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Felucia - Jedi Temple


handofthrawn

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"One's pain can either be their oppression, or their freedom, depending how one handles its aftermath. If one revels in it, they become it's captive. But if one learns to accept it existence, to grow past its confines, and moves past it, it become a part of them without hindrance." - Genesis Stormhelm

 

"There's no need for apologies, Ms. Draygo" I spoke with a half hearted chuckle, scratching the back of my head partially in nervousness as well as embarrassment, forcing a smile to my face despite the subjects we were discussing. "On either front. My past is my past, just as your's is your's. It's a part of who we are, not who we'll be."

 

In truth, I felt more badly for even voicing the glimpse of her strife that I had, than what she had saw of mine. While truthfully that it was a painful memory, I had long moved past it. Did I hate that it had left me alone, forcing me to scavenge and steal from sites and persons long forgotten by most? Yes. But I had always justified the means in one form or fashion. Either I donated portions to the local orphanage, or I gave some of my rations to those who didn't find a way to earn their own. Some could say I did it to ease a guilty heart, and in some ways it may have been partially true. But deep down, the illegality of it mattered not in my mind, because I lived in the memory of my parents, both in myself, and in those I helped.

 

But the woman before me, even through the gaze I was presented, I could feel pain that had existed long before the occurrences of what I saw. It was almost as if I had touched her soul, and felt it's sorrow. Though I dared not let it be known, because I felt that would bring even more sorrow to the woman. "Forgive me." I spoke, realizing that she was right, that I had never properly introduced myself. "My name is Genesis Stormhelm, but Gene or Genesis will work just fine."

 

By now, Bleep had decided to join us, a few choice words erupting from the droid that I kept silent about revealing being directed toward me, mostly about us getting out of here before we end up behind bars and miss our chance to escape while I seemingly rather lolly gagging with a raving lunatic which was yelling toward the heavens just moments before. Yet I ignored her outburst about the woman before us, more focused on why we shared such visions of each other's past, and what meaning it held.

 

"I hate to ask Me. Draygo." I spoke inquisitively while Bleep just stood there in silence by now, completely gawking at my ignoring her. "But what would have cause such a shared experience? Was it the crystal that shattered? Or your Jedi Magic?" I hated using such a term, but my understanding of the Force and the Jedi Order was rather limited aside from what I had been told or read during my 'excavations'.

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Alem nodded to the tree at the information he was given. It was a pity that he did not recognize her, but not unsurprising.

 

"Thank you. I was thinking that I may be forced to look at Coruscant, but I am hesitant to go there since my appearance may frighten civilians. However, with recommendation from the Jedi, I may have luck searching databases at Kuat. I may explore there after my search here."

 

However, Alem couldn't end his search here yet. Just because one Jedi didn't recognize his ward did not mean she wasn't here. He just needed to dig a little further. He turned back to the receptionist and inquired where he may find some more individuals that might match his criteria. She shrugged, but then she thought that some may be in the cantina a floor below. It was near the sleeping areas for residents, so Alem would need a guard to make sure he didn't slip away into there.

 

Alem understood, and soon he had a Temple Guard accompanying him down. The guard commented that it had been a long time since he saw someone carrying an electrostaff, to which Alem nodded. They typically were used for crowd control before the Separatists gave them to Magnadroids.

 

The droid looked across the cantina, scanning for younglings. There were a few here and there, but none matching his ward in age nor race. They were approaching maturity age, none like his ward. Surprisingly, he was having no dead moments in his programming. He definitely was getting more strange looks down here though. An old droid in the entrance area of the temple was a strange sight. Put that droid accompanied by a jedi in a cantina of said temple, and the strangeness only increased.

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“Something like Persuasion? No, I wouldn’t have done anything like that. I mean, it’s certainly possible to share a memory using the Force, but doing that involuntarily would have been… just… profoundly unethical. I wouldn’t have done that to you.”

 

Her eyes flitted towards her boot, still resting on the table between them. It wasn’t completely unheard of for a creation of the Jedi or another Force sect to impose a connection between two Force-Sensitive individuals. Holocrons could interface with their user through the Force, though they functioned primarily as archival devices; the Rakatans had scattered Force-Interfacing maps all over the galaxy that interfaced with their users with the Force; some of the more megalomaniacal Sith Masters had left behind remnants that gifted those they deemed worthy with knowledge in the form of visions.

 

Hopefully this stone wasn’t anything so sinister, not if it was deemed harmless enough that it had been assigned so light a vigil that a teenaged orphan was able to pocket it.

 

“It had to have been the stone. It’s not uncommon for items developed by the Jedi to detect the potential of those trying to use them, even for the sake of protecting them from knowledge that they simply aren’t ready for… though I’ve never encountered one that shared memories between two complete strangers. Who developed it, or why… unfortunately, that’s quite beyond my area of expertise.” Armiena smiled. This was probably not the probably not the best method to divulge this sort of news to a young man who likely only suspected that he might have certain advantages over his peers. “Did you know that you’re Force-Sensitive?”

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“Young apprentice. No sorry they keep telling me you are a Knight, but frankly I don't believe that either!” The doctor of the Jedi facility was known for letting his opinions be worn on his sleeves and blessing everyone around him with whatever pile of chip dust he kept on his shoulders that day. Though there were no doubts about his abilities in the healing realms, Sandy did not enjoy the lecture that she was now being handed. “…Why anyone would Knight such a young girl who has not shown in the slightest her maturity is beyond my comprehension, why it only makes sense that Adenna would rashly make you a Knight. She always seems to show her grey side when it comes to her actions. I will have to have a talk with the council about your lack of responsibility in your masterhood. Not only did you put your apprentices lives at risk, you used a power taught by those extremists at the Imperial Knights on one of them?”

Sandy stirred a little at that, but he continued.

 

“Using techniques taught by those Revanchists is treading close to the dark side, and we know what will end up with those imperial knights, they’ll become sith because they are rash and foolish as thousands before them. You need better role models like Darex or Starlisk instead of Kyrie kriffing Eleison. At least they showed what a Jedi should strive to be! They seek to bring harmony with the dark and redeem those that follow it, not purge them from the galaxy.”

“You bring up a mass murderer and a ineffectual master that let the Sith build their forces unmolested until they breached the Core worlds as your defense of Jedi Ideals?”

 

Not the smartest thing to say to someone that was used to sharing and hearing only his opinions.

 

“What! How dare you, that smacks of arrogance and the dark side you little-”

 

Sandy hopped down from the exam table, grabbed her torn robes and threw them on.

 

“And now our fleet returns utterly defeated because of that inaction. There are some Jedi like me that will not let the Sith build completely unmolested. A sith master is currently trying to smash a moon into the capital of the Galactic Alliance and my brothers and sisters who fell on Onderons body’s are being paraded through the streets. ”

 

He began to sputter

 

“The Sith and their allies are beyond redemption and it is time that the Jedi went to work to end them, not redeem them.” She held up a hand to stop another sputter of protest from the Jedi Master. “And not by dropping rings packed by civilians into planets, or sinking cloning banks of innocents into dark Kaminoan seas. We have learned that lesson.”

She turned and strode from the room, applying the bactaphage patch to her wound on the way out and only stopping briefly at her room to toss her sparse belongings into a rucksack and change into a fresh set of clothes. She paused for a minute before adding the plastoid armour the imperials had given her to the rucksack and booking a passage on the Courtland to the distant world of Ilum. Well not directly, it would get them close enough, stopping at Iridonia where Sandy would buy a personal transport.

