Chapter 7

The Hospital Then the Plaza

Furia was in the clothes she wore to school when she arrived at the Republic Military Hospital. Once she was inside she went to the desk by the door and had her faced scanned. There at the door to check people’s credentials was the old Transdoshan Sergeant Crassi. He had known Furia for around 5 years. Padawans at times come to the hospital to help out. “Am I allowed to enter?” Furia asked the old Transdoshan, and he did a little reptilian laugh and waved her to go through. She went to the turbolift. When the door opened, she went in with a few others and pushed the panel for the fifth floor. She exited on the recovery floor. This floor was devoted to the troopers that were injured and got their surgeries or other treatment, but needed to rest and recuperate from their injuries. Furia went to the desk and bowed her head a little. “Hi.”

“Nice to see you again Lady Furia. How have you been.” Nurse Jin said to the padawan that had come here occasionally for a few years. Furia and several of the padawans were known for the help they have done at different times.

“Doing pretty good.” Furia wondered at times why people at times called her Lady Furia since Lady was not an official title with the Jedi. She had heard conflicting stories of women in the Sith Empire called that. Some stories the women were called Lord, and other times called Lady. Furia didn’t mind being called it, just unusual other Jedi weren’t called that. Pricilli would be called Jedi Pricilli, not Lady Pricilli. “How have you been?”

“Busy unfortunately. Numerous wounded coming back lately from the battles. One good thing though. You certainly are popular with the troops. There is talk about the fun they had watching your dancing yesterday. But back to business. We heard you were coming. If it is all right with you, rooms 9 through 12 will be the ones you will be helping with.”

“I’m ready to start.” Furia was going to make the best out of the situation. She has for several years had the attitude of getting a bad situation and trying to turn it into a good experience. This “penance”, irritating Jedi Masters, was no different. She was going to make the best of it. Who knows, she may meet new people. That’s always a good thing.

Going into room 9, she saw a med droid scanning a man. She did not know his treatment, but he was being scanned for his electrolytes. He was injured on a desert planet in a firefight, and the salts in his body were off. The droid was making sure the trooper got appropriate amounts but not too much of electrolytes. “Hi. Need any help?”

The droid answered. “No assistant. Thank you.”

The man sighed and smiled. “Hi miss. Any chance you can get me some Moogan tea?”

“Served cold?”

“Yes. That would be nice.” He smiled at the young lady who was helping, not realizing she was a padawan.

“That would be a sufficient intake for the patient” the droid said as it turned to Furia then back to the patient in the bed.

Furia made a little sarcastic smiled to the droid then left for the food galley. The trooper laughed a little as she walked out. Since Furia had been on that floor of the hospital before, she knew where to go. The galley was not being used by anyone. She touched a few times on a screen on the wall and then below the screen a glass came out then it was filled with the tea. Feeling the glass to make sure it was cool, Furia went back to room 9 and gave the trooper the glass.

He smiled at her. “Thank you.” She turned around and started walking out. As he saw her walking out of the room he noticed the braid of her hair. “Padawan?” he asked as she walked out the doorway.

Furia turned around and smiled at the trooper. “Yes.” She then walked away to the next room.

He shook his head a little. “Wow. She’s the babe.”

Room 10 had a Duros, a younger male. He was resting in bed with eyes closed. Blue skinned, it was evident there was some explosion because of the burns on one part of his body that was bandaged up. Connected to his headboard was a screen that she could look at to see what happened and his treatment, but she knew “need to know.” She is not treating him, so she had no business to look at his medical treatment. He appeared to be shaking a little bit. He opened his eyes, and his red eyes looked at her. “Fuel explosion. Nice tattoo it gave me. Any chance you can get me an extra blanket?”

Furia knew a few languages, but not Durese. Focusing with the Force she was able to pick up some of what he meant, but she had to look at a translator screen above his head to understand all that he was saying. Without the screen she sensed he was cold, but not how he got his injuries. She nodded her head and went to a shelf built into the wall in the room. There were two folded blankets on top of each other. She grabbed the top one. It wasn’t that warm. She unfolded it a little bit while walking back to him. She unfolded and spread out the blanket on top of the blanket already covering him.

