2 / Faith in Trust
"Concentrate, Kata."
Kata's brows pushed together in frustration. She worried that if she concentrated any harder, her head might explode from the effort.
"I am."
"If you are speaking, you are not concentrating."
An irritated noise escaped Kata's lips. She and Merrin had spent the better part of the day working on teleportation and her poor mind was exhausted. Too stubborn to give up, she persisted, feeling her aggravation building as the day went on. Merrin never appeared to lose her patience, which only served to annoy Kata even more. She had noticed how her frustration always seemed to build more quickly when she was working on her Magick than it did with her Jedi training. It likely didn't help that using Magick didn't come quite as naturally to her.
Kata lost her focus once again, her eyes flying open, a faint tinge of green still lingering in them.
"Do not get frustrated."
"It's difficult, Merrin."
"Yes, it is. If it were easy, everyone would learn."
Kata sighed and closed her eyes once more, trying to quiet her thoughts and focus.
"Expand your mind, let go of your physical self."
The Padawan tried to follow her instructions, but she had no idea what it meant to 'let go of your physical self'. She had never struggled with any of her training as much as this one thing. This one thing that she failed to do time and time again, which only made her more determined to succeed.
"What does that mean, Merrin?"
"It means project your awareness around you. Forget where you are and focus on where you want to be."
Very helpful, Kata thought. If anything, she was too aware of her surroundings, given that Merrin always liked to do their training on some precarious ledge halfway up Santari's Peak. "To motivate you" she would say. Kata was not afraid of heights – or death, particularly – but she didn't like to lose and she hated to fail.
"Your mind is wandering again, Kata."
How did she know? Kata grunted in aggravation.
"Blast it!"
"Cursing will not help you learn faster."
"No, but it does help me vent my frustration."
"Perhaps we should stop for today."
"No, I want to try again."
Kata closed her eyes once more, this time trying to focus on her surroundings. She could hear the wind rustling through the trees that grew from the face of the mountain, the sea birds' cries as they flew over from the nearby oceans and the gentle shimmering sound she could always hear on Tanalorr when she listened closely enough. She was never quite sure what made that sound, but she liked to think it was the Force, surrounding them. She had travelled to many places in the Galaxy over the last few years, and few of them had felt as strong in the Force as Tanalorr.
She felt the mountain breeze on her skin, through her clothes, in her hair, the last warmth of the afternoon beginning to show the first signs of sunset. And again, the Force, all around her, flowing through her. She breathed it in deeply, drinking in its light. There was much of it on Tanalorr, but also great darkness. The balance between the two never quite clear, the line always blurred. Like her.
Without really meaning to, Kata entered a meditative-like state, so deep was her concentration and connection to the Force in that moment. She breathed slowly, deeply, her mind finally quieted and only feeling remained. Merrin did not interrupt her focus, just watched patiently. After a few more deep breaths, Kata was almost ready to give this teleportation thing another try, when something strange happened. An image – a flicker, really – only there for a fraction of a second, then gone again. The sudden sensation startled her right out of her trance.
"Are you alright?" Merrin approached.
Kata realised she was panting and a cold sweat had suddenly broken out on her forehead. What was that?
"Yeah, I'm fine." She assured.
"What was that?"
Kata took a moment to respond, unsure of what she just experienced herself. It was so fast, but so vivid. The image was unmistakable, and what she'd heard... whose voice was that?
"I don't know." She finally admitted.
She wiped the moisture from her forehead, feeling dazed. She was suddenly distracted by the distinctive boom of a ship dropping out of hyperspace in Tanalorr's atmosphere. Her head jerked up to see a familiar ship making its way down to the planet from the Abyss.
"Teelo..." She breathed.
In an instant, she forgot her worrisome experience just now. She looked back at Merrin, who had also been looking up at the sky.
"Go," She nodded in approval. "We are done for the day."
Kata smiled and looked down over the edge of the cliff. They were a good two hundred metres up – child's play. No fear, she reminded herself as she allowed her body to freefall over the edge.
She used the Force to steady her descent as Cal had taught her, then about thirty metres from the ground, she connected with the rock face and slid the rest of the way. She felt a particularly rough rock scrape her bare forearm on the way down, but it didn't bother her; the scrapes and bruises were part of the fun. At the end of her slide, she dropped to the ground below right outside the west entrance to the living quarters and rolled as she landed so she wouldn't break her ankles. She heard someone nearby startled by her sudden appearance.
