[Sorry for the wait guys, a mix of writers block and busy stuff has kept me away but now hopefully back on track. Well without further adieu here's the next chapter for you ladies and gents :)]
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For what was supposed to of been a huge galaxy wide war raging across the universe, it came as a surprise to Jake to find the hospital wing near empty except for himself, a few robots, the alien doctor Nema and two other occupied beds. He knew from what he was told the clone soldiers were situated at a military base somewhere else on the planet but with the amount of Jedi said to be out on the battlefield, it was a little strange there was barely any casualties on their side. Even with their supernatural abilities a bullet, or rather a laser bolt in their case or those of an explosive nature he thought could still give them the same serious injuries as a 'normal' person would receive whilst battling in violent conflict.
From what he witnessed first hand the marine knew their lightsabers had the ability to deflect laser bolts either away from harm or back at the shooter but having dozens bearing down at you at the same time, one would at least get past their defence and strike a serious blow. Still it showed they were capable fighters, even if they the likes of Ahsoka and Kenobi stressed they weren't warriors. To Jake that didn't make any sense. If they trained for combat, wielded weapons and lead troops into battle then they were exactly that, warriors.
Roaming his eyes around the room for what must of been the thousandth time in the space of an hour since waking up, all thanks to the prodding from one of the skeletal surgical bots he began growing disdain for. As if having his muscles playing up and aching like hell and his having lungs trying to spew every breath out of his body in coughing fits was painful enough, metallic pointy fingers and syringes didn't help in easing his suffering. One thing he was grateful for was being out of the wetsuit and given a matching white shorts and shirt as hospital wear. The last thing he wanted right now was another illness from an alien strain of bacteria coming off seawater soaked gear he had on for days.
The beeping of what he assumed to be their version of a heart monitor echoed in the mostly quiet wing with the alien doctor talking to another patient being the only other sound in the room, leaving him to dwell on his thoughts since waking up four days ago. Beside him on the bed side table was a tray of food and a cup of some weird drink given to him an hour ago he hadn't yet touched, making it the third time he rejected eating in as many days since finding out he'd been poisoned.
After finally abling to stay awake long enough for Nema to explain what was wrong with him, he was completely blown away at finding radiation was floating around in his body. Of all the ways he thought death could strike him with, radiation sickness was not one of them. To his relief shortly after she explained further on the Jedi told him it was harmless and not the cause of his sickness, revealing are rather more shocking and troubling. Somebody had purposely poisoned him.
The poison, or 'Rubrumnoxianide' as they called it, found it's way inside him by digestion, meaning somebody had laced his food with the nasty stuff before he had departed for the Calamari homeworld. The Jedi doctor told him it could've been worst if it weren't for his in their book a surprisingly strong immune system, however it did affect his potassium levels to a point they were dangerously low. It explained the cramps and dizziness but not the ghost white skin and blood red, demonic like eyes until the alien healer said it was a common side effect from the poisonous substance.
Luckily for him it was curable and the annoying injections the robots kept sticking into him were filled with the antidote to help flush the poison out of his body, much like a detox worked back home. Unfortunately the damage was already done in the targeting the potassium in his cells. The doctor's explanation was a lot more technical medically wise meaning most of it went well over his head, but he got the gist when it was put in more layman's terms.
The only nutritional intake he was receiving by his stubborn choice was the drip attached to his arm, though rather than a bag it was coming out of the wall behind him. The thought had crossed Jake's mind a few times to rip out the stick thin, colourless tube out of his arm but it was the only thing from starving him completely.
The hiss of the hospital wings electronic door opening filled his ears open but the sudden approach of a medical bot caught his attention and the marine let out an irritated sigh at the boney machine coming his way.
"Oh would you lot just sod off" He growled but the robot ignored his comment, resting one of its cold, metal hands on his shoulder as it slowly pierced the skin on the same shoulder with it's syringe hand.
"You really do hate them, don't you?" A familiar voice asked him in amusement.
"Wouldn't you if they kept poking and prodding you every minute" He briefly turned his head to Ahsoka then back at the machine, glaring at the steely emotionless robot.
