The Return of the Rebellious Teen
Jedi Master Kyle Katarn was, for one, not a happy Jedi. Five years ago, his most promising student, Jaden Korr, killed his other student, Rosh Penin, and went off in a fit of rage, turning over to the dark side. Jaden killed many Jedi, most of whom Jaden knew and trained with. He knew Jaden was powerful, since he trained her and watched over her progress closely, heck, he even taught her some of his own tricks! But to lose to Jaden in a duel, was something that really brought reality down on Kyle. He lost both of his students in a single day, one dead, and the other becoming the galaxy's new found fear, Darth Keldran.
If only he had read the signs sooner, if only he had talked to Jaden more about her feelings, then maybe all of this would not have happened. Jaden was like a daughter to him. He wanted to comfort her, raise her well. He knew he wasn't the father material, but still, Jaden's smile whenever she completed a task and was complimented for, was enough for him to feel all warm and fuzzy. Okay, so he doesn't actually feel all warm and fuzzy, but it makes him feel like his life had finally found its purpose.
To see that one thing turn into something dark and swallowed by hatred and sadness, was enough to tear the Jedi's heart into pieces. He had not gone back to the academy after being defeated by Jaden on Korriban, vowing to return only after he had 'dealt' with his pupil. She was his responsibility, after all. He spent months searching for Jaden, till he came across the news of the new Sith Lord, Darth Keldran. He knew at once that it was Jaden, though it was puzzling why some people thought the new Sith Lord was a male, and a womanizer.
Nonetheless, Kyle set out to find Darth Keldran. What he found did not please him one bit. Keldran had rebuilt, and remobilized the imperial armada. Though smaller than what Emperor Palpatine had during his reign, Keldran's forces were no doubt large. Subjugating planet after planet, destroying those who stood in their way, the imperial fleet was the new symbol of fear throughout the galaxy.
Kyle had contacted Jan Ors, an old friend, and for while they dated, to get the new republic to build up their forces. He, in the meantime, tried to get planets to stand up against her. Though it pained him to see them put up resistances that would only cause Keldran to destroy their planet entirely, it did succeed in slowing the advances of Keldran's forces.
However, more and more planets were giving into their fears, and swearing allegiance to Keldran. Time was running short. Kyle needed to do something. His chance came when Keldran's main fleet held back over the planet of Triol, apparently due to some complications. Kyle infiltrated the super star destroyer of the advance fleet, and single-handily destroyed the ship, causing its main core to go into melt-down, and creating a giant explosion that engulfed the entire advance fleet.
Kyle managed to escape, though the Raven's Claw was badly damaged and so he retreat to Cloud City to wait for Keldran's next move. What Keldran did next, was exactly according to Kyle's predictions. Three fleets moved in from three different sectors to where the advance fleet was.
Kyle had contacted Mon Mothma and Leia Organa Solo earlier, and when Kyle went to the site with the newly repaired Raven's Claw, he came to see the new republic's fifth, and thirteenth fleet chasing down the remaining ships of Keldran's forces. Four of Keldran's massive fifty fleet army were gone. Now surprise battles would no longer work.
Knowing Jaden, and therefore Keldran, Kyle decided that only head-on attacks would be effective. Keldran may not be a war strategist, but she is very smart, and with her ability to sense life forms and the feelings of others, it may very well prove useless to even try to hide from her, let alone try to ambush her. The new republic had gathered its forces, amassing a great number of ships and fighters. Kyle Katarn would be chosen as the strike forces commander, and Kyle knew Luke had a hand in that decision. The Jedi fleet had also assembled, joining the ranks of the republic fleet.
Though the Jedi numbers were few after the battle of Korriban, they were slowly growing in number once more, and had enough Jedi to form strike teams. The battle was set, with the new republic forces heading straight towards Keldran's massive fleets, whom had also sent her entire force for a head-on attack. The stage would be the planet of destiny, Tatoonie.
It was silent at first. Maybe for a few merchant freighters in the sector, bringing illegal goods for the Hutt. Other than that, nothing was out of the ordinary. Not a sound in the void of space. But within the next moment, they appeared. Two fleets appeared at the same time, each at opposite ends. One, being the great mighty fleets of the new republic, and the other being the massive ships of Darth Keldran. The two fleets stared at one another for a moment, then all hell broke loose.
"FIRE!"
