Categories > Books > Harry Potter > A New Order
Synopsis: A renegade Jedi has a force vision of a pair of powerful force sensitive’s and sets in motion events that will see the rise of a new order. Her actions will have a profound effect on the future of many worlds.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Star Wars and I make no profit from this work of fan fiction. I am in the debt of its true owners as they have been the creators of worlds of fiction that millions have enjoyed. All Hail to JKR and GL!
A/N: Timeline checkpoint it is now coming to the end of 23BBY and the early months on 22 BBY in the Star Wars Universe – The Clone Wars have begun….
Last time:
“You are sure that this is wise?” asked Rutga Tahl as he approached Yoda, “the rest of the council is sure to object.”
Yoda leaned on his glimmer stick watching the departing ship, “Wise, no but the right thing it is my heart tells me.”
“Do you think Talia’s vision was true?” asked Rutga quietly.
“Ahh see that far ahead I can not but perhaps…..think more on this I will. Sleep I need now.”
Rutga nodded and turned to leave, “Then I will bid you goodnight old friend.”
Yoda nodded absently as the Jedi Master left the cabin, his eyes still on the dwindling shape of the freighter, “May the Force be with you.”
Chapter 6
Aboard the Talia, Deep Space
Harry sat with Luna in the med bay watching MK remove the sedated Jedi from the Bacta tank and begin a long chain of medical checks on the young woman.
Soon enough the medical droid completed his tests and reported, “The subject has recovered from blaster burns to her torso and shoulder. The broken collar bone and dislocated shoulder have responded to treatment with Skele-Gro. Her pregnancy appears to have not been compromised in any way.”
Harry didn’t know what to say to that. ‘Pregnant’, the Jedi sleeping on the bunk was still a padawan if her hair and uniform she had been wearing were to be believed and to be honest she didn’t look like she was anymore than 16 with a youthful face, petite figure and a long black braid.
“You can just see it starting to show and that’s only because she’s pretty skinny,” commented Luna as she ran her hand over the girl’s abdomen.
“But….bloody hell Luna she’s pregnant, how the hell did such a young padawan fall pregnant?” Harry was quite aware of the relationship taboos of the Jedi code.
“I would imagine that she engaged in intercourse,” replied Luna distractedly as she studied the motionless girl.
“Oh ha ha, you know what I meant Luna.”
“She will be cast from the Order,” added Harry as he watched Luna ran her hands over the young woman. “What are you doing?”
Luna turned to face Harry her face puzzled, “You say you felt a compulsion to say nothing to the Jedi?”
Harry nodded, “Well it was….it was like a voice telling me to say nothing about her, why?”
“I think we need to have a talk with her before we decide anything else, MK is it safe to wake her up?”
“Yes Mistress Luna, there should be no risk,” replied the Droid.
Luna looked to Harry who shrugged and then she turned back to Mk, “Wake her up please MK.”
The Droid injected the sleeping padawan.
oOoOoOo
“So what is the deal with our guest?” asked Sirius as the crew of the Talia minus Luna gathered in the Ships Mess.
“She is recovering well enough,” answered Harry.
“I can feel a ‘but’ there Harry,” replied Hermione.
“But the situation is a bit more complicated than we thought,” Replied Harry, “Padawan Keisha is pregnant.”
“What? How old is she?” asked Hermione.
“Fourteen,” replied Harry.
“Bloody hell…I mean…bloody hell,” muttered Sirius.
Harry nodded, “MK said that she’s recovering well and that the baby is okay but this opens a can of worms, not just because she’s underage but because this would see her cast out of the Jedi order.”
“What?” asked Ron indignantly, “She made a bloody mistake….that’s stupid.”
Hermione laid a hand on Ron’s shoulder, “I know Ron but from what I’ve read of Talia’s notes and from the computer the Orders rules are quite strict regarding relationships.”
“Poor kid,” added Remus.
“So what do we do?” asked Sirius, “We can’t just dump a pregnant teenager on some planet and wash our hands of her. Does she have any family?”
“She doesn’t know, Keisha was taken from her parents as a baby and doesn’t really know anything other than her home world was somewhere in the Outer Rim,” replied Harry.
oOoOoOo
Luna sat holding Keisha’s hand as the Padawan cried.
“Everything will be okay,” said Luna as she stroked the teens shaking hand.
“I’ll be cast out,” whispered Keisha as the full implications of her situation occurred to her.
“If you go back,” answered Luna, “that is the likely outcome. If it is not to sensitive an issue can I ask about the father?”
“Zor-sha, he’s a Mast…..a Padawan….we…um….well it’s obvious what happened.” Keisha looked at the floor as she whispered, “What will I do? I’ve dedicated my whole life to being a Jedi.”
“Keisha, look at me please,” asked Luna even as she filed the name Zor-Sha for further investigation.
As Keisha looked up Luna smiled at the padawan, “There are always choices Keisha, several years ago I was offered the choice to learn about the Force a choice you were denied well now the universe seems to be offering you a choice.”
Puzzled Keisha stared at the Luna, “I don’t understand.”
Luna smiled and summoned a container from the other side of the room.
“You’re a Jedi!” exclaimed Keisha.
Luna laughed merrily, “No I’m not, but my Master was a Jedi.”
Keisha stared at Luna for a few moments, “You are a Force sensitive?”
“Yes, I was one of the apprentices of a former Jedi Knight called Talia.”
Keisha looked interested despite her own problems, “We were taught about some of the other types of Force sensitive’s but I’ve never heard of them wielding a lightsaber,” she said as she gestured at Luna’s.
Luna laughed again, “Well Harry and I do and we’ve see at least one Sith running around with one so maybe the Jedi need to update their text books.”
A wide eyed Keisha risked a smile at Luna’s answer.
Luna took Keisha’s hands, “Keisha you are welcome to stay aboard the Talia while you decide what you want to do. We’ve got time considering the Council no doubt thinks you are dead.”
“Thank you,” whispered Keisha as she gave Luna’s hands a friendly squeeze.
As she stood Luna pulled Keisha to her feet, “Now up you get and I’ll take you to meet the rest of the crew.”
oOoOoOo
Luna settled Keisha in to the last of the spare cabins and skipped down the corridor to her own small cabin. The Padawan had been a little overwhelmed by what she had heard and seen even if she was very grateful for the haven the Talia offered. Luna had her suspicions about the chain of events that had bought Keisha aboard and promised that she would ask Talia the next time the Force ghost appeared.
After striping off and washing up she sat on her bunk and slowly immersed herself in to the Force, sending her love to her father. She felt the briefest moment of connection before it faded. With a mental sigh she slowly withdrew her awareness and returned to her physical form.
Almost every night she tried to send her love to him but it didn’t seem to reach him. Perhaps it was the fact that he was a wizard and therefore not as Force aware as she had been trained to be, regardless it didn’t seem to work.
Luna lay back on her bunk thinking of her father, safe with his new family on Earth, which was good of course but there remained a small part of her that was saddened by the changes to her life.
As she slowly drifted off to sleep her mind drifted and she smiled maybe tonight would be a Harry dream.
An hour later she woke from a rather different dream and padded out of her room.
oOoOoOo
It had been a long day but a productive one. For nearly four hours Keisha and the crew of the Talia had exchanged histories. That had led to a demonstration of how magic worked and an even longer discussion of other aspects of Force manipulation. By the end of the long day a relieved and excited Keisha had eagerly agreed to stay aboard the Talia for the short term.
Harry was absolutely exhausted when he finally got in to his bunk. His knee was healed but the muscle was still a bit stiff and he had been sitting for too long. After a few minutes of massage the muscle relaxed and he lay down, he had just closed his eyes when he felt Luna enter the room.
“Luna?”
“Can I lay with you for a while?”
Harry shifted over and Luna lay beside him with her head resting on her shoulder. After a moment she drew her leg up to rest her knee on his stomach. He could feel her warm skin and risked a quick glance. She was indeed naked.
“Luna is there a reason why you are naked and sprawled all over me?” asked Harry.
Luna caressed his shoulder, “You’re warm and besides I find it comforting watching you sleep, I often masturbate to that image.”
Long exposure to “Luna-isims” had granted Harry a great deal of shock resistance but that comment was enough to generate a blush.
“Are you blushing Harry?” asked Luna.
“Yes,” answered Harry shortly.
