The Jedi King II: War for the Rim

by Blitzkrieger

The Militia have made their move plunging the Galaxy in a new war, with the Rebels caught in the middle. After Ahkilleon chose stayed in Militia and the New Jedi, he enters an arena of politics, light and dark. Facing either his past he left behind or going forward to seize a future as prophecy fortold to become the Jedi King, but nothing is ever certain and no one can be trusted.

1. The New Jedi

THE JEDI KING II

War for the Rim

Chapter 1

The New Jedi

NABOO

Theed

16 years ago

The procession continued along the streets of the city, Theed along with dignitaries from across the galaxy to pay there final respects to a woman who embodied liberty, and like the death of the republic so did hers. Padma Amidala, was dead, her funeral contained an open casket procession drawn through Theed by four gualaar , behind her walked the reigning queen of Naboo, Boss Napa, Senator Binks and many more. The streets were linned with candle holders as a choir dirge played somewhere. The dead woman had her brown hair linned with flowers her face pale but still beautiful. A blue wavy dress on her body and to the ultimate tragedy, pregnant, her hands over her belly in which her hands clutched a japor snippet. Bail Organa stood next to Mon Mothma, both of them stricken with grief when he thought he saw a familiar face in the crowd but then they were gone.

Later, leaving the procession behind Bail made his way into the less crowded parts of the city, following the hooded figure till he found her. "You shouldn't have come here. There's nothing you could have done." The figure turned and she removed her hood"For either of them. Why risk it?"

"She was my friend." When Ahsoka dropped her hood.

Before he could say another word he heard comms chatter in the distance, "There's a patrol coming, you must leave where is your ship?"

"The river." She said quickly

"This way." Bail led her across the pillars that surrounded theed to a balcony not far from a city exit.

Ahsoka had to stop to lean on a pillar, "Are you alright?" He asked "I'm fine, tired is all…" she panted as she made her way

"Here." Bail handed her a long range transmitter.

"If you need anything, you can contact me with this." He said.

She took it and looked down "No I'm tired of fighting-urk" Ahsoka suddenly turned and leaned over the edge puking, she leaned on the stone railing and winded before she pushed off rubbing her upper chest "Ow…" she winced at her own touch and nail averted his gaze as a married man and gentlemen the new better.

"These past few weeks have been difficult, I'm-" "Pregnant." Bail said. Ahsoka snapped her head to him wiping her mouth "What that can't-" she lowered her hand to her stomach and like a bolt of pure force she felt it, she spark of the force within her, she felt life and it terrified her.

Neither could believe it "You there!" Two clones of the coruscant guard approached bail from behind when he looked back ahsoka was gone.

Hiding on the ledge above "What can I do for you, officer?"

The security clones walked up to him "Let's see some identification."

"Of course." He said looking up and noticing she was still there.

"Senator Organa of Alderaan." The clone said.

"That's right." Bail said not looking up at ahsoka.

The clone handed him back his papers "I'm afraid no one is allowed back here, Senator. Imperial orders."

"Forgive me. It's easy to get lost with all that has happened. My wife and I have been blessed with a baby girl, I thought I'd see the signs sooner but… it just happened." Bail said, ahsoka senses he was lying but for what reason?

The clones looked at one another neither man any idea what to say "Thaaaaats very nice but-" "It's a precious thing a newborn, it can be frightening, terrifying for an unprepared parent. Still, we have a duty. Don't we? An obligation to uphold, when we're able." He said speaking to the clones and ahsoka who held onto her stomach her heart racing.

The clone looked at his brother and he shrugged "We'll have to escort you back to the procession, Senator."

"I understand and if you should ever need anything, please contact me." Bail said as he was led away and Ahsoka made her way back to her ship. She left Theed behind making her way to the lower wetlands where the river entered the jungle, there the Silver Angel sat with Turok and Rex standing guard.

Ahsoka approached them before she stopped short and collapsed onto her knees "Commander!" Rex came running as did everyone else to see Ahsoka was crying. Rex picked her up into a kneeling position.

"Get the medpack she's hurt." Rex called and Trace ran back to the ship.

She grabbed his arm "Rex I'm not hurt I'm…" she grabbed her stomach and held it tight, Rex looked at her down at her stomach and then the look in her eye, the terror the joy, it was a storm of emotions on her face.

ARCADIA

Bastion Temple, home of the New Jedi Order

ONE DAY AFTER MALACHOR

Ahkilleon laid there on the medical table, Turok sat in the corner as a white robe Jedi healed and a Jedi medical droid stood over him, he winced from what they were doing to his left arm. He looked up at the ceiling and tensed before they stepped away "It's done." Sitting up Ahkilleon sat up and in place of the arm he lost Ahkilleon had a mechanical arm. The arm was shaped to resembled a toned human forearm with a hand attached and four fingers and a thumb, it moved flawlessly and was made of metal alloy with openings in it where he could see the hydraulics move the same way muscles moved.

"It'll take a few weeks to get use to the arm. Take it slow." The doctor ordered as Ahkilleon crushed the metal hand into a fist. He got up and looked to the doorway of the medical room and saw Lord Asimov standing there.

TWO DAYS AFTER MALACHOR

Ahkilleon was standing in an open yard with a towering harch before him, reddish brown fur linned his coat and his six arms all held training swords, kendo's. There were other students there watching all of them dressed like Ahkilleon in a gray or brown tunic with long sleeves, Ahkilleon wore a faded blue Jedi robe unlike the old republic robes that had the tunic vest the New Jedi robes were more common a simple set of travel garments with a high collar and leather boots or shoes. The harch attacked and Ahkilleon blocked the first five swings with his stick and his new mechano arm before the harch overwhelmed him and knocked his weapon from his hands and the boy to the ground to some of the students.

At his next lesson Ahkilleon was sitting in a classroom, the walls and floors were smoother over stone and had wooden floors, the students all sat in rows of an elevated floor that went higher up as it went back. A few other Jedi younglings starred at the new boy, Ahkilleon listened to the lesson done by Master Chase Piru, a dark skinned human woman with brown hair and a great robe.

