Jinx landed on the balcony far lighter than he should have, or at least so it would seem to any innocent bystander. Of course they might question where he came jumping from in the first place, given that this balcony was several floors above the next balcony down and so on down the length of the building. 
           He was on the hunt though, the Force flowing through him like some kind of intoxicating drug. It was at times like this that he felt at his full potential, in full control and yet not as the Force guided his actions faster than any normal person. It didn’t make him special, it just put him in a different group than most citizens of the galaxy. The Jedi group.
            As a self-proclaimed Guardian of the Force, Jinx often found himself on hunts like these. During deep mediation the Force would reveal–or so Jinx would say–to him an individual doing wrong with their abilities. 
           Some were actual Jedi, remnants of the Clone Wars or failed apprentices of Clone Wars survivors. Some had simply left the Order long before. Some simply had a sensitivity to the Force and used it. Either way it was explained, the end result was beings were abusing their power and Jinx felt it was his destined role to end that abuse.
            This one in particular was a formidable opponent. Son of a Jedi Master, his Mother had tried to raise him to follow the teachings of the long lost Order. She thought hiding right under the Empire’s nose on Coruscant would work, which it did for nearly twenty years…but eventually she was caught and slain which left her then teenage son all alone.
            He did what he needed to survive, using his powers to bend people to his will. Once he saw how easy it was, he started doing it for everything. 
           Mind tricks might only work on the weak minded, but apply some force and dark energy behind it and it’s surprising how many weak minded people there really are. He wanted some credits or a new place to live? 
          Convince them. Cute girl, doesn’t like him? She will. Someone argues or catches him? Choke them, cut them down with his saber, whatever he wanted. For Toryn Celli it was all one big game.
            Jinx found him easy enough, the idiot had never considered someone might come looking for him one day. Messy. So here he was, coming into what Toryn thought was his high-security safe haven through an open balcony door.
            Suddenly an emerald green blade lashed out at Jinx, Jinx hopping backwards with a cat-like grace and melting into a lower defensive pose, aqua blade snap-hissing out and illuminating him. “I’m impressed, Toryn…I don’t get to lock blades with many of your kind.”
            A man not quite Jinx’s age came out from around the frame of the balcony door, trying to look confident if not boastful while Jinx could see right through the act to the scared fool behind it. Toryn knew he was going to die, Jinx could feel it. “Does my would-be killer have a name, or is this just for sport?”
           “Your abuse of the Force has come to an end, Toryn. You’re little more than a shell of the man your mother had hoped you would become, not even fit to carry a lightsaber.”
            Toryn’s eyes narrowed, confused and enraged all at once. “Who are you?”
           “I am a Guardian of the Force, and the Force has shown it is it’s will for you to die here tonight. Goodbye, Toryn Celli.” Jinx lunged at Toryn, calling the Force as if it were a thick tendril and wrapping it’s energy around his blade like some kind of thick scarf. He had spent years perfecting the technique, and as he struck his blade and what must feel like hundreds of pounds of Force power behind it Toryn went flying across the room and slamming into a wall inside. It was rare anyone could find a way to block that on a first swing.
           Trained Jedi would find a way to lessen the Force and withstand it somewhat quickly in a fight–it was never truly meant to be the decision maker, though Jinx was glad when it was as it meant a fight ended early.
           No, it was meant to cause two things to happen…one, wear his opponent down quicker through fatigue. Two, occupy their concentration through the Force on blocking his blows rather than on things they may use for offense.
            As Jinx started walking indoors, however, he saw a quick cackle of energy and figured out quickly what it was. His blade coming up and calling the Force to form a vortex of sorts in front of him, the dark lightning firing out of Toryn’s fingertips was wound up tightly and fed into his lightsaber’s blade. The extra energy would ironically just be fed into the blade’s looping energy flow and recharge it’s batteries.
            “I can do this all night, you’re no match for me,” Jinx groaned.
            Toryn lunged a bit faster than Jinx had given him credit for, blades locking and Jinx slipping back half a step from being caught off guard. 