Keldran did not want to observe the battle. It brought her much pain and anguish. It was pathetic to see a Sith Lord cower from battle, but she was unable to suppress her ability to 'see' the life and emotions of everyone around her. And acting like a rebound effect, the dark side of the force was amplifying the effects it had on her, en-powering her at the same time.
The more pain she suffered, the more powerful she would become as she would be dragged deeper into the dark side. But Keldran stood firm on the bridge of her flagship, the jaugarnaught class super star destroyer, the Judge. She would see all of this, which she has started. And she will see it end.
"My lord, the enemy seems to be gaining the upper hand!"
Admiral Threl reported another pointless report. But Keldran did not care about what the report meant. She was focused on the battle. She knew what was happening.
"Jedi.... No doubt Skywalker has found some interesting new students. Send out the new fighters. The Judge will retreat backwards, while fleets seven and twenty will cover our retreat. All other ships are to reorganize their ranks and push forward."
"Yes my lord!"
Admiral Threl wasted no time in relaying her orders. Quick to please? Or simply knowing that such a strategy was the best for survival. Survival, huh? Keldran could laugh at that. Who needs survival? All they need was power. Power to rule all, and control everything and everyone.
"Rosh...."
Keldran was surprised of what came out of her mouth. And then she felt something odd. She wiped her eyes, and looking at her glove, she saw them once more. Tears. Why? Why was she crying? Maybe she knew why.
She turned and left the bridge, making her officers look at her with odd looks. They wouldn't understand. Storming into her room, she grabbed her saber, and pointing its beam at the dark corner. The presence was still there.
"ROSH! WHY?! WHY ARE YOU HERE?! DO NOT DISTRACT ME WHEN MY GOAL IS SO CLOSE!!!"
In a fit of rage, Keldran threw her saber at the corner. The saber simply landed on the floor, deactivating itself.
"AARRRHH!!!"
Her old saber flew from her belt to her hand, and its light blue beam awakening after a long sleep. Keldran hesitated at throwing her old saber. She stared at its blue glow, as memories flooded back into her head. Memories that she sealed away. The times she spent in the academy, the time with Rosh and Kyle.
She didn't realize it back then, but she was smiling. Her time in the academy, was her happiest time. Keldran's eyes flooded with tears, and she did not stop them, nor demand their presence. She dropped her saber, as she buried her face in her hands.
"Why... why do you torment me so?.... For what i did? Or for what i have become?"
Keldran could only cry in her sorrow. Her emotions thrown once more into chaos. It happened before, when she chose to strike Rosh down. But now, through her tears, she had managed to regain herself. Her true self.
"I know i cannot be forgiven for what i have done... and i will never ask for forgiveness because words cannot turn back time. Words and tears can never bring you back Rosh, and i know that..... As for what i can still do to prevent my madness from going any further, there is but one thing."
She wiped her tears away, and looked up at the dark corner, smiling.
"I have to end this nightmare with my own blood-stained hands."
She stood up once more, and raised her hand. Her two lightsabers flew back to her hand, and she clipped them on her belt. She pulled her hood back over her head, smiling softly at the dark corner.
"... Something only i can do."
Kyle's grip on the console was getting harder and harder with each passing second. There was only so much he could do. Luke has played him with his own words. He vowed to take care of Jaden, and so when the strike force was assembled, Kyle was placed in the command seat, which meant he couldn't go out to the frontlines.
In a way, he was in-charge of taking care of Jaden, but he wouldn't be able to confront his former student. The republic's fleet was pushing hard, with multiple X-wing squadrons launching constantly. Keldran's forces were not giving up much ground either, with new star-fighters that were trident in shape, and painted as black as night.
There were also the agile TIE fighters, but now fighting along-side those new fighters, and another new fighter which was shaped like an arrow-head. The Jedi fleet had stayed on the frontlines, and Kyle could see the Force flowing strongly from some of the ships. Battle Meditation, as it was called. Kyle remembered it when Luke said he found some old records of old Force powers at work.
This would allow the enemy to weaken their resolve and morale, while their own forces were strengthened. A fearsome power, and for so many Jedi to be able to use it, was certainly unbelievable. Kyle had gone through some of the old Holocrons that they managed to recover over the years, and it did seem like the Jedi of the past were stronger in raw power. But that was of no concern to him now.
"Commander! The enemy main fleet is pulling back!"
"She's trying to defend herself.... Get our right and left flanks to corner them in a pincer attack!"
