Chapter 18: Sometimes a Tree isn’t just a Tree

Summary: And now to find out why they needed to meet up on Ossus, specifically...

Chapter 18: Sometimes a Tree isn't just a Tree

Izuku sighed as he finished a cool-down jog. His usual workout was something familiar, something mindless. And that was something he'd needed after the last ten days. His own breakdown with Fay had been, if anything, worse than Aayla's. Aayla had suffered a deeply personal loss, one that Izuku was only just beginning to understand the depth of as she told a few stories about Quinlan Voss in fits and starts. Some were happy, some were sad, and many were quite funny. Each one that she'd shared with him, and each session of meditation she'd had with Master Fay, had seemed to soothe an aching wound in Aayla's Force presence that he hadn't even understood was there. For all the pain of that loss, and the trauma of her experiences that had followed, Aayla's issues had been largely confined to relatively recent happenings.

The fact that Fay had chided both of them for missing the obvious, picked up the remote to Aayla's chastity belt, and simply meditated for a second before punching in the release code hadn't hurt anything either. Admittedly, they had both been embarrassed at having to explain the need…then doubly embarrassed that neither of them had thought to use the Force for a solution. Aayla had groaned at the returning memory of her own master teaching her a similar means to bypass security codes, though admitted she might not have been able to do anything with it so far out from the last time a living being used the code. Izuku had been even more chagrined when he realized that the same sort of odd pseudo-psychometry he'd used to try and figure out the Jebble Box almost certainly would have worked. Fay had simply grinned, waited for Aayla to take a very thorough shower, then used the experience as a segue for helping Aayla farther with relearning to center herself for meditation.

There were no such simple solutions for Izuku. He couldn't meditate a way back home, with the one try Fay had made with him getting a very firm 'no' from the Force. Nor were his issues all so recent or so confined to singular losses and short term experiences. While Aayla was having a few issues beyond the loss of her master, that one issue was her biggest central trauma. Izuku, on the other hand, had dozens of 'central traumas' to pick from. More than one friend, or at least classmate, had died during his time at UA. His mentor, Miruko, had herself been killed only a month before he'd graduated. And the mass loss of civilian life during the struggle against the League, Humarise, and the MLA, had been extremely hard for all the Heroes to cope with. Even his relationship with his mother had been strained, by the end, as she'd begged him to walk away from being a hero…and he'd refused.

He had seen a therapist for some of it, of course. All of them had. But he'd also lacked much in the way of a support network after his estrangement from his mother and the death of Miruko. Nor had there really been all that many therapists properly equipped to deal with the clusterfuck heroism in Japan had turned into by the end. There were still a lot of bleeding wounds there, many of them reopened a bit by the knowledge he would never get to see what good all of it did. He wouldn't get to mend bridges with his mother, couldn't visit Rumi's grave. His voice against the HPSC's bullshit wouldn't be there, and he'd never have a chance to try changing the system for the better.

Master Fay had been an immense help in dealing with it all. Far more than any of the therapists he'd seen in the past. A part of that had been that, despite her own peaceful nature, Fay had seen far more tragedy of every kind than he had. Sometimes even on a planetary or sector scale he could scarcely wrap his head around. She understood in a way that Aayla couldn't yet and hopefully never would. In a way that none of his therapists, save a fantastically overworked Hound Dog, had ever really been able to claim. She had helped him remember that, for every loss and every perceived failure, he'd saved hundreds or thousands in turn. That, people like Miruko had died how they lived, proudly and selflessly standing in the way of evil until their last breath. It was, perhaps, ironic that the single most peaceful soul he'd ever met was the one who understood Miruko, of all people, the most. But Fay did understand, just as she understood what drove Izuku himself.

She was also able to offer some ways to improve. One of the reasons he had, despite it seeming very odd for his originally somewhat timid nature, actually clicked pretty well with Miruko, was that he always wanted to be better. He could, to at least some extent, accept his mistakes if he could also work to avoid repeating them. In his former mentor's words: 'To make mistakes is human. To refuse to make the same one twice is what makes us something more.'

