Evacuated and fortified…

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled thinly. “I’m not judging her or any Sith for that matter, I’m just doing what I swore to do. To serve the Republic on one hand and to honour life with the other. Anyone who opposes me in those aspects of my duty has to know I cannot pick and chose who to bring to justice.”

“She sure could do with some love. She doesn’t want to end up like me. 26 and I’ve never even kissed a boy. And I know you mean more love than just that kind of relationship but you get my point yes?”

“But maybe if I were no longer a Jedi, her desire to bring down the Order would in some way diminish. I still have my share of our inheritance you know. I planned to set up a charity, remember but the war got in the way. Anyway, I was thinking of buying a small farm on Tatooine, maybe take a Padawan that would otherwise be overlooked and teach them the basics.” She sighed again.

“Too many politics for an Order that’s supposed to be devoid of them. If things don’t go in a way that allows me to be honest with myself, I’ll leave. No fuss, no encouraging others to leave with me, just slip silently away.”

She returned her focus on her sister once more. “The Code? That version is in conflict with the aspect of attachments. How do you love someone, marry them but train yourself not to care if they died? If someone married me, I’d want them to care if I died, not move on after five minutes of grieving. The concept is simply odd to me.”

“And talking of relationships, are you and…Ice still an item?” She raised an eyebrow to emphasise her interest in the answer.

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Going a little Obi-Wan there aren't you?" Taeli chuckled a little as her sister talked about possibly getting a farm on Tatooine. She couldn't fault her sister for anything like that or what she believed, Taeli might be Sith but she had a moral code she followed. It helped to not have been a Sith for the formative years of her life, just being a normal, hard-working student. And then her sister asked her about Ice, and she couldn't hide the sigh or the amusement that Corvus was asking about something so . . . gossipy

"Unfortunately not, we just drifted apart," she sighed. "It happens I suppose, we both got busy and we agreed to break it off. I haven't heard from him since, so I wonder if he's okay or not. He was doing stuff on this one world that has an absolute ton of deadly creatures, but I don't know. But . . . wait a second, you're in your mid-20's and haven't kissed a boy once? In the six years I haven't physically seen you, you haven't even given a boy a peck on the cheek, even in a teasing way? Sorry about this for a moment."

And she started laughing hysterically, not in a condescending way though, but it was funny that yes Corvus was a Jedi, but not one kiss?

"Oh Corvus, Corvus, Corvus, you realllllly are missing out," she said, wiping tears from her eyes as she got her laughter under control. "I don't want to take away your choices, but if I have to sign you up for a blind dating sight for you to actually live a little, I will."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus nodded, “Not so far from the truth. I got the idea one of the last times I went there. If things get too political, that’s where I’m headed. I just love that place. The bars, the Krayt Dragons, some friendly Tuskens I know, just a place I could go and never get bored. All I’d miss were access to holocrons but I could still do research – there’s enough in public records to do that.”

She then listened as her sister explained her relationship with Ice – it sounded complicated and then suddenly the subject came back to Corvus. She flushed slightly. “No, never. I mean I must have kissed our dad and my brothers when I was little. I mean until we met, I could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times I’ve been hugged and still have digits left over. And that was just friends and an excitable Padawan once. Every time the subject of Attachments comes up in Jedi Lore with the Younglings, they always try to pair me up with a Jedi. But none appeal. I can’t explain it. I’m a Jedi and I want to be seen as such, not as a potential date.”

“And it’s not actually that funny. I’m sure there are lots of 25-year old girls who’ve never kissed a man. Lots and lots. And no to the blind-dating. I mean, for a start, when would I find the time?”

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"Sorry, with everything going on, I'll take the humor where I can get it," Taeli said, smiling at her sister sheepishly. "I don't know how you can live that way, bottling up everything and making yourself a droid essentially. Even before I joined the Sith, I could never imagine being a Jedi as you would define. As a New Jedi Order, possibly, I've thought about it from time to time."

Shrugging, and not continuing that train of thought right now, she smiled again and started walking towards where the hallway would open up to the main foyer.

"You know, Tython has such a rich history, for both Ashla and Bogan," Taeli said, leaning on the railing. "The Force Wars, the founding of the Jedi, being the site of the main temple during the Cold War and Second Galactic War during Vitiate's time, connections to Belia Darzu with her fortress on the other side of the planet, Bane and Zannah came here."

