[FIC] The Adventures of Jolee Bindo

[The Source]

Jolee Bindo will never be seen in the same way again.. I like how you treated his story, and you have captured his character. Wow... Nice Job!

[Jae Onasi]

Chapter 15: The Emergency

 

My heart stopped for a moment.

 

Only two stretchers, not three....

 

Izah’an’s first was in the main stretcher, moaning in pain. The other unconscious man was under an oxygen breath mask and covered in blood, mud, and equipment. The flood of relief I felt when I saw it was Talin was tempered by great concern when I realized he was seriously injured. One of the emergency workers held up the infusion bag that had a line running from it to Talin’s arm and another held on to some equipment as they rushed past the doors. I quickly joined Jolee as he followed the stretchers into the emergency area.

 

“What happened?” I asked him, watching the emergency teams transferring both men to the brightly lit treatment bays and hooking up monitors and instruments. The alarms for critical values started sounding from the monitors in Talin’s bay. The med team scurried around setting up equipment, taking samples, and doing the initial scans to find all the injuries. They spoke back and forth with clipped voices edged in worry.

 

We walked briskly towards him, and Jolee filled me in. “When we found them, he was curled up around Izah’an’s first. Talin must have caught him right after they blew out of the corridor. The storm carried them some distance, and they hit a building about eight meters up—you could see the marks on the wall. They fell down the side, and Izah’an’s first landed hard on top of him. I’ve done some healing just to get him to this point, but we’re going to have to work together to stabilize him.”

 

I scanned the displays and watched the values scroll. “Oh, Force, these are bad,” I said, after seeing nothing but critical numbers.

 

Jolee laid a hand on my shoulder. “Stay calm. Getting adrenaline-addled isn’t going to help him. He’s the one with the problem, not you. I know this isn’t the first time you’ve been through something like this.”

 

The flashbacks returned with a vengeance. The explosion. Roben on the ground. Cradling his head and trying to heal him. Seeing his spirit leave. I closed my eyes and shook my head, trying to clear the images.

 

“Look at me, Jae,” Jolee commanded. I had no choice but to comply. He looked in my soul for a moment and then caught my eyes. “He’s not Roben. Talin’s got more than a chance, as long as you don’t keep standing there gawking at the past. Now, move. Focus. You’re a professional, and we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

 

I took a deep breath, recited the Jedi code to calm myself, and stepped into the controlled chaos in Talin’s bay.

 

Talin labored to make even a shallow breath. Bandages were stained bright red, and his leg was lying at an abnormal angle on the bed. One of the Li’adans finished the scan and put the results up on the monitor. Tarm’ad, the triad of doctors who was treating Talin, looked over the images, which showed a number of injuries ranging from the most serious to very minor.

 

Jolee pointed at the images of Talin’s fractured spine and collapsed lung. “We have to heal those before he can go into the kolto.”

 

Tarm’ad said, “All the tanks are in use right now, and there’s no one we can pull out at the moment.” They called over a duo. “Eron’an, tell surgery to be ready for two cases.”

 

“Jolee, if you can work on his collapsed lung, I’ll tackle the internal bleeding and that spine fracture,” I said.

 

When Tarm’ad looked momentarily confused, Jolee explained, “We’re going to heal the most serious injuries as long as our Force powers hold out to try and get him stable.”

 

“He’ll have a better chance of surviving if he still needs surgery after we’re done,” I added.

 

“Just tell me what you need and when,” Tarm’ad said. “While you’re doing that, we’ll work on putting his shoulder back in place and sealing all those deep lacerations.”

 

“Fix the breathing and the bleeding, I always say,” Jolee said.

 

He started concentrating on healing Talin’s collapsed lung while I worked on bringing the torn edges of the artery together, ‘watching’ them heal from the inside out.

 

“Bleeding’s stopped,” I told Jolee.

 

Jolee nearly had Talin’s lung healed when he regained consciousness, dark eyelashes fluttering against his ghostly pale skin. I had to drop out of the healing meditation to calm him when he started moving around.

 

“Heart rate’s spiking,” Eron’an said. His heart was beating dangerously fast from shock.

 

“Sedate him. Now,” Tarm’ad ordered.

 

I leaned in close to him and gently put my hand on his. “Talin, you’re hurt bad. We’re healing you right now. Hold still for us.”

 

He nodded slightly and closed his eyes again.

 

“Talin, hang on just a little longer. I’m almost there,” Jolee said.

 

Alarms went off as Talin gave a little shudder and stopped breathing.

 

“His heart rate and BP just bottomed out. We’re losing him,” Eron’an announced.

 

“Damn it, Talin, don’t you give up now. I’m almost done fixing that lung,” Jolee said. “Jae, go get that boy. Tell him I said he’s too damn young to die.”

 

I closed my eyes in meditation and drifted over to that dark, quiet between-world. The shadow-valley between life and death strips the soul to its essence. There are no masked emotions, no lies, and I felt a sudden roiling of my feelings as I looked around, anxious to find him and bring him back before it was too late.

 

“Talin,” I called out, finally seeing him.

 

He looked around, the confusion coloring his aura.

 

I walked up to him. “Talin, come back to us. You can’t leave.”

 

He pointed towards that warm, bright light, “They don’t seem ready to take me just yet, but I want to be with them. People I love are there. It hurts too much where I was, and I can’t go on anymore.”

 

“Jolee says you’re too damn young to die.”

 

Talin smiled, but his eyes kept their weary look. “Jolee’s a funny man. No one’s too young to die. Children die. Babies die.”

 

“But we still need you here with us. Don’t let go,” I urged.

 

“There are other Jedi.”

 

“Not other Jedi like you, Talin. You’re special. And you’re our friend.”

 

He looked over at me, surprised. “I thought you were angry with me and didn’t care.”

 

“Frustrated is a better word. Friends get frustrated with each other sometimes. Yes, I do care about you.”

 

“It’s more than frustration. You use that to keep me away.”

 

I didn’t want to answer, but I was afraid he’d let go if I didn’t keep talking to him to draw him back.

 

“I’m scared,” I said after some time. “Every one I’ve ever loved has died. My parents are gone. When Roben died, I felt like my soul was ripped in half. If I love, I lose, and I don’t want to feel that way ever again. Now you’re trying to leave, too. Jolee and I will do everything we can to heal you, but you’re the only one who can decide to return.”

 

“I didn’t know you felt that way.”

 

“I don’t think I’ve ever told anyone before. So what’s your reason?”

 

He tilted his head, confused. “What do you mean?”

 

“That arrogance. You’re only that way with me.”

 

“Because you’re beautiful, talented, and have a strength of will I’ll never have. I have feelings I never imagined having, and I’m not sure what to do. Keeping you at arm’s length keeps us both safe. I don’t want to put either of us in a difficult situation. But I don’t think it will matter now, anyway.” He turned towards the beckoning light, slipping fast.

