Chapter 11: Judgement of the Jedi

Star Wars + Harry Potter Crossover

Chapter 11: Judgement of the Jedi

This chapter has been delayed for two reasons...the first reason and least annoying is that I am moving house on the 15th of September and then going on holiday on the 25th. This has meant that there is obviously a lot to get done. Second (and much more irritating) the new windows 10 update kept sporadically turning off my internet. This was only fixed yesterday by going back to an earlier build and stop any new updates from downloading.

All that is to say that though updates will sporadic between now and the 3rd (ish) of October I have not abandoned the story and I hope to get at least one, hopefully two, chapters out before then.

769 BBY - 764 BBY

2,884 ATC - 2,889 ATC

Coruscant

A few weeks later Harry was both cursing and chuckling over the Jedi High Council as he attached his newly arrived (and Cadi produced) arm. The ambivalence that he was feeling had nothing to do with Ter-ldi's trial as that had happened a week ago.

The trial of the Jedi's most wanted was predictable in it's main outcome. Ter-ldi was found guilty of violating his oath to the Republic and to the Jedi not only for his experiments into the dark side of the Force but also his spy network that was rumored to extend at least throughout the Core.

The Council had then collectively cut him off from the Force and proceeded to turn him and his accomplices over to the Republic proper for trial on corruption charges and investigation into his supposed spy network and any informants he might have either in the Jedi or the Senate. They hadn't even done more than a cursory investigation into the possibility of another Jedi helping Ter-ldi as they had dismissed that concern out of hand.

Needless to say that two days after he was turned over but before any investigation could begin Ter-ldi was found dead of an apparent suicide. The Vykas siblings family were slowly, even now, extracting them from the Senate's judicial branch by use of a very expensive lawyer and, if Harry had to bet, a great amount of money spent in bribes.

All of that, though not expected, had not surprised Harry in the slightest. No he was cursing because although a few weeks earlier he had managed to subdue three criminals without killing any of them (which the Council prefered), one of which was a rogue dark Jedi, the prissies still managed to view him with outright dislike and suspicion.

To be fair to them the majority of the Council also viewed every other traditional Jedi in the order with the same suspicion, if to a lesser degree. Their suspicion had increased a great deal when he return and that was in large part due to the fact that he had shown knowledge, if not true mastery, of some very obscure and powerful Force Techniques (not to mention his use of magic which he still omitted from any report, verbal or otherwise).

What made him angry was the hypocrisy of it as, if it was a progressive that had performed so admirably they would be touting the success of their clearly better methods. The fact that he was not led to them distrusting him more because it not only made a lie of the idea that their method was inherently better but also, he was sure, because he was being watched by some 'trustworthy' Jedi and they had no idea that he could do those things.

They also could not ask him where he had learned those skills without giving away the fact that they were watching a fellow Jedi and have their own actions scrutinised. So the suspicion increased and they distrusted him all the more.

The peace of the Jedi Temple was fast becoming a shallow thing with divisions between the traditionalists increasing by the day and this was mainly due to the Jedi High Council itself. More specifically the problem had to do with how the High Councils seats were divided up among it's members.

When Harry had become a knight it was roughly evenly split with the traditionalists having all five lifetime seats and one of the long term seats giving the traditionalists not only half of the vote but hope, as it were, that they could weather the political storm. Yoda, on the other hand, sat on the council in one of the long term seats and both of the remaining long term seats along with all the short term seats were both progressive and followed his lead making him the defacto leader of his faction.

When Harry had returned with the renegade Jedi in tow he had found that fragile peace broken as one of the masters that sat on one of the long term seats, Master Oblar, retired to devote himself to the mysteries of the Force. His place was quickly taken by Master Durvan giving the progressives over half the vote.

Harry did not find it a problem out of any sense of jealousy as the main benefit (at least to Harry's mind) to becoming a Jedi Master was studying restricted Holocrons but he had plenty to study in Cadi at the present time. He was also ineligible as he had never trained a padawan and nor did he particularly want to both because had no pull to train a particular padawan and also because being on the Council would put him in almost daily contact with Yoda.

The reason that it was a problem was because to gain your mastery you not only had to (with rare exceptions) teach a padawan to knighthood but you also had to have the approval of the majority of the Jedi High Council. This ment that in the last three hundred years or so fewer and fewer traditional Jedi had ascended to the rank of master let alone joined the council itself and it had even devolved, though only fairly recently, into almost an unwritten rule that if you were not a progressive you would not gain a mastery.

Harry assumed that the traditionalists on the Council had allowed this because the long term and short term seats were supposed to provide different views than the more conventional lifetime seats and as the lifetime members were all traditionalists it made sense, from a certain point of view, for the others not to be as it allowed for a certain balance.

Now however that was not the case and now that the progressives had a majority on the High Council it was becoming clear that they did not agree and were now, if they weren't before, actively blocking any traditional from a gaining a mastery. The only small mercy that traditionalists like Harry had was the fact that, at the moment, they could not deny teaching the old ways at all as that would require a unanimous High Council vote.

