Chapter 15: Masters and Apprentices
Ryder opened his eyes and rolled over in his bed. Finally, my body isn't aching anymore, he thought. The clock on his bed-side table read, "7:43 AM."
He rolled back onto his back and starred at the ceiling. The ceiling tiles had multiple cracks that extended everywhere throughout the tiles.
'What is the last thing I remember,' he thought.
He closed his eyes, and two images appeared. He could tell who they were just by their posture. It was General Rodan and Doctor Rogers. He could hear Rodan talking in his ear about using his anger and frustration and to channel it into his training. That's it.
The procedure was done, and all the suspicions and charges were no more.
A wave of relief washed over him.
Suddenly, with his eyes still closed, he saw a droid appear in his thoughts. It was an old, red R2 model, but it seemed very familiar. He felt warm looking at it. The image disappeared as he heard a loud crashing noise.
He opened his eyes and saw a nurse bending over to pick up a tin tray that she had dropped on the ground.
Using the Force, he lifted the tray off the ground, and the nurse turned around with a jump and a yelp.
"I'm sorry," she blushed. "You startled me…" She looked down at a folder in her hand and then back at Ryder. "Ryder," she finished.
She held out her arms, and Ryder placed the tray on them. He gave her a soft smile and asked, "How long have I been asleep?"
She glanced back at his file and gave a quick response saying, "A little over a week, Mr. Jedi. I've been instructed to get your clothes and ask that you head towards the briefing room when you feel well enough to do so."
She sat the tin tray down on a nearby table and walked to Ryder's side. "I'm going to run a quick check on you, if that's fine," she asked?
Ryder nodded giving his approval, so she began to start applying pressure to Ryder's legs, arms, head, chest, back, and finally his shoulders to see if he still felt any serious pain.
"Just let me know if you feel any pain, okay," she asked?
"Got it," responded Ryder.
No matter where she pushed down on, Ryder didn't feel pain in that area. He really only had a bad head ache at that point.
"Well, it seems like you're in fine shape," she said as she put a check mark next to the respected body part she checked.
The nurse folded the folder and placed in on the tray. "It looks like you're clear to leave whenever you want," she said with a big smile.
She picked up the tray and went through a door that was on the other side of the room. She came back after a few minutes with Ryder's standard, casual clothes. She laid them down on the table next to him and said, "Here are some of your clothes that your friend, Nero brought by a few days ago." She left the room going through the same door that she went through earlier.
On the table was an outfit that was comprised of his blue gym shorts, ankle socks and white sneakers, a white, short-sleeve shirt that had two buttons at the neck, and a gray hoodie.
Ryder looked back at the clock that read, "8:31 AM" and began to get out of bed. He took his legs out from the covers and put them on the ground. He stood up and stumbled forward but caught himself before he fell to the ground.
'I guess this is what happens when you don't use your legs for a week,' he thought.
He regained his balance and took off the gown that he was wearing, and he began putting on his own clothes.
By the time he finished, his legs had regained their walking strength; he was ready to get out of the Med Bay. After all, it is his least favorite place on the ship.
He walked out the door and started walking to the elevator. On his way to the elevator, he stopped and looked out a window. They were in a part of space where the only thing visible from right there were distant stars.
Something deep inside Ryder made him feel empty. It was as if he was missing something that he knew was important to him. Something that WAS a part of him.
He turned and continued his way back to the elevator. He pressed the up button and called for the elevator. It must have been only a few floors down because it was there within a few seconds.
Ryder slowly got in and went to floor: seventy-four.
On the way up, he began thinking of ways to tell off all the generals that didn't believe in him, but he knew that would just get him in trouble. He was bound to get something in return for the pain he went through.
The elevator began to slow down, and it finally stopped. The doors opened, and he was immediately greeted by a protocol droid.
The droid began to speak saying, "Good morning, Mr. Jace! I am RA-7, a—"
Ryder waved his hand at droid, telling it to be quiet.
RA-7 started walking into another room as it said, "Well that was rude."
There were only three people in the briefing room, and they were all sitting at the far end of the table. In the middle, sat President Reed. On his right, was General Hall, and on his left, was General Fox.
President Reed stood up and said, "Excuse KA-7, he's quite the character." There was a long pause after he said that.
He motioned at Ryder to come sit down and said, "Please, Ryder. Take a seat. We have much to say."
