Broken Codes

Faltering Hope

Coruscant: 30 BBY
Jedi Temple
Lesia Mirri

    Lesia stood in the main hallway of the Temple with her fellow younglings. A few Knights were returning from a trip. Les tilted her head, spying the infants that they carried. "Where did they get those babies?" She asked one of the older younglings.

    "They found them," the youngling replied. "They must be Force sensitive. They'll become Jedi, like us."

    "What about their families? Won't their families miss them?"

    Her companion shrugged. "They probably will, but those babies won't know the difference."

    "Why not?"

    "Because they won't see their families again. Their life is here now." The youngling knit her brows and faced Les. "I thought you already knew this. The same thing happened to all of us, after all."

    "What?" Lesia's blue eyes widened in shock. "No, but...I thought I was born here."

    The youngling shook her head. "None of us were born here. We were all located and brought to the Temple as babies."

    Les stared after her as she walked away. "They took me from my home? I just thought my parents were dead...but they're not?" Her eyes burned as she blinked back tears.

    She looked around the Temple, her sorrow changing to anger. "I don't want to be someone who takes babies from their families. I don't want to be forced to do what they tell me!" Les set her jaw, making her decision. "I won't become a Jedi and they can't make me."

Coruscant: 19 BBY
Jedi Temple
Lesia Mirri

    Les kicked her feet over the arms of the chair. She began picking at her nails absentmindedly. This certainly wasn't the way most Jedi greeted Jedi Masters Yoda and Windu. Then again, Les didn't count herself as a Jedi.

    The door hissed open and Master Windu entered with Master Yoda at his side. "Comfortable?" Windu asked. He looked vaguely annoyed.

    "Not really. The seat is hard and it's not quite wide enough." She straightened, despite herself. "Why was I summoned?"

    "You are twenty one years old and yet you remain unapprenticed," Master Windu began.

    "That's not my fault," Les interrupted. "No Jedi wants to deal with me."

    "You know exactly why no Jedi Master has chosen you yet," Windu growled. "The galaxy is at war, Lesia. It is our duty to restore peace and order, but you prefer to sit here and make life difficult for everyone."

    Les narrowed her eyes, meeting his frustrated stare. "How many years have I told you that I don't want to be a Jedi? How many times have I asked you to expel me? I would have left on my own by now, but you would just send someone after me."

    "Selfish, your thoughts are," Master Yoda replied. "Dangerous are they. Angry and sad have they made you."

    Les crossed her arms. "So I've been told. Get to the point."

    "Spread thin, our forces are. Help they need. Send you to war, we must."

    "What? No, no way." Les began shaking her head.

    "You will be assigned a master, seeing as none will choose you. Ki Adi Mundi will oversee your Jedi training and you will obey him," Master Windu said. "Report to him immediately."