Sadly Harry could see the day coming where that vote would pass one way or the other.

The main reason that Harry was chuckling had nothing to do with the sad state of the Temple but rather his synthetic arm. The one that the Jedi provided was quite basic and it seemed that the Masters begrudged even giving him the basic synthetic flesh covering. He could almost feel Yoda's deep stare trying to impart some great lesson in humility upon him.

Harry however was having none of that and had learned from his capture that being unarmed ranged from being inconvenient to being disastrous. He was internally chuckling at his side step of any such hidden lesson in humility as he had ordered one immediately from Cadi. He had made sure that, from the outside, it looked like the one that the Jedi had produced but still, he found that the Jedi didn't notice the switch hilarious in its own way.

The internal structure was very different from the standard Republic issue. For one instead of steel or hardened plastic the internal workings were made of an alloy carved with runes to make it much lighter. It also had a hidden compartment that would release into his hand by way of a moving shelf like apparatus hidden in the underside of his new forearm the lightsaber that was currently hidden in said compartment which was his original Jedi lightsaber. Thanks to his skill in occlumency he had managed to convincingly lie and tell the Council that it had been damaged beyond repair.

While he was waiting for the new arm he had therefore taken the opportunity to create a new one. The new blade was almost identical to his previous one except that instead of being inlaid with yew, holly and oak it was instead inlaid only with holly and beech (Luna's wand wood) in a intertwining pattern and the blade, instead of being the viridian of his last, was a deep sapphire blue.

Needless to say after his capture of a rogue Dark Jedi, not to mention the Vykas siblings and the tenuous nature of the order as a whole at this present time the the faction of the Council that followed the progressives proceeded to withdraw the offer of a position as an archivist and proceeded to 'reward' him with a teaching position in the Temple.

The fact that this meant that his access to the more sensitive parts of the library would be restricted to that of a normal knight and enabled Yoda to watch him more closely and thereby limit (or at least slow) his mastery of new techniques. Thankfully though he might have a teaching position, like his previous offer, he was able to have it deferred for sometime under the idea of gaining more experience.

"Hey kiddo" Harry looked up from his wandering feet having found himself strolling down the halls of the Temple rather aimlessly after attaching his arm. He saw Varlya Tarvam looking at him quite bemused.

"Knight Tarvam" came Harry's very proper and respectful response. Her laugh rang out in the otherwise quiet halls.

"Oh stop that William" she said smirking at him. "Unless you are trying to emulate our dear Master Yoda?" Harry shuddered lightly at the very notion of that.

"Please, don't joke ...it pains me…" Harry fake whined and they fell in step with each other as they began to walk slowly towards the Temple Hangar. At this time of night the Temple was empty with the padawans asleep in bed as well as most of the teachers.

"So…" Varlya began "how are you dealing with your reassignment?"

"You mean from the job that I hadn't even started yet?" He queried "I'd be happier if they didn't try to pass it off as a reward".

"But don't you want to help teach the new generation? After all they are our future". Though she managed a perfectly innocent tone and a straight face her eyes twinkled with barely concealed mirth.

"Padawans are more your thing" he said amicably "besides we are not even talking Padawans in the main but rather Initiates".

"We were all Intiates once. I don't see the problem with teaching them besides, I suppose the prissies probably expect you to either outright refuse or choose something inconsequential like basic Force control lessons" remarked Varlya.

"Either way I'm no longer the poster boy for the traditional way. I either disappear to be lost in the background noise of the wider Galaxy or become sidelined by teaching" was his considered reply.

"So cynical" she teased.

"Tell me I'm wrong" said Harry pointedly even as her silence became deafening in the gloom of the very late night.

"So what are you going to do then?"even as she asked the question she smiled " I know you, you are just like your father and just like him I am sure that you have an idea running around that head of yours".

"I thought I'd visit Arthur" he lied "then perhaps just travel around the Outer Rim. I have no objection to being lost in the Galaxy for a while".

"I am confused. Isn't that what the progressives want you to do?" she asked.

"Yes" his grin was positively wolfish seemingly showing all of his perfectly white teeth "I am going to make them regret the idea that I should go wandering. With any luck by the time that I return they will be hitting themselves for ever having the idea in the first place". Harry's voice was almost joyous at that particular moment.

"Be careful. I'm one of the former progressives that became a traditional after…" she grimaced and a shadow of pain flashed in her eyes "Well after what happened to your father".

"There aren't many who do that" said Harry philosophically "and since Master Oblar gave up his seat it's quite unlikely to happen in the future".

"Now you are being too pessimistic" countered Varlya.

"Am I?" Harry said pointedly "let's look at the problem logically shall we?" Varlya nodded humoring him "When was the last time that a traditional Jedi was granted the rank of master?".

"I am not altogether sure" she replied, her brow furrowed in thought.

"I double checked it this morning. The last elevation of a traditional Jedi was eighty six years ago". Harry's voice was calm and dispassionate.

"That can't be right" she said shocked.

