(A/N): First chapter of the new year! I know last chapter was much more plot and less fluff so I hoped to kind of mend that with this one. I saw in the reviews recently that we've got a couple of people who binged the whole fic until now and I have to say - all of you guys are absolute mad lads! Fun fact, you've now read more words than what's in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. So pat yourself on the back! Anyway, I hope you enjoy. I got goosebumps writing this!
No matter how many of her Jedi brethren would disagree with her, the heart of a Republic Warship was always the hangar. Adorsha watched from the observation deck as equipment was being loaded onto the LAAT/i Gunships alongside the Torrent Fighters that would be escorting them on the ride down. The crew of the ship were practically the bone cells, making sure they had the foundations upon which to operate, which was where the troops themselves came in, providing the metaphorical and literal blood of the ship. The ship itself was a lot smaller than what she had journeyed upon during the early days of the war, and Adorsha was somewhat thankful for it. Back when the Engineers on Kuat and Sullust had been more experimental, her and her Master had been fortunate enough to be stationed with the 209th Armored Attack Battalion onboard a prototype warship that had practically been a moving fortress.
Adorsha still remembered the sour taste in her mouth when her Master had named it.
"Indomitable? Are you sure that's a wise name, Master?" It had been a genuine question, and Krell had snapped at her like she was being insubordinate.
"A ship like this needs a name that shall do it justice, hence forth, it will be known as the Indomitable, for it cannot be conquered or destroyed, not under my command," She remembered how he had folded his arms behind his back, then turned to her, peering down at her with beady eyes "Unless you have an objection, to my judgement, Padawan?"
"No sir." Adorsha had lied, again, to his face. By that time, it was something she had to do almost constantly just so there wouldn't be any conflicts. The name Indomitable had been nothing except a testament to her Master's ever increasing, ever worrying, arrogance.
The ship had been destroyed during the first battle of Kamino.
So many lives had gone up in flames, then even more had been consumed by the sea. The 209th had to be rebuilt with new Clones fresh from Kamino, and integration hadn't been easy. It had been hard for her to learn the ticks and quirks of the fresh faces in an army of Clones, yet she couldn't imagine how hard it must have been for them too.
"The company should be ready to move out shortly, General, we're just waiting on the refueling of the transport ships and moving some of the heavier equipment on," Fives' voice sounded from behind Adorsha as he reported in, helmet on his belt "You ready to get back down there and flush those clankers out?"
She turned around, the sole of her boot making a distinct grinding noise against the tile of the floor, swishing with her coattails. Fives, like all ARC Troopers, had very thick barriers around their minds. Their independence made their will strong, thus Adorsha wasn't able to read his thoughts even as she took a step closer to him. However, that did not mean she couldn't sense when he was projecting, or sense his mood. This time, it was her who closed the gap between them, reaching up to kiss his lips tenderly. He exhaled, the tension in his form easing away as Adorsha wound her arms around him. She could tell that beneath the excited, boiling surface of his blood that itched for a fight, there was a nervousness that sat at the bottom of his soul. Thick, unmoving like the sludge of a swamp, Adorsha could only recognize it as she felt it within hers too. Neither of them would exactly be able to shovel it away, but it could provide a good foundation for them to stand on and fight once they did get down to Ren Vhar again.
Just as she had started the kiss, Adorsha was the one who ended it, and Fives took her head in his hands. The gaze inside of his citrine eyes said what the soldier himself couldn't. They had both very nearly died in those caves, were it not for timely intervention, they would have perished together. That horror, that fear, the muffled screams of his brothers as they were eaten alive still haunted him. Adorsha hugged him tightly, and Fives hugged her back with some reluctance.
"We'll go down there, together, again," Adorsha promised Fives in a firm, determined tone "And we won't just flush them out," she scowled "We'll make them regret the day they stepped foot onto this planet."
The Jedi was momentarily stunned out of her mood when Fives pecked the top of her head "Have I told you how much I love you lately?"
She chuckled lightly "I had some idea."
His honeyed gaze returned Adorsha's own as Fives opened his eyes "I hoped to catch you alone before we went down, actually," he confessed, and stepped back a little "I have something for you, I think you'll get more use out of it that I could," reaching back into his belt, Fives pulled out one of his DC-17's, and held it out for Adorsha to take.
"You're… giving me your pistol?" Adorsha took the gun from him, and examined it. Rotating it in her hand she held it up close to see if he had made any modifications. It didn't appear like he had done anything to it, hence her confused expression when she finally looked at Fives again.
"That was my first issued decee when I went into training, we were told it was our responsibility to take care of our weaponry, and nothing was more important than it," Fives began to explain "Then... I found somebody more important," he smiled when Adorsha blushed, her montrals turning a deeper shade of blue in response "I know there's a good chance we could get separated down there," or worse, that one of them wouldn't return "So, I thought if I gave this to you, perhaps you could put some of it on your lightsaber? That way we'd be fighting together- wherever we end up on this mission."
Adorsha was back on him in an instant, her kiss more frantic than before, which Fives returned eagerly. She wasn't exactly sure how the parts, or even which ones, would fit onto her weapon. However, she was sure that she would find a way to incorporate it into the overall design. Even if that meant it was just adding to the aesthetics and nothing else. She broke the kiss and tucked her face under his chin, her montral laying flat against his cheek.
"I'll see what I can do before we leave," She wasn't exactly sure what she would be able to put on the saber in time before they left, but the Jedi was certain she could make it work. Fives pulled back a little bit to brush her cheek with his thumb.
"Make sure you get into your snow gear, can't have you freezing up on me now," Fives advised her gently, although from her smirk, he knew he had no room to talk.
