SWRPF Archive ~ Gaurdians of the Force: The Tainted Blade ~

Mira stood in a corner of the huge entrance hall, scanning the room looking for a familiar face. Jedi and non Jedi alike either stood in clusters or stood alone as she did. She recognized a few of the young padawans only because they helped her unload her cargo when she delivered it to the Academy.

Then she saw them, Serin, Liana, a man she didn?t recognize and Kai. She weaved her way through the crowd and placed her hand on Kai shoulder.

?Well look who Skywalker dragged in! I guess he wanted all of us together again.?

Tag: Kai,Knighthawk,KissSpooky

 

IC:

Me and my big mouth, Jarrod thought to himself. Now I have what looks like an army surrounding me! He turned to each of them one by one, and tried his best to smile. "A pleasure to meet you all," he said, bowing politely. "My name is Jarrod." He made no effort to holster his weapon, but did place it blade-down on the floor, resting it solely on the tip of the blade. He then turned his attention to Kai, who seemed a little cautious in their brief meeting a few minutes earlier. "I was reading some of the names here, and I was wondering if you kenw any of them and how they died." He tried not to mention toe topic with too much force in his voice, so as to keep any emotions from the crowd down to a minimum. "One in particular intrigues me. Could you explain what is meant by a pact with the Dark Side?"

TAG: Kai

OOC: Death catches everyone once. (Okay, so it gets me twice, eventually. )

 

No sooner had Serin appeared, a veritable plethora of newcomers made their way into the room. Kai scanned them intently. There was an older man, his eyes scanning the room thoroughly. A brief telepathic probe told him that he was an investigator of some sort, but he delved no further.

Two young Jedi followed, one male, one female. They appeared somewhat out of place given their youth, but remained confident and as mature-looking as possible. Finally, he felt another familiar person enter the room and recognised Mira long before she crossed the room and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Hello stranger..... looks like we're all back in the mix again."

He was cut short from saying anymore by Jarrod's query about the names on the memorial plaque.

"One in particular intrigues me. Could you explain what is meant by a pact with the Dark Side?"

The Jedi Master exhaled sharply. Lance's story had always been a complex one and it was something he tried to avoid - McCallister was gone and although he should be remembered, Kai's philosophy on the Jedi codenamed KnightHawk was to let sleeping dogs lie.

But he chose to answer it, if only to validate it to himself.

"Lance McCallister was a complex man. He was torn between his duty to the Jedi and his love for his wife. The Dark Side came to him when he was vulnerable to its rapture, but he was somehow able to manipulate and control it to a degree that few Jedi have ever accomplished, even Skywalker. In the end, he used his abilities to save a lot of people, myself, my padawan Liana and Jedi Knight Serin Kore whom you just met."

"One might argue why a supposed Dark Jedi was allowed to be imortalised here, but those who knew him know that his place here was with all those who should be honoured; servants of the light."

A solemn moment came over Kai, but it was interupted as the doors to the Council chambers slid open without warning and a golden protocol droid appeared at the entrace.

"Good evening, Jedi and fellow travelers. Master Luke Skywalker requests that all of you enter the chambers and he will be with you shortly."

With that, the curiously varied group began to make their way into the room, but Kai strayed back a bit and stepped up the the droid.

"You're C-3PO, right?"

"That is my designation, Master Halicon."

"Can you tell me what this is about?"

"I'm afraid Master Luke has told me precious little on this matter, but I do believe it involves the recovery of a lost item of particular significance."

Kai nodded.

"Alright. Thank you, C-3PO." He said and stepped into the room.

The others were assembled around a large oval table to one side, surrounded by a dozen or so chairs. The droid bid them to sit and they did so, Kai sticking close to Liana, Mira and Serin.

No sooner had the sat down, did Kai feel a great power enter the room, followed by a curious anomally in the Force. The first was Skywalker, which he confirmed as the Jedi Master walked to the head of the table, drapped in his usual black robes. The second was a figure wearing similar robes, but their face was covered by a deep hood and for the life of him, Kai could not assertain their identity. Unlike Jarrod, who was not present in the Force, this person seemed to phase in and out of it, randomly and without reason.

Kai abandoned his focus on the stranger and faced Skywalker as he addressed the group.

"Welcome to you all. I thank you for coming on such notice and I'm happy to see that so many of you could make it. Whilst I did summon more, I believe that some have been held up for one reason or another. Because time is of the essence, I will begin the briefing on why you have been summoned.

