Hey guys. So, I'm going to start off with an apology. I honestly though I had uploaded this chapter already. When a guest reviewed earlier this week asking for an update I was confused. After checking everything, I saw what was missing. Sorry about that to everyone. Thanks for reading so far. Here is the next chapter of Forgotten Legacy.
Starkiller walked out of the Council chamber, furious with the Grandmaster. Luke told Starkiller to wait before leaving for his private mission until after the new Jedi were announced as knights and had made their own sabers. Starkiller did not have time to wait, and it was clear that Skywalker did not realize that.
Starkiller was a clone whose aging had been accelerated. A process, he found out, that had been used during the Clone Wars. He had also discovered a fatal side effect of the aging process, his body was deteriorating. Now, his mission had been to find a cure for the issues he faced.
Two months ago he stumbled onto a record that was very well hidden. It was a comm message that had gone out to certain soldiers during the Clone Wars. It was heavy encoded, but Starkiller had managed to crack some of it. It was a message in Mandalorian, that when translated mentioned at least two words, "home" and "cure." The problem was, the message had been bounced around space so much that the origin point was almost impossible to determine. Starkiller knew he had to investigate it further. If there was a chance to cure his deterioration, he was going to take it.
Starkiller knew he would get into a lot of trouble for what he was planning, Percy probably would be in trouble too. Starkiller would offer Percy a choice in the matter. If he wanted, he could stay here and learn from a different master. If Percy chose to come with him though, Starkiller would make sure they stop on Ilum so the young man could craft his own saber. He would pass on his saber to Percy as well. It had a Kaiburr crystal inside of it which helps amplify the power of the saber, as well as his Force abilities. Starkiller did not want the crystal to fall into the wrong hands. Percy was a good man and would not abuse the power the crystal gave, in Starkiller's opinion.
Speaking of his young apprentice, Starkiller would need to go get him so they could leave later during the night when no one would notice. Starkiller had landed his ship in a clearing away from the temples in case something like this had to occur. All he had to do was find Percy and get him ready to leave. If Starkiller had his way, it would be a year before they returned, and that was only if he could not find any leads for this cure.
Starkiller felt the surrounding area for his apprentice and sensed him with the Solo girl. He knew they had become something similar to friends, at least that's how they acted. She was the only person that Percy was not cold to outside of the other demigods who arrived with him. Starkiller wondered why the Solo girl was so concerned with Percy. She had been showing up at his training and helping him to understand things, but Starkiller felt that there was more to it. When he rounded a corner he found a possible reason for why they were so close.
"So this is what you do when you're not training?" Starkiller said loud enough for the couple to hear him.
The two pulled out of their embrace and both of them turned bright red. The two being plenty embarrassed, Starkiller moved closer to them.
"Starkiller it's not like that," Percy started.
"Oh really, then what is it like Perseus Jackson?" huffed Jaina.
Percy rubbed the back of his head, nerves getting to him, "I didn't mean it bad Jaina. I meant that we have not been sneaking off to do this all the time."
Starkiller stifled a laugh at how his apprentice was struggling. Jaina glared at him and scooted away a little bit. Percy sighed and stood up to speak with his master. He glanced over at Jaina hoping she would look his way.
Shaking his head at their childish antics, Starkiller grabbed Percy's shoulder, "Be ready tonight. We will leave then."
Percy's eyes lit up, "You mean you got permission for us to go?"
"Not exactly," Starkiller replied, "That's why we leave under cover of night."
Percy nodded. Starkiller was glad that Percy knew there were times to go around the rules or ignore them completely. It made things easier when teaching him to control his dark side instead of it controlling him.
"Wait, you can't do that. Master Skywalker has to approve all missions," Jaina said.
Starkiller sighed and rubbed his eyes, "Yea well, some things supersede what the Grandmaster wants."
Percy smirked, "It will be fine Jaina, don't worry. Focus on your mission and we will see each other soon."
Jaina nodded, "Okay, but if you don't come back to me, I will become a more feared bounty hunter than Boba Fett as I track you down."
Percy shrugged, "I don't know what that means, but okay."
He kissed Jaina goodbye and then followed his master out of the room. Starkiller hoped that Percy knew they would be gone a long time.
"Percy, grab all your belongings and head to the ship," he ordered.