"As long as you'll warm me up again after we get back," Her voice was smoother than hard candy and just as sweet "You should go get changed too, I'll see you on the flight deck before we leave," Adorsha promised, which wasn't a lie, she just couldn't bring herself to say goodbye just yet.
Fives pecked her lips softly "Go, before I get tempted to break the door."
The walk back to her quarters was mercifully short thanks to the redeployment, everyone was too busy hustling and bustling in the hangar and cargo areas to make any traffic getting back. The all weather gear she had chosen to wear on Ren Vhar was still being laundered, and she would admit wearing that had been a mistake. She knew it would have been cold, but being that the previous operation had been one of urban warfare she had wrongly assumed after their march they would be indoors. If not that, then fighting in the streets, not underneath the ice.
Her quarters were just as cold and desolate as the planet's surface had been. She had never felt comfortable in space on her own, not since the Red Harvest incident. Often Adorsha wondered why the council had picked her to be Master Krell's apprentice when she would have been happy amongst the agricultural corps. Whenever she had the opportunity to visit a temple of the Jedi, she would always make a beeline for the gardens. Among nature she felt at home. She could feel every living organism and its place symphonically resonating in a choral peace which soothed her soul. That peace, that beautiful melody, had turned into a bloody roar of chaotic carnage during that incident. Apparently it had made her worthy of being apprenticed to the Weapon Master. Furthermore, her time hunting down and dealing with the ramifications of said incident taught her what she needed to pass her knighthood trials. However with those ramifications, came the crippling chill of loneliness in space, the feeling of paranoia that something was in the shadows watching… even if her senses told her nothing was present.
Adorsha found herself standing before the small wardrobe she had been permitted by the Jedi and the Republic. The door slid open with a wave of her hand, the mirror greeting her with her image, and an odd thought.
I miss the green, the flora, the trees… yet I've feelings for a man birthed in a cloning vat.
A man who wouldn't exist without war.
A man who I shouldn't have any attachment to… yet I heard his voice calling me.
The Jedi looked down at the gun in her hand, and then took out her main double bladed saber. Sighing, she put them down on the nightstand before she went to change outfits. Pulling her shirt over her head and her pants down, she paused seeing the scars on her hip. The furious lines ripped through her white markings, white bleeding into silver where they had been bisected. Adorsha's fingers seemingly moved of their own accord, running over the physical, painful memories of a battle long past, a true trial of her dedication to the light side of the force. Even now, years later, she could still feel the pain of bloodied nails ripping at her tender flesh trying to grab her.
Hissing through her teeth, she buried the memory as she plunged her hand into her closet, drawing out the blue winter garb granted to her by the Jedi. There was nothing special about it, it was mostly blue, warm, and had a white fur trim that matched the lining of the hood within the long overcoat she wore. That was the only thing she didn't like about it was also, the coat. When it went over her montrals, she looked like a blue loth cat or a snow bunny. The goggles she had around her neck didn't alleviate the problem either, though the white belt she snatched from the armory broke up the solid blue a little bit.
"Well, at least I'll be warm."
Adorsha slid her wardrobe shut, the mirror catching a glimpse of the lightsaber and the gun on her night stand.
"I thought if I gave this to you… we'd be fighting together."
The Jedi sighed "Oh Fives…"
Looking at her chrono, she knew she didn't have much time, but oddly enough - she felt as though she needed none. She already knew how she wanted it to look, and what parts of the weapon she wanted to go where.
Placing the blaster to her left and her lightsaber to her right, Adorsha knelt on the floor, her boots squeaking at being creased. Her hands came to rest on her knees, the fabric of her pants soft beneath her fingertips and the floor cool under shins.
The Jedi breathed in.
Flowing through all, is balance.
She could feel it all, the footsteps of the Legion getting ready to move out, the naval garrison running through the halls in preparation of the assault.
There is no peace without a passion to create.
These were the words her Master had taught her. It wasn't complete heresy upon the code, it was a stipulation. Creativity was good, it fueled ideas, relationships, but only true passion could give way to obsession. Channeling it into something productive was the most helpful and mindful thing a Jedi could do.
There is no passion without peace to guide.
Fives' words echoed on the fringes of her mind. This weapon, this tool of justice, was a product born of love. Guided by the serenity they felt in each other's arms, a feeling that embraced her in the force.
Knowledge stagnates without the strength to act.
They had to stop the Separatists before they could escape, before they could level another city, or worse, collapse the entire planet's fragile ecosystem.
The barrel of the gun and the cylinder of her lightsaber hilt scraped together.
Power blinds without the serenity to see.
This was the core tenet of every Weapon Master's creed. One Adorsha knew she would take care to remember when using this new weapon.
There is freedom in life.
Even if their lives were ones they had only ever known a certain path, they still had the freedom to choose, to walk away. To love, to hate, and protect.
There is purpose in death.
Nature had a cycle, one that had to continue for the sake of their future. It could not be stopped, yet there was always that reassurance it would go on no matter what. Adorsha took comfort in that fact.
The force is all living things.
"Ner mesh'la Jetii."
I am the Force.
Adorsha's lightsaber came to her outstretched hand, the arctic blue blades igniting with a swipe of her finger.
The light reflected in the silver and black handle, the inner barrel of the blaster having been completely stripped down and mounted securely on the outside of the body to create a grip. Matching on either end were two elongated black emitters, six prongs stretching up to guard the base of the blades.
This was the weapon of a Jedi. Not just any Jedi - a Jedi Weapon Master.
Master Krell would be proud.
Adorsha smiled and disengaged the weapon, and went to grab it's much simpler, thin, cousin. Placing both blades on her belt, she walked out, ready to face whatever Ren Vhar had to throw at her.
(A/N): Be sure to let me know what you thought about this chapter and the story so far in the reviews, and remember to favorite and follow/Subscribe so you get notified of when the next chapter comes out! Until then~