Private Chrysalis and Crucible

[Jack Sandrow]

Est. year: Unknown
Location: Unknown
Planet: Zonama Sekot

THE TIME - PRESENT

Two crystals moved in midair. Two became one, then two, then one.

"You want two?"

"I want two, but I want the adaptability of two and one alternatively."

"Hm. Of course. I have to admit, I don't know much of this. What little I do know, says none of this has been attempted before. Not successfully, anyway."

"That's why I'm gonna be the first."

"Indeed. And you're using...?"

"The tough ones, yes. And a lot of the Force."

"You're opening yourself up to weakness with that." The crystals paused in flight, before slowly coalescing within a cocoon of super-rigid, super-durable plant material. A pit, a bulb, of power. The cocoon adjusted its shape, forming into a seed, a pod, almost the shape of a peanut. A slim indent bisected the kyber seed, showing where it could split. "I would recommend putting these into actual sabers as soon as you get the opportunity."

"Nah. I play it unsafe; this is no different." A hand reached out, green. The bulb moved towards the hand, before slowly pushing into the palm, becoming swallowed up by the 'skin' before passing into the body. "I suppose they're conduits, as well."

"Show me."

The green figure stood back, before concentrating. Two wooden hilts formed in their hands, before two force-sabers ignited, glowing an insidious black, crackling and sparking.

"No, Jack. The Force requires control over your emotions. Don't focus on the emotion, focus on the control of the emotions."

"Trying... ghhh..." The blades flickered, but then began to glow green, stable, solid. "...Like... That?"

"Yes! That's... Incredible," the first figure nodded, smiling wide. "Now... try something else?"

"I'm trying...." The green lightsabers swelled, before flexing, snaking along the ground as they hummed with electricity. Inquisitively, the green figure snapped one, and it cracked as a whip, flexing and popping as its own energy manifested. "Oh... that's simpler than I thought."

"But relies on the Force to make it work. Force suppression techniques exist."

"And they'd suppress me too. These can be my canaries." The light-whips zipped back into place, and the green figure brought his hands together, as a large pike formed between the blades. Now a staff-like shape, the twin bladed ends buzzed, with the wooden stave between providing reach and distance. "Heh... my leaves."

"And as a single blade?"

"Yep." One blade withdrew, the seedling folding back into their palm as the first blade adjusted. "I've got the Force guiding me."

"Like a blade of grass in the wind... so too you must use the Force to guide these blades. They will require your concentration to use effectively."

"But no one can take them from me. Or turn them off mid-battle."

"Does that happen often?"

"Well, no. But it's a good preventative."

"Or paranoia."

"Oh hush. I'm not the one who hops around the galaxy to keep from being found."

"Point taken."

Jack eyed the blade slowly, retracting it and producing the pod from the 'hilt' he had grown into his hand. "This is incredible...."

"Through the Force, many things appear to happen that might be considered unnatural. But it was through the Force that the first sabers were crafted. Long, long before my time." Sekot put their hand on his. "You must be mindful. You are in unexplored territory."

"No... I'm in forgotten territory." Jack nodded slowly. "I'm going to bring a new level of discovery to the galaxy."

"Caution, though," Sekot advised. "Not everyone will see what you have and believe it belongs to only you."

"And if they seek to create and let life flourish, then I see no reason to deny it of them. But... these can be mine." He hefted the small pod in his hand, before letting it fold away into his body again. "My statement of devotion to the Force."

Sekot inclined their head. "So be it."

- - - - -

A WHILE EARLIER

He awoke, deep within a cavern. This was a pocket of Sekot's caves... but unlike anything he had ever seen. A massive rootlike system grew in and around the cavern, all drawing close to the center column, an immense trunk. He was moving towards it. Before he could protest, the tree grew in and around him. Every part of his body was impaled by the tree, the tendrils and roots seeking his core, his innermost parts, as he felt himself ripped apart, almost to the molecular level.

Sekot stood outside, a hand on the tree. "Metamorphosis is often painful. I will guide you. You will become a devotee of the Force, I promise. You asked it of me, after all."

 

[Jack Sandrow]

THE TIME - PRESENT

"I did tell you to be mindful. And you go ahead and cut your own arm off."

"Sssst... you needn't lecture me - OW! - This hurts bad enough without your words."

"Of that I have no doubt." Sekot was carefully reattaching Jack's arm. "Have you ever actually used a whip before?"

"Yes... once... when I was a kid. Wasn't a real whip..."

"How reassuring." Sekot sighed. "You need to learn how to control a whip, then. And that's not something I can directly train you with."

"Then whom?" Jack looked at their figure.