 

“Talin Kayl, you just look at me right now,” I commanded, the sharpness in my voice surprising even me. He looked back to me, silent. I continued, “You have to fight this and come back to us. You’re too strong to run from life when it gets hard. Besides, Jolee would miss you a lot, and so would I. Maybe it’s selfish, but we want you in our world.”

 

He gave me a small smile. “You’re starting to sound like him.”

 

“He grows on you after awhile.”

 

He smiled wider. “Like a fungus.”

 

“I’ll make a pact with you. When we get back and you’re well, we’ll both deal with our problems. I’ll stop pushing everyone away when they get close if you’ll drop the condescension.”

 

He mulled over his options.

 

I hardly dared to breathe as he tried to make his decision. I held out my hand to him. “Come with me, please. I’ll help you get back.”

 

“It’s going to hurt a lot when I go back, isn’t it?”

 

When I heard him use ‘when’ instead of ‘if’, I allowed the tiniest bit of relief to trickle through me.

 

“It will, but not for too long. We’re trying to do everything we can to get you healed fast. I’ll stay with you as long as you need.”

 

He took hold of my hand, and I smiled as the relief flooded in.

 

“I’m going to hold you to that pact,” Talin said, and we walked away from the darkness together.

 

The change from the silent, dim netherworld to the glaring lights and cacophony of monitor alarms and loud talking was jarring, and I snapped out of the meditation.

 

Ilan’an called out, “He’s breathing again, rapid and shallow.”

 

“Glad you got him back, Jae. Lung’s healed; I’m going to tackle some of those other fractures.”

 

Tarm’ad listened to Talin’s breathing. They looked almost amazed in their pleasure. “Lung sounds are much better.”

 

“Heart rate’s a good sinus rhythm. BP and O2 sats are coming back up towards normal,” said Eron’an.

 

“Better,” I said, breathing out a bit in relief. “I’ll work on the vertebrae now.”

 

“You used a ton of energy trying to get him to come back. You burn yourself out trying to heal him completely and I’ll be very upset,” Jolee said, looking up from his work to make sure he had my complete attention.

 

“I’ll stop before I exhaust myself.”

 

I meditated and brought the edges of the vertebrae back into alignment. The fracture lines filled in and set. Jolee and I worked on the rest of the injuries until I was shaking from the effort to use the last of my Force strength.

 

He looked up as we finished the work on Talin’s broken bones. “You’re done. Sit down before you fall down.”

 

I sank into the chair and looked over the monitors. Some of the values were now out of critical ranges and moving back to normal. “He’s starting to stabilize, Jolee.”

 

“Looks like he’s not going to need surgery, either,” Tarm’ad said, looking over the latest scans. “All the major injuries are healed. Impressive.”

 

The decrease in everyone’s intensity level was almost palpable. The staff moved briskly instead of frantically, and the volume of the noise dropped to a more normal level.

 

“Nice job,” Jolee clapped me on the shoulder and then caught me when I nearly tipped off the chair. “You’re beat. Stay here while I go check on Izah’an.” He washed up and walked over to the other bay.

 

Talin started to stir and tried to remove the oxygen mask. I took his hand and held onto it gently to keep him from taking it off. He was too weak to pull away to reach his face.

 

“Talin, leave the mask on, you need the oxygen right now. You’ve been hurt badly, but you’re going to be OK,” I reassured him. “They’re pulling glass out of your back, so you have to hold still.”

 

He settled down, not making a move to remove his hand from mine.

 

Jolee returned to us after some time and noticed Talin was more responsive.

 

“How’s our favorite patient?” Jolee said, looking down at him.

 

“I feel terrible,” Talin said weakly, his voice barely above a whisper.

 

“You look terrible, too,” Jolee said, “but you’re past the worst of it. They only have to pick out that glass now. Just how many windows did you crash through?”

 

Talin mustered the energy for a half-chuckle before it quickly turned to a wince, “Oh, it hurts to laugh. One or two. Izah’an?”

 

“You did a good job protecting him. He’s going to be just fine. He had a couple of broken bones and a concussion, but he wasn’t nearly as bad off as you were. You broke pretty much everything you can break.”

 

“Hit several buildings hard. Last fall got me.”

 

“Jolee, what happened to Dycen’a?” I asked, looking over at him.

 

“The Li’adans think he was swept away in the storm and likely died. I’m not so sure. We would have found something by now if he’d been killed. I think he’s somehow survived and is hiding. However, he’s not anywhere near here right now, or we’d feel it. It’s going to make a very interesting report for the Council, that’s for sure.”

 

Kiol’ad and Elin’ad entered the infirmary, worried looks mirrored on all their faces. They conferred with Damen’ad and Tarm’ad to get a report on all the patients and then came to speak with us. Tarm’ad returned to the task of finding and removing all the glass and debris from Talin.

 

I joined them in that task, taking gauze to clean some of the facial wounds of the debris.

 

“You don’t have to do that. I can wash my own face,” Talin said, embarrassed at being unable to do the simplest tasks but too weak to stop me from helping.

 

“I’m making sure you don’t have anything stuck in these cuts. Besides, you’ll be a lot more comfortable if you don’t have all this grit and dirt drying on your skin. Now you just rest and let me do my job.”

 

“All right,” he said, closing his eyes.

 

Kiol’ad came in, and seeing Talin with his eyes shut, said quietly, “We heard the good news that Jedi Kayl will recover.”

 

Talin heard them, opened his eyes, and tried to raise his head.

 

“Talin, hold still, please,” I said to him. “Tarm’ad’s still working. Jolee will take care of things for you.”

 

Elin’ad smiled gently, saying, “We don’t worry about protocol and negotiations in the infirmary.”

 

Jolee said, “We’re glad Izah’an made it, too. I was concerned when he was blown out the window. That storm was unbelievable.”

 

Tarm’ad looked up from their work. “We don’t know if Izah’an would have survived without both Jedi helping with their healing. We’ve learned some very interesting treatment techniques.”

 

Kiol’ad looked at both of us and said, “We’re thankful to have you here and grateful for all your help. When everything has settled a bit, we’d like to hear what happened in more detail, especially about Dycen’a. Is there anything you need?”

 

Jolee looked over at me. “I think my Padawan needs to go change.”

 

I had one of the disposable ER gowns on over my outfit, which had been stained with blood and dirt. I realized I was starting to feel the chill of the damp dress.

 

“I didn’t notice,” I said, looking down at it for the first time since before the attack.

 

Jolee noted dryly, “I gathered that. You really have to stop dressing up in evening gowns when you go heal.”

 

I wrinkled my nose to make a face at him for that quip.

