The Padawan and the Apprentice: Temmin's Tale
For Temmin Tagge, the past was never far away.
He had left the base behind, left the people there…behind. He had fled after what he had done. Yet even here he could feel shame, and realized that he had failed his master. Proven everyone that said he didn't belong here…had been right.
It was not an easy thing to accept.
The half human/ half Sith pure blood sat upon the plains of the world where Survivor Squad had made their home. He sat before the ruins of a pyre fifteen years past.
He sat, lost in the past, meditating, trying to find his center.
What he found instead…was chaos.
As he breathed in, he heard the voices of those he had known, those that refused to accept him.
Take this creature away, Roxanna. He is no grandchild of mine.
The boy is dangerous, his blood is bound to the dark side.
His father was a traitor to his people. It is only a matter of time until he betrays you too.
The boy will never be a Jedi…I…have foreseen it.
As he breathed out, he reached out through the Force, reached out across the realm of the light and the dark, the two worlds he had been born into.
He heard the voices of those that defended him.
He is MY son. You will not speak to him that way!
You are the blood of Vokai, grandson. You are born to a house of pride and courage.
Your father gave his life to defend those he cared about. That is the essence of the light side, young Temmin.
I will train you, despite what others say. You will be a Jedi. I promise you.
Temmin opened his eyes. He reached out into the Force and called out to the only one that could understand what he was feeling at this moment. As he had done many times in the last five years.
"Father."
"Speak to me."
He looked at the ground before him, the remains of what had once been a funeral pyre. It was here that a young Sith warrior name Temu Vokai, also known as Rhazhar, had been brought after death. It was here that those he had come to call friends had burned his body. Honoring the fallen warrior who had fought with them many times, and in the end gave up his life to save theirs.
Temmin had attended that funeral, technically. His mother, Roxanna Tagge had been there. He had still been growing in her belly at the time, but he had been there.
His mother and grandfather had brought him here for the first time six years ago. Before that, he had lived quietly, under their care.
They had wanted him to know his father, what had happened. What had led him to make the choice he had made.
Everyone who looked at him called him Sith. His dark pink skin, the ridge on his brow, the small tendrils that grew from his cheeks. All these things marked him as being of the old blood.
He was of the Sith race, it was who he was, but not who he wanted to be.
It might have been in his blood, but he had no love for the empire. Why would he?
They took his father away from him, from his mother.
Why should he even think himself like them.
No, the Sith were not his people, regardless of his blood. His mother and grandfather, they were his family…they were his people.
IOI
Roxanna Tagge had been born with brilliance in her blood. Possessing a genius level intelligence, she had earned a doctorate in medicine before most young people knew what they wanted to do with their lives.
Her wealthy family had disowned her for her choices. The House of Tagge was wealthy, owners of a mining company known throughout the Republic. Twice they had cast her out, first for refusing to use her gifts to serve their needs, and again, when she came home with a baby, a child born with Sith blood in his veins.
Temmin.
Roxanna had not faltered, she remained defiant. She had been the one that had brought his father into the light.
She would not deny her son the same chance.
It was through her, that his father had learned to respect those that fought for the Republic. She had taught him to see through the lies of the empire, and the manipulations of Darth Vitiate. What had he called her once, his grandfather had told him. What was it…?
Oh…yes. He remembered now.
A superior woman, a woman worthy of a warrior of the old blood.
The son had loved her, and eventually, the father had come to respect her, and see her as a part of his house.
His grandfather had been born under the name Temi Vokai, but when he joined the Sith Order, he became known as Gnar, warrior of the empire, and eventually, a general. General Gnar had served for decades. Many battles he had won for the empire, and when the Sith returned and took Korriban. He had been with them. He had then led his forces against the enemies of the empire.
Thirty years ago, the emperor had placed him in charge of seizing this sector and the surrounding star systems for the Sith. He had come to wage war, his only son, and heir, at his side, the tip of the blade pointed at the Republic's heart.
