It seemed like an eternity before her eyes started fluttering open again. And still, she could replay the events of the combat as if it had just happened. Slowly, she was starting to come out of her healing trance.
"Easy," she heard a calm voice bring her back into consciousness. "Focus on my voice, Callista. Let it lead you back to the present."
"Master Azad..." Callista wearily said as she tried to open her eyes. "Where...?"
"You're on Coruscant," Andrea Karrde said softly as she stayed by her. "Daddy picked up your signal and we found you in your ship."
Callista softly nodded as she attempted to lean up, with Andrea helping her and bringing the back of the bed up to support her. "How long was I in the trance?"
"Three days," Manna told her. "Master Karrde rechecked Master Faulkner's home and they brought you here."
"Where is your father?" Callista finally asked Andrea as she rested there.
"The High Council is meeting," Andrea told her. "Your duel has brought a lot of things that they're discussing. When you're up to it, they wanted me to bring you into chambers."
"To see the High Council?" Callista asked as she looked towards the ceiling, wondering what they ask of her.
"What of Master Faulkner's effects?" Jil-Qun Tahm's hologram asked, being transmitted from his office at the Jedi Academy.
"Chris Tien Jinn found that he had living relatives on Corellia," Steffan said as he motioned to his fellow Jedi sitting there. "She and I delivered Mark's effects personally to them and explained the circumstances of his passing."
"This bring too many questions," Relan Volkum said as he leaned forward in his chair.
"Aye, it does," Ainar said as he nodded agreement. "We've not heard or felt anything from any kind of remnants of the Sith for some time. Not since you battled Welt on Dagobah, Steffan...and even then some years before then."
"Master Algeron has a point," Kiae Quon Dei added. "The Sith have never attacked us openly. This could be a beginning of something larger in scope."
"It is definitely a change in tactics, something we must meditate and focus on," Steffan said, suddenly closing his eyes before returning his attention to the meeting. "The young lady is awake."
"I think it was a fine display of courage and swordplay," Adi Klem said from his side of the council chamber. "With this and the previous events that Master Vallen described when she visited Mark's house yesterday to feel the sense of the battle, I think she's taken on more than many of our Padawans have faced."
"I also believe so," Ainar said as he looked at Steffan. "With Master Vallen's assessment of the fight and your judgment of her fighting skill, I say she had passed any equivalent of the trials."
"Do the rest of you think so?" Steffan asked, getting nods of agreement from the rest of the Council. "Very well then."
Andrea... If Callista is ready, please bring her to the Council Chamber.
Yes, Father.
"Callista," Andrea said as she had remained by her bed. "The council is ready for you if you are up to it."
Callista opened her eyes, squinting at the bright lights in the medical ward. "I think I can manage."
Andrea nodded and started to help her out of the bed. "I can support you if you need me to."
A small smile passed over Callista's mouth, "Thanks, but no." She rose slowly from the bed, fighting off the dizziness, and stood.
Andrea kept her close as they left the medical ward and began to go down the corridor to the lift that would take them to the central tower. "Ever been there before?"
Callista shook her head. "Not alone. I went once with my Master when I was on Corellia..."
"Well, I think it'll be much different this time," Andrea told her as they kept walking.
Nodding, Callista concentrated on walking. She was so focused that she didn't see the young Padawan coming down the hall.
"Watch out," Andrea said before the young man stopped just short of hitting into them in the corridor. "Falco... you gotta watch out there."
He blushed. "I'm sorry miss Karrde. I didn't see you there, you know?" He glanced at Callista. "Healer, I wanted to offer my support to you...seeing as you've been through a battle with a Sith, and all that..."
Callista gave Andrea a sideways look, which her friend just shrugged. "The battle was only supposed to be known by the council... but word traveled fast."
Chuckling, Callista replied, looking at Falco, "I should have known better. The temple is the one place where things do tend to travel…"
"But it won't go any farther," Andrea said as she winked at her and looked at Falco, with a straighter face. "Right, Falco?"
He straightened. "You have my word on that, Miss Karrde." he bowed and hurried off.
"Come on." Andrea just grinned. "They're waiting."
"Padawan Gseran," Steffan began to say as Callista stood in the center of the Council Chamber, Andrea by her side in case she needed help walking back to her quarters later. "I see that you are recovering well from your encounter."
"I am, Master Karrde," she said softly. "And I thank you for your arrival to get back to the Temple for further attention."
Steffan nodded at this and continued. "We all mourn for Master Faulkner's passing, but I will pass on something that he would be telling you now. We all face terrible decisions in our lives and in our duties. Life and death decisions like the ones you've made that cannot only affect you personally, but possibly the lives of millions in this galaxy. Being a Jedi means making such a decision and trusting in the Force to carry out what must be done to protect the people. And it is not a burden that cannot possibly be carried out lightly."
