BALANCE | A Star Wars story

XL

      It's been thirteen days since I arrived in Iokath with my parents and they have been the most manic thirteen days of my life. Between appeasing my psychopath parents and putting my plan into action, I've haven't stopped. I've ran all round Iokath on meaningless errands for my parents, I've spent two days in the Church of the Sith sector and learnt more about them and their role in the upcoming war.

       I wake early and go to find Mazal in the surveillance room where I update him on any knew changes and where we just talk about our life in the four years we were apart. It's nice having my best friend back, but the threatening shadow of war and my parents loom over us putting pressure on the both of us.

       During the day I spend time with my squad in our training room. Together we perfect the plan until each of us knows it off by heart. We train and train, red lightsabers clash in a memorising battle for dominance. The Sith guards fire endlessly at several targets I position randomly throughout the room until their aim is without failure.

        Then in the evening I visit my parents and update them on how my squad is doing then they provide more information on the upcoming war. We will get to Coruscant on the fourth day of Month Five, the day the Jedi order was formed, and march on the temple. This is all the information I truly take in as it's all I need for my plan to work, my squad and I will be the only ones going to Coruscant if this all works out.

Finally as night arrives on Iokath I slip out of my quarters to the Libertas. Arden and I stay awake into the early hours of the morning talking about our past. I learn about his life on Tatooine under the ruthless crime boss, Jurga and how he was raised as the perfect Bounty Hunter that struck fear into any who dared oppose Jurga. I tell him about my life growing up on Korriban, I confide in him about the darkest parts of my childhood. He doesn't say anything just squeezes my hand reassuringly and that brings more comfort than words ever could.

Now I'm sat in the Libertas' main hold that has been mostly cleared out so we can all fit (Arden needed something to do). Me, my squad, Arden and Mazal are all sat on the floor leaning against boxes with pillows behind our backs.

"Tomorrow," I begin "we put our plan into action. Tomorrow we create a new order that bring equality for everyone, not just force users." I've thought long and hard about this, I want to make somewhere where force users can train without the confinements of the Jedi Code or the Code of the Sith. I also want to make somewhere where ordinary people can live and learn how to fight to defend the galaxy should the situation ever occur.

"We're ready," Icarnae, the other female Sith guard says with conviction.

            "I know you are, we all know the plan inside out right?" They all nod, "great, and everyone knows what they have to do?" Once again they all nod but despite this I have an urge to quickly outline the plan anyway. "Once we board the cruisers, we'll change the route from Courscant to Zakuul where we will land and some apprentices will stand guard over the cruisers to make sure no one escapes. Then I will deal with my parents whilst the rest of you deal with any guards or apprentices who's loyalties lie with my parents and there is no swaying them. After that, Teeubo, Naesi, Cazan and Kalsiu you will return to Iokath to free everyone here whilst the rest of us head to Coruscant." I say to my four young apprentices who nod eagerly. "This is going to be tough guys, my parents are incredibly strong in the force, it's taken all my effort to keep them from knowing about this. But I believe we can overthrow them, for the good of all the force users in the galaxy, Gods for the good of everyone in the galaxy we have to succeed and put a stop to the unjust rule of the Jedi and the Sith."

Cheers erupt around me, Arden glances at me a smirks. That smirk use to infuriate me but now it seems different and I find myself smiling back.

Soon after everyone leaves the Libertas, heading to bed to get as much sleep as they can before tomorrow. I stay back a moment to talk to Arden and once everyone has left my heart begins to beat thunderously in my chest.

Silently we walk through the ship until we get to the passenger lounge. We take our seats either side of the Dejarik board and Arden switches it on. We play in silence, only letting out grunts of annoyance when our character is defeated or sounds of glee when we defeat the others character. Soon though the silence becomes too loud and I have to break it, trouble is I don't know how.

          "You can still leave you know," I whisper into the silence.

          "What?" He tears his gaze off the board to look at me in shock.

          "I'm just saying, you don't have to stay and fight you can go find some new planet to disappear on, the galaxy is full of them."

          "I don't want to run away Erin, I want to be here fighting by your side for a better future." Suddenly the Dejarik game is forgotten and he moves to sit next to me, heat rises to my cheeks as he clasps my hand in his.

          "And I you, I never want to leave your side again." My words are barely a whisper and if he wasn't sitting right next to me he wouldn't of heard them at all. "Sometimes I wish we could fly away, leave it all behind and make a life for ourselves on some distant planet away from everything that plagues us."

         "You know we could never do that," he whispers, why are we talking so quietly? There is only us, me and him. "You could never let the galaxy succumb to your parents' ideals and I agree with you, so we fight. One day we will be able to fly to all corners of the galaxy but we have to sort this mess out first."

          "I hate that you're right," he laughs a deep laugh that makes my heart beat a little faster and brings a smile to my face. I lean into his side and he wraps an arm around my waist pulling me closer. We cuddle up together and suddenly my eyes are incredibly heavy, I fight a yawn but it breaks through after a moment.

           "Go to sleep jun ikha, we've got a big day tomorrow." I'm lulled to sleep by his soothing words, it's only when I'm about to be pulled under that his words sink in. Jun ikha, it's a Twi'leki saying that means 'my soul'.