Ilum

[Sasori]

Sasori saw the man approach him ready to continue on, but the former assassins eyes lingered on the Jedi for a moment. He didn't know how, but by his body language Sasori could tell something was troubling him, and Sasori felt an urge to pick the agents brain for information on what could cause his problems, but decided that Vothe had earned his respect enough to keep his privacy and to figure out his problems on his own. Sasori gave no indication of his momentary pondering and went on up the stair case and back into the blizzard that awaited them outside.

 

After a few minutes of walking, Sasori made it to The Grey Avenger and opened the ramp and made his way back into the shuttle, putting the duffel bag of crystals in a cupboard, and placing his own in his safe, locking it securely before sitting in the cockpit and getting all pre-flight operations completed so when Vothe sat beside him, they could take off back to Gala.

[Vothe Kyrik]

Vothe saw the curiosity on Soren's face, but made no attempt to address what had happened. He only had to consider carefully the implications. He sought no validation for his decision, but if he needed one, the bulge in his pocket was proof enough. Whatever his choice had been, he would have walked away from that cave with a lightsaber crystal, and so it was clear to him that the Force's will could be served no matter what path he took. He did not wish to be bound to the Force's will, but neither did he seek to counteract it. What he saw before him was ultimately the same as what he had left behind when he had joined the Jedi Order--he was a free spirit, and he would make his decisions by his own intuition and then live with the consequences. He would let no one else decide for him what was best.

 

And both Nikkos and Kitt had been incorrect. Those were not his only two available paths. He wasn't sure how it would work out, but he intended to forge a path that neither of them foresaw. Perhaps, one that neither of them would necessarily support, but the path that Vothe Kyrik would attempt to follow nonetheless. It would take care, but he was a meticulous man.

 

Boarding the Grey Avenger, Kyrik made his way to the cockpit, his aura one of brooding. He sat silently in the copilot's seat and strapped in for liftoff, but he did not address Soren.

[Sasori]

Sasori noted that his companion was not in a pleasant mood when he sat down in the seat beside him. He wasn't sure what had gone on in those caves, but something certainly changed in his mood, especially the cheerful one the Jedi had shown off much earlier in their camaraderie. Sasori wondered whether the duality was getting to him, and he felt a tinge of guilt due to Vothe's mission.

 

Before he spoke further they took off and blasted off into space.

[Aira Cadan]

The shuttle carrying myself and my former Jedi Master appeared out of hyperspace over the ice world of Ilum. I immediately remembered the last time I had been here, and the desperate battle that had been waged between our forces and the Imperials. It had been quite a struggle. But that was behind us now. Those factions didn't even exist anymore. They had grown and changed, and I believed firmly that it was all for the better.

 

Nevertheless, it was going to take the planet some time to heal from the encounter. Jagged scorch marks marred part of its white surface, and I could still feel the echoes of death on the Force, hanging like a fog around the icy planet. I spoke only to direct Onderin to bring the shuttle around. I wanted to go to the same coordinates--more or less--as I had been in when the spirits had contacted me.

 

I delved into the Force and began to search. "Do you know where the Temple used to be?"

[Onderin Starlisk]

At some point during the trip, Aira had passed off the pilot's seat to Onderin, and now with practiced hands he eased the shuttle around Ilum's planetary sphere, angling for the visible penumbra where night changed into day. He was already stretching out with the Force, feeling the power of the crystals and the echoes of the conflicts that had plagued the planet during the war... and during the Arach'tar invasion.

 

"Yes, I remember," he said. He'd never actually been inside the Ilum Temple, but during the Arach'tar conflict, one of the major battles had taken place over Ilum, specifically centered around the Temple there. It had been his first direct encounter with the Arach'tar, a critical stage in what had been a tremendously costly but ultimately successful battle. Onderin still had scars from that war, though physical they were not.

 

Presently the Jedi Master initiated a scan of the vicinity in which he knew the Temple had once existed. They had little trouble picking up what was left of it. Time and turbolaser fire had worn away what had once been a grand structure, but a building that large did not fade tracelessly into the frostburned peaks that served as its backdrop.

 

Even more useful than the ships sensors, though, was the sense that its passengers had--their connection to the energy field that bound the entire universe into a cohesive, unfathomably complex unit. "I can feel them," he said, gliding the shuttle down through the atmosphere toward the ruined structure that had housed many students of the Force much like themselves. Soon, its landing pads were compacting square meters of snow until they were tight enough to support the ship's bulk, and Onderin triggered the boarding ramp. "After you," he told Aira, gesturing aft.

[Aira Cadan]

I grabbed a heavy coat before I went outside--thankfully, the shuttle still had some from the last time we were here. The wind was bitterly cold, but at least it wasn't actively snowing, and so visibility was decent. But I didn't really need my eyes. I could sense them too now.

 

"C'mon." I beckoned to Onderin to follow me and we moved into the ruined halls. It warmed up a bit when we were out of the wind, but as the roof was open and there were large holes blasted in the walls, the difference was only a few degrees. Nevertheless, I was grateful for it. We moved silently among the wreckage and as we went, I broadcasted my presence. It was like shouting a message. Is anybody here??

