main
side
curve
  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Beyond - Legends [ updated 7/21 ] - Cruel Honor - mystery/romance - (19yr post-NJO)

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by Arin_Atona, Oct 4, 2004.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    : Galvin gets the best jokes.

    He tries.

    : I certainly hope that Ben was having a dream and not a vision.

    Only time will tell.
     
  2. JediMaster_Fisto

    JediMaster_Fisto Jedi Youngling star 1

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2004
    where r u?

    u haven't posted in a while.

    please post soon!
     
  3. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    I've been fighting the minions of Darth Reality... and I've got a lively little fic going in Saga that has drawn most of my effort.

    I'll be back to quasi-semi-somewhat-normal sometime soon.
     
  4. DarthIshtar

    DarthIshtar Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    quasi-semi-normal...etc...

    Estoy asustada por tu indecision.

    3PO:

    Quasi-semi-normal...etc...

    I'm afraid of your indecision.
     
  5. JediTristan

    JediTristan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2004
    More for me on Saga!

    Whenever you update is fine with me.
     
  6. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    Finally! A post!

    With a surprise cameo to boot!


    * * *

    The swirling maelstrom of rust-colored clouds wrapping around the planet below was reminiscent of times gone by - of days when all of life seemed be suffocating in one seemingly endless storm that threatened to strip away everything good in its fury. One could scarcely imagine that anything could survive under such a relentless onslaught of raging forces shearing against one another with enough ravaging power to change the shape of the most hardened bedrock and alter the course of rivers. Yet somehow, life managed to linger under the surface, simply needing a little nourishment to continue on its course.

    No matter the storm, and even when all else was reduced to ashes, something good and unspoiled would always be left behind to rekindle the spark of life where one might only see cold darkness.

    "Deceptive, isn't it?"

    Nori kept her gaze outward as the owner of the voice approached her side and began his own observation. With all the swirling activity below, it was difficult to even distinguish which direction the Errant Venture was orbiting the storm-laden world.

    "Through all those storms," the voice continued, "it's hard to imagine that anything actually lives on Ossus."

    Nori turned her head to regard him with a soft smile. "It so happens, I was dwelling upon that very thing, Master Skywalker. Although," she added, pursing her lips, "I find it more amazing that all this chaos was caused by the hands of sentient beings. Nature, in all its power and indiscriminate destruction, cannot hold even a flickering candle to the inferno of cruelty beings often inflict on one another."

    Master Skywalker nodded his head. "Nature is cold and unfeeling in its cruelty. Men are calculating and deliberate in theirs."

    "Sometimes," Nori agreed. "Though unbridled passion can be just as cruel."

    "Is that why love was forbidden in the Old Order?" Luke inquired, drawing her gaze. "I've never had the opportunity to study..."

    "You should not trouble yourself with it," Nori interrupted, almost disdainfully. "The Old Order established a great many rules and codes to create consistency within its teachings. Rules often have their basis in wisdom, but often outlive their usefulness. The moratorium on emotional attachment was one such rule."

    Skywalker regarded her in silence for a few moments. As she suspected, he wasn't satisfied with a simple dismissal. "Why do you say that?" he asked. "It's not just because you broke that rule, is it?"

    Nori smiled at him, pleased that he was as intelligent and observant as he was powerful. "Of course not. It outlived its usefulness because it failed to take into account people like you and I who always look for the reasons behind things. Its purpose," she explained, "was directed at a specific type of Jedi with a specific type of commitment. When the days came that our ranks swelled beyond our capacity to maintain a one-Master, one-Padawan apprenticeship, many individual-specific teachings became canon because it was simply easier to train all Jedi the same way than to tailor their training to the specific apprentice. Even when it became possible to go back to the old ways, the Council thought it best to leave the training regimen as it was so that the Order became little more than a Jedi assembly plant." No doubt he would catch her use of the term 'old ways'.

    Skywalker looked perplexed. "So, students weren't always taught the same things?"

    "Certainly not," she replied. "Tell me, Master Skywalker, is it better for a Jedi to be unattached and burning with desire, or to give up their celibacy and be always distracted by their passions and familial obligations?"

    Skywalker looked away, staring back out at the Storm of Ossus. "I don't know. I've known both. I love my family, and I wouldn't give them up for anything... but sometimes I think my life would have been less painful without family."

    "Each brings its own set of difficulties," Nori noted. "You can choose to fight b
     
  7. DarthIshtar

    DarthIshtar Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    Awww, glad to see my favorite victim out and about again. No chance of killing her again, is there? I liked Nori's comment on her mistake at the time of marriage.
     
  8. JediTristan

    JediTristan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2004
    O no. *sigh* Silly Kali, back again to guilt us all.

    Wonderful meditation on Ossus, and I agree that Luke and his program are missing something...
     
  9. padawan lunetta

    padawan lunetta Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    May 15, 1999
    Ooh nice post. :D But mean little ending there, *I* think, because I want.More.NOW!!!
     
