Ask Confronting Fear

[Jeyten Dres]

Corstris Temple
Corstris
Outer Rim Territories
Theme

​

After weeks upon weeks of trying to decipher the clues that resided in his father's journals regarding the location of the next Temple that hid another clue to Cayne's location, Jey and his droid companion now dubbed 'Scouty' had finally managed to locate the whereabouts of the next temple on the planet Corstris. According to his father's writings it was an ancient and long forgotten temple that was built by a now extinct Force-sensitive cult. However, what worried him was the fact that Jey's father hadn't actually detailed any specifics of what would be in the temple.

Slightly paranoid, Jey decided to request the help of his Jedi best friend Astra and maybe she'd find some interesting trinkets inside the temple as well - though, the main reason he invited her along was because he missed her, but he'd never admit that to her. Jey withheld the information regarding what they were going to be doing, only that he needed her help and to his surprise; she agreed to come along.

Docking on the planet, a short distance away from where the temple was seemingly located. Jey was equipped in his explorer outfit with his lightsaber and two DL-18s attached to the belt, with Scouty attached to the back of Jey's outfit. Jey and Astra then began to head toward the Corstris Temple, "Thanks for coming on short notice, and without much information. Means a lot." he said with a smile as he glanced at his friend and wrapped his arm around her shoulder affectionately.

Upon reaching the temple, Jey stood a few metres away outside the entrance and felt confused as he felt a strong presence in the Force before eventually realising the temple must have been built on a Force nexus... although what confused him the most was the fact that he sensed the strong presences of both the Light and Dark sides of the Force emanating from this Force nexus. Unsure if this was a normal phenomenon, he turned to look at Astra with a confused and concerned expression "Uhhh... is this normal, Ast?" he asked, knowing that she definitely felt it too.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

Although she was unsure of Jey's reasoning for inviting her along, Astra had agreed to accompany her friend to a long abandoned temple partly because he was her friend and she wanted to help him in whatever he was hoping to achieve, partly because she was interested in the proposition of exploring a temple to see if she could find anything interesting or useful but also because Jey had a tendency to get himself into sticky situations and she wanted to make sure he stayed safe.

"Someone has to supervise you." She joked and nudged him in the side before they proceeded towards the temple. She was dressed in Jedi robes for the first time since meeting Jey as it was safe to do so now they weren't on Nar Shaddaa and had her hair braided behind her head. From the outside the temple looked quite impressive but ominous as nature had already began reclaiming the building.

As they got closer, there was an unmistakable change in the Force which initially had Astra concerned but upon realising it was a Force nexus she relaxed. Unusually, however, the nexus was emitting fluctuations in both sides of the Force which made the temple all the more intriguing. "I don't think so." She told him as she proceeded with caution. As they came to the entrance, she turned to Jey. "Do you have a flash light or something?" She asked.



@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Jey grinned and nudged her back, he took a moment to inspect Astra's new look - well, it was a new look to him at least. She was in traditional Jedi robes and had her hair in a braid, his eyes glanced up and down as he examined her and he eventually formed a genuine smile "You look nice. Fancy." he informed her nonchalantly.

Jey felt at ease when Astra confirmed she was sensing the same thing as him, however, he felt cautious when she stated that this Light and Dark side nexus wasn't exactly normal. Now, at the entrance the blonde Jedi wondered if he had a flashlight to which Scouty excitedly chirped and activated his spot light, lighting up the temple inside. "Thanks, Scouty." Jey also unclipped his lightsaber and ignited it, which created a warm amber glow - he did this partly to create extra light but also as a way to show off to his Jedi companion.

Now with sources of light, the Force-sensitive teen entered the Corstris Temple holding his lightsaber upright to provide light for he and Astra. Now inside, he felt extremely conflicted - with both sides of the Force calling out to him, calling for him to embrace either one of them. The youth stayed quiet as he tried to ignore both of them and continue on with his goal, he also attempted to use the nexus to hide his conflict from Astra.

Treading deeper inside the temple, they would see a faint glow in the distance which revealed an entrance to another large chamber. He stopped in his tracks before the next entryway, hoping to hear what Astra thought of all this.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

"Thanks, you're not too bad yourself." She returned the sentiments but hardly looked at him, instead focused on the task at hand. Inside the temple was dark and eerie, the unusual Force nexus didn't help to lessen her unease but she was unafraid, only cautious.

