Purification

[Fennex Zeerda]

Fennex set his pack gently on the ground and bundled his coat around him to ward of the cold. A single shaft of light pierced down from the roof of the cave, and its reflection from the crystal deposits lining the smooth walls cast shifting, shimmering blue and white waves throughout the chamber. It was a stark contrast to the endless waves of reddish sand and brown rock of the surface of Jedha. The first of the rituals which Fennex was seeking to recreate had taken place on Ellora- a world lost to time, even before the war with the Exiles, like so many other ancient Jedi sites. He intended to find the place the records spoke of, but for now he believed Jedha would be suitable alternative for him, which is why he had traveled out here so far from the Jedi fortress at NiJedha, This narrow series of caverns was a small off shoot of the larger, more traveled Kyber caves that the initiates and masters frequented closer to the temple. Fennex had discovered it wandering the surface of the ancient moon during his recovery after Illum. It had seemed to call to him- a place of preternatural calm, and a natural spring of lightside energy even beyond the normal energetic warmth of Kyber Crystal deposits. It wasn't nearly as strong as some other sites that many temples had been built upon throughout the orders history, but Fennex had always felt at ease here.

He settled himself crosslegged on a flat stretch of stone formed eons ago by an underground stream that had long ago settled into a small trickle, which now dribbled over the edge of the stone and into a small pool which then disappeared into the smooth carved rock. Fennex removed his lightsabers from his coat pockets and placed them on the ground at his sides. The matched set was the same ones he had constructed on achieving knighthood, nearly three decades ago. They were well worn, and had undergone a number of repairs over the years. The dull grey weapons were scratched and dented and scored, wrapped in sweat stained leather bands. When he'd first carried them into battle and used them to kill, he was shaken by it. After a while he began to wonder how many they had killed verse how many they had saved. After a decade or so, he stopped wondering. Now, even further along, after countless battles fought, with grey creeping in around his ears and snout... he wondered again.

Fennex removed the first exile saber from his bag and inspected it for the first time since he'd picked it up on Dantooine so long ago it seemed, though in reality that had been hardly a few months. The girl had been little more than a child, but her actions proved her to be something far more dangerous. The hilt was surprisingly simple in construction, he thought- a simple silver cylinder, like something a padawan or initiate would make for their first weapon. He placed gently on the stone floor in front of him, and moved on to the next. This one was from the flamboyantly colorful Rishii he had slain on Coruscant. It was wrapped in cloth, and in two pieces since he had bisected it after nearly being impaled by its dual phase function. The two pieces of the shaft, seperated just below the crystal chamber, were badly burn scored by his own lightsaber and dark purple blood stained the cold metal. He placed both pieces on the cloth next to the other. All of the weapons carefully arranged around him- his own and the Exiles- shared something in common, but Fennex was having difficulty placing it. Many of Exile weapons he had encountered over the years fell into two broad categories, when he took the time to examine them. The first were crude, brutal, and efficient. The second were overly elaborate mockeries, flashy and ostentatious. Both tended to be exemplary of the exiles personality and the way the darkside had corrupted them.

But these... The Knight realized what the commonality was. These were Jedi weapons, at heart. They were simple and elegant, not fancily balanced or outfitted or given over to grand displays. Nor were they designed as brutal weapons of war, even if that is what they had become. They were lightsabers who had once belonged to Jedi. The realization was unexpected, but it didn't shake Fennex like it would have once. He was coming to terms with the reality of the Jedi, and how close the darkside truly was to all of them. It called to all Jedi equally, preying on their baser emotions. That was why the Jedi code existed as it did, in its entirety, he had realized. Many became caught up on the more popular catch phrases, but the entire code mattered, he realized. It was in these spaces that the darkness found its hold, seeping in wherever it could to corrupt the pure hearted. Even in him, he had realized.