"It is and what is worse is that every single applicant for elevation was blocked by the progressive faction. It has only got worse in recent times as Yoda may not have led the faction at its founding after the death of Odan-Urr but he does now and he is nothing if not fervent in his beliefs". Harry took a breath as he knew she would not like his next revelation "It is getting ridiculous. For proof look at your own former master...Orion has been suggested for the rank of Jedi Master twelve separate times now and, in each case, his nomination was blocked simply by the progressives deadlocking the vote".

"Surely if they were this bad the Council would have done something before now?" she queried.

"They were never this overt about it before Yoda became a master...now they seem to be hammering their advantage home. Before you suggest it...I have no idea why the Grandmaster has not intervened...perhaps she wishes to prevent a sundering of the Jedi like the Revanchists during the beginning of the Mandalorian Wars...I really do not know".

"What can we do?" Varlya asked after a long pause to digest what she had heard.

"Nothing" was Harry's succinct reply. "At least for the moment as we have no desire to break away from the Jedi Order at the moment and we also are not sitting on the High Council or able to change policy at this time".

"So what now?" she asked "What is next for you?".

"I am afraid that it is going to get much worse before it gets any better my friend. As for me? I need to leave again, at least for awhile before I say something that I might regret about the Council's so called reward".

"Is that why you're going to go traveling around the Outer Rim? To get away from the Council for a while?" she asked.

"That's part of it sure. I also think that I can do more good out there than I can here right now" he replied his voice firm.

As he moved towards the Hangar and the doors softly opened at the slightest twitch of his finger he looked at her and then, quite quickly, hugged her warmly. "I am afraid this where we part".

"Be safe William, I have become quite attached to you Potters".

"As are we to you. Oh, by the way, you might want to keep a close eye on the Holonet". His grin was infectious even if she did not know what he meant at the time.

And with that soft goodbye Harry Potter was off to Cadi and away from the politics of the Temple once again.

Cadi

As Harry moved down the ramp he was met by the droid Hermione. Though with the appropriate amount of synthskin she looked human and was named after his oldest friend her features actually looked like an amalgamation of Hermione, Luna and the Patil twins.

"Master Harry" said the droid her monotone voice oddly comforting to Harry.

"Walk with me" he responded while moving towards his house. "Are things set up to my specifications?".

"There are eight training droids armed with lightsabers in the gym and the relevant Holocrons for lightsaber combat, with a focus on Form V and Jar'kai, have been removed from secure storage. Finally your belt,with a holster for your blaster, has been modified to include a clip for your lightsaber".

"Thank you Hermione" he paused "and my other request?".

"We are monitoring the Holonet and every back channel we have master" she responded.

"Good" Harry smiled at the blank faced droid.

"Master...you can't always run from the problems of the Jedi Temple".

"Advice? From you?" Said Harry mildly surprised.

"You are the one that set the precedent, barring being a droid becoming a danger, to disallow all memory wipes".

"So I like my droids with personality and it's biting me in the arse?" asked Harry amused and before she could answer he continued "Anyway.. I am not running from the Jedi so much as I have my own ideas and purposes… added to that my viewpoint is skewed, after all, there is no saying that my next body will be a Jedi".

Five Months Later

Harrys skill with a lightsaber improved in leaps and bounds as he managed to discover a natural affinity for Form V. His skill in Jar'kai after five months was basic to say the least though it was improving if only very slowly.

At this moment, in the early afternoon with the soft light streaming through the bay window, he realised that he had reached a new level of skill as he was managing to combat and hold his own, if not win, against three Jedi killers armed with single lightsabers.

What made them especially hard to combat was not only that their styles were completely randomised but their heuristic processors adapted to his attacks with every single combat meaning that he was always forced to improve and adapt with every single spar though he had limited their skill level. Once he had managed to consistently best them he would either up their skill level or add a fourth droid. Most of the time he had lost however he was slowly managing to not only hold them off but occasionally win so the day that he would have to change his routine was fast approaching.

Harry had an epiphany while at and his ilk wanted to pigeon hole Harry and other Jedi like him, they wanted to limit and suppress the depth of emotion on both ends of the spectrum to limit the risk of falling to the darkside while strengthening mental control. Traditionalist thinking demanded a more natural balance between the head and the heart than that and as, arguably, Harry's search for home was fueled by his strong emotions as well as the fact that his simple need to live and find Luna defined everything that he was he could respect and follow that thinking a lot more easily.

Worse than that, in Harry's mind, Yoda and his ilk wanted to stop or limit Harry learning new Force powers. Not only would that be doomed to failure (due to Cadi's collection of Holocrons) but, given Harry's habit of finding himself in life or death situations, it was actually more important to him to master the skills that he was learning (if he could) before he moved onto the next.

Most modern Jedi stopped at a certain level of proficiency, though it did vary from Jedi to Jedi as to how proficient, as they thought that the only true threat to them that remained were Dark Jedi. Harry knew better, not only did he know that the Sith were still in existence, but he also had Voldemort to deal with. In short, it was almost like most modern Jedi shaped their will and the Force into a hammer, while Harry was trying to refine his abilities into a scalpel.

