Chapter 102:
Taylor:
"A counter?"
Vicky offered a quiet nod, still lying across from me on the bed, one of her fingers playing with a lock of my hair.
She wasn't meeting my eyes and I didn't need to be Lisa to know that there were complex emotions playing out behind that averted gaze.
We've discussed it, wargamed it. I made damn sure to hammer home that people were
going to come after us. And she knew it.
But no one had ever
seriously gone after her before. Not like this. Not doing weeks or months of research, crunching numbers, analyzing footage.
It was old hat for the life I'd lived.
But as strong of a front as she put up, the reality of it had disquieted her, unsettled her.
What I felt was altogether different.
It wasn't
anger, nothing so base as that. It was something deeper. Something
worse. I could feel it writhing inside of my chest like a hissing snake, and I made a conscious effort to push it back down.
I didn't want to become what I'd been on Ilum.
"You could stay." I said. "In the Temple, or Kashyyyk. Train people on how to whack others with a glow stick really, really hard."
She snorted. "Please. As
if I could let Anakin take hold of the propaganda spotlight and get one over me in the popularity polls." She joked.
It was a pipe dream, I knew that. She was too important. Even more than me. When Vicky showed up on the battlefield, everyone
knew that they were going to win. That they were going to be ok. Even if it wasn't true, Jedi and clones
believed it to be true. And that was power in its own right.
We were both valuable. But if I had to make a purely objective call… there was no contest in terms of morale between her and me on the frontlines.
"It's ok." She promised. "Still… Karla." She said pointedly, and it probably wasn't
just to change the conversation. "She's a para…
twi'lek now."
I nodded. "She is… her trigger wasn't like ours though. Thank God. Queen just…
gave it to her."
Vicky stared, frowning. "Am I a bad person for somehow being…
bitter about that?" She asked.
"We both are to a degree, I guess." I shrugged. "But… we'll get over it."
She nodded. "Power testing?"
"I did some." I admitted. "She's a Thinker. Two or three, for now at least. Specifically, she can read and understand people's emotions. Has to be line of sight, within about a hundred feet. Doesn't seem to work through electronics, at least in the tests that we conducted."
"That's all?"
I shook my head. "No. She can control
her own emotions. Shutting them off or cranking the intensity up. Like a lot of dials in her brain. I'd like to conduct some tests of that with you specifically later."
Vicky raised an eyebrow. "Hmm? Why me?"
"Cause combat wise," I began. "You're one of the best precogs in the Order right now… and I'm pretty sure her ability can just flatly counter you."
Vicky raised an eyebrow, and then let the smile that'd been tugging on her lip spread just a little bit.
"Oh, really? Heh.
Bet."
—
Iskt:
It was sort of an impromptu rule, at least between Miss Taylor, Miss Vicky and
them. Them of course being himself, Karla and Noble Squad.
Out in the field, you did your job, whatever it was. You did it right, without complaint, without excuses.
They'd never
told them that, never
demanded it, but that very quickly became what he understood to be
expected. From his Masters towards them and they, in turn, towards the two Jedi Masters.
Outside the Temple, as Noble team said, they were 'on the clock'.
But within the Temple… things were different.
Again, they never said it, but he could remember the differences before the war and now. Very rarely did Miss Vicky or Taylor ever
demand something of any of them. They asked.
What would you like to do today?
Is there anything in particular you need help with?
Day's yours, kid, have fun.
The days in the Temple were easier, from the conversations he'd had and overheard from various clones. R&R, shore leave, downtime.
The concept was simple.
High stress situations, if not alleviated even for a short while, could cause burnout… even for Jedi.
The Temple was the place where it could be alleviated.
Where they were safe from surprise attacks, artillery barrages, the threat of the Sith, the death of friends.
So in the Temple, they didn't have to do anything. Or, to be more specific, they were allowed to do what they wished… within reason, of course.
He was pretty sure Knight Skywalker still wasn't allowed to do swoop races in the halls.
Granted, the Trandoshan was confident that the Knight hadn't been
serious when he pushed the idea as a fun sporting event for the clones…
But Iskt was only confident... not sure about that.
But either way, the point stood. By and large, they could do whatever they wished, to a certain extent.
This was their downtime.
