Chapter 50: Exceeded Expectations
*Dmph* *Dmph* *Dmph*
The sound of boots stomping in the mud broke through the slight headache I was suffering from. "Commander! Are you alright?"
I felt a hand grab my arm but I quickly swatted it away while shaking my head. "Fuck… no. What do you think?"
I reached up with my right hand and ripped the cracked visor off of my face. I then tossed it to the side before grasping my head. "Ahhhh, FUCK! That hurt!"
To my right, I was able to hear my master chuckling. "Haha, not bad for your first time."
I sat up, turned my head to the right and spat in the mud. "Fuck off."
Ven laughed again. "Come, we won't be safe here for long."
I sighed but nodded. He was right. Struggling to my feet, I pulled a bacta injection out of my tactical belt and jammed it into my arm. The cooling sensation of it spreading through my bloodstream washed away the headache. In addition, the scrapes on my face and hands began to scab quickly.
Even more surprising, I found it easier to stand. Rolling around my left ankle, I realized that I must have sprained it during that slight debacle. That would have been quite disastrous in the case we were ambushed.
I shook my head vigorously, clearing it of these anxious thoughts. There was not a need nor the time for them at this moment. "Alright, let's move. What of the chutes?"
Ven gestured towards his chute as he giggled again. "Mine's already been packed. You should probably remove your harness."
I glanced down and quickly unclipped the three buckles. "Bully."
Ven merely shrugged and started walking towards the forest. "It's for your own good."
With a hastened pace, I walked and caught up with him. "And how is that the case?"
Ven smiled. "Satele told me how you have some trouble with your emotions. A bit of tough love will help with that. While it is bad to suppress your emotions, it is good to be in control of them. Only when in control of your emotions can you properly and healthily commune with the force."
I blinked a few times as I processed the information. This was similar to what Satele told me back on Alderaan. It honestly made a lot of sense. It's similar to the expression about remaining calm under pressure. This allows the avoidance of rash decisions.
I could only nod and internally admit that I needed to work on this. "I see. Thank you, master."
Ven chuckled. "Regardless, teasing you is fun."
I rolled my eyes as we entered the forest. We were spared from the relentless rain as the trees covered the sky. "How far is the FOB?"
Ven shrugged before looking at one of the troopers that were acting as our escort. "You, trooper, what's your name?"
The trooper was a woman and surprisingly was a player. "Corporal Sheema, Master Jedi."
Ven nodded. "Corporal, how far is the camp from here?"
She glanced down at her wrist comm and then looked back at him. "About a klick. The walk is about 10 minutes."
Ven smiled and then looked back towards me. "About a klick. The walk is about 10 minutes."
I clicked my tongue as I stepped towards the trooper to get a better view of her. I couldn't see much because of her armor and helmet but she was quite tall and slender. I could only imagine the beauty that hid under those plates.
She noticed my approach and glanced towards me. "Commander, do you need something?"
I shook my head. "I was just curious about the travelers we might run into at the FOB."
Sheema nodded. "Well, Commander Violet is the CO (commanding officer) for this front. I am not sure about the other fronts, but most of the officers in this front are from our guild. General Kroos and Lieutenant General Lothar are in the capital along with the noble families of Kuat."
The mention of their guild caught my interest. "Hooo, Violet was promoted. I guess that congratulations are in order once I arrive. Humor me if you don't mind."
She nodded again. "What is it, sir?"
I smiled. "What is the name of your guild?"
Sheema sighed with what I could only perceive as relief. I am not sure what she thought my intentions were but they clearly weren't good. "Our guild's name is Acta Non Verba. Have you heard of us?"
My expression froze for a moment before I recovered. Fortunately, this went unnoticed by her. Internally, I was shocked but on the surface, I was doing well to hide it. For now, I decided to play along. More accurately, I was going to play dumb. "Acta Non Verba? Hmmm, I can't say I have. I have been quite busy this past week so I'm a bit out of touch with current events."
I could have sworn that I saw a glint in her eyes. I struggled to contain my laughter as I guessed what would happen next.
Fortunately, at least for my personal enjoyment, my guess was correct. "Well, commander, Acta Non Verba was the first official guild formed by travelers. It remained this way until just a few days ago. While we may not have the same foundation at home as other traveler guilds, we have quite the solid member count and combat capabilities. I would also dare say that we have more officers in the military than any other guild."
I chuckled. "Oh, that's quite impressive. Who is the guild's leader?"
Based on her body's subtle movements, I could confidently say she was smiling beneath her helmet. "I don't understand why, but Commander Violet is only an Elder in the guild. The guild's leader goes by the name of Galen."
I nodded, wearing the expression of a satisfied elder. "Galen, hmmm. I'd like to meet Galen. Can you arrange it?"
It wasn't even a second before she nodded vigorously. "YES! Achem, I mean of course. As a core member, I can definitely help you with that. Would you mind if I contacted them now, commander?"
I nodded with a gentle smile on my face. "Not at all. Please do."
-GE-
Several minutes later, we arrived at the base. It was quite the impressive setup. The entire base was surrounded by walls that appeared to be quite durable. I was able to see two gates from the direction we approached from but based on their positioning, there must have been one facing in each of the cardinal directions.
