The Endar Spire had been stationary for several days. From where I stood, motionless, I could see the ship's Commander, Colonel Tavhir. Head down, he was pacing nervously in one of the many docking decks of the Republican cruiser. The Colonel was a tall, slender man. His greying, military-cut hair gave the man the charisma of age and experience. Tavhir was a highly respected military man, one of a small caste of soldiers who no longer needed to prove themselves. Nevertheless, Tavhir could not hope for any further promotion, as his rather outspoken personality had already offended the Republic's high dignitaries on many occasions. But it was common knowledge that the Colonel didn't care whether he was promoted or not; the important thing was to be able to express his thoughts. But even so, his men knew that he could not completely hide his frustration at not being able to do as he pleased.
Today was one of those days when Tavhir had to contain himself. The Republic had certainly given the Colonel the most unacceptable order of his career.
One of his men stood not far from him, hands clasped behind his back. The soldier was dressed in a thick pearly orange jacket, dark trousers that ended in a pair of black boots. The man, in his late thirties, wore a rather remarkable beard, and had short but thick brown hair. He was watching his colonel, who kept going back and forth with anxiety.
Behind the two men, about thirty soldiers stood straight, lined up in four rows, dressed in ceremonial Republican armour. This was the brand new garrison to which I had been assigned at the last minute; at that moment, it was in the third row that I had been ordered to remain. All of us were kept in perfect silence a few metres from our two superiors, but we could all hear the grumbling of our very bitter commander.
"They're late." The Colonel snarled, receiving only our silence in response.
"They're late, Carth!" He repeated more sharply, looking up at the man in the orange jacket.
"Yes, they may be late." He corrected.
"They have the audacity to come and eject me from my own ship, to force me to abandon my men, and they don't even have the respect to be on time for that!"
"Commander, you know very well that this is a temporary measure. You are not being removed from office." Carth added, in a disguised attempt to reassure his superior.
"I'm glad to hear that. Otherwise, trust me, I wouldn't have made it easy for her."
"I don't think she needs that to get into trouble. She's a Jedi after all. She has no military training. If you want your men back the way you left them, you'll have to be educational with her."
"That's why I'm counting on your professionalism, Lieutenant. You have qualities in this matter that I admit I do not have; not under these conditions." Tavhir finished.
Carth nodded in agreement with the Commander's last words.
An alert echoed. The officers looked up into the electromagnetic field of the huge docking bay door, which showed the first small shuttle in the distance, moving slowly towards the cruiser. Tavhir wrinkled his eyes. It didn't quite seem to be going according to plan; there must have been two shuttles. Carth glanced towards us. We were not moving at all, as we had been instructed. Then he turned his head again to his superior, who seemed on the verge of imploding. The shuttle broke through the force field and landed smoothly several hundred meters from the military. The ship's ramp swung out violently and crashed to the hangar floor with a deafening clang. Two people stepped out, both dressed in the standard attire of Republican officers. Tavhir sighed, and with a brief wave of his hand ordered his Lieutenant to follow him to meet the other two officers. Carth complied, and the two of them walked for a few seconds before facing the new comers.
"Colonel Tavhir, Lieutenant Onasi." The first of them saluted. "We apologise for the delay, and also for the hitch in the handover."
"Why? There is another hitch?" Tavhir asked, trying his best to contain his exasperation.
"Colonel, as you can see, the Jedi shuttle is not here yet."
"Good thing you're here to point that out... Ensign." Tavhir ironically pointed out the man's much lower rank. The latter continued with embarrassment:
"We've been told that the shuttle will be joining the Endar Spire in about fifteen minutes."
"Good. Let's wait then." The Colonel said, his eyes fixed on the Ensign, who seemed increasingly uncomfortable.
"Colonel. I'm sorry, but you must leave your cruiser. We must get you back aboard the Arbiter as soon as possible."
Tavhir did not respond immediately. Carth showed a tense, uneasy pout. What was to come next was not going to be fun.
"Please help me understand better, will you? " The Colonel asked in a falsely benevolent tone. "You are telling me that I must leave my ship and my men when my successor has not even arrived yet? You're asking me to leave my cruiser without command?"