That was not to say that Harry's training regime was without problems however as, no matter how much Harry tried, he could not master Force Light at all beyond its most basic form. Then again, Harry thought, few Jedi ever mastered any form of Force Light and it also had the added bonus of stopping any progressives from calling him dark before they could even begin.

If he could have mastered it then he firmly believed that his recent battle with Ter-ldi would have gone much differently. Instead the Dark Jedi was dead, murdered by persons unknown and any investigation by either the Senate or the Jedi had failed to uncover any hint of the perpetrator.

The only important improvement that Harry had made to his burgeoning skill in Force Light was that he could now move, albeit slowly, while using the power. It still, at best, only combated the dark side for a few minutes and tended to leave him exhausted for hours afterward. That was a far cry from documented cases of people that had mastered it as they had (albeit only once or twice) affected entire planets.

Quickly shutting the droids down (as they had been held to a standstill for a few minutes) and as he needed a break anyway he casually walked towards the lounge and, while wordlessly summoning drink with his magic and drying his hair with a quickly pulled towel, he found Hermione the droid waiting for him.

"Master Harry...I have news" stated the droid even as Harry turned to give her his full attention. "There is a planetary crisis on Almania. A portion of the local populace are in open revolt against their ruling class the Je'har".

"Sadly suffering exists throughout the Galaxy why does this particular planetary system concern me exactly?"

"There is wide coverage of the internal conflict which, though small at present, has both it's supporters and detractors eagerly watching the Holonet. Most do seem to decry the ruling class that lives in luxury on one of Almania's moons".

"What do they do that is so wrong?" asked Harry having never heard of the either Almania or the Almanian System before. In his defence though it was a rather large Galaxy.

"They sell their peasants into slavery and the caste system that is ingrained throughout the society keeps most in an never ending cycle of misery and hardship" Hermione reported.

"If this has been going on for some time why has the Republic not stepped in?" asked Harry.

"It appears that there have been several illegal bribes to key Senators as well as the fact that Czerka are profiting from supporting the Je'har and supplying their Home Guard with arms". Before Harry could think of anything to say to that revelation she continued "It has however reached the Galactic stage and piqued the Senate's interest for two reasons. The first reason is that the flow of rare Seafah Jewels have stopped. This is mainly due to the fact that they are found on another of Almania's moons Pydyr but all shaping, cutting and industrial or artisan infrastructure or work is based on Almania. Secondly some refugees managed to escape the planet, through a pirate blockade no less, and bring the caste system to the notice of the Senate in a public (and broadcasted) forum. The Senate, as is their want when things they don't like to think about are brought to their attention, caused a fuss".

"What are the Senate doing about the situation?" Harry pressed.

"Nothing" came her predictable response "they are being paid too much not to interfere and to, of course, keep the Jedi from interfering".

"The disposition of forces?" Harry asked.

"On the side of the Je'har? Around 1,000 trained soldiers, a regiment of their Home Guard, and further there are 1,000 roughly split between the Ailon Nova Guard and Czerka employed mercenaries. On the other side the Rebels have almost 5,000 untrained democratically minded(ish) peasants and lower caste humans. They are short on money, weapons and hope". Her eyes unfocused from a moment as she accessed more information from her archives " The Je'har are led by their Great Houses. The most notable houses are Furell, Daston and Rennek and have been for many centuries. The rebels are led by a man named Tor Dalon and while the Je'har are buying equipment and support from companies like Czerka the rebels are being aided by no one that we can find".

"What is the probability of the rebellion succeeding?" Harry asked.

"Though the rebellion is under six months old I calculate less than 12%" came the depressing response.

"Find out how many droids the heir to Potter Industries is allowed as a bodyguard and get Tor Dalon on the comm. Once you have done that prepare a suitable amount of weapons, medical supplies, clothes and food". He commanded.

"Yes Master Harry".

2 Weeks Later Almania

"Greetings Master Jedi" said Tor Dalon, a 5ft 10inch round faced human with eyes that reminded Harry of a deer, even as he walked down his landing ramp.

"I'm not a master of anything I am afraid" Harry gently chided "Nor should you expect the Council's support as, if I had asked, they most likely would have tried to stop me coming here".

"Even so Knight Potter we have full food stores for the first time in months and your medical supplies have greatly helped the injured and sick of Glanna". Tor was not exaggerating for effect, rather he was extremely grateful for though in olden days Glanna was a prosperous city it had been (through much bombing) turned into a rubble strewn slum.

"I am afraid that these six hundred droids are all I am able to bring and that is only due to this conflict being in the Outer Rim".

It was an odd quirk but, when Harry had set up the contract for his company with those greedy Senators of the Republic all those years ago, it had included a provision for any heir to the company to have a rotation of six hundred droids while in a dangerous environment. Strangely enough being on a discontented system of almost 18 billion did not qualify but simply being in the Outer Rim did. This was of course on top of his personal allowance of twenty five as William Potter rather than 'The Heir'.

His personal droids were killer's of course but the remaining six hundred were HP-21's that were quickly modified (by other droids) mostly on route to teach basic combat with a blaster rifle as well as fight.

