The Rebel Faction

He led the younglings to one of the less used courtyards. His students, however, would know the place well. Having a penchant for out of the way places, he had made note of the location of quite a few and had used them as his classrooms on more than one occasion. He had chosen to gather them here for simply reasons of comfort. The place was secluded, away from the chaos on the other side of the complex. It was also familiar. They had spent a number of lessons here and that meant they knew every nook and cranny.

The children amassed themselves under one of the more prominent trees, easing each others nerves by the mere fact that the entire clan was present. The sound of each other's voices confirmed that each member was well and present, not lost, and as long as they stuck together, they would have some measure of confidence. After all they did everything - sleeping, eating, studying, playing - everything together.

With on eye on the younglings and one on the entrance of the courtyard, Kenshin waited expectantly for his Padawans to arrive. Ben was the first, quickly followed by Darami and soon Tatane. At the sight of his older students, he simply nodded in greeting. Many things had to be decided and done and they needed to do it all right now.

Unslinging the small knapsack he had had with him this entire time, he motioned for Darami and Ben to step forward. Reaching in, he retrieved the hilts of two lightsabers and handed each young man one. "These were supposed to be temporary training sabers for today's combat lesson. I was going to bring you both to the storage rooms after to pick out your own training blades in a Force sense exercise." With every new Padawan he would let them instinctively choose their first weapon to ensure compatibility. It was the next best thing until they would build their own true lightsabers.

"However we now do not have that option, nor the time for a lesson today." He continued, a frown marring his face. "I would've liked to do at least basic instruction in person with you two but these would now have to suffice." He then tossed them each a data disc. "It's a technique booklet on Soresu, or Form III. Because you are being so abruptly thrown into the outside world, I suggest you learn this Form well before you attempt a Form you'd prefer. It is the Form that will keep you alive until you are ready to choose another."

"In it is also a copy of the Jedi Code." His tone was grave. "Most Masters instill the Code upon their students on their first day of training. I however save it for the first lightsaber lesson. The Code may be old and outdated when it comes to most aspects of Jedi training, but I am telling you now that it is paramount when wielding a weapon. In combat, the Code absolutely applies. If you are at peace, you can read your opponent. If you are open to the Force, you will see your enemy's weakness. If you are serene, you will be able to react."

At the sensation of someone tugging at his robe, he looked down to see Layla and did his best to smile. He knew that it was her way of telling him that he was being way too serious looking. This time, he just couldn't ignore the urgency in the air. "Darami, Ben. If both of you two decide to go off into the world now, I'd like you guys to stick together. That way you can help each other and watch each other's backs. Theed isn't a dangerous city but you will most definitely encounter less friendly ones when you go offworld."

He then turned to Tatane. He knew that she was a capable Jedi and could hold her own. He had, after all, come to him from the outside world and already well into her studies at that. With the training they had recently done, she was no doubt just as sharp, if not sharper than before. "You are free to do what you wish."

He then addressed all three of the Padawans. "I'll be with the younglings, wherever we may end up. My first priority now is to take care of them. Once we establish some sort of base, you guys are welcome to stop by and hang around for as long as you want..." As they contemplated their paths, Kenshin's mind quickly turned to the needs of the children. He would have to find them suitable shelter and food as well. It would only be after meeting these basic needs that they could address the future situation.

Ben slowly reached out, a little shocked they would be getting their lightsabers so soon. He wasn't even sure he could handle one without the proper training. This was the first weapon that Ben had ever really handled, but he also knew that that lightsabers were not only a weapon, they were also a symble of the jedi. With this saber in his hand Ben could himself become closer to the Jedi. He was on his way to joining their ranks.

Ben looked at Darami and then towards Katarn. As he pulled the disc and lightsaber towards himself, Ben was thinking about the teachers words. Did he want them to go out on their own, but was too polite to just tell them, or was did he believe they could learn better if they were both out on their own? Ben didn't know what answer, but it was another thing to think about.

He wondered if Darami would stay here or go out into the galaxy with him or maybe leave to head out alone. Ben's eyes slowly moved from Darami to Tatane. Would she stay here or go out alone? Perhaps she could come with them and they would explore the galaxy together?

As Tatane talked, Ben listened and took in her words. He could feel inside that she was talking from personal experiance and not just saying things. What she said were true and Ben would try to never forget them. He knew all about deceptive people and how there were plenty of them around.

He smiled a little towards Tatane, "If you like, you could come with us, if Darami wants to stick together that is. Maybe you could help us out with a few tricks?"

