Gala - Jedi Praxeum Ruins

[Darth Furion]

...connection...

 

The whisper came from no where, yet rested gently in Aiden's mind none the less. The boy knew he'd be watching, and Julio, too, knew this was just another game. The lad wanted answers, meaning, but he was playing with fire. He walked deeply into a secluded section of the temple with a Sith, and it wasn't likely he told anyone where he was going. With an exhale, the precious veil that masked Julio from the minds and eyes of others passed over Aiden, erasing him from the perceptions of others. It wasn't a quick thing, nor was it done in such an alarming way as to draw attention. If anyone had been paying attention, it would seem the boy had simply flickered out, the flame waning down until there was nothing left.

 

You're looking for them, trying to explain to yourself how you are in some way share a part of me, or the others of this temple. You want to see that you are not entirely alone in your experiences. Yes?

 

Even in its non-directional nature, the voice seemed to be pacing, circling the boy. No draft stirred, no gravel from the paths ground under phantom feet, no plants swayed from an absent brushing. The voice spoke plainly, asking questions but more so to progress the conversation and line of thought rather than find answers.

 

That's why we seek friends and family, try to pull people toward us and make them like, even love us. We want to belong to something greater than ourselves, we want to share experiences with other people, and more than anything else, we don't want to be alone.

 

However, you have to realize something very important. You are alone. Others may share your life's moments, but they will never experience them the same way you do, never feel the way you do. Certainly, they may have their own feelings and thoughts that may coincide with yours, but that's to be expected. Your family will be sure to raise you to fit the general mold they want to see in you. Those you consider friends wouldn't be so if they didn't share your views and feelings on large issues.

 

But despite all that, you're ultimately still alone. You can numb the feeling with family and friends, but its always there, deep in the back of your mind, arising in moments of fear and self doubt. You're alone because you don't really know who you are. You haven't figured out for yourself how you feel about certain ideas, or people. But don't worry about that, my boy, you're only ten. You've got quite a while to figure all this out.

 

On that note the voice stopped and Julio retreated back to himself, though left the veil. It was a large garden, and he had room enough to relax and meditate for a while, at least until his stomach's growl became too vicious. High aloft in one sort of tree -or bush...or was it a vine?- Julio leaned back and made himself comfortable.

 

I suppose I don't really have any friends....But I have Rose. I will have Rose.

[Aidan Darkfire]

"So...I guess it wouldn't matter if you were my friend or not then..."

 

Aidan sighed, the feeling of emptiness returning. Quietly, he tossed the last rock in his hand at the fountain, getting up.

 

"I'm sorry things are the way they are. I wish I could change them."

 

Slowly but steadily the young boy plodded back to the greenhouse door, leaving the dark man behind. Maybe someday he'd understand...maybe someday he'd be able to help the dark man. But right now maybe he was just a kid.

 

Outside the door, Aidan stopped, his brows furrowed together in contemplation as he thought to himself. If he was capable of all that he had witnessed, then why wouldn't he be able to one day help people like that? A switch in the back of his mind clicked, and the young boy walked off with a sense of quiet determination.

 

Someday, he'd be able to help everyone.

[Darth Furion]

....Me too....

 

The lament didn't travel far past his lips, but he said it, and in doing so actually acknowledged something he had been ignoring for a long, long time. He had no friends, no one to talk to when he was lonely, or confused, or infuriated. No one to taint his perspective, or influence his interpretations of himself or how he thought or felt about things. It was as he told Aiden, we surround ourselves by like-minded individuals to reinforce our beliefs, to evolve what we know and feel through the minds and hearts of those you surround yourself with. For years now Julio had purposefully avoided making any such connections, refusing to let himself get tied down to anyone or anything. The focus was me, it had to be. No one else would focus on him, protect him, make him strong. His only community was within the Sith, and even there it was impossible to find a friend who wouldn't slit your throat as you slept if they thought it'd get them an ounce of power.

 

As much as he had been avoiding it, Julio came to the realization that the human inside needed others, in some way, to connect to. Years of solidarity and inward focus certainly helped him understand who he was, as both a man and a Sith. But here, in this temple, or anywhere around other people, he wasn't the same man he thought he was when he was alone. He found himself holding back, shielding these people from the monster inside of him. He didn't like them....or, well, he didn't think he did. They were predictable, certainly, which was something he vastly enjoyed about them. Simple, straightforward. In fact, these Jedi were probably the closest things to friends he had. In an obscure, messed up way, he knew that they would listen to his troubles, and try wholeheartedly to help him. Was that friendship, or simply Jedi naivete?

 

The Sith's left hand twisted just a little bit, and a long set of beads fell down around his wrist. Each bead was originally a bony white, painted in a darker red, and had small symbols etched into the sides. Julio placed one between his fingers and felt the barely noticeable edges to the etchings and closed his eyes. He muttered something, but it was completely incomprehensible, barely a whisper and of a language long forgotten to virtually the entire galaxy. He seemed to be muttering lines, switching the beads between his fingers as he came to a new one. There were one hundred beads on this blood dyed rosary, each distinguishable from the rest. As he chanted on he began to slip into a deep meditation, falling from the face of this world to the harsh reality of the next. And as he eased deeper and deeper into the chasm of his mind and the Force, Darkness spread.

