Star Wars The Shadow War - Times End - Two new factions opened up! - Legacy: War spoilers!

IC: Tim Battershell
Shoreline, The Gardens, Temple of Light - Saridona Prime.

Although his Master and two Padawans, one of whom - Miss Tano - he judged to be quite handy with a blade, would be escorting the prospective witness, Tim wasn't overly happy with Grandmaster Zey's arrangements for safeguarding Padawan Lacie.

Unless baiting a trap, in which case the actual 'witness' was invariably replaced by a trained ASF Officer, the protocols dictated that the fewer people 'in the know' about the location of the 'Safehouse' the better - and that included the ASF Director! Nor did it seem that Padawan Lacie was overly keen about going to MedBay herself.

Taking out his Comlink, Tim quickly composed and sent a text-only message to his Master;

//Master, my 'Illusion' would provide better security and comfort than MedBay, if you and Padawan Lacie would prefer. Contacting my ship now to put you on the 'Command and Control file with full authority over all Ship's Systems. My own assignment shouldn't take that long - not much data to sift, as yet.//

He then made a brief transmission to his ship, confirming the new arrangement, before heading back to where Zurros Ka waited. Keeping his voice low, he said;

"Zurros, let's collect Knight Sandstrider and head back to the Cafeteria, where we can review last night's 'hidden holocam' footage in reasonable privacy. I've had a thought that Darth Slinker may have used the Cafeteria as a shortcut between the Promenade and the ramp up to the Hangar Bay level last night. To my way of thinking, he'd want to clear the area as quickly as possible after murdering Padawan Zoe. Both those entrances are covered by our newly-installed holocams, if I remember rightly."


TAG: Falcon, Zurros Ka, Bardan_Jusik.

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
Heading towards the medbay

As Kasha waited for a reply, her comlink blinked causing her to look at the message on the screen. She smiled and nodded. If Lacie wasn't all that hurt, then take her to stay Tim's ship sounded like a good idea. On the other hand if someone wanted to get to Lacie due to knowing too much. She shook her head. //Sounds like a good idea, but what if they decide to cut out the middle and blow up your ship with her and me on it? Since the children are not here, I have room with me in my room. It has three bedrooms.//

Tim Battershell

 

IC: Tim Battershell
The Gardens, Temple of Light - Saridona Prime.

Tim's Comlink vibrated in the manner that indicated an incoming text message; //Sounds like a good idea, but what if they decide to cut out the middle and blow up your ship with her and me on it? Since the children are not here, I have room with me in my room. It has three bedrooms.//

Tim grinned as he composed and sent his reply;

//You must do what you believe is right, of course, Master; but the Illusion has six spare Staterooms which have never been slept in since her rebuild! The forward-most on each side are the only ones 'in-use' - one for me when she's on the ground and the other holding Prestorious' effects and private files. Additionally, she has very high-powered shields, and sensors that can detect beings attempting to sneak up on her - if necessary by the vibration of their footsteps alone. Her other major features are a compact, but very well-appointed, sickbay and the whole of the Starboard Storage Bay is available for Jedi Training, complete with a set of Stinger-remotes and a couple of Lightsaber Training Droids. Not all that useful to me now, though; through use I've become too familiar with their trigger-movements!//


TAG: Falcon.

 

IC: Kai Dareagen
The Gardens, Temple of Light, Saridona Prime

"There appears to be something in the victim's mouth.” Kai tries to look, but feels his bile rise in the back of his throat, “I have not removed it as you have not yet released me to move or alter the body, but I thought it might pertain to your investigation." The young knight takes several deep breaths struggling to settle his stomach. He steals a quick glance at Zoe, but then looks away. He fights down his vomit and takes another long look. There is something in her mouth. He reaches his shivering hands forward, slowly. He stops just before making contact,

“Sorry,” Kai sets his left hand on Zoe’s chin and pulls down slightly. Gently he removes the object, a piece of flimsi, from her mouth. “You can take her now, I’ll accompany her to the morgue.” He unfurls the flimsi,

Surrender the Temple, and yourselves, to the Darksyde.

A growl escapes his mouth, as if what this person did to Zoe isn’t enough of a warning, they had to put a note declaring it as such, more Sith overkill. Though Kai takes small comfort in the fact that Zoe didn’t suffer, but the extent this person went through to send this message is horrifying. Kai steps away to allow the droid to do it's work.

TAG: Bardan_Jusik

 

Co GM Update: Part I

IC: padawan Lacie (NPC)
en route to the infirmery, Temple of Light

"Lacie, you said Zoe was really upset last night. Do you know the exact reason why she was upset? Was it someone or something that made her upset?" Lacie flinched visibly at the question from Knight Sherland. "She was.." distracted for a moment she almost tripped over her own feet as they walked, but she managed to catch herself and prevent a fall. "There were rumors," she looked back at the other padawans, Tano and Thrace. "In the padawan dorms." She paused again, as far as she knew these two hadn't been a part of that rumor mongering, but she didn't know for sure. The whole level had seemed ablaze with the news by the time night fell.

"Rumors that Zoe's master, Knight Aroon, had been questioned several times." She shrugged. "No one had the whole story, and things seemed to be really jumbled up. Some people said he had been questioned by the Council, some by just a few Knights in charge of finding the Sith hiding here." She pulled at he hair for a moment. "Padawan Abyo said that he had been questioned six times!" She shrugged. "Padawan Takkoo had heard it was just twice, but that he was clearly suspect."