Ryder looked at each of the Generals who didn't have a single expression on their face. He walked to the near end of the table and sat down in the closest chair.
"First, General Fox has something that he would like to tell you." Ryder looked over at the General, who's elbows were on the table and hands were supporting his head.
General Fox put his hands in his lap and looked up at Ryder. "On behalf of everyone that thought you were the mole, we apologize. Your progression rate and knowledge are what led us to believe this, but we were terribly wrong as shown by the memories that we all saw. We didn't know that the procedure would cause that much pain either, so once again we are sorry."
President Reed looked over at General Fox and gave him a nod then returned his gaze back at Ryder. The President began saying, "We are glad to say that all restrictions that were placed on you are now lifted. You have full access to the archive along with everything inside of it. Along with texts from the archive, we give you permission to examine the holocrons. However, if another one of them can only be viewed once, you must immediately tell us of the content."
General Fox shot the President a look of shock, but the President kept going. "You are one of two people that can open them, so feel free to learn as much as you can from them."
Ryder began to smile. He liked seeing General Fox not get his way, and he was excited about learning from the holocrons.
"Now that that matter is settled. We have a mission for you," continued the President. He pressed a button on his side of the table that made a holographic map appear above the table.
In the middle of the map were the two suns and the surrounding planets. Earth and four other planets were highlighted red, and Ryder assumed that it was because they were under ISIS control.
General Hall stood up and began to speak. "Your mission is to create your own lightsaber. You have been using a training lightsaber for too long, and you have shown enough skill to make your own. Inside the archive, there is a book that lays out a step-by-step process on how to build one. You might want to learn that."
President Reed pushed another button that was below the on button. Six planets turned a yellow color.
"These planets contain Kyber crystals, the source of a lightsaber's power," said General Hall. "Use the Force to pick a planet to go to, and that is where you will find the crystal to forge your weapon with. You will—" General Hall was cut off by Ryder suddenly speaking.
"I'll go to this one," said Ryder with eyes closed. He was pointing to one of the planets that had the name "Ilum" above it.
General Hall looked curiously at Ryder. "Okay… We'll make a note of that. You will be able to take a crew of your choosing along with you. Of course, we will review your selections and give the final saying and possible recommend a few people too. Do you have any questions?"
Ryder scratched his head thinking of questions. "Yes, how will me and my team get there?"
President Reed turned off the holographic map and walked over to Ryder. He said, "Go down to the hanger and check out what starships we have in stock. Talk to Katie, the girl that came up here with you right after we left Earth. She'll be able to help you pick one out down there."
President Reed led Ryder to the elevator and pressed the down button. "I'll get to it right away, sir," said Ryder as he saluted the President.
The elevator door opened with a few people inside that he didn't recognize.
"At ease, Ryder," said President Reed. "Now go on." After everyone in the elevator got out, Ryder got in and pressed floor three.
On the way down, the elevator stopped on floor seventeen. The doors opened, and Luca and Jake walked in.
"Ryder!" yelled out Luca.
"Good to see you back on your feet! I knew you weren't the mole the WHOLE time!" said Jake as he nudged him with his elbow.
"I haven't seen y'all in a long time," said Ryder dapping them up.
"Yeah, we've been training rigorously to be honest," said Luca with a laugh.
Ryder noticed this right when the doors opened. Luca and Jake both had bandages around their arms and legs from their training. "That's awesome! Have y'all been inside the archive yet?" asked Ryder.
"No," said Jake. "I'm in the D-class. I haven't really gotten a hang of my gum nen."
"He's gotten a lot better physically, though," reassured Luca. "Shit, I don't even know what nen is basically."
"Anyways, where are you headed to," asked Jake?
"I got assigned a mission to make my own lightsaber," said Ryder with a wide smile. "I have to go down to the hanger and pick out a ship to take to Ilum."
"Congrats man, that's awesome! I've studied up on that place, actually. It's the ice planet, right? Has a lot of Kyber crystals?" asked Luca.
"That's the one. They haven't told me when I'm supposed to leave, but I hope it isn't for a while. I'm a little rusty," admitted Ryder.
The elevator came to a stop on floor three. "Well, this is my stop guys," said Ryder as he walked out onto the floor.
"We'll be in the training rooms for a while, so if you want, come on over and train with us," said Jake.