Turning a little whimsical, she added, "This place is incredible, so much history. It's in the very air of this world, in the trees and water. The rocks even have memories they could tell us if we only listen to their tales. Sorry, I'm feeling a moment here and it's kind of nice to just relax and let this place wash over someone."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled at the concept of Taeli as a Jedi. It felt a lot more plausible than Corvus as a Sith. “I know I come across as being ‘right’ all the time, but they’re just my views. I know many Jedi that marry and have families and carry on being Jedi. My Master was one. But my comfort in people walking their own paths extends to me being most balanced doing things my way.”

“And wouldn’t it be great to spend days together reviewing the Jedi holocrons? Unlocking variations of abilities. Do you know we spend more time looking for Sith artefacts to destroy than Jedi ones to rediscover. We could go on a galactic crusade, researching potential hiding places and returning lost treasures to the Jedi.” Her eyes were truly alive now, dancing with excitement.

Then she reflected on her sister’s words about Tython. “I’ve never been here before.” She ran her hand over a wall as she spoke. “It was locked down when I arrived on Ossus and has never been considered to be reopened. Now, it’s only a matter of time before the One Sith claim it to be theirs. But for now it belongs to everyone I guess – so please feel free to have your moment." And Corvus was quiet for a few seconds as her sister clearly took in the atmosphere – as the Jedi wondered what this place would have been like in its heyday – or at any of those points in history her sister mentioned.

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

Taeli smiled as she let her mind wander to what traveling with Corvus would be like, researching ancient sites and recovering lost treasures. Maybe it was just the nature of this place, maybe it was a hidden desire to do more with her sister, but Taeli couldn't shake the notion from her head.

"That would be nice," she said, an easy smile on her lips. "Do you know, if Darth Praelior hadn't found me first or those boys hadn't tried to violate and murder me, I would have ended up on Ossus first. Life would be so much more different, I think. I'd be a Jedi right now, maybe not a master, but possibly a Knight. So strange to think about, we would have met earlier too."

Turning around to lean over the balcony a bit and look out across the rest of the temple, the easy smile still on her lips, she said, "It's hard, you know, being a Sith and constantly dealing with idiots and their plots. I mean, I'm not above it myself, but I like to be honest with people and uphold any deals I make. I wonder. . . give me a second."

Concentrating on her mask ability and her Force aura again, she placed a layer of light side emotions on top of her normal presence, enough so it would seem like her natural one, by focusing on her love for Corvus and Melori.

"So what do you think? How does it fit?" she asked with a giggle, letting Corvus feel her presence for a moment. "It kinda fits while on this world I think."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled because Taeli smiled – it was infectious to see her sister happy. “Do you know what? We’re about to renovate Ruusan to become an Academy again, so there will be lots and lots of focus on that building but little on the surrounding area. So I was thinking. The Army of the Light, the Brotherhood of Darkness, Lord Hoth, Lord Kaan. Bane and Rain. Tempted?”

“I’m not asking you to become a Jedi, heaven knows, we have enough idiots and their plots of our own.” She laughed when she realised what she said, “Not that I’m calling you an idiot.” And she laughed even louder but suddenly it ceased and her eyes were dancing again. “But what if you had a chance to see all those things? We could both do some research and see what might be there and then cross-reference. We could meet up here and then travel in my ship?” There was no stopping Corvus now, her speech was quicker and her pitch slightly higher.

Corvus momentarily closed her eyes and using Force Sight, sensed Taeli’s aura. It wasn’t pure, but it was a lot lighter than many Jedi she knew and even if someone wanted to sense her – which was unlikely in the presence of the GrandMaster, it would satisfy any Padawan or Knight and even many Masters.

“It really works. Unless you call on the Dark-side, nobody would ever know. So? Yes?” She nodded vigorously.

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"Well I'm glad to see that the Grandmaster agrees," taeli said, giving a mock curtsy, but smiling all the while. She could feel her academic side tugging at her, extremely tempted by Corvus's suggestion they explore Ruusan together. Valley of the Jedi, the history of the successful Sith Order started there . . . oh so many things.

"You're definitely making it hard to say no to visiting Ruusan," Taeli replied, laughing a bit as she pulled a sphere out of her satchel. "It's like Tython, so rich of history and everything, both Jedi and Sith. Hold on a sec."

Activating the sphere, she tossed it into the air and the small geo-mapping droid activated and began scanning the temple and zooming around to disappear down a hallway.