At the familiar sound of a lightsaber igniting, Astra's hand went straight to the lightsaber hilt at her hip and her head whipped to where the sound had come from but she relaxed when she saw it was only Jey, clearly a little on edge. "You have a lightsaber?!" She blurted out even though it was obvious that he did, she reacted more out of surprise. "When did you get that?" She asked a more sensible question.

The presence of the Dark side was unsettling but Astra was firmly set on the path of the Light side so aside from the unease and the distant calling of the Dark side, she remained steadfast. She was weary of the light source up ahead and instinctively told Jey. "Be careful." Since he seemed to have a habit of rushing into things.

They stopped at the entrance of the large chamber and Astra explored the room ahead with her eyes before they would decide to enter. "I wonder what kind of cult used to be here." She thought aloud. "It seems like Light and Darksiders have been here to create this nexus... Try and stay focused." She warned her friend, knowing of his tendency to give in to anger which was dangerous.



@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Astra's surprised reaction was exactly what he had hoped for, the young teen's face formed into a confident one as he simply responded with "It's a long story involving a one-time bounty hunter who, may or may not be an acquaintance." recollecting his misadventure on Dantooine, "I'll tell you later." he said, flashing a wink.

Before Jey made his way into the lit up chamber at the end of the long dark temple entrance, he heard the blonde Jedi tell him to be careful. The hazel eyed teen chuckled "What're you, my mom?" he retorted in a lighthearted manner, before treading closer to the large chamber's entrance. Face turning serious, Jey nodded acknowledging what Astra said about being careful. And with that, Jey carefully took one small step inside the large chamber before fully entering inside.

The chamber was indeed large, but it was empty and circular with absolutely nothing inside but the glowing symbols on the walls which lit up the chamber. Puzzled, Jey deactivated his lightsaber and turned to look at Astra for advice before realising she was nowhere to be seen - "Ast?" he called out in confusion and then noticed that even Scouty was gone - "Buddy?" he said softly, now slightly worried.

Jey grasped his lightsaber firmly when he spotted a figure standing in the middle of the circular chamber with its back to him - the snap hiss of Jey's lightsaber echoed through the empty chamber as he cautiously approached this figure. Now stood directly behind this figure, Jey realised it was a woman, swiftly he placed his hand on her shoulder and spun her around to get a look at the woman's face. The teen's mouth hung agape in complete and utter shock - "Mom...?!"

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

"May or may not?" She asked, confused. "Right, ok." She smiled and shook her head, Jey sure was... an interesting character. Astra jokingly rolled her eyes at his comment but didn't retort. He was reckless and irresponsible, she said what she had to say, but he had a good heart and she really liked that about him.

Once Astra set foot inside the chamber, she approached one of the walls to get a closer look at the symbols that were illuminated on them. "Woah, what do you think-" She turned to look at Jey to finish her question but frowned when he wasn't there and then looked around the chamber before calling out. "Jey?" She shouted but there was no response. Maybe he had gone back for something and she hadn't heard him, she thought, not getting too worried yet.

She continued to examine the symbols on the walls but turned around at the sound of footsteps, expecting to see Jey but instead was faced with a Rodian man. "Can I help y-" She started before her eyes fell on the singed hole in the clothing on his chest and the gruesome wound underneath made by a blaster bolt or lightsaber but Astra knew which it was. "No..." Her eyes filled with tears as she backed away from the man and then turned to run but behind her were two Rodian children. "Excuse me, have you seen our Dad?" The older child asked to which Astra slowly shook her head but they looked around her and ran to him when they saw him. "Dad!" They exclaimed.

The Rodian man kneeled down to hug the two smaller Rodians and spoke to them solemnly. "I need to go away, kids, and I won't be coming back." He told them to Astra's horror. "What? Why not?" One of the kids asked through a trembling voice. "Because that woman killed me." He pointed at Astra so all three pairs of eyes fell on her. She stood frozen in horror and tears began streaming down her face.


@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Jey's face went from shock to complete bliss, "Mom!" he called out in excitement, he switched off his lightsaber and attempted to hug the black haired woman, although this was quickly rebuffed when Annaya turned her head in disgust and pushed him away violently. Jey's face of bliss then fell into confusion and slight sadness "Mom...? What's wrong?" he asked softly.

