Private Just Flew In from Transcendent Atrial and Boy Are My Arms Tired

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

GREEN DEVIL BAR
CORELLIA,

the kind of place where older blue-collar guys with real faded Corellian Bloodstripes blended in. Three or four of'em had worked a run on the Gossamer or a Levantine Sanctum ship or a Kathol rig the back in the day. Jorus clapped a few shoulders, bought a few old hands' drinks, as he slow-motion pinballed his way to the bar. He'd been their captain once upon a time. It was the least he could do.

He took a barstool and ground the heel of his palm into that spot above his right knee that always ached on Corellia. "Julius," he said to Julius Sedaire , as if he'd been here yesterday instead of...Pomojema's nuts, how long now? "Gimme the cheapest lum you've got and a shot of Whyren's. Not the reserve though. Survey game's not what it used to be."

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Theme

For a moment, Julius just stood there, eyeing Jorus like a three-headed wampa with an extra toe. It had been years, if not a decade or more. He turned around to the middle pillar behind the bar. Behind it were pictures taped and tacked all over. More than a few of them featured a much younger version of himself and Jorus, and a few had Coren Starchaser in the mix. The three of them had had rocket fuel for blood and the stars in their eyes back them. There was even one of a watchful older Jorus showing his daughter Tessa how to do something arcane looking to a starship engine.

Lost in memory, he turned around with a genuine smile and presented the man with a bottle of reserve and the house lum, which most said was excellent.

"Distilling and smuggling has been good. You know you drink free with me. And since I own the place, we don't have to sneak out a back window this time."

Drawing in a breath he did something he knew Jorus would hate, but he loved doing, as he raised his voice with the bark and bite of a commander of soldiers.

"Alright you lot. We got Jorus Merrill here, cut the weak osik out. Whyren's on the house, and toast the captain!!!"

Almost as one, as shots were passed out, and most in the house lifted the glass in their direction and downed the whiskey. I mean, what's the use of owning the Galaxy's best whiskey distillery if you couldn't abuse the privilege on occasion?

Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Jorus bit back some halfhearted grumbling about not being anyone's charity case. A dumb instinct anyway. He'd made and given up billions a long, long, long time ago. If not for a certain incident some decades back he'd be, what, pushing a century?

He took their attention, their respect, with as good a grace as he could manage while drowning in memory. Met a few eyes, returned some nods, tried to keep discomfort off his face, turned back to the bar.

"Nice place you've got. Just realized some of the familiar faces in here looked that way because I knew their grandparents." He uncorked the bottle and sloshed a bit into the lum. "Got'em killed too, some of'em. I tell you, Julius, I do not miss war. Last time I fired a shot in anger I was just scaring off pirates on the Nagai Trade Spine, and even that's been a while. Most days I don't even carry a piece."

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Theme

The Green Jedi nodded, and looked down wistfully. His own belt still held two lightsabers and a bryar pistol in a drop-leg. He had tried giving up war. But it never seemed to take. As he shifted to wipe the bar a bit, he tossed the rag over the beskar pauldron of his wife on his left shoulder, nodding. Taking a moment to answer his old and perhaps only true friend besides Coren.

"We both saw our share. You were made for the open black, you and Coren. I was the damn fool off on crusades, always dragging you two along it feels. But you aren't a bad man Jorus. May not be a good one in a few books, but... You're a man, and one I admire, for what it's worth."

Snapping the towel off his shoulder, he wiped a water ring off the counter as a wookie trundled off, racking the glasses into a sink. Then for a moment he stood still, and words tumbled out unintended, unburdening himself with something no one yet had been formally told. In a gesture of affection his late wife had told him was Mandalorian, he tapped the pauldron he wore.

"Keira's gone. Official like. Or near as we'll ever know. She went off chasing glory and a proper life for a Mandalorian and never came back. I've even made nice with this New Jedi order, teaching them to fight Mandalorians. We're old, Jorus. And the years weigh. But we live. And persist. And in my case, I know I'll die with a saber in my hand harassing some overlord or opressor. You? You'll probably die trying to duct-tape and spray-glue a leaky fuel core on some jerry rigged ship. It's just what we are. But for what it's worth, I'm better for having known you. And it's good to see you..."

Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

"Keira's gone? Feth. Feth, I'm sorry." Truth be told he'd never known Julius' wife well, but theirs had been a long and meaningful relationship, by all accounts. And rare for being that long: Mandalorian warriors didn't tend to grow old. She'd gone wandering more than once, if memory served, gone missing too. If she was finally well and done, that had been coming for a while.

He didn't say any of that. Wasn't anything Julius didn't already know, and rubbing salt in the wound never helped anyone.

"Glad you two got as much time as you did," he said at last, and meant it. "Glad you've found some good to do, a place to make some bit of difference. Say what you will about the Alliance's Jedi, and I sure have, but the Core's been relatively at peace and stable, most of it, for a long time now, far as I've heard There's worse things than being some supporting part of keeping that safe."

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Theme

Pulling from under the bar, he slid Jorus a shot from a milk-glass bottle covered in silvery whorls and patterns. Absinthe Aing-Tii on it's who knows how many batch. The bottle had changed, but as he lit the Arkanian sugar cubes with a flick of the aurodium lighter he carried, he smiled, raising the flaming concoction and saluted Jorus with the drink. A thousand other things could be said in this moment. His affection for the man in front of him was known to any who knew the two, and he had told Jorus it more than once, in plain terms and his own way. Restating it wasn't his way, and serious conversation was rare. But a toast, with that misty and far-away look in his eyes... That was a very Julius thing to do. As were the words.

"To old friends and old men. May we grow ever younger as we age!"

Snuffing the blue-green flame with a puff of air, he downed the anise flavored drink and sighed.

"Now... To what do I owe the pleasure? Did my daughter blow up something of yours that will require a second mortgage on this place?"

Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Jorus matched the toast with the glass of lum which was, it turned out, as good as he remembered.

"I don't hit up Corellia as often as I should, but I do drop by here, or try to, any time I'm planetside. Truth be told it's a family reunion. I'm old enough to have descendants now, bud. There's a whack of cousins, there's Rave's side, now there's Mara's kids having kids of their own, a bit...I don't think I'll ever get used to any of it, not a bit. I was alone for a long, long time, or it was always just me and Rave when we were kids, then just me and Mara and Alna - I'm not used to being part of something big. And extended family politics makes me fucking nostalgic for the Jedi Council, which I thought nothing could ever, ever make me be."

 

[Julius Sedaire]

"Try having your in-laws be Mandalorian. A fist fight is expected at almost every reunion. Oofta but the right hook Keira's "auntie" or whoever that was has dislocated my jaw... And then, trying to teac these kids how to fight.. They want to stand straight legged and wave a 'saber like a landing baton for a docking bay. It's... It's bloody criminal!"

Suddenly he cracked a smile, and side-eyed his captain and friend.

"Force! We've done it! We're grumpy old men! Finally!"

Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Coren Starchaser]

That was the thing about the galaxy and a being's place in it. It constantly changed. It flowed like a great sea, a river, the currents of solar winds. Born on Corellia, and one of the most vocal sons of the world, it had been a surprising while since Coren had made it home. And an even longer time since he made it to Green Devil. The Sentinel of Sullust had traded his war dog days for his exploration routes again.

A haunt for spacers and Bloodstripes alike, Green Devil was not just a good place to return to, but was THE place to return when home, if he wasn't visiting the Starchaser Estate outside Tyrena, by the Golden Beaches.

Rumor had placed two very troublesome beings at the bar today, and while he was a Wayseeker more interested in wayfinding, he had to keep the peace whenever he was able. And that was when he saw them, stepping through the door, was the two old men at the bar. Wearing a poncho that gave the air of a Warden Cloak, old and out of a stock from a potentially defunct company, it covered basic spacer garb, a mix of electronic gear from the Levantines for exploration, and a few mystic items, a Jedi compass and the like.

"I thought that if I heard there was a disturbance, it'd be you two."

Jorus Q. Merrill Julius Sedaire

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

"Force! We've done it! We're grumpy old men! Finally!"

Jorus Q. Merrill

"Hey, some of us have been grumpy old men since the fifties!" Jorus sloshed a little more Reserve in his lum. "At heart, anyway-"

Wearing a poncho that gave the air of a Warden Cloak, old and out of a stock from a potentially defunct company, it covered basic spacer garb, a mix of electronic gear from the Levantines for exploration, and a few mystic items, a Jedi compass and the like.

