if-inconvenient-come-anyways - You know that you don't need to comment on every chapter (I appreciate it, but its not a requisite.) You had a lot of good thoughts in that paragraph and many of them are correct (but perhaps not in the way that you think they are).
A/N - Sorry that these chapters are a bit shorter than usual. Hopefully the fact that the plot is moving forward makes up for it a little.
Anyways, please enjoy this next chapter! As ever, any feedback is appreciated.
Chapter 27: Confrontation
Aurine Brynar waited patiently for the appointed hour for when she would enter the Trav'starn Museum of Natural History and finally put an end to this bizarre and dangerous situation. She waited alone in a small restaurant just south of the museum, one that gave her a good vantage point for overseeing the front entrance, just in case any shenanigans were going to happen. Sipping on a cup of caf, she seemed just like a normal patron stopping for a drink before heading home for the evening. She didn't even feel that nervous, in fact, she felt completely calm, this was what she liked, no searching for clues or researching facts just a simple task – show up, arrest the bad guy and leave.
She was becoming amused by the lengths that her Padawan was going to keep her safe though. First, there was the perfectly unobtrusive Bothan that was keeping tabs on her, the tan furred Bothan was doing a fantastic job of keeping up what appeared to be an animated conversation with a friend, all the while surreptitiously glancing over in her direction. Aurine would have expected nothing less top fieldcraft from one of the spies from the famed Bothan spynet, but trying to monitor her without her knowing was a fairly impossible task. After all, she was a Jedi Knight, and she was used to people trying to keep tabs on her.
Secondly, Sascha had also clearly instructed Quelba to assemble a team Bothan commandos to be in the area. The Force auras of a dozen commandos stood out from the milieu of the area like a sore thumb and she assumed that if things seemed to be going badly for her inside the museum, the soldiers would be called upon to assist her. She'd known the second that she said that she did not want a squad of soldiers as backup that Sascha would do it anyway, he was a tenacious Padawan, but he was so very predictable at times.
Aurine didn't mind though, if Sascha wanted to take these largely unnecessary precautions he was welcome to do so. He was a good Padawan, she'd want no other to be her apprentice, but sometimes he forgot that she was the Master and he merely the apprentice. Sascha was smart but he thought his solutions were superior simply because he thought of them. He would learn that he was not infallible. She had been outside of the Temple more times than she could count; this was only his second mission, there was a massive gap in experience between the pair. She was also trying to fight his somewhat petulant nature, he assumed that he had to be involved in everything that she did, but she knew that he still needed some protecting. He was eager like any Padawan his age, but the desire to help could sometimes backfire.
That was why she'd commanded him to stay far away for tonight. He'd been upset and understandably so, but she didn't want the distraction of him potentially interfering. She'd given her word as a Jedi that she would confront Weliss alone and she didn't want to spook the thief or antagonize him in any way by breaking her promise. What she had done had hurt Sascha, hurt his pride most of all, but she would make it up to him just as soon as Weliss was safely in police custody.
Enough daydreaming, she commanded herself, checking her chrono. It was time to arrest a thief.
Jedi Padawan Sascha Whitestar kicked a pebble as he walked down the street, clad in his anonymous brown travellers' cloak. It was a petulant act, one born of frustration. It was, he knew, an act that was unworthy of a Jedi, even an apprentice like himself but he couldn't help it. His Master was half a world away preparing to capture Weliss and he was on another continent all together, not even allowed to be nearby if something went wrong.
It was so...manifestly unfair to be treated like this, he thought, after all, he was the one who had discovered the first clue! And for his reward, he was being left on the sidelines while his Master potentially put herself in danger. Master Brynar had tried to placate him by saying that he was only being told to stay behind because a Jedi always kept their promises, and she had promised Weliss that she would come alone. Furthermore, she had promised him that they could stay on Bothawui for a while and work on his training. That was all well and good, but he didn't care about when or where he was being trained, right now he just wanted to be a ten minute speeder ride away from his Master. Yet all he wanted was to be a ten minute speeder ride away, but even that had been denied to him. Had Aurine forgotten what had happened the last time that she had made him stay behind?
Sascha stopped and shook that thought out of his head. Why did he always come back to that moment? It wasn't like his Master was some sort of child. She had managed to live her life pretty darn well before he had met her. Why did he think that he had to be there to prevent some sort of harm from coming to her?
