Chapter Seven: Aftermath
Meetra was exhausted.
More and more pain had been taken into her, and with each passing moment, it had become more unbearable. But she had pressed on, reducing the agony of those around her as Kreia worked. It had seemed to take hours, but looking at the clock, she realized it had scarcely been one.
Then the doors opened, and stretchers were wheeled in. On them were Revan and Malak and Meetra could sense their lifeforce weakening. She moved forward, but a man shouldered past. "Get out of the way, away! These two need immediate medical attention!"
"Revan, Malak?" said Meetra. "What happened to them?"
"The bald boy was trapped in the reactor room for nearly thirty minutes." said a man as behind them droids began to cut the suits off. "Even through the suit, he's taken serious amounts of radiation."
"And Revan?" asked Meetra, looking like a vicious gash on his head. It was bleeding, and his brow was stained red.
"A head injury," said Kreia. "I will do what I can with the Force." She looked up. "Meetra, you'd best take a rest. I doubt you'll be able to continue much longer and I have work to do."
Meetra nodded and moved away to sit down. Malak and Revan were both unconscious, so they weren't feeling any pain. Making her way out into the halls, she felt wretched. Like she had been shocked and stabbed and fried. Even though she didn't actually feel any pain, the emotion was still there. None of the crewmen had died, but many had come close.
Meetra wondered what it was like to die. She decided she didn't want to find out. Then she noticed two of the crew walking, both uninjured. One was a woman with tan skin, the other a man who was pale.
"Did you feel that during the battle?" asked the tan woman.
"What?" said the man.
"Well, I mean, I was freaking out, panicking, and then I felt something in my mind." said the woman. "A sort of mind and everything clicked into place. I felt like I could take on a thousand fleets of pirates. I was able to get hits in once that happened."
"Now that you mention it, I did get really motivated for a while." said the man. "And I've heard the same thing from others." Then he saw Meetra. "You, your one of the Jedi. Do you know who did any of this?"
Meetra thought about what Revan and Malak had told her. "Well um, Master Kavar was in a space fighter so it couldn't have been him. My friends, Revan, Malak and the other two were dealing with a leaking reactor. Master Vrook went to the bridge. And I was in the medical bay with Master Kreia.
"That leaves um, Bastila. Revan said something about her being able to motivate people with the Force, but I don't know much." Maybe that was why she kept disappearing.
"Well, whoever it did, they saved all our butts." said the woman. "This Bastila, is she powerful?"
Meetra shrugged. "She's a Padawan from the Agricultural Corps. Why don't you ask Master Vrook or one of the others? I don't know anymore."
"Right, thanks." said the woman.
Then they moved off. Meetra had the feeling she'd started a rumor. Then again, what was the harm?
"Are you alright?" asked a voice.
Meetra looked up and saw Dak looking at her. He looked a bit pale but was standing. "…Dak, you're alright."
"I got off lucky," said Dak.
Wait, something occurred. "What was Malak doing there with you?" asked Meetra.
"Filling in for Bastila," said Dak. "He'd been assigned to do meditation training, but we got called down to help with some repairs. Bastila wasn't there."
"Malak nearly died!" said Meetra in horror. "Why wasn't she there?! What was she doing?"
"I don't know," said Dak. "Other 'duties' whatever that means. Where were you?"
Meetra felt that she was angry and forced herself to be calm. There was probably a perfectly good reason why she wasn't present. The 'duties' had been assigned by the Jedi Council, after all. Or members.
Where had she been? She hadn't even thought about that. "Waiting for Vrook." Meetra realized. "He was an hour late, and when he arrived, he just gave me a more intense version of normal training sessions. He doesn't think I'm mature enough for real training, I guess."
"Well, that's Vrook for you," said Dak. "Belaya should be waking up soon, so I'll go wait for her."
Meetra watched him go. She hoped Revan and Malak were alright, but they would be unconscious for a while. So she shook her head. "…I need to go train or something."
