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Beyond - Legends A Long Time Ago (far-future)-finished!

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by female_obi_wan, Apr 12, 2004.

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  1. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    My first post in the Beyond forum. :D

    Summary: Tass Vari has a few small problems...a brother who hates her, a sadistic Gungan for a teacher and a hatred for schoolwork to name but a few. In order that she may have a chance of passing her exams, she has to do a History project...guess which History she chooses.

    23/5 -I made a cover. :D Here it is. From left to right-Dekabyn, Tass and Faith. :D



    A Long Time Ago
    1. Just Another Beginning


    No!

    No no no no no! NOT supposed to happen! Not supposed to happen, you stupid little girl!


    Cursing herself, she ran around the corner and down the corridor, almost knocking over a blue Twi'lek male...probably one of the new teachers. She yelled "Sorry!" behind her, and kept running. Regimesh will be furious. "Always late, Miss Vari," he'd say, in that accent she used to find so hilarious. "But even I had dared to hope you'd have turned over a new leaf over the holiday..."

    Run run run run run! Come on! Stupid Nerra. He said he'd wake you up so you wouldn't be late and he DIDN'T and you shouldn't have trusted him you stupid...

    She almost shot right past the classroom. She had to stop and turn around again. The once-familiar door was now painted red...they must have done that over the holiday.

    She knocked.

    "Enter," two voices called.

    She entered. Two seats were in the centre of the room...on one of them sat Kirris Leleny, High Mistress of something-or-other, the one who'd arranged the meeting...and on the other sat the much-feared (and mostly much-hated) Middle Master of History, J. Regimesh.

    "Take a seat," Kirris annouced. She hit a button next to her and a chair detached itself from the wall and made its way to her. She sat down.

    "So, Tass..." Kirris began, in a trying-to-be-friendly tone of voice..."Master Regimesh called me to arrange a meeting. Apparently you've been working at a below-average level in History?"

    And Planetary Cultures, and Language Studies, and... "Yes, High Mistress," she said.

    "Can you give me a reason?"

    "No, High Mistress."

    "Very well," She looked over at the History Master. "We've discussed this. We want to see you pass your final exams, Tass. You're intelligent enough..." Oh really. "...and so we've decided to give you one last chance."

    She hadn't been expecting that. "What is it?"

    "A History project," Regimesh announced. "Pick a subject, research it, and present a well-written and fully illustrated project on it by the end of term." He glared at her. "Personally, I think we're letting you off far too easily."

    Tass didn't care. She nodded. More History...damn.

    "So, Tass...will you do that?" Kirris continued.

    "Yes, High Mistress."

    "Good. I expect you to start work on it straight away...understand?" Tass nodded again. "Right. You may go. Bear in mind...if the project isn't up to scratch, you forfeit...well, you forfeit your future, really, Tass."

    Tass hurried for the door. She noticed Regimesh shoot her an extremely disapproving look as she left. Not for the first time she wondered what his problem was. Oh well...maybe it's just something you pick up when you're the only Gungan teacher in the whole school.

    *****

    "No way," Dekabyn said. "You're not that bad."

    Tass played with her hair. They were sitting in her favourite spot...the small metal bench on the highest balcony, where you could look out over Coruscant. It didn't make her feel any less depressed, though. "I am that bad," she said. "Below Average in everything."

    "Not Art."

    "I wasn't counting that."

    "So there's one thing you're good at. And I expect History won't be too difficult once you get the hang of it...honestly, what're they on about, forfeit your future?"

    "I dunno. Not going to ask, either." She rested her head on her hand. "Anyway, all this is easy for you to say, you're so smart and I'm so dumb."

    "You're not
     
  2. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    ..aaaand it drops. :p Up!
     
  3. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    Hmmmm... good start.


    It's always hard for people to notice Far Future era stories. Keep it up though! :)
     
  4. Sarahthenerd

    Sarahthenerd Jedi Youngling star 1

    Registered:
    Sep 30, 2003
    DarkDroid- Thanks! Glad someone's reading. :D


    A Long Time Ago
    2. Differences

    Tass liked her house, in a strange kind of way. It was small (although not as small as some of the other houses) and on the forty-second level down, but it was cosy, in a way. All done in blue and red. Her mother liked red, her father liked blue, so the result was a mismatched house.

    She pushed the button on the door, it read her handprint and let her in.

    "Anyone here?"

    Nerra, her brother, came out of the living room. He looked at her, saw who it was, and went back in again. Tass followed him. He was sitting slumped on the sofa, a look of extreme annoyance on his face.

    Lelleri, Tass's mother, was sitting on a chair and reading a holopad.

    "Don't mind him, Tass," she said, not looking up. "Mayalri's gone."

