Chapter 2
Year 12 Month 11 Day 25
A small surviving branch of the black fang seeks to bring Remnant into war. These clones have spread to all the corners of the world. All are trained force users. The Jedi have made their destruction a top priority.
Arslan was marking her copy of the Jedi path. Yang handed hers down to Arslan. She was studying the history section making notes. She sighed and put the book down. She was ready to give birth any day now, so she had gone to bedrest by the Jedi. She read over the book four times.
She wished the Main order allowed for marriages. It would have been nice to see how they would have managed pregnancies. The Jedi here do help her. She had been focusing on her force powers these last few months over her lightsaber combat. She was a form V specialist, like Yang before her. She thought about using form VII, but she knew the dangers involved with that style.
She didn't realize that she was using the force to float her drink over to her until Silver commented on it.
"Mom?" Silver said. Arslan realized what she was doing, and almost lost control of the cup.
"Sorry Silver." She said.
"Is dad almost back?" Silver asked.
"I think so. Something up?" Arslan asked.
"I was wondering when dinner would be here." Silver said. Jaune went out to get pizza.
"Soon." Arslan said.
Jaune opened the door after that and put the pizza on the table. Arslan got up but felt a terrible pain in her lower back and her stomach. Jaune turned at her and opened his eyes wide.
"It's time!" He said.
"What?" Arslan asked.
She barely remembered getting to the hospital. For some reason, she remembered Fyre coming over before they left.
Arslan could barely think as she went into labor. Her mother was in the room she remembered.
"You're doing great." She said. Arslan used the force to help her. She didn't realize Yang was in the room. She remembered the pain. She remembered there were doctors there. She remembered the feeling of relief. But she didn't remember what she said. Her mother smirked at whatever she said. Yang looked shocked. She saw someone on the other side of the glass laughing. She didn't see what was funny here.
Her memory got better as soon as she was handed her son. He cried out. She took deep breaths as she held her son. Jaune was in the room.
"There he is." Jaune said. He was holding onto Silver, who had just woken up from a nap.
"Huh?" Silver looked at Arslan, and his baby brother.
"Is that my brother?" Silver asked.
"Yes, it is." Arslan said with a smile. "Gold Arc."
Yang was able to get in to see the birth, but still, the black fang clones were on her mind. She got a report from Arin that he ran into three of them. He fought them off. He had to protect Hunter.
They were still out there. Yang worried about them. The Jedi had been taking them out at a steady pace, but they had some losses.
She looked at Arslan and wondered if she was going to be safe. She had to trust in herself, and Arslan's ability. She stood up and congratulated the couple.
"If you want, we could do a test to see if they have a high Midi-Chlorian count." Yang said.
"In a bit." Arslan said. She just kept holding onto her child.
Year 13 Month 1 Day 23
Arslan was ready to go back out with Yang. Yang shook her head when she saw Arslan. Arslan didn't understand.
"It's not you. It's president Belladonna." Yang said. Arslan knew something annoyed her if she called Blake that.
"What is it?" Arslan asked.
"Blake's pregnant now." Yang said.
"Oh, I would have though you would have been happy for her." Arslan said.
"I am… But she didn't think to tell me till now. I'm her best friend." Yang said.
"What, do you have babies on the brain?" Arslan joked. Yang didn't say anything. Arslan could tell something was up. Maybe she did want to be a mom.
"Maybe Arin and I will." Yang turned back to her and winked. Yang had a massive smile on her face.
"Did you ever get Gold tested?" Yang asked. Jaune was home with Silver and Gold.
"I did. He has around my number." Arslan said.
"I see. Maybe one day you'll train him." Yang said.
"Maybe." Arslan said. They walked through the town.
"You know, I was starting to worry Weiss would have her kid before you were ready to come back." Yang said.
"Giving birth isn't easy master." Arslan said.
"Yeah, I know." Yang said. "Today we're going to deal with a hostage situation."
"What?" Arslan asked.
"You heard me. We have two other Jedi in the area trying to keep the hostages alive. We're going to sneak in and rescue the hostages. I know you've been working on your stealth. This would be a great time to use it." Yang said.
"Why did the situation start?" Arslan asked.
"A bank robbery. The police are at the scene keeping everyone away. We get special privileges. I'll send you the layout of the bank. The hostages are being kept near the safe and away from the front of the building. A hunter team is slowly going through the building to make sure there are no bombs are any explosives left by the clones. The robbers are armed with blasters and minor explosives. That's why the Jedi out front are there. The alarm is already triggered, so we can make moderate noise. We also need to have minimal damage to the building. Understand?" Yang asked.
"Yes." Arslan looked over the building. "How minimal is minimal?" Arslan asked.
"What are you thinking?" Yang asked.
"Well…"
Rouge was on the scene of the robbery with Dan Rosa. They saw the six armed men in the lobby pointing blasters at the window. Dan already had to block a few shots. They stopped after they noticed that they were Jedi.
