Bespin-ing [Talrik]

[Josh Dragovalor]

[member="Rune Talrik"]

Bespin.

He couldn't recall the last time that he had been to Bespin, to Cloud City. It had been an incredibly long time. As the Jedi Master would set foot on the planet once he had walked down the dock of his ship, he would look down at his datapad. Rumors of a Sith Lord hanging around had been spread about, and he knew that if a Sith was causing trouble here, then he would need to find them before they did so.

Josh took a deep breath as he would gently throw the brown robed hood onto his head, hiding the blonde hair and brown eyes, and his other features. He would begin to make his way out of the spaceport then, knowing that this mission could potentially be incredibly dangerous.

But his life really was full of nothing but danger, no?

 

[Solemn]

As Master DragonsFlame, member of the Jedi Order having returning to his duties only but recently, would set foot on Cloud City, the large flying outpost set in the clouds above the planet of Bespin, one of the many gas giants of the Galaxy, a ship that was flying within the planet's atmosphere would head towards the city in a relatively average speed, not too slow, but not too fast either. The ship, slightly visible from the docks as it was not too hidden by the clouds produced by the ambiant atmosphere, seemed to be a Light Freighter of the YT series, model 2400. Soon enough, the ship would land at the docks besides the Jedi Master's ship, and a man would come out in the usual beige-colored Padawan robes, lightsaber at his waist.

As he arrived at the scene, Rune, the Padawan in question, would quickly notice that most of the docks, usually populated by a varied number of people, was completely deserted and void of civil life. Apart from the usual presence of droids that would quickly clean the place and proceed to do automated repairs on damaged equipment, it was almost shocking at how completely deserted the whole area was. For such a popular touristic attraction, it was clear that Rune was shocked by this scene.

"How empty...."

He would then head forward towards the interiors of the large flying mining outpost, frowning seriously. He had heard recent rumors about how the people of the Jedi Order were confronted with a menace coming from various audio devices scattered around the Galaxy. The supposed menace was apparently a Sith Lord and, therefore, the Order and the Republic quickly took the matters in their hands and made this whole event completely private and scooted away from the public. Thus, it was the main reason why it was from rumors, and not officials, that Rune about all of this awful situation, and how it apparently seemed the person was located on Bespin.

Unfortunately, from what he could gather with the complete void of a mining colony he was facing, it was clear that the rumors were true and that an impeding danger was truly located somewhere around the area.

For now, however, it was silent and discreet, not seeming to want to show its presence and, for now, Rune was particularly fine with this behavior, seeing as he wasn't interested into risking his life like a blind fool against a full-fledged Sith Lord yet. No, he just wanted a single glimpse, then leave as fast as he ever could... Nothing more, nothing less. The Dark Side was still something that he was completely unfamiliar with, and thus, he wanted to see how it manifested in a person's mind.

And then, the Padawan would suddenly spot somebody in front of him. Curious and frankly shaken by the presence of a normal Human being in such a deserted area, Rune would head towards the person without any hesitation, taking a deep breath to limit his anxiety.

"Excuse me, sir? Can I ask you the reason behind this place's emptiness?"

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

How long had it been now? To be quite honest, the Jedi Master couldn't remember. A couple of months, maybe? It didn't matter. What mattered was the now, the present, and the future. What mattered right now was that he was a Jedi Master, with the Jedi Order, and what mattered was that even though they had not assigned him anything, he had come to Bespin of his own volition. Quite frankly, the going ons of the galaxy, who owned this planet right now... It was beyond him. He was out of the loop and he didn't care.

He would gaze back at his ship, the Defender-class_light_corvette known as "The Final Dragon". Or, more specifically, "The Final Dragon III", "The Final Dragon MK. III" or "The Final Dragon 3". The irony on the ship's name wasn't lost on him, of course. But the first incarnation of the ship, a YT series model, had been destroyed in an explosion, one that had also destroyed an ancient Jedi Temple with the at-the-time Padawan and his Master inside, with the Padawan sacrificing himself to save the Master, knowing the Master was more valuable to the Republic and the Jedi then he was. Upon return to the Jedi Order after his multi-year coma had elapsed and the Jedi had escaped captivity, he had been commissioned a new ship of the same make, with some upgrades to fit current day standards more, and thus "The Final Dragon II". The ship hadn't been destroyed, of course. It served him well, from his remaining Padawan years, to his time as a Jedi Knight, to his time as a Jedi Master, Grandmaster, and then back to Master again. The ship had simply become outdated with age and tech, and he had been given a bigger, and more fitting one by the Republic and Jedi long ago as a reward for his work. He hadn't used it, it had been sitting in a hanger for a long time, as he saw his own ship as satisfactory. But with age comes wisdom, and with his return to the Jedi Order, he knew that should he take Padawans again, which he had begun to do, he would need more room, as well as meditation space and a medbay. A ship that could deal and take more damage, to fit the more dangerous situations he had begun to come across as a Jedi Master. His YT had not been destroyed, merely retired and left as a keepsake at his home, hidden and safe from dangerous eyes. The corvette was the best choice for what he needed right now, and that was what mattered.

