Private A Murder Most Fowl

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Heading towards Ukatis
Tags: Oryn Selvar​

Katherine had been up at the crack of dawn in order to get some early morning training. It had been a routine she had started during her time away with Torin, and had maintained ever since. The fact Naboo was a gorgeous place certainly helped, although nothing could ever replace what she called home these days.

And for a while Katherine thought the day would go like any other day, until she suddenly got a ping on her commlink mid-flight. A fairly high priority mission had arrived on the Jedi Order’s doorstep, the source being a face familiar to the redhead.

Corazona von Ascania

Apparently a dispute had erupted on Ukatis, between two rival families that were focused on agriculture. So far it had only escalated to verbal threats being shared, but there was a growing concern it was going to get worse. Cora was unable to personally deal with it, and the Jedi already present; situated at the enclave there, already had their hands full trying to help keep the peace

Thus, she had sent a request for help from the High Republic’s Order.

Katherine hadn’t hesitated to answer the call, indicating she would head to the planet as soon as possible. Though, as she went to do just that, an idea struck the winged Jedi.

Since taking a place within the High Republic, Katherine had been gradually working towards the idea of officially taking on a Padawan. It was a massive responsibility, and one that she wasn’t about to take lightly. And while she had yet to make a final decision, it wasn’t about to stop her from still instructing a Padawan or two.

Thus, she made a call and requested for Oryn Selvar to join her post-haste. When he had arrived at the hangar where her ship was, Katherine ushered the Nautolan onboard with nary an introduction. It was only when they were away, the ship thrown into hyperspace, that Katherine finally turned to face where Oryn was seated.

“My apologies for the abruptness, Padawan Selvar. The mission we are undertaking is ever developing, so I wanted to get us underway as soon as we could.” She said, a small apologetic smile on her face. “My name is Katherine Holt.”

 

[Oryn Selvar]

​

Oryn was halfway through a spar with two droids when his summons came. He had lost track of time of how long he had been there, so lost in the motions of combat had he been. He hadn't managed to drive past the defences of the droids, but in return they had only touched him thrice. The message indicated haste was of the essence, so he quickly shut the droids down and handed in the training saber, as he did not own one himself, and moved out.

Even before reaching the hangar he could hear the sounds of a ship powering up. Surely it wasn't his, was it? Was it? Oh. The Nautolan transitioned from walk, to a jog, to a sprint. The ship was already levitating as he leapt onto the ramp. It wouldn't have taken off without him, would it?

"Padawan Oryn Selvar, reporting for- oh" he started, though once he saw the back of Knight Holt, he simply followed into the cockpit and found his seat. Even without the Force, his headtails would've picked up on the emotions filtered through the air from the pheromones. In the Jedi Knight he couldn't sense any malice, or even annoyance. He wasn't being dismissed. All he could taste was simply the pursuit of efficiency.

Oryn let Holt pilot the ship while he used the moment as a chance to meditate. What was this mission? Where were they going? Why was he selected? Was he ready? He tried to avoid doubt settling in, letting there only be the Force.

He didn't recognise the coordinates, nor was he familiar with the path they were taking.

When he was addressed, he looked up at the Knight, and smiled. The undercurrents were still that of focus, yet layers of the air grew warmer. "No apologies needed." "Oryn" he repeated, following up from her introduction.

"What is our mission?" he asked, then turned with a serious look towards what seemed like star chart of some kind. He stared a moment, but couldn't quite make sense of what was in front of him. "What's an Ukatis?"

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Heading towards Ukatis
Tags: Oryn Selvar​

“Ukatis is a predominantly green world, a majority being rural farmland and forests. Its capital city is Axilla, a feudalistic society which means yeah, King, Lords, Nobles, Peasants, the whole thing.” Katherine paused for a moment, mentally cataloging the information she knew. “Fortunately; hopefully, we won’t have to be dealing with any nobles today.” If they could avoid drawing their attention, she’d call it a minor victory in of itself.

“Oh, and there is a Force Nexus located on the planet, so you may likely sense it even if we aren’t going to be venturing anywhere close to it.”

It was a piece of Ukatis history that Katherine had only heard of, mostly from Cora after the redhead had first learned about the incident, and had bugged the blonde healer for details.

I really did have a bad habit of that when I was a Padawan…

“For us, the relevant part is the farmland. There are a number of families that are solely focused on running farms. Two of which have erupted into a dispute, ranging from sabotaging crops, to outright stealing livestock.”

She could only imagine how quickly it must’ve sparked, especially as it was messing with a whole family’s livelihood.

“Our mission is to help support the investigation there. The local enclave is currently focused on keeping the peace, so it’ll be our job to solve the case.”

 

[Oryn Selvar]

​

"Ukatis is a predominantly green world," Those are some serious wings, he thought to himself. He'd been too focused on trying to make it on time, then deciphering her tone and demeanour to really focus on it. But this lady really had a serious pair of wings on her... "a majority being rural farmland and forests. Its capital city is Axilla, a..." Can she really fly with those things? Surely they're not just for show. How fast? Can't be too fast, right? "King, Lords, Nobles, Peasants, the whole thing. Fortunately; hopefully, we won't have to be dealing with any nobles today." Though she probably doesn't weigh too much. Shouldn't think about that... Anyway, those are some heavy wings. Maybe at a stand-still you wouldn't get much speed, but leap off a building or something? Those things would carry you...

