Alone at night, Jacen Arkos, Jedi Knight and once a commander during the Clone Wars, wandered wondering to himself, how did he end up here?
It had been a few months since the war ended, and he remembered it as if it were yesterday.
The memory always played out the same, flashes of blasters, the heavy footfalls of the clones, and the hum of his lightsaber as he deflected shots.
Yet, what had haunted him most was the voice heard mere moments before the chaos.
How could anyone possibly forget such a voice, low, husky, and dripping with menace?
The only thing that the voice said was a single spoken order.
"Execute order 66."
With that order, everything he knew was shattered.
Draco Jedite, Jacen's former master, had fought and died, ensuring that Jacen escaped.
He'd wandered the Galaxy for a few days afterward when his recall beacon sent a signal only the Jedi knew, claiming that the War was over. They were to return to the temple, but deep down, Jacen knew what he'd experienced was far from an isolated incident.
Afterward, the code changed from return home to run and hide, followed by a message from Obi-wan Kenobi, somberly telling any survivors that the Jedi Order and Republic had fallen with the Empire rising to take their place.
This, more than anything, hit Jacen in the gut.
"What were we fighting for?" Jacen asked numbly, not as though anyone could provide an answer.
The Jedi had fought during the war to defend the Republic against the Separatists, but the true winner was the Sith.
Now, not knowing where to turn, he began drawing upon his master's unorthodox teachings to blend in.
Looking at him, he had more the look of a Corellian space goer rather than a Jedi, having swapped his Jedi attire for a black multi-pocketed jacket, black trousers with additional pockets, a pair of black fingerless gloves, and boots that reached the middle of his lower legs
Though his most identifying feature was his hair which had an unusual appearance wherein it started black on the top of his head and then faded into red, he often wore an undershirt with a hood attached to keep this feature hidden.
Though he still had his lightsaber, he kept it hidden in his jacket pockets while displaying a DC17 blaster pistol on his right thigh.
After roughly a month of laying low, he eventually found himself in a strange world, barely touching the Unknown Regions.
Though it wasn't likely that the Empire had a presence on this world or even had begun to reach out to this corner of the galaxy, he didn't want to risk exposing himself. So he avoided unnecessary conflict whenever possible.
As he traveled, he could feel the currents of the Force on this world, but it felt different than it did on other worlds.
Perhaps the Force had evolved into something new, as he recalled various cultures throughout the Galaxy had their interpretations of the Force.
As night began to fall, he came upon the outskirts of a city and happened to look up.
As he did, a stunned realization met his eye as he saw the rising moon of this world.
He'd seen his share of other planetary moons being damaged during the war, but this moon looked as though it had been shattered in what must have been a cataclysmic event, perhaps at some point far into this world's past.
His gaze fell onto the city, which made him apprehensive as he didn't think the people of this world spoke basic; However, he knew a few trade languages throughout this part of space he wasn't looking forward to engaging in conversation.
As he approached the city, he came upon a sign which, much to Jacen's surprise, was written in a form of basic.
The sign read Welcome to Vale.
"Vale," Jacen said, testing the sound of it.
"Not the most convoluted name for a city."
He gave a slight laugh with that statement, recalling how often his master had him memorize names of critical areas during combat, most with names no one had any hope of pronouncing, much less being able to say them.
The memory of his master suddenly struck him with a sense of sorrow, Draco had been more like a father to him, but now he was gone, snuffed out by the very troops they had fought beside for years.
For that instant, he felt his anger rising, but as quickly as it came, it disappeared as he recalled his master's instruction on ways to calm the mind.
He shook his head, knowing too well that it would never disappear.
How could anyone truly let go of something equivalent to a fresh wound that would end up leaving a nasty scar, a permanent reminder of the events that had caused it?
As he walked through Vale, he came upon what must be a bar or nightclub though he knew he was taking a risk going in without knowing what payment they took.
It wasn't as though he carried a wallet full of credits which would be worthless, especially this far out from the Core.
Yet, he was at a point where he didn't care.
Reluctantly, he entered the establishment, which had been playing loud music, but suddenly stopped with a few patrons looking at him.
Jacen had expected such a reaction, yet he was more surprised to see that many of the patrons were human, but he could tell there were some people with underlying currents of malcontent.
For a moment, his gaze fell on a man in a bowler hat, wearing a white coat, casually leaning on a cane while holding a cigar. However, he was in deep conversation with the individual who Jacen suspected was the owner of the establishment.
Jacen could sense the tension as he cautiously approached an isolated table.
He saw the owner hold up a hand to the man in the hat, and it was clear the man was both uneasy yet annoyed at having someone waltz into his establishment.
Jacen winced as he prepared himself for an angry conversation.
The man was angry, but he kept it hidden with a professional business sense.
"I don't think I've seen your face here before, kid," the man started to say.
Jacen sighed inwardly; at least he wouldn't have to use an incomprehensible language.
"I'm new in Vale," Jacen admitted.
"I don't suppose you have Corellian Ale?" He asked, earning a questioning look from the man.
"We have no such thing here, kid," the man pointed toward a bar.
"It either King's Ace, Evening Dust, or Death Stalker Fire whiskey," he began naming various drinks.
