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| - Clouds blocked all sunlight in the skies over Eriadu City. Still, Shalli continued to peer at them, looking for a break. Occasionally, an avian flew overhead, breaking the monotony. Right now, she was waiting. Master Greystone had gone into a store to purchase some food for the pair. Shalli was waiting, leaning against the stone masonry building. It was a warm day, but she remained covered in a veil more often attributed to the servant women of the Colonies than to the elites of Eriadu. She was not willing to let her blue skin be shown, however. Such could have had disastrous implications on this world. The Jedi Master returned from the store and handed Shalli some bread with a spread on it. She was surprised by the cuisine, as it was of a lighter fare and largely insubstantial. Still, it was food—something of which they had not partaken for about twenty hours. Their mission right now, as Master Greystone had indicated to her earlier, was to canvass the streets near the EIE headquarters. The Jedi had been able to sneak into the complex after the fire and copy documents and files. Since then, they have been waiting for Avar Zranik to make an appearance. He was rumored to have been arriving within moments, but nothing had come of fruition to this point. About three blocks down the street, however, Shalli began hearing a crowd of people. Glancing in that direction, she noticed that the local police had blocked the street access. Behind them was a large mass of beings. Curious, she began drifting toward the crowd. Within minutes, she was at the police barricade. "You will let us two Humans through," Master Greystone said from behind. "I will let you two Humans through," the officer said, obviously swayed by the Jedi Master's mind trickery. "Thank you," he replied to the officer. Shalli continued walking, meandering back into the center of the street. Master Greystone, from behind, put his right hand on Shalli's left shoulder. "Use everything within your power to project yourself as a Human," he said. "What do you mean?" the Omwati asked, peering at the Jedi Master. "Concentrate on the Force," he returned. "Think of this as a broader mind trick. Focus the same energies, but use it to imagine yourself as a Human." "I don't understand." "You are skilled with the mind trick, no?" "Yes." "It uses the same skills. Envision yourself as a Human and project that through the Force broadly—to everyone around. Most of these people will buy it easily." Shalli tried, but she was unable to garner an image. "Keep focusing," the Jedi stated. "This is a skill that could save your life one day. Of course, with our mission today, this could be that day." "What am I trying to tell people?" Shalli asked, eyes still closed. "You're not speaking it," he replied. "You should be pushing forward and image with your mind in the same way as if you were deflecting someone's attention." Shalli tried again. Focusing all her energy, she formed an image of herself in her mind with pale, peachy skin and blond hair. Then, she glanced toward the crowd and began 'telling' them with her mind that she was this image. At that moment, an unassuming man walked passed the two Jedi. All the while, he kept staring at Shalli. His glare, however, was flirtatious and not sinister. Surprised, but not upset, by this development, Shalli assumed she was successfully accomplishing the Force power. Master Greystone, too, seemed satisfied, and ushered her forward into the crowd. Greystone led Shalli through the sea of Humans to an area that was within visual distance of a large stage. Nevertheless, behind them was a long alley. Undoubtedly, Shalli surmised, the Jedi Master had intended to use this as an escape route should things become challenging. There were only a few people blocking their exit. Trying to relax but not loose the image she was mentally projecting, Shalli turned toward the stage. A short, balding, overweight man was ranting on the stage. His voice was cascading through the speakers, and his arms flailed around with vigor. He was surrounded by military-type officers and wealthy businessmen. There was only one woman on the stage, and all were Human. Still, the crowd seemed to be lavishing the man with attention and cheers. "It is the duty of everyone on Eriadu to make this planet better," the man shouted. "You know who this is, right?" Master Greystone whispered to Shalli in her left ear. "No," she replied. "This is B'Rhea," he returned. "Who?" Shalli questioned, turning her gaze to the other Jedi. "He's the Governor-General of the planet," he stated. "Never heard of him," she whispered back. "You better learn him quickly," he said. "He's going to be a major player in everything over the next few years. I can sense his future. Darkness surrounds what little remains. His legacy will surely be long-lasting." "Everyone care for your brother and sister in this fight!" B'Rhea shouted toward the crowd. "This is the only way we can defeat those aliens who want to destroy us. We will take back this sector from them and make ourselves their masters once again! Eriadu is the jewel of the sector, not Seswenna. Let those vile aliens and alien-lovers perish in Chaos!" The crowd let forth a deafening roar of approval. Shalli was surprised by the