 

FInding her apprentices, she ushered them towards the landing bays where a planetskipper would take them to the Courtland, a modified transport ship which would in turn take them through many planets until they reached Iridonia. After their first jump, they would change into normal clothes and store their sabres aboard their luggage.

 

((Next post in space, explain boarding the transport, your thoughts, and your meditations. Also for those reading this, the thoughts towards Jedi masters Onderin and Darex are IC not ooc ))

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Calix Meus Inebrians

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"The Force is a mysterious form of nature, it's web eternally intertwined with destiny and fate. There were no coincidences when it came to the Force, nor could one grasp any comprehension of it's undoubtable will. It tied everything together, bonded it, leaving it's pawns to fall exactly where they were meant to. Where one was thought to makes their own destiny, was in truth, the exact intent and destination." Genesis Stormhelm.

 

 

"So it's true then?" I summarized more than questioned at this point, having heard her thoughts upon the matter and her question only solidifying what I had already began to suspect. "My mother was a Miraluka, so I knew there was a chance. Then there was the luminescent Brith that led me to the cave where I found the crystal.." I stopped right there, realizing I had yet to reveal that part. But now that it had been said, my gaze staring toward the boot that laid between us, I supposed if she questioned it, I couldn't very well avoid the subject now. "Let's just say that I'm beginning to see a pattern here."

 

If it hadn't been for the distant noise of the comings and goings of the Temple's commonsary, the traffic of those returning from off-world and likely some heading off-world, we likely would sounded like a couple of lunatics to someone paying attention. Or at least, in my head, it would have felt that way, only reinforced by a confused beep that Bleep let out as she turned her optical lens toward me. And I wouldn't have blamed anyone either. I was clueless about the Force, or it's teachings, mere unattainable magic weaved by those blessed or cursed to wield it as far as I was concerned.

 

But now, sitting across from the woman, the picture of my life painting a picture that seemingly led to the exact moment, I couldn't help but wonder on it. A sense of courage flowed through me and I drove my hand into the boot and pulled forth both halves of the crystal forth, looking upon their forms once again, trying to understand why something so delicate had chosen me in their unknown purpose. I had seen many like them in the lightsabers I found within the Jedi Conclave back home, none as large as the whole that these two halves once made. But this crystal, plus the Brith, or rather vision of the Brith, perplexed me. It felt almost as if I had been led to it, and then I to this woman who sat before me where it cracked in two.

 

Without thought beforehand, my lips uttered words I never meant to voice. "Do you think perhaps this crystal meant to lead me here, to you, which is why it split in two?"

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“You too?” A huge grin sprouted on Armiena’s face at Genesis’ mention of his ancestry. She'd never met another half-Miraluka hybrid. From what her mother had told her, her species was rather uncommon in the Core Worlds and certain genetic mismatches with humans made the pairing somewhat difficult. Only seconds after the veteran Jedi let out a restrained bark of laughter, an elderly Miraluka clad in simple robes of faded black, donning no headgear or even an eyeband, limped into the commissary. She made a rather humanlike show of gazing about the hall as though searching for someone, then slowly moved to pour herself a mug of tea. A faint hint of a smile remained on her lips as she watched and waited.

 

“My mother,” Armiena explained, jerking her head towards the time-weathered seer. She leaned forward to stop her fellow half-breed from retrieving the crystals from her boot, but it was too late; he was already turning the stones over in his hands and peering at them intently. This time, fortunately, it seemed that the cleaved crystals remained inert, perhaps perceiving that their task had been completed.

 

“All I can say is… it’s possible that you were guided here by the Force. It was certainly a convoluted string of events that led you here. ” Armiena looked down sheepishly. She was no great philosopher or counselor; her understanding of the Force had always been somewhat secular. “Destiny, if it exists, is a complicated thing. The Jedi like to say that the future is always in motion, but that’s perhaps a kinder way to advise you to not think about it too much… or too not let the idea of destiny go to your head. The way I see it, all that we can manage is to try to do what we think is right, every step of the way.”

 

Armiena took a deep breath. She had never expected to teach another pupil after the death of her last apprentice. The thought of being responsible for the future of another young man when she had failed Arlan and had been absent from her own son's childhood seemed impossible. She pushed her cloth cap backwards, revealing a scalp that was covered with only a pittance of black stubble.

 

“Which is why I would like to teach you to use the Force.” The offer was made; Armiena’s eyes carefully watched Genesis’ expression. “I won't try to deceive you. This will probably be one of the most difficult things you will ever do. We'll be traveling regularly, and it will occasionally be quite dangerous. But you deserve a chance to develop your gifts.”

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Alem stood perfectly still, analyzing every single youngling he saw, but it was rather disappointing. Each one would give his circuits something the organics called hope, a chance, or a possible lead. But then each analyzation resulted in a dead moment, followed by a negative result. He even began to rexamine people several times, just to make sure he wasn't making any errors, or to make sure that the dead moments in his programming weren't interfering with his results.

 

Chance of finding Ward here: >.1%

Move on to new area: Kuat

 

Alem began to turn to his guard. "It seems I must be moving...."

 

Alem stopped. He had a brief glimpse at two humanoids. One a bald adult, the other a redheaded teen. For that brief moment he analized the teen, wondering if she was...

 

Result: Negative. Not Twilek

 

Another disap...

 

Possible parameters detected. Inconclusive. More information needed.

 

Alem paused. Usually he had a dead moment in his programming at this time. What were these parameters?

 

Command: Define Program.

Secondary Program: Alema'tal

Description: Restricted unless unlocked by owner or recognized parameters.

 

For a moment, Alem wondered if he should tell the Jedi that he may have found some hidden programming he wasn't fully aware of. This may be what the Jedi were fearful about. However, doing such a thing would place him in danger, and he calculated that his owner would not have placed this Alematal program with vicious intent.

 

"Guard, I saw two humanoids. One a bald female adult, and with her a possible youngling."

 

The guard thought for a moment. Then asked "You think she could know where your youngling is?"

 

Alem shook his head slowly. "While unlikely, I must see them. Will you accompany me deeper into this area?"

 

The guard nodded, and the two began to move forward, Alem ignoring the eyes on him, full intent on making his way, slowly, to where he saw the two.

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"It was an amazing thing, to see the knowledge of our similarities unfold before our eyes that day, despite our approaches to life being from opposite ends of the spectrum. The Force held its mysterious reasons deeply in secret, yet, in a flash, could reveal obvious hints here and there." - Genesis Stormhelm

 

"Mother?" I questioned quickly, turning my gaze around toward the direction that Armiena motioned toward, my expression of disbelief apparent when I turned back toward the Jedi. " I see."

 

But in truth, I was as far from putting things together as the seasoned Jedi before me, more questions placed before the both of us than answers. Her mother, like my own, was Miraluka, which made her like myself, a rare hybrid between the Human and Miraluka races. My mother had always called me her little miracle, a blessing between her and my father's love for each other. But it wasn't until i grew older that i understood the exact odds of my existence. But now proposed another question, and that was if the Force and these crystals I held in my were behind our encounter, why did it chose to bring together two of similar lineages? My head was beginning to hurt as I thought on this.

 

Clearing my thoughts I looked back toward the Mirluka that Armiena had mentioned to be her mother and my heart began to ache. Despite her elderly age, I couldn't help but see my own in her. And it made me miss her touch. No matter how much time had passed, the pain I felt never got any easier, only my dealing with it. Still, at times, it managed to get to me when I least expected, and seeing Armiena's mother made today such a time. Sadness apparent, I gazed downward toward the crystals as I listened to Armiena speak, her words somewhat distracting.

