Ok, this is my first ever fic and I figured that I'd post it before I lost
the nerve. This a sort of branch-off from a piece I wrote as a school
assignment. Anyway, here it goes....
Disclaimer: Star Wars isn't mine, I just wish it was.
***
Jysella Horn ignored the sweat pouring off of her forehead. Instead, she concentrated on the remote barely a meter away from her blazing lightsaber. Sensing an attack, she raised her blade to deflect the ruby red bolt that was suddenly streaking towards her.
"Enough," a commanding voice ordered. Jysella immediately shut off her jade green weapon. "You're definitely getting better." The voice belonged to her father, Corran. He was a slightly greying man that still fought his best despite the fact that he was past his prime. He leaned against the paneling of the training room, a proud look in his eyes as he watched his only daughter.
"Thank you, Master," she responded formally, slumping down onto the cold floor. "Of course, it'll still be a while before I can beat you, Dad."
"And I plan on keeping it that way for some time, Jys. Besides, you kids need all the experience you can get from the older Jedi. The Vong may have left, but there are still plenting of evil people out there."
"I know, Dad. I just hope I'm up to the challenge."
****
****
Jysella sat down on the hard bench in the middle of the mess hall. It was filled with all the other Jedi trainees from all over the galaxy. After the first Academy on Yavin 4 was destroyed by the Yuzhaan Vong, the trainees had moved all over the galaxy. They had finally settled down on the jungle planet of Ganido. The temporary prefab structures were already being replaced with an almost exact replica of the old temple.
Her brother, Valin, grinned at her from across the table. "Another day of hard training, eh? Too bad you don't have my skills, then it'd be a lot easier, wouldn't it?" He winced as she kicked him none too gently under the table.
"Hey, just because we're both his padawans doesn't mean we should always be competeing, does it? You need to refocus on what it means to be a Jedi." He shot her a startled glance. Jysella was normally the kid who rushed into everything whil Valin prefered to think things out. Then his face broke into an impish grin.
"You're just trying to mess with my mind, aren't you? I see where you're coming from! Besides, as the elder padawan, I DO have superiority." He ducked as she threw a roll at him. "Ok, ok. I was just kidding. Hey, look, there's Saria!" Valin hastily smoothed his hair as Saria smoothly glided over to perch on the bench next to Jysella. Valin's face blushed as she greeted him politely, then turned into a deep conversation with his sister. Jysella risked a moment to glance over at her brother who weas now staring at how Saria's lips moved. If her brother was determined to have a crush on her best friend, she observed, he had better learn to be more subtle about it.
Jysella and Saria walked down the hallway to their next group class. As long as they were at the Academy and not on missions with their masters, it was required for them to go through group lessons with other padawans near their age. They were normally pretty fun, in these lessons they had begun to learn advanced Force techniques. They still had a while to go when Saria had to bring up Valin. "What's up with your brother, Jys? He kept staring at me during lunch today. Is he ok?"
Jysella growled mentally. "No, no he's fine," she replied, mentally adding on that he was as fine as her brother ever got. "I'll talk to him about it. He was probably just pondering some deep, mystical aspect of life again."
Saria laughed shortly. "Yeah, I bet that was it. He normally is kind of quiet, now that I think of it. Oh, come on! Here's the room." They entered the room quietly, bowing respectfully to Jedi Master Shri at the front of the room. They settled themselves on the benches that lined the wall. When Master Shri looked up and saw that all the students had gathered, he began to speak on the topic of todays class.
"Today we will begin to learn how to meditate in order to recieve visions of the future. You have been taught how to use the Force things to percieve events from the past and from the present, but the future is much more difficult. I will guide you along the way, for the first time. Do not feel afraid to share what you may see. You may not even see anything. One at a time, please come forward and I will attempt to guide you."
The students stood and complied with the older Jedi's instructions until only Jysella was left. She stood up slowly and walked over to where the Master was waiting. "Do or do not, there is no try," she whispered softly before she closed her eyes and reached out to the Force. Different Jedi percieved the Force in many different ways. For her, it had always been a river that she merely had to dive into before she was fully immersed in the Light side. This time was no different. Master Shri's wavering form appeared before her.
"Follow me," she said softly. The Jedi floated down the river to an area that Jysella had never noticed before. It was cold and dark, full of drifting shadows. "This is an area of the futures that may be. Remember that what you see may not come to pass, the future is always shifting. I will leave you now, until you feel the need or want to come back."
Jysella nodded and swam deeper into the shadowed area. Two paths stood before her. Listening even more closely to the Force than she had ever done before, she chose the right path. It had patches of light every few meters, but looked parsecs better than the other path that was completely shrouded in darkness. Suddenly, an image appeared in front of her. A tall humanoid stood before her. It looked like a cross between a Vong and a human. It spun slowly in front of her. The features of the wide face made her gasp in shock. The features that the shifting light revealed were nearly identical to her own. A lightsaber suddenly appeared in the figure's hand, glowing a bright, brilliant yellow. Jysella found her own green blade in her hand.
The fight between the two began. Strike, parry, slice, block. The deadly dance of their bodies continued for what seemed like hours. The figure reached out and pushed her to the ground. She landed on the rough surface with a heavy thump. Her lightsaber flung away and shut off before she could so much as cry out. The acid yellow blade came up to rest right above her unguarded throat, unwavering. Her mind stilled as she fully gripped what was happening. "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo...."she yelled, her voice echoing strangely in the heavy air of the vision.
Her eyes opened suddenly. Her mind scrambled back into her body as she realized that she was lying on the floor of the classroom. Master Shri and Saria were craned over her limp form. "I saw.. I saw..." she felt some pressing reason to tell them what her vision had contained.
"Hush, child," Master Shri's comforting voice said. "We'll get you to the med center." Then he addressed himself to Saria. "Help me pick her up, now. Her pulse is erratic, she's sweating, and she's pale. She needs help immediately." Her body was lifted off of the cool reassurance of the ground as she was borne off to the med center.
The scene in front of her flickered harshly as she stared around the pristine med center. Master Shri, along with Master Skywalker, her father and brother, and Saria stood over her. There words made no sense; she only caught glimpses of conversations. Most things seemed to regard her medical condition. She moaned, trying to tell them what had happened in her vision. They just made soothing sounds, telling her that it would be ok. All she wanted to do was scream in frustration; she just needed to make them understand.
Cighal, the famed Jedi healer, bustled around everyone. She used her Force powers to place the girl in a deep healing trance. Her pounding head stopped hurting; she could breath without her lungs lurching painfully. Now that her physical state had improved, Master Skywalker began to question her.
"Padawan Jysella," he stated formally. "What happened during your lesson with Master Shri?"
"I... I sunk into the Force, more deeply than I've ever done before." Her voice said the words haltingly. Now that she had actually begun to speak, the words had to be forced out. "I saw a path in front of me, two roads to pick from. I chose the one on the left. As I went along, I saw a figure. It...it was a Yuzhaan Vong. I think. It didn't really look like one, just sort of. Its face was my own." She looked down as she said this, afraid that her vision could be interpreted as some fault of her own.
"Go on," Master Shri urged gently.
"It had a lightsaber, and I had mine. We fought for what seemed like ages. Eventually, it pushed me down and put its lightsaber against my throat in the kill position. I screamed... and then... I woke up." She shivered in the renewed remembrance of the horrible ending.
"Ah. That would be why half the Jedi suddenly had plain-splitting headaches. You broadcast better than even your father does. It's a hard ability to come by this strong. But your vision, I wonder what it means."
