Ask Ajan Kloss Reunion

[Kalen Novak]

Ajan Kloss​

It had been nearly two years since Kalen and his Master had left on assignment without Larana. Master Ris had given various answers as to why she wasn't brought along but Kalen had always suspected it had to do with the fact that she had been much further along in her training and needed less attention. So Kalen had been dragged from one crime-ridden outer rim to the next, continuing his training in secret. As time passed, the awkward adolescent was being replaced by a confident Jedi.

He had been excited and nervous when he was told they were returning to the Jedi Temple. While away, they had no communication with the Jedi except for brief, coded progress reports that were sent every couple of months by Master Ris.

Kalen had found himself pacing as their ship exited hyperspace above the Jedi Planet. He had tried communicating with Larana when they had started to make their way back home but she had not replied. He hadn't been too surprised by that, still unsure what she had been told when they had left.

Knowing he would be worthless, Master Ris dismissed him to go find her when they landed. She had always been one for disappearing, but he had always been able to find her and headed out to do just that.

 

[Larana Basai]

It had been two years since they’d left her – two whole years spent wondering where they’d gone or whether they’d even return. It did not matter how many times she asked, there were no answers; not even a single communication from either of them. Both Kalen and Master Ris had vanished, leaving Larana behind as if she’d never mattered in the first place. Deep down she knew that it wasn’t true, but there had been so much bitterness in the beginning, she’d almost become entrapped in it.

It started to feel normal after some time, though she wasn’t entirely certain that anything nor anyone would be able to fill the burning hole in her chest, though many had tried. Kalen had been her companion from the moment she’d been brought into the Jedi Order and no one, it seemed, quite understood her in the ways that he had. Perhaps no one ever would.

Larana sighed, hugging a knee to her chest, her other leg dangled freely over the cliff edge. On the horizon, birds danced against the warm sunset and a strong breeze rustled the tops of the trees, their canopies stretched as far as her eyes could see. It as a sight she’d never tire of, though she spent many hours hiding out here to avoid Master Oros’ painful lectures. He had been the latest to take on the impossible task of training her; a stern and bitter old man who was no more prepared than the handful of other’s who’d given up on her.

A shift in the Force alerted her to someone’s approach, drawing her attention away from the horizon. For a brief moment, she thought it felt familiar, but then it faded and she frowned. This particular presence felt far too confident to be Kalen; she would have known if he had returned. Larana didn’t even feel the need anymore to turn and check that it wasn’t him. No, instead she spoke in a dismissive tone, assuming it was one of her temporary Master’s other students coming to fetch her.

“I already told Master Oros that I was done for today. It’s late and I want to be left alone.” Larana rested her chin on her knee and her leg tighter to her chest to calm her frustration. It wasn’t worth getting worked up over. She was certain she’d overcome these feelings months ago, but perhaps she’d been wrong to assume that she had.

 

[Kalen Novak]

He had checked several of the closer places she had frequented around the Jedi Temple but had no luck in finding her. Reaching out with the Force, he was drawn away from the Jedi Temple and towards a cliff overlooking a large jungle valley with a river winding through it. It didn't surprise him that she would be there, it had been a place where both of them had used to think, sulk, or just get away in general.

He moved silently through the jungle as he approached the clearing but no effort to hide his presence in the Force from her. He stood at the edge of the clearing, Larana's back turned towards him. She obviously wasn't in a great mood, and Kalen wasn't sure if it was about to get worse or better. He stood silently for a moment, watching as the breeze tossed her hair slightly before reaching out with the Force and taking ahold of a tiny pebble and flicking it towards her. It wouldn't hit her hard. It had been a game they had played as children once they had learned the basics of telekinesis.

He stood wearing traditional Jedi clothing for the first time in what had felt like an eternity, while they had been away they had spent most of their time concealing the fact they were Jedi. His newly crafted double-bladed lightsaber clipped on his side and blaster rested in a holster on his hip. When he had left, he hadn't even known how to fire a blaster, so much had changed in the last two years but he couldn't help but feel like things hadn't changed at all now that he was back here with her.

