Character Breakup.

Star: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Emperor Palpatine, Yoda, C-3PO, Padme Amidala, CT-5294/Jez and Creinna Ellwood

Dana: Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu, Bail Organa, R2-D2, Dexter Jettster, Breha Organa, Hermione Bagwa, Qui-Gon Jinn, Whie Malreaux, RC-8736/ Juker, CT-3368/4551/ Tann, Si Ulix and Ulu Ulix

Chapter 9

Coruscant never truly slept; even at night, the city was bustling. An orange glow lit up the skyline as the sun set, the air traffic lanes a constant presence, vehicles moving back and forth ceaselessly.

Ulu stood by the window in the diner, watching the sunset. He wore the clothes of a civilian now, some rough street teen, hardly the look of the Jedi Padawan he'd been.

Si came up behind him, almost hesitantly. He didn't know what to do now. He hadn't ever thought he'd see Ulu again… now he was here, in the same room. Older by more than ten years, yes, but still his boy.

But how to tell him.

He cleared his throat to announce his presence, didn't know if Ulu could detect his presence. "Lovely sunset tonight…"

Ulu nodded. "Yes."

Si took a measured breath. "So… how did the Jedi discover you, then?" He was testing the waters, hadn't spoken much to Ulu yet. Even when introduced, he hadn't mentioned his last name.

Ulu was quiet for a moment. "I was born on Kinyen, I was told… I don't know much about my family, though. Most Jedi don't." He paused. "We're not supposed to have attachments."

Si nodded. It was a familiar line to him. "Your– your master?"

"Glynn-Beti." Ulu swallowed hard, it hurt to say her name, to know she was gone.

"Ulu…" Si paused again, placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. The deep breath before the plunge. "How much do you know about your family?"

Ulu frowned, clearly puzzled as to why the subject was being pursued. "Not much… I don't even know if they're still alive."

Si felt a pang, recalling his late wife. "Your mother… she died not long after you were born… If it weren't for you… I might have followed her." Grans mated for life and if one spouse died, it wasn't uncommon for the other to succumb from grief soon after.

Ulu whirled suddenly, three eyes clearly showing his startlement. "How…?"

Si's next words were quiet, almost pleading. He didn't know how else to say it. "Ulu, I am your father."

Ulu froze, stared. Si released his son, the boy staggering back, shaking his head wordlessly. Without a word, Ulu hurried from the room, nearly running right into Dex, who'd heard the entire exchange. The Besalisk followed Ulu with his eyes before looking back to Si, whose expression was full of pain. The elder Gran slowly looked up, withdrawing a small holographic projector from his pocket, the same one he'd grabbed before leaving his apartment so hastily days before.

He switched it on, revealing an image of three Gran: Si, his wife and Ulu, still an infant.

Dex watched in silence, waited. Si took a deep breath, finally acknowledged the Besalisk. "If I don't… make it out of this mess for whatever reason… Can you give this to him?"

He held out the projector and Dex carefully took it in his hand, nodded. "Thank you," Si said quietly.

-88-

CSF Headquarters, Coruscant

"Sir, the security holograms from the Temple have been examined. We've found the identity of the Gran aiding the Jedi." The trooper pulled up a hologram freeze-frame for his commander, the subject's face captured perfectly. "Si Ulix, a mechanic from Kinyen. CSF also impounded an abandoned speeder registered to him in CoCo Town, near Dexter's Diner. It matches the description of the speeder they used in the escape, sir."

The commander nodded. "Send a squad over there and see what you can find out."

"Yes, sir."

-88-

"I didn't think- I mean- I don't know." Ulu stared at the ground, hugging his knees, his three brows furrowed. "How can this be possible?"

Whie spoke up. "I felt the same way when I went to Vjun... It was my home, but it wasn't, at the same time. And my mother..." He put a hand on Ulu's shoulder. "You never know what to expect when you find your family."

"Shouldn't you be happy?" Creinna asked. "With all that's happened, it should be nice to finally have a chance to know your father."

"It's just..." Ulu shook his head. "This is all happening at once, too fast. I just don't know what to think."

Juker and Tann approached quietly. Thanks to Hermione, Tann's hair was now bright red, while Juker had decided to grow a beard to disguise his features better. "Ad'ike," Juker said, kneeling beside the Padawans, "Family is what you make it. It can be people you're related to by blood, or people you take in to your heart. No other complications required. Eniki?"