He had not expected his son to be betrayed by his own men. That they would be loyal to one of his rivals, looking to hurt the old pureblood by murdering their general's only child.
Rhazhar had survived their trap, barely, but in escaping the Sith, he had been found by the Survivors, taken first as a prisoner, but…eventually, becoming an ally of their cause.
He had resisted the Survivors, at first, refusing to answer their questions, refusing to betray his duty, despite the betrayal by those that had served under him.
He had been a son of the empire, through and through.
When the chance came, he tried to return to the Sith, and reached out to his sire. General Gnar was grateful to see his child alive, but…he could not take him back.
He respected his son's courage, how he refused to cooperate with the enemy, but a father's love was not the empire.
The empire had its own ideas.
The empire cared nothing for Rhazhar's courage, all they saw was that he had been captured in the first place.
They called him traitor. They called him enemy, and called for his head. They asked for General Gnar to take it.
So the father told the son to flee. He told him that he was no longer welcome in the empire.
Rhazhar had had no choice.
He became what they said he was, he fought for the Survivors, even against his own father. He kept them safe, aided them in escaping the general's traps, and the Sith warriors that pursued them.
He fought well…until he fell.
Temmin knew this tale. It had been his first bed time story. His father, a man of courage and honor, in an empire that prized treachery and cunning above all.
Was it any wonder that at the war's end that his grandfather had chosen to defect? To live apart from the empire that had first betrayed, and finally killed his son.
Gnar had surrendered, he told the Republic all he knew about the Empire's plans in this sector. He had done this because the empire had taken the one thing, he cared about more than his duty.
His son.
The Jedi didn't imprison him, despite his actions during the war, his knowledge of the dark side, and the Sith blood in his veins. They permitted Gnar to retire in peace, and for the first nine years of his life, Temmin had lived with him, visited often by his mother, who had grown quite famous herself by that time.
The old man had welcomed his grandson in his lonely exile. He had had watched over Temm, protected him.
He had said many times: It is nice to hear a boy playing in my home again.
When the cold war ended, and the empire renewed its war, Temmin wished to pick up the sword his father had carried. He had asked his grandfather to teach him the ways of the Force, but the old general had refused.
Gnar only knew the dark side. If he taught his grandson, the power of it would draw him closer to what he sought to destroy, he would become…like the very beings who had taken his father's life.
The old General…would not to that to him.
The dark side was not the path Temmin needed, not if he wanted to fight the Sith. He reached out to Roxanna, who reached out to the legendary Jedi Master Jas Dar Bynn.
Gnar asked him to teach his grandson the way of the Force. To give him the skills he needed to face the empire.
He wished for the son of his son, to be a Jedi.
Master Jas…refused. He said that he could not train him. He claimed that it was not his place to do so, but that didn't mean that the boy would not be trained.
Fenn Shadowstone, Jas' padawan had achieved knighthood. The Jedi Master believed that he was ready to teach, and so, Temmin became his first student, his padawan learner.
The Jedi Council had raged at that choice. They didn't believe that someone of the old blood could be a Jedi. They could follow the light, perhaps, but the violence of a war would draw out the darkness in anyone of the old blood.
Masters Fenn and Jas had disagreed, they trusted him, and so he began his training, for five years now he had been Fenn's student, and he had never disappointed him, until…now…
…until Darth Avaryss…
…until…Zay.
IOI
Temm closed his eyes again, reaching out with the Force, trying to stay in the light.
Though his Sith blood drew him towards the darkness, he could feel the light, he had learned to use it in the past five years.
Yet, now, he was troubled.
He had lost control.
He replayed the moment over and over again in his head.
Zay on her knees before her master. Darth Avaryss, her owner, standing above her. She was hissing about betrayal and failure, while Zay cowered on her knees.
He had felt the Sith Lord's excitement, she seemed almost eager. It felt like she wanted to hurt the girl.
The dark lord had raised her hand, the girl had flinched, as if the blow had already fallen.
Temm had reacted on instinct, instinct and anger.
