Flashback: Survival of the fittest

[Havatr_Einar]

​

Dorvak received a message from Master Saerina to go to the weapon room. He had been in his room looking at the crystals he collected. Dorvak was able to get the crystals from other Jedi that were willing to part with them.He knew however that he would have to get his own, and doing so is not an easy task. He would face his worst fears and over come them. This would be his greatest test. Dorvak was thrilled for this moment though.He knew however that emotions can be a dangerous thing and so as Dorvak walked to the weapon room he focused. When he felt he was ready to walk through the door, Dorvak walked into the weapon room and looked about. There were bits and peaces of light sabers on crafting tables, and also another youngling. One he recognized to be Bast. They were acquaintances at best but hopefully this would be a chance for them to form a friendship. Dorvak walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder.
Greetings Bast. Have you too been summoned here by Master Saerina?
Dorvak rested his hand back at his side. Another youngling getting a saber. What a monumental day this was. They both take a step forward growing closer to being a full fledged Jedi.

 

[Ferre]

For a creature born onto an ice-world, Bast looked irrevocably damaged from experience not an hour ago from the caves of the Ilum temple. His face slightly scratched, the white of his hair luckily concealing the multitude of snow pieces that had intertwined and concealed themselves within the messy short strands, and worst of all, the mass of inflicted bruises, the abuse of the temple -or more rightfully Bast’s inability to scale a wall- hidden beneath his initiate robes.

The experience having been enough to make Bast want to quit the order while obtaining his crystal, the gleaming blue jewel in his hand seemed mocking. It was evidence that Bast, for once in his short life, had actually worked for something. A symbol, that Bast might, just maybe, care. Thus, the crystal became not only Bast’s future weapon, the energy from which all Jedi defended the galaxy and it values, but also Bast’s greatest secret. To his dying day, how hard he worked, the blood, sweat and determination, would go to his grave with his lips stubbornly sealed.

What could he say? The boy had a reputation to keep.

Back safe in a training room of the Ilum temple, the past was safely in the past, even if only a span of ten minutes separated the two. Shutting the door of memory and throwing away the key, Bast turned his attention to the task at hand. An array of tools for building his lightsaber stood before him. Way more than were needed to build one lightsaber, hundreds of options presented themselves. Perhaps the padawan would seek a double blade? Perhaps they would enhance the power of their saber through carefully focusing the direction of the matrix. Maybe their personality would be established through intricate carvings and smaller pieces that wove together to form a masterpiece.

For Bast, the choice was simple, which design was the easiest to make and maintain?

Suddenly, the young boy felt a hand on his shoulder, breaking Bast from his contemplative observing of the pieces.

Ah...yes.. This...was……

“Dorvak.” Bast responded with a nod. “Possibly, I just got back from the caves. Was told a Knight would meet me here.”

 

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

(OOC: Havatr's character is actually named Dorvak, I was confused by this too at first.)

Saerina Avrikana had been waiting in the weapon room for a while after she sent out the two Padawans to the crystal caves here on Ilum. It brought back so many memories for her, of her own training experiences. She had been given very little instruction on how to complete this challenge when she was a Padawan- that was the point, wasn't it? As a young girl she had been scared to walk into an unknown environment and face her greatest trial. But her master had been supportive of her, believing that she could do it on her own, and her motivation to have her very own lightsaber had superseded her fear. Perhaps that was how these two Padawans were feeling now. The young Jedi Knight was excited for them to finally have their own lightsaber crystal, and she was curious to see how they would fare.

But before they returned, her comlink vibrated, indicating an important message was coming through. Saerina recognized the name of the caller as one of her master's friends, a Jedi Knight several years older than her. When she answered, a voice garbled with static responded. "Avrikana. You are on Ilum with a couple of Padawans, correct?"

"Yes, why?"

