Star Wars_ I, Jedi - Michael A. Stackpole [76]
I walked over and rested my hands on his shoulders. “You did all you could do. You know that. Here, with this academy, you are helping erase the legacy your father left behind. What you are doing is good and vital, but you can’t let your need for reassurance blind you to what’s going on here, right now. Kyp is out of control and under the influence of someone that is steeped in the dark side. You have to talk to him and straighten him out.”
I felt a wave of peace flow down over Luke. “You’ve now reasoned your way to a conclusion I made before your confrontation with him. Kyp is still in a state of turmoil. I think he would see intervention right now as a confrontation, don’t you?”
I nodded. “Let him sort his head out himself? He’s a smart kid, it could definitely work. If I can be of any help …”
“Just don’t provoke him.”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry for interfering, Master Skywalker. I’ll gladly leave him alone. With his ally he’s out of my weight class anyway.” I smiled carefully. “I don’t pick fights where I know I’ll get pounded.”
Luke returned my smile. “Unless there is a good reason.”
“Right, and I can’t think of one that will be good enough to deal with Kyp any time soon.”
In retrospect, there were billions of reasons to confront Kyp and risk getting my head handed to me. Luke was the Jedi Master and he asked me to step away, so I did because I agreed with his plans. Even now I wish I’d tried to do something, but all the scenarios I worked out in my head turned out just as bloody as the real thing did.
Short of murdering Kyp, I could have changed nothing.
And by murdering him, I would have irrevocably changed myself for the worst.
I returned to a meal that we completed in relative silence. What comments were offered were light, often of pleasant remembrances of childhood days. I noticed that Master Skywalker and Mara Jade remained quiet during those exchanges, as did Brakiss and I. The food itself was actually pretty good, though no one seemed to notice. And no matter how small the portions, no one seemed to finish what they had taken.
After cleaning up I retreated to my room, and heard Mara eventually go to hers. I was having trouble getting to sleep and almost strolled over to talk with her, but the way she’d politely shut me out earlier gave me a clue that I would just be courting rejection. I clearly didn’t need that, so I remained in my room, mentally reviewing and rehearsing the various moves I’d learned in using the lightsaber.
At some point the shrill bleating of an R2 unit penetrated my meditations. It took me a second to realize it wasn’t Whistler. I grabbed my lightsaber and went running out of the Great Temple, trailing two silhouettes that had to be Master Skywalker and Mara Jade. As I came out into the cool night air, I saw Mara Jade’s Z-95 Headhunter streaking away into the starry sky.
“He stole my ship!” Anger poured off Mara Jade in waves. “We’ve got to go after him.”
Luke shook his head. “We cannot.”
“What do you mean?”
I cleared my voice. “We don’t have any ships here.”
Mara’s jaw dropped. “No ships. No X-wings? You two without X-wings?”
“This is a school for Jedi, not pilots.” Luke’s face closed up as the other apprentices began to filter out of the Great Temple. “Kyp is gone. I don’t know if he will be back or not. I hope so.”
“Me, too.” Mara slowly ground a fist in the palm of her opposite hand. “Steal my ship, will he?”
Luke fixed her with a hard stare. “Mara, please, calm yourself. You’re not helping the situation. I’ve got to deal with my apprentices and explain this to them. After I see to them …”
The anger pulsating out from Mara lessened, but I had the feeling she’d just shielded its output. “Go, Luke. I understand.”
Master Skywalker walked back toward the Great Temple and never gave me a glance. I watched him go, but felt no inclination to follow. I didn’t know what he was going to tell everyone else, but I was fairly certain I already knew more than he would share with them. Being there and questioning his motives and thinking would have been as disruptive