"Kata, be careful Padawan!" An older man exclaimed.
"Sorry, Master Gidun!" Kata apologised, pressing her palms together before quickly running down the Temple steps.
The square was always abuzz with activity at this hour. The Younglings were adjourning their lessons for the day, spilling from the Temple entrance, Master Maven and Master Gidun trying desperately to wrangle them all. The older Padawans like her were gathered around the sparring ring, and she could see Heda and Dash Pavan in the middle of a bout, their lightsabers flashes of green and blue. The hunters were coming up from the southern gate, bringing in their fresh kills for the day, and the farmers were preparing to return to the docks and fly over the sea to the farmlands in the west.
"Hey, Kata!" A familiar voice greeted the Padawan as she passed.
"Hey, Mosey! Good haul today."
"You know it!"
Kata waved at her and carried on, running straight into one of the Padawans by the ring.
"Oh, sorry Jynna!" She apologised.
"Head in the clouds again, Akuna?"
"Always!"
By the time she reached the gate to Haven's Pass, she had almost knocked over at least two other people going about their day. She used the biometric scanner to open the gate and jogged down the secluded path to where the Mantis and the Rogue usually docked. As she approached, she could hear two voices carrying through the passage; one Teelo's and one Cal's. Of course he had beaten her there.
"So all was quiet, then?" She heard Cal ask in a low tone.
"As a tomb." Came Teelo's reply.
"I don't like the sound of that. What do you think happened?"
"Your guess is as good as mine."
The two halted their conversation as they saw Kata come into view. Cal saw Teelo smile at his Padawan as she approached them.
"Hey." She greeted unceremoniously.
"What, no hug?" Teelo demanded.
Kata raised one brow.
"Am I not getting a little old for that?"
"Absolutely not," They feigned offense. "Get over here, kid!"
Kata grinned widely and jumped up, throwing her arms around Teelo's neck. They swung her around, eliciting a giggle from her, before setting her back on her feet.
"You will never be too old for that." They scolded with a pointed finger.
Cal smiled at the pair that had become the unlikeliest of friends. Ever since they had joined their crew, Teelo and Kata had seemed to share a special bond. Cal had a sense of why that might have been, though he dared not say it aloud. While he and Merrin were her mentors, Teelo also had much to teach Kata that was helpful in her unique situation, and Cal was grateful to them.
They had happened upon Teelo – either by pure chance, or the will of the Force – on Ontotho almost three years before. They were trained as a Jedi from a young age, sent to a distant world to fight with their Master during the Clone Wars, just like Cal. It had become a very familiar story among the Jedi surviving on Tanalorr. It had been difficult at first for Cal to trust them, but now they were like family.
Teelo was a unique-looking person, with a Mirialan mother and a Miralukan father – a 'Mirialukan' they called themself, often joking they were fortunate to have their mother's eyes. Their skin was of similar pallor to Merrin's, but an obvious shade of green, half-shaven head of hair so dark blue it was almost black, and the distinctive diamond patterns of the Mirialan facial tattoos above their brows, in the centre of their chin and along their jaw line. Cal realised he had never asked Teelo what their tattoos meant, though he wasn't sure if it would be an appropriate thing to ask.
"Sounds like things weren't too good on Nar Shaddaa?" Kata observed.
"Things are never good on Nar Shaddaa, Kata," Teelo joked, patting her gently on the back and beginning to walk with her up the path to the gate. "It's cold, dark, and everyone there is grumpier than Greez."
Kata laughed.
"Who can blame them with the Imperial occupation as bad as it is now." Cal pointed out.
"It definitely doesn't help matters." Teelo agreed.
"I'm glad you're back," Kata beamed up at Teelo. "I missed you."
"Missed you more," They squeezed Kata in for a hug by her shoulder. "And I missed your birthday."
They suddenly whipped out a long, metal object from their bag and handed it to Kata. Cal didn't see what it was right away.
"What is it?" Kata asked.
"It's called a laser sight, for your blaster." They explained.
