NOVEL NEXT Chapter 23: No Such Thing as Coincidence
Summary: Ood Bnar has theories, Celeste has Trauma.
Warning! Chapaters 21-23 were all posted back-to-back! Make sure you don't miss any of them!
Chapter 23: No Such Thing as Coincidence
Izuku and Aayla spent much of their morning, after their talk and subsequent fun, helping Mei get more fully settled in. This included the first of several hour-long language transfer sessions, in which Aayla chatted with Mei in Basic while Izuku transferred a hefty dose of subconscious information. It would need a day or two to settle in, before being repeated. Then it would need to be washed, rinsed and repeated again and again until Mei was mostly fluent. After those lessons had come the far more dangerous revelation of the Infinite Engine to Mei, as they used it to make her a wardrobe and other essentials. Both of them were fairly convinced that the only reason they were able to get Mei away from the powerful device again was because she couldn't actually understand the language it used. The fact that she immediately set about trying to make a translator was a little worrying, but would hopefully actually help with the language learning along while keeping her distracted for a bit.
As a result of being distracted by seeing to Mei's needs, it was only as lunch arrived that they finally encountered Celeste Morne properly. The woman had stayed with Master Fay on her yacht the night previously, but had apparently been poked and prodded by the older Master into joining the group outdoor meal that was sort of becoming traditional. She looked more than a little lost, though she did perk up slightly when she spotted Aayla, directing her first words toward her in the form of thanks.
"Padawan Secura. I wanted to thank you for your efforts yesterday. I was informed that you were the one to actually destroy the Muur Talisman, due to some unique property of your lightsaber crystal?"
Aayla nodded and smiled, but gestured to Izuku next to her.
"Yes, the Heart of the Guardian is a relatively recent acquisition and I don't pretend to fully understand its powers yet, but it seems to enhance the more martial uses of the Force. I might not have managed, even with it, however, if not for Izuku. He and I have a Force Bond and he was able to channel his own considerable strength to me, to be directed into the Crystal along with my own. Combined, it was enough to overwhelm the Talisman's defenses."
Morne nodded, reiterating her thanks to Izuku as well, who acknowledged the thanks even as he delivered a plate of sandwiches. Actual sandwiches, rather than ones made from the nutrient packs and autochefs that most smaller ships relied on. Izuku had insisted on stocking the ship so they could make some proper food, and Aayla hadn't been of a mind to fight him on it. Though, sadly, they were starting to run out of the fresh stuff. There was a reason ships mostly stuck to the packs, autoprep units, and various types of long-lasting ration kits. Regular food was just as hard to keep fresh aboard a starship as it ever had been aboard sailing ships back in the days of more primitive exploration on Earth.
Still, everyone appreciated it while they had it, including Morne who tucked into it like she hadn't seen real food for quite a while, even before being stuck in stasis for a few thousand years. For a little bit, conversations mostly stalled as they all ate. Izuku, however, was still a hero at heart and his link to Aayla's empathic ability let him feel how much of a bleeding wound Celeste still was. He picked his words carefully, very carefully, but he still spoke.
"Miss Morne, I will not pry. That's Master Fay's job." Said worthy glared at him with absolutely no heat to it, even as her lips quirked. "But if you end up wanting to speak to someone in a similar situation to you…well, that's pretty much me. Master Bnar might be more literally in your situation. But he was also over a thousand years old before he went into hibernation. I mean no offense to him, but he was already used to the mindset of living to see all he knew change and all those he'd befriended fade away."
Master Bnar, far from being offended, nodded and smiled.
"Indeed, it is the price all long-lived species pay when we choose to interact with those who are not. And I must admit that mindset has softened much of the blow for me."
Izuku waved an acknowledgement and continued, staying focused on Celeste and carefully moderating his words to her whipsawing emotions.
"I, on the other hand, was ripped away from my entire home dimension just a few months ago. Mei is here now, but that was a wildly unexpected event that happened only after I'd already been through what you are experiencing right now. Worse in a way, like you, I was ripped away from the purpose I had before. I was dropped into a galaxy much darker than my home, and then forced to figure out what to do from there. Trust me when I say that I at least somewhat understand what you're going through."
Tension had been building up in Morne as disbelief that he could possibly understand drove her to greater turmoil. But it popped like a soap bubble as he finished his comparison. Instead, she slumped a bit with the realization he'd been telling the absolute truth. The parallels were pretty obvious. Her response came out halfway to a whisper.
"The last part is the worst. I went to…sleep, if you could call it that, in a galaxy that was recovering. Where the Force was getting cleaner and less corrupt, even if my own small group believed not enough was being done to prevent it from all happening again. Yet, I awoke to find that the Sith had returned, not once, but multiple times. And to the Force feeling far more foul with the Darkside than it was last I felt it freely. Nearly as foul as it was during what I remember of Exar-Khun's war. It's not quite that bad yet…but…"
Izuku nodded.
"Yeah, Master Bnar mentioned that. But I think that's a good sign, not a bad one. Or, rather, I think both of your reintroductions to the galaxy is a good sign."
Celeste Morne frowned, not seeming to understand what he was getting at. Though Master Bnar nodded and Master Fay looked like she knew exactly where he was going with it.