His unwillingness to listen to a power he didn't understand had made him overlook the simple solution to Aayla's problem. To focus so heavily on fighting had prevented him from knowing how to heal. Fay presented the perfect opportunity to properly learn what he was dealing with, in both respects. Even if the Jedi Master herself admitted that the strength of Izuku's connection to the Force was even more unusual than her own. Part of every session with her, beyond that first breakdown, had been focused on learning what the Force was and how to make use of his unique connection to it. He knew full well that he was barely skimming the surface, but already he had found better ways to deal with the 'noise' the Force constantly bombarded him with than simply shutting it out entirely. He'd also begun to learn a few simple methods of self-healing, which Fay claimed would eventually lead to the ability to heal others. A claim he certainly wasn't about to refute, given what he'd finally learned about Fay from Aayla.

Master Fay was, according to what Aayla knew, one of the very few 'Wandering Jedi.' Jedi who didn't answer to any of the various councils at all, only following the Will of the Force. She was, despite her youthful appearance, centuries old. How old Aayla had no idea, but she was old enough and disconnected enough from the regular Jedi Order that Aayla had blushingly admitted she'd thought the woman was some sort of myth or fairytale. The sort of example one held up to younglings as an exemplar of what one should be. She was fuzzy on the details, as Fay hadn't come in farther than the mid-rim in generations, but the Jedi Master was apparently famous for ending wars with no bloodshed, stopping plagues in their tracks almost single-handedly, and pulling off seemingly impossible feats with pure Force. She was also, curiously, the only Jedi Aayla new of who was famous for never using a lightsaber at all.

On his way back to the ship, Izuku passed through the plaza where they'd first met Fay, and cocked his head in curiosity as he saw her once again kneeling before the great tree there in meditation. His shields more carefully modulated to be open to the Force now than they had been then, if only a little bit, he could feel her sending delicate tendrils of the thought into the tree. Curious, he almost changed course to see what she was doing…until he remembered he was soaked in sweat from his attempts to get back into a regular workout routine. He'd been frankly appalled when he first restarted his old workout from his days with Miruko and discovered the months since his first arrival here had cost him some of his physical edge. The fact that the simple self-healing he was starting to learn was rapidly helping him regain that edge was quite the added bonus. Sadly, it didn't do anything for the smell of sweaty Izuku. Better take a shower first, before checking out what Master Fay was up to…

... ...

It was half an hour later when a much cleaner Izuku, in much fresher clothing, returned. Master Fay was still in exactly the same spot she had been, but noticed his approach immediately. Instead of pulling completely away from her effort, however, she split her focus and waved him to join her. As he knelt beside her, more than a bit confused, she spoke. The fact she could do so despite what he could feel her still doing with the Force was an awe-inspiring feat of multitasking in and of itself. One that nearly distracted him from her actual words.

"Have you noticed anything odd about this tree, since you created your new shields?"

Izuku blinked, considered that, then turned his attention to the tree. He had noticed something, but had dismissed it as being a Jedi thing, given it was right next to the Great Library. The tree positively glowed in the Force, in a way matched only by Fay herself in Izuku's limited experience.

"It radiates the Force. Is that unusual? I assumed it must have been some Force plant that grew here because of the Library."

Izuku was startled by a gurgle of laughter erupting from Master Fay. Her concentration on the Force tendrils she'd been using actually faltered for a moment, indicating he'd truly surprised her with his comment. There was a great deal of amusement laced in her voice as the Force technique steadied and she spoke again.

"I rather think that's more literally true than you realize, young one. Though not quite in the way you think. This 'tree' is actually a Neti. Quite possibly Ood Bnar himself. It is possible it is one of his descendants instead, but his position here on one of the landing fields for The Great Library makes me believe it more likely to be him. They were trying to evacuate the Library back then, after all."

