Raey fell to his knees gasping, clarity rushing back as quickly as the air flooding through his body. He stared blankly at the ground, one hand gingerly exploring his throat, until something smacked loudly into wood right above him.

He instinctively dropped, rolling away from the assumed attack. Boots pounded past him as the wood-and-metal smacking sounds continued - brownish leather boots. He let his gaze follow them, rising as he did.

The acolyte who had almost killed him had a new opponent – no, two opponents. One man dressed all in white was already engaged with the black enemy, armed with some apparently-wooden staff which he jabbed and swung with expert ease. The leather boots that had drawn Raey's gaze belonged to a second white-clad man, similarly armed, who leapt into the fray with a powerful overhead jump from off a fallen log. The black acolyte was forced back, his weapon whirling almost faster then Raey could follow in an attempt to block both of the strangers' attacks.

Beyond the combatants, Raey saw LN, blood pouring down her face and her eyes wide. He saw his stun baton lying where it had fallen, the modifications he had made with parts from the shuttle no longer giving any extra juice to the shocker. Something must have burned out, or gotten knocked loose.

But what's making that hum?

A voice rang out, a new one from behind Raey, in wordless exclamation. In almost the same moment, the black acolyte thrust out a hand towards one of the white-clad men, knocking him backwards with the mere gesture just as he had done to Raey earlier. A moment later the acolyte himself stumbled, forced unexpectedly back, and the second white-clad fighter slipped through his distracted defences and slammed his staff into the enemy's ribs.

The acolyte cursed, spitting out a word that sounded evil even though Raey had no idea what it meant. He retreated slowly, glaring at everyone in the area with eyes that promised revenge, then turned and disappeared with a dash into the jungle underbrush.

With him gone, Raey let himself relax, slumping weakly against one of the tree's many trunks. He looked back at where the warning cry had come from and saw a third unexpected ally, this one an alien and dressed in pale brown instead of white... and holding a pale blue lightsaber in his hands. A moment later, the hum and the blue light vanished, and the alien let out a relieved breath.

"It's safe, for now," he said, looking encouragingly at Raey, then shifting his gaze to LN. "Oh, dear, you're injured. It'll be a long walk back to the city..."

One of the two staff-wielders came to stand next to Raey and offered him a hand. Hesitantly, Raey took it, groaning slightly as he got to his feet.

"Who are you?" asked LN, a note of suspicion in her voice, but she didn't protest when the first of their mysterious saviors came to help her up.

"These gentlemen are members of the city guard," replied the alien politely, then bowed. "And I am Ar'tak Beln, Jedi apprentice. I was sent because her highness sensed the presence of dark ones."

"City?" asked LN.

"Jedi?" Raey added immediately. Then, "Her highness?"

"All your blessedly straight-forward questions will be answered soon, but come. It is better to see then to hear, and her highness insisted you be welcomed into the city and brought before her as soon as we found you."

Raey and LN exchanged a look, his hopeful and hers wary, but the strangers seemed better company then the insects and the wanna-be Sith. LN reluctantly nodded her head, and the alien – Ar'tak – smiled again in response, but said nothing. He merely turned to lead the way back into the tangle of jungle.

The walk was long, but the help of the guardsmen and the unwavering guidance of Ar'tak made it seem quicker then the meandering path LN had taken before. The latter remained stoically silent throughout the journey, but her brooding did not seem to bother their guides. The guardsmen didn't attempt conversation, though they were quick to give little bits of advice and warning as they walked, pointing out "sink traps" or slick leaves or other hazards of the jungle.

Raey got a good look at Ar'tak the Apprentice's back as they walked. He had seen quite a few aliens come and go on Jakku, but of course that was only a fraction of what the galaxy had to offer. Ar'tak looked almost twi'lek – he had two short little twi'lek-like "tails" that dangled past his shoulders, and his skin was blue – but Raey had never seen a twi'lek with horns before. Two, each about a hand tall and slightly curved, on top, and two at the end of the tails.

The apprentice didn't say much, either. Raey tried to ask about the planet (though he didn't mention the coordinates of Dameron's that had led them here), but Ar'tak would only reply with vague "You will see" sorts of non-answers. Eventually, Raey just stopped asking.

And then, just as the sun began to go down, they came out of the jungle. The trees abruptly ended, revealing a landscape of cut trunks, deep ruts where trees were chopped up and dragged away, and young grass growing all over the uneven ground. Flowers, unusually small and delicate after the wild growth of the jungle, popped up here and there among the grass, white and blue star shapes with pale leaves.

