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The nearby world of Dartag was an interesting contrast to Drinax. In many ways, it seemed to be what the other planet wanted to be, or could have been had fate dealt a better hand. The transit here was thankfully uneventful as you left the First Order control.
It also become more clear as to how this place could appear to be so prosperous in time of war, and how it wasn't being hounded by refugees like other worlds you've seen or heard of.

The cost.

Docking alone was far more than you would have expected, and you wonder what Demarchus would have had to pay for transit here. Despite the seeming high price tag this world has for everything, the place seems to thrive, and the people here even appear amicable, at least at first glance

Kalidyn looked a bit awestruck as they came in on approach. It was so big! There was so much! It was almost overwhelming. He then had to focus on the landing so he was able to calm down a bit. Then he was FLOORED by the costs! Docking was expensive. Fuel was expensive. He could only imagine what actually LIVING on the planet would cost daily.

He hurried over to Tess. "You used to LIVE here?? How could you afford anything? Does work here pay more than other places?" He was starting to get a bit excited so forced himself to stop and take a breath, let her answer.

He started heading out of the dock area with them. "Do we need to find a place to stay first?" Or find work to pay for anything like eating, he thought.

"Let's just say I worked in a specialized industry" She said with a giggle as a rare radiant smile flew across her face. She let her hair down and seemingly relaxed, as if she backtracked in years to no longer being a Liutenenant Junior Grade in the Resistance.

"Dont worry about the price tags. Hopefully we won't be here too long. We plug DD in somewhere safe, if he's got anything good we send it out, and figure our our next step. Easy day, right?"

Kal's eyes shift over to Tess and he couldn't help but think. She was beautiful but she was also smart and cunning. She could have been in...any number of employment areas. A number of which would even be legal.

"I see." was all he said about it, though.

He smiled and looked down at the droid then back at her. "Well, lead on, Oh Mistress of the Many Talents! This is your turf. I have no idea what would constitute a 'safe place' here." He nodded though. "I'll watch your back."

"I don't think anyone's going to approach you to sign a development contract, so that's about as much danger as we're likely to get in here. That is, until the Jedi gets here."

"How are you feeling about that, by the way?" She asked, cocking her head to the side "Things got frantic there in a hurry. Guess nobody really asked if you even wanted what you were being thrown into."

Kalidyn frowned and looked down slightly. "Yeah, I guess no one's really asked me, have they? They have all just talked at me and about me, even TO me, but just talking and informing, not questioning." And while his brain locked up in thought a bit, his feet kept walking unconsciously. He finally looked at Tess again.

He shook his head, a half-smile on his lips. "It's...a lot, honestly. Half the time, I want to pretend it's not real and I'm just going crazy, but that's not dealing with it. It doesn't make SENSE to me. Like why me? Why do I get..." He looked around and lowered his voice, "powers and all the trouble that comes along with it. I mean, being a...Jedi, or in-training to be one or whatever, isn't exactly the kind of thing that most people celebrate or want around, you know?"

"Because you are up to the task..." You heard a voice from behind you. Looking back you see the spirit of your ancestral mother, the great Nomi Sunrider.


"You have a strength and capacity that is greater than you know. That you only know the limits of by facing adversity and overcoming it, in a time where there is no shortage of adversities and challenges to face. In the short time since you first felt the Force, first heard my voice, you have already come so far, further than you already thought possible."

"The Force is the greatest mystery in the galaxy, and while even I could not understand it, I know this much. The Force does not make mistakes. You were chosen to become a Jedi, young Kalidyn, and you were not chosen wrong."

She raised a hand gently towards Tess "You have great friends and resources. They will support you in the best and worst of times, if you let them."

Turning towards the Zeltron "You, my dear, should not begrudge your friend that your destiny lies on a different path than his. You will achieve greatness in your own right, if you stay the course. In time, you will even find that greatest secret, the thing you want so badly you refuse to even tell yourself."

