Chapter 16 – In the news
Alright, time for the next chapter. Barriss has her talk with Luminara about what happened and we find out who was listening in to her conversation with Naria and Alyva.
Not much more to say, enjoy the chapter.
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General point of view
Barriss and her friends, Naria and Alyva, returned to the Temple after their trip to the markets. Naria and Alyva went to see Nyla and deliver the food they had brought along for her. Barriss decided to go and find her master so they could talk about what she had seen on that mission. After they'd said their goodbyes they parted ways.
As Barriss approached her quarters she sensed that her master was inside. She stepped inside and found her master sitting on the couch. "Hello Master." She said as she moved to the couch. "Hello Barriss." Luminara replied. "Where did you go to? I heard that the show had been cancelled." She asked her padawan. "Naria and Alyva stopped by. They were heading out and invited me along. I could really use some fresh air to clear my head." Barriss replied with a sigh. "I see." Luminara said as Barriss sat down on the couch. Her eyes were drawn to the stuffed animal Barriss was holding. Luminara gave Barriss a questioning look. Barriss took a deep breath. "There's something that I needed to talk to you about master." She said softly. Luminara quickly sensed her padawan's unease. "Barriss, what happened?" she asked with concern in her voice. "It's about what happened on a mission that took place before the bombing…" Barriss replied.
Barriss took a deep breath before telling her master about what had happened on that assignment. The joy she had felt in meeting those children on that planet, followed by the extreme and overwhelming sadness and pain of seeing them die in that explosion. "They were all so young…Why did they have to die?" Barriss asked softly as she finished her story. Luminara wrapped her arm around her padawans shoulder. "Oh Barriss, why didn't you talk to me about this?" Luminara asked in return as she held her padawan. "I don't know…" Barriss replied. "I didn't know what to think at the time. It was too shocking." She said softly. "I understand Barriss, no loss is easy to deal with." Luminara replied with a sigh. "I just wish you had told be about this sooner, I could've helped you handle it." Barriss gripped the doll in her hands a little tighter. "I'm sorry Master." She said with regret in her voice. "You don't have anything to apologize for Barriss." Luminara replied with a kind smile. She send a few waves of comfort to her padawan. "Come on Barriss, let me help you deal with these feelings now." She told her padawan. Barriss nodded and they spend the rest of the evening in meditation until they were both tired out.
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The next day
Barriss let out a deep breath as she deactivated her lightsaber and clipped the weapon back to her belt. She removed the training helmet she had been wearing. She waited a moment to let her eyes and ears adjust, the helmet had deprived her of those senses temporarily as part of the training exercise. As she held up her hand she caught the training remote that had just been firing at her. Hearing the whispers behind her, she turned around to face the group of younglings.
"Today you will practice honing both your lightsaber skills and your Force senses." Luminara explained to the group of younglings. Barriss smiled as she felt the excitement of the younglings in front of her. She and her master had been asked to substitute for the normal teacher. Luminara had asked her padawan to demonstrate using the Force in order to block bolts from a training remote instead of using one's normal senses like seeing and hearing. Barriss had been hesitant to do so at first, but Luminara had managed to convince her. After the bombing she had committed under the control of the Sith, Barriss was still unsure about using the Force intensively. However, during the exercise she could barely feel the Dark Side around her. Admitting her feelings about what happened on that mission and discussing it with her master and her friends had taken a large and dark load off her mind. Barriss felt the Light side strongly flowing around her again. It had increased her confidence greatly and she felt a lot better as a result.
"These helmets will render you unable to see or hear the remote as it fires at you. You'll need to use the Force to find the remote and block it's attacks." Luminara continued explaining. "The level of the remote won't be set as high as when Barriss demonstrated. You'll start at beginner level, with fewer bolts and plenty of time to allow you to sense where the remote is." She finished explaining and looked around the training room. Luminara smiled at Barriss. Both of them could clearly sense their excitement. "Now then, who is ready to try for themselves?" Luminara asked. Excited yells and waving hands was the response she got. "Alright then, line up and we'll get you started." Barriss told the group.
