The Eternal Vigilance (The Maw)

[Hou-Jo Poleb]

The veteran Hou-Jo had walked into the room, wearing fresh robes. It took him some time to figure out that he was on Manaan. He noticed that quite a few people were gathered here, including Ara, Armeina, Aryian, a Blademaster, and a very disrespectful Jedi Admiral. He put up his hood so that he might not be recognized right away.

_________________

[Onderin Starlisk]

OOC: Oops, missed that one. I guess I should read better. The source of Onderin's annoyance was the continued comm chatter.

 

IC:

Onderin was composed when more people started entering the room--first Isolder himself, then Hou-Jo Poleb, the previous Grandmaster.

 

He was glad when Armiena just stepped forward. That way, he wouldn't have to say anything just yet....

[Prince Vegeta Isolder]

Isolder was visibly displeased with what had occured thus far, and Armiena was not making things much better. The Blademaster was too used to working on his own as of late, and had forgotten himself. The tendencies of royalty he had worked to purge had begun to return after his long period of solo activity.

 

It appears the requirements to lead the Jedi have been significantly lowered.

 

"Well, I could understand if someone as inexperienced as yourself could so easily brush off my warning. If it was just a matter of your life, I would leave you to your insolence. But since trillions hang in the balance, I will explain to you the gravity of the situation."

 

Isolder concentrated to remember as much of the warning as he could. He wanted to be as exact as possible.

 

"Through means a normal Jedi would not understand, I received word from the next world that a weapon of the so-called Chaos deities has resurfaced. It is called Esrever and it resided on Maltauros. The identity of the one who took it is unknown, but the power of this weapon is unfathomable. It makes the Sith freaks who called themselves gods look like children. I cannot express to you how dangerous it is. Do with this notification what you will."

[Hou-Jo Poleb]

Hou-Jo felt another disturbance in the Force. Something terrible had happened. He felt no death or tragedy, but he felt something wrong.

 

.:Dark Lord:.

 

Hou-Jo winced, as he was bothered by something for one moment, but almost instantly forgot about it completely. He was somewhat, disturbed by what Isolder had to say. "You received word from the next world? Who's told you of these absurd dangers?"

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[Wookiee Jedi]

The force was everywhere. Kirlocca was apart of it, joined it only recently. However, Kirlocca was one with it...he only remained with it. Kirlocca's spirit lay motionless in the quite movements of the Force. He was not alone, his grandfathers spirit sat next to him...clearly wanting to address him. Kirlocca didn't bother to give him permission, Harrukky always spoke when he wanted to. No one ever stopped him before.

 

"Why do you lay here?"

 

"The force will not accept me."

 

"And for good reasons too. Your time is not over."

 

"I've died, there is no more I can do if I can't join the force."

 

"No. You died making a wrong decision, and you know of what I speak."

 

"Are you telling me that I should have stayed with the kid that's not even mine...abandon my call of the force and the pledge I made to the Jedi?"

 

"Yes...for you have felt inside Holden what I already know. You know that with you at his side, he will become great."

 

"He is not force sensitive."

 

"One does not need to force to be great Kirlocca. You know this."

 

"What good does it do for me? To come so far...to lose it all..."

 

"When you lose it all, you sometimes gain the world."

 

Silence. Both remained still and motionless for some time. Kirlocca thought for a second that he had died again, but he knew better then to think that one could die twice...

 

"So, I will find the world in him?"

 

"No...he will become your world. And you are to make him a priority over your Jedi commitments."

 

"That will go over well with the Jedi."

 

"All of those on the council have broken their commitments at one point. None of them will have a problem with you doing this, and if they do, then they are not Jedi."

 

Kirlocca made the pause this time, letting what his grand fathers spirit told him. After a few moments passed, he asked the question.

 

"When will you send me back?"

 

There was no reply of words, but instead, Kirlocca was met with a lid thud. Something inside his chest banged, threatening death upon him. It hurt beyond belief, but the Wookiee soon learned that it was only his heart, starting to beat again. It grew faster and stronger until it reach it's normal pace. White lights shone all around him for a few seconds before fading out into a normal pale glow of lights of the medical room inside the Jedi base.