The Jedi closed his eyes and centered himself as he had done thousands of times before. His paws settled on gently on his knees, and his breaths came slow and deep. He concentrated on nothing around him except his own mind and his connection to the Force. Padawans spent years learning the foundations of such meditation techniques, and a Jedi could spent the rest of his natural life perfecting it until it came as naturally as breathing. It did not take long for the furry little Knight to enter a trance-like state as his mind emptied itself of all thoughts. Novices often tried to picture, or worse tried too hard not to picture their connection with the Force. Instead, you had to let go of yourself, let go of your thoughts, and let the Force flow through you. It was a difficult concept to teach to those who had not experienced the first steps of it themselves, and even to those who had experienced such enlightenment it could be difficult to reproduce on command.

Fennex slowly faded into a deep trance. The cavern, with its shimmering lamps of kyber, was still and silent around him, and yet teeming with life. The Force treated his body much the same as it treated the rocks, and the beautifully formed stalagmites and stalactites around him. It treated him the same way it treated the slithering granite slugs in the dark corners, the quietly shuffling hawk-bats huddled on the ledges of the chamber, and the microscopic bacteria in the caves cold pool waters. The Force flowed in and around them all, connecting and binding them together. The bacteria and Fennex were one and the same. Beings of the same nature and origin observing themselves through eachother. One.

Fennex let go.


@Mortivica @Faster Than Light

 

[The Storyteller]

The hilt, now in possession of the little, furry Jedi, contained a link via the Force to the one slain by him and his fellow Jedi. The hilt, like all, was common but it's creator, the dark hearted Mother who fabricated such a thing, had poured her hatred and malice into the object; turning it into a haunted object that continuously called to the ghost of the one whose name spoke upon the lips of her enemies; Xiang Liu. From the netherworld of the Force, where the dead became one or refused to be engulfed entirely by the Force walked as an apparition, the dead Exile opted for the latter. In life she had failed herself, but in death, she was more powerful than ever before. However, despite the power she wielded from beyond the grave forever encased in a ghostly form, her powers could only be called upon in the areas where the Darkside was present; and the furry one had come to such a place where the Dark was methodically conquering the Light.

Whilst the Jedi passed the crystals, the eyes of the Exile's severed head locked onto his body with a grisly manifestation of pure hatred; jumping from one crystal to the next, only to dissolve when the final crystal had been passed. Still, the crystals where everywhere; and so was her cold gaze.

Watching and waiting with a calculated patience, she saw her hilt exposed; her heart pounding with morbid glee. It was her baby, a wicked murderous baby but her baby nonetheless. The mere sight of seeing it lying next to this Jedi enraged her, almost capsizing her into raining down a caustic hue of vengeance with the sole purpose of burning and eroding the flesh from his bones.

But still, she waited.

Her smile turned into a violent sneer, when she saw the Jedi expose himself by falling into a meditation trance.

From a nearby corner, where the shadows reigned supreme, she took on the form of a Force ghost; a headless body holding in it's hands her head, eyes still locked onto the back of the Jedi. With a small puff from dead lungs, she blew of a cold kiss that ruffled the fur on the back of the Jedi's neck; sending hawk-bats screeching madly throughout the cave. The slugs, harmless and useless, began to cower away; both parties aware of the presence of evil.

"Murder.....thief."

Her voice, like a cacophony of nails dragging across the inner side of a tomb, bellowed and echoed in the cave; freezing the cave's dwellers into silence. Snarling, exposing rotted and jagged teeth, she hurled her head toward the Jedi's back; only to dissolve, along with her body, just before physical contact was made and his eyes allowed to bear witness to her presence, leaving in the two places she once was, a fleeting wisp of dark smoke.
​

@Loco / @Faster Than Light

 

[The Storyteller]

Xiang Liu wasn't the only one who wouldn't rest, Zik'ir was slain by the little furball on Courscant. That wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was that he had his wings clipped off by the little fox. And for what? Zik'ir didn't know this in life, but in death he knew the truth after the fact. That it was all for nothing, as the lead that Zik'ir and Fennex were chasing on the missing counilors turned out to be a dead end, just nothing. Zik'ir did manage to see his own saber, which was split into two pieces. He almost killed the furball, but he couldn't land an otherwise game-ending hit on him. So close and yet so far, a very narrow margin between victory and death, but in the end he had found only death. Zik'ir could not possibly rest. He would be waiting, waiting for this chance. As a being who was obssessed with his own beauty, the clipping of the peacock-like Rishii's wondrous wings was seen as worst than death itself, although Zik'ir was blinded to see him 'hideous', the short-lived emotional pain was greater than the physical pain, and the former carries on even in death.

