Rebirth of the Fallen
A short story by B. James Hunter
Chapter 2.
The buildings were all on fire. The devastation was considerable. Huge columns of smoke rose up like giant sea serpents, high into the night sky. Blaster fire could be heard from all directions as the inhabitants of Taris city fought in vain to repel the invading forces. Storm troopers moved in groups, using well drilled battle tactics to overcome their opponents. The soldiers were not the primary concern however. What struck real terror into the hearts of the defenders was not the soldiers but the dozen or so Sith masters leading the assault. Almost no-one on Taris had ever seen a Sith master but everyone had heard of them. And what they had heard terrified them. And here now, in their city, they found themselves confronted by the very source of their nightmares.
From the doorway of one of the burning buildings, Catherine Serrano surveyed the scene before her. It was almost too much to take in. If the destruction being wrought by the soldiers and the saber wielding dark masters was not enough, huge laser blasts rained down from an unseen enemy high above the clouds, tearing the buildings apart as if they were made of paper.
A scream from the courtyard to her left brought Catherine's mind back into focus. At once, she was running. The entrance to the courtyard lay just ahead. As she approached, a grenade hit the base of one of the gateways giant supporting pillars, shards of marble exploding in every direction. The huge monolithic pillar began to sway as if trying to decide which way to fall. Its decision made, the structure began to crumble and collapse in on itself; falling to cover the entrance way to the courtyard and gardens beyond. Catherine did not stop running and as the marble blocks began to fall, she jumped. A huge piece of marble slammed into the ground with a crash that sounded as if the sky itself was falling. Catherine landed on the stone and immediately sprang forward, propelling herself high into a forward flip. In one flowing movement, twin beams of violet light erupted from the metal objects she was carrying. The motion of her flip brought forth two violet arcs that cut clean in two, another giant piece of the stone pillar that was falling towards her. The block exploded, clearing a path through the hailstorm of rock. Completing her forward flip, Catherine landed perfectly inside the courtyard as the last of the pillar came crashing down behind her.
The sight before her almost ripped her in two. Corpse upon corpse littered the courtyard. Men, women, even children lay lifeless on the crimson stained grass of the town gardens. She knew these people, she knew them all. Something didn't seen right. It was late and the courtyard was seldom frequented after nightfall. They would all have been home when the attack began. Suddenly, it dawned on Catherine the full horror of what she saw. These people had fled here when the fighting broke out. The buildings were being destroyed from above and the secluded courtyard would have seemed a perfect safe haven from the attacks. The Sith master knew this and had simply waited for his prey to come to him. In the search for shelter they had found a tomb.
The dark Sith turned to face her from across the garden. His face and tunic were splattered with blood: it dripped from the handle of his double-ended lightsaber. The Sith said nothing; instead he stretched out his arm towards Catherine and beckoned her to attack. The Jedi cleared her mind and started to move. Just then, something caught the attention of them both. A boy, no more than fourteen, fell from one of the trees. From his landing, it was obvious he had been there for some time. Catherine could only guess the horrors he had been forced to witness. The tree from which the boy had fallen from lay directly between Catherine and the Sith. In an instant, her priorities changed. She ran towards the figure, still lying on the ground, battered from his fall. The Sith laughed at the site before him. "Foolish Jedi" he hissed. "Your willingness to protect these pathetic worms will only hasten your annihilation." As with the Jedi, the Sith began to run in the direction of the child. As he approached, he flung out his hand as if trying to stop himself from hitting an invisible wall. Catherine felt the wave hit her like an explosion. She flew backwards at great speed, hitting with considerable force a large tree behind her. Winded, Catherine collapsed to the ground gasping for air.
She looked up to see the Sith standing over the now cowering body of the young man. The boy held out a hand to the woman and cried out.
"Please help me Miss Serrano." With that, she saw the boy's face and recognised him immediately. Jerel was crying and his face was a mask of abject terror. The Sith laughed once more and raised his saber above his head. As if in slow motion, Catherine looked on helplessly as the dark master brought down his weapon upon the young man cowering below.
