Chapter 1: Crash Course
3982 BBY
Jedi Temple, Coruscant City, Coruscant
Seva giggled to herself and giggled, "O-okay, Mom...". She reached down to pull up the covers which had mysteriously slipped off of her, but couldn't seem to find anything. In fact, putting her hand down, there was no mattress to speak of, either. Not yet willing to open her eyes, she propped herself up on her elbow and felt around on the surface she suddenly found herself on. Cold, dusty stone met her touch.
Frowning slightly, she thought to herself, Did I fall off? I could have sworn I was in bed. Sunlight was flitting in through her eyelids, which she was now rubbing, and it puzzled her to no end. The moons were visible only a second ago, is it morning already?
She groaned loudly and forced her eyes open with her fingers, calling out as she did so, "Mom?"
Seva froze when her voice echoed unexpectedly, and just as alarm began pricking at the back of her head, a wave of overwhelming calm invaded her, making her senses swim about. Faint voices murmured nearby, and the surrounding air bit at her skin with its chill, but none of that bothered her at all. She was okay. She was... was...
Someone was probing around in her head. What's happening...!? Get out, get out, get out! A surge of fear outside of her control began hammering away at her own head, pounding down and shutting out her senses. It persisted until the artificial calm was completely and utterly destroyed, at which point it began to cloud everything within her as well. Amid the powerful current running through her, Seva still felt something digging deeply, unerringly, through her mind. The sensation was profoundly invasive, and sent her into an even deeper panic. Images of her mother and father surfaced to the forefront of her mind, disappearing as quickly as they appeared, as if being examined and discarded. The raw fear suffocated her thought process until her very being became a single, steady pulse of despair.
Just as she felt she couldn't bear it any longer, an impossibly heavy presence eclipsed her awareness, followed by an echoing whisper that pierced through her shambled consciousness.
Enough, it hissed sternly.
It was a woman's voice – Seva did not recognize it, but the nightmarish rush left in its wake. She felt everything around her grow still until finally she could feel again.
Seva found herself facedown on the floor. Her throat felt raw, and it was apparent that she had gone into one of her tantrums. She could rarely stop on her own once she got going, and judging by the spittle on the floor, she had violently screaming for an unusually long time – no one had come to stop her.
Wait, she thought, why would anyone stop me...? That's a weird thing to think about... A loud, clear voice interrupted her daze, and snapped her to attention.
"Do you see now, Sama? I will not allow it. There is no peace in this child.
"
Shakily, Seva pushed herself onto her hands and knees and looked up to get a proper view of her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was the semi-circle of hooded figures in concealing brown robes, all facing her, each as still as a statue, making it hard to determine who had spoken in the echoing room. Seva's head ached and rang numbly as she struggled to take in the sight. Golden light flitted in through the enormous windows behind them, wrapping around the figures and turning them into mildly indistinguishable silhouettes.
"It is as you had said, Master Vaeric... but... a reaction like that? In one this young? It shouldn't be possible, it is unheard of!"
"That's because it was not hers – it was not natural at all. I can't have been the only one who felt it."
"It was so primal... there was so much unbridled emotion. We've all faced this before, it is of the dark side! I know it!"
One of the figures on the left twitched briefly, and cut in in response, "Kova! She is a young girl, mind what you're saying! The Sith have been beaten back, we've won; this child can hardly stand!"
They spoke the truth. Seva's legs were shaking violently, and along with the bruises on her battered wrists and forehead, she felt nauseated. She did not know at what point she had gotten on her feet, but she was slowly rocking from heel to heel just to maintain her fragile consciousness. Sucking in a ragged breath through her nose, she gathered herself sufficiently to blurt out, "Where am I? Who are you people?"
A measured pause lingered in the air before an answer echoed out, "You are in the Jedi Temple of Coruscant, youngling. You stand before the High Council of the Jedi Order. The question at hand is who you are. Why are you here? Were you sent?"
She furrowed her brow, unsure if she had heard the stranger correctly. "What...? Jedi? What's a Jedi? I'm looking for my house, how far away is it from my house?" More silence followed after her questions, as if the answer were obvious. Her confusion turned to desperation, "I want to go home! I don't know where I am, and I'm not supposed to be alone..."
"Do you remember where your home is? Any landmarks?" a kind voice offered. Seva opened her mouth to recite...something... but nothing came to her mind. One again, alarm began to descend down around her ears. Huh...? It's... I live at... I...
"I don't remember," Seva finally breathed, more to herself than to the others.
In a dismissive tone, another voice said, "She appears to have no idea what is happening happening. Vaeric, what do you think of this ruse-"
"There is no trick, no ruse here; the youngling is in genuine distress. If the circumstances of her arrival here at the academy are as they seem, then the clearest course of action is to nurture her until she is ready to speak to us with lucidity."
Sharply, a voice interjected, "You seek to shelter someone who displayed an acute affinity with the dark side? This soon after repelling an immense Sith presence? Perhaps you've forgotten our losses, Sama. Losses the Republic has not even begun to recover from. We cannot risk awakening something that has the child as a host. It could be a Sith spirit!"
"What do you seek to do then, Kova? If she's as potentially dangerous as you say, then releasing her into the galaxy will be an immensely irresponsible act that would be traced back to the Order!"
"I seek to neutralize the threat. The only logical action is to snuff out the source of the darkness, not study how it blossoms or festers!"
"This is a living, breathing youngling."
