Star Wars_ I, Jedi - Michael A. Stackpole [218]
“There you are, Corran.” Luke smiled as he came up onto the roof. “Your wife’s right, brown is better for your hair.”
I raked my fingers back through it. “Yeah. Gonna let it grow out a bit, too. Can’t decide on the goatee and moustache, though.”
“I’d get rid of it.” Luke shrugged and joined me at the wall. “I had been hoping to see you over the past couple of days.”
“Sorry, Mirax and I were … checking out the Pulsar Skate and making sure it was prepped for the trip back to Coruscant.” I pointed vaguely off toward the starport. “We can give you a ride back, if you want.”
“No. You’ll want time alone—or more time alone—and Elegos has learned of the Alderaanian ritual of leaving grave goods in the Graveyard. Ooryl and I are going to head to Kerilt, pick up Elegos’ daughter, Releqy, and take them to where they can leave things for Ylenic It’kla.”
I nodded. “I’ll have to make that trip, too, at some point. Leave something for Ylenic in my grandfather’s name.”
“I think that would please both of them.” The Jedi Master glanced up at the stars. “After that I think I’d like to help Rogue Squadron find the Invidious and end Tavira’s career.”
I shrugged. “Without the Jensaarai she’ll just be another proto-warlord running around out there. Someone will get her—New Republic probably. Maybe she’ll anger Pellaeon and he’ll do us a favor by taking her toy away from her.”
“That would be convenient, certainly.” Luke fell silent, for a moment, then rested his hands on the top of the restraining wall. “There’s something important I need to discuss with you.”
“Me, too.” I gave him a smile. I’d spent a fair amount of time thinking about my life and my father’s “man in the mirror” saying. I actually did recognize myself, which was good, but it forced some hard choices. I shrugged. “I’m not going to go back to the academy. I’m not going to be a Jedi full time.”
“Interesting.”
I arched an eyebrow at him. “Interesting?”
“Yes. I was going to ask you not to return to the academy.”
My mouth gaped open in shock for a second. “I wasn’t that disruptive, was I?”
The Jedi Master shook his head. “Not at all. You see, you had training all your life that directed you toward a goal that I’m trying to train my recruits for. You have a grounding that means learning to use the Jedi techniques and tools just adds another layer to you. It provides you with more things to do, things you already are well trained to do. On the way here you pointed out that Nejaa often went about as a regular man, solving problems and only using his Jedi abilities when needed—precisely because he had the other skills needed to do these jobs and didn’t have to rely upon his Jedi skills.”
I smiled as I unraveled what he meant. When the only tool you have is a hydrospanner, every problem looks like something that needs to be torqued. “I think I get what you’re saying.”
“I’d expect that of a detective.” Luke laughed lightly. “You figured out Exar Kun had to be behind Gantoris’ death and the trouble on Yavin 4 because you were a trained investigator. I missed all the evidence you saw, or didn’t want to believe it because I didn’t see how it fit together. That ‘fitting together’ training is some of what the new Jedi will need. The regimen that gets created to provide it won’t give you anything.”
“You could well be right.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “So why is it that you won’t be coming back?”
I shifted my shoulders uneasily. “It kind of gets back to what you said about Nejaa, and to part of what I did to Tavira to get her out of here. The place where I can do the greatest good right now, I think, is with Rogue Squadron. Look at you, you’re always being called away to solve some galaxy-threatening