So, it was both notable and a little unusual that Miss Taylor and Miss Vicky had requested they present themselves in the training grounds today with Master Drallig for 'special training'.
And it was a special training that wasn't just for them, but for all of the senior Padawan's and Knights.
As in those actively seeing combat on the frontlines.
The halls were filled relatively quickly, with old crechemates and friends finding each other and beginning to catch up and gossip. Iskt and Karla themselves found several of their old crechemates too, now Padawans to other Masters, like Zai and Zaisk with Master Allie, Ten-Hu with master Poof. Decimus and other friends joined them, too. Ahsoka, Barriss, Cal and Trilla, all gravitating around them with their own brands of stories and well wishes.
It was… good. Odd, since they hadn't all really had time to interact with each other since… everything, but it was good. To see all of his friends were still alive and doing well, given the circumstances.
Master Drallig made his way to the center of the arena as the other Masters gathered behind him. There were less of them than the Padawans and Knights, of course, but they too seemed to be mingling together. He spotted Miss Vicky and Knight Skywalker.
But not Miss Taylor though. Odd. He wondered where she was.
—
Taylor:
"I want you to know that I do not approve of these inquiries you're making."
"I know." I answered, offering an apologetic smile towards the older woman. "And I appreciate your help regardless, Master Nu."
The old woman sniffed, a very small set of glasses now resting on the bridge of her nose, looking like she'd been extracted from the classic films from Earth as a snooty librarian. "The only reason is because I have heard of this… development with your Padawan."
"Of course you did." I thought but didn't say.
"Jedi gossip like highschool girls.''
She looked down at the datapad. "All of the information here is, of course, part of the public records. For anything more specific I will require nothing less than Council approval, even for a Master."
"I understand." I said, taking my own datapad. "I just need to know how many abilities exist out there that can outright manipulate emotion."
"
Most of the abilities of that nature stem from the dark side." The head librarian said with clear disapproval, even though she didn't look up from her reading. "That isn't something
either of you should be delving into just for idle curiosity of experimentation!"
"We're fighting a war." I answered… or maybe reminded. She was the librarian. One who rarely left these archives. "Karla's already encountered a Sith once… who's to say if she finds another, one that might have access to some of these techniques?"
"I am aware." The old woman snipped. "It's why I've given you access to everything we have on the subject in the public archive. But
you-" She said that last word
very pointedly. "-are rarely satisfied without pushing
some form of boundary."
"Sometimes they need to be pushed a little." I answered. My voice was deadpan but there was an inflection I didn't quite manage to suppress.
Vicky really was a bad influence.
Master Nu sniffed, returning her eyes to the datapad to continue scrolling.
"The only Jedi Master who has any sort of proficiency with techniques similar to what you're asking for are our healers…"
Makes sense… at least to keep people calm.
"And Master Poof."
I blinked. "Wait, Master Poof?"
She nodded. "Indeed. He's always been drawn to esoteric techniques. I understand you based your fire techniques off of that candle trick of his, did you not?"
I nodded, a fist rising to my mouth "I did, yeah." Hmmm… Poof wasn't my ally on the Council, but he wasn't an enemy either. He, like Rancisis (at least before Ilum), were the true neutrals on the Council.
He even had one of my crechelings, Ten-Hu, as a Padawan.
I think it was safe to say I could at least
ask, when I was done with my inquiries and research here.
Hell, he might've even accessed some of the non-public archives to learn these techniques of his.
—
Anakin:
"These droids are not like the B1s and B2s." Behind Anakin loomed a large, projected holo-image. "The EG-5
Jedi Hunter." He said very clearly towards the assembled Padawans and Knights. "That's what the Separatists have named these things. The name should give you a clue on what their job is."
The holo-image shifted, now showing the droid in motion, fighting a phantom enemy, rather than simply T-posing.
"The combat data we've gathered," He continued. "Puts each of these droids roughly on par with some of our Jedi Knights."
He saw some fear beginning to seep into the crowd at that, muttered conversations, worried glances.
"SO!" He shouted, his voice going off like a gunshot in the halls, bringing all eyes snapping back to him. "We're going to prepare you all for the possibility that you might run into these droids." He said with a pleasant smile, the holo-image once more shifting to a T-pose, but now highlighting several of the droid's features.