"Okay, I'll see if I can make it over there afterwards," Ryder told the two as the elevator doors closed. He turned around and began walking in the direction of the hanger.
On the way there, he passed by two or three classrooms full of students learning the history of their powers, the basics of them, strategy, and weaknesses of other powers. However, he didn't see a classroom talking about the history of the Jedi or their powers. Ryder felt a sense of pride that he was a part of a rare class of warriors, and he felt saddened that the few other Jedi didn't have a teacher. The only qualified teacher was General Lance, but he was always too busy to teach because he was a strategic planner. That's when the thought of himself teaching them came to mind.
'I feel like I can do it,' he thought. 'It would also help me get back into fighting shape.'
He arrived at the hanger and entered the large area where there was a constant sound of welding and power tools. On the other side of the hanger, Katie was welding a panel onto the top of a light freighter.
Ryder went straight to where she was to ask her about the ships. The ships that were ready for takeoff included the standard starships. There were X-Wings, Y-Wings, and A-Wings ready for departure. The other mechanics were working on TIE fighters, other light freighters, and a few Jedi Starfighters. He had to be careful not to get in the way of other mechanics because they would often get mad when someone would accidentally mess them up.
"Hey, R2! Get me the stick welder!" yelled out Katie from on top of the freighter.
The R2 droid rolled to the stick welder and grabbed it with his mechanical hand. It turned around and starred at Ryder like he had a third eye.
"R2, stopped messing around and hurry up," yelled Katie! She saw it starring at Ryder, so she decided to save him from the creepy encounter with the droid.
"Well, that was weird," said Ryder up to Katie.
'That looked just like the R2 droid I saw when I was in the Med Bay,' thought Ryder.
"Yeah, that droid is a little weird, but it's a good droid for sure. He kind of just showed up the other day out of the blue and began helping me out," she said. Katie sat up, put her tools down, and lifted up her welding mask.
"You got any starships or freighters I can use for a mission? It needs to fit at least five people," said Ryder.
Katie said something under breath, but Ryder couldn't hear it. She climbed down from the ship and walked over to Ryder.
"Hey, R2. Come here really quick." The utility droid scurried over to Ryder and Katie.
"So, you're finally out of the Med. Bay? I bet you're happy about that," said Katie. She was crouched down, pressing a series of buttons on R2's front panel.
"Yeah, that whole thing was a pain in my ass. Pointless too," replied Ryder.
"Well, I know it did ease quite a few people's minds. There was a fairly large group that believed the rumors. Whoever started them is an idiot, though," she explained.
After she pressed a few more buttons, she said, "Okay, R2. Go ahead and display the ships."
Using his holographic projector, R2 projected a hologram of the ship that Katie was just working on. The shape of the starship resembled the letter, 'P.' On its top, it had a double laser cannon, and at the base of the leg was the cockpit. Next to the schematics was a description of features that were hidden from the blueprints. In bullet points it read, 'Two Concussion-Missile Launchers, a front and dorsal laser cannon, a dorsal laser turret, and two proton torpedo launchers.'
After Ryder finished reading the description he asked, "How long before this ship is ready to go?"
"I'd say about one month before everything is in top notch condition. But, depending on when your departure is, I can get a lot of the mechanics to work on it to speed up the process."
"Don't worry about that," said Ryder laughing a little. "I'd love some down time right about now anyways."
However, Katie was not in a joking mood due to the amount of work she had to finish. "Since you've come by, within about two weeks of the President telling me to fix up all these ships, I only have one other that's available." Katie pointed at a Firespray-31-class starship that looked like it had some wear and tear on it. The best part about this starship were the numerous military weapons that had been built onto the ship. It included laser cannons, proton torpedo launchers, blasters, concussion missiles, a tractor beam, and seismic charges. However, it could only carry two people.
The last ship that was available was a heavily modified Imperial Transport starship. It was black and had two side wings. One was a normal wing with a plate with a plaster at the end. The other wing had two long plates on the end that could contract and separate with blasters on their ends too.
"This ship's name is: Rogue Shadow, and boy is that fitting. It has a mach-speed engine, can fit 8 crewmembers, shielding system, an advance sensor system, a cloaking device, and laser cannons. It can pick up ships across an entire system, and sneak through the most heavily guarded places. I still has a little ways to go before it can be used at pull potential, though." Katie had pride in this gem that she had built.
