Ask Yavin IV A Place of Peace

[Izel Thral]

Izel clicked and nodded with satisfaction as Yulie agreed to the appointment. A little anxiety was fine, so long as she wasn't allowing it to paralyze her. If she was going to be a Jedi, she would need to learn not to fear things far worse than needles.

"Could be short notice if there's a cancellation, but if you two are planning on remaining at the Temple, somebody will be in touch if something opens up." The Twi'lek explained.

"We'll be here for some time, I'm sure." Izel would cut in. Yulie had a lot of catching up to do after all. Even the fast learner that she seemed to be, the Vratix figured it would likely be a few months before she was prepared for the Initiate Trials. As the Dathomirian asked about 'below average' results in her blood test Izel understood exactly what it was that was frightening her, and inwardly kicked herself for giving the Padawan another thing to fret over. The Twi'lek helpfully tried to reassure her, but Izel could sense her apprentice wasn't fully buying into it. Her antennae gave a twitch as she thought a bit.

"Just remember that whatever your starting point may be, we are here to make you stronger." Izel reminded the Padawan as she fell silent. She turned her attention back to the Twi'lek, who after typing away for a moment looked back at them with a smile.

"Alright, we're all set." She said. "We'll see you next week Padawan." Izel looked over her shoulder as she heard the students in the next room standing up, their lesson supposedly over. It would be getting crowded here soon. With their business finished, the Vratix would look down at her apprentice once more.

"Shall we find you a room then?" She asked. Frankly the insectoid was feeling a bit drowsy herself despite the early hour. She missed her own bed dearly.

@Zohrael

 

[Yulie]

"We'll see you next week Padawan."

"Until then." Yulie replied with a serene bowing of the head. It was like someone flipped a switch somewhere inside her mind the moment it became clear that the appointment was expected of her. The Twi'lek noticed but didn't say anything; even if she had been raised by the Jedi all her life, there was hardly an escaping the knowledge of how so many of her people lived. This sort of behaviour wasn't strange to anyone with slavery on the mind, though it was distinctive.

"Shall we find you a room then?"

"Y-yeah!" There were so many exciting things at the Temple, she had to remember what she had been initially excited about. As they navigated the halls towards this next destination, Yulie took the time to reflect on everything the Temple had to offer.

"The Temple isn't anything like I thought it would be. Huge library, free food, fully-equipped med bay...this place is pretty extravagant. I thought it would be more like the treetop market on Kashyyyk, everything kind of thrown together with whatever was growing nearby." There weren't many who would consider the Temple extravagant, but it possessed something Yulie never experienced before: comfort. The walls were high, sloping artfully into precise angles. Stone shutters made musical notes as they guided fresh air through the walls. This place felt safe, and Yulie always associated that feeling with piles of money that she'd never have. To her, merely having a comfortable place to rest was extravagant.

She wondered what her room would be like, but she wasn't getting her hopes up. It would be too easy to let the architecture and free food to get her thinking that a wide open space with a glorious view and sturdy walls would be waiting for her. Even if her quarters were as cramped, uneven, or filled with noises and smells that would take getting used to, the Temple was offering more than she ever had before. And her Vera did mention barracks; it might have been wise to assume there would be a long hall with rows of bunk beds for all the Padawans. There could be barely any space or privacy for herself, and even that would be better than the prison. No need to stay alert while resting. But it would get pretty old really fast if there were any aggravating Younglings to poke her in the middle of the night, asking weird questions about witches.

"Do bacta tanks have an internal communications system for the occupant?" Wondered aloud, taking her mind off wondering what sleeping arrangements were awaiting her. Since her Vera had family who helped make the tanks, Yulie considered her teacher an expert by proxy. "If not, I could make an unobtrusive modification. Would be pretty simple to rig a small driver and a micro-amp inside some acoustic foam, mould it around the curve of the tank and keep it in place with a simple adhesive. Whoever is inside could listen to some music and it wouldn't affect any of the tank's mechanisms. With the fluid acting as a medium, the volume could be kept low enough to be unnoticeable to the medical team, but pleasant for the occupant. Might have to be something by an aquatic race; Mon Calamari opera or something. Everything else would sound distorted."

