Beyond - Legends The Journal of Talon Tantiss: Jedi Knight and Reluctant Vornskr Owner: Complete [DDC 2015]

Interesting discussion about the increase in crime and the cause and the strategic importance of the crystals. Relocating on one hand feels like giving into someone's schemes but it also feels like the safe thing to do. I like the intrigue and Indupar involvement.

 

Very interesting turn of events, especially regarding the dangers of having numerous untrained Force sensitives living on the Coruscant streets - but of course the Jedi can't train everyone and have to be selective about the process...

 

I am sure Luke would be shocked...especially when he discovers Ben, Zylie and Valla all knew about the boy. But Ben and Valla needed to know because they live with Talon. Also Marcus already was a stowaway on their ship. They would have figured it out eventually. I think Luke might be hurt until he is told this was not Talon's decision to make and he could not only lose the privilege of seeing his son, but every person who knew the secret increased the chance of Marcus being deposed.

Thanks. This story arc is based on my 2013 NaNo story that I never edited or posted. I thought it was an interesting story, but it was centered around the H'Drachi seers. I don't know if the story will be too confusing when written in Talon's journal. When I did Second to None: Sacrifices that story was posted before Talon's Journal covered the events. So most people knew the entire story before I started posting his journal. Now I am doing it backwards. I don't know if that will work. What I need to do is get off my butt and edit and post the story.

Thank you. I hope this next post doesn't seem too Gary Stu. I don't think it is more Gary Stu than Jacen being the hero of the Vong War. Hopefully it will be okay.

Coruscant is becoming infested with Jedi wannabes and washouts and things will only get worse over time. The Chief-of-State isn't totally paranoid. He knows there is a problem with Force strong criminals. In Talon's first journal he helped capture a rapist that was using the Force to mindtrick and make women vulnerable before doing a memory rub to make them forget what he had done. So, I have been hinting about the problem since 2012 or 2013. If a person hadn't read the other journals this may seem like a situation that came out of the blue, but it isn't.

Ack! I have been holding off on posting because it will mean I will have to finish my 2013 NaNo so readers can get the whole story.

Thanks everybody for reading.

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Entry 22

When Zylie and I got to the Vazy Princess I immediately went to our cabin, switched on the subspace transceiver and punched in the code for my parents’ apartment in the Indupar Palace. My mother answered my call and visibly blanched upon seeing me.

“Talon.” The way she said my name made my gut clench nervously. She was sitting at a desk—probably at her bedroom transceiver—with a panicked look on her face. She averted her gaze momentarily before looking back to me. “I suppose you heard the news,” she said softly.

I nodded. “Just now. What does dad think about the situation?”

Mom gave me a strange look. “Of course, he was horrified. It came as a complete surprise. I know he is scared of your reaction…that you would blame him.”

My brow furrowed in confusion. Why would my dad think I would blame him for a mining discovery? “Mom, I don’t know why dad would think I’d be mad at him. He’s not responsible for what happened on Ec Pand.”

My mother let out a shuddering breath as her posture visibly relaxed. “That’s a relief. I’m so glad to hear you say that. He was really worried. Your father wanted to be the first to tell you. He thought he would have time to get back from the battlefield and contact you before the news hit the holonet. I guess the newsflash moved faster than we anticipated.”

“What?” I muttered, realizing my mother and I were talking about two very different things…and what she was referring to was obviously something that might upset me. “Battlefield? What battlefield? I heard about the discovery of the Stygium crystals but nothing about a battle going on? What happened? Did the Galactatic Alliance attack? Is dad okay?”

My mother’s mouth open and then closed without saying a word. She looked completely dumbfounded. “You don’t know about the battle?”

“No! What’s going on?”

She closed her eyes and sighed. “The Nagai attacked Ec Pand. Your father and a regiment of Indupar infantry responded.”

My jaw went slack at the news. The Nagai are a race of near humans from the planet Nagi located in a satellite galaxy known as Firefist. They are known as fearless fighters and experts in guerrilla warfare. “Dad’s okay, right?” I was becoming a little frantic. My father was a veteran of dozens of battles and I never seen my mother so flustered (except for the time he lost his leg).

“Your father is fine. We’re all fine. Let me get your father on the line and transfer you. He wants to talk to you before you hear crazy rumors.”

“What rumors? Mom what’s going…” I didn’t get to finish my sentence. My mother put me on hold as she attempted to connect me to my father. I turned to Zylie who was sitting behind me at the edge of our bed. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

I could tell she was just as concerned, but she put on a brave face. “Your mother said everybody was fine. She wouldn’t lie about that. She probably just doesn’t know the details of what happened and wants your father to tell you himself.”

My jaw tightened as I tried to steady my nerves. “Or my mother doesn’t want to be the one to break bad news to me.”

Zylie didn’t get a chance to reply. At that moment my father’s image appeared on the transceiver screen. The signal was full of static and all I could see was the side of my dad’s head as he fiddled with an instrument console panel. I wasn’t sure where he was at the moment, but it looked like the interior of an armored ground transport command post. I have been in a few while serving at a Void Jumper. I could see communication equipment, vidscreens, infrared proximity sensors and various weapon control systems in the background. Usually the command post has at least a handful of men manning the various stations, but this one looked empty. Either the battle was over or my father kicked everybody out so he could talk to me in private. Eventually the signal cleared and he turned around to face the transceiver. When I saw the look of dread on his normally jovial face, I knew something very bad had happened. “Crap,” I whispered to myself as I stepped back and sat heavily on my bed. “Dad? What’s wrong?”

My father ran a hand nervously over his red beard as his eyes shifted down and then back to me. “I was hoping for a day or two to prepare for this conversation.” He blew out a breath as he ran his hand over his face. “Talon, first of all I want to say nobody in your family is hurt, but something’s happened that is going to upset you. Your mom said you haven’t heard the news or seen holovids of the battle…which is good, because I think you should hear it from me first.”

Zylie reached out and put a reassuring hand on my knee as I felt her apprehension wash over me through the Force. “What happened?”

“Is this line secure?”

I nodded. “It’s highly encrypted on my side. I am sure the same is true on your end. Zylie is here with me.”

My father nodded. “That’s fine.” He reached back with a hand and rubbed his neck where I could visibly see the tension in his neck muscles. “Ec Pand was attacked by the Nagai.”

“That’s what Mom said. I heard there was a discovery of Stygium Crystals…were they after that?”

My father drew a deep sigh. “Yes, and I doubt they will be the only government trying to seize the planet’s assets. They are worth more than the gross domestic product of most worlds.”

“But you stopped them, right?”

“We did.”

I blew out a relieved breath. If the Nagai gained access to the crystals they could become a formable enemy. “So, what’s wrong? Did you...” I stopped in mid-sentence, suddenly realizing this must have something to do with my son. “Is Marcus alright?” I asked frantically, making sure I didn’t say ‘son’. This transmission might be highly encrypted but a top slicer might be able to overcome those precautions and I didn’t want anybody outside my family knowing the king of Indupar was not the true heir to the throne.

“The King is well…but he is the reason I want to talk to you.” My father hesitated and I could see he was deeply troubled. “He led his forces on Ec Pand.”

“What?!” I shot to my feet. “He’s twelve years old!”

My father’s head dropped. “I know, but he is the King. I can't order the boy around. I was with him…most of the time.”

“Most of the time!” I shook my head in disbelief. “You wouldn’t let me go into combat conditions until I was eighteen and a legal adult, but you allow your…king to lead troops into combat?! He’s twelve-kriff'n-years-old! He’s not even a teenager!” I could not believe my father let my only child on a battlefield!