At any other time in her life she would have puffed up with the high praise from the renowned Jedi. At present, she couldn't feel anything at all as she relived the horror of that moment again. She'd had visions before; they were a common occurrence. This one had been different though. It had seemed to real to simply be a portent of things that might not come to pass it had been too certain for that. She looked up, startled away from her thoughts as Master Shri put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"Master Skywalker, Master Horn, if no one objects, I would like to take Jysella as my padawan. She perceives visions better than any student I have ever had the honor of instructing. As this is my area of expertise, I could probably do the child the most good with my knowledge."
Her father shrugged in agreement. "Sure, I don't see why not. I've rarely had visions of my own. Besides, it would help you to grow in the Force if you spent time with another master for a time, Jys."
Master Skywalker nodded his head in mute agreement. "Then it is settled. Padawan Jysella, do you accept Master Shri as your new master?"
"I do," she answered every bit as formally as the older Jedi.
***
The same figure attacked her, again and again. These dreams had haunted her ever since that first vision. They always ended with her waking, screaming into the darkness. Her new master was sympathetic to her plight and had taught her to stifle the dreams before she woke up. This time, however, it didn't work. The figure had pushed her on her back and the lightsaber was slowly drifting closer to her throat. When it was half a centimeter away, the alien crumpled to its knees, the lightsaber extinguishing suddenly. Behind the spot where it had been standing stood a confident young man. His clothes and posture reeked of an outlaw, as did the blaster that he held in one hand. Instinctively, she knew that she could trust him. His short brown hair waved slightly as he reached over to help her up, a cocky grin splitting his face.
"You didn't think I'd abandon you, did you?" he asked in mock sadness. "I'd never let a pretty girl like you get killed off by a Vong toy, that's for sure. So how about that date that I asked you about earlier, eh?" The vision faded, leaving her alone with her two thoughts. The first was that she knew that the thing was definitely related to the Vong. The second was that her father would strangle any guy her own age that talked to her the way that that one just had.
***
"I know what that thing is now." Master Shri looked up, her brillaint blue eyes startled. "It's a Yuzhaan Vong thing. Not a Vong itself, not exactly. I think it's one of their biological experiments. The only thing I don't understand is how it had my face. I'll figure it out eventually, maybe."
"How do you know that, Jysella?" Master Shri's face was puzzeled. "Did you have another vision?"
"No, not exactly," Jysella replied, sitting down across the table from her master. "I had the same one, I've been having it every night since the first time. This time it just... went further." Jysella proceeded to tell her master all that the vision had contained. The older Jedi mused over this new information slowly. Jysella could almost feel his thoughts rushing around, trying to get a foothold in this new territory.
"You said it was an area with very rough ground?" Jysella nodded. She did remember that part. "We may be able to determine what planet it was. The only thing we would have to do would be to go back and let me see the vision for myself. You're a strong enough broadcaster, we should be able to do it easily." Jysella nodded reluctantly. It wouldn't be worth repeating the vision again if she couldn't learn where they were. Hopefully, they could solve this thing now.
The vision passed before her and her masters mental eyes slower than ever before. Jysella soaked in all the details greedily, and she could feel her master doing the same. It was a swamp, they were in a swamp. The sky overhead was an odd shade of purple. Jysella had never seen anything like it before. Master Shri had, though. Their minds linked perfectly, and they both knew the world. Aneen. It had been one of the first planets to fall under the onslaught of the Vongs' invasion. The skies were purple because of a chemical that occupied the air instead of oxygen. The atmosphere was breathable for humans, although it sometimes caused weird reactions.
The most significant thing about the planet that Jysella learned from her mind-linking with Master Shri was that it was her home planet. That was good, as far as Jysella could tell. They would at least know something about the planet before they went there. Both Jedi slid out of the mind link, already forming lists of what they would need to do before they departed on their journey.
***
"No."
"But Dad! This is important! We aren't going on a joy ride! Master Shri will be with me and I won't get hurt!" Jysella protested fiercely.
"That's not the point. Aneen was deep in their territory, there's probably still plenty of Vong out there. We had enough casualties already in this war. You are NOT going to be one of them." Her father's jaw was set. There'd be no way he'd reverse his decision, unless...
"Master Horn, Jysella needs to do this. The Force is calling her, she will end up there eventually. The best we can do is to prepare her as best as we can. Like your daughter said, this isn't a joy ride. I don't like it anymore than you do, but I do realize that this has to be done. It may even be that her vision was just one path, we have never said that it was the only destination. There may be no danger whatsoever. We just need to have this happen, the Force will control the result. Nothing will happen that was not meant to be."
Corran sighed in dissatisfaction. It was one thing to stand up to his impatient and headstrong daughter. It was quite another to stand up to an equally powerful and well-respected Jedi Master like himself. "Fine," he agreed slowly. "But you aren't getting away from me that easily. I'm coming with you and their will be no arguments."
The wide smile that had spread across Jysella's face sank ever so slightly at his last words, but then brightened again instanly. "Sure, Dad," she answered with a wild look in her eyes. "If that's how it has to be,than that is how it'll have to be."
He nodded back at her grin, not realizing the hidden truth of her words.
***
Jysella sat at the controls of the starship, deeply involved in trying to figure out which buttons she was supposed to press. Of course, she'd flown ships before, but this model was unknown to her. Finally, she decided on the small black one that was near the center of the control board.
The ship was a medium sized vessel, with no real distinguishing features. That would help her in the long run so that she wouldn't be recognized as easily when she got to Aneen. It was one of the brand new ships that had been donated to the Jedi when the government finally realized how important it was for them to be at least independent on the New Republic for transport. Jysella felt only half guilty about taking it. It was the only way she could see to fufill the vision. She couldn't allow her dad to accompany her, it didn't feel right.
She had become almost obsessed with the vision lately, but it couldn't be helped. She'd remembered hearing stories of the false vision Jacen Solo had recieved in the beginning of the Vong invasion. It had nearly cost him his life. Well, that wouldn't happen to her, she thought with a child's false sense of certainty. Realizing that her thoughts would continue to chase themselves in circles until she actually did what she felt she had to do, she proceeded to warm up the ship.
As a steady stream of lights blinked on green, she alighted from the hard docking bay, soaring through the air has she had used to see the birds fly on Yavin 4. Tears came to her eyes as the old scar of that loss pulled open again. You were too young to do anything then, she told herself strictly. You can just make up for the pain now. She was unaware of how her thoughts drifted dangerously close ti the Dark Side. For the moment, she remained blissfully unaware of the deeper meanings of her immature and sulky thoughts.
The sky changed from a light blue to a dark, empty black as she broke free of the atmosphere. "Please return and land at once," a steady voice said over the comm unit. "You are on an unauthorized flight, return and land at once."
She searched for a moment before she was able to find the speaker, firmly flicking the switch off. She wasn't going to be deterred from her path even if a few squadrons of fighters was sent after her. Resolutely she entered the coordinates for Aneen with one hand while jinking the slightly unwieldly ship around with the other to help eliminate any chance of getting scored by a laser hit or by getting snared in a tractor beam.
Finally, she toggled the hyperspace lever, causing blue and white streaks to shoot past the cockpit as the stars elongated into the comforting reassurance of lightspeed. She released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She stood up in elation, smiling as she realized that she had completed the first part of her mission.
A firm hand settled on her shoulder. She sighed in frustration.
