Chapter Six: The First Steps
"So if Cere wants us to look for a Jedi here. Why does she need us? She's a Jedi after all." Kairi responded as she and Cal started walking.
"She's not a Jedi anymore. She cut herself off from the Force." Cal corrected her as he was on Kairi's left side while they walked.
"What? Why?" Kairi asked after they jumped down and started jogging.
"I have no idea, Kairi. We'll know soon if we ask her." Cal answered, before finding a patch of grass which he thought of trying to meditate for a minute. "Okay, Kairi. Let me meditate here for a while. Just keep an eye out for anything." He stated before he slowly got down on his knees, closing his emerald green eyes in the process.
"Okay… I'll just-" Kairi started to say to herself before turning around to see Iris as she screamed frighteningly. "Yo, you gotta stop scaring me like that! My heart is all the way down to my stomach." She explained while trying to calm down as her hands were on her knees until she heard Cal muttering underneath his breath.
"No… Master… Kairi…" Cal muttered as Kairi looked back at him, knowing that he was having a hard time clearing his mind.
Kairi only watched as she knew in her mind not to interfere with meditation, but she knew deep down that she had to help Cal.
As beads of sweat began to show on Cal's face along with him shifting, Kairi immediately got on her knees in front of Cal and took his hands into own. His labored breathing began to slow as Kairi was rubbing the back of his hand with her thumbs before looking up to see Cal who immediately opened his eyes.
He began to start scanning the area around him and Kairi, before seeing Iris who was behind the 16 year old Jedi Padawan, but she quickly disappeared when she got caught.
"Cal…" Kairi started to say before removing her hands from his larger ones. "Are you okay?" She asked.
"I… I just saw someone." Cal stated.
"What?" Kairi asked before she turned around... but when she looked down there was a white and red bi pedal droid. "Awww!" She exclaimed with a smile on her face.
The bi pedal droid flew up and rested on top of Kairi's left shoulder before he started introducing him with his beeping and chirping sounds.
"Hey, BD-1. I'm Cal." He introduced himself.
"And I'm Kairi, little guy." She introduced herself as well, before he jumped onto Kairi's lap.
BD-1 started beeping as he was asking a question in concern to Cal.
"Yeah. I'm okay. But… we're looking for someone." Cal answered as he had his hands on his knees.
BD-1 asked once more thinking they were looking for him.
"No, not you. We're supposed to be looking for… a Jedi, I think." Cal answered.
BD-1 trilled as he jumped off of Kairi's lap and started running off.
"Wait, you know the Jedi? Hey, wait up." Cal responded as he and Kairi stood up and watched him jump onto a control lock panel before using his scomp link to slice through.
A metal bridge pulled out as Cal and Kairi were amazed by how one small droid could do that, before BD-1 flew ahead of them when they started climbing on the vines.
Once they reach to where BD-1 is, they can see the vault in the distance.
"That's the vault Cere mentioned. Whoever is there supposed to be waiting on us, Cal." Kairi stated as she walked ahead before reaching the ledge. Turning back around, 16 year old Jedi Padawan started walking through a holomap which BD-1 pulled up. "Sorry, little buddy." She apologized before moving outside of the holomap.
BD-1 beeped as he started zooming in to where the vault is before Cal studied the map.
"There are a few places to start searching around Bogano. But for now, we gotta find our way to the vault." Cal explained, as the two can see the path to where the Mantis is, before BD-1 closed the holomap and the two Jedi Padawans started following the bi pedal droid.
As they jumped from each platform to the next, Kairi immediately stopped as Cal pulled her back from taking a deadly fall.
"Thanks." Kairi responded as Cal's hands were still around her small waist.
"Any ideas on how to get across this gap?" Cal asked, before letting go.
BD-1 beeped as he thought of an idea to where he can use the zipline to carry the two.
"But wouldn't it break? And will it be hard for BD-1 to come back and get you?" Kairi explained as BD-1 got onto the zipline, ready to start sliding down.
