Yes, they _should _be leaving today, but the universe had other plans for them, it usually does. Jurhan still remembered earlier that day, when Luke had called all his students to the great lecture hall. Jurhan had entered a bit late as usual, and slipped into his seat next to Kehmar Ma and a female trainee, Lace, he said hi to his friend and winked at the girl, whom he had flirted with his whole tenure at the academy. The hall’s casual chatter bled away to complete silence when Luke stepped onto the stage. "The Planet of Sallase has fallen to an epidemic. We, as Jedi must go help, This afternoon, we will set out, and once there we will land on the planet and help in anyway possible." He told the students. One of the other students, named Barakiss raised his hand. "Master Skywalker, if we go onto the planet, won’t we become sick?" Luke smiled. "No, through the force, you’ll be able to control the spread of the disease through you’re body. We will help the inhabitants of Sallase until they receive the cure." Luke told him.

Yes, the cure, Luke had called Jurhan and Kehmar Ma into a private meeting later that day. Luke needed the two of them to get the cure. With their extra training, they’ll be perfect to get it. Jurhan noticed the suitability of the comment. "Master, what do you mean, we’ll be perfect to get it? Where exactly is this cure?" Jurhan asked. "What was once known as the most dangerous place in a galaxy. Jabba The Hut’s Palace." Luke said. The virus that had sprung up on Sallase had appeared before. The Empire had purchased the cure, through the black sun, from Jabba The Hut, and now it was up to the two Jedi knights to get in and get into the dead crime bosses palace and it get it for the New Republic. Jurhan’s train of thought was interuppted as he and Kehmar Ma got to the landing field, there, taking up most of the grassy field that made up the landing are, was a huge transport, like the one used during the rebel evacuation from the planet Hoth. Jedi students waited in line to board. The two Jedi Knights walked past it Jurhan saw Lace in line, she blew him a kiss, he smiled at her and then turned back to where they were going. They stepped into the cool, damp hangar under the temple, which had once housed X-wings and Y-wings when the temple had been a rebel base. Inside they found the ship that would take them to Tatooine, the ship’s name was _Yavin’s Revenge._

It was sleek black passenger shuttle with two blaster impalcements, but little else. Jurhan made a mental note to improve the ship if ever he got a chance. Climbing onboard, they found there to be four rooms, an engine compartment, and a cockpit. Jurhan sat down in the pilot seat and begin to check his instruments, Kehmar Ma began to check the rest of the ship. Eventually, both men were strapped in up front. Jurhan pressed three controls and, with a whine, the repulsor lifts pulled the ship off the ground. The sublight engines built to a roar, as the _Yavin’s Revenge _slowly slid from the hangar bay it angled up and shot towards the sky like a lighting bug.

The clouds and sky began to bleed off into the blackness of space, illuminated by the fiery gas giant of Yavin. Kehmar Ma unbuckled his acceleration straps, and moved into the navigation chair. He opened the star charts, and began to plot the coarse to Tatioone. Once done, Jurhan reached up, and pulled the lever on top of the control panel. Outside, the stars elongated into streaks and the ship shot ahead into hyperspace.

______* * *______

Tatooine loomed ahead, a sandy colored ball. Jurhan pulled the _Revenge _in and landed it in docking bay 42 at Mos Eisley. They stepped down the boarding ramp. "So what’s the first move?" Kehmar Ma asked. Jurhan turned around. "First I’ll head over to the cantina, there we’ll be able to find someone who knows the location of Jabba’s Palace." He said. "Meanwhile, you see if you can get us some transportation there." The Cantina, as usual, was bustling with activity. Jurhan made his way in front of the stage, across to the bar on the far wall. He had pulled his hood up, and kept his Jedi Cloak pulled close around himself. He passed a rack of musical disks advertising the band playing on stage. Jurhan continued and sat down at one of the stools. He ordered a drink, a kind of hot chocolate, with a mint twist, introduced to him by Luke. He began sipping it when he felt a presence behind him, and within it, anger swelling.

"You’re sittin in my seat." The man said. "My apologizes." Jurhan said, about to stand. "I’ll move." "NO! No one sits in my seat, and gets away with it." the man said. The familiar sound of a blaster pistol charging rang in his ears. From under his cloak, barely noticeable by his attacker, his foot lashed out. The burly human flew backward into one of the tables, it crashed to the floor, the blaster flew from his hand. The man stood, and grabbed a snapped off table leg. He ran to Jurhan, who spun, his white lightsaber flared to life, and sliced the leg in half. Jurhan’s fist fired fourth and the man fell to the ground, unconscious. Jurhan deactivated his saber, and returned to drinking his drink. All over the bar, murmurs ran through the crowd, he heard the word Jedi whispered several times

A bit later, A Barabel walked up and sat next to him. "What is Jedi doing here?" the alien asked. "I’m looking for something." Jurhan replied. "You are Jedi, for you, I help." The Barabel said. Jurhan turned and looked at him.

