age and experience, she has a very sophisticated perspective and seeks out additional points of view. In this instance, she asked Master Tapal’s padawan if he found anything in the data off-putting, and he did. He noted that twenty-one children were reported murdered on Galidraan in violation of your established code of conduct. Upon investigation, the AI noted that your followers have never caused the death of a child on purpose or by accident in any incident report she could find.

“It made no sense to me that your soldiers would violate such a fundamental principle for a situation that had zero personal investment for you. It was an act of barbarism, and that is what Death Watch stands for.”

“Master Tapal, may I speak with your padawan?” Jaster Mereel questioned.

“Of course,” Jaro said. “Jedi Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi.” He touched his padawan’s shoulder briefly, and Obi-Wan lowered his hood.

Jaster Mereel stared at him for a long moment. “Welcome to Mandalore, Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

“Thank you, sir,” Obi-Wan said.

“As you must know, my world is on the brink of civil war because of various factions and a conflict of ideals. Representatives of all three factions are in this room, I want to believe peace is possible, which is why they’re here even after everything that happened on Galidraan. Jedi proclaim themselves to be peacekeepers, which is why I invited the High Council to send a representative. I expected at least two Jedi—accomplished masters with the skills needed to act diplomatically.”

“I believe your expectations have been met,” Obi-Wan said. “Master Koth and Master Tapal have a combined 169 years of experience and knowledge to bring to this conversation.”

“And you,” Jaster said. “A young boy who pointed out a small piece of data that many overlooked entirely.”

“I have a limited perspective due to my age. As a child, of course, I noticed the deaths of my peers. Children are often collateral damage in the wars that adults engage in. We are murdered and worse on a regular basis across the entire galaxy on so often a basis that we’ve become a statistic,” Obi-Wan said. “I’m fortunate to have been raised in a safe environment, and I’ve had a thorough education at the temple on Coruscant. It isn’t a circumstance that all children in this galaxy can claim, and that is a genuine shame.”

“Does your Jedi Master treat you well?”

“Yes, of course,” Obi-Wan said. “I’m safe and sound. Even now, in this very moment, no matter your intentions or plans.”

“A child’s utter faith is a true gift,” Jaster said, and Jaro nodded. “Tell me something, Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

“If I can,” Obi-Wan said.

“What do you think of my situation with your limited perspective.”

“I think you’re on the brink of destroying your world,” Obi-Wan said. “And it appears that the other factions are more than happy to help you set the whole planet on fire. It’s like children squabbling over a toy. They’d rather destroy it than let one person have it.”

“Why do you think that?”

“From a purely outside perspective,” Obi-Wan began and stepped closer to Jaro. “The True Mandalorians seek to bring all Mandalorians under a single code of conduct with little regard for personal autonomy. It’s the makings of a tyrannical government, and such governments are inherently corrupt and abusive.

“Death Watch is full of terrorists who murder children. They are all dar’manda—soulless husks in armor they don’t deserve to wear.” He paused when someone hissed in fury. “And the New Mandalorians don’t understand what it means to be a pacifist in a hostile galaxy. Pacifism is a luxury and an entitlement—they want to sit with their principles and wax poetic about non-violence while others would either be required to protect them or watch them get killed. It makes their entire existence a fallacy. You cannot be a pacifist in a circumstance where you cannot survive unless someone else is fighting for you.

“If they want to live that life in truth then they should leave known space, find a planet that is both unmapped and unnoticed so they can live in complete isolation from the rest of the galaxy.”

“You are a fascinating child, Obi-Wan Kenobi,” Jaster said and slouched back in his throne. “You just called me a tyrant to my face. I’m enthralled.”

Jaro put his hand on Obi-Wan, and the boy moved closer still. “I’ve already put one person in jail for twenty years for assuming my padawan was available for the taking.”

Jaster grinned and threw a leg over the arm of his chair. “I’m sure that’s an interesting story. Very well, Master Koth, what do you suggest I do?”

“The Republic is seeking a list of names regarding the civilian massacre on Galidraan. They are to be tried for murder and terrorism before the Galactic Senate. If every single individual is turned over to the Republic, then we’ll consider the matter of Galidraan settled. Tostiv Puz, the former governor of Galidraan, is in custody and will face a multitude of charges for his actions.

“As to your pending civil war,” Eeth said and pulled a lightsaber out of his robe. He tossed it toward Jaster Mereel, and the man caught it easily. “You’re the Mand’alor, Jaster Mereel, and you owe it to your people to find a path that doesn’t see them all dead or mentally destroyed. You can’t allow Death Watch to continue to rampage around the galaxy, nor can you allow the New Mandalorians to commit cultural genocide against your people.”

“Cultural genocide?” A voice called out. “We don’t wish such a thing.”

“Obi-Wan,” Eeth said quietly. “Define the term cultural genocide.”

Obi-Wan took a deep breath. “To deliberately destroy the culture, belief systems, or religion of a group of people. In proposing to strip the True Mandalorians of their beliefs, armor, history, and religion—the New Mandalorians are advocating cultural genocide. In truth, it would make them no better than Death Watch, whose actions are genuinely disgusting.”

The silence was no kind of comfort at all. Movement to his left caught his attention. He grabbed his padawan’s arm and pulled Obi-Wan between him and Eeth even as he drew his lightsaber. But, Jaster Mereel had sprung off his throne and activated the lightsaber that Eeth had tossed him and had the black blade pointed at the chest plate of a large Mandalorian.

“You swore to me that you weren’t of the ones on Galidraan, Pre. Yet, you just moved toward a child with your weapon drawn,” Jaster snapped.

Jaro watched the helmeted Mandalorian slowly put a knife as long as his arm back in its sheath.

“He’s not a child—he’s a Jedi,” the man said lowly. “And they’re all the same—our enemy for generations, and you’ve invited them into our capitol. You’ve listened to their advice. You’ve accepted the darksaber from their hand like it was a gift they had the right to bestow, and this so-called child thinks we’re the disgusting ones.”

“It was not a gift,” Eeth said shortly. “I merely righted an ancient wrong. Also, Grand Master Yaddle is simply tired of your repeated attempts to steal the real one since your ancestors have stolen more than one replica from the display case at the temple on Coruscant. And the replication process is annoying. The whole situation is unreasonable.” He paused. “Much like the first and only Jedi to ever wield that lightsaber.”

“I’m an armed child,” Obi-Wan said, and they all focused on him. “And my lightsaber could cut through that cheap armor you’re wearing like it isn’t even there.”

Jaster laughed as he walked away from Pre Vizsla. “Jango.”

“Yes, Mand’alor.”

“Take the Republic’s list and hunt down every single member of Death Watch that was on Galidraan and turn them in,” Jaster ordered. “If they fight you, give them no quarter.”

“Mand’alor, I must protest. There must be a better way to bring the members of Death Watch home.”

Jaster sat down and put the darksaber down on the arm of his throne. “Jerec, your position is the height of foolishness. Anyone in Death Watch would murder every single member of your faction given a chance.” He waved a hand. “Death Watch is to be destroyed—either by renouncement or by death. They don’t serve our world or the way. Currently, neither do you. It’s your job in the days to come to figure out how to either integrate with the rest of us or leave the planet altogether.

“And for the record, we will not protect you from harm if you break with us and make your own government. Either fall in line or go away.”

* * * *

“I didn’t mean to call him a tyrant,” Obi-Wan blurted out as soon as they sat at the table with food. “But he asked my opinion. It seemed like I couldn’t be dishonest.”

Master Tapal laughed. “He knows very well he’s been acting like a tyrant, Padawan.”

“Still, it wasn’t very diplomatic of me,” Obi-Wan said. “I’ll do better.”

“You did fine,” Master Koth interjected as he brought caf to the table for himself and Master Tapal. “He wasn’t remotely offended. Mandalorians expect and prefer blunt honesty. Frankly, you’re a credit to the education system at the temple. You’re clearly very knowledgeable regarding galactic history Mandalorian culture, and you’re well-spoken.”

“I read three briefs from the Council of Reconciliation regarding Mandalorian culture and religion on the trip to the planet,” Obi-Wan said. “I had another picked out, but I ran out of time.”

Master Koth stared for a moment and looked toward Master Tapal. “Were your two previous padawans this way from the start?”

“Wilaj was borderline over-prepared for every single mission,” Master Tapal said, and Master Koth laughed. “Jos preferred to learn through experience but sought additional reading materials as needed.”

“I only speak four languages,” Obi-Wan said. “It could be a problem, and I couldn’t find a language primer on Mando’a.”

“Which languages?” Master Koth asked.

“Galactic Standard, Binary, Huttese, and Old Alderaanian,” Obi-Wan said. “I learned the last one so I could read historical texts from Alderaan, which have not been translated. The translation programs are blunt objects when it comes to old languages, and the nuance of a situation can be lost. A lot of galactic history has been documented on Alderaan and all historians are encouraged to learn Old Alderaanian as a result. Master Nu suggested I learn it years ago, and I agreed that it was necessary if I wanted to understand how the Republic came to be what it is today.”

“Huttese?” Master Koth questioned. “Handy, considering Jaro’s mandate, but a curious choice for a child raised in the Core.”

“It’s the second most prevalent spoken language in the galaxy. Or at least, that’s what everyone says. But I’d wager that it’s third and that Binary is actually the most prevalent spoken language due to the extraordinarily large number of class two droids in existence. But precious few organics would want to acknowledge that. In fact, most people don’t even add Binary to a list of languages they know even when they’re fluent.” Obi-Wan focused on his food. “Still, I didn’t mean to call him a tyrant to his face.” He paused. “Helmet.”

Master Tapal sighed. “He’d have adopted you on the spot if he could’ve gotten away with it. You could’ve been outright hostile, and he would’ve been more charmed than offended.”

“I couldn’t be a Mandalorian,” Obi-Wan said decisively. “They run around with guns, and that’s just uncivilized.” He was relieved when they both nodded their agreement. “I understand the need to know how to use such weapons, but it just seems rude to shoot someone.”

“Cutting off a limb isn’t rude?” Master Koth in an amused tone.

Obi-Wan shrugged. “They’re more likely to survive getting a limb cut off by a lightsaber than they are getting shot. At least the wound is cauterized, and they won’t bleed out. Plus, they can get a limb replaced.”

“Tiny Meatbag is more mercenary than me,” Ace said as he rolled into the kitchen and stuck his probe in a slot beside the dish-cleaning station. “Enid, the error in the cleaner will need a physical adjustment.”

“Thank you for the verification, Ace. I’ve added the task to the twins’ list,” Enid said. “And no one is more mercenary than you.”

“One day, I might space Rust Bucket, Master. I hope you aren’t really attached to him.”

Master Tapal laughed. “It wouldn’t be the first time he’s been spaced.”

“I know where you sleep, Tiny Meatbag,” Ace retorted as he rolled away.

“Obi-Wan,” Enid said. “You have an incoming holocomm from Coruscant. Shall I take a message?”

“I can take the call if I’m dismissed.”

Master Tapal nodded. “But finish your food.”

Obi-Wan nodded and picked up the bowl to take with him. “Thank you, sir.”

Enid had answered the call so by the time he got to his quarters from the lift, a little hologram of Siri Tachi was standing on his comm station in his room. Obi-Wan sat down at the desk and activated the holo capture.

“Hey.”

“I caught you during a meal?” She questioned. “I thought Quinlan said Master Tapal was running his ship on temple time.”

“He is—we were off the ship for an extended period of time this morning, so I’ve just now had time to eat lunch,” Obi-Wan said. “How are you?”

“I’m fine. I’ve accepted an apprenticeship with Master Gallia,” Siri said. “It’s all over the temple that you’re on Mandalore with your master. I was worried about you—being around all of those barbarians.”

“I’m fine,” Obi-Wan said with a frown. “Master Tapal is an accomplished field operative and perfectly capable of navigating our current circumstances.”

She nodded, but she was still frowning. “You’re…not meant for this kind of work, Obi-Wan. I’d rather you’d have gone to the Service Corps than do what you’re doing.”

“Should I be insulted by your lack of faith or what?” Obi-Wan questioned, and she crossed her arms over her chest. “Master Tapal would’ve never offered me an apprenticeship if he was worried about my ability to function as his padawan.”

“I think your performance at the academy has blinded you and him both to your abilities,” she retorted. “You perform well in isolation, certainly, but how will you really do out in the galaxy? Maybe you should’ve taken the apprenticeship with Master Jinn. He does diplomatic work exclusively and that’s less dangerous than whatever you’re currently doing on Mandalore.”

“I’m currently on a diplomatic mission,” Obi-Wan said dryly. “Did you just call me to demoralize me or what?”

“I’m not….” She huffed. “You’ve made a mistake, and I’m worried, as your friend, that you haven’t thought it through. Quinlan enables you, Obi-Wan, and he always has. Bant and Garen aren’t much better. Bant is just dazzled by you, and Garen is only ever concerned with his silly plants or the flight simulator.”

“I haven’t made a mistake,” Obi-Wan said firmly. “Apprenticing with Master Jinn would’ve ruined my life, and I’m certain of that. I don’t want to talk about him ever again.” He slouched back in his seat and shoved a piece of meat in his mouth as she sighed.

“I wish you’d take me half as seriously as you take Quinlan,” she muttered. “If he told you that you were making a mistake—you’d pay attention to him.”

“I have to go,” Obi-Wan said abruptly. “We’re due back for another meeting within the half hour.” He shut down the comm before she could respond.

He finished his food in silence and ignored the comm station when the message received light started to blink. She’d probably sent him a snotty message in response to his abrupt and rude departure from their conversation. He wasn’t interested in reading it. Obi-Wan stood and went back to the third floor to put his dishes away.

Master Koth was standing near the exit, so Obi-Wan went to him with a frown. “Sir.”

“Problem?” Master Koth questioned.

“Apparently, it’s all over the temple that I’m on Mandalore. Was this mission supposed to have any sort of security attached to it?”

“It’s a big political mess so there was no securing it,” Master Koth explained. “The Senate has already had a hearing on the matter of Galidraan and the actions of Death Watch on the planet.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Okay.”

“You’re out of sorts,” Master Tapal said shortly as he joined them. “What’s wrong?”

“Just….” Obi-Wan looked down at his boot. “It’s hard when you have someone in your life that you thought you could trust who turns out to have zero faith in your abilities. Over the last year, I’ve noticed that my friend, Siri, is only satisfied with my actions when I’m doing exactly what she expects me to do. Quin says that she has a crush on me, but I just think she sees someone she can shape into a person she can find acceptable. She suggested that we should take the Consular path together and work as partners in the field after we’re knighted.”

“Did this campaign of hers start after your empathy began to increase?” Master Koth questioned.

“Yes,” Obi-Wan answered.

“Perhaps she merely sees in you someone who could make her own career path more successful,” Master Koth said. “Did you argue with her?”

“She said I made a mistake in my apprenticeship and that I should’ve chosen Master Jinn. It’s awful because she knows that he makes me really uncomfortable. Quin told me that Siri was upset with the way that I left the temple. I apparently spent more time with Quin saying goodbye than I did her.”

His master nodded. “She’s having attachment issues.”

“Yes, Quin thinks so.” Obi-Wan frowned. “The matron in the crèche talked to us a lot about friendship groups and how we’ll be separated as we become full members of the Jedi Order. Siri didn’t seem to have any sort of problem during those conversations.”

“Physical maturity can cause shifts in personality and emotional attachments,” Master Tapal said. “But if your friend is going to be detrimental to your emotional state on a regular basis, then I will have to monitor your interactions with her.”

“I’m not going to take any more comm calls from her,” Obi-Wan said. “I’ll send her a message later letting her know. I just need to settle my mind. I’m sorry to be upset.”

“We all get upset,” Master Tapal said. “It’s how we manage our emotions that matter the most.”

“She’s been making me uncomfortable for a while,” Obi-Wan admitted. “She tried to kiss me a few months ago, and I ran away from her.”

Master Koth laughed briefly. “My apologies.”

“Quin laughed, too,” Obi-Wan muttered. “At any rate, I need to figure out a way to tell Siri that I prefer males exclusively, but I really don’t want to have that conversation with her. It doesn’t feel like any of her business. She doesn’t know that I’m from Stewjon or that I’m intersexed. Only Bant Eerin and Quinlan Vos of my friends’ group know. Bant because I needed advice when I started my reproductive cycle, and Quinlan because I basically tell him everything. He’s very easy to confide in, which I’ve always found more annoying than anything else.”

Master Tapal hummed under his breath. “Ah, well, we all have one of those friends. I’ve been telling Eeth things I’d rather not for decades.”

They left the ship, and Obi-Wan used the walk to release the irritation and hurt that the conversation with Siri had caused. He knew she cared about him and that her behavior was rooted in that. Obi-Wan just didn’t know how to make it clear to her that her brand of worry and care was actually quite cruel. Part of him wanted to send a comm to Quinlan about it, but it wasn’t fair to put all of his issues with Siri on his best friend.

They ended up sitting at a large table for the next meeting, and Obi-Wan was surprised to find himself sitting next to the Mand’alor at the head of the table. His master had been provided a bench beside him so at least Jaster Mereel understood not to separate them. Master Koth was seated across from them and four other people that they hadn’t been introduced to were in the other seats at the table. None of them were wearing helmets, which was interesting.

Obi-Wan focused on Pre Vizsla. He’d checked and discovered that the man wasn’t on the list of Death Watch members who’d been seen on Galidraan. But it really wasn’t much of a distinction. He’d surely done some terrible things since joining the terrorist splinter group.

“Do you think I owe you an apology, boy?” Pre Vizsla questioned.

“No, I have no need for insincere apologies.” Obi-Wan sat back in his chair and focused on Jaster Mereel, who was reading on a datapad that Master Koth had provided.

The Mand’alor put the datapad aside with a little frown and focused on Obi-Wan.

“We teach by example and demonstration, much like your Jedi Order,” he said. “Though most would not appreciate the comparison.”

“I have regular classwork as well,” Obi-Wan said. “Reading assignments at this point and I’ll have to write research papers and essays on various topics. I just passed my language assessment on Old Alderaanian, and I’m considered to be fluent. I tried to find the language lessons and a primer on Mando’a, but it doesn’t appear to exist on the HoloNet. I’ve put in a request with the temple librarian, but she hasn’t gotten back to me yet.”

“Why do you want to learn Mando’a?” the Mand’alor questioned.

“I like to learn languages. It teaches you a lot about a species. For instance, did you know there are no words that mean please in Huttese? It says a lot about the Hutts, right?”

“Certainly,” the Mand’alor said. “Jorn, get the boy a language datachip.” He sat back in his chair. “Tell me, Master Koth, why should I participate in the Republic?”

“You’ve had a seat on the Senate for several hundred years and it’s been empty for well on a hundred,” Master Koth said. “It would make it very difficult for a situation like Galidraan to happen again. You and your people could continue to do the work that you want with the benefit of having your contracts filed and sealed within your senator’s office. It would also ensure that you actually get paid, and the proof of contract would protect your people from inappropriate retaliation or unfounded accusations. It would allow you to verify situations and make sure that your people aren’t used to do something immoral.

“Additionally, it would permit your pacificist population to migrate as they will through your senator’s office on Coruscant.”

“Why should we leave our homeworld?” Jerec demanded.

“So, you intend to attempt cultural genocide?” Master Koth questioned. “I would warn you that such a campaign is considered to be a criminal act within the Republic, and Mandalore is a part of the Republic whether you’re represented or not. Additionally, it would be an act of civil war where your intentions are to strip your fellow Mandalorians of their culture and religion. Such a crime would be subject to prosecution by the Galactic Senate.”

The Mand’alor turned to him. “Who knew I could solve most of my problems by inviting a bunch of nosy politicians to have an opinion?”

“The only thing worse than a politician is the lawyers that normally come with them,” Obi-Wan said, and Jaster Mereel stared for a moment before laughing loud and long. “Also, the Jedi Order would be called upon to defend the True Mandalorians from insurrectionists on their world trying to destroy their whole culture and religion.” He paused. “I don’t know how many people you have to bring to a fight that you don’t want, Jerec, but I could make an educated guess on how many Jedi the Order would send to fend you off.”

The Mand’alor looked at him in silence for a long moment. “If you let me adopt you, I’ll let you carry the darksaber around.”

“That’s not much of a sacrifice for you since you became Mand’alor without it, and you haven’t a single clue how to really use it,” Obi-Wan retorted.

“I’ll let you sit on the throne.”

Obi-Wan made a face, and Master Tapal sighed.

“No, but if you’ve gotten attached, I guess I’ll take comms from you in the future,” Obi-Wan said, and several of the Mandalorians laughed. A datachip was placed down in front of him, and Obi-Wan only glanced briefly at the silent Mandalorian as he walked away. He picked up the chip with a pleased smile and put it in his robe pocket. “Can I share it with the librarian at the temple if she doesn’t already have it?”

“Do you think she’d want it?” The Mand’alor questioned, clearly surprised.

“Knowledge is precious,” Obi-Wan said earnestly. “Plus, if we’re going to be friends now, then we should learn your language. Don’t you think?”

* * * *

“So, to recap,” Mace Windu said warily. “Jaster Mereel, the Mand’alor, tried to adopt your padawan and when that failed, he agreed that the whole planet of Mandalore is now friends with the Jedi Order.”

Jaro just shrugged. “That about sums up the whole conversation. Eeth is on a ship headed to Coruscant with Duke Adonai Kryze, who will be taking on the role of senator for the sector. I’m due back on Dathomir within the next forty-eight hours to retrieve the data that the new Great Mother has found regarding the stolen child. Eeth has a report that he must deliver in person. The data is very sensitive.”

He noted that Yoda’s chair was missing entirely from the room and Even Piell had joined them. Jaro hadn’t checked his comms, but he expected there to be an announcement about Yoda’s retirement from the Council. It was startling, and it made him uncomfortable as Yoda had been the Grand Master of the Jedi Order Jaro’s entire life. He appreciated the normalcy even if he hadn’t always enjoyed Yoda’s methods.

“Where is your little padawan?” Jocasta questioned.

“Currently swinging back and forth across the training arena with his grappling hook,” Jaro admitted and got a few laughs. “He’s thrilled with it. Twobit is off to the side, giving him a continuous safety lecture. The last time I checked, the boy was upside down.”