"We have received a transmission from the government of the planet Csilla that one of their major cities' power has been deliberately shut down by an enemy force, and they don't know who did it. This could spell disaster for the inhabitants because of the planet's climate and the structure of the city. Since you're nearby, we wanted you to take the Padawans and help restore the city's power as well as find out who shut it down in the first place."

"Of course," she said, knowing that this would be good experience for the Padawans. Csilla was in an ice age and most of its cities were underground, so loss of power would indeed be a disaster. "I'll tell them. We'll leave as soon as possible."

"Excellent. May the Force be with you." With that, the older Jedi Knight cut off the connection.

Saerina debated for a little while if she should go interrupt the Padawans, or if she should just go herself, but she didn't have to make that choice because the Padawans soon arrived. Immediately, she explained to them the message she had just received. "I'm sorry we didn't get much time to talk about your trials in the crystal caves," she said with a sympathetic smile. "We'll get to that soon. But for now, the people of Csilla need our help, and we don't have much time to spare."

 

[Havatr_Einar]

Dorvak noded in understanding. He was still a bit unnerved from his experience in the caves. Dorvak had fast his trial and overcame it. Talking can wait for a better time. For now he was more concerned with the fact people needed his help, and he was more than glad to give it. However he worried about the climate. The cold and he did not get along. In fact he tightened his robes and was grateful he was wearing winter clothes. Dorvak looked at Bast and then his master.
I am ready when you are master. I look forward to aiding these people.

 

[Ferre]

Bast looked to the components for making their light saber and then back to the Jedi, back to the components and back to the Jedi is silence.

We're they to ditch the idea of building a saber just minutes before the task was set to begin? Perhaps they would grab components and finish up on the ship. Perhaps they would just pocket their crystals and hope the force wills it so they don't fall out.

The people of Csilla? Bast didn't feel particularly drawn to helping people, yet it was the job of being a Jedi...a job Bast willingly signed up for.

"Alright" Bast replied simply, awaiting orders like usual. Besides, it looked like Dorvak was enthusiastic enough for the both of them.

 

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

Saerina could sense vibes from both Padawans' presence in the Force by now. Slight remnants of fear seemed to tint Dorvak's presence- either leftover nerves from the trial in the caves or rising anxiety about their next mission. Either was understandable, but at some point she would have to help him learn to relax and let the Force guide him- a concept that Saerina still definitely struggled with many times. As for Bast, his presence seemed to emanate... nothing. Untraceable amounts of emotion. Which was probably good for a Jedi, but was it the right sort of stillness? Saerina wasn't sure. She was concerned for both the Padawans but there was no time to say anything about it.

She followed Bast's gaze up and down the wall, towards the lightsaber parts. It was a shame, really, that they had to leave. But should an entire city on Csilla die for two lightsabers? "We'll be back," she reassured him. "You have the most important part, the crystal. The rest will fall into place much more easily." Being a lover of the lightsaber herself, Saerina knew that the making of the weapon could not be rushed. They should not hastily grab random parts and attempt to assemble it on the ship. They would still be close to Ilum; once they were done with Csilla they could return here easily.

Motioning for them to follow her, she took them to their ship in the hangar. It wasn't Saerina's; she didn't have a ship of her own. This was just a general ship from the Jedi Order, big enough for a pilot, copilot and two or three passengers. She fired up the controls and a weary grumble sounded from the engine- the ship wasn't the newest model ever, or in the best condition, but it was good enough. "Which one of you would like to copilot?" she asked. Saerina was not overly fond of flying- or any sort of impersonal machine, for that matter. But she knew how to do it, how to keep people alive on a basic ship such as this one.