"Dammit!" One of them yelled.
"Don't come any closer!" One of them yelled.
"You can end this now." Rouge said. She showed them her lightsaber as well.
They stayed like this for a while. A sniper team was stationed outside. The police had closed down the streets leading up to the bank. New reporters were there.
Yang walked passed one.
"The reports indicate ten gunmen went in this morning. We don't know who is leading this yet…" They walked passed the news reporter.
"Rouge reported seeing six in the lobby. That means there are four elsewhere in the building. The hunter team hasn't reported finding any explosives. Still, keep your guard up." Yang said. An officer was behind the border they erected to keep civilians away from the bank. Yang and Arslan went the border.
"I'm sorry, you have to stay…" He saw the lightsabers.
"Oh, good. You're here." Yang and Arslan started toward the bank. They put in listening devices as they were walking.
"The roof may need to be cleared." Arslan said.
"I think it already is." Yang said.
"Do you have any of those spy droids? Arslan asked.
"Two, here you go." Yang reached her belt and pulled out a droid the size of a bug. Police were everywhere, staying out of the way of the Jedi.
"Do we have any information on semblances?" Arslan asked.
"Not yet. We don't have much on these criminals." Yang said. The transceiver picked up Rouge and Dan.
"Yang, are you here yet?" Rouge asked.
"We just got here. How is it on your end?" Yang responded back.
"A bit tense. They're afraid, but we can keep them under control." Dan said.
"Good. Any idea about the other four?" Yang asked.
"Far as we can tell they're guarding the hostages. They are making demands now." Rouge said.
"We'll try to stop them. Keep them focused on you." Yang said.
"Will do."
"Looks like we have to end this quick." Arslan said.
"Looks like it." Arslan and Yang rushed to the bank. They used the force to jump to the roofs of the buildings around them. Arslan jumped onto the roof of the bank and activated the spy droid. It flew through the vents until it was over where the vault would be. There was no ventilation in the vault. It flew further until it found an opening. It dropped down into the room with all the hostages. There were two guarding the hostages, and two guarding the exit door. They opened the door. The building Yang and Arslan jumped to was higher than the view of the door. The exit door was the fire exit, is supposed to lead the main street, but it also connected with an alley.
"Two here, Two by the door." Arslan sent the thought to Yang. She shook her head. She went to the edge, hiding herself with the force. The bug moved out and saw a hallway that lead to the stairs and offices. It sent out a sonic pulse, not sensing anyone else in that hallway. It moved to another set of stairs closer to the hostage room. One of the hunters was getting ready to attack if they needed. The bug saw the other three move into sight.
Arslan sent the info to Yang. Arslan turned the bug back and saw that the hostages were away from the windows. She looked up and saw the sniper. She traced his line of sight and realized they put them there to keep the snipers from firing.
Yang used the force to jump to the roof of the bank.
"This shouldn't be too hard. Take out the weapons and incapacitate them." Yang whispered.
"Through the window?" Arslan asked.
"Minimal damage." Yang said. Arslan shook her head.
Yang raised three fingers and started the countdown. When she was out of fingers, use used the force to raise the windows open. Yang and Arslan gripped the edge of the roof and swung into the hostage room. The robbers raised their blasters, but Arslan and Yang sliced the weapons up. The two watching the door started to turn around, but they were stopped by the hunters in the stairs. Arslan didn't recognize them.
The robbers took out knives. Yang punched the man four times, knocking him out. Arslan spun in the air, landing a kick to his face, taking him down. The other two were taken down.
"Jedi, we already checked the building. Its clear. We'll take care of these four." The leader said. Arslan took the lead with this one. They rushed to the stairs. Arslan jumped in the air and slammed down into two of the robbers, knocking them out. Yang rushed down, slamming the ground. Three of the robbers were knocked out.
"Finally. Jedi." The last robber took out a black lightsaber.
"A clone!" Yang said. Rouge and Dan rushed forward, but the clone brought his hand down, slamming down the security metal. Two lightsabers slammed into the other side of the security system. Arslan held out her golden blade. The clone rushed forward.
He slammed into Arslan, who stumbled. Yang swung at him, causing him to back off Arslan and focus on Yang. Arslan rejoined the battle. He was keeping up with the Yang.
Yang was taking on the brunt force of the clone. He wasn't as strong as Cinder, but he was much stronger than he looked. He was using form I, but she could tell he had some talent with form V and VII. She just noticed that Arslan was gone. She had to focus on this fight.
The two entered a blade lock.
"How many of you do we need to kill?" The clone asked.
A golden blade went through his chest. His eyes widened. He looked down, then realized he was too distracted.
Rouge and Dan finished cutting through the security system and saw Yang and Arslan had already beat the clone.
"We found another face." Yang said. She slapped Arslan's back.