"Did you think you were alone on this planet?" Sekot smiled. "The natives have been here long before you."

"Well. I should go meet them, then," Jack nodded, hissing as his arm gently slipped back together. He rotated the shoulder, adjusting, then breathed out slowly, adjusting his grip. The seam vanished, before readjusting as well. Jack stood, arm intact as if it had never been severed. "Let's go!"

"Mm. Right this way," Sekot guided him, leaving the room.

- - - - -

A WHILE EARLIER

Jak screamed in pain. He had been undone once before, and the pain he felt then was just as bad as the pain he was feeling now. It was a sensation he had been loathe to feel again. He didn't have a choice then, either. But... he had trust this time. Trust... and the Force. Didn't stop him from screaming though.

Blood spilled out - virulent, transformative, toxic blood. The writhing RNA screamed and thrashed, before dissolving away like dust in a windstorm. The green sludge fizzed and gurgled, the influence of her losing its grip on him. Slowly, sap began to purify, growing thick and golden, potent with energy, ready to surge through his body.

Carpals, metacarpals, phalanges, hissed into the nothingness that was Sekot's crucible. His hands were flensed, flayed, turned to ribbon, ripped and twisted apart, before slowly and gently beginning to reform. Periosteum became mycelium. Trabeculae became hyphae. Marrow became... potential. It was a hand once. It will be a hand again.

The eye. One of the most delicate organs of the humanoid body. Bursting and rippling apart as if in slow motion. A voiceless, soundless scream echoed through the Force, as the cells which comprised an ocular organ began to reform. With the care and love only a creator could manifest, two perfectly-formed eyes gently replanted themselves in Jak's face. The scream stopped, for now.

Lungs were useless. As was a stomach. And a heart. Actually, do away with all those. Sekot stepped around the crucible, thinking to herself. If Jak was truly to become more, he had to become less first. Do away with all those unnecessaries, and put what he needed back in. If he wanted more, he could make it himself.

Stomach. He had used that plenty of times. Heart... no. A vascular system, yes, but a central vascular system? No. Same with his brain. He didn't need a singular brain. A wave of their hand, and Jak lost his mind. Unravelling like noodles from a bowl, his grey matter unspooled, thinning and shrinking and spreading, becoming an integral part of his physiology. A brain was unnecessary, when he could think with his whole body at once.

Lungs? Not when he was already using his whole body to breathe. With a gentle nudge, Sekot increased the amount of chloroplasts in his cells. There. He'd never need to breathe through his mouth again. His energy would come from the world around him. Actually, on that note... They adjusted his heart. No need for a vascular system, of course. The whole body would become his vascular system.

Muscles, bones, tendons, the like... No. His flexibility was something he proudly demonstrated. They would not inhibit that - they would assist that. With the malleability and ductility of fungal systems, he'd be more of himself than he ever was before. It was time for him to evolve.

Energy... yes. He would need energy stores. They concentrated, frowning a bit. The Force was powerful... but they would not presume to dictate his needs, or to dictate the will of the Force. A few more midi-chlorians couldn't hurt, though. He was growing in his way of the Force... he would do well with a deeper connection.

Practical energy stores, too. A tilt of their head, then a careful rearrangement. What was once his heart was now dense pockets of energy, dotting throughout his body. Nutrients, vital supplements, organic potential. With these, he could manipulate himself as much as he needed... could draw from the dirt as much as he wanted. Time to recharge them would be necessary, of course... but he would manage.

They eyed the crucible, thinking for a moment. Time to let him percolate.

 

[Jack Sandrow]

THE TIME - PRESENT

Jack huffed, going through the motions as a Vong watched in amusement. "Use your whip as an extension of yourself, not just a tool!"

"Thank you," he gritted out, adjusting slightly and trying again.

"Straighten up. Arm out! Put your back into it!"

"Thank you," Jack grunted, adjusting again. With a resounding crack, the lightwhip snapped through the air.

"Better! You're almost good at it," the Vong chuckled, arms crossed. "Keep at it, I'm gonna get a drink."

"Kriffin'... something or other," Jack grumbled, adjusting again and slashing again. "Stupid... grrahh...."

"Need a sparring partner?" Jack turned to see a whip being tossed at his face. He caught it, quickly sheathing the lightwhip before it could hurt him again. The figure who had tossed it at him was slight, blue-skinned, a Ferroan. "Just gotta promise me you won't slash me to ribbons."

"I promise," Jack smiled, testing the weight and heft of the whip. "As long as you promise me the same."

"Mmmm... no promises," the figure smirked, his steps light and careful. "Try not to get hurt."