Kalidyn gave a little bit of a start at the voice joining their conversation. I didn't USED to be so jumpy, he thought. He let out a sigh and glanced back. His eyes widened when he saw who it was.

He listened to her and then ran a hand through his hair. "As a pilot? I know where I stand, my capabilities and my limits. With...the Force?" He spread his hands with a confused look on his face. "I just don't know. It's all so new. I don't yet feel what you seem to see in me. But...I'm willing to try. It seems important."

Then his eyes slowly shifted to Tess, then back to the spirit. Out of the side of his mouth he asked Tess, "You...can see and hear her...right?" His eyes glanced at Tess once more to see if she was looking at the spirit - or at him like he was crazy.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 01:21, Tue 24 Jan 2023.

Your wingman's eyes were large, unsettled. Fixated on the ghost, Tess simply nodded her head up and down.

"Your doubt will be your undoing. Being a Jedi, using the Force in any fashion requires focus, discipline, and no small amount of confidence. The only limits that exist are the ones that you set yourself. Through the Force, nothing is impossible. Turn to your friends Kalidyn. In the darkest of moments, if you no longer have faith in yourself, put your faith in them, and that they see what you cannot."

And then Kalidyn had outside proof or reassurance that he was, in fact, not crazy or going insane. He felt better about that. It was still a bit scary to think of all that was being thrust upon him, but...it was real. It was happening. It made no sense to him, but he had to accept it.

He drew in a deep breath and then let it out slowly. Then he nodded. "Alright. I accept this burden. What's next?"

"You have answers to the questions you seek. You only require time and the wisdom to see them. That will guide you on your next course of action."

The ghost of your ancestor fades away, leaving you again alone with your co-pilot and your droid.

"Okay, so that's probably up there with the strangest thing I've ever experienced. Talking to a ghost. An actual Jedi ghost. And why do I get the feeling that things are going to get even stranger before this is all done?"

She looked around before asking "What do you think? Do we tell him what just happened?"

Kalidyn stared at the spot where the spirit had been for a moment after it faded away. He rubbed one eye, then drew in a deep breath and then let it out slowly.

He looked over at Tess. "You talking about our mutual friend who is coming?" He gave a nod. "Can't hurt. He already knows I talked to her once and he didn't think I was crazy."

His eyes shifted to the droid. "Actually...DD...did YOU see...the person we were talking to?"

OOC: Pewp. I saw this post and thought I responded to it, sorry! Crazy busy at work still.

"Confirm, saw the pretty ghost Jedi lady" The droid chimed in happily, rolling back and forth happily

The elderly and distressed Jedi approached only a few seconds after being referred to. His hands in front of him in his robes, his eyes surveying the area gently. Whether he was searching for a threat, or just trying to build a memory of the place, was hard to determine. When you were both able to distinguish each other, there was a genuine smile on his face, so there was at least that going for you all.

Kalidyn gave a nod and a small wave to the older man once they sighted each other. He flashed a small smile. "Welcome. I see you made it one piece."

He gave a moment in case Demarchus had anything to say or news to bring up. But then he very quietly informed the Jedi of what the three of them had seen and heard from his ancestor spirit.

"But DD and Tess BOTH saw her this time! The first time I saw her, DD didn't see her and I'm pretty sure thought I was going mad." He paused. "That's...this isn't common, though, right? Repeat visitations by...ghosts? Actually, what ARE they called? Force...spirits?"

"Force ghosts are quite rare. There is mention that Jedi Master Luke Sywalker had been visited by ghosts of past Jedi. How much of that is actually true is hard to tell. They could just be ghost stories" He rolled eyes at his own joke "never mind the pun."

"Who did you see?"

Kalidyn looked at Demarchus and one eyebrow rose up at the pun, and the informatiom shared. Then he muttered almost to himself, "For something rare, I'm quite popular with one it feels like."

When asked about who they saw, he gave kind of a half-shrug and spread his hands. "Well, it was...Nomi Sunrider again." He rubbed his chin. "I guess, since she's my ancestor, it makes sense for there to be...a connection. Though if as rare as you say, I don't know why she has shown up several times now."

