Public [JEDI] Philosophy Class: The Nature of the Dark Side

[Braze]

[Veridian Jedi Academy]

Tags: Leos Loomi Casaana Ko Vuto Jackie Rosso 0-7 Kyric Roten

Philosophy Class: The Nature of the Dark Side
Instructor: Knight Braze Kai'el

Braze had decided it was perhaps best to offer an open philosophy class this cycle... no rank, no roster, no assignment. Any Jedi who wished to attend was welcome, whether they were Padawan, Knight, or merely a wanderer of thought looking for a quiet hour to question what they'd been taught.

He'd chosen the title deliberately; The Nature of the Dark Side. It was a risky hook, but that was the point. Braze knew well that certain topics drew out the curious, the doubtful, and the quietly conflicted. Sometimes those who most needed guidance came because they sought permission to ask the questions that frightened them.

He'd written the topic in firm, sweeping Aurebesh on a chalk slate and left it propped against a low stone table. The courtyard of the Temple was still when he arrived early to prepare, bathed in soft morning light. The sky was streaked with warm golden hues, and the air carried a balmy breeze that moved through the gardens like a sigh. Birds chattered lazily in the canopy above, and the faint perfume of flowering herbs clung to the air. It was the kind of subtle calm that belonged to a place where the Force seemed to breathe.

Braze set out a neat ring of mats around the table, their edges perfectly aligned. In the center, he placed a simple teapot, its lid lifting in small bursts of steam as the scent of spiced green tea mingled with the floral air. He sat cross-legged, robes gathered loosely around him, and poured himself a cup as he waited.

Beside the pot, half-shrouded in a folded cloth, sat a crimson pyramid hiding away a Sith holocron. He and his student Leos had recovered it from a derelict outpost, and though it had long since been deactivated and rendered inert, it remained a potent symbol of what could tempt, what could twist.

Braze glanced toward it as he took a slow sip,

"Let's see who shows up today," he murmured, "Those drawn by curiosity… or those looking for something they don't yet understand."

 

[Leos]

Veridia
Tags:m Braze

Epo-1, YT-1760 small transport
​

Beside the pot, half-shrouded in a folded cloth, sat a crimson pyramid hiding away a Sith holocron. He and his student Leos had recovered it from a derelict outpost, and though it had long since been deactivated and rendered inert, it remained a potent symbol of what could tempt, what could twist.

Leos knew what he was looking at. He felt obligated to be here, given the experience he had with the object. There was a stiff silence about him as he found himself a seat towards the back of the space, or at least the back-most mat he could find. Not that it would keep him from getting called on. He didn't exactly expect that given the fact that his instructor was the teacher of this class.

How strange, being here in a fully fledged temple. It was nothing like Daiyu....

A blessing and a curse.

 

[Casaana]

Veridia wasn't a place Casaana usually found herself. It was far out in the unknown regions from her home on Kattada and the High Republic, but she'd made the trip out of curiosity, both to see the planet and what her friend Braze was up to. There was even the possibility of finding some piece in the exotic markets that would fit well into the skyhopper rebuild she was doing. By now, she'd been on the planet for a few days, exploring the Jedi temple and surrounding ruins. Later she'd go out to the city, but for now, Braze had invited her to a class he was leading on the Dark Side. Not really her thing, the Dark Side had never held the slightest bit of interest to her, but it was the perfect opportunity.

For snooping! The lock to Braze's room yielded with a little persuasion from her intrusion kit and she slipped inside his luxuriously appointed room. The lights were off, leaving the glowing stars pasted across the walls and ceiling glowing. She held a fist up to her mouth, stifling a giggle that nobody was there to hear, as she enjoyed the difference between his lifestyle and her normally austere living conditions. Laying down in his bed, she rolled across his satin sheets and let the soft mattress envelop her under its round canopy. Sliding to the edge, she stood and made her way to his desk with her mission firmly in mind. The drawers were filled with flimsies of interesting designs and knick-knacks, but not her quarry.

Turning to his dresser, the Padawan began rifling through his clothes, quietly singing "snacks snacks snacks, where are the snacks?" Under her breath. Why did a boy have more outfits than most other girls she knew? Obviously she was an exception, she only had a few other than the pretty dresses he'd gotten her. Ship parts and doodads were much more important, and wardrobes didn't travel well. Finding a floral silk robe, Casaana tried it on with a twirl before going back to carefully digging through Braze's dresser drawers.

