It's Just A Little Thing

[Jae Onasi]

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Revan brushed the damp dark hair away from his face and pushed aside the ropy vines that seemed to find any way they could to block his progress through the jungle.

 

“I taste terrible,” he whispered for probably the thousandth time into the dull animal mind of one of the cannocks that turned to look at him. The toothy beast shook its stocky head and scrunched its face up as if it had just gotten a mouthful of the acidic Maaley berries that dotted the jungle in cheery yellow bunches. It sniffed the air and lumbered off in the opposite direction for better tasting fare.

 

The solitary Jedi picked his way silently through the lush greenery and rechecked his data pad. It had taken him months of combing records and talking to those local elders still alive from the Exar Kun’s era to find just the spot. Should be around here…. He scanned the area for the slightest height difference. The dense brush had completely overgrown the area in the forty-odd years since the war had touched the area. Revan closed his eyes, reaching out with the Force to feel for the disturbances. The battle deaths in this area called to him still, and he had to push those aside. Ah, there!

Revan pulled out a camp shovel from his pack and dug around. It made a chinking sound as it hit metal, and he knelt down to brush the rest of the soil away carefully from the rusted metal cylinder. He pulled it out of the ground and wiped some of the dirt. It’s hers, all right.

 

He heard a distinctive click. Another eight. Two more in the trees above him. Baragwin assault rifles, all of them. Revan decided against risking the chance of someone squeezing off a round from the overpowered energy weapons and slowly raised his hands. He stood up carefully and looked around. A squad of Mandalorians circled him in a careful formation designed to prevent escape without shooting each other should he bolt.

 

One of the soldiers, dressed in armor distinct from the others, strode into the center and looked him up and down. The others automatically pointed the rifles away from their leader. “You’re getting soft. We’ve been ready for you for the last three hours.”

 

Revan grinned. “Nice try, Canderous. Remind your tree lovers that it’s always better to check the branches they perch on to make sure they’re not rotten underneath. It would have been a long fall, not to mention quite a distraction to everyone else.”

 

Canderous muttered a Mando curse and quickly motioned to the young sniper in the tree. The soldier scrambled backwards on the branch to safety just as Revan called forth the mental energy to snap the branch at its weak point. The large branch thumped to the ground, forcing the troops on the ground back a couple steps to avoid getting hit.

 

"You get the win this round. Hope it makes you happy.”

 

“It’s the little things in life—like beating an elite Mandalorian squad.”

 

“You’re almost as funny as the old man. You’ll need to work on that.” Canderous nodded at the dirt-covered cylinder still in Revan’s hand. “Is that hers?”

 

“It is. She changed out some parts but his name is inscribed on the edge. I’m surprised she didn’t remove that.”

 

“Love does strange things to someone’s mind sometimes.”

 

Revan gave Canderous an evil grin. “That’s the only explanation I’ve ever had for Bastila and you.”

 

“You forget I only need a little lust to keep me happy. The little princess can learn fast when she wants to.”

 

The Jedi waggled his eyebrows a couple times and grinned even more widely. “I’ll be sure to tell her. She might want to alter the wedding date if that’s the case.”

 

“Tell her that and I’ll kill you myself. Let’s get back to the old man before he manages to talk everyone to death.”

 

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Jolee swallowed hard against the lump in his throat, but couldn’t keep the tears from glistening in his eyes. “Where’d you find it?” he asked as Revan handed him the cylinder he’d found.

 

“Where you last heard from her—the jungle moon.”

 

The dark-skinned, wizened Jedi turned over the old lightsaber in his hands. His thumb caressed the etched lettering on the edge of the cylinder. “She never took the inscription off,” he said, voice hoarse with emotion. “I figured after she tried to kill me with this she wouldn’t want to see ‘Jolee loves Nayama’ on it every day.”

 

“Maybe your wife still loved you but didn’t know how to come back to the light side. And you.”

 

Jolee nodded agreement. He closed his eyes, cradling the lightsaber lovingly up against his chest. “You have no idea how much having this means to me. Everything of hers was lost to me, and I thought that included her love.”

 

Revan smiled. “It’s just a little thing. I thought it might make you happy.”