Star Wars: Rise of the Battlemage

Ahsoka and I spent the rest of the night together under the stars, watching the river. We talked a bit about the future, about her desire to rebuild, to create something from the ashes of the Jedi Order, and my desire to continue growing the Skyforged. There was an obvious synergy between our two goals, and while only time would tell if that would continue, I was happy to share the journey with her.

Eventually, we retired to the captain's cabin to sleep. Nothing further happened beyond a few, well, quite a few kisses, but that didn't bother me in the slightest. Spending the night in each other's arms, finally being honest with the draw that we both felt towards each other, would stick with me for the rest of my life.

It felt like... Like breathing again after being submerged under water, far past the point that my lungs began to burn. It felt like finally taking a sip of cold, clear water after walking through a long, endless desert. It was hard not to want more than just that sip, but I needed to be careful. There was a reason I held back for so long, after all.

It wasn't that Ahsoka was particularly fragile or that I believed she couldn't handle herself. She was a badass and had been for a while, and I looked forward to that continuing and even improving as we worked together. She could handle herself. I didn't need or want to treat her like spun glass.

The problem was that Ahsoka had spent her entire young life being told that love and attachments were dangerous. That she was supposed to be above feelings of love and lust. And then, when she left that life behind, she had all but doubled down on it, enveloping herself in her old teaching as a refuge against the storm of tragedy that followed the Clone Wars. She clung to her teachings, separating herself from her own emotions and resisting the urge to form connections.

And here I was, making her, hopefully, feel all those things and more. I wasn't stupid or blind after all. I knew we were getting closer, and I certainly knew I had feelings for her. But patience had been the name of the game, giving her time to grow, feel what she needed, and adapt to choose what she wanted. I had desperately hoped she would open up and, of course, realize how damaging and wrong the old Jedi teachings were. But, even if she hadn't, if she had decided to stick to the rigorous, inhumane teachings of the old Jedi order, then I would have had to move on.

Taking it so slowly had been challenging, especially while spending so much time with her, knowing she was interested but also knowing she needed time. Watching her finally open up, finally begin to realize how toxic her old teachings had been...

When we returned to the Chariot to sleep, she was apologetic, mostly for not saying something sooner and for keeping me waiting. I wasn't surprised she knew about my feelings, considering the empathic abilities of a Force user. I assured her as best as I could that it was okay and that no matter what, we would always go at the speed that she felt safe and ready for. As long as she was with me, I was happy to wait and help as much as I could. She understood, promising that she wanted to be with me. She wanted to see where our connection led to and what the future held for both of us, together.

Waking up with her head on my chest had been an experience, one that seemed to heal a part of me that I hadn't realized was broken. It was going to be interesting, maybe even challenging, but I was more than excited to learn and grow with her.

Of course, all of those happy butterflies I felt when she slowly woke up, turning her head upward to give me a smile, did not mean we could stay in bed forever. We were technically on a mission, which meant getting up and out of bed at a reasonable hour. It also meant dealing with the friendly ribbing of the crew when we finally left my cabin.

We stepped out to the sound of trumpets playing, and a holoprojector leaned against the wall playing fireworks. Each little explosion of light revealed words like "Finally!" and "Took you long enough!" The sounds of the trumpets must have alerted everyone that we had left my room because, after a few moments, Tatnia, Julus, and Camila all stepped into the hall from the lounge, clapping and cheering.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," I said, my arm around Ahsoka's waist, giving rather pointed looks at Julus and Tatnia. "We didn't give you this kind of crap when you guys went public."

"Yeah, but neither of us is the boss," Tatnia responded with a teasing smirk. "Besides, we didn't do the holoprojector. That was Luke and Miru. They prepared that weeks ago for when you finally got together."

"Damn…We're gonna have to get them back for that," I said, shaking my head.

"As if either of them can point fingers," Ahsoka added, shaking her head.

"What?" I asked, looking at her with confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Of course, you didn't notice. Luke is just over three years older, but they clearly get along pretty well," Tatnia pointed out before Ahsoka could explain. "Give it a few more years for Miru to grow up, and for them to realize what's going on, they will be an item."

"Huh… I'm gonna need a shovel."

"That sounded colloquial, but I know that tone," Ahsoka said, biting back a smile. "Don't be mean."

"No promises."

We laughed, and Tatnia revealed that they had made a real breakfast, an apology for making fun of us. It was simple food, but the fact that it was made fresh and shared with friends easily made up for it. When we were finished, it was time to start the day.

When we got down to the first deck, the Mandalorians were already preparing to leave, armored up and packing some supplies onto a few speeder bikes. They were determined to explore the deep forest of the world, wanting to get a feel for their potential home. Or at least, that's what I was guessing. Corvak simply stated that they wanted to hunt, but I saw an eagerness in his eyes that told me it was more than that.

Mandalore had been a husk of a planet for a long time, long before the Empire bombed the world flat. To suddenly have access to a rich, vibrant world, with an invite to live there... It must have seemed tempting.

I did my best not to seem smug about it.

Either way, I was fine with them going off and doing their own thing, as long as they stayed in contact, though that that was more for their safety than anything. Not only were they my guests, meaning I had no intention of putting them to work, but any exploration they did around the mesa would only benefit us in the long term. The Jedi had done some scans and some exploration around the immediate area, but we were still woefully ignorant of the thick, primal jungle that surrounded us.

That was why, after everything was offloaded, I had the Loyal Hound flying around at low altitude, running some deep scans to build a much more complete map. It was also why a few semi-portable sensors had been included in the equipment delivery. The more we knew about Nirn, the better.