 

Kirlocca slowly moved around, trying to get a feel for walking and feeling things again. Kirlocca looked outside a view port, upon seeing that he was under water, Kirlocca's memory flooded back to him.

 

Shyriiwook: "I hate water."

[ObliviousKnight]

All that power... in a blade? Granted, simple Jedi philosophy warned quite vividly that size mattered not, but it seemed that the power to destroy or irrevocably change the universe could reside in such a simple object, something that one could grip in their own hands, was rather... ironic. One imagined that such power would be held within a vast weapon, or, rather, a more abstract host such as a spirit.

 

Waste of a perfectly good blade, cursing it with that kind of power.

 

"Thank you." I inclined my head in acknowledgment of his warning. That sort of solemnity had to surprise those that knew me. In truth, my humble response was in retaliation to his arrogance; Prince Isolder of Hapes, with his useless nobility. "I have an idea of where we can start, but like Hou-Jo said, we need to know everything you can tell us. How did you get the message--I know what you said, but humor me and I'll try to understand. Did you receive any detail about which god created that weapon?"

 

It seemed that the Gods of Chaos had a way of cursing us when they had appeared to leave our galaxy to rebuild after their ruin. Damn them! Which false god is going to terrorize us now: Khorne and his butchery, his murder? Nurgle and his disregard for all life that doesn't suit his purposes? Tzeentch and his conniving plots, his deception? Or Slaanesh and his/her treachery?

 

If Isolder knew which God had created it, this would give us an essential running start, a chance to stop the threat before it could strike.

[Jarin Silocen]

Helbrecht landed, his personal mission accomplished. Everyone had been evacuated safely, and that was all that had mattered. Now, he had to report. He worked he way around the temple, asking who was in charge, getting a series of questionable looks followed by faint smiles and a pointed finger with coupled with general politeness. In a matter of time, he came upon the grandmaster herself.

 

"Ma'am. Everyone is safe and out of the Gala temple."

[Ary the Grey]

Aryian returned refreshed, wearing pure white silk robes that seemed to flow like a living liquid around his frame. He was slightly disappointed Armiena hadn't had the time, but sensed more trouble was brewing. As it was, he entered into the company of the others again, but at the rear, merely listening to the conversation. His fiance was being the leader of the Jedi again, and he wished not to step on her toes.

 

Quietly he surveyed those gathered, noticing a few he didn't know, studying those he did.

[Syn]

((Erm, I wasn't actually going to post, but I'm bored and tired of working on my Novella))

 

An-Dur did as he promised himself, he hung back and waited for his friend to find who he sought. Ichigo seemed to have the same thought process as him, which was comforting. Though, An-Dur was sure that Ayrian was a man, as his named seemed masculine and so when Ichigo approached the woman, An-Dur stepped forward from the shadows. Not clearly knowing why. He just felt the urge to float through the crowd, or perhaps he was drawn to the warrior who had drawn his blades and defended the Female Jedi. Either way, An-Dur headed towards him, picking up his pace when he noticed the man begin to leave.

 

Quickly he headed across the expansive room, politely moving through the crowd, taking the most direct path, which was through the center of the room. Within a relatively short time, the Zabrak in the black tuxedo had caught up to the warrior. With a slight clearing of his throat and a gentle yet questioning voice, he asked the stranger with a noble heart. "Kind sir, Excuse me for a moment. Might you be Aryian Darkfire? Because my friend over there, the one talking to the lady? He is supposed to meet that person here to begin his training. I figured you might be able to tell me, since you look like the type to hold considerable sway. Excuse me, if I sound too straightforward."

 

He then stepped back allowing the warrior who outclassed An-Dur in every way to feel safe and not threatened. Making a mental note of this considerable man.

[Ary the Grey]

Aryian looked towards the person who approached him, listening to his queries.