Braze​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Leos Casaana | Open to other writer's interested in joining - Non jedi interested in joining dm first ​

Braze was holding class and therefore unable to stop Casaana from rifling through his belongings.

The balcony doors were unlocked, curtains breathing in the floral breeze. His bedding was neatly made, soft and freshly laundered, everything smelling faintly of tea and clean linen.

On the small table by the window sat a sizable satchel of deep blue velvet, painted with winding silver vines. A silken mesh was wrapped around it like a net, and when she loosened the drawstring, the inside glittered with large, glassy orbs of color. They looked like jewels... bright, translucent, and sweetly fragrant. They seemedto be candies.

They weren't ordinary candies, though. They were a gift from Kaito Starfall , handmade confections with real serious herbal and medicinal value.
The pink ones were made with sakura petals and pickled plum extract. They tasted lightly floral and tart and were said to help ease tension and support digestion after long meals or stressful days.

The green ones carried the scent of yomogi and wild honey. Their mild bitterness cleared the senses and aided circulation and recovery after exertion.

The golden amber ones glowed like sunlight containing a mix of yuzu peel and ginger root. They brought warmth to the body, soothed sore throats, and settled nausea.

The violet ones smelled clean and sharp, steeped with red shiso and peppermint oil. They helped clear the sinuses and ease coughs or headaches.

The dark brown ones had the deep molasses scent of black sugar and reishi mushroom. They were meant to support the immune system and steady the body during fatigue or stress.

The white ones were soft in color and aroma, blending kudzu root and chamomile. They were taken for relaxation, mild anxiety, or sleeplessness.

And the blue ones gleamed faintly when turned to the light, infused with ginseng, matcha, and lemon balm. Their taste was earthy and clean, made to improve focus and gently restore alertness. There was no card or letter with them that detailed what they were but they certainly seemed like candies.

As time slipped by, it became clear that perhaps Leos would be the only student today. That was fine with Braze. He smiled faintly as he watched the young man settle himself at the far end of the ring, as though distance might spare him from being noticed.


Braze lifted his cup, taking one last sip of tea before setting it aside.


"Good morning, Leos," he said quietly. "It seems it might just be the two of us today, unless someone wanders in late."

His tone was calm and conversational, as if they were about to discuss the weather rather than the nature of temptation itself.

"This class wasn't mandatory," Braze continued, his voice even. "But you came anyway. That says something about your thoughts." A pause. "Let's start with the foundation, then."

He turned his gaze toward the dormant holocron resting on the cloth nearby moving to un veil it.

"When you hear the words 'Dark Side,' what image or feeling rises first?"

 

[Leos]

Veridia
Tags: Braze

Epo-1, YT-1760 small transport
​

"When you hear the words 'Dark Side,' what image or feeling rises first?"

"Cold..." Leos murmured, though loud enough for Braze to hear, "It feels cold."

Leos didn't really want to be in this class. A part of it was just the presence of other students. They weren't really like him, and he didn't want to interact with them either. The encounter with that same dark artifact Braze held didn't exactly help either. He didn't like thinking about the control it held over him for that brief moment.

But even so, he answered honestly. Even if the answer was brief.

 

[Alaric]

In the couple of years since Alaric had resigned from the swords-edge lifestyle of the Lightsworn Jedi, he had become a Wayseeker of no one's accord but his own. His travels had taken him across the entirety of the galaxy, to more Jedi enclaves than he had known to exist, and to planets in great need that had been forgotten as the Jedi took up arms against evil powers. He had come to the far-flung world of Veridia on yet another pilgrimage, having heard stories of it's Ashlanti Monks, whose peaceful, isolated practices interested him. He had also heard tale of the Veridian Academy's resident knight Braze, another Jedi who swore to no Jedi Council. Not that there was one unified council to serve in these trying times...

Alaric wandered the grounds of the academy, enjoying the serene nature and the profound sense of peace in this place so far from the heart of conflict, when the fresh breeze filled his nose with the fragrant aroma of steeping tea. Ahead he saw the young man's unmistakable white hair, and he knew he had found Braze, assuming the boy with him to be his padawan. He strode up to them, noticing the subject written on the board behind them...