Izuku blinked. Was she saying the tree was a sentient lifeform? Wait, hadn't he read that name when he was looking up information on Ossus? Something to do with…

"Wait. Ood Bnar? As in the one of the Founders of the Great Library?!"

"Indeed. A great Jedi scholar, he was initially believed lost when Exar Kun sacked Ossus during its evacuation. It was only when the world was rediscovered that Jedi of the time found this spot and realized what it might mean. You see, Ood Bnar was, or perhaps is, a Neti. A species of incredibly long-lived, shapeshifting and sentient plants. Their homeworld is long gone, but a few of the species remain. There is even one in the Jedi order now, I believe, a relatively young example of the species named T'ra Sa. Though young is relative, of course, as I believe she is only a century or so younger than I."

That…that was a lot to unpack. Izuku had been thrown for a loop by Fay's age, though exactly how old she was he hadn't dared to ask. He'd known, from even skimming bits of information here and there, that long-lived species were a thing. The Hutts could easily live a thousand years, which actually explained a lot about why Hutt Space was still independent. That section of space had belonged to the Hutts since before the Republic came to exist, with the explored section of space known as 'The Slice' growing around it instead of consuming it. But with this, Fay was talking closer to four thousand years, not one thousand.

"Is he…aware?"

That seemed very boring to Izuku. But maybe it was normal for Neti? Fay chuckled, but it was a more subdued thing than his initial comment had brought out of her.

"No. Neti are able to enter a sort of hibernation. Given his location here on the landing pad, it is presumed that he was caught up in Exar Kun's raid while attempting to evacuate. Jedi Master of incredible knowledge he might have been, but Ood Bnar wasn't a warrior. The theory is that he was either wounded here in the attack, or else protecting some relic or other from the raiders, and embraced the hibernation as a means to survive. Between the sheltered nature of the canyon and the protection of his hibernation, he apparently survived even the shockwave of the Supernova. But he's so deep into his hibernation that he can't bring himself out. Others have tried what I am before and failed to help him."

Suddenly, Fay's focus on the tree…the Neti, Izuku quickly corrected himself, made a lot more sense than it had a few minutes ago. Fay was a healer and, from what little he knew, extremely talented in the more esoteric branches of the Force.

"You're trying to wake him?"

Fay nodded, then pulled back from her focus just a bit more so she could look at him properly.

"Yes. It is one of the tasks I was sent here for. It's quite unusual to be sent somewhere for several different reasons, even for me. Yet here I am. I was meant to help you and Aayla, of course. But I came here so that you would come here, and bring with you the artifact called the Jebble Box. It is as Force-dead to me as to you or Aayla, yet something tells me Ood Bnar is needed once more, to deal with its contents. And that doing so will be important somehow. Given the rising tide of the dark side in recent times, I was not about to resist such a clear call, even if others have failed before."

Izuku needed to chew on that for a moment. Fay, ever patient, simply let him, returning her attention to the Neti she was attempting to wake. There was several things there that were poking at Izuku's brain. One was that mention of the 'rising tide of the dark side.' He'd felt a strong pulse of importance to that phrase when she'd said it, and carefully opened his shields a bit more to see if there was more information to be had. There was, sort of. Yet he hadn't made nearly enough progress with understanding how to filter the babble of information all around him. Without a specific focus, he was simply getting a lot of ominous tidbits that made little sense to him.

Frowning, he considered for a moment, before trying something a bit more focused. Was there a way he could help the…Izuku groaned as the obvious answer slapped him in the face. Fay seemed to hear something in that groan, or perhaps she sensed something in the Force, as she shifted far more of her attention to him, nearly letting her effort go entirely this time.

"My Quirk. I was telepathic even before I came to this galaxy and connected to the Force. Even assuming that my Quirk directly has something to do with the Force..."