Oh. Was she staring? Was he supposed to say something? "Indeed" Oh that was a dumb thing to say, but he thought it sounded clever. Drat. He still didn't know much about Ukatis. What had she been saying again? Farms and nobles, farms and nobles...

For the rest of the briefing, he paid attention well. He didn't dare to do anything else lest she throw him off the vessel and pick out another Padawan.

"Are we talking a small group of farmers on either side? Or bigger clans?" he asked for context.

The case seemed simple enough. He should be able to support the winged Knight in this.

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Heading towards Ukatis
Tags: Oryn Selvar​

It did take several seconds longer than normal for the Padawan to respond, and Oryn’s simple response had Katherine stifle a laugh. Even when she had been talking, she caught the Nautolan staring at her wings. At this point it was nothing new to her, especially with people who got a closer look at them. From what she had been told, it was one thing to see them from afar, it was another to see the enormity of them up close.

His question about the size of the two rival families did give Katherine pause, as she thought on the answer.

“Unfortunately the report did not state a specific number when talking about the families. Nor did the records of Ukatis provide any.” Potentially, they could request more detailed records, but Katherine had a feeling they were going to be interacting with the farmers not long after landing.

The redhead caught Oryn’s eyes shifting, just ever so slightly to look at her wings again. This time Katherine did let out a chuckle, a mouth turning into a knowing smile.

“You have questions,” she began, nudging her head a little towards her right wing. “Ask away.”

Better to get them out now, rather than in the middle of an investigation.

 

[Oryn Selvar]

Location: Heading towards embarrassment
Tag: Katherine Holt
​

He had gotten caught staring. His cheeks would've fired up a bright shade of red if he could blush. Thankfully, Nautolan physiology came in clutch. She didn't seem offended, and so he didn't voice an apology, not exactly, but she could probably read one on his face all the same.

"I" he started. He was caught off guard, and it took him a moment to recover. "I haven't seen many of your kind before, is all." none, actually. The respectful thing would've been to leave it at that. But curiosity killed the Loth-cat. "Can you fly?" the obvious question, followed up by the one he really cared about. "How fast?" he couldn't quite contain the growing grin as he envisioned it. Jedi on wings, swooping in to cut down a group of Sith. Wicked.

Oryn didn't dare ask the question about how much weight her wings could carry. He didn't want to spend the rest of their trip locked up.

"Others have said it's like I'm flying when we're in water." he managed a little laugh. "It's not exactly the same. Swimming, I mean. But I get that it looks like that."

"At sea, I'm really in my element. It must feel nice to always be in your element. Except when you're inside, or in space I guess" As long as Katherine had clear skies overhead, she must've felt like she could conquer it all.

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Heading towards Ukatis
Tags: Oryn Selvar​

Katherine did feel a little bad making Oryn feel embarrassed, at least that was her assumption given how taken aback the Nautolan was. She wasn’t exactly brushed up on her physiology knowledge, but she was fairly certain they weren’t able to visibly blush.

The obvious and rather simple first question got a small chuckle from Katherine.

“Yes I can fly, quite easily in fact. Be it from a significant height, or from the ground if necessary. Though that requires a little ‘Force assistance’ to propel myself up high enough.”

The question about speed gave Katherine pause, her focus shifting away somewhat as she thought about it. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever properly tracked it…”

No wait, that’s a lie.

She had tested it, but back during her Padawan years. Which was quite some ago now, and more importantly, with a whole different body.

“Let’s just say I’m never going to beat a starfighter in a drag race. But if pushed to my limit, I can catch up with one.”

Katherine smiled as she listened to Oryn talk about swimming. “It might not be exactly the same, but I imagine it’s the same feeling? Like…many people can swim, can deep dive, but they require this and that piece of equipment in order to do so. For you, there’s no need for any of that, you are; as you said, in your element. It’s the same feeling I have when flying.”

 

[Oryn Selvar]

Katherine Holt​

"No way!" Oryn couldn't understand how she'd never tracked it! He'd been racing all over the place if he could fly. She said she'd never beat a starfighter in a race, obviously, but… Had he heard that right? She could catch up with one? His jaw dropped.

Katherine
was
so fething cool.

He was so far from being this cool.

He also didn't think he could catch up to a starfighter at sea. Or... Could he? Maybe with the Force. Feth. That would be cool.

Somewhere, a consol beeped, signifying they were coming out of hyperspace. Oryn hadn't travelled that much, and so found himself glued to the glassteel as they were taken in planetside. The place was beautiful. It should've been obvious, perhaps, when Kat had told him there were a lot of farms and the like. There were clear open fields of lush green, surrounding areas where nature was allowed to spill out, without being dominated by industry or overgrown cities.

Maybe he had judged Ukatis too harshly.

