Faction Shepherds of the Stars (Warden of the Sky Mastering of Okkeus)

[Coren Starchaser]

It was a once in a lifetime event. The Purgills were moving, and their whole movement sent a trigger and a warning to those in the galaxy who knew enough to listen. Something big was happening. Word was spreading through the right channels in the galaxy, the Wardens Cant was passing the message from one ship to another. Conversation that was encoded. Old dust spacers, like the old salt sailors of times of yore, knew some of what was being said, there was a change coming in the galaxy, but very few knew exactly what was in the message.

Starbirth along the path of the Purgill.

And the where? That was much harder to decipher. An icy nebula out beyond the bound of wild space, on the very rim of the galaxy. In one direction, the galaxy that was home to things that everyone knew and loved, on the other side? Peridea, companion to the galaxy, and home of the purgill, and others. The challenge was locating it with the right starmaps.

And some starmaps were more efficient than others. The new updates of the Blake-Merrill Starmap, and the new navigation computer upgrade put out by Starchaser Enterprises had it, a lonely part of the galaxy, known only as the Pillar.

Blue and purple gasses swirled in the location, and it had been long theorized that a star would be born here, but many didn’t know when, aside from the Purgill.

And the Wardens of the Sky. The cant spoke of the time, and the place, passed through the space lanes. It caused many of the Wardens to leap out, nearby the system, as another message disseminated through the beings.

A marshalling of the Wardens of the Sky. Few particulars were on the docket, a gathering of these beings did not require much, but there was one that was going to be elevated, from the rank and file of the Wardens, to a rank held by few, the title and station of Master.

And that was being given to Okkeus.

Serendipitously, Coren Starchaser had heard the tales of Okkeus, having known the man through passing, and some small events. He was wandering the galaxy, and the tales of the Warden-Jedi protecting the spacelanes. A family of Wardens had birthed this one, very similar to his own children.

As the Tachyon Rising reverted to real space, Coren could see others having already arrived, ships he knew, ships he built, and ships he had no idea of the make or model, let alone the pilot. Being in the station he was, he made sure that several beings knew of the gathering specifically and awaited their ships. He could feel both his kids, and it took a moment to locate the Wandering Star, with Kaia, and Coren had no clue which ship his son was in, with his constantly being in some form of repair or another.

And awaited the one he needed, the one that today, deserved recognition. All the while, behind them, the light, radiation, and image of the mass was being refracted, bent, and changed by the frozen crystalline of the ice in the nebula, the sounds of bergs crashing into one another as starships arrived. The Wardens were a secretive bunch, and many had scramblers on their personal starships and fighters to prevent identification.

Coren waited, and meditated.

Okkeus Dainlei
Chloe Blake
Trextan Voidstalker
@Wardens of the Sky

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

The Pillar

Coren Starchaser | Chloe Blake | Trextan Voidstalker
​

The captivating swirl of blues and whites slowly disappeared as the Blue Lightning returned to Realspace.

Something inside of the man could not believe that this day had come. Almost all of his life had been spent involved with the Force. Using it for what he thought was right. He was but a boy when he became a Knight of the Jedi Order. Much too young, he thought. Okkeus was flung into the galaxy and all of the conflicts it had to offer. Trying to determine what were the reasons for all of this destruction. That is why he went on a path of his own. Following the footsteps of his parents, just as they wanted him to.

To become a Warden of the Sky.

And so that is what he did. Moved his life to the Outer Rim, vowing to protect the hyperlanes as best he could for those who were not able to defend themselves. The everyday person that those up in Coruscant were not able to protect. He fought hordes of pirates, battle fiercely against rogue Sith, helped proctor civil political discourse within towns. Just a simple man, trying to make his way in the universe. All of his valiant efforts were never in the hope of gaining something more. It was just what he thought was right. But those around him, especially Coren, recognized his efforts to combat this evil. He knew that it was time for Okkeus to accept the role of Master. That is why he was out at the edge of the stars.