Another day he was training with other Jedi meditating, in a garden with his class when they saw a ship fly overhead. Later a group of medical Jedi were rushing with stretchers carrying wounded Jedi. These Jedi wore armor on their shoulders and among them dressed in militia armor and fatigues was Turok. He looked at Ahkilleon and glared at him to resume his training.

Later at mid day he was inside a large mess hall. Long tables where Jedi sat together with food and drinks were all chatting, he saw the table of students he often trained with but chose to sit alone.

That afternoon in the temple courtyard a crowd of Jedi were assembled, padawans, knights and even some masters. Ahkilleon sat on the outskirts watching two Jedi square off against one another. One was a burly weequay and the other a younger Jedi, his hair a mess of thick locks and a padawan braid, he wore a short sleeved robe and wore no lightsaber. He bore a yellow kiffu stripe across his nose and cheeks but his eyes were a pale blue and his skin light. The two jedi raised their arms and touched at the wrist the other hand drawn back like they were about to punch one another. Thrusting each hand forward they pushed the force off of one another a space between their hands holding a contest of force pushes and power. The crowd cheered at the contest and Ahkilleon felt the force powers challenging another till the weequay was blown back and the kiffar boy raised his arms above his head in triumph laughing as people came up and congratulated him.

That afternoon he walked back to his dorm, he reached for the door opening it before he saw Turok's hand shut the door wearing a large duffel bag on his back. Gesturing with his head to follow, Ahkilleon did so following Turok out of the Temple and into the thick forested mountains so Arcadia. At the gate of a small wall outside the temple ground were a field of rocks. The trandoshan made him stop and pointed at his boots gesturing for him to take them off. Ahkilleon gawked at him for a second and then he took them off. Turok scooped up the boots and walked with the boy following closely. They hiked up the mountains till they found a secluded glade surrounded by trees. Turok dropped the bag and Ahkilleon the rock before he sat down exhausted. Turok opened the bag fetching something out and he walked over to the boy kicking him. Looking up Ahkilleon saw Turok holding a set of weights. They were fastened to Ahkilleon's ankles and wrists and then he pushed a wooden handle axe into Ahkilleon's hands next. Pointing next to one of the large straight trees. Sighing Ahkilleon walked over to the tree and began to hack at it into the late afternoon. When the tree finally fell, Ahkilleon was sweating but then Turok came up with a rope and tied it around Ahkilleon back with loops through each arm. It and Turok gestured him to follow, Ahkilleon looked back at the log he was attached to and Turoks back going higher up the wooded mountains and Ahkilleon then followed pulling the log with him. The lizard and the boy went higher up the mountain following up a babbling brook that became a stream that led to a waterfall sounded by many dark stones. Turok dropped the pack and Ahkilleon the ropes on his shoulders his back red from the pull and muscles aching as the sun set. Turok reached into the bag and pulled out a long handled hammer before he gave it to Ahkilleon and pointed to the large boulders that lay on the edge of the waterfalls banks. Some as big as his head more bigger then a tank. Ahkilleon got up feet sore and cut from the tough terrain hands blistered and began to smash the rocks with the hammer into the night. Till finally the moon was overhead and Ahkilleon had passed out from exhaustion.

Turok covered the boy in a blanket and picked him up carrying him back to Bastion Temple.

ONE MONTH AFTER MALACHOR

Ahkilleon faced off against the harch Jedi master again in front of the students, Asimov stood up on a walkway with K'Kruhk and some other Jedi watching. Ahkilleon attacked and like the Jedi before him his blue and white hair had grown more and he'd done up a strand of it in a padawan braid. The harch hadn't let up his strikes till his smacked Ahkilleon across the face and into the dirt of the training yard. Ahkilleon got back up instantly and attacked again but was overconfident and was beaten in only a few short moves, but still he got up for another round. The harch attacked him with a flurry of strikes Ahkilleon blocked all of them but didn't focus on his footing and was knocked down and then knocked out.

Later at the fallow up lesson the younglings and Ahkilleon were practicing with large metal puzzle locked into one another. They were using the force to unlock each section of the puzzle move one piece incorrectly and it would stop the process. Ahkilleon was focusing on a difficult one and did so under the watchful eye of Master K'Kruhk.

Eventually Ahkilleon was inside a large library with towering data storage walls like books. He had a dozen of them on a table in the middle of the library looking at data pads of Jedi from the past. Specifically one Jedi leading white armored republicans troops she had black hair and wielded a double bladed blue lightsaber she wore light armor and a sleeveless leather traveling tunic. Reading the holopad he saw the had numerous accommodations and military awards.

By the time lunch had rolled around Ahkilleon still sat alone, at the doorway looking in on them. K'Kruhk and Asimov stood with Turok, they looked at one another as if there was a problem but said nothing. The other younglings of his class were watching him and one of them a nautolian with grey skin and black eyes use the force to make a paper starfighter fly over and hit Ahkilleon in the back of the head. Ahkilleon looked back and the other younglings laughed and made faces at him to get a reaction. But Ahkilleon turned around and didn't react. The younglings scoffed at him and returned to see their food trays gone and above their heads before falling down on their heads the whole cafeteria erupting in laughter. Ahkilleon smirked as the younglings cleaned themselves Ahkilleon looked over to Turok who shook his head.