Annaya's face, still in disgust, refused to look upon her son "This is all your fault, Jey." she stated coldly. Finally, she locked eyes with her son, her face now that of contempt "If it wasn't for you, you're father wouldn't have left me! If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have worked myself to death trying to provide for you!" Annaya yelled hysterically and with sheer hatred in her voice. Jey's heart sank completely, deep down Jey had always felt that his existence was responsible for his family falling apart and now that his mother; the person he loved most in the galaxy was saying this to him... it was too much to bear.

The teen's entire demeanour deflated as tears began welling up in his eyes "W-why're you saying this...? P-please..." he pleaded in broken up sentences. Annaya then began violently poking her son's shoulder as she hollered at him even louder "If you hadn't have been born, I'd still be alive and Cayne and I would be happy!" the words that were coming out of Annaya's mouth were too painful, the Force-sensitive teen fell to one knee and hung his head low, allowing his tears to drop on the floor and allowing his mother to continue berating him.

What she had said before was so painful that everything she was saying after caused Jey to fall into some sort of trance. As she continued to chip away at the youth's insecurities, a voice... a memory echoed through his head - "The past is the past... learn to let go and move on." it was what Kraud had said to him on Devaron weeks ago. He was right. With restored confidence, he sniffed and wiped away his tears before standing up to confront the manifestation of his mother.

His face was completely serious and confident, without any words he pulled Annaya into a hug - "No, you're wrong." he said calmly "I've blamed dad for what happened... but deep down, I blamed myself for things I had no control over... it wasn't my fault, it never was my fault. Mom, I love you and I'll never forget you... but I've gotta stop blaming myself and move on." and with that, she was gone. The young teen took a moment to gather his bearings, he gazed into the distance and saw a man surrounded by robed men and women. It was his father, and their ancestors... or at least some manifestation of them.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

"I'm sorry." Was all Astra could whisper with the three pairs of eyes feeling like they were piercing her soul. "Why did you do it?" The older child sobbed. "I- I didn't mean to." Astra said quietly. "Murderer." The Rodian said definitively. "No..." Astra shook her head. "Murderer." The child insisted. "No, it was an accident!" Astra said more loudly, becoming deeply unsettled. "Murderer, murderer, murderer..." All three Rodians began chanting.

"No, no..." She put her hands over her ears and closed her eyes but the sound wasn't coming from the room any more, it was in her head. "No!" She screamed and all of a sudden there was silence so she slowly removed her hands and opened her eyes. The Rodians had gone but standing inches from her face was Alana. She immediately wanted to throw her arms around her sister and hug her but she knew this wasn't real, this wasn't Alana, so she backed away.

The moment she made a move, a red lightsaber blade ignited at Alana's side and she took powerful steps towards Astra. "Alana, no!" She shouted, ducking and rolling to the side to avoid the blade but her sister kept coming so Astra ignited her own lightsaber and reluctantly engaged in a duel with the figment of her imagination. Alana was ruthless and unrelenting and as the battle raged on she grew no more weary.

Eventually, Astra made a fatal error which led to Alana's lightsaber poised over her chest while her own lightsaber was down at her side. She searched Alana's eyes for any emotion but only saw coldness and when she looked down, the lightsaber was through her chest, though it did her no physical harm as none of this was real and she knew it, the emotional pain equalled that of the physical pain. Astra slid down against the wall and sank onto the ground, dropping the lightsaber hilt on the ground beside her in shock.



@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Feeling a bit more put together now that he had confronted his insecurities and accepted they were not his fault, the Force-sensitive teen approached his father and their ancestors with confidence. Cayne stood in the middle and slightly ahead of their Jedi and Force-sensitive ancestors - squaring off with his father, Jey looked directly into Cayne's brown eyes.

"You're pathetic." Cayne declared in a calm but accusatory manner. Jey took a moment to break eye contact and glance at each one of his ancestor's, they stared back at him with individual scowls. The hazel eyed boy smirked and then looked at his father, allowing Cayne to continue - "When I left you and your mother, it was a for a purpose but instead of being a man and embracing your destiny, you opted to self-destruct instead." Cayne's words stung Jey for a split second, he checked himself and remembered that these were just manifestations. Cayne continued "You had so much potential, you could have been a powerful Jedi. Now that potential has been squandered." he stated with a raised voice, manifesting a death stick in his hand and proceeded to wave it around in his son's face before throwing it to the ground.

