Private The Dark Night

[Aiden Porte]

Odessen
Bettany Sal-Soren ​

The days on Odessen had begun to blur together, each one shorter than the last, as if the light itself were being steadily leeched from the sky. Night claimed the planet early and held it for far too long, wrapping the forests and valleys in a heavy stillness that pressed against the senses. Odessen had always been strong with the Force, ancient and layered, a place where echoes of the past lingered like half remembered dreams. To Aiden Porte, it felt wrong now. Not dark in the way of storms or grief, but strained, like a living thing pushed beyond its limits.

From the cockpit viewport, Aiden watched the planet slowly rise beneath their descending ship. He could feel it even before they broke the cloud cover, a low vibration in the Force that set his nerves on edge. Odessen was calling out, but not in pain alone. There was confusion there, and something else beneath it, something deliberate. Aiden closed his eyes briefly and centered himself, breathing through the familiar calm of the Jedi Code, though it did little to quiet the unease settling in his chest.

The reports had been sparse and frustratingly vague. A massive military installation, long abandoned and believed dormant, had been reactivated. By whom, and for what purpose, no one could yet say. Only that its awakening coincided with spreading disturbances across the planet, systems failing, wildlife fleeing, and Force sensitives experiencing the same disquieting pull Aiden now felt. Fools with a hidden agenda, the Council had said, though even they could not agree on how deep the rot went.

Aiden had not hesitated when he was sought out. If something on Odessen was poisoning the Force itself, it could not be ignored. Still, as he glanced toward the co pilot seat to where Padawan Bettany sat,, a protective instinct stirred within him. She was capable and perceptive, but this mission carried the kind of uncertainty that left scars. Aiden reminded himself that shielding her from the truth would not serve her. Not now. Not ever.

The ship shuddered slightly as they entered the atmosphere, clouds boiling past the viewport in dark, bruised layers. Aiden reached out with the Force again, testing the currents ahead, and felt resistance. Whatever had been awakened down there was not merely machinery. It was intention given form, woven through metal and forgotten corridors, feeding on neglect and secrecy alike.

As Odessen drew closer, its surface unfolding in shadow and faint, fractured light, Aiden felt the last threads of certainty slip away. They had been tasked with fixing the problem, with destroying the source of this spreading plague. Yet standing on the threshold of the planet, he knew with chilling clarity that they did not yet understand the shape of the threat.

They were walking into something far older, and far more dangerous, than anyone had prepared them for.

"Are you okay?"

 

[Bettany Sal-Soren]

Location: Odessen
Objective: Her first mission as a Padawan
Tags: Aiden Porte

Bettany was nervous. She hadnt spoken a lot on this journey, enough not to be rude, but far from the chatty sociable person she was. She was reading, data on the world, files that Aiden suggested might be relevant. She wasnt sure if it was useful or if it was busy work, either way it put her into a familiar mental place, preparing for a role by reading the background, maybe that is what it was after all.

She felt the ship shudder as they hit the atmosphere and she looked up, she actually found re-entry to be quite pretty as atmospheric plasma rolled off the heat shields but it didnt last long and soon she could see Odessen stretched out before her. The military base they were investigating appeared on the radar and she input the new telemetry into the copilot station.

"Are you okay?"

"Honestly? I'm not sure. I'm nervous, but you know that to be expected, right? Own my feelings before they own me or something...

But... There is something else. Since we got close the planet I have been feeling this nagging feeling. Like i'm annoyed at you, but i cant remember why... it is really annoying. So just say a general sorry." she laughed and smirked at him. He would feel the nerves, he might feel the ripples of anger in her person where the darkness snaked around her trying to find her personal emotional vice.

The clearing where they would land was close and Bettany began checking herself. She liked this outfit, it worked well on her body and it felt like velvet. She had been told it was also blaster resistant but she didnt want to test that unless she had to.
​

 

[Aiden Porte]

Bettany Sal-Soren​

Aiden inclined his head slightly as he listened, his expression calm and attentive, the way it always was when he took her feelings seriously. It was natural to feel that way, he knew that well, and he did not dismiss it or rush past it. When he spoke, his tone was warm and steady, meant to ground rather than correct.

