Hey! I have finally decided to post this. So far I have the first four chapters written up and I intend to keep this updated on a regular basis (hopefully). I actually intended to start putting up the Kingdon Hearts fic I was working on, but since this one will be a lot shorter than that one I decided against it.

I do hope you read and review! I'm excited to start posting this story and I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it!

As a note, if you see some words that make absolutely no sense whatsoever, they are probably a curse in the Star Wars universe.

Here's the full summary: It's been years since Revan and the Exile left for the Outer Rim. They returned thinking everything was over but they were wrong. Now it's up to a Jedi to save the Republic by keeping a Tusken Princess away from the Sith with help from unusual people. With a snarky smuggler, a calm Kushiban, an uptight droid, a perverted scoundrel, a radical Echani Warrior, a serene Aruzan, a slightly off Frozian, and an Iridonian haunted by his past, our Jedi hero might have bitten off a little more than he could chew.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Star Wars Universe or creatures invented by LucasArts and such. I do own the personalities of Colton Stormtrotter, TI-29, Aishlinn Vorren, and Tegrit.

Chapter 1

A man wearing a thick brown cloak walked into the cantina in Dagor located on the planet Melida/Daan. A tall, silver protocol droid was at his side and its glowing yellow eyes scanned the area warily.

"Master, are you quite sure we are in the right place?" he asked. The man nodded, his face obscured by his cloak.

"Don't worry, TI-29, our pilot's first mate guaranteed that they both would be here. I'm not unprotected anyway." He assured his droid. The droid nodded his silver head slowly, still unsure about the whole thing.

Inside the cantina, Twi'lek dancers were in the front while an array of Kitonak musicians were situated behind them. The young cloaked man glanced around the cantina in search of the small, rabbit-like Kushiban he had spoken with earlier. His eyes were drawn to a booth where a young woman was reclining and a small, gray, fuzzy bunny sat. A smile graced his features and he made his way to their booth.

The woman was at least twenty with long dirty blond hair pulled back in a braid. She wore tight leather pants, combat boots, and an open leather jacket which revealed a dark blue belly shirt. She had several bracelets adorning her wrists and two blasters were slung on her hips. A cigarette hung out of her mouth and she stared at her guests with half-open green eyes.

Her companion was a small Kushiban, gray in color, and about a foot and a half in length (the size of a small dog). He was sitting on the table and his fluffy tail was wrapped around his companion's left wrist. A brown belt holding a single blaster was strapped to his waist and as the cloaked man approached, he stared at him with large black eyes.

"What can I do for you?" the woman asked, sitting upright and motioning for the other man to take a seat. He did and pulled back his hood, revealing platinum blond hair, baby blue eyes, and a soft but angular face. A flash of silver on his waist caught the girl's attention, but she dismissed it momentarily. She'd bring it up later. The droid, TI-29, stood awkwardly at his master's side.

"Your friend told me that you have a ship and the means to take me to Tatooine." He said. The pilot nodded her head slowly, taking a drag from her cigarette and putting it out in the ash tray. She glanced at her companion.

"He's correct, but it'll cost you. 5,000 credits, in advance." She said. The man nodded slowly, reaching into his pocket to grab the money, but she held up a hand. "Wait a second," she said leaning towards him, her chest protruding and causing his eyes to be drawn there momentarily. She smirked and stuck her thumb out at her friend before continuing. "He knows you're a Jedi, and I know you're a Jedi, so you and your droid friend better not cause us any trouble, a 'right?"

The young Jedi gritted his teeth but nodded. "Agreed. We shall not cause you any trouble."

"Good to know. I'm Aishlinn Vorren, by the way, and he's Tegrit." She greeted, shaking the other man's hand.

"My name is Colton Stormtrotter and this is my protocol droid, TI-29. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"When you're ready to leave, come to docking bay 34 and we'll be waiting." Aishlinn said as she stood from the booth. Tegrit hopped down from the table and walked on all fours beside her, not saying a word until they had left the Jedi's earshot.

"Ash, do you think it's a good idea to take this Jedi in our ship? He could cause us trouble, you know, big trouble." Tegrit cautioned his friend. Aishlinn waved off his concern.

"Don't worry, Teg. He's a paying customer, so it's good enough for me." She pulled out one of her blasters, wiping a grease smudge off. "I mean, how much trouble could this Jedi be worth?"

Tegrit shrugged his shoulders and tossed his head, shaking his long ears out of his eyesight.

The Kushiban didn't know, but he had a feeling that taking this Jedi to Tatooine would cause the two smugglers more trouble than they initially thought.

—

"Knight Stormtrotter, we have an important mission for you." A Purple Twi'lek dressed in brown Jedi Master robes said to a young blond man training with his lightsaber. Colton nodded and bowed reverently, following the Jedi master.

"What is my mission, Master Trekhol?"

