Ask Field Trip

[Orenth]

THEME​

Jedi Padawans were known for being students of the Force yet unlike Jedi Knights they still had much to learn. Byron was well aware of his ignorance but was getting an idea of what direction to take. The Skylark Horizon was a blast boat and not the best at carrying large quantities of cargo like freighters. So for this job the Jedi Order allowed him and a few other volunteer padawans to go on their own trip to the temple on Yavin 4. A YT-1300 owned by the Jedi Order was stocked full of supplies after they left Ajan Kloss and Byron was tasked with piloting the ship and returning it afterwards.

"Well it's in decent condition but...we need to think about getting better hangars on Ajan Kloss." He said mostly to himself as the light freighter flew over the lush landscape of the jungle moon. BG-L0, aka "Big Low" just beeped and rolled to a different portion of the light freighter to check on something.

Ahead, the Jedi Temple jutted out of the canopy. Already, just by being in the planet's atmosphere he felt like there was a wealth of life to the world though its identity was totally different from Ajan Kloss. Soon enough the ship would come to land in one of the hangar bays of the Temple. It was a step up from Ajan Kloss in Byron's opinion. Some ships were still tarpped and left out to the elements. Droids and various Order personnel moved about their daily activities. Some watched the newest ship arrive. The ship was guided slowly into a side spot where the cargo could be unloaded without being in the way of other arriving or departing vessels.

Powering down the ship, he guided the binary loader droid in the hangar and made sure to check in properly. The air was different on the planet. A unique ecosystem yet also still similar to the jungle of Ajan Kloss. He took a deep breath and puffed his cheeks for a moment as he realized he was the responsible one for the time being. It was his first time at this temple but from an engineering standpoint he could tell the structure was sturdy if not lacking in some maintenance. With the supplies they brought they were one step closer to restoring the temple to a better state.

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel was grateful for the opportunity to work with Padawan Ryker again, they really hadn't had the time for a proper introduction on Tol Amm. Then they had been too busy trying not to get eaten alive, but the initiate had proven himself to be quite capable in her eyes. They were only supposed to be delivering cargo this time, so hopefully things would be much more easygoing. Of course, things had gone wrong for her on simple missions before, so the Vratix was never really sure what to expect when leaving Ajan Kloss anymore. She was coming to the conclusion that either she was a magnet for trouble or the Jedi as a whole were.

Seeing the Great Temple come into view immediately caught the Padawan's undivided attention. From her studies it was quite the fascinating place, and had exchanged hands several times throughout it's history. In fact this was not even it's first time being occupied by the Jedi. It was part of why she volunteered for this simple transport mission in the first place, in order to get a chance to explore the ancient structure. As they landed and stepped off the ship Izel was greeted by the pleasant atmosphere of the sparsely populated world. She always liked visiting places largely untouched by civilization. Too many planets in the galaxy were cramped and overpopulated.

She quickly got caught up looking around the hangar, taking great interest in examining every detail of the old temple around them. "Well.. this is nice..." She said a bit awkwardly before looking back to Byron. "Are we supposed to... Help them unload or something? I don't believe I've been on a supply run before." It wasn't very hard to tell the Vratix was much more interested in exploring the temple then doing anything they had actually been sent here to do.

@Darasuum

 

[Fiach Dubh]

Fiach was possibly considered a well-seasoned Padawan – but she was a Padawan none the less. She had been working through her trials and was therefore on the journey to becoming a Knight – but she believed a Jedi learned every day, regardless of rank or status.

So, she immediately signed up for the opportunity to visit Yavin 4. She’d been there once before to meet her Master but hadn’t had the opportunity to return until now.

As they approached the jungle moon, Fiach took the opportunity to stow her Jedi cloak. If Ajan Kloss was humid, their current destination was more like an outdoor sauna. As they skimmed the trees, Fiach saw the Temple peeking out from the canopy and a smile formed on her lips. New experiences equated to education in Fiach’s eyes and she adored learning.

No sooner had they landed than they were surrounded by ground crew and droids that ensured they were guided to the right spot and then unloaded their cargo with impressive efficiency.

She’d studied the Temple from records she’d been able to access and wondered if the restoration would be sympathetic to its heritage or be more pragmatic and simply ensure it was safe and habitable. The latter would require less time and resource – but Fiach had a soft-spot for the ‘old days’ and hoped it could at least externally keep the façade of a bygone era.

