Star Wars, page 23
“Oh! Why, Master Lox. I brought your breakfast, sir. Will you not eat in your quarters?”
“I will, thank you. Have you seen my Padawan, Amadeo Azzazzo?”
“No, sir. My dormitory logs tell me that he left the Jedi Temple last night. He has not yet returned.” The droid turned into his room to set down the tray. “Is there anything else I can help you with, sir?”
“No, thank you.”
Mirro stood in the hallway after the droid departed. Amadeo went out and never came back? That wasn’t like his Padawan. Any time they were on a mission, he was never very far away. He had seldom expressed an urge to explore. But Mirro remembered how Amadeo’s face had lit up at the sight of Coruscant. He had no idea that this place would unsettle his Padawan—or intrigue him, dangerously so.
Mirro pushed himself to eat some breakfast, though he had no hunger, before reporting to a larger meeting room with several Jedi Masters. There were plenty of welcomes and back claps, as Mirro had not seen so many of the Jedi in a decade. But there was a sad tone to the reunion. Several Jedi had died on Starlight Beacon. Regald Coll. Wayseeker Jedi Orla Jareni. A Padawan, Burryaga, was missing and presumed dead. So many more were either dead or missing in action.
And it was there that he heard, without a doubt, that Jedi Master Stellan Gios had died when he’d steered the irreparably broken upper portion of Starlight as it fell to Eiram, barely missing the city of Barraza, saving millions on the planet. Mirro and Stellan had bunked together many a time when they were young. It was a shock, no matter how many years he’d been able to temper and understand his emotions as a Jedi Master. Mirro took a moment alone to process it all.
Stellan, his old friend.
Gone.
A hand touched his shoulder. He turned to see Maia Tsoo, a look of concern on her face.
“I’m sorry, Mirro. It’s a lot to take in.”
“It is, but I’m not the only one dealing with such loss and so much change.”
She nodded sadly. They began walking to the front of the room together. “So, how is your Padawan? Did he get a chance to explore the Jedi Temple?” She looked over her shoulder. “I don’t see him here.”
“I . . .” Mirro didn’t want to say he feared his Padawan had fled the grounds hours earlier and might be inebriated and facedown somewhere in the undercity. The fact that such a vision had entered his mind troubled Mirro. Have you no faith in your Padawan? Be reasonable. He smiled back at Master Tsoo. “When I see him, I’ll ask him. He’s probably catching up on some rest.”
An attendant to Master Tsoo summoned her, and she went to the front of the assembly, calling for everyone’s attention.
“Thank you all for being here and answering our call for help. I wish it were under better circumstances. We have been holding many briefings on what we know about the Occlusion Zone. Information is constantly updating. We welcome questions at the end of our presentation, and your assignments will be distributed at the end of the meeting. Please be seated.”
The seat next to Mirro stayed empty throughout the meeting.
After it had ended, more hours went by. Mirro visited the meditation chambers and the Kyber Arch. But soon he found himself in one of the upper meeting chambers that was vacated. Master Tsoo had given him and Amadeo their assignment. They were to leave in a few hours. And Mirro had not told anyone that his Padawan was missing. It was midafternoon, and the clouds were hazy over the cityscape. Amadeo had heard Master Tsoo tell them that they could be dispatched that day. It was unlikely Amadeo had forgotten the urgency of their time there.
Mirro closed his eyes and reached out to the Force. He tried to sense his Padawan, to see if he could detect fear or anything that might give him a sense that Amadeo was in danger. But he sensed no absolute absence, as if Amadeo had been killed. Instead, it felt almost like a void, like a pause in the universe where Amadeo was concerned. As if Amadeo were deciding something and existed in a gray zone of indecision.
What if he’d lost his Padawan to the sights and sounds and excitement of Coruscant? Groundquakes and pirates and thieves and scoundrels in the Outer Rim had worried him less than this. But he trusted that he had taught Amadeo well and his Padawan had learned much.
Mirro took a deep breath.
“Wherever you are, Amadeo, I am with you. As is the Force,” he said.
Their ship would leave shortly. It was time to go.
Outside the Jedi Temple, far down the walkway, the ship he and Amadeo had arrived in was undergoing a safety check by Republic engineers. Mirro asked the Temple Guards if they’d seen Amadeo reenter. The answer was no. The next step would be to cancel his mission and go searching for Amadeo, but something told him not to, to trust in the Force that Amadeo would make the decision that was necessary for him. Being a Jedi wasn’t for everyone, and not every Padawan became a Knight. Not every youngling became a Padawan. Some served the Jedi Order in other ways, within the Temple or at various outposts; some left the Order completely.