 

Ilan’an brought some scrubs for me. “Please, take these. You need something dry until you can get back to your quarters.”

 

I made a move to let go of Talin’s hand to go change when he abruptly gripped mine tightly. “Please, don’t go,” he pleaded. “I don’t want to be alone right now.”

 

Looking down at him, I saw the vulnerability in his exhausted face and felt his fear at coming too close to death. I smiled, gently squeezing his hand back.

“We won’t leave you alone. I’ll be right back, I promise. Jolee will stay with you while I change,” I reassured him.

 

Talin let go reluctantly. I changed and returned quickly.

 

“I think he’s asleep,” Jolee said quietly, nodding towards Talin. “Elin’ad is going to take me back to our suite so that I can clean up and change. I can’t stand smelling like bantha schutta. Then I’m going to have a little chat with Kiol’ad and Elin’ad. They need to know about Dycen’a training as a dark Jedi. I shouldn’t be too long. Call me on the comlink if something happens.”

He turned and left with the Triad leaders.

 

“Well, now we’ve got all that glass,” Tarm’ad said, satisfied at the work.

 

They spread an anti-infective over his back and then covered it with a large dressing. Talin woke up from the cold of the medication.

 

“They’re done now, Talin,” I said.

 

He nodded in relief, but he reached for my hand for reassurance anyway.

 

“You’re going to be just fine. I’ll stay with you as long as you need.” I said, giving his hand a slight squeeze.

 

He finally relaxed completely and fell into a deep sleep, breathing evenly. I sat down in a chair next to his bed to keep a vigil.

 

* * *

 

“Jae, wake up,” Jolee said in a subdued voice. “You neck is going to get stuck like that.”

 

His eyes still managed to crinkle in amusement, though the fatigue remained from all the healing and fighting he had done earlier.

 

Rubbing the gritty feeling from my eyes, I lifted my head up from the top of the chair. Apparently, I had been in that position for quite some time, because my neck was nearly fused from stiffness. I rotated my head a bit to loosen up the muscles, and remembering where I was, looked immediately over at Talin’s bed to assess his condition.

 

Jolee followed my eyes over to him. “He’s improving quite a bit. Looks like all his vital signs have stabilized in the normal ranges. He’s sure got a death grip on your hand, though.”

 

“He was scared. I guess he felt he needed to hold onto something familiar.”

 

Jolee patted my shoulder a couple times. “You’re a good lass. Sometimes it’s the simplest gestures that mean the most to our friends. It reminds me of Nayama’s cocoa chip cookies. Which reminds me of food, which you haven’t had in awhile.”

 

I looked over at Talin, who was in a deep sleep, recovering nicely. My stomach gave me away by growling loudly. “I suppose I could eat a little something and nap while he’s asleep.”

 

“Of course you can eat and sleep,” Jolee snorted, “because I’m going to sit here by Talin and make you rest. Heh, you know, this Jedi master thing grows on me. It’s kind of fun ordering around you young people.”

 

I could only manage a tired smile at his wit. I relinquished my chair and sat down at the little table where he’d left a small dinner tray.

 

He said, “Nayama used to take the finest Ithorian cocoa chips—best in the galaxy, maybe the universe—and make these cookies. They were the finest smelling cookies, but they tasted just awful.” He scrunched up his face in distaste. “In fact, she was a terrible cook. Somehow, she managed to burn or ruin just about any dish she touched. I had to learn how to cook in self-defense or I would have starved. She loved those cookies, however, so I always ate a couple and encouraged her to make more.”

 

“If you didn’t like them, why did you want her to make more?”

 

“Because every time she made them, she’d bring me a plate and put a little kiss right here on my head,” he said, pointing to the center of his forehead. “She never did that with any other dish she made. I would have eaten a bucket of bolts to get that little forehead kiss. It was a tiny thing, but it meant a lot to me. It was one of the ways she showed me she loved me. I bet you’ve had some little thing like that that meant a lot to you.”

 

“Roben and I had this little hand signal we’d give each other to say ‘I love you’. We weren’t always able to speak to each other in the Court if we were busy with our particular duties, but we could make our little sign to each other subtly enough that it wasn’t noticeable to anyone else. And my housemother, Telma, had this little couch in her office where could sit. If we had a bad day, she’d come sit down on that couch next to us, put her arm around us, and give a little motherly squeeze. It didn’t matter how bad the situation was, that little hug somehow seemed to make everything all right.”

 

“Heh, Telma sounds like a fine woman.”

 

Talin gave out a short sigh. Both Jolee and I looked over towards him. I scanned the monitors quickly for any abnormal readings and was relieved when they continued to remain normal. When I looked back at him again, his eyes were open slightly and he appeared to be in no distress. His lips turned up slightly, which was as much energy as he could muster for a smile.

 

His voice was barely above a whisper as he asked, “Do you people ever stop talking long enough for a guy to sleep?”

[Diego Varen]

As I ate, he related his little cookie story. “Nayama used to take the finest Ithorian cocoa chips—best in the galaxy, maybe the universe—and make these cookies. They were the finest smelling cookies, but they tasted just awful.” He scrunched up his face in distaste. “In fact, she was a terrible cook. Somehow she managed to burn or ruin just about any dish she touched. I had to learn how to cook in self-defense, or I would have starved. She loved those cookies, however, so I always ate a couple, and encouraged her to make more.”

 

I liked what Jolee said there. Perfect comedy. I didn't know if Talin would survive, but with Jae and her healing powers, he'll be fine. Another good Chapter.

[Jae Onasi]

Man, are you fast on the keyboard. I posted it I think 8 minutes prior to your post.

 

Thanks. Jolee's quips are fun to do.

[JediMaster12]

Yes your Jolee dialogues are as always funny Jae. It was a Bindo moment with Jolee explaining about life. Reminds me of his lecture on love *sigh* the memories

Nice turn of events Jae with Talin. I hope this calls for something more in the future?

[Hallucination]

And here I was hoping Talin would die...

Yet another Jae-tastic chapter, keep it up!

P.S. Were you hungry when you wrote this?

[Hallucination]

And here I was hoping Talin would die...

Yet another Jae-tastic chapter, keep it up!

P.S. Were you hungry when you wrote this?

[Jae Onasi]

And here I was hoping Talin would die...

Yet another Jae-tastic chapter, keep it up!

P.S. Were you hungry when you wrote this?

 

That's OK, Jae will keep Talin in line when he decides to get a little uppity. Besides, near-death experiences have a strange way of altering one's life.

 

I wasn't hungry, but Jae was.

 

 

@JM12--I won't disappoint you.

[Char Ell]

I wonder how long Talin will be bed-ridden? This could give Jae and Jolee an opportunity to check out things on their own.