"It's because I'm young and stupid, I guess," he said quietly to himself.
He had at least been allowed to prowl the streets of Navshe'starn alone and he was searching for a situation he could get involved in and take out some frustration on. A barfight where he could sort out some combatants, a pickpocket that he could arrest, anything where he could prove to himself and his Master that he was not just tagging along while the more experienced Jedi Knight did all the work. Quelba had, with Sascha delivering a none-to-subtle hint, assembled a squad of elite commandos that were awaiting the word to be sent to the Trav'starn Museum of Natural History, so he had at least been able to assuage his conscience that way, but he was still extremely frustrated by the whole situation.
Sascha clenched his hands into fists and tried to push away the feeling of frustration. It was a useless emotion that could bring him nothing but trouble, but still the feeling lingered. Sighing, and realizing how much he had still to grow as both a person and a Jedi, he moved in the late afternoon sun of Navshe'starn. Like all the other parts of Bothawui he had managed to see on this mission, he had taken a liking to the smaller city. Navshe'starn was a kind of cultural hub, attracting young artists from Bothawui and surrounding sectors, Sascha liked it because it felt alive, it buzzed with the hopes of creative beings, who wanted nothing more than to display their talents. On a different day, Sascha would have contented himself going through some of the art galleries in the area admiring the creations of a hundred different species, but tonight he was not in the mood. Tonight, he wasn't in the mood for much besides quiet reflection.
It was frustrating being a Padawan, Sascha was finding. Theoretically, he was an almost fully trained Jedi, but as a Padawan he was still beholden to the whims of the Jedi Knight he was apprenticed to. It was not a relationship of equals, in some ways Weliss had been correct in calling him a slave. He didn't resent Master Brynar, in fact he liked her quite a bit, she was a good Master, open with her knowledge and was receptive to many of his ideas, but when push came to shove, her ideas were the ones that always seemed to take precedence. He knew from experience how hard it was to talk Master Brynar down from doing something when she set her mind to it, no matter how eloquent his counterarguments were. He couldn't do it in the Temple when she was pushing herself too hard in her recovery and he couldn't do it here either. Perhaps when he had a few years of experience in working with her, he'd figure out how to appeal to her better, but for now, she did what she wanted and Sascha just kind of tagged along. It was not exactly how he'd dreamed his apprenticeship would go when he was younger.
His self-pitying reverie was interrupted by the insistent beep of his comlink. Maybe Master Brynar had reconsidered at the last moment. "Whitestar here," he said into the comlink somewhat unnecessarily,
"Crem here," said the jovial Bothan, clearly mocking the young Padawan.
Sascha rolled his eyes but smiled as he did it, "What can I do for you, Lieutenant Irys'lon?"
"We had an automated signal from one of the nearby museums, apparently there has been some sort of break in. I have the full feed from all the cameras inside so normally I wouldn't bother you…but I can't see anyone on the monitor. Now it's probably just an Ak just trying to set up a nest for mating season, those things drive our sensors crazy, but I can't see it either. I know you are in the area, I was wondering if you'd check it out for me, I figure its better than calling in the police."
"Uh, Crem, what's an Ak?" he asked, somewhat embarrassed by his lack of knowledge of the planet's wildlife.
"Small bird of prey, they mostly feed on the smaller mammals in the grasslands, but they sometimes come into the city, especially during mating season. Don't worry they are harmless, just annoying."
Sascha considered for a moment, "Sure, beats wandering around the city waiting for something to happen, can you send me directions to my datapad?"
"Sure thing, boss. I'll monitor you on the security cams, everyone else is watching your Master, I figure I might as well watch out for you. May the Force be with you…or whatever it is you Jedi say."
Sascha rolled his eyes again and signed off, taking his datapad off one of his belt pockets and checking the directions that Crem had just sent to him. He estimated it would be a five minute walk to the Navshe'starn Museum of Bothan Art but he wanted to arrive as fast as possible without attracting attention so he lightly jogged in the direction of the museum.