"Geo-mapping the temple so the blueprints are never lost and pictures are saved of it, in case the crusades reach Tython," Taeli explained. "Um, maybe I can think about while we're here and I give you my answer later?"

She was highly tempted, maybe she could visit other Jedi worlds as long as she kept her false aura up. Maybe. . . she really wanted to spend more time with Corvus, but on the other hand . . . she did have duties and Melori was still with the Sith. She needed to think about things more, so much more.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus bowed politely to the curtsy, smiling all the time. “You can call me Corvus all the time I’m pleased with you, otherwise it’s your Highness, OK?”

Corvus wasn’t going to push the visit to Ruusan but she knew she’d go there even if her sister said no. She piqued her own interest enough to not be able to resist.

Corvus watched the droid disappear. “I doubt the crusades will come her. Rather an invasion force. It’s slap bang in the middle of Sith space, but for some reason is still considered neutral. But I suspect this place will either be levelled or made the home of a Sith Lord.” She looked around, “My tastes are significantly more modest. And don’t rush any decision, Ruusan isn’t going anywhere any time soon.”

“Funny thing is, this place doesn’t feel like a Jedi Academy any more, rather it feels like a museum that’s had all the exhibits removed. It feels soulless. When we’re finished here we should take a look around. I for one might not be able to come back any time soon – if ever.”

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"I suppose that's what happens when a world is close to Sith space," Taeli sighed, looking around the temple foyer one more time as the survey droid whizzed back to her hand. "Well, if the Republic ever reclaims the world from us, once it's taken as we both know it's a matter of when not, you'll at least have the blueprints to rebuild this temple."

"You know . . . I don't think any Sith deserve to call this world home or occupy it, it should be preserved as is for study," she sighed a bit. "But, I know I would just get shouted down for such a view and probably attacked. Guess we should see what we can . . . I wonder . . . have you ever heard of the tale of the Forge?"

Without stopping to wait for Corvus to answer yes or no, Taeli started spewing out the tale.

"Supposedly, there is a place up in the mountains in this region of the planet where the ancient Jedi built the first lightsabers," she said excitedly. "It was lost for millennia when Tython was abandoned following the Force Wars, but when the Jedi came back here after the Treaty of Coruscant, they re-discovered it and began using it as a final trial for Padawans to reach Knighthood. Apparently is was very strong in the Force, tapping into Tython's natural energies, but a creature was said to guard it to test those that succeeded in building their lightsabers. We should try and find it!"

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus appreciated Taeli’s pragmatic approach – blueprints for reconstruction were an excellent idea and one she felt she shoukd have thought of herself.

Now Corvus was an historian but with millennia to cover, she had her favourite eras and initially Taeli’s reference threw her. But as she explained, memories of the Forge came back to her. She’d completely forgotten it was on Tython but she remembered the tales when she was a Youngling and they’d always speculate what kind of monster protected it.

Her only concern was that they’d find it only for the Sith to destroy it, but she was an historian first and foremost. Protecting it was important. Finding it was even more so.

“Right, I need to go and get changed then, catch me up.” Corvus ran barefoot back to her ship, her dress held up by her hands as she jogged and set up her datapad to download everything the Jedi knew about Tython before changing back into her robes and grabbing the computer and re-joining Taeli. “OK, I’m ready. This may have some clues on it.” She held up her datapad and smiled. “As the eldest sister, I insist you lead!”

It may have been artificial, but the light-aura her sister was generating was comforting to Corvus. She wouldn’t let the hope consumer her, she was a realist – but she could dream, couldn’t she?

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"Right, well, if what I read is correct, we can find the Forge near the ruins of an ancient Tythonian city to the north-east of this region, going to be hiking a bit though because it's up in the mountains if I remember right," Taeli said, the pure excitement bleeding out of her as her eyes shined a bit brighter from happiness.

Taking her sister by her hand, Taeli raced out of the temple and out onto the old training grounds and had to stop for a moment as she looked around at the natural beauty that surrounded them.

"Wow, now that is impressive," she said, looking around them. "Anywho, we need to go this way I think, but double check your datapad every so often for the records. I'm pretty sure anyways."

As they began their hike, Taeli even forgot she was wearing a false aura right now, she was just too excited for anything else and didn't want to let the time slip away with her sister. Tilting her head a bit, she let a question rise up in her head.

