The Eternal Vigilance (The Maw)

[ForceFusion]

Shawmus was running. He was doing his daily sprints, and feeling quite good about it, besides the fact that he was constantly muttering to himself so he could have someone to talk to.

 

His back had been to the shuttle as it landed across the hangar bay, and he'd been so distracted by pushing his own body that he hadn't noticed. But when Armiena stepped into the hangar bay and away from the ship, Shawmus felt her presence strongly.

 

It was like being hit with a tidal wave in the midst of a desert, feeling the presence of someone close after so long. New life in the Force washed over him, so hard that he dashed across the hangar bay to her side at almost blinding speeds, faster than he'd ever managed before.

 

"Master Armiena!" he exclaimed, much louder than he'd meant to. His voice echoed throughout the large room. He would have started babbling about how much progress he'd made -- or thought he'd made -- in her absence, but after running all morning, he was quite out of breath. Or maybe it was the excitement that took the breath away. He couldn't be sure.

 

He just wanted to get his training on with. Shawmus was at tip top physical condition, able to center himself in the Force at a moment's notice, weave an impenetrable defensive shield with his pink practice saber against the remote, and jump the height of a moderately sized house. That and he'd taught himself discipline. Boredom could do that.

 

"How've you been, mate?" he asked on a whim, the only phrase short enough to fit in between breaths. "Force with ya?" And he gasped, filling his lungs deeply, forcing calm upon himself. "Sorry."

 

And that was when he actually calmed down enough to realize it wasn't Armiena. "What the?!?" Shawmus exclaimed. Though their presence in the Force had been almost identical to Shawmus' perceptions -- not used to sensing sentients after such a long time of solitude -- he hadn't even noticed that the woman he was looking at was not, in fact, his Jedi Master. But was, in fact, an older woman. "Who the hell are you?" Shawmus blurted, feeling somewhat betrayed and ashamed. He caught himself. "Ma'am."

[ObliviousKnight]

Misal Draygo inwardly cringed at Shawmus' use of Armiena's title. Even though she knew that her daughter deserved to be recognized as a Master of the Jedi Order, Armiena deserved--

 

A mental shutter suddenly blocked the emotional imprint of her presence on the Force. Misal had little idea how much her daughter had trained this Padawan, and she had no desire to bare her thoughts and most personal secrets to a complete stranger.

 

It wasn't unexpected that Shawmus had accidentally mistaken the elder Draygo for the younger. Their familial relation caused their Force presences to appear markedly similar to those sensitive to the Force, but there remained enough difference between the two that a skilled Force-sensitive could distinguish between the two without much difficulty. Misal often seemed to be more... reserved, more weathered than her daughter, more tempered by loss and the cruel twists of fate.

 

However, when Shawmus first viewed Misal Draygo, it would have been quickly apparent that this was not Master Armiena Draygo that he was dealing with. Even though their Force presence's may have seemed similar due to blood relation, the two could not have appeared any more differently. She appeared to have a similar build to her daughter--what little of it wasn't concealed over her gray robes and veil--but she was significantly shorter, and she carried herself with a sober pride, as though she had been bearing a mighty weight for millenia.

 

"Indeed." Misal greeted her daughter's apprentice with the tiniest of smirks on her lips. "Since you asked so politely, my name is Misal Draygo. As you no doubt have surmised, my daughter is your... master. She would have wanted for someone to ensure that her... apprentice's training would have progressed during her absence, so here I am."

[ForceFusion]

Shawmus arched his right eyebrow in animated exaggeration, as was typical of the young man. Growing up as someone who was easily found at the center of a party, the Selt had grown accustomed to adapting to any situation to make his audience laugh.

 

Misal Draygo, he was slowly realizing, would not be an easy audience. Shawmus took a breath, thinking quickly. "I'm sorry, ma'am," he started, stumbling over his words just a bit. "I've been in solitary for quite a bit, so I guess I sorta jumped all over ya, eh?"