"Maybe" She said sitting down on the chair next to him "How you feeling today?"
"Well I haven't turned green and had the urge to smash everything yet, so that's a good sign" He gave her a humoured smile but got a quizzical look off the Jedi teenager "I'm fine kid, just bored out of my skull"
"I see you're not eating again" She thumbed to the dinner tray beside them "How can you keep up your strength if you're just going to starve yourself" Jake watched her sit back into the chair folding her arms as she lectured him, frowning at him over the wasted food again.
"For all I know that stuff is probably laced with cyanide or whatever that poisonous crap somebody has already tried killing me with"
"I have ran multiple scans and have you told many times there's nothing wrong with any of that" Nema came over intervening, scolding him again like a parent unhappy with their child's misbehaviour "Weakening your body will only make your condition worse, as Padawan Tano has too pointed out"
"See, if Master Nema says it's fine then you don't have anything to worry about. Stop being such a stubborn youngling" Biting his tongue the Royal Marine Corporal was about to retort but it was obvious the futility of his defiance over the matter was waning.
"Alright" He caved in and reached over taking what appeared to be a bread roll, taking a bite of the small loaf "Happy now?"
"I'd prefer you used the utensils provided, but it's a start" With a shake of the head she left them be and head over to what Jake worked out to be her personal computer in the middle of the hospital wing.
"Was that really so hard?"
"No, just learnt a long time ago arguing with woman is a battle lost before it started" He told her with a smirk, getting a humoured snort in response from the Togruta Padawan.
"You sound like Anakin" He watched as her smile begin to thin out and an expression change to that of concern "How are you really feeling Jake?. I can't imagine having to discover someone to try deliberately killing you, in the Temple of all places"
"Well it's a massive pile of shite kid, there's no denying that" He put bluntly rubbing his chin "Whoever the cowardly little prick is, they better pray to that Force of yours I don't get my hands on them"
"Master Obi Wan is heading up the investigation into what happened. I'm to lend a hand and keep an eye on you until the perpetrator is arrested"
"Thanks Ahsoka, but preferably you should concentrate more on your teachings and training. Don't worry about me" Jake tried to assuring her but by the look on her face she wasn't overly convinced "Alright, let's quit moping around. What's happening out there?"
"As I said, Obi Wan is heading the investigation into what's happen to you. Master Skywalker has gone to Naboo with Senator Amidala because there rumours the Gungans are going to launch an attack on Theed" She listed out the latest goings in and around their Order and the Republic. Jake found it oddly comforting as he had a somewhat normal conversation with Ahsoka, mostly because in some ways she reminded him of Jess since she would be the one to always be the one to inform him on the latest news and goings on in the Matthews household.
A small pang of sadness tugged at him over the thought of his sister. Mentally shaking his mind over the musing of his family in case he lost focus on the conversation, he asked her over the brewing troubles on the planet Naboo.
"Gungans, aren't they the aliens that helped us back on Dac?"
"Yep. Representative Binks says since the Gungan Army arrived back discontent has spread amongst the populace and rumoured plans to attack the surface population" She explained the news further in detail, leaning slightly forward pressing both her hands down on the armrests "If there's one person who can talk the Gungans down from such an invasion, it's Padme. She's popular amongst the humans and Gungans of Naboo"
"I probably wouldn't of believed that until seeing her in action. This Naboo is lucky to have a politician like her" He wished he could say the same about politicians in his homeland but there hadn't been any that came close Padme Amidala for decades.
"The Republic too. Oh, I might have something that might ease your boredom" Reaching around to her side Jake watched her unclip an object from her belt next to her shorter lightsaber, or Shoto as she educated him on the laser sword types. The welcoming sight of the small, white rectangular music player with it's matching coloured headphones sticking out of the top socket.
"Cheers kid" She passed the ipod over to him. Tapping on the screen he glanced to the date, time and battery life and what appeared to be a recently played song "So have you guys found anything out yet?"
