Disclaimer – all original Star Wars characters in this fanfic (excluding my OC's) are the property of Lucasfilm and Disney.
Chapter 20 "Hints of The Force."
Outer Rim Territories, Planet Atollon, Coral Mesa.
Atollon was a remote planet in the Lothal sector with a breathable atmosphere, but a hot climate. Despite the dry weather on the rocky surface covered in plated tree corals, the planet featured a deep underground freshwater source. The world of Atollon had caverns which served as hives to the krykna, predatory, non-sentient, spider-like creatures. Aside from them, Atollon was also home to Dokmas, small, timid animals with protective shells and two eyestalks, and Convorees, a species of bird that had two eyes, two wings, a beak, a prehensile tail, and a gold and brown plumage.
The day after Zai'shira infiltrated the Jedi Temple, she and Deiven traveled to planet Atollon in order to find the faithful child of the Force. Flying low over the vast deserts, Zai'shira looked for anything that could lead them to the child, but to no avail. The Togruta decided to land the silver-plated YT-1210 light freighter near a large coralline formation, which covered a broad, flat-topped elevation.
When the ramp of the freighter was lowered, Deiven quickly ran down and left the vessel. He was very excited to see a new planet. Yes, thanks to his Mind Time Peregrination, he already saw many dangerous places, mysterious ruins, and exotic planets, but this time he visited a new world for real.
Deiven wore leather-made feet wraps instead of shoes, black trousers, and a blue tank-top. Like Zai'shira and the other Togrutas, who lived on Shili, he wore necklaces and bracelets made from animal teeth and claws.
"Be careful, Deiven," Zai'shira warned, walking down the ramp. "This is a foreign world with unknown threats, and we're not using Mind Time Peregrination. If we die, we die for real."
"This is awesome!" Deiven exclaimed. The young boy crouched and sniffed the ground, discovering new smells. Zai'shira always found his animalistic behaviors charming. Considering he had the DNA of many predatory and wild species, he behaved reasonably normal.
The Togruta noticed a few Kryknas that began to approach them. Deiven also spotted them and carefully moved towards the new creature. Zai'shira placed a hand on her lightsaber hilt, just to be safe. The young Firrerreo moved to one of the six-legged, spider-like creatures and began to sniff their beaked mouths surrounded by a pair of fanged pedipalps.
Kryknas were very curios and confused at Deiven's behavior, but they didn't attack. One of them approached Zai'shira and looked at her with its black eyes. "Don't think for a second that I will sniff you as well," the Togruta spoke and slowly reached out, placing her hand between the Krykna's eyes. She tapped into the Force and tried to connect with the creature. Without negative emotions in her mind, it was an easy task. Zai'shira told the Krykna that they had peaceful intentions, and the creatures believed them.
"I have been expecting you," suddenly a voice echoed in both Deiven's and Zai'shira's minds. Both Force-users began to look around, looking for its source.
"You heard that as well?" Zai'shira asked Deiven, who quickly replied. "Yup! I think that's the child the Force talked about."
Both Zai'shira and Deiven felt a Force signature and began to walk towards it while the Kryknas followed them. The Togruta also noticed Dokmas, but to her surprise, the Kryknas, who usually preyed upon the small creatures, didn't attack them.
Kryknas stooped when they all finally reached a ring of nearly a dozen steps into an open flat space, Deiven began to look around. He saw many rocks and coralline formation, but no sight of the child. "He should be here," Deiven stated. "But I don't see anyone."
"Hello!" Zai'shira called out. "Is anyone here?!"
Deiven ran up to one rocky monolith and began to climb it to have a vantage point. When he reached the top, he began to look around in search of anyone.
"Do you see anything?!" Zai'shira asked, but Deiven shook his head. "Except for the spiders and the small creatures with the shells, nothing!"
Suddenly, the monolith, on which stood the young Firrerreo, began to move. "Woah!" Deiven wobbled and quickly jumped down. Both he and Zai'shira backed away from the mowing rock and grabbed their lightsabers. "What the hell?!" Zai'shira watched in shock as the rocky monolith turned towards them with a loud groan, creating a cloud of dust. While Zai'shira squinted her eyes, Deiven widened them. Like every member of his species, aside from normal eyelids, he had nictitating membranes, transparent eyelids that protected his eyes from flashes of light and dust. They were perfect for such situations since it allowed him to carefully observe the being in front of them without the risk of small sand particles getting into his eyes.