 

[Larana Basai]

The uninvited presence did not move but stood in silence behind her; it only frustrated her more than whoever it was elected not to respond to her very clear request. It often felt as though no one truly cared about what she wanted anyway, constantly tossing her about from mentor to mentor – perhaps it had made her a bit rancorous over the years. For this reason, she decided it best to hold her tongue, ignoring the newcomer.

Larana kept her attention focused on the warm horizon, thoughts drifting back to a time when she held a burning desire to explore every inch of this planet, a dream that had died out when Kalen had disappeared. She decided that, if she stared long enough, her guest might tire of her blatant rejection and retreat to the temple, but they didn’t.

A small pebble hit the back of her arm, breaking her focus. Now ready to absolutely lose it, Larana spun abruptly to reiterate her previous request, thought probably not in the most patient of tones. “It wasn’t a requ-“ her words were cut short, the wind knocked out of her chest as her eyes came to rest on the familiar, yet now seemingly unfamiliar face.

Larana felt her heart sink into her stomach and, though she’d sat here almost every evening for the past two years, the ledge felt as though it might crumble beneath her. There was a brief moment of silence, her eyes wide in disbelief though tears welled in the corners, threatening to roll down her cheeks.

“Kalen..” was all she could whisper, heart racing in her chest and color drained from her previously rosy cheeks, as though she’d seen a ghost.

 

[Kalen Novak]

He had often wondered what she had been told, or if she had been told anything when they had left. He hadn't been told much, expected to do as he had been told. Kalen had always been better at that than Larana had been. He could sense now that whatever she had been told, she had been hurting. A part of him wavered slightly watered slightly around their edges.

He took the wave of emotions in the chest, bracing himself against the impact before giving the woman a slight smile. "Its really good to see you, Larana." he said. Maybe she didn't feel the same way, maybe she hated him. The thought gnawed at the back parts of his mind.

"Can I sit?" he asked, taking a step forward. If she didn't stop him, he would walk to the edge of the cliff and slowly lower himself down beside her. He looked over the edge, feet dangling over the hundred-foot drop below. He was silent for a moment before letting out a breath and leaning back on his hands behind him. "This view never gets old." he said.

 

[Larana Basai]

There was a sensation of free falling, as butterflies swarmed her stomach, but she wouldn’t bring herself to embrace him; there was still bitterness, though not necessarily directed at him. It was the expectation that she’d accept the circumstances, move on without asking questions, pick up as if he’d never existed. It was the two long years spent dealing with her emotions without any direction from her superiors and, though she had anticipated the worst, here he was standing in front of her like it’d never happened at all.

Of course, it was hard to ignore the fact that he wasn’t the same skinny, not entirely confident in himself, Padawan as when he had left. He was different now, his shoulders held back as though he were ready to take on the world and that surprised her. Two years had felt like an eternity and, perhaps it had been for him to have changed so drastically.

“I didn’t know if you’d ever come back..” Her emotions pulled back and forth – excitement, anger, sadness all fought for her attention, but Larana couldn’t settle on one.

She hesitated behind him, only moving to find her place next to him after he’d sat down, though she kept a distance, unsure of his feelings. Had he entirely forgotten about her in his absence? Was it too much to expect that things would return to normal? These questions created a pit in her stomach.

“I don’t know how anyone could tire of it.” She pulled her knee back into her chest, refocusing her attention on the horizon to keep from staring at him awkwardly in disbelief.

 

[Kalen Novak]

He had grown so used to reading those around him, he had to actively stop himself from reaching out and touching her mind with the Force. Even with restraint, there was no stopping the ebb and flow of emotions flowing around them. It sent chills running up his spine.

"I..." he finally spoke after she had. "...I argued with Master Ris nearly constantly about why you had been left here," he said. In fact, the night they had left was the first time he had yelled at the woman. At first, he couldn't understand why, and in the usual Master Ris fashion, she offered no explanation. Now, he understood somewhat better why they had been separated. They had been pretty much inseparable since they had been brought to the Jedi Order. They had leaned on one another constantly throughout their training, sometimes to the point of over-reliance. They were a great team, but both of them needed to learn to be Jedi in their own right. It was not an easy answer to come to but their rarely are easy answers when it came to the Force.