The fleets pushed forward according to his orders, not giving the enemy a single moment to recover their formation. Kyle had hoped to reach out to Jaden once more, but found that a barrier had been placed around Keldran's flagship. Kyle could not breach such a powerful barrier with his own power. Was there really no hope to save Jad-
"Commander! In-coming transmission! It's.... it's from the enemy flagship!"
Kyle's eyes widened, looking up at the communications officer. He wasn't lying, even the officer was shocked and surprised.
"Put it through!"
The moment Kyle said that, a screen appeared before him. And on that screen, a figure in black robes silently stared at him. Though the face was covered by the hood, Kyle could still tell who it was. Only one person would exude such a feeling.
"Jaden."
The figure pulled back the hood, revealling the face of Kyle's hopes and dreams, as well as his nightmare. Jaden Korr, or Darth Keldran, was smiling at him. A soft, and gentle smile that Jaden had always carried, and yet Kyle could sense the deep sorrow, and sadness behind that smile.
Jaden had not changed much over the five years, but there were signs of her turn to the dark side. Her face was worn and weary. Her eyes showed fatigue and pain. Her skin was also pale, and her hair being in a mess.
'"You still call me that after all these years? After all of the pain and hardship that i've put you through?"'
"Of course! You are my student! I can never abandon you, no matter what you've done, or what you've become!"
Jaden smiled, and giggled a little, making Kyle blush a little in embarrassment. But this... this was the Jaden he knew. The Jaden whom he had trained. Not the dark Sith Lord who had defeated him on Korriban five years ago.
'"You were always too soft, master."'
"Stop that... i thought i told you to call me 'Kyle'-"
'"Because titles give you the creeps? I remembered."'
Jaden's smile may have reassured Kyle that his student was back, but why couldn't he shake the feeling that something was still amiss?
"Jaden... let's stop this fighting and go home. Everyone misses you."
Jaden's smile suddenly dropped. She lowered her head for the moment. When she looked back up, her eyes were flooded with tears, and her smile was forced.
'"I... cannot go back."'
"What?"
'"There is no place i can return to now. There is no place that i can call my home."'
"What nonsense are you talking about?! Your home is with the rest of the Jedi! You belong with us!"
'"But who would be there waiting for me? One who has been tainted by the stench of death and destruction? No one would. My sin is too great to be ignored. And i cannot defile or stain the Jedi Order and its name any longer."'
"I'll be waiting! Isn't that enough?"
Jaden wiped her tears, and her soft smile returned, though its sadness was clear to all.
'"It is more than enough.... And though the others may forgive me, i cannot forgive myself for the things i have done. I just called to ask for forgiveness, for everything. Even if you don't, it doesn't matter. You were the best teacher any Jedi could ask for-"'
"Jaden! What are you saying?"
'"-and you were the best friend i ever had. My failings were that of my own, and you shouldn't feel ashamed of yourself. You did not fail me, or yourself. I failed you."'
"Ja-"
'"PLEASE!... don't stop me."'
Jaden stopped Kyle's interruption. Kyle felt her using the force to keep him silent, but exactly how was beyond him. It wasn't forced, but it felt like something was simply telling him not to speak. Let Jaden finish. Because she needs to.
'"Tell Master Skywalker that i'm sorry. And that to atone for everything, i will see the end of my own doings. Erase my name from the Jedi Order and Archives. There wasn't a student named Jaden Korr in the beginning. Never should have been. Now, i will finish what i've started. To end my own betrayal. History will write as Darth Keldran fell before the might of the new republic. Not such a bad story for young children, huh?"'
Jaden lowered her head as she tried to wipe her tears that could not stop flowing.
'"Kyle... you were like a father, a brother, and a friend to me. The days we spent together with Rosh were some of my fondest memories, and i will forever treasure them. I'm sorry Kyle... that i could not meet your expectations, and that in the anger of being betrayed, i betrayed you as well.
I pray that you will gain new students whom you would be proud of. Forget everything about me, and move on. I have lived long enough, and i wish to end my story with my own hands..... Goodbye Kyle, and thank you."'
With one last smile, the transmission was cut.
"JADEN!! Trace back that transmission!"
Kyle, who found his voice back, immediately turned to the communications officer.
"I can't! We're not getting through!"
"Dammit! Jaden.... You already are a student i am proud of.... Don't do anything foolish-"
"Commander! The enemy flagship! It's exploding!"