 

The two held gazes for a bit, Shawmus feeling like he was being very much judged. "So, your daughter, she's, uh, ok, right? Not dead or anything?" That would be a depressing thought. And Shawmus was not in the mood for a depressing thought. He was in the mood for sentient interaction.

[ObliviousKnight]

"Armiena is alive and well, but circumstances do not allow her to attend to your training. It could be a while before she isn't pinned down by her duties elsewhere... and weddings tend to take quite a bit of effort to plan." Misal Draygo answered the Padawan smoothly, her veiled expression inscrutable as she spoke.

[ForceFusion]

Shawmus didn't feel the need to intrude about Armiena's life, though he was intrigued about this marriage business. Apparently, despite some things he'd read, Jedi could marry nowadays. That was a good sign, in case Shawmus should ever stumble upon a lady of his own. That was doubtful, of course.

 

"So, training then, eh?" he started, terribly unsure of what to say. "Well, I'll let you in on what I've been doing so far...." And he went into a long, colorful commentary on the regimen he'd set up for himself since his master had departed, including his physical training, meditation in the Force, and lightsaber combat practice. "Of course," he said, "it's not much, as I haven't had anyone to guide me into new things, but I feel pretty confident of my ability to run back and forth between the walls of this hangar. And I can block pretty much anything that blasted remote throws at me."

 

Taking a breath after his long rant, Shawmus looked at the unfamiliar woman, who still intimidated him more than he'd like to admit. "Got anything new for me?"

[ObliviousKnight]

For a moment, Misal merely listened, rather unimpressed by Shawmus' declaration of his skill with the lightsaber. He might have been able to hold his own against a single remote, but that modest feat was nothing without skill in the Force. She would have to ensure that Shawmus soon discovered how humble his advancements in his skills were, lest he became overconfident. However, the Miraluka was pleased to find out that he hadn't been idly waiting during his... Master's absence.

 

"Plenty, if you're up to the challenge. You have a few minutes to get your things. I'd advise you to prepare for cold weather; where we'll be going... it's not the friendliest of environments." That tiny, mysterious smile resurfaced on her lips--with those words, she had just made a delicious understatement. Soon, he would be immersed in a training experience that he would never forget. In fact, if he was really, really unfortunate, he might not even live through it.

[ForceFusion]

"Well, I guess I'll just get packing, ma'am," Shawmus said, excited to be getting off this ship and this planet. He didn't have many possessions, having left them all at home before that fate-changing mission above Irrador. But he'd picked up a few things along the way, all packed into a single duffel bag. There were some food rations, a datapad, clothing that wouldn't be comfortable but would be survivable in pretty much any weather, and a few other trinkets. Of course, he couldn't really be sure his clothes were appropriate for this journey, as he'd never been to a planet with a terribly harsh environment, and Shawmus did think he sensed some malice in Misal Draygo's voice when she spoke of the upcoming events. But there was no use in sitting here alone, running back and forth.

 

"Alright," he said when ready only a few minutes later, "where are you taking me?"

[ObliviousKnight]

"I don't want to spoil your surprise... but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give you a hint. The name of the planet is a four letter word, and it's not a profanity, either." Misal barely resisted the temptation to grin, but it would have been very obvious to Shawmus that she was enjoying his unease. There was nothing malicious about her enjoyment--it was childish, perhaps, but Misal was simply doing what she was best at. Her own daughter had benefited from this training, even if Armiena had not recognized the teaching relationship that it was.

 

"Can you pilot a shuttle? As soon as we enter hyperspace, I'll need to prepare for your training." Still, that smile refused to fade from her lips, giving the hint that his training was soon to become highly memorable... and she was going to enjoy every second of it.

 

Misal didn't wait for his response; she knew the look of a pilot, and Jedi who didn't have at least some skill in a cockpit were extremely rare these days. She simply turned on her heels and strode up the boarding ramp of her borrowed shuttle, gray robes splashing under the backlash of the breeze from the craft's coolant systems. Time was wasting away, and she didn't intend to squander it on searching for answers that she already knew.

