As Leia Organa Solo got dressed to face the day, she felt a type of mental peacefulness that she hadn't felt since she'd first encountered Talon. Now though, she felt calm, and centered. She was ready to confront whatever this day might hold in store for her head on. A glance at her still sleeping husband brought a light smile to her lips. She finished getting dressed and placed her lightsaber on her belt, before heading to the cafeteria.
As she entered the cafeteria, Leia came to a stop. There was still more than an hour before the first wake up chime, so what was Pleena doing up so early? The young Nautolan was sitting at a table with a slight frown of intense concentration on her face and a cup of tea or some other heated beverage in front of her. A quick look around told Leia what she already knew… except for her and the Nautolan, the room was completely empty.
"You look like you have something on your mind Pleena. I can join you if you feel like talking about it." Leia offered after walking over to the table.
"I thought that us Nautolans can see better in the dark than humans." Pleena exclaimed almost irritably.
"As far as I know, you can… why?" Leia answered as she sat down across from the girl.
"If that's true, then how come Talon was able to see in the dark last night when I couldn't?" Pleena demanded quickly.
Leia opened her mouth to speak, but then snapped it closed as she thought about what she knew about the situation. "I have no idea Pleena, but that is something that we'll definitely have to look into. I know Talon has some very unusual abilities when it comes to using the Force… her ability to see in total darkness might just be another one… because I honestly don't know of anything else that can explain it."
"Do you… do you think she would teach me how to do that if it is a Force power thing?" Pleena asked hopefully.
Leia gave the girl a genuine smile. "I'm sure she would be happy to." She said before she frowned in thought. "Well… maybe not exactly 'happy', but she certainly won't have any objections." She amended.
"Master Solo… if… if there's anything I can do to help her, all you have to do is tell me what it is." Pleena said earnestly.
"After what you did last night… I know I can rely on you to help Talon. Whether she knows it or not, she needs friends, and given what I've seen of you, I don't think anyone could ask for better." Leia stated honestly.
Pleena looked up at the Jedi Master in awe. "You… you really mean that… don't you?" She asked in disbelief.
"Yes, I do." Leia said as she looked the young Nautolan in the eye. "You've made some very accurate guesses about Talon's past, and have been told a lot more… but Pleena… I will be completely honest with you. I don't know all of Talon's past, and what I've learned so far has made me pretty sure that I don't want to either."
"It can't be that bad… can it?" Pleena asked partially in doubt and partly hoping that her friend hadn't really had a horrible life.
"Pleena… when I was much younger… I was tortured by the Empire… I was even made into a slave by a Hutt crime lord… but I can smile, and I know what it takes to be happy. Talon… well, she doesn't. Before she met me, the only time she's ever seen someone smile was when they were about to make her scream in pain. Talon doesn't know any of the things in life that you or I take for granted, such as friends, happiness, good times, a loving family… or something to laugh about. If someone were to use the Force to examine every one of her memories, I'm sure they would find that Talon has never laughed about anything, and never smiled either. That's because Talon has never had anything to laugh or smile about. It really hurts to admit it, but I don't really think I can help her with that. She's just too scared of me… scared of everyone really. I know that she doesn't understand the meanings right now, but in time, I hope she will, and once she does… I think Talon will remember you as the first real friend that she ever had." Leia said softly without taking her eyes off Pleena.
"I knew it was bad, but I didn't know it was that bad." Pleena whispered with tears in her eyes. "We… we can change that… right?"
"I don't know if I can or not Pleena… but I think that you can. So I'm asking for your help. Most of the other students that she meets with either be too awed by her skills, or too frightened of her past as a Sith to really get to know her. She needs someone that she doesn't have to obey, someone that she can disagree with… and that someone isn't going to be me. Whenever I tell her to do something, or even ask her to do something, she does it because she's much more than half afraid that she'll be killed if she doesn't. That's where you come in Pleena. If you show her something, or get her to do something, watch her closely, to see if she likes it, if she doesn't, then try something else, okay? Can you do that for me?" Leia asked seriously.
