Author's Note: It has been pointed out that these younglings are acting far too mentally mature. Well… there is no way that a 14 year old girl can get elected as Class President at a High School, at least, I've never heard of that happening. There is certainly no place on Earth that a 14 year old girl would be elected to rule an entire nation, forget about the whole planet. Considering that this is EXACTLY what had been done in 'The Phantom Menace' it becomes immediately obvious that children in the SW universe are FAR more mature mentally than Terrestrial counterparts.
As they exited the room where they had been practicing their telekinetic skills Crystal noticed Talon wince slightly. She quickly nudged Chargon and pointed this out to her. She wasn't sure if it was caused by pain in Talon's leg or not, but she wasn't going to take any chances either. She had seen the recording of Talon protecting Kaldin, she had also noticed how Pleena took an active interest in Talon, and she also saw how supportive Pleena was for Talon. She could see that the young Nautolan was doing her best to be a good friend to Talon but because of Talon's past, that friendship couldn't be reciprocated. Such a thing was not pleasant to know.
Crystal had spent just enough time around both Pleena and Talon to realize that though she might not understand why others were looking out for her and helping her, Talon would still cooperate with anything that might be asked of her. She saw that particular trait as something that could quickly land Talon in a lot of trouble. It meant that Selar and the rest of the team would need to keep an eye on Talon to keep her out of trouble.
Chargon looked down at the grey Twi'lek when she was nudged. Looking in the direction Crystal indicated, she saw Talon recovering from a wince. She knew that Master Cilghal had given Talon a combination injection consisting of pain killer, bacta serum, and vitamins a few short hours ago. She knew that Cilghal had removed the cast and that Talon's leg brace would come off in another day or two. That meant her leg wasn't causing any pain, so there was no reason for the pain killer to be included, unless there was another issue she didn't know about.
With this in mind, Chargon stepped forward and placed a hand on Talon's shoulder. "Hey Talon, are you okay? Is there something wrong?"
Chargon was more than slightly confused when Talon simply stared blankly in front of her. The girl wasn't moving, and she was certain that it wasn't a good sign. "Master Solo? I think something's wrong with Talon." She called out quickly.
Leia didn't feel anything wrong through the Bond she had with Talon, but she wasn't going to take any chances. Moving closer she made an active probe of Talon's mind through the Bond and found… nothing.
Leia knew instantly that something was seriously wrong! Talon was always in a state of fear from one thing or another, so this sudden state of nothing was alarming. She stepped directly in front of her Apprentice, closed her eyes, and concentrated on the Force to enter Talon's mind. She succeeded for a brief instant before her concentration was shattered by an overwhelming barrage of emotions and thoughts that didn't belong to Talon.
Leia was in complete shock as she stared at her Apprentice for a moment, then she knew what the problem was. She recalled how Talon was unable to block out anything carried by the Force. Because of that weakness, anything born by the Force would affect Talon harshly even if no one else ever noticed it. Talon simply couldn't ignore the unshielded emotions and thoughts of others around her.
"I don't think there's anything we can do." Leia said in a tone that was heavy with sorrow because she knew that short of completely cutting Talon off from the Force, there was nothing that could be done for her.
"What? Why not? What's wrong with her?" Pleena demanded hotly.
"Talon doesn't have any mental shielding! She can't stop sensing the thoughts and feelings of others… that includes those far outside this Temple." Leia announced.
"What about taking her into the Council Chambers? That blocks out everything in the Force, doesn't it?" Crystal asked hopefully as her mind raced.
Leia's eyes shot wide as she realized there just might be a way to help Talon after all. "If anything can help, that would be it!"
"Then let's go!" Selar snapped as he lifted Talon into his arms and began to carry her towards the Council Chambers.
As the group of obviously determined youth almost ran towards him with the leader carrying an unresponsive girl in his arms, the guard knew that something was up. He stepped in front of the open doorway intending to block their progress when he caught the intense glare of Leia Solo. He knew that she had been promoted to the rank of Master, but she was not a Council Member.
"Move! That room might be the only thing that can help her right now!" Leia ordered sternly.
The guard moved out of the way because he could see that Leia was in no mood to negotiate, but he used his comlink to summon one of the Council Members to find out what was going on.
As soon as she was carried in to the room, the torrential onslaught ceased and Talon took a deep breath to steady herself as she took in her surroundings. "Why are you carrying me? How did we get here?" She whispered in confusion.
"I was just faster than the others." Selar said with a grin as he placed Talon in a chair before turning to the others.
