//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Force of Wills: A Duel of Fates Story // by Shadowsnake89 //------------------------------// Having received their assignment, Jedi Knight Tempest Shadow and her new padawan, Roseluck headed toward the landing pad of the temple to proceed. “Master, I know we were instructed to travel incognito, but are you sure you trust this...pilot to get us there in one piece?” The two looked ahead as they spotted the crimson painted ship, which Rose identified as a YV-545 freighter, that would ferry them to their destination. Outside a young humanoid male with slightly tanned skin and spiked orange hair on his head stood outside the vessel as several of the landing pad workers loaded cargo into the ship. His attire was what one might expect from a freighter captain; A red jacket over a plain white shirt, loose black pants and a pair of dark brown boots that were halfway to the knee. “Come on, come on,” he complained. “I don't want to be here any longer than I have to.” He noticed a purple and green astromech droid attempting to plug itself into his ship and gave it a good kick as it spun sideways. “Don't even think about it, junk pile.” The small droid opened a compartment on it's head and shocked the man with a taser to the leg. “Ah! Why you little...” Tempest's chuckles as she approached broke up the minor scuffle. “You'll have to forgive Spike. He has a knack for exploration.” Rose looked the rather scruffy looking spacer over before speaking. “I take it this is your ship?” “Yep. Captain Garble at your service.” He extended a grease covered hand to the young lady, who hesitantly shook it. “Don't let her looks fool you. The Shock Jackal is one of the finest ships out there.” He tapped the hull of the ship as a panel came loose and he hurriedly tried to fix it. “I feel so assured.” Rose said sarcastically as she and Tempest boarded the vessel. Garble soon came aboard himself once everything was loaded up and he joined the two Jedi in the small cockpit of the ship. “Alright, ladies. Let's get this show on the road.” He cracked his fingers and firmly locked them around the ships controls as the crew on the loading docks got clear and the vessel was soon on it's way out of the planet's atmosphere. Once the vessel was clear, they made the jump to hyperspace. “Well, think I'll call it a night.” Garble stretched in his seat before spinning around and getting up. “But we just got started.” Rose stated as she watched him head to the doorway. “That's why the auto-pilot was invented. Shouldn't take more than a day or so to get there. You two can have cabins two and four. I'll be in my private quarters. And no peeking.” He flexed his arms as he made the final statement. Rose rolled her eyes as she sat back. “Don't flatter yourself. Just make sure this rust bucket gets us there in one piece.” “Don't worry about it, doll,” he winked at her before departing. “I'm the best there is.” “Gross. How do you know him again?” The red haired girl turned to her master who had been silent throughout the entire exchange. “A few months before I found you I was on a mission on Onderon when I came upon him. The poor thing had involved himself in a weapons deal gone wrong. The buyers had decided to save a few credits by cutting out the middle man and Garble was on the chopping block. After all the fighting was done, he said he owed me if I ever needed anything and here we are. I know Garble can be...infuriating at times but I don't fault him for that. He's had a difficult go of things.” Without elaborating further, Tempest arose from her seat and headed out as well. “I'll take cabin two if you don't mind.” “Yes, master.” The padawan eventually got up herself and made her way out to the hall. “This ship is filthy. Which way is it again?” She whispered as she attempted to navigate the ship, maneuvering around the many crates and barrels that littered the halls. After a few moments she spotted light coming from an open door and moved toward it. Peeking in she saw that she'd found the wrong room and caught sight of the captain of the ship, his back turned to her as he removed his shirt revealing his muscled back. Rose found herself blushing slightly before she noticed two large, jagged scars that ran vertically on either of his shoulder blades. At that moment Garble froze and in the blink of an eye turned to the doorway. Luckily for Rose, her Jedi reflexes kicked in and she vaulted to the ceiling, supporting herself between two beams. The freighter captain peered out into the hall and looked around to find the halls empty. He then stuck out a forked tongue, seemingly smelling something before he shot his head upward only to find nothing there either. He grunted before heading back in and shutting the door. Back in her room, Rose breathed a sigh of relief as she had narrowly avoided being seen. She flopped on the lone bed of the room and put her hands over her face. “I can't believe it. He's hot!” she kept her words muffled under a pillow as she shut the lights out and went to sleep. The remainder of the trip was without incident as the ship soon reached it's location the next