The empire had fallen, as master and apprentice now reside without a path to follow. The apprentice remained alone, staring into the skies and seeing the complete and total annihilation of the empire's true destructive force. The second Death Star… was reduced to nothing but scrap and stardust. There he stood on the planet of Endor, knowing that this day would pass. After he and his master had heard of the destruction of the first, their trust in the empire had wavered. Still, they remained loyal to the empire, but they were more than prepared for the inevitable.

The humanoid did not know whether to be joyous or to be sad. He saw the destruction of the second Death Star as something… irrelevant to him. He smirked at the sight of it. He was glad that the symbol of the Empire had fallen. However, his smile wavered… for the destructive power that the empire had was now gone. The truly evil force using it had perished, but everything he could have gotten from the power it yielded was now gone forever.

He gritted his teeth, for he still felt it. He still felt that, somewhere along the galaxy, warriors of old were now present. He may not know where, but he needed the Empire's firepower to find them… to seek them out and destroy them forever. He curled his hand tightly in his dark gloves, gritting his sharp teeth. The white-skinned humanoid wanted nothing more than to fight those beings that wronged him and so many people many years ago. "… Jedi… don't think you're free from me yet…" He muttered under his breath.

His intense scowl was broken by the sound of his communicator. From his right pocket, the humanoid frowned. His black and brown robes folded over and toiled as if he commanded the elements around him, wanting the force to thrash about in his wake. However, he knew he had to answer the call, and soon a familiar face took form. A blue hologram took form just above the communicator, and the humanoid frowned. He held his free hand against his beard, holding it by his chin. "I see that you survived?" The pale humanoid spoke in a disappointed tone.

A scowl came from the other figure, with his throat croaking. "And you too, I see… I'm not surprised; Echani like you are too strong and battle-hardy to die." The Echani didn't speak. No sound came from him but the wild causing his dyed black hair to lose it's once proper form. "… You don't seem glad to see me alive."

"… I have something to say to you."

"I knew you had something to hide," the low voice hissed. "Ever since we spoke of the coming end days, I sensed that you wanted to speak to me."

"… You want to stay loyal to the Empire…."

"If that was a question, I'd clearly be quite offended," the master chuckled. "We may have only been his inquisitor's… but we joined to serve our lord, and I plan on seeing his plan through."

"No, you joined to serve him," the Echani roared. "I only wanted to kill the jedi."

"Yes… but our desires intertwine, do they not?"

"Far from it now!" The Echani's teeth began to grit. "The Empire is gone! All of the power I wanted to use from them is gone now! There is nothing left!"

"Yes, but now we can start anew… and continue with the pockets of the Empire that are still loyal to him."

"… That… those people were only ones I tolerated," the Echani answered. "… You wish to be a tyrant… and continue the tyranny…. I just want to end the jedi."

"And that's why you are a fine inquisitor."

"But…."

"Don't forget, you served along the Empire…. You owe it a duty!"

"I owe nothing to a dead empire!"

The speaker could only shake his head. "… Are you making an enemy of me?"

"I…."

"Yes…. Yes." The speaker nodded. "… I thought I raised you better… but I guess I'll need to find you."

"I doubt you'll come close."

"Oh, I know I will…" The figure chuckled grimly. "Because you know what will happen if you don't…. You know what will happen when you try and fade away into the galaxy…." The figure's voice grew lower as a long, aged exhale curdled around the Echani's spine. "… You… Leigh Orrosova… You truly disappoint me. Have you not learned anything from your master? Or… no… you certainly did…." A slow, eerie cackle soon emitted from the speaker. "You'll come to me… because as long as you aren't looking for me… I will find you…. And when I find you, you will not see your end. But alas… that only leaves you the chance to find me… to try and usurp me from that very chance… but do you really think your experience will keep you alive when our blades finally meet?" The hologram vanished, and the communicator turned off.

However, one final echo boomed in Leigh's mind.