Zay…she…she was like no other girl he had met before, not that he had known many. His Sith blood meant he was not welcome in most places in the Republic, he and his grandfather had lived a solitary life. The training of a padawan learner didn't help that. Especially not in war time. He and Fenn were always on the move. Battlefields were not the places for fraternization.
He had not had a chance to know many young ones his own age, certainly not girls. The youngest of the survivors and the other Jedi that lived here were at least five to ten years older than him. Zay, Avaryss' serving girl, was the first. Finally, he had had a chance to speak with someone, not about duty or the Force, but…just as two people.
He felt…drawn to her, they had been friendly from the start, and when she looked at him. He…he felt…
He had no real words to describe it. He felt…nervous, yet happy at the same time.
Was this what non-Jedi might call…attraction?
If so, he could see why the council forbade it.
He could see how it could lead to attachment, and had led to it.
Don't think about it.
Temm took another deep breath trying to focus on the light, and again…he reached out.
He was not here to think about that. Not her!
He had come for help.
He could not give up.
He tried to slip deeper into the Force, to feel the light in all its form and splendor, and again…he called out.
"Father…please…hear me."
He had come to this place where his father had been laid to rest. He had read stories of Force Sensitives continuing to exist after death. Tales of them guiding those they cared about, helping them in their hour of need.
He needed to talk to someone about what had happened.
He felt that only his father could understand.
Temm had attacked Avaryss, shoved her down using the Force. He leapt before Zay, his lightsaber drawn.
He would not let her hurt Zay.
He had attacked someone who was an ally.
It was…shameful.
The dark lord had not been afraid, she had been more amused than anything else.
"Brave of you, Temm, but not very smart."
Her words stung him even now, but not as much as the look of disappointment on the faces of his master, and his master's master.
Fenn had trained him better than that, to lose control so easily. He had embarrassed his teacher.
Master Jas had seen it too, proof of why he should not have been trained in the first place.
Temm couldn't stand it. He had shamed himself, and his father's memory.
He…had fled.
Now, he had come to this place, looking for guidance, to find his center again. He feared that his master and his master would not understand.
He thought maybe his father would.
So he was here, calling for help.
"Father, if you can hear me, please…answer!"
Temm bowed his head in shame.
"I need to speak with someone."
"Please."
"Maybe he heard you."
The soft voice behind him caused him to gasp, he had been so intent on looking into the Force that he had not felt her approach. He leapt to his feet, his hand on his lightsaber ready to defend himself.
He didn't need it.
He pulled his hand way, feeling more self-conscious than ever.
She was here.
Zay stood before him.
She looked down at her feet. She blushed shyly.
"Hi," she said offering a small wave of her hand.
"Hi," he responded.
Zay was here, he thought.
Great.
She was small for a human, though they were the same age, she barely came up to his chin. A girl with curly blonde hair, and dark green eyes.
She was paler than he remembered, thinner too. He could see scratch marks near her left eye, eyes now ringed with dark circles.
She had been through much. Captain Cooper had mentioned that she had been kidnapped, that she had needed to defend herself.
The captain said she had needed to kill, not an easy thing, both the act and living with it afterward.
He could sense her guilt, but also a sense of…contentment, grateful to be home, and safe.
There was more though, most likely wouldn't have sensed it.
His Sith blood responded to it…hungrily.
He could sense her anger, simmering beneath the surface. It had grown stronger. He had first sensed it when she awoke from her coma. After she had been hurt when Darth Avaryss had taken her with her to find some Sith Artifact.
Yet, that didn't worry him. Now that she was back, they could help her. HE could help her. He had feared for her when her master had sent her away, left her on Nar Shadda.
She was back, now…
…that was what mattered to him. She was back.
She…was safe.
She smiled softly.
"Maybe…maybe he sent me. Showed me how to find you."
The girl giggled.
"Whoever HE is."
Temm looked away.
That smile, the way she looked at him.
His dark pink skin darkening towards red.
May the living Force protect me, he thought.
I fear…I'm in trouble.
IOI
They talked until the day finally turned into night.