"Yep, should have expected that." Jack chuckled, preparing for the impromptu spar. "Bring it on."

- - - - -

A WHILE EARLIER

Formlessness. His boundaries were vague, unknown.

He could feel something resembling cohesion. Something drawing him back together. Like drawing in a breath, he began to slowly draw himself together. Arms carefully sewed themselves back together. Fingers flexed and snapped into place. Legs re-mounted onto his torso. His eyelids reformed over his eyes, blinking awake.

Oh god.

He burst out of the tree, retching sludge and coughing it all up as best as he could. "Guuhhh... Haaahhh... S...Sekot... Where am I? Wh... how long?"

"How long have you been in there? Oh... no more than a few months, I'd say. I had to do a lot of work on you, after all."

Jack felt all over himself. He felt almost the same.... almost. In a vein of exploration, he attempted to produce a flower from his palm. Success! He chuckled softly, smiling as he carefully reabsorbed the flower. "....no kidding."

"And look what else you can do." They gently waved their arm, and Jack gasped as a mushroom sprouted from his arm.

"That's.... that's new."

"Indeed." Sekot stood up from where they had been meditating. "In an effort to maintain your own self-regulation, I've combined both fungi and flora into your biological makeup. You can control both, I would believe. You might have to get used to it, however."

"Mmhm." Jack was already attempting to change it. With slow and painful work, the mushroom slowly shifted, turning into a flower, then back into his arm. "Nff. That's going to take some time to practice."

"You'll do well, I think. You've done well so far, after all."

"Your confidence is much appreciated." Jack slowly stood, turning to look at Sekot quizzically. "Hey... can I ask you a personal question?"

"You may ask..." Sekot crossed their arms, one eyebrow rising.

"...Are you a guy or a girl?" Jack winced. "Sorry. Awkward question-"

"Neither." They shrugged. "I am a planet. Why do you ask?"

"I... I think I've changed. I think I'm both." Jack looked over himself. "...I feel like I'm both."

"Well... then I'm glad you've come to realize that about yourself. When did you realize it?" Sekot smiled, stepping over to put an encouraging hand on Jack's shoulder.

"I... I don't think there was a moment I realized it... more so that I can look back at myself and go 'Hey, I have changed!' And.... I've changed." Jack looked to Sekot, smiling. "I'm more of 'me' than I've ever been."

"I'm proud to hear it." Sekot returned the smile. "What next?"

"...Practice," Jack grinned, heading up to the surface. "Lots, and lots, and lots, and lots of practice."

 

[Jack Sandrow]

THE TIME - PRESENT

Jack's blades crossed with a Vong's staff, panting. "You're good."

"No, you're just new at this." The Vong, Kelo Curaq, was quite amused at the other's attempts. Though the sabers had been dialed down to 'training' mode (so as to not cut through the Vong's training blades), the regimen was still putting Jack through his paces. "Not to worry," he grunted, one swift strike knocking Jack on his ass. "I'll fix that."

Jack groaned, taking a moment to just lay there. "...go on without me. I'll get up in a while."

"Not good enough," Curaq growled, staff descending hard on Jack's face. Jack managed to duck away just in time, hissing in frustration as he backed off.

"Hey!"

"You wanted training," Curaq grunted, bringing his blades to bear. "You've got it."

"I didn't mean try to take my head off!!" Jack jumped back, flexing long-forgotten skillsets as he jumped and twisted out of the way of Curaq's strikes.

"Your enemies will be much less merciful than I am." Curaq gave him a look. "And a lot more skilled than I am." Without any warning, he lunged at Jack, who was only just able to swat the blades away. "Using actual lightsabers."

"Warnings - ah! - duly - ack! - noted!!" Jack flexed, twisted, then took a half-second to step back and regain his momentum.

"There you go!" Curaq chuckled, as Jack pressed his attack. "Keep that up, and you'll be just as good as me!"

"With any luck!!"

The battle lasted for nigh on an hour, with Curaq finally beginning to show signs of weariness.

"Break?" Jack called, shoulders slumping a bit.

"Break," Curaq agreed, straightening up and allowing his blades to go slack in his hands. "Can you get me an apple?"

Jack grinned, reaching to the side as a tree sprouted, blossomed, then plopped an apple in his hand. "Here," he nodded, tossing the apple to his sparring partner. "Enjoy."

"Thanks, I plan to."

- - - - -

A WHILE EARLIER

A mushroom slowly twisted and unfurled, spooling up out of the ground as it shook the dirt off its cap. A little larger, a little taller, before the cap flared, letting it reshape itself and bud, before puffing up and popping.

"Acktphth!" Jack winced, eyes closed as the splatter of spores coated his face. "....yech."

