Jedi Padawan Quest (Star Wars)

V: Educations


The strangest thing about the nightmare were the emotions. She could feel all of them, more palpably and clearly than the scene itself. The worry, the fear, the racing of hearts on one side, and nothing at all on the other, at least not at first. Eventually she felt it, though it didn't feel the same as the other emotions. Satisfaction and a cold, strange will that felt wrong.

A Twi'lek girl, perhaps a year older than her and lean and wiry, was running along a beach, the sky dark overhead. She was dressed in long pants and a sand-colored vest covered in pockets, her skin light brown. She looked scrappy, her eyes bright even as she ran, and behind her came dozens of droids. B1s, Nima realized later, for she spent a long time going over the dream.

Dreams became something different with reflection, when the mind runs over it again and again, teasing out every meaning.

She was headed somewhere, trying to dodge the laser blasts that were scorching the sand, leaving the ground steaming hot. And in the distance Nima could feel apprehension and fear, a group of people. Twenty people, exactly.

"Halt!" one of the droids said, uselessly.

"Company!" the girl yelled, almost grinning for a moment, her eyes getting even more bright as she slid under a set of laser blasts as the ambush got under way.

A group of Twi'leks with old blasters crawled out from behind a set of dunes and began to fire, somewhat clumsily, their aim not great but the time and the ambush allowing them to get the upper hand.

The girl kept on running until she was hit in the shoulder with a blaster bolt. She screamed and went down, trying to roll away, the sand underneath her so hot it burned her skin.

A few other Twi'leks fell, some of them limp and unmoving, but the panic in the air didn't quite overwhelm them. They didn't quite break, and after only a minute of firing and chaos and trying to dodge bolts, the droids were scrap.

"Oh, Mother!" The girl writhed, as she crawled away, one of the men coming to pick her up.

Coming from all of them was this desperation. They'd lost four members, others had been injured, and these were just B1s. The Twi'leks of this group just weren't warriors. There were of trading and fishing clans, forced into this by the death or retreat of the martial clans. They'd have to take what remained of the droids as possibly useful scrap, along with the wounded. They'd have to leave the dead.

The war, Nima realized, and the moment she thought that in her dream, her perspective seemed to almost slip upwards, until she could feel a vast reservoir of misery and panic, fear and death, spreading out across an entire world. Absent in some areas, but tight and powerful, like a punch to the gut, in others.

When she woke up, she found that her pillow was stained with tears.

*******

The dreams didn't stop, not really. Each one seemed to almost be a scene from the war, or a moment, some of them as small as a woman rocking her child to sleep and staring at a door, her longing to see her husband so powerful it seemed echo in Nima's emotions when she woke from the nightmare, filled with a strange longing she didn't understand. Filled with foreign thoughts, until she was able to shake it off. She was dreaming of a war foreign to everything the temple was.

Lessons continued, she kept on doing well in math and they moved onto talking about the diplomatic habits of Nemoidians in Master Lamaq's class, while Master Ark'in began to talk about the old Sith wars, so long ago that they were beyond the living memory even of Yoda.

Master Fy-Tor-Ana's classes started simple. The first two days they met, and they'd be meeting three times a week, they simply ran around a training ground, showed off how high they could leap, and otherwise demonstrated the basics of their education up to this point. Fy-Tor-Ana, a brown-haired human in her thirties, didn't even demonstrate her own physical prowess, just watching all of them and pacing around, providing small hints such as how to stretch.

She was biding her time, Nima now realized, for on the third day the class met in one training room, and then were immediately told to follow her.

It was quite a crowd. Besides Elize and Katarina, there was Giska chattering with all of the assembled Younglings. Almost forty of them were taking the class, a gathering that wasn't that surprising. Fy-Tor-Ana's classes were very popular, and there was no such thing as a full class roster.

Of course, Nima had been in her class once before, but it had been a few years, and so she could remember only snatches of what she'd learned. You learned how to fall, of course, and hit the ground without breaking anything, and there'd been a lot of running.

"This will be a simple test. That's what this is. You'll go through the obstacle course. As this is the first time some of you have been with me," Fy-Tor-Ana, with a smile, "I won't end the run if you get hit by one of the lasers. I've set them to no-power, but in future tests, if you're hit such that you'd die, that's it. I even have some limited-stun devices that can take parts of you out of action." She said it chipperly, amused by the groans from some of the students at how troublesome it'll be. "This time, being hit will just mean you're docked points. The goal is to get to the end as fast as possible, with as few mistakes as possible. Destroying anything important will lose you points, of course. It's taken a lot of work to make this obstacle course. If you destroy anything I'll be taking it out of your hide. There will be signs and painted signals to tell you where to go."

