Chapter 29

'What the fuck was that? It felt like... literal darkness was creeping up behind me. I need to get stronger.' Moka thought to himself as he woke up in a cold sweat. It has been a few weeks since Moka gave his speech in the hospital courtyard and made up with Emiry, and things were progressing fast.

The construction of Blackstar Temple was nearly complete, as the whole 'blade' of the palace has undergone a major change. The Temple was heavily fortified and held few blindspots, and even had a crisis bunker of sorts, as the events during the Jedi Schism left many of the Jedi worried for their safety. The Temple had many viewports, which allowed them to have constant visuals of the surroundings, as well as enjoy the view. Many hangars, security features, and facilities were added which will allow all of the Templars to prosper in luxury.

Moka even made a new sigel for the Templars, which was the 'T' shape from a Mandalorion visor, with an intricate triangle surrounding it. It was a simple design, but that was just what Moka was going for. He wanted people to be able to take even just a passing glance at the emblem and recognize the Templar Order. Moka being somewhat used to marketing as he has helped plenty with the family business, Put the emblem on anything dealing with the the Templars, but it the Blackstar Temple, their clocks and armor, hell, he made merchandise like he was running some small gift shop.

The Templars themselves have also undergone a huge change. Since his forces were so small compared to other, Moka wanted to make sure they were safe as well as performed as the best of the best. So after the Templar completed their Oath, to where they pledge loyalty to the Order and to the Mand'alor, Moka used a lot of resources to completely outfit every Templar with their own suit of black and purple Templar armor, even the Younglings. The base Templar armor was made with beskar, but those who were strong and showed great promise, Moka allowed them to make theirs purely out of the precious Kahlium.

Not only did Moka outfit them with the best armor, but weapons as well. Every Templar was required to carry both a firearm as well as a melee weapon. Templars were allowed to use any weapons at their disposal to ensure that they are prepared for every combat situation. The former Jedi were absolutely horrible shots at first, but after Rust came through to take over firearms training, they became a fierce fighting force with just blasters alone.

The first ones to fully grasp the principles of Perfect Force, were naturally Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan and a few other of the former Jedi Masters, but the next that surprised him was Emiry and Abbela, but Moka suspected that them feeling through their Force Bond may have helped them out. Never the less, with this, Moka was able to secure the first Masters of the Templar Order. The Masters and Moka quickly went to work teaching the others, and even taking on Fledglings, the Templars version of Padawan, though unlike the Jedi Order, they weren't limited to just one.

Moka also officially took on a few Fledglings, the first being naturally his adopted son, Anakin. Moka was confident that with Anakin training in Perfect Force, unless something major happened, he won't fall to the dark side and become Vader like he did in canon. The next student was a young, adorable Togruta girl who was five years younger than Anakin, named Ashoka Tano. She felt vaguely familiar to Moka, but with the force telling him she was special, he selected her.

Anakin and Ashoka immediately got along just like brother and sister, which reminded Moka of him and Jona when they were younger. Their relationship also gave him a taste of what being a father was going to be like, as he was constantly breaking up their bickering.

After about a month and half of Moka and the other Masters training, a few bright stars began to emerge, mostly among the former Jedi Knights, which in turn cemented their positions as Knights of the Templar Order. The best to emerge from the first batch of knights, was the young Zabrak that was the first to pledge loyalty to the Order, who turned out to be named, Kenn. After asking around about Kenn, Moka found out that Kenn became one of the first to become loyal to him and the Order, thanks to Moka saving his little sister, Kessa, who was one of the Younglings missing limbs that Moka bought prosthetics for.

Hearing this, Moka decided on having Kenn join Dragon Squad, since Emiry can no longer be in it due to her duties as a new Master of the Order. Abbela also would've become a Master teaching others, but she is far along on her pregnancy, very quickly catching up to the soon to burst Shmi. Very soon, Moka would become a father and he was both excited and terrified.