She thought back as some of the other rumors came to mind. Each had been wilder than the last. The Sith secretly ruled the Council already, the battle had just been a ruse. Or the Sith invasion had been repelled, but they had managed to take over the lower levels and were stuck there, trying to get out. There was a hidden Sith in the Temple, one who had managed to infiltrate the TCC and brought down the shields before the Sith had invaded and was still at large. The whole thing was an exercise being run by the Mandalorian head of security, there was really nothing to worry about. Neither Lacie nor Zoe had known what to believe, but Zoe had been clearly bothered by the rumors that her master was involved.

They continued on towards the medical ward. "I told her not to worry, that it was all just rumors, but she was worried that her master might be involved with all of this, that it would somehow come down on her." She started to cry again as she remembered Zoe ignoring her pleadings to just stay put and not worry so much. "If she had just listened to me she would be alive. Why couldn't I make her listen? Why?"

TAG: Falcon, Gotab, Padawan4687

---

IC: Knights Alemar and Alivanne (NPCs)
Stockade, Temple of Light

The force fields crackled and buzzed before them as the pair of Jedi watched over their prisoners. Knight Alemar, a female Shistavanen with brown fur, graying at the edges, could feel that their prisoners were awake, though for the moment they were silent. In fact they had been silent ever since the wave of fear and pain and overwhelmed the two Jedi assigned to duty here. At first they had been concerned that it was the beginning of some sort of escape attempt, but the prisoners remained safely locked away in their cells long after the Jedi had regained their fighting form. Still, while the Jedi had been weakened by the "force wave", the Sith appeared to have been strengthened by it.

Alemar looked to her partner, Knight Alivanne. The short haired, short statured, human woman had been just as affected as Alemar had been, though they hadn't discussed what had happened in front of the prisoners. If the Sith had hungrily devoured that pain, the Jedi knew they would feast on any uncertainty that their captors exhibited.

The door behind them unlocked and opened, causing both Jedi to spin around, Alemar's hand went to her blade, though she did not ignite it. Instead she followed Alivanne in bowing in greeting to the new arrivals. "Ah, Knights Trevalus and Be’orar, welcome. to the dungeons," Alivanne said with a smile. The Shistavanen turned to the other pair though. "And you must be the newcomer, Knight Archisa. I heard a Mirialan had arrived in the earlier...confusion." She nodded to Eira Dryn, unsure of how to address her just yet. "Here to speak with the prisoners?"

TAG: Ananta Chetan, The_Zeltron, Mitth_Fisto, Rebecca_Daniels

---

IC: COO-33K (Cookie) Cooking droid (NPC)
Dining Facility, Temple of Light

Things had cleared out nicely here Cookie thought to himself as it went about his early morning tasks. It was still technically breakfast time, but the dining hall was now empty of Jedi after something had scared them all away. Scurried off like roaches when the lights turn on the cooking droid thought to itself, accessing his memory banks of the infestation of his kitchens back on Nar Shaddaa. Disgusting, and so unsanitary.

Now of course the droid was doing his best to "rescue" the breakfast he had prepared for this morning as other droids scurried about the hall cleaning up the messes that had been made by the Jedi who had all so quickly departed. Reconstituted Nuna eggs were a fine meal, and Cookiee hated for them to go to waste. Over his decades of service in various kitchens, Cookie had developed a knack for knowing his customers, and by his reckoning no Jedi would be back for breakfast. It was time to try to save the eggs and prepare for lunch. Reconstituted Nuna Egg salad sandwiches sounded like an excellent choice for everyone.

A clattering of dishes caught Cookie's attention and he looked towards the sound of the disturbance. One of the server droids had slipped on spilled eggs and gone crashing to the ground, adding even more to the mess. Cookie knew the gyro stabilization of that unit needed to be tuned, but where was the time? A moment later the server droid and her gyro-stabilizers were put into long term memory as a trio of Jedi did enter open dining hall, against Cookie's prognostication.

"Hey, we already served you breakfast," the droid called out to padawan's Battershell and Ka." Knight Sandstrider hand't been to breakfast yet, but the other two had. "We're still cleaning up your mess from earlier!" He pointed to a chair where Battershell's now cold and runny breakfast had landed earlier. "No seconds! So what are you here for?"

TAG: Tim Battershell, Skywalker_T-65, Zurros Ka

 

Co GM Update: Part II


IC: Beskaryc Taab
TCC, Temple of Light

It hadn't taken long for Taab to find the relevant files to peruse. He had a time and place to examine, and he was looking for a specific pair of Jedi. Lefty (Knight Reese) and Munchies (Knight Kurkak), both on the Knights dorm level, just after lights out. Shouldn't be too hard.
He had just started to run the security footage when he was interrupted by a text only message sent to his comm unit. He sighed softly, annoyed at the interruption (though he kept the footage running) as the message scrolled across the Heads Up Display in his buy'ce.

//Place Knight Aroon on the top list of suspects.//

Aroon? The Knight who was so plain that Taab couldn't even think of a nickname for him? Taab didn't think him capable of the sort of malice required to do what had been done to Easy Pickings (Zoe) and wondered briefly what could have caused Momma (Kasha Sherland) to suspect him enough to send Taab a message. No matter, she had and...

Ah! there on the footage was Lefty, flexing his mechanical arm with a pleased sort of smile on his face. He was headed down the corridor towards his own room. Taab would have to fast forward through the entire night to ensure he stayed there, but things were looking promising so far. A few minutes later, according to the time stamp, Munchies went lumbering down the same corridor towards his own room. Excellent, so far so good, though Taab would also have to watch to ensure he stayed in his room all night as well. He kept the playback running, at 4x speed and let out a loud yawn.

