Andrea closed her eyes and stretched herself out in the force for a few moments before she looked over at Callista. "Okay, daddy changed plans," she told her. "It'll be a while before he gets home. So, I guess we get the time to show you around some."

Callista smiled slightly. "That's perfectly alright. Lead on. "

Andrea smiled and started back up the steps, making sure that the doorway was closed after they came back into the living room. "Well, I don't know where to start," she said as they walked into the kitchen. "But I would guess you might be at least a little thirsty after your flight?"

"I am...and being in a hospital for a week doesn't help either..."

"I can imagine," the voice of another woman said from the kitchen as they entered.

"This is my mom, Callista," Andrea said as she introduced them. "I won't go into the formal title."

Callista smiled and just bowed before one of her hosts.

"We've heard a lot about your progress," Jade told her as Andrea went to pour some water for them. "I hope your trip went well."

Callista paused a moment. "As well as can be expected, I suppose." She accepted the water from Andrea with a smile of thanks. "It certainly was interesting..."

"I guess we'll all hear about it later," Jade said as they sat there. "Steffan and Ryneas should be back from their trip soon. But it'll give you time to settle in."

"Come on," Andrea told her with a smile. "Dad was talking about the guest cottage, but I think Dilan's room will be alright while he's at the Academy."

Smiling back, Callista nodded to Jade, and followed Andrea from the kitchen. "Any chance I could freshen up before dinner?"

"Sure thing," Andrea said with a wink. "Dilan and Ryneas share a refresher, but you can use mine."

"Thanks," Callista laughed.

"Us girls have to stick together," Andrea jokingly said as she led her up the stairs.

'That we do." Callista followed Andrea into one of the upstairs bedrooms, noticing how neat it was.

"Here we go," Andrea said as she opened one of the doors. "Its Dilan's old room. But he's only here when he's on break from the Jedi Academy. Mine's just down the hall."

Callista glanced at her. "The Academy?"

Andrea looked at her. "You didn't know about it?"

"No...I guess Coruscant keeps pretty much to themselves, although I'm not sure why..."

"Well, its not a known fact," Andrea told her as they walked into her room and they sat down on the bed. "After the Peace Brigade aided the Yuuzhan Vong against the old academy on Yavin IV, the Jedi decided to keep the location of any future facility secret. They first reestablished it on Ossus after the war was over."

"Where the Library used to be... So why rebuild the temple then? It doesn't make sense..."

"The council decided that their presence on Coruscant might prevent so much of the sentiment that was sweeping the Senate when the invasion came. And I guess they decided it was time to re-establish some of the old ways. Coruscant has always been the 'center' of it all, and it was a place where the Jedi have always been."

"It was before daddy began training, so I wasn't even there for that. Or when the Academy was moved to the old facility on Chandrila."

Callista thought that over. "It makes sense I suppose."

Andrea just shrugged and sat there for a few moments. "Oh! Where are my manners." She gestured to the other door in her room. "You wanted to freshen up."

Grinning, Callista followed her across the room. "It's not a problem. I know you probably don't get a lot of visitors here."

"Usually just Arie or Ainar," Andrea said as she opened the door to the refresher. "Sometimes other members of the council, friends and families from here." Andrea suddenly noticed a picture she usually kept on the mirror and suddenly pulled it off and hid it. Hiding a smile, Callista set her bag on the counter and dug out a fresh set of robes.

Andrea blushed slightly as she put the picture away. "I'll be downstairs if you need me."

"Thanks, Andrea." When Andrea had gone, Callista stood there for a minute getting a sense of the room. it was filled with joy and hope. She smiled as she set about washing up. The little baby she had helped bring into the world was still fresh in her mind. She finished up, and making her way back into Dilan's room, she lay down on the bed. She didn't know how long she had slept, but she woke to Andrea shaking her gently.

'Callista, dinner is ready..." She sat up, rubbing the sleep from here eyes. "I'll be right there..."

"Master Karrde," Callista said as the dishes were being cleared away. "I think there is something about the mission I need to talk about...in private."

Steffan looked over to her from where he was putting plates up to wash and nodded softly. "Very well."

He led her out of the kitchen and across the living room into another room that she hadn't seen yet. The sight of the many books on the shelves amazed her, along with another shelf that held lightsabers of different sizes and styles. She immediately recognized the one he used against her in their last spar, and wondered if the rest were from friends or enemies.

