My mom and I rushed out of the main reactor room and headed back into the shuttle, where Gida, Tarom, Nova, Lorea, Orlamax, and Jeren were waiting for us. I wasted no time in hoping into the pilot's seat, taking us out of the destroyer and towards Manaan. As soon as we landed on Manaan, Gida, Tarom, Nova, and I were in the cargo hold with Lorea, Orlamax, Jeren, and my mom. Due to Gida, Tarom, Nova, and I being Jedi, we couldn't leave the shuttle.

"Well, this is the farthest we can go." I mentioned.

"We know, but we are grateful for taking us this far." Jeren commented.

"We thank you for what you did back there in the destroyer." Orlamax added.

"Speaking of the destroyer, what exactly happened back there?" Gida questioned. "When you returned, Storm, you looked rather frightened."

Mom and I exchanged an uneasy look. I glanced back to see everyone else looking at both my mom and me.

"I'll tell you guys later." I assured them.

At that moment, I felt immense pain throughout my head. I down crouched as I cradled my head with my hands. I pushed past the pain as I tried to focus on what was causing me pain. And in a matter of seconds, I discovered that the pain was coming from Maya. Everyone was at my side at once, looking worried.

"Are you all right?" Nova inquired.

"Yeah...but Maya's not. She's in pain." I informed them.

"You better return to the Jedi Temple." Mom advised.

Once Mom, Lorea, Jeren, and Orlamax were off the shuttle, we took off, making our way back to Coruscant. As soon as we reached the front steps of the Temple, we saw O-Mer rushing out towards us. "Masters!"

"What is it, O-Mer?" I questioned.

"It's my Master, Master Storm. Master Maya hasn't come out of her room ever since she came back from trying to bring back a clone trooper, who was on the run." O-Mer explained.

My stomach churned at his words. I had a feeling that clone trooper was Fives. Yet I couldn't stop myself from asking, just to make sure it was Fives. With that in mind, I spoke up. "And do you know who this clone trooper is, O-Mer?"

"It was Fives, Master Storm." O-Mer informed us.

My stomach dropped. No wonder Maya was in such pain. I immediately turned towards Gida, Nova, and Tarom. "After you three inform the Council of successful mission, I want you three to look through our intel. I need to know if Tâtsâ Ca'ana has been captured by the Separatists."

Nova furrowed her brows. "You mean, your father?"

"Yes, my dad...On the destroyer, I ran into Dooku. My mom found me and helped me fight Dooku. He told us that my father has been captured by a Separatist destroyer." I confessed.

"And you don't if he's telling the truth or just taunting you." Gida pointed out.

I nodded. "Exactly..."

"And how did you escape?" Tarom asked.

I hesitated. "...Well, my mom and I fought Dooku, and we managed to escape. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna check on my sister."

Without waiting for anyone to say anything, I rushed over to her room, knocking on the door. I heard a muffled sob followed by a Maya's voice that croaked. "Who is it?"

"Maya, it's me." I said.

The door then opened, revealing Maya. Her eyes were puffy and there were dry tears on her cheeks. Oh Maya...I could tell that the capture of Fives was affecting her.

"Maya, O-Mer told me that you haven't come out of your room since you brought back Fives, who was on the run." I informed her.

Upon hearing my words, Maya's face fell. "You better come inside. He didn't tell you everything that happened."

As soon as I walked into her room, the door closed behind me. Maya's room was simple and similar to my room and the other rooms here at the Jedi Temple. Except unlike my room, which had posters of swoop racers and podracers, Maya had landscape paintings of different planets she had been to, which were hung around her room. Maya sat down on her bed, while I sat across from her on one of her meditation pads.

"What didn't O-Mer tell me?" I inquired.

Maya let out a shaky sigh. "...Fives is dead."

My stomach dropped at her words. Fives had become a good friend to me, but I knew to Maya he meant much more than that. I wanted to tell her that it would be all right. Nevertheless, I had a feeling she had more to tell. Once Maya was ready, she spoke again. "After we went to Kamino, the Kaminoans took Tup away. While Rex was called back to Ringo Vinda, Fives was quarantined as the Kaminoans believed he might also have what Tup had. Unfortunately Tup died, and they found a tumor in his head."

I furrowed my brows. "A tumor?"

"Fives convinced Master Ti to present the intel to Palpatine, and unfortunately something wrong occurred, they said Fives tried to assassinate the Chancellor but there's no way Fives was capable of such a thing." Maya clarified. "Anakin, Rex, and I tracked down Fives, who escaped. We found Fives in a warehouse and unfortunately he was killed right in front of us...he died in my arms, sister."

Tears streamed down her cheeks. It pained me to see her like this. I hated it...I placed my arms around her, pulling my sister in for a hug. She let out a sob as her shoulders shook. I had a growing suspicious that Maya was in love with Fives, and this confirmed it. After we pulled away from the hug, I spoke up. "You love him, don't you?"

"More than anything, Storm." Maya confirmed.

I raised an eyebrow. "And did he know?"

Maya hesitated. I placed a hand on her shoulder. "Maya, I'm your sister. You can tell me anything."