"Starting from the feet," He said. "You'll note that the droid's feet are four pronged talons or hooks. This makes it
very hard to knock the droid down and gives it a great deal of stability. So don't be surprised if your standard Force Push doesn't actually
move it at all." He said. "If you want it to move, you need to actually
lift the droid first and then
push. In that vein, the droid's weight is approximately one hundred and fifty two kilograms, so practice lifting that much weight here in the Temple safely before you attempt it in the field."
Many of the Padawans and Knights were listening with rapt attention. There were still some mutterings, people discussing things with one another, but each of them were giving the lecture their full attention.
"Moving upwards, we can see that these models have
six thruster ports. Two on the sides of the chest, where its rib cage would be," The hologram highlighted the two aforementioned thruster ports. "Two on its back," Again, the holo shifted. "And two on the soles of those clawed feet.
He caught bits and pieces of some of the conversations happening around him. Some of the more experienced in combat, be it Knights or Padawans, were beginning to piece together the implications.
"This, as you can probably guess, gives it a high range of mobility." He confirmed. "They can keep up with most normal displays of Force assisted acrobatics. Furthermore, their software has been uploaded with comprehensive data on all seven forms of lightsaber combat, with an algorithm designed to predict the movements of Jedi by cross referencing their stored data and normal biomechanics. It isn't perfect by any means as far as we've determined, but if you're using very standard
textbook styles, unless you can outpace its raw numbers, it will not end well for you."
Now came the worst part.
"Furthermore," He cleared his throat, the holo behind him shifting again to specifically highlight the armor plating. "These droids have an outer shell of cortosis."
Many, but not all
paled at the revelation. It was mostly the Padawans that were ignorant; many of the senior Knights looked very,
very concerned, even ill
"For those of you who don't know, cortosis is a relatively rare metal. It is extremely resistant to energy based weaponry,
including lightsabers. Not only will your lightsaber fail to cut through it, it will cause a feedback loop that will temporarily short out, if not outright
damage, the inner workings of your lightsaber."
Now the panic set in. Not only did many people begin speaking, turning the previous silence in the room to a forlorn memory, but some outbursts couldn't be contained.
"Are you saying that if we hit them at all we'll be completely disarmed!?"
"How are we supposed to fight that!"
"Do we leave it up to clones then?"
"I bet Miss Vicky punched one to beat it."
That last comment, he noted, came from Zai, a Nautolan girl sitting next to Iskt and Karla, one of Taylor's old crechelings.
"Silence!"
Master Drallig's voice carried through the auditorium, drowning out the din and clamor with a single thunderous shout. The man was calm, just loud.
As the quiet returned to the hall the Battlemaster offered Anakin a nod, letting him take control once more.
"I understand this is alarming, but I didn't come here to just say how screwed we all are." He promised with his 'winning smile', as Padme called it.
"The Jedi Hunter droids have no less than three exploitable weaknesses." He reassured. "Just like we're scrambling to field more clones, the CIS is scrambling in their own way with hastily designed weapons. Engineers on a time crunch sometimes have to cut corners to meet the deadline."
The hologram shifted. "One of these cut corners is the cortosis itself. Yes, it's very resistant to energy based weaponry and lightsabers, but it is an overall
weak metal. Pure kinetic force can dent the treated folds and outright snap the untreated variants of it. So in short, one of the easiest ways to take one down would be carrying a slugthrower with you." Some, but very few of the assembled Jedi, didn't outright cringe at the notion.
Blasters were genuinely frowned upon in the Order, Anakin knew. There were
many reasons for it, from optics to culture, to pride and everything in between. A
slugthrower - an even more barbaric weapon - Anakin wasn't surprised that many were just reflexively turning their noses up at it.
It wasn't his job to single handedly change their minds. The war would do that. Or it'd kill them first.
He moved on. "Second, droids, like all machines, build up
a lot of heat. All of that heat has to go
somewhere." The holo shifted to the droid's back, just over its back mounted thrusters, where there were no less than eight
vents. "Each of these vents has an almost laughably thin layer of plating. Even your bare fist can probably punch through them, though you're likely to get cut. Punch a shiv, or an ion spike, through it and that droid will take crippling, if not outright catastrophic, damage."
