Mandalorian Jedi

by Gabe Z

This is the story of Aric Jaro, a Jedi trained in secret during the trilogy. He has a variety of adventures with his droid, Chirpy, and meets up with the Young Jedi Knights later in the series.

2. A Chance Meeting

Mandalorian Jedi, chapter 1 - A Chance Meeting

By Gabe Z.

PG

YJK-Action

Disclaimer - George Lucas owns Star Wars and all related subsidiaries. I, however, own Aric, Lirkana, Lars, Chirpy (R2-A1), and some other characters that I'm probably going to make up.

Description - Aric continues his mission on Dathomir and meets some familiar faces. It takes place sometime between the Diversity Alliance arc and the last trilogy. Yeah, I know the joke has already been told, but it's new to Aric and Lirkana.

Note: I would have gotten this us a few days ago had it not been for school starting. I have to hit the sack earlier so I can't write as much at night, but rest assured I'll keep 'em coming, just be patient!

Snap! Aric froze instantly as the twig snapped beneath his heavy boot, and the pieces sloshed onto the ground near him. Lirkana paused just behind him and listened, eyes narrowed, an air of concentration boiling off of her. Satisfied that she heard nothing out of the ordinary, she motioned for Aric to continue. He reached back onto his backpack and unfastened his helmet from its place on the pack. He pulled the final piece of the armor over his head and clipped the chip strap secure. He stood for a few moments to adjust to the switch in fields of vision, but he was used to it and adapted momentarily. He continued to walk softly along his course, and Lirkana followed close behind, alert.

- - - -

Jacen was shaken by what he saw through the macrobinoculars. Boba Fett? No way! What would he be doing on Dathomir? His curiosity was further compounded when he noticed what looked like a lightsaber dangling from his belt. So he wasn't Boba Fett, he just wore the armor. And he was a Jedi? If he had his lightsaber, he must have been fully trained, but Jacen didn't know of any Jedi besides the ones trained by Luke Skywalker's academy. He shot a glance beside him to look at Tenel Ka, whom he had accompanied on a visit to her homeworld. She also held a pair of macrobinoculars, and he assumed she had already seen what he had seen. Just to be safe, he asked her. "Did you see. . ."

"Indeed, friend Jacen. I also know the warrior he is with. She is Lirkana Tai, and was one of my friends during my childhood here."

Jacen just nodded and continued to observe the two figures. They began to fade from his view and he increased magnification to maximum. He could now see the Jedi and warrior in detail, but was shaken when he saw the Jedi stop, and nod at him.

- - - -

"Lirkana, I think we're being watched."

He deftly reached into his pack and withdrew a compact pair of macrobinoculars and handed them to Lirkana. She quickly activated them. Aric poked his elbow in the direction where he suspected their watchers to be. She pointed the magnifiers in that direction, and Aric detected surprise when she spotted them. "One of my friends is up there." she said.

"Really? Why are they watching us, then?"

"It is my friend, warrior Tenel Ka, who is a Jedi, at least in training. She has a man with her, possibly another Jedi."

Other Jedi? Here? "Where do they. . . train?"

Lirkana Tai paused for a moment and thought. "I believe that it is a moon in the Yavin system."

Yavin, eh? He made a mental note to make his next stop on the moon to see what a Jedi training institution was like. After all, he had never known any Jedi besides his master, and had only trained one-to-one with a master Jedi. He was eager to meet others, but at the same time, very apprehensive. He figured, with a wan smile on his face, that if he was being watched, the armor was giving the observers some amount of nervousness.

The two continued walking and covered about three klicks before stopping to rest in a small sheltered area beneath a huge tree. Aric unstrapped his pack and laid it down on the damp ground by the rock Lirkana was sitting on, sharpening a wicked-looking knife with an equally wicked-looking rock. Aric started and stood up, senses alert. He removed his helmet and tossed it to the ground. He unhooked his lightsaber and held it in a passive position at his side. Lirkana noticed his behavior and stowed the sharpening stone in a little lizard skin pouch at her side. She brought the knife to the ready at assumed a combat stance a few meters from Aric.

Aric felt the tingling of his danger sense, but sensed no harmful intent, just challenge mixed with some curiosity. He whirled to his left, igniting his lightsaber just in time to parry with an electric violet blade. He delivered a flurry of blows and performed a Force-assisted backflip to see his assailant. Probably the Jedi-in-training that Lirkana had spotted with the other warrior women. He wondered where Tenel Ka was; probably waiting in ambush. The Jedi recovered and ran towards Aric. Aric thumbed the dual-phase button on his saber and the yellow blade extended into a double length white blade, stopping the charging teen mere centimeters before he speared himself on the extended column of energy. The teen Jedi drew back in surprise, but Aric saw an expression on his face that belied his situation. Aric whirled in time to catch the warrior woman Jedi in mid-jump. He slashed with lightsaber and she fell out of the air, rolling to the ground and leaping up in a defensive position. Aric decided that even though he was extensively trained in lightsaber combat, two foes, even if they were potential allies, it would be better to end it quickly. He closed his eyes and projected visions in the other two Jedis' minds.

