"Yeah, right." Calista laughed at the idea and shook her head. "I didn't know him very well, but Jedi… well, it wasn't generally allowed for us to form the kind of attachments that lead to having kids. There were cultural exceptions but… I don't know. Maybe it was supposed to guide us towards being selfless." she shrugged, once again a bit confused by the whole 'no attachment' thing.
She sighed and gently put her hand on Hawkin's shoulder. "I'm sorry. Would you like me to pull up the information on Kiffex?" she asked, understanding if he chose not to see it.
Hawkin rolled his eyes.
"Well that's kind of dumb. If Jedi were all about peace and patience and keeping it, I think some of them could have benefitted from children. And not to mention, loving something more than yourself could be considered selfless, right? As for Kiffex, I need to know what has happened. Then I'll know where to start. It all starts back at home, right? If there's a problem, I've gotta try to fix it there."
“Yeah, I’m not arguing with you on that.” Calista nodded. “I do remember that… maybe it had something to do with losing them? Cause I definitely remember there was a whole thing about fear leading to the Dark Side… maybe I’m just shooting in the dark but…” she shrugged before accessing the information. “Maybe after we check on the status of Kiffex, we can search for the reason why this happened.”
Hawkin shrugged and looked intensely at the holonet.
"Fear of losing someone you love is natural. I just don't understand. As for Kiffex, I'm preparing for the worst. A precious resource planet, brutalized by the Empire, more than likely."
“I know and have experienced losing people. But… I don't really know. Maybe I should check the Jedi archives and see if there's more about that. Unless you have any information about it, Dex?” she asked. “Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if that was happened either. The Empire ravaged so many worlds for their own greed.” Calista admitted as she read the information.
Dex was silent for a moment.
"I possibly have some information, but I would have to sort through all of my memory banks. That would take a while."
As Hawkin looked at the information on Kiffex he sighed.
"Yes. It looks like the Empire came in and absolutely ravaged it. It doesn't look like it used to look. That makes me feel a certain way, and I don't know how to explain it."
"Take your time, Dex." Calista assured, curious what information he might have about Jedi and any ancient rules or changes the droid would know of. "Heartbroken? Maybe even a little angry? It's understandable if you are and I certainly won't blame you for it. You can feel any way you want about it. The important thing is to not let those feelings control you." she said calmly.
Hawkin looked at Calista and struggled to voice what he was thinking.
"I mean yes? But no? I expected something to happen, because for the last five years I've been here and I saw the stormtrooper squads in the lower levels, and I saw them take people, but I didn't expect the Empire to just absolutely ravage a planet. Everything changed when I heard about the first and then second death star, but I never expected it to work. There's still so much bad in the galaxy. How can that be so, when good won in the end?"
Dex beeped.
"Sometimes, for good to come to fruition, bad needs to happen. Dealing with Jedi for centuries at this point, I've heard my fair share of you can't have the light without the dark, and there has to be a balance. The Force is mysterious Hawkin, and you will never know all the answers."
“Believe me, I understand. I knew that there wouldn’t be a single planet untouched by the Empire but when I found out how much of the Imperial fleet was Coreillian made… I felt like there was a piece of molten metal in my gut.” Calista told him. “And being Force-Sensitive means that I could feel when Alderaan was destroyed. It nearly knocked me off my feet.”
She nodded at Dex's wise words, remembering many lessons from Masters that said basically the same thing. “He’s right. My Master emphasized the importance of balance in the Force many times. Once or twice I heard her wondering if… things weren't as balanced as we believed before the war.” she admitted.
"Wait. How long ago was Alderraan destroyed? It had to have been years ago. It could explain a three day period when I was younger where I just felt horrible, and like my world was ending."
Hawkin sighed and touched Dex's head.
"Yeah. I don't think anything was ever balanced before the war. I heard the old timers saying that there was too much political unrest and something to do with a trade federation led to a lot of problems. If I'm being honest, I had heard of the Jedi and Sith, if you call them that, but I just thought they were tales for kids. Something the Empire made us believe. It was like I couldn't fathom a whole bunch of people who could move stuff with their minds and were powerful could just abandon us. Then I found out later that they were hunted down and killed for sport."
He trailed off and looked distant for a moment.
"In the underground, if it was a popular bounty hunter, sometimes they would take a holo crew and they would broadcast them hunting down people. I do remember seeing some of those in passing. It makes me wonder now, that if some of the broadcasts were just bounty hunters going after Jedi…"
“Yeah. It was destroyed by the first Death Star but I don't remember how many years ago it was… at least five years ago roughly. It was one of the most painful moments in the Force.” Calista sighed, remembering another similar feeling too. “But, I’m sorry to say that you're probably right about that being the cause.”
She let out a soft huff but nodded at the mention of the Trade Federation. “The Trade Federation was just the start. They became the first of the Separatists, a group who deserted the Old Republic for one reason or another, and the “public” enemy during the war. But I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole thing was a setup from the start.” she confessed before looking at Hawkin firmly yet calmly. “Now you know that both people did exist and that the Jedi didn't abandon anyone. And now you know that you are on the path to becoming a Jedi yourself.” she smiled encouragingly. “As your teacher, I promise, I won't abandon you either.”
Her confidence wavered slightly when he told her about how the bounty hunters recorded their hunts. “Honestly, depending on the bounty hunter, I wouldn't be surprised. I'm sure the Emperor had a high price on anyone who knew or could use the Force. Some Bounty hunters had a personal issue with Jedi… but some were honorable.” she sighed.
