Is this Avatar or Star Wars? (Hunting Kro Var Manuals)

[Ak'lya]

This was an interesting bounty. The client wanted manuals, instructions to the techniques of the Kro Var shapers. Having very few funds of his own, simply searching auctions wouldn't do, and he wanted to do something anyways. He wasn't sure how he was going to get them, but at this rate, he didn't really care. He tilted the craft towards the southern end of the landmass, setting the ship down near a small village. As he walked down the ramp, he watched a pair of men approach the ship. If he had to guess, these would be the shapers he was looking for.

"Most who come to our village seek training. But you have not the aptitude for it. So why have you come to us?"

"I need instructions on how to become a Kro var. Manuals, books, scrolls, anything you have to teach this art."

The younger man seemed about to speak, but the elder cut him off. "Such an item is rare. How do you plan to gain such an item?"

" I wasn't sure. I didn't know how valuable they were to you." He thought for a moment. The contract was for thirty thousand credits for the information, plus an implied bonus for instructions. This could total near forty to fifty thousand when he was done. More than enough to justify trading a few things. But he didn't want to unless he had to.

"There are few ways one could obtain such a thing." The older man continued. "You could find someone in ownership who no longer wants theirs. A few in this village may be willing to give one up, for the right price. You could also earn it in a trial. This would test your physical body to its limits, and if you succeeded, you would be awarded one. Lastly, if you could prove you had the gift, we could train you, and in exchange for your service, you would be granted a manuscript."

"Let me see if I can find one in town.

 

[Ak'lya]

It took Dal a while to find anyone interested in selling or trading anything to him. It seemed these things, while not as rare as he was led to believe, was incredibly hard to get for someone who couldn't preform the art. He found himself repeating the same conversation over and over every time he asked about it in town:

"Why not just get one from the academy?"

"I can't use the force."

"Then why do you need the manuscript?"

"Someone wants me to get them for him."

"Why doesn't he just come here and get it?"

"Because some people would rather pay someone else to do the work."'

Every time he was sent somewhere else. Eventually, someone offered him a simple scroll on fireshaping for his vibroblade. He was too eager to take the trade, even though he barely had the credits right now to replace it. He had enough to make the payday, at least. Now just to get something on watershaping. That would probably mean going through the trial. The Devaronian sighed. He was not looking forward to this.

 

[Ak'lya]

Standing in the pit, Dal looked at the training grounds around him. He stood at the sandy floor of a massive maze of platforms and passageways. He had been stripped bare of all equipment and of his armor, having nothing but a tunic and shorts to protect him from what was coming. He could see vines crawling through the entire thing. Some of them were charred, but he guessed they would still support his weight. He noted where the fires had been. He would need that knowledge.

"You have one task to complete the trial. Reach me. If you can do that, we will give you what you seek."

The Devaronian nodded, knelt for a moment, and took off running into the maze ahead of him. He felt a wave of heat wash over him as the sand where he had stood was blasted by a fireball. They were firing at him! On instinct, he reached for his waist, only to remember he didn't have his blaster. Getting desperate, he grabbed one of the vines, swing up a layer in the maze. Quickly tucking a handful of atones into his pocket, he moved again, feeling the blaze of the impact behind him. Looking up, he noted that he had roughly ten to fifteen meters to go upwards. Pulling out one of the stones, he hurled it towards the man, hoping to catch him off guard.

 

[Ak'lya]

Dal was attempting to scamper up one of the tangles of vines when he heard the stone strike. A thunk and a grunt were his only response. But the attack was enough to get him up a level, bringing him near the point of reaching the man. He paused for a moment, panting as he tried to catch his breath. He felt the heat building up around him, but he barely had the energy to hold his head up to look. Flames were all around him now, and he couldn't see the old man or even the next platform. The heat quickly became unbearable, and the winds picked up as he waited. The Devaronian thought for a moment. He could try to wait it out, but he wasn't sure he had the strength. His other options were to try and jump for it. He thought he knew where the next platform was, and if he could make it there, he could then move on to the final platform, and the raised dais where the old man stood.

"You are weak, as all who lack the gift are. A simple trick takes you out of the race."

Dal ignored him. He reached down and tossed a stone through the flames, listening as it tumbled down. Another and another met the same fate. He was running out of rocks. Then he heard it. Thunk. the stone hit a solid surface, high off the ground below. He tossed another, just to be sure. Thunk. He had his location. Taking a step back, he dashed forward, feeling the flames lick at him as he passed through the wall. They singed his clothes, but any fires were snuffed out by the winds whipping around him. He watched the platform fall just out of reach. In desperation, his arms shot out, hoping to grasp on to the edge. His fingers caught, jerking on his shoulders. He could feel them start to give. Pulling himself up despite this, he fell to his knees on the platform, exhausted. He wasn't sure how he could find the energy to make it to the next platform.

 

[Ak'lya]

Dal was exhausted. His shoulder hurt from being jarred. His arms and clothes were singed or burnt. The smell of smoke and seared flesh wafted up from his body. There was only a few meters left to go, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't make it. He couldn't find the strength. The muscles in his body cried out from exertion. He was done. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make it the last few meters. The last jump.

