Tarys' wrist-mounted holo rang, showing that Master Satele was calling him.
"Tarys? I need you at the Temple as soon as possible. Come as quickly as you can." His Master sounded uneasy. Something had happened.
Not one to ignore such urgent summons, Tarys ran back to the Temple he was only in the courtyard, so it only took a few minutes to make it to the entrance where he was told that Master Satele expected him in the Council chambers. That was odd. This had to be serious, normally she'd just talk to him in her office.
Tarys never failed to note the sheer grandeur of the Council chambers, a circular table lay in the centre, allowing every Master on the Council to confer as equals while statues of revered Jedi Masters, whose true visages had been lost to history, watched down from above beneath a ceiling that was as high as the sky. In the room, he met his Master, unaccompanied by anyone else. She must've already been in there.
"Good, you're here. You must make your way to the training grounds as soon as possible, the Flesh Raiders are invading and I need everyone that can be spared fighting back. I know you're still recovering but I need you out there." Master Satele always spared a thought for his well-being but she was right. She didn't use the word invasion lightly. If that was indeed what was happening then he needed to be out there. "Take a speeder out to the Gnarls Outpost and be ready. You'll land in the thick of the fighting."
He hadn't expected that. He thought the Flesh Raiders' violence was limited to skirmishes on the outskirts of the Jedi grounds, but to come as far as to invade… something had to have changed. The reasons didn't matter for the moment. Tarys made his way outside and onto a speeder bike as quickly as he could, within moments he was feeling the rush of wind against his face as he raced to the Tythonian Gnarls. Ordinarily, Tarys would have taken the time to appreciate the beauty of Tython's nature but this time he let it speed past him in a blur of green and blue as flora and water mixed into one.
The low hum of the speeder decreased until it ceased as Tarys looked outwards to assess the situation. Master Satele hadn't embellished it - hundreds of Jedi Knights and Padawans were fighting back hordes of ravenous Flesh Raiders. The natives looked much like their Rakatan ancestors, two eyestalks protruding from the side of their head and a similar fleshy complexion united the two species but where the Rakatans exhibited grace and knowledge, the Flesh Raiders showed only unsated hunger and desire for bloodshed.
Tarys ignited his lightsabers and advanced toward a Padawan that was being set upon by three attackers. He blinked closer, wincing from the pain the action caused - his wounds from Cademimu still hadn't fully recovered - but noticed that the Padawan was, in fact, a familiar face.
"Jodal!?" Tarys said in disbelief. He didn't even know he was back on Tython.
"Oh good of you to join us! Now will you please stop gawking and start helping? Three flesh raiders and everything," His friend said, pointing his blue saber at the assailants.
"Of course, I couldn't let you get eaten could I?"
"At least I'd go down fighting, now let's go, dammit!"
Tarys didn't protest his friend's suggestion, lunging forward at the Raider closest to him and impaling it with his mainhand saber, drawing a pained growl from the beast as it fell to its knees, breathing his last.
Tarys was glad Flesh Raiders weren't sentient, not fully so anyway, it meant they didn't know or fear the concept of death, it made delivering it much easier, as much as the Padawan hated to admit it. Killing should never be easy. He chided himself, echoing his Master's words. It had been the first thing she said when he had killed his first being. He would never forget it. Tarys didn't have time to dwell on his thoughts as a second Flesh Raider raised a vibrosword over its box-shaped head and swung at Tarys with, hopefully, less than its full strength.
Tarys just had enough time to raise his left saber to meet the vibrosword's cutting edge, but with only one hand, he was too weak to fully block it. He blinked onto the Raider's back, the pain of the action made him wince as he drove his saber into its heart through its back. Severing the head would have been easier, but such an act was barbaric and unnecessarily cruel. Cruelty was not the Jedi way. As the second of the three fell to the ground, and Tarys with it, Jodal landed the final strike on the third, ending the one encounter among hundreds.