Izuku reached out to the Neti in front of them, using Fay's own Force Technique as a guide to where one would find a Neti's mind. This being was so alien to him on a biological level that he'd have never known where to start looking without the tendrils of thought and Force she was using. But with those as a guide…he found the sleeping mind of the Neti in moments. Considering what to do with that for a moment, he grinned. This guy had survived a supernova. Surely, his favorite trick to wake his very-much-not-a-morning-person-rabbit-mentor up wouldn't hurt him? It was a trick that often ended in a high-strung ass kicking, but had been oh-so-worth-her-reactions. Not taking time to double think himself, Izuku pumped the sensation of the one time he'd accidently drunk a bit of Eraserhead's coffee straight into the Neti's brain…

The reaction was instant.

It was so fast, in fact, that Fay actually yelped and instinctively scrambled back from the suddenly flailing tree. So did Izuku, but he had been half expecting it and managed to hop to his feet and away from the writhing and twitching plant with far more grace that the ancient Jedi Master. He'd sworn that coffee could wake the dead…after he'd come down from the near lethal levels of caffeine and sugar. And, you know, after he'd had to explain to everyone what little he could remember of the hyper-active-training-spree-of-doom that had leveled most of three separate training zones. Apparently, even if he hadn't had a chance to try it on the dead, the memory of it was enough to wake someone from the almost dead. Which was close enough for Izuku to feel completely justified in his previous defense that his rampage had been all the coffee's fault.

Of course, at the moment, he was a bit more focused on watching with fascination as ancient roots ripped up from the stone of the landing field, all of them compressing toward a growing central body of wood. By the time that central mass reached four meters in height, he was admittedly reconsidering his life choices and wondering if he needed to run. Thankfully, once all the roots had gathered, the bulk began to compress again, shrinking even as it took on vaguely humanoid features. Despite the initial jolt clearly starting the ancient Jedi, the process slowed as he seemed to realize something was amiss.

Over the next few minutes, the rough-hewn humanoid features seemed to twitch and shift, as if trying to compress farther. At three meters, the attempt stopped, as Odd Bnar seemed to give it up as a bad job and focus on detail. Not that he succeeded all that well there, either. Hands formed well enough, as did claw-like feet. But he certainly wouldn't be winning any prizes for beauty, Izuku thought, even as the very rough-shaped forms of eyes and a mouth were carved out of the Neti's 'face.' Those eyes blinked open, causing Izuku to blink back as they proved to simply be differently-shaped and colored bits of wood. Yet, apparently, he could indeed see in some fashion as those eyes focused quickly on Fay and Izuku as they stood several meters from him, clear of the accidental destruction he'd wrought in awakening. The deep rumbling voice that emerged a moment later was, given the Neti's size, almost expected.

"Well now, that was quite a rude awakening. Yet, given how much I seem to have increased in mass since I was last aware of my surroundings, I suspect far more time than I had hoped has passed. Not, in truth, that I was entirely sure I would awaken at all. I had half expected Exar Kun to hack my body apart to reach the cache of lightsabers I was protecting."

Izuku was very grateful that Fay was quick to take the lead. He had zero idea what the protocol was for dealing with someone that had been a tree for nearly four thousand years.

"You have indeed, Master. Given your comment, I believe we were correct in thinking that you are Ood Bnar? The order had thought as much, but until now has failed to reawaken you."

The Neti nodded, the motion almost ponderous given his size. He glanced curiously at Izuku, before focusing on Fay.

"That is my name, yes. If I did not feel some curious bit of lingering indignation toward your companion, I would assume it was you who had awoken me, Child of the Daughter. How long have I slept?"

Fay's seemed surprised again at the title he had given her, face shifting to a rueful grin as she responded.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you recognized her touch on me. You truly do live up to your reputation. As for how long you have slept, I'm sorry to say that it has been quite close to four thousand years since Exar Kun's war. As I mentioned, other attempts have been made to wake you before, as early as just a few hundred years afterward when the hyperlanes around Ossus stabilized. But all failed until today."