"At least it evens the odds somewhat" Tor said though he did look worried. "Won't the Council or the Senate be mad at you….for your interference?".

"The Senate? No. They can no more be furious with me than they can with Czerka and, quite frankly, they are not in any rush to anger my brother or Potter Industries" Harry shrugged and offered a quick smile "As for the Council...frankly yes they will be but, quite unfortunately for them, the first thing that we did when we landed was boost your transmission strength so that every piece of your struggle would be sent to the Holonet and seen by the entire Galaxy if they were so inclined". His grin returned full force "Besides the trade agreement that defines the relationship of Potter Industries and the Senate, when the greedy Senators drafted it and at least in part wanting a larger 'contribution' as well as knowing my family's unique production methods included these bodyguard provisions for 'The Heir'. Of course it was also meant as a crude joke as well as an insult...it was never intended to be used".

"Wouldn't the Jedi simply order you away from the battle in private though?" Tor pressed as he did not want to lose the advantage that a Jedi could give.

"We also happen to have picked up six reputable war correspondents from the Galactic News Service to personally document all aspects of the struggle. Their only limit would be on tactical information before a battle...they certainly would have access to comm traffic" said Harry.

"You are an evil man" Tor joked "a great part of the Jedi's power lay in their benevolent reputation… if they were to order you away now they could lose that". The two men fell into step with each other heading into a burnt out building that was doubling as command quarters for the, as yet unnamed, movement.

"I may have also gotten these reporters from out of the way planets and forgotten to mention it to the Council" Harry added.

"So they have no idea that everything they say will be recorded?" asked Tor pointedly.

"At this moment?" none whatsoever…"

In this desolate place Tor Dalon suddenly burst into deep and very loud laughter.

About a month later the Council contacted him and, as was their wont of late, they did so with all the grace of a sledgehammer hitting concrete.

"What do you think you are doing?" demanded Tuspin Myec "The Jedi Order is not authorised nor does it have any desire to get involved in this conflict without Senatorial permission".

"The Jedi Order is not here in any military or peacekeeping capacity at all".

"Really?" came Myec's stern voice "So what do you call supplying over 2,000 blasters with vibro-bayonets attached?".

"I am not supplying any arm at all Potter Industries is and so is Czerka for that matter. Czerka however are overcharging and supplying the other side. Potter industries are offering a heavily discounted rate". Harry did have the passing thought that you could call almost free a heavily discounted rate if you were so inclined and not be lying.

"So Potter Industries are arms dealers now? You must be so proud" The sarcasm in Myec's voice was so thick it was almost a solid and dripping thing. "Regardless the Council believe it would be unseemly for a Jedi to be giving aid, even if only medical, in what amounts to an internal conflict. It is therefore the order of the Council that once you have dispersed your medical supplies " here he spat the words in disgust "that you are to return to Coruscant for judgement".

"Make up your damned mind Myec. Either you are annoyed that I am here helping out by giving medical supplies as any decent Jedi should or you are annoyed that my family are selling them needed supplies at cost and upsetting your status quo" Harry rebutted. "As for your request I will have to refuse on humanitarian grounds as there are many people here that lack basic medical care and will die if I leave". The best and worst part of that argument, in Harry's mind, was that he wasn't even lying as he was at the moment the closest thing to a doctor that they currently had.

"We are concerned that more people will die in this conflict you arrogant fool" snarled Myec whose emotions, even in the pale blue of the transmission, seemed frayed on the usually sombre face.

"Remember your own lessons my old master" responded Harry with barely controlled, but equal, vitriol. "You and Master Yoda are concerned with the thousands that may be lost now but without change how many thousands, if not millions, will die as this caste system persists to a (quite likely) bloodier end?" countered Harry.

"You would throw away thousands of years of tradition simply because you don't agree with it? Are you really that much of a child?" said Myec. Harry could sense his indignant disbelief even through the thousands of lightyears that separated them and travelling from the clean and bright halls of the Temple to the dank, dark and dingy comm room in which Harry stood.

"I would do anything in my power to save as many people as I can, for as long as I can, yet you accuse me of arrogance?" Harry's eyes hardened almost appearing to be stone even as his face became resolute. "You may be a Jedi but any relationship we had, such as it ever was, is now utterly done".

"You disappoint me" came the predictable and suddenly soft reply as Myec had seemingly managed to get his emotions under control.

"And you utterly disgust me by simply supporting a corrupt and abusive regime simply because it is the way things always were. A final point for you Myec..things do change and neither the Jedi, the Republic or even Yoda's way of thinking are eternal". As he sputtered trying to formulate a response Harry continued "If Master Yoda wishes to admonish me in the future tell him to come himself, in person if he has the courage, as I am tired of you. You are nothing to me now and I sincerely hope we never see, let alone speak to each other, again".

Harry then slammed his hand down on the receiver's power button cutting the conversation short though, sadly, not improving his mood.

Harry took a moment to close his eyes and center himself. For some reason that Harry could never fathom the calm and dispassionate voices of either Yoda or his old master always seemed to rub him the wrong way. Maybe, he mused, it was because the Galaxy was not calm and dispassionate and treating it (not to mention the living breathing people in it) like it was seemed cruel and heartless more often than not.