Creinna looked down at the floor. She missed her master, the man who had become to be like a father to her. While she knew that she needed to think about the present, she wished that he had been able to escape with her. Things would seem simplier if he were here with her. No, Creinna told herself, you became too attached to him, attachment is forbidden, you need to let go and move on. He's dead. He sacrificed himself so that you could survive.

"You Jedi... you may not believe in attachment or whatever," Tann said, as if reading Creinna's thoughts, "but face it, you're as much a family to each other as you're going to get." He indicated himself and Juker. "Us clones, we grew up in training pods with our brothers. And you Padawans... you were all trained together. That makes you like siblings, in a way, doesn't it?"

"Yes, in a way." Creinna looked up at Tann. "My Master was like a father to me before he was killed."

"There you go, then," Tann nodded. "I never understood this 'no attachments' stuff, myself. It's the nature of almost any being to gravitate towards others." He nodded to Ulu. "Your people, the Gran - they need to be among others, or they'll die of loneliness, more often than not. And humans have a similar 'herd instinct' going. We need each other. Simple as that. What good would we get from denying something that's been ingrained in us from the beginning?"

Creinna was not sure how to reply to that. The no attachment rule was ingrained into every Jedi's head, even if she found it difficult where her master was concerned. She just stared at Tann, uncertain.

Juker put a hand on Tann's shoulder. "Take it easy, Tann. Don't keep running over them with your lectures."

Dex glanced at them from where he was cleaning up the kitchen area. Then he saw movement out front from the corner of his eye. A large CSF vehicle had landed out front, and several troopers were getting out.

The troopers approached the diner. "Heat sensors tell at least six beings are in there, maybe more."

"Break down the door." The commander ordered.

"Sir?"

"We have reason to suspect they're harboring fugitives, trooper. Just do it."

"Yes, sir!"

As the door burst open, Creinna reacted out of pure instant. In less than a second her lightsaber was in her hand. One of the clones fired but she jumped forward, deflecting the blaster shot right back at him.

Juker and Tann leaped up, drawing their blasters. The diner quickly became a maze of crossfire, all the combatants diving for some sort of cover as stray bolts ricocheted wildly.

"Everyone to me!" Dex roared, drawing a gun from behind the counter, that, to Si's untrained eyes, resembled a small laser cannon.

Creinna moved back towards Dex, deflecting blaster fire at the clones as she went.

"Get them out the back way!" Dex called to Juker and Tann, who nodded and began all but pushing the Padawans towards the rear of the diner, while Dex, Si, and Hermione kept firing at the troopers. "You too, Hermione!" Dex ordered. The pretty waitress's eyes widened, but she nodded, hurrying after the clones, her own blaster still held ready.

With her lightsaber still ignited, Creinna turned back to look at the diner before hurrying along with the others.

"Let's go!" Si shouted as the others made it out. He and Dex turned to follow them. But just as Si reached the back door, a bolt caught him in the shoulder, and he fell.

Ulu stumbled, whipping his head around. "No!"

Tann caught his arm. "Keep moving, kid!"

"No!" He saw Dex behind them, only Dex, no sign of Si. "Let go, we've got to go back!"

Creinna turned as well, pausing in her step. "We need to save him."

She had left her master behind only a few days ago. How could she feel right just walking away? Not if someone else had to be left behind.

"Keep moving!" Juker snapped at them. Going back was a deathtrap. "It's you they want, Jedi!" He met Ulu's eyes, saw the desperation in them. "I will knock you out and carry you out of here if I have to. We can't go back. Now move!"

-88-

They kept running, finding their way down into the levels of the undercity, where light barely reached, before they stopped, sinking to the filthy ground.

"All right," Juker said. "We'll find a place to stay down here... refugees and outlaws use this area all the time. We're just a few more faces in the crowd. No one asks any questions down here. No one wants to know."

Creinna sank down to the ground, fighting against the emotions that kept battling against her attempts to release them to the force. Another person who had been left behind. First her master, and now Si, who had found her when she had been alone and had no place to go. She respected him, and all she had been able to do was walk away.

Juker turned his eyes to Ulu. "Ad'ika. I'm sorry," he said. "No one wanted this to happen."

"He's not dead." Ulu's voice was hollow, but held a faint trace of hope. He looked at Juker. "He's hurt, but he's not dead."

Juker paused, meeting everyone's eyes. "Then we'll find a way to save him."

Translations:

Ad'ike= Mando'a for "kids"

Eniki = Huttese for "understand?"