“Ah, I’ve not had such an urge in several hundred years,” Yaddle said. “Here’s hoping he hasn’t eaten recently. He’ll probably get sick.”

Jaro was grateful, as ever, to have a full complement of droids on board. “Tink, go tell that child if he gets sick, he’s cleaning up the mess.”

“I’d clean up for him,” Tink retorted and trotted off. “Obi-Wan, are you okay?”

“They’re all prepared to baby him,” Jaro said, and Yaddle laughed. “I believe that I’ll be well-received on Dathomir, and Eeth can rejoin me after he’s settled the Mandalorians on whichever Senate aid is going to be stuck with them.” He glanced around at the various holograms. “Are you going to tell me where he is? Or should I just be surprised?”

“Grand Master Yoda has retired to the academy to teach permanently,” Yaddle said. “He’ll focus on meditation and Force communion.”

Jaro nodded. “And what should I expect from him when it comes to my padawan?”

“Qui-Gon chose an apprentice yesterday. An initiate named Bruck Chun,” Jocasta said. “He has requested to be secluded at the temple exclusively for the next three years, and I’ve arranged a sabbatical with the Council of Reconciliation for him. Master Jinn would also like your padawan to know that he’s sought mental health counseling and that he still thinks he’s a brat.”

Jaro nodded. “He should probably avoid saying that to any Mandalorians that show up at the temple for a visit.”

“They’re going to visit us?” Jocasta questioned, eyes widening with shock.

“Oh, certainly. Since we’re friends now,” Jaro said as seriously as he could.

“Going forward, Jaro, we would appreciate it if you would assert a little more control over your padawan’s overtures of friendship,” Jocasta said dryly.

“It’s worked out very well for the Republic,” Jaro responded, and she sighed loudly. “And Mandalore. We’ve averted a civil war, and the Mand’alor has agreed to hunt down Death Watch for us. I’m not seeing a downside. His first week has gone very well. We extracted a fellow Jedi from a precarious situation, had a great first meeting with the Witches of Dathomir, and prevented a civil war on Mandalore. I’m tempted to introduce him to the first Hutt I can find just to see what happens.”

Obi-Wan appeared at his side with a datapad in hand. “Hutts eat Humans.”

“True,” Jaro said. “And you’re small.”

“I have no desire to be a Hutt snack,” Obi-Wan stated, and Mace Windu, of all people, burst out laughing. “Also, I didn’t throw up. You made Tink all worried for no reason. She tried to get Twobit to take my temperature.” He paused. “Manually.”

Jaro laughed before he could help himself.

“They’re in the infirmary discussing which is more accurate for Humans—oral or rectal. The conversation is violating all of my boundaries,” Obi-Wan said firmly. “And I’m more than willing to space the entire crew, Master Tapal.”

Jaro focused on the Council. “I have to go, obviously. He managed to avoid causing a diplomatic incident on two different worlds then turns around and incites a civil war on my ship.”

“May the Force be with you,” Jocasta said dryly and ended the holoconference with a push of a button.

“And with you,” Jaro muttered with a sigh, then looked down at his padawan, who was frowning and pouting at the same time.

 

 

 

Chapter 10

“We don’t know much,” Nomi said as she came on board the ship with Asajj on her hip. “We found this device.” She offered a datapad. “And one of the Nightbrothers confessed to knowing about the ship. Talzin knew how to pilot it, but no one else on the planet has the skills to do it.”

“We can send someone here to help you with the ship,” Jaro said as he accepted the datapad. “Anything else?”

“There was a Nightbrother whom Talzin called the Keeper. He’s dead now, along with his two sons. We don’t know the context as everyone involved in the incident, including witnesses, were killed afterward. Talzin made sure of it. We think it’s because the creature named Darth Sidious was here, and his identity was to be protected.

“Talzin feared him, but she also coveted his attention,” Nomi said as she put Asajj down, and the child darted off shouting for Obi-Wan.

“He’s on the bridge, little one,” Jaro said, and the little girl changed direction. He focused on Nomi. “What did this Keeper do?”

“No one knows, but he had Maul for several months after Talzin gave him to Sidious. He was in a secluded part of the Nightbrother’s settlement all that time, and no one saw him,” Nomi took a deep breath. “I don’t believe it was anything good. Talzin was very good at creating boundaries amongst the clans and enforcing secrecy. I’m not sure how to rectify that.”

“Has anyone challenged your leadership?”

Nomi shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “No, so many were afraid of Talzin that they are surprised and horrified that I defeated her so easily. But it wasn’t easy. I was exhausted for days afterward. I had to use every bit of magick I had in my body to kill her. But I wanted my baby back, and….” Her gaze drifted in the direction that Asajj had run to. “And I hoped that you’d come to Dathomir because you’d heard something about her being taken. It seemed a silly hope.”

“Had I heard such a thing, I would’ve come here,” Jaro said.

“Asajj told me that it’s your job to free slaves,” Nomi said quietly.

“Yes,” Jaro said. “I free slaves and see slave distribution disrupted and outright destroyed. I do everything that I can.”

Nomi nodded. “Talzin and several Great Mothers before her have kept the Nightbrothers in servitude. Asajj found out about it, and she was devastated that there were slaves on Dathomir. She asked if I was going to make her a slave again.”

“It must have been difficult.”

“I took her right over to the Nightbrother’s settlement and freed them—I’ve outlawed enslavement and indentured servitude on the whole planet. I want my daughter to be proud of me.”

Jaro nodded. “Tell Kycina that I will do everything I can to find Maul, and I’ll check in when I have information. Have you searched the ship?”

“Oh! Yes, and it had a small droid on board. I asked the droid where the ship had been but it had no memories of taking any trips. It did offer to download the astronavigation data. Fortunately, for everyone involved, Asajj understood its language.” She pulled a datachip out of her skirt pocket. “I should’ve given you this first. I have no idea what it was talking about.”

“It could be exactly what I need,” Jaro said. “Ace!” The astromech rolled into view. “Did the droid on the ship look like this guy?”

“Yes,” Nomi said with a smile. “Exactly like that.”

“The droid was probably used to help pilot the ship, and a memory wipe means that someone was trying to keep a secret. I’ll send a request to the temple to have a Jedi come to Dathomir to teach you how to use the ship.”

“Can it be Ky?” Asajj questioned as she appeared beside him and snagged one of his fingers. “Please.”

“I’ll certainly ask,” Jaro said. “But Ky might have already been sent on a new mission. He works as an investigator and helps the Jedi locate criminals.”

“I’ll send him a comm and ask, too,” Asajj said brightly. “Mother, Obi-Wan is studying a star. He has to write a paper on gravitational anomalies. He said he has to document what he learns and demonstrate that he understands the concepts.”

Nomi stared at her daughter for a moment, then turned to Jaro. “Sometimes she says things that make no sense at all to any of us.”

Jaro laughed. “I think you’ll find that’s just part of raising a child. They have an entirely different perspective from us from practically the start. Sometimes it’s frustrating, but it can also be life-changing. Obi-Wan is my third padawan, and each of them has enriched my life and taught me things that I never expected to learn.”

Nomi nodded and picked her daughter up. “Yes, I can see how that would be the case. Thank you for returning, Master Tapal, for the information.”

“Call me Jaro,” he said. “I’m glad to see that Asajj is adjusting to being home.”

“It’s nice here,” Asajj said. “There’s no war.”

Nomi’s eyes fluttered shut briefly, and she pressed a kiss to her daughter’s cheek. “Do your padawans break your heart, too?”

“Yes,” Jaro admitted. “One way or another, that’s the burden of loving a child.”

Nomi smiled then. “It’s a good burden. Thank you again. We look forward to hearing from you, no matter what news you have to deliver. Just knowing would be a relief, Jaro.”

“Let Kycina know that giving up has never been and never will be acceptable to me,” Jaro said, and she nodded.

“Yes, of course.” She paused as she started to leave the ship because Asajj whispered in her ear. Nomi turned to face him again. “May the Force be with you.”

“And with you,” Jaro said.

Nomi nodded and hurried down the ramp.

* * * *

The astronavigation data from the ship was a mess. Someone had clearly tried to wipe the ship’s computer as well, but that was inherently difficult to accomplish due to the complicated structure of a ship’s navigational computer.

“Enid, time on reconstruction of the data?”

“Twenty-two hours,” Enid responded. “But my initial assessment of the data isn’t positive. Statistically speaking, the data is leaning toward the Hydian Way trade route.”

“Exclusively?”

“Yes,” Enid said. “Which is odd. The model of the computer is designed to keep navigational data of the ten previous trips.”

“Programmed destinations?” Jaro questioned.

“There should be at least five. I would expect Dathomir to be one, so we will hopefully have four more to investigate,” Enid said. “That data is…jumbled.”

“Jumbled,” Jaro repeated and sighed. “Take a copy of the datapad as well.” He put the device on the holotable. Obi-Wan was seated on a bench against the wall, working on his own datapad. “Issues?”

“No, sir,” Obi-Wan said and set aside his datapad. “Asajj seemed to be in good spirits. She said that her mother taught her how to clean water with magick so she never has to worry about dirty water again.”

“That must have been a relief to her.”

“Yes, and it’s made me curious about Dathomir’s magick. We have little to no information on it as far as the librarian on Coruscant is concerned. She found it quite confounding as well. I’m hoping that a better relationship with Dathomir going forward will allow us to learn more about their use of the Force.”

“I agree,” Jaro said. “For the record, I don’t know how to use the Force to clean water. It is a skill that every single Jedi could benefit from. One of the most dangerous parts of being stranded anywhere is the inability to find potable water.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Where will we go next?”

“Kashyyyk, so we can pick up the blumfruit Mila has been promised, and it’s the closest source,” Jaro said. “I told Ky I would keep his promise. Mila wouldn’t hold it against him due to the circumstances, but she’ll be pleased to receive it and keeping a good relationship with her is to the benefit of the Order. You can meet Chieftain Tarfful. I’ve let King Grakchawwaa know that I’m coming, and he’s referred me to one of his chieftains, who has a matter to discuss with a Jedi. They were preparing to contact the temple when I sent my request.”

“Do you think they have a big problem?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“No, they’d reach out to the Senate directly if that were the case,” Jaro said. “Occasionally, they’ll find a Force-related artifact on the planet due to the historical use of the world by the Zeffonians.”

“Zeffonians,” Obi-Wan repeated and picked up his datapad. “That’s vaguely familiar.” Jaro watched him tap on the datapad for a few moments, then set it aside again. “Kashyyyk will have trees.”

“Lots of trees,” Jaro said in amusement. “And yes, you’ll be able to leave the ship to see one. We’re three hours out from the planet, so you meditate and settle your mind. Kashyyyk is a Force vergence deeply invested in the Living Force. Many Jedi find the world overwhelming upon first exposure.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Yes, sir. I’ll get started now.”

“And change your clothes,” Jaro suggested. “You won’t need a robe due to the heat.”

“Will the heat bother you?” Obi-Wan questioned curiously.

“No, I have a double coat,” Jaro said, and his padawan looked confused. “I have an insulation layer of fur that regulates my temperature in most environments. I’m not as insulated as a Wookiee, and I obviously have exposed skin that I must take care with my skin in extreme environments. My species is rather robust compared to yours, but I will keep your comfort in mind as we travel.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “I’m not worried about me. I’ll go change. I hope I get to climb one of the trees!”

Jaro shook his head as the boy trotted off. Fortunately, Wookiees tended to love children of all species. He just hoped he didn’t have to fend off another adoption offer.

* * * *

Jaro took a deep breath as he was offered a small Wookiee. He accepted the pup, who was clearly pleased to see him. The toddler Wookiee probably weighed around forty pounds and Force energy was swirling around him like a gentle storm.

“How old is he?” Jaro questioned.

“Just five,” Chieftain Tarfful said. “His parents are honored that he has been gifted by the Force and they believe he is ready to go to the temple on Coruscant. I was going to reach out to Master Yoda, but you were coming here. It was fortuitous, old friend. His name is Gungi.”

The boy rested his head on Jaro’s shoulder with a pleased growl.

“He’s clearly keen to be with his own kind,” Tarfful continued.

“Yes,” Jaro said in agreement and looked out over the balcony where Obi-Wan was with a Wookiee who had been thrilled to show him real trees.

“Chewbacca will take care with your padawan,” Tarfful assured.

Jaro nodded and focused on Gungi, who was relaxed on his chest. “I don’t know if the current crèche matron knows Shyriiwook, but we’ll arrange for a droid translator to be his companion at all times to make sure his needs are thoroughly met.”

“We know we can trust the Jedi with our pups. Gungi came from a litter of three and is the only one with the Force,” Tarfful said. “The parents would like to receive quarterly comms regarding his welfare.”

“Yes, of course,” Jaro said with a quick smile. The boy was so sweetly content in his arms that he was kind of startled by how comforting it was for him. “I’ve heard that having a Wookiee pup in the temple is a joy. They’re very charming and create a boisterous atmosphere that makes the crèche a very happy place to be.”

“My mate says that pups are sweet in nature, so we don’t toss them away into the forest,” Tarfful said, and Jaro laughed.

“Would his parents like to see him before I leave?” Jaro questioned.

“No, they’ve said their goodbyes this morning and don’t wish to upset him before he leaves home,” Tarfful said. “We’ve done our best to prepare him for his new circumstances. I believe he will excel.”

“Yes, I agree,” Jaro said and patted the boy’s back. “The Force is strong and content within him. I will take him directly to Coruscant and deliver him into the hands of the crèche matron.”

He looked out to where Obi-Wan was halfway up a tree with the Wookiee named Chewbacca. It wasn’t the tallest tree within range, but it was large, sprawling, and beautiful. The boy was clearly having the time of his life.

“Children are precious,” Tarfful said.

“Yes,” Jaro agreed. “Recently, I met a small Zabrak girl who had been stolen and put into slavery. I returned her to Dathomir and to her mother’s arms. I don’t need rewards for the work that I do, but it was gratifying to see that child returned to love.”

“You are a credit to the Jedi Order, Jaro,” Tarfful said. “I have a gimer stick for your master. You might as well take it to Yaddle when you go to Coruscant.”

“Might as well,” Jaro said in agreement and watched Obi-Wan use his grapple hook to swing from one tree to another.

* * * *

“Why do we have a Wookiee pup?” Obi-Wan asked in a hushed voice even as Jaro put the Gungi down on a cot that he’d had Twobit set up on the bridge.

“Because he’s a Force-sensitive, and his parents have deemed him old enough to be sent to the crèche,” Jaro said quietly as Gungi curled on his side in his sleep. “We’re going to take him to Coruscant, and it’ll be a good opportunity to pick up Eeth as he wishes to be a part of the operation to retrieve Maul if we can find him.”

Obi-Wan nodded and stared at Gungi with a smile on his face. “He’s adorable. Like a stuffy bear.”

“Chieftain Tarfful said that Wookie pups are sweet as a survival mechanism,” Jaro said dryly.

“That’s actually a popular theory across species,” Obi-Wan said. “Babies are cute to encourage their parents to keep and protect them. Will he be sad to be taken from home? Is he too old?”

“No, he’s not too old, and his parents have prepared him for his new little adventure. There will be an adjustment period, but Wookiees historically have always done very well in the Order,” Jaro said. “He’ll spend at least twelve years in the crèche before he’s old enough to go the academy. Wookiees live for hundreds of years and mature slowly. They also grow slowly so he’ll be around your current size for a decade more as well. You currently weigh more than he does.”

“You mean to say he’s all fluff?” Obi-Wan said in amusement. “We could keep him for a while.”

Jaro laughed. “No. You may stare at him for the next seven hours, then we’ll be giving him directly to Matron Sheva.”

“We could go slower,” Ace said as he rolled into place beside Obi-Wan. “So we can keep the fluffy child for longer.”

Jaro sighed as he plotted the course and activated the hyperdrive at full power. He had no reason not to make best speed to Coruscant, as he could refuel at the temple, and it would be best for the mission ahead of them. Still, Grungi was radiating happiness even in his sleep, and it was nice.

“I’ve never been this content in my life,” Obi-Wan said as he stared at the pup. “I’m so sad we didn’t have a Wookie pup with us during my years in the crèche. And now I have to learn Shyriiwook. One day, he’ll be a Jedi with me and I want to make sure I can understand him.”

“We’ll get you the language course while we’re at the temple,” Jaro said. “It’s not something you’ll be able to speak, as you probably already know, but I’ve never met a Wookie who didn’t understand Basic. I’m sure his parents have made sure he’s fluent. We’ll get him a droid translator, who will act as his companion throughout his life as a Jedi.”

“That’s great,” Obi-Wan said. “He’s so happy. He’s like a little ball of sunshine.”

“A credit to his parents who nurtured him very well,” Jaro said as Obi-Wan settled in the co-pilot seat. “Plus, he was born within a Force vergence. Such children always have a very gentle and amazing relationship with the Force. Some call them children of the Force.”

“That’s what it feels like,” Obi-Wan said in agreement and glanced back to the cot. “Did you encourage him to sleep?”

“No, but I imagine he’s worn out from having his goodbye celebration with his family this morning. They would’ve had a little party for him. It is a great honor to be born Force-sensitive on Kashyyyk,” Jaro explained. “On some worlds, it’s the exact opposite.”

“I think I was basically tossed at the Jedi representative on Stewjon as soon as my parents realized that I was Force-sensitive. I can’t say it’s an honor on Stewjon. From what I’ve read, I’d have been considered a burden from practically birth because they couldn’t afford to get attached to a child they’d be encouraged to part with. They even have a whole family detachment process they go through where the parents basically have a memorial service for the child they wished they’d had.”

“That’s appalling,” Jaro said. “I didn’t know anything about that.”

“I had to look hard to find it,” Obi-Wan admitted. “I also bought a book that wasn’t in the temple library. I can give it to you if you’d like to read it.”

“Did it upset you?” Jaro questioned.

“At first, but then I was relieved for my parents that they had a way of processing whatever emotions they had in regards to giving me to the Jedi Order,” Obi-Wan said. “And I’m grateful that they allowed me to join the Order because it feels like my destiny to be a Jedi Knight.” He cleared his throat. “Do you often bring children to the temple?”

“I’ve done it over the years—most often because the Council has asked me. But there have been times when I’ve found a Force-sensitive child in slavery with no available parents. I’m very careful with such things as I don’t believe that it’s right to ignore what parents want when it comes to their children.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “There’s a note in my file. My parents don’t want to meet when I’m an adult. That hurt to find out, but I was never sure if I wanted to meet them anyway.”

“I’ve met my parents twice,” Jaro said. “Once shortly after, I was knighted, then again when my father was made the senator of the Lasan system ten years ago.”

“Is he still the senator?” Obi-Wan asked curiously.

“Yes.”

“I’ve never noticed a senator named Tapal,” Obi-Wan said and picked up his datapad.

“No, you wouldn’t,” Jaro said. “I have my mother’s surname. It was to honor her great-grandfather, who was also a Jedi. He was killed in battle over a hundred years ago. I’ve never looked it up, as it felt like it would be hurtful to know the details. My father’s name is Jaren Elan, and my mother’s name is Choli. I have six siblings whom I’ve never met. They know about me, of course. My parents told me that my family was very proud to have given the Jedi Order such a successful and talented Force-user.”

“That sounds….”

“Patronizing and obtuse,” Jaro supplied, and his padawan laughed. “I’ve not attempted to interact with them since. They can take pride in my work at a distance.”

“Inappropriate jerks,” Obi-Wan muttered.

“Speaking of,” Jaro said. “Master Jinn has taken a padawan. He offered and was accepted by Initiate Bruck Chun.”

“Wow.” Obi-Wan took a deep breath and pulled his legs up as he got comfortable in the co-pilot seat. “That’s a lot.”

“He’s also in mind healing and still thinks you’re a brat.”

“Ah, well, I’m fine with that part,” Obi-Wan said. “He’s going to learn really quick that my flavor of brathood is much preferred over the one he’s stuck with. Bruck is going to be a lot of work. Thankless, demeaning work that may very well fix him in the long run if he actually tries to make Bruck the Jedi he could be.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“Well, Bruck has potential, but not all of it is good. He has a lot of ego to work through, but maybe that’s exactly the kind of thing Master Jinn can focus on. He’ll see the parts of Bruck that could go wrong and maybe correct them.”

“You think Initiate Chun is on the brink of going dark?” Jaro questioned.

“Bruck is a bully and he has a very narrow perspective of what it means to be a Jedi Knight,” Obi-Wan said. “I don’t expect anyone to walk the same path as me, but I can see how far off-track some of my peers are. Bruck’s desire to be a Jedi Knight is rooted in selfishness, and he has a cruel personality. Plus, he actually hates my guts.”

“You think that situation is that far gone?” Jaro questioned, alarmed by the idea that anyone would actively hate his padawan. “Are you certain?”

“Yes, and so is Quinlan,” Obi-Wan said. “Is that something we should’ve reported to someone?”

“Yes,” Jaro admitted. “You should’ve. I’ll speak with Jocasta in private.”

“We can sleep on the ship, right?” Obi-Wan questioned. “The guest quarters are tight and low on privacy.”

“Agreed, and yes, we’ll stay on the ship if we have to stay overnight, which I don’t anticipate,” Jaro said. “I can’t stand the guest rooms. Eeth says I’ve gotten spoiled by my own mattress.”

“My mattress is nice,” Obi-Wan said. “I’m okay with being spoiled.”

Gungi sat up and stretched his arms. “I’m hungry.”

“He’s hungry,” Jaro translated. “Take him to the rec area and get him some food—berries, spicy meats, high fiber grains.”

“Great,” Obi-Wan said and stood. He offered Gungi his hand as the pup left the cot. “Maybe we can eat in front of the big window.”

“Enid will translate for you,” Jaro said and smiled when Ace immediately followed the two children toward the lift.

* * * *

Gungi was very observant, and Obi-Wan found him easy to communicate with, even without Enid’s very handy translations. The little boy had been overtly pleased when Obi-Wan said he’d been learning his language as soon as possible.

He’d fed the pup a bowl of spicy meats and vegetables that seemed to be the right choice. Ace was fascinated by the Wookiee pup, but he wasn’t being rude to him, so Obi-Wan counted that as a win.

