The Wonderful World of Mara Jade

Chapter 5: What You Have Learned

Mara was given a room in an unused makeshift bunker supplied by Rey. To her credit, Rey showed Mara the small bunker, complete with a miniscule refresher, and then left Mara alone. Mara got the sense that Rey could read Mara, either through the Force or by actions, that she wanted to be left in solitude.

Alone with her thoughts. And what thoughts they were.

She spoke to Wedge. Heard her niece, Jaina. And she was suddenly on Seria. It was real. She was there. And then she wasn't. She didn't feel unconscious, though she did feel faint. It was the strangest sensation. She didn't just enter a different place in time. She was transported. Her thoughts went to the head injury that she sustained somehow. She had no memory of it. She could understand if her Force memory enhancement couldn't register a memory of an event from months ago. For her to not remember an injury was beyond her belief. Regardless, her Force-healing technique took care of the injury. That dismissed the traveling by head injury method.

For the first time in a long time, Mara was confused. She recalled another time when she was confused ten years ago. She was in the body of Mary Jane Skyler in Mobile, Alabama on the planet Earth. Were her current travels through realities related? She had wished someone could just give her the answers. Mara mentally shook her head. That was not how she worked. She excelled at putting pieces of puzzles together. The problem was that she was missing several pieces.

Rey had come back in after what seemed like minutes but was in actuality about an hour. She was about to give her greetings until Mara stopped her.

"If you're going to ask if I'm alright, I assure you, you won't be."

Rey nodded. "Very well. Message received." She paused before asking, "Still figuring out your…time travel?"

"I don't know what to call it either. And before you ask again, it was nothing like a Force vision."

"It was like you were there physically. The air, the sounds, the smells."

Mara looked at the Rey with wonder. "Yes, exactly."

Rey breathed before saying. "When I first touched Luke's lightsaber at Maz Kanata's, I was instantly transported to an unknown place. It was a strange corridor with clean walls. Inside there was a large oblong scaffold overlooking a deep shaft. I heard voices. It wasn't until I recalled later that one of the voices I heard was Luke's. He was screaming, No at something. Or someone."

From the description of images Rey gave, Mara added them up along with Luke screaming. Something horrendous had been revealed to him. "Sounds like Cloud City. Bespin. It was where Darth Vader revealed to Luke that he was his father."

Rey's eyes widened. "Oh. That explains the screaming."

"Luke told me once that even though he knew it to be true in the Force, he still could not believe it."

"That was the same way I felt when Kylo Ren revealed to me that Palpatine was my grandfather."

"Nothing like life altering facts."

"Yes, well, my point was that when I saw and heard those images, they weren't like in a dream. They were real. I was there." She paused. "Was that a Force vision?"

"I don't think so. Force visions are much more dreamlike. They are made up of a series of images, but they don't tell the whole story. They're cryptic and hard to decipher. For that matter, they usually don't come suddenly at a moment's notice. Force visions occur mostly when you're concentrating in a Force meditation." Mara considered. "On the other hand, maybe the Force was telling you something once you touched the lightsaber."

"Up until then I had only heard of the Force as this mystical entity. I had no clue that I had that ability in me. I've learned much since then."

Suddenly, Mara yawned. She had just realized it was late evening.

"Oh, I'm tired of thinking about it now."

"Do you have any idea what you're going to do now?"

Mara paused and said, "Actually. I'd like to keep myself busy. Do you think I can join in on one of your training sessions tomorrow?"

"Are you kidding? I would be honored."

After a semi restless night, Mara woke up in the morning. Hanging in the closet, Mara found her original black one-piece tunic that she wore when they discovered her comatose on the beaches of Seria. She changed out of the drab beige tunic that Rey supplied and back into her own clothing. This was the first time since she woke up in this reality when she felt like herself again. She attached her lightsaber to her belt and secured her hold-out blaster in her sleeve. She took a bite of nerf strips and then headed out to Rey's Jedi Academy. She quickly found a small group of students being supervised by Rey. They each were using exercises in the Force control. Several rocks and various objects were floating around each student as they meditated. There were only four students: three males and one female. As Mara approached silently so as to not disturb them, Rey caught sight of her. She motioned Mara over to her. Mara joined her and said, "Good morning, teacher."

"Morning, Mara. Sleep well?"

"Not really. I see you're starting with the basics."

"This is routine now. These are the older students. Barad, Shaden, and Kwip are about sixteen. Raena is the oldest at eighteen. How old were you when you started your training?"