Steffan looked deep inside of her, feeling her spirit within...as all the council was doing. "Do you accept this responsibility?"
Callista stood there, lightly tapping into the Force to maintain her stance and drew from it what she needed to know. She would no longer be able to think of only her own relationship to the Force, but her responsibilities as a healer and to the people. "I do, Master."
Steffan nodded again, looking to the other members of the High Council. After a few moments, they stood in unison and closed the circle around her. Steffan's look was one of pride as he looked at her.
"Callista Gseran, it is the decision of this council, after much discussion, to confer unto you the elevation of your rank," He said as the council raised lightsabers high in unison. "Congratulations, Jedi Knight."
"So," Andrea said as she started leading Callista out of the turbolift from the tower. "What are you going to do with the braid?" Callista thought a moment. "I was thinking to send along to Master Faulkner's relatives..."
Andrea thought on that one. "I don't think any of his family was part of the Order, were they? I mean, I don't know if they'd truly comprehend the meaning of it."
"You're right... what would you suggest then?"
"You could do a private ceremony," Andrea said with a shrug, getting a curious look from Callista...so she decided to talk about it. "In all the stories Daddy would tell me, a warrior would hold such important matters of honor and personal achievement in private. Something personal like this would only be of importance between you and your teacher."
"And," she added. "I think it would honor your master for his instruction in a way no one else could do."
Callista thought on that. "I think you're right."
"I know its one of our old traditions, but it just feels so right for something like this," Andrea said as she started getting enthused about it. "I'd love to be your second, but something like this is too personal...almost spiritual to my people."
Callista smiled. "I would be honored..."
"I'll set everything up," she told her. "But this is something for you and you alone."
Nodding, Callista leaned on Andrea as she made her way back to the medical wing. "Any chance I could get back to visit his home on Corellia at some point?" Andrea just smiled. "I think I can get Daddy to let me take you there."
"I would like that very much."
The following day, Andrea helped Callista dress in fresh robes in preparation for the ceremony. She slowly made her way through the halls of the Temple, her hood drawn up. Those she passed paused in respect, sensing her solemn mood.
Entering the quarters she shared with Manna, she made her way to her room, closing the door. Her room was just as she had left it. Neat; yet it carried a sense of who she was through personal items placed throughout the space.
She lowered herself carefully onto the bed, gazing around the room for a few moments. On the desk rested a hologram of her and Mark as he presented her with a gift for her fifteenth birthday. She smiled, remembering that day like it was yesterday. He had had given her a copy of a book on Force healing. It was that book that helped her to develop her skills.
Coming back to the present, she slid off the bed, kneeling gently on the floor. Her hood fell away from her face, and she pulled her hair aside. She paused for a moment, meditating before she continued. She felt a familiar presence in her mind, as if he was standing right next to her.
She smiled. Master... The air in front of her shimmered as an ethereal image began to form, and her Master stood before her once more. She had heard stories of some Jedi returning to visit people after their passing, but had never experienced it.
He smiled, regarding her much as a father would regard his beloved daughter. "Callista, do not grieve for me. I knew my time was near. One does not fight the Will of the Force on such matters." He paused, reaching out to lay a ghostly hand on her shoulder.
"I am so proud of you, Callista. You were able to overcome your fears, and to face those who threatened both of us. I hope that you will continue to stay true to what I have taught you, and to use your skills to help those in need, whoever they may be." He smiled and bowed. "The force is with you, Jedi Knight." This last was echoing in her mind as his image faded from view.
Drawing a small vibroblade from her left boot, Callista reached up and grasped the braid marking her as a Padawan. She was a padawan no longer. Reaching up, she severed the braid close to her head. It fell into her hand as she lowered the blade. She tied the end with another band, and set it aside for a moment.
She drew her sabers, lifting both in salute. Bowing from the waist, she touched her forehead to the floor, a show of respect to her fallen teacher. Rising, she wrapped the braid, hooking her sabers to her belt once more. She carefully braided the rest of her hair and left her quarters in search of Master Vallen.
Master Vallen looked up from her screen as Callista knocked on the frame of her office door. She smiled. "What can I do for you, Callista?" Slipping into the chair in front of Spark's desk, Callista gathered her thoughts for a moment.
"Master Karrde tells me that you investigated Master Faulkner's death..." she paused, then continued, "I was wondering what you sensed from the battle."
