To Xion

[Eskel Tyvia]

Eskel, lay awake in his bed aboard his newly purchased ship. He couldn't shake something, churning in his stomach. He was falling into something, yet it was not sleep that called him to rest. It was so frustrating, not being able to get to sleep.

Eskel had been practicing with his saber, he had heard whispers of how the Jedi and Sith trained rigorously ever day to master the art. However, Eskel found it rather easy. Then again, he had never had to use it before. Not in a fight, and he hoped he wouldn't have to. His bed sheets crumpled up under his skin, he was fading into a darkness he had never experienced previous to this night. He was scared and alone, he didn't understand why or how. It was possibly some other force user attempting to subdue him, however he could not feel the presence of another nearby. These thoughts were swept aside as Eskel's eyes closed shut, his body limp as he had submitted to the dark sleep he was drowning in.

Eskel awoke, in a heap. Fires burning on his right and left, two ships had crashed. Eskel's head was spinning as he attempted to take to his feet, only making it a few steps before dropping to his knee's. He didn't recognise where he was, or how he had gotten there. Nothing was clear, as dark mist warped the view of his surroundings, he merely saw the tip of the iceberg. A blue beam of energy appeared in the air, not unlike that of a lightsaber. Following it a man in black combat armour, then another. Both holding blue lightsabers, the green women cut the both down with ease, as she turned. Calling out to Eskel, shouting for him to look out. Hearing the hum of a blade behind his head before the vision drew to darkness and Eskel awoke, sweat rushing off his body as it boiled with adrenaline.

Heavy breaths escape Eskel as shock over took him. Was he going to die? Eskel dwelled on the vision for hours, taking a shower before drying off and getting dressed. A word was sticking out in his head and no matter how hard he tried to ignore it, he couldn't. The word wouldn't leave him, he couldn't stop thinking about Xion.

It didn't take Eskel long to figure out it was a planet, but he didn't quite understand what he was looking for, or why any of this madness was happening. However, he came to the conclusion he was doomed if he did, doomed if he didn't and thus, plotted a course for the planet. Not long after, he arrived and was headed for the surface.

[member="Rasu Gan"]

 

[Rasu Gan]

It seemed that regret was now the one factor that filled the Shi'ido's mind. Having left the civilised galaxy for six years, Rasu had returned to find her once perfect life in ruin. Her dearest friends dead, her beloved Order on the brink of collapse and now her favoured apprentice had been killed at the hands of some unknown organisation. She had known that one Matsu Xiangu had dealt the killing blow but she now sensed that others had been involved and that the death of the Togruta had gone much deeper than just an accidental Sith encounter. Having meditated on the whereabouts of this shadowy organisation, the planet Xion had continued to reoccur in her visions, leading the Jedi Master to the barren Outer-Rim planet.

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Locking the door to her room, Rasu left the inn and began her investigations. The local cantina seemed to be the best start for an operation like this, with such places being a beacon for various scum to gather and relax. The Shi'ido hoped someone would be able to part with some information, so as she made her way into the near-empty streets of the primary settlement the Jedi Master opened herself to the Force. She did not want to suffer the same fate as her late Padawan, so kept her senses on high alert for any impending attack.

Immediately she spotted quite a prominent surge in the Force, a being whose aura displayed great strength and power. Realising that they had only just entered the planetary system, Rasu quickly changed her direction, heading for the spaceport at the center of the settlement. Rasu began to close in on this Force-user, suspecting them to be a member in this shadowy organisation. Stopping only a few meters from the landing pad, Rasu waited patiently for each passenger to disembark before identifying this mysterious force-user.

[member="Eskel Tyvia"]

 

[Eskel Tyvia]

Eskel had arrived, hooded and cloaked. However, any who saw his face might think he had saw a ghost, that was what the vision felt like. It had made him lesser. He felt weak, like it had drained him. It became even worse as Eskel came out of his ship, looking about him. He could help but smile, he liked seeing people. All these different, strange species he had never seen before. It was if it rejuvenated him, being able to walk among others gave him the strength to take that first step into the unknown.

Eskel gripped at the railings of his ships door. Even with his strength returned to him, he still felt a sense of unease. As if many eyes watched him, however one set of the eyes were different. All around him was cold, however. Something of warmth had its eyes locked onto him. But in that warmth, was the flicker of the flame, an unrest. It wasn't here to give him warmth, but to shut out the cold. To not allow the others to freeze. But Eskel couldn't feel the warmth inside himself, or the cold. Nothing, just the force to guide him. But, he felt like the warmth wasn't the danger. However, he wasn't sure.