She had sat down in the grass beside him, watching as the stars began to shine.
This was the longest they had had to speak. No masters around expecting them to deal with this or that. No duties that they needed to perform.
She asked him about this place, why he had come here, and he told her about his father, the sacrifice he had made, and how Temm hoped that he might hear his son, and appear to him.
"Has that ever happened," she asked curiously.
"Have you ever seen him?"
"No," he confessed, "But I can almost sense him in this place. I think he may still look down on it, or his presence remains as an echo."
The boy shrugged.
"I could be wrong."
The girl smiled again.
"He sounds like a good man. He would have had to have been if your mom loved him."
He shrugged again.
Maybe.
Zay rubbed idly at her bad foot, the heavy boot she wore so that she could walk without a cane was gone. She had taken it off so she could stretch her toes, and be more comfortable. Temm could see the metal bracings that Captain Cooper's doctor had added, so that she could walk normally again, or as close to it as possible.
Zay had told him about that too.
When she was little, she had loved to run, to feel the wind in her hair. She had been quick and light on her feet. She had been born a slave, but at least when she ran, she had felt free.
That had all ended a little over a year ago. She had been sold to a new master, and he had nearly sent her to her death.
She told him how her previous owner had made her enter a sealed Sith vault. How she and her friends had been sent into retrieve an artifact for a dark lord that had desired it.
Zay had been the only one that had come out. The traps in the vault killed the others, and she had been poisoned by a Sith blade. It had sliced through her leggings, cutting her foot just above the ankle, the wound shouldn't have been serious, but the poison on the blade had still been potent; a foul venom that mutated the very flesh in those exposed to it.
The Sith Lord that her master had served had been Darth Avaryss. She had killed the man when he had tried to renegotiate the deal that they had made. Avaryss had taken the item she sought, and Zay as well. Though, she had neutralized the venom in the girl's blood, the damage had been done.
Her foot had been twisted by its effects.
She hid her bad foot from him, ashamed of how it looked.
He told her not too.
Temm wasn't put off by it. It was a part of this sad pretty girl.
Had she not had it, she wouldn't be Zay.
For a time they fell silent, and it was comfortable, but one thing she had said continued to bother him, worry him.
He couldn't just let it come to pass.
"Master Avaryss has said she would train you?"
The girl nodded.
"Yes, it…it is what I want."
Temmin shook his head.
He…he didn't understand.
No.
Not Zay.
"You can't be a Sith, Zay. You can't."
She gave him a cool look. Her eyes flickering angrily.
"You think I'm not strong enough? Do you think I'm weak?"
"No," he added quickly, not wishing to insult her.
"You heard my story. How my father was betrayed by his own men. They had been trained as Sith too."
He sighed.
"Surely, Master Jas can help you. Maybe, Master Shyra. She doesn't have a student. She can teach you the ways of the Force. You don't need Lord Avaryss and the Sith teachings.
The girl looked down, her anger at his comment replaced with something else, something resigned, or sad.
"I will never be a Jedi, Temm. I can't…"
"But you CAN! We can help you. Your anger…"
"Is too strong," she sighed, her hand finding her misshapen foot.
Her eyes narrowed.
"I heard them talking, the masters. When I woke from my…coma. After I destroyed the cafeteria in a fit of rage. I…I didn't remember what happened, it still isn't clear, but…
The girl winced.
"Master Jas, he spoke with Master Fenn and Master Shyra. They didn't think that I should be trained. I was too old, too angry, bitter, and my life…even if they tried to help me…"
She sneered.
"The story of my life, the Jedi never did anything to help the people on my world. NEVER! My mom was taken as a slave. I was born into it. She used to tell me how one day the Jedi would come. How they would free us all. She believed it. Believed it more than anything else."
Zay shook her head.
"The guardians of peace and justice. Where were they when we needed them? When my mom needed them?! Where were they when I was ripped from her arms and put on the auction block. I was only eight years old, Temm. I cried out for her help, begged for mom to save me, but they pushed her back. I…I was sold to Mater Ankar, and there were no Jedi there. No one came to save me. No one…"
She shivered and looked away.
