Ask Light the Beacon

[Dash Pavan]

JEDI COUNCIL SESSION, BRIGHTHOME
9.30am local time​

Dash folded his arms, leaning against the wall and waiting his turn.

He did not have much experience dealing with the Jedi Council just yet and was a little nervous, but his nerves were not the only thing making him uncomfortable. He did not entirely want to be here at all.

The time had come to pitch the restoration of Starlight Beacon station to the Council. While the Rhinnalian had played a significant part in the events leading to the station's discovery on Eiram, it had not been a mission he had chosen. An impulsive attempt to rescue his stranded friends had led to more danger and chaos than he could have imagined, and turned his life upside down in recent weeks. He had barely spoken to his boyfriend, had withdrawn from his friends and quietly agonised about big decisions holding his future in the balance.

He had known the meeting was coming. As the senior Jedi on the mission, he was expected to formally present the report, the retrieved data and his recommendations for the next steps. Any other time, it would have been a dream opportunity. But at the moment, it was one he found difficult to focus on.

Ezra would have been a big help. He had the passion for the work involved and the knowledge of the technical steps needed to get the station operational. The guy probably understood half the data they had collected already. But Dash would not ask him for help, not right now, and he had not even offered it. Who knew where he even was.

Dash flicked a spec of dirt off his athletic white robes. A more circumspect Jedi might have dressed up a bit more, but the Rhinnalian was increasingly dropping any pretense of being a typical officious Knight. It had got him nowhere.

At least he would not face the Council members present alone. Leon was due any minute and not for the first time Dash would be glad to have him at his side. Padawan or not, the Adumarian had a much better grasp of some of the fine detail than him and usually had enough gas in the tank to lift anyone's day.

With any luck, they could persuade the Council members and get the green light for restoration works. It would not make Dash happy, but it might just make him feel better.

@Zay @Black Noise

 

[Leon Baudelaire]

Leon sighed, “Home sweet, Brighthome.”

He vaulted over the side of his Malla Class Starfighter and held a crooked elbow up for Peetwo to perch on. The little BD unit landed a moment later then scooted up to Leon’s shoulder. The little droid warbled in his ear and he chuckled, “I know it’s going to be fine.”

Or at least he hoped.

He was dressed in his usual mission gear. He’d just come in from a trip to Ellora where he’d finally managed to wrap up some repairs he’d be putting off for way too long. It wasn’t quite ready yet, but the official scrub squad base would be done in a couple of weeks provided the galaxy didn’t go up in flames any time soon. He couldn’t wait to see their faces when he got to show it to everyone.

Leon rounded the corner and spotted Dash. Baudelaire’s mischievous little smirk settled on his lips. He threw Dash a quick two finger salute and said, “Yo!”

“Nice robes, you challenging the council to hand to hand combat?” Leon teased. Dash looked like a badass Jedi ninja, and it was only now that Baudelaire gained an appreciation for stuffy robes.

“How long is the waiting list?” asked Leon as he settled in next to Dash. “Maybe we should have just gone to Hera together,” he thought out loud, but pushed his doubts away. They’d worked too hard to let a fear of public speaking stop Starlight Beacon from coming back on.

“Ugh, wanna go over what we plan to say? Might as well strategize while we wait.”

@Alhon @Black Noise

 

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

Hera was not yet in the council chambers. Of all the duties and grand responsibilities that had come with her station, the red-headed Arkanian had almost purposefully neglected to get that timepiece Kaisa suggested for her. Instead, she was late, as always. Entering the hallway before the council chambers, she grinned wildly as she spotted Dash and Leon sitting together. "Look at two of my favorite Jedi- and Peetwo!" Striding over to the both of them Hera would suffer no resistance as she grasped both of them in a quick hug.

Releasing the strong embrace nearly as quickly as it began, Hera remarked, "Come inside! I think Grandmaster Alex is already in there waiting for you two." There was an unmistakable skipping in Hera's heart, a great overflow of joy that both her current and previous Padawans would be able to feel. They knew Hera better than anyone else and they would know she was beyond proud of them.

Opening the council doors and making sure to step in before Leon and Dash, Hera would announce loudly, "Right on time!" Before moving to take her seat. Setting in, her green armor plates clicking together as she sat, Hera removed her blackened goggles to see the two young men with her own eyes. Smiling, the Justicar-councilor would ask, "So! Rescued stranded Jedi and found a new place of residence for our Order? Tell me all the details."

@Valen Pelora @Zay @Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

Leon did not disappoint, rocking up with a smirk and spring in his step. He even had the little droid from Christophosis in tow and his comment on Dash's robes actually made the Rhinnalian smile. "Not just yet" he replied, nudging Leon as he sat down next to him "but definitely if they give us any grief. This should be an easy ask".