[Keenava Dira]

< An encrypted comm message comes for Julio Furion >

[Sanj-Misavj]

Sanj's ship popped out of hyperspace near the Jedi planet of Gala. The Jedi Knight sighed nostalgically. He remembered when he first came to this planet to become a Jedi. He was a boy then, now he was a Jedi knight fully trained and ready for battle. Sanj routinely entered the atmosphere and soared over the beautiful landscape. How long had it been since he was here last? Ten years at least, maybe more. The Jedi Knight had not only changed mentally since he was first here, but he looked much more wise and strong, he even had several scars from the years spent on Yavin IV in the wilderness. The time in isolation only made him wiser.

 

The blue skinned Jedi approached the temple and began to land near the temples entrance. He quickly grabbed a clean robes and put them on, he wanted to look presentable when he re entered the universe. He smiled; it would be good to see his friends again. Maybe get a padawan. Maybe. He put his lightsaber in a concealed holder inside his sleeve.

 

Sanj-Misavj swiftly exited his ship and locked it. He slowly walked into the sanctuary smiling, he felt as if he was a new recruit, so hopeful, so full of life. Sanj let out a sigh of relief, was home.

[Reptilia]

The Knight was meditating when he felt a familiar presence go overhead, it took him a moment but he recognized Sanj, his acquaintance from when they were padawans together. It had been a long time but he remembered the Jedi from their training days, with Xae and Hartel... The memories came back, how he could help him. Rep shook his head and continued to meditate.

 

After a few minutes Rep looked up, he could sense Trushaun was close. He leaped up from his rock and started walking towards her. He felt that she had made a choice about her class, it made Rep happy as it would make training her a little bit easier. It had been a few hours since they parted ways from each other but it seemed like they both made good use of that time. As his padawan came into view he sped up a little to meet her. "So," He started, "What did you decide on?"

[Nishant]

She grinned, and impulsively took Nishant's arm as they walked. "So I suppose we have the rest of the evening off." Her eyes twinkled. "What do you want to do?"

 

Nishant appreciated where she was coming from with her answer; he was slightly surprised, in his inward way, to feel the relief that ran down his spine as she said that she was not quite so familiar with the kind of anger the man called Julio had displayed. Even with his own particular note, that the manner in which both Julio and the predatory woman had controlled themselves seemed similar (though doubtlessly they had been learned through different methods, as per how they had been taught and how they had learned), Nishant acknowledged that before that control had slid shut, the Sith had felt...as Emily said, unbridled. As Nishant looked at his friend, he shared her appreciation for the energy and the awe it inspired.

 

When she spoke of controlling emotions, Nishant had to let his comments pass””though he was certain many, even most Jedi (and others) considered control of emotions to demonstrate mastery, he himself did not believe control to be the right word or the right view. He recalled having mentioned this to Emily before, and perhaps he would bring that to the fore again later; for now, he was more interested in simply walking with her. As if cued by that thought, he felt her arm link with hers and again there was the inward surprise that never touched his features, save for that he looked at her with a smile. What would he want to do?

 

”œI would like...”

[Wookiee Jedi]

Kirlocca slowly walked the halls back towards the main Grand Auditorium, and hopefully, where some of his students may be. He had to stop though, as he saw Aidan and the familiar Dark Jedi making a few exchanges between both of them. Kirlocca placed his paw firmly upon his lightsaber hilt and let out an aggressive growl.

 

<< Aidan! >>

 

Kirlocca then tilted his head towards the main auditorium. He then locked eyes with the Dark Jedi, almost giving him a watchful stare so that he would know that the Wookiee would not hesitate to make a move upon him if he conducted himself inappropriately.

[Sanj-Misavj]

Sanj heard a scream of the name, Aidan. He almost smiled at how quickly he would get into action, almost; he would have if it didn't sound so dire. He dropped his main robe to show a secondary, shadow colored one that he used when he needed to stealth. He perfectly hid in the shadow and was almost impossible to see, even if someone was looking directly at him while looking for him it could be hard for them to make his shape out. The Jedi Sentinel began to sneak around and followed the sound to the source.

 

Sanj was shocked at what he saw, it was worse than he feared. It was a Dark Jedi who was far more powerful than himself next to an innocent child who he could sense was strong in the force but hadn't been attuned to it, and a powerful Wookiee Jedi. He could feel the atmosphere tense, which wasn't a good thing for the safety of the boy; with him there the Dark Jedi would have leverage. This was why he decided to remained in stealth. As soon as the Dark Jedi was distracted, he would bring the boy away from the conflict and into safety. Then if needed he would engage the enemy.

[Emily]

She let out a short laugh. "How did I know you were going to say that?" she teased. "You're getting predictable, Nish." But her smile let him know that she remained very interested to see what drew him to the gardens with such power. She had seen more plants within the past few days than in her entire life, but other than that, she had absolutely no experience.

 

"Let's go, then." They walked seemingly randomly, but their steps drew them deeper into the Temple. They finally entered a large garden with a brook running through it.

 

Emily glanced around. It was very green and vibrant, and as she opened herself to the Force, she could feel the massive concentration of life here. A flash of color caught her eye, and she let go of Nishant's arm to walk over to it. It was a flower, bright orange with pink stripes, almost glowing with the Force. Emily had seen holos of flowers before, but now she realized that they had failed miserably to capture the essence and elegance of the real thing.

 

But what most surprised her was the smell. The flower carried a strong fragrant smell. She inhaled reflexively, and a smile crossed her face. She had never imagined such a scent. It combined perfectly with the almost-too-bright colors of the flower.

 

She realized Nishant was waiting, and blushed. "I never realized they were going to be so beautiful. I've never imagined something of such perfect beauty."