"Wait, was that?" The Negotiator (Elim Rand) looked up at Taab with amusement as the Mandalorian spoke to himself. He rewound the footage a minute or two, to confirm to himself what he thought he just saw...

Yes, it was who he thought. There, right before him was a small holo of Easy Pickings, entering the Knight's dorm level only minutes after Lefty and Munchies had retired. What was she doing there? She should be on the padawan level. Taab paused the feedback to make sure. Yes, it was most definitely her. He started the playback once again, noting the look of deep concern on her face. She didn't hide her feelings well at all.

The young padawan paused outside of the doorway to the room assigned to her master, Knight Aroon, but she didn't knock. If Taab were to guess it looked like she was trying to screw up the courage to do something, to knock, or just barge in, but she never did. Instead she turned and fled back down the hallway, walking briskly before going out of the holo-cams range. Interesting. He continued to fast forward through the footage again, making sure to keep an eye on Aroon's door as well.

"Oya!" Taab whispered to himself, earning another bemused look from the human Jedi Knight. 40 minutes after Easy Pickings had left his room without knocking, Knight Aroon emerged and headed down the corridor in the same direction as she had. Taab rewound and watched again, looking for anything out of the ordinary, but the Jedi seemed as he always did. Taab did take note that Aroon was armed with the lightsaber he had requested of Taab earlier. Curiouser and curiouser. Taab would have to note what time the man returned, though his primary focus was on eliminating Lefty and Munchies as suspects right now. Still, he forwarded on Momma's message to Tough Guy (Kai Dareagen).

//Message from Knight Sherland reads as follows: Place Knight Aroon on the top list of suspects. End message.//

In the meantime, Taab kept the footage rolling...

---

IC: Serjon (NPC)
Central Island, Gardens, Temple of Light

Serjon watched dispassionately as Knight Dareagen apologized to the deceased before removing the object from her mouth. He understood that organics had an emotional response to such things, though he was fortunate to not be programmed with such responses to what was essentially just a bag of meat now. The droid did begin the "collection" of the body parts now. Moving them to a central location on the island, knowing that a pair of labor droids were on their way to actually handle the body.

As he did so he heard a low growl emit from his Jedi companion. He had found a peice of flimsi stuffed in the corpses mouth, and whatever was on it had elicted the response. An organic would have been curious, something that Serjon was likewise not programmed for unless it pertained to medical matters. Still, he responded, unsure if Knight Dareagen required some sort of assistance. "Is everything all right sir?"

At that moment the boat touched shore again, this time carrying a pair of general labor droids. They rolled onto the rocky beach with little difficulty, their treads crunching the sand and rocks beneath them before trampling through the underbrush. Dareagen stepped away now, as Serjon began loading the body of padawan Zoe onto the collapsible stretcher they bore.

"Next stop, the morgue. I believe you stated your intention to accompany us sir?"

TAG: galactic-vagabond422

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
headed towards the med bay

Kasha quickly typed in a new message to her padawan as she waited for Lacie to answer. //Padawan, it sounds good. We'll stay there until we have this sorted out. I don't mind looking after Lacie, guess I'm deprived of my children at the moment. I need the company. Have you heard of any rumors about Knight Aroon being investigated?//

Kasha listened as Lacie answered her questions causing her to frown. Aroon wasn't questioned by the Council and the rumors were bothersome indeed. The only Jedi that had been questioned about was her husband so far and that's due to him taking off in the middle of the night without saying anything to anyone. "Lacie, the only Jedi that had been questioned so far was my husband. And that's because we decided to take our children back to our home on Corellia two nights before the Sith attacked without telling anyone, if made it look suspicious," if Zoe had approached one of us this whole mess could've been avoided. "Sometime's it's difficult to get one to listen when they're really upset, next time someone is super upset, don't hesitate to contact a Master or a Knight. My daughter ended up in a comma for two weeks. She never told me that her friend was being physically picked on. Mekaila went to her friend's defense and got hit in the head pretty hard. I'm going to tell you the same thing I told her after she woke up. If there is something going on or bothering you or another padawan, please don't hesitate to approach me. Okay?"

Kasha paused for a second and bit on her lip. What if the rumors had merit? Sometimes rumors can just be rumors but what if Aroon was involved and one of the padawans knew? She knew Tim would've told her if he heard something and her being on the council, they would avoid Tim like the plague. "Besides the two padawans you mentioned, do any other padawans come to mind?"

"Padawans Thrace and Tano, have you heard of these rumors?" Kasha questioned both padawan learners.

Gotab, Padawan4687, Bardan_Jusik, Tim Battershell

 

IC: Tim Battershell
Cafeteria, Temple of Light - Saridona Prime.

As the author of a good portion of the mess, Tim decided to take the lead in answering the Cook Droid;

"Profound apologies, Chef, especially for the mess. We were struck by what you would probably term a 'power-surge' just as we were about to eat.

That was caused by the discovery of one of our number who had been permanently deactivated and subjected to a brutal forcible dismantlement on the Meditation Island, sometime last night.

With your permission, could we possibly find a quiet spot to look at some surveillance holo-recordings, as instructed by Grandmaster Zey? Also, if you or any of your assistants happened to notice any 'meatbag' behaving strangely - make that more strangely than usual - between Last Servings and Breakfast, could it please be mentioned?. We have an enemy loose in the Temple, it seems. He or she needs to be identified and stopped from causing further harm as quickly as possible."

