Revoking the Darkness

[Vako]

Silence, pure silence. This was something that Varrin Torik had come to prize in the last number of decades. His slow move away from the carnal noises of barren worlds was not a quick one. He had developed such a hatred for the touch of metal on his skin, that he wanted nothing to do with it. Even though he cherished the silence, he despised setting foot on the small ship he had, simply because it reminded him of everything he had escaped from. But even being away from it hadn’t been enough. His thoughts never stopped churning, and his mind never stopped dwelling on everything in the past. But the madness he had come to was not a satisfying trait. It was merely a survival mechanism. And the more he’d stayed on worlds with nothing but primal beasts surrounding him, the more he came to understand his own superior consciousness. That alone wasn’t enough to drive him back to civilization, but it was at least a start. That thought had entered into his mind years earlier, but certain new thoughts had only returned recently. And of all the thoughts that came with returning to civilization, the most difficult to accept was returning to the Jedi Temple.

Varrin Torik was a tainted shell of what he once was. No one at the Temple would have recognized him from appearance alone. Having disappeared more then fifty years earlier, and his mind being far from what had been would make it quite difficult to even know there was something that had come before it. Varrin knew this, but had never cared. He had never looked back on what he had been, and for years he had no reason to. He was what he was, but the trouble was even he wasn’t quite sure what that meant. For his desperate need to remain separate from the greater civilization so to clear his own mind, all he had found was questions he could never answer. This was the only reason he had decided to return to the Temple. To perhaps be able to answer the questions, or at least get the best opportunity he could.

It hadn’t been a secret his walking back up the steps of the ancient structure, but it hadn’t been difficult for him either. He had not said a word as he walked his way up. Not to anyone. Not when weapons were brought to bare on him. Not when his lightsabers were taken. Not when he was apprehended. It wasn't necessarily him being cooperative, it was just him not fighting. He knew where he was, and he knew as he'd approached what would happen. He didn't have a hand laid on him, and it wasn't a moment of offensive tension. It was just him stopping, and walking, and stopping, and walking.

He was taken into a meditation room, locked inside, and had taken a seat. His lightsabers were not longer beneath his dark, tattered, fur covered, carnal robes. He just remained with his hood over his head, his white beard extended through the front, upon a small pedestal. The shades were drawn, and not a sound could be heard. He just kept his eyes closed, and as he had done for many years, remained silent and waited for an answer to come.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"Are you sure I'm the right person for this?" Sherasti Rin had asked as the Temple's guards summoned her for an audience with a Dark Jedi who'd surrendered himself. After all, who was she? A Consular. A peacemaker, a diplomat. Not a woman skilled in fighting servants of the Dark Side. Just recently she'd nearly met her death at the hands of one, and she was still technically in recovery. But she was indeed strong enough to use her telepathic abilities, which seemed to be all that was required of her.

They simply wanted a telepath present at the questioning of this Dark Jedi, to determine whether or not his answers were truthful. And that was fully within the Togruta Knight's capabilities. She was an accomplished young telepath, and even if her opponent was superior there were telltale signs of lying, and she knew how to probe barriers. If there were any up she'd be able to tell. And in this case if there were any up she'd know the Dark Jedi wasn't cooperating in good faith.

She followed the Jedi who'd summoned her along one of the corridors she'd rarely traveled down, near the public entrance, and stopped before the door. She knew it was the right one because two Jedi were standing guard outside. And she could sense the occupant.

Even from a different room she could get a read on him. He was silent, and seemed a little unsure of things. She honestly couldn't say why he'd come here, but she couldn't read any evil intentions on him. He genuinely didn't seem to be a threat, and she couldn't detect any barriers with her passive probe.

But still, Dark Jedi could be incredibly dangerous, which was why the Guardian who'd summoned her was going to be sitting at her side. As she hovered outside the door he reminded her of questions to ask, and promised to intervene if there was a need.

And then she walked into the room and sat down in the seat across from the bearded and shrouded man, smoothing her skirt and elaborate sash as she did so. Smiling sedately at the man.

"My name is Sherasti," the Togruta Knight began. "What's yours?"