The Rishii took his form, it was the same as an forearm-less (and wingess) version of himself, otherwise the same he appeared on Courscant that day. It was awful for him to fathom, but he wanted the furball to see how he disfigured the Rishii horribly before he died. He appeared four meters to the meditating furball's left side, leaving a chilling and dark side aura which could be felt by the fox even with his fur.

"YOU..."

The Rishii said, around the same time Xiang Lui's spirit would hurl herself into the Jedi. Zik'ir wasn't even sure if the furball would remember his voice because he didn't speak much during their brief encounter. Zik'ir would disappear before the furball would turn open his eyes. Maybe at best he could get a glimpse before he fades away. Maybe. Zik'ir will enjoy tormenting this furball beyond the grave.

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

Fennex felt the air turn eerily cold, standing his fur on end as he sat with his eyes closed in the dark cave. The windswept desert moon was always on the chilly side, but this wasn't just a drop in temperature... it was something different. Something terrible. It quickly seeped its way deep inside him, nauseating and unsettling. He had hardly started, it seemed, but already the Dark Side was all around him. He continued breathing deeply and rhythmically, letting the Force flow through him, sparking a warmth deep within him... But it wasn't enough. He could feel it, in an entirely abstract and unexplainable way, being choked by the Dark.

"Murderer... Thief..."

Fen struggled to maintain his focus as the words cut deeply into his very soul, seeming to echo in his mind rather than his ears. The rasp seemed distant, but familiar at the same time- a ghostly echo.

"You..."

This voice was more familiar- more recent- but just as ghostly and disembodied, and hard to place. In any other circumstance he would have called it a menacing sound, but that wasn't quiet accurate. In fact, it was much less a sound and more of a feeling, speaking to the living Force of his soul more so than his body. Fennex fought to maintain his focus on his meditation, struggling against the sudden barrage of distractions, right up until the apparition struck at him. There was no real impact, but that didn't change that fact the Fennex could feel it. If he thought it was cold before, it was nothing compared to the icy spike that went through him, causing him to leap to his feet, his eyes opening wide as he searched for an assailant that wasn't there. His fur was puffed wildly as he searched a cave that suddenly seemed much darker than when he had entered. The granite slugs no longer slithered in the dark, and the hawk bats were deathly silent in their roosts. Fennex' body stood stock still where he had landed after being disturbed form his meditation, but his eyes darted to and fro, waiting for a new assault. The lightsabers he had arranged so carefully before he began this journey long forgotten- it was as if they weren't even there.

"Come on out you cowardly spook. Show yourself!" Fennex shouted vainly into the darkness, provoking whatever apparition was after him.

@Mortivica @Faster Than Light

 

[The Storyteller]

"Hahahahahahaha" the sound of the Exile Peacock crackled after the little one demanded the spirits showed themselves. Although the furball would have keen hearing due to his species, but it's just a flat echo that would fill the area, it's not something that the fox' ears would be able to hone in on. Instead Zik'ir's restless incorporeal form would be floating directly above the fox as negative energy was attempting to flow towards his loathed enemy. He was floating in such a way that his talons would be facing above while his head would be giving a slash smile with his head pointed directly downs at the Fox, having it's head in sight below. With his restless spirit, there are many things in death that he couldn't do in life, and one of those things will be settling his grudge with the fox. If the fox decides to look high, he might not even bother vanishing this time, showing his disfigured, translucent, wingless for to him at last. Now that he thinks of it, playing hard to get sounds like it will get boring really fast.