 

"Meet me here for training? Yes, I'm Master Darkfire...but I was unaware I was supposed to meet someo-...wait...Ohhh...I'm going to give that ship a fine re-tuning when I get on it next..."

 

Aryian glared in the direction of the hangar, knowing his ship had obviously made a few comms too many as part of its self-created liberties subroutine. Since it was constantly linked with Aryian's thoughts, it often took it upon itself to execute some of the things Aryian wished to do, or even finishing Aryian's intents. This one must've had some story behind it, and no doubt stemming from his thoughts of taking a Padawan recenty.

 

"Thank you for telling me this...your Ichigo may have been waiting some time for a man that would never have been there."

[Kirana Sunrider]

(Sorry for not posting sooner Ichigo)

 

After inclining her head towards Onderin, she turned to look at the young hopeful, Kira gave him a gentle smile.

 

"He is..."

 

Pausing for a moment, Kirana saw Aryian come, greet Armiena, head off and then come back again after a few moments.

 

"There he is there."

 

Kira pointed to the now returned Aryian Darkfire.

 

It seemed while the writer of Kira was busy with RL stuff, others had come into the increasing group of Jedi. She acknowledged those that had joined them then listened to the goings on around her.

 

It disturbed her the news of this weapon. More powerful than those 'gods'? She'd had her encounters with Nurgle and had survived that. She had felt the power he'd wielded... stronger than that... this isn't good...

[Prince Vegeta Isolder]

Isolder could recognize the sarcasm in Armiena's voice. He had acted a bit foolishly. He was not a god, anymore than the Chaos pretenders were.

 

"Of course, the leader of the Jedi should be able to understand such things, just as a Blademaster should be able to humble himself in front of equals. This is a problem we must face together. I do not know for certain which of the Chaos gods is involved. However, when I visited Maltauros, Tzeentch was in charge. It stands to reason it would be a weapon of his creation. Of course, Ara-lai Kaipi could tell you more about that than I could. She was running with Tzeentch at the time."

 

Isolder had been disappointed then at how quickly the Jedi had fallen for the tricks of the Chaos gods, and not much had changed in that regard. Of course, Isolder had not chosen to confront Tzeentch on Maltauros, so even if he did not participate, he did not stop it all either. This weapon had been unleashed onto the world, and they were all to blame as much as its wielder.

 

"I received the information from a deceased Blademaster, a source beyond impeachment. He warned not to go to Maltauros or to try to wield the weapon, for it would be uncontrollable. I think the latter warning is sensible, but I'm not so sure about the former."

[Hou-Jo Poleb]

"I doubt that any of the Chaos gods are involved in this, they left this galaxy. I can tell you that Maltauros was indeed Tzeentch's domain. Did this, Blademaster, tell you what exactly this sword does? Did he say anything we can do to defend ourselves from it? With all due respect, I find it hard to believe that a spirit from the other side told you that someone had a dangerous sword and we should be careful."

_________________

[Wookiee Jedi]

Kirlocca ignored the fact that he was surrounded by water and made his way out of the medical bay. It didn't take him long to find a group of Jedi, all of whom he had meet before, were discussing something. As the Wookiee approached, he heard of the chaos gods, and swords, none of which really interested the Jedi master, so he quickly turned away from them to find either a comm station or a terminal for him to find out if Holden had made it off Gala, or if he would have to go back to pick him up.

 

Kirlocca quickly signed onto a terminal and checked the Gala logs, finding that all life had been evacuated from the dojo, and the Alliance base was still in the process of being evacuated. Kirlocca was a bit upset that Holden was not here already, but decided not to give into those feelings and instead, he reached out with the force to try to find out what Jedi had or was having interactions with him...

 

...Kitt Fitt...

 

Kirlocca allowed a smile to come to his face upon feeling that his long time friend had taken care of his child for him. Although, when Kirlocca touched Kitt, he did not seem to pleased with the Wookiee. Kirlocca wondered why, but didn't give it too much thought when he saw Aryian out of the conner of his eye. Kirlocca ran up to him and embraced him with a hug.