About ten minutes later all of the younglings had been spread across the room, all equipped with a helmet and a training remote. Luminara walked up to Barriss. "You did well in the demonstration Barriss. I told you that you didn't need to be so worried." She told her padawan with a smile. Barriss smiled back. "Thank you Master, our talk yesterday really took a lot of strain of my mind. I feel a lot more confidence in myself and in the Force." She replied. "I'm starting to feel like I did before all of this." Barriss said. Luminara knew that she was talking about both the loss of those children and the bombing incident. "That's good to hear Barriss." Luminara replied. A few pained grunts were heard throughout the room. "Let's go and see if we can help our young Jedi out, shall we?" she asked. Barriss nodded and they both started walking around the room, offering advice where needed.
As Barriss walked through the room she saw one of the younglings take of his helmet and toss it on the ground. She made her way towards him. It was a human boy with dark hair. His tunic had multiple scorch marks on it. When she reached him she sat down on her knees beside him. "Hello young one, what is your name?" Barriss asked the boy. "Dash." He replied. "What's wrong Dash, why did you stop?" she asked him. "It's too difficult. I keep getting hit." He replied annoyed. Barriss smiled slightly. She recognized his problem quite well. "That's why we're practicing Dash. You can't expect to master the Force in one day." She told him. "But you made it look so easy." He replied as he looked at her. Barriss nodded. "That's true, but don't forget one thing Dash: I have done a lot more training." She said with a smile. "Do you think it was this easy for me when I was your age?" Barriss asked the young boy. "Uhm…" he replied. "Believe me when I say that it took me a lot of time to master this. I got hit a lot more than my clanmates." She explained. Dash looked at her, not believing what she said. "Using the Force takes a lot of practice. You need to keep trying and don't give up." She told him with a smile. "Remember, I am a padawan and I've had years of training and I've had plenty of time to practice my skills with my Master. You just have to keep trying. Don't get discouraged." Barriss explained to him. Dash's earlier frustration seemed to have eased away. "I understand." He replied. "Good." Barriss said as she pulled him to his feet. "Now let me give a piece of advice I was given when I was your age." She told him, he immediately paid close attention. "Do not let the fact that you can't hear or see confuse or scare you. Clear your mind of those feelings. Stand firm and concentrate, let the Force fill you and guide your movements. Go ahead and try." She encouraged him. He nodded excitedly and picked up his helmet. When he put it on Barriss reactivated his training remote. She observed him for a moment. His stance was a lot more relaxed and his confidence had obviously increased. The remote fired at him and he managed to block the bolt. Several more bolts were fired and he was able to block them all. Barriss could sense his excitement. With a smile she continued walking around the room.
Shortly after Barriss had helped the young initiate, Naria entered the training room. Luminara signaled the initiates through the Force to stop their training. They all deactivated their lightsabers and removed their helmets. "Good day Padawan Sarden, what brings you here?" Luminara asked as Naria approached her and Barriss. "Hello Master Unduli, Padawan Offee, I'm sorry to disturb you." She said as she bowed respectfully. "But the Council has requested the presence of Barriss, Alyva and myself." She explained. "For what reason?" Barriss asked. "I'm not really sure." Naria replied. "Very well. Barriss, go with her and find out what the Council wants." Luminara said to Barriss. She nodded in return. "Alright Master." She replied and moved to Naria's side. "Let's go Naria, do you know where Alyva is?" Barriss asked. "Yes, I already contacted her. She'll meet us just outside the Council chambers." Naria replied as the two of them left the room.
Luminara watched as the two left, after that she turned her attention back to the younglings. "Alright initiates, let's resume the practice." She told them. They replied with the same enthusiasm and continued with their exercises.
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A little later Barriss and Nyla arrived at the Council chamber. Alyva was already waiting outside for them. "Hey girls." She greeted them when they reached her. "Hello Alyva, do you know what's going on?" Barriss asked. "No, I don't. I have no idea why the Council summoned us." Alyva replied as she shook her head. "Guess we just have to wait to find out." Naria said. Barriss and Alyva nodded and the three of them waited patiently until they were called in.