My father's jaw tighten as he talked through clenched teeth. “I am not his father! He is the King of Indupar. He believed leading his forces will reinforce his position as ruler of the Crown Worlds.”

Anger was beginning to boil up inside me and had to use a Jedi meditation technique to calm myself. I knew what my father was saying. Marcus wanted to ingratiate himself to his people and prove his ability to lead. “What happened?”

My father looked ill at ease as he continued. “I think it is best that you see the video. It will be broadcast on our planet later today and will probably be all over the galaxy by tomorrow.” He heaved a sigh. “I’ll narrate what’s happening.”

After a moment my father’s face was replaced by a grainy holovid of heavily armed Indupar soldiers wearing battle fatigues and body armor positioned around a town that was obviously protected by a particle/force shield. I could see the generator in the distance emanating long flickering lines of energy up and around the village. “The Indupar Army had pushed back the Nagai Forces to a small town outside the crystal mines," my father narrated. "The enemy put up a shield generator and were dug in. We figured this was the advance party tasked with reconnaissance and to secure a position. They had picked an isolated area and scrambled communications so the locals couldn’t call for help. The Nagei forces appeared very surprised that the Indupar Government almost immediately knew they were on Ec Pand.”

I gave a soft snort. I knew exactly how the Indupar Government knew the Nagai were there. The royal H’Drachi Seers foresaw this attack. I am surprised they let them get as far as Ec Pand. They must have wanted them there for some reason.

“Marcus called a truce, a suspension of hostilities, for the purpose of negotiations. He wanted to talk to the Nagai leader. With the energy and shock field in place around the enemy forces I guess the Nagai general didn’t believe he was in any danger. We couldn’t move or fire through the barrier—I couldn’t even use the Force to affect things on the other side of the shield. It acted like a Force cage. Of course, I knew the Nagai could have snipers outside the field so I demanded to accompany the King, along with his personal guards.”

At this point in the video I could see my son, dressed in a very conspicuous dress blue uniform with gold epaulettes, walk toward the encapsulated town. If he was wearing any protective gear I didn’t see it. Towering next to him was my father wearing green pixilated fatigues with beskar’gam armor plating covering his chest, groin and shoulders. Ten of Marcus’ personal guards and a platoon of ground troopers followed close behind.

Marcus came to the shock field and waited the arrival of the Nagai commander. Eventually a man walked toward the field followed by an equally well-armed entourage. All the Nagai warriors had pale skin and black, spiked hair. The General was taller than his companions, possibly two meters in height and was extremely gaunt. He looked like an emaciated corpse. He swaggered up to where Marcus stood and I could see the shock field glisten in the sunlight, separating the two leaders.

“At this point Marcus politely told the Nagai leader that as King of the Indupar Crown Worlds he was ruler of Ec Pand and that if the Nagai leader surrendered and his men put down their weapons he would allow the army to return to the Firefist system unmolested, but the General would receive a trial for crimes against the people of Ec Pand. Of course this offer was greeted by laughter.”

I could see in the holovid the pale skin troopers smiling in amusement as the Nagai leader gave my son a dismissive gesture.

“The General told Marcus that the Nagai would prevail.” My dad took a deep breath and then continued. “Marcus then said, ‘I know you believe reinforcements will arrive soon. Two hundred frigates should be coming out of hyperspace at any moment to devastate my armies. Unfortunately for you, they will never arrive. My naval forces activated a gravity well projector along the anticipated hyperspace lane linking the Ec Pand system to the Firefist galaxy. An interdiction field was generated pulling the Nagai fleet out of hyperspace and were subsequently crushed by my forces.’”

I could see on the holovid the General call to a soldier who was probably the communications officer. The man pulled out a portable transceiver from a satchel, pushed some buttons and shouted into the device. He turned to the general and shook his head.

My father paused the video. “The General didn’t believe Marcus, stating it was a ruse. Marcus unclipped his lightsaber and repeated his demands to the General. When the man refused this happened.”

My dad turned the vid back on and I watched my son do the impossible—he walked right through the shock field.

I don’t know of any Jedi that can do this. Grand Master Luke can create an energy resistant Force bubble to protect him from blasters, but as far as I know he doesn’t know how to counter the properties of an Energy Field. I have no idea where Marcus learned this skill, but by my father’s surprised reaction in the holovid I could tell Dad didn’t teach him this technique. My father tried to follow my son, but was shocked back from the energy screen.

I heard Zylie gasp as the events unfolded. As soon as my son was on the other side of the field he activated his lightsaber and decapitated the General with one swipe. The Nagai soldiers stepped back in shock before they started unloading their blasters on him. Marcus blocked the blasterfire with his lightsaber with ease before he held out an open hand in the direction of the energy generator. He made a flick of his wrist and the generator levitated up and over, smashing into the side of a building. As the protective shield fell, Indupar military snipers took out the remaining enemy near my son before a wave of soldiers advanced forcing the Nagai soldiers into a full retreat. The king’s bodyguards quickly formed a protective circle around the boy, which didn’t keep my father at bay. He shoved his way to the inner circle to confront Marcus. There was no audio but I could see my dad yelling and gesturing wildly. Marcus gave my dad a reassuring pat on the shoulder and said something before he turned and—accompanied by his guards—walked away from the town and towards whoever was filming the holovid. He stared directly into the holocam for a second or two, his expression was one of a victorious commander, full of power and determination, but as he turned away from the camera operator I caught a disturbing hint of a smug smile.

The holovid faded and was replaced by the image of my father. “The King suffered no injuries. He killed the Nagai General and a possibly two more by deflecting their blasterbolts back to their direction.” My father paused. “He told the General the truth. The Nagai armada was pulled out of hyperspace and destroyed. When this holovid is edited, narrated and broadcast over the Crown World HoloNet the boy will be the hero of the Indupar and Ec Pand systems.”

I ran a hand through my hair realizing I developed a cold sweat. “Dad, how? How did he learn how to counter a shock field with the Force? Did you train him to do that?”

My father shook his head. “I wish I could take credit for teaching him that impressive skill, but I didn’t. He didn’t do it through the Force at all, although I am sure he is going to let public believe he did. Physicists employed by the Royal House designed a personal energy field confounder. The device is small, but it can sense the frequency of an energy field and then project its own energy field around a person’s body that is 180 degrees out of phase. It makes a protective bubble allowing a person to pass through a shock field unmolested. But to sense the field one has to be practically touching it. That is why he wanted to get in close.”

“And you let him!”

“I think you can tell I obviously didn’t know what he had planned. If I did, it would have been me wearing the device, and he knew it.” My father took a calming breath and blew it out. “I’m sorry Talon.”

I shook my head in frustration. There was nothing I could do about this now. At least he wasn’t harmed. “What did he do with the surviving Nagai?”

My dad gave me a faint smile. “He sent them home. Some of his commanders thought they should be executed for the destruction they caused. There were a number of deaths in the town they captured. But he said a good leader is not only seen as powerful but also humane. If he destroyed the Nagai Army the next invading force would be less likely to surrender.”

I was still having trouble wrapping my head around everything I just witnessed. “Dad…he’s only twelve years old.”

My father looked at me sternly. “He is the king of the Indupar Crown worlds. He also will be in charge of a vast fortune of crystals that could make the Indupar military a major threat. He needs to show strength or every government in the galaxy will attempt to overthrow him. We are not under the protection of the Galactic Alliance or the Empire. We are an independent system.”