@Loco

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

The evil laughter echoed endlessly through the darkness, both everywhere and nowhere at once, resonating within the Jedi's soul. Fennex had never felt a sound like this before. It made him queasy, like he'd swallowed a whole stomach full of Dagobah swamp water, and his fur was practically tearing itself out of its follicles it was so on end. He had that feeling like he was being watched, but when he reached out with the Force he felt only a smothering sense of darkness. He was alone in this place, in every sense of the word.

"Laugh it up you... you..." Fennex spun around in circles now, searching for something to yell at, fighting to contain his growing sense of fear, "you non-existent...nether-rat!"

His shouts did not echo the way the eerie laughter had. It fell flat and muffled instead, like the whole cave was doing its best to bury his voice. Ears slicked against his skull, Fen let out a low growl as his fear began to mix with anger. This wasn't what he'd bargained for, coming down here. This wasn't at all what the ancient texts had described. Something must have gone wrong. He was supposed to be here letting the Force flow through him as he had done so many times before- letting the vibrant connection with the living Force fill the space around him, purifying the crystals. He couldn't understand where this sudden attack had come from, and how such a wondrous and bright connection had been all but crushed by the sudden oppressive darkness.

He felt them before he saw them. The ghostly black eyes floating silently just inches above him. the Knight locked eyes with the apparition, his heart freezing in his chest. I killed you, he thought. What madness was this? Fennex scrabbled away from the translucent beasts claws and his ugly malevolent smile. Fear gripped him tightly now as he struggled to wrap his mind around what was happening. The fox spun to face his resurrected foe, calling his lightsabers to hand as he did so... but nothing happened. The sabers were gone, scattered by his sudden leap or perhaps stolen by the ghostly fiends of the cave- they were nowhere to be seen. Worse yet, Fennex realized, dread seeping into the deepest parts of his soul, his lightsabers weren't the only thing to abandon him. Fennex could feel nothing of the Force. Just cold, black darkness.

 

[The Storyteller]

They say that Darkness rises, and the Light to meet It. But here, it will just be Darkness rising and even more Darkness to meet it. Zik'ir's incorporeal form vanishes the moment Fennex processes what he just saw of him, giving off vile crackling before disappearing. Now in front of Fennex the translucent images of both Xiang Liu and Zik'ir appeared in plain view of the little foxy Jedi as both of the two voices can be heard laughing in unison. The time for fun and games is over, now the real torture begins. Xiang Liu's headless body would be standing upright, with her severed head being held in one hand. The mal-aligned Rishii spirit would be floating just above her despite his form lacking his illustrious wings. The two show their venomous grins. Zik'ir's form has it's wings comeback to him a lightsaber hilt is materialized in it's hand, same one the Rishii was sporting during his encounter with the fox before his untimely death. The blade would ignite, it would produce a red beam, still making the sound of a saber ignitng but the blade translucent as the rest of his incorporeal form.

Xiang Lu's spirit would then extend a hand at the fox, and the dark side spirit would aim to use the crackling dark side energies to push the fox to slam him into one of the cave pillars behind him. Meanwhile, Zik'ir, while mid air, would launch himself with speed towards the Fox while flying, reading himself for a lightsaber strike on the fox. In the end, the ghosts have no physical presence, Zik'ir's lightsaber wouldn't actually cut the Fox if a strike lands, but it would impact him on a mental and spiritual level. They will either shatter the fox' mind and breaking his will in the process, or turn him to the Dark Side. As they are incorporeal, no physical blows can touch them. The only way to defeat them, is to give birth to a new light that rends the darkness. When Zik'ir gets lightsaber range, he would swipe his blade horizontally at the fox' chest level, stopping himself midflight completely since he isn't bound by momentum in death.

@Loco!