“Ahh, warm. Thank you.” The Duros closed his eyes and smiled as he appeared to be falling asleep. Furia felt no need to tell him how she warmed up the blanket.

Walking into room 11, a middle aged trooper was sitting up in her bed. Seeing the insignia on the sleeve of a jacket that was draped over the chair in the room, Furia could tell she was a nurse for one of the hospital ships, probably one recently attacked. “Go out!” the woman yelled at Furia. “I don’t need some teenage flunkey in here trying to pick up on a soldier. Now go!” Furia smiled, turned, then walked out. It was easy for Furia, while she walked out of the room, to sense why the woman was so agitated. No husband, she wasn’t promoted in her unit, then before she left for this most recent deployment she met a younger man at a tavern. She brought him home and got romantic, he left the next morning without telling her, and she hasn’t seen him since. She now has to take an antibiotic for the infection he passed on to her. No wonder that she was bitter.

Furia finally checked the last room, room 12. A younger human was laying on the bed. He was half asleep in his bed, moving a little bit and moaning at times. Furia walked out to the desk and told the nurse stationed there “did the patient in room 12 receive his comfort meds?”

“Honey, he is maxed out on his comfort medicines. He can’t get any more for a while.” The nurse said with a matter of fact look towards Furia.

The padawan turned and walked back to room 12. Going close to his bed, she noticed a datapad on the bed beside him. On the screen was simply a short letter. It seems he, Private John Smithson, sent a letter to what appears his mother about his injuries. She, Gwyn, sent a short response. “You could have done better”. She did not put anything else in the letter, not even signing it. Furia went out of the room for a few seconds to see if he had any visitors since it was now visiting time. Several other of the troopers that were patients had visitors of family, friends, or fellow troopers in their unit. Private Smithson had no one. Furia walked back into room 12 and made sure the door was closed. She walked to be by his bed. Leaning down, Furia kissed the injured trooper on the forehead. He immediately started to relax a little. “No wonder” she said softly. She didn’t need the Force to know he was hurting as much or even more emotionally compared to physically. She looked at the door, then looked back at the private as she took off her shoes. Pulling the blanket up that was covering him, she slipped into the bed under the blanket. She lay on his right side, facing him. She moved her right arm to lay it on top of him. Furia snuggled her body next to his, feeling his skin except for the single pair of shorts he had on. He was no longer moving in the bed, but resting calmly with the look of peace on his face. She could tell he no longer appeared in pain, nor restless. He was in peace and soon began to fall asleep.

After several minutes Furia got out of the bed, put on her shoes, and walked out the door. She avoided room 11, and went to check on rooms 9 and 10. In 10 the Duros soldier was sleeping comfortably. In room 9 the man said he was good. He didn’t need anything. He thanked her again for the tea. Furia went up to the nurse’s desk.

“Sorry about that nasty one in room 11. And whatever you did in room 12, his life signs have definitely improved.”

“Just some tender care” Furia replied. “Anything else?”

“No. That little bit of time you gave definitely helped. Two of them are now asleep, one didn’t want you in the room, and the last one was quite thankful you got him that simple glass of tea. Nothing else for you to do here. It’s leaving early, but no need for you to bother a patient that’s sleeping. We’ll send a message to your Master. Enjoy the rest of the afternoon Furia.”

Furia nodded to the nurse, then walked to the turbolift. As she walked to the door, she heard from a distance “Get ready for tomorrow. New set of admits.” When the door opened, she walked in and pressed on the panel for the first floor. She rode the it down to the first floor. She walked out of the turbolift, and started walking to the entrance of the building. To the side she noticed a Cathar trooper standing alone. She appeared nervous standing there. Furia walked over to see if she needed any help.