The two Jedi that attacked him were immediately calmed and put away their sabers. Aric switched his back from dual-phase mode and deactivated it. He clipped it to his belt and crossed his arms. "And you two are?"

The man who had attacked him offered an answer. "I'm Jacen Solo, Jedi Knight. Looks like you are, too."

"That's true. I'm Aric Jaro, Jedi Knight, not it training."

Aric glanced over his shoulder and saw Tenel Ka and Lirkana Tai conversing. He figured that they had recognized each other and had decided that there was nothing worth fighting over. He overheard some snippets of conversation. "Handsome one. . . yes. . . take him back."

He shook his head and smiled. "So, Jacen, what brings you here? And what in the name of Lieutenant Kettch are you doing following me? Us?"

"I was just here with Tenel Ka on a visit. I just got sort of suspicious when someone wearing Mandalorian armor showed up."

"Yeah, I seem to have that effect. So, Lirkana Tai over there was telling me about a Jedi academy that you train at? I didn't know it existed."

Jacen looked a bit surprised. "It's on Yavin 4, a moon in, well, the Yavin system. Abandoned Rebel Alliance base."

"Yes, I've heard of it."

"So if you don't know about the academy. . . how did you become a Jedi?"

Aric closed his eyes for a moment and decided to keep it short. "Well, I was born shortly after the destruction of the first Death Star. A friend of the family felt that I had Force potential, and at age eight I was shipped off to some planet in the Unknown Regions, and I was trained by a Chiss Jedi Master."

"Chiss?" Jacen replied, a shiver visible throughout him.

"Yeah, I know all about Thrawn and such, but he was nothing like that murderer. He was, well, a bit eccentric, but was Yoda not eccentric?"

Jacen replied with a nod and put his fist to his chin to ponder all that Aric had just told him. "Let's see. . . first Death Star would make you, what, twenty-two?"

"Yeah. You're about sixteen, if I have my years correct."

"How'd you know that?"

Aric smiled a thin smile and replied. "I know my history. You and Jaina's birth wasn't exactly secret."

Jacen reciprocated the smile. "Yeah, I suppose not. Well, what are you doing in this place, anyway?"

"I was supposed to meet an old friend here to help him do. . . a few things."

Jacen nodded and turned to the two conversing warrior women. "Tenel Ka, meet Aric Jaro, fellow Jedi Knight."

"I am pleased to meet you, Aric Jaro."

"The pleasure is all mine."

Aric turned to address the minuscule assembly before him. "Well, Lirkana, shall we?"

Tenel Ka spoke up. "We wish to go with you."

Jacen added his approval to her idea. Aric was pleased that they would have help. "Well, glad to have you on board, Jacen and Tenel Ka."

"Lead on, Aric." said Lirkana Tai.

- - - -

The four came within five klicks of Lars's location by nightfall, and they set up camp around a small rock formation protruding from the ground. Aric unpacked his ration kit and handed out the tasteless ration bars and water packets to each traveler. "Sorry about the lack of gourmet, but it'll do."

Jacen replied. "Yeah, we're used to these tasteless little pink cubes. Hey, want to hear a joke."

"Uh, whatever."

"What's the difference between an AT-AT and a stormtrooper?"

Aric rolled his eyes. "Beats me. What?"

"One's an Imperial walker, the other's a walking Imperial!"

Aric groaned and put his hand to his forehead. Tenel Ka remained mirthless, as did Lirkana Tai. These warrior women just didn't laugh, did they? Aric popped the remainder of his ration bar in his mouth and lay down on the soft, wet ground. Moments later, he was asleep, soon followed by the others. Lirkana was the last to lay down, and before she did, she gently kissed Aric on the forehead. "Good night, Aric." she muttered.

- - - -

Aric was also the first to wake in the morning mist. He rose and shouldered his pack and waited for the others to wake. One by one, they arose, and within ten minutes the party was ready to go. Aric checked the coordinates on the rangefinder in his helmet. "Looks like we've got about four and a half klicks to Lars."

Tenel Ka had a slightly puzzled expression on her face. "Lars?"

"Yeah, Lars. Old friend of mine, I'm supposed to meet him here."

She nodded and continued on. The four were at the coordinates Aric had received from Lars within three hours, and Aric surveyed the area. He was baffled by the lack of, well, anything, where they were. Then he realized what he needed to do. He switched on the infrared vision in his helmet and was greeted by the faint, but obvious outline of a small spacecraft, not twenty meters in front of them. "Ah, there it is. Follow me, please."

Jacen looked surprised. "How do you know."

Aric tapped his helmet and said one word that made him understand. "Infrared."

They came up to the ship, and Aric found the hatch. He thumped the door with his gloved fist, and was greeted by the muzzle of a blaster rifle through a hole in the hatch. "Who is it?"

"Lars! Aric Jaro!"

"Aric? Is that really you?"

"Yeah. Now what did you want to talk about?"

"Oh, right, right."

The blaster withdrew from the port in the door and a series of beeps followed as the door slid open. Lars eyed the two warrior women and Jacen suspiciously. "Who're they?"

"Don't worry, they're just friends. Met them all here, in fact."

Lars's frown turned to a wry smile. "Almost got captured, did ya?"