His friend's suggestion to plan what they were going to say was still a good one. "Well, I'm happy to walk them through what happened and what we found" Dash said "and we can both sell all the advantages the Order will get having the station back up and running".

He paused, scratching his blonde hair "I could probably use your help if it gets technical, like if they want to know exactly what needs doing to it. I know Ez said...." he trailed off, momentarily dwelling on his boyfriend.

The joyful tones of Master Hera suddenly echoed down the hall and Dash was rescued from his reverie. Hera looked good as always, like she was fresh from some adventure and just gearing up for the next. He jumped up at her arrival, no stranger given that he trained under her but never having quite forgotten how she had nearly nudged him out of the Order.

They followed her into the council chamber, Dash giving Leon a 'here goes nothing' look.

@Zay @Black Noise @Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

The Council chamber doors burst open. Hera, Dash, and Leon would be greeted with the customary array of chairs. The vast darkness of space spreading out around them from a massive viewport. Alex sat in the center on the semi-circle. Her traditional robes carefully arrayed about her chair. She looked over at the chrono blinking on the wall. “The chrono Kaisa gave you was very expensive, has it broken already?” The smallest hint of a smile curved the edges of her lips.

She could feel the joy bubbling from Hera. Pride in her former and current student. An equal measure of anxiety seemed to leak from Dash. Alex let the smile blossom fully across her face. They couldn’t have that.

She turned to her fellow Councilor seated beside her. “My, my Council Albion, what do the young ones say about me these days to strike such concern in our promising youth?” By the Force she sounded old. She was old. Might as well lean into it. “Come on, both of you.” The Grandmaster beaconed them forward. “Tell us everything.” She leaned back in her chair, lacing her fingers together. By all accounts this was meant to be excellent news.

@Black Noise @Alhon @Zay

 

[Leon Baudelaire]

Just before Leon could respond to Dash, Hera arrived. It was amazing how she always seemed to show up at the worst possible moment. Leon couldn’t keep the smirk off his face as she wrapped the two of them in a tight embrace, “Gah, alright MOM!” moaned Leon as he tried to wiggle free with a chuckle.

Peetwo produced it’s electric prod and it’s single photoreceptor watched Hera like a cat about to go full goblin mode. Luckily for the little droid, Hera led them into the chambers with a resounding kick to the door. Okay, Hera was confident in this, maybe there wasn’t anything to worry about? Then he saw the anxiety in Dash’s face and mirrored the sentiment as they followed behind Hera.

Baudelaire’s heart sank when his master proclaimed she was on time. The galaxy would implode before Hera “The Joyful” Albion was on time. The Grandmaster of the Order was already in place. Master Voran was mostly an enigma to Leon. He’d only seen the woman once before now, and even then it was brief. He held tight to the fact that she was Maura’s teach and by proxy couldn’t suck. Well, she could, but it was way harder to believe knowing her Padawan.

It had been a while since Leon had been put in a position to display tact or cooth and he wasn’t looking forward to it. Master Voran and Hera shared a little banter before things turned to business.

An awkward silence settled between the two groups. Peetwo nudged Leon and Baudelaire took a breath and stepped forward.

“First and foremost, thank you both for your time. Personally, I believe that our discovery was mandated by the force,” by the gods he sounded dumb, “Originally, Padawan Thorne, Padawan Sipal and myself were dispatched on a diplomacy mission, but our ship malfunctioned and then crash landed on the planet of Earim,” Leon decided to skip the part where the tree padawans had been locked in mortal combat with one another while the ship plummeted toward the ground.

“We encountered a tribe of primitive sentiants,” he chose his words carefully here, “When it became apparent we couldn’t communicate with them, they grew aggressive and we allowed ourselves to be captured.” Leon clasped his hands together in front of himself feeling the anxiety of giving this report dissipate as he warmed to the task. “Unfortunately, when they brought us to their camp it was clear that negotiations wouldn’t be possible,” was that because of each of the Padawans had fallen into their own scheme, absolutely, was that necessarily pertinent to this conversation? Naaaaaah. “We made our escape, but no without pursuit, during the scramble we stumbled upon a cave mouth,” Peetwo took this opportunity to hop down to the floor and produce a hologram of the cave in question.

“Once in the cave, we took time to recoup and get our bearings,” which was code for they screamed and bickered until more danger showed up, “At the time we weren’t sure why our pursuers didn’t continue to follow us, that is until we ran into the carnivorous force imbued flora that called the cave home,” Leon normal relaxed expression crumbled slightly as he remembered the images they’d been forced to face, “I’m not entirely sure how, but we managed to fight off the force visions the plant labored at us and just as we defeated it, Jedi Paven showed up.”