Another thing that managed to sneak up on Moka during this crazy time of building the Order, was that his birthday a week and a half away. Seeing that his birthday and subsequently his wedding were so soon, Moka figured it was time he finally meet his future bride and bring Clan Awaud under his banner.

Sitting in the Tempest, Moka looked back to see Dragon Squad, Roz, and his Fledglings strapped in and ready to go to Mandalore. Clan Awaud is based on the planet Vlemoth Port, and pretty much run and own the planet, but it is also located in Hutt Space. So to avoid any nasty surprises in Hutt Space, or any awkward moments with the girls in Blackstar Palace, the two parties agreed that meeting on the homeworld would be best.

Since Kahlua was a moon of Mandalore, it only took a few short hours for the Tempest to break through orbit and hover just over the capital, Keldabe, and the 100 meter tower of Mandelmoters was the sign to everyone that they made it. Turning off the cloaking as they land at Keldabe Spaceport, Moka enjoyed the scenery of the bustling streets. Keldabe was the capital and cultural hub of Mandalore, so many different people filled the streets as Moka and the gang headed to the infamous Oyu'boat, as Moka gazed at the different buildings, some made with Durasteel, while some buildings were just wood.

The Oyu'boat was a large tavern that has been around for as long as Keldabe has, becoming an important place where foreign dignitaries and Clan leaders come to meet, hence why they were there. Walking into the tavern, Moka and the others, immediately received a few stares in the packed bar, but chose to ignore it and keep walking. Moka was well known in most of the galaxy, so it was obvious that someone so influential would be recognized on his peoples own homeworld.

As they got deeper into the tavern, Roz stepped forward and began waving in a certain direction. "Nam, we're here!" Roz said as she walked faster towards a group of Mandos with blood red armor, two of them immediately catching Moka's attention.

The first was the Mando that Roz was hugging in a questionably friendly manner that made Moka suspicious of their "friendship". Roz was currently not in her full armor thanks to her large belly bump, so she was doing her best to be careful.

The Mando named, Nam, that Roz hugged was a large man, slightly taller than even Moka and Rust. He was around his mid to late thirties and had tanned skin and black hair with flecks of Grey, tied in a ponytail. Unlike most Mandalorions, Nam has foregone wearing full armor, only sporting a bracer that covered his shoulders and collar bone, thick red gauntlets that went up to his forearms, and of course his traditional helmet. Scars were littered all over his body, that showed that the man was clearly battle-hardened.

The other one was a shorter Mando with clearly female features. Unlike Nam, she wore full armor that was painted the same blood red, but accented with light purple and gold. She was still wearing her helmet, so Moka couldn't see her face, but the large Mandalorion axe on her back that was covered in scratches, told him that she too was battle-hardened as well, like all of Clan Awaud were famed to be. If the man was named Nam, the Chieftain of Clan Awaud, the only female Mando in the group had to be none other than his future bride, Vera Beroya.

As they got closer, Moka was shocked to find that Vera was force-sensative and clearly strong in the force. But, what left him stunned is how strong their connection through the force was, as he hadn't felt that sensation since Emiry and Abbela, and thought he never would. 'What are the fucking chances?' Moka asked himself.

As if she felt something, Vera turned to look straight at Moka, tilting her head in confusion. "What is this? What did you do to me?" Vera asked Moka pointedly, her choice of words causing her Clan to go slightly on edge, forcing Dragon Squad to respond in kind.

Seeing the situation break down, Moka let out a heavy sigh, wondering why Mandalorions were always so on edge. "I didn't do anything, it seems as though you are force-sensative, and you and I have a somewhat strong connection. I'm Moka, Moka Kahl, King of Kahlua" he said, holding his hand out for a handshake, but felt immediately embarrassed. 'A handshake? Seriously? I mean, what is honestly the best way to greet your wife you've never met?! ' Moka thought to himself.