A beat. "Nice going, Jack," he muttered, before beginning to scrape the mess off his eyes. "Really, just well done overall."

He sighed, gingerly pushing the guck off his hands before finally standing up. Mushrooms were a lot more finnicky than plants. For one, mushrooms were a lot more ornery. They seemed to have more backbone, or whatever they wanted to call it. More amused with the result going haywire rather than actually getting anything done.

But that was okay, he figured. More time to learn the ins and outs of fungi. Starting with attempting to mimic other things...

It was slow going. Fungi cells weren't like flora cells - if anything, they were almost like animal cells. What little Jack remembered from his early schooling concerning fungi were that they were by and large almost wholly unknown. What little was known about them made it almost impossible to compare them to either plants or animals. They were their own 'thing', so to get an understanding of them was difficult at best.

But he kept at it.

Trial and error (mostly error, and plenty of trials) finally began to show dividends. Within a few days, he had figured out how to sprout mushrooms just as regularly as he could a blossom. A few days more, and he was mixing and matching quite a bit. A few weeks more...

A few months more...

He just needed a bit more time.

 

[Jack Sandrow]

THE TIME - PRESENT

Jack slowly sat up. He cracked his back (didn't need to, but it always felt nice) and pulled the covers back. "I'm just grabbing a quick drink," he told the other occupant, who waved sleepily and rolled over.

Pausing halfway to the kitchen, he rubbed his chin, looking in the mirror in the bathroom there. "Hmmm... yeah, stubble's not quite your look anymore," he murmured, rubbing at it until the growths had vanished back into his jaw. "Mm."

Grabbing a drink, he gargled a moment before crawling back into bed, murmuring soft nothings into the Twi'lek's skin. They hummed in appreciation, pulling him in closer. "Gotta get up and do things, yknow."

"No you don't..." they grumbled, pouting a bit.

"I'll leave you a breakfast, I promise," Jack murmured, giving them a soft squeeze before getting back up again.

"Eggs please," the Twi'lek yawned, stretching as well before getting cozy under the blankets. Jack hummed softly in assent, heading to the kitchen again. A few minutes later, a warm breakfast was sizzling away, as he touched on his comm pad.

Life on Zonama Sekot was interesting, to say the least. He often found himself lost in nature, and on some days it took all his willpower to not lose himself entirely to the trees. And then there were days like today, where he felt so attuned to the energy of the little communities here. Was he supposed to choose? How could he choose?

Walking the line between both worlds was dangerous. And yet here he was. He didn't feel like a thrill-seeker, it wasn't like he was intentionally pursuing danger. And yet. Here he was.

It would be a few hours later, but he would find himself alone in the woods. Spread-eagle on the ground, he felt the grass slither around his fingers, felt mushrooms prickle at his nails. The warmth of the sun washed over his face, and he let out a long sigh. Out here, time seemed to melt away. The beauty and subtlety of the flora this deep into the forest tugged at his sense of awareness. He could feel the blades of greenery curling around him, sucking him down, keeping him still. The light, then the stars, then the light again.

Stars. Light. Stars. Light. Stars. Light. Starlightstarlightstarlightstarlightstarlightstar.....

Two weeks? Two months?

She sat up slowly. Her hand went to her chin. No stubble, huh?

She got to her feet, checking over herself slowly. Yes... she was still Jack. But... she was new. She was the same. She was still herself. Themselves. Himself. Jack nodded slightly, smiling a bit. She had not realized it at first... but it was completely true, now that she was aware. She was more herself than she had ever been before.

She worked her jaw slightly, blowing out a soft breath. Her form shifted slightly, shoulders broadening, hips shrinking... and he opened his eyes.

So... there was a new Me. Jack. I am Jack, and that means something more than it's ever meant before. Now it's physical too.

Jack took a long, slow breath. Time to have another chat with Sekot.

- - - - -

A WHILE EARLIER

Hyphae snaked along vines. Spores twisted and writhed as they melded to chloroplasts.

A sword sang as it slashed through the air.

Jack tested the edge, concentrating a moment before letting the blade sharpen even more. Another testing slash, and he felt the air buzz around it. "Better." The hardened blade suddenly turned whip-like, lashing out with a loud snap! as it cracked by his hand. "Better." Another shift, as the blade suddenly sank into the ground. He raised it up again, the blade much larger and thicker than before. "Better." And finally, he let it extend, growing longer, spear-like, before testing its handling as well.

"Excellent."

He smiled. Now... what was that Sekot said about a 'present' for him? Something to do with Jedi artifacts or some such.

Best he take them up on that ASAP.