[Renegade Puma]

Great chapter Jae. Geez I can only say that so many times and I think I am at my limit. Maybe you should give all the rest of our fics a break and write a sub-par chapter? Eh? Yeah didn't think so. Keep up the great work. I can't wait for the Jalin relationship to blossom.

[Jae Onasi]

Great chapter Jae. Geez I can only say that so many times and I think I am at my limit. Maybe you should give all the rest of our fics a break and write a sub-par chapter? Eh? Yeah didn't think so. Keep up the great work. I can't wait for the Jalin relationship to blossom.

 

I am constitutionally unable to do anything half-way. As a personality trait it's both a blessing and a curse. It's extremely difficult for me to say "OK, that's not perfect, but it's 'perfect enough'."

 

@cutmeister--I hadn't thought about keeping Talin in recovery mode to let the other 2 go out alone, but that's an interesting possibility. I have the overall outline (along with a page of Jolee quips and little snips of stories I want him to tell) and I try to fit each chapter into that outline to keep it moving in the right direction. However, the chapters themselves are pretty fluid during creation.

[JediMaster12]

Yeah and that is why the chapters are so good. I'll be waiting for the next chapter . Patience is my virtue

[Renegade Puma]

Everyone listen to me! Jae is a Dark Lord of the Sith! She is leading us all down the dark path with her excellent plot and her masterful story telling! Can't you see it? She has us all in a daze. I am fighting it hard but I can only snap out of this hypnosis every now and then for a minute or so. So I am writing this to you in hopes of breaking us all free one day. Uh oh.... here it comes again..... AGhh!!!! Must go back to reading.... Jae's..... story..... *Transmission ends*

[Diego Varen]

Everyone listen to me! Jae is a Dark Lord of the Sith! She is leading us all down the dark path with her excellent plot and her masterful story telling! Can't you see it? She has us all in a daze. I am fighting it hard but I can only snap out of this hypnosis every now and then for a minute or so. So I am writing this to you in hopes of breaking us all free one day. Uh oh.... here it comes again..... AGhh!!!! Must go back to reading.... Jae's..... story..... *Transmission ends*

 

I think we all want the next Chapter. ASAP for Renegade.

[Jae Onasi]

You guys are too funny. I will try to get something put up very soon.

 

(Jae goes back to living room to go rummage around in the laundry basket where she last saw that Sith mask....)

[Jae Onasi]

Chapter 16: The Story of Reeca

 

“Feeling any better, lad?” Jolee asked.

“Still rotten, but better,” Talin breathed quietly.

 

“‘Better’ is better, we’ll take it,” Jolee replied. “You should be up and back to normal in a few days.”

 

“Wish I could believe that,” Talin said, eyes closing slowly.

 

Jolee chuckled slightly, “When you’re planting flowers, it’s hardest to imagine their beauty when you’re up to your eyeballs in the poo-doo fertilizer.”

 

Talin just shook his head slightly and sighed.

 

“That’s very…picturesque,” I noted, lifting an eyebrow in irony. A yawn escaped before I could stop it, and Jolee looked me over with a critical eye.

 

“Talin, I’m sending Jae back to our suite, and I’ll stay here.”

 

I protested, “Jolee, I need to be here in case--”

 

“No, you need to go rest. The masters who are strongest in the Force don’t have unlimited healing power, and neither do you. We all have to sleep sometime. The only one who I’m convinced doesn’t sleep is Vrook, and look how crabby it makes him. There’s a Li’adan outside who will take you back to your room." When I made no move towards the door, he added, “They now also have these amazing new-fangled devices we call comlinks,” Jolee said dryly, displaying his. “It’s a novel concept. We can talk to each other at any time if we have an emergency. What will they think of next?” Jolee said with an acidic drawl, though he tempered it just a bit with a smile.

 

“Go. Sleep.” Talin made a weak dismissal motion with a bandaged hand.

 

I crossed my arms and stated, “Fine. But I’m going to come back as soon as I get a short rest.”

 

“You must be really tired,” Jolee said. “You sound like a two year old. All you need to do now is stomp one of your feet. Get going.” He made a circling motion for me to turn and then pointed at the door.

 

I sighed, turned, and made sure not to stomp on my way out.

 

 

***

 

The dream tendrilled like one of the poison vines of Dxun, trying to strangle any good around it….

The Sith Lord laughed loudly, watching my attempts to block his lightsaber blows, a look of haughty disdain darkening his face. Jolee was there, lying on the ground, struck down in battle. Talin, lying on the ground next to him, twisted by the horrible plague of blisters. Those same blisters covered my hands, but I couldn’t stop fighting. I had to save my friends. I watched in horror as the Sith Lord raised his lightsaber to bring it crashing down on my head, realizing my block would never reach up in time to protect me from being killed…

 

I woke up fully in a start, taking a moment to realize I was in my room in the suite, the dampness from the sweat trickling down my neck and making me cold. I had only slept a few hours, but the dream made my heart race, and I knew it would be a while before I could get back to sleep. I found some caffa in the galley and picked up the holocron from the pile of Jolee’s datapads of notes. Turning it over in my hands in study, I thought about the dream and the masters’ mantra, ‘the future is always in motion’. Maybe studying the holocron could make a difference. Sitting down on a sofa, I started the meditation.

 

***

The shift in the air and the light weight draping over me woke me up. Jolee had come back to the suite, and had covered me up with a blanket.

“Well, I was trying not to wake you up,” he said.

 

“Talin’s OK?”

 

“Sleeping like a baby. He’ll be that way for a while—his body is starting to heal itself now. Tarm’ad promised to call us if he woke up. I came back to get some shut-eye before I fell asleep walking. I was surprised to see you out here, though. I didn’t know you’d taken to sleeping on the sofa with holocrons and caffa. No wonder you’re having strange dreams lately.”

 

Brushing the hair out of my eyes, I said, “I wasn’t trying to sleep, I was trying to meditate.” I pointed at the holocron.

 

Jolee sat down across from me. “Using the Force at full bore is pretty exhausting. It takes a lot of energy to channel that much power. Sometimes, there’s just no substitute for real sleep, and your body lets you know that by checking out for a while. Even masters don’t meditate forever. So why were you out here trying to study the holocron when I told you to rest, hmm?” He tried unsuccessfully to put a strict look on his face—the frown was there but the eyes contradicted it.

 

“It was that nightmare vision again. You’re down, Talin is lying on the ground with Scourge, and I’m battling the Sith Lord and can’t get my lightsaber up in time to make the block. It woke me up and I couldn’t get back to sleep right away. I thought if I came out and studied this holocron some more, I might be able to change something or at least stop the dream.”

 

He rested back in his chair and considered the situation for a few moments, rubbing his chin. “I don’t think you’ll be able to stop the dream. The Force is funny like that. Once it gives someone a vision, it usually doesn’t make it go away until it’s completed.”

