Prologue

     Wind whistled as the rain splattered in the fading night sky. No stars were seen, all covered by the clouds. Suddenly people started leaving. Quietly, even quieter than usual. As if they didn't want to be seen.
     A seven year old boy, his twin sister, and older brother were playing in their home. Seth and Armaeda were running around chasing Nayk. They were both smaller, and even while working together, they couldn't catch him.
     "That's not fair! You're ten and we're only seven and you think we can catch you?" Armaeda, or Mae, squealed while plopping herself onto the ground.
     "It's a game," Nayk sighed, waiting for her to get up. Then he glanced over at Seth who was standing by the window. "Seth?" he called out. He didn't answer, just staring out of the window.
     Nayk began walking over to him. Seth looked over his shoulder calmly a moment before he approached, as if he had already seen him coming before. "Look," he whispered, turning his clear blue gaze back outside. Two cloaked figures were roaming around, checking people's houses.
     "Well, I hope they don't come here." Nayk looked uneasy.
     Seth, on the other hand, almost wished they would come. "I don't know, Nayk. They feel kind of friendly. As if they want to protect us."
     Mae, who had just been listening, laughed. "You think everyone is friendly," she crowed. When Seth's face turned beet red, both she and Nayk laughed.
     Then came the first explosion and swarm of people. Well, they weren't people, but some weird robot like things. They all seemed to be looking at the two cloaked figures. Then they took out their guns. At the same moment, the two figures took out some small metal thing. But then light shot out, blue and green. "Whoa, they are Jedi!" Seth exclaimed, eying the lightsabers enviously. "I want to be a Jedi," he breathed.
     Then he turned to his brother and sister, who had said a word. Mae looked frightened, and Nayk seemed to be comforting her. Seth felt strange. As if his life was about to change forever, but not necessarily in a bad way.
     The door burst open on his thoughts. One of the Jedi strode in. "Come," he commanded. "If you don't leave, you will be killed."
     Nayk and Mae just stared in shock at him. Seth thought fast. Then he ran upstairs. "Mum! Dad! Come down! Hurry!" he called. They must have heard the urgency in his voice because they rushed downstairs immediately. "Come on!" he pressed, then ran back to the room with the Jedi and his siblings.
     "What happened?" his mother asked.
     "You must come with me," the Jedi said.
     Seth's father looked uncertain. "Why should we listen to you?"
     In less than a second, the Jedi pulled out his lightsaber. "Because I am a Jedi and I am trying to save this village."
     That seemed to do the trick. "Alright," they said simultaneously. Although they tried not to show it, Seth could tell they were afraid of what was going to happen next.
     Another Jedi just rushed in. "Three of you must come with me." They were taking too long to decide who, and so he just took Seth's mother, father, and sister.
     Seth and Nayk glanced at each other. Then they were ushered out by the first Jedi.

In only a few seconds, Seth was soaked. And tired. Suddenly he saw something crash onto the ground before him. He swerved to the side just before it hit him, a smile growing on his face. It faded away when the Jedi stopped and stared at him.
     "How did you know that was coming?" he asked.
     Seth was confused. "I...saw..it?" he replied, blinking water from his eyelashes.
     "Huh. Well let's go. The ship is near by. I want you two to go in and hide."
     Seth and Nayk nodded and ran in the direction where the Jedi pointed. Then they were stopped at the entrance of the ship. More of those robots guarded the entrance. In the middle, a large man dressed in long black robes stood. "Who are you two?"
     Seth stepped closer to Nayk, afraid. "I'll distract them," his brother spoke softly, "while you sneak on board."
     "But-"
     "Go!"
     Seth nodded and pretended to run away, afraid. Then he crept to the side of the ship. He faintly heard his brother talking to them. Then he saw the man advance on Nayk. Please be safe, he begged in his mind, Then he climbed up the ramp and went and hid behind a box inside.
     All Seth could see from behind the box was lights flying around. The area cleared up. "No!" he couldn't stop himself from screaming when all that was left was his brother's still body on the ground.
     "What was that?" a robot said to the other robot, looking around.
     Seth quickly shrank back and went further in the ship, looking for somewhere to hide. If I don't hide soon enough, then Nayk's death would have been for nothing. He controlled the urge to cry and to run back out.
     The inside of the ship was chaos. The lights were flying in opposite directions. He just had to figure out which side was the side the Jedi was on. He couldn't go in now, so he decided to stay in one corner of the room.
      He waited there even after everyone was gone, and all was silent, afraid of what he might find when he came out. Shivering, he sat there, until a hand was placed on his shoulder. He whipped his head around, then relaxed when he saw the Jedi.
     "Are you alright?' his kind voice came. Seth nodded, realizing everything was alright now. Everything except for Nayk. "I saw what happened," he said.
     "About Nayk?" The Jedi nodded.
     "I'm Paedon," the Jedi said, stretching out his hand. "Who are you?"
     "S-Seth," he stuttered.
     Paedon nodded, acknowledging his response. Then he said, "Follow me," and turned away.
     Seth followed him, then stopped with his eyes wide open. Nayk's body lay there. "I brought him inside."  Seth fell to his knees at the sight of his brother. He was dead, and Seth would never see him again. Never play with him again.
     Paedon didn't give him much time to grieve. "Seth, do you want to be a Jedi?" Suddenly Seth's sorrow clashed with new feelings of absurd excitement.
     "Of course!" he said, looking up at Paedon hopefully.
     "A Jedi starts his training at about your age." Paedon paused, looking at Seth's face. "And you obviously have Jedi reflexes."
     "So I can train?" Seth asked excitedly.
     Paedon looked smug. "I suppose." Then his face turned sorrowful. "My mentor, the other Jedi with me, died battling the man who just killed your brother. So if the Council grants me the rank of Jedi knight, I can train you."
     Seth remembered that Mae and his parents were with him. "What happened to-"
     "I don't know," Paedon said, looking away. "And let's leave it at that."


Seth followed Paedon, his hand on his lightsaber, ready for an attack. Thirteen years old, he'd been training for six years - and was a brilliant fighter. He'd been told that no other Jedi has matched his speed in a fight.
     Seth was proud.
     Now they were going to go to a volcano - Mt. Fura. He was slightly nervous, since they were setting out to kill Darth Heouss, a Sith Lord. Seth had eventually learned that it was a Sith Lord, Darth Swatar, who had killed Nayk all those years ago. And that Sith were often Jedi who betrayed. I'll never betray the Jedi and the Republic, Seth thought to himself. No matter what.