"Not really. Obi Wan has questioned people in the cafeteria, but it's difficult to make out how a toxic sap from a rare plant found it's way into your food" The youngster explained to him then stared down at her hands, rolling them together "However" She left her sentence wonder sighing, clearly unsure over what she was thinking of saying next.
"What?" He prodded for her to continue.
"I had a vision"
"Oh?" Jake straightened up on the bed, waiting for the kid to elaborate further over her impressive foresight ability "And what did you see?"
"The day before we left for the Mon Calamari homeworld, in the cafeteria. I saw me you, Masters Skywalker and Secura sitting and talking, but I felt the Force pull me to this person standing over in the entrance" She stopped for a second, scrunching her brow as he waited patiently for her to continue "I can't worked out who they were, he had his hood up but there was something not right with him"
"How so?" He questioned her, watching as the Padawan tried remembering as much as she could from her vision.
"He was staring over at us. As I said I couldn't see a face but the way he was standing in the doorway, and his body language showed he was taking an interest in us" She gave a thoughtful frown as she carried on contemplating over what she saw.
"Have you told Kenobi this?"
"No" She started rubbing her forehead whilst releasing a sigh "I don't know, the vision doesn't show any definitive proof of anything linked to what happened to you"
"To be honest Ahsoka, back on Earth if somebody claimed to of had a vision over past events they'd be laughed at or in some extreme cases taking a trip to a mental asylum" Instantly he saw the look of dejection cross her face "But seeing first hand you Jedi perform things that my people view as impossible, I'm willing to believe it"
"Thanks" A cheery grin appeared on her face "I'm started to cope better with my abilities growing over the years but that lingering feeling of doubt always has me thinking if I truly am in control"
"You don't have anything to worry about kid. It's all apart of growing up. The voice of doubt will always be bugging you, no matter how old you are, trust me" He assured her "And seeing you fight, well I'm still not pleased they let teenagers fight in a war but you certainly put to shame a lot of soldiers I know"
"Even those of you unit?" A smirk began to shift her mouth to one side.
"Let's not carried away" He joked, receiving a mocked looked of offence from the comment "As for this vision, you saw the most likely scene I'd be poisoned and described a suspect. That's something"
"Yes, but Master Kenobi has already spoken with the staff and they haven't reported anything unusual" She told him as another medical bot walked by carrying a tray of medical equipment, heading over to one of the patients on the far end of the wing.
"Don't you guys have CCTV cameras or whatever your equivalent is, in or around the cafeteria?"
"We haven't watched any of the security recordings yet if that's talking about. Obi Wan was going to check them over once he finished his inquires" Jake raised a questioning brow, thinking it would've made more sense to have the security footage of the area checked first.
The repetitive beeping of what the marine came quickly accustomed to, belonging to the mini communication devices or 'Comlinks' everyone around this place possessed started going off on Ahsoka's wrist. Sighing she raised her right arm and pressed down on the button flashing a green light at it's curving top.
"Tano here"
"Ahsoka, I've finished talking with the kitchen staff. Come meet me at security once you finished with meeting with Matthews" He heard the Jedi Master request to her over the comm.
"Alright Master, I'll be there soon" Pressing the comm button again to switch the line off. She glanced up at him again for a second once the connection was cut then the sound of approaching footsteps brought both their attention over to Nema
"I'm afraid Padawan Tano I must cut short your visiting time as the Corporal is in need of rest. The antidote will be taking full effect soon"
"She's right Ahsoka" He turned back to her, beginning to rub his eyes "This detox they've been giving me makes me woozy and i'll probably start babbling nonsense soon"
"That wouldn't be anything new" She stood up from the chair, smiling at her jesting comment.
"Cheeky bugger"Jake snorted whilst shaking his head at her poking fun.
"I'll talk to you later Jake. I promise I'll keep you in the loop"
"Thanks kid. Remember to tell Kenobi what you told me, it'll give you a step closer to this sneak"
"I will" She said leaving, going out the exit out of the hospital wing. Glancing down at his ipod he pressed on the touch screen reading over the choice of song and band.