"We're going to do this at the same time. You're going to climb onto my back and hold onto me. Don't worry, we won't fall to our deaths." Cal explained as he remembered all the times from lifting up heavy scrap parts and even climbing up ropes as a rigger on Bracca.
"But Cal…" Kairi started to say as she was hesitating about the idea while backing away.
"Do you trust me?" Cal asked.
Kairi looked up at him before nodding slightly.
Cal turned around to face away from her until, until the 16 year old Jedi Padawan slowly climbed onto his back, as she remembered a younger Cal doing this to her when she was out of strength during their first few weeks on Bracca.
"I do, Kestis." Kairi whispered as she wrapped her arms around him, before resting her head on the back of Cal's ginger hair.
Unexpectedly, Kairi moved her face in front of his ginger hair before taking a small inhale of his hair scent.
"Wow… his hair smells… so amazing. Which conditioner does he use? Or is it all water and soap?" Kairi thought to herself as her silver eyes were closed with her nose in Cal's ginger hair when she relaxed, smelling his scent.
Cal smiled before he managed to jump and grabbed BD-1's legs as they began to slide down onto the zipline.
"It… it worked." Kairi responded before she climbed off of Cal's back.
"And you didn't panic this time." Cal replied before he turned around to face her.
"Yeah… I guess I didn't. Maybe we should do that more often… I mean the zipline routine until I find some way to help me. Not me hugging you from behind." Kairi responded as she realized what she meant which she completely embarrassed herself, causing Cal to laugh at her blushing face. "Hey, stop that!" She exclaimed as she gave out her signature pout with her arms crossed.
"It's cute when you do that. You're still the same Kairi I knew back from Coruscant." Cal stated, before Kairi looked at him.
"Whatever, Kestis." Kairi responded as she calmed down, before the two continued to follow BD-1 as he started to walk onto a metal bar. "This is the way? Can't we just find another way?" She asked
"That door is locked. Listen, just walk in front of me. Right foot ahead of the left. Keep your balance. And don't look down." Cal explained as he gently lifted up Kairi's arms to the side before Kairi looked down at the metal pole.
Breathing slowly with her eyes closed, Kairi walked as she remembered Cal's words in her mind before Cal followed her, until they reached another place on the map which looked like an abandoned workshop to them.
Cal and Kairi stopped when they saw a bograt attacking a bogling who was only peeking its head out of the hole, until BD-1 jumped onto its attacker's head, before trying to back him off with a kick.
The bograt immediately got furious as it only hit the bi pedal droid back one time as it damaged BD-1's scomp link.
"Hold on, BD-1! We're coming." Cal responded, as the bog rat grabbed BD-1 by it's mouth, throwing the droid to the side, until Kairi accidentally let go of the pole with one hand, when she tried to pull out her lightsaber.
Fell down on her back, Kairi caught the two bograt's attention before they immediately ran up to her until Cal jumped off and did an overhead slice attack onto one of them.
Kairi immediately slowed down the second one as Cal attacked it until the bogratwas in pieces.
Pulling herself up, Kairi started wiping off the dirt off her white skirt with her left hand before Cal checked on her.
"It could have been a lot easier if I didn't try to pull out my lightsaber like that." Kairi responded, before looking down at her right hand that had a vase shard in it. "And that's gonna leave a mark." She stated as Cal examines it, before pulling the shard out and immediately wrapped it with tender tape.
"You have to be more careful, Kai. You're turning into a mummified tomb guardian." Cal responded as he gave out a small joke.
"Each scar tells a story, you know." Kairi responded before the two headed to the room where BD-1 limped off into to be safe
Slowing down the giant fan, they ran inside before seeing BD-1.
"Hey. That's pretty brave. You okay?" Cal asked.
BD-1 beeped in sadness as he tried to walk it off when Cal and Kairi saw wires and sparks shooting out of his left leg.
"Wait. I can help you with that. Will you let me?" Cal suggested after seeing a workbench.
