Gray Jedi Ch. 2

“Serra, they’re on our tail!”

“I see them! Hang on!”

Serra Keto and Malik Ran rocketed through the Coruscant system, the Republic navy chasing after them all the while. The Z-95 Starfighters were fast, but their antique Defender-class light corvette held up splendidly, able to evade most incoming attacks. Not to mention that it was also quite well armed.

“Get the hyperspace coordinates programed, I’ll keep ‘em at bay,” Malik said.

“On it!”

Malik pulled up the targeting computer, tracking the fighters behind them. He figured he wouldn’t be able to destroy them, but if he could just throw them off a bit, it would give them their chance to escape. As he placed them in his sights, a transmission came in over the comlink.

“Unidentified ship, you have entered Imperial space without permission. Identify yourselves.”

“Don’t respond,” Malik said to Serra. “The less they know, the better.”

“Agreed.”

Deciding to send a reply with actions, Malik took careful aim at the nearest starfighter and let loose a volley of blaster fire. He managed to wing the ship, forcing the pilot to abandon the chase, but his comrades now knew them to be hostile and engaged as such. They opened fire, but the shields on the Jedi ship were stronger than they anticipated, deflecting most of their attacks. Meanwhile, Malik continued to throw them off with his shots, forcing them to roll and evade.

“Ok, we’re ready!” Serra shouted.

“Get us out of here!”

Malik strapped himself in just in time as the ship accelerated to light speed. Soon, the capital of their once-great Republic had been left behind. The pair sighed in relief, relaxing back in their chairs.

“So… where are we headed?” Malik asked.

“Ord Mantell,” Serra replied.

“Ord Mantell?! Are you sure that’s wise?! The Clone Army is known to use that system as a base of operations!”

Serra smirked. “They use the northern half of the planet as a base, but the southern half is nothing but abandoned junkyards. Trust me, they won’t find us, and we might find some salvageable parts in those junkyards to help us. And since we’ll be approaching from the south, they’ll never even see us coming.”

“Oh. Uh, good… good thinking,” Malik stammered, surprised at how well though out her plan was.

Placing the ship on autopilot, Serra continued, “We won’t arrive for several hours at least, and it’s been a rough day. What say we go relax for a bit?”

“Sounds good…”

Malik stood from his chair and began to explore the ship a bit. Near the cockpit stood the captain’s quarters. He and Serra would sort that out later, he figured. Moving down the main hallway, a couple of extra sleeping areas lined the walls on either side of the exit ramp. Finally, he found three rooms in the back of the ship. The first was a small, dark room with a large holomap computer, perfect for charting courses and planning missions. The second was a conference room, complete with advanced communications equipment. The last room appeared to be a meditation area, containing several cushions and sofas on which to relax.

“Perfect,” Malik said, taking a seat on the sofa.

“Mind if I join you?” came Serra’s voice from the door.

“Please.”

Rather than sit in a different seat, she moved to sit next to Malik on the sofa, sliding close to him in the process. As he seemed apprehensive and distant, she attempted to calm him by placing her hand on top of his. He recoiled at first, but did not move it away altogether.

“You ok?” she asked, concerned.

“I… I don’t know…” he admitted. “I feel like… I should have done more for Master Windu. I could have found a way to save him.”

“Malik, what’s the first rule of being a healer?”

“First do no harm, of course.”

“Oh yeah… ok what’s the second rule of being a healer?”

Sighing, he knew exactly where she was going with this. “We save as many people as we can. Sometimes that doesn’t mean everybody.”

“Exactly. You didn’t kill Master Windu, Palpatine did. He didn’t die from your failure; he died in service to the Republic, in service to freedom. Don’t dishonor his memory with misplaced guilt.”

Seeking to comfort him, Serra moved closer, laying her head on his shoulder as she held his hand. She turned her face, planting a soft kiss on his cheek. Although she wanted to go further, Serra then noticed that poor Malik’s head was hanging and slumped; he was so exhausted that he had passed out sitting up. She gently guided his body to lie across the sofa, and then placed herself in his arms to spoon against him. Before long, both Jedi were fast asleep.

*****

Some time later, Malik was awoken by an alert from the ship, indicating that their arrival at Ord Mantell was eminent. As his brain powered up, he became aware of a warm sensation against his body. Opening his eyes, he saw that Serra had fallen asleep in his arms, her gorgeous raven hair mere inches from his face. Soon, she began to stir as well.