It wasn't like Jacen hadn't had a stiff drink before, someone who had everything from Cortyg brandy to a shady Weequay Pirate Brew Captain Hondo Ohnaka introduced him and Draco to after some negotiation began.
However, the fact the man looked at him like he was growing a second head when he mentioned a Corellian Ale indicated he'd be better off not mentioning any drinks that became his personal favorites.
The King's Ace sounded interesting, and he decided to go for that, only to suddenly remember that he didn't have the right money to pay for it.
"You can pay for this, yes?" The man said with suspicion.
With the air of someone planning his funeral, he admitted that he had no money on him.
Sure enough, the man's anger showed through his professionalism, "You think this is a free establishment, kid?!" He slammed his hands on the table.
"You wanna drink? You pay beforehand," he continued.
For an instant, Jacen's hand tried to move discreetly toward the blaster at his hip, intent on using its stun setting, only for the man to snap his fingers, and two of his men came to his side.
"First, you don't have any money to pay for the drink, then you try to shoot me in my establishment," he said with anger and contempt.
So much for that, Jacen thought, then he decided to try a little trick of the Force, only for the man to stiffen when he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat.
"Are you going to continue wasting our time Junior or shall we get back to business?" The man in the bowler hat said, blowing out a ring of smoke.
Jacen laughed inwardly at the sound of the manager's name, but his humor instantly turned to caution when he looked at the man with the hat.
One look at the man made Jacen shiver, he was exuding an air of control and confidence, but there was no mistake that he also had undercurrents of greed, deceit, and power.
"Not someone I wanna make an enemy out of," Jacen said to himself.
Almost immediately, Junior stood straight up, adjusted his tie, and turned toward the man, though not before nodding at two of his men that flanked Jacen.
"Make sure he stays put," Junior told his goons before heading back toward the other man.
Both goons eyed Jacen contemptuously while Jacen was doing his best to appear nervous, but inside he knew these two mooks were nothing to be concerned about.
Though he preferred not to start an unnecessary fight, he was prepared to defend himself if needed.
"You think you're scared now?" said one of the goons drawing a curved blade that had a red tint to it.
"Wait till the boss is done with his conversation."
Though Jacen's nervous flinch was exaggerated, the image of the red blade he had brought up the unpleasant appearance of a red lightsaber being drawn and aimed at his throat.
"Stop doing that," He said, berating himself.
He had to remind himself that he was still a Jedi, and it wouldn't do to dwell on his fears.
"Hey!" The second goon shouted, aiming what looked like a slug thrower handgun at him.
"Are you hard of hearing, kid?!"
Inwardly, Jacen was considering numerous ways to bring this to an end; he could use the Force to snatch the goon's weapon out of his hand, perform a mind trick on the pair of goons to ignore him while turning their aggression toward each other, or even see how quickly these goons could use their weapons before he unloaded a few blaster bolts dropping them.
The last option that appeared in his mind was to see how quickly they could use their weapons when he whipped out his lightsaber, but that option was sure to get him unnecessary attention.
Then again, perhaps he didn't need to do anything that could be directly linked to him, and his eyes were suddenly drawn to the door.
Somehow he felt that the Force would provide an unexpected solution.
Just then, a girl with long blonde hair and violet eyes, wearing a pair of gauntlets, a light brown jacket, matching light brown shorts, and an orange scarf, strolled into the establishment.
Jacen was both surprised and impressed that she had more confidence than he did when he first entered.
For a moment, her eyes seemed to scan the entire room before looking in the direction where Junior was finishing his conversation with the man in the hat.
At first, Jacen felt apprehensive, but he held himself back.
He had a feeling that she knew her way around shady bars and nightclubs, but more than that, she had the air of someone that was searching for something or someone.
She eventually reached the bar area and began talking with Junior.
Having parked her bike, Yang Xiao Long made her way toward Junior's night club though it wasn't to have fun or to go on another of her late-night outings.
She came here to get the answers she wanted.
As she approached the door, she managed to catch a glimpse of Junior in conversation with none other than the infamous Roman Torchwick, one of the biggest underworld bosses in Remnant.
She gave an inward 'tsk' while moving her finger back and forth as though scolding a child caught doing something naughty.
"This is gonna be a hard night for you, Junior," she said after taking a discreet photo with her scroll.
With everything ready, she straightened her hair, put on her best carefree look, and stepped inside.
Inwardly the inside was what she'd come to expect though there were a lot more of Junior's goons than she'd expected; she wasn't overly concerned.
For an instant, her eyes saw two of those same goons hovering over a guy who wasn't in a comfortable position.
"Not a good night for you, I guess," she said as she refocused on Junior, who'd just finished his conversation with Roman.
Casually she slid to the bar next to Junior, and the acting began.
"So what's a girl gotta do to get a drink around here?" She began.
Junior's eyes then fell on her, and she smiled inwardly when he saw a look of confusion on his face.
"Aren't you a little young to be in a place like this, blondie?" He asked.
"What would you even drink?"
Yang shrugged, "Oh, just a tall strawberry sunrise."
She then raised a flirty eyebrow, "Maybe even a bit of information while you're at it."
She then pulled out her scroll showing a masked woman in tribal attire.
"I don't suppose you know where I can find her do you?"
She saw Junior get nervous over the topic only to cover it up with a haughty arrogance.
"Never seen her before," he said as he straightened his tie.