"I remember two kids who couldn't wait to get off this planet any chance they could get." he said with a smile returning to his lips. "See the stars, explore the galaxy." he continued wistfully. "All the while ignoring what was right in front of them." he finished. He had longed for home, longed for this for so long.

"I've missed you." he finally admitted after a silent pause. He felt vulnerable admitting it. There was no denying the fact she was angry, likely angry at him. He wouldn't blame her for it.

Forcing past it he tried to steer the conversation back to less serious waters. "Get into any good trouble lately?" he asked, grinning as he looked over at her.

 

[Larana Basai]

Her mind wandered back to memories of the past, of their adventures and unrealistic expectations of what the future would hold – a smile pulled her lips. There was a time that she would have walked blind into almost any situation, if it gave her an excuse to move beyond the protective walls of the Jedi Temple; she was more reserved now, but there was still a small fire that burned inside of her, a lingering desire to see the galaxy, but it’s flame wasn’t nearly as bright as it had once been. Without Kalen it had felt as though it were only a matter of time before that flame were snuffed out entirely, perhaps his presence would reignite it, but for now she was contented just to sit here with him.

“I’ve missed you.” His confession melted the last of the bitterness she’d held onto and, turning to look at him, the color returned to her cheeks, now warm with a hint of embarrassment. Larana smiled again and moved to close some of the distance she’d created between them. In truth, she had missed him so deeply that, at times, it had created an internal conflict that couldn’t be defeated.

“I thought I’d go mad if you never returned. I wondered if you’d grown tired of me, of ‘us.” She admitted in response, shaking her head at the thought of how ridiculous her fears sounded out loud, no matter how real they might have been. Larana was almost thankful when he redirected their conversation, thought his question made her frown slightly.

“No, I haven’t. Master Oros is…” she paused, considering the words cruel and unfair, but he hadn’t been unrealistic in his expectations of her, she’d only been impatient with them. “He isn't as forgiving of my wandering off as Master Ris had been and his punishments are for more effective than climbing stairs.”

 

[Kalen Novak]

He huffed out a breath as she voiced a concern that he had chosen to leave. "And let you get rid of me that easily." He said leaning over to nudge her shoulder with his. "Not a chance." He said warmly.

Kalen smiled as she moved closer, some of the tension clearing for air.

He continued to listen as she spoke of this new Jedi she had been training with. He assumed she would have been learning under another Master when they had been assigned off planet for so long. "I'm certain there isn't a Jedi Master alive that could keep you completely out of trouble." He said fondly.

He was about to suggest that they go one of those adventures that would inevitably land them in trouble when his communicator buzzed in his pocket. He scowled. "Not even an hour…" he mumbled when he pulled out the device, and a small holographic image of Master Ris appeared above the device

"Kalen, you are being given another assignment. Bring Larana as well, since I know you have already found her. Make sure she packs belongings for an extended assignment." She said before cutting off the transmission, not waiting for a reply. Kalen had long grown used to quirk and tucked the device back into his pocket.

He looked over at Larana. "As you can see, she is her usual cheerful self." He said, moving to push himself up. "Shall we go see what this is about?" He said offering her a hand up.

 

[Larana Basai]

The pit in her stomach grew as Kalen reached for his communicator, but she tried to hide the pain in her expression by looking away. Not even an hour had passed and he was already being called away; the idea of it was comparable to a blaster bolt in the chest and she had to take a deep breath to keep from trembling. It wouldn’t be easy to mourn his loss a second time, but she’d need to trust in the Force that it had a plan for the both of them; one she didn’t quite understand yet.

Her former Masters voice came through his com, broken for lack of signal, but her message was clear. She mulled over all the things she could say to her, to make her understand the abandonment that she’d forced her to suffer, but before any of the words could leave her lips, the message cut out and left only radio silence. It took her a moment to process Master Ris’ request that she come along. What had she meant by an extended assignment?