Aric chuckled. "Yeah."

"Well, come on in, and have a seat."

The four followed Lars into the small ship and were seated in the passenger lounge. Lars addressed Aric. "Well, the reason I brought you here is my latest venture. You remember the undersea mining operation on Mon Calamari?"

Aric shook his head. His friend, nine years older than him, was always getting into some crazy business venture. But this was a new thing; Aric had never known a time when he had needed help. "Yeah, the ore mining station?"

"Right, that's the one. Well, you know how the Remnant surrendered about three years ago? A rogue contingent of Imperials took over my station and are diverting all production to help rebuild the Empire's arsenal."

Aric's eyes narrowed. He hated the Imperials for all that they had done, and it had just become personal. "Well, do you just want the Imperials off the station? Or something more?"

"Well, getting them off would be nice. And I think your armor would provide sufficient fear for them to not come back. Right?"

Arid nodded. Yet another use for the old, unused Mandalorian armor he had picked up in the Koornacht Cluster. "Well, I have a few things to do, a moon to visit, before I can help. I think that I can be there within a week. That alright?"

"Hey, as soon as you can is fine with me."

"Well then, we'll be going. May the Force be with you."

Aric rose, followed by Tenel Ka, Jacen, and Lirkana Tai. They walked down the ramp. "You too, Aric." replied Lars.

- - - -

Aric had forgotten all about the supposed 'capture' by Lirkana Tai. Jacen and Tenel Ka had went back to her ship to depart for Yavin 4, where the Jedi academy was, he had been told. Jacen left him a set of hyperspace jumps that would get him to the moon in less than a day. They were gone, and now Aric had to accompany Lirkana back to a tiny village not five klicks from Lars's ship., as her 'prize.' The nav computer must not have recognized this in his scan for encampments when he landed. He sincerely hoped that it would have no lasting implications. He was bound at the wrists and led into the village. Several guards atop domesticated rancors turned to stare at Aric, admiring Lirkana's 'catch.' One even offered to buy him away from her, but fortunately, she decided to 'keep' him.

She led him back to her hut in the village and sat him in a chair. "I'm sorry to put you through this. I do not really enjoy this historical custom, but it is important to remain in good standing with the elders. Besides. . ." she trailed off as she unbound his wrists and straddled him on the chair. "I don't think you mind being captured all that much." she teased as she ran a finger lightly over his jaw.

He replied, trying to sound witty. "No, I don't, I suppose."

She shut him up by pressing her mouth to his. His wrists were sore from the cord, but he managed to get them around Lirkana Tai's waist. She backed away from him and set about gathering some things from shelved scattered about the room and then threw them into a cloth sack. He sat, reeling from the kiss she had just given him. He was relieved to not have to act as a slave. And he was happy that the red-haired warrior woman found him attractive. And he found her attractive. Oh yes, he found her attractive. His lips still tingled from the kiss as he observed her moving quickly about the room. "What are you doing?"

She paused momentarily in her task. "I wish to accompany you to Yavin."

Aric sat back in the chair, a bit stunned by her sudden decision. "Um, really? How did you know. . ."

"I observe and listen well, Aric."

"Yes, I suppose so. Wait. Won't just leaving like this affect your status or something?"

She sighed and offered a heavy shrug. "It will, true, but I have no desire to remain in this place. I do not enjoy the traditional customs of the world, though I have adapted rather well. I want to see the galaxy, to not be grounded on Dathomir."

Aric put his hands to his chin and pondered for a moment. "I guess I see where you're coming from on this. Okay, you can come with me. Just one question: how are we going to leave this place undetected."

"We wait until night, but that will most likely not be sufficient to cover our escape. I was under the impression that you could provide some cover."

He frowned. "I could provide a Force illusion. . ."

He didn't like using the Force to twist the minds of others into believing something other than reality, but sometimes circumstances called for more than usual methods. She interrupted his thoughts. "It is dusk. We will be able to leave in a few hours. Tell me, where is your ship?"

"About, say, ten or twelve klicks from here. Should be able to reach it by morning if we hustle."

She adopted a thin smile and nodded, satisfied. "So it shall be. But before anything else, please tell me about yourself."

"Well, I was born on Ord Mantell, about a month before the first Death Star. . ."

- - - -

Night had fallen. Aric quietly placed his Mandalorian helmet on and paused for a moment to adjust the scanners for night vision. Lirkana followed close behind. Just outside of the hut, they could both see several rancor guards keeping watch on the perimeter of the village. Suddenly, Aric caught a flash of movement. Just a flare in the otherwise dull green landscape of his night vision. He also felt a vicious presence. After him. He turned to Lirkana and whispered. "There's someone out there on the horizon."

"I see. Do you know who it is?"

"Not exactly. But I have a bad feeling that if it is, there won't be a village left here. We've got to do something."

The shape moved closer, now accompanied by another dozen. A sinking feeling built up in Aric's gut as his danger sense tingled violently. Espos. They must have followed me here, and they'll stop at nothing to have my head on a stick. He looked to his right and saw that Lirkana was no longer by his side. A second later, he heard a monstrous clang as the village's alert gong was sounded. The rancor guards immediately picked up and scanned the horizons. Spotting the intruding Espos, the guards charged them. Good. They should have a fighting chance, even if the Espos have blasters. He saw flashes of fire and the glinting silver of spears in the distance, as a furious battle raged. Lirkana came running to him and pointed in the direction of the battle. "Come, we must assist my clansisters."

