O, the cry did knock (Dagora-Kel)

[Velok the Younger]

But how is it​

That this lives in thy mind? What seest thou else​

In the dark backward and abysm of time?​

Varunda IX
Former Fringe Confederation Territory
Edge of the Unknown Regions

Picture, if you will, the kind of comfortable house where work happens, a soft-edged functional place. Put it in a dense forest near the Ithorian-run city of New Habat, close enough to use the starport and the local Marrow & Illskins, but far enough for privacy. Surround it with young trees, a garden, and a sand-and-rock mandala that resonates in the Force. The trees do too, but all of it's subtle, never insistent. You'd almost have to make contact to know.

It's a lonely place, in its way, but its owner keeps busy. That's clear enough from the weeds growing through the front walk and the well-worn hinges on the toolshed. Those tools can turn the eye, if you look at them wrong. A set of pruning shears, though unquestionably shearlike, is also something more. Saplings are trimmed, a mandala passes through cycles of creation and obliteration, like this work has intrinsic value.

***​

Rave kept patting soil around roots as a starship's landing shook the forest. Repotting would wait for no man.

[member="Dagora-Kel"]

 

[Darth Metus]

Master.

The word held an untold sum of significance to the sensitive portion of the Galaxy. For the Dark Ones, it denoted a rare display of submission in the hopes of achieving power. For the Light, it signaled a bond that could last a lifetime. It was a term that one as stubborn as Dagora-Kel reserved for only one individual. She was the architect that built the former Mandalorian into the Alchemist that he was this day. She was the one who pushed him onto the path of twisting creation to his whims.

And now, she had summoned him.

Vague were her words on the matter. In fact, the Dar'manda was simply provided coordinates alongside a header that identified who was sending the message. It is Finished. Needless to say, Dagora dropped everything and made for his master's location at once. Upon arrival, the first thing the Songsteel-clad warrior did was open himself to the Force. He felt its ebb and flow, relished in its presence...and then began to look around. In times past, Dagora could easily smell the darkness of what his master was cooking, but that was not the case today. She was surrounded by numerous signatures in the Force, of this he was sure, but nothing screamed Alchemical creation like usual.

"Interesting." he said, making he way over at a brisk pace. And what was he greeted with? Trees. Lots of trees. And greenery. "I didn't take you for one with a green thumb, Master." he said, offering a half-smile.

"It is good to see you."

[member="Zhol Kash Dinora"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Dagora-Kel"]

"Hello, Isley."

They'd been of comparable age once. Peers, frankly: he might even have been a few years older once, and his greatest creations rivalled hers. An alchemical variation of 'wars not make one great' flitted through her head. She stood, settling the potted sapling in its place beside a dozen others. Today's generation had promise.

She stood, natural knee protesting and metal knee rasping, and wiped her palms on her gray cloak. "Of all the friends I made in my old career, I'm glad you're the one who stuck around. Welcome to Varunda Nine - have you been here before? Fascinating place."

She eyed him up and down, professional interest taking over. "Is that armour new, or has it just slipped my mind?"

 

[Darth Metus]

Isley.

Now there was a name the former Mandalorian hadn't heard in a long, long time. He, in his decision to completely walk away from the ways of his people, went so far as to abandon the name given to him. However, this wasn't exactly the sort of detail that mattered at the moment; and he damn sure wasn't about to correct his mentor. Instead, he simply took solace in the words Rave expressed: it felt good to know he was valued.

"That means a lot coming from you." he began. "And unfortunately I never had the chance to visit Fringe territory. I can count on my hands the amount of times I've been this far away from the South."

He paused, before nodding in affirmation to Rave's inquiry. "Yes, this is one of my recent works. My bones aren't as spry as they once were so I went with something far lighter." And, it went without saying that the Dar'manda had taken steps to mute the unique traits of his armor for the outing. It wouldn't do to literally suck the fun out of the reunion. "So, tell me more about this fascinating place...and these rather lively plants of yours."

[member="Zhol Kash Dinora"].

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Dagora-Kel"]

"Mm. Phrik, and something...special. Interesting." She blinked her way back to the big picture and offered a grin, picking dirt from under her nails with the tip of an ever-sharp pair of pruning shears. Svoltan rhyolite went a long way towards keeping her trowels and spades in good repair. "And thank you for keeping it under control. This place is delicate, in its way."

She gestured around the forest with the shears. "Varunda Nine is teeming with plant species from all over the galaxy. Someone's attempt at building a rare-lumber export world, I think. There's all manner of strange breeds to be found, if you know where to look, and I do. These little beauties in the pots are today's generation. For some of my strains, I use controlled lor pelek plant-surge techniques mixed with Dathomiri equivalents, and I can go through an iteration or combination in a day or two. Very minimal alchemy, or related techniques, all Light Side; it's more selective breeding and Force-agnostic genetic manipulation. At their heart, of course..." Force, this mode was coming easily to her, even after so long. "They're descended from cuttings of cuttings of the Force-sensitive tree that grew at the heart of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. I've thrown in some brylark genetics for durability, and trying to focus the saplings' latent Force-sensitivity by using..."