The two friends gave each other a curt nod. They both knew they needed to keep fighting, to split up to find new battles to take part in. Tarys restricted his use of the Force to pushing and pulling, usually pulling a Raider into his saber, to end a fight quickly and chose not to teleport. It was simply too draining and painful in his current state. He noticed his breathing becoming more strained as he needed to stop to catch his breath more often. He really needed some more time for his wounds to properly heal, they had been mortal until Astraia treated him. Regardless, he did as his Master bid him and fought on, defeating another few dozen or so Flesh Raiders until his holo rang out with the familiar sound of someone calling. He'd sustained more injuries in the fighting but nothing serious enough for him to stop.
This time it was an unidentified comaddress. Upon answering, he saw an image of a male Jedi Knight. "This is Derrin Weller, you're the Grand Master's Padawan, right? I don't know where the Flesh Raiders got advanced weaponry but they know how to use them, we need to stop them at the source before we're overrun. Another Padawan found a cave tunnel they've been using to enter the valley. We need someone there to make sure no more come through, and the Grand Master suggested you."
Tarys really, truly wished for a reprieve. He was more tired than he had any right to be but there was no denying reality, both in how fatigued he was and how necessary it was to follow his Master's instructions.
"I'll seal it, Knight Weller, don't worry," Tarys confirmed between heavy breaths.
"Good to hear. You'll find the entrance along the mountain range. May the Force be with you, Padawan."
"And you," he said, before immediately setting off for the cave.
He knew exactly the mountain range he referred to, it was quite the meditation spot for Jedi, peaceful and quiet, just the way they liked the places they meditated in. It took longer than if he'd teleported but Tarys considered the relative lack of pain a worthwhile trade-off, especially if he was going to have to seal a cave. The cave in question was prominent along the mountain wall, its entrance being several metres high and more importantly, lit by torches on the inside.
Contrary to what he'd expected, however, Tarys didn't find a legion of Flesh Raiders he'd have to defeat, no matter with how much difficulty, but a Bith Padawan at the mercy of a face he recognised. The human's countenance was decidedly rougher, older and… darker, but there was no mistaking it, this was Callef - the Padawan that went missing all those years ago.
"... Jedi, why would you kill me?" Said a Bith dressed in a Padawan's garb.
"Because the Order must evolve, and you are weak," Callef said with more conviction than Tarys had expected.
"Callef?" Tarys said, cautiously approaching the confrontation.
"How do you know who I am, Padawan?" Callef uttered his rank like it was an insult, spitting in the face of Jedi tradition. "It doesn't matter. You're dangerous, you killed my soldiers."
His fellow Padawan explained that Callef commanded the invading Flesh Raiders.
"Not invading, cleansing. Our Order is weak, it must change and I will be the one to change it," Callef declared as two darker-skinned and altogether more composed Flesh Raiders joined him at his side.
"Callef, this is wrong," Maybe Tarys could make him see the folly of his actions. "Lay down your weapons, let's talk about this."
"And this is why the old order must fall! All you want to do is talk," snapped Callef, turning on a blue-coloured lightsaber.
Tarys gritted his teeth, he could feel the dark side enveloping the former Padawan. He was utterly convinced of his actions, the only course of action was battle. Tarys activated his own lightsabers, it would be wise to take care of the Flesh Raiders first, there was no telling what they would do if their leader went down. Perhaps they were under Callef's thrall and would rampage if he was defeated.
Callef was skilled, abnormally so for a Padawan, so he must have received training after he left the Temple, Tarys surmised, but from whom? The colour of Tarys's blades were lighter than his, creating a unique azure light when the sabers clashed. He tried to disengage from Callef and made a focused strike against the Raider immediately behind him, leaving a deep, burning gash in the creature's chest as it fell to the ground.