Something so minor of a modification would be Yulie's gateway drug into thinking up more enhancements, excuses to remove the outer casing to see how the machinery worked within. The suggestion bordered having an ulterior motive in that sense, although it was unlikely that anything would come of it in this case. Being able to communicate with the people recovering in a bacta tank would likely have been an innovation in the earliest days of that technology, and a system for this purpose would require no modification to provide music.

@Reyn @Rhogar @Charndley

 

[Izel Thral]

As she and her Padawan made their way towards their final destination, Izel chittered lightly at Yulie's comments. It was good to hear the girl was getting to feel at home here.

"There are some places and temples with a more humble aesthetic, but the Jedi are much more than simple monks, as you know." She explained. "Considering we play such a large role in galactic affairs, it's only natural we should require more resources than the typical religious sect." Yulie's next line of questioning caused Izel to cock her head, giving a curious twitch of her antennae. Playing music to help soothe patients in a bacta tank? It wasn't something she'd ever heard of.

"Well, you'd need to talk to the healers in the med-bay about that." She replied as she thought it over. "It's common practice to sedate the patient before submerging them in a tank, so I can't imagine they'd have much need to talk. But it may be something they'd consider, if it would help relax more uncooperative patients."

Before long they arrived at the archway heading towards the temple barracks, Izel pausing to examine a terminal by the door. The insectoid clicked silently to herself as she looked through the available rooms before finding the one that had been prepared for the new arrival. "Here it is," She poked her finger on one of the cells, nodding for Yulie to take a look. "B16, the room itself doesn't really have a view, but there's a nice terrace at the end of the hall with an overlook of the jungle." As they moved into the barracks proper Yulie would find this section of the temple was much more along the lines of what she had expected. Which was to say, not all that extravagant at all. The halls were lined with doors to individual rooms, so she would have privacy, but the rooms themselves were not sprawling and impressive like the open halls of the temple. As Izel opened the door to her room she would find a relatively small chamber, much more appropriate for a monk's cell. There was the main portion where a bed, dresser, footlocker, chair and desk were situated, and then a closed bathroom off to the side. The room itself was spartan, well-lit but walled by unassuming stonework.

"I know it's not much to look at, but you're free for the most part to add whatever personal flair to the space you like." Izel explained as she looked over the chamber before turning her attention to her apprentice. "Someone will be along either sometime today or tomorrow to fit you for your robes. You're still allowed to wear your personal clothing in the temple and during training, but it will be better to have a few changes of clothes, I'm sure. You can spend the rest of your time today settling in and getting comfortable. We will begin laying down your training regimen tomorrow. I'd like some time to unwind from that odyssey myself. Any questions?" the Vratix stood by the door to the room patiently, awaiting her Padawan's response.

@Zohrael

 

[Yulie]

Yulie entered the room tentatively, getting used to the look of things before examining it closer. This was more like the way she imagined the Temple to look like after having some time to observe Isen and her Vera. Before she had met them, she would have imagined something as opulent as a palace and as intimidating as a military compound. Her quarters were surprising in their normalcy. It had everything that she would need for study, rest, storage and even a restroom! Better than her lodgings on Mon Gazza, but not terribly different.

She ran a palm gently against each wall as she walked the perimeter of the room. Each of them were cool to the touch, which meant they were well-insulated. Heat exchange was often on her mind, and even though this place had nothing to do with machinery, the moderation of temperature remained something to be mindful of. The room was at a relaxing temperature, so the Temple must have had some way of circulating the air, but the only ventilation shafts she noticed were in the industrialized sections. Perhaps those harmonic slits in the outer walls had something to do with it; the wind could be guided into currents flowing throughout the entire building if the interior held the correct shape.

Engineers were greater thinkers than she, but the Dathomirian could still appreciate something that was well-designed. Ancient achievements were even more impressive than modern ones, for how could people understand things so clearly and build so expertly with only primitive tools? Even with modern equipment, Yulie wouldn't be able to design a passive system for a building's air circulation, especially since the wind could blow from any direction. Yes, simple as her room appeared, it was part of something extraordinary.

"I know it's not much to look at, but you're free for the most part to add whatever personal flair to the space you like."