 

“Oh, wonderful,” I said, too tired to stop the sarcasm. “I can’t wait for more sleepless nights.”

 

“No one ever promised you lots of beauty sleep when you’re a Jedi, you know,” he grinned. “Still, the future is pretty fluid. Just because you see it one way in a vision doesn’t mean it will be that way. You never know what might change it. Studying the holocron may not do anything, and then again, it might just be the thing that saves everyone. I’d rather bet on it helping, and the knowledge is never wasted. And since we seem to be in a lightsaber battle, we’ll make sure we study solid technique. It’s always good to be prepared for these things. You know, this reminds me of this lass, Reeca. It’s a good story, but I need some tea first before I tell it. Doesn’t matter what planet I’m on, damn infirmary air is always dry.”

 

He went to the galley, and came out with two cups of hot tea, handing one to me. I sat up to sip the fragrant drink, watching the steam making lazy swirls upwards.

 

“Alderaan grey tea. Supposedly helps people to relax,” he said, sitting down with his cup. He continued, “Reeca and I were made Padawans about the same time. Fine girl. Brilliant scholar. Always had her nose stuck in holocrons. Last I heard, she was one of the master archivists in the Jedi library on Coruscant. Anyway, she kept having this vision that she was falling off a cliff or something, landing face up on a ledge 100 feet below and dying. She did everything she could to avoid high places after that. Finally, her master made her go on a hike in the mountains with him. He took a couple of us Padawans along for exercise and herb training or something like that. ‘You can’t run away from destiny’, he told her. If it was going to happen, the Force would make it happen. If not, at least she’d get over trying to escape her destiny all the time.”

 

“I take it she didn’t fall off any cliffs during that trip, then?”

 

“No, Reeca did fall off a cliff—it really was her destiny that she saw in her dream. The future didn’t change that much from the vision. We were walking on a narrow path, and I was leading. I stopped short to keep from stepping on a snake. She kept going, ran into me, and lost her balance. I tried to grab her to keep from falling, but I couldn’t catch her in time. She fell off the side of the cliff and landed on a ledge about 100 feet below, just like in her vision.”

 

“How did she survive, then?”

 

“Well, she put in extra study on levitation techniques. Probably studied till her eyeballs fell out, knowing her. All of us used our levitation skills to stop her fall, but she really didn’t need it. She’d managed to stop her fall pretty well by herself, and she just floated above the ledge for a few moments catching her breath. Once she got up and realized she was still with us in the land of the living, she pulled out one of those monofilament lines and made her way down the rest of the cliff. She beat us to the campsite and was sitting in front of a nice little fire by the time the rest of us made it back. I’ll say one thing for her, she was definitely prepared. She didn’t even have a scratch. Her master made a point that night to discuss teamwork, how fluid visions can be, and the value of study. I’m not quite sure why he kept looking at me every time he mentioned the word ‘study’. I didn’t skip that many of his classes.”

 

“I doubt that there’s any super-secret Force power to protect us from a Sith Lord, though.”

 

“Ha! That’s a good one. No, I don’t know of any anti-Sith powers, or I’d be using them myself. That doesn’t mean we can’t try to come up with a couple different strategies that will stop this guy in his tracks.”

 

The tea must have been working, because I could no longer suppress the yawning.

 

“Hey, my stories aren’t that boring, you know,” Jolee said.

 

“I think it’s the tea. You must have spiked it with something to put me to sleep.”

 

“Now would I do anything sneaky like that?”

 

I grinned back at him without a response and headed to my room.

 

“I’ll wake you up if anything changes,” he promised.

 

* * *

 

Much later that day, I found Jolee in the galley sipping caffa and studying the holocron.

 

“Why did you let me sleep so long?” I asked.

 

“Maybe because you needed it?” he retorted, lifting his eyes to me.

 

I shot him a dark look. “We need to go see if Talin’s OK. I should have been up hours ago to check his condition.”

 

“Tarm’ad called me a couple times with reports. He’s doing fine, and he’s still asleep. I didn’t see any point in waking you so you could watch him snore. However, I know you won’t be satisfied until you see your patient for yourself, so let’s go.”

 

We arrived quickly at the infirmary, and Jolee and I walked over to Talin’s room. I was relieved to notice that he was starting to wake up, and all the monitors showed normal or near-normal values.

 

“Hey, how are you feeling now?” I smiled down at him.

 

“Do you know how many times I’ve had to answer that question today?” he asked, his face scrunching up in an irritable look.

 

Jolee chuckled a bit. “Well, if you have enough energy to be grumpy, you must be doing better.”

 

Talin snorted. “Yes, I feel better. I still feel rotten, but it’s better than yesterday when all I could do was lie here like a beached jellyfish, while everyone did everything for me. And to me. Have I mentioned how much I hate doctors and hospitals?”

 

“We’ll try not to take it personally,” Jolee replied dryly, giving Talin’s arm a very gentle pat of reassurance.

 

“Roll over on your stomach so I can check your back, please,” I said. Talin complied. I gently removed the dressings.

 

“That tickles,” he protested.

 

“Healing skin is very sensitive, and I’m trying to use a light touch so it doesn’t hurt,” I noted clinically, looking over all the many cuts and bruises that were starting to heal. “Well, with the combination of Tarm’ad’s treatment and my long rest, I think I have plenty of Force energy to heal this very quickly,” I said, looking pointedly at Jolee.

 

Jolee beamed at his success.

 

Talin looked over at Jolee and asked, “How long?” His sharp ears had caught the slight emphasis on ‘long’.

 

“About 14 hours.”

 

“Good. You needed it. I suppose I’ll allow you to heal, then,” Talin decided.

 

“Imperious today, aren’t we?” Jolee drawled.

 

Shaking my head while smiling at that, I ordered, “Hush now, all of you. I need to concentrate.” Focusing on his back and using the Force, I saw each cut and bruise heal.

 

Talin shifted his shoulders a bit after I finished, testing for sore spots, and then turned over, sighing. “Ah, it feels good to lie on my back. Much better. Thanks.”

 

Jolee rechecked all the other injuries to make sure healing was complete. “You and the doctors did a good job, Jae. Talin, I think you’ll be out of here in a couple days.”

 

“I don’t plan on being here that long.”

 

“Now, Talin….” I said, raising an eyebrow.

 

Elin’ad entered the infirmary in brisk strides. They stayed a respectful distance outside Talin’s bay until he saw them and waved them in. “You’re making amazing progress,” they said, smiling wide with pleasure.

 

“I’m feeling much better today. Thank you,” he replied, managing some cheerfulness.

 

“Master Bindo, we’d like a moment with you, if you don’t mind,” Elin’ad said.

They left the room, though we could still hear the conversation.

 

“Certainly. Is there something I can help you with?” Jolee asked, cordially.