Leon stepped to the side and gestured for Dash to step forward, “Once we were finally able to think, we realized the walls weren’t made of stone, but of metal,” Baudelaire said, “After some discussion we decided to press on and investigate the site,” the image Pee two was displaying shifted displaying the entrance they’d taken into Starlight Beacon, “I’ll let Jedi Pavan take it from here,” then he whispered, “Just let me know when you want me to jump in on the tech stuff.”

@Alhon @Black Noise @Valen Pelora

 

[Dash Pavan]

If Dash was unsure how he felt about Hera, there was at least no doubt about the Grandmaster. The sight of the Master Jedi robed and waiting for them was a sobering sight, one that brought home how important this really was. She looked at him like she saw right through him, which only made Dash feel worse.

Leon did a sterling job of bringing the senior Jedi up to speed. Dash felt sure his summary of the Padawans' crash and planet side antics must have left out some juicy details, but he was just glad of the chance to gather his thoughts.

"They did really well to stay together and get through it" Dash began, still genuinely impressed at how much the three of them had endured before he arrived. "When we all made it out, we came face to face with the station".

He paused for a moment, remembering all too well how their camaraderie had collapsed as they bickered over what to do next. But neither Hera or the Grandmaster needed to know that. "It had the look of a crashed space station" he explained, trying to be objective "it must have fallen out of orbit decades ago, if not longer".

"We decided to explore the station and assess anything of value. Padawans Thorne and Sipal were able to restore emergency power and establish control over the main computer...". It felt weird talking about those closest too him in such terms, but he reminded himself Ez would probably have had no such trouble in his shoes. "Padawan Baudelaire and I accessed the station archive and interacted with the holo of Master Shadra Tin...".

Dash had to wonder if the name meant anything to either of the senior Jedi and found himself glancing at each of them. Hopefully he was keeping their attention; they would need to buy into the story of the station to commit to its restoration.

@Black Noise @Valen Pelora @Zay

 

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

Hera laughed at Alex's remarks but did not respond to them directly, instead, she took a seat and listened as the two young men recounted their adventures. Hera indeed sensed the unease in them both, but she was unsure of why it was there. She had tried to relax them a little bit in her greeting, and she felt she might've made headway in Leon. But Dash, there was tension there, unresolved conflicts. Did he need more time away from her? Hera couldn't tell, at least not yet.

Then came their tales. Hera knew Leon well, and she knew when he was leaving out things. The changes in his expression, the clarity of his thoughts as they passed over him, they could not be hidden from her. But she did not respond to them. Hera did nothing more than allow her sly little smile to stay on her features while he talked. At the bottom line, the group faced hardships and then worked together to overcome them. It was admirable.

Dash spoke next, speaking more about the space station. She sat up a little straighter as he spoke of it, clearly interested. Dash knew Hera was focused on creating more bases and assets for the Jedi Order by any means necessary, he had even been instrumental in gaining control of an entire shipyard for the Jedi Order. Now, a space station that might be put back into orbit, or even refitted with a massive hyperdrive and sent somewhere useful...

'The possibilities,' Hera thought, 'I'm excited.' Then, noticing the pause in Dash's explanation, she decided to speak up. "Sounds like quite the adventure. Ezra and Ferrin were able to reestablish power, so the station is operable still despite falling out of orbit! Fantastic. Tell me more, please, and-" Looking directly at Leon, "Don't skim the technical details. That's my favorite part."

As she spoke, she sent a mental message to Alex, keeping it short and private between the councilor and the grandmaster, "Who the hell is Shadra Tin?"

@Zay @Alhon @Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

She listened silently. Alex nodding along at the proper moment. The report was much as she expected and filled with half-truths. Leon did well to cover his tracks, but he was reporting to the Grandmaster. The hidden pieces of his story leaked from the edges of his mind. Alex was not about to give the young Jedi difficulties. Part of life was learning to grow. She hardly expected every mission to be a flawless display of professionalism. Besides, it seemed Dash had a fair handle on everything. He was still learning his place as a Knight but progressing quickly. What she could not quiet pinpoint was the thrum of tension with Hera. What did she not know?

The mention of Master Tin and voice in her mind brought her back to the moment. She answered Hera’s mental question by speaking to the room. “Master Tin…a little-known name…and an old one.” Alex only knew because of the time she’d spent locked in the Yavin archives as a Master herself. “An archivist of the Old Order." Alex leaned forward. Her interest plainly written on her face.