"This one is around knight level but gets distracted easily. I killed him after fading into the force." Arslan said.
"Good job." Dan said.
Arslan went back home that night. When she walked in she saw Jaune chatting with Ren and Nora, their four-year-old twins.
"Oh, hey Arslan." Jaune said. Ren and Nora greeted her as well.
"Did I interrupt something?" Arslan asked. She hung her cloak up.
"Not really. We were just talking about our classes." Ren and Nora both joined Beacon as teachers.
"How is teaching?" Arslan asked.
"It's good. It's strange though. The school's original purpose was fulfilled. Now we train peacekeepers." Ren said.
"There are still black fang out there." Arslan said.
"We heard. I wonder if they're going to do next." Nora said.
"I killed one of them today." Arslan said. That caught everyone's attention.
"I thought padawans weren't supposed to fight them." Jaune said.
"We didn't plan on fighting them. Yang and I were just supposed to stop a hostage situation, which we did." Arslan said. She explained her mission.
"What do the blank fang want with banks?" Nora asked.
"I think they just wanted to get a Jedi there." Arslan said. She started sipping tea from her home. It was a reward for a mission she and Yang had completed a while ago.
"Something so small that it didn't justify multiple Jedi." Ren said.
"There were four of us. Rouge and Dan were there as well." Arslan said.
"Don't they want to bring war? What else are they planning?" Nora asked.
"I don't know." Arslan said. "Something seemed off with Yang today. But maybe I'm overthinking it."
"What do you mean?" Jaune asked.
"We got to talking about babies, and she… I don't know, wasn't fully herself. It went away right after." Arslan said.
"She could have just been teasing you." Nora said.
"I hope so." Arslan said.
Month 3 Day 2
For the third time in his life, Karel was in the hospital watching his wife give birth to his child. Weiss was covered in sweat. Her hair clung to her head. Winter was outside the hospital room watching Jade and Aqua. Weiss was catching her breath as she held onto her son. Karel looked at his baby boy with pride in his eyes. His white hair matched his mother's.
"Baby Jasper." Weiss said. It took a while to come to a name for him. Jaune told him he couldn't take any of his sister's names anymore. Jaune still teased him about that.
It came to Jasper. Jasper Schnee. Son of Weiss Schnee and Karel Allusis. Jasper cried out in the arms of his mother. Weiss was exhausted. Jade and in with Aqua and Winter. Winter looked at her nephew and smiled. Jade came up to the bed holding Aqua.
"Hi there Jasper. I'm your big sister, Jade. This is our sister, Aqua. Welcome to our family." Jade said. Winter ran her hand through Jade's hair.
"You are a good sister." Winter said. Aqua reached out to her brother. Weiss looked at her family. Joy started overcoming her pain. But she still wanted something to drink.
Karel couldn't be happier.
Month 4 Day 17
Karel was home with Jasper. Weiss had returned to work. Jasper didn't have a strong connection to the force. He wasn't destined to be a Jedi. Karel appreciated that, and so did Weiss.
Jade was back from her lessons.
"Hey, Dad." Jade said. She sat next to Karel.
"Something up?" Karel asked.
"When will I get my own lightsaber?" Jade asked. She looked up to her father.
"Are you ready?" Karel asked.
"I don't know?" Jade answered.
"A lightsaber is an important thing. It is a part of you. Take mine for example." He took out his blue lightsaber. He held Jasper with his other hand. Jade held the lightsaber with great care. She looked at it.
"Do you see all the scratches? They weren't there. It's been though a lot." Karel said. "My Jedi master helped me make this. The metal here has a connection to Alderaan. The emitter ring here is made from a metal found from there. This…"
Karel explained everything about his lightsaber. Jade looked at it.
"What about mine? What metal will it be use?" Jade asked.
"It's a special and hard metal. It's called Beskar. Your mama was a Mandalorian, and it's a metal used in her culture. I have enough for you to create a lightsaber with it." Karel said.
"What does Beskar look like?" Jade asked.
"It's shiny, and has waves." He explained.
"Cool!" Jade said.
"And when you're ready, you can make a lightsaber. But first you would need to get a Kyber crystal." Karel said.
"How do I do that?" Jade asked.
"There are many places on Remnant where they can be found. You may have a vision about a cave. If you do, then we'll know its time." Karel said.
"A vision of a cave?" Jade asked.
"That's one way of doing it. We also have other places where we can go to find the crystal." Karel said. Jade leaned on Karel.
"I hope it's soon."
"That would be wonderful." Karel said.
Month 4 Day 18
Jade kept thinking about making her own lightsaber. She saw it in her hand. She had to suffice with her imagination as she did her training.
It stayed in her mind as she ran along the course. She imagined herself older, wielding the lightsaber as she rushes toward danger. She got distracted and smacked into a wall. Karel rushed over.