Jey's face turned from confident to rage, he was tired of hearing it, tired of having the Jedi Order shoved in his face by others - emotions swelling up inside him, and without words Jey ignited his lightsaber and attempted to strike his father down who quickly blocked it with his own blue blade. Engaged in a blade lock, Cayne shook his head "Disappointing. Always quick to anger, quick to aggression... maybe I was wrong." Jey quickly broke away from the lock and engaged in a brief duel with his father's manifestation, aggressively and relentlessly attacking Cayne.

The son managed to use his overwhelming strength and anger to knock the father's blade from his hand. Cayne fell backward and onto the floor, completely at Jey's mercy - the black haired teen aimed his lightsaber at his father's throat, eyes Sith red, Jey raised his blade. However, it was no longer his father on the floor - it was... himself, in Jedi robes. Double taking, he looked upon his own body and realised his lightsaber was red and his attire full black.

He realised if he struck this Jedi version of himself down, he would be extinguishing his own light and in-turn fall to the Dark side completely. The teen lowered his weapon and proceeded to close his eyes, taking several deep breaths, he then raised it once more and impaled himself with the red blade in hopes of ridding himself of his own Dark side - expecting to feel searing pain, he winced... but felt nothing. Jey opened his eyes to see he was holding nothing, Scouty was back and so was Astra... not too far away from him.

Relief overwhelming him, Jey ran to his friend and hugged her tightly. He was grateful to see her again and glad that whatever he just went through was over...

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

The manifestation of Alana towered over Astra and she looked up at her sister with tears in her eyes. "You stood by and watched me turn into this. You did nothing." Alana spat at her sister who was cowering under her gaze. "This is your fault." She persisted. Astra sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying to gain composure by opening herself up to the Force. Alana said some more hurtful things but Astra wasn't listening until... "Hey!" Alana shouted, getting Astra's attention, at which point Astra rose to her feet to get to her sister's level before speaking to her with a newfound confidence.

"I am not responsible for the choices you make." She said plainly. Ever since Alana's addiction began, Astra felt responsible for not doing enough for her sister but even when she tried to make things better it seemed it didn't make a difference, the real change needed to come from Alana and she couldn't do that for her. The thought of her sister being a practitioner of the Dark side broke her heart but like all aspects of life, nothing was ever certain and she would just have to do all she could to minimise that possibility. Astra turned to walk away but Alana spoke in a tone that could only convey sadness. "You left when I needed you." She said, voice shaking.

Astra stopped in her tracks, knowing that her sister was referring to when she joined the Jedi Order three years prior but frowned, no, this wasn't Alana, this was just her imagination of Alana. Her and Alana loved each other very much and this scenario would never be a reality. She knew she needed to walk away from this stronger so with a deep breath she carried on walking until the events behind her faded into nothingness and she was back in the empty room she had been in all along. It was difficult to tell who was there with the nexus so she turned around to see if Jey was in the room with her this time and thankfully, he was.

"Jey!" Astra shouted, relieved to finally see a friendly face. She ran over to him to hug him but he looked past her so she frowned. "Jey?" She spoke with a concerned tone before turning around to see what he was looking at, behind her was a Jedi Knight who had been captured. She looked between the pair before placing herself in front of the knight and pleading with the manifestation of Jey. "Don't do this, please." She pleaded with him but he only Force pushed her out of the way before plunging his amber lightsaber through the chest of the knight. "NO!" She screamed.

The manifestation displayed her fears of Jey giving in to his emotions and joining the Dark side if she didn't guide him well enough. She knew about his anger and his indifference to killing but the thought of him becoming so callous as a Dark sider shook her to the core. Astra fell to her hands and knees, sobbing after all that she had just witnessed. When she next looked up, she saw Jey again and got to her feet to meet him in his hug. "Is- is that you?" She asked, placing her hands on either side of his face to look him in the eyes and confirm before she settled into the hug and sobbed quietly on his shoulder.



@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

"Yeah... it's me. The real me." he reassured her, holding her tight - Astra was visibly shaken, he could feel her tears beginning to soak his shoulder. Whatever happened to him, must have happened to her too but he knew he had to stay strong for her for now, even though he was deeply unsettled as well. "Everything's gonna be alright, now..." Jey said in a noticeably shaky voice.

The teen gave Astra a few moments to gather her bearings before slowly and gently pulling away from the hug, using his gloved fingers to wipe the tears off of her face he gave her a warm smile - now, seeing her face and bright blue eyes, all of his confusion and fear went away in an instant. They were together again, and he couldn't feel any more safe.