[Vako]

Varrin could sense the numerous people around that surrounded him. Not just the ones that were outside, but the ones everywhere in the temple. He had been close to the Jedi Temple on several occasions since he had first arrived on Coruscant, but being in it was an entirely different thing. There were so many there, and the force was strong in all of them. This however was more of an annoyance then it was a worry. His mind had let go the idea that he was in danger there. Perhaps he was, perhaps he wasn’t, but it was no worse off then if he was walking around on his own. He was still old, and had thought about his own death for a long time. If it came here, he wouldn’t see hardly a difference then how Thun and Yura had died. He just continued breathing, and ignoring everything that was around him.

When the door opened, he had almost failed to notice. Varrin had found ways of meditating through extreme circumstances, with lots of noise and energy pouring in all around him. Such adaptations tended to happen when someone spent years in swamps and forests with nothing but the indigenous life. The fact that he had noticed caused his eyes to open.

He was looking in the right direction as they came around to sit in front of his pedestal. He kept his eyes forward on them. There were two of them. Varrin however was no making plans for an escape. He wasn’t running through his mind on how to get out of there, how he would defeat or kill the two in front of him, nothing of the sort. He had his mind simply on where he was. Varrin had his mind so connected to the present he hadn’t even given a moment to try to press the minds of the two young Jedi that had entered. He had no interest in seeing what they thought, or who they were. He had followed his own will there, and he was following it still.

With the request for his name, Varrin didn’t think about how to answer. He had no need to. He was straight forward, and had no time for games. He was searching for nothing, yet looking for everything. This was the goal that had overtaken his life, and it kept him utilizing all the time he could. For much of the four decades prior, he had spent little time speaking. He didn’t bother wasting time on speaking to animals, which some would suggest might have helped keep him sane. But at the point he was at, there wasn’t much more to the stupor of insanity that he could achieve. He just remained looking forward and shot out his answer in his airy, yet gruff tone. ”Varrin Torik”

He had not said his name to anyone in many years. But the fact was that no one had asked. He considered himself to be “The Shaman of Autumn”, and if the question What he was had been asked, that was how he would have answered. But since he was directly asked his name for the first time in a very long time, there was no reason not to give it.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"Well Varrin," Sherasti began as she placed hand gently in the other, though it was hardly a nervous gesture. "Why did you come here, to the Jedi Temple? Did you want to submit yourself to the judgment of the Council?"

The Togruta had to admit she was genuinely curious what brought the man here, why he'd come. And she had her own wishes of course.

Redemption was a beautiful thing, and if this man had chosen to turn his life around, to change from the dark side? Well then, she wanted to support him. It was her duty to support him.

"I'm sure if you've truly changed we can all respect that, and we can support you. You just need to tell us everything you can, how you came here and why. What you want. Don't be afraid, I'm here to listen to you."

She sat back in her seat and simply watched him now, reaching out with her abilities to touch his mind and gauge what he said. That was her special gift, her talent. She was doing her part by using it now.

[Vako]

Blinking slowly, Varrin considered the questions. He didn’t consider himself a complex person, in fact he never considered himself. He kept his thoughts always towards other things. He didn’t like focusing on himself, since that was no way to find the answer he was looking for. Granted he didn’t quite know what the answer was that he was looking for, or even what the question was, but he’d continue on until he could find it.

He took the questions as he wanted them. He didn’t feel like answering the question about submitting to the council. Varrin took his own meaning out of it, and presumed it to be that they wanted to cleanse him of any darkness that perhaps was inside of him. But Varrin did not consider himself a servant of the Dark Side, nor that was controlled by the darkness. He had merely reacted throughout the entirety of his life in the way that he needed to. In his mind it was need. He was not selfish, he was not self centered. He was merely a force of reaction, no different then the rats that had surrounded him for decades. He was just a creature trying to go on living.

”I’m here to find an answer.” Varrin hazed out. It didn’t occur to him that the woman would have no idea what he was talking about, in his mind it made sense. But his mind was a cluttered mess so that he only thought it made sense, when in fact he had no idea what he was looking for.

His eyes blinked once more and he came to the decision to speak more. ”I’ve returned here following it.” At that point his mind was open. He wasn’t the most forthcoming as it came to speaking. He had never been overly talkative, he couldn’t have been, not with Thun as his master. And that had carried on throughout his isolation. He could answer questions, so long as they were asked. But if they were not, then he would be left to sit finding things on his own just as he had done for most of his life.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"An answer to what question?" Sherasti inquired curiously. This man was so very unusual, thoroughly different, and though not dangerous at the moment, there was the possibility he was extremely dangerous.