"I screamed for my mother," she murmured, "Just as Johun screamed for his. I…he…"
She put her head in her hands. He heard her whimper, whimper and sob.
He put his hand on her shoulder. She looked up, her eyes red, tears shining in them.
"Was Johun a friend of yours?"
She pulled away as if burned, her eyes darkening.
"He was the one who took me off Nar Shadda. He…he murdered his family. He…he was a monster, Temm. He would have sold me back into slavery. I couldn't…I can't…"
She looked down at her hands wiping at them.
"I…I killed him, stabbed him. He…he was so bad, but he still called for his mother at the end. Even after what he did. He cried out for her, just like I did on the auction block. I…I…"
She threw her arms around him, he…he froze unsure what to do. Finally, hesitantly, he pulled her close, held her as she cried in his arms.
"I hate him," she whimpered, "I…I hate…me."
"It wasn't your fault," Temm said stroking her back, trying to comfort her, hoping she wouldn't notice his reaction to her being so close, the smell of her hair, the way it ticked his skin.
Please don't notice, Zay, he begged the Force.
Please don't.
His heart beat faster, he took a deep breath, trying to focus on her, not what was happening at that moment.
"It was self-defense," he reminded her, "He was trying to take you away. You did what you had to."
"What I had to," she repeated, murmuring into his shoulder.
She said something he didn't really hear, something about weak and fate.
"You're not weak," he said, "You defended yourself. You were brave."
She sniffled and pulled back. She wiped at her face, she giggled nervously.
It seemed strange, considering how much pain she was in at that moment.
Why giggle?
She shook her head.
"You must think me a stupid child. Crying over someone who tried to hurt me."
Temmin smiled.
"I think it is a good sign, actually. If you can feel something for someone so bad. You aren't lost. I…we can still help you."
Again, she smiled sadly. He could sense acceptance, and bitterness.
"This is why I need Master Avaryss, Temm. She will teach me to control my anger, the hate I feel."
"The dark side will consume you, if you let it," he warned.
"It hasn't consumed Master Avaryss. That is why she is here, isn't it? She is helping you fight the Zakuul. She wants to change the empire for the better, but she won't be able to do it alone. Men and women like the men who betrayed your father still have power."
Zay's eyes sparkled eagerly.
"I can help her change things. I can make the empire better. We can get rid of those who won't give up the war. Master Avaryss will end the war. The Republic and Empire will find peace. Isn't that worth it? If we work together, we can stop the invaders, and the wars will end. The Empire and the Republic can share the galaxy. Isn't that better than all the war and death?"
He nodded, but still…
He found himself thinking about his grandfather, and all the lessons he had learned, the stories the old man had told.
Even with the emperor gone, the Sith were still Sith. They were taught to want to destroy the Jedi from the very moments they took their first steps.
Could Avaryss change that?
Would Zay stay the girl she was, or would she be lost as well?
"You saved Master Avaryss' life on Vel," she reminded him.
"We were fighting together. What else could I do?"
"She respects that. She respects what you did. Even trying to help me, that took courage, my master knows that."
Temmin frowned.
He had sensed no respect when he shoved Avaryss, but in that moment he wasn't really looking?
Could Zay be right?
Could he be wrong about the dark lord.
"Trust her, as you did on Vel, please Temm. She wants what is best for me."
"But the dark side…"
"It will be me using it, not the other way around."
"You could get lost, consumed."
"You won't let that happen. You can protect me. You will protect me. I know you will."
Temm nodded.
He would protect her.
Always.
He sighed.
What he had been taught. What his grandfather had told him. This…what she was asking…it went against everything he believed.
It is what the Jedi believe, he reminded himself.
The same Jedi who said you weren't worthy to join them.
They were wrong about you.
Couldn't they be wrong about Avaryss?
Couldn't they be wrong about Zay.
He shook his head.
He had never felt so confused.
