Obi-Wan's quarters smelled faintly of tea and ion grease from the droid he had disassembled earlier. He looked up from his datapad as Kaelen entered, bowing slightly.
"Master," Kaelen said. "You wanted to see me?"
Obi-Wan gestured toward the chair opposite him. "You've seen plenty of fighting, Kaelen. What you lack is experience with words. Yoda is departing for Toydaria to negotiate with King Katuunko. You'll accompany him."
Kaelen blinked. "Me? As a diplomat?"
A small smile touched Obi-Wan's beard. "A Jedi must know when to sheath the blade. Besides, if you can survive Master Yoda's riddles, you can survive anything."
Kaelen bowed again, trying to hide his apprehension. "When do we leave?"
"Now. Pack light."
The cruiser Thousand Moons drifted through hyperspace, its interior humming with quiet efficiency. Yoda sat cross-legged in meditation inside the forward cabin, the starlines reflecting in his eyes.
Kaelen sat nearby, watching. The little Master radiated calm power; even the Force seemed to flow more smoothly in his presence.
Yoda's eyes opened. "Troubled, you are. Mmm?"
Kaelen hesitated. "Master Kenobi thought I should learn from you. I don't know if negotiation is… my strength."
"Know your strength, you must," Yoda said, "but greater, to know your weakness. Learn, we shall, hm?"
Kaelen managed a smile. "Yes, Master."
Before Yoda could reply, the comm officer's voice cut in. "Approaching Toydaria system, Masters."
Moments later, the stars stretched back into points, revealing the soft blue-green sphere of Rugosa below—a moon blanketed with coral forests and mist.
But the view was soon filled with something else: a line of Separatist frigates sliding out from behind the moon like predators from shadow.
"Ambush!" the clone pilot shouted.
Turbolaser fire raked the cruiser. Explosions rippled along the hull.
"Shields failing!"
Yoda gripped his cane, serene despite the chaos. "Escape pod, we must reach. Hurry!"
Kaelen ignited his purple saber, deflecting a spray of shrapnel from a ruptured console. "This way!"
They sprinted down the corridor with three clones—Thire, Rys, and Jek—blaster bolts chasing them. Another explosion threw Kaelen from his feet; Yoda's hand caught him with invisible strength and set him upright again.
"Focus," Yoda said gently.
They dove into the pod. The hatch sealed.
"Launching!"
The small craft burst free just as the cruiser split apart in a blossom of fire.
Rugosa
The escape pod punched through the moon's thin clouds and crashed amid towering coral spires. The hatch blew open, releasing a hiss of steam and dust.
Kaelen was first out, saber drawn. The landscape was surreal—giant coral trunks twisting up from shallow seas, their surfaces slick and iridescent under the twin suns.
Thire scanned the horizon. "We're three klicks from the rendezvous, General. Droid patrols in the area."
Yoda hopped lightly onto a coral ridge. "Heh-heh, good. Stretch your legs, we shall. Adventure, hmm?"
Kaelen climbed after him, smiling despite himself.
A rustle in the distance froze the clones. Battle droids clanked into view, their voices tinny. "There they are! Blast them!"
Bolts streaked through the air. Kaelen's saber blurred purple arcs, deflecting each shot back toward the attackers. Yoda vaulted from his perch, spinning like a leaf in the wind. Each movement of his small body was effortless grace; droids fell in halves before they realized he'd reached them.
Kaelen extended his free hand. The Force surged outward, catching a pair of droids and smashing them against a coral pillar. Pieces rained into the surf below.
Thire whistled. "Remind me not to play dejarik against either of you."
Yoda chuckled. "Size matters not, Captain. Strategy, hm? Learn you shall."
They moved cautiously through the coral labyrinth, weaving between translucent trunks. Kaelen's senses stretched outward, brushing against every living thing—the small flickers of fish below the water, the slow heartbeat of the moon itself.
But threaded through it was something darker.
Asajj Ventress.
He felt her presence before the others heard her.
"Master," Kaelen said quietly, "we're being watched."
Yoda nodded. "Yes. Shadow, I sense too. Patience, young one."
Far away, on a Separatist landing craft, Ventress smiled as she watched their progress through a holodrone. "Count Dooku, they're alive. Shall I finish them?"
"Do not fail me," Dooku's voice replied. "Make King Katuunko see the weakness of the Jedi."
Ventress's lips curved. "As you wish."
They reached an open valley where coral spires jutted like teeth. Droid tanks rolled from the mist, cannons glowing.
"Trap!" Thire shouted.
The clones dove for cover. Kaelen's saber snapped to life, purple light slicing the fog.
Yoda lifted both hands. The Force flowed through him like wind through water. He gestured—and an entire line of tanks lifted from the ground, their cannons firing wildly into the air before crashing down in twisted heaps.
"Now!" Yoda called.
Kaelen and the clones surged forward. Blaster fire seared the air. Kaelen leapt onto a destroyed tank, his saber spinning in perfect Form VI circles. Each motion deflected a storm of bolts while his other hand sent waves of Force energy rippling through the enemy ranks.
Rys lobbed a thermal detonator. The blast lit the valley in white light, scattering metal fragments.
Ventress's hologram appeared between the wrecks, her tone mocking.
"Impressive, little Jedi. But even you cannot win forever."
Yoda tilted his head. "Forever, I need not. Only until lesson learned."
He looked to his men. "Different each of you are. Strong together, stronger still. Show her, we shall."
They moved as one. Thire drew fire, Rys flanked, Jek provided covering shots, and Kaelen guided their rhythm through the Force, anticipating the droids' every shift. In minutes the last tank exploded, sending a mushroom of dust into the air.
The hologram flickered, Ventress scowling. "The King will hear of this."
"Tell him truth, you may," Yoda said, "if truth you still remember."
Her image vanished.
By sunset they reached the royal clearing where King Katuunko's coral throne awaited. The Toydarian ruler hovered before a row of guards, his wings beating slowly.
"Master Yoda," he said, voice resonant. "Count Dooku told me the Jedi were weak."
Yoda bowed. "Strong in spirit, not numbers, are we. Proof you have seen."
Kaelen stepped forward, bowing respectfully. "Your Majesty, the Republic seeks friendship, not conquest. You saw how the Separatists treated this world—ambush and lies. We offer protection and trade."
Katuunko regarded him with interest. "And you, young one, speak well for your Master."
Kaelen flushed. "I'm learning."
The king chuckled, then turned to Yoda. "Toydaria will join your Republic. Count Dooku can keep his droids."
A burst of laughter from Yoda filled the coral valley. "Wise decision, great king. Together, peace we will build."
Aftermath
As they prepared to depart, Yoda placed a small, three-fingered hand on Kaelen's arm. "Good, your words were. Confidence, I sense growing. But more than words, the Force in you sings."
Kaelen looked out over the coral plains where smoke still curled from destroyed droids. "When I fought today, it felt… connected. Like the Force was showing me not just their moves, but everything—the fear, the balance. It's the same feeling from my visions, only clearer."
Yoda nodded slowly. "Echoes still, of the past and of what may come. Trust the Force, but not the fear that hides within it."
He started up the ramp of the waiting shuttle. "Come, diplomat-warrior. Long way to Coruscant, we have."
Kaelen smiled at the title and followed.
Above Rugosa the stars returned, bright and indifferent, and the war continued beyond them—but Kaelen felt steadier than before. For the first time, diplomacy and battle no longer seemed opposite paths. They were parts of the same current, flowing through everything the Jedi were meant to be.