Regardless he took a deep breath and touched the Force, touching the edges of both the dark and the light and allowing all traces of his anger,resentment and frustration to be swept away by the mixed torrent of that river of power.

"Do you have a quote about what was said by the Jedi Master or the message relayed from the Council regarding this war Knight Potter?" asked one of the four reporters that were standing in the back of the shadowy comm room having gone unnoticed by Master Myec.

"You are here to report on the war are you not" came the calm question from Harry.

"Yes but a quote…" the reporter persisted.

"Then report it" said Harry abruptly even as he swiftly walked out of sight and began his new daily routine of helping his droids instruct the rebels in how to fight. It was exhausting and frankly, to Harry's trained eye, they were a long way off.

In the afternoons he spent his time either using all of his training and power to help heal the sick and injured or he was trying to feed them by either serving them food or using his abilities to help sense and then hunt down game.

That, more than anything else, was why Harry was annoyed with both his old master, Master Yoda and the Senate in general. Of course he knew that there would be more deaths on both sides at first if the rebels fought back more effectively with the weapons and armour provided by Potter Industries. That they would dare to try to claim the moral high ground when the defended a system that not only oppressed but often also sold members of their own society into slavery baffled him.

It wasn't just that though as, while in the grand scheme of things this civil war was incredibly minor, it was also an inescapable truth that no matter how many died in this war it did not take into account the thousands that had died and were still dying under the system as it currently stood. They did not see the dying children, the starving families that had not eaten in weeks, the people dying of simply treated illnesses and conditions. They did not see that all the while the uppermost class, the Je'har, lived on their palatial moon and threw away more in table scraps in a day than most of their workers ate in a month.

They did not see that or they did not care.

Harry supposed that he was becoming rather disillusioned as a Jedi, but then he thought, with all these people around me hurting how could I not become somewhat disillusioned?

All of this meant that, late in the evening, Harry was hot, tired, bloody, bruised and more than a little sore. He moved with utter exhaustion radiating from his every pore and all Harry wanted to do was to go to his lodgings (a small burned out room that only had room for a small rickety cot) and go to sleep. He moved over to the nearby open fire pit however, as it doubled as a kitchen of sorts, complete with a huge bubbling pot of stew that was a welcome relief to his grumbling stomach.

He took a bowl and ate quickly and mechanically. He was so exhausted and so hungry that he didn't even notice as the scalding stew burnt the roof of his mouth. In truth he didn't even taste it all that much and wouldn't have been able to tell you almost anything about it, certainly not what was in it, except that it was warm and filled his stomach.

Yet here, in this gutted city, he found himself just as at peace, if not more so, than in the Temple on Coruscant. The reason for that was simple and complex all at once..Politics. Here politics didn't matter, here he was not waiting for judging eyes or a back hand comment from a progressive. Here, in this battlefield, he could do what Jedi were meant to do in his mind without interference. Here he could heal, protect and teach. If Harry had had his way he would have, of course, prefered teaching them anything else but this was a war zone after all.

So it was with a sense of weary purpose then that he began to move slowly towards his as he was and the food was settling in his stomach and with sleep starting to blur his vision someone called his name however.

"Master Jedi! Master Jedi!" came the voice of a small dirty boy. At this time of night and as tired as he was he couldn't remember the boy's name, nor drudge it from his memory using occlumency. Let alone give his oft repeated refrain that he wasn't a master at all. "Commander Dalon requests your presence in the Command Tent".

Harry smiled wearily at the boy and thanked the boy and began to move directly there. As he walked, like any Jedi worth their salt, he drew upon the healing energies of the light side to heal and rejuvenate himself and force tiredness to slip away. He had lost count of the amount of times that he had done this in recent memory and, though there would be a price, there was no time for him to rest at the moment.

In a few short minutes Harry entered the command tent. It was nearly empty with the sole items in the tent being a small table, two chairs and a bottle of whiskey with two glasses. In one of the chairs sat Tor Dalon exhaustion radiating in waves from the hard working man.

"Sit down" said Tor wearily.

Harry did as he was asked and eyed his friend critically for a moment before seemingly coming to the obvious conclusion with the comment.

"You look exhausted my friend. Have you even slept today?" queried Harry.

"You're one to talk. How much sleep have you had in the last week? Four hours? Five?" Tor responded

"I'm good. Jedi are trained to do without much sleep when necessary" the Sith even more so, though in a different fashion, Harry added in his head.

"We have a problem" Harry merely raised an eyebrow as they had a lot of problems. "To be frank it's the largest problem which is always the same Je'har damned problem..".

"Time" finished Harry ruefully while pouring them both a drink.

"It's always time at the moment. We have the Ailon Nova Guard and the Mercs coming to stop us now. That's a thousand well equipped trained killers against five thousand servants, slaves and farmers with barely enough weapons for half of them. According to your trainers, not only do we need to wait for more equipment that won't be here for at least a month but, the army needs at least another six months before they can stand in line and do the most basic of maneuvers. Our best estimates are that they will need another year before they can fight properly".