Spark sat back from her screen as she regarded Callista. "I admire your your courage for facing such an adversary. Not many would at your age. Your determination and loyalty to your Master came through very clear." She paused for a moment. "The Council is still at a loss as to why the Sith attacked Mark in the first place. We may never know...but we all have felt a shift recently. There is something big in the offing. A confrontation will occur. I pray that we may not need your skills, but I fear that we will."
Callista nodded. Mark had told her as much, as had Steffan. She rose, bowing to Master Vallen. "Thank you, Master." Spark inclined her head. "I foresee that you will come to be a very skilled Healer, Callista. Force be with you."
Callista sat on her bed in the medical wing, lost in thought. She kept thinking back over her third encounter with Mephisto. Why did he come back? What did he hope to achieve? She gazed down at her wounds, only seeing traces of them, they had almost fully healed. Her knee was still weak, as her kneecap had shattered from Mephisto's kick.
Steffan walked into the doorway and lightly tapped on the wall to get her attention. She glanced up, blushing a little as she realized she hadn't sensed him. "What can I do for you, Master Karrde?"
"I just wanted to see how you were feeling," he said as he walked into the room. "Andrea told me of the ceremony she suggested to you. Do you feel changed after you did that?"
She thought a moment. "Yes, I do. I think it was a good way to honor him..." She trailed off, thinking once again of the battle.
"Something's disturbing you," he said as he stood there.
Nodding, she sighed. "I just can't figure out why he came back, or went after Master Faulkner. What did he hope to accomplish?"
"We don't know...but we're doing everything we can to figure it out," Steffan told her as he sat at the side of her bed. "I feel that we may be facing something larger here. But I won't trouble you with that thought right now. Andrea told me you were wanting to go back to Corellia for something?"
She smiled. "I would like to visit his home one last time, there's something I need to do there. He told me once about something that he wanted me to do if he was killed."
He nodded. "Do you wish to go alone, or would you like Andrea to accompany you?"
"It's something I need to do on my own."
"Very well," Steffan said as he looked over her. "Be careful in your trip, Callista."
"I will, Master Karrde." She rose carefully to her feet and bowed to him.
"You think we did the right thing?" Ainar asked Steffan, as his old friend walked onto the observation balcony.
"You'll have to be more specific, old man," Steffan replied, his latest joke centered around whose hair was showing more gray.
Ainar didn't smile this time around, "Granting her Knighthood already...when I think back on it, maybe we needed to give it a few months, see how she deals with Master Faulkner's death... you remember how Bryn turned out…" his voice faded out as the memories of his former padawan came to haunt him, he had failed her terribly. After being granted Knighthood she had taken off, never to speak to him again.
Steffan sighed, "That wasn't your fault... it always takes two."
Ainar just nodded to no one in particular and pulled the cloak tighter around him.
"Let's just hope we did the right thing this time around…"
His house looked just as it had two weeks ago. She could still sense the intense emotions from the battle that took place. It still surprised her that she had survived; it was definitely something to remember.
She made her way down to the training room, and just stood there for a few moments. A lot had happened in this room, and many lessons had been learned. She shuddered as she remembered one of the last things that had happened in this room. She had indeed been walking a very dangerous path that day.
Shaking off the memory, she made her way back upstairs to master Faulkner's room. His voice came back to her then. "Callista, if I die, there is something I want you to do..." She had gazed back at him, her face serious. "I will do what I can." He smiled, and then turned serious once more.
"I have indeed felt what is to come in the next few years, as Mephisto himself stated. It is because I have that I want you to do this for me." She waited, letting him find the words, she knew this was difficult for him. "Hidden in this room are my records and journals. They contain training notes and other things that could be dangerous if they fell into the wrong hands."
"They are hidden somewhere in this room, and that place can only be opened with the Force." He turned towards the far wall of his room, where a bookshelf took up most of that side of the room. She could feel him reach out with his mind, as he extended his hand. "The hand gestures are unnecessary, but it helps to use them when I show you. It will help you learn how to manipulate the Force and use it like an extension of your physical body."
Instead of looking at his hands, she had concentrated on feeling what he was doing through the Force. She could feel an invisible hand reach across the room and trip a hidden compartment behind the bookshelf. He then reversed his action, closing it once more. She copied what she had felt him do, opening it on her second try.
He smiled. "Well done, Callista. You must take these materials with you, and keep them from the wrong hands." A shadow passed over his features. "Even some in our own government would kill to get their hands on them." She nodded...and with that, her focus returned to the present.
She once again opened the hidden compartment, withdrawing the heavy books and data disks. Slipping them into the bag over her shoulder, she closed it. Pausing, she looked around his room once more. Everything was as it should be. Slipping the bag over her shoulder, she left his home for the last time.