“What exactly did you all find?” A holo, importantly not a holocron, of Master Tin was fascinating. The station must have been a relic of their past, but what exatly remained to be seen.

@Black Noise @Alhon @Zay

 

[Leon Baudelaire]

Baudelaire clasped his hands in front of him as Dash took over. He managed to keep his eyes forward when the diplomatic description of they’re split was relayed. Hera encouraged them to get into the nitty gritty of it and shrugged in agreement. The Grandmaster saved him from the brunt of Hera’s curiosity, by narrowing their conversation to the most pertinent discovery.

In all honesty, Leon wasn’t sure where to start. The sheer immensity of information they’d uncovered could fundamentally change the Jedi as they knew it. Mysteries shrouded in the passage of time could be brought into the light. It felt like the possibilities were endless, but he wasn’t sure if that’s what they wanted. So, he decided to split the difference.

“In the archives we learned a lot. The Holo of Master Tin wasn’t simply a replaying message, it was a full AI,” he glanced at Dash then back to the councilmembers, “As to be expected the AI isn’t stable, but with Padawan Thrones slicing skills we were able to find the bridge.”

“Peetwo,” said Leon, the little BD unit spit out two datachips and Leon snatched them from the air. He trotted over and gave one to Hera then hustled over to the grandmaster, before returning to Dash’s side.

Leon clasped his hands in front of him, “On the bridge we managed to get a full diagnostic read out of the station,” he gestured to the datachips he’d given them, “You can find a full detailed report on the chips, but the long and the short of it is, we discovered a large amount of Jedi history and a structure large enough to be converted into a base.”

@Alhon @Black Noise @Valen Pelora

 

[Dash Pavan]

"Padawan Baudelaire is right" Dash said, reasonably chuffed with how this was going. "Master Tin's holo was indeed a sophisticated AI, one who is willing to support our Order and share the knowledge of the station". At the very least, the Order had to send some Jedi of the right persuasion to learn the full extent of the archives.

"The key thing you will note from the data" Dash continued "is that the station is sufficiently intact to be repaired and restored to orbit. To live and breathe again". He let that thought hang there for a moment, trying to inject a tone of hope into his words, hope at the symbol the station could be for an Order seeking to rebuild.

"I do not understand the technical requirements myself" he conceded "but there are many that do. What I see is the unique opportunity - the opportunity not only to reclaim a part of our history, but to acquire a new base of operations in the present. Not by starting from scratch, but by restoring the work of our ancestors. By repairing Starlight Beacon".

Dash looked from Hera to the Grandmaster and to Leon at his side. "We have to do this guys. It will remind everyone what we were, and show them all who we are".

@Black Noise @Valen Pelora @Zay

 

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

As the two young men wrapped up their descriptions of what had been done, ending with a 'call to action' as any good speech should, Hera sat back in her seat and frowned. A rare expression, one that felt strange on her face and didn't last long. But the Justicar-Councilor was, for lack of a better word, confused. Sighing and allowing a smile to grace her features once more, Hera spoke, "I'm sorry, but am I missing something? You argue this as if you expect us to shoot you down."

Holding up her hands in a manner of 'come on,' for but a moment, Hera relaxed and laughed. "You both know me, I live and breathe establishing more bases for the Jedi. Unless there's some hangup on Jedi history that I'm too young and hip to understand-" At that, she looked over at the Grandmaster and was unable to contain another laugh at her own terrible joke, "I'm all aboard restoring Starlight Beacon! I've already got a mind for how we might go about it."

There was the First Defense Mercenary Enclave, their people would be experts in restoring space-borne objects. Or the Ossein, as Hera had recently reestablished contact with him. Though forefront in her swirling mind, and clearly visible to Alex should she take a peak, were the Wookiees. It had been too long since they had brought them along to a Jedi venture.

@Valen Pelora @Alhon @Zay

 

[Alexandria Voran]

She smiled softly. “You need not convince me.” Alex rubbed her hands together. “I simply needed to hear it from you. Reports are only half measures when it comes to understanding the breadth of what we may accomplish.” She put her hands on the arms of her chair and stood. “To hear the conviction in your voices gives me hope. The Force knows that is in short supply these days.” The Morelllian Jedi let her eyes falls on Dash and then Leon. “Jedi Pavan, Padawan Baudelaire…this task is yours. You shall have all you need to get the station up and running. You’ll report directly to Councilor Albion and me.” She patted them each on the shoulder as she walked by.

“Incredible work. Truly. Now, let’s finish what you started.” Alex headed for the doors, whisking them open with the Force. “Next time, you don’t have to be so nervous.” A light laugh echoed as she entered the hall. They needed to get to work.

OOC: Thread end.

@Black Noise @Alhon @Zay