Following it, Ahkilleon was in the courtyard another force contest had concluded the young kiffar padawan had won again. Ahkilleon walked forward and held his arm up to signal his challenge. Majority of the older Padawans and knights snickered or laughed at his challenge. The kiffar boy had a smirk and shrugged before he held his arm up accepting the challenge. Lord Asimov watched from the shadows as the two boys used the force to push off one another's hands and when the New Jedi saw Ahkilleon was holding his own some started to hollar and cheer for the Kiffar Padawan to win. For a second the kiffar looked like he was about to falter and Ahkilleon smiled. Then the kiffar winked and Ahkilleon was blasted with a force cannon that sent him flying into the mud. The other Jedi all shrugged and dismissed him as an upstart kid who got lucky and patted the kiffar boy on the back for his victory. Ahkilleon spat out mud and dusted himself off when he saw a hand. Ahkilleon looked up to see the kiffar boy holding his hand down to him, Ahkilleon took it and he was helped up by the boy who nodded. He hadn't won the contest but he had won the Kiffars respect.

Later that afternoon like so many times before Ahkilleon was with Turok, they would chop down the tree and drag it up the mountain to the falls. Ahkilleon would hammer boulders down to gravel as Turok fished in the waters for their dinner. And with every tree Ahkilleon felled and every stone he shattered Ahkilleon's muscles were stretched and he grew stronger. He smashed a large rock with a yell and it cracked into two as night fell and in it Ahkilleon saw embedded into the rock was a kyber dropped to his knees and Turok ran over after catching a fish to see the boy holding the crystal the start of a new blade.

TWO MONTHS AFTER MALACHOR

Returning to the morning lesson, Ahkilleon had started to out grow his blue robes he had rolled up the sleeves and his muscular right forearm had started to catch up to his mechano arm. He had is white and blue hair pulled back into a sprout with his braid loose around his neck, the reddish brown harch stood there not holding training sword. Instead he held six lights are three blue and their green one in each hand. Ahkilleon reached for his belt and drew a new lightsaber. It was a slightly curved blade like his old one it had two diamonds carved into its main hilt, the but had an indent to it and switches up near the middle their was no guard on the emitters and when he turned it on the blade was blue. Ahkilleon advanced on the harch and met him the sparring match, Ahkilleon's lightsaber bounced off the harch and couldn't get through but Ahkilleon wasn't faltering this time and holding his own. Until the arachnid battlemaster struck from all sides with his six arms Ahkilleon jumped into the air avoiding the blow and brought his lightsaber down on a six arm blade lock. The battlemaster unlocked the blade and let Ahkilleon fall forward into a head butt going down. He had a big bruise on his head but he sprang back up to continue his training.

At his force training Ahkilleon was looking at another puzzle moving the parts to unlock it as he stood their hands upside down in a handstand. Even with the blood rushing to his head he was focusing on the puzzle. Across from them Lord Asimov wearing fur lined caps stood watching with K'Kruhk and a group of other Masters, Asimov waited and then the Jedi Masters shook their heads.

Later Ahkilleon was walking out of one of his classes alone, he turned from the other younglings when he saw Admiral Trench walking down the halls toward him. Ahkilleon smiled and ran to the old spider and hugged him. The cyborg embraced him and the two began to walk and talk. Eventually the two of them found a secluded garden in Bastion Temple to play a holographic game of Fleets & Fightets. The program appeared where Trench was playing as an imperial fleet and a new set of ships was there Militia ships.

Later at the lunch room the kiffar boy sat down across from Ahkilleon who had been eating alone, when he sat down the two of them were looking at one another. And then the kiffar boy waved over to someone from the table his own clan sat at. Among them a girl close to Ahkilleon's age, she had fair skin with full lips a straight nose thick brows but no hair on her scalp, she had two kiffar stripes running down each end of her lips and she sat down next to them. It clear to see the two of them were siblings and now friends.

That evening as Ahkilleon and Turok were making their way up the mountain, Ahkilleon was no longer crawling with the log he was up right hands on the ropes pulling it when he stopped seeing what he thought was a shadow moving. In the woods Ahkilleon reached for his lightsaber but a Turok shook his head and the woman was gone. Ahkilleon carried the log up the mountain and to the quarry and falls, there he saw a shuttle was there. Admiral Trench was already sitting by a fire cooking some fish and smiled when they approached, Ahkilleon approached the spider but Turok pointed him to the rocks and the hammer to continue the training.

4 MONTHS AFTER MALACHOR

Ahkilleon waited as other young Jedi spared with the harch Jedi, they all had their lightsabers and Ahkilleon paced waiting for his turn, his hair had grown more and he now had a short pony tail added to the white and blue locks. His forearms were thick and lean and he wore wrappings around his palms and wrists from hours of swinging the axe and hammer. When it was his turn he approached the Harch but someone grabbed his arm Ahkilleon turned around and saw Lord Asimov standing over him. He let go and walked away and Ahkilleon followed. They left the lesson behind and Ahkilleon followed the Warlord to a part of the temple he'd never been. There were few windows there and fewer Jedi walking these parts of the Temple. Asimov opened a large door where a stone chamber was inside there he heard the sounds of combat dark robes Jedi Knights were inside one of them was standing in front of a training dummy. Ahkilleon watched the dummy fly toward the Jedi and they held their hand out a bolt of force lightening shot out and hit the dummy right in the chest. The Master in the room, was a familiar face Asajj Ventress. She approached the young knight and patted him on the back but when when she saw Asimov with Ahkilleon she frowned shaking her head. The two starred at one another and Asimov stopped Ahkilleon before he left insisting on the training.

Pulling away Ahkilleon left the dark chamber and returned to his other lessons, his studies took him to the medical quarter of the temple, a Jedi master in white robes with long branch like hair was standing over a wounded animal, it appeared to be a green colored fox with three legs it had a gash running alongside its hip. Among the other students there was the bald girl the kiffar boy had introduced them to. Ahkilleon hadn't noticed her before until now. The tree like woman held her hands over the wounded animal covering the wound and the whole class felt the force flow into the fox. When the woman removed her hand the wound was gone and a scar had formed. The fox sat up and hopped off the table running out of the room. The whole class applauded for the woman and she smiled when she saw Ahkilleon's face her eyes were warm but well sad like she new something he didn't.