 

Still, she preferred to give him the benefit of a warning, rather than catch him completely blindsided. Which was slightly inaccurate, she realized. It was her aim to constantly catch Shawmus off guard, to force him to fight with every breath he took, but her intentions weren't malicious, only unorthodox.

 

"Come on, Shawmus; time's a-wasting."

[ForceFusion]

"Ye--" Shawmus was saying, suddenly to no one. "--s, ma'am," he finally finished when prodded onto the ship. This was...odd. Shawmus was not at all sure of what to make of this woman. It would surely be an interesting trip.

 

Sitting in the cockpit next to Misal Draygo, Shawmus worked his jaw, attempting to coax words out. None came. He was, quite simply, confused.

 

"Uhh," he managed after a moment and some concentration in the Force, "should I, umm, y'know, do...something?" he asked her, motioning vaguely at the control boards in front of him, yet fully expecting her to deliver a very blunt "no" and blast the ship out of the EV and into orbit. Looking over at Misal Draygo, Shawmus subconsciously braced himself. What had he gotten himself into?

[ObliviousKnight]

"Yes. Look away from the nav computer for a second while I plot our course in." At last, Misal laughed, clearly enjoying the veil of confusion that she was casting over the Padawan's eyes. She swiveled about in her seat to face him, offered him a cheerful wink--not that he could see that through the veil that obscured the upper half of her face, of course--and blasted the shuttle's sublight engines.

 

If Shawmus had failed to strap himself in in time, that his mistake, and he would have to deal with it. It would hardly do for an upcoming Jedi to not exercise some common sense, no sir.

 

Misal didn't say another word throughout the duration of their departure from hyperspace, but neither did her smile disappear from her face. The mere thought of the initial exercise she was going to put him through was enough to amuse her--it was childish, certainly, but the Miraluka woman had never quite been broken of her fondness for practical jokes. And this was for a worthy cause.

 

Misal Draygo lifted her veiled head from the monitor of the nav computer moments after the shuttle broke atmosphere and quickly began to escape from Manaan's gravitational grip. Her calculations were complete; their ascent was complete, and there was nothing left to do but apply a tiny twist of the wrist to a certain prominent lever, and to enjoy the kaleidoscopic swirl of the stars around them.

[Vladimir Faust]

In a completely overlooked and all but walled over section of the Eternal Vigilance, a small accidental surprise from Faust's earlier raid takes effect. A dropped thermal, used by a long dead storm trooper, partially activated and having rolled into a far corner amid interior systems following the vaporization of its owner, explodes in a sudden blast.

 

There is minor damage to some of the most minor of systems, the results limited to a small portion of the E.V. and could be repaired in a day. Still it was a grim reminder that evil often left subtle, lingering after effects and its presence could never be wholly extinguished...

[Avararda Dinn]

((I'm a dunce. I got grounded (go figure) and I have very limited computer access. If you could, I need a quick up-to-date, and I'll get going. I apologize.))

[Zeke]

A transport touched down at the reconstructed Jedi installation. From what Zeke could gather there were no Jedi here, so his task would not be hindered by silly hang ups on who used or abused what side of the force and past atrocities. He was happy for this, as in all honesty he was only doing them a favor.

 

Those in the station were none the wiser to his presence amongst them. The human who checked out the equipment and aquatic transports, however, had a touch up performed on his mind adjusting a few moments in the past days so that he recalled someone checking out the exact gear needed by Zeke. He gathered everything and boarded a single person transport. As it descended into the depths of the planet, Zeke moved into the back and changed into his envirosuit.

 

Scanners picked up three larges pieces of the station that had sank during the attack by the Empire. The ship scanned each one, picking up weapons in the first, nothing special in the second as it had been the mess hall, and the place he sought was in the third”¦which unfortunately had been buried beneath the most durasteel and rocks. They hadn't made it down here yet to clean everything up; most likely it'd be a long time before they did, since the three portions were not leaking anything hazardous.