xenophobic remarks, and the praise that met them. "Should anyone stand in our way, we will take them down. Seswenna can no longer prosper at the expense of the hard working Humans of Eriadu. Men, double your efforts at your jobs. Women, tend to the needs of your men. Let's prove to the galaxy that we are economically and technologically superior to everyone. Our planet will no longer be this small speck in the outer reaches, we will be praised as the glory of the southern galaxy! Once again, the crowd cheered. Not only was he xenophobic, Shalli thought, he was chauvinistic. She was also beginning to feel something inside her that was not right. It was almost like a tension, but she was unable to explain it. Something, somewhere on this planet was making her unsettled. Perhaps, she thought, it was the rants of this despotic madman. Still, she sensed something elsewhere. Something dark, and it began to cause a physical tension to encroach into her muscles. "Do your part, my brothers and sisters," the politician continued. "And, I will do mine! We are pushing for great change that will bring our planet glory. The Hydian Way will be rerouted to our planet, not Seswenna. The link will become the main route! The Rimma will too be rerouted to connect to us directly. We will strengthen our hold on commerce, and we will rule the southern areas of the galaxy economically and culturally. Beside me are great men. Avar Zranik's company is expanding daily! Czerka is investing once again in our southern hemisphere. The guilds have pledged their support to rerouting the hyperlanes, and the Bank of Eriadu has just acquired the Rimmaline Bank, giving us access to every system between here and Thyferra!" The crowd began chanting something indiscernible, but Shalli was growing uncomfortable. Through her feelings, however, she continued to push forth the mental image of her as some blond-haired Human. It was growing more difficult, however, and Shalli began to struggle internally with whether or not her emotions could be controlled. It was the perpetual battle that she faced. Everything she was ever taught was that emotions led to the dark side. The growing tension in her made her assume that her growing sense of emotion was the source of the darkness she felt. "We will then take over their systems!" he shouted. "We will make them our servants! We will enslave all those alien scum that walk those worlds, and spread our true social democracy. Then, the Republic will have to listen to us, and we will be triumphant!" Shalli was now feeling tight and nauseous. Here, this arrogant dictator was bloviating about partial galactic domination. How had she not heard of this man before? Surely he would have been viewed as a threat to the security of the Republic. That was, of course, if they took his comments seriously. Glancing at the crowds, she noticed that the entire park area seemed filled with beings. There had to have been over one million in the area listing to this indoctrination and ranting of a madman. This psychopathic and arrogant man was damning them to servitude and conflict, and they embraced him! What were they getting in return? Some false sense of radical planetism and xenophobia? Shifting in place, Shalli's arm bumped the back of the man in front of her. He turned and looked, with a glare of disgust before turning back toward B'Rhea. An instant later, he turned around again—this time with inquisition and suspicion. Shalli felt the urge to run but did not move. She suddenly felt the Force slip out of her control, as the man pointed his finger at her. "Alien!" he shouted. "She's not one of us! Alien! Get her!" Shalli looked at Master Greystone, he nodded his head to the side discretely. Shalli understood. She ran. As she took off through the few people that blocked direct access to the alley, the Omwati looked over her shoulder. Around twenty men were now chasing her. Master Greystone was also following, but he was directly in front of the stampede, as if leading the charge. Suddenly, Shalli felt concern. She began to be afraid that she was going to be captured and bludgeoned to death. The concern began to overwhelm her, spawning an emotion that she could not identify. As she ran down the alley, she fought with herself. 'Emotion is bad,' she chastised mentally. All this did, however, was serve to stir it more within her. 'No emotion, only peace,' she mentally rehashed. The mob that flowed behind her had swelled to around fifty men. Master Greystone had caught up to Shalli, which surprised her given his age, and was now running by her side. Shalli pointed down another street, and the two Jedi turned to the right. The Force seemed to have left her. She was unable to sense where she was going or what was occurring. Instead, she only sensed the angry mob and her own… fear. It was raw fear that she was experiencing! "No!" she shouted out loud. "Fear is an emotion. Emotion leads to the dark side!" Master Greystone looked at the Omwati curiously but seemed to sense what was going through her mind. "Just calm yourself, Shalli," he said between heavy breaths. "Emotion is not bad… Fear is not even bad… Embracing it is… the problem. Calm your mind… and allow yourself to be proactive… instead of reactive. Remember your training!" Shalli finally stopped running, but the crowd was