Her attention refocused on Kalen, heart rate now slowing back to a steady drum as the pain faded from her eyes. “Gone two years and she thinks she can return as though nothing happened.” Larana sighed, turning to take Kalen’s hand and used him to pull herself to her feet.

“Yes, lets find out what she’s on about. But one thing first.” She hesitated only for a moment, and then leaned forward to place both of her arms around his waist, holding tight to him, face buried in his chest. It had been so long since they’d embraced that she stayed there a moment longer, not wanting to waste the opportunity. "Please don't leave again."

 

[Kalen Novak]

They embraced, Kalen holding her for several long breaths. He stood silent as she asked him not to leave again, not knowing what to say. He wouldn't lie to her, making promises they both knew were out of their control. Being a Jedi meant sometimes giving up the things that one held most dear. Perhaps that is why the old Jedi Order had forbidden attachments altogether. If he had to choose between the Order or Larana, he wasn't sure what he would do. The thought made his stomach turn. With no words of comfort to give, he chose to be present, taking in the moment.

As much as he didn't want to moment to pass, it finally did and he took a step back. He gave an expression that he thought hid his worry, but it would likely be a pointless attempt with her.

They had returned to the Jedi Temple, Kalen briefly catching her up on what they had been doing for the last two years. They had been tracking a group of dark side followers that had formed around Nar Shaddaa, using the criminal underground to hide their movements and dealings. More and more artifacts of the Darkside were appearing all over the Galaxy.

Returning to the Temple, they found Master Ris where she had told them to report. The woman was small, shorter than Larana but she carried herself like a giant, and as much as they had made it a hobby to complain about her over the years, she was the closest thing to a mother that Kalen had. Ris' eyes fell on Larana as they entered. She was not one to show much emotion, but there was no hiding the fondness in her eyes. "Larana, Its good to see you." she spoke quietly. "I have heard good things about your training, know that I am proud of you." she said. "After this, I am sure you have questions and I promise you all the answers I can give." she finished.

She turned back to a data console and images of several files appeared about a projector in the center of the room. "Kalen has hopefully caught you up somewhat as to our investigations if not, you will have time to catch up on the way to Nar Shaddaa. "The group we have been following, the one we thought most connected to this shadowy group of Darkside followers all turned up dead yesterday. This leaves us largely back at square one. Whoever had killed them had taken care to hide their tracks, but there is no doubt that this wasn't common gang violence. Several of the artifacts we had been tracking have also disappeared.

It would be too obvious if I showed back up, snooping around but the two of you are unknown which gives you the opportunity to go blend in and see what you can find out. Both of you have progressed much in your training but this is a dangerous assignment. Know that I would not be sending you if I didn't have confidence in both of you." She said looking back up from the projected images as they faded.

"You will need to leave tonight so the trail doesn't get too cold. Do you have any questions?" she asked, looking to both of them.

 

[Larana Basai]

It wasn’t fair for her to ask promises of him that she knew he couldn’t keep, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise when he elected silence over the truth. Their devotion to the Jedi Order meant either one of them could be called away at a moments notice; there was no guarantee that they would be able to remain together. Larana had always known this to be true, but never imagined that it would be this difficult to adapt and overcome. Kalen had always been there, and when he suddenly wasn’t, she had struggled to cope.

He stepped back and a familiar look of worry flooded his eyes. It had not been her intention to upset him, so she offered him a reassuring smile, taking her place beside him for their journey back to the temple. The two of them had made this walk countless times together in their youth and, for a brief moment, she was transported back to a time when neither of them understood what being a Jedi truly would mean. How naïve they had both been, but how far they had come since.

Kalen had changed so much and yet so little in the years since he’d been gone. She wondered, in his eyes, had she changed just as much? Her hair was longer, whiter, and she had gained some muscle in training to fill out her awkward shape. Larana was hardly the wild young girl that she had once been, a realized that startled her.

Shoulders held back, hands clasped behind her back, she walked beside Kalen towards her former Master. She questioned whether or not Master Ris’ return would mean stability in her training, or if she’d remain to be tossed from mentor to mentor until Kalen had graduated to Jedi Knight. It was a disheartening thought, but she didn’t wear the emotion in her expression, instead calm and silent as they were briefed on their assignment, nodding her head only once in acknowledgement.