Walking to the training room, she sat down crosslegged and tried to center herself. But she just felt all over the place. So instead, she began to practice her stances with her saber. Swinging the blade through the air, she reflected that she had learned a lot.
But Revan had still gone toe to toe with her. And Malak was still better, if less so. Why? Revan didn't even have a teacher. Her swings were more aggressive, and she checked them. Then she turned around to have her blade caught on a blue lightsaber.
Master Kavar was standing there with a smile before he shoved her back and flourished with an easy grace. "None of us should be alone after an event like that. Even someone lucky enough to be uninjured. Are you alright?"
"Master Kavar," said Meetra, before noticing a wound on his cheek. "you… you've been cut."
"A gift from our enemy," said Kavar. "Some of them were very talented with the blade for pirates. And their armor was distinctive.
"I believe they may be Mandalorians. Are you alright?"
Meetra nodded and lowered her saber. Vrook should be doing this. "Fine. Do you know where Vrook is?"
Kavar sighed. "Vrook has had his hands full. The Captain was killed during the fighting, and he's had to take over. A lot of the crew are dead, and plenty are injured. Frankly, if the situation weren't so serious, I'd recommend a return to port."
"This shouldn't have happened," said Meetra.
"Pirate attacks are a way of life in the Outer Rim," said Kavar. "They're how the Republic keeps its fleet in good order. Still, we aren't technically in the outer rim yet, just nearing it. These are a very daring sort of criminal. If indeed they are merely criminals.
"But enough of this. I'm told you're a talented lightsaber duelist."
"Yes, but I'm nothing like Malak," said Meetra.
"Care to spar?" asked Kavar. "I might be able to give you a few pointers. And it may take your mind off things."
Meetra nodded. "I'd like that."
And so began her lessons under Kavar. And they were far more interesting than what she did under Vrook.
Malak awoke, and his head hurt like hell. Just like everything else.
Malak was floating within a bacta tank. He hadn't been in one of these since Zhar had saved him and Revan. Gazing around through the glass, he remembered fading out little by little. All he'd been able to think about was closing the valve. He'd tried banging on the door at some point, but no one had come.
"… I'm alive?" said Malak into his breath mask.
"Yes, you are," said Master Kreia, coming forward to the glass. For the present.
"Where is Revan?" asked Malak. "Why… why didn't he open the door?"
"His sector of the ship was hit by a suicide attack from one of the enemy," said Kreia. "It threw him off his feet, and he was knocked out and injured. You were trapped in there for thirty minutes, however, so you by far got the worst of it."
Thirty minutes. Was he going to die? Malak didn't want to die. "Will I recover?"
"In all ways that matter, yes," said Kreia. "But I hope you weren't planning on growing facial hair."
"I wasn't," said Malak. What did she mean by that?
"Well, then you will not need to shave," said Kreia.
So his hair, or lack thereof, had dropped out. It didn't matter, Malak preferred the bald look anyway. What about the others? "What about Belaya?"
'Still recovering." said Kreia. "It will take days before you two are fully decontaminated. You will have to spend a great deal of time on Kolto tanks."
"The suits were supposed to protect us…" said Malak.
"You might as well have been wearing costumes," said Kreia in disgust. "The suits were deeply flawed in design. It seems the Republic did not consider them a priority. It is fortunate that you were able to decontaminate your blood, if only partially. Any normal human would be dead."
"Will Revan recover?" asked Malak.
"Oh, I'm certain he will be just as insufferable as ever," said Kreia. "Though perhaps a bit more cautious." She frowned. "Still, what you did was… brave. And because of it, this mission may now continue. Though we've lost a ship and another will be delayed in arriving."
"What about the pirates?" asked Malak.
"They withdrew after a lengthy skirmish," said Kreia. "We should meet with Captain Saul Karath at the designated rendezvous point. However, it is obvious that someone knew the path we would take. They also were bold enough to attack before we even left Republic Space.
"Repairs are ongoing."
Malak considered who he might have forgotten. "…And Bastila?"