"I'm in trouble, aren't I?" she asked silently, already knowing the answer. She felt the person's head nod succintly. The word yes hung between them uneasily as she prepared herself for a long talk with whoever had caught her.
***
***
"Yes and no," Master Shri stated calmly. "Your actions were impulsive and risky. You DID do the right thing, but your way of achieving it was wrong. You would do well to learn from this, Padawan."
"I'll try, Master," Jysella answered quickly, hoping to forgo any long lectures. She got up from the pilots chair. "Why are you here, Master?"
Master Shri laughed quickly. "Straight and to the point, as always. Well, I knew that you would try something like this from the look on your face when we spoke to your father, It wasn't hard to stow away on your chosen vessel."
"Oh." Jysella pondered what her mentor has said for a moment. "Am I really THAT predictable?"
Master Shri just laughed again. "Not to most, child. But to those who know you well, yes. I think your father even suspected on some level."
"I guess I'll just have to try harder to suprise all of you." And with that the conversation was ended. They each moved on to their separate tasks, preparing to exit hyperspace after their quick jump.
***
The boarding ramp lowered quickly, almost seeming to feel Jysella's impatience. A young man stood just at it's end. She gasped softly in shock. It was the guy from her vision! Now that she had time to study him, she noticed his powerful build, sandy hair, and piercing gray eyes.
"Welcome to Aneen. Would you like a guide for your visit here?" His eyes moved from Master Shri to Jysella. They widened slightly when he saw her, as if he recognized her.
Master Shri didn't appear to notice. "Yes, please. That would be most welcome. Do you mind guiding us to a place where we could stay for the night?"
"It will be my pleasure, sir."
***
The establishment that their guide, Jason, had taken them to was comfortable, if not lavish. The owner had been all too happy to give it to them for no charge. Jedi had left a deep imprint on this world when they had regained it from the Vong. In the small amount of time since then, many of the signs of war had been covered up by renovation, but not all. These thoughts occupied the young Jedi's mind for mere seconds before her thoughts locked onto the more important issues at hand.
"Why are we here, Master?" I need to fufill the vision- or at least try. We're here right now, can't we just finish this quickly and be done with it?"
"Are you so eager to get back to your father?" Jysella ignored the older Jedi's attempt at distraction. "You recognized our guide, and he recognized you. I don't know what that means but we need time to figure everything out. Patience is a quality that you should put more emphasis on," he admonished softly.
"Yes, Master. So what do you plan to do?"
"Leave the choice up to you, Jysella. I'm merely giving you the time to meditate on what must be done. You, ultimately, will decide the course of action that you will take. This is your mission, your test, not mine. It is up to you to determine of you will pass or fail. I cannot interfere."
"Oh." Her master continually surprised her. For a padawan to be given this much responsibility at such an early point of training was nearly unheard of. On second thought, Master Shri was right. It was her mission and it was her vision that had led them here. It was oddly fitting that it would be her choice that decided her fate.
Jysella sank deep into the Force, almost subconciously. The vision, the Force river insisted. Remember the vision. Ok, she thought. Jason was there, she was there, Master Shri was not. She and Jason somehow needed to get alone in the vision area. It was in wilderness, lots of undergrowth and trees. Had she heard anything about wildlife reservations or something? Yes. Remnants of their conversation on the walk to the inn floated back to her.
Jason had thrown sidelong glances in her direction the entire time. She had been concentrating on not staring at him openly.
"The wildlife reserves are one of the main factors that have helped to rebuild our economy after the invasion. I can take you out to one of them tomorrow, if you would like."
"No," Master Shri had replied. "I grew up around here. I've seen them hundreds of times. I would like to know more about the rebuilding efforts, however." That was it!
Jysella's eyes popped open as soon as she had reached her decision.
"Master Shri, I know how you are uninterested in the reserves since you grew up in the area. I, however, am interested. May I ask Jason to accompany me while I visit them tomorrow?"
The spark that kit in her Master's eyes and her own ease at making the formal request strengthened her resolve. She knew that she had made the right choice.
"Of course, Padawan," Master Shri replied just as formally. "Congratulations on reaching the right decision," she added, a note of pride in her voice.
Jysella's smile broadened.
****
***
The forest paths were very beautiful, Jysella had to admit. Normally such things didn't strike her as lovely, but this forest was special. Maybe it was because she had finally come to the area of her vision. Whatever the cause, it distracted her from the whole reason that she was there, at least for a moment.
"Why are you really here?" Jason asked suddenly.
"Well..." Should she trust him? He was in her vision, which had to mean something. She quickly explained her situation.
"You had a vision of me?" He sounded surprised.
"That's what I said, wasn't it?"
"Then this must have to happen! I mean, two people can't both be wrong about the exact same thing, not when it's as important as this!"
"What the Sith are you talking about?" Jysella was genuinely baffled; she had no clue at what he was getting at.
"I had the same vision except, well, I was me!"
She looked down and saw the blaster holstered at his hip. "So you came prepared.... No point in wasting time. Let's get this over with!"
They hurried over to the cliff on their right that gave them a nearly unobstructed view of the surrounding areas. Below was a river, little more than a stream. But there, in the distance...
"There! It's some kind of Vong dome!" She leaned forward on her toes to get a clearer view.
The ground slid out from underneath her. A strangled yelp half caught in her throat as gravity forces her towards the bottom. Her Jedi skills could do nothing to stop her long fall.
The Force did help to slow her down, somewhat. She'd done it before, but now it was extremely hard with the ground rushing up at her ant the wind blowing all around her.
Just relax, she kept telling herself. It didn't help, not much anyway. She hit the ground with a thump that gradually crescendoed into a groan as air rushed back into her bruised body. After five painful minutes she was able to stand and take a few tottering steps. She staggered haltingly in the general direction of the Vong installation. How was she supposed to fight now? The vision couldn't be wrong... Jason just had to save her. How was she going to survive without him? It could take hours, even days for him to find a secure path down the cliff. The vision wouldn't wait. It kept nagging at her thoughts. She was never distracted from it for more than a nanosecond.
I have to try, she decided, determination following the thought. She knew what she had to do. Now came the hard part, actually doing it.
Just relax, Master Shri's voice sounded in her mind. You've been training to be a Knight since you could scarcely walk. You are prepared for this.
Focusing her thoughts on her goal and not on all the obstacles allowed her to tap into the Force for strength. Her injuries and doubts faded even further into the back of her mind. They were no longer important. She strode confidently towards where she knew the future awaited her.
***
A mass of writhing, multi-hued flesh. That was what the Vong dome looked like from up close.
Her hand settled firmly around her lightsaber hilt. Her thumb lightly stroked the switch that would make the brilliant green blade shoot forth into existence.
The vision replayed itself in her mind's eye. The dome hadn't been there before, but on the other hand, Jason wasn't here now when she needed him. She felt the momentary fear replaced easily with her now accustomed comforting reassurance.
"So. An infidel Jeedai has found me at last."
Jysella spun around, her blade igniting as she swiveled. That had to be it! It just had to be the Vong creation that she sought after. Jysella's facial features were easily visible across the thing's wide face. The figure didn't appear to recognize any resemblance, however.
"I am the culmination of two societies. My blood descends from the much glorified Shai domain as well as the despicable Corran Horn, although he is a Jeedai, he was still a respected warrior- for an infidel."
The sound of her father's name in relation to this... thing sent her into a spasm of anger. Her face blazed red from the heat of her fiery passion. It was a while before she could even get her mouth to work properly.