“It was meant as a compliment,” explained Luna.
“Thanks,” replied Harry.
There were a few minutes of silence then Luna shifted around for a few moments before sitting up on Harry’s abdomen, very low on his abdomen, “Luna!”
“Were you aware that you have an erection? It’s quite big isn’t it, is that as big as it gets?”
“LUNA”
“You are very repressed Harry it is after all a natural function. Do you mind if I touch it?”
“Yes I do mind,” replied Harry in a strained voice.
Luna shrugged looking disappointed, “I had a vision or a dream I’m not sure which and I wanted to talk to you about it,” as she spoke her soft, warm hand was resting on his stomach.
“Oh Merlin, Luna could you move your hand….UP move your hand up.”
Luna removed her hands and slipped off his belly to sit on the bed, “Better?”
Harry nodded and pulled his sheets up, “What sort of dream?”
“It was like when Vectivus gave me the trick to doing those Force illusions except this time it is all disjointed. There were things I recognised even if I couldn’t get too many details. Keisha giving birth as Hermione held her hand. Then it shifted and Remus and Sirius were teaching us and then you teaching Ron, Hermione and Keisha,” Luna paused and Harry felt her suddenly jump up.
“Luna?”
“Come on Harry, I know what to do next,” Luna was pulling at his hands trying to pull him up.
“What?”
Luna pulled back the sheets, “The Sith holocron, it showed me where we needed to go, Oh Harry it showed our new home. We need to go look.”
“Right now, when just about everyone is asleep?”
Luna sat back down on the bed, “I suppose it can wait until we have rested,” She looked down at Harry’s tented sleep wear, “It just moved!”
“What are you…” began Harry before realising what Luna was referring to, “Oh Merlin, look Luna I know you don’t mean to…..stop that!”
Luna looked totally unrepentant, “My lips were dry I just moistened them with my tongue.”
“You licked your lips!” yelled Harry.
Luna smiled in a rather predatory way, “I was just looking I wasn’t going to do anything.”
“LUNA!”
“WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP!” bellowed Sirius from next door.
Luna rolled her eyes and yelled back, “SORRY I WAS LOOKING AT HARRY”S ERECTION.”
“Oh god,” whispered Harry as he put a pillow over his face.
Next to him Luna hid her smile and thought one step at a time my love, one step at a time.
oOoOoOo
Straight after breakfast Luna brought the three holocrons to the table and told every one of her dream vision and her theory regarding the holocron.
Keisha was floored when Luna mentioned the holocron, “You have a Sith holocron?, how do you even have Jedi holocrons they are priceless artifacts!”
“Talia believed that to understand the force you need to study both sides so she spent decades gathering lost holocrons for study,” explained Luna. They had only given a brief overview of their training last night and the holocrons hadn’t been mentioned at all.
“But surely the Sith holocron is too dangerous,” argued Keisha.
Harry looked thoughtful as he answered, “I am sure some are, that’s why we destroyed one on Geonosis. Our master left us this to study and I have trust in Talia’s decision.”
oOoOoOo
Opening the Sith holocron turned out to be a bit of an anti-climax. The holocron simply projected what turned out to be spatial co-ordinates.
“There has to be more doesn’t there?” asked Hermione.
Harry looked disappointed as he answered, “I would have thought so, I mean the Jedi Holocrons we have contain huge amounts of information.”
“Maybe you need to turn it on at those co-ordinates?” suggested Ron.
Hermione smiled at hey boyfriend, “That’s a good suggestion, maybe it is location specific or there is another reason it won’t show us anything…….hmm maybe there are several conditions. Luna do you remember anything else from your vision?”
“Just bits and pieces of what I assume are upcoming events,
“So do we go to these co-ordinates or not?” asked Sirius.
Keisha looked up from where she had been entering date in to the ships computer with a frown, “There isn’t much in the nav database just a designation for the star system, MZX33291.”
oOoOoOo
“What do Talia’s logs say about this Vectivus chap?” Remus asked Hermione as the crew of the Talia ate their evening meal.
Talia’s personal logs were a treasure. She kept scrupulously accurate records and had captured much of her research in her recordings and notes. Hermione and Luna were slowly going through them and cataloging them for ease of use.
Hermione pulled her data pad over and flicked through screens, “According to Talia’s research he was apparently a successful and ethical if rather ruthless business man. He was also a scholar and apparently his interest eventually led to him seeking out the Sith. He completed a Sith apprenticeship and became a Sith Lord but a strange one.”
“How so?” asked Sirius.
“He was never motivated by the usual desire for galactic domination or an all-consuming hatred of the Jedi, and he instead chose to live the remainder of his days luxuriously in the company of his family and friends.”
Sirius snorted and laughed, “That doesn’t sound too Sith like, I mean don’t you get kicked out of the club for being a nice guy?”
Hermione rolled her eyes and continued, “Okay so Talia must have a good information source, um okay…. Here you go Sirius, she notes that Vectivus was still a ruthless individual, willing to do whatever it took to succeed.”
“How did she know?” asked Harry.
oOoOoOo
Keisha sat listening intently as Sirius explained how wands work to focus a persons magic. The Talia’s newest if still unofficial student nodded then looked puzzled, “Master Sirius...”
Sirius fought back a chuckle, “Please Keisha just Sirius will do.”
Keisha nodded, “Lightsabers work the same way, focusing energy using crystals. Would that mean I could use my lightsaber to direct the Force?”
Sirius shrugged and called Harry over from where he and Luna were sparring and repeated Keisha’s question.
“I’ve never tried it but the theory sounds interesting, one way to find out I suppose,” Harry raised his lightsaber and pointed it at Sirius’s jacket that was hanging over a chair.
“Wingardium Leviosa,” intoned Harry mimicking the wand movements.
“Try that again Harry,” asked Sirius as he watched the lightsaber carefully.
“Wingardium Leviosa”
“Try your patronus,” ordered Sirius.
“Expecto Patronum”
A fine silver mist appeared but quickly faded.
“Bloody hell it worked!”
Harry ignited his lightsaber to check it worked and then deactivated it, “But how I mean it’s not a wand?”
“It’s a foci, well done Keisha. As is so often the case the student has taught the teacher. I think we need to look more in to this because if it works out it solves one of the problems I was worried about.”
“Wands?” asked Luna.
Sirius nodded, “Exactly, wands, how do we get more or replace any that are lost or broken.”
Harry looked at Keisha for a moment before smiling, “If you don’t mind Keisha I think I’ll have you work with Hermione on this one.”
oOoOoOo
“Tired mate?” asked Harry as he entered the flight deck having left Keisha, Luna and Hermione in the Mess discussing crystals and wand foci.
Ron laughed and punched Harry on the shoulder, “Ha as if, this ship is amazing and besides the more hours I log up the better chance I have of being chief pilot.”
Harry laughed and flopped down in the co-pilots seat.
“What’s up Harry?”
“Just a bit worried about what we are going to find,” replied Harry.
“Second thoughts?” asked Ron.
“No, it’s just that we are placing a lot of trust in the spirit of a dead Sith Lord even if Talia trusted him it, well it doesn’t mean we should.”
Ron nodded and gestured at the Nav computer, “Well you have still got about two days to change your mind.”
“I hope its just nerves but there is something….oh I don’t know. It’s like a shadow over the sun constantly there but when you look it’s gone.”
Ron looked over at his friend, “We knew we were going to have to be careful so lets be extra careful.”
Harry sat back in his chair, “Let’s hope its enough.”
oOoOoOo
Asteroid Belt - MZX33291 system – Outer Rim Territories
“Are you sure this is it?” asked Sirius as the crew of the Talia crowded the flight deck.
“We are at the correct co-ordinates,” confirmed Hermione.
“What’s that?” asked Harry pointing to a large asteroid.
“It’s a habitat;” said Keisha, “A lot of mining colonies use them as bases. I saw some once when I was on a mission. There should be an access point to an internal dock.”
“Hail the base,” ordered Luna.
Hermione opened a standard hailing channel, “Mining operation this is the Freighter Talia seeking permission to land.”
“Nothing,” reported Hermione.
“Take us down for a look Ron” ordered Harry.
oOoOoOo
“Everyone ready?” nods answered Harry.
“We need to be careful here, instruments show that the environment is fine but be prepared to leave immediately,” said Luna.