"Sounds to me that the trade federation wasn't even really a trade or a federation. It was just there. As for becoming a Jedi, that sounds daunting. I'm glad you won't abandon me, it does bring some comfort. Most of the bounty hunter's I've come across, and mind you, it's been a few, have all been nice to me. Which is a good thing. They come in asking for people to fix their ship, no questions asked, and they just get pointed over to me. Of course Coruscant has labor laws, but since I am still technically underage, I can work on Bounty Hunter ships and I don't ask questions and they don't ask questions. I'd like to say that I'm on good terms with them."
Dex emanated a mechanical laugh.
"If I know anything about a Jedi and their padawans, you won't have to worry about being abandoned. You just have to worry about making it through training. You'll probably feel like she's actively trying to kill you sometimes. But that's all in good fun. For the most part."
"I knew a bounty hunter once. She was the last person I would expect to help me and my Master, for more reason than one… but she did." Calista smiled softly, remembering the warrior fondly. "If we come across any Bounty Hunters, I'll trust you to know how to deal with them. We'll just have to be careful all the same."
She chuckled softly and gave a small shrug. "Learning to be a Jedi can be a daunting and difficult path but I believe you can do it. With you as my Padawan, my job is to guide you and show you what you can do. The rules of being a Jedi have changed because of the war but together, with Dex, maybe we can bring things back to a better way." she affirmed. "I believe the Force brought all three of us together for a reason."
His eyes widened.
"If we run into one I know, then I could probably do it. If it's one I don't know, you better hope you what what they want. And please show me what do and how to do it. I'm clueless here."
Dex whirred.
"I can see the rules have certainly changed. This is all new stuff for me. It's very much uncharted territory. Like the outer rim."
Hawkin frowned at the droid.
"I should probably hook you up to the holonet. The outer rim has been colonized for a while now. People live out there."
Dex let out a whistle.
"I have missed a lot. Alright Hawkin, hook me up to the terminal."
Hawkin laughed and hooked Dex up to the terminal and waited for his memory banks to be updated.
Calista nodded. “I will show you.” she promised as she watched Hawkin, her Padawan, hook up Dex to the holonet. “Everyone starts out with little to no idea of what they can do. I grew up among Jedi but since the Empire, most people have written off abilities of the Force as coincidence or luck, either out of an attempt to hide or simply because they don't know that the Force is real.”
Hawkin laughed.
"I mean, a few moments ago, I really believed what I was seeing was because I was smelling hyperfuel all day. Now that I know that it's something different, I'm excited for my future. It means I'm going to be doing something more than turning wrenches and fixing ships my entire life."
Dex's interface flashed, and the droid had caught up on two hundred years of history. Hawkin squatted down and unplugged the droid from the holo net.
"How was the information dump? Are you all caught up now?"
Dex looked at Hawkin.
"So much has happened. I understand a lot more now."
Calista chuckled with him and nodded at his example. “Like I said, you didn't know about the Force so you made a logical assumption to explain what you thought were hallucinations. There’s nothing wrong with that.” she shrugged, hoping that she sounded as assuring as she meant to. “I’m glad you seem eager to learn. There's a lot I have to teach you… including how to make and use your own lightsaber one day.” she smirked.
Hawkin picked Dex up and let the droid attach on his back as he started walking again.
"I've got so much to learn. And isn't a lightsaber like a laser sword? Where would I even start?"
Hawkin started acting like he was in a fight, making blaster noises and dodging and weaving. Dex piped up.
"If I were human, I would be getting sick!"
Hawkin responded back laughing.
"Dex! I'm not even human! I'm a humanoid! From Kiffu!"
Calista laughed at Hawkin’s childlike imitation of using a lightsaber and shook her head fondly. “A lot of people call lightsabers and laser swords the same thing but it's not just the weapon. There are different techniques and forms for using a lightsaber as well as channeling the Force to enhance your reflexes, your strength, speed, and agility.” she explained before using the Force to easily jump over her Padawan, flipping, and landing so that she was facing him. “But before you can even get to that, you have to learn more of the mental aspects of the Force.”
Hawkin watched Calista jump over him.
"Whoa. That was ridiculously cool. You're saying I get to learn that? After I learn what the Force does mentally of course. But that's so different. The little cell things do all that?"
“Yeah, you stick around long enough and you’ll get to learn that.” Calista grinned. “There's a lot of stuff to learn first to build up to that. But that depends on how fast you learn things… not that I’m trying to rush you. Some people take a longer time to learn things than others and some things just come naturally to others.”
“Well I plan to stick around! If it’s anything like learning about machines and what they do, I think I’ll learn very quickly.”
He fixed Dex who had slid around on his back.
“I hope you’re okay back there. I got a little carried away.”
Dex whirred.
“I am alright. I haven’t moved that fast in 200 years you know.”
“I remember a Jedi or two who were skilled with machines so you might find some similarities.” Calista nodded, thoughtfully before laughing a little at Dex’s quip. “Come on. I was going to show you my place.” she reminded, already leading the way.
“Epic. I’m gonna become another Jedi that’s skilled with this Force business and machines. I’m going to be a double threat. Lead on Calista.”
Hawkin tapped the top of Dex’s head.
“Well I won’t move so fast next time. Or… you might need to get used to it. Who knows? I might be zooming around on things sometime.”
Calista smiled and shook her head as she walked on towards the nearest multi-level public transport. “Force knows. You might be.” she shrugged. “Hopefully, we won't have to “zoom around” too much too soon now that we're closer to a time of peace.”