 

At least, until the offer to train me crossed her lips. Catching me completely off guard, I was speechless at first. I had always knew there was a chance of me being sensitive to the Force, but I never expected to be offered to be trained, especially as a Jedi. By the time my parents had passed, i was well past the age of recruitment. And the few Jedi whom managed to stop in on Dantooine paid little heed toward an orphaned half breed Miraluka. So her offer was completely unexpected.

 

But now that it had been made, it caused me to think about it. Aside from my fatefilled encounter with the woman before me, I knew nothing of the Force aside rumors and stories. And I didn't want to pledge my life to something I knew nothing about. Yet, I couldn't deny the events that led me here, to her. So I sat in silence for a moment, contemplating it, twirling the crystals within my palm. The only alternative I could see happening was my life returning to Dantooine once the Temple Guards were done with me, a life of scavenging and stealing, one I had hated even before arriving here at Felucia and one I hated the idea of returning to if there was another way. Plus there was the enthralling allure of action and adventure that every young boy admired upon and wished for, and my heart ached for a chance to help those like myself, forced to live an unwanted life of crime to survive.

 

"I accept" I finally spoke after much thought, finally agreeing that this was most likely the route my parents would have wished for me, and my curiosity of the events leading me here causing me to feel as if it was meant despite my usual disbelief in the ideal of fate. It was almost as if something was pulling me here, to her, a feeling I could not deny no matter how much fact I placed before me to prove otherwise. "I've thought long and hard on your offer, and while you've earned me of the dangers, it still outweighs the alternative. My life on Dantooine, as a criminal, as an orphan trying to survive, is over. If I am to die, then let in be in the service of something."

 

Subconsciously I couldn't help but hear my father's voice as I spoke that last line. I smiled at that thought.

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As Armiena made her offer to the half-Miraluka, she sensed another presence enter the commissary and stare directly at her. It buzzed steadily with hyperalertness and electronic activity: a droid, probably one configured for combat or security. She refused to be distracted as Genesis considered the prospect of training to use the Force, instead keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the young man’s expression and her attention on the thrum of introspection and disbelief that surrounded Genesis. It wasn't only the brush of cold air over her scalp that made Armiena suppress a shiver and the fine hairs in her arms to stand to attention when he accepted, however. She had known enough martyrs to last several lifetimes, and the last thing she wanted was for another apprentice to wind up as another dead hero.

 

“I hope that things won't come to that. The galaxy has enough dead heroes. If anything, promise to work for a greater good--yes?”

 

The old Miraluka had just limped up to the two and pressed a comlink into the younger Draygo’s hands. Armiena spared a moment to glance at the markings on the device before receiving the transmission--a Jedi model, probably lifted from a quartermaster’s office somewhere. Sighing, she listened and her face turned ghostly upon learning of the disaster looming over Coruscant.

 

“Speaking of traveling,” Armiena began, closing up the comlink and leaving it on the table between them. “We need to leave right away. There's an emergency developing on Coruscant that Darex--the Grandmaster--needs as many as possible to respond to. I'm not exaggerating when I say that potentially trillions of lives are at stake. You'd better eat something while I arrange for some transport--”

 

“Already arranged. A welcome-back gift.” The old Miraluka’s lips twitched as she pressed a datachit into her daughter's hands. “She’s a bit ugly, but she has a class-oh-point-nine hyperdrive.”

 

Armiena turned to her apprentice. “Alright, you have five minutes to nick as much hot food from the galley as you can manage. There's something I need to take care of before we leave.”

 

She returned to the electronic presence at the mouth of the commisary. Rising from her seat and turning to face the mechanical being, she took quick strides to confront it before it could intrude much further. The droid, assuming that it wasn't simply equipped with a clamshell re-skin by an owner with more money than brains, was one of the old MagnaGuards, a model used by the Confederacy of Independent Systems during the Clone War. Armiena had never seen one of the droids in the steel, but she knew of their reputation as fiendishly dogged close-quarters combatants, with redundancy after redundancy built into their chassis. It seemed ludicrously unlikely that the Jedi sentries would have consciously allowed a potential threat into the Temple, but she nonetheless found the battle droid and its unblinking array of photoreceptors slightly intimidating...

 

...especially with another youth under her protection.

 

Armiena stared upwards into eyes even though she knew that it was equipped with secondary photoreceptors all over its chassis. “This is the second time that you have been watching me and my apprentice,” she began, reflexively reaching for the Force. She was being hypervigilant, perhaps, but the veteran Jedi suspected that she might about to have an opportunity to stretch out some of the soreness from the climb into the temple. “Can I help you?”

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The approach of the bald woman made Alem a little pleased, as it did help his search shorten a little bit, though he couldn't help but notice she left the youngling away from her. If he was going to scan the youngling and uncover this Alema'tal, he would no doubt have to earn this individual's trust. If he was an organic, he would've been annoyed, since earning trust was not something he was doing well it appeared.

 

Alem raised a hand in greetings, similar to how he did when he first arrived on this planet.

 

"Greetings. My name is Alem'Chee. I must confess that while I am here on business of my owner and seeking out my ward and his lost youngling, I needed to speak to you and to the youngling you were with."

 

Alem's head turned briefly as he scanned the room again, unable to find the individual, so he turned his head back to the woman, to appear more human to her. "I mean no one any harm, though I understand if you are suspicious of me due to being a droid. However, I can give you my word that nothing in my known programming is meant to harm anyone here. This Jedi here..." Alem gestured slowly a metal hand toward the guard who had been with him "...as well as the guards at the door can attest that I have been cooperative, surrendered all my weapons but my staff, and I have promised to succumb to a mind wipe when I am ready to leave this temple."

 

Alem gave another look around the room briefly. "May I ask where the youngling you were with is?"

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"The tapestry of fate, spun like the web of the shell spider, was a fickle yet sturdy design. Though it flowed in its strength and could stand the test of time, certain niches could open up, causing unexpected consequences. Fate may have been a set destiny, yet the path forward toward that destiny held many paths open to travel." - Genesis Stormhelm

 

"Neither do i" I spoke with a heartily chuckle, scratching the back of my head in nervousness at the mere though of death. It wasn't that I feared death, but I had fought its grasp for many years now and intended to keep up the fight for years to come. But life held uncertainty, and if that day ever came, I was prepared to face it openly. Such was the life of one who lived its possibility each day for the last seven years. It had become an expectation of sorts, and the fear of it no longer held any meaning, each day considered a blessing. I had never thought beyond struggle and survival, at least, until now. "Agreed."

 

Before any other words could be spoken, Armiena's mother had made her way over toward us and something was exchanged in silence, not paying much attention in respect of their privacy. It was during this time I noticed a guard enter into the commissary where we sat, causing me to grow rather anxious, especially with the accompanying droid. Glancing over toward Bleep whom had noticed their arrival herself, we both nodded that we needed to make an exit, and quick. Luckily Armiena provided just that, though her words didn't exactly promise escape. It was either staying in the frying pan, or leaping into the fire where I stood a better chance, something i had long been accustomed to.

 

"Understood Master Draygo.." I spoke, the words surprisingly leaping from my mouth before I had a chance to even think about it. In truth, it was the first time I had called her by her title, but from what I knew of the Jedi Order, the teacher had always held the title of Master. But in an odd turn of events, it seemed to feel right and that thought sat upon my mind as I nodded toward Armiena, as well as her mother as I excused myself. Me, a student of the Force, my Master a Jedi. This had turned out to be one crazy day, and as I snuck out of sight from the looming guard, a sense of purpose washed over me, despite the nervous pit stirring in my stomach.