"Being afforded all the credit in a victory she had only a very small part, I'm afraid." snapped Kreia, obviously irritated.
What did she mean by that?
Never before had Bastila had this kind of respect.
Among the Agricultural Corps and the apprentices, she had been a peer. When she was living with Mother and Father, she was just a girl next door. But now wherever she went, she was met with respect. She could sense awe and admiration around her.
A man approached. "Bastila Shan?"
"Yes?" asked Bastila, not sure how to respond.
"You saved my friends life." said the man. "Thank you."
"I, I don't believe-"began Bastila. She hadn't saved anyone.
"I'd frozen up." said the man. "If you hadn't given me a push, I'd never have pulled him out in time."
"Well, I was merely performing my duty as I saw it," said Bastila. "I'm sure all of you had far more vital roles." Far from decreasing the admiration, her apparent modesty only increased it. She walked and met many people like that man.
Then she ran into Master Vrook. He frowned at her in disapproval. "You seem to be taking your new reputation in stride, apprentice Shan."
"Yes, well, I don't really know how to handle it," said Bastila.
"Don't." said Vrook. "Fame is not something that a Jedi needs or craves. Perform your duties without regard to pride or personal benefit."
Bastila bowed. "I understand, Master Vrook. I… how did this get out?" She hadn't told anyone.
Vrook nodded. "As far as we can tell, Revan observed something of your powers and spoke of it to Meetra Surik. When questioned, she brought it up, and the rumor spread like wildfire. Still, I suspect they recognize you subconsciously. You were in contact with their wills for most of the voyage, after all."
"I understand," said Bastila.
"I'm told that several of your fellow apprentices are in the med bay," said Vrook.
"Is it serious?" asked Bastila. Had something serious happened?
"No, they should recover," said Vrook. "Only Malak will suffer any permanent damage, and that is superficial."
Bastila nodded. "I… I know I should visit them, but I'm tired. Very tired."
"It would be best if you rested for the moment," said Vrook.
Bastila nodded and returned to her quarters. Only then did she feel how tired she was. Falling into her bunk, she collapsed into sleep.
Revan awoke.
Revan was lying in a medical. His neck had a brace on it, so he must have injured himself while falling the second time. Where was Malak? His hands were tied down, so he presumed he had thrashed. His gaze looked around him for anyone who might be waiting for him to wake up.
There was no one.
Where was Malak, was he alive? And where were the others? Dak and Belaya surely would have recovered by now. If Revan was alive and well, so were they. He'd had it far worse than them. But Malak had had it worst of all.
Perhaps they were visiting him. Or was he dead?
Revan needed to know. But there was no one here to tell him. He waited there, waited alone for anyone to come through the door. Was he going to die? Perhaps he'd suffered some serious injury? But if so, why was no one with him.
Revan had known he was not normal, but he'd thought he'd had a sort of friendship with Dak and Belaya. They'd worked together constantly. Dak and Belaya might have had it far worse than he'd thought. Was it possible only he was alive? But even if that was the case, where were the Jedi Masters?
If every one of the other students were dead or disabled, they should concern themselves with him. Except he wasn't a student, was he? He was a washout. The moment he'd failed to impress a master he'd been of no more concern — a mere footnote in history at best.
Did the Masters even care?
No, of course not. There was no emotion. There was peace.
"Did you hear about why we won?" asked a voice outside the door.
Revan looked up, hoping it was someone coming to see him. He didn't know them, but perhaps they wanted to thank him for getting irradiated to save the mission.
"Hear what?" asked another. "I've been in the medical bay for hours." They were getting nearer.
"It turns out there is this Jedi prodigy, named Bastila." said the other. "She has a power called Battle Meditation. She singlehanded turned the tide of the battle. That's why everyone suddenly got really inspired; she did that on her own." They passed the door.
"Seriously?" asked the other, faintly. "Do you think she signs autographs?"
"I wouldn't count on it." Then their voices faded out.
Revan was alone in the medical bay. He waited hours for someone, anyone, to come to him. But no one did.