"Fine work Crystal! That was an excellent idea… as usual!" Selar said as he grinned at the young Twi'lek.
"I wasn't sure that it'd work but I'm just glad it did." Crystal replied in a sigh of relief.
"I'm glad it did too Crystal. Thank you." Leia said sincerely as she placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.
"Now you see why Crystal's part of this team. She's not one of the best at the physical stuff and she may not be one of the smartest yet, but she is definitely one of the fastest thinkers in the Order! Give her a problem and she'll find a solution." Chargon smiled briefly as she looked Talon over.
"I wasn't able to find a solution to that ISD though." Crystal said a bit defensively.
"Don't worry about it Crystal. I don't think anyone in their right mind could have come up with that stunt Talon pulled." Karlaani consoled.
"No kriffing kidding! Whoever taught her that was crazier than a wounded Rancor!" Vara snapped.
"I know and I'm glad those monsters ate him!" Pleena added angrily as she looked over at the Togruta boy.
"Pleena… how did you know the Tarentatek ate Talon's flight instructor?" Leia asked interestedly.
"You said they ate everyone they could catch; well if anyone was still alive then Talon wouldn't have come here to get away from them. That means they ate everyone else." Pleena said seriously.
"She's got a point." Crystal said with a shrug.
Talon watched quietly while the others talked. Now that her mind was almost silent, she was able to think. She noticed that Master Leia was keeping a close eye on her in spite of paying attention to the conversation going on around her.
'Are you feeling better now Talon?' Leia asked over their Bond.
'Yes Master Leia' Talon replied without hesitation. 'Everything was so loud that I couldn't think.'
'I know Talon. I want you to remember that this room can block a lot of that out. I will try to get permission for you to come here when you need to.' Leia replied gently.
'It doesn't block out everything though, because I can still hear you and the others.' Talon answered.
'You can hear us because we are in this room as well. If you were here alone, you wouldn't hear anything.' Leia told her.
Talon nodded her head as she took in that information. Then she looked up as Kenth Hamner walked in accompanied by the guard and Kyle. She recognized both of the Masters. One had hurt her leg and then later had given her something to eat along with something so she could sleep. The other was one who had threatened to send her away, but then later he had made her an Apprentice to her Master Leia after making her a Master. She didn't know who the light green skinned Twi'lek male was.
"As I told you on the comlink Master, this group barged in here. I will admit that one of them was limp while being carried by another." The guard said seriously.
"Talon was overwhelmed by the thoughts and emotions that she can't block out because of her lack of mental shielding. It means that she constantly senses most of the thoughts and emotions of those in and near the Temple… maybe even further, but I don't know for sure." Leia explained before being asked.
"If that's the case, then with these chambers being sealed with neutral Force energy, the room acts as a shield for her, doesn't it?" Kyle asked intently.
"Yes it does. Almost as soon as she was brought in, she began to recover. Without this room, I don't know that we could have helped her." Leia answered gravely.
"Wait… if this room is sealed with neutral Force energy and that's why Talon can't sense everything while she's in here, is there anyway you can fix a headband like that or maybe her room or something?" Crystal asked suddenly.
All four of the adults turned to look at the young Twi'lek in surprise, but several of her teammates started snickering.
"Now you see exactly why she's part of our team! She thinks fast!" Chargon said with a laugh.
Leia frowned in serious thought while she looked over at Chargon. "Are you saying she always thinks that fast?"
"Yeah, she's quick. Figures out puzzles real fast too!" Chargon bragged.
"That would not surprise me right now, because her suggestion does have some merit. We used ysalamir oil to seal the Council Chambers. I suppose a small amount of it on a head band or something might help. I'll speak with Tionne and see what she has available." Kenth stated.
"In the mean time," Kenth began turning to the Twi'lek who had been guarding the door, "anytime Talon needs to enter this room, I want her allowed in. If the Council isn't in a meeting then you are to allow anyone with her as well. If we are in a meeting then she must either enter alone or with Leia here, but no one else. Is that understood?"
"Of course Master. I will relay those instructions to all the guards exactly as you have stated them." The guard answered quickly before bowing respectfully and exiting.
Kenth watched the guard leave before turning to Talon and looking at her seriously. "Are you alright?"
"I am now Master." Talon nodded. ""I'm sorry. I couldn't think with how loud everything is here."
"I've already summoned Tionne, so we'll see if there's anything she knows of that might help." Kyle said hoping to ease Talon's mind a bit.