“Morning Malik,” she mumbled. “How’d you sleep?”

“Not as restless as I thought I would.”

“I’ll take it,” she replied with a sweet giggle.

After untangling themselves from each other, the pair made their way back to the cockpit to make preparations for arrival. Serra ensured the shields were running strong, while Malik checked that the weapon systems were armed and ready. If they should run into any Republic warships, they wanted to be prepared. But as they dropped out of light speed, both were pleased to find that they were the only ship in the vicinity.

“Huh… guess the clones were called away.”

“Not that surprising. Here, check out this transmission that came through while we slept,” Serra said.

The pair listened to a special session of the Senate, during which Chancellor Palpatine elaborated on a failed plot by the Jedi to overthrow him. With his warped face, he now had the look of a true Sith Lord. Alongside tremendous support from the politicians, he then announced the reorganization of the Republic into the Galactic Empire. This was supposed to ensure a “safe and secure society,” but both Jedi could tell that this was the Chancellor’s, now the Emperor’s, plan all along: a final bid for nearly unlimited power. As thunderous applause echoed throughout the Senate, Serra cut the transmission off, disgusted by what she saw.

“So this is it… the Sith won…”

“Not in my book,” Malik replied with confidence. “They may have beaten us, driven the Jedi into hiding, but as long as the ways of the Light Side of the Force exist, so will the benefits they bring. We just have to do as much good as we can for this galaxy. And avoid getting caught, of course.”

Serra brightened a bit. “I actually had a thought on that last goal. Looking at the ship’s configuration, it would be easy to modify it. It is a Corellian design, after all. For example, if we can find the right parts on Ord Mantell, I bet I could install a cloaking device. There’s already a hidden stash of stygium crystals onboard; they’re the primary component to cloaking devices.”

“You could do that?” Malik asked in wonder.

“Of course! Don’t forget, I’ve always been on par with Skywalker as far as my mechanical skills and piloting capabilities.”

“True, I had forgotten that. All right then, let’s head for the surface. Where do we start?”

“How ‘bout here?” she asked, pointing at their navigation panel. “This section of the planet contains the largest junkyard in the hemisphere. I’d be shocked if it doesn’t have what we’re looking for.”

“Sounds good.”

Serra piloted their ship down to the surface of the planet, landing amongst a heap of abandoned parts and scrap. Exiting the ship, she now saw that the junkyard seemed to stretch into infinity. Doubts began to creep into her mind. What was she thinking in coming to this place?

“You’re attacking the problem all wrong, Serra,” Malik grinned, seeing her worry.

“Huh? How so?”

“You’re only inspecting this junkyard visually, hoping to see with your eyes the parts we need. That’s worse than a needle in a haystack. But we are Jedi… the Force can guide us. You know what parts we need. Picture them in your mind, and allow the Force to take over.”

While a pure connection to the Force had never been Serra’s strength, she did manage to quiet her mind as Malik instructed. As in-tune with the Force as he was, she trusted that what he was describing was indeed possible, even for a brash young Jedi like her. Reaching out with the images of the machinery in her mind, she began to feel the invisible tug of the Force. Compelled to follow it, she and Malik traversed the junkyard for an hour or so, trusting only in their instincts to guide them. At last, they arrived at the top of a pile of junk, looking down into a valley of sorts.

“Down there,” Serra said.

Jogging down the hill, they began to search the area for whatever it was the Force was leading them to. Finding parts for the primary body of a cloaking device took no time at all, as these were quite commonplace. The computer core, housed in the balloon-like top of the device, would be trickier. But thanks to the Force, Serra soon came upon part of an old, beat-up cloaking device. Only the top half remained, but that was exactly what she needed; the rest of the parts would suffice to get it working again.

“How do we get this back to the ship?” Malik wondered.

“Here, got an idea,” Serra replied. Pulling a large, flat piece of rectangular-shaped metal from the rubble, she continued, “Let’s load everything onto this, and we’ll levitate it with us back to the ship, like a flatbed.”

“Perfect!”

The pair got to work on their spoils, being careful to load the parts in such a way that they would not be damaged during transport. Once everything was secure, they began to make their way back to the ship. It was slow going, as their concentration was focused on keeping their cargo stable. While this was quite easy for Malik, Serra began to grow fatigued about halfway through. But after a few minutes’ rest, she had recovered enough to make it back to the ship. All the while, she couldn’t help but smile at how patient Malik was with her. He never looked down on her or thought less of her just because he was stronger with the Force than she. Serra liked that. Hell, she liked everything about this man.

