"Use this blade as an anchor to regain control of that side you."
Charra opened her eyes, putting an end to her meditation as Maul's words echoed in her mind. What had he meant by using the Lightsaber as her anchor?
Most if not all non-Force Sensitive beings believed that a Jedi's saber was nothing more than a weapon, in truth it was so much more than that. The lightsaber was alive in a way due to the Kyber Crystals that resided in all of them; it was the heart of the weapon. It was the Crystal that chose the welder, was that what Maul meant; use the Crystal as her anchor?
Charra glanced down at the hilt lying in front of her before reached down to pick up. This saber was actually her second saber; the first had been destroyed during the mission with the Rancor. Which lead to her injuries and an entire month in a Bacta Tank, then having to see Dooku's infamous disapproving scowl for a solid week as she regained her strength before heading to Ilum for another Crystal.
She hadn't even bothered checking the color of the Crystal after she had snagged it from its perch. If she had and told Dooku about it, she could avoided the stares from the other Padawans and Masters, she had already drawn plenty with her antics with the Rancor, she didn't need more due to the color of her second blade.
She had still been a padawan learner, her blade should not have been purple, and a large majority of saber blades were blue or green and occasionally yellow-orange in Plo-Koon's case. So why had her blade been purple, was it because she was a Zygerrian?
Not even Dooku knew what it meant and he was a seasoned Jedi Master. Mace Windu on the hand seemed to know and understand what this meant but he had remained silent as he and Dooku weren't exactly friendly with one another.
The dark skinned man had approached her a few months after Dooku's departure due to the death of Qui-Gon at the hands of Darth Maul.
A small part of Charra still felt that Dooku leaving only a few weeks after her Knighted spoiled the entire enlightening experience. Then reminded herself that Obi-Wan was getting the short end of it as his apprenticeship had been cut short because of Qui-Gon's death and stuck with training a Padawan before he was even ready for one.
She chose to help Obi-Wan with his new padawan, saying it would be practice when she got her own, it was partly true. In return, Kenobi and his new Padawan would accompany her on diplomatic missions as no one trusted a Zygerrian even one that was a Jedi.
As Charra gazed at the cool metal of her Saber hilt, she remembered that Mace had planned on taking her as his apprentice for he had seen something in her that would make the Zygerrian a suitable candidate for his teaching style. It certainly explained why the dark skinned human had watched her all throughout the girl's apprenticeship. At the time, the Padawan Learner had just figured that the Master was curious and wanted to see how her training was coming along; he had done the same with other Padawan's as well. But Windu's dark eyes always returned to her, looking back now, it made sense why he had watched her as she trained under Dooku.
The older Jedi didn't see the underlying darkness in his Padawan; if he did see it then Dooku must have believed that training and discipline would temper the violent and dark nature of his student's Zygerrian blood.
It had worked for a time, but Dooku's unexpected leave of the Order had caused a hairline fracture in her restraint and control to emerge. That fracture extended upon learning of her former Master's turn to the Darkside, making her more susceptible to her darker almost bestial nature.
With a snap hiss, Charra's purple blade burst to life, the glow of the blade made her eyes appear lavender. As she gazed at the blade, she wondered if she would have had more control over that side of her if Mace had been her Master. The human male was a known practitioner of form 7 and even invented Vaapad, he had to dapple in the darkside in order to do so but he had mastered it and made it his own.
~There is no point in dwelling on what could have been, focus on the now,~ Her Jedi coolly commented. ~Focus on repairing the cracks before the trickle becomes of a flood.~
Charra shook her head and extinguished the purple blade, she doubted Dooku's old teachings would help in regaining control of her wilder more violent nature.
Perhaps, she mused as she gazed at nothing in particular. It's time for a change in tactics.
~Careful on how you approach this,~ Her Jedi cautioned. ~If you are not...~
~Yeah, yeah,~ The Zygerrian cut in with a slightly annoyed huff. ~Darkside, death and destruction. The works.~
With a soft grunt, she clipped her saber to her belt before exiting her quarters, nearly tripping over TC-9 in the process.
"TC-9, you know I hate it when you do that." Charra chided.
The astro-mech bleeped an apology, his dome head spinning a complete 180° before letting off a series of beeps and whistles.
Charra chuckled softly. "Yes, I'll give you an oil bath, TC. Later though, I need to speak to Maul."
The Droid let out a series of happy beeps and whistles even going as far as rocking from side to side on its stabilizers before rolling off at high speeds.
