To Blackwater Reach (Irajah)

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

"Difficult would be one word for it, yes. You're no stranger to work and pain, so I'm not too concerned about taking the time to show you how to do it properly. The alternative would be for me to create a piece of alchemy to achieve the same effect - which would then be vulnerable to discovery, loss, theft, malfunction, or detonation. It would be the quick and easy path, and while that's not always a bad thing, it would also be a crutch. No, it's probably best to teach you how, though it would take a while." Ashin tapped her temple with one finger. "The best alchemists understand that you want to keep your best toys and techniques in your mind, rather than depending on a physical object to carry around. Part of alchemical mastery is knowing when not to use alchemy at all.

"But we won't need to delve into alchemy to teach you this. The technique I have in mind requires a different approach. Tell me, Doctor: what can you do with the Force, and how do you feel when you access it?"

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah had nodded, a small, curt gesture, when [member="Ashin Karrde"] had said 'keep your best toys and techniques in your mind.' It was, after all, something she already subscribed to.

She looked down at the mug clasped in her hands, frowning thoughtfully. There was silence for a moment before she answered the question.

"Until recently, I saw little point in expanding my abilities with the Force. When I was a child, I was taught a single technique by my father- one that ultimately saved my life- but the nature of it left my only experience with the Force as being aggressively turned inward. As it stands, affecting things outside myself is a.... challenge, I will admit."

Keeping Gideon at bay took up so much of her abilities. In order to learn more, she had sacrificed ground to the virus. So much of her potential was wrapped up in the moment to moment battle that kept Gideon in check in her body.

"The man who did end up training me for a time, however, was.... exacting," she said, leaning back. "Time was the limiting factor, as my.... research.... could not be put off indefinitely. Let's see. I can keep a contagion in check, in myself or another. I know if I am in immediate danger. I can move things, break them- telekinesis he called it, one of the few things outside myself that you could say I am good at. Brush the surface of another's mind without being sensed, or how to find the cracks in mental armor and delve deeper. I have a limited familiarity with telepathy, and the sharing of memories."

Limited indeed and she knew it.

"I learned everything he would teach me," she said, a touch of chagrin in her voice. "But I couldn't stay."

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

Ashin opted not to pry. There were more interesting things to discuss than people and feelings.

"I'd consider that a substantive toolbox and a pretty decent foundation, especially for what we'll be learning. In some circles I have a reputation for...well, a couple of abilities that are only useful in combat...but I've always been more interested in what you might call utility skills. Adiabatic shields to keep air in and toxins out; tapas to control my own body temperature; enhancing my short- and long-term memory. Overlooked and underutilized by most, not unlike some of what you can do.

"My plan has two stages. First I'll teach you memory enhancement, unless you know it already. That'll let you think back to describe and identify the objects that your enemies tend to carry. It's an ability you can practice on your own, and I'd recommend using it daily for a couple of weeks or more before you try to access and control the relevant memories. The last thing you want is to stumble into a compelling, enhanced version of the worst days of your life.

"Once you've learned that, we'll build from two skills you already know. You can break things, and you can sense the weak points in another's mind. Those are both related to what some records call Shatterpoint: the ability to hit anything - a Mandalorian breastplate, a situation, an emotional state, a major Sith amulet - in such a way that it breaks irrevocably. It's far from my specialty, but I can still guide you along during your first steps. From there, again, it's a matter of solo practice. Spend a decent amount of time on it, and you'll be able to, oh, fire a blaster volley that makes a house collapse. Punch armor into splinters, regardless of your physical strength. Intuit the most crucial person in a given room, and figure out how to influence or affect or use them."

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah listened closely to [member="Ashin Karrde"]. [member="Carach"] had once described her as a black hole for knowledge- that anything he could teach her would never fill. 'What's next? What's next?' had been the very mantra of their time together, and that intense need to comprehend and own shone on her face now.

"I didn't know you could use the Force to improve your memory," she said quietly, thoughtful. "Mine is good, but not infallible. And I admit, I have always turned it more toward certain subjects of study, rather than the details of things around me. In truth, it never felt as important as the work I was doing." The tone of her voice made it clear that she did not necessarily feel that was the case here.

