Chapter 7
Frigid snow swirls around in the darkness surrounding a snow laden mountain. An alcove can be seen harboring a dark figure sitting quietly in the shelter. A heat lamp is nearby, providing a small amount of warm light in the darkness. The figure is unmoving, meditating amidst the snowstorm with robes flapping about in the wind that cuts into the alcove. The light of the heat lamp glances off silver and white hair as the hood covering the woman’s head is moved by the wind. Another figure climbs the mountain, coming over the ledge near the alcove. A heavy breath is exhaled by the meditating woman as she calls out to the new arrival, “It appears that I did not choose a difficult enough place to reach, Rajavia.”
A younger Rajavia steps into the light, just inside the alcove before she addresses Anhiel. “I do not understand why you feel the need to run from help.” Anhiel rises before folding her hands behind her back, “You indicated there was nothing more that could be done.” Rajavia’s eyes roll, “That does not mean you should travel into a blizzard alone to meditate. You need time, it has only been a few months.”
The memory is cut short as Anhiel’s eyes open quickly at the sound of her ringing comm. She rises, keying the communicator on quickly “Go ahead.” The voice of the older commander answers, “Ma’am, the scout group has just exited hyperspace. It appears they had issues with their long range communicators. I have instructed the officers to prepare for immediate debriefing.” The admiral responds gruffly, “Well done, Commander. I will leave the debrief to you. Send the details to me once complete.” The Commander acknowledges his orders before terminating the link. Anhiel remains still for a couple minutes, various thoughts running through her mind as she closes her eyes. She opens herself to the force, reaching out into the area around her. Athin is nearby, meditating in his quarters next door. Further into the ship are Rend and Sun walking together towards the training room. Apprehension radiates from the new Jedi Knight as a flicker of a smile crosses the master’s face. She knew his promotion and assignment of a padawan would put him out of his comfort zone. But Rend was loyal and was only lacking in confidence and internal strength. Recent events showed great progress in that area which drove the Master’s decision to promote him. Anhiel thinks to herself, “Taking responsibility for another will push him to continue to be confident and strong.”
The methods may be unorthodox, but Anhiel felt confident in the young man. Just as he had been left with the fleet and pushed to act, training a padawan would push him to continue growing. Something pulled the Master’s focus as she thought. Somehow the sensation of being watched pressed on her senses despite being alone in the room. However, Athin gazed in her direction studying the woman and her unique aura as he often found himself doing. He had sensed the extension of her presence as he meditated and turned his gaze in her direction. His sight did not show the physical world, but the impressions left by objects and beings in the force. He could not describe to someone the look of the woman’s silvery white hair, her slender frame, icy blue eyes, or sharp facial features. Despite that, he found the woman to be beautiful and always had. The flow of the force in and about her aura despite the gaping wound at her core was a testament to her strength as well as the burden she shouldered. Anhiel looks in his direction, seeing only the durasteel wall that separated them but feeling the presence of his gaze. The feeling was familiar to her. Athin was not the first Miraluka to have gazed upon her in such a manner. But there was more to it. The intensity and passion of the look was so familiar it did not bring her discomfort. It only stirred questions within the woman, ones she did not feel she was ready to answer. She frowned slightly before moving from the room, striding in the direction of the bridge.
Rend paced back and forth in the center of the training room, arms folded behind his back in an effort to not give into his normal nervous habit. The promotion to Knight was shocking enough to the young man, but to be assigned a Padawan of his own at the same time was beyond his ability to reconcile. Quietly, Rend speaks to himself in an effort to calm his sense of unease, “Master Anhiel does not do things without reason. But where do I even begin?” He ponders the question, thinking back on the training he underwent, nodding repeatedly as an idea comes to mind. The new Padawan enters the room, wearing a similar sparring outfit as Anhiel had worn before as she walks towards Rend. She stops, bowing low before addressing him, “I am ready when you are, Master Vega.” Rend appraises her for a moment with a quizzical look before she continues, “I have seen how you interacted with the Admiral. I assumed this was appropriate. I have not made it far into the reading material that was provided.” Rend smiles, returning the bow, “You are correct. I suppose everything is still settling in for me so I was surprised.” He raises his right hand to his side causing two dueling swords to rise from the rack on the far side of the room before making their way towards the pair. Rend turns, grabbing both blades from the air before handing one to Sun as he speaks, “A core part of my training under Master Anhiel was a focus on physical conditioning, strength, and ability separate from the use of the force. That is where we will start with you. Our bodies are vessels for the Force. To be able to wield its power requires peak performance in all aspects of the body: physical, mental, and emotional. My master often said there are many force users who have become too reliant upon the force, allowing their physical ability to suffer.” Rend begins moving through the Shii-Cho lightsaber form as he continues to speak, “A truly powerful Jedi is not strong because of the force alone. They are among the most elite non-force users without the aid of the Force. However, when that is combined with the guidance and power of the Force, a Jedi’s value in combat is greater than a hundred soldiers.”