  10. RebelMom

    RebelMom Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 20, 2000
    Ah, it worked this time. Tried to reply earlier but the darn computer kept giving me error messages. *sigh*

    Anyways, I always love to see Luke. Big surprise, huh? ;)
    Very surprised to see Kali in the holocron. It makes sense, since it is her family, but still a nice surprise.
     
  11. JediTristan

    JediTristan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2004
    O crap, am I supposed to be surprised?

    Consider me pleased instead :p
     
  12. JediMaster_Fisto

    JediMaster_Fisto Jedi Youngling star 1

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2004
    that was too short!!!

    isnt kali the girl from your other story???
     
  13. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004

    * * *

    "You know," Ben mumbled, rubbing his jaw as he and Galvin threaded their way through a series of Ord Nalax' corridors, "I thought your promise to backhand me into the next parsec was just a figure of speech."

    Galvin flashed him a sidelong grin. "That's what you get for thinking instead of ducking, hotshot."

    "Some bodyguard you are," Ben snorted while they rounded a corner intersection in the Market District. "You're supposed to be...."

    The two Jedi stopped short as they took in the sight of the corridor packed tightly with milling people from just about every species Ben could think of in the ten seconds he was rendered speechless. It only took one glance to realize that the vast majority were 'slum-folk', as the station's residents called them - destitute denizens like the children he and Galvin had risked their lives to save only a few weeks earlier.

    "Stay close," Galvin admonished him softly.

    "I recognize some of them," Ben noted quietly. "From the riot, I mean."

    That 'riot' had drawn the ire of the station's security forces, and now hordes of these people were being herded from the Market District into other areas of the station where they would pose less of a problem. At least, that was the official report on the station's newsfeeds. In reality, the hunger-sparked outburst had generated a great deal of sympathy from many of the station's residents - Kaz included - who were often themselves only a payday or two away from joining the slum-folk in their misery. Now, they were being corralled into another area of the station where people would take less notice of them.

    "Let's hope they have good memories," Galvin answered him, urging him forward to press through the crowd, "and that they don't expect you to feed them all again."

    "What would be so wrong about that?"

    "It works for quelling riots," Galvin pointed out, "but the Pressio fortune would be better spent finding a way to help these people get off this station."

    "Good point," he conceded, pushing his way through the crowd, Galvin right behind him. "I guess I don't think about long-term things like that."

    "I noticed."

    Ben had a witty retort lined up on the tip of his tongue, but he halted suddenly and lost that particular thought. He stood on his toes and stretched his neck to get a view over the crowd. Amidst all the people wearing relatively neutral colored clothing, a quick flash of sparkling blue and silver caught his attention and his eyes were drawn to the source of his distraction.

    "Galvin..." he murmured softly as he locked eyes with his quarry.

    Staring back at him were eyes of deeper and brighter blue than he had ever seen on any being in the galaxy - more so than even the bright blue shimmersilk sash that framed the silky-soft silver skin of her face.

    "What are you waiting for?" Galvin asked gruffly.

    Ben was hesitant to reply, almost afraid to move a muscle for fear that she might disappear. "I think I found her," he whispered.

    "Who?"

    "Her," he reiterated with emphasis. "The Nelomian woman."

    Perhaps she could read lips. A look of worry crossed her face and the woman - girl, really - turned and quickly departed down another corridor.

    "Where?"

    "Aw, stang," Ben swore, resuming his push through the crowd. "She's getting away!"

    "What?"

    "When, Why, and How," Ben snorted. "Stow the grammar lesson and let's get moving!"

    He plunged through the crowd, weaving his way through until he came to the intersection of corridors where the girl had disappeared, then saw her vanish around a corner further down. "This way!" he called out, over his shoulder to Galvin.

    Unfortunately, Galvin wasn't there to hear him.

    Ben looked around the crowded corridor for a moment, figuring his tall companion would be easy to pick out. After all, how hard was it to spot a man nearly-two meters tall wearing red from head-to-toe with a blaster rifle on his back? Galvin, however, was nowhere to be seen.

    Thinking quickly, Ben reached out w
     
  14. padawan lunetta

    padawan lunetta Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    May 15, 1999
    Oooh nice update! Wit's as sharp as ever...LOVE the opening two lines. hehehehehhee

    Awesome work :D
     
  15. RebelMom

    RebelMom Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 20, 2000
    Why do I have the feeling that them being separated will cause problems?
    And I do love your witty dialogue. :)
     
  16. DarthIshtar

    DarthIshtar Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    Uhoh, galvin's gone. ::Smacks forehead.:: And Ben's such a pansy wuss! Just the way I like things!
     
  17. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    Luney: it's as sharp as ever...LOVE the opening two lines.

    Thanks! ;) I rather like being witty.

    RebelMom: Why do I have the feeling that them being separated will cause problems?

    You've got a very bad feeling about this, do you?

    : And I do love your witty dialogue.

    Thanks! :D

    Ishy: Uhoh, galvin's gone. ::Smacks forehead.::

    Yeah, that might cause a problem or three.

    : And Ben's such a pansy wuss! Just the way I like things!

    Like father, like son... and grandson. Ultra-powerful pansy wusses seem to run strong in the Skywalker family.

    And yet, we love them anyway...
     