"WHAT?!"
Kyle brought up the screen, and sure enough, the giant super star destroyer, the Judge, was exploding. Self-destruction.
"Jaden.... what did you do-?!"
Kyle suddenly felt a strange lift in the force. As though an extremely heavy weight was lifted off his shoulders. But he knew what it was. The Force of an extinguished Jedi. It could only mean-
"JADEN!!!"
She stepped away from the consoles, wiping her tears away. This was all that it should be. She had already led the children she trained into life pods, so they should be safe for now. Standing in the main command room that she had constructed, this wide console that stood before her would allow her to control the entire ship completely.
It was built so that if ever the case the ship was controlled by the enemy, she would come to this room only she had access to, and control the ship from here. She wiped her eyes with one hand, while typing in the self-destruct code with her other hand.
"This is as it should be."
She kept repeating to herself. It wasn't any form of justification for what she was doing, which in her mind was simply running away, but it was something that she needed to say in order to keep her body moving. After pushing the final key, the ship shuddered. The engines were quick to go into melt-down.
Soon, the main cores would also go into melt-down sequence, and cause an explosion wide enough to destroy more than half of her fleet, and disable the remaining few. She had faith in Kyle to round up the rest. She paused, smiling to her thoughts.
"... Faith... and i thought i had lost it all... Hey, Rosh."
Jaden looked up from her console, and now, she could see him clearly. Rosh Penin, though transparent, and pale, he still looked the same as before. His cheeky smile, his mischevious eyes. Standing before her, he had a smile of understanding.
"What do you think of my way? Kind of stupid, huh? It probably doesn't seem like me at all to choose this method... and yet, i did..."
Jaden took her old lightsaber, and stared at it, smiling fondly as she remembered more memories from the past.
"I built this after my fight with you on Vjun... at first, i was still hopeful that you were still my friend, my trusted ally... but somewhere along the way, my mind became clouded. Worried of the alternative."
She looked up at the ghostly visage, who still stood there smiling.
"I killed you in a fit of rage... i'm sorry. Really... i am."
Jaden felt the tears forming once more, but did not bother to wipe them. Pointless to wipe them anyway.
"Well, i may not be going where you are, but at least everyone should rest easy, right?"
The ghost slowly shook its head.
".... Would you forgive me?"
It nodded, smiling.
"Then that is good enough for me... this is goodbye, Rosh... for the last time."
Jaden closed her eyes, as her surroundings began to explode. A cooling sensation took over her and the next thing she knew, everything went silent, cold, and dark.
Kyle Katarn could not believe what he was seeing. The enemy flagship, the Judge, had just self-destructed, with his student, Jaden Korr, still inside. Jaden had tried to redeem whatever deeds she had done, and took her own life. The explosion engulfed Keldran's fleet, and about seventy percent of her remaining fleet were destroyed in that one explosion. The wave that the explosion had caused crippled the remaining ships, and while quite a number of new Republic ships were hit by the wave as well, the remaining ships were more than enough to surround the enemy.
With the destruction of its flagship, the remaining enemy forces were quick to surrender. But Kyle did not feel satisfied. How could he? He had lost his most prized student, the second time. He had failed himself, and as a Jedi. He slammed a fist into the console, almost breaking it. How could he go on with his life? After such an event. He would have to quit being a Jedi, and seal his force powers once more.
Move on? He couldn't do that. Jaden had meant well with her words, but instead, it created a huge void within him. He suddenly looked up, having felt a strange shift in the Force. And before him, stood a ghostly visage of Rosh. Kyle rarely had any visitation from Jedi beyond the grave, and it was unsettling to see his former student appear before him. However, Rosh simply smiled, and floated back a few steps, where a figure in black robes lay. Kyle immediately recognized that figure.
"JADEN!"
Kyle ran up to his old student, and picking her up. There was a pulse, though weak, and she was breathing. But she was still unconscious. Kyle looked up to Rosh, and the ghost nodded, before disappearing. Kyle did not know what to say. He had never heard of this before. He was sure he felt Jaden's connection to the Force being lost, but here she lay, in his arms.
"... Commander? Is she-"
Kyle suddenly snapped back to reality. In the eyes of everyone else, she is a complete stranger who suddenly appeared. Nobody else could see Rosh.
".... She's an important guest of mine."
"But isn't she... you know, the ene-"
"Don't say that."