He looked down and smiled. "But...I must admit, the words were nice to hear. And not having DD think I'm crazy."

"Well, wish I was there to hear it." He says with a gentle smile before turning to Tess.

"It's your show from here on, my dear. What do you suggest we do now?"

"Well, I know a guy who owes me a favor that can probably crack everything we need. Has a tendency to get himself in trouble though. Doing this the 'right way' is an option too of course, but we'll have to pony up the credits."

Kalidyn spread his hands and gave a grateful expression to Demarchus. He was just very glad someone else, anyone else, had seen and heard the spirit, honestly. Well, not anyone, he supposed. That could be troublesome. He glanced around to make sure no one was looking too much at them.

But he smiled and nodded at Tess. "I mean...the person you know sounds like it would be...more off the radar, right? That might be what we need for the moment, yeah?" He then continued, "We could also pivot later and go the other route if we have to."

"In a place like this, it's hard to get completely off the radar. But, we can be sure nothing gets traced back to him, or us, so that's good"

Without another word, she moves off with every expectation of you following. Finding a transit station, she's able to hail a speeder "To Diamond Square please"

After a few quiet moments, the driver looks back and starts up conversation "Pardon me miss, but you're a local, ain't ya? You look familiar somehow"

"Oh, I get that alot" She smiles in response "Sorry, you've got the wrong girl. Just one of those faces that blends in with everyone else."

"Heh, with a face like yours sweetheart, not likely."

Kalidyn trusted Tess and let her lead the way, following her. They may not have known each other that long, in the grand scheme of things, but she had proven herself as far as he was concerned. And she had been in the same organization as he and DD, and seemed to have the same goals.

He looked over at Tess and a small smile slipped on to his face. He very quietly said, "It must be such a burden to be cursed with such beauty, huh?" He let out a small quiet chuckle.

To the driver he said, "We've just arrived on a planet less than an hour or so ago, actually."

Tess looked strangely nervous as you spoke to her, but chuckled along nervously.

"Nahh, the lovely lady asked for the Diamond Square; that's where the locals go. Tourists always make their first stop to the beaches or the shopping districts. That is, when we get tourists. Doesn't bother me none though. Wouldn't be the first diva or celebrity I've had trying to play things on the down low. Whoever you are, I'm glad I get to say 'welcome home'."

The taxi made quick work arriving into the center of the area. As you exit, he speaks up again
"Hey, keep your eyes on a swivel, ya? Things have gotten kinda crazy around here lately. We like to act like the war isn't here, but everyone's more on edge. Just, be careful, okay?"

"Careful as I can be" Tess smiled at the driver, and he practically beamed.

"Yaaaaaa, I knew I knew you from somewhere. Seeya round Tess, hope you're sticking around for a while..." he drove off before a real answer could be given

After exiting the vehicle, Kalidyn turned to look at Tess with a hopefully-expectant look on his face, one eyebrow raised up questioningly. "Okay. What the hell? How did he recognize you from that?" He spread his hands. "And what did you used to do here? I'm dying to know."

He turned to their droid friend. "DD, can you look up information about our mutual friend here?"

"Not important" She said quickly, walking away as she did "We're here about the future, not the past."

Demarchus, a quiet observer in most of this, spoke up "I would advise caution, but there are ways through the Force one can gain knowledge"

Kalidyn shook his head at Demarchus, a bemused look on his face. "No, we'll let her keep her secrets. For now."

He started after her and said, "Oh, but it IS important. I need to know as much as I can about my partner. What if someone asks me about you? Or if you have some super-useful skill in your past that I might need to know when planning something?"

He was mostly teasing her, though of course he DID want to know. But he was willing to wait.

He looked around as they moved, seeing what there was to see but also watching for any danger as he followed Tess to meet this person.