“It’s very good,” Gungi said and paused as Enid translated for him. “Can I have more of the white pieces?”

“Those are potatoes,” Obi-Wan said. “And yes. Did you want to add spice to them?”

“Yes, please.” Gungi set aside the empty bowl, and Obi-Wan pulled a second out of the synth as soon as it appeared.

He put the first bowl in the cleaner and returned to the table with the snack of meat and cheese pieces he’d gotten for himself.

“Are you a padawan?”

Obi-Wan considered Enid’s translation which was much shorter than the sounds that had come out of Gungi’s mouth. “Yes, I was honored to be chosen by Master Tapal. I grew up on Coruscant in the crèche with Matron Sheva. She’s a Togruta and very nice. I think you’ll like her a lot.”

“I want to be a Jedi Knight,” Gungi said and put a spoon full of potatoes into his mouth.

“If you study and work hard, then I think you’ll do just fine, Gungi,” Obi-Wan said, and the Force warmed around them. “The Force likes you.”

“I like her,” Gungi said and rocked happily.

“Be careful,” Obi-Wan said and steadied him. “You’ll fall off the stool.”

“Have you?” Gungi questioned and laughed.

“Twice,” Obi-Wan confessed, and the boy laughed some more. “But don’t tell Master Tapal.”

“You have no secrets from me, Padawan,” Master Tapal said as he entered the rec area, and Obi-Wan grinned at him.

Gungi tipped again as he giggled, and Obi-Wan caught him carefully.

“We must keep this fluffy child,” Ace said, and Master Tapal grinned at the droid.

“I’m starting to feel replaced,” Obi-Wan muttered.

“Ah, fortunately for you, this one is full to the brim with the influence of the Living Force,” Master Tapal said as he easily plucked Gungi up the stool when he almost tipped off it again. “And he’ll need a master equally invested.”

Gungi threw his arms around Master Tapal’s neck as his master sat down on the bench and pulled the bowl of meat close to them.

“Finish your food, pup,” Master Tapal urged, and Gungi picked up his spoon happily. He focused on Obi-Wan. “Give yourself an hour of physical training. I’d like to see you work on your upward movement with and without the grapple hook to increase your confidence within the Force. I’ve set up an obstacle course for you in the training arena.”

“Yes, sir,” Obi-Wan said and put his empty plate in the cleaner.

He quickly made his way down the arena and took a moment to settle himself before he took a running leap at the shortest tower. He caught the edge and climbed up onto it. The obstacle course looked more like a puzzle than anything he’d ever done at the academy. Obi-Wan recognized quickly that there was going to be just one way to reach the very top of the arena. Grapple points were purposefully short in supply.

As he jumped up to the next point, he noted that Master Tapal had taken a seat at the top of the arena with Gungi still in his arms. He took his time making each decision since it was the first time he’d ever done an exercise similar to it. Part of him really didn’t understand why he was doing it.

In the temple, calisthenics were a mixture of Force exercises, running, martial arts, and gymnastics. But the kind of climbing he was doing wasn’t something he’d ever done in a classroom setting. It was interesting, however, and he liked the challenge.

“You seem confused,” Master Tapal called down to him.

“This is just a different kind of experience for me,” Obi-Wan confessed.

“Ah, well, temple instructors don’t handle this kind of training as it’s very individual, and they have large groups to instruct. An exercise like this is about preparing you for fieldwork, and that’s a master’s job,” Master Tapal explained. “After this, I’ll want you to write down how you feel about the exercise and which parts challenged you the most.”

“Yes, sir,” Obi-Wan said and took a deep breath as he made his next choice. He did feel very challenged and he had to admit that was kind of unusual.

He jumped to the next obstacle, his fingers skimmed along the surface, and he hit the floor. Fortunately, the crash mats had been rolled out so he sort of bounced. Obi-Wan rolled over onto his back and took a deep breath before he sat up then rolled to his feet.

“Anything hurt?” Master Tapal questioned.

“No, sir, it just startled me,” Obi-Wan admitted. “Sorry.”

“I expect hard work, not perfection, Obi-Wan,” Master Tapal said.

“Yes, Master,” Obi-Wan said and took a deep breath before starting the course over again.

The fall had kind of released the pressure a little so he was relaxed as he made the first jump. When he looked for his master, he was gone from the top of the arena and was instead sitting on the arena floor not far from where he’d fallen. Gungi was relaxed in his lap, eating a large piece of blumfruit.

“The Physical Force is available to you despite your affinity for the Unifying Force,” Master Tapal said. “You’ll find it will embrace you more when your need is dire. There are Jedi in today’s age who don’t really embrace the athleticism that the Force gives us for a variety of reasons. They don’t need it, or it’s unnatural for their species or body type, or they associate it too closely with a fight which they avoid at all costs.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “It feels good to move. It’s like the Force wants to help me.”

“The Force is invested in us—our minds, bodies, and souls are influenced by her as we move through our lives. That’s why staying in the light is so important. When one of us falls to darkness, it diminishes the Force’s influence and perspective.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Why the puzzle?”

“Problem solving,” Master Tapal said. “You’ll be called upon to act fast in the field and figure out how to make things work for you on the fly. Your survival depends on your ability to solve problems quickly and accurately.”

Obi-Wan focused on the exercise at hand and reviewed the puzzle as a whole before he made his next move. It felt better to know why he was being asked to do something and he figured that was a failure on his part that he could work on in private. Master Tapal shouldn’t be made to explain himself every single time he introduced something new.

 

 

 

Chapter 11

Gungi decided to leave the ship on his own two feet, but ended up clutching Obi-Wan’s hand as they walked down the ramp. To his surprise, they had a whole little crowd of people to greet them. Both Master Yaddle and Master Yoda were in attendance, and they looked thrilled by Gungi’s arrival. He realized then that no one had been told that Gungi had even been born. Maybe it was always done that way so the arrival of a Wookie pup to the temple was a unique surprise.

Master Yaddle stepped forward and offered her hands to Gungi, who released Obi-Wan with a pleased roar and sought out the grand master’s attention. “Welcome to the Jedi Order, Gungi.”

Gungi responded by hugging her. He was already bigger than her, but Obi-Wan was relieved he was quite gentle with the embrace. He watched as the baby Wookiee was introduced to most of the Council and Matron Sheva. He chattered the whole time and continued to practically glow within the Force.

Master Nu approached them with a pleased smile. “I checked; he’s our first pup in 500 years. We don’t have a proper translation droid for him. I was wondering since you’ve spent time with him, Jaro, if you’d be willing to go custom order him one?”

“Yes, of course,” Master Tapal said. “He’s a sweet boy, but he’ll miss his mother a lot at his age. So, we should keep that in mind.”

She nodded. “Get him exactly what he needs, Jaro. A droid that will stay with him for many decades will be to his benefit.”

Obi-Wan looked around and found Gungi in Matron Sheva’s arms. The boy was rubbing his face against her lekku and practically purring. He knew that feeling very well. Matron Sheva was the most comforting person in the whole temple. She was a member of the Education Corps and was absolutely brilliant. Obi-Wan had learned some of his best and most used skills in studying from her.

A half-hour later, they were in a shopping center not far from the temple. Obi-Wan was familiar with it as it was a favorite of the initiates and one of three places where the temple guards would take them to shop. The place was crowded, but fortunately, people were giving Master Tapal a lot of room, which worked out for Obi-Wan as well.

He caught a glimpse of Quinlan and started to call out to him, but his master put a hand on his shoulder.

“Padawan.” Master Tapal’s voice was firm, and it was very startling as he’d never taken that tone with Obi-Wan before. “I’ve left you ignorant of a very important matter. Do not speak to anyone in this crowd for any reason. Come now.”

Obi-Wan flushed and said nothing as he was guided toward a droid shop down a narrow ally. His hands were shaking a little as he pulled his robe close to him and burrowed further into the hood to hide his face. He hated the way his complexion betrayed his emotional state every single time. Master Tapal’s touch was firm but not rough, so he couldn’t account for how upset he was becoming.

Ignorance was foreign to him, he realized and to be told he was ignorant on any subject was appalling. Realistically, Obi-Wan knew there were millions upon millions of things he did not know, but this felt like a fundamental issue and that he’d almost made a very grave error.

Once in the shop, Master Tapal released his shoulder and briefly cupped his head. “I’m not angry with you, Obi-Wan. I’m irritated with myself. We’ll discuss the issue in private after we’ve completed our task for Gungi. Eeth should be ready to depart at that point as well.”

Obi-Wan nodded.

Master Tapal went to the counter, and a Human male left the back of the store. “Good afternoon.”

“Master Jedi, how can I be of assistance?”

“I need a small droid, sturdy in design, with a sweet personality and an accurate, unfiltered translation protocol. She should be loyal, cheerful, and nurturing. Her voice should be crisp, clear, and neutral in accent. She is for a child, but will remain, in some form or another, with this individual hopefully his entire life.”

The man nodded. “How small? Seeker size or something along the lines of a techno droid?”

“In between,” Master Tapal said. “She should be able to cling to her owner.”

“So, more of an exploration droid model,” the man said. “But probably a little bigger than the traditional one. I have a few options for bodies and programs. How old is the child currently?”

“He’s five,” Master Tapal said. “I’ll need a confidentiality agreement before I can discuss anything else regarding the child specifically.”

“Oh, of course.” The man pulled a datapad out and started to work on it. “It’s not often that I get a commission like this from the temple.”

“It’s more a matter of privacy than it is security,” Master Tapal assured. “You aren’t being put in a dangerous position.”

“The Jedi aren’t known to do such a thing,” the man said and offered the pad. “A standard contract with a privacy clause enforceable by Coruscant Security Forces. You can check with them, of course, but I’ve never violated a privacy clause in my life. It’s just not good for business.”

Master Tapal reviewed the contract, nodded, and signed it. “Send a copy to the temple’s legal office along with the invoice for the droid.” He paused. “I’m Jaro Tapal and this is my padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

He smiled. “I’m Hagi Morrow, droid designer and smith. I used to work for Serv-O-Droid on Naboo, but I retired from the company and opened up a custom shop here on Coruscant as a retirement plan.”

“You chose to retire on a city-world after spending your life on Naboo?” Master Tapal questioned.

“Nature is highly overrated,” Hagi said dryly. “Especially when you’re allergic to trees, and no medication will fix it. Give me manufactured air any day, thank you.”

Master Tapal smiled. “The child is a Wookiee. So, the droid will need to be sturdy but also easily repaired so no exotic parts in her construction. Her program should recognize his maturity as his ages. We wouldn’t want her to treat him like a child when he’s an adult.”

“It’s been a very long time since we’ve had a Wookiee Jedi,” Hagi said. “That’s exciting.”

“Very, and he’s charming as pups are often seen to be,” Master Tapal said. “He’ll be secluded in the crèche for years, so don’t expect to see him before he’s at the academy.”

“Yes, of course,” Hagi said. “Best to keep him safe. I’ve been working on something new—sent the design off to Serv-O-Droid but they declined to market it. I have the prototype.” He left the counter and quickly returned with a droid. He put it on the counter and activated it.

The droid stood up on two legs and twisted its little body like it was stretching.

“It has firmware but no software,” the man explained. “So, let’s start with a nanny protocol then add the translator on top. With the nanny being the fundamental personality—it will ensure that she’s sweet and personable. Voice preference?”

“Mature female,” Master Tapal said. “And if she can speak Shyriiwook, that would be ideal.”

“I’ll need to tweak her voice modulator,” the man murmured as she worked with his datapad. “I designed her body for light espionage work, so she’s sturdy and has repulsors to catch herself if she takes a fall to prevent damage. She has a lot of memory built-in, a sunlight power collector, and a seventy-two-hour battery.”

“She’s cute,” Obi-Wan said, and Master Tapal offered him a smile. “He responded really well to Enid on the ship.”

“He did,” Master Tapal agreed. “So, a mature female voice should be ideal for the droid.”

The droid sat down and started to blink rapidly as she accepted her programming. It was interesting. Obi-Wan looked around the shop then and moved away from the counter. He found a display of manuals and picked up a datachip on emergency droid repair. That seemed like exactly what he needed to start building his own skill to help the droids if there was a problem they couldn’t fix on their own. He input his credit chip code on the kiosk and pocketed the datachip.

He returned to the counter and stared at the shining silver droid for a moment, then turned to his master. “Could she be green? I think he’d like that more.”

“I can send her through a painter,” Hagi said. “Perhaps a camouflage pattern of browns and muted greens to remind him of his home.”

Master Tapal nodded. “Yes, I agree.” He put a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder. “Good suggestion.”

Hagi took the droid into the back with a thoughtful nod. He came back and continued to work on the datapad. “She’ll be done in a moment. I have a stationary painter droid, and the pattern isn’t complicated.”

Obi-Wan wondered how that was done and started to ask if he could watch but Evie started to wiggle around in his pocket. He pulled her out, and she wrapped her legs around his hand.

“Is that an ID7?” Hagi questioned. “I’ve only seen holos of them.” He cleared his throat. “Is it for sale? I can give you 5,000 credits for it.”

Obi-Wan’s mouth dropped open. He had no idea the little droid was that expensive. “She was a gift and not for sale.”

“Too bad,” Hagi said with a sigh. “Don’t suppose you’d let me scan her?”

“She can’t be scanned,” Master Tapal interjected. “I had to get her explicit permission to review her programming when he received her.”

“Protective gift,” Hagi said. “Not a bad choice for a little Jedi.”

“I belong to Obi-Wan,” Evie said. “I can use my laser to defend myself from droidnapping. Obi-Wan, there is a new scomp link that is compatible with my design. Can you buy it, please?”

Hagi reached under the counter and put a little box on the counter with a hum. “She must have been assembled more than six months ago not already have the upgrade.”

Obi-Wan checked the price for the scomp link, winced but went back to the kiosk to pay for it. He had the credits since he’d rarely ever spent his allowance. He tucked the box into an interior robe pocket, and by the time he returned to the main counter, the droid was back with a new paint job.

“She looks great,” Obi-Wan said.

“Agreed,” Master Tapal murmured. “She’ll certainly blend into natural environments and won’t catch the eye in other environments the way a shining silver or gold would.”

The droid stood up, wiggled a bit, and her eyes lit up. “Greetings, I’m ZI-P1. Where is my charge?”

“His name is Gungi, and he’s at the Jedi Temple,” Master Tapal said. “We’re taking you straight to him.”

“Lovely,” ZI-P1 said warmly. “I can’t wait to meet him.”

* * * *

Fortunately, it was love at first sight for both the Wookiee pup and droid. Obi-Wan had wanted to stay in the crèche for a while, but his master clearly did not, so they’d left fairly quickly. He had a little knot in his stomach as they boarded the Guardian since the subject of his ignorance was looming large once more in his mind.

Master Koth was at the holotable, drinking a cup of caf and staring at a large hologram full of data in a language Obi-Wan didn’t recognize. He paused for just a moment and frowned at the swirling letters.

“Zabraki,” Master Tapal supplied and prodded him gently toward the bridge. “It’s not a language you’ll necessarily need to learn as most translators are able to handle it at near perfect accuracy. All of the data on Mother Talzin’s datapad was in that language, but Enid had no issues in the analysis.”

Obi-Wan nodded as Evie crawled around on his shoulder, then jumped to the console as he sat down in the co-pilot seat. He was quiet as his master negotiated their departure from the temple dock and the planet itself. Shortly, they were in hyperspace.

“Okay,” Master Tapal said quietly. “Let’s go upstairs to the rec area. I need caf.”

Obi-Wan nodded and followed his master to the lift. Once in the rec area, he got himself a cup of hot chocolate and followed his master to the observation area silently. They sat down together on the large sofa in front of the viewport. The hyperspace lane was a blur outside, so he focused on his master after a few seconds.

“Shadows are never a secret inside the Order,” Master Tapal began. “They can’t be, as we learned early on that the techniques they use to hide from others don’t always work consistently against their fellow Jedi. In order to protect their operational security, their identities aren’t a secret, even when nearly all of their mission work is. You noticed Quinlan Vos in the marketplace, but you did not notice his master, for instance. As a padawan, Quinlan is still learning the skills he’ll need to do the work he has chosen for his career within the Jedi Order.

“Seeing you probably distracted him to an untold degree since he wasn’t aware that we returning to Coruscant. In fact, only three people knew they were heading back to the planet, specifically with Gungi, and the rest of the Council wasn’t informed until shortly before we landed. Jocasta decided to keep the information close due to the rareness of a Wookiee joining the Jedi Order.”

Obi-Wan nodded and took a sip of his hot chocolate. “Is Quinlan in trouble for getting distracted by me?”

“No, in fact, Ioan probably used it as a learning opportunity and a timely one at that. But the issue between you and I is that you almost called out to your friend.”

“Yes,” Obi-Wan said and winced. “If he’d been on a mission, I could’ve endangered his life by acknowledging him.”

“Yes, you could’ve. You could have, in fact, gotten him killed, and it would’ve been my fault for not educating you properly on this topic. I’m going to speak to Jocasta about it and suggest that they do a lecture on it for initiates and padawans. Quinlan will be trained on Coruscant for years, and you won’t be the only padawan to come across him on the planet.”

Obi-Wan took a deep breath and blinked back tears. “I feel stupid.”

“You needn’t,” Master Tapal said and stretched his legs out in front of them. “It’s my fault. We should’ve had a thorough discussion about your friend long before now and not just the few moments here and there that we’ve had.”

“His work will be dangerous.”

“Nearly always,” Master Tapal said. “Both physically and emotionally, which is why he needs a touchstone that is both normal and unimpeachable. I’m not suggesting that you must be perfect in your interactions with him, but being able to trust you with everything will be to his benefit all of his days.”

“I trust Quin with everything,” Obi-Wan said. “And I already know that’s rare and precious. The thought that I might have endangered him is sickening.”

“Just in the future, never approach a Shadow in public outside of the temple. They’ll come to you if the situation allows it,” Master Tapal said. “You might also encounter fellow Jedi out and about in the galaxy that should not be approached due to their situation or mission. It’s rarely appropriate to pursue another Jedi if they walk away from you without some sort of signal.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Do you suppose Quin was on a mission?”

“It looked more like a training exercise as Ioan’s work doesn’t normally involve shopping centers,” Master Tapal said. “But interrupting his exercise would’ve been disrespectful.”

“Yes, of course,” Obi-Wan said and took a deep breath. “You caught me before I called attention to him, right?”

“Yes,” Master Tapal said firmly. “Otherwise, you’d have certainly noticed his master extracting him from the situation.”

Obi-Wan allowed himself to relax a little and drank some more of his hot chocolate. He stared at the beverage. “I’ve never had the real thing.”

Master Tapal hummed. “The synth recipe is actually very close. So close that some species with less sensitive palates can’t tell the difference. I’m unsure if you would notice.” He stood. “Let’s go see what Eeth and Enid have learned.”

“Who named Enid?”

“Wilaj named her after a friend of his from the crèche,” Master Tapal said. “Unfortunately, she was killed while she was still a padawan along with her master when the ship they were traveling on was destroyed by pirates.”

“I am honored to be named after Jedi Padawan Enid Kolis,” Enid said as they headed for the lift.

Obi-Wan filed the name away mentally for later investigation and sipped more of his hot chocolate as they used the lift to return to the bottom floor. Master Koth was where they’d left him, still staring at the data.

“Conclusions?”

“It’s jumbled,” Master Koth said roughly, and Master Tapal sighed. “But there are trends to be seen even in the mess of it. The ship traveled exclusively along the Hydian Way trade route over the last year. While it’s skirted close to the Core, it hasn’t made any stops there as far as I can tell.”

“And Talzin’s data?”

“She kept records of several trips off of Dathomir,” Master Koth explained. “There are two Sith, Jaro.”

“So why was Maul taken to be trained as an apprentice?” Master Tapal questioned. “Speculation, Obi-Wan?”

Master Koth focused on him.

Obi-Wan sat down on the bench and stared at the galaxy map that was currently being projected. “It seems like he would be for future usage, but also the senior Sith might see him as an expendable asset. Revealing him in the future might even confuse people and further hide the real Sith Lords from discovery.”

Master Koth hummed under his breath. “Well, reasoned. It makes the child’s current circumstances even more dangerous as his potential value hasn’t been met in any regard. If they find out about our knowledge, they might kill him and scuttle the operation.”

“Yes,” Master Tapal said with a frown. “Enid, highlight the Hydian Way route. Based on the data you can collect, start selecting planets for investigation. Focus on non-Republic worlds with low populations, with no established governments that are livable, but not exactly attractive to spacers for landing or resupply.”

Obi-Wan watched the trade route as it was highlighted on the map, and his vision blurred. He tried to push the Force gently away as he wasn’t in a good place for a vision, and he hadn’t really discussed the situation with Master Tapal. Mostly because he hadn’t had a vision since becoming his apprentice, but that was neither here nor there.

He got a significant pushback, so he stopped trying to fight it. The Force rarely got aggressive with him, but when she did, he knew he had to listen. His mind’s eye was full of fire and heat. Emotional devastation rolled over him in a wave, and he could hear the sound of lightsaber meeting lightsaber. Such a fight was actually rare outside of sparring and training.

Distantly, he felt his cup removed from his hand. An unspeakably hot air brushed over his skin, and Obi-Wan shuddered.

“Obi-Wan?” Master Tapal questioned.

“The world is hot,” Obi-Wan murmured. “Volcanic. It’s a place of ruination and heartbreak. In another life, in a different time, it was the stuff of my eternal nightmares.” He tried to open his eyes, to escape the hellscape he was seeing. “He was a brother to me. I think I killed him.”

“Easy, boy,” Master Tapal murmured. “Can you let go of the vision? I think you’ve seen more than enough.”

“The Force…needs me to see more,” Obi-Wan said. “We must be careful. Sidious will try to recapture Maul. He’s invested in his project. We need to…oh.”

“Obi-Wan?”

The vision ended, and he took a deep breath. “Mustafar. Maul is on Mustafar.”

“Fuck,” Master Koth muttered.

“Wow,” Obi-Wan said, and his master laughed. “The Force thinks we need to destroy the facility. No one should be known to survive the destruction. It’s the only way to protect Maul from the Sith.”