BD-1 turned around to face Cal before looking down on his right leg and he immediately limped his way towards the ginger haired Jedi Padawan, jumping in his hands.
At the workbench, Kairi sat down on Cal's left hand side as she decided to watch.
"Well, the scomp link is busted. So… this should get you moving for now." Cal explained before using the soldering iron to fix the wires and even place a piece of BD-1 protective plate back where it was. "Okay. Try that." He responded, before BD-1 tried out his leg and tested out the blue light on his lenses until he reminded the two about the vault.
"Okay. But now we gotta find a way outta here." Kairi responded, before she climbed off the workbench.
As Cal went on ahead after slowing down the giant fan, Kairi heard Iris calling her name before looking at the Force Ghost who was sitting down on the left side workbench.
"Kairi? Are you coming?" Cal asked after noticing that Kairi was still inside of the giant fan room as she was looking around at the spare parts.
"Go on ahead and look. Tell me when you're ready." Kairi responded as she was looking at the workbench on her right to see a few wooden sticks.
Cal nodded as he decided to look around the Hermit's Abode, before finding a force echo in a storage room.
"Whoever lived here used this room for storage, they kept their foods and supplies." Cal stated as Kairi heard that before seeing Iris lifting up a few rocks and starting to throw them at her.
"Oh! You don't say!" Kairi responded loudly, after she managed to slow it down with the Force. "Quit it!" She exclaimed as Iris had a smirk on her face before dissappearing.
"What was that?" Cal called out before running out of the storage room to see Kairi holding rocks in her hands.
"Uh, nothing, Cal. I think BD-1 just opened a path for you." Kairi explained, before heading back to the workbench until she saw a toolbox which Iris placed down. "What do you want me to make?" She whispered, before Kairi felt her eyes rolled in the back of her head.
As Iris took control of Kairi's body, she began to start working on the materials that the 16 year old Jedi Padawan found. Grabbing each tool, Kairi was only able to feel as she can hear a hammer pounding along with a chisel, thinking she's working on the rocks. Pulling out her own lightsaber, Iris used it to thin the long sticks before getting some rope to tie it together until she let Kairi control of her own body.
"What was that about?" Kairi asked after blinking her silver eyes until she looked down at the workbench to see a bow and arrow which was handcrafted in front of her.
Picking it up, Kairi felt her eyes roll back as she remembered that she once used a bow and arrows…
19 BBY...
"What are you doing with that, Padawan?" Rin Sotah asked after walking into Kairi's bedroom to see her fixing it on the floor.
"Just fixing it, Master. I once used a bow and arrow before somewhere." 9 year old Kairi explained before getting the paint out from her desk… until Rin Sotah looked displeased as he used the Force to pull the paint, bow and arrows from out of her reach.
As the bow and arrows were in his hands, Kairi looked at him.
"You are a Padawan. Not a scavenger or some hunter. As my Padawan, you must learn the ways of the Force. Your lightsaber proves that you are the symbol of hope. Now… I will be taking this." Rin Sotah explained after when Kairi stood up from the floor.
"But Master-" Kairi tried to speak up, but Rin Sotah held up a finger.
"And no back talk. You should never do that to your Master or to anyone. You only speak when someone is talking towards you." Rin Sotah instructed, before he left…
Present Time
"Even though I'm warming back up to my lightsaber… Doesn't mean he can stop me now since he's gone." Kairi responded to herself as she used Force slow on the giant fan blades before a bog rat saw her running out.
As the bograt dug a hole to hide himself underground, Kairi had her bow and arrows ready before she felt the room go into complete silence once she closed her eyes while using her barefeet to feel where the bograt was coming from. Aiming her arrow, Kairi quickly moved back as the bograt jump out and tried to attack her, but the 16 year old was quicker than her enemy as she let go of her arrow.
Hearing a painful cry, Kairi pulled out her lightsaber and sliced through the bog rat as two parts of the body fell to the ground. Opening her eyes, she examines her work when she can see that the arrow pierced through its huge orange red eye and its head was sliced off.