 

On my way out of the backside of the commissary, I managed to grab a couple of wraps that looked similar to the ones I had noticed on her plate during our initial encounter when I saw her screaming at the heavens, and packed them away as I disappeared down the hall. Bleep, still suggesting that we leave this planet and my 'thoughts of grandeur' behind, following quickly in tow. "Bleep, I'm sorry, but I've decided. You're welcome to stay behind or return to Dantooine alone if you wish. I'll never force you to follow me. But if I can do something with my life than just survive, then I must, especially if I can help others like us do the same. I spoke, looking around a corner to see if the coast was clear. Turning back to droid, I knelt before her with a understanding smile and brushed her transparent dome lovingly. "Please understand Bleep.

 

I hated that she couldn't comprehend this feeling that had washed over me, but I had to do what I felt was right. I didn't want to leave her behind, Bleep like a little sister to me and faithful companion. But if she didn't want this life, I couldn't ask her to follow me down it. With a tear in my eye, I turned once again to check the hall, before taking off and heading toward the distant roar of ships and hopefully the ship Armiena's mother mentioned. But to my surprise, Bleep quickly followed in suite, mumbling my idiocity as she caught up, saying that she had already hacked the comment unit that was handed to Armiena earlier and was able to transmit our location should she need it.

 

I chuckled with joy as we turned another hall, finding comfort in knowing that Bleep was there and willing to follow me and allowing Armiena to find us once she was done with her business, despite already having a feeling that she could easily find us without Bleep's aid. "Thank you Bleep."

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The hesitation was writ on Armiena’s face before he offered her hand to the combat droid in greetings. This particular model of combat droid was supposedly a Jedi-hunter, nearly as deadly unarmed as with a electrostaff or blaster. More than that, if the droid was a genuine production of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, it was older than Genesis by a considerable margin; it was probably older than the Empire. A Her eyes focused subtly away from the droid’s photoreceptors as she reached for the Force. Not sensing imminent peril or lethal intent from Alem’Chee’s electric presence, the veteran Jedi took a step forward and offered her hand, clasping the MagnaGuard’s unyielding steel hand with a grip that was deceptively firm for a hand so gaunt. “Call me Draygo. My apprentice and I were about to leave the planet on a mission that cannot be delayed, but we can at least speak on our way.”

 

A cramp threatened in her thigh as Armiena led the droid into the commissary. She limped along and massaged at the complaining muscle, scanning the room for her apprentice. “We had just started to leave when you showed up,” she offered , jerking her thumb towards the entrance of the hall. “Genesis, Alem’Chee. The droid says he needs to speak to you,” she explained, taking just a moment to retrieve her boots before they left. Somewhat clumsily as she worked the boots back onto her feet, Armiena led them back to the turbolift at the entrance of the Temple and carefully monitored the two while they spoke.

 

Her mother was already waiting for the party, her legs elevated on the passenger bed of a personnel carrier. Armiena couldn’t see a set of keys in the crew station; the old Miraluka must have hotwired the repulsorcraft. “Walk if you like,” the perpetual delinquent explained defiantly, her jaw thrust out defiantly. “But I’d rather not tackle four hundred meters of mud and slopes in the rain.”

 

The younger Draygo sighed and climbed onto the bench of the carryall. Her legs had been burning from the hike up to the Temple.

 

In the few hours since Armiena had arrived at the Jedi Temple, a small rainstorm had gathered and broke along the walls of the valley. The rapping of the rain soon became audible along the sides of the turbolift and the party was soon drenched by the warm downpour. The Jedi veteran looked up and frowned; taking a deep breath, she gathered the Force around them and summoned a Force barrier over the roof of the personnel carrier. The rain immediately began to patter against the unseen shield and drip down to the sides of the vehicle.

 

“Just drive, please.” Her brow furrowed in concentration, Armiena’s lips twitched. “I don’t know how long I can maintain this barrier.”

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Alem was surprisingly pleased at the fact that this particular Jedi was actually willing to take Alem's hand. A good sign.

 

"Thank you very much Draygo. As such, you may call me Alem, as my owner has designated me to his friends and extended clan."

 

As Alem followed the Jedi, he couldn't help but scan the woman over. She was most definitely a warrior. The battle scars he could see were evident. But this did not make Alem nervous in the slightest. If anything, his programming seemed to register this as a good thing in relation with the fact that she mentioned the individual was her apprentice. He knew that all Jedi masters and knights took on apprentices, much similar to a guard and their ward. However, their relationship always seemed a bit deeper. Alem was actually taught that if he ever fought a Jedi and their apprentice, he was to go for the apprentice first, since this would upset the jedi and make it more likely they would make a lethal mistake. Perhaps Alem could relate with the Jedi a bit more beyond both being protectors. His relationship with his own ward was much deeper then others knew.

 

However, he was bothered about something. This Jedi didn't visibly carry a lightsaber or another weapon of choice. All traditional Jedi carried a lightsaber at all times to protect themselves and others. Was this nervousness part of the hidden program?

 

Before the jedi introduced the apprentice, Alem silently scanned the redheaded human over. He even made a note about the human, just to be sure this unknown programming would receive it. Alem had to be thorough about this. He had to know what this program was, and how it could interfere with his primary goals.

Name: Genesis

Race: Human

Approximate Age: Between 15 and 18. Approaching full maturity.

Conclusion: Not Primary Ward

 

But as the individual called Draygo introduced this Genesis, there was another dead programming moment. Their was nothing unique about the name to trigger the dead programming. But seeing and having scanned the being seem to be important for the droid's programming. What was it?

 

Then the new commands began to kick in.

 

Parameters Identified

Program: Alema'tal on standby.

Secondary Ward Pending: Genesis

Secondary Goal Identified: Seek Passage with Jedi. Offer protection. Do not allow lethal harm come to this individual for the time being.

Secondary Goal should and will not intervene with Primary Goal.

 

If droid's had brains that function like organics, his would've been racing. This new program, what did it mean? Why did his owner install such a program into his complicated bodyguard when he had no need to protect people other then his own family? However, these were questions for later, or possibly questions that would never get answered.

 

In typical droid fashion, Alem repeated his ceremonious greetings to the human designated at Genesis, complete with the hand out to shake "Greetings. My name is Alem'Chee, though you may call me Alem if desired. Your master mentioned that you are going on a mission that cannot be delayed, I will be straightforward and to the point. I came to Felucia to see if my ward was here, but I wished to speak with you when I noticed a hidden program in my systems. Upon seeing and introduced, I have gained access to this program which states this goal: Offer Protection. I calculate this can be done while I continue my own search for my primary ward."

 

Alem decided a review of his own programming would help convince the youngling, as well as Draygo to accept his offer, much similar to how one would give a resume. "I have been originally programmed and trained by the forces of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. However, I was reprogrammed by my owner on Ryloth to be a protector, utilizing my trainings and programmings from the CIS to never be the aggressor." Alem noted the astromech and decided to add something about being a droid. "With combat training still intact and the ability to be repaired, I believe I am ideally useful, especially for those who are unable to protect themselves."

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After some unexpected delays, a new Carrack-class cruiser joined the Jedi fleet massing in the system. It featured four squadrons of a brand-new type of starfighter that had been the brainchild of Jedi Master Saria LaRone.