I groaned realizing my father was right. “I can understand wanting to appear strong, but there is something that really bothers me…the Seers obviously knew about this attack some time in advance. Why didn’t they stop the Nagai recon forces? You said there were casualties in the town. That could have been prevented. I saw that little smug expression at the end of the vid. Marcus let them die just so he can look good!”

My father’s face darkened into an angry mask. “That is pure conjecture on your part!"

“Really, is it?” I crossed my arms across my chest and glared at my father. “You said the enemy jammed communications but the Indupar Army was upon them almost instantly. He knew.”

I could see my father’s jaw tighten as he looked away. “Marcus wouldn’t allow the deaths of his people just to strengthen his image.”

I studied my father’s face. He was hiding something else from me. “What other reason could there be?”

He shrugged. “The seers see decades into the future. Showing strength on one battlefield might prevent a future war. Some decisions may appear coldhearted to those not possessing prescience.”

I leaned forward. “Is that what he did, dad? Did he prevent a major war by doing this?”

“Maybe. It remains to be seen.”

“What has he told you about the future?”

My father shook his head. “Very little. The seers are secretive, including Marcus.”

“I don’t like the seers,” I muttered darkly. “I don’t trust their motives…not one bit.” I pointed at my father’s image on the transceiver screen. “But, if they are going to continue predicting the future, let them know that they should watch out for the Galactic Alliance’s Chief-of-State. He’s going to want control over those crystals.”

My father nodded. “I will, but I don't think the Alliance will attack without first trying to negotiate.”

“Dad, Streke is crazy. Don’t underestimate him.”

My father chuckled for the first time in this conversation. “Don’t worry about Mokk Streke. I can take care of him. It is the Queen I worry about.”

“What’s going on with the Queen?”

My dad shrugged. “Her and Ema’s reaction to the video was worse than yours. I may have to leave Indupar for a while until she cools off. I am fairly certain they want to toss me in the brig. They blame me for Marcus wanting to be a warrior king, claiming I’m a bad influence on him.”

“That’s just great,” I grumbled. “Do you think they’ll let me come to Indupar? I would like to talk with Marcus.”

My father smiled weakly. “If it is to talk sense into the king, I’m sure they will approve…and I would like that. Your mother and I miss you and Zylie terribly. Hopefully you won’t be visiting me in the dungeon.”

I glanced over to Zylie for a second. “It will probably just be me in the StealthX unless we can get a cargo order to Indupar.”

My dad smiled broadly. “I am sure there is something we can order from your current location to make the trip profitable.” My dad reached forward to his the deactivation switch. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Real soon.” When the transceiver screen went black I looked over to Zylie. “My twelve-year-old son is a combat veteran.”

She leaned against my shoulder and sighed. “You can’t control him. You may be his father, but you can’t discipline him. I doubt his mother has any sway over him. For what it’s worth, he looks like he is a gifted and disciplined warrior like his father and grandfather. He’s also a trained seer. I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.”

“Maybe,” I muttered. On one level I was proud at the courage and skill he exhibited, on another level I was horrified that my little boy decapitated a man before his thirteenth birthday.

They grow up so fast.

 

On one level I was proud at the courage and skill he exhibited, on another level I was horrified that my little boy decapitated a man before his thirteenth birthday.

I see some of Anakin Skywalker's bolder quirks are peaking out through Marcus a bit. Great chapter, can't wait for that chat...

More soon

 

Marcus is growing up rapidly. I hope Talon will meet his parents in freedom

 

Exciting chapter! But I worry for Marcus, he might be in way over his head...

 

Oh, man. That is a lot for a 12 year old to handle, even one like Marcus. I don't blame Talon for being freaked out. I'm glad he'll be going there to see his son, who I am sure knows that his father is on the way. I'm sorry that I haven't been around much (darn classes with their assignment due dates!) but you know I love Talon and anything you write, gal!!!!

 

Thanks. Talon is going to have to get in line to have that chat. I am sure he got an earful from everybody at the palace.

I'm sure Mark and Kira will be alright. Marcus loves his grandparents and won't let anything happen to them.

He has bitten off way too much if I ever get around to editing my 2013 NaNo. That had him involved in a big mess. I don't know how much I can get in this diary this year.

College classes are a pain in the butt and put a crimp in everybody's fanfic writing time. I doubt I will do NaNo this year...but who knows. I really don't know if I will have time with everything that is going on in my life...any you have much more on your plate. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read and review!

Thanks everybody for reading and reviewing! I truly appreciate it.

This next post is very short but it gets Talon, Marcus and Mark on the same planet.

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Entry 23

Thirty-six hours later I arrived on Indupar. I really hate doing long trips in the StealthX. Traveling on the Vazy Princess has spoiled me. I’d left Kuat shortly after talking to my father. I didn’t want to be near my Aunt and Uncle when the video of my son showed up on the holonet. I am certain they would have more questions for me concerning my father and the young king.

I got clearance to land and set my starfighter down in the Royal Palace docking bay. In the spaceport corridor I could see my parents. My mom was wearing a conservative blue dress while my father was decked out in his Indupar military dress uniform made out of dark blue Savva Silk and accessorized by a chest full of medals, gold trouser stripes, gold and silver aiguilettes, a dark purple Fourragère, braided cuffs and a gold waist belt that held his lightsaber and an ornate gold-plated blaster.

He looked so gaudy! Ha!

I powered down and popped the canopy. As I exited my ship my mother ran up and nearly tackled me with a fierce hug

“I’ve missed you so much,” she cried happily. I was a bit surprised by her overly emotional embrace, but then I remembered she always got this way when someone in the family went into combat. It takes weeks for her anxiety to subside completely.

I gave my mother a hug and kiss and then broke away to give my father a hug. “I’m glad the Queen didn’t banish you.

My dad embraced me and then stepped back as a big, bearded grin crossed his face. “I think she wanted to, but Marcus intervened on my behalf.” He chuckled. “She’ll get over it…eventually…maybe. Do you have luggage?”

I moved to the undercarriage of the StealthX and opened a small storage compartment. “Just my toiletries and a change of clothing.” I raked my gaze across my dad’s gold encrusted uniform. “I figured I could borrow some of your tamer outfits if I stay more than a day or two.”

My dad looked down at his uniform and snickered. “Too much?”

“No,” I said sarcastically. “You should have added some gold camouflage face paint, gold dental veneers, and an assortment of gold necklaces.”

My dad guffawed as he wrapped an arm around my mother. “I’ll have you know your mom thinks I look dashing in this uniform.”

I made a face. “Enough said. I’d like to speak to the king if possible.”

“Sure.” My dad motioned for me to follow him. “He’s expecting you.”


Entry 24

My mother took my flight bag and disappeared down the hall saying she had to get started on dinner. I followed my dad to a large training room where he often instructs Marcus in self-defense and Jedi techniques. Usually it is empty other than Marcus and an aide or two, but today there were a dozen other people with the young king working out on the mats practicing martial art take downs and submission holds. I wasn’t positive, but I believe they were learning K’tara. It is a fighting style used by the Alliance Special Forces and other combat units. It stresses stealth and the quick neutralization of the enemy. They performed various strikes and defensive postures while a tall human instructor wearing what looked like a looser version of a black special operations uniform screamed out instructions.

I glanced at my father. “Who are these people?”

My dad threw a thumb in Marcus’ direction. “They’re Indupar Knight recruits. They are all Force-sensitives to some degree.”