“Hi. Do you need help with anything?” Furia smiled a little as she asked the trooper who still appeared nervous.

“Oh, ah, excuse me. Hi. I need to talk with a few of the soldiers about return to duty. I’m not sure where to ask for where their rooms are. The sergeant looks too busy to ask.”

“Let’s see if he knows where they’re at. I’m Furia.” The padawan started walking to Sergeant Crassi, keeping pace with the nervous trooper who had the patch of a lieutenant on her uniform.

“Hi, um. I’m Lieutenant Darci Grahrama.”

“New to Coruscant?” Furia asked.

“Why, um, yes. And thank you for helping.”

The two women went up to the Transdoshan Sergeant. “Hey Sergeant. This is Lieutenant Darci Grahrama. Lieutenant, this is Sergeant Crassi. Don’t worry, he doesn’t bite. That hard at least. Can you help us find some troopers she needs to see?”

Sergeant Crassi laughed as he looked at Darci’s list that she had on a datapad. He held it close to a monitor he had on his desk. With a motion of one of his fingers back and forth, information from his monitor went on to the datapad.

“There you go” he said in Dosh, the Transdoshan language.

“Thank you, Sergeant, sir.” Darci appeared thankful, but still nervous. Furia surmised the Cathar Lieutenant was probably not many days out of finishing training. Darci turned to Furia “Again thank you Furia.” Darci then noticed the braid. “Oh, excuse me, Master Jedi Furia.”

Sergeant Crassi was smiling at the interaction between the two women while he continued to do his work checking credentials to allow people in. Furia smiled. “It’s just Furia. Or Padawan Furia. I’m not yet a Jedi Knight.”

“Yet” said the Transdoshan sergeant. Furia smiled a little more. It’s nice when people outside of the Jedi Temple appreciate her.

“Oh” replied Darci, a little surprised. “I’m sorry Furia, I mean Padawan Furia.”

“Hey, nothing to apologize for. You know where to go?” Furia was still smiling, enjoying the time she was having meeting Darci.

“Yes ma’am. That I know. Thank you.”

Furia laughed. Sergeant Crassi was so much enjoying the exchange between Furia and Darci. “Ma’am. You’re going to make me feel old.” Furia was smiling away. “Hey, let’s get numbers. We can meet later this week in the evening. Furia brought out her card, then touched it to Darci’s when the Cathar brought her card out.

Darci was now beaming. She liked this Jedi. “That would be nice. It was nice meeting you Furia.”

Furia leaned over a little and gave Darci a little hug. “Nice meeting you too. Bye.”

“Goodbye” replied Darci. The lieutenant turned then walked to the turbolift with what appeared a little more confidence. As the door opened, she went in it, turned around, then waved at Furia and Sergeant Crassi. The door then closed.

Furia turned back to the Transdoshan. She leaned over and kissed his forehead. “Thanks. Bye.” The padawan then walked out of the hospital. Sergeant Crassi laughed and smiled as he saw one of his favorite Jedi walk out of the building.

* * *

It was late afternoon as Furia walked from the Republic Military Hospital to the Jedi Temple. She was walking across the plaza. Numerous flowers were in bloom in flower plots, blueblossoms and roses of different colors. A plaza connecting something of the Jedi with the military.

As Furia looked around the plaza she had walked through many times, she saw people walking through, and people sitting on some of the benches. At her left across the plaza she noticed an empty bench with people walking by it. Taking her index finger to her chin, she did her pondering look as she had an idea. Walking over to the bench she greeted the people walking near her. She went to the bench, turned, and sat on it cross legged. Sitting there in her dark brown Jedi robe, she greeted more people as she thought she likes the look of a skirt better than the trousers. “Skirt is just more me” she thought to herself. Nevertheless she knew she looked like a Jedi sitting there on the bench.