 

The silence was oppressive, but through the Force I began to sense quiet stirrings, just weak things here and there, like seeing something flicker out of the corner of ones' eyes.

[Darth Furion]

At their presence the air grew still, somber, dreadful. Muted white light pouring in from the snow capped holes in the ceiling seemed to drown and sink to the filthy floor. As the Jedi stepped in to the main foyer, the three sets of large wooden doors leading out the rest of the temple creaked slowly to a close, and somewhere, way beyond their instincts, their training, even their faith, to the very core of their being the Jedi felt a wound tear anew.

 

"NO!" Screamed a woman dressed in white librarian's robes, on her hands and knees, holding the smoldering hole through the right side of ribs. The wound was fatal, but from the depth and angle a trained eye could see that it wasn't intended to be quick. "Please no! Not the children!"

 

From across the room she looked terrified, her hand out stretched to them in utter desperation.

 

"You know this is wrong!" She screamed with what defiance she could muster. "You can't lie to yourself forever, Sith!"

[Onderin Starlisk]

Too many battlefields.

 

That was the only conclusion Onderin could draw when he witnessed the librarian crawl in and he didn't even flinch. He wouldn't realize it until later, but it many ways it reflected how unfit he was to be a Jedi Master after all these years. Later, he would have time to reflect on these moments and he would decide that it would be a long road to get him back to a place in the Force where he could feel people's suffering. But right now, he was missing one of the key elements in a Jedi's life--compassion. He had simply seen too many battlefields.

 

The former Admiral reached out with the Force despite the pain that many would have felt and touched the specter, just long enough to determine that it wasn't real, then strode forward past her. "Something very bad happened here," he said to Aira. He stretched out with his feelings and listened to the echoes around him of events past. There was a lot of pain, but it fell like rain on the stone that was this Jedi's heart. "It had to do with the Sith--that much is clear."

 

He turned and looked at the woman, wondering just how real the apparition was. "Your conflict is past," he said to it, though he suspected it could not hear him. "Please, be at peace."

[Ary the Grey]

From high orbit, Ares heard the call of the Jedi like a shining beacon. He knew there was a Jedi temple on this planet from the Sith database, though he didn't know where, and was currently scanning the surface of the planet to attempt to locate it, a process that would have taken several more hours. In a way, the Jedi had done him a large favor without realizing it. As he had waited, he had been working on a modification for his Force Mask, adding a vocalizer to it that he could control with his implant, allowing him to talk once more. Fittingly enough, it was the same intimidating model vocalizer that the infamous Darth Vader had used years before, though his mask and Vader's looked vastly different. He had also rigged the mask with a small electrical system designed to disable the effect of the mask without actually having to take it off, allowing him to effectively turn on and off his connection to the Force at will remotely through his implant, as well as the ability for others to sense him.

 

Silently his small shuttle cruised through the atmosphere, landing deftly at the Temple. With his mask donned, they wouldn't have been able to sense him, yet he wasn't intending on hiding his presence, and landed his craft near theirs. His protocol droid followed him out of the shuttle, as he entered the Temple, following the rapidly filling tracks in the snow the Jedi had made. From their tracks, it appeared there were only two of them, but Ares never underestimated potential opponents. Should the Jedi attack him, he was more than ready.

 

Hearing voices in the halls ahead, he followed them, not making any effort to hide the sounds his boots made on the floor. The last thing he wanted was to startle them.

[Aira Cadan]

Onderin spoke to the distraught woman as I listened. The woman was very much like the apparition I had seen before of the young boy, although she seemed more solid. My heart grew heavy as the pain in the place echoed through time. "Please," I added. "Be free of this place. You have no need to remain here any longer. Become one with the Force."

 

Footsteps echoed on the stone behind me, and I turned to see a tall figure with a glowing mask. I could sense nothing from him. Another apparition. I wonder how many will come. I spoke to it. "You too. Be at peace. There is no need for your souls to linger here." This man seemed slightly more solid than the woman had. Perhaps he was stronger than she.

 

I caught sight of a protocol droid coming up behind the newest spectre and raised my eyebrows. "Hello," I told it. "I'm glad to see you. Can you tell us what happened here?" Clearly, the droid was an old caretaker of the Temple who had been in hiding and was just now drawn out by our presence. Hopefully we could access its memory banks and find out just what exactly had occurred here.

[Ary the Grey]

Ares turned to look at the protocol droid as she addressed it, and even the droid turned its head towards its master in a quizzical gesture, uncertain of what to do. His gaze returned to the two Jedi, confirming by the lightsabers that hung at their waists that they were indeed Jedi. His vocalizer pierced the air with its flat mechanical voice, addressing the woman.

 

"I'm guessing you're one of those Herbalist Jedi. Word to the wise, it doesn't matter whether or not they're grown with the aid of the Force, stay away from the mushrooms. Anyways, I'm not here to cause trouble. Much as I despise your ways, which ring strong in this place, I'm here to access the networked Jedi database to gain information regarding the Kashyyyk incident, and also to pick up a few rare Ilum crystals that were supposed to have been stockpiled here. If compensation is necessary, the Sith coffers can more than adequately provide it."