"I knew you could never make it. You are not worthy." He heard the old man say. Looking up, he watched the figure, a blurred old man, move his hands as they wreathed themselves in fire. The old man was going to kill him! the energy he didn't know he had rushed through him as the last of his adrenaline kicked in, he lept desperately for the last platform, clearing the edge and rolling to the dais's base. Standing, he made an exhausted step up to the man. Enjoying the surprised look on the man's face, he smiled.

"How's that?"

And everything went black.

 

[Ak'lya]

Dal woke up in a cot, every muscle hurting. He could feel cold seeping into his arms. He sat up, looking over to see the old man standing in the doorway.

"You're awake. I was wondering how much you would sleep."

"How long was I out for?" the Devaronian asked, rubbing his eyes. He was still trying to wake up. He felt tired, but not exhausted.

"A day and a half. You were rather drained after your trial." The man said, walking up to him and placing a book on the bed. On top of the book, he placed a small metal cube. "Your reward for completing it." And with that, he left.

 

[Ak'lya]

Dal spent the next few days studying the book. It was mostly written in a language he didn't understand, but it had annotations and comments as well as a translation section in the back. It seemed this was exactly what he was looking for. Smiling, he set it down and picked up the metal cube.

He had never seen anything like it before. It looked like a box, but he could see no seams on it. The cube seemed almost like the Jedi Holocrons he had heard about, but they were crystal, and all glowing and shiny. This was just a solid metal cube with a sort of lens in one side. He peered into it for a moment, trying to see inside. It looked black. As he shifted to try and get more light in, the lens suddenly had a bright light behind it.

Pulling back in surprise, spots in his vision, the bounty hunter set the box on the floor. An image of someone preforming the motions of fireshaping, as a monotone voice over described what the technique. Interesting.

 

[Ak'lya]

"I need you to show me what you have on watershaping." Dal told the datacron, as he had learned it was called, for the second time today.

"I have already shown you the basics of watershaping. Demonstrate them." The datacron replied, the voice and figure having shifted to a female figure

"I don't have access to the force. I can't preform them." He replied, frowning. He had gone over this before, mere minutes ago. The Datacron's reply was identical to the one earlier."

"Then I cannot show you any more."

"Fine. Goodnight then." He replied, flicking the machine off. He slid the book and datacron under his bed and closed his eyes, sleeping again. He was sick of the datacron. The sooner he got his money, the better.

 

[Ak'lya]

"So it won't show me any more?"

"No. It is programmed to only show a user one skill level at a time. Unless one masters the basics, you cannot see anything more."

Dal sighed. He knew, as did the old man who had given him the datacron, now standing across from him, that he couldn't do that. "So how can I verify that it has what my client wants?"

"I could do it." a voice said. The old man turned around to see the younger man from the landing site standing there. "I know watershaping. I can walk through all the levels for you."

"Thank you."

 

[Ak'lya]

Dal and the man, whose name he found out was Tolem, spent a few days with the datacron, as Tolem would walk through the training exercises while Dal watched. When Tolem was tired, they would take a break, and talk about life. Dal would talk about Nar Shaddaa and the cities of Mos Espa, which fascinated the native shaper. In return, Tolem shared with him the legends of his people, and the stories of battles he fought. Dal would retell of his father's exploits as a bounty hunter.

"So you hunt people for money?" Tolem asked him once as they rested. They were almost done with the sessions, and Dal had seen more than enough to be sure his client would be pleased. The question was a bit of a surprise for Dal, but he tried to answer as best he could.

"Yeah. Someone does something that breaks the law, or kills someone famous or rich, or sometimes just angers the wrong person, they get a bounty on their head. Someone else is willing to pay for them to be captured or killed. People like me see those prices and find the bounties, that's what their called, and bring them back to the people paying."

"So if they angered someone, why do they deserve to be captured?" Tolem replied.

"Most people don't post a bounty unless something serious was done, like damage their livelihood or something. It's not a perfect system, but it works well enough."

"So you hunt criminals."

"More or less. Depends on which government you ask."

"I see."

That had been the last time they talked about it. Soon, they had finished, and they parted ways. Tolem had his village to defend, and Dal had his contract to turn in.

Now just to find his client....

(Word count: 2123)

 

[Warren Century]

Warren Century was waiting in Mos Espa when he arrived, a bit excited. For he'd FINALLY have the power of the shapers at his disposal. A power that other Force Users didn't have which actually was going to bring him closer to his goal, of learning all the various techniques he could of the Force. The shaper's techniques were just a stepping stone. Plus being able to burn someone's face off when they decided they wanted to throw a building at you with the Force? A very good idea. Warren was not the kind of person who liked to waste time. Approaching Dal, he'd toss him a bag that contained about 100k worth of credits. "For your speedy delivery of the information. In any case, now that I have the information I may have another assignment or two for you. Assuming you're up for it."
Warren then took the items that held the information from him. "Pleasure doing business with you for this information."

[member="Dal Talonok"]