 

“It is a matter that requires urgent attention. We’ve found Dycen’a.”

 

“Where is he?”

 

“He just broke through the planet’s shields in a small scout ship. Your ship is the only one fast enough to stop him before he can jump to hyperspace. We’d like to request your assistance in catching him.”

 

Talin heard the request and looked over at me. “I need to get up and help.” He struggled to sit up.

 

“You need to rest.”

 

“I am not staying another night in any infirmary.”

 

“Talin, no--” I tried to stop him from getting up, knowing what would happen when he got out of bed too fast. Never underestimate Jedi speed. Or determination, I reminded myself.

 

“Oh, blast it,” Talin said through teeth grit in frustration.

 

Tarm’ad and I each grabbed an arm when his legs refused to hold him up after he stood, and Jolee rushed back in to help. Some of the monitors started flashing warnings as Talin’s vital signs fell precipitously from his efforts to get up too quickly. His face went white as he nearly lost consciousness. We immediately got him back to bed, and I concentrated in the Force while Tarm’ad injected medication to stabilize him. I tried not to fidget as I waited for the vitals to stabilize and breathed out in relief when they started to climb. A few minutes later, the glassy look left his eyes as he became more alert.

 

“Jedi or no, it takes time to heal from injuries as severe as yours. You have to stay in bed until you’ve recovered,” I urged him.

 

He scowled. “Stop looking at me so concerned.” He thought for a moment, and the frown disappeared as he looked at me again. “I’m not going anywhere, I promise. I just hate being incapacitated, and I hate not being able to help you.” His shaky voice told me the bravado was merely a cover.

 

Jolee locked eyes with Talin. “I don’t appreciate a scare like that because you have some kind of inferiority complex about accepting help. You’re not going to be able to help us if you’re collapsed on the floor. Next time you try to do anything that these four don’t approve, I’ll have you shipped back to Coruscant in a med pod for the masters to heal you there. Is there anything unclear about this?” He kept a bland tone, but the look on his face was as severe as I had ever seen.

 

“None whatsoever,” Talin sighed, defeated. He laid his head back and closed his eyes, lips tight in frustration, knowing there was nothing he could do to help.

 

“I’m glad we’ve got that straight, then. Jae, I’m going to see what else Elin’ad has to say about catching our favorite Sith apprentice. We’ll leave as soon as possible.”

[Diego Varen]

"Hey, my stories aren’t that boring, you know"

 

That should be Jolee's quote. Good as always. I wonder who this Sith is. I hope all will be revealed in the next 2-3 Chapters.

[Char Ell]

^^^

Speaking for myself, I hope all will be revealed in due course, however many chapters that takes.

 

***gleefully rubs hands together***

So it's Jolee and Jae, off to chase down the nefarious Dycen'a, eh? I eagerly await the next installment of this story to see how this plays out.

 

I also liked how you had Jolee use one of his stories to illustrate for Jae how force visions/dreams don't lock her onto future paths. One can still do something to control one's own destiny. That part of the chapter really resonated with me.

[JediMaster12]

Sweet another chapter done and soooo addicting

Great job Jae. Talin sounds like any tough guy trying not to be a wussy. I like Jolee's being the leader and ordering people around especially Talin. I also liked the story Jolee tells of visions. Reminds me of Andor and Kraat and the whole destiny thing. Yep definitely a Bindo moment

[Jae Onasi]

^

If Yoda could tell Luke the future was always in motion, I figured Jolee could do that, too.

 

@Pottsie--one of my (many) favorite lines in "The Incredibles" (which is one of the few movies outside of the SW series that I've seen more than once in theaters) is when Mr. Incredible tells the kids, "We'll get there when we get there."

Of course, I liked _everything_ that E had to say, especially when she's showing off the new super-suits to Elastigirl. "Virtually indestructible--" (as missiles and fire are shot at Elastigirl's new Super-suit, E watches with a sick glee as everything blows up) "--yet breathes like Egyptian cotton." That is so my sense of humor.

 

I wasn't happy with Ch. 15. The emergency scene was a little too tame and blah, and after debating whether to add a bunch of potentially confusing med terms but also add more excitement, I decided to go for it. I reworked it quite a bit, and it's definitely longer but more detailed. Hopefully it captures more of the urgency that happens during a trauma.

The show ER is quite accurate in portrayals of emergencies, btw, except for the annoying spinning camera thing that starts to make my head hurt after a while. Makes me want to reach out for the camera man and say 'Hold still, for heaven's sake!'

[JediMaster12]

I haven't watched ER since Carter left so I am not up to date. After for years watching it, it kind of fell by the wayside. New favorite is CSI. Still I think you do a terrific job Jae.

[Jae Onasi]

^

I was done with ER once Mark Green left. When they started really getting away from their original mission of showing life in an ER (which they did really well the first couple of seasons) and started being overly obvious about pushing political agendas, I lost interest.

Oh yeah, CSI is one of my favs, along with Without a Trace and lately, Criminal Minds (I adore Mandy Patinkin--we've seen him twice in concert. Great performer!). I also watch Dog the Bounty Hunter just because it's so darn quirky. Jimbo just shakes his head in wonder at that one.

 

I'm off to go write the next chap.

[Jae Onasi]

This is an updated version of Ch. 17. Thanks for the beta, Jiara.

 

—————————————-

 

Chapter 17: The Capture

 

I turned back to look at Talin, whose lips were set in disappointment. “Jolee and I are going to head out in a couple minutes. Do you need anything?”

 

“No.”

 

“You’ll be in good hands here. Tarm’ad has excellent medical skills,” I tried to reassure him.

 

“I know. I’ve watched them at work,” he said quietly, looking away.

 

“I know you want to go, and it’ll be good to have you back when you’re healed. We made a pretty decent team against all those Sith fighters.”

 

Talin blinked and focused, then looked at me. “I don’t think you’re going to end up in any kind of duel with Dycen’a being out in space, but, please, you have to listen to me on this in case you do.”

 

“I’m listening. I’ve learned to have a healthy respect for your lightsaber skills.”

 

“Dycen’a is very predictable in his fighting style. He’s still new to lightsaber dueling. Even though he uses the dark side to enhance his power, it doesn’t make up for his inexperience. He almost always does flurries, and he uses a lot of the same moves. It didn’t take me long to figure out the forms he uses because they’re so simple.” His agile hands traced the patterns in the air, highlighting the best attacks and countermoves.

 

I watched intently, determined to memorize every scrap of information. “I’ll make sure to tell Jolee.”

 

“Mind your stances, too. Stay with the basics—dramatic spins are for holovids. Remember to watch his eyes.”

 

His urgency surprised me. I laid a hand on his arm to calm him. “Talin, you’ll be fine. We shouldn’t be gone long, and I promise we won’t leave you here.”