Tim had never dealt with a Droid of this type before, but had a firm belief that showing appropriate respect never hurt. This Cook Droid was the head of the Temple's Kitchen, after all, so merited being addressed by the title of "Chef".

Before he could begin reviewing the recordings, or even unsling and activate the Recorder/Viewer, a text message came in from his Master. The operative part was;

//Have you heard of any rumors about Knight Aroon being investigated?//

//Negative, Master and I doubt Zurros has either, although I'll ask him. While I certainly think parts of Knight Aroon's conduct this morning give grounds for suspicion, that's not proof. I also suspect he's being given quite a grilling by the Grandmaster and Master Piim right now! May come down to him not bonding as closely with his Padawan as he should have, and is now feeling guilty about not having done so.//; he texted in reply.

Turning to Zurros, he said aloud; "Zurros, my Master is asking if either of us heard rumours about Knight Aroon coming under investigation. I haven't but have you?"

Now he was free to get the Recorder / Viewer operating in Playback mode, saying to his companions;

"Three pairs of eyes are better than one for a job like this, Gentlemen! What I think we should be primarily looking for is anyone moving from the Promenade entrance to the passage that ascends to the Hangar Bay level, especially if they are moving with undue haste or in a furtive manner. If we don't recognise them ourselves, Major Taab may be able to, although that means a visit to the TCC."


TAG: Falcon, Zurros Ka, Skywalker_T-65, Bardan_Jusik (especially re. the Holocam Recordings).

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
Walking towards the med bay.

Kasha waited for Lacie to answer as she noticed she had an incoming text message from Tim. //Thought it was worth asking, according to Lacie there are rumors about Aroon being the one we're looking for. Thought I would ask. We'll need to interview the padawans and nip this in the buds before it really gets out of control.//

Tim Battershell

 

IC: padawan Lacie (NPC)
en route to the infirmary, Temple of Light

"Besides the two padawans you mentioned, do any other padawans come to mind?"

Lacie shook her head in response. "There were a bunch of them." She shrugged now. "At the time it seemed like everyone." She kept walking with the others. "It was so bad that even I figured that Zoe's Master must have something to do with what was going on..." She looked away wistfully. "Even if I told Zoe that she had nothing to worry about."

She stopped now as the other continued on for a few steps, allowing herself to fall a few meters behind. "Are you saying that the Jedi Inquisitor, Knight Dareagen, isn't investigating Aroon?"

TAG: Falcon, Gotab, Padawan4687

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
Walking towards the med bay

"Knight Dareagen, isn't investigating Aroon?"

Kasha stopped walking and turned back towards Lacie with a frown. Not at the time he wasn't but now she had put him to the top of their suspects list just to rule him out. "He wasn't at the time, no," she answered honestly. "but now everyone is under suspect until we figure out who did the deed. At the moment we need to start ruling others out as quickly as possible if we want to find who the Sith is that is among our group. We'll need to ask him a few questions about his where bouts and see if anyone can vouch for him. It's standard procedure for cases like this."

Kasha quickly punched a message into Master Zey. //There are rumors about Aroon being investigated among the padawans, suggest we nip this in the buds as quickly as possible. It caused Zoey to be upset and to go out to the island by herself in the first place. Particularly with two, Padawans, Padawan Abyo and Padawan Takkoo. I would suggest starting with those two padawans to see if there is a reason why they were passing around rumors.//



"Come on, we'll keep it brief at the med ward, we just want to make sure your okay, then my padawan has offered us the comforts and security safety of his ship. Maybe we can ask the medic to supply you something to help you sleep," Kasha suggested with a kind smile. "Lacie, how do you feel besides feeling sad?"


Bardan_Jusik, Gotab, Padawan4687

 

IC: padawan Lacie (NPC)
en route to the infirmary, Temple of Light

Lacie was taken aback at Knight Sherland's statement. There may have been a number of differing rumors flying around the padawan level, but one thing they nearly all had in common was that Aroon was suspect number one. "Hhmmm," she said to herself at the answer, still confused and frightened by what was going on around her. The mention of staying safely on padawan Battershell's ship (Lacie knew he was Knight Sherland's padawan) sounded good. So long as he could be trusted.

Lacie shrugged, if Sherland trusted him, and she trusted Sherland, then Lacie could trust Battershell too. She nodded silently her agreement to that idea, though she really didn't feel like she needed to be checked on in the med bay. The morgue was in the medbay, and that's where Zoe's body was going to be taken. Lacie didn't feel like being that close to her deceased friend again. Not while she was on a cold slab anyway.

"Lacie, how do you feel besides feeling sad?"

Terrified, Lacie wanted to scream. She knew that Zoe had been more advanced in her lightsaber training than she was. If this hidden evil could do...what he had done to her to, than he could do even worse to Lacie, and more quickly. It was a thought that almost froze her with fear. She looked into Sherland's smiling face, her own eyes still moist with tears.

"To be honest, I'm a little scared at the moment."

TAG: Falcon, Gotab, Padawan4687

 

IC:Kasha Sherland
Heading towards the medbay

Kasha nodded knowing full well this feeling. This feeling can lead to the dark side as well. She stopped walking and turned towards the padawan. "It's okay to be a little scared, it's a natural reaction after what's happened. but also fear is a path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering. Consume you they will as it did other padawans and knights in the past. If you're not careful, you end up becoming what you hate the most. Come on, let's get this over with at the med ward. Then we can head down to Tim's ship. I'm a little curious about his layout, it did sound amazing so my curiosity is peeked. It sounds like there is more then enough room for all three of us. Thrace, Tano how do you feel like staying on my padawan's ship tonight? Lacie, do you have any questions for me?"