"My father has nothing to do with you!" she cried fiercely even though she could not deny the truth of its words. The fact that they resembled each other so strongly pointed to the thing's statement as highly likely.
"Oh, but you are wrong!" the creature stated gleefully, clearly taking pleasure from the girl's pain. "The blood of Horn, taken from battle on your planet Bimmiel, combined with that of the vaunted Shai domain by the Shapers produced me! But enough of these monotonous explanations! It is your time to face the Last Pain, the eternal embrace of death!"
It's lightsaber- a blinding yellow- was brought up and ignited against Jysella's own before the latter even recognized fully that the fight had begun.
***
***
The fight was full of fury. It was a battle for more than just their individual lifes. Somehow, it amounted to much more.
Strike, parry, thrust, block, twirl. The battle seemed like an endless dance, full of a strange wonder and glory and, surprisingly, an awesome beauty.
Her strength and that of the Vong creature were very equally matched. Neither ever gained the upper hand for more than a moment.
Jysella's mind was near;y blank of all concious thought for the duration of the battle. She'd never concentrated this deeply before. Impossibly, she wasn't even aware of herself doing it.
Suddenly, the interrminable dance was stopped. The alien's blade caught on her own, twirled lazily, and neatly tossed Jysella's blade to the side. Her opponent's blade, hawk-eyed yellow, lowered itself to rest a mere millimeter above her throat. The alien's evil, malicious cackle filled the air.
Come on, Jason, she pleaded desparately. I need you NOW! You're supposed to save me!
Her eyes closed as she realized that her vision had been wrong, or that she had done something to make it turn out this way. There was no one to save her now. At least the alien would be quick about killing her. She'd have a quick warrior's death.
Probably. Hopefully.
***
****
She opened her eyes again quickly. Of course! She could use the Force! Swiftly, she formed her thoughts into a hand that grabbed her blade from where it had been tossed aside scant moments ago/
The blade dipped in the air as her concentration started to slip. after what seemed like forever, the blade was positioned along the side of the alien's throat. As she started to push the ignition switch along the way, the creature's voice broke into her thoughts.
"Are you listening to me, filthy infidel? You are teetering on the edge of death, and yet you do not plead for lenience like the rest of your pitiful kind. What is so different about you?"
Jysella didn't take the time to answer. She frowned at the added focus it took now that she knew about the thing's taunts.
The crystal blade shot out of the hilt, skewering the alien neatly through the neck. Simultaneously, blaster fire erupted from behind it. The creature toppled over, leaving her staring at Jason in surprise. He returned her look with equal open amazement.
Jysella was the first to voice her opinion. "Well THAT was unexpected!"
****
****
Jason and Jysella made their way back to the city at a crawling pace. It took them nearly ten hours to hike the normally three hour walk. By the time they finally arrived, darkness had long since set in and Master Shri had nearly given up on waiting for the two adventurers.
The lights sprang o as soon as they stepped inside. Master Shri was settled into a comfortable chair. A proud gleam lit his eyes as the two young people entered the room, victorious.
"I see that you've done well on your quest," he remarked as Jysella ettled heavily onto a couch. Jason stoof behind her, his hands resting on her shoulders in a companionable and slightly protective position.
"well," Jason replied, "that weird creature is dead. We're both still alive. I think that means we did good... er... well."
All the occupants of the room settled into a comfortable silence. Jysella, naturally, was the first to break it. Just as predictably, she vut straight to the essence of what was troubling her.
"Master, is Jason Force-sensitive?" The query shocked both of the men. Neither of them had ever paused to consider it and all it's implications and complications.
"Well, I never thought to check. Why do you ask, Padawan?"
"Because jason had the same vision that I did, basically." She rushed on with her explanation before she had registered the shock on Jason's face and the thoughtfullness across Master Shri's features. "He was him and I was there and the 'xact same thing happened so I figured it was probably some kind of Force vision. And that would mean he was Force-sensitive, ya know? Did that make ANY sense?"
The words tumbled out of her mouth faster than lightspeed. Jason and Master Shri took several minutes to process the data that she was overloading them with. Master Shri began to test Jason's Force-sensitivy as soon as he realized that that was what was required of him.
He found his inner Force strength quickly and easily. He certainly had quite a lot of it. He opened her eyes to tell the two youth what he had found.
"Yes, he is quite sensitive to the Force." Jason's eyes wodened in shock. He started to protest loudlym but Jysella quickly cut him off.
"That means that he should come and study at the Jedi Academy, right?"
"Of course. It is up to him to make the final decision, however."
Both Jedi turned to look at the startled young man. They waited patiently, at least in Master Shri's case, for his response. "Well... err... I guess I could go. My parents both died in the war. Sure, I'll go!" he answered, uncertainly at first, but gaining confidence as he went on.
"Let's go!" Jysella chirped cheerfully.
"Hold on a second," her master warned, a knowing grin on his face. "Have you forgotten about your injuries? Your father will certainly behead me if you have so much as a scratch."
"Injuries?" Jysella quickly examined herself. She had been too busy thinking about the future to realize that she had bruises all over and several scorch marks along her arms and neck. "Oh. That could be a problem."
****
It ended up taking the better part of a week for all of her signs of injury to fade away. The entire time was completely uneventful, full of relaxed meditation and Force exercises. Jason learned to connect with the Force easily. In addition, Jason and Jysella's relationship evolved from friends into... something more.
The trip back on the sleek shuttle barely took any time at all, it seemed. Jysella figured tht ut was because of the extremely lower levels of apprehension. Their ship touched down gently as Jysella landed it. Peering outside through the cockpit window, she saw her father glaring at the ship, his foot tapping in agitation.
I am SO dead, she groaned. I'm never gonna be able to do anything again.
All three of the passengers on the ship strode down the ramp together. Master Shri took point and his two apprentices situated themselves on either side.
"Hello Master Horn," Master Shri said. "How was your week?"
"Hmph. If you don't mind I'd have to have a talk with my daughter. A very LONG talk."
"Of course. Follow me, Jason. I'll gove you a tour of the Academy." That left Jysella alone with her father who was struggling to contain his anger. On impulse, she walked over to him and threw her arms around him, kissing him gently on the cheek. "I'm sprry Daddy," she whispered. She felt her father's anger lessen considerably. Maybe her punishment wouldn't be so bad after all.
****
Jysella finally caught up with Jason outside of the Academy. They smiled at each other briefly, and then began to talk.
"So what;d your father do to you?" Jason asked.
"Nothing. Technically, my mission was sanctioned since my- our- master agreed to it and went along. I just had to 'swear not to rush off on some fool's errand without consulting him', as he put it. So how how do you like the Academy?"
"It's... nice." There didn't seem to be anything else to say. They sat in an uncomfortable and embarassed silence for several long moments.
"Jysella?"
"Yeah?"
"Umm.. do you think that we're maybe... more than friends?" he managed to stammer out. They had both started leaning in towards wach other as they were talking.
"Yeah."
Their lips pressed gently against each other in a slow kiss. It wasn't too passionate or hurried. It was more of an embrace between two people who had just realized what they meant to each other but were intelligent enough to realize that they had all the time in the universe. In fact, that;s exactly what it was.
The kiss lasted only a moment before they broke it. Smiling deeply, they turned and walked towards the Academy.
And ran straight into am outraged Corran Horn. His jaw was set into a hard line.
"We are SO dead," the two young Jedi chorused together.
