"First meeting with Aura? Hmm, let me think...

Well, my first contact with Aura came about with a private message. I had known the High Councilor a little before this but my involvement with the Clan was more perusing my own studies. I was never one to get into politics, as my time as a Peacekeeper kept me busy on other systems after the destruction of New Tython.

I had just gotten back from investigating a small outpost of Dark Jedi. I had been tracking them for a while and it was rumored they where worshipping some old holocron containing the spirit of some ancient Sith lord. Turned out not to be anything except a few "lost" darksiders trying to do their own thing and worshipping nothing more than a busted relic. So I was sitting in the Sanctifier, playing on my datapad when a little chat notification popped up from the High Councilor's office. I was a little hesitant to open it because I hadn't exactly gotten permission to go on the mission or take the supplies from the quartermaster. Thought for sure I was getting fired. Why? I don't know. It's not like I had anything they could fire me from. Anyway, we start chit chatting about the Clan and stuff going on. Next thing I know the conversation shifts into how Sunrider is in need of new leadership. Had I known what I was getting myself into, I would have taken my phone to the nearest cliff, flung it off, started shooting at it with rockets then nuked the entire planet into oblivion. It all started with a simple "hey, have you though about getting back into leadership?" Now, I'll be honest, the last leadership role I had was Aedile and that was when House Hoth first opened, so I was ready to step back into the ring, but as an Aedile or Battleteam Leader, something not too crazy as a lot had changed in the Clan over the past few years and like I said, I was perusing my own studies and had not kept in touch with any of my old contacts. Well that's not what she had in mind and she was not about to take anything any less than me agreeing to be Quaestor. She started buttering me up a little, but then started pouring it on pretty thick. I had never heard a High Councilor sound so desperate. After hours of deliberation, she finally broke me down. I agreed to command Sunrider.

It was fun for about three seconds. Then I found myself helping the Vatali in a civil war started by the Quorahi. Way to ease into a position right? Not at all what I had planned. Eventually it all worked out though. Aura and I started working very closely. Then came her next big deception. She made me second-in-command, knowing full well that she was going to step down and needed a replacement. Now here I am. High Councilor of Odan-Urr and as luck would have it, a bunch of crazies are engaging in another war. I mean, that figures, right?"

- **Revak Kur**

Droid chatter, loud bangs, tools being used in relentless fashion, the familiar sounds of the Sacred Heap spilled into the dense foliage surrounding Gui's emporium. The shop itself was tucked away, off the beaten trail, not because Gui didn't enjoy the company of others. It was others who didn't appreciate the artistic noise that Gui was known for. Yet, even as the racket intensified, the Odan-Urr Rollmaster wasn't the one making it. 

His black dreads flicked in the embrace of Kiast's soothing breeze as it cooled his sweaty skin and while it was pleasant, it wasn't the cause of the smirk creasing his lips. He tapped his cybernetic fingertips against the metal chair he manufactured out of spare parts as contemplation stirred his indecisiveness. 

Lingering thoughts washed over his mind ever since Aura announced her retirement. The holo-recording he received wrenched his stomach, still, he knew the time had come. Revak, with Turel at his side, would carry Odan-Urr with more tradition than Gui cared for, but their passion was admirable. Without his voice of reason, he wondered where he fit anymore. Who would he go to with his problems, who could he confide in, or would he be called to lead the Clan someday, an Order with his own set of morals and traditions? 'Now THAT's a thought.' he chuckled as he twisted a rusted hydrospanner in his organic but gloved hand. 

"I'll never forget you Aura," he spoke softly, peeling the glove from his hand. Rarely did he allow his skin to investigate objects. Items contained too many memories, some good, others bad. The hydrospanner, a gift from his Consul, was filled with her memory. The memory of when they first met. 

"Look how young I was then.." Gui spoke once more, guiding his fingers over the metallic surface as his mind opened up, unlocking the contents inside. 

-------------

"Patience, kid!" Aura's brow was furrowed as her eyes assessed a young Kiffar slumped over in deep thought. "What I'm asking of you is to learn patience." 

"What would I do with younglings?" the Kiffar grumbled. "I can't teach, if you remember, it wasn't that long ago I was being taught myself!" 

"We have lost much Gui, perhaps you, more than others. New Tython was the only home you'd ever known and in the blink of an eye, it was taken from you. But you never gave in. Those younglings you rescued when you fled to Nar Shaddaa are alive today because of you. They continued their training, because of you. They are Padawans now," Aura poked him in the chest, "because of you, Gui."

"I can't fix this.." tears began to fill the newly Knighted Kiffar's eyes. "I can't fix any of this." 

Aura reached to her back and pulled a hydrospanner from her belt before sitting down next to him. 

"Do you see this?" the boy looked at the tool and nodded. It was a rusted piece of junk that had seen better days. "Could you still use this?" 

Gui nod his head. 

"But it's older and worn out. It's rusted and battered."

"So?" Gui sniffled, "It still works the same. It's function isn't compromised because of its outward appearance." 

The Zeltron's eyes sparkled like blue crystals. "Exactly." she added a soft smile. 

"You still have a purpose, Gui. Even though you feel rundown and broken, know that you are more valuable to me, to this Clan, than how you appear on the surface." 

