00.03 Prologue

[Many months after the Gathering]

[Temple District, Coruscant]

"It's a blaster"

Daron rolled his eyes back at her "Why yes it is Barriss, wow, I did not know that! What....I have a blaster at a blaster practice range I wonder?"

Barriss glared back at her irritating friend as he fiddled with the weapon secured at the edge of the range and then take range "Oh, ha ha ha, you are so funny Mister. But why are we wasting time at a blaster range"

"Because Daron brought us.....or, well, we invited ourselves to come along really. It's pretty wizard though! Not like pod-racing but still fun" came from beside her from the shooting booth beside where she leaned against the wall of Daron's area followed by the noise of blaster blots being shoot. Barriss resisted rolling her eyes at Skywalker's overly cheerful reply, of course the energetic little human brat would enjoy this; Males.

"Yes, it wasn't like I snuck out or dragged you all here. I'm learning how to shoot, in a Temple approved shooting gallery"

"Which all the Instructors frown upon!" she retorted watching his less than stellar efforts without using the Force like he should "...they all say so!"

"Sure they do, but the Teepo visit from time to time, and in it's in the rules were allowed to make use of them as their within the zone allotted to us poor, learning, Initiates"

"They'll still reprimand us"

"Me, my responsibility, I'll take the blame if it gets to it" he retorted adjusting the blaster, taking a breath and beginning to take slower, much more accurate, shots.

"And do you spend hours reading Temple rules or something?"

"Only sometimes..." he replied finishing his shooting as the screen popped up with his 'score' beside him along with some sort of advisory on 'blaster holding' or something "...can't make plans or play the game if you don't know the rules"

"We could be spending more time practicing with our lightsabers"

"Anakin can't, age....but apparently using blasters is hunky dory in the rules for some insane reason..."

"And pod-racing too!"

Daron snorted at the human boy's interruption "...and pod racing too not being out right banned. Likely because there's nowhere to do it in this area thankfully, but that's why we're using practice blasters. But, I came here because I developing using life skills for when I go off on my lonesome, you lot all just appeared"

"That's Skywalker's fault!" she protested, as did Tiplee from the booth on the other side as the new, bit older than normal for a proper Initiate, complained back that it wasn't.

"Now children, no blaming each other, you are here, all of you so unity is strength" Daron corrected in his 'old master' voice "...no blaming the new youngling for not being the responsible one. Anyway, my lightsaber skills are perfectly adequate thank you very much"

'Yeah, we know' she wanted to grumble back because Daron was good with a lightsaber, but he was still talking about leaving the Order after everything, despite everyone telling how silly he was being "You can still change your mind you know"

"Hey, I won't. Rules are I'm thirteen shortly and that means Agri-Corps, or one of the others for a year and then I'm off into the wild blue yonder"

"Unless you get a Master"

Daron snorted "Yeah, unless I get one of those, then I'm stuck a little bit longer, bloody stupid rules and age of majority for humanoid species and Temple views on Padawans"

Bariss glared back at him; everyone was worried about failing to get a Master and Daron was more afraid, almost pessimistically certain, he was going to get 'stuck' with one. It was weirdly unfair, but also strangely impressive the way her friend stuck to his mad desire to walk away from being a Jedi...

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[32 BBY]

[Temple District, Coruscant]

Stass Allie watched the Initiates duel beside Adi, and in truth she could understand the waste it would be to lose a promising potential fellow Jedi...but everything she had read indicated this would be a wasted effort. She glanced at Master Gallia, one of her bloodline and sighed.

"Yes, I admit there is potential there, and taking him as my padawan would be acceptable. But, having studied everything and having experience in diplomacy like you have, I must say it's very unlikely it will do more than delay leaving"

Adi nodded, hands together in the sleeves of her robes as the free for all below continued "No that I understand sadly, but delaying it till the youngling matures a little more would be best. Sending him to anywhere else will see him loophole his way out of the Temple's protection before he is ready to face the galaxy, best he experiences it under guidance first so none can take advantage of his naiveté.....and perhaps, with your encouragement, that could be changed"

Stass sighed again "Of course, of course, but don't expect miracles, only what is possible in the Force"

"Good, that is all we can ever hope for in these dark times"

She nodded in response and merely watched the fights along with the rest of the gathered Master's, Knights, and Padawans. Unusual in the sense that the free-for-all wasn't quite a free-for-all as a small cluster of four Initiates, led seemingly by her future green-skinned padawan, took down the others together. Amusing really as it wasn't, strictly speaking, against the rules but it was somewhat against the spirit as it gave them an unfair advantage...that they pressed till it was only them left. She almost chuckled at that point as the four became three against one, causing the green boy to laugh in amusement.