Pleena stared down at the table for several long moments in silence before she finally looked up at the older Jedi. "This… this is the kind of thing that Jedi are really supposed to do isn't it? All that Force stuff, and lightsaber fighting, that's just extra. Jedi are supposed to help people, aren't they?"
"Yes, Pleena… that's exactly what Jedi are meant to do."
"Then I guess… I guess that this is where I start to be a real Jedi then, isn't it?" She asked softly.
Leia couldn't help but give the young Nautolan a soft but sad smile. She knew that Pleena was now putting her youth aside so she could help someone else. The sight of a youngling trying to assume a maturity far beyond her years was a very sobering one.
At that moment Leia looked up as Talon walked into the cafeteria. The girl was looking around in apparent confusion. The girl looked around at the empty tables before swallowing hard and walking over to the table where Leia and Pleena sat.
When Talon saw the all but empty cafeteria, she was certain that she missed the chime that alerted everyone to wake up. She wasn't sure how she could have slept through it because she and the other Fighters had always woken upon hearing the door to their room open or when someone got close to them, and the chime was much louder than that door had been.
"Well Talon, you're up early. Did you sleep well?" Leia asked with a smile.
Talon froze because she was stunned for a moment. It was no wonder that she hadn't heard the chime… it hadn't sounded yet! Then she realized that her Master had asked her a question. She had to think about what the question actually meant before she could answer. She nodded her head because she felt properly rested, and walked toward the table.
"Good! If for some reason you don't get enough sleep, I want you to let me know. There will be times in the future where you aren't able to get any sleep, but that isn't now, so if you get tired, I want to know about it." Leia said in a firm but gentle tone.
"Now, would you like to join us for breakfast?" Leia asked.
Talon nodded her head and moved to sit down across from her Master and Pleena. As soon as the serving droid arrived, Talon ordered the same thing she had eaten the first morning she'd been here.
"Talon… there is something that you really should know right now. Over the past few years, a number of Jedi have succumbed to the Darkside. They did this because of influence from the Sith. They weren't the Sith that you knew; this was another group entirely. They set out to destroy us by twisting the minds of a Jedi until that Jedi went mad and embarked on a killing spree. Many Jedi succumbed to those techniques. A mere five years ago, a man calling himself Darth Ceadus tried to tear this galaxy apart with a civil war. Before that, this galaxy was ruled for twenty years by The Empire, led by Darth Sidious. His will was enforced by Darth Vader." Leia said heavily.
Talon looked at her Master curiously. Some of this information she knew, but most of it she didn't.
"The reason I am telling you this is because the people of this galaxy and especially Jedi have a lot of good reasons to both fear and hate anyone with a Sith background or Sith training. There are many sentients out there who personally recall the atrocities of Darth Vader and The Empire, and there hasn't been enough time to pass to allow various beings to put aside their hatred of the Sith. That means there are many in this galaxy who will not like what you were, because they have many good reasons to fear the Sith. All they need to hear is 'Sith' and they may try to kill you. That is why I do not want you to mention anything regarding the Sith if you avoid it." Leia said firmly. "Do you understand?"
Talon nodded her head, before glancing at Pleena.
"You don't have to ask. If I didn't get to see you save Kaldin like that, and found out you were a Sith… I'd be staying far away from you! I know you aren't like that, but only because I found out what you are like before I knew you were a Sith." Pleena said wryly.
Suddenly, an idea occurred to Pleena and she quickly looked over at Master Solo. "If Talon is here, and your Apprentice now, then that means she's not a Sith anymore… doesn't it?"
Leia thought about that question silently for a moment before she answered. "You're right Pleena, it does mean that Talon isn't a Sith anymore. In the Old Order she'd be what was called a 'Padawan', but now we use the term 'Apprentice', and that's what she is, my Jedi Apprentice." She replied calmly.
Kenth Hammner looked around the classroom at the various students gathered inside. With fifty flight simulators and only thirty students, there were more than enough. One thing that stood out to him was just how much smaller the newest student looked in comparison to the others. He knew they were all at about the same age, but Talon looked much younger than the others because of her much smaller size. Normally he wouldn't allow her in this class because of how young she looked. The fact that she had flown to Coruscant in a Sith fighter proved conclusively that she knew at least the basics of how to operate a ship, and that was the only reason she was in attendance with this group.