Yang had been in enough situations to realize when someone was lying, especially when they were people that walked a slack line between law and crime.
Fortunately, she was the one holding an ace up her sleeve.
Casually, she put her arm over Junior's shoulder and then pulled him close so only he could hear.
"You know this is a nice place ya got here, Junior," she said in a lilting tone, but then her voice got a touch harsher when she showed him the picture of him talking to Roman.
"Imagine everyone's surprise when they discover that this place hosted the notorious Roman Torchwick."
Junior began to sweat nervously as he tried to take the scroll from her, only for Yang to have her finger dangerously close to the send icon.
"Careful, Junior," she said with a mocking tone.
"Wouldn't want me accidentally pushing send as you tried grabbing my scroll."
Junior eventually relented, trying to preserve whatever dignity he had.
"Yeah, I've seen her, but she's not someone anyone should try finding unless they have a death wish." He said as though telling a child not to play around with a dangerous animal.
As he talked, she noticed that the mooks had started converging on them; witnessing their boss was uncomfortable.
"See, that wasn't so hard, was it?" She said, putting her scroll back in its pocket and then raising her hands innocently.
"Didn't mean to bring an audience to this little show."
Junior snorted contemptuously, "You'll pay for that, Blondie."
For an instant, Junior had utterly forgotten about the other unwelcome guest and was surprised to see that the man wasn't even nervous about the prospect of being thrown out.
"Ah, come on," Yang said, interrupting Junior's thought.
"Don't be upset let's kiss and make up."
She saw Junior look at her with surprise and a bit of interest.
Even Junior's unwelcomed guest seemed surprised by the development.
"Well, alright then," Junior said.
Yang then closed her eyes and leaned forward, inviting Junior to the upcoming kiss, but before Junior could reach her, a powerful right-hand punch sent him flying backward.
She smiled as the goons suddenly looked shocked at what had just happened, and she assumed a proper fighting stance.
"Anyone else wanna dance?"
Jacen had sat there for a handful of minutes as he watched the development occurring between the blonde girl and Junior.
His early apprehension turned to appreciation at how she had taken control of the situation, but the atmosphere of the place was becoming thick with tension.
Even the two mooks that were supposed to keep him in place had their attention fixed on the development.
He began to take notice of additional mooks slowly closing in on the conversation, and Jacen felt the urge to do something. Still, the Force told him to be patient, even as his anticipation turned into a desire to act.
After seeing the girl put away her device, which he suspected to be similar to a datapad, only more compact, he saw Junior walking toward him as though he'd just remembered Jacen was still there.
Jacen prepared himself for whatever was about to happen when suddenly, the girl cut in.
"Ah, come on," she said in a playful tone.
"Don't be upset let's kiss and make up."
A look of puzzlement crossed Jacen's face.
"Who is this girl?" He asked himself inwardly.
As it seemed Junior was about to receive the promised kiss, the Force whispered a warning that told him a fight was about to ensue.
Additionally, he had the distinct impression that the girl wasn't the one in trouble, but instead, Junior was the one in the crosshairs.
Sure enough, the girl struck Junior with an impossibly powerful punch that sent him flying into a far wall.
For an instant, Jacen looked in shock at what just happened; she'd moved at an impressive speed and with enough velocity to send a grown man flying into a far wall.
He'd also sensed a power surging through the girl at the moment of impact.
"The Force?" Jacen had initially thought but immediately dismissed it.
He remembered when he'd first sensed the power flowing in this world; though the Force was present, it didn't resonate as the Jedi had used it.
It wouldn't be a stretch in Jacen's mind to consider whatever power the people of this world used as something different in its own right but no less powerful.
He had enough time to move aside as one of Junior's goons unwisely charged toward her, only to be knocked into the wall beside Jacen.
Wisely, he made his way toward a spot that wasn't likely to take sufficient damage, and from there, he watched in awe as the blonde girl managed to fight off several goons.
How she moved gave Jacen the impression of a trained martial artist fighting against a group of simple-minded thugs.
Jacen didn't especially feel the need to interfere as it seemed she was holding her own, though it seemed like she was taking a few hits.
However, she didn't seem to have any visible injuries; the weapons barely came into contact with her skin.
Though this wasn't even the most exciting feature, he noticed that she seemed to absorb the oncoming hits somehow and store them into a rising vortex of power which he saw first in the form of a tiny spark but was steadily growing to become a raging flame.
When the last of the goons went down, Jacen saw the blonde girl turn her attention to two other girls, twins he'd assumed despite their different dress styles.
These two had more insight than the goons the blonde girl had taken down because they immediately began to take the fight to the blonde girl, who seemed to be enjoying herself as if this were some thrill she wanted.
"What a warm-up," Yang said to herself.
"Barely even worked up a sweat."
As the last of the goons fell, her eyes were drawn to two girls that looked at the wreckage with distaste and then gazed balefully at Yang.
The Malachite sisters, if Yang's insight into this establishment was correct, now it was about to get interesting.
"Who does this girl think she is?" The first sister said with evident scorn in her voice.
"I think we should teach her a lesson," the second sister replied.
Yang again assumed her combat pose as the twins began their attack.
They came at her from all possible angles, with her taking the occasional hits but often retaliating with various kicks and punches, which kept her from losing too much ground.