“No, I suppose I don’t have any questions. I’ll pack my things and meet you in the hangar.” Larana looked towards Kalen and, if he agreed, she would retreat without another word to retrieve her belongings, stopping only briefly to alert Master Oros to her departure.

Not more than 10 minutes had passed and she stood on the landing pad, bags at her feet, awaiting Kalen to meet her so that they could begin their journey to Nar Shaddaa.

 

[Kalen Novak]

He shook his head. While Master Ris had done most of the ground work while they had been away, he knew that the group that had been killed were not pleasant people much like the rest of the planet. He remained after Larana had retreated to pack. He remained silent but gave the Jedi Master a questioning look.

"You'll do fine." She reassured him, knowing he struggled with doubting himself. "I have taught you whatever everything I can, now it's time for you to start forging your own path. She said looking away. " Now go on. We will be in contact soon enough." Kalen nodded and bowed to the woman before leaving to prepare the ship.

He met with Larana and they set about preparing to leave. It would be a long trip, but he was glad to have her along. His master was not always the best of company. With preparations finished, he made his way to the cockpit and lowered himself in the pilot's chair and started the engines.

"Sorry you are getting caught up in this." He said once Larana had joined him. "I suppose it doesn't seem fair to have to drop everything for someone who has been gone for so long." He said. The ship climbed into space and after the calculations were entered, the ship jumped into hyperspace.

 

[Larana Basai]

Larana sat sideways in the co-pilots seat, her legs draped over one arm rest and her back pressed against the other. The roar of engines rattled their ship and she took in a deep breath, releasing it and all of the tension she had been holding onto with it. It had been months since Master Oros had allowed her to leave and, even when he had, her jobs usually consisted of guarding the ship; their metal walls had become all too familiar. This time would be different, though something about their assignment didn’t sit well in her stomach.

From what she understood, an entire group of dark sided followers had turned up dead and it was their purpose to investigate the cause. Logic told her that it wasn’t natural; an entire group of men wouldn’t all die simultaneously of natural causes – it had to be murder, even Master Ris had thought so. Larana wasn’t new to hunting petty criminals and slavers, but dark siders were new and unfamiliar. Did either of them stand a chance against one, or were they walking to their deaths?

It was probably best that she kept her concerns from Kalen. He hadn’t seemed too worried by their assignment and she didn’t want to seem unsure of herself. He had been tracking them for years and, if he wasn’t concerned, then it only made sense to trust in his instincts. Or, at least that was the theory she had decided to stick with.

“You don’t have to apologize to me, Kalen.” Larana turned to sit correctly in her chair, turning in it to face him. “I’m not upset about our-“ she stuttered, stopping to correct herself. “I’m not upset about your assignment. I’m just grateful that I was asked to accompany you.”

 

[Kalen Novak]

The ship lurched and stars started to blur past. When he was younger, he had found the idea of space travel highly unnerving but now he had come to find it fairly relaxing.

"Our assignment" he corrected her with a grin. "There is no way all of this falls on me." He said with a chuckle as he reached over and swatted at one of her dangling legs.

"Once we get there we will need to stow our lightsabers. One flash of those and we will have every bounty hunter in the secret after us. There are a couple of blasters and vibroswords in the back. We will need to find you some different clothes along the way." He said, looking at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Other than that we just have to deal with a planet filled with the worst people in the Galaxy. Easy stuff." He said casually.

His chair swiveled towards her before stopping. He let out a breath, finally letting himself slow down. "So other than overbearing Jedi Masters, how are you?" He asked somewhat awkwardly. "I'm having a hard time believing this is all real." He continued with a slight shrug.

 

[Larana Basai]

They couldn’t bring their lightsabers? That was concerning, as she was rather clumsy with a blaster, having had very little training with them. It made sense though, considering their destination and the fact that she’d rather they not become targets, so it would have been mindless to protest. Her robes, on the other hand, did wonders to conceal her awkward shape, and she didn’t bother to hide her obvious discomfort at having the wear anything that might actually conform to her curves; it was comparable to asking her to run around without any clothes at all. Her lips curled into a slight frown.

