Chapter 14: A nice day to relax
As they ran from yelling savages shooting some outdated but still very lethal slugthrowers, Beldorion realized he had really underestimated his Master's capacity for chaos. It might be unfair to blame him seeing as he hadn't armed the raiders or called them to the farming compound they were protecting, but surely his Force sensitivity made him pick the most chaotic mission possible. It was simply not possible that they were just unlucky enough to be in the middle of the first raid in years for Bel's first mission as a Padawan. And then he had the gall to laugh about it. "Nevermind that, Bel, it's just like in the Temple! No lightsaber allowed dodging practice!" His demented laughter still echoed in Bel's mind. No, wait, Rowe was still laughing. And it seemed such a promising morning just the day before...
After his last night at the library, Bel had woken up ready for adventure. The joy of going into space, helping people, and finding new quests sang in his veins, unbridled. It was only mildly doused when he realized Master Rowe was still sleeping and had, in fact, mentioned "getting an early start" at 9 am, and he was not, in fact, joking when he mentioned 9 am as an early start. Clearly, standards slipped for some when allowed to set their own schedules outside of the control of the strict fosterers in the Temple, and Master Rowe had been free of their influence for years now. Well, nothing to it but to start some early katas and meditation, Bel decided.
Luckily for his sanity, by the time he was beginning to get restless in his meditation Master Rowe had woken up and gone to the fresher, then prepared himself a cup of caf. Bel opened his eyes to find his Master looking at him with a disappointed look on his face, ready with some admonitions. "Young padawan, I find myself saddened that you chose to sully this beautiful morning by rising too early. Those terrible habits must be curbed, but worry not! For I will make you relax even if it takes me decades! So I vow." Bel rolled his eyes, scoffed when his eyeroll caused Rowe to gasp dramatically while grabbing his chest, then replied sweetly: "or maybe the Force means for me to remind you to stop relaxing all the time, Master!"
After a brief playful scuffle, they decided to pack up, go for a quick breakfast, then leave for their ship. They were expected to fly to meet the equipment shipment in its original planet, were it was being sold to be replaced by newer machines, then escort it to Vittory, an otherwise unremarkable colony in the Mid Rim. Not even Master Rowe could make that complicated, right?
Bel's earlier, naive thoughts mocked him as he remembered the auspicious beginning of their quest. Still, the Force led them where they were needed, and a lightly defended outpost in an sparsely populated colony would have been easy prey for even this band of losers. Bel sent a rock flying unnoticed to brain another raider, then turned around, confronting a screamer that was slowly realizing nobody was at his back anymore. His confusion turned to dread when he looked back and saw Master Rowe cuffing the unconscious forms of his fellows, stealthily dropped by the Jedis' efforts as they "fled" from the raiders.
"Acceptable control, Padawan, might try to break less bones next time, settle for just knocking them out." The sheepish raider decided it was time for the better part of valor, and promptly dropped his weapon, surrendering. Bel scoffed as he slithered back, and replied to his relaxed Master, "I could have dropped them faster and with no broken bones if you didn't make up that restriction to only use stones found while we ran! We had to run for 15 minutes just to find enough rocks that'd work!" Rowe laughed in answer, "Everything can be taken as training, young Padawan! Or you can just pretend it was your plan!" He winked at Bel, who groaned, the slapped the raider in the back of his head. "And you, sir, are obviously the leader, so spill! Who paid you to harass the farmers?" The poor soul could only gulp before he started attempting to deny everything, not that it'd help him.
And this, Bel mused, was why Rowe was a Master despite his antics and a respected one to boot. He was perceptive, intuitive, had a gift for reading and empathizing with people. Under his tender ministrations, the captured raider quickly spilled the fact that they did, in fact, have a backer who was interested in taking advantage of an undefended farmer's consortium. The protection racket they uncovered was not quite at the level of an holovid, but it was a nice bit of help. In the end, it was an appropriate first assignment, and a learning experience. It was even good as dodging and telekinesis practice like Master Rowe had claimed, even if he obviously had improvised it. Hearing him talk, one could be forgiven for forgetting he was a mature adult with decades of experience as a Jedi.
The locals decided to throw them a party after the Republic settled thing with the company trying to abuse the colonists, and they duo ended up staying for an entire week after repelling the raiders. It was a far cry from how ineffective the Republic would become in a few centuries, Bel mused, but heartwarming to see it was a force for good still. With the help of the Force, the Order and the Jedi would flourish for millenia still, and this hopeful spirit would prevail over stagnation. Heartened, Bel decided to enjoy the festivities. Simple fare from simple sentients, but a satisfying taste all the same. Maybe this apprenticeship was going to work out after all.
Author's note:
Trouble follows Force sensitives, or maybe they are just thrown into it.