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

This couldn't be real. It felt real, but it couldn't be. Fennex kept repeating that to himself internally, trying desperately to be convinced. He felt tiny and powerless, trapped here with these illusory monsters, without the Force to guide him. It was disconcerting and disorienting. He'd relied on the Force for decades to guide his hand and to light his path. It had always been his greatest ally. But now, as the ghostly Exile's crimson blade deepened the shadows even further and cast Fennex in a demonic red light... he was alone, for what felt like the very first time. Fen bared his teeth at the apparitions like a cornered animal, his fur puffed out in every direction, his instincts trying to make himself look bigger as he took up a defensive stance, claws at the ready. He growled like a feral dog. His enemies didn't seem very threatened. I'll show them... the Knight thought as he readied himself. He pushed off with his hind legs, leaping at his foes. If he was going to die in this cave, he would die fighting. He hardly made it off the ground.

Xiang Liu's crackling green blast of energy struck him dead center, flinging him across the chamber like a furry little ragdoll. Instead of heat, the tendrils of lightning pierced him with a sense of icy coldness, sapping the strength from his tense muscles where it struck him. He collided with the smooth stone pillar with a sickening thud. Fen hit the floor of the cave snout first, dazing him as he quickly attempted to struggle to his feet on his weak and wobbly limbs, hissing like the wounded animal he was. He barely made it to one knee. Fen looked up in time to see the predatory bird hurtling straight at him, lightsaber poised to strike. Fen screeched angrily and lashed out desperately at the birds wing- the one holding the lightsaber- but it was in vain. The fox watched as his little claws passed through the ghost like he wasn't there, useless. The same could not be said for the Exiles weapon. The blade struck Fennex true, sweeping horizontally through his chest.

This was it. He should be dead, Fennex knew. Cut in half, just like he'd sliced apart the foes he was facing now again here in this cave. But it appeared these creatures weren't done with him yet. The blade passed through him without leaving a mark, but Fenenx collapsed backwards again as if he had been physically struck. His chest ached with incredible pain, like some slimy dark creature was trying to squeeze his heart until it burst inside him. He gasped desperately for breath, his lungs feeling like they'd been filled with ice water. he stared up at the triumphant peacock with rage in his eyes.

"COME ON THEN!" Fen screeched, his voice hoarse and breaking as he clumsily rolled away from his enemy, his fur now matting with droplets of blood from his falls. He struggled to stand, stumbled, and began struggling up again, preparing for the next blow. Foam was forming at the corners of his mouth as the rage of being helpless to fight back- defeated by the ghosts he'd summoned- began to consume him...

"DO IT!"

Ghosts he'd summoned. The words nagged at the back of his mind. Why did he have ghosts, he wondered?

@Faster Than Light

 

[The Storyteller]

The two spirits of the Exiles paused, grinning and smirking in sanctification of what they had one to the fox. Just Fennex made them suffer before dying in life, they will make the Jedi suffer before breaking him in death. Either he turns to the Dark Side today, or he will have a shattered mind forever. There was a feeling of rage in the Fox, and as the Fox taunted them, the two Exile spirits began crackling and laughing, echoing through the caves. What they are doing seems to be working and by edging him on maybe they can push him closer and closer. The spirits of Xiang Liu and Zik'ir are in sync in their purpose. As the fox dared him, the Exiles will oblige gladly. Zik'ir and Xiag Liu would extend their free hands, palms forward. With that, Fennex (unless he finds a way to defend), would find his torso and arms chained together with the dark side of the Force as the grip would be ensnared around him. It would tighten and then tighten again to painful levels. The rage is there, an avenue of attack has been presented. And once fully exploited it and the Fennex gives into it, it doesn't matter what happens next, the Exiles will win in these caves even in death.

@Loco

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

The ghosts he'd summoned...