Gui wiped the tears from his eyes and latched onto Aurora with a hug. 

"You're going to be a better Jedi than any of us someday, kid. Trust in this," she poked him in the head, "this," she touched his heart, "and the Force. It will never forsake you, Gui. Your instincts have carried you through some rough times, it has kept you sharp, kept yourself alive, and has kept them alive." She pointed to the Padawans training in the Praxeum courtyard. 

Gui smiled, with a newfound confidence. His eyes shifted to the younglings and he could feel their life-force. Each one was like a conduit attached to an advanced circuit-board. Together they became one.

"But what if I fail?"

"You will," Aura smirked, "But you will also succeed. That I am sure of."

"When do you want me to start?"

"You already have." Aura grinned. 

---------------------

"Quiet, Barry!" Gui shouted and slammed his metal hand into the wall. 

Sharp whistles rattled off from the door as the little PIT droid burst outside with a blowtorch in one hand and a pair of goggles it didn't even need draped crookedly over its head. 

"Sorry, bud. I just need time to think," he slipped his glove back onto his hand. "Thank you for everything Aura, I love you." he thought to himself, hoping she knew that. 

---------------

The Zeltron stopped in the middle of her training with Revak and looked to the dense foliage below the Council tower. A smile crossed her face and she immediately stopped.

"I know." she whispered to herself. 

"What was that?" Revak queried, taking in deep breaths. 

"It's nothing, Revs, was just thinking of an old friend." 

 

I was never good at writing, especially with emotional compositions. But I hope to do my best and to show my best wishes and thanks to our High Councilor.

"That was too easy," a Twi'lek guard chuckled to his comrade in arms; a lanky human who had the look of a toddler cutting his teeth, inexperienced and green, "Vigo was right." 

"Ha-yea-ye!!" the young infiltrator couldn't unsheathe his words as he began to choke on them. He clawed his throat and his wide eyes flicked to his superior. He too was scratching at an invisible force. Fear washed over their pain laden faces and the panic of suffocation began to plague their fragile minds. In an instant, before both men surrendered to black, they were hoisted from the stone threshold they were told to protect. 

"Let NO-ONE enter this castle!" they remembered Vigo saying, but they had no other choice.

The sudden levitation worked against them and like fragile twine, their necks simultaneously popped under the pressure. Slumped heads signaled the end as the two lifeless bodies fell to the ground forming a pile of meat and bone.

Soft footsteps grew louder and piercing the night, a green skinned Sephi, a Mirialan? slithered to the side of the door and pressed his back against the wall firmly. In his hands was a rather large sniper rifle, yet he didn't need to fire a single shot, not yet, as another man approached. There was no sneakiness or subtlety in the encroaching shadow. Just an air of unpleasantness masked by a regal appearance.

A thick curly mane jostled with each step the man took, his stride was unwavering, as was his resolve. His calloused hand waved out in front of him and if you were paying close enough attention, you could see the Night Hawk Squadron sigil on the cuffs of his sleeves. The door slid open and without breaking stride, the large man entered the castle the same way he had been since he was but a lowly apprentice. Often he entered in search of wisdom from the old masters, this time it was different. A group of insurgents were on his turf, holding hostage members of his Clan. This was a death sentence to anyone with the same disregard for logical thought.

As Corvo entered his home, Juda slid in behind him, his eyes ever watchful. 

A guard streaked across the hallway in front of Corvo and his brow twitched in amusement. Juda lifted the barrel of his rifle and aligned it, not where the terrorist was, but where he thought the terrorist would go next. His mind calculated the angles and trajectory of the shot before he even made it and as the trespasser went to dart back from where he came from, Juda squeezed the trigger with an exhale. The attacker's body twisted as a bright green bolt burned into his flesh, immediately stopping the primary function of his heart as the shot hit center mass. 

Corvo maintained his brisk approach as he could feel the minds of the officers being held in the room at the end of the hall. There were only two more men left, the Force told him so. This little attempt to earn quick credits with a ransom or the acquisition of resources with a list of demands was foolish. The Nubian was not impressed, not in the slightest, this was a novitiate attempt at best. 

Corvo flicked his hand once more and the door opened to reveal two men waiting on the other side, their blasters were at the ready and as they saw the Sith, they opened fire. 

*hssss*, a sanguine blade entered the fray, bursting from the dominant hand of the Juggernaut. Typically, this weapon would be used to deflect the shots, instead, the bolts would merely melt against an invisible barrier. The eyes of the two men grew wide and they shot faster as the Dragon of Tarthos pressed forward and closed the gap with a powerful lunge that carried the tip of his blade through one of the heavy blasters. The Zabraki backpedaled but Corvo caught him with an invisible grip and pulled him into the red blade. The creature squealed and screamed as the blade slowly burned through his belly. 

"Zabrak were supposed to have a higher pain tolerance.." Corvo pondered as he shifted his attention to the next terrorist. This man was more heavily equipped and had the look of leadership about him. It had to be Vigo. 

"Wa-wait, we can talk this through!" Vigo stammered, pathetically trying to prolong his life. 

Corvo whipped his blade and froze the blade within an inch of Vigo's throat causing the chubby man to gulp.

"What brings you to this domain?" the robotic voice of the Squad Leader queried. 

Vigo swallowed harder.