[Nishant]

Predictable? If it was in pursuit of something like that which she would soon explore with him, he didn't mind if such a thing were predictable. In fact, he rather liked that his adoration of what was natural energy and splendor was so habitual for him that it could be called predictable. He smiled at that, and at her twist on his name. As they walked, he heard the slight patter of the brook before they were even near the garden, and wondered if this ability to hear was tied with his awakening to the Force. He had always possessed keen senses (always, as in, as far back as he could remember), but this felt different. He felt the garden before he ever saw it.

 

When they arrived Nishant waited, allowing Emily her time to explore without his presence involved. He found himself drawn to her reactions, found himself almost nodding at her realizations””first the opening to the wonder of it all, and then the color, the visual sense; then the smell””oh, the scent of this place! He could not help but let it pull him in, even now. As she turned to him, for a moment Nishant thought she had pulled a flower up to her cheek, tucked it into her ear. Then he realized she was blushing, and that it was the color and the warmth he saw in her cheek that had created the sensation.

 

”œYes,”

[Kitt]

A smile appeared upon Kitt's face as Roene activated the training lightsaber. For some reason, he expected it. Both Tirius and Roene were different padawans, but they both managed to push when they needed too. The Grandmaster responded to his apprentice's call for a challenge by pulling out his own lightsaber. With a quick snap-hiss, a blue blade of energy sprang to life. Kitt never spoke, but instead acted. He leapt high into the air, making a short spin before he landed next to Roene with a downward spiral motion at his legs. His plan was to follow through with an upward swing, catching Roene off guard.

 

(Sorry for the short post.)

[Emily]

She took his hand and let herself be pulled to the ground next to him, pondering his words. She felt that there was a spark of true wisdom in them, and wanted to explore it a bit more. "That is an important lesson to learn," she said slowly, clearly thinking hard about it. "One that I find myself having a hard time accepting." It was a very vulnerable thing to say, but she felt safe confiding in him. The lesson was alternately frightening and comforting to her.

 

"I hate that everything dies," she said softly. "It reminds me, well, of my own helplessness. It's something I can't control. When my father died, I felt like fate or destiny or the Force had stolen him from us and deliberately let my family in tatters. Like life was playing a cruel joke on us. But I didn't believe there was anything I could have done to save him."

 

Her voice grew harder. "But my mother...she committed suicide. She claimed she just couldn't go on anymore, that she had nothing left to live for." He could hear the bitterness in her voice easily. "I blamed myself. In a way, I still do. If I had been more...I don't know, more something, then perhaps she would have stayed. She didn't love me enough to live for my sake."

 

She paused. "I loved her, but it wasn't enough. So I finally left, searching for a new family with the Sith. I found one. I belonged, I had a master who was brilliant and was determined to help me become the very best I possibly could be. But once again, I was the butt of some cruel joke. My master died in a battle over this very planet, and once again, I was left in free-fall."

 

She shook her head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to suddenly dump my whole life story on you. You just got me thinking...If everything dies, what is the point? All will come to nothing in the end."

[Nishant]

At her last words, Nishant smiled softly. He had found his own answer to that question years ago, and remembered well the turmoil that had engulfed him prior to his own understanding. But it was his answer, and he knew each person must have their own reconciliation with what was transitory. But, he decided, sharing his way with her wouldn't be a bad thing. After all, sharing this garden was the same.

 

"I have wondered the same thing, before," he said. He took her hand, placed it lightly around the nearest flower still glistening with quiet droplets of dew. "That is when I first learned to love flowers. First I loved the ocean, and the only reason I learned to love it was because I had to learn from it to learn my family's meditation. I told you of that day, when I helped that creature from the sea in leaving its body--after that I could not reconcile myself with death. It did not help that winter came within a month. My mother told me to go into the woodlands every day at dawn, and I did, and nothing seemed to happen. Until one morning, nearly a month before spring was supposed to begin, I saw the smallest flower bursting through the snow, so eager to live that it had raised itself up too soon."

 

He turned to her, and heard the brook rolling nearby. "Everything is transient, but each flower that dies lives on in the enduring birth of every other flower born beside it. When I first learned of the Force, that is what I thought it might be--the enduring paradox, ever transient and ever living. When I felt it today, for the first time, I knew for myself that this must be true, that it is connected to my soul, that though my body may die my soul, my energy will become something else."

 

He could not help running a hand lightly against her arm, puzzled at the feeling within him. He had been eager to help people many times, but it felt so...right, now. "I feel for you, that you have had to endure so much. But you are here, now; whether you believe it to be for a reason, or mere coincidence, it can mean something to you now that you are in a place that is entirely consumed by the cycle of life and death." He laughed, very lightly, and his eyes glimmered.

 

"If everything dies, I think the point is, to live."

[Trushaun]

Trushaun was exhausted after her little training exercise. She relaxed and tried that mediation thing that Rep had taught her hours before. The cool wind flowed in and out of her nostrils and through her hair. The Fosh became revitalized and ready for action once again when her master came up on her.

 

He asked her of the choice she made.

 

Standing up, she calmly put her hand out to use the Force. She lifted up a single pine needle, with some struggle. Guiding it in front of her master's face, she hoped he would realize she chose the naturalist field. It was growing tiresome talking through the droid strapped to her waist so she felt this was much easier. And more meaningful.

