A New Dawn

A strange sound disturbed his sleep and pulled him from a land of dreams back to the real world. It took several moments of blinking the sleep from his eyes and looking around his surroundings to realize just where he was. The interior of his starship was not present and had been replaced with the cozy interior of a home. It took a few moments for the memories to trickle into place. He was on Ossus. The sounds he heard was the chirping of birds and the buzzing of insects as nature woke with the rising of the sun. It was not something he had heard in some time. The inside of his ship and the inky darkness of space had been his only constant companion.

More memories dripped in and he remembered the previous day, of the revelations and pained history he had laid out for Teagan, and his heart hurt at the thought. Rising from the sofa he had fallen asleep on he made his way through the domicile and opened the door into Teagan's room just a crack. He could just make out the shape of her asleep in her bed. Somehow that was comforting to him, to know she was safe and sound. It was a silly need considering she was located here, on Ossus, surrounded by Jedi more than capable of defending her against that which hunted her.

At least, they would be able to protect her against a few scouts. In the back of his mind Feint knew that if they ever found this world and found them here that they could come in force. Not just one hunting party, but all of them. An army of Leh'beni hellbent on the destruction of the single Lupine held here and the traitorous heretic protecting her. They may even send an Arbiter. They may start a new war. There were many Jedi here now, but they could not resist the ire of an entire civilization. Statistically speaking, it was bound to happen eventually. Hopefully it would be years from now when the Jedi have established themselves as a force of power in the galaxy again.

Creeping from the home, Feint stepped out into the early morning light. The air was chilly and moist. Dew wet his polished shoes with every step. His coat was buttoned up, hiding his elegant suit from view. Standing a safe distance from the dormitory buildings he reached into his coat pocket and pulled forth a small box, from which he drew a single white cylinder. They had nothing like stims on Leh'ben. Such a practice would have been looked down on as uncivilized, but it was a habit he had picked up in the last few years. Something to help calm his nerves when he was stressed.

Lighting it up he took a long drag and blew the smoke skyward. The Jedi camp was just waking up. A few going about their business. Whatever that was. Although he had been a fleeting guest here several times he had never really stopped to watch or learn their ways. It was easier to come and go if you never made attachments. His decision to stick around this time had opened fresh eyes to his surroundings. No doubt he would watch from afar and try to understand just what it is the Jedi do, how they train, and what they believe. Perhaps he would write a book, a history tome that would never be allowed to grace the shelves of the Grand Library in Galphast. No doubt they had already taken and burned his other books.

But there was no sense in dwelling on those things.

The narrow pathway to Master Vyme's home was ever so slowly widening, though Farran had to wonder if the Jedi Master made efforts to fight back the 'civilization' as much as possible. There were still wild and down-swept branches, thin and blooming, that she often enough had to push past. It was a strange thing to her, and made her wonder over the differences between what her old Master spoke of concerning the Jedi, and this apparent reality of how they truly were. Master Vymes had shed some light on things, but there were still many unknowns. Many things that confused her to such great degree.

Farran Esrimoure was a Padawan once more, it seemed, and while she felt a small bit of resentment over that, she knew that it was for the best. This galaxy and the Jedi in it were not what Master Davola had told her they were, and it was inevitable that she go back to the level of a Learner. Then again, from what she could glean from Master Vymes' teachings, a Jedi never truly stopped being a Learner. It was something that lessened the sting, and in fact made her hopeful for whatever might lay ahead.

Rounding the last bend in the small pathway, Farrn frowned, bringing her eyes forward as a strange scent filled her nostrils. She'd smelled it before, but those times were usually around the Alliance contractors; certainly not here. She knew that Master Vymes had adopted a woman's children as his own... and that he also did not partake of stims... had the frustrations of caring for little ones driven him to such a habit... ?

No.

The stranger standing on the front porch was enough to cause her pace to slow, and Farran gave him a narrow-eyed stare.

Her hands remained in the back pockets of her trousers as she consciously kept herself from immediately placing a palm to the saber hilt clipped on her belt. Instead she stopped a few paces from the first step that would lead up to the small porch.

She frowned. She'd never seen this man before.

Still though, she had been tasked with making attempts at subtlety and tact.

"Are you here for Master Vymes?"