 

Five minutes later Zeke was standing atop a rock roughly thirty feet above the pile of wreckage. He concentrated the force energy in this place around the top piece and began the difficult and long task of lifting it, though it was made slightly easier since he was performing the task underwater where everything was easier to lift.

 

The piece was lifted free and tossed to the side after twenty minutes of trying to break it free from the middle piece and ten of finding a place to put it down that wouldn't harm to much of the ocean bottom species and plants, which if he recalled correctly were valuable to this planet.

 

Something stirred behind him.

 

He twisted around in time to see the dark abyssal maw bearing down on him. He dodged to the side, narrowly missing behind consumed by the animal, and fell down the rocky hill to the bottom where a cloud of mud lifted off the floor and into the space around him as a result of his impact.

 

Damnit

 

He regained his composure and made for the downed structures. The pseudo-shark creature was close on his heels as he burst through a hole in the hull and swam upwards to the bit of light he could see. Apparently the systems were still somehow online, at least the lights were. He came up out of the water and over the edge in a hurry and turned to look back as the beast retreated into the depths. Zeke took off the helmet of the enviro-suit and moved deeper into the station. Getting past the locked doors wasn't a challenge for him”¦

 

There were bodies strewn all about, those of the Jedi and Empire alike. He moved aside all the tables that were in his way in the mess hall and began to arrange the bodies. He laid them side by side, roughly one foot apart each and ensured their eyes were shut. Something felt wrong about a dead man with open eyes.

 

As he discovered the bodies when moving deeper into the station, he would move them back into the mess hall then continue deeper in. Several hours of work went by before he realized it and in that time he had made his way to the final door. He pried it open with the force and walked inside, surveying the various broken equipment and shattered glass lying on the floor. He walked forward and stopped in front of what had once been a glass case protected with many alarms and such; only ranking Jedi had been privy to the information that had gone there.

 

He gathered the small items and in a flash they had seemingly disappeared.

 

Time for me to be on my way then”¦

 

When he made it back to the mess hall, he lit each of the bodies on fire by using the elemental arts of the force. Each of them had received a proper farewell from this realm now and he was happy with his job done here. Making his way back to where he had entered, he jumped into the water after putting his helmet on and swam back to his transport. It carried him to the Jedi structure, where he left the enviro-suit and soon after the planet itself”¦

[Xodus]

With a flicker of psuedomtion, Xodus' ship soared from space and into the atmosphere of Manaan. He was told by an informer that all Jedi recruits were to report here for basic force training. Atleast until he obtained a master, he could learn the ropes here, that way he would be accelerated when the time comes for his real training to begin.

 

His ship landed on the nearest landing pad. He wasn't sure if it was restricted or not, but he wasn't concerned about that. He wasn't one to follow rules anyway. When he hopped out, he took a breathe of fresh air, and smiled. He then stood his back against his ship, awaiting a sign or someone to notice him.

[Damon]

((Ok untill my charcter arrives I am throwing an NPC to help get people busy. Note folks I am here not to bring you to knight hood, but to teach you the basics and maybe show you a thing or two.))

 

With in the the main area not to far away from the space port a man that obviously was a jedi and a teacher at that.

 

He waited for the new students to arrive so that he might ready them for their journey as a jedi.

[Raitaro]

Raitaro's new ship, Promethean Fire, touched down on a landing pad near the abandoned facility. It seemed to be coming back to life, with Jedi Activity. It seemed and endless cycle of building up and knocking down for the Jedi, but until he could stand to stop it, he was in no position to complain.

 

The knight descended the entry ramp, turning back to be sure his droid was in toe.

[Damon]

Damon's ship Inheritance landed in the bay of the jedi facility. Exiting the ship with Gavin only a step behind he walked to the teacher of soon to be padawans.