Later, Ahkilleon was working in what looked like a garage and a hanger all in one, a familiar face was their instructor, the Jedi pilot Ganodi, the rodian woman was in front of the students who all had an individual starfighter in front of them. All the other students seemed to be struggling at fitting the right parts to the engines and ship but Ahkilleon was ahead of them all he was splicing his engine into the ship or attaching a wing. The bald girl attempted to use the force to connect the parts and it moved slowly but it was working, Ahkilleon however was moving parts in and out with his hands getting covered in grease before he closed the hatch. Hopping in the starship he turned it on before he started it up and flew out the hangar. Ahkilleon had a smile on his face as he flew out the wind in his hair the joy of flying a ship after months of being on the ground to fly again made him feel free but he remembered flying with Phoenix Squadron, he flew up above the clouds and saw a rainbow, and the smile was gone.

That afternoon he tried his luck at the Force Contest against the kiffar boy, Ahkilleon's height had started to catch up with the other boy. They faced off did the formal wrist against wrist and began. This time though a gust of a wind blew past the other Jedi watching and Ahkilleon held his own. The kiffar boy gritted out a smirk before Ahkilleon's arm fell back and he was knocked down the other boy still the Victor. Ahkilleon slammed his fist into the ground and sat up angry to see the other boy hand still there to help him

Up. Taking it Ahkilleon nodded conceding defeat with what little dignity he had left and went to leave.

But the kiffar boy stopped him, he gestured for him to follow and Ahkilleon thought about missing the evening with Turok. And he followed the other Jedi anyway, they walked out of bastion temple down a road with lamps leading down the mountain into a valley. There Ahkilleon saw less than fifty small buildings huddled in the center of the valley by a river running through it. The buildings were all made in the traditional outer rim dome style with a mix of metal, wood and stone built in around them. Majority of them were houses all next to one another. But what caught him off guard were all the Jedi walking around the town, he saw them going into the houses and coming out some where his age, others were older or younger. The kiffar boy led Ahkilleon to a house at the end of the street and he saw a large house with a gold star painted on the door, a clan symbol. The door opened and a man walked out dressed in loose gray robe and brown pants, he had a trimmed goatee and long thick black locks that had started to turn gray. It didn't take long to see the man's face in the kiffar boys or how they both wore the yellow stripe across their face. Ahkilleon approached and bowed before the man laughed and picked up Ahkilleon in a bear hug despite the gray the man hugged Ahkilleon so hard he felt his joints pop. Beckoning the boy inside Ahkilleon came into see a table set for dinner, the bald girl was there so was a third child a young little girl with curly white hair and fair skinned she had a stripe on her nose like her father and brother it brown eyes like her brother. Then Ahkilleon saw coming out of the back room was Asajj. Putting two and two together Ahkilleon saw this was her home, her family. She shot daggers at her son, the Kiffar boy who shrugged before Asajj walked out. The man who could be none other than Jedi Master Quinlan Vos followed her. Ahkilleon's presence offsetting what was going to be a family dinner. Sighing Ahkilleon new all go well what she was angry at and turned to leave. The kiffar boy, Corto tried to stop him but Ahkilleon walked past him to see Turok outside waiting.

It only gets harder.

SIX MONTHS AFTER MALACHOR

The training with the New Jedi continued, Ahkilleon was now sparring with the other young Jedi, he was facing down two of his class at once a quarren with blue skin wearing a gray robe and a human woman with a dark brown robe that covered hers tire body. Ahkilleon deflected their attacks easy and moved out of the way of a sneak attack by another Jedi learned a weequay girl ran at him and he spun around kicking her square in the chest and knocking them down. Ahkilleon twirled his single blade and laughed confident looking at the bested students. Then he poked the harch instructor who shook his shaggy furred head and the other students got up not looking at him.

Later at one of his lessons Ahkilleon was using the force to disassemble a B2 battle droid. All of its screws, wires, interlocking pieces from gears to gyros and computer chips and then crush it into wreckage, he dropped the shattered pieces in front of the other Jedi and they just glared at him.

When it was time for lunch, Ahkilleon was about to sit down with Corto but, the Vos boy led him over to another table where older padawans sat, when they saw Corto they treated him warmly but when they noticed the other boy everyone just stared at him like he was out of place. Seeing he wasn't welcome Ahkilleon went back to sit alone.

Then came time for another round of Force Contest, Ahkilleon stood off against Corto and the circle of other new Jedi gathered around watching, they pressed wrists against one another and shoved their hands forward in a force push. Everyone cheered on Corto and booed at Ahkilleon. While Corto kept his eyes on Ahkilleon keeping it a friendly match Ahkilleon's eyes burned with intensity and he focused on every ounce of his force before Ahkilleon unleashed his power sending Corto off his feet and into the air falling into the other Jedi. Ahkilleon let out a victorious yell fists clenched tightly arms flexed as he yelled looking at the crowd expecting them to cheer but if anything they were more disappointed he was the winner and did nothing but disperse dismissing his victory. Seeing there was no one there to welcome him the only ones in the courtyard were the Jedi checking to see if Corto was alright. Ahkilleon walked over to help him up like he had but Corto was already getting up he wobbled a bit having hit his head a bit hard. The other Jedi especially his sister Yumi shot him a nasty look. Ahkilleon looked somewhat hurt and ashamed till he glared right back at her before storming off.

The sun was near setting and an orange hue cut through the trees, Ahkilleon hammered at the rocks, gone was the skinny boy from before. He was taller now sweat rolled down his face his white togrutan birthmarks had grown more and he bore them on his shoulders as well to opposite L's facing one another, his white and blue locks had grown down past his shoulders, he fastened his hair back into a bun but still regained a healthy flow. He wore No tunic as he had been working for hours outside hammering the rocks, his shoulders were broad and his back now strong with arms almost thick as the trees he'd felled and there had been many because they were now mixed together with the rocks in a cabin he smashed down the hammer again thinking of the glares from the other jedi, the head shakes of the Masters.

Wasn't he doing everything right, he struck a large boulder hard leaving a scrap on it.