"This is my study," Steffan said as he poured himself a glass of Cataani ale and sat down in one of the chairs away from his desk, motioning for Callista to sit in the other one. "Something troubled you on your trip?"

"Not in the normal sense of the word..." she paused, gathering her thoughts. "I had to put down halfway between Coruscant and Corellia for repairs, and I encountered someone." She put a slight emphasis on the word. She frowned slightly, remembering.

"He was injured, so I offered my services. Even in spite of the feeling I got from him." She shivered slightly from the memory. "He unnerved me a little, like he knew what I was thinking..." She proceeded to describe what had happened while she had worked on his leg, and the change in him afterwards. She paused, debating whether to tell him about what she had seen as he left.

"Disdain at the beginning," Steffan said as he leaned back and sipped his drink. "It would sound like a Dark Jedi or even a Sith."

She nodded at the last word. "He carried a Sith lightsaber...he did not harm me though..."

"You're certain?" Steffan asked her as he sat there.

"I am, Master Karrde. He never once raised a hand against me..."

"And certain he was Sith?" Steffan again asked as he leaned forward. "A Dark Jedi, I could understand not wishing for combat against us. But Sith...as far as I have read in history, they have always hated us with a passion."

"Not all Sith are as they appear to be, Master." She smiled slightly. "He was adamant about repaying the debt he owed me. Certainly not what I was expecting..."

Steffan nodded softly. "I will admit, they have secrets that we've not even begun to grasp. It possible that they do not all hold to the old ways. Like the Jensaari, in fact."

"How do you mean?"

"I guess history isn't one of the subjects they would cover with you," Steffan said with a chuckle. "The Jensaari were discovered by Master Skywalker and Corran Horn after the formation of the Jedi Academy. They had been taught in the ways of the Sith, but here's the interesting part of that story. They never really gave into their hate, and only used their Sith abilities in defense of their own."

"We've tried to stay in touch, helping each other when we can," Steffan told her. "Its not something that's been common knowledge."

"Probably explains why it wasn't covered in my history class..."

"Probably," Steffan said with a smile.

Having concluded her discussion with Master Karrde, Callista wandered out of his study. The house had quieted after dinner as everyone went their own way. Making her way upstairs to Dilan's room, she removed her boots and settled onto the floor. The mission had taken a lot out of her, but she had certainly been up to the challenge. it wasn't every day that one got to deliver a baby, or even help a Sith. That alone had been a challenge in more ways than one.

It was her first solo mission, away from the temple and her instructors. Definitely made one think on their feet. All the students were taught about the hatred that all Sith harbored against Jedi, or at least that's what they were led to believe.

Callista now knew differently. Either Mephisto did not hold to all of the ancient teachings, or he had come to understand more of the Jedi than to just let the centuries-old hate fester between them. His acceptance of her help, albeit reluctantly, was evidence enough.

She had gone against her initial reaction of revulsion to offer him assistance when he needed it, and he admired her for that. It definitely took guts. Most Jedi would have left him. But as had been proved time and again, Callista was not the average Jedi.

Callista had been sleeping fitfully until Steffan woke her in the dark. No one else stirred as he led her away from the house and into the woods. It was so dark that she couldn't see her own hand in front of her face and had to rely on her senses to guide her.

They came to a clearing, where a large plinth was sunk into the earth. It was some sort of marker, covered completely in Cataani script that Callista could not read. Steffan stood for a few moments as they stretched out their muscles. Finishing, he traced the script with his finger.

She looked at him, sensing him beside her more than seeing him. "What are they?"

"They mark places that hold an important place in our history," Steffan told her. "This one, in particular, has been here for a millennium." She frowned, trying to read the script chiseled into it, but could not. "What does it commemorate?"

"A special and interesting story," he said with a smile as he sat down. "Millennia ago, Cataan was nothing but groups of warring clans. One of them, the clan Tritoch, was able to unite a few of them under one banner. When the patriarch of the clan died, he had left two sons, Randolo and Itaro Kylan. Randolo, being the eldest, assumed control of the union...and started becoming ruthless."

Callista settled on the cool ground, wrapping her cloak about her feet.

"Itaro was his best general, but was soon to see how his brother was abusing his power. One day, Randolo's nephew was riding with him and was about to kill innocents for pitiful reasons. Itaro felt this was dishonorable and challenged him, according to tradition and killed him." Steffan lowered his head. "Randolo had his own brother put in irons then sent him out to be crucified." Nodding, Callista listened quietly as he continued.