"NO!" screamed Catherine as she jolted upright in her bed. For a second, she sat there, motionless in total darkness; breathing heavily and drenched in sweat. It took at least a minute to get her heart rate back under control. Slowly, she brought her hands up to her face and audibly exhaled. Pulling back the covers, she climbed out of bed and walked unsteadily to the bathroom. Cupping her hands under the tap, she filled them with cold water and lowered her head towards the basin. With her face dripping wet, she looked into the mirror at the pale figure staring back. She remembered what had happened earlier that evening.
She remembered talking to Gadon upon seeing the cloaked figure.
"You see the man by the door?"
"I see him. Is he trouble?" Gadon replied. Catherine ignored the question.
"Bring him to my office." And with that, she put down her glass, turned and began to walk away. Gadon looked at his friend and then at the glass. A trail of wine had spilled and had run down the side of the crystal and onto the balcony ledge. Gadon saw the spilt wine and was now genuinely concerned. In all the years he had known the woman, Catherine Serrano had been calmness and composure personified. The very idea of her spilling a glass of wine was akin to someone else floating off into space.
"Can I help you sir?" asked Gadon as he approached the figure by the entrance. The cloaked figure turned and looked at the man before him. With no great haste, he brought both hands up and pulled back his hood, revealing the light complexion of young man; almost a boy.
"Do you know where I might find Master Serrano?" the young man replied. The name Serrano caught the attention of those in the immediate area. "Did he say Master Serrano?" asked one parent to another. Gadon surveyed the crowd and knew he had to nip this in the bud. The mayor laughed but the Jedi sensed it was forced.
"I don't know of any master here young man. I think you may be a little confused." He continued, not allowing the Jedi to respond. "Why don't we go and talk to the headmistress of this school? Perhaps she may know of who you speak." The Jedi sensed what Gadon was doing and played along. As the older man gestured, the young Jedi followed Gadon through the crowd and up a flight of stairs towards the school's administration section.
Catherine walked through the living area of her home in total darkness. As she reached the kitchen, she opened the refrigerator and brought out a large jug of Kaltak milk. Not bothering to find a glass, she opened the jug, brought it to her mouth and drank heavily. The half empty jug clattered onto the work surface as Catherine pressed her head against the cool door of the refrigerator and closed her eyes.
Gadon knocked on the office door. After what seemed like an eternity, "come in" was heard from inside the room. Gadon and the young Jedi walked into Catherine's office. Gadon said nothing. "It is an honour to meet you Master Serrano. My name is Tu Li Shin." said the stranger, now ignoring the mayor and concentrating fully on the young woman before him.
"Don't call me that." said Catherine. The young man seemed taken aback; as if he couldn't even imagine such a response.
"Do you want me to go Catherine?" said Gadon. He felt uncomfortable, like he suddenly didn't belong there. And yet, he wanted to stay. He wanted to protect his friend, any way he could.
"No," came the response, a little too quickly. Catherine was having trouble even meeting the eyes of the young man before her. She wasn't prepared for this. Nine years of teaching and living in a community had softened her. She knew, deep down that everything she once was still lingered within her. It was buried deep and she had no wish to go looking for it. "You must be tired from your long journey. I insist you accept our hospitality tonight. We can talk in the morning." The kind offer was not for the Jedi's benefit. Catherine needed time to think.
"But Master Serr--"
"Let me take you to your accommodation young man." interjected Gadon, cutting the Jedi off with the skill of a politician.
"But I really--"
"Tell me; are you hungry?" said the mayor, again stopping the Jedi in his tracks. This time, the older man followed up his remarks with a look that said this conversation was over.
"Thank you. You are most kind." replied the Jedi, now resigned to continuing his mission in the morning.
Catherine stood upright and walked out of the kitchen and into the living area. As she turned to make her way back to her bed she caught sight of the large object in the corner. Catherine stared at it for a moment before crossing the room to stand in front of the locked wooden chest. Taking a key from a hook inside a nearby vase, she opened it. At the base of the container was a robe, neatly folded. Lying on top of the robe was a small metal box about a foot square in size. A lifetime was in this chest, someone else's life. She let go of the lid.