[Ary the Grey]

Te Jedi master let out a giant wheeze as the Wookiee bear hugged him, nearly crushing his ribcage unintentionally in the process.

 

"...khant...breefe..."

 

Kirlocca took a moment of pause to wonder what on earth Aryian had said before he was let go, gasping and chuckling in a rather peculiarly funny manner. Aryian shrugged it off, merely glad his old friend and mentor had successfully cracked his back, instantly working the cricks out of it.

 

"Well, well, Kirlocca, it's good to see you...and away from the battlefield as well. Those were some nasty Sith that attacked us...I fear the Jedi have only grown weaker. But let's not focus on that. You agreed a long time ago to be my Best man, and now you're going to finally be able to fulfill it."

 

Aryian grinned, still holding his ribs.

 

"We're finally getting married...and it's going to be soon. We need to celebrate, you and I, old friend..."

[Wookiee Jedi]

Yes, the Jedi had grown weaker then normal. Kirlocca could remember back to a time when three Sith would not have lasted as long as they did...but then again, maybe it wasn't the Jedi getting weaker, but the masters getting older. Kirlocca sure noticed how he had a shorter breath while on the battlefield...but the Wookiee blamed it all on the fact that he had so much movement before he stepped out onto the battlefield with the Sith.

 

Kirlocca let out a howl of excitement for his friend at the notice of him and Armiena getting married, although, he still didn't understand why to two waited so long to get married, he was excited for them anyways. And as Aryian said, celebration was in order, whether before or after the marriage.

 

Some pity grew inside Kirlocca upon seeing that he had placed his friend in pain, and the Wookiee let him know by a sad mournful growl.

 

(Kinda playing with a new way to write, keeping myself more wookiee.)

Edited September 12, 2007 by Guest

[Kitt]

Kitt's StarSword came out of hyperspace above the planet Manaan. Kitt was able to land the fighter in the Jedi hanger bay without any problems, besides from the few questions that Holden would ask, wondering about things that normal three year olds do. Even as he walked Holden through the Jedi base, he continued to ask questions about how Kitt knew his dad and so on. Kitt was flooded with relief upon seeing Kirlocca.

 

Kitt placed Holden on his feet on the ground, and the kid took off for Kirlocca, running into his arms. Kitt arrived at Kirlocca shortly after Holden did.

 

"Next time, don't leave him."

[Wookiee Jedi]

Kirlocca swung Holden around in his arms, while at the same time, trying to to let him hit anybody around him. When he finished his swing, Holden started to explain the details of his journey to Manaan with Kitt through his eyes. Kirlocca allowed himself a moment to glance at Kitt, using the force to pass both his thanks and his gratitude for him getting Holden to safety. When his gaze returned to Holden, he was still going through the trip.

 

", and WOOSH! We were in hyperspace. It was amazing."

 

As Holden finished, he simply smiled and laid his head on the Wookiee's shoulder. Kirlocca allowed a prideful smile to show upon his face for Holden. The kid seemed not to care of who was around, or how loud he was.

[Ara-Lai Kaipi]

Ara frowned at Isolder. "I don't know what you're talking about with me 'running with' Tzeentch. I knew him, as he was in a relationship with a friend of mine, and there was a time when I was brought to her in order to recover from a run-in with Vladimir Faust. I also saw him one other time, in the Jedi temple on Coruscant, I believe. Other than that, I had little to no contact with him." She cleared her throat rather pointedly. "I would appreciate it if you would not insinuate such things in the future, especially when it isn't in one bit true."

 

Heaving a sigh, Ara went on, "But the sword sounds troublesome, to say the least, particularly if it was made by one of the 'gods'." It was even more trouble if it was made by Tzeentch, Ara didn't add. She knew that Tzeentch had been a master of the art of alchemy, most likely even better than her and using implements of the dark side as well as of the light. Given what Sanare could do, and the feelings of dark she had gotten off of the Sith-crafted sword that had nearly killed Armiena, the abilities of this other god-sword could be nothing but insane.

 

In her thought, Ara ran her fingers down the hilt of Sanare in a calming motion. The blade didn't speak, but let out a low hum of reassurance.