“We’re here,” Malik said, interrupting her daydreams.

While Malik spread the parts out underneath the ship, Serra went onboard and found the stash of stygium crystals to power the cloaking device. As she was the better mechanic, Malik allowed Serra to take the lead on the project, following her instructions as they came. She began by hotwiring the power cells in the bottom half of the machine, which was quite easy for her. There was no true standard for this part of the device, just as long as everything ran with efficiency and did not overheat. Serra then turned her attention to the beat-up computer core they had found. After making several adjustments to the circuitry within, she installed the stygium crystals in the center of the device and began to wire the halves together. Using a small computer, she performed several diagnostics, and found that the device was indeed operational.

“We did it!” Serra exclaimed in joy.

“You did it,” Malik emphasized.

Serra jumped up, grabbing Malik in a celebratory hug for a moment. While he was hesitant at first, he found he rather enjoyed feeling her warmth against him; he had noticed the same thing earlier when they woke up together. Even though both of them were filthy from their trip through the junkyard, he still found the scent of her hair intoxicating. Before he could react further, Serra separated from him.

“Come on, help me get this installed.”

Serra opened up the access hatch underneath the ship and climbed in, preparing the space for the cloaking device. Once she was ready, Malik levitated the eight-foot-tall machine up through the hole, keeping it steady for her. Serra made quick work of the installation, and soon their new acquisition was ready for its first official test. The pair climbed aboard and powered the ship up.

“Here’s hoping this works…”

“I know it will,” Malik said with a smile.

Once all systems were running, Serra connected to the cloaking systems and activated the device. At first, nothing happened. But after a moment or two, the device in back hummed to life, and the ships sensors confirmed what the two Jedi had hoped would happen: their ship was now undetectable. Once this was confirmed, she powered off the ship to conserve power, as it was growing late in the day.

“Impressive,” Malik marveled.

“This’ll make it easier for us to find a safe port,” Serra agreed.

As the sun sank low over the horizon, the pair adjourned to the relaxation area, grabbing a couple of ration packets along the way. They ate in silence for the most part, still exhausted from the events of the last few days. Malik flipped through news reports on the monitor near him, piecing together the events of the Rise of the Empire. Though the Senate gave overwhelming support to the move, several systems remained hesitant. Among the most notable of these was Alderaan, a system famed for its society of peace and tranquility. Their leader and senator, Bail Organa, was also a known friend to the Jedi, having worked with the Order on humanitarian projects throughout the war. If any could be trusted to keep their existence a secret, he could. Upon sharing his thoughts with Serra, she agreed, saying Alderaan should be their next destination. At that time, the pair received an encoded message directly from the Jedi Temple.

“This is Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen, with the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take its place. This message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi: trust in the Force. Do not return to the Temple. That time has passed, and our future is uncertain. Avoid Coruscant. Avoid detection. Be secret… but be strong. We will each be challenged: our trust, our faith, our friendships. But we must persevere and, in time, I believe a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you always.”

“So… that’s it,” Serra sighed.

“Looks like it. At least Kenobi managed to send out the distress signal. Do you think any survived besides him?”

“If I know Master Yoda, he’s far too wise to have been caught off-guard by this. He’s alive… I’m certain of it.”

“And if he doesn’t want to be found, he won’t be. Still, I think this confirms our next course of action. We have so few people we can trust left in the galaxy, but Bail Organa is one of them. I doubt he’ll remember me personally, but I’m sure he would help us.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Yawning with a stretch, Serra said, “It’s getting late. We’d better get some sleep before our trek tomorrow.”

“Agreed. Um… seeing as you’re our pilot, I think it’s only fair to, uh, let you have the captain’s quarters. I’ll sleep in a bunk tonight.”

Serra eyed him, a knowing look in her eye. “Is that really what you want to do?”

“W-what do you mean?”

“Come on, Malik, we slept together last night.”

“Yes, but not on purpose. We just… passed out.”

“Well… maybe you didn’t do it on purpose. But I snuggled right up next to you. I knew exactly what I was doing. And I’m not sorry,” she said, leaning close to him. “Malik… neither of us can deny how we feel.”