"Jade, are you alright?" He asked. He checked in on her.
"Yeah." She said. Her cheeks were burning read. Karel sighed and put his hand on her head.
"Jade, you were thinking about your future lightsaber, weren't you." Karel asked.
"Yeah." Jade didn't look at her father.
"Jade, do you understand what it means to use a lightsaber? It is a symbol and a tool. It is powerful, and dangerous."
"I know dad. The teachers have told me that." Jade said. Karel sighed.
"You need to focus. Out there, you can't lose focus. There are bad people out there that we have to stop, and if you don't focus, they will hurt you, or worse." Karel said. He knelt to her level.
"I don't doubt your ability, Jade. Don't think for a second that I do. I'm scared Jade." Karel said.
"Scared?" Jade looked at her father with wide eyes.
"Yes, scared. Scared that people will try to do terrible things to you. Scared that you may get hurt trying to get your Kyber crystal. I don't want anything bad to happen to you, but I know bad things will happen. I worry if I can prepare you well enough." Karel said. Jade hugged him.
"You can't be scared." Jade said. Karel hugged him.
"Thank you, Jade." Karel said. He smiled and comforted his daughter.
"I know you will be a great Jedi. You are already a great sister. When you get our lightsaber, well, then we'll have one mighty fine Jedi." Karel let out a laugh.
Night fell. Jade was walking to her room when she overheard Weiss and Karel talking.
"Wow… I can't believe it." Karel said.
"I can. I just wonder how Tai and Raven are taking it." Weiss said. Jade stopped by their door.
"Mom, Dad, You're loud." She said, walking to her room in her green pajamas with clouds on them.
"I didn't think we were loud." Weiss said.
"You may have been." Karel joked. Weiss lightly slapped his shoulder.
"I hope Yang's okay with everything." Weiss said.
Jade got into bed, and quickly fell asleep.
As she dreamed, she looked down and saw she was in Jedi robes.
"Weird." She said. She walked forward. She saw her mama. She stopped.
"Mama?" Jade asked.
"Follow me Jade." Bora said. Jade followed after her mother. They walked together. Jade smiled as she held Bora's hand.
"You've grown so big." Bora said.
"I have! And I've started my Jedi training. Dad's training me. He thinks I'm almost ready to make a lightsaber." Jade said.
"I see. How is he? Is he happy?" Bora asked.
"Yes. Him and Weiss got married. I got two siblings now too." Jade said.
"Is that right? What are their names?" Bora asked.
"Aqua and Jasper." Jade said. Jade didn't know where Bora was taking her, but she just wanted to stay with her mom.
"I wonder what they'll be like." Bora said.
"Aqua's really cute. She's started calling me sis. She hasn't done it too much, but she has done it. Isn't that old, so he's just a baby right now." Jade said.
"Are you helping your dad out?" Bora asked.
"Oh, yeah. I'm a huge help." Jade said.
"Good." Bora said. They continued to walk.
"Uncle Erik and Aunt Pixi also got a baby. Aunt Jira adopted a baby with her husband. Oh, he's a military man like her. They got married a little bit ago. Aunts Alex and Adi are teachers at Beacon. Uncle Lance got a girlfriend too." Jade said. She had to update Bora on everything.
"Who's dating Lance?" Bora asked.
"Mia Aera. I think she was one of your students." Jade said. Bora stopped.
"Really? I though he gave up on dating her." Bora said.
"And Grandma joined the local council." Jade said.
"I guess she couldn't help herself." Bora said. She must have been reaching her sixties.
"Silver has a brother. His name's Gold." Jade said. Jade continued to tell her mother everything. Her mother listened happily.
"Here we are Jade. This is the cave you've been thinking about." Bora said. Jade looked at it. She knew where it was somehow. She looked at her mama.
"What?" Jade asked.
"This is where you'll find your Kyber crystal." Bora said.
Jade looked at the cave. She looked back at Bora. She smiled and knelt down. Jade saw people behind her. They felt familiar. Bora kissed Jade's forehead.
"You be a good girl, Jade. I know you can. Bora stood up.
"Where are you going?" Jade asked.
"It's time for you to wake up." Bora said.
Jade opened her eyes before she could say anything. Weiss was standing over her.
"Jade? Are you alright?" Weiss asked. Jade looked at Weiss and stared crying. She hugged Weiss.
"I talked with mama." Jade said. Weiss stood there shocked. She wrapped her arms around Jade. She sat down on the bed.
"How was it?" Weiss asked.
"She was so happy. I told her about everyone." Jade said between sobs. Weiss comforted her.
"Would you like to stop by her grave today?" Weiss asked. Jade shook her head. Weiss planted a kiss on Jade's head.
"Then we'll go. And you can tell me everything if you want." Weiss said.
"She showed me where I need to go to get my crystal." Jade said.
Karel was at the temple looking over sighting reports. He ran his hand though his hair.