And with that, Skywalker began to explain to them about the dark visions he'd been having, involving Darth Vader and the Emperor, Vader's discarded blade and the Palpatine's return. The story stretched for almost an hour, with a tired-looking Skywalker explaining it to most miniscule of details. He told them how the blade had been concocted by

 

Master Skywalker?s story had intrigued her. And when it had been revealed that the Tainted Blade had been found she had taken a deep breath. Her mind ran through all she knew of it, which was little. And when Master Skywalker had said that Camden had been the one to find it her heart sank.

She looked at the young man, horrified at what he had to be going through. While she was close to Kai she and Camden had never gotten to know each other well. Everything of the Camden she remembered was gone except the look of resolve in his eyes.

When Kai had accepted the mission to find the blade she knew she had to go with him. She wasn?t one to leave her friends to fend for themselves. She got up and stood on Kai?s other side and said,

?I?m going with you.?

Tag: All

 

Mage chuckled slightly, stepping forward and tapping the rank insignia on his uniform.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but this isn't a volunteer kind of thing for me. Cracken asked me to help whoever Skywalker put on this mission, and I took the assignment; besides, I love jobs like this, where you're trying to track something down with little to no hope of finding it. It's why I signed up with the NRI."

He grinned slightly. "Besides, it'll get me out of this damn uniform and administrative work for a while."

 

IC:

Okay... Psycho with a deep emotional problem... Jarrod's train of thought was clipped by the golden protocol droid who summoned everyone into the chambers.

He listened to Master Skywalker with little taste for the meeting at hand, until they got to the part about the assignment. A sword with the power of the Dark Side? Sounds strange. He looked around for a second, and then stood up, turning to the group that had already agreed to the job. "I'm with you too," he said with determination.

OOC: Made that short on purpose.

 

OOC: Sorry about not being on yesterday or earlier today... it wasn't my fault, but it's a long story.

IC: Terow stood at the edge of the room, watching as the others talked a bit. With the exception of the Jedi, he doubted they'd even noticed him; he generally made such a habit out of being unseen it was hard to be noticed sometimes. When they were ushered into the room and given the background to the situation, he was suprised, to say the least. "Well, I'm in." Terow said, not giving any explanation as to why. In fact, he could think of several reasons: not annoying the Jedi Order, for one. There was also the possibility that the Jedi would be willing to pay well, but that could be dealt with afterwards.

 

Serin wondered what Kai was thinking as he looked her over. She was sure he'd have heard the whispered rumours about her being a rogue, or whatever, but he didn't give any indication of any judgment.

"You seem....different. I can't put my finger on it though. Regardless, it's good to see you again. I'm guessing you got Skywalker's summons as well. Any clues as to what's going on?"

Serin looked around as more people started filing into the room. "Your guess is as good as mine. I figured I was being kicked out of the order, or generally getting in trouble for something. Then everyone started showing up."

Almost before she knew it, the room had filled up with people, Jedi and non-Jedi alike. She noted Mira had showed up, and bowed to her, smiling but without speaking.

The stranger smiled in to each of them, but it definately wasn't something he had much practice at....still, Serin couldn't blame him for trying. She did note he wouldn't sheath his sword, but did rest it point down on the floor. He turned back to Kai, so Serin took the opportunity to look towards the doors to the Council Chambers. As she did, they opened, and Master Skywalkers droid, C-3PO, came out and indicated for them all to enter.

Walking in, Serin took one of the seats at the far end of the table, among the people she knew, folding her hands on the table thoughtfully. Finally, Master Skywalker entered with another person, covered in a robe. They sat and the Jedi Master told them all about the Tainted Blade.

It struck Serin then that it was strange that Kai's other apprentice, Camden, wasn't around. Reading Master Skywalkers eyes when he looked at Kai, she examined the hooded figure, and followed her thoughts to the inevitable conclusion.

Her thoughts were confirmed as the figure pulled back the hood to reveal his face as Camden's, but Serin almost didn't recognize him, he looked to be on deaths door. Kai didn't take it well, but that was to be expected.

Skywalker and Kai shared some words, and finally the older Jedi Master spoke, saying there was no obligation for the assembled group to go on the mission. Kai made an appeal to them as well. Almost before he'd finished speaking, Mira was up saying she'd be going, which didn't really surprise Serin in the least. 3 of the non-Jedi quickly spoke up as well.