The woman gave a soft snort of amusement before heading for the Cargo hold where she knew Maul and Savage would be. She glanced out one of the windows just in time to see the exit from Hyperspace; she then took a moment to admire the vast emptiness of space before continuing on.
X X X
As predicted, she found the two Zabraks sitting in the center of the Hold. They pair appeared to be in the middle of a Meditation session, however hearing Savage's all too familiar snores said otherwise. She also didn't need the Force to know that Maul was annoyed.
"Meditation isn't for everyone." Charra commented as she walked towards the red and black male.
Maul's only response was a small huff of annoyance, but didn't object when the Jedi sat across from him.
Charra glanced at Savage, she could feel Maul's eyes on her and she knew she would have to word this carefully as Maul tended to get rather prickly when she questioned him about Savage's training. When she turned her attention back to Maul, he was watching her closely with a guarded expression.
"... Savage is having trouble repairing his lightsaber, I'd like to help but he is your apprentice and I'd rather not step on your toes, so to speak."
Maul quirked a tattooed brow. "That hasn't stopped you before; I don't see why it would stop you now."
"True, but I need to respect the fact that you are his Master and rudely butting in isn't appropriate." She had to stop herself and gather her thoughts before she started rambling like an idiot.
Maul remained silent, wanting to see where the Jedi was taking this. His expression was still guarded but with a hint of minor curiosity.
"If... It's alright with you; I'd like to help Savage with his Lightsaber. I'm sure it's the same basic concept just executed differently." She scratched the back of her head, feeling a little out of her depth.
"You've never had an apprentice, have you?" Maul coolly stated after a long pregnant silence.
"Nope, apparently I'm scary," Charra replied without missing a beat. "The only kit who would come near me was Anakin. However, that might have been because of my friendship with Obi-Wan."
Maul's gaze hardened a fraction but other than that his expression and body language remained unchanged.
"Anyway," Charra commented quickly changing the subject. "If the repairs for Savage' lightsaber involves poking him with a stick, I'm all for it."
The red male snorted softly in amusement. "I don't think that will be necessary, Savage wasn't trained at a young age as I was. I will need to go about his training in a different way."
She noticed how Maul phrased his statement but decided not to comment about it, instead she rose to her feet intending to leave, any intention of broaching the subject she had come to see Maul about all but gone.
"Let me know if I can help." Charra glanced at her still sleeping mate; she smiled a little before heading for the door.
"If you help me, Charra," Maul prompted before she could get too far. "I'll help you with your... Problem."
Charra paused before looking over her shoulder, an eye brow raised. "My problem?"
"Don't play coy with me, Charra. You know exactly what I'm talking about and I'm certain Savage does as well."
The Zygerrian's ears folded back against her head as her silver-green gaze danced over towards her Mate and sighed, she didn't bother denying it further. "It was that obvious?"
Maul gave her a look one of his eye brows raised before speaking. "You just spent the last 8 hours meditating after being unusually quiet the last 24 once you returned from the woods smelling of dirt, wet fur, and dried blood."
Charra's eyes darkened and she glanced away; she could still smell that Jungle cat's fur and blood on her hands. She knew that Maul had followed her after having snuck off to bury the creature she had killed, he may have masked his Force Signature but he couldn't mask his scent.
Maul matched her closely before commenting. "How is that Dooku never taught you to control that side of you?"
She shrugged with a sigh, looking back at the male. "I think he believed that training and discipline would temper it. However, his leaving then betrayal fractured my control."
"Your master had clearly been unqualified to train you despite his decades of experience."
Her eyes flashed in anger but it was brief, Charra knew Maul was right. Despite Dooku's vast knowledge and experience he shouldn't have been her master, even thought they had gotten along well during their time together as Master and Apprentice.
The Zabrak gestured for the woman to return, after a moment of hesitation Charra returned to her spot and sat back down. Maul opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it.
"Say I agree to this, what do you get out of it?"
Maul's eyes glittered. "As we are sharing the same space-"
"If you're suggesting that we should start getting along, you've gone off the deep end," She cut in with a snort of amusement then leaned forward, voice firm. "Tell you what, if you stop beating around the bush and simply tell me what you want, I won't try to kill you anymore and I will watch your back. On my honor as a Jedi."
Maul seemed to find that amusing and smirked slightly. "Are you giving me your loyalty?"
"I wouldn't go that far and I believe we've already established a hierarchy," Charra countered, having no desire to fight Maul again, at least not for a while. "If anything, you have my trust."
"Fair enough, having your trust will suffice for the time being." He replied with a small nod and sounding rather cryptic.