Jey felt his own eyes were slightly swollen from the dried up tears earlier. He rubbed his eyes to try and rid himself of the annoying itch before returning his attention to Astra once again. Never in his entire life had he encountered anything as bizarre as what he went through today, was it the Force? The temple itself? Nothing in his father's journals ever prepared him for this... maybe the Jedi in front of him had the answers he sought - "What the kark was that?" he asked, facing her. All he knew was that he and Astra would need a quick breather before entering into the next chamber... hopefully this was the last of their surprises.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

Astra clutched tight to the fabric of his clothes, not wanting to let go but it didn't take long for her to calm down in Jey's embrace so she soon loosened her grip on him and stopped crying but when he pulled away to look in her eyes, she could see that he was just as disturbed as her so she forced a smile to try and get him to not fuss over her.

Upon their gazes meeting, she realised that after what she had just seen, she felt a deeper caring for him than she had ever realised. If she had to watch Jey fall to the Dark side, it would be nothing short of a heartbreak but she was unsure whether or not to share what she had seen with Jey, worried it could distress him too.

Astra looked upon Jey sadly, knowing there was nothing she could say or do that could ease whatever pain he had from what he had seen, but she at least hoped to take his mind off it. She stood up on her toes and kissed Jey on the forehead before smiling at him, though it was clear both were still distressed. "Everything is alright now." She corrected him.

"I wish I knew." Astra said with a sigh. She had never heard of anything like what they had just experienced so she was at a loss. "It could be to do with the Dark side presence... best guess." She spoke in a tone void of emotion, trying to avoid thinking about what had happened. After a deep breath she sighed and turned to Jey. "Let's go." She said.



@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Jey frowned in disappointment, he had hoped that somewhere along in Astra's Jedi training she would have been taught about "Evil, trippy manifestations in Force-sensitive temples" before realising that was far too specific to be in some kind of Jedi curriculum. However, her theory on the source being some sort of 'Dark side presence' made a lot of sense.

His hazel eyes watched Astra as she took a breath and gathered the strength and confidence to push on, he smiled and nodded before making his way into the next chamber alongside the blonde haired Jedi. Although what they had both just been through was traumatising and would stick with them for a while, Jey couldn't help but feel slightly reinvigorated - these manifestations allowed him to confront the worst parts of himself, allowing the teen to make peace with his misplaced guilt as well as confront his inner darkness - in regards to the latter, he knew that wasn't simply the end of his inner dark side but he knew he was on the right path to destroying it completely.

Stopping at the entrance to the next chamber, it seemed to be locked with no form of entry... before he realised that this door was only able to open through the use of the Force. With that, Jey held his arm out and closed his eyes - summoning the Force inside him and unlocked the door. As the door slowly slide open, the teen cautiously exchanged a glance with Astra before the two would firmly step into it together.

Now inside, Jey realised that Astra and Scouty were still present and alongside him, which made him feel much more at ease. As the Force-sensitive youth took a moment to observe his surroundings, Scouty leapt onto the floor and began doing the same, the group would see that this chamber was some kind of vault... filled with various trinkets and crates which Jey assumed could be potential ancient Jedi and Sith artefacts. Turning to look at Astra, he smiled "See, what'd I tell ya?" Jey said confidently. His attention was then brought to his droid companion, who after finishing exploring the vault, was staring off into the distance. After approaching Scouty, Scouty proceeded to spontaneously project a holorecording - another holorecording of his father.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

The training she had received thus far had taught her to let go of the past and not to ruminate on what could have been which was a perfect ideal but not always practical when guilt pushed you to relive what you had done, almost as if your mind was punishing itself. After what had happened on Nar Shaddaa, she had spoken to Kraud about it, driven by unsettled feelings of guilt and he told her she mustn't feel guilty but even when she didn't actively think about it, that guilt was still there and was unsure how to rid herself of it apart from continuing to meditate and search for inner peace on her own.

At the moment, Astra didn't have many thoughts, she was purposely numbing herself to what had just happened for now. Although she wanted to avoid confronting it forever she knew she couldn't, especially as Jey was involved and she was worried it could hinder their relationship if she wasn't entirely honest with him. She stayed silent as they walked but was becoming more at peace as they distanced themselves from the events they had just witnessed, seeing Jey as a Dark sider made her worry that there could be a possibility of it becoming true if he wasn't kept in check so she would be sure to be very careful with him now.