She whistled, "You two aren't bad." She said, putting a note of playfulness in her voice.
The first sister seemed to take that as an insult and charged at her, which Yang had been counting on. The sister landed on a table only for a loud blast to erupt from her gauntlet that blew the table apart, causing her to fall unceremoniously onto the floor.
"Might wanna watch your step there," Yang said jokingly.
Before the sister could pick herself up, Yang sent another blast from her other gauntlet, which sent her back into the bar area and knocked her unconscious.
Yang didn't have time to savor her victory before a kick sent her backward.
The second Malachite sister was all over her and angry that her sister wasn't there to back her up.
Yang could almost sympathize as she'd typically been protective of her sister Ruby, but in this fight, only one could remain standing.
In the second sister's fury, she'd over-extended, and after a well-aimed knee to her stomach, she fell to the floor motionless.
For a moment, Yang took in the area, which had become increasingly damaged during her fight, and her eyes fell upon Junior's unexpected guest.
She was surprised that in all the chaos, he had somehow managed not to be in the way when things got hot.
The sound of footsteps on broken glass made her turn, and Junior now held a long pole arm with a mallet-like end at the top.
"You're gonna pay for all this damage you caused, blondie!" He said with notes of anger in his voice.
Getting back into her fighting stance, she prepared to face off against Junior, seeming a bit at ease.
However, an unexpected blow from Junior's weapon let her know that despite his name, he wasn't a novice.
She'd managed to dodge and roll away from most of Junior's attacks, but with every strike she took, she noticed her aura beginning to shimmer.
"Time to end this now," she said to herself just as Junior came at her with another blow.
Her blood was on fire as her semblance had now been sufficiently charged from all the damage she'd taken in the last few minutes.
Just as she got back up, she stopped in mid-stride.
There in Junior's hand was a fair amount of her hair.
That did it!
Suddenly, the room around her burst as her hair began being covered in flames, and her eyes went from violet to red.
Just then, Junior wished he hadn't met her just as her fist, hitting with more force than her standard punches, sent him flying right out of the upper window.
However, with the energy expended, Yang's hair resumed its original form, and she was physically exhausted.
This always happened whenever she used her semblance with full force, her uncle had mentioned more than once that she should learn how to use all that energy she collects in small doses, but her temper and desire to end a fight quickly always see her using it all at once.
Suddenly, a strange discharge followed by the sound of something heavy crashing on top of someone behind her made her turn around.
There underneath a collapsed beam was the second Malachite sister, whom she initially thought had been winded by her knee attack had attempted to attack her from behind.
She then looked to see that the guy Junior had wanted to toss out was holding a gun she didn't recognize, but the smoke from it made it clear that he had shot at the beam that collapsed on the second sister.
She looked from him up to where the beam had been hanging and was surprised by what she saw.
A small metal thread had only suspended the beam that fell, but with one shot, the man had taken the structure down upon the second sister.
What a shot, she thought to herself.
She had enough time to see the man give his weapon a flourishing twirl before holstering the weapon in place.
She took one final look at the unconscious sister before looking the man in the eye, giving a slight shrug.
"Guess you got the drop on her," she said in her familiar joking tone.
If Jacen hadn't seen it, he'd have never believed it.
His view of the blonde bombshell had steadily improved during the last 35 minutes since she'd given Junior the hard rejection.
As the fight continued, he sensed that whatever power she was storing was building up to the intensity of a raging inferno, as though her blood were liquid fire.
It wasn't until he saw Junior standing while holding some of her blonde hair that he sensed Junior had just signed his death warrant.
Then as though her power and rage had turned the building power she'd stored into the intensity of a star, he could see the air around her being heated up. Then as if an explosion occurred, everything around her shattered, and in that instant, she seemed like something he'd only thought existed in legends.
Her blonde hair now had visible golden flames which seemed to dance around her, and her eyes had gone from violet to burning red.
For that instant, Jacen also sensed that her strength had been boosted to unprecedented levels.
With that strength, she could probably match a force of ten fully-grown Wookiees.
At the height of her attack, after sending Junior flying through an upper window, he suddenly sensed all that power she used had virtually vanished, leading to exhaustion beginning to take over.
A movement suddenly caught his eye, the second Malachite sister was slowly getting back up.
He sensed her murderous intent as she readied her twin blade to stab the blonde girl in the back.
Acting on instinct, Jacen whipped out his blaster and aimed not at the sister but at a wire barely holding up an unsteady beam just above the sister.
In a fraction of a second, he fired a single shot which met its mark being guided by the Force, and to his satisfaction, the beam managed to fall right on top of the sister knocking her unconscious.
He saw the blonde girl turn to see what happened; then, she looked at Jacen with curiosity and intrigue.
He gave his blaster a quick spin before holstering it.
At first, there was a moment of silence, but then the blonde girl looked from the unconscious sister to Jacen.
She gave a slight shrug before finally looking at him.
"Guess you got the drop on her," she said in her familiar joking tone.
Jacen gave a slight laugh at her rather poorly timed pun.
"What can I say?" He asked her, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Trouble tends to follow me whether I ask for it or not."
Jacen noticed that she'd gotten a bit closer to him.
Looking at her, she had a well-developed build which only confirmed his thoughts about her being a skilled fighter; she was beautiful and -
"Um, eyes are up here, buddy," she admonished him, and only belatedly did he realize he was staring at her chest.