 

Jar-Kai (AP 2) completed. Construction begins on another AP 2 ship, to be completed 7/8/18.

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"Alem was a rare breed of Droid, formerly who's sole purpose was to hunt and kill Jedi. Yet, that day, such things were unknown to me and his program long altered to protect the very beings he was meant to hunt. Ah, the irony of it all." - Genesis Stormhelm

 

"Nice to meet you, Alem" I spoke with a slight cheerful tone, yet hesitation and confusion lingering within. While I was always happy to meet a new face, the droid perplexed me. His words of wards and missions were unknown to me, and only outright confused me as I met his hand in return. And in truth, his expression of hidden programs, what little I knew about droids and programming, wasn't the most reassuring aspect. Still, there was a sense of sincerity in his approach, and if Master Draygo was willing, so would I be. "I am Genesis Stormhelm. It's nice to meet you.

 

The day had taken a memorable turn on us as we rose above the valley, warm rain washing over our form in an almost cleansing drizzle. I briefly looked upward now having left the Temple below as well as my former life behind me and gazed into the unknown above with vigor, a smile crossing my face as the drizzling rain fell upon it and ran downward as we grew ever closer to freedom and the future. I couldn't help but feel anew, as if I had been waiting my whole life for this day. And as Armiena's shield went up, I stood in awe, finally seeing first hand with my own eye, of the Force's general applications.

 

"Wow Master... I spoke, the look of amazement and inspiring written profusely upon my face as I reached out and ran my hands across the barrier, my natural reaction to jerk my hand back when I felt its flowing texture. It was truly a sight to behold, especially for one such as I. "So this is the Force?

 

Falling back upon the passenger bed near Armiena's mother, I gazed at the elderly Miraluka with an all encompassing smile upon my face. I noticed the tension between the two, and was curious as to the why, but could not find any appropriation on how to broach such a subject. So instead, I decided to get to know the elderly woman as much as I could, just as I would Armiena during my tutelage under the Jedi Master. Extending my hand out to her, I spoke, the innocence of my youthfulness apparent. "Hi. I'm Genesis. You must be Armiena's mother.

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As the Rising Son pulled out of hyperspace, Lok checked over his instruments, smiling as the old starfighter held together nicely. His smile only grew as he felt a powerful presence ahead of him, Felucia. For years he had heard the stories of the Jedi, and the mysterious power they called the force, that it was described as a sixth sense. Behind him his navigator R7 bleeped at him.

 

"Yes R7," he smiled, "It's dead ahead, start a scan, and we'll start our descent." As the E-Wing began to descent, Lok received, coordinates and clearance to land. As he passed by the fauna, and wild life, Lok was amazed by the face that he could feel them. Everything on the planet seemed connected, and the wonder and awe of it left the young Zabrak grinning. He approached the temple and was amazed by the structure, he could feel many powerful presences within, and began his landing approach. After landing he and R7 exited the Rising Sun, the young man look around in awe, numerous starships, of various origins, lined the hanger. He could barely contain his excitement.

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“This is a petty little abuse of the Force. My old Master would not be amused.” Not desiring to get soaked by the warm downpour, Armiena sank into herself and focused her attention into maintaining the barrier above them. The water continued to sluice over the sides of the open-air man-transport and mud splashed around her boots, but she otherwise managed to stay dry. She remained silent and stared towards a point some kilometers into the storm-shrouded distance while the transport drifted towards the hangars, trying to decide how she was going to prepare Genesis for what might be a dangerous mission. If Faust was on Coruscant, it would be impossible to guarantee his safety. That was a dangerous enough event for a mostly-trained apprentice on the verge of his trials, but for a neophyte…

 

Their Miraluka driver cast an unseeing glance backwards. “Misal Draygo.” The Miraluka tilted her head quizzically at the young man, yet another habit that she had learned from living amongst humans. “If you don't mind my asking, was it on your mother’s side or your father’s side? Your gifts, I mean.” From the knowing smile that graced her age-weathered face, she wasn’t speaking merely of his Force-Sensitivity.

 

While the young man and the septuagenarian spoke, the open-air transport entered the shelter of the Jedi Temple’s hangar, a cavernous chamber stocked with numerous starfighters, shuttles, and freighters. One of them, an old Medium Transport that was clearly of Corellian design, was being swarmed over a panel of dockworkers who were set about loading a small, one-man starfighter into its cargo hold. Armiena held out a hand and felt a set of time-weathered code cylinders fall into her palm.

 

Armiena’s eyes swept overthe forty-plus meter-long freighter, recognizing the lines of the hull as a Barloz-class Medium Freighter, one of the older vessels manufactured by the Corellian Engineering Corporation prior to the spectacular success of the YT-series. Though the white paint job was accented tastefully with maroon edges, the hull was scoured by various scrapes and dents from impacts with unknown objects. A pair of flimsy-looking manipulator arms were tucked along either side of the cockpit, their limbs terminating in series of sinister probes and tools. The layout of the meager weapons suite was unusual as well, with a keel-mounted quad laser turret and a bow-mounted launcher. At least two sensor dishes had been added to the hull; an upgrade? Nevertheless, Armiena covered her eyes in utter dismay when she managed to make out the name of the freighter, painted by the side of the cockpit in large black characters:

 

Shippy McShipface.

 

“It’s the ugliest ship I’ve seen in my life,” Armiena remarked. That included some actual Uglies; that catch-all term for ships that are the product of mating together the hulls of ships that were never intended to be combined, usually with disastrous consequences for the ship and pilot. “It’ll suffice.”

 

Armiena dismounted and took her party into the shelter of the ship’s massive cargohold. In the background, a set of teamsters and loading droids were guiding a starfighter into a set of docking clamps. Amidst the chatter of machinary and curses as the dockworkers struggled with the ancient docking clamps, she explained. “Genesis, Alem’Chee, we’re going to Coruscant. I wasn’t exaggerating when I said that potentially trillions of lives are at stake. Vladimir Faust… did something to pull the planet's moon out of orbit. The Galactic Alliance won't be able to do anything to stop it in time, so it’s on the Jedi.”

 

She took a deep breath and addressed her apprentice directly. “I'm going to be blunt. Faust and I have tangled with each other for years, mostly to my detriment. We have a… a... personal grudge. He killed my last apprentice.” She let those last words drop like a tonne of durasteel ingots. “I completely understand if you'd rather wait to begin your training until after I return, but I'm going. I'm not going to let Darex down. Chocks away in five.”

 

True to her word, Draygo managed to make good on her estimation of five minutes. Joining the dockworkers in their frustrating task of heaving the wings of a brand-new starfighter into the docking clamps of an obsolete vessel, she sweated, cursed, and got her hands filthy with grease. When the teamsters weren't looking, however, Armiena pressed her grease-stained hand against the steel and gave the clamp an irritated slap. Something in the time-stuck mechanisms must have yielded to her Force-imbued touch, as the wing of the one-man fighter slid easily into the clamp and was securely locked. Grease-stained high-fives were exchanged, then Armiena was able to retreat to the cockpit in the upper deck and take off from Felucia. A short time later, the freighter leaped into hyperspace.

 

((To space, then Upper Levels.))

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Acceptable Response. Lack of Resistence and denial of services accepted.

Secondary Ward Identified: Genesis

 

Alem seemed to be pleased at the non-denial towards him from Genesis as well as the Jedi master. Indeed, his programming indicted a positive response to the entire situation. It seemed that his owner had programmed a bit more personality with this hidden programming. Nothing major, such as making him go against his primary goals of finding his primary ward, but enough for something equivalent of emotion to show through. Even when he guarded his wards back on Ryloth, his personality was lacking or, for lack of a better term, robotic. This fascinated Alem.