At this many of the Jedi were nodding, no upturned noses this time. Anakin still thought they were either underestimating the droid or overestimating their own abilities; getting behind a resisting combatant for such a clean shot was
not easy.
"Lastly," he highlighted the central column of the machine, its 'spine'. "As you've probably noticed, the Jedi Hunter droid has a very
thin waist. This is to keep its weight down to help with its mobility. That waist is also covered in cortosis but is filled to the
brim with all the wiring, servos lubricant, cooling tubes and… well…
everything the droid needs to function properly." He nodded. Your lightsaber won't cut it, but even simple blows can start damaging its inner workings."
"Like hitting someone in the stomach with a sledgehammer." He recognized Ahsoka's voice.
Anakin nodded with a small smile. "Yes, exactly. Generally speaking the Jedi council advises the use of Force techniques to damage this part of the machine."
For a demonstration, he lifted three objects, two solid plates of armor plating and one, very large cast iron orb.
With a flick of his fingers the orb sailed towards one of the plates like a cannonball, smashing into it with enough force that the sound alone made
him wince, and sent echoing bangs through the entire room with the equivalent decibel of an artillery shell.
The armor plate was completely folded in on itself.
"Obviously, using something in your environment is possible but if you find yourself without a suitable object to use well-"
He clenched his fist.
The second armor plate was crushed like a metal paper ball.
"The Force itself will do." He shrugged, returning all three items to their place on a small table at the edge of the arena.
"Any questions?"
Several people raised their hands.
"Yes?" He called pointing towards… well… Cal Kestis. Call him biased, but Anakin knew the boy well enough to know that he usually had a decent head on his shoulders and he wouldn't ask
stupid questions.
"You said earlier that those using 'basic lightsaber forms' would need to outpace their raw numbers. What are those numbers?" The boy called.
Anakin nodded pleased. "An excellent question…"
—
Vicky
Vicky didn't realize Anakin had a hidden talent for teaching. He fielded the array of questions very well, especially for a first timer.
He was one of the Jedi's foremost experts on droids and engineering in general as far as she knew, and he
had been the one to capture the EG-5 intact. So he'd been picked to give the lecture.
It'd been pretty short notice, too; they only just got back from Kashyyyk a few days after Vicky's own return, after all. Taylor said he'd been nervous and had asked her for tips.
But honestly… yeah. The kid was a natural.
"In light of the particular danger of these droids, the Jedi Council has decided that special precautions and preparations must be undertaken. All of you have been divided into five categories." Anakin continued after the questions had been fielded, holding up his hand to very clearly show his five fingers. "These categories roughly translate to your level of combat skill, as judged by Master Drallig and your respective Jedi Masters who consulted with us for this training. It's our hope that before any of you step onto the battlefield again where you might find these droids that all of you will be at a minimum of rank three, preferably having surpassed the fifth rank."
Vicky could hear a few mutterings going around, people beginning to wonder, of course where they were placed.
"Your ranking-" Anakin said clearly, "-is not a mark of shame, or of pride. It is merely a sign of how much you'll have to work, and how much you can help others to get to where you are. Conduct yourselves as such." He nodded as the large holoplinth lit up with a billboard of many names, each divided into five columns.
As expected, ranks five and four, overseen by Keto and Secura respectively, were the most populous of the five columns, filled to the brim with Padawans.
Mostly group five was going to test whether the Padawans in question even
could use the Force to crush the metal at all under ideal conditions. And if they couldn't, then by God was everyone gonna work to find them a way to do it. Four would add certain conditions: a time limit, light distractions, irritations and so on.
Rank three, Anakin's group, was where you had a more even split, no doubt to the shock of many Knights who may have thought they were pretty hot shit, or Padawans who didn't think they were that good. He would be the one to
start implementing active combat into the exercise. They needed to focus enough to crush the metal in combat.
Anakin wouldn't be going full Dooku's/Obi-Wan's/The Sith Slayer's Apprentice-mode on them, but they'd definitely have to bring their A game.
Master Drallig's examinees on rank two were pretty much all Knights, and the Battlemaster would be pushing them
hard.
Honestly, Vicky was pretty sure Anakin could do a better job on that front if they let him get creative, but far be it from her to say anything. No need to hurt anyone's feelings. Cin wasn't a bad guy.