"Promise you won't tell anyone else, especially the Council." Maya mentioned.

I nodded. "Of course."

"Fives and I were secretly dating for a year. We were waiting for the war to end, so we could leave everything behind. He was willing to leave his old life behind and I was willing to leave the Jedi Order behind for Fives." Maya confessed, fighting back tears that threatened to fall from her silver eyes.

I wanted to tell Maya that I knew I she felt, but for some reason I could muster the courage to tell her about Koltav. So I decided to find out more about this tumor.

"And the tumor?" I questioned.

"The Chancellor said that it was a mere parasite native to Ringo Vinda. But I don't believe him. I know this sounds insane, but before the other troopers arrived, Fives told Anakin, Rex, and me that all clone troopers have organic chips in their heads to make them do whatever the person who planted in them wants, even to kill Jedi." Maya explained. "He even went as far as to say that the Chancellor was in on the chips in the troopers' heads. But I know the Chancellor would never be capable of doing such a thing."

My stomach churned. How I wish I could tell Maya the truth about Palpatine, but I couldn't. Besides they would never believe me, and Palpatine would have everyone I care for to be killed. Instead of telling her, I gave her another hug. "Don't worry, Maya. You're not alone, frahino. I'm with you."

"Promise me that no matter what happens that we'll be together." Maya mentioned.

"I promise, Maya. No matter what happens, we'll be together. It'll take a lot more than the Separatists to break us apart. I'll be with you until the very end." I assured her.

After spending some time with Maya, trying to distract her from Fives' death, I walked towards the gardens to find Master Allie sitting on the ground beside a small pool with her eyes closed. As soon as I approached her, Master Allie opened her eyes.

"Master Allie, I know you're disappointed in me, but I just wanted to apologize. I let my feelings get the better of me and I disregarded the Jedi Code." I informed her. "...I just felt happy, when I was with him."

"Until he was killed." She pointed out.

My face fell. "Now I see why Jedi aren't allowed to marry. The pain is too much..."

Upon seeing my face, a guilty look appeared on Master Allie's face. "Storm, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to remind you of Koltav's death. But please don't let it happen again, Storm. You cannot just dismiss the Jedi Code as though it's nothing."

"Don't worry, Master Allie. It won't happen again." I assured her.

She then gave me a smile. "Good, that's all I ask. I know it's not easy, but I believe you can do it. You're strong, Storm."

"Thank you, Master Allie. I won't disappoint you again."

•••

Two weeks went by, and I had been busy. I had been sent on missions left and right along with Areria and T3-A2. It took some time to warm up to him, since he was no R3, but eventually we became good friends. Maya was finally out of her room. She was sent on a mission to Manaan along with her padawan, O-Mer, to escort Shazzi and Ruko along with the other judges of the High Court back to Coruscant. Lorea, mom, Jeren, and Orlamax were successful in convincing them to join the Republic. Currently, I was with Kina and Thox, helping them train a group of younglings. Among them were Katooni, Gungi, Zatt, Ganodi, Byph, and Petro. Kina, Thox, and I were teaching them in the sparring arena. 

"Now while you fight, you want to keep concentration at all times." Kina mentioned. 

"Master Ha's right. The minute you lose concentration is the moment you put your life in danger." I chimed in.      

"Now Master Ka will demonstrate this with Storm." Thox mentioned. 

Kina then stood in front of me with her lightsaber raised in the air. I ignited my lightsaber before swinging it towards Kina's lightsaber. At once our lightsabers clashed with one another. I remained focused as I backed off, taking a few steps back. Kina swung her lightsaber again, but I managed to dodge her attack, jumping in the air before landing behind Kina. As soon as she whipped around, I lunged towards her, striking low. Kina quickly deflected my attack. The younglings watched as Kina and I fought one another, blocking each other's attacks. 

"Give up, Ca'ana?" Kina questioned. 

"Never." I replied.  

I swung my lightsaber, forcing Kina to take a few steps back. Once our lightsabers collided, I pushed forth with all my strength. As I pushed on, I heard Koltav's voice in my head. "Storm..." 

My eyes widened. Rather baffled, I stumbled back. Koltav? I mentally shook my head. No, it can't be. Koltav is dead, I saw him die in my arms. When I looked back at Kina, her lightsaber blade was just inches away from my neck. A grin appeared on her face. "Looks like I won." 

I wore a sheepish smile as I tried to forget what I heard. "Sorry...I got distracted."

"And you see, younglings? That's why we remain focused, because it could cost us our life." Kina warned. 

I then turned towards the younglings. "All right, now everyone grab a partner and begin dueling." 

At my words, their eyes lit up. They quickly grabbed their partners before they began to duel one another. As they practiced, I heard my name being shouted out. "Storm!" 

I looked up to see Tarom, Vinor, and Nova outside the sparring arena. I glanced over at Kina, who noticed Nova, Tarom, and Vinor outside the arena. 

"Go on, Thox and I will take care of the younglings." Kina assured me.  

I smiled. "Thanks Kina." 

Kina returned my smile. "Just remember this when I ask for a favor." 

"Thanks. You're such a great friend." I teased. 