 

[Havatr_Einar]

I would be more then happy to copilot master.
Dorvak walked up to the co-pilot seat and sat down. He began to run checks ensure that it was able to get them to their location. The real thing was a bit different than simulations and books, but Dorvak was confident that he would be able to assist his master in flying. After a few minutes of checks and flipping switches the grumble from the engines died down to a low hum. Still lowed and showed wear from the ship's age, but not as bad as it was when they first were switched on. Dorvak was slightly excited to get to co-pilot and receive actual flying experience. His instructors that trained him said he was average at flying but had potential to be great at it.
Everything is ready to go master. I just need the coordinates to Csilla so I can program the hyperdrive.
Dorvak focused on his feelings and calming himself. Though excited he needed to remain calm and controlled if he was to be of any use. Though his fear and excitement remained. Dorvak tucked them away to be dealt with at a more appropriate time.

 

[Ferre]

As Dorvak took the chair of the copilot, Bast moved himself to a seated position on the ground, crossing his legs to look the perfect but relaxed form of a meditating jedi.

On one hand, yes, he was actually meditating. One the other, his reasoning was more along the lines of someone delving into prayer when they notice a passerby wants to disturb them. An effective way of legitimizing his lack of desire to be social.

 

[Havatr_Einar]

Dorvak received the coordinates and programed them into the hyper-drive. Once they took off and were able to plot a safe course they would be there in no time at all. Dorvak looked back to see what Bast was up to and found him in a meditation. Assuming Bast wanted to be left alone Dorvak turned back around and clicked a few more switches. He looked at his master waiting for her command.

"Ready when you are master. Coordinates programed and ready to go. If you want I can fly us out of here. Your call master.

 

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

Saerina glanced down at the holomap, on which their route was highlighted. "Our trip will be short and easy enough," she mused. "I think you should try it... it will be good practice, and if there are any issues, I can take over." She hadn't gotten an opportunity as of yet to work with her Padawan on piloting. Hopefully now she could get an understanding as to what his flying style was like, and if there was anything she needed to correct. She was no expert at flying, but she would teach the Padawans what she knew about the subject. Turning towards the back, where Bast was, she said, "On the way back, you can take the controls if you'd like." Obviously Saerina wanted to focus on instructing Dorvak, but she wanted to remember to help Bast get something out of this too.

After Dorvak put the ship in hyperspace, and Saerina helped guide him, they traveled for an hour or two before arriving at the frigid planet of Csilla. Finding a safe place to land was definitely tricky, as there wasn't much civilization on the planet's surface. But they eventually found an entrance to a hangar just underneath the surface, and there was an elevator that took them down closer to the core.

When they arrived at the tunnels underground, Saerina quickly observed that the elevator they had used was being manually operated by a couple of mechanics. Everyone walking around was holding a torch or other sort of non-electrical light. Most noticeably, the temperature was decreasing by the minute. Saerina pulled up her fur-lined hood around her face and shivered slightly. The effects of the power loss were already revealing themselves in a drastic way.

"Let's see if we can find the chairman of this city so we can discover the best way to put ourselves to use," she told the two Padawans.

(OOC: If either of you want to temporarily play the governor or whatever of the city, go ahead.)

 

[Havatr_Einar]

