Chapter Text
Tuntura was a mostly uninhabited planet, full of rolling plains and rocky terrain covered in greenery and large bodies of water. On a large plot of land there was a village built just below a jagged mountain. The people there were a mix of humanoids and aliens from across the galaxy that had come to live a simple life away from the conflict and worry elsewhere; so it was a great surprise when a Republic Star Destroyer appeared in the skies above.
Hours went by with no activity. Many of the villagers wondered why it was there, why it hadn’t sent down any soldiers; for the most part everyone went about their day, only pausing to stare up at the ship hanging there like a moon visible during midday. Without any communications they couldn’t contact the ship, so it sat there, the children seemed entertained by it and the others looked up occasionally out of curiosity. Near the end of the afternoon there was finally activity. A small escort shuttle flew down to the village, passing over a few times before landing outside the small settlement. A crowd grew quickly to see who had arrived. Many of the adults expected it to be people asking for supplies, many of the children hoped it would be clone troopers wearing their eye-catching white armor. Everyone was surprised to see two masked figures step down the ramp of the ship; dressed in all black with long flowing capes dragging behind them, they caused an uneasy feeling to spread throughout the group. They seemed almost identical, the only way to tell them an apart was a slight height difference. Both walked within a few inches of the crowd and stopped suddenly looking over the audience gathered to greet them. The taller of the two spoke first “We are envoys of the new galactic empire; we’ve come because we believe a criminal lives among you.”
“We do not have any criminals here” Everyone turned to one of the village elders, an old black man sporting salt and pepper hair, complete with a large beard “everyone who comes to this planet is seeking a new life, free of their old impulses, belongings, and mistakes.”
“I’m afraid their crimes are too large to simply ignore.”
“We will not give up one of our own to masked strangers.”
The shorter figure began to step closer to the old man and the rest of the group; everyone became startled and backed up a few steps, except for the old man. The taller figure stopped their partner with an outstretched hand. There was a moment of tension as the man stared deep into the visor of the shorter figure who seemed to be fuming and struggling not to pounce at him. Eventually she relaxed and allowed her partner to continue “I can understand wanting to protect a member of your community, but trust me; this is not someone you want around you” she paused and looked at the crowd again “or the children.”
The man stood unphased by her words. With a sigh and a slight tilt of their head, the figure reached for their helmet and slowly lifted it off. The woman shook a few strands of long black hair from her face and returned her gaze to the crowd. She was a Mirialan; skin a healthy shade of light green with simple black tattoos running across her cheeks and nose, the only thing out of place were her eyes. They seemed mostly brown but from the elder’s point of view he could see hints of a yellow glow were speckled in with the brown “My name is Murinai, this is my apprentice Tariss” with that the shorter figure removed her helmet. She was also a Mirialan, with similar eyes and skin color. Her dark black hair was in a bob-cut that went down to her cheeks and her diamond shaped tattoos ran up and down her nose. Murinai offered the villagers a sincere smile “Again, I can understand wanting to defend your people, but this person is not one of you; if I had to guess she doesn’t even actually live here.”
Murmurs began to emerge from the crowd causing Murinai to smile “We just need to know where someone might be able to live outside of the village.”
The old man stood his ground “We will not give anyone up to you.”
“There must be something I can do to convince you.”
“You’ve already lost my trust, when you lied about who you are.”
Tariss glared daggers at the man as Murinai pursed her lips “May I ask what lie I told you?”
“You told me you were an envoy, of the empire.”
“That is correct.”
“Why would an envoy carry a lightsaber?”
Murinai’s smile faltered a little and her eyes darted down to look at her belt, her saber was still concealed; then she turned to see Tariss turning a bit pale and finishing an adjustment to her cape. Murinai held back a grimace and looked back to the old man “Things have changed since the time of the Republic, not everyone in the galaxy is as peaceful and compliant anymore” with that Murinai grabbed her saber from her the back of her belt and ignited it, pointing the end of the blade at the man. The scarlet light surprised everyone, and the murmurs became screams. The old man began to falter and Murinai’s smile returned to her face “Where is the woman?”
“So, you know who you’re looking for?”