“You’re right. Sounds easy enough.” She retorted in sarcastic fashion, shaking her head in disagreement. This assignment would likely push both of them to their limits, but Larana would have been willing to go to war with Kalen. He provided her with a sense of confidence; the two of them could accomplish just about anything when they worked together.

He spun in his chair to face her and she returned to her awkward, sideways position, in her own. “That depends. Do you want the honest or lighthearted answer?” Larana nudged him with her boot, using the momentum to spin once in her chair, her fingers intertwined in her lap. “I can do either, but be warned that they both involve overbearing Jedi Masters. I’ll admit, I never thought I could miss Master Ris, but I did.” She laughed, shaking her head. “I can’t believe I admitted that.”

 

[Kalen Novak]

He gave her a somewhat more serious look. He had worried about her, still worried about her. He let her deflect with a light hearted answer. It would take time for them to close the gap that had been forced between them.

"Well, maybe Jedi Masters won't be an issue for us much longer. The fact that we have been sent out alone has to mean we are close to becoming Knights." He, finally leaning back in chair. "Think of how insufferable a teacher you will be." He said, grinning.

​

​

 

[Larana Basai]

It was all in the past now, but she had walked through hell and back to find her place and her purpose. Larana didn’t want to admit it, but for as much as she had mourned him, their separation had done them both well in forging their own individual paths within the Jedi Order. It didn’t seem fair to him, for her to hold onto the bitterness that she had felt – neither of them had been given a choice, but both of them had worked hard to overcome it.

“Or this is a long thought out plan to get rid of us.” She countered, shrugging her shoulders with a grin. “The two of us, under-cover and alone, on perhaps the most hostile planet I’ve never been to. That would explain why Master Ris was in such a hurry for us to leave. That, or you’ve managed to drive her mad over the last two years.”

 

[Kalen Novak]

She joked, but Kalen picked up on the feelings underneath her words. "We all know you are too stubborn to die even if that was the plan." he said. "You know.." he continued after a pause. "She has kept pretty close track of your training while we were away." he commented. "I would catch her from time to time looking over reports or communicating with those who were currently assigned to." he said. The fact was, she had been left behind because she had been much further along than Kalen had been when they had left. If the roles had been reversed, he would have likely failed out of the Order.

"I'm sure she will never admit it. You know how she is but I thought you should know" he said, standing. He placed a hand on her shoulder "Its good to have you back." he said with a smile. He turned to leave. They had a long journey ahead of them and an even longer mission after that.

"We will stop tomorrow for supplies," he said before leaving the small cockpit. In the meantime, he needed to spend some time finishing up some repairs he had started before arriving at the Jedi homeworld. During their time away, Kalen had learned a fair amount of ship mechanics. It was a necessary skill when they had been cut off the resources of the Order. After that, he would make his way to his bunk.

 

[Larana Basai]

Kalen knew her too well, even after all the time they had spent apart. He could read her emotions in her eyes, no matter how hard she tried to hide them in her words. He was worried about her, but he didn’t have to. Larana had learned to survive on her own well before she had come to the Jedi Order; from losing her mother, to poverty and homelessness, even war – she had survived them all, and she would survive this too, she just needed some time.

It had been hard for her to adjust to his absence, and now equally as difficult to adjust to his return; though, that wasn’t to say she wasn’t grateful for it, because she was.

“I never left.” Larana remarked in her typical sarcastic fashion, turning in her chair to watch as Kalen stood to leave the small cockpit. It was late and he was likely exhausted, so she couldn’t blame him for retiring to his bunk, but she stayed behind. It had been such a weird day that she couldn’t bring herself to fall asleep, no matter how heavy her eyes and become.

It was a few hours later that she finally did fall asleep, still curled up in the co-pilots chair, a copy of Jedi History folded open in her lap and long strands of almost white hair fallen over her face. The hum of the engines lulled her to sleep, her legs still tossed awkwardly over the armrest where Kalen had left her.