"It doesn't help that they share the same face." Karel said. "Or that it's so forgettable."
"That's what makes them so dangerous." Gael said. There was a black fang clone found in Atlas. They'd taken out twenty-seven clones at this point. But they also lost Seven Jedi. Each one was ambushed while on a mission. There were five knights and two padawans. The padawans were killed after their masters were. The threat level for the clones is generally a knight-level threat.
"Master Gael and I were able to create a complete analysis on all the clones we have had brought in. I've sent the data about the genetic structure of the clones to everyone. It appears that every clone is sourced from Sith from over a hundred years ago. The Sith disappeared as they were reaching the height of their power. We assumed that they were killed right before the First Great War. But Salem was able to bring them over to her." Meg said.
"They don't appear to have gone to Menagerie." Karel said looking at his notes.
"They would have a hard time fitting in there." Gael said. Karel nodded his head. That was all they knew about the clone threat.
"Now we have to go over the missions. Karel said. The Jedi moved on to the next topic.
"We have a border dispute that they need mediated. A GI mining town and an alliance mining town. The GI are sending an inquisitor." Karel read off the rest of the details.
He had twenty more to go over. None of them were too difficult. Dealing with the everyday group of bandits here, border dispute there. Nothing as busy as battles. He smiled at that.
"What is it?" Gael asked.
"Nothing. Just thinking about the past." Karel said. Karel was reading his datapad when his scroll buzzed. He looked at it and saw Weiss sent him a message.
"When you get back, Jade has something to tell you."
"Weiss, I assume." Meg asked.
"Yes. Jade has something to tell me." Karel said.
"This isn't so important. We'll assign teams for the missions." Gael said.
"I do feel bad about this." Karel said.
"Go." Meg said. She shook her head.
"Alright, I'll go." Karel left the temple, greeting the padawans and knights along the way.
He though back on his life as he got into the airspeeder. He had gone through a lot. Not as much as Jedi like Yoda, or Satele Shan, but still a lot. His body showed a memorial to that.
He parked his airspeeder, and started walking to the home, but saw Jade and Weiss in the graveyard.
"What's going on here?" Karel asked. Weiss and Jade turned to him.
"You're home early." Weiss said.
"Meg and Gael covered for me. It was nothing big, just simple missions. So, Jade, what did you want to tell me?" Karel asked.
"Last night…" Jade explained the dream she had. Karel realized why they were in the graveyard. He picked Jade up in a massive hug.
"Stop! You're squishing me!" Jade yelled. Karel stopped and looked into Jade's eyes.
"You know where this cave is?" Karel asked.
"Yeah!" Jade said.
"Then… You are ready. Go get everything you're going to need. You should know the list." Karel said. He let Jade down and she ran into the house.
"She's so happy." Weiss said. She turned to Karel. Her smile stayed on her face.
"Do you think she was there?" Weiss asked. Karel looked at the grave of Bora. He closed his eyes and shook his head.
"Yeah. I do." Karel said. Weiss kissed Karel on the cheek.
"I'll leave you for a moment." Weiss walked back into the house to help Jade.
Karel went to the hedge stone and sat next to it. He didn't care about the snow.
"She's growing up Bora." Karel said. "Our little Jade is growing up. I hope you aren't breaking too many rules over there. Jade already told you about the updates. She's starting to look like you. She watches your videos still. We backed them up so they're safe. Weiss loves her so much. Everyone does, but I thought you should know she's loved. She's started asking me about your culture and family. I've given her everything I could. I wonder how you would have handled this era of peace. This era is what we fought for. We did this for Jade."
Karel put his head against the hedge stone.
"She's a big sister now. I know she told you, but I need to tell you. She may learn about your culture if Lance marries Mia. She's going to use Beskar in her lightsaber. That makes me feel better. She asks about you a lot. I tell her everything I know. It's strange. We had so many years together. I wish you could experience this peace. You deserve it. Put I guess in a way you are at peace." Karel got up. He wiped the snow off him.
"What should I bring you next time I come? I was thinking your favorite drink." Karel looked at the grave.
"Maybe."
Karel was flying with Jade. The cave was back an hour away at the speed they were going. Karel wanted to give Jade time to prepare for the trip.
"Clear your mind as you travel through. Don't let distractions blind you. You will feel the call from your crystal. You may have a more spiritual experience. That is up to the force." Karel said. They landed by the cave. Jade went to grab her backpack she brought, but Karel stopped her.
"Not for this. You can't take anything in there with you." Karel said.
"Ok…" Jade said.
"I'll be here, waiting for you." Karel said. They walked to the entrance, and Karel knelt to meditate. Jade turned around and took one last look at her father. She turned to the cave and walked in. As she walked further in, she heard the entrance of the cave close.
"I can do this." Jade said.