"Wow… I did that." Kairi whispered before putting her lightsaber away.
Putting her bow and arrows behind her back, Kairi felt Cal's presence from above as she looked up and saw him.
"Since when do you know how to use a bow and arrow?" Cal asked, knowing that he was amazed by how Kairi could handle her combat skills by herself without needing his help or being injured at the end.
"I… somehow knew. I remember how to use them. Maybe it's part of my hidden past. Plus I remember Master Sotah scolding me about it." Kairi explained.
"I have an idea. Those bow and arrows may come in handy later. Keep them with you, okay?" Cal suggested before he used his lightsaber to cut a rope for Kairi to climb up.
Kairi nodded as smiled before climbing up the rope and taking Cal's hand once she made it to the second floor of the Hermit's Abode.
Kairi slowly removed her hand from Cal's hand as she gently touched it after he walked ahead of her.
"Just like when we were Younglings." Kairi whispered, before following Cal as they were on the roof of the Hermit's Abode.
Making their way up to the roof, the two were looking around as she could see how beautiful Bogano is from where they were. But a few Sploxs rolled towards them as they were ready to attack Cal and Kairi with their claws. The two managed to stop them by parrying them before doing overhead slashes. Hearing BD-1 beeping at the dead bugs, he started scanning them as a blue ray from his lens glowed.
"He's a cute little droid to have." Kairi stated, before she climbed onto Cal's back as she was ready to use the zipline maneuver like they did last time. "How did he end up here?" She asked.
"I asked the same thing too while you were busy. But BD-1 is like you, Kairi. He doesn't remember." Cal explained.
"Is that true?" Kairi asked after she climbed off and BD-1 jumped onto Cal's back.
BD-1 beeped as he looked at Kairi, agreeing to her.
"Well, maybe we can get them back. He was on this planet for a while, right? The Jedi may be his owner." Kairi explained, as they started walking again.
"We'll see, Kairi." Cal responded.
As the two made it to the Great Divide, they can see the ancient vault nearby along with a few statutes that looked very strange to and like they were staring at the two Padawans. Cal and Kairi stopped as BD-1 pulled up the holomap to see that the bi pedal droid mapped everywhere that the three went on the planet.
They were going in the right direction, but based on the rigged rocks that were in front of them, it was not going to be an easy job to get across to make it to the vault.
"We can't make it over there. All of us gotta find another way." Cal responded.
BD-1 replied with a sad tone, before he saw Kairi walking away from them as she was looking up.
She walked back to Cal as she got her tiptoes to try to measure how tall Cal is, due to her 5'2'' height.
"What are you doing?" Cal asked, before Kairi had an idea as she ran back.
"Hey… Boost me up." Kairi stated before Cal looked up to see that sturdy structure above them was the way to the vault.
"Not a chance, Kairi. What if something is up there ready to attack you?" Cal responded.
"Then I will deal with them. Cal, you have to let me make decisions on my own. I'm 16 years old." Kairi explained as she looked at him.
BD-1 suggest an idea as the droid looked at Kairi and Cal.
"Are you sure? You want to stay with her just in case?" Cal asked as Kairi started smiling at BD-1.
BD-1 flew over to Kairi as he landed on her shoulder before staying secure on her back.
"Such a cute and brave droid you are!" Kairi responded as she managed to use her left hand to pet his head.
BD-1 beeped happily as he nuzzled his head against Kairi's neck, making her laugh.
Cal chuckled, before he got close enough and had his hands out for Kairi put her left foot in.
"Okay, when you get up there. Help me up." Cal responded as Kairi used her left foot and used both of her hands to rest on Cal's shoulders until he boosted her up.
"Like I will ever leave you, Kestis." Kairi scoffed as her hands managed to grab onto the ledge before she used her feet to quickly climb up. "It worked." She stated before BD-1 trilled in agreement.