day. Rose and Tempest emerged from their rooms and met on their way to the bridge. “Morning, master. Sleep well?” “Not very, I'm afraid. I've never been quite comfortable sleeping among the stars but it's only a short voyage so not much to worry about I suppose. There will be time to rest once we're planet side.” “Morning, ladies.” Garble greeted the two as he faced the controls. Rose entered the room and kept her distance, sticking close to the entryway. After the incident that had transpired, Rose made every effort to avoid the reptilian being, which had not gone unnoticed by her master, who merely chuckled at the girl's awkward behavior. “You'll be happy to know we've just arrived. Welcome to Kentoph.” The ship approached the planet but found a fleet of about two dozen ships orbiting it. “Unidentified vessel, you are in restricted space. Slow your speed and identify yourself immediately or be fired upon.” A voice said over the com channel. Rose and Garble were both a bit nervous as several of the vessels began to train their guns on the small freighter. “Allow me.” Tempest stepped forward and placed a hand on the console. “This is Phantom-1, requesting approach vector to the capital.” After a rather tense moment of waiting, the voice answered back. “Identity confirmed. Welcome. Please conform to the transmitted vectors and to the approved landing pad.” Garble sat back and looked impressed by what had just happened as the guns that had been trained on them moments before had went back to their original positions. “Well that's an unexpected surprise. Let's hope there aren't any more.” “Scared?” Rose chided with a smirk. “Pfft, as if.” Soon the ship had entered the atmosphere of the world below and entered the designated docking bay. The ship touched down as the docking crew walked onto the pad. “Alright ladies, here we are. Just call me when you're done. I'll be here when you're ready to leave.” “Thank you, Garble. I doubt this will be long.” Tempest patted him on the back and she and Rose left the cockpit and exited the ship from the now down ramp. The two are greeted by two mean in white and gold silk robes. The mean bow briefly before addressing them. “Master Shadow, we're honored you have decided to grace our world with your presence.” “The honor is all ours.” Tempest bowed in kind as Rose followed suit. “I take it Pharaoh Hisan is awaiting our arrival.” A confirming nod from the escorts answered her question and the group were soon on their way by shuttle to the large capital city. While Tempest stood with a quiet composure that became her, Rose couldn't help but take in the wonder that was the capital in all it's resplendent glory. She stopped once she turned to see her master's calm demeanor and assume a similar pose. “We are here.” The guides said as the shuttle touched down on a landing pad on the massive palace that acted as the seat of government for the world. They were led directly to the throne room where Hisan himself, dressed in military regalia, waited while a woman with light velvet skin and similar attire stood beside him. He arose from his seat and held his arms out toward the new arrivals. “Ah, greetings to you Master Jedi.” He descended from the throne as Tempest and Rose both dropped to one knee and lowered there heads. “Blessed be you, Pharaoh Hisan.” Tempest said with a humble voice. “Arise my friends.” The pharaoh offered a hand to her to help her up. “I am honored that the council saw fit to send you in these desperate times.” “The Jedi Council, as representatives of the Republic have sent us to help assess the situation to determine the proper course of action to best resolve the matter.” “You mean find an excuse to interfere with our business and roll over us if necessary.” The woman who stood next to the throne commented as she approached. Hisan took a step back to introduce her. “I'd like you to meet my queen, Sunny Flare.” “I'm also his chief military adviser. A pleasure to see you again, Master Shadow. And you would be?” Rose quickly gave a light bow. “Padawan Roseluck at your service.” As they talked, two aids arrived in the room. “My lord, we apologize for the intrusion but your presence is requested for the festival preparations.” “Of course,” Hisan turned to the two Jedi. “I must apologize but I must take my leave for now. So many things to be done. Flare will fill you in and provide you with everything that you need. Farewell and may the force be with you.” He gave a slight bow of his head before he turned and left with his aids. Rose noticed a slight roll of the eyes from Sunny as she addressed them. “Follow me, ladies.” She led them down a hall as she began to explain their visit. “I understand that the rebellion in the southern sector of our planet has caused no end of concern for your Republic.” “The facilities in those sectors are of keen interest to the Republic. It provides key raw materials for ship yards. We are simply here to negotiate a peace between your factions.” Tempest explained. “That's funny because from what my sources tell me, your senate is planning a coup to get it's hands on our resources for a fraction of what we charge for them.” Sunny