"No, no, not buy, rent. I don’t want it permanently, just while I’m here." Kehmar Ma said calmly to the speeder dealer. He pushed a hair from his face, "Do you speak basic?" he asked. The dealer angled his head and looked at the Jedi. Kehmar Ma sighed, and turned to the cantina entrance. He was relieved when He saw Jurhan exit, and walk to him. "I’ve got the map, what’s taking so long?" Jurhan asked. "He doesn’t understand the concept of renting." Kehmar Ma said cooly. "Let me handel it." Jurhan stepped forward and began to speak to the dealer. Kehmar Ma recognized the language, Hatise, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying. Right now he wished he had taken Hatise instead of Talz, but there was no way to change that now. Jurhan turned around. "We got it." he said. "Huh?" Kehmar Ma said in confusion. "You’ve just bought you’re self a speeder." Jurhan said slapping his hand to Kehmar Ma’s chest. "Jurhan.. You’re not serious are you? Are you?" Kehmar Ma called to him as he walked back to the speeder.

______* * *______

Jabba’s Palace was in a state of disarray. The main building was there, only it was cracked in several places, and the roof had collapsed in a few. The side tower, that held the weapons port had fallen as well. Jurhan thought this odd, as he pulled the speeder to a stop. Duracrete shouldn’t be that damaged after even 30 years, and it had only been 15. He climbed out. Kehmar Ma sat in it resentful that he had bought it, then followed Jurhan out. He looked at the upper levels closely and realized some one had used heavy blasters to blast open the landing deck of the palace "Well," Jurhan said as he walked up to the heavy metal door, "Think there’s a back door?" he asked. Kehmar Ma walked up. "I don’t think so, perhaps we can cut a section out with our lightsabers." Kehmar Ma said. "Just a second." Jurhan exclaimed coming to a hole blown out in the door. "I think there’s some one already inside."

They stepped through, and over the fallen section. Kehmar Ma’s hand went immediately to his lightsaber. Jurhan began to walk forward. Cautiously, they walked down the narrow passageway, illuminated only by the cut in the door. Strangely, up ahead they saw a light coming out from the end of the tunnel. The emerged from he tunnel into a lit cross shaped room. The part they were in led across the opposite wall, and through into a stairway. But then, they knew. Jurhan felt it first, he pulled his lightsaber from his belt, and with a snap-hiss, the ivory blade extended from the hilt. At either end of the cross-section were heavy wall mounted, blasters, that were trained on the two Jedi. Jurhan’s fired one shot, which he parried, it struck a wall and the palace rumbled. Two more, the second he reflected back towards the guns. Then another, which he deflected into a smoking black smudge on the floor next to his feet. "If this keeps up the palace will collapse!" Jurhan shouted The third blast hit his saber, and flew back directly into the barrel of the blaster, which exploded in a shower of sparks. Jurhan released a deep breath. Kehmar Ma was about to congratulate him, when the blaster at the other end of the cross-section flared to life, opening up on them. Kehmar Ma’s blue blade parried four bolts before it too deflected a shot back into the gun barrel.

They headed through the doorway at the end of the hall, Into a plushly decorated room reserved for Jabba’s more important clientele. Outside the room, was a small stairway, no more then three of four steps, and at the bottom, a landing, and a door to the left, and more steps leading through that. They marched through the door, and found them selves in Jabba’s main audience chamber. And right in the middle of a gang with their blasters leveled directly at their chest.

