Ask Resurrection of the Evergreen

[Kerriwarr]

Spoiler: Ambience OOC

Origins
The landscape of the frozen world was one of peril. A desolate, inhospitable place to be, undoubtedly. This was, however, the site of an enigma. A transmission signal from a bygone era had been detected by a relay station orbiting the nearby planet of Andelm IV. For even such a short distance (galactically speaking), the signal was weak, indicating low power levels from the equipment being used, or (more likely the case) a damaged or obstructed transmitter. The garbled content of the message is not a legible one, though it does indeed appear pre-recorded. Only one word was found to be discernible through the static and rough language of Shyriiwook in the transmission:

"Jedi"

The remainder of the message remains indiscernible. After being relayed to the Jedi Temple, however, it appears the long unanswered call of the mysterious transmission will soon be answered...


The Scene
Tucked within the recesses of a mountain valley sits a ship. This ship, almost entirely buried in packed frost and snow, houses a small transmission antenna which only barely sticks out of the ice, along with a portion of its stern cargo door and a small section of the port side window. The ship, however, is not the enigma that may draw one in. Those attuned to the ethereal landscape of the Force would feel a strong presence dominating the area, the extent of its influence casting forth onto the immediate vicinity like the branches of a great tree, engulfing all in its presence with a feeling in stark contrast to that of the surrounding area: Warmth. A peaceful, calm, resonant warmth that permeates the essence of one's being. Similar to the warmth retained by an evergreen through a dreary, frigid winter, this warmth too preserved the life of whatever it was that lay inside the hold of the ship...

@Rhogar

 

[Rupert]

Gone were the days of comfort, the days where Rupert could afford to be idle. The young had gone off to die and he remained, he withered. He would spend the days reflecting on his past, both the joys... and the horrors. To the days before the First Order, even before that of the Rebellion. The glory of the Republic prior to the Clone Wars and to the Jedi he knew then. The young, the old. It was a different time, and he was nothing more than a relic.

So as it were, Rupert had taken to the skies. Robbed of his youth, the ancient Jedi travelled by civilian transport. Gone was the sure step, the steady hand that could quick-draw a blaster. Replaced with the shadow, rather, the primordial sludge of what he once was. He shuffled along the cargo hold of some light freighter that he had chartered, he hadn't even bothered to see what the ship was, just that it ran.

The cause of this.. exodus? Nay, this adventure? The slightest of tugs from the Force. One that felt familiar, archaic, tested. So with a heavy cloak to join the thick robes and his thick slippers, Rupert was bundled for the cold, or so he hoped. It was then, passing Andelm IV, that the freighter intercepted a transmission. It was gravelly, deep, far from Basic. The Captain, a lithe twi'lek would seek out his elderly companion to see if he could make sense of such noises.

Inward came the slow shuffle of slipper and tap of cane as Rupert made his way from the cockpit entry to the radio terminal. "Rupert, sir... Uhh.. .what do you think it is?"

Rupert would close his eyes, deep in thought, as he leaned heavily on the cane. The sound at first was foreign, until that old mind began to work once more and the gears spun into place. Shryiwook. Ahh.. the wookies. How Rupert, loved his time amongst their people. He would pull back those loose thoughts as he refocused on the comm at hand. One word, repeated over and over: Jedi.

"Captain, we must land the ship. Trace the signal to its source!" Rupert would yell out with an excite that would momentarily belie his age. Shaky legs would crouch until he was seated and the freighter would soon follow the course that the Captain piloted. It appeared Rupert could still be used as a tool of the Force.

@Tharnanion

 

[Kerriwarr]

The freighter soared through cloud and snow for some time before breaking through to the lower portion of the frigid planet's atmosphere. The clarity of the ground below, seemingly appearing from the void of mist, was nothing short of breathtaking. The snowy landscape persisted on the planet's surface for as far as one's eyes could possibly see. The mountains and gorges of the planet were clearly visible amidst the snowdrift plains that dominated the planet's surface. One such set of mountainous peaks, according to the transponder aboard the ship, seemed to be the source of the signal. As the ship made its way across the barren landscape toward the twin peaks, the old Jedi would begin to feel the farthest, weakest inklings of this presence. It was clear that the Jedi's intuition was intact.

The clearing between the two mountains was small, with only barely enough space to land the ship inside, sheltering it from the harsh winds of the ice-ridden planet. As one exited the ship, a cursory observation would reveal the entrenched ruins tucked underneath a small overhang, buried in snow...