 

He wasn't lying, though his mask blunted his senses, he could still feel the brightness of the lightside stinging the back of his mind like a chiding mother. As for the Jedi, they might prove useful in uncovering more information through the system, but his real motive for being here was the crystals and their unique properties. Otherwise he'd have simply gone to Kashyyyk.

[Darth Furion]

At his daunting footsteps the ground grew hot, and the great wound quivered. Something new terrified the librarian, though she seemed to pay the Sith no heed directly. Her horror stricken eyes bore straight through to nothing in the middle of the room. It was as if his presence stirred something dark underlying the boundless suffering drenching the walls. Dreadful eyes slowly rose to meet something, or someone. The Jedi moaned and shifted against the invisible fiend as she was lifted into the air by her throat, her hands frivolously grasping at a non existent wrist.

 

"Take...take what you..." She gasped through what labored breaths its tighter grip allowed her. "What you need...from me. Please...have mercy on the children."

 

At her desperate plea the grip tightened, and the doors slammed shut, and all sound in the room seemed to fade.

 

Those who ask for mercy do not deserve it.

 

The voice was not heard, but rather felt against their hearts like spite, and hatred in its purest form. Something sharp slid into the librarian, just below the sternum. The wound was open, a neat little slice through white robes pink flesh. But the phantom blade twisted, and the wound tore wide as sharp metal made mince of her insides in a flick of the wrist. The blade fell free as the body dropped dead to the ground, black blood already pooling beneath her.

 

A chorus of children cried out as as a couple dozen younglings stepped from nothing and knelt next to their dead mentor. The youngest of them cried, the elder ones simply stood there solemn, pensive. Together they stood, and flashed before Ares.

 

"We wont let you." Spoke one of the older younglings. "We can't." Said another, and so on, each no more than a disconnected murmur at the Sith before them. "No more."

 

Dozens of little training lightsabers lit in unison, and together they fell into the first form. They simply stood there, defiant, wholly right in their way.

 

A child in the middle dropped, dead on his feet for no apparent reason. Two more screamed as their arms dropped, severed and cauterized from their bodies. The rest seemed oblivious, just staring at Ares, ready.

 

A small skull cratered and another was snuffed out. Three fell to their knees, desperately clutching at their necks. Bones cracked and tore free from skin, tendon, and sinew. Blood flowed and sprayed with every brutal sweep and strike.

 

In the end no one was saved from the carnage. Gore was everywhere, blood pooling so large it was at their very feet, staining the brims of their shoes. At the center of it all was Ares, covered in blood from head to toe. This was not simply a ghost, but a great wound in the force, torn from great tragedy and pain. The small sundered bodies before them, as well as their blood flecked on their clothes and faces, seemed very much real.

[Ary the Grey]

He saw them look around and noticed the particular looks on their faces as they appeared to watch a phantom puppet show, chasing shadows with their eyes. Behind his mask, Darth Ares' eyes narrowed. Something wasn't right here. Immediately he disengaged the effect of his mask through his implant, though he originally had no plan of doing so. The room flooded with his presence which began to play into the scene that now unfolded in front of him. The strangely familiar presence of a Jedi, yet twisted somehow, horribly dark. Onderin might have been able to try to place who Ares really was, but for the moment, it would escape him.

 

Unseen, he grinned. It was like grand artwork how the younglings fell by the dozens, their life essences washing over him, filling him with their dying emotions...fear...determination...even anger over their caretaker being slaughtered so mercilessly. It was delicious. He did hold some small amount of respect for the young ones, for in the end they faced their fate like their adult counterparts often didn't, and died a warrior's death. The large Force scar was just that as it opened wide, unveiling its full energy on the three assembled, painful and sad, but also giving Ares power in this Temple of Light. Not that he'd really do anything with it...just that it was comforting to have a few touches from home when visiting the enemy's den.

[Onderin Starlisk]

By the Force... Onderin turned away from the gruesome display, even though it wasn't happening now, but rather had before. He had indeed seen many battlefields and endured many terrorizing sights, but there was enough humanity--enough Jedi--left in him to feel extreme discomfort in the presence of this travesty. It was almost reassuring to know that he could feel such vehemence still, to be able to find that shred of compassion which he had thought he was without. He would meditate on this moment, see if he could nurture this seed.

 

Presently he was trying to figure out the riddle that was this other specter, the darker one with the protocol droid that spoke for him. When the droid started referencing current events, the Jedi Master started to figure out that this was not a ghost at all, but actually a man that had shown up at the Temple for information. And when the man opened himself to be felt by the Force, Onderin felt clearly the dark side in him.

 

"The Jedi Order is not in the habit of giving access of the archives to Sith," the ex-Admiral said, the slightest hint of a challenge in his voice. This man had no place here, and yet as Onderin examined him in the Force, he felt something most unusual. The Sith was... familiar to him. They'd met before, he was certain, but couldn't place the man. Like he was an alternate version of someone he knew, or part something else. It was rather like how he'd felt back during his Master trials when he had encountered dark versions of his apprentices, like he knew who they were but they had in some way been fundamentally and irrevocably altered. It was what the dark side did to people.

 

"The crystals are native to this world, and are not bound to this Temple. If you seek only them, find them yourself."