"By the way Ahsoka" Jake called out to her just as the door to the wing opened up, making her look back "There are other singers and bands on this thing than these guys you know" He held up the music player and slowly rotated it in his risen hand.
"Oh uh well, I didn't want to press or do anything in fear of breaking it" The teen guiltily as she starting to rub the side of her arm "Besides, I'm starting to take a likening to your type of music"
"Ahh, so it's converting you to the world of rock" Jake joked as he placed the ipod back down on to the bed. With an roll of the eyes she departed from the wing leaving him alone with Nema, who was as ever since he'd been incarcerated tapping and reading her ipad like device on the other side of him
"The antidote is working exceptionally well Corporal. Your body has adapted with very little trouble, meaning hopefully within one or two more doses you'll be fully cured" She informed him dancing her finger over the pad, glancing for a second with a small smile before resuming her work.
"When will I stop looking like some supernatural creature?" He asked scanning his eyes over the ghostly white skin of his left arm.
"Within a few days. Now, I suggest you finish off what's on that tray before leaving to waste" The Jedi healer informed him in a tone which he got the gist of felt more like an order than an request. Leaning over with a sigh he picked up the tall, grey cup and peered in at the contents .
"Uh, what's this?" The marine asked her just as she was about to turn to leave.
"Bantha milk" She stated like it was a common fact "Why, what is wrong?"
"It's blue" Jake raised a questioning brow as he glanced at the drink then back at Nema who now had an amused look on her face.
"I assure you it is perfectly normal. Now you'll have to excuse me, I have to attend to other patients" With that she left him be to scrutinise the soft beverage. It had the texture and smelled the same as milk, the colour however he was still sceptical of since he the only time he'd seen milk of a different colour was when it was with artificial colouring and flavouring.
Bringing the cup closer to his mouth he gingerly took a sip of the milk and swallowed it down, finding it to his pleasant surprise quite tasty. It had a richer and more sweeter taste to that of cow's milk and some milkshakes he'd used to have as a kid like Frijj or supermarket brands. With his new found liking to the alien animal drink drained the rest of it down within a four gulps, placing the now empty cup back on the tray situated on the side table.
Picking his ipod back up he woken the screen up again and snorted in humour again at the song title. I sure feel like I've been to hell and back, He thought to himself as he placed each earphone into the correct ear and skimmed through the list of bands and other music. Swiping his finger downward on the screen the list of names from various musicians skimmed past faster than his eyes could recognise the artist, stopping the screen scrolling as he pressed his thumb down choosing one at random.
"Lynyrd Skynyrd it is" He said in a low voice as he laying back down on the bed, the guitar intro of Sweet Home Alabama ringing in his ears as he stared up at the lightly lit ceiling. It wasn't long before the effects of the antidote began taking hold causing his head to feel funny and eyelids began feeling heavier.
Tiredness eventually overwhelmed him once more and Jake snoozed off again, allowing his mind to slip him into the realm of unconsciousness. Soon he began dreaming again only instead of flashbacks of the night the orb snatched him from Earth in that guarded warehouse and threw him into complete alien environment, Jake was going through what he best described as a mental slideshow.
For a moment he was on more comforting and welcoming surroundings as he recognised he was standing on the Cornish coastline, Newquay to be precise. The sun was high in the gleaming blue sky with very few clouds encroaching over the South Western coast. The crashing of waves and cawing of seagulls brought his focus down to the beach below, watching as the pearl blue coloured sea wash up against the cliffs surrounding the rock formation split from the rest of the mainland. Once he saw the scattered rocks Jake remembered this part of the coast to be the Bedruthan Steps.
Faint chatter to his left brought him toward the cliff where two people sat on it's edge nattering and looking out to the clear blue waters pointing out to the Celtic Sea. It took next to no time for the marine to recognise the couple seated on the grass covered rocky cliff, more in particular the smiling and giggling form of the woman who caused his heart to beat at a fast than normal rate.