"I thought that if I heard there was a disturbance, it'd be you two."

Jorus Q. Merrill Julius Sedaire

"Coren! Hell yes. This can't be a coincidence - which one of you's getting prophetical?"

The lum and Whyren's were doing their job. Jorus felt downright effusive. He shoved out the next bar stool over to give the Starchaser patriarch a place to sit. In fact he went in for a back-clapping kind of hug and attempted to pickpocket that compass in the process. Never mind that he hadn't picked a pocket since before just about everyone in this bar was born.

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Laughing a true laugh like he hadn't in ages, Julius leaned over and eyed the other old timer, and split a grin as he spoke.

"He's on the house, but you're double, we know your kind, Mr. Starchaser."

Sliding a glass, he indicated the growing collection of bottles between himself and Jorus, and nodded.

"Besides, you have no plausible evidence I've caused any trouble lately. I'm a perfectly legitimate businessman running a legitimate business."

He snorted, trying and failing to school his face to straightness as the mood of Jorus and the booze hit him both hard in the heart.

Jorus Q. Merrill | Coren Starchaser

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Wayseeker had approached and gave a laugh when he was greeted by Jorus and Julius. Sitting down he did feel the attempt for the compass but thought nothing of it. This was one that would bring him back to the world of Tanalorr from Corellia. Something he shouldn't let get into the wrong hands, but those hands were not here. He nudged the compass away ever so slightly with the Force.

Adjusting the cloak as he sat, it was clear that there was his lightsaber, a weathered, almost green oxidation of the silver metal, set aside the blue paint, chipped and worn, was obvious. His other hip hosted his Power-9 blaster.

"Yeah, you do run a extra fee here, don't know why I still frequent this bar!" Coren laughed as he tossed a few credit chips on table. No words spoken, it was going to by Whyren's. And with the family holdings of shield technology and navigation equipment, probably second to Silk, he could spring for the Reserve.

The trick was, have a fast ship to out run creditors.

Jorus Q. Merrill Julius Sedaire

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

The Jedi compass vanished, not particularly surreptitiously.

"And here's to legitimate business. Feth, I'm glad the three of us found our feet. Way we grew up, pretty much all the marketable skills we had boiled down to different ways to shoot things or carve them up. But you've got a bar, you've got nav tech, I've got Baobab - none of which have a damn thing to do with it. Baobab was my escape, I guess. Or my way to do something, be something, I could feel good about. I liked running the Wretched Hive, and Silk in its day, I surely did...but I was sure putting out a lot of weapons in a lot of directions. Baobab, it's just long haul nav, just maps, first contact when the right job comes up. Legitimate business. Something I can feel better about than I ever did about the whole..." He waved a vague circle, an aimless gesture encompassing the whole... "...Jedi thing. My hat's off to you two for making it work for you and the men you wanted to be."


Coren Starchaser Julius Sedaire

 

[Julius Sedaire]

A grunt. The man he wanted to be eh? That was a change. Suppose at the end of the day, he was happy where he was. But it certainly wasn't where he had wanted to be.

"Never wanted to be a warrior. I always wanted kids, and a family. But every time I stepped out, something dragged me back in. Not that it took much. I planned on being a proper father figure at one time. But you know what? Wouldn't trade it for the world. Without the wars and insanity, I'd never have met you lot. And that's worth being shot a few times, eh?"

Jorus Q. Merrill | Coren Starchaser

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Now it was a bit interesting if Jorus was going to take the compass, and he was to do anything, Coren had the faith that his long time friend and mentor would be helping his causes. Coren may be without an Order but he still was a part of that Order. Mostly. He was leaning Warden and other fringe groups, the point where he probably should just be "Force Master" instead of Jedi, but… well, titles.

"I mean I've been working on my River project lately. Kaia's been holding down the salvage business and helping navigate the Chaos of the Unknown Regions." He took a sip from his drink as he looked at Jorus. Silk had put out a lot of weapons, so did the Wretched Hive. Not that it was a problem then but maybe even Coren was being a bit more reminiscent.

Shields and engines, exploration ships and racers, that was what he was working on selling now. And protective equipment.