Kata stopped walking and pulled her blaster from its holster on her left leg. She attached the modification easily and pointed it at the rocks a safe distance away. A thin red laser protruded from the sight, pinpointing where she was aiming with a small dot. She fired once and the bolt hit right where the dot was. She grinned from ear to ear.
"Cool."
"I thought you'd like it." Teelo seemed pleased with themself.
"How did training go today?" Cal asked.
"Ugh," Kata waved her hand dismissively, holstering her weapon. "Don't ask."
"That bad, huh?" Cal teased.
Kata made another aggravated sound in response.
"Merrin makes it look so easy! It's infuriating."
"You'll get there, Kata," Cal encouraged. "I'm sure of it."
"Do you at least have anything new to show me?" Teelo asked, folding their arms.
"Of course."
Kata walked over to their right until she was standing in one of the many pools of water that always gathered on Tanalorr's surface from the frequent rain. She exhaled deeply and focused, throwing both arms out to use the Force to blast a sizeable hole into the rock wall that shattered outwards into several chunks. She caught them before they were thrown in all directions, then bright green streaks of light enveloped her hands as she moved the chunks of rock back into place, leaving no trace of the destruction. Cal found it fascinating to watch her create chaos with her Jedi powers and then restore it with her Magick, almost like reversing time. Fascinating and, at times, terrifying.
"Very impressive," Teelo praised. "Only took you two weeks to learn that?"
"She's a fast learner." Cal chimed in.
"I'll say. I could barely pull my saber to my hand when I was your age."
Kata wandered back towards them, throwing her arms up in a wide shrug. The action very much reminded Cal of Merrin.
"Maybe I'm just better than you." She teased, putting her hands on her hips.
"Oh, really," Teelo's eyes widened at her cheek. "You want to test that theory, Padawan?"
"Maybe… if you're brave enough to fight someone half your age."
"Half my age and half the swordsman." Teelo taunted.
Kata scoffed in an exaggerated way and Cal shook his head at their antics. The two of them were always like this – they had a very healthy rivalry going. Too healthy, some might've said. Though, having such long-standing competition with one of the best fighters Cal had ever seen could have only been good for her saber skills. Calling her half the swordsman they were was a compliment. Cal certainly wouldn't have wanted to go toe to toe with Teelo in a real scrap.
"You two can hack each other to pieces later," Cal interrupted. "Do you mind, Kata? I need a minute." He gestured between him and Teelo.
"Sure. I'll leave the adults to talk." Her sarcasm on the word 'adults' was evident.
She started to back away with a mischievous grin.
"I'll meet you in the ring?"
"Fine, but I won't go easy on you." Teelo warned.
"Wouldn't dream of it!" She called back.
Kata turned and waved her hand in the air as she jogged back up the path towards the gate, her tied back hair swished back and forth as she went. Cal thought she definitely needed another haircut; the kid's hair grew like a weed. He'd have to mention it to Merrin. How had he turned into such a parent?
"Growing stronger every day."
Teelo's remark snapped Cal from his distracted train of thought.
"Yeah," He agreed. "Her command of the Force continues to exceed our expectations."
"Well, she's special. A Jedi and a Nightsister for her mentors, it's no wonder her potential seems limitless," The two of them began walking up the path again as they talked. "And she doesn't have the yoke of the Order holding her back."
"I sometimes wonder if we should be holding her back," Cal pondered. "We're letting her walk a dangerous path."
"Yes, you are, but stunting her growth would only serve to work against you. Teaching her to embrace her abilities, and learn to control them, will serve her better in the long run."
"You sound just like Merrin."
"That's because she's smarter than the both of us combined."
"Hm."
Teelo half-smiled at Cal's pensive expression. They reached over and patted his shoulder.
"You worry too much, Cal. When the time comes, she'll be ready. I believe in her."
Cal nodded slowly. It wasn't that he didn't believe in Kata – he had great faith in her abilities, and her resolve. But, like many young Jedi, she lacked patience and vigilance. He knew those were things she would learn with time and experience, that they weren't really things anyone could teach her. But the girl had a penchant for finding trouble, something he felt like she unfortunately got from him. Her smart mouth didn't help – that she definitely learned from Merrin. Ok, maybe that was him, too, but also Merrin.