Smiling as she leaned back in her chair just a bit, Serin crossed her arms across her chest and said, "So when do we leave?"

 

OOC: I believe we may be waiting for another reply or two, but in the interest of keeping the flow up, I'll post in accordance with the majority having accepted the mission.

IC: Kai glanced at Master Skwalker, finding him looking down on the shorter man but feeling humbled nonetheless.

"It looks like you've got a team, Luke."

The Master of the order nodded solenmly, but a satisfied grin came to his lips.

"So it would seem. It would also seem that despite his state, Camden is the key to finding the Tainted Blade. He'll need to come with you, his protectors. It appears to be the will of the Force, and you, the Gaurdians of that Force."

Camden, despite his relative frailty, spoke up.

"....The Blade has......stopped moving right now.....whoever has it may of stopped to refuel or rest. It's in .... the Outer Rim.....on a planet called Cargul."

"Then we're heading to Cargul." Kai said, somewhat matter-of-factly.

Luke Skywalker interjected abruptly.

"Alright. I've arranged for a transport, a Corellian Heavy Frigate to take you all to Cargul, but you're welcome to use your own transports or store them in the hold. I've also made arrangements for accomodation in a local hotel, the Coruscant Palace. You can rest there overnight and get started in the morning."

Kai nodded in agreement. Skwalker addressed the group again.

"I'll see you all in the morning here. May the Force be with you."

With that, the Jedi Master bowed and made his way out of the room, his droid teetering behind him. Kai gave Camden a sad, whimsical look.

"You should of told me earlier."

The boy coughed briefly.

"I'm sorry. It all happened quickly. I'm mostly affected in appearance. The 21b droid that examined me said that the saber was just leeching my energy more than anything else. I can deal with the physical appearance - I'm not 100% but I could be worse.

They left the room and went back outside to the lobby. Kai turned to the group.

"I guess we're free until the morning then. The hotel is only a few minutes from here. I'm going to go and have a catch up with my apprentice here at a local bar. You're welcome to join me."

With that, Kai and Camden set off, the apprentice turning to his master as they headed towards the elevator.

"A veritable crisis, and you want to get drunk?" He quiped, his voice hinting at amusement despite the raspy tone.

Kai patted his back as the boy pulled the hood back over his head.

"We should enjoy it while we can. Besides, you never say no to a shot of Bothan liquor, do you?"

Camden grinned, his first smile all night.

"I guess not. I'm glad you came Kai. I was afraid you wouldn't.

Kai thumbed the control panel and the doors promptly slid open. The two men entered the lift and Kai replied telepathically.

Palpatine himself couldn't keep me away, little brother.

They halted the cart as they waited for anyone else to join them.

Tag: All. I figure the characters get to know each other better before they set off - a bar is a good enough place to start.

 

OOC - Sorry about the lateness of this post. in in the UK so im in a different time frame to the most of you

Leina had listened to Master Skywalker intently. But when she saw camden she almost gasped outloud. Camden had trained with her once or twice before and had grown quite a strong friendship with him. Seeing him in this state was awful

"Master Halicon! Im coming too. He's one of my good friends and I don't wanna see anything happen to him"

With that she joined the rest of the group who were heading out of the chamber

 

OOC: Time to break out a classic style of mine: sadness ad infinitum.

IC:

Jarrod began to walk out of the meeting chamber, sword in hand, when his comm-link began beeping like it was about to explode. He picked it up and keyed it on, expecting a last-minute call from Samantha. He reflected on his life a little bit before turning it on, though. Life is good, he thought to himself. I have a great job, a nice place to live, and the most important thing of all: I have someone who cares about me, and I'm getting married to her next month. Yes, life is great!

The voice on the other end of the comm-link was one he had never heard before. "Jarrod, this is Cloud City Hospital, Emergency Unit. Please come here quickly!" The voice faded out of Jarrod's consciousness, along with everything else. The yells coming from the other side fell on deaf ears, and Jarrod stood in place, frozen by doubt and fear, for a couple senseless minutes. As soon as he snapped back to reality, he ran through the halls at his top speed, leaping through one of the Temple windows before his sword and comm-link even started to fall. The flamethrower on his arm soon kicked in, acting as a repulsor lift to keep him from becoming roadkill as he plummeted.