"I'm just some gal who got tired of sleepwalking my way through life. The past is a different person. I'm a lieutenant, Junior Grade in the Resistance. We succeed in this mission, we'll both probably get promoted."

She was quiet as she lead you into a seemingly normal and derivative office building. Up a few stairs, and you through a posh hallway. There's alot of logos of media companies on the walls, and the folks that they've worked with. Tess came to a dead stop at a door and tried to open it, to no avail.

"Strange. Kili is a workaholic. He's never not here."

Kalidyn let out a small chuckle even as he rolled his eyes. "Sure, sure. Whatever you say, Lt. Jr. Grade." She was hard not to like, even if she sometimes did or said things that drove him a little crazy.

He followed after her, both keeping his eyes and ears open, but also taking in the sights a little bit. He had never been to this planet before, and there was a lot to see. He got serious when she slowed down and even more when she sounded concerned.

He lowered his voice, "Alright, let's check it out. What does this Kili person look like just so we know if we find them?"

He reached out and knocked on the door.

"Oh, he sticks out pretty easy. the spikes on his head and the tattoos will do that."

You're not sure if it's impatience or something greater, but seeing you fail to open the door as well causes her to reach for her sidearm.

Kallidyn blinked at the description but then frowned as he thought it over quickly. "Oh! A...Zabrak?"

No one had answered his knock yet. He glanced at her. "Should we knock again? Or are you going with an alternative entry method?" He was asking if she was about to force the door.

"DD, if you would..." She replied bemusedly. The droid quickly took his task of slicing the door open.

"I've got a bad feeling about all of this. When this is all over, I'm putting in for leave"

Kalidyn gave a small shrug. Like he had thought - not physical force, but still unlawful entry. He stepped back to make sure the droid had room, and pulled his own pistol as well, just in case.

He glanced at her. "Why? Too stressful?" He grinned. "Or is it the company you keep?"

"We could very well be the difference between success and failure of the Resistance, and it's coming down to whether I can find a missing friend that's very fond of routine. To say nothing of being accompanied by two wizards with powers I don't understand and who tend to attract attention. So, ya, I'm a little stressed."

The door opened swiftly, and Tess moved in an instant inside. Her Zabrak friend was absent, and the room looked to be a mess. There was a lot of artwork on the wall, some of it damaged. Conspicuously, on the far wall was a poster of a holovid. Front and center, was a starkly familiar Zeltron, dressed to entice and armed to kill. Seeing the two side by side, it's no mistake who that is.

Kal spoke up with a mock-indignant tone but a grin on his face, "Hey! You know very well that I attracted attention before I became a..." He hesitated over that last word as he wasn't exactly sure if it was an insult or just a descriptor, "...wizard."

He looked from the poster to Tess and then back again. "Huh. Something seems familiar about that woman...but I can't put my finger on it..."

Even as he made the joke, he looked around to see if there were any clues as to where the Zabrak friend had gone.

"Kal, if you keep oogling at that thing I'm going to shoot it, or you" She spoke from over her shoulder, looking through drawars for any possible sign of foul play or a clue. Her hand was closer to her blaster pistol, the holster strap unbuckled.

"That person died when the bombs fell. You're stuck with me, so do your Jedi whatevers and help me figure this out, or go stay by the ships."

OOC: Make a Perception check and/or any other roles you feel appropriate at this time.

Kal turned serious for a second as he looked over at Tess and somberly replied, "While I could say I'm sorry I never met her, that would be untrue. I only know the one Tess, the one I am familiar with, and as you well know, I am more fond of her than I should be already, and certainly more than she would like."

He then went back to searching in earnest for clues. He even tried to see if he could use his...connection with the Force to try and make sure nothing was hidden, but he felt a twinge in his temple for his troubles.

20:50, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 26 using 1d20+7.  Perception.
20:56, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 4 using 1d20+1.  Use the Force (Sense Surroundings why not).

You feel some latent Dark Side energy associated with Tess. It's cause or target is beyond your insight at this point, but it does drop as you speak.