    "Mayalri?" Tass remembered her...vaguely. A pretty girl from Naboo. "What d'ya mean...gone where?"

    "Left him," Lelleri said, keeping her voice low. But Nerra got up and left the room anyway. Lelleri sighed.

    "Why's she left him?"

    "Who knows? He's not saying a word. Could be anything." Tass heard Nerra going up the stairs. "Maybe you could talk to him."

    "He won't tell me anything."

    "Well, anyway....be nice to him when he comes back down. He really liked her, you know."

    Tass hadn't know. She sat down on the sofa, and switched on the holovision.

    "Anything to avoid homework, I suppose." Lelleri said sarcastically.

    *****

    Dinner that evening was somewhat quiet. Nerra wasn't saying anything. Tass was started to get annoyed at him.

    "I've got to do a project," she finally said, during a particularly long silence. "For History. They won't let me take my exams otherwise."

    Tass's father, Jek, stared at her.

    "You didn't tell us this before," he said.

    "I only found out today."

    "You don't get entered for the exams otherwise?" Lelleri said worriedly. "Tass, this is really serious."

    "I know, I know...I promise to do a good job."

    "Then get started after dinner," Jek said gravely. "No going out with Dekabyn...go to your room and do some research. Nerra, have you got any holopads she can borrow?"

    Nerra looked up sullenly. "There's some books."

    "Books?" Lelleri said. "My. I thought we threw those out ages ago." She looked at Jek, who shook his head.

    "There's some stuff about History in there," he said. "The Empire and things."

    "That'd be useful," Tass said, giving an internal groan. The Empire had sounded fascinating at first, but a few hours in Regimesh's class, with him filling her in on all the boring details concerning politics and the disolution of the Senate, had soon changed her opinion.

    "It goes up to the Emperor's death," Nerra said. "You'll have to look up what happened after that on holopads and stuff,"

    Then, since he'd finished, he left the table and Tass heard the front door slam. Tass thought back on what she'd learned about the Emperor's death. All she could remember was that his apprentice, Vader, had killed him, because of something to do with his son. Hadn't the Emperor nearly killed him? Regimesh hadn't gone through it in much detail. It had all seemed just weird to her, anyway. If it hadn't been the no-nonsense History teacher who'd told her, she would have doubted it'd actually happened.

    Oh well.

    "I'll go find the book," she said, and put her plate away. She went up to Nerra's room, and looked around for it. She found it buried underneath some hologames. She retreated to her own room, brushed the dust off the cover and looked at the title.

    The Greatest War Of The Stars, by Various Authors.

    "Nice title."

    She dropped it in her schoolbag and left.

    *****

    She managed to sneak out and meet Dekabyn anyway. Her parents were in the living room, having a Serious Discussion. They had one every now and then.

    She closed the front door quietly, but it made a beeping noise anyway. No-one seemed to notice, however. She crossed the walkway and went to the railing. She glanc
     
  5. CodeName_Targeter

    CodeName_Targeter Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 7, 2003
    Looks pretty neat so far.

    :Targeter:
     
  6. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    Great chapter. Excellent characterization in my opinion.

    Keep going... :D
     
  7. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    Codename_Targeter: Thanks!

    DarkDroid: Thank you too!

    A Long Time Ago
    3. Friends In High Places

    She was in a sea of green, surrounded by flowers, and no buildings whatsoever. She could have been on Naboo, not Coruscant. It was all so pretty! And there were lots of people there...faces she knew, people who she'd seen on the holovision and things. Perhaps that attractive actor from Yavin was here...who knew?

    "Tass!"

    Hey!

    "Tass! Would you please wake up! Regimesh's coming!"

    Tass's head shot up from the desk. A few people looked in her direction and she felt herself going red. I hate it when that happens!

    "You fall asleep anywhere, y'know." Dekabyn sounded impressed. "We should hire you out for scientific research or something..."

    "It's not funny! It's annoying," she growled. "Good thing you woke me up."

    Regimesh walked in. The class fell into silence. Regimesh looked around the room, and gave a smile, the Gunganish smile that had Tass bursting into laughter a year or so ago.

    "Well done. Perhaps your manners are improving."

    He stood at the front of the class, and pushed a button on the wall. The lesson for today appeared on the screen. Tass had the urge to fall asleep again.

    *****

    After class...and no sleep...Tass was heading for the door when Regimesh stepped in front of her.

    "Started your project work yet, Miss Vari?"

    She blushed. "Erm...no. No, sir."

    He stared. "Well, I suggest you get on with it, then. Try the library."

    Tass nodded urgently and left.

    *****

    Dekabyn eventually convinced her to go to the library.