As soon as his feet hit the ground, he started bolting to the landing pad where his ship had been parked. The sword and comm-link had hit the floor roughly at the time he had landed, but he didn't hear and didn't care to. He ran through the parking area and quickly had his ship running at full power, with the hyperdrive coordinates in the nav-computer before the fighter had even gotten off the ground. This led to his riskiest maneuver yet: entering hyperspace while in a planet's atmosphere. The AX-Interceptor groaned under the stress of Coruscant's gravity as it blasted through to light speed. With all the modifications that it had, he cleared the entire trip to Bespin in record time, roughly 30 minutes.

The arrival was nothing spectacular. The ship barely survived the rough landing on Bespin, but it would fly again. Surprisingly, it looked better after the rough landing than it did before. He didn't bother with that, though. He still ran through the city, looking for the hospital. As soon as he got there, he charged through the glass doors like a man on a rampage. Little shards cut through him, leaving minor cuts and scrapes on him, but the adrenaline masked the pain. The receptionist looked up in alarm at the sound of glass being broken.
"Jarrod! What a surprise." She was wide-eyed in fright, and trembling slightly. "Samantha's in the ER, sir."

Jarrod ran to the ER with tears in his eyes, slamming the doors open with the force of his running. The only response is the doctor turning to look up, a sad look on his face as he says, "I'm afraid it's too late." The body is covered and wheeled out to the morgue, and that is that.

The rest becomes a blur to the memory, and Jarrod comes back to consciousness in the streets outside the Jedi Temple. He doesn't remember leaving Bespin, but somehow he is here, and it feels like tears have been streaming down his face.

TAG: All

OOC: Well, I noticed that I didn't run that NPC through with the GM, so I just pulled a small notice of character deletion, in my favorite manner. (Death works in mysterious ways.)

 

OOC: Yeah...what Leigh said, being in the UK slows me down.

IC: (chronologically before the last post)
Denin also joined the party leaving Skywalker's chambers. He was left reeling by the sight of Camden, but also strangley...pleased. This quest was shaping up to be one that would rest well in Jedi lore. A fallen hero, stripped of his powers and life...an unlikely coalition, sent out to receive an aincient artifact from a deadly foe...

In eight million years time, I'll bet little Jedi kids sing songs about us.

The thought of that pleased Denin greatly.

 

Serin sat at the table as the 2 younger Jedi (they may have actually been padawans still, but Serin wasn't sure) made assurances that they'd be coming along, one very emphatically. Seems she was a friend of Camden's.

The group was dismissed for the evening, Kai inviting them all to a local bar, and quickly leaving in the elevator with Cam. Obviously they needed to talk.

As they all started making ther way out, it looked like the tall stranger, Jarrod, seemed to get a call, and all of a sudden, he was off, jumping out of a nearby window. Serin was surprised, to say the least, but wasn't going to put anything past her new companions, especially not the non-Jedi.

As they waited for another lift to arrive, she got feelings of excitment and pride coming from one of the younger Jedi (she thought his name was Denin or something). Leaning in to whisper in his ear, she whispered, "I wouldn't let Master Skywalker know of you thinking like that. A Jedi's supposed to be beyond thinking about their place in the history books."

Serin doubted he would listen to her...most of the younger generation now thought of her as at best a Nomad, at worst an Outcast and a Rogue and Dangerous, but she figured she would prepare him.

She then looked to the other young Jedi (was her name Leina? She's a friend of Kalai's, that's for sure...), and smiled at her.

"You and he," She nodded to Denin, "Must be quite talented to be requested for this mission before even being Knighted. Not that I'm surprised. Kalai has always spoke very highly of you, Leina."

She smiled again and stepped through the doors of the lift as it arrived.

TAG:A-Wings, Leigh

 

Kai_Halicon, is it ok if i join at this late stage, i have put my details below, if you would not like my to join just delte this post.Also if noone else objects i could be Canadian_Wookie's master.

Name: Sedrynvagor (Sedryn)
Age: 22
Gender: M
Race: Human
Homeworldssus
Height: 5,10
Weight: 149
Physical Appearance/Features: is 5, 11, he his very athletic and a proud bearing. His short brown hair and deep dark brown eyes make his skin complexion dark and rugged. Shoulders and chest are broad and strong due to years of hard times in the wild. On his right arm, a large serrated 8 inch scar comes from his elbow to his wrist
Clothing: wears traditional Jedi robes; a cream tunic and trousers, worn in brown knee high boot with fasteners. A Jedi Utility belt is found round the waste, and over the top goes a dark brown robe with hood.
Personality: Very quite and reslient,strong willed. Dertimed. Calm and kind.intuitive and impulsive.