"I cannot let a traitor survive…."

…

…

…

"Hello?"

A feminine voice broke the man away from the mental reality. He soon found himself thrust back into a familiar cantina. The rust-colored, homely walls reminded him of just how low he was now at. Fear had driven him here…. No, not just that; as he remained seated in the small, uncomfortable wooden chair he realized that he had acknowledged the truth of his situation. He knew he wasn't prepared to face the one that trained him… raised him. It was far too improbable.

The feminine voice soon carried a tone of disgust. "You are ordering something, aren't you?"

The Echani raised his pale-white skin, brushing away from of the pitch-black hair that curled over his eyes. He saw the tiel Twi'lek looking down at him with a cruel squint in her eyes. Leigh was far from being phased, for he had experienced and caused more horrific displays of dominance than some tiel-skinned waitress staring daggers at him. "You've been sitting there for five minutes," she added on, shaking her head as those two long appendages shook with her. "Clearly you want something, so tell me what you want and I'll be on my way." Leigh was still silent, trying to get himself fully back into his surroundings. "Well, what do you want?"

Leigh couldn't exactly blame her; he must have been in that trance for longer than he had anticipated. That memory of him… the last encounter between him and his master was still ingrained in his mind. But now the waitress's words rang in his head. "What do you want?" Her words rang in his head. He didn't remember what he had told her after that. He no longer cared about what he wanted to eat; it became an afterthought to him. As the Twi'lek turned away, satisfied with whatever answer the Echani gave, he pondered to himself on what he truly, desperately needed.

He knew he couldn't take his own master on anymore. Especially not by himself.

Soon, an idea seemed to burst from the force and inspire him. He knew exactly what he needed.

Far across the ocean of stars, drifting through the void expanse of space, was a lonely vessel somehow packed with life. The crimson and azure paint that decorated the ship was one that signaled a great prestige. It was the ship of an incredible trader, and even a better smuggler; the Crimson Vulture. But that past was now behind the person that carried the title of captain, for his first mate, and now love, had only just finished their private honeymoon on the glorious and populous planet of Coruscant.

The moderate-sized trader ship was like a home to the captain, and the inside of it appeared as such. The brown leather and spacious interior housed a collection of plants that his now-life partner had collected on their travels together. The captain sat down on the outstretched, circular couch, resting his body and exhaling out of a rich feeling of true comfort. He placed his avian-like legs on the counter, arching his long toes outward. The avian-humanoid rested his arms on the spine of the couch, chirping merrily to himself. However, those chirps ceased when he glanced at his arms… metal… artificial. For a split-second, it reminded him of a harder time… a crueler time. The blue-feathered avian sighed to himself, gripping his sand-toned jacket. His legs buckled from within his brown, weathered pants as memories of his past suddenly returned to him. All of this had only lasted just under a second or two, yet the joy he once felt was now replaced with nothing but pain.

However, a voice he treasured beyond all else had voiced concern. "Is everything okay?" The avian humanoid gasped upon hearing the question, soon looking over to the source. He let off a soft coo as he eyed his human lover. Seeing the man's familiar sand-colored skin and kindly brown eyes brought back the comfort he felt before. "Sorry for taking so long," the human added before putting on a dark-brown robe. "Just needed a quick shower."

"You look fresh." The avian smirked, the smile forming at the skin-edges of his large mouth.

The human chuckled to himself. "Stop it, you." His voice perked with innocence as he sat down. His eyes were wide and endearing as he spoke, but his strong, friendly look still shook with concern. "Don't hide that now… you seemed … uncomfortable."

"… It's been many years, and I'm still getting used to these." The avian commented, showing his metal arms.

"I can understand…." The human nodded before laying his body down. The avian tensed up for a moment, finding the move surprising at first…. But he soon calmed down. He knew just how much the human loved him. "Hoopaloos are still avians at heart… it would be as if a bird had their wings clipped. It just wouldn't feel the same."