"I don't think this is the first time she's become distracted, but it's the first time I know of that she's frozen because of what she senses." Leia said as she frowned in thought.
"So this has happened before?" Crystal asked in concern.
"Yes Crystal, it has… just not this bad." Leia answered heavily.
"Then we'll have to keep a watch for this. That shouldn't be too hard, because we can make sure that someone's always with her." Chargon said as she looked at the other members of the team.
"But what about when she's in her room? She keeps it so cold and dark in there that you can't stay with her, and even if you could, it's so dark that I can't even see!" Pleena protested quickly.
"That's dark!" Krenn said with a smirk before he frowned. "Wait, if we Nautolans can't see in her room, then how can she?"
"Krenn wasn't it?" Leia asked before the Nautolan boy nodded. "I'm not sure just how Talon is able to see in that type of darkness but she can. If I ever find out how she does it, I'll let you know, okay?"
Krenn was nodding his head when Chargon spoke up.
"If no one can stay in Talon's room with her, then we have to find someway to make sure that she's properly shielded from the Force. Sensing everything while meditating is one thing, but getting all of that while you're trying to sleep…" Chargon broke off with a shake of her head and a wince.
"How do you get to sleep?" Karlaani asked softly as she looked at Talon.
Talon's brows knitted as she tried to recall just how she had gotten to sleep. She knew that Master Cilghal had given her an injection to do that one night, but she couldn't figure out how she'd gotten to sleep on the other two nights.
"So far it's usually been because of sedation. The only exception is the night that everyone had the nightmare." Leia interjected solemnly.
"I'm here now, so is there something I might help with?" Tionne asked as she entered.
"Yes Master Solusar!" Crystal piped up immediately. "Talon always senses everything in the Force and not just what goes on in the Temple, but on a lot of Coruscant too. She needs some way to block out the some of the Force but not all of it because she can't think while getting everything at once."
"I would say that sums things up quite nicely Crystal, thank you." Leia nodded.
The woman's eyes narrowed as she thought about the problem for a moment before looking over at Talon. "Talon are you able to think without any difficulty in here?"
"Yes Master, but I can sense the emotions of those in here right now, but I don't know what they are." Talon answered truthfully since that was what these Jedi wanted to hear.
It was very strange. It didn't matter if they liked the answer or not, these Jedi still wanted to hear the truth. Talon really couldn't understand exactly why that was, but she wasn't about to question it either.
"Well we sealed these chambers using ysalamir oil on the walls, floor, and ceiling because that oil is saturated with neutral Force energy. It may take some time to get something calibrated so that Talon can still sense and use the Force, but also have enough neutral Force energy around her to act as a type of mental defense that she doesn't have." Tionne said to everyone before she turned again to Talon.
"I'm very sorry Talon, but it appears that we'll need to… experiment to find out just how much ysalamir oil is needed so that we can use just enough to help you, but not so much as to cut you off from the Force. That is something we don't want." Tionne said gently as she knelt down to look Talon in the eyes while placing her hands on the girl's shoulders.
BREAK
One hundred and ninety two attempts. That was how many tries were made before coming up with something that worked. They'd tried everything from placing the smallest trace of the oil on Talon's forehead to making a headband that she could wear. Several of the methods that had been tried had no discernable results. A great many of the attempts had almost removed her ability to sense the Force, while still others had cut her off so completely that Talon was unable to use the Bond she shared with Leia. They finally found a solution that not only allowed Talon and Leia to utilize the Bond, but also allowed Talon to sense and use the Force as she was accustomed to doing. It hadn't been easy and it hadn't been swift either, but Selar and the rest of his wing had stood patiently by while Master Solusar tried various methods.
Leia had to admit that she was relieved. She had understood that Talon had some problems with her lack of mental shielding, but she would never have guessed that it could be so serious. Such a simple solution to what could be a very debilitating condition. All that was needed was a simple touch of the stopper to the vial on Talon's forehead. The residue on the stopper contained just enough ysalamir oil to provide Talon with the necessary impedance to act as the shields that she didn't have. She could see an immediate difference in Talon's general behavior. Where before the application of oil, Talon would usually appear as if she weren't paying attention, now the girl was very alert and attentive.
"Hey Talon come see the droids we're working on." Deilaani suggested now that the issue had been dealt with. "We've got one for each member of the wing, but none of them are finished yet. They're all astromech droids. Several of them are ones that we salvaged. We can't prove it until we get them working again, but some of them might be from the final battle of the Clone Wars."