Of course, the word Shatterpoint meant nothing to her. Not yet, at least. She had never explained to anyone else what had happened on Maena and again on Panatha. Those two times the world had shifted, as if at a ten degree angle to itself, and she had seen for a heartbeat the potential outcomes arrayed before her. It had seemed an oddity- some quirk of the Force, rather than a technique she could grasp and wield. The fact that it was something already just at the tips of her fingers would make Ashin's plan that easier to realize, though neither of them in that moment knew it.

"I will learn whatever you can teach me. And if it may hurt the Zambranos?"

Her tone was tight now, and her eyes glittered faintly in the dim light of the library.

"So much the better."

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

"Excellent. In the strictest sense, memory enhancement as a term doesn't really describe the process. Memory can be flawed, almost inevitably, by your own priorities and biases and by time. Think of this technique more like a vision, or like a painstakingly created holoprojection. You might not have been aware of all the details, but some part of your brain perceived them and flagged them as low priority. This technique dredges up all that information. If I walked back to, say, when I first arrived, I couldn't just describe the painting hanging by your door, I could paint a perfect replica - assuming I had the skill. I could pause the memory and linger over details. I once flipped through a book in an enemy's library while talking to him, and when I left I transcribed it verbatim for future study."

Over the next half hour, she taught Irajah short- and long-term memory enhancement. The process started simple enough: recollecting the last book she'd read and the last meal she'd eaten; going back over favorite moments from the past.

"Personally, I've always found that rather cathartic."

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah took to learning naturally, and this particular topic was even easier than usual. It was, she discovered, a technique she already used, but for very narrow applications involving her work. It simply hadn't seemed important for other things, and while it took a bit of practice (and more moving forward) to shift from genetic code to breakfast, she suspected that once she made a habit of it, it would be much easier than the ways she typically used it.

"I can understand why," she said softly. She imagined though that it could be all too tempting to focus on those moments in the past, rather than looking to the future. It was worth being conscious of.

While they had been working, Terin had saw fit to send a second cart in, this one with small foods, easy to eat and work- finger sandwiches and sliced fruit, small pastries and savory puffs. He'd left it by the door, unobtrusive, and thoughtful, as always, of her needs.

Popping one of the savories into her mouth, she chewed contemplatively for a moment.

"How does this and..... Shatterpoint you called it? How do those intertwine? Or will it be easier to explain once I know more about the later?"

[member="Ashin Karrde"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

"Oh, it's fairly straightforward, though who knows what combinations you could discover. You'll enhance your memory of the objects they keep on them, the things they care about. Get to know their shape, size, material, heft. Where they're held - neck, belt, finger, pocket. What they do, if possible. Whether they have inscriptions. When the opportunity comes around, you'll have a perfect sense of your targets.

"Feel free to send me drawings, and I may be able to identify them. I can provide you with books, and if you need more resources, go to Annaj. Southeast of a swamp town called Ikkermill, you'll find a run-down store. Tell the proprietors that Ashin Varanin sent you and you owe Kaine Zambrano some blood. They'll give you anything you need, if they like you."

 

[Kuzo]

It was very little for Irajah to remember those instructions. She nodded, a small frown on her face, but for what exactly was not clear. She stood up, moving to the tray to pour caf for both of them, though she barely seemed to realize she was doing it. Stirring a generous amount of sweetener into her own, she rubbed absently at her temple before offering the other mug to [member="Ashin Karrde"].

Irajah had no idea how late it was. Honestly, she wasn't certain she cared. It wasn't new, working until the wrong side of dawn on a particular problem. It had been her habit for nearly the last year. The fact that this was something other than Gideon actually made it almost a vacation.

​Almost.

She settled down behind the desk, drawing a piece of flimsy over absently, left hand doodling as she sipped at her caf. She didn't sit down with the intention of recalling in that moment, but her hand itched, so she gave it free reign.

"Now," she said, her voice grim. "Shatterpoint."

It was clear that, unless Ashin called a halt, it wouldn't be the diminutive doctor who faltered first.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

"I doubt you can do it yet."

