Outcaste

It is a time of turmoil in the Republic. The war between the Mandalorians and the Jedi rage across the galaxy. Amidst the war, there are small pockets of isolated peace, but when a group of insurgents direct their own revolutionary lead attacks against a local government in a newly christened Republic world named: Xolatis, the Jedi send one of their gifted Masters of the Order, Jedi Master Alec Uban. Master Uban arrives to find that not all on Xolatis is what it seems. The local President has instituted a strict set of rules, including a curfew, and when the agitated insurgents revolt again, the Jedi Master finds himself in a desperately hostile situation without a chance of resolution without involvement of more Jedi. The Jedi of course, spread thin across the galaxy already, are in no position to mediate the situation. There are other mysteries: what is the governor, Lord Darchind, hiding? Who is he dealing with in secret?

What are his real motives? When Uban's apprentice arrives on Xolatis with two other Jedi in tow, the stakes are immediately elevated. From a dim world on the edge of known Republic space comes a danger to both the Republic and Jedi not seen since the likes of the Sith!

Part I

Distant Memory

.1

The nearly vacant local shuttle set down onto the gray landing pad just outside the settlement-capitol of the newly discovered and inducted Republic world, Xolatis. The small shuttle was much like those that were vagrant on the surface of the Republic's own capitol planet, Coruscant---drabbly colored and without much imagination to it's architecture, a simple capsule with vital parts put where they needed to put in order to fly. The only thing that distinguished it from such a interplanetary vehicle was the hyperdrive, which of course let it launch from one planet and jump easily to the next without use of the sublight engines. The usual blather of aliens and Humans were aboard this shuttle, a few sightseeing but fearful Jawas, a rare Kushiban traveler that kept to herself, some Twi'lek, a burly-mercenary looking Trandoshan that looked out the window of the shuttle pensively as the shuttle set down. There was another passenger, far to the back of the space shuttle: he was a lone Human Jedi. This man was an envoy to sue for peace between a small contingent of freedom fighters and the local government's head, a man known to the Jedi Council as Lord Darchind. The only thing this Jedi or even the Council knew about this Lord Darchind was that he'd been a fairly decent man when trying to deal with these 'freedom fighters' that were trying to upset the balance of the local governments meek yet expansive control over Xolatis. Upon joining the Republic, Darchind began badgering anyone who would hear him that he'd dodged several assasination attempts by these 'freedom fighters' as he called them, but he remained unopposed in the position that these freedom fighters already had the freedom they were 'fighting' for. A clunk and a thump notified the shuttle's occupants it had finally landed safely on the ground and gone through the usual procedures. A hiss-thunk and all four doors (two on each side of the long space-bus) slid open. A stead outpouring of men and women of all kinds of species got on and off of the shuttle at once, hurrying toward their destinations. The Jedi Master went with them, more like a specter on the air then a real person. None of them saw him, he was but a 'brown-cloak' to the people of this planet, they didn't yet know a lot about Jedi. I'll prefer it that way, he thought, touching the silver cylinder on his belt. For now. Express instructions had been given to this Jedi Master---he was to be as careful as ever in such a new, foreign place. The Jedi council did not want their reputation to be tarnished this far out on the outer rim---they might some day ask for help from Xolatis and it's people, if the place had anything of value to offer to their war effort with the Mandalorians. This place was as far out in ths galaxy as one could get without being lost in the twinkling abyss. Along the fringes of the Corellian trade route, between Tatooine and Ryloth but past both of the worlds, just on the fringe of what smugglers and experienced astronavigators called Wild Space. The jedi master moved toward the edge of the pad just as the shuttle took off with it's new set of occupants back through it's circuit: from Xolatis to Ryloth then to Tatooine, a long jump from there to Rodia, a longer one to Corellia and one more back to Coruscant. It had only been a few days travel for him, but the jedi's legs were still gnarled with the frustrated ache hyperspace travel. His knees had always worked up when traveling so far too, but for some reason, they weren't hurting as much as they had in the past. Strange, he thought as he passed down the stairs into the settlement out of the side of the grass hill, perhaps it is an effect of the gravity. This jedi was just glad to be back on a mission that didn't involve the war. Jedi Masters like him were truly indispensable in a time like this, with the war against the Mandalorians raging on, they were being called on more and more to be soldiers rather than guardians of justice in the galaxy these days. It bothered him because if the Jedi weren't guardians of those who couldn't fight, then what were they? Eccentric old stewards of a galaxy quickly succumbing to growing pains? At fifty two, he sorely hoped this wasn't the case---I won't be around to take care of this place forever, he thought wryly as he made his way up the main street in a bustling crowd of aliens. Only that one crowd though, he thought, instantly suspicious. He stretched out of his mind with an invisible net of the force and threw it out over the hubbles and apartments to each side of the street. He nodded to himself in confirmation as he started to walk up the main walk to the Administrations building, Darchind institutes a curfew. I suppose that isn't all bantha poodoo. He sometimes wondered if just a little more security on the side of the Republic's own police forces wouldn't lessen the load for the jedi, free them up a bit so they wouldn't be so thinly spread across the small patch of cosmos they occupied. The Administrations Building, with it's towering rock-made towers and spires, was set out in front of him and he really thought it looked more like a castle then a governmental office. The jedi straddled a durocrete walk-ramp toward the main doors but before he could come within ten paces, two Gamorreans flanking a tall, black cloaked alien came out from the doors. Again the jedi became weary of his surroundings just a little more. Sith? he thought almost instantly. No, he thought after a moment's hesitation. Their way had died like the flickering of a candle a good while ago. Just the same, the jedi master was now thankful more then ever for his premonition about him and his padawan learner. He was thankful that he'd convinced his padawan to stay on Coruscant and compete in a sparring tournament at the newly constructed temple. It hadn't taken too much convincing. The Padawan learner, in his fifth year of being such, was excelling at a rapid speed both in his grasp of the living force and his lightsaber skills. Though their relationship as Master and Learner had been a bit strained lately, the one who stood in front of the castle thought it was best for him to be on Coruscant at the new temple, for more then just the reason of participating in the tournament . . Between the Coruscant and Dantooine, even the Jedi's homefront seemed stretched thin. The female human underneath the black hood peered out curiously as the jedi envoy walked slowly up to her and the guards at her side. "Jedi Master Alec Uban, I assume?" The Jedi Master, Alec Uban indeed, halted at his name and smiled, greeting her warmly. "Yes, I was sent to speak with your governor, Lord Darchind?" With a brief skirting motion of his palm hitting the top point of his brown hood, he revealed his light brown skinned face. Uban was bald-headed, by his own decision, and his ice blue eyes glowed intensely in the coming starlight settling on the evening. His moustache and chin hair were connected loosely by two strands at either side of his smiling lips, all of which were black, peppered with grey and even some elusive white hair. "Shall we . .?" Uban offered, watching the woman's reaction thoughtfully. She nodded once, "My name is Valecka, I will show you to his eminence, Lord Darchind now," replying just as warm and welcoming. She turned her back and the Gamorreans did the same, swinging their battle axes and their leathery faces with their drooling tusks smiling eerily too. Alec followed them into the castle of made of blue rock reflecting, the Republic hasn't been here more then a month, but the citizens of Xolatis sure have warmed up to the thought of extra-planetary immigration . . It suddenly struck him as strange as to how these boar faced alien guards were already in Lord Darchind's service. Shouldn't he have noticed something like that in the town, when he'd seen the other aliens? Alec Uban's mind grew weary. I'll just have to be more watchful. Entering the dim innards of the blue rock building he stretched out through the Force and paid closer attention to the gathering pieces of a puzzle that had yet to slide into place.