Harry pressed the pressure a touch panel and the door hissed open. Exposing a beautiful park of small trees and flowering bushes leading toward an elegantly proportioned building.
“Wow,” whispered Harry.
“Beautiful,” was Luna’s comment
“How is this possible?” asked Hermione, “Are people still living here, someone has to maintain this.”
“Droids,” said Remus.
Hermione was busy looking around the area trying to establish a theory when Remus spoke up, “That is very likely but….oh.”
A Droid was approaching across the lawn, “Greetings I am 1C-32 of the Jonex Mine Eight Eleven B asteroid mining colony, if you would follow me to the house I will see to your needs.”
Hermione stepped forward, “1C-32 could you please tell me who lives here?”
“The colony is no longer in operation and the mines are closed,” replied 1C-32.
Hermione reworded her question slightly, “Is there someone still living here even though the colony is no longer in operation?”
“The colony is no longer in operation and the mines are closed,” replied 1C-32.
Hermione looked like she was about to ask again when Luna touched her arm and shook her head.
“Very well lead on,” ordered Harry.
1C-32 immediately set off toward the house leading them through the sculptured gardens. As they moved through the grounds they began to see some of impressive engineering that allowed what was essentially a closed ecosystem to survive. Water reclamation units were hidden among the gardens and large solar lights dotted the domes roof. They also passed several other Droids working in the grounds but besides watching their progress they did not initiate any conversation of other interaction.
“Do you think the Droids are the only ones here?” asked Remus as he paused to examine one of the Droid workers pruning a flowering bush.
“Maybe,” replied Ron, “surely they’d tell us if someone was living here.”
The interior of the building was just as impressive. Comfortably appointed its smooth flowing design made it seem almost organic, they halted in a large room with huge windows overlooking the gardens.
“Doesn’t look much like a mining colony,” commented Sirius.
Harry looked around the well appointed room, “It looks like a home, a very expensive home. This makes less sense than before why would an ancient Sith holocron lead us here?”
“Because this was, or perhaps it is more accurate to say is the home of Darth Vectivus the creator of the holocron I gave you,” explained Talia as she appeared next to Harry.
“Master,” greeted Harry as Luna called out, “Talia!”
“It is good to see you my beloved apprentices,” Talia then turned to the others, “Indeed it is good to see you all, the vanguard of our new order.”
Talia walked over to Keisha and knelt by the young Jedi, “I am pleased to see you here Keisha for this will be your home, a home for your child and the home of the order.”
oOoOoOo
“What is the place Talia?” asked Remus.
“Many centuries ago it was the home of Darth Vectivus a Sith Lord. Indeed his spirit still resides in the lower mines. For now suffice to say it is a very safe place unknown to the Sith or the Jedi.”
“Harry, Luna, please follow me, 1C-32 please see to refreshments.”
Talia led Harry and Luna through the house until she paused at a visually unremarkable doorway. But to Harry and Luna it was like a black hole of dark side energy.
Talia paused before the door once more fading as her time grew short, “I can go no further, but you must my apprentices.”
“What is behind the door?” asked Luna.
As Talia faded her voice was almost a whisper, “Fear.”
oOoOoOo
Harry walked through the door and was plunged in to absolute darkness. Blind he fell in to the Force extending his awareness and sensed nothing. It was like the universe had ceased to exist.
Slowly light returned but it was a sickly green reminiscent of decay and it did little save highlighting the shadows and sickly mist that surrounded him.
“Harry…..Potter……the boy-who-lived……look what I…have become Harry,” slowly out of the mist a shadowy figure appeared.
“Don’t you recognise me Harry?” hissed the figure its voice filled with hate, a familiar voice, Tom Riddle’s voice.
Harry didn’t move, “This isn’t real; you are a projection of the Force a test, Riddle is dead.”
“Oh so brave Harry yet so foolish. Here is my domain here you are weak…..weak and pliable…through you I can return Harry.” The shadowy figure moved forward extending a clawed hand.
Harry stood firm and unmoving, “You are an illusion a wraith and you have no way to hurt me save with words,”
“We shall see Harry, Crucio.”
The pain was indescribable.
No, this can’t be thought Harry as his body convulsed. Then the pain stopped leaving him twitching and nauseous.
“Powerless am I, let us see then, Crucio,” hissed Riddle.
Harry screamed as the pain tore through him then ended as Luna appeared by his side, lightsaber in hand.
“Ah Lovegood come to save your saviour have you girl?” mocked Riddle.
“Avada Kedavra,” screamed Riddle and green light lanced out, a rushing wind sounded and then nothing.
Harry fought to stand and face Riddle but he found his eyes drawn to where Luna lay slumped on the ground, motionless.
“No, Luna,” Harry dropped back to his knees and turned Luna over. Sightless eyes looked out from her dead face bathed in green light.
“You are weak Potter and you appear to have run out of sacrifices,” Riddle mocked and then burst in to high pitched laughter.
“No,” hissed Harry as his fists clenched and his lightsaber twitched on his utility belt, “It’s not real, it’s an illusion.”
Yet Luna’s body looked real it felt real. His Luna was dead.
He made no conscious decision yet his lightsaber was in his hand and ignited. Loss and anger coursed through him as he advanced on the laughing Riddle. Harry struck and was enraged when his blade was deflected off an invisible barrier.
And Riddle laughed.
Again and again Harry lashed out with his lightsaber, each strike harder as his rage powered his attacks.
Then it was over and Harry found himself standing in an empty cavern.
“Well done apprentice,” said a mild, cultured voice from behind him.
Spinning Harry recognised Darth Vectivus.
“Where is Luna?” he demanded blood still pumping with his pain and anger.
Darth Vectivus looked on impassively, “Control it apprentice, master you anger, master your emotions, use it never let it use you.”
“Where is Luna?” demanded Harry.
“Luna is safe and well, she was never here,” replied Darth Vectivus in a soothing tone, “Now calm yourself and reestablish control.”
“Why?”
Darth Vectivus smiled, “To see if you have the gift of rage and the control to harness your emotions, in short to see if you could be taught.”
“Oh yes Harry you my young apprentice have the capacity to learn.”
“And Luna?” asked Harry.
Darth Vectivus smiled, “Let us see….”
oOoOoOo
Luna walked through the door a step behind Harry and in to her past.
“Loony Luna Lovegood,” mocked Cho Chang.
“What is this?” asked Luna as she looked around the Hogwarts girls’ toilets near the potions classroom.
“Loony, loony Lovegood, what are you doing?” asked Chang.
Luna knew where she was now and what was to come, but why?
“Cat got your tongue Loony or are you just ill mannered? Perhaps you should learn a lesson loony.”
Knowing that the slap was coming Luna tried to move…SLAP. The pain was just as she remembered.
“Little freak you can stay here till you learn,” hissed Chang as she vanished Luna’s clothes and snatched younger Luna’s wand with another slap, laughing they left the weeping Luna naked in the bathroom and walked out laughing. Luna looked around knowing what was next……no not again.
“Well, well who have we here?” asked a male voice.
No not again thought Luna I won’t allow this as fear coursed through her. Luna gasped as a rough hand grabbed her shoulder.
“A little firstie,” it was a Slythern by his robes. Luna felt herself pushed face first in to the wall.
No no no
“Best make sure you’re not hiding anything,” a hand thrust between her legs roughly caressing her……no
A blast of uncontrolled magic burst from Luna as the older boy flew backwards.
“You little bitch,” hissed the older boy as he picked himself up off the floor.
Luna backed away but like her first year there was nowhere to go.
Knowing what was coming Luna could feel the fear and the pain and the humiliation and snapped, she had power and she would stop this. With a gesture the leering senior stopped and reached for his throat. Luna tightened her fingers as the older boy choked and tried to draw breath.
No, this wasn’t real…it was an illusion…this was her past with a gesture the boy fell to the ground and the room faded.
“You did well Apprentice, you used your anger and fear and it made you strong,” Darth Vectivus said approvingly as he appeared.
“That was cruel,” hissed Luna.
“Yes it was, but not without purpose, you had to know you had the gift of the Sith, the gift of rage and I had to know you had the ability to control it. The universe needs no more followers of the dark who lack control.”
“Go and rest, tomorrow I will meet your friends. With my help you will learn to use your gifts both light and dark. Through me I will show you the path of control.” Darth Vectivus bowed and faded away as the exit appeared.
oOoOoOo
“Bloody hell,” hissed Ron as Harry finished explaining the test they had undergone.