She gestured to a turbolift. "Your run will begin the moment you exit the turbolift, two floors down. Follow the signs and markers, and make sure to grab a lightsaber before you enter the first room, unless you're far better than I have any reason to think you'll be."

Elize raised her hand.

"Yes?" Master Fy-Tor-Ana asked.

"Who goes first?"

"Well, it seems like you, since you've volunteered. The winner gets bragging rights and good exercise, just so you know, Elize. You'll see the finish line when you reach it. This is a custom course, because I decided that the specialized rooms were too simple. The galaxy is very different, and more hostile than ever, so my lessons have evolved with that."

Eliza nodded and stepped onto the turbolift.

"Oh, and a hint! Losing points matters more than losing a second or two," she called to Elize as she was sent downwards.

"We'll give it thirty seconds," Master Fy-Tor-Ana said, with a shake of her head. "With so many of you, it'll take a little while, and you'll be in no fit shape after this. So anyone who has schoolwork to do, or feels like they're not up to it, you're allowed to leave this time. Just don't make a habit of it. If you miss more than two of these sessions, I'm going to start getting the feeling you don't like me."

One person left, that was it, muttering an excuse about some tutoring he'd been planning on doing. That left enough people that if Nima was going last, it'd be around a quarter hour before she could go. Still, she waited patiently, trying not to think too much of the dreams. If they were of what's true, of what happened, then what did that mean?

It was troubling, and Nima almost didn't notice when, about halfway through the list of students, Master Fy-Tor-Ana called out, "Nima Tyruti."

Nima strode over to the turbolift, wishing she'd stretched out her muscles a little more. But regrets and second-guessing slowed people down.She took a breath, and as soon as the lift stopped, she ran out. There was a barrel full of practice lightsabers off to the side, and she didn't even stop running to reach out with the Force and pull one up and towards her. She caught it easily, following the big white signs on the wall, running into a room on the left, keeping up the pace as she quickly climbed a ladder and surveyed, for just a moment, her obstacles.

It started simple, with balance beams. She kept up the fast pace, because if she walked it slowly she'd just waste time, so she ran on. The balance beam went across to the far wall of the room, and then there were a series of platforms that she'd have to jump, followed by what looked like another balance beam.

Halfway through the first balance beam, she almost fell, stopping for a moment to look down. Oh. That was devious. The balance beam, about a foot's width, had suddenly narrowed down to half that size.

She took a breath and tried to go a little slower this time, even though it meant that she'd lose some time. Then she leapt across the platforms, annoyed at herself. By losing momentum, the jumps were taking a lot longer then they would have if she'd kept on running. She'd already wasted a handful of seconds by the time she leapt onto the last balance beam. But falling would mean lost points, and so she slowed down and walked across it carefully to the door at the end. Opening it led to the same hallway as before, but with arrows pointing to a room to the right. In the entryway of the room, there was a beaked Hiskan initiate sitting down and panting, his feathers all ruffled. There was a tall wall in front of him, with enough of a curve that you could get a running start. So Nima didn't slow down, just ran and leapt…

Her fingers graced the edge of the wall's top, and then she fell down.

"You should give up," the other initiate panted, "It's… too tall."

Nima frowned for a moment, looking around to make sure that there wasn't something she was missing, a small handhold, or perhaps an angle to come where there might be more traction. But if there was, she couldn't see it, and stretching slightly to limber up she walked back until she had enough distance to ran and tried again. She was aware that she was probably not doing all that well, but other people had had problems too, hadn't they?

This time she grabbed it, thankful for the weight training she'd been doing as she hauled herself up and stumbled forward. At the top, there was just what seemed like a U-shaped concourse of steel catwalk, curving but fundamentally safe, the metal almost mirror-like. Of course it was a trap. She took off running, and managed to jump just in time as a section of it fell down from under her, as other parts of the steel framing were turning red, clearly representing advancing danger. Still, she kept ahead of it, and was just wondering what the next trick was when she figured it out.

This time a part of the floor shot up instead of down. She barely dodged out of the way, losing precious moments trying to make sure she didn't run into anything, hands gripped tight as she kept up her running, trying to make up for lost time. At the far end of the room was a short tunnel that seemed to drop down to go into another room.