With a soft crunch of the crystalline ice, the man's ship touched down on Pillar. Others were already here, waiting to attend his mastering ceremony. Coren had made a call for them to come here. A gathering of the Wardens was apparently something that was a rare occurrence. So Okkeus was honored to be a part of it.

Stepping down off of the loading ramp, the spacer made his way towards the small gathering of people. Apollo trotted alongside of him, the memory banks already recording this location and adding it his ever-growing starmap. A simple robe was worn with a light jacket over the top. The man knew that the Wardens were not known for their flashy appearances, rather their ability to blend in with the crowds, becoming one with the people. So he elected to do the same. Walking further along, he finally reached the group.

"Hello Coren, it is good to see you."

 

[Chloe Blake]

Outfit: x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Tag: Coren Starchaser Okkeus Dainlei Trextan Voidstalker any other warden​

The Aurora cut through the star speckled void like a silent specter, emerging from the final micro-jump with a flash of realspace distortion. Her hull shimmered in the refracted light of the nebula's ice, its shifting blues and violets casting a near-ethereal glow over the ship's burnished plates. The transponder read something different today, something forgettable to anyone who might come sniffing too close, but there was no mistaking the way she moved, the way her hyperdrive signature lingered in the space lanes like the hum of an old spacer's tune.

Then came the voice filtered through a modulator, sure, but still carrying that soft Corellian drawl like the whisper of wind over dry grass.

[ Khasaan'l min chumani. ]

That old greeting rolled through the comms like the familiar taste of caf on a cold morning, a call to those who knew, those who listened. Chloe leaned back in her pilot's chair, fingers tapping idle patterns against the worn leather of the armrest as her gaze flicked over the display. Ships filled the expanse ahead, some sleek and new, others bearing the scars of countless hyperspace jumps. Some she recognized, most she didn't. That was the way of the Wardens - - ghosts of the sky, whispers in the black, only stepping into the light when the lanes called for them.

And today, they called for a new Warden.

She exhaled slow, watching the navigational data scroll across the screen from behind the modulator and her lips curved into a soft smile.

It had been a long while…

This place - - The Pillar - - was a legend in its own right, a cold, waiting cradle for a newborn star. The Purrgil knew. The Wardens knew. Yet for the rest of the galaxy just another spacer story for younglings bedtime imaginations like Nox Draven and the loot of a thousand worlds.

Flicking a switch, she tightened the encryption on her comms and let her voice slip through again, a familiar warmth beneath the modulation to Coren Starchaser . [ Aurora on approach. Got eyes on the Rising, Wandering Star, and more'n a few I don't know. You're drawin' a crowd, Starchaser. ]

Beside her, the beep and hoot of binary from GT-F0 in the sidelines in inquiry.

"Ain't one for big gatherings, you know that." she replied back with a soft drawl and a faint smile to the droid.

But you still came, he chirped out.

That much was true. She'd spent years keeping to the edges, slipping between the cracks of the known and unknown, making sure the hyperlanes stayed just a little bit safer. That was the way of the Wardens, silent guardians, unseen until the moment called for them. And this moment? It called for her.

Because today, one of their own was stepping into a new legacy.

Her fingers danced over the controls, guiding the Aurora into formation among the scattered ships. Below, the frozen nebula stretched wide, the slow, ponderous movement of icebergs colliding a stark contrast to the restless energy thrumming through the gathered Wardens. They were here for a reason. For a moment.

And Chloe would see it through.

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

Trextan found that they rarely gathered in numbers for long. After the great betrayal of the Jedi Order by Taeli Raaf, he could understand that. They worked alone and had a lot of space to gather. Individually they could move around easily, as a group they had powerful enemies.

He let the computer plot the last of the sublight journey through the field. The lines plotted drawing him towards the Pillar.

He had once worn a set of gold stitched robes that had brought great amusement to certain people. Today he wore we spacer clothes. He at least had his smartest pair of boots on.

Trextan didn't know what a Warden mastering would look like. He landed and made quickly to the ramp to find out.