It was a massive entity with two white-colored eyes, a flat nose, and a long, brown-colored beard. It leaned its body towards them, supporting itself on its long arms, and spoke with a loud, resonant voice. "Hello"
"H-Hi," Deiven replied, while Zai'shira took a closer look at the entity when the dust cleared out. "You're a Force wielder," she stated. "Are you the child of the Force?"
"Aren't we all the children of the Force?" the entity smiled mischievously, answering the question with a question.
"Well, yes, but-" Zai'shira tried to answer, but the entity spoke again, interrupting her. "Then, you have answered your question, Togruta."
"Ookaay," Zai'shira was puzzled by the strange, enigmatic being, but she continued, attaching her weapon back to the belt just like Deiven. "I'm Zai'shira Kessen and this..." she gestured towards the young Firrerreo, who waved to the entity. "...is Deiven Virlo."
"It's nice to meet you, Zai'shira Kessen and Deiven Virlo," the being spoke. "My name is Bendu. Like I said earlier, I have been expecting you. The Force preannounced your arrival on this planet."
"Then you know why are we here," Zai'shira said. "We need your help in creating a new faction, the Kingdom of the Force, to bring balance in the Force."
"Not an easy task," Bendu stated. "Why makes you think you can succeed where all Jedi have failed?"
"We follow all four aspects of the Force and respect its rules!" Deiven announced proudly, and Bendu shifted his gaze from the Togruta to the young Firrerreo.
"Ahh! You're open-minded, good, but the path of four aspects of the Force is a hard and complicated journey," warned Bendu. "The light side and the dark side cannot exist without each other, just like the Living Force and the Cosmic Force."
"I know," Deiven assured with a smile and showed Bendu his hands. "I have birthmarks with four symbols of the Force."
The massive entity raised his large hand, and Deiven was telekinetically lifted from the ground towards his face. The young Firrerreo presented his hands to Bendu, who looked closely at them. "Hmmm... I see," Bendu smiled. "You're special, Deiven Virlo. You have the potential to succeed where others have failed, but mere potential doesn't guarantee your success. Just like with every child of the Force, your decisions will shape your future and your fate."
When Bendu lowered Deiven back on the ground, Zai'shira asked hopefully. "Will you help us, Bendu?"
"I will not fight your battles, but I can offer my knowledge and advise, Zai'shira Kessen," Bendu answered. "You need to find others who share your beliefs and those who are willing to fight alongside you."
"The Force gave us hints, we'll need to find a fangless hunter, who cannot drink, the Builders who desire to atone for their past sins, and a faithful child, who lives together with spiders, which are sensitive to what fuels the dark side of the Force," Zai'shira stated. "You're that faithful child, but we still have to find the builders and a fangless hunter. We have no idea who they are and where to look for them."
"What is a sin for the Force? Hmm?" Bendu asked with a smile, arching his bald eyebrow.
Zai'shira pondered for a moment. "Not respecting its rules and not following the four aspects," she answered, remembering what Deiven told her.
"A-ha! So you're not looking for petty criminals," Bendu pointed out.
"I guess, but still, that doesn't help us much," complained the Togruta. "It could be literally anyone, a group of Jedi that left the Order, a bunch of exiled Sith, or some other Force-sensitive group. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack."
"Are Jedi or Sith called the Builders?" asked Bendu.
"I... I don't think so," Zai'shira said unsurely. "Such a name was never used in regard to Jedi or Sith. At least, I never heard it being used. Dammit, too bad I didn't check that yesterday in the Jedi Archives when I had a chance."
"What if you're looking for a race and not an organization?" Bendu arched his eyebrows. "One race can have many names."
Zai'shira reflected on his words. One thing popped in her mind, but it was too crazy to be true. Deiven and Bendu watched her, so she finally spoke her mind. "When I was a youngling, we had a history class where our teacher told us about the Rakata from planet Lehon, which were also called the Builders. They were a technologically advanced race that developed early in galactic history. I don't remember the details, but in short, their long-term use of the dark side of the Force corrupted their society and turned them into a race of merciless warriors. The Rakata used their potent Force-powered technologies to conquer and enslave every other species they came across throughout their known galaxy."