 

"What precisely is this sword capable of, regardless of who holds it?"

[Damon]

Finally ariving out of hyperspace the invisible Shadow of the jedi made geosynchiours orbit around Manaan. Acessing the nural network that was special operations mebers only and found Aryian only on the planet.

 

 

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Hey all mr all white and burning bright. I thought you like to know that I have brought the home of special operations from Gala. You want me to send off till we need it again or would you like me to leave it here above the planet?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

Looking at Gavin Damon let use a sigh of exhustation.

 

"This Gavin is the last part of your journey with me. These next few weeks will push you to the end of this journey and to the start of your next. You have done well. Hopefully after what time we spend here shortly we can begin what must be done."

[Gavin Ryaro]

Gavin nodded towards his master. He was having difficulty containing his excitement. He had not expected his training to come to a close so quickly. Pending on his performance he could be a Jedi Knight in as little as two weeks. He took a sip of the wine in front of him and reclined, awaiting further instructions.

 

((Short post- just filling))

[Prince Vegeta Isolder]

Isolder was not convinced by Ara's denial. He knew many of the Jedi had been fooled by the Chaos phonies. But the Blademaster let the matter pass.

 

"It was not my intention to insult your character Master Jedi. You have my apologies."

 

Isolder's yellow eyes took on a glazed look as he tried to picture the events on Tatooine. The Hapan was struggling to remember the exact words of the message while trying to hold his tongue at Hou-Jo's remark. He failed in the latter case.

 

"Are you suggesting I am lying Poleb? I feel I should remind you a Blademaster of my talents would have more knowledge of the spirit world than a Jedi like yourself can comprehend. Please keep your questions to the matter at hand, and try to avoid embarassing yourself."

 

Isolder knew he wasn't behaving, but this was a matter of great importance. He didn't need people second guessing him.

 

"This problem is serious. Do not entertain any thoughts otherwise. The blade gives an individual all manner of god-like power. Far more than any of the Chaos gods wielded individually. But it only seems to work in that way for the one who wields it now. For the rest of us it turns the wielder against their nature. For example, Master Poleb would be forced to turn to the dark side, and would suddenly become intelligent. The power in the hands of one of us would be uncontrollable and devastating. But the powers of the blade are both unlimited and focused in the hands of the one who wields it however, because he or she is immune to this effect. I do not know how to stop it. We don't even know who has taken it or where they are."

[Ara-Lai Kaipi]

"Unaffected by the...hm. That is definitely interesting," Ara said quietly, mostly to herself. "My first guess, then, is that this person either learned to control the effect, or that they were perhaps so corrupt to begin with that they can control the sword with little problem." She scratched the back of her head, a half-wince of thought on her face. "Regardless, one of the first manners of 'business' would be to find who has the sword and where it is."

 

She turned to Isolder, thoughts and ideas still racing through her mind even as she spoke. "I don't suppose you have any idea how to accomplish that, or are we all going to have to figure this out from, more or less, scratch? I don't mean to be rude, I'm just concerned." A long breath escaped Ara's lips, her worry and frustration showing clearly. "Quite obviously, this isn't good, and I don't doubt your source. I've had my own...dealings with the dead, as well as with living souls. They can be rather talkative, given the chance, can't they?"

[ObliviousKnight]

"Don't." I said simply, looking at Hou-Jo. "I don't doubt your source, I mean." Hopefully, Hou-Jo understood my warning without making it obvious to the rest of the gathered Jedi. I knew that he was always prideful--even more so than I--and even the slightest provocation, even unintended, could earn his ire. After all, I once managed to provoke him while I was just a Padawan under my old master Kamsie.

 

It's been that long?

 

"Now I definitely have an idea of where to start." I nodded at Ara-Lai Kaipi, matching my green eyes with her gray. Hopefully, we were both thinking of the same woman; although I hesitated to name her a friend, my own life had been changed for the better--more than once--due to her interventions. She was one of the very few followers of the Dark Gods that I wouldn't have hesitated in judging as a decent person, and I suspected that she had been similarly repaid for her service.