"You got that right," the older Jedi responded as he began steering them inside.
****
THE END
****
Disclaimer: Star Wars isn't mine, I just wish it was.
***
Jysella Horn ignored the sweat pouring off of her forehead. Instead, she concentrated on the remote barely a meter away from her blazing lightsaber. Sensing an attack, she raised her blade to deflect the ruby red bolt that was suddenly streaking towards her.
"Enough," a commanding voice ordered. Jysella immediately shut off her jade green weapon. "You're definitely getting better." The voice belonged to her father, Corran. He was a slightly greying man that still fought his best despite the fact that he was past his prime. He leaned against the paneling of the training room, a proud look in his eyes as he watched his only daughter.
"Thank you, Master," she responded formally, slumping down onto the cold floor. "Of course, it'll still be a while before I can beat you, Dad."
"And I plan on keeping it that way for some time, Jys. Besides, you kids need all the experience you can get from the older Jedi. The Vong may have left, but there are still plenting of evil people out there."
"I know, Dad. I just hope I'm up to the challenge."
****
****
Jysella sat down on the hard bench in the middle of the mess hall. It was filled with all the other Jedi trainees from all over the galaxy. After the first Academy on Yavin 4 was destroyed by the Yuzhaan Vong, the trainees had moved all over the galaxy. They had finally settled down on the jungle planet of Ganido. The temporary prefab structures were already being replaced with an almost exact replica of the old temple.
Her brother, Valin, grinned at her from across the table. "Another day of hard training, eh? Too bad you don't have my skills, then it'd be a lot easier, wouldn't it?" He winced as she kicked him none too gently under the table.
"Hey, just because we're both his padawans doesn't mean we should always be competeing, does it? You need to refocus on what it means to be a Jedi." He shot her a startled glance. Jysella was normally the kid who rushed into everything whil Valin prefered to think things out. Then his face broke into an impish grin.
"You're just trying to mess with my mind, aren't you? I see where you're coming from! Besides, as the elder padawan, I DO have superiority." He ducked as she threw a roll at him. "Ok, ok. I was just kidding. Hey, look, there's Saria!" Valin hastily smoothed his hair as Saria smoothly glided over to perch on the bench next to Jysella. Valin's face blushed as she greeted him politely, then turned into a deep conversation with his sister. Jysella risked a moment to glance over at her brother who weas now staring at how Saria's lips moved. If her brother was determined to have a crush on her best friend, she observed, he had better learn to be more subtle about it.
Jysella and Saria walked down the hallway to their next group class. As long as they were at the Academy and not on missions with their masters, it was required for them to go through group lessons with other padawans near their age. They were normally pretty fun, in these lessons they had begun to learn advanced Force techniques. They still had a while to go when Saria had to bring up Valin. "What's up with your brother, Jys? He kept staring at me during lunch today. Is he ok?"
Jysella growled mentally. "No, no he's fine," she replied, mentally adding on that he was as fine as her brother ever got. "I'll talk to him about it. He was probably just pondering some deep, mystical aspect of life again."
Saria laughed shortly. "Yeah, I bet that was it. He normally is kind of quiet, now that I think of it. Oh, come on! Here's the room." They entered the room quietly, bowing respectfully to Jedi Master Shri at the front of the room. They settled themselves on the benches that lined the wall. When Master Shri looked up and saw that all the students had gathered, he began to speak on the topic of todays class.
"Today we will begin to learn how to meditate in order to recieve visions of the future. You have been taught how to use the Force things to percieve events from the past and from the present, but the future is much more difficult. I will guide you along the way, for the first time. Do not feel afraid to share what you may see. You may not even see anything. One at a time, please come forward and I will attempt to guide you."
The students stood and complied with the older Jedi's instructions until only Jysella was left. She stood up slowly and walked over to where the Master was waiting. "Do or do not, there is no try," she whispered softly before she closed her eyes and reached out to the Force. Different Jedi percieved the Force in many different ways. For her, it had always been a river that she merely had to dive into before she was fully immersed in the Light side. This time was no different. Master Shri's wavering form appeared before her.
"Follow me," she said softly. The Jedi floated down the river to an area that Jysella had never noticed before. It was cold and dark, full of drifting shadows. "This is an area of the futures that may be. Remember that what you see may not come to pass, the future is always shifting. I will leave you now, until you feel the need or want to come back."
Jysella nodded and swam deeper into the shadowed area. Two paths stood before her. Listening even more closely to the Force than she had ever done before, she chose the right path. It had patches of light every few meters, but looked parsecs better than the other path that was completely shrouded in darkness. Suddenly, an image appeared in front of her. A tall humanoid stood before her. It looked like a cross between a Vong and a human. It spun slowly in front of her. The features of the wide face made her gasp in shock. The features that the shifting light revealed were nearly identical to her own. A lightsaber suddenly appeared in the figure's hand, glowing a bright, brilliant yellow. Jysella found her own green blade in her hand.
The fight between the two began. Strike, parry, slice, block. The deadly dance of their bodies continued for what seemed like hours. The figure reached out and pushed her to the ground. She landed on the rough surface with a heavy thump. Her lightsaber flung away and shut off before she could so much as cry out. The acid yellow blade came up to rest right above her unguarded throat, unwavering. Her mind stilled as she fully gripped what was happening. "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo...."she yelled, her voice echoing strangely in the heavy air of the vision.
Her eyes opened suddenly. Her mind scrambled back into her body as she realized that she was lying on the floor of the classroom. Master Shri and Saria were craned over her limp form. "I saw.. I saw..." she felt some pressing reason to tell them what her vision had contained.
"Hush, child," Master Shri's comforting voice said. "We'll get you to the med center." Then he addressed himself to Saria. "Help me pick her up, now. Her pulse is erratic, she's sweating, and she's pale. She needs help immediately." Her body was lifted off of the cool reassurance of the ground as she was borne off to the med center.
The scene in front of her flickered harshly as she stared around the pristine med center. Master Shri, along with Master Skywalker, her father and brother, and Saria stood over her. There words made no sense; she only caught glimpses of conversations. Most things seemed to regard her medical condition. She moaned, trying to tell them what had happened in her vision. They just made soothing sounds, telling her that it would be ok. All she wanted to do was scream in frustration; she just needed to make them understand.
Cighal, the famed Jedi healer, bustled around everyone. She used her Force powers to place the girl in a deep healing trance. Her pounding head stopped hurting; she could breath without her lungs lurching painfully. Now that her physical state had improved, Master Skywalker began to question her.
"Padawan Jysella," he stated formally. "What happened during your lesson with Master Shri?"
"I... I sunk into the Force, more deeply than I've ever done before." Her voice said the words haltingly. Now that she had actually begun to speak, the words had to be forced out. "I saw a path in front of me, two roads to pick from. I chose the one on the left. As I went along, I saw a figure. It...it was a Yuzhaan Vong. I think. It didn't really look like one, just sort of. Its face was my own." She looked down as she said this, afraid that her vision could be interpreted as some fault of her own.
"Go on," Master Shri urged gently.
"It had a lightsaber, and I had mine. We fought for what seemed like ages. Eventually, it pushed me down and put its lightsaber against my throat in the kill position. I screamed... and then... I woke up." She shivered in the renewed remembrance of the horrible ending.
"Ah. That would be why half the Jedi suddenly had plain-splitting headaches. You broadcast better than even your father does. It's a hard ability to come by this strong. But your vision, I wonder what it means."