“Mustafar is privately owned by the Techno Union,” Master Koth said. “They charge the native population rent to stay on the planet.”

“That’s the most obscene thing I’ve heard today,” Obi-Wan said. “We should blow up their factories, too.”

“At the very least, we should actively encourage some criminal organization to take the planet over,” Master Tapal said thoughtfully. “Let’s deliver Mila’s blumfruit and get a consult on which syndicate I should gift with a hellscape world in the Outer Rim.”

“Well, it seems like we should make sure whoever takes it from the Techno Union doesn’t support slavery or slave syndicates,” Obi-Wan said. “So, what about your ambitious friend?”

Master Tapal laughed. “His aspirations aside, he doesn’t have the people to take over even a small planet.”

“It seems like he could expand his operations with the right kind of resources,” Obi-Wan said.

“Whose empire is he trying to encourage the building of?” Master Koth questioned.

“Hondo Ohnaka,” Master Tapal answered, and Master Koth groaned. “I know.” He cleared his throat and set his caf cup aside. “Enid, what is the legal status of Mustafar?”

“It is non-Republic, privately owned property,” Enid reported. “The Techno Union registered the ownership with the InterGalactic Banking Clan 322 years ago.”

“So, they just decided they owned the planet?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Yes, Outer Rim planets with no established planetary governments are considered non-entities to the Republic and thus have no protections against private ownership.”

“How would the native population get their planet back?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“First, they’d have to remove the Techno Union outright from their world,” Master Koth said. “And we can help with that. They probably have a mostly droid-run factory on the planet. We get rid of the organics, figure out how to change the loyalty of the droids, and give the natives a government plan to follow and implement immediately.

“If they file status with the Republic, they’ll be subject to a review and the Techno Union won’t be able to return or assert ownership again until after the review is completed. The standard to be considered an independent planet in the Outer Rim is low. Enid, draw them up a plan and put it on a datapad in case that is a viable option.”

“Does this violate our mandate?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“The argument could be made that the Mustafarians are being kept in slavery by an invading party,” Master Tapal said. “The Techno Union doesn’t currently have a large lobby within the Senate, and most of the companies involved would immediately remove themselves from it if there was an accusation of slavery. At the very least, they’ve created a system of indentured servitude through the invasion of a planet, and that’s gone unaddressed for far too long. Enid, start building a case file just in case someone has the audacity to ask me questions.”

“Great,” Obi-Wan said. “Where do we get a whole bunch of weapons to give them?”

Master Koth sighed while his own master offered him a wry grin.

* * * *

Jaro wondered idly if he could snag the security footage from the station as he watched his padawan take in the entirety of Mila in all of her glory. She was dressed, at least, but had chosen to wear a pair of thin harem pants and a robe cut down to her naval. Her tentacles were swirling gently in a tight arrangement, an indication of her age and power, as she didn’t require armor or any sort of binding to keep her body from spilling out all over the place.

Mila grinned. “Hello.”

Obi-Wan offered her a bow. “I’m pleased to meet you. Thank you for being so generous with your valuable time.”

“Oh, you sweet little thing,” Mila said and grabbed Obi-Wan’s hand. “Come, tell me all about how Jaro is working you too much. Are you hungry? Cero, scan this boy. Is he underweight? Jaro, I’m going to beat you senseless if this child is malnourished.”

“I’m perfectly healthy for age and size,” Obi-Wan protested but didn’t try to remove his hand from hers. “Promise. Who’s Cero?”

“Cero is the AI that runs my station,” Mila said. “Bring my blumfruit, old Jedi. The baby Jedi and I are going to have a long talk about everything that you’ve done wrong since he met you.”

Jaro sighed and shared a look with his partner as his padawan was led away. “What is it about that kid?”

“He has a very sweet face,” Eeth admitted and shrugged. “And he’s well-mannered, which some people find precious.”

“She’s going to try to keep him,” Jaro muttered.

“Certainly.”

Shortly, they were in Mila’s sprawling office that was furnished more like a lounge than any sort of administrative space. Jaro liked the large, sturdy furniture as he never had to worry about breaking things in Mila’s space. He put the crate of blumfruit down on a side table and focused on his padawan, who was seated on a lounger with Mila.

“In his latest comm, he offered me a whole squad of supercommandos to boss around,” Obi-Wan said, and Mila laughed. “I have to admit, it’s the most tempting offer so far.”

“I should contact Jaster and give him some tips on the care and feeding of a Jedi,” Mila said in amusement. “Just in case his efforts prove fruitful in the future.” She focused on Jaro. “You said you needed a favor?”

“I need the name of an arms dealer who can put down a very large supply of weapons on short notice that isn’t generally more problematic than that.”

“The Dragon is the most obvious choice,” Mila said. “Where do you plan to drop these weapons?”

“Mustafar,” Jaro said as he sat down. “I need a distraction for a personal operation, and I’m going to use my mandate to obliterate the Techno Union on the planet so the native population can stop being used as indentured slaves.”

She hummed under her breath and nodded. “Well, the Senate can’t really argue against that. I mean, they’ll want to, but Mustafar isn’t in the Republic, and its circumstances are offensive. You should encourage the Mustafarians to include an application for junior membership to the Republic in their confirmation of the government package. It’ll make the mining operation on that planet taxable. Politicians love taxes.”

“Yes, I agree,” Jaro said. “Thank you. I hadn’t considered that angle. It would be ideal, of course, if the Mustafarians reached out to me for help.”

“Oh, I can arrange that,” Mila said. “It’ll be fun and profitable to make a new friend. The Mustafarians are sitting on a near-endless supply of credits, and the Techno Union needs to be broken up. It’s too big, and they operate more like a criminal syndicate than they do a business association. Their influence over the galaxy at large needs to be curtailed.”

Jaro nodded his agreement.

“Do they interfere with your business?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Oh, they’ve tried,” Mila said casually. “They keep offering me contracts for their droids, but I pride myself on offering organic pleasures and don’t employ droids to work for me in that fashion.”

Obi-Wan stared for a moment. “They make pleasure droids?”

Mila grinned at him. “They’re called luxury droids, and they’re utilized by many for hostess purposes in upscale restaurants and office environments. But there are certain elements who have had them programmed for the purposes of personal recreation.”

“Oh.” Obi-Wan blushed and exhaled. “That’s just inappropriate.”

Mila hummed her agreement. “Yes, I agree. Droids can provide a certain level of companionship, of course, and make great friends. But there is a certain lack of free will when it comes to a droid who is programmed to provide intimate entertainment that can’t be rectified. I’ve never known a droid to develop a sexual interest in an organic on their own, through experience and adaption.”

“Can droids fall in love?” Obi-Wan asked curiously.

“Certainly, some of the more sophisticated AI models can fall in love, but their logic circuits and programming temper such emotions. I’ve rarely seen a droid fall in love with an organic individual as they understand our lives are temporary compared to their own.”

“Except for someone like you,” Obi-Wan said. “You’ve probably outlived many droids.”

“Droid bodies, yes,” Mila agreed. “But many of the droids with me have been with me in some form or another for thousands of years. I’ve made sure their programs are preserved, updated, and given new platforms as needed.”

“That’s great,” Obi-Wan said, and Mila smiled grandly.

Jaro shared a look with Eeth as he sighed. “He’s not up for adoption.”

“If the Mand’alor couldn’t pry this precious boy from your grasp, I doubt I’d do any better,” Mila said in amusement as she picked up a datapad. “Cero, contact the Dragon and tell him I need enough weapons to start a revolution within the next twenty-four hours. Then let Captain Vero know that I’m going to Mustafar to make some new friends within the next six hours.”

“Yes, Mila,” Cero said.

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. “Just like that?”

“Did your master tell you how we met?” Mila questioned.

“He said that Master Yaddle introduced the two of you,” Obi-Wan said with a glance toward Jaro.

“True enough,” Mila said as she did something on the datapad then set it aside. “But it was only after they rescued me from a slave auction. I’d been caught unaware, betrayed by a so-called friend, and put in a punitive collar. Every single time I acted out against my captor, I was tortured.” She touched her throat. “So, your master and grandmaster came for me. I’m forever in the debt of the line of Yaddle, and my kind takes such debts very seriously.” She touched Obi-Wan then, cupping his head gently. “Remember that little one, should you ever need me.”

“Is that so-called friend still around?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Ah, he met a timely end,” Mila said with a shrewd smile. “Never you fear.”

“That’s good. One shouldn’t tolerate personal betrayal,” Obi-Wan said decisively, and Jaro sighed at Mila’s overt delight.

“This boy could charm a Hutt,” Mila announced.

“Obi-Wan is not interested in meeting a Hutt since they eat Humans.”

“Ah, yes. Unfortunate habit of theirs.” Mila relaxed on the lounge and focused on Jaro. “If you need a distraction on Mustafar, I can make a big enough mess on my own that whatever operation you have going on there won’t even be a footnote.”

“I wasn’t going to ask that of you,” Jaro said.

“It’s been a while since I’ve gotten out and about. Why don’t you invite Masana to join me on my side of things? She’s a lovely distraction and is utterly awe-inspiring in battle.” She inclined her head. “So, what’s going on, Jaro?”

“I need to rescue a kidnapped and enslaved child,” Jaro said frankly. “He’s ten years old.”

“I’ll go in on half the cost of the weapons,” she said after a moment. “And I’ll invest myself in helping the Mustafarians in the establishment of their government. I’m due for some altruism. Just the one child?”

“Well, there are other children on the planet, right?” Obi-Wan questioned. “Mustafarian children. They’re probably forced to work and pay rent to live on their own home planet, too.”

“You’re right, of course,” Mila said tersely and stood. “It’s unfortunately easy to ignore such details, and that’s shameful. Children all over this galaxy suffer for the ambitions and greed of adults.”

 

 

 

Chapter 12

“Allowing Mila to take the lead for the liberation of Mustafar is an interesting use of your mandate,” Jocasta said.

Jaro shrugged. “She’s also footing half the bill. I consider this mission to be Order business. I’ll come in after the liberation to help with resources officially and create a report for the Senate committee to detail the resources I use to help the Mustafarians recover from over 300 years of forced servitude by the Techno Union.”

“This could destroy the Techno Union and come back to bite the InterGalactic Banking Clan, who financially supports the union across many fronts. The Union’s lobbying body here on Coruscant is working hard to ingratiate themselves to various senators. It’s not working as well as it has in the past. Some of that is your fault. The continuous connections you make between the wealth of the Core worlds with slavery operations in the Mid and Outer Rims aren’t always well received.”

“If they don’t want their misdeeds exposed then they should just not do bad things,” Obi-Wan muttered from his place on a bench against the wall near the holotable.

Jaro grinned at him even as Jocasta sighed.

“Maybe I should send you both to the Exploration Corps,” she retorted. “I had a meeting with the Duke Adonai Kryze today. He joined the Anti-Slavery Committee, and he wants your padawan to know that he’ll be heavily influencing the committee to give more funds and attention to the problem of child slavery in the galaxy.”

He noted that Obi-Wan was just nodding. Jaro knew he should probably start monitoring the boy’s communications, but Obi-Wan was smart and followed the rules. So, it seemed like a waste of his time in the long run.

“That sounds like a positive thing.”

“He also offered me a platoon of supercommandos to help protect the crèche,” Jocasta said. “I did eventually promise to send him a comm, if we ever had a security issue. He then garrisoned his platoon of highly trained combat assets in accommodations as close to the temple as he could. He’s living there as well.”

“Mandalorians are clearly the best kind of friends to make,” Obi-Wan said and Mace Windu laughed. The rest of the Council were making the appearance of taking the situation as serious as possible. “Maybe we should invite them to Mustafar. They’d probably enjoy it.”

“No,” Jaro said firmly and Obi-Wan laughed. “Though, you’re right. They would certainly enjoy it.”

“Important question,” Obi-Wan said. “If we don’t invite the Mandalorians to our liberation plan, are they going to get their feelings hurt?”

Jaro stared even as his own master snorted and started to laugh. He’d never wanted to hang up on the Council more in his entire life.

“And you thought his friendship overtures were not a problem,” Jocasta said dryly.

“He practically charmed the nearly transparent pants of Mila,” Jaro said and his padawan laughed.

“Are you certain about Mustafar as a target?” Mace Windu questioned. “The data supports it, but it could also be any number of planets along the trade route.”

Jaro glanced briefly at Obi-Wan briefly and found the boy tense. “I’m confident that even if I don’t find the child I’m searching for, that my time on Mustafar won’t be wasted. The situation on the planet is, fundamentally, a violation of the Republic’s founding principals. Not a single company involved in the Techno Union is going to want to publicly protest the situation as they don’t want to defend indentured servitude on the Senate floor. If they do, I’m more than happy to appear in person to hear their arguments.”

Jocasta raised an eyebrow. “The committee is content with you out and about in the galaxy doing what you do, Jaro. I’m sure Duke Kryze will do his part, going forward, to keep the committee off of your back regarding your choices.”

“Yes, I’m sure,” Jaro said. “After all, they don’t want me in the Core investigating their wealthy friends.”

Jocasta nodded. “Very well, keep us informed. May the Force be with you.”

“And with you,” Jaro said and ended the holoconference. He turned to Eeth. “Thoughts?”

“Lack of explicit permission equals deniability of a sort,” Eeth said. “In the end, the Senate can’t blame you for rendering aid after the fact. I assume that you’ll be using confiscated funds for your part of the illegal weapons purchase.”

Jaro smiled. “I always obey the law and it’s not illegal to buy military grade weapons on the black market in the Outer Rim.”

Obi-Wan laughed.

“And yes, of course, I’m using confiscated funds because the committee chooses to ignore those credits and how I spend them. They expect me to use those funds exactly that way.”

Jaro watched his partner settle on the bench with a datapad. He knew that his less than ethical dealings were a little sore point for Eeth, but the needs of his goals required that he be flexible on certain points. He lived by a code much older than the Galactic Republic and knew in his heart that he was one with the Force and his calling was just.

“You’re a bad influence on this sweet boy,” Eeth muttered.

“And on you as well,” Jaro said wryly and Eeth laughed.

* * * *

“Again.”

Obi-Wan took a deep breath, ran up the side wall of the training arena and flipped over. He landed nimbly on his feet. Master Tapal made a little noise of dissatisfaction, which was kind of annoying if Obi-Wan was going to be honest about it. He stared at the wall and exhaled slowly.

“Again.”

He didn’t ask what he was doing wrong as it was clear that his master wanted him to figure it out for himself. Obi-Wan took a deep breath before he did the flip again and his master was silent. He stared at the wall for a long moment then sat down beside Master Tapal on the mat.

“How often have you been told to live in the moment and ignore the Unifying Force?” Master Tapal questioned.

“Since the first time I had a vision in the crèche,” Obi-Wan admitted. “Every single time I had a vision, Master Yoda would visit me and caution me against me trusting my visions. Eventually, I stopped admitting to having them and would work hard to make sure they weren’t noticed by others. Quin helped me hide them at the academy as much as he could. It was always so upsetting that Quin’s gift with psychometry was lauded while my own was considered a borderline travesty.”

“I see.”

“What am I doing wrong?” Obi-Wan asked. “Because I feel like an idiot for not getting it.”

“You aren’t doing anything wrong,” Master Tapal said. “But your relationship with the Physical Force is diminished in a way I’ve rarely seen with a Jedi your age. It’s something we can rebuild, but I find it concerning that your potential has been limited by Yoda’s discrimination against the Unifying Force.”

“How does ignoring my affinity diminish my relationship with the other aspects?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Your affinity is also a conduit to the other aspects—it’s a focal point for your power within the Force. As such, it should be nurtured and cherished, Obi-Wan. To be one with the Force means to accept your destiny within her embrace.”

“I think sometimes people use words like destiny and fate to accept their circumstances as they are and never fight for something different,” Obi-Wan said. “How can you tell my relationship with the Physical Force is diminished?”

“You’re heavy on your feet, and you aren’t fully embracing the influence of the Physical Force in your movement. Since it is my affinity, I can feel the disconnect.”

“What’s Master Koth’s affinity? If you can say,” Obi-Wan questioned.

“The Cosmic Force,” Master Tapal said. “Thus, he is deeply connected to matters of destiny.”

“Can you subvert your destiny?” Obi-Wan leaned back on his hands in a direct imitation of his master.

“Yes.” Master Tapal stretched his legs out and Obi-Wan followed suit. “But it can lead to a very painful path. The Force guides us, and our destiny is part of that guidance. If we turn our backs on such a thing, we’re opening ourselves up to parts of our existence that the Force has no purchase.”

“What about the dark side? Are some people destined to fall?”

“I don’t know if I believe that a fall is the destiny of any Jedi,” Master Tapal said quietly. “But one cannot deny the need for balance within the Force. Yet, darkness need not mean Sith.”

“The destroyer of worlds,” Obi-Wan murmured. “It felt like one of the truest thing I’d ever heard when Master Koth said it on Dathomir. Since we know that darkness can exist in absence of a Sith then I suppose the root of a Sith has nothing to do with the Force itself, but an inherent corruption of a Force users’ mind and soul.”

“Yes.” Master Tapal shifted into a meditation posture and turned to face Obi-Wan, so he rearranged himself to match. “Does the emotional upset of your vision linger?”

“Distantly,” Obi-Wan said. “Like it was the glimpse of events that are not mine to experience. Upon reflection, I didn’t kill the man who was like my brother. I left him for dead and I believe that was worse.”

“On a world like Mustafar, it could be much worse,” Master Tapal agreed. “Why do you think it happened in the vision that way?”

“Because I loved him,” Obi-Wan said. “And I couldn’t be the death of him. But it seems like that was a very selfish choice and not one I could afford to make again. But also, it didn’t feel like me in the vision, but a version of me that I will never become.”

“You’ve heard of the multiverse theory.”

“Yes,” Obi-Wan nodded. “Infinite realities. Science seems to be split on it across most industrial worlds but various Jedi philosophers over the last thousand years have documented many instances with different realities experienced during meditation.”

“One of the reasons that Jedi like Yoda insist we ignore the Unifying Force’s warnings is the chance of one reality bleeding into another. You caught a glimpse, in your vision, of an alternate path. Since you feel no ownership of the events then they aren’t part of your future. That being said, it did give you valuable information that has most certainly led us to Maul.”

“I hope so. But what if I’m wrong?”

“The moment you said it, the Force moved in me in such a way that made me feel very certain of your prediction,” Master Tapal said. “So, if he’s not there then we’ll be wrong together. I trust in the Force, Obi-Wan. I trust her to lead me and be with me all of my life. You have been taught to ignore and essentially distrust part of your relationship with the Force. We will rectify that.”

“Yes, sir.”

* * * *

The comm from Siri had been short and pointed regarding his rudeness. Obi-Wan had deleted it without responding. They were currently in orbit around the planet Bespin amongst hundreds of other ships waiting on word from Mila, who had met with the Dragon for the weapons then headed for Mustafar. He had plenty of time to sit around with his thoughts since both Master Tapal and Master Koth were very busy going over intel. They’d already gotten a planetary scan from Mila revealing several structures.

He had sent a message to Quinlan letting him know he was available for a holocall so when the station activated with an incoming call, he was excited. He really hoped that he kept his disappointment off his face as his friend, Bant, appeared.

“Obi-Wan,” she said warmly. “Quin’s on his way back to the temple and will be on shortly. He didn’t want to miss the chance to talk to you. I’ve been volunteering in the crèche. But it’s hard to get a slot these days since everyone is excited about the Wookiee pup. Gungi’s so sweet.”

“He is,” Obi-Wan agreed. “How is he settling in?”

“Oh, well, I think. I heard that he was a little upset the first night and couldn’t sleep. Matron Sheva found him a sleep sack and that made it easier for him to go to sleep.”

“Good then,” Obi-Wan said. “How are your studies going? You’ve apprenticed with Master Fisto, correct?”

“Yes, and I wanted to talk to you about that,” she said quietly. “Listen, you’re going to hear that I was rejected by a master due to my association with you. And it’s true, but I wasn’t all that interested in apprenticing with Master Tahl due to her close relationship with Master Jinn. I’ve heard they both have a hard time putting their duty first when one of them is at risk.”

“I’m sorry that happened, Bant. It’s not fair at all.”

“It’s not but I’m okay and Master Fisto is an amazing fit for me. I went for a swim to clear my head after my meeting with Master Tahl and met Master Fisto at the pool. We chatted for several hours about the Force and my goals as a Jedi. Then the next day he sent me a comm and we had lunch. He offered to apprentice me, and I said yes, of course. I’m honored by his attention. Yesterday, we started to working in the water. I’ve already created a Force water orb. It didn’t last long, though.”

“That’s amazing,” Obi-Wan said. “I’m glad you have a master that truly sees and respects your potential. I heard that Master Jinn took Bruck as his apprentice.”

Bant rolled her eyes. “Yes, he was flouncing around the temple for a bit. But then, he started showing up to classes clearly exhausted. I’ve heard that Master Jinn is working him very hard. I suppose he means to kill Bruck’s attitude problem with training exercises.”

“Is he working him too hard?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“No, but Bruck’s used to coasting along at the academy. He told me once that he didn’t bother to try too hard because it was impossible to surpass you and that it wasn’t fair.” Bant looked to her left and smiled. “I’m being kicked off the comm. You look great and happy, Obi, I’m so happy how everything is worked out for all of us. I’m going to send my epically large letter later. Garen has one in progress, too.”

Quinlan abruptly took her place in the holoprojection, and his friend waved off to the side before focusing on him. “You came to Coruscant with no warning.”

“Sorry, operational security,” Obi-Wan said. “Are we alone?”

“Yeah, Bant is hoping to slide back into the volunteer schedule at the crèche.”

“I wanted to apologize for almost calling out to you at the shopping center,” Obi-Wan said quietly. “I didn’t understand how stupid and dangerous that would be. Master Tapal has made sure I won’t make that mistake again.”

“You did distract me, so I got a lecture,” Quinlan said wryly. “But that was my fault, not yours. And it was just a training exercise so you wouldn’t have endangered me if you had made the mistake. Master Tholme says that he learns more from mistakes than he does successes as they are often very hard lessons.”