"Its why Starchaser Enterprises, after the Sullust Alliance war ended, focused on shields, and the tools for the upstart explorer and treasure seeker." The Sentinel of Sullust nodded and gave his attention to Julius. "The wars did have a way to do that, but seeing that my kids were safe, it was the least I could do. And then when I married Celeste, it made it even easier to step away… But it wouldn't have put us all together."

But boy did he miss the excitement. Maybe he should try to find the remnants of the Levantine Free Space. Could they reinvigorate that?

Julius Sedaire Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Julius Sedaire Coren Starchaser

"Shames me some, y'know," Jorus admitted - he was fiddling with the compass now, forgetting to keep it out of sight - "that you two're still working on things that keep...well, it's wars. How do I put this. How do I...look, Julius, here you are teaching Jedi to fight Mandos and you're well and truly ready to go out taking on some Sith; and Coren, here you are still maintaining your River Network to move Jedi around the parts of the galaxy where they're not safe, not even close to safe; and here I am at family reunions and hawking star maps from a kiosk in Zoronhed. I don't have the stomach for the blood and thunder and gun running and arms manufacture and guerrilla warfare...but I still wish I was doing something to help. The wars don't end just because I want'em to."

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Gripping and releasing his hand, Julius listened to Jorus admonish himself as the din of battle echoed in memory. Corellia. Socorro. Coruscant. A hundred hundred more. For a moment his eyes went glassy, before they snapped back.

"You're the linchpin. You might not ever take credit for it out of us. But you showed us how to live loud, how to take a stand. For that, you can take your admonishments and shove it. You're a good man, Jorus Q. Merrill. And the Galaxy owes you as much or more than either Coren or myself."

It was true, even if Jorus wouldn't admit it.

"Besides, you got Tessa to settle down a bit and hold a steady job turning a wrench and out from my bar. That's a miracle! And if you want more? Well we ain't dead yet!"

Jorus Q. Merrill | Coren Starchaser

 

[Coren Starchaser]

"No shame anywhere. We fought wars, we all did things that we aren't proud of now, but felt was necessary then." The flashback of magma cells is what really got Coren's mind feeling guilt. But the rest of the war? It was fought against Sith, to keep them away from those who couldn't defend themselves. And the he made his way into the Outer Rim and kept the peace there. It was a long cry from his early days in the Sanctum.

"We all have our roles we played. And yeah, like Julius is saying, half of this wouldn't have started if we hadn't all met."

Another sip of his drink, looking to Julius.

"And you got Kaia out there, well Mara did. That girl felt lost for years before her and that little paddie pack."

Julius Sedaire Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Coren Starchaser Julius Sedaire

"Those two did land on their feet, didn't they. Kaia running the family business - I've heard her mentioned in a corner or three of the Unknowns." Jorus grinned and made his eyebrows dance a bit. "Bigger rep than her daddy in a couple sectors I could name. And Tessa - she landed with CEC a while back, right? Always did good work for me. Good grease monkey, perilously close to an HR nightmare. The number of ways that kid could find trouble..."

It all got him thinking of Mara and the lives she'd led, the lives she'd taken back in the day. Hard things to forget with all this talk of Mandalorians. She'd gone on crusade as a kid after the Ilum Enclave massacre. That was far in the rearview, but never far enough. And of course, thinking about Mara's past crimes was so entangled with Jorus' own guilt. Things he'd done, as Coren said, that they'd thought necessary at the time.

Best to move on.

"Reminds me, got something here."

He slid wobblingly off the stool and rooted around in his knapsack. He came up with a bracer, a piece of forearm armor, and thunked it on the bartop.

"Present for you, Julius - sorry, Coren. It's pure kyberite, no tech or nothing. Force blast hits it, bounces right off. There was this...I was screwing around on Ringo Vinda, right? Turns out, ages and ages ago, some droid pirates from Bestoon came at Darth Vader, and some of'em were equipped with these concave kyberite shields, size of a dinner plate. Mara got her hands on the wreck of one and put it up against some shit Sith and, yeah, the blasts and the lightning and all bounces right off like I said. Some got turned into this, I guess it's armor design from where she lives, from Kilia. Pure kyberite does it naturally if you smith it right, I guess. More your territory than mine, figured you'd dig it."

Jorus was a bit of a rambly drunk. He had long known this about himself.

Spoiler

From Darth Vader 2020 #36