Wasn't he training hard, he hit the boulder again.

Ahkilleon, he was pushing himself, disciplining his mind, following their instructions. Again and again and again he hit the boulder harder and harder taking his frustration out on the rock.

And they didn't show any signs of approval or admiration for everything he was doing he smashed the hammer into the boulder breaking it. "Turok…" he dropped the hammer and looked over at Turok who was over by a fire pit that had been constructed using the stones from the quarry.

He was roasting a set of fish on it, Turok had his duster laying down on a wooden bench next to it also made from the rocks and lumber, the trandoshan looked up after sprinkling some seasoning on the fish "I've been doing this for almost six months now, and for six months I've been training…. When am I going to get to the front?"

Turok leaned in his chair. He was wearing no boots as the Trandoshans feet were tough from decades of walking bootless. Instead he wore a fitted uniform of a Militia officer, it was a mix of grey, green and brown. Over his torso he wore a fatigue jacket with greenish brown over the main body a grey mesh stitched in under the arm pits and sides and around the elbows, the pants were cuffed at the knees for the lizard and he had an insignia on his chest, five single edge blades on the shape of a Star. A militia revolver blaster was strapped to his hip "You know the rules lad, no minors in combat, what are you coming up on sixteen, one more year."

"The war could be over by then." Ahkilleon said walking up his chest sweaty, it had grown like the rest of him but he was still bulked up.

Turok muttered "If only, but it won't, the Empire has started to push back on the worlds we captured, come on I'll show you the latest reports."

Ahkilleon tossed on his blue robe tunic leaving it open as Turok took out a holodevice and set it down showing a holomap, it along with the fire and blue hue of the map. The galactic map was set up flat with red for the Empire and blue for the Militia, the Imperial shield over the red and Militia wreathed hexagon on the blue. Majority of the map was in red at the center and mid section, "Core and Mid worlds are nothing new, Empire still owns all that but there have been some changes to the Rim."

Turok's metal claw pointed to the line of red and blue at the border of the Mid Rim, "The borderland regions are still hotly contested, we took the western reach and corporate sectors at the start of the invasion, there are so many former separatists there they practically invited us. So still no chance of the Empire flanking us, Admiral Trench has started the annexation of Hutt Space." Turok pointed to the south east of the galactic map where a green patch was now cut in half and absorbed by the blue part.

Ahkilleon smirked seeing the new border stop just short of the Nal Hutts system "Bet the slugs didn't like that?"

"Nope, but no mercenary army is going to stand up against a trillion battle droids." Turok said gesturing back to the Militia center.

"The Foundry worlds like Raxus and Selucami are facing threats from an Imperial invasion but Lord Asimov has been keeping them busy in the borderlands and his campaign Charros has hit a snag if reports are correct, they've sent in an Old Republic general turned Moff to face him."

Ahkilleon looked over the map analyzing it "And Caliban?"

"That cyborg left for Chiss Space a month ago." Turok told him.

Ahkilleon drummed his fingers on his mechano arm "Think they'll join us?"

"Of course not the Chiss Ascendancy haven't sided in a war since the Great Galatia War and even then they were dodgey at best." Turok said turning off the map.

Ahkilleon rubbed his hands, "How about Lothal?" He asked.

Turok folded his arms and breathed out his nose "Lord Bloodwolf has finished cleaning up the wreckage from the battle, the moon there is producing forth five percent of all battle droids for the militia and he's refused to come to Arcadia for the fourth time."

"And the people?" Ahkilleon asked him.

Turok pressed his lips together, "Not use to being in a wartime system, food and medicine are still arriving but rumors are the Wolves are showing favoritism to anyone who has a family members who enlist or serve the new regime."

"How's this any different from the Empire?" Ahkilleon asked.

"For starters they aren't rounding people up, or burning villages in fact Lord Bloodwolf has majority of his droids working night and day to rebuild the capital and any other town that was damaged, the extra ones are building roads, aqueducts and so on. Let's change the subject are your lessons going well?"

Ahkilleon frowned "Yes… and no, my training feels to easy sometimes."

"Take it the new arm is working out?" Turok asked.

The teenager held up his metal arm "Sometimes I still feel my old arm, like it's not metal."

"It happens, what shoot the other Jedi you getting along with them?" Turok asked.

Ahkilleon was silent, he looked away "They don't like me." Ahkilleon said back, Turok scratched his leathery scaled jaw "They don't like me cause I'm better, I'm stronger, I actually know how to hold a lightsaber how to fix a ship and fly it…" Ahkilleon picked up. Few rocks and fumbled them in his hand "I thought I was done with that shit!" He flung the rock away into the darkness of the woods.

"Most of them didn't have a mother like yours or people like me to teach you how to do all that stuff, most of the Jedi were just about your age when they survived the purge, others are just kids, runaways people who got lucky to get away from the Inquisitors they haven't faced what you have, the real galaxy." Turok told them.

"They're afraid of me." Ahkilleon muttered fists clenched.

Turok looked at his hands "… do you want them to be?"

Ahkilleon sighed and unfurled them "No, I want… doesn't matter, I'm heading back to the Temple." Ahkilleon fastened his robe over his chest and walked away from the fire. Turok let him go and light his pipe as Ahkilleon walked through the woods alone. The moon shown down on him and he stepped down a trail that Turok and him had made with the logs being dragged up the mountain for six months. He passed over a stream that was part of the river before he entered into a clearing and stopped. "A deaf Gamorean could hear you, come out."

Emerging from behind some trees were four of his classmates, the blue skinned Quarren, the veiled girl in brown robes, the weequay girl in beige robes and then the bald sister of Corto, Yumi.

Yumi wore a pale gray robe with long sleeved yellowish brown tunic underneath and matching pants, her boots were black and went up to her knees. At her hip she had a curved lightsaber and glared at him with her pale eyes. "Yumi." Ahkilleon said.