OoC: If I'm posting too frequently, and if it's preferred that I wait a bit for others to do so, then please let me know and I'll wait before replying to this thread, so that others can have their chance to do so in turn.

IC:
Tatane beamed at Ben, as if she were a child that had been given some fancy new toy, when suddenly and idea seemed to have dawned upon Kenshin and he began to give the younglings some quick, meaningful orders. She turned to him just as he began to speak with Darami and Ben, her eyes flickering with an assortment of confusion and curiosity. He then turned to her, his seeming almost childish in the light of the situation, and in spite of herself, she stared at him with almost dumbfounded expression.

For a moment, she couldn't reply. His manner was enough to make even her, a calm and respectul woman by nature, implore just what on Naboo he was thinking of now. She knew that calculative mind, that inner cunning that he didn't always outwardly express. She had witnessed it firsthand the time she had initially stumbled upon his path. She wondered exactly what he had decided to get them all into, but somehow she was also grateful that she would not be reliving her past... at least not yet. To lose the Naboo she had once known was enough to make her numb inside, and to the world around her as well. But to have to go out on her own again would be like a heavy blow to the head, as if she was never meant to have a master to help and to guide her in her steady progress as a Jedi.

And so, grateful for the more optimistic points of the situation, she felt that she had no place to protest. "Of... course, Master Katarn," she said then, almost laughing at the very irony of their... predicament. But luckily, they had Kenshin to work things out for the time being, and there was no doubt that he certainly had something. She would suppress the urge to question him, for it seemed that he already had enough on his shoulders when it came to preparing for whatever trip they were taking.

"Come with me, all of you," she said then, quickly adopting the role of an experienced figure so that the younglings would have reason to listen to her. Yet she flashed them a quick smile in an attempt at reassurance. "We'll need to hurry, now. Stay with me and we should go about this in a timely manner." She looked up at Ben and Darami, non verbally noting to each of them that they could come with her if they wanted, or go about their collecting on their own if they deemed it faster or more necessary. She then wasted no time in leading the younglings into the door Kenshin had so kindly opened for them, but went in a different direction as their leader figure.

She doubted their task would require the full amount of time that Kenshin had probably offered them, but there was no need to take their time, either. Tatane didn't have many things to pack in the first place, so they went about gathering whatever things the younglings needed most before proceeding to the area she, herself, resided in. There were a few problems with wanting to keep too much than they were asked, so it did take a bit longer than she thought when it came to working out these simple wrinkles. However, her sense of urgency seemed to rub off on those that gathered about her, and they knew from earlier that day that Kenshin had really meant what he said about one knapsack only.

For herself, she gathered extra bits of clothing and bound her hair as the younglings helped scour her room for any objects that looked important. She shrouded herself in large, dark brown robes and wondered if, in their mission, they would have to collect some sort of "normal" clothing if they ever planned to encounter a city of any kind. She pursed her lips, noting with a certain wry amusement that the younglings found her almost empty room rather funny. She could almost laugh, if the situation hadn't, by now, sunk into her bones. The academy was not as she had once known it anymore. Things were different; things were changing.

She almost choked, but dismissed these thoughts as hurriedly as she could as she took one of the youngling's hands in her owns and took the procession through the temple once again. If Ben and Darami had gone with them, she would assume that they had gathered their things by now and were with the group once again. Before long they had already emerged into the hangar bay, each of them looking about expectantly for Kenshin with some bag or other in their arms.

I have faith that things will work out well for us all, she thought faintly as she gazed at each youngling's wandering face. But I also do not put too much faith in the Force itself, for I know that we as people also play a pivotal role in the shapings of our own lives. This will work out, because we will make it so. She then, as if out of some motherly instinct, used her gentle hands to guide the younglings into a circle so that her vision may remain on each and every one of them. They collected in a nervous and perhaps a rather tight circle, their bags clutched close to themselves as they searched with anticipation for the familiar, friendly face of their Master Katarn.

It didn’t take long for him to pack. Having left so many times before practically on a whim, he practically had a method to gathering what he deemed to be necessary for an unplanned trip. Upon entering his room, he quickly disappeared behind the divide created by pack bookshelves to where his bed was. Kneeling, he rummaged for a second until he retrieved his trusty old knapsack. The worn canvas bag had been with him on all of his trips and it would join him on his newest endeavor as well.

Opening it, he tossed it on top of his bed as he rushed to gather his things. A clean set of robes was the first to go in and as always a spare utility belt followed quickly behind. Grabbing his datapad from his desk, he tossed that in as well as a number of important data discs. He then scavenged the workbench area for all the spare credits he could find. They couldn’t bring too much with them now but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t need more things later. When that time came, he wanted a head start on the gathering of necessary credits.