This spurred them both into a hushed debate between themselves. The figure on the far left had turned its head to the figure on the center-right, and both bodies shook from the force of their arguments. The verbal spar was quickly cut short, however.
"Both of you, that is enough! I hate to do this, but our approach to ascertaining the truth from this child is clearly going nowhere. This is a breach in Temple security, and therefore I must resort to more assertive methods..." the voice paused, then continued, "Kova. Search her mind, and tell me everything that you see."
Without any pause, the center-right figure strode toward her, swiftly closing the distance between them. She didn't think to back away – the predatory gait of the figure had her petrified. At the back of her head, she was vaguely aware of how short the one called Kova actually was. Fully straight, the figure would have had a mere 4 inches over her. Away from the glow of the sunlight, they seemed much less intimidating. Their arm raised, Kova held open a palm before her face, and felt herself slip into another bout of forced calmness. This one, however, felt significantly... lesser. Nonetheless, it was more than enough to incapacitate her, and once again, she felt her mind be peeled open like a withered flower's bud soon after. Kova's search was rough, without a single touch of delicacy. To her surprise, they withdrew after only a minute or so of probing her, and when she refocused, Kova was backing away slowly, shaking their head slowly before turning around to face the council.
"What is it, Master Kova?" someone inquired, "What did you see? Who is she?"
A brief silence. Kova answered quietly, "Aside from a... scarce awareness of her personal identity, this child's mind is empty. There is nothing that we can learn from Seva Q'Unarei."
A collective murmur of surprise met his words.
"That is impossible. There has to have been a sign of where that dark energy came from."
Kova replied with a shake of the head, "Not a hint. She is a blank slate."
A growl of impatience emanated from the semi-circle, followed by, "Then we have no obligation to watch over the child! We do not shelter those without Force sensitivity. We must send her elsewhere."
"You are so quick to send away those who seem to offer nothing, Master Vaeric. Despite your denial of it, she is indeed a Force sensitive. No child has the emotional depth to radiate such fear on their own. The Force amplifies, expands all that it touches, and she clearly has a strong connection." The one speaking paused before continuing, "If nothing was found, then it is because it has been hidden away from the reach of our senses."
"Who would hide something in such a fashion? Who would be capable of it? Knowledge is of no use if even the wielder is blind to it. The Sith are not subtle in the slightest, this recent war is proof of that. Their use of the Force is much more tangible, obvious even to those who are not trained to recognize it."
"Then our job is to discover it. To peel away this cover, coax forward the source of her strength, and ultimately discover where she came from, and why."
"I agree with Sama. It would also serve us well to rehabilitate her, if we need to overshadow evil with an education here at the Temple. We can observe and monitor her-"
"You intend to train her?" came the indignant reply, "You will put faith in this youngling who just showed us how early corruption can set in, when our champions, once stalwart heroes of the light, simply turned theirs back on our teachings, and waged war against their own home!?" Seva watched the centermost figure look to his left and his right, gesturing with wild hand movements to emphasize each phrase. When he finished speaking, he had to stop to compose himself and return his breathing back to normal.
The reply came in a softer tone, "Master Vaeric... we all share the loss. The galaxy grieves for its fallen heroes, especially the Jedi Temple. But this youngling is not responsible for their betrayal. She holds answers, and we owe it to those who died for the Light to find them."
For a long time, nobody said anything. Seva was uncomfortable with the silence, mainly because she felt she was causing a huge problem she couldn't begin to understand. She didn't want to be yelled at by these strangers, she wanted to go... she wanted to go... Tears welled up in her eyes. I don't remember where I want to go, but I want to go somewhere else. I just want to go.
Finally, Vaeric spoke up, "Master Kaziz, Master Sama... you both seem willing to put your faith into this project, though I cannot begin to fathom why you would, given the state Coruscant is in – let alone the galaxy. You two are responsible for training her if you deem it to be the best course of action, but in the interest of preserving the peace, I strictly forbid any tutelage of the Force. Under no circumstances is she to learn the higher techniques of the Jedi.
"In addition," he continued sharply to speak over the protest that followed, "We will be conducting regular attempts to free the youngling of her amnesia. The sooner this matter is resolved, the sooner the attentions and energies of our scarce remaining Masters can be devoted to repairing the Republic."
With a lage sigh, Vaeric lowered his hood and looked directly at Seva, who stepped back in alarm with her hands over her mouth. The silhouette dispelled, she could se that his skin was green, and his eyes were large, black, bulbous orbs that stood out. A mass of tentacles was draped around his shoulders like hair normally would be, and his mouth was a thin, pursed line that held no kindness in it. The monster was unlike anything she had ever seen in her life, and she was afraid that all the other figures looked similar to him.
"Two of our youngest Masters have volunteered to be your mentors, child. You will follow our rules, live by our Code, and learn what it means to be a Jedi. It is a great honor that very few in the galaxy can experience. Are you ready to accept this journey before you?"
Without hesitation, Seva sobbed out forcefully, "No! No, I don't! I don't want to be here, I don't want to be a Jedi! I'm cold, I'm sleepy, I don't know where I want to be, but it's not here! I want to leave!"
None of the council members were looking at her at this point. Vaeric said, after a pause, "That is not an option you can make, youngling."
Seva's chin quivered, and it was all she could do to keep from breaking down and crying. Sniffling, she whispered "I... I can't go home?"
Vaeric looked away.
"No. You can't go home, Seva. This is where you live now. This council is adjourned."