The Jedi Master would nod toward the R4 unit at the top of the ramp on his ship, but before he could continue on, another ship would pull in, and out stepped a man wearing recognizable robes and sporting a clear Padawan braid. The lightsaber only confirmed it.

His mission came to mind again, and he would be about to head out to try and find information on this Sith Lord before the man would come over to him and ask his question. It had taken him aback, but he would look back at him and tilt his head.

"To be quite honest, I haven't been here in many years" He would admit. It was now that he realized how... Eerily quiet things were. "I'm as in the dark on this as you are" Josh would add, looking the man over.

"You're a Jedi, then?"

Straight to the point, as always.

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

Wait a minute.

This man..... Rune has seen, heard or read about him in the past for sure, for he was already aware of this face's existence.

Not too long ago, while he was still located on the planet of Coruscant, the Padawan had visited the Jedi Temple's Library and was able to acquire many books about the history of the Jedi Order, the Jedi Council as a whole and the records of the Galactic Republic's many achievements. Of course, the first book that he had started reading was the one about the history of the Jedi Order, which retraced all major events that happened ever since the Battle of Yavin, including the fall of Senator Palpatine also known as Darth Sidious, undercover Sith in disguise, the cremation of Darth Vader, his apprentice, and the rise of the New Republic along with the reconstruction of the fallen Jedi Order.

Unfortunately, these were all there were, for the Empire had almost destroyed each and every single particle of history ever since then on the Order. It was like Jedi, Dark Jedi and Sith Lords alike had only existed within their current millennium along with the Force, which was truly false. The book, however, had recorded most Jedi Masters that were part of the Council ever since then with name, pictures and a very brief description for every single each of them, and, after having met this man, there were no more doubts: the man that was in front of him was Grandmaster Joshua DragonsFlame.

Rune was almost shocked to see him here. Although the Padawan was aware that Grandmaster DragonsFlame has been demoted to Jedi Master not too long ago, the thought of meeting him in person had never really came to his mind. Because of this, he was almost frozen in both mind and body, completely destroyed by stress. What was he supposed to say? If the once-Grandmaster DragonsFlame was here, then that meant that the Sith was probably ten times stronger than he had ever imagined.

He must had confused Sith and Dark Jedi once again. Damn it all..... Now he had to find an excuse for his unbelievably stupid and reckless behavior. Even if it was a Dark Jedi instead, it would had been as equally dangerous anyways... Risking your life just to evaluate the Dark Side of the Force was as reckless as jumping of a bridge; it is almost as similar as plunging deep into the hands of death.

As Master DragonsFlame told him that he was in the same predicament as the Padawan was when it came to the mining outpost's population count, then asked him if he was a Jedi, Rune would slowly nod, trying to push away the fear of meeting a true Sith Lord.

"Yes, I am. Unfortunately, I am only but a Padawan. I... have heard rumors about the presence of an individual on this planet that was influenced by the Dark Side, and, out of curiosity, I came here to study this person."

He would look down in shame.

"Yes, I am very aware that this was a foolish thing to do, but I am completely unaware on how the Dark Side looks like and I.... I really wanted to know what its influence would be on a person like a Sith Lord. I'm sorry, I know that I'm risking my life here, but, to me, falling into the Dark Side's schemes is almost as awful as death itself."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

It had been a good year since he had stepped down as Grandmaster. It was a controversial endeavor at that. But the Order at the time, with it's Republic alliance, had become something that he no longer recognized. The Jedi had become nothing but aggressive tools of war, mercenaries, and soldiers. They looked at things as though they were ruthless killers and hunters, and not the peacekeepers that they were trained to be. It had started with the Grandmaster before him, Selena Halcyon, who's Jedi Council was where he had become a full time member. Granted, he'd been on the council at the time more then anyone else on it, besides perhaps the old Miraluka Syn. He had been promoted to the Jedi Council mere weeks after becoming a Jedi Knight, and had served on it as their Knight Representative under Grandmaster Watts, Grandmaster Je'gan, as well as Grandmaster Halcyon until Halcyon had rebuilt the Council from scratch, discarding the Knight Representative position and removing him from the Council... For a moment, anyway. His promotion to Jedi Master came soon after, and he was made a permanent member of the Council full time, serving well beyond Grandmaster Halcyon's tenure, and into his own.

It was during Halcyon's reign that this change came about. Her militaristic stance was the cause, and the close working with the Republic didn't help. When Josh had taken the Grandmaster role, he sought to change it. But their numbers were great and an attempt at impeaching him caught fire, with the Grandmaster deciding to step down in order to ensure the disagreeing Jedi did not erupt into in-fighting. A Jedi Civil War was the last thing he wanted, after all. He hoped perhaps, that the next Grandmaster could pick up the pieces. Unfortunately, he was wrong, as his successors failed, and only escalated the direction Halcyon had taken with the Order. Fed up, Josh had finally decided it was time to leave, to find himself, and most importantly: To do the Jedi's job without the mis-prioritized Order holding him back.

He had been gone a long time, and was still apprehensive, but with their separation from the Republic for the most part, and Corvus trying to fix things, he was willing to give it a chance again. But with that in mind, he would tilt his head when the man seemed to freeze. He didn't realize he was intimidating. Sure, he was about 6'3, but he didn't think he was scary looking. He let the man talk, nodding along as he would listen, before speaking.