The Nature of the Dark Side. A grim topic, he thought, but one that Jedi would always struggle with so long as the folly of mortals existed to draw them away from unity with the Force. He heard the Padawan describe it as cold, certainly not something Alaric could deny.

Alaric smiled as he joined them, noticing other unoccupied mats around the teapot.

"A good morning to you, my fellows. I am Alaric, and I was quite enjoying the scenery of your world until I overheard your discussion. Padawan, you said the Dark Side feels cold, yes? The warmth we so often feel when we meditate is the comfort of the Force. When we surrender ourselves to Its will, It fills us with certainty. Why might the Dark Side feel cold in comparison?" he posited the question to Leos, sitting cross-legged on the mat next to the two, and pouring himself a cup of tea.

Alaric's thoughts turned to the Dark Side Elite, the Dark Jedi who served Darth Solipsis, who he had faced when he was a Lightsworn. His nightmares were still haunted by their cruelty. It was true that the only way he could describe them was cold. They were unflinching like they were numb, and there was no emotion in those cold eyes, merely psychopaths who bent the Force away from its natural flows and used it to hurt innocents. He supposed it was a good thing for this Padawan to acquaint himself with the Dark Side before having to see its ugly face for real...

Braze Leos Casaana

 

[Casaana]

"Ah! What's this?" Casaana held up the prize she found buried under Braze's silky things. The figurines were maybe twenty centimeters tall and, when she held them in the light coming from the window, reminded her of someone she knew. Taking it closer to the light, she saw that they were some of her Jedi friends. Her lips pursed off to one side as she thought. There was a plushie line that did famous people, but these looked custom. Smiling, she looked around the room again, wondering if there was one that looked like her lying around somewhere. But she was on a mission, so she carefully returned these two to their hiding place.

Then she saw it, a large bag of velvet and silk mesh wrapped with silvery vines sitting on a table right next to the window she was just using for its light. The satchel called to her, and she carefully pulled it open to reveal the myriad of hard candies glittering to her in the sun's light. Disappointment flowed through her before their scent reached her and she realized they were much better than the jewels she'd first thought they were. Plucking up one of the golden ones, she held it up so the light filtered through it before popping it into her mouth. Closing her eyes, she let the warmth of the candy's flavor spread through her senses.

Closing the bag, she fell back onto Braze's bed again to spread out her arms and feel how the silk of the borrowed robe glided over the satin sheets as she played with the candy on her tongue. As much time as she spent on the frontier or living austerely, Casaana usually only felt such luxury on the rare occasions her friend Persephone Dashiell was putting her up somewhere. So she took a long moment that seemed to stretch on to enjoy it as she stretched out on the soft bed.

Braze Leos Alaric​

 

[Braze]

[Veridian Jedi Academy]

Tags: Leos Casaana Alaric
​

Philosophy Class: The Nature of the Dark Side
Instructor: Knight Braze Kai'el

Braze didn't seem to mind the newcomer joining them. He greeted Alaric with a small bow, his head inclining softly.


"Welcome, and good morning. Yes… Veridia is a beautiful breath of fresh air in an otherwise cold and dark universe," Braze agreed.


He fell quiet as the man spoke with Leos , listening carefully to his words before offering his own.


"There is seldom a hard lesson that doesn't stir discomfort," he said simply.


"Cold…" he echoed, turning the word over in his mind. "It is an apt descriptor."


His gaze drifted slightly, tone thoughtful. "It is also powerful... immensely so. And that kind of power can be suffocating, absolute… yet alluring. Intoxicatingly addictive. To be untethered, unmoored. . . to become one with the tempest." He paused briefly, as if tasting the weight of his own words. "Everyone carries that potential. It resonates within our raw, intense emotions. Left unchecked and unrestrained, it brings destruction, and greater suffering still." He started to walk back and forth infront of his little table.

"Many who turn to the dark side do so in search of power. The Sith, as we know their doctrine today, believe that through power they achieve victory over the chains that bind them. They feel oppressed, trapped, powerless, and so they reach for those sweet temptations that promise freedom. They let their restraint fall away, chasing the illusion of liberation."