With Cal watching her, the ginger haired Jedi Padawan can see Kairi standing up and walked away, just only a few steps as she can see the vault on top of a muddy hill in front of her.
"Okay. Now, help me up." Cal remided, as Kairi got sidetracked and ran back to where she can see Cal from down below.
Having her hand out, Kairi waited for Cal to grab her right hand until BD-1 beeped loudly in a frightened alert tone which caught their attention when Kairi felt a long tongue wrapping around her left ankle.
"Oh no!" Kairi screamed as she felt herself being pulled away from Cal's grasp until he fell down on his back.
Hitting his head as he can hear Kairi calling out his name for help, until he looked over to his left where the ridged rocks were before he slowly stood up.
"Try again."
"It's difficult, Master."
"Yes. The path is difficult. But with the persistent and the Force as your ally. You will overcome any obstacle. Now. Do what you must to reach me."
Cal immediately started running before he started to use the wall run ability that he remembered from his training days with Jaro Tapal.
Making his way to the other side, Cal can tell Kairi was no longer in danger, but she was holding onto the back of Oggdo who was trying to get her off.
"Again! Weee! Again, you big bully!" Kairi teased with laughter, as Cal pulled out his lightsaber while Oggdo was hopping around to try and get the 16 year old Jedi Padawan off of its back.
When Oggdo saw Cal, it immediately jumped towards the ginger haired Jedi Padawan as it tried to munch its teeth onto his body.
Cal started parrying as it backed away from him and when he jumped over him, the 16 year old Jedi Padawan was up in the air which made it the perfect time to slow it down by using the Force.
Kairi pulled out her lightsaber as she decided to stab it into it's back, causing the gigantic toad to yell out in pain which Oggdo immediately stick out his tongue to try and grab Cal. But its life ended quickly when Cal used the force to slow down and cut his extending tongue off with his lightsaber.
With Oggdo defeated, Kairi jumped off as she landed in the small puddle of water before Cal ran up to the shorter Jedi Padawan to check on her.
"I thought you were about to be eaten. You okay?" Cal asked.
"I'm fine. Just my feet are covered in slime." Kairi answered as she smiled while looking down at her feet that were covered with Oggdo's sticky saliva.
"And where are your boots?" Cal asked.
Kairi was looking around for them, before she pulled them off of the clip that held the two brown slouchy boots together on the back of the 16 year old's belt clip.
"Just don't lose them, okay? Cere wanted you to have them since you've lost your old pair back on Bracca." Cal informed before BD-1 jumped back onto his back, chirping and thrilling out what happened between Kairi and the Oggdo. "Whoa, hey slow, BD-1!" He laughed while the two were listening how the bi pedal droid had fun while battling the enemy.
"Hey, we can save that story for later when we meet your owner, okay, BD?" Kairi responded with a smile.
BD-1 beeped in agreement before Cal and Kairi were standing in front of a muddy hill that leads to the ancient vault. When the two Jedi started walking, the bi pedal droid jumped off and started running ahead of them which caught their attention.
"Race you two there?" Cal asked.
BD-1 trilled in agreement as he had a head start before Kairi started running as well.
"Whoa! It's on!" Cal responded with excitement in his voice.
"Just like old times?" Kairi asked as she nearly fell and immediately got back up by using her hands.
"Back on Coruscant? You bet!" Cal answered, before BD-1 jumped back onto his back, informing the two that he was done.
"Already?" Kairi asked, as she was out of breath.
"We're not finished yet." Cal stated.
BD-1 beeped as Kairi made it to the top of the hill, resting her hand on the vault structure.
"Okay, okay, you've probably would've won. Kairi, you were not being fair. You've cheated, Jabami." Cal explained before he stood next to Kairi.
"You always get the headstart back in our Younglings days. You never change, Kestis." Kairi explained, before she and Cal stood in front of a sealed off door which was the entrance of the vault.
As Cal was gently touching the vault door with his right hand, Kairi watched as she saw a glowing blue light seeking out between the cracks of it which happens to be the Force.
