Jedi Insurgency 103

Countless ships filled Eriadu's orbit. Venators, Acclamators, Providence-Dreadnoughts, Subjugator-Heavy Cruisers, and ships from the Republic fleet that were too numerous and varied to name blocked out the stars. 

Corvus sighed in relief as he saw the incoming Imperial fleet flee with their tails tucked between their legs.

The sight of reinforcements put his heart at ease. For a second there, he was convinced he had been fully played by Thrawn. Editing the arrival time of Grand Admiral Josef Grunger was a brilliant counter intelligence OP. Honestly, it only made him want to kill/recruit the blue skinned alien even more! 

It was one thing to see Thrawn being a badass on a show, it was another thing to experience it live! Hell, he was neutered since he was a Lieutenant at the moment. Just imagining him as a Captain or Admiral was enough to send shivers down one's spine. 

Furthermore, he had been caught monologuing. During their ‘battle of wits’ Thrawn had rescued Vader, and ordered a general retreat. Having hacked Grant’s terminal before, Thrawn had stolen the Admiral's credentials, and used them to countermand some of Corvus's sabotage. As a result, many of the Imperial Army regulars, and clone troopers managed to escape! 

Thankfully, it seemed like the ambush on the starfighters, and capital ships seemed to have succeeded. From what he could tell, well over half of Grant’s fleet was space dust. That is, over 250 capital ships had been obliterated, with many more suffering grievous damage. He'd have to get a sitrep from Clip for an overall number, but so far, it appeared that the Starcrusher Corp had eked out a victory, despite the odds. 

Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Corvus could only chuckle and shake his head. Of course, the Chiss incidentally got played too. Although Corvus knew he had CIS reinforcements on the way, he never would have imagined that there was a rogue fleet out there flying the Republic flag! 

Speaking of which, a bad premonition was brewing in the Force! It appeared…it appeared that the Republic fleet was preparing to engage with the Separatists!!! 

He tried to call any of the capital ships, but none of them were responding! Calling Clip, he had a desperate idea in mind on how to resolve this, and it had to work! No way in hell was he going to allow this tenuous alliance to crumble just as it was beginning to bear fruit! 

“Captain! Interpose your fleet in-between the two newcomers! We cannot allow them to come to blows! If either side hails you, reroute them to my channel.” Corvus ordered in a tense, stressed tone of voice. 

“I recognize those ships, General. They're of Corellian make, and are under the command of General Rahm Kota. I'll do as you order sir, but the man is a notorious clone hater. No offense to the Jedi, sir, and I'll do as you ask…”

“You think he'll fire upon you anyway?” Corvus asked with a frown. 

“It's a possibility, sir.” 

Corvus's mouth firmed into a straight line. 

“Then I'll make him see reason.” Corvus replied in a no-nonsense voice, and cut the call. 

Advancing the ARC-170 towards the ship that held the strongest pull in the Force, Corvus was surprised that as soon as he drew near, he began to take turbolaser fire!

‘Motherfu-’ A thought was half formed as he was forced to bob and weave around the oncoming blasters. 

Inventorying his taozin amulet, Corvus flared his presence in the Force. 

A second later, the turbolasers paused. 

‘At least Kota can see reason. We are both on the Lightside after all.’ Corvus internally grumbled to himself. 

Then, he sensed amusement, and perhaps something akin to the cockiness of what a desperado or gunslinger might display. Followed by this, a lesser presence near to the first expressed extreme embarrassment? 

Seconds later, the turbolasers began again, to which Corvus cranked the ARC-170 to full force just to dodge. When starfighters started to be deployed, Corvus’s eye twitched, and he went into stealth mode. 

Ship now completely invisible, Corvus re-equipped his Taozin amulet, and bypassed the maelstrom of bolts headed his way. Flying towards Rahm Kota's ship, he was going to give that bearded jackass a piece of his mind! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The air on Eriadu was thick with smoke and the ozone scent of discharged blaster fire. Evening cloaked the cityscape in muted hues, where flickering streetlamps-damaged due to the horrors of war-fought a losing battle against the encroaching darkness. From the roof of a crumbling warehouse, Obi-Wan Kenobi crouched low, his cloak was drawn tight. Rain lightly pitter-pattered in the distance, and a drop landed on his cheek, appearing as if it were a single, solitary tear. 

