Chapter 8 – A Puzzling Situation

Alright, this chapter is finished. I've decided to change my original plan for this chapter and split it in two parts. It was taking longer than I wanted it to and I got a little stuck on it, so I ended the chapter earlier than I had planned, but at a point where it is a natural break between two chapters.

Hope you enjoy.

;-

Queen Ahsoka Tano walked though halls of the palace with Shaden Zadane, the leader of the royal guard of Shili. They were on their way to check up on the people working to inspect the cargo that they had taken from the ship of the Night Torn Syndicate, the group that had tried to have Ahsoka assassinated and abduct women from the tribes to keep or sell as slaves.

She had paid a visit to the attacked tribe the day before along with Senator T'Rani Corso and a number or royal guards. Fortunately, everything there was going well. The tribesmen that had been hurt by the criminals were recovering nicely and the warriors that had stayed at the tribe had already helped them repair the damage done to the settlement.

They hadn't really asked for it, but Ahsoka and T'Rani had also seen to it that the tribe would get some supplies to help them through the next few weeks while their warriors recover. The last thing that Ahsoka wanted was for them to starve, but the tribe would be fine now. They had been quite grateful for her kindness.

Ahsoka and Shaden walked into the room and looked around at the palace staff sorting through the goods taken from the thugs ship. All of the jewelry and other valuables that they had promised the usurpers in exchange for taking the palace girls as their slaves was in this room. With that gang now taken care off, they had taken the liberty of relieving the ship from its cargo.

"Just how many girls did that scum promise them?" Ahsoka said as she shook her head. With the amount of treasure that was here, one could buy a small city on certain worlds.

Shaden hummed a bit. "It might be best not to think of that. Leave his vile acts in the past and let us focus on the future now," he replied. He didn't want to imagine it himself and he especially didn't want their new queen to be focused on such things. She had been through enough already.

Ahsoka nodded in agreement and they continued to the person left in charge of sorting through everything they had pulled from the ship.

"Verana, how is everything going?" Ahsoka asked the red-skinned Togruta woman. She had been one of the first advisors to contact the palace, looking to take up her old job as financial advisor with quite some enthusiasm. Right now she was working with the palace staff to make an accurate inventory of the valuables takes from the ship. All of it would now be used to help Shili and her people, so they would need an idea of just how much wealth that scum had hoarded.

Verana turned to her and smiled. "Hello milady, we're making good progress," she replied. "There's still a lot of gems and jewelry we have to sort through and put a price on, but we already have a nice count of 400.000 credits in just the normal credits alone."

Ahsoka's eyes widened a bit. "Already 400.000 and you still need to sort through most of the stuff?" she asked a bit stunned. "Sheesh, I don't think I even want to know what they did to get such money."

"Yeah, I don't think I want to know either. Seeing as how they were here to take our people as slaves…" Verana shuddered a bit. "Never mind that now, we will make sure to put this money to good use. It will help Shili greatly."

Ahsoka nodded. "Yes, that it sure will. T'Rani still has a few renovation plans for Corvala," she replied. "A few of the other cities, including two on different continents of the planet, have also contacted her to discuss plans for renovations and new construction projects. Now that that slime is no longer stealing everything for himself, those projects can finally get started."

Verana nodded in agreement. "Yes, I have a distant cousin who works with the local government over on the southern continent. They had a few construction plans, but were never able to get the necessary funding. That will thankfully change now."

"We will make sure of that," Ahsoka replied with a smile. "I'll leave you to it. Do let us know when you have everything sorted out."

"Will do milady," Verana said with a smile and a slight bow. She then moved back to a few of the workers that were sorting through several pieces of jewelry.

Ahsoka walked around the room a bit more, checking in with a few of the workers and observing the pile of treasure for herself. She never had been that interested herself in fancy, expensive jewelry and the like, but this pile was nevertheless quite a sight to see. Something then caught her attention and she froze mid-step.

Shaden noticed her freeze and walked up to her immediately. "Ahsoka? Is something wrong?" he questioned, instantly ready to signal his fellow warriors to be on full alert. She was looking around slightly, with a hint of confusion on her face.

Ahsoka turned to him slowly. "Did you hear that?" she asked him.

Shaden shook his head. "I didn't hear anything unusual. What did you hear?" he asked her in return.