Percy nodded, "Okay, let me say goodbye to my friends first."
"No!" Starkiller commanded, "We need to be secretive about our departure. We are on a tight time limit."
Percy had never seen or heard his master act like this. It was as if he had become the jerk some of the other trainees claimed him to be. Percy decided it would be best to not fight with his master this time.
"As you wish," Percy muttered as he walked towards his chambers.
Starkiller hated hearing the subservient sound of Percy's voice. It was unlike the young man, but Starkiller knew Percy was avoiding conflict if possible. Starkiller decided he would make it up to Percy while they traveled.
Jaina watched as her new boyfriend and his master left for a secret mission. She hated that they were breaking the rules, mostly because she did not want to see Percy get seriously punished. She hoped her uncle would be understanding. Percy was a good guy and would become a great Jedi, she was sure of it.
Jaina pulled out her comm device and checked the chrono device on it. She freaked out when she realized that it was almost time for her and Piper to depart. She rushed to her chambers and changed into her flight suit. Grabbing her mission bag, she ran as fast as she could to the hangar. Luke and Piper were standing in front of Piper's X-Wing talking when she arrived.
"About time," Piper yelled at her from across the hangar.
Jaina blushed, "Sorry I got distracted and lost track of time."
Piper noticed her friends blush and grinned, "Distracted by what Jaina?"
Jaina blushed harder as she stammered and tried to come up with an excuse. Percy had wanted to keep it between the two of them for now, but she was afraid she would give it away. Jaina mentally cursed Piper and the gifts she had.
"I would like to know as well, niece. Also, don't lie. I have a feeling we would both know if you were," Luke said.
Piper smiled a little more deviously, "I bet it was a pair of sea green eyes and the muscles that go with it."
"No it wasn't," Jaina defended. However, it came out a little too quickly. Jaina knew she gave herself away.
"So Jaina Solo and Percy Jackson. I wonder what Han will say," Luke shared a devious grin with Piper.
Jaina's eyes flew out of her head, "Uncle Luke!"
Luke and Piper laughed at her response. Jaina could not believe how her uncle was acting right now. It was as if he were a teenager again.
After composing himself, Luke put a hand on Jaina's shoulder, "I apologize. It would seem that spending time with our new trainees is causing me to act like them. They are so full of life and fun. I will not tell your father, Jaina. I'll leave that up to you."
Jaina hung her head at that. It's not that she was embarrassed of Percy or anything. Her parents were just some of the most hard to please people in the galaxy. One was a former smuggler know everywhere it seemed, the other was a politician. She was not sure how either of them would react to someone dating their "baby girl."
"Alright ladies, remember this is a recon mission only. Go in, see what's up, and come back. No unnecessary risks," Luke stared straight at Jaina when he said the last part.
Jaina crossed her arms, "You accidentally punch the prince of a sovereign planet one time, and you're ridiculed for life."
Piper chuckled at Jaina's antics, "No problem Master Skywalker. Have we received any more intel on what is on this rock?"
Luke sighed, "Only that the ship seems to be an old freighter of some kind. Nothing new has arrived."
Jaina patted Piper on the back, "Don't worry Uncle Luke. We have got this under control."
Luke nodded, "Then may the Force be with you."
As Luke left, the girls jumped into the cockpit of their ships. Jaina looked over at Piper who seemed extremely nervous. Jaina remembered her first mission and the nerves that plagued her. As they both placed their helmets on, Jaina opened a comm channel with Piper.
"Don't worry, it's just like the simulation and test flights you have done."
Piper nodded, "Right. Doesn't make it less nerve wracking though."
Jaina laughed, "My first mission like this, I was vomiting all day. Then I showed up without my jumpsuit."
"Well I'm doing better than you did I guess," Piper teased.
Jaina laughed, "It would seem so. Just try not to puke while we are in hyperspace."
Piper groaned at that.
The two girls fired up the engines on their craft and prepared to launch. Luckily the asteroid was not relatively far, so their X-Wings could handle the short jump. If it were any further, they would have to take a larger ship.
Jaina was the first out of the hangar, followed closely by Piper. They gunned their engines and made for open space. Jaina could hear Piper going over what to do, step-by-step, over the comm channel. She smiled and was glad that Piper learned fast.
"You're doing great Pipes," Jaina said.
