Silent.


The nights on Naboo were more quiet and serene than any other place in the galaxy. A cool breeze rolled in gently of the surrounding hills. The same hills were being misted with a light rain from the navy blue skies. Sephia couldn't help, but find herself wandering the open halls of the Temple at some strange hour of the night, every night. She could here the occasional chirp from the peko peko bird s that were probably getting frustrated with wet nests.

Strolling the halls, the Apprentice found herself inside the elaborate gardens. A gentle chill rushed over her as she walked into the symposium. The structure was open, with a massive tree that arched out into the middle, covering the hole like a blanket, the leaves and flowers that decorated the worn bark creating a blanket the almost completely closed the large circular opening, but left enough slivers for a perfect amount of light to escape into the gardens. Right now it was a soft moon light, during the day it was a warming, bright light from the sun.

Sephia sat in an old bench, and leaned back looking at the tree's branches, which at night showed little of it's true beauty. Keeping her mind off her horrible dreams is all she had in mind. The images of death and destruction. They frightened her and despite their reoccurrence she had yet to speak to one of the Masters on it. She tried not to seek council as often as she could, she wanted to discover things by herself. Her mother had always taught her that was best. But truthfully, she was scared to know the truth behind this nightmare.

She hoped it was just what she wanted it to be. Nothing more than a nightmare, something her mind invented as a result of her loneliness as of late. Something she was just imagining.

The Padawan shifted the thoughts in her mind, trying desperately to stop convincing herself what she already knew. Sephia looked through a break between branches and caught a clear glimpse of the sky. She had come to watch as the sun rose, to watch like she used to on Corellia when her father was still alive. Watch as the stars turned from white to blue as the night shifted into day. It was a beautiful sight. Something she hadn't experienced in years.



As she awoke, she saw many Apprentices passing through the gardens. She sat up rubbing her eyes and fixing her ruffled hair. She straightened out her Devotion Beads that had twisted around her neck during her sleep. Sephia shook her head. She had fallen asleep long before she was able to see the sunrise. She was kicking herself over it, but supposed it's the result of trying to stay up and watch it the previous night. Lack of sleep is not what helps one stay up. Sephia was starting to feel the physical repercussions as well. Her eyes felt heavy and showed some wear and her body just felt completely out of sorts.

As she began wandering the halls in the early hours, she began thinking of her dream again. Rubbing her eyes Sephia tried once more to mentally change the subject. It was like she was losing her mind. Never had a dream or a vision or a nightmare or whatever name you wanted to call it bothered Sephia so much. Before she knew it she was standing before her quarters. She tapped the codepad and the door slid open with a gentle hiss.

Looking at her clock, her eyes opened widely. She ran cool water at the sink, splashing it in her face and quickly changing tunics before she was out the door, heading toward the dueling chamber. She was close to being late for her latest sparring match. Sephia hated not being punctual. But lately she was just entirely out of sorts.




There was whispering going on as she and the other student kept going. Neither had yet to be struck by the training sabers, but they both had been very close. Too close for Sephia's comfort. She lightly walked in a back and forth motion as he stood with his blade arched outward and to the right, he was panting heavily. And although she was winded, Sephia tried her best not to look it. 'Dueling is purely mental, if you can show your opponent your better and you can convince yourself of it, you are the victor long before any blow is landed'. The words of Master Dorian were like echoes in Sephia's mind.

She twisted her body, bringing the blade over top herself in a swoop toward his shoulder. He moved quickly and swung inward, but Sephia was able to counter by placing her blade in the way just in time. She parried and he backed away. Still panting, he continued to move.

His blade came in a quick set of thrusts aimed at her torso. She parried each one away and returned with a slash that covered the area where his body once stood. Several sounds came from the crowd of other apprentices. She knew what they were. About her lack of form and of any trace of technique. She had often taken scolding for her lack thereof. Master Dorian had told her time and again, a maverick lightsaber form is a pathway to poor dueling, yet she remained one of the better in her class. Despite her lacking in other areas, Sephia was quite a fine duelist.

He sloppily brought his training saber into an upward thrust, but Sephia saw a flaw in his 'form' and took advantage. She brought her blade across gently and caught him on the side, giving him a nasty jolt. He sighed and the whispers continued as Sephia wiped the bit of sweat that had collected on her forehead with the sleeve of her tunic. She pulled her hair out of it's upward hold and shook her head to let it fall to it's normal place laying just past her shoulders. Several of the students gave the two pointers. Whether they were more experienced or not, Sephia and her opponent listened. She had a habit of combining the styles together and the advice from padawans who used, say Form II as a main style, were able to help her tighten her form.