[Aira Cadan]

As the newest batch of spectres began to relive their horrible deaths, I closed my eyes. I did not need to see this. But the sense I got from it all was that of a rift in the fabric of the Force here. It was almost like...a Force nexus of sorts. I didn't have time to share my opinions with Onderin, however, before the dark man with the droid that had arrived earlier suddenly unmasked his presence.

 

As it washed through the Force, I suddenly knew he was real. I was a little embarrassed at my erroneous assumption that he had been another ghost, but I hadn't expected to encounter anyone living in this Temple. I was glad that Onderin spoke up. I didn't feel like we needed to fight this man, especially since while he was clearly a Sith of some considerable power, his presence was twisted just enough to make me think he was a fallen Jedi. Hopefully, he would be satisfied with harvesting the crystals and leave.

[Ary the Grey]

((Fyi, in my entrance post to the thread, I modified the mask with a mechanical vocalizer, it's how he's communicating now. The Droid's just for looks, really.))

 

Master Ares cocked his head to the side in mock disbelief as he replied to the supposed Jedi before him.

 

"You know, the only thing I hate more than Jedi is filthy, dirty, no-good lying sacks of Poodoo. And Jedi. Not that you're one, but I have good intelligence that indicates the Jedi used to stockpile the kind of crystals I'm looking for in their Temples on Ilum."

 

In fact, though the memories of his former life were still blurry, he seemed to remember being the one to oversee the very stockpiling he mentioned, though he was unsure if it was this Temple or not, many had been built and destroyed in the past, and his memories were shattered fragments at best.

 

"And not to mention, yeah, I'm a Sith. But I'm working for CoreSec, on a case that can help clear your Grandmaster's name from the accusation that he was involved in a recent massacre on Kashyyyk. I'm not asking for my droid here to plug in and download your entire database or plant a virus or be left alone to my own devices. I could care less about your filthy, run down Temple or your Archives. I'm interested in this case, to assist CoreSec and the Galactic Alliance, to help prove the Sith intend on following through on their intent to protect their allies and destroy any threats to their existence. You Jedi might be the shield, but we are the sword. Now I tried doing this nicely, but do I honestly have to resort to pillaging an abandoned Temple at a different location to get the things I want, things, I'd like to point out, that render us mutually beneficial to each other? Think, Jedi."

 

He spat the last word as best he could through the vocalizer, hoping it'd sink in just how ridiculous the other was being. Just in case, through a silent command, he silently ordered the protocol droid that accompanied him to return the shuttle and keep it prepped for takeoff. It turned, moving off the way it had come to complete its task.

[Onderin Starlisk]

Onderin furrowed his eyebrows for a moment in thought. This Sith was a strange one, claiming to have Jedi interests in mind. Perhaps the strangest part was the fact that he had arrived at this moment into a Temple that had been abandoned since the Arach'tar invasion. Onderin didn't believe in coincidence after all those years of serving the Force, but it appeared that the Sith's presence, as strangely familiar as it was, had nothing to do with their mission here. Apparently it didn't even matter.

 

"Very well," he said. "Head into the archives if you wish. This place has long been without power." He gestured at the ceiling, or rather at the distinct lack of one in most places. Snow drifted down through the blasted-away roofing and formed a thin layer under their feet which crunched when they walked--Onderin realized now that the very sound should have alerted him to the fact that the Sith was real and not an illusion. It was the kind of detail he would never miss back in his CorSec days. Presumably not the same CorSec about which the Sith spoke, of course.

 

"As far as the crystals go, I'm not aware of any such stockpile. Traditionally, it is a critical part of one's training as a Jedi apprentice to venture into the caves to find one. But if you're convinced, look around." Onderin turned away from the Sith and back to Aira. The irrelevance of the Sith's quest to their own had taken him somewhat offguard. It was like trying to solve a mystery in a dark warehouse while being followed around by a nosy circus clown.

 

"Perhaps if we head deeper into the Temple, we can find the source of these apparitions," he suggested.

[Ary the Grey]

Ares hadn't expected a complete one-eighty degree turn on the treatment he received from the Jedi, but currently, he really didn't care. Unrestricted and unsupervised access through the Temple, at his own risk of course. He nodded, acknowledging everything the Jedi said, hearing him mention to his apprentice something about venturing deeper into the Temple to find the source of the Force scar.

 

The Sith flipped his mask back on, extinguishing his presence in the Force rather abruptly as he turned to leave, venturing down a side hallway. Using signs and general intuition, he located the main archives room several minutes later, only to be dismayed to see the roof had collapsed from the weight of the snow in this part of the Temple, leaving only a part of the room untouched. Thankful that his suit provided thermic insulation, he called for his droid to bring the backup power supply from the shuttle on his implant before setting to work, seeing how he could go about fixing the various electronics that were salvageable. All he really needed was holonet access with Jedi ID codes to get at the information he wanted, nothing particularly in their archives or archival network.

[Aira Cadan]

I shrugged as the Sith moved off. Who knew what he was really doing here? Maybe he was actually here doing what he said he was. I didn't know, but frankly, I didn't really care. His presence had nothing to do with our being here, and there were no Jedi secrets in this old, long abandoned base that would give problems to the Order.

