Private Hymn of the Light

[Aymeric Prendergast]

HYMN OF THE LIGHT
~The second coming of the Shadow~

OUTFIT: x
TAG: Allyson Locke

JEDI TEMPLE, CORUSCANT, CORUSCA SECTOR, CORE WORLDS

Ambria had gone pretty well. The mission did raise an interesting conversation about my unusual method on facing dark side spirits, but I would say that it's a success overall. If it wasn't, I wouldn't be assigned on a high-profile mission personally by Master Valery Noble , nor would she send me to meet the legendary Jedi Shadow, Master Allyson Locke. Though her heyday was before my time, her stories did travel around the Temple from time to time. Good, bad, everything in-between. Yet stories are just that, flawed recollection of events that's delivered to fit one's narrative. There is no truth but the Light, Ashla. So I walked to the meeting with no expectations but one stemmed from the fact that this is a Jedi Master and legendary Jedi Knight that I'll be meeting with. You don't go that far in the way of the Light without Ashla's blessing, the opinion of rando senators and officials be damned.

She'll be in the southwest lounge, Master Valery said. I assumed she had already talked to Master Allyson, asking me to approach her alone in a semi-public setting. Maybe that should've been the cue for me to tell Master Valery that I'm a quite socially awkward person, and a direct introduction would've been grand. Or maybe she knows already and just doesn't care. I was too preoccupied with everything that's been happening in this sort-of audition to even think about asking that before. Either way, it's a work thing, I'll just swallow the pill and do whatever is needed. "Master Allyson Locke?" Knocking on the lounge open door, I entered the room to find her sitting there on her own. "Jedi Knight Aymeric Prendergast. I was sent by Master Valery Noble." I extended my hand to offer her a handshake.

The first thing that comes across my mind is that she still looks very young. I've heard that she was a very accomplished Jedi that reached the top position from a very young age, but that was years ago. I just had the idea that she would be quite older, being a legendary Jedi and all, I guess I was wrong. Or she, like many highly force-sensitive individuals, doesn't age as quickly. It was quite dumb for me to forget that aspect, hell, it was dumb to even think of things like a Jedi Master age in the first place.

Taking a seat beside her, I told her the reason I was sent here, just in-case Master Valery didn't tell her. "Odacer-Faustin. There's been whispers that the Sith Order are planning their next move to claim the ancient dark side world." It would be my biggest, most important mission as of yet. There haven't been as many high-profile missions related to the dark side ever since the war with the Maw, back when I was still a youngling and a very young padawan, and I happened to be assigned on the other side of the galaxy when the Ouroboros Crisis happened. Ambria was an important mission, especially since I worked directly with Master Valery, but this is on a completely different level. The fact that I am to work with Master Allyson Locke is just a testament of how crucial the mission is. "Master told me that you are the right person to talk to."
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[Allyson Locke]

//: Aymeric Prendergast //:

The return to the Order was a quiet one. There was no fanfare, no sort of celebration or welcome party. Everyone she had known had retired or died in the last great war. Allyson didn't know how to feel. Nothing was the same, but the work felt routine. Almost as if the Corellian hadn't left when she did. She wondered if things would have been different if she hadn't abandoned her post. A hand rested against her lips as she felt the cool metal of the old Alliance award. Not something she had won with the current Alliance, but one that fought the First Order and the One Sith.

So many faces and lives fading into the living Force.

Today, Val had asked a favor of her; Allyson wondered if it was some sort of test. It was something to monitor her loyalty or see if she was still on their side. Allyson didn't blame her. There were often times that the Corellian had abandoned the Order for her own endeavors. Typically, leads that came across her desk and were too hot to pass up. Allyson focused heavily on the Sith; almost all of her career was geared to eradicating them. The work cost her everything. While she wanted to blame the Sith, Allyson knew her methods pushed the galaxy away from her.

Even now, she was, from her knowledge, estranged from her partner.

Allyson tucked the medal back into her worn leather jacket. The faded rogue squadron patches looked nearly melted into the old leather. Allyson looked at her comm device and watched as the seconds passed. Whoever this kid was, he was taking his sweet time. Why was she nervous? Why had she adjusted the black eyepatch for the hundredth time in the past five minutes? Karking chaos Val, why did you do this to me? Allyson asked the Force, hoping for Val to somehow feel the pain the old Corellian was feeling.

An awkward fellow knocked on the door on queue, and Allyson straightened in her seat. "Yep, come in." She answered and watched as the youth moved stiffly to greet her. Aymeric held his hand out to her, and Allyson paused, staring at it. She hadn't expected such a typical greeting from someone training to be a Shadow. He was so trusting. She shook his hand cautiously and then looked about the room with her eye. Something felt off, but the Corellian couldn't yet put her finger on it.