"What is a Jedi, to you?" the question kind of slipped out of him before he could really think it through. He didn't wish the words back, however, it was something he often pondered. "What does it take to be a Jedi Knight?"

He listened, while watching the ship crawl closer and closer to ground before finally setting down with an elegant and smooth thud.

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Arriving on Ukatis
Tags: Oryn Selvar​

“A Jedi is a guardian.”

Katherine started, pausing as she took over the ship’s controls and began piloting it down towards Ukatis. Once it had passed through the planet’s atmosphere, she set the auto-pilot to take them to Axillia’s Starport. From there, she turned in her seat to address Oryn.

“The Force flows through every living thing throughout the galaxy. For the vast majority, it just passes through without notice. But for a percentage of people? They can feel it, and can reach out towards it. Some innately, others with a guiding hand.” The words flowed from her lips without a hint of hesitation or pause.

“Unlike the Sith, Jedi are taught to follow the flow of the Force, rather than try to dominate and force our will against it. What we are capable of is both powerful and dangerous. Which is why we have a responsibility to use it in the service of others.”

Katherine paused as she looked out via the viewport, taking in the scenery as the passed over lush fields, and towards the expansive capitol city of Axilla.

“To be a Jedi Knight is to put that into practice. Take the lessons you’ve learned from your Master, and go beyond even that. You act upon that responsibility, to stop those that would sow chaos and discord across the galaxy, and protect those that cannot defend themselves. And of course, to eventually pass on what you’ve learned to your own students.”

 

[Oryn Selvar]

​

"But when I hold out my hand, and create a wave of energy with the Force... Am I not bending it to my will in some way? How is that different from what the Sith do?" As a Jedi raised by the Order, he should know the answer to this himself. He'd heard it before many times. Sith drew upon emotions, they dominated people around them, and wielded the Dark Side of the Force like a weapon. Jedi were of peace, serenity. They didn't demand of the Force... But they did ask.

"Does the Force really have a will of its own? Or is it just an energy field, thoughtless, just existing. And we, who are able to feel it, pull on its strings. But the Force can't really say 'no', can it" It was something that had been a puzzle to him.

Oryn glanced out the viewport as Katherine Holt took them in. The capital city of Axilla was both strange and fascinating to him, with an architecture unfamiliar to him. It almost was as if it was plucked out of a different time. Once the ship set down, Oryn got up from his seat and got ready to head out.

"Oh, think I'll need a weapon on this one? I didn't bring one" he said a little sheepishly. He had yet to make a lightsaber of his own - that felt so far away to him now. He sometimes used a modified training saber that was given to him on missions, but not all missions required it.

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Arriving on Ukatis
Tags: Oryn Selvar​

“Intent is the difference,” was Katherine’s almost immediate answer. “If you look at it from an outside perspective, yeah, both sides are living entities that can reach out to the Force in order to do something. The difference is that Sith are taught to see the Force as a tool for them to use, to dominate it for their own personal means, such as power. They demand it. Whereas Jedi, we are taught how to be in harmony with the Force, to use it in the service of others, and that when a situation calls for its use, we ask it.”

Much as she always distanced herself from that period of her past, it at least allowed Katherine a great deal of perspective on the differences. “It’s why we’re taught to control our emotions, because something as innocuous as a Force Push can easily become deadly if its influenced by too much emotion.”

The question about the very existence of the Force got a knowing smile from the redhead. “That is the eternal question, Padawan. One that no one has ever been able to definitively answer, thus why there are so many varying views on it across the galaxy. But yes, the most common one; the one many Jedi Orders follow, is that the Force is a type of energy field that consists of an endless cycle that we know as the Living and Cosmic Force.”

Amongst their discussion, Katherine had managed to land the ship, settling it down in a free spot in the city’s starport. The winged Jedi chuckled quietly, seeing Oryn almost immediately hop out of seat, eager to get things underway.

The question about the lightsabers however, did give Katherine pause.

“Honestly? It might be best if we don't bring any. The Ukatian farmers already don’t like the nobles sticking their noses in their business. Can’t imagine they’ll think too highly of us either, even if we’re just there as mediators.”

Not that it mattered in the eyes of some. To them a Force user in general was just as deadly as a lightsaber.

“But it doesn’t hurt to be a little prepared.” Katherine led the way as they walked through the ship, heading towards the ramp. “T4!” She called, and within seconds the astromech droid came whirling around the corner, beeping and whistling. “Keep the ship secure while we’re away, I’ll alert you if anything comes up. Oh yes, and keep a hold of this for me.” Katherine reached down and unclipped her lightsaber, handing the large physical crossguard hilt to T4, his twin grabber hands grasping it carefully.

“Come along Oryn, time for your first experience with Ukatis.”

As they departed, stepping down the ramp, they were greeted by an approaching protocol droid.

“Are you…” The droid paused for a moment, “Jedi Knight Katherine Holt, and Jedi Padawan Oryn Selvar?”

“That’s us, yes.”

“Oh wonderful! Please, follow me. I’ve been instructed to guide you to the transport that’ll take you to the enclave.”