[Emily]

"If you're right, that means death is not an end, but a beginning." She wanted to believe that. If it was so, then all the death she had encountered in her life was not in vain, not something to despair over. Perhaps it wasn't quite something to celebrate, but if she truly believed that, then it made their deaths more easy to accept. There was peace to be found in Nishant's viewpoint.

 

But Emily couldn't just take it on face value. Her father had taught her to think critically at an early age, so she pondered the words as Nishant continued speaking. It seemed right, but she wondered. She assumed that this was a viewpoint shared by the Jedi Order, for she had heard that Jedi considered death as 'becoming one with the Force'. That fell in line with Nishant's instincts about his final state.

 

And really, if the opposite were true, she mused, what would the point be to life? It would be hopeless. You'd simply live for a little over a hundred years and then die, and fade away to oblivion.

 

As Nishant placed her hand on the flower, she considered it's soft petals. He was right; there was always spring after winter, and new life after death. It was the way of the universe. What would make her think that she was any different?

 

At that thought, a great burden was suddenly lifted from her heart. She found herself almost choked up with emotion. She had no idea what had changed, but in truth, she was experiencing her first tantalizing taste of peace. The feeling was gone as quickly as it came, but it left her feeling lighter. The first step of healing had taken place in her soul.

 

Then Nishant touched her arm, and she felt a shiver run down her spine. She met his eyes as he spoke, and something in her resonated with what he said.

 

"I want to live," she said, her voice almost a whisper. "I want to burn with splendor of a thousand suns. I want to make something of myself, not pass away in obscurity." She glanced down into her lap, but unconsciously leaned into him. "Thank you for telling me that. I can't tell you what it means to me." Her fingertips reached out once again to caress the soft petals of a flower, her heart full of mixed emotions. Most of them she couldn't identify, but her overall feeling was that of safety. Right here, right now, with Nishant by her side, she felt safe, and she wouldn't have traded that for the galaxy.

[Roene Givrah]

The Cerean sighed lightly, adjusting his stance in response to his master's hesitation, but as the silence lingered, Roene's mind started to fill with anxiety. When the possible urgency of the previous distress call flooded his consciousness again, feelings of stress and worry pounded his senses and subtle worry lines flushed through the Cerean's face. As the sound of battle resonated in his mind however, beckoned by the acknowledgment of his master, Roene let his nervous feelings subside in favor for subdued interest.

 

So, Roene watched in earnest of Kitt's actions, continuing to smile broadly as his master returned the expression. Then, when Kitt sprang into action, Roene cleared his mind of all hesitation; he cleared his mind of all doubt, of all uncertainty, of all thoughts and embraced the force energy that pooled around him. The cool energy felt bracing and inviting, but a little different when he tried to tabulate combat procedure instead of feeling organic life. Whispers flooded his mind of voices disconnected from temporal reality. Their words, separately a disjunctive array of mumbling incoherence, together formed sentences upon sentences of advice, clues and instructions that welled silently in Roene's mind. Each definitive step of Kitt's movements seemed to flesh out as Roene stood in place and jumped to avoid Kitt's sweeping blow.

 

The Cerean's hands fell into a subtle rhythm that wasn't his own, which felt weird and uncomfortable, but he made the distance and readied himself once more. He could see Kitt's hidden blow before he did it, but was only slightly attentive in parrying it. Not knowing where to move next though, Roene decided to internalize his master's movement and try his own feeble attack at Kitt's side. It was a crude side swipe which fluttered to life after a small spin, but it wasn't really well thought out. He could feel the ground he lost by it, but he hoped to see a new move from Kitt in response to his awkward gesture and return his feeble attempt at combat with a more thorough knowledge of maneuvering. It wasn't slow and it wasn't weak, but the side blow was an obvious move to any spectator who happened to be watching.

 

After the small spin to avoid another attack and a stroke at Kitt's side however, Roene hadn't the slightest on what to do next. He could only slightly feel Kitt's next move through the force, but so far his skills at combat seemed moderately competent at best.

[Aidan Darkfire]

((Guys, if you read the posts, I'm actually nowhere near him, and he pretty much just let me walk away from him. Nothing went down, nothing is going to. Responding as best I can...))

 

Aidan jumped a little as he heard the growl, head swiveling to look down a hallway he was passing after he left the greenhouse. It was the carpet Kirlocca-man, and he sounded a little angry. Like a puppy with its tail tucked between its legs, Aidan scampered forwards, hastily moving onwards to the mess hall, stomach rumbling again. He knew he'd only have time to grab a couple ration bars before he made his way back to the main auditorium, munching the whole way.

 

Once there, he sat in one of the back seats, waiting for anyone.

[ObliviousKnight]

Just outside the Jedi Temple, a Miraluka woman meditated in the clear air of the wooded valley. Periodically, she shifted position, to relieve the irritation of arthritic limbs, but aside from that occasional motion, Misal Draygo was a rock in body and in the Force. Finally, she straightened her veil and looked directly up to the brilliant sky.

 

Far sooner than Misal had expected, a common Lambda-class shuttle swooped down from space, transmitting the most recent recognition codes for a Republic vessel. The Miraluka, watching its descent from the moment that it was nothing more than a faint thread of contrails in the heavens, smiled quietly to herself. The elder Draygo wasn't exactly pleased that her people had returned the Wartide girl so quickly, but rather, more relieved that what had been a nightmare of an operation was finally coming to an end.

 

The unerring skills of eight of her men and women had nearly been worn down to the point of uselessness by this years-long babysitting mission”¦ and recent events had shattered the confidence of one of her most promising operatives. Years of careful training, destroyed in only a few minutes””the very thought was physically repulsive. It was going to take her months to bring the poor man back to fighting condition””months that were steadily becoming more precious to her.