This time she saw the trap coming, exhausted and annoyed as she ran through the tunnel, ducking over part of the wall that came up to hit her head, and leaping over another segment of it that pistoned out, her body twisting as she rolled into the next part of the test, rising and panting, her clothes ripped at one place from a near miss.

In the next room, there were ten robotic turrets in place, gleaming metal but with clunky blasters that whirred as it fired up in a way no blaster did, which only made it easier to know when it was going to fire. She drew her lightsaber, igniting it to a green glow and moving it in front of her as she ran for the far wall and the door there. Some of the bolts came very close, but they were slow and lazy, and she batted them out of the way. The only reason it was hard at all was because there were so many of them placed all around. It'd be easier to deflect them while walking than running, certainly, but she made it through intact.

By the time she reached the next room, she was already more exhausted than after a training session with Scout, Ahsoka, and her friends. But she tried to push through, because this is what she'd been training for, really.

In the next room, she stopped to pant for a moment, sweat dripping down her lekku as she stared at the next obstacle.

It was a smooth cylinder, a little like a log, only spinning so quickly that if she didn't go across at a sprint she'd be dumped down into the area below, which no doubt would be a huge deduction of points. So she tried to spend a moment figuring out how fast it was rotating to figure out how to run just right not to quite fall off. After all, if she lost points here, it wouldn't matter that she was going fast.

But in that free time, Katarin came up to her, the human's face serene and almost cold. It was a look of focus that gave Nima pause. Katarina was passing her up: even though she'd had a thirty second head start. Katarina began to run across the log, her every step no doubt guided by the Force, as Nima had to be as well.

So she concentrated, trying to all but drown in the Force. Suddenly she knew: she could do it. She was in Clan Squall, they were faster than any other Clan, or so it was said. And she could feel the Force around her. This was almost the last stretch, she knew it instinctually, her senses stretching out her. They made her more than just a person, they made her a Jedi. So she started sprinting.

Katarina was halfway through the obstacle, but Nima didn't need to wait. She just ran, faster than she had in a long time, her lungs burning as she leapt right over Katarina, landing at the same time as Katarina almost caught up to her. Then she was running ahead, down a ramp, eyes glancing at a sign once and knowing it instantly.

A glance at a sign, not even slowing down, told her that the last obstacles were invisible. They were lines of tape in a hallway that were to be treated like platforms: or a balance beam. The other students were at the end of the hall, gathered around a large sign that read 'Finish.' She just had to make it to them.

Nima didn't slow down. It was a long hall, and normally her lungs would be screaming by this point, after constant activity. But she didn't even notice it as she leapt from 'platform' to platform, and then ran along a tape 'balance beam' not slowing down. In fact, she only picked up speed, all but flying across the finish line seconds ahead of Katarina.

It didn't matter that Katarina had actually beaten her, when she skidded to a stop and turned, the people were gaping at her.

Whew. That was… very difficult.

*****

In the end she got sixth, behind Katarina, Elize, Gisky, this human initiate named Whie Malreaux, and Zig Nal.

Her legs were burning and when she went to sleep, for the first time in well over a week, she didn't have any Nightmares at all.

It was what they called a good start.

The next time she ran a rather different course, she didn't do as well. But she didn't do terribly. And she was just going to keep on getting better. Hopefully as fast as the runs were getting harder.

She was getting better at lightsaber practice, too, though she still had a lot to learn.Her grip was improving, at least, though she still felt as if the Form she was using might not be the right one for her. Of course, some of that was the fact that Ahsoka was pressing her pretty strongly on that topic. And Aydan seemed calmer, though a little tense. Yoda seemed to have gotten to him, at least for the moment.

Meanwhile, in Force training classes, they'd moved onto trying to lift and manipulate crates. It was heavy, and a lot harder than she was used to, but she tried to keep it up. Because it was something that could be very important. Being able to throw around a crate like that with fine control meant it could be a weapon, bent to her will.

She'd heard rumors that Yoda could lift entire spaceships, and she believed them. But she wasn't Yoda.

She didn't share any classes with Ayguin, but that didn't mean she didn't end up getting roped into helping her, which is how she wound up in a side-room sitting on the couch with a datapad in front of her, reading off questions as Ayguin paced back and forth, stopping only briefly to take a sip of the tea she'd insisted on bringing. It was also how she met Bariss Offee.