    "Honestly...you can't keep putting it off. Before you know it he'll ask you again, and you'll still have nothing to say."

    Tass sat at a table, doodling on her holopad with the sensorpen. She drew Dekabyn. He looked alright, but she wasn't good at drawing arms. She'd have to work on that...

    Dekabyn appraoched the table, carrying a pile of holopads in his arms. Tass looked up guiltily. "Oops. I could have done that."

    "Never mind." He sat down and pulled Tass's holopad towards him. "Nice. Is that me?"

    Tass blushed and pulled it back towards her. "What holopads did you get?"

    "This one...it has some stories about Darth Vader," he said, pointing at it. "And the others are to do with the Rebellion and Alderaan."

    "Thanks," Tass said. "Where should I start?"

    Dekabyn shrugged. Tass picked up the Darth Vader one.

    "Once known as Anakin Skywalker, hero of the Clone Wars..." She glanced at Dekabyn. "Well, I knew that."

    "So did I. Keep reading...you have to know all this stuff, you know."

    "He was taken to the Jedi at the age of nine, taken from a slave's life and his mother on Tatooine. After Qui-Gon Jinn, the man who found him, was murdered on Naboo by the Sith lord Maul (see page 360) Skywalker was assigned to Jinn's Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Kenobi agreed to this only out of respect for his Master, but soon it seemed he did come to care about the boy. However, he was powerless to stop young Skywalker from walking down the path to tyranny and murder. In their final duel (see page 425) he was forced to send the young man to what was meant to be his death..."

    Tass paused. "Well, that's something I didn't know."

    "You ought to know." Dekabyn intoned. "We did it last year. I think you were asleep."

    "Must have been," Tass said. She flipped forward a few pages and started to read again.

    "Anakin Skywalker returned to Tatooine only once. It is said he came with the woman who would become his wife, Padmé Amidala Naberrie. Here, Skywalker discovered his mother had been freed from slavery, but had been captured by Tusken Raiders. Plenty of theories have been offered as to why, but no-one can be sure of the truth. However, it is known that when Skywalker found his mother dead, after days of searching, he slaughtered all the Tuskens on Tatooine. The act of genocide marked his decent towards the darkside..."

     
  8. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    Excellent chapter... It's nice to see the reaction and opinion of the past from Far Future OC's. Can't wait for the next update! :D

    BTW; this is the first Far Future fic I've read (and enjoy) that doesn't involve some super-army-of-death or new/rehashed-galaxy-destroying-superweapon! :p
     
  9. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    DarkDroid: And it's gonna stay that way. ;) Glad you're enjoying it!

    A Long Time Ago
    4. Of Stupid Things

    On the way to school the next day, Tass filled Dekabyn in on what happened. He looked outraged.

    "That's not fair! They got you into trouble! Tass, you ought to go see Faith's parents and tell them what happened. And then smack the Rinakels hard."

    "No point," Tass said. "They'll just devise a way to make my life miserable if I say anything."

    "But it's just not...argghhh." Dekabyn trailed off. "Who gave them the right to do things like that?"

    Tass shrugged unhappily.

    "And what about..."

    "Tass! Tass, wait a minute!"

    Both Tass and Dekabyn turned to see Faith rushing across the platform to them, having just gotten off an airtaxi. She was wearing expensive jewellery, and a beautiful white dress that looked stunning against her dark skin. Dekabyn, however, didn't look impressed.

    "What do you want?" he asked her.

    "I came to apologize," she said, looking at both of them. "I'm really sorry, Tass, I know what the Rinakels are like and I should have said something...I'm really sorry."

    "It's alright, Faith. Thanks." Had she been expecting that apology or not? "It's okay."

    "I shouldn't invite them over again," she said, falling into step with them as they kept walking. "They're not nice. But Mum thinks people like that make good friends, and...well, you know what she's like..."

    Tass didn't really, and she didn't suppose she wanted to. She nodded.

    "I told her it was me who tried to fly the ship," Faith added nervously. "She was livid. She says I have to pay for it and everything."

    "Oh..."

    "I will. I have enough money..." Dekabyn gave a snort; Faith chose to ignore it. "Tass..."

    "What?"

    "I don't know why the ship went wrong like that. I think it happened because I was nervous...I can't work out why." She looked uncomfortable. "Any ideas?"

    "None. Sorry, Faith."

    They reached the glowing blue building that was the school. Faith spotted a smartly dressed Rodian girl waiting by the enterance.

    "Reelia's over there...mind if I go talk to her?" she asked apologetically. She hurried off, calling over her shoulder "Won't be a minute..."

    Dekabyn sighed. "Come on, let's leave her."

    "Dek!"

    "She'd rather hang out with her own kind..."