 

So I followed my old master deeper into the temple, opening myself more and more to the Force as I walked. I knew all the answers we needed could be found within it, and right now we needed to know the source of these apparitions and the way to stop them.

[Onderin Starlisk]

OOC: Alright, I'll just take care of this, then.

 

IC:

As Onderin walked, he continued to see apparitions, memories in the Force. There was much unrest in this place, and the turmoil he felt through his connection to all living things spoke of the aberrant, blasphemous nature of the dark side. What had happened here was nothing good, nothing right or just. It was because of things like this that Onderin had chosen to fight; many Jedi were content to meditate on some hidden-away world, but he had stood on the front line. Only through sacrifice could such evils be prevented.

 

I desire mercy, not sacrifice. The words seemed to materialize in the Jedi Master's mind and he wasn't sure if they were his own or the result of direct stirring in the Force. Mercy, Onderin thought, repeating the word in his head.

 

Presently he and Aira were coming into the center of the Temple, and there the nexus in the Force was the strongest. Many Jedi had died here. Onderin repeated the word over and over in his head: Mercy. What the Sith had done here seemed horribly wrong, a twisted deed that could never be forgiven, but only followed by justice.

 

And yet... the deed had happened. The Force was all-powerful, and though it was not a deity, in it was found balance. Onderin had often experienced this balance; in a way, the Force was like nature itself. How could there be a good without a bad? Couldn't good things come about as a result of bad circumstances? And, more importantly, if he allowed himself to be led only by a thirst for justice, would not it turn into revenge? And if he gave himself to revenge, was he still good? Would he really be serving the will of the Force?

 

Suddenly Onderin knew what he had to do to put the spirits at rest. Whatever the Sith's reasons had been for doing what he had done, the fact that Onderin was here, now, was no coincidence. This was his test, the lesson that the Force had been trying to teach him for perhaps longer than he was willing to admit.

 

He dropped to his knees, smearing the dust that had settled there, and looked at the far wall. "I forgive you," he said. Then he opened himself again fully to the Force, letting the turmoil fill him. Everything bad seemed to assault him at his very core, but as he searched it, he found beneath it all that pool of light that was the calm power that he served.

 

An apparition appeared before him, and he immediately knew it was a manifestation of the Sith. He regarded the man calmly. "You're forgiven."

 

Suddenly, the apparitions were gone and the turmoil evaporated. The light washed through Onderin. Forgiveness of one's enemies, even the blessing of them, was the essence of many things that were critical to a Jedi. There was no emotion, but peace. There was no chaos, but harmony. It was mercy... even compassion.

 

Onderin looked at Aira. "It was hatred that held them here."

[Aira Cadan]

We knelt in the heart of the nexus, and I was clueless as to what to do. But thank the Force that Onderin was here to show me the way once again. It seemed that I would be forever learning from him.

 

I felt the spirits finally fade away, and it was as if there was a long sigh, a breath of relief that the torment would finally end. Death, true death, was welcome to them. It brought a tear to my eyes, and I hastily wiped it away as Onderin turned to me with a simple explanation. The smile I gave him was a bit watery. "Thank you."

 

I rose and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek, then held out a hand. "C'mon master, let's get out of here." Our job was finished, and it was good. I felt closure, like that part of my life was finally ended and I could begin again as a new person. No longer the naive girl leaving her family, or the curious padawan, or the hardened soldier. But me.

 

I led the way back to the shuttle we had arrived on. A few minutes later, I had it in the atmosphere and on it's way back to Tython.

[Ary the Grey]

Hours later, Ares's search into the archives had been fruitless. He had a few weak leads, but overall it was worthless to continue here. Fortunately, as he had suspected, there was indeed a large cache of crystals deeper into the Temple near the training areas, which his droid had managed to find for him as he worked. After retrieving those, he made his way back to his shuttle, and left promptly. He had contemplated demolishing the Temple, but he really had neither the means nor the reason, as it was not yet time to fully show his hand to the Jedi.

 

Once clearing the gravity well of the planet, his shuttle winked from existence as it slingshot itself across the vast reaches of space.

[Mes Tisserand]

Deep in the caves of Ilum”¦

 

A man sits in the darkest corner of an extensive cavern, clothes ragged, beard unkempt, hair down to his shoulders, with his sharp eyes fixed on a single hole in the cave wall. With a soft and steady exhale, he closes his eyes, and once again, as he has now done for years, focuses his mind on the past. One single memory continues to come to the front of his mind:

 

Sly Stevenson stood there... taking all this information in... when suddenly... an Image hits him... it was another glimse into the future, this time, It was for everyone to see.