Despite the roughness of his features, it was easy to see that the Neti was taken aback by the amount of time. Something that was even more apparent in the shock he radiated to Izuku's empathic senses. Shock so potent that Izuku could feel Aayla responding to it back at the ship and scrambling to join them. Ood Bnar was silent for long minutes, with Izuku and Fay more than willing to give him the time to process that revelation. The silence stretched long enough for a wide-eyed Aayla to join them, with Izuku whispering what had happened to her as she did. Finally, the Neti managed to gather himself, seeming a mix of sheepish and sorrowful as he spoke again.

"Yes, well, I suppose these things happen to the best of us. May I hope, given that at least two of you are Jedi, that Exar Kun lost, at least?"

Master Fay smiled gently, and Izuku was still grateful she was handling this, thank you very much!

"He did. Indeed, his attack on Ossus was one of the last offensive operations he managed, he and his allies were systematically defeated not long after. He was slain on the moon of Yavin IV, and his armies swiftly fell to chaos without him at the helm. I am sad to say his was not the last war we have fought with the Sith in the eons since, however."

Ood Bnar hummed in clear satisfaction, then sighed in regret.

"Yes, given that the Force feels even darker now than when I first went into hibernation, I imagine you are at war with them again, even now."

Aayla and Izuku looked at each other, startled…and then both of their gazes snapped to Fay as they felt her complete lack of surprise, mixed with not a little chagrin. What?

"In truth, we do not know what is going on. I keep little contact with the rest of the Jedi, but I did receive a most insistent update from them just under a year ago. They had taken some considerable pains to have a courier track myself and the other wandering Jedi down, in regards to the reemergence of a possible Sith during a crisis on the world of Naboo. We had, until then, thought them finally wiped out entirely. A thousand years with not a peep from them, only to have one turn up very much alive and involved in the dispute there. The darkening of the Force you mention had been going on for some time before that, but no one knew what it meant."

Ood Bnar looked and felt surprised again, at that.

"Truly? Yet, to me the Force feels even more out of balance now than it did the day Ossus burned, at the height of Exar Kun's destruction. Indeed, it feels almost polluted. Like a pall has been cast over it, not from a single source but many. I expected you to say there was another galactic wide war ongoing, or at least eminent."

An uneasy surprise radiated freely from both Aayla and Master Fay. Izuku wasn't exactly excited to hear that news either, but he knew he was missing the context that the three Jedi had. There was even less detail about the Sith in the public archives he'd accessed than there was about the Jedi, and he was barely dipping his toes into what the Force was at this point. Taking the path of wisdom, he choose to just observe the others for the moment. Fay was, unshockingly, quicker to recover from her surprise than Aayla was.

"That is...concerning, to say the least. Though some of it, perhaps, may be more related to an upswell of conflict and violence galaxy-wide these last few years, rather than the Sith? It is certain something I would like to speak more to you about. However, you have only just awoken, and I'm sure you have many questions of your own. Perhaps we should all retire somewhere a bit more comfortable to talk?"

Ood Bnar nodded, his face twitching into a smile, of sorts. At least as much as that crudely hewn wooden face could.

"Indeed, there is much I would know. First, however…"

The large Neti turned with surprising grace for his size. The moment he took a single step, something that had until then been completely hidden behind him came into view. Ancient, battered crates, that must have rested under the body of his sprawling tree form.

"These ancient lightsabers were what I was attempting to protect from Exar Kun. All have historical value, and many have rare focusing crystals that make them relics of some importance. The Great Library is gone now, but they remain. I would appreciate your help in securing them…"

... ... ...

A/N: Ah and now more of the players are starting to take the stage...and yes, Ood Bnar being there is 100% EU canon. I intended to involve him from the very start, since he just so happened to be an expert on the Darkside. One of the few Jedi in their entire history that had the ability to study knowledge of it, without being corrupted by the knowledge...

A/N 2: Sorry if the removal of Aayla's chastity belt was a bit...anti-climactic. The truth is that I actually tried to make a bigger deal out of it, but it just didn't fit. I considered, for example, having Fay force Aayla to learn how to do it herself. But...Fay is too kind for that. I decided it fit her better to make it a different, gentler sort of lesson for them...