Aric was torn between what to do. He knew he should stay and protect the village. It was, after all, him that the Espos we searching for. He drew up his lightsaber and ignited it, its yellow glow giving the two an ethereal radiance. They charged into the fray.

Aric arrived first, to be greeted by a hail of blaster bolts. A rancor bellowed in pain and fell heavily to the ground, throwing its beleaguered rider to the ground. The dozen Corporate Sector troops had been reduced to five, who were still blazing away with wild abandon. The warrior women were faring no better. Three of the four rancors had been slaughtered, along with as many women. Aric decided that it was time to change the balance of the fight. Lirkana was already in the fracas, and was going hand to hand with one of the troops. She stabbed her wicked knife into his gut and he doubled over, coughing up blood as he slumped to the ground. Aric charged the nearest troop, lightsaber at the ready. He deflected a small rain of blaster fire and slashed the nearest troop cleanly across the stomach, bisecting him. The last rancor went down, spouting blackish blood from a dozen wounds. Aric decided that the battle was not going well, as the Espos were turning the tide quickly. Time for drastic measures.

He reached into his pack and withdrew a beckon call. Quickly activating it, he yelled. "Chirpy! Get over to. . ." he paused as he transmitted a set of coordinates. "Power up the antipersonnel guns and be ready to fire!"

He heard Chirpy blat back a series of affirmations. Aric prayed to the Force that his reliable astromech would arrive with the Nightwolf in time to save the village. He slashed another Espo as the familiar roar of ion engines filled the sky. He yelled. "Lirkana! Get down!"

He dived and rolled to the ground and Lirkana did the same, just as Chirpy opened fire with the lower blaster cannon, lighting up the area with a hail of antipersonnel bolts. Two more Espos went down, clutching various wounds. Aric yelled, hoping that the ship's security measures were functional. "Chirpy! Open up shop!"

He was more than a little relieved when the boarding ramp lowered. Lirkana leaped in, followed quickly by Aric. The hatch sealed shut with a hiss and the ramp retracted. "Chirpy, give me one pass at that Espo vehicle!" he yelled as he sprinted into the lower gunwell. He powered up the quad laser cannon with Force-assisted speed and drew a bead on the troop carrier that was slaughtering the village. He let the Force flow through him, and when he felt the time was right, he let loose a hail of yellow-orange laser bolts, and was rewarded by a yellow-white explosion as the troop carrier met its maker. The last trooper was flung almost twenty meters by the explosion, and hit a tree, falling to the ground, unconscious or dead. Aric, let out his held breath and slumped back in his gunnery chair, powering down the powerful laser battery. He ran a hand through his sweaty hair and loosened the catches on the now constricting armor. He climbed up the short ladder to the passenger hold and found Lirkana sitting in a chair, trying to tend a nasty-looking wound on her thigh. "Lirkana! You're hurt badly. Let me help you."

He quickly keyed open a compartment in the wall of the rear of the ship, the wall that divided the rest of the ship from the compact though powerful engine assembly. He grabbed a medkit and hurried back to the passenger lounge. She was beginning to look pale and tired from loss of blood. He tore open the kit and removed a large pad of fiber gauze and applied it to the wound. He suddenly felt a little nervous, looking at her thigh that way. No, no, he told himself. You need to do this, she might die if I don't! He shook his head and stopped the flow of blood eventually. He removed a field cauterizer to close the wound, and then removed a bacta wrap from the kit, depleting the small canister of the miracle medicine into the empty bandage. He wrapped the bandage around her leg and elevated it onto the small table to keep it from bleeding any more. She was almost unconscious from dizziness and loss of blood, but he distinctly heard her say one thing: "Thank you, Aric."

- - - -

Aric was extremely relieved at not finding any Espo cruisers waiting in orbit to ambush him. Even so, he slaved his two gun turrets together and kept them online, as well as the heavy ion cannon array. Lirkana slept quietly in the single bed of the Nightwolf's cabin, and he checked on her every few hours, inspecting the wound. It looked ugly at the time, but with the bacta wrap, it should be good as new in a few weeks. Chirpy rolled into the cockpit and swivelled his dome to face Aric, and blatted a series of questions, but first and foremost expressed his worry. "Yes, yes, Chirpy, I'm just fine. Glad you care." he chuckled.

"Who's who?"

The astromech hooted indignantly in a kind of 'don't play stupid with me' kind of rebuke. "Oh, her?"

Chirpy whistled excitedly. "Oh, yeah. That's Lirkana Tai. She's one of the warrior women from Dathomir."

The droid beeped sarcastically. "Oh, yes, I'm sure you knew that." Chirpy whirred and beeped. "What? No! I'm not in love with her. Where in the name of the Force do you come up with this?"

The astromech emitted a sequence of high beeps, obviously smug laughter. "Oh yeah? Well, keep acting like that and I might just scrap you, huh? Or have your memory wiped. How'd ya like that, pal?"