The words echoed through Fennex's mind just as the apparitions maniacal cackles echoed through the darkness of the cave. He could feel their attack coming. The malevolent energies of not just the ghostly exiles, but Fennex's own rage had turned the cave into a swirling mass of darkness in his minds eye, and for the first time Fennex could see it- all of it. He could feel his supernatural foes harnessing it for their own gain, and the irony of his own emotions fueling their relentless assault on him was not lost on the Jedi. He was supposed to be above this. There is no emotion, there is peace. He'd repeated the mantra to himself tens of thousands of times over the decades. As the dark tendrils wrapped around his limbs, Fennex wondered; had the Jedi Code never really stuck with him, or was his discipline and dedication to it the only thing keeping the darkness within him at bay all this time?

"What's in there?"

"Only what you take with you"​

He heard the words as if they were calling to him from across all eternity, all whisper and echo. But the words meant something to him. He understood their meaning, if not their context, and they filled him with hope. The darkness was in all of them- in every living being. It dwelt deep inside them, feeding on their baser emotions, making its promises of power and fulfilment. They would never truly be rid of it. It was part of them. But there was a light in the dark. The darkness only had the power they gave it. There was a future for the Jedi- and for all living beings- long after he was gone, despite the darkness that seemed to be consuming the galaxy now. Fennex and all the living Jedi were just an infinitesimally small part of it. Whether Fennex lived or not, whether the Jedi order survived or not... The Light was eternal. It would find its vessels, and it would survive.

Fennex closed his eyes, content. If this was his end, so be it. He would not die with rage and darkness filling his heart. If the darkness struck him down, he would become more powerful than it could ever imagine. With that in his mind, Fennex relaxed, his fur settling and his breath slowing back to normal even as his limbs were stretched out and wracked with pain. He focused all of his energy on the light side of the Force- determined to meet his demise meditating on the cosmic energy he had dedicated his mortal life to. A shimmering glow enveloped him, as he centered himself, beginning within him and expanding rapidly outward. There is no death, there is the force. He waited for his end.

...

The end never came. When Fennex opened his eyes, the cackling evil apparitions were gone. The spell was broken. He was alone in the dim light of the cave. His body remained locked in place, his paws on his knees in his meditation stance, unmoving. His breathing was ragged, not as calm as he had remembered moments earlier, but quickly bringing itself down to normal. His fur was soaked in sweat, as if he had just exerted himself greatly- not something someone would expect from sitting alone in an empty cave on the cold desert planet like Jedha. Fennex breathed a sigh of relief. What a nightmare, he thought, entirely unaware of how real the last few moments had been.

Fennex eyes caught sight of the objects in front of him- a pair of perfectly matched silver hilts, slightly longer than the weapons the knight had wielded over the last several decades, but wrapped in the same familiar worn leather bands, stained with the sweat and blood of countless struggles. New lightsabers, elegantly constructed from a fusion of Jedi and Exile blades- a symbol of what could be made of the ruined remains of creatures twisted and forged by the dark side, turned back to the light. He carefully lifted the weapons with the force, inspecting them carefully. They were perfectly balanced, in more ways than one. The blades activated in unison before him, bathing him in a cool white glow. The shimmering blades were completely colorless, with only the slightest hint of pastel blue near the emitter, a slight refraction from his old crystals.

Fennex closed his eyes again, and released a deep sigh of relief. The lightsabers shut off and returned to his sides. It was over, for now. The dark energy bled into the Exile's kyber crystals by all their hate and malice had nearly overwhelmed him. Their combined efforts had nearly defeated him, bringing his own darkness bubbling to the surface and forcing him to confront it for the first time. IT was jarring, and even frightening, if he was being honest. He had never realized there was such capacity for darkness inside every living being like himself, and he was forced to contend with a sudden wave of pity for little Alais, and Master Vox, and Vin, and all the others who had been overwhelmed and defeated by it. IT gave him a jarring new perspective on everything that had happened over his life, and the last few years in particular. He needed time to process it.

Fennex opened his eyes and looked around the cave, reaching out with the Force once more to feel the bustling life around him. He felt the granite slugs and hawk bats, and all the microscopic organisms in the slick walls and pools of the cave. He felt everything.

"I'm sorry." Fen whispered to the ghosts of Xiang Liu and Zik'ir, "May you be with the Force, always."