Padawan Veruna nods lightly as she listens intently. Slowly, she begins to mimic Rend’s movements through the form. Her movements are not nearly as fluid but she continues to push through the different stances as Rend continues speaking. “Master Anhiel would often have us spar without the use of the Force. It was difficult at first, to purposefully quiet the Force. But in doing so, I had to rely on my own ability in combat and the limits of my body. Master Anhiel is a fearsome warrior even without the Force aiding her. In our last sparring match I came at her with everything I could muster while she repressed her connection to the Force. Even then I could not get the upper hand.” Sun pauses, a quizzical look crossing her face as she remembers the duel, “It looked like to me you had her on the defensive.” Rend chuckles, “She was going easy on me. Only a trained force-user would be able to tell. I am no match for her in combat when she does not hold back.” The pair continue through drills for the following couple of hours. While Sun was in very decent shape as a result of standard military training, she panted heavily as they ended. The stances of Shii-Cho were fluid, even beautiful, but they required the use of muscles not often relied upon by standard exercise. As she caught her breath, she bowed low to Rend, “Thank you, Master.” Rend returns the bow, allowing himself a moment’s respite from his normal worrying, thinking to himself “I think that went well.”
A durasteel door slides apart, exposing the bridge of the Shadow Redeemer before Athin steps over the threshold. He shakes his head slightly as he is reminded that he is indeed aboard a ship, a decision he was still not sure whether he regretted or not. The Miraluka looks around briefly before striding towards Anhiel, who stood near a large console in the back center of the bridge. Her brow was furrowed as she leaned over, resting her hands on the sides of the console as she reviewed the data on the screen. Athin stopped a couple meters away, taking a moment to observe the woman until she addressed him. “Athin, I am surprised to see you on the bridge. Has your fear of space lessened?” The man chuckles, “Not at all. However, I wished to see if there was anything I could assist with. I have felt like an out-of-place passenger thus far.” The Admiral straightens up and leans her head back for several seconds, “I could use a distraction. I am perplexed by this unknown enemy and can’t seem to gain a foothold on how we should proceed.” Athin nods gently, “Shall we grab some food then? I am famished and honestly forgot how to get to the mess.” Anhiel continues to review the screen before her for several long moments before she straightens, releasing a frustrated sigh at the data, “Yes, that sounds good. Give me just a moment.”
The pair departs the bridge after the Admiral spoke briefly with a couple of nearby personnel. They walked in silence for a couple minutes, Anhiel leading the way through the many hallways with heavy, purposeful steps. Athin follows, observing the woman as they walk and sensing the waves of frustration radiating from her. He clears his throat gently before posing a question, “Anhiel, perhaps your frustration would be eased if you shared what the cause was?” Anhiel stops, having crossed the threshold into the mess. A young soldier jumps to attention before addressing her, “Ma’am, we were not expecting you. Please take a seat and we will prepare a meal for you.” The Admiral inclines her head slightly before responding, “Thank you. Do bring enough for Athin as well. He is particularly hungry at the moment.” The soldier salutes, “Of course, Ma’am.” before moving away towards the kitchen. The Jedi move across the large room, taking seats across from each other in a far corner away from the other soldiers scattered about.
Athin remains quiet after they get settled. He knows she heard him before they entered the mess but was content to wait for her to return to the subject. Several long moments pass before Anhiel turns her icy eyes towards Athin. Her voice is guarded and quiet, not wishing to project the information to the rank-and-file, “We still do not know much of anything about this enemy. The way they attacked Eriadu is different from any tactic I have seen. They were precise and quick, rendering us powerless to do anything. We would have been destroyed if the fleet had engaged.” She pauses as the soldier from before approaches the table, leaving two large trays of food before saluting and moving away. “I did not expect this to be straight forward. However, the way things have started does not sit well with me. The data I was reviewing earlier pertained to the limited movement information we have thus far. It has been frustratingly difficult to find a pattern so that we can identify a vulnerability to strike at.” A light scraping noise cuts through the air as she moves the trays, sliding one over to Athin who inclines his head in thanks. “Do you think it is wise to proceed without additional forces? This is clearly much more coordinated than a simple rogue faction.” Anhiel nods, “I agree this is larger than anticipated and have sent a message to Coruscant. But we have not received a response.”
Athin straightens, setting down the utensil he was bringing up as he observes a shift in Anhiel’s aura. Where it was radiating frustration it now settled, focused, with regular pulses of alarm. Before he could speak, the woman stood up abruptly followed by the shrill noise of blaring alarms. Flashing lights of red and white illuminate the metal walls all throughout the capital ship. A gruff voice sounds off through the ship wide comm system, “All personnel, report to battle stations. Unknown enemy force has exited hyperspace and is moving to engage.” The Admiral turns quickly, sprinting from the mess, leaving Athin to trail her while grumbling to himself, “Great, space combat. My favorite.”