His face turned red with embarrassment.
"I-I'm sorry I didn't mean to disrespect you like that," he said, becoming incredibly flustered.
"I don't go around doing anything like that to women."
He stopped when he realized she'd been laughing at his prudence.
"Relax, no harm done," she stopped looking around at the wreckage.
"Well, unless you count the bar, the reflective ball, and the music station," Jacen replied, finally regaining his composure.
He blushed again when he saw that she had gotten closer and was examining him, starting with his hair.
"Huh, your hair almost reminds me of my sister Ruby's," she'd said as she continued examining him but then backed away suddenly, rubbing the back of her head nervously.
"Sorry, I guess I was being a bit intrusive."
She then extended her hand to him, "Name's Yang Xiao Long; who do I have the pleasure of thanking for saving my neck just now?"
Yang, finally had a name for her, but just as quickly, he shook his head and extended his hand to shake hers.
"I'm Jacen Arkos, a pleasure to make your acquaintance Miss Xiao Long," he winced inwardly.
He wasn't greeting a dignitary or an older person; Yang was roughly the same age he was.
"You don't need to be that formal, Jacen," he said self-deprecatingly.
Yang laughed, "You can just call me Yang."
Jacen breathed a sigh of relief but noticed Yang was still slightly exhausted from her earlier attack.
"Um, if you don't mind me asking," Jacen began.
"What exactly was that just then?"
Yang seemed to give him a puzzled look, "You've never heard of a semblance?"
Jacen shook his head but logged the information away for later.
"I'd have thought someone like you was either a huntsman or a student, though I'd remember seeing you if you attended Signal Academy," Yang said.
Jacen was even more confused; semblances, huntsmen, and an academy.
Yang seemed to give him a look of disbelief, "So you've never heard of a semblance or know what a huntsman is?"
She continued, "You've never seen or fought a Grimm."
Jacen raised an eyebrow at the mention of that word; it gave him an icy chill that ran down his back.
"I take it that's something these huntsmen are trained to fight?" He asked, trying to put the pieces together.
He saw Yang shaking her head in disbelief, "Where'd you come from anyway?"
"You just fell out of the sky?"
Inwardly Jacen winced; she wasn't too far off the mark; he'd quite literally crashed his ship when he'd made a last-ditch jump into lightspeed.
He'd have nearly drowned if he didn't manage to force open the canopy.
He stopped his musings when he noticed Yang had tossed her arm over his shoulder.
"Well, lucky for you, I can help you at least understand the basics and maybe even show you around Vale," she motioned at the disarray.
"So you don't end up in the middle of things like this."
Jacen took her meaning and noticed she was trying to support herself.
"Before that, I think we should get out of here and get you some rest," he said as they went outside.
He'd barely made it out when he saw a young girl wearing a red hood and a skirt standing outside with her hands on her hips.
"Yang did you get into another fight again?" she scolded.
Yang managed to get onto her feet as she addressed the younger girl.
"Oh hey, Ruby," she said nervously as she rubbed the back of her head.
"It's not as bad as you think."
A sudden recognition hit Jacen as he noticed Ruby.
She definitely had the same black-to-red hair that he had, though perhaps her most interesting feature was her eyes.
Silver, he'd seen few races throughout the galaxy that had silver eyes, but there was something incredibly unique about the silver eyes Ruby possessed.
His thoughts returned to her hair, and a humorous idea came into his mind; she could almost pass as someone related to me.
Though he banished the thought from his mind as soon as it came, then again, he didn't exactly know where he'd come from before the Order raised him.
He'd been raised in the Jedi Temple as an infant, not having a vague memory of his parents or even if he had any other living relatives.
It took him a moment to realize Yang was trying to get his attention.
"Um, welcome back to Remnant space man."
Jacen was shocked at how close Yang's words were, but he eventually recomposed himself.
Belatedly, he looked from Ruby to Yang, "So you're both sisters?"
Yang gave a nod while also giving Ruby a pat on the head, "Hard to believe, isn't it?"
For a split second, Jacen noticed that Ruby had quickly gone from where she was by Yang's side to being close to his blaster.
"Hey, be careful," Jacen said to Ruby, who seemed very interested in his weapon.
He looked back at where Ruby had been standing only to find a fading trail of rose petals.
Returning to where Ruby now was curiously eying his blaster, he realized.
Her semblance gives her incredible speed; he wondered how many different semblances this world's people used.
"I've never seen a gun like this before," Ruby said, pointing at his weapon.
Humoring Ruby's curiously, he swiftly unholstered his blaster, twirling it before showing it to her.
He could see the apparent interest in Ruby's eyes.
"Wow, that's the coolest-looking gun I've ever seen," Ruby said excitedly.
"Oh, trust me, it's not like any gun you've ever seen," Jacen said while turning his attention to a can seated on a low wall.
He quickly looked around to make sure there weren't any bystanders out and about, then he aimed at the can, pulling the trigger, which sent off two bolts of orange energy, with the first knocking it off the wall and the second shot hitting it dead center.
He then blew the smoke off the blaster and holstered the weapon.
"That was so cool!" Ruby's voice was filled with utter excitement.