"Soooo, what should we talk about while we hike?" she asked. "I doubt there are many, if any, Flesh Raiders left on the planet after so long, so the hike should be fairly easy."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus pointed to her boots, “I can do hiking, so don’t worry.” And she allowed herself to be swept out of the Academy and into the open air, and memories of running around with her brothers and sisters came flooding back and she shared them with Taeli, snatches of images of playing in the parks, the sun streaming through gaps in the trees, the sounds of children laughing and at times squealing with pleasure.

Corvus duly checked her datapad and simply agreed that north-east was the way to go. And she nodded at her sister’s observation. “The area was cleared out and although unoccupied, Jedi came regularly to check the place over. But that was six years ago, although if that is enough for predators to take over is another matter.”

“So, what to talk about? I have a fun game, if you don’t mind. In fact I have a fun game even if you do mind. I use it to pass the time of day with Kana if we’re on guard duty or something. We take it in turns to ask silly questions but they have to be Force related – but trivial. Extremely trivial. And I’ll go first to show you how it works. I ask you, you answer, I answer and then you ask, OK? So, if you could marry any Sith Lord from history, who would it be and why?” She giggled, “I told you it was silly.”

It was silly and fun and on a glorious day like today, going for a walk with your big sister on a deserted planet felt like she’d been granted the gift or a perfect afternoon.

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Hmm, you know as much as I like Darth Bane for what he did and everything, I would NOT want to be with him in anyway like that," Taeli laughed. "You know what, I think I would go with Darth Revan because he wasn't a stereotypical Sith either and I've seen some pictures of him. I can understand why Bastila fell for him."

Laughing a bit as they climbed, she smiled and fired back, "Same question then, which Sith Lord in history would you marry and why?"

It felt nice to be this carefree with her sister, going on an actual adventure and everything. Maybe she needed to see her more often, she could probably sneak onto Ossus or other Jedi worlds if she really really needed to. Wouldn't that be a fun trick to play on her sister, oh she couldn't stop a small chuckle internally as she imagined her sister's face.

She still was keeping her focus open for anything that might be a danger, but so far so good.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus felt a bit of a cheat as she’d been asked this question before, but the answer didn't need to change.

“Bane could have been a decent choice for his brain but overall he wouldn’t be the one. For me it would have to be Vader. Not when he was the whiney brat but when he was so imperious. And don’t forget that for as Dark-sided as he was, he turned to the Light-side for the love of his family.” Corvus bushed at this point. She hadn’t meant it to sound so personal for them when she’d selected the elder Skywalker, and the reasons were as valid now as they were when she’d first answered the question.

“I didn’t mean…you know, I wasn’t suggesting or anything.” She smiled and shrugged, “Anyways, if you could have any Jedi power what would it be?”

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

Taeli smiled as her sister answered, and she could definitely understand the whole attraction to Vader. He had been a man of purpose, even if he had lost the love of his life, a man who knew what he wanted and got what he wanted generally. Still, the reminder of Vader's ultimate fate wasn't lost on Taeli.

"I know, I know," Taeli said, although part of her mind did wonder. "Give me a hard question sheesh."

She knew what she was about to say might give Corvus a tiny, teensy glimpse into how much Taeli had read about the Jedi and the Light side. She had devoured every book on Lorrd about the Force, and even if she didn't have access to the standard Jedi archives, she had recovered some from deep within Coruscant itself where some back-up drives had survived the Jedi Temple's destruction.

"Oh so many to pick from, Force Light, Healing, enlightenment, valor, cure, Ray, Malacia, Morichro, oh so many to pick from ummm" she grumbled, but smiling. "If I could only pick one though, I'd probably pick ummm . . . ummmm . . . oh this is difficult . . . ummm maybe Protection Bubble. No! I know, I'd go with Healing actually, mainly because I'd want to actually help some people if they were injured."

Looking back at her sister, she kenw the obvious next question.

"In the reverse then, what dark side power would you want to learn and why?" she asked.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled as Taeli listed a whole selection of Force Abilities that she could command herself without thought, yet to her sister were currently unattainable without at least a teacher and an acceptance of using the Light-side of the Force.

“Force Light is useful – although Darth Venefica might disagree after our encounter on Kashyyk. Valor is particularly handy, especially when you can empower others with it. Malacia is gross but comes in handy when a less obvious use of the Force is required. Learning that one was I suspect like many Sith abilities. We had to practice on each other – and have a large bucket handy! Bubble and Shield are good to know but Healing is so valuable to a Jedi. We often work in refugee camps and there are never enough Medics – so I often double as the resident doctor.”