never turned her face to the Jedi as they continued down the hall. “That...would indeed be news to me.” “Understand, Master Jedi, calling for your Council's intervention was Hisan's idea, wholly. But I chose you specifically out of all the members of the Order because of your connection to this world.” This comment caused a bit of confusion with Rose as she realized she was falling behind and picked up her pace as Sunny Flare continued. “That being said, I'll need some assurance of the Jedi Order's goodwill in this matter.” “We'll do whatever we can to make ourselves of service to you.” Rose spoke up, soliciting a smile and a brief chuckle from Flare. “Eager, I like that. I have some tasks that need doing and only a small time frame for them to be achieved. To that end, I'll need you to choose one to undertake to prove yourselves. First and foremost, the Celestial Knights touched down here a few days ago.” “Celestial Knights?” Rose asked as Tempest turned to her. “A group of force sensitives that search the galaxy to destroy the dark side wherever it exists. They are staunchly opposed to the Jedi and our teachings. They believe force should always be used first to solve situations.” “Despite their aggressive nature, I've had good dealings with them in the past. If they arrive somewhere, there is usually a very big problem so I convinced Hisan to let them be for the time being. I know your groups don't see eye to eye but them being here is a concern. If you could facilitate communication with them to find out anything about their purpose here it would be appreciated.” “Hmm,” Master Shadow had a bit of hesitation in her voice. “That could prove to be rather problematic. You mentioned another task.” “Indeed. This may prove to be a little closer to home, I'm afraid. As you know, many tribes dot the planet's landscape. In light of the rebellion, I convinced our military to recruit many of them to our side through various provisions. It seemed to be an effective means of keeping them out of the larger conflict. Unfortunately, we've had an unfortunate incident between two of the tribes I believe you are quite familiar with: The Changeling and Zebra clans.” “Very, I'm afraid.” The Jedi Master answered as the queen continued. “These two clans have been in constant conflict up until recent times. With the death of their ruler, Chrysalis, the Changeling Tribe splintered into two factions, one led by her daughter, Pincer and the other led by a tribal named Thorax. Pincer and her faction have joined the rebels while Thorax sought out a peaceful coexistence with their neighbors. They came for peace talks and the tribes we gathered agreed to stand with us if the rebels should take action against any one of them.” “I'm sure there is more to it than that.” “You'd be correct. We also asked that they set aside any past frictions they might have had. Looking back, that might have been a tall order. Still, many of them kept to it. But the Zebra clan has not. Their war chief has attacked Thorax's tribe without relent. I've done what I've could to try and settle things but...” “The blood between the two tribes runs much deeper than many know. That may not be a rift anyone can fix, I fear.” “So it would seem. But if I can't stop the attacks then many of the other tribes may question this alliance and go back to fighting or worse, turn to the rebels. I can give you some time to think this over. As I said before, the choice is yours. I'll provide you with my own personal transport with my best pilots to get you where you need to go. They have the coordinates to the clan's new main camp as well as to the last sight of the Celestial Knights.” She gestured to one of the doors in front of them. “These will be your quarters for the duration of your stay. When you're ready to depart there is a communicator inside. Good fortune to you, Jedi.” She bowed before turning and leaving. Rose and Tempest entered the lavishly decorated room and looked around as Rose spun in awe at her new surroundings. Tempest, for her part, immediately sat on her bad, crossed her legs and began to meditate. Her apprentice stood by for a long time and waited for her to come out of her trance. Eventually Rose decided to get some sleep and laid in the large, soft bed provided her. Sometime later she was awoken. “Master? What is it?” “Come, it's time to depart.” She only spoke briefly as the two gathered what they needed and headed toward the palace hanger bay. Any questions Rose may have had, she kept them to herself as Tempest had a rather grim look on her face. The two were silent until they arrived at the large hanger and walked to the heavily modified gunship that was being prepped for takeoff. The two were greeted by two pilots who saluted them, one a woman with cloud white skin and hair and the other a man with blue skin and short cut green hair. “Ma'am, Captain Vapor Trail at your service. This is my co-pilot, Sky Stinger. We're ready to take you wherever you need to go. Just say the word and we'll have you there.” “Very good. Load up.” Was all Tempest said as she and Rose boarded the craft and the ground crew finished the preparations.