Chapter 26: Hidden Talent
Taking a break from his training, Daimon decided to improve his own knowledge for when he created his 10 Celestarchs and their Legions of Force Scions which will fight alongside them. After spending several days doing this, it was time for him travel to Corellia where he would visit one of the orphanages that Astralis Dynamics funded.
A/N: For now the Primarch equavalent will be called Celestarchs, and Space marines will be the Force Scions. But I also want to have a vote for the three different options for each, so please vote below which one you like:
Primarch equavalent options:
-Progenitors
-Archons
-Keep it the same (Celestarchs)
Space Marine equavalent options:
-Guardians
-Exarchs
-Keep it the same (Force Scions)
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An orphanage was the perfect place to find hidden force users that the Jedi Order hadn't managed to get their grubby little hands on yet. Mostly because they had so little Force power that they couldn't be detected, or because the Order hadn't looked in this location yet.
And now with the war already started between the Jedi Order and the Dark Jedi, Daimon could acquire some Orphans whom he could train and raise from a young age to become excellent Force Users. Even if they had the minimum amount of Midi-chlorians required to wield the Force, by training on a Force Nexus such as Tython, they could improve their Force abilities by leaps and bounds.
Once the ship landed, one of the staff was already waiting to greet Daimon as he stepped out of his ship. The staff member's eyes grew wide as she saw who emerged from the ship. She knew him because he was famous throughout the Republic because of his feats as a Jedi and achievements for the Republic.
"Master Daimon, it's an honor to meet you. My name is Varvoza" she greeted.
"Nice to meet you Varvoza, though I no longer in the Order," he informed her. Outside of the Order, it was probably not well-known knowledge that he left.
Hearing that he was no longer in the Order, Varvoza was a little bit surprised to hear that and wanted to ask why, but she didn't want to waste his time standing outside. "Ah, I understand. Let's head inside and we can further introduce you to our young ones."
As they walked in, the children's faces turned towards Daimon who they saw was as tall as the door. "Children, this is Daimon. He's here today to spend some time with us. Can we all say hello?" Varvoza announced to the children gathered in the common area.
"Hello, Daimon!" They all said in unison.
"Hello young ones," he said with a bright smile on his face. Already he could feel the faintest of Midi-chlorians within each of them, but only a few that could actually grow up to wield the Force. The day was spent interacting with the children, discovering those who exhibited somewhat of a connection to the Force.
As expected, several of them had potential to be trained; all they needed was guidance and the correct environment, Tython would provide just that.
After spending several hours with the children, Daimon decided to adopt the 5 who could be trained as Force Users. However, when he thought about it, were Force Users all he needed? The answer was obvious to him, but he asked himself that question because he thought about the benefits of not only adopting the Force capable ones, but also the non-Force capable ones.
He could train them up for specialized paths, such as military strategists, politician, engineers, and numerous other roles that needed to be filled. He could select these individuals early on and raise them to have a much better future than living in an orphanage with no parents to care for them.
Looking deeper into the Force around each child, he could see a small glimpse of what they could grow up to be with or without him. With him, all of them would have good future and be able to achieve great things. Without him, only a handful of them would grow up to see moderate success, while most would have to turn to criminal activity sending them down a path that they could not control due to their circumstances growing up.
Looking at each child, he saw potential, some more than others, but it was there, nonetheless. A thought crossed his mind, with the resources and knowledge he had, he was in a position to change not just one orphan's life for the better, but all of them. And it's not like he was doing this just to feel good about himself, no, everything he did was for a reason.
"Varvoza," he began, "I wish to adopt all the children. Not just those who can wield the Force."
Varvoza looked stunned. She blinked several times as if trying to process what she'd heard. It wasn't just the surprise of Daimon wanting to adopt all the children in her care. It was also the realization of what kind of opportunity it would present for these orphans. Daimon was somebody who could offer these children a better life.
"Master Daimon…" But before she could continue, he interrupted her.
"A simple yes or no will suffice."
She swallowed, then finally nodded. "Yes."
"Good," he said turning to face the children who were still looking at him. Their young eyes were wide with curiosity and hope. "Children," he began, "I have some news for you. How would you like to leave this place and come live with me?" He felt the surprise coming from their faces, a few gasps spreading throughout the room.
"Really?" A young Twi'lek girl was the first to break the silence, her eyes filled with hope. "Yes," Daimon smiled, "All of you."
"Will we have our own rooms?" another boy asked. "Yes," Daimon responded, "everyone will have their own space. And everybody will be raised to become great leaders and will receive lots of training and education."
"Like what?" a third child asked.