Braze exhaled softly, eyes distant. "But know this... it is a trap. The dark side is difficult to turn from once you've tasted its so-called freedom. It brings a kind of catharsis, a release from pressure… and that release becomes addictive. They crave more and more until nothing truly frees them. They chain themselves willingly becoming the very thing they sought to escape."


His voice softened then, calm and reflective. "Yet life can only thrive when there is both light and dark. The key lies in balance, learning to manage those feelings, to acknowledge them for what they are."

Braze folded his hands behind his back as he began a bit more,

"The amount of Force one can draw upon differs for every being. For some, it's inherited... passed down like any other talent. But it's not something you acquire; it's something you learn to use."

He smiled faintly. "Rather than thinking of it as how much sugar you possess, think instead of how well you know how to use it, how to craft something refined, something that nourishes. You will always go farther through understanding than through greed."

He turned slightly, pacing as his tone grew quieter.

"The only way to overcome the Dark Side is through discipline. The nature of the Dark Side is, in truth, natural to all living things. It is pleasure, temporary and easy to reach. The Light Side, on the other hand, is joy. It is enduring, but difficult to attain. It demands more of us: that we overcome laziness, surrender quick pleasures, and face what we fear most. One is selfish one is selfless... "

He let a pause hang before his gaze swept the room.

"Can darkness exist without intent?" he asked. "If a Jedi kills to end a war, and a Sith kills to bring peace...what truly separates them?"

His eyes softened, reflective. "Have you ever felt the pull to act without restraint? What stopped you?"


Another quiet breath. "What emotion do you fear losing control of the most...and why?"

Casaana
Braze's quarters seemed to be filled with indulgence. Silk draperies fell in languid folds from the ceiling, filtering the amber light into soft ribbons that drifted across polished wood and folded robes. Every surface was deliberate: books neatly stacked beside a kettle, a scattering of trinkets and stones that caught the light like stars strewn upon a table.

It was the kind of room that invited one to relax, to surrender. A place that promised comfort and safety, a sort curated dream like calm.

Yet as her eyes wandered upward, she would be drawn to a face. Beneath the canopy of the bed, half-hidden among folds of fabric, hung an object she hadn't noticed before ... a mask, pale and delicate, tethered in place by red satin chord as though waiting to be worn. Its empty eye seemed to follow the movement of the one below, catching light in ways that made the expression change.

Beside it, suspended from a thin cord, was a necklace. A single Kyber crystal hung at its heart, crimson in color. It pulsed with a color too deep to be comforting, its light bleeding over the soft bedding below. Behind them was a mirror tucked up high.

She would soon notice the mirrors throughout the room, glinting faintly in the soft light. At first they seemed to be there for decoration, catching bits of color and glow from the lamps, but the longer she looked the more she realized how carefully they were placed.

Each mirror offered a vantage point from the bed, showing parts of the room one would not normally see without sitting up. She could make out the doorway in one, the far corner in another, the balcony in the next, even the reflection of the small table near the window. They were all angled perfectly, each one overlapping the next, covering every blind spot in the room.

It was a strange and meticulous arrangement, too precise to be accidental. The mirrors made it possible to watch everything from where she lay. The idea was clever, yet it carried something uneasy beneath it.

 

[Casaana]

Sprawled out on the bed, Casaana tonged the candy around in her mouth, letting its warmth suffuse her senses as she studied the multitude of mirrors surrounding the bed. At first, she thought them some art project of Braze's as he always displayed a knack for creating things. But as she studied them, she saw their intended purpose of observing every aspect of the room without having to move one's head. As if that movement would give one away to an assassin. She frowned as she moved the candy over in her mouth. Had Braze ever been attacked by assassins? Here in the heart of a Jedi temple, it seemed unlikely that anyone would even have the audacity to break into someone's private rooms.

Shifting her gaze over to the red crystal, Casaana shuddered at the sight of it. Such a thing didn't belong, it was a temptation, a lie promising easy power, and its coolness unsettled her even from where she lay on the bed's satin covers. No longer enjoying herself, she edged over to the bedside and swung herself upright to leave.

On her way out, she closed the door before licking a finger, using the moisture to reaffix one of Braze's long white hairs across where the door met the frame. Then she did the second one she'd found. Still wearing the scavenged floral silk robe over her usual drab Jedi outfit, she started to head out to where Braze was supposed to be teaching his class.