Chirpy blatted exactly what he thought of that. "Hey, hey, don't get touchy. I'm just kiddin' around."

The droid swivelled its dome as if shaking its head. Chirpy rolled to the other side of the cockpit and jacked into the main computer, content to converse with the computer until they reached Yavin 4. Aric checked the nav computer. About eight hours to the moon. "Chirpy, keep us on course. If anything happens, let me know."

The droid gave a hasty acknowledgment and shooed him away. Aric sat in one of the small lounge's chairs and removed his torso armor. He pulled on the shirt he wore underneath, as it had become damp and hot with sweat. He stripped off the rest of the light armor which had become so heavy since the fight on Dathomir. He removed his sweaty shirt and tossed it into the fresher's laundry bin. He turned the shower to full blast and let it run for several moments before stepping in. Before he did, however, he poked his head in the cabin to check on Lirkana. She appeared to be sleeping, but the fact that she rolled over just before he came in and was wearing a broad smile on her lips, belied the fact that she had been enjoying watching him remove his clothing. He stifled the urge to laugh but could not help feel a bit self conscious as he closed the fresher door, stripped the rest of his clothing away and stepped into the shower.

Fifteen minutes later, refreshed and invigorated by the hot shower, he stepped out into the small but complete fresher, tying a towel around his waist. He regarded his stubbly self in the mirror, lamenting on the fact that he hadn't shaved in close to a week. He withdrew a razor and lopped off the excess hair, leaving only a trace of stubble. He dressed quickly and opened the fresher door to find Lirkana up and about, limping, but trying determinedly to walk. He quickly ran to her and helped her sit in one of the three chairs scattered about the lounge. "You really need to rest, you shouldn't try to put much pressure on that for at least a day or two. We'll have the people on Yavin take a look at it when we get there."

"No, I have to recover myself. Tradition demands it."

"I thought you hated traditions."

"Not all of them. Why do you think I still wear this armor? Or keep my hair the way I do?"

Aric paused and smiled. "Well, I can think of several reasons, right off the top of my head. . ."

She giggled and he was about to make a much more suggestive comment before Chirpy poked his dome around the corner from the cockpit and blatted loudly. "He says we're in the Yavin system. We should be dropping out of hyperspace in about ten minutes."

"All right. Wait, what was it that you wanted to say to me?"

"Erm, nothing. . ." he trailed off, suddenly feeling very self conscious. They sat in awkward silence for a while, and she was just about to press the issue when the hyperspace warning indicators beeped. Glad to be out of such a situation, Aric hopped to his feet, pulled on the rest of his armor and walked into the forward area of the ship. Just as he walked through the low door into the cockpit, Chirpy shrilled in alarm. Aric hustled into the cockpit and saw just what was making the little droid so agitated. As soon as he sat quickly in the pilot's chair, he knew what was wrong. An Imperial Star Destroyer hung in low orbit over the green moon of Yavin 4. Muttering a string of vile curses under his breath, he quickly ran a sensor sweep on the Destroyer, then proceeded to power all shields and weapons. Chirpy let out a low, mournful moan as if anticipating the potentially deadly skirmish that might occur. He yelled back to the passenger lounge. "Lirkana! We've got trouble. Buckle in and sit tight, this might be a wild ride."

He was slaving the quads, the ion array, and the concussion missile tube together when he received a transmission from the moon. It was an extremely attractive woman, with silvery-white hair and slightly pointed ears. It was a wide band distress call. "This is the Jedi academy on Yavin 4. An Imperial Star Destroyer is in orbit and is bombarding us! We need help! Anyone. . ." the image fizzled out as the battleship's turbolasers flared to life, sending a withering hail of fire down upon the Jedi moon. Aric knew the situation was desperate; even at maximum hyperspeed, the New republic couldn't get even a Corellian Corvette to the system in time. Aric, knowing the odds were extremely stacked against him, decided that he needed to protect the academy. Even if he knew only two if the people staying there.

"Chirpy, calibrate weapons systems to the T. I need a full status report on monitor five-two, stat."

The droid hooted and a schematic appeared on a monitor to his left. Good, all systems ready to go. He let the Force flow through him. It felt even stronger than normal, probably since he was in close proximity of so many Force users. He brought the engines to life and set an evasive attack pattern towards the bridge of the huge ship. No mind was paid to him on the first pass; no TIEs were deployed, either. A good sign. He depressed the trigger for the first time, sending a barrage made up of orange laser fire, electric blue ion pulses, and red-pink concussion missiles. As he swung the Nightwolf around for another pass, he looked back to see if any damage had been caused. Sure enough, a small explosion and fire burst from the white hull of the command tower. Now things were heating up. The Destroyer turned some of its turbolasers on his ship as the previously dormant ion cannons flared to life. Aric pulled the ship into a tight downward loop and made a pass at on of the spherical shield generators on top of the bridge. Letting loose a barrage of six missiles, he pulled the ship away just as it was rocked by a stray turbolaser blast. The ship rumbled violently, but the shields held and the Nightwolf veered away as the ball-shaped shield generator exploded in a brilliant flash of yellow-white, showering the area with debris.

