Tentative Inroads

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

Mr. Imperieuse,

My name is Rave Merrill. You may have heard of me. If you have, perhaps you know that I have been legally dead for the last few years, and when you meet me you will find someone significantly older than the Rave Merrill your searches might turn up. Fortunately, what I have to offer you is not contingent upon whether you believe me about my identity. What I have in mind can stand on its own, regardless of its creator. It is, or should be, immune to the relevant logical fallacy.

If you would be willing to meet me at the following coordinates, I believe I could make it worth your while.

The coordinates would lead to one of the old phrik strip mines on Val'hala. Mined out, for the most part, before Iron Crown moved on. Or maybe it had been Mohc -- for the mine, it had only been a couple of years, but for Rave, this place's significance was thirty years in the past. Which corporate instrument had done what no longer registered for her. The strip mine had eroded, soil filling it, plants sprouting up, even some young trees.

 

[Onrai]

In most cases, Vitor would not have come on such a solicitation. But while he had remained isolated within most of the galaxy, deliberately keeping himself away from much of what had gone on, he had heard of Rave Merrill. An enigmatic figure, one rumored to have at varying points been connected to some of the largest corporations and most nefarious individuals across the galaxy. And she desired his presence...

He came to the location given, jezzail pistol at his belt, agrinium plate covering his body. In the event this was a trap, he desired to be prepared.

And yet... was it a trap?

[member="Rave Merrill"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

It was most certainly a trap, but a plot against his skepticism, not his safety. At the far edge of the huge pit, droids entered and exited a small mineshaft. Dust and noise filtered through the air. Hardly tranquil. In the centre of the pit, a good half mile away, a wholly separate operation was taking place. Ithorian healers tended a variety of modern Sithspawn within atmospheric fields. The twisted, tormented people - or lethal monsters, if you prefer - were unusually calm.

In the centre of the sealed, transparent medical tents grew a deciduous tree that, while large, hadn't been there a month ago. Vitor might judge that from the buckled ground, if he knew anything about horticulture. Beneath the tree waited an ageing woman with dark eyes, exchanging bizarre items with the Ithorians. The whole thing - priests, tree, woman - would radiate the Light to Vitor's senses, though the woman's presence had an edge to it, and a portion of regret. The Sithspawn, of course, radiated the Dark, but not as strongly as normal.

 

[Onrai]

Vitor would step forward, doing his best to nonchalantly head towards the biodome. Entering, he spotted the only human female he could eye in the sea of Ithorians - assumedly, this was Rave Merrill herself. Silently, though he knew the unlocking of his true power had made him somewhat more capable at conflict, the woman well across from him was his superior in every possible way, shape, or form, despite her apparent age. How unpredictable she would be, he would eventually discover.

"Miss Merrill, I presume?"

[member="Rave Merrill"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

Another human had come to see the process. For his part, Aamaw's focus remained on measuring the impact of the tree on the other Ithorians' efforts. The rationale for placing operating tents here, not to mention the obviously transplanted tree, eluded him. The Force here was tired and angry, an echo of a frustrated populace and long hard days in the mines. And though the new mineshaft was some distance away, the noise and the dust were non-negligible. He did not understand, and it displeased him.

Not enough to overcome his interest in the tree, though.

"Master Merrill, thank you," said the human woman evenly. "Welcome to Val'hala, Master Imperieuse. What do you think of what we're doing?"

So the ubiquitous Rave Merrill was throwing her new arrival into the deep end, it seemed. Seeing how much of the project he could piece together by observation. Aamaw smiled all down the sides of his neck and continued clipping individual leaves from the tree into a medical pannier.

 

[Onrai]

[member="Aamaw Murr"] [member="Rave Merrill"]

He pondered for a moment, eying the tree underneath the biodome. Stepping towards it, he gently placed a had on some of its exterior bark. "I would admittedly have more of an opinion if I knew what exactly it was. From what I can tell, it appears to be an ordinary tree. Perhaps placed here to help revitalize the still-damaged ecosystem of the mines? I would assume the soil is still tainted by the high levels of slag and chemicals from the mining equipment."

He had hardly met this Ithorian - still the infamous woman remained silent. Most intriguing.

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

"That's part of it, in a sense," Rave admitted, glancing at the listening Ithorian. "Cleansing and processing are two sides of the same coin. The tree needs more than trace nutrients -- higher volumes of certain elements than normal soil can offer." The tree's Force presence was a subtle thing. She rested her palm against the trunk to get a better sense of it. "There are...processes ongoing inside the tree. Natural crystals growing and taking certain forms. Seams of fine crystal in the wood. Felucian derivatives, Force-sensitive tree strains, and a good few mechanisms for training the tree's Force presence in certain directions."

She paused to correct her thoughts. "This tree, and its predecessors for several generations, haven't just been exposed to the Felucian processes that grow crystals inside living bone, they've been fed mulch that involved shredded Jal Shey garments and powdered...assets. Other assets." Crystals derived from the Ankarres Sapphire and the Healing Crystals of Fire, primarily. Enough to guide and shape the trees' Force presence in the direction of healing. "This generation is a rough prototype, but if you speak with any of the Ithorian doctors, they'll tell you that their surgeries are going better than anticipated. The tree calms the alchemized victims, weakens the Dark Side's hold on their flesh and their minds, and helps them heal." She thought of the thousands upon thousands of alchemically altered sentients deployed by the One Sith. "This tree, Mr. Imperieuse, will cure Sithspawn."

