Confronting Fear

Training

"Ushar, you need to rest that leg. Vicrul, I want a report from Kuruk and Cardo on the status of Nal Hutta. Inform Ap'lek and Trudgen we'll be meeting tomorrow at 0900 for a meeting. I'll be in my quarters until then. "

Ushar and Vicrul watched their master leave without another word.

"Something's happened. The Jedi did not return with him." Vicrul observed.

"I still think she should be eliminated. She's influencing him, even now the Darkness wanes in him." added Ushar in disgust. "I never thought Kylo would be brought down by pretty eyes and a nice set of tits."

Vicrul shook his head. "It would not do to think that way. It wanes in him but it grows in her. You have witnessed her power firsthand, what she did on Pasaana. And, you know who she is. The Darkness will return to him and she will turn in time. Be patient, Ushar."

"My least favorite thing to be."

Making his way to his quarters he barely noticed the usual scurrying of his subjects to get out of his way, a thing that had once brought him great satisfaction that now seemed as irrelevant as Vatleria had until today.

Once he removed his helmet inside his quarters he scratched a small spot behind his right ear. It had been bothering him since he started back, making him suspect some small insect had bitten him while docked on Kloss 2, adding to his irritation. Over the course of his life, he'd been shot, stabbed, and slashed. How was something as simple as an insect bite causing him such discomfort? Feeling wetness on his skin, he stopped, examining the blood on the tips of his gloved fingers.

From the panel near his desk he commed the bridge. "Mitaka, I want every piece of information we have on Vatleria sent to me within the next three hours or it will be your head."

"Yyyesss sir."

Fuck, he was tired. It was to be expected though, he told himself. As he removed the heaviest layers of his caked on clothing to shower he wished for Rey's comforting embrace, that she'd come straight back and not gone on without him. He'd had plans for her once they returned. But, the Force had called her and that could only mean something important was about to happen. As dangerous as following your Force instincts could be, it was often more dangerous to ignore them. That didn't mean he had to like it.

It was going to be a long three days while he was what he'd been most of his life: alone.

Sweat dripped down the end of Finn's nose, his concentration wavering as he levitated several large stones over a campfire, none other than Luke Skywalker observing him.

Per Mace's instructions, Finn had reported straight to General Organa the second he returned from Haruun Kal. While Leia had been awestruck by Finn's tale and the violet lightsaber, she did not promise to train him, replying that she needed time to think. She came to him several hours later, Chewy in tow and orders to report to Ach-To.

Upon his arrival, he had found Luke waiting for him in the Jedi temple. It seemed Leia had arranged for him to train with Luke until Rey's return when she would take over. From where or when she would return, Master Luke would not say.

He concentrated even harder on the stones, lifting them higher above the flames. He was determined to master the Force. He had to, for Rose, Rey, Poe, Leia, Mace, and himself. So many people were counting on him. Rey had warned him training would be hard, that Luke could be cranky. Finn had known this in theory, but theory was much different than application. As someone who was used to being in a bustling hive of people, the isolation of Ach-To had left him feeling distinctly alone.

And something about this training felt wrong, like it's not what he was supposed to be doing with the Force. He knew it had many applications and while Knight seemed to be Rey's chosen occupation, Finn had a feeling he was meant to do something different. His mind kept flashing back to when Rey had healed the serpent in the desert. It had felt so right and the snake was so happy, he could just tell. That was the type of hope Finn wanted to bring, not hope that the battle could be won, but rather that everything would be okay afterwards.