Upon arriving aboard the ship, I issued the necessary orders. We had to quickly unload some of the heavy equipment and half of the Torrents; otherwise, the new birds simply wouldn't fit on board. While things are being settled, the ARKs arrived, then the bombers—what did the rebels call them? Oh, right, the Y-wing—even though it doesn't really have wings. And then there were the Eta. To be honest, it's a crappy machine—no heavy guns, no deflector shield—but its speed is off the charts. It'll do as an interceptor.
In short, there was a lot of work to be done. It took a couple of hours to distribute everything among the hangars and load spare parts and consumables. After giving the order to enter orbit, I went to look for Ahsoka. She was found in the training hall.
"Training?"
"Yes, Master."
"Where is Master Secura?"
"Master, as soon as we arrived on the ship, she disappeared into her cabin and hasn't come out since. I feel like she's… not well. I tried to talk to her, but nothing worked," the girl spread her arms. "Maybe you'll have better luck?"
"Damn… all right. I'll try to talk to her."
Leaving my padawan to practice, I went to find Aayla. Locating the right cabin, I knocked gently.
"Master Secura?"
"Yes."
"May I come in?"
"Of course."
Entering the room, I found the Twi'lek sitting on the floor in a meditative pose. I sat down silently beside her, paused for a moment, then cleared my throat and began:
"I sense that you are upset. Is there anything I can do to hel—"
But she opened her eyes and somehow angrily replied:
"Did Shaak Ti ask you to talk to me? I don't need your help!"
I was somehow taken aback by her reaction, but then she closed her eyes again and continued, her tone noticeably calmer:
"Forgive me, Knight Vikt. You are not to blame for what happened, but I… I gave in to my emotions. Just for a moment. It's over now."
"I'm telling you—I understand."
"You don't understand…" Aayla said quietly. "My Master… he did so much for me! I should have gone after him, found him, made him see reason! He would have listened to me…"
"And the Council?"
Secura rose abruptly and began pacing back and forth in the confined space of the cabin.
"The Council… the Council strictly forbade me to follow him! 'Your duty as a Jedi is above your personal obligations,'" Ayla mimicked one of the Council members bitterly. "They… they don't understand! Master Vos brought me back to the Light when I stumbled.,, And I must do the same for him!"
Finishing her tirade, she stopped at the far wall, wrapped her arms around herself, and nearly broke down—her lekku were visibly trembling.
Here we go… women. I've never understood you, and I never will. And besides, it's dangerous for the male psyche to try to understand women… All right, jokes aside. Words clearly won't help here. Secura is still on edge and has no intention of calming down—and she needs to be calmed down. So, what now? Think, Jedi, think!
Fortunately, after a couple of seconds, one option came to mind. Weighing the pros and cons, I decided it couldn't make things any worse. With a quiet snort, I stood and stepped toward the Twi'lek, who was still facing away from me. I had one last resort left in my arsenal…
Hugs! Long live hugs!
Well, why not? It had worked a couple of times with Ahsoka, so it should help here too — same principle, after all.
Gently but firmly, I turned her around by the shoulders and pulled her toward me, carefully wrapping one arm around her. With the other, I began to stroke her head and lekku, at the same time sending soothing waves through the Force.
At first, she froze like a statue, her palms pressed against my chest. Then, after a few moments, she suddenly relaxed and clung to me more tightly, burying her forehead in my shoulder. I continued to stroke her, murmuring things like, "Easy… easy… calm down… everything will be fine," and other similar nonsense. The words themselves weren't important—it was the intonation that mattered.
Gradually, she stopped trembling, and her breathing evened out. Reaching out through the Force, I felt her emotional state stabilizing.
All right, then.
Wait—what's this now…?
***
Aayla, stunned by the man's actions, froze in Vikt's embrace. Her first instinct was to pull away, to break free from his arms, but as she unconsciously reached out through the Force, she felt a wave of warmth and care emanating from him. This feeling… she hadn't experienced it in a very long time, and even then it had been only a pale shadow of what she was feeling and sensing now. But… she didn't want to interrupt it; on the contrary, it was all so alluring, so deeply soothing…
Suddenly, her body began to react in a way it never had before. Her heart started to beat faster, heat flushed through her, and her thoughts grew tangled and unfocused… The touch of the Jedi's palms sent pleasant shivers racing down her spine.
What… what's happening to me?
And while her mind struggled to comprehend what was occurring, her body began to act on its own. She pressed herself closer to him; her hands slid up his chest, slowly traced the line of his neck, then wrapped around his head, pulling him nearer. Their lips met in a kiss…
***
Rayo descended the steps of the airspeeder that had brought her straight to her family's doorstep and immediately found herself swept into her father's arms.
"Daughter, I'm so happy to see you!" Graham lifted her up and spun her around. The girl laughed.
"Da-ad, put me down!"
"No way! How long has it been since we last saw each other? Six months? No—more!"
"Graham, put my daughter down!" came a stern voice.
"Yes, sir!" the Pantoran replied jokingly. "Let's go inside!"
At last, Rayo was able to hug her mother.
"Rayo, my dear, I'm so proud of you." Riot Chuchi took her gently by the elbow and led her toward the living room. "You know, most of the Assembly members who used to doubt you are now openly supporting you. Your speech in the Senate caused quite a wave of enthusiasm. But…" She paused, studying her daughter's face. "Are you sure about what you're doing?"
"Absolutely," Rayo nodded. "It was a carefully considered decision, and now I won't back down."
"Well, that's wonderful." Riot smiled softly. "By the way, we're having a dinner party tomorrow. There will be quite a few guests, and I'd like to talk to you about something important…"
"Okay."