"If it turns out that any of them were in that battle, then I'd like the chance to get their perspective on what happened. All of the records from that era were altered by The Empire." Tionne interjected with interest. "Where did you get them anyway?"
"We found tons of junk down in the bottom levels. We think that's where a lot of debris from that battle was thrown after the Temple was ravaged." Selar answered easily.
"Selar… you must be very careful when going down there. Not everything has been restored and the bottom levels may contain some things that are still very dangerous. If you don't believe me, ask Pleena… she is still troubled by what she encountered down there several years ago." Tionne warned seriously.
"You won't have to worry about that Master. The Force was with us. We were going down there a lot getting droid parts until we found one that was about to try to kill us. It overloaded and blew itself up. We haven't gone back since." Selar answered earnestly.
"Good! We have a maintenance crew tending to those levels and some of the things that have been encountered have even given a Jedi Master difficulty. So don't venture back down there with out permission and an escort, okay?" Tionne explained.
"You won't have to worry about that! That last trip convinced us." Chargon replied readily.
The young group followed Selar to one of the maintenance bays where all of their droids, parts, and tools were placed in one corner.
"Those three are the ones that haven't been claimed yet." Selar told Pleena and Talon. "I want you two to each pick one and do what you can to get it working again. Once it's fixed, it'll be your droid, so fix it up the way you want it."
"Don't be afraid to ask for help either. Some of us aren't the best at mechanics, but this is a good way to learn. Besides, learning how to fix things may be useful one day." Chargon added.
Pleena nodded and bolted forward to look at a green R2 unit that was covered in blast marks. "I want this one." She exclaimed happily.
"That one will be yours then." Chargon said with a smile. "Talon… what about you? Which of the two do you want?"
Talon walked forward to look at what looked to be a red R2 unit that was heavily damaged. The dome had been torn open by something and was almost ripped in half. The main body was a simple barrel like construction that had no legs or anything else to provide mobility. It was obvious to her that it would take a lot of effort to get it operational again.
Talon didn't reply because she was thinking about what it would take to get the droid mobile again. It didn't look as if it had ever had any type of legs, and she thought that was strange. Talon's head suddenly turned to her right and she looked up at Chargon just before the older girl placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Thinking about taking that one?" Chargon asked quietly.
"Yes." Talon answered simply.
"Well then, that leaves one for whoever else we get to join our Wing." Selar said with a grin. "Now anything you see laying around is free for anyone to use and you'll probably have to requisition some parts from supply, but you can fix it up any way you want."
Talon nodded her head as she looked at the droid. It appeared to have been used and then tossed carelessly aside when it was no longer useful. It was exactly what Darth Magus had planned for her. Master Leia had changed all of that for her, now perhaps she could do the same for this forgotten droid.
Talon sat down and began to remove the mangled dome from the droid to discover that most of the internal systems were surprisingly intact. The primary power relays had been severed, as had the sensor network. The other problem was mobility, but she'd figure that out later.
Once Talon had the dome removed, she saw that most of it would have to be replaced. There was a lot that was simply far too damaged for her to be able to repair. She knew that she wasn't highly skilled in such things, but she was still going to try. She looked over at the haphazard pile of spare parts and saw several systems that could be used for sensors. None of them would be able to fit inside the dome to look as originally intended but should work if properly mounted on the surface of the dome.
Retrieving a welder and a set of eye protection, Talon looked around at the others intending to ask a question. Instantly her optical filter went black and the only thing she could actually see was what Chargon was welding on. She knew where everything and everyone was, but everything was black.
"Wow! Now that is intense!" Karlaani exclaimed. Everyone turned to look at the red skinned Twi'lek girl expectantly. "Talon's visor just went as dark as a pair of welding goggles, but now it's normal again!"
"That means she can see no matter how bright or how dark a place is." Pleena groused. "That's not fair at all." She muttered sourly.
"So? We can see in dark places too." Krenn stated. "We Nautolans are good at that you know." He said leaning towards Pleena just a bit.
"I know that, smarty-tails! But Talon can see in a room so dark that I can't!" Pleena retorted hotly.
"Just hold it… both of you!" Chargon snapped as she stepped between the two.
When both of them fixed her with sullen expressions but were silent otherwise, Chargon turned to Pleena. "I know that Nautolans can see in almost total darkness, are you saying Talon can see better than you can?"
Pleena nodded her head solemnly. "The other day we were in her room. She keeps it really cold in there and it's so dark that I can't see but somehow she can!"