The ship now had all of its turbolasers and ion cannons tracking Aric's ship, hoping to get lucky and score a hit. Aric veered around stray bolt after stray bolt and decided that it was time to stop taking needless chances. He veered away from the Star Destroyer his computer had just identified as Eliminator, a ship commanded by one of the rogue moffs hoping to regain a foothold in the galactic chain of government. He was gratified to see a Mon Cal cruiser come out of hyperspace near the destroyer and begin to engage it. The firestorm stopped for a moment, and Aric let his guard down. He was jolted as an ion burst hit the ship, full on, frying all systems and rendering the engines nearly useless. Chirpy let out a long wail, then shut down, falling to the floor with a clunk. Aric flipped the switch for a cold start and prayed to the Force that he could keep them in the air long enough for the engines to reboot. He knew he couldn't keep the ship in the air with his own power. He just wasn't that strong.

He glanced quickly at a diagnostic panel to his right and saw Lirkana sitting in the seat to his right. He hadn't even noticed her in the heat of the battle. "Didn't I say to sit tight back there?"

"I've never been a very good listener." she replied flatly.

"Well, that and a lot of other things aren't going to matter in three minutes unless this flying junk heap can get a cold start running. If it doesn't well. . . let's not talk about that."

Lirkana Tai's cool composure seemed to melt ever so slightly at his grim speculation. He glanced at the nav computer. One minute until impact. Forty seconds to restart. It would be a tight squeeze if he had ever been in one. It would take ten seconds after the reboot to kick the engines and five or more seconds to pull away, if the sharp break didn't completely destroy the repulsors with its sudden shift. . .

He tried to focus as the seconds ticked away. A bead of sweat ran down his forehead and dribbled onto his armor, running down the polished green as he kept stoically confident. It was almost time. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. . .

The roar of the engines was deafening, but Aric didn't hesitate to slam them to full power and pull hard up on the rudder. . . there was a screech of metal as the bottom of the Nightwolf scraped heavily with the tarmac of the academy's landing pad. He pulled up and around, setting it into a steady, slow approach pattern. Breathing heavily, he wiped a thick film of sweat from his forehead, and swiped away some strands of hair that were stubbornly clinging to his damp face. Lirkana looked as if she was doing her best to kept her stern facade, but the relief that she felt was plainly evident to Aric as he used the Force to calm his writhing nerves. Five minutes passed and he broke his quick meditation. He keyed into the diagnostic computer to find that most everything was shorted out, but was repairable. Chirpy was recovering from his jolt, swivelling his dome about wildly, bleating and blooping, confused.

Aric laughed a bit as he flipped the gear switch. The ship's three landing legs extended from hidden slots in its belly. A moment later they were on the ground. The landing gear gave a loud hiss of compressed air being released, and the ship settled onto the landing pad. Lirkana looked relieved to be on the ground. Aric wondered if it was her first time traveling through space. If it was, well, he had given her a hell of a show, by all means.

He looked out the large forward viewport and saw several figures standing on the landing strip about fifteen meters from the ship. He recognized Jacen and Tenel Ka and saw an older man, whose figures gave him the appearance of a man wizened beyond his years. There were a few others there whom he didn't recognize. He rose from his seat and stretched, to a symphony of popping joints and sore muscles from sitting tensely for so long. Chirpy moved to followed him, as did Lirkana. He wiped the condensing moisture off of his armor and keyed open the landing ramp. He didn't bother to engage the security protocols; he could sense no danger or harmful intent anywhere in this place. He walked to the hatch and breathed heavily. He started down the ramp.

He walked out onto the tarmac and glanced in the direction of the welcomers. They were walking to him, joined now by a golden droid and a short, stubby astromech that looked much like Chirpy. The older man arrived first and greeted him. "Hello, Aric. I am Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master. Jacen and Tenel Ka have told me much about you."

Aric felt vulnerable and exhilarated at the same time. He wasn't sure what to say, so he stuttered a bit. "Well, uh, nice to meet you too, Master Skywalker."

The younger Jedi approached and greeted him in turn. Last to arrive were the droids, who eagerly conversed with Chirpy. The golden droid, obviously a protocol unit, greeted Chirpy. "I am See-threepio, human-cyborg relations, and this is my counterpart, Artoo-detoo."

Chirpy blatted what was obviously a greeting, and Threepio appeared surprised. "An A1 model? How exciting! I have never met a droid such as yourself! I am pleased to make your acquaintance, R2-A1."

Threepio's companion echoed those thoughts. The three droids ambled off, Threepio in the lead, the two astromechs rolling behind, excitedly exchanging whistles and beeps. Jacen and Tenel Ka walked off in the opposite direction, followed by Lirkana, who was talking with Tenel Ka, about Dathomir and how life had been since she had last lived their. That left Aric and Luke Skywalker to talk. Aric felt a bit nervous in the presence of a Jedi Master whom he didn't know, but he calmed himself and prepared for any questions that the Jedi might ask. "Aric, may I examine your lightsaber?"