"Something like that…." He sighed, before quickly shaking his head. A sudden wave of pride took over him as his feathers swelled with excitement. "We had just had our honeymoon, but our happiness together has lifetimes of time left! We should be having a great time, not moping over the past!" He crossed his arms, still maintaining a confident smirk. "Having a normal…. Home-life is okay from time to time… but nothing beats the adventures we've had."

"And those still to come," his partner added.

"Right!" He laughed back. "Coruscant was nice and all, but-"

"Too many humans?" The human raised a brow.

"Oh please, you know I'm getting used to them." The Hoopaloo huffed.

"Aww, is Captain Sven getting bothered?" The human asked, and the only answer that he got was a loud snort from his now-husband Hoopaloo. The former could only laugh at that, giving him a loving kiss on Sven's mouth. The avian soon tried to hide his smile but turning away, but the human knew that Sven adored the affection.

"… Cael?" Sven asked fondly. The human gave his husband every ounce of attention he could give. "… I don't know, but you made everything worth it."

Cael couldn't hold back the smile. "… I don't know what to say to that," he frowned. "Once again, you leave me beyond words."

The two continued to rest throughout the evening, simply enjoying each other's company. Despite the honeymoon being incredible beyond either one's dreams, they were both exhausted. From trying out the different restaurants, to trying to experience Coruscant just after the empire had fallen… it became a completely new place, one of prosperity of wonder. It had only been a year since the empire fell at the hands of persistent rebels and a mysterious warrior, and already it appeared as if the galaxy was becoming a place for true camaraderie and peace once again.

Hours had passed, and Sven had fallen asleep on the couch; both him and Cael had eaten one more massive meal. Cael was still awake. He couldn't fall to sleep. A strong and annoying pull had been getting at his mind. He couldn't explain what it was, but ever since Sven and he had entered the ship once again, something was pecking at the corner of his mind. The human shook his head and soon stood firm, trying to get the nagging feeling to leave him. However, the more he tried, the feeling only grew even more persistent. "… What is with this?" He sighed to himself.

"Boop?" A robot voice chirped from the corner of the room. Cael tensed up from the unexpected sound before looking over to the source. "Boop bip boop?" The high and low-pitched boop called back to Cael. The source was a small droid that stood as tall as where Cael's knees were. The rectangular droid looked at Cael through it's many lenses, tilting back and forth on its long, robotic avian legs. Its feet perched gently on the floor before the droid worriedly jumped back and forth.

"No no, don't worry, I'm fine." Cael urged the droid. "Actually…." He looked at the droid again. The droid then looked up, giving off a curious whine the two antennae at the sides of it's head twitched. "… BD-1, do you feel as if anything is… pulling at you?"

"Boooop?"

"I'm not crazy, BD… I just feel like something is nagging at me." Cael began to pace around the room. "It only just started today. After Sven and I came onto the ship, something's been bothering me. Well, not bothering me, just nagging at me." Cael sighed to himself. "… Do you think something got in our luggage?"

BD-1 shook its head. "Beep bop…. Boop beep eep."

"Oh, you saw his luggage?"

"Boop beepeeep bop."

"Ah... wait, a box?"

"Beep boop boop."

"So he brought a box on board that we didn't see before?"

The BD-1 droid let off excited beeps in response.

"Well, do you know where it is?" As soon as Cael asked that, a low, long whine left BD-1's speakers. It was a long, saddened yet soft cry. "Don't worry, it's okay that you don't know; I'll just ask him later…." The droid returned back with some happy chirps. "Still… I don't get why he'd hide that from me… but…."

As Cael tried to piece together what the droid told him… he noticed something rather peculiar about the pull. There wasn't just a nagging feeling about it, but there was also a noticeable direction of where it was coming from. "…. What if…. I…." Before he could finish his thought, he began to try and follow the pull. As he truly began to acknowledge the pull… trust in it… and as his body began to develop a desire to seek it out, the pull began to feel stronger?