Ahsoka looked around again. "I can hear something, feel something calling to me," she replied as she closed her eyes. "It's strangely familiar. I've heard this before, in a… much colder place. It sounds so similar." She opened her eyes and slowly made her way to the table where the rest of the items that they still needed to look over. Verana and Shaden joined her at the table as well, unsure what to make of her words.

Ahsoka looked over the table, something was calling out to her through the Force. She had heard this feeling, this singing before. "Ilum," she suddenly thought. This sensation was similar to her Gathering, similar to the sound of her crystal calling to her in the caves. She reached out with the Force and found herself drawn to a small box that lay underneath a few other jewels. She took it from the pile and opened it. Her eyes widened as she looked at the orange crystal that glowed in the Force.

Verana leaned in and studied the crystal as well. "Hmm, something about that crystal looks different than the others we have here," she commented.

"That's because it is different," Ahsoka replied. "This is a kyber crystal, a crystal of the Force. The same type of crystal that is used as the heart of a lightsaber. I can hear it calling to me." She took the crystal from the box and held it in her hand. It resonated so brightly with the Force, it was a wonderful sensation. She slowly closed her fingers around the crystal, an image appearing in her mind. She turned back to Shaden and Verana. "I have a slightly selfish request."

"A slightly selfish request?" Shaden asked with some visible confusion.

"Yes," Ahsoka replied, a smile spreading on her face as she felt the warm glowing crystal in her hand.

;-

Two days later

There was a wide smile on Ahsoka's face as she went through kata after kata, her new lightsaber swirling around her. The Force sang to her through the crystal, filling her with both a great sense of peace and joy at holding a lightsaber again. The orange blade hummed around her, glowing like a warm sun, giving light to all it touches. There was no reason to deny it, with a new lightsaber in her hand, she felt complete again.

The palace servants that she had sent out to gather some supplies for her had been quite confused when she told them what they needed to get. To them, it had seemed like a collection of random parts that they themselves wouldn't know what to do with. Ahsoka had merely smirked at their confusion.

Once the palace servants had brought her all of the parts, she had spent some time with the engineers and crafters of the royal guard. They really knew their craft and they had been great help in constructing the parts for her new lightsaber. They knew some slightly different techniques for shaping metal, that they had been happy to share with her, and the end result spoke for itself.

All of the components had been perfect and the crystal resonated happily with all of them. She had invited the palace servants that had gotten the parts to join her after that, so that they could see just what it was they had helped her with. Each of them had stared with wide eyes when she called on the Force and made all of the components combine around the crystal. Then she had taken her new lightsaber into her hand.

Her new lightsaber fit perfectly in her hand, a very comfortable weight as she practically danced around the open area in the garden as she went through all of the familiar moves. She switched from a one handed grip to a two handed grip, back to her preferred reverse hold and went through all the forms that she had practiced over the many years. A part of her almost felt like she was back in the Temple, practicing the forms as a younglings with her clan or training with Anakin either in the Temple, on the Resolute or somewhere else during their many missions.

After going through a few more of her favorite katas, she deactivated her lightsaber and clipped it onto her belt, next to her sash and her mother's katana. With a satisfied smile, she turned back to the spectators in the garden and walked up to them.

"That was quite amazing to see Ahsoka," Silara said with a smile. "You really are fast and graceful, and that weapon seems to suit you perfectly."

"Thank you Silara," Ahsoka replied happily. "I've always used a lightsaber and this one just feels perfect in my hands. The crystal is wonderful and with everyone's help, I was able to get some great components. I don't think that I could have made it any better."

"It is a wonderful weapon indeed," Shaden commented. "I just hope you will stay mindful of your position as queen and not go after every little trouble on Shili yourself."

Despite his slightly strict and professional tone, Ahsoka could hear the teasing undertone very clearly. She gave him a smirk. "How can I not? Especially since I know that all of you will be right behind me," she replied in a teasing tone. "Just make sure you get there before I finish handling the situation myself."

The warriors and servants in the garden all laughed at her words, a few of the warriors shaking their heads. Silara especially was entertained. She stood up and walked a bit closer to her. "You just sounded exactly like your mother did when she had officially become a princess of Shili after marrying your father," she said with a trace of nostalgia in her voice. "She loved messing with the warriors assigned to protect her as well."