"Have you not appointed a steward, as Admiral Dodonna ordered you to do?" The other man, who had so far remained silent, replied with annoyance. Tavhir glared at him, then said:
"Lieutenant Carth Onasi is my steward. And who are you?" The Colonel asked as he scanned the man's jacket, surely looking for a military insignia.
"Dreshan Norr, Senator of Taris. I am aware of the measures recently taken by your Admiral, who has entrusted me with the supervision of this handover. You are therefore ordered to obey, Tavhir. The Jedi have had a slight setback, which is in no way Commander Shan's fault."
Tavhir seemed to clench his teeth tightly at the very last words. He had no choice. These were Dodonna's orders. Although it was well known that he did not always share the Admiral's ideas, he had a special respect for her. She had always shown herself worthy of her rank. She was to be trusted.
The man sighed, then slowly unbuckled his badge and handed it to the Senator. He gave Carth a cordial look, then headed for the shuttle. The Senator and the Ensign watched him, as if worried that the officer might change his mind. Once he had entered the shuttle, the Senator ordered the Ensign to board as well. Norr then turned to Carth, and handed him the Colonel's badge:
"We must leave. You will hand the badge to Commander Shan. Don't worry, she shouldn't be long now. Before we leave, I will inform her that she will have to speak to you. Our apologies for the chaotic handover."
"Thank you Senator." The Lieutenant simply replied.
Norr nodded respectfully to the very temporary head of the cruiser, then joined the shuttle, which soon took off with Tavhir aboard. A minute passed. Carth Onasi turned to us, who were still waiting behind him. He then announced:
"Ladies and gentlemen, please be ready to welcome your new superior very soon. Please hold your position."
We remained silent, but each of us fidgeted a little, so as to regain a proper posture to greet our new Commander. We did not have to wait long. As Norr had announced, the Jedi shuttle appeared quickly, and came in for a smooth landing. Again, the ramp lowered violently against the hangar floor, and the first two people appeared: a man and a woman, both dressed in light brown robes. They were moving lightly. Carth seemed to be absorbed by the sight of the two individuals. So did I. Most of us were used to the military heaviness and brutality of Tavhir; a little delicacy was welcome. The two people stopped at the bottom of the ramp, to wait for the third and final person, who finally appeared, and stepped off the ship in turn. Once at the bottom of the ramp, this last person took the lead and walked with inspiring determination towards Carth Onasi, who seemed to be examining them without realising it.
So this was Bastila Shan, the new Commander of the cruiser, Tavhir's nightmare. Of course, no one here would learn of the young woman's existence. Bastila Shan was, in her field, a war heroine. Her almost unique Battle Meditation power had enabled the Republic to postpone the fatal war against Darth Malak's Empire again and again. Bastila Shan's Battle Meditation restored strength and valour to the allied forces, while discouraging enemy forces. It was a power already known to the Jedi, but what made it exceptional was that Bastila Shan was without a doubt the most gifted user of it in the history of the Jedi Order, out of the few who could master it. Not to mention her stunning victory over Darth Revan during their battle on the latter's ship. Tavhir's hostile reaction to the decision to leave the Endar Spire under the command of a young, inexperienced Jedi was understandable, but one could not help but feel a deep respect for her, even gratitude.
I noted that Carth Onasi still hadn't made a move. He still seemed mesmerised by the arrival of the Jedi. Suddenly, as if he had just come out of a dream state, the Lieutenant hurriedly, and with some degree of awkwardness, made his way towards the Jedi, who had already had ample time to approach him. I could feel a hint of anxiety in him. This was not the time to be spotted by his future superior, who had a reputation for being rather cold.
"Lieutenant Carth Onasi, I guess?" The young woman asked, not revealing her condition at all.
"Himself, Madam. I welcome the three of you to the Endar Spire. And I take the liberty of immediately handing you the badge of command of this cruiser."
Carth solemnly extended the small object that had been hanging from Tavhir's jacket earlier. Bastila Shan looked down at the insignia, grabbed it and placed it in a pocket under her Jedi robes.
"Well? Did you plan for us to stare into each other's eyes all evening? Next, Lieutenant."
Carth Onasi held the Jedi's gaze with defiance and disbelief. The man seemed to channel a rage that was boiling inside him, and continued:
"Commander, if you don't mind, I'd like to introduce you to this group of soldiers, specially chosen to assist and protect you."