I regarded the new apprentices. Most were teenagers, but there was at least one recruit in his thirties and two others looked younger than Marcus…possibly ten or eleven years old. I turned to my father. “How are you going to train a dozen apprentices?”

My father rocked back on his heels and sighed. “I can’t. Well, I can for the initial instruction, but they’re going to eventually need Masters and that I can’t do. I've been talking to Jaina and Jacen about sending these recruits to their fully established Jedi Academies. Both are open to the prospect.”

I looked back to the students. “Why not the Jedi Academy on Coruscant? I can understand the king not going there, but these other students could go. I am sure Uncle Luke would welcome them.”

My dad shook his head. “We are not part of the Galactic Alliance. If I sent students to the Jedi Academy the Chief-of-State would probably insist that they swear allegiance to the GA or he would pressure the Indupar Crown Worlds to join the Alliance. That’s why I am leaning toward sending them to train with Jaina and the Imperial Knights and not with Jacen. The Hapes Consortium has more independence than most worlds in the Alliance…but they are still in the Alliance. The Empire has more flexibility. Emperor Fel makes his own rules without bureaucrats breathing down his neck.”

I had to laugh. “I never thought we would one day believe working with the Empire would be the better choice.”

“True, but the decision hasn’t been made yet.” My dad raised a hand giving a signal to the instructor. The man nodded in acknowledgement before barking out orders for the group to halt training and to take a break. My dad and I walked up to Marcus who was sweating in his loose workout clothes. He smiled widely when he saw us but didn’t break character. When in public he is always the king and I was simply a Jedi visitor.

“Jedi Tantiss, it is always an honor to have you visit.”

I gave him a formal bow. “The honor is mine, your highness.” The words came out polite and with the proper reverence accorded to a king, but deep inside I wanted to scold him for risking his life…but that would have to wait until we were out of the public view.

One of Marcus’ aides handed him a towel that he used to wipe the sweat off his face and arms. “Please join me in my quarters. I look forward to catching up on news about your family and the Alliance.”

We followed my son down the long winding halls leading to his personal quarters. Once behind closed doors we had the liberty to talk freely. “What the hell were you thinking?” I chastised Marcus. “You went into a war zone! What would’ve happened if you couldn’t take down the generator? You would have been trapped inside the town with your army on the other side of the shield!”

Marcus grimaced a sour expression. “Dad, I already had this conversation with my military advisors, my generals, grandfather, grandma, my mother, and the queen mother.”

I folded my arms across my chest, exasperated beyond words. “And what did all of those people tell you?”

Marcus looked down to the floor as a guilty blush crossed his face. “They told me exactly what you are preaching now. All I can say is, I made the decision as the ruler of the Indupar Crown Worlds and as a Seer. What I did was the correct decision.”

I stared at him in annoyance, but what can I do? What’s done is done. I walked over to his quarter’s sitting area and flopped down on the couch. Marcus approached smiling sadly. “Sorry Dad. I didn’t want to upset everybody, but it had to be done.”

I looked up to him and sighed. “For the greater good, right?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

I gave a defeated gesture. “What can I do? Nothing.”

Marcus came and sat down next to me. “If it helps, I'll tell mom that you thoroughly chastised me.”

I chuckled as I reached over and gave his shoulder a squeeze. “Just promise me you won’t do something that dangerous again.” I waited for his reply, but none came. I looked into his blue eyes and asked him again. “Promise me.”

He looked away. “Dad, I can’t make that promise.”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “The same reason why you can’t make a similar promise to me. You are a Jedi Guardian. It is a dangerous job. My job can get just as dangerous.”

My head dropped to the back cushions of the couch as I glanced over to my father standing off to the side. “Now I understand why mom forbade me from doing missions at a young age. It’s terrifying seeing your child in harm’s way.”

Marcus smiled as he patted my knee. “Dad, don’t worry. I don’t foresee any more dangerous missions for me in the near future. I’ve made a huge purchase from Talon Karrde's shipping company and the Vazy Princess should be here in a few days. Meanwhile we get to spend some time together and we can discuss what I should do with the Stygium crystals.”

I relaxed for the first time since I saw the vid of Marcus on Ec Pand. “That sounds great.”

 

did Marcus get the earful of a life time and yet it sounds like it was unavoidable.

More soon

 

Duh! I thought I reviewed for the prior entry. I think I was so taken aback by what Marcus did, no wonder he got a "lecture" from everyone. He's right though. His dad can't make that promise to be safe either. But this whole seer infallibility is - in my opinion more dangerous than the missions!

 

They are knights and soldiers and getting in harm's way. loved the discussion between father and son

 

Very interesting politics! And great talk between Talon and Marcus.

 

Marcus thinks it was unavoidable. The trouble is the time stream one day might be wrong. He has too much faith in his abilities. He is probably driving his mother crazy.

That is true. From earlier fics Marcus explains that they may see dozens of possible futures and they try to determine which future is most likely to happen based on their best judgement. In other words, the future is always in motion.

Thanks. My son told me the other day he was going to join the Army (like his mother and father before him ). I had to bite my tongue and not try to dissuade from doing so because that would make him more determined to join. Instead I told him, "You better get off the video games and start running and doing push ups and sit ups because you need to be in great shape." He hasn't mentioned his desire for military service since then. Ha!

Thanks! I have been so busy I wonder if I can complete my current story arc by the end of the year. I will try my best. I might rewrite my NaNo 2013 this year for NaNo 2014. They now allow you to redo a past NaNo if you have all new written work that adds up to 50K words. I plan on using my 2013 NaNo as an rough outline and start over again. This story arc is based on that NaNo.

Thanks everybody for reading. Since I am getting the kids ready for their first day of school tomorrow I will only do a short post today.

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Entry 25

After Marcus showered and changed his clothing we all went down to my parents’ quarters where my mother had prepared one of our favorite meals: Coruscant game fowl served with Lipana berry sauce over seasoned rice. I really miss my mother’s cooking. I hate to say it, but Zylie is terrible at preparing meals. Princess won’t even eat her cooking leftovers. Valla and Ben are not much better. I appear to be the only person on the ship that can read a recipe.

It was a wonderful feast and a great evening. Dad and I purposely avoided the subject of the battle so not to upset my mother. We talked about Indupar Knight training, my pregnant vornskr, and my mission to catch a mind-witch. My parents thought Jonnar teasing his daughter about marrying me was hilarious and mom got all teary eyed when I revealed that I told the witch I would rather die than break my marital vows.

“Zylie is very lucky to have you as a husband,” my mother said warmly.

I gave her a wide grin. “I keep telling her that, Mom, but I don’t think she believes me.”

My father rolled his eyes. “I wonder if vornskrs dislike giant egos? That would explain Princess’ distaste for you.”

Marcus let out a big laugh. “Did Princess growl at you again, dad?”

I made a noise of disgust as I raised my arm. “She bit me.” I pointed to white scar tissue. “The bacta healed most of it but you can still see a scar where she clamped down on me.”

“What did you do to her?” My mother’s brow furrowed in confusion. “She’s never bit anybody before.”

“I didn’t do anything. I was helping Zylie to give her a bath when I noticed her distended stomach and teats. I thought she might be pregnant and decided to feel her belly to confirm this belief. I guess she thought I was endangering her young and she bit me.”

Marcus grinned. “Can I have a baby Vornskr?”

I laughed. “Once they are weaned you can have all of them.”

My dad looked a little uneasy. “They won’t come after my ysalamiri, will they?”

I shook my head. “Vornskrs eat ysalamiri in the Myrkr forest because that’s their main food source. If you feed the animals they won’t hunt.”