Force User: Yes

If Yes-

Affiliation: Jedi
Rank: Jedi Knight
Lightsaber colour: Turquiose
Lightsaber design: Dull sliver finish,Hand grip customised to Sedrynvagors hands.

Force strength: senses, combat, telekenisis.
Force weaknesses:Healing, still battleing to find his potential.
If No-

Job/designation: N/A
Affiliation: N/A
Skills/qualifications: Skilled Mountian and wild lands guide.

Weapons/personal items: N/A
Vehicles: (if any) N/A

Bio: Sedrynvagor was born on the force rich planet of Ossus, his father was a Jedi Master, at the age of three Sedrynvagor was taken away to Yavin four to begin his training at his fathers reques. At Yavin 4, Sedryn had his run in with Masters, as he loved adventure and to go for long walks.As Sedryn grew he became more powerful and at the age of 18 he was promoted to Jedi Knight. Still at the age of 22 Sedryn is said still not to have reached his potentialand was told by the council that he would not be promoted to Jedi Master until he had found his Potential. Now Sedryn works for the council in Wild Area were travel in difficult due to his expertise in the field.

 

OOC: I don't mind the time delay from anyone - I'm pretty much about as south of everything as it gets. *ode to New Zealand*

IC:Two sectors away from the Jedi Temple and down a couple of levels, Kai and his two students sat in a corner booth of a reasonably sized tavern dubbed The Shady Haven. It was a dimly lit, relatively busy place and had a great variety of alien and human patrons. Kai had been coming here since his teens and pretty much owned the corner booth they now sat in. He tended to keep his idenity a secret here, given the fact it was not an ideal place for a Jedi to be. There were many smugglers and more dangerous types in the bar, many of which disliked the Jedi.

Some of the others from the meeting had followed them and were scattered throughout the bar. Kai had taken a few moments to speak to his student about this mission and the ramifications it might have.

"Camden.... are you sure you're up to this?" He asked again over his mug of Corellian ale.

Camden, still hooded in the farthest part of the corner nodded.

"I have to be, don't I? I can feel the Blade out there. It's like nothing you've ever experienced Kai. The sheer power it resonated......is beyond description."

Kai furrowed his brow.

"Tell me about the thief....the one who took it."

The apprentice sighed.

"I can't remember much....they moved quickly and without hesistation. One minute, I'm en-route to the Temple, the next minute, I'm lying in a bed with a 21b over me."

"Alright. We'll find out soon enough I guess."

Camden nodded.

"I guess so. I'm going to get another drink. You want anything?"

"Another ruby bliel please." Liana requested and Kai shook his head in decline. Camden got up and walked over to the bar, where a pair of intoxicated Gran were drinking up over epic laughter.

Kai reached out telepathically to Liana.

Does Camden seem.....off-balance.... emotionally? I can't sense any thoughts from him up or down. His presence in the Force is flickering in and out.

Liana replied quickly.

He does seem a little ..... cagey... but I can't get a strong sense of anything too out of the ordinary.

Kai took another mouthful of beer and replaced his glass. He wondered what the others in his party thought of the entire situation. First chance he got, he would have to catch up with Mira and Serin as well as getting to know the other Jedi, Denin and Leina. Terow, Mage and Jarrod were all still wildcards to him right now but he didn't sense anything threatening from them.....at least, not yet.

Out of the blue, he sensed a surgence in the Force, eminating from the direction of the bar itself. It was curiously mixed with anger and frustration and he looked over to see one of the Gran arguing with Camden, who remained hooded.

It barked something in Gran that the Force translated to him:

["Wait your turn, little human! You'll get your chance! We're not bothering you, so why do you insist on pushing us aside?!"]

From Camden came a response in the same language, hideously uncharacteristic.

["Because the power of the Force allows me to do so, you three-eyed gutter-trash."]

And with that, the Gran bellowed a cry of anger and ripped away Camden's hood.....

...only to stop dead in his tracks, horrified as the saw the boy's eyes were completely pitch black and pulsating like a hearbeat.