"Okay, can you tell me what precautions you take to prevent the transmission of infection for both yourself and a patient. Please list three species where these precautions are either not enough, or should be modified to fit the specific biological needs of the patients," Nima said, reading from a list.

"I'll do the modifications first," Ayguin said, with a frown. "First, Neimoidians. They actually have a very robust immune system. It's pretty impressive, and so they can seem to be only a little bit ill while actually having what for some other species' would be a deadly disease."

Nima frowned and flipped through it. "Yes, that's right. Though don't all species have only a certain amount of cross-species diseases?"

"Not consistently enough to create a different pattern for anyone," Ayguin said, frowning and pausing. "With Neimoidians you should ask them about their symptoms and if they fit one of a set of major illnesses use greater caution. It actually is fascinating, the strength of their immune system and..."

"Seems like that'd be a lot of work, and they are our enemies for the moment," Nima mused. She shook her head, her lekku shifting into a half-unconscious shrug. "So, who else?"

"Well, Verpine have exoskeletons, so the type of damage and the spread of potentially infectious fluids is different, but because of their biology, they pass on only a small subset of diseases, and don't get diseases easily either. So despite the greater… exposure, you can potentially do without quite as many medical safety protocols. And… third…"

She trailed off, trying to figure out a third one. Nima was about to help her out when someone interrupted her.

"Well, third there's Hutts," a female voice said, faintly accented. It was a female Mirialan, a bit shorter than Nima, with dark hair and blue eyes, dressed in the traditional robes, still with a Padawan's braid. "Clawdites also have a certain sensitivity to a wider number of diseases, thanks to their shapeshifting. Hey, Ayguin, how are you doing?"

"I-I'm fine," Ayguin said, flushing. "There's tea. Are you back from the war, Bariss?"

"For the moment. I don't think that will last. But it's good to be home. The Temple's so different, as if they're not touched by the war at all. I know that's not true, of course," Bariss said. "But it feels that way."

"Is that a bad thing?" Nima asked.

"No. No it isn't. The war's bad, and healing all the damage's it's doing is rough. I can't even tell if we're winning. So being back at the Temple is a good thing. I just wonder how much anyone who spends most of their time here can understand what the galaxy is going through." She shook her head and walked over to the couch. "And you must be Nima. I've heard a lot about you."

Nima bit her lip and nodded.

"All of it good, of course," Offee said. She was actually nervous, and Nima realized that she clearly hadn't been expecting anyone else. "So, how's training going?"

"Pretty well. I'm not in First Aid, but I have a little bit of time free to help Ayguin." Not a lot, in fact. In around thirty minutes she had another class, but she'd decided to use the short break in the schedule for a good purpose.

"What did you take?"

"Art of Movement and Philosophy."

"How's Philosophy?" Offee asked.

"Master Vaal likes to see us debate. Two classes a week, in the first he introduces concepts, in the second he gives examples and makes us debate them," Nima said. "It's… interesting."

"It's good that you're taking a class like that. It seems that everyone else is sinking into violence," Bariss said. "Even I've had to polish my ability at fighting. Ahsoka sent a letter with hints, but out in the field… there's not time to experiment with double lightsabers. Besides, it doesn't really suit me."

"You should d-do what you feel best," Ayguin said, still pacing. Nervous. A little afraid, though Nima didn't know why.

"Thank you. You know I value your judgement. So your work in the Halls of Healing is going well?" Bariss asked.

"Yes," Ayguin said.

"Actually, since I don't have any classes, if you wanted you could leave and I could take over quizzing her."

"If that's alright with you, Ayguin?" Nima asked.

"Of course. I'll see you at dinner," Ayguin said.

********

"So, hmm," Master Vaal, looking around the gathered dozen Initiates. "We have talked that one issue out." The Duros was even more grey than the average member of his species, well into old age, and yet with a sharpness of his movements and his manner that seemed to speak to something more than sitting and philosophizing in his youth.

Perhaps he was like Katarina, who was sitting opposite Nima.

Of the people here, Nima knew Tamia, Katarina, Cho, Amada and Hannah well. Or at least well enough that she had been able to all but predict how they'd argue in the previous debate, which was on the rules of warfare and how they should be enforced.

"So, the next issue is: Ryloth. It has been invaded. A force has been sent to relieve it. The planet itself is somewhat valuable, but it wasn't thought of as either top of the target list, nor the planet that, having lost it, we could lose the war." Master Vaal nodded at that. "So the question is: where does the Duty to Protect lie, morally? How large of a fleet should be sent? What about strategic matters in the inner-rim?"