    Tass sighed herself, and followed Dekabyn. She would have to talk to him at some point.

    *****

    There was no History that day. Lunchtime came quickly, and Tass and Dekabyn wound up in the library once more.

    "I've got this," Tass said, and pulled the book Nerra gave her out of her bag.

    "You shouldn't bring that to school!" Dekabyn said. "Someone'll steal it. Those things are expensive! And that one looks quite old."

    "It's not. It used to be Nerra's, he must have read it quite a few times." She opened it to a random page. She expected to see pages and pages of hard-to-read words, but instead...there were drawings.

    "Wow." Tass breathed. She ran her fingers over them. A girl was staring out at her, her eyes slightly defiant, or maybe even just annoyed. On the opposite side a man clutching a blaster looked out. There was the shape of a Wookiee behind him, but it looked like the drawing hadn't been finished.

    "Who are those two?" she said.

    Dekabyn pointed to the bottom of the right hand page. "Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan, and Han Solo, her future husband," he read. "Interesting. They were in the Rebellion, weren't they?"

    Tass could remember only bits of this. "Yeah...I think they were." She leafed over the page, looking for more drawings.

    "I'll get you some holopads," Dekabyn said, and he walked off before Tass could stop him. She looked at these new pictures. Whoever drew them had been very good. On one page there was another girl, her hair done up in a style even more elaborate than anything Faith could come up with. She was smiling. On the other page there was a teenage boy. Well, maybe a little older than teenage...she wouldn't know. He was smiling too.
     
  10. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    Excellent post there, female obi wan! :D
     
  11. VaderLVR64

    VaderLVR64 Manager Emeritus star 8 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Feb 5, 2004
    I just "found" this story via the OC thread on the WR board and I LOVE IT! It was so interesting to see what history's take might be on Anakin and his pals. Great job! Will there be more? Please say there will be more!
     
  12. Spike2002

    Spike2002 Former FF-UK RSA and Arena Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Feb 4, 2002
    Hey, I just noticed this on the first page of BYS and thought it looked very interesting, and it is, so well done on a great fic so far :D
     
  13. MamaShmi

    MamaShmi Jedi Youngling

    Registered:
    Apr 29, 2004
    This is great, I hope there's more. It is always cool to see how history treats a subject or person. I'm sure half of what we read in our history texts is incorrect and the other half is not correct, LOL!
     
  14. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    DarkDroid: Thank you! :D

    VaderLVR64: Yes, there's going to be more. ;) Glad you like it!

    Spike2002: Thanks. :D

    MamaShmi: Yeah, I know. I do History at school and have my exam soon. *panic* :D Thanks!

    BTW...back up there, on the first post, I've posted the cover (oh, alright, alright, I'm just about to post the cover) ;) but here it is again if you're too lazy to scroll up. :D

    A Long Time Ago
    5. A Miniature War

    Almost a week later, Tass had almost forgotten that particular vow. All the students were being bombarded with homework, and Regimesh didn't care that she had an important project to fit into her busy schedule. She had no time to herself whatsoever. Neither did Dekabyn, but he didn't seem to mind.

    "How are you getting on?" he asked her as they walked through the morning crowds to school.

    "Alright, I suppose," she said. "I've covered the Sith Lords. Maul, Tyranus, Sidious, Vader. And most of the important Jedi."

    "Have you done the beginning of the Clone Wars? There was a programme on the holo last night..."

    "There was? I missed it." She sighed. "But yeah. Done it. Tyranus was the one who was once a Jedi, right?"

    "Right."

    "Yoda's Padawan, Jinn's Master?"

    "I think so. Can't remember. Probably."

    "That's quite interesting then," she said thoughtfully. "Jinn was the one who freed Anakin Skywalker. Maybe he knew..."

    "Knew what? About the Jedi Purges?"

    "Yeah...maybe his Master put ideas in his head...maybe they both wanted the Jedi destroyed."

    Dekabyn tilted his head to one side. "Well, you never know," he said. "It could've, I suppose. Jinn seemed like an alright person, though...I mean, he was the one who kept going against the Council, wasn't he?"

    "Yeah, he did," Tass said, remembering. "Why, d'ya think it was good that he did that?"

    Dekabyn nodded. "The old Jedi were corrupt. Anyone could see that."

    "You think it's a good thing they all died?"

    They stood in a crowd of people, waiting for the bridge to lower and provide a way across the airlane.

    "Well, no..."

    But he evidently couldn't think of anything to say after that. The two of them started talking about other things, like holovids and the reconstruction work on Coruscant, and they didn't stop until they got to school.