Kate?, Jake felt slightly more at ease as he continued to stare over at his girlfriend and past self. He remembered this as the last time he was on leave and coincidentally she came down from university with her group of friends at the same time, Having to trudge around swampy marsh lands and rainstorms in the Far East with Adam and Tom facing Sergeant Campbell's wrath for their usual bitching, it was a Godsend he could enjoy his time off duty and away from the pissed off marines with the love of his life.
He watched himself put an arm around her as they both enjoyed the view, the conversation as he recalled was on Kate reminiscing about how the view reminder her of Henley Beach back in Adelaide. Jake knew that as much as she loved her stay and being educated in the UK, Kate felt at times homesick from being so far away from her family in Australia. It wasn't far off as he was feeling right now, not being able see and hold her in real time.
Taking a foot forward he intended to walk over to her but then everything started to turn. The landscape changed from that of the natural beauty to an artificial construct, the blue sky and seas, the grassy and rocky cliffs and even the sandy beaches turned to clean, spartan but expertly made steel walls and floors. Scanning around the new It resembled that of the corridors aboard the Jedi and Republic starships, only the surfaces had more smoother appearance to their designs.
Ok this not weird or anything, Jake muttered to himself as he cautiously walked down the corridor. A sudden and violent shock made him lose his foot for a second as the stark white lights flashed off then back on again. The corridor shook again with another violent knock but he held his footing by reaching out for the wall.
Quickening his pace Jake near jogged up the corridor until he saw a reflecting light by the right sided wall, halted by mere metres when he realised it was a window. The long rectangular glass construct gave him a clear view of the outside, presenting him with a view of the dark expanse of space with thousands of white dots representing stars littering the place. It didn't take very long to know he was on a starship of some kind but whose was he standing in and why.
The next object that came into view took the Corporal by surprise as he stared out the window with wide eyes as the sight of a familiar blue and green planet coming into vision.
"Earth, what the hell is going on here!?" No sooner had those words left his mouth a squadron of red coloured fighter sized aircraft flew by at high speed, firing crimson coloured laser bolts toward the side of ship rocked again from the now evident battle outside, doing nothing more than adding further confusion as to what Jake was witnessing. The sound of an explosion drew him to the other end of the corridor seeing small plumes of smoke and pieces of the interior now burning on the floor and the wall smeared in explosive residue.
All of a sudden a squad sized team of insectoid aliens dressed in a combination of leather like rags and shoddy armour stormed down from the same end of the corridor, the lead one barking out orders in an alien language holstering their weapons up. Instinctively Jake reached down to grab his pistol when it dawned he was still in his hospital attire and completely defenceless. However to both his relief and utmost surprise they completely blanked him and carried on moving down the corridor keeping their weapons trained for trouble.
Another powerful shake made him and the buggy aliens in front lose their footing again, feeling the ship bank port side hard slipping Earth from view and revealing to his eyes a whole fleet of ships of different shapes and sizes firing at the vessel. Focusing more on the alien boarding party than the ships the marine chose to follow the bugs and find out what they were after, seeing as that they didn't see him as a threat or, to his speculation, know he was even there.
Explosions and exchange of fire could be heard all over the place as Jake shadowed the aliens to find out why they were fighting whoever owned this starship. Seeing the creatures racing past a junction at a quicker pace, he heard the whining of laser rounds and a heavy thudding sound repeating itself over and over grow louder. Keeping at a distance he poked his head past the wall that turned to the junction's end to a battle raging between the bug people and two enormous robots.
Catching glimpses of the machines whilst staying cover from the battle Jake noted they were at least nine foot tall and shaped almost like a human, if not for the narrow head and jet black vertical slit in the middle of their face. Both possessed very thick grey and white armour plating and both their arms spewed rapid firing orange heavy laser bolts at the attackers. Together they stood in a centre point that split into multiple corridors blasting at different targets down each one holding off the offenders with deadly precision, except for the one behind them to his curiosity.
The squad he'd been following recklessly charged down the robots firing wildly but were quickly punished for their lack of battle strategy by one of the machines turn a gun arm their way, firing a burst of it's heavy weapon resulting in them being cut to ribbons. Murky brown blood from the bugs splattered all over the walls and cries of the injured and dying echoed alongside the weapons fire as Jake remained in cover from the bloodshed.