"Why do I have the feeling I'm going to regret this?"
"As long as you don't cross me like that again, you have nothing to worry about," Maul replied rolling his shoulders before continuing. "Now, shall we address the issue of your more violent side?"
Charra 'tched' once before speaking a soft growl escaping her. "If your suggesting that I try to make peace with it and find some happy medium, it won't work I have tried."
"You cannot approach this with the mindset of a Jedi," Maul replied all business now. "You will need to approach something of this nature as you did with Husk."
She raised an eye brow. "I'm not sure I follow, I challenged Husk to a fist fight. Are you suggesting that I look into the abyss and roar a challenge?" She regretted saying the words moment they left her mouth.
The Zabrak gave her a long searching look before replying. "You're not quite ready for that just yet, one step at a time."
X X X
Charra knew that Maul wasn't going to hold her hand for this little exercise only be her anchor, a fixed point so she could find her way back. Next time, she would be her own or ask Savage.
She could sense the other male was close by but she couldn't see him, it made the fur along her shoulders stand on end.
"Stay focused and get moving," Echoed Maul's familiar growl. "I do not want to stay like this longer then I have to."
She huffed softly, although she felt the same way... Having someone like Maul at the edge of her mind with her barriers down... She'd rather think about it. If he felt her unease, he chooses not to comment and remained a silent constant shadow at the edge of her mind.
As instructed prior to this little adventure, Charra avoided opening any doors that would hamper the exercise.
According to Maul, she would have to access a memory where the Dark Side however brief had entirely consumed her. Once that was accomplished, getting Charra's darker half to submit would come next. Fun.
As one specific memory sprang to mind, a Clone Trooper materialized a few feet away. He was wearing typical Clone armor with dark gray slash marks on his upper arms and thighs. He also looked like every other clone; same tanned skin tone, same dark hair styled into a shaved flat top. The only noticeable difference were the eyes, all the clones had various shades of brown eyes. This Clone had one brown eye and one blue.
"Doyle..." Charra murmured, her heart aching at the sight of the man.
Her reaction drew Maul's attention, he didn't need to ask. It was obvious that this man was more than just a soldier under her command.
"Does Savage know?" He asked, keeping his tone neutral.
The woman was silent for a long moment. "I... I haven't even thought about Doyle in nearly three years... What does that say about me?"
Maul said nothing for several seconds. "You can worry about that some other time, we need to get moving. Find the memory and lose yourself in it."
Charra didn't hide her annoyance but it didn't last, her gaze returned to the Clone one last time before continuing forwards with glancing back at the Trooper.
X X X
Charra paused when the sound of blaster fire and the familiar smell of smoke on top of the clamoring voices of several Clone Troopers. She stepped out of the dark pathways of her mind and onto the battlefield...
Her nose wrinkled as the smoke stung her nostrils and she waved away the offending scent.
"This is going to make things harder." She softly growled.
"The Clankers started the fire to throw us off, but they screwed themselves." Her second in command commented as he stood beside his general.
The Zygerrian general snorted softly in amusement before speaking. "While we're on the subject, what is the situation on the blaze?"
"Raze and Tats believe that with the wind change, the fire won't be a problem. Worst case scenario, minor smoke inhalation."
"Let's try to avoid that if possible. Keep me posted, Dax."
"Of course, General. We should head for higher ground to get ahead of the smoke." Dax coolly stated.
"My thoughts exactly, Commander. Move out."
Dax nodded and gave the order before putting his helmet on to take the lead.
Charra watched her Commander take the lead only to jump slightly when someone gave her ass a little squeeze. "You could get court-martialed for that you know."
"Ah, you'd miss me too much." Sub-commander Doyle cheekily replied before wrapping his arms around the Jedi's waist, resting his head in the center of her back.
She purred softly, enjoying the moment before pulling out of his grip and turning to face the man.
"I'll see you tonight." She commented, stooping down in order to kiss the shorter man, ignoring the playful cat calls and wolf whistles from passing Clones.
She reluctantly end the kiss before things got too carried away, they had mated twice that same morning. As tempting as it would be to have another go, they had work to do.
"Think we got time for quickie, General?" Doyle smirked as though reading her mind.
Charra snorted in amusement, pushing back her own desire as she scented his. He seemed to know this as he pressed into her, his hand reaching out to stroke her heat through the fabric.
"Save it for tonight," She breathed, taking a step back from his touch. "We have to get moving if we are to meet with Kenobi at the rendezvous."