 

As Alem was guided to the ship, noting briefly of the demonstration of the force power, he could not help but observe the eyeless beings. He tried to understand how they were able to navigate so well without natural eyesight, but came up empty. The ears did not look to be anything better than human, and the sense of smell was hardly useful for casual walking, as far as Alem knew.

 

At the ship, as Draygo hid her eyes at the name, Alem was approached by a rodian which Alem recognised from the temple entrance. The rodian reminded the old droid the promise he had made, to which Alem nodded.

 

"It seems I will be leaving with this ship instead of my own. If I may request, could you make sure that when you erase my knowledge of the location of this temple, have someone move my ship a distance away and be sure I have coordinates to where it is at?"

 

The rodian agreed full heartedly. That wouldn't be too much of an issue at all. With some credits, Alem could guarantee a local could keep an eye on the ship and make sure it didn't get stolen. Satisfied, Alem requested to listen to Draygo first, and make sure of the location of where they were going. Satisfied with it being Corescant, one of the top choices Alem had for finding his primary ward, he submitted to the erasure. They had it done within the cargo hold of the ship of Shippy McShipface, to which the rodian chuckled a bit, and the process didn't take long at all. Alem was pleased that only the location of the temple was erased, and no other files were tampered or even opened, just as the Jedi had promised. The Rodian handed Alem his weapons and bid the droid a farewell.

 

As the ship took off, Alem followed Genesis, reviewing his own data silently.

 

Probability of finding primary Ward on Coruscant: 30%

Warning: Primary Ward's Safety if located on Coruscant is threatened.

Warning: Secondary Ward's Safety on Coruscant could be threatened.

Keep eye on Genesis and Draygo. Provide Help when needed. DO NOT ABANDON PRIMARY GOAL.

 

((Just wanted to clear up some things before my character left)

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Jedi Ace Brittany Va’ne, a Lorrdian and a Jedi knight pulled her V-9 torrent in a tight curve around the sensor buoys that laid out the test course that she was running for fun while waiting for something interesting to happen. As one of the few survivors from the battle of Onderon, Brit’s heart was gladdened to be put here on recovery flying while a new flight took on rotation aboard the Mon Cals. It gave her time to recover, maybe write Jason a nice holo letter to see if her was still interested….

 

“Hawkbat one, control.”

 

She pulled the V-9 into another steep port sided turn with a twitch of the controls and a push on the rudder pedals.

 

“Go ahead control.”

 

“Seers have identified the Ewing coming from grid 2-1 as a possible threat, we have given him clearance, but follow him down and investigate, he could just be a hopeful.”

 

Brit rolled her eyes and took off after the E-Wing, heading towards the main docking bays of Felucia, it took about an hour to navigate the buffeting winds of the stratosphere and finally down to the city below. SHe pulled her V-9 up and locked out the struts with a flick of an overhead switch. When the Torrent had settled, Brit pulled her lithe form out of the cockpit and climbed down. She stretched her sore legs and waved at the pilot of the Rising Sun which she had set down next to.

 

“Welcome to Felucia friend! What brings you out this way?”

____________________

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Brittany Va’ne -Jedi Ace

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Calix Meus Inebrians

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"It's always been stated a fact that daughters tend to take after their fathers, while sons take after their mothers, through base biology and subtle DNA markers. How much was actually true, we could never really tell. Only that it proved true the statement, nearly ninety percent of the time." - Genesis Stormhelm

 

"Nice to meet you Mrs. Misal Draygo." I spoke in an ecstatic tone, my grin still encompassing my face, her learnt facial expressions unobserved and oblivious to myself as she poised her question. In truth, I had never really thought about it. My looks came from my father, evident in my aching heart nearly every time i looked in a mirror. But I carried alot of my mother in me as well, not only the Miraluka bloodline, but in spirit as well. She was a kind soul, generous and caring. But she was also strong, facing struggles as they came with a smile upon her face and gentleness in her heart.

 

But as I gazed upon the elderly woman, and given the conversation that Armiena and I held earlier, I gather a hint she meant my part of our similar lineage. With a sly smile crossing my face, and a heartily chuckle, I answered. "If you're talking about me being part Miraluka, that would be my mother. You remind me alot of her actually, as does Master Draygo. But if you're meaning my Force Sensitivity, I couldn't honestly tell you. If my father was sensitive, we never knew."

 

As we arrived at the hangar bay, an area that I truthfully doubted I would see again so soon, we disembarked the transport and my gaze caught notice of what I had overlooked before. When I first arrived here, I was cuffed, and was more focused on escape than what surrounded me. But now, free and embarking on this adventure, i took the moment to take in the sights, including one that involved the droid i had just met moments before. This place, it was so full of life, and for a moment, i felt as if i had never left Dantooine nor that i was on a distant planet. It felt homely. Bleep rolled up beside me, taking in a similar thought I'm guessing, as she too sat in silence and gazed around.

 

"Its not so bad Master" I spoke after hearing Armiena speak, causing my gaze to shift toward her direction and toward the ship she spoke of. In truth, any ship held a certain magnificance about them to me. Even clunkers and disguarded ships like the ones that surrounded the starsport where I used to live, littering Dantooine's surface like a graveyard. To be able to go and come as they please, visit other planets and starports, carrying life and its substances to and fro. There was a sense of honor and pride in it. Even in the one that brought me to Felucia, though my memory of it was bittersweet. "At least its spaceworthy."

 

As the group boarded, I continued taking in the sight of this ship, running my hand across its metallic surface as if I was rediscovering an old friend or a living legend. Sure it had its scars. But I couldn't help but imagine the life it had lived and those it supported in its travels, secrets long lost to the ages. Letting go of my thoughts, and of the hydrolic lifts that held its entrance open, I caught up to Armiena and the others, a feeling of excitement running over my form as i walked its halls and rejoined the others.

 

"If you go Master, then I go. This time there was a sense of seriousness about me, almost as if my father projected himself through me, a seriousness of a duty bound veteran whom realizes this may be his last mission and has settled his bets. But in truth, it was all I could do to keep from shaking. When I accepted Armiena's offer, I meant it. I would, despite Bleep's protesting at this point, follow her as her apprentice and learn not only about the Force, but about life as well. Whatever laid ahead of me simply laid ahead. There were numerous paths, but only destination. And if it lead to what we feared, then at least I would hold no regrets by choosing the path I wanted to follow. "This is my decision.

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Jackson laid in his bunk staring up at the ceiling, simply thinking and trying to process the past few days’ events. From his ascension from the Coruscant undercity to the ‘battle’ above Onderon, and the aftermath thereof. It had all been exhausting, certainly, but now that he had the time to rest, he found that he just couldn’t. There were too many things to think about, too many stray thoughts running through his head and wreaking havoc on his ego.

 

He sat up with a quiet huff, and looked around the room. He had long since finished the programming on his ‘maneuvering jets’ and fine tuning the mechanics. He had long since looked over his tools, cleaned them, oiled them, and organized them. It had been a long night thus far.

 

The disgruntled padawan took another look around the room before his eyes settled on the stun baton near the rest of his things. When was the last time he had to use it? When he was backed into a corner, like those pilots who had lost their lives earlier? Jackson shivered, and picked the device up. He held it in his hands, and idly thumbed the activation dial, circling it with just enough pressure to feel the ridges without turning it on.