--------------
Catherine greeted the Jedi at school's main gate.
"I trust you had a pleasant rest Mr Shin?" as she spoke she turned her head to look at the three girls standing nearby, listening to their conversation. By now, the Master Serrano comment would be all round the school and she had no wish to fan the flames.
"You girls should be inside by now. Hurry along and get to your classes" said Miss Serrano. They didn't need to be told twice.
"Perhaps we can take a walk?" Catherine asked, gesturing in the direction they might travel. "I apologise Miss Serrano if I caused you any problems last night. It was not my intention to inconvenience you." The young Jedi was genuinely concerned he had overstepped the mark with the woman at his side. "You want to tell me why you are here?" Catherine's voice betrayed no emotion. The pair fell silent as they passed a group of young children being escorted to class by their teacher. The two women acknowledged each other with a smile as they passed. Catherine and the young Jedi continued to walk along the path before turning right into the courtyard and its botanical gardens.
"Master Vandar has been poisoned. They say he might die." Catherine took a moment to take in what she had just heard. She had gotten to know Vandar very well at the end of the war and cared for him deeply. That was all many years ago however.
"And why are you telling me this?" Catherine winced inside at what she had said. She wanted to know more but she couldn't risk being drawn back into their world. For the second time in two days, the young man was surprised by her response. 'Perhaps she's not the Jedi everyone says is?' he thought to himself.
"I'm telling you this because Master Vandar has asked for you."
Whilst it wasn't clear which one of them sensed it first, Catherine was first to react. She turned and stared down the path they had just walked and saw a figure, once again, cloaked and wearing a hood standing at the entrance to the courtyard.
"There's another" cried Shin. Catherine turned and followed the gaze of the young Jedi. Standing directly opposite the first figure, was a second man, cloaked and hooded as before. These were no Jedi, that much was obvious. Catherine's first thought was to scan the courtyard. Unusually for this time of day, it was empty. For that, she was thankful.
A familiar hiss echoed around the courtyard as first the two Sith and then Tu Li drew their lightsabers.
"Tell me you're good with that thing" said Catherine as the unexpected noise startled all the birds from the trees.
"Stay behind me" replied the Jedi.
In an instant, the Sith on Tu Li's side stretched out his hand. A huge arc of force lightning leapt from his fingers instinctively connecting with Shin's raised lightsaber. For a second, this caught Catherine's attention, only a second; but it was long enough. Even as she turned once more to face the Sith nearest her, another powerful arc of lightning ripped into her. With no saber to absorb the force, Catherine cried out as the excruciating power coursed through her body. Still connected to the woman, her attacker raised his hand and pushed it hard to his left. Catherine felt herself rise from the ground, still racked with pain from the continuing energy discharge. Tu Li looked on, unable to do anything as Catherine was thrown clear across the courtyard with great force into the trunk of a tree.
The noise from the courtyard had attracted much attention from the people nearby. No-one could quite believe their eyes. 'Who were these men and why was Miss Serrano here?'
A woman in the crowd started to scream when the Sith sent the young teacher flying across the courtyard. Others in the crowd ran to get help.
"Well that concludes our meeting Gentlemen; unless there is any other business?" Gadon began to think about lunch when he heard the commotion outside. Opening the window, he could see people running in the direction of the school. "What's going on?" he shouted. A raven haired man shouted up to the Mayor. "There are people fighting in the courtyard. The school headmistress is there." Gadon cursed under his breath. 'The arrival of the Jedi was a sure sign of trouble' he thought to himself. 'Dammit, I should have been there.' Then it hit him. He suddenly knew what to do.
"Kalina. Get my transport ready. NOW!"
Catherine groaned and made to move. She could smell her own singed flesh as she tried in vain to get her muscles to relax. Tu Li didn't know what to do. He had never been in combat before and here was not one but two dark Sith masters. The young man did not lack courage however and ran at the figure facing him. In quick succession, Tu Li's blade clashed twice with the Sith's weapon. The boy spun and crouched, sweeping his saber across the area previously occupied by his opponent's legs. The Sith was far too quick for the boy. He flipped in the air and landed in the exact same spot he had left. This time, the dark master attacked. Blow after blow rained down on Tu Li's blade. With the skill of a master, the Sith cut the lightsaber from the Jedi's grasp and with an outstretched hand of his own, sent the young man flying backwards in a wall of energy.