When Cal took the first breath of concentration on using the Force, the door reacted as it opened slowly, revealing a way inside of the vault.
"It worked." Kairi responded quietly.
"It did." Cal agreed, before he decided to climb inside of the vault with Kairi tailing behind him before the two looked around the vault.
Their feet were touched by water as they could see lily pads and flowers floating in the water. On each side of the vault, there were scriptures of the same statues that were just outside of the vault, meaning that this place that the two were standing inside now was not builded by any other person in the galaxy, but something more sacred and spiritual.
As the two walked forward, BD-1 immediately jumped off and began to scan a circular disc that was in the middle of the vault before they checked on the droid.
"BD-1, are you okay?" Cal asked as Kairi got down on her knees, next to BD-1's left side.
"Well done. Whoever you are. You have passed the test that I have left behind and gained access to the vault and this recording, one of many encryptic logs stored inside of the droid. I am Master Eno Cordova. I may not know who you are, but you have a purpose. The faith of the Jedi Order is rested upon on yours…" Eno Cordova explained as Kairi turned to her right to see Cal watching the hologram, before seeing Iris appeared next to her left side.
"Wow, for an old Jedi Master who found this place he must have done something to the Zeffo and to my homeworld." Iris responded with her arms crossed, before Kairi shushed her which caught Cal's attention away from the hologram.
'Must be me imagining things.' Cal thought as he saw Kairi looking at the hologram of Eno Cordova, before looking back.
"I have placed here a Jedi Holocron. Containing a list of every name and location of the Force Sensitive children in the entire galaxy. But I can only trust this holocron to show who is willing to follow my footsteps to gain access to it…." Eno Cordova continued before Kairi turned to face Iris.
"Your home planet? Where did you come from exactly? Am I not allowed to see your face?" Kairi thought to herself as she looked at Iris who was looking down at a lily pad which had a pink flower on it.
"...Seek out the three sages of the hidden tombs of Zeffo. There for, you may seek peace in the eye of the storm. Good luck, Jedi. And May the Force be with you." Eno Cordova finished after Kairi turned back around to look back at him.
Once it was over, the two Jedi Padawans slowly looked down to BD-1 which the droid look up.
"So you're the someone we're supposed to meet." Cal responded, before he sat down in the water in front of BD-1. He only stared at the bi pedaldroid for a few seconds before speaking again. "You know… Me and Kairi… we have been alone for a long time now… not even having a purpose in life. Just hiding. It's not a good feeling or way to have. Not for a Jedi. Or a droid." Cal explained as BD-1 was staring at the two.
"Cere was right all along. Maybe this is the purpose. This is the right way to go." Kairi stated as she gently placed her hand on Cal's right shoulder while he looked up at her.
"Yeah. We're done hiding." Cal responded as he looked at Kairi, before looking back at BD-1. "Hey uh… do you want to maybe meet… some friends of mine?" He asked as he stood back up.
BD-1 beeped and trilled happily before Kairi laughed at how the droid was excited to meet new people.
Before leaving, Kairi looked back at the scriptures on the wall as she was giving you a hard stare at it until she saw a flash of the Zeffo statues location somewhere else far away.
Somewhere, the sun was bright as the color of fire.
Somewhere that place full of deadly creatures will attack if trespassing.
And somewhere where people wore red which was a bold color and can hear someone chanting in a different language.
Feeling someone touching her shoulder, Kairi jumped back while pulling out her lightsaber as she turned around to see Cal holding his hands up in a defensive way.
"Whoa, Kairi. What has gotten into you?" Cal responded calmly as he kept his distance until Kairi put away her lightsaber.
"Sorry. I have been… jumpy lately since Bracca." Kairi apologized, before Cal gently placed his hand on her left shoulder while the two started walking out of the vault.
Unaware of the planet Kairi just saw with her eyes rolled back and even throughout the hints, she decided to brush it off after almost hurting Cal.