Kyle snapped at the officer, who retreated a few steps back from Kyle's glare. Okay, maybe not a complete stranger. After all, they did hear him call her Jaden when she was talking to him through the transmission. He did not want to do this. He stood up, and focused.
"You all did not witness what just happened. It did not happen. Darth Keldran is dead, and my student, Jaden, collapsed from fatigue."
Kyle commanded through the Force to all of the officers on the bridge who bore witness to the miracle before them.
"Darth Keldran is dead... Yes sir."
They all seem to accept it pretty easily. Kyle, satisfied with it, carried Jaden out of the bridge, and to his own quarters, where he lay her on his bed. Jaden was back with him now, and that caused a great sense of relief. Brushing her bangs from her forehead, he gazed down at her soft features, a mix of happiness and excitement, and yet a relaxing relief washed over him. The door to his quarters opened, and to Kyle's surprise, Luke Skywalker came in.
"So... she's returned."
"Yes... Luke, i-"
Luke held a hand up, stopping his old friend from explaining. Luke simply smiled.
"I know, and i understand, Kyle. I had sensed something amiss."
"... You mean you placed a listening device on my bridge."
Kyle narrowed his eyes at Luke, who shrugged.
"Who knows what you're talking about. Jaden has gone through a lot, and while i do not understand how she managed to survive, it is certain that her connection to the force was cut for that moment."
"... Luke, about Jaden-"
"We will deal with her when she awakes."
Luke simply stated, but that was what Kyle was afraid of. Luke's judgement. Luke seemed to read his friend's thoughts, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You need not worry. We will not punish her. In fact, for her to have fallen so far to the dark side, and yet be able to make it back on her own is an achievement that we should congratulate her for. The only other two i've known to have gone so far down the dark path and made it back, were my father, and the Prodigal Knight."
"The Prodigal Knight? Isn't that simply a legend?"
Kyle raised an eyebrow.
"Hmm, maybe, but maybe it is fact. Anyway, as i said, do not worry about Jaden. The rest of the council has already spoken and they agree that Jaden is worthy of the title Jedi Master, and should be part of the council. Her insight on the dark side would prove to be a very valuable lesson for us."
Kyle had a feeling that when Luke meant the council agreeing, would mean Luke 'threatened' the council to agree with him. But he wouldn't say that out loud.
"But-"
Luke paused, looking down at Jaden with a worried look on his face.
"-Jaden may not be too happy about the news. I fear that her thoughts on trying to redeem herself may prove to be too strong, and her emotions would act up once more. Kyle, i need you to constantly watch over her."
"You know i will."
"Yes... i know you will."
She had no idea what was going on, she was suppose to be dead, and yet her body ached so much. She found her eyelids heavy, and by reflex, or instinct, she forced them open. Staring up at a rather familiar ceiling, she immediately sat up, though her muscles paid the price for her moving all of a sudden with cramps.
But she forced herself to look around. She was sitting in a medical ward. No, not just any medical ward. It was the ward in the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV. She could not help it as tears welled up in her eyes. She did not want to be here, and yet why? How? What was the point of her surviving?
"Why... why?!"
Kyle had taken a break from watching his student, deciding to grab a drink. There, he met Luke, and while he did report that there had been no change in Jaden's condition since they got back to Yavin IV. It had already been one whole week. Kyle was starting to get worried once more, even though the droids had stated that all of her vital signs were stable, and that it would only count on Jaden herself to wake up, since Kyle had opted not to inject Jaden with drugs to wake her.
She needed to wake up on her own, and realize her own reality. And hopefully he would there to greet her with a smile, not going off for a drink, which was what he was doing. Kyle and Luke were talking when they stepped back into the medical ward of the academy, and when Kyle turned to his pupil's bed, he found her awake, good, but she was holding onto a medical knife, and her left wrist was bleeding. Bad.
"Jaden! Stop it!"
Kyle and Luke wrestled the knife out of Jaden's hand, while trying to restrain her.
"Let me go! Let me go! I'm not supposed to be here! I'm not supposed to be alive! Why?! Why did you do this to me?!"
Jaden screamed at the top of her lungs, then she finally stopped struggling, only letting the tears flow down her cheeks as she cried to herself.
"Why... why Rosh... Why did you save me.... After all that i've done.... Am i to forever carry this burden of guilt? Is this my punishment?... Is that my atonement?"