Rank one, her group, had just nineteen examinees. Three Masters, fourteen Knights…
And just two little Padawans.
Plenty of people would no doubt cry foul but neither Tay nor Vicky cared.
Their tiny terrors could do it.
Vicky wasn't gonna raise a finger to fight anyone, after all.
She waved happily towards the two Padawans who both looked at each other, a whole conversation passing between them like she and Amy had back when they were kids, before they both shrugged, beginning to march down towards her column.
—
"Okay!" Vicky said after a few moments where her nineteen were arranged in front of her on one of the five practice areas. This one filled with gentle, warm white sands.
She clapped her hands. "I'll be your instructor for the day." She promised before reaching down towards a crate beside her. Three little drones were inside but she only activated one.
The floating orb rose up, activating before she reached over and held it in her hands, placing it in front of her stomach.
"These droids all have pressure sensors to detect when they're under the estimated necessary pressure. I have spares here just in case someone gets gun happy, but not too many so lets keep calm." Vicky smiled, wiggling the droid. "We all know that each of you has the strength to destroy the metal in question with your raw Force power."
"So we're going to fight you?" One of the Knights, a Nautolan, asked, black eyes splayed wide open. "No offense, Master Dallon, but that seems like… how would you say… overkill? You are certainly much more powerful than these droids."
"Aww, I like you." She laughed, shaking her head. 'Nah, I'm not gonna fight you. No point in that. We all know your respective combat records. Each of you has been under fire and had your lives threatened on the battlefield before. You were able to keep your cool under combat so we're not here to test that.
One of the Masters cleared his throat; the others were curious now, but she could see her Padawan had an inkling of what was about to happen.
"Then, what are we testing, Master Dallon?" Her colleague asked.
"How well you guys can keep a hold of your shit when you're
actually afraid." She answered, raising a finger. "I have an ability. It's not very well known because it's useless on droids, but I can make people
afraid. The effects of course are temporary and I'm not exactly looking to turn you into a nervous wreck, but in this controlled environment it's the closest we can get to what people feel during genuine 'mortal panic', when you feel like you might genuinely die." She nodded. "Most likely
very few of the test takers will get here. That's why the benchmark for acceptability is rank three with Anakin. But the Jedi Council has deemed the experience a good one for those they're confident can handle it."
"That technique." Another of the Masters, a Cathar, spoke. "It sounds as though it is of the dark side."
"It isn't." I assured, and she wasn't lying. Her aura had nothing to do with light or dark. "But it's definitely not something you're gonna find just lying around, either. For those of you who'd like to back out, you're allowed to. There's no shame in it whatsoever."
Each of the men turned, looking at one another before one of the younger Knights stepped up. And, through pride or peer pressure, the others followed his example.
Iskt and Karla didn't even look like they'd given the offer a second's thought.
Vicky nodded, smiling. "Ok. We'll start with you"
—
Her aura uncoiled from her body, affecting each of the examinees one by one. It took a bit for her to find the right level of intensity, but not so long for anyone to get an easy trial.
She could see it. The signs weren't the same, but they were
universal.
Humans broke out in cold sweat, trembling. Sometimes they stared at her, sometimes they backed away.
Nautolans changed color, their black eyes shrunk. The Cathars' hackles were raised, their ears pinned back.
She could see it. The
fear.
With her eyes and in the Force.
One by one they came in front of her, into the range of her aura.
The Masters tried to master
themselves, falling back onto calming techniques that muted her power, but didn't stop it. Like someone trying to smother an electric stove with a blanket. Her power kept working, kept rewiring the meat parts of the brain, even as their experience told them to push it out.
Eventually, desperation made them lash out.
The droid chimed.
Some of the Knights were not ready.
Their defenses
crumbled. A castle without guards. Gates without bars. She walked right in and they never even noticed, struggling just to keep it all together and not just fall into panic.
Run.
She whispered it in their minds and run they did, the spell breaking once they were out of range, much to their shame.
Some, she didn't mind trick.
She just grabbed her saber like she was about to draw it.
That was enough.
Fear is the mind killer.
It's one of Taylor's favorite quotes for a reason.
Iskt, her Padawan, knew her power, but that didn't stop it from affecting him.