Being able to operate a ship and maintaining a flight formation or engaging in a dogfight was something else entirely. That was part of why she was in this group of more advanced students that were under his instruction, so he could get an adequate approximation of her flying skills. He set the simulators to run a combat flight against an Imperial Star Destroyer. Each of the students would be in simulated X-Wing fighters but without an Astromech droid. He would be constantly monitoring each of the students, but he knew that he would be paying some extra attention to Talon to see just what she was capable of and what she might need to learn.
Talon watched as the other students began climbing into the simulators. These looked more advanced than the ones that she was familiar with, and she was certain that they weren't nearly as old. When she climbed into the one she was directed to she saw that she was right. They were a lot more advanced than even the actual ship she had flown! She settled in and buckled the safety restraints; then she began looking at the controls.
Talon was able to identify some of the basic systems as she looked over the instrumentation. She quickly brought the main power online and then looked to see what else needed to be done. There was a readout display that showed her the basic schematics of the ship she was to be flying, and saw that all systems were within acceptable levels. She activated the life support, checked the fuel status and then brought the engines online. She lifted off, retracted the landing gear, and proceeded to enter orbit. That was when the com system signaled for her attention.
"Green Leader to Green Ten; Talon what are you doing?"
It took Talon a moment to find the controls for the communications system and she activated it immediately. "I'm waiting in orbit."
"Orbit!? How are you in orbit when everyone is still doing systems checks?"
Kenth Hamner crossed his arms and observed the telemetry of Talon's simulator dubiously. Given her performance so far, he had serious doubts about her piloting skills.
"Well just wait for the rest of us to get there. We'll join you shortly."
While Talon waited in orbit above Coruscant, she looked over the numerous controls that she wasn't at all familiar with. She quickly spotted the controls for the weapons, although there was an extra set of controls to activate the torpedoes, whatever those were. Then found a targeting computer. That was something she'd never had access to before, because the simulators on Korriban hadn't been equipped with them. She knew what it was because it was labeled. Other controls such as the S-foils were ones that she wasn't at all familiar with and had no idea what they were for. One ting she didn't understand was why there were two separate controls for an emergency ejection. One was for atmospheric use while the other wasn't. There were many other controls that weren't exactly labeled in a way that she could understand, so she ignored them and waited.
Talon didn't have to wait long before she was joined by the rest of the students. They assumed positions of three flights in a group of ten. The one closest to her only had nine though.
"Talon, this is Green Leader, you will be designated as 'Green Ten'. I want you to take the right flank position. You'll be my wingman so I can keep an eye on you. Just follow me, and shoot anything in front of you while keeping the enemy off my tail."
"Yes Master." Talon replied as she maneuvered to take position at the tail end of the closest formation.
Talon could see that the formation was very different from what Darth Magus had taught them to use. Instead of a flat diamond formation, she was at the tail end of a diagonal flight, which was flying next to two more diagonal flights.
Selar's face twisted into a frown of confusion. 'Master!? Why did she call me Master? I'm not even a Knight.' He shook his head to rid himself of that thought as the simulated ISD dropped out of hyperspace in front of them.
"Green Leader to Green Flight; stay sharp people target is straight ahead. Lock S-foils in attack position and charge your weapons. We do this by the book. We get in behind it and target the engines first. Then we worry about their weapons. The other flights have their targets as well, so we won't be alone. Now let's make it happen."
Talon heard the orders, but she had no idea how to adjust the S-foils of her ship because she didn't know what they were. She did know what the weapons systems were though, and she immediately moved to activate them. That was when a warning notice appeared in her HUD. {S-FOILS MUST BE LOCKED IN ATTACK POSITION BEFORE WEAPONS CAN BE ACTIVATED}
Once again, Talon looked at the unfamiliar controls in front of her. She saw the control for the S-foils and moved that lever forward until it locked in place. Movement outside her cockpit caught her attention, and she turned her head to see the strange looking wing assembly spreading apart. A green indicator light above the S-foil lever came on, and she assumed that the S-foils were now locked in place. That meant she could activate the weapons. They came online with no problems now that the S-foils were in attack position.