At any other time in her life she would have puffed up with the high praise from the renowned Jedi. At present, she couldn't feel anything at all as she relived the horror of that moment again. She'd had visions before; they were a common occurrence. This one had been different though. It had seemed to real to simply be a portent of things that might not come to pass it had been too certain for that. She looked up, startled away from her thoughts as Master Shri put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"Master Skywalker, Master Horn, if no one objects, I would like to take Jysella as my padawan. She perceives visions better than any student I have ever had the honor of instructing. As this is my area of expertise, I could probably do the child the most good with my knowledge."
Her father shrugged in agreement. "Sure, I don't see why not. I've rarely had visions of my own. Besides, it would help you to grow in the Force if you spent time with another master for a time, Jys."
Master Skywalker nodded his head in mute agreement. "Then it is settled. Padawan Jysella, do you accept Master Shri as your new master?"
"I do," she answered every bit as formally as the older Jedi.
***
The same figure attacked her, again and again. These dreams had haunted her ever since that first vision. They always ended with her waking, screaming into the darkness. Her new master was sympathetic to her plight and had taught her to stifle the dreams before she woke up. This time, however, it didn't work. The figure had pushed her on her back and the lightsaber was slowly drifting closer to her throat. When it was half a centimeter away, the alien crumpled to its knees, the lightsaber extinguishing suddenly. Behind the spot where it had been standing stood a confident young man. His clothes and posture reeked of an outlaw, as did the blaster that he held in one hand. Instinctively, she knew that she could trust him. His short brown hair waved slightly as he reached over to help her up, a cocky grin splitting his face.
"You didn't think I'd abandon you, did you?" he asked in mock sadness. "I'd never let a pretty girl like you get killed off by a Vong toy, that's for sure. So how about that date that I asked you about earlier, eh?" The vision faded, leaving her alone with her two thoughts. The first was that she knew that the thing was definitely related to the Vong. The second was that her father would strangle any guy her own age that talked to her the way that that one just had.
***
"I know what that thing is now." Master Shri looked up, her brillaint blue eyes startled. "It's a Yuzhaan Vong thing. Not a Vong itself, not exactly. I think it's one of their biological experiments. The only thing I don't understand is how it had my face. I'll figure it out eventually, maybe."
"How do you know that, Jysella?" Master Shri's face was puzzeled. "Did you have another vision?"
"No, not exactly," Jysella replied, sitting down across the table from her master. "I had the same one, I've been having it every night since the first time. This time it just... went further." Jysella proceeded to tell her master all that the vision had contained. The older Jedi mused over this new information slowly. Jysella could almost feel his thoughts rushing around, trying to get a foothold in this new territory.
"You said it was an area with very rough ground?" Jysella nodded. She did remember that part. "We may be able to determine what planet it was. The only thing we would have to do would be to go back and let me see the vision for myself. You're a strong enough broadcaster, we should be able to do it easily." Jysella nodded reluctantly. It wouldn't be worth repeating the vision again if she couldn't learn where they were. Hopefully, they could solve this thing now.
The vision passed before her and her masters mental eyes slower than ever before. Jysella soaked in all the details greedily, and she could feel her master doing the same. It was a swamp, they were in a swamp. The sky overhead was an odd shade of purple. Jysella had never seen anything like it before. Master Shri had, though. Their minds linked perfectly, and they both knew the world. Aneen. It had been one of the first planets to fall under the onslaught of the Vongs' invasion. The skies were purple because of a chemical that occupied the air instead of oxygen. The atmosphere was breathable for humans, although it sometimes caused weird reactions.
The most significant thing about the planet that Jysella learned from her mind-linking with Master Shri was that it was her home planet. That was good, as far as Jysella could tell. They would at least know something about the planet before they went there. Both Jedi slid out of the mind link, already forming lists of what they would need to do before they departed on their journey.
***
"No."
"But Dad! This is important! We aren't going on a joy ride! Master Shri will be with me and I won't get hurt!" Jysella protested fiercely.
"That's not the point. Aneen was deep in their territory, there's probably still plenty of Vong out there. We had enough casualties already in this war. You are NOT going to be one of them." Her father's jaw was set. There'd be no way he'd reverse his decision, unless...
"Master Horn, Jysella needs to do this. The Force is calling her, she will end up there eventually. The best we can do is to prepare her as best as we can. Like your daughter said, this isn't a joy ride. I don't like it anymore than you do, but I do realize that this has to be done. It may even be that her vision was just one path, we have never said that it was the only destination. There may be no danger whatsoever. We just need to have this happen, the Force will control the result. Nothing will happen that was not meant to be."
Corran sighed in dissatisfaction. It was one thing to stand up to his impatient and headstrong daughter. It was quite another to stand up to an equally powerful and well-respected Jedi Master like himself. "Fine," he agreed slowly. "But you aren't getting away from me that easily. I'm coming with you and their will be no arguments."
The wide smile that had spread across Jysella's face sank ever so slightly at his last words, but then brightened again instanly. "Sure, Dad," she answered with a wild look in her eyes. "If that's how it has to be,than that is how it'll have to be."
He nodded back at her grin, not realizing the hidden truth of her words.
***
Jysella sat at the controls of the starship, deeply involved in trying to figure out which buttons she was supposed to press. Of course, she'd flown ships before, but this model was unknown to her. Finally, she decided on the small black one that was near the center of the control board.
The ship was a medium sized vessel, with no real distinguishing features. That would help her in the long run so that she wouldn't be recognized as easily when she got to Aneen. It was one of the brand new ships that had been donated to the Jedi when the government finally realized how important it was for them to be at least independent on the New Republic for transport. Jysella felt only half guilty about taking it. It was the only way she could see to fufill the vision. She couldn't allow her dad to accompany her, it didn't feel right.
She had become almost obsessed with the vision lately, but it couldn't be helped. She'd remembered hearing stories of the false vision Jacen Solo had recieved in the beginning of the Vong invasion. It had nearly cost him his life. Well, that wouldn't happen to her, she thought with a child's false sense of certainty. Realizing that her thoughts would continue to chase themselves in circles until she actually did what she felt she had to do, she proceeded to warm up the ship.
As a steady stream of lights blinked on green, she alighted from the hard docking bay, soaring through the air has she had used to see the birds fly on Yavin 4. Tears came to her eyes as the old scar of that loss pulled open again. You were too young to do anything then, she told herself strictly. You can just make up for the pain now. She was unaware of how her thoughts drifted dangerously close ti the Dark Side. For the moment, she remained blissfully unaware of the deeper meanings of her immature and sulky thoughts.
The sky changed from a light blue to a dark, empty black as she broke free of the atmosphere. "Please return and land at once," a steady voice said over the comm unit. "You are on an unauthorized flight, return and land at once."
She searched for a moment before she was able to find the speaker, firmly flicking the switch off. She wasn't going to be deterred from her path even if a few squadrons of fighters was sent after her. Resolutely she entered the coordinates for Aneen with one hand while jinking the slightly unwieldly ship around with the other to help eliminate any chance of getting scored by a laser hit or by getting snared in a tractor beam.
Finally, she toggled the hyperspace lever, causing blue and white streaks to shoot past the cockpit as the stars elongated into the comforting reassurance of lightspeed. She released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She stood up in elation, smiling as she realized that she had completed the first part of her mission.
A firm hand settled on her shoulder. She sighed in frustration.