What would that even be? Yulie wondered. She never had decorations before, and she never had any friends who were able to give their own rooms a personal flair. Even if she wanted to cover the walls with posters of the youth's most popular performers, she wouldn't even know where to look for one let alone choose the right one. And she didn't own anything that could be put on display. If any curious eyes peeked into her quarters, they'd probably wonder if she even had a personality at all.

"Well, there's more to it than meets the eye." Yulie politely corrected, disagreeing that there wasn't much to look at. "It's no starship, but this place is very well-designed." She pointed towards the upper corner of the room where the walls and ceiling met. Clustered at that meeting point were small tunnels that burrowed into parts unknown. "Those small, circular holes: I don't think that's an air vent, but part of a pressure system. The opening and closing of doors keeps air moving just enough so that there aren't any high or low-pressure areas to disturb the general circulation. Whoever designed it must have really knew their stuff. I can make sure that machinery handles that, but a passive system in a building this size?" Yulie grinned. Try to find something like that in Mon Gazza!

There were too many pollutants in the engineering bays for a system such as that to be used. Undoubtedly their air vents had mechanical air circulation outfitted with the typical filters and scrubbers one would expect to find in a starship. Yulie concluded that those areas of the Temple must be newer, but didn't make the connection that this design choice was so that the Temple's inhabitants could connect with their natural environment easier. With wind and stone moderating air flow, pressure and temperature, they would not be distracted by the unnatural. Yulie was yet to find appreciation in that. To this Dathomirian, these humble little quarters were part of a mathematical equation that she respected.

When the conversation turned towards the subject of robes, Yulie initially thought to ask if she could wear her current outfit instead, but then immediately remembered that she didn't want it to be stained with grease or burnt by lightsabers, so the robes were a welcome gift, after all. Her current ensemble could be worn when she wouldn't be in any sort of position to ruin it.

"No, I don't think I have any more questions. I could probably use some time to digest everything. Maybe at that terrace you mentioned."

Yulie reached over her shoulder so she could help find a new home for her pet spider and made her way back to the door. It was just then that she noticed something odd: the locking mechanism was on the wrong side. Carefully turning it with one knuckle as to not upset the curious spider, the lock did indeed activate.

"That's weird." Yulie said, looking a little flummoxed by it. Should not the lock be on the outside of her quarters? That's how it was at the prison, of course, but also that room she had rented in Mon Gazza. Since her employer was also her landlord it made sense for him to have a controlling interest in her movements. The engine rooms in both of the Captain's ships had locking mechanisms on both sides for security reasons, but as the ranking officer his access codes were able to override her own. Why would the Jedi want to have someone like her decide if and when Room B16 was accessible? They could just use the Force to unlock it anyway, or rip the door out of its frame, or they could plunge a lightsaber through and make their own entryway. So what was the point in her even having one at all?

"This really is my room, isn't it?" Yulie said softly, her eyes slightly moist with happiness. There was a big difference between having her own room and a room having her, and this was the first time she found herself on the deciding side of the lock.

@Reyn @Charndley @Rhogar

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel folded her hands behind her back as Yulie cautiously inspected the chamber. When the Dathomirian turned her attention to the hole in the ceiling the Jedi Master followed suit, her antennae twitching curiously as she listened to the Padawan. The girl was certainly a studious observer. A few moments in a room and she immediately sought to figure out how everything worked. No doubt once she trained her Force sense, her powers of perception would be unparalleled.

Izel's antennae continued to twitch idly as she mulled over the events of the past few weeks in her mind. No doubt she had been fated to stumble across the young Dathomirian on Mon Gazza. And no doubt it was the will of the Force that she be trained to be a Jedi. The Vratix couldn't discern what may come of it. Surely enough there would be some who'd have their reservations, but she trusted in the Force and in her own instincts that she was on the correct course. More and more she was coming to accept her failures and the tragedies that had befallen the Order. Had she never gone into exile, none of these events would have transpired. This was the answer to the questions she was asking herself after Sullust. Perhaps her purpose was not to defeat the Sith through strength of arms, but to play a different role in their inevitable downfall. And she was confident that downfall was inevitable.

"This really is my room, isn't it?" Her attention turned back to Yulie as the girl spoke quietly, her mind focused back on the present where it belonged. The Vratix clicked, her spirits lifting with renewed meaning.