Truthfully, Kata wasn't dissimilar from the few other Padawans her age, except that her use of Nightsister Magick tended to set her apart from them. Cal and Merrin had spent many an hour debating how they would train the Jedi on Tanalorr once they had begun to set the Hidden Path up there. Jedi survivors and Force-sensitives had begun to flock to Tanalorr, though few their numbers were.
Initially, Merrin had been willing to train them all as they had Kata, in the Jedi arts and Dathomiri Magick, though she was unsure how receptive non-Dathomirians would be to such training. And Cal worried that arming that many Jedi with abilities that were channelled through the Dark Side of the Force, and were often times difficult to control, might be dangerous. So eventually, they had agreed that Merrin would teach those willing and able to learn some basic Magick – fire, restoration, things they could use to navigate and survive, and they would wait to see how experimenting with Kata worked out.
It felt strange to refer to Kata's training as an 'experiment', but that's precisely what it was. They truly had no idea what kind of fire they might be playing with. Better it were contained to one individual – who had proven very early on that she was capable of handling it – than to test it with forty-seven Jedi of varying ages, experiences and backgrounds. It would have been far more difficult of an experiment to control.
"Sounds as though the time might be coming sooner than we thought," Cal lamented, returning his mind to Teelo's mission. "You didn't find any clues as to what might've happened with the garrison?"
"Nothing conclusive," Teelo shook their head. "At least nothing that doesn't seem like it was put there deliberately."
Cal frowned.
"You think someone set it up to look like the Rebels were responsible?"
Teelo threw out their arms and halted their steps, looking at Cal.
"Possibly, maybe. Like I said, just a hunch."
Cal patted their back once and started to walk forwards.
"I'll trust your gut over evidence any day, Teelo."
"Hey, uh, speaking of trust..." Teelo began.
Cal stopped and turned back towards them expectantly.
"Thanks for trusting me with this one, Cal," They said sincerely. "I know it's been a bumpy road since I joined the team, and I haven't always been the most forthcoming, but—"
Cal held up a hand to stop them.
"It's in the past, Teelo. You've been with us how long now?" He stepped forward and laid a reassuring hand on their shoulder, making eye contact with them. "You've earned my trust. You've more than proven yourself a worthy and valuable asset to Tanalorr, and a loyal friend."
Cal smiled at them warmly and they returned it.
"Thank you, Cal. The camaraderie you and yours have shown me is more than I deserve."
"It's deserved," Cal assured them. "You're one of us now, whether you like it or not."
Teelo laughed, a light, cheerful sound, and the two continued towards the gate.
The sunset was looming once they made it down to the square, people starting to make their way in all directions to prepare for nightfall. They had stationed heating lamps around the most commonly travelled areas of Tanalorr, as while the weather was usually incredibly pleasant during the day – when it wasn't pouring rain or storming – at night the temperatures dropped. Almost like it was on a desert planet like Tatooine, just not to such intense extremes. Cal could see people starting to light those lamps up now as the sun drew lower in the sky, the chill already beginning to set in. Though, he had a feeling things were about to heat up in the sparring ring.
"Hey, Kata!"
Her head whipped in Teelo's direction when she heard them. She was sitting on the railings of the ring chatting with Jynna Sett, the Padawan she'd almost knocked over earlier. They stalked towards the sparring ring, unclipping their saber from their belt.
"Still looking for a fight, or do you want to run your mouth some more?"
Kata grinned widely.
"Ready when you are, Master Niteva."
She tilted herself backwards and gracefully flipped into the ring. Teelo hopped over the railing and moved to stand opposite her. Cal made his way in-between the gathered Padawans, smiling in response to a few scattered greetings of "Master Kestis". He leaned his arms atop the barrier, ready to observe their bout. He heard Merrin approach and join him.
"Those two are already at it again, I see." She observed.
"Well, you know Kata and Teelo. It's almost like their greeting ritual now."
"Hm."
Cal saw Kata's left hand reach down towards her blaster, then stop and withdraw as she thought better of it. Good move, he thought. Using a blaster against Teelo was pointless; they would just deflect it back faster than she could fire. Instead she detached one half of her saber and flipped it into backhanded position, leaving the other half on her belt. Cal saw Teelo spin their saber in their left hand. He had always found it interesting that they chose to fight left-handed. It was their dominant hand, but most Jedi who were left-handed still fought with their right. Not Teelo, and Cal thought that was perhaps part of what made them such a good fighter. When he'd asked them about it, they had said it worked to their advantage; that their opponents were often thrown off by how they moved.