“Are you two alright?” asked Sirius his expression showing his deep concern.
Harry nodded, “Fine Sirius it was all an illusion, bloody convincing and painful but an illusion never the less.”
“What about you Luna was it Riddle?” asked Ron.
“No,” answered Harry on her behalf, “Luna’s was worse, was that a memory, because if it was I swear I’ll hunt them all down.”
Luna sighed, “I’ll talk to you about it later Harry.”
“So what now?” Hermione asked as she picked at her salad.
“Well it appears that our host has agreed to train us all,” replied Harry.
“I’m not sure I want to anymore,” mumbled Ron.
“You have a choice to make then,” offered a cold voice as the red robed Darth Vectivus appeared.
“A very impressive illusion,” complimented Luna.
Darth Vectivus nodded and lowered his hood revealing a handsome if portly middle aged man, “Thank you I’ve always been rather good at them,” he said to Luna before turning to the others, although his gaze fell on Ron.
“As I said you have a choice to make. I will have no unwilling students.”
Sirius looked thoughtful as he considered the image of the Sith Lord, “Why must we choose?”
The image of Darth Vectivus gestured and an image of a man in black and red armor appeared and a blood red lightsaber ignited in his hand, the twisted expression of hate and rage was frightening. “This is why, because unless we restore balance to the Force he is the future. Uncontrolled hatred and rage loosed to destroy what he cannot have. Yes I will train you to understand the darker side of the Force but more importantly I will teach you about balance and how to harness your emotion but remain in control. I will teach you this because I have seen what will be if I don’t.”
Keisha looked terrified as the Sith Lord spoke but summoned her courage to speak, “What will happen if we fail?”
“The Sith will all but destroy the Jedi but in their turn they will also fall and the cycle of war and destruction will begin anew, spreading and growing until the galaxy is in flames. In the ruins I see a new foe rise a civilization, beings outside the Force who seek only destruction and death. Failure is not something that can be contemplated.”
“I’ve seen it happen,” whispered Luna.
“I know little seer, you have the gift just as your master once did when she studied here. Pay close attention to your Force visions and what they tell you.”
“But how can we stop that?” whispered Hermione.
Darth Vectivus looked at Hermione and waved his hand as an image formed behind him. Harry and Luna in robes of grey and black stood side by side and behind them arranged in a semi circle stood dozens of people dressed in the same grey and black robes. Hermione saw herself standing next to Ron and Keisha. Sirius and Remus stood alongside them looking out at the future.
As they all took in the image the voice of Darth Vectivus continued on, “By opposing the fools who try and destroy the balance, by being skilled and knowledgeable enough to intervene and manipulate and if all else fails being strong enough to kill.”
oOoOoOo
1C-32 insisted on a tour of the main estate which turned out to be huge and remarkably well maintained. The tour included Hydroponics bays, Droid repair facilities and even a small aero-space workshop.
The self-sufficient nature of the old mining colony also meant that nearly all their time could be spent training. Harry was sure it was going to be busy.
oOoOoOo
Three Months Later (22 BBY)
The Force ghost of Darth Vectivus turned to face his students, “Remember both the Jedi and Sith philosophies are flawed. The Jedi abandoned their emotions in search of peace and the Sith embraced negative emotion in search of power. Both have failed to understand that only by seeking balance can a Force user fulfil their potential. Light and dark are the same it is the purpose to which power is used that defines it.”
Darth Vectivus shook his head, “It is lack of perspective that clouds vision. Look at the Sith – Jedi war a dispute over who will hold power that has persisted for a millennia. The same battles, the same philosophies and the same outcomes, what insanity makes the participants believe the same input will give a different result? You must put aside labels and old ideologies my apprentices, judge by actions and outcomes not labels, Balance and control, emotion guided by a morale philosophy. There is nothing that cannot be achieved with these strengths.”
“But how do we break the cycle?” asked Hermione.
“By changing, adding a new element to bring the Force in to balance. That was Talia’s vision and that is what I came to see in my later life and why I agreed to help her.”
With that the Force ghost faded away as he always did when he decided the lesson was done.
oOoOoOo
Talia had trained them to be open minded about the Force and it was now obvious why. Had they had the traditional Jedi training they may not have been as open to the more destructive dark side of the Force. Much as Keisha struggled with some of the Sith lore they were learning. Still it was a revelation to learn just how much more powerful they were when they used emotion and an even bigger revelation to find that powerful positive emotion worked nearly as well as the darker emotions.
Harry, Luna and Keisha were drilling the others constantly in the combat arts, which they considered as a requirement considering the unrest in the galaxy.
Hermione and Keisha were still working on a way to use lightsabers as wands and how best to blend traditional Force powers with magic. All of this work meant that for three months they had trained hard than they ever had before attempting to master the teachings of Vectivus.
The only down side to this frantic learning was that regardless of their successes and their excellent progress it was very obvious was just how far from mastery they truly were. Each new skill, each facet of understanding they gained simply showed how much there was still to learn.
They could all feel the clock ticking and time was short because elsewhere the endless war between Sith and Jedi was entering a new phase.
oOoOoOo
HoloNet News
Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) begins new round of deployments
Clone troops led by Jedi have moved to several star systems in a bid to bring the threat posed by the Separatist to an early conclusion.
Amendments to constitution before the Senate
A set of constitution amendments introduced to senate. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine was quoted as saying, “There are times when we must all endure adjustment to the Constitution in the name of security."
oOoOoOo
One thing was obvious about the Sith they really were not keen on keeping good records. Hermione sniffed in frustration as she read the crumbling manuscript that vaguely hinting at some common rituals and rites used by Sith several thousand years ago.
For months now she had been sorting through the mass of data collected by Darth Vectivus and while interesting it was time consuming.
“Hermione,” Ron’s call drifted down the stairs, “Are you in that bloody library again?”
Hermione sighed quietly as she laid the manuscript aside, ‘I’m down here Ron,” she called back.
Ron trundled down the stairs, walked over and kissed his girlfriend on the cheek, “How goes it?”
“Slowly,” sighed Hermione, “Much of this was never catalogued and just placed in storage, dumped in storage is probably more accurate.”
Rod squeezed her shoulder in support, “Well you had best come up they are almost ready to go.”
oOoOoOo
Sirius stowed the box of supplies and turned to Harry, “I wish you would let one of us come with you.”
Harry stowed his storage box and turned to his godfather, “You guys are busy studying and that is important, besides we shouldn’t be gone long a couple of weeks at most.”
“Is it worth the trip?” asked Remus as he entered with Keisha.
“Vectivus said that the Jedi enclave was destroyed but the crystal cave survived.” The former Padawan was now four months along with her pregnancy and starting to show.
Sirius sighed, “Just be careful Harry, I trust Vectivus to train us but I’m not always convinced that we have seen his true motives.”
“We’ll be careful old man you just keep trying to master Shii-Cho,” replied Harry with a grin.
“Hardy Ha Ha I’ll have you know that I am well on the way to mastering Makashi,” replied Sirius.
“Remus is well on the way to mastering Shii-Cho, Ron and Hermione are well on the way toward mastering Shii-Cho. You would do well to emulate them Apprentice Black,” replied Keisha in a stern voice that sent Remus in to paroxysms of laughter.
oOoOoOo
HoloNet News
Rumors persist of Separatist forces preparing to attack core worlds.
Republic sources admit that attacks by militant Separatist’s led by disgraced Jedi Count Dooku are likely to attack Republic targets.
Rumors of a new Separatist General
Sources have revealed that the droid army of the militant Separatist’s is being led by a cyborg.
oOoOoOo
“Look after him,” said Hermione as she gave first Harry then Luna a long hug.
“We will look after each other,” replied Luna.
“See you in a few weeks’ guys and for Merlins sake please bring me some meat. I’m getting tired of this vegetarian thing,” added Ron taking his turn to hug Luna then slap Harry on the back.
Harry laughed as he pantomimed writing a shopping list, “Meat and focusing crystals got it. Dantooine is a fairly safe destination mostly rural and you know we need the crystals. Vectivus is also hoping we can get some of the relics left after the Jedi enclave was destroyed.”