The meeting continued, and Aymeric saw an opportunity to potentially share valuable information about the Sith's creeping front. As the words began to spill from his mouth, Allyson's attention snapped to him, and she snapped her fingers. "What are you doing?" she looked at him with confusion. Standing, she refused to answer his questions and instead focused on walking around the room. He could pick up traces of the Force from the Master as she used it to search for any hidden machinery. The woman was a known technomancer, using it against several enemies on missions. Stopping at the door, Allyson quietly shut it and locked it. "Don't share information in the open without verifying that you're in a safe location." Nothing was sensed in the room besides the two of them, and the only technology that Allyson could feel was the eye under her eyepatch. "Even the temple isn't truly safe no matter how many masters verify it to you. I trust Val, but being a shadow is knowing how much to trust someone and knowing that you can't trust anyone." Maybe that was her downfall, but it also kept her alive. Knowing that trust was what got so many good Shadows killed over the centuries, Allyson refused to let anyone in that close anymore.

A lesson she had learned during the NIO/GA and Sith war.

Sitting back down, Allyson looked to Aymeric. "As Master Val has told you, I'm Allyson Locke; just call me Allyson - there's no need for formalities. Those get you killed." Another lesson from the Shadow that was known for infiltrating governments for long periods. "Odacer-Faustin." she started a hand rubbing at her chin. "I have some data on that; I remember an inquisitor from the Sith a few years back was quite interested in the planet. From what I discovered, a lot of artifacts and such reside there."

Allyson placed her comm device on a small table between them and waved her hand. Once more, she used mechu-deru to manipulate the device, unlocking bits of it that only she could. The device projected a small planet, and with a wave of her hand, she expanded deeper into it until a tall, imposing building rotated carefully. "Specifically, from what I gleaned during my time in the Sith, this was an old academy." Looking at the Knight, she knew this was supposed to be a mission for training. "How do you think we should do this?" Allyson forced a slight smile; it was apparent being around others was a foreign concept. For the past few years, she had been doing her own recon in Sith space, far from anyone who touched the light.

 

[Aymeric Prendergast]

HYMN OF THE LIGHT
~The second coming of the Shadow~

OUTFIT: x
TAG: Allyson Locke

JEDI TEMPLE, CORUSCANT, CORUSCA SECTOR, CORE WORLDS

I just stare dumbfoundedly through Allyson's whole lecture. It's true what they say, behind every legendary figure is a large personality. Not that I have anything to complain about, I'm new to this whole field and I know that there's still mountains of skills, attitudes, and points of view I could learn and improve upon. Especially when it comes to the espionage side of being a Shadow. Like Master Valery, I took the specialization of dealing directly with the dark side; whether it be artifacts, spirits, or practitioners. And that's why training with her has been an overall pleasant experience. It was rigorous, don't get me wrong, but it was mostly on the field that I'm already quite good to begin with. To infiltrate a network of dark side cabals, that's something I still need to learn much deeper of. So I just took her criticism silently, making a mental note not to repeat any of that, ever again, especially in front of her. She's one of the best in her field, I aim to be one day. That started with just calling her by her first name.

"Alright. Allyson." That might take a while to get used to. She continues with what she knows of the planet, scrolling past documents and presenting devices. Of course, she's a known technomancer. I haven't met a lot since the first time I joined the order, yet it's quite curious how she's not the first I interacted with this past three months. Some of the information, I already know, was briefed by Master Valery beforehand. Yet I let Allyson go around with it, there could always be additional information that might end up saving the mission when it comes to that.

"It is. Artifacts, scrolls, perhaps even ancient tombs." I added. With Sith structures, sometimes it's more than what the naked eyes catch. The main building hides an underground structure, a sky temple hidden by dark side mist, you never know until you dropped there. It's obvious that planning is essential, but adapting to changing situations is even more important. And as expected, Allyson did ask me for a potential approach. With a forced smile, at that. Great, an awkward Shadow and another in training. This is going to be a completely different experience than my training with Master Valery, for better or for worse.

"What I know is, this will be a part of a larger operation, so I'm expecting an aerial clash." I'm not even sure how the Alliance are able to field a competitive amount of fleet with the war with the Mandalorian Enclave going on. But it's almost guaranteed that we will field a fleet, so we have to take that into account. "That's no good, we have to drop in before that. Get in before they are even there. They might have abandoned the academy for centuries, but it's a dark side structure, they will still be fighting in their elements, if it ever comes to that." I might be a better fighter than recon, but fighting the Sith in their element is far from desirable.

"If it goes smoothly, we'll check for any helpful information, make a copy, and destroy everything else." Or what we could, I just simply not sure if we would have enough time to do both. That case, no copies.
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