“But… the Order-”

“The Order has fallen,” Serra reminded him. “Malik, all we have left is the Force… and each other. I’ve meditated night and day about my feelings for you, and every time I try to follow Master Yoda’s advice and let go of anything that might become an attachment, I cant. Not when it comes to you. Every time I do, I feel something, a tremor in the Force. It tells me that it’s the wrong thing to do. It tells me… we need each other.”

Sighing, Malik admitted, “I’ve felt the same exact thing you just described. I’m just such a damn rule-follower, I guess. That’s why I’m hesitating.”

“There’s nothing wrong with doing things by-the-book, when the book is just and makes sense. But we’re taught that we are, above all else, servants to the will of the Force. And if the Force is willing us to be together… then we should.”

Their eyes locked, unable to look away. Malik peered into her deep, brown eyes; Serra gazed right back into his icy blue ones. Their breaths began to synchronize, and they again felt a push from the Force. It drew them not apart, but together. The two Jedi leaned closer, mere inches separating their faces. At last, Serra could wait no longer. Placing a gentle hand on Malik’s cheek, she drew him in and pressed her lips to his, feeling the warmth of his touch. He was slow to respond, as she expected, but soon found himself unable to resist this incredible woman.

The pair kissed for quite some time, slowly exploring each other and savoring the warmth of human contact. Their actions soon became stronger, and Serra lightly prodded at Malik’s lips with her tongue. Without even realizing it, he parted his lips and allowed her entry, and soon their tongues were intertwined with each other. While he was surprised by this new sensation, Malik did not fight it; there was no going back at this point. Finally, they parted from each other, panting in arousal from the experience. Without a word, Serra took his hand and stood, leading him down the hall to the captain’s quarters.

They found the room to be spacious, yet simple. A desk sat in one corner, and a small table with two chairs in another, both holding a small lamp. Ahead of them stood a large, comfortable bed with brown linens. As Malik moved to switch on one of the lamps, Serra sat on the bed, smiling at him the whole time. She then kicked off her boots and began to unstrap the pieces of leather armor around her chest and shoulders, revealing her plain off-white tunic. Malik’s mouth dried out as she began to uncover her form; her beauty was truly breathtaking.

Sensing his uncertainty, Serra stood and sauntered over to him, drawing him in for another kiss. As she did so, she moved her hands up his chest and pushed his brown cloak off of his shoulders, letting it fall to the floor. She then moved her hands back to his chest, unwrapping the fabric of his tunic and pulling it out of his pants. Malik was powerless to stop her, and surrendered himself to Serra. Soon, she had finished with his shirt and pulled it up and over his head, exposing his bare chest to her. Serra smiled at this, and decided to give Malik a similar view, crossing her arms in front of her and lifting her top off. He could now see that his previous observations about her form were spot on: her beauty was stunning. He had always admired her porcelain skin, and was now further entranced by the addition of her large, soft breasts. Malik knew she was shapely, but hadn’t realized the extent, as her armor concealed her form in most cases. But tonight, he did not see her as a warrior. Tonight, she was simply a woman, one who wanted nothing more than to be with him.

“Malik,” Serra whispered. “You can touch me.”

“Are… you sure?”

Taking his hand in hers, she raised it and placed it on her breast. “Positive.”

Malik was speechless once again. He could feel how soft she was, and he couldn’t resist moving his other hand forward to cup both her breasts. They were quite large, a bit larger than his hands, and contained a pair of tiny pink nipples. He spent several minutes exploring every inch of them, soon discovering that Serra gasped every time his fingers touched her nipples.

“Are you alright?” he asked in concern.

Nodding, Serra replied, “Better than alright… that feels so wonderful…”

As Malik continued caressing her globes, Serra couldn’t resist joining in the fun and began inspecting his strong chest with her hands. Though not rippling with muscles, he was lean and quite well toned thanks to his daily exercises. Medics had to be ready to run at a moment’s notice, after all. She continued down his chest before tugging at his belt. When he gave no protest of her efforts, she leaned in to kiss him and began undoing the buckle. After a moment of fiddling with it, she at last managed to loosen it and, kneeling in front of him, slid his pants and undergarments down in one motion.

Serra stared in wonder at the object now in front of her. She of course had an academic knowledge of human anatomy, but seeing the real thing inches from her face was far more impressive. Malik’s cock was already hard from their foreplay, extending about seven inches and perhaps two inches in diameter. As much as she was nervous about managing it, Serra wanted nothing more than to feel him inside her, filling her up.