"It's the best infiltrating ship in this whole part of the solar system," she said prideful.
Ryder could tell that Katie was in a serious work mood, so he cracked a little joke. "Okay, perfect. So, I'll come by in two weeks to pick up the ship, and hopefully it won't blow up while flying."
Katie laughed a little as she got up from kneeing next to the utility droid. "None of the ones I build blow up. They do that to other ships. So, which ship do you want?"
"Well, I really like how the Rogue Shadow can detect a lot of things while not being detected at all. The fact that it can fit a large crew helps too." Ryder paused to consider both ships. "I guess I'll go with the Rogue Shadow."
"Good choice. It has the ability to weave in and out of tight spaces; I just hope you have a skilled enough pilot to get through asteroid belts," said Katie.
Ryder's smile was larger than ever.
"No. It's you. Don't tell me that you're the pilot," said Katie palming her.
"No promises," said Ryder laughing. Katie's stern glare met Ryder's eyes, and he quickly said, "I promise that I'm not that bad!"
She took a deep breath. "I really hope you brush up on your piloting skills before this mission." She walked over to the ladder and began climbing to the top of the ship. Katie picked up her welding mask, put it on, and began to weld the top panels onto the top of the starship.
"Okay, don't sabotage my ship while I'm gone!" said Ryder and he began walking out of the hanger.
On his way out, he noticed that a lot of the mechanics stopped their work and starred in his direction.
'What the hell are they looking at,' thought Ryder.
Suddenly, he felt something run into the back of his leg.
"Bleep bloop boop beep," said the same red, astromech droid that had followed him from Katie's ship.
Across the hanger, Ryder heard a voice yell out, "Just take him. He wasn't that big of a help after all!"
It seemed like Katie no longer had any use for the utility droid. He laughed a little at how free going this droid was. "Okay little guy, let's go."
Ryder looked down at his watch, and it read, '1:48 PM.' He looked at the utility droid and said, "Let's get some lunch, my new friend."
Ryder and the R2 droid went to the Dining Hall and got a plate of pizza and broccoli. Within twenty minutes, Ryder had finished his meal and was ready to begin his studying again. Ryder went to the elevator and called for it.
"So, what's your name?" asked Ryder.
"Bloop beep bop suweee," said the utility droid.
"So, all you're going to give me is 'R2?' I guess that I can deal with that," said Ryder.
The elevator doors opened and the two got in. Ryder pressed the button that would send them to the seventy-third floor.
The only thing the droid said was where they were going. To which Ryder told him that the archive was up on this floor. They reached the seventy-third floor and got out. The elevator was at the end of a hall that was about 125 feet long and at the other end was the entrance to the archive room. Ryder walked over to the hand and eye scanner with the utility droid by his side.
"Well, let's see what's in here," said Ryder.
He placed his hand on the scanner and his eyes in the headband. A beep came from the scanner acknowledging that it had scanned Ryder. The steel sliding doors opened.
There were 6 bookshelves lining each side of the walkway that led to two waist-high columns the supported a red and blue holocron. Behind the holocrons were tables that the students could use for studying. There were about fifteen people scattered around reading a book.
"Do you like it, Ryder?" asked a voice from behind him.
Ryder looked around and saw a tall man wearing a general's, military uniform. The general had a muscular body shape and had blonde, flippy hair. "Yeah, General Lance. I didn't know that we had more scrolls than what Jerry teleported."
General Lance walked to the nearest bookshelf and picked a book and flipped it to a random page. "Yes, we had these on this ship already. They are the more secretive books that hold a lot of ancient knowledge. It would do you well if you study a while here." He closed the book and put it back in its spot on the shelf.
"Awesome. I'll make sure I do that then. So, what's the deal with the holocrons?" asked Ryder.
"Take them into a room over there," said General Lance. He pointed towards a door that was in a corner behind the studying tables. "You'll be able to use the Force Freely in there and experience the holocrons."
"Oh, okay. I also wanted to talk to you about the other Jedi," said Ryder.
"What is it?" General Lance responded.
"Since you don't have any time to teach or train them, can I do that?" asked Ryder.
"I'll have to talk to the President about that. But, I can discuss that while you're on your mission," said the General.
