The Last Sith, Part Two

Welcome to Part 2 of my (so far) only attempt to do Star Wars fanfiction.

Oh, and here are the disclaimers again:  Mara McCuniff is a a copyrighted character of Traci Briery.   Star Wars, Jedi, Sith, Yavin, Dantooine, Coruscant, Yoda, Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu, et al, are copyrighted characters and terms owned by eorge Lucas, Lucasfilm, and 20th Century Fox.  I ain't gettin' no money from this, folks.

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Mara repairs Jeel's ship (part 3)

The main communications module lay disassembled on the dining room table. Mara had most of her scanning and repair tools scattered about, which she floated to her hands as needed. Master Orn had assigned her this task after a recent communication with the Jedi Council had been cut short by faulty equipment. She had spent the last hour of the day replacing old circuits and cleaning everything else. It was at this time that Master Orn entered the room. He was not alone, but was accompanied by a man dressed in similar fashion – another Jedi? He appeared to be younger than Master Orn, albeit of the same height and a stockier build. He had a kind face compared to Orn’s, although the same could be said of many others. Mara looked up from her tools, then at her master and his new guest.

"Mara," said Orn, "This is Master Jeel Kumba. He brought his ship here for repairs, so I have invited him to stay with us until they’ve been affected."

A Jedi Master? He had brought a Jedi Master to their home without warning? She could not, of course, be angered by this, but there was a moment of awkwardness as she mentally dusted off what Orn had taught her in such situations. She set down her tools, stood up, bowed her head, and held out her arms before saying, "Master Jedi, we are honoured by your presence and welcome you into our home. We are your servants." She kept her head bowed as required and could only hear Master Jeel’s response. He sounded, to her surprise, amused.

"My!" he said. "Isn’t that our most formal greeting?"

"Of course," said Orn. "We would offer no less."

"Well, in that case…" said Jeel, then seemed to think a moment, nodded to himself, then clasped his hands together in front of his chest and bowed slightly before responding with, "I am equally honoured by your generosity and accept your invitation."

This gave Mara permission to stand "at ease," and she relaxed and looked their new guest in the eye. He had very clear, kind eyes with just a twinkle of-

"Mara," said Orn, "What is… er…?" He gestured towards the table, and Mara’s cheeks immediately reddened as she began gathering up her instruments.

"Oh!" she said. "I-I’m sorry, master, it’s only that this is the easiest place to work, and I didn’t expect that we would have a guest and-"

"Will you need any help with that?" offered Jeel, stepping forward. Orn held out a hand and shook his head.

"It is her responsibility," he said. "Come; we will repair to the common room. Mara, clean all this up and prepare dinner for three. And afterwards, finish the repairs. We need that communicator."

"Yes, master," she said, scurrying to and fro with the equipment. She could very well use the Force to lift every part and move them to their appropriate resting place, but the job was done just as quickly with her hands and feet.

* * *

Masters Orn and Jeel settled into their chairs in the next room, which also served as Orn’s study and meditation area. The furniture was simple yet practical and efficient. The chairs had no cushions, since they cost extra, and Jedi had no use for unnecessary comfort, anyway.

"I really wouldn’t have minded helping," said Master Jeel.

"Helping what?" said Master Orn. "Oh!  No, as I said, she has chores and is responsible for them. I have always made her duties very clear and have raised her in our most traditional ways."

"So I’ve noticed," Jeel said, glancing in the direction of the dining room. "How long has she been your padawan? She seems to be… what, 17? 18?"

"I believe that’s her age, yes," said Orn. "I found her as a child of about 5 on the streets in Gakh City on Yavin’s moon. An orphan. Very strong with the living Force. But we can discuss that later, if you still wish it. I’m curious if you’ve met with or heard from the Council recently."

"I sent the message that I was going to be sidelined by repairs, but that’s about it. Was there anything in particular you were curious about?"

"The Sith, mostly," said Orn. Jeel half-smiled, then sighed.

"Yes," he said. "We’re all curious about them, aren’t we? Our efforts have been focused on finding out their numbers, and most importantly, finding their bases of operation. But they won’t…. I hate to sound like I’m hoping for war, but at least we’d have a better idea what we were dealing with if they opposed us openly."

"The Sith have always been cautious," said Orn. "Some might argue cowardly. They are ruled as much by fear as by hatred. This morning Mara asked if I sensed a disturbance in the Force. Of danger. I didn’t answer directly, but I have been sensing… something close."

"Do you think the Sith are here?" asked Jeel.

"I’m not certain," said Orn. "I cannot pierce the clouds of the future."

"In my experience," said Jeel, "It’s been a definite sign of the dark side at work when the future is uncertain. The dark side is so afraid of revealing itself that it reveals itself by that very ‘uncertainty.’"

"Indeed."