"I see..." He began, scratching his beard. So the man was investigating this Sith Lord as well. Well, was investigating the dark presence... But Josh knew just what was in store. A Sith Lord wasn't something that someone trifled with.

So he would smile faintly. He already had his answer.

"You have two choices then" He said. "You can head back to the Jedi Temple and let me handle this... Or you can come with me and give me a hand, so long as you try and keep back a little if we meet this Sith Lord."

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

As Master DragonsFlame proposed the two choices to the Padawan, the latter would look down, thinking about it. To leave, or to stay.... That was a hard decision to make. In some way, he knew he was too inexperienced to properly fight against a Sith Lord without gaining heavy damage to his mind and body in return, but, in the other way, he was also very, very curious about how the Dark Side would influence somebody to become so evil. Although he was aware that some Jedi could also be considered evil within their codes of personal morale, no one was as evil as the people that were seduced by the Dark Side.... and that was why he wanted an example. He wanted an example so he could try to image the psychological effects it would provoke and halt its progression if he is himself seduced by the Dark Side one day or another. After all, no one truly knows what the Force reserves for them and, although there were many Jedi in the past that considered themselves invincible against the Dark Side, they had become Dark Jedi or, worse, Sith Lords by the end of their lifetime.

Rune never wanted this to happen to him. Though he was aware that joining the Dark Side would provide him much stronger powers in the end and maybe even a stronger authority among the corrupted and the criminal organizations of the Galaxy, the emotions that he would need to put upfront would completely change him for the worse. Of course, everyone has heard about the Chosen One, Anakin Skywalker... a promising child that, in the end, became one of the most dangerous Sith Lords to ever live, having killed many Jedi during the infamous Order 66. Unfortunately, such a tragic tale was the only thing that was left of the history that was still known today and that was not destroyed by the Galactic Empire in its awakening under the hands of Emperor Palpatine, and, even then, these were not really historic records.... They were simply based on rumors and legends from Jedi that had miraculously survived the Genocide and had passed them on to following generations with oral communications.

Still, even if Anakin Skywalker was a good example, it was not enough. He had no visuals, nothing that could had been perceived by eye contact and, therefore, those claims were almost completely useless. Yes, the Chosen One ended up being a terrible being, but all of the actions he had committed were not present in front of Rune's eyes during his lifetime, and so he thought of them as owned by the past, and, therefore, unimportant, irrelevant.

No, he was not going to go back to the Jedi Temple. His choice was absolute: he wanted to stay here to get his eye witness, to get what he had been asking so many times to his previous Master, Kaila Saratzi, to no avail. Looking back once again, now out of his thoughts, the Padawan would reply to the choice that has been given to him.

"I will help you, Master DragonsFlame. I prefer seeing the Dark Side with my own eyes than to flee from it, as prideful as it may sound."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Josh himself knew the dangers of the dark side. For so long now, he'd attempted to learn both sides in secret... For one reason. He wanted to conquer this idea of corruption, he wanted to prove to the Jedi that there is still hope. That if they go down that dark path, they don't have to think the way a certain someone did... Thinking they were too far gone. Thinking darkness was the only option. The light always existed in them... He wanted to prove that to the Jedi. And to his brother. His brother was his motivator. To make such a sacrifice... He needed a motivation beyond love for the Jedi. His brother was that motivation. Josh risked a great deal in doing so, he knew that. He knew that there was a good chance that he himself could be corrupted. That he himself could become the very thing he couldn't stand.

But he'd already made peace with that. He'd already asked [member="Coryth Elaris"]... If I fall and you cannot bring me back to the light, take my life and let me pay the price for my decision. That's what he had told her and he would stick by that. But he didn't plan to fall. So far, nothing had changed. But he'd only just begun that path. All he could do was hope that he could learn both sides... And still remain who he was. That was all he wanted to do, to prove it to Nick... And to bring him home. He didn't care if he joined the Jedi or not, but the Sith had taken away the only family he had left. Nick wanted to be free... It was his responsibility as big brother to help his brother be free.

As well... If his plan succeeded, he knew there was a chance, a real, true chance, that he could become immune to the temptation of the dark side. In that, his plan was the same as Rune's. To have a mental image, a mental scarring, something he could defer to at every temptation, every possible corruption. To mentally scar himself into never touching the dark side again. Even if he had a moment of weakness, if this worked... Even in a moment of weakness, having his mind automatically, habitually turn to that image, that memory, that feeling of how much he despised how the dark side felt... How much it made him sick and terrified him... It would mean one thing, and that would be that he would be a Jedi for the rest of his life. And that was all he could ever ask for. He wanted to remain as he was... To continue being a Jedi and doing his part for the galaxy... And protecting the ones he cared for.

The ultimate risk. The ultimate sacrifice. The ultimate gamble. But it was one he was willing to take.

He waited for the man's answer, and when he finally decided on it, Josh would nod in turn. "Then let's go" He spoke calmly as he would begin walking. "What do you know about what's going on, thus far? I know a Sith Lord is lurking on this planet... Wreaking havoc, apparently. But where... I'm not sure."