“Okay anyone not coming to Dantooine had better get off,” said Luna as she made shooing gestures.
oOoOoOo
Another chapter done and chapter 7 will be posted soon as my fantastic Beta XRaiderV1 gives the thumbs up
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Star Wars and I make no profit from this work of fan fiction. I am in the debt of its true owners as they have been the creators of worlds of fiction that millions have enjoyed. All Hail to JKR and GL!
A/N: Timeline checkpoint it is now coming to the end of 23BBY and the early months on 22 BBY in the Star Wars Universe – The Clone Wars have begun….
Last time:
“You are sure that this is wise?” asked Rutga Tahl as he approached Yoda, “the rest of the council is sure to object.”
Yoda leaned on his glimmer stick watching the departing ship, “Wise, no but the right thing it is my heart tells me.”
“Do you think Talia’s vision was true?” asked Rutga quietly.
“Ahh see that far ahead I can not but perhaps…..think more on this I will. Sleep I need now.”
Rutga nodded and turned to leave, “Then I will bid you goodnight old friend.”
Yoda nodded absently as the Jedi Master left the cabin, his eyes still on the dwindling shape of the freighter, “May the Force be with you.”
Chapter 6
Aboard the Talia, Deep Space
Harry sat with Luna in the med bay watching MK remove the sedated Jedi from the Bacta tank and begin a long chain of medical checks on the young woman.
Soon enough the medical droid completed his tests and reported, “The subject has recovered from blaster burns to her torso and shoulder. The broken collar bone and dislocated shoulder have responded to treatment with Skele-Gro. Her pregnancy appears to have not been compromised in any way.”
Harry didn’t know what to say to that. ‘Pregnant’, the Jedi sleeping on the bunk was still a padawan if her hair and uniform she had been wearing were to be believed and to be honest she didn’t look like she was anymore than 16 with a youthful face, petite figure and a long black braid.
“You can just see it starting to show and that’s only because she’s pretty skinny,” commented Luna as she ran her hand over the girl’s abdomen.
“But….bloody hell Luna she’s pregnant, how the hell did such a young padawan fall pregnant?” Harry was quite aware of the relationship taboos of the Jedi code.
“I would imagine that she engaged in intercourse,” replied Luna distractedly as she studied the motionless girl.
“Oh ha ha, you know what I meant Luna.”
“She will be cast from the Order,” added Harry as he watched Luna ran her hands over the young woman. “What are you doing?”
Luna turned to face Harry her face puzzled, “You say you felt a compulsion to say nothing to the Jedi?”
Harry nodded, “Well it was….it was like a voice telling me to say nothing about her, why?”
“I think we need to have a talk with her before we decide anything else, MK is it safe to wake her up?”
“Yes Mistress Luna, there should be no risk,” replied the Droid.
Luna looked to Harry who shrugged and then she turned back to Mk, “Wake her up please MK.”
The Droid injected the sleeping padawan.
oOoOoOo
“So what is the deal with our guest?” asked Sirius as the crew of the Talia minus Luna gathered in the Ships Mess.
“She is recovering well enough,” answered Harry.
“I can feel a ‘but’ there Harry,” replied Hermione.
“But the situation is a bit more complicated than we thought,” Replied Harry, “Padawan Keisha is pregnant.”
“What? How old is she?” asked Hermione.
“Fourteen,” replied Harry.
“Bloody hell…I mean…bloody hell,” muttered Sirius.
Harry nodded, “MK said that she’s recovering well and that the baby is okay but this opens a can of worms, not just because she’s underage but because this would see her cast out of the Jedi order.”
“What?” asked Ron indignantly, “She made a bloody mistake….that’s stupid.”
Hermione laid a hand on Ron’s shoulder, “I know Ron but from what I’ve read of Talia’s notes and from the computer the Orders rules are quite strict regarding relationships.”
“Poor kid,” added Remus.
“So what do we do?” asked Sirius, “We can’t just dump a pregnant teenager on some planet and wash our hands of her. Does she have any family?”
“She doesn’t know, Keisha was taken from her parents as a baby and doesn’t really know anything other than her home world was somewhere in the Outer Rim,” replied Harry.
oOoOoOo
Luna sat holding Keisha’s hand as the Padawan cried.
“Everything will be okay,” said Luna as she stroked the teens shaking hand.
“I’ll be cast out,” whispered Keisha as the full implications of her situation occurred to her.
“If you go back,” answered Luna, “that is the likely outcome. If it is not to sensitive an issue can I ask about the father?”
“Zor-sha, he’s a Mast…..a Padawan….we…um….well it’s obvious what happened.” Keisha looked at the floor as she whispered, “What will I do? I’ve dedicated my whole life to being a Jedi.”
“Keisha, look at me please,” asked Luna even as she filed the name Zor-Sha for further investigation.
As Keisha looked up Luna smiled at the padawan, “There are always choices Keisha, several years ago I was offered the choice to learn about the Force a choice you were denied well now the universe seems to be offering you a choice.”
Puzzled Keisha stared at the Luna, “I don’t understand.”
Luna smiled and summoned a container from the other side of the room.
“You’re a Jedi!” exclaimed Keisha.
Luna laughed merrily, “No I’m not, but my Master was a Jedi.”
Keisha stared at Luna for a few moments, “You are a Force sensitive?”
“Yes, I was one of the apprentices of a former Jedi Knight called Talia.”
Keisha looked interested despite her own problems, “We were taught about some of the other types of Force sensitive’s but I’ve never heard of them wielding a lightsaber,” she said as she gestured at Luna’s.
Luna laughed again, “Well Harry and I do and we’ve see at least one Sith running around with one so maybe the Jedi need to update their text books.”
A wide eyed Keisha risked a smile at Luna’s answer.
Luna took Keisha’s hands, “Keisha you are welcome to stay aboard the Talia while you decide what you want to do. We’ve got time considering the Council no doubt thinks you are dead.”
“Thank you,” whispered Keisha as she gave Luna’s hands a friendly squeeze.
As she stood Luna pulled Keisha to her feet, “Now up you get and I’ll take you to meet the rest of the crew.”
oOoOoOo
Luna settled Keisha in to the last of the spare cabins and skipped down the corridor to her own small cabin. The Padawan had been a little overwhelmed by what she had heard and seen even if she was very grateful for the haven the Talia offered. Luna had her suspicions about the chain of events that had bought Keisha aboard and promised that she would ask Talia the next time the Force ghost appeared.
After striping off and washing up she sat on her bunk and slowly immersed herself in to the Force, sending her love to her father. She felt the briefest moment of connection before it faded. With a mental sigh she slowly withdrew her awareness and returned to her physical form.
Almost every night she tried to send her love to him but it didn’t seem to reach him. Perhaps it was the fact that he was a wizard and therefore not as Force aware as she had been trained to be, regardless it didn’t seem to work.
Luna lay back on her bunk thinking of her father, safe with his new family on Earth, which was good of course but there remained a small part of her that was saddened by the changes to her life.
As she slowly drifted off to sleep her mind drifted and she smiled maybe tonight would be a Harry dream.
An hour later she woke from a rather different dream and padded out of her room.
oOoOoOo
It had been a long day but a productive one. For nearly four hours Keisha and the crew of the Talia had exchanged histories. That had led to a demonstration of how magic worked and an even longer discussion of other aspects of Force manipulation. By the end of the long day a relieved and excited Keisha had eagerly agreed to stay aboard the Talia for the short term.
Harry was absolutely exhausted when he finally got in to his bunk. His knee was healed but the muscle was still a bit stiff and he had been sitting for too long. After a few minutes of massage the muscle relaxed and he lay down, he had just closed his eyes when he felt Luna enter the room.
“Luna?”
“Can I lay with you for a while?”
Harry shifted over and Luna lay beside him with her head resting on her shoulder. After a moment she drew her leg up to rest her knee on his stomach. He could feel her warm skin and risked a quick glance. She was indeed naked.
“Luna is there a reason why you are naked and sprawled all over me?” asked Harry.
Luna caressed his shoulder, “You’re warm and besides I find it comforting watching you sleep, I often masturbate to that image.”
Long exposure to “Luna-isims” had granted Harry a great deal of shock resistance but that comment was enough to generate a blush.
“Are you blushing Harry?” asked Luna.
“Yes,” answered Harry shortly.
“It was meant as a compliment,” explained Luna.
“Thanks,” replied Harry.