The caf was still uncomfortably hot. Without breaking eye contact, Ashin drained it black and unsweetened, then set the cup down on the low table. She set a spoon beside it. Tutaminis cut the heat, kept the drink from burning her mouth and esophagus.

"Still, you might be able to get an instinct for the rudiments.” Ashin tapped the rim with the spoon, and a bright tone rang. “One tap, no harder than that, in the right spot, at the right angle, will turn this mug into pieces of ceramic no larger than your fingernail. Stretch out with your feelings, let go your conscious self, and act on instinct. I expect this will take you about an hour.”

 

[Kuzo]

It wouldn't take an hour for Irajah to get it- it would take an entire paradigm shift.

So much of her attention with the Force was taken up by keeping the Gideon virus in check. It left her signature oddly turned inward, as someone had once describe it. Her time learning with [member="Carach"] had clarified the limits of how much she could affect things outside of herself without risk. Of course, it had been found only by stretching far past the bounds of safety. The anger, the sheer rage at what had befallen her, what she had allowed, at the hands of the Zambranos had bolstered her then and she had pushed through it, forcing herself to greater heights, dredging from greater depths.

At a cost.

Gideon had gained ground in those weeks on Azure. To a point where she'd needed to leave, to return to the work on the virus itself. To find a cure that was looking less and less likely.

Though she had drawn on certain elements of Shatterpoint in the past, unknowingly, it was to be maddeningly elusive in the here and now. Maddeningly because it seemed as though it was just past the tips of her fingers- familiar in a way she hadn't expected, but also couldn't put her finger on. Elusive because of the tether of Gideon. As if one more mental step and she could grasp it, but that would mean she had to let go of the virus. Even if only for a moment, she didn't know how much damage it would do, how much of the already precious time running through the glass she would lose.

That is your weakness talking. That is fear.

She could almost hear Carach's purring voice in her mind. While in truth he had been the one to caution her, to stop her when she had pushed well beyond her limits, he had also been the one to offer an alternative. One that, at the time, she had found unappealing. But as her research opportunities dwindled..... the choice between living and dying seemed simpler.

Time. It was always about blasted time. How much she had left. How much she could sacrifice for more.

But if she took his solution, then entire doors opened that had been closed before. One door closed, yes. But was that sacrifice worth the potential for revenge?

Irajah took that step away from Gideon in her mind.

The teacup shattered.

She reached up, feeling a wetness on her face. Blood dripped from her nose and she grimaced, pulling back within herself and taking that iron grip on the virus within once again. One hand reached out, plucking a tea towel as she stood up, turning away from [member="Ashin Karrde"].

Wordlessly, she wiped the blood from her face, careful, deliberate and thorough. Without hesitation, she stepped over to the fireplace and dropped the towel into the flames.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

Ashin watched the towel burn. The part of her that had been homeless once said 'waste'. The part that had been a tyrant said 'biohazard'. Silent, she looked at her datapad's time stamp and raised an eyebrow.

"Clearly I'll have to congratulate your friend on his teaching. You picked that up more quickly than I'd expected." There'd been a hint of a familiar face or sense in the Force when Irajah was thinking of her former instructor. If Ashin's guess was right, Irajah was the student of her student's student. Then again, these days, who wasn't?

"It felt like that was difficult for you on a mental level. That's something you'll have to grapple with in your own way in order to practice. And you will need to practice. A teacup is one thing. A nearly-indestructible Sith amulet protected by the passive aura and active will of a Sith Master - that's something else entirely. In case you weren't clear on aura, by the way, every Force-user has one. It's the reason we don't go around ripping out each other's hearts and crushing each other's weapons, not unless there's a dramatic power differential. Do you understand the implications?"

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah reached up, rubbing at her temple. Her head ached, and she wasn't entirely certain why. Of course, it could be the lateness of the hour, or the difficulty in the last task.

"To be honest, we spent very little time on auras beyond 'they exist,' " she admitted. "Since my specific needs were, well, specific, I am finding particular gaps in my knowledge that I suspect someone trained in a different fashion might not have. What we worked on was thorough. Exacting. But it was not fully comprehensive, if that makes sense."