@Darasuum @Reyn

 

[Orenth]

"Yeah, we'll knock this out quickly and get to the other stuff." He had come her to learn but that would have to wait for their first job to finish. Unloading a ship, while sometimes tiring, just felt honest and rewarding in its own right not to mention it was one of the reasons why he had become a little stronger rather than rely solely on others to do things for him. With the binary loader, other hangar staff and several padawans would help make it go by quickly. Izel's excitement was obvious and it was a feeling shared by the other padawans.

Fiach was one padawan that had joined in the trip as well. Byron hadn't worked with her before though she seemed like she was close to becoming a Knight, maybe moreso than himself or Izel. It didn't take long to unload the ship. The supplies did not fill up the maximum cargo capacity of the light freighter but it still made Byron sweat a little from the exertion and the warmth of the planet. Thankfully it was getting dark and a little cooler.

Thanking the hangar crew for their assistance, Byron would move the ship from where the normal offload area was to a spot where it wouldn't been in the way. "Alright. With that out of the way we can get food, take a little rest or see if its alright for us to head out and do a little exploring maybe. Who wants to do what?" There wasn't any rush and after spending a few days in hyperspace he imagined they might want to think about other needs before getting into something. Last thing they wanted was for someone's bladder filling up while they are running away from a gundark. I hope they don't have those here

@Corbeau @Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel nodded to Byron as he spoke, eager to get the menial official task over with so they could focus on more interesting things. Doing such work reminded her of her time spent on her family's farm, and reminded her why she had been so eager to leave a life of manual labor behind. She faired better than some of the other Padawans, being better acclimated to the humid environment of Yavin, but still felt a bite of hunger gnawing at her gut by the time they were finished unloading the freighter. Despite her eagerness to explore she agreed with Byron that a bit of food wouldn't go unappreciated.

"Perhaps we can just grab a quick bite to eat..." She said, her mind still clearly fixed on investigating the temple and jungle around them. She looked to Fiach for her own opinion. For their part most of the other Padawans seemed more eager to take a rest after the work they had just finished. It seemed like it would just be the three of them for the time being.

@Darasuum @Corbeau

 

[Fiach Dubh]

Fiach was, as ever, pragmatic. The mission always came first – in this case unloading the cargo with the aid of ground crew and a few droids. She was not muscular by any stretch of the imagination but was instead wiry and had good stamina. But like the others, by the time they’d finished, she recognised the need for nourishment.

For Fiach, food was fuel and nothing more. She would typically survive on ration bars and water – and had never cooked anything for herself in her entire life. But when at a Temple, she used the canteen as it allowed her to have a balanced diet and fresh food. Often her choices surprised, as she didn’t care about taste or texture and would therefore put combinations together that weren’t typical. But she was oblivious to other’s opinions.

“Exploring is top of my list,” Fiach said. “Who know what we might discover once we venture a little farther away from the Temple. But accept we should replenish our energy stores before we set off.”

@Reyn @Darasuum

 

[Orenth]

Byron looked between both women and cocked an eyebrow at the way Fiach spoke. It was strange and objective with accurate clipped tones. But the engineer was also getting a bit hungry so he made a suggestion. "Well I think they have a cafeteria maybe or we can head to the nearby colony and see if they have a restaurant or something there." From what he had heard there was a small settlement on Yavin 4 not too far from the temples. But they lived indipendently from the Jedi Order. It was likely lacking in a lot of the same amenities they were used to and lived a semi-rustic lifestyle.

"I heard from one of the Masters they used a technique that allowed them to survive without actually eating any food for awhile. Haven't had much practice myself but I say let's go to the coloony, see if they have any grub and then maybe if they don't we see if we can try to learn the technique." Byron had a feeling that it was wiser to practice hungry when it came to 'force sustenance'. It would give each of them some motivation at least.

The colony was still quite a bit aways. He didn't want to hike there. It would take hours. But if he borrowed a speeder then they would be able to get there in the darkening sky before it got too late. "Watch out for nocturnal animals. Yavin's still a wild place." One of the hangar workers warned.

@Corbeau @Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

"I agree," Izel quickly said with a nod to Byron. "And... Even if we wish to practice this technique we should have some food to fall back on in case we're unsuccessful." As much as the Padawan enjoyed expanding her knowledge of the Force and learning new techniques she wasn't too eager to start learning this one Byron had just mentioned. She'd rather just eat the old fashioned way if the resources were available to them. Besides, she would like a chance to see this new settlement as well.