That was a question he wasn't expecting. But he obliged, and handed the metal cylinder to the Jedi Master. "Interesting," he mused as he ignited it and the whitish-yellow blade slowly extended with a hiss. "Dual-phase. I know of only one other Jedi who built a dual phase lightsaber, and he was instructed by a Jedi Master of old. Tell me, how were you instructed in the Force?"

Aric sucked in a deep breath. "It's a long story. . ."

"I have plenty of time."

Aric took another breath and began. "Well, I was born on Ord Mantell, and when I was eight, a friend of the family took me to a world in the Unknown Regions, and I was trained by a Chiss Jedi. . ."

"Chiss?" Skywalker shivered visibly at the mention of the race. Just the name seemed to be able to send a chill down the spine of just about any sentient being in the universe. Aric continued as the two Jedi walked towards the temple. Luke returned the lightsaber, and the two walked along, discussing all things of the Force.

- - - -

Aric laid down on the firm but comfortable sleeping pallet in the guest room that had been afforded to him. He had been hesitant to accept such hospitality; years of experience had taught him to always look for an ulterior motive. However, he had sensed nothing but warm, friendly thoughts throughout the temple, so he decided to accept. Lirkana Tai was in the room directly across the hall on the lowest floor of the ancient Massassi temple, the history of which Master Skywalker had been more than happy to enlighten him on. He was tired, but it was a good sort of tired, the tiredness one felt at the end of a productive day.

His tiredness was interrupted by a soft knock on the door. "Yes?" he called.

"Aric Jaro? Jaina Solo, Jacen's brother? Mind if I come in?"

"Sure, come on in."

Jaina stepped through the door. Aric looked up at her and was momentarily stunned by her beautiful features. He lightly shook his head and motioned to the lone chair in the room. "Please, have a seat."

She looked down and fidgeted for a moment. "It's, uh, nice to meet you."

Aric smiled softly. "You too."

She smiled back. "I, urm, heard that you were pretty good with a lightsaber. . ." she trailed off, sounding hopeful, her voice a bit soft.

"Why? You need some practice?"

"Well, yeah," she replied nervously.

Why was she so nervous? Must just be jitters, he thought. She probably wasn't attracted to him. "Well, do you really think you could take me on?"

She smiled and replied. "Well, never hurts to try, hm?"

He shook his head and laughed. "No, I suppose not. I'll try to be careful."

She hopped up from the chair and walked to the door. "I'll meet you out at the landing pad, in, say, fifteen minutes?"

"It's a date." Did I just say that?

She smiled broadly and left his room. He shook his head again and sighed. Is this why he was here? To be lightsaber practice for a bunch of wet-behind-the-ears Jedi trainees? No, no, don't underestimate them. Still, he was afraid that his vast lightsaber skills, combined with his dual phase saber, could be a deadly combination, even in practice. Especially in practice. He rose from the bed, his hope of catching a short nap shot for the evening. He slipped the breastplate of his Mandalorian armor over his head and secured the leg, arm, and crotch plates, then slipped on his white gloves with black backs on. He double checked all the fastenings and then clipped his lightsaber to his belt, patting the comforting shape of the cylinder at his side. He walked out the door and locked it. Starting down the corridor, a figure ran to meet him. Jacen Solo. "Hello, Jacen."

"Hey, Aric. What'cha up to?"

"Just going to meet Jaina for some lightsaber practice."

"Really? Sounds like fun. You could give her a run for her money, I can vouch for that. Hey, mind if I watch you guys practice?"

An odd request, but Aric couldn't see the harm in it. "Yeah, sure, why not."

Jacen grinned and headed in the other direction. "Okay, I'll be there."

- - - -

Aric groaned and shook his head as he waited at the landing pad for Jaina. Jacen and a dozen other students had gathered a the place to watch this new arrival take on the supposed lightsaber ace of the academy. Others arrived by the minute, until Jaina showed up. All told, about fifteen students had showed up for the practice session. "Quite a crowd, eh, Jaina?"

She laughed. "Yeah, looks like it."

Aric looked around and saw Jacen, Tenel Ka, and a dozen others he didn't recognize, including a huge ginger-furred Wookiee, a pair of Trandoshans, a human in some gaudily colored robes, among others. Aric drew his lightsaber and held it at ready at his right side. "Ready when you are."

She drew her own lightsaber and ignited it. A green shaft of light appeared and she tensed in concentration. Aric wasn't sure if this was such a good idea. He had the dual-phase saber, and was infinitely more experienced. But it couldn't hurt to take practice wherever it presented it, right? He narrowed his eyes and let the Force course through him, and he could feel it take hold of his body. Jaina charged at him and thrust her saber at his torso. He blocked low and parried high, the green and yellow lightsabers crashing together and making a crackling hiss. Aric muscled his saber lower towards Jaina and she strained with exertion as beads of sweat dripped down her brow. She rolled away and Aric drew away and shook his head, sending little drops of sweat flying from his hair. He held the ignited weapon and his side in a passive position and watched as Jaina recovered. He sensed her ready to try something, and just as she began to charge, Aric thumbed the second button on his lightsaber and the extended white sword extended. Jaina's eyes widened and she dived to the ground to avoid a collision with the weapon. She rolled to the ground and her lightsaber clattered to the pavement and sputtered out as she hit the tarmac hard. Aric stretched out with the Force and drew her saber to him. "Had enough?"

She grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I think so. Looks like the lightsaber champ of the academy has been defeated."

Aric laughed and handed her saber back. She holstered it and walked away. Murmurs of approval and excitement arose from the crowd as Aric used the Force to calm himself. He was just about to walk away to a fresher when who should appear, but Luke Skywalker.

The Jedi Master, clad in black, circled him. The onlookers tensed, as if anticipating some epic battle. The Jedi Master withdrew his weapon and ignited it, the greenish-white blade producing the low, hypnotic hum that lightsabers were famous for. Aric drew his saber and turned it on, bringing it to a ready position. The two circled for a moment, talking. "So, Aric, it appears that you are quite a fighter with a lightsaber."

"Well, I suppose so, hm?"

The Jedi Master nodded and Aric moved to parry in a lightning quick motion. Luke, surprised, back off a bit and eyed his opponent. "You're a quick one."

Aric appeared not to hear the comment, his face taut with exertion and concentration. He slitted his eyes and prepared for another attack. Luke came at him from all angles, slashing and cutting with blinding speed and precision. Aric parried successfully, but he had become trapped against the temple's exterior. Evaluating his options speedily, he used the Force to jump and ricochet off the wall, landing behind Luke. The Jedi Master turned around and slashed at Aric. He was still recovering from the jump when Luke's blade hit his chest armor at the perfect angle to bisect him. Instead, what would have been the killing blow was defused as Luke's saber sputtered out against the armor. Luke deactivated his saber and said, with a knowing expression on his face. "Cortosis ore."

"Right. The planet I trained on had loads of the stuff. When I got my armor, I made a side trip back to pick some up and stuff it in the armor."

Aric punched the button on his weapon and the shaft of yellow energy vanished into the saber's handle. He returned it to its position on his belt and wiped his face with the back of his left glove, removing most of the sweat that was blurring his vision. He sat heavily on a bench near the area and proceeded to unstrap the restraints of his armor. "You are unwise to lower your defenses," said Luke with an ominous tone to his voice.

"Really? Do you think I'm not defending myself right now?"

Luke smiled. "No, I suppose not. I wouldn't want to catch you in a bad mood, though."

Aric chuckled as he removed the torso plating. A couple of catcalls and ooh's were heard from the female members of the crowd as he relaxed and set the armor on the ground by his feet, his undershirt stretching almost uncomfortably taut against his chest. Luke smiled and laughed again. "Looks like you've got a fan club, Aric."

He stood from the bench and retrieved his armor from the tarmac. "Looks that way, doesn't it?"

Luke chuckled and began to walk the other way. Aric headed back to his ship, to use the fresher. On his way there, some of the female spectators crossed his path, giving winks and more suggestive gestures. He wearily trudged up the ramp on the Nightwolf, where Chirpy was waiting, fresh from his chat with C-3PO and R2-D2. He even looked clean. They must have given him an oil bath or something. Chirpy shrilled in happiness at the sight of his master. Aric laughed. "Nice to see you, old friend."

Interesting, that. Calling a droid an old friend. No harm done, thought. No rules that say that humans couldn't befriend droids. "Anyone try to get in?"

Chirpy blooped and activated the security monitor. There was Jaina, looking over the exterior of the ship. Jacen had told her that she was a whiz with mechanical things and ships, so he guessed that it was just good-natured curiosity. A later log showed Lirkana climbing up the ramp, looking tired and worn out. Must have been on a run or something with Tenel Ka and Jacen. Aric opened a storage closet and placed his armor inside, leaving him in his undershirt and shorts. He headed for the fresher and shed his shirt into the clothing receptacle by the shower room. He caught a glimmer of movement in the corner of his eye and felt a presence moving through the room. He was immediately suspicious. He was knocked off his feet as Lirkana tackled him from behind, slamming him to the ground and pinning him to the cold deckplates with her muscular legs. "Now I've captured you."

Aric laughed. "I guess so, hm? So, now that you've caught the great Jedi Aric Jaro, what do you intend to do?" he chided in a mockingly cutesy voice.

She smacked him playfully across the forehead and pressed her nose to his. She rotated her head and closed her eyes, pressing her lips to the Jedi pinned underneath her. He reciprocated and deftly slipped his tongue into her mouth. He was glad that she didn't call the whole kiss off at that. If fact, she returned the favor, and their tongues met in a twisting duel, wrapping around each other. He wrapped his arms around her thin waist and pulled her closer. They locked lips again and she shifted position. Abruptly, she jumped up and yelled, "Ow!"

Aric sat up, concerned. "What? What's wrong?"

She began to turn bright red and nudged her head in his direction. He was confused until he looked down at himself. "Oh. He he." he chuckled nervously and began to redden himself. "Um, sorry, couldn't, er, help it."

She giggled softly and returned to the cabin. He stood and winced at a pain he felt. "Ow! Geez, she coulda gone a little easier on the gear!"

He laughed aloud as he walked into the fresher. Things weren't shaping up so bad here at the academy. He chuckled as he stepped into the shower. No, they weren't bad at all.

To be continued, of course.