But smiling at these thoughts, she realised her own question had rebounded on her. She hadn't asked it because she had a clever answer to give - and was now a little stumped. "Drain Knowledge sounds good but the side-effects are too extreme. So I'd have to choose Midi-chlorian manipulation. That's how Anakin was conceived you know. And with my track-history with boys, that could be a sensible alternative." She chuckled, "OK, perhaps not, but it’s an option."

Corvus was aware they were close to where their search efforts needed to be more focused so she stopped the questioning and started to scan their immediate surroundings. Something like the Star Forge might give off some sort of aura – but she was equally interested in avoiding the monster if she could. “Where from here?” she asked, wondering if Taeli had a plan.

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"We need to find an old tunnel system," Taeli said, extending her senses out as they moved around. "Should be somewhere within this area, and that should lead us into an ancient Tythoian city that protects the Forge. I just hope nothing collapsed to block our way, how annoying would that be."

The last part was added with a laugh as she deployed another drone to scout out what they couldn't sense. While they looked, Taeli couldn't stop herself from wondering about Corvus's answer about which dark side ability she would choose to learn if she could. The problem with midi-chlorian manipulation, at least as much as she had read on it, was that every action taken with it, had an equal reaction to your attempts to change things. Taeli might be curious about it, but she didn't want to tempt fate more than she did already.

Still . . . her own answer had surprised her just a little bit, but she had been truthful. Force Healing was something Sith couldn't do, and she was interested in expanding her repertoire beyond what normal Sith could do. She was drawn to the idea of pulling a Jacen Solo, going off into the stars to learn exotic abilities and see strange and wondrous sights. She wondered if maybe she could convince Corvus to come with her on such a thing . . . but she might be too busy for such an adventure.

A beeping from her datapad interrupted her thoughts as the drone had located the entrance to an un-collapsed cave system just a little further ahead in the mountains.

"The droid found something!" she yelled to her sister excitedly. "Come on!"

Taking her sister by the hand again, she took off to where the droid indicated the entrance was. She was most definitely not acting like a Sith right now, the thrill of finding something overriding her Sith side and allowing her natural state to flourish. With that also came one other thought . . . something centered around maybe . . . possibly . . . maybe not, but she could hope . . . Corvus might show her a technique.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened, impressed with her sister’s knowledge of the layout of Tython – she’d clearly come prepared. She heard the beeping too and set off with her sister, like two children on a treasure hunt.

As they rushed to where they hoped to find the tunnel’s entrance, Corvus couldn’t help but reflect on Taeli’s answer to one of the fun questions. Force Healing wasn’t a basic ability, but with her sister’s undoubted power, if she could show her how to draw on the Light-side of the Force, she might have a chance of learning it. Bane would turn in his grave, but he wasn’t about to find out was he. But how to broach the subject without it sounding like Corvus wanted to convert her sister to the Light-side.

But she was nothing if not brave – or perhaps foolish. “You know, me learning a Dark-sided ability would probably never work but you could…you know…if you ever wanted…you know…well, the offer is there if, one day, kind of…should you…you know…stuff.” Her face flushed and she looked ahead intently, not wishing to gain eye contact with her sister, in case she’d offended her.

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"I . . . uh . . . well . . . maybe," she whispered in a small voice, also not looking at her sister as the cave entrance loomed up in front of them. The fact Corvus had just voiced aloud the potential offer, the thoughts Taeli was having herself about maybe asking her for a small lesson on the Light side, made her head spin a bit. She couldn't say no, just wasn't in her mental capacity to say no to new information or techniques.

They were so alike, her and Corvus, and she knew that the offer was a sincere offer, nothing about trying to manipulate her at all. She had to offer the same, but what could she possibly offer Corvus to learn that she probably didn't know herself. She had been studying the Force for twenty years, Taeli only had six under her belt. Her sister would probably never consent to learning some of the unique things she knew . . . ever. But she had to offer.

"If . . . well . . . you know ummm . . . if you ever want to maybe . . . just watch me . . . work a spell or something . . . just for you to observe . . . not that I wouldn't mind . . . you know showing you it . . . but sorry, Um I'll just be quiet for right now," she said, turning her attention to the cave, but Corvus would probably be able to feel her struggling with the two questions in her head.