 

"Hello. I am Master Damon. In interest of my padawan I will be taking over classes for now as to help teach those are willing to the learn what they should learn till their master arrives."

 

The teacher bowed his head and lead Damon to the training center where no one was present, yet at least.

 

He was informed that everything he would need to teach the students is here and that if he needed anything he had to but ask. Damon tilited his head and the teacher left. Turning to his padawan.

 

"I know you must think I am trying to take away your experince by forcing you to learn in a group however far from it. When you have others who are trying to do the same as you I have learned that one pushes harder. So for now please do as I ask and absorb the infomation you will recive here."

[Xodus]

Xodus stood against his ship, watching the other Jedi recruits flock around what proved to be a Jedi Knight or Master. Xodus couldn't tell the difference yet. In any case, he was of somewhat importance. He stood away from his ship, and began walking towards the Knight. He was introducing himself to everyone, and letting them know what they would be learning.

 

As his attention veered off, he couldn't help notice someone (Raitaro) landing behind them. From the looks of it, he wasn't a recruit. So, he decided to approach the man.

 

"Hey...are you a Jedi?"

[Ads-Gop Flif]

The Phoenix exits hyperspace above the blue orb...

 

"R10, set us down, I'm too lazy."

 

The ship lands and Ads jumps out...

 

:Now, I wonder what I should do...why'd the force pull me here?"

[Apollo]

Lotus quietly observes the sudden influx of Jedi and Jedi hopefuls. He could feel their signatures in the force, none of them above the rank of Jedi Knight and one of them having a slightly deeper connection to the force then most hopefuls would have. He was the most recent arrival to come to the Eternal Vigilance, with a man by the name of Xodus being the first to disturb his meditations.

 

The long forgotten Jedi Knight stood up, his pale fingers grazing the weapon on his hip as he stood there in quiet contemplation, deciphering what the force had been whispering in his ear for weeks now. The time had come for him to take on another apprentice. Silently the Jedi moved out of his personal chambers and into the nearly vacant hallways of the station. He arrives in the Hanger just in time to see a young man disembark a ship and look around.

 

Lotus's violet eyes gazed upon the hopeful with a neutral expression, his staff saber visible at his side.

 

"Welcome to the Eternal Vigilance."

[Ads-Gop Flif]

Ads took the man in, reading him like a book...

 

"Hello," Ads replied as he looked around the hangar...I could get used to this place, if this is where the force will have me be...

 

"I," Ads continued, looking the man in the violet eyes...he did not yet know who this man was, but he could tell it was someone that he would get to know very soon...

 

"Am," Ads took in the man's silver hair, which was in stark contrast to the dark brown hair he could see reflected in the man's violet eyes...or the color hair he knew was on the man in the reflection, as it was hard to make out the differences in color...

 

"Ads-," Ads said, while his eyes moved to the orange staff saber, and the pale fingers that held it...

 

"-Gop," Ads tried to read into the man with the force, as the blank expression revealed nothing, but he was unsuccessful, he was too weak, and perhaps the man was also too strong...

 

"Flif. And you are?"

 

Ads waited for the man to reply, and equally neutral, unrevealing expression on his face...

[Apollo]

The man displayed no emotion as he would expect from such an old hopeful. He had seen countless figures come with a hop in their step, overjoyed at the possibility of becoming a Jedi. Lotus has also met several that were angry of being sent to the place. They were younger, around the age of ten and had been forced to come to the Jedi by their parents. None of them had made it past the first month of training.

 

”œI am Maroon Lotus, Jedi Guardian.”

[Ads-Gop Flif]

"It has always been my dream," Ads replied as Maroon Lotus approached him, "I don't know why, but it has. I have received a very small amount of training twice, but I can't use any of it. And the reason that I want to be a Jedi is my longing to help others in any way that I can."

 

Ads turned around and looked at his ship, thinking...about what he should say and his life in general...