Arriving at Eriadu in time to witness Imperial retreat, he had sensed his student, yet was a step too late to do anything about it. Truthfully, he was somewhat pleased that they had missed one another. Although his will was firm on the matter, and Master Qui-Gon had helped him come to a decision, he yet hoped that there was still good within Anakin. If Revan could supposedly turn from the dark back to the light, then maybe his brother could too. 

During these heavy thoughts, he had found himself planetside, and wanted to observe the conditions of the people, and if Revan had treated anyone like the Sith that history had made him out to be. So far, everything seemed to be in order, yet he was ever skeptical. If even the best of them could turn to darkness, then he would keep an eye out. 

Ever cautious, Obi-Wan had evaded many different patrols, and found himself drawn to another Jedi. 

Below, in a narrow alley choked with debris and piles of freshly made corpses, a white-haired teenager moved like a specter through the chaos.

Obi-Wan’s breath caught as he focused on the boy.

‘Jax.’

He hadn’t seen the young Padawan since before the Temple fell. Back then, Jax had been bright-eyed, quiet, always training harder than expected. An orphan from the Inner Rim with a natural aptitude for saber combat, and a strong sensitivity with the Force, Obi-Wan had considered Jax to be Anakin's student before ultimately settling on Ahsoka. The teen was an Echani and had always been pale, but now his skin was ghostly. Both of his arms were mechanical, and blocked blaster fire with ease. 

Twirling twin lightsabers, Jax cut through foes with economical motions, and never sat still. 

Obi-Wan stroked his beard in satisfaction, as he watched the teen overcome a thermal detonator by [Force Pushing] it back. 

Whatever had happened in the wake of Order 66 had changed him. He seemed to be like a hardened veteran. Cold, yet pliable. Warm, yet steady. He was a Jedi. 

Three clone troopers were all that remained from a squad of twelve, and seemed to have the teen caught in an awkward spot. Their guns blazed, and right as Obi-Wan thought he might need to step in, Jax proved he had things well in hand. 

Using the Force to toss a crushed metal crate into the lead trooper it struck with enough force to knock him unconscious. The second opened fire, but Jax ducked, rolled, and launched forward in a burst of Force-enhanced speed. A swift twirl of the saber caught the clone in the chest, forcing him to collapse dead. The third tried to retreat, but Jax extended one hand, and the clone was yanked backward and slammed into a wall, his weapon crumpling beside him.

In seconds, it was over.

Jax stood motionless, his breaths were heavy, yet soon came to calm down. His expression was unreadable as he knelt beside one of the clones, checking for signs of life. He then took out some wire from their utility belts, and tied the two living clones up, then removed their weapons. 

Obi-Wan nodded to himself.

‘Discipline. Mercy. Control. All things a proper Knight must know.’ 

He descended silently from the rooftop, his feet barely making a sound as he approached. Jax sensed him instantly and spun around, twin blue lightsabers pointed at him in threat. The hiss of rain water sizzled as it made contact on the azure blades. 

“You are brave, young one. I am proud of you.” Obi-Wan said gently, stepping into the flickering light.

Jax blinked, and his stance faltered.

“…Master Kenobi?”

Obi-Wan offered a small, tight smile. “It’s just Obi-Wan now.”

Jax lowered the blade slowly, but didn’t extinguish it. “I thought you were-”

“Dead. Yes, many believe that, yet the rumors of my demise are greatly exaggerated.”

Jax nodded, still stunned. “What are you doing here?”

“I might ask you the same.” Obi-Wan replied. He looked around at the pair of unconscious clones, and then at the deceased one. “But I’ve seen enough to understand.”

He stepped closer, eyes narrowing as he examined the boy’s expression. There was no anger, or taint of the Darkside. He wondered how long this boy had followed Revan? Since the Temple had fallen? He recalled something in the letter saying that Revan was attempting to rescue Jedi? Perhaps he could gain new insight into the mysterious man through Jax. 

“You have fought in the Clone Wars for these last three years, and survived Order 66. I apologize, Jax, we have failed you.” Obi-Wan said quietly. “But you’re not a child anymore,  and I would not begrudge you should you wish to go into hiding.”

Jax didn’t speak, but his jaw tensed.