 

It would be a good idea to practice those forms that Skye had shown him earlier. Just in case. So that the next time he was backed into a corner, he would have a way out. So that he wouldn’t get backed into a corner in the first place.

 

He should practice his meditation afterwards, too. Definitely. And maybe ask if he could give piloting the ship a go some time. Just in case. Maybe once things were taken care of on Felucia. Definitely.

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  • 3 weeks later...

By the time they had gotten back to Felucia the Master Healer was exhausted. She had been running on very little rest as she tended to the injured from the disastrous battle for Onderon. Skye had taken short meditative breaks but would need a proper rest to recover. There had been so many wounded to work on, so many that hadn’t made it, killed in the space battle. The Healer would have to check in with Darex as Jaina was MIA. What she couldn’t tell was if her fellow Councilwoman had survived or if she had perished. With all the deaths that occurred in that dreadful fight there was no way any of the Jedi there - even those most familiar with her - could isolate a single presence amongst the many tortured souls whose lives had ended or those that lived on though were horribly wounded and still cried out their pain. By the time Skye had been told Jaina was missing they had already left the system.

 

“Master Organa. We’ll take over here now. Go and rest, you look exhausted.” The Healer looked up from the chart she had been attempting to read through blurry eyes. “Yes… you’re right. I’ll leave my patients in you’re capable hands… and yes, I’ll rest. I need to report to Master Trevelian. There’s been no word regarding Master Skywalker?” Skye asked, knowing the answer by the expression on her fellow Jedi Healer’s face. “No Master Organa. No one can confirm if she’s alive, taken prisoner or if she has become one with the Force.” Skye closed her eyes and sadly shook her head, “We can only trust in the Force.” With that, she handed over the chart and took her leave, intending on getting a little rest before she composed messages for the Grandmaster… and for Andon and Emily. The least she could do was to report that Jaina was missing.

 

As she walked past the room allotted to her Padawan, she tapped on the door, waiting for him to answer. “How are you holding up Jackson? We’ll head over to Serenity after I’ve had some rest.”

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Jackson ceased his practice as he heard Skye knock on his door, and wiped the sweat from his brow before thumbing the portal open. "Master Skye." He greeted her a little awkwardly, still unaccustomed to the title.

 

"I..." He hesitated, "I think I'll be happy to leave. This ship, I mean, and the people here. Ever since the battle it's been really, really uncomfortable. I've been fighting a headache ever since I, uh, since I noticed that something was off."

 

The Padawan glanced over his shoulder to check the time in his room, somewhat surprised with how much time had passed since he had begun practicing earlier. Had it really been that long? It only felt like it had been a little while, and yet it must have been hours. The fatigue was starting to set in now that he wasn't so focused, and his stun baton felt heavy hanging from the strap on his wrist.

 

"Master Skye, do you think you could show me the ropes of flying? When we get back? I can handle a speeder pretty well, I think, but I've never really had the opportunity to learn with a real ship. After everything that's happened I think I want to start."

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  • 2 weeks later...

Skye met her Padawan’s eyes with a tired smile and nodded her head as Jackson told her how uncomfortable he felt being on the Ara-Lai. “What you’re feeling is through the Force. It is your new awareness of those surrounding us - how stressed they are all feeling - emotions and trauma. I’m not surprised that it has given you a headache. It can be overwhelming for those new to the ways of the Force.” Skye leaned against the door frame as she looked at her Padawan, “Your headache will ease once we get far enough away.” Where she was going to rest before heading back to her ship, the Healer now changed her mind, “Gather your things, we’ll head back over now.” She pushed herself away from the door frame and stepped back, heading to the room next door. It didn’t take her long to gather up her belongings and meet her Padawan in the corridor.

 

As they made their way to the hanger Skye answered Jackson’s question about flying. “Yes, I can teach you how to fly. We can set up the simulator so you can begin there.” By the time they entered the hanger bay, I-Nine had docked. She led the way over to the embarkation ramp and boarded Serenity. “It’s good to be back,” the Healer murmured softly as she crossed the threshold. She would still need to rest before she reported to Darex and Andon regarding Jaina. Skye very much hoped that Jaina would turn up soon. Making her way to the cockpit she instructed I-Nine to take them out and head towards Corellia. She would rest during the trip. Skye would take Jackson to the Forest Retreat and begin his training in earnest. Turning to Jackson she spoke, “Unless you wish to rest also, I-Nine can give you a rundown on piloting. Once I’ve rested I’ll cook dinner. Any questions we can go over then.”

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Jackson was packed up and ready to go almost the moment Skye had stepped away to gather her own posessions, his relief to be leaving such a heavy headache-inducing miasma nearly palpable. The fact that all of his worldly posessions consisted of the clothing on his back, a tool box and a single go-bag also helped matters greatly.

 

"Don't think I could sleep if I tried," he grumbled once they settled in on the Serenity. "Don't get a lot of sleep on the best of days, but here..." The Padawan glanced towards the bloodied ships they were soon to leave behind. He was still having a little trouble coming to terms with the reality of actual organized war and battle, as opposed to shootings on the streets and friendly arguments between opposing street gangs. The death toll this time around was a little bit higher than it was down in the undercity, and he couldn't just run deeper towards the surface to get away from it all now.

 

Not yet at least. Maybe if he could get his own ship...

 

"Well." He turned back, cutting off that line of thought. "Just need to keep myself busy for now. Where are we going from here?"

 

Jackson hesitated for a moment, before adding a quick "Master."

 

The word still felt foreign and uncomfortable rolling off of his tongue, like he had just gotten a mouthful of old engine grease.

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Skye turned back to I-Nine, briefly giving instruction for the droid to begin showing Jackson how to fly the ship. Her eyes sparkled at his use of her title as she turned back to her Padawan adding, "We're heading to Corellia. I have a forest retreat there. We could have gone down to the surface of Felucia to train though with the ships still here in orbit we will be better off away from them." As she spoke, the silver and green Protocol droid had lifted the ship and left the hanger, gliding out away from the Ara-Lai. It took only a short amount of time before I-Nine pulled back on the lever sending them into hyperspace. The Jedi Healer watched as the view changed to streaks of swirling light before she again turned back to Jackson, "We'll stop in Tyrena to get a few supplies and you can pick up some other clothing. I suggest you get some that you are comfortable in so you can move freely for training. I'll get you a set of Jedi Robes that will fit you properly as well." Where he had made the comment about not being able to sleep properly, the routine she will put him into would soon correct that. She intended to build his fitness as well as give him the mental training he would need to become a Jedi.

 

"I'll leave you here with I-Nine - he'll take you through what you need to know for how to fly this ship. You can then use the simulator in the hold as often as you wish. It's got a lot of scenarios programmed in of how to pilot through an asteroid field, how to fly in combat and your regular run of the mill piloting. I'll see you in a couple of hours." With that, Skye headed back out of the cockpit towards her quarters. She took a quick sonic shower and got into fresh robes before she lay down to get a bit of much needed sleep.

 

[To Space thread]

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  • 4 weeks later...

A small fighter exited hyperspace above the planet of Felucia with casual haste. Though its emergency beacon was activated and transmitting the codes necessary for seeking asylum as a refugee, the pilot remained cautious in his approach, carefully maintaining a slow approach as it awaited a proper escort. The pilot, Mjan, knew the potiential disturbance he could cause should he not respect the proper channels, especially considering the racial stigmata that followed those of his kind given their history as a whole.