“Blessed are all of you” she started saying to the people walking in the plaza. “For all of you are blessed by the Force, and you are all special. The Force, that which binds our galaxy together, is created by all of you. We are in a horrible war, but through that there are bright spots where the Republic shines brightly. Each of us have bad days, like the Republic has bad days. Yet with the help of others, we persevere through the bad days to become better people, and be grateful of the good days. For each of you is a Temple. A part of the great Force. No one is insignificant. For each one of us is special. Do not damage your Temple. Life is hard, and sometimes it is so hard people turn to quick fixes to cover up the pain. Narcs, alcohol, spice, all feel good but in the end cause cracks in your Temple. Yet if you take the time to stop for a little bit, rest, let your body and mind come to calm, the hardships will flow away from your Temple, and you become one in peace with the Force. Not only would you help yourself, but others”.

“Little girl, who are you to preach?” A middle aged man came walking up to Furia with his daughter who appeared ten years old. The girl stood a little back and to the side of her father. Furia thought that was interesting since padawans would many times stand that way with their Masters. “You don’t even look old enough to drink alcohol. Who are you to tell us? You dress up thinking you are some Jedi.” Near the father and daughter was a hovercart. In it was a large box. They must have bought something earlier. “You are no Jedi. You don’t know about people dying.” Furia thought of a few Sith apprentices whose bodies met the blades of her lightsaber, and the Republic Army personnel she saw die near her. “We are just people. We don’t have any special privilege like those aristocrats that live over there.” The man was using his thumb to point back at the Jedi Temple, not noticing that the hovercart was raising higher off the ground. “Your father and mother make you responsible enough that you even know what a chore is? Do your parents even know you are here?”

The hovercart was raising even higher off the ground. “Dad” the girl said as she looked at the hovercart going higher without someone touching it, then looked at her father.

Being able to smile without mocking the man, Furia continued to preach. “What I look like does not matter. We are all lovely beings that create the Force. All of us, including Jedi, become better beings when around people that care for themselves and others. For no matter who or what makes the words, the words are truth. Don’t look down or criticize another, for that life is as valuable as your own and may be great if allowed to grow. The great mistake of a child may become that child’s greatest learning experience. The mistake of cooking a recipe may become a new way of cooking food that so many will enjoy. The spouse that seems not to listen now may be planning on something better for the family in the future. The injured soldier that can no longer battle, may become the future teacher of perseverance, and how to successfully avoid battle.”

“You have no idea what you are talking about!” The man yelled at Furia while others walking in the plaza stopped to listen to the conversation. They also were noticing the hovercart that was floating a meter in the air behind the man. “You spew nonsense dressed up as some Jedi sorceress. My employee that keeps on failing won’t change. The waitress that got the order wrong gets another’s order wrong. My wife, ahh” he stopped mid-sentence. “You don’t even know what it’s like to be a mother.”

“Thank the Force” Furia said silently to herself, thinking for a brief second what it would be like being a mother.

“Oh Daaad” the girl said to her father.

“For when we help one do better, that one causes another do better. It continues like a reaction. The Force flows more free, giving more energy to all life. Do not fall to hate, for that causes disruptions to the Force and unintended harm to others.” Furia was speaking as she went, with no set speech but talking about what she felt as if coming from her soul.

“Those Jedi don’t even talk like that” the man said in a derogatory way towards Furia, as his daughter pulled on his clothes.

“Dad!!”

He turned around to scold his daughter, then looked at the hovercart floating in the air. Looking frustrated, the man took his daughter’s wrist. “Let’s go!” He walked away from Furia, holding on to his daughter and bringing the hovercart. After walking several meters, the girl did a quick turn of her head and waved at Furia. Smiling, Furia waved back at the girl.

A woman standing not far from Furia asked the padawan “Master Jedi, how does us being blessed by the Force explain the war?”

Furia made a little bow of her head towards the woman. “When one does not treat well someone even in the far past, the results can be like waves then ripples coming from a splash of a great rock falling into a pond. The ripples continue until something blocks them. The block could be something bad, but could also be something good that stops the ripples and helps bring more life into the pond. Such can be like when someone steps in a pond to stop the ripples, and causes a little water to flow to a plant nearby that needs water because it is in dry dirt.”