Kata sucked in a deep breath and exhaled loudly, preparing herself. Her eyes focused sharply on her opponent across the ring and she moved into her backhanded stance, igniting her purple saber. Teelo also ignited their saber, white blade glowing brightly, and stood far too casually, trying to goad her into attacking them. And it worked; the Padawan charged forward and they locked sabers briefly as Teelo pushed her back. Kata recovered quickly and planted her feet, preparing for their next strike.
Teelo was much bigger, stronger and faster than Kata, and they usually went easy on her when they sparred. But Cal could see them hitting harder than they normally would and Kata was struggling to hold them back. Teelo was someone Cal would've described as being a gentle soul, and they certainly had a soft spot when it came to Kata, but once they got into a fight, they were downright scary. Their strikes were fast and aggressive and their face focused and unflinching. It was in stark contrast to their usually sunny disposition.
Kata faltered as one of Teelo's strikes broke her guard. They tried to take advantage of the opening, but she thought fast and jumped up, flipping over their head and landing behind them. She moved to attack their back, but they ignited the other half of their saber, blocking her strike. The surprise was plain on Kata's face and they turned their head towards her.
"I warned you I wouldn't hold back." They grinned.
Teelo used the Force to push Kata back with their right hand and she stumbled. They passed their saber around their back and across their front, spinning it back into forehanded position, only showing off a little. Kata seemed taken aback as she re-strategised and Cal shook his head. Teelo almost never fought double-bladed in the ring, because it simply wasn't a fair fight. Cal guessed that was the point of this bout, though. If Kata could hold her own against them for even a few seconds, it would be longer than most.
Kata blew out an exhale and jigged on the spot before charging forward to meet her doom. And Teelo certainly did not hold back, their saber a blur of white light as they spun it towards her, Kata barely able to block their blows. After a moment, she backed off, giving herself just enough time to draw her other saber and ignite it. Good, Cal thought. She was quite proficient in dual fighting, and it was her best chance here, allowing her to spread her energy more evenly against the flurry that was Teelo. She got her sabers up just in time to block them, holding each side of their double blades at bay with her own. Her back foot started to slide and she dug her heel into the dirt. Cal saw her eyes flick downwards right before she tried to sweep Teelo's legs out from under them, but they had seen. They broke contact with her and flipped backwards, easily avoiding her strike.
"Nice try, Kata," They taunted. "But I saw what you were thinking. Never let your opponent know what you're going to do next."
Cal heard a frustrated noise escape Kata's lips before she charged them again. But she did something even he hadn't expected her to do; she swung her right saber forward and faked them out mid-swing. Teelo's saber whirred through the empty air as she flipped backwards and reached out with her left hand, pointing three fingers in Teelo's direction and green tendrils enveloped their legs, locking them in place. Before they had time to react, she used the Force to burst forward and lock sabers with them, straining against them. Then she shut off her left saber and Force pushed them back as they had just done to her. They slid backwards, released from her Magick hold, steadying themself.
"Good, Kata!" They praised.
Without so much as a hint at their intentions, Teelo pulled Kata towards them, which Cal could see she very much had not anticipated. She managed to get her weapon up in time to block them, but Teelo used her momentary lapse in focus to headbutt her right in the face. There was a collective "oooooh" from the audience around the ring and even Cal cringed, knowing how much that would've hurt. He knew Teelo had her now, and they must've known it too. They pushed her saber from her grasp and kicked the back of her knee out. She started to fall backwards, but Teelo mercifully gripped her arm before she could hit the ground, then pointed their saber at her throat.
"But you still have much to learn."
Teelo smiled down at the Padawan smugly and she narrowed her eyes at them, unable to stop the smirk that spread across her face.
"Ow." She emphasised.
The crowd that had grown around the ring began to applaud and Cal and Merrin joined in. Teelo pulled Kata back onto her feet and stowed their saber. Kata looked around her until she spied her own, now halfway across the ring and pulled it to her hand.
"Sorry, I gotcha good, there." Teelo apologised, gesturing to the mark they'd left on her forehead that was already turning into a bruise.
"It's fine," She waved a hand dismissively. "Maybe it'll teach me to duck next time."
