From the perspective of Nizzal.

  We had been speaking with Aomi, for a while. She told me that the cve accepted my master's st request to test me as the grandmaster didate. It was done in the old ways, as tradition dictates, the one who had been chosen for the trial wouldn't be notified about the fact that the trial had begun. This was a tradition that was supposed to prevent any type of influen the didate's decisions. Therefore, a small number of people had been ordered to prepare the ideal enviro for the trials. It was a big event, ohat normally occurred in every few hundred years. As that was the minimum lifespan of a grandmaster. There were times, when finding an ideal subject for the position had stretched over decades or more. Now, the process had hastened, as the seers sensed a big cluster of shatter points looming over the gaxy. An age will end soon, and a new era will begin. It was iable. Few such eras have ended sihe standing of our diminished order, while we watched on from the sides, rarely interfering in any major occe. Our interference usually was to prevent harm to our own order. We were not heroes to willingly take upon the weight of the gaxy. No. That role was already taken. We had long freed ourselves from such distras. It was an endless and futile endeavor anyway.

  It was easier this way, only watg from a distance while isoting ourselves from the cruelty of this world. In solitude with a chosen few, brothers, and sisters in arms, bound by much stroies than blood. Bound by our shared thirst for freedom and the wish to escape the endless cycle of aimless suffering. Yet somehow, suffering always find a way to reach us, to slip through the slightest openings aer into our hearts. There was no force ability powerful enough that could hide us from it forever, nor in the light or in the dark side of the forbsp;

  I looked at Aomi, who was sitting at the same table as me... From her expression alone, I had to realize that she was serious about the news. I sighed and said slowly...

  -I hoped that you were joking in a particurly shitty way... But it seems that you are serious after all. So the seventh line had fallen twelve years ago. That is not the news I wished to hear the moment I met with one of you. Tell me, how did it happen?

  -I didn't know it myself. Until I sensed his presence just a while ago. He appeared through the living force, to warn us of great danger. Although he was uo materialize as an astral body, he was still able to unicate. It was a bit weird, though, his presence, was different than our immortals. It kind of reminded me of those annoying monks... Although, far inferior in power.

  I blinked, shocked by this ued new information.

  -Did he mao train with the monks, and survive?

  -I thought about that too, but I have ain answer.

  -I see... Could you at least tell me how he died? It wasn't because of the monks, right?

  Aomi shook her head immediately denying that assumption, and tinued with a troubled expression. She clearly had some problems with how to properly describe the situation to me.

  -He was a member of our order, but also a legitimate jedi master at the same time. You probably already know this, but he never really, give up on the jedi order. Eve was clear that the order was rotten to the core, he still pyed the part of a master through geions. It was good for us since we could get free information on the level of a jedi master. Yet I also warned him that his passion and stubbornness would endahe archive, ao an early grave. But the man was adamant in his ways. Such a naive fool... Some momentary information was not worth the loss of a plete line of memories. A few years ago I tried to speak with him, only to realize that he was missing. I thought he got bored with the jedi finally, a. You imagine how surprised I was when I heard a disembodied voice ag like him nine years ago, telling me an iing story about the return of the Sith through the force. I didn't believe it at first, so I pnted a new spy in the order to figure it out. It was one of our younger apostles who mao infiltrate the jedi order a few years ago, to serve as a witness for your trial. She also found out about the tragid of our shared friend. The story was matg with the ohat ghost told me. Oh, his current name was Qui-Gon Jinn, by the way. A Sith named Maul killed him in saber bat. In the end he died more like a jedi, than one of our members. That guy was a weirdo even among us, and that is quite something to achieve.

  -I should have known, that the Sith had a hand in it.

  -Yes, it e decided to gift a few upgraded guard droids to the Zygerrian Queen and tried to assassinate one of them. Unfortunately, we only mao wound him, but at least we did it in a way, that they thought it was the queen's order to kill him. Resulting in an internal battle between them. We also destroyed most of the evidehat you were ever present in the pace by deleting every captured video file from the pace security system. It was but an attempt to slow dowrag until we mao leave the p.

  -Why don't we just leave right away?

  -Because, dear Nizzy, the Separatist blockade around the p kind of blocks our way? You know? Hehe... okay, that was not that funny...