A slow grin broke over her face. "Oh, you're going to like this."

She'd been potting, using soil from a well-used bucket. She held up a handful of the soil, which was dotted with tiny shreds of brownish cloth or leather. "Jal Shey clothes," she said with some satisfaction. "Belts, gloves, robes -- the usual, with the standard imbuements. I'm experimenting with the best ways of getting the trees' Force presence to grow in specific directions. It's a deeply imprecise art. It takes more patience than I'm used to, but I feel it's...purer than my old efforts. More in tune. Like I'm recycling mortal efforts back into immortal processes."

 

[Darth Metus]

This was quite the change in direction, and surprisingly enough...Dagora rather liked where this was going. In a time long since past, his expertise had laid solely within the darker side of things. While he did dabble with Force-Imbuement and other such tactics, never before had he even considered touching the Light. But, as is the case with most mentors worth their salt, Rave considered what Dagora had not. She had turned her efforts from contorting creation to her will into growing something...stunning.

"Descendants of the very tree of the Jedi...directed by methods free of Darkness. You never cease to amaze me, Master."

At this point, Dagora's grin matched that of his teacher's. To say the very least, he was one hundred percent on-board. "So this is alchemy...rather, the tenets of alchemy...applied without the blood. In that case, I an eager to know what traits you have introduced to the young saplings. Which directions are you attempting to direct them?"

[member="Zhol Kash Dinora"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Dagora-Kel"]

"Well, it's alchemy, and it's not. You know as well as I do that what we call alchemy is so many different fields all hammered together. Even just within the biological side of things. Some creatures were made -- the Leviathans, the chrysalides. Some were made and then developed on their own - the terentateks, possibly the wyrms. Some arose spontaneously, mutations influenced by the Dark Side without much in the way of deliberate mortal interference - the first war hydras, I believe, and possibly Dxun devourers. Some were the results of breeding programs with other alchemical processes mixed in - the silooth, the war behemoths, probably the tuk'ata. All this to say...alchemy's such a vague word, but I don't have a better one."

She knelt by a sapling, gripped the pot in both hands, and lifted it up for Dagora's examination. "Touch the leaves, or the trunk. This one's been fed mulch that includes the shreds of liners from Jal Shey mentor armor, for a calming influence, and other clothing items for improved awareness and focus. Imagine a tree you could plant near...say, a workshop. Picture a tree that would focus and soothe your mind, and calm predators and aggressors if they came too close. The real trick, and what I'm anxious to see happen, is when the tree's natural Force-sensitivity takes its pattern from the broken artifacts and grows with the tree, but in line with that pattern, even after the little bits of Jal Shey creation are long gone. An old tree like that could be immensely calming. That's the hope, at any rate. For now I'm working with young trees and limited auras. And then, of course, there are...other ideas."

 

[Darth Metus]

"Perhaps that should be our next venture, coining a fitting phrase to describe this art we adore." came his response, the humor evident in his tone. Dagora then obliged his mentor by reaching out when the plant was raised for his inspection. Whilst the resulting sensation was not tremendous, it was indeed there. Rave was certainly onto something here.

What if I had such trees planted at my facilities? he thought, entertaining the notion of increased productivity as a result of a well-nurtured arbor. "The applications of such greenery are promising. There is so much...good...that could be done with these. Protection. Productivity." he began, before homing in on the last bit of his mentor's words.

"Other ideas? Do tell..."

[member="Zhol Kash Dinora"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Isley Verd"]

Rave snorted in amusement and lowered the pot to sit beside the rest. "I spent too much time building weapons and corporations to learn how to smith words. But yes: if a tree like this is planted nearby, tranquility increases. That much is historical fact. Centrepieces for headquarters, perhaps, or a factor in improving working conditions. Not that something like this would make oppressed workers more docile; I'd imagine with the will of the Force at play, the tree might inspire certain kinds of unrest. But when workers are well-treated, I'd expect productivity and efficiency to increase. Less stress, perhaps less boredom or ennui. But the key element here, I think, is that I'm not doing this to create a specific puzzle-piece effect like I always used to do. This is about presenting people with the spirituality of the Force, rather than its technical function. Which is not to say there won't be benefits."

She dusted off her hands and stood. "One of which, I believe, will be personal affinity. If you take the time to nurture a tree like this, from quite a young age, and don't take the shortcuts I'm using for breeding purposes, I firmly believe the tree will become attuned to you. To the point where the wood could, perhaps, form a multipotent crafting material." She raised an eyebrow and offered a quiet grin. "Something you could carry with you and appreciate...in a number of forms. I mentioned the brylark genes, I think? Here, come along -- there are some older saplings in the woods. I find these grow better outside of controlled circumstances, and their natural progression is what I'm trying to understand."