"I'm in trouble, aren't I?" she asked silently, already knowing the answer. She felt the person's head nod succintly. The word yes hung between them uneasily as she prepared herself for a long talk with whoever had caught her.
***
***
"Yes and no," Master Shri stated calmly. "Your actions were impulsive and risky. You DID do the right thing, but your way of achieving it was wrong. You would do well to learn from this, Padawan."
"I'll try, Master," Jysella answered quickly, hoping to forgo any long lectures. She got up from the pilots chair. "Why are you here, Master?"
Master Shri laughed quickly. "Straight and to the point, as always. Well, I knew that you would try something like this from the look on your face when we spoke to your father, It wasn't hard to stow away on your chosen vessel."
"Oh." Jysella pondered what her mentor has said for a moment. "Am I really THAT predictable?"
Master Shri just laughed again. "Not to most, child. But to those who know you well, yes. I think your father even suspected on some level."
"I guess I'll just have to try harder to suprise all of you." And with that the conversation was ended. They each moved on to their separate tasks, preparing to exit hyperspace after their quick jump.
***
The boarding ramp lowered quickly, almost seeming to feel Jysella's impatience. A young man stood just at it's end. She gasped softly in shock. It was the guy from her vision! Now that she had time to study him, she noticed his powerful build, sandy hair, and piercing gray eyes.
"Welcome to Aneen. Would you like a guide for your visit here?" His eyes moved from Master Shri to Jysella. They widened slightly when he saw her, as if he recognized her.
Master Shri didn't appear to notice. "Yes, please. That would be most welcome. Do you mind guiding us to a place where we could stay for the night?"
"It will be my pleasure, sir."
***
The establishment that their guide, Jason, had taken them to was comfortable, if not lavish. The owner had been all too happy to give it to them for no charge. Jedi had left a deep imprint on this world when they had regained it from the Vong. In the small amount of time since then, many of the signs of war had been covered up by renovation, but not all. These thoughts occupied the young Jedi's mind for mere seconds before her thoughts locked onto the more important issues at hand.
"Why are we here, Master?" I need to fufill the vision- or at least try. We're here right now, can't we just finish this quickly and be done with it?"
"Are you so eager to get back to your father?" Jysella ignored the older Jedi's attempt at distraction. "You recognized our guide, and he recognized you. I don't know what that means but we need time to figure everything out. Patience is a quality that you should put more emphasis on," he admonished softly.
"Yes, Master. So what do you plan to do?"
"Leave the choice up to you, Jysella. I'm merely giving you the time to meditate on what must be done. You, ultimately, will decide the course of action that you will take. This is your mission, your test, not mine. It is up to you to determine of you will pass or fail. I cannot interfere."
"Oh." Her master continually surprised her. For a padawan to be given this much responsibility at such an early point of training was nearly unheard of. On second thought, Master Shri was right. It was her mission and it was her vision that had led them here. It was oddly fitting that it would be her choice that decided her fate.
Jysella sank deep into the Force, almost subconciously. The vision, the Force river insisted. Remember the vision. Ok, she thought. Jason was there, she was there, Master Shri was not. She and Jason somehow needed to get alone in the vision area. It was in wilderness, lots of undergrowth and trees. Had she heard anything about wildlife reservations or something? Yes. Remnants of their conversation on the walk to the inn floated back to her.
Jason had thrown sidelong glances in her direction the entire time. She had been concentrating on not staring at him openly.
"The wildlife reserves are one of the main factors that have helped to rebuild our economy after the invasion. I can take you out to one of them tomorrow, if you would like."
"No," Master Shri had replied. "I grew up around here. I've seen them hundreds of times. I would like to know more about the rebuilding efforts, however." That was it!
Jysella's eyes popped open as soon as she had reached her decision.
"Master Shri, I know how you are uninterested in the reserves since you grew up in the area. I, however, am interested. May I ask Jason to accompany me while I visit them tomorrow?"
The spark that kit in her Master's eyes and her own ease at making the formal request strengthened her resolve. She knew that she had made the right choice.
"Of course, Padawan," Master Shri replied just as formally. "Congratulations on reaching the right decision," she added, a note of pride in her voice.
Jysella's smile broadened.
****
***
The forest paths were very beautiful, Jysella had to admit. Normally such things didn't strike her as lovely, but this forest was special. Maybe it was because she had finally come to the area of her vision. Whatever the cause, it distracted her from the whole reason that she was there, at least for a moment.
"Why are you really here?" Jason asked suddenly.
"Well..." Should she trust him? He was in her vision, which had to mean something. She quickly explained her situation.
"You had a vision of me?" He sounded surprised.
"That's what I said, wasn't it?"
"Then this must have to happen! I mean, two people can't both be wrong about the exact same thing, not when it's as important as this!"
"What the Sith are you talking about?" Jysella was genuinely baffled; she had no clue at what he was getting at.
"I had the same vision except, well, I was me!"
She looked down and saw the blaster holstered at his hip. "So you came prepared.... No point in wasting time. Let's get this over with!"
They hurried over to the cliff on their right that gave them a nearly unobstructed view of the surrounding areas. Below was a river, little more than a stream. But there, in the distance...
"There! It's some kind of Vong dome!" She leaned forward on her toes to get a clearer view.
The ground slid out from underneath her. A strangled yelp half caught in her throat as gravity forces her towards the bottom. Her Jedi skills could do nothing to stop her long fall.
The Force did help to slow her down, somewhat. She'd done it before, but now it was extremely hard with the ground rushing up at her ant the wind blowing all around her.
Just relax, she kept telling herself. It didn't help, not much anyway. She hit the ground with a thump that gradually crescendoed into a groan as air rushed back into her bruised body. After five painful minutes she was able to stand and take a few tottering steps. She staggered haltingly in the general direction of the Vong installation. How was she supposed to fight now? The vision couldn't be wrong... Jason just had to save her. How was she going to survive without him? It could take hours, even days for him to find a secure path down the cliff. The vision wouldn't wait. It kept nagging at her thoughts. She was never distracted from it for more than a nanosecond.
I have to try, she decided, determination following the thought. She knew what she had to do. Now came the hard part, actually doing it.
Just relax, Master Shri's voice sounded in her mind. You've been training to be a Knight since you could scarcely walk. You are prepared for this.
Focusing her thoughts on her goal and not on all the obstacles allowed her to tap into the Force for strength. Her injuries and doubts faded even further into the back of her mind. They were no longer important. She strode confidently towards where she knew the future awaited her.
***
A mass of writhing, multi-hued flesh. That was what the Vong dome looked like from up close.
Her hand settled firmly around her lightsaber hilt. Her thumb lightly stroked the switch that would make the brilliant green blade shoot forth into existence.
The vision replayed itself in her mind's eye. The dome hadn't been there before, but on the other hand, Jason wasn't here now when she needed him. She felt the momentary fear replaced easily with her now accustomed comforting reassurance.
"So. An infidel Jeedai has found me at last."
Jysella spun around, her blade igniting as she swiveled. That had to be it! It just had to be the Vong creation that she sought after. Jysella's facial features were easily visible across the thing's wide face. The figure didn't appear to recognize any resemblance, however.
"I am the culmination of two societies. My blood descends from the much glorified Shai domain as well as the despicable Corran Horn, although he is a Jeedai, he was still a respected warrior- for an infidel."
The sound of her father's name in relation to this... thing sent her into a spasm of anger. Her face blazed red from the heat of her fiery passion. It was a while before she could even get her mouth to work properly.