"I'm not planning on leaving for another month, though. This will give me enough time to teach them a little of what I know and get myself into better shape. Wasn't that one of the purposes of the archive?" insisted Ryder. He was hoping to guilt trip General Lance into letting him teach.
"Fine," said the General. "I'll send out a message to all Jedi. It will say to meet on floor fifteen in room seven at eight in the morning. Also, we are the only two people that can open the Jedi holocron. And, you are the only one that can open the Sith holocron. I've tried multiple times but can't. So, just be careful. We don't know what it will try to say to you."
"I'll be sure to relay everything I learn to you, General. Don't worry," said Ryder. "This will also give me enough time to think of what I'll teach the other Jedi. See ya!" Ryder waved goodbye and was off to the book shelves.
He got to the Force section of the book shelves and picked up a few books. First, he grabbed, "Lightsaber forging." Next, he grabbed "Ancient Sith" and "Ancient Jedi." He put these three books in his bag and took out two other books. He put the "Form Two" and "Form Four" books back on the shelves.
As Ryder put the books on the shelf, R2 whistled to him. "Beep bop scre bop."
Ryder turned to the astromech droid and saw a small leather bound book that had, 'Force Applications' written across the front in gold. He grabbed it and flipped through the pages. Intrigued with the content, he placed it in his bag and said to R2, "Thanks, R2. Where did you get this?"
However, instead of answering Ryder, R2 strolled off in a different direction.
Ryder shrugged off that encounter and threw his bag strap over his shoulder and walked over to the holocrons.
"Don't forget to record whatever the Sith holocron says," reminded General Luke from the other side of the room.
"I've got this, General," said Ryder. "Just go back to doing your General duties."
Ryder looked at the holocrons and said to himself, "I guess I'll try the Jedi holocron this time." He reached out and grabbed the blue holocron.
Holding it in his hand, he walked over to the room that General Lance had pointed out to him. Ryder reached the door then turned to find the astromech droid.
"R2, come here real quick," he yelled over to him!
"SHHHHHHH!" A few students with open books glared at Ryder from a nearby table.
Ryder waved and mouthed the words, 'I'm sorry,' to them.
R2 came up to Ryder, who said, "I need you to go find the digital copy of these books and scan them." He handed the books to the droid, and it took off in the direction of the main console. Ryder opened the door and walked into the room.
The only thing in the room was a red pad sitting in the middle of the floor. The walls were tall and gray with a red cushions on them too. He walked to the middle and sat down, throwing his bad to the side.
"Well, let's see what they've got to say," he said as he began using the Force to open the Jedi holocron. It began floating in the air, and the corners were turning as they slid off the blue cube. A bright flash of blue and white light came from the cube, and suddenly, Ryder was no longer in the room in the archive.
Ryder was in an empty room that had a large window that over looked a city full of skyscrapers and flying speeders. He turned to the entrance of the room and saw a small, old, green alien.
"My old holocron, been found it has," it said.
"Who are you?" asked Ryder
The green guy laughed as he waddled to the center of the room and sat on a stool two times its size. "Come, come. Learn. Who I am, matters not," it said as it poked its finger towards Ryder.
Ryder slowly walked towards the green alien and sat down in front of him.
The green alien sat with his eyes closed. "Strong with the Force you are. I see… Trained by someone of the Gray." He paused.
"Let me teach what he could not." The alien opened its eyes and looked into Ryder's. "Yoda, I am. Listen and learn, you will," he said.
Ryder didn't bother saying a word to even respond.
"Your mind, clear it," Yoda started. "Learned Battle Meditation, and Force Enlightenment and Aura you have." He let out a deep breath.
"Open up to the Force, you must. Feel everything. The living energy that flows through all. Even yourself. The source of the Force within you, feel it. Grasp it."
Ryder was doing exactly what he was told. He could feel his own Force in his hand.
"Good. Now, pull it in. Suppress what you feel. This will make it harder for other Jedi or powers to sense your presence."
Ryder felt light and different. He lifted his arm, but he couldn't see it. All he saw was the floor behind it.
"Force Suppression is what this power is. Another power you have achieved is Force Camouflage. Hand in hand, they go." Ryder's invisibility went away as he could see his arm again.
"Powerful Force power it is. In infiltration missions, used many times."
Yoda sat up straight and continued to say, "More to teach, I have." He closed his eyes, then a door opened behind Ryder.