Jacen shrugged, trying to be modest, "Eh, there's nothing a good old DC17 blaster pistol can't handle."
"A what?" Yang asked.
Jacen showed an exaggerated version of the look of disbelief Yang showed him earlier, "Well, does that mean I have something to teach you?"
Yang laughed shortly, "I guess we'll both be learning a few things."
As Jacen turned, he noticed Ruby gazing at something in his inner jacket pocket.
"What about that?" She pointed at the object Jacen had.
Jacen quickly hid it away, feeling a twinge of guilt mixed with concern.
Yang and Ruby seemed like good people, but he wouldn't risk potentially drawing them into something horrible.
If he used his lightsaber too often, especially in a populated area like Vale, it could put them both in danger.
There were haunting stories he'd heard about what the Empire did to people that helped any surviving Jedi.
"Oh, come on, I wanna see," Ruby said, intent on wondering what other weapons he had.
"Trust me, Ruby, you shouldn't wonder about certain things," he said with a shrug, only for Ruby to pout a bit.
Jacen gave her a gentle rub on the head, "So your sister mentioned that she was attending a school called Signal Academy."
Ruby quickly said, "Yes, I'm a student there too; it's how I came to create this."
With a flourish of movement, Ruby pulled out what Jacen had first seen as a heavy impact slug sniper but then quickly changed into a scythe just as she finished striking a proud pose with Yang giving applause.
"One of the courses there included how to build our weapon, and that's how I came to make Crescent Rose," she said, sounding like a proud parent.
"Our weapons are more than just that; they're an extension of ourselves."
That statement resonated deeply with Jacen; if what Ruby had said was anything to go by, these huntsmen, or the females' case, huntresses, had an almost kindred spirit to that of the Jedi.
After all, he'd recalled his master stating that his lightsaber, which he had constructed before becoming Draco's padawan, was more than just a weapon; in many ways, a lightsaber was a Jedi's life.
Still, there was a concern, he wasn't sure why, but he sensed that Ruby was on a path that she wasn't truly prepared for.
"So, why exactly do you want to become a huntress?"
Ruby paused momentarily before answering, "Well, I've always wanted to help people and be like the people in stories I used to read as a kid."
Jacen seemed to find Ruby's view refreshing, but it reminded him of others he knew back in the Temple who had similar aspirations, only for them to end up dead, broken, or worse.
Taking a deep breath, Jacen said, "It's one thing to read about stories or fairy tales, but when faced with reality, it doesn't tend to go the way one thinks or even reach the outcome one hopes for."
Rather than seem disheartened, Ruby said, "Well, if we don't do our part, then things will never get better."
"Besides," Ruby continued, "My mom always wanted to do what she could to help others as a huntress."
Somehow Ruby's mention of her mother gave off a ripple of sadness that Jacen sensed, but it was mixed with a stronger emotion, pride; she held her mom in high regard enough to want to uphold her legacy.
Despite a rising apprehension that Jacen felt at Ruby's youthful optimism, he didn't want to come off as overly cynical.
Another side of him applauded her for wanting to follow a legacy she felt was worth pursuing, as he once did when he passed the Gathering, which marked his first steps toward becoming a great Jedi such as he'd read of in stories while studying in the Temple archives.
"Then I hope you make her proud in the path you take," he said encouragingly.
With those words, Ruby seemed to light up even more, and she gave a somewhat awkward salute, "I'll do my best."
At that instant, he saw that Yang had gotten somewhat disheartened over the topic of Ruby's mother.
"She's no longer alive, I take it?" He asked, trying not to be discourteous.
"She went out on a mission a few years ago, but it didn't end well," Yang said with sadness.
Jacen looked from Yang to Ruby, sensing the unmistakable current of sadness though it seemed Yang's went even deeper than Ruby's.
Inwardly, he wondered precisely who or what Yang was so intent on finding that it was worth blackmailing.
Not wanting to dig into things he had no right to know, he stretched.
"It's getting late," he said with a yawn.
Picking up on this, Yang seemed to snap out of her melancholy and regain her vigor.
"Yeah, we'd better start getting back home, Ruby; Dad might start having a panic attack if we aren't back."
Ruby seemed flustered, nearly dropping her weapon before folding it back and placing it in its holster.
For a moment, Jacen saw Ruby look at him with puzzlement.
"Do you have a place to go?" She asked curiously.
Yang picked up on her sister's question glancing at Jacen, "If you want, I can give you a ride back to our house."
Jacen saw Ruby's eyes narrow and turn in Yang's direction.
"You know what dad will say when you bring a strange boy?" Ruby asked, giving Yang a slightly chastising tone.
"He could sleep in our spare room," Yang said.
"It's not like I'm inviting him over as if we were dating."
Jacen practically felt his heart skip a beat with Yang's comment, and he shook his head nervously.
"That's generous of you, but I don't wanna impose," he said as his face flushed.
"It'd be my way of thanking you for saving my back a while ago," Yang said with apparent sincerity.
Jacen recomposed himself and slightly smiled, "I truly appreciate it, but I have somewhere else to be."
He cursed himself inwardly; where would I even go?
Yang shrugged, "Well if you're ever in Patch, feel free to look me up," she said.
"Even if we might not see each other again, once you meet me, we're friends for life."
Friend, Jacen seemed to be overwhelmed with emotion, but he gave her a respectful salute.