There were a few minutes of silence then Luna shifted around for a few moments before sitting up on Harry’s abdomen, very low on his abdomen, “Luna!”
“Were you aware that you have an erection? It’s quite big isn’t it, is that as big as it gets?”
“LUNA”
“You are very repressed Harry it is after all a natural function. Do you mind if I touch it?”
“Yes I do mind,” replied Harry in a strained voice.
Luna shrugged looking disappointed, “I had a vision or a dream I’m not sure which and I wanted to talk to you about it,” as she spoke her soft, warm hand was resting on his stomach.
“Oh Merlin, Luna could you move your hand….UP move your hand up.”
Luna removed her hands and slipped off his belly to sit on the bed, “Better?”
Harry nodded and pulled his sheets up, “What sort of dream?”
“It was like when Vectivus gave me the trick to doing those Force illusions except this time it is all disjointed. There were things I recognised even if I couldn’t get too many details. Keisha giving birth as Hermione held her hand. Then it shifted and Remus and Sirius were teaching us and then you teaching Ron, Hermione and Keisha,” Luna paused and Harry felt her suddenly jump up.
“Luna?”
“Come on Harry, I know what to do next,” Luna was pulling at his hands trying to pull him up.
“What?”
Luna pulled back the sheets, “The Sith holocron, it showed me where we needed to go, Oh Harry it showed our new home. We need to go look.”
“Right now, when just about everyone is asleep?”
Luna sat back down on the bed, “I suppose it can wait until we have rested,” She looked down at Harry’s tented sleep wear, “It just moved!”
“What are you…” began Harry before realising what Luna was referring to, “Oh Merlin, look Luna I know you don’t mean to…..stop that!”
Luna looked totally unrepentant, “My lips were dry I just moistened them with my tongue.”
“You licked your lips!” yelled Harry.
Luna smiled in a rather predatory way, “I was just looking I wasn’t going to do anything.”
“LUNA!”
“WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP!” bellowed Sirius from next door.
Luna rolled her eyes and yelled back, “SORRY I WAS LOOKING AT HARRY”S ERECTION.”
“Oh god,” whispered Harry as he put a pillow over his face.
Next to him Luna hid her smile and thought one step at a time my love, one step at a time.
oOoOoOo
Straight after breakfast Luna brought the three holocrons to the table and told every one of her dream vision and her theory regarding the holocron.
Keisha was floored when Luna mentioned the holocron, “You have a Sith holocron?, how do you even have Jedi holocrons they are priceless artifacts!”
“Talia believed that to understand the force you need to study both sides so she spent decades gathering lost holocrons for study,” explained Luna. They had only given a brief overview of their training last night and the holocrons hadn’t been mentioned at all.
“But surely the Sith holocron is too dangerous,” argued Keisha.
Harry looked thoughtful as he answered, “I am sure some are, that’s why we destroyed one on Geonosis. Our master left us this to study and I have trust in Talia’s decision.”
oOoOoOo
Opening the Sith holocron turned out to be a bit of an anti-climax. The holocron simply projected what turned out to be spatial co-ordinates.
“There has to be more doesn’t there?” asked Hermione.
Harry looked disappointed as he answered, “I would have thought so, I mean the Jedi Holocrons we have contain huge amounts of information.”
“Maybe you need to turn it on at those co-ordinates?” suggested Ron.
Hermione smiled at hey boyfriend, “That’s a good suggestion, maybe it is location specific or there is another reason it won’t show us anything…….hmm maybe there are several conditions. Luna do you remember anything else from your vision?”
“Just bits and pieces of what I assume are upcoming events,
“So do we go to these co-ordinates or not?” asked Sirius.
Keisha looked up from where she had been entering date in to the ships computer with a frown, “There isn’t much in the nav database just a designation for the star system, MZX33291.”
oOoOoOo
“What do Talia’s logs say about this Vectivus chap?” Remus asked Hermione as the crew of the Talia ate their evening meal.
Talia’s personal logs were a treasure. She kept scrupulously accurate records and had captured much of her research in her recordings and notes. Hermione and Luna were slowly going through them and cataloging them for ease of use.
Hermione pulled her data pad over and flicked through screens, “According to Talia’s research he was apparently a successful and ethical if rather ruthless business man. He was also a scholar and apparently his interest eventually led to him seeking out the Sith. He completed a Sith apprenticeship and became a Sith Lord but a strange one.”
“How so?” asked Sirius.
“He was never motivated by the usual desire for galactic domination or an all-consuming hatred of the Jedi, and he instead chose to live the remainder of his days luxuriously in the company of his family and friends.”
Sirius snorted and laughed, “That doesn’t sound too Sith like, I mean don’t you get kicked out of the club for being a nice guy?”
Hermione rolled her eyes and continued, “Okay so Talia must have a good information source, um okay…. Here you go Sirius, she notes that Vectivus was still a ruthless individual, willing to do whatever it took to succeed.”
“How did she know?” asked Harry.
oOoOoOo
Keisha sat listening intently as Sirius explained how wands work to focus a persons magic. The Talia’s newest if still unofficial student nodded then looked puzzled, “Master Sirius...”
Sirius fought back a chuckle, “Please Keisha just Sirius will do.”
Keisha nodded, “Lightsabers work the same way, focusing energy using crystals. Would that mean I could use my lightsaber to direct the Force?”
Sirius shrugged and called Harry over from where he and Luna were sparring and repeated Keisha’s question.
“I’ve never tried it but the theory sounds interesting, one way to find out I suppose,” Harry raised his lightsaber and pointed it at Sirius’s jacket that was hanging over a chair.
“Wingardium Leviosa,” intoned Harry mimicking the wand movements.
“Try that again Harry,” asked Sirius as he watched the lightsaber carefully.
“Wingardium Leviosa”
“Try your patronus,” ordered Sirius.
“Expecto Patronum”
A fine silver mist appeared but quickly faded.
“Bloody hell it worked!”
Harry ignited his lightsaber to check it worked and then deactivated it, “But how I mean it’s not a wand?”
“It’s a foci, well done Keisha. As is so often the case the student has taught the teacher. I think we need to look more in to this because if it works out it solves one of the problems I was worried about.”
“Wands?” asked Luna.
Sirius nodded, “Exactly, wands, how do we get more or replace any that are lost or broken.”
Harry looked at Keisha for a moment before smiling, “If you don’t mind Keisha I think I’ll have you work with Hermione on this one.”
oOoOoOo
“Tired mate?” asked Harry as he entered the flight deck having left Keisha, Luna and Hermione in the Mess discussing crystals and wand foci.
Ron laughed and punched Harry on the shoulder, “Ha as if, this ship is amazing and besides the more hours I log up the better chance I have of being chief pilot.”
Harry laughed and flopped down in the co-pilots seat.
“What’s up Harry?”
“Just a bit worried about what we are going to find,” replied Harry.
“Second thoughts?” asked Ron.
“No, it’s just that we are placing a lot of trust in the spirit of a dead Sith Lord even if Talia trusted him it, well it doesn’t mean we should.”
Ron nodded and gestured at the Nav computer, “Well you have still got about two days to change your mind.”
“I hope its just nerves but there is something….oh I don’t know. It’s like a shadow over the sun constantly there but when you look it’s gone.”
Ron looked over at his friend, “We knew we were going to have to be careful so lets be extra careful.”
Harry sat back in his chair, “Let’s hope its enough.”
oOoOoOo
Asteroid Belt - MZX33291 system – Outer Rim Territories
“Are you sure this is it?” asked Sirius as the crew of the Talia crowded the flight deck.
“We are at the correct co-ordinates,” confirmed Hermione.
“What’s that?” asked Harry pointing to a large asteroid.
“It’s a habitat;” said Keisha, “A lot of mining colonies use them as bases. I saw some once when I was on a mission. There should be an access point to an internal dock.”
“Hail the base,” ordered Luna.
Hermione opened a standard hailing channel, “Mining operation this is the Freighter Talia seeking permission to land.”
“Nothing,” reported Hermione.
“Take us down for a look Ron” ordered Harry.
oOoOoOo
“Everyone ready?” nods answered Harry.
“We need to be careful here, instruments show that the environment is fine but be prepared to leave immediately,” said Luna.
Harry pressed the pressure a touch panel and the door hissed open. Exposing a beautiful park of small trees and flowering bushes leading toward an elegantly proportioned building.