This cold, that caused him to shudder. It attacked from the shadows, and once it felt the warnth it retreated near completely. Eskel could only assume that they had been able to find him, whatever this was. Based on what he was feeling about them right now. He attempted to conceal himself with the force, but it only worked temporarily as suddenly he felt the eyes on him again. However, now it was stronger. Eskel turned around, spotting the green women in the crowd. Singling her out, but he couldn't tell if she was the hot or the cold.

But, he knew she was dangerous. Thus, Eskel was on the move.

[member="Rasu Gan"]

 

[Rasu Gan]

As the shuttle passengers disembarked, Rasu merged with the crowd, doing her best to single out the powerful aura she had sensed earlier. Expanding her own Force aura, the Shi'ido prepared to hone in on this particular being, only finding to her surprise that the signature had vanished in the Force. They must be extremely skilled to be able to mask their presence, she thought, resorting to more practical methods. Tapping the nearest person on the shoulder, a Rodian, Rasu analysed the being's features, searching frantically with the Force. On any other occasion Rasu would have preferred to avoid such a confrontation but with her emotions running wild and with her desperation and adrenaline taking control of her judgments and actions, she didn't hold back.

Voicing their irritation, Rasu abandoned the Rodian moving on to a cloaked figure. Blocking the human's path Rasu gazed into the young man's eyes, searching for any sign of this powerful force aura in his own signature. Having failed again, the Jedi Master turned away from the rather pale young man and continued onto the next applicant. By this time the crowd had reached the market plaza and the passengers began to separate and go about in various directions. Rasu was running out of time and if she didn't locate this being soon, her hopes of avenging Asaak Tey would escape her as well.

As she moved onto the nearest being, she froze, the back of her spine tingling with danger sense. Her hands immediately dropped to her belt, fingers wrapping themselves around the cool, metal hilts of her twin weapons. An eerie breeze filled the spacious plaza, erasing all noise as the Force glowed with the presence of both the powerful individual and several other force-users, their signatures relaying pure aggression. "Stang" she muttered, as she ignited her weapons, preparing for the ambush that would soon begin. Her golden blades lit up the surrounding area, the humming of the blades calming the Shi'ido's mind, the clam before the storm.

[member="Eskel Tyvia"]

 

[Eskel Tyvia]

Eskel was quick to be on the move. He didn't want to be caught up in anything, however everyone was in panic and soon. Four men in black clothing stood in front of him, it was like those from his nightmare, his vision. And the green woman was here too, it was all making sense now. Eskel turned to start moving in another direction, only to see another group of four appear, and then another. Soon, himself and a crowd, the green woman where the only ones left standing. Eskel took his saber from its holster, but before he could act, the men in black activated their blades. "Get out of here, run!" Eskel shouted to the crowd, he didn't want anyone else to get caught up in his mess. Then suddenly, the docked public transports exploded, killing almost all of the civilian crowd, and taking Eskel off his feet and into the ground, his saber landing just outside of his reach, his mind was blurred as several of the men in black surrounded the green woman. Eskel needed to help her, but even now his ears were ringing. Reaching out for his lightsaber, he remembered what happened in his vision. He could hear the hum of the blade. But, in a instinctive moment; Eskel used the force to pull his saber to his hand, and swivelled in his crouched stance and cut through the stomach of the, what he could see now was an assassin. The assassin was surprised, gripping his stomach and looking back at Eskel frantically before falling over and dying.

Eskel took to his feet, he had been lucky then. However he doubted he would last in a straight up fight, he had no idea what he was doing.

[member="Rasu Gan"]

 

[Rasu Gan]

Without warning, the transports exploded knocking Rasu off her feet. Rolling backwards, she allowed the blast's momentum to carry her backwards, landing safely only a few meters from the first group of cloaked figures. Their blue blades cast dark shadows over their masked faces, ringing alarms inside the Jedi's mind. However these were drowned out by the screams and shouts that echoed through the Force. All at once, beings around the plaza were dropping dead, their life snuffed out by the various explosions now cascading throughout the settlement. Plumes of smoke billowed into the sky as ash and soot fell from the darkened heavens. It was too much for the Shi'ido to bare.

Closing herself off from the screams of pain and agony, Rasu turned towards her attackers, their weapons humming as they arced towards her exposed flesh. Within seconds three of her opponents lay dead on the floor, her golden blades hissing hungrily as they sunk into armor and flesh. These were the men who had ordered her Padawan's demise, these were the men who had murdered these innocent people. Cold, dark anger swelled with the Shi'ido as she lashed out with her blades, slicing through whoever stood in her way.

When no one else approached her, Rasu turned, searching for her next victim, eyes glowing a sickly yellow as she succumbed to the grief and fury that wished to take her over. Instead her eyes came to rest on the pale human she had inspected before, a lightsaber in his hands. Curious, Rasu extended her Force awareness towards the man, drawing back in shock as she became aware of the power that resided within him. Realising she had found the source of the compelling aura, Rasu's grief subsided as she stood in silence, wondering why the Force had drawn the pair together.