 

“It’s not me I’m worried about. I want you to come back safe.” He held my gaze as he laid his hand on top of mine. The warmth spread from him and flowed through me. No, not again, not those feelings. ‘There is no emotion…’ Jedi training is supposed to stop this—Jolee can’t be right! I can’t risk that heart-splitting pain again when I lose someone…him….

 

Jolee’s knock on the door caught our attention. Talin held on to my hand a moment longer, reassuring me with that warmth.

 

“Ready?” Jolee asked evenly.

 

“Talin was telling me about Dycen’a’s fighting style.”

 

“Yes, I can see that,” he replied, desert-dry.

 

I couldn’t stop the flush from spreading across my cheeks, and I turned quickly to Talin. I shook my finger in a feeble attempt to appear stern and in control. “You behave while we’re gone. I’m going to ask Tarm’ad about everything when we get back.”

 

“Go. Catch him and come back safe. May the Force be with you both.”

 

* * *

 

The Accipiter streaked away from the planet as we raced to catch Dycen’a.

 

Jolee settled into the pilot’s chair after scanning the instruments. “Here’s the plan, Jae. We want him alive and his ship’s too small to board. We’ll have to disable it and force him to land.”

 

“He doesn’t strike me as the surrendering type.”

 

“No, he’s not. We’ll probably have to fight him if he comes down uninjured.”

 

“Talin gave me some pointers about his dueling style just before we left.”

 

“Don’t know about you, but I don’t recall any styles that involved holding hands with your enemy.”

 

“Jolee!” I sputtered, heat flushing my face as he grinned. “It’s probably caregiver syndrome. Patients sometimes get infatuated with people who save them. I’m sure it’ll go away when he’s better.”

 

“What’s your excuse then?”

 

“Very funny. He was depressed about not being able to go with us. I just thought he needed a friend then.” Jolee looked at me dubiously, cocking an eyebrow. I crossed my arms over my chest. “Why would I encourage that? The man drives me absolutely crazy with his overbearing attitude.”

 

“Sure. Remind me to play pazaak with you more often. I’ll make a million credits watching your face give away all your secrets.”

 

“I’m trying to be serious!”

 

“Look, I don’t know what happened when you had to go bring him back from death’s door, but you gave him a reason to come back. I felt the shift in both of you. Something might happen, something might not, but as long as you both are happy, I’m fine with however it works out. What I do know is that denial is bad, especially for a Jedi. You may as well put a blinking sign above your head that says ‘Jedi lying to herself here.’”

 

I sat back and closed my eyes. The images of the last few days raced across my vision as I considered what he said. “I don’t know what to think. I’m still trying to sort everything out. So much has happened just in the last two days. I can’t even begin to understand how he can drive me up a wall with his arrogance and yet attract me all at the same time. I never expected to have any feelings like that after Roben. With the Order’s rules on attachments, I hoped that I wouldn’t ever have to deal with it again.”

 

“Now that’s an honest answer. All I can tell you is that the Order isn’t an escape hatch from life. If you try to run away instead of really living it, you’re going to miss out on so much. Besides, the attraction thing doesn’t have to make sense. Sometimes it just happens. I fell in love with the woman who shot down my ship. Does that make any sense? Of course, she was gorgeous and had fire in her spirit…but I digress. Things sort themselves out with time.” He tapped another button on the control panel and adjusted our course. “Now, tell me what he said about those fighting styles. My mouth is getting dry from all this lecturing.”

 

Jolee sat back in his chair as I explained, occasionally nodding or asking me a question to clarify a point. “That boy’s good. He caught a couple things I missed. Let’s hope we don’t have to put it to use.”

 

The proximity alarm beeped as Dycen’a’s ship appeared on our screen. We received silence to our hails to turn around and land. Jolee maneuvered our ship behind him, flying in fast.

 

“Don’t hit anything critical like the cockpit. We want him to land in mostly one piece,” Jolee ordered.

 

“Got it. He’s firing!”

 

Jolee rolled our ship, dodging the blaster fire. I locked in on the engines and shot several rounds. The first round hit the shields. They glowed brightly for a few moments, and then died out. The next rounds hit the ship.

 

“One of his engines is flaming out,” I said.

 

“Well, now he doesn’t have a choice about landing. Track him.”

 

Dycen’a’s ship turned back towards the planet. Li’adan fighters scrambled as we both entered the atmosphere.

 

“Li’adan control, call your people off. We need Dycen’a alive,” I called.

 

“We’re ordered to fire,” Control replied.

 

“Son, that boy’s ship is already flaming out. Just follow him down with us. Unless you feel like explaining yourself to Kiol’ad, who wants him alive if possible.” Jolee keyed off the comm and grinned at me. “Always feel free to take high officials’ names in vain when dealing with the military.”

 

After a long pause, the comm crackled loudly with a terse reply. “Kiol’ad has ordered us to leave him to you. However, we will shoot him down if he deviates towards the city.”

 

“Understood. Out,” Jolee replied. He keyed off the comm. “Like he has control over his fighter right now.”

 

The fighters moved into an escort formation, and we maintained our pursuit. Dycen’a’s ship glowed as it hurtled through the atmosphere, then leveled out. The top exploded off. Jolee pulled up sharply to avoid the debris.

 

“His ship’s breaking apart!”

 

“No, he’s ejecting, that damn fool. There’s hardly anything to breathe this high up. Stay on his signature. I’ll circle around.”

 

Dycen’a was a miniscule blip on the sensor as Jolee turned to follow him. What was left of Dycen’a’s ship broke apart into large chunks that fell in a rain of fire. Dycen’a’s speck on the monitor disappeared. I scrolled through the different sensors, trying to pick up his signal again. “I lost him, Jolee.”

 

“It’s the heat and debris. Confuses some of the instruments. They can’t tell us everything, anyway. You have to trust your senses, too.”

 

Jolee landed near the spot we felt Dycen’a was most likely to land. Once on the ground, he surveyed the terrain. “Hmm, forest and fields. If I were a smart Sith, I’d probably hide in the woods somewhere. All the animal activity makes it easier to cloak his signature.”

 

“Who said he was smart?”

 

“Well, you’re learning to be sassy now, aren’t you? Never underestimate Sith. Just when you think you’ve got them figured out, they do something new and sneaky. Now, look around and see if we can find anything of his.”

 

We worked our way across the field, searching for bits of evidence to tell us where he landed.

 

“There’s a parachute over there.”

 

“Now we can find his trail.” Jolee slowly paced the area and stopped to finger a tall stem of grass.

 

“What is it?”

 

“A broken stalk and the start of some faint tracks.”

 

“I don’t see much of anything.”