Yet, he didn't want to lose her. He didn't want her to hate him, which she would if he turned away from her now.
He took her hands in his.
He held her gaze, made sure that she didn't look away.
"I'll be there for you," he promised, "At the first sign of trouble. I will…"
She squealed with delight and hugged him again.
"I KNEW you would understand. I KNEW it!"
She pulled back just enough, she was smiling brightly, her eyes shining like the stars overhead.
Seeing that look, that smile, it took away everything, shame and doubt. He felt…safe…
…he felt warm.
He felt her hand on his chest, her fingers touching the bare skin on his neck.
She was so close.
"Zay," he murmured.
Their noses touched.
"Temm…I…"
Her eyes closed as she leaned in.
He leaned in too.
Their lips touched.
No more words.
Beneath the stars of this world, Temmin Tagge shared his first kiss with the girl he called Zay.
It was…good.
He kissed her again and again. Pulling her tight against him. His heart pounding, his blood racing.
They parted, both breathing heavy.
Zay giggled.
"You put your tongue in my mouth."
He blushed.
"Sorry, I…"
She smirked.
"Its okay. I…I kinda liked it."
He chuckled.
She kissed him again, and again, and again.
He…
"HEM! HEM!"
The sound behind them was loud, and to Temm, familiar. It caused the two to split apart. Zay slipped out of his grasp, ending up sitting on the ground.
"Ouch," the girl giggled.
Temm coughed and looked around, anywhere but at the eye of the woman before him.
He hadn't sensed her approach; his senses had been too busy with…other things.
He flashed a nervous grin.
"Mom," he said, "Hi!"
Roxana Tagge stood before them. Her expression was…hard to read.
What his grandfather might have called: an old-fashioned look on her face.
She quirked her lips, whether in frustration or amusement, he couldn't say.
"Temmin," she said greetings, "Zay."
"Hi, Doctor Tagge," the girl giggled.
Temm looked over at her. Zay's face was almost as red as his was, and his skin was naturally closer to red than hers was.
He couldn't meet his mother's eye. It wasn't shame. He…he wasn't sure what it was…
Damn it.
"I thought I might find you out here," she said, ignoring what she had just seen.
"I took out one of the speeders. I thought you might like a ride back to base."
"Ah…sure," he said, not really looking forward to the speeder trip back.
He offered Zay his hand.
"Wanna lift back?"
She shook her head no.
"Actually, I would like to stay here for a while. Watch the stars. Master Avaryss gave me the evening off. Said I should try to enjoy myself."
Temmin nodded. He knew that he had no reason to worry about her. There were no dangerous predators on this part of the planet, none to threaten a person anyway.
He went to join his mother. He hoped they wouldn't be talking about this on the way back, but he doubted he was that lucky.
"Temm?" Zay called out.
"Yeah," he said back.
The girl smiled at him.
"Thank you, for protecting me, earlier, and for understanding what is to come."
He nodded.
He trusted her, wanted to trust her.
He didn't want to lose her regard.
He hopped into the speeder, his mother taking the steering yoke.
Temm glanced over his shoulder as they pulled away, Zay disappearing among the shadows of the night.
Disappearing…into the darkness.
In that moment, a cold shiver ran down his spine.
He trusted Zay.
Yet, he heard his grandfather's words.
"The dark side is not so easily denied, son of my son. It claims those that seek to claim it. Honor is cast aside in its shadow. Hate flows freely in the darkness, and treachery is the coin of that realm."
"What do I do, grandfather," he had asked, "How do I avoid being caught up in it."
The old pureblood sighed.
"Remember my warnings, young one."
The old man shook his head. Remembering the son he had lost; taken by the very empire he had sworn to serve.
The old man's warning had been plain.
Temmin Tagge knew them well.
"Beware the dark side."
Another shiver ran down the half-blood's spine.
"Beware."
NOT THE END!
A/N: Zay and Temm's story will continue in Fallen Hero, and conclude in the next Avaryss story. Until next time dear readers.
May the Force be with you, always.
DG