Obi-Wan circled him slowly. “That being said, you showed restraint when others would have chosen vengeance. You fought without recklessness. You acted not from emotion, but from a place of purpose.” He paused. “The skills of a warrior are nothing without the heart of a Jedi.”

Jax finally extinguished his saber. “Master has taught me well.”

Obi-Wan blinked. ‘So Jax has become his student. Interesting.’ 

“Revan has taught you well. I see in you compassion, and an understanding of the Force greater than your peers. I see that you have passed the Trials of Skill evidenced by your advanced lightsaber form. To maintain a level head after Order 66, the Trial of Courage is yours. To lose one's own arms, and not be bound by cruelty, you have passed the Trial of Flesh. All that remains is the Trial of Spirit.”

Obi-Wan then stepped back and drew his own lightsaber, but had yet to ignite it yet. “A Jedi is not made only in combat, but by clarity. By their Spirit. Are you prepared?”

Jax didn’t hesitate. “I’m ready.”

Their blades ignited at the same time. 

Blue and blue clashed in a sudden storm of light and movement. Obi-Wan attacked swiftly with testing, probing attacks. Jax met him stroke for stroke. He wasn’t as fast, nor as experienced, but he was fluid, and adapted to what Obi-Wan threw at him. 

The white haired teen used the environment, trusted his instincts, and never struck out of anger. He parried a flurry of attacks and then disengaged. Obi-Wan, a master of Form II, a combat technique dedicated to defense, and seeking openings in his enemy, was happy to let the youth pull back. 

Minutes passed like hours as the two of them stared one another down. 

Internally, Obi-Wan was quite pleased with Jax's willingness to meet blades with him. Not to sound arrogant, but he had quite the reputation in the Order. Few Padawans or even Knights would dare to agree to a spar with him. Jax, on the other hand, had jumped right into it. Yet throughout their exchange just now, he got a strong sense about who Jax was as a person. His initial flurry was full of power, precise strikes, and a sort of floaty quality that was difficult to pin down. Then, instead of continuing to press the attack, he pulled back as soon as Obi-Wan had intended to retaliate. Clearly the Echani teen wasn't single mindedly focused on the here and now, and could see the bigger picture. 

“That’s enough.”

Jax hesitated in his reply, as they hadn't crossed sabers in more than a minute. “I passed?”

Obi-Wan looked at him with a long stare, as if he were admiring a future pillar of the Jedi Order. 

“You have passed every Trial that matters. You did so on the day you chose compassion over hate. You did so when you stood alone, without fear. You have faced loss, and you did not fall.”

He stepped forward and placed a hand on Jax’s shoulder.

“By the right of the Council, by the will of the Force, I name you Jedi Knight, Jax.”

“I only wish Master were here to see this.” Jax whispered, a single tear trailed down his eye. 

“Yes, your Master is quite the interesting fellow. Perhaps we could discuss this over a hot drink of tea. This rain is beginning to get out of hand.” Obi-Wan stated grumpily, momentarily losing the aura of a master. 

A moment later, a short, black haired teen ran onto the scene, lightsaber blazing. 

Obi-Wan felt a darkness in the child, and narrowed his eyes when he saw a thin line of crimson light coating his emerald lightsaber. He recognized him as another Padawan, if he was not mistaken, his name should be Yon. For one to fall after he had seen one uplifted, how tragic. 

He was preparing himself to take this Dark Adept into custody, when the child simply walked up to them.

“So what if you're a Jedi Knight first.” Yon pouted…”I bet I can heal more people than you!” 

The black haired boy then turned his back, and ran towards what appeared to be a hospital tent. 

“Heal?” Obi-Wan questioned, only to see the taciturn youth had already run after Yon. 

“Oh dear, it seems I've been ignored.” Obi-Wan chuckled, and began to follow them, thoughts of tea, and questions of Revan filled his mind. 

“Obi-Wan, forgetting something?” Qui-Gon materialized, and pointed towards the pair of unconscious clones. 

Obi-Wan rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed. Perhaps he was being too hasty in promoting Jax. 

“Let the children play. Besides, you might learn a thing or two.” Qui-Gon playfully advised before disappearing. 

“I hate when he does that.” Obi-Wan grumbled to himself, and spoke to empty air. 

Levitating the pair of unconscious clones, Obi-Wan followed after Jax & Yon, his curiosity had been piqued. 

Just what kind of man was Revan? Today, he would find the answer to that question.