Teelo chuckled and nodded once at her. Kata turned and tried not to hobble out of the ring, rubbing her left knee.
"Anyone else?" Teelo asked aloud.
There were several murmurs and whispers from the crowd. It seemed no one was game enough, and Cal didn't blame them.
"No takers? Merrin?"
"Another time, Jedi," She refused. "Some of us have work to do."
"Whatever you say, Nightsister."
Cal furrowed his brows at Merrin.
"It's not like you to turn down a chance to put Teelo in their place."
"It has been a long day." Merrin explained with a shrug of her shoulders.
Kata limped over to the two of them, already holding her hands up in anticipation of a grilling.
"I know, I know, I was too aggressive, I should fight more conservatively."
Cal chuckled.
"You did well, Kata. I'd say that was your best bout yet."
"They were toying with me," Kata rolled her eyes. "I'd never be able to face them in a real fight."
"You are young, you will improve." Merrin assured.
"Remember, at your age most of your opponents will be stronger and faster than you, so you have to be smarter." Cal reminded her.
"Yes, Master."
Kata bowed, her tone and the gesture dripping with sarcasm. Cal flicked the tip of her nose.
"Ow!"
"And I don't mean smart-mouthed," He scolded. "That'll get you in more trouble than you can handle."
"Are you speaking from experience, Cal?" Merrin teased him.
Cal shot her a dirty look and Kata snorted, rubbing her nose.
"I hear you, Cal," She assured. "I'll do my best."
"I know you will. Come on, Greez and I are gonna do some maintenance on the Rogue, and you're gonna help us."
"And I am about to be late to teach a class," Merrin said. "Stay out of trouble, you two."
"No promises." Cal joked.
Merrin stopped Kata as she was about to leave and studied a few strands of her long, thick hair with scrutiny.
"What?" Kata demanded.
"You need a haircut, child." Merrin stated.
"No, I don't." Kata protested.
"Yes, you do." Cal refuted.
"Ugh."
"Hey, Akuna!"
Kata's head whipped around to see Jynna approaching with a smile.
"Good bout," She complimented. "You've gotten better."
"They kicked my ass." Kata pointed out.
"Don't sell yourself short," She disputed. "Lasting longer than ten seconds in the ring against Master Niteva fighting double? That's an accomplishment in my books."
Kata shrugged nonchalantly, trying to hide how pleased Jynna's compliment made her.
"Maybe I'll give you a few pointers sometime."
"Mmm, don't let it go to your head."
"Kata!" Cal called out to her.
"Coming! Gotta go."
"See you later, Akuna."
Kata and Jynna waved to each other and Kata caught up to Cal. He immediately noticed the goofy smirk on her face, but didn't say anything, simply smiling to himself. The two of them made their way to Haven's Edge and could clearly hear Greez cursing to himself inside as they drew closer to the Rogue.
"He's getting senile in his old age." Cal joked, making Kata laugh.
The Rogue Mercenary was Teelo's ship, which they'd told Kata once they'd "liberated" when they escaped the Ryloth system years ago, before they'd met. Kata wanted to laugh aloud at the thought of Teelo stealing anything, let alone a ship. Its design was very different to the Stinger Mantis, it was rounder in shape with a mostly black paint job and the interior was accented with blue rather than the orange on the Mantis. There was a holo-chess table on board where Teelo had kicked her butt at many a game over the years, though she was steadily improving. One day she'd beat them.
They boarded the ship and headed to the engine room at the back where Greez was staring at the hyperdrive and scratching his bald head, muttering to himself.
"Need a hand?" Cal asked.
The Latero started and turned around so quickly Cal was concerned he might pull something.
"Geez, kid, you gotta quit sneakin' up on me like that!" He scolded.
"Sorry!" Cal chuckled.
"brrtrrt!"
"Hey, Greez." Kata greeted.
"Hey, Kata, how ya doin' kid? What happened to your face?"
Their tone turned to concern when they noticed the growing bruise on Kata's forehead.
"Oh, nothing, just getting my butt handed to me by Teelo, same as always."
"Again? Y'know, ya gotta put that Mirialadooka in their place one o' these days, Kata."
"bwee-oop."
Kata giggled. Greez found it impossible to say "Mirialukan" so every time he tried to say it, he said it differently, and it always made her laugh.
