Council of the Old Republic

[Jedi_Man]

Sam tried to meditate. It was too hard. He'd killed people before, gang members trying to hurt innocent people. He had no time to negotiate.

But he never hurt a friend, or fellow Jedi. He was angry, just a little. What ever had caused the dam of emotions to burst, it must be evil. Sam got angrier, but then he was calm. All seemed... peaceful.

He stepped out of the room. He was hungry, needed a snack, maybe a bofa treat. He walked into the commisary and saw Vtorym. She looked at him, and gave a slight smile. She was still holding her arm.

Sam's arm twitched once, then he walked to the food buffet and stacked up on steak and mashed potatoes. He sat all the way across the room, he needed space to think.

No one got up to confront him. He was glad.

[Fredi]

Grieg reached the hangar and did all the checking to the ship, he waited a few minutes for his master but Master Zhar did not came.

"Hmm master Zhar is taking way too much time, I'm going to get something to eat, T1 stay here"- Grieg said to the droid.

Grieg went then to the commissary to get some food and maybe some fruits for the way to Nar Shaada, there he saw some familiar faces around the table, Master Dorak's apprentice was there, he decided to pass and ask them if they have seen Master Zhar.

"Greetings fellow friends, by any coincidence, have you seen Master Zhar? I can't seem to find him any where." The devaronian padawan asked.

[CommanderQ]

Jerek smiled at Vtorym, he decided he wouldn't push the subject too far, as he didn't want to if it wasn't the right time for them.

 

He looked at the Devaronian, Grieg, as he remembered. He was still getting to know everyone around here, it would seem.

 

"I think my Master wanted to speak to yours, they may be near the Archives. But I don't know, I hope it helps."

 

That brought another thought to his mind. He had talked more today then he had in a week. For some reason, he found himself able to be open with Vtorym, perhaps it was because she was very much in an experience that no one, except Jacob, was in.

 

Perhaps the Council would accept him once again. But war often changes things...

[Tysyacha]

Vtorym suddenly noticed that most of their fellow students in the Jedi Temple had finished their lunches and were carrying their trays up to the front of the commissary so the kitchen droids could sanitize them. As for herself, she wasn't quite ready to leave her bantha steak behind. Why did the others have to hurry so, to rush through their meals and their training with the urgency of soldiers primed for combat? Then again, what were Jedi if not soldiers who had been trained to use the Force? She sighed.

 

"Listen," she said to Jacob and Jerek softly. "I've been having some unsettling dreams lately. They're about us, or at least representations of us, facing the Council. Have either of you noticed that the Masters seem to be more on edge than usual? Maybe it's because they are not sure whether the one known as 'Revan' will stay on the path of the Light, or maybe it's something else. Whatever the case may be, these dreams are telling me that we shall face a trial soon--you, Jacob, you, Jerek, I, the Devaronian, and a Twi'lek called Lena Vark. The Council seems to have singled us out in the dreams."

 

After a pause, she said, "We may not be the only ones. The Council may be aiming to test all of us, if the dreams come to me through the Force and not mere stress!"

 

She shook her head as Jacob and Jerek stared. "Who knows? Maybe I'm just crazy."

[CommanderQ]

Jerek raised an eyebrow and sighed.

 

"These...these visions tell you this?"

 

He thought for a moment.

 

"Then you are most certainly not crazy. Perhaps heeding this message would be wise..."

 

He took another bite and the meal was finished. He looked at Vtorym and her plate of food.

 

".....unless those visions are because you eat too many Bantha Steaks before bedtime...."

 

He smiled, hoping they got the joke, he didn't crack too many of those usually.

[Tysyacha]

Vtorym chuckled. "Trust me," she said, "I'm not planning on taking a nap very soon."

 

She finished the last of her Bantha steak and took her tray up to the front of the commissary. A kitchen droid took it deftly, spun it around on its mechanical arm like a circle of flatbread dough, and sprayed it clean in a matter of seconds. The Jedi smiled.

 

She noticed that Jerek and Jacob had fallen into line behind her. "Am I just lucky," she said, "or are the droids bored and wanting to show off their--erm--extracurricular sorts of talents?" Vtorym suddenly wished she had another lunch tray for the droid to wash.

