Author's Note: Hi! Sorry for the delay of updates. I've been really busy with college, but hopefully the break provides a variety of updates to keep everyone busy! I promise I'm going to get better at updating. So enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars unfortunately. Just Jana.
Jana complimented Ahsoka on her training in the Jedi Temple, smiling as the Togruta's jabs gradually became quicker and cleaner with her green blade. The two were fond of each other and were growing close, just as Anakin and Jana once had. They often communicated with one another between missions. When Ahsoka's call to Jana had never been answered a week before, she knew something was wrong. With Anakin's connections she learned of Jana's journey to recovery from initial stages of hypothermia. Anakin chose to leave the details of what had happened to the men as well as to the bounty hunter out, though. That part was up to Jana.
Since her return Ahsoka had been adamant about Jana drinking teas and performing hot compresses, concerned for her new friend. Jana was grateful for Ahsoka and trusted her because of her compassion, but she wasn't ready to tell her of the Kamino mission. She had briefly opened up to Anakin about what she had seen in the ship, but she thought Ahsoka was too young to know of such things and didn't want to bother Annie too much.
"Good work today." Jana softly praised once more. The hypothermia had truly taken a toll on her throat again- it was like she had gone two steps forward and one step back.
"Thanks, Jana! Couldn't do it without you." She smiled and presented Jana with a hot tea in a thermos. Jana sighed but took the drink, knowing from experience Ashoka would not take no for an answer.
"Jana, Ahsoka." Anakin entered with his arms crossed as usual. "The Council has an assignment for us." The Padawans immediately stopped their chatter and nodded seriously, following Anakin to the Council room without delay. Master Plo must already be here. Jana thought back to when she was still recovering on Kamino last a few days prior.
He had stayed with her her entire recovery, even when the Council called him with transmissions. When she was finally free of fever and could speak again, she looked up to him, asking if whether he was upset with her or not. He had chuckled at her and replied with no, he had simply been worried and wished he could have been there with her amongst the danger. Jana hesitated before saying she was glad he hadn't, and he smiled at her concern for him. Still, he warned her not to get in a bad habit of going against orders. "You are not the Golden Child here, Jana." He had said, making the blonde laugh for the first time since her recovery.
The three arrived at the Council room shortly and entered. To Jana's surprise, Plo Koon sat in his typical council seat. So I will be going without him.
"Good afternoon, Jedi. We have a serious mission we must send you on quickly." Mace Windu said.
"Go to Aayla Secura's aid, you will. In trouble, she and her troops are. Many men you will take. Rescue her you must." Yoda confirmed. It was obvious Aayla was in severe need of help by the sharpness and shortness of their words.
"Will we be proceeding without Master Plo Koon, then?" Anakin asked for Jana, knowing she wouldn't ask despite dying to know.
"We recognize that Jana completed her last mission without his help, and so we believe she is ready to take on the following without his guidance. After all, she will be with you, Master Skywalker, as well as Master Secura." Mundi said. Jana exchanged looks with her master to make sure he truly thought she was ready. He nodded. In actuality the Council had watched Jana's testing footage from Kamino. Her growth was propelling her to the stage of a Knight, but she wasn't quite there just yet.
"Then if that is all, we will be going." Anakin turned on his heel, Ashoka and Jana following him. They hurried to the hanger with their gathered men and prepared for take off. It was going to be a bumpy ride.
Okay, by bumpy ride Jana had envisioned maybe some evasion tactics or even almost crashing. But this was insanity. The field was almost too busy to look at. Aayla's fleet was far from surviving, and Jana gave Anakin the sign when they arrived. We will do what we must, not what we can. It was something they had come up with before the Clone War.
When she finally spotted the front lines, Jana backed out of the ship with a wink and dove onto the ground, laughing at Rex's stunned look. She landed with a dodge roll to ease the pain. When she came up she worked to deflect as many shots as she could, maneuvering up to where General Secura fought.
"General! Where can we dispatch troops for evacuation? We'll help escort you there!" Jana yelled over the fire. Secura looked over to her with relief.
"Commander Kinall! It's good to see you again. There is a line of cruisers nearing the lower docking bay. We have to move!" Jana nodded and motioned to Anakin as well as Ahsoka across the way. They began drawing back their men, Rex helping to keep them moving along.
"Watch your backs!" Jana shouted after the Shinies that turned and ran. Meanwhile, the experienced Clones back stepped to avoid getting shot. Jana deflected multiple shots before using the force to crush a few battle droids, catapulting the parts up and out so they would build momentum and crush others. Clones cheered behind her.
"Well done, Commander! We're glad to see you." Said a familiar armored Clone, and Jana recognized him as Drummer.
"Glad to save your asses. Now haul tail!" She ordered and continued her work. She watched the Clones pouring in with relief. We're gonna make it! She ushered the troops to continue. Across the way she spotted Anakin who smiled at her briefly. Suddenly the enemy fired again- and in that time Jana watched everything they had just worked for begin to fall apart. Anakin, remembering the promise he and Jana had made before landing, Force pushed the troops out of the way. He tried to take the fire on by himself, but he couldn't.