“May I… touch it?” she asked.

“S-sure.”

Serra reached out a gentle hand, brushing her fingers along his length. She could feel it was not only hard, but also possessed a spongy texture. As she continued inspecting him, she heard a muffled groan from Malik. Smiling, Serra knew he had to be going out of his mind.

“Enjoying yourself?” she asked, continuing to stroke him playfully.

“Uh… uh huh,” he managed to say.

As she stood, Malik kicked off his boots and the last of his pants in a hurry, not wanting to trip and look a fool. Still, Serra refused to relinquish her gentle yet firm grip on his member, even as she unzipped her pants. Kissing him on the cheek, she decided to see how much prodding Malik would need.

“Can you help a girl out?” she whispered into his ear.

In compliance, Malik reached his trembling hands down to Serra’s slim waist and slipped her pants over her hips, letting them fall to the floor. She now stood almost naked before him, clad in only a simple pair of white panties.

“M-maybe we should, um, move to the bed?” Malik asked, still unsure of himself.

Grinning, Serra replied, “Thought you’d never ask.”

Maintaining her grasp on his cock, she led him over to the bed and pulled back the covers. After a few quick kisses, she spun Malik around and pushed him down onto his back, causing him to laugh in surprise. With a lustful smile, Serra slipped her fingers into the waistband of her panties and slid them down, revealing a thin black landing strip leading down to her pussy lips. Crawling into bed with Malik, she pulled the covers up over them and lay in his arms, kissing his chest and neck all the while.

“I can see… why the Council forbade this,” Malik realized. “Impossible not to form emotional attachments.”

Straddling him, Serra gazed deep into his eyes. “Malik, I have no delusions about what we’re doing and what this means. This is an expression of self… I admit that, and I realize that such selfish decisions aren’t the Jedi way. But I also have no delusions about our current situation. Either of us could be killed any day now. Knowing that, I find that one of the greatest fears a Jedi faces is not present in my mind: the fear of losing you. Malik, I accept that we could be dead as early as tomorrow. And if that is the will of the Force, I will be nothing short of thankful to have known you… and given myself to you.”

As Serra positioned her slick entrance at the tip of his cock, both hesitated for a few moments. They waited for some sign that this was indeed the will of the Force. Finally, after a few moments, they felt a wave of serenity wash over them. It was the same nudge they had each felt individually, though stronger now. With it came a single word entering both of their minds.

Together.

Malik nodded, and Serra began to descend. As she pressed her pussy against him, she felt a twinge of pain. Given his intimate familiarity with human anatomy, Malik had anticipated this, and gave a soft kiss to Serra’s lips, easing the transition. A few drops of blood dribbled down his length, but the pain in her eyes soon subsided. Pressing on, Serra continued to engulf him, finally arriving at the base of his cock. The sensations were incredible; she felt so full, so complete. They were connected in every physical, mental, and spiritual way imaginable. Peering into his eyes, Serra could tell that Malik was feeling the same sensations as she. She then leaned down and took his face in her hands, planting a long, sensuous kiss on his lips.

“You and me, Serra. Together,” he whispered as they parted.

Smirking, she retorted, “The Empire has no clue what they’re in for.”

As the pair giggled from her crack, Serra began to work Malik’s length with her pussy. She found several different methods with which to stimulate him, each with different results. Beginning by raising and lowering herself along him, she saw that he enjoyed that a great deal, but that it was a bit less pleasurable for her. Next, she took his full length within her and circled her hips, feeling his cock stretch out her insides and explore every inch of her. Serra loved that, though Malik’s reactions were lukewarm. Finally, she placed her hands on his chest and began to grind back and forth along his pelvis. This produced exactly the result she was looking for: simultaneous pleasure.

Malik’s eyes bulged from her efforts, and Serra began to feel a powerful tingling between her legs. Their pair’s actions became more passionate by the second, beginning to be lost in their desire for each other. For Malik, he was not only overwhelmed by Serra’s womanhood, but also by her gorgeous breasts jiggling inches from his face. Serra, on the other hand, kept her eyes shut, feeling his length sliding in and out of her. This combined with his strong hands on her back, beginning to push her over the edge. Feeling the end near, the couple locked eyes, refusing to look away as their orgasms approached. At last, they wordlessly climaxed together, Malik’s seed filling Serra’s convulsing pussy.