"It is natural to feel that way on your first mission," Aiden said, his voice easy. "And as far as what you are sensing in being annoyed with me." He let out a soft chuckle, just enough to ease the tightness in the air without undermining the weight of what she was experiencing. He did not pretend it was nothing. He would not insult her instincts that way. "What you are sensing is not personal. Something here is stirring emotions on purpose. It is trying to turn irritation into anger, doubt into fracture. If you feel it pressing, tell me. Do not wrestle it alone. We are in this together. Deal?"

He extended his hand toward her, palm up, a familiar and almost playful gesture paired with a friendly smile. And he waited with patient confidence for her to meet it.

The ship began its final descent, the clearing opening beneath them as dark earth and towering trees emerged from the haze, silent and watchful. Aiden rose smoothly as the landing sequence engaged. As the ship settled and the engines wound down, the weight of Odessen pressed closer, heavier now that they were truly within its grasp. Through the Force, Aiden could feel something ahead stirring, aware of them, probing and learning in the depths of the abandoned installation.

Before the ramp lowered, he met Bettany's eyes. His presence was calm and unshaken, an anchor amid the gathering tension. "Remember," he said quietly, with certainty rather than comfort alone, "We walk into this together. Nothing here gets to decide who you are."

 

[Bettany Sal-Soren]

Location: Odessen
Objective: Her first mission as a Padawan
Tags: Aiden Porte

Bettany looked at the hand, was he looking for a high five or a hand shake. She went with the hand shake "sounds like a deal to me, I'll tell you if I start hearing voices telling me to punch you... unless its Bri." she joked, feeling the tension soften just a little bit.

She met his eyes as they gathered up her stuff and she let a little bit of a fearful gulp go down, she tried her best to hide her nerves but nodded at his comment about being in it together. The pair walked down the ramp and on to the ground. The ground here was soft and spongey with the rich root complexes and the trees towered around them all removing the chance of a view.

She would be proactive and try to show her value "I think it's that way, the force is pulling me there. Its like it wants me to slip and slide into it. Its a very strange sensation." she laughed. She felt like she knew what that pull was and as long as he did not correct her she would saunter off, her lightsaber swinging on her belt ready if it was needed. Bettany hoped a weapon wouldn't be needed but if thar was the case why were Jedi so hyper fixated on the damn things.
​

 

[Aiden Porte]

Bettany Sal-Soren​

Aiden accepted her handshake without missing a beat, his grip firm and reassuring rather than formal. When she joked about voices telling her to punch him, he let out a soft laugh, the sound easy and genuine.

"If that happens, I will take it as constructive feedback," he replied lightly. "Unless it is Bri, in which case I will start running immediately."

The humor was deliberate, meant to steady her without dismissing what she felt. He could sense the nerves still lingering beneath her composure, but he also felt her resolve rising to meet it. That, more than anything, eased him.

They walked down the ramp together, boots meeting the fresh, damp earth of Odessen. The ground yielded slightly beneath their weight as they descended the hill, moss and roots weaving underfoot. The air was cool and heavy with the scent of soil and ancient trees. For a brief moment, it almost felt peaceful.

Then the base came into view.

Through the breaks in the forest canopy, the massive silhouette of the abandoned installation emerged, its angular structures cutting harsh lines against the organic curves of the landscape. It should have looked dead. Instead, faint lights flickered along its exterior. Transports were stationed outside, their hulls marked with wear that spoke of recent travel. Fresh tracks scarred the ground near the landing pads.

Aiden's expression shifted subtly. The warmth did not vanish, but it sharpened. His awareness expanded outward, brushing against the currents stirring around the facility. The Force was not quiet here. It churned in slow, deliberate eddies, like something breathing beneath the surface.

"Recent activity," he murmured, mostly to himself, though he knew she would hear it. "So much for dormant."