After a couple of minutes they heard Master Yoda's familiar voice call them inside. They entered the Council chambers and bowed respectfully. "Welcome padawans, called you here we did. Know why, you do?" Master Yoda asked them. The three of them shook their heads. "No master, we don't." Barriss replied. "It's actually quite simple." Master Windu said. "We want you to tell us what you know about this." He said as he activated a holoprojector. An image appeared in front of the three padawans. When they saw what it was they all stared at it in shock. It was a new edition of one of the largest magazines in the inner rim. The cover and the headline took them by complete surprise:
"No one knows how horrifying this war truly is." – Barriss Offee
Underneath the title was a picture of the three of them sitting on the bench. "No way…" Alyva said in disbelief. "Can any of you three please explain this article? Its contents have caused quite some commotion." Master Mundi asked. Barriss could feel that there were quite a few eyes on her. "Did you have some kind of interview with a reporter of this magazine?" Master Windu asked them. "No Masters, we didn't. We…" Naria began, "That was a private conversation. How did they…?!" she said in disbelief. "They just eavesdropped on us? So much for privacy." Alyva said shocked and with disgust in her voice. The three girls looked at each other, unsure of what to say. "Padawan Offee, would you care to explain the things that were said in this article?" Master Windu asked in a rather demanding tone of voice. "With all due respect Masters, I'd rather not." Barriss replied, causing a few shocked faces in the room. "And why not?" Master Shaak Ti asked. Barriss looked at the Togruta. "If they have really copied our entire conversation, you can read it for yourselves. It is a very painful memory for me and I'd rather not keep talking about it." She replied as she lowered her head. The members of the Council said nothing for a moment as they observed the three padawans.
"Understand your feelings, I do." Master Yoda said. "Speak of this any further, we will not." The rest of the Council looked at him for a moment, but didn't decide to argue with him. "Thank you Master Yoda." Barriss said as she gave the elder Jedi a grateful nod. "Uhm… Will that be all, Masters?" Naria asked cautiously. After this situation she'd really want to get away from the Council. "Yes, that is all. However, padawan Offee, we want to see you tomorrow." Shaak Ti replied. "Yes Master, may I ask what for?" Barriss asked confused. "There is an important assignment and you are the most suitable for it. We will brief you fully on it tomorrow." Master Plo Koon answered her question. Barriss nodded. "Alright Master." She replied.
The three of them then bowed and left the Council chambers. None of them said anything until they entered on of the turbolifts at the end of the hall. "What in the name of the Force was that?!" Naria asked in frustration. "I have no idea. They listened in on us and now everyone knows what happened." Barriss replied with worry in her voice. "Barriss, don't worry. This isn't your fault. You're not to blame for any of this." Alyva said. Barriss took a deep breath. "Y-you're right, sorry about that. I kinda freaked out a little." She replied. "It's okay Barriss." Alyva said as she patted Barriss' shoulder. "I can't believe that some reporter would just do something like that." Naria said in disbelief. "That's probably why Master Skywalker hates reporters so much, remember when he crushed that camera?" Alyva asked with a smile. The three of them laughed for a moment as they recalled the incident.
The turbolift stopped at a level. "This is my stop." Barriss said. "I'll see you both some other time." She told her friends. "Alright. See you Barriss." Naria replied. "Goodbye." Alyva said as the doors closed. Barriss smiled and made her way back to her quarters. "I might as well prepare for that assignment. I wonder what it is." She thought as she entered her quarters.
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That's the end for now. I've decided to break this part up in two chapters.
The part about Barriss and that tragedy during her mission was a bit inspired by "The Order Redeems" from .5851. There was a similar back-story with a mission that involved a tragedy of sorts, but I'm not going to spoil that story any further for others who haven't read it yet.
As I mentioned in a previous chapter, I was originally planning to use that tragedy part in that interview. During my vacation I decided to change things a bit and this is the result. Those reporters, always looking for nice stories.
In the next chapter Barriss will be told about her new mission.
Until next time.