Mirro went into his ship to make sure all was well. They had the supplies they needed. The ship was in perfect shape. He walked into the cockpit for a final check and yelled in surprise.
“Amadeo!”
His Padawan was asleep in the copilot chair. His clothes were rumpled, his wavy hair was frizzed and flattened on one side, and a small bruise bloomed high on his left cheek. The unmistakable odor of spirits arose from his clothing. Amadeo awoke with a start, his eyes slightly puffy and his gaze disoriented for a moment. Until he saw Mirro.
“Master Lox!” Amadeo pulled himself forward, his hands on the console.
“Where have you been? Are you all right?”
Amadeo smiled. A somewhat glorious sight to his master, who took in the rumpled state of his Padawan. “I’m fine. A little tired. I’m sorry, Master. I should have contacted you a while ago. I tried to send a message to the Jedi Temple, but I think the messenger wasn’t terribly trustworthy.” He combed his fingers through his hair, making it stand on end and giving him the appearance of someone who’d gotten an electric shock. “I went out last night because I couldn’t sleep. I wanted to see Coruscant a little, and well—I made a friend.” He smiled sheepishly.
“A friend?” Mirro said, raising an eyebrow.
“I met a lot of people. They live such a different life than we do. It was fascinating. Apparently, I was fascinating to them. And then, when it was time to return—well. . .we returned to the undercity, and Alees got in some trouble because she apparently forgot to pay the bill at a club. . . .”
He went to a club? Mirro tried not to let his surprise show on his face.
“And so I helped her out, but it turned into a fight, and someone spilled Corellian wine all over me, and we were running—”
“A fight?” Now Mirro was combing his fingers through his hair, trying not to pace.
“In defense only. Alees is fine. She sometimes spends time with people who aren’t exactly trustworthy. In any case, I only just got back.”
“And what did you think of Coruscant?” Mirro asked.
A slow grin spread across Amadeo’s face. “It’s exciting. Like an endless maze of things that can be discovered. So many different people, doing different things. But also. . .superficial in a lot of ways. Unsettled. Unfocused and unsure of itself.”
“Do you mean the people, or Coruscant?”
“Both. Both trying to be so many things, to so many people. There are so many ways to ground people—roots and anchors. Through money or relationships. Or ambition or places. I think I was searching for this connection in people or a place, and I realized . . .” Amadeo’s voice trailed off, and he stared out the viewport into the vast cityscape.
“Yes?” Mirro asked.
“The Force is my anchor. It’s my roots. It’s my connection to everyone, and everything.” He grinned. “Coruscant has been amazing, but frankly, it’s kind of exhausting.”
“What else happened?” Mirro asked. He sensed that his Padawan was holding back something.
Amadeo appeared to be hiding a smile. “Not much.” He straightened up. “So. What’s our mission?”
Mirro sat down beside him. He explained the meeting that Amadeo had missed, and his Padawan took it in with the gravity it warranted. After a long while, Amadeo nodded.
“Very well. I’m ready, Master.”
“Good. But first,” Mirro said, leaning closer, “one last thing.”
“I know, Master. The Force is with me. And I’m with you, to fight the Nihil, to keep people safe, and to defeat this nameless threat against the Jedi.”
Mirro nodded. If his Padawan could fight this nameless terror and this vicious threat in the galaxy, then Mirro would rise to join him in the fight. They would do this together. The Force was with them, no matter what.
Mirro held up a finger. “Right, but you were gone so long, and—”
“You don’t have to doubt me. There are countless ways to live a life, but this is the only one that has ever felt true to who I am and what I know to be right.”
“But what I was going to say was. . .what you really need is—”
“Yes, Master?” Amadeo leaned in, eyes serious.
“A shower. And a change of clothes. You smell like perfume and a vat of Corellian wine.” He winked.
Amadeo blushed slightly under his tanned cheeks. He stood up to leave the ship. “Yes, Master. And this time, I promise I’ll be right back.”
ZORAIDA CóRDOVA
Zoraida Córdova is the acclaimed author of more than two dozen novels and short stories, including the Brooklyn Brujas series, Star Wars: The High Republic: Convergence, and The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina. Zoraida was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and calls New York City home. When she’s not working, she’s roaming the world in search of magical stories. For more information, visit her at www.zoraidacordova.com.
