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[I]Luke Skywalker.[/i] The man's name resonated through Joren's entire being. He had heard tales of the great Jedi Knight, Luke Skywalker, the hero of the Rebellion. He had been the young pilot who had destroyed the first Death Star, the hero who had slain both Darth Vader and the Emperor himself. Truth be told, Joren hadn't really believed the stories. He suspected that this Luke Skywalker had been a fraud, a creation of the Rebellion intended to conjure images of the Jedi of old as a way of bringing legitimacy to its fight against the Empire. 

However, now, standing in this man's presence...he knew that it was not true. This man, this...Luke Skywalker was radiating with the Force. Joren had never been in the presence of someone who had ever been as strong in the Force as this man, not even his father's presence could compare to the man who stood before him. No, something told them that all the stories about this man were indeed true. 

“The Force is with you.” Luke finally said, breaking the silence at the table. The Jedi master had been surprised to find someone who appeared to be so strong in the Force. 

“It is.” Joren admitted after a slight hesitation. He had spent his entire life hiding his true nature from everyone around him, including his best friends, yet for some reason he knew that he could be honest with Skywalker, which was oddly freeing. “I guess you can say it runs in my family.” 

“I know what you mean.” Luke says as he averted his eyes to the floor for a split second, before a smile crossed his face. Luke stayed silent for a moment before he returned his gaze to the younger man and his Mandalorian companion. 

“So tell me about yourself.” Luke said at last.

“What do you want to know?” Joren asked. 

“Well, your name's a good start. Where you came from.”

“There's really not much to tell. My name is Joren Kel, I was born on Nar Shaddaa. After I lost my parents, I had to grow up fast.” Joren began. 

It was a story Luke had heard before. But he could tell that the younger man was holding back. And Luke understood. He had only just met him, and the Jedi master hadn't yet earned the younger man's trust. And that was alright, Luke had hoped that there would be plenty of time for that. 

“What is it that you do?” Luke asked, trying to redirect the conversation.

“A little of this, a little of that.-” Joren said. “Nothing much n particular.”

“He's a space bum.-” Dono cut into the conversation.”He's a decent hustler. And he's damn good in a fight. He's actually saved my neck more times than I'd like to admit.” 

Joren was somewhat surprised by Dono's sudden praise. The Mandalorian had barely said two words to him since that night on Tatooine. He found himself wondering exactly what his friend was up to. 

“Yeah, I guess when I'm not out there 'hustling and being an all around scoundrel,' I'm mostly just trying to avoid trouble.-” Joren said to the Jedi. “-So, what's your story?”

Luke looked around the crowded cantina, and though he wanted to be honest with the younger man, he wasn't sure exactly how much he could say without being eavesdropped on by someone in the bar. 

“I want to talk to you about that, but not here. Why don't you come with me, I think I might have a job offer for you.” Luke said much to Joren's surprise. “Come with me.” Luke said as he motioned for them to follow him to the exit.

“Why us?” Joren said as they stepped through the doors of the cantina leading into the street. Luke just turned his head to face the younger man and smiled.

“If there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's that scoundrels usually aren't that bad.”

“So, what is this job offer?” Dono asked as they started walking down the street. Luke looked around, surveying the area to make sure that there wasn't anyone listening in. When he was satisfied that no one was, in fact, paying any attention to them, he began to speak.

“Listen, what I'm about to tell you is a...sensitive issue. However, something tells me I can trust you to keep this to yourselves for now.” Luke told them. When the men nodded in agreement, he continued. “Shortly after our victory at Endor, I had set out to rebuild the Jedi Order. I have a small number of students, however, I am looking to identify more potential students. However, with the continuing war against the remnants of the Empire, the New Republic is limited in what they can provide for support of this mission.”

“They've told you that you're on your own.” Dono said with a hint of understanding in his voice. Luke just nodded.

“I need a ship. Transportation to different worlds as I look for students. Preferably a ship that can hold its own when things get rough, yet provide enough room for training. This would be a long term mission. If you're willing to do this, the New Republic will pay you handsomely. Ten Thousand credits up front, plus expenses to get you started. The final price is negotiable, of course.” Luke paused for a moment, almost as if internally debating his next words. “And I'd be willing to train you as well.”

Joren just stands in silence for a moment after listening to Luke's proposal unsure of what to say. This was the very thing that his father had been preparing him for since he was a very young child. Since before he could walk, Joren's father had instilled in him the values of a Jedi. All the “games” that Van Kel had played with his son, which unknown to the small boy had been Jedi training exercises, to more formal training as he got older. Joren knew that this is exactly what his father would have wanted for him. Yet, Joren had seen what his father's devotion to the Jedi Order had done to him. It had left him a broken man, desperate to reignite a flame that had been extinguished in the universe or years. 

After his father's death, Joren had decided to live his own life. He had no desire to follow in his father's footsteps. He didn't want his father's obsession to become his own. However, that was before he found out that there were more out there like him. That he wouldn't be doing this alone. The prospect of being with others who understood the things that he felt, the things that he experienced was very tempting. 

As was the pay for the job. Ten thousand credits up front was a lot of money, and would go a long way in helping he and his friends establish their new lives.

“He's in.” Dono said suddenly, before Joren could answer for himself. Joren turned to his friend, his eyes wide in astonishment. “Vod'ika, we've known each other for a long time. You were born for this.”

Joren split his gave between his friend and the Jedi, and then nodded in agreement.

“I'm in.” Joren said finally.

“We're in.” Dono corrected as Joren turned to look at his friend and smiled in relief.

“I think we have a ship that's perfect for this job. And I already have a crew that I trust.” Joren said to Luke.

The older Jedi smiled at the pair and clapped Joren on the shoulder. 

“That's good, Joren. You're about to take your first steps into a larger world.” Luke said, recalling the very words that Ben had once said to him when he had began his own journey, in what had seemed like a lifetime ago.