“Yes, and you know what she is; but now I’m beginning to wonder what you are” Murinai began stepping closer to the man with her blade still outstretched. The man backed up, trying not to panic “So quick to question a newcomer to your little village, able to identity a lightsaber at the slightest glance” The old man’s steps stopped suddenly, and he struggled to move his arms. His view shot over the shoulder of the lightsaber wielder to the apprentice with her hand outstretched. “I’m starting to think we’ve stumbled across more than one jedi.”
“Let him go” a young dark-skinned woman broke through the crowd and ran over to the old man “He’s no jedi, he’s just trying to protect us!”
Barely able to move his head, the man turned to the woman “What are you doing?”
“The jedi is at the top of the mountain, in a small cave; we give her food and water every few weeks but that’s all.”
Murinai pauses for a second before giving the saber a dramatic flip and switching it off. She signaled for Tariss to let go of the man. She complied but also pulled him forward just enough for him to fall to his hands and knees in the soft soil. The woman rushed to help him as the two black figures moved past, the shorter stopping and kneeling down to address the two of them “You were smart to tell us what we wanted to know; it would have been smarter to let the old man die; before he puts your lives at risk again.” She spoke flatly, as if everything she said was unquestionable. The woman turned to snarl at her but Tariss had already left to join her master for the trek up the mountain.
The weather soured as Tariss and her master journeyed up the path. The storm clouds and thunder rolled in out of nowhere, but no matter how loud it got or how dark the view became not a single drop of rain fell. The trail was made of the same black rock as the mountain itself; there weren’t many signs of civilization as they went, Tariss looked out to the sea and over at the village, but she couldn’t stop her eyes from drifting back to the mountain where the jedi was “There’s no way she won’t be expecting us.”
“I’d assume so; other than us, I don’t sense anything else on this planet. No doubt she can feel the same”
“Then we should prepare to fight, or at least try and find a way to surprise them.”
“Patience apprentice; unlike our welcoming party the jedi may want to talk.”
“Why, so she can trick us or try and escape; we have her outnumbered and overpowered.”
Murinai turned suddenly, startling her apprentice “I said patience Tariss; if we treat every enemy with blind ferocity they will do the same to us” she searched the young girls eyes for any sign of understanding “The jedi are strong opponents, no matter how many of them there are or how much control they have in the galaxy. We are walking in at an advantage, but victory is not assured.”
Tariss swallowed and answered her master with a shaky nod. With her acknowledgement Murinai stepped back and returned to her casual attitude. Tariss tried to slow her heart rate as they continued to walk. They would soon arrive at the jedi’s lair and her master was right; she needed to calm down. If the jedi did put up a fight, there was no way she’d be able to face them with so much anxiety and adrenaline. Tariss decided to put her helmet back on, to try and block out some of the outside noise; at least inside she could focus better, and her master couldn’t see the panic in her eyes.
At the end of the trail there was a clear opening in the mountain. Resembling a triangle, two large slabs came together to form the ceiling. The cave seemed highly decorated; candles lit the area best they could, there was a bed made of what seemed to be dried grass and a stone table covered in cloth and trinkets. Finally, in the very center of the cave on a rug was a woman, maybe the same age as Tariss, meditating. Both women paused at the sight of her; Murinai gave a smirk and stepped forward, Tariss simply watched from the entrance but took her saber from her belt and began fiddling with it.
Murinai stepped slowly towards the jedi, making no effort to be quiet; whether it was an act or not, the jedi was already aware of them “Are we bothering you” she finally said.
“No” the jedi spoke softly and outstretched her hand to the space in front of her “please, join me.”
Murinai took the spot on the rug in front of her but didn’t move to fold her legs. Now even closer to jedi she was fully struck at how young she appeared to be “I must admit; I didn’t expect you to look like this, you must have been a youngling when it all happened; you honestly still look it.”
“You’ve come to kill me.”
“Is that a question?”
“Did it sound like one?”
Murinai laughed at this “How long have you been here?”
“Since the temple fell, like you said” the woman finally opened her eyes to look at her guests. She was surprised by the sly smile on Murinai’s face but tried to appear emotionless. Her gaze drifted to the other woman; mask on, blade in hand; if anyone would initiate confrontation it would be her. Her eyes drifted back to the older woman “If you haven’t just come to kill me, what else could you want?”
