Chapter 15

The Solo Quest left Ossus for Tatooine at maximum speed, a trip that would take approximately two standard days along two trade routes that intersect at Coruscant. Well into the journey, long after jumping to hyperspace near Coruscant, Jacen, Eriana, and Womprat were found discussing the Sith and Mandalorian situation by Jaina when she opened the cockpit door unannounced.

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," Jaina stammered. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"No, please, come in," Jacen gestured to the empty communications chair. "We were just throwing ideas around about what the Sith and Mandalorian alliance could mean."

"What have you come up with?" Jaina asked.

"Scary version?" Eriana asked. "They build up enough clout to succeed in turning the Galactic Alliance against us, take over dozens, if not hundreds of planets, and we're hunted down and killed Palpatine style."

"Sounds like the Vong all over again," Jaina mused.

"Correction: The Vong were only concerned with domination and conversion on a religious crusade. The Mandalorians, from my vast experience, are much more intelligent and ruthless, if equally determined," Womprat critiqued.

" 'Vast experience'?" Jaina asked the astromech. "What experience with the Mandalorians could you possibly have, droid?"

"Womprat's brain is over five thousand years old, Jaina," Jacen interrupted. "Unfortunately, that's about all I know about him."

Womprat gave an annoyed burst of sound at Jacen, and then continued.

"Continuation: As my Master so inconsiderately left out, I was built after the initial Mandalorian attempt to take over the galaxy, and was given the rare opportunity to travel with Mandalore himself in the service of my masters on no less than two great missions across the galaxy. I have also tracked the development of those arrogant meatcans, and catalogued their fighting styles for weaknesses to facilitate easy assassination and neutralization."

Jaina stared at the droid momentarily, and then looked at Jacen. "You do know it's illegal to possess assassination droids, don't you?"

"Yep, but technically he's classified as an astromech," Jacen opened a panel on his chair with the Force and extracted a memory chip to show her. "An astromech with removable assassination programming that nobody really needs to know about. Besides, have you seen half the systems on this ship? The only things I haven't found are biological weapons and diamond-boron armoured torpedoes. There are two experimental Mark XX E-Webs hidden under a floor plate the refresher. I didn't even know they made Mark XX E-Webs!"

"Jacen! Stop and think for a minute," Jaina said incredulously. "You're a Jedi! Why do you have an assassin droid?"

"He's a good example of what not to do," Jacen said reasonably, ignoring her look of utter disbelief. "And he's not bad with a hydrospanner."

Jaina's head ended up in her palms, but Jacen continued.

"Anyway, we believe the Sith are using the Mandalorians as a cover to hide their presence. Womprat knows how the Mandalorians have operated in the past. One of our goals will be to see how similar they are to their roots and see if we can exploit any historical weaknesses. That will take time to confirm, though."

"Okay, we know the worst case," Jaina said, finally composing herself. "What's the best case scenario?"

"The Mandalorians cave when we pacify the Sith, and the Sith are willing to co-exist with us peacefully after a diplomatic request," Eriana said. "And, at the same time shares of Galactic Footware Inc. skyrocket because all the Sith buy their new line of fluffy pink slippers. You'll notice I'm short on them…they just sold off their military footwear division." She tapped a display screen showing her financial portfolio.

"Jaina, where are your apprentices?" Jacen asked after a moment of silence.

"Oh, they're working on some telekinesis techniques in the back," Jaina said. "Why?"

"They should be here, discussing this with us," Jacen replied. "Six heads are better than four."

"Jacen, this isn't something for apprentices to be discussing," Jaina's face and voice indicated she thought her brother insane. "I don't even know why we're discussing it. For one, this is a matter for the Jedi Council to work out, not a Master, a Knight… Sorry, two Masters, a Jensaarai, and an assassin droid! Forget a pair of apprentices!"

