Lost Jedi:
The Aftermath of Tenstarri
Disclamer: I do not own Star Wars. If I did, I would have already asked Hayden Christensen to marry me. I still own Tason, and now I own Jace too. The Rusty Speeder is my own creation. Thanks to Dan for inspiration and thanks even more to Brittany for editing.
Author's Note: I probably should have mentioned this in the prologue. Lost Jedi: The Aftermath of Tenstarri (or "LJ TAoT") takes place in the Old Republic, about 200 years before Star Wars: Episode I.
Chapter One
In The Rusty Speeder
It was a bright afternoon in Coruscant, and with the sun high in the sky now, the two Jedi had to shield their eyes as they exited the Jedi Temple. The pair boarded a taxi speeder and rode into the high-rises. Before they went too far up into the sky, one Jedi asked to be let off.
He was younger than his colleague, as he had just turned nineteen a month earlier. He had a tall and muscular build. His hair was very dark brown, possibly black, with dark eyes to match. In fact, if it weren't for a wise, if somewhat aging, look in his eyes, he would have been perfectly handsome.
His name was Jace Latimer, and he was no longer a Jedi Padawan learner. The look of stress melted off his face as the taxi stopped on the lower-level streets of Coruscant.
"Where exactly do you plan to go, Jace?" his Master asked. Jace grinned widely.
"To a club, probably," he replied coolly. His Master gave him a quizzical stare. "I've just finished the Jedi trails, sir. I need a drink." His Master laughed as Jace closed the speeder's door and walked away along the streets.
He passed over many of the newer, more questionable clubs, before entering an old bar called "The Rusty Speeder". It was semi-well lit, and glowed an eerie and somewhat hazy orange. He walked farther into the bar, glancing the tables for a place to sit.
Then it hit him. It felt as though a wave of restless energy had struck him head on. Jace stumbled backward a bit, but no one seemed to notice. He shook his head and glanced nervously around. If he wasn't mistaken, what he has just felt was a mutilated form of the Force.
Intrigued, Jace began walking through the crowd of people. His eyes snapped to anyone wearing brown in hope that he would see Jedi robes. He saw no one. Jace took one last nervous glance around, and sat down and a small table in the midst of the crowd.
After taking a moment to calm himself, Jace began looking for a waitress. He noticed a trio of them a few yards away, pointing and giggling at him. They were not bothering to keep their voices down and he distinctly heard the words "handsome Jedi". Jace rolled his eyes impatiently. When they realized he was watching them, one of the girls came forward.
"How can I help you?" she asked, stifling more giggles and looking slightly flustered. Jace sighed, irritated.
"Something light," he replied airily. The waitress nodded, dashed back to her friends, giggled, and then disappeared behind the bar-side patrons.
Jace leaned back in his chair. He looked around the bar and at its customers. Most of them were hopelessly drunk or taking advantage of the hopelessly drunk. This was troubling, indeed, but not a Jedi matter. Jace continued scanning the chaos until his eyes fell on someone in particular, just a few yards away.
She was standing unusually still in comparison to the others around her, and that is what made the young woman stand out. She was tall and slim, with long, but graceful, arms and legs. Her outfit matched those of the other waitresses, comprised of an abdomen exposing and sleeveless top paired with sleek leather pants, all in black. The clothing did not seem to suit her, but she looked rebelliously comfortable in them.
Her hair was mostly light brown, with strange auburn highlights at the ends. Her skin was fair, but looked darkened and slightly worn. Jace was about to take in the color of the girl's eyes when he realized she was watching him.
He felt the wave of energy hit him again, stronger than before. He noticed the girl flinch and knew she had felt something as well. He glanced down for half a second, grabbed and ignited his lightsaber, only to look up and find another one at his throat.
Jace's blade was probably an inch from the girl's face, and lit it up in a brilliant green light. It hummed dangerously, but the girl did not appear frightened. In fact, to Jace, her amethyst lightsaber was the frightening one. It was silent, as her arched wrist was entirely still.
Now, unfortunately, Jace had a good look at the color of the girl's eyes. They were a clear blue, and would have been uniquely beautiful, had they not been creating such an icy glare. As she and Jace stared ferociously at each other, the latter began to rapidly think of what to do. The former seemed unnaturally calm.
"Lower your weapon," the girl snarled, breaking the silence that had now fallen over the bar. Jace narrowed his eyes.
"I don't think you're in any position to be telling me what to do," he replied. He could have then sworn he saw a flicker of a grin pass over the girl's face.
"I don't think you're in any position to be questioning what I'm telling you to do," she said confidently, almost boldly. Jace hesitated. Then he lowered his lightsaber and extinguished it. He could easily ignite it again if she made a move. It took the girl a few moments before she lowered her weapon, and even longer to extinguished it. Both of them watched each other warily as they put the lightsabers back. In Jace's case, this was into his belt, and in the girl's case, into a strange holster on her thigh.
A low, cautious hum began to refill the bar. The waitress who had been serving Jace edged her way forward towards him, eyeing the other girl nervously. She set down Jace's drink quickly, with looking at him, and turned to the girl.
"What's going on here?" she asked, trying to muster as much authority into her voice as she could. Then she grinned at Jace. "Old girlfriend?" The other girl did not look pleased, and Jace shot her a frustrated glare. The blue-eyed girl never took her eyes off Jace.
"I'm going," she replied softly, but sternly.
"If you walk out now, you'll be fired," the waitress said. "You realize that, don't you?" The other girl nodded and gave Jace one final, long stare. Then she brushed past his shoulder and disappeared out of the bar. Jace watched her leave, and then absentmindedly placed a few credits on the table to pay for the drink. He left it untouched, and made toward the exit.
It was cooler now, and dark shadows made the lower streets of Coruscant appear to already be in twilight. Most of the inhabitants had cleared off, leaving only the fortuneless riffraff to wander about. This made it only too easy for Jace to spot the girl walking quickly down the street. After jogging to catch up, Jace put a hand on the girl's arm.
Again, she pulled out her lightsaber and aimed it at Jace. This time, however, she did not ignite it. She just pointed it at him, dangerously close and threatening.
"Stay away from me," she snapped. "I want to pretend what happened back there never took place." She tore her arm out of his grasp, put the lightsaber away, and continued walking. Jace did not back down and followed her a few more feet.
"Care to tell me why you have a lightsaber?" he demanded, rather than asked. She shot him a glare that obviously meant "no". Jace still followed "Then tell me your name, at least."
"I do not want to associate with you," She hesitated, and then sneeringly added, "Master Jedi." They had reached an external elevator for an apartment building. Jace moved in front of the door before the girl could enter. She wasn't pleased.
"Tell me your name," Jace said, "and I'm gone." The girl glowered at him, an icy, violent look in her eyes. Her fingers hovered over the holster on her right leg, but she though better of it. She sighed.
"My name," she said slowly, "is Tason." She shoved Jace out of the way and boarded the elevator. She pressed a button and the door quickly closed. She sneered at Jace through the green-tinted glass and rose up the side of the building.
Jace watched the elevator, counting the number of floors before it stopped and Tason exited, which was on the twenty-forth floor. He made a mental note, and headed toward the edge of the street. There, he waved down a taxi speeder and headed back to the Jedi Temple.