The two Sith looked at each other and laughed.
"I am almost disappointed" said Krell Lito, the Sith who had defeated the young Jedi. "I expected at least some resistance; but your pitiful skills cannot possibly compare to the power I possess." The second Sith looked over at the crumpled figure of Catherine Serrano. She had regained muscle control but it was still too painful to move. "Kill him so we can finish what we came here to do" he said impatiently.
"No-one said we had to make this quick" Krell retorted before unleashing a burst of force lightning into the prone figure of Tu Li.
The two security officers who arrived on the scene were met by the agonised screams of the young man lying on the ground.
"Lower your weapons" they both shouted, pointing their blasters at the Jedi standing over Catherine. The Sith began walking towards them, ignoring their command. Feeling adequately threatened, both the officers fired their blasters at the approaching figure. With rapier skill, Rulin Krogan weaved his blade twice, ricocheting the blasts of laser fire and directing them back where they came from. The officers flew backwards as the energy blasts hit them in their chests. They were both dead before they hit the ground.
"On your knees Jedi." Almost spitting the words as he spoke them, Krell waved his hand upwards and pulled the almost unconscious young man to an upright position. He raised his saber above his head, holding the weapon with both hands, his face a mixture of hatred and pleasure. Without saying another word, the Sith brought down his blade cutting the air where the boy had been a split second before. The red blade cut into the grass as the boy flew with no little force, through one of the sheet glass windows of the botanical greenhouse.
Instantly, both men turned their attention to the young woman behind them. Catherine Serrano was still lying on the ground but her hand was outstretched in the direction of the greenhouse.
"So you do have spirit in you after all." It wasn't a question. If anything, it was a nod of respect. "She's mine." said Krell standing in front of the greenhouse. "The boy can wait."
Catherine braced herself. She had almost recovered from her initial injuries but with no lightsaber, there was nothing she could do. She prayed the Sith would leave after she was dead.
"Catherine" shouted Gadon. He was standing at the entrance to the courtyard. Krogan, the Sith who had killed the security officers stretched out his hand to strike him down. Just as he did so, Gadon mustered up all his strength and threw an object into the air towards his friend. A moment later, the mayor flew backwards; the air forced from his lungs as he collided with, and destroyed, a wooden bench along the edge of the path.
What happened next happened very quickly. As the small metal box spun through the air, Catherine rose to her feet. The Sith by the greenhouse saw what was coming and ran at the woman. The clasps on the container suddenly burst open revealing two silver coloured lightsabers. As if attached by wires, they left the metal container and flew into the hands of the young woman.
Almost immediately, the twin violet blades hissed into life and came crashing down on the blade of the approaching Krell. The pair exchanged blow for blow, parry for parry; all the while the second Sith rushing to join the fight. Krell began to move backwards with the fury of Catherine's blows. If she'd had time, Catherine would have been surprised and more than a little down hearted to see how quickly her old skills had come flooding back. With supreme agility, she continued to force the Sith back on his heels. And then she had him. For an instant, he dropped his guard on his left side and Catherine struck. With a sweeping arc of her right saber she took his arm off just below the elbow. In a single motion, Catherine twisted her body; turning to face the second attacker, and span the blade in her right hand. As she turned, her right arm and saber continued to travel around behind her, beheading Krell.
The second Sith stopped running. Catherine faced Krogan, one blade pointing straight at him, the other in the opposite direction exactly where his fallen associate had stood. The Sith struggled to take in what had just transpired. Anger and rage contorted his face as he screamed. At full speed he ran at the woman. Catherine didn't move from where she was standing. She parried the first blow and with a swing of her second blade slashed across the back of the Sith just as his momentum carried him past her. Catherine didn't even look back. The Sith stood motionless for a second, blood pooling at his feet. His lifeless body slumped to its knees and then fell, face first onto the grass just as the violet blades of Catherine's lightsabers receded.