“Wow,” whispered Harry.
“Beautiful,” was Luna’s comment
“How is this possible?” asked Hermione, “Are people still living here, someone has to maintain this.”
“Droids,” said Remus.
Hermione was busy looking around the area trying to establish a theory when Remus spoke up, “That is very likely but….oh.”
A Droid was approaching across the lawn, “Greetings I am 1C-32 of the Jonex Mine Eight Eleven B asteroid mining colony, if you would follow me to the house I will see to your needs.”
Hermione stepped forward, “1C-32 could you please tell me who lives here?”
“The colony is no longer in operation and the mines are closed,” replied 1C-32.
Hermione reworded her question slightly, “Is there someone still living here even though the colony is no longer in operation?”
“The colony is no longer in operation and the mines are closed,” replied 1C-32.
Hermione looked like she was about to ask again when Luna touched her arm and shook her head.
“Very well lead on,” ordered Harry.
1C-32 immediately set off toward the house leading them through the sculptured gardens. As they moved through the grounds they began to see some of impressive engineering that allowed what was essentially a closed ecosystem to survive. Water reclamation units were hidden among the gardens and large solar lights dotted the domes roof. They also passed several other Droids working in the grounds but besides watching their progress they did not initiate any conversation of other interaction.
“Do you think the Droids are the only ones here?” asked Remus as he paused to examine one of the Droid workers pruning a flowering bush.
“Maybe,” replied Ron, “surely they’d tell us if someone was living here.”
The interior of the building was just as impressive. Comfortably appointed its smooth flowing design made it seem almost organic, they halted in a large room with huge windows overlooking the gardens.
“Doesn’t look much like a mining colony,” commented Sirius.
Harry looked around the well appointed room, “It looks like a home, a very expensive home. This makes less sense than before why would an ancient Sith holocron lead us here?”
“Because this was, or perhaps it is more accurate to say is the home of Darth Vectivus the creator of the holocron I gave you,” explained Talia as she appeared next to Harry.
“Master,” greeted Harry as Luna called out, “Talia!”
“It is good to see you my beloved apprentices,” Talia then turned to the others, “Indeed it is good to see you all, the vanguard of our new order.”
Talia walked over to Keisha and knelt by the young Jedi, “I am pleased to see you here Keisha for this will be your home, a home for your child and the home of the order.”
oOoOoOo
“What is the place Talia?” asked Remus.
“Many centuries ago it was the home of Darth Vectivus a Sith Lord. Indeed his spirit still resides in the lower mines. For now suffice to say it is a very safe place unknown to the Sith or the Jedi.”
“Harry, Luna, please follow me, 1C-32 please see to refreshments.”
Talia led Harry and Luna through the house until she paused at a visually unremarkable doorway. But to Harry and Luna it was like a black hole of dark side energy.
Talia paused before the door once more fading as her time grew short, “I can go no further, but you must my apprentices.”
“What is behind the door?” asked Luna.
As Talia faded her voice was almost a whisper, “Fear.”
oOoOoOo
Harry walked through the door and was plunged in to absolute darkness. Blind he fell in to the Force extending his awareness and sensed nothing. It was like the universe had ceased to exist.
Slowly light returned but it was a sickly green reminiscent of decay and it did little save highlighting the shadows and sickly mist that surrounded him.
“Harry…..Potter……the boy-who-lived……look what I…have become Harry,” slowly out of the mist a shadowy figure appeared.
“Don’t you recognise me Harry?” hissed the figure its voice filled with hate, a familiar voice, Tom Riddle’s voice.
Harry didn’t move, “This isn’t real; you are a projection of the Force a test, Riddle is dead.”
“Oh so brave Harry yet so foolish. Here is my domain here you are weak…..weak and pliable…through you I can return Harry.” The shadowy figure moved forward extending a clawed hand.
Harry stood firm and unmoving, “You are an illusion a wraith and you have no way to hurt me save with words,”
“We shall see Harry, Crucio.”
The pain was indescribable.
No, this can’t be thought Harry as his body convulsed. Then the pain stopped leaving him twitching and nauseous.
“Powerless am I, let us see then, Crucio,” hissed Riddle.
Harry screamed as the pain tore through him then ended as Luna appeared by his side, lightsaber in hand.
“Ah Lovegood come to save your saviour have you girl?” mocked Riddle.
“Avada Kedavra,” screamed Riddle and green light lanced out, a rushing wind sounded and then nothing.
Harry fought to stand and face Riddle but he found his eyes drawn to where Luna lay slumped on the ground, motionless.
“No, Luna,” Harry dropped back to his knees and turned Luna over. Sightless eyes looked out from her dead face bathed in green light.
“You are weak Potter and you appear to have run out of sacrifices,” Riddle mocked and then burst in to high pitched laughter.
“No,” hissed Harry as his fists clenched and his lightsaber twitched on his utility belt, “It’s not real, it’s an illusion.”
Yet Luna’s body looked real it felt real. His Luna was dead.
He made no conscious decision yet his lightsaber was in his hand and ignited. Loss and anger coursed through him as he advanced on the laughing Riddle. Harry struck and was enraged when his blade was deflected off an invisible barrier.
And Riddle laughed.
Again and again Harry lashed out with his lightsaber, each strike harder as his rage powered his attacks.
Then it was over and Harry found himself standing in an empty cavern.
“Well done apprentice,” said a mild, cultured voice from behind him.
Spinning Harry recognised Darth Vectivus.
“Where is Luna?” he demanded blood still pumping with his pain and anger.
Darth Vectivus looked on impassively, “Control it apprentice, master you anger, master your emotions, use it never let it use you.”
“Where is Luna?” demanded Harry.
“Luna is safe and well, she was never here,” replied Darth Vectivus in a soothing tone, “Now calm yourself and reestablish control.”
“Why?”
Darth Vectivus smiled, “To see if you have the gift of rage and the control to harness your emotions, in short to see if you could be taught.”
“Oh yes Harry you my young apprentice have the capacity to learn.”
“And Luna?” asked Harry.
Darth Vectivus smiled, “Let us see….”
oOoOoOo
Luna walked through the door a step behind Harry and in to her past.
“Loony Luna Lovegood,” mocked Cho Chang.
“What is this?” asked Luna as she looked around the Hogwarts girls’ toilets near the potions classroom.
“Loony, loony Lovegood, what are you doing?” asked Chang.
Luna knew where she was now and what was to come, but why?
“Cat got your tongue Loony or are you just ill mannered? Perhaps you should learn a lesson loony.”
Knowing that the slap was coming Luna tried to move…SLAP. The pain was just as she remembered.
“Little freak you can stay here till you learn,” hissed Chang as she vanished Luna’s clothes and snatched younger Luna’s wand with another slap, laughing they left the weeping Luna naked in the bathroom and walked out laughing. Luna looked around knowing what was next……no not again.
“Well, well who have we here?” asked a male voice.
No not again thought Luna I won’t allow this as fear coursed through her. Luna gasped as a rough hand grabbed her shoulder.
“A little firstie,” it was a Slythern by his robes. Luna felt herself pushed face first in to the wall.
No no no
“Best make sure you’re not hiding anything,” a hand thrust between her legs roughly caressing her……no
A blast of uncontrolled magic burst from Luna as the older boy flew backwards.
“You little bitch,” hissed the older boy as he picked himself up off the floor.
Luna backed away but like her first year there was nowhere to go.
Knowing what was coming Luna could feel the fear and the pain and the humiliation and snapped, she had power and she would stop this. With a gesture the leering senior stopped and reached for his throat. Luna tightened her fingers as the older boy choked and tried to draw breath.
No, this wasn’t real…it was an illusion…this was her past with a gesture the boy fell to the ground and the room faded.
“You did well Apprentice, you used your anger and fear and it made you strong,” Darth Vectivus said approvingly as he appeared.
“That was cruel,” hissed Luna.
“Yes it was, but not without purpose, you had to know you had the gift of the Sith, the gift of rage and I had to know you had the ability to control it. The universe needs no more followers of the dark who lack control.”
“Go and rest, tomorrow I will meet your friends. With my help you will learn to use your gifts both light and dark. Through me I will show you the path of control.” Darth Vectivus bowed and faded away as the exit appeared.
oOoOoOo
“Bloody hell,” hissed Ron as Harry finished explaining the test they had undergone.