"It sounds like we were quite a bit alike," Ahsoka replied with a smile. "It makes me wonder a little how things would have gone if Anakin and I had come to Shili and met her. I'm sure he would have loved to tease me about that." Her voice trailed off a bit near the end.

One of the palace servants walked up to her and lightly coughed to get her attention. "Excuse me, milady," the green skinned girl said. "But it's almost time for lunch. I heard that the chefs were going to make something special today. A few of the tribes living closer to the city sent a batch of fresh Akul meat as thanks for the help that you and Senator Corso provided."

Ahsoka looked at her and gave a light smile. "That sounds like a good plan. I could go for a good meal after that exercise," she replied. "So we got a special treat hmm? Can one of you contact T'Rani? It wouldn't be right if she doesn't get to enjoy it as well."

The green skinned girl nodded. "Of course milady, we'll get right on that," she said as she bowed her head. "Please enjoy the meal."

Ahsoka nodded back and began making her way to the smaller dining room that she preferred to use instead of the larger dining hall for larger gatherings. Silara and a few of the servants in the garden joined her while Shaden and the other warriors went back to their posts.

;-

A few days later

Ahsoka was sitting in the palace garden, accompanied by a few palace servants. She was enjoying a nice tea break with the girls after what was becoming a normal daily routine for her these days.

She and T'Rani had a few meetings with dignitaries from the other cities of Shili, to see how everything was going in the cities and to discuss a few plans for the cities. After that, she had gone to inspect the cargo and supplies that captain Hardin, the engineer Riyec and the rest of their crew had collected on their last assignment. Then she had overseen the delivery of some of those materials to a construction site in the city and check on the progress there. All of those tasks completed, she had joined Silara and a few of the other warriors in their training, it was a great way to stay in shaped. To end her tasks for the day, she had done some more practice with her new lightsaber.

With everything done for the day, this nice quiet moment was a very welcome break. Lyra and a few of her friends had joined her on her 'order'. They were good company and it was nice to just relax for a bit with them.

After they had finished the tea, Ahsoka had gone for a little stroll through the garden. Lyra had joined her to keep her company, but Ahsoka also suspected that it was for a slightly different reason. She just had this little suspicion that Shaden, Silara and the others wanted to make sure that at least one person was keeping an eye on her, after that whole mess with that gang and their attempt to assassinate her, not to mention her little joyride with their fighter.

She couldn't help the slight smirk on her face. If she really wanted to do something, she doubted that they could keep her from doing it. That thought gave her a lot of ideas to mess with them if she felt like it. She kept that idea in the back of her mind as she and Lyra walked.

As she walked through the garden, she suddenly began to sense a strange feeling through the Force. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but it almost felt like something or someone was calling out to her. She took a few slow steps forward, her mind not registering the question from Lyra.

The strange sensation grew stronger and she couldn't help but feel drawn to it. There was nothing menacing or dark in this feeling, quite the opposite. She reached out with the Force to see what it was and a bright light surrounded her completely.

;-

Lyra looked at Ahsoka when she didn't reply to her question, which seemed odd to her, seeing as they had been talking the entire time. She looked at the young queen. She seemed to be strangely focused, staring at something that wasn't there. It confused her and worried her a little as well.

"Milady? Is something wrong?" she asked with a bit of concern. She didn't reply. "Ahsoka? What is it?" she asked again. Ahsoka remained silent and didn't answer her. She contemplated reaching out to her, as Ahsoka was still transfixed on something that she couldn't see, when suddenly, to her horror, Ahsoka just collapsed to the floor.

Lyra gasped in horror and didn't hesitate a second. She kneeled down next to her immediately and shook her shoulder, trying to get a reaction from her. "Ahsoka? Ahsoka!" she called out worriedly. She didn't reply or react at all. She quickly looked around and spotted one of her friends a short distance away. "Alana! Alana! Contact the doctors and the guards! Something has happened to the queen!" she called to her friend. Alana turned to her startled and the shock on her face was very clear to see. She quickly ran off to alert the other palace staff.