Strange. Usually, when a comrade fell a Flash Raider would become enraged, but the other retained its already peculiar calmness. Undeterred, Tarys weaved away from Callef's attacks. Whoever had been teaching him hadn't been teaching him the traditional forms, Tarys noticed, and Callef suffered for it. Without knowing how to counter moves from the variety of forms Tarys had learned, Callef left himself easy to avoid so Tarys could focus on the Flesh Raider.
The Padawan employed Soresu to deflect the bolts from the Raider's blaster until he got close enough to safely ignore it. Meeting its eyes as he made the killing blow, Tarys saw… nothing. Not anger, not any discernible emotion, just emptiness as he watched the life drain away from the Flesh Raider.
"Surrender Callef, there is always forgiveness," Tarys declared, mustering as authoritative a voice as he could.
"No. You don't seem to understand. You are weak, Padawan. The New Order is strong and it will replace you. You are obsolete." The vigour had not left Callef's voice, there truly was no turning back.
Tarys readied himself once more, the toll of battle quickly threatening to defeat him if Callef didn't. Tarys internally thanked the Force, it seemed that Callef had neglected to learn how to effectively fight a user of Jar'Kai. Sometimes Tarys was truly grateful for how unconventional he was. The fight was over quickly. Tarys was able to outmanoeuvre the former Padawan, but he still refused to surrender.
Callef seemed to give in to his rage and abandoned any semblance of tactical planning when he bounded towards Tarys, saber overhead. Tarys retaliated by first meeting his saber with his own and quickly stepping around Callef as to not be overwhelmed by his comparatively stronger assault, causing him to lose his balance and stagger backwards. That was why you didn't rely on your opponent for balance, even if it meant greater attacking strength. It was a basic lesson Callef seemed to forego. He was unrelenting, launching a flurry of attacks Tarys was too lucid to be hurt from, yet too fatigued to fully interrupt. Callef made an error in his footwork, leaving his side open. Tarys took what he thought could be the only opening and plunged his right-hand saber into the former Padawan.
"I'm sorry Callef," Tarys whispered to the now lifeless body of the Padawan he was sent to investigate for his Trial. If he'd only pursued it further, if only he hadn't been content to accept the laudations of his Masters and chased a fallen Padawan, perhaps he could have saved him. Perhaps he could've ended the invasion before it began. How many lives had been lost because Tarys couldn't be bothered to see an investigation through to its end? He knew what Master Orgus said, but if he'd investigated regardless - perhaps he could have done something. Moments later the very same Jedi Master entered the cave.
"Master Orgus? What are you doing here?"
"Checking on you two. What happened?" Master Orgus answered.
The Bith Padawan relayed the events to the Master, who grew a small smile hearing about Tarys' actions. "You did well, Tarys. I'm impressed."
"You remember me?" Tarys was astonished.
"Well, it isn't every day an Initiate resorts to Psychometry to complete his Trial. Still, I can't believe this is where he was hiding. Callef was right under our noses, and leading Flesh Raiders no less. I warned the Council they weren't mindless beasts, and this is proof. And this lightsaber of his… there's something familiar about it, strange," Master Orgus reflected, inspecting Callef's lightsaber. "Anyway, we need to make sure no more Flesh Raiders get through."
Tarys agreed, and the Jedi Master walked toward the dark opening in the cave that led further inwards, presumably to wherever the Flesh Raiders were based, and effortlessly used the Force to cause the opening's collapse. For Tarys that would've been a monumental feat, one that would've taken the last few bits of energy he had left. He saw why Jedi Masters were called such, they truly were incredible.
"That should hold them back, for now. Tarys, you should report back to the Temple," Master Orgus told him.
"I'm injured Master Orgus. Are the training grounds safe to travel?" asked the Bith Padawan.
It was true, he was in a far worse state than Tarys. The Padawan could barely stand as it was, he wasn't sure that, even if the grounds were safe, the Bith would get there in one piece before he collapsed on his own.
"Not yet, I'll get you to a medcentre," the Master responded, recognising the Padawan's pain.