She rolled to the side as her spasms subsided, keeping his face cradled in her hands the entire time. For the longest time, they said nothing. There was no need. Their joining was complete. Listening to her contented sighs, Malik couldn’t resist kissing her hands and fingers a bit as they rested on his neck. Serra found that she was still quite sensitive in the aftermath of their lovemaking, and couldn’t even manage to return his affections without a series of squirms and spasms. After several minutes, the couple began to drift off to sleep, maintaining physical contact all throughout the night.

*****

Malik awoke first the next morning, finding himself alone in bed. Though he worried at first, he soon heard sounds coming from the attached bathroom. He figured Serra was cleaning up in the shower. After all, they had both worked up a large amount of dirt with their trip through the junkyard yesterday. After a few minutes, the water shut off and Serra emerged back into the bedroom.

“Good morning, sleepy,” she said, her wet hair glistening from the sunlight peeking in through the window.

Before Malik could reply, Serra had already leaped back into bed, kissing him passionately and giggling the whole time. After a minute of this, she calmed down again and laid her head on his chest. They cuddled lazily for a while before deciding they had delayed their labors for long enough. Redressing herself in her traditional Jedi clothes, Serra made her way to the cockpit and powered the ship up to perform diagnostics. Malik took a shower himself, finishing in record time, as he knew they didn’t need to stay in this system any longer than necessary. When he had finished and dressed, he saw that Serra was working in the cockpit, so he exited down the ramp and went to inspect their work from the day before. Everything appeared to be in order, until he saw a clone ship approaching in the distance.

“Serra, we’ve got company,” he said into his comlink.

“Shit! It’s a clone ship; they’ve probably spotted us already. They’re headed this way…”

“Is the cloaking device ready to go?”

“Not yet. It’s gotta warm up for a few minutes.”

“Ok. Keep working on it, I’ll buy us some time.”

“Please be careful, Malik.”

The ship landed nearby, a troop of clones exiting and jogging towards the Jedi vessel. Malik knew he would not be able to conceal the fact that he was a Jedi for long, so he placed the hood of his robes over his head, obscuring his face from view. Turning to face the soldiers, Malik kept his head low and his hands visible.

“Don’t move!” the commander barked. “Nowhere to run, Jedi!”

“Officer, there seems to have been a misunderstanding,” Malik replied calmly.

“Don’t even try it, son. We got word from the 501st division that a ship of this type escaped two days ago, firing upon Imperial ships over Coruscant as it left. You’re under arrest for high treason.”

Seeing the quartet of soldiers encircle him, Malik said, “I have no wish to do you any harm. None of you had any choice in your lives; you were practically enslaved from birth. Destined to fight. Please, don’t force me to hurt you. Just let me go. Tell your superiors you found nothing.”

“Silence! You’re under arrest!”

“Very well then.”

Before the soldiers could react, Malik’s powerful Force Push blew them back. As they hit the ground, he instantly drew his lightsaber from his belt and ignited the blue blade. Eying them for a moment, the healer in him refused to retaliate without giving them one final opportunity.

“Last chance, officers. This does not have to end in violence.”

“No… it’s your last chance, Jedi. I’ve already got my full regiment of troops incoming from our ship!”

Malik could see that he was telling the truth, as a large mass of soldiers was making their way towards their ship.

“You really shouldn’t have done that…” Malik sighed, bringing his weapon into position.

“OPEN FIRE!!!”

The quartet began assaulting Malik with their blaster rifles, but the Jedi was more than ready. Being a medic, he specialized in defensive lightsaber combat, and in particular deflecting blaster bolts. Each soldier fired a half-dozen shots or so, but Malik remained unscathed, and even managed to deflect the shots into the ground to show them one last time he didn’t want to harm them. But as the regiment of clones approached, Malik now saw he would have no other choice.

“FIRE!” the commander ordered once more.

As the mass of soldiers attempted to end Malik’s life, he drew on the Force to aid him, in essence falling into a meditative state. This allowed him to deflect every incoming blast with little thought or effort. His rebounds began to pick off the clone troops bit by bit, soon whittling the group down to only ten. His lightsaber whirled around him in a flurry of light; the clones began to think that he was invincible. As they advanced to try and take him out, one of the soldiers was cut down in surprise.

“HA!” Serra cried, stabbing the soldier with one of her lightsabers.

“Serra!”

“Thought you might want my help.”

“Ah, I had it all under control,” Malik chuckled.