 

Misal came to her feet, sighing as her old bones complained at the movement. Regardless of the role that he might play in her daughter's life, she wanted nothing more than to see Julio leave without any further delays--especially if he had been speaking to Aidan.

 

The Miraluka mistress contacted the Sith Master through the Force, her voice astonishingly vivid for such an imprecise means of communication. Come to the hangar. Your daughter will arrive in about three minutes.

 

_________________________________________________________________

 

 

”œIt's the leap of faith. If there's ground for me to land on, I should be alright. It might even do some real good for the Jedi””and the Sith, actually. If not”¦ that's where you come in.”

[Skye Organa]

~~ An encrypted message comes into the Temple from Master Skye Organa addressed to Hopeful Nishant. ~~

 

I noticed you on the hopeful's register. If you are still looking for a Master, I am willing to train you. If you have your own transport, meet me at the Golden Link Casino. I have a patient to see there. Otherwise, let me know and I will pick you up at the Temple before I leave.

 

Jedi Master Healer Skye Organa.

 

~~ end comm ~~

[Darth Furion]

The meditation had stopped as soon as the two newcomers entered the garden, not far behind Aiden's exit. He made no move, the same bead locked between his fingers, but he listened. It was droll at first. Two young hopefuls reveling in the splendor of life itself, but to the Sith's surprise it turned dark rather fast. The girl's emotions fluxed greatly, deep and wide, like a massive river dammed. She mentioned a history with the Sith, and it only took Julio half a second to pull her name and face from the compartmentalized storage system he used in the back of his mind. Emily, apprenticed to Raynuk. That didn't seem to work out too well, did it? Raynuk was in charge of leading an assault on Gala for the Empire. Since then he has gone missing and is presumed dead. And here she was, still on Gala. Did she crash land and never leave?

 

Or maybe she simply takes root where ever she is.

 

The bird was...disturbingly placid. Even in his adolescent exchanges with the girl, he was calm, always with a pleased look about him. Something about that stirred Julio and demanded this injustice go on no more. This had to be stopped, it wasn't right. Children should feel so much more freely than this. Without a slightest sound, without moving the tree or shaking any leaves, Julio calmly stood from his seat on the branch and finally opened his eyes. With one kick he was out of the tree, silent as a mouse. He twisted himself in air to land quietly behind the bird, his legs and padded shoes taking all the force of the landing. For the very brief second before Julio moved, he paused to consider what would be the most effective way to create unrest in this poor boy? He needed a scare, if only to violently rip him out of his happy little bubble and expose him to something unfamiliar for a change.

 

The rosary around his left hand came loose from his wrist as he raised his hand next to the boy's ear. Julio's right hand brought his crushguant to rest upon the lad's right shoulder, squeezing it tight to keep him from squirming loose. He had to hear it, it would change him, help him understand. With the faintest touch Julio brushed the rosary with malice. Thousands of screams filled the room, each distinguishable in their own special way. Men, women, children, species off all kinds screamed as one in their suffering. Within a second the flowers immediately around the three of them began to wilt from the chorus of torment scourging the room. After just two more seconds, the touch eased and the screams went away. Three seconds and it was done, but in that time the pain of a world could be heard, for those special few who were in the room to hear it.

 

Death is only the beginning, my boy.

 

The door opened with a gesture and he was back into the working folds of the temple without another thought to the pair. Let them share that moment, he was only the facilitator. Before he ever got the message from Darkfire, he felt Rose, closer and closer. His heart felt like it was on fire, each second thundering harder and harder in his chest. With all the Force he could muster he sprinted, a mere blur to most he passed by.

 

He stopped at the hanger entrance and took a much, much slower walking stride. Rose felt him now and she, too, was visibly excited. He opened the door and stopped. His little girl was just getting down the ramp. Instead of going all the way down it, she stepped to one side and jumped half way down, turning the fall into a graceful tumble and popped up into a run, straight for her father.

 

"Daddy!" She crashed into him like the first line of two opposing armies on a charge, arms somehow in a knot behind him as she tried her best to bear hug the hell out of him. But the Sith simply caught his daughter and held her head to his chest. A soft sigh escaped him as she came to rest in his arms and he could feel that she, too, felt she was safe. Everything felt as it was going to be alright, for a while at least.

 

Hey there, baby girl.

 

"Did you miss me?!"

 

The Sith gave a soft chuckle, bend down and kissed his daughter on the forehead. Immensely.

[Nishant]

As she leaned against him, he felt fulfilled, in a sense, felt the difference between the thought that something was worthwhile and the action that was worthwhile. He could recall a teacher ingraining into him that it was right action that was the most pertinent to use as an example; it was not greater than thought, or word, or feeling, as it relied on these””but action was demonstrative of these, something everyone could understand. Her simple action of leaning against him, of release and relief, gave him hope. And when she spoke of burning like a thousand suns, he remembered vividly the first time his mother had introduced him to a healing energy he now believed to be the Force”¦it must have been, for it felt so”¦wondrous. As she laid a hand to his heart and one to his cheek, his eyes had beheld her as if beholding the sun, and he had wept.

 

It may have been because of this place of comfort that he was late in realizing someone was behind him; it was likely this and the skill Nishant believed this man possessed. He had only the smallest fragment of a moment, just before his shoulder was locked beneath a grip so firm he was sure it could be shattered with a thought, that the boy knew exactly who was there. In that same moment, he remembered the slight notion he had passed over in the hallway, that sense of someone connecting to something, whispering in his mind. The Sith had been here the entire time.