The terrified Gran went for a knife at his side, the silver of the blade glinting in the light of the bar's counter lights as he raised it to his defense. The poor Gran never saw the lightsaber appear in Camden's hand, the cobalt aqua blade snapping forth from the hilt, a weapon that had once belonged to Kai. Camden slashed once horizontally, searing the knife in half. The Gran looked on in horror as Camden stabbed the blade tip forward towards his throat.

Kai reacted without thinking. He slid over the top of the table, Liana just inches behind and called to the Force. The Gran was pulled out of harms way by Kai's telekinesis just as

 

IC:

Jarrod slowly walked into the Coruscant Palace, his heart aching with the pain of lost love. He passed by a small mirror, and noticed something horribly wrong with his face. There were trails all over it, as if from tears, but they were red. Some cuts had appeared on his face from running through the glass door and leaping from the Temple, and some scars were forming on other parts of his body, but how was blood streaming from his eyes!? He turned to one of the empty chairs in the lobby, and sat down to meditate.

All of a sudden, though, the hit-and-run accident the doctor had told him about came to mind, and he remembered seeing Samantha covered int he bed sheet, and realizing it was too late.

He woke up with a start, crying again, and he brought his hands up to his face to control his weeping. He was unable to tell what was going on around him, he was so lost in his sadness.

TAG: All Republic characters.

 

Sedrynvaogor walked alone, his face was hidden under the hood of his robes as he passed a group of traders. As he walked toward the Temple to meet with Master Skywalker,He felt a minior tremor in the force." The dark side i feel".
Sedryn continued to walk he head full of though.As he passed The Shady Haven, A familar presence filled Sedryn.

" Master Halicon" Sedryn bowed as he adressed the senior Jedi.

" Sedryn, i am guessing you are on your way to the temple"

"yes master" Sedryn replied " i am to go with you to help on your assigment Master"

Sedryn looked over at the wosey Jedi Padawan, " Master am i correct in saying the tremor i felt came from this padawan"

" yes Sedryn, but that is not the issue now we must begin are seach for the blade, or i sense greater evil will come to us first"

" i agree master" Sedryn bowed once more and may his way to the Jedi temple, there were a few things he needed to do first.

Sedryn made his way toward master Skywalkers meeting place.He walked the long narrow corridors of the temple and then finally he came to his destination. The meditation ward. Sedryn cleared himself on the security scanner and made his way in to fine Master Skywalker sitting corss legged on the floor, awaiting Sedryn's arrivel.

Sedryn bowed low to his Master.

"Sedryn now is your chance to find your potetial,this is not only a mission for you, but a quest to find your true potetial." Master skywalker said in a low calm voice.

"i understand master" Sedryn replied

" Sedryn trust your feelings, you skill is higher than you think, but beware of the Dark side, great power brings great responsbilty. go now and prepare and May the force be with you Sedryn"

" and with you master " Sedryn stood and slipped out the door leaving his master to Meditate.

Sedryn made his way to his quaters,he had to collect his kit, and then he would be off.

 

OOC: Welcome sendrynvagor. Nice work in slotting yourself in given the indroduction time had passed, but in future, please don't post my or any other character's responses without consulting the user. It's just common courteousy but some people can take offense to it.

Thanks.

~Kai~

 

Mage had walked into the bar a little bit after the rest of the group, and had planned on joining them, after grabbing a drink. Then the commotion had started. At that point, he had done what he did best; blend into the crowd, observe, pay attention.

And what he saw was a Jedi committing assault with intent to kill on an innocent bystander. It was the guy who had been exposed to the 'Tainted Blade,' as well, which made it even more interesting. Mage's hand drifted towards his heavy blaster pistol; he believed that the Jedi Master Halicon could handle this situation, but he had managed to survive this long by never assuming anything.

There had already been a good chance that everything Skywalker had said wasn't just hype; this was a little more evidence in that direction. After Kai had defused the situation and left with Rycoth, Mage relaxed and ordered a drink.

He then placed his field kit down on his table, opened it and took out a small compsystem. After tapping a few keys, Mage was plugged into the New Republic database system; anyone with any affiliation with the government, the military, the Jedi, or with a criminal record, showed up here. He typed in Rycoth's name, and soon enough a bio popped up. The person who had just attempted to kill two aliens after provoking a fight wasn't the same person as in the bio. Something had happened to him, maybe the lightsaber, something to change his personality drastically.

"Great," Mage muttered.