 

"Have I come to the right place to begin my training?"

 

The man reminded him of the Jedi...his past...the force...and Ads was happy. He let a small, friendly smile appear on his fine, fine face.

[Apollo]

”œIndeed you have.”

[Jarin Silocen]

Eric "Hell" Helbrecht landed on the endless ocean of a planet Manaan, landing on a platform-city the natives had long ago set up for foreigners willing to trade or buy their exports. Helbrecht had heard of the Jedi temple on Gala being burned to the bricks, so this was the only other place he could think of off hand. There used to be a temple on Coruscant long ago, but after several raid attempts and one final raid success, another was not built in it's place. Exiting the shuttle with of the rest of the refugee looking travelers, Helbrecht made his was to a Selkath dock worker, asking for directions to the Jedi temple. The words were almost incomprehensible, but he got the gist of what was said. He followed the current of the pedestrian traffic until his path varied from the mainstream. He pushed his way as politely as he could through the crowd until he got out of the cluster. They had dragged him thirty meters past his turn and he chuckled. He pushed against the the flow once more, this time directly opposing it, reaching the almost empty hall at long last. He paused in the corridor and sighed heavily.

 

Sometimes it's just easier to go with the current, but the current often takes you to a place you more often than not wished you never went to. Fighting the flow is the only way to get to where you need to go. Fighting your weak will, ever wanting to take the easiest path, is how we can become strong. Strong enough to serve that is.

 

Helbrecht smiled and nodded in approval at his own insight. He continued down the corridor, soon coming upon the temple. It would certainly serve the Jedi's needs until the temple was rebuilt, but it was no where near as impressive as holo's of the Jedi temple on Coruscant. Now that was a temple. Almost considered a fortress. He spied Maroon and Ads talking in a few meters away. He made his way over to them, staying five paces away and kept silent until they acknowledged him. It was rude to interupt others. And where would this galaxy be without manners?

[Ads-Gop Flif]

"Not much..." Ads replied matter-of-factly. As they walked, Ads looked around the hallway, wanting to see everything there was to see.

 

"I learned a few basic force powers, but that's all. My most extensive force training was five years ago, so I've almost forgotten it all, as I alluded to earlier."

 

"Wait--are you going to be training me?" Ads peered deep into Maroon Lotus's eyes.

[Guest]

Ichi shifted when Xodus approached his master. He had addressed Raitaro rather bluntly and Ichi's circuits fired up and took the action he felt his master would want him to take. He was much to busy to pay attention to some random being. He stepped forward and met Xodus before he reached Raitaro.

 

"Yes, sir. He is a Jedi Knight."

 

Why did I do that? I had not been ordered to do so.

 

He turned his head and looked toward Raitaro. "Master, I believe this human wished to converse with you, if you are not busy that is."

[Hawker]

Mrakhh blasted into space. He did a few barrel roles before starting the decent to land. Mrakhh was never the one to be fancy at anything, but he enjoyed riding his new ship. It reminded him of flying his Mosgoth at home. He had no idea why he was on this planet but he had a feeling this is where he was supposed to be. Strange. Maybe someone here could possibly explain it. He landed and waited to see someone or for someone to come out and great him. Mrakhh hoped he did not have to encounter any Metal-Men...

 

 

 

((That's all I could come up with for the first post. Some instructions on what I should have Mrakhhh do would be great. Thanks!))

[Raitaro]

"Yes... I am Raitaro."

 

Raitaro's somber gaze halted on Xodus, pausing to wonder why his droid had chosen to speak for him. His speech was slow, careful--almost tired.

 

"Why do you ask?"

[Xodus]

Xodus kept his gaze upon the Jedi, but before he could speak again, his droid spoke up for him. It was odd; He was completely life-like. But hey, a Jedi Knight. Finally, he had the chance to meet one, as that would be him one day.

 

"Because...I'm looking for training, and you sound like someone who can help me out."