"Think about it, Miss Morne. Just as the Force starts to darken and turn foul, two random Force users, following direction of the Force, end up recovering you. Then waking both you and an expert in the Darkside, with the help of a wandering Jedi Master that's known to have a powerful connection to the Light Side of the Force. I may not know much about the Force yet. I'm not even a Jedi and probably never will be. But even I don't think coincidence can possibly cover that. No, it sounds to me like the Force knows what it needs to make things better and is putting the pieces in motion to do so."
Celeste Morne stared at him for long, long moments. Then, to Izuku's relief, she smiled. It was only half a smile, still tinged with a bit of bitterness, but it was a real one.
"I suppose it does sound a bit too pointed to be anything but intentional, doesn't it? Particularly since it's two experts in the Darkside. I was, after all, a Jedi Shadow who specialized in hunting Sith and Sith artifacts."
Aayla started.
"Wait, really? The Shadows were all but disbanded after the Russan Reformation! The closest we have are experts on the underworld like my own Ma…former Master." Aayla's expression sank for a moment, but she powered through. "I know there are one or two others like him. His own Master for one. The Dark Woman, who has a…reputation. Maybe a few others?"
Aayla looked to Master Fay, but Master Fay shrugged.
"I don't know either, Aalya. Remember, I don't really answer to the council. But I think that too might be a part of the equation. None of us here answer to the Jedi Order directly, and my own meditations are firmly telling me that fact is not an accident. It's possible the main order has a leak of some sort and what the Force wants is an outside perspective. And it's formed a group of experts and irregulars to create that perspective. Perhaps we can discover something the council cannot, as no one even knows to be looking for most of you. I, myself, will likely have to make another appearance before too long. If there are Sith out there stirring up trouble, they are unlikely to miss my absence in the longer term. But I do often vanish from the public eye for months at a time."
Celeste was looking between all of them with a frown, then closed her eyes, falling into meditation and reaching out to the Force…only to snap out of her trance almost immediately with wide eyes. Those eyes were locked on Izuku with an expression of pure confusion. Aayla's expression twisted into a wry smile.
"Yep, he has that effect on people. Nope, we have no idea why his connection to the Force is that way. Welcome to the club of confused people! But hey, is seems to get us some answers, sort of, so we're sort of just rolling with it."
Celeste gaped at Aayla for long moments, then shifted to stare at the two Jedi Masters in turn. Fay simply shrugged with a grace that shouldn't be possible, while Bnar let out a rumbling chuckle.
"I actually have a theory or two about his connection to the Force. But otherwise, it is an accurate statement. Can I ask what it told you?"
Morne shook herself, frowning, speaking up only after a moment to gather herself.
"It wasn't so much that it told me anything. Nothing specific, at least. It just…the Force just felt…happy that we were figuring it out? How did the Force feel happy? That's not…how, what…"
It was Master Fay that chuckled this time.
"You'd be surprised how much about the Force that even Jedi still don't know. I've felt it have emotions before, though never as general as the ones around Izuku. Most of the time it's a sign of…something else that I might go into at a later date. In his case it just seems that the Force as a whole is more communicative with him and those immediately around him. Almost like he's acting as a sort of translator for its intentions."
"I actually think that's exactly what is happening. But I would need to do a few tests with equipment I do not believe you are likely to have, to check that theory in full."
Even Fay seemed surprised at Master Bnar's interjection, blinking for a moment before picking up the thread of what she'd been saying.
"Regardless. It is a boon. As is the fact you just said it feels we're on the right track. Was there any specific direction?"
Morne started to shake her head, then hesitated and nodded instead.
"I think I'll need to go somewhere, eventually. To take up hunting again? And I'll need a ship to do it? But it felt a ways off. Like the thing I was needed for wasn't for months yet and I needed to stay here for a while first? The impressions were pretty general, for all that they were clearer than I've ever felt."
Everyone there nodded, having already experienced similar things so far. Conversation lapsed for a moment, before Ood Bnar spoke again.
"In that case, I believe general preparations are in order. I do believe I mentioned I wished to speak with you young Izuku. Master Fay has been teaching you a few things, but I wish to assess for myself if you have a talent for one or two other areas. If either you or young Aayla do, it may give us a bit more of a hint. There are also a few tests I can walk you through without equipment that may help prove my suspicions as to your odd connection with the Force, one way or another."
Looking around and noting that everyone was done eating, with Mei already having her nose back in her tablet trying to work out a translator, Izuku shrugged.
"Well, no time like the present, then. Do remember my offer if you simply need to talk, Celeste?"
When she nodded, he stood, and headed off with Master Bnar to the old landing site that he was still using as a meditation spot…
... ... ...
A/N: I only mention this once per release, but my stories have a Patreon Page where some early access content is available. In example, there are five more chapters, making for just shy of 13,000 more words, of Displaced Hero currently in early access there. Similarly, there are at least a few Early Access chapters there for ALL of my stories, though NONE of them are ever permanently paywalled. All fanfiction content I make ends up here eventually, as new content for each story is released. I've recently quit a side-gig job that was draining my soul out one metaphorical papercut at a time, and I'm putting the time I was using for it toward releasing a lot more content, more quickly. Currently, that means about 40-50K words a month, across three stories per month. If you'd like to support me continuing to be able to do so (instead of having to find another side gig to keep eating), I'd appreciate your support :-).