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

Nodding back to Master DragonsFlame, Rune would proceed forward beside the man's side, slightly contented with the idea that the latter had not decided to contradict his wants and send him back to the Jedi Temple for his personal safety. Although it was true that this mission of his was truly going to be a dangerous, maybe even deadly one, the Padawan's wishes of seeing the Dark Side were stronger, for now, than anything else within his mind. In fact, the more he talked about the Dark Side, the more he wanted to know its effects. Thus, he needed to learn them quickly, or else this curiosity might lead him on a path that is too dangerous to be taken by a Jedi of the Order.

And, with that in mind, he would head forward along with Master DragonsFlame deeper inside the mining outpost of Cloud City, his mind alert and his body, ready for battle. Still apprentice of the Force itself, he had to be careful against the Sith Lord, or else things might go awry for both him and Joshua. At the very least, his lightsaber skills were most truly higher than any Padawans yet inside the Temple, almost worthy of a deserved Jedi Knight, which meant that he would maybe be able to rival the dangerous situation that he will be facing soon enough..

Looking around, Rune would slowly lift an eyebrow at the complete absence of any breathing, sentient life. Though there were droids conducting repairs on damages here and there on the walls and on the floor, probably coordinating a massive maintenance operation that is done only when the outpost is under attack, the Padawan, although happy to see them at the least, was still worried about the lack of any living individual.

The silence, above all..... It was truly horrifying, at best. Apart from the beeps and boops of the droids and the humming of the still-functioning electronics and engineerings, there were no sounds whatsoever. Within such a large outpost with massive tourist attractions, you would at least suspect much more noises compared to any other parts of the Galaxy.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard he looked at the decor, no corpses were found and, therefore, he feared the worse. Were the people captured by the Sith Lord and held hostage? Murdered, then thrown deep into the bowels of the gaz giant right beneath the clouds surrounding Cloud City? Kidnapped by the First Order to be kept as prisoners and slaves? There were no answers to his questions and, therefore, Rune's worries only aggravated themselves on their own as a result.

As Master DragonsFlame asked to the Padawan how he had ever learned about the situation happening in this outpost , Rune would slightly lift an eyebrow as he heard the word "havoc". Havoc? For now, the destruction was clearly underwhelming in his opinion. Despite that, however, he still replied back to the question he has been told, looking ahead.

"Mostly rumors, unfortunately. Among the Padawans of the Jedi Order and the populace of Coruscant, many people had heard about the insurgence of a Sith Lord within this very mining outpost and, ever since then, people have been avoiding Cloud City like a disease."

He would look around just one last time before looking back to Joshua.

"From what I can visually gather, these rumors seem to be partially true. Though, I have to admit that the damages were maybe exaggerated. What I am worried about, to be fairly honest, is the lack of people. Isn't Cloud City supposed to be a very attractive tourist attraction?"

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

The silence was worrying him. He held the same thoughts as his PAdawan ally. Had the Sith Lord captured and held people hostage? Or did people simply not come here due to the rumors? The ferocity of the droids that were fixing things was also a factor to consider, and he would take a deep breath as he considered their options carefully.

"It's supposed to be" He would answer to the man's rhetorical question, in a way that merely noted agreement. "To be quite honest..." He began. "I think we're walking into a trap."

He wasn't shy about it. He could see it now. There was likely something, someone, watching them... He couldn't see them, but he could feel it. Something in the Force... Or maybe it was just his gut telling him.

But he would nod toward the Padawan and keep walking, his guard constantly up, and constantly wary. He was just waiting for someone or something to jump out...

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

A trap.... Technically, this was a rather unfortunate possibility and Rune was very aware of it, seeing as the location seemed perfect for an ambush. Because of the lack of people and the presence of many droids on the scene, maybe even too many for such small damages, sounds coming from someone that would be hiding around them would be almost unseen or, worse, inaudible thanks to the droids' beeps and boops.

Now that he thought about it, the Padawan was starting to grow suspicious towards the amount of droids around the area. He had already encountered such models in the past: they were, for the most part, all repair droids from the LE-Series, and seemed to have been manufactured within a specific way to make sure that they would constantly maintain this outpost at its best overall performance at all times..... which meant that they should had been extremely expensive. To send them in so many numbers for such small damages caused by a Sith Lord was almost detrimental to this place's budget and maybe even foolish. In these situations, why not simply use other, cheaper repair droids such as the WED Treadwell?

There was definitely something fishy with those droids.

"Master DragonsFlame..... Please watch over the droids..... I have had my fair share of experience with them in the past, and I can definitely tell that their behavior is not common. LE-Series repair droids are too expensive to be sent repairing such small damages...."

After they would finally enter a small room at the end of the large hallway that they had been walking in ever since they had entered Cloud City, the Padawan would start to worry even more, now frowning. The room was apparently supposed to be a conference room from what he could gather from the high-grade furniture and holographic monitors placed upon the walls and the top of the table in the very middle of the room. He would look around, then notice that there was a protocol droid in the corner of the room, which made him blink in surprise as he noticed that it had been deactivated, standing upright, but its head and back bending forward, looking towards the ground. The robot was built with a snow white color, which matched the interiors of Cloud City, and seemed to be apart of the E-3PO series.