Eventually, when the labor droids were all set up and working on another temporary home, Ahsoka gathered Amescoll and his Padawans, inviting them into the lounge of the Chariot. Julus and Tatnia were out walking the perimeter, mainly as an excuse for some alone time, while Calima was reading in her bunk room.

"As we said, the mission to Grakkus's palace was a success," Ahsoka explained, addressing Amescoll. "We were able to recover a multitude of lightsabers, thirteen holocrons, and several other personal items. We also found a few ancient Jedi texts. They are still inside their specially sealed containers, mostly because I am worried about what might happen if we take them out."

That got some clapping, and congratulations. I know that Ahsoka had already mentioned the remains to Amescoll, who had solemnly taken them to be taken care of.

"That is good news," Amescoll said with a smile. "The idea of our ancestors' holocrons sitting in his vault… I must say it did not sit well after I learned the truth."

"It didn't with any of us," She said, shaking her head. "With the holocrons uncovered, I thought it best that a few of them stayed here so that they could be used by the Padawans and younglings. I know you are here, Amescoll, but…"

"Nonsense, I wholeheartedly agree," The older man said with a smile. "While I enjoy teaching my Padawans, there is much I do not know. I would suggest, however, that instead of assigning a holocron to each student, they be passed around frequently and be used in groups of three or more."

"Why?" Ahsoka asked. "I agree, but I'm curious about your reasoning."

"Because I don't want them to lose who they are," Amescoll admitted with a shrug. "The masters would have had many issues with what we are doing now, including how we have structured ourselves and how we plan to continue to push who we are as Force-sensitives. I don't want any of the older Masters to pressure my Padawans into compliance in exchange for teachings."

"You're thinking in a similar direction as I was, but Deacon also made a fair point as well," she said, looking over at me and gesturing for me to take the floor.

"Well… just because someone made a holocron that looks like it was made by a sane Jedi, doesn't actually mean that's the case," I explained with a frown. "There is a non-zero chance that any holocron you find, if you don't already know the creator, could be made by someone who was or already had fallen to the dark side. If you use them together, it will be easier to identify if you stumbled on a bad egg."

"That… makes a disturbing amount of sense," The older Jedi admitted with a frown. "Have you examined any of these holocrons already?"

"I have talked with a few, including the three I brought with me to leave here," She explained. "But holocrons are capable of lying and pretending, so without using them…"

"There is no way to know," He said, shaking his head. "Well, hopefully, we can mitigate this admittedly unlikely but still dangerous problem with ample warnings and by using them together. What do you plan on doing with the other ten holocrons?"

"I plan on keeping them on Omega Station for safe-keeping," The orange-skinned Togurta explained. "Once this settlement has stabilized and we have some proper structures in place, I will bring the rest here."

"Would it not be smart to spread them out?" One of the Padawans, the male Twi'lek, asked. "So that their teachings could be recovered if the worst happens?"

"There will be other holocrons and teachings," I assured them. "Jedi have been making and hiding them for a long time. There are caches of Jedi knowledge all over the galaxy. When things calm down and we are in a place to fully invest in the next step, I promise I will help you find as many as we can. Until then…"

"We are better off focusing on more important things," Amescoll agreed. "We have our teachings, and we have the Force. Everything else is secondary."

While some of the Padawans were eager to delve into the holocrons, Amescoll was determined to discuss what exactly our plan was. While he insisted he wasn't the leader of whatever came next, he was more than happy to pick up the slack until one person, or several, stood up to the plate.

"Once the proper construction equipment arrives, it will take time to train and get used to it," I pointed out. "We also have to have some sort of plan before we can start plopping down buildings. Trust me, a city without proper planning is only going to cause issues."

"We need an expert," Ahsoka added. "To design buildings and to plan the city."

"You sure we can't just copy and paste a different design?" I asked with a wince. "Maybe we could buy the plans for Solinda?"

Everyone chuckled at the suggestion, and I resigned myself to hiring another person. The new person wasn't really a problem anyway. It was letting an unknown into our midst, letting them learn about the city and about us, only to let them walk around. At least I had a pretty firm grasp of what Corvak and his people were like before inviting them.

"Alright, we can start looking for some sort of city planner with experience," I said. "I'll comms Nal that he has a new task. With any luck, he could find someone suitable before we even get home."

We continued to talk about some of the ideas for the city, and I was happy to hear Amescoll sticking to his guns about not repeating the mistakes of the old Jedi Order. I suggested some sort of Jedi dorm or gathering area, and he shook his head.

"I would actually prefer if we spread our homes, future and current, all across the mesa," He explained. "I envision Jedi living next to families, making friends with neighbors, helping and being a part of the growing community. We could have a central repository for knowledge, maybe even a museum or memorial, something to serve as a hub, but that's it. I would even say that we spread out meditation spaces all across the mesa, letting the city grow around them. We could treat them like public parks, with sound-dampening to make it a calm refuge for everyone."

I once again thanked my lucky stars that Amescoll had been so agreeable and understanding of what the Jedi order needed to be. I promised him that as long as I was in charge, and even after that, assuming whoever took over for me was willing to listen, the Jedi and the citizens of Nirn would live together as equals.

Of course, that then led to the conversation that I had named the planet Nirn because I was tired of calling it the ancient Jedi planet, or some variation thereof. Amescoll laughed, agreed it was as good a name as any, and happily agreed that they would name the city on the mesa, just to make things even.

I told him he was welcome to, but to not take too long, since more people would be moving in soon, and any one of them could come up with something that sticks.

He agreed that he and his people would come up with something soon.