One of the robot's arms then opened up and appeared, if Jake was not mistaken, a missile shaped device extending outward. A second later from it surfacing out the machine's arm it launched down the corridor they had been mostly concentrated on, followed within a second of its release an ear splitting explosion and the cries that came when it impacted against living targets. The shooting then stopped and the robots lowered their gun arms, rotating their heads in an unnatural fashion that would break the neck of an organic being across each corridor scanning for any remaining targets.
Something then must of got their notice as the marine watched both snap their heads back to the more natural positioning and stomped off down the corridor they had been covering. Seeing as the coast was now clear and it felt as if he was invisible to these people Jake decided to find out where those steel war machines were now headed. Walking over and avoiding the remains of the insect aliens who stupidly charged like madmen into the guns of the robots, he couldn't help gazed around the carnage left over from the battle which judging by the evidence all around him was a one sided affair.
Down the corridor to the left of him where the machines had been concentrating most of their fire was to no better description, a massacre. They were dozens of bodies from the same aliens race as the one he tailed, the same brown coloured blood staining the no longer clean white interior and pieces of what he assumed to be their organs covering the floor and lower parts of the walls.
"Christ above" Jake muttered as he stared at the bloody scene. Not one of them moved or made a sound. It was clear they didn't stand chance against the robots. Turning his head in the direction the war machines had disappeared own he left the scene without so much as a backward glance, knowing it was going to be difficult for that scene to get out of his head for awhile. He eventually found a way out of the maze of corridors and spotted a long curved ramp leading up to large oval door coated in the same type of metal and colouring to that of the rest of the ship's interior.
Taking one last glance around the area finding no one else was about, nothing with either organic tissue or metal for skin, he walked up the ramp keeping on guard despite coming to the conclusion of being an invisible viewer to the events playing out before him. It was all so very confusing to Jake as he approached the door, trying to figure out where he was exactly since this wasn't his own memory he was wandering about in.
The doors automatically slid open up without so much as a creak to reveal the ship's Bridge and half a dozen robots working at different stations. These ones he found were vastly different to the ones who had fought off the alien boarders. They all had the same body design as the battle ones but much skinnier and shorter, standing a few inches smaller than himself. The big eye opener however was when he glanced up at the windows at the front of the Bridge.
Not only was his homeworld facing him again albeit getting closer and closer, the dark skies of space had dozens of ships battling it out like when the the one he witnessed over Nubia. Two separate fleets fought it out against each other and the ship he was aboard, pulling no punches as blasts of heavy green and blue laser bolts slamming into the opposing fleets over the robot run ship. Jake raised a brow in astonishment of at the first set of warring ship he gazed at, seeing as they held great resemblance to the flying saucers that usually receive attention in the media over possible existence of extraterrestrial life.
The others were tube shaped like a cigar but looked more war scarred than the others, appearing to be more interested in the robot's ships than the saucers. A great barrage of light green energy was smashing into the black hull of the ship, colliding against the shields that shimmered briefly from the attack. Jake was so fixed with space battle he hadn't taken notice of the robot's ship trajectory toward Earth and the speed it was heading to the birthplace of his people.
It wasn't until the view of space and the alien ships started creeping away and in its place the blue and greenery of the planet steadily filled the windows the marine snapped back to the 'present'. A warning siren started blaring across the Bridge gaining the attention from all of the robots as one rushed to a flat screened console built below the windows, it's metallic four fingered hands dancing over the touch screen at incredible speed.
Shifting his gaze off the robot and back to the outside he shocked to find the ship was so close to Earth he could make out the European and tip of the African continentals. It didn't take genius to explain to him the speed the ship was going at and the lack of activity or inability from the crew in pulling the ship away from it's current course meant it was going to crash planetside. The machine from the front worked vigorously at his console but then it literally blew up in his face, leaving a fist sized hole where it's vertical 'eye' used to be.
