Inner Demons

Posted on Thu Nov 22nd, 2012 @ 7:27am by Thane & Bomoor Thort & Thurius

2,332 words; about a 12 minute read

Chapter: Chapter II: Era's Dawn
Location: Jedi Temple, Coruscant
Timeline: 0930 (Local Time), Day Six

OLD

Bomoor looked to the cold red-seeped floor, his breathing heavy with the weight of the task placed upon him. Thurius stood up from his seat and walked over to his old pupil. He did not speak but he gave Bomoor a hard stare that willed the Ithorian to stay strong. He laid a hand on Bomoor's hump.

"If this session is concluded, I hope you will excuse me," he spoke, eyes locked on Quellus, whose harsh words towards Bomoor had made him protective of the Ithorian, "I should speak with Bomoor."

With glowering eyes and hunched upon his chair, Quellus lifted his hand as if to gesture towards the exit. "Do what you must, my friend, just as Bomoor must... and we all must as well."

NEW

The massive chamber that served as the main hall of the Jedi Temple was beautiful, and was always occupied by scores of Knights, Padawans and Masters at any one time, meditating by the pools and fountains, discussing philosophies as they walked and dined, or training in some of the more open areas. Exotic statues and bronzium busts of Jedi past and present littered about the place, soft music wafted through the air from certain areas, whilst the general din of quiet conversation was paled by comparison to general strength of the light Force aura occupying the entire space. Built about a natural piece of the environment, just as the old temples, the current Jedi Temple housed the Sacred Spire, a Force nexus that permeated everything and everyone even slightly in-tune with the Force.

It was atop this that the Reborn Jedi Order had decided the High Council Spire would sit, and so Thane now waited by the bottom where the lift that carried Jedi and visitors to and from the Council Chambers would open to reveal his friend, as he knew Bomoor had been summoned without him. With his back against a pillar, the pale-skinned Jedi Guardian was no longer garbed in his red spacer's jacket and white undershirt, now wearing a black greatcoat with the sizeable collar turned up. A black undershirt rested beneath his dark grey tunic, over which a brown leather strap helped to holster items underneath his coat, along with the typical brown Jedi belt from which his silver and electrum lightsaber hilt swung.

Whilst some Jedi in the Order did indeed attire themselves in darker varieties of the typical Jedi garments, Thane's own were an even darker departure from the norm, although he found the greatcoat particularly durable and easy to move in, but could be quickly thrown off when necessary. Equally, unlike most Jedi, he cared little for robes or loose tunics, and kept his own tighter, making for quicker moves when utilising the tight and fast-paced Makashi saber form, as well as when in the throes of Vaapad.

He crossed his arms just as he realised the lift was now heading down from the tip of the spire, and the familiar presence of Bomoor greeted him via the Force, as well as another presence he knew only too well, an even stronger figure within the Force, and a bastion of power and light. Master Thurius.

The lift slowed to a halt, stopping with the lightest of clicks at the base of the tower. The curved doors slid apart and out stepped Bomoor, with Master Thurius at his side. Bomoor's great neck was angled down, he knew that Thane stood outside the lift but he could not face him. It had been only a few moments ago that the council had asked him to work behind his friend's back, to be ready to kill him if he turned to the Dark Side. It was all too much to take in.

It did not take the Human's connection to the Force to see that the Ithorian was troubled, and was seemingly struggling to face Thane. His dark brows furrowing, he uncrossed his arms and took a couple of strides over to Bomoor, a look of stern concern on his pale features. "Are you alright?" He asked, craning his head upwards to try and look his friend in the eyes. "What did they say to you?" Thane pointed towards the lift behind him and Thurius, before actualling looking to the Cerean Jedi. "Master, apologies, but what has been going on that is so special to have me left out, and leave Bomoor like this?"

It was not often that the Ithorian was brought down by things. Like Thane, he had a pride about him, keeping himself well-mannered and controlled, not often becoming saddened. Of course, Thane's pride was more obvious and was more prone to outwards anger than Bomoor, but it was incredibly peculiar to see him with his trunk held so low. It must have taken something to cause this.

The Ithorian straightened up to answer before Thurius could, "Everything is fine, Thane. I just grow somewhat tired of seeing the council. I'll talk to you about it later but you must excuse me for now."

Without looking for a reply, the Ithorian paced off, into the main chamber and out into the courtyard - a place he often went to reflect, although usually when there were fewer people milling around.

"I'm sorry Thane," The Cerean Master commented as they both watched Bomoor leave, "You understand that the council meetings are not to be openly discussed but I'm sure Bomoor will tell you something later."

He turned and gave a sturdy smile to the human, "How have you been though? I haven't had a chance to speak to you properly since you and Bomoor returned. I trust your saber skills have improved?"

Watching Bomoor leave with concerned and curious eyes, Thane pulled himself away to turn back to Thurius. He gave a grunt of a laugh as he registered the Master's question. "Well, they've certainly been put to the challenge by Axion and his cult," he answered as the pair began to pace along the marbled floors of the Jedi Temple. "I was able to cut down one of the cultists through Makashi, and defeated others through some... different means. My anger has always been getting the better of me in duels; it makes Makashi difficult to control, but I have been trying to find ways to focus and use it."

The Human looked over to Thurius, the light reflecting from his hairless cone-like cranium. "I've done quite a bit of research into Vaapad, and found myself slipping into it during my battles on Nar Shaddaa. The sheer anger I felt, all focused into making me faster and stronger, willing the destruction of my enemy as I - honestly - enjoyed the battle." Thane shook his head. "But it still required a lot of concentration, and with an enemy like Axion, whose form was completely alien to me, with speed and prowess I've not seen from many, I couldn't maintain it, and he punched holes in my defences."