“Well for you to join us.”
The jedi cocked an eyebrow at this but didn’t offer a response. Murinai’s smile widened “I’m not sure what you may have heard isolated all the way out here, but the jedi are all but extinct. That doesn’t make them useless however.”
“So, I would what exactly; come with you, dress like you, bow to your master?”
“Well with your prior experience I’m sure you could be your own master; go where you want, do what you want” Murinai began searching the girl’s eyes for anything; a sign of weakness, any reaction to her words “I’m sure the jedi would have never given you such freedoms.”
“You’re right; but then again the jedi aren’t around to tell me what to do anymore” the jedi’s rich blue eyes narrowed in on Murinai “You’ve made sure of that.”
“So, you’d rather be here for the rest of your days, until you drift away and become one with the force?”
“What’s so wrong with that?”
“Well it’s selfish for one; look how easily we were able to find you” Murinai got up slowly and began to loom over the jedi “Do you think we’ll be the last people to come here; more sith will come, bounty hunters even.”
“Then I will protect myself, and the people that live here; with my life if I have to.”
“How noble” the jedi’s eyes stared deep into the woman’s eyes, shooting over to her apprentice every once in a while, but never losing focus “You obviously would have been a great jedi, and you could be an even greater sith.”
The jedi sighed and slowly rose to her feet; Murinai noticed that she didn’t have the height of a youngling. Tariss took note of her attire; she was dressed in what others had described as the traditional cloths of a knight, the only thing missing from her appearance was a lightsaber “She is unarmed” she muttered, eyes beginning to dart around the cave for any sign of a silver cylindrical handle. Murinai smiled and began stepping away from the jedi and taking her cape off “Go on girl; grab your blade, it’s only fair that you be prepared to die.”
“I thought you were going to offer for me to join you?”
“You’ve made it very clear that you’re not interested.”
While they spoke back and forth Tariss watched the jedi for any sudden movements, anything that would give away her next move. For a second she noticed her hand twitch as if reaching out for something. Tariss traced from the hand to the small table of trinkets and instinctively jutted her hand out blowing the stone display to pieces and sending everything flying. Murinai’s focus was broken for a second before she realized it was not the jedi who had caused the explosion. Her opponent took advantage of the moment and summoned a small box hidden in the side of the wall to her side. Murinai ignited her lightsaber and immediately took two swings at the jedi. She dodged the first one just barely by stepping backwards, dodging the second by rolling to the side. By then her own blade had reached her hand, breaking free of the small box, she ignited the blue blade and flipped it in her hand looking directly at Murinai. She offered the jedi a smile and pointed with her own saber. Before she could take a step or say anything there was a bloodcurdling scream from the other side of the cave. Tariss was midair when the jedi turned to see her. She managed to raise her blade and catch the overhead attack. Tariss’ allowed her feet to hit the ground and immediately pulled away from the clash and took another swing at her neck. The jedi blocked it almost effortlessly and pushed into the clash, knocking Tariss off her footing. She moved to advance on the retreating sith but was surprised when she was pushed into the wall of the cave by Murinai. She struggled to free herself but Murinai had flat to the cave wall, saber still in her hand. The master began to step forward menacingly, her own blade skirting against the ground making a sinister hiss. Refocusing her attention on the roof above them, the jedi willed some of the stones to fall towards her opponent. Murinai slashed at the rocks; unable to block the smaller ones but succeeding in cutting the larger pieces.