“Unless you touch their belly,” my son laughed.

I chuckled. “Correct. If you touch a pregnant vornskr’s belly she may develop a craving for Jedi.”

The remainder of the meal was spent laughing and telling stories about my childhood, Marcus’ training, and the early years at the Jedi Academy when my father and Aunt Mara were Uncle Luke’s first students.

It was a good get-together.

Entry 26

I should have known something would spoil my evening and that ‘something’ came in the form of Ema Aiti who rang the buzzer of my guest quarters just as I was about to retire for the evening. I tightened the bathrobe over my sleep pants and answered the door. In the corridor I found Marcus’ mother standing there, arms crossed over her chest and with a disapproving expression on her face. She didn’t wait for an invitation to enter, but barged past me and into my guest quarters. “I heard from the palace staff that you were here. I should be told when my son’s father is visiting and not have to hear it from the help.”

I spread my hands out in a placating gesture. “I didn’t know you weren’t told. I was invited by my father and Marcus…maybe you should have this conversation with them.”

“I should have known your father was involved,” she huffed, her usually beautiful face scrunched up into a cold mask. “My sister should have sent him away. I am sure he has filled my son’s head with glorious stories of battle.” She glared at me. “Are you here to compliment Marcus on becoming a murderer before he’s even a teenager? You and your dad are a bad influence on him. You are making him into a warmonger!” Ema was livid…and just as upset as I was with my father upon seeing the holovid of Marcus. I can understand why she was upset but the fact that I am being blamed made my blood boil. Before she could continue her tirade I put up a cautioning hand to silence her.

“Stop right there. How dare you blame me for anything Marcus does.” I thrust an accusing finger at her. “You robbed me of my right to raise my son, to be part of his life. He didn’t even know I existed until he was nine years old. Nine years I lost with my son! And for the last three years my contact with him—my only child—has been severely limited. So don’t you dare criticize me for Marcus’ behavior.”

The fire dimmed in her blue eyes for a microsecond before she went back on a counter attack. “Before you and your father came into his life he never wanted to be a Jedi warrior. He wouldn’t have been on that battlefield if it weren’t for your father training him. Marcus wants to be a Jedi so he can be just like you.”

I shook my head in disgust. “My parents forbade me from participating in dangerous missions until I was eighteen years of age and I am positive they would have done the same for Marcus if possible.” I stared at her in annoyance. “If you want somebody to blame, look in a mirror. It was you and your sister that allowed him to train with the seers. Marcus himself told me he went to Ec Pand because of what he saw in the time stream…not because he wanted to impress my dad or me. He did it for the good of the Indupar Crown Worlds. So if you want to blame somebody blame yourself and your all-knowing seers! Why aren’t you yelling at them for not stopping him?”

Ema fell silent for a moment before dragging a hand through her long blond hair and sighing deeply. “The seers can’t see Marcus in the time stream…you’ve known that for a while. That’s how he was able to stowaway on your ship last year.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I knew they couldn’t find him sometimes…it is now all the time?”

She nodded slowly. “He’s disappeared entirely. They know of his presence after the fact. They knew about the upcoming attack on Ec Pand and had the admirals set up a trap for the Nagai fleet. They knew the ground forces were successful on Ec Pand…but they didn’t see Marcus there. They saw the shield coming down, but they thought your father did it through the Force.”

I rubbed my hand over my chin in thought. “Do you think Marcus is blocking them?”

She shrugged. “He rarely discusses the subject with me and when he does I suspect he is lying.” He eyes went wide as she took a step toward me. “Maybe you can find out. Go to this quarters or office and use your post-cognitive powers to figure out what he is up to.”

I took a step back, offended by the suggestion. “I’m not going to spy on my son.”

She gave a caustic laugh. “He spies on you! He watches you through the time stream. What’s the difference between him looking at your future or you looking into his past?”

I closed my eyes and drew a calming breath. She had a point, but I still didn’t like the idea. “The future can change, the past cannot. If he ignores me in the time stream and I died he will be wracked with guilt.”

“What if you didn’t check on what he did in the past, so you didn’t see his plans, and in doing so, you didn’t see what idiotic thing that got him killed. Don’t you think you would feel guilty also?”

I turned away and paced the room in thought. I stopped and gazed at the floor intently before speaking. “Ema, if he watches me in the time stream then he would know of any plans I had to spy on him. He would simply find a way to counter my snooping. I wouldn’t get any useful information and it might result in Marcus never trusting me again.” I blew out a deep breath before settling down on the couch. “I want to protect my son, but I’m not going to invade his privacy. I don’t want to do anything that would cause resentment and damage my relationship with him.”

Her shoulders slumped as she blew out a frustrated breath. “I don’t know how your mother tolerates having three Jedi in her family. She must have be a nervous wreck when you were growing up.”

I gave a low chuckle. “She knew we were instructed by highly skilled Jedi Masters. Our training has kept us alive. Even if Marcus never picked up a lightsaber again, he would still be a target of assassins. All political leaders are susceptible. A Jedi warrior king is harder to kill.” I stood and walked over to Ema, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Don’t send my father away. The skills he has imparted to Marcus might be the only thing keeping our son alive…and not the other way around.”

She gave me an exasperated roll of her eyes and a dismissive gesture. “I hate to admit it, but you are probably right. According to your mother, he is as wild and incorrigible as you were at his age. If he is going to be running into danger all the time he might as well be properly trained.”

She turned and moved to the exit. She reached for the door latch but stopped and turned back to me. “Talon, I apologize for getting angry at you. You're right. You were cheated out of fatherhood…and for that I am sorry.” She then slipped out of my room closing the door behind her.

I walked to my bedroom wearily, wondering if I was making the right decision. I am Marcus' father and he is still a child. Should I use my powers to keep a watchful eye on him? I don't know the answer to that. What I really wanted to do was break into the seers’ meditation chamber and see what mischief they are up to. Of course they would see my actions and prevent me from doing so.

I plopped down in my bed wondering if Marcus was allowed into their meditation room. I realized I’ve never asked him where he did seer training. If Marcus has entered their inner sanctum, then he'd know all their secrets. But, if they prevented my son from entering their headquarters, then they were definitely hiding something. I would feel better if I knew for sure that Marcus was privy to the seers’ plans. If he wasn’t…well, then maybe the elusive King Marcus should pay a visit to the seers’ meditation chamber. They couldn’t stop him, because they wouldn't see him coming.

 

Poor Talon, he came to give his son a talking too and his ex assumed the opposite. She has no right to accuse him without knowing what Talon said to Marcus. At least she apologized for cheating Talon out of fatherhood.

More soon

 

Terrific stuff with the banter and the tirade I agree with Talon's perspective wholly though.

 

Interesting developments. Wonder what's up with Marcus...

 

Very interesting for Talon and his son

 

What a dilemma for Talon - he cares about his son so much and the fact that he's been able to spend so little time with him must still upset him deeply. Given Marcus' gifts and the situation he can't take charge of the situation like he probably wants too! Great, cathartic discussion between Talon and Ema.

 

Thanks everybody for waiting so long for the second post of the month. I delayed until the last minute because I have been very ill. I sometimes get really anemic to the point that I am totally confused, I can't concentrate and I definitely can't put two coherent sentences together. I went to the doctor and have been taking large amounts of iron to get oxygen back to my brain. My blood tests came back okay. I have elevated white blood cells so I might be ill. I have chronic health problems so this is nothing new. I just hate not being able to write.

