Endeavor [Complete]

XVII

 Seventeen

"Jiron, Padawan Ava," said Master Satele. The pair had just arrived back from a long-term mission, serving for a few months as the personal Jedi bodyguards of the Queen of a world under siege by the Empire. The Republic had finally driven the Imps out again, so the job of the Jedi had been fulfilled, and they were back on Tython. "I have a new assignment for the two of you. A report has just come in from Master Moran and her Padawan Gazar of what they believe to be the ship of the same Sith responsible for the droid attacks on Tython, and the theft of Republic intel from Master Izumi's ship. It vanished before they could determine anything for sure. Since you, Ava, have been involved so often with this particular enemy, the Council determined that the two of you should be assigned to track him."

"Yes, Grand Master," Master Jiron said. "We'll leave tomorrow."

"Here is all the data we have, hopefully it will be enough for a start," she said, handing him a datachip. He took it, and tucked it in his robes.

"Well little Ava," he said once Master Satele had left. "Looks like we're going to go find ourselves a Sith."

The thought of what they were hunting down scared her immensely. A Sith was what had killed Michael. And now she was expected to find one. She took deep breaths, remembering what she had learned. Fear leads to the dark side. She had to master it.

While the idea of tracking a Sith was intimidating, it was also exciting. Master Satele believed in her, believed she could do it. Don't forget how awesome you are. I think you need me to remind you sometimes. Michael's last message. She reached in her pocket and touched the cool, curved metal of her holocomm. He was confident in her abilities. Maybe that was enough for her to learn to be confident in herself.

She had learned so much with Master Jiron. She hadn't even realized how much she had improved until Tira had walked by during a training session, and commented on how impressed she was. Master Jiron told her she was shaping up to become quite the Jedi. Finding and apprehending a Sith, it would be a challenge. But maybe, it was exactly the challenge Ava was ready to face.

The very next day, the Syzygy was ready for takeoff. Ava had been perusing the information provided by the datachip, and they were going to begin their search at the Sith ship's last known coordinates. It was Ava's job this trip to be the pilot. Master Jiron sat next to her in the copilot's chair, watching everything she did. Ava kept on monitoring the controls and steering the ship until hyperspace engaged. With him right over her shoulder, she knew she had to do her best.

She found herself dreading what would happen if she messed up, even though she knew he wasn't Master Izumi. Master Jiron wouldn't yell at her, or punish her, but that instinctive fear settled in by her time with Izumi, before she confronted him, lingered. When he reached up his hand to point out a control that needed adjustment, she flinched, expecting to be hit or swung at like Izumi would do occasionally when he lost his temper. It had been many months, but the reflex still lingered.

This motion didn't go unnoticed by Marc, and he looked at her curiously. Ava stared ahead resolutely, determined not to look him in the eye. The last thing she wanted was for him to feel more guilty about leaving her with Izumi, when he had no choice. Especially when they were tracking down a Sith. Guilt could easily be turned to a Sith's advantage. Manipulation with their words was as dangerous as their lightsaber skills.