"Ah, you did learn. Fair dues, unity is strength"

"Take down the biggest threat together you said, sorry Daron, that's you" the Miralian girl replied gesturing to the other two as the other 'dead' Initiates cleared out of the way...

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[A short while later]

[Temple District, Coruscant]

"So, you're the new jailor of choice" greeted her in a tired but somewhat bemused voice from her new padawan as she approached him. Good control on his emotions she guessed, she'd felt the sudden spike of anger swiftly snuffed out moments after his choosing as a padawan "...couldn't you have, I dunno, chosen someone who wants too. I dislike the glares I got from certain folks"

"I would not put it that way my Padawan, guide and guardian perhaps, and if your choice is to leave when you are of age then I will not objected. Be saddened, but it is place to support you in that choice in your life. It is not for everyone, the life of a Jedi"

He smiled tiredly it seemed to her "Isn't that the truth, but I'll hold you too that....Master?"

She bowed ever so faintly hands together in the long sleeves of her robes "Stass Ali, Jedi Knight and Consular, to formally introduce myself. In these darkening days it is my role to help bring light through diplomacy, and I hope that I have much to teach you in the time we have together"

Daron the Somelite sighed "Not like I have much of choice now, do I? But, I'll do my duties to the best of my abilities"

'I'd like more, but it is a start?' she thought to herself nodding in acceptance of the not-defeated reply "And none of these...pranks I have heard of?"

A snort of amusement "I've kind of stopped that for the here and now, best to focus on learning in the time left I guess"

Stass nodded keeping up the pleasant facade "Good, let us go and get something to eat and we can better acquaint ourselves and the nature of our duties in the days to come..."

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[30 BBY]

[Freighter Sapphire Star, Onderon System]

She had her hand firmly placed on her face and resisting the headache as her padawan's voice came over the pirate ship's internal communications "Hello Pirate Scum! This is your New Captain speaking, I have control of your bridge, and my fellow Jedi the Engine Room, and have sealed it to prevent entry, and your former employer is unconscious at my feet along with the rest of the bridge crew"

Stass groaned as she heard the banging in the background of the communications suddenly, likely on the entrance to the bridge....

"That's not going to work now lads sad to say..." her padawan, who should not be where was currently, announced cheerfully "...so, new management and you! See, I have a fantastic offer for you, my glorious crew! It seems your old Captain screwed up, hence the Jedi running about on our fine ship, and the proper authorities are on their way....so, ya'll have a few minutes to get your stories straight for why it's all Captain Sleepy here's fault, and how you're all helping us brave enforcers of the law in bringing him to justice! First one to get to communicator, tell us where all his ill-gotten gains are, and let me record this gets immunity, and a share of the reward for finding the stolen loot! You have....wow, fast reaction time....a little bit, better hurry guys...."

Her padawan paused then clicked on the comms again "Oh, it looks like we might have a winner already!"

....and then pirates started killing each other she saw through the security screens here in the locked engine room...

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[29 BBY]

[Leaving Temple District, Coruscant]

It was strangely hard leaving the Temple after all these years I found as I trudged alone towards the transport that would take me to the spaceport. Sure....well, it didn't matter, new life, new things and finally a chance to study and theorise a time on my old magics without watchful Jedi stomping down on it. I already missed many of them....damn this was hard...and all I could see was the coming nightmares and them dying. Something that I just....didn't know how to deal with; not from the big picture of the Sith, to the big problem of Ani' who'd become Darth fucking Vader....

'Blame the Force' I told myself taking a drinking of energy drink before stepping onto the transport. The Force didn't like me very much, but then again it wanted the Imbalance gone, a Sith was puppeting things, and then we'd a whole Temple of space wizard lemmings who trusted the schizophrenic entity called the Force utterly, with unbending faith. Now....now I was alone, just like I wanted...and it was hard, and I dreaded all the hard days to come now from Clone Wars to the distant but deadly Vong....

'Well, depressed time over. Get ship, see if home is still there and got wandering a time' I told myself giving a shake of my head as I turned on the holo-comm in my hand on and sending the sound to my ears alone. First things first after all; my parting gift to certain folks; and a reminder why they should update their security codes from time to time.

"DANCE! NOW Shake those Hips! Yeah! Shake it, Shake it, Shake..." came to my attention as the footage of the Temple interior came into view and the holograms in the training area, the full training area, came alive with the moving figures. Damn but setting it up had been hard, certainly getting the pom-pom's on Windu's hologram, but it seemed a huge success...