He poked to the blue quarren male, who was taller then all of them dressed in a pale coral colored tunic with the sleeves rolled up and leather bracers he had dark black pants on and was holding his lightsaber hilt in one hand. "Kragger."

Next he acknowledged the veiled girl, she was the tallest girl and her brown robes had a veil attached to them to hide her face except for a slit in the head piece showing dark brown eyes. Her robes were long and went down to her ankles and she had baggy sleeves hiding her figure in one brown mass, "Fatima."

The last one a slender weequay girl with thick braids, dressed in a pale beige robe and pants, a leather braced around her waist like armor had her hand at her hip over her lightsaber "Urrde, nice night for a walk eh?"

Yumi clocked her tongue, "You're going to pay for what you did to my brother, Ahkii."

Folding his arms on his chest "Your brother is fine, and Ahkii really that's the best you can come up with?" He taunted her attempt to insult him. He sensed Urrde and Kraggen moving behind him over the dead leaves and branches cracking behind him.

"It's not just that you arrogant, bastard you think you can just come here and show off like you're something special." Ahkilleon saw yumi raise an accusing finger.

He glared at her then shadows of night hiding his eyes "…. Can we not do this, I'm not in the mood."

"Get in the mood pooser." Kraggen snapped drawing his lightsaber a bright green blade emerging from lightsaber. It was a longer design due to his size, looking like a long pile with joints attached to it and studs at the hilt, the emitter had three prongs around it like a triton.

"I'm warning you Kraggen, all of you I will defend myself." Ahkilleon told him.

Urrde and Fatima turned on their blades the bright blue from Fatima and another green appeared from Urrde. Fatima's lightsaber was wrapped up in thick cloth with some beads attached to it, most of the body hidden under the cloth like its owner. Urrde's was slender like her lined with a leather grip and dark brass colored metal. "All of you."

Yumi snickered "Oh don't worry this won't be like Master Stormblades class." She said turning on her urged lightsaber hilt, it was an emitter attached to a lightsaber that had a spiral hilt made to keep it firmly in the wearers grip. It wasn't as curved as Ahkilleon's lightsaber that had only a slight arch in the hilt but Ahkilleon never reached his.

"Right, because I won't be holding back." Ahkilleon said.

"Cocky bastard!" Kraggen attacked first rushing him from behind, it looked like the lightsaber was going to cut him in hand but Ahkilleon dodged him and scooped up a handful of dirt throwing it in his face. Kraggen yelled more of of anger than pain.

The girls attacked him all at once, "Don't worry we lowered the intensity we wouldn't want you to have another accident, Ahkki." Yumi hissed swiping at him, Ahkilleon dropped to the ground rolled out and jumped up licking at Fatima. Urrde swung her lowered intensity blade at his leg but he twisted and pushed her away with the force. Landing up Yumi's blade came the closet and he dodged left, right, ducking before he drew back his metal hand into a fist and drove it forward at Yumi, the blow with his speed and the mechano hand would have shattered her nose but he halted at the last second. Yumis face went pale then she already was and he flicked her in the nose so far she staggered back flustered "Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!"

Ahkilleon looked at the three of them and folded his arms, "We done?" He asked annoyed and not even tired.

The four of them recovered, getting up "Not even close." Fatima snapped behind her veil she jumped up and swung the lightsaber at him, he force pushed her away like swatting a fly and Urrde grabbed a large set of rocks and flung them at Ahkilleon. He dodged the rocks snatching the smallest stone from the rocks and flung it at Kraggen hitting him right between the eyes stunning him "Kark- not again!" Kraggen said swinging his green lightsaber wildly. Yumi went on another offensive using her single handed style like a rapier to try and hit Ahkilleon "Stop insulting us and draw your lightsaber coward."

"Sneaking up on someone in the dark, badly I might add, to ambush him four on one and I'm the coward, you're insulting yourselves Yumi." Ahkilleon said flipping away from her landing gracefully. Across from them, he landed on a boulder and into a squat before he sat down picking a tall blade of grass sticking it in his mouth winking at her.

Yumi's face turned red with frustration, "Now do you want to go home and we forget about this, or do I need to start taking this seriously?" He asked her "Bald Bitch?"

"Oh you better, I'm going to show you just how much of a bitch I can be!" She screamed Ahkilleon let her come at him and when she swung he slid off the rock and backed away as she kept swinging. Fatima came from the left and Kraggen the right, the white haired boy ran forward and slid between Yumi's legs grabbing her ankle so she ate dirt. Coming up he launched himself at Urrde. The weequay Jedi swung up on his lightsaber kissing Ahkilleon by an inch, he grabbed her braids and yanked them making her fall backwards. When Ahkilleon landed Fatima outflanked him, whirling around he caught her lightsaber with his mechano arm and squeezed making her drop it, then he pulled her forward and bent her arm at an awkward angle making her yelp "Fatima!" Kraggen roared charging Ahkilleon. Seeing him coming a mile away Ahkilleon let go of Fatima's arm and pushed her into Kraggen the two of them colliding. Tumbling forward in a tangle Kraggen held his lightsaber arm out to avoid striking Fatima as they fumbled toward a towering tree. Ahkilleon saw Kraggens lightsaber slash right through the trunk and the smell of burning wood followed the creaking cracks of the tree. After months of chopping trees down Ahkilleon new the sound of when a tree was going to fall, and where.

The four bullies looked up to see the trees lead covered top start to blot put the moon and cast its shadow on all four of them to crush the new Jedi revenge for Kraggens accidental slash. In seconds the felled oak was speeding toward them before it stopped a foot above Yumi's flicked nose. To their left Ahkilleon had both hands out stretched he lifted the tree with invisible ropes of the force and pushed it away from all four of the Jedi before letting go. He breathed heavily out of his nose for a few seconds then exhaled dropping his arms and relaxing his shoulders. Urrde, Kraggen, Fatima and Yumi were starring back at Ahkilleon. He spat out at the dirt and turned away "I'm going to bed."

