Chapter 4
Disclaimer: Guess what guys! George Lucas called me! He wants to GIVE me all rights to Star Wars. (I wish. [sigh] I still own nothing...)
DRAMATIS PERSONAE: (* indicates an original character, which I own. PLEASE DO NOT USE MY ORIGINAL CHARACERS WITHOUT PERMISSION!)
Zekk Jaunter; Jedi Knight, Human Male
Jaina Solo; Jedi Knight, Human Female
Jagged Fel; Head of State, Human Male
Mirta Gev-Orade; Bounty Hunter, Human Female
Jolvin Jay*, Jedi apprentice, Arhan/human male
Han Solo; Pilot, Male Human
Leia Solo; Jedi Knight/Former politician, Human Female
C3P0; Protocol Droid, Masculine programing
Allana (Amelia) Solo; Jedi trainee/heir to the Hapan throne, human female
Myka Vox*; Jedi Trainee, Kiffar female
Luke Skywalker; Jedi Grand Master, Human Male
Answer to review on previous chapter:
Blaze- I'm glad you thought it was a "Wicked good chapter" :) Thanks for the ship name ideas :)
Chapter 4: Lost and Found
Zekk opened his eyes. He saw white. Soon he realized that the white was a ceiling. Pulling himself up to a sitting position he looked around and grinned. He was home. Home, his small, cramped, cluttered quarters that had collected a year's worth of dust at the Jedi Temple, but it was still home. He stood up and caught a glimpse of himself in a mirror. He was dressed in only a pair of shorts, and his firm, chiseled muscles were easy to see.
"Well hey there, good lookin'," he said to his reflection before walking into the refresher for a sanisteam. He took his time washing himself. It felt good to be alive, especially after his year of nightmares. He shuttered at the thought of what he had gone through for twelve months. He wrapped a towel around his waist and walked back out into his combination bedroom/living room/den to the closet. A huge grin spread across his face.
"Jedi robes." Yes, a nice change of pace from the same flight suit he had been wearing, even though it was kind of Jaina's apprentice to have it laundered for him. He selected his favorites; black and gray. Nothing too fancy, just straight and to the point. They were a little roomy from the weight loss he had experienced. Oh well.
And then he remembered. "Dang! Cafeteria food... Maybe the coma wasn't so bad after all..." He still had yet to meet one resident at the temple who actually liked the free food they received. "Maybe I can get Jaina to go with me down to the café down the street." He walked out of his quarters and went to the next door down from his, knocking cheerfully. Thirty seconds later, Jaina, dressed in a tank top and shorts, with rumpled hair opened the door, looking half awake.
"Good morning," he greeted.
"It's to early to be perky," she mumbled.
"Actually, it's almost midday. Now go get dressed. Otherwise, you'll get stuck with cafeteria food, and you'll miss me breaking a credit to get you a nice brunch." The promise of not having to pay for edible food for herself woke Jaina up a bit.
"Fine. Give me ten minutes or so." Fifteen minutes later, they were seated in a booth in the cozy café, looking over the menu. They placed their order, and sipped some caf while they waited for their food. Jaina had managed to make her self look decent in the short amount of time she had requested. Her hair was pulled back in a sleek ponytail, and she wore light green Jedi robes.
"So," she said. "Were you conscious for any of your time away from us?"
"No. Literally, I remember an explosion, and then I woke up to a really bright light." Jaina stared at him curiously. She knew he was hiding something.
"Any dreams?" she ventured. Zekk shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"Well, yeah," his voice trailed off.
"Any you remember?" Zekk sighed.
"Yes. I guess I should just tell you right now. The whole year I was out, I had these dreams, if you could call them that. They were more like nightmares. Flashbacks to when I was younger.. I had to stand on the bridge of a ship and watch my home planet destroy itself with my parents still down there. I could here their screams, even though there was no way I could have when I was younger. I saw myself running for my life through the under city, there were blaster shots flying around me, even though there were none when I was a kid. The shadow academy, the time I nearly killed you, except in my dream, I actually decapitated you. The Vong War, all the breakings I suffered through. I could feel the pain again. The time with the Killiks, except I killed Jag, Welk, Lomi, and a bunch of other people that had become nuisances to me. And back on Lumiya's asteroid. When the Dark Side got in me, It stayed. I went and killed Alema. Then later, I went and killed Caedus. Then I decided I wanted more. I killed your uncle when he wouldn't surrender the Jedi order to me. Then I killed anyone else who opposed me. I took over the government. I saw myself pass in front of a mirror, and I saw the face of Brakiss staring back at me." He sighed and looked away, it was clearly upsetting for him to talk about. Jaina got up and went around to Zekk's side of the table. She wrapped her arms around him, resting her cheek on his shoulder.
"Zekk, none of it really happened," she said as she brushed an ebony lock from his face.
"It seemed as though I progressed through the flashbacks, the got more and more real." she hugged him a little tighter.