She could sense Piper's smirk, "Yea, if only Repair Boy could see me now."
"That's your mechanic friend right?" Jaina asked.
"Yea, he would go nuts over something like this," Piper responded.
Jaina chuckled, "Alright, we're about to make the jump to lightspeed. Our comms will still work, so that will help pass the time. Do you have your coordinates plugged in?"
"Just finished. Do you need to check them?" Piper asked.
Jaina already had her instruments running and making sure Piper was in track. She was impressed with what the demigod could do. She had accurately plotted her course and even managed to avoid a potential meteor shower.
"Well done Piper. It's hard to believe this is your first space flight."
"Thanks, my teacher was not the best, but I managed to figure things out," Piper teased.
Jaina smirked, "Well I'm sure your teacher could still whip you in a fight if she wanted."
"That's only if she can stop making out with her boyfriend," Piper countered.
Jaina shut up at that. How had she known they had been kissing?
"To answer the question you're probably wondering about, I can sense love around me. When it changes, and when it grows. Plus your lips are swollen," Piper informed her.
Jaina banged her head in the console. How could she have been so stupid? Of course that's how she knew.
"What about you and my brother?" Jaina asked.
Piper sighed, "Your brother is cute, and probably has a great sense of humor. However, he is one of the densest people I've ever met, and that's coming from someone who knows Percy."
Jaina sighed. She knew her brother could be a major idiot. He never realized how he affected the women around him. All he cared about was his studies and knowing more about the Force. Jaina had told him time and time again to get his nose out of the holocrons and to focus on real life.
"What did he do?" Jaina asked.
Piper began to explain and Jaina tried to help her understand. To Jaina, it was nice to talk about boys with somebody. Most of her friends in the Academy only ever wanted to discuss training methods or Force techniques. Even her pilot friends only talked about missions. Jaina was glad to have a friend who she could just be a girl with. It also helped her understand Percy better. She was almost positive that he was the owner of the eyes, and who she needed to save.
Jacen sat with Hazel, Nico, and Thalia in a training room in the temple. He had agreed to train with them this evening in exchange for information about them. Jason wanted to know more about their world than what Piper had told him.
"The three of you are progressing rapidly through your training. We've never seen anyone learn as quick as you demigods," Jacen told them.
Thalia laughed, "Where we are from its learn fast or die painfully."
Jacen nodded, "Based on some of the stories I've heard, I can imagine. So why do you all seem to follow Percy as a leader?"
"That's because he is one of my praetors, or generals," Hazel said.
Nico nodded, "He is one of the children of the top three gods as well."
Jacen's face twisted in confusion, "true, but aren't the three of you children of those gods as well?"
Hazel answered his question, "We are, but none of us have had to handle as much as Percy."
"What do you mean?" Jacen asked.
Thalia raised her eyebrow, "Why do you care so much about Percy?"
Jacen leaned back a bit, "Piper talks of him constantly. I'm just wanting to know more."
It was Nico's turn to raise an eyebrow, "You're jealous of Percy and Piper? Dude that would be like him being jealous of you and Jaina. It makes no sense."
"Yea, he's like mine and Piper's older brother," Hazel added.
Jason grinned, "Alright, you caught me. I was a little worried of their relationship."
Thalia smacked Jacen on the back, "Dude, you have nothing to worry about there. Make your move already."
Jacen laughed with the demigods. He was glad to hear that Percy was no romantically invested in Piper, and vice versa. Piper was a rare beauty the likes of which he had not ever seen before. When she returned from her mission with Jaina, Jacen decided he would finally speak up to Piper. He was also going to talk with Percy. Maybe the two of them could become friends, especially since Percy seemed to care for his sister.
A darker part of his mind did not like the fact that Percy was getting closer to Jaina though. Someone who could willingly tap into the dark side was not someone Jacen wanted around his family. Jacen found himself wishing he could tap into that power himself, if only to protect his sister when Percy finally snapped from the darkness within. Jacen figured that he could probably find a way to just skim the surface of the darker powers and not become corrupted by its influence. Jacen was strong enough in the Force to be able to handle it. At least he thought he was.
Short chapter this time. Don't worry the next chapter is on its way. There should not be as large of a delay for it either. For those who are wanting more action, there will be some in the next chapter. Thanks again for reading. You guys are awesome.