"When they found out who he was, he was sent away. Itaro searched for a chance to redeem his clan...it took him all over the world until..."

"Until?..."

"He disappeared for a long time...and no one knows what had happened during that time," Steffan said as he looked up to the day break. "When he returned, he had a strange light in his eye. Some say he was visited by The Lady herself... He began bringing the heads of the other clans together, bringing common sense and a leading voice among them. The last great war lasted for a long time. When the final battle came, it was like nothing in the history of my people before or ever since."

"This spot," Steffan said as he held his hands out to motion to the field. "Is where Itaro took his brother's head. And he himself took upon him the responsibility of uniting all the clans...no one else felt so much courage and honor in one man."

"And so," he continued as he stood up. "Came the creation of what you've ever seen and heard about us. Our code of honor...our way of life...duty to family and country. All started here."

Callista rose with him, her breath frosting in the cool morning air.

"With the beginning of the day, you can experience something you've never felt before during your meditations and exercises on Coruscant," Steffan said as they enjoyed the morning.

She smiled, remembering how different the planet had felt to her. "The life of the planet?"

"One reason we've tried so hard to never take more from our home than what we need," he said as he closed his eyes and just breathed it all in. "A new experience for you if wish to go through some of your practices here."

"I would be honored."

Steffan smiled and completely surprised her, turning in an instant as his blade came alive. He had hoped to test her reaction to surprise, and he was close enough that his move would definitely test her.
She sensed him turning and snatched her blade, activating it in midswing as she turned to face him. They were so close, that when their blades intersected, their faces were mere inches apart.

"Focus, and you can feel it," Steffan said as he pressed his movements. "The sensations from the battle ages ago."

She reached out, and it all came crashing in like a tidal wave. The determination on both sides, the loss... She snaked her left foot out, hooking his ankle, in an attempt to throw him off balance, then she danced away from his blade.

Steffan came up, a grin on his face as she was quick to pick up on it. "Just don't let it completely take control, Callista. But you feel the intensity?"

She nodded, and set herself as he came towards her once more. She attempted to come in high, but Steffan quickly snapped her blade aside, lowering himself and caught her in a sweep that sent her down to her back as he came in for an overhead strike. But she was quick to turn it into a roll that took her away from him and settled her back into her fighting stance.

"Good, " Steffan said as he kept pressing. "Don't surrender ground. Press when you see it."

Callista barely nodded, and before he could counter, her second saber was in her hand, and slicing upward, as if she meant to bisect him at the hip. The saber in her left hand parried his counterstrike.

Steffan barely saw the second saber come into play, and he lifted himself into a graceful leap that landed him on top of the pillar behind him. He stood there, his saber gripped firmly in his hand as he looked down at her on the ground. "Excellent, Callista."

She inclined her head, and made a graceful leap to land next to him, her sabers ready.

"Tight control," Steffan said as their sabers whirled within moments of each other. "Excellent. Remember, foot space is scarce here...mind your surroundings." He switched to back-handed form and kept looping his saber in wide infinity arcs, catching hers in a block with every stroke.

Expanding her senses, she took in the pillar, Steffan, and the ground around it. His saber was a blur, and it was difficult to find an opening. She parried another strike, dancing carefully around him.
'There..' His right leg was trailing outside his defense, and she brought her saber in low, grazing his leg while she blocked his high strike.

Steffan caught the slight touch and flipped to prevent a second strike, landing softly on the ground again, looking up at Callista.

"You're improving," he told her as he shut down his saber. "Pretty soon, I might have to increase the level that I'm using against you. Come on down, I believe Jade will have breakfast ready by the time we get there."

Smiling, she flipped backwards off the pillar, and landed softly beside him. "That sounds wonderful," she said, and her stomach growled a hearty agreement.

Callista made her way to the cavern and the training floor. The room was cool and dim. She moved off to the perimeter of the circle, feeling that it was not her place to intrude upon it. Centering herself, she began moving through a kata, concentrating on the flow of the movements as she moved from one to the next. The force swirled around her as she moved.

Her twin sabers wove intricate patterns in the air, the hum echoing in the large space. Lunging at an imaginary attacker, she came in high, slashing diagonally towards the floor. She whirled, landing in a crouch as she sensed someone else in the room.