"I don't know about that" Tess started to say, meekly "getting to know me better doesn't sound so bad, I guess. Let's just try to get this mission wrapped up before we start scheduling date night, if you Jedi are even allowed to have those"

What you notice in your search of the space, is how little there is to notice. The only things of value here are the furniture that would have been too bulky to be taken out of the space. There's circles and dust shadows of smaller items that had sat here that were removed. There's also no indication of either forced entry or violence inside. Whatever happened here was recent, deliberate, and likely planned and peaceful.

Kalidyn looked a bit surprised, though his back was to Tess as she spoke, looking around for clues as he was. He hadn't expected that. He had thought it would be harmless flirting that wouldn't go anywhere. If it actually started to go somewhere, well, that might end up being dangerous for them. Professionally at the very least. He wasn't sure about Jedi and romantic entanglements, but he guessed it was probably frowned on or something.

He didn't want to make a big deal out of it though so he just said, "Okay. Mission first, though, right."

He finished his search. "I'm not finding anything that indicates...anything, really. Or I don't know what I'm looking for maybe." He let out a sigh and shook his head. "I think we will need to go out and ask around and look for your friend."

He glanced at DD. "Unless you have a way to find out anything."

"Ya, maybe some old coworkers will know. Might be tough, guy was a homebody, there might not be too many others who keeped in touch him. He wasn't the type to go out to the clubs, seeing he was stingy with his cred.."

Tess stopped her thoughts partway, as she looked around again at the office. "Oh. That explains it."

Kalidyn perked up at the mention that they might get to meet some of her 'old co-workers'. Maybe they would get more information on what she used to do for a living. That poster was very intriguing, but a little vague on the details.

He paused with a frown, "What? What explains what?"

"I think he went broke. Maybe he was evicted, or he got wrapped up in some bad business. Who knows, but I think that's something to look into."

Kalidyn looked around slowly. "Hm. What makes you say that? Because he's not here?"

He frowned. "When you get evicted...do they normally keep all your stuff in the place? I would have thought it would be cleaned out and rented to someone else pretty quickly to keep money rolling in." But this wasn't his area of expertise so he looked for confirmation. "...Right?"

He then shook his head. "Regardless, I don't think we're going to find any clues here so...lead the way to who we should talk to."

"If the furniture was rented out than it would make sense for it to stay" the Elder added. "Anything of value that could fit through the door looks like it's been removed. Public records may have an answer. Unfortunately, it doesn't bode well for him either way."

The explanation Demarchus gave sounded more than plausible and Kalidyn looked slightly embarrassed at not having thought of that at all. "Oh. Sure. That makes sense."

He looked at Tess after a moment. "So. Ready to lead us to talk to people that might know what happened and/or where they are?"

"I'm not exactly eager about it, but ya" Tess responded "If we're right, this means breaking a guy out of jail, or freeing him from gangs, neither of which sounds great for our future."

"Hey, guys. Jedi can feel people through the Force right?" Tess was quickly and uncharacteristically dour and uncertain "can you do your meditation thing to, you know, make sure my friend is even still alive?"

Kalidyn gave Tess a sympathetic look. He didn't know what happened in her past - and it wasn't really his business unless she wanted to share - but he could sympathize with dealing with the past or people he didn't want to.

At her question he looked surprised and very uncertain. He looked at Demarchus. "Uhhh, that's a YOU question, sir. I don't know how any of it works." He frowned. "Though...would you need to know a person, if that was even possible? I don't know."

Demarchus simply and quietly sat on the floor, his knees in front of him, sitting on his feet. He motioned forward with his hand "That's an US question, Padawan. I know things have been a struggle, but you have me to help you here. You're also not under threat of being attacked. Knowing the person is helpful, but not a requirement. Come, let us see what the Force will tell us."

Kalidyn's eyebrows rose up in surprise. He hesitated slightly, wary of trying the unknown and failing when Tess was counting on him. But he drew in a deep breath and calmed himself. It didn't hurt to try, and learning was something he needed to do.