Three of the troops turned to fire upon Serra, but she merely shrugged off their efforts by spinning her lightsabers at rapid speeds. She then approached the trio with a couple of acrobatic tumbles, landing in the middle of them and taking them all out with a single blow. In the meantime, Malik had decided to go more on the offense, taking out three more soldiers with a few precision slashes. He and Serra ended up back-to-back, defending each other from the final group of clones, taking out two of the three with their deflected shots. As the final one realized he was alone, he began to back up in fear but tripped on a small pile of junk before he could run, dropping his blaster in the process.

“And where do you think you’re going?” Serra asked, approaching the soldier. She raised her swords, watching as the clone attempted to shield himself.

“Serra,” Malik said in a stern voice.

The Jedi said nothing in reply, but only smirked and swung one of her blades towards the ground. As Serra sliced his blaster rifle in half, the soldier fainted as a result of his near-death experience. Serra then turned back towards Malik, holstering her lightsabers at her belt with a confident grin.

“That wasn’t necessary,” Malik said, boarding the ship with her. “You didn’t need to terrify the man.”

“I know, but… I’d be lying if I said I don’t take the betrayal of the clones personally. We were friends and allies, after all.”

“Still, we’re better than that, Serra. Fear and revenge are not the Jedi way, even in this changing galaxy. Besides, the clones are programed for absolute loyalty. They had no choice in the betrayal. No, none of this was their fault; it was all Palpatine’s fault.”

Taking a seat in the cockpit, Serra sighed. “You’re right, of course. I’ll try to remember that.” With a quick kiss on his cheek, she said, “Thanks, Malik.”

“Anytime,” he replied with a grin.

With their ship now powered up, they lifted off from the junkyard and took off into space. As they broke through Ord Mantell’s atmosphere, Serra activated their new cloaking system, picking up an incoming ship on the scanners. Malik searched the radio frequencies in an attempt to listen in on their transmission.

“Commander Jace, come in. Do you read? This is Sargent Fox of the 501st legion. Please respond!”

“Sounds like they’re trying to backup their buddies down there,” Serra observed.

“Yep. Not to mention that they’ll have no idea where we went in the aftermath. Look how close they are to us, and they have no clue! Nice job on the cloaking unit, by the way.”

Serra smiled in reply and began plotting a course to their next destination: Alderaan. Once they were a safe distance away from the clone ship, she activated the hyperdrive and deactivated the cloaking systems. Soon, they were safely in hyperspace, away from the eyes of the Empire.

“Malik,” Serra said quietly. “There’s something I’ve been wondering.”

“What’s that?”

“Well… back on Coruscant. The last thing I remember was Skywalker throwing me from that balcony. At that point, I thought for sure I was dead. Then, I opened my eyes and there you were. You saved me, Malik. How? I… thought I heard either you or Master Windu mention Force Lightning, but I had to have been hallucinating from the pain.”

Sighing, Malik replied, “You weren’t hallucinating, Serra. I don’t know how it happened or what I did, but I was so determined to save you that I somehow unleashed an electric shock into your body. I don’t know what else it could have been; it had to be Force Lightning.”

“But that’s a power of the Dark Side, right? How did you manage to use it?”

“I… I don’t know.” Thinking back to those moments, he continued, “I was at first devastated at your demise, but then was able to sense that you weren’t gone yet. I became determined to save you. Your life did not deserve to end so prematurely. I felt… something awaken within me. So strong was my desire to save a life, to save your life that I was willing to use any measures I could think of to do so. Then it just… happened. I shocked you. Your body responded positively, so I somehow did it once again. That’s when you woke up.”

“So, you weren’t drawing on the Dark Side at all?”

“I don’t think so. If I had, Master Windu would have said something.”

“It must be because you were focused on its power to give life, rather than take it,” Serra speculated.

“Maybe so…”

Turning to him, she said, “I think it would be worth exploring, to see if you can replicate it.”

“What are you talking about? This isn’t a power a Jedi should be using!”

“Lightning itself is simply a force of nature,” Serra countered. “Whether it is a power of the Dark Side or the Light Side depends on how it’s used. If you learn to use it to give life, to defend the innocent, how could that ever lead you down the path to the Dark Side?”

Thinking for a few moments, Malik muttered, “I suppose it’s worth looking into…”

“And if at any time either of us feels that you are straying down that path, we will stop immediately. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” he replied with a nod. Standing from his chair, he said, “Let’s get started.”

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