The stirring grew stronger the closer they came, pressing at the edges of perception. It was not a wild surge of darkness, but something organized. Calculated.

He slowed his pace just enough to ensure she matched him, his presence aligning beside hers rather than overshadowing it. "Stay close, Bettany," he said quietly, his tone calm but unmistakably firm. "Do not expect any warm welcomes here."

 

[Bettany Sal-Soren]

Location: Odessen
Objective: Her first mission as a Padawan
Tags: Aiden Porte

As they walked, Bettant tried to keep an eye out for activity ahead of them, but focusing on not tripping over roots was also pressing on her mind, she was worried to embarrass herself in front of her master, but she pressed on. She could do this.

As they got closer the base seemed less and less abandoned. They walked past a power pylon and Bettany stopped to look up. There was the gently buzzing and whipping sound or wires as the metal stressed and unstressed in the wind. "That's live, I'm no expert but an abandoned base doesnt need a lot of power." she joked and carried on the path. She wondered what else might be in store. There was an electrified fence between the base and them. From the shy it had looked damaged. But she suspected it might have power.

They were now getting close enough that a keen eye might be able to see movement on the walls, but this meant the pair of jedi might be exposed too. They had to be careful.​

 

[Aiden Porte]

Bettany Sal-Soren​

"Good point." Aiden spoke as he looked at the pylone and towards the elevator before them, leading further down into the into the base. And there was a flight of stairs that descended down as well. Aiden checked the elevator, which seemed to be out of service. "Well, it looks we are taking the stairs."

The Jedi Knight took a deep breath as he reached inside his pack and took a small glow stick, snapping it on, and he dropped it down the opening of the staircase. He watched it fall all the way down, which was maybe three or four stories down.

"Something strange is going on here." He reached the foot of the staircase. The Jedi Knight led them down the stairs. The glimmer of darkness surrounding them to seemed to thicken. Aiden stopped them while they were halfway down, as shadows flicked against the glowlight at the bottom. Very, faint groans could be heard.

The Jedi didn't activate his lightsaber yet, but he proceeded with caution. "You can hear that too right, I'm not just imagining it?"

 

[Bettany Sal-Soren]

Location: Odessen
Objective: Her first mission as a Padawan
Tags: Aiden Porte

The pair wound their way down the stairwell into the close darkness and then Aiden stopped them both in their tracks. She hadnt heard it before over their footsteps but now she did. "Yeah, I can hear it. That is not a good sounding moan, although I'm not sure that there is ever a good sounding....." she suppressed a little laugh and shook her head. "Sorry, just pretend I didnt say that."

There was a flash in the shadows down there Aiden's torch was lighting up the floor, then footsteps and what sounded like a slamming metal door. The groaning was getting louder. Bettany didn't even notice herself doing it but she had her lightsaber in her hand and its humming green blade was now lighting up the wall around it. "We are definitely not alone in here." the footsteps seemed to respond to the new glow from the stairwell and then began to move again and Bettant was sure she could feel vibrations on the metal stairs in time with footsteps that did not belong to them.

"Aiden... I'm scared." she confessed as her grip tightened on her blade.
​

 

[Aiden Porte]

Bettany Sal-Soren​

Aiden glanced back at her with a small smirk despite the darkness pressing in around them. "Oh no," he said under his breath, a quiet laugh escaping him. "We are absolutely talking about that later."

The humor faded as the groans echoed again, closer now. When she admitted she was scared, something in him shifted instantly. His posture squared, his presence in the Force expanding around her like a shield.

"Don't be." he said firmly. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

They reached the base of the stairs.

The creatures emerged from the shadows, twisted and wrong, their movements jerking and unnatural. Aiden recognized the signs from his studies. The Blackwing virus. He had studied the logs on it, and he had never expected to see it.

His blue blade cut clean arcs through the dark, swift and controlled. He did not hesitate. Each strike severed and disabled, clearing space in front of them.

"Do not let them touch you, Bettany," he called, stepping slightly ahead to take the brunt of the surge. "They are not living. We destroy them."