Within a few hours Selena and Arren whirred amongst the stars at hyperspeed, every moment closer to the capital of the Republic. They traveled on a public passenger starship that was hot and rank with diverse life. Their Jedi attire was noticed with cautiousness, fear, and respect, and rewarded them with as much privacy as a public ship could offer.
Selena, bubbling with energy, tapped her feet against the floor, drummed her fingers against her legs, and hummed a bright tune softly under her breath. She always lacked the serenity a Jedi should possess, which was part of the reason the High Council ordered her to train on Dantooine. When Selena felt the Force she tasted its raw energy and vitality, and relished in its capabilities. She was but a sieve the Force touched and flowed through. It was for this reason she was excited to return to Coruscant, despite her foreknowledge of something unpleasant. Coruscant bled with life and technology and energy that could not be rivaled on any other planet.
Arren Kae beside her meditated. Her timeless, ageless face was plainly troubled, and Selena sensed her Master knew full well the reason of this journey but was disinclined to admit it. However, she would not seek the answer, out of trust for her Master, wisdom to know such questions would be ignored at best, and an attempt at patience. A Jedi Knight would wait.
To keep herself occupied Selena reached out in the Force and brushed the auras of her fellow passengers. Fifty or sixty crammed into the central room. Almost half of the travelers were humans, and the remainder consisted of aliens from sultry Twi'leks to meek Bith to towering Wookiees. Being surrounded by such energy was exhilarating.
But one passenger was not like the rest. He was a huge, fierce, gray-skinned Taung. Although he wore no official armor or uniform, he was obviously a warrior. He proudly bore a gruff face, grim scars, and yellow eyes that were dead to compassion. Selena poked at his mind and retreated like a startled child. There was death written across that alien's soul. "Master Arren, that man in the corner," she whispered heavily.
She broke from her meditation and but glanced at him. "Look at him using the Force, not your eyes, as I have taught you," the historian instructed. "That is the only way to truly see."
Selena opened her mind and obeyed. Another observer would have judged the Taung warrior to be consumed by the dark side, but she knew the difference. There was greatness and conquest and evil within his shriveling soul, but not a shard of the Force. Suddenly she was surrounded with screaming visions that revolved around her. She saw charring moons and planets, millions of civilians floating lifelessly in a lake of blood, and war-torn, homeless survivors. Troops of heavily-armored Mandalorians gutted innocents, bombed planets, raped and tortured and destroyed. And there was no resistance. Where were the Republic soldiers to grant salvation? Where were the Jedi Knights to promote peace and negotiate treaties? Finally the visions ceased, yet her questions remained unanswered. A single word was sufficient to describe this man. "War."
"What did you see?" asked Arren eagerly. Somehow the grim tidings sparked her notice.
"The Mandalorians. They destroyed everything...there is going to be a war, and it will be bloody."
"The Mandalorians, you say?" Arren emitted a thoughtful noise and examined a datapad. "They have been attacking Outer Rim worlds for years, unchecked and barely noticed."
"They're going to attack the Republic; I sense it."
"Trust the Force; it shall never lead you astray."
Selena exhaled. "I need some air," she muttered, and exited the central room of the starship. She rested her back on the corridor wall and slithered to the floor, with her head resting in her small hands.
The door to the central room opened again, and Selena sprung to her feet lightly. The Taung warrior now shared the corridor with her. In a brief dark side temptation, Selena considered activating her lightsaber and killing him before her visions became reality. It would save billions of lives across the galaxy. Surely that couldn't be so evil? No. One murder does not justify another.
"Jedi," hissed the Taung in a metallic voice.
"Mandalorian," Selena responded icily.
"I planned to journey to the Core myself, but you will bring the news of war instead." His accented Galactic Basic bit into her with every word. He brushed a gray finger across her jawline and commanded, "You go to the Jedi Council. You go to the Senate. Tell them the Mandalorians have come, and we are waiting for a worthy foe."
He locked his dead yellow gaze upon Selena, and she seemed to feel the pain of every life he would quench. I will stop you, she vowed earnestly, even if you take my life as well.
The Taung nudged past her and disappeared into another corridor. Selena rushed inside to sit beside Arren. Her Master appeared to have head every word that was spoken between them. "War is coming to the heart of the Republic. You must inform the High Council of this immediately upon arriving at the Jedi Temple."
"Surely they have foreseen it."
Arren smirked. "One would hope. Even if they are aware of the situation, they will be pleased by your initiative and precognition in the Force. You will advance in their favor."
Selena was more restless than ever. "What are they going to do? How can we prepare? If the Mandalorians are going to cause that much bloodshed we must find a way to stop them."
"Peace, Selena. The Council shall decide a plan. Those millions you saw dead shall be spared, and the Jedi will protect the Republic as they have for thousands of years." For some reason Arren Kae was troubled no more. Whatever the Council's disturbing reason for summoning them, this proclamation of war calmed any anxiety about the previous situation from her. At least one of them could maintain peace about the circumstance. Selena prayed the mass destruction would be averted. Now she bore the pain of the dead in her soul, and she swore to save them.