    *****

    At lunchtime, Tass studied on her own while Dekabyn went to the school shop to buy some things he needed in order to finish all the work he had to do. It hardly seemed fair...Dekabyn didn't have enough money anyway, and shouldn't the school provide everything they needed? Maybe Dekabyn and her brother and everyone else who'd said so were right...the school was designed to cater to Coruscant's elite.

    She'd found another holopad...'The Life Of Luke Skywalker'. It was proving to be interesting. Very interesting. Like the stories she'd read when she was little...

    What really happened in the throne room on the Death Star no-one we ever be completely sure, but there is no reason to think Skywalker would lie. He told many people in the course of his life: when Vader threatened his sister, he attacked him, then stopped when he realised he could never kill his father. He threw away his weapon, and prepared for death. The Emperor unleashed his powers on the young Skywalker, but he lived for one reason: his father, who he'd never known as anything more than a Sith Lord, picked up the Emperor and threw him down the Death Star's reactor shaft. But the effort killed him...and more than that Skywalker never said, except perhaps to his sister and closest friends...

    All the stories she'd read had had heroes in them, but this, for some reason, was affecting her more than the stories. There was something in this that none of her favourite authors had managed to tell her, but she couldn't work out what...

    Someone came and slid into the seat next to her. She looked up. It was Faith.

    "Tass," she whispered. "I thought I could talk to you.
     
  15. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    What a wonderful, long chapter, female obi!

    The Jedi Temple offering tours? Attack of the Tourists! :p

    Anyways, I loved the cover art. Very well done. :)
     
  16. Mistress_Renata

    Mistress_Renata Manager Emeritus star 5 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 9, 2000
    Now this is a very different approach to SW, really creative! I am curious whether Tass is finding contradictory information in those history books, or if any of them are just plain wrong. It's fascinating, too, to see Coruscanti life woven in, along with the class distinctions and the relationships with her friends.

    Wonder what she'll make of the Jedi Temple? She may want to hit the Museum of History as well, if there is one...

    After all this, she deserves top marks! Keep it up!
     
  17. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    DarkDroid: Thanks!

    Mistress_Renata: Good to see you here! :D Thanks. And she does indeed deserve top marks. ;)

    A Long Time Ago
    6. Mistakes And Names And Idiots

    The next day, Tass told Dekabyn about the conversation at the dinner table. "Wouldn't you like it? Going to the Jedi Temple? Because...I sort of said I'd take you. It's alright if you don't want to..."

    "Are you kidding, Tass?" Dekabyn asked increduously. "I'd love to go. When is it?"

    "I dunno yet. Sometime in Shelova Week, I guess, Mum doesn't want me to miss school."

    "Great. How much will it cost? Because...well...it'd be expensive, wouldn't it? I was thinking of getting a job soon, but it'd probably make more sense for me to get one now, if we're going to..."

    Tass cut him off. "Dekabyn, Mum's paying for both of us. She doesn't mind."

    "What?" Dekabyn stared at her. "She can't do that, it's not fair. Tell her I'll pay."

    "Don't be like that. It's a treat for you. For both of us."

    "But..."

    "She thought it'd be good, since you're, you know..." She stopped there.

    "Since I'm what?" Dekabyn asked.

    Oh, that was a dumb thing to say...

    "Since I'm what? A stupid little poor boy who can't survive on his own?" Dekabyn went on fiercely.

    Tass groaned. Damn. "Look, it's a nice thing she's doing, okay? Don't throw it back in her face." But she had a feeling she'd said the wrong thing.

    "They all do nice things. All the time. It makes them feel good about themselves." Dekabyn snapped. Then he looked guilty straight away...but he pushed ahead of her and ran off.

    Tass sighed to herself. Brilliant.

    *****

    She didn't see him at the start of lunchtime, which was a pain because she wanted to speak to him. She went to the library instead, realising that she seemed to be spending more time in here than anywhere else now. Why? What was she doing, drowning her worries in schoolwork or something...?

    She found a bunch of holopads and took them back to her table. What hadn't she done yet? Oh yeah...the reformation of the Republic, for one. She'd been putting it off, it seemed boring, all the politics and stuff...but she ought to mention it nonetheless. She picked up the first holopad and began flipping through the screens.

    Formation of government...former Empire supporters...Senator Organa...Master Luke Skywalker...Hey, it was him again. She opened that page. Then, she felt someone sitting down next to her. Dekabyn.

    "Hi," she said, forgetting he was annoyed at her and then remembering again. "Dek, I didn't..."

    "Sorry, Tass," he said sincerely. "I was just...well, I don't know. But I didn't mean to say that you and your parents are anything like the sixth-levelers or anything..."

    "It's okay, Dek. Honestly." She moved her eyes back to the holopad, then realised something. "Sixth-levelers? We're calling each other names now?"