"Hyperdrive chappin' your hide or somethin'?" Cal asked.
"Ah, the core's wearin' out again. I swear this ship goes through more hypercores than the entire Imperial fleet! Where have you been sendin' that kid lately?"
"They should've only made four jumps," Cal explained. "Two to Nar Shaddaa and two back."
"Burning out a core in four jumps seems a bit extreme, doesn't it?" Kata remarked.
"I'll say! There must be something wrong with the hyperdrive." Greez scratched his head again.
"Could it be leaking fluid into the well?" Cal asked.
"That was my first thought too, but I checked it already."
"Is the compressor mounted properly?" Kata inquired.
Both of them looked at her, then at each other, and without a word, Greez shuffled around to the other side of the hyperdrive and examined the compressor.
"Uhhh, no, it is not. Kata, you're a genius, kid!"
Kata shrugged one shoulder but was secretly pleased with herself.
"Good call, Kata." Cal praised.
"I learned from the best."
"How's she lookin'?"
Teelo's voice suddenly sounded behind them as they made their way into the room.
"Hey, did you know your compressor was loose?" Cal asked them.
"Uhh, no I didn't. How did that happen?" They wondered aloud.
"I was gonna ask you the same thing."
"Sorry, I didn't notice. Is that why the hypercore keeps burning out so fast?"
Cal rolled his eyes at them.
"How is it that Kata doesn't even have her own ship yet and she knows more about them than you do?" He questioned.
"Look, ships are like women to me, I don't understand 'em, but I know how to get 'em moving."
Cal shot them a disapproving look.
"Gross, Teelo." Kata scolded.
"Sorry." They chuckled.
"Alright, Teelo get over here, I'm gonna show you how to fix this in case it happens again," Greez demanded. "The rest of you, clear out, there's too many Jedi in this engine room!"
The three Jedi laughed and Teelo joined him by the hyperdrive while Cal and Kata made their way towards the cockpit. Cal sat down in the pilot's seat and started his checks on the ship's levels. Kata sat next to him in the co-pilot's seat to assist him and BD-1 jumped up onto her lap and she petted the droid. She started to get lost in her thoughts and Cal noticed her far-away expression.
"You ok, kiddo?"
"Hm? Oh, yeah, sorry, just lost in thought."
"So training didn't go so well this morning?" Cal prompted.
Kata rolled her eyes.
"I just—no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to get this teleportation thing down. I focus, I meditate, I concentrate, and just... nothing!"
Kata sighed in frustration.
"Well, maybe you're forcing it too much. Some things with the Force you gotta let come a bit more naturally. Other things just take time and patience. You won't learn everything in a day, Kata."
"Yeah, I know. I just hate to feel like I'm failing at something."
"Failure is a part of learning," He reminded her. "Don't give up, you'll get there. I have faith in you."
"boo-bweep!"
"Thanks. Something weird happened to me again today, too."
"Weird how?" Cal tried to hide the immediate concern in his voice.
"I really don't know how to describe it, but when I was meditating earlier, I saw... something. Or I thought I did, it was so fast I can't even really be sure I saw it."
"What did you see?" Cal stopped what he was doing and turned to her.
"Like I said, I don't even really know that I saw it."
"So what did you think you saw?"
Kata hesitated to answer, trying to conjure up the image in her mind.
"I thought I saw Haven, but it was... burning."
Cal hadn't expected her to say that and he couldn't suppress the instant alarm he felt.
"You said this happened to you while meditating today?"
"Yeah, why?"
Cal didn't answer. First the dream she had the other night and now this? Was he foolish to hope they weren't connected? The obvious concern on his face was starting to worry Kata.
"Do you think it's connected to that weird dream I had?" She echoed his thoughts.
Cal looked at her face, his own unchanging.
"I don't know, but if anything like that ever happens again, I want you to tell me, ok?"
"Yeah, of course." She promised.
Cal resumed his checks on the ship and Kata felt her anxiety rising. She hadn't thought anything of that weird flash since it had happened, but Cal's reaction was making a terrible pit gather in her stomach.
Both Jedi were restless that night, Kata plagued by the image she now couldn't shake from her mind, and Cal feeling an ever-growing tinge of fear that he hadn't felt in a very long time.