The votes are in, and this story is now... A romance! Honestly, was not surprised by the results at all :P You guys have been begging me to add some love between our characters for the LONGEST time! And now all that begging is finally gonna pay off.
Y'all might have to give me some time, though. Because now I gotta add in a few tweaks with what I already had planned. Oh well... This is gonna be fun!
...
Coleman Kjac watched his friend and fellow council member, Shaak Ti, practically glide through the halls, humming gently to herself. The Ongree couldn't help but sigh at his friend's antics, especially since they involved a certain Kaleesh general. Coleman could sort of understand where Shaak Ti was coming from, he could understand her wish to "heal" the cyborg's broken spirit. But he was starting to wonder whether or not the Togruta woman actually knew what she was getting herself into. Befriending the republic's number one enemy was not the wisest choice, in his eyes.
"The council isn't going to like this one," he muttered under his breath as he started walking towards the giddy Jedi. His suspicions would have to wait, he knew he needed to tell Shaak Ti what had happened during the council meeting she had missed.
He cleared his throat, catching Shaak Ti's attention. Turning to him, she beamed brightly. "I'm finally getting somewhere with him, Coleman," she told him gleefully. "All that patience is finally paying off! I knew there was still good in him!"
"Uh... That's great, Shaak Ti," the Ongree forced through his own hesitation. "But I came to tell you about what happened during the meeting."
Shaak Ti's beautiful face tightened a little. She glanced down. "I see," she said, forcing herself to become professional again. "Well, what happened?" Coleman sighed heavily, and he pinched the bridge of his... Face? (Ongree people are really weird looking)
"We should probably sit down," he decided, making his way towards the other end of the hall, where the Jedi archives stood proudly.
Shaak Ti followed her friend, wondering what bad news Coleman had. She could tell it was bad by the way he delivered the set up. For a few seconds, a knot in her stomach formed, worried it might have something to do with Grievous. 'I hope they don't shorten his sentence here.' She thought.
Coleman led her to a small coffee table in the library, sitting down on the small sofa that accompanied it. He motioned for Shaak Ti to sit next to him, before sighing once more.
"Coleman?" Shaak Ti asked, sitting down beside him. "What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?" The Jedi master repeated. "What's wrong? It's that damned chancellor, that's what."
"What about him?"
"..." Coleman did not speak, causing Shaak Ti to press on.
"What did the chancellor say?" She asked once more.
"It's not what he said, but what he did," Coleman stated bitterly. "Palpatine has made Anakin Skywalker a member of the Jedi council!"
"WHAT?!" Shaak Ti exclaimed, jumping out of her seat. "But how?! Skywalker isn't even a master! He hasn't had nearly enough experience to even qualify-"
"I know," Coleman hissed. "Now can you keep it down? I swear, you've been acting different ever since they captured Grievous."
Shaak Ti bit her lip in frustration. "His name is Qymaen," she murmured. Then she sat back down. "Forgive me, friend. The news is just a bit shocking, is all."
"You think?" The Ongree retorted, having not heard Shaak Ti's words about the general. "I never trusted Palpatine, but this is crossing the line."
The Togruta woman nodded in agreement. Anakin Skywalker was a powerful Jedi, she could not deny it. He was a superb general during the clone wars, a caring teacher to his former apprentice, a brave warrior who never backed down, and skilled in nearly every field a Jedi could partake in. But at the same time, his youth made him brash. He was quick tempered, and his connections to Tatooine made his emotions unstable. His decisions were not very logical, he relied too heavily on his feelings.
Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew that was quite hypocritical of her to say, but she pushed the thought away.
"Things are getting too out of hand here," Coleman continued. "We have a former warlord in our cells, a Kamarian assassin of all things in custody, and now Skywalker is a council member..."
Shaak Ti did not respond, and Coleman turned his head to look at her. "Oh.." He muttered, slapping himself mentally. "Sorry for the rant." Shaak Ti shook her head.
"It's alright, Coleman," she assured. "I was just letting it all sink in."
The two sat in more silence for a couple minutes, interrupted only when Jocasta Nu offered them some tea. While the thoughts of Anakin swam throughout Coleman Kjac's mind, they had left Shaak Ti's a long time ago. Her mind was back on Grievous, the mysterious villain who had suddenly become a very important thing in her life. The Jedi woman smiled slightly, happy to know she was finally getting somewhere with the general. She would show him that there was more to life than pain and hatred, she swore it.
But there was one thing that was slowly crawling back into her thoughts. What would happen when Grievous was to be exiled? Suddenly a heavy feeling formed in her chest. A sudden realization that her new friendship with the general would not be lasting long at all. In fact, they had less than a week now. Would that be enough time for everything that needed to be said, said?
"Shaak Ti?" Coleman's voice broke the silence.
"Hm?" She hummed sadly, looking down.
"What's wrong?" He asked. "You're..."
Shaak Ti then noticed a tear leak out of her eye, and she realized she must have been crying. Sighing, she wiped her tears away and shook her head. "It's nothing, Coleman," she said. Standing up, she brushed her hands over her robe. "I'm going to visit Qymaen."
Before Coleman could protest, Shaak Ti was gone. The thought of visiting the general again made her feel happy again, and she quickly hurried out of the temple. However, Coleman was the complete opposite. He narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "You're making a mistake, Shaak Ti," he grumbled to himself. "I know what you want, but you're a Jedi. Grievous isn't one to be trusted..."