"That 3PO unit..."

Rune would slowly lose his frown, now putting a hand on his chin as he asked Master DragonsFlame.

"Should we activate it? Perhaps it would be able to tell us what happened on the station before its deactivation."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

It was more then likely that this was a trap, plain and simple. And he knew it. This just seemed to obvious to not be a trap. He wasn't sure who - or what - was watching them or what they had planned, but all they were finding were droids, droids that were acting simple and calm despite seeming to be fulfilling emergency functions. The area was barren of all actual life, and he couldn't help but feel uneasy.

[member="Rune Talrik"] was right, of course. They wouldn't be sent out to repair something small... They had been laid out for another reason, unless the cheaper droids were just plain broken. But en masse? No... It didn't seem right. None of it seemed right. But it was the 3P0 unit that was deactivated that made him even more on-edge. When the Padawan would ask if they should activate it, he would nod in turn.

"Yeah. Activate it, then stand back. It could be rigged with explosives" Josh would warn. "At least, it'll probably warn whoever is responsible that we're here. But.... Well, they'd probably find out anyway."

 

[Solemn]

Although Rune was slightly worried now that Master DragonsFlame started talking about how this 3PO unit could potentially be rigged with explosives. he was also actually a bit dubitative about the fact, and it wasn't really necessarily because, at a first glance, the unit's body did not seemed to have been recently modified whatsoever. There were also interrogations within the Padawan's mind about the place the droid was put in and its deactivated state. After all, why would somebody rig a droid with explosives only to blew it up afterwards? This droid also seemed really expensive thanks to its E-3PO brand.... To destroy it was to burn down a great pile of credits for absolutely nothing.

".... I will be careful."

The Padawan would nod to the Jedi Master's warnings, then slowly head forward towards the droid with a serious face, putting aside his thoughts that he considered to only be personal and greatly unimportant for this mission. Nevertheless, he was still worried about this droid, worried that it might had its systems altered. He also doubted that its personality was still intact; it could had been modified to fit in with the repair droids outside the room.

As he finally reached the droid unharmed, Rune would then stare at it silently, then slowly head towards the droid before freezing, noticing that he was hearing a small hum coming from the droid.

"Ah-hah!"

The droid would suddenly come alive and make Rune blink as he quickly dodged an incoming, but poorly done chop, grabbing a hold of his lightsaber in the process and turning it on in self-defense.

"I've got you, you mongr-"

The machine would then stare at the two Jedi silently for a moment before letting out a shocked gasp, standing back as Rune would simply stare back, surprised. This droid... It hasn't been altered, is it?

"Oh my goodness! HELP! I can't believe it, I am finally being rescued after such a long time waiting here in this dusty room!"

The machine would then let out a sigh of relief as it shook his head, seeming quite happy to finally see somebody that could potentially help it out of this place.

"B-Because you are here to help me, right? I-I mean, if you are friends with that awful, awful lady, t-then..... Please don't hurt me, I conjure you!"

"We're not here to hurt you."

Rune would reply seriously, visually analyzing the droid a little bit more to see if this was a possible trap. Needless to say, he really couldn't find anything wrong with this machine. It looked fine, actually reacted like most protocol droids when subject to possible conflict, and he was not able to sense any dark forces surrounding the being. He would look back towards Master DragonsFlame, then give a small smile.

"I think it's safe to say that this unit is harmless."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Of course, there was the fact that whoever bought the droid may not necessarily be the one that rigged it with explosives... Someone that would rig an expensive droid with explosives probably didn't care about the cost to the owner. And he doubted this droid was on the side of the opposition... At least, not until recently if at all. Droids could be re-programmed, their memory modified or erased entirely. They could lie when programmed to, or put on an act. Protocol droids, especially, were skilled in this sort of thing when programmed to do so. All the Jedi Master knew was... It was far, far too quiet. Only the droids in what should be a bustling city... Something was amiss, that was obvious.

As the droid would activate itself, Josh would let Rune do the talking. It would be a good test of Rune's abilities, after all... Josh could take over if things got serious, of course. But not letting the Padawans gain experience on the field themselves was detrimental to their training. Letting them experience these things firsthand was the way to go, so long as they were supervised.

Awful lady, the droid had said? Sounds like the Sith. But Josh still had his doubts... It was as he had thought earlier. Anyone, man or droid.. Could put on an act when set to it. But Rune seemed to conclude that it was harmless, and the Jedi Master would nod in turn.

"Press it for information then. True or false... It gives us a lead."

OOC: Apologies for how long it took. Muse has been a funny thing as of late.

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

As Master DragonsFlame would tell Rune to quickly ask the Droid some information so that they could know what was actually going on here, the Padawan would nod back, then turn his head towards the 3PO unit once more, his eyes now serious, but his smile still present, mostly because Rune actually enjoyed interacting with Droids even though this was for actual official matters and not basic routine. Needless, as fast as he was told to ask, the Padawan would do so with no more hesitation.

"Could you be able to explain to us what has truly happened here?"

