Shorter chapter here, but I couldn't expand it the way I thought I could. Oh well.
Enjoy anyways!
"Still hard to believe she wants to meet with me." I shrugged on my cloak.
"She made it clear in her response she never had hostile intentions. Thought I still don't like you going in your Jedi uniform." Sabelle was pacing by the window, failing to hide her emotions from me.
"She lives on the outskirts of town. Anyone around is probably already in the know. Besides, if she really is going to try and kill me, these are at least blaster resistant and don't restrict my movements."
"Still. Going into danger by yourself? I don't like it." I messed with my cloak, making sure it was settled on my shoulders properly.
"It's a good thing I kept that list from you then." She frowned at me.
"I wondered about that. Just how much information did you hide from us?" I quick stepped towards the door as she went to move towards me.
"Enough to make you pale-gotta go!"
"Jondu!" I snickered as I ducked outside. A blue land speeder was waiting for me, the driver patiently tapping a rhythm on the side. He looked up at the shout to see me almost jogging over to him.
"I'm guessing you are the one the lady in there is yelling at?" He asked. I nodded.
"Yes. Going to regret that later, but it's not often I get a victory over her."
"Mother?" He guessed. I slid over the side of the speeder and settled into the seat.
"Yup." He shifted into a more upright position and kicked the speeder into motion. A knowing smirk pulled the corner of his mouth up.
"I understand that."
««{{¤}}»»
"Good afternoon, sir. Lady Tebuug will meet you inside her office," A man said, dressed to the nines. I nodded, then followed him inside of a rather impressive home. We walked down a short hall before turning left down another. He stopped at a door and held it open. I bowed my head to him before stepping inside.
It was a quaint little office, with shelves inset into the white walls on either side. Glass windows stood on either side of the desk in the middle, though their texture made it so you could only see basic shapes and colors outside.
"Ah, Master Jedi." Maleel Tebuug sat at the desk. She stood up and came around to greet me with a handshake. "I do apologize for the way our introduction went. I never meant any harm. Honestly, I should have guessed revealing I knew what organization you were from would make you wary." I shook her hand. Probing just on the surface of her thoughts, she was being genuine.
"That's why I'm here, actually."
"Oh? Please, sit." She gestured to the seat on our side of the desk before stepping around and retaking her own. I did so, folding my arms into my sleeves to hide any nervous ticks.
"A quick thing first, please don't call me a Jedi Master. I never even made rank of Knight." She tilted her head before glancing at the screen to her right.
"Are you not old enough?"
"To be a Knight, yes. However, I never passed my trials, so I didn't move up in rank beyond that of a Padawan Learner," I paused for a moment, "Even if the Order was still around, most Jedi don't make the rank of Master until they are in the equivalence of their 30s."
"I see. No disrespect intended." I returned the nod she gave me.
"I'm here because I need to know how you got that information. From my understanding, it was never public knowledge." She smiled, though there was a hint of mischievousness in it.
"No, your status as a survivor of Order 66 was never made public. I am one who never stops trying to find knowledge. Especially valuable knowledge such as this."
"Order 66?" That term sent a shiver down my spine. The Force almost…winced? That wasn't a normal reaction.
"The night the Jedi Temple fell, there was an Order broadcasted to every clone trooper. Apparently, it was kill on sight for the Jedi. You were all branded as traitors to the Republic." It still felt like something was off.
"I faced off against the squad of clones I fought alongside since the war started. Even if I had been deemed a traitor, they wouldn't have tried to kill me. They were…we were close, for a commander and his troops."
"Oh? That is new information." She noted it down in a data pad. She tapped her finger absentmindedly a few times before looking at me. "I will say it does seem strange that your information was not public, considering the Emperor has personal huntsman for the remaining Jedi."
"Huntsmen?"
"They are called Inquisitors. Some of them are former Jedi themselves, though don't tell them that." I bristled.
"Former Jedi, hunting Jedi?" I scowled, squeezing my hands together.
"Unfortunately, yes." She looked queasy just admitting it.
"How do you know all of this?"
"I have many faces in many places. There are at least three spies on Coruscant tasked with finding information on the remaining Jedi alone." My head pulled back at that.
"Why so much effort for something that is extinct?"
"Because you're not." I sat up a little straighter.
"What do you mean?"
"There were Jedi scattered throughout the galaxy that night. Some of them weren't with any Clones. They heard a message put out by one of the Jedi Masters and went into hiding." I sat back, thinking.
"The message…" The one I had listened to the night after Kalenta had died. The one Master Obi-Wan Kenobi had sent out.
"You got it as well?"
"It was confirmation I couldn't go back to the Temple."
"And like you, a few others survived." Her words took a moment to pull me out of my thoughts. I sat up a little straighter.
"Are you saying you know where they are?"
"Only two have been confirmed. A few others are so good at hiding that even my sources can't keep a lock on them." She sat back and folded her hands in her lap.
"Then those two weren't trained or aren't trying."
"I was trying, until recently," A voice said behind me.
I spun out of my chair, nearly knocking it over. My eyes widened to the point of pain. Blood drained from my face until I was ashen. My knees shook as if watching a stampede charge me down.
"Of course, if you wish me to go into hiding again, I am more than capable. I am a little offended that you think so little of my abilities."
So...who is the owner of this voice? Why have they got Jondu so pale? Leave a review and let me know!
May the Force be with you!
~Silverleone