But as she heard them speak, it felt like her stomach was turning over. A man entered the chamber along with a Bith. Sephia suddenly felt sick. The images from her dream flashed again and again. Master Dorian and the two beings approached. She heard what they said, but it didn't quite sink in at that moment. The words passed through her head as if they weren't said... but they were said. And despite her best efforts Sephia could her them all. The other apprentices looked and saw the confused and distraught look and suddenly the whispered were gone.

Silent.

"Ms. Fatale?" He spoke softly as if something was wrong.

"Uh.. yes." Sephia answered him despite the burning sensation in her stomach.

"We've learned certain mistakes were made during a conflict that ensued between the Galactic Coalition and the Empire."

"What kind of mistakes?"

"It's your mother Sephia." Master Dorian interrupted.

She knew, but she couldn't bring herself to say it.

"She's been killed during her return flight to Commenor."

Dorian's arm brushed her shoulder as he went to comfort her, but she felt the sting in her eyes and backed from his reach.

"And your sure it was my mother? Your sure it was Dialla Fatale?"

She delayed.

"We are positive, the manifests from it's departure on Naboo were discovered a few weeks ago." He replied.

"How could this happen? Why was she shot down?"

"Well.. we are unsure. But we believe that Coalition forces believed her to be aboard a spying or scouting vessel for the Empire."

She digressed.

"Who did it?" She asked.

"We don't know. Only that the Coalition was patrolling those borders at the time. It could be any number of vessels and officers."

Sephia found it hard to control not only her anger, but her pain. She had been to her father's funeral already. She knew the pain of loss. Sephia just couldn't accept that her mother was dead. She didn't want to accept it rather.

It was too much sadness to accept.

It meant being alone. Trully alone.

"Sephia...?" Master Dorian asked softly.

She left. No one stopped her.





An hour of crying had passed and Sephia was watching the sky with the sun still hanging brightly in the sky.

Sephia's face leaned against the warm windows as she could feel the salt dry on her face. Her eyes still bore a bit of redness as she looked at almost entirely transparent reflection in the window.

Her cherry brown hair was matted and messy from the fit she had just thrown.

Normally at this time of day she would have done her Chalactan prayers. But her mother's religion only reminded her of her mother.

A light knock came on the door and Master Dorian entered as the door slide open.

The human male of fifty-something walked over and sat next to her on the ledge of her window.

"My father died when I was a Padawan. He was fighting for a cause he thought was great when he ended up being on the bottom end of an Imperial Walker in some icy hell-like planet." He said gently.

"I ended up leaving the Order to care for my mother who fell sick." He continued. "She.. ah.. she didn't make it another three months. I wasn't sure how to take it. But my master gave me some inspirational words and pushed me to continue when the time was right."

"What did he say?" Sephia asked.

"We all die. It's not a question of how or by who's hand, but a question of how we've led our lives. Your mother raised you the best way she knew and you've turned out to be one of the best students I've ever had Sephia."

She didn't reply. Sephia just continued to look out her window into the courtyard below.

Dorian slipped out.

He was a good Master. Ian Dorian had been a Jedi for almost fourty years now. And by her standards he was one of the most loyal, intelligent, and strong willed people she had known. And of all the people she had known and met in her life, including her mother, he was most like her.

Her dreams made sudden sense. They had been sent to her by the Force. Or by the hand of the Chalactan prayer goddess'.

Either way she had known about her mother's death long before that investigator and Bith ever entered the training Chamber.

Maybe that's why it didn't hurt so much anymore.

Sephia lamented leaving the Jedi Temple. It had been her home for so long it seemed agonising to leave, but she was being called away if only for a short time. The accommodations she was receiving aboard the Elysian were something to be noted as well, much better than anything she ever had at the Temple or needed. They were on their way to the HighCorp Headquarters placed high above a metropolis on Ord Sannis. She was being looked over by the company's interim CEO a Muun calling himself Mr. Gill. He had a very lavish wardrobe to match the luxurious aboard the Elysian she surmised.

He sipped at stim-caf giving her a cold stare, something reminiscent of all businessmen. Mr. Gill had been very elusive upon their first meeting on Theed. He gave few details of himself or anything else for that matter. Sephia was needed to either turn over the company to the Board of Trustees or to resume control. She still hadn't decided which she was going to do. It was her family's company, one her uncle had used to further Sentient Rights, and given jobs to thousands. Mr. Gill kept his eyes affixed to Sephia even as she moved to get a glass of water from a tray to her left in the corner of the Conference room. She swallowed a rather modest gulp, trying to calm her anxiety. Running a corporation would mean giving up her training as a Jedi. That too, was her family's legacy. Master Dorian would be very displeased.