"That's correct," Bendu nodded. "Rakata used only the dark side like the Sith, which is not what the Force wanted. They sinned in its eyes."
"But they can't still exist," Zai'shira said surely. "They weren't seen in millennia."
"Just like the Sith Lords?" Bendu asked with a chuckle, but Zai'shira didn't answer. The Sith hid in the shadows all this time, so there was a chance the Rakata did the same thing. The Togruta could not believe that the ancient race was supposed to help them to create an army.
"So this means we're going to visit planet Lehon, homeworld of the Rakata?" Deiven asked, his amber-colored eyes sparkling from excitement. It was another planet for him to visit.
"I guess so," Zai'shira confirmed and looked at Bendu. "We could use your wisdom on Shili. I'm sure the Togrutan people would quickly grow to like you."
"I would rather stay here," Bendu refused. "I prefer peace and quiet, and as you can imagine, my appearance would draw too much attention."
"Then maybe you can stay on one of the moons of Shili," Deiven suggested. "Although smaller than this planet, Num'Ma has a similar landscape. Rocks, mountains, highlands. And of course, no one lives there so you could hide like before, and you'd have the privacy you want."
"And you'll need a place to stay when the war begins," Zai'shira added. "Will be a third faction during that war. Sith and even Jedi will surely keep track of our movement, so if one of them will track us here when we need to hear your advice, you won't have peace and quiet. However, they won't dare to venture into the heart of our Kingdom."
"Hmmm..." Bendu thought about it, squinting his white eyes. "You make a good point, Zai'shira Kessen. Show me the moon." The massive Force wielder raised its hand, placed it above the Togruta, and lowered it, almost touching the tips of her montrals. Zai'shira understood and let Bendu into her mind so that it could see Num'Ma, the first moon of Shili, and learn its location. "I see," he spoke and withdraw his hand. "Very well then, I shall travel to that moon and see if it is to my liking."
Bendu raised his arms, and a powerful wind began to circle around his body, creating a large sand tornado with him at its center. Deiven and Zai'shira backed away from the massive entity, who vanished in the sand tornado, which slowly surceased, leaving the two aliens dumbfounded.
"Hmmm... well, that's a good thing," Deiven stated. "He would not fit aboard the ship anyway."
Zai'shira chuckled. "You got the point there," she agreed. "Alright then, let's head to Shili first, I'll contact Master Dooku and ask him to check the coordinates of the planet Lehon from the Jedi Archives."
Sometime later – Hyperspace Tunnel, YT-1210's Cockpit.
Zai'shira contacted Master Dooku and waited a few moments before he was able to answer. When his blue, holographic image appeared on the display console, the human quickly noticed the strange Firrerreo, who sat in the co-pilot seat. "Hello," Dooku greeted politely. "You must be the young Deiven Virlo, I heard so much about you."
"Yup!" Deiven smiled to the Jedi Master, about which he heard from Zai'shira. "And you're Master Dooku, who's going to join us. It's nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Dooku replied with a warm smile and looked at Zai'shira. "What do you need?"
"We found the faithful child of the Force on Atollon," The Togruta said, bringing Dooku up to speed. "He joined our cause and helped us learn the identity of the Builders. Its the ancient race called Rakata from planet Lehon."
"Rakata?" Dooku was surprised to learn that they were still alive, but also that they were supposed to help them. Their abilities and technology could prove really useful.
"Yes, but I don't know the planet's coordinates," Zai'shira added.
"Easy enough," assured Dooku. "I'll search for them in the Jedi Archives, and I call you as soon as I can."
"While you're at it, can you find some information about the third hint of the Force, a fangless hunter, who cannot drink?" Zai'shira asked. "Whoever that person is, it would be easier to find him or her if we at least know the name of the species."
Dooku scratched his chin and nodded. "I'll try," he promised and turned his head to look at something beyond the holoprojector's reach. Zai'shira guessed the other Jedi were close. "I'll contact you later," he said and turned off his device, ending the conversation.
"So we have almost everything," Deiven summed up. "We just need to find the hunter, and we're good to begin bringing the balance."