 

"I don't know how useful it will be, but at least we have something to start with. At least it's not nothing."

[Prince Vegeta Isolder]

Isolder had no more answers for Ara. Anything he said now was mere conjecture.

 

"I have no idea how the weapon can be overcome. It seems a catch-22. If we can even find the one who wields it, and manage to take it from him or her, it will simply corrupt any one of us next. Perhaps it can simply be destroyed."

 

Isolder doubted it would be that easy. Besides, they didn't even know who had stolen it or where they were. It was that Isolder hold Armiena's claim.

 

"You have an idea Master Jedi?"

[Syn]

An-Dur stood there in the background, watching all the Jedi around him converse about something of great importance. What it was he wasn't sure, something about a weapon, but from his distance all he could hear were bits and pieces of their heated conversation. Which only intensified his curiosity to know what the infernal matter was. Of course, An-Dur was no fool and the matters of the Jedi hardly concerned him. Deciding to do something in an attempt to not drive himself insane with the 'whats', 'whos' and 'wheres' he began to contemplate how he would go about drumming up interest for his guild. Lucky for him, such thoughts were all engrossing. He began to consider what he would wear, if he would shroud his face, his words and his tone. Would he be energetic? Perhaps serious? Would he discuss current affairs in a hopes to peak the publics interest through moral outrage? So many options to contemplate, it all began to excite him. A roguish smile eased across his face, and his eyes began to dance with mischief.

 

That, unfortunately did not last long, because he was thrust from his thoughts when he noticed that his friend had not yet come over. That alone was odd, since Ichigo had wanted this so bad, was it possible that he was having second thoughts? He was drawn to his friends image, as he conversed with the female Jedi, he wondered if he could do that as well, if he could do that and not be tempted to give into his desires. It was something that completely drew him away from his simple musing and tossed him back towards the dilemma that was the brick wall he could not get passed. The fate--his fate, it seemed that it was upon him and to deny it was to doom himself to a life a misery. His mind began to race with a choice, a simple yet profound one that would rule his life; Desire or duty? Two words that meant as much to him as the fate of his parents death and his own place in the galaxy. If he had knowledge over the force, perhaps he would have been able to shield his thoughts, would have been able to conceal them from those prying minds that so chose to invade. As it stood, he did not and as such, his mind was an open book ripe for the picking, for all to see.

 

At his back came the grunts and howls of something familiar to him, one that he'd heard before; it was a Wookiee. An-Dur's mind changed gears in that instant; a Wookiee as a Jedi? Who ever head of that? Was it possible? Perhaps a great warrior and partner because of some life-debt, but a Jedi? Could it be true? With his thirst for knowledge An-Dur turned on his heels, and sure enough right where Master Ayrian Darkfire was a Wookiee stood grasping Master Darkfire, holding him several feet off the floor, in an impressive bear hug. More importantly though, he was a Jedi! a lightsaber could be seen at his belt. An-Dur stood there struck stupid, he couldn't believe it! With a slack jaw and gaping expression. He stared towards the Jedi Masters. If he could have gotten control of himself he might have noticed the Wookiee Jedi leaving, he did not though. Lost in his world of wonder at the thought of a Wookiee Jedi in combat, their natural prowess, their code of honor, An-Dur nearly shed a tear. Suddenly he cursed himself and wished to be a Wookiee, wished to be able to rip men in two with ease and without the aid of a weapon or strength enhancers.

 

Finally, though ever slowly An-Dur regained control of his motor functions and spoke, addressing Jedi Master Darkfire. "Master Darfire, I didn't realize a Wookiee could be a Jedi, incredible! I bet he is a wondrous warrior! Oh, how I wish to be a Jedi..." Suddenly, as the words tumbled out all color drained from his face, he had unconsciously voiced what his soul yearned for and to a Jedi no less. An-Dur looked to be dead on his feet as he stared terrified into the mans eyes. He cursed his luck and his ancestors for making him dimwitted. Oh, how he wished he could take it back, or that Ayrian Darkfire would ignore it, but a greater part of him wished for the answer, wished to know if he could wield the force. And on that train of thought and convincing himself that since he started, there was no point in stopping he continued his conversation with the Jedi master. the color in his face slowly returning and his eyes dancing with the question that burned throughout his soul. "...Do you think I could be a Jedi? Am I...Force sensitive?"

