Chapter 17- A dead tree?

While their leader was hugging Layan with joy, the other indigenous were shocked when they heard his words. To them, jedis were part of their mythology, and the temple and items they left behind after their disappearance has to be protected, it was their sacred ground.

Meanwhile, Layan was still in the leader embrace but could now use the force skill, Comprehend Speech. In his previous life, he was skilled with the force and had a pretty imaginative way to use it, but now everything became easy when he used the force.

Ever since his reincarnation, his connection with the force improved tremendously, which made everything easier. Comprehend speech wasn't a skill he worked particularly hard on, but now it became as easy as breathing for him.

"The jedis have come back for us. They will guide us in the force."

"Yes, I will help you master your abilities. Now could you guide us at the interesting places in this world."

The man didn't seem to understand clearly his speech but got the gist of it. He started to make big hand movements trying to indicate them a direction.

"Master are you sure about it? They just attacked us."

Lyn was a bit doubtful. It could be a trap to lure them into an ambush, leading to their future death.

"Don't worry, it's normal. They were just protecting their territory, now that we established ties with them, we can become friends."

This way, they followed the leader and his tribe through several ruins before traversing a canyon. During their travel, they saw a few crumbled buildings and crashed ships, but their most astonishing discovery was an old mural depicting a Jedi knight wielding a lightsaber.

Finally reached their destination after a few hours, the place where the Jedi's descendant that called themselves the Ysanna wanted to lead them revealed itself to be an old dead tree.

The tree wasn't high, maybe three meters in height and was located on a hillock of rock. The tree bark appeared to be gnarled and dead as no leaf grow on it.

"A dead tree?"

Lyn was surprised as to what was revealed to be the purpose of several hour's trip, an old tree that seems dead for a long time.

Layan didn't hear Lyn's question as he was contemplating the tree. It wasn't just a cult from backward peoples, they were deeply linked to the force and if they led him to their 'sacred ground' or 'Holy tree' as they said, it has to be somehow force-related.

He walked to the tree and put his hand on the bark. While he was probing it with the force, he felt a sleeping consciousness. Instantly, he tried to focus the force in him and in the vicinity to put it inside the tree to awake this sleeping consciousness.

With his newfound abilities in the force, he was able to gather a large amount of energy, and finally, after a minute of sweaty effort, the consciousness woke up.

Stepping down, he came beside Lyn and gave a statement that flabbergasted her. This news was, after all, mind-blowing.

"It's not a dead tree, it's a millenniums year old Jedi Master."

"What?!! It's impossible!"

"When our history lessons will start, you will discover that our galaxy is crazy and everything is possible."

He smiled at his apprentice candidness and waited for the consciousness to fully awake itself.

"Grooann"

The time finally came, a loud and strange sound was emitted from the tree and the ground shook. Once the shakings stopped, a face formed on the tree bark and clear blue eyes opened, looking down toward Layan.

"I am Ood Bnar. Who are you, you who awoke me from my deep slumber?"

This time, it was Layan turn to be flabbergasted while Lyn simply raised an eyebrow and looked at the stunned expression on her master's face.

"Oob Bnar, like the revered Neti Jedi Master, the understudy of head librarian Odan-Urr who later became the head librarian of the Great Jedi Library?!!"

"Indeed, this is me. I'm happy to learn Jedi Master my legacy wasn't forgotten in time, but you haven't answered my question, you who walked at the edge of both sides."

The voice of the Neti Jedi Master was deep, calm, and echoed everywhere in the vicinity. Hall of the indigenous totally freaked out from fright while the other half reacted as if they saw a god at the apparition of the old Jedi Master.

"I am Layan Vaherg, a force-user trained by a Jedi in another time."

Layan was pretty tense in front of this master of the past. Not only was he able to sense his inclination toward the force even though he was using Force Stealth, but he was also totally undetectable to Layan senses, his signature was one with the planet itself.

Even though the said signature was currently weak, with time he would become incredibly strong as nature started to proliferate once again in this world.

"I have to thank you for awakening my old self. Now, tell me why do you come to this inhospitable and desolate world?"

"I was searching for a place away from prying to train my apprentice and search relics of the past, be it about technology or Jedi knowledge. With the wars happening these millenniums, knowledge and techniques were lost."

Layan didn't lie saying that, he knew he couldn't in front of a master so venerable, and his link to the planet seem to enhance all the abilities in the force of the Neti Jedi Master.

"Hmm. You told the truth, but I felt something else, you want something from me."

"Yes, I would like to use your wisdom and to have access to the remains of the Great Library you were responsible for."

The Neti became pensive, his roots started to move a bit in a circle while he was deep in thoughts.

"I agree. You helped me and I'm grateful to my benefactor, furthermore, knowledge is made to be spread and share to progress further. A shame that so much knowledge was lost during my slumber."

"I'm sure, you'll be able to rebuild it. Master Ood Bnar was known to be a well of knowledge in his time."

"Maybe, with the force and time I will recover my health, but it feels strange I feel like I'm not part of this time, like an outsider. Everything and everyone I knew is over and dead since long ago."

The Neti voice became sad. Layan knew this feeling. He felt it every day ever since his reincarnation and could sympathize with the old master. Layan, on his side, he could still recognize a few peoples but Ood Bnar had nothing to relate to.

"Come back to see me later, young one. I'd like you to make me a favor."

After that, they left and headed toward the location Master Ood Bnar indicated them. Lyn was talking non-stop, asking for an explanation to know who they were talking with and the history behind it.

She was not only astonished to know the background of the talking tree but by the talking tree himself. It was a myth, a Neti, a specie so rare that no one saw a member of this race in the past millennia.

The Neti was a species of shape-shifting sentient plants native of the planet Myrkr and migrated on Ryyk, a now destructed world. All the members of this race are said to be force-sensitive and biologically able to live thousands of years and the best beings able to use Hibernation Trance, able to keep themselves alive almost indefinitely, even without light and water.

They piloted their speeders slowly behind the Ysanna and headed toward the remains of the Great Jedi Library. Everything they saw around them was destroyed, only ruins were left but they continued until they reach a slope leading upward.

Remains of ships and war machines and armors became more numerous in this region of the planet. Layan already planned to come back here and check everything one by one to extract everything that could prove to be useful.

They were so much to obtain, technology, spare pieces, old reports enlightening past events, or simply the raw materials to build something else.

Layan already had several ideas in his head for the Ysannas. Ossus could become his backyard where he would form his own personal army, a new Jedi Order better than the current one or whatever else.

He had the peoples at his disposal and was lacking resources, but when you think to it resources are laying everywhere on this planet. Finally, the slope goes down toward a sunken place where a huge circular flat and smooth door made of polished rock was standing proud sealing what was behind it.

"We found it. An entrance to the Great Jedi Library. What awaits us behind this door is absolutely priceless and could reveal to be the cornerstone to victory in the near future!"

The ambiance became solemn as he raised his hand toward the seal door.