Every fiber of her being was tensed for action. Her left hand extended behind her, the blade raised over her head, while the other was held low, the glowing blade pointing towards the floor. A flicker of movement caused her to turn her head, and she cranked her left wrist around to block a strike that seemed to come out of nowhere.

"Make your movements more fluid," Steffan said as she paused during her kata. She barely nodded, working to hold back her opponent. The brilliant green blade that crashed against hers highlighted Andrea's face on the other side. Well, this will be something new, Callista thought.

The two women ranged all over the training floor, their blades flashing in the dimness. Andrea's skill was impressive, her concentration unwavering. The green blade of her saber was a blur as she defended herself against Callista's attack.

Even during the fury of the battle, Callista studied Andrea's moves, recognizing them quickly. Another practitioner of Form IV. Reacting purely on instinct, Callista dropped under a strike aimed at her midsection, and scissored her legs around, knocking Andrea's feet from under her.

Andrea responded immediately by rolling with the motion of her fall and assuming the high guard, going for strikes low and high from the same guard. When she sensed Callista's lunge, she flipped over the attack with just small space between them and tapped Callista's back as she landed, going back to a more standard guard.

Blocking the pain from Andrea's strike, Callista rolled away from her, and settled herself in a low guard. She fights well Callista thought.

Andrea circled around like a Corellian sand panther, her thoughts only on the fight, and her face still a calm reflection

Steffan eyed the combat with a critical eye.

Turning sideways, she presented her side to Andrea, both sabers pointed towards her opponent. Shifting her weight, she leaped at Andrea.

Andrea stood her ground till the last moment, then parried both of Callista's sabers upward and grabbed her leading arm. Using Callista's momentum, she rolled down and tapped Callista again as she came up. She kept her stance, but looked down and noticed that Callista had tapped her as well.

"Hold," Steffan called to end the spar.

"Don't feel so discouraged about this one," he told her. "I told you that Andrea trained differently than Master Faulkner taught you. We were just about to tune a few of the ships if you'd like to learn some things they don't teach at the temple."

Callista grinned, "I would like that very much."

"We can see if yours needs some too," Steffan said as he led them further into the cavern, opening a set of doors that separated the training area from a larger section. They came up to a streamlined ship that looked like it would rival a Corellian Action series in size. "All aboard," Steffan said as he started up the ramp.

"I wouldn't be surprised if it does, I did a pretty hasty patch job on that last mission."

"Patch job on what?" Andrea asked as she turned to look at her.

"I had a motivator blow on me halfway between Coruscant and Corellia. I had to put down for repairs..."

"Daddy, I'll take her down and have her show me some of it and maybe we can get it taken care of." Andrea said as she looked over at Steffan.

"Go ahead," he told her. "I can handle White Squall by myself."

Andrea punched in a few commands into one of the wall panels. "Watch out," she told Callista as she finished entering the commands, looking up in time to see the tarmac that Callista had landed her ship on start its descent into the hangar.

Calista jumped slightly in surprise. "I didn't know that it could do that..."

"A lot of what's under the house is possibly as old as the house itself," Andrea told her as the ship kept coming down. "We passed under the lake when we were walking from the training circle to here. But these are the only two areas that aren't known to the others."

"Why was I shown them, then?"

The ship stopped in front of them, and Andrea pulled a remote from the panel and stepped onto the tarmac, Callista eyeing her.

"The only ones that we trust to know them are Jedi. And only those close to us," Andrea told her. "Come on. We have to go lower to the service area."

Nodding, Callista followed Andrea onto the tarmac and to the service gantry. "The setup here for servicing ships is extensive...more so I think than the temple's..."

"Well, my ancestors took advantage of this deep part of the cavern," Andrea said as they started going farther down. "And it comes in handy for us now."

Andrea nodded and smiled. "Well, there was a lot of controversy a few years back over a totally new craft. Daddy didn't feel that the New Republic could control it, with all the political powers who would love to flex their military muscle as well. So, he decided to keep it here...he only uses it when absolutely necessary."

"I think I remember seeing something about that...don't remember much about it though. Mobile suits, right?"

"Correct," Andrea said as she hit a key on the remote, causing lights to their left to come alive, highlighting a machine that stood 60 meters tall.

"Whoa..." Callista just stared. "it's HUGE..."