Beyond the tree-cut clearing, there lay a sprawling, almost glowing city. The pink of the sunset gleamed off of clean white walls, towers of stone and houses of wood all neatly painted and divided by wide cobblestone roads. Steady light lit the homes, evidence of at least some level of advanced technology, and Raey saw a few land-speeders slowly moving through the city.

The white city lay at the base of a huge hill, or perhaps a small mountain, covered in jungle. The face closest to the city had been partially cleared, and a stone structure sat on a flat plateau cut into the hill's side. Wide stone steps led from the city up to the stone building, and statues lined the way. They were too far away for Raey to make out any features, but the sheer number of them made him curious.

"Welcome," said one of the guards proudly as they neared the buildings, "to Brehalda City. Our lady awaits."

.

LN felt their eyes on her. Even among all this white, her armor felt out of place and unwanted. No matter the color, the stormtrooper uniform stood out as an obvious tie to the First Order, marking her as an enemy for all to see.

When she looked, no one met her gaze. They pretended they hadn't been staring at her, quietly despising her behind her back no doubt, but she still knew they couldn't help but think that way. This world... she did not know what it was, but it was clearly hiding from the First Order for a reason. These people knew to hate stormtroopers.

She closed her memory to the last jungle world she had been on. That was behind her. Whatever these people might think of her now, she was going to prove to them she was different. No matter what it took.

The young chagrian alien led them through the city, the other two guards having now fallen behind. LN and Raey had both recovered enough to walk without stumbling, though LN still had to spit her own blood to the ground every now and then. The quick application of bacta on the march had helped, but not even bacta worked instantly.

Raey kept looking at everything like it was fascinating. LN understood some of his sense of wonder – the odd duality of ancient methods used to build the houses and towers mixed with the superior technology of their speeders and lights (and, from sight of an old Corellian freighter rising above the city at one point, a spaceport) made for an interest sight – but it simply didn't feel like the right time to gawk at these people. Despite the rescue, and the subsequent friendliness, LN still had no idea what was expected of them. The friendly smile of the chagrian might turn to a scowl any moment, and then they would be alone, injured, in an entire city of hostiles.

The guards dropped back fully when they reached the stairs to the stone temple on the hill. LN kept one eye on the statues as they climbed, looking for familiar faces. Most depicted humans, though there were a few aliens in the mix... same as in the city down below. Mostly human, a few aliens. There didn't appear to be a class divide, so it was doubtful this place was a former Imperial world everyone had just forgotten about. From what LN had seen, even after the Empire fell the mindset and ideals created by the Empire tended to be slow to fade without outside interference.

So what is this place?

Jedi...?

LN swallowed and concentrated on the steps.

The temple was not as impressive as the stairs would have suggested, merely a moderately sized building of large stone blocks set right into the hill, surrounded by a wide, flat green lawn. Stone benches, little gardens, and wooden buildings were scattered with no particular order around the lawn, and around these LN saw a few more figures, some dressed in white, some in tan like Ar'tak. Long robes, cloaks both with and without hoods... a shiver ran through LN, and her mouth went dry.

Jedi.

No wonder the First Order... the Knights... are looking for this place...

Dread washed over her.

And we just brought them here.

Ar'tak turned, as if sensing her thoughts, and smiled again, his eyes squinting closed. "You're in no danger, ma'am. We know our enemies, and you don't have to be one."

LN didn't even try to reply. Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth, and she swallowed again, painfully.

There was a woman in plain white standing, waiting for them, just ahead of the temple stairs. Her hair was grey, but her lightly-wrinkled face looked kind and her eyes seemed ununsually young. A circlet of silver rested upon her brow. Ar'tak bowed as he approached, and when he spoke his voice was filled with a kind of childish adoration LN had never heard before, not even in the most passionately naive of the First Order's followers.

"Your highness, we have done as you requested. Behold, the newcomers..." He trailed off meaningfully, glancing back at Raey and LN.

"Oh, I'm Raey," the scavenger said hastily, bowing awkwardly. "Thank you for the rescue, your... highness?"

LN licked her lips, but it didn't help. "L... LN," she croaked out. "Formerly of the First Order." She didn't salute. She didn't bow. She stood stiffly, waiting for this ruler's warm smile to fade.

The smile only grew. "I am glad we reached you in time, Raey, LN. I am Leia Solo-Organa. Welcome to New Alderaan."