Thankfully a speeder was made available to them, and better yet one that could reasonably accommodate the Vratix. Too many of these vehicles were too small or too awkward for her to sit in. On this one she settled into the back seat, allowing Byron and Fiach to take the front. She chittered a bit in amusement as one of the workers warned them of the local fauna. "Enough animals have tried to kill me that I'd be more surprised if this was an uneventful trip." She replied lightheartedly. "Don't worry about us." She assured him as Byron took off into the wilderness.

@Darasuum @Corbeau

 

[Fiach Dubh]

Fiach was unsure as the fascination with food – and saw a visit to a local restaurant as delaying what she saw as time that could be spent exploring or studying – but was learning to go ‘with the flow’ as her Master might say. Being part of a group often required taking a stance that reflected the view of the majority (or even sizeable minority) and putting personal preferences aside.

So she nodded at the suggestions Byron made. And she’d heard of the concept of a Jedi surviving without food but instead utilising the Force. It seemed an entirely practical application – but she always reverted back to her primary thought on the subject. What was she prepared to stop doing to start doing something new? She was already at the point where there were not enough hours in a day – and so would participate and help out, but not pursue the Force power in the way it seemed her fellow Padawans would.

So, she followed her fellow Padawans outside – and to a speeder that could accommodate all three of them comfortably. Less comfortable was the constant reference to local fauna that had designs on bypassing the use of the Force and simply eating them. Fiach was generally wary, but right now, was tapping into the Force to heighten her senses in case of attack.

She took the passenger seat. “Byron, if you drive, I’ll keep an eye out for anything that might wish to eat us. Being eaten on our way to a cafeteria would be both ironic and unfortunate.”

@Reyn @Darasuum

 

[Orenth]

Byron was fine with driving. In fact he enjoyed it. He wasn't sure how dangerous the local wildlife was but Izel seemed confident that even if something happened, the trio would be able to handle it. Still, Fiach made a point of keeping a look out.

The small holographic display system on the vehicle paired with the navigation gave them a safe route. He didn't have to worry about swerving around trees or going over too much difficult terrain. The colony had been on Yavin for over a century at a distance from the Messassi temples. Even so, non-paved paths twisted through the forest and over hills a few times. Flocks of a few winged creatures flew overhead and he saw a small heard of quadrepeds run into the shade of thicker trees as the speeder flew by.

"So...." He said trying to fill the air with some conversation while they traveled. The view itself wasn't too bad but he didn't feel like he knew his fellow Jedi that well. This was a decent time as any to get to know the others. "...did Izel tell you about the time we nearly got our faces bitten off?"

@Corbeau @Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel's antennae twitched curiously at Fiach's statement. Her way of speaking was certainly unique when compared to most humans she encountered. To the Vratix she sounded much more like one of her own kind. Since joining the Order Izel herself had made a great effort to alter her language to better fit in with humanoids. Fiach on the other hand seemed quite comfortable setting herself apart. She still held great respect for the human and her abilities, but did find it odd.

Despite her earlier joking the Vratix Padawan was actually quite relieved that their trip was mostly peaceful. When so much had been happening since her becoming a Jedi it was nice to have a relaxing experience every once in a while. When Byron began to recall their misadventure on Tol Amm she laughed softly.

"If I remember correctly they tried to bite off much more than that." She commented as she looked back to Fiach. "The first time Byron and I met was on a mission to Tol Amm. Knight Vesper and I were supposed to be investigating a shortage in food supply. It turned out the plantations where the supplies were coming from had been overrun by sentients that had been reduced to flesh eating beasts. We barely escaped with our lives." She paused for a moment and looked back to Byron. "Did we ever find out what happened to those poor people? I was never told what information the Council received from Mr. Thrindel..." Come to think of it that was probably quite important, considering it was possibly the result of an infectious disease. She hoped Vratix were immune at least.

@Darasuum @Corbeau

 

[Fiach Dubh]

Fiach had visited many planets where the flora – once displaced by civilisation – took back its planet. Between the temples, where once well-trodden paths existed, the foliage had reclaimed most of its former glory, only to be once again curtailed by new travellers.

She raised an eyebrow at Byron’s words and her smile never left her lips. “No, she didn’t,” she replied and glanced back at her sparring partner. “I’d love to hear more.”

And she listened as Izel explained about the mission they were on and what transpired. “I encountered something similar on Nar Shaddaa with my Master. Fortunately none got close enough to test how appetising our faces were, but there were a few close shaves.”

Turning her head around to the right of the speeder, she closed her eyes momentarily. “Do either of you sense anything?” She pointed to a two o’clock position to indicate where she was focused.

@Reyn @Darasuum