Mara winced. "Uh..seven. Palpatine drilled Force training into me early on. My first assassination was at age twelve. A Karpaki sniper rifle. Wish I had that today. Then I was point lead on my first mission at age eighteen."

"Oh," Rey said. "I suddenly feel like a novice."

"You're doing well so far. What exercises are next for them?"

"Lightsaber training. These are the only ones who have built their own lightsabers so far." Rey looked over at Mara and asked, "Would you like to do some training?"

Mara said. "Why not?"

Rey addressed her students. "Alright everyone, that'll be enough. Well done. Excellent control." Each of them opened their eyes. The objects that they were controlling fell to the ground gently. Mara could feel their confusion upon seeing her.

Rey called out to them. "Students, I would like for you to meet Mara Jade Skywalker."

"Is she related to you, Rey?" asked the fair-headed boy named Kwip.

"No." She eyed Mara before saying, "She was once married to Luke Skywalker himself." The students emitted murmurs of admiration. Rey continued. "And Mara is a Jedi Master. Mara, would you like to take over?"

Mara always found it difficult easing into teaching mode. Somehow, she didn't feel as hesitant now. "Hello everyone. As Rey told you, I am a Jedi Master. I was taught by my husband, Luke. I know you have several questions. Let them go for now. Focus on your training. I'm sure Rey has told you that Jedi training is not easy. It takes a different level of discipline and a strong commitment. Rey tells me that you are the only students who have built your own lightsabers. That's good. But it's only a start. Let me ask you. Why does a Jedi wield a lightsaber?"

There was a dumbfounded silence between the students as they looked to each other for the right answer. Finally, the dark-haired boy named Shaden spoke. "For combat to use against enemies."

Mara asked, "Do you plan for all of your enemies to have lightsabers? In truth, the majority of weapons your enemies use will be blasters. Nothing like the blocking techniques of Form 3 and 4. A Jedi does need to know all lightsaber Forms. That doesn't mean that they should use all of them."

Shaden said, "But what if there is another member of Knights of Ren that comes to attack us?"

"Highly unlikely," Mara answered.

Shaden replied back, "But we must attack them and destroy them before they kill again."

"Interesting," Mara said. "Do all of you agree with that?" Most of the students nodded, except Raena. Mara could feel the confusion in her. That's when Mara got an idea. "You know, I do admit that there is something dark that I can feel in the Force since I've been here. Perhaps there is a dark force user close by. Don't you feel it?"

Shaden, Kwip and Barad agreed. Nothing from Raena. Rey came up to Mara and whispered in her ear. "What are you doing?"

"An exercise. Interrupt us and give them something else to do." On Rey's look, Mara said. "Trust me."

Rey then addressed her students again to say, "Thank you, Mara. Tell you what, why don't we begin our physical exercises? Go ahead and start your run on the course. Concentrate on speed in the Force. Carry on."

The students reluctantly got to their feet and they each proceeded to run through the nearby course. Rey looked at Mara. "What is going on?"

"Tell me, do you agree with Shaden and the others? If a dark side Force user appears, would you attack first?"

"With everything at my disposal."

"I was afraid of that answer. Go ahead and watch over them. I'll be in my bunker." Mara turned and walked back to her room.

Although confused, Rey continued with her training. She also started running through the course. The students and Rey continued to run as fast as the Force allowed them. Jumping over limbs and wide crevices. Some students added flips to the jumps. As Rey ran she wished she had activated the training remote for further experience in the Force. She decided they were already in the duration of the course to bother with it. They ran several laps before they each began to tire out. Rey told them through the Force to keep going. Each of them did. They continued to run.

Until they were stopped.

On the other side of a small crevice. stood a looming dark figure. It wore black loose robes that were ragged and torn. It's only skin showing was its human head that was pale and bald. Darkness circled around the piercing eyes. He finally raised his head to stare at them.

Kwip asked, "Who is that?"

Shaden cried, "That's the Dark Force user that Mara found in the Force."

"You are correct," the man boomed. "I have waited a long time to finally find Jedi who are still living." The snap-hiss of his blood-red lightsaber ignited. "Your deaths will be quick and glorious."

Rey finally caught up to them. "What is that?"

"Exactly what it looks like," cried Shaden.

"What do we do, Rey?" asked Kwip.

"We continue to be cautious."

"Cautious?" Shaden exclaimed. "He wants a fight, so we'll give him one!"