He slowly moved to sit opposite of Demarchus. "Alright. What do we do?"

Tess, lacking a better option, sits with the two of you as well, her eyes darting between the two of you, trying to follow on.

"We clear our minds. The Force is always trying to speak to us, but we must silence our own minds to hear it. Now, close your eyes, take deep breaths, and focus on nothing but my voice. With each word, allow yourself to relax. Do not try to compel the Force into submission, but open yourself to the direction that the Force wishes to move through you."

"There is no emotion, there is peace.
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge,
There is no passion, there is serenity,
There is no chaos, there is harmony
There is no death, there is the Force"

Make a UTF Roll, plus any Force Points of Destiny Points you may wish to use.

Kalidyn listened and did his best to follow the instructions. He tried to clear his mind, though it was no easy feat with so much having happened and so much going on! But he kept his eyes closed, kept his breathing slow and deep. He tried to just...open himself up to the Force. He followed the voice and the words.

First, you were mostly just conscious of the environment around you. The sound of the air circulation systems, the pressure of your own body sitting on itself, Tess' perfume. Slowly, those began to fade away, and you became aware of the world outside your own body, and outside of the room.

You see, you feel, you hear, The Force. It is a strange thing, but it quickly becomes familiar. This feeling you've had before, your entire life, as far as you know. A tiny voice behind a wall of cacophany, at all times.

As soon as it becomes known to you, it vanishes, but in a vivid manner. You see through your minds eye a Zabrak man. Dark, dirty, exhausted. Pushing something heavy in a large cavernous space. The last you see is a jacket on his back, with a hastily painted logo of some kind on it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:33, Sat 24 June 2023.

Kal wasn't honestly sure what to expect, or if it would even work. He wasn't trained in the ways of the Force, after all. But he tried...and then something happened! He was himself, but so much more. He was himself, but connected to so much more. It was...well, it might have been overwhelming had he not been sort of meditating and embracing it. He did still have to force himself not to break the connection in surprise when it happened.

His voice was quiet and he spoke almost absent-mindedly. "I see...a Zabrak male. He is...dirty. Tired. He is pushing...something, something heavy. In a very large space. I can't...tell where he is."

He struggled to hold the connection in his excitement, but couldn't hold it. "He had like a...symbol or logo on his jacket." He tried to both describe the logo he'd seen and sketch it out. "Do you recognize it, Tess?"

"Yaaaa" She said, "But it doesn't make sense. That logo's from a movie. Some of the dregs started wearing it and tried to form a gang, but they were nobody's. Speeder jacking, purse snatchers, stuff like that. Last I heard a few started dealing in death sticks but that was the worst of it, and they'd gotten caught. That they went from petty crime to forced labor? There's gotta be something we're missing."

"He's alive, so that's a start. Thank you both"

"I mean, you're welcome, though I'm still not a hundred percent sure how that worked and all."

Kalidyn thought about what Tess said for a moment before finally giving a shrug. "Sounds like things might have changed while you were gone? Maybe the gang's gotten bigger and/or changed." He rubbed his chin. "Was your friend the gang-joining type?"

He shook his head. "Do you know where they might be at, hang out, or...someone we can ask without causing an incident?"

"No" she shook her head "He was about his work, sometimes obsessively so. I don't think he liked most folks. He'd go days sometimes without leaving this place."

She started to sink a little bit "This is starting to feel like it's my fault. I knew he was a little...different. If I stayed put, I coulda kept him out of trouble..."

Kal moved next to her and put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. his voice was soft and full of support and compassion when he spoke. "Hey. Don't do that. Don't beat yourself up. This isn't on you. You can't be the only thing standing between someone and the choices they make."

He squeezed once more and pulled his hand away. "Besides, you don't know what happened, so focus on what we know and can do for now until we know more. Okay?"

He headed for the door. "Come on. Let's see if you can find us some place to learn more information, yeah? A bar? A club? A street corner informant? Something?"