Kina nodded vigorously. "I know...By the way, are you all right? While we were dueling, you looked like you saw a ghost."

I let out a nervous laugh. "Me? Oh yeah, I'm fine...I should go and see what Nova, Tarom, and Vinor want. It must be very important. Talk to you later, Kina."   

With that, I walked towards Nova, Tarom, and Vinor, refusing to look back at Kina. I didn't have to look at her to know there was a suspicious look on her face. As I walked outside the arena, several thoughts filled my mind. What had happened? Did someone get hurt? As soon as I approached them, I spoke up. "What is it?" 

"We did what you asked us." Tarom reminded me.

"And fortunately we found nothing on your dad. He wasn't captured by the Separatists." Nova informed me. 

I was relieved yet devastating upon hearing Nova's words. Of course Dooku would lie to my mom and me. Dad may not be captured, but that doesn't mean he's all right. But I wanted to believe he was still out there. He promised to return back. I then noticed that Gida wasn't here, and I remember Gida was there when I asked them to find out if Dooku had been telling the truth or not. 

"Where's Gida?" I inquired. 

"There was a distress signal that the Jedi Council discovered. So Gida had been sent with Master Koon and a troop of clones to check it out." Tarom explained. 

"And since Gida had to leave, she told me to help continue the search in her place." Vinor added.  

At that moment, Jinx approached us. "Master Windu wishes to see you in the communication center." 

"It must be about Gida and Master Koon's mission." Tarom pointed out.

"You're right, we'll check it out at once." I mentioned. 

I was about to take off, when I noticed Jinx began to walk off in the other direction. Where was she going? Wasn't she going to coming with me? Rather confused, I called out to her. "Jinx, aren't you coming?"

Jinx stopped walking at once. She then whipped around to face me. Her face had hardened at once. "No, Master Windu asked specifically for you. Apparently I'm not good enough to be in that kriffing meeting. Not that I care anyways..."

With that, she stormed off. I glanced over at Tarom and Nova, who were just as baffled as me. Nova merely shrugged. "We'll see you later. You better go now."

Tarom nodded. "Yeah, best not to keep Master Windu waiting."

"You're right." I agreed.

With that, I quickly made my way to the communication center. Once I arrived at the communication center, I saw Master Windu, Master Yoda, Master Jocasta Nu, Anakin, Anakin, Areria, and Obi-Wan.

"Glad you could join us." Master Windu commented with a stern look.   

I bowed my head. "Forgive me, Master Windu. I arrived as quickly as I could." 

At my words, Master Windu's face softened. He gave me a small nod. They then quickly filled me in on what Master Koon, Gida, and their troopers found, which happened to be Master Sifo-Dyas' ship and his lightsaber. Master Jocasta turned on the holomaps as Master Koon and Gida joined us through holograms.

"Our records definitively state that Master Sifo-Dyas died on Felucia. In the fifth quarter, a small skirmish broke out between the native Felucians." Master Nu explained. "Master Sifo-Dyas was assigned to negotiate peace talks between the tribes. The negotiations failed, and Sifo-Dyas was killed."

"What became of his body?" Master Koon inquired.

"I'm afraid I cannot answer that. Any further information on this incident has been sealed." Master Nu informed us.

"On whose authority?" Master Windu questioned. 

"By the office of the Supreme Chancellor." Master Nu commented.

I furrowed my brows. Palpatine sealed the incident? But why would he do that? Unless he had something to do with Master Sifo-Dyas' death. I mentally shook my head. I can't make assumptions like that until I'm certain that he's involved. 

"Thank you, Madame Jocasta." Master Windu replied.

With that Master Nu bowed before leaving. Once Master Nu left, Master Yoda turned towards Obi-Wan, Anakin, Areria, and me. "To Felucia, Skywalker, Ca'ana, Skikea, and Kenobi will go. A trail long cold it is, yet still lay hidden there a clue might be. Question all who were present the day of Sifo-Dyas' death, you must."

Master Windu raised an eyebrow. "And what of the sealed file?"

"Speak with the Chancellor personally I will to see what part in this the politics of the Senate have played." Master Yoda mentioned. 

With that Areria, Anakin, Obi-Wan, and I made our way to the hangars. Once we spoke to the tribal leaders on Felucia, we contact Master Yoda at once. A hologram of Master Yoda appeared at once. 

"We have spoken with the tribal leaders on Felucia." I informed him. 

"They use a very ancient dialect, which is hard to understand, but from what I can make out, when Master Sifo-Dyas died, he was not alone." Obi-Wan mentioned.

"There was a second Jedi here with him." Areria chimed in. 

"And the name of this second Jedi?" Master Yoda questioned. 

"Either I don't understand them, or they won't say. It's hard to tell. This is a primitive people we are dealing with. After his death, they cremated Sifo-Dyas' body, and I'm afraid the trail goes cold there." Obi-Wan explained. 

"Did you have any success with the Chancellor?" Areria asked. 

"Hmm, as much success as usual, I am afraid. Pointed in another direction I am now. To speak with Valorum I go." Master Yoda said. 

The hologram then faded, leaving us more confused than ever. Now what were we going to do? 

~Translations~

Frahino----Sister (Old Corellian)