What happened next was a flurry of movement and Lyra struggled to keep up with everything. The palace doctors and guards had rushed to their position and had quickly taken Ahsoka to the palace medical wing. The warriors of the royal guard had make quick work of securing that area and also locking down the palace completely. While this was going on, two guards and a few medics extensively quizzed her about what had happened.

She explained everything the best as she could, but she just had no idea what could have happened. One moment they were talking together, nothing was wrong, and then she just collapsed without warning. There hadn't been anyone else nearby, save for a few of her friends. It didn't look like she had been hit by something. It couldn't have been some form of poison in the tea, they had all shared the same kettle. If that was it, then they all should be unconscious now. "Us probably sooner than her, I'd wager. We don't have the Force to protect us," Lyra thought in her worries.

Despite her stress and concerns, she recounted all of the details as best as she could for the medics and warriors. When there was nothing left to tell, the medics quickly thanked her and headed off. One of the warriors from the royal guard had tried to call her down a little, then told her to go and rest up. She had done what she could. She reluctantly agreed with him. There wasn't really anything more that she could do. She was able to make some very nice works of craft from wood and leather, but she wasn't a doctor. She shook her head and started to slowly make her way back home.

;-

Senator T'Rani Corso, leader of the royal guard Shaden Zadane, Silara Triball and numerous other warriors and palace staff were all gathered in a meeting room close to the medical wing of the palace and the room where their queen was now. Each of them was trying to get some answers to this situation. Their young queen had fallen into some form of unconsciousness, but no one seemed to be able to explain just what it was yet.

"So far, the doctors have ruled out many different forms of trauma, both physical and mental. Her blood showed no signs of poisons, toxins or drugs either. If it had, someone else would have shared the same fate as her, seeing as she always shared food and drinks with others," T'Rani told the others as she read the information from her datapad. "She's completely unresponsive, but they can't explain why yet."

"So, it's some form of coma?" Shaden asked, trying to keep a calm demeanor despite his worry.

T'Rani shook her head slightly. "They're not sure. They're measuring quite some brain activity from her, so it's not a coma, at least not one I'm familiar with," she explained. "Right now they just don't know."

"There must be something that they can do, right?" Silara asked worriedly.

"They're still running all sorts of tests," T'Rani replied. "They're monitoring her condition closely. Apart from the fact that she's unconscious and not responding to anything, she appears to be fine. They don't think her life is at risk, there are no abnormalities in her hearth rate, oxygen or blood pressure, but she just isn't waking up."

A silence spread through the room. No one seemed to know what to say or do. After a few minutes of contemplating the situation, Shaden stood up. "Alright, none of us like this situation, that much is obvious. Here is what we're going to do," he addressed the group. "Aurora, I want you to send out an emergency transmission to the warriors currently not on duty. I want everyone in the palace to make sure that no one is able to get in or out without us knowing." Aurora nodded in reply and began to write the message on her datapad.

"Senator, we need to make sure that the doctors have whatever they need. If they need something, get someone on it right away," Shaden continued. "I also want two of us standing guard in her room at all times. Silara and Cira, when we're done here, please relief the guards presently there. I will set up a timetable for others to switch out with you over time." The three women replied their agreements.

"The rest of us will investigate all of the places that she has been today further, just in case we missed something earlier," he informed the others. "I wish there was more that we can do, but there isn't, unfortunately. We will keep making sure that the palace is safe and that the doctors have what they need to help the queen."

The others in the room voiced their agreement, but it was clear by the general mood that they too weren't too happy with the situation. They would all prefer to do more, but they just couldn't do more but wait.

;-

That's the end of the chapter for now.

I know it leaves things as a cliffhanger, but it does serve as a breaking point between the now two chapters. As I said, it was taking me a lot longer to finish this chapter. Work has becoming increasingly more busy, seeing as my colleague has fallen ill, leaving me to take over a portion of her work on top of my own. Besides that, there's also some personal issues back home that aren't putting me in the best mood to write occasionally. Everything combined, I decided to break up this chapter and upload the first part now.

The next update will probably be for my Barriss Story. She will be taking Scout as her Padawan in the next chapter and that is a part that I've been wanting to write for a little while now.

I might also decide to do some work on a different one shot idea I had. I simply have too many ideas that I would want to work out and too little time to turn the ideas into actual stories. Nevertheless, this one shot might be a nice one to do.

Until next time.