Bardan_Jusik, Padawan4687, Gotab

 

IC: padawan Lacie (NPC)
en route to the infirmary, Temple of Light

Suffering, yeah I've had enough of that. The mantra was an old one, one that probably every padawan knew well, but it didn't help Lacie right now. She hadn't been all that afraid before, nor angry. She didn't even feel hatred right now, even after seeing Zoe like...that. But she was suffering right now. Suffering more than she ever had. She started to feel her anger rising. What gave the Sith the right to do this to all of them, to her, to Zoe? Maybe the Jedi of old had it wrong, maybe it was the suffering that came first

"Come on, let's get this over with at the med ward. Then we can head down to Tim's ship."

Lacie nodded her head eagerly. She didn't want to go to the med ward at all. That's where Zoe's body would end up, but there was no arguing with a Jedi Knight. Better to just get it over with and go to a place of safety, padawan Battershell's ship sounded like the perfect place.

"Lacie, do you have any questions for me?"

Lacie started to shake her head before biting her lower lip. She wanted to cry out, to scream to the heavens asking "Why?" But she didn't. Instead she wiped away the last of her tears and answered simply. "No Master Sherland, no questions."

TAG: @Falcon, @Gotab, @Padawan4687

 

IC: Suraya Archisa
Temple Brig

One of the secret joys of being a Jedi for Suraya was discovering opportunities to return kindness for evil. While incarcerated aboard the Hellfire she was irregularly given a plate of stale often half-eaten Sith leftovers as her only sustenance for many days. So while on their way to the brig she was sure to pick up a few ripe muja fruits from one of the nearby kitchen pantries. Two for each would do.

Once they had cleared the security checkpoints and been updated briefly on their two dark guests by Knights Alemar and Alivanne she observed that their cells were well within earshot of each other. Perhaps they could speak to them both simultaneously without having to bother with bringing them into an interrogation room, at least for now. Casting a long sideways glance at her companions, she waited patiently for one of the Council member's to initiate the questioning, though she had observed yesterday that both Gaan and Hochner were very much at ease in regards to adhering to small issues of protocol. After a sufficient pause she cleared her throat...If I may...Harbinger...Sixtus...can you tell us...if this...Darth Praedator, has the ability to change their appearance at will...again and again...or are they committed to a single chosen form...at least for some duration?


TAG Bardan_Jusik The_Zeltron Mitth_Fisto Rebecca_Daniels

 

IC: Ian Thrace
On the way to sickbay, Temple of Light, Saridona Prime

Ian followed along behind Knight Sherland and Lacie, his fellow Padawan. He felt from her a desire to not go to the sick bay, and who could blame her? Looking over at Alisha sheepishly he remembered all the time they had each spent there, sometimes due to each other. He gave the Togruta a small smile, hoping she would see it. Sad to say she seemed like the closest thing he had to a friend in the Temple. That thought made him blush slightly.

As they made their way through darkened hallway, Ian listened in on the conversation between Knight Sherland and Padawan Lacie. There were questions about the rumors. Ian had heard them too, but had been too afraid to add to them. His own opinion was that "Battershell" was at the heart of all of this, but Ian couldn't afford to say anything to another Padawan about that. The information was far too likely to get back to "Battershell", and that would lead to a very violent and gruesome end, just like it had with Zoe.

"Padawans Thrace and Tano, have you heard of these rumors?"

Ian shrugged and nodded before answering quietly. "A few..." He wasn't sure that answer would be of much help.

There were other questions too, and Ian almost bumped into Lacie when the discussion turned to Knight Aroon. Just speaking of him really seemed to get to her, but he just seemed like a nice guy to Ian. Why would he hurt his own Padawan like that? That just made no sense. None of this made any sense to Ian. None of it, and that frightened him even more. He wasn't alone.

"To be honest, I'm a little scared at the moment."

"Tell me about it," Ian muttered under his breath. But something even more frightening was about to be brought up. "Thrace, Tano how do you feel like staying on my padawan's ship tonight? Lacie, do you have any questions for me?" In the moment he had missed that they would be going to "Battershell's" ship for "safety" reasons, but it hit him like a speeder truck now. Safety, on "Battershell's" ship? Oh no. No way. Ian had felt uncomfortable enough the first time. There was no way he was going to go aboard that ship now that Padawans were being killed.

"No Master Sherland, no questions."

"Master Sherland, I have a question." He stopped, not sure what to say next. "Is there anywhere else in the Temple besides your Padawan's ship that we could all stay?" Yeah like the heart of the Sun he thought to himself. "Somewhere less obvious maybe?"

TAG: Bardan_Jusik, Falcon, Padawan4687

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
Walking towards the med bay

Kasha felt shock come off of Ian at the mention of staying on her padawan's ship. She wasn't sure earlier if he suspected her padawan or not but now she was sure. Just like they were jumping all over Anakin just because he left with their children two days prior to the attack. Kasha glanced at Ian and frowned as he asked a question that raised her suspicions.

"Master Sherland, I have a question." He stopped, not sure what to say next. "Is there anywhere else in the Temple besides your Padawan's ship that we could all stay?" Yeah like the heart of the Sun he thought to himself. "Somewhere less obvious maybe?"

"I wasn't sure earlier, but I'm sure of it now. Padawan Ian, why do you suspect my padawan?" Kasha questioned with a frown. "He's been assigned to the team attempting to find the culprit. Do you know something about Tim that I don't?"