“I can see that.” Obi-Wan took a deep breath. “Sorry that you got a lecture.”

“Oh, I’m not,” Quinlan said. “Master Tholme is a very good teacher and everything I learn from him will keep me alive in the future. I went with him on a mission. We went to a planet called Melida/Daan. This is all public record at this point because the Republic is preparing send in a peacekeeping workgroup made up of Jedi and Mandalorians.” He paused. “I’m told I have you to thank for our new Mandalorian friends. We reported to the Senate that a third faction has emerged on the planet and that it’s made up entirely of children. The adults are fighting them just as hard as they do each other. It’s disgusting. Jaster Mereel is going there personally.”

“Are you going back?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“No, our part is done,” Quinlan said. “But it was really disheartening to talk to children who were afraid their own parents were going to kill them in combat or that they might be forced to kill a parent or older sibling. It was just…really sad.”

“Yeah.” Obi-Wan nodded and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry you had to see any of that, Quin. Did you get the research paper assignment for astronavigation?”

Quinlan huffed. “Yes, and I’d rather be punched in the face than write that crap. How does that work for you?”

“Master Tapal reviews available assignments in the courses and forwards the ones he wants me to do. I get graded by him and the academy. I can review transcripts of the classes if I want, and I have to do all of the reading. I’ve finished my paper, but Master Tapal sent it back to me and asked for some additional research on two different areas. Probably because we’ve both recently seen how poor astronavigation skills can lead to trouble.”

“Master Narec has gone to Dathomir,” Quinlan said. “He apprenticed Julian Davs before he left. Juls was so pleased that he promised to do all of their astronavigation calculations going forward.”

“Fortunately, he’s a natural at that kind of thing,” Obi-Wan said with a laugh. “The Dathomiri will be pleased to see Master Narec return.”

“How did Dathomir feel to you?” Quinlan questioned. “Was it a problem for your empathy?”

“No, it was actually pleasant and neutral,” Obi-Wan said. “There is some darkness but nothing overtly evil and it was even better after Mother Talzin was…killed. The second time we went, the whole world felt lighter. Still a bit dark, but nothing twisted or harmful.”

“Can you tell me anything about what you’re doing now?”

“Not now, but certainly later since it’s going to be…quite public after the fact,” Obi-Wan said. “The potential political fall out should be stunning.”

Quinlan grinned. “Good. I think this work will suit you all the way down to your toes, Obi. Making a difference will keep your heart warm.”

“What will keep your heart warm?” Obi-Wan questioned.

Quinlan stared for a moment then took a deep breath. “You. It’s always been you.” He shook his head as Obi-Wan’s mouth dropped open. “I have to run, Master Tholme is waiting for me. We’re going to spar. May the Force be with you.”

“And with you,” Obi-Wan said quietly.

He sat back with a little huff as the holoprojector went dark. Then he got up and went off to find an adult because he needed one. Master Tapal was at the holotable, and Master Koth was seated on the bench. They were both silent.

“Can you fall in love when you’re young?” Obi-Wan questioned and they both turned to look at him. “Does your brain have to be mature or something for that to be real?”

“Love can’t be quantified, Padawan,” Master Tapal said. “The love you have your friends changes and grows as you age. It can grow deeper, or even shift into something romantic depending on your physical maturity. But falling in love is never simple nor is it the same way twice. Plus, you need to consider species and emotional maturity. In the end, such emotions are valid as they are and also subject to change.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “I was speaking with Quinlan, and he said he thought that making a difference would keep my heart warm. And, like an idiot, I asked him what would keep his heart warm.” He huffed when his master laughed at him. “And he said me and that it had always been me. Then, because he likes to enigmatic, he said he had to go.” He waved both hands in frustration.

“Perhaps he just put some distance between you after his confession to increase his own comfort,” Master Tapal suggested. “You have a Force bond with him, do you not?”

Obi-Wan blushed because no one had ever questioned him about that before. “He doesn’t feel distressed or upset at all. In fact, he feels amused.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “It’s a crèche bond. We were told it would fade over time, but it never did. Probably because of my advanced Force sense, but we weren’t told we couldn’t keep it.”

“It would be beyond the pale for anyone to tell you such a thing,” Master Tapal said. “Such a bond is a gift from the Force itself and should be honored as such. It also is a very real comfort to your friend that will serve him in his role as a Shadow. And it will be easier for you to know on a fundamental level that he is fine even if he can’t communicate with you or anyone else.”

“Right.”

“Some might tell you that you’re far too young to worry about such things as romantic love, but that seems patronizing to me,” Master Tapal said as he shifted the hologram around in front of him. “You’ll also discover, when you’re older, that sexual contact can change your feelings for someone. For some species, sex is for breeding and serves little other purpose. But when sexual congress is also a pleasure, as with most humanoid species, there is a different set of circumstances to deal with.”

“But not for everyone.”

“What do you mean?” Master Tapal questioned.

“Well, some people never want to have sex at all, right? And there are those who seem to have sex just for the sake of it. Mila’s business wouldn’t be very successful if everyone treated sex as special and important.”

“Granted,” Master Tapal said. “I’ve always cautioned my padawans to take sexual contact with others very seriously and reserve such intimacies for those they can trust. Sex can make you vulnerable—physically and mentally. With your advanced empathy, I would ask that you be very careful about who you share your body with in the future. For your own sake, if nothing else.”

“I try not to worry about it,” Obi-Wan admitted. “But I had many talks with Matron Sheva about consent and assault statistics for the intersexed. It’s one of many reasons why I wouldn’t admit it freely and would outright fight a physical examination in practically any circumstance. That being said, since I’d rather it not be taken from me, I did handle that whole first kiss thing with Quinlan. Bant said it was important ages ago, when I told her I ran away from Siri’s grabby hands and mouth.”

“I can’t,” Master Koth said firmly, got up and walked away with a soft laugh.

“We’re having an important conversation, Master Koth!” Obi-Wan called out. “What if I need your input?”

“Your Master is eighty-five years old, Padawan Kenobi. He can handle this conversation without me,” Master Koth said dryly as he entered the lift.

“You’d better bring me more caf!” Master Tapal shouted after him.

Obi-Wan sighed. “Seriously, my life got really complicated out of the blue.”

“Growing up does that.”

“It was a trap,” Obi-Wan said darkly.

“Clearly,” his master said in agreement. “How was it?”

“What?”

“Your first kiss.” Master Tapal raised an eyebrow. “Mine was a clumsy, but sweet mess.”

“About six months ago, Garen was having a crisis and he asked everyone if they would kiss him because he needed some clarification on an issue. Well, not everyone, just our friend group. At any rate, he ended up kissing Bant, Siri, and Quinlan. After Quinlan, he just decided that he never wanted to be kissed ever again as long as he lived so he apologized for leaving me out.

“But I was okay with it since I’d never want him to do something he really didn’t want to do. And being asexual is a perfectly reasonable thing to be, which we all told him, and he was relieved by our acceptance. I was worried that Siri might be a jerk about it, but she wasn’t. At any rate, I found out that Siri had lied to Quin and told him that she did kiss me, which was irritating. I’ve not addressed it with her. I think she’s been trying to sort of insert herself into my friendship with Quin for a while.

“So, I asked Quin about it, and he agreed. And it was perfect, really. I trust Quin a lot and I know that he won’t ever try to take more than someone wants to give him.”

“Have you heard anything more about Padawan Chun?”

“Yes, apparently, he’s showing up to class exhausted. I guess Master Jinn has figured out that working him to the point of near unconsciousness makes him easier to deal with.” He shrugged when his master laughed. “But also, since Master Jinn is in seclusion at the temple then he has all the time possible to dedicate to his padawan. Did you tell Master Nu about Bruck’s epic hatred of me?”

“I did, yes,” Master Tapal said. “She told me she would report the issue to Master Jinn, so he could mitigate the situation.”

“Or they’ll form a club and hate me together,” Obi-Wan muttered and his master sighed. “Just saying.”

“What would you say his main issue with you is?”

“It’s two-fold,” Obi-Wan said. “He think he’s superior to practically everyone and I rarely ever responded to his verbal bullying in the fashion that would satisfy him. He wasn’t in the crèche with us, and some people resented that, but I didn’t care. He also has actively tried to get Siri Tachi’s attention for a while now, but she’s not interested in him. He blamed me for that. When it was really about his manipulative personality, which she finds extremely off-putting.”

“I’d forgotten how fraught gender politics are at the academy,” Master Tapal said as Master Koth returned. He accepted a large mug of caf. “Thank you.”

“The clandestine romantic entanglements at the academy remain the single biggest topic of gossip in the temple,” Master Koth said.

Obi-Wan waited until Master Koth had sat back down before he focused on Master Tapal and said, “Quin told me that Master Tholme told him that sexual intercourse is excellent stress relief.”

Master Koth sighed loudly, and his master offered him a grin so Obi-Wan just smiled and turned to stare at the hologram. It was a four level prefab building that looked very familiar. He realized most of the shopping complex on Coruscant was built with such buildings. He frowned at it for a long moment then sat down beside Master Koth to stare some more.

“What’s wrong?” Master Koth questioned.

“The dimensions are off,” Obi-Wan said. “Those buildings are all over Coruscant and the shopping center is made out of them—stacked on top of one another like building blocks. But I’ve been in the vents of one and they are definitely not that small. Maybe the one on Mustafar is a custom build.”

“Doubtful as it would’ve been a waste of money and might have called attention to the purchase,” Master Tapal said. “Big enough for one of us to crawl in?”

“No, but certainly big enough for me or the twins,” Obi-Wan said. “I’d be stealthier than the twins, of course. Do we know where Maul is being held?”

“Mila wasn’t able to get a detailed scan, and she’s already landed to start working with the natives,” Master Tapal said. “They’re preparing a request for aid that will be sent directly to me shortly before they start their liberation party.”

“We cannot call it a party,” Obi-Wan said firmly. “It’ll definitely hurt the Mandalorians feelings if they find out it was a liberation party, and they weren’t invited.”

Master Tapal stared at him.

“Though they are currently on Melida/Daan putting their boots down about the whole child army thing,” Obi-Wan said. “So, they might be sufficiently distracted.”

“What child army thing?” Master Tapal questioned.

“A third faction rose up on Melida/Daan. The children of both factions defected and formed their own resistance group. Instead of stopping to consider what they were doing and who they were fighting—the bastards just started trying to kill their own children, too,” Master Koth said shortly. “The Council had intended on sending Master Tahl to act as a peacemaker, but the intelligence was odd. I like to think we’ve learned something about the reports submitted to the Senate after the mess with the Mandalorians.

“I suggested that we send Tholme instead to investigate. He took his padawan with him. The reports from the planet were already awful but to find out they were murdering their own children as well meant we needed a more proactive response to the problem.

“So, the Council put together a peacekeeping force made up of Jedi and Mandalorians,” Master Koth continued. “And they’re on the planet now making it clear how appalling the Republic finds it that they’re murdering children in their deeply selfish civil war.”

“Isn’t all war selfish?” Obi-Wan questioned. “At least on one side?”

“War is complicated,” Master Tapal said. “And rarely ever does it boil down to a single reason. For some, it’s a matter of a power and financial gain. But for others it’s about ideology and the inability to accept the beliefs of those around them. You’ve seen the potential for war on Mandalore. All three factions on that world would’ve ended up in a civil war and at the root it was about their culture past, present, and future.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “If it’s not a custom build then that building probably isn’t all that different than one in the shopping center on Coruscant. Each modular section is two floors, and the duct work is connected between the two floors of each prefab structure. The walls are flimsy and badly insulated as well. It would be easy to cut through one with a lightsaber.”

“Certainly,” Master Tapal said. “Are you suggesting I send you into this building through the vent system?”

“Well, yes,” Obi-Wan said. “I’d be concealed the whole time and if we are able to discern his exact location—it would be easier than an assault on the building itself. I could be in and out with him without anyone even realizing. Moreover, he’s more likely to trust another child.”

Master Koth made a noise like he disagreed.

Master Tapal just nodded. “Let me think about it.”

“Jaro,” Master Koth said quietly.

“I’m not his nanny, Eeth,” Jaro said. “Both of my previous padawans were in the field with me from day one. I teach critical thinking and survival skills through experience.”

Master Koth exhaled slowly and nodded. “This is why I can’t ever have one.”

“I agree,” Master Tapal said. “We’d have to stage an intervention and put you in counseling to get you to part with your thirty-year-old padawan.”

Obi-Wan laughed. “It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve snuck around in vents. Of course, on Coruscant the only concern was CSF officers and the temple guards. I probably shouldn’t be telling a member of the High Council this. It’ll ruin everyone’s fun.”

“Sneaking successfully out of the temple is a rite of passage,” Master Koth said and took a sip of caf. “You’re old enough to know, however, that the temple guards always knew, and you were never far from one even when you were out buying more candy than the rules allowed. But you probably did successfully evade Coruscant Security Forces as they aren’t trained to notice Jedi.”

Obi-Wan shrugged. “Quin suspected that to be the case, but the pretense is fun. I won’t tell the others. No need to demoralize anyone or ruin their plans.”

 

 

 

Chapter 13

Mustafar looked like a hellscape from space, and it felt life-ruining. Obi-Wan stared down at the planet, anxiety swirling around in his gut. Perhaps it was the vision coming back to haunt him. Master Tapal had been right that he felt no ownership concerning the events he’d witnessed. Part of him already hated the day that he would meet the other man from the vision. He knew that he would, as that felt like a bit of destiny. He hoped they had a better ending in his reality than they had in the one he’d seen in his vision.

He rubbed his sternum thoughtfully as he let go of the emotions the vision had invoked in him. It wasn’t his heart that had been broken by betrayal and disillusionment, but he ached for his counterpart. Despite what he’d been taught at the temple, Obi-Wan had never really learned to ignore his visions. It seemed like a stupid thing to do. He had learned to hide them as much as possible. Obi-Wan wondered how many others had done the exact same thing.

“I’ll do better,” he murmured. “I’ll pay attention.”

It felt like a promise, and it was relieving to have said it.

There was a distinct clank as the Guardian docked with the Titan. Obi-Wan trotted over to the docking ring and waited as the two ships were fully connected, and a door opened. Master Masana Tide dropped right down onto the Guardian without extending the ladder and stared down at him.

“Hey, kid.” She inclined her head and spread her arms out. “What do you think?”

He grinned at her. “You’re magnificent, Master Tide. Welcome aboard.”

Master Tide laughed loudly and snatched him right up off the floor. “You little charmer.”

Obi-Wan considered protesting being carried around like a baby as she headed for the lift, but then just threw an arm over her very broad shoulder. The Dowutin female was as tall as Master Tapal and nearly twice as wide as him. She probably weighed upwards of 900 pounds, so there was no arguing with her.

“Jaro!” she called out as they left the lift on the bottom floor of the ship. “I found a charming tiny Human. Is he yours? Can I have him?”

“No, you can’t have him.” Master Tapal sighed and shook his head. “Put my padawan down, Masana.”

“He’s such a sweet, cute little thing,” Masana said but set him down quite gently. “It makes me want to go back to Coruscant and get myself one.”

“They have quite a few at the academy right now,” Jaro said. “A padawan would probably do you some good.”

She laughed then unceremoniously hauled Master Koth into a hug. “Eeth! Looking good.”

Master Koth laughed and accepted the hug. “Masana, you get bigger by the day.”

“Or at least by the decade,” she said wryly and released him. “I’ve missed you.” She focused on the holotable. “I’ve already connected with Mila, and we have a game plan. The Techno Union has a large contingent of droids on the planet with an oversite management team at the factories. The main issue is the private security forces they have on the planet. There are around 400 mercs on the planet right now. Nothing Mila and I can’t handle, and we’ve planned our offensive to start in just twelve hours. The Mustafarians are eager to take their world back and are generally pleased, if astounded, by the sudden off-world help.”

Master Tapal nodded. “Any data on the other facility?”

“It’s not far from the ruins of an ancient Jedi enclave,” Master Tide said and offered Master Tapal a datachip. “Prefab, four floors, and it’s been suspended above a lava flow. It’s clearly been set up to be scuttled at a moment’s notice. I’m concerned that our activities with the Techno Union might spook the staff at the secret facility and cause an evac.”

“Then we need to be in place before you start,” Master Tapal said as he inserted the datachip into the holotable. “How old is this data?”

“Just ten hours. I sent in a seeker droid to get an accurate read on the place. A small ship visited the planet three hours ago. Mila and I had our ships running silent, so we went unnoticed as far as we know. The benefit of having ships designed for smuggling.” She frowned. “One adult life sign on the ship.” She paused and seemed to consider what she was going to say. “I tried to capture it for the purposes of operational security. The pilot fought back and stupidly tried to enter hyperspace while trapped in my tractor beam. The ship broke up and was destroyed. They didn’t respond to any of my attempts at communication. I do know it came from the not-so-secret facility while on the planet.”

Obi-Wan watched his master absorb that information. Master Koth was frowning at his datapad. He wondered if they were both weighing the odds that Masana Tide had actually taken out one of the Sith lords.

“How did the pilot feel?” Master Koth questioned.

“Dark as fuck,” Master Tide retorted bluntly. “Cruel. I wasn’t all that fussed when they wouldn’t surrender. There wasn’t a body to retrieve, but I did do a thorough scan of what little wreckage remained as it was ejected from the hyperspace lane. Who are you hunting, Jaro?”

“A Sith lord or two,” Master Tapal said, and her eyes widened in shock. “And I’m wondering if you’ve managed to take one off the list.”

She shrugged. “You’re welcome.”

Master Tapal laughed, and they all focused on the holotable. The holographic detail was much better, and the vents were accurately displayed. Obi-Wan watched the three masters stare at the plans. Despite the size of the facility, there were only twenty-two staff and Maul inside it.

“He must be very dangerous,” Obi-Wan murmured as he stared at the plans and the marked location where the seeker droid had found Maul. “They’ve heavily isolated him, and he’s probably wearing a shock collar so they can control him. His Force abilities might be the root of the isolation. There will come a point when Darth Sidious has to either kill him or trust him to behave. At least, the Sith will come to trust his own training.”

Evie stirred in his robe pocket and crawled out. She hopped onto the holotable. “Obi-Wan and I can retrieve the boy.”

Master Tapal nodded as he stared at the plans. “An assault will result in them scuttling the facility. Take all the data you need, Evie. Make sure you know how to remove a variety of shock and slave collars in case you need to remove it before he can be moved.”

Her lights flickered and lit up as she did as instructed, then she crawled back up Obi-Wan’s arm and burrowed back into his robe.

“Handy little thing,” Master Tide said. “Where did you get an ID7, kid?”

“She was a gift from a friend,” Obi-Wan said.

“A good friend to keep,” Master Tide said, and Obi-Wan nodded.

* * * *

“That could be the most unsafe place to work in the whole Outer Rim,” Obi-Wan said as they stood on the ridge above the Sith facility. “Someone should file a complaint.”

“The repulsor fields are holding, so the temperature is reasonable,” Master Tapal said. “Forgive this old man a small bit of coddling, Padawan.” He picked Obi-Wan up and used his grappling hook to swing them across the lava pool before he could respond.

Obi-Wan took a deep breath as they dropped, and his master landed nimbly on top of the facility. He was put down, and they hurried across the top to an exterior vent tower. They climbed the tower, and Master Tapal pulled the heavy metal grate off the top of the central vent.

“Keep your comlink active at all times,” Master Tapal ordered. “No detours from the plan unless you’re discovered and need to take the secondary route. If he fights you, leave him.”

Obi-Wan took a deep breath. “His mom wants him back.”

“A ten-year-old Zabrak male is twice as strong as you are, Obi-Wan,” Master Tapal said. “If he fights you, he could and certainly would kill you. He’s probably already killed more than one person, which is part of why he’s isolated in this facility. The staff that the Sith have here can’t handle him. Save him from himself if you can, but do not risk your life for his. I’ll try another method of retrieval.”

Obi-Wan nodded and placed his grappling hook.

His master put a hand on his shoulder. “If they scuttle this death trap, you’ll have less than a minute to get back up here. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Obi-Wan said and nodded.

Obi-Wan slid down the tower vent shaft easily and recalled his grapple hook. It snapped gently back against his wrist, and he shifted the device carefully. The grappling system was designed to work from his utility belt or the wrist. Master Tapal had suggested that the wrist would work better for his size and use. They’d done several exercises with it in the training arena while they’d waited for Master Tide and Mila to get into position.

Evie shifted on his shoulder. He’d left his robe on the ship, which meant she could either ride on his shoulder, hover on her own, or tuck into the now-empty pocket on his utility belt. She’d already decided the pocket was hers since he’d be wearing his grappling hook on his left wrist from now on. He’d have to work on it a little since he’d had to put his chronometer on his right arm temporarily.

Maul was on the third floor, so he hurried through the vent system as quietly as he could and lowered himself down another horizontal part to reach the third floor. There wasn’t a large vent in the room the boy was being held in, but Master Tide’s seeker droid had scanned the lock. Evie was confident she could slice it.

Once he’d reached the closest point he could with the vents, he pulled a grate free carefully, and Evie spun off his shoulder to scout ahead. He waited just a minute before she returned.

“We can move. The guards are watching a holoprogram,” Evie said with a series of taps on the top of Obi-Wan’s hand. It was a shorthand version of the Binary language that he was grateful to already be familiar with.

He slid out of the vent, dropped to his feet, and hurried down the hall. Evie flew ahead of him and started slicing into the lock before Obi-Wan reached them. There were no security cams, which made sense to him; the Sith lord wouldn’t want any recordings of his face in the facility. He hoped that Masana Tide had killed one of them. The Force felt very content about the death, so that was interesting.

The door clicked open, and Obi-Wan slipped into the room quickly. The boy was seated on the floor, dressed in rags, and glaring at him. “Hello, there.”

“No,” Maul hissed. “Tell him no. I’m fucking done fighting. I don’t care what he does to me!”

“I don’t know who you’re talking about,” Obi-Wan admitted. “I hesitate to even say this, considering you’ve probably already been taught that someone like me is your enemy, but I’m with the Jedi Order, and we’re here to bring you home.”

Maul scoffed and glared. “Tell that bitch I want no part of her! And the Jedi would never come for me!”

