Chapter 5 – Beginnings

-April 23, 2002; Stark Industries Penthouse, Washington D.C.; Planet Earth-

The last 15 months had been full of ups and downs for the multiple parties involved. Satine and Nick had discovered that the computer that Satine's mother had, had a feature to read Holocrons of all types. Many of them were filled with old and ancient history of both the Jedi and the Sith. Nick - or Master Fury as Satine had taken to calling him - had advised to slowly learn from both types of Holocrons because there were multiple sides of the Force she would eventually learn and understand. So far, Satine had only gotten through three Jedi Holocrons and 1 Sith Holocron. The now 9 and a half year old girl may have been considered a genius, but she didn't want to rush through things. She took her master's advice in going slow and learning a few hours a day. The rest of her day was filled with learning how to meditate and why it was good, learning the theory behind the different forms of saber fighting, and basic things she needed while still on Earth like math, English, etc. Satine was thriving at her basic classes as she was a Stark after all and very much her father's daughter when it came to learning. Because of her abilities in the classroom, she was able to finish her 7th grade work by the time she had turned 9. Satine knew she was on the fast track to finishing high school at a young age just like her father, but Satine wasn't particularly worried about doing college or anything of the sort because once she finished high school, Satine would delve wholeheartedly into her training with Master Fury.

Over the last 15 months, Satine had also changed. She only grew a couple of inches, but the most noticeable change had been her hair. Her hair was a perfect dirty blonde blend and was no longer down to the middle of her back. Instead, Satine had it cut and maintained in the form of a bob that was to the end of her jawline. She, also, now had a braid that started behind her right ear and went down to the top of her shoulder. The braid was currently being held together by a bead crafted by Master Fury symbolizing she was officially his apprentice. Her father had been hesitant when he saw what Satine had done to her hair, but he had slowly learned to appreciate and stand by her decisions. Satine and Tony had come to a mutual agreement that Pepper, Happy, and Rhodey would not know about the extracurricular activities that Satine was apart of as neither of them wanted to freak out the three people whom they were close with. Eventually, they would find out, but as of right now, it was not imperative for them to know. Obadiah had tried to make some kind of contact with Satine as she was the Stark Heiress, but Tony and Pepper both made sure that he couldn't touch Satine especially with how young she was. Something in Tony's gut told him to keep Obadiah away from his daughter and make sure nothing happened to her. For that, he was grateful Fury had taken to training Satine because whenever Obadiah came over now, she was always gone for her training with Fury.

Master Fury had been tough on her and showed her just how high his bar of expectations was for her to exceed. He was stern and strict yet let her know when she was doing a good job and when she wasn't. He himself had also been slowly learning as well as he had been cut off from the Force for a very long time. He also had to force himself out of the mindset of being just a Jedi and learn how to be simply a Force Wielder. He had to reteach himself some semblance of discipline and relearn how use the form he had once been very proficient in. However, due to his status as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., he had to make sure he used discretion in how and when he trained himself as well as Satine. He could not let his agents know about Satine, nor could he let them know about the abilities they both had.

Fury had also maintained contact with his old friend who was now apart of the Living Force, he had eventually learned. He was grateful for the guidance that his friend had given him and was shocked to see not only Satine's grandfather, Obi-Wan Kenobi, join Qui-Gon but also see Anakin Skywalker and Master Yoda. Fury had mixed feelings seeing Anakin but could see that he had truly turned away from the Dark Side…which was why he looked so young as a Force ghost. He found out that Anakin had actually had twins with Padme Amidala and was pleased to know that his son had resisted the Dark Side. The one eyed man found it funny when he informed Obi-Wan that his daughter with Satine had a daughter whom he was training.

*Flashback – 10 months ago*

Fury was reading through a few files alone in the office of the Stark Industries Penthouse Tony allowed him and Satine to live in with the privacy settings activated. He glanced up as Obi-Wan and Anakin both appeared. Anakin looked about ready to faint from the shock and confusion he felt from the ghost. The former Jedi sat back slightly and rose an eyebrow at the pair before it suddenly dawned on him. Satine was currently doing her studies in the mini library the penthouse had and would be with him for the next two months as her father had events all over the world he had to attend. "Let me guess…you saw her," he said to Obi-Wan who looked emotional.

"She looks like a perfect mixture of us. Why did you not say anything? Why did Master not say anything? There is no possible way it is our daughter, Nick. Who is she?" Obi-Wan asked. He needed to know who that girl was especially since she had a padawan braid.