Tossing all that he managed to find into a wallet, he tossed it into the bag. He was pretty much done. Giving the room a one last scan as he tossed on one of his long, olive colored cloaks, a small cloth pouch resting at the head of his bed caught his eye. It was his pouch of personal trinkets from all the wandering he had previously done. Without much thought, he tossed that into the knapsack as well before pulling the drawstrings tight and snapping the cover-flap in place.

Throwing the bag over a shoulder, he exited the room. It would be the last time in a long while before he would hear that door swoosh close behind him again and for the first time ever, Kenshin had to resist the urge of locking his room. He had collected a lot of stuff in there, stuff he had gotten attached to. He didn’t want to come back, when he did come back, to find stuff stolen. But he knew he needed to fight that urge of attachment. Jedi were supposed to be ready to drop everything and go at all times. He would have to relearn that.

But as he made his way over to the hangar bay, he felt that not locking the room had been the right decision. An unlocked room amongst all the other unlocked rooms would be less suspicious. Besides, he probably wasn’t supposed to be in here after Master Dolash’s speech and it was better to leave as little of a trace as possible. They had, after all, broken in even if they had broken into their own home.

Entering the hangar bay, Kenshin wasn’t surprised to see a handful of other people there. A number of the now homeless Jedi would probably choose to indefinitely borrow one of the Academy’s ships. Quickly seeing the modified YT-2000 he had in mind, he jogged towards it and up the main ramp. Hearing the whirring and banging of tools working durasteel, Kenshin immediately went for the right cargo hold where the Forge brothers had set up a workshop. Knocking as he entered, he was greeted by two mildly amused faces.

“So he has showed up here after all.” Chuckled Dex as he set down the wrench in his hand and wiped the grease off of his fingers with a rag attached to his tool belt. “Figured you’d come here after the speech that really tall guy made this morning. I mean, the Dawnshadow is the closest thing to home right?” He said with a grin.

Cary looked up from his workbench and smiled as well. “We left your room pretty much untouched. It’s still the mess of books and datacards you left. Probably still smells like you.” He added with a laugh.

“That’s good to hear.” Kenshin said with a nod and a slightly sheepish grin. “But I need to ask for a favor. I need to bring a few ‘underlings’ with me…”

“No problem.” Dex interjected whole heartedly. “Anything to help a hardworking Jedi Knight in a bind.”

“Well they’re hardworking, that’s for sure but they’re not really Knights yet.” Kenshin replied with a slightly mischievous grin. “You see, they’re mostly younglings ranging from the ages of eight to twelve…”

He was met with a moment of silence. He could tell by the look on Dex’s face that the grizzled mechanic wasn’t too keen on having kids run around aboard ‘his’ ship. Cary frowned as well but Kenshin knew the younger brother would be more sympathetic.

“How many kids do you have? And how many adults as well?” Dex asked somewhat cautiously.

“Six kids. That would be the entire clan I’m in charge of. The only adult besides me would be Tatane, my Padawan.” He answered simply. It would seem that Ben and Darami would be doing their own thing. No matter, they could keep in touch by comlink when they were in the vicinity of city or a portable long range transmitter.

“I think we’ll have to clean out the upper deck storage rooms and convert them into a sleeping areas for the kids.” Cary finally said. “If you plan on teaching classes or just hanging out, the left cargo hold is still empty and you can practice there like all the previous times.”

“No kiddies in the workshop or the cockpit.” Dex warned, jumping into the conversation. “That is all I really can ask. People can get hurt easier in those two spots.”

“Agreed.” Kenshin said with an affirming nod. “We’ve got the next two and a half hours to set up those rooms, load up on supplies, and fuel up the ship. Let’s get to it…”

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Ben was happy and speechless when Kenshin let them know they would be breaking into the Temple. Relief washed over him and he smiled as he watched the teacher move towards the wall of the Temple compound. He looked around slowly and wrapped the robes he had on around himself while moving towards the gate with the rest of the group. As he moved he carefully spread his arms out and helped to guide the younglings.

Once inside Ben let the others gather their belongings as he rushed to his room. Knowing that he only had a little time to get all his things he hurried through the corridors of the Temple. However, upon arriving at his room, Ben realized he didn't really have much of anything to take with him. The only thing was the holopicture of his mom and his backpack. These were the most important things to him at the moment.