He thought to himself, Now I know why Cracken called me in on this one. Not because they need my help finding that blade; it sounds like Halicon could do that on his own. They want me to put down any Jedi who goes insane from being near that thing. That's why Cracken sent me up here, even though he knew I'd killed another Jedi far gone into the dark side. He sent me up here *because* of that.

I'm not here because I'm a good investigator. I'm here because I'm a Jedi killer.

"Hell of a way to spend the golden years of my life," he muttered, drinking as he sifted through the bios of the other members of the team.

Tag: Whoever

--------

Mephet'ran raged. In the cloud of darkness he inhabited, he saw only the Tainted Blade, and it had slipped through his fingers. The Sith at Korriban had spoke of the day that a blade could grant incredible power to he who wielded it, they had prepared him, and it had still been removed from his grasp. He had been gathering followers to the Sith cause for years now, preparing for this day, the day he would have to comb the galaxy for the blade, and now it had dissapeared.

They had come so close. Dark Jedi who worked in concert with him had finally picked up on a source of great darkness, something that could only be the blade. His spies had discovered that a young Jedi Knight, a whelp by the name of Camden Rycoth had the blade in his possession, and was bringing it to Skywalker for disposal.

Mephet'ran could not have asked for a more perfect situation. The Jedi would be alone, he would have to pass through several systems on his way to the Jedi on Coruscant, and then Mephet'ran would only have to kill the three Dark Jedi for the blade. That would not be so difficult; he knew he could destroy them, as suredly as he knew they could destroy Rycoth.

They had used Sith techniques that Mephet'ran had taught them to assault Rycoth, to bring the blade into their possession. But this was where the legend of the blade had shown itself to be a reality.

The Blade must have dubbed them unworthy, even though they were Force users. Mephet'ran was sure of it. He had questioned them extensively about the circumstances involved in losing the blade, right before he destroyed their very souls, and he was certain that the blade had decided to betray them.

A thief of some kind, a non-Force user, as far as Mephet'ran could tell, had siezed the blade. The thief had been good; he had been able to elude, even hurt one of the Dark Jedi. He had then dissapeared into the galaxy.

Mephet'ran reached through the mist of rage, o

 

OOC: Coota, you're possessed of a sharply creative mind. Great post.

With the role of the 'thief' not being filled, I'm going to take it on in NPC form tomorrow if there is no interest before then.

 

Serin remained in the dark corner of the tavern, watching Camden's outburst. She knew Kai and Liana would take care of the direct conflict, so she made a point of keeping an eye on the others around the pub, reaching out with telekinesis to keep them away from the heart of the action, to keep fingers from triggers and melee weapons at their sides...

As Kai helped Cam out with Liana watching their backs, Serin knew this wouldn't help Kai's worries for his apprentice in the least.

"Still," she thought to herself, "looks like I'm not the only one watching their backs...", as she watched the older investigator who'd been at the meeting, Mage, carefully take his had away from his blaster and seem to relax. He ordered a drink and pulled a small device out of his kit bag.

Picking up her drink and making her way through the crowd around behind Mage's table, Serin could make out what looked like a small info screen. Getting a bit closer, she could see it was something about Cam, before he moved on to someone else.

"Hell of a way to spend the golden years of my life." he muttered.

"Not exactly the young man we saw a moment ago, is it?" She said as she helped herself to a seat at Mage's table. Taking a sip of her drink, she looked the older investigator in the eyes as she said, "Just don't be planning on taking him out quite yet. We all have our problems...I can only imagine what your little screen would say about me. It was only a matter of time before something found Cam. Still...he's a good kid."

Shrugging off her robe over the back of her chair, Serin leaned forward, resting her face in her hands. "So what you have to ask yourself is: are you here to investigate, or keep an eye on us?"

TAG: Coota

 

Mage grinned widely and replied, "If I had less confidence in the Jedi, I'd think you plucked that thought right from my mind, miss."

He sat back and sipped his drink, thinking for a few moments. Eventually, he reached a decision. The fact of the matter was that many of these Jedi could pluck thoughts right out of his mind, if they wanted to. If they were without telepathy, he knew that he could lie to most Jedi without being detected; he knew was strong minded enough for that, at least. He also knew he couldn't be mind controlled; he had experienced an attempt at that, and while it hadn't been fun to fight, it hadn't worked on him either.

But while his job was usually to keep secrets, keep his ideas and his hunches to himself, and reveal them only when he could wrap everything up, he realized he needed to be honest with these people. They were going to be working as a team. Maybe he'd have to keep some secrets later on, especially if any leaks developed as a result of that Blade, but right now he would lose nothing and gain everything by being completely forthcoming.