"Well," Hannah said. "I think that Ryloth should be left to its own devices for a few months, until we can reinforce the attacked areas in our core territories, as painful as such sacrifices are. Ultimately, the Inner Rim is the heart of the Republic. Whoever holds that will automatically win the war, and so Outer Rim battles should only be done when it can help us push them out. It's tough, but it's what's necessary for victory."

"But we are Jedi," Tamia said. "Even if we can't send a fleet, or a large one, we have a personal duty to do something." She stood up. Tamia was a human, slightly pinched looking with plain, almost forgettable features, but a voice that could sometimes grate, though she could tell stories well. "We could at least send a few Jedi to lead native resistance."

"Does anyone remember Geonosis?" Hannah asked. "Do you think that's how we should be wasting Jedi lives?"

"Ryloth is part of the Republic," Cho said, standing up, going a little greener with annoyance. "Any attempt to apply the principle of utility to a war such as this will end up coming to absurd results. Especially since there is a large-scale Twi'lek resistance just waiting for the Clones to help them reclaim their world. It's that simple."

"I'm glad I live in a world of simplicity," Hannah said. "Ultimately, the Jedi have the duty to save as many people as they can. But sometimes when you try, you--"

"Do or do not," Katarina said.

"What does that even…" Hannah muttered, though she trailed off.

"Jedi can and have done great things," Katarina said. "A single Jedi on Haruun Kal has apparently led a resistance force to drive off the Separatists."

"A single council-member," Tamia said. "I'm not sure, do we have such a figure to spare?"

"Perhaps not," Master Vaal said. "But does that mean that it shouldn't be done?"

"I think… more should be done to help Ryloth, and all of the Outer Rim territories," Nima said, taking a breath.

"Of course you would think that," Hannah said, with a smirk.

Last Night's Dream: Flame Battle Droids weren't actually good for much. They weren't smart enough to use their flamethrowers effectively, and there wasn't that much fuel, relatively speaking. But they were skilled enough to burn down some isolated houses. A woman ran towards the house, only to be shot down by a B2, screaming and begging as her children were caught in the fire and the smoke.

This was an example.

Nima shuddered, trying to hold in the rage that threatened to slip outwards. Hannah's words were like boulders chucked into a lake, but she needed to respond carefully. She needed to harness her emotions, control them, not let them control her. She was a Jedi, and more than that: she was right. "Yes, I would! Because that's what Jedi do, but more importantly--"

"Jedi do many--" Hannah began.

"But more importantly, because every world we abandon tells dozens of other worlds in the Outer Rim that the Separatists will victimize them and the Republic will do nothing. Nothing at all except stand by and pontificate about necessary sacrifices." Nima let out a breath, "In a war for hearts and minds, is there such a thing as a necessary sacrifice?"

"No, there isn't," Amala said, chiming in with a grin.

"Because for each planet sacked and slaughtered by the Separatists, what people learn is not that they are monsters, but that we are failures, that we are too weak to do anything, and that if they wish not to suffer, they should surrender, or stay out of the war. Ryloth has greater importance than you think, and there is a duty to save those who suffer, but even if it was a backwater it wouldn't matter to me. It shouldn't matter to us. That's what it means to be a Republic, that's what it means to try to govern the galaxy. And as Jedi, we are part of it and this war. So you said it, and I'll say it again. Of course I would think that! Anyone who cares to think about it would!" Nima looked around the room. She'd risen out of her seat, and almost strode up towards the middle of the room. "This is only practical, this is only moral. This is the Republic that we're fighting for, and if it's not then we shouldn't be fighting."

"Perhaps we shouldn't," Hannah said. "I didn't mean--"

Nima let out a breath. "I don't believe that, Hannah. Not now. Anyone advocating to leave Ryloth out to dry is both cruel and foolish. The same applies for the other planets on the Outer Rim. The exact number is a matter of math and battle tactics. But the principle of fighting the enemy where they are in order to hold onto the Outer Rim? I stand by it."

"Please sit down, Nima," Master Vaal said. "But it was a very interesting argument. I'll be assigning a few texts on similar concerns, actually, in past wars. It also brings us to the question of how exactly the Jedi should interact with the civilian population, in order to…"

*******

Nine days later, Nima was in her room when she had the second visiter in an hour. It was a little late, and she'd settled down on her cot. Her room was barren, though at least she didn't have to share it with one other Initiate, the way she had a few years before. It was a small cell, with a single, low shelf upon which she had placed a few books, a few old toys, and a few cultural artifacts from Ryloth, such as miniature prayer chimes.