"Several Dark Jedi have surfaced around Anchorhead on Tatooine. We have reason to believe Darth Yetsu has ordered them to search for something among the Sand People. We do not know what it is, but we need you to travel there and discover their reason for needing this item and to take it from them if necessary. Whatever it is they are searching for, it is powerful and if they find it, all hope for the Republic and the Jedi will be lost." Master Trekhol explained to the young Jedi, one he had trained for a while during Master Atton's (the boy's actual master) search for the old Jedi Exile. Colton nodded.

"Is there a transport I can take to get there?"

Master Trekhol nodded. "We have one that can take you as far as Melida/Daan, but after that you are going to need to find some other mode of transportation." He said. "I apologize for the inconvenience, but we are short on ships and the means to get our Jedi places."

The young Jedi Knight nodded. "It is quite alright, Master. I shall see to my mission immediately."

Colton gathered his things in a small traveling bag and strapped his lightsaber to his belt before departing to the ship where his droid waited. The TI unit was a tall, silver, humanoid prototype droid that was programmed with many languages, including that of the Sand People's. Colton was going to need that ability to speak with the Tusken Raiders and discover the Dark Jedi's purpose.

"Master Colton, our captain awaits your arrival so we can depart." He explained. Colton nodded and boarded the large vessel with the droid in tow.

"Jedi Knight Colton, are you ready for departure?" the captain asked after the young Jedi had found his quarters. Colton nodded.

"Yes, Captain. Thank you for taking me as far as Melida/Daan." He said. The captain nodded.

"I only wish we could take you to your final destination."

Colton nodded and the captain left his room. TI-29 stood off to the side and deactivated himself to conserve his charge. Colton smoothed the sheets on his bed before sitting down.

"There is no emotion, there is only peace…" he repeated the Jedi code slowly, knowing his emotions would be tried on this journey. Much would, but it was up to him to stop Darth Yetsu's plans for the Sand People, probably the Jedi's only hope at the moment.

—

"Master, shall we meet the pilot and her companion at the docks now?" TI-29 asked. Colton nodded slowly, arching his back and cracking the joints of his neck.

"Yes, Tee-eye. The Sith could have discovered our purpose, so we need to tread warily. We may still be invisible to their sensors, but Darth Yetsu is a very strong dark lord. Who knows what intelligence she has at the moment." The Jedi said as he pulled the hood of his cloak over his head. TI-29 nodded and followed after Colton.

It didn't take long for the pair to find docking bay 34 and as they entered, they saw the freighter ship they would be riding in. The hatch lowered and Aishlinn stepped out, a cocky grin on her lips.

"Like her?" Aishlinn asked, tapping the side of her ship. "She's called the Fancy Fox."

Colton's eyes scanned the spacecraft; it wasn't the best ship out there, but it was better than most out there. "It'll do."

Aishlinn frowned at his comment. "'It'll do'? That's it? No, 'thank you for flying my all the way to fraking Tatooine'?" she demanded hotly, crossing her arms over her chest. "She doesn't like to be insulted."

"I didn't insult," Colton looked up at the freighter, "her. I only stated that it was capable of taking us to our destination."

Aishlinn rolled her eyes. "Whatever. You may be cute, but one more negative comment about my ship and you'll be thrown out into hyperspace."

"But I didn't—"

"Don't try, Master. She's already gone and you risk insulting her as well." TI-29 cautioned. "Let us simply board the ship and get on with our mission."

Colton nodded and let out a sigh. "Yes, Tee-eye, let's go." There is no emotion, there is only peace… The young pilot was going to cause him to loose his patience if he wasn't careful.

"Yo, Jedi, want to be my first mate? I'm sure you'd feel safer if you had control of this ship." Aishlinn called from the front.

"A Kushiban can fly a ship?" TI-29 asked rhetorically. Tegrit, seated in a raised co-pilot's chair turned to glare at the droid.

"I am perfectly capable of piloting this vessel. Ash here was only suggesting that your human companion might feel safer while having some measure of control instead of relying on my assistance. She was not insulting my capabilities."

Colton pushed TI-29 away from Tegrit. "Forgive us; we meant no disrespect and I trust both of you can handle the ship without me."

Tegrit huffed and turned away, muttering something about "Jedi and their stupid peacemaking," though Colton didn't hear the whole thing. The droid stepped back into the main room while Colton took the Navigator's seat up in the cockpit. Aishlinn turned to grin at Colton.

"You ready for take-off, 'Master'?" she asked, poking fun at what TI-29 called him. Colton tried not to frown, but failed.

"Yes, let us go."

Aishlinn pressed several buttons and flipped a few switches before the ship hummed to life. It lifted into the air and within minutes had left the planet's atmosphere.

"Teg, go program hyperspace with the coordinates for Tatooine." Aishlinn ordered. The small, rabbit-like creature jumped from his seat and walked, on two legs, over to the navigational charts on the side of the wall. A small latter was resting beside it, allowing him to reach the charts. He punched in several numbers before turning back to Aishlinn. He said something in his native tongue and Aishlinn nodded.