Andrea just nodded. "I've never seen anything that contains such power. You're looking at something that could've stopped the Reborn Emperor's Eclipse-class Star Destroyer all by itself."

Dead silence followed that comment, as Callista was speechless.

"I know... As morbid as it might sound, I actually have fun learning all the operating systems on it," Andrea said as they reached the service area. "Just the technical side of me."

Callista just shook her head. "I think I'll stick with courier ships, thanks..."

Andrea just smiled. "Speaking of which, you said it was the hyperdrive?"

"Yeah, motivator blew halfway to Corellia."

"Sounds like they didn't go over it well enough before you left," Andrea said as he traced along a few of the panel lines before locating one and opening it.

Callista nodded. "Not like they had time to, either...it all happened fast."

"Before you left Coruscant?" Andrea asked as she went into the shop to retrieve a few tools. "They could've at least gone over it while they were loading. The motivators are supposed to be checked regularly."

"Yeah...it's odd..." she trailed off as her thoughts returned to the encounter with the Sith.

Andrea turned and looked at her. "There you go again," she said as she started removing the inner housing so she could pull the motivator.

"Sorry..now that I think about it though, I think it happened for a reason. I needed to be there at that moment..."

Andrea nodded as she finished removing the braces and gently lowered the motivator onto the cart.

"It is not ours to question the Will of the Force," Andrea said as she moved it over to the table where she had the tools ready.

"I will say this: it is not an encounter I think I will ever forget, and I think we may meet again soon..."

"We?" Andrea asked as she looked up from the motivator.

Callista flushed a little. "I ran into a Sith on that planet..." She glanced up as Andrea paused.

Andrea eyes went wide at that revelation, her hands still on the table. "And you didn't fight?"

"No, he never even laid a hand on me, it was I who helped him."

"Wow," was all she said as she started to remove parts from the motivator and checked over every one of them. "Encounters with them didn't use to be so wide spread."

Callista nodded. "Your father told me once that they are resurfacing, but he doesn't know why."

"We had faced them a while back," Andrea told her. "On Korriban...the old stronghold. Daddy used to tell me how there would only be two...but now, there are many of them."

"Yes, they are turning into a widespread order, much like we are and used to be..."

"There it is," she said as she removed the core. "You said you had to fiddle with the wires?"

"Yes. The wires were loose, and when I replaced it, it looked like it had suffered a power surge..."

"Well, your repair held," Andrea said as she removed the spun wires. "But the emergency stuff isn't supposed to last long. Look at some of the degradation...these would've gone out again on your next jump. Good thing we decided to go over it."

Callista let out a nervous chuckle. "Me too. I would hate to be stranded in the middle of nowhere.."

"Or worse," Andrea told her as she went to a cabinet and pulled out a replacement. "Dad used to use the Temple shuttles for a while, and luckily we still carry spare parts."

"I am very glad that you do, for my sake."

Andrea just smiled as she put the new coil into place. "We'll have you up and running in no time."

Callista just then remembered. "I was supposed to check up on the progress of the outbreak containment on Corellia on my way back. I'll have to leave in the morning. I can't believe I forgot..."

Andrea chuckled a little as she started moving the motivator back towards the shuttle. "Its not impossible."

Grinning, Callista followed and helped her maneuver it back into place. "I was enjoying my time here so much that it just slipped my mind."

"It happens," Andrea told her as they locked it down and started to replace the hull panel. "When I go to Coruscant with Daddy for matters concerning my training, its definitely a lesson in patience for wanting to come home."

"It's the same way with me sometimes. Corellia was my home for a long time.."

"There we go," she said as she dogged the hull plate in. She called the remote to her hand and started bringing the tarmac back up to the hangar level. "They say detachment is important in the Old Order...but I just couldn't see that with us now."

"Things that have been part of our life for so long, they are very hard to separate from. I know..." They reached the hanger level and Andrea stepped off first, letting Callista touch on the rock before she began to send the shuttle back up to the ground level.

"That was interesting, I didn't know that much about motivators."

"Well, there's a lot of practical stuff that some of the Jedi on Coruscant don't feel is important," Andrea said as they walked back towards the stairway to the house. "Daddy has always disagreed with some of that practice. I mean, if you learn how to fly the ship...you just need to know how to repair it."

"Exactly. I'm glad I knew how. It comes from tinkering in my free time." All Andrea could do was grin as they started up the stairs. "We may be different in some ways, Callista...but I'm really getting to like you."