 

The Setting was the same as the last one... The remaining Jedi attack the Queen of Darkness... In the Valley of skulls and bones, the battle Rages on, with the first casualty falling... Master Neh Raven sustains a slice to the Chest, Through the heart to be exact, As the saber enters the Old Masters Skin, He feels the Light Burn, more hott than a thousand fires burning bright, the saber slices through the heart of the Master. Neh falls to his knee's in pain, as his eyes blink... the last thing he feels Is Sly's hands catching him from hitting the ground. Sly Lays his former Master on the Ground, using his fingers to close his eyes... Rising to his feet, Master Prophet whispers to the young Queen... you will pay for that... as Sly Engages in battle... the Next one to fall is BLCKCLONE... the old wookie jedi suffers a blow to the neck, ending his life quickly... with hardley any pain to him if any. Two Masters remain, Adi-Wan, and Master Sly Stevenson. Who would be the next to fall... would it be.... as Kaylynn Locks sabers with Adi-Wan, Kaylynn force pushes Master Prophet backwards knocking him a good 30 feet in the opposite Direction. As Master Prophet senses a force presence he hasnt felt since he was 26 he rises to his feet as he feels what is comming next. Sly uses the force to accelerate his running speed as he Jumps in the air, knocking Adi-Wan himself out of the way. Kaylynn turns around in time to see her mountain of skulls tumbling down upon her. The Skulls crush the Queen of Darkness as A voice is heard from the other side of the Mountian of skulls.

 

"Good my young friend, your force powers still amaze me."... The voice was a familiar one to both Adi-Wan and Sly. The voice was... Mes Tisserand, one of the few remaining Masters of the galaxy, He was beleaved to be dead, but was alive, and had brought a Knight... A knight that was a former Padawan of Sly's. As Sly rises to his feet, Old with age he walks to the still fairley young Master Tisserand, his former Padawan. "You always did have the best timing Mes..."As Mes, Adi, and Sly catch up with chat, the skulls begin to move, saying nothing to the Masters, The Knight who remained nameless, rushes into battle with the Queen. As Kaylynn rises from the Skulls, she Ignites her saber, and locks face to face with the Jedi. Toe to Toe, Face to face, and Eye to eye... the two look very similar, the Boy, White hair, and white eyes, but... the Girl.. Black hair, and Black eyes... the two seemed very close, yet very different... The Sabers locked in battle, The Light Child speaks... "It seems we meet again..." The Lady Darkness replies with... "I was strong enough back then to kill THEM... Now I kill you..."

 

The Image fades once again, as Sly states... WE must be leaving.. This vision will save us all.

 

It seemed no-one but Sly knew what the Vision ment even though they all saw.

 

Years.

 

Years had passed.

 

"Yeah...I'm a Jedi Master alright..."

 

As true as that last statement the weary man made was, he felt no pride. His words echoed emptily into the darkness of the cavern, alone and cold. He began to think once again,

 

"He's dead...gone."

 

It'd been years since Sly had died, and he had at one point come to terms with it. Now, Mes Tisserand, once Jedi Master and Leader of the Jedi Council was a wreck. It'd been years since he'd seen or heard from a Jedi, this much of the prophecy was true. He'd been hiding in Ilum since his personal exile, years upon years ago.

There was a time many years ago that he had considered moving on, moving forward from this wretched hole he had dug for himself, but it was but another daydream among many.

 

He still couldn't remember what made him leave, it was just a feeling, something internal told him to flee, to hide, to disappear. He stares deeper into the hole in the wall, something very near to his heart.

 

"Very Good Mes... This crystal is Powerful... This one is special... not just any green its Emerald Green... rare... but beautiful never the less...."

 

Master Prophet uses the force to lift up the parts infront of their faces....

 

"Now... Take this peice first... and place the crystal inside..."

 

He held the missing piece to that hole in the lightsaber lying beside him.

 

It was that very instant that Mes felt something move inside him...deep within him, a voice pushed his very being...

 

"Mes, move...it is time..."

 

"Master?!?" Mes shouted, but the only return he heard was that of his own voice echoing throughout the cave. He stood for an hour, listening, but to no avail. Moments later, he felt his body moving, but not on his own accord. A spirit pushed his hand down to retrieve his lightsaber, and he then felt his feet walking him toward the mouth of the cave...

 

With a smile crossing his face for the first time in years, he proudly stated:

 

"Good to see you too Master."

[Mes Tisserand]

Mes follows the dimly lit hallway down to the mouth of the cavern. His footsteps echo in his ears, amplified by the hardened rock. The ice covering the entrance gives off a faint glow...

 

"Must be daylight" he thought

 

Mes gave this fact little concern, as Ilum was a vastly underpopulated planet and his chances of encountering friend or foe were slim. Instead he focused his mind on the wall of ice in front of him, doing his best to warm his mind and then focus that heat on a small portion of the ice. This would prove to be more difficult than he had anticipated, as he hadn't felt much warmth in his body or mind in quite some time.

 

After an hour or so, the true lights of day penetrated the cavern and Mes took his first look outside. He recoiled quickly because the light pained his eyes which were used to the blackened inside of the cave. After a few moments, he climbed out and began a trek down the cliff-side. It was at this moment he felt a pain in his gut, as familiar to him as a faint memory from ones childhood.

 

"Hunger...when on earth was the last time I ate?"

 

He couldn't remember. He had been sustained off of the sheer force energy emitted by the crystals in the cave for so long, he couldn't recall his last meal.

 

Driven by the shadowy memory of an old friend as well as the unfamiliar pangs of hunger, he very slowly descended the snowy mountain to destination unknown. All he knew was that it was time to move; where he was headed wasn't important.[/i]

[Darex Trevelian]

At the small enclave the Jedi maintained on Ilum, Me'lia Shepard stood guard in the entryway. It was a quiet place, and a quiet job, but the Twi'lek Jedi enjoyed the post. The icy winds would howl over the entryway, creating something akin to music, particularly during a storm.