 

"This is Mjan Sadow, Kissai and Sorcerer of Tund, requesting asylum among those of the Jidai." He spoke, his voice deep but carrying a soft and gentle tone as he opened a comm to the temple below, weapons deactivated and only the ship and its engines registering as he made the final stretch of his approach. "I will await final confirmation before I make my decent."

 

He knew his request would take time to be accepted, if it even would be, considering the past history of the Order with his kind and those that took up the name the last few hundred millennia. So caution would be the key not only on his part, but theirs as well. But he had came to the Jidai with a purpose that neither had ever seen before, to learn and be instructed upon the lightside of the Force, a sentiment that he alone held even amidst his brethren within the Sorcerers of Tund and their belief in the unified Force. But to Mjan, he would need to understand both sides of the duality if he was to truly understand the unity of it.

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Fortunately for Mjan, the operations controller on duty had never heard of either title by which the newcomer identified himself. On top of that, there had been so many Coruscanti refugees streaming into various ports across the galaxy that Mjan's plea for asylum was about the 20th the controller had heard this morning. And he'd only been on duty for a few hours. As a result, Mjan received back a pre-programmed response. "Greetings and welcome to Felucia, on behalf of the Jedi Order. Deactivation of the shield will commence after your ship's identification has been logged. Please proceed to refugee camp Onith-4 at the attached coordinates where you will be provided with quarter and food, and a trained professional will meet you to discuss your needs and options."

 

---

 

This whole situation was a kriffing mess. I slogged through the mud that had been raised by the rain and the constant tramp of beings passing through refugee camp Onith-4, trying to keep my frustration off my face. For the past two weeks, refugees had been pouring in. Many people knew that there was a Jedi Temple here, and in crisis, it was often the Jedi that people looked to. Especially since the GA fleet had taken a beating by what appeared to be Mandalorian forces. And since Hesperidium had hit Coruscant three days ago, the refugee stream had only increased, and the mood in the camps had gone from shocked yet hopeful, to utterly devastated. Even though Coruscant hadn't been completely destroyed, many of these people had lost literally everything, and even those who hadn't were reeling. A catastrophe on this level hadn't happened to Coruscant ever. Even the shield collapse of a decade or so ago held no candle to this.

 

Of course, disasters occurred on other worlds. But Coruscant had always had an air of being invincible, surviving everything that had been thrown it's way, standing as the seat of government and culture for millennia. To be honest, I was having a hard time believing it myself. The Grandmaster and the other Jedi who had been there had failed. How could this possibly be the will of the Force?

 

"Please, Master Jedi!"

 

The voice of a young human, no more than five or six, interrupted my dark line of thought. I stopped walked and turned to her. "Yes, little one?"

 

"My mommy is sick. She won't stop coughing. Can you help?"

 

I checked the pouch that hung by my side. "Yes," I confirmed. "Take me to your mother."

 

The child darted off, forcing me to pick up my pace as I hurried after her. We passed mud-splattered white tent after mud-splattered white tent until she stopped and pulled back the flap of one, disappearing inside. After a moment, I followed her.

 

The interior of the tent was humid and stuffy. Felucia was a jungle planet, and even the Jedi Order didn't have the resources to provide climate control for all these refugees. A woman lay on a cot, with two other, smaller children clustered around her. Her coughs shook the tent. The three children looked up at me with wide eyes. "It's okay," I said, trying to smile. I knelt down next to the mother and took her hand. "I'm Aira," I said. "I'm just going to check you over, okay?"

 

Pulling out a diagnostic scanner, I ran it over her. In the past few weeks, I had become familiar with a lot of equipment I hadn't previously known how to use. After a moment, it beeped, and I checked the readout and nodded. The scanner confirmed what I had assumed it to be--dust particles in her lungs. It was a very common ailment in these camps. Without hesitating, I pulled out a tube of medicinal spray, checked to verify that it was the correct one for humans, then handed it to her. "You'll need to spray this in each nostril twice a day," I told her. "If the coughing doesn't subside in three days, come find more medical help, okay?"

 

The woman nodded weakly.

 

"Are the kids having any symptoms?"

 

"No," she croaked.

 

"Okay," I nodded, rising to my feet. I turned to go, but she grabbed my arm.

 

"Thank you," she whispered, tears of shame entering her eyes.

 

I grasped her hand warmly. "May the Force be with you."

 

Back outside, I put my hands on the small of my back and arched it, stretching out the crick that had been forming. Realizing I was hungry, and desperately needing a shower and a nap, I started to head back to where my fighter was parked. The coolness and cleanliness of the Jedi Temple sounded really good right now. Before I got very far, however, I was notified of a new wave of refugees getting ready to land. There were other people who could get them settled, but I was near the edge of the camp anyway. So I turned and headed over to the makeshift landing zone we had cleared in the jungle. Once I got these newcomers settled, I'd get that shower.

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Captain of the Galactic Alliance & Jedi Knight

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Mjan was quite surprised by the response, but as he brought his ship into the lower atmosphere, he began to understand why. He had expected strict and abundant security as he neared the Temple, but what he saw upon the viewscreen painted quite a different picture. Hundreds of ships, if not thousands, littered the areas surrounding the Temple. And the make shift camps seemed filled with thousands, if not millions, of life signs. Mjan's brow shifted with surprise, and his thoughts ran between questions as to why Felucia would be so over populated with refugees and then shifted toward a sense of sadness to see so many displaced. Reaching over with his left hand, he activated the landing gear and began his decent.

 

Outside his ship, Mjan, dressed in his custom Robes, felt slightly out of place as he stepped foot into the muck beneath his feet. Krayiss II was quite different from Felucia to say the least. But as he passed the many faces, most carrying injuries and a look of horror upon them as the realization of whatever catastrophe they witness slowly began to set it, the same look of little attention toward his appearance remained the same. No one seemed to notice nor recognize the Sith that he was, only another alien among the many masses. A sense of relaxation set in, and as he passed a few, he made his approach and began helping how he could.

 

Ointments to numb the pain of those covered with cuts and bruises made from plants his people cultivated within their hidden temples, tea to relieve the inflammation of those whom had inhaled heat and dust as well as ease the coughing and break loose the congestion that had settled in their lungs made from simple roots, and clean bandages for those who needed redressings to keep clean from infection as he made his way through the camp. He held no clue as to what had happened to these folks, but if he could help, he would.

 

Most folks paid little heed to his appearance as he made his way closer toward the looming Temple, making subtle mental notes of the plants and fauna he recognized and those he didn't. He had never seen such a lush planet, most of the fauna his Order cultivated imported through smugglers and those friendly to their cause. It was a rough life living amongst kin whom held grievances toward their beliefs, but it was a worthy one. To live outside the chaos and find order within one's self was the truest of achievements. And as a Sorcerer of Tund, one held a sense of pride knowing they had risen above the barbarism that plagued their brethren. Yet for Mjan, he had always held a scholarly outlook, always curious about why his kin held so strictly their ways and refused to see outside of it. This is why he came out of hiding and ventured toward the light of the Jedi.

 

Passing a group of playing children, he smiled as their eyes fell upon him, kneeling down and offering a loaf of bread to them out of his satchel, one or two of them running their hands across the barbs that protruded from his brow and chin and across the jewelry that adorned his facial features. He chuckled, finding their touch quite ticklish as he rose, his hand brushing their lekku before he went to walk away. But as he went to turn, a feeling of warmth washed over his form, causing his gaze to shift toward an approaching presence(Aira). Standing there, he watched as she approached, wondering if she knew who he was.

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