Chapter 2- Events In Motion

Kyrah gathered the remains of the Holocron and navigated her way out of the cave. Once again, she met the unforgiving environment of Arkanis. Climbing back onto the speeder, she began the journey back into town. The entire ride back, she pondered the apparition's final words. What path was she embarking on? What events had been set into motion? Perhaps things would become clearer when she returned to Coruscant. What had transpired worried her, to be sure.

Upon her arrival at the outpost, Kyrah returned to the lot where she'd rented the speeder. She parked it in line with the others and disembarked.

"You're back." A familiar voice said from behind her.

"I am." She turned to face the old man.

"How did it go? Did ya see it?" he asked, each question with a greater sense of urgent persistence.

"I did. It was an ancient artifact…and it has been dealt with."

"So you think," the Sith's voice whispered, seemingly from nowhere. It sent a shiver down her spine. Kyrah glanced over the old man's shoulder only to find the figure standing in the shadows near a building across the street.

"Oh good," the old man said. "I was beginning to think you also got- "he stopped short when he saw Kyrah's eyes widen. "Miss...MISS!"

Kyrah blinked a few times and shook her head to refocus. She looked again; the figure was gone.

"I'm sorry. I thought I saw…" she trailed off.

"Saw what?"

"Never mind, it was nothing."

"Are you sure you're okay, miss?" he asked, concern growing in his voice.

"I promise I'm fine," she said, struggling to not let her voice waver. She inhaled deeply, hoping to calm her frayed nerves before looking at the old man again.

"I must be leaving."

"Of course, you take care of yourself."

"I will..."

As she walked back to the shuttle, Kyrah activated her communicator. "R-3, prep the shuttle for takeoff."

After she boarded the shuttle, R-3 approached her from the cockpit. "Set a course for Coruscant. Since it will be some time before we arrive, I'm going to meditate and rest," Kyrah said. "Please inform me once we arrive or if I'm needed in the interim."

The droid beeped in acknowledgment.

"Thank you, R-3."

As Kyrah reached the back of the shuttle, it made the jump to hyperspace. Setting the two halves of the Holocron down on the table, she made her way over the bench.

While passing a particularly shiny piece of durasteel in the ship's hull, Kyrah couldn't help but notice her reflection. She paused, removed the hood of her cloak, and took a long look at herself.

The rain had soaked her completely and her hair had been disrupted by the wind. Her hair, usually meticulously braided, now hung messily with the loose strands clinging to her face. Kyrah's green eyes were haunted, and she looked ill. Though she'd fought to suppress it, the ordeal had affected her; especially when the apparition reappeared in the town. Her mien told of the fear she was trying so desperately to suppress. Jedi were trained to overcome fear yet here she was, shaken to the core.

She still couldn't make sense of what she'd encountered in the cave. More concerning was the fact that she still saw the figure and heard its voice after destroying the artifact. She'd heard stories of Shadows who became paranoid after spending time around dark side artifacts. Some would begin to see the dark side in everything, even their fellow Jedi. They'd begin to act in ways reminiscent of the Sith, believing it was for the greater good. Kyrah worried the same might happen to her.

For now, all she could do was call upon her Jedi training to fight her emotions as best she could. This required guidance from the masters at the temple.

She sat herself down cross-legged on the bench to prepare for meditation. Even if that could not help ease her fears, perhaps it would provide clarity regarding the shift she'd felt in the force. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and began to focus.

After some time, the force began to speak to her. She felt hot like she was on a desert planet. Then, ever so faintly, she began to hear a chorus of unrecognizable, inhuman cries. The sounds of men yelling followed, their words indiscernible through unmistakable blaster fire. It became louder and louder, unbearable even, before coming to a sudden halt. In the silence, she heard another voice she instantly registered as Grand Master Yoda's.

"The shroud of the dark side has fallen…"

Master Yoda's voice became overpowered by sinister laughter. This laughter came from two voices, one she did not recognize and one she'd hoped to not hear. The familiar voice broke off its laughter.

"Do you understand now, Kyrah? I warned you…"

The voice trailed off as the unfamiliar laughter dominated. Kyrah felt her meditative state breaking. Her eyes shot open as she gasped.

R-3 appeared in the doorway, beeping to inform her that they were coming up on Coruscant. Kyrah slowly stood up and followed the droid to the cockpit.

When the shuttle dropped out of hyperspace and began the approach vector, she noticed several large ships had built a formation around the planet.

She knew for a fact that they had not been present when she departed the Republic capital. There was a large range of ships occupying Coruscant's air traffic at any given time. However, these were battle cruisers and the Republic hadn't had a standing army for generations.

The comm system began to chime and R-3 warbled with uncertainty in response. The flagship was hailing them.

"Put the transmission through R-3," she said calmly. The droid responded by plugging into the system and rotating the scomp link.

A man's stoic voice spoke. "This is the Republic cruiser Avius requesting identification, manner of travel, and destination from T-6 shuttle."

"This is Jedi Knight Kyrah Zamora. I am returning to the Jedi temple from an off-world mission."

"Do you have military ID codes?"

"Military ID codes? No, I don't."

"We are at war ma'am; you will need ID codes to proceed past the blockade."

"War?"

Counting travel time, she'd been gone no longer than a standard month. Had the Republic really gone to war in that short span of time?

"It seems I was dispatched on this mission before the senate issued a declaration of war," she continued. "Therefore, I don't have ID codes established yet. Can you put me through to the Jedi temple's communications tower? They should be able to sort this out."

There was a brief silence. "One moment, ma'am. I will put you through, but do not deviate from your present course."

"Understood."

After another period of silence, a different voice spoke through the comm. "This is Jedi Knight Mal Denan."

"Denan," she said. "This is Kyrah Zamora."

"One moment, please. I must verify your name in the archive," he replied. After yet another period of silence on the comm, the Jedi's voice returned. "Greetings, Zamora. How may I assist you?"

"I'm returning from an off-world mission. It seems there have been some drastic changes since I was last at the temple. A blockade of warships is preventing me from entering the system. They are requesting military ID codes I don't possess. Is there any way you can assist me with getting past the blockade?"

"I should be able to. Give me a moment to speak with them. You'll likely be asked to transmit your ship's ID signature to the Avius and go through a scan. It's just you on the shuttle, right?"

"Not a problem, Denan. I only have an astromech with me."

A second later the first man's voice returned. "This is the Avius, please transmit your ID signature and await a life form scan."

"Very well," she said.

The astromech confirmed the evaluation with an uneasy beep. The communications officer's voice then returned. "Everything checks out, you are cleared to land at the Jedi temple."

"Excellent. Thank you," she said before the transmission was cut.

She piloted the ship manually to the temple hangar's landing pad. Once she had landed and extended the docking ramp, Kyrah returned to the back of the shuttle to grab the two halves of the Holocron. Shortly after doing so, she trailed behind the astromech down the ramp and into the hangar.