"That's good to know Pleena. It means we'll need to dress warm and carry an illuminator if we visit Talon in her quarters. In the mean time, these droids won't fix themselves." Chargon placated as she stopped an argument before it could really begin.
Pleena nodded and turned back to the droid she was examining. She really didn't know anything about mechanics, so she knew that she wouldn't be able to fix this droid by herself. It seemed to have less damage than the other two which was why she'd chosen it. It really wouldn't have mattered if it only needed power though, because she still didn't know what to do. There were a few wires that she could replace because she could see both ends of the severed wire and that told her that it had been a single wire prior to damage. Everything else though? That was out of the question. She been at it for almost an hour and had just finished replacing the last wire that she was sure of when a series of beeps and whistles caught her attention.
Talon looked around because she could feel everyone staring at her. That was when she saw the grey skinned Twi'lek girl named Crystal put down the part she was working on and walk over to her.
"That one was messed up more than any of the others. How did you get it working so fast?" Crystal asked with an impressed grin.
"The sensors were destroyed, and the wires leading to the power source were severed. Once I replace those, she started working just fine. She doesn't have legs though so I'll have to figure something out on that." Talon answered nervously.
"That's why you've welded a scanning system on to the dome so it can see." Crystal said approvingly. "Nice! So what are you going to do about the legs?"
"I… I don't know." Talon answered.
Another series of beeps, chirps, and whistles made Talon turn back to the droid she'd chosen.
"I've never heard of Master Kenobi, so I don't know who that is. I can try to find him for you though." Talon said to the droid as she answered its question.
"You can understand binary?" Deilaani demanded in shock. "What other languages do you know?"
"I know how to speak Basic, Binary, and Sith because that's what we were taught. Basic is so we can understand most beings, Binary is so we can understand the droids when something is wrong at the Academy like with one of the fighterships or something, and Sith because that is what we were." Talon answered plainly.
The droid chose that moment to emit another wild series of sounds for nearly half a minute that attracted Talon's attention.
"What did it say?" Pleena asked interestedly.
"She told me her name which is R4, and that she is built into a Delta-7 fighter assigned to Master Kenobi so he can fight in the Clone Wars. She says she never had legs and wants to know if Master Kenobi is alright." Talon answered.
"I hate to tell you this, but the Clone Wars ended over fifty years ago. The Delta-7 Starfighters haven't been used since. If Master Kenobi was a Jedi, then I'm sorry about that too. Almost all of the Jedi were killed at the end of that war so I don't think your Kenobi is still alive." Crystal explained.
"Wait! Kenobi as in Obi-wan Kenobi? Him and Master Yoda taught Grand Master Luke Skywalker before they died. That's who she's talking about… Obi-wan Kenobi!" Karlaani exclaimed excitedly.
"You know Talon… Master Solusar is going to want to know about this, and she's going to want to talk with R4 to find out the truth of what all happened in the Clone Wars." Chargon said softly.
"Hey Talon… if that droid never had legs; how are you going to make her able to get around?" Pleena asked curiously.
"I… I don't know." Talon answered before a rapid series of excited chirps and beeps got everyone's attention.
"What'd she say?" Selar asked as he walked over.
"She asked if she belongs to me now and suggested that I use repulsorlifts to provide her with mobility if she's not going to be part of a ship again. She also wants to know if she can once again be used by the Jedi Order." Talon translated.
"R4, I'm Chargon Kayla Green Three of Green Wing. We're a group of student pilots in the New Jedi Order. The old Order was destroyed at the end of the Clone Wars and all Jedi were declared traitors. It took a long time for the Jedi Order to be rebuilt and there's a lot of things we're still trying to find out. Talon is the one who did your repairs because she picked your damaged remains to be her droid. The rest of us salvaged enough busted droids for the entire Wing to have one. Talon was able to finish your repairs before anyone else completed the droid they're working on." Chargon said apologetically.
Everyone watched as the stained dome with a box of sensor units welded to it began to swivel around quickly. Then a rapid series of chirps and beeps was heard to emerge from the droid.
"Okay. I can do that." Talon said with a nod before using the Force to move the droid Pleena had chosen close to R4.
"What's going on Talon?" Pleena asked worriedly.
"R4 says she'll fix the rest of the droids for us. She said that yours isn't as badly damaged as the others, so she'll start with that one. Then it can help fix the others." Talon answered.
"Intense!" Crystal cried out happily.