"Heh, far from it," Zai'shira disagreed. "With Bendu, the Rakata, and that hunter, we'll be ready to start creating our faction. After we're done, then we'll be ready to begin. It's a long and hard way ahead of us."
Two hours later –The Orbit of Shili, Num'Ma – First Moon of Shili.
After getting Aven, who had the right to meet their new ally and a resident of Num'Ma, Zai'shira landed on the rocky moon of Shili, which was located nearest to the planet's sun. Like Atollon, the surface of Num'Ma was filled with little greenery and a lot of rocky mountains and deserts. The climate was hot and dry; therefore, little to none Togrutas visited the moon.
One thing that the moon lacked in comparison to planet Atollon was the coralline formations. It was the reason Zai'shira was able to spot Bendu's massive and specific body from afar. All three approached the buried entity, who moved, and just like earlier, he surfaced, creating a large cloud of dust.
"By the moons of Shili," Aven raised his head and spoke in a hushed tone, not believing his eyes. As Bendu looked at them, he chuckled and said with his loud, resonant voice. "Hello again. This is a nice, peaceful place just like I saw in your mind, Zai'shira Kessen."
"I'm glad you like it, Bendu," the Togruta replied and gestured towards Aven. "Allow me to introduce my husband and the King of Shili, Aven Tunalen."
"A King of Shili," Bendu parroted and squinted his white eyes, looking closely at the male Togruta. "I sense doubt in you, Aven Tunalen, King of Shili, but also hope."
"Doubt and hope?" Aven cocked his head. "What do you mean?"
"You don't believe in our success," Bendu said straight out. "You think we'll fail, but you're hoping that you are wrong."
"I..." Aven sighed and admitted. "Yes, you're right, I really hope I'm wrong, and we'll manage to do this. I knew about the Jedi, the Sith, and a few things related to the Force, but I think that the things I saw exceed even the Jedi's understanding. I feel so useless and helpless."
"Do you know what the will of the Force is? Do you know what the Force wants?" Bendu inquired.
"The balance in the galaxy with four aspects of the Force," Aven replied with a shrug. Zai'shira and Deiven talked so often about it that he already knew it by heart.
"Aaah! So the so-called guardians of peace are clueless, but you, a non-Force-sensitive King, know very well," Bendu pointed out. "That already makes you more competent and useful in the eyes of the Force than the Jedi Order."
Zai'shira smiled, placed her hand on Aven's shoulder, and gave him a reassuring squeeze. Aven looked at her and smiled back. A sudden beeping sound of her holoprojector drew Zai'shira's attention. She knew it was Master Dooku. "Excuse me, I need to answer this," the female Togruta said and moved to the side. She reached for her device and activated it.
A holographic image of the Jedi Master appeared on her hand. "Hello again, Zai'shira," said Dooku. "I have the coordinates of the planet Lehon, and I think I know who is our fangless hunter, but I'm afraid you won't like it. Aside from a few non-sentient animal species, the only sentient race in the galaxy that could fit that description are the Anzati."
"The snot vampires?" Zai'shira wasn't happy to hear that. The Anzati creep her out due to their grotesque way of feeding. Using a natural ability akin to hypnosis, they bewitched their victims in a manner similar to a Jedi mind trick. Using this telepathy, the Anzat lured in their unsuspecting targets by mesmerizing them with their telepathic control.
Once a victim was within their power, the Anzati would uncoil their thin proboscises from their cheek pouches located on either side of its nose and usually inserted them into the subject's nostrils and into the cranium, where the brain was sucked out of the organism. They called this meal 'soup,' 'luck,' or the 'Sea of Memory. The actual substance they drained out of living beings, the gelid, mucoid medium for the luck or life essence, they referred to as soup.
"Unfortunately," Dooku confirmed. "But since we're talking about a fangless hunter, who cannot drink, I think it's an Anzat, who has his proboscises damaged and thus, it prevents him, or her, from feeding or if you prefer, drinking."
"I see," Zai'shira nodded and sighed. "Well, maybe I'll be lucky, and I won't need to dwell into the heart of planet Anzat to find our fangless hunter."
"May the Force be with you," Dooku said, ending the conversation. Zai'shira placed the holoprojector back into her pocket and returned to Aven, Deiven, and Bendu, who talked with each other. "I received information about the third hint," she announced. "I need to go to the planet Anzat."