Gotab, Bardan_Jusik, Padawan4687

 

IC: Kai Dareagen
The Gardens, Temple of Light, Saridona Prime

"Is everything all right sir?" The droid asks, Kai tucks the piece of flimsi into a pocket and stares back at the medical droid,

“It’s fine I just need to get started on the investigation.” He is lying of course he isn’t fine, this whole incident has thrown everything into disarray, his mind, his feelings, everything is out of balance. He needs to find this killer, to get justice for Zoe, to finally put this dark chapter behind him.

Labor droids arrived and began to put Zoe on to a stretcher, Kai looks away again, still can’t bear to look.

"Next stop, the morgue. I believe you stated your intention to accompany us sir?"

“Yes, I’ll accompany you to the morgue,” he pauses to take a deep breath, “Lead on,”

TAG: Bardan_Jusik

 

IC: Ian Thrace
On the way to sickbay, Temple of Light, Saridona Prime

"I wasn't sure earlier, but I'm sure of it now. Padawan Ian, why do you suspect my padawan? He's been assigned to the team attempting to find the culprit. Do you know something about Tim that I don't?"

Ian's ever mounting levels of fear shot through the roof at Knight Sherland's response. How did she know he suspected "Battershell"? Now that she did, what would she do about it? His breathing quickened, his mouth went dry and his palms were clammy. His first instinct was to deny it. If "Battershell" was the Sith, then it stood to reason that "Sherland" was working with him. Even "Battershell" had stated that the best way for the Sith to remain hidden was a Master and Padawan pairing. If he confirmed his suspicions to her, she would kill him, and Lacie and Alisha. She would kill them all to keep her secret. He couldn't let that happen, nor could he simply run away and hide from "Knight Sherland". No matter how afraid he was, Ian had to stay and observe her, and eventually go with his suspicions of them both to Grandmaster Zey. He would know what to do.

"I'm sure you know your Padawan far more than I do Master Sherland." Oh that was true, especially if they were in league together to bring the Jedi down from within! "I just..." His eyes darted back and forth, trying quickly to come up with a believable lie. "I would just feel much safer somewhere else in the Temple than aboard an unfamiliar vessel is all."

TAG: Bardan_Jusik, Falcon, Padawan4687

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
Heading towards the med ward.

"Ian, you have to calm down," Kasha spoke gently as she sensed his panic doubling through the Force. "Fear is a path to the dark side, if you don't control your fear and panic, it can and will lead you astray. I can sense your panic and fear through the Force in case you were wondering how I figured it out. You're not very subtitle with your feelings or the way you kept throwing suspicion glances towards Tim at the shoreline. Tim is not a Sith, I would've known long before now. And as for me, my husband and I came from Ossis. That is where we both trained was with Skywalker's group. His sister died because she was protecting me from the Sith that was attacking me. She gave her life so I could be with her brother. That is not something I take lightly and I am grateful for it because it allowed Anakin and I to have two beautiful children. My ancestor is Master Decinchi, he doesn't make it well known that he is well over two-hundred and fifty years but his people are long lived. He is my great great great grandfather and there's a chance I have passed that gene down to one of my children. I have a history that dates to a long lived line of Jedi all the way back to the Clone Wars. My ancestor was an order 66 survivor and an Alderaan survivor."

Kasha paused for a second and took a deep breath and slowly released it. She suspected that Ian was jumping at shadows just because they didn't know the Sith Lord was. "Ian, if you have trouble trusting those around you. You'll be jumping at shadows for the rest of your life. Learn to trust your instincts instead of just making guesses because you don't know the person. Clear your mind, Ian. What do your instincts tell you?"

Bardan_Jusik, Gotab, Padawan4687

 

IC: Alisha Tano
Location: En route to the Medical Ward

Alisha listened closely to Master Kasha as she tried to placate Ian, but both of the last names she said brought on two very different reactions: Skywalker, which heightened her attention, and Decinchi, which instantly made it shut off. She nearly sent a glare to the ground, but quickly stopped herself. Quick, think about something else before you blast your emotions to everyone around you, again! Battershell...she had no real reason to suspect him, she couldn't sense anything "off" about him when he had offered her the data pad either. Not only had they been alone at the time, but Alisha had still been disoriented by that Force scream! Technically, the perfect time to strike.

Definitely not the best way of rationalizing, but it was all Alisha could do at that moment to silence her own rambling brain. Maybe she'd be able to sneak a few minutes to read the pad while on board the ship... "Throwing accusations around isn't going to get anybody anywhere." She added with some disgust at the thought, "If anything, our hidden Sith would likely just sit back, relax and watch as the fear destroys the Temple from within..."

TAG: Bardan_Jusik, Falcon, Gotab

 

IC: Kasha Sherland
Headed towards the med bay

Kasha nodded as she listened to Alisha. She completely agreed with the padawan. "Padawan Tano has made some good points, throwing around accusations towards each other will not get us anywhere. It will only cause mistrust between everyone and it'll destroy us from the inside. We'll end up doing the Sith's work for him. Unless we have proof allowing us to act on it, otherwise it only causes problems. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Kasha hoped Ian would drop the subject and just put trust that Tim wouldn't do anything to any one of them. Ian seemed to be lacking trust in others, and that is something he really needed to work on.

Padawan4687, Gotab, Bardan_Jusik

 

IC: Ian Thrace
On the way to sickbay, Temple of Light, Saridona Prime

"Ian, you have to calm down."

