"The last LAAT/I is away, sir," Republic trooper Racer told the Padawan as he sat on the ground in his flightsuit, pounding the stone with the butt of his lightsaber. "It'll be our turn to go next." "Very good, Racer," The young man said in a dead voice. "I can't wait to get away from this rock." "I'm with you there, General Zarell." "What's with this kid?" The new heavy weapons commander said over the secure line the troopers used when they wanted to talk in secret. "I thought these Jedi were tough?" "Watch it, Heavy!" Boom, one of the 105th Legion's commandos said angrily. "We don't know what it's like for these Jedi. They say that when a lot of people die, it has a strong effect on them. Because of their connection to the Force." "And cut this kid some slack, will ya?" Racer growled. "Believe it or not, they say he's only thirteen." Heavy turned to face the others, then down at the Padawan. "He looks to be eighteen to me. Is he a clone like us, or is he just from a short lived branch of Humans?" "He's not a clone," Boom said. "I guess he's just short lived. Which is too bad, because this kid is something else. You'll like him." "It looks like I won't get the chance to, though. We're getting a new General. That Cerinian, Pehn Orell." "Were you able to recover any of his Master's remains from the wreckage?" Boom asked Racer, the Legion's top Intelligence officer. "No. He was completely incinerated. Even his lightsaber was melted. All I found were the crystals for it. Gave 'em to the kid." "Here's our ride," Vreem Zarell said as he stepped past the troopers to the landing LAAT/I. "I'll be okay, Racer. And I'm fourteen, not thirteen." Racer and Boom turned to the new artillery officer. "And evidently he has very good hearing," Heavy said. "You got that right!" Cheater, another member of the commando team said as he trotted by, jumping into their ride out. "You can't keep secrets from him. We've learned that the hard way." Heavy shook his head and laughed as the doors closed, and the LAAT/I lifted, taking them back to the ship's landing sight. Maybe they'll get the chance to meet up with him again. "You heard what I said, Padawan!" Admiral Vlad Vinzer said angrily. "There are plenty more of them. They're nothing but cheap, expendible tools to be used and thrown away!" Dayko Sekhut, the Captain of the Stardestroyer Victory rolled his eyes at the stupidity and arrogance of the commander of the battle group his ship was attatched to. Vreem Zarell stood before Vinzer, shaking with rage. Enraged at his callous attitude for the men of the GAR. A third of his troops had died down there because of this man. "Is that all, Padawan? Or are you going to waste more of my time with your whining." "Do not call me Padawan!" Vreem said angrily. "My ascension to Knight has been confirmed by Master Yoda!" The young Jedi then advanced a step closer, his hand hovering close to his weapon. "So you will adress me as General Zarell!" "And yes, there is more!" The boy added quickly. "Since Master Collo died down below, it falls to me to write the report that the Jedi Council shall give to the Supreme Chancellor," The Jedi then shoved his face in Vinzer's. "And I'm going to tell them of your refusal to engage a lone Lucre class battleship, and the resulting loss of five thousand men." "What are you accusing me of, boy?" Vlad Vinzer asked slowly. "Cowardice, you pompous idiot!" He shouted before leaving. The Admiral stood glaring at the door when Sekhut spoke up. "Permission to speak candidly, sir." Vinzer nodded, still staring at the hatch. "Sir, one day you are going to push the wrong Jedi. And when you do, you'll find yourself being dismembered where you stand." Vreem Zarell watched the traffic flit about as he stared out at the Coruscant skyline. He'd lived most of his short life here since being brought to the Temple by Masters Jin and Orell. He smiled when he recalled just how annoyed they'd been with him on the short trip from his homeworld of Corellia. They'd never seen a baby so young who was so talkative. It broke his heart when he learned Pehn's former Padawan, Ateia had turned to the CIS. Everyone liked Ateia. And Ateia, like Vreem, was born on Corellia. The Corellian press liked to call the two of them the Kidnapped Ones. The fact that their parents had both handed their children over to the Jedi on Coruscant, rather than their own Jedi, seemed to offend them greatly. Especially Ateia's. For her father sat on the Corellian Jedi Council itself. Vreem heard the sound of heavy boots coming down the hall to the office he'd been sent to after telling the assembled Masters that he was leaving the Jedi. It pained him to let those men and women down. But he just couldn't take anymore of the death. But the person he looked up to most, was the man now standing behind him. "I'm glad to be able to see you before I leave, Master Obi-Wan," The boy said as he turned. "And I am happy as well. I'm sorry you have taken this course, but I understand your reasoning. And the fact that Vinzer was allowed to keep his command has left all of us angry. But at least he has Pehn Orell to keep him under control now." "Obi Wan?" Vreem faced the Jedi Master. "Another reason I'm leaving is the fact that I almost took my lightsaber out and struck Vinzer down." "The man does have a way of provoking people," Kenobi said, nodding. "I want to know who it is that's protecting him. We've lost so many men because of him. It must be someone high up in the chain of command." "Well I wish they would stop, so the navy can get rid of him." I agree," Obi-Wan said as he pulled out a small data card and handed it to Vreem. "Take this. It will tell you how to access a Jedi safe house at the mid level of the southern CoCo District. Master Windu wants you to have what's stored there. He thinks that you still have an important part to play in things, even if you'll no longer be a Jedi. And I think he's right." "Thank you, sir. And thank Master Windu for me as well." "Do you have any idea what you're going to do?" The older man asked. "I'm going to join the Corellian Defense Forces. I'm a very good fighter pilot." "And that would give you the chance to find out about your past." "I know some already." Vreem told Kenobi. "As you know, when Master Collo and I were there last year, I was injured. When I was in the hospital, the staff did a dna scan of me, to see if I was in their database. Turns out I was. And they had the name of the man who left me at the hosptal when I was a baby." "Really? What is it?" Kenobi asked. It was rare for a Jedi to find out who their families were. Vreem smiled and told him. Kenobi burst out in laughter. "Are you kidding? That's the worst name I've ever heard." "Yeah," Zarell said in agreement. "But the sad thing is, two others had the same name before him." "Have you tried looking that name up in the Republic computers?" "Yeah. Believe it or not, there's only one person with that name in the Republic, alive. He's a one time resident of Corellia who lives in one of the slums on Doroub. He has an extensive police record as a con man. It seems he's not very good at it." "Well, I have to go," The Jedi said at last. "I'm being sent to the Mandalorian Sector again." "I kind of figured that by the armor," Vreem grinned at Kenobi. "They sure seem to be sending you out there a lot lately." "Listen," The boy said as they turned to leave the room, his smile fading. "When you see Snips, tell her I said goodbye, and may the Force be with her. That's the one thing I'm really going to miss. Watching her being Knighted." "I will. I know she'll be very sad about you leaving. You two were the best of friends." "When are you going to take another Padawan, Master Kenobi?" "I think I'll wait until after the war. I have just too much to do to take the time to train another Learner. Plus, I'm on the Coucil now, which gives me even less time to devote to training a Padawan." Yeah, I'm still alive.