 

[Coren Starchaser]

It was great to have some of the Wardens here. Coren would never enforce that someone appear who was not in the mind set to be here. Wardens were a secretive bunch, and sharing their face with another Warden? It wasn’t unheard of, he knew Jorus and Chloe were Wardens, but he never shared that fact. Though, most wanted to keep their names off the radar. Running from something, or a bounty on their own head.

Among their own kind, though, he doubted many were truly worried.

Within the Pillar, Coren knew that the Wardens were safe. The only ones crazy enough to come out this way? Other Wardens, and their predecessors, the Purgill. Rumor was that it was the Purgill who taught the first Wardens the ability of Astrogation. And maybe even how to manipulate hyperspace itself, but there was only one who he knew to do that.

When he heard the call from Chloe, Coren couldn’t help but grin. “Don’t blame me, the Passing and the birth of a star, those are the unsung heroes of this meeting.” His Corellian accent clipped, but polished. The modulation on his commlink not working as well as it would on the ship, but the receipient fully away of who she was speaking with, aside from such.

He turned to the gathered, many of the Wardens chose to remain with their ships in orbit, but the galaxy was protecting this place. Pillar was here for eons. A star being born here would surely melt it away, but not before the Passing, and definitely not before the promotion of the one known as Okkeus.

As the younger Warden-Jedi approached, Coren smiled. “Welcome to Pillar, Okkeus.” Coren was seated, and had his hands steepled. “You are certain why you’ve come, are you not?” Certainty was part of being a Warden. Knowing where you were going, making the right call, at the right time, to do the most good…

Their conversation was to be broadcast to the gathered Wardens, both on Pillar, and in orbit above. In orbit with smaller purgill, fitting between some of the ships as they began to arrive.

Okkeus Dainlei Chloe Blake Trextan Voidstalker

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Among the small but growing group of spacers, Jorus was one who kept his vac suit and helmet on. A place like this, sky full of ice, you couldn't be too careful.

It had been a while since he spent any time with Okkeus Dainlei , back at Zoronhed, wrangling family droids and family cooking. He offered Okkeus a friendly grin and a half wave, but stayed quiet. This wasn't Jorus' moment or event and Coren Starchaser had a vibe going.

Chloe Blake Trextan Voidstalker

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

The Pillar

Coren Starchaser | Chloe Blake | Trextan Voidstalker | Jorus Q. Merrill
​

"Yes, I am certain."

He had felt the call to come here to this place, along with the other Wardens in the nearby star systems. The Force was calling him towards a greater purpose. A journey similar to the one he was on now, but with more direction. It was his true reason for being connected to the light side to begin with. Okkeus was never meant to fight in big, extravagant wars that only led to senseless death. That time had come and gone. Now, he was being beckoned to study the Force in ways which no one has before. And it could only be done by following the true path of the Warden.

A kind smile and wave were offered back towards Jorus as the man continued forward. It had been some time since he had last seen the spacer. Okkeus reminisced on the time that had spent together back on Zoronhed. Sure did feel like forever ago.

"I've been called to walk in the path of the Wardens of the Sky."

 

[Jada Raxis]

From the back of the crowd a door whooshed open, to reveal a medium height woman, jet black hair, black spacers jacket with a fur collar and unassuming spacer trousers. She slipped in quiet and quick, so as not to disturb the proceedings.

After a few months of pirate hunting, Jada had caught an odd conversation at the The Wheel, space station. A little digging led her here, to quite a few faces she recognized. Some from legend, some from life and a great many more she did not know.

It still felt great to be among her own, safe, not being hunted by angry hutts or hacked off psycho pirate crews.

She leaned back against the wall, gloved thumbs tucked into belt to watch the Mastering unfold.