THE NEXT MORNING

Ahkilleon awoke in his dorm room, it was a small cot of a room with a single window covered by curtains the walls were stone the floor was covered in a mat that went over almost the entire layout. A bed roll was on the floor that was thick with cushion and a pillow with a blanket. There was a hamper in the corner by the door a small low table under the window where his lightsaber sat on the mantle. He sat up pushing the blanket off and walked over to the wall and pressed a hand on it the stone slid open revealing a fresher that he stepped into so he could shower. Afterwards got dressed in his blue robe and a pair of grey pants, grabbing some cloth shoes and walked out of the dorm with his lightsaber.

As walked through the dorms he noticed the looks from the other Jedi, no doubt one of the four who ambushed him last night had blabbed to some one. What happened last night would spread quickly from word of mouth so he ignored it. Ahkilleon walked his way to his first morning lesson held in a large circular chamber with an open skylight allowing morning air to fill the chamber. It was a circular roll with large windows standing tall to the ceiling that had blinds on them letting in enough light but not blinding. The floor was a cushioned matt and all the Jedi already there had their shoes and boots off, Ahkilleon did the same. He noticed Yumi and her underlings on the other side of the room leering at him before they saw him notice, the other three looked away but not Yumi.

There's were another eight students in the room, majority of them alien, with the exception of only one human and Yumi, and Ahkilleon a hybrid. At the center of the room stood the instructor a large red dirt colored Harch with darker brick colored marking running up and down his fur. He had deep blue eyes all six of them and his six arms were musclar and large like himself standing over the young Jedi at an imposing 6'6, he wore No sleeves over his robes but had leather bracers on each forearm and an additonal leather hand on each shaggy arm. His chest was covered by a thick beige tunic with an orange and green silk sash over his right shoulder wrapped around his waist and fell down to his waist. Which had six identical lightsabers clipped to his thick leather belt. No shoes on ere worn on the harches feet as his kind rarely needed them. "Good morning click-click students, I trust you all slept well." He clicked out to them as they gathered around.

"Good morning Master Stormblade." The class greeted him with half yawns and droopy eyes.

The spider was wide awake compared to them "You should wake up click click click, there is a special test today click, yes very special click click." He folder his upper arms and placed his lower arms on his hips as the middle pointed to them one waving his hand. The floor opened and half a dozen training remotes floated up, "The Council wishes to see your progress click click click in defending yourself against blaster fire click click".

The door to the chamber opened and five Jedi walked in, leading them was Grand Master K'Kruhk the grey haired whipid wearing a straw hat walking with a wooden cane dressed in beige garments with a brown robe, a traditional Jedi apparel. Following him was a woman in white, she was a neti a plant like species with greenish brown skin no nose full lips vine colored eyes with branch like tendrils for hair. Another younger woman a female zabrak entered, dressed in black leather robes, she had on more of a black leathercoat than a robe with a hood. Her skin was pale as snow with black lips. Black hair tied back in braids which was common for the New Hedi, a crown of red horns atop her head. She wore a tube top over her upper chest and looked disinterested in the whole affair. The last Jedi to enter was a tall statuesque man his hair whats white but he still appeared youthful he wore a strong jaw, green eyes fair skinned like Ahkilleon. He wore a high collared teal raiment with the old Jedi order Sicilian sown in on the sleeves, a lightsaber at his belt. Master Stormblade bowed to all of them "Masters K'Kruhk, Saa, Brood click click click and Jennir welcome you honor us with your presence, click click click." All the younglings bowed but Ahkilleon didn't he looked over at the man with white hair and froze before he bowed to them out of protocol not respect.

Master K'Kruhk raised his cane and stomped it bidding them to rise, "As you know, we are only here because of the alliance between the Council and the Militia, the galaxy is still a very dark and cruel place and Jedi are not always welcome. Therefore this test is to see if your years of training and skill have honed you to be ready should you confront those who wish to do you harm."

"Training remotes heheh?" Kraggen chuckled "Uh Master how does this cause us harm?" He stopped himself seeing he was being rude.

Master Brood smirked, "Becuase sometimes an angry mob with blasters gets lucky or you're hunted down like a dog by imperial troops, and your corpse gets dragged through the streets." She said darkly.

"Thank you for that… vivid smile example Maris." Saa said stepping forward "Should you fail to de-escalate the situation, and violence is inevitable you must defend yourselves." She said as the remotes began to circle one the younglings some of them reached for their lightsabers but Ahkilleon didn't move. He new what this test was, his lip slightly curled and he forced it back down.

"As you know, the Militia is at war against the The Galactic Empire and many brave soldiers are giving everything they have so that we may live in peace, Master Saa has instructed you all in the healing arts?" Master K'Kruhk asked everyone nodded. "It is for that reason Lord Asimov has requested Jedi healers be brought to the front on Selucami as Empire has launched a large scale assault on his command, let me be perfectly clear you are to be medical aid only, and will he chaperoned by a Knight and by no means allowed to enter combat." Maste K'Kruhk's tone was sharp and fierce. "That said, should the worse come to happen and you have no choice, we must know you are prepared to defend yourself."

"Master Stormblade these are your students. You may conduct the test in whatever order you see fit." Master K'Kruhk said.

Stormblade nodded "Kraggen as you thought the droids were so funny you will go first, click click click these will be low intensity bolts it won't kill you click click but you won't forget it, and to make things click click interesting, the safety shield will shrink in on you as time runs out." The harch said, all the Jedi moved to the outer part of the ring as Kraggen stepped into the middle the remotes hovering around him floating around. "You will have three minutes click click click and three penalties for each time you get hit. Click click click the third one will mean you fail…. Click click begin!" The remotes broke off from their halo surrounding Kraggen and then a shield appeared inside the circle room to protect the class and masters from stray bolts.

Kraggen deflected a dozen or so before he got hit in the leg and grabbed it snapping "Ow-" another one hit him and that sent him down and he got zapped a third time before the test ended with a fail.