The Droid would let out a "Uh...", then look down in slight hesitation itself, which would make Rune slightly lift an eyebrow. Huh, why was it doing that? Must be because it was afraid of something.

"It's.... Well, you see, Jedi, it's, uh, it's because I'm a bit scared that this lady might come back here to finish me off if I actually tell you anything. Before she deactivated me, she has strictly prohibited me from interacting with anybody that is linked to the Republic or the Jedi Order..."

Ah, so it was because of that. Rune would stare at the Droid unit silently for a moment, then reply back to its fear with a friendly smile.

"If you could tell us where she is, at the least, we will make sure that you will be able to get out of here safe and sound with no damages to your circuits whatsoever."

"R-Really?"

"Really."

"Then, uh..... I-I suppose I could tell you at least that. I mean, she wouldn't destroy me for such a simple thing, really..."

It would look down for a moment, then tell them.

"She is located in the Main Control Room... She has been hiding there ever since she has decided to leave everybody alone as long as they would leave Cloud City without contacting the Republic. How she was able to make that menace successful is beyond me, b-but I'm telling the truth!"

The Droid would assure, then tell Rune in a quiet voice.

"Also.... Those repair Droids outside... T-They tried to attack me not long ago before I was deactivated. They pushed me away and even threatened me...!"

Rune would listen carefully, then nod with a serious face.

"Understood."

He would look back to Master DragonsFlame with a frown.
"The Sith is in the Main Control Room and, apparently, the repair Droids outside were violent before the unit's deactivation."

He would sigh.

"I fear their programming might had been altered so that they would become violent when suddenly tasked to do so. I propose that we should find another route other than the main hallways.... else, we might have to find them all at once."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Apparently the Sith Lord that had taken the planet hostage had not only let people go, trusting them enough to not contact the Republic, but had also let this droid go in the case it was quiet. Strange... The information seemed.... Strange. He didn't trust it. At all. The only thing he might believe was that the other droids had been re-programmed and were likely going haywire.

Once the Droid had finished up, he would nod, seemingly happy with the information that Rune had gotten from the droid. He would then turn to face the droid. "Hide" He spoke flatly. "I'll be paging the Order to come pick you up before the Sith discover you for speaking out. Find somewhere to hide until they arrive" The Jedi would command as he would open up his datapad, and contact the Order. Quick summary, coordinates, yadda yadda. He also informed them that he didn't trust the droid and should probably deactivate, kidnap it, and then search it's memory banks elsewhere. And with that, he would shoo the droid away before turning to Rune.

"Welp, let's find a way around and get to the control room. If I'm being honest?" He would begin. "This screams trap. Massive, massive trap. But as we have no other way to go? Let's spring the trap."

"Lead the way" He would add, smirking a bit. Testing the Padawan again, it seemed.

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

"Oh, that is such a great boulder you are taking off of my shoulders, mister Jedi! I thank you very much for your help! I hope that you will be safe out there!"

The Droid would almost literally explode with joy and generosity for Master DragonsFlame and the Padawan that was accompanying him, then start looking left and right around the room, trying to see if it could hide itself anywhere around the area. Oddly enough, it would actually decide to hide behind a nearby closet in a rather awkward position, still as happy as ever.

"I will be as safe as a brand new unit here behind this closet! M-May the Force be with you, mister Jedi!"

It would call towards both Master DragonsFlame and Rune, then go on to simply crouch behind the closet, constantly whispering to itself things such as "Please don't let her find me, please don't let her find me!" or "I hope the Council will arrive soon!". This whole ordeal would actually make Rune slightly laugh despite the awkward feeling of this whole situation, smiling brightly.

"Don't worry. You'll be safe out there, I'm sure."

Well, at least he hoped so. There was nowhere this unit could possibly go without getting itself into probable harm, and he himself doubted that the Sith would have any more attention towards it at all now that she, for it was probably a woman now that the Droid actually told them about her gender, was probably thinking that it was still deactivated.

Then, as Master DragonsFlame told him about his worries of this whole situation as Rune would walk back towards the room's door, he would sigh, agreeing with a nod.

"I unfortunately couldn't agree more. At the least, if we take care of the repair Droids outside, we might not have to deal with them if we ever get stuck in battle between ourselves and the Sith Lord that has taken over this place."

However, as serious as he sounded, he would blink in surprise as the Master Jedi would suddenly tell him to lead the way, seeming to want to test the Padawan's skills. He would stare at Joshua with slightly widened eyes, then nod.

"Understood."

He would reply back, then open the door.

And that is when the repair Droids suddenly looked back towards them all at once. They were still seeming to be doing their quiet repairs, but the fact that they all had suddenly stopped and turned their gaze towards them would make Rune frown deeply, slowly putting his hand towards his lightsaber.

"Master DragonsFlame, please stay behind me.... These Droids...."

He slowly walked forward, his weapon now in hand.

"They're going to attack us."

Suddenly, it was as if his prediction would spring to reality as the repair Droids immediately rushed towards them in shockingly offensive maneuvers at full speed, seeming to want to take care of the Padawan first, as if they knew that he was the weakest between the two Jedi. Rune, frowning, would quickly put his weapon in front of him, then take the uncommon stance of the Fourth Form, Ataru, before deciding to use both of his Lightsaber's blades in order to fight against many enemies at once.