But danger or not, she was intrigued. Every answer had to have a matching question, and he wanted to know something. And if he wanted to know something, she wanted to know something too.

There was always something worth knowing in the universe, from general knowledge all the way to the Force itself. Life was a continual learning experience, a massive quest to find the answers to those questions.

But in this case she didn't know what question the man was searching out an answer for.

There were concepts she could guess a Dark Jedi coming to the Temple might have on his mind. Atonement. Redemption. Forgiveness.

The dark side was a lonely state of being, wholly unlike the light. And she knew if she ever fell, a core of her being would beg to be brought back.

She hoped that was why he'd come here.

[Vako]

A twitch in Varrin’s upper lip revealed his frustration. A glimmer of aggravation poured off of him and into the room, but not one that suggested he was about to thrust himself forward to attack. No, it was really just an addition to his previous confusion. The black cloud that existed in his head was hard for him to navigate, and he was somewhat angered by her question, since he didn’t know what.

The fact was that Varrin hadn’t the slightest clue what he was looking for, or what he was doing. He was looking for something, and he didn’t know what it was. And that fact had brought him back to the Jedi temple, a place where things had at one point seemed clearer for him. He knew that it wouldn’t be as simple as arriving and suddenly he would receive enlightenment, that mindset had left him years ago when he first began venturing from secluded world to secluded world. Instead he thought that over time that the answer might come to him, and with it revealing the question that he had all along.

Up until that point, neither had happened, and he had done simply what every force user was always taught to do. Follow the Force.

His mind didn’t allow him to dwell on figuring out a way to clarify his point for the young Jedi, he had no desire to do so. It would only make things worse in his head, and he didn’t want that. Instead he moved his mind ever further into the present.

Varrin was not blind to his situation, and he had not naively walked into the Temple thinking that it would not happen. Regardless, he didn’t know what reason they would have for doing it. In some ways, he presumed that he may be captured for the murder of his companions to the Mission Omwat. Even though he had done nothing of the sort, and had suffered a worse fate then they had. The fact was that two of the lightsabers were theirs, and the original crystals now hung around his neck. Their been replaced with a deep red, which he had done to mimic the color that Varrin felt represented the betrayal and ill fate they had suffered, likely didn’t help.

None of that really crossed his mind. And he did want to know. Though he was their on his own free will, and was being placed in front of an inquisitor, that did not mean he did not have questions of his own.

”Why am I locked and under guard.” he groaned out, in a way that sounded more like a statement then a question. He continued looking forward at the young Jedi who had asked the questions, and his breathing remained steady. Having been a captive for ten years hadn’t helped his enthusiasm for the situation of being placed in it once again, and the thought of it began to flow through his mind as he said it.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sherasti resisted the urge to sigh at the man's response. She'd been hoping for something a little more... helpful... Instead she'd gotten another question.

There were too many of those. What she needed were answers.

The whole problem, from what she could sense, was that the man across from her didn't know the answers himself. It was clear there was something more to his mind, some sort of confusion clouding him, obscuring his thoughts from himself. She wasn't sure if it was age or corruption, but it was very real. He had a barrier of his own up. Something restricting him.

Well, it wouldn't hurt to answer his question, as a sign of good faith.

She eyed the man's beard as she prepared her diplomatic response. Something she was good at.

"You aren't a Jedi, and we could all sense your darkness. We have to find out what your intentions are, and see if you pose a threat before we decide what to do with you. If you like, I could summon a Council member to speak with you."

Sherasti folded her hands in her lap and looked at him, peering under his hood in search of his eyes as she chose her next words.

"But for now, you could tell me what brought you here. How did you get here? Are you alone?"

[Vako]

They could sense his darkness. This particular phrase stood out to Varrin. They could sense his darkness. What had this meant really? He couldn’t say for certain, but the trouble was that he didn’t understand this either. Varrin had spent years in isolation, but before that he had spent a decade imprisoned. How could he be blamed for being a product of his environment? But at the same time Varrin knew precisely what he had become. The years of being kept on his own, the acts of vengeance, the hatred and grief he’d felt. It was everything that he’d been taught for years to strive to stay away from. For all he had tried however, he had no choice. The torture, the mocking, the isolation. All of that for years, matched with the evidence that there really was no hope. He did only what he could, but by the time he’d managed to escape, his thoughts were so consumed by his rage that he hadn’t the slightest issue with removing the limbs of the man responsible.