Jeel thought for a moment. "I’ll tell you what," he said. "Unless there are objections from yourself or the Council, I’d be happy to remain here and help you find out if it isn’t the Sith that we’re not sensing, after all."

"You needn’t go to that trouble-"

"Of course I can," said Jeel with a grin. "It would be my honour to assist you. And if our efforts produce nothing, then I will leave, satisfied for the time that the danger is minimal."

Orn considered the offer a moment, then nodded grimly. "Yes," he said. "Thank you. It is our honour to be assisted by you."

"Oh, no need for the extra formalities," said Jeel with a wave of the hand. "We’re on equal terms here."

"Of course," said Orn with a nod. "You must remember that my own training was also deeply rooted in our traditions."

Mara appeared in the doorway. She said nothing until Master Orn acknowledged her presence with his gaze. She then bowed her head and held out her arms again. "My masters," she said, "I have prepared tonight’s meal, and humbly invite you to partake."

"Wonderful! I’m famished!" said Jeel, to the equal surprise of Orn and his padawan. "Pardon me," he said to Mara as he left the room. Although not the formal reply to the dinner invitation that either had expected, it was still tradition for the guest to enter the dining room first. Orn entered now, followed by Mara. Three places were set at the table. Several covered containers of hot food were at the centre. Jeel seated himself first, followed by Orn, and Mara began to seat herself, but stopped when Orn cleared his throat and gave her a stern look. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she looked here and there at the table as though checking for imperfections in the settings or the food or anything else related to the layout, when Orn pointed very subtly at the floor. Another lesson was mentally dusted off, and Mara uttered a hasty apology before seating herself on the floor.

Master Orn paused a few seconds before saying, "Mara, please – join us at the table." With that, she seated herself on the chair closest to the kitchen. Jeel, who had been watching this with a furrowed brow, suddenly made a noise as if discovering something new, and pointed at Orn.

"Now I remember," he said. "That’s the tradition where… where the padawan has to be invited to the table, yes? When guests are over, that is?"

"Yes," said Orn. "Please – eat, eat as much as you like."

"Heh, believe me, I will," said Jeel, reaching for a ladle that rested in the main course, a hearty stew of local vegetables and meats. Mara excused herself quickly before gently taking it from his hand and doling out his portions for him. Jeel made efforts in vain to wave it all off so as to serve himself.

"Oh, now, you really don’t need to bring out all the traditions for my sake," he said. "We Jedi are supposed to serve others, not be served."

"True, but you are our guest," said Orn.

"Fair enough," said Jeel. "I’m very grateful for your hospitality, of course. Thank you," he said to Mara after she handed him his plate, now laden with fresh, hot food. He took a moment to smell it, and was not displeased. "Oh, this smells wonderful," he said. "I know I’m going to enjoy this."

"The honour is all ours, Master Jeel," said Mara, trying to control the blushing of her cheeks, but unsuccessfully. She then busied herself loading up Orn’s plate, and then her own.

Based only on Jeel’s reaction to the meal, one could assume that he had never had a more delicious repast. He had finished half of it by the time Mara had set down her own plate. A little bit later Jeel stated that this was, indeed, the best meal he could remember eating. Tradition dictated that Mara could only answer with "The honour is all ours, Master Jeel."

"This is wonderful," he said near the end of dinner. "I shall make this a day of mourning that I actually had to stop eating this." He noticed the puzzled expressions on his hosts’ faces, then laughed. "A joke," he said. "But it’s not a joke to say that you’re a splendid cook, Mara."

Mara looked down in another attempt to hide her cheeks. "The… honour is all ours, Master Jeel," she said before removing the dishes into the kitchen.

"What sort of repairs does your ship need?" asked Orn to change the subject. Jeel shrugged.

"I’ve never been good at mechanics," he said. "I thought it was the stabilizer, but it looked fine as far as I can tell. So I’d be very grateful for any recommendations you could give me. Er, preferably someone not too expensive, of course."

"Mara will do it," said Orn.

"Your padawan?" said Jeel. "She can cook, and repair starships?"

"She will look at your ship tomorrow, or as soon as she’s finished repairing our main communicator. If she cannot fix your ship, then we will look from there for a reputable repair station."

"Oh, that would be splendid," said Jeel. "Just let me know how to repay you, and I’ll see to it."

Orn waved him off. "Nonsense," he said. "You are our guest. You are also a servant of the Force as we are. It is our duty to aid one another."

Mara appeared in the doorway. "Master?" she said.

"Yes."

"With your permission, I’ll take the communicator into my room and finish putting it together," she said. "I have repaired it; I just need to reassemble it."

"You may," said Orn. "Oh, and Mara? Tomorrow you will accompany Master Jeel to his ship and examine it. Bring all your tools and see if you can fix it yourself. If not, he’ll need to hire someone in town."

"Of course, master," she said. "I will do my best."

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