Braze Leos Alaric​

 

[Leos]

Veridia
Tags: Casaana , Alaric , Braze

Epo-1, YT-1760 small transport
​

Why might the Dark Side feel cold in comparison?

"Well... taking energy from something make it colder... and those darkside guys get their strength from taking energy from others, yeah?" he mused, thinking about it in an admittedly more scientific way. "I guess greed could just be cold..."

He sat and listened to what Braze had to say, frowning a little. All of that seemed a little too charitable to the Sith. He knew what those kinds of people were like. They were like his father. There wasn't any light in which they acted for the good of others. It was all selfishness. They took energy from others and left the world colder.

"What emotion do you fear losing control of the most...and why?"

"Are... those rhetorical questions?" Leos asked in a quieter tone.

He didn't want to answer that question in front of others.

 

[Braze]

Tags: Casaana Leos Alaric
​

Braze was quiet as he listened, watching Leos curiously. One brow lifted as he spotted Casaana joining the class, though his attention quickly returned to Leos.

"Young hopeful... this is a philosophy class. And philosophy, at its core, is the study of wisdom.

It is often said that knowledge is power. But there is a difference between knowledge and wisdom. I believe that wisdom is far more powerful, and the two are not one and the same.

Knowledge alone is a collection of facts. It can be memorized, traded, or even stolen. A Sith may learn every secret of the Force and still remain blind. Wisdom, however, is what we become through understanding. It is the tempering of knowledge through experience, reflection, and compassion.

Knowledge can teach you how to build a weapon. Wisdom teaches you when not to use it. Knowledge can light the path ahead, but wisdom teaches you where to walk. One without the other is imbalance.

The Jedi do not seek to hoard knowledge, but to transform it into wisdom, to let what we learn shape who we are. It is through wisdom that we grow, through understanding of ourselves, the galaxy, and the Force.

This class is, essentially, the study of asking why. It is the art of thought, a transformative act of turning curiosity into understanding. There is no quicker way to learn than to ask questions. A good philosopher examines life, existence, morality, knowledge, and reality itself, and asks: What is true? What is good? What does it mean to be? How should we live? Why do we believe what we believe?"

As he spoke, Braze set aside what he had been doing and began to walk among the gathered students, his tone steady and deliberate.

"So, no, Leos, these kinds of questions are not rhetorical. And I will tell you why."

He came to stand before the younger man, studying him closely.

"The Dark Side feeds on silence, and it feeds on fear. If we are afraid to name what stirs within us, it festers until it owns us. Speaking of it does not make it stronger. It makes you stronger. To name a feeling is to claim mastery over it. The first step of self-discipline is honesty, even when it stings."

He paused, reflecting on the weight of his own words.

"The Force does not demand perfection. It demands awareness. If it frightens you to answer, perhaps that is your lesson. The Dark Side hides behind the things we refuse to face. So I will ask again, Leos, not as your teacher but as a fellow seeker, what emotion do you fear losing control of most? Because until you can face it, it already controls you.

The Dark Side is not some ominous storm beyond us. It is the shadow our own light casts. It is the fear of loss, the hunger for more, the anger at what we cannot change."

 

[Alaric]

"You ought to listen to your master, young padawan. He is correct. We practitioners of the Force must always be aware of it's flow, so that we can be in harmony with it. What we call The Dark Side is merely what happens when there is discord between one sensitive to the flows of the Force and the Will of the Force. Just as your master has said, it is a shadow, and that is why it is often felt to be cold, because it is disconnected from the energies that surround all life, that give harmony to nature. The powers that we say are granted to those who tap into the Dark Side are not truly granted, but taken, stolen, and hidden away in the shadows. The Dark Side is but a corruption caused by one's own will trying to supersede the laws of nature, and it is fueled only by destruction, decay, and consumption, things that are not sustainable to ourselves, nor the environment. One needs only to look at the history of the Sith to see their folly, time again these lords have made themselves into the most powerful beings in the galaxy, but always at great cost, and always to a fault. I would encourage you to learn more of the Dark Lords of the Sith, living and dead. In their stories we can find their folly. The common theme is always something driving them away from harmony with the Force. Fear, anger, regret, or resentment, among other reasons. By knowing what drives powerful men away from the harmony of The Force, we can learn to identify our own struggles, and overcome them in ways they could not."

Braze Leos Casaana