Tarys nodded the two farewell and set off for the Temple. He felt bad about not being able to stay and fight more but any more exertion and he was going to be more of a liability than anything, and that was easily worse than sitting out so he made no protest. His fellow Jedi seemed to get the situation under control quickly enough once the continuous flow of Flesh Raiders finally ended with Master Orgus' sealing of the cave. As a result, getting back to the Temple was a thankfully uncomplicated process and as soon as he was back he went to speak to Master Satele, who was meditating in her chambers.
"Master? I was told to report back," Tarys said, quietly. It was good etiquette not to interrupt another Jedi's meditation, and when it was necessary to do so, in as unobtrusive a method as possible.
"Welcome back, Tarys. I have to say I'm impressed the Temple is already buzzing with accounts of your heroism in the training grounds," she said, standing up from her meditative pose.
"Heroism is generous, Master, I wasn't even at my best. Turns out fighting when you're fully recovered isn't a great idea," Tarys said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"And yet Master Orgus sent word ahead that you fought the Flesh Raiders and Padawan Callef. He was the one from your trial, wasn't he? That must've been a disturbing confrontation. Are you alright? I'm sorry again for sending you out before you were ready," she replied, the sympathetic smile he was so accustomed to appearing on her face.
"A little shaken, I'm not going to lie. He was the last person I was expecting, but I'll manage. I wish I didn't kill him though. Maybe I could've returned him to the light," Tarys looked down, he couldn't possibly look Master Satele in the eye with his failure.
"It's not your duty to do so. Taking a life affects the Living Force - and the one who does the killing. It's why we enter battles calmly, with reason. Emotions like anger - even toward yourself - lead to the dark side. I've told you this before, Padawan." She always invoked his rank when she had a lesson to teach him, like somehow that made it more serious, although, in a way, it did.
"I know… It's just-" Tarys took a deep breath. "There is no emotion, there is peace."
"Exactly. I know it's hard, but I'm glad you find it difficult, as strange as it sounds. Taking a life should never be easy. I'm proud of you. You did superbly today but your job's not over yet. Meet me in the Council chambers in about an hour. You should spend that time in the medbay."
"Thank you, Master, I will."
The first time she suggested the medbay he'd dismissed it, insisting he was fine. Boy he was wrong. It was incredible what forty minutes of treatment from a healer Jedi could do. He was as good as new by the end of it, just a little fatigued but still worlds better than he was before.
When he entered the Council chambers this time, Master Satele was conspicuously missing. Perhaps she would make her entrance later. Instead, other Masters populated the seats. Master Orgus and the Togruta Master Bela Kiwiiks, as well as her Padawan Kira Carsen, were present physically and with Masters Tol Braga and Jaric Kaedan transmitting in by holo. They were discussing how a former Padawan could go about becoming the leader of an army of Flesh Raiders. The question had no obvious answer.
Then, the Grand Master of the Order made her entrance and took her seat on the table, giving a short nod of greeting in Tarys's direction. "The Flesh Raiders were disorganised primitives before today and the safety of the Temple is unexpectedly threatened because that's changed."
"Right. They had proper weapons and fought like an army. It's more than unusual - there has to be a reason for it," Tarys chimed in.
"Callef most likely wasn't acting alone," Master Orgus surmised.
Master Satele's brows furrowed as she raised her hand to her face in contemplation. "Too much of Tython remains unexplored. We do not have the resources to spare for an investigation."
"We have to do something," stated Master Orgus.
Tarys addressed the full Council himself, this time. "What if Master Orgus and I investigated? We're already familiar with Callef, and he supervised my final Trial. We can spare two people, right Master?" Maybe by doing so, Tarys could make up for not pursuing Callef's case all those years ago, maybe this could be something of an atonement.
"That could work," Master Satele considered. "Master Orgus, what do you think?"
"I'm all for it. Let's see what sort of Padawan you turned out to be, hmm?" He flashed a broad smile.