He turned around at the sound of scurrying footsteps behind him at the rest of the crew rushing out the Bridge. Taking one last glance back Jake saw the front of the perfectly shaped arrow head like ship plummet down to the planet below with it's entire front section engulfed in flames by the entry into the atmosphere, heading toward if he wasn't mistaken judging by the outline of the land, Germany.
Following suit after the robots he left the Bridge through the oval door again of the doomed spaceship, but instead of finding himself in the hallways again there was nothing but the emptiness of space. He swung his head around this new venue his consciousness brought him to, finding he was standing on some unseen platform as stars and galaxies of the universe floating all around him. Growing frustrated by the continuous change of scenery and lack of understanding of these dreams, memories or whatever unknown force was dragging him through this weird cycle he closed both eyes and ran his hands down his face in exasperation.
"Enough already, what the hell is this crazy shit!" Jake growled out loud to the empty expanse enclosed around him. He then pinched the bridge of his nose at receiving no response, thinking it was dumb thing to do as this was all supposed to be all in his own head.
Then came the odd sense of calmness he felt weeks ago, the same calming experience that overcame the marine when he was supposed to follow Adam and Tom out of the warehouse after the orb went berserk.
A flanging alien voice whispered in his ears, a language he only heard once before after…
Jake snapped his head so fast the speed would've resulted in whiplash but ignoring any growing pain he turned and glared at the 20 metre giant glass ball that magically appeared behind him.
"You" He glared at the orb, his blood boiling and all confusion he felt before was replaced with anger. Its 'pupil' tracked his movements as he took several steps closer to the alien thing, still giving off the creepy impression of a giant eye but all wonder he had about the orb was replaced with fury "You did this, didn't you?. You were the one who brought me here!" Jake shouted at the thing, pointing an accusing finger at the orb.
In some ways he was glad it was just him and the orb object present, otherwise he would of been seen as crazy like a madman shouting at pigeons. The orb did nothing except for staring him down with it's long reptilian like eye, still whispering it's unknown language at him.
"Why, why am I even here?" The pissed off Royal Marine's carried on questioning it, his ire growing at whispering orb. With no answer forthcoming he threw his arms up in the air and turned his back to it scoffing "Why am I even talking to you, you probably don't understand a word I'm saying. You took me from my home, my family and my way of life with very little to non existent chance of ever returning back to them all. You chucked me in the middle of a Godforsaken galactic war and now I have people I barely understand trying to kill me without giving a clear reason whatsoever"
Again he was met with no answer. The whispering alien voice continued to echo all around the star littered surroundings, the only background noise between him and the orb. Jake folded his arms and once again closed his eyes, breathing through his nose as the anger simmered down and was being replaced by sadness.
"I just want to go home. Back to Britain, back to Earth. To see Kate, my family and the lads of the Royal Marines again, but I suppose that's just a pipe dream now" The Corporal sighed in defeat.
"I'm sorry" Jake eyes shot open at the soothing feminine voice that uttered those words in. Turning back around to where that voice came from he found the eye on the orb casted down to floor, like a real one would do in sorrow. For moment he was stunned, unable to think of anything to say or move a muscle.
The white slit shifted back up to face him again, the alien chatter now gone and replaced with complete silence between him and the orb.
"What?" He asked in astonishment incase he may of been mishearing things.
"I'm sorry, Corporal Jacob Matthews of Earth" It repeated again but spoke his full name and rank with the same level of regret. Jake was at a complete loss for words, standing dumbfounded as the slit rose up and matched his gaze.
"Wait. How do you know my name?" Jake shook out of his stupor but the star glistened expanse started fading to nothing but a cold, dark emptiness. All that was remained was him and the orb who was now crackling with electricity. The buzzing from its electrified body made him take a few steps backward but a large electrical bolt discharge and aimed straight for him.
Whether or not the bolt struck him Jake would never know as he now found himself back in reality of the hospital wing. Leaning up on his elbows he checked around the room for anything out the ordinary and whether or not he really was awake. The place was quiet with very little noise other than the medical bots going about their business and the steady beeping off a couple of monitors. He spotted Nema still at her terminal using her hand as a chin rest whilst she appeared to be finishing up on medical reports.