Carth Onasi invited the young woman to follow him, which she did. We were all completely static. At least, most of us were. From my position, I couldn't help but stare at the Jedi. "So this is her." I thought at that moment, my eyes sealed on the famous young woman. Despite my view being partially obstructed by my colleagues in the other two ranks, I was able to make out the Jedi clearly. Like her colleague, Bastila Shan wore a brown bure. The classic Jedi bure. The woman's gestures and movements sometimes gave a glimpse of her famous double-bladed lightsaber, attached to her belt. An exception to the rule. Very few Jedi tried their hand at a weapon like this, and Bastila Shan was a renowned duelist. I couldn't help but smile in fascination. But I was brought out of my musings by an indiscreet clearing of throat. I looked up, and realised that the unpleasant noise was coming from my right-hand comrade, still standing at attention, who was trying as best he could to make me regain a concentration worthy of such a moment. But I did not do anything that should have been done in response. Instead of regaining my posture and acting as if nothing had happened, I turned my head sharply towards my comrade, betraying my distraction even more to everyone. My superiors included. Seeing that my comrade had not left the expected posture, I then turned my gaze back to the Lieutenant and the Jedi. They were all staring at me, Onasi in particular glaring at me. Bastila Shan took a step towards us and addressed me in a chilling voice:
"Come here." She ordered harshly.
I was surprised by this request, and gave a questioning look to my Lieutenant, who said curtly:
"You have been given an order, Midshipman."
I left my place lightly, slipped through the ranks, and took my place before my superiors. Commander Shan looked at me with a somewhat disproportionate severity. "I'm going to have a bad time." I thought. The young woman seemed to be examining me. What could she be watching so closely? I was a man, like any other. Although, glancing at Carth Onasi, it was true that I had a much more imposing build. At six feet tall and with broad shoulders, I towered over my superiors. Beyond that, I was neither much better nor worse than anyone else. The only originality was perhaps my dark brown hair, which I wore quite long, but carefully tied back for the occasion. Not being a trained soldier, and indeed at that time not enlisted for any soldierly qualities, I was allowed to enjoy this extravagance.
"State your identity to the Commander." Carth added, growing increasingly annoyed. The Jedi didn't look away from me.
"Midshipman Corem Galhor, Commander." I announced solemnly.
"Where were you attached before you were sent to the Endar Spire, Midshipman?" Bastila Shan asked.
Carth Onasi did not let me answer, and cut me off at the beginning:
"Madam, this is the translator you asked for. He's not military, he's not very familiar with protocol." The man justified to his superior.
Bastila looked coldly at the Lieutenant, without saying a word. Then she turned her attention back to me.
"Where were you attached before you were assigned to this cruiser?" She asked again.
"I was stationed at the Republic Embassy on Onderon. I was there for about four months before I was assigned to the Endar Spire. While there, I had the opportunity to work with the royal authorities, and I..."
"I didn't ask you for the full story of your career, Midshipman." Bastila Shan cut in sharply, seeming at this point almost angry. "You are no longer on Onderon, and there is no 'royal authority' here. Just do as you are told. And, for the time being, what is required of you is to remain static, in your place, in the third row. You are a cerebral person, aren't you? It's not an intellectually challenging task, is it?" The Jedi finished in a particularly condescending tone, glaring at me.
I didn't know what to say at the time. I found the young woman's attitude particularly disproportionate, but I understood that I and my fellow garrison members were expected to behave in an exemplary manner. I had just damaged the reputation of this elite group. Nevertheless, I couldn't help feeling that she had taken a special dislike to me.
"Return to your position, Midshipman." The Jedi ordered haughtily without waiting for my response.
I obeyed without delay, and returned to my original position. Unexpectedly in such situations, Bastila Shan gave a simple nod to Carth Onasi, and left the hangar without so much as a word to her garrison. The officer followed her with dismay; he did not seem to approve of this provocative attitude.
"This collaboration is not going to be easy," the Lieutenant announced softly, before ordering us to break ranks and leave the hangar.
Hi!
I hope this is not too bad (especially the English).
I will post other chapters soon. The passages of the Endar Spire & Taris are among the shortest I have in stock.