"Then it's settled. Tarys, your next mission will be to work with Master Orgus to learn why the Flesh Raiders have become suddenly so advanced, and put a stop to the threat," Master Satele briefed him. Tarys had done a few missions before with other Masters but never one so monumental and important to the Order. The Temple's safety rode on his performance.
"Yes Master, thank you."
"Padawan, go downstairs to my chambers and take some of my equipment, I'll meet you there," Master Orgus instructed as the other Masters continued discussing.
Tarys made his way down to Master Orgus' chambers and did as he was told, taking a few stim packs and putting them in pockets in his utility belt, they always were useful and if recent experiences told him anything, he'd need them. The Padawan waited until he started to grow impatient, then waited some more until he resorted to meditating to fill the time. A sense of serenity washed away the anxiety he felt, but not the guilt. It was his fault that a Flesh Raider army now invaded the Temple. He'd helped beat them back but they should not have attacked to begin with. Tarys' complacency and inaction were what caused this - he should have found Callef, his trial wasn't complete.
Finally, after an eternity-long wait, Master Orgus made his way down and approached Tarys.
"Blast those Council meetings, I'd die of old age before my colleagues ran out of things to say," Master Orgus lamented.
"I've attended enough with Master Satele to know the feeling, just don't tell her I said that," Tarys laughed as he made his confession.
"Your secret's safe with me Padawan. I'm glad you suggested this, I would have hated to not investigate further. I should've made you my Padawan after the Tournament, before Master Satele got the chance to," the Jedi Master gave a hearty laugh to match Tarys' own.
"I was pretty adamant that Master Satele took me on, but I appreciate the sentiment Master, thank you," Tarys gave him a gracious smile.
"It's no problem. I'm glad that you found a Master suited for you, but I'll get to the heart of it. There's a group of Twi'lek pilgrims on Tython. They've been fighting the Flesh Raiders for months. The Republic asked us to deny those Twi'leks aid - they settled here illegally - but frankly, we need them," Master Orgus explained.
"The Republic asked us to deny aid? Why would they do that? Jedi are meant to help those in need," Tarys asked, incredulous.
"When Tython was first rediscovered, the Twi'leks petitioned the Senate to settle here. They were denied but they settled anyway, so the Republic doesn't acknowledge that they're here. They live in a village in the mountains. You need to go there and establish contact, try to learn everything they know about the Flesh Raiders. The knowledge they have could be invaluable. I'll warn you, their matriarch is not our biggest fan, can't say I blame her," the Master continued.
"The Republic just pretends the settlement isn't there? Isn't that cruel?"
"Depends how you look at it, if they followed the law then they wouldn't even be here and they wouldn't need help, but I understand where you're coming from. Seeing as we need them, feel free to help them however you want. We'll consider it Jedi business - the Republic can't say no to that."
Tarys smiled, "Thank you, I'll get going now."
The journey itself was a relatively simple one. Having a map of all of the explored planet mounted onto his wrist was truly a blessing for navigation. The village itself was small, containing only a hundred or so Twi'lek pilgrims, but they had built their foundations to last, they were proper homes and their farms extended to as far as the eye could see. Their fortifications weren't lacklustre either, for a settlement of that size. The few turrets and armed soldiers they had seemed appropriate but even Tarys recognised they wouldn't be able to put up much of a defence against violent Flesh Raiders.
Tarys guided himself to the Matriarch's home, instantly recognisable among the other, significantly smaller buildings in the village. Inside, he was met by three Twi'lek, an orange man and two green-skinned women, one of whom wore regal robes - the Matriarch, he figured.
"Greetings, Matriarch. The Jedi Council has sent me to help you fight the Flesh Raiders," Tarys said.
"So the Jedi finally deign to recognise my people's suffering? How noble." The Matriarch practically spat the final word. Master Orgus didn't lie. She was bitter, rightly so perhaps, but still bitter.