"My father has nothing to do with you!" she cried fiercely even though she could not deny the truth of its words. The fact that they resembled each other so strongly pointed to the thing's statement as highly likely.
"Oh, but you are wrong!" the creature stated gleefully, clearly taking pleasure from the girl's pain. "The blood of Horn, taken from battle on your planet Bimmiel, combined with that of the vaunted Shai domain by the Shapers produced me! But enough of these monotonous explanations! It is your time to face the Last Pain, the eternal embrace of death!"
It's lightsaber- a blinding yellow- was brought up and ignited against Jysella's own before the latter even recognized fully that the fight had begun.
***
***
The fight was full of fury. It was a battle for more than just their individual lifes. Somehow, it amounted to much more.
Strike, parry, thrust, block, twirl. The battle seemed like an endless dance, full of a strange wonder and glory and, surprisingly, an awesome beauty.
Her strength and that of the Vong creature were very equally matched. Neither ever gained the upper hand for more than a moment.
Jysella's mind was near;y blank of all concious thought for the duration of the battle. She'd never concentrated this deeply before. Impossibly, she wasn't even aware of herself doing it.
Suddenly, the interrminable dance was stopped. The alien's blade caught on her own, twirled lazily, and neatly tossed Jysella's blade to the side. Her opponent's blade, hawk-eyed yellow, lowered itself to rest a mere millimeter above her throat. The alien's evil, malicious cackle filled the air.
Come on, Jason, she pleaded desparately. I need you NOW! You're supposed to save me!
Her eyes closed as she realized that her vision had been wrong, or that she had done something to make it turn out this way. There was no one to save her now. At least the alien would be quick about killing her. She'd have a quick warrior's death.
Probably. Hopefully.
***
****
She opened her eyes again quickly. Of course! She could use the Force! Swiftly, she formed her thoughts into a hand that grabbed her blade from where it had been tossed aside scant moments ago/
The blade dipped in the air as her concentration started to slip. after what seemed like forever, the blade was positioned along the side of the alien's throat. As she started to push the ignition switch along the way, the creature's voice broke into her thoughts.
"Are you listening to me, filthy infidel? You are teetering on the edge of death, and yet you do not plead for lenience like the rest of your pitiful kind. What is so different about you?"
Jysella didn't take the time to answer. She frowned at the added focus it took now that she knew about the thing's taunts.
The crystal blade shot out of the hilt, skewering the alien neatly through the neck. Simultaneously, blaster fire erupted from behind it. The creature toppled over, leaving her staring at Jason in surprise. He returned her look with equal open amazement.
Jysella was the first to voice her opinion. "Well THAT was unexpected!"
****
****
Jason and Jysella made their way back to the city at a crawling pace. It took them nearly ten hours to hike the normally three hour walk. By the time they finally arrived, darkness had long since set in and Master Shri had nearly given up on waiting for the two adventurers.
The lights sprang o as soon as they stepped inside. Master Shri was settled into a comfortable chair. A proud gleam lit his eyes as the two young people entered the room, victorious.
"I see that you've done well on your quest," he remarked as Jysella ettled heavily onto a couch. Jason stoof behind her, his hands resting on her shoulders in a companionable and slightly protective position.
"well," Jason replied, "that weird creature is dead. We're both still alive. I think that means we did good... er... well."
All the occupants of the room settled into a comfortable silence. Jysella, naturally, was the first to break it. Just as predictably, she vut straight to the essence of what was troubling her.
"Master, is Jason Force-sensitive?" The query shocked both of the men. Neither of them had ever paused to consider it and all it's implications and complications.
"Well, I never thought to check. Why do you ask, Padawan?"
"Because jason had the same vision that I did, basically." She rushed on with her explanation before she had registered the shock on Jason's face and the thoughtfullness across Master Shri's features. "He was him and I was there and the 'xact same thing happened so I figured it was probably some kind of Force vision. And that would mean he was Force-sensitive, ya know? Did that make ANY sense?"
The words tumbled out of her mouth faster than lightspeed. Jason and Master Shri took several minutes to process the data that she was overloading them with. Master Shri began to test Jason's Force-sensitivy as soon as he realized that that was what was required of him.
He found his inner Force strength quickly and easily. He certainly had quite a lot of it. He opened her eyes to tell the two youth what he had found.
"Yes, he is quite sensitive to the Force." Jason's eyes wodened in shock. He started to protest loudlym but Jysella quickly cut him off.
"That means that he should come and study at the Jedi Academy, right?"
"Of course. It is up to him to make the final decision, however."
Both Jedi turned to look at the startled young man. They waited patiently, at least in Master Shri's case, for his response. "Well... err... I guess I could go. My parents both died in the war. Sure, I'll go!" he answered, uncertainly at first, but gaining confidence as he went on.
"Let's go!" Jysella chirped cheerfully.
"Hold on a second," her master warned, a knowing grin on his face. "Have you forgotten about your injuries? Your father will certainly behead me if you have so much as a scratch."
"Injuries?" Jysella quickly examined herself. She had been too busy thinking about the future to realize that she had bruises all over and several scorch marks along her arms and neck. "Oh. That could be a problem."
****
It ended up taking the better part of a week for all of her signs of injury to fade away. The entire time was completely uneventful, full of relaxed meditation and Force exercises. Jason learned to connect with the Force easily. In addition, Jason and Jysella's relationship evolved from friends into... something more.
The trip back on the sleek shuttle barely took any time at all, it seemed. Jysella figured tht ut was because of the extremely lower levels of apprehension. Their ship touched down gently as Jysella landed it. Peering outside through the cockpit window, she saw her father glaring at the ship, his foot tapping in agitation.
I am SO dead, she groaned. I'm never gonna be able to do anything again.
All three of the passengers on the ship strode down the ramp together. Master Shri took point and his two apprentices situated themselves on either side.
"Hello Master Horn," Master Shri said. "How was your week?"
"Hmph. If you don't mind I'd have to have a talk with my daughter. A very LONG talk."
"Of course. Follow me, Jason. I'll gove you a tour of the Academy." That left Jysella alone with her father who was struggling to contain his anger. On impulse, she walked over to him and threw her arms around him, kissing him gently on the cheek. "I'm sprry Daddy," she whispered. She felt her father's anger lessen considerably. Maybe her punishment wouldn't be so bad after all.
****
Jysella finally caught up with Jason outside of the Academy. They smiled at each other briefly, and then began to talk.
"So what;d your father do to you?" Jason asked.
"Nothing. Technically, my mission was sanctioned since my- our- master agreed to it and went along. I just had to 'swear not to rush off on some fool's errand without consulting him', as he put it. So how how do you like the Academy?"
"It's... nice." There didn't seem to be anything else to say. They sat in an uncomfortable and embarassed silence for several long moments.
"Jysella?"
"Yeah?"
"Umm.. do you think that we're maybe... more than friends?" he managed to stammer out. They had both started leaning in towards wach other as they were talking.
"Yeah."
Their lips pressed gently against each other in a slow kiss. It wasn't too passionate or hurried. It was more of an embrace between two people who had just realized what they meant to each other but were intelligent enough to realize that they had all the time in the universe. In fact, that;s exactly what it was.
The kiss lasted only a moment before they broke it. Smiling deeply, they turned and walked towards the Academy.
And ran straight into am outraged Corran Horn. His jaw was set into a hard line.
"We are SO dead," the two young Jedi chorused together.
"You got that right," the older Jedi responded as he began steering them inside.
****
THE END
****