The Lost Purpose seemed so damn quiet.
I walked through those cramped halls listening to the hum of the engines, the creaking of the walls, the hissing and popping of the oxygen scrubbers, and all that I could focus on were the sounds that were missing.
At one point I remember looking out one of the portholes at the destroyed section of the ship, where the plasma explosion and the vacuum of space had taken their toll.
The damage to the shields and the hull meant using the hyperdrive was out of the question, so it was just a matter of punching in coordinates to the nearest planet I could find in the navicomputer.
"Centrallis," I read off the screen, my voice low and hoarse under the black mask. I had been wearing it constantly and focusing on repairing any piece of machinery I could find to keep myself occupied.
It was only minutes away from the planet that I put the finishing touches on the autopilot, which guided The Lost Purpoe into that godforsaken port in Davn.
All the while I packed anything I thought I might need. I stuffed Millicent's jacket and my breathing mask into dad's old rucksack, rather than food or water, grabbed a few credits and walked out of the ship, wanting only to forget.
Teller kept the mask over his face as he read through the dossiers Carnada had sent the Jedi, reports on important figures across Shilrakaen that he needed to be aware of to navigate this new world he had been thrust into.
There was very little information on her of course, but somehow he wasn't surprised by that.
"Are you alright?"
He hadn't even noticed Thayla walking up to him. The last time he looked, she had been doing push-ups across the room, while Jon continued to fine-tune D0-1T.
"You're wearing your mask, Teller."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize. I just wanted to know why you're so stressed."
He showed her the datapad in his hands.
"It was a lot to read. It feels like homework."
Teller chuckled. "Yeah, but it wasn't just having to learn about all of this. It's knowing that that giant machine is still hovering over our heads. It's knowing that a battle could break out any minute and I barely have a grasp on the basic lightsaber forms. It's wondering whether I should be at all Jedi, if we even are Jedi." He glanced over at Jon. "I'm sorry. A lot of stuff has happened so fast that I think I'm just overwhelmed."
"That's ok. Those feelings can happen." She took him by the hand and pulled the young man up onto his feet. "And for the record, we are Jedi, no matter what anyone says."
Jon was still facing away from them, but his hydrospanner had stopped turning.
"Being a Jedi isn't about how many people you can defeat with a lightsaber. It isn't about lifting the biggest rock. It isn't about slaying monsters. Whether you are a Jedi is a question that is answered right here," she placed a finger at the center of his chest. "Being a Jedi is getting up in the morning and deciding to be better. The galaxy is a dark place. It's filthy, disgusting and corrupt, but a Jedi faces that darkness, that corruption, because the galaxy needs people like us. It needs bringers of light, defenders of the innocent and keepers of the peace. It needs hope."
Teller looked down at the ground, until Thayla put a hand on his shoulder.
"You are a Jedi, Teller Vonn, not just because you follow the will of the force and train to use it, but because you bring hope wherever you go."
"I don't-"
"Please shut up and agree with me already."
Jon audibly chuckled.
"Teller, you are a Jedi."
With a sudden swell of pride, he did finally look her in the eyes and say, "Yes, Master Creed. I am a Jedi."