Part of him wanted to tell her that the Jedi were under commands from the Republic not to help, but he knew to compromise the Republic's reputation made for a poor Jedi so he restrained himself. Hopefully, he'd be able to change the Twi'lek's mind through his own actions.
"Nothing to do with the attack on your grounds, I'm sure," she continued.
Tarys was surprised she knew about that, the Twi'leks were better connected than he thought. Still, there was no use in withholding the truth on a mission to build trust.
"I won't lie Matriarch, it does - we didn't realise how great of a threat the Flesh Raiders had become and we've paid the price." Hopefully, she could see how much he wanted to help. He just needed the chance.
"So now you seek help from the people you once ignored," her tone was still poisonous. The Jedi really had ignored them and for too long.
"We do. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for my Order's actions, hopefully helping now will go towards earning your forgiveness," Tarys said solemnly. He was probably overstepping his bounds as a Padawan but the Twi'lek village had earned the right to be scornful of the Jedi.
"A trainee's apology isn't worth much, but I'll take it regardless." She wasn't really thanking him, the glare she gave revealed it was more of a veiled insult but she continued nonetheless. "My scouts have tracked the Flesh Raider for months. Watched them grow in strength. I will share what we have discovered, but only if you agree to protect my people. We… we suffer…"
The Twi'lek matriarch suddenly staggered, losing her footing and nearly falling to the floor before the other woman was able to quickly step in and provide support.
"Mother, you need rest. Let me carry this burden for you," she whispered, almost too quietly to hear.
"Will the matriarch be alright? Does she need a doctor?" Tarys expressed his concern.
"Thank you, but we have our own healers here," the Matriarch's daughter replied.
"This is my daughter Jedi, Ranna Tao'Ven, she and Scout Chief Moorint here will speak for me. I must attend to… other matters…" The Matriarch finished before her daughter guided her away. The 'other matters' must've been recovery. She was too proud to even admit her condition.
The Scout Chief approached him after the Matriarch had left, "Personally, I don't care why you've come - as long as you destroy the Flesh Raiders. Ever since they got their new weapons and gear, they hunt us like animals." Thinking of his own people as little more than target practise clearly hurt the man's pride, although Tarys couldn't blame him - seeing your people reduced to fodder would be painful for anyone, that was why Tarys needed to put a stop to it however he could.
"Tell me what I can do to help and I'll do it," Tarys offered.
"The enemy has a camp in the valley nearby. My scouts say the Flesh Raiders store their weapons and other tech in a cave," Moorint explained. He didn't say so, but he obviously wanted Tarys to deal with the cache of equipment.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it, removing the tech will go a long way to neutralising the Flesh Raiders" Tarys assured him.
"Taking care of it won't cut it, we need to strike fear into the Flesh Raiders. Sabotage their weapons. Fix it so they blow up in their ugly faces…" The Twi'lek clenched his fist so hard Tarys thought he was going to draw blood.
Ranna Tao'Ven joined them again, quickly enough to hear Moorint's suggestion, "How would we do that?"
"I've seen the technology they use, they're standard Republic design. Overloading the power circuits and plasma coils would make them explode," Tarys explained.
"That's right, sabotage would thin the Flesh Raider numbers and eliminate their technological advantage," the Scout Chief agreed, nodding in Tarys' direction.
"But if you brought that technology here, we could defend ourselves with those weapons," Ranna countered.
"I'm with Miss Tao'Ven on this one. The weapons would be better used by the villagers, blowing them up for some perceived psychological advantage is a waste," Tarys voiced his opinion.
"Please, just call me Ranna," the matriarch's daughter corrected.
"Anyway, the debate is pointless unless you can get inside that cave. You'll need one of the leaders' access keys," Moorint interjected.
"I agree, find the technology and do what you think is best. Thank you for helping us, Master Jedi," Ranna finished.