"Boop?" BD-1 asked, tilting its head curiously.

Cael continued to follow the pull. Instead of resisting the pull as it grew stronger, he followed it, allowing him to guide him. The mysterious sensation guided him through the hallways of the Crimson Vulture. He had passed many of the now-empty extra bedrooms until, finally, the pull had led him to the medical bay of the ship. That was when the nagging sensation was at his strongest.

The droid followed closely behind, now curious to discover what may have been bothering Cael. "Beep boop?"

"No sign of it… I don't get this at all," Cael complained before turning to BD-1. "You say you aren't picking up anything?"

"Boop boop." BD-1 shook his head.

"Then how am I… Sven didn't seem to notice anything either…. So what's … with this pull?" Cael continued to follow the sensation until it led him to a cupboard to the side. He quickly opened it, for now the pull was almost begging to the human to find it. Cael's right arm shook from anxiousness until, finally, a black box rested before him. He reached out for it with both hands, almost hungering for it. As soon as he pulled it from the cupboard, the pulling sensation ceased. The pains and nagging sensations had left him.

"Damn… you found it." Sven's voice emerged, disappointed. Cael turned around, confused. "I was… really hoping to surprise you with that."

"… I…." Cael wanted to say something, but he couldn't initially find the words.

"How'd you find that anyways?" Sven asked, crossing his arms as he raised his red feathery brow. "Did BD-1 tattle on me?"

"Boop BEEP BEEP!" The droid adamantly fought against that claim.

"A 'pulling' sensation?" Sven asked, confused.

"I… I'm really sorry, Sven…." Cael lowered his head, sighing with guilt. "I don't know how or why, but this nagging sensation at the back of my head was just bothering me… And as soon as BD-1 told me about a box, I just… followed it."

"You … followed it?" Sven asked, confused.

"If you don't want me to open it, I'll put it away and keep it a surprise," Cael begged. "I'm sorry, I-"

"Hun." Sven's voice suddenly grew very stern, and focused. "… I think there's a reason why you managed to find my gift to you."

"… What do you mean?"

"… Open it." Just like that, a hungry sensation lured Cael to act. Still holding the box, he pressed his thumbs against the upper lid. As Cael looked within the contents of the box, the human perplexedly looked back to Sven. "…Ever since I knew where that was on the Black Market, I always wanted to get you one of these… and with the empire now gone, holding one of possessing one isn't illegal anymore. I know a few friends of mine that have things like that as novelty treasures…. And… at first I thought it would be an incredible gift for you to treasure.…"

"I'll still treasure it like one, I will!"

"But, Cael… if what you said is true, then there's much more to it than that." Sven nodded, still looking at the box before me. "… Take it out…"

Slowly, I removed the treasure from its coffin. At first, the object began to feel heavy. It was a dark, black-colored hilt with what appeared to be a silver hilt. As I began to hold it, the familiar sensation from before began to pull at me. The sensation felt different, however, slightly different; it was no longer pulling or nagging the human onward… the sensation guided him. Even though he had never seen this object before, Cael held the hilt as if he instinctively knew that it was a weapon to be held. A small shifting sensation was pressing up against his thumb. It was a button.

Sven nodded. "… Ignite the blade."

Cael didn't understand at all. However, the sensation that compelled the human to act … understood clearly.

A firm thumb press against the button caused a concentrated beam to form. Cael's arms shook as his eyes now lay fixated on the blade in front of him. The blade of light fluttered softly from the hilt Cael held firmly in his hands. The yellow glow of the blade shook as an intimidating hum called out from it. Soon, once the beam of light stopped expanding, the hum softened. The new wielder didn't know what to say or do, but now the hilt felt much, much lighter to him, as if the blade was already a true extension of himself.

"I… what is this?"

Sven smirked. "That, my love, is a lightsaber."