 

Suddenly, the Temple's comm system crackled to life: "Attention, Knights and Padawans. Report to your Masters immediately after you finish for an important announcement."

 

For some reason, the hackles on the back of the Echani Jedi's neck began to rise.

[Jedi_Man]

The silence of his thoughts were broken by the announcement. Sam looked at his plate, it was empty.

Hmmm, went straight through me. Sam thought amusingly. He got up and put the tray into the cleaning receptacle. He ran towards his room, to get his lightsaber, A jedi should never be caught with out one. He then left for Kavar's room.

" You rang?" Sam said in a deep voice as he entered.

[Tysyacha]

"Yes," replied Master Kavar. "If you would, please sit and meditate with me."

 

Once he had levitated and crossed his legs in the traditional Lotus form, he looked at his curious Jedi Knight student with an expression of hope and despair mixed into one longing gaze. "I am concerned about something," Kavar said. "You may wonder why we Masters caused the whole Temple to snap to attention, but this is serious--and possibly suicidal. There is something--a presence in the Force--that seems to be bleeding the life out of the galaxy, slowly but surely. We do not know what it is, but we intend to find out. The reason I called you here, Sam, is to inform you of this, and to ascertain your interest in being on a..." He paused. "We must be careful. I must be careful, you see."

[Jedi_Man]

Sam sat and meditate with Kavar.

" Please, Master, you can tell me." Sam said. He wondered what Kavar was talking about. A mission, maybe just some more help around the temple.

" What ever it is, I am ready to hear it." Sam said eagerly.

[Admiral_Thrawn]

"Death is but a natural occurance, where a bridge form's between the living and the deceased. The code state's in a simple manner that there is no death, but there is the force. Such teaching's are implicated under the wrong manner of speaking, but they carry great weight."

 

The room was filled with an eery silence. Every second was the effect of millenia, as the living force fluctuated about Sev's being. His form, so irrevocably bound to a meaningless existance, sat in complete silence. Cross-legged amidst the chamber, an ebony curtain flung across every dark avenue, Sev was alone. Yet he was not . . .

 

"All so dark, every turn but another path into the ultimate abyss."

 

___________________________________________________________

 

The door flicked open slightly as a fragile form slid through it's physical boundries, into a darkened corner. Her eye's focused upon the lone male in the center of the room. The confinement's of the physical world were nothing to her, as she felt purely through the force.

 

"You have come far my pupil, so far. Your understanding of the force is beyond even my own knowledge, such is the way of thing's." The male considered slightly, his breathing slow.

 

"Rank is not a measure of skill, but of understanding."

 

She nodded as she drew the hood from her eye's and draped it around her shoulder's.

 

"The living occurance is simply a matter of what is and will be, do you understand?"

 

"Yes Master Stusea, I understand."

 

"I am . . . impressed. The last time a pupil of mine came so far . . ."

 

Her voice trailed off as memories flew across her vision.

 

"I will not fall my Master, lest the force will's such a thing, in which I have no control."

 

Aleco considered his word's and knew now that she had learnt something.

 

"It wasn't your fault, it wasn't his . . . it was the will of the force."

 

She smiled faintly as she withdrew from his quarter's, her mind becoming overcome by emotion. A quick combination of focus and will drew the emotion's from her frail mind and cast them into the shadow.

[Alkonium]

Upon hearing the message, Jacob quickly left the mess hall to speak with Master Vandar. "Sit down, there is much we need to discuss." Vandar said as Jacob entered his quarters. "About what?" Jacob asked, wanting to be certain what he was getting into. "The Force is undoubtedly strong in you, but you have difficulty controlling your own power. You could be a great Jedi if you master your power, and I fear there is little more you can learn from me. Perhaps if you took a more hands-on approach, you might be better able to control your ability." Vandar explained. "What do you mean?" Jacob inquired, a number of emotions swirling in his head.

[Tysyacha]

Master Vrook gazed at Vtorym with a mixture of fatherly love and patriarchal disdain. If his suspicious were correct, his student was one step above a garishly-dressed little streetwalker in the alleys of Coruscant, but far, far below a true Jedi Knight. No matter. More serious concerns pressed, at least for the moment. He would deal with the subject of Jacob Marek if and when the time came. For now...there was the disturbance to find.

 

"Can you feel it?" he asked Vtorym. "Listen to the Force. What do you sense, Vtorym?"

 

"Fear," she replied, "and desperation, and a wild sort of--hunger? Am I right, Master?"

 

Vrook nodded. "Something or someone is out there," he said coldly, "and we Jedi need to try and find out what it is. We're the only ones who can even sense such a thing. Am I right in trusting you, Knight V'stalt? Am I wise to tell you this? Only time will tell, I fear, because I've sent students on missions before and had them fail more miserably than you could ever know. I don't want to send you on a strike team and have you fail, too."

 

Vtorym's icy gaze hardened. "I will not fail, Master. The Force shall help me not to."

 

Vrook shook his head. "Such arrogance! Do I really want to send you on this mission?"

[CommanderQ]

Jerek heard the announcement and placed the uncleaned tray down on a nearby counter, immediatley leaving to see Master Dorak. When announcements like this came, you had to go right when they you got them.

 

Master Dorak was sitting near one of the Archive's many tables. He seemed to be reading one of the volumes of information, but he was perfectly aware when Jerek walked into the room.

 

"It is good to see you so promptly, Jerek, we have much to discuss."

 

"Of course, Master, this must be extremely important to announce it to everyone."

 

Master Dorak nodded,"Yes it is. Very Important. Maybe even more important then the Redemption of Revan, but we'll see."

 

Jerek sat opposite from Dorak.

 

"Master?"

 

"Can you not feel it? Stretch out your feelings. Go farther then Coruscant, farther then the entire system. Feel the outer reaches...."

 

Jerek sighed and closed his eyes, stretching his senses into these outer reaches.

 

And then it came.

 

A torrent of fear, anger, and confusion.

 

And something much darker, much more filled with darkness that no words could describe.

 

Jerek snapped back.

 

Master Dorak smiled, "It is good that you still master the ability to sense these things, Jerek."

 

Jerek smiled as well,"Sensing that, my best guess is, we have to investigate?"

 

Dorak nodded, "You are correct. You and many of the other Knights and Padawans are to go together to find the source of this new terror, whatever it may be. This will be your final test, I'm sure."

 

Jerek nodded as well, "Only Knights and Padawans?"

 

"Yes. Only those. From what I remember, this is what you do your best at?"

 

Jerek smiled, "Yes Master. Your memory serves you well."

[Admiral_Thrawn]

"I can feel it . . . like a gaping chasm, the yawning rupture spread thin across the entire outer rim . . . it feel's so empty, so lifeless . . . but wait . . . there is a hunger, a primal fury that is . . ."

 

His voice trailed off as he sensed the empty gap in the force.

 

"A rupture, a wound, it was slowly growing bigger . . . big enough to even lead to . . . no, it was far too early to make such a premature guess. Something of that magnitude . . ."

 

Pain wracked every fibre of his being as a masked figure reached out to him, calling and . . . he sought for something, he sought for him . . . a great hunger, all but a mask and a figure . . . it revoked all his ties to the force for but a second, then the great fury receded. Sev focused slowly, trying to recover from such a monumental feeling. He had been cut off from the force for but a second and it had struck him harder than any blade or weapon ever could.

 

This . . . figure was but a representation of the true problem, perhap's connected to it. The creature was hunger, it was like looking into a great rift and never looking away. The masked visage stared at him, it's eye's filled with a manic desire. Voice's uttered unintelligible syllloble's of a language even more ancient than time itself. Even these rumour's of a force known as the truth Sith paled in comparison to the threat this one posed.

 

It would devour the force, everything, then itself . . . simply recalling these image's sent the Jedi into a new level of pain, a new level of utter agony. He had not the strength nor the desire to attempt such again and swiftly departed from the pitch-black chamber. The voice seemed to follow him, echoing throughout every avenue of the force. It stretched around him, ensnaring him indefinetly as it closed in for the kill. The force killed him of mind and soul, but it was an illusion.

 

He staggered about the Enclave, desperately trying to dispell, to do away this new force. A moment later he returned to the physical world, to see a small crowd of Padawan's gathered around him, each sharing a concerned expression. He rose from the floor and pulled his hood over his head, already having suffered enough humiliation--enough pain, for one day.

 

He moved into a darkened corner and drew his hood away, a bucket of sweat running down his face, his breathing growing more ragged. He searched for something, just one avenue for escape. He remembered a Jedi, Vtorym.

 

He willed what he never thought possible, as he sent through the force a very shockwave into his unwitting target. He needed help, he needed someone, somebody. She was the first to cross his memory, his battling mind. He wondered what death would be like as he collapsed to the floor . . .

[Tysyacha]

Vtorym, in Master Vrook's private quarters, suddenly collapsed to her knees in agony.

 

"What is it?" snapped Vrook sharply. "Knight V'stalt! What's happening? What's wrong?"

 

When the swimming red haze of her vision began to reform itself into familiar shapes and shadows that she recognized, she stood up. "Someone's been wounded. Badly." Without waiting for her Master, a serious yet understandable breach of protocol under these circumstances, she fled from the chamber, Vrook on her heels, his lightsaber ignited.

 

When the two reached what Vtorym believed to be the source of the pain, the raw disturbance in the Force, both Master and student were dumbfounded. Knight Sev Kershaw lay on the floor, half-curled into a fetal position, with not a scratch on him.

 

"Kershaw!" Vrook snapped. "Are you half-dead? Asleep? Stand up this instant, you fool!"

 

Vtorym, however, knelt down beside him. "Shhh," she said. "Knight? It's me...Vtorym..."

[Admiral_Thrawn]

"The Master cannot see it, a troubling sign under such . . . pressing circumstance's. A swirling vortex, the voice cries 'feed me', all turn's dark . . . This masked figure, this great hunger, such raw power and fury . . . never have I seen hunger wielded under such a way, yet . . ."

 

His eye's flittered open, the pupil's vaguely red. A great presence of the dark side suddenly diminished within him, it's power fading. Sev faintly flicked his wrist, summoning whatever energy remained to diminish the creature's power over him.

 

"I felt it . . . so much hunger, so much pain . . . I felt it."

 

Without another word he slipped into darkness, falling back against the wall. His mind had been badly damaged, with his spirit wavering. His connection to the force was now weak, the critical link damaged by whatever beast saw fit to invade his mind, his body. He could still see through the force, escaping the confine's of his body and watching the event. He could see both Vtorym and Vrook, along with his now critical body.

 

Sev knew that he could not re-enter his body until he had been healed, made salvagable. He felt so think, so weak, as if the entire galaxy was crushing down on him, it's celestial might centered around one microscopic being. Thousand's of image's crossed his mind, each one afflicting him like a disease as it struck into it's place in his memory. He saw past, present and future as all the cosmos sped past him in a brilliant grandeur of light's and color's.

 

He shook the feeling off and moved over to his body, lifting the hood. His eye's were now a blood crimson, giving off some sort of . . . his spirit, mind and soul, was sucked back into the confine's of his body.

[Thanatos9t]

Elsewhere in The Room of a Thousand Fountains which was a place for relaxation and reflection, between the various missions and trials that the Jedi faced many Jedi from Padawan to Knight and even Master would come to relax.

 

Many of the Jedi would go around in groups and rarely strayed from the main paths as you could very easily get lost amongst the plants and fountains as many Padawans had been warned or found out the hard way.

 

Meditating amonst the foliage in a remote location on the events that were unfolding elsewhere Triko Tano the Rodian Jedi reflected on what had been an unusual day.

 

Apart from the odd comment which had almost become background noise about his skin pigment which for some unknown reason was red which was very unusual, these comments ususally came from a uninformed Padawan or another person looking stir up trouble. The occurances were so common that he just suppressed the feelings of being an outcast.

 

Then he had his daily training exercises to keep his mind and his body focused these were normally done with Master Kavar but he was observing another training session. Using his unusual green bladed tonfa lightsaber which had been recommended to him by Kavar as it allowed him to change from offence to defence quickly during a fight he begant to practice his lightsaber form alone.