Luckily for him, Vera shook his hand, the connection between them growing even stronger as their hands touched. "Vera Beroya, Heiress to Clan Awaud, and I guess possible future queen of Kahlua. Huh, feels kind of weird to say out loud." said Vera as she turned and sat in an open both nearby.

"Trust me I know what you mean, but eh, you get used to it. Now, the hardest thing to get used to is-" Moka said as he joined her in the both, and the two began talking at length about random topics.

Seeing the two get along so well that they completely forgot about everyone else's presence, everyone wore a wry smile as they eased away and slowly left the tavern, leaving the future married couple alone to get to know each other better.

Once they were all out of the bar, Roz turned to Nam wearing a smug grin. "See, I told you those two would be perfect together! We could probably have the wedding right now with the chemistry those two had!" Roz said, excited about Moka getting along with his future wife.

Nam wore a tired smile and slowly shook his head. "Ay, they remind me of how me and you used to be not too long ago." Nam said as he stepped closer to Roz, until she stopped him with a soft hand on his chest.

"Nam, please don't do this. You know I had to leave in order to take care of Moka after those damned Jedi failed us again. I'm all he had, Nam. And plus, now I am pregnant and engaged to be married..." Roz said before her voice trailed off.

"Yeah, to a man I heard some call shifty and reminded them of a snake. Not only is he not a warrior, I hear he has already gotten on Moka's bad side, and that even he is against it. Just because you may carry his child, doesn't mean-" Nam said before he was cut off by Roz putting a hand over his mouth.

"You know, for a big brooding warrior, you talk to much. Enough of this conversation. Let's go get our accomodations together so that we can finish planning the wedding. Dragon Squad, you follow me too. Moka and Vera will be fine on their own." Roz said as she quickly walked off down the street.

Nam let out a heavy sigh as he followed close behind Roz with his crew behind him. Meanwhile, Dragon Squad followed awkwardly behind them, as they all felt as though they just heard a big secret they weren't supposed to know. Only Rust, who was once apart of Roz's crew knew the true significance of what just occurred.

Hours go by, as Moka and Vera got closer and closer to each other. Though a Force Bond hadn't formed yet, Moka already felt connected to Vera on a deeper level, as if he has known her his whole life. Moka was worried that Vera might disapprove of his past and soon to be born children, but to his pleasant surprise, she completely accepted him and the situation he was in.

To Vera, whatever Moka did before they got married was none of her business, but once they swore their oaths to each other, if he cheated on her, she promised to feed him his own genitals. Moka had heard many threats before, but when he heard Vera say that, his nuts immediately shrank and tried to hide in his body.

As the two were talking, suddenly loud explosions outside of the tavern broke the conversation. Before they could fully process what was happening, Moka jumped over the table, pulling Vera into his arms, covering her with his body. Vera was slightly panicked and about to ask what Moka was doing, but the next second, the whole building was rocked as a large chunk of the building was tore apart.

Once the dust began to settle, sounds of blasters, explosions and screams filled not only the tavern, but the streets of Keldabe. Moka barely looked up from Vera before he quickly pulled his custom blaster and fired a few shots into the lingering cloud of dust, the thuds that came after telling Moka his shots were true. Vera felt as though her mind was in a whirlwind, as things turned to chaos before she even knew what happened. All she knew was that Moka, the man she would soon be married to, more than likely just saved her life.

Standing quickly, and helping Vera to her feet as well, Moka looked her over to make sure she was okay. "V, are you okay? Are you hurt any where? I can carry you if I have to, but we need to move, fast!" Moka said as he quickly scanned the surroundings.

Unfortunately, most of the patrons were not as fortunate to have near indestructible armor like Moka, so all of them were either dead or heavily injured. The thought that this was an ambush immediately entered Moka's mind. Between the stares he got, and the quick escalation of chaos, it was clear to Moka, someone clearly wanted him dead.

The only question Moka couldn't figure out was, who the hell had the balls to pull something like this off?