Obi-Wan drew his lightsaber and turned it on, revealing the indigo blade. Maul’s mouth dropped open. “Jedi Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi at your service. If you were talking about Mother Talzin, she’s dead. A woman named Nomi killed her and took her place as Great Mother of Dathomir.” He turned off his lightsaber and hooked it back onto his belt. “There’s a lot of information to relate and we’re going to run short on time. So, to sum up, Talzin stole you from your real mother. She stole your brothers, too. Your real mother’s name is Kycina and she’s waiting on me and my master to bring you home.”

Maul stared as tears welled in his eyes. “Don’t fucking lie to me!”

“I’m not lying to you,” Obi-Wan said patiently. “I have no reason to lie. If we were just here to steal you from the Sith, I’d have come prepared to knock you unconscious and drag you up the vent shaft to my master with little to no care as to how much injury such an extraction would cause you.”

“Kycina was just…she was just the woman that worked for Mother Talzin,” Maul said hoarsely. “She kept us in the nursery.”

“She took care of you and your brothers,” Obi-Wan said. “She fed you, put you to bed, and even bathed you. She did all the things a mother should do.”

“Yes,” Maul said quietly and rocked back hard against the wall. “Mother Talzin said she coddled us and would take us away from her for weeks at a time.” Tears streamed down his face. “She’s really my mother? Do you promise?”

“She told my master that she was your mother,” Obi-Wan said. “She asked us to do everything we could to find you, Maul. Will you come with me?”

Maul stood, eyes dark, and wiped his face with his forearm. “If you’ve lied to me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, I swear on my life I’ll fucking kill you if it’s the last thing I do.”

“I’ve told you the truth as I know it,” Obi-Wan said. “And if any of it is a lie, it’s because I was lied to as well.” He held out a hand. “I prefer to make friends over enemies, Maul.”

Maul stepped forward and very hesitantly took Obi-Wan’s hand.

“Master Tapal, we’re on our way back up,” Obi-Wan said. “He’s not wearing a collar.”

“Understood, Padawan.” Master Tapal’s voice sounded a little tinny as it came out of the comlink on Obi-Wan’s belt.

“Those stupid slave collars don’t work on me,” Maul said. “I kept tearing them off, and it was costing them too many credits.”

“Good for you,” Master Tapal said. “Be careful not to be seen, Obi-Wan.”

Obi-Wan opened the door, and Evie darted out to check, then returned. She tapped the word go against his collarbone. He pulled Maul from the room, and they hurried down the hall and toward the vent he’d exited from.

“Okay, hold on,” Obi-Wan said quietly and grappled the top of the vent.

There was a distinct clang even as he pulled Maul close. The boy was significantly shorter than him but was clearly sturdy and strong. He clung easily, and they were pulled up into the vent just as he heard footsteps. Obi-Wan hurriedly put the vent back into place and motioned Maul to be quiet and still. The boy nodded.

“That little bastard got out of his room again! Lock the place down!”

Obi-Wan winced but thought that Maul’s habit of escaping his room would probably work in their favor as an alarm sounded and security guards were ordered to retrieve shock rods and stun weapons.

“Just keep moving,” Master Tapal ordered sharply.

“Lord Sidious told me if I left my room again without permission, he’d kill everyone here and me, too,” Maul whispered.

“Well, we’re leaving, and everyone else gets exactly what they deserve,” Obi-Wan muttered as they crawled quickly through the vents. He used the grapple hook again to get them up to the fourth floor. “We’re close, Master.”

“Not close enough!” Master Tapal shouted. “Move, boys, now!”

The facility dropped abruptly, and more alarms started to sound. Distantly, an automated voice started to call for an evacuation.

“The facility just received a command from off-planet,” Master Koth reported. “It’s a scuttle protocol. Reason unclear. They’ve had no outgoing communications.”

Obi-Wan grappled the top of the entry tower, and they swung upward quickly. His master grabbed them both and hauled them out of the tower with the Force. The Guardian was hovering near them, and Master Tapal tossed them both right through the open door and grappled the ramp.

Obi-Wan crawled away from the entry, dragging a stunned Maul with him. “Get out of the way, Maul. Master Tapal is big.”

Maul gasped a little. “What the hell is he?”

“A Lasat,” Obi-Wan said in amusement. “And watch your language. Adults don’t like it when little kids curse.”

Master Tapal swung onto the ship with a heavy thud and slapped the control panel to close the boarding ramp. “Did I hurt either of you?”

“I’m fine,” Maul said cautiously.

“Pretty sure my wrist is broken,” Obi-Wan said. “But that’s better than a lava bath.”

Master Tapal made a noise. “Your sense of humor is genuinely appalling, Padawan.” He plucked Obi-Wan right up off the floor. “Come, Maul. Eeth the facility is completely destroyed. Did anyone evacuate?”

“No, they didn’t have any way out—no escape pods or docked starships,” Master Koth said over the ship’s intercom.

Master Tapal took him straight to the infirmary and deposited him on the examination table. “I broke his wrist, Twobit.”

Obi-Wan shared a look with Maul, who was staring at Twobit. “He’s a medical droid.”

“They had one at the bad place,” Maul said. “They used it to fix me when Lord Sidious broke me.”

“Ace is putting us into orbit,” Master Koth said as he appeared in the doorway. “I have a copy of the command that was sent to the planet. I can’t tell where it came from.”

Obi-Wan removed his grapple hook and set it aside as Evie rubbed her body against the side of his head. “I’m fine, Evie.”

Twobit scanned his wrist. “There are four hairline fractures,” he reported. “Bacta injections will resolve the issue.”

“See, that’s not bad at all,” Obi-Wan said, and his master sighed. “Seriously. I’ve had worse from sparring with Bruck.”

“I’m never letting you near that child again,” Master Tapal said stiffly, then turned to Maul. He knelt. “Can I ask you some questions, Maul?”

“Are you really going to take me home?” Maul questioned, gaze narrowing.

“Yes, just as soon as we drop the supplies for the Mustafarians.”

“Why do they need supplies?” Maul frowned.

“Another Jedi Master and a friend of mine are currently leading a liberation effort on the planet below us. They took up the campaign to protect our operation to rescue you.” He tapped Maul’s chest gently. “And now the Mustafarians are going to be free from the Techno Union.”

“That’s good,” Maul said quietly. “They don’t live well.” He took a deep breath. “I’m a Nightbrother.”

“Yes.” Master Tapal nodded.

“What if I don’t want to stay on Dathomir?” Maul questioned.

“If I may be frank?” Master Tapal questioned, and the boy nodded. “You are too old and already too invested in the darker elements of the Force to be accepted by the Jedi Order. If you don’t want to remain on Dathomir, we will work to find you a home. But, why would you not wish to stay?”

“Obi-Wan said that Mother Talzin is dead, and that’s good—she was very cruel. Even when she visited me on Mustafar, she only had ugly things to say to me. She said my lack of progress shamed her. The Nightbrothers are slaves on Dathomir, and I don’t know if Mother Nomi will be any better.”

“You’ll be pleased to know that Mother Nomi has freed the Nightbrothers, Maul.” Master Koth knelt down with them, and the boy focused on him. “She has outlawed slavery and indentured servitude on the whole planet. Mother Nomi wants a better future for Dathomir. She’s also developing a good relationship with the Jedi Order.”

“Are you a Jedi?” Maul questioned. “They let Zabraks become Jedi?”

“Yes, of course,” Eeth said. “But I was raised in the temple on Coruscant, and that’s a requirement. The Order prefers that children come to the temple before they’re five years old for most humanoid species.”

“It all sounds too good to be true,” Maul admitted and averted his gaze. “It’s like I’m in a dream, and I’ve not had good dreams since I left Dathomir. I’ve done terrible things—killed people to make Lord Sidious happy. He’ll try to get me back.”

“As far as he knows, you died with everyone else in the facility,” Master Koth said. “He’ll never know differently, Maul, if we can prevent it. We’ll take you home to Dathomir. There are no reports regarding this operation for the Jedi Order. Nothing will be said anywhere for anyone to hear who can’t be trusted. As far as Sidious is concerned, you no longer exist. You can go home to Dathomir and have your markings altered magickally. You can disappear amongst the other Nightbrothers if you wish. With Talzin gone, he will likely avoid returning to Dathomir to protect his identity.”

Maul turned to Obi-Wan. “What would you do?”

“Mother Nomi killed Mother Talzin because her own child had been stolen from Dathomir, and she wanted Asajj back. She was afraid that Mother Talzin would somehow prevent that. She and the other Nightsisters searched for all the information they could so we could find you. Your mother, Kycina, cried when she spoke of the children Talzin stole from her. She loves you, Maul. If I had a mother who loved me, I’d go home.”

“Your mother doesn’t love you?” Maul questioned.

“I was given to the Jedi Order when I was very young,” Obi-Wan said. “My mother doesn’t even know me. Perhaps she loved the baby she had, but I’m not that child anymore.” He focused on his wrist as Twobit started to inject bacta, and he couldn’t help but make a face.

“Does it hurt?” Maul grimaced at the needle Twobit was wielding.

“Yes, but the bacta will work quickly,” Obi-Wan said. “It’ll be completely healed by tomorrow.”

Maul nodded. “I’ll go home if the Nightbrothers are truly free. I can’t…I can’t be a slave ever again.” He focused on Master Tapal. “You had questions.”

“Did you ever meet the other Sith lord?”

“Yes, his name is Darth Plagueis. He’s very powerful and wealthy. It was his credits that paid for everything on Mustafar. I think he’s old, too. Lord Sidious said I had the potential to join an ancient and prestigious lineage if I fully embraced my anger.”

“Did he say any other names?” Master Tapal questioned.

Maul wet his lips. “Lord Sidious told me it was an honor to be apprenticed to him because he was of the line of Bane. I don’t know who Bane is, though.”

“An ancient, long-dead Sith,” Master Tapal said quietly. “When did you last see either of the Sith lords?”

“Lord Plagueis visited me this morning,” Maul said. “It was the first time I’d ever seen him in person. I think…he was angry about me, but I don’t know why. He asked me if Lord Sidious called me his apprentice and I said no. I was just an experiment, and I said as much. Lord Plagueis laughed, and it felt so mean and ugly.” Maul shuddered. “He said maybe I’d be useful after all, and he left.”

Master Tapal nodded. “Why do you think you just met him today?”

“Well, I met him years ago but only ever over holocalls,” Maul said. “He liked to call me and lecture me about the history of the Sith. I lashed out at Lord Sidious last week and hurt him. He laughed at me for it instead of getting mad, and I told him I wanted to go home. He told me that I was never going home and that my mother didn’t love me. Lord Sidious said she’d never loved me because I was male.”

Obi-Wan shrugged. “Sith lie. It’s all they do, and he thought your mother’s name was Talzin, so he was dumb, too.”

Maul laughed a little but then frowned. “Lord Plagueis came to see me because I refused to do my exercises and ignored him during his weekly call yesterday. He told me if I didn’t do as I was told that he’d be forced to cancel the experiment. I told him to go ahead.”

“One final question, did you ever see either of their faces?” Master Tapal questioned.

Maul shook his head. “They always wore their hoods down over most of their face. I can’t tell you who they are. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. So, don’t worry about it,” Master Tapal said. “Twobit, scan Maul for health issues.”

“He looks healthy for his age and size,” Twobit said even as Master Tapal put Maul on the examination table beside Obi-Wan. “Did they feed you well?”

“Yes, very well,” Maul admitted. “I have to grow strong to be useful.”

Obi-Wan grimaced and picked up his grappling hook, which he tucked into the empty pocket on his utility belt since he couldn’t put it back on his wrist due to healing. “Enid, can you ask the twins to put a cot in my room for Maul? It’ll be a while before we reach Dathomir, and he might like some sleep.”

“Of course, Obi-Wan,” Enid said.

Obi-Wan turned to Maul. “We have guest berths on the third deck of the ship, but I figured you might not want to be alone.”

Maul looked down at his hands. “I’ve been alone for a long time. A cot in your room would be…good. I won’t be a problem or do anything bad.”

“Great,” Obi-Wan said. “We’ll figure out some clothes, too.”

“We should have clothes in the supplies to fit him,” Master Tapal said. “Twobit?”

“Yes, I ordered pants, tunics, and shoes in a variety of sizes for children. We have a large collection of unisex robes in the supplies, and that has been our main clothing offering for refugees. But Asajj’s rescue highlighted a need that we’ve rarely dealt with in the past. Most often, when we free slaves, they’re adults or near to adult size. The few children we’ve had on board in the past were normally with their parents, and those adults handled any clothing issues they had while we traveled.”

“I’ve scanned him and sent Clank to gather what he will need,” Enid interjected.

“Tell her that Nightbrothers wear red and black,” Master Koth said, and Maul nodded slowly.

* * * *

“Are you well?”

Jaro nodded but then shook his head. “I’ve never actually hurt one of my padawans before.”

“Well, neither of your previous padawans were Human,” Eeth said. “And they’re far more fragile than most species that we know of or interact with. You had no choice, Jaro. Half the facility was already destroyed by the time they got to the top of that tower. Another thirty seconds, and all three of you would’ve been in lava.”

Jaro lowered his head in the stream of energy that the sonic shower was pouring over his body. “He did well. I shouldn’t throw my guilt all over him.” He stepped out of the shower and pulled on a robe. “Will you go check on them? The boy was very hostile when Obi-Wan first met him.”

“Enid would certainly notify us if they were arguing,” Eeth said. “But, yes, I’ll go check on them.”

He tied his robe together, then sat down on the comm station and rubbed his face briskly as he pushed aside his guilt so he could focus on the holocall that he needed to make. When he felt level, Jaro contacted the temple. Jocasta was expecting word from him, so he waited while the call was routed quickly through the system to her office.

“Jaro,” her hologram appeared with a cup of tea in her hand. “Yaddle is with me. What news do you have?”

“Masana and Mila are down on the planet wrecking the kind of havoc two women of their impressive size can do,” Jaro said, and Jocasta grinned. “I’ve met my objective, but there are issues I want to discuss in person with the Council. I’m going to cut communications after I drop the supplies Masana needs, take a small detour, and return Master Koth to Coruscant.”

Her eyes widened slightly then she nodded. “I’m considering a security review of the temple.”

“I agree that you should,” Master Tapal said with a nod. He hoped his formal tone told her more than anything he was saying to her.

The hologram shifted, and Yaddle joined Jocasta. “You’re upset, Jaro. What’s wrong?”

Jaro took a deep breath. “I made a mistake with Obi-Wan, and he was injured. He’s my first Human padawan, and I simply forgot, in the heat of the moment, that he’s not as sturdy as other species.”

Yaddle nodded. “Has he recovered?”

“Yes, but I broke his wrist,” Jaro said quietly, and her eyes widened slightly. “I’m sick with guilt if I’m honest.”

“You’re the kindest and most gentle of all the Jedi I know, Jaro,” Yaddle said quietly. “You can give me the details when you arrive, but I’m certain that you did the very best you could with your padawan in the moment. I have the utmost faith in you.”

“Thank you,” Jaro said quietly. “I need to go check on him, but I wanted to confirm the success as soon as possible. The Mustafarians deserve to be free and making contact with them as requested felt like we’ve made a good step toward rectifying a very old wrong.”

“What did Master Koth say about the accident?” Jocasta questioned.

“Master Koth offered no criticism,” Jaro said, and they both nodded. “I’m just, honestly, not used to making this kind of mistake. I’ll speak with Obi-Wan. He doesn’t appear to be bothered psychologically by it at all, and I feel no resentment through our bond.”

“Then you know the rule,” Yaddle said and left the holoprojection even as Jocasta failed to not look confused.

“Don’t borrow trouble,” Jaro supplied, and Jocasta nodded. “I’ll make best speed to Coruscant as soon as I can. Then, I plan to avoid the planet as much as possible for at least a year. May the Force be with you.”

“And with you,” she said dryly, and the holoprojection faded away.

Jaro stood, pulled a pair of pants on underneath his dressing robe, and went to find his padawan. Obi-Wan was actually seated in the middle of the training arena, meditating. His tiny droid was perched on his shoulder. He walked to the pair and sat down in front of him.

Obi-Wan opened his eyes and focused on him. “You’re upset.”

“I’ve never hurt one of my padawans before.”

“It was necessary,” Obi-Wan said plainly. “Even if the injury had been significantly worse, it would’ve been necessary. Are we not taught that it is better to cut off a limb than lay in a trap and die?”

Jaro nodded. “Knowing that and accepting that are two different things.” He held out his hand and Obi-Wan put his hand in his palm side up. “Does it still hurt?”

“No, it’s fine, I promise.”

“I’ll be more careful with you in the future,” Jaro murmured as he rubbed his thumb carefully along the bones of Obi-Wan’s wrist before releasing him. “How is Maul?”

Obi-Wan huffed. “He just…threw off all of his clothes!”

Jaro laughed. “Body shame is foreign to Zabraks.”

“Certainly,” Obi-Wan muttered. “I barely managed to get turned around before he was totally naked, running around my refresher. At any rate, Master Koth got him into the shower, and he asked for water since he’d had not bathed with water since he left Dathomir.” He took a deep breath. “He’s incredibly angry and dark.”

Master Tapal nodded.

“The cheerful façade is difficult to look at,” Obi-Wan said in a near whisper. “I can’t say he’s even doing it on purpose. He clearly wants to be free of what was done to him, but he doesn’t have the tools to do it for himself. Can we help him?”

“We’ll give him to his mother and let her know that we can arrange for a mind healer for him if she wants that,” Jaro said. “But we can’t force such a thing on their family.”

“I want to believe that his mother would want him to heal, but being dark on Dathomir isn’t a bad thing, is it?”

“Traditionally, the Dathomiri have a very balanced Force presence—neither entirely dark nor light. Some would say a shade of gray, but that’s not accurate either,” Jaro said. “The balance on Dathomir is very complicated, and it serves the Force. That is enough for me.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Maul and I would’ve died if you hadn’t thrown us onto the ship, you know. I didn’t have time to climb out and launch my own grappling hook at the same time. So, really, a broken wrist is much preferred over a lava bath. I’ve never had a bath at all, actually, that I remember. Maybe my parents put me in a tub of water.” He made a face. “I’ve only taken a handful of water showers because it seems wasteful, and the sonic works great.”

“I normally take sonic showers exclusively to lower the natural odor my species produces that some Humans find it offensive.”

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. “What odor?”

“You’re part of the majority then,” Jaro said with amusement. “A small percentage of Humans have a genetic quirk that allows them to smell the oils on my skin that I naturally produce, and it is apparently very offensive.”

“Ah, well, no one ever comments, right? That would be rude.”

“People have,” Jaro admitted. “It’s not like I can do much about it because the skin oil is necessary to maintain my fur, and I couldn’t stop producing the oil even if I wanted to.” He stood. “You should get some sleep. It’ll make it easier for the bacta to finish up healing your wrist. I’ll be monitoring Masana’s operation well into the evening. Then we’ll drop the supplies and the diplomatic package. The twins will launch the comm relay by morning as well.”

“Good night, Master,” Obi-Wan said and gracefully rose from the floor.

“Will you have a problem sleeping in the same room with Maul?” Master Tapal questioned.

“No, he’s not angry with me,” Obi-Wan said simply. “Maybe I’ll get him to meditate with me in the morning. He could use some mental room to find his balance.” He trotted off toward his room even as the door opened. “Hey, Maul, did you put on some clothes?”

“Yes, you prude!” Maul shouted and Eeth strolled out with a laugh.

“Just because I don’t want to see your tiny red butt…doesn’t mean I’m a prude,” Obi-Wan protested, and Maul laughed.

 

 

 

Chapter 14

Masana had once more plucked his padawan right up and started carrying him around. Fortunately, Obi-Wan seemed more amused by Masana’s antics than offended. Jaro stared at her.

“If I’d known this sweet little thing was on Coruscant, I’d have dueled you for him,” Masana said and frowned at him.

“I was telling Master Tide there is a Twi’lek initiate at the academy named Tarsi Des who is really nice that I think would be a really good fit for her,” Obi-Wan said as Masana sat down on the bench and put him on her knee.

Jaro stared at them. “He’s not a toddler, Masana.”

“My whole leg weighs more than he does,” Masana said in delight. “I’m going to Coruscant as soon as I can to get myself one. I had no idea I even wanted a padawan until now.”

“They sneak up on you,” Jaro said. “How is Mila?”

“Sad that you wouldn’t send Obi-Wan down to the planet to visit her but enjoying herself. You know she likes to boss people around and the Mustafarians are enamored with her to the point they might elect her queen,” Masana said and put Obi-Wan down on the bench beside her. “We’ve set up the synth for food distribution, and we’ll need a medical resupply. The organics running the Techno Union factories evacuated the planet as soon as they realized they couldn’t contain the libration event. I expect a complaint to be filed, but ask me how much I care.”

Jaro grinned. “I could hazard a guess. Has anyone discussed the facility that was destroyed?”

“The natives knew about it and were not surprised when it was scuttled. They don’t know anything about the organization that was running it, nor do they seem to care. They’re glad to see the end of it and said they won’t allow anything similar to be erected in the future.” She looked around. “Where’s your special guest?”

“Eeth is working with him in private to help mitigate some of the damage done to him,” Jaro said. “He suffered as one would expect him to in a Sith’s dubious care. He’s a very angry and damaged child.”

Masana’s fist tightened on her thigh, and she nodded. “Can’t say I’m unhappy to have taken a dark bastard out whether he was a Sith or not.”

“We believe he was the Sith, as he’d visited the child earlier in the day to lecture him about his behavior and progress,” Jaro said. “It was his first physical visit to the facility as far as the boy knew, so we got incredibly lucky.” He glanced toward Obi-Wan. “Or the Force gave us a gift.”

“The timing was very good,” Obi-Wan said. “I wonder why the facility was scuttled? The alarms had gone off, but they were just going to contain their prisoner since he’d gotten out a few times before.”

“If it was the Sith lord on that ship that Masana pulled apart, then he might have had an apprentice bond. His student would’ve felt the death of his master. If the apprentice figured out where his lord was supposed to be, then he might have assumed the facility was compromised, and he disposed of it to protect himself,” Jaro speculated. “We’ll investigate it as much as possible. Here’s hoping he has a high public profile and we’ll notice that he’s missing or presumed dead. Either way, we’ll keep your name and ship out of it, Masana. Jocasta will make sure that I’m the one to investigate if the Jedi are called upon to do it.”