He carefully lifed up the picture and gazed into his mothers warm, kind eyes. Even with all the thoughts running through his mind, Ben couldn't help, but smile at the beautiful woman that seemed to be always looking at him. As he looked at the picture, her image appeared inside his mind, telling him once again that he needed to take things as they came because it would all be fine in the long run. He should just be himself and follow his own heart.

With this new reasurrance Ben knew he had to go off on his own for a little. Even though he wanted to stay and help Kenshin with all his heart, it was necessary for his personal growth for him to explore the world on his own before. It was this fear he had to face and overcome. Since he was a small child, he had always been affraid to be left alone and after the death of his mother, his world collapsed around him. From that single moment he was along in the galaxy and it scared him to the bone right now as it did then. Ben understood that for him to progress in life, he would have to learn that inside himself he had what it took to go out alone and explore the vast galaxy.

He had to realize that he was stronger than he made himself out to be. From his master's teachings Ben knew if he set his mind to something he could accomplish it. Even if it was hard, not quiting was the key to learning as well as to life in general. It was time to solve his own problems and find ways to survive. With the force as his ally anything was possible. It would be an adventure much like the ones he used to watch on the holofilms.

With a new reassured expression Ben placed the holopicture inside his bag and looked around the room slowly. He would need a spare robe and clothes so he went to the closet and pulled the other robe out. Once folded, he stuffed the thick robe into the bag and eyed the dresser in the corner of the room. From this he produced a few pairs of underclothes as well as socks and some belts. These he also placed into the bag and reached into his pockets to pull out the lightsaber he had been given. He placed this into one of the long side pockets before zipping up his now full bag.

One last time he eyed his room and hopped to one day return here. His eyes slowly swept over the bed and the desk he had sat in before. On the desk he noticed two unused data pads and quickly lifted both of them into his hand. He stuffed them into his robe pockets and lifted up his bag. Once it was slung over his shoulder Ben walked out of the room without looking back. This part of his life was behind him now and a new path had opened up for him. After this new one had run its course could he return.

Ben hurried through the empty hallways towards the library straight from his room. While exiting his quarters he realized that without a master he would need more help and guidance during his travels. In order to accomplish his he would need all the information of force powers and training proceedures than he had. The best place that he knew for this information was the extensive Temple library.

IT was into this empty library that Ben walked into now. He looked around slowly and saw that not a soul was inside so he sat down at one of the empty terminals and connected one of his data pads. Through keyworld searches, Ben quickly located the data he would need and started to transfer it into his data pads. This information included everything a trainee would need to learn for themselves. There was even a tutorial on how one could build their own lightsaber. The amount of data was staggering and Ben would need much time to go over it. Time was something he would have now, however, and he would use it wisely.

Finally after almost half an hour Ben emerged from the library with the bag of his on his shoulders. He started off towards the hanger bay in order to say his goodbyes and see if Darami was there with an answer to join him or not. On his way, though, Ben passed the mess hall and walked inside. Again, like the library, no one was present so he moved towrds the food line. He would have to take something with him just to keep him feed till he could provide for his own food.

While filling his bag again, Ben realized that Kenshin would also probably have a hard time providing for the little ones now that the Temple was closed. Perhaps he had the money to buy food, perhaps not. Ben didn't want to risk it and since he was already in the mess hall, he might as well get some food for the others. He pushed the kitchen doors open and moved into the large room slowly. His eyes glanced around and noticed two large duffle bags sitting under one of the tables.

He quickly took these two bags and began to fill them full with food stuffs of all kinds. Ben raided the cabnets and got some powdered milk for the younglings as well as other foods they would need for nurishment. They were still growing and would need a different diet then the adults. Finally he zipped up the bags and hopped it was enough for now, it was the bed he could do. With that he lifted them up slowly, straining from the heavy weight.

Ben moved out of the mess hall and made his way into the hanger bay. There was freighter sitting there with the ramp down and he smiled toward a girl that sat on the edge. Ben walked over to her and knelt down, asking her if she knew where Master Katarn was. She shook her head so Ben smiled and squeezed her shoulder gently, letting her now everything would be alright. He picked up the bags again and moved into the ship slowly.

Inside he noticed Tatane and smiled at her, seeing all the kids gathered in front of her. Ben moved closer and set the bags down as he looked around the ship slowly. It was small for so many people, but he guessed it would have to do for now.

"I brought some food from the mess hall for all of you, just in case you need it." He looked at Tatane and smiled gently. "Looks like your all getting settled in, I just hope its not too perminent."

He paused and looked towards one of the hallways, "Do you know were Master Katarn is? I was hoping to say goodbye to him before I left."