"Left, right, left, right—pull up! Hands wider, place your foot farther out…"
"Shade," Vessira—who'd allowed us to call her Ves—groaned theatrically. "Please stop. Without you it's already nauseating."
"And besides, it's because of you that we're the ones who have to take the heat now," Zeng added.
"And what did I do? Nothing! I'm not the one who broke the workbench."
"Yeah. You finished breaking it."
"Hey!"
"More accurately, you dropped someone on it," Lina cut in.
"Gra-a-a-a."
"There! Even Gris agrees with us."
"Oh, come o-o-on, guys. It's not that bad."
"We're marching at night through the Silent Desert at minus ten to find some hidden sphere," Lina droned monotonously. "HOW could it possibly get worse?"
"We could've marched by day," Ramira shrugged. "At plus forty. Don't know about you, but I still can't use the Force to make a layer between skin and atmosphere to keep my body at a comfortable temperature."
"True. Gotta shake Master Uval down on that topic," I nod.
"Shade, don't. He already wants to kill you, don't push him even more."
"N-no, it's mutual love with us."
"Fhfh…" Ves choked.
"R-r-r-ra-a."
"Where from? Well, it's simple: Master Uval is an old acquaintance of Mother's. I suspect they studied together, not sure. But he used to come by a lot and… if you can call it that, keep an eye on me when I was homeschooled—as a Master from Qigong Kesh, where Mom was headed and where she'd basically assigned me. But! Things didn't work out between us from the start."
"Can you give details?"
"From the beginning, my Force was… unstable. I was always kind of emotional, and it stressed him out. I have to admit—not without reason. Once he let slip to Mother that I should be sent to Bogan, and she smacked him in the face for it. Since then we've hated each other. I honestly tried to mess with him—and did, within the limits of my strength and opportunities—while he stoically endured those pranks and tried to find a way to rein me in. Nothing serious, small stuff, but still. Like the fact I had the nerve to openly slap one of Qigong Kesh's first instructors in the face with a plate of—"
I didn't get to finish. Suddenly the ground bucked, and something began crawling out right under us. Everyone jumped back, and when we turned around we saw a massive flint lizard. Almost three meters tall; a broad beast with tough, spiked, sparking scales and violet eyes. Six muscular legs and two rows of crystalline sharp teeth.
"I think I'd rather have walked by day…" Lina exhaled.
Spotting the Wookiee as the biggest, the creature—despite its size—charged at him fast. Zeng and Feng reacted first. Grabbing the lizard's tail with the Force, they dragged it toward themselves with effort. The action was accompanied by the lizard's wild roar.
Lina went next. Leaping onto the beast's head, she whipped out her stilettos—gifts from her father—and plunged them straight into the monster's eyes. Only instead of blood, dust and sand sprayed from the wounds. The lizard roared even louder. Tossing the girl on its snout, it tried to snatch her, but a flying kick from Vessira knocked the monster's maw away from the falling Miraluka. Drawing my blades—gifts from Mother—I stabbed them into the monster's belly on the move. From the other side, the Wookiee's axe bit into the lizard. A savage roar—and a shockwave rolled off the beast, flinging all of us aside. I barely managed to throw up a Force barrier.
Coming to a bit, I get up and see an electrified Wookiee. Shock, spiked with adrenaline, spills out into wild laughter. Meanwhile, using sound to orient itself, the beast headed straight for me.
"S-sura!" I shout, darting aside. The beast follows right after me. It hears and smells me clearly.
Dodge—its jaws snap shut a meter from my arm. A leap—and another toothy snap right in front of me. Landing and roll. Tons of sand erupt where I land from the enraged beast. It lunges again, but this time a powerful shockwave slams into its side. I turn toward the source and instantly start choking.
"Don't you dare!" angry Ves yells. Her fur is electrified too, just like the Wookiee's. What's happening on her head is impossible to describe. "Don't even think about it."
"K-khryak…"
"No!"
"Pha-ha-ha…" I can't help it—and pay for it instantly. The lizard, recovering, charges at me again, but this time the twins intercept it. Striking its muzzle with the Force in unison, they disorient the lizard. The Wookiee finished it. Picking up his axe, he split the lizard's skull.
"Well…" Zeng said, wiping sweat off his forehead.
"…that's that," Feng finished.
"Don't celebrate yet," Ramira said, pointing at seven more rising sand mounds.
"MOVE!!!" I scream at the top of my lungs and, sheathing my swords, bolt first. The others react fast, and now we're sprinting as a tight pack from a group of angry reptiles.
"Whose idea was it to go at night through the Silent Desert?!" Feng yelled.
"Gris!" the fluffy Miraluka ratted him out.
"A gru-u-u!"
"Should've studied Tython's fauna! Didn't know, huh?" I shout back.
"Flint lizards don't care about the time of day, actually," Ramira said.
"Stop talking—move your legs faster!" Ves barked.
"Ar-ru gra ar-gra-aru."
"We barely took down one, and you want to kill seven more."
"Ugra-a ar argra-a."
"Since you're so smart, you go beat them and we'll watch," the Wookiee glanced back—and immediately picked up speed.
"Kar-ru-ra a-ru-u."
"What? Changed your mind? Thought so!"
"Guys!" I call out, pointing at a group of starfighters flying our way.
Reaching us, three starfighters opened fire immediately, grinding three lizards into mince and scaring off the rest. We finally stopped and collapsed onto the sand. Soon the aircraft landed, and someone walked up to us…
"Master G-a-a-ar-o-o-os," I drawl happily, without a hint of mockery. Never thought I'd be glad to see this slick-backed bore.