"But notice that here we are, and none of those things in your dreams actually happened. See? I still have my head." Zekk smiled.
"I'm very glad of that," he said as he pulled her into an embrace this time. Then the food came. Jaina stayed where she was instead of moving back to her original place. The conversation brightened, and by the time they walked out, they were laughing.
~.~.~.~
The duo walked reentered the Temple when Myka came up to them.
"Jedi Zekk? Master Skywalker would like to see you in his office." The Kiffar girl led him down to the office of the Grand Jedi Master.
"Ah, Zekk. Come and sit," Luke said to him as he entered. "Myka, why don't you stay for a while." The surprised trainee nodded and took a seat next to Zekk.
"Well, I am certainly glad to see that you are all right," Luke said with a twinkle in his eye.
"Yes, sir. I'm fine," he said to the older Jedi.
"Have you and Myka been introduced?"
"Yes, Master. Jolvin and I were sparring last night, and he came to watch," Myka piped up.
"Good. Because Ben is not going to be your master after all. Zekk is." Both Zekk and Myka looked surprised.
"I intended Zekk to train you from the time I met you, Myka. But then he disappeared. I decided to wait for a while, but when I saw how quickly you were progressing, I decided that you needed at least a temporary master. So that's why I assigned you to Ben," Luke explained. "I think that Zekk will be able to train you better than other masters for several reasons. First, Myka is Kiffar. She can read the memories associated with inanimate objects. Zekk is good at finding things. The two talents compliment each other. Second, you two have very similar backgrounds. You were Both born on Ennth..." At this statement, both looked even more shocked. Ennth was a small, backwater planet in the outer rim that the majority of the population in the galaxy had never even heard of. "...And you both lost your parents there." Zekk noticed Myka look down at her hands. She looked like she was trying not to cry. Luke seemed to notice too. "Anyway, Zekk, train her to the best of your abilities, and Myka, listen to him. He has a lot of wisdom to share with you." With that he dismissed the two. Jaina was waiting outside.
"So what did he want?" she asked.
"He decided to assign me an apprentice."
"So soon after you get back? Strange. Anyway, come on, we gotta go see Jag. He was doubting your alive-ness. I want to go say 'I told you so' to him." Zekk rolled his eyes.
"Sure, Myka, why don't you come along too." She nodded.
"Myka?" Jaina gave a questioning glance.
"My new apprentice." He said, placing a hand on the teen's shoulder.
"But I thought Ben-"
"Master Skywalker changed his mind," Myka cut her off.
"I see."
Within the hour, they were in front of the Senate Building where Jag kept his office. Jaina had called Jolvin to come along too. The four entered the building. No one was at the reception desk.
"That's odd," Jolvin commented. "This place seems deserted." Sure enough, the desk was not the only vacated spot. The whole lobby was empty.
"That is strange. Keep your eyes open," Jaina warned. The foursome walked towards the turbo lifts to one side of the lobby and Jaina entered Jag's floor number. They stepped out and were again greeted with silence. Cautiously, they crept down the hall.
"Master, look!" came Myka's startled cry. Zekk whirled around to see what had caused her outburst. In a nearby meeting room, what looked like all of Jag's body guards, assistants, secretary, and all other personnel wore stun cuffs on their wrists, gags, and a few of them had large explosives strapped to their backs. Four lightsabers came out instantly.
"Zekk, Myka! Stay here and call the police. Tell them to bring a bomb squad. Jolvin, come with me!" Jaina ordered. Myka pulled out her comlink, and Zekk went to the transparisteel wall to hopefully mouth instructions to stay calm, and that help was on the way. Jaina and her apprentice shot down the hall toward Jag's office. When the door refused to open, they cut their way in.
"Jag! Are you here?"
"Head of State Fel?" The calls were in vain as they checked his office and surrounding rooms. Jag was gone. Security arrived, and ran into Fel's office.
"Freeze! Put you're hands in the air!"
"It's okay, they're with us." Zekk and Myka appeared behind the officers. The officers stood down. The four Jedi and the chief of police walked out of the Senate Building, where a mob of reporters and curious pedestrians had gathered.
"Captain, is this a kidnapping?" asked a red-skinned Twi'lek woman.
"We're not sure yet. We will answer questions later. Right now, we just need to get answers for you people." Slowly, the mob dissipated. Zekk grabbed the captain by the shoulder.
"Sir, is there anyway I could work on this case? Head-of-State Fel is a close friend of mine, and I do have credentials in investigating." Jaina immediately chimed in that if Zekk was working on the case, she would like to as well.
"Jedi Jaunter and Jedi Solo, we appreciate you're willingness to help. What I want to do is get some of my best detectives in there. After they have taken a crack at it, it's all yours." The two Jedi walked away, stunned that Jag was gone.
Author's note: And THAT was chap 4. I'm already working on chap 5, so make sure to stay tuned :)
Rock on dudes and dudettes :)
L3VE Bethany :) XOXOXOXO