Master Jedi. Tarys had been referred to that on missions before but it never failed to take him slightly by surprise. He was only a Padawan yet most people didn't really care about the difference in rank so long as a Jedi was there to help, but among the Jedi with whom he lived, the word 'Master' carried much weight so to hear it used on himself… it was a strange feeling.
Tarys left the village and set off to find this cave. It shouldn't be hard to find, just follow the Flesh Raiders back through the valley to wherever they got their weapons. The cave itself wasn't too far and the few Flesh Raiders along the path didn't pose much trouble for Tarys now that he was mostly healed. As he walked through the valley he recognised the terrain - this was Tythos Ridge. Not many people ventured out here simply because there wasn't much reason to do so. The ground was dry and cracked and little vegetation grew in the area, especially compared to the lush and diverse variety of plants closer to the Temple and even the Masters' Retreat.
Ramshackle buildings adorned the paths. Perhaps they belonged to the Raiders? It must've been so as just next to one such construction lay what Tarys presumed was the open mouth of the cave he was looking for. He cautiously entered the cavern, following the dim light he saw inside. The cave was full of them. It was a small space but that didn't stop over a dozen Flesh Raiders from congregating in it, all armed and all certainly dangerous.
It didn't matter though, he had given his word that he was going to help the Twi'lek villagers and this wasn't going to stop him. Tarys still held the element of surprise so he carefully drew one of his lightsabers and pressed the button, being wholly aware of the low hum of the blade - hopefully, it wasn't loud enough to give him away.
With Force-enhanced precision and strength, Tarys threw the saber like a javelin, a feat only possible because of the fact that the plasma blade held no discernable weight, toward the neck of the closest Flesh Raider. While the saber flew through the air, Tarys teleported into blinking range of another enemy, enjoying the distinct lack of pain this time around. As soon as he saw the blade make impact Tarys blinked into the scene and Force Pulled the hilt of his weapon back to his right hand, ready to fight.
The next few minutes were a blur as he spun and danced around the Raiders' attacks, trying to pick them off one by one.
"TARYS!"
What in the? Then he remembered he had a Sith girl in his head.
"Okay, you've got me. No more shouting, also, not the best time." He thought, lowering his mental shields and parrying the latest attack from a Raider's vibrosword.
"Wait… are you fighting? Shoot, sorry, I'll talk another time."
"No, it's all good. Keep going, this isn't too hard anyway," For some reason, Tarys had the urge to embellish his actions, he wanted to look as good as possible in front of her, he didn't quite know why but he knew he wanted to impress her.
"Show off. Don't care if it's a toddler you're fighting, tell me when you're done. Actually, don't fight toddlers." said the strange, feminine disembodied voice in his mind.
"Damn, there go my plans for the weekend." Tarys retorted as he plunged his saber into the torso of the penultimate Flesh Raider.
He raised his forearm to his brow, wiping away the accumulated sweat before he faced the final Flesh Raider. Like the ones that accompanied Callef, this one was darker-skinned with white markings on its body but unlike them, it wore a great deal more clothing, something Tarys decided he was very glad about.
Fighting it, while not difficult, was definitely a change of pace for the Padawan. This Raider had skill, likely proper training and it showed. Still, in a duel between a newly trained Flesh Raider with a vibrosword, and a lightsaber-wielding Padawan with years of experience, the Padawan won - and quickly. Fortunately for him, this particular Raider seemed to be leading the group in the cave and carried a key, presumably for the massive cache of weapons behind it.
Tarys sent a ping through his holo to that of Ranna, who'd given her own before he left the village.
"Ranna? I secured the cache, I'll start heading back, it's safe to send your people down here to collect the weapons," Tarys spoke into his wrist.
"It is? Thank you, thank you so much. We'll speak more when you get back here, I'll send people down now," the Twi'lek's voice was slightly marred by static but he received her reply well enough to hear.