Now distracted the jedi was able to break free of Murinai and continued to pull rocks down from the ceiling with increasing speed and size. Eventually Murinai jumped away from the falling rocks only for the jedi to take a running leap at her. An onslaught of blows went between the two; each swing changed from offensive to defensive in a pattern, neither moved their feet. Tariss watched her master closely for any sign of weakness or fatigue but the two warriors continued to clash like automatons in a display. There was a repetition of moves with every fourth of fifth strike until the jedi changed suddenly. As Murinai went for her offensive strike the jedi did the same putting one of her feet back and thrusting her saber forward with both hands, stabbing into her chest slightly. Murinai, unable to follow through on her swing, went tumbling backwards in pain. Tariss immediately ran in as the jedi moved away from a growling Murinai. The apprentices first swipe was wild and quick, she tried to cut the jedi straight down the middle; she moved to Tariss’ left and watched as she swung at her again, another easily blocked attack. The jedi watched calmly as Tariss lashed out with strike after strike. She continued to back up as the sith advanced until she was stepping over the remnants of the ceiling she had pulled down. The jedi reached out and willed a few of the stones up at Tariss who covered her face with her free hand and lashed out. She took three blind swings at the jedi. She dodged the first, deflected the second and moved closer to try and disarm the sith; the jedi caught the end of the blade in shoulder, grazing her but not stopping her. She then used her entire body to knock Tariss into the closest wall and turned her attention to Murinai who was mid strike. She blocked it immediately and in response Murinai kicked the jedi in the stomach, she stumbled past Tariss. Murinai stepped forward confidently and slashed at the jedi with a glancing blow. She blocked it but Murinai quickly recovered and slashed at the jedi’s blade arm, grazing it as if she were teasing. The jedi hissed and grabbed at the arm trying to keep focus through the pain. Murinai took one more swipe as if not trying and the jedi blocked again, not thinking about what her next move might be. Murinai once again recovered quickly and cut the top of the jedi’s blade off causing the beam to fizzle before turning off completely. Now the smile returned to the sith’s face as she looked at the jedi observing the broken blade in her hand; she gave a playful pout “It’s almost sad; watching your potential being squandered.”
The jedi returned her attention to Murinai, rage in her eyes. The sith went for one last blow, slashing downward at the young girl with both hands wrapped around her blade. The girl immediately raised her hands and willed the force to catch the attack mid-air. Murinai was surprised at her speed but quickly found herself breaking free of the girl’s will by reeling away from her attack. Then, just as before, Tariss screamed loudly before rushing in and trying to swipe at the jedi. She dropped her hands and made large full body movement to dodge and roll out of the way. Tariss pursued closely and Murinai ran to catch up with the two of them. Trying to make sure she wouldn’t jump away again Tariss edged closer to the jedi until there was barely room for her to take a full swing at her. The next attack she threw out was met with a hand firmly placed on her arm. Tariss struggled to pull free and the jedi delivered a few precise punches and kicks to the body of the sith apprentice. One last open palmed smack to the head made Tariss reel back, dazed but still being held by the jedi. She felt the resistance stop and began to move her opponent’s arm more easily. She watched as Murinai approached from behind, ready to strike, and turned with Tariss’ blade hand to thrust the blade directly into her master’s gut, and outside the storm clouds finally broke.
Murinai’s expression fell flat and her eyes locked with Tariss. She watched as her master’s eyes filled with tears and her eyesight began to droop. The jedi finally released the apprentice’s hand and Tariss immediately switched off her lightsaber and went to grab her master as she crumpled to the ground. Arm around her waist, Tariss took her free hand and tore her helmet from her head to look at her master face to face. She ran her hand down the side of her face and eventually went to grab her hand. She began to blubber as her master’s breathing grew more and more raspy.
Just out of view, the jedi managed to grab Murinai’s lightsaber and retreat from the cave. She ran down the path as fast as she could, trying to ignore the screaming pain in her arm and the overall ache of her body. At the base of the path she cut a quick right and headed for what would be the bottom of the mountain. Tucked away under tarps and bundles of loose brush she slowly uncovered a jedi starfighter. Climbing inside the cockpit she quickly powered on the ship and felt it rumble and rise into the air. It didn’t take long for the people of the village to notice it fly off into space and then jump into hyperspace with a twinkle.
Tariss still held onto her master. She didn’t notice the jedi take off, she just cried and hugged her master; she blamed herself for losing control, then she blamed her master for her lax attitude. Finally, her feelings landed on the jedi; the jedi who had taken Tariss by the hand and made her kill her master. She was at fault, only her. Tariss felt the pain and anger build up, she felt a searing heat in the back of her head and finally let out a wail so loud it traveled down the mountain. The cave floor cracked, the ceiling crumbled; down in the village houses shook and the ground began to split as the girl cried for her master and her murderer.