The Navshe'starn Museum of Bothan Art was a non-descript, beige, two-story building that was only recognizable as an art museum because of the sign out front. I always get the good assignments, he sighed to himself as he eyed the front entrance. How am I supposed to get in? I can't break in without setting off even more alarms, and I don't want to spook whoever is inside in case it is the unluckiest art thief in history. He waved hopefully at the security camera outside and he heard the front door unlock.
"You may enter Padawan Whitestar," said Crem's distinctive voice from a concealed speaker. Sascha shook his head, threw Crem a mock salute, and entered the museum, pausing to admire the impressive artwork in the hallway. In the foyer he paused to take stock of his surroundings, opening himself up to the Force and searching for any presences concealed within the Museum, he thought that he sensed one being inside, but whenever he tried to get a better fix on his or her location it shifted, almost fading from his sense. Sascha frowned, that wasn't supposed to happen.
He flicked on his comlink, "Crem I can't get a sense if there is anyone inside, it's like there is somewhere here but they are hiding from me. Really weird. Could you get the Navshe'starn police to send a couple of police officers over? I'm not really sure what I'm getting into here."
"Copy that boss," said Crem, turning professional, "Do you want them to just wait outside when they get there?"
"Sounds like a good idea," he agreed, "I'm going to go exploring, keep monitoring me on the security cams, they are all still active, correct?"
"Yup, recording at one hundred percent efficiency. Still can't see anyone else inside. I've got five creds that says that it's just a pair of Ak's doing a mating ritual."
"I'll take that bet. I always wanted five creds."
Crem paused, "You don't even have five creds to your name, do you?"
"Not really, no."
"Oh well. A bet is a bet," said Crem jovially. "If you don't pay, I'll just hire a debt recovery company, I'm sure they'll have no trouble in wringing the credits from you."
Sasha snorted and deactivated his comlink. He kept alert as he entered the small museum. Once he was inside, he unclipped his lightsaber from his belt and kept it in his right hand, still using the Force to see if he could detect elusive presence within.
With that being unsuccessful, he tried a more direct approach, "This is Jedi Padawan Sascha Whitestar. Come out with your hands up and you will not be harmed," he said into the Museum, using the Force to project his voice into the deepest depths of the building. The presence that he was tracking seemed to quiver in fear at his pronouncement, confirming his suspicion that he has found the galaxies unluckiest thief, trying to break in to a Museum as it was being monitored by the Bothan Defence Corps and that happened to be able to contact a nearby Jedi. Tough luck, but that's what you get for breaking the law, the Padawan thought confidently.
He hefted his lightsaber experimentally, if he is going to apprehend a criminal, he wants his lightsaber at the ready just in case the thief wants to try and fire a weapon instead of surrendering peacefully. Besides, there were few things in the galaxy than being confronted by a Jedi wielding a lightsaber. The weapon's comforting weight in his hand, he entered the main atrium of the museum, which was a large-high ceilinged room with several little platforms with display cases adorning the room. He's pretty sure that the thief that he is about to catch is in this room, though even when he probes into the Force again, he still can't sense him or her in the atrium.
Which is odd and it brought him up short. He was sure that he tracked the thief to this room now the thief is gone? What in the name of the Force is happening here?
A trickle of fear entered the Padawan's mind, perhaps he has bitten off slightly more than he can chew? For a brief moment he evaluates retracing his steps and going back to entrance. There he could regroup with the police officers that he requested that were surely just a minute or two away.
"Where is your damn confidence, Sascha?" he whispers to himself. "It's just one person, at most. And you are a Jedi."
Feeling a bit absurd, he moves slowly into the room. His Force sense seemingly having failed him he tries to use his five 'normal' senses to find the intruder, his eyes rake across the room as he walks deeper into the room. The various pillars and stanchions that house the art of the gallery give the thief plenty of potential hiding spaces and he methodically sweeps them one at a time.
As he got to the end of the room he began to get more cautious. The thief had to be in one of these few remaining hiding spots. When he got to the end of the room, he checked the last spot behind a large painting of an ancient military victory and there is…nothing there. Sascha releases a long breath. This was just totally bizzare. There had to be someone here!
The Padawan decided that he has lost his mind. He starts purposely back out of the atrium deciding that he's going to bring the police officers into the search. He places his lightsaber back on his belt and is almost to the doorway when the lights go out.
Sascha startled. By the time he saw his attacker coming at him from above, it was too late to react.