Before Rey could stop him, Shaden ran towards the dark man with ferocious determination. Rey told the others, "Looks like Shaden has already made up his mind. Come on, remember your training, let's go!"

She, Kwip, and Barad quickly ran in attack mode towards the dark man. Shaden struck at him first with a wide, sweeping arc directed at the man's head. The man simply blocked it and followed through with a parry of his own. Shaden blocked it. The others joined in and tried many different areas of attack. The dark man blocked every one of them. At one point, they all swiped at him simultaneously to overpower the man. He simply reached into the Force, and in one motion they were all catapulted backwards into the air. Rey landed near to him. She got up immediately and returned to her attack stance.

The man grinned, showing his rotting teeth. "I really hoped it would be you who was left. Do you think you're a Jedi? You are no more a Jedi than you are a Skywalker."

Rey's rage took over and she attacked him. He countered easily and laughed. She continued her attack while the other three joined back in.

"You will not defeat us!" Shaden cried.

The man smirked. "All of you have already been defeated. At least there are four of you brave enough to confront me. There is one who never joined the fight." The man nodded over to the other side of the crevice.

Sitting with her legs crossed as calm as could be, was Raena. Her long blonde tresses blowing in the wind was the only action on her body. The three boys looked over at her.

Shaden yelled at her. "Raena, come help us!"

Raena simply exclaimed casually, "No!"

"What do you mean, no?" cried Barad.

Shaden said. This is a dark side user. This is what we were trained for."

"Actually, it's not," Raena yelled back. "And that is not a dark side user!"

Confused as they were, they turned back at the dark man. He suddenly raised his blade, as if he were surrendering. Then something strange happened. His features began to fade and dissolve. The red lightsaber suddenly turned blue. His bald head grew hair quickly. The color of the hair was soon evident.

Red gold.

Where a disgusting dark side user had been standing before them, Mara Jade Skywalker now stood. She announced, "And that is why Raena passed. And all of you failed. Even you, Rey."

"I don't understand," Rey said. "How did you do that?"

Mara shrugged. "A little Force Illusion I picked up from Corran Horn. I haven't used it in a while. I didn't know if I could still do it. I did and it was effective."

Kwip said sadly, "Does that mean we can never be Jedi?"

Mara answered, "I wouldn't say never. You just displayed aspects unsuitable for a Jedi."

"What does that mean?" asked Shaden.

By this time, Raena had joined them. Mara addressed her. "What would you say, Raena?"

The blonde teen quoted. "The Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."

"High marks," Mara said. "The rest of you went against that Jedi code. Aggressive attacks are closer to that of the Sith, not the Jedi." She looked at Rey. "That might be something that your Jedi texts would have mentioned."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You're still new to this. You'll get there."

"That Skywalker remark was rather harsh."

"Yes, it was. You may hear it again someday. You have to learn to control your emotions. They can be used as weapons just as easily as a lightsaber blade." She turned to Raena. "Can I ask you something?" The teen nodded. "Did you know that you had Force potential even before Rey discovered you?"

"Yes, I have known it since I was a child. I had to hide it. Where I was on Chandrila, being a Jedi was not fashionable during the First Order reign."

"No, it wasn't," Rey replied.

Mara continued with Raena. "And you studied Jedi lore?"

"As much as I could without getting caught."

Mara nodded. She then noticed that they all had their blades still ignited. "Uh…guys. Fight's over. You can put your weapons away now."

They then shut their lightsabers down.

"Who won?" asked Shaden, wryly.

Kwip said, "I think Raena did."

Rey stated, "It's not about winning, students. Raena just showed us the discipline in the Force that we lacked."

Barad asked Raena, "How did you know that wasn't a dark user?"

She shrugged. "I couldn't feel any darkness in the Force. Also, I didn't let my eyes decide for me."

Kwip asked. "What does that mean?"

Mara answered him as she turned back towards the bunkers. "Your eyes can only interpret what they see. They're not part of your emotions. You have to feel in the Force what is the dark side and light side by being calm and passive."

She turned back to them, but they were not there. The scene changed in an instant. She was no longer on Ajan Kloss. She didn't faint. She was still standing. Yet, she was now inside a med facility. It was a small room with a medical bed. The sounds of beeping equipment were all around her. The smell of medical baacta was typical in Med facilities. They were all real. She was here. The next thing she heard was the voice that she had yearned to hear for months.

"Well, I'm glad you learned something from my Academy after all these years," said Luke Skywalker.

tbc