"Fair enough, General. Though I doubt you can resist me for long as I will be thinking of you... In various positions." Doyle replied as he headed to join his brothers.
"Keep that up and I WILL have you court-martialed." She replied through narrowed eyes, though her tone lacked any true threat.
"HA! I'll bring the cuffs." He winked at her before putting his helmet on.
She shook her head and softly chuckled before reaching up to scratch her left ear.
"Watch yourself out there, Doyle." She stated, using her private line.
"I always am, Charra. I'll see you after this is over."
X X X
"General, you're needed up front." Dax commented over the Comm.
"I'll be right there." Charra commented before making her way towards the front.
Her eyes narrowed when the scent of fresh blood and burnt hair. The sight that greeted her wasn't what she had been expecting; a body maybe but not splatters of dark blood and what looked like a chunk of bone. She caught her second's eye even though his helm was still on.
"I hate to see what is on the other end of this blood." Doyle commented standing next to a Shiny named Sparrow.
Charra remained silent as she reached out with the force in order to see if she could sense the injured party.
"They're in the forest," She commented as she lowered her hand. "I'm going to check it out. Dax, stay with the group."
"Yes, General. Sparrow, go with the General." Dax replied.
Even with his Helmet on, Sparrow looked nervous and Doyle trying to put him at ease didn't help.
"Ah, don't worry, kid," Doyle grinned as he gave the Shiny a playful nudge. "The General will look after ya."
Sparrow glanced at the Zygerrian General and nodded shakily before standing next to her.
"I want radio silence unless it's absolutely necessary to break it," Charra ordered. "Find cover and stay hidden until we return."
Doyle and Dax saluted in response before moving the troops off the path and into the undergrowth opposite Charra and Sparrow.
X X X
Charra crouched down to check the foot prints of what was clearly a wounded animal; she didn't see any claw indentations which meant they could be on the trail of a large wounded herbivore.
"Speak your mind, Sparrow." She commented without looking up.
Sparrow jumped at being suddenly addressed by the General and stammered. "I-I shouldn't... It-it's not my place, sir... I mean Ma'am... General."
She chuckled softly, he was certainly still a new recruit, unsure of himself, and jumpy around his general. "I'm giving you permission to speak your mind."
He was silent for a moment before getting the courage to speak again. "I-I know I haven't been under your command very long... But I couldn't help but notice that you and Sub-Commander Doyle are... Together."
"Yes, Doyle and I are together," Charra replied sounding a little distracted as she looked closer at the foot print. "We help each other after unwind after campaigns."
"Oh, ok. The reason I asked is because I heard that Jedi... Couldn't form attachments or... Something along those lines."
The general growled softly making Sparrow step away worried that he had overstepped, and upset her. When in reality, she only growled because she couldn't remember what these print belonged to, it was on the tip of her tongue! When she finally spoke, her voice was cool and level.
"It is true that ad a Jedi, I cannot form attachments. However, with the war going on, a little rule breaking isn't going to hurt anyone." Sparrow seemed to relax and her level tone as he glanced ahead of them, he didn't need to be told where they would be heading. Not with the trampled undergrowth and large splatters of blood giving itself away.
"This way, our quarry isn't sentient but is wounded and suffering. Once we catch up to it, we'll put it out of its misery." Charra replied as she rose to her feet.
Sparrow nodded and continued as he followed her. "And the men are ok with the two of you being together?"
She smiled softly. "At first they weren't sure what to make of it... Mainly due to my Zygerrian reputation."
Sparrow tilted his head in confusion. "Your what?"
"Oh, I guess you hadn't heard this story yet-"
"Probe droids!" Dax shouted over the Comms.
"How many?" Charra was all business now.
"Two, Chase managed to take one of them out."
The general cursed softly. "I'll be there as fast as I can. Find or make cover."
"Yes, General!"
"Are we heading back?" Sparrow asked as the Jedi deactivated her com-link.
She didn't respond as she reached out with the Force, searching for the wounded animal. She learned that the creature was a Reek, she had seen one only once back on Geonosis. Tough beast but direct hit with a blaster had put it down.
It's pain hit her like a runaway speeder, the large herbivore was riddled with wounds from blaster fire but the source of its agony and causing it to bleed heavily was a barbed spear lodged in the animal's side, blood filling it's lungs. It was slowly drowning in its own blood.
"General? We need to head back." Sparrow's voice sounded distant.
Charra gave the Clone a distracted nod as she raised her hand to focus her energy; she gritted her teeth moments before her hand snapped into a fist. She shuddered as she heard and felt the snap of the Reek's neck; she shook her head as she swayed, grateful for Sparrow catching her when she nearly collapsed.