Jade closed her eyes. She put her hand on the wall and walked down the path. She opened her eyes again, and she saw glowing lights. She saw the cave start to break off into different paths.
Jade closed her eyes again. She tried to listen to the force. She raised her hand, opened her eyes and went down that path.
Karel was meditating outside. He opened his eyes, and he saw a force ghost sitting next to him.
"Who are you?" Karel asked. The ghost let out a smile at him.
"You've met me before." He said. Karel looked at the ghost and examined him. He felt like he should know him, but he couldn't put his finger on who he was.
"I'm sorry, I don't recognize you." Karel said.
"Obi-Wan Kenobi." He said.
"You died?" Karel asked.
"Yes, and no. I can teach you how to do this." Obi-Wan said.
"Is that why you're here?" Karel asked.
"No. I came because you called." Obi-Wan said.
"I didn't mean to…" Karel started.
"Nonetheless, we are here."
Jade continued down the path.
"Do you think you can succeed?" A voice called out.
"Who are you?" Jade asked.
"You are weak." The voice called back. Jade turned around and saw… Prince Cedric there.
"Cedric?" Jade asked. They met when they were very young.
"You can't do this." He said.
"What are you talking about? You don't know me." Jade said.
"You are a pampered brat. You are weak." Cedric said. Jade didn't say anything. She turned away. She started to continue down the path.
"Your mother is dead because she was weak." Cedric said. Jade stopped. She turned back and looked at the smiling prince.
"Don't you dare call mama weak." She said. Cedric laughed and faded. Jade looked around. Her heart was beating, and her anger started to fill her.
"Let the anger go." She heard.
"What?" Silence filled the cave. Jade took a deep breath and let the anger wash over her.
"Don't let them in." The voice said again. She walked forward down the path. She felt something calling out to her.
She stopped after a while. She didn't know where to go.
"Lost?" Cedric came back. Jade closed her eyes.
"There is no passion, there is peace." She said.
"Peace is a lie." Cedric said.
"There is no ignorance, there is knowledge." Jade said.
"I will kill you if you repeat one more line of that pathetic code of yours!" He took out a red lightsaber. The cave darkened around them.
"There is no death, there is the force." Jade closed her eyes and knelt down to meditate. Cedric let out a roar and the blade faded as it was about to make contact. The cave lightened back up. When she opened her eyes, she saw a man standing there.
"Who are you?" Jade asked.
"Qui-Gon Jinn. I'm here to help you finish this trial." Qui-Gon said.
"I heard about you from my dad. He told me you appeared to him when he got his purple Kyber crystal." Jade said.
I appear to many on this world. I am one with the force." Qui-Gon said.
"Was I weak?" Jade asked.
"That all depends on what you mean. What do you think?"
Jade turned around, hearing the call of the crystal. There was a massive wall in front of her, but she could see a glow coming from the top. She turned back to Qui-Gon, but he was gone. Jade gathered her force energy and jumped. While she didn't make it to the top, she made it a good amount of the way. She started to climb up the rockface.
It took her some time, but she made it to the top. She flopped onto the ground. She looked over and saw Qui-Gon standing there. There was a pedestal in the center of this clearing. She caught her breath.
"You know… that sucked!" Jade yelled. Qui-Gon smiled at that.
"You're prize awaits."
Jade stood up and saw the crystal. She grabbed it. The cyan crystal.
Karel was Jade coming back out of the Cave. Obi-Wan turned to him.
"You still can learn to become what I am." Obi-Wan said while fading.
Jade came out of the cave covered in dirt, with a few scrapes and scratches. She had a massive smile on her face. Karel stood up. She showed him her cyan crystal. She nearly collapsed in Karel's arms.
"Long day?" Karel asked her as he carried her to the ship.
"I hate climbing." Jade said.
Month 5 Day 12
Yang was in Menagerie with Arin. She was wearing loose robes. Arin and Yang were keeping Blake safe as she gave birth. There was a terrorist threat to kill her when she was at her weakest. They weren't the only Jedi defending her, but they were the last line of defense. Yang looked over at Blake as she was in Labor. Her own hand went to her unborn child.
It was difficult to tell her parents. Her and Arin had too much to drink and didn't use anything. Her parents were very understanding. Ruby was surprised. Arslan was the worst. After everything Yang gave her for being pregnant, she was getting all that back. The band was supportive.
"Three months until that's us." Yang said. Arin sat in the hallway. He nodded.
"I can still marry you if you want." Arin said.
"You don't need to force yourself." Yang said. She wasn't ready. Arin stood up.
"Yang. You know I love you. I won't be forcing myself." Arin said. Yang sighed. Yang stopped. She didn't know why she was against the idea. She didn't want to manipulate Arin. But he was willing. Arin put his hand on her shoulder.
"I want to be with you." Arin said.
"I know." Yang said. She turned back to the door.