           He grinned at Toryn and watched the sense of accomplishment wash off his face, then shoving Toryn back and attacking. High swing, mid swing, high swing, low swing and twisting about with a back-handed smash…Toryn blocked each as quickly as he could, slowing down and Jinx watching his blade get closer to Toryn’s body each time.
            Toryn sent furniture flying towards Jinx, diverting his attention ever so slightly from withstanding the crushing blows Jinx was dealing. Jinx had little choice but to leap back and re-direct the projectiles, precious seconds that allowed Toryn to focus and attack again.
            Jinx was on the defense this time, Toryn displaying he was more a student of speed than strength or finesse with a lightsaber. Jinx bat away the attacks like they were coming from a child, then ducking under a twist and seizing the moment. He swapped his grip to hold the blade backwards, then darting forward and bringing his fist up to the middle of his chest to strengthen his shot.
            The scene played out as Jinx was suddenly holding onto a beam of death that shot out to his right, Jinx lunging forward and the beam slicing into and out of the torso of Toryn as if nothing was there. Unlike the holovids showing fountains of blood and an awkward moment where nothing happened, Toryn’s upper torso slid right off the bottom half thanks to the sudden disappearance of it’s support. The cuts were cauterized, there was no blood save for the initial mist from blood becoming super-heated and evaporating.
            Jinx stood, closing his eyes and letting the emotion drain out of him. 
            While he believed in his work and likely looked like he enjoyed it, there was always a little part of him that doubted what he was doing was necessarily right. Will of the Force, certainly…but that could mean anything.
           A door burst open across the room suddenly, silhouette unmistakably that of a man in Mandalorian armor. “Aw, sunnavabitch,” Kal’or moaned. “You’re done already?”
            Jinx smiled at his friend, the elder man he practically considered a Father. Jinx had been lost in a bad way not long ago, and Kal’or had suddenly come into his life and taught him the Mando’a way of doing things, their principles and beliefs. And from that things had made sense again to Jinx Katarn, gave him something to hope for.
            “Well, if you’d just used that damned jet pack to fly up here with me you could have joined in.”
            “Eh, I hate flying,” Kal’or huffed. “Emergency use only. Well…by the looks of the place, I’m guessing he was a spry one?”
            Jinx nodded. “He had training, that’s for sure. Caught me off guard a little, but I wouldn’t say I was sweating too hard. Most of these guys are of little threat to me, it’s innocents they’re a threat to.”
            The pair walked back to the turbolifts, taking them up to the rooftop landing pads and walking back out into the night air. Jinx had spent his early years growing up on Coruscant and made it a habit to avoid the place after that…it was always bittersweet looking at the never ending sea of lights for him at night.
            Kal’or pulled off his helmet, sniffing the air and letting out a long breath. “There’s a great dive I know near the senate hall we should try visiting before we leave, he said.
            Jinx went to respond when his comlink started vibrating in his belt, he then reaching in for it and pulling it out. “Katarn here,” he answered.
            “Jinx, it’s Janet,” came the voice. Jinx’s heart still fluttered a little whenever he heard her speak, though it didn’t take a Jedi to be able to tell something was wrong in her voice.
            “What’s wrong, Jan?” Jinx asked.
            “It’s Les…Jinx, there’s something really wrong with Les. Mark said that he’d never seen him so angry, so…not him. He took the Stormcrow and stormed off and it took me some time to try and figure out what was happening.”
            Jinx was confused at first, then deciding she just needed some advice.  Les being his on & off again Apprentice, perhaps she thought he would know where the boy was going? “How can I help, Jan?”
            “Are you on Coruscant?” She asked.
            The question felt wrong in the way she said it, as if she was hoping he was going to tell her he wasn’t. While he wasn’t eager to share the reason for him being there, it was a big planet and there were a million reasons on any given day he’d be there. “Yes, why?”
            “Mark just called me…your castle’s burnt down to nothing, the local fire department just finished putting out the flames. I think he’s coming to see you, Jinx…I think he’s coming for you.”

– Jinx