 

It would be this place of comfort, it would be the memory of his mother, and it would be an inkling of what he would eventually become that would save Nishant from what he was about to endure. And then it happened, the unleashed agony of a world so beautiful erupting into fragmented pieces of soul. Everything scattered, everything was blank and at the same time filled with smoldering ruin, collapsing into a hole of empty blackness””he was that hole, but he could not recognize the word ”œhe”

[Mathis]

((Don't you hate it when someone unretires and jumps into the middle of your storyline/character development?))

 

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......?!......

......!!......

 

As something familiar stirred on the edge of his senses, Mathis started to awake from his self-induced trance. As the fog cleared from his mind, he opened his eyes and recoiled with shock as he saw a bushy beard that was so long that it had puddled up in between his crossed legs. As he reached behind his back, he grimaced as he discovered that his hair was at least several feet long. The Force had kept his body alive (and the medical droids that had been providing nourishment supplements after he had proved to be unresponsive), but apparently there were some things that could not be taken care of automatically.

 

Slowly Mathis unfolded from his trance position, stretching arms, legs, and muscles that were stiff but still in optimal condition. Standing up, he wobbled for a little until his balance returned. Looking behind himself, he saw that his hair fell all the way down to the back of his knees. A voice grated out of the silence.

 

"I've got to do something about all of this hair."

 

The sound of his own voice in the silence of the room startled Mathis. He had been alone with his thoughts for nearly two years, and he had forgotten what he had even sounded like. The voice was gruff, but that was probably due to the lack of use. Focusing on the sound of his voice, Mathis spoke to the empty room again.

 

"Not to mention, I smell like the trash that used to pile in the dumpster of the Last Call, or was it the slop that they served? Now, where is.... ah, there's the refresher!"

 

While he worked on becoming clean enough to be socially acceptable, he pondered the presence that had woken him from his meditation.

 

It was definitely somebody I've run into before. Something in my memory is setting off warning bells. An enemy maybe? But if there was Sith on the base, then alarms would be going off, and I would already have been dead. I must go and find out who this person is...

 

With his hair shorn short and the beard gone, Mathis changed into a clean pair of pants and a shirt. Sliding his weapons into place, he focused on the person he had felt. When he locked on to their position, he exited his room and started through the hallways, letting the Force guide him to where he needed to be. He navigated his way through the halls and past people, most of whom he didn't recognize. Ignoring those he passed, he kept the presence he was looking for isolated from the others. After a fair amount of time spent walking, during which his muscles became warmed up and his blood pumped faster, he eventually came upon a garden. Mathis paused for a moment, and focused on the Force. He verified that the person he was looking for was within. Something had been nagging at him during the search, and, now that he was so close to this mystery person, a scene was dragged from the archives of his memories.

 

Anger, snow, a flash of black. "May the Force be with you, Jedi."

 

"Ilum."

 

With this one whispered word, Mathis remembered where he had felt this presence before. It had been on Ilum. The Sith had hunted down Mathis and his apprentices. Mathis had tried to hold them off, to keep them from getting to his apprentices, and had failed. Anger started to surge through his veins, but he channeled that energy back into himself. The person that lay ahead of him was not the same Sith, but something about them was very similar to it.

 

Gathering the Force about himself, he prepared himself for whomever or whatever it was that was inside the garden. Striding forward, he came upon a young male (Nishant) and female (Emily) that were obviously having a private moment. The circle of dead flowers that surrounded them piqued his curiosity, but he tamped it down, remaining vigilant to his reason for intruding upon them. At the sound of his voice, the pair turned to face him.

 

"I beg your pardon, but I fear I must interrupt. Who are you, and what relation do you have with the Sith?"

 

His eyes were locked with the girl's, and she knew that he was addressing her and her alone.

[Emily]

Nishant seemed lost in memories, but happy ones, so Emily just sat there and enjoyed the gardens and the sense she got when she was near him. Until Julio came.

 

She had no warning of his presence; he was silent as a mouse as he approached. And then suddenly the Force was filled with anguish, shattering the moment of peace she had so tentatively grasped. She started and gave a short gasp. Thousands of screams reverberated, and she was thrown back to the battle over Gala, and the way the Force had filled with the cries of the dying.

 

But this was something she had been trained against by Quietus. In that millisecond, she opened herself to the Force. The agony filled her, but instead of overwhelming her, she took that anguish and turned it into power. It was true, she had found, the Sith teaching of taking emotion and using it to amplify the Force.

 

But before it did her any good, the tormented cries were gone, and Julio had dashed off, a blur of motion the only indication he was ever there. Emily felt Nishant's anguish and despair then, and she reached out to him. Before she could say anything, he had his hands on her shoulders and was asking if she was alright.

 

"I'm fine," she said. Her voice shook a little, but it was true. "I mean, it startled me, but...well, it's not like I haven't felt anguish through the Force before." She tried to make light of it, but the experience had moved her. It had reminded her of her place in the galaxy, and that Nishant's views were not absolutely true. There was balance there, between Julio's view and Nishant's. She simply had to find it.

 

She didn't have time to say anything else, for a man approached her. He spoke to her brusquely and intensely, asking who she was and her connection to the Sith. She raised an eyebrow, but felt like this man had to be a Jedi. Perhaps he was one who didn't approve of training hopefuls who had been Sith apprentices? Regardless, she saw no reason not to be honest with him; she was not ashamed of who she was.