gaining ground. She ducked into a paper repository. Master Greystone followed behind. They peered out a crack in the large metallic bin as the crowd largely ran by. A few of the stragglers, including the original accuser, were standing directly in front of the Jedi’s position. There was no exit, Shalli noted. They had to wait inside the heaps of papers for a while. At the same time, she tried to eliminate the emotions. She rehashed her training, focusing on eliminating emotion by chastisement. Nothing worked, however. The more she reprimanded herself, the more she began to fear the very fear that had built up within her. Instead of relaxing, she continued to mentally stir. In a matter of minutes, her fear of fear had caused her to become far too overwhelmed. Now, she was feeling something else within her. Uncertain and completely oblivious to its consequences, the normally non-emotive Jedi began fidgeting. The ruckus caught the attention of the accuser, and he opened the bin. The Omwati looked squarely into his eyes. She understood him, as she sensed the same series of emotions he had. They both were afraid of each other, and they both were in dislike of the other. Then, Shalli realized, they both wanted to kill each other. "Shalli," Master Greystone called softly, placing his hand across her chest, as if to gently restrain her. "Shalli, focus. Focus on peace. Let me handle this gentleman." Even though the Omwati heard the words, she could not reconcile what she was feeling. It seemed to overwhelm her; it seemed to permeate everything around her. Everything was tense and strained, yet she seemed to be able to feel the Force again. The man took one step forward. Shalli's emotions came to the fore. In an instant she envisioned him attacking her, even though he had only inched forward. Reaching out, through the Force, she gathered her strength. By the time the man was only a mere step from her and the now-standing Jedi Master, she could not contain everything that was being experienced. Lashing out, she thrust her arms forward; telepathically ejecting a blast in the Force that flung the unsuspecting man across the alley. He landed four meters away. A sudden surge of power came over her, and the Jedi jumped out from among the papers. She ignited her lightsaber and charged the man, impaling him in the chest. Three of the other Humans, who were now looking on, darted off down the alley. She could sense their fear, and it she felt reassured that they, too, would meet their demise. So, she grabbed the lightsaber and followed in pursuit. After only one block of buildings, Shalli had caught up to the three men. She slashed at the legs of one, cutting him down. Leaving him on the ground, she reached out through the Force and grabbed another. As she ran forward, she pulled the man toward her with the Force, her lightsaber aimed outward. The man, unable to overcome the power Shalli now wielded, slipped and lost his balance. The Omwati continued pulling him toward her, until her blue lightsaber went through his back. The last man slipped and fell to the ground. Shalli ran to him as he rolled onto his back. Their eyes met, and she saw both his fear and hatred. Yet, he said nothing. She raised her lightsaber over her head and pointed it downward. As the man remained, his face became hollow and expressionless. She felt his fear subside as he closed his eyes. Yet, it was not replaced by confidence. Rather, Shalli thought, he was resigning himself to his fate. Although she had killed three other men only moments earlier, could she really kill this man? A swirl of thoughts flooded her mind. What if his only transgression was hate? Had he really been among the belligerents who had chased her with the intent of attacking? The more Shalli hesitated, the more her strength seemed to wane. She sensed Master Greystone behind her; she sensed stark disapproval. This was an emotion with which she was very familiar. After all, she had sensed it from all her masters on so many occasions. Turning around, the Omwati disengaged her lightsaber and started walking toward the Jedi Master. She began to sense something else within herself. Another emotion, she surmised. This time, however, she did not fight it. Mentally overwhelmed from having suddenly discovered fear and hatred, she collapsed on the ground at the feet of the Jedi Master. Guilt overcame her. She understood guilt. Master Greystone grabbed Shalli and deftly pulled her upright. Then he walked down the alley in complete silence. By the time he was fifteen meters away, she knew he was not going to turn back. Realizing that she had just fully wrought his disapproval, she quietly followed in tow. Over the next hour, Shalli slowly marched back to the Eriadu City Naval Base. She had fully regained her composure and had felt the surge of energy and emotion dissolve. Now, everything seemed almost more like the normative than the terrible experience in the alley. She still sensed something dark somewhere on the planet, but it was inconsequential. She had reestablished her meticulous self-control and was shutting down all aspects of her mind. The Omwati knew that Master Greystone would need to be faced. The entire situation had become a blur, and she honestly was unable to remember what had been true and what had been imagined. She