"General, are you alright?" Sparrow asked voice tinged with worry.
"I'm-I'm alright," She replied, giving her head another shake before rising to her full height. "Let's go."
X X X
Charra drew out her light saber and activated the purple blade as she charged the enemy, cutting down four battle droids before whipping out a second saber. The green blade matching it's purple colored counterpart blow for blow as their owner cut down battle droids and deflected blaster fire, drawing attention to herself and making it easier for her men to recover and fire back.
The skirmish lasted only a few minutes and ended when Charra cut down the last B2 Super-battle droid with a back handed diagonal strike, slicing the droid in half from shoulder to hip. The general deactivated her blades and hooked them back onto her belt before it slid apart and crumbled to the ground.
"Status report," Charra commanded, getting down to business. "Any one wounded?"
"A few scrapes and a sprained wrist. Ridge tried to punch a Clanker." A medic named Patch replied, rolling his eyes.
"What? I thought it would work." Ridge countered with a huff.
Charra chuckled and shook her head; she waited until her men were back on their feet before leading them another half mile before coming across a secluded yet easily definable location.
"We will rest here for ten minutes before continuing to the rendezvous. I'll keep a look out."
Taking a pair of binoculars with her, the Zygerrian headed for a tree for a better view of their surroundings. As this happened, everything seemed to lose focus and fade as Charra tried to pull out of the memory.
"Keep going," Maul hissed. "I sense we are getting close."
"I-I can't," She whispered, not bothering to hide her fear. "I can't relive that again..."
"You must, if this is to work you must relieve it. All of it." The Zabrak's voice was firm but oddly gentle.
After a long tense moment, Charra relented and the memory stabilized and continued without further complications.
With a bit of help from the Force, Charra leaped into the tree and onto a sturdy branch high up before peering through the binoculars. She saw no immediate threat; only the gaps in the smaller trees and the dirt road they would continue to travel along once her men were well rested.
"If you're looking for anything interesting, you're in the wrong direction." Doyle's voice filtered through her private Comm.
Charra smiled softly, not bothering to look down at the man standing at the base of the tree. "You should be resting, Doyle."
"You know I can only rest when I'm snuggled up against you, mainly after a good romp."
She could almost hear the grin in his voice. "Go rest, Doyle. And yes, that is an order."
"As you wish, MY General. However, just so you know I will be sending dirty thoughts your way."
"Force, help me, anything but that." She replied in mock terror.
Doyle chuckled before deactivating transmission and headed back towards his brothers.
"So insufferable." Charra commented good naturally, as she lowered the instrument from her eyes she glanced over at the Soldiers resting a few yards from the tree.
She felt a surge of affection for those under command; they had kept her sane and grounded in the chaotic shit show that was the Clone Wars. In return, she had done for them by being their safe harbor in rough seas. She wasn't just their general; she was their protector coming to the aid of her men at a moment's notice. Due to this fierce devotion, Charra almost never lost a soldier.
Should a man fall, she would write down their name- not their number but the name they gave themselves, she would honor the memory of her men with some kind of tribute. For the moment the list was short but it would likely grow before this wars end.
Doyle's familiar barking laugh broke Charra from her semi dark musings. She smiled softly as she remembered when he had approached her after a rather trying and difficult battle despite the careful planning.
She had saved the Sub-Commander and three others from Grievous when he had made one of his rare appearances. She bought them time to escape by taking on the cybernetic General alone. She managed to hold her own for a bit, however she had underestimated his craftiness and ended being thrown around like a rag doll. Not one of her finest moments.
She managed to get a little payback by crushing his knee using the Force and drive him off with a little help from the same four men she had rescued earlier.
After that, things simply fell into place and she never regretted it. She had something that was solely hers, someone to help her forget the horrors of war, it was temporary but it took the edge off and kept them sane.
Charra gazed fondly at her Trooper for a moment longer before returning her attention back to the binoculars, scanning the tops of trees and surrounding area.
Her eyes narrowed when she saw movement in the trees, hadn't not been for the scopes she would have seem it. She adjusted the sharpness and growled softly when she saw them. Without taking her eyes off them, she contacted Dax.
"We've got Commando Droids in-coming." She calmly stated.
"How many and much time do we have?" Dax replied just as calm.
"I see at least three and we have at least eight minutes. You have two minutes to pack up and leave."
"And you, General? Where will you be?"
"Buying you time, I'll catch up when I'm done. Keep heading for the rendezvous point."