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

"Ah, shavvit-"

It was, these days, too easy to forget, even important things. Jorus unshouldered the backpack he wore over his space suit and removed a duranium plaque the size of two open hands together. He'd had a few of these machined on the Wretched Hive for this exact sort of moment. The plaque was clearly something a spacer could bolt to a bulkhead or hull plate. It was engraved with poetry, a snippet of an alien philosopher's dream of walking back through interstellar reincarnations to the first spark of life:

Make haste: the webs of death and birth
Are brushed away, and all the threads of earth
Wear to the breaking; spaceward gleams
Thine ancient pathway of the suns,
Whose flame is part of thee;
And the deep gulfs abide coevally
Whose darkness runs
Through all thy spirit's mystery.
Go forth, and tread unharmed the blaze
Of stars wherethrough thou camest in old days

— Klarkash-Ton​

He went and handed it to Okkeus. "Something to bolt on wherever," he said, and left it as that so as not to interrupt whatever Coren had planned.

Okkeus Dainlei Coren Starchaser Chloe Blake Jada Raxis Trextan Voidstalker

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Having the Wardens together was a great feeling. It was interesting to see how they all behaved and worked with one another, and around each other. Coren was more ecstatic than he could rightfully explain that the Wardens were welcoming more to their fold. As they were secretive, their work and goals were less seen than the Jedi, and many folks would either moonlight as the latter, and forget they were the former.

He was included in those numbers.

As he could feel the other Wardens, he continued on with his discussion to Okkeus. The man wearing Jedi-esque robes. Coren did the same, but he was proudly announced as both a follower of the Jedi religion, even if a wayseeker, and a Warden of the Sky. People idly knew that if they contacted Starchaser Enterprises, rescue service would arrive. Something very akin to a little known group in another universe called Signal Cartel.

Perhaps that was inspired by the Wardens.

“You have been.” Coren nodded. “You’ve been out in the dark and doing your work.” He took a moment as he was allowing others to speak. Seeing Jorus move, Coren was glad. The elder spacer had a tone and attitude all his own, and something that Coren could only hope to achieve one day.

A plaque. It was not something known to Coren, he had not seen that, though he had an understanding, from anything he’d gleam in the Force, of what it was. Something for Okkeus.

Something related to the life of a Warden.

“Okkeus. You have walked the path of the Warden, sailed the dark seas between worlds. You understand the concerns of those bound to their ship, and their hopes. Hopes to find a new life for themselves, to find riches they could only dream of, to find themselves where others only dare to go.

“You are part of the path, whether the travelers realize it. You hold watch on the spacelanes, drifting from where you are, to where you’re going. Always being where you are needed.

“Do you hold to the life of a Warden, settling only for a time, to constantly be of service to spacers in need?

“Do you hold to the life of a Warden, allowing the eternal wanderlust to send you to where the Lanes need you?

“Like the Purgill, you will be known as a traveler, to some a hero, to very few, the exact nature of the path you fly… Hold the life of a Warden sacred, the true allegiance should not be shown, as you are in service of those travelers…

“Hold the names of those you do recognize in the strictest confidence, act without request, and without hope of reward.

“Your armor is your discretion, your weapon is your body, and your calling card, is the acts you perform.”

He would be waiting for Okkeus to respond where appropriate.

Reaching into his robes, Coren pulled a stone, light amber in color, with a mild Force aura. “As you step into the role of Master Warden, the choices you make are yours. Who you come across left to the Force. This stone, pulled from the core of a star can assist you in being where you are needed. Protect it with your life, as it can be used by others for unsavory ends. Continue to venture forth, and spread our message and teachings to only the most discerning of navigators and adepts.

“Congratulations, Okkeus Starsider, Master Warden.”

He had no ideas where the name Starsider came from, but to be honest, Coren had never been the one in charge of Mastering another Warden, and the Force, purgill, and starbirth behind him were all intermingling.

Okkeus Dainlei Chloe Blake Trextan Voidstalker Jada Raxis Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Chloe Blake]

Outfit: x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Tag: Jorus Q. Merrill Coren Starchaser Okkeus Dainlei Jada Raxis Trextan Voidstalker​

Chloe leaned back against the bulkhead of the Aurora, arms folded, the soft hum of her ship steady beneath her boots. She didn't need to say much; the Force spoke well enough for her. It was a rare thing, to feel so many Wardens gathered in one place, their presence like drifting star maps, each with their own trajectory yet woven into the same grand path.