Bringing both hands up to his face Jake wiped his tired eyes, contemplating everything he had just gone through in such a short space of time. Seeing his homeworld and Kate again brought up mix feelings of sadness and joy even if it was from an old memory but he also felt confused by the battle he witness above Earth and within the alien ship. All sorts of speculation ran through his head over that part but none of it still made any sense to him. Then there was orb itself appearing and actually speaking to him.
"Trouble sleeping, do you?" An old, sketchy voice asked next to him. Peering down to the left hand side of the bed Jake saw the green goblin like alien standing by the edge where the curtains stopped on either side of the hospital bed, resting his three fingered hands on the top of his wooden walking stick. If he recalled the old being was called Yoda and what from what Ahsoka and others had told him, the little alien was the Grand Master of the Jedi.
"Something along those lines" The Corporal said taking the headphones out from his ears.
"Trouble your mind, what does?"
"What?" Jake raised a brow at the Grand Master.
"A conflicted mind you have, Corporal Matthews. Why else would you stop eating and problems sleeping, hmmm?" The old Jedi pointed his stick over to the tray.
"Well, having somebody use a cowardly attempt to end your life in a supposed safe location without reason does that to you" Jake shrugged putting the ipod and headphones on the side table next to the tray of half eaten food.
"Worrying it is, for such a thing to happen within the Temple. Work of the Dark Side, I fear has motivated this" Yoda casted his eyes down to the floor with a frown.
"You think these Sith lot are behind it?"
"Perhaps. Mysterious as to why they would target you, it is"
"Well I did fight one of them and she's now rotting in a prison somewhere" He suggest the bald headed 'Dathomiri' he and the clones fought over Nubia with a small shrug,
"Many Jedi have battled Sith over millennia. Personally sought those who bested them, Uncommon but not unheard of"
"Cheers sir, that's very comforting to hear" Jake rolled his eyes in sarcasm, laying back down know having to watch himself from some vengeful potty version of the Jedi. He heard Yoda let out croaky chuckle before speaking in his odd way of speaking.
"Fear not. Advantage over the Sith, you may have yet Corporal"
"Advantage?" Jake sat back up again, waiting for the old Jedi to elaborate.
"Yes. Sith are masters at manipulation, able to influence those around them with the Force. You are not of the Force, possess midichlorians, you do not" Yoda lifted his stick and pointed it at him.
"You can still manipulate a person without the use of your powers, sir"
"A different level the Sith use. Tap into a person's darkest fears, know their thoughts and feelings, they can. Use it against them for their own interests, they will. Not able to do it with you, they can not"
"With respect Yoda sir, from what I'm lead to believe and what I gather is the Jedi are capable of the same thing" He threw back with a small frown.
"Correct you are. But against the Jedi Code, it is" Yoda calmly replied with no visible hint his accusation caused offense.
"Codes can be broken" Before anymore could be said on the debate a fast repeating beeping noise start to emit from the Grand Master of the Jedi Order. Jake felt a sense of deja vu at having a conversation broken up by the repetitive tone of a communication device Yoda pulled out from his robe.
"Debate this another time, we shall Corporal. Duties elsewhere require my attention"
"Very well sir" Jake observed the Grandmaster slowly away with the small patter of his walking stick tapping the flawlessly clean floor. It was hard for the Royal Marine to believe Ahsoka at her claim the little old green man was very powerful and skilled Jedi with the way he slowly walked out the hospital wing like an old aged pensioner. Though the saying 'Appearances can be deceiving' did come to mind and with the crazy world around him, it wouldn't of surprised Jake that if was probably more physically fitter than he was.
Releasing yet another sigh he crashed back down to the bed, all sense of tiredness started evaporating over Yoda's words. It felt as if his mind was being bombarded left, right and centre with one situation mixing with another to make figuring a way to deal with it ever the more harder. It just made Jake miss Earth more knowing problems could be solved without the threat of space wizards or creepy, mystic alien spheres talking to you in your sleep, rooting around in your mind.
"God I miss normality"