I hope this next post makes some sense. I do make mention to my story Second to None: Sacrifices. It is a variation of LOTF. Jacen is tricked by Lumiya to apprentice under her. Jacen almost kills Mara Jade by accident. He was also involved in a nanovirus plague targeting the Hapan royalty and in doing so he got rid of most of Tenel Ka's enemies. Only Mark Tantiss knows the extent of Jacen's evil actions. That discovery was made while Mark was doing a memory wipe on Jacen to 'cure' him of his Sith ways. Talon Tantiss suspects Jacen was involved in the Hapan plague, but he has no proof and, in all honestly, he doesn't really want to know.

I hope this entry makes some sense.

I figure she is really upset. She should be mad at Marcus but people often displace their anger in these types of situations.

Thanks! I know I would have freaked if my son did something like Marcus did. I probably would be blaming everybody because I would need a lot of targets to vent my frustration.

I don't think Marcus knows the whole story yet. In a rough draft of my 2013 NaNo story I have him discovering the truth. I don't know if the whole story will be revealed in this journal. This story is ending up like the TV series Lost...where you are always confused as to who knows what.

Thanks. I can't imagine only seeing your child a few times a year. Talon has a right to be mad at Ema.

Thank you. Being around Ema must be a little strange for Talon. He loved her dearly and she broke his heart. Of course now he is deeply in love with Zylie. It just has to be a strange situation for everybody. I suspect Marcus knows there is some friction between his parents and that is why he doesn't give his mother a heads up on his father's arrival.

Okay, here is my next post. I probably will edit it a dozen time between now and the next post. I hope it makes sense.

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Entry 27

I had breakfast with my parents the next morning. I was sitting across the dining table from my mom and dad, eating breakfast, when my father started to chuckle under his breath. He cut his eggs with the edge of his fork, gave me a furtive glance, and then attempted to stifle a smile.

I raised an eyebrow. “What’s so funny, Dad?”

He motioned for me to wait while he tried to swallow a mouthful of food. Once he got the chow down he wiped his beard with his napkin and grinned. “I heard Ema was in your room last night.”

My jaw went slack. I really hope he didn’t get the wrong impression. “Dad, she just came to talk; don’t start any rumors.”

He rolled his eyes and snickered before pointing his fork in my direction. “Do you really think I would be in a good mood if I thought you were cheating on your wife?” He shook his head while offering a disbelieving snort. “No, I know you were only talking. I could feel her anger seeping through the Force all the way to our quarters.”

My eyes narrowed with irritation. “Then why didn’t you come and help me. She was pissed.”

My dad bit down on his lower lip to keep from laughing some more. “No way. I have been on the receiving end of her tirades for days. Yesterday was the first time I’ve had a reprieve.”

I rolled my eyes and I went back to my meal. “You could have at least warned me or let her know I was on planet.”

My dad shrugged. “She’d still be mad.” He sipped some juice and leaned back in his chair. “The Vazy Princess will be here soon. Marcus had his people talk to Karrde and he chartered the freighter to transport some cargo from Indupar, to Coruscant, then to Hapes and finally to Bastion. He is paying twice the going rate.”

“Okay,” I said guardedly. “Does that mean Marcus wants me gone from the planet?”

My dad nodded. “It’s probably for the best.”

I gave a slow despondent nod. I had really wanted to stay longer, but with Ema in a foul mood leaving was probably the soundest course of action. “What’s the cargo?”

Dad put his hand to his chest and smiled. “Me.” He stood and picked up his empty plate and moved it to the kitchen. “Today Marcus sent a group of his representatives to Coruscant to negotiate with Chief-of-State Mokk Streke concerning the recently discovered stygium crystals. He wants me to meet them there and assist.” He returned from the kitchen and sat back down. “He said he feared his representatives would be turned away if Streke knew a Jedi was on board. I am going to sneak into the meeting at the last minute. It will be harder for him to turn me away once negotiations are ready to commence.”

“Why does Marcus want you there?”

His brow went up slightly. “Because I am one of the few people he truly trusts.”

“Plus your dad can use the Force to figure out if Streke is lying,” my mother added.

My dad grinned. “That too.”

I sighed deeply. “I sort of wanted to spend more time with my son.”

My father stood and put a friendly hand on my shoulder. “I know, but I would like to spend some time with my son also.”

I looked over to my mother. “Are you coming with us?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m going to stay and make sure Marcus stays out of trouble.” She gave my father a knowing look. “Before the Ec Pand incident I told your father Marcus was acting suspiciously, but I was completely ignored because I’m no Jedi.”

The way my mother said that last sentence indicated this was an issue my parents argued over before. Luckily my father will always admit when he’s wrong…especially when it comes to my mother. He gave a shrug of his shoulders and a sheepish grin.

“I should have listened to you, Kira. I guess women’s intuition is stronger than the Force.”

She laughed as she cleared the table. “And don’t you forget it.” She looked over to me. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep Marcus out of trouble while you are doing some male bonding with your father.”

I was a little relieved that my mother was staying with my son. If anybody could keep a Force-strong boy out of trouble it was my mother. When my brother Jaden and I were young we always wondered if my mother was Force-sensitive because she always knew when we were up to no good. She’s not, though. She simply pays close attention to our actions, tone of voice and body language.

Hopefully she'll keep a close eye on Marcus while we’re gone.


Entry 28

The Vazy Princess arrived two days later. I met everybody at the palace docking bay and escorted Zylie, Valla and Ben to my quarters where Marcus was waiting for us.

Once the doors were closed Zylie gave my son a big hug. She stepped back and shook her head. “You are just like your father. That vid of you on Ec Pand took a decade off my life.”

He blushed slightly. “Sorry to worry you.” He motioned us to the sitting area of my guest quarters. “I hope your trip was uneventful.”

As we sat down I noticed Valla and Zylie were having a hard time keeping a straight face. “Everything went perfectly. We were able to obtain the large cargo order you requested…but I have to admit, it raised a few eyebrows with some of the merchants.”

Marcus’ brow furrowed. “I ordered combat-sturdy datapads for my officers.”

Zylie laughed. “That was only one thing on your purchase list.”

Marcus leaned forward slightly at he gazed at Zylie and Valla in confusion. “I allowed my sergeants to get input from the soldiers that deployed to Ec Pand and determine what they would want as a reward for a job well done. I trusted them to make an appropriate requisition for the men.”

Zylie, Valla and Ben all burst out laughing. “You allowed the enlisted men to decide what they wanted?” Zylie shook her head in disbelief. “That explains the two-hundred assorted Kuat pleasure holovids, fifty cases of high-end whiskey, and five hundred boxes of expensive, hand rolled cigaras.”

Marcus blanched. “They ordered pleasure holos?” An annoyed expression crossed his face as he slowly stood. “I think I need to have a conversation with my senior noncommissioned officers.”

I rose out of my seat with a chuckle, placing a hand on his shoulder “If you give combat soldiers say on what they want…expect them to request what they want.” I gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Just tell your men you are going to have their requisitions delivered to their homes…either to their spouses or their mothers.” I chuckled as I dropped back down into my seat.

Marcus snorted. “Oh, that’s mean, Dad.”

“Don’t actually do it, just get them panicking.”

Marcus smiled. “I guess I have something fun to do tomorrow.”

The rest of the day was spent talking and catching up with what’s going on with each other’s lives. Too much was said to write down in a journal entry. I can say, a good time was had by all.