"Like training to become stronger than you are right now," Daimon answered.
The reality of Daimon's proposition hadn't been understood because of how young each of the children were, but within each child's heart they all felt excited. They all swarmed him, hugging his legs and shouting with joy. Their enthusiasm was contagious, making Daimon chuckle lightly as he patted some of them on their head.
As this little celebration continued, Varvoza stepped away to prepare the necessary documents for adoption. Daimon spends the rest of the day with the children, playing games, answering their endless stream of questions and telling them stories of the galaxy.
Varvoza returned with the documents ready in her hands, later in the evening just as Daimon had finished narrating his made-up version of the Battle of Ossus. "Master Daimon," she whispered, "The documents are ready."
Daimon excused himself from the children and joined Varvoza in her office. "Thank you, Varvoza," he said sincerely. She had him sign both a digital document and a paper document which he signed after carefully reading through them. Varvoza watched him as he scanned through the documents.
She could see that he genuinely cared about the children's future, or if he only planned to use them, he was very good at hiding it as she could normally tell when someone adopted to only raise the children and use them in the future. This was one of the things she had to deal with working at an orphanage, but there was nothing she could do when the rich just threw money at them.
Once the formalities were completed, Daimon stood from the table and extended his hand towards Varvoza. "I greatly appreciate your assistance Varvoza," he thanked her again as they shook hands.
By the time Daimon left her office, it was well past bedtime for the children. They had all fallen asleep on the floor under makeshift blankets.
The next day arrived quickly for Daimon and the children who were still trying to grasp the reality of their new status. They were all going to be taken away from this place, their only home most could remember, and taken to a new place where they would live together as a family, train together, eat proper meals, and grow up in a better environment.
Daimon arranged for transport ships to arrive to safely transport the 20 kids who were under Varvoza to Tython. Once they arrived on Tython, the children were already set up in a massive house that was built for Daimon a few months ago. It was built to be his central headquarters/living space for him.
He didn't have enough rooms for the children, but he did have enough space in his massive living room area which is where they would be living until a space was constructed for them.
The ages of the children ranged from 4-8 with majority of them being around 7-8 years old. Their training would start with basic education, reading, writing, and mathematics. Daimon knew that education was key to their success and growth. After this initial phase, those who showed potential for the Force would progress to related training. Those with other potent skills would be directed towards specialized training paths tailor-made for their abilities.
He would also make sure that there was always time for fun, games, time spent outside, etc. The most important part of their growth would be their time growing up together.
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Now entering the year 7001 BBY, 2 years after he left the Order. He had gotten a surprise visit from somebody he never thought he would see ever again.
Cortana had just returned from her visit to Coruscant, and with her she brought an interesting guest who had been looking for Daimon for the past 2 years since he left the Order. That person was none other than Sera, his former Padawan and now a former Jedi Master.
Ever since the war officially started between the Dark Jedi and the Jedi Order, she had sought out her old Master first because she knew he would know exactly how to deal with these Dark Jedi. But she was frustrated to hear that he had left the Order without saying anything.
His reasons for leaving weren't shared with her from the Jedi High Council, making her frustrated and that frustration only grew as her attempts to locate Daimon remained futile. When she did find leads, it led her right to Cortana at the Astralis Dynamics headquarters. After meeting with Cortana who recognized her almost immediately, she was brought to Tython to see Daimon.
Standing in front of him, she raised her hand causing Daimon to get on one knee as she slapped him across his face. "What were you thinking, Daimon?" she demanded, her voice cold and laced with anger. "Leaving the Order without even telling me?"
Daimon simply looked at her with a calm expression on his face. "I left because my place is no longer with the Order. I must now walk my own path, Sera," he said.
"My path is long, dangerous and filled with lots of suffering and sacrifices," he continued, "But it is a path that I am prepared to take."
Sera gazed at him; she knew he would say something like this. Which is why she decided to be blunt and direct rather than get emotional. "The I will follow your path as well. I have experienced the results of the Orders ways and see how illogical they can be sometimes. So, you have no choice but to accept me."
Standing next to Sera, Cortana gave Daimon a look which basically said, 'just accept her already'. So, with a heavy sigh he reluctantly agreed. "Fine," causing her to celebrate her small victory.
"But you will have to learn to live with some of the choices that I will make,"
Nodding her head, she showed she understood what he was saying, and she decided to add a little joke. "If it's anything like when I was your Padawan, then I won't have any complaints."
Daimon shook his head before he turned around and walked back into his HQ with Sera and Cortana. He would assign Sera with new training to understand the ways of Balance which he learned from the Force Priestesses.