"All yours Padawan." She replied warmly and walked past the Dathomirian. She exited the room, turning back briefly to face her apprentice. "Enjoy your day, Yulie. I'll see you tomorrow." With that she would begin her trek down the hallway, intending to make her way to her own room. Finally home, and finally ready for a fresh start. Whatever terrible events had brought her here, this was where she was now, and from now on she would only look forward. She had her mission, and her new apprentice. With the Force to guide her, all would be well. Of course, her new start could wait until after she had gotten a very well-deserved rest.

/End Thread
@Zohrael

 

[Yulie]

Yulie delicately turned the doorknob as far as it would go and with her other hand's outstretched fingertips she carefully pushed the door shut so as not to make a sound. She wanted to know what sort of noises it made when the hour was late. Some made a thin wooden shriek when they were nearly closed while others made a deeper groan at the start, but this one made an inorganic gasp at the halfway point. The lock made a standard click when the mechanism snapped into place, and unless there was some trick of the Force at work there wouldn't be any way to make it quieter.

Giving the lock some more thought, Yulie elected to unseal her chamber door and leave a thumbs' width ajar. Even though the lock, as well as the door and the rest of the room were all hers, she wasn't ready to claim the territory as her own. These grounds were controlled by people much higher in station than she, and she did not want to give anybody the wrong impression by shutting them out at the first opportunity, especially her Vera. No, she would make herself and her quarters available to whoever might have business outside her door.

It's my choice this time. Just because it is my choice to use the lock does not mean that I must. This isn't the same as before. She told herself, finding justification in maintaining the status quo of not being fully in control of her boundaries.

Walking back to the desk, she let her pet spider down upon it so it could explore the place on its own terms. For the moment it did not feel like exploring. This was a new environment and it wanted to be still for a while, until it knew what to make of the place. Seeing no sense in prodding it or searching for bugs to feed it, Yulie sat down on her bed and gave it whatever space it wanted.

As soon as she sank into the inviting mattress, she decided to put off exploring the terrace. That could wait, she was comfortable and there was no hurry to get up. Besides, she felt more hesitant to wander around now that her Vera was away. With the Vratix by her side, there was no question that she belonged there. An unfamiliar face, alone? That might draw more attention. More focus from the guards, more opportunities for wayward youngsters to pry her with questions. And the mattress was soooooo comfortable!

She flopped to her side and purred as she stretched against it. Before she could turn her attention back to the spider, she was already halfway to a deep sleep. She didn't even have time to get undressed or find her way under the covers; it had simply been so long that she last slept on something soft that her body instantly took to the new mattress. Tossing and turning deeply massaged the countless knots her muscles had collected from sleeping on rooftops and floors. Bruises finally had a chance to mend themselves now that they weren't being driven into solid surfaces. Mere minutes after sitting upon the mattress and the Dathomirian was positioned so comfortably and so strangely that any resident felines at the Temple might be inspired and join her.

Though her body was blissfully relaxed, the currents of the Force unsettled her Dark, and so her mind was anything but calm. She dreamed of the Temple besieged, and an army of grey-skinned women offering their mothers' skulls in exchange for the empty promises of a False Queen. She dreamed of a great beast emerging from distant sands and bringing a settlement to its knees with a liquid breath that burned hotter than fire. She dreamed that Stormkirk had found her, and returned her legion of spiders so they would devour her alive. And just when the feverish imagery was as wildly disturbing as she could process, the scales tipped the other way as if someone put a thumb upon it to ease a troubled mind out of the nightmares that had captured it.

When the Obelisk had tried to smother the dim, flickering candle of Light within her, her Vera tried to pull her back from the darkness by guiding her to positive memories, feelings and imagery. She had greater difficulty conceiving of such things back then than she did now. In dreams, she could have old friends, a stable family in a peaceful village. For a night, she felt as if she knew those things while she dreamed a better life.

It was the first good night of rest she may have had in her entire life, and her body meant to take full advantage of it. Even if people invited themselves to her room, neither footsteps or the door's gasp would rouse her from her slumber. If allowed, she would sleep through the entire following day and just past the crack of dawn on the next.

/end threat
@Reyn @Rhogar @Charndley