Though he had been gone for years, he still knew the Jedi well. He had been one for his entire life leading up to that point. But now he was far from it, and he understood that. It had just never been laid before him so plainly. He had not spoken to an actual Jedi, trained at the Temple as a force for good, since before he had left Omwat. And to hear one who was perhaps a quarter of his age tell him that he wasn’t one struck a blow in his mind, but not one that he showed. He was too focused on the present for that.

”I am alone.” Varrin answered. ”I have been alone for forty years.” His gruff, harsh tone was not one of anger. It was only the way he’d come to speak. ”I’ve come to… He hesitated a moment trying to come up with the words of why he was there. It was a hard question for him, and he had no way to place it. Finally after a few seconds he came up with something, though he knew it wasn’t a very complete thought. ”… find something.” He finished, keeping his gaze forward as he spoke.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Find something?

What would you come to find at the Jedi Temple? That was something Sherasti could guess at with reasonable confidence. Peace. What else was there a Dark Jedi would be missing, but the Jedi would have? Something everyone desired. Yes, there was compassion, there was mercy. But both of those followed from Peace. It was the very core of a Jedi's being.

There is no emotion, there is peace.

"Well," the Togruta began as she smiled thinly. "Maybe we can help you find it Varrin. Do you remember the Jedi Code? You can trust in its wisdom to help you now. Try to remember with me."

Sherasti closed her eyes and took a breath before beginning to recite the code slowly, hoping the man would join in with her. He'd been a Jedi once, she was sure of that. And the knowing glance from her fellow Jedi had confirmed it.

Then she spoke aloud, touching his mind as well, implanting the words there as well, making sure he heard it all.

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.

[Vako]

Blinking once again Varrin stopped trying to actively find something and just listened. The idea of people helping him find something that he himself didn’t know of was a strange idea. But at the same time it was something that was never offered to him before. He was in many ways hostile to the idea. That it was here at the Temple he had to find himself in order to get that help. But he wasn’t one who could blame the whole for the mistakes of others. He had been alive, and the Jedi couldn’t sense that Gavit was lying. But that event probably happened before the young Jedi before him was even born, and so he wasn’t going to throw it at her.

He was somewhat skeptical about how he should react to the offer of assistance. He hadn’t been helped by anyone for anything in a long time. Only drifting and doing what he needed to in order to survive. But there was no one there with him to help. So he took in a skeptical neutrality, wondering where it would lead him.

”Peace.” Varrin said catching up with the young Jedi in front of him. He continued as she did.

”There is no ignorance, there is knowledge...

There is no passion, there is serenity...

There is no chaos, there is harmony.

Varrin stopped knowing what came next. This was something that he had struggled with for a long time. In most ways he accepted it, but all the while he had blocks in his mind that made it difficult. But his apprentice and his masters death was something that had shaken him hard. In spite of his more crazed and disillusioned state, he had still come to grips that they were of the Force. Part of this was why he changed their saber crystals. It was simply to reflect the tone of their passing.

…there is the Force.” Varrin finished, a moment behind the Consular before him.

In that moment Varrin thought about his being at the temple. He had not recited the code in many years, but still knew it very well. Sitting there he began to have a thought pass through his mind. Perhaps the reason he had thought to come to the Temple was specifically so that he could get help in finding the answer. It was the Force that Varrin followed, and he thought that perhaps that was what had brought him there.

Blinking once more, Varrin opened his mouth. ”What is to happen to me.” He asked in his gruff tone which displayed it like a statement once more. He did not sense a great hostility in the air towards him, merely caution. This was not a surprise, but he did want to know what would come next.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sherasti weighed the question asked of her, mulling over how to respond to it. It wasn't an easy thing to be asked, and it wasn't something she could answer with experience or with confidence. He was asking for a prognosis on his fate, and that wasn't something she was in a place to judge. It wasn't in her purview.

She couldn't give a complete answer. And that bothered her.

But she remained perