Star Wars: Shattered Galaxy

[UnusualStranger]

"Sounds fantastic. Thank you Niner." Marcus said, somewhat confused why he would take the liberty of adding a scent to the air. However, the droid seemed well enough. For a droid anyways.

"Niner, what he is specifically asking for are Holocrons, lightsabers, and possible training devices regarding initial force teachings or other types of knowledge. Especially training regarding lightsaber use and construction would be appreciated." Marcus said, trying to be a little more specific for Prenlarr.

Here is to hoping that we can find a few weapons that would at least be a little more useful against some dark Jedi.....actually....

"Niner, does the installation or you do any additional scans of the outside world? If so, I would like to check something, if you can."

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

"Oh." Niner hummed for a moment. "I assume you mean Jedi Holocrons. They can be found within the Jedi Wing. Do not touch the Sith Holocrons in the Sith wing. They are..." Niner shuffled closer to Marcus. "Mean to me. And the other droids. The Holocrons are difficult to miss in the Jedi wing, they're stored within the room just to your left as you enter the Jedi wing. When you are ready, I will assist you there. There is...quite a selection. Many of the Holocrons contain information on training, and other rooms contain devices used in the training process. Many detail the construction of a lightsaber, including variants such as the Dual-Phase blade and the Double-Blade. Others contain lessons on their use, everything from the Vaapad of Mace Windu and the devastating Djem-So favored by the Skywalker line to the simple Shii-Cho and the Jar'kai favored by Master Ajira Dovo'Kai."

Niner seemed to look saddened. "As for lightsabers, there is a cache of Adegan Crystals used in the construction of the lightsaber within the Vault, but I am afraid that there are only two lightsabers within this Vault. One is the lightsaber of Master Kyle Katarn. His was deemed the best choice to serve as a physical template. The other is the lightsaber of the Sith Lord Darth Akarian, a Sith Lord that threatened the Republic some four hundred years ago."

 

[blaze96]

The droid's reaction to being asked to talk about the stasis pods didn't sit well with him. He wanted to take a closer look at the hardware and programming, something was definitely off about it. He wanted to know what it was though.

"Excuse me Niner, would you mind if I took a look at you for a second? I think something may be off, probably nothing but I'd still like to check if you don't mind." He then turned to the others.

"I would prefer to remain here for a bit if that is alright. If you insist I will go with you but I would prefer to perhaps go to the maintenance wing with Niner and perhaps one person who knows how to use a gun then meet up with you later.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

Niner nodded. "Of course, sir. It has been some considerable time since my last proper maintenance check." He approached Prenlarr and turned around, showing the access panel. Prenlarr had little trouble accessing the droid's memory banks, and after a few minutes of searching, found that all data on the Stasis Pods was simply not there, a massive blank spot in the Droid's memory.

 

[UnusualStranger]

Marcus nodded, happy to hear that there were the necessary supplies around to make a lightsaber. While simply grabbing one sounded nice, he wasn't comfortable using a legendary Jedi...or Sith, lightsaber. It wasn't in his hands, and he wouldn't do it justice. Besides, much better to be one with his blade....or something heroic like that. That was how the stories went, right?

"Thanks again, Niner. I think some lightsaber lessons would very much be in order, as well as some crystals to assemble a blade itself...." Marcus began, watching as Prenlarr got to looking over the droid.

"See anything important there? I think we should get started looking this place over if there is something suspicious. Otherwise, get to work on this...whatever it is we are getting ourselves into." Marcus continued, stepping about and looking at the droid and the doors, looking at the one claiming the Jedi wing. Pushing a button on the panel, the door opened, and Marcus stepped inside.

Well, here we go. This is going to be either horribly stupid of me to start doing, or horribly successful.

 

[CounterAttack]

Shouldering his rifle, Rec approached Prenlarr and the droid before they could head off. The idea of obtaining the lightsaber of the Jedi Master Katarn appealed highly to him, despite his regular manner of choosing not to work for power or glory. Just getting close enough to examine the fabled Jedi weapon was appealing in itself. Given the mention of holocrons which could instruct in their use, he could even learn to use one...

"Where can we find these crystals, and the lightsabers?" he asked the droid, who provided the answer as being the Jedi Wing. Turning back to the group, minus Marcus who had left for his destination, Rec said, "Right, I'm gonna go see what there is to see in there. Feel free to follow if you want." With that the hunter slipped his rifle back into its strap, drew his pistol - because one could never be too careful, even in a place such as the underground vault - and made his way to the wing.

There they were, clear as day. The lightsaber stood in a case, held up by a display frame. On its right sat a plain, unadorned box; the two were placed on a pedestal in the center of the room. Its contents, however, were no mystery to Rec. He could feel the presence of many small objects within, each with a slightly differing Force aura around it. The collective auras made the box of crystals shine like a kaleidoscope, blinking and pulsing slightly in Rec's colourblind vision. The crystals paled in comparison to Master Katarn's lightsaber, however; the Force signature attached to the weapon eclipsed even that of Vesera, and she had had the brightest aura Rec had ever seen.

The game hunter cautiously approached the pedestal, his free hand extended tentatively to the display case in which Katarn's saber stood. With slightly trembling fingers - unusual for Rec - he holstered his pistol, lifted the glass free with both hands, and set it down in a free space next to the stand. Then he reached out and cautiously took hold of the weapon, lifting it free.

Almost instantly, Rec's vision flickered and blurred before snapping back into focus. He felt... powerful, with the lightsaber in his hand, even though it was inactive. The legendary weapon seemed to have a life of its own, such was the strength he felt in just holding it. Truly, Master Katarn must have been a great Jedi in his time.

 

[blaze96]

"The memory of the stasis chambers is, non-existant. Not deleted, it literally isn't there. Why in the world would that be the case? What would be so precious that they would delete the information. This certainly deserves to be investigated. I don't want to release whatever it is, but I can't help but want to know what would be so horrible. Can you hypothesize anything that would make this reaction plausible Niner?" Prenlarr said, hoping at least one of the others would be as interested in it as he was. He wasn't about to go alone, or even with the droid at this point. He would at least wait until one of the more experienced members of the team expressed some form of interest.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

Niner looked extremely puzzled. "Strange. You are correct, the memories have been erased. Further, by my analysis, I have entered several times. There are over nine hundred and thirteen hours of lost memory on my databanks, spread out over the last thousand years." Niner beeped for a few seconds. "My hypothesis is that there is something within the Stasis Pods that someone does not want known. I cannot be certain that there are not other moments of missing time within my memory."

 

[UnusualStranger]

Marcus paused at the doorway, seeing Rec collect the one lightsaber from the alter. He was either overeager to prove something, or actually thought he could handle the weapon. However, this was not really his concern anymore. What was his concern was that the stasis pods were now an issue.

"Niner, is there any records of the Jedi who have entered this vault? And are there sensors outside of this vault?" Marcus asked, stepping back out of the Jedi wing, now somewhat concerned about even opening the Stasis wing.

"And Prenlarr....I would think it better we collect what we know for certain, rather than investigating something which may interrupt that. I think the pods are likely important as well, but we shouldn't go diving into trouble when there are other items that need to be collected and cared for first." Marcus said, looking the droid over again closely.

So he has been tampered with. Just great. Means that we have had someone around here doing something they should not have been doing. Or there was someone in stasis who woke up and decided they would rather not exist any more here as a Jedi....Hm.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

"Oh my, yes. I could attempt to list them for you. The first person I encountered upon my activation was Master Ben Skywalker. Soon after, I encountered Master Luke Skywalker, Master Corran Horn, Master Tionne Solusar, Master Aran Keltame, Master Cale Voss, Master..." The Droid went on for several minutes until he was requested to stop.

"As for your request as to the sensors, yes, we do. They were damaged in the initial destruction of the surface and further by the depredations of the feral creatures that now inhabit the planet, but the mouse droids repair them."

 

[UnusualStranger]

".....Feral creatures? I think I would like know anything about them you can tell us. We didn't see any of them on our way here, which is probably lucky for us." Marcus said, not pleased to hear that getting back up to the surface might be more difficult than he wanted it to be.

So much for training at all. Going to have to make a task of it while going back to space....or going who knows where next. Going to be kind of messy from here on.

Marcus began walking back into the Jedi halls, looking over the many items stored in the area. He wasn't sure if he should really take all things out of this vault, as chances were it would again be used in the future....well, if there was one.

Without thinking, Marcus reached forward, picking up one of the Holocrons in the area, and looked it over. It wasn't necessarily too much different from the other one he had been holding forward before, but without even wondering, he knew that it somehow was.

"What do you have to teach me, oh interesting thing? Some guidance, any guidance, is always appreciated. Especially now."

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

"I'm afraid I don't know very much about them. They appeared soon after the planet's destruction. They seem to be of numerous races - mostly Human, but still many other races. All mammalian, though. Bothans, Sullustans, a few Wookiees. They seem to have some kind of immunity to the nerve gas, but they aren't terribly intelligent. Here and there, scavengers have landed on the planet, but I'm afraid they were quickly torn apart. The Rakghouls are in the lower levels, and they're a little more well-known. Mutant monsters that resemble some kind of amphibioid creature. The Ferals and the Rakghouls seem to do battle on a regular basis."

The Holocron pulsed blue, and then a holographic face appeared over it. "Greetings. I am Talia Kovagne, once the leader of the Jedi Shadows, now the Gatekeeper of this Holocron. Have you come seeking training, or wisdom?"

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

Forty-one thousand kilometers away from the would-be Jedi, the KSD Aullanger maintained it's high orbit over Coruscant. Aboard, the crew was bored. Being assigned the Coruscant garrison was well known among the Kuati - it was like being on shore leave, and having to stay aboard doing maintenance.

And so that is what the crew of the Aullanger did, day in and day out. Drills. Maintenance. More drills. More maintenance. Also card games, distilling alcohol, and 'fraternization.'

On the bridge of the Aullanger, they still behaved like the bridge crew of a Star Destroyer, even if they didn't quite look the part.

"Captain. We're detecting a seismic disturbance on Coruscant. Buildings around the Temple are collapsing..."

"Hawkbat?"

"It's fine, sir. Maintaining geosynchronous orbit over the Temple."

The Captain, a middle-aged man who apparently didn't take the uniform regulations on shaving particularly literally, nodded. "Attempt to raise the landing party."

The communications officer punched a few buttons, then looked up at the Captain. "Sorry, sir. We can't detect them at all."

"Continue to transmit to them..."

Then the communications officer tore off his earpieces, an earsplitting screech coming from them. He began punching buttons on his control. "Something's jamming us, Captain! Full-spectrum jamming, I can't get through it."

"Sensors, do you detect anything?"

"Those buildings collapsing stirred up a nest on the planet, but no sign of enemy ships. Or planet-based defenses."

"Signal Battle Stations."

"Battle stations, aye. Shields up, all weapon systems online. The 15th, 9th, and 101st are scrambling."

The Captain sat back on his seat, grimacing. "Let's hope we don't need them. Keep trying to break that jamming. Compile a message to Admiral Cath and transmit it at any opportunity."

 

[UnusualStranger]

"I come seeking both, Master Talia Kovagne. However, training would likely be more beneficial to me in any sense at this time." Marcus replied to the Holocron, not sure what he was getting into, but then not really caring at this point.

Well.....quite a few of these I don't think I would be able to take with us to teach us anything in the first place. Going to see what this one does for me now, and then it's time to grab several of them, then get moving to the other rooms, see if there is training equipment or something in there.

Looking back at Niner, Marcus shrugged his shoulders.
"I am hoping that you have not had any incursions with the feral monsters or Rakghouls, have you?" Marcus asked the droid off hand, turning his gaze back to the Holocron that had addressed him.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

"Oh my, no. The Vault door has been sealed for some time. Occasionally one of the maintenance droids encounters one of them and is torn to shreds, but replacing them is not difficult. There is a small automated factory down here for producing droids, and there is no shortage of materials. But the Vault itself is quite impregnable. I doubt they are even aware of it's existence."

The Holocron nodded. "Opening your mind to the Force is one of the most difficult steps in training. If you are ready to begin now, find a quiet place and rest in a position that is comfortable for you. Then clear your mind. Do not contemplate your physical surroundings, but rather turn your focus within."

 

[blaze96]

"Niner, what are the dates before and after the last gap in your memory?" Prenlarr wanted to know, if they were recent it meant somebody had changed something and would probably be coming back. Meaning it would be better if they left right then and there, or at least prepared.

 

[UnusualStranger]

Marcus nodded, both to Niner answering his question, and to the Holocron informing him of something he could do. Taking a quick glance around, he began walking to the back area of this Jedi wing. Pausing to listen for a moment, he figured it quiet enough for himself, and took a seat. Setting the Holocron in front of himself, he found himself taking a deep breath, looking at the Holocron intently.

"....Where do I begin? Just.....not thinking?" Marcus asked, not really sure what to expect, or how to do what he was going to attempt. Flexing his hands slightly, he began to wonder what this was even going to do.

Is it like daydreaming, where I do not know what is happening that moment? Perhaps something to go with my extra senses? Am I going to even feel this?

 

[CounterAttack]

"So... the weapon of a Jedi Master," Rec said quietly, more to the lightsaber than Marcus, who had left and re-entered the Jedi Wing. "Perhaps I shall take up your blade, Master Katarn... then again, the stories say that each lightsaber is attuned to the Force-signature of its owner, and yours is long since linked with this weapon, I can tell that much." He was correct, of course; the lightsaber's aura seemed to clash with his own. It might be better if he built a saber himself and used that one in combat. Over time, perhaps Katarn's blade would recognise a new owner, one who followed the teachings of the Jedi, and... allow itself, for lack of better words, to be used in the hands of Rec or any of the other hopeful Jedi.

That seemed to be the best course of action. With a new goal in mind, Rec set the lightsaber down, carefully replaced the glass casing and took the small case of Adegan crystals in one hand. Reclaiming Katarn's saber but having nowhere to put it, he turned away from the pedestal on which they had stood and paused, not really knowing where to go from here. Marcus was seated on the floor, talking to another holocron. It occurred to Rec that following suit, perhaps with another of the Jedi artifacts, would be good.

The game hunter randomly chose a shelf of the devices, and strode over to it, resting the lightsaber on top of the crystal case in order to free a hand. He picked out a tetrahedral holocron and held it in an open palm, silently wondering how to activate it. He didn't know much, if anything, about things like these; killing krayt dragons and similar monsters was his forté.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

Master Kovagne continued, "Focus, young one. Close your eyes and open your mind, release your preconceptions about reality. All things, everything are linked through the Force. Can you feel it? The stones, the vault, the great ship in space, you. They are not separate, they are one, each a tiny part of the greater universe. Close your eyes and see the greater puzzle."

As Rec lifted the Holocron, the air over it shimmered, and a creature that looked somewhat like some kind of robed shellfish appeared. It gurgled something at Rec, then it translated.

"I am Master Khodoan. And you...who are you?"

 

[CounterAttack]

"My name is Rec Sira. Ordinarily I am a game hunter, but... times have changed," Rec introduced himself to the strange Jedi image, inclining his head in respect despite it being a hologram. "Now I am on the run from the Sith, having joined up with a group of other people sensitive to the Force. None of us are true Jedi yet, but we aim to change that; that is the reason we are here, to learn the teachings of the Jedi and understand our ability to manipulate the Force. If I may ask, Master Khodoan, what does this holocron contain?"