Destiny Eclipse/Chapter IX

-- 6 ABY --

Lorta – Medical Centre
As Xander opened his eyes shakily, all he could make out were foggy shapes, and what looked like a woman leaning over him, a concerned expression on her face.

“Mum?” He asked groggily as he tried to sit up and look around.

“He’s still in shock,” the woman said, pushing him back down, and turning away to address someone else, “He thinks I’m his mother. Did the prosthetic surgery go as planned?”

That caught Xander’s attention. His eyes snapped open, able to see fine as he sat up again. “Prosthetic? Me? What happened?”

The woman turned back, “The Sith invaded Lorta, the Force knows why, and you and your friend were caught up in it. I managed to save you before one of them killed you, but your entire left arm was lost.”

“Jysek? What happened to him?” Xander asked, glancing around, hoping to catch Jysek napping in another bed, ready to leap up and go on another adventure. With shock he remembered his last memories, Jysek’s disarmament, the ease with which a mere boy had defeated him, and the power Jysek had faced.

The lady bit her lip, looking saddened by the question. “I managed to beat off the Sith and force them to retreat, and Koras destroyed a large portion of their fleet. They won’t bother Lorta for a while.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” Xander said, with a sinking feeling, knowing all too well now what had happened, but needing to hear it.

“Son – what’s your name?”

“Xander.”

“Xander, you survived the attack with vicious wounds, after fighting a Sith Apprentice. Your friend fought a Sith Lord, specially trained in combat fighting. He had no chance. I’m sorry, I did all I could, but he died of grievous injuries in my hands,” she said, turning away as Xander’s bottom lip trembled, as if to give him the dignity of shedding tears with no one to witness the lapse.

“Life goes on. He’s now at peace with himself and the Force,” Xander said softly, repeating the saying his mother had taught him from an early age.

The woman stiffened visibly in the chair, and Xander could feel, even without any use of the Force, her sudden curiosity. “That’s a Jedi saying. How do you know it?”

“My mother was a Jedi. Before I left home, she revealed it to my father and me. I haven’t seem them in a year,” Xander said, letting his head droop.

“My name is Asil Leikane, I am a Jedi Master at a Jedi Academy. If you come with me, I could train you to be a Jedi,” Asil said, under her breath, even though they were alone in the room. “Tell me, what was your mother’s full name? And your father’s?”

“Lysa Sornfree and Korto Vos. Why?” Xander said, feeling a confusion of emotions: immense sadness at his friend’s death, coupled with grief, but also a sense of excitement at the prospect of being a Jedi.

“Sornfree? Vos? They were two of the most famous Jedi of the Old Republic. Sornfree perhaps only amongst the Jedi survivors as a common Jedi who had gone missing to the Clones, but Vos, Quinlan Vos, he was a Jedi Master, a powerful Kiffar Jedi. I assume Korto is his son?”

“Yes, Quinlan was my Grand Father. Are you really a Jedi? Could you train me?” Xander asked, holding his breath in anticipation of the bitter disappointment, that he was almost sure was to come.

“Yes, there is a secret Order on Bakura. I will need to be sure you are Force Sensitive, and then you will need to understand how secretive our Order is. But, of course, we will explain all our laws when you arrive.”

Asil closed her eyes, reaching out in the Force to probe Xander’s presence, “Now,” she said, her eyes closed, “Try to use the Force and expand your presence as much as you can. Basically tense all your muscles and make yourself as big as possible physically, and it should be repeated mentally. Over time you will be able to do it with no physical movements, but only after training.”

“Alright, I’ll try,” Xander said, nodding. He closed his eyes, and followed the instructions Asil had said.

Suddenly Asil gasped, her eyes flying open, “Such power... I had expected much from the son of two powerful Jedi, but this. This rivals many of the Jedi Knights in our Order, and this is unbridled, no training. You will get stronger in time, and that would make you a powerful ally, or a bitter enemy. Let me take you to the temple, give you training, and help you grow in the Force.”

“I would like nothing more than that,” Xander said, “Thank you Asil, this means the world to me, following in the footsteps of my Grand Father and mother.”

“Your perfectly welcome,” Asil said, smiling, “Call me Shatterpoint, everyone does.”

“Ok,” Xander said, struggling to smile, knowing it would be a while before he would ever be able to feel happiness again, “Thank you Shatterpoint.”

“I’ll let you say your fare wells to your friend, and then you can meet me at my ship in Docking Bay 347, he’s in the room downstairs, ask at the desk. The doctors have declared that you’re perfectly fine, so we can leave as soon as you’re ready,” Shatterpoint said, rising and placing a comforting hand on Xander’s shoulder before leaving him.

Xander stared at the wall for a few minutes, finally letting the tears flow. Jysek had been his friend for more than half his life. They had been here merely on a repair objective. Everything had happened so fast, and now he was gone. Gone forever. At least, as his mother had always said, he was now at peace in the Force, and Xander was thankful of that.

He rose, pulling on a shirt hanging on the rack, and a pair of pants, and his boots that rested by the foot of the bed. He holstered the blaster that his father had given to him, and he had used at Black Haven’s main base.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped out of his room and on to face his destiny.

Lorta – Docking Bay 347
Shatterpoint sat in her ship, meditating on the startling discovery she had made almost by accident. Xander Vos was powerful in the Force, that was for sure, but it was raw talent, and that could prove fatal in his training as it had for so many padawans in the distant past.

He was the son of a Jedi Knight, and the grand son of a Jedi Master, and his power was greater than even Quinlan Vos’ that was for certain, but something was not right in him, and Shatterpoint was worried about it.

Perhaps it was just that his friend had died so suddenly and cruelly, yet another name added to the list of victims to Sith atrocities. Shatterpoint shook her head sadly. The Sith had for long been dormant on their throne world of Kroprulu, but recently they had become much more aggressive and violent. They had to be stopped.

Xander didn’t have the taint of the Dark Side, which she had initially feared because of his battle with the Sith and the death of his friend, but he wasn’t steeped in the light either. He had the feel of one who had joined the Grey Order, although she knew that was impossible. However, he did have some Force techniques, and had demonstrated the ability to expose himself to the Force, so Shatterpoint did wonder.

She moved to push the button that would extend the ramp, as she felt Xander’s presence enter the docking bay, before standing and moving into the pilot’s chair. A few minutes later, she heard Xander behind her, enter the cockpit as well, and sit down heavily in the co-pilot’s chair.

“Where is the Order again?” Xander said, clearly having forgotten, or not having absorbed it after the news of his friend’s death.

“Bakura, so its not far away,” Shatterpoint answered, keying in a request for lift off.

“Bakura...” Xander said thoughtfully, “It’s almost as if the Force wanted me to go there.”

“Why do you say that?” Shatterpoint asked, lifting off as the light on the console blinked green.

“Jysek-“ Xander stopped, swallowing hard, “Jysek and I were trying to take out Black Haven, which took us to Kinyen, and then from there to Lorta, which, if you take into account our starting on Tatooine, has moved us closer and closer to Bakura.”

“What did you say? You took on Black Haven?”

“Yeah,” Xander said, smiling ruefully, “It didn’t turn out too well, they captured us and forced us to work for them. We only just escaped before someone managed to defeat them for us.”

“Vikro...” Shatterpoint murmured, deep in thought.

“What did you say?” Xander asked curiously.

“Nothing, never mind,” Shatterpoint said, moving the ship into position, before easing the Hyperspace lever back, sending them hurtling into Hyperspace. “Get some rest, you’ve had a rough journey.”