"Green Ten, you were a little slow in locking your foils. Is there a problem?"
"No Master." Talon responded quickly. She was certain that admitting to any ignorance of these strange systems would get her punished, and that was something she didn't want.
Selar shook his head in irritation as he focused on what needed to be done. "Green Ten, I'm not even a Knight yet, and certainly not a Master! Call me Green One, or Flight Leader."
"Yes Flight Leader." Talon replied quickly.
Talon's brows knit in apprehension. Already she had made a mistake by addressing someone incorrectly, and she knew that she would most certainly be punished for that. She became determined not to make any further mistakes.
"All units look alive! This is Yellow Leader, and we've got TIEs being launched!"
"Green Leader to Green Flight; stay sharp and stay calm. We know how to handle this, so let's do it by the book. Talon, I want you to stay with me and stay close."
"Yes Flight Leader." Talon replied as several other ships broke formation and surged ahead.
A quick glance at the scattering ships showed her a type of configuration that Talon had never seen before. A long needle like fuselage with four wings protruding at a slight angle meant excellent maneuvering ability, and a thruster on each of those four wings meant excellent speed as well. She leaned forward and looked to each side and noted that it was the same type of ship that she was in.
The ship she was instructed to follow began a shallow dive that would take it beneath the huge enemy craft, and she quickly followed. She noted that four of the enemy fighters were on an intercept course for them as they all scattered to find opponents.
"Flight Leader, we have four ships that are moving to come for us." Talon said over the com system.
"Copy that Green Ten. Just keep them off my back."
"Yes Flight Leader."
Talon watched as the quad blasters of Green Leader caused one of the TIE fighters to vanish in a silent explosion. She was forced to wait until her own targeting screen lit up and flashed as one of the remaining three entered her sights. Talon didn't hesitate as she fired her own weapons. The quad streaks of energized death blazed towards her target and vaporized it in a brilliant flash. There was no chance to target a second fighter as they raced past. Talon couldn't help but notice that the weapons on this craft were apparently much more powerful than any vessel she had trained for, because it had always taken at least three shots to destroy an enemy ship.
As soon as the fighters flew by beneath her, Talon immediately decelerated to a near stop, knowing that they would be coming around at maximum speed in order to catch up with supposedly accelerating vessels.
"Green Ten what are you doing?"
"Getting a vantage point on our attackers Flight Leader." Talon answered calmly in spite of the clear tension and disbelief in her Leader's voice.
Sure enough, the two enemy craft flew past and Talon was able to target and eliminate one of them before accelerating to match the other.
On his scope, Selar had seen what Talon had just done. That move was very risky, but also brilliant! With only one TIE fighter now on his tail, he was fairly sure that this new addition to their class could handle it. That's what he thought anyway, because he would never have thought of or even tried the stunt that she'd just pulled to take out one of them.
"Green Ten, you do whatever you have to do… but take him out! You are clear to engage."
"Yes Flight Leader." Talon answered as the fighter in front of her dove and banked right at the same time.
Climbing, weaving, diving, looping, and circling, Talon tailed that enemy fighter every step of the way, but she couldn't get a proper shot off at it. Forget the targeting system that she wasn't familiar with, besides she couldn't get that strange looking thing in her scope long enough to hit the trigger. After several minutes of being unable to even come close to hitting it, she began to get anxious. This simulated fighter pilot was far more skilled than she was, and she knew it.
Finally, finally, after what seemed like hours, Talon finally got a slight vantage and opened fire even though the ship hadn't entered her targeting screen. Only one of the four beams of highly concentrated energy plasma managed to clip an edge of one solar panel, and that caused the ship to veer out of control while careening wildly. She stayed with it, juking and twisting like she was out of control herself, when she finally got her chance. She didn't realize that she had gotten so close, until the ship exploded in a shower of super heated sparks that she couldn't avoid flying through.
"Green Ten… what is your condition?"
Talon studied her instrument panel for a couple of minutes before she finally answered. "The sensors say my forwards shields are down by eighty percent, and I had some thermal warnings, but my ship is perfectly operational. I can still fight."