“Are you two alright?” asked Sirius his expression showing his deep concern.
Harry nodded, “Fine Sirius it was all an illusion, bloody convincing and painful but an illusion never the less.”
“What about you Luna was it Riddle?” asked Ron.
“No,” answered Harry on her behalf, “Luna’s was worse, was that a memory, because if it was I swear I’ll hunt them all down.”
Luna sighed, “I’ll talk to you about it later Harry.”
“So what now?” Hermione asked as she picked at her salad.
“Well it appears that our host has agreed to train us all,” replied Harry.
“I’m not sure I want to anymore,” mumbled Ron.
“You have a choice to make then,” offered a cold voice as the red robed Darth Vectivus appeared.
“A very impressive illusion,” complimented Luna.
Darth Vectivus nodded and lowered his hood revealing a handsome if portly middle aged man, “Thank you I’ve always been rather good at them,” he said to Luna before turning to the others, although his gaze fell on Ron.
“As I said you have a choice to make. I will have no unwilling students.”
Sirius looked thoughtful as he considered the image of the Sith Lord, “Why must we choose?”
The image of Darth Vectivus gestured and an image of a man in black and red armor appeared and a blood red lightsaber ignited in his hand, the twisted expression of hate and rage was frightening. “This is why, because unless we restore balance to the Force he is the future. Uncontrolled hatred and rage loosed to destroy what he cannot have. Yes I will train you to understand the darker side of the Force but more importantly I will teach you about balance and how to harness your emotion but remain in control. I will teach you this because I have seen what will be if I don’t.”
Keisha looked terrified as the Sith Lord spoke but summoned her courage to speak, “What will happen if we fail?”
“The Sith will all but destroy the Jedi but in their turn they will also fall and the cycle of war and destruction will begin anew, spreading and growing until the galaxy is in flames. In the ruins I see a new foe rise a civilization, beings outside the Force who seek only destruction and death. Failure is not something that can be contemplated.”
“I’ve seen it happen,” whispered Luna.
“I know little seer, you have the gift just as your master once did when she studied here. Pay close attention to your Force visions and what they tell you.”
“But how can we stop that?” whispered Hermione.
Darth Vectivus looked at Hermione and waved his hand as an image formed behind him. Harry and Luna in robes of grey and black stood side by side and behind them arranged in a semi circle stood dozens of people dressed in the same grey and black robes. Hermione saw herself standing next to Ron and Keisha. Sirius and Remus stood alongside them looking out at the future.
As they all took in the image the voice of Darth Vectivus continued on, “By opposing the fools who try and destroy the balance, by being skilled and knowledgeable enough to intervene and manipulate and if all else fails being strong enough to kill.”
oOoOoOo
1C-32 insisted on a tour of the main estate which turned out to be huge and remarkably well maintained. The tour included Hydroponics bays, Droid repair facilities and even a small aero-space workshop.
The self-sufficient nature of the old mining colony also meant that nearly all their time could be spent training. Harry was sure it was going to be busy.
oOoOoOo
Three Months Later (22 BBY)
The Force ghost of Darth Vectivus turned to face his students, “Remember both the Jedi and Sith philosophies are flawed. The Jedi abandoned their emotions in search of peace and the Sith embraced negative emotion in search of power. Both have failed to understand that only by seeking balance can a Force user fulfil their potential. Light and dark are the same it is the purpose to which power is used that defines it.”
Darth Vectivus shook his head, “It is lack of perspective that clouds vision. Look at the Sith – Jedi war a dispute over who will hold power that has persisted for a millennia. The same battles, the same philosophies and the same outcomes, what insanity makes the participants believe the same input will give a different result? You must put aside labels and old ideologies my apprentices, judge by actions and outcomes not labels, Balance and control, emotion guided by a morale philosophy. There is nothing that cannot be achieved with these strengths.”
“But how do we break the cycle?” asked Hermione.
“By changing, adding a new element to bring the Force in to balance. That was Talia’s vision and that is what I came to see in my later life and why I agreed to help her.”
With that the Force ghost faded away as he always did when he decided the lesson was done.
oOoOoOo
Talia had trained them to be open minded about the Force and it was now obvious why. Had they had the traditional Jedi training they may not have been as open to the more destructive dark side of the Force. Much as Keisha struggled with some of the Sith lore they were learning. Still it was a revelation to learn just how much more powerful they were when they used emotion and an even bigger revelation to find that powerful positive emotion worked nearly as well as the darker emotions.
Harry, Luna and Keisha were drilling the others constantly in the combat arts, which they considered as a requirement considering the unrest in the galaxy.
Hermione and Keisha were still working on a way to use lightsabers as wands and how best to blend traditional Force powers with magic. All of this work meant that for three months they had trained hard than they ever had before attempting to master the teachings of Vectivus.
The only down side to this frantic learning was that regardless of their successes and their excellent progress it was very obvious was just how far from mastery they truly were. Each new skill, each facet of understanding they gained simply showed how much there was still to learn.
They could all feel the clock ticking and time was short because elsewhere the endless war between Sith and Jedi was entering a new phase.
oOoOoOo
HoloNet News
Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) begins new round of deployments
Clone troops led by Jedi have moved to several star systems in a bid to bring the threat posed by the Separatist to an early conclusion.
Amendments to constitution before the Senate
A set of constitution amendments introduced to senate. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine was quoted as saying, “There are times when we must all endure adjustment to the Constitution in the name of security."
oOoOoOo
One thing was obvious about the Sith they really were not keen on keeping good records. Hermione sniffed in frustration as she read the crumbling manuscript that vaguely hinting at some common rituals and rites used by Sith several thousand years ago.
For months now she had been sorting through the mass of data collected by Darth Vectivus and while interesting it was time consuming.
“Hermione,” Ron’s call drifted down the stairs, “Are you in that bloody library again?”
Hermione sighed quietly as she laid the manuscript aside, ‘I’m down here Ron,” she called back.
Ron trundled down the stairs, walked over and kissed his girlfriend on the cheek, “How goes it?”
“Slowly,” sighed Hermione, “Much of this was never catalogued and just placed in storage, dumped in storage is probably more accurate.”
Rod squeezed her shoulder in support, “Well you had best come up they are almost ready to go.”
oOoOoOo
Sirius stowed the box of supplies and turned to Harry, “I wish you would let one of us come with you.”
Harry stowed his storage box and turned to his godfather, “You guys are busy studying and that is important, besides we shouldn’t be gone long a couple of weeks at most.”
“Is it worth the trip?” asked Remus as he entered with Keisha.
“Vectivus said that the Jedi enclave was destroyed but the crystal cave survived.” The former Padawan was now four months along with her pregnancy and starting to show.
Sirius sighed, “Just be careful Harry, I trust Vectivus to train us but I’m not always convinced that we have seen his true motives.”
“We’ll be careful old man you just keep trying to master Shii-Cho,” replied Harry with a grin.
“Hardy Ha Ha I’ll have you know that I am well on the way to mastering Makashi,” replied Sirius.
“Remus is well on the way to mastering Shii-Cho, Ron and Hermione are well on the way toward mastering Shii-Cho. You would do well to emulate them Apprentice Black,” replied Keisha in a stern voice that sent Remus in to paroxysms of laughter.
oOoOoOo
HoloNet News
Rumors persist of Separatist forces preparing to attack core worlds.
Republic sources admit that attacks by militant Separatist’s led by disgraced Jedi Count Dooku are likely to attack Republic targets.
Rumors of a new Separatist General
Sources have revealed that the droid army of the militant Separatist’s is being led by a cyborg.
oOoOoOo
“Look after him,” said Hermione as she gave first Harry then Luna a long hug.
“We will look after each other,” replied Luna.
“See you in a few weeks’ guys and for Merlins sake please bring me some meat. I’m getting tired of this vegetarian thing,” added Ron taking his turn to hug Luna then slap Harry on the back.
Harry laughed as he pantomimed writing a shopping list, “Meat and focusing crystals got it. Dantooine is a fairly safe destination mostly rural and you know we need the crystals. Vectivus is also hoping we can get some of the relics left after the Jedi enclave was destroyed.”
“Okay anyone not coming to Dantooine had better get off,” said Luna as she made shooing gestures.
oOoOoOo
Another chapter done and chapter 7 will be posted soon as my fantastic Beta XRaiderV1 gives the thumbs up
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