 

[Onrai]

"Intriguing." He pondered for a significant period of time, letting the concept flow through him. Memories of a past that was never his still circulated in his mind - he knew the horrendous alchemical processes one took to create such Sithspawn, a cocktail of sorcery and surgery rarely performed, lay alone undone.

"Then I wish to test it personally." He paused for a moment, knowing that he had already taken a step over the edge. "My... My chromosomes were corrupted by the Dark Side. I spent six hundred years entombed inside of an oubliette. I know that it did something to me, because my sons and daughters are monsters - mutated on a cellular level by the corruption. I want to have normal children again - or at the least find a way for my kids to have a normal life."

[member="Rave Merrill"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

"I see. Then this may be the will of the Force, Mr. Imperieuse. I sensed something along those lines, but only since you arrived. I contacted you because you have the right portfolio, the right connections, and enough reach in the Force to understand some of what I'm doing." She clapped her hands briskly. "We can begin immediately, if you like. Aamaw, Xhodo, will you attend?"

Without much sympathy - Rave wasn't known for her bedside manner - she asked him details of his medical history. She and the priest-healers needed to know about cures and therapies already attempted. They set up another triage tent and operating table right in the shade of the tree. Not that there would be any surgery, but so that he would have somewhere to lie down while the Ithorians put him to sleep. Ithorian healing sleep was better than general anesthesia in many ways.

"Whenever you're ready, Mr. Imperieuse."

 

[Onrai]

Eyes were closed as Vitor relaxed, letting the feeling of rest overtake him. Slowly, it consumed his consciousness until all he could see was but a mere pinprick within a sea of murky blackness. An indeterminate time later, he would awake, a bizarre feeling of soothing within his body as he would slowly but surely sit up, turning towards the still visible Rave.

"Did it work?"

[member="Rave Merrill"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

As [member="Vitor Imperieuse"] woke, Chodo exchanged glances with the other Ithorian healers and surgeons. Merrill's contribution had been so esoteric he hadn't even felt the bulk of what she was doing, let alone comprehended it. Not answering Vitor, she grimaced and stepped back to sit at the base of the tree, leaving Chodo to respond to the question.

"Mister Imperieuse," said Chodo, stepping forward, "I regret that it is too soon to say for certain whether you have been fully and permanently cured. However, I've attended to the revitalization of several Sith-touched individuals. I believe what we have accomplished here today -- our healers, Madame Merrill, and the Tree of Ankarres -- has likely made a significant difference to your quality of life going forward. I can put you in touch with excellent Ithorian clinics inside the Republic, for purposes of aftercare. These procedures are so new that data collection is essential. We hope to bring solutions like this to the tens of thousands of innocents who have experienced alchemization at the hands of the One Sith. Your feedback and assistance would be invaluable. We can learn a great deal from your case -- how you recover, how you feel." The big Ithorian's head tilted. "Would you be amenable, Mister Imperieuse?"

 

[Onrai]

[member="Chodo Murr"]

Now that the process was complete, Vitor felt as though there was a burden lifted, not only from his body, but from his soul as well. Whatever darkness that had accumulated within his body now felt nonexistent. He felt - clean, if there was such a way to feel that sense outside of being washed down. "Indeed... I'd be more than glad to work with anyone you can hook me up with to monitor my progress. I believe this could certainly prove to be an extremely beneficial procedure to those whom the Sith have... defiled."

There was no other term he could really use - not for the horrific things they did to man and beast.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

Chodo bowed deeply. "Wonderful. I'm very pleased you feel so well. Alas, I think the effort has quite drained Madame Merrill. She is not primarily a healer,which I believe was part of the impetus for creating this beautiful tree." He rested one long-fingered hand on the jewelled bark. "Such a contrast," he said, looking out over the nearly-depleted phrik mine. "Scrabbling for non-renewable resources, versus growing ever-new...I think I have lost the phrase in Basic, yes? My point is this, friend. This tree and others like it may be the mark of the future, if they can only be placed in the right hands. I mean to share them throughout the Ithorians diaspora, for one thing."

 

[Onrai]

"So you wish for my assistance in this endeavour." He paused for a moment. "That is, if I understand correctly, you want me to assist in you sending trees like this one across the galaxy, spreading them to create new places where those who've been touched by the unholy power of the Dark Side can finally receive the peaceful healing to their bodies and souls."

He pondered for a moment. "I wonder if this tree could be turned into a weapon to harm the Sith."

[member="Chodo Murr"]

 

[Velok the Younger]

[member="Vitor Imperieuse"]

"No," said Rave sharply, sitting up against the base of the tree nearby. "This is a mechanism of healing."

She took point position as the Ithorian retreated.

"But on the other hand," she said, "it does have tactical uses. Imagine Sithspawn beginning to revert and shake off their makers' control, in the middle of a battle. Careful planning would be needed, but such things have happened, like when a Jedi attempted to lead a Graug army on Kashyyyk." She smiled faintly and stood, artificial leg clicking. "If you want these trees to shift the balance of the war, Mister Imperieuse, consider this. How much of a battle's fate depends on skill or luck or materiel, and how much depends on the balance of the Force. Shift the balance of the Force, and you may, in subtle ways, influence the outcome of a given fight or a given war. These trees have a powerful if subtle effect on the ambient Force, and nearby minds.

"Now, granted, it's difficult to get the Republic to sign off on something with largely spiritual benefits. Hence the clinical trials, some of which you've now witnessed."