He turned around to look at what was coming through, but the little, green alien stopped him. "No! Stop! Focus…" He paused for emphasis.
"Patient you must be. See with the Force."
Ryder closed his eyes and did as instructed. He searched the building with the Force. It was easier to do that here, thought Ryder. It was more connected to the Force. Concentrating, he calmed himself and felt through the Force. Now in front of him, stood a metal contraption. He could hear the gears and metal joints clanking against other parts as the oil and electricity rush through their hoses and wires. It was a simple protocol droid. One that felt like KA-7 in the briefing room. "What is a droid doing here?" asked Ryder.
"Good… the droid, you feel," said Yoda. "Now, feel the flow of the Force rushing through the machine. The oil. The electricity. Its movements. When grasped everything, you have. Freeze their movements. Disrupt their flow of the Force," said Yoda. "Now try it."
The robot began to move its arms back and worth creating a constant motion. Ryder searched the room and found the robot standing in front of him. He reached out again and felt the Force flowing into the droid. It allowed the gear shafts and parts to move, like it was the real oil making the machine work. He kept the feel of the Force in the back of his mind. He reached in and felt the electricity and fluid flow through the wires and hoses. With the Force, electricity, and oil vividly in Ryder's mind, he reached out and grasped all three of them, holding onto them tightly. He clenched his hand and formed a fist. While Ryder closed his hand, the robot stopped moving completely.
"Fast learner you are. Stun droid, you have. Unconscious for a few minutes, it will be. The same thing you have learned, applied to people it can be. Stun them you will too. However, this is all that I can teach you in this holocron." Yoda stood up and walked to the kneeling Ryder.
He said, "In the real world, performing these techniques are harder." The green Jedi took his walking stick and tapped the end of it on Ryder's chest for emphasis. "Train more and be patient. Your skills and Force powers, develop them you must. Meditation and continuous practice it will."
Putting his cane to the ground, Yoda walked past Ryder, and his entire surrounding began to vanish like smoke when the wind blows.
Ryder opened his eyes, and the square holocron was back to its original cube shape. He was in the room that was in the corner of the archive. He looked at his watch and the time read, "9:41." So, I was in the holocron for two hours. I can do one more, he thought.
Ryder stood up with the Jedi holocron in his hand. He left his bag and walked to the column that the holocrons rested on. He placed the holocron back on the pillar and picked up the holocron that glowed red. When Ryder turned around, a guy that looked around sixteen years of age was standing in-between him and his study room. He stood about 5'10", had an athletic body type, had short, buzzed brown hair, and wore Jedi training clothes. On his hip was a silver hilt that resembled a classic, Jedi lightsaber.
"I'm Ben Ward," he introduced himself. "I'm a part of an ISIS rebel squadron that joined the military a few days ago. They ran us through the Roxy, and it turned out that I'm a Jedi." Ryder stood there analyzing Ben. He took in his posture, the way he spoke, and other facial expressions.
"I just received a call from General Lance, and he told me to come find you here in the archive. He said that you would be able to train me." Ryder's eyes widened in response to hearing that the General is letting him train other Jedis.
"That is, if you're fine with this," he added.
"No," stuttered out of Ryder's mouth. "I mean, yes. Yes, I'll train you," he laughed as he finished talking. "I'm just surprised that he is letting me do this."
Ben just stood there with a smile on his face and waited for what his new master had to say. "Well, what do you know already," asked Ryder?
"I know how to use a sword, and that is about it," Ben said. Ryder thought for a few seconds then raised his index finger. "Wait a second," he said. He walked around Ben and into the corner room. He rummaged through his bag and pulled out two books then headed back outside to Ben. Ben was turned around looking at what Ryder grabbed inside the room and held out his hands. Ryder placed two books in his hands. The titles read, "Form One: Shii-Cho" and "Form Three: Soresu."
Ryder looked at Ben's eyes and said, "First lesson: Never underestimate knowledge, for knowledge is true power. Now, begin reading these two books, and come find me in the training room tomorrow. That will be it for now." He shooed Ben away before he turned to go back into the corner room. Well this is about to be interesting, he thought.
Ryder looked at the time, and it was now "10:34 pm." "All of this can wait for another day," said Ryder as he put the Sith holocron back on its pillar.