He hissed like a crocodile. A deep, rumbling growl vibrating the air around him. He glared at her with eyes that were slit like a cat's. Mouth open, baring his fangs, muscles bunched in fight or flight responses.
He chose fight.
Iskt lunged, and even as he raised his fist Vicky knew he'd never hit her, merely punching with all his considerable strength dead center of the droid to smash it to pieces between her hands.
She let the destroyed remains fall with dull thumps onto the sand, a sliver of metal having cut the boy's knuckles as he pulled away.
…
"We'll work on that." She promised with a wry smirk.
Iskt wasn't happy about his loss of control, she knew him well enough to know that.
But hey… he understood the assignment at least.
He nodded, stepping back to join the others.
Finally, it was Karla's turn.
Vicky
had been looking forward to this, but she ramped up her power slowly. Karla was, after all, the youngest one here.
She spread her senses out in the Force, brushing the girl's surface thoughts, seeing with two sets of eyes how it was affecting her as it took hold, the first signs beginning to show and then…
Nothing.
Karla went completely blank, almost corpse-like in her 'feel'.
The girl brought up her hand, and the droid beeped. Announcing that the threshold had been met.
Vicky smiled.
Looks like Tay had been right. So far, at any rate.
Karla's power trumped hers in this field.
"More Data?" She heard Fragile whisper at the back of her mind, the image of an impish smile imposing itself on her thoughts.
Vicky smiled.
More Data.
—
Anakin:
It was hours until the testing was done, and by the time it was, many of the examinees and their instructors gathered around the expansive training grounds, speaking with each other. Sharing training advice and notes, as it were.
Anakin listened and watched it all; few of the students marching up to him not just to regard the exercise itself, but pick his brain for sword techniques.
It was… a nice experience, really.
"Perhaps I should be looking over my shoulder. Soon I might be out of a job, Knight Skywalker."
Anakin blinked, turning towards the voice, finding Master Drallig making his way closer to him, hands clasped behind his back, a kind smile on his face.
Anakin laughed just a bit, shaking his head. "No, never, Battlemaster, you're far better at the task than I am."
"You're selling yourself short. You have an unexpected talent for teaching." Cin reassured.
Anakin didn't quite
preen under the praise… but it
was nice to hear. Though watching several of the Knights step up towards Victoria, still trying their hand at the assigned task, he noted something odd.
Iskt, who'd been standing patiently at the side of the arena, waiting for his Master to finish, was being hastily dragged away from his corner by Karla, who was pulling the large Trandoshan boy closer to Anakin.
Anakin raised a slender eyebrow, spreading his senses towards her as he half carried a conversation with Drallig beside him.
He was surprised indeed when of all things, his brush across her surface emotions carried… a very real fear.
A fear that did not abate until she was standing beside Anakin and Master Drallig.
"O-one moment, Battlemaster, please, excuse me. I'm sorry." He cut in hastily, smiling apologetically at the Battlemaster.
Cin, though blinking in obvious surprise and curiosity, nevertheless nodded. "There's no need for apologies, by all means."
Anakin hastily nodded and half bowed to the man before swiveling on his heel and kneeling down beside Karla.
Iskt too looked curious, leaning a bit closer as Anakin whispered.
"Hey, Karla." He whispered as quietly as he could. "What's wrong?"
She shook her head, lips pressed together into a thin line.
Anakin frowned, spreading his senses out even further, not just towards her, but to the surrounding grounds. He subtly checked everyone in the area, especially near where Iskt had previously been standing.
There was a moment, a brief snapshot of
something that made his insides twist that he couldn't quite catch as Anakin began to look with his eyes, not just the Force.
Nothing stood out.
"Karla." He pleaded again. "Come on." He nodded. "Use your power on me if you want; whatever it is you know you can tell me."
Karla shook her head. "No. We can trust Mr. Anakin." She said and he had to stop himself from smiling at the surety he heard in her voice.
Still, "Then what happened?" He asked.
She hesitated, her eyes darting somewhere to the right and Anakin tried to follow her gaze before she reached up, tugging at his robe at the shoulder to pull him close, whispering in his ear.
"I don't want Iskt standing there." She said.
"I got that, but
why?" Anakin insisted.
One last time, the girl hesitated. "Master Bulq… he doesn't feel very nice."