The Jedi at the entrance of the temple sent out a report of detaining a man with a blaster. He was alone. Arin and Yang looked at each other.
"Just one?" Arin asked. A doctor started walking toward the room Blake was giving birth. As he walked by Yang, her face dropped. She felt the darkness coming from him. Arin felt it as well. They stood up and turned on there lightsabers.
"Damn. I thought I kept it hidden." The doctor said. He took out his own lightsaber. He was one of the clones. Arin rushed in fast.
Yang could barely comprehend it, neither did the doctor. Arin was fast. His lightsaber pierced the doctor in an instant.
Arin stepped back, holding the clone.
"What?" He asked before he died.
"How did you do that?" Yang asked.
"I have to protect my family." Arin said. He stood up and looked at Yang. "You are my family now."
Yang felt his power. She turned to see that Blake hadn't noticed a thing. She turned to see Blake's child being born. A boy. She already knew what his name was going to be. Obsidian Belladonna. He had a panther tail Yang noticed.
Arin looked at the baby. He looked at Yang.
"I was thinking naming the kid Lightning. Any objections?" Arin asked.
"Lightning? Um…" She thought on it.
"Not really."
Month 5 Day 15
Blake learned that people did try to attack the hospital, but they failed due to the Jedi. The black fang were also there, but Arin killed him quickly. She still didn't know what to think about Yang and him having a child.
"They are creating terrorists, but they seem to have only been attacking the alliance. If they want to destabilize everything, why are they attacking only us?" Sun asked. He held Obsidian in his arms.
"I have to meet with some imperial officials soon, so I can see if they have been attacked." Blake said.
"Wait, MI or GI?" Sun asked.
"MI."
"What's this one about?" Sun asked frustrated.
"We're talking about opening up more trade between us and them." Blake said.
"Oh." Sun said.
"I wish dad got to see him." Blake said, looking at obsidian. He got his mother's hair, but his father's eyes.
"Do you think he would have liked me? As a son-in-law I mean." Sun said.
"It may have taken him time." Blake said.
"Oh." Sun said. He looked into his son's eyes.
Ilia knocked at the door. She entered in.
"Ilia, what is it?" Blake asked.
"We have found a bandit stronghold in what remains of the desert." Ilia said. Blake sighed. Bandits still exist and cause trouble.
"How many bandits?" Blake asked.
"We assume close to five hundred." Ilia said. She handed Blake the datapad.
"Should we send the red fang to deal with them?" Blake asked Ilia.
"Personally, I would say yes. However, we should also have Jedi present since we don't know if any clones are present." Ilia said. The Jedi temple was almost complete. In the meantime, the Jedi had a smaller structure they were using. Blake sent the request to the Jedi.
Yang looked at the construction of the Jedi temple on Menagerie. It would have seven floors. The building was a hexagonal shape. It had six spires on it. The outside was complete, but it was the inside that was being built right now. It was the insides that were being worked on right now. Yang sat outside of the temple, thinking.
The workers were mostly Faunus, but there were humans here, and even a few aliens. It was a work of love. The temple shined in the sunlight. The white marble came from a local quarry.
Arin sat next to Yang.
"How are you doing?" Arin asked. He looked at the temple being constructed.
"Good." Yang out her hands over her stomach. "I've been thinking about what you've said…"
"About me marrying you?" Arin asked. Yang shook her head.
"I'm worried." Yang said.
"I know." Arin said. He grabbed Yang's hands.
"It would change things. But they already have changed." Arin said.
"Yeah… Arin… Maybe we can do it. Lightning deserves it." Yang said.
"You deserve it as well." Arin said. Yang kissed him.
Month 6 Day 16
Jade was at the temple, holding her lightsaber. Karel had someone melt the metal into the parts she needed. It took a while for her to create her lightsaber. But when it was done, she knew it was hers.
It was a single-blade lightsaber with a flat pommel. Etched on the bottom was her mother's emblem. The hilt of the Beskar lightsaber was sleek and metallic, with a polished finish that reflected the surrounding light. The grip had enough room for her hands now, and as she grew. The blade had a flat emitter. The blade had weight to it, but not so much it became a detriment.
Jade turned on her lightsaber, and the cyan blade came out. Karel watched her as she held her lightsaber.
"Good." Karel said. He turned to the other padawan, around Jade's skill level, and watched as he pulled out his lightsaber. He had a green blade. The blade had dust-infused metal in it.
"Good." Karel said. The two padawans started training. They had there lightsabers turned to a lower setting.
Karel watches as Both trained with Form I.
Meg stepped in the room.
"That's the blade she crafted. It's definitely unique. After you're done with this, we have something to discuss in the council chambers." Meg said.
"Is this about the new masters?" Karel asked.
"It is."
More Jedi knights had reached the rank of master. Grandmaster Ray and the rest of the council decided to allow more than twelve to join the council. The masters would be sent to certain temples until all the councils reached twelve.