  I rolled my eyes at that.

  -What?

  -Please tinue. ~I sat upright, giving her my full attention. - What Separatist blockade are you talking about?

  -Oh well, could you say please, big sister Basti?

  -No.

  -... What a killjoy. Anyway, the ohat had beeed around the p sihe moment an all-out battle began in the pace. The Queen died, and the Zygerrian hink that it is the beginning of a Separatist invasion. Currently there are hundreds of thousands of fighter ships of various sizes that are engaging the separatist fleet, at the outer and imospheric levels. You say whatever you want about the Zygerians, but they are not the type who surrender in front of superior forces. Oh, and the various crime syndicates that had been io the queen's gaxy-wide sve au. Each syndicate had a private army, basically. They are all trying to flee and therefore they are fighting on the side of the Zygerians. It is plete chaos.

  -In other words, an all-out war between the zygerians and the separatists began around us. Thats... Fug great!

  -Yeah, I know!

  -What the heeeell you say!? What will we do now?!

  -Rex, girl... Big sis here has everything under trol. I have prepared a cool hideout. We will go there and simply wait until the storm passes, just like always, then we will slip away. The Separatists 't spare that many ships to hold a full scale, p-wide blockade in the middle of a gactic civil war, not for long.

  -Well... sigh. That's alright, I guess... ~I looked aside for a sed as I thought a bit... There seemed to be er solution. This fanoyed me for some reason.

  -op pouting please. I could eat you whht now, you are just too cute.

  I looked up at the smirking woman... Was I really pouting this much? I didn't even realize, or she could simply say it to get under my skin... I slightly shook my head to clear my mind from useless thoughts. I o foow.

  - you tell me, what happeo that Sith? Darth Maul, was it?

  -Yes, he was killed, by Jinn's Jedi apprentice, a guy named Obi-Wan Kenobi. You should know him by now, as I heard in the reports.

  -... No way... That annoying guy killed a Darth? So... that was why the Jedi cil chose him to be my master while I stayed there... The man robably the only one in the whole order that actually killed or even fought with a true Darth. Heh... They thought if there is someohen it will be he who will be able to kill me or judge me objectively, even when I looked like an i child. He lost his own master because of a darkside user. That deep scar would certainly make him a good person for the job. Now, I am kind of curious, what will he say, if he realizes that I am an old friend of his master. Of course, we didn't really see eye-to eye, especially because he was unwilling to cut his es with the Jedi, and for that reason he always missed out on the order's meetings. Still, that bastard was family, and he didn't deserve this fate...

  There was series of hasty steps heading towards our dire. Both of us looked towards the door that was leading to the corridor where the two jedi left. I was expeg Ahsoka to burst into the room even ahan before... Anakin was ly known for his calming presence, so I wouldn't be surprised to find his attempts to ask for fiveness resulting in the exact opposite effebsp;

  Therefore, I was very surprised in the moment when the pressure doors parted, to see a different but familiar girl standing in the doorframe. She was fuming like a charging bull that saw red. I followed her with my gaze as she walked into the room. My eyes were stuck to her fa disbelief, as the iig bck hair put in a high pony tail appeared. I jolted out of my stupor as I stated a name hesitantly.

  -Is... is that you, Rika? What are you doing here?

  The bck haired girl suddenly froze iep, and turowards me. There was clear reition in her eyes.

  -Revan?... No it's Nizzal... What are you doing here... already... ~ Her fagrily focused on Aomi, who was sittio me right now... When did she e over to my side... She was sitting opposite of me just now. Was I that distracted. I o do something about this dangerous endenine.

  -You! You promised me that you would call me over before we picked her up!

  -Oh did I? It must have slipped my mind. Sorry about that, it happens to the best of us after all.

  -Stop mog me! You are my elder, but I still don't have to swallow all your insults! Also, why did you send two damo my room! I had enough of them i six years! That is nht... I was happy to meet with Ahoska. She is my best friend... Master Anakin is also a good jedi... Just shut up already, you weakling. You 't even hold a memorylih feions of memories... How would you know what is a good jedi or what isn't... Sniffles sadly... Now you took it too far master, you hurt her feelings again. Sometimes you act like a plete jerk. I am a Sith Lord you idiot; why wouldn't I act like that? You are nothing else but a SHIT Lord in my eyes when you make Rika cry like that. What did you call me? I am doh you, bastard. I am revoking your apprenticeship right now. Oooohh, I am so scared, it almost paio say that you missed your ce with a few hundred years. Would you two idiots finally finish your childish argument and lend back the trol to our host?