  18. JediTristan

    JediTristan Jedi Youngling star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2004
    WHoa! Ben and Galvin! Two old friends!

    Felt weird reading about them again. Uh-oh, splitting up is never good.


    Don't people learn anything from horror movies?

    Sheesh.
     
  19. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    : Felt weird reading about them again.

    Well, they *are* the main characters...

    : Uh-oh, splitting up is never good. Don't people learn anything from horror movies?

    What would be the fun in that? :p
     
  20. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004

    * * * *

    "I hate to be telling you this," Master Skywalker began, taking a seat beside Master Solo on the long red couch across from her.

    Syal sighed and looked down at her newborn son, Renon, cradled in her arms and rocked him gently. "Something in your tone suggests you're about to tell me anyway."

    "We may have thwarted the attempt to kidnap you and your son," Luke said hesitantly, "but I have reason to think they'll try again."

    Syal's rocking slowed until she was perfectly still. Visions of a dark, hideous figure and a blade of bloodshine filled her thoughts. Again? Even with her husband and two more Jedi in the stateroom with her, aboard a fully-armed Star Destroyer and a compliment of thirty-some-odd Jedi Knights in near proximity, her body involuntarily shifted ever so slightly and her arms retracted to place herself in a position to better shield her child from some unknown, unseen threat.

    Among any other audience, that subtle maternal reaction, readable by only a fraction of the galaxy's species, may have been the only outward sign of her inner terror. But neither her husband at her side, nor both the brother and son of the woman that trained her into that tough, rigid exterior, were fooled.

    Valin's strong arms deliberately wrapped around her, encompassing his wife and son in a comforting circle of protection. "Not here," he whispered, placing his warm lips on her forehead to kiss her in reassurance. "We're safe here."

    "We can't spend our entire lives here," she whispered in reply, leaning into him. "If we do, then we're already their prisoners."

    Master Solo cleared his throat and leaned back against the sofa. "We're certain they'll try again," he began, holding up a finger to indicate he wanted to clarify something, "but we're not sure they'll go after the same target."

    "Jacen is right," Luke noted. "By assassinating an Ardiesian senator and attempting to kidnap you, they obviously mean to send us a message, but they're doing it in such a way that they're creating a lot of media attention."

    Syal considered this for a moment, furrowing her brow in thought. "Master da-Boda said they wanted Renon to train as an apprentice from birth... but you think that's only part of it?"

    "They could have picked a far easier target if that was their only goal," Luke said with a sigh. "To be perfectly honest, I think having a Force-sensitive child like Renon was just a fringe-benefit to their real scheme."

    Syal blinked, showing her uncharacteristic surprise for a second time. "A... fringe-benefit? There's a comforting thought."

    Valin released her from his embrace and leaned forward to put his elbows on his knees. "Is Syal still in danger?"

    Jacen looked to Luke before answering. "We honestly don't know. We'd like to keep Syal and Renon aboard the Errant Venture until we know for certain."

    Syal shrugged slightly and looked down to watch Renon stir. "I can use the holocomm to attend most of my meetings and Senate sessions... but I can't stay here forever."

    "We understand that," Jacen assured her. "We'll try to keep it as temporary as possible."

    "Thank you," Syal replied, nodding her agreement. "Now then, if you'll indulge me, I'd like to set aside my maternal concern for a few moments to be an irritating senator bent upon intruding into your investigation."

    The ends of Luke's mouth turned up into a smile, emphasizing the lines on a weathered face that had apparently smiled far more times than the hardships and concerns of his life should have allowed. "I expected nothing less. In fact, Jacen and I had hoped you might be able to give us some direction."

    "In what way?" she asked, efficiently concealing her confusion.

    "We have to assume that our Sithly friends have a reason for making such high-profile actions," Jacen answered. "An ulterior motive that we're overlooking..."

    Syal nodded. "One that your unexpected presence foiled."

    "Exactly," he remarked. "Despite the media frenzy over the attempted abduction, there's be
     
  21. padawan lunetta

    padawan lunetta Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    May 15, 1999
    Ooh nice post, Lukie's so cute. ;) LIke Valin and Syal together :-D

    OOh Tenel Ka eh? Interesting...though he belongs with Jys. ;)
     
  22. RebelMom

    RebelMom Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 20, 2000
    Ooh, more political intrigue. Can't wait to find out who's behind the attempted kidnapping.
     
  23. DarthIshtar

    DarthIshtar Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    LOl, love the torrid comment...
     
  24. Arin_Atona

    Arin_Atona Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    Luney: Ooh nice post

    Thanks!

    : Lukie's so cute. ;)

    I thought you'd think so...

    : LIke Valin and Syal together :-D

    Me too :D

    RebelMom: Ooh, more political intrigue.

    Indeed. [face_mischief]

    : Can't wait to find out who's behind the attempted kidnapping.

    Mmm... That's not a big secret...

    Ishy: LOl, love the torrid comment...

    :D That was my favorite part, too.
     
  25. RebelMom

    RebelMom Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 20, 2000
    eh, I probably forgot. I've been on vacation so the brain hasn't been functioning.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.