Her lips quirked into a half-smile as she watched Okkeus step forward, his words firm despite the weight of the moment.

"Yes I am certain. I've been called to walk in the path of the Wardens of the Sky."

Well, that was the right answer.

"Chakta Sai Kae," she murmured, the old Corellian toast slipping from her lips like a quiet benediction. A drink would've been proper, but the sentiment carried just the same.

The nebula shimmered beyond the hull viewports, ice and gas swirling as the mass of Wardens observed. Some in person, some watching through encrypted channels. Chloe let her focus drift outward, brushing against the familiar presences she knew -- Coren, Trextan, Jorus -- and those she didn't, newcomers to the Warden path. Ever so slowly, Purgill drew nearer, wandering between the gathered ships, their silhouettes massive against the shifting light. The way they moved, slow and deliberate, reminded Chloe that time had a rhythm all its own. The great beasts had been traversing hyperspace before navicomputers, before the Hydian Way was even a thought. If anyone knew the significance of this moment, it was them.

She took a deep breath, the crisp scent of the ship's recycled air grounding her. Out here, in the quiet of deep space, away from the tangled politics of the Core and the chaos of the greater galaxy, things made sense. You followed the currents, felt the shifting tides of the stars, and if you listened well enough... you ended up exactly where you needed to be.

Okkeus was standing in that place now. His moment. His choosing.

Chloe let herself fade into the periphery, content to be the observer -- she'd always been more myth than presence, anyway.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

The Pillar

Coren Starchaser | Chloe Blake | Trextan Voidstalker | Jorus Q. Merrill | Jada Raxis​

The presence of his parents could be felt through the Force.

Okkeus could feel them here with him now, watching as their son was fulfilling the purpose they had raised him for decades ago. To live a life where he could protect and defend others that traversed the stars. To make this galaxy a safer place for all who roamed it.

He graciously accepted the plaque from Jorus, his blue eyes scanning over the words that were inscribed upon it. The poetry had a sense of beauty and wonder to it which made the man start to tear up. His robotic fingers of his left hand traced over the writing as the words filled the man's head. Nestled on the console of his ship, the Blue Lightning, is where this plaque would rest. A nod of thanks was offered to Jorus as he turned back towards Coren once more.

The words in which the man spoke washed over Okkeus. Almost as if insurance was being provided that his life had meaning to it. That he was not just wandering the galaxy, lost and without significance to it. Here, now, the Force knew that he was destined for something greater than himself. The way the Purrgils looked down upon him made this connection feel even more important. Life in which he was going to live was only beginning.

“Do you hold to the life of a Warden, settling only for a time, to constantly be of service to spacers in need?

"Yes, I do."

“Do you hold to the life of a Warden, allowing the eternal wanderlust to send you to where the Lanes need you?

"Yes, I do."

The eternal wanderlust.

The phrase in which Coren spoke stuck out to the spacer. It perfectly encapsulated this universe and all of its wonderous glory. Reaching out, Okkeus accept the stone in which was handed to him. He shifted it around within his palms, feeling its weight in both the physical and mystical sense. Star stones were something that he had only heard rumors of, but had never seen, let alone held before. It had a strong connection to the Force, one that would not soon be forgotten. Time would be spent later meditating with it, trying to uncover the secrets it held.

Returning his gaze back to Coren, he listened intently for what was said next.

“Congratulations, Okkeus Starsider, Master Warden.”

A few tears began to roll down his face as his new Warden name was given to him. Starstrider. To him, it signified the obstacles in which he had to cross to be here at this very moment. The death of his parents. His fall, and recovery, from the dark side. The eternal battle against the Bryn'adul and the Sith. The choice to step away from the Jedi Order and follow the light. All of these things were steps he had to take to lead him to where he was now. But he was grateful for all of them. Because without those trials, one could not become who they were meant to be.

"Thank you, Coren. I promise to uphold the code of the Wardens and defend the stars with all of my ability. For as long as the Force gives me breath, I will protect this galaxy the best I can."