...
"I said hold still," the medical droid scolded as it continued its careful work of repairing Grievous's damaged chest plate. The general growled in annoyance.
"Maybe I would be more willing if you actually knew what you were doing!" He shot back, ready to clobber the droid in front of him. The droid gave what sounded like a scoff, shaking its head.
"Well you were the idiot who decided to get shot in the first place." If the general wanted to play dirty, the droid decided it would play dirty as well.
Grievous roared. "Take that back you worthless pile of scrap!" He demanded, jabbing his finger at the droid's head. The droid looked at Grievous with its blank, mechanical eyes.
"You are by far the worst patient I've ever had." It deadpanned. Grievous was about to retort, when the bickering was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. Glancing up, the two metallic figures saw Shaak Ti staring at them in amusement, a huge smirk on her face.
"Qymaen, shut up and let the droid do its work," she teased, crossing her arms over her chest. Grievous mumbled something under his breath, and reluctantly allowed the droid to continue.
"Thank you, Jedi," the droid exclaimed as it slowly and cautiously removed the general's chest plate. "This man has been rude to me ever since I arrived. It's like he doesn't want medical attention!"
"I want medical attention from a professional," Grievous hissed. "Not this thing."
Shaak Ti chuckled, but then gasped when she saw the cyborg's gutsack. Grievous noticed this, and his golden eyes shifted around. "Unnerving, isn't it?" He assumed. Shaak Ti could only nod, looking away from the pile of organs. Grievous sighed. "Besides my brain, Shaak Ti, those guts are the only living part of me I have left," he explained, his one hand gesturing towards the innards.
"I'm sorry," Shaak Ti apologized. "I'm just not used to seeing things like that." Grievous nodded.
"Not many people have." As he said this, the medical droid finally attached the new chest plate, sighing in satisfaction.
"Finally," it murmured. "See? That wasn't so bad, was it?" It seemed to grin cheekily at the Kaleesh, who narrowed his eyes.
"Just take your leave, already," he growled.
After the medical droid left, Shaak Ti entered the cell and sat down besides her new friend. She observed his new chest plate, which looked fairly identical to his old one. "It looks good," she complimented. The general scoffed.
"It's nothing compared to flesh," he told her bitterly. Shaak Ti bit her lip, and dared to scoot closer to him.
"You miss having a body?" She inquired, and Grievous's reptilian eyes glanced off towards the distance.
"More than anything," he admitted. "Back when I had a body, I felt power. More than I ever could in this metal shell. And back when I had a body, I had friends, family, a lover even."
Shaak Ti felt a blush form, not used to talking about anything romance related. "A lover?" She echoed. Grievous sighed.
"Her name was Ronderu," he informed the Jedi. "She... She was my everything. I loved her with everything I had, but then..."
"But then...?" Shaak Ti dared further and placed a hand on his shoulder. Grievous clenched his fist, trying to calm his breathing.
"She... She..."
"Droid! The hell are you doing with that Jedi?!"
The two shot up quickly, staring at the clone trooper in complete shock. The trooper had his rifle out, aimed straight at the general's head. "Shaak Ti, you should return to the temple!" The trooper ordered, his aim never leaving Grievous. Shaak Ti narrowed her eyes, and stepped towards the trooper.
"Soldier, I don't think that will be necessary," she explained. "The general was causing no harm, and-"
"I have to insist, Jedi." The trooper cut her off rudely.
"Just go, Shaak Ti," Grievous growled. "This trooper will be no trouble."
Reluctantly, Shaak Ti finally left the two after a minute of a three way stare down. Mumbling to herself, she slowly made her way through the cells, trying to block out the verbal fight the general was locked in with the soldier.
...
'Where am I?'
She was in a lush jungle, one that vaguely felt familiar. "Is this..." She wondered out loud, her wide eyes taking in the scenery.
"Kalee?" A new voice spoke up. "If that's what you're thinking, then you're correct, Jedi."
"Huh?" The Togruta turned her head, trying to find the source of the voice. She glanced through the "clearing", her ebony orbs scanning for any sign of life. There was none.
"Up here, Jedi."
Looking up, the Jedi woman finally found who her new companion is. It was female, she could tell by the lithe, cat like form. She didn't wear much, just enough cloth to cover her waist and legs, along with her chest. Her skin was a beautiful shade of red, similar to Jedi's own skin. Black hair fell over her bare shoulders, her face covered in a strange, painted skull mask. The woman was currently cleaning a sith-age rifle, her golden eyes locked onto the Jedi below her.
"I've been waiting for you, Shaak Ti."
The Togruta tilted her head. "I'm sorry, you have?" She asked. "I don't believe I know you."
"Is that so?" The woman on the tree chuckled. "Well allow me to introduce myself." In one fluid motion, she swung her rifle over her shoulder and launched herself out of the tree, landing next to the Jedi harmlessly.
"My name is Ronderu," she introduced. "And I am the mate of Qymaen Jai Sheelal."
...
I am not happy that these usually take days to write because SOME PEOPLE always have to interrupt me and drag me off to God knows where! Anyway, so this is finally done and all :/ Thank God, but I'm not fully satisfied. Hopefully my motivation comes back tomorrow or something. (Yeah, the author's note at the end can be up to a week after the first one...)
Don't forget to review! And remember, stay wykkyd!