Ian wanted to, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't and as "Knight Sherland" continued talking, it grew more difficult still. She could read his mind it seemed! That was scary enough to think about without considering that she could be the evil Sith's accomplice, or maybe even the evil Sith herself!!! Her long and storied history, her connections to the greats of the past further discouraged him. He had no such connection to Jedi lore. Those like "Knight Sherland" and Padawan Alisha Tano were lucky. All Ian knew of his own connection to the Jedi Order was his old master, who had adopted him out of necessity rather than desire. Even she had been ripped away from him at a young age, forcing him to become a beggar and thief in the underworld of Coruscant. Maybe if he had their advantages in life, his own wouldn't be so messed up right now. It just wasn't fair!

"Ian, if you have trouble trusting those around you. You'll be jumping at shadows for the rest of your life. Learn to trust your instincts instead of just making guesses because you don't know the person." The last person he had ever really trusted had been Knight Ibarra, the master who had been killed before his eyes when he was just a boy. In his mind's eye he could still see the Bounty Hunter end her life by severing her head with her own lightsaber! He could smell the sulfurous odor of the Works back on Coruscant. He had trusted her, and she had failed him. Not by choice, but she had failed him all the same and condemned him to his life of petty crime.

In the life that followed for him trust was akin to a four letter word. A street gang of thugs and thieves was no place to engender trust. Only his minor abilities with the Force had allowed him to earn his keep there, though he never let anyone know about his special advantage. Trusting them with that would have been a death sentence. He had no doubts that any of them would have turned him in for the bounty on his head.

"Clear your mind, Ian. What do your instincts tell you?" Ian shook his head, looking away from "Knight Sherland" and towards the floor as they walked. Still, he did as he was asked. He closed his eyes (hoping he wouldn't bump into anything) and tried to clear his mind. He was so afraid, and that fear threatened to overwhelm him. It sharpened his mind, gave him focus, a focus that started to pierce the fog...

It was so cold in here all of a sudden, and he shivered slightly. His eyes snapped open. That wasn't the way, he knew that. He breathed in deeply, the air around him becoming warmer. The focus was gone, but so too was his mind clear, at peace. His instincts however failed him. He felt...nothing, and that scared him more than anything else.

"I'm sorry Master Sherland. My instincts tell me nothing." He shook his head again as he shrugged, hoping "Knight Sherland" was done with him. Padawan Tano wasn't though. "Throwing accusations around isn't going to get anybody anywhere." Ian was aghast. Guess they weren't friends after all. He couldn't blame her, not after the way he had treated her earlier. "If anything, our hidden Sith would likely just sit back, relax and watch as the fear destroys the Temple from within..." Sitting around doing nothing seemed a pathway to certain death as well.

"Padawan Tano has made some good points, throwing around accusations towards each other will not get us anywhere. It will only cause mistrust between everyone and it'll destroy us from the inside. We'll end up doing the Sith's work for him. Unless we have proof allowing us to act on it, otherwise it only causes problems. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Ian nodded his head slowly, but he didn't really understand. How could they ever hope to find proof without suspicion? Ian himself hadn't acted on anything, had not openly accused anyone of anything and yet here he was being berated for simply observing, for having suspicions. He shrugged a last time. "Yes master." Ian resigned himself to his fate. He still didn't trust "Battershell" or his master, but Ian would trust whatever destiny the Force had in store for him.

TAG: Bardan_Jusik, Falcon, Padawan4687

 

Co-GM Update: Part I

IC: padawan Lacie (NPC)
Infirmary, Temple of Light

Lacie frowned at the questioning padawan Thrace was getting. This wasn't about him, or even her. It was about Zoe, and finding the murderous filth that had killed her. She quickened her pace, the sooner she got this over with the sooner they could get to padawan Battershell's ship. Once there they could hopefully all focus on the task at hand and forget about padawan Thrace and his...weirdness.

Her tactic worked, at least in the short term as they arrived at the Infirmary without much further conversation. Once admitted she was examined by an absolutely ancient medical analysis droid.

"Other than a touch of dehydration, she is completly healthy. I see no reason to keep her here under our care provided that she takes care of herself and properly hydrates." Lacie nearly leaped for joy as she hopped off the examination bed. She wanted to get out of here before Zoe's body arrived, she had no desire to be here and have to deal with those emotions again. "C'mon, let's go. I want to be far away.." she paused. "I want to get to the hanger as soon as we can," she said as she rushed out of the Infirmary and headed to the hanger, and safety.

TAG: Falcon, Gotab, Padawan4687

---

IC: Darth Sixtus, Darth Harbinger (NPCs)
Stockade, Temple of Light

With the arrival of two Council members along with two others, Knights Alemar and Alivanne took a step back. They would continue to guard the entryway to the stockade, but wouldn't interfere in the interrogation in any way. Once it started that was. Finally Knight Archisa spoke.

"If I may...Harbinger...Sixtus...can you tell us...if this...Darth Praedator, has the ability to change their appearance at will...again and again...or are they committed to a single chosen form...at least for some duration?"

There was a feminine giggle from the cell to the Jedi's right while the cell to the left remained silent for a moment before Harbinger spoke. "Ah Knight Archisa, so good to hear your voice again. And who is that out there with you? I sense Be’orar and," his voice caught for a moment. "Trevalus." He paused again before continuing on almost serenely. "And of course Miss Eira Dryn. Well, even Jedi Knights need bodyguards I suppose. Especially when confronting a pair of caged Sith." The giggling could be hard from the other cell again before Sixtus answered in turn.

"Now now, Harbinger. These fine Jedi have come to us with questions. It seems only reasonable to answer them, after all they have been such hospitable hosts." Now it was Harbinger's turn to laugh, a short nasty sounding thing that didn't sound at all as sincere as him companion's had. "Well, I don't blame them. It seems our friend Praedator has gone and done something rather rash."