Luke and Kyle did not know what to say to the crying girl. They had no words of comfort for her. Till Luke sighed, and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Jaden... If Rosh did save you, that would mean he has forgiven you, and you shouldn't carry the guilt, at least not by yourself. If you still wish to atone for your actions, then you should live on. Live on and forever bind yourself to a cause. You should work for the sake of others, and no longer yourself for all eternity."
"Master... Skywalker."
"Here, we are all equal as Jedi. We would never abandon those in need, and we would never discard those whom we call friends."
Jaden looked at Luke, wiping her tears. She listened to his words closely, and understood what was said.
"... I should continue to walk down my path, huh..... And never look back."
"The choice is your own. Nothing is set in stone, but once you've started, you should never stop. Walk, or run. Keep doing it till your legs can carry you no further. Go till you collapse from exhaustion. Maybe only then, can you find the answer to the salvation that you seek."
Kyle was about to comment on Luke's choice of words, but Jaden surprisingly nodded in agreement, smiling her old smile, though her tears were still there.
"Then i will... And when i find my answer, maybe i could share it with the both of you."
Luke chuckled at that, ruffling up Jaden's hair, an act which surprised the other two, since he rarely, if ever, does that.
"Good. Since you've awakened, i can tell you what is to become of you."
"I am ready for the punishment."
Jaden said, sitting in a proper position.
"Punishment? Hmm, one could call it that... The council and i have agreed upon the matters at hand. As of today, you are no longer a Jedi Knight."
Jaden lowered her head, though she was kind of expecting that. Kyle swore that he wanted to punch Luke for pausing that long. That was on purpose, for sure.
"You are no longer a Knight, but now a Master. And as a Jedi Master, we welcome you to the Jedi Council."
Jaden's head snapped up, eyes wide at the news. She did not believe what she heard, and so Luke decided to repeat himself.
"I said, that you are now a Jedi Master, and member of the council.... is that really so hard to believe?"
More than hard to believe, Jaden's mind was now completely blank.
"Well then, i'll let you rest a while longer. I have things i need to talk about with the council. We shall see you next week at the meetings. Don't be late."
With that, Grand Master Jedi Luke Skywalker left the medical ward, and a dumbfounded and completely spaced out Jaden Korr, and a somewhat worried Kyle Katarn to their own devices. Stepping outside, Luke could only chuckle.
"What's so funny?"
A feminine voice asked. Luke turned, and smiled at the women with flowing fiery red hair who walked up to him.
"It's nothing Mara... Anyway, how about lunch?"
It took some time for Kyle to get Jaden back to her senses, and when she did, Kyle was the target of a barrage of questions and screams and shouts. It was obvious Jaden was still upset about being alive, and now that she was promoted, it made things even worse. Deciding on the premise of 'celebrating her promotion', though Kyle was just trying to get Jaden to calm down, he brought her to coruscant for a... drink.
While it wasn't standard practice, nor was it any form of practice, Luke had allowed it, without the council's knowledge what-so-ever. In a popular bar on coruscant, Jaden began to drink, and truth be told, that was the very first time Jaden had alcohol in her system.
And she did not take it too well. Within five minutes of chugging down her first drink, she ordered more, and heavier drinks, till she was so red in the face that Kyle thought her head would explode. However, what did explode, was Jaden's temper. She went on a rampage, demanding more drinks, complaining about the prices, then beating up random people.
Within ten minutes of her first sip, the bar was a complete mess, almost like a hurricane had just past through, and flipped the entire place upside down, except for Kyle, who sat in his seat trying to look like he wasn't involved at all. In fact, the area around Kyle was the only place that wasn't touched at all by Jaden's mad destruction run. Jaden had effectively destroyed the bar, and beat up the security that came shortly after.
It should not have been the end of that, since most bars like these were owned by powerful criminal lords, yet, the criminal lords were not that stupid either. The name of Darth Keldran was still strong, and when Jaden showed her face, the crime lords were quick to clean up their act and ignore what had just happened.
Apparently when Jaden was a Sith Lord, the criminal lords did pay her tribute and visits, so they did recognize her, though they did not know she was now a Jedi Master, and no longer a Sith Lord. Jaden Korr literally had the entire underworld of Coruscant bowing at her feet, and she did not notice it in her drunk state. Luke may have known what Jaden was capable of, since when Kyle brought a sleeping Jaden back to the academy, Luke was smiling as though nothing bad had happened.