 

While others might find being assigned to Ilum boring and lonely, the dozen Knights and 14 acolytes who called this enclave their home never complained. It was an honor to be chosen to guard the crystals, to guide the occasional padawan and even scarer Knight or Master to the entrance of the caves, and to keep everything running smoothly.

 

She was glad that nothing much happened here. It was a quiet life, but a useful one. The solitude drew the Jedi here together into a tight, close-knit community, and the peacefulness allowed them all to have a strong connection with the Force. She was very content.

[Darth Furion]

A deep breath of exhilaration. The ship winked out of hyperspace and into the orbit of Ilum and everything came rushing in at once. The Force itself cried in agonizing silence at the return of the conqueror, the one who wounded it so terribly when last he stepped upon its frozen surface. How many fell that day? Too many to count, all of them innocent in ways lost to this merciless monster since he first accepted that dark embrace. His heart sped up, his mouth watered at the feel of the unmovable imprint he left upon the Jedi temple nestled within the crystalline caverns and the brightness of life of those that now called it their home.

 

Take us in.

 

The ship landed just a few hundred meters outside the main entrance. By now the Jedi would know they were here, but the Dark Lord jealously held the culminated darkness of his party from their perception. He took it all into himself, obscuring himself in the others and suppressed it deep down in the cage. The Beast howled in protest as always, claustrophobic even further with the added passion of two others. Vaegir needed no help hiding as he had yet to even embrace the Dark Side, let alone make an impression on the Force.

 

We are here on premiss of acquiring lightsaber crystals. He began as he stood from his seat, adjusting his gear and straightening his coat. When we get in, Qaela and Vaegir will assume the relationship of Knight and Padawan. Qaela, you will be there to help guide Vaegir in selecting his first crystal. You two will be guided away from the main temple, down into the caverns where the crystals are pure and untouched. When you get far enough away from the group, take out your escorts. I will try to suppress your movements as best I can, but they will know something is off when you make your move.

 

He wasn't really even paying attention to whether or not they were listening. As he spoke he calibrated his lightsabers and check the drums to his slugthrower, all the things a warrior does to prepare for battle. It was almost ritualistic, a form of meditation in its own right to those practiced in the art of killing.

 

Lallu and I will be in the temple proper. I will be asking for tour, as my apprentice has never been herself. If any ask, we are commonly on mission on the outer rim, and only get to return to temple every few years. Any details beyond that will be trivial, and up to you to fill in. In their seclusion they may be excited to hear tales of the outer rim. Qaela take the lead and Vaegir will work off you. If anything, the boy has skill at bullshit.

 

Replacing his weapons within the folds of his coat, he pulled the ryyk blade from its sheath, as well as a small vial of black rage poison. With a measured hand he put small drops on the edge every few inches, smoothing it out with his bare finger without much regard. Qaela, once you take out your escort, make your way to the communication hub. Silence them, and then make your way back to us.

 

When the poison was applied through the entire blade he replaced it in its sheath on his back, and licked the rest of the poison off his finger. Any minute now they will be calling us, so prepare yourselves.

[Qaela]

Why did it have to be so cold? Having grown up in a mostly warm region of a temperate planet, she had no love for the cold. She knew better than to let that show. Even dressed in the ridiculous costume of a Jedi, it was hardly enough. She knew of spells that would keep her warm, but she dared not use the Force now due to the risk of exposure. She wasn't sure how Furion was concealing their essence, but she didn't think even the Dark Lord could keep things under control if she started casting Nightsister spells right in front of the Jedi.

 

Despite the chill, she was excited. This was the first time she was actually going into direct combat against the Jedi alone. She had met one of them before back when setting Grandmaster Kitt up for assassination at the hands of Ar-Pharazon and Raynuk Montar, but she had been young and not seeking blood at that point. There was the excessively one sided massacre of the foolish Jedi that tried to attack six of them at the Sith Temple, but that really didn't count. Every other time she had battled spellcasters, it had been Sith trying to kill her. Jedi were a whole different animal, if her studies had any truth to impart. Sith were aggressive, quick to suspicion, and without mercy. Jedi were pacifistic, quick to trust, and too hesitant when it came to killing.

 

This would be fun.

 

"Come along then, Padawan," she said in as preachy and self righteous a tone as she could muster. It might be a little over the top, but she figured that is how a Jedi might sound. She had spent some time among those of the light while infiltrating the Witch clans, but they were not much like Jedi at all, so that probably wouldn't be too much help. She only hoped that they could make their move quickly and that the Jedi weren't too nosy.

 

Being tied up with the strange golden skinned non-human wasn't all that bad, anyway. He was an attractive enough specimen of a male, but there hadn't been much time to get to know him. They hadn't spoken much on the journey, but he seemed capable of dealing with things. He definitely didn't give off the impression that he was a weak kneed little lordling who had never fired a blaster or held a knife. She would keep an eye on him through this to make sure he didn't damage his features. Of course, she would also do so because Furion would want him intact for whatever purposes he had.