 

"I'm Emily Skywalker. My connection with the Sith goes back a long way. I have trained in the ways of the Sith under Darth Quietus, and my parents were Sith Masters--John Skywalker and Sirvani Zsahra."

[Darex Trevelian]

He was so intrigued by her half-formed plan that he didn't protest as she practically dragged him to the hanger. It seemed like she was still having to talk herself into it, and that worried him, but as he had told her before, he trusted her to do the right thing.

 

"A truce between the Jedi and Sith was the topic of the most recent Council meeting," he told her as they arrived at the hanger. "If by your actions, you can achieve some good, then I'm all behind it. And I'll do what I can to help."

 

The ship carrying Furion's little girl landed smoothly, and Darex felt the Sith Master enter the room. The sight of the father and daughter embracing was touching, and reminded Darex yet again that there were some good things still in the universe. It wasn't all war and destruction.

 

And he needed that reminder when the Force erupted in the deaths of thousands. He closed his eyes and fought for control as immense sadness took over him. It was gone in that moment, but before it was, he caught a glimpse of the once-gleaming towers and spires of Coruscant. He knew something terrible had happened in the battle there, and it weighed on him. Then he carefully pushed the majority of the weight away, releasing it into the Force just as those people were released into the Force. But he remained solemn and quiet, observing his old friend and wondering what she was going to do.

[Mathis]

Upon Emily's declaration of her Sith heritage, the lightsaber hanging from Mathis's belt flew to his hand. He held it at his side, finger resting over the activation button. He seized upon the Force and used it to impose a scene into her mind, one which encompassed all of her senses and appeared as if it had actually happened to her.

 

A man stood before her, snow and wind whipped away at both of them. The Sith's eyes had been gouged out, and blood was dripped down his face. He raised his lightsaber, burning black against the white of the snow-covered mountains, and stabbed downwards. A short burst of intense pain was felt, then the brush of fingers, closing her eyelids, followed by nothingness.

 

As he released his grip on her mind, Mathis spoke out. His voice remained calm but commanding.

 

"Is this the one that you claim as your father? You don't even have to answer that, I can feel his influence on you. How is it that you, spawned from and trained by the Sith, are sitting here in a Jedi Temple? I may have been out of the loop for a while, but last time I checked, your kind was busy doing their best to kill us off."

 

He paused for a moment and unconsciously touched the butt end of the lightsaber. It was not capped off, as most were, instead it appeared to have been melted.

 

"It might be in your best interest if you explained yourself."

[Nishant]

What she said made sense to him. Of course, having been introduced to the other side of the spectrum, having explored it to a degree, Emily would understand a way of dealing with that kind of immersion that Nishant wouldn't be able to grasp right now. But, he thought, now he had been introduced to it, to the balancing factor, to the dark against the light. Everything was necessary; there was some reason for why Julio had introduced him to such pain. He would discover why, as time passed, perhaps.

 

For the moment Nishant dedicated his focus to the droid that had brought with it a message for him. Holding the proffered comlink close, he listened, and an immediate sense of eagerness came over him. A master had found him! And a healer, no less! Nishant calmed easily, reversed the frequency on the link to send a message of his own, which he recorded before handing it back to the droid and requesting it be sent to Master Skye Organa immediately.

 

Then he noticed the newly arrived, and the crushing disturbance the man presented. Nishant had long since learned what was and was not his place, and he had found that over time the ability to know when and where to act came with greater ease”¦but he was still young, and that wasn't the only reason why he had a difficult time finding ease in this circumstance. Something was stuck in him, some root that would grow to build something in his heart, to shape him and weigh him and eventually help him; but now, he did not understand it, and he did not know how to feel it appropriately.

 

The man was saying, ”œIt might be in your best interest if you explained yourself."

 

It was here that Nishant found himself moving, not quite placing himself between Emily and the man (who was apparently a Jedi, and not one Nishant found himself admiring), but almost next to the man, facing him directly. Something came out in him, something that was left over of the ferocity Julio had opened to him, unleashed in him, and when Nishant spoke it was with a voice of iron he had never used before.

 

”œYour forcefulness betrays you, as does that hand of yours, hovering over your lightsaber. You think you own the authority to order anyone to answer to you? The Grandmaster himself allowed us entrance and training here; he has the wisdom to understand that interactions are not made through orders. You must have been out of the loop, to think that because you call yourself a Jedi you can take what you want on a whim. Perhaps you think you are so different from a Sith who acts just the same?”

[Mathis]

Mathis felt his eyebrow raise and a half-smile attempt to form on his lips when the younger man confronted him.

 

He's definitely got some spirit in him.

 

"Order? I never ordered her to do anything. I suggested it. I felt a presence that was reminiscent of a Sith that I fought many years ago, and wanted to discover what he, or, apparently, his descendant, was doing here. I've found, over the years, that the best and easiest way to get an answer is to go to the source of the question."

 

He glanced down at the lightsaber in his hand. He removed his thumb from the activation button, but kept the handle within his grasp.

 

"After you see your teachers, your friends, and your apprentices cut down by the Sith, you'll learn that it's safer to approach them with a weapon at hand. Her father and his friend hunted and killed myself and my apprentices ((her mother was busy doing the same thing at the same time, but I don't know that )) with no reason other than we were Jedi and they were Sith.

 

I did not come here to take whatever I want, I came searching for Emily here to find answers."