Astra was pleased that Jey had come to accept himself more and was more willing to use the gifts he had been given, though she still hoped that he would use those gifts within the Jedi Order, now more than ever. It seemed that he had a lot of potential and a good heart which was all that was needed to take the first steps to becoming a Jedi. Both were nervous for what the next room would hold after the last one had proved to be so harrowing but upon stepping into the room Astra gasped and walked over to a crate, kneeling down beside it to rummage through its contents, handling them carefully.

It seemed like the findings would be interesting enough for her but Jey wasn't a Jedi and the Sith were extinct, he didn't have an interest in them either, so she thought that now was as good a time as any to ask the true purpose of his visit. She turned to Jey and asked. "Jey, why are we actually here? Or rather what are you-" Her attention was turned to a light out of the corner of her eye and she turned to see Scouty playing a holorecording of a man and although she had never seen Jey's father, there was a resemblance between the pair that could only indicate they were related. She stopped what she was doing and looked at Jey for his reaction and then back at the holorecording.



@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Jey heard Astra's voice in the distance but it went in through one ear and out the other. The holorecording of Cayne stared directly through Jey - after a few seconds, the recording of Cayne began to speak "My son, you must have successfully confronted your and overcame your fears and insecurities, allowing you to enter this vault." his face proceeded to form into a smile "I'm sorry for omitting this information in my journal, but it was necessary and I am proud of you for accomplishing this trial."

Jey's head dropped slightly and he formed a small smile, exhaling a light chuckle through his nose and then proceeded to return his attention to his father's message. "Entering this vault has activated a map in 4EY-18's memory core, leading to the next location of another map piece. Once you travel to these locations and reactivate 4EY-18's memories, he will reveal a full map to my location. Good luck, son." Cayne's transmission then cut off and in its place, Scouty began projecting a holomap which revealed the next location - Zeffo.

The black haired teen turned to Astra, his face was completely serious. "Remember that holocron we found at my old home, my dad's?" he asked rhetorically, "It had a message inside, from him. He didn't explain to me why he left but it was for a reason... he's left clues behind for me in various ancient temples so I can find him." he revealed, Jey proceeded to unclip his lightsaber and show it to her "I found my dad's old journal in the Temple of Eedit a few weeks ago, and I've been using it to train myself in the ways of the Force... it's also where I rebuilt this." Jey stated bringing attention to his family's now repaired lightsaber.

While he didn't know how she'd react, or if she'd even understand - he at least hoped she wouldn't be mad at him for choosing to omit this information from her.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

Astra got back to her feet, holding a dusty book in her hand, but didn't join Jey. She felt like this was something he needed to experience alone so she watched from further back as the hologram of his father explained a situation that Astra couldn't fully comprehend. Why had his father sent him on a giant treasure hunt where he would be waiting at the end?

Once the hologram had stopped, Astra approached Jey with a look of concern, she knew of his adverse feelings about his father but she couldn't predict how he would feel about this but thankfully he took the liberty of explaining the situation to her. "Wait, what?" She asked, stunned at what she had just heard. Although she understood everything Jey had just told her, she had one burning question: Why?

Why had his father done what he had done? She supposed that would be something he would have to find out when he found his father. "So that's why you came here..." She thought aloud, not at all angry that she had been withheld the information for them being here, she would've just enjoyed getting to spend time with Jey nonetheless, though the crazy Force visions did put a dampener on the mood.

"Are we going to Zeffo now then?" Astra asked but immediately realised she was likely overstepping some boundaries, after all, this was his father and his own business and she wasn't entirely sure why she had been invited along to Corstris in the first place. "Uh, I mean are you going to Zeffo now?" She tried to correct herself.


@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Shrugging, Jey made a type of noise that resembled 'I dunno' before actually elaborating - "Dad, said he'd tell me when I actually found him. Can't wait to hear a reason good enough to abandon your family." he said coldly, while Jey felt less animosity to his father for actually abandoning him and his mother for a purpose, he still held contempt toward him for choosing that over his family.

Jey was happy that she understood and didn't react negatively to him withholding information from her until the time was right. He nodded twice, confirming Astra's question "Yeah... and I'm really, really sorry. If I had known what would be inside here, I would have just come alone." he apologetically informed her, Jey cared deeply for his friend and detested the idea of putting her in harm's way - mentally or physically.