Other than that, all of the rest of what she had was stored in a small chest, which held her clothing, her toothbrush, and other such necessities. Though Twi'lek didn't tend to have teeth problems. She brushed out of habit and because she'd been given it, so why shouldn't she?

It wasn't much, but it was home, and when she went to sleep, sometimes she'd leave the door open, so that a little bit of light fell onto her collection, to see if she couldn't quite sleep. That had become more common, as of late. The Nightmares continued, though now news and rumors of a Republic fleet coming factored into them.

Scout had been by, worried about her friend Ahsoka, who was apparently being called away on some sort of mission. But, Initiates didn't go on missions, did they? It was all very against procedure, and Nima didn't know what to say.

That's when she felt Master Bell. He was still far away. In fact, Nima realized, he was just barely landing in the Temple, but something about the combination of emotions--exhaustion, pride, determination--seemed to tell her that he was going to be coming to visit her. So she sat down and composed herself, meditating as she felt--closer than she would have felt anyone else, for who else did she love more than Master Bell, and her mother--his passage through the Temple. He wasn't even stopping to set his stuff aside, just striding in her direction.

She calmed herself, sure that whatever the news was, it was important to hear it.

So when Master Bell knocked on her door, she was composed, and she said, "Come in."

"You're been expecting me?" Master Bell asked. His beard was a little shorter, and slightly singed, and he was carrying a backpack, which he set down before sitting on the floor. "Hey, Nima."

Nima got up, and despite her composure hurried to hug him, briefly. He moved his head out of the way, so that his beard wouldn't tickle or annoy her.

"I have," Nima said. "I could feel you coming. The Force, it…"

He wanted for her to speak, and then when she didn't, he laughed. "It's amazing sometimes, isn't it. I've been away at the war. I only just heard a few hours ago about Ryloth. I'm going to ask to be transferred there. There's been rumors among some of my Twi'lek sources that--"

"The Separatists are planning on enslaving Twi'leks to give to the Hutts to try to shift them to their side," Nima said, guessing what he'd say.

"That's not a rumor that was supposed to get out, off planet. I had trouble learning it myself." Master Bell said.

"I had a dream." Nima looked away.

"A nightmare? Have you been having them often?"

"Yes. About the war. But… they feel true. And I know they're true," Nima said.

"The war is a nightmare, in its way." Master Bell shook his head. "Though there's bravery. And I've met and worked with the Clones in retaking the Xiz'kak system. They're amazing, and they deserve rights and recognition. And Jedi are just the people to try to do that. In Xiz'kak, they fought against superior numbers and with careful planning won handily, with losses that even a less dedicated force would be able to hold up against." He bit his lip, "They're not without fear, because they're sentients. But they're in control of themselves. Dedicated. Focused. If they had Force talent and understood that they were people, who should have rights, they could be excellent Jedi in their way."

Nima blinked. That was a stronger endorsement than she'd heard him give quite a few people. "Really?"

"Dedication, focus, loyalty. And they show initiative, too, though they're taught to think they're just a cog in the machine," Master Bell said, with a shrug. "I have a plan involving the Clones, though I can't tell you about it. It'll be aided by the fact that Master Windu is leaving soon."

"Leaving? Why?" Nima asked, a little confused.

"I'm not sure, but that's what I was told," Master Bell said. "By Knight Tylius, who keeps up with these things. I hope it's nothing serious. But with him gone, the plan is more likely to work, though it'll be some time before it pays off…"

Now Nima was really curious. Yet at the same time, there was quite a lot to ask about, a lot to consider. The war, for one.

What does Nima Ask/Talk to Master Bell About, before he no doubt gives out gifts?

[] The war. He retook an entire system. What was it like, what did he do, how did it happen? Who was with him? It's hard, being so far away from it, listening in… so why not an up-close story.
[] Nima's Mother. Master Bell hasn't ever told Nima any more about her, but perhaps now is the time to press a little more. Surely, even if Nima's never going to see her again, he could tell Nima more than that she's 'okay.'
[] This… plan of his. Why is he being so mysterious? Why is Master Windu's departure important. Master Bell, though, sometimes likes to be mysterious. Or at least… careful in one way, but not in others.
[] Write-in.

******
A/N: Alright, so here we go! Thanks to @NemoMarx.