"Yoda once said that children possess the greatest minds of all," Jacen said. "They have an uncanny ability to see things in an uncomplicated manner and to do the unexpected. Recall, it was the Jedi Order stagnating thanks to a bunch of old guys who didn't want to change that caused a collective blindness towards the Sith's attempts to wipe them out. And now Uncle Luke is trying to replicate that system and ingrain that mentality in everyone's minds? I'm sorry, Jaina, but I can't accept that argument. There is too much at stake to leave out any options. Unless…you don't trust one of your apprentices."

"Of course I trust them!" Jaina shouted back, standing up angrily. "Why can't you just accept the fact that the Jedi Order has its own way of doing things, and that you have to follow them if you want to be part of the Order?"

Jacen stared into his seething sister's eyes, and slowly stood up to tower over her without breaking eye contact. "When the Masters of the Jedi Order start playing by their own rules, such as obeying their own lessons on controlling anger," Jaina flinched, but could not look away. "Maybe I will play by their rules. Until such time, I can not, and will not, stand by while a threat against the innocent lives under the care of the Jedi exists. I will do whatever is necessary according to the rules of conduct as determined by Yoda, Obi-Wan, and the other Jedi Masters who instructed me to Mastery to protect them, whether the Jedi Council likes it or not."

Seeing his sister being sufficiently admonished, Jacen sat back down. "Believe me; if you knew the powers my Masters possess, you would know we are not running around unchecked doing as we please. The terms of us learning from them prohibit us from doing too much beyond what normal Jedi can do without consulting with them. I guess you could say we have our own little Jedi Council to answer to.

"Now, can we continue the discussion like reasonable people, or do I have to send you to your room?" Jacen finished with a faint smile in his eyes.

"No," Jaina said, tears welling up in her eyes. "We're missing two people who should be here." She turned and left the cockpit in search of her students, though Jacen suspected her students would not hear from her for a short while.

"Jaina," Jacen called. He sensed her stop, but could not think of anything to say. "Forget it."

"Nice one, Jace," Eriana said sarcastically as Jaina ran away. "Do you make every girl you know cry, or just your little sister?"

Jacen rolled his eyes and turned to check over the ship's diagnostic screens to ensure all was well. "She's older, not me."

"Witty response: You could have fooled me, Master."

"Stay out of it, both of you," Jacen said, leaving the cockpit after his sister.

-! #$%^&*()

Ben heard Master Lowbacca call out a series of grunts and barks that meant no more to him than the talking heads his parents watched on the Holonet. He tightened the last bolt on the engine blade he was securing as he waited for the Wookiee to finish, and for TB-92 to translate for him. It had been a month since he was first assigned to Master Lowbacca, but he still barely knew any words in Shyriiwook. He sincerely hoped he would never have to speak the Wookiee language. Jaina said she could emulate some of the words, but only after a few glasses of wine.

"Master Lowbacca asks if you have finished with the maintenance of the engine so he can engage the engines," TeeBee said with what Ben thought to be the most boring voice in the galaxy. "Hopefully he will wait until you respond so he does not activate them prematurely and blow us both up. My life has been far too short to be blown up by a careless Wookiee."

Ben gritted his teeth and thought back to his and Jaina's attempts to reprogram the droid. Every time they tried performing a modification the entire neural net would crash and they were forced to reload the backups. After the tenth attempt, Ben was forced to accept that his depressed droid was there to stay.

"Almost done Master Lowbacca!" Ben called out. "Give me a minute!"

[Okay,] Lowbacca called back, in one of maybe five words Ben recognized from Shyriiwook.

Ben quickly collected the tools he had been using and got to safety away from the engines of the X-wing.

"All clear, fire 'em up!" Ben called to Lowbacca and watched the engine.

"Not gonna get very far with that setup," A familiar voice came from behind Ben.

"Uncle Han!" Ben ran forward and gave his uncle a hug, leaving a pair of dark greasy handprints on his white shirt just above the waist. Han winced and pulled Ben off him.

"Not so fast, Lowie," Han called out. Lowie had sensed the problem with the engine and was staring at Ben from the cockpit. "Kid has a few loose ends to tie up."

"What do you mean?" Ben asked.

"Take a look," Han said, pointing at the empty spot on the engine where the cowl was missing.

