This was an idea I got a while ago. I have no idea how long it'll turn out to be, or how long it'll take me to write the individual chapters, so bear with me as there will probably be somewhat large gaps between updates. (I also have a fair number of other ideas floating around my head.) The chapters also may not be all that long. And as with my first Resident Evil fanfic, I intend to thoroughly screw with the characters and galaxy. You've been warned.
It was a long-forgotten place, orbiting a wretched blotch of sludge that passed for a planet. Nar Shaddaa, the Smuggler's Moon, or at least it used to be. Republic law had long since ended the existence of the large criminal organizations that found the place useful. Thus, the moon had been abandoned by all but the utterly hopeless of society's outcasts. It did have other uses, however. Pilots from around the galaxies would come to test their mettle against the artificial canyons and mazes that had been thrust up from the surface. Racing through at reckless speeds, the best earned no small amount of pride, the rest were lucky if they survived. Wrecked hulls of fighters, transports, and other small craft were frequently seen embedded in buildings.
All of this flashed through the mind of the individual standing on a fairly large platform that extended into open air. Inside his armor, he glanced at a chronometer display. They're late. Must be a family thing. The armor he wore was found in the possession of Jedi, Republic Security Force members, and an extremely small number of lucky bounty hunters or criminals. A small, badge-like unit was placed on the owner's chest. A DNA scanner read the genetic code of the user's thumb. If it scanned wrong, a non-lethal shock of power would surge out. If correct, a near-impenetrable armor spread across the entire body, save the tip of the thumb. The armor sported low-grade blasters, weakened in compliance with the Republic's weapons laws, and a space to hold a lightsaber or similar sized device.
Where are they? I want to get this mission over with. Then, at last, he heard the sound of Republic fighters. With a smile, he activated his weapons.
Neca Kre'na sat in his fighter's cockpit. A resident of the "Beta" galaxy after the Intergalactic War, he and his sister had been found and trained by the Jedi Master Gred. "Transfer some energy from shields to engines. Don't want Trasae to get too far ahead." He could feel the ship responding. The fighters were partly biological and connected directly to the pilots' minds. Neca could have simply thought the command, but speaking it helped him differentiate between himself and the fighter. He could lose himself in the Force, not some machine.
Soaring between buildings, he barely saw the flash of light that lanced out from a structure towards Trasae's fighter. The laser blast pierced a wing, and impacted on the hull. His ship brought up a display, knowing he would be concerned, and he saw that she was in really big trouble. Trasae ejected, her seat flying into the air moments before the craft slammed into a building and exploded. Neca sighed with relief. At least it had only been the fighter. Then the ejection seat lost power and plummeted towards the surface, far below. Trasae managed to free herself and used the Force to levitate.
Neca brought his fighter over to her and she rested down on its wing. Slowly, with the utmost care, he brought the fighter to where his sensors picked up a smallish power signal. He brought his weapons in line with the armored figure. The lasers were just enough to help bring a ship's shields down, but that was still more than enough to vaporize most living things. He was about to fire when the attacker deactivated his armor, revealing familiar features.
"Ran'sot?" the shock in Trasae's voice matched Neca's fury.
In seconds he was standing in the cockpit, his armor and personal weapons activated. "What do you think you're doing?" He started shouting curses in his native language.
Horrified surprise flashed across the human's features. "I have no idea what happened. I set them just to register as hits, not do damage. Certainly not to do that much damage."
"Neca," Trasae had calmed greatly, "The Trainer I must be on the other side of the building. Take your fighter around and dock, we'll meet you there." She jumped off the wing to the platform. The fighter roared off, leaving the two alone. "I'm sorry about Neca." Though she knew she probably could not change it, her friend and her brother had a growing rivalry. They tried to restrain themselves for her sake, she knew, but it was becoming increasingly difficult.
As they walked through a twisting corridor, Ran'sot Solo stopped and looked at her. From the moment he had met her, he thought she was the single most incredible person he'd known. Certainly she was attractive, but there was more to it. She was kind and gentle, yet strong, caring and fiercely loyal. And she did not seem to care that he was the last member of the legendary Skywalker/Solo line, being the descendent of Anakin Solo. He looked directly into her reddish eyes. You know what I would say. And you know I can't. Not yet.
They walked on in silence, knowing that the right time would come.
* * *
Towards the edge of the "Alpha" galaxy, in what had once been known as the "Unknown Regions" rested the planet Sentak. The one-time backwater world had since become the capitol world of the expanded Republic. Having pushed into the area between galaxies, Republic diplomats utilized new hyperspace technology to reach and penetrate the boundaries of a nearby galaxy. They were met with mixed feelings. Some welcomed them and joined the Republic, others wanted the "invaders" destroyed. There was also another reason for the move. Coruscant was no longer habitable. The constant development into and up from the surface had made the entire planet unstable. Thus Sentak, while impressive, was slightly less developed. The cities were not all-encompassing as Coruscant's had been, and only leaders and society's more wealthy members made it their home.
On this world stood the towering structure where the Jedi trained, and the Jedi Council operated. In the upper levels of this building, Jedi Master Gred talked with Senator Trepix Farthay.
"Those fools are going to ruin the Republic. They cannot see that recent events are a signal of danger. The increase in crime and terrorism can only do us harm, and they treat it like nothing."
"Calm yourself, Senator. If there were a true danger to our peace, I am certain that we would have sensed as much."
"Even the Force cannot sense everything."
"Perhaps."
"Anyway, how are your students doing. Are they around?"
"No, I have sent them off on a training mission to see how they operate under only their own supervision. They should be returning shortly, however." Gred had been given the honor of training Ran'sot Solo as well as the Kre'na twins. Neca had always been the stronger of the siblings, but he felt that Trasae would play a pivotal role in the galaxies, though how and when he could not tell. Time, and the Force would reveal the truth.
* * *
Neca sat in the room assigned to him on the Trainer I. He sat in total silence and concentration, focusing on the Force. He let himself go, sensing his connection to the Force as if floating in a large, warm ocean. He felt is awareness spread throughout the galaxy, as if he could take each star, each planet in his ethereal hands. He seemed to soar through known space. For a moment, he felt a cold darkness, then it was gone. He tried to find it again, but he had been shaken, and it eluded him.
With an almost painful suddenness, a drop of blood fell to the Core Worlds. The blood hit a planet and burst into dark, unnatural flame. The inferno grew sporadically, bursting up at seemingly random points, engulfing the galaxies. The brightest of flares arose from one accursed planet in the Alpha galaxy. He tried to identify the world, but the flame burned at his eyes, his mind…
The knocking completely disrupted his concentration, jarring him out of his vision.
"What is it?" he grumbled.
The door molded open, and Ran'sot appeared. "We've arrived. We'll be disembarking soon," he paused. "Look, Neca, maybe-"
With a glare, Neca focused enough Force energy to throw the human to the opposite wall. Ran'sot got up, and a small disk dropped from wrist to palm. Almost instantly, the device grew and molded into a lightsaber. He switched to an attack stance, and froze, knowing they were making a mistake. We both let our anger get the best of us. Almost. But what about next time? He compacted his weapon and walked off. Around a nearby corner, Trasae shuddered.