Jurhan and Kehmar Ma were relived of their lightsabers by the group, and brought forward to Jabba’s throne. On top of it was an ornate wooden chair, sitting in it was a broad-shouldered man, with black hair and a beard. He wore black gloves, black pants, and a black jacket over purple pants. Holstered at his hip was a large Blastech DY-440 sniper blaster, the next one of the line after Han Solo’s infamous model. He smiled. "Well, well, well, what have we here? a couple of good willed Jedi Knights come looking for the cure to Sallases plague?" He said. Jurhan recognized him. Weekly, during their NRIO training, they were shown mug shots of the galaxy’s most infamous criminals, this ones had come up, his name was name was... "Kember Creige." Jurhan said. "In the flesh." Creige responded. "What are you doing here?" Kehmar Ma asked, "Same as you, I came to get the cure, and sell it to the New Republic." Creige said. Jurhan’s mind reeled, he felt it, exactly what Creige was thinking, and he said so. "You lie!" he said. Creige threw his had back in laughter. He looked Jurhan right in the eye and spoke. "Yes, I lie, I actually had my people plant the virus on Sallase, and now I intend to sell the cure to the New Republic." He said with a smile. Jurhan wanted to launch himself at Creige for causing such death. He looked to the goon holding his lightsaber, and began to concentrate. Something on the arm of the chair beeped. "Uh-oh, he’s here." Creige said. Before any one asked he told them who. "This Bounty Hunter’s been following us for weeks now, the last planet we were on, we slipped a tracking device on the outside of the ship, and one on the inside right next to his main control console." Creige said with a slight laugh. "Alright boys let’s finish here and get out." Creige looked at Jurhan and Kehmar Ma, as if suddenly noticing them. "But, we can’t have Jedi Knights sitting around, poking in our business can we?" he said. Creige reached forward, and depressed a button on the chair’s arm rest. Jurhan’s concentration was broken when the floor beneath him dropped out, and he found himself sliding down a chute behind Kehmar Ma.

A small door at the end opened up, and he fell through. Jurhan stood and looked around trying to get a handle on his bearings. Looking around he realized he was in the Rancor pit. It was a subterraininan cave underneath Jabba’s actual palace, on the far wall, there was the bleached white skeleton of a long dead, and scavenged rancor, unlike most rancor’s which mumafy after death, this one, which had been killed by Luke Skywalker, had been knawed on , and stripped of it’s flesh by the many rats and snakes and other creatures living in the sandy pit. The heavy door which comprised the far wall, was closed, it had separated the beasts head from it’s body. Jurhan shivered. "Why send us down here with nothing to harm us?" Kehmar Ma asked. "Because he wants to keep us down here, where there’s no way out, and we’re conveniently out of the way." Jurhan replied. They went over, and closely examined the door. On the other side, they felt the presence of a large animal. "Well, that way’s out." Kehmar Ma said. "Not necessarily." Jurhan replied. "I have an idea."

Kehmar Ma stood in front of large iron door blocking the only exit from them. Jurhan stood by the wall, on the other side was the control button to open the door. He closed his eyes, and concentrated. On the other side, the force surged, and the button depressed. The door slowly began to, surprising, lift. Kehmar Ma leaped up and grabbed on of the jagged teeth that held the door down. A shimmering crystal creature ran towards them, It turned to Jurhan, him being the only target. He ran and leapt into the air, but the creature was already under the door. It leaped up towards him. He flipped, and landed on the creature’s elongated snout. He used it to further propel him, along with a mid air somersault, onto another of the door’s teeth. The animal landed and slid through the sand to the other side of the pit. Both of the Jedi swung forward, and landed just past the door. Creige’s creature got up, and shook it’s head, relentlessly, it began to run towards Jurhan and Kehmar Ma. Jurhan threw his last bit of force energy at the door control, and it began to slowly lower. The creature continued running, suddenly, the door creaked, and blow out, falling down in front of the animal, trapping it on the other side. "Now all we have to do is get out of here." Jurhan commented. They stepped to the door way leading out into the rest of the palace, it was covered by a steel cage like door. They looked around for the door control, when the door opened. Jurhan stepped out, looked around, and found him self on the business end of a sawed off blaster being held by the mandalorian bounty hunter, Boba Fett.

"Fett, what are you doing here?" Jurhan asked. "Looking for Kember Creige." Fett said. Jurhan walked up to him. "He’s in Jabba’s store house, collecting a cure, we can go together I have a plan." Jurhan said. "I work alone." Fett told him. "You can’t leave us here, you helped us once, why not again." Jurhan said. "You were paying me before." Fett said. The bounty hunter turned to walk out of the room. Quickly, Jurhan ran through his mind, there had to be something that he could use to help them, something at least he could say to keep him from leaving. Then he struck upon it. "Creige’s got a tracking device on you’re ship!" he shouted. Fett turned. "I’d know." he said. "No, because it’s not anywhere you’d know about. Let us go with you, and we’ll tell you where it is." Kehmar Ma said. Fett paused. "You can go." He said, then abruptly turned and left.