"Annie!" Her voice cracked as she slid across the rubble to reach her friend, Ahsoka close but behind her. You admitted you weren't good at meditating, so why would you suddenly be able to handle this?!
"Jana! Is he alright? What's happening?" She could tell the young one was scared. You can't tell her the odds yet. You have to be strong.
"We shall see, Ahsoka. Don't be frightened." The blonde helped uncover Anakin, Aayla rushing to assist at their sides. The blonde did a quick look over his injuries and listened to the vitals as best she could. Druk, Annie. You really did keep our promise. "He's not in good condition, we need to get him to a medical droid as soon as possible." She could sense Ahsoka's fear for her master. She wished she could comfort her, but there was no time.
"Come, get him aboard the ship." Aayla ordered, and Jana hoisted Anakin over her shoulder. Across the way she spotted Rex helping the squabblers of the group. At the sight of Anakin on her back he ran over, the four Clones left following him aboard.
The bunch boarded the last cruiser and were on route to join the Resolute. Jana sat Anakin down in the back and hooked him up to life support. We have to act quickly.
"What can I do to help, Commander Kinall?" Rex asked from beside her. She watched as Ahsoka looked at Anakin's dying body with wide eyes.
"Get Ahsoka out of my way and keep her calm. I can handle Annie." She said it with enough confidence that Rex wasn't sure if he was talking to Jana or not. It felt like back on Geonosis.
Suddenly, the ship entered hyperspace with a rough jolt, sending Jana and the others to the floor. What in the blazes is going on? Jana looked to Rex who understood his new mission: find out what's happening. Aayla was yelling up in the cockpit, and Jana heard Ashoka arguing.
"Jana! We're going to have to remove Anakin from life support now!" Aayla yelled at her. Jana's eyes widened while she reached to strap down Anakin, already knowing where Aayla's head was. Afterwards she started to clear her mind, trying to blur out the chaos that was happening. Even if she were to float into another room, she should be able to keep him alive. Rex watched Jana roughly bump into a corner, but she didn't seem to notice. He looked to General Skywalker and remembered Christophsis. He could never fathom how she managed it.
Suddenly, Jana was dropped back on the floor, and the life support was cut back on. This time, the ship began to accelerate at a dangerous rate. Jana couldn't particularly hear what was happening anymore. She just saw Rex mouthing words to her, but all she could hear was a ringing. The side of her head throbbed incredibly. Must've hit it pretty hard at some point. Rex ran over to her and tackled her, and in an instant they were tumbling through an atmosphere and crashed into a surface. When Jana came to, Rex still held onto her with his eyes shut tightly.
"Captain? Are you alright?" Rex opened his eyes and pushed himself off of Jana. He offered his hand respectfully, and she gratefully took it, rubbing her head gingerly. We crashed awful hard.
"Never better, Commander." He chuckled dryly.
Jana turned to see Anakin still in place. She sighed and walked over, knowing her work was cut out for her. While the others regrouped and built a camp out of the parts that remained, she did what she could for Anakin with the limited supplies they had available. She then hoisted Anakin up and carried him out of the rubble to where they stood. Rex immediately began helping her lay him out.
"Rex and I can stay here to protect Anakin." Ashoka began to say one thing or another to which Aayla disagreed. Ashoka needs to learn how to let go when needed. She's essentially attached to the hip with him. Jana tended to take Aayla's side on this one. Ahsoka seemed frustrated but nevertheless agreed.
Along their journey to find possible civilization thanks to Bly, Jana learned much about Bly, Flash, Lucky, and Cameron. They weren't roughed up Clones, but they were still more experienced than Shinies. They talked amongst themselves for a decent portion of walking, but Jana mostly was focused on the confusion Ashoka gave off. After a while of walking, Jana ran to catch up with Aayla and Ahsoka at the head of the group.
"How are the men fairing?" Aayla inquired.
"Just fine, but I'm more worried about you, Ahsoka." The young girl perked up at Jana's forwardness. "Both Master Secura and I can sense your confusion."
"Indeed. What is troubling you, Padawan?" Aayla inquired.
"Well, it's just... I don't understand. Jedi aren't supposed to form attachments, but the Order provides us with a Master we are to mature and learn with. And at the same time we are to show compassion to others. I just feel very worried for Anakin and confused about the code." She explained her situation. She felt awkward talking about it in front of Jana, but she knew the girl would take no offense.
"I, too, was close with my master." Quinlan Vos, the pretty boy. Jana couldn't help but let a faint smile trace her lips at his mention. "As you said, we did everything together. But I have learned how to go on without him now. I'm sure Jana has some better advice for this scenario." The blonde winced at the twilek's remark. Aayla looked at her knowingly.