Then, suddenly, it was as if the Droids were completely overwhelmed by Rune's sheer speed and overall finesse in the Lightsaber, mowing them every single Droid with expert hands, spinning his weapon's beaming blades with brutal speed and shocking strength.

Needless to say, the fight was over far more quickly than anybody would had predicted it. The Droids, not adapted to combat whatsoever, seemed to had been programmed to fight against Non-Force Users. But, even then, considering that Rune had used the basic Force technique "Force Speed", he had been far too fast for them to handle properly, especially against such a fast-paced Lightsaber combat form.

The combat was done after a simple total of seven seconds with all the Droids in the area dispatched. During this whole procedure, the Padawan, strangely, had not once used any other Force techniques, only relying on brute strength and improbable speed.

As it seemed the situation was back to the usual calm, Rune would take his Lightsaber in both hands, the second blade now deactivated as he called back towards Master DragonsFlame.

"I am sure there is more of them! Normally, such great facilities needs dozen of these repair Droids to function properly, so we need to hurry and head towards the Control Room before they overwhelm us!"

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"Yes, yes, that's fine, now go hi-"

The droid's hiding spot was a little odd and it caused him to stop right in his tracks as he stared at the droid for a moment when it's.... Rather unique hiding spot had stopped him mid-sentence, but the Jedi would shrug as he led the Padawan away to say what he had said before without being within earshot of anyone. Once he had given the reigns of the mission to Rune, he would motion for him to lead the way. It was clear that they were walking into a trap. A monkey with a bowl of noodles on it's head could tell you that this was a trap.


Of course, Rune just so happened to lead them right into the army of repair droids. They had stopped the moment the Jedi had appeared, and the Jedi Master would facepalm. Just facepalm. That was all that was needed to explain the situation. He raised a hand to stop Rune when he would speak.

"No, they're going to offer us a bowl of ice cream" The Jedi would joke sarcastically as he would immediately grab his lightsaber. "Of course they're going to attack us. It looks like Mr. Protocol Droid was correct in that aspect."

The Jedi Master hadn't needed to use the Force beyond enhancing his physical attributes, it was over before long as his lightsaber had been drawn, and working alongside the Padawan, the Jedi Master would move from one droid to another, sometimes destroying them with their own weaponry, or slashing through them himself. When it was over and done, he would look over at Rune, nodding to his statement.

"Lead the way then. Hopefully the control room isn't too far."

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

Rune nodded, quite frankly deciding that ignoring the previous sarcastic statement about how he warned the Jedi Master that the repair droids would attack them while it looked basically completely oblivious that they would do so was clearly the best thing to do at the moment, simply looking ahead and swiftly sweeping any sort of embarrassment under the rug, not wanting to lose focus on the situation at hand. Already, as they would start moving forward once again, the Padawan would hear many bangs and bumps coming from all around them, whether it was over, under, or downright around their position.

So those buggers were in the vents.... and it still seemed like there were many of them still left completely safe and in one piece, which made Rune start holding on to his lightsaber a little bit tighter, frowning.

"I can't really guess how many they are in total, but.... In such a facility, there must at least be dozens of them, at the least more than a hundred units. I do not know if they are all rushing towards our position at the moment, but it might be best to not dismiss that possibility."

He would advise Master DragonsFlame, then start going left, then right, then wherever he needed to go in these damn hallways to find this control room the Protocol Droid had told them about not too long ago before this whole mess slowly started taking place. All he could say was that, at first, they were downright lost. Of course, with the Padawan having never actually been in this place beforehand, he didn't really know where to go even if he had seen some detailed maps of Cloud City on Coruscant some time ago when he was still in the libraries.

But, after a while of quick walking and constant banging coming from the vents, but no signs of attacks, he would start feeling something, feeling a dark, corrupted energy coming from not too far away from them. The Force, yes..... The Force, aware of the Dark Side, couldn't possibly ignore it and force the Light into ignorance. Wary of the possible danger ahead, the Padawan would ask.

"Should you take the lead, Master DragonsFlame? I think I can sense the Sith Lord being not too far away from us now.... and, if I may say, I believe you are the most fit for this situation."

He would look down for a moment, feeling a bit shameful for not being strong enough to fight a Sith Lord on its own very easily. Maybe coming here, after all, was not a good thing to do.... Maybe he should had stayed in the libraries and simply go and study an Holocron.

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Well, not everyone got the fact he was usually joking around the first time. The Jedi Master was always rather laid-back, but Padawans weren't exactly taught that Jedi Masters could actually be human beings. Not all of them were, of course... Some were emotionless, seemingly soulless husks that seemed closer to droids then actual human beings. A certain Daella, who turned out to be a Sith in the end, came to mind...

Still, Joshua wasn't of that sort. He was always joking around, always cracking wise, even if in the vein of sarcasm. He didn’t tend to be a man of malice, and certainly wasn’t trying to cause any sort of discomfort whatsoever to the Padawan Rune.

As the battle had apparently ended, it was clear soon after that this was clearly not the case. The Jedi Master turned to his accomplice, nodding in turn. His expression had become stern and serious, as though a sigh that the tone of this mission had changed.