Eight troopers were standing guard at the gate we approached from the South. They all stood at attention. "Commander!"
They all saluted and remained frozen. I waved my hand, not caring for the theatrics. "At ease."
The eight of them relaxed but kept their vigilance. This was expected of those standing guard. "Open the gate!"
One of the troopers yelled this before the gate split in two, creating an opening in the middle. The interior of the base was then revealed to me.
The majority of the base was composed of prefab structures. Some of them were even two stories tall which was surprising. Circling the structures were large tents that countless troopers were shuffling in and out of.
Sheema approached me as I was admiring the base. "Commander, the Guild Leader is ready to meet with you."
I nodded but kept my gaze locked on the largest of the prefab structures. "Very good. I believe I have some more pressing business to attend to. I'll have to trouble you with waiting."
Sheema nodded with an understanding expression. "No worries, commander. I'll be waiting for you."
I smiled and continued towards the large structure which was most likely where the command center was located. After another minute, I was standing at the front door of the building at my master's side.
He glanced at me. "Shall we?"
I nodded and stepped forwards to open the door. The inside was surprisingly cool. Did they really have air conditioning here? Quite the luxurious accommodation.
It took another 20 seconds before we arrived in the command room. In the center of the room was a large holographic table with a detailed projection of our surroundings. Red dots of various sizes, some of them blinking, were accompanied by white dots at similar frequencies.
On the far side of the room, I found Violet sitting at a desk with a familiar dipshit lounging in a chair that was leaning against the wall behind her.
I waved. "Violet, it's good to see you."
She looked up from the datapad she was reading and her face lit up as she saw me. "Soryn! Wait, Soryn?"
I chuckled, flicking my Jedi robes to give her the hint.
She rolled her eyes at me. "I thought they were sending Jedi."
I shrugged. "Yeah, what about it?"
She sighed. "Oh no, you're not…"
I smiled and held my hands out to the side. "Mmmhm."
Violet turned to her left. "Galen, are you seeing this? I'm not hallucinating, right?"
Galen lifted his head off of the wall and then appeared to nearly shit himself. "Oh fuck!"
He shot out of his seat and ran over to me. "Soryn, what's good?"
My smile widened as I hugged Galen. "It's good to see you again."
Galen patted my back and separated from me while nodding. "Yes, good. Very good. Oh! This is Violet."
I nodded. "I know."
Galen tilted his head in confusion. "You two know each other?"
I nodded. "Yeah, she was in the same officer class as me."
I could see the dots connecting in Galen's head as his eyes lit up. "Oh! Perfect."
Now it was Violet's turn to be confused. "Wait, what is going on here?"
I smirked and nodded to Galen. "You didn't tell her?"
Galen shrugged. "Slipped my mind."
I laughed. "Typical."
Violet interrupted our banter. "Guild Leader!"
Galen threw his hands up. "Jeez, relax. I'm getting to it."
Violet nodded impatiently. "Well, get on with it!"
Galen rolled his eyes. "Come on, Vi, I'm supposed to be your superior."
Violet glared at Galen. Her gaze was lethal and even made me sweat a bit. She was quite fierce, eh?
Galen grimaced. "Okay, okay. Soryn here is the other founder."
Violet tilted her head in confusion. She was even more lost now. "Founder?"
The gears turning in her head could be heard by all who were in the room. Then, her eyes widened. "Wait, you?"
I smirked. "Yeah, me. Is there a problem?"
She slowly buried her face in her hands and shook her head. "Oh no. This clown show really is a circus. What did I get myself into?"
I chuckled and walked over to the desk. I patted her shoulder and smiled. "Come on. Are you even surprised?"
Violet emerged from the curtain that was her hands and shook her head. "Honestly, no. It all makes sense right now."
I raised my brow. "How so?"
She pointed at Galen. "There's no way that idiot could have done this alone."
I glanced at Galen but he just shrugged. "I can't dispute that. Anyways, how is my guild doing?"
Violet nodded, her shoulders sinking slightly. "We have about 450 members and continue to gain dozens each day. We have even spread our fingers into the Navy and have a Lieutenant General in our ranks."
I glanced at Galen again to confirm her words and he just nodded. "Yeah, she's in charge of all that stuff. I'm kinda shit at this kind of thing as we both know."
I nodded. "You and I both, my friend."
Violet then tensed in her chair. "Wait… Commander… Jedi… Oh! Are you who Sheema was telling me about?"
I chuckled. "Yeah. I didn't have the heart to interrupt her proud ramblings about my guild. It was a good feeling, ya know?"
Violet sighed. "Well, that makes it easier. We were prepared to do anything to recruit you but it appears that you already own the guild. Ha! Now we are one of the only two guilds to have a Jedi in its ranks."
My interest was once again piqued. "Oh?" I then turned to my master. "Master, are there any other padawans that are travelers?"
Ven nodded. "Indeed. There are two others. One of them embarked to partake in the gathering just after we departed and the other was a few days ahead of you."
After thinking about it for a few seconds, it made sense. With the millions of players, there had to be more Jedi than just me.
I sighed, realizing that I wasn't as special as I had thought. "Interesting. Anyways, Galen, Violet, we can catch up later. Master Zallow and myself need a briefing."
Violet nodded, picking up the data pad that she was holding before. "Indeed we do."
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