Ben picked up his diagnostic scanner and went over to the engine with his uncle in tow. He scanned the engine, but everything appeared to be fine. He double checked all the wiring, the landing strut hydraulics, and even the angle of the blades, but everything seemed to be okay.

He saw it from way over there, Ben thought. What could he see from there?

Then it hit him – the cowling.

"The cover?" Ben asked.

"Nope," Han said. He pointed to the fuel hose Ben had replaced. It was blue, just like the hydraulic lines, not red like the one he had removed. "You used hydraulic tubing, not a fuel grade line."

"I couldn't find any," Ben said. "It should be fine."

"Maybe in a pinch," Han agreed. "But you're doing maintenance, not field repair. That line won't last more than forty-eight hours with fuel running through it."

"Oh," Ben said dejectedly. "I guess I'm just not good at this stuff, Uncle Han."

"Yeah, sure you are kid," Han punched him on the shoulder lightly. "Your old man's one of the best mechanics around. It's in your blood. I mean, look at these blades."

Han pulled him over and flicked at a blade with a finger, creating a soft humming vibration. "I haven't seen an engine this precisely calibrated by anyone but me. You've got talent, kid, and a good teacher."

Lowie roared a thank you to Han, but Han merely picked up a pair of pliers and handed them to Ben.

"I'll get the red hose. You yank that blue one out," Han said. "And forget the Wookiee. I'll make a mechanic out of you yet."

-! #$%^&*()

"Okay," Eriana mused. "What about Corran and Asajj Ventress?"

"Oh, definitely Corran," Nelani said, accepting the plant from Eriana and passing it to Karth.

"I think Asajj," Karth accepted the plant and continued moving it towards Eriana again. "She had some remarkable kills in the Clone Wars."

"Asajj, I think, too," Eriana admitted, continuing the plant's path. The three were sitting in an equilateral triangle a couple metres apart in the training area practicing distracted partner telekinesis with Jacen's potted amphistaff polyp. "What about Boba Fett and Han Solo?"

"Solo," Nelani said. "Fett's bitter, but Solo has more to live for."

"Disagreement: I would have to disagree with this one," Womprat chimed in. "While Solo is a formidable meatbag, Fett is a meatcan with far greater skill and training. Fett also carries the exquisite JR-42 scope on his BlasTech, indicating he has much greater tastes in lethally efficient weaponry."

"I don't know," Karth was momentarily distracted by an amphistaff that decided to lash out at him and nearly dropped the pot, but Eriana caught it. He sheepishly took over and passed it to Eriana properly. "Umm…oh, right. Solo also has style that Fett doesn't. Fett's too narrow-minded."

A series of grunts and whines from the corner of the training room indicated Astro seemed to disagree…or agree. Karth and Nelani did not quite know what to make of the Vornskr's grunts.

"That's true," Eriana agreed with the Vornskr, passing the polyp to Nelani and levitating Womprat into the mix. "But Solo did do it by accident. And that does show how tough Fett is. I gotta go for the meatcan myself."

"Oooh, Jacen's not going to like that," Nelani said with a glint in her eye, taking over both objects and moving them along. "My turn. I'll say…both Master Skywalkers."

"You don't like making things easy, do you?" Karth asked, trying to focus on both items and moving them along while thinking up an answer. "Master Luke."

"Jade," Eriana said, effortlessly moving the objects and spinning Womprat upside down in the process. "I fought them both. She has training that farmboy hasn't a clue about."

Womprat made a comment, but decided to speak backwards in light of being floated upside down, so nobody quite understood him.

"I'm in the Master Luke club," Nelani nodded to Karth. "He was knocking a Sith Lord around while Master Jade was killing people in their sleep. Maybe if she snuck up on him…"

"What are the criteria?" Karth asked as he spun Womprat back around.

"No vehicles and anything goes." Eriana laid on her back with her eyes closed, letting the two apprentices take over the exercise. "Pass the plant high, Womprat low. Just bounce back and forth. Oh, and tap each other on the head with the pot."