The council was preparing to have masters for the Menagerie temple ready. They had two Faunus Jedi and one Human master ready to be stationed in the temple when it opened.
Karel watched Jade and the other padawan train with one another.
Karel returned home with Jade. As they got in, Ruby, who was pregnant again, Oscar, Yang, and Arin were there with Weiss. Yang and Ruby were going to give birth in just about a month of each other.
"What's going on?" Karel asked. Jade came in and saw Yang and Ruby.
"Hey Jade, is that your lightsaber?" Ruby asked. Jade came forward and showed it off.
"Yeah!" Jade handed the lightsaber to Ruby. She turned the lightsaber on and saw the cyan blade. She turned it off and handed it back to Jade.
"Great Job." Ruby said.
"We're discussing about the bandit fortress in Menagerie." Arin said.
"That." Karel said. They were wrong about the number of bandits. They were far larger than they thought. They were under siege but showed no signs of surrender. It became a fiasco.
"Have you decided something?" Karel asked.
"We need to figure out how they're getting supplies. They're in the desert. This shouldn't be possible. So we wonder if the black fang have something to do with this." Arin said.
"The Jedi haven't forgotten." Karel said. He took his seat.
"They attacked MI traders. The MI is preparing to attack them back, but they don't have authority. Emperor Sym himself is going to Menagerie to see if they could settle this." Weiss said.
"Then we need Jedi there. Could the black fang have given the bandits droids?" Karel asked.
"Not that I've been able to tell." Arin said.
"Salem didn't like using droids. If they have droids, we'll have to figure out where they came from." Oscar said.
Yang looked at the blueprints of the fort. It was built two hundred years ago, then a Sith destroyed the wildlife in the area, which led to the desert. The fort was abandoned, and should have crumbled, but it wasn't.
"I looked over everything about that fort. It shouldn't exist. So we have to abandon everything we know." Yang said.
"When she figured that out, trust me you didn't want to be around her." Arin said.
"Three day! I spent three days finding every little scrap of info on this fort for it to be useless!" Yang said.
"It was much worse than it is now." Arin said.
"I believe it." Karel said. Jade saw Scarlet and went over to her.
"The Red Fang are there now. They have completely surrounded the fort, but that's the progress they've gotten." Ruby said.
"I see…" Karel said.
"Perhaps the 122nd could join in this." Arin said.
"That's not what I deal with anymore. I can ask Pixi if you want, but she still needs approval from the alliance council. The Jedi council will discuss this soon. We need to keep Menagerie safe." Karel promised.
The chief of the bandits walked on top the wall of the fort. He smirked as he saw the Red Fang out there. They couldn't touch him no matter what they tried. He was a human, leading a group of Faunus. He fought his way to the top. His heavily muscled body was covered in scars. His beard was full, and braided in a traditional Faunus style. His eyes burned gold.
"You really shouldn't be out here." Tyrian said. He was the newest arrival. The jail didn't notice his escape. One of his operatives may have helped with that. Tyrian put on Echo's mask.
"I could kill many of them. They found all but one safehouse." Echo said. Echo's arm opened in eight slots. Echo placed eight poisons in there. They were kept safe, and the arm could mix them and spread them at a moment's notice.
"Not yet. The boss wants you to go recruit people. But he gives you a warning. The Jedi know his candidates. Be careful." The bandit chief said.
"I will rebuild the assassins."
Tyrian phased through the ground. The chief shook his head.
"You better be right about him boss." The chief said.
A sith appeared from the darkness. They looked out at the army sieging them.
"It will be alright. Trust me." The sith said.
"You sure this gambit will work?" The chief asked.
"The Jedi will arrive, and so will the false sith. Emperor Sym may be here himself. We both get what we want." The Sith said.
"Did you get the shield?" The chief asked.
"Of course I did. And if you haven't noticed, it's up." The chief looked up. He was shocked at how well it was able to disguise itself.
"And the bomb?" The chief asked.
"It will arrive soon." The Sith said. If this worked, he may force the doors to reopen. He smiled behind his mask. The others were failures next to him. Bank robberies, bombings? Pathetic. They didn't have his vision. They never dreamed like he did.
Author's Notes: Gen 2 characters are arriving faster now. Gold, Jasper, and Obsidian. The remnants of the Black Fang are all over now. The Assassins may yet be revived. But there is still good going on. The Jedi are growing stronger.
Remnant has changed in the last few years. It's level of tech has increased, mostly because of the Galactic empire. Now speeders, and droids like R2D2 and C-3PO are all around. The standard Remnant weapons are more high-tech. Remnant's factions are also going to worlds around Remnant now. Colonies are only a few short years away.
Yang won't be a single mother. I think Raven and Tai would be very understanding about her situation, especially seeing how Yang was made, so they didn't have a bad reaction.
May the Force be With You
-DragonZlayerx12