"Not surprising, it is his nature..."

"Hmmm yes. He does have a flair for the dramatic, not as developed or refined as your's my dear."

"You flatter me Harbinger," Sixtus cooed. "But I do believe that we've been asked a question already."

There was silence again from Harbinger for a moment, and Sixtus almost went to respond again before he spoke. "Praedator may have some ability, and he certainly enjoys his drama, but no, he cannot change his form at will." Sixtus took over now. "He will be what he is, whenever you find him. If you find him."

"He has them jumping at their own shadows now, can you feel their paranoia?"

"mmmm, yes. It's delicious."

Now it was Harbinger's turn for his own little joke as he tried to imitate the voice of the long since passed Grand Master Yoda. "Begun the Shadow War has," and the small stockade was filled with the sound of Sixtus' laughter.

TAG: Ananta Chetan, The_Zeltron, Mitth_Fisto, Rebecca_Daniels

---

IC: COO-33K (Cookie) Cooking droid (NPC)
Dining Facility, Temple of Light

"Profound apologies, Chef, especially for the mess. We were struck by what you would probably term a 'power-surge' just as we were about to eat. That was caused by the discovery of one of our number who had been permanently deactivated and subjected to a brutal forcible dismantlement on the Meditation Island, sometime last night."

Cookie accepted the apology from padawan Battershell, such as it was, in stride. This was his kitchen, and he expected a certain amount of decorum from those that ate here. Making messes and such for any reason was just not acceptable.

"With your permission, could we possibly find a quiet spot to look at some surveillance holo-recordings, as instructed by Grandmaster Zey? Also, if you or any of your assistants happened to notice any 'meatbag' behaving strangely - make that more strangely than usual - between Last Servings and Breakfast, could it please be mentioned?. We have an enemy loose in the Temple, it seems. He or she needs to be identified and stopped from causing further harm as quickly as possible."

That explained the new equipment someone had put in his kitchen. He hadn't know what it was for, only that he didn't requisition it. He did know that it wasn't for baking a cake. he also hadn;t seen anything out of the ordinary, but he was a cooking droid, not an Imperial Spy probe. "In the back here, use the main pantry. There are no chairs, so you'll have to stand. Should be nice and quiet in there. Don't touch anything, I have it organized the way I like it." Cookie gestured with one of it's arms towards where he meant, delicately balancing a bottle of Sernpidalian mayo-ketchup. "If you find who you're looking for, please keep any fight away from here. You've made quite enough of a mess in my kitchen already."

Cookie watched long enough to see the trio of Jedi go back to the pantry area. He had never before referred to an organic as a meatbag before. It sounded more like a fine dish to prepare rather than something to call a sentient. He went back to start chopping vegetables. Yes, meatbag, perhaps served with Fenti beans and a nice Chimbak. That sounded wonderful.

TAG: Tim Battershell, Skywalker_T-65, Zurros Ka


OOC: That second to last line adapted from The Silence of the Lambs.

 

Co-GM Update: Part II


IC: Beskaryc Taab
TCC, Temple of Light

Taab was already growing weary of this. It was the boring parts to an investigation such as this that made him despise bounty hunting. Sure the thrill of finally catching up to a worthy foe was made it worthwhile, but the hours, days, or even weeks it could take before doing that were so tedious. Maybe it was a good thing Tough Guy (Kai Dareagen) had been given the lead on this.

The Mandalorian stifled a yawn and kept watching the holo footage of the Knight's dorm level from the night before. So far there had been noting to incriminate the two guards he had left in the Gardens, but he had to watch it all to make sure. He did note that the Negotiator (Elim Rand), who was standing nearby him here in the TCC in real time, left the dorms right around 10 minutes after Aroon had. Was there a connection? Too soon to tell, but he did cast a glance towards the mirthful Knight who was busy chatting away with his twi'lek companion.

There was nothing on the footage for some time afterwards. Both Aroon and the Negotiator must have had some late night business to attend to, though Aroon did return to his room about an hour after he had left. He looked none the worse for wear, as emotionless and plain as ever. There was still no sign of either Lefty (Knight Reese) or Munchies (Knight Kurkak) leaving the dorms though, so Taab watched on.

TAG: No one.

---

IC: Serjon (NPC)
en route to the Morgue, Temple of Light

As the droids and Knight Dareagen accompanied the deceased to the morgue Serjon took note of the melancholy silence. Serjon was no expert in psychoanalysis, and his bedside manner left much to be desired, but he was a healer, and Knight Dareagen needed some healing. There was no need for the Jedi to escort them, the body was just that, an empty (and dismembered) husk. It and the droids that carried it would be a very low priority target for the Sith the Jedi were all hunting for, and there was little else the body could tell Dareagen with regards to his investigation. It was therefore an emotional attachment, a desire to see her body put to rest (for now in the morgue, Serjon was sure the Jedi would perform their own cremation ritual when time allowed) that motivated the young Jedi Knight.

"If I may ask, what will your next course of action be Knight Dareagen?" The droid had no actual interest in how the Jedi solved the crime, or what his thought process was. The question was in fact a clumsy way to get Dareagen thinking on the future, on doing something, instead of just dwelling on padawan Zoe's death.

TAG: galactic-vagabond422

OOC: I'll get Dareagen and the droids to the Morgue later this week or in my next update depending on when you post vagabond.. I just didn't want them there at the same time that Lacie's group was.