Both apprentices glanced at her with looks of disbelief, but started the modified exercise. The plant arched in a high path, while Womprat moved back and forth between them, and they alternated passing one to the other.

"Why does Jacen keep an amphistaff polyp?" Nelani asked. "Aren't they dangerous?"

"I asked him once," Eriana admitted, "But all he said was 'sentimental reasons.' I don't quite know what he means by that, but he does use it to keep his Vongsense in shape. He also uses the staffs as armour if he needs some. I think he was jealous of my Jensaarai armour. Karth, your pick."

Karth looked overwhelmed with the task of the complex telekinesis, but still mumbled out "Masters Durron and Horn."

"Corran," Womprat said.

"Master Durron," Nelani said.

"Master Durron," Karth repeated.

"Corran," Jacen said, entering the room with Jaina in tow. If anyone noticed her red eyes, nobody commented. "Better fighter, and any Force Kyp throws at him he can absorb and throw back." The two siblings sat down on either side of Eriana, and Jaina levitated a couple wooden staffs into the telekinetic mix. Karth started sweating under the concentration of the telekinesis, and even Nelani was showing signs of strain, but both continued. Jacen nodded his impress to Jaina.

"Yeah, I'm in the Corran boat," Eriana agreed. "Your pick Jaina."

"Um, what?" Jaina asked, slightly lost.

"Just a game to keep their minds going," Eriana explained. "We're naming two random people and trying to say who would win a lightsaber or blaster battle."

"And you had to drag my polyp into this?" Jacen asked.

"Incentive to keep it moving," Eriana winked as an amphistaff lashed out and severed a few strands of Nelani's long hair.

"Palpatine and Vader," Jaina said reasonably. "Before Vader got the armour."

"Oh dear," Eriana sat up. "That's a good one. I'd have to go with Palpatine."

"Vader," Nelani blushed slightly, secretly supporting Vader out of her crush on Jacen. "He fought in the wars when Palpatine was on his high throne getting old."

"Palpatine was said to have beaten the best," Karth said. "He scared Yoda off."

"I think Palpatine, too." Jacen nodded. "Vader was bitter but he wasn't as desperate as Palpatine. I don't think Vader could've struck down his friend, anyway."

"I think Vader," Jaina said. "He did beat Palpatine in the end, with the armour."

"My turn," Jacen claimed. "Obi-Wan and Uncle Luke."

At the same time Jaina, Nelani, and Karth said "Luke." and Eriana, Womprat, and Jacen said "Obi-Wan." Even Astro barked in support of Obi-Wan.

Jacen shrugged. "Womprat?"

"Challenge: I pit the Jedi Exile and The Great and Illustrious Darth Revan together."

"Who?" Everyone asked at the same time.

"Okay, it's official," Jaina said to the droid. "You don't get to pick again. Ever."

Before Womprat could make an inappropriate comment, Nelani said "Jacen and Eriana."

"Jacen," Eriana said immediately.

"No – Eriana," Jacen pointed at her. "She'd beat me."

"Sithspit," Eriana said indignantly. "You're the better fighter by far."

"You're better with a blade," Jacen dismissed her. "And you learned all that stuff from the Echani master we had with us for a bit."

"You still know way more with the Force than I do."

"Remember that time on that unnamed little rock out in the Unknown Regions when you pulled a dozen mynocks off my back?"

"That's because your suit was low on oxygen and you passed out! Anyone would have needed help."

"I thought there was a no-arguing clause in this," Karth said, finally losing control and dropping all the objects. Jacen instinctively caught the polyp pot. "Aww…"

A chime rang over the comm. system.

"Looks like we're at Tatooine," Jacen, glaring at Eriana. He took the amphistaff polyp and left the room with it, speaking something in Vongese to it.

"Did I just hear him say 'Anakin'?" Jaina asked.

"I don't know. Jerk. He's too kriffin' modest." Eriana turned back to find Womprat scooting out the back door at high speed. "Hmph. Better put those staffs away and get ready, kids. We'll be in the cockpit if you need us."