Mage sighed, "Truth is, I think I *was* assigned to keep an eye on you people; but I certainly wasn't planning on killing that kid. I've had my blaster set for stun for years now; besides, he's our best hope for finding that lightsaber."

"You ever hear about the Mila Calin Incident? Happened about seven years before the Vong War, back when I was little bit younger and spryer. Though I'm just as incredibly handsome now as I was back then," he grinned again and tossed her a wink.

Tag: KissSpooky

 

Terow

Terow was stunned by this turn of events. What was a Jedi doing attacking civilians!? He ran out of The Shady Haven, following the Jedi. When he caught up to Kai, he asked, somewhat bewildered, "What happened back there? Why did he attack that guy?" Terow hung his head. "What did you Jedi get me into!?"

Tag: Kai, anyone at the bar.


Kaylen

Kaylen bowed his head in respect. "Yes, Master." After signing off, he headed to his TIE Defender, reflecting along the way about what had happened to bring him here. From the early days in the Jedi Temple, where he'd learned Jedi techniques with others and studied the forbidden techniques on his own, to his clandestine departure from the Jedi Order. He reflected on his first meeting with Mephet'ran, where he'd agreed to serve the Sith in exchange for training. He considered the Tainted Blade he'd heard so much about. Well, it would be a pleasure to keep any Jedi away from it, but he wasn't certain whether he was going to really hand over the Tainted Blade or not. On one hand, the Blade might give him the greatest power in the galaxy. On the other hand, it would also make him the enemy of nearly everyone in the galaxy, but he would have reflected power from being a servant to Mephet'ran. However, if Mephet'ran had been telling the truth in their all-too-brief conversation, it seemed that neither Kaylen nor Mephet'ran was ready to weild the blade. Of course, it might have been a ruse to keep Kaylen loyal until Mephet'ran was ready to take the Blade himself. This would bear thinking on. There was no need to decide just yet, of course...

 

EDIT - To accomodate ReallyBoringGuy's post.


IC: Outside The Shady Haven, Kai set Camden down on a bench nearby. Liana had summoned a hover-taxi and it hand pulled up beside them. They both helped the semi-aware Camden into the back seat and Liana climbed in beside him. Kai's padawans were as opposite as day and ngiht, but as close as brother and sister, Liana, being the elder of the two was the more authorative.

Instead of getting in the front seat, Kai paused and knelt down in the doorway and spoke.

"Take Camden back to the hotel and get him into bed. I'm gonna stick round here and discuss our course of action."

He could tell immdediately that Liana wasn't fond of the babysitting role, but the fact it was Camden made her more patient. She glared a look that screamed 'you-owe-me', but nodded in agreement as Kai handed her some credits for the fare.

"Alright. What if Camden flips out again?"

Kai pondered it for a moment.

"Then you let me know. I'll keep a psionic tab on him regardless."

With that the taxi moved off towards the hotel, leavin the Jedi behind outside the bar. He buttoned up his coat slightly higher and went back inside the bar.

Just as he did, the one named Terow stopped him, somewhat disturbed by what he'd seen. Kai put a hand on his shoulder and replied.

"Look...this is complex, but if you want answers, just follow me inside. I'm going to try and rally our little collective."

With that, he made his way inside, leaving Terow to make what he would of that comment.

The majority of patrons eyed him as he made his way inside but few cared for the events of the past, content the round of drinks they'd just been shouted. Kai paused to pick up a rather potent glass of antique Alderaanian vodka as he made his way over to where he'd seen Serin sit down with the NRI operative dubbed Mage just he'd taken Camden outside.

He pulled up a chair and sat down, placing his lightsaber on the table as he did so. The silver hitl rattled the glasses on the bench and the action was met with silence as he took a sip of the burning liquid and spoke.

"Hmm... who'd of thought a lightsaber could turn a mild kid like Cam into what you saw then..."

More silence. He got the feeling from Serin that she'd implied something that Mage had been cagey about. Kai had to admit, she was a different woman to the one he'd met two years ago. She reminded him of himself.

"Serin.... Inspector Wizall....what's your take on things? I need to know what you think and how you feel about this mission if we're going to establish a chain of command and more importantly, trust.

Tag: KissSpooky, Coota. ReallyBoringGuy, you can come join us at the table