[ObliviousKnight]

I sighed heavily. Perhaps I had spoken too readily; no matter what I said, someone was going to be disgusted with me, whether it was Isolder, for refusing to divulge potentially useful information; or my fellow Jedi, for violating the privacy of my comrades, some of whom were admired and sterling examples to their peers; or myself. I'd intended to keep my more sordid dealings a secret to be divulged only the most intimate of my friends, but now I was going to be forced to reveal it before everyone.

 

Might as well disgust all of them at the same time, I decided. Fair was fair.

 

"I made contact with Slaanesh before the Chaos Gods left our galaxy." And don't think I don't regret it, I dared them to interject. "His home was on the planet Vernza-Torrah; I can give you the coordinates of the planet, if you like. I have no idea if the planet has changed at all--I haven't set foot on its surface for years. I don't even know if you might find anything useful there, but knowing about it might come in handy.

 

"I don't know anything about Khorne or Nurgle, but the better part of their followers were Sith or worse. I don't know of any of Khorne's followers, but I know that Kakuto Ryu and a few high-ranking Sith worshiped Nurgle. As for Tzeentch..."

 

Forgive me for saying what I am about to say. You deserve better than this, especially after everything you've done for us all.

 

"Skye Organa. I suspect... no, I know that she was heavily involved with Tzeentch." She'd been involved with the grim chaos that stained Maltauros with our blood, but Skye never had the temperament to follow Nurgle or Khorne; Skye was too genuinely good, too pacifistic to follow those gods of death and destruction. Tzeentch would have been the only god she could have worshiped--which explained the wings I had once seen sprouting from her shoulders.

 

What had happened that caused her to lose them?

 

"She would know more about Tzeentch than I would, and... her son... her son..." Finally, I decided to brave meeting Ara's eyes, after having betrayed the trust of one of our own. Could she have... raised children with one of the Chaos Gods? "They might be a lead, especially if they know where Tzeentch lived while the Gods were still in our galaxy. If you run into either of them, though..."

 

I glanced down, fervently studying the pattern of scuffs on the surface of my boots. Even if divulging this information gave us a valuable head start on tracking down Esrever and whoever claimed it, it didn't change the fact that I had just spilled the most jealously guarded secrets of Jedi whom I liked and admired. It was an awful thing for me to do, and I wouldn't have been surprised if they decided to never trust me again. "If you run into them, please give them my apologies for involving them in this, and betraying their privacy."

[Prince Vegeta Isolder]

Isolder shifted uncomfortably. A decidely un-Blademaster-like notification that he knew more about that particular subject than he had let on. Isolder had been on Maltauros after all. That was how he knew of Ara's activity there. Isolder hadn't expected Skye to be brought up though.

 

I have not heard anything about her in at least two years. I did not think she still lived.

 

Isolder was not sure what to do. He had never sworn to keep what he had seen their secret. And he had expressed his displeasure with it during his visit. But he had found the daughter of Skye a pleasant person, in spite of her father. The Blademaster had never spoken of what he'd seen there out of respect for Skye. He felt in many ways his pledge of silence was an unspoken promise as binding as if he'd sworn it aloud.

 

But certainly Ara has proven herself countless times and I was quickly willing to judge her. Should I not hold Skye to the same standard? Is this crisis not enough to justify releasing any secret I hold? The truth is I liked Skye and her daughter more than I liked Ara. I was angry over other issues in my dealings with Ara, and this was the root of my attitude toward her and my unwillingness to speak about Skye. Such a childish stance.