Entry 29

We didn’t stay long on Indupar. That’s probably for the best. I really didn’t want another late night visit by Ema complaining about the delivery of two hundred smutty holovids to the palace. I must admit, I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t witness the mayhem a battalion of drunk, horny, cigara smoking ground troopers could rain down on the capital city. Oh well, maybe next time. Ha!

I transferred my StealthX back into the holding bay of the Vazy Princess and then helped my father with his luggage. I put his huge travel bag in our guest cabin, but the long, thin metallic case he brought he carried into the cargo bay. I was a bit confused, so I followed my father. “What’s in the case?”

He looked to the carrying case and smiled. “It is a gift for a friend.”

I frowned at the cryptic remark. “It looks like a blaster rifle case.”

“That is exactly what it is.” He moved to the far end of the cargo bay and pushed aside some metallic storage crates, clearing an area. He examined the floor before banging his heel on the metal deck.

“What are you doing, Dad?”

He didn’t answer right away. He turned to the wall and examined some external conduits. “I’m looking for the secret storage compartment.”

I laughed. “Who do you think we are? Han Solo? We’re not smugglers. We don’t have secret compartments. Why would you…” Before I could finish my sentence my father pulled or pushed something above a large electrical box causing a loud metallic thump to echo through the cargo hold. I was shocked when a floor panel slid aside revealing a two-cubit-meter hidden compartment. “What the…?”

My dad turned to me confused. “You didn’t know about the hidden features of this ship?”

“No.” I shook my head. “How did you know?”

My dad hopped down into the storage area and gently placed the blaster case on the floor. He then jumped out and flipped the secret switch to close the hidden chamber. As the floor panel slid shut, he turned and gestured toward the smuggler’s compartment. “Karrde and I supervised the renovation of this ship. He thought it wise to have a least one hiding place. After all, the Falcon’s hidey-holes are the reason your aunt and uncles are alive today.”

“Okay,” I said slowly as I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I just have a few questions.” I dropped my hand and looked my father in the eye. “Why didn’t I know about this supposedly lifesaving hideaway and why do you feel the need to stash away a blaster?”

My father ran his fingers through his beard in thought. “I don’t know why you weren’t told. I thought you knew. As for the blaster, I am going to a planet where the chief-of-state distrusts Jedi. I don’t want customs finding a sniper blaster rifle with long-range scope in my cabin and start asking questions. But don’t worry, it’s legal.”

I started to get an eerie feeling about my dad’s explanation. “You said it is a gift for somebody…who?”

“Deke.”

“Deke…as in your old Jump School buddy, Deke? The commander of Tenel Ka’s personal bodyguards, Deke?”

Dad smiled. “Yeah, Deke Tavik. He said he has some really interesting information he will trade for the antique sniper blaster rifle that I foolishly mentioned owning while in his presence.”

My eyes narrowed slightly. “And isn’t Deke the person you disappeared with for almost two weeks shortly after Jacen’s brush with the darkside. And after those two weeks you returned to Coruscant and retired from the Jedi Order with no explanation. It’s that Deke, right?”

My dad frowned deeply, leaned in and whispered to me. “Drop it.” He stepped back and gazed at me sadly. “I know you have your suspicions about Jacen’s involvement with Lumiya and my actions in the aftermath of her death.” He pulled in a deep breath and let it out. “All I can say is…whatever awful thing you suspect…you’re probably right…and nothing good will come from you knowing the details. So please, drop it.”

My father’s words, along with the sad tone of his voice, shook me to the core. My throat tightened as I tried to form a response. “Okay dad. I trust you did what was best for all involved.”

He forced a smile on his face. “It was for the best.”

He gazed at me affectionately before turning on his heel and exiting the cargo area.

As I watched him walk away I couldn't help but feel sorry for my father. All his life he was forced to keep secrets. After the Emperor Reborn attempted to possess his body my father became the unwilling recipient of Palpatine's memories. All that dark knowledge he has kept secret for decades. Now he is the keeper of Jacen's memories. My cousin's memory wipe, performed by my father, ensured Jacen didn't remember his fall from the light. Jacen doesn't remember...but my father saw what was in Jacen's thoughts. These memories are my dad's burden.

Part of me wants to know the truth, but the other part knows my dad is right. Nothing good will come from knowing the details.

 

good post. At least Talon gets to spend time with his dad.

Sounds like it's going to get interesting during negotiations

more soon

 

Loved the blend of teasing and almost-confiding. Yup, some secrets/full details are best kept to a minimum of reveal. I particularly liked the commentary on Kira's astuteness.

 

like this talk with his dad

 

I'm also behind on reading about my buddy Talon. I love how he's the last to know about everything, poor guy. And I love the bit about Marcus and the enlisted men's shopping lists.

 

Great few posts, the plot thickens...

 

Thanks. I think those two should spend more time together. I like writing about Mark.

Kira has the advantage of knowing Mark and her boys all their lives. Well, almost. Kira met Mark three months after getting pulled out of a cloning chamber. So I consider that as knowing him all of his life. If you know somebody that long you can usually read their body language.

Thanks. They are going to be together for a little bit longer. Hopefully I can figure out something for those two to do.

Thanks! I hope nobody sees that as being disrespectful to enlisted men. I was enlisted in the Army before I became an officer. I know what it is like being surrounded by young soldiers. When I would inspect their barracks rooms I would find all types of interesting stuff.

Thanks. I'm glad you like it.

I have been so busy lately that the quality of my writing has gone down hill. I apologize for that. I have a whole list of things I need to do today. They are things I don't want to do, so I am procrastinating by doing my DDC update.

Thanks for reading!

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Entry 30

When I told Zylie about the secret compartment she didn’t believe me. I had to show her. It took me a few minutes, but I located the entry switch and opened up the compartment. She stared at it in disbelief. “Why didn’t my father tell me about this?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Why not ask him yourself? He’s your father. My dad thought we were already told.”

“I will.” Zylie marched down the corridor, past the galley where my father was having a snack and to the flight deck where she asked Valla and Ben if they knew about the secret compartment, which they didn’t. They also didn’t believe it and had to see it themselves. The ladies then went back to the cockpit and called their father. Ben and I crowded in behind them, wanting to see what our father-in-law had to say about this.

“Dad, why didn’t you tell us about the smuggling compartment in our ship’s cargo area?” Valla asked her father impatiently.

Karrde looked a bit sheepish. “To be honest, I had second thoughts about it after having it installed.” Karrde ran his fingers through his beard and sighed. “I was a smuggler and it was instinct for me to have that added, but then I thought you and your sister would see it as an invitation to smuggle and I didn’t want you to get involved in that type of life. Especially when you have Jedi husbands.”

Valla rolled her eyes and blew out a breath. “Dad, you could have told us about it and then forbid us from using it for smuggling.”

Karrde chuckled. “That’s like handing a teenage boy a condom and then telling him not to have sex. There is an implied permission.” He threw up his hands in a gesture of defeat. “But you know about it now, so I will tell you…don’t smuggle.”

Zylie made a scoffing noise. “Too late, Talon’s dad is smuggling weapons in it.”

Karrde’s brow furrowed. “What?”

I shook my head adamantly. “He’s not smuggling. He’s transporting a legal weapon to Hapes, but we’re stopping at Coruscant first. If we're randomly searched by customs he doesn’t want it found because the Chief-of-State thinks the Jedi are out to get him.”

Karrde gave a snort. “I am sure if the Jedi were out to get him…they would have got him by now.” He shook his head with a chuckle. “He’s delusional.”

Valla’s eyes narrow as she regarded her father. “Is there any other surprises on the ship that we should know about…any other secrets that you had second thoughts about?”