"Granddaughter," Nick answered making Anakin and Obi-Wan both go wide eyed. "Yes, Skywalker. Obi-Wan did very well in hiding the fact he had a daughter with Duchess Satine. That daughter was sent here and grew up before marrying Tony Stark and having Satine Stark." He stared at Obi-Wan and swallowed thickly. "Your daughter never was force sensitive. However, her daughter inherited those abilities and is very strong. I won't be training her traditionally as somehow Satine Kryze had gotten her hands on not only Jedi Holocrons but Sith ones as well. Your granddaughter will understand both sides. I will make sure she is not purely Light while still understanding not to use the Dark Side. I see now that the Order had been corrupted for years, but we refused to see it. I will not make that same mistake Obi-Wan. You have my word on that."

Obi-Wan gave a gentle smile as he stared at his old friend. "What is she currently studying?" he asked lightly now curious about his granddaughter as he knew she couldn't see him.

"Basic theories on the different forms as well as slowly starting her off with history of the Order and the Old Republic in addition to her regular studies. Her mother had a computer that has a device that can read holocrons and project the information. So far, Satine has gotten through 1 full Jedi Holocron as well as half of another one. Once done with her second Jedi Holocron, she will start on one Sith one. Every two to three Jedi ones she finishes, she will work on 1 Sith one. I explored the hidden room Satine's mother had created adjacent to her art studio and found Qui Gon's old lightsaber you had held onto for the longest time. I am not sure if the crystal will bond with her, but I have a feeling if it does…she will somehow use the Force to change its color. I even plan to give her mine once I feel she has been trained enough because once she is trained, I will no longer have a use for my own saber," Nick said easily as he went back to looking over and signing the files he had brought with him from his office at S.H.I.E.L.D. "She may not be able to see any of you now, but I have a feeling she can somewhat feel your presence. Once she is older, I know she will be able to see you, and at that time you can officially meet her. For now, please be patient with her."

*End Flashback*

From that moment on, all of the Force Ghosts watched over Satine without interfering with her training. They had tried going to Nick with lots of different ideas of what to train Satine on next, but Nick was very firm in how he was going to train Obi-Wan's grandaughter. Ten months flew by in a flash, and Nick found that she was ready to start training in the first form of saber combat, Shii-Cho. Nick didn't want to start Satine off with one of the harder forms as she was still very young. Form I was what had been traditionally used for younglings when they started learning how to attack, block, and parry. It was best used with multiple enemies instead of one on one combat as many times…those who used Form I had very little knowledge on saber combat. The director could tell that Form I was not the most ideal form for Satine's personality, but he was insistent on her learning the form so she could move to the other forms later on.

Currently, Nick was watching Satine go through the basic katas of Form I with a blindfold on. He was seeing what she remembered on her own as well as how the Force guided her. The one eyed former Jedi narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched Satine. She may only be 9, but she was most definitely her father's daughter. They had been working on Form I for the last month, and Nick could tell her genius was showing by the fact that she was doing almost every single movement perfectly. A soft sigh left his lips as he closed his eyes for a moment trying to figure out if he would do a spar with her, or if he would have her move onto Form II to see if that would be a better form for her. Satine gave off the aura that she could easily know multiple forms and switch between them with no problem whatsoever. Nick glanced to his left seeing Obi-Wan watch his granddaughter with proud eyes. Kenobi had been a practitioner of Form I as had Kit, Yoda, and himself. His eyes narrowed for a moment before finally deciding. "Satine," he called out to the young girl who stopped moving at the sound of his voice.

His apprentice deactivated her lightsaber and placed it on her belt before removing her blindfold and looking at him. "Yes Master?" she asked lightly. She was sweating slightly from practicing the katas.

"How comfortable do you feel with Form I?"

"I know the movements, but I still feel as though I have to think about them before I do them. I know my mind moves faster because I am technically a genius…however, I want to be able to fluidly do this form without thinking. I want it to be second nature to me," Satine answered. She was far more mature for her age, but she didn't mind as she didn't want to be treated like a little child. She was the daughter of Tony Stark and the grandchild of a great Jedi and a Duchess. The 9 year old also had a gut feeling that she would need to really know these different combat forms. She didn't know what was coming, but Satine knew Earth would never be the same whenever it did come.

Nick watched his apprentice for a long moment before calling his lightsaber to his hand with the Force. "Then how about a spar?" he asked simply before chuckling lightly seeing her smile and nod. He stepped into the ring discarding his trench coat and activated his purple lightsaber waiting to see if she would make the first move.