"I know you have not yet moved on from Sarissa, Jana. But how have you developed through this process? We can all tell you have flourished under Master Plo Koon." Aayla said bluntly. Ahsoka couldn't help but feel sorry for her friend. Even though it had been nearly three months, she knew the wound was still fresh in Jana's mind.
"I... I would say remembering all the life forces come together after death, and even before death as well as in between, when you meditate. It is true, I no longer sense my master's warmth or emotions." She cleared her throat. "But when I meditate I feel a planet's cycle, and I feel her in the death portion. No matter where our galaxy's people go, they will always be apart of the cycle. It brings great comfort to me. And I know in time I will stop clinging to this fact. After all, new people enter different parts of the cycle all the time." Jana explained. Ahsoka went quiet at that and Aayla smiled. She knew Jana was close to overcoming this challenge.
The group at this point had been following a trail they had found from a large tree. It was then that Jana sensed other forms approaching them.
"Master Secura. We are not alone." She mumbled, and the men went on alert. Unfortunately, they were not quick enough. Caught off guard, wild beasts attacked them, large and ravenous. I have to get these out of here! Jana watched as Flash was killed in one crunch of jowls. She ignited her shoto blade and taunted the now bloodied animal with it. The animal quickly reacted, and Jana had to axel over the creature to dodge it. This thing is huge! She snatched her other blade in her hand and ignited it as well.
She waited for the beast to charge her again and side stepped it. Remembering her tactics in the testing room on Kamino, she sprinted and slid on her knees in the dusty Earth, bending back with her blades as to cut the beast into thirds.
Looking up from her dirty work she saw the others had defeated the other two beasts, but not without losses. All of the clone troop except Bly had been killed. Jana sighed in remorse. I should have had my senses about me and warned them sooner.
"We have to keep moving. We need to find help, and fast." Aayla said with a stoic face. The three others of the party nodded. Lucky for them, they soon came across a village.
Through many troubling negotiations and communication, they met the village leader called Tee Watt Kaa, who obviously didn't take a liking to the Jedi. The Jedi meant the Republic. Republic meant war. And war meant trouble. I unfortunately understand where he's coming from. Jana was frustrated but knew they were right. If the Seperatists learned four Jedi and an esteemed Clone Captain were stranded here, they'd arrive in a few hours no doubt.
"Sir, please. Hear me out." Jana interjected. Up to this point she had been quiet. She hadn't been in negotiations like this in a while and felt rusty in the situation, but she had to do her best for Anakin. Tee Watt Kaa gazed at her distastefully. "Our friend will die if we don't get him some medical attention. Healing him will not make you a representative of one side or the other. It will just make you compassionate." The creature thought on this for a bit before allowing his son, Wag Too, to accompany Ahsoka and Bly in fetching Anakin. Aayla and Jana had to stay at the village. The creatures wished the group off and escorted the two Jedi into a small home.
"These creatures almost caused violence to keep neutrality, what they see as peace. How contradictory." Jana commented while waiting for the leader to return to speak with them.
"Indeed, though I can see some of the old Republic in this village." Aayla seemed solemn about this. Jana supposed the war took its toll on everyone. The times of old had definitely been much easier. "Jana, is it true you meditate to join the collective force? To sense your master?" Aayla suddenly asked. She's always so blunt.
"Yes. In ways, she guides me, I believe. Even from where I cannot see her." She explained, clearing her throat once more. The dust didn't do her any good. Part of her wanted to mention the other voice, but something made her hesitate.
"Padawan, you can't continue doing this. Sarissa is not your master anymore. Plo Koon is. You should seek him out when you need guidance." Aayla corrected with only a bit of a softer tone. Jana knew she was right, but she felt stiff with Plo Koon sometimes still.
"But we're still tense at times. I feel like he's difficult to talk to, especially with his Council duties. I feel like... like-"
"A pity project?" Jana nodded in confirmation. "Master Plo defended you when the Council reassigned you. He saw in you what he wanted in a Padawan. He didn't take Ashoka. He didn't take a line of other younglings. He took you. You should be grateful and show him the respect a master deserves in return by going to him with these questions. You have to realize Sarissa can no longer help you." Jana was going to continue the conversation when Tee Watt Kaa returned.
Jana allowed the adults to have their "adult talk" and remained silent for the duration of their conversation. She thought Tee had Utopian ideas, but she understood what he was getting at. The Republic- no, the Jedi Order should not have fed into the violence that now goes on all around us. We should have sat down and used our words from the very beginning. The fact that they hadn't made people turn away from them.
Outside, a commotion could be heard. Jana rushed out of the camp to see Anakin hobbling in with Rex's support. Good, my mends helped him last this long. She grinned at him, and he grinned weakly back. While the others discussed the next plan of action, Jana stayed back to watch over Anakin with the healing process Wag Too proceeded with.
In the back of her mind, Aayla's words rung loudly. Let go... let go... let go.