@Rhogar

 

[Rupert]

The beauty of such a world was not lost on Rupert. It had its own sense of serenity, of peace. But at his age, he would begin to hope at some point the Jedi would move to a beach world or ya know, something better than a haunted jungle. His heartbeat would quicken as the shuttle lowered, years it had taken for him to continue undertaking missions again and here he was, off on his own, hopefully about to uncover some lost secret or even better, save a life. The shuttles hydraulics shook a bit as the craft bounced upon landing, the ramp lowering to reveal this white wonderland of sorts. But there was a new thing on Rupert's mind.

Cold. Oh how Rupert hated it. It was bad for his slippers, his bones, even his Pajama Bandit robe. Slow steps would ease down the ramp, assisted by his cane until he felt the soft crunch of snow beneath his slippers. He would begin to shuffle slowly forward through the snow, crunching as he moved along. Eyes closed, one hand extended, he would try to open himself to the Force, and sense the others presence.

Long moments would pass before the eyes opened and he stepped forward. This was the place. Moving around he would find a small section of the ship just breaching its ivory tomb. Now here, he had two options: Climb down and maybe get hurt or... try to free the ship with the Force and just take a real long nap after he was done. Option two sounded so much better.

Widening his stance a bit, Rupert would push his cane deeper into the snow, so it would stay upright on its own. Both hands were now extended before him as his eyes closed and he focused on the entrenched shuttle. "I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.. I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.." he'd begin to whisper slowly to himself as his minds eye wrapped around the entirety of the shuttle and he thought of what he wanted to do: lift.

@Tharnanion

 

[Kerriwarr]

A budge in the ice and a loud, audible crack could be heard as the old Master channeled his abilities, urging the old vessel out of the burrow that had formed around it. It would, indeed, be no short order of strength to free the ship from its icy prison, and the sound of rending metal and splintering wood could be heard from the vessel as it was pulled from the snow. Soon, it rested some fifteen feet away from its icy cocoon. The ship itself was revealed.

An Auzituck-class gunship could be recognized among those with the know-how. Its surface painted a dark, pastel green with white and yellow accents running along the length of its hull. The cargo bay door which previously only lay partially opened was now fully askew, laying on the ground and revealing the contents of the cargo hold to the elements, unabated by any obstacle. Despite the fact that Auzituck-class ships were ancient by current standards, the ship's interior contained something even more interesting than even the ancient starship which had now been revealed.

The interior of the ship, despite its age and lack of upkeep, was nothing short of breathtaking. The cargo hold itself had been gutted, making it apparent that this gunship was not, in fact, used as it was manufactured. What replaced the normal interior of the cargo hold were benches. Benches for sitting and benches for working. Even more so than that, however, was the artwork that resided inside the cargo hold. Amidst the strewn about tools, books, datapads, and whatnot, on the very floor and ceiling of the craft were slabs of wood. Wroshyr wood, from the looks of things. The slabs were carved beautifully, inlaid with artistically interpreted designs of flora and fauna, all of them native to Kashyyyk. Dominating the mural of carvings was a massive Shyyyo bird engraved into the ceiling of the craft, complimenting itself as the centerpiece of the entire work. It was clear that the maker of this ship - or at least whoever renovated it - was nothing short of spectacular in the way of architecture and artisanry. A maestro at their craft.

Upon one's progression from the hold, activating the hatch which led into the small cabin between the hold and cockpit, one would find the centerpiece to this mystery. Sealed into the wall, covered in frost, was the viewport to a cryo-stasis pod. Inside the pod was the face of a large - and particularly old - Wookiee. On the floor in front of the pod was a wooden box, more like a case. Next to it sat a lightsaber. A massive weapon, truly. Nearly long enough to be a cudgel in the hands of Rupert without being ignited. The saberstaff's wooden grip, too, were engraved with a plethora of floral designs from Kashyyyk. It was evident now that the inhabitant of the pod was the owner of the ship and, indeed, a Jedi.

@Rhogar

 

[Rupert]

Rupert would strain from the effort as he had worked muscles that had not been stretched in years, the muscles of the mind. Once the gunship was freed of its icy prison, he would collapse to his knees in the snow, chest heaving from the effort. He could feel himself nearly drained, but the task was far from complete. Hand gripping his cane tightly, he'd force himself to his feet, then forward, into the craft.

