“Of course. I didn’t mean any disrespect.” His face had paled, which made the freckles on his nose and cheeks stand out. Jora liked it when humans had some face markings of their own. “I only meant that I’ve been working as an archivist, trying to be a good one, and it doesn’t seem like the frontier would need many of those.”

She tilted her head, considering. “You might be surprised. But I intend for you to be more than an archivist, Reath.” More gently, Jora added, “You prefer to concentrate on those areas where you believe effort counts more than talent. But you have more than enough talent for anything you set your mind to—and effort always counts. For any task, in any place.”

“Doesn’t it count more here? Where it does the most good?”

Jora shook her head in fond disbelief. “My first Padawan craved endless adventure. My second one would happily avoid it. What both of you actually needed was the same thing: balance. I found it for him, and I’ve found it for you.”

(At least, she hoped she’d helped Dez find it. Sometimes, hearing of his exploits on Zeitooine and Christophsis, she wondered.)

The depth of Reath’s dismay would’ve been comical if it hadn’t been so heartfelt. That was one thing they never told you about being a master—that sometimes teaching a hard lesson hurt more than learning it. She said, “Tell me, Reath, why can you not cross the Kyber Arch by yourself?”

Reath frowned. “Do I need to?”

Jora didn’t reply. The Kyber Arch stood within one of the vast meditation chambers of the Coruscant temple. Each crystal in the arch was a kyber crystal, one retrieved from the damaged lightsaber of a Jedi fallen in battle. As beautifully as it sparkled in the light, it was a reminder of the price their fellow Jedi had paid in the pursuit of justice over the past millennia. Thick at the bases, the very topmost curve of the arch had deliberately been left extremely narrow, as a representation of the perils the fallen had faced.

Scaling and crossing the Kyber Arch was an advanced meditation technique. Most Jedi never attempted it—only those who felt called to do so by the Force. So if Reath insisted on taking her question literally, he would never have an answer.

Literal he remained. “I mean, I think I could cross it. We’ve made our way across ropes and tethers skinnier than that. Do you want me to try?” Reath looked hopeful again. “If I make it alone, does that mean we don’t have to go to the frontier?”

“Neither you nor any other Jedi has ever crossed the Kyber Arch alone,” Jora said. “Nor will anyone ever do so. When you know the answer why, I believe you’ll understand why we’re headed to the frontier.”