"Fail, next click click." Master Stormblade barked all six arms crossed in disappointment. Three of the other students went next and some lasted a bit longer then Kraggen one even got to two minutes only getting hit twice before the third laser came from directly above zapping them, the last one got hit twice. Urrde managed to almost get to three minutes till the third laser hit her from the shield shrinking in on her so she didn't have anywhere to move and she groaned out gritted teeth her thick leathery weequay hide protecting her from laser bolts. Fatima was up next and managed to get hit only twice before she concluded her test as the first to pass when the shield bottle necked "Well done Fatima, click click pass." Stormblade told her.

Kraggen and Urrde cheered her on and then the rest of the class went, three more fails and two more passes, till it was just Yumi and Ahkilleon left, "Vos, click click click let's see what you got." Master Stormblade said said. Yumi walked out into the center of the room and stood tall bowing to the masters for good measure, Ahkilleon rolled his eyes as the test began. Yumi held out her lightsaber with one hand and the other remained free, she deflected the first dozen shots and dodged any that got close to her. Urrde, Fatima and Kraggen cheered her on past the first minute ask where most of the students got hit the first time. The remotes started to move faster and the lasers got more accurate. As the shield shrunk around she Yumi used her freehand to push some

Of the remotes away or off balance so their shots missed. When the shield shrunk in around her she hadn't been hit once. All the other students cheered for the young Jedi and Yumi clipped her saber back on her hip smiling unable to hide her own pride, but she bowed respectfully "Well done click click click, well done I would expect nothing less then a perfect score Yumi click click click." Stormblade patted her on the back as she walked back to the adoring fans and her three underlings. The bald girl shot him a smug grin like she was saying 'top that'.

Ahkilleon would be happy to oblige.

"Tano, click click click, you're up." Master Stormblade, Ahkilleon got up rolling his shoulders getting loose.

He took the center of the room and the remotes hovered around him before the shield dropped, Ahkilleon closed his eyes and centered himself when the first remote fired. He drew his lightsaber and deflected the shot back at the remote it bounced away and then the others opened fire. Ahkilleon blocked the attack and then he at the nearest remote Ahkilleon sliced it on half to the surprise of the entire class, Ahkilleon cut the other remotes in half one by one, he cut down five in a row skewered the sixith, crushed three more with the force, cut the eleventh and grabbed the last with the force throwing it on the ground and stabbing down into it all in less than a minute. He turned off his lightsaber and the shield opened up all of the students were wide eyed and slack jawed. Ahkilleon stood up smiling confidently he'd done more than pass the test, the four masters faces were all stone and impossible to decipher but Stormblade frowned shaking his head. Master K'Kruhk stood up and Ahkilleon saw him point his cane "Fail."

"What!" Ahkilleon snapped. The outburst from the boy got the bigger reaction from the other young Jedi.

Master K'Kruhk lowered his cane "The test was to defend yourself, not attack, even after we stated that you are not to enter combat. If you cannot follow the rules of the test how can you follow the instructions in a warzone?"

Ahkilleon heard him and gawked, eyes wide he tilted his head "Maybe because I've actually been in one and I can take care of myself?"

"Then take care of the young one." Master K'Kruhk said. "Overconfidence will be your undoing, return to your quarters you will not attend any other lessons today, those who passed will prepare for the journey to Selucami, and meet Master Uzuma in the Temple hanger to depart. Those who failed will continue their studies here." Master K'Kruhk said dismissing Ahkilleon's outburst and sending him to his room.

The Masters turned to leave and Ahkilleon stood there before he was about to chase after the council. Master Stormblade held out two of his right arms catching him "An angry tiger click click click is easily lured into a trap when provoked." The spider said, Ahkilleon shoved his arms away.

"A galaxy wiping purge and the jedi order still makes rancor shite proverbs." Ahkilleon said, pushing off his arms.

Master Stormblade stood next to him, eyeing him intently with his many blue eyes "This Order, click-click-click is not like the old one click-click-click, I was a member of the service corp before I became Battlemaster, click-click-click you need only prove yourself."

Ahkilleon shook his head "Then what was this?" Ahkilleon asked, kicking one of the broken remotes.

"Disobedience, click-click-click, Master Saa and K'Kruhk are from the old guard click-click-click, they value life above all else, click-click-click especially jedi lives." Stormblade said all six arms behind his back.

"And if those jedi get into a fight with stormtroopers or worse none of them will survive, believe me…" Ahkilleon held up his left mechano arm "I know."

Stormblade squinted, "Which is why click-click-click, you will not be going to Selucami click-click-click, aboard the shuttle that leaves at 1700 hours today click-click-click, aboard a transport that has an access port near the lower click-click-click haul near the engines click-click-click." Stormblade said heading to the exit.

"One does not click-click keep a tiger caged." Stormblade said walking out of the room and Ahkilleon smiled.

Later that evening, the young Jedi who had passed the test were all wearing Jedi Robes approaching a large Militant Ship. The vessel was a military transport ship, the size of a light corvette with five engines in the pack two stacked on one another with one in the center, it was painted with azure blue fringe and the Militia Hex on each side. Formerly the Separatist Hex, the difference being the laurel wreath and crossed blaster x sword beneath it. The young jedi boarded the vessel as Ahkilleon also wearing a jedi robe crouched behind some crates he ran for the shuttles lower access port near the back of the engines. He used the force to undo the hatch and climbed inside as he heard the engines take off from Arcadia. He was inside a cargo hold and saw a small window showing Bastion Temple In the distance as the sun was going down. The temple itself was more of a castle than a holy site. It had high walls around the main keep, with four towers around it and at the center of the peak the Council Tower. Beneath it he saw the small town of Jedieum where the New Jedi's families stayed, and deep in the wooded mountains he saw a fire burning. He new it was Turok who was smoking his pipe "Give'em hell kid, that's where you're going."