“You’re correct. With their numbers, we will only waste valuable time and energy” Josh spoke calmly, taking a deep breath while he appeared to be gauging the situation. It was clear they needed to make a getaway and make their way to this Sith Lord, and fast... Otherwise they would be overwhelmed. Strength in numbers was a big deal, no matter your skill level.

"I'll take the lead... In a moment" He spoke as he turned to Rune as the repair droids would begin advancing in increasing numbers. "Run! Now! If you think you know where our enemy is, head that way! I'll join you in a moment!" He called to the Padawan.

Once Rune had ran, Josh would then turn to the droids advancing on them. There was far too many of them, and he would need to push them back if he had any hopes of them getting to this Sith Lord safely... He would disengage his lightsaber and place it back on his belt as the repair droids, continuing to increase in number, would advance on the lone Jedi Master in droves. He held out his hands, taking a deep breath... He had used Force Wave a hundred times by now... Hopefully firing enough of them would be able to keep them at bay to allow Rune to get to safety, before he cleared himself a path to join him...

After several bursts of the attack sent many of them flying, Josh noted many coming from behind him, and he would turn, holding out his hands and trying to use Force Wave to cover them as well, the blast shooting in several directions as usual...

But this time, nothing happened.

His eyes widened. He wasn't tired... He wasn't out of force power... What could possibly be going on? The repair droids were swarming him, and while he might be able to ward them off with his lightsaber for a time, he till had a serious numbers disadvantage.... He kept trying to use the ability to ward them off, but nothing was happening. It was there that he noticed his hand had begun glowing blue....

"What the hell..." He whispered as the aura would begin to spread across his body. He felt his body involuntarily curl up as he hovered in the air a moment... And then he let out an involuntary, but ear-piercing, fierce scream as a force of power would repulse around him, sending the droids that had crowded around him back in a powerful blast that covered a short distance, destroying many of the droids in the process. The Jedi would take a breath as he looked around him, having unintentionally thinned out the numbers a good deal. He would take a breath and close his eyes, Force Repulse once again being used to clear away the droid crowded around him. With their numbers thinned and many of them having backed away or been blown back, Josh saw his opportunity to run through the path he had cleared and go after Rune.

The droids were now a much lesser threat. He'd used a good deal of energy due to not being all that used to this ability, but he could recover with some rest. Before long, he would catch back up to Rune, though Rune might note the blood trailing down the Jedi Master's cheek from the stray debris and droid parts that had hit him in the chaos.

"I can take the lead from here..." He spoke quietly, looking over at Rune as he took off at a run. He knew he should rest, but there was no time, not yet... It was a reckless move on his part, he knew. But if they didn't hurry, the repair droids would catch up. Josh had done his part in thinning their numbers and pushing them back to give them some breathing room, but it wouldn't last forever. "I can sense the dark side... It's close... Be on your guard."

[member="Rune Talrik"]

 

[Solemn]

As soon as he would notice the incoming droids and was told to run as fast as he could towards where he thought the Sith Lord could possibly be, Rune's eyes would slightly widen for a moment, but, knowing that the Master Jedi was much stronger than he was and that he probably had a plan to take those repair Droids out as fast as possible, the Padawan would dash forward, although he wouldn't use his usual Force Speed, simply sprinting away by making sure his lightsaber would be closed as he would do so in order to keep himself from being accidentally cut.

As the Padawan ran as fast as possible, following this constant disruptive feeling in the Force as he did so, he would quickly look back to see what was going on behind him and see if Master DragonsFlame was alright. Noticing that he didn't seemed to have any trouble at first, he would simply nod to himself and head forward as fast as possible, quickly slashing his way through two incoming repair droids, then using the Force to push one that was jumping towards him from the ceiling.

And then, he felt it as he passed besides one door, which almost made clench his teeth as he did so. Stopping straight in his tracks, he would stare at the closed door, panting, then frowned once he sensed the Dark Side was strong here, especially behind that door... It was like all of his senses were telling him no, telling him to head back and to never cross this door for fear of being killed.

"I found the-"

He would call towards Master DragonsFlame, but would then freeze once he would notice the large group of repair Droids suddenly flying in the air and crashing against the ground, which slightly made the Padawan cringe for a moment, mostly for the Droids. Any else emotions of his were actually closely related to pure awe and surprise.

So this was the true power of a Jedi Master? The true potential of the Force?

...

.... He had to learn how to use this....

Shaking his head quickly to come back to reality as Joshua approached Rune, the latter would nod, then look towards the door. It still felt as if this door had something dangerous behind it, something so dangerous indeed that it could maybe kill him on the spot... but.... now that he was closer to it, it was as if, for some reason, it was smaller than he had expected.

"The Sith Lord is behind this door..."

He would tell the Jedi Master again in the most blatantly obvious way possible, then look towards the hallways they came from, then look back towards Joshua, noticing his exhaustion, then coming to the conclusion that he might not be able to fight against any more groups of enemies correctly. Noticing that fact, he would place himself in a way that their coordination would place him behind the Jedi Master, then notify.

"I will cover our backs from any more repair Droids. Let us hope she will not fight us alongside them..."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]