 

[Darth Metus]

"I can't say that I'm surprised to hear that, Master." said the Dar'manda. "It's going to take a lot more than a blessed arbor to calm down an angry work force."

Then, the former Mandalorian listened to the words his mentor had to say on the subject. She, as always, knew what she was talking about...and within her words was a truth. Rave had changed over the years; but also in recent history. She was no longer the woman who summoned horrors on Geonosis' battleground, but rather someone who wanted to share the gift of the Force with others. This change was...well, it was going to take some getting used to.

Oh wait, did she say benefits? Okay, maybe she didn't change that much.

"Multipotent crafting material...You tease." he began, firstly motioning for the woman to lead the way deeper into the forest. As he then shadowed her, the question was posed. "So why the change? Did something...transpire...in our time apart?"

[member="Rave Merrill"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Isley Verd"]

They passed from the clearing into the woods. Varunda's ninth moon wasn't single-biome, but forest and jungle featured heavily. From overhead, this was just a patch of greenery like any other, and the massively complex life-web of the jungle masked the anomalies of her experiments.

"I ran some experiments on rancors raised on Felucia," she said, moving past his question. "Their bones and teeth grow the same crystals as some of Felucia's native creatures do, suitable for making skullblades -- biological equivalents of Force-imbued weapons. It's a combination of parasitic, symbiotic, and Force-related factors. The rancors are genetically identical to any others, but they grow the same crystals. So I figured out how to make a melange of Felucian factors, and fed it to some trees, with varying results."

Blue-green crystals sprouted from split bark or dripped from heavy-laden branches. Rave led Isley through them without pause. "Imperfect intermediate steps, though I'll admit the final creation is a long way off. It was the qo'saarai," she said apropos of nothing, still walking. "The qo'saarai tuk'ata I brought to Geonosis. When we finished summoning the lotek'k, it did what we wanted, and then it drove them mad. About half of them, a good hundred or so." She had a more precise number, and most of their names. "Hubris without purpose, Isley."

 

[Darth Metus]

These experiments of hers went far beyond the former Mandalorian's initial impressions. It was one thing to demonstrate the ability to direct the growth of a Force-sensitive flora...but another thing entirely to literally transfer a trait across two hosts and onto a tree. To say the least, Isley was vastly impressed by the crystals he witnessed; and entertained the thought of how fitting it was. No matter how much he grew, [member="Rave Merrill"] was the tutor...and well, she knew how to kriffin' teach.

"I'd like to think myself creative, but this is something I would have never dreamed up." he said, keeping pace through the greenery.

And then, Rave answered his question. It was...indirect...but the truth was there. Isley remembered all that had transpired on Geonosis. He felt the darkness of the Lotek'k. He heard transmissions and screams of terror when it rose. He knew that this was his master's work...but he didn't anticipate the price. You see, Isley was more of a materials man. He made inorganic tools through his mentor's tutelage. Yet Rave? She made living, breathing things.

And with life came the ability to care. With life came the ability to regret bringing harm to one's creations. She had driven them mad in the name of war, and perhaps that was the root cause of the changed woman walking before the Dar'manda.

"I...see..." he said. Whilst his words were simple, the gesture he made was something he hadn't done before. Reaching out, he placed a hand upon her shoulder for only a moment; a sign that he understood, and then left it at that. He was not here to pick at her scabs, after all. Retracting his hand, Isley then commented on the "final creation."

"And what is your vision for this final creation? What would it's purpose be, if anything?"

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Isley Verd"]

She patted the hand on her shoulder for the moment it was there. "Force-sensitive trees whose auras have been conditioned, across generations, to follow the Jal Shey forms that drive darkness out of a mind? Trees with Force-crystals in their wood, crystals derived from samples as wide-ranging as pontite that cools tempers, the Ankarres Sapphire that heals, powdered Sasori knockoffs of the Healing Crystals of Fire, multipotent Upari crystals that express different properties based on how they're cut? All drawing from the strength of the original Force-sensitive gene strain?"

A smile as they came to a patch of better-proportioned trees, later generations of testing. Crystal veins and traceries sparkled in their bark, their leaves.

"The Trees of Ankarres, I call them." She pronounced it Ahn-CAR-rezz, the traditional way. "They require soil rich in heavier elements -- old phrik mining sites work best, I find. It's this specific brand of crystals; plenty of raw material needed. I set up medical tents and arranged for Ithorian physician teams, as well as certain patients considered...a special brand of terminal, out of the thousands upon thousands affected by various...newly propagated conditions. Significantly increased rates of surgical success, mental stability, calm, old graft rejection, reduced Dark Side presence, regressed traits..."

She turned to Isley and folded her arms, smiling like a knife.

"This tree cures Sithspawn, Isley."