 

“Look for the alterations in life force in the area. The damaged brush gives a subtly different Force signature. Helps if you’ve learned Wookiee tracking skills like I did. Saved my hind end in the Shadowlands more times than I care to count. Keep alert in the woods—you’ll probably feel the dark side presence before you see him, but not much before. Watch everything.”

 

We followed those faint tracks far into the forest. We approached a glade, the dark side energy chilling the air. Jolee stopped and cocked his head to listen. I sensed the fear in the animals that skittered away. My heart started to pound in anticipation, and I took a deep breath to suppress the adrenaline. I felt for his presence. He’s there, he’s moving…. Jolee’s lightsaber snapped on a moment before mine.

 

A breeze brushed across my face. Dycen’a swooped down, lightsaber lit. “Jolee!” I called, ducking a powerful slash.

 

Dycen’a’s orange saber blazed as it wheeled over my head. Then he drove his blade in hard. I caught his attack and slid my lightsaber down its length. I grazed his chest before he dodged to the side. He grunted with the pain, and his face darkened in fury. His blade blurred with his flurries and I fought to keep up with the rain of blows. When he slashed at my legs, I dropped my blade tip down. His whirling blade stopped but it shot right back at me. The heat burned through my tunic sleeve and singed my arm before I snapped my saber up to stop his attack. Dycen’a’s eyes lost focus for a moment. As I slashed, a wall of Force energy hit and I flew back. The impact with the tree knocked my breath out. Dycen’a jumped towards me. He raised his lightsaber high and chopped down.

 

Jolee’s saber caught his attack mid-swing. Their blades locked together, and I twisted out of the way. Dycen’a broke loose and attacked Jolee. Their blades crackled loudly with each blow. Jolee sped up his attacks as I joined him, pressing Dycen’a back. Our blades spun and then scissored on Dycen’a’s lightsaber. It flew out of his grasp. He stopped, holding up his hands. I turned off my lightsaber, breathing heavy.

 

“It’s over, Dycen’a. We don’t want to hurt you,” Jolee said.

 

“Come with us quietly,” I added, slipping into his mind to persuade him.

 

He repelled the attempt and glared at me. “I’m not going to live life Joined. You’ll kill me, or you’ll die trying.”

 

“Why do all the Sith say things like that?” Jolee sighed.

 

Dycen’a’s eyes narrowed and he smiled thinly. His Force energy flowed. I heard a loud crack and looked up. “Jolee, jump!” I leaped to the side as a large branch crashed down. The smaller branches raked across my back and arm.

 

Dycen’a leaped away. His lightsaber flew to his hand and he dashed off into the forest.

 

“Jolee?” I pushed aside leaves, searching frantically. I found him lying under part of the branch, eyes closed. “Oh, Force!”

 

One eye popped open, then the other. “I’m fine. Just a little stuck. Help me with this branch.”

 

I breathed out in relief. I helped untangle him and then pulled him up. “He ran off that way,” I pointed.

 

“Let’s go.”

 

We sprinted after Dycen’a and gained on him as he crashed through the forest. Then Dycen’a stopped short, arms circling wildly to stop his momentum. He had come up on a deep ravine. He turned to face us, igniting his lightsaber. Jolee and I stood side-by-side, our sabers snapping on again. Dycen’a stepped into an attack stance and started swinging wildly. His blade crashed against ours. My arms shook from the effort to drive back his blows. Jolee circled his blade in towards me, then snapped it back away. Dycen’a slashed sideways to block. Jolee abruptly whirled his blade back under in a feint. Dycen’a’s blade kept flying away, leaving his side exposed. Jolee and I struck him down, and he collapsed at our feet.

 

Jolee picked up his lightsaber as I kneeled down. “Life signs are still there, but really weak. There’s a lot of damage, too much for me to heal.”

 

Jolee put a stasis field around him. “It’s too much for both of us. He’s going to need Master healers. Let’s move. We’ll put him in the med pod and send him to Coruscant as soon as we can hit space. The Council will want to talk to him anyway if he survives.”

 

We double-timed back to the ship with the Li’adan. As we left the woods, I looked up. The sun was gone. Dark clouds filled the sky, lightning flashing.

 

“Sky looks bad,” I said.

 

“Let’s move it. I’ve already been through one storm. I don’t want to be in another.” We crossed the field and reached our ship quickly. Jolee started up the ship while I secured Dycen’a in the med pod and activated its stasis field.

 

“All set?” he asked when I rejoined him.

 

“The life signs are staying stable.”

 

“Good. Let’s get out of here before that storm hits us and does something nasty.”

 

I thought about what the storm would do to the wreckage. “Jolee, turn around. We have to go back.”

 

“It’s generally not a good idea to fly towards the danger, you know.”

 

“If that storm hits the ship debris, any evidence will be destroyed. We have to try to get the navcomputer and find out where he’s been.”

 

“I hate it when you young people are right. Look, you’ve got 5 minutes to find whatever you can, less if I have to call you back.”

 

Some of the remains were still smoking. I searched through the wreckage and found what was left of the cockpit. The winds started to howl, and the black clouds were lit up with non-stop lightning flashes. The sprinkles of rain turned to drenching sheets.

 

“Jae, we have to leave now. Sensor shows a tornado coming.”

 

“I found the navcomputer!”

 

“Leave it! We won’t be able to fly out of this if we don’t leave now!”

 

“I just about have it!” The instrument was stuck. I pulled out my lightsaber and severed it from the wreckage.

 

“Get on the damn ship, Jae!” Jolee ordered.

 

The booming thunder made it almost impossible to hear him. I crouched low against the wind and flying debris. A meter-wide piece of metal whirled through the air. I threw up a force field. It bounced off, just missing my head. Then the wind intensity dropped, and I realized the ship was blocking the gale. I ran up the ramp into the relative safety.

 

“About time you decided to listen to me and get back here,” Jolee groused, lifting the ship off the ground. “You look like a drowned tach.”

 

“Try Wookiee. Drowned tach doesn’t do it justice,” I said, trying to wipe away the rivulets of water pouring down my face.

 

“Punch in the coordinates for an orbit. We’re going to fly straight up to get out of this storm,” Jolee said, hanging on to the instruments with both hands.

 

The fierce winds rotated in small funnels around us. The ship bucked as Jolee tried to gain height. “Hang on. We’ll get out of this yet.”

 

Lightning lit the sky ahead of us. For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. “Oh, Force. Jolee, look. That can’t be what it looks like…”

 

Jolee uttered several expletives.

 

Bearing down on our ship was an enormous tornado.

[Diego Varen]

A good Chapter. The Sith has been revealed then. Can't wait for more.

[JediMaster12]

Nice little joke about pazaak. I'm sure Jae is a terrible player if she keeps blushing like that. Good chapter as always Jae and I enjoy reading your fic though I am still trying to figure out how I could have more views than replies on Broken Wounds Heal. My mind is split in two