“You think he’s that high profile?” Masana questioned. “It’s a big galaxy.”

“I think if he’s as old and as rich as my little guest stated, which bears out considering he was funding the experiment down on Mustafar, then yes, I expect him to be very well-known. A Sith isn’t going to allow himself to languish in obscurity,” Jaro said. “They crave power, Masana.”

“This is when you’re dedication to our history will serve us,” Masana said. “I always did everything I could to avoid those lessons and only took one class at the academy.”

“We learn the most from history,” Obi-Wan said. “No mistake is new; no idea is fresh. Everything that can be done today was done before, and we can study those outcomes to prepare for what comes next.”

Jaro nodded. “Yes, exactly.”

“But it’s boring,” Masana said, and Obi-Wan made a face at her, which made her laugh. She stood. “I should go back down. We’re reviewing the data the Techno Union left behind so we can set up trade deals for the Mustafarians. Mila has arranged for them to buy a starship from her at cost and will have a crew trained to manage it.”

Jaro nodded. “Let her know that she can contact me if she needs anything, and I’ll try to make it happen.” He paused. “Please try to dissuade her from becoming their queen.”

Masana laughed. “Nothing would keep them free more decisively than Mila the Destroyer sitting on the throne of Mustafar, Jaro.”

“What did she destroy?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“Anything she wanted,” Jaro said. “But she’s mellowed out in the last thousand years.”

“Wow.”

* * * *

They’d sent a comm to Dathomir, preparing Mother Nomi and Kycina for Maul’s circumstances, and it was relieving to see they’d kept the receiving party small. Obi-Wan was worried that Maul might be overwhelmed by a lot of people.

Mother Nomi was standing with Asajj in her arms, and Kycina was as close as she safely could be to the landing zone with two boys. Maul’s brothers, Obi-Wan assumed, and he wondered if they were excited to get their brother back. His curiosity was answered nearly immediately because both boys shouted and ran forward as soon as Maul came down the ramp. The smaller of the brothers latched onto Maul like he might never let him go.

Kycina came forward, and Maul stared at her for a long moment before taking the hand she offered. All three brothers gathered around her as she pulled Maul into a hug. There was a quiet, awful grief wafting off the four of them was difficult to be close to. Obi-Wan took a few steps back so he could regain some control over his empathy and his bond with Master Tapal swelled inside of him. It felt like a protective shield, so he used it that way and relaxed as he tucked his empathy behind the bond.

“Thank you, Jaro,” Mother Nomi said as she joined them. “You’ve done more for us in the last month than anyone has in hundreds of years.”

“He has suffered a lot,” Master Tapal said quietly. “He’ll need a lot of understanding and help to come to terms with what was done and how he is now. His darkness is…it could be corruptive. If you need help with it or decide that mind healing would help, just tell Ky, and he’ll arrange for it.”

“He’s already spoken to Kycina and me about it,” Nomi said. “And she’s open to it as she wants her son to have the life he deserves to have. Ky and his padawan are adjusting well to living amongst us. We’re pleased to have them here, and he’s found three children in the crèche that he believes might be better served at the Jedi Temple. An evaluator is coming to see them and determine if they have the potential to be Jedi.”

“Does that appeal to you?” Master Tapal questioned.

“I believe it would solidify the relationship between the Jedi and the Dathomiri, which serves my world. But I won’t take children from unwilling parents, and we’d want to know how the children are doing regularly once they’re at the temple.”

“We have such arrangements with many worlds and even arrange for children to visit home as needed for cultural reasons,” Master Tapal said. “I realize that many believe that the Jedi steal children and hold them hostage, but that’s not how we operate in practice.”

“Obi-Wan, could you leave the Jedi Order if you wanted?” Nomi questioned.

“Yes,” Obi-Wan said. “I would’ve said, in the past, that I really didn’t have anywhere to go if I did leave. My parents declined, in my records, to meet me as an adult, and I’m left to assume they’d have no desire to meet me now. But the leader of Mandalore has been trying to adopt me since we met, so I’ve got options.” Master Tapal sighed. “But I want to be a Jedi Knight. It feels like my destiny.”

Nomi smiled, and Asajj continued to rest on her shoulder. She patted her daughter’s back. “She wanted to see you both but is tired from being ill. Ky says she’s mostly recovered, and it’s just an adjustment due to being amongst a different population.”

“Children coming to the crèche from other worlds often experience the same transitory illnesses,” Master Tapal said. “Please take her to Ky immediately if she gets worse, as she might need medical intervention. He’ll have vaccines, medications, and various other medical supplies in his supply cache if she needs them.”

Obi-Wan turned his attention to Maul and found him still hugging his mother. It was nice, and the grief around the family had lessened, but it still swirled around them like a waning storm.

This, he thought, was the legacy of the Sith, and it always had been.

* * * *

His padawan was a jittery little thing on the inside, but he appeared very calm as they were called in the Council’s chamber. Obi-Wan’s little face was like a placid lake as they came to a standstill in front of the High Council. It was impressive since he was certain it was the first time the boy had ever been in front of the entire Council.

“We heard you were injured, Obi-Wan?” Jocasta began.

Obi-Wan inclined his head. “Yes, Master Nu. But I’m fine now.”

“Your master reported the injury but not the context,” Jocasta said. “We asked you to be included in his report so that we can review the situation for him. Accountability is an important part of the training process, of course, but more importantly, your master is prone to stewing in his own guilt for years if it’s not mitigated.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “On Mustafar, we discovered that the Sith facility had been suspended above a lava pool. We realized it was designed to be scuttled at a moment’s notice, which made an overt assault untenable. Since it was a prefab building that had a similar design to those on Coruscant and an expansive vent system, I volunteered to go into the vent system and attempt to retrieve Maul, the boy the Sith had stolen from Dathomir.

“I used my seeker droid to scout ahead for me and followed the plan that Master Tapal and Master Koth prepared for me. When I found Maul, I talked him into coming with me, and we left his room. Unfortunately, a security guard must have left the room they were in and heard my grapple hook hitting the vent system. We managed to hide before they saw us, but they did set alarms off.

“Master Koth reported that the facility received a scuttle protocol from an unknown source off-world. We moved as fast as we could, but by the time we reached the top of the access tower, half of the facility had fallen into the lava lake. Master Tapal grabbed us both the moment he could and threw us through the open hatch of the ship, then used his own grappling hook to board.

“I think we might have had less than twenty seconds left before the entire thing was consumed. Maul was uninjured, which was not a surprise since he’s a Zabrak, but I broke my left wrist. It was the wrist I had my grappling hook on, so it was the first part of me Master Tapal could get his hand on when we reached the top of the access tower.

“I’m young and still growing so my bones are more flexible than an adult Human’s, which means I’m less likely to break a bone in a fall. That being said, we did hit the deck quite hard due to distance and velocity. As I explained to Master Tapal after the fact, a few hairline fractures are far more preferred than a lava bath. Twobit treated the injury with bacta injections, and it was perfectly fine when he scanned it this morning.”

Jocasta nodded. “I agree. A lava bath would be an unfortunate end.”

“Most of the time, a substance doesn’t look like it’ll hurt, even if it will,” Obi-Wan said thoughtfully. “Lava looks like agony.”

“Yes,” Jaro said quietly. “It does.”

“Have you discovered the origin of the scuttle protocol signal?” Jocasta questioned.

“No, but Eeth has the data and will be working with it here on Coruscant,” Jaro said. “We do believe it came from a Core world, but it was encrypted in a strange way. I’ve left it to him as he’s much more suited to such work.”

Jocasta nodded. “Obi-Wan, you can go if your master agrees.”

Jaro dropped his hand to Obi-Wan’s shoulder briefly. “Don’t leave the temple and meet me at the ship in three hours.”

“Yes, Master.”

He said nothing as his padawan left at a sedate pace despite the overt desire to run. Jaro focused on Jocasta. “I don’t stew in guilt for years.”

“You could earn a doctorate in it,” Yaddle retorted. “But the circumstances were intense, and I don’t believe you had a choice if the boy’s report was accurate.”

“It was,” Jaro said. “But still.”

“Still,” Yaddle agreed. “You’ll be more careful in the future.”

“I will,” Jaro said. “Based on a conversation with Maul, we did come to confirm that the Sith are called Sidious and Plagueis. Masana encountered a very dark presence on a ship leaving the planet and tried to capture it. The pilot fought her tractor beam and attempted to enter hyperspace. The ship was destroyed, and the only life sign on board was lost. Maul reported that Darth Plagueis had visited him that morning in person for the first time.”

“So, one of them is dead,” Jocasta said. “Either on the scuttled facility or in the ship that was destroyed.”

“That is my current belief,” Jaro said. “I don’t think he was in the facility with me, but there are historical accounts that indicate that an experienced Sith lord can hide from us. We must take such a thing seriously since I believe one or both of them have been here for a very long time. Maul said that Plagueis was very old and wealthy, but he was never allowed to see either of their faces.”

“It’ll be interesting to see if someone with a high profile disappears,” Jocasta said. “I don’t expect a Sith of that age to be lurking completely in the shadows. They’ll be working toward some goal.”

“Bane’s goal,” Jaro said.

“What?” Yaddle demanded.

“Darth Sidious told Maul that he should be proud to be included in the lineage of Darth Bane,” Jaro said.

“So, the Sith continue to seek our destruction,” Jocasta said. “It makes our relationship with the Republic more dangerous than ever.”

“Yes,” Yaddle said. “It’s something to be mitigated, Jocasta. We can’t allow the Senate or the chancellor to give our people orders unchecked. It is dangerous.”

“With the Sith in play, we can’t act as peacekeepers or neutral mediators if we’re entrenched in the Galactic Senate,” Jaro said, and they all focused on him. “The galaxy at large sees the corruption of the Republic and the bureaucracy that cripples the Senate. We’re slowly being tainted by association.”

“I’ll work on it,” Jocasta said after she glanced around at the other members of the Council.

They were all clearly worried.

“My visions have grown darker, but they’ve also changed,” Sifo-Dyas murmured, and everyone focused on him. “There’s bleed-through, of course, and I’ve seen the ramifications of the same decision played out a hundred different ways. Large-scale war seemed to be on the horizon, but this morning, during meditation, I saw a different kind of war being fought. Clandestine fighting, assassinations, and complicated politics.”

“Do any organizations stand out as a problem?” Jocasta questioned, and for a moment, Sifo-Dyas stared at her in shock. “We can’t and won’t act without verification, of course, but if you’ve seen something we can investigate, then I want to know. We want to know.”

“Yoda—”

“Is retired,” Yaddle interjected firmly. “Exploring the various outcomes of decisions and investigating potential problems should be the mandate of this Council going forward. We need to be proactive in the protection of the Order and our people.”

“The Trade Federation,” Sifo-Dyas blurted out. “They’re an immense, galaxy-wide threat, and we need to neutralize them as much as possible. Also, they have too much influence in the Senate. It needs to be mitigated as quickly and silently as possible. I’ve seen the Sith lords in visions, but never their faces. I agree that one is most certainly dead now. The one left behind will be seeking an apprentice. He’ll certainly look to corrupt a Jedi, Jocasta. It would be faster than seeking out an untrained Force-sensitive and doing the training themselves at this point. We need to look at the vulnerable members of the Order—old and young.

“We need to start having frank discussions about the dark side as an organization—they all need to understand that the Sith only offer pain and destruction. We need to separate ourselves from the Republic in a way that protects us because if we don’t, then it will be the death of us all in some fashion or another.” Sifo-Dyas wiped tears from his face with a trembling hand and lowered his head. “Thank you for letting me say all of that. It’s been eating me alive.”

* * * *

“You look great,” Garen said. “Very put together.”

Obi-Wan flushed. “We had to meet with the High Council, so we put on our best robes.” He brushed some lint off his pants. “Thankfully, I was dismissed after I did my report on the last mission.”

“Was it a cool mission?” Bant questioned.

“It was amazing, but I can’t discuss it ever,” Obi-Wan admitted, and all three of them shared in shock. “A lot of what I’ll do with Master Tapal will have various levels of security attached to it. That’s why I can’t always take holocalls, and responding to comms will be slow.”

“Is that why you ignored my last comm?” Siri questioned.

“I didn’t ignore it,” Obi-Wan said. “I just didn’t respond to it, Siri, because it was rude and stressful. I had to prep for a mission at that point and lives were at stake. I can’t be distracted by your behavior when I’m in the field.”

She crossed her arms and frowned. “Right.”

“Quinlan will be sad to have missed you,” Bant said. “He’s on a mission that he was excited about. Of course, we can’t know anything about his missions at all, which is kind of scary.”

“Master Tholme will do everything he can to keep Quinlan safe,” Obi-Wan said firmly. “It’s the path he’s chosen to pursue, and we must respect it. Speaking of, did you guys get the lecture about not approaching or calling attention to him in public if you see him?” They all three nodded, and Obi-Wan frowned. “I almost made a mistake.”

“They really should’ve been talking to us about that all along,” Bant said darkly. “Anyone of us could’ve made that mistake, Obi. The younglings all love Quinlan and Matron Sheva has been known to take them out in the past. She probably won’t be going forward, not with a Wookiee pup in her charge. Force help us all if he were to be kidnapped.”

“Well, Force help the people who’d try it,” Obi-Wan said. “They’d be the most hunted people in the Republic, and I wouldn’t want to be hunted by Wookiees for any reason.”

“I need to talk to Obi-Wan in private,” Siri announced, and he barely refrained from groaning when both Bant and Garen gamely got up to leave.

They both patted him on the shoulder as they left the balcony. It was no sort of comfort, and he was going to tell them about it in comms later. He looked out over the small courtyard in front of them and took note of the various Jedi meditating.

“Have you thought more about the Consular path?” Siri questioned. “Master Jinn has apprenticed Bruck Chun, so you’ve lost that opportunity permanently at this point.”

“Master Jinn was not an opportunity for me,” Obi-Wan said and turned to stare at her. “Take that on board, Siri, because I’m really tired of discussing him. The thought of being in the same room with him right now is stomach-turning. If you were any sort of friend, you’d have never considered it appropriate to torture myself with that kind of relationship.”

Her cheeks flushed. “I am your friend, Obi-Wan. I could be the best of all of your friends if you’d give anyone but Quinlan a chance. He’s taken a dark path in the Order, you know. Shadows do that kind of work so the rest of us don’t have to, and I’m grateful for that, but going forward, associating with him won’t do you any favors.”

“Quin is my best friend,” Obi-Wan said quietly. “And there will never be a day when I turn my back on him. I trust him with everything, and I know he has my back. I know he’d do anything he could to help me, and I’d do the same for him. Listen, Siri, I don’t want to have this conversation, but I’d rather not get a lecture about emotional maturity in the future.” She huffed. “I’m gay.”

She frowned and shook her head. “No, you’re not. Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’m not being ridiculous,” Obi-Wan snapped. “What an incredibly hurtful thing to say to me. I’ve barely told anyone, and this is how you treat me? What kind of friend are you at all?”

“Obi-Wan, you’re barely into puberty and everything is changing for you,” Siri said in a tone that was so patronizing that it left Obi-Wan breathless with anger. “You can’t possibly just know you’re gay at this point. Have you ever even kissed anyone at all?”

“I have, and I told Quin that you’d lied to him about the two of us kissing,’ Obi-Wan said. “I can’t believe you lied about that kind of thing. It’s weird, and I think you have issues with your emotional priorities.” He stood, and she stood with him. “Your behavior has been incredibly selfish since I accepted an apprenticeship.”

“You think I’m selfish?” Siri asked, startled. “You’re the one ruining all of our plans!”

“We never had any plans together,” Obi-Wan retorted in exasperation. “You just talked at me then tried to kiss me without my permission, which made me really uncomfortable. I don’t want that kind of relationship with you, Siri, and I wouldn’t even if I wasn’t completely and utterly gay.”

She slapped his face. Obi-Wan blinked in surprise and took a step back from her. He’d never been slapped in the face in his life. Not even Bruck had ever been that disrespectful. Siri appeared shocked at her own actions, and tears welled in her eyes.

“What’s going on out here?” Master Tapal demanded as he joined them.

Siri squeaked and backed away against the railing as Master Tapal knelt in front of him.

“Obi-Wan?”

“She slapped my face,” Obi-Wan said quietly and took a deep breath. “Can we go?”

“Please stay a moment,” a female voice said, and Obi-Wan watched as Master Adi Gallia went to her padawan. “Siri, what made you strike Obi-Wan? I thought he was your friend.”

Siri averted her gaze. “He’s…just not being what he’s supposed to be. He has the wrong master, he’s on the wrong path, and he’s not….” She huffed. “We were always going to be partners in the Consulars, Master, and now that’s all been ruined because he makes terrible decisions. Plus, he keeps saying he’s gay and he can’t be gay. That’s just ridiculous.”

“Why is it ridiculous?” Master Tapal questioned as he brought Obi-Wan close to him.

She glared at the floor. “He’s from Stewjon and is intersexed. So, he can’t be gay, and when he’s old enough, he’ll get corrective surgery to fix his birth defect.”

“I don’t have a birth defect,” Obi-Wan snapped. “What’s wrong with you? And how do you know I’m Stewjon? Have you told anyone else?”

“I overheard you talking with Bant about it,” Siri said. “And no, I haven’t told anyone. It’s mortifying enough that our friends know. And, of course, it’s a birth defect. Normal Humans aren’t born with two sets of genitals, Obi-Wan.”

“Well, technically speaking,” Obi-Wan said slowly. “I’m near-Human, and twenty-three percent of the population on Stewjon is intersexed. The Stewjoni are a subset of the Human species. Also, for the record, I won’t be getting any kind of surgery to correct what you think is wrong with my body.”

Master Gallia put a hand on Siri’s shoulder and forced the girl to face her. “Siri, your bigotry is appalling. Who has taught you these disgusting opinions?”

Siri blinked at her. “But….”

“Who taught you this?” Master Gallia demanded.

“My parents have been giving me lessons on the social mores of Serenno. It was part of their agreement for me to come to the temple for training,” Siri said. “They also told me I should make sure that I get the most successful Jedi in my age group to partner with me to ensure I’m safe in the field and that I can have a good career.”

“I want to leave now, Master,” Obi-Wan said quietly.

“Obi-Wan,” Siri said and started to move toward him, but Master Gallia stilled her.

“We can’t be friends anymore,” Obi-Wan said and took a deep breath when she gasped in shock. “I can’t be distracted by your behavior, and your lack of respect for me is very hurtful. As a final favor, I would ask that you not lie to the friends we share about what just happened here.”

Tears streamed down her face. “Why would you even ask that?”

“Because you’ve lied before,” Obi-Wan said and her cheeks darkened. “You’re on an unsafe path, Siri, and I can’t be a part of whatever comes next for you.” His master stood, put a hand on his shoulder, and guided him off the balcony.

Bant and Garen were both standing in the hallway as they exited. They were both staring at him wide-eyed. He didn’t know what to say to them.

“I appreciate that you’re both very close to Obi-Wan, but he needs time to process and deal with his emotions regarding this incident. Please refrain from discussing what was said with others,” Master Tapal said quietly.

“I’ll tell Quin,” Obi-Wan said, and they both nodded.

He followed his master through the temple and back to the Guardian with a stinging face and misery stirring his gut. He hadn’t expected that the situation with Siri would be as bad as it turned out to be. The little squeak of the boarding ramp closing was actually a relief instead of an annoyance.

“What do you need from me?” Master Tapal questioned.

“Can I be alone?” Obi-Wan asked.

“Yes, of course,” Master Tapal said. “I’ll get us underway. Our next destination is Bakura.”

“Hutt hunt?” Obi-Wan questioned, and his master nodded. “Great! I’m at the point where I might actually want to meet an evil slug.”

He went into his room, crawled onto the bed, and closed his eyes even as tears welled. Obi-Wan grabbed a pillow and hugged it tightly.

* * * *

Jaro took the cup of caf that Ace brought him with a sigh and checked his chronometer. His padawan had been asleep for several hours, but his emotional upset had been radiating out of him like a little storm, so it was to be expected. Unfortunately, he’d been contacted before he could leave the planet, so they were still on Coruscant.

Since Obi-Wan was sleeping, he’d had to take several meetings via holo with the Judicial Department. They weren’t telling him what they really wanted to, so he was more curious than anything else. He was now waiting for a call from the Republic Office of Criminal Investigations. The ROCI received copies of all of his reports, and they were probably trying to figure out how to reprimand him and Masana Tide regarding the libration of Mustafar.

Fortunately, for Masana and himself, they hadn’t broken a single law. They hadn’t even been in Republic space and thus were not accountable to the ROCI and or even the Galactic Senate regarding what had happened on the planet. The lawlessness in the Outer Rim served them very well, and jurisdictional authority played a heavy part in their success against slavers.

The Anti-Slavery Committee had also called out the Judicial Department and the ROCI on their haphazard work on the slavery issue inside and outside of the Republic. Since he worked with sector rangers and security forces from the ROCI regularly, he did try to keep up a decent relationship with them.

The holotable activated a Human male appeared in the holoprojection.

“Master Tapal, I am Provost Marshall Thron Gienn with the Judicial Department. The ROCI has referred this situation to me due to political concerns. We have a very delicate matter that needs to be investigated. I apologize for the delay in this conversation, but Grand Master Yaddle recently made some changes in how Jedi receive requests from the Judicial Department and the Galactic Senate. Just a matter of organization as far as I know, and a welcome one, I might add. It’s good to know that the Order is keeping track of its people.

“I’ve sent the High Council an assignment package, and they’ve told me it will be distributed to you. I wanted to speak with you personally regarding the mission.”

“I received the package just a moment ago,” Jaro said. “A high priority missing? I don’t normally investigate missing person cases unless trafficking is suspected, Marshall Gienn.”

“Normally, such a case would be given to a team of judicials or an elite sector ranger. But considering the delicate issues at play and the potential fall out, I reached out to the High Council for help. They believe you are the best choice as an investigator. And considering your career with the Order and the work you’ve done with the Judicial Department, I can’t deny you are a very successful field asset. My records indicate that you’re eighty-five years old, but you appear quite young.”