Anakin's eyes widened a bit and turned to look, finding that the Weequay Council member was indeed standing by the spot where Iskt had been. Almost behind the boy, if memory served.
The Council Master was now staring at Dallon instructing the last of her examinees, his face the picture of stony stoicism, revealing nothing.
As subtly and as carefully as he could, Anakin stretched a tendril of his senses towards the Council member.
He very deliberately placed a reassuring hand on the girl's head, standing up to stay beside them, and let Karla take his hand in hers as he turned and smiled at Master Drallig, resuming their conversation as if nothing at all was amiss.
—
Sora Bulq
"Ahh, Master Bulq!"
The call surprised the Weequay Master, though he recognized it.
Turning to find that Anakin Skywalker was indeed jogging up behind him to catch up was still surprising.
"Knight Skywalker." He nodded, turning to face the young human as the boy smiled widely.
"Glad I caught you." Anakin said. "Forgive me for wasting your time like this, Master."
At the words Bulq ground his teeth together behind closed lips just a bit. He indeed did not enjoy having his time wasted, much less by an open ally towards Hebert and Dallon, but the pretense of politeness was still needed here.
"Not at all." He shook his head. "What did you wish to discuss?"
"Well," Skywalker's smile turned sheepish. "You enjoy a reputation as one of the Order's greatest swordmasters, Master Bulq, so I was wondering what you thought of the lesson. If there's something you'd improve on for the future."
It was
indeed a waste of time. Many of those Padawans and most of those Knights were
hopeless as warriors. Niman practitioners and
diplomats. Even a hundred years wouldn't bring them up to par. Much less Drallig, the poor excuse of a Battlemaster.
"It was more than adequate." He lied. "Perhaps you will take Master Drallig's position as Battlemaster when the war is done."
The Knight certainly couldn't do any
worse than the pitiful excuse the Jedi of today called Battlemaster.
Anakin laughed. "He said the same thing. Thank you, Master. I was nervous, it being my first time giving a lecture like that and all."
He nodded, trying not to show his impatience. "You had nothing to be nervous about. If that is all-"
"It's so
nice to have a Master who doesn't let his personal feelings affect his treatment of any of the Padawans present. Isn't it, Master?"
Bulq paused mid step, his brain stuttering for a moment even as he
heard the edge that had slipped into Skywalker's voice.
He straightened, turning slowly to look at the still smiling Knight, his thoughts hidden behind a sharp fang and deceiving glibness.
Bulq's eyes narrowed. "Are you implying something, Skywalker?"
"Nothing at all, Master." Skywalker said. "Just you know, It'd be a shame if there were any Masters who would… I don't know, threaten or hurt any of those Padawans because of personal feelings." He shook his head, lips forming the mockery of a frown as he shrugged with a deep breath sucked in through his nostrils. "I might just… have to leave them choking on their reputation as a swordmaster… ya know?"
Bulq felt his features twist; most species considered Weequay's ugly, and he could only imagine the wrathful curl of his lips did little to disprove that notion as Skywalker's features, still holding that insufferable smile, hardened.
Before anything more could be said another voice cut in.
"Hey, Annie?"
Bulq felt his fury rise, Anakin turning his head ever so slightly to glance down the hall but keeping one eye on the Council member too as he smiled at Dallon. "Yeah, Vic?"
The so-called 'Perfect Jedi' frowned, one eyebrow hiking up to her forehead as her eyes darted between Anakin and Bulq. The three children, Trandoshan, Togruta and Twi'lek, were at her side. "Something up?"
"Nah." Anakin laughed, one hand rising up to clap lightly on Bulq's shoulder like they were old friends. "Master Bulq was just giving me lesson tips!" He walked back, not turning around as that damnable smile of his remained etched on his face. "Good talk, Master, thank you. Maybe we'll talk again." He promised, the words allowing him no less than five paces distance before he finally turned and finished making his way towards Dallon and the Padawans.
The woman, children and Knight marched down the hallway as Bulq's fists clenched so tight his nails bit into his skin.
(X)(X)(X)
I am very
very happy with Anakin's character/development right now :3
How bout you guys?
As usual we still have three advance chapters available on Patreon right now where everything is finally coming together *beautifully*
Its gonna be so epic