"Alone?" Deiven asked, disappointed.
"Yes, the planet is very dangerous, and in the worst-case scenario, I need to relay on my stealth skills," Zai'shira answered.
"Be careful," Aven asked worriedly. "The Anzati, especially the wild ones, want nothing else but to prey on others."
"I will," Zai'shira reassured. "I infiltrated a Jedi Temple, so this will be much easier."
Two hours later – Planet Anzat, Spaceport, Maggot's Cantina.
Planet Anzat was a legendary and dangerous Mid Rim world filled with mountains and mist-filled valleys. The planet was avoided as its inhabitants, the Anzati, fed off the life-forces of other sentients. As early as their alignment with the Sith Empire of Darth Revan during the Jedi Civil War, the Anzati built large floating spaceports to accommodate trade with offworlds.
Discouraging non-Anzati from leaving the platforms, the spaceports were a breeding ground for crime and delinquency, as smugglers, and other low-lives made their way through the system. Still, despite all that, the spaceports and its establishments were the safest places on the planet. Maggot's Cantina, a drinking and dining establishment on Anzat, was one of such places. The cantina was a gathering place for spacers and pilots who came to the Anzat Spaceport to refuel or for business issues.
The Anzati, on the other hand, made their lives in the tall rocky spires that protruded from the mist-shrouded surface. Living in small stone enclosures, many Anzati left the world after their early martial training was complete, making a living in the galaxy as murderers and assassins.
After landing and docking the light freighter, Zai'shira decided to visit the cantina to get some information. The place was filled with many pilots and also many shady-looking individuals. Approaching the counter, Zai'shira got the attention of the tall, red-skinned Devaronian male, who wiped a glass. "Huh, we rarely see your kind here, Togruta, he said curiously. "What brings you to Anzat?"
"I'm looking for someone," Zai'shira replied. "A specific Anzat with injured..." she tapped her finger against her own cheek. "...proboscises. Do you know anyone with that description?"
"Hmmm... the Devaronian squinted his brown-colored eyes and stooped wiping the glass. "We have one Anzat, that claims he cannot drink the soup. He stays in the back room." The Devaronian pointed with his thumb at the door on the other end of the cantina.
Zai'shira nodded and moved away from the counter, heading towards the door, not noticing that the Devaronian pressed a button that was located under the counter. The Togruta didn't believe that she could be so lucky. Pressing a panel on the wall, Zai'shira opened the door, which slid open. "Hello?" she called out, entering a dimly-lit room with a small bed, one window, and a desk.
When she passed the doorstep, closing the door behind her, she felt a movement above her and heard a lightsaber being ignited. Zai'shira lunged forward, avoiding a lightsaber slash, that would surely decapitate her. She reached for her own weapon and activated it. Turning around, she looked closely at the attacker.
The tall male Anzat before her, who could easily pass for a human, had long, black hair, grey-pale skin, bulbous nose with flared nostrils, and green eyes. Zai'shira had no idea how he got a yellow-colored lightsaber, but he was clearly strong in the Force.
"Another Jedi assassin," the Anzat raised his black eyebrow. "You just can't learn, do you."
Zai'shira raised her white eyebrow markings. "I don't know your name Anzat," she said. "But if you're the person I'm looking for, then I'm not here to fight you. No matter what you did to the Jedi Shadows."
"Spare me your lies, Jedi," the Anzat replied, pointing the yellow blade at the Togruta. "First, you killed my parents, and now you want to kill me."
"I'm not a Jedi," Zai'shira replied. "I was in the past, but I left the Order. Now, I'm looking for an Anzat who cannot drink the soup." The Togruta deactivated her yellow-colored blade and attached it back to her belt. She raised her hands in a peaceful gesture. "I just want to talk."
The Anzat looked suspiciously at Zai'shira but lowered somewhat his blade. Two, very short tentacle-like proboscises curled out from his cheek pockets. They were definitely too short to get inside a brain and suck out the soup. "As you can see, I fit the description," he said.
"Yes, you are," Zai'shira confirmed. "My name is Zai'shira Kessen, and I'm a former Jedi Shadow. What's your name?"
"I'm Avelon Karkko," the Anzat answered. "The grandson of Jedi Master Volfe Karkko."
Please R&R ;)