“My species is long-lived,” Jaro said easily. “Your records are accurate regarding my age.” The man nodded slowly. “My maternal grandfather was also a Jedi, and he was killed in action at the age of 438.”

“I see.” He cleared his throat. “The administrative assistant for Hego Damask II, the CEO of Damask Holdings, has reported him missing. He was supposed to be making a solo trip to his home world, Mygeeto, but he never arrived and has not returned. He had several important meetings scheduled over the past two days that he missed, and his staff assures me that he’s never done anything like this before.”

“So, I shouldn’t expect to find him in a brothel,” Jaro said, and Marshall Gienn laughed unexpectedly.

“He’s a Munn. Are they prone to such things?”

“I’ve rarely met a species who didn’t have members prone to such a thing,” Jaro said. “Munns are known to be greedy and morally ambiguous enough to take advantage of anyone to accumulate wealth. I’ve been in more than one Munn-run whorehouse in my day.”

Marshall Gienn blinked in shock and nodded slowly. “That’s fascinating. Hego Demask is 103 years old, both parents were Munn, and he’s one of the wealthiest individuals living on Coruscant currently. A kidnapping is likely, but no ransom demand has been sent that we were made aware of. We’ve already searched his apartment and the results of that search were included in the documentation I’ve sent you.”

“Do you know what sort of ship he was using? Did he have crew on board? His comm code?”

“All of that is included in the case file,” Marshall Gienn assured. “I’ve done the very best I could to provide you with all the information you need to begin an off-world search. I do not believe he’s returned to Coruscant, Master Tapal. Additionally, and I shared this with Master Nu, Senator Palpatine from Naboo has expressed interest in Hego Damask’s disappearance.”

“What kind of interest? Is he hostile?”

“Curious,” Marshall Gienn said. “And if I’m honest, oddly elated. Damask is a very wealthy individual, and that level of wealth equals corruption. But Senator Palpatine hasn’t joined a single committee or faction in the Senate dedicated to fighting crime in or out of the Republic,” Marshall Gienn explained. “So, I doubt he’s pleased that a criminal has been kidnapped or killed.”

“Do you genuinely believe Hego Damask is a criminal?”

“He makes more money in a week than I’ll make in a year,” Marshall Gienn said. “And I don’t trust anyone who makes that much money, Master Tapal.”

“Call me Jaro,” he said.

“Thron,” the Human said in return. “There will be some media coverage over such a high-profile disappearance, so a quick resolution would serve my office and the Jedi as well.”

Jaro nodded. “I’ll figure it out.”

“Thank you, Jaro. I appreciate your time, and, for the record, I envy your regular mission. I’d love to be out there ruining the lives of slavers as often as possible. Your success rate regarding criminal convictions is also a thing of beauty.”

“I try,” Jaro said with a grin. “And I’ll contact you about your missing businessman as soon as I can.”

“Thank you,” Marshall Gienn said and closed the comm.

 

 

 

Chapter 15

Obi-Wan got up, washed his face, cleaned his mouth, and stared at his reflection. His face no longer hurt, and the skin wasn’t red, but he had a small red scratch on his cheekbone. Probably from Siri’s fingernails, but he doubted that she’d done it on purpose. He frowned and wondered if he should go to Twobit for it. Obi-Wan pressed on the mark, and it stung a little.

They weren’t in space, and that was no sort of comfort. Based on the Force movement around them, they were still actually docked at the temple.

“Enid, why are we still on Coruscant?”

“Jaro ended up having several meetings and the Judicial Department made a request of the High Council that was filtered down to him. Provost Marshall Thron Gienn contacted him personally. We have a few research tasks and he decided to stay on the planet while he completed them to increase my efficiency as it pertains to HoloNet access and power consumption.”

“Okay,” Obi-Wan said and shrugged out of his formal robe then hung it in the narrow closet in between the sonic shower and the toilet.

He was embarrassed that he’d gone to sleep in the robe. Fortunately, the closet had protocols to clean and remove the wrinkles from the clothes he hung in it. Evie wiggled out of it with a little beep of alarm and flew out of the closet to perch on his shoulder.

“Sorry.”

“You should be,” Evie said. “I can’t even take a proper nap!”

Obi-Wan pulled out his grappling hook and put it on the desk then added his chronometer. Evie responded by tucking into the empty pocket on his belt.

The grappling hook, which had originally been attached to his belt, had been placed in a leather vambrace that was reinforced with armorweave. It had a slot for a chronometer, but he hadn’t had time to merge the two before the mission. Obi-Wan grabbed his multitool, took the chronometer off the simple leather band, and attached it to the vambrace. He tucked the band into his desk in case he needed to use it in the future and put the vambrace back on.

“You should see Twobit about the scratch on your face,” Enid said. “If Jaro had seen it before your nap, it would’ve already been treated.”

“It’s small.”

“Fingernails aren’t sanitary,” Enid retorted. “And it could get infected. Plus, it could scar, and you don’t want a reminder of your friend’s betrayal on your face.”

“How did you know?” He touched the thin scratch again. He didn’t think it would scar.

“Jaro had a discussion with Master Nu around the situation with your former friend and her violence against you over comlink,” Enid reported. “I shamelessly eavesdrop on all conversations that take place on this ship.” She paused. “Go get the cut taken care of.”

“It’s not that big,” Obi-Wan protested, but he went off to find Twobit before Enid sent the medical droid after him.

Master Tapal was at the holotable, so Obi-Wan stopped to stand with him.

“How do you feel?”

“Sad,” Obi-Wan admitted. “I heard we got an assignment from the Judiciary.”

“Missing rich man,” Master Tapal said. “Jocasta forwarded it my way because she thinks the timing is interesting enough to investigate.”

“Our mystery dead Sith,” Obi-Wan said quietly and nodded.

“Go get that scratch looked at,” Master Tapal ordered. “You have an apology pending from Siri Tachi, and that is the last communication you’ll receive from her unless you contact her first. Her master has put her in mental health counseling, and she’s on probation. She’s going to have to make a choice between being in the Jedi Order and continued contact with her bigoted family. There will be a series of lectures at the academy to discern if there is a problem with outside influence or if she’s an isolated case.”

“I didn’t notice any messages on my comm station,” Obi-Wan said and touched the scratch again.

“I had Enid hold them all until we could speak. You also have comms Master Nu, Master Gallia, and the friends that witnessed the event.”

“How did you know where I was?” Obi-Wan asked curiously.

“Your little Mon Calamari friend contacted her master, Kit Fisto, who used his comlink to contact me,” Master Tapal said.

“Bant Eerin,” Obi-Wan supplied, and his master nodded. “Garen Muln is my other friend’s name. He’s apprenticed with Master Clee Rhara, but he’s just turned twelve, so he was surprised to get an offer so soon. He kind of blames me for that, as he said my friends were under a lot of scrutiny because of what happened with Master Jinn. But I think he’s made a great connection, so I’m not going to feel guilty about it.”

Master Tapal hummed like he agreed. “Twobit is waiting.”

“It’s a tiny scratch.”

“That could easily become very infected if we landed on the wrong planet before the skin heals,” Master Tapal said, and Obi-Wan went to the infirmary with a sigh.

Twobit was waiting with a tiny packet of bacta, which Obi-Wan accepted and tore open. He smeared the bacta on the scratch and put the packet in the recycler.

“Do you need to discuss your hurt feelings?” Twobit questioned.

“I probably should, but I don’t want to,” Obi-Wan admitted. “She said I had a birth defect.” He crossed his arms. “And there’s nothing shameful about having one, of course, but she said that about my perfectly natural anatomy. How am I supposed to deal with that?”

“The child has clearly been exposed to an immense amount of ignorance,” Twobit said. “I’ve instructed Ace to bring you some hot chocolate.”

“Best medicine ever,” Obi-Wan declared with a laugh.

“We’ve not discussed your specific anatomy,” Twobit said. “And I chose not to scan your external genitals as a matter of privacy.”

“I present as male,” Obi-Wan said. “In fact, most wouldn’t assume I’m intersexed at all unless a pelvic exam was done since my vaginal slit is underneath my testes. I don’t and won’t have overt mammary glands. I did get gender counseling in the infirmary at the temple starting when I was nine years old to make sure I was comfortable with my presentation and if I wanted to be known as male or female.

“I’ve always felt very comfortable being called a boy, so I was glad I didn’t need to make any changes on that front, as it would’ve led to conversations with my peers that I wouldn’t have wanted to have. Matron Sheva didn’t actually start calling me male or female until I was old enough to tell her what I thought I was. Even then, she made it clear that I could change my mind at any time.”

“I’m glad you had such an understanding matron,” Twobit said. “Ace has your hot chocolate at the holotable. Come back if the scratch isn’t healed within the next hour.”

“Okay, thanks,” Obi-Wan said and trotted off toward the holo table. Ace was there holding a cup of hot chocolate, so he took it. “Thanks, Rust Bucket.”

“You’re welcome, Tiny Meatbag. I’m sorry your friend was mean to you.”

“That’s the risk you take with trusting someone,” Obi-Wan said and sat down on the bench. “Right, Master Tapal?”

“Trust is always a risk,” Master Tapal said. “In some fashion or another. Did you want to handle your comms?”

“No, they can all wait unless I need to respond to Master Nu or Master Gallia?”

“No, neither expect a response,” Master Tapal said. “But won’t be offended if you do respond.” He sat down on the bench. “Enid, tell Obi-Wan about Hego Damask II as the public knows him.”

“Hego Damask II was born on Mygeeto to Caar and Marn Damask in the year 147 BBY. His father is a high-ranking official in the InterGalactic Banking Clan, and his mother, Caar’s codicil wife, passed shortly after his tenth year. He spent his youth apprenticing in accounting and business management away from home and, as the lesser child of a second wife was reportedly rarely welcome in his father’s home.

“Details are sparse, but eventually, Hego inherited all of his father’s holdings as the only surviving child. He has a variety of public relationships with politicians, business associates, and casual criminals. However, there are rumors that he’s also associated with more than one Hutt clan in the past. He has an interesting history with the Trade Federation and was instrumental in helping the organization gain representation in the Galactic Senate.

“Functional constituency seats remain an immense problem within the Galactic Senate and have created a level of corruption that has influenced the approval of the Senate and the position of supreme chancellor since the Ruusan Reformations.”

“Who will inherit Damask’s money and businesses?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“There is no documentation regarding inheritance filed with the Republic that I could find,” Enid said. “I’ve marked all of the accounts, and the Judicial Department has frozen all of his personal accounts to prevent theft pending the conclusion of our investigation. The business accounts may only function strictly within the realm of doing day-to-day business at this time.”

“So, if we found some criminal issues and evidence thereof, we could confiscate all of it,” Obi-Wan said thoughtfully, and his master hummed under his breath. “We could break up the company into individual businesses, disassociate it with the Trade Federation, and donate the various smaller companies to charities and hide all of our activities behind the committee’s mandate.”

“Enid, dig deep and find all of the illegal activities you can. Get tedious about it,” Master Tapal ordered. “If we can take it, we should. We don’t want his apprentice to inherit any of it.”

“Understood,” Enid said.

Obi-Wan took a sip of hot chocolate. “How often do you let me reach conclusions that you’ve already come to?”

Master Tapal smiled. “When Jos realized what I was doing—she was really fussy for weeks.”

“Well, you did tell me that you teach through experience,” Obi-Wan murmured. “I’m not offended. It’s a relief to know that when I miss something, you’ll be there to catch it. Did you notice the dead children in the Mandalorian data?”

“No,” Master Tapal said. “Well, I noticed the deaths, but I didn’t make the right connection because I’d lumped all of the Mandalorians together mentally due to my past experiences with them. Jaster Mereel is a tyrant, or at least he’s been acting like one for a while. Your perspective was timely and very beneficial to that situation. I made that clear in every single report I filed.”

“Thank you,” Obi-Wan said. “Okay, so maybe be more overt in the lessons?”

Master Tapal laughed. “With you or just all padawans going forward?”

“Oh, certainly all padawans going forward. Just to lower the stress of the whole thing,” Obi-Wan said and leaned on him as he stared at the data floating above the holotable. “If we can take most of his personal funds, then we can do a lot of good with what must be essentially blood money.”

“Yes, we can,” Master Tapal said as he draped an arm around Obi-Wan. “Or, at the very least, we could supply Masana for her next libration event.”

Obi-Wan laughed.

“We have guests standing outside of the ship. I’ve told them that one of you will be with them shortly,” Enid interjected.

“Who?” Master Tapal questioned.

“Master Tholme and his padawan.”

Obi-Wan winced. “Is the scratch gone?”

“You have a small red mark but no open skin,” Master Tapal said. “We’re going to have a discussion about interpersonal violence later. But for now, go invite your friend and his master on board. Tell Ioan I’m on the bridge. Enid, close the holotable, and there is to be no discussion regarding our case until we’re alone again.”

Obi-Wan went to the docking ramp and opened it. Master Ioan Tholme glanced him over and lifted his hand off Quinlan’s shoulder as the ramp clicked against the floor. “Welcome aboard.”

Master Tholme smiled. “I’ve heard you respond negatively, but politely, to unauthorized boardings.”

Obi-Wan blushed. “Quin.”

“You kicking a hostile trying to come on board in the face the ship then apologizing to them afterward is funny, and Master Tholme needed the laugh at the time,” Quinlan said. “Siri tried to corner me to tell me a story about how you’d wronged her and got her in trouble with her master, but Bant cut her off then told me to contact you. Since you were still here, I decided I should come see for myself rather than wait for a comm.”

Obi-Wan took a deep breath and nodded. “Master Tholme, Master Tapal is on the bridge.”

Master Tholme glanced between them with an amused smile and shook his head as he hit the button to close the ramp, then walked away. Quin grabbed his hand and pulled him across the training arena floor and into his own room. Obi-Wan shut the door as his friend released his hand.

“She hit me,” Obi-Wan blurted out, and Quinlan turned to stare at him in shock. “She slapped my face and told me I was ridiculous when I told her I was gay. Siri already knew I was from Stewjon, and she thinks that being intersexed is a birth defect. She said she expected me to get surgical correction as an adult.”

“I….” Quin sat down on the end of the bed. “I told her that you weren’t interested in her intimately, and she got mad at me. She said I didn’t get to interfere in your personal relationships and that I needed to mind my own business. So, I left it alone because Master Tholme told me that I couldn’t manage her expectations for her. I never thought she’d get violent with you.”

“She said I’d ruined our plans, but I didn’t make plans with her. I can’t see myself shaping my path as a Jedi around anyone. It was unfair for her to assume that she could just decide I was going to live my life to suit her exact needs. I don’t think she’d have been this open about her goals if Master Yoda was still the Grand Master of the Order.”

“No, she’d have never dared,” Quinlan agreed. “I appreciate the shift in priorities that Master Yaddle has undertaken, and Master Tholme is pleased with the way our relationship with the Republic is slowly shifting. He thinks it’ll only get better going forward. That being said, it’s clear that Siri is emotionally disturbed.”

“Her master asked her where she’d learned her disgusting bigotry,” Obi-Wan murmured, and Quinlan winced. “She admitted it was from her parents, who stipulated they could teach their daughter the social mores of their world while she was at the temple. I think that’s going to be a big problem. Siri is on probation and she’ll have to decide either to be a Jedi or to go home to Serenno.”

“I think going home is dangerous for her,” Quinlan said and his gaze got distant briefly. “She’ll only learn more awful things and she knows enough about the Force to train her own. Her parents are wealthy, so they could get her another kyber crystal if the Order keeps her lightsaber. She won’t accept any advice from me.”

“Her master has sent me a comm. I haven’t read it yet,” Obi-Wan said. “But I could respond and mention my worry that she might fall to the dark side, and I am actually worried about it. Her family is obviously hateful. But, I guess I couldn’t say anything that Master Gallia that she hasn’t already seen for herself. Maybe I need to stay out of it. I feel like I’m precariously close to making an enemy, and that’s just grossly unfair.”

“Yeah, it is.” Quinlan frowned. “I’ll keep an eye on her while she’s in the temple. You know you shouldn’t contact Siri going forward, right?”

Obi-Wan nodded. “I know. She was made to send me an apology, but I’m not sure I want to read it. I don’t care how sorry she is for getting in trouble for her abusive behavior.” He stared at the floor as he leaned on the desk. “I…I’ve never had anyone make me feel wrong for how I was born before.”

“There’s nothing wrong with you, Obi-Wan. You’re not even unique,” Quinlan said, and Obi-Wan laughed reluctantly. “I bet there are thousands just like you on Stewjon running around the place.”

Obi-Wan sat down on the bed, then sprawled there, and Quinlan dropped down beside him. “I’m trying to let go of the anger and hurt. It’s not good to keep any of it.”

“No, I agree,” Quinlan murmured and took his hand. “There really is nothing wrong with your stuff.”

Obi-Wan laughed. “You hardly even know what my stuff is.”

“I’m just saying that whatever you’ve got going on is fine,” Quinlan said.

“You’ve never asked.”

“Who would? That’s just your personal business.”

“Bant asked,” Obi-Wan said, and Quinlan laughed. “I remain surprised she didn’t ask for a drawing of some kind.” He took a deep breath. “I have traditional external Human male parts and a vaginal slit.”

Quinlan exhaled noisily. “That seems like the established configuration of the Stewjoni and those from Alderaan. The intersexed from Naboo are the opposite or often don’t present as intersexed externally.”

“I’ve heard,” Obi-Wan said. “Matron Sheva gave me a lot of documentation shortly before I went to the academy so I’d be educated about my circumstances and about how intersex individuals are viewed across the Republic.”

“I’m sorry that Siri hurt you,” Quinlan said. “Bant is furious and is glad they no longer share a dorm. She said she told Siri that she didn’t want anything to do with her going forward because she couldn’t associate with an abusive person.”

“Siri said that Bant enables me because I dazzle her.”

“Ah, well, you kind of do, but Bant sees you, Obi. She knows exactly who you are, and she values your friendship very much. Bant just also understands that you’re the ideal.”

“What?”

“The ideal. The Jedi we all want to be,” Quinlan said as he sat up and leaned on one hand. “I remember watching you spar last year, and I couldn’t help but think it was like looking back into the past and seeing a Jedi Knight from history. There is an air of legend around you, Obi-Wan, and there always has been.”

“Shut up.” His face felt unbearably hot.

“See, there you are—all grace and knightly charm,” Quinlan said with a grin.

Obi-Wan pulled on Quinlan’s hand and sighed. “I should kick you off the ship.”

Quinlan slouched back down but stayed on his side. “Listen, Siri doesn’t know you at all because if she did, she’d have never assumed she could shape you into something that suited her purposes. I’m not saying you’re difficult or incapable of change. It’s just that you know what you want, and you’ve always been very certain about your path.”

“Yeah,” Obi-Wan said. “Maybe that challenged her, I don’t know. She clearly had a problem with the fact that I wasn’t interested in doing exactly what she wanted.”

“Siri’s always been rigid like that. I always thought she came to the Order late, but I felt like I couldn’t say that since I was nearly seven myself.”

“Yes, but you’d been in training on your homeworld since you were four years old,” Obi-Wan said. “Siri was six and it seemed like, from the start, that she thought that the rest of us were required to follow her and do what she said.”

“Yeah,” Quinlan said and made a face. “I’m exhausted. We were up all night doing something I can’t discuss.”

“You should go get some sleep,” Obi-Wan said quietly. “You do look tired.”

“I wanted to see you. I figure it might be a while before you come back to Coruscant. It seems like Master Tapal has been on the planet more in the last two months than he has in decades. He’s probably considering making a break for Wild Space.”

Obi-Wan laughed. “We’ve avoided that kind of thing so far. But it was a question when we were looking for Master Narec.” He looked at their hands. “Are things going well with Master Tholme?”

“Yeah, I’m learning so much from him,” Quinlan said. “And his control over his psychometry is astounding. I hope I can get there one day because, you know sometimes I get overwhelmed by the emotions left behind on objects that the event content can get lost at least briefly. It’s clear he can separate information from emotion very easily.”

“That takes that experience, right? And you’re in a position to get experience in a safe way as his padawan.” Obi-Wan sat up, and Quinlan followed suit. “I do worry about you, but I know that Master Tholme will keep you as safe as he can.”

“Where did she hit you?” Quinlan questioned.

“Here.” He touched his left cheek.

Quinlan leaned over and pressed a soft kiss against his cheekbone. “Since Matron Sheva isn’t here to do it.”

Obi-Wan grinned. “I’m going to tell Bant that you kissed it better.”

“If I hadn’t, she’d be giving me a huge lecture,” Quinlan said and stood. “I worry about you as well, but I always have. But that’s mostly just selfishness on my part, as I’d never be the same if something happened to you. So, stay safe—for my sake if not your own.”

“If you keep saying sweet things to me, I’m going to start keeping a diary so I can record them.”

“Don’t worry, Obi-Wan, I’ll keep a record for future extortion purposes,” Evie said from his belt, and they both laughed.

When they left his room, Master Tholme was waiting by the boarding ramp with Master Tapal. Quinlan moved to his master’s side without being ordered to. They departed quickly, and Obi-Wan was sad to see his friend go but excited to leave Coruscant as quickly as possible.

He followed Master Tapal to the bridge and slid into the co-pilot seat.

“Are we still heading to Bakura?”

“First, we’re going to Mustafar. Masana has gathered every bit of wreckage she could of the Sith’s ship. I want to pick it up and see what we can learn,” Master Tapal said. “Then we’ll head for Bakura because I have the data on Wallanooga the Hutt, and I’d like to put him under a Republic prison.”

“Do they have basement cells?” Obi-Wan questioned.

“I’m willing to commission one,” Master Tapal said, and Obi-Wan laughed.

He turned his head toward his master. “We can avoid Coruscant for a while, right?”

Master Tapal grinned. “Absolutely.”

He sat back in the co-pilot seat as they exited the temple and quickly left the planet. Shortly, they were in hyperspace. Obi-Wan relaxed, and he let go of the stress that had quickly piled on him while they were at the temple. It felt like they were starting an adventure, and that was exactly what he needed.

The End

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