Several floors up, watching out of a window in the Jedi Temple, a Togrutan and a Mon Calamari Jedi were looking down on the plaza. Even from the distance, both knew who the crowd was gathering around.

“Did someone actually tell her to do this?” Gial asked Pricilli.

“No. This is on her own. She talks numerous times that Jedi need to be out more interacting with people, other than in a battlefield. This is her own idea.”

“Is this even allowed for a padawan?” Gial appeared to have a perplexed look on his face, or at least something that one would think looked perplexed on an aquatic being.

Pricilli looked at her padawan in the distance. “There is no rule against a padawan preaching. I checked. It doesn’t interfere with her studies. She is not doing anything that is giving the Jedi Order a bad name. She doesn’t think of what she is doing as a chore. She enjoys it. At times I admire my padawan’s free spirit.” Pricilli sighed, knowing she had to stop looking at her padawan’s preaching to the crowd. “Let’s get our snacks. We need to go back.”

* * *

After speaking to the crowd, Furia went home to see Pricilli was not there again. “I’ll find out soon enough” Furia said out loud as she went into her bedroom to change into some nice fitting shirt and shorts. She started cooking a prepared meal, Wild Herbs and Nuts. “Wild, yea right” she thought. It was from food grown on a farming space station. While it was cooking, Furia talked to the holoprojector and sent a message to her Master. “I’m home”. She heard the sound that her dinner was finished cooking. She took the dinner to the table. She got a glass and filled it with water, then set it by the dinner on the table. She thought about how her day went. Good day. A fun time at lunch. Got to meet a new person at the hospital. Preaching at the plaza felt good. Needs practice, but felt good. Furia ate her dinner, enjoying the taste despite knowing the term wild was fake.

Finishing her dinner and water, she put the plate and glass in the dish cleaner. She went to the main room, then sat in her meditation stance. She is not going to practice tonight the disconnect from the Force. That is not the easiest thing to do with one’s body. She closed her eyes, looked down, took several calm breaths. She then took a few deeper breaths then stopped breathing. Focusing on the extra oxygen she put into her body, she calmly thought of different moves she could do while dueling. Cutting the hands off, slashing the back of a leg when someone tried to kick her, cutting the sides of hands when trying to grab her lightsaber or her wrists. She went several minutes without breathing. She stayed awake and did not pass out since she prepared her body by having extra oxygen in her. After what appeared ten minutes, she did a large exhale of carbon dioxide straight ahead of her. Looking forward for a few seconds, she breathed at a normal pace to help get excess carbon dioxide out of her. She closed her eyelids again, and looked down. Feeling the energy of the Force flow through her, she didn’t think of anything. No disturbance with the natural flow of the Force. Barely could Furia feel the force emanating from Pricilli. Her master is probably at the library still. Furia now focused on her lightsaber. With the Force she disconnected it from its holder. Allowing it to float in the air in front of her, she grabbed her lightsaber with her right hand and turned it on. Sensing something wrong with the blades, she opened her eyes. The green blades would go fully out then slightly retract, then go back out.

“At some point I am going to have to take it all apart and look at all the different parts” she thought. Furia turned off the lightsaber and strapped it back in its holder. “Enough of meditation for now”. Furia thought what she could do. Go out and rent a speeder? Fun, but not the best thing to do with Master Pricilli still upset for the devastating hits Furia did to Reyno. Holovid someone, later. Her friends are probably studying. Go to practice dueling? Master Pricilli said it was asked for Furia not to go there for a few days. Club hopping? Did that yesterday with Stacy, which was fun. Giving a sigh, Furia decided to study. Galactic Cultures and Huttese would be good, with Huttese last since it was the most fun. Study of the Force and History of the Jedi she had a firm understanding, so no need to study tonight. Going to her room, she sat at her desk in quiet to study.