    "It wasn't my idea..." Dekabyn muttered.

    "Well, whose idea was it? Are we starting a revolution or something now?" When he didn't answer she sighed and went back to her work. "I should be doing this. I'm still behind, I think...there's loads I haven't done..." She looked at the holopad, still in her hand. "Let's see. Princess Leia and Han Solo got married. And Luke married and had children. Hey...he named one of them after his father..."

    "Vader?" Dekabyn asked.

    "Anakin."

    "Poor kid," Dekabyn grimaced. "Maybe he changed his name. Imagine having to be named after an evil dictator all your life..."

    "Luke's father saved his life and killed the Emperor as well, Dek, you know that! I'm sure he was perfectly happy with his name."

    "Well..."

    "Why do you care, anyway?" She hoped she didn't sound annoyed, because she wasn't, really...just worried about something and she wasn't sure what...

    "I was named after an evil dictator, that's why."

    She blinked. "You are?"

    "Yep. Governor Dekabyn Amnawi Scelus...remember him?"

    Tass thought for a minute. "Ages and ages ago...the governor of.
     
  18. Rowan_Jade

    Rowan_Jade Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 14, 2003
    OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO :eek:

    Wow!

    I just found this and................ Wow!


    What a great take on the whole saga! I love this.

    I can't wait to see what you do next! I love the hints of Force use in Faith. Maybe the good guys will win and Force whip those rotten stinkin rich kids (ick!).

    I love the looks back at the history of what we all know so well. This is great! I can't wait for the trip to the temple!

    -Ro
     
  19. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    Rowan_Jade: Thanks so much! :D

    A Long Time Ago
    7. Sides

    Tass told Dekabyn about Nerra the next day. He looked thoughtful once she'd finished.

    "Who'd he get into a fight with, then?"

    "Don't know. Sixth-levelers, I suppose." She said the words carefully.

    Dekabyn looked away. "Look, I'm not going to go and start fights...I'm just going to stand up for myself, okay?"

    Tass had been thinking about this all night. "But the thing is...we're making it worse for ourselves, Dekabyn. Everytime one of us fights with them, whether we started it or not...it just lowers their opinion of us low-levelers."

    "Low-levelers?" Dekabyn practically spat the words out. "Tass! They use that term to insult us, and you bloody well told me off for insulting them back! Sixth-levelers! Whose side are you on?"

    Tass felt her face going bright, bright red. "I'm sorry, Dek...I forgot. That term gets thrown around so much, on the holovision and things..."

    "Low-levelers," Dekabyn snarled, and this time he actually did spit on the hard metal floor. "It's driving me crazy. All the stuff I've been hearing...you know how that senator got shot a few months ago?"

    Tass nodded, although in all honesty she'd forgotten about it.

    "Well, they're still going on about it, because he was shot while he was visiting the..." he scrunched up his face "...low levels...and they're saying how none of us children have any hope or future growing up there...and my mum was furious..."

    "Really?" Tass had met Dekabyn's mum only a few times, but had liked her.

    "Yeah. Do you know," he said suddenly, looking her right in the eyes, "that just a few years ago...okay, more like ten...the Senators had this idea that involved taking away the children of anyone below thirtieth level and having them be fostered by people better off...and they were going to entirely reconstruct the whole place as well and have them not be houses anymore...Tass, our parents would have had nowhere to go, and no-one would have cared!"

    Tass felt her breath catch in her throat. Oh stars, there's so much I haven't been paying attention to...more than just History, that's for certain...

    "But they...changed their minds, I take it," she managed to say.

    Dekabyn gave a hollow laugh, and didn't say anything. He looked at her and then ran on ahead, not waiting. She could practically sense his frustration.

    Tass had the words "Whose side are you on?" echoing in her head all morning.

    *****

    At lunchtime, it became evident that Dekabyn was deeply ashamed of what he'd said. He bought her lunch (despite her protests), he helped her with her Mathematics, and he carted books around for her all day. By the time they were about to go home, Tass realised she hadn't worked on her project at all. Still, she didn't care...she was too busy being both pleased and worried. A strange combination.

    Still, she felt like she understood her brother's actions a little better now.

    "Tass," Dekabyn said nervously, as they walked past classroom after classroom. "I...er...you don't have to be on a side, y'know. And maybe I don't want to be on one either."

    "Thank you," Tass said, and felt slightly stupid for a reason she didn't know. "We can be our own side, if you like. We won't start fights, and we'll show them all what we're made of by...well, by winning I suppose."

    Dekabyn actually put his arm around her. "Good idea."

    There was a noise behind them and they both turned around. It was Faith. Dekabyn dropped his arm rather quickly.

    "I...er...I have something to show you," she said.