"Then I hope we meet again, Yang," he said.
With a nod, Yang got onto her bike with Ruby beside her.
"First one to the house washes dishes for a week, Ruby," Yang said with a note of challenge.
"Hope you enjoy your new chore Yang," Ruby replied with just as much competition.
Just as Yang started her bike, Ruby suddenly vanished, becoming a red swirling blur of rose petals.
"No fair, Ruby!" Yang shouted as she put her bike into motion.
Just like that, Jacen was alone, a feeling of somberness suddenly taking over his initial excitement.
From the conversation, he now knew that the world he was on was called Remnant, a group known as huntsmen and huntresses, who used a unique ability called a semblance, and they fought against creatures called Grimm.
Though he had no idea what those creatures looked like, he knew there was still a lot about this world that he didn't know.
Many other questions flooded his mind as he wandered from the outskirts of Vale into a forested area.
He remembered the shimmering field around Yang during her fight that seemed to block most of the oncoming weapons, it seemed to act in the same way a deflector shield did, but then again it didn't give off the sensation a typical deflector shield would have, it felt like it was being generated naturally.
He'd have to ask Yang about that detail.
A slight rustling noise suddenly snapped him out of his revelry, and he looked back to where he'd just entered the forest.
He could barely see Vale anymore through the thick trees.
After a small nightclub fight, Jacen wasn't in the mood for any more surprises.
Drawing his blaster, he stood ready, letting himself feel the currents of the Force around him to give him awareness.
He could sense the wildlife of the woods, wolves, bears, and even a few deer, but nothing too unusual at first.
Suddenly, Jacen sensed something else out there; it didn't feel like any animal he'd ever sensed, it had a primordial predatory presence to it, but that wasn't what made Jacen feel frozen in place.
Whatever it was felt dark, mindless, as if it had been born from darkness itself.
He remembered the stories he'd read about lost worlds once belonging to the ancient Sith and how some still held many of their twisted creations, Sithspawn they were called.
He also remembered a story his master had told him about how his own master Dooku before he had left the Jedi Order, had encountered a Terentetak on Kashyyyk while still a padawan to the legendary Jedi Master Yoda.
Sudden realization hit him as he remembered what Yang said about huntsmen and huntresses fighting creatures called Grimm.
No mistake, he thought to himself.
He had the sudden impression that the dark creature was stalking him was only a few feet behind him, and Jacen had enough awareness to leap out of the way just as a sharp pair of claws slashed the empty air where he'd been standing.
He turned in mid-air landing on his feet to look at the thing that nearly killed him.
It was tall, utterly black with what might have been fur, but it seemed to undulate and sent off wisps of black smoke; it had long bony claws on the ends of its fingers and toes, with a mouthful of white teeth while also consisting in two pairs of sharp fangs.
It had the appearance of a wolf, but its posture suggested that the creature could go from bipedal to quadrupedal; its eyes were incredibly haunting; they flowed with a sinister glow, almost as if the fires of hell were blazing behind its skull.
Moreover, Jacen couldn't sense anything that might have passed for sentience in this creature; in the Force, the beast didn't resonate with anything living.
Unnatural, was the unspoken word that crossed Jacen's mind.
"This thing is a Grimm," he said, trying to keep his fear lowered.
Without a second's thought, Jacen fired at the creature, which barely had time to move out of the way before two shots hit it in the chest and head.
The beast gave a haunting cry and then fell to the ground motionless.
As Jacen watched, he was astonished to see that as it died, the creature's body was evaporating until nothing remained of it except for its fangs and claws.
He didn't have time to examine them before he heard a loud howl similar to the one the slain creature made.
"A pack!" He said to himself as shock started overtaking him.
He spat out a curse, he should have suspected the thing probably wasn't alone, especially if it hunted like a standard wolf pack.
Suddenly, it felt as if the cold primal darkness he'd sensed from the other creature had been multiplied by at least ten.
He saw them beginning to gather, each with a similar appearance to the one he'd just killed.
However, he sensed that one of the pack was considerably older than the rest. Jacen's attention was drawn to a larger version of the other creatures, though, unlike its smaller versions, this one had bone-like protrusions on its arms, around its chest where it seemed to be a form of armor, and it seemed to have seen battle judging from the scar over its eye.
Jacen could sense the primal, animalistic presence of the others, but this bigger one seemed to be more cautious.
"That's gotta be the alpha," Jacen said aloud.
He had his blaster ready as the alpha issued a series of noises causing the younger ones to surround him.
He'd have to be quick about shooting them as they came because the Force was screaming at him that he might only get a few shots off before some of them got the drop on him.
He took a deep breath, letting the Force guide his blaster.
With a growl, three Grimm rushed at him, only to be shot down with precise accuracy.
He dodged a lunging bite from the Grimm behind him and fired another shot, dropping it like its fellows.
However, unexpectedly, the other six began attacking together, making it impossible for Jacen to lift his blaster.
Right now, the only thing keeping him alive was his precognitive awareness, but he felt it was only a matter of time before they brought him to exhaustion before the killing blow.
This tactic must have taken several lives of people that had unwittingly come across this pack or gone out to face these monsters, but Jacen wasn't planning on becoming their latest kill.
