| H
onour | Loyalty | Justice |

Dashthea chuckled softly to herself, giving her head a slight shake in Bok's direction. Truth be told, she wasn't sure if she would rather see Sikka's mouth run off with her straight into a tangle with a Jedi, or watch her suffer through an exercise in restraint. Whether she succeeded in maintaining her professionalism or failed and paid for it, this mission was going to be good for her.

Schooling her expression, she strode confidently after Rhett up into the ship. Keeping all comments to herself, she allowed an appreciative eye to wander over the hangar - and to take stock of the equipment lying about. I can think of a few uses for a mini fleet like this.... The ship was old and a little dusty looking, but it seemed remarkably well manned all the same. I hope they did a thorough mechanical analysis, though. I'd hate to be blown to oblivion because some buckethead didn't do his job right.

Still casually inspecting the hangar, Thea allowed herself to drift back behind the others a bit, now and then finding something interesting to look at that was behind them. Even if the Jedi had a solid reputation for being the 'good guys,' cautious habits were never worth overlooking in unfamiliar places. And besides, lots of people were incredibly good at seeming good when they were anything but.

@Dipper @BlueFlameNikku @Kimberlyn @~\The Talentless/~

[fieldbox="Arvana Tarron, darkred, solid"]Arvana kept an eye on Kuno as he laid into the bottle she'd brought him and the droid went about its work. She frowned at the heap of metal her Master was talking about, gauging its parts and coming to the conclusion that Kuno was right; it didn't look like any kind of standard droid she had ever seen before, now that he mentioned it. She wasn't expert enough to determine anything more useful, however.

Turning her attention back to Kuno, Arvana smirked and uttered a short dry laugh. "There are a lot of things you've done - and do - that I know better than to imitate, Master," she said, enjoying the opportunity to tease him.

She stood with him, attentive if he needed support, although her concern seemed unwarranted. She wasn't expecting the monologue he launched into just then, but it brought a passing smile across her face. Anytime is time to learn.

She nodded her head slowly as he finished. "That is strange. I can imagine it's useful in a pinch, though. How hard is it to learn?" Arvana had heard a bit about Force healing before, and now and then she had seen Kuno use it a tiny bit. But if he was bringing it up in more detail now when he had never volunteered the lesson before, she was eager to learn as much about it as she could.

Impressed by the disappearance of the wounds, it was hard to believe what Kuno had just said a moment ago about it all being a facade. I'll have to keep an eye on him and make sure that he's not going to do something dumb, such as pretending he's alright. She strode quickly to keep pace with him, light steps maintaining her position at his side with ease.

***​

Arvana halted and turned midstep as Kuno stopped at the door to the common room, curiosity prompting her to peer around him at what had caught his attention. Her face darkened into a frown, and she glanced once between him and the young woman with the collar before settling into a calculating stare at the woman. Her hand slowly wrapped around her lightsaber.

Sometimes, she had found herself in firm disagreement with her Master - and this happened to be one of those times. What was he thinking, bringing a Sith Apprentice aboard the Sojourn? Did Master Ken know about this? And more importantly - did he approve?

The image of Kuno standing disheveled and droopy with a bottle in his hand didn't bolster her approval of his casual treatment in the matter, or raise her confidence in his ability to make wise decisions presently. She nudged his ribs with her elbow, and shot him a knowing look before fixing her glare on the Sith Apprentice once again.

Once she had an opening to interject, her tone was sharp. She ignored the introduction and moved straight to the most pressing concern she had with this. "Yes, and it's been dealt with" she jumped in to answer Erisi's question, her tone perhaps a bit too sharp to be considered polite. "Droids aside, Master.... I really don't think it's wise to leave Sith 'converts' wandering freely about our ship?"

She realized after she said it what her Master must be thinking - and she felt instant regret for the harshness of her insinuation. As a reformed Sith himself of course, Kuno would have faith in this girl. But wouldn't that make him all the more susceptible to deception? We can't just trust her because it worked out with him....[/fieldbox]
@Joan @~\The Talentless/~
 
I should have attended the funeral myself Ophelia thought with a hint of melancholy. Sending a stand in, no matter how forced.... in retrospect, it felt to her like a cheapening of the honour owed to the Jedi and other brave souls who had fought and died to protect the Enlightenment. It felt appropriate to wear dark funeral garb in lieu of her dour feelings towards herself, but at the same time more fully reminded her that she hadn't worn them to their proper function.

With her emotions indicated only by the slightest downturn of her lips, the Queen strode aboard the Sojourn amidst her full entourage, head up and attention focused.

And, for a moment, she faltered.

The first person she saw was the last she would have expected to be greeting her - the Clone Commander. Shouldn't he be off telling Clones what to do? Surely he has more important things to do than babysit. Perhaps, just a small part of her was angry that she was actually glad to see him.

The hints of frowning about her face disappeared, and in the back of her mind, she laughed - but also felt bad for the poor man. He sounded like he needed a nice cup of tea for that voice.

She barely stopped herself from starting in surprise. My my, and he's supposed to give me a tour as well? Isn't that a bit.... much? Her initial thought was to assure him that really wouldn't be necessary. But then again..... She could use some more of his awkwardly endearing company to take her mind off things. No, goodness no. The Defence Force members with me should come with us to get an understanding of the layout, and I should know my way around in case of an emergency as well. Yes. Of course.

Ophelia nodded appreciatively. "Thank you Commander, that sounds wonderful. I look forward to seeing more of the Sojourn, once we can drop off a few things we probably shouldn't drag all about the ship." She gestured with her hand to the repulsorlift of paraphernalia the servants had brought, inwardly cringing at the excess of it all. Oh well. "Lead on when you are ready, Commander."

Luckily for Thrice, clones were built with enough self restraint to keep him in the royalty’s good graces. Thus, he refrained from making any comment about the absurdity of the Queen’s massive collection of... stuff. What in the galaxy could all that be used for, anyway? Better yet, where would they fit it all?

Shoving that thought aside, Thrice cleared his throat once more and inclined his head in a brief nod. ”Of course, your highness. This way.”

A map of the ship was pulled up on the HUD inside his helmet, just in case. He began at a leisurely pace assuming, with good reason, that the Queen would prefer not to rush.

“Captain's quarters are up a few tiers, but the ship's got plenty of lifts to get around." He led her toward one of the lifts to await its descent. "Floor above us is command. If something is to happen to the ship... that's where you want to be, highness. Escape pods line either side of the lift's exit."

"... Starboard viewing ports give a nice view of the stars, if you're ever interested."

Oh, he almost felt envious. He didn't have time to watch the stars during travel. At the very very least he could share the sight with someone else.

The lift doors slid aside and Thrice stepped inside. It was just spacious enough to fit a good squad or two if need be. "This way, ma'am."

Ophelia moved evenly beside Thrice, maintaining her poise and presence with ease. She nodded slowly as he talked, taking note of the escape pod's locations. She mentally reminded herself to keep out of the Command area unless she was summoned or otherwise needed to be there. The last thing she wanted was to go poking her nose where it would get in the way.

Then, something clicked in her head. Captain's quarters? Why would..... oh. She almost felt flushed, and even a little embarrassed. I really don't belong there.... but somehow I don't think it would be proper to refuse. Despite all the time she had spent as Royalty, Ophelia had still never gotten completely used to being treated like it.

She let her eyes follow the Commander's comment to the viewing ports, and for just a moment, she stared. Space was cold and rough, but it's element of harshness balanced with delicate beauty never ceased to amaze her. As they moved on, she glanced over at him and quickly away again. Was that a hint of the whimsical she heard in his tone? Blast it. Why did he have to wear that irksome helmet and be so..... hard to read?

Ophelia followed him into the lift and waited patiently while her servants and security sorted themselves out. Determined not to let the time on the lift pass in awkward silence, she glanced over at the Commander.

"I truly appreciate you taking the time to show us around; I'm sure you must be quite busy with everything going on." She hesitated, realizing the contradiction involved in saying that when she had opted for a tour that wasn't really fully necessary.

"I'm sure that if there are more pressing things you must attend to that someone else would be more than capable of showing us the rest of the ship.

Goodness does that make it sound like I don't think he's capable? Blast it...

"She's yet to earn any stripes, and she's no royal yacht, Highness, but she'll do." There was a hint of a smile in his tone. The shine of his visor, if tilted juts so, could be seen as one if inspected closely.

Although she didn't seem the sort to fawn over luxury, it seemed a wise thing to warn her of. Out of concern, perhaps, because he knew how disappointment felt, especially when it concerned comfort. Ah, the days when comfort returning home intact.

“Not… particularly,” he said. “My men know their duties. Me breathing down their necks won’t do them much good.” The lift shuddered as it began its ascent, and Thrice stood back, hands behind his back in a polite, respectful stance. "And I don't mind."

He was far from offended, however. Amused, if anything. Of the many things Thrice appreciated about military duties, it was the hierarchy. But that mattered little, because he didn’t mind taking the time off to show her around. She was well spoken and good company, and what commander wouldn’t appreciate that?

Thrice quickly brushed these thoughts aside as the lift came to a halt.

“Officers get a nice spot. Better than the barracks, anyway, so you’ll be just fine. I know you’ve got your own security, but I think it’d be safe if I assigned a few of mine just to be certain, if that’s fine with you.” The lift doors parted and Thrice stepped out to resume the ‘tour’. “Captain’s quarters are at the end of the hall. The Jedi will be close should you ever need anything.”

The hall was lined with numbered rooms and when he passed the second, he rapped his knuckles against its surface before continuing. “I’ll be right here if you ever need anything the Jedi can’t provide. Such as casual conversation.”

Ophelia allowed herself to relax ever so slightly, relieved that her worrying was all for nothing. Sometimes the Council liked to tell her that she was worrying too much, but she couldn't really believe that. She liked to think of it not so much as worry, but more due caution on all fronts.

Was that a hint of a smile that I saw just now? She wondered briefly. No, probably not. Just light and reflections. Stupid helmet.

Ophelia gave a nod of acknowledgement, briefly glancing to her own Captain trailing a few steps behind, and he returned the gesture. "If you think it would be wise then I have no objection" she said. In truth she rather liked the idea of having a few Clone guards. They intrigued her, and she was curious to learn as much about them as opportunity allowed.

Perhaps it was just idle curiosity, but his comment about the barracks somewhat interested her in seeing them. Hands-on military supervision had never been something her role as Queen entailed outside of the small Defence Force assigned to her security, and used to open spaces as she was, she wondered how so many men could be crammed into such a small area effectively.

She made another mental note when the Commander indicated where the Jedi would be, and now she was beginning to see why the Council wanted her here. With her own security, an entire division of Clones on board, plus six Jedi near at hand, she doubted there was a safer place to be in all of the Enlightenment. Additionally, there probably wasn't a more concentrated force of their troops to be found, either.

Perhaps I should acknowledge the wisdom of their decision to send me here after all...

She paused, noting the door Thrice indicated as his own. Excellent... I'm not sure why this is excellent, but it is. She couldn't resist a slight twinkle in her eye and quiet laugh at his last comment.

"Thank goodness. I'm sure that will be a blessing for us both. The Jedi are many things to be admired... but light conversationalists, they are not." She paused, then gestured to her attendants and their cargo. "I find that when my handmaidens are busy with, eh, that - " she gestured to the repulsorlift of paraphernalia, "I tend to be in their way more than anything else. If it's agreeable to you, we can begin the tour now while they settle things?"

"Well, I s'pose such a collection is standard for royalty? Not that..." The defensive set of his helmet suggest it was a question born of genuine curiosity, one he suddenly wasn't so sure would be received well. "I mean, I-- ah, never mind. Apologies ma'am. This way."

Zip it tight and get a move on, you kriffin' idiot.

Thrice pulled a smooth about-face and hurried down the hall. At least, in spite of his lack of tact, he'd have something of a conversational partner. If, that is, she forgave his misstep. Outside of her or the Jedi, his men were fine enough for a chat about standard clone issues, but anything beyond that and they were fairly useless.

He scoured his brain for a sloppy map of the habitation deck and all of its branches, including a long stretch of empty space along the port side Thrice knew to be for observation. One of his personal favorite spots on the ship was nearby-- predictably, it was a window to the stars. For a military ship, it had an unusual amount of weak spots.

“I mentioned them, didn’t I? The stars during hyperspace. I'm sure if your own guard isn't willing to take the risk, my men would gladly escort you."

Sure enough, the viewing port stretched across one end of a rather spacious looking room to the other, transparisteel tinted for the coming night cycle. Someday, it'd be filled with off-duty officers. For now, it was empty.

"Am I right in assuming you'll be dining in your own quarters?"

Following her guide, the Queen was glad to leave behind the fuss and bother of unpacking and settling in. Whenever it came time to travel, she was incredibly grateful for the talents of her handmaidens to smooth over the details that often frustrated her.

"No no, it's alright, don't apologize. You're actually quite correct..." Ophelia trailed off and closed her mouth. There was no need to bore the poor man with explanations of why such royal frivolity existed on Naboo. In some respects, it had its place, but generally speaking, it was all practically useless.

She completely forgot about it the moment her eyes landed on the viewing port. The sight before her was enough to take her breath away. Looking at something so elegant and so serene, it was easy to forget the havoc the Confederation wreaked on the galaxy. Her eyes never left the stars, and she slowly moved as close to the transparisteel as she dared.

"Yes, I believe you did mention that briefly." Ophelia couldn't vouch for whether or not her men would voluntarily take that risk, although she knew they would if she ordered them. "That is most kind of you," she said quickly, "I'm sure my guards will appreciate the reprieve if nothing else."

She slowly let her eyes wander over the room and back to Thrice. She responded with a noncommittal shrug. Her tone was light and teasing. "Yes, unless I'm invited to dine in someone else's quarters, that would be lovely. Unless of course, it's too much trouble to arrange?"

Her forgiving nature notwithstanding, Thrice murmured another apology anyway and focused intently on the stars. From the safety of his helmet, Thrice snuck a quick glance at the Queen to assure himself that she was not, in fact, glaring in disgust. Good.

A million other questions were doing rounds in his skull but he hadn’t the guts to ask. Funny thing, that-- he could rush into the heart of a battlefield without a thought, but could he ask a woman - a Queen, at that - a few questions? Not at all. These thoughts led him right back to the tour, which he was supposed to be leading.

“Most of the middle decks are munitions and maintenance. Between that and engineering we’ve got barracks. Mess hall next corridor across. Jedi’ll probably be congregating around there, and if you’re ever looking for a more… social… evening, feel free.”

Now he could remember the reasoning behind that question. It seemed ridiculous to think someone of her stature would condescend to spend any amount of time in the presence of a warship’s crew. Regardless, he couldn’t help but feel a bit hopeful.

Thrice cleared his throat. "Whenever a good mood strikes, the men get playful." With a short, breathy laugh, Thrice popped the seals on his helmet and pulled it off. "Entertaining. I'm sure they'd have no problems if you came down to watch."

Well, the majority wouldn't. Some of them were stingy about who watched them wind down. So long as Thrice kept them in check, it ought to be fine.

"That's about it. I, uh, don't really know a whole lot about the ship myself. If there's anything in particular you'd like to see..."

Thrice shrugged, and suddenly wished he'd received some proper socialization training in his earlier years.

"A more social evening." Ophelia predicted she might visit there more than once before the journey was over. Her previous experiences with interplanetary travel made her well aware of how tedious it could easily become. Being cooped up in a metal box hurtling through the galaxy, one tended to seek the company of others often.

"That is a most generous invitation, Commander. I'd love to come down sometime to watch." She smiled warmly. Ophelia looked forward to the opportunity to spend some leisure time with the Clones herself, and she was sure her own guards would find it interesting as well. And now, she was especially curious what a Clone in a playful mood would be like.

Seeing the Commander remove his helmet prompted an approving tilt of her head. It was nice to finally be able to see his face while they talked. She hurried to address his final question at the moment she realized her eyes might have lingered a beat too long to be polite.

"If it's no inconvenience to your men, I was actually interested to see the barracks." She laughed softly, hoping that her curiosity didn't come across as naive or foolish. "I'm curious how they arrange such things; this is a large ship, to be certain, but I can imagine that designing it to carry so many soldiers required an intriguing use of space in the design..."

Now that she'd said it out loud, it seemed rather ridiculous. It wasn't her business to meddle in these things.

"But of course, I understand if it's an imposition; I wouldn't want to cause any undue disruption..."

Thrice flashed a grin; the men would surely appreciate such consideration on her part. It wasn’t often someone of higher standing would turn an eye in their direction. It was flattering, almost. Thrice certainly would enjoy proving the existence of their more… accessible side.

But then, who wouldn't jump at the chance to prove they weren’t just soldiers, after all?

Thrice let the eye contact linger a bit longer before the sensation grew to be too much, and then he ducked his head.

“The men are…” he ran a hand through his short-cropped hair and frowned. “They get twitchy when a new face shows up in the barracks."

Would he, the good Commander that he was, want to expose the poor woman to such an awkward situation?

... Well, no, but she did ask.

"But I can arrange something, if you'd like. A few weeks in and we've already turned storage into recreation."

He tucked his helmet under one arm and wandered down the corridor. “A good handful of machine parts, as well. I can’t take you down there now because drills ought to begin shortly, but whenever you feel like leaving your quarters...” he shrugged. “I’ll be waiting.”

"There's not much else to the ship, I'll be honest. Unless you like ancient starship engines."

Ophelia gave a gentle nod, acknowledging the inconvenience of her request. She had no desire to be underfoot, and she appreciated the Commander's candor in refusing her. She'd met more than one person in similar positions who would acquiesce to whatever she asked. Sometimes she wondered if it was the essence of foppery that occasionally plagued Naboo, or just the overall fear of authority that the Confederation inspired.

She smiled a bit and shook her head ever so slightly.

"Unfortunately the mechanics of politics are more familiar to me than those of starships, but I appreciate the offer, Commander." Before they arrived she hoped to find the time to make her way down for a visit but kept the promise to herself just in case circumstances turned out to prevent it.

Ophelia paused and faced Thrice, bowing politely. "It seems an excellent craft, Commander; I thank you again for taking the time to show it to us. It is a great inspiration to see the forces of the Enlightenment in such capable hands."

Thrice deflated with a sigh. Of his many responsibilities, this was perhaps the most stressful. Perhaps an effect of being designed, quite literally, for combat-- he could handle a tumble in the dirt. To fall flat on his face smack dab in the middle of a social situation would end him. “Oh, good. I don’t know much more than you. I’d hate to shoulder that kind of humiliation.”

Silencing the drumming of his fingers against the visor of his helmet, Thrice clicked his heels together and snapped off a curt salute, with a kind smile there to add a bit of warmth to the gesture.

“Always happy to help, ma’am. When the time comes, sleep well. We all have a long war ahead of us.”
 
Adahla sat cross-legged on the ground as she watched her padawan start off pretty well. She could feel his concentration slowly start to slip away from him. She stayed where she was letting her arms rest loosely on her legs. It was almost as if she could sense what he was seeing, the sith. She watched as his strikes became more forceful. She could feel and see the anger behind each of his strikes and that made her slightly worried. The form that would fit best for him, for now, was basic form. She could feel the force shaking the air around her lifting anything not bolted down the ground. It surprised her when she was slightly lifted off of the ground. She let her force drift around him to comfort and ease his anger helping him focus his force into something else. Adahla stood up and walked to him placing her hand on his shoulder lightly, speaking softly as to bring him out gently as she pushed more of her force around him to calm him down. "You can come back to me now. I have seen enough, Denis."

@BlueFlameNikku
 
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Denis continued to sweat as his imaginary bout continued; going blow for blow with the red lightsaber wielding opponent. He didn't know how long he'd been in combat but he felt a calming presence some ways into his fight; as if a gentle breeze had arms and wrapped around his body. The vision of the Sith began to fade but continued to move and mock him for his weakness. The padawan shook his head denying the words, his eyes closed shut tight trying to block the cloaked figures presence. Denis didn't wish to hear such words; they reminded him of how powerless he was growing up, alone and abandoned.

The feeling of a gentle hand placed upon his shoulder followed by the soft words of his master lifted him out of the trance he'd created; his vision returning back to that of his living quarters as the black shades around him and the Sith faded away into nothing. While this happened the objects within the room that were floating also swiftly fell back down with a multitude of small clanks and bangs. The young man frowned at the tone Pha speaking to him with and the words she chose. None of it sounded promising to him.

He knew he'd failed at concentrating yet again adding to the countless times he had before only now being able to properly tap into the Force showed that he was more of a danger now than a simple worry like how he was sure the other Jedi Knights and Masters that knew him in the past saw him. The young man frustratingly tossed the metal pipe he was using as a lightsaber proxy to the floor with a clang as he came to a rolling stop by one of the four walls within the room. He did not pull away from his master's shoulder but did stand idle as he continued taking in heavy breaths trying to steady his heart beat after that prior excursion.

"So...am I still just as garbage with the Force as I was without it?" He said while forcing a smile; not knowing the full extent of what he'd just done.

Interactions: @Princess Poisoned Rose
 
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[fieldbox="Kuno Delrah, gold, solid"]

Kuno raised an eyebrow at his apprentice "Do you not trust my judgement?" He started. It made sense why she reacted the way she did, the Jedi Sentinel understood this, but he was still gonna make his defense. "that is no way to speak in front of our new guest" He joked. "Well look, She was originally in our holding cells, of course my doing. But! I was not the one who let her out, it was most likely Master Ishua who was notified that I had brought her on board after our little battle." He explained, looking back at Arvana and then Erisi. "She came on her own free will mind you, but anything she does against us I will take all the repercussions that come with it" He spoke, his tone was cold, but understanding, he knew the consequences that could come from this. He most certainly weighed that in before anything else.

"Now, that droid...Yes it was armed to the teeth, yellow and navy blue, all match that description. fortunately for us, I handled it, but if you have anymore information on what in the world that was, please enlighten me because that thing put up a hell of a fight, and used technology I've never seen before" He was curious to see what she would say, hid the technology, or tell him what she knows. Anything could help incase they have to deal with something like that again.

@Joan @Starlighter

[/fieldbox]

[fieldbox="Sikka, orange, solid"]
Sikka Rolled her eyes "Yes Dad" She mocked Rhett before gesturing for Bev to follow, she bet the crew onboard the Sojourn would not like the Nexu walking freely around, but Sikka had a habit to test everyone limit. Sik gave Bok a smirk "Of course I'm gonna be fine, I'm the most accurate sharpshooter In this team" She chuckled, boasting in her own Glory. Bev stood next to Sikka who gave the Nexu a good chin scratch before following the rest of the squad through the docking tube.

Sikka Didn't care, she was going to push boundaries, she was going to push buttons, and she was gonna push until someone pushed back just to see where she stood in this new ship. On top of that, there was the armory she could raid, jedi she could annoy, and ship parts she could scrap. This job had just turned into the biggest goldmine for the female merc.

The hanger was outstanding, she looked around with wide eyes, eager to begin havoc, at least when her crew isn't looking. "Oh boy this is gonna be a day to remember" She spoke out loud.

@Dipper @BlueFlameNikku

[/fieldbox]
 
[fieldbox=Ishua Ken & Erisi Fengris, green, solid, 8, book antiqua]
As the ship continued to lurch into hyperspace, the Jedi Master pulled out his comlink and contacted the clones who were keeping watch over the prisoner, giving them a succint series of instructions. "Move the Sith to observation platform one- I'll be waiting there to speak with her. Keep posted outside the door until I'm finished in there." After some confirmation from one of the soldiers, the Jedi, with his ever-faithful astromech droid close behind, entered the turbolift nearest the briefing room and took up three levels, making his way to the observation deck as he breathed heavily.

Erisi's eyes narrowed as the younger Jedi snapped at her, and her frown only deepened when the Jedi implied that Erisi shouldn't be here. The word "master" meant that this was Kuno's apprentice, so she could just be being protective, except...she seemed to be challenging her master's decision. That was definitely unusual, and she was surprised at Kuno's response at well. She wasn't used to masters being quite so...reasonable, frankly, although it was consistent with what she had gathered of the Jedi's character when she had spoken with him earlier.

He turned to her and asked about the droid, and she took a breath to steady herself before responding. "That was Nixus. He's a mercenary that the Sith employ, and trust me, you haven't seen the last of him. His consciousness will already have transferred to a new body by now...did he give any indication of what he was after?"

Before the Jedi could answer, one of the clones guarding her tapped her on the shoulder and told her that the ship's captain wanted to speak with her. She considered asking him if it could wait a few seconds, but if she was going to talk about Nixus, the captain was probably the best person to talk to, wasn't he? He would be able to take much more direct action than Kuno or Arvana would, and while Kuno at least would probably tell somebody who could do something, it would still be much faster to just tell the person in charge.

She gave the master and apprentice a parting nod and let the clones guide her to the observation deck. When they reached the door, the clone on her left gestured for her to go inside before he and his partner went to either side of the door after removing the neural blocker that they had used to inhibit her Force abilities. She took a step toward the door, but paused as she felt the movement of the Force inside. There was a Force user inside, but the way the Force moved around him...she had never felt anything quite like it. It was enough to almost forcibly stop her in her tracks.

The captain, I assume...He doesn't feel anything like the other Jedi. What is this?

One of the clones glanced at her, and she forced herself forward, through the sliding door and into the observation deck. Inside was the Jedi she had sensed, along with a red astromech droid. She studied him for a moment, still baffled by the way the Force felt around him, before giving up and asking, "Who are you, and why did you bring me here?"

The words came out harsher than she meant them to, but she couldn't take them back, so she didn't concern herself about them much. Instead, she stood where she was, still near the door, waiting for an answer.

Ishua soon turned around, waving his his hand to close the doors using the Force as he then offered her a polite smile, speaking to her.

"My name is Ishua Ken, a Jedi Master and General- I was one of the commanders on Naboo's surface. My friend here is R4-X2105. I will admit, I was a tad surprised when I was told that Kuno had brought a convert to the Jedi. But first, tell me- what is your name?"

The Jedi Master then raised his hand, offering a sign of friendship and acceptance to the Sith woman. He had always found that genuine kindness and emotion had been the way to win over converts from the Sith- instead of whipped into a frenzy they could become calm and embrace their true self. While the masters of the Ancient Order may have thought this too far with the previous Jedi Code, Ishua saw the importance that the Jedi needed to evolve and retain the same moral principles that made them akin to a guide for the galaxy, very well summed up in Grandmaster Skywalker's new Jedi Code. But for now, he laced every word with honesty, motioning to R4 to whirr off into a corner, which he did for a moment to activate a terminal that caused a small canister to open up in one of the observation deck's tables.

Erisi glanced behind her briefly as the doors closed, but her attention was quickly drawn back to the Jedi. He introduced himself with a smile and a hand raised in greeting, almost like an equal. This almost surprised her more than the way the Force felt around him. After a moment of hesitation, she replied, this time making sure to keep the harsh note out of her voice.

"Erisi Fengris." She kept a wary eye on the droid and the canister that had just opened up. She almost asked what that was for, but the habits she had developed under Sith masters kept her mouth shut for now. Instead, she turned to studying the Force around Ishua. For a moment, she merely observed, but then she cautiously prodded it with her mind, trying to figure out why it was so...different.

As she prodded, she would find his mind was very well-guard, almost to the point that the Jedi Master could jump into her mind as Ishua gently pushed her out of him mind, moving his hand toward the canister as her old lightsaber landed in the Jedi's hand. He ignited it, flicking his wrist as he studied the Sith lightsaber as its red blades hummed before looking at the Black Knight and speaking slowly.

"So this truly is the lightsaber of a Black Knight- almost mass-produced, with just enough differences to give the illusion of individualism. This is the lightsaber of a Sith... but is is not yours. Not anymore."

The Jedi Master then deactivated the lightsaber, dropping it and closing his eyes as he raised it with the Force, slowly deconstructing it as the hilt separated into three parts, pulling a dark, glowing red crystal from the lightsaber as the mechanical pieces slowly fell to the ground. He then opened his, speaking softly as he looked back at the former Sith, pushing it slightly towards. As he did so his expression, darkened and became far more serious, illustrating the dire truth of what he was about to say.

"This synthetic crystal was made to be a conduit of the Dark Side. It contains the hate and malice your master tried to impart onto you. Reach out with your mind, with the Force- destroy it. Then you can begin anew."

The Jedi pushed her out with ease, leaving Erisi a tiny bit disoriented, but not really surprised. He had said he was a Master, after all, and what little she knew of Jedi heirarchy told her that that title was not given lightly. Still, it was a little bit of a surprise after being taught almost incessantly that the Jedi and the Light Side were weak compared to the Dark Side.

She didn't think about that for long, however, as the Jedi took her lightsaber out of the canister. She watched as he ignited the lightsaber and examined it, and when he spoke, she gave a slight nod. What he said made sense--the Sith had never been much of ones for individualism, and mass-production would be seen as more efficient and would equip more soldiers quickly. However, she didn't expect what he did next.

She stared at the crystal, her eyes widening a bit. She could hear what he was saying, she could understand, to a point, but...something was stopping her. After a moment of contemplation, however, it became obvious. I break that crystal, and I lose one of my last connections to the Sith. I came here to see what was so different about the Jedi, not cut all ties with the people who raised me.

Well, then, what have you learned? Is it worth it?


Something nudged her, bringing the question into her mind. The Force, perhaps?
After another moment of consideration, she reached out cautiously. Her mind touched the crystal, and she could feel the raw hatred filling it. That was something she had never understood about the Sith--why did they focus so much on passion and anger when a calm mind would do the job much better?

She was getting distracted. Focus.

With a deep breath, she reached out to the crystal again, this time focused on the source of the anger instead of how it felt. That was easy enough to find, and after that, it was a simple matter to remove it entirely.

The Jedi Master watched as the red coloring began to fluctuate within the crystal, small cracks beginning to form until it shattered, feeling as if a weight had vanished as its flakes fell to the floor. Ishua then put his hands into the sleeves in that age-old Jedi stance, beginning to speak again afterwards.

"You have taken your first step towards healing and separating from the Dark Side. The journey will be long and it will not be easy- but by that destroying the crystal you have broken its hold over you- a Sith crystal amplifies one's emotions, regardless of whethee they strengthen or weaken you. A crystal synthesized by a Jedi does not bear this trait as the sythetic crystal reflects the state of its master when it is created. But for now, clear your mind, focus on the smallest of things until you can feel the echoes of the Force. Tell me, do you hear it? The calling of the raw, cosmic Force?"

The cosmic Force... Her eyes slid shut, and she breathed in deeply, focusing on doing as Ishua said and purging everything else from her mind. All of her nagging fears and doubts, the amazement at how easily she had broken the crystal, the curiosity about the strangeness surrounding the Jedi Master...everything. It wasn't simple in the slightest, and if she hadn't destroyed the crystal, she probably never would have managed it.

But once it was done...she felt it. It was strange and awe-inspiring and nothing like anything she had felt before. It was vastly different from the Dark Side, less different from the Light, though it had echoes of both of them. It was...it was what surrounded Ishua.

Her eyes opened, wide and round, and she looked at him, searching for an explanation, her voice soft and awed as she spoke.
"What is this?"

The Jedi Master chuckled, meeting her gaze as he spoke.

"This is the power of the ancients- a means that doesn't rely on emotion or forced serinity to channel. This is the power of the Jedi Revan and Qui-Gon Jinn, and even the Dark Lord Sidious. It is the great unifying gestalt of the universe. It is how the Force ghosts would appear to their fallen pupils and what allows holocrons to be possible. It is path many attempt to follow, but usually only Jedi Consulars succeed due to their vast skill in meditation and understanding of the Force. This is far more difficult if one is not born with a natural affinity for it like the Jedi Revan and his apprentice Meera Sutrik. Before the time of the Empire, the teachings of and intristuctions for harnessing the Cosmic Force were lost or hidden until they were rediscovered by Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and taught in part to his pupil, the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi as well as the Grand Master Yoda.

"It is a difficult path, but I believe you to be strong enough to pursue it."

Erisi listened carefully, still somewhat awed by what she had felt. While not all the names he mentioned were immediately familiar to her, she did know enough of her history to understand what he was saying. Quite frankly, it was a little bit overwhelming. Just earlier that day, she had been treated like a prisoner...now, she was being offered training in an ancient and powerful way of wielding the Force. It was nothing like what she knew, and she found herself swept up in it, eager to learn.

She inclined her head as he finished speaking. "If you believe so, so be it." After a brief pause, she added, "What next, Master?" She only realized what she had called him after she had already spoken, and even though it made her pause, she didn't regret it. After all, the Jedi was rather quickly becoming her new master, wasn't he?

Before the Jedi Master could respond, the ship suddenly halted after suddently exiting hyperspace and listed to the side, a massive alarm beginning to blare throughout the ship as the automated siren began to echo throughout the ship.

"Warning, warning! Explosion and hull breach in sector 14-B. Main engines, secondary engine controls, and lift-force thrusters are now offline. Sector 14-B, 14-C, and 13-F are now in automatic, total lockdown. Air pressure stabilized. Approximate time to crash-landing into the surface of the planet Felucia: thirty standard minutes."

Alarmed, Ishua opened the doors, quickly barking instructions to the clones to take the convert to a LAAT/i in the hanger bay to prepare to abandon ship as the whirring astromech droid beeped and booped in panic as he followed the Jedi to the bridge. As soon as he arrived, he kept calling out, requesting information from the various members of the bridge crew.

"How did we arrive at Felucia so early?! Even with all of the technology in this ship, there's no way we could have arrived in an hour and a half."

"Sir, it appears that whatever caused the explosion also served to overpower our machinery, pushing it to the extremities- this could have very well been meant to kill us! The fact that it didn't is a miracle."

"Do we have anything? Repulsors, tractor functionality, anything?"

"Sir, we do have our replusors and some directional thrusters."

"What is out current trajectory?"

"We're currently inbound for the jungles in the planet's northern hemisphere. Given our current capabilities, we could redirect the ship into the ocean, but not without causing some harm to the wildlife, General."

"Can the ship do this automatically?"

"Yes, sir."

"Give the order for all ships to scramble and evacuate to the ruins of the Jedi Temple near the global capital- send a distress message to our allies there explaining the situation."

Then, in a rush for time, the order to evacuate was sent throughout the ship as the Jedi Master ran for his custom A-Wing fighter, hopping in the pilot's seat as R4 hovered himself into position and locked himself into the ship, powering it on and turning on the navigation systems. Seeing one of the clones without a transport, the Jedi helped him into the passenger seat, the Jedi being on of the last to exit the ship as the remainder had already scrambled while the frigate began to descend according to its autopilot. Soon enough, the Jedi Master would make his way down to the large, empty clearing that the Enlightenment were using as a starport while some of the clones and Enlightenment soldiers were already hard at work turning the ruins of the Jedi Temple into a livable base.
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Adahla gave a small laugh at his choice of words. "You are far from garbage, Denis. You managed to lift me off the floor with the force. That is more than promising in my eyes." She smiled dropping her hand and unhooking her double lightsabers and tossed him one. "Now, we practice together. Don't let anger and wrath cloud your judgment. You felt me pull you out of your trance. Focus on that feeling." Her words floated around the room as she flicked her saber on. "Now, come at me."

It felt like a few hours later as she was parrying his attacks and managed to knock him to the ground a third time. "Remember to push back. You can't always let me have the upper hand in these situations." She smiled and offered him her hand when she felt the ship move in an unexpected way and it nearly threw her off balance. "What on earth was that?" She looked at Denis just as the sirens started to blare throughout the ship, "Oh what did they do to this ship? We need to head down to the ship docks now Denis." She said sharply calling her other saber back to her and clipped them to her belt before running to her room collecting her bag that she carried with her always and never left anywhere without her bag. She headed down the ships docking and hopped into one of the carriers and hoped Denis would join her on there soon.

@BlueFlameNikku
 
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Denis Celwick

The padawan blinked in surprise at Adahla's words; mainly the part about how he had apparently lifted her with the Force during his little exercise. For the moment he was speechless as he still struggled with grasping what his blooming gift was capable of. With a reflexive motion he caught the saber his master had tossed to him in his right hand. The designs on the hilt were quite a bit more decorative than most of the bare saber hilts he was used to seeing. Even more so against the norm the blade was a bright purple which he witnessed as Adahla ignited the saber's twin in her own hand.

His master's next words made him nervous. Denis hadn't sparred with another Jedi since his initial training days and those were only other initiates and such sessions were few and far between; never mind a master. Denis heeded Master Pha's words, slowed his breathing and closed his eyes. For the next few seconds he focused on that feeling; a soft breeze enveloping him like a loving embrace. His anger, his wrath, his frustration; he let them all wash out of him slowly like a billowing brook. Deep down he knew he'd never be able to rid himself of his anger...but that didn't mean he had to let it control him. When he was ready to answer his master's call to begin he opened his eyes and ignited the purple lightsaber; and the sparring began.

Denis knew he was going to get his rear end handed to him so he had prepared himself before hand. He wasn't suppose to try and win, he was suppose to learn and analyze everything his master was doing. How she moved, her block, her parries, his own mistakes and short comings. No piece of information was too insignificant and was stored away as if each scrap of info was thrown into a vault. After being knocked onto his back for the third time Denis audibly breathed out through his nose. "No offense Master Pha, but its kinda hard to just simply not let a master have the upper hand." Before Denis could reach up to accept the offered hand the ship shook beneath him. He managed to look about his room just as the sirens began to go off and he sprung to his feet. "I was just getting use to the place too." He joked before replying as he almost felt the sharpness in her voice. "Of course Master Pha. I'll meet up with you down there."

Denis quickly scooped up his own backpack of essentials but as he reached for his blaster pistol on the counter in his room, he hesitated. The Force was at his disposal now and he had a master to guide him now. With his loner saber now just a bunch of parts his blaster pistol was the last physical object that reminded him of his overly long time as an initiate as well as all those nights when he slept with a blaster pistol in his hand growing up in the slums. Those memories would only lead him to the dark side and he knew that.

Leave it...that tool has brought you this far in life but will only serve as a crutch moving forwards...focus on the tools of the Jedi and you will realize your true potential.

Without another second wasted Denis was sprinting down the halls towards the hanger and joined up with Adahla aboard the same transport carrier.

@Princess Poisoned Rose
 
There was very little a clone could truly call his own outside of his armor. Instead, they'd often gravitate toward their shuttles or fighters to slather them in legion colors or artwork unique enough to mark it as their own. As such, clones were also extraordinarily testy when it came to the well being of these ships, so when an explosion rocked the Sojourn and nearly crumpled the wing of one of their precious LAAT/is, the troopers were understandably furious.

An organized sort of chaos broke out in the hangar. Pilots shouted back and forth as they checked their fighters, running careful hands along bodies and wings and carefully checking the paint of their stylized doodles. Storm was among them, furiously hammering out the dent in his shuttle's wing. Auto provided his fellow pilot aid while Match reconnected severed lines in the LAAT/i's engine.

Thrice stood on the deck to oversee his men. Beside him, Strafe counted each ship in the hangar.

"Any word from Kip?" Thrice asked, as if to distract the Major from his growing distress.

Strafe sighed. "He's still conferring with the bridge officers to figure out what went wrong."

"And what do you think, Major?"

"I think..." Strafe paused, running a hand over his visor. "Commander, I think it was an attack, but-- but I can't be sure. It feels like one."

Thrice nodded slowly, but said nothing. It was dangerous to assume anything so early, yet if the Major was right... They had a problem on their hands. Until the General gave them orders, though, he and his troops would make sure their only methods of escape were in good condition.

The evacuation order couldn't come sooner. Thrice wasted no time in reiterating the order to the troopers, rounding them up, organizing squads, and assigning said squads to various shuttles. The Commander then gripped Strafe's shoulder and turned him around so the Major faced him.

"Get our Commandos up to the Officer's deck and make sure the Queen and her escort get out safely. You're flying with me and Storm."

Strafe, clearly pleased to have a task, saluted and sprinted toward the lifts.

That out of the way, Thrice return to the very exhausting duty of making sure his pilots took turns leaving the hangar. What a day.
 
"Any mess that beast makes is yours, you hear?!"

Oh sure, he loved the kid dearly. That didn't mean he wouldn't lock her up in a closet somewhere and make her read the entirety of his logbook. Out loud.

If she started influencing Bok, he'd make her read it twice.

The ship thrummed softly under his boots. Old starship engines sometimes coughed as they worked, but this particular vessel was as silent as a warship could be, and Rhett couldn't help but be impressed. The troop transports were also fairly ancient, yet the clones fretted over them as if they were fresh off the production line. Boasting fresh coats of paint, too, which was mildly surprising to Rhett. What, he wondered, would be the benefit of coloring a shuttle intended for war?

Weird clones.

Rhett couldn't say for sure who was in charge, as all the Jedi looked the same to him. A senior Jedi, maybe-- Grandmaster, if he recalled. Jedi he couldn't trust - no matter how many times the Mand'alor assured their alliance - but he could trust credits, and credits they had. With half the payment already transferred, Rhett was feeling rather enthusiastic about this job.

Or, he was enthusiastic, until that engine cough he'd thought about rumble throughout the old ship and sent it sputtering. He shouted out a string of curses.

"Hells. Damned Jedi can't even fly a ship right--"

He thumbed his comm. and turned to the rest of the mercs. "There goes vacation. Who wants to find a shuttle?"
 
[fieldbox="Nixus, gray, solid"]
img_4021-jpg.133936

///......reboot initiated......///

Nixus was sitting in a pilot seat of Tri-wing supplied by the Confederation. The consciousness being transferred to another body was always a bit of a bizarre experience for machine, at first it took some getting used to, re-learning the limbs, programs, and so forth. But now, he was capable of transferring without being hindered by the experience. As long as the body was accessible.

"It's done..." the machine spoke aloud. "well, if my predictions are wrong, the ship should be overloaded, that's if the device you supplied me with did its job correctly" there was a long pause before the droid nodded. "Understood, I'll be heading over soon, I expect to see the credits transferred by the time I get to this new job location"

The droid began to engage the ships hyper drive and pulled the throttle stick forward before jumping.



[/fieldbox]


[fieldbox="Sikka, orange, solid"]
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"you're joking?" She said with the roll of her eyes I didn't even get to explore the ship what the hell.

Bev reacted by getting down low and growling at everything that moved, the ship started to shake in different directions, only further upsetting the beast. Sikka placed a hand on the creatures getting it to calm down. "These Jedi sure know how to keep this old tech in working condition huh?" The death watcher followed the group to the nearest ship and watched as everyone loaded on. Just as she was running up the ramp of the shuttle ship she felt something come over her, almost as if something was trying to push her to the left. She sidestepped and from behind her landed a rather heavy crate, came off of the shelving under the opening of the entrance. she turned around as her pet ran into the ship, she replied by following the Nexu onto the ship getting a seat for herself with Bev at her feet.
[/fieldbox]

[fieldbox="Kuno Delrah, gold, solid"]

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"we need to move now Ris" Kuno reacted almost instantly when the ship jerked. He could tell exactly what had happened just from the sound of the ship, the engines overloaded, meaning they had to of been tampered with, which means the droid had something to do with it. But the jedi Sentinel had no time to beat himself up, he had to get him and his apprentice to safety, they're no use to the war if they're dead.

Soon kuno found himself in the ships hanger making sure the clones and troops got to the shuttles safely, his eyes fell upon the Interceptor he had ordered to be heavily modified by his hand designed blueprints, his eyes widened and his mouth was a gape "Oh my....she is beautiful! Now that's something to drink to!" He then turned to Ris . "Arvana, start up the interceptor of ours while I help, its time to see if our new baby is what I designed to be. "

within what felt like seconds, Kuno found himself at the pilot seat of his ship, Arvana at his side in the co-pilot seat. He soon began to flip switches and the engines started to hum on "Listen to this baby Purrrrrr! God damn this is exciting, Ris flip that green switch above your head, were about to give this thing a hasty test drive" Once his Apprentice did what he had asked, the ship slowly lifted off the metal floor and Kuno threw the throttle forward and the ship darted out of the Star Destroyer "Hellllll yesssssss, Arvana am I good at what I do or what" He said getting overly giddy at his own creation. Kuno saw the look his apprentice was giving him and he sighed "Okay yeah, this isn't really the time to boast, lets get to the drop zone." And with that the ship made itself through the atmosphere and to a landing near the temple that Ishua had ordered them to meet up at. Once they got out of the ship Kuno was almost stunned to see how quickly the clones were at work getting the temple usable.

[/fieldbox]

@Starlighter @Dipper @AceSorcerer
 
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[fieldbox="Arvana Tarron, darkred, solid"]“You don’t say” Arvana murmured to herself as she steadied herself from the shock of the explosion and then hurried after her Master. She would have preferred to take stock of their current position and make sure that no one was trapped anywhere on the ship where they couldn’t get to the hangar, but the howling sirens and blazing rotating alarm lights combined with the ship personnel racing past them made it clear that full evacuation was underway. If anyone was trapped and needed assistance, they would know.

In the hangar, organized chaos was fully underway. True to form, Kuno launched straight into the thick of it. She moved to follow, but he stopped her. "Arvana, start up the interceptor of ours while I help, its time to see if our new baby is what I designed her to be. " Pursing her lips, Arvana nodded and started towards the Interceptor. “Yes, Master; I’ll have it up and running before you get there.”

Maneuvering around Clones and machinery, Arvana navigated her way over to the Interceptor. Although now was not the time to stop and gawk, she was impressed by the amount and quality of work that had been done on it since Kuno had issued his request. It would be a shame for the Clone’s hard work and her Master’s vision to be dashed to pieces so soon. There will be hell to pay if this beauty gets so much as a scratch on her before I get to learn how to fly.

Arvana climbed up into the cockpit and strapped herself into the co-pilot’s chair. She’d never seen the inside of an Interceptor before, but she’d been on enough of a variety of different ships with Kuno that figuring out which buttons to push and what switches to flip wasn’t terribly difficult. The displays came to life and the engine hummed, vibrating the walls and the floor.

A few minutes later, Kuno joined her. His giddy schoolboy attitude was amusing and not unexpected, but for the time being, they needed to focus on getting safely from the ship to the planet surface without getting blown to bits. She shot him a raised brow look, silently reminding him to stay on target. Thankfully, it worked.

~​

On the planet surface, Arvana hesitated getting out of the cockpit. She let her hand linger on the control panel. If Kuno didn’t get around to that flying lesson he’d promised soon, she was taking his baby for a joyride.

She slipped out of her seat and hopped to the ground, scanning the area with her eyes and reaching out with her sense of the Force. Aside from the hustle and disruption of ships landing and Clones scurrying to transform the nearby temple into a temporary base, the jungle surrounding them felt quiet and peaceful. There were strains of tension and activity near her, but it was clear enough to see why. Giving a brief glance up at her Master, Arvana suggested,

“If you’d like to meet up with Master Ken, I can stay here to meet the rest of the ships.”
[/fieldbox]

@~\The Talentless/~
 
[fieldbox=Ishua Ken, green, solid, 8, book antiqua]
The next thing the Jedi knew, the ship began to malfunction- so much for a prototype starfighter.

After crashing into part of the planet's forest, the Jedi Master started cough, forcing the canopy to eject as the droid removed itself and the clone hopped out.

"So much for experimental tech... I blame you, Rusty."

The droid began beeping in random tones and frequencies, with the Jedi Master slapping the dome before rubbing his eyes.

"You're going to be the death of me! ...Clone, what's your name?"\

The clone looked a while, his armor almost entirely white.

"I'm Omega-711374, a squad designated marksman."

True to form, the clone's helmet had a macro-scope attachment. The Jedi drew the hood of his cloak, pulling out his comlink as he hit a few buttons, finding his way to the Jedi temple after attuning it to the radio frequency that was utilized by the ships that had already landed at the ruins. After finding their way, the trio began travelling, but not before the Force drew him to the side and, found the oddest of all things as he used the Force, pulling something out of the marsh that did not quite expect- a lightsaber. When it touched his hands, images ran though his hands, droids and blaster fire and the ancient Jedi, the Jedi Master dropping the lightsaber as a closer inspection revealed much. The remnants of clone armor, of droid soldiers, of tanks- they all poked out of the ground. This had been a battleground of the final days of the Republic.

This had been one of the sites of Order 66.

Picking up the lightsaber once more and asking to borrow the clone's canteen, he used a little bit of the water to clean the lightsaber, activating it as a blue blade emerged. The Jedi used it for a few moments, eventually deactivating it as the astromech activated some old droid pods, leading to a conflict that earned the clone the nickname of "Spark."

In a few hours, not long before dusk, the Jedi Master finally appeared at the camp, the Jedi Master and the clone reporting in to the clone commander, the Jedi asking the commander to call the other Jedi and officers for a briefing while the astromech droid beeped and began shuffling in place.

ro-lightaber+Aayla+Secura7.jpg

[/fieldbox]
 
SWE11-Nikto.png
"BOK TOUCHED NOTHING!" The large man shouted in a more or less startled fashion as the sirens began to blare and the ship rocked; going so far as to frantically whip his head side to side trying to make sense of the moment. After a second or two went by however the big oaf realized he actually hadn't done anything wrong and quieted down...that is until the realization of the ship basically being in the process imminent destruction hit his brain. Bok quickly followed right behind Sikka and Bev with long bounding strides. "Sik! Wait for Bok!" He'd say as he caught up and joined her on the same shuttle taking a spot by the hatch doors, making sure everyone else made it as well; even offering a helping hand to pull anyone inside if they needed it.

Denis
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The shuttle ride down to the planet's surface was more enlightening that Denis would have ever expected it to be. He hadn't been in close proximity like this to any of the clone troopers, which is why the padawan was caught off guard when one of the clones next to him asked if himself or commander Pha were injured at all. Then he remembered that Jedi knights and upwards were of course high ranks within the Enlightenment.

Denis regained his composure and responded to the clone. "No, we are both uninjured, thank you." He'd pause for a moment as the clone responded with a..."Glad to hear it, sir." One day soon Denis knew he may have to assist in commanding some of these soldiers but giving out orders was practically a foreign concept to him. He'd mentally sigh in his thoughts. Just another challenge I suppose... The padawan placed his hands behind his back and stood up straight; a pose he'd seen plenty of higher ups in the enlightenment do and addressed the same clone. "What's your name trooper?"

The clone stood at attention with his blaster rifle. "Nines, squad sergeant, sir."

"It is good to meet you, Nines." Denis looked to another clone at Nines' side. "Your name?"

"Demo, Sir. Demolitions expert."

Denis continued to ask the names of every clone in presumably Nines' s squad which consisted of eight other troopers in total not including Nines and Demo; Quicks, Brick, Oddey, Dytto, Gratt, Varr, Bite and Blitz. They weren't just some faceless soldiers behind helmets. They live and breath within the same existence as everyone else. He stood there silently, almost frustrated as he wanted to say something but was a lost for words.

"I...I ask that..." He stuttered and stopped before starting again. "...when the time comes..."

All of the clones turned and looked at each other with knowing smirks beneath their helmets as Nines' spoke up finishing Denis' sentence.
"...you'll have our backs, isn't that right sir?"

Denis' words were caught in his throat for a moment before turning up a smile. He could certainly learn a lot from these troopers in due time as well.
"I will, and I hope you all will do the same for me."

"Sir, yes sir!" The ten troopers replied in unison just as the shuttle came in for a landing within the clearing and the off ramp came down as personal alike swiftly exiting. The padawan took in the controlled chaos of the current events.

Some ways across the clearing he could see Arvana surveying everything as well. Happy to see his fellow Jedi in training none the worse for ware Denis went on to help with the unpacking of supplies until he was called into the meeting with the other higher ups.
 
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Adahla sat silently in the carrier down the planet but observed those around her. She listened to those around her speak. She knew Nines and had spoken with him a few days ago when back at the base where they discovered the clones in the bunker, of course, Ishua didn't wait for her and blew the door open when she could have easily disabled it and gotten inside. She shook her thoughts from her head and turned back the others.

"As long as we work together we shall be fine." Adahla's voice broke the silence that had developed temporarily over the group. She stood up setting her bag down. Her eyes glanced around the shuttle. "It is a bit strange for me seeing the clones in present day when you all are consider very much to be Myth. I know though there is more to all of you than meets your helmet." She smiled at them and she could feel them breaking through the atmosphere, "Well boys, best get ready to land." She felt the pilot easing them down into the clearing. She reached up and held onto a rail while she felt the shuttle give a groan and shudder upon landing.

The door made a 'kswshhhhhhh' sound upon opening up. She waited until the others exited the ship before she grabbed her bag and walked down the ramp. Her eyes looked over the area, she noted that Ishua was not in the clearing, however, that was usual for him. She did spot one of the other padawans across the clearing. She dropped her bag next to the ramp and helped the troopers gather the rest of the supplies out of the shuttles and put them together. She looked at one of the troopers that was with her group, "Nines, can you get one of your boys to do inventory so we know just what all we have?"

"Yes, Commander. Quicks! Get over here on the double." The other trooper would hurry over and begin inspecting what inventory was brought with them on the shuttle. "We've got this handled Commander Pha. Orders have already been sent out to mark down and organize what's been saved to be brought within the temple." With that the rest of the squad went about transporting the various goods to and from the temple while Nines and Quicks kept inventory.

Shortly after this Denis turned back around and returned to Adahla's side. "You think Master Ishua knows what happened to the ship?"

Adahla rubbed the back of her neck and gave a light groan, this was starting to be stressful for the Jedi. She took a calming breath while she looked over at Denis. He mentioned the ship and she shook her head, "Probably something the droid and I missed on our initial scans. Although we did warn him about the ships core being slightly unstable." She looked back towards the temple. She had been here of course when she was younger and a little naiver. She looked back at Denis and gave him a smile. "Well I think we should maybe make our way to the temple."

The padawan nodded in response. "Yeah, we should get going. I'm sure Master Ishua will have something to say about all this and what to do next." With that the two head over to the temple; only for them to be called back to the camp for the urgent meeting.
 
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Idyllic was probably an appropriate term for the planet they found themselves on. Quiet, peaceful. Eerily so. It made Rhett tighten his grip on his rifle until bruises formed on his palms.

Rhett grumbled within the confines of his helmet as he stepped off the shuttle. He looked up to find other shuttles swarm the sky and join theirs in the clearing. Not far ahead, clones were already inspecting a crumbling ruin. Rhett glanced over his shoulder at the rest of his crew and beckoned them before making his way toward the bulk of the Enlightenment's forces, and wondered which of these identical Jedi was in charge.

The temple loomed overhead, oppressive in in its age. Ancient Jedi glyphs decorated the walls. Rhett trailed a gloved finger along the crumbling wall and then pulled it back to view the dust, rubbing it between his fingertips. In that moment, he was thankful for his helmet's filter, for he'd surely be coughing up a storm otherwise. He wiped the dust away on his thigh and continued on.

He glanced over one shoulder at his crew. "Anyone sees an important looking Jedi, let me know. I have words for him."

Words regarding where they ought to be going and who, ultimately, they would be reporting to. And who would be paying their second half when this was all over. That was, of course, the most important question he had.
 
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[fieldbox="Kana Acula — Jedi Guardian, #396, solid, 10, Titillium Web"]
When Kana awoke in Ishua's bed, she forgot what had happened for several moments. Then, of course, she remembered. Mother of Kwath! What have I done? Getting dressed quickly, she grabbed her lightsabers and practically ran towards the command center, deciding to forget that she had told Ishua that she loved him. Yes, she would forget, and he would forget. That's always how it worked. Cursing repeatedly, she barely made it on time for the holo-meeting with Mandalore and other important Enlightenment figures. She remained silent, of course. As soon as the meeting was over, she was gone, finding herself back in the training room with two lightsabers in hand.

She was more embarrassed than angry. Kana fell into the motions of exercise rather quickly, adapting herself to the feel of wielding two lightsabers. Although it was hardly typical for an apprentice to actually use her master's lightsaber, she knew that her master had always wanted her to learn to dual-wield. Having always had an affinity for the more physical aspects of the Force, Kana rather easily picked up on the fighting form, although it was perhaps less than perfect.

She was still practicing when the whole ship suddenly tipped, forcing her off-balance. Disengaging her sabers, Kana listened carefully to the chatter on the coms before alarms finally blared.
The ship was going to crash? How the hell did that happen? She'd missed the excursion with Nixus, unfortunately. The poor Jedi seemed to be terribly behind on everything at the moment,
so muddled were her thoughts. Without hesitation, she ran for ships, hitching a ride on one of the shuttles packed with a dozen clone troopers. When they finally lifted off, she hung onto one of the hand railings for dear life, the combination of the cramped space and the hysteria of the situation creating a bit of a nightmare for everyone.

The shuttle landed hard amongst several others, having taken a bit of damage during the evacuation. They made it, and they were alive. But as she watched their cruiser drift crash into the ocean, she somehow knew that the Sith were to blame. Helping a few injured clones, Kana was glad to see Arvana and Kuno alive and well and briefly worried that Ishua was nowhere to be found. For whatever reason, she knew he was fine; he would turn up eventually.

And he did, calling for a meeting of all the Jedi and the officers. She was one of the first there, watching him carefully for any signs of injury. Only after she was certain that he was alive and well did Kana finally relax. Well, as much as one could relax in the given situation.
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[fieldbox="Shalia Toyle — Mercenary, #008080, solid, 10, Abel"]
There were only two things that mattered to Shalia Toyle in an evacuation: her data pad and her own wellbeing. Although she admitted that there would be some grief felt if the others died along the way, she was nothing if not self-centered. Nonetheless, Rhett and his crew ended up being her ticket off the Jedi's rust bucket that was doomed to crash. So, after ensuring that she hadn't left behind her precious data pad, she got the hell out of there along with the rest of the mercs.

And now she was pissed. The cruiser had been an information treasure trove, and its security systems were only barely updated! With more time, she could have easily hacked her way into their main database and mined all that beautiful gold on the Enlightenment, the Jedi, and the clones. Unfortunately, it was too little and too late. And now the cruiser was flaming into the sky and sinking beneath the ocean of Felucia. Damn!

However, Shalia kept her thoughts on the matter to herself. She wasn't inclined to make her intentions known to just anyone, even the mercenary crew. Although she would never work for the Sith, she knew plenty of people who would kill for just a few tidbits of the information that she was privy to. And she had been so close to unearthing so much more! Cursing the universe,
she followed Rhett towards the Jedi Temple, unusually quiet and deep within her own thoughts.
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Strafe felt his unease spike when the ship trembled. Small explosions chained along the hull as he and a handful of troopers raced down the hall to the Queen’s chambers. Sure enough, guards in Naboo colors had been stationed there, and were now chattering amongst themselves. What, they couldn’t feel the ship shaking? Strafe rolled his eyes and gestured for his companions to take up positions by his side.

“Highness?” Strafe stood to attention. “I’d request access," he gave the guards little more than a passing glance, "but we don’t have time.”

One of the troopers shifted awkwardly and nudged Strafe's shoulder. "Why'd the Commander send us? She's got men already."

"C'mon, Captain! You wanna listen to screaming TIEs when you could be escorting royalty?"

The captain shrugged. "Anything's better than escort."

"Shut it."

Strafe conferred quietly with the guard stationed to the right of the door and made his request once more, with the Commander's backing. He just hoped this Queen was as kind as Thrice had claimed her to be.

Ophelia’s expression remained as neutral and passive as ever under the heavy mask she wore, but in her mind, she was frowning. They’d hardly returned to her quarters from the tour when the ship had begun sporadically jolting and rattling (hardly a comfortable environment to be in when traveling through space), and now there were Clones knocking at the door.

Stepping past the guards and brushing back her handmaidens, she faced the Captain directly. Of their own accord, her eyes wandered to glance behind him, and she felt an unwarranted sense of disappointment at the absence of a particular familiar face - or helmet, rather.

Collecting her focus, she took stock of the squad standing in the hallway. “Yes, Captain?” She said, opting for a conversational tone.

"Commander sent us to retrieve you. Ship's about to blow, Miss. Not that he doesn't trust your men," he added quickly, "but he thinks we'd do a better job at keepin' you safe."

The ship trembled again, and this time, the illumination banks lining the hall flickered. Strafe glanced over his shoulder at one of the men at his flank, who shrugged. No communications from the Commander, then. Organizing this extraction would be a bit more difficult than Strafe had anticipated.

"We've got serious trouble down in the engines, so we're going to get you on a shuttle and off this ship, but we need complete cooperation from you and your men."

He set his comm. to receive any and all calls and made a vague gesture with one hand.

"Have everything you need? Don't exactly have time for packing."

From the corner of her eye, Ophelia saw her Captain bristle a tiny bit at the Clone's explanation. She couldn't imagine he liked being told that someone else could do his job better than him, but she silenced any protests he might have made with a quick glance and quiet whisper.

"This ship is the Clones area of expertise; we'll all be better off in their hands," she said quietly. Her Captain continued to scowl but made no objections.

The tremors in the hull forced her to adopt a slightly firmer stance, and her eyes widened as the illumination banks momentarily flickered out before relighting the hallway.

Complete cooperation.... that was something she could never ensure for her entire entourage; they were free to make their own decisions and prone to react out of their own sudden instincts or fears, but she would pull together as best she was able. She nodded to the Clone Captain, and stepped into the hall, gesturing for her guards and handmaidens to follow.

"Lead on, Captain," she said firmly. For once, I'll have an excuse to be without my wardrobe. I suppose even the worst of circumstances really do have silver linings.

“This way, then.”

The ship held steady while they made their way through the ship, and for that Strafe was thankful. Even so, small sections of the ship’s hull were bowing inward, warping and darkening the halls. Lighting fixtures were now either sparking, or out entirely. Yet the ship remained oddly silent. Hollow, like it knew of and had accepted its fate. Strafe was no sentimental pilot-- he didn’t care for this old warship beyond appreciation for its impressive armaments.

Still, it was a shame to lose such an asset.

The shuttles that still remained swayed. Three in total. Good enough for him.

He turned to the Queen and her entourage. "We'll take the shuttle on the left. Might have to share breathing room with some Jedi, but it'll do. Stick close so I can keep an eye on the lot of ya."

Strafe strode toward the shuttle, tapping on the glass of the cockpit to give the pilot a thumbs up. Then he hopped aboard the shuttle, beckoning his own men and the Queen's to join him. Thankfully, the only ones already aboard was a Jedi and his apprentice.

Ophelia kept her focus centered dead ahead, setting a fast, even pace. Her guards and handmaidens alike kept up easily, mirroring her calm exterior. Every time sparks jumped from an illumination bank or her eye caught another sign of the ship collapsing she nearly flinched.

An inevitable sense of relief lifted her shoulders as they entered the hangar, and she nodded as the Captain indicated the ship on the left. Of those who trailed along with her, she entered first and found herself a place situated out of the way from those better equipped to act proactively in an emergency situation.

She bowed her head to acknowledge the Jedi Master and the young Padawan at her side but said nothing to them. Her attention tracked the Clones as they prepared the ship to exit the hangar, breathing deeply to centre herself in a more relaxed state of mind. Turning to Strafe she asked,

"Has the ship been fully evacuated, then?

He shook his head. "I can't say. We'll have to wait and see, I s'pose. Stay put, miss, and I'll check in with the pilot."

Peeking into the cockpit, Strafe quietly conversed with the clone at the controls. Once they were in proper contact with the rest of the fleet and those already on the surface, Strafe gave the command and the shuttle lifted off.

With that, he returned to the hold and took a seat at the shuttle's rear.

"Everyone's waitin' to regroup planet-side," he said. "Hells. Certainly not engine failure." Strafe looked over at the Queen. "Hope you're okay with a rough landing, because that's the best we're gonna get."

Sure enough, the shuttle lurched as it hit atmosphere, but held steady and made its descent toward the planet's surface.

"I can escort you to the General if you'd like, miss. Or we can leave you with your men. I was given orders to make sure you're taken care of."

Ophelia gave a slight inclination of her head to show that she'd heard and waited for the Captain to return after checking in with the pilot.

"If I'm being honest Captain, I've not had much experience with rough landings to forewarn you as to how well I'll handle one." Despite herself, Ophelia almost smiled just a tiny bit. "But who am I to complain, anyway; I'm glad we're all safe, and I thank you for that."

As the shuttle rocked and shuddered through its entrance into the atmosphere, she forced herself to relax and close her eyes. These men knew what they were about, and if anyone could bring the ship safely to the ground, they would. Nevertheless, she breathed a silent sigh of relief when their momentum came to a halt on the ground.

Turning to the Captain with her composure fully recovered she answered, "It may be best if I were to see the General directly."

The shuttle lurched one final time as it settled into the clearing, engines idling.

"Here we are, safe and sound. What do you think? Our pilots could always use some constructive criticism." From the cockpit, the pilot grumbled, and Strafe answered him with no more than a chuckle before exiting the shuttle.

Strafe looked up, squinting, to catch a glimpse of other ships pouring in. One of those he assumed would be the General, and another the Commander. He turned back to the Queen to beckon her over.

"Let's go find our good General, shall we?"

Ophelia smiled softly, glancing assuringly at the Pilot and taking a moment to say, "I'm afraid I lack any particular expertise, but for my part as an uninformed passenger, you performed excellently."

With the help of her handmaidens, she stepped down out of the shuttle after the Captain. It felt good to be on the ground again, feeling the gentle movements of fresh air and smelling the scents of a natural environment. Raising a hand to shield her eyes against the brightness of the sky, she followed the Captain's gaze to the rest of the arriving ships, flooded with a sense of relief that the others were safely on their way.

"Yes, of course." She tore her gaze from the growing specks above them and gave her full focus to keeping her limbs intact while navigating her way in pursuit of the Captain. A thousand curses on whoever decided Queens should dress like broom closets.

"I said constructive criticism, not encouragement,"
Strafe said with a snort. The pilot looked irritatingly satisfied, however.

If Strafe had to guess, the General and whoever else had made it planet-side would be inside that temple. Even then, he could see troopers scurrying about in the distance as they inspected it, while others idled around their shuttles waiting for the Jedi to disembark.

He looked over his shoulder at the Queen. "I can take you about as far as the temple, then I've got other duties to attend to. I'm sure you're men can handle whatever else comes after that." He checked his comm. "The General should be just inside."

Strafe instructed his troopers to help with combing the temple for threats, then led the Queen and her men inside.
 
[fieldbox=Ishua Ken, green, solid, 8, book antiqua]
d3424dc7061095a09cfce8f9ed153675.jpg


The Jedi Master stood in the center of what seemed to have been the main building, the general watching as the droid inserted his scomp arm into an old holoprojector, the machine slowly glowing and coming to life- a testament to the technical skill of the clone soldiers. The droid then generated a rough holomap, expanding from the temple to the farthest droid dispenser that they had seen.

Once all the command personnel had gathered, the Jedi started the meeting, looking around.

"Alright, everyone, long story short- there active battle droid dispensers from the Clone Wars surrounding the temple. They're a serious threat that they can activate at any moment and they threaten the local villages and possibly the capital if they advance- according to what information we have from Caretaker's data banks, these models are from late in production and there could be anywhere between four to six thousand battle droids wating to activate in approximately thirty droid dispensers. They appear to be equipped with seismic sensors that require an organic presence within a certain radius to activate, and they seem to function on solar power. "

R4 whirred and clicked, brining up a holographic projection while the red protocol droid then began to speak as the Jedi General pointed to him, Caretaker bending slightly at the waist in acknowledgement before looking at the holograpic display and speaking up.

"Some of the dispensers are bound to be inactive, perhaps as many as one out of four according to my calculations, but it would be most effective to attach explosive charges to each dispenser to allow for remote detonation so that all risk to our soldiers is minimized. I hypothesize that we should send out a squad of ARF troopers and some volunteers to map out the dispensers and scout out any useful information and then we go and swarm the dispensers either tomorrow or the day after, depending on the weather at hand."

After the droid finished talking, the Jedi scratched at his chin, putting his arms in his cloak sleeves as he began to speak, the breeze beginning to blow through the ruins of the forest temple as clones and soldiers could be seen and working on their spacecraft in the nearby artificial clearing.

"I agree with Caretaker- we need to assemble a scouting party and learn more about the terrain. Otherwise, are there any thoughts, suggestions? After all, nailing battle droids is the clones' specialty, if I'm not mistaken."
[/fieldbox]
 
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“Droids?” Thrice chuckled lowly. “Of everything that could have lasted those two-hundred years..."

Which meant they would need explosives, because every Commander knew that the best - only - way to put down an army of droids was with explosions. Even Twitch would be thrilled, Thrice was sure. The entire 343rd would be bristling with excitement, because as much of a challenge as these new Sith adversaries were, they weren't what the clones had been made for. And tearing the head off a warbling B1 was infinitely more satisfying.

"Bit more than a specialty, sir," he said, tone light and teasing. "If we've salvaged anything from the ship, I'm sure they'll be giving us no trouble."

Thrice stepped out of the main room and onto the temple steps. The sheer presence of the Force here was intense, so intense even Thrice could feel it out of the Jedi's presence. Everything would be alright so long as the Jedi were there to guide them. That was what he'd been taught. Now, facing an army of droids, Thrice couldn't help but feel as if he'd taken a step back through time to when things were simpler-- when the only enemy was a legion of tin cans, and the Jedi, ever the wise, stood at the helm. He'd almost call it nostalgic.

Through his comm., Strafe's weary voice came in. "Commander? I, uh, finished that 'assignment'. Queen's all good. Oh, and Twitch wants to fill you in on some things. Won't tell me anything."

Thrice sighed. "Good. Good. If Kip's with you, have him run a full inspection."

"Lost his helm, sir?"

"No, but I don't think he can hear my calls. Give him a good shove for me?"

"Sure thing, boss."

Now, to find Twitch. Knowing the Sergeant, it was likely something to do with their troops as a whole; the man was by-the-books in every sense of the word. If something was off, he'd know. And if he was intent on sharing that information with Thrice... it was very likely a big deal.

When he contacted Twitch, he instead ended up sitting through the man describe, in detail, a rather convenient cache of pulse grenades.