"I see..." Thurius considered, he had spoken with Thane many times before about Form VII. Juyo and its alternate incarnation, Vaapad, had always been controversial forms within the Jedi, given their basis in channelling emotion into the moves. After Master Waay's reformation of the order, Form VII was even harder to come by - excluded from teaching manuals and known to only the most adept of duelists. In his heyday, Thurius had embraced the ways of Vaapad and used it openly. But in recent years he had fallen back on perfecting the traditional forms.

"A weaker Vaapad practitioner will be incapable of controlling their motions, leaving openings as well as alerting opponents to their attacks. The speed of the form is only successful when facing an opponent that cannot match your fast attacks. Axion is clearly no novice - the form you describe was clearly enough to dominate your use of Vaapad."

"And my other forms aren't powerful enough to get any sort of victory over him," Thane responded quickly, tugging at the lapels of his greatcoat. "I can't deny or ignore my strong feelings, and so seek to use them in combat against him; Vaapad's my only option of having any chance at besting Axion. I have the raw emotion, the drive, the speed... Heh. It's surprisingly similar to the issue we seem to have here, isn't it?" The pair continued walking as Thane spoke. "Just as Axion uses deception and trickery to fool me and defeat me, so does the Jedi Council whisper behind my back to my friend. What happened to honesty and openness?"

The pair walked out into the main chamber, still filled with force users, all with their own purpose and intentions. Thurius walked forward and stopped in front of Thane, halting him, "Now you cannot believe such a thing. The council does not act out of selfishness or greed. We have to look beyond the individual, in a way that no one else can. Our methods may not always appear fair, but we are in no way similar to Axion and his like. I think you forget what we stand for."

"That is the exact same thing I would say of the Council," Thane replied evenly. "Please don't take offence: I do not mean it of you, Master, or of all the Council, in fact. Master Sotah is a wise and fair man, as is Master Asha a good woman, but the general consensus of how they agree to guide the Jedi Order in the Republic is nothing of what a Jedi should stand for."

The Human gestured forwards for them to continue walking, a light breeze tugging at a few of Thane's loose brown hairs as he waited for Thurius to continue. "I'm not saying they are selfish or greedy," he said, as the pair did pick up pace again, passing a mural of a lightsaber duel during the Old Sith Wars, depicting a Jedi - brighter than all other colours in the image - standing over a defeated Sith Lord, an apparent testament to the strength and superiority of the light side of the Force. "I am saying they are misguided. Fearful. I just hope that yourself and my Master can balance out some of their thinking," he went on, partly angry and partly sorrowful, "but I think they would quickly turn on you, too."

Thurius paused for a moment as Thane strode forward, wondering whether to argue against him but instead he thought better to look at it in a better light, "It is natural and healthy to question your superiors, Thane," he nodded as he rejoined the human as they began to make their way out of the chamber and into the courtyard, "My only concern is that you don't put yourself in danger with your defiance, much like you do with your saber technique."

He chuckled slightly as he steered the conversation back towards his favoured topic with an analogy, "There is great strength in what you feel but a strong Jedi knows never to allow it to let it show - it clouds the judgement and makes you vulnerable to those around you. The Vapaad technique is not just a trial of the body, but a trial of the mind as well. Sharpen your mind, be subtle but also strong and you may well find that you are better able to channel your emotions in battle."

Thurius stopped at the foot of the courtyard steps - a shimmering white fountain stood before them, adding a spray of moisture to the cool city air. Surrounding the fountain were neatly positioned beds of grass and flowers. Many of the Jedi that did not pass the trials were put to work within the order - some force-sensitives found the maintenance of the temple grounds adequate use of their gifts. Thurius saw little purpose in the work they did, but he couldn't deny the skill they had, growing rare plants and shrubbery to create the finest city garden he had ever seen. The Cerean Master looked around to see if Bomoor was in sight but he could not spot the Ithorian in the courtyard.

After a few moments of thoughtful silence, Thane looking with glazed over eyes at the various Jedi and Temple occupants about them, the Guardian spoke again. "Thank you, Master," he said, his voice more confident and decided, "I think you've made some good points. I would suggest a sparring session, but I don't fancy being completely demolished twice in the same week." He gave his Master's friend a small, but nevertheless, genuine smile. As Thane turned to also look for Bomoor, with as much success as Thurius, he felt himself sigh before he spoke once more.

"You and Master Sotah have always been good mentors; understanding and capable, but I just can't see how you could tolerate the behaviour and attitudes of the Council." He ran his hand over his face, where small bristles of facial hair were starting to form, but was far starker against his pale skin than most Humans experienced. "But I don't think I can," he admitted, "but it doesn't mean I won't try." Thane pulled once again on his coat's lapels and looked towards the part of the Temple that would lead him to the dormitories. "I've got a lot to think about before the next meeting. Thank you again." He extended a hand to Thurius.

Thurius grasped his hand and brought it down firmly, "Good luck Thane. Whatever you are told tomorrow, remember that some of the greatest minds convene in that room so you must know they do not make decisions without just cause."

He began to make his way up the steps but paused a short way up, glancing back, "If I don't get the chance to say so later, take care of yourself and keep Bomoor close."

He turned and carried on, adding to himself, Together, I believe you might stand a chance against the darkness.

RSS Feed