"What did you do?!" he snapped immediately.
"Well, we were… carrying out your assignment," I answer for everyone.
"Tell me honestly—are you idiots?"
"Huh?"
"Your target is ten kilometers from here, and it's in the temple's safe lands." We glance where he points. Oops. "But fine—your geography is terrible. Now answer me, please… WHY THE HELL did you set out at NIGHT?"
"Well…"
Whose idea was that? His hard glare swept over our group. Everyone sat with heads lowered, not daring to look up.
"You're lucky those were just flint lizards. Who's the 'genius' who came up with that 'bright' idea?" Yeah… the sarcasm and venom in the Master's voice were overflowing. Looking at my comrades, I sigh.
"Mine," I say, getting up off the sand and dusting my pants. The others immediately lift their heads—especially the Wookiee, whose eyes practically screamed, "What?!"
"Yeah, whose else could it have been," he stated. "And fine, you—but why did the rest of you go along? Ramira. You're a smart girl; you didn't even need to go with them, they took your punishment off. Why did you go?"
"Well… friends. And… classmates. I wanted… to help. In case someone got hurt."
"Yeah, with these lot something like that might happen, sure," the Master nodded.
"Gu-r-r-ra ar-r ra-r."
"Gris? What are you talking about?" the Master frowned.
"Nothing. He's just a stupid furry doormat who doesn't know how to keep quiet," I cut in, pressing the Wookiee with a look. Yeah… 'pressing a Wookiee with a look' is a good joke, but it worked anyway.
"Hm?" Now the Master looked at me.
"Master Garos, I'm the idiot who dragged the whole group into the desert at night. And led us the wrong way, too. I admit my guilt—ready to take punishment."
After that, silence fell. No one spoke. I watched the Master expectantly; he watched me back. Eh… if I hadn't screwed up in the temple, we wouldn't even be here. And Gris… everyone makes mistakes. Besides, I was kind of the group leader… was. And the final decision was mine. The worst part is, I knew perfectly well about those beasts, but I also knew our target was in safe territory, so I agreed to go at night. I never assumed we could accidentally end up in wild lands, so… however you cut it, the screwup is mine.
"So what am I supposed to do with you?"
"Understand them and let them go, and give me a reprimand," I shrug.
"And you won't even protest?" he sounded surprised.
"It's deserved."
"You're not hopeless. Fine—then everyone load into the cargo hold," he pointed at his ship. The exhausted students got up and headed for the machine. "And you," his gaze returned to me, "will continue carrying out the assignment. The safe zone is there," he pointed. "Can you get there yourself?"
"Yeah."
"Questions?"
"No questions."
"Excellent. Why are we standing around?"
"Ehh…" With a heavy sigh, I adjust my swords and head toward the temple. This is going to be a long night.
***
… I only returned to my room two days later. To find that damned kyber crystal, deliberately thrown into the sands, I had to keep my Force sight fully extended the entire time. The Silent Desert absorbed not only sound, but the Force as well, so I had to strain twice as hard. Why, with that kind of setup, do Je'daii navigate there just fine? Because they use Force sight, and that's a slightly different thing. I use waves to see. And since the sand absorbed those waves perfectly, I had to scan everything within a twenty-meter radius—or, more simply, check almost the entire territory. And where I found the stone, I'd passed three times and didn't find it. Naturally there was nowhere to eat, but thank the Force—Je'daii are much hardier than others in that regard, and I did have water with me. (Yeah, going into a desert without water—you'd have to be completely out of your mind.)
The crystal itself was a completely white, uncut little stone. Seeing my persistence, Master Garos allowed me to keep it as a trophy—apparently taking pity on my suffering… and gave me a few tips on its use. Turns out, crystals like that aren't rare on Tython at all, and they're actively used in any tech or devices. Kyber crystals focus the Force excellently, and with their help ship reactors are created, weapons, medical equipment, and much more. They're also used for direct Force use. Clothing with a kyber crystal in it strengthens the wearer's connection to the Force pretty well. What's also interesting—crystals are sentient. At least, that's what they believe. Turns out, if you meditate over one crystal for a long time, and pass only your own energy through it, the stone will start listening only to you. Well, at least that's what they say, but it doesn't stop people from stuffing these little rocks anywhere and everywhere.
Some bright minds made special blasters for themselves. Others made gloves capable of absorbing or reflecting enormous Force pressure—for example, the same ball lightning. To stop it, a Je'daii has to strain. But if he's wearing gloves like that, the kyber crystal will do it all for its owner, dispersing the lightning's energy. You only need a small impulse, and that's it.
Personal character matters here too. Depending on what emotions the owner experiences, and their personal qualities, the crystal can change color. For example, if you fall to the dark side, then whether you want it or not, the crystal will turn red. But only if you have a bond with it—if it's yours, so to speak. So, in a way, I got lucky. I found an untouched crystal. On the other hand, it's a prize for the winner. Under ideal conditions, the punishment we were going through is considered a test for older groups, and people generally didn't think I'd have the stubbornness to actually find it.
Glancing at myself in the mirror before going to the shower, I have to admit I don't look much like my former self. Messed black hair, filthy to the point where in places you can't see my characteristic "predatory," sort of "sharpened" pigment patterns. My clothes are no better: the vest is torn, the sleeveless shirt too; not even going to mention the pants—rag-only. One good thing: the boots are intact. If I'd lost or damaged them, Mom would've been very upset. Those aren't the kind you can find just anywhere—boots with joint attachments that don't hinder mobility during acrobatic tricks. And they don't fly off during them, either. Alright, enough staring at myself—it's time to shower and sleep.