Jurhan, and Kehmar Ma followed Boba Fett, who took them up two flights of hidden stairs into a small room just above the throne room. As they climbed Jurhan noticed small hidden areas in the walls of the stairway. Inside there was a wide array of things, from spice to blasters. Jurhan grabbed a small hand held one, and slid it into his belt, underneath is cloak. They got to the room, and from the shadows, watched as Creiges men loaded canisters of the plagues cure onto a truck. On a nearby table lay Jurhan’s and Kehmar Ma’s lightsabers. "No blasters guys, especially on the next floor, after the pummeling it’s taken, Any loud noises would cause it to collapse." Jurhan said, then he let his eyes fall shut. On the table his lightsaber began to quiver, beside it Kehmar Ma’s did as well. The shot fourth into the waiting hands of the Jedi. with a snap-hiss the blades shot out. Crieges thugs pulled out blasters. They began to fire, Jurhan parried as many bolts as he could. While his partner pulled the guns from their hands. The blasters flew through the air, and shattered against the rock walls beside the hidden stair case. Boba Fett stepped into the fray, firing his sawed off blaster with deadly accuracy. Each of Creiges men were gunned down by the ruthless bounty hunter. Jurhan looked at Fett angrily, "What did I say?" and Kehmar Ma followed Boba Fett at a run to the next level up, where Creige’s ship docked. There he stood smiling as the gang plank raised. "So long! Boba Fett!" he shouted of the ships repulsors. Fett raised his gun to fire. Jurhan made a quick glance around the docking port, pillars precariously stood holding the roof up. "NO!" shouted Jurhan, knocking the gun aside. "That blast might bring the whole place down on us!" He shouted. The Ship pulled out, causing the landing platform to fall inward to a lower level. With a roar Creige’s ship rocketed off to Mos Eisley. "Where’s the tracking device?" Fett said angrily. "What’d we do?" Jurhan asked. "You’ve cost me a bounty, that’s not something I soon forget. No where’s the tracking device?" Fett sneared. "It’s next to the main console in you’re cockpit." Jurhan muttered. "But we still have a mission to complete." he added. "That’s fine, just..." Fett began. He was cut off by a rumble below him, the truck carrying the cure started up. "Kehmar Ma, run down and see if you can stop it!’’ Jurhan shouted. "What are you going to do?" Boba Fett asked. "Something stupid." Jurhan said stepping to the wall on the far side of an open window.

Kehmar Ma ran down to the lower level in enough time to see the truck lift on it’s repulsor lifts and fly off.

Jurhan felt it to. And ran. He leaped through the window and out onto the top of the truck. "Alright, I made it!" he thought, "Now I need a plan." He looked around the back of the truck for some way to stop it. Then seeing the engines, it hit him. Jurhan reached back, and pulled out the blaster he grabbed from the hidden compartments in Jabba’s palace, He aimed at the engines and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. He examined it, the gun hadn’t been used serviced, or as much as looked at in the past 11 years. He shook it, and aimed again, he pulled the trigger, and a bright red blaster bolt leapt into the engines, the front of the gun fell off, and it then broke in half, but it still fired. Jurhan smiled, then grabbed hold of the side as the engines exploded sending the truck into a wild fishtail. It crashed into a sand dune and it’s occupants got out and ran. Jurhan pulled himself up, he couldn’t stand very well, let alone chase them. He figured they’d get away, until he saw Kehmar Ma pull up in front of them with in the speeder. "At least Boba Fett will have two of Creige’s gang." Jurhan thought. He weakly climbed from the dune into the front passenger seat. Kehmar Ma got in behind him, after having put the thugs in the back, he activated the engines and flew the ship back to Mos Eisley. The Red planet of Yavin hung heavily in the sky of Yavin 4. On the Jedi Academy’s parade field, Jurhan and Kehmar Ma stood along side them were several other students form the Jedi Academy, aliens and humans, all stood quietly as Luke Skywalker stood to the podium to make his speech. "A Jedi master should always be calm, with the force as his allay, he never need fear, or surprise. However, on this day, I will show happiness. As the second class to graduate from the Academy, You will join you’re fellow Jedi Knights in protection of the galaxy." He said. " The Jedi master Yoda once said to me, A Jedi does not crave adventure and excitement. At the time, I thought that they meant we were above that. I know now what they meant. A Jedi does not crave adventure, because all his days are filled with adventure. He need not seek excitement, because excitement seeks him. You may think that now with the force as allay you may rest. This is not the case, it only gets more interesting now." Luke said. "And so my fellow Jedi." He said, unclipping and ignighting his lightsaber. "I salute you." With a hum he thrust his blade into the air. Each of the students activated their sabers and followed suit. Amongst them, the ivory and blue blades hummed.

At the party after ward Jurhan was confronted by Lace. "So Jurhan, what’s next for you guys?" Jurhan looked at her, pulled up and planted a kiss on her lips. "I’m sure we’ll think of something." He said.

The End

Well that’s all for now, at least until the next YJK book comes out, then I’ll return to the present story line, it’ll be a really good story, but it’ll be based directly on this story. Until then, "Smoke me a kipper, I’ll be back for breakfast." -Justin