[Darex Trevelian]

It was always quite exciting when a ship signaled for permission to land. Of course, standard protocols would be observed, just as they were at all Jedi enclaves. As such, the ID and transponder code of the incoming ship were taken and checked. The fact that the ship was not registered to any known Jedi gave the traffic controller pause, but there were enough Jedi that changed ships frequently enough and forgot to register them with the archives that it wasn't enough to refuse them access. They would simply be asked to register the ship once they landed. He attached a note to the security detail that would meet and scan the newcomers to ask for them to fill out the registration form.

 

As the ship landed outside the main entrance to the enclave, a small detachment of two Jedi Knights and two adepts braved the cold to go out to meet them. Standard procedure dictated that all Jedi visiting the Enclave surrender their lightsabers, for Ilum was no training center, and Jedi who wished to craft their lightsabers on planet did not do so at the Enclave itself, but out in the caves. It was part of the trial of creating one's lightsaber, for the caves were filled with visions that an aspiring Jedi would have to face. The Enclave was a mere centerpoint, designed for masters to wait for their padawans without suffering the frostbite that would quickly affect them outside, and as a staging point for those embarking on the quest for crystals.

 

Therefore, as the four approached, they carried small storage cases for the visiting Jedi's weapons, and one of the Knights (a Rodian female) carried a datapad with the ship registration form and visitors log.

[Rezjal-el]

So, this was it then. The real deal. The true start of his life as a Sith.

 

Vaegir had expected months if not years of academy style training. Working in safe, controlled environments in which the only real danger was the chance of failure. It seemed, though, that Furion’s methods differed greatly from the young apprentice’s expectations. Well, perhaps that was not entirely true. Vaegir had long since abandoned expecting anything from Furion aside from the unexpected.

 

The briefing was simple enough. In fact, it gave him a tingling sensation in his palms. The feeling one might get when standing at the edge of tall structure. The immediate and very real excitement brought on by the promised rush of adrenaline. Visions of old holo movies filled his head as he listened, the young man seeing himself as part of some team of experts come together to pull off a legendary heist. Who was he to be then? The knife man? The hacker? Maybe he was the face man?

 

When we get in, Qaela and Vaegir will assume the relationship of Knight and Padawan. Qaela, you will be there to help guide Vaegir in selecting his first crystal. You two will be guided away from the main temple, down into the caverns where the crystals are pure and untouched. When you get far enough away from the group, take out your escorts. I will try to suppress your movements as best I can, but they will know something is off when you make your move.

 

Yep, definitely the face man.

 

“You mean… ‘take out’ as in… ‘knock out’ right?” Vaegir found himself asking aloud. He was not unaccustomed to violence, but he had never experienced it on a person to person basis. Many creatures had fallen to his blade or his spear, but that was purely a predator and prey survival scenario. This was full out infiltration and assassination. Understandably, the inexperienced Sith had issue with the idea of taking the life of another sentient. But in the end, it was going to be the jedi or himself, and the idea of death or capture was highly overrated.

 

The knowing smirk from Furion was all he needed to answer his question.

 

"Come along then, Padawan,"

 

“Behind you, master.” Vaegir replied, speaking in a well-practiced, upper class accent. It was something he and his friends used to do to make fun of the ‘nobles’ who arrived from the core worlds and often thought of themselves as having celebrity status on a distant planet like Firrerre. Indeed, Vaegir even referred to it as his ‘poncy’ voice.

 

He made his way to Qaela’s side, dressed in his own Jedi garb. Robes were never something he had made habit of wearing. They felt very loose and light on the body. In fact, were it not for their obvious visual presence, he may have thought himself to be naked.

 

Nudity aside, he took the opportunity to study his would-be master. They hadn’t had the chance to speak much in private, so any measure of apparent rapport between them would have to be fabricated. After all, a master and padawan needed to have some sort of chemistry between them. Then again, he was only playing off his knowledge of intrapersonal relationships. The Jedi could very well be a collection of wet blankets that merely tolerated each other’s existence. Regardless, Quaela was nice to look at. She at least appeared to be capable of holding her own. Were it to come to violence, she might not have to resort to ambush and surprise tactics as much as he. So, there was that.

[Qaela]

Qaela offered only the slightest of nods to Vaegir's response and marched on out through the snow toward the odd looking Jedi waiting for them. She didn't even bother to try to hide the fact that she was cold. "I am Jedi Mandela Hedgrove," she said in a slightly annoyed tone. She tried to affect a Core accent, but was not foolish enough to think that her more harsh Rim background wouldn't come to play. She had never been good at faking accents, but that wasn't for lack of trying. "This is my Padawan, Jadero Lorruro. I picked him up on the same Force forsaken Rim mining outpost that I have spent the last several years marooned on and decided to take him with me when I made my escape. While there, my lightsaber was taken so, after a short recovery period, I decided that it would be a good time for us to collect crystals to make new lightsabers. Both of us will be needing to get into the caves to find them."

 

She paused and looked thoughtful. "As my first lightsaber was built using crystals from other sources, this is my first time here. It has been a good long time since I have been around civilized company, so forgive me if I require some help and a guide. The last thing I want to do is disturb the peace and tranquility here."