"Here we go!" she pulled back the lever for hyperspace and then switched the ship to autopilot. She yawned and stretched. "I'm gonna get something to snack on. She'll be fine for the next few hours, so don't worry."

The three sentient beings left the cockpit and entered the center hull. TI-29 stood by the table to the left and Colton slid into the seat beside him. Aishlinn sat across from the Jedi and Tegrit jumped onto the table beside her.

"So tell me, Jedi, what top secret mission are you on?" she asked cheekily, biting her lower lip as mirth shown in her emerald eyes. Colton stared at her in curiosity.

"Instead of divulging into my business, why don't you tell me about you?"

Aishlinn shrugged. "I'm just an honest smuggler who—"

"I don't believe 'honest' and 'smuggler' can be in the same sentence." TI-29 stated, interrupting their pilot. Aishlinn glared at him.

"Never liked droids. Anyway, yeah, I'm a smuggler, but it's work and I gotta eat somehow. Can't always rely on republic means of earning money." She glanced over at Colton. "I do earn my money; it's not entirely legal, but I earn my money, so don't go tattle on me to your uptight Jedi high-ups." She warned. Colton smiled at her.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Aishlinn grinned back before pulling a box of cigarettes out of her breast pocket, lighting one, and taking a long drag of it. Colton rolled his eyes at her and leaned back in the seat.

"Thank you for doing this for us, Aishlinn. We were in need of a ship and it was generous of you to take on a stranger and his droid for so cheep." He said. Aishlinn smirked and leaned over the table towards him. Tegrit rolled his eyes, muttering, "humans…"

"Think I could've gotten more?" she chuckled at the Jedi Knight's expression. "Call me Ash, your prude-ness."

"And call me Colton, not whatever it is you feel like ordaining me as." Colton said, trying to keep the irritation out of his voice. Ash nodded, her smirk still firmly in place. She turned to Tegrit and he rolled his eyes at her.

"You really must learn to be more mature." The Kushiban commented.

Ash scoffed. "'Mature'? Mature is my middle name!"

Tegrit sighed and looked at Colton for support. The Jedi Knight shrugged.

"We should get back to the cockpit. Landing will be soon." The small Kushiban said, jumping gracefully to the floor. Ash nodded and grinned at her passenger.

"You gonna come or are you going to sit back here and wait?"

"I'll come."

The two humans entered the cockpit, Ash taking the pilot's seat and Colton sat in the Navigation chair.

"How much longer do we have until we land on Tatooine?" Colton asked. Ash shrugged.

"A half an hour, give or take."

As she spoke, the ship jolted violently. Ash righted the ship quickly, checking the scanners.

"Aw, ish'ka." She cursed. "Sith fighters at eight o'clock. Think you can take 'em, Cole?"

Colton nodded and quickly moved the turret into position, knocking the fighters out of the air with unnatural grace. Ash smirked as Tatooine grew closer.

"We'll be landing soon, so hang on!" she shouted to Colton. A final shot hit the ship and Ash looked up to see a large hanger ship, more than likely not friendly. "Perfect…" she mumbled. A red light was going off and the young pilot managed to keep the shields from further depletion by sudden evasive maneuvers.

"Hang on, Colton! We've gotta move or risk sudden death by explosion!"

Tegrit pressed several buttons as Ash steered the ship towards the surface of the desert planet. The much larger ship was unable to follow, giving the poor ship a break from its abuse.

"Well, that could have gone better." TI-29 stated as the pilot and her first mate exited the cockpit. Ash gave the droid a dirty look before Tegrit hopped up on her back and draped himself over her shoulders.

"Shut up, stupid droid. No one's listening to you." Ash said sourly as Colton joined the other two sentients and his droid.

"Be nice, Tee-eye; we don't want to anger our pilots." Colton warned. TI-29 nodded his silver head and fell into step beside his master. "Thank you for taking us here. I appreciate your help."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up, mister." Ash said, grabbing the Jedi's shoulder. He looked at her curiously. "You got me in a helluva lot of trouble. You owe me."

"I cannot give you any more money at the moment, but if you are willing to take me back to Alderaan, I assure you the Jedi council will—"

"Done." She interrupted, lighting another cancer stick. She smirked at him. "Looks like you're stuck with me a while longer."

Tegrit rolled his large black eyes before attempting to sleep on his companion's shoulders. Colton nodded, a small smile crawling onto his lips.

"I guess so."

Ash sent him her signature cocky smirk before saluting. "G'day, General. I'll be at the cantina, if ya need me." she tucked several loose strands from her braid behind her ear before shoving her hands in her pockets, cigarette poking out between her cracked lips. Strangely, Colton never thought someone could look more beautiful than she did at that moment: fly away hair, nail-bitten fingers, dry lips, cigarette, and all.

"There is no passion, there is serenity…" He'd have to work on that one too.