However her thoughts were cast aside as another hooded figure approached, this time aiming for the young man. Already several more figures converged on this mysterious man and it dawned on Rasu that he was about to be overwhelmed. Knowing that the time to act was now, the Jedi Master leaped into the fray, lashing out at the attackers until she stood back to back with the man. "Thought you could use a hand." she gasped, slicing through another figure of what appeared to be an endless horde. "Is there no end to them?" she thought, fatigue beginning to fill her system.

[member="Eskel Tyvia"]

 

[Eskel Tyvia]

Whilst the green woman cut through the assassins as if carving wood, Eskel was barely able to keep up with one before catching him in the leg and then using an overwhelming amount of strength to force his own blade into his face. The pinkish glimmer of Eskel's face filled what were once shadows with a dim red light, so much had happened so fast.

He had been mistaken earlier, this women who now stood at his back against these assassins. She was the warmth he had felt earlier as came into the docking bay. However, something had changed now. Eskel could sense the conflict within her, this may have been a chance meeting. But it meant something to her, and she had saved his life and now it meant something to him. "Less talk, more action."

Eskel had always been told by his brother when in battle he didn't recognise his brother, Eskel entered a state of calm as he engaged one of the assassins. Making quick jabs left and right, however the assassin proved to be a match for the untrained combatant. However, as Eskel locked blades with him, he held the assassin there with one and set the assassin alight with a burst of flames from the palm of his hand.

A few moments later and Eskel had killed another, but had taken a few punches and had scrapes from the explosion. Eskel eas quick to count, "...16. Groups, of 4..." He muttered to himself, getting down on his knee's and checking on the assassins corpses for clues. "...Nothing.." Again he muttered, seemingly oblivious to [member="Rasu Gan"] that Eskel was busy.

Finding out who just attacked but not just them, but the people.

 

[Rasu Gan]

Offering only a grunt in acknowledgment, Rasu continued her onslaught, knowing now that this mysterious young man was safe and perhaps not the evil she had labelled. He had shown great skill and potential, something rarely seen in an untrained force-user. Despite his raw, unchecked power, Rasu could sense the calm, resolute emotion that echoed from his Force aura. It surprised the Shi'ido that the man displayed such a high level of discipline for one so young. "Such an interesting young ma....."

She was abruptly drawn from her thoughts by a burst of pain. Having lost focus, a lone assassin had taken advantage of the situation and stabbed at her abdomen. Gently grazing the side of her hip, she had only the attackers incompetence to thank for not having a gaping hole in the middle of her stomach. Pushing out with the Force, she sent the man flying backwards, landing meters away out of the Shi'ido's sight. Inspecting the wound, she cursed, flinching slightly as the cauterized flesh sizzled against the cool wind. Placing an emerald hand over the scorched skin, she called out to the Force. Immediately a faint glow appeared over her fingers as the pain vanished. Rasu was not adept in the art of healing but she knew enough to provide the treatment needed to survive this encounter. With the wound now numb, Rasu turned to her companion, now on his knees inspecting the bodies that the pair had butchered.

"Found anything useful?" she asked, bending over the body as she extended her Force awareness, ensuring no one snuck up on them while their backs had turned. "Rasu Gan" she said, taking advantage of the reprieve to introduce herself.

[member="Eskel Tyvia"]

 

[Eskel Tyvia]

Eskel wasn't able to find anything. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that what they had done was wrong. He felt no aggression when he crossed blades with the assassins, and only the cold unfiltered darkness slipping away when he struck them down. They were not sith, they were enslaved. Eskel, without a word removed one of their masks. "Look" He beckoned [member="Rasu Gan"] to study the assassins features. "His skin, grey and deformed, deep scars in his skin like trenches on a battlefield. As if, drained of life. Of hope, of the force. Something Jedi and Sith take for granted." Eskel noted, closing the eyes of the assassin. "Something has done this to these people. Jedi and sith alike, but none deserve such a fate." Eskel stood up, letting out a deep sigh. "And I would have of had the same fate if it were not for you." Turning to the Jedi Master, he gave her a swift nod. "Thank you." The boy held his saber in a tight grip. His finger, lingering over the ignition. "But, why are you here?" Eskel was curious to say the least, this green woman had been in his vision. It was possible the force had simply brought them together.

However, Eskel would be foolish to rely on something with little to no evidence to prove such coincidences could even happen. Thus, he needed to be cautious. Especially around someone far more experienced and well trained than himself. However, if this was some trick. He was ready, but he hoped he wouldn't have to face this opponent. He wasn't very much ready for that, not at all in truth.

He could feel nothing but a warmth and comforting sensation from the woman, but his senses could be fooled.