knew that an account would have to be given for chasing the three unarmed men through the network of alleys. His demeanor clearly indicated that she had acted improperly. The Omwati still felt completely justified for having dispatched with the initial man, as he had intent of attacking her, according to her recollection. Then again, a Jedi Master might have seen it quite differently. After all, she was not certain what had actually occurred any more. Once back at the base, Shalli retired to a sitting area and laid back. As she closed her eyes, she sensed Master Greystone enter the room. "We have a guest," he said straightly. "Prepare yourself." "Who?" the Omwati inquired, slowly standing. "The Grand Master has arrived," Master Greystone returned. Shalli immediately snapped to attention. Searching through the Force, however, she could not feel the Grand Master. Had the arrival already taken place? How was she unable to sense one of her former masters? Then again, she was not even able to sense the Force, and that thought caused every other mental synapse to dissolve. Master Greystone stepped into the hallway, and Shalli regained her senses quickly enough to dutifully follow in tow. Passing through enumerable corridors, they arrived at the main garage where the speeders were being stored. Shalli recognized the cavernous room of duracrete. There, along a far wall, the Grand Master was powering up a speeder. "Master m'Ord Vinka," Master Greystone called. The being simply looked up at the two Jedi who were approaching. There was no other form of acknowledgment, and there was no gesture of greeting. The two Jedi continued their march toward the Grand Master. With each step, Shalli slowly felt the Force regaining its presence. Even with this, it felt differently than it had. "Master m'Ord Vinka," the Jedi Master called once again. "Yes," the Grand Master replied flatly. "What a surprise to see you here, Sidian. What brings you Eriadu? I thought your work was out in the Moddell sector." "It is good to see you, as well," Master Greystone politely returned, brushing off the obvious lack of interest. Shalli was confused at this point. Surely, the Grand Master had traveled to Eriadu for a reason. Did he not know that there were two Jedi already working the investigation into Avar Zranik? If not, should she tell? Was it her place to divulge information? At the same time, she sensed that Master Greystone felt in control of the situation. If he was able to handle the Grand Master, it would be better. Remembering the past, the Omwati recalled how the then–Council Member m'Ord Vinka had perpetually chastised her and attempted to block her knighthood with a tirade in the Council chambers. "So," the Grand Master spat. "Why are you on Eriadu?" "My investigation brought me here," Master Greystone replied. "My research crossed paths with some interesting findings on Qina. My presence on Eriadu was warranted to make sure that all the pieces fell into place." "Odd," the Jedi returned while adjusting the controls on the speeder. "I would have never guessed such a connection." "What brings you to Eriadu?" Greystone inquired. "I wish I had known you were coming, I would have been more prepared to greet you." "Bah! Save the pleasantries," the Grand Master spat. "I'm only here to check out the alleged fire before going to Seswenna. I'm hoping to get off this planet within an hour or two." "Why Seswenna?" Shalli blurted without thinking. Both Jedi Masters glanced at Shalli in surprise. She had not spoken to the Grand Master for over three years. Their history was checkered at best, and she understood that he had no love for her. Still, she was curious and thought that Delwynn would approve of her attempting to investigate suspicious activity. "That's not your concern, Omwati," the Grand Master nastily chided. At that, m'Ord Vinka hopped in the speeder faded out of sight toward Eriadu City. As he departed, the Force faded once again. "What was he doing?" Shalli finally asked. "He's going to Seswenna to be with Senator Moonflower," Master Greystone said matter-of-factly. "His thoughts betrayed him. He's so overwhelmed with paranoia that the Jedi are slipping out of his control. He's also trying a—let's just say—'more hands-on approach' to this now. He believes taking charge of the situation will make the politicos on Coruscant give him whatever rights he demands in this case." Shalli was now even more confused. A Grand Master was power-hungry? That did not seem like something that aligned with the Jedi Code. Maybe Master Greystone was mistaken. Maybe he just was concerned about the factions within the Jedi Order. After all, it was clear to everybody that there were two distinct factions: one that embraced development of the light side of the Force thoroughly—even allowing a being to function within its own capacity to love and have compassion; the other group shunned anything that could possibly lead to the dark side and was adamantly against any emotion. Shalli was definitely within the latter camp. That is, she was taught to be of that persuasion. "Now, Shalli," the Jedi Master said with displeasure. "Let's talk about what happened in Eriadu City." Shalli's mind went blank. It was as if a computer had been abruptly unplugged.
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