 

Why am I always alone...

He remembered thinking this during his training session later on he found out this was because one of Kavars other students Samuel Nevar had injured a Jedi by the name of Vtorym during training.

 

Reflecting upon being told to report to his master during the afternoon, running into Sam who he know of only in passing in the halls he looked white as a ghost, dismissing this as him feeling bad for what had happened to Vtorym he had entered Kavars quarters and was told about a presence consuming the force.

 

No it can't be possible...can it?

He remembered denying it then feeling waves of uncertainty flow across the temple as other Jedi were informed of this revelation.

[Tysyacha]

Vtorym again tried to aid Sev, but Vrook stepped in front of her. "What is the meaning of this?" he snarled. "Stand at attention and answer me, Knight! What is wrong with you?!"

[Jedi_Man]

Master Kavar had just told him that a mission was made available.

A mission? To me?

" Master, What is this mission about?" Sam inquired.

[Alkonium]

"We are sending a number of Jedi to investigate a series of disturbance in the Outer Rim, and I have recommended you for the task." Vandar explained. "Why me?" Jacob had to ask. "If you can learn control, you will be an undeniable asset to the group. There is no more time for you to attempt to learn to control your power here on Coruscant. This shall be a trial by fire for you." Vandar told him. "I hope you know what you're doing." Jacob commented.

[Tysyacha]

Master Kavar folded his hands in front of him in consternation. "Knight Nevar," he began, "I have felt a disturbance in the Force, a far more serious one than I have ever felt. It is as if there is a vortex surrounding a dark presence, perhaps a member of the Sith Order. This...vortex, if you will, seems to be devouring all that surrounds it, all it encounters. Perhaps your anger, now undirected and unfocused, will dissipate as you search for it." He sighed. "If you will accept a mission that could possibly prove suicidal, I would like you to serve on a strike team to venture into into the Outer Rim and find it."

 

He gazed at his student unwaveringly. "You may decline if you wish. One of the core tenets of the Jedi Order is that we send no one into danger if it is not of their own free will. Make your decision carefully, Sam. I shall wait."

 

***********************

 

Vtorym was becoming angry at Master Vrook, at his treatment of the barely-conscious Sev but also at his treatment of her, of all his other Padawans.

 

"I can't believe you missed the signs," snapped Vtorym. "Sev needs help, and I can't help him. It takes a Master to counteract this kind of pain that I sense through the Force in relation to him. Now, either you get down beside him and see what's wrong, or I'll call for Master Kavar or one of the others."

 

"Do you get to give orders around here?" answered Vrook. "No. You are naught but a Jedi Knight, and I a Master. Very well, I will help Sev, but in my opinion he's always been a bit of a hypochondriac. As for you, Knight V'stalt, I was going to ask you to serve on a strike team to go into the Outer Rim and locate the dark disturbance in the Force, but now I've changed my mind."

 

The Echani maiden stared at him coldly. "The one I've sensed is different."

 

Vrook perked up his eyebrows. "What? The one you have sensed, Vtorym?"

 

"I see her in my dreams," the Knight replied. "She says she can save us all."

[Jedi_Man]

Sam looked at Kavar.

" Yes, yes yes yes yes!" Sam said jumping up and whooping with joy. Finally, something to do!

" I'll be packing now!" Sam said as he ran towards his room to gather what supplies a Jedi had.

[Admiral_Thrawn]

Sev's eye's snapped open as he took in the harsh visage of Master Vrook. He lifted himself to his feet and fell back against the wall, sucking in every bit of air about him. He exhaled with relief, finding whatever had previously ailed him to have faded. The image of the masked figure remained, as did the sense of ... hunger. He had delved far too deeply into the creature's web, only to become ensnared. It seemed he had, for now, escaped it's trapping's.

 

"Master, Knight."