Selar couldn't believe what he was hearing. He knew that with his forward shields down to a fifth of full strength, he would be ready to pull back. Where ever Talon had come from, it was pretty clear that she wasn't one to play things safe, or she would never have had her leg broken like that the first time he'd seen her in a training session. The only question was… could she make a difference? A single glance at his scope showed him that all three flights were heavily outnumbered by more than eight to one! He knew perfectly well that there was no way for them to win this scenario. With a grand total of two hundred and fifty TIE fighters and an Imperial Star Destroyer against the meager thirty X-Wing fighters being flown by students, there was no chance at all!
He knew that it was only a simulation, but he had no idea what he was supposed to do in this situation. Perhaps the new addition had an idea or two? Selar hoped so. He sent a communication to her on a private channel.
"Green Ten, we are outnumbered and outgunned! Got any ideas?"
"Only one Flight Leader… eliminate the command personnel and the grunts will be demoralized and on their own." Talon answered just as she had been taught.
'Oh that really helps a lot! Just how are we supposed to take out a Star Destroyer with a couple hundred TIE fighters trying to blow us away?' Selar thought sourly as he angled toward the stern of the massive vessel.
A look at her scope showed Talon the same thing everyone else could see. There were just over two hundred and forty TIE fighters along with the Imperial Star Destroyer preparing to launch more. She knew that there was only one way to possibly defeat the enemy. Darth magus had always used a similar scenario every time she had been in a simulator. A single touch on the screen gave a basic diagram of the behemoth, and Talon knew exactly what to do.
Shoving her throttles forward until they maxed out, Talon began switching power from the rear deflector shields which she knew were going to be useless, and diverted that power to the engines. Almost as soon as she started her attack run at one hundred and ten percent of engine capacity, the enemy began moving to intercept her. She flew exactly as she had been taught, swerving, diving, climbing, and twisting, but never once letting her target leave her field of vision.
Selar gaped in stark disbelief as Green Ten slammed into the bridge of the Star Destroyer firing rapidly the whole way. The explosion set of a chain of smaller blasts that rocked the massive vessel, but that was short lived. The superstructure remained functional, but the bridge was destroyed and several decks both above and below along with other nearby areas were heavily damaged. Startled gasps of surprise, and then cheers filled the communications frequencies. More than half of the TIE fighters fled immediately, leaving behind those that were flying like they were lost.
He was the last to leave his simulator, but when he finally climbed, Selar was pumped! Less than fifty TIE fighters had been left at the end of the simulation, and the Star Destroyer was a drifting wreck ejecting escape pods. It was true that all of the students had 'died', but so had a lot of the enemy! For a mere thirty pilots who were still learning, they had succeeded in decimating the enemy.
"You are insane!" Deilaani exclaimed as she walked up to Talon. "Where in the galaxy did you come up with that idea?"
"Yeah! I want to know too!"
Those sentiments were echoed by nearly all of the other students. Talon looked up at the red skinned Twi'lek who was a head taller than she was and had asked the first question.
"That's what I was trained to do in that situation." Talon answered plainly.
"Who in the Sith hells would teach a suicide run?" Selar demanded.
"That would be the Flight Instructor at the previous Academy that Talon attended. She has been taught in a way that is much different than the way we do things here. This little simulation you just had, illustrates that difference quite blatantly." Kenth Hamner said calmly as he looked at each of the students in the class.
"I will admit, that all of you did quite well in dealing with your enemy forces. However… that was not what you were supposed to do! The proper response would have been to either retreat or contact base and request reinforcements. From that perspective, this entire exercise was a massive failure because every last one of you died needlessly." The Grand Master stated.
"But Talon showed us how to kick the stang out of them! Can I get a recording of this?" Deilaani asked excitedly.
Kenth placed his left fist on his hip and his right hand splayed across his face as he sighed heavily while shaking his head. Being told that they had failed apparently didn't mean anything to the students right then, because they were obviously on an adrenalin high after taking on such an overwhelming force and decimating it.
"All of you go prepare for lunch." The Grand Master said in exasperation.