Entry 60

From the viewport of my dad's shuttle we watched the consular ship take off. Ben immediately contacted the Jedi subtemple on Ossus advising them to keep a look out for their returning Jedi. I wanted to get off this Sithspawn planet right away, but my dad insisted on feeding us first. We were starving, so I didn't protest too much.

As we sat in the galley eating roast bantha sandwiches and fried tubers, I glanced over at my father and admired his outfit. I have to admit, the Empire always had impressive uniforms. "You're not really considering leaving your grandson to train Imperial Knights, are you?"

My father took a bite from his sandwich and chewed silently before answering. "Not if I don't have to."

"Why would you ever have to? You're not part of the Empire. It's not like Fel can order you there."

My dad shrugged. "Ossus is closer to Upekzar than Bastion…I probably could have made an excuse to visit the sub-temple, but Marcus insisted I go to Bastion under the pretense of checking out the training. It makes me wonder why."

Ben and I gazed at my father inquisitively. "You believe he had another motive?"

My dad chuckled. "The one thing I know about seers is they don't like telling you their full plan…and Marcus is a seer in training." He hesitated before continuing. "He'll deny there's a hidden agenda when it comes to me going to Bastion, but I think he wanted me there for a reason."

"Why would he keep that a secret from you?" I had to ask because this didn't make sense. "Marcus can trust us."

My father shrugged. "I know Marcus keeps secrets from me when it comes to what he sees in the time stream. Keeping secrets is his prerogative. He may be your son and my grandson, but he will be King and a seer…he can literally do what he wants. I can't control him. The seers can't even control him. He can see their manipulations and he has political power over them." My dad grinned. "They're wary of him...I can tell. I don't think they can see him clearly in the time stream. I know he has baffled them a few times. When he snuck out of the palace to stowaway on your ship, Ema and the Queen immediately went to the seers and asked them to locate the Prince, but they couldn't. He's in their blind spot. I think that scares them…but they need him. They enjoy the protection of the Indupar monarchy and they like having access to a person with power and money. I think they offered to train Marcus as a seer so he will feel some allegiance toward them."

"That doesn't sound like they're scared of him," I pointed out. "They just want to use him."

"That's what I thought at first." My dad's grin grew broader. "But then I discovered the seers have politely requested that Marcus not enter their meditation chambers."

I shrugged. "So? They wouldn't let me in either. They like to maintain their privacy."

My father shook his head. "Not really. I've been in their meditation room. The Queen and Ema have been inside. Only you and Marcus have been asked not to enter. Why do you think that is?"

Ben ventured a guess. "Because Marcus and Talon have post-cognitive abilities."

"Exactly. This means they don't want Marcus or you to know what's gone on in that room in the past."

I gave my dad a curious look. "What are they hiding?"

My father finished his sandwich before pausing in thought. "I don't know…but maybe it's time for Marcus to find out."

Entry 61

We said our goodbyes to my father before returning to our StealthX's. I was disturbed by our earlier conversation. Were the seers up to no good? And if so, would the Grand Master be furious at Ben and me for not revealing our suspicions earlier?

Ben obviously noticed my sullen mood as we walked to our ships. "Are you upset with your dad or Marcus?"

I shook my head. "No, they were doing what they had to do for the greater good." I paused for a moment. "Do you think we should tell your dad about the seers and what they're doing?"

"Yes…" Ben said slowly. "But I would want to talk to Marcus and the Queen about that first. My father knows the existence of the seers, but he sees them as any other Force user having visions that may or may not come to pass. Once he becomes aware of their accuracy…well then he'd would want to travel to Indupar to visit. Once on planet there is a very good chance he would come in contact with your son."

"And then he will know about my relationship to the Prince of Indupar."

There was a short pause before Ben responded. "Would it really be that bad? Mom and dad can keep a secret; you only have to look as far as Jacen and his brush with the darkside to see that. My father would probably be relieved to hear about Marcus."

"Why relieved?"

"Right now my dad thinks your father left the Jedi Order and Coruscant because of what he was forced to do on Kavan and Myrkr."

I sighed deeply. "Ben, my father did leave the Jedi Order because of those things. He didn't even know about Marcus back then. Only leaving Coruscant was because of Marcus."

"That's true...your dad quit long before he knew he had a grandson." He gave me a strange look. "To be honest, I never believed your father left the Jedi Order because of the fiasco with Jacen."

My brow furrowed in confusion. "What?"

"We were all in on the cover-up, including my father. The Grand Master asked your dad to perform the memory rub on Jacen. I can't see him leaving the Jedi order over that."

I didn't want to tell Ben that I had the same suspicions. I always believed Jacen had something to do with the plague that killed dozens of royals on Hapes, but there was no evidence to prove the connection. If Jacen was involved, only my father would know the truth since he was able to see Jacen's thoughts as he did the memory rub. To add to my suspicions, after returning from Myrkr my dad started acting strange. He disappeared with the commander of Tenel Ka's personal guard for a few weeks without filing a flight plan. That had me wondering if those two were off getting rid of evidence...but that's pure speculation on my part. I once asked my father where he went and what he did and he responded that, 'Some things should remain a secret'.

I ran my hand through my hair and turned to my cousin. "Ben, if there was another reason, dad didn't tell me."

That was the truth.

"Maybe…" Ben sounded very unsure. "Still, it would help my dad to know that Mark left Coruscant and stayed away because of his grandson and not because of any lingering bad feelings."

"I have no idea how anybody can think my dad harbors lingering bad feelings…not when he has that constant goofy grin on his face. He's happy…and he has another costume to bring home to my mother."

Ben chuckled. "You told me about his little fascination with costumes. I have to admit that uniform looks much better than the Jedi robes."

I smiled. "Marcus needs to get an awesome looking uniform for the Indupar Knights."

"I'm sure your father will take care of that."

"He probably will." I looked up to my astromech droid sitting behind the cockpit. "R9 open the canopy." The droid complied and I used a Force enhanced jump to get into the cockpit of my fighter. I watched Ben do the same. Before we sealed out ships I called out. "Let's go home and back to our ladies!"