Despite the biting cold there was a warmth to the craft that Rupert hadn't felt in over two centuries. This was no gunship, one that he had become familiar with during the Clone Wars, no no.. this was somebodies home. Shaking hands found their stillness as the slid along the intricately carved slabs of wood. He could name each beast, each flower as his hand washed over it. He didn't need to see who was in the pod to know what the owner of such a craft would be, this maestro could be none other than Wookie with how he worshipped the beauty of his world and captured it in skill of his hand.

He would turn to follow the murals all the way to looking up and seeing the Shyyyo bird and he let out a sigh as peace washed over him. Nothing of this ship could be left behind and he would ensure that it didn't. It was then that Rupert noticed the pod and approached it, one hand resting on the glass. It didn't escape his attention that there was a saber nearby, and he wasn't one for tech. However with one final act with the Force, his eyes would close and he would trust in the Force to guide his hand. The hand would drift until the Force urged him to stop and he would press down on the button, releasing the Wookie from his centuries long sleep.

@Tharnanion

 

[Kerriwarr]

A sharp hissing sound emanated from all edges of the pod as the front panel bisected, opening to reveal a massive Wookiee underneath. Clothed in only a simple tunic, tabard, and trousers, the Wookiee looked like a relic without accounting for his clearly matured state. What may not be so obvious was the fact that the Wookiee was very badly injured. Not coming to consciousness, the body of the Wookiee slumped to the side, revealing through his wild chestnut fur a deep patch of frostbite on his lower abdomen. Without the aid of bacta or advanced medical assistance, it is very likely that the Wookiee would be on numbered days without going into stasis once more.

As this became apparent to Rupert, the reasoning behind the old Wookiee's stasis became clear. It wasn't a choice. It was necessity and survival that drove the Wookiee into the cryo-pod. With limited time, it was now up to Rupert to decide what the fate of the old Jedi was to be...

@Rhogar

 

[Rupert]

Rupert would move to keep the Wookie from slouching and then cursed when he realized the reasoning for the stasis. As a Jedi, he could heal, but this was well beyond him, well beyond the energy he had left remaining. Quickly, Rupert would begin to close the door to the stasis pod "I am sorry, my friend.. You shall sleep for only so much longer, for that I swear.." once the cryo-pod was sealed, he'd read the characters on the buttons: Shryiwook. He would search for the one to begin the cryo-stasis, and then hit the button. "Captain! Bring your men! I need stuff loaded!" Rupert would yell out.

The Captain still stood outside the ship, mouth agape in wonder at what the old man did. Having a YZ-755 light transport freighter, he had the ability to not only load the the auzituck gunship, but safely stow it all within the large cargo hold of the craft. At Rupert's voice, he would start to bark orders to his men and they'd set to work with tow cables and turbolifts to try to lift and move the downed craft into the hangar.

Rupert would collect the Wookie Jedi's most important belongings, before exiting the craft and letting the Captain and his men do their jobs. A long lost Jedi, was going to return home.

@Tharnanion

 

[Kerriwarr]

The Wookiee, still peacefully unconscious within his stasis pod, would feel the first inklings of life for a great deal of time as he slipped ever so closer towards awareness. Hearing muffled hissing sounds followed by blurred speech and commotion, the old master would feel a sharp pain in his side.

Another hiss as the valves pressurized the pod once more.

...

silence.

The great master fell once again a victim to the endless expanse of dreams.

---

The ship itself would be relatively easily loaded into the larger freighter. Being a relatively small craft by comparison, the cables and lifts would do the trick just fine, especially considering the decreased friction offered by the ice and snow.

In his hands, Rupert would, in his search for the Wookiee's more significant artifacts, find a relatively large tome whose pages are worn with time and use, the Wookiee's massive saberstaff, an intricately carved wooden box with seemingly no latch to open it with, and a small, drawstring leather pouch. In all, the load would be rather cumbersome if all taken at once. The aid of some of the freighter's crew in transporting the items would prove to be most ideal.

@Rhogar

 

[Rupert]

Rupert was more than happy to let the crew help him. After all, he was all but drained from the efforts of the day. He sat in his personal chamber, resting and watching over the Wookie Jedi Masters gear. As he rested, he would thumb through the old tome, using the utmost care, as he tried to discover the identity of the trapped Master.

Gauging from the age of the vessel and the Jedi's gear, he could at least place his frozen companion from around the Clone Wars. Maybe before. That would give Rupert hope. Another Jedi from an era long thought lost. As the Captain's ship took off and charted a course for Yavin, Rupert allowed exhaustion to take him. Or maybe it was just time for the older Jedi's nap. The flight would go for the most part, without incident and none of the Captain nor his crew would bother the pair of old Masters.

@Tharnanion