Then he heard the buzzing of a droid as it approached him, an astromech droid. What was it doing here? In classic droidspeak, that was the beeps and trills characteristic of astromech droids, it told Tarys that it was T7-01, and that it was captured by Flesh Raiders after trying to scout the wilderness and its sensors were malfunctioning due to a faulty restraining bolt. More importantly, it was able to record 'allies' of the Flesh Raiders after its capture.
Playing back the holotape, he saw a hooded figure speaking to Callef and one of his Raider companions.
"Teach our soldiers how to use these weapons. Train them on the Twi'lek invaders," said the hooded figure, whose deeper voice identified him as male.
"When will we strike against the Jedi?" inquired the fallen Padawan.
"Patience, Callef. The Jedi will fall when our army reaches full strength."
Then the blue light of the recording fizzled out as the droid addressed him once more,
"T7 recording = useful / Jedi = take T7 to safety + remove restraining bolt."
Tarys couldn't possibly turn down a request like that. He knelt down undoing the restraining bolt. "I never really understood the need for them to begin with, what harm could you do?"
"Restraining bolt removed = increased T7 scanning range / Flesh Raiders = in big trouble now," the droid said, conveying enthusiasm.
"Damn right they are," Tarys was hard-pressed to agree.
Taking the droid with him, Tarys made his way back to the Twi'lek settlement and made his way back into the Matriarch's abode. He walked in to see a blue-skinned Twi'lek man lamenting to Ranna and Master Orgus,
"She died in my arms. You should've seen what those filth did to her," he growled.
"I'm sorry Saylew. We all share your loss," Ranna comforted in what Tarys had learned was her characteristic compassionate tone.
"For every one of us the Flesh Raiders butcher, we should kill ten! No, a hundred!" Saylew fumed.
Tarys didn't believe in answering death with death, but he couldn't help but sympathise with the man's plight. Jedi were not supposed to get attached but even he had people he cared about, friends, teachers and others who he'd more than mourn were he to lose them - he couldn't begin to understand what it would be like to lose a spouse. He assumed it was a loss beyond words.
"Will that restore your loved one to life?" cautioned Master Orgus.
This enraged the Twi'lek, "Don't lecture me, Jedi. My wife is dead! Our people, slaughtered! Where were you then?" Where the name of their Order was spoken by reverence by Ranna, it had become an insult from Saylew - they truly hadn't done enough.
Tarys tried his best to comfort him, "Nothing I can say will make you feel whole again but we are doing everything we can."
"What about exterminating those animals?"
"Saylew, this Jedi brought us the Flesh Raiders' weapons so we can defend our homes," Ranna informed him.
"Then give me those weapons. We'll hunt down the Flesh Raiders. We'll have retribution," demanded Saylew.
Tarys couldn't allow another to die chasing revenge. "No. You're upset, I understand that, but the last thing you need is a weapon. Let me handle the Flesh Raiders, they'll be defeated but I won't let you die before we do."
"Your wife wouldn't want you to die for revenge. I promise we'll stop these attacks," Ranna said.
"Fine, just make sure those bastards pay for what they've done," he grumbled in reply.
Ranna led him out of the building as Master Orgus turned to speak to Tarys, "Well done, Padawan. He may not feel better, but at least he'll stay out of trouble."
"Thank you, Master, I do feel bad for him though - no one should feel the pain of losing someone close to them before their time," Tarys said, looking out to the door where Ranna still spoke to Saylew.
"People wonder why Jedi are forbidden to marry or have families. They don't see how attachments always lead to suffering. Passionate emotions can destroy a person - and Jedi destroyed by passion become something terrible," warned Master Orgus.
"Still, for those that do have it, it must be a wonderful thing, and then to have it ripped away…" Tarys trailed off.
"Don't get any ideas Padawan," laughed the Master.
"What? Of course not," Tarys rebuked.
Of course not.
About bloody time we actually start the Jedi Knight's story!
Hope I didn't keep you waiting too long!
PS. Currently plotting out the first chapter from Astraia's PoV.