High Heavens (Star Wars - Luke Skywalker)

XXVII - Padawans of the Past

Coruscant only got grittier and darker the further Mara and Strata descended. Level after level, they ventured deeper into the heart of the planet. The air grew dank and dirty. Most residents shied away, but Mara could feel eyes following their every step. She kept seeing movement in the corner of her eyes, but was only met with empty alleyways each time she looked.

"This place creeps me out," Strata said, arms crossed around herself. She threw another uneasy look around. "I keep feeling like someone's watching us."

Mara nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'm getting that, too." She glanced at the top corner of a building as they pass, reading the address. "We're not too far."

"Good."

Musty puddles sloshed at their feet, and small rodents scampered out of the way as they walked. The sun felt far wat, under all the smog and dust. Mara kept a steady hand wrapped around her blaster, it's weight a comforting presence in her pocket. Han and Luke had been right. Coruscant was a nasty place.

Had it been better, before? Before the Empire, back when the Jedi lived in that temple, not the Emperor.

Mara put an arm out in front of Strata. "Wait," she said, voice dropping into a whisper. She tilted her head down a long, shady passageway between two buildings in front of them.

"What is it? Do you sense something?" Strata asked. Her eagerness felt a bit misplaced for the situation.

"I don't know," Mara replied. "Maybe. At least... I think I do."

It wasn't a feeling, exactly. It was a sensation, a familiarity. She'd felt it before, but it was difficult to say where. That prickle, that likeness...

Luke, when he'd arrived at Han's docking bay. Ben, when she'd met him in the Dune Sea. And.. Ahsoka, when she'd saved Mara's life.

From behind her, Strata let out a gasp.

Her blaster was charged and aimed before Mara was even aware of what she was doing, and she spun around to find herself face-to-face with a hooded figure. Their hands were raised, but their head was bowed, and Mara had no idea who - or what - they were.

"Why are you following us?" Mara demanded, not moving her blaster from it's position - pointed directly at the stranger's head.

Slowly, the two thin, pale hands wrapped around the hood of their cloak. As they threw it off, Mara looked at the woman. She was fragile-looking, practically all bones, and her face was made up of sharp edges, thin pink lips, and round, blue eyes.

"I don't mean you any harm," she said, her voice soft but steady.

Strata took a step towards her. "She asked you a question."

"I sensed you the moment you stepped foot on the planet. I just never thought you'd come all the way down here."

Mara stared at her for a few seconds, before asking, "Are you Calla Sai?"

"Shh!" the woman hissed at her suddenly, glancing over her shoulder on both sides. "Not so loud, now."

"Sorry, sorry," Mara said. "I... I've been looking for you."

"Oh, I know, trust me," Calla replied. "You've been in my dreams, girl, for quite some time now. I had a feeling you'd be on your way."

 Before Mara could ask more, she beckoned for her and Strata to follow her and moved towards a gap between two buildings. "Come now. We'll talk somewhere it's safe."

Slowly, Mara began to follow her. Strata remained at her side, but did lean over to say, "That was pretty convenient, if you ask me."

Calla lead them through a winding series of alleyway and backwater roads, routes that Mara was sure only a Jedi fugitive would frequent. Streetlights and busy roads became scarce, until finally Calla stopped in front of a ground-level apartment, her faintly trembling hands punching in the key-code before the three of them slipped inside.