 

Turning back to Emily, but keeping Nishant in his field of vision, Mathis addressed the girl, the emotion from recapping his death causing the control over his voice to crack.

 

"Your friend here did make me realize that I had forgotten the common courtesy of introducing myself. My name is Mathis, and I've been a loyal member of the Jedi Order for... I don't even remember how long it's been. Now, would you please oblige me by telling me why it is that you are here while your parents and Master are all of the Sith."

[Emily]

Emily was shocked as the gardens suddenly faded to be replaced by a whirlwind of snow. But she barely noticed, for in front of her, tired and bloody, stood her father. She couldn't keep the elation away at seeing him again, but just as quickly as it came, it was taken over by sadness. As much as she might have wished otherwise, she knew what she was seeing was only a memory. Her father's image stretched out, lightsabers ignited, and swept them through her. As the image faded, she heard the one thing she had hoped the most to hear--his voice. Even though the wish for peace in the afterlife was not meant for her, she couldn't help but savor this one memory.

 

As the shared memory ended, she opened her eyes to see the man draw his lightsaber on her, although he left it unignited. She raised an eyebrow. Would he strike down an unarmed young woman just because of her parentage? It was so strange...she saw and heard such differing accounts of Jedi to be exceedingly puzzled. One moment, they were offering some real nuggets of wisdom, and the other moment, they were ferocious predators.

 

Nishant stepped between them, and she was astonished and gratified to hear his voice was harder than she had ever imagined it could be--for him, anyway. The way he stood up for her warmed her to the core.

 

The Jedi replied by introducing himself as Mathis, and attempting to explain his reaction. The name struck her as familiar, but she couldn't place it. Emily wasn't surprised by his words after seeing the vision, but she was surprised that he seemed to feel that the fact that they were of different orders was insufficient reasoning.

 

"I'm sorry your friends were killed," she began. "But that is part of what Sith do--they kill Jedi. Ever since the Jedi began this conflict thousands of years ago, Jedi kill Sith for simply being Sith, and Sith kill Jedi in response. It is part of a fundamental building block of both orders; it is why you are here in the middle of the Jedi Temple threatening me.

 

"I will offer you whatever answers I can," she said, her voice a little defiant. "My parents were Sith, yes, but they also believed that the Sith Order had a narrow view of the Force. Ever since I was young, they encouraged me not to limit my horizons and to study the Force as a whole. When they died, I vowed to honor their wishes. I sought out the Sith. Sith was in my blood, and I know several members of the Order quite well." She thought briefly of Alora, who was practically an aunt. "I was trained for a short time by Darth Quietus. When he died in the recent battle over this planet, I was left alone. I..." she paused for the first time and glanced at Nishant before turning back to meet Mathis' eyes. "I remembered that my father encouraged me to learn from Jedi as well as Sith, and so I came here. I studied briefly under a Knight named Jazeon, but he didn't end up taking me on as his padawan, so I remained here. I am hoping to study under a Jedi Master and become a Jedi Knight."

 

She wondered what Mathis would make of her tale. If his only memory of her father was of him being killed by John, she doubted he would believe it. She took a step forward so that she was directly behind Nishant and to the right a little, so that she was looking at Mathis over Nishant's shoulder.

 

As she did so, the reason why the man's name seemed familiar came back to her. The lightsaber...her father had left behind a lightsaber, with instructions for her to return it to a Jedi named Mathis if she ever came across him in the future. Could this man be the one her father had referred to? He had to be. "You said your name was Mathis, right? Mathis Qui Gon? If you are...then I have something that I was told to give you."

 

((Edited after speaking with Mathis over PM))

Edited June 24, 2010 by Guest

[Dashel Illioni]

Research was something that Dashel was beginning to find exasperating. It seemed that out of every 10 promising leads, only 1 in 10 would ever amount to anything. Worse was the simple fact, as Kala reminded him, that for every lead that got passed the first level of examination, only 1 in 100 went any further. Had he not had the very difficult workout sessions and meditation series to look forward to, he might have given up the chase.

 

Yet he had them, and it helped to keep him focused. The harder he worked on all three, the more things seem to come together until the day his patience paid off.

 

He found a single clue, buried in a child's primer of all places that had once belonged to a Jedi master who had been in charge of one of the old order's creches. A simple flimsy, on which was printed a single series of Triani runes which Dashel recognized from the holocron that had been the reason for his initial trip to the temple on Coruscant.

 

It seemed the holocron had more secrets to unlock. He had not had time to access the device before yet another workout, but vowed that on the next morning he would have a conversation with the gatekeeper personality.

 

At the workout, he was sparring with Kala, when she went nearly totally inert for a few seconds. Concerned, as she had never displayed the slightest flaw before, he activated his wrist cuff and scanned her. The device's display indicated that there were not difficulties, just that she was receiving a massive data download.

 

Dashel did something assumed by many to be an easy task for most Jedi. He waited.

 

After a few moments, Kala reactivated and stared at Dashel before saying anything. When she did, it was something that startled him.

 

"Seems someone stole one of your old ship's from the former temple grounds on Coruscant and used it to attack a Mandolorian. I hope you don't mind, but I decided that you owed him a favor." She paused a moment before continuing, "It might do you some good to have to fill that favor."

 

Dashel frowned, not sure that owing anything to a Mandolorian was a good idea. He paused a moment, than decided that if it happened, it happned and there was nothing he could do about it.

 

The workout ended, merged into a meditation session, dinner, and then a night of rest for the Jedi.