After studying for a few hours, she concentrated for a second with the Force to know what time it was in the evening. There was some time before she would be going to bed. Thinking what to do, she had an idea: holovid! None of her good friends would be studying, hopefully, and it would be fun to chat. Going in the main room, she pressed several times on the control panel of the holoprojector. Within a few seconds Furia got to see the holograms of her friends Stacy, Mecina, and Dantella. “Hey. Oops, let me get a drink.” A little laugh came from Dantella as Furia quickly went to the kitchen and got a bottle of tropical lunch drink from the refrigerator. Coming back to the main room, she noticed the holograms of the other three were reemerging on the holoprojector. The others also got a drink after seeing Furia get one. Furia spoke like a Hutt in the deep voice “that was fun at lunch”.

Mecina responded, also as a Hutt. “I do not think you will be asked a question at lunch for a while”.

“Heard what you did at the training area. Scum deserved it.” Stacy said. “It was talked about in the Jedi Temple by numerous students.”

“Not going to mess with you Furia Tormenta. You were rough.” Dantella responded.

“He set me up. He shouldn’t mess with anyone like that.” Furia was going to ask about Master Plootu, but decided against it.

“That’s true.” Stacy said. “Wonder if anyone will ask you out for dinner now Furia?”

“Don’t think anyone is going to ask her out. Cause ‘em to shake in their shoes” Dantella the Iridonian replied.

Furia laughed. “Oh what a headache that would be. Can you see the guys at the Temple trying to go out with me? Making stupid statements about the size of their sabers, or mind trick me to kiss them.”

The other three laughed. Mecina replied. “Mind trick you girl? You would have them licking the ground.” All of the four friends were laughing. “Bad enough a month ago that Senator’s aide try to ask you out.”

“Oh did that get Pricilli ticked. She took the Senator to a room and when they came out he looked freaked. Didn’t see that aide again.”

“That pool maintenance guy that wanted to dry me off when I got out of the pool. Remember that?” Stacy chirped in.

“Oh I do. Did he ever back off when we all stared at him.” Dantella remembered that day, seeing the guy trying to be flirting with her friend when they were at the pool.

“So nice not to have to deal with a boyfriend. Too much drama. And motherhood, oh no” Mecina said as she shook her head.

The girls chatted for a while on clothes, and what should be new styles they could wear as Jedi robes. Stacy talked about the Solar Flare and how much fun it was the previous night.

“Girls, getting bedtime. I need to go to bed.” Dantella then gave a yawn.

“Was fun chatting” Mecina replied.

“Good night” said Stacy Organa.

“Good night.” They all replied.

The holovids of all three of Furia’s friends disappeared. “Good chat” she thought to herself. Furia then went to her room to get ready for sleep. Master Pricilli is still not back. This isn’t some tiny assignment.

Furia cleaned herself up, then changed clothes and put on her sleep shirt and shorts. She went to her bed, and positioned herself in her meditation stance. Closing her eyes, she meditated and felt the Force. Master Pricilli seems to be getting a little closer. Hopefully that means she is done for the night at the library. The flow of the Force caused by all the life on Coruscant was easily sensed. The move she did today on Reyno was thought through, how she should position her body throughout the move, and different alterations of the move if someone tried different defenses. Faint from the great distance, she felt the pain and suffering from the war. That horrible war. There must be more casualties today. Numerous days Furia would not have that feeling. A pillar of fire shooting up for a second at a great distance then it disappeared. What is that from? Numerous small disruptions of the Force from the lower levels of Coruscant. That must be from the people living down there. The struggles for safety, food, a place for a home. Coruscant’s government seem to care for those citizens they do see, but not those they don’t see. The flow of the Force from all the Jedi that live nearby, strong does it feel tonight. A little special flicker of the Force Furia was able to perceive from her three friends. She couldn’t help it when she smiled at feeling the presence of her great friends. Furia opened her eyes, and focused at what was around her. Feeling calm, she laid down to go to bed, put the lightsaber on the nightstand, turned off the light, and soon after went to sleep.