TESSA GRATTON
Tessa Gratton is genderfluid and hangry. She’s also the author of adult and YA SFF novels and short stories that have been translated into twenty-two languages. Her most recent novels are the dark queer fairy tales Strange Grace and Night Shine and the queer Shakespearean retelling Lady Hotspur. Her current work includes the YA fantasy Chaos and Flame (2023; with Justina Ireland) and novels in the Star Wars: The High Republic series. Though she has lived all over the world, she currently resides at the edge of the Kansas prairie with her wife. She/any.
CLAUDIA GRAY
Claudia Gray is the pseudonym of Amy Vincent. She is the writer of multiple young adult novels, including the Evernight series, the Firebird trilogy, and the Constellation trilogy. In addition, she’s written several Star Wars novels, such as Lost Stars and Bloodline. Her debut adult historical mystery, The Murder of Mr. Wickham, was released in May 2022. She makes her home in New Orleans with her husband, Paul, and assorted small dogs.
JUSTINA IRELAND
Justina Ireland is the author of Dread Nation, a New York Times best seller and YALSA 2019 Best Fiction for Young Adults Top Ten selection. Her other books for children and teens include Deathless Divide, Vengeance Bound, Promise of Shadows, Ophie’s Ghosts, Rust in the Root, and five Star Wars novels. She lives with her husband, kid, dog, and cats in Maryland. You can visit her online at www.justinaireland.com.
LYDIA KANG
Lydia Kang is an internal medicine physician and author of the novel Star Wars: The High Republic: Cataclysm and the story “Right-Hand Man,” in the anthology From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back. Her historical fiction includes Opium and Absinthe, A Beautiful Poison, The Impossible Girl, and The Half-Life of Ruby Fielding. She is also the coauthor of Quackery: A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything. A native of Baltimore, Lydia now lives in Nebraska with her family and very codependent dogs.
GEORGE MANN
George Mann is a Sunday Times best-selling novelist, comics writer, and screenwriter. He’s the creator of the Wychwood supernatural mystery series, as well as the popular Newbury & Hobbes and the Ghost series. He’s written comics, novels, and audio dramas for properties such as Star Wars, Doctor Who, Sherlock Holmes, Dragon Age, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Dark Souls. George lives near Grantham, England, with his wife, children, and two noisy dogs. He loves mythology and folklore, Kate Bush, and chocolate. He is constantly surrounded by tottering piles of comics and books.
DANIEL JOSÉ OLDER
Daniel José Older, a lead story architect for Star Wars: The High Republic, is the New York Times best-selling author of the young adult urban fantasy series Outlaw Saints, the sci-fi adventure Flood City, and the monthly comic series Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures. His other books include the historical fantasy series Dactyl Hill Squad, The Book of Lost Saints, the Bone Street Rumba urban fantasy series, Star Wars: Last Shot, and the young adult series the Shadowshaper Cypher, including Shadowshaper, which was named one of the best fantasy books of all time by TIME magazine and one of Esquire’s 80 Books Every Person Should Read. He won the International Latino Book Award and has been nominated for the Kirkus Prize, the World Fantasy Award, the Andre Norton Award, the Locus Award, and the Mythopoeic Award. You can find out more at www.danieljoseolder.net.
CAVAN SCOTT
Cavan Scott is the creator of Shadow Service, The Ward, Dead Seas, and Sleep Terrors, and is the New York Times best-selling author of Star Wars: The High Republic: The Rising Storm, Star Wars: Dooku: Jedi Lost, and Sherlock Holmes: The Patchwork Devil. A lead story architect for Star Wars: The High Republic, Cavan has written comics for Marvel, DC Comics, Dark Horse, IDW, Legendary, 2000AD, and more. He is currently developing several new properties for television and film, and is creative director of Strange Matter, the production company he founded with fellow Star Wars writer George Mann in 2019.
CHARLES SOULE
Charles Soule is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of the novel Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi, as well as a comics author who has written some of the most prominent stories of the past decade for Marvel, DC, and Lucasfilm, in addition to his own work, such as Eight Billion Genies and Undiscovered Country for Image Comics and his original novels, The Oracle Year, Anyone, and The Endless Vessel.
Zoraida Córdova, Star Wars