 

He nodded coldly at the pair and moved away, his glare wavering on Vrook. As the cold air came about him he staggered slightly, his body still numb from the experience. After escaping the Master's vision he slid down a nearby wall and breathed in a frantic fashion. Air began to pour out of his mouth, as he could not retain such a needed substance. He rubbed his temple's and tried to focus, drawing his lightsaber as he did so. He ignited it a few feet from his face, holding it up with the force. He deactivated the blade and let the hilt fall into his lap, caressing the intricate design with a fondering affection.

 

He tried to meditate, but found he could not focus so much so as to enter such a difficult stance. Sev was, if anything, extremely reserved. He never showed his expression, even under the most agonizing pain. Never once had he even smiled, even let a tear fall, such was his mysterious character. Vrook seemed to criticize him for being reserved, even though such was the Jedi way. The Master had a unique point of view, a unique attitude. Such thing's made him a good Master in many way's, yet it also held him back.

 

Sev broke free of such thought's as he realized that most of the Knight's were beginning to pack their item's. To send such a large amount of force on a single mission, such was foolish even for the Jedi Master's. Not a single Master was in their rank's either and most of the Jedi selected were relatively new to the roll, or did not quite have the attitude for it. He held his palm down as a small bird flittered onto his glove, allowing him to run his finger down it's warm feather's. He stared at the small creature, taking in it's beatiful design, then rose his hand as to let the bird leave.

 

He attempted to rise, this time with more strength and headed for his quarter's. He arrived safely, only to find the door locked tight. He expected that this was because his Master had requested he gone on the mission, so his door was sealed until his return ... or demise. Either way he held two finger's to the locking mechansim, controlling his breathing carefully as he attempted to undo the advanced design. His attempt was met with success, most likely because the Master's would not expect for a Jedi Knight to break into someone else's room.

 

He cast the door aside as he entered, only to find a large bag in the middle of his bed. Sev used the force to guide it into his closet, having no interest in this mission the council would send him on. As a practicioner of Soresu and a ranking 'Force Master' his Mistress likely intended for him to play a role in the mission, but he denied her. He held ample respect for the Jedi Master, but did not quite understand as to why the Master's intended to send so many to their death's. He knew that his vision's, his torture, it was connected to this mission.

 

He had yet to inform anyone as to what the nature of their mission was, yet he suspected that he knew more than the Master's in this one paticular subject. Sev laid silently atop his bed, drifting into the world of the sleeping. Before closing his eye's, he re-sealed the door and erased any record of his entering of the apartment complex. He needed rest and wanted no one to disturb it, much less drag them on this foolhardy crusade of there's.

[Tysyacha]

Master Vrook glared at Vtorym, making her snap to uneasy attention.

 

"So, you wish to go on this mission to find whatever is threatening us?" Against her better judgment, the Jedi Knight nodded. "Come with me."

 

Instead of leading his student to the Training Room, or even to his private quarters, he led her to the Council Chamber itself. Vtorym was puzzled. What in space was going on? Was he going to discipline her, and if so, for what?

 

"What is your relationship with Jacob Marek?" he asked, sitting in a tall chair.

 

"He is my fellow student, and a Knight," replied the girl carefully. "He and I have been close friends ever since we began studying at the Temple, and we share a connection through the Force. It is not as strong as a Force bond between Master and student, but it is strong enough for us to let each other know how we're feeling, or warn each other of approaching danger," she explained. "If I go on this mission, I humbly request that he go along with me."

 

"You mean us?" asked Master Vrook. Vtorym nodded a little too hastily.

 

"I have confidence in your abilities, Knight V'stalt," he said, "but what I doubt is your willingness to forsake your emotions, your passions. Are you sure you're not lying to me about yourself, or Marek?" Vtorym shook her head.

 

"It is as I thought," said her Master, tossing Vtorym her double-bladed silver staff. "If you're going with us, you must fight," he said. "Skorost'! Now!"

[Jedi_Man]

Sam threw his meager supplies together. He had a Lightsaber, and a spare lightsaber, a few robes, a heavily modified, yet still legal, Mandalorian blaster, and his collection of Datapads and Holocrons.

Sam suddenly realized, he knew neither were the ship was or were it was going! He walked out of his room and went over to Kavar's room.

Knock-knock-knock

"Come in!" Kavar cheerily called. Sam did so.