Raising an eyebrow, to make sure he had heard her right - did she say 'we'? She wanted to come with him to Zeffo? Even after what they had just been through? He smiled at her but it dropped slightly when she corrected herself. Still smiling, albeit a small one, Jey closed the gap between them and stood close to her. Jey looked deeply into her blue eyes, smile growing slightly just at the sight of her face, he proceeded to place his gloved hand on her shoulder "You can come too." he said, but corrected himself "If you want, I like hanging out with you." he said flashing a wink.

Whether she would agree or disagree, Jey didn't want to spend another second inside this temple. After her answer, he would lead her and Scouty out and back to The Kath Hound.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

"Try not to think too harshly before hearing him explain... I'm sure he had a very important reason." Astra tried to offer some solace but recalled the time when she had practically insulted his father by saying he wasn't a true Jedi and she knew she had acted too harshly as well. His lack of empathy made her shiver, she would do all she could to stop him from falling to the Dark side, even if it meant tough love.

Astra frowned at his comment. "If I had known, I wouldn't have wanted you to come alone." She told him. It had proven better for both of them that the other was there so they were able to provide each other with support. He couldn't have stopped her from coming along if he tried.

Part of her wanted to come to ensure he didn't give in to his emotions when he was alone but the other part of her cared about him deeply and she was invested in his life so she wanted to go on this journey with him, if he allowed her, to offer help when he needed it but also companionship. She knew the journey must be a difficult one to make at times, given his strained relationship with his father, so she wanted to provide all the support she could. "I like hanging out with you too but maybe next time we could just grab a coffee." She joked, trying to make light of the experience.

Once they were back in The Kath Hound, Astra breathed a sigh of relief and practically threw herself down into the co-pilot's seat. She was quiet for a while, debating back and forth in her head whether or not she should tell Jey what she saw but she knew that it would only eat her up inside if she didn't. "Jey..." She started, her tone conveying that she was being serious. "I saw a few things in that chamber but one of them... was you." She looked up at him. "You killed a Jedi, you- you showed no mercy." She told him, uneasy with what she was saying. "I'm afraid of you falling to the Dark side."


@AfroBandit20

 

[Jeyten Dres]

Upon entering the Kath Hound, Jey felt a sense of ease being in the familiar comfort of his freighter. Entering the cockpit, Scouty leapt from Jey's back and onto the cockpit's control panel just a few moments before Jey himself managed to seat himself in the pilot's chair. After a few moments of Jey tapping a few buttons at the console to fire up the ship's engines, Astra broke the comfortable silence they had.

After hearing what she had to say... his upbeat demeanour deflated, Jey sighed and his head hung low. "I'm sorry you saw that..." he sympathised, before rotating his head to look at her - "I am too..." Jey added, acknowledging Astra's fears with his own. Jey's knowledge of the Dark side was greatly expanded after reading through his father's journals - even though it granted a greater power, he knew there was a cost... a cost he wasn't willing to pay. As a former addict, he knew what the Dark side really was - a drug, and if he allowed it to consume him... all of his efforts kicking his Death stick addiction would be for nought.

"In that chamber, I saw myself too. The light inside me, I almost-- I had the opportunity to destroy it, but instead I destroyed the darkness inside me." he shook his head slightly "I know it was a metaphor and it's not completely gone, but just know that I'm really trying." Jey stated in hopes of reassuring her. Observing the conversation that was transpiring, Scouty tilted his head before approaching his master and nuzzling his head on Jey's gloved hand, the black haired teen proceeded to pat his head in response. Maybe this was Scouty's way of saying he believed in him?

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

Since the first time they met, Astra had been aware of the instability Jey displayed and she had been worried about it since but hadn't been expecting it to progress into a full-blown fear. She cared about him because they were friends and she knew he would help her out whenever she needed and her likewise but she didn't realise just how deeply she cared for him until today and now she was starting to look at him through different eyes.

She had hoped to make Jey aware of her fear but it seemed he shared that fear with her, making it all the more important that she did all she could to steer him in the right direction, after all fear was often a stepping stone to the Dark side. She wondered what else he had seen in the chamber but decided not to push it, if he decided to tell her in time then he would, though she doubted she would be sharing what she had seen any time soon.

Astra could see Jey's desire to rid himself of the darkness within him and how he feared it too so she offered a smile in attempt to reassure him and herself. "You'll get through this, I believe you." She told him. Intending to keep him on track, she said nothing more on the matter, following the principle that rumination was not beneficial for a healthy mind. At that moment, there was an incoming transmission from Kraud summoning her for help so she looked at Jey and shrugged. "Duty calls."


@AfroBandit20