He attempted to fire not at the oncoming smaller Grimm but the alpha, only for one of the smaller Grimm to slap the blaster out of his hand.
"Dank farrik!" He said, narrowly avoiding an incoming claw slash.
He attempted to use the Force to call the blaster back into his hand, only for the Alpha to stomp its foot down right on top of it, which gave a very audible crack and burst as the gas inside it was ignited
Jacen's eyes widened; until now, he'd assumed the Grimm were mindless primordial beasts acting on instinct, but now he understood what made these creatures dangerous.
Whatever experience this alpha had undergone in its youth, it took that lesson to heart.
These monsters could learn from their experiences and adapt.
Now without his blaster, he changed his tactics to incorporate the ancient martial art of Teras Kasei, not that he felt it would get him anywhere as he wasn't fighting against enemy Force Wielders.
Belatedly, he recalled when Yang had taken down several of Junior's henchmen with her specialized martial arts and decided to take a page from her book.
Yet, as he followed through on a few targeted kicks and punches that went through two more Grimm, he made the mistake of being too close to another Grimm, who delivered a swipe of its claw which made contact with Jacen's back.
Jacen had just enough time to leap away, landing at a safer distance from the attacking Grimm, but he immediately collapsed; the wound he received just now went deep, and it felt like nothing he'd ever experienced.
"Dammit!" He said aloud, not even bothering to hide his pain.
The Grimm seemed to drink in his despair and begin to charge at him.
All six of the remaining Grimm attempted to charge at him, only for Jacen to toss his hand palm outward, using the Force to hurl the oncoming Grimm backward, but it would only be a matter of time before they got back at it.
Sure enough, they came at him again with teeth and claws ready.
He was going to send them flying backward again, but the pain from his wound made him fall onto his knee, and he had just enough time to see the blood-thirsty monsters leap with outstretched claws.
For that instant, Jacen looked up and had a haunting realization.
"Am I going to die like this?" He said, practically on the point of tears.
After everything he endured during the Clone Wars, having narrowly escaped Order 66, only to become food for these monsters?
The image of his master suddenly came into his mind, followed by his first meeting with Yang.
No, it's not over, Jacen thought as he came to a decision, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a cylindrical device that could be held in one hand or two.
Without a second's thought, he activated it just as the Grimm prepared to finish him.
Then in one fluid motion, he managed to cut through all the rest leaving only him and the alpha.
The entire forest was now illuminated in a violet glow from the blade of energy that lanced out from the device he held, and it resonated with the hum the blade gave while ignited.
Jacen looked upon the blade as one would a beloved friend one had long thought dead, then aimed the tip at the Alpha, who stood there looking concerned at being confronted with a weapon it had never seen before.
A slight smile tugged at Jacen's lip, "Just you and me now, ugly."
Enraged, the Alpha unleashed a growl and prepared itself to attack.
Jacen obliged the monster with a mocking salute as he slipped into the ready form of Ataru.
In that instant, time seemed to slow down; diving into the Force, he could feel the subtle movements of the alpha, the sound of its breathing, its claws as they scratched the ground, the resonance of the menacing growl it gave off.
Even his wound, for the moment, ceased to preoccupy him as he prepared.
Soon, the alpha's patience seemed to run out, and just as it moved to attack, Jacen vanished with blinding speed; his lightsaber managed to land a blow on its incoming claw taking off the beast's right arm.
The next blow saw Jacen duck under a retaliatory strike from the alpha's remaining left arm and, with a swiping flourish, severed both of its legs.
It howled in pain as it fell over and flailed around wildly.
It looked up just long enough to see that Jacen had leaped into the air and was bringing his lightsaber straight down upon it.
With a last howl of defiance, it attempted to block it with its only arm, only for Jacen's lightsaber to sever it and make a clean dive down from the top of its head to where its feet had been.
Jacen then watched as the alpha's one remaining eye faded, and it fell into two pieces which began to evaporate, leaving only the bony armor behind.
He noticed with some relief that the lightsaber had carved directly through the bony chest armor, indicating that while it might have shrugged off ordinary things, it at least wasn't lightsaber resistant.
He recalled the Zillo Beast attack on Coresaunt sometime during the war; the ancient beast demonstrated its heartiness when Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker first encountered the creature on Malastare, when he mentioned that the creature's array of plates along its body could withstand the blow of a lightsaber.
He felt a slight sting with that memory too.
Jacen had held Anakin in the highest respect, if only because his methods seemed to mirror those of his master.
Now, however, Anakin was gone just as his master was.
He'd heard that when the Temple had been raided, Anakin fought to protect the younglings, but he ultimately ended up dying during the attack.
As Jacen deactivated his lightsaber, he suddenly felt a hyper-awareness of being extremely tired, and his wound had been bleeding during his fight.
"Must have lost a lot of blood just now," he said with a note of lament.
He was beginning to feel lightheaded from the blood loss, barely managing to stand up.
Yet, he didn't feel like dying this day, even though his body was virtually tired.
His vision was beginning to blur, and he thought he heard the sound of approaching footsteps coming toward him.
His vision cleared just enough to make out a figure in a coat with white hair holding a cane beneath his hands.
He tried to stand but ended up collapsing onto the ground.
He vaguely saw that the man had moved closer.
As Jacen closed his eyes, the last thing he heard was the man's voice.
"Rest now."
END