Tor picked up his glass and swallowed some of the burning liquid that was almost laughably called whiskey. "In short if we fight now we will die".

"Can you not retreat into the hills, regroup and drum up support from among the populace?" asked Harry.

"Not in the time remaining. Not without leaving a trail" summed up a glum Tor.

"Where are they now?" asked Harry.

"The Ailon Nova Guard and Czerka do not enjoy each other's company and they also want to entrap us. The Nova Guard are coming down from the north and they are both the best trained of the two and the closest being only five days away from us. Czerka in contrast are coming from the south and are currently eight days out" said Tor.

"East and West?".

"Sea and mountains respectively. We couldn't get through the mountains in twelve days let alone eight".

"What route are they taking?" asked Harry.

"We are in a hidden vale that is hard to see and easy to defend or at least it would be if we had the trained men. The Nova Guard are coming through the Green Canyon and Czerka is coming up through the Shallow Pass" explained Tor.

"Show me" commanded Harry.

Tor brought out a map from underneath his back pocket and pointed out not only the Green Canyon and the Shallow Pass but where the rebels vale was as well as the estimated positions of their enemies. Harry traced the route of the Nova Guard with his finger and grinned.

"The Nova Guard will be at the Canyon in three days" said Harry before continuing " and if I hurry I can be there in two. I will take the first two droid companies (half a battalion) and stop the Novas. With any luck I'll be back here with them to help fight Czerka".

"And if you're not? Not to be defeatist but what happens if you fail?".

"Then you, with your five thousand farmers, will be a day behind ready to attack the disorganized and battle weary soldiers and then you escape beyond their trap with your men. Believe me the only way that happens is if I am dead and Jedi do not die easy". Seeing Tor's nod Harry continued "If I succeed my droids and I can link up with you and turn and destroy Czerka. I won't lie...your losses are likely to be high but it is your best chance to succeed". Tor looked at Harry skeptically and couldn't help but say " A simple plan...but the best ones often are" before he added " my friend you do realise that you only get one shot at stopping them. The rest of their route is to exposed for an ambush and Czerka has no such vantage for attack along their route".

"I know. I'm very glad that we have the anti-aircraft guns up and running or they wouldn't be coming on foot but rather bombing us into oblivion" stated Harry.

"How are you going to take out the Nova Guard?" asked Tor curious.

"Have you ever heard of a man named Viriathus?" asked Harry knowing that their was no possible way that the man could have done. As Harry said that his mind was already wondering down the road to victory thinking speculatively of the Phrik alloy panels in his ship. Seeing his companions blank look Harry shook his head all the while remembering hiding in the library and reading anything that he could to avoid his relatives in Surrey. "Nevermind. I will leave tonight and hopefully see you in four days".

Three Days Later

As the midday sun beat down on the lush and aptly named Green Canyon a battalion of the famous mercenaries called the Nova Guard entered the Canyon two abreast as the narrow Canyon hugged the bottom of a natural slope on one side and a hard unforgiving five hundred foot drop on the other.

Around two thousand years before Harry was born Viriathus had managed to defeat the Roman army with a very simple and effective tactic. Harry was about to attempt to repeat that feat in the same way.

Harry looked at his droids and nodded who, unlike the double rank of the Ailon Nova Guard, were in single file. They locked their makeshift shields together (fashioned hurriedly from the interior panels of Harry's ship). They had also stuck the light dirt and some grasses on both their chassis (for camouflage) and on the shields themselves (so they could lay behind them at an angle). Harry slowly moved his shield towards its nearest mate, locking it in its place in line.

The droids and Harry were laying almost flat and the shield wall was both roughly camouflaged and complete as well as laying it just in front of them. Time seemed to slow on the hot and muggy day as the partially hidden troop waited for the line of approaching Nova Guard to reach the appropriate position.

Eventually, much like Viriathus before him, Harry signalled his droids and they all with one hand drew vibroknives while picking up the shield with the other. Then Harry and his droids charged with vibroknives held high above the shield but angled at forty five degrees. Harry's lightsaber flared to life in the same fashion even as the now running droid picked up speed.

The Ailon Nova Guard turned and was caught flat footed by the running wall of death that the droids and Harry had become. They were however one of the most highly regarded mercenary units in the Galaxy and so many did managed to draw their neurotoxin covered swords known as the Eklot. Some even drew blasters and ineffectually fired at the wall coming towards them.

It did not do them much good however as, when the moving wall crashed into the front rank with an almighty shudder and bang, they found that not only did their neurotoxins not work on droids but that the strength of said droids was prodigious to say the least. They began to, quite quickly, become pushed further and further back towards the canyon edge. The few that were able to try and fight back either fell to the vibroknives or Harry's lightsaber.

Soon they began to panic knowing that certain death awaited them at the bottom of the canyon and hearing either the heavy breathing of their fellows, high and fast as well as panicked, in their ears behind them or feeling the earth slowly slip beneath their feet and knowing that while they could not look back (all of their focus had to be pushing forward after all) the next step could well be their last.