 

Isolder had allowed his relationship with the Jedi to tarnish his role as a Ral'tath too many times. He had accepted an honorary rank of Jedi Knight. He had even trained a few at the behest of past Jedi leaders. But it had clouded his objectivity. He had refused to intervene in what he'd witnessed on Maltauros and now the galaxy was paying the price. If Armiena had suspicions, it was irresponsble of the Ral'tath not to speak what he knew. He spoke, his eyes betraying how sad he felt at what he was saying.

 

"Skye will know much about it. She had a child with Tzeentch. A daughter at least, I knew of no son. Let us hope she forgives me as well, but we all must realize right now there can be no secrets. I have long ago dissolved the bonds of a Hapan Prince for the sake of the galaxy. I abandoned my family in favor of my duty. All of you should accept right now that any loyalty of friendship you feel means nothing in comparison to the crisis we face. If anyone else can shed some light on Tzeentch or any of the other so-called gods, you must not hold back. What happened is in the past. Do not fear repercussion for past sins. Fear only the genocide that will take place at the hands of the Esrever."

 

The Ancestral Spirits know I am guilty of many sins myself.

 

Isolder had never ran with any wicked Chaos god, but he had made his own fair share of mistakes. He was a Ral'tath, and they were not meant to be the Judges of the galaxy. Only the Executionors. This crisis was more important than self-righteousness and misplaced guilt.

[Ara-Lai Kaipi]

"She also had two sons by him."

 

Ara breathed in deeply, speaking as she exhaled. "I know of Amon, who has since become a Jedi and a good man in his own right. There is also Krishna, a rather impish young man whom I met during my time on Yavin IV." A faint smile crossed her face as she recalled her game of tag with the half-god on the jungle-bound planet. "But Skye...she paid for her time with Tzeentch, almost with her very being. I had to retrieve her soul for her after her time with the Chaos God was over; she had gotten lost after going into a trance to try and save herself."

 

Ara shook her head. "In any case, Skye would know much more than I would. All I knew about Tzeentch myself is that he was--or is?--a god, and that he had something to do with alchemy. He mentioned the subject in one of the few times we talked." Ara patted Sanare lightly. "And it is a subject I'm fond of. But anyway, we need to mobilize, I think, and find out as much as we can before we regroup. Keep in contact until then. Agreed?"

[ObliviousKnight]

((Sorry to treat you like this, but we're not getting anything done just chatting like this, and this has been planned for the better part of a year...))

 

"Pardon, Master Jedi, but I need to speak with my daughter." A detectable amount of scorn lacing her voice, my mother butted her veiled head into the conversation. Before anyone could react to her lack of deference to the Jedi and Blademaster in conversation, her gloved hand hooked under my armpit and she roughly hauled me back into the corridor."

 

"What on--what Ara said." By now, we were simply wasting precious time--all topics and speculations had now been exhausted and we were simply speaking to hear ourselves speak. My mother, on the other hand, seemed to take special offense to this and simply dragged my person away from my fellow Jedi. "Now, what in..." I began, trying to pull my arm out of her grip without results, resigning to her unshakable grasp until she managed to drag me into the hangar.

 

"Why are you wasting time with them? What's going to happen is inevitable, if that weapon is half as powerful as the Prince claims." How had she listened in on our conversation without our knowledge? "What you can influence is..."

 

With an exaggerated sweep of her unoccupied arm, a dark padded box tumbled from her sleeve into the palm of her hand. It was just the right size to hold a ring.

 

"How did you...?" It hadn't been nearly long enough for her to forge a ring on her own, let alone one set with a Corusca gem. I cracked it open, letting the silvery glow of the precious metal fill my eyes, and allowing the scattering of light from the rare gem dazzle me. That ring... was exquisite. Simple, perhaps--only a band and a single gem--but it was beautiful beyond words, defying coherent description.

 

"I'm good at what I do. I will offer no further explanation."

 

I simply stared at the ring that was to become Aryian's... hopefully, very soon.

 

"...Shiny."

 

"Very coherent." My mother snorted.

 

"...Pretty."

 

"Infantile."

 

"Ooh?"

 

"Ah, indeed."