Karrde averted his eyes. “No.”

“Daddy…” Zylie said in her ‘I know you are lying’ voice.

Karrde shrugged. “There are three more small partitions. In the three cabins there is a hidden compartment for a blaster in the bedside tables.”

“Thank you, Daddy,” Zylie said in an overly cheerful voice before her brow furrowed in confusion. “Why didn’t you tell us about those hidden compartments? Those could come in handy.”

Her dad sighed deeply as he looked to something or someone to his side. “Those blaster compartments can’t be locked. Your mother and I didn’t want you to forget that there was a blaster there and then some child gets ahold of the weapon.”

“What?” I interrupted. The only child that has ever been on this ship has been my son. As far as I know, Karrde was never told about Marcus. “What child are you talking about?”

At that point Zylie’s mother, Zara, crowded into the viewing area to address that question. “We were hoping to have grandchildren sometime in the future.”

Karrde blushed slightly at his wife’s comment, but then gave a nod. “I am in my seventies and not getting any younger.”

I put my arm around Zylie and smirked. “I’ll start working on that right away, sir.”

Zylie gave me an evil look as she gave my hand resting on her hip a slap. “Knock it off.”

I grabbed my wife around the waist and started pulling her toward the door. “No time to waste. Let’s get to baby making.”

Karrde snickered. “You don’t need to get on that mission right this minute, but sometime in my lifetime would be nice.” He pointed at the screen. “Just don’t smuggle. It’s not a life for my girls.”

“Got it. No smuggling,” I said teasingly as I pulled Zylie out of the cockpit and down the corridor toward our cabin. As we passed through the galley my father raised and eyebrow and smirked. “What’s this all about?”

I smiled broadly. “I’m dragging Zylie to our cabin so I can check out her hidden compartment.”

“Talon!” Zylie screeched in embarrassment.

My father obviously knew what I was talking about because he said “There is a trick to getting it open. Let me know if you need help.”

I gave him a mock look of shock. “Dad, what would mother say?”

My dad blushed as he shook his head. “She’d say she’d like a grandchild from Zylie…so get working. But if you do need help finding the quick release latch to the blaster compartment let me know.”

By then Zylie had broken free from me and ran to the cabin. I glanced over to my father. “I think I can figure out how to get into it.”

After a half hour trying to first locate and then open the compartment I finally had to get my father to help me…but later that evening I did get to work on the baby-making mission. HA!

Entry 31

A few days later, late in the sleep cycle, we arrived on Coruscant. My father had said he didn’t have to meet the Indupar delegation until 0900 and the conference with the Chief-of-State wasn’t scheduled to occur until 1300 hours, so we didn't bother waking anybody.

Ben and I docked the freighter and then wandered off to our respective cabins to get some sleep. I woke early in the morning to get breakfast started and found Ben already awake and drinking caf. “Why are you up so early?”

He sipped his caf and shrugged. “Your father left the ship about a half hour ago. I woke when I heard the ship boarding ramp clunk when returning to the locked position. We need to check that out. It goes down silently but coming up it makes a loud bang. I think there is something wrong with the locking mechanism.”

I looked at my wristchrono. “It’s 0700. He’s not supposed to meet anybody for another two hours.” I went to the galley cabinet and grabbed my caf mug. “That’s weird. He never leaves without saying goodbye.”

Ben looked unconcerned. “Maybe he had an errand to run before meeting with the delegation.”

I filled up my cup and took a sip while deep in thought. “He didn’t mention any errand. Why did he sneak off…?” I stopped in mid-sentence and thought about that sniper blaster rifle he made sure was safely hidden from the Coruscant security and customs services. “He didn’t take the blaster rifle did he?” As I said the words the ridiculousness of my comment hit me, but at the same time a sense of dread ran down my spine. Maybe the Seers saw something. If they saw that the Chief-of-State was a danger to my son, would my dad go off and kill the man? I didn’t think it was possible. No, I knew it wasn’t possible. I shouldn’t think of such things. My father is no killer. But then I realized that isn’t true. My father has a confirmed death count that probably rose to the hundreds or thousands. If you consider the destruction of Byss it might be in the millions. Still, there is a big difference between killing in combat and assassinating people.

“Why do you want to know about the blaster?” Ben asked then shook his head incredulously. “Do you really think he may have snuck off to kill somebody?”

I gave a noncommittal shrug of my shoulders. “No.”

Ben put his mug down on the counter. “You do too.” He walked down the corridor toward the cargo bay. “I know you. You’re going to be all nervous and upset until you see that blaster.”

I followed behind my cousin. “No, I won’t.”

He blew out a breath. “Yes you will.” We entered the cargo area and walked to the location of the hidden compartment. Ben reached up above the electrical panel and activated the hatch release. “I’ll show you the blaster and then you can relax.”

I was going to argue that I didn’t need to see it, but in reality I wanted some relief from my worries. When the smuggling compartment was revealed I was relieved to see the rifle case in the exact location my father left it. Ben jumped down into the cubicle. “What are you doing?” I asked.

He looked up to me. “I’m going to show you the weapon.”

I squatted down at the edge of the opening. “That’s not necessary.”

Ben rolled his eyes. “If we leave now you'll dwell on the possibility that the blaster wasn't inside.”

Ben knelt down next to the carrying case, flicked open the locks and opened the container. When I saw the blaster rifle I let out a deep sigh of relief.

“What’s going on?” came a voice from behind me. I turned to find my father standing about a meter behind me, holding a box of pastries while munching on a fried dough ball covered with powdered sugar. I was so startled by my father’s appearance that I lost my balance and fell into the smuggler’s hold, landing on my cousin.

Ben yelped as I fell on his back. “Dammit Talon, what is with you falling on me?” He detangled himself and then noticed my father looking down at us. “Oh. Hi, Uncle Mark.” He struggled to his feet and helped me up. “We were just checking out the storage compartment. What are you up to?”

My dad sat down on the edge of the opening, his legs hanging over the side while holding up the box of pastries. “I was getting something for breakfast.” He looked to Ben, me and then to the blaster case before a expression of disappointment crossed his face. “You were checking to see if I took my blaster, weren’t you?”

“No,” I muttered while Ben simultaneously said, “Yes.”

My dad shook his head sadly. “I’m disappointed in you two.”

I grabbed onto the edge of the opening and pulled myself out of the container before reaching down and helping Ben up. “I’m sorry Dad. Ben never had any doubts. He was just trying to ease my worries. I am sorry that I would even consider that you would assassinate anyone.”

I was surprised when my father made a scoffing sound. “That’s not why I’m disappointed. If I needed to assassinate a person I would. What I wouldn’t do is involve you two and your wives. If I were intent on killing somebody I would rent a private ship with untraceable credits, use a fake transponder and alter my facial features. I wouldn’t catch a ride with my son, nephew and their brides. Do you think I’m an idiot?”

I opened my mouth to say something, but then closed it not knowing what to say. The way he listed off his assassination how-to list was disturbing. My dad must have sensed my discomfort because he just laughed and gave me a good-natured slap on the back. “Don’t worry. The last time I was on an assassination mission it was to slay the Emperor Reborn and I didn't even get to do the deed. The kill went to Karrde.” He stood and then pulled me to my feet. “Come on let’s eat.”

Somehow my father’s words didn’t bring much comfort. The ease in which he described how he would sneak onto a planet was disconcerting at the very least. I wonder if the Seers have sent my father on clandestine missions in the past? I would ask my dad, but I felt bad enough about being caught checking up on him. Perhaps I’ll ask him on another day.