Moving to sit back down, she slid almost bonelessly into the chair she had been perched on not long ago. Despite the success, she was feeling the strain- dull and heavy pressure in her skull, as well as a certain frustration. No, she did not really grasp the implications, and she didn't know if it was simply because she didn't have the information she needed, or because she was simply too dumb and tired to full comprehend in that moment.

[member="Ashin Karrde"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

Ashin nodded once. "Then let's make this the night's last lesson. To get through Kaine's defenses, his defensive aura, and affect his personal objects directly, you'd need one of two things. Either you'd need to be much stronger than he is, which simply isn't going to happen anytime this decade, or you need him compromised. Injured, severely distracted, drugged, exultant. How you achieve that is up to you."

Ashin stood and smoothed out her clothes across her hips. "You've pushed yourself as hard as I'm willing to allow. No more practice tonight. Get some rest, Doctor, and if you have a spare room handy I'll do the same."

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah didn't argue. After all, it was hard to argue with common sense.

"I'll have Terin show you to a suite," she said, running a hand over her face. Due to the lateness of the hour, she had no doubt that he had already had a room prepared for [member="Ashin Karrde"], just in case. He was thorough like that, and while she always appreciated it, it was moments like this that made her treasure it.

She paused, watching the other woman for a long moment. Hazel eyes were thoughtful and it looked as though she were going to say something.... more in depth than the words that actually fell from her lips.

"Thank you."

It was a simple statement, but it covered a range of sentiments.

"Sleep well, Ms. Karrde."

​When Ashin would leave the library, as promised, Terin was there, waiting to escort her to one of the guest suites. Outside of the main areas of the house, the rest of the manor was more abandoned than occupied. Room after room full of furniture covered in sheets, dark hallways that had the air of a place light was simply not needed. But the corner suite, on the northwest side of the manor was brightly lit, fresh smelling, with crisp clean sheets.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

The estate's quality - sight, scent, texture - brought back memories of her years as Ajira Cardei. The trappings of Naboo nobility had worn on her in time, and she'd embraced a simpler life. But now she found herself embarrassed by how much she enjoyed these little luxuries.

Over the following weeks, as work permitted, she stopped in whenever possible. Sometimes that meant the Force equivalent of a holocall: a phantom illusion cast across interstellar distances. Compared to said holocall, it had the advantage of being untraceable. Compared to a visit in person, it had the advantage of keeping Ashin from seductive comfort. She'd prided herself on austerity as Sith Empress and founder of the Fringe. Now was not the time to get soft. A spectral presence still offered her a range of options for teaching Irajah to break things.

Along the way, she introduced the doctor to the toolbox of underutilized Padawan abilities that had saved her life more often than Force lightning. From memory enhancement, Ashin moved to adiabatic shields, improving physical senses, dulling pain - Crucitorn, Jedi called it - and the Tapas technique for controlling body temperature regardless of environment. Shatterpoint, however, remained their focus.

 

[Kuzo]

Shatterpoints. The invisible cracks that allowed the unbreakable to be broken. Things. People. Even moments. It was over the course of the next few weeks that Irajah came to understand that she already had touched upon the power, unknowingly.

Maena. Panatha. Moments where she had seen the fractures. Seen the dozens of potential futures from a point of shattered energy. She had been unable to influence it then. Simply seeing the moment as a cracked mirror, each piece reflected in on itself into infinity.

With [member="Ashin Varanin"]'s coaching, she came to understand that, perhaps someday, she would be able to choose which reflection would move reality itself forward. There was strength in her, they both knew it.

But, as always, it was Gideon holding her back.

Now, however, for the first time since being stricken by the virus, Irajah was unwilling to let it dictate her actions. Not anymore. It would not hold her back.

With that, messages were sent. To [member="Carach"], to [member="Matsu Xiangu"]. She would go forward with his suggestion. There would be no cure, not now. Perhaps there could have been. But time, as always, marched on.

And she was done being bourn along in its wake. No. It was time to chose.

For this shatterpoint, this singular moment in time, Irajah reached out and grasped the potential future she desired.

And didn't let go.