Dorvak was grateful for the chance to take the seat as pilot. It would give him the chance to show his master some of his skills.
“Thank you Master”
As Master Saerina turned to address Bast Dorvak took the pilot seat and settled in. Taking a deep breath his began to move the ship. He was a bit rocky and fast on his take off and the ship groaned from the strain. This was all much harder than simulation and theoretical training. Dorvak quickly learned that he had to take into account the ship he was flying and how it needed to be handled. Not everything was a Star-fighter. Dorvak was far more relaxed when they cleared Ilum's hanger bay and out of the atmosphere. Master Saerina returned to aid Dorvak in engaging hyper drive and instructed him on how to navigate. The trip there was without any issue and the quiet of space aided Dorvak in focusing on his connection to the force and his emotional unbalance he knew his master was aware of. After a few hours of travel the reach Csilla and Dorvak, with Master Saerina overseeing, pulled the ship out of hyperspace and headed to the planet’s surface. Once again Dorvak could hear and feel the groaning of the ship. A sensor chirped a few times as they went through the stratosphere and quickly went silent. Dorvak slowed the descent and the groans silenced. The surface of the planet held no vegetation and the idea of having to deal with another ice planet gave Dorvak the chills. There was jagged ice and cliffs and little life. A few animals that could handle the harsh cold of the planet’s surface could be seen. Master Saerina pointed out the hanger bay just underneath the surface. Master Saerina assisted Dorvak in landing and they all exited the shipped and headed towards and elevator that lead underground. A cold draft caught Dorvak and his blood chilled. He pulled his robes tighter and continued forward. The elevator lead deeper into the planet and the closer to the core the warmer it got. Sadly, it did not get as warm as Dorvak had hoped. Even Master Saerina was pulling her robes closer. Dorvak located a lite torch and grabbed it. The temperature was decreasing by the minute and the torch did more than just shed light. It provides some, even if little, warmth.
Dorvak listened as his master spoke,” Let's see if we can find the chairman of this city so we can discover the best way to put ourselves to use,"
“I agree Master, perhaps we should ask someone?”
Dorvak wondered if his Master or Bast would have an idea. Being his first time outside the planets of Tython and Ilum Dorvak was ready to listen and learn. However as he was thinking this and idea came to him.
“Do you think the general populous can take us to him?”

 

[Ferre]

It seemed that their worry would be unnecessary.

A young woman with neatly kept black hair and white-collar work attire, covered with an equally well-kept snow-jacket hurried up to them, herself carrying a torch. The glow from it's flame illuminated the shape of her face as she neared the group, a look of distress masked by professionalism. She pressed the torch closer to the group, examining their presence.

"You must be the Jedi we requested." Her voice sounded confident in the assessment as she drew the torch back closer to herself, shivering from losing the moment of warmth for the sake of better sight. "My name is Dise, aide to the chairman..." she glanced up to the tallest Jedi of the group. "You must be Saerina. Pleasure."

Not giving the Jedi a moment to reply, the aide continued "Our technicians have already tried, but perhaps you should go down to level 5...that's where we keep our generators and power. You'll find the maintenance elevators down that hall to your left" she turned to the side, pointing out the elevators in question.

Perhaps her speed was from nervousness, or maybe from the cold, or maybe from a busy schedule she had to attend to. Bast couldn't make out which one, but appreciated her getting straight to the point.

 

[Havatr_Einar]

The three walked to the maintenance elevators were a tall Red haired Jedi stood. She didn't wear the traditional robes of the order but instead wore loose fitting pants and shine high boots. Here shirt was unseen as she was wearing a think coat for warmth. The coat fell down to her knees but parted so she would be able to walk or run if need be. Upon meeting the Jedi Dorvak bowed and smiled.

" I am Jedi Knight Sheila and /i have come to replace you Saerina. The council needs you back at Ilum and I was sent to this forsaken ice cube to take your place." She spoke couragely.

Saerina nodded and wished us well; she then headed back to the landing platform were the ship we took was located. Dorvak turned to the Master Jedi that was replacing Saerina. She had already push the call button for the elevator and it was headed our way. The floor indicator changed numbers to indicate the floor it was on.

"Master Sheila why was Master Saerina sent back?"

"What the council wills is not for us to question, nor is it your concern. Stay in the hear and now were the mission is. These people are depending on us."

Dorvak didn't like the answer but accepted it. He was worried about his Master of course, but as Sheila stated we are needed here and now. The rest will have to come later. For now Dorvak cleared his mind and focused on the mission at hand. The elevator Dinged and the doors opened.

"So Bast what do you think the problem might be? Hope your better with machines then I am."

Dorvak walked into the elevator after Jedi Knight Sheila and held the door as they waited for Bast.

 

[Ferre]

Bast, per his usual self was tuned out almost entirely of the conversation until the syllables of his name drew him back.

"So Bast what do you think the problem might be? Hope your better with machines then I am."