  I watched this mysterious phenomenon in plete shock. Rika, was arguing with herself aloud, and there were four pretty different personalities giween themselves. Each time a different attitude a different demeanor and body nguage took over her body when they spoke. When all of them finally shut up, the girl simply crumbled to the ground and began to cry silently.

  The deep sadness and sense of shame from her presence had the effects parable to a powerful sp to my face. It immediately awakened me from my dreamy state.

  I stood up, and ruo the girl. I kneeled dowo her and patted her back awkwardly... I also turowards Aomi, who at st chose to wear a serious expression...

  -What the hell was that?

  I asked her quite angrily.

  -Well... how should I put this... You know, our order was quite small in the beginning. And even in our best times, the apostles never grew bigger in han one hundred. We are far from that number now... You should know the reason for that, right?

  -Yes, I know... With each geion, of memories ied, it will be harder to find a patible host to properly and willingly store the archive. That is why we created a few dozens of different life-elongating teiques...

  -Yes, but times have ged... Back then, there were hundreds of times the number of force sensitives in the gaxy. Now, the numbers are scarce, and most of them were cimed by the jedi years before we could find them. This is why we had to infiltrate the jedi order at the highest of ranks, to access and slightly modify the information on patible force-sensitive children whenever we wished. The problem was that, we didn't know of the Seventh Apostole's passing, until we needed a new host. When we realized what had happened, it was already too te. So, we used a host to i the archive, ohat was not chosen by the force. That is the result... It is not as bad as it looks, really.

  -The other memories she holds only get out of hand when she is depressed or a bit uhe weather, just like now...

  - That was incredibly stupid of you... She could have died as a result... It is a miracle that she is actually alive, and not pletely mad... Also, you have seo the jedi order, in this state? Are you crazy?

  -No, I am not... We don't really have members that are children, normally. So we didn't have the luxury of being picky, and she wao help. I also said, that it was not as bad as it looked; the others were clearly making a show for you purposefully...

  -This is crazy... It is the force, that chooses the bearer. It should never be taken into our own hands... The sequences could be pletely unforseen...

  -Oh, stop rambling about that, we will heal her eventually. The Order never leaves behind their members after all. She will be all right. Am I right? Rika? This much time should be enough to clear your mind.

  -... Ye-yes... I am better now... Thank you, Re-.. Master Nizzal... I am sorry that you have to witness me in su unsightly manner...

  -... By the way... I will ask this now, since I am not sure that my nerves would be able to handle another surprise like that... Is there anyone of our order that I have already met and didn't know what he or she is?

  At that very moment another familiar voice appeared in the room just behind me.

  -Oh yes, that would be me!

  That voice... please, I must be wrong... it 't be? I slowly looked towards the dire of the cheery boyish voice. When I finally turned around, my fear had proven right. There was a mirian boy, sitting on a chair, in one of the shadowy ers of the room. He was clothed in ceremonial gray jedi clothes. Which meant that it was mostly normal jedi clothes in gray color instead of brown and beige. We never used them except in official meetings.

  -I sighed... is that really you, Eqomu?

  -Of course! I slipped away just to dress more appropriately for our official meeting. It is what good etiquette and mannerism dictates after all.

  I felt as the blood drained from my face... This 't be... I think that I had been traumatized from the etiquette csses... possibly for life...

  -Ugh... Just put me out of misery... ~ I said, quite depressed.

  -What? React more appropriately... A pupil is a mirror of his or her teacher after all. Don't bring shame on my name...

  -Hihi... ~At least Rika cheered up a bit at my sudden depression.

  Meanwhile, Aomi smirked in the background, clearly amused by the present turn of events. Then she said.

  -Now, get a hold of yourself, kids. It's about time to reach our hiding spot, and we will have to work together to set up our camp. Nizzy, pick up your jedi friends from whatever they are doing and bring them to the bridge. I don't want any nasty surprises this time, we don't really have a pn B. Now chop-chop!