"Have you thought of an answer yet?" Mr. Gill said breaking the silence between them.

"To what?" Sephia asked coyly.

To him he it was just business. The Muun were notorious were their lack of emotion. He probably expected an answer before they even reached Ord Sannis.

"To my proposition. I will take full control of the company after you sell your shares to me for my rather... generous sum..." He spoke mockingly of her as if the decision was already made. He slide a piece of flimsi across the conference table and she took a seat again, reading the offer.

"It.. seems... like enough." She said.

"Enough! It's more than enough!" He chuckled after his outburst.

"This is my Uncle's company, I'm not sure I just want to sell it off." Sephia stated.

Mr. Gill took it quite rough. He placed his cup down on the table, not slamming it, but enough to make the liquid splash over the edge. The Muun businessmen wasn't too happy about her reluctance.

"When you have an answer, call me on my communicator unit." Mr. Gill said briskly as he exited the Conference room.

Sephia looked at the offer again before flinging it back onto the table. Leaning against the stiff chair backing she turned her head toward the luminars in the ceiling. Mr. Gill was probably go out on a limb offering her that amount of credits and offering to bring her to view the company, but she still couldn't be sure of what to do. Either way it was an irreversible decision. Mr. Gill struck her as the person that would sell their mother to make a profit, though. Maybe it meant the company was in good hands or maybe it meant as soon as an offer to buy out came along he would liquidate and put hundreds out of the job to make a quick credit.

Sephia wished she had Iain along to impart some of his wisdom. She held her comm unit in her hand. She stared intently at it trying to decide whether or not to key up Master Dorian's code and place a call to him.

Her finger ran along the edge of the smooth surface.

She decided not to.






"When your Grandfather founded this company it was a small courier service in San City. From there it has grown to encompass..."

K7PO trailed off in Sephia's mind. His impeccable use of basic and calming accent were just to boring to keep her attention as she watch the the twin stars dangle in the sky and the docking of High Corp vessels, commercial ships, and private ships along the multiplex of hangar bays that surrounded the marvelous structure of Prometheus Station. She could see the entire main continent of Ord Sannis. It made the details of HighCorp's history a little less intriguing than Sephia thought they would be.

"Miss Fatale.. Miss Fatale?" K7PO was a bit frustrated by her lack of concentration.

"Yes Kay-seven?" She called.

"Please pay attention." He demanded.

It was of course less of a demand as it was his personality programming. It might have been the quirks like those of K7PO that made droids so inviting and often times too sentient. It made people wonder if droids could actually think on their own. At least it made Sephia curious.

"I'm sorry Kay-seven, the view is just so amazing." She said.

"Why yes it is, Miss. From her we have a clear view of HighCorp's ground office in San City, Mr. Gill has gone to great lengths since your Uncle's death last year to errect a statue in his honour. It was your Uncle's efforts that lead to Ord Sannis becoming such a bustling economy out here on the fringes. Mr. Gill and your Uncle designed much of this station, Mr. Gill's additions are making it the most sophisticated station this side of the galaxy. The new renovations include..."

Sephia stared at the shiny silver coverings of K7PO, looking at her rendered reflection. So much work had gone into this company by her Uncle, but Mr. Gill had been doing a good job of running it temporarily that it made her think he was what was best. What did she know about running a corporation? She was a Jedi Padawan, not a Chief Executive Officer.

"Kay-seven.. how long as Mr. Gill been with HighCorp?" She asked hoping for a short answer.

"Well, before your Uncle took full control he was interim CEO following the death of the oldest of your Grandfather's sons. He helped your Uncle to understand the workings of the company and before that he was..." He babbled further, but Sephia had the answer she was looking for.

He had helped this company since before even her Uncle's ownership. He had more right to becoming full owner than she. Sephia now understood his frustration in the Conference room aboard the Elysian. He had been working for HighCorp probably from it's infancy. The aging Muun had earned control of the company from years of loyalty. She smiled, so it the answer had been quicker than she thought, but it still didn't make her any happier. It still didn't change the fact that it was her family's company. She paused looking at the twin suns over Ord Sannis again. Mr. Gill was what was best for HighCorp. Sephia was out of her element and eager to return to the Jedi Temple.

But then why this burning feeling in her stomach? Why the hesitation?

Maybe it was worth sleeping on she conceded.


If she could actually sleep.