The padawan raised a brow at the very difficult question given he had never seen their heating system before

"Hope your better with machines then I am."

The elevator doors closed. The descent went slowly as most service elevators do.

"I mean..." The padawan struggled where to begin with his original question. Could he give heating 101 in three seconds? "There are a variety of heating systems and combinations of systems. They can be classified either by the type of energy used to produce the heat, such as wood, to even the energy of kyber crystals. In general terms- heating systems convert a fuel or an energy form into heat. The conversion takes place in one or more locations within area, and the heat produced is then distributed throughout the living space. Usually, and what I think we're dealing with here, is a very large and very expansive central system." Though not giving much pause, the padawan held up three fingers rather flippantly, "Which would assume three basic parts: the heating plant where fuel is converted into heat, a distribution system for delivering heat to where it is needed, and controls to regulate when it operates. Therefore the problem could be one problem -one of these systems-, or perhaps their whole system is bantha fodder. Either way...we can assume it's supernatural enough that the trained local repairmen who are familiar with it's system don't know what to do and they became desperate enough to call space wizards for help."


Sheila didn't comment during the exchange between the two boys, but raised an amused eyebrow at Bast's last comment.

At that, the door opened and Sheila marched on out ahead first. The heating system greeting them upon exit was massive, as it should be considering it was powering the entirety of a snow-encased city. Living on Arkania, that was something Bast was all to familiar with...only his city didn't break.

Arkanian pride aside, if it could every be really put aside, Bast followed the Knight out of the elevator. Torches lit up the room in a massive elegant display of thousands of lit wooden stumps that lined the walls much higher than Bast would have imagined. It seemed level 5 was truly level four and five put together in order to hold the massive iron monster that -if it was making sound- probably would've echoed the room with loud aggressive beating noises.

However, that was their first clue, the iron contraption clearly wasn't moving, wasn't making any sound at all, and rather just looked like an overpriced modern art centerpiece in a really cold museum.

 

[Havatr_Einar]

Dorvak listened closely as Bast explained what he knew about these kinds of systems. He clearly had experience and knowledge of them, and with that Dorvak sighed a breath of relief. However Bast comment on the city needing space wizards, as people jokingly called Jedi, worried him. Would his skills be enough to aid the city or would he just be useless and left on the sidelines. Sheila placed a hand on his shoulder and it calmed Dorvak. Once the elevator opened Master Sheila and Bast walked out of the elevator. Dorvak followed and looked about in awe at the massive construction before them. Even though it appeared to not be working. It was still a great feat of creation. At least to Dorvak it was. He had never seen anything like it and hopped that they could get it working soon. The cold crept through a opening in his warm layers and he shivered from it. Dorvak walked up to the machine and placed a hand on it. The cold repulsed him and he quickly removed it.

"Bast you have experience with this so you take lead. Dorvak you are to listen to him and once you guys have a possible conclusion let me know. Be sure to make note of everything even the most remote possibilities"

"Yes, Master Sheila as you wish."

Dorvak looked at Bast waiting for his instructions. He was glad that he was not in charge. He had only the quickly explained version of how this all works and what could be the issue. He had no experience what so ever. This had him clearly out of his element. No combat and in the cold. Dorvak was ready for this to be over.

 

[Ferre]

"Bast you have experience with this so you take lead. "

Wait, no. No no no no. This is not what he wanted. The Arkanian went doe-eyed in horror as Knight Sheila walked swiftly away.

Bast sighed quite audibly. While yes, he was bloody fantastic at machines, if this was some force mumbo-jumbo -as he was positive it was- they were screwed with his apathetic leadership. A light pinged in his mind. That was it. All he had to do was find the source of something he didn't already know and then scream into his com-link for Knight Sheila. She would come, do her Jedi Knight thing saving the force with the good of the universe or what not and they would go home and Bast could crawl back into his bunk once more.