The Nova Guard was doomed. Harry knew it and so did the Guard themselves but, they did not break and fall to their knees as they were professional soldiers to the end. It took over an hour for the slow push and bloody knives to do away with the small fragment of the Ailon Nova Guard that was on Almania.

The shield wall tactic however was a huge success as though the Guard was slain to a man Harry lost only five droids in the entire conflict.

Soon after (and with a short power nap) Harry had turned to meet the approaching rebels and explained to Tor what he had done. Tor's eyes had widened and his face had paled considerably while gaining a frown. This had only confused Harry.

"What?" Harry said with a matching frown of his own "why are you so upset?".

"It wasn't really a battle was it?" Tor replied moodily.

"Dead is dead Tor" Harry said dismissively "All war is distasteful. If you and your rebels are going to survive, let alone win, you are going to have to do many distasteful things before this is over. Where your personal morals draw the line…. that I cannot help you with. Be aware however that you will not just be deciding for yourself but your whole movement".

"So I should just do whatever it takes to beat the Je'har is that it? I should just forget all about my honour and the honour of the people who serve with me?" questioned Tor.

"No. If you want my advice I would say that too few morals are just as bad as too many. As for where to actually draw the line?" Harry shrugged "I am not you nor would I wish to be. I will say that the Je'har have been treating you almost like an amusement with the mercenaries as their own personal hunting dogs. Be glad that they have treated you like that as, when the full might of the guard comes, you may have actually had enough time to build a force that could stand a chance".

Harry began to walk back towards their camp with his droids forming behind him, a few carrying the damaged parts of their brothers for repair, calling back over his shoulder "If you are concerned with honour? Honour the dead by saving as many of the living as you can".

Tor looked at the back of the man that he knew as William Potter shaking his head and his eyes sorrowful. Tor knew that he had to save his people and he also knew, from their long discussions over planning the next encounter or skirmish, that his friend was not a bad man. Still he hoped that neither he nor his friend lost too much of themselves in this war and he hoped that his home would weather the storm.

Within the week Harry, his droids and a few hundred armed rebels faced Czerka in a running skirmish in woodland and though the rebels did lose a few men they were victorious. Once they had won they removed the weapons from the dead and redistributed them amongst the army.

Their greatest asset at the moment was being mobile and the downside of that was that they simply had no firm idea when the next Potter funded cargo ship could brave what was rapidly becoming a hostile approach before delivering supplies.

So they looted the dead and they tore down rich second caste houses to buy things from a rapidly expanding black market though, to their credit a cargo ship on behalf of Potter Industries seemed to get through on average around once a month.

After Czerka's defeat Tor, Harry and the rebels removed strategic and useful parts from the Patience cannibalising and disabling the ship before moving deeper into the hills and mountains. They took everything they could carry and, of course, the mobile anti air turrets on floating sleds came with them as well.

Over the next four years rebel sentiment caused a swell in numbers with the formally tiny group eventually numbering just over 140,000 men and women and it was still growing by the day. It was around that time that the rebels felt secure enough to not only try and take back their planet but also, possibly, take the fight truly to their oppressors.

The Galaxy watched with increasing interest as the reports kept coming from inside the conflict itself no matter what the Je'har tried to do to stop them. There were weekly images of workhouses being freed where people of the lower castes were worked and whipped to death in a fashion so horrid that appalled many, even some Hutts looked uncomfortable. There were true and documented account of the rebellions doctors, often led by Knight Potter, trying to save as many of those unfortunates as they could.

The de facto leaders of the rebellion Knight Potter and General Dalon were often seen on the Holonet not only helping the sick and injured as much as they could but playing key roles in the decisive battles of the rebellion. Often the impulsive but brilliant insights of Knight Potter or the calm methodical nature of General Dalon turned the tide of a battle.

The rebels and, by extension the Holonet, had even given them nicknames almost like beloved characters from a children's book rather than the hard fighting life and death warriors that they were. They called Dalon The Wall as, it was whispered, that where The Wall stood the enemy broke and ran against his unbreakable will.

Harry on the other hand was simply called the Jedi Lord. Even now centuries after the Army of Light stories were still told of the kind yet grim faced Jedi who fought across the Galaxy against evil and, in many cases, effectively ruled the planets they saved with a benign hand.

It wasn't that either man encouraged this but, after four years of fighting and beating the odds, their reputations were slowly becoming legendary whether they wanted them to or not.

Thanks to this, not only was recruitment increasing for the rebels but the goodwill that the Je'har had in the Senate was further and further eroded with some now openly calling for the unconditional surrender of the Je'har due to human rights atrocities or, in the alternative, a peace treaty that removed them from power. Some even wondered why there was only one Jedi there, given all that they were seeing, the Council however was silent and repeatedly refused to be drawn into any debate regarding Almania.

Sadly the ruling elite simply hired more mercenaries, activated the entirety of the Home Guard to the threat and by using their ships and personnel had managed to cut off all air traffic at the end of the third year, if not communications, between Almania and the rest of the Galaxy.

The Civil war for Almania was coming to a head.