    "What?" Tass asked.

    "Come with me."

    She led them into an empty classroom. Tass followed. Dekabyn followed as well, although rather reluctantly. Inside the room there was a table with a glass on it.

    "Faith, what's..."

    But Faith held her hand up for silence. "Watch."

    She raised her hand, then lowered it again and turned to Tass and Dekabyn. "Oh...and you might want to
     
  20. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    I just skimmed over the last two chapters I missed, and from what I've seen, they're better than the others.

    I'm going to read them thoroughly tomorrow. I just got back from Canada Day celebrations and it's the middle of the night, and I'm here skimming through fan fic. :p

    I need sleep... :oops: [face_tired]
     
  21. Rowan_Jade

    Rowan_Jade Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 14, 2003
    Liked it! Liked it a lot! :D

    I can't wait till they get to the Temple! And is Faith definately going now too? Seems that she might want to go just to see if she can get some insight into her ?Jedi? powers........

    Waiting patiently........... Ro
     
  22. DarkDroid

    DarkDroid Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Feb 3, 2004
    Ah, excellent. Finally read through the chapters thoroughly and I'm hyped for the next chapter. Chapter seven was great. :D Maybe Faith will become a Jedi? And if she does... :confused:

    Oh, and those lousy Senators... Can't trust politicians with children in the Galaxy nowadays. :p
     
  23. Sarahthenerd

    Sarahthenerd Jedi Youngling star 1

    Registered:
    Sep 30, 2003
    Rowan_Jade: Faith isn't going, but it is indeed Jedi powers she has. :D Thanks for posting!

    DarkDroid: Well, here's the next chapter! :) *agrees about the Senators*

    A Long Time Ago
    8. Real People

    They'd be leaving in a few minutes. Tass cheked her bag again. Books, clothes, holopads...she had almost everything, except money. She went to the secret compartment in her room, and took out some of the creditchips. The holopic of her and Nerra was still in there, she noticed. Hmmmm.

    She went outside to meet Dekabyn. He was waiting at the door, along with her parents. Nerra wasn't there.

    Lelleri kissed her goodbye, much to Tass's annoyance. "You two be careful," she said.

    "Contact us when you get there," Jekk said.

    Tass nodded.

    "Bye, Mrs and Mr Vari," Dekabyn said.

    "Bye, Mum and Dad!" Tass said. "And say bye to Nerra for me as well, okay?"

    Jek nodded. Dekabyn led Tass out of the door, and closed it behind him.

    "Okay...let's go find the airtrain station..."

    They started walking.

    ****

    On board the train, Tass thought to herself for a while. She wondered what the Jedi Temple would look like. She'd seen pictures, but maybe it'd been changed since then.

    "I've never been to the other side of Coruscant before," Dekabyn said thoughtfully. "Not ever."

    "I did once," Tass said. "But I was so little I don't remember it anymore."

    "Tell your mum thanks from me," Dekabyn said. "For paying for all this."

    "Don't worry, I already did."

    They watched the world fly by the window for a few minutes, and then Tass said something else.

    "What if they don't want to help Faith?"

    "What do you mean?"

    "Like, if they say she should have come by herself or something..."

    "Why?"

    "It's just...the old Jedi Order were pretty...dismissive of this sort of stuff. I know they've probably changed...but...history repeats itself. Or something."

    Dekabyn looked as though he had no idea what she was on about.

    "Never mind," she said lamely.

    Dekabyn nodded, and then after a few minutes he spoke.

    "I was thinking. About all that stuff I said..."

    "What, you mean...the other day? About...oh, you know? Taking sides and all that?"

    "Yeah."

    "But we decided what we were going to do."

    "I was thinking about your brother."

    "Oh," Tass said. "What, him starting fights and things?"

    "Yeah."

    "Nothing will happen," she reassured him. "He's just....oh, he's just growing up and making an idiot out of himself while doing so."

    Dekabyn actually smiled at that. "Oh. Well, who doesn't?"

    They let the subject drop.

    *****

    The train continued on. It wound through skyscapers and past the place where construction work was taking place. Dekabyn glanced out of the window thoughtfully. Tass took out her project, and started typing things out. Dekabyn turned away from the window.

    "Wow. That's going to be one seriously good project, you know."

    She blushed. "Thanks."

    "You really got into it, didn't you?"

    "Yeah."

    Dekabyn didn't ask why, but she decided to tell him anyway. "It just feels different now. Like these were all real people with real flaws and virtues and...stuff. Like some people say that Kenobi wasn't a good teacher, but others say the destruction of the whole order was down to Anakin alone, and some people say Yoda was wrong...and so on."

    Dekabyn nodded. Tass could tell he was impressed.

    "What do you think, Tass?"

    "About what?"

    "Well...about the whole thing. Who was right and who was wrong and things."

    "Er..." No-one had really asked her that yet. "Well...you said once that the old Jedi were corrupt...but think about it, they all died, even the kids. And the kids didn't do anything."

    Dekabyn actually laughed. "Well, that's funny, because when we were talking about that whole Tusken thing, you said it was alright that the kids died in that case."

    "I did not," Tass said crossly. "I said it was evil!"

    Dekabyn raised an eyebrow.

    "I did!"

    "Alr
     
  24. Rowan_Jade

    Rowan_Jade Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 14, 2003
    About time you came back to this! :D

    Love the room number! Are they on level TX ?

    Ooooooh! partial mushiness with that lack of a second room huh? I can sense a bit of a dilemma coming :D

    Looking forward to what happens in the Temple.....

    -Ro
     
  25. female_obi_wan

    female_obi_wan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Aug 1, 2002
    Rowan_Jade: Thanks!

    A Long Time Ago
    9. The Temple

    Tass was awoken the next morning by Dekabyn swearing loudly. He'd got up, and since the room was so dark had walked straight into a deactivated cleaning droid in the corner.

    "Forgot where I was," he muttered. "I'll go outside while you change..."

    "You do that..."

    Tass got changed quickly, and then let him back in. Something occured to her.

    "You didn't bring a change of clothes? Or nightclothes or anything?"

    He turned very red and looked at his feet. "I know how revolting it makes me look, alright? But Mum just bought me some new clothes and I didn't want to take them in case they were lost or stolen from the room or something, and a bunch of my other clothes were ruined yesterday because the washdroid malfunctioned, and...well...these were the only clothes I could take."

    Tass looked at him, not sure what to say. "Oh. Um..."

    "So now I expect I'm all dirty and smelly," Dekabyn muttered. "Great impression to make, really great..."

    "Don't worry," Tass said, finally finding her voice. "You don't smell. You look fine. Don't worry." But she was starting to worry herself now.

    On the airtaxi, she thought about what her friend had said. She knew in the back of her mind that Dekabyn was worse off than her, but she'd never really...realized. She knew he wouldn't like it if she felt sorry for him, and so she tried not to.

    They didn't talk very much. They were both nervous.

    The airtaxi eventually came to a stop outside a building. It had statues leading up to the enterance, and looked more like something you'd find on Naboo than something you'd find on Coruscant, but it wasn't anything too much out of the ordinary. No taller than any of the other buildings, really.

    The Jedi Temple.

    "This is it?" Dekabyn asked.

    "Yeah..." Tass said. "Yeah. I saw pictures."

    They got off the taxi onto the platform. Tass looked down at the city beneath her. She wasn't actually that far from the ground. She looked up at the Temple once more...all the pictures in the world couldn't have prepared her for actually being here.

    "It used to be taller, didn't it?" Dekabyn said thoughtfully. "The tallest building on the planet. Could've reached the sky."

    "That's what I heard," Tass murmured. She walked up to the nearest statue...the one at the front. It was a slightly different colour from the others. It seemed to glitter slightly.

    "Luke Skywalker," she read. "Founder of the new Jedi Order, and son of Anakin Skywalker."

    "There's two more statues around the sides," Dekabyn said. "Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader."

    "That's interesting..."

    "D'ya want to stop and take holographs?"

    Tass considered it. "Maybe later."

    They want past the other, smaller statues...many Jedi, some of them young and some of them old, some of them from species that didn't even exist anymore. Tass held her breath for some reason.

    Dekabyn reached the door first. There was a blue button on the side. He pressed it. Instantly the clear sound of a bell rang out. It sounded like it was coming from somewhere deep within the Temple.

    "Now they're all going to know we're here, I guess," Dekabyn said, sounding somewhat uncertain.

    The door creaked open. Standing on the other side was a boy. He was wearing Jedi robes, but other than that, he looked incredibly ordinary. The three of them looked at each other for a second. Coruscant traffic whizzed by overhead.

    "Hi," Tass said eventually.

    The boy smiled. "Wait. Don't tell me...Tass Vari and Dekabyn Resh, right?"

    "Right," Dekabyn said in surprise.

    The boy grinned. "I'm Owen. Owen Skywalker."

    "Seriously?" Tass said. Her voice came out high and squeaky. She blushed bright red.

    "Yeah." Owen said, grinning. "Luke's great-great-a-bunch-of-greats-grandson."

    "Wow," Dekabyn said, clearly impressed. "But you're hardly older than us."

    "I'm eighteen," he answered. "Nineteen in a few months. Anyway...come in."

    Tass and Dekabyn s
     
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