Excellent. The padawan clasped his hands together with decision.

"Alrighty!" he proclaimed

His eyes darted to his fellow padawan "Don't do what's already done for you" came his sage-like first command. With that he strolled off to a nearby worker to talk mechanics. What first started out as an awkwardly fumbled greeting since Bast didn't think to introduce himself before interrogating the woman, turned into a lively discussion on thermal emitters, feed compensators, and energy management systems, oh my!

Then as the conversation died down from brianiac talk, and a very clearly established it should work but it doesn't followed by disturbances such as disappearing workers happened before the shut down of the machine was what led them to call the Jedi.

"But since it shut down, we've had no disappearances. No reappearances though either." The worker explained.

 

[Havatr_Einar]

Dorvak nodded as Bast gave him his instructions. "Don't do what is already done for you."
Dorvak ponder Bast' words. What has already been done for us? An idea popped in to his head. The techs in this city should have repaired the machine already. So going by that logic the machine should actually function. Heading opposite of Bast. Dorvak began to search for how to turn it on. He bumped into a tech that was walking around inspecting everything. Dorvak requested for an explanation on how to start the machine up and that's when more pieces were given to him. According to the tech he encountered when the machine was on people would end up missing. With it off nobody vanished, but nobody was returned either. Dorvak could see why they call for help from the Jedi. This is strange indeed. What could want the machine shut down? Dorvak couldn't help but think that the best way to find out would be to turn the machine itself on. He pulled out his training saber and turned it on to the highest setting. It was far more lethal at this setting which is why the sabers are turned down for training but it would still take some effort to kill another person. However extremely bad burns and shocks to a persons system are very likely. Dorvak noticed that Bast had finished talking to the person he was talking to, and so walked over to him.

"Hey, Bast does this seem strange to you. They have the machine working, but they wont turn it on. Something to do with people going missing. What do you say we clear the place out and turn it on and wait?"

Dorvak couldn't help but wonder if a trap would work. What if the body thief knew what they were up too? What if they decided to take someone from the city instead of confront them?

 

[Ferre]

Bast nodded, looking at Dorvak expectantly to notify Sheila. If he didn't, Bast would and Sheila would be able to evacuate those in the room.

Either way, as soon as the room was cleared, the padawan's enacted their plan

The machine roared to life, at the same time, the ground beneath them began to shake.

Now that was strange. Bast was sure, even with the set up of the machine moving at full capacity, it shouldn't be able to make the foundation shake. Or else they would have a pretty poor foundation for a city.

Perhaps they had worse problems that simply lacking heat.

The young padawan glanced up at the grumbling roof. His mood in utter shambles. If this city collapsed on him...well he would be dead...but aside from that he would be extremely annoyed. Even worse, he might get buried in this cold hell. Not that he was too young and with a bright future, on the contrary he tried his very best not to contribute to the greater galaxy in the slightest. However, he didn't want to be trapped in the logical sentient limbo of "am I about to die in a second or nah?"

A few second of this, the rumbling subsided. They weren't dead. However, the lights immediately blacked out. Bast felt a presence. Not dark, not light. Strongly and overwhelmingly from behind the giant machine.

Well....here was that time he spoke of earlier. He comlinked Sheila
"Force presence beh-"

"In the shake a man was injured. You and Dorvak check it out-"

The audible groan of a man could be heard through the crackle of the comlink

"I'll meet you later"

Kriff. Apparently it was bad enough that level three was affected. Bast rolled his eyes, luckily unable to be seen in the cover of darkness. His Arkanian vision took over, the forms of heat in the room taking on their unltra violet forms of heat. He glanced at the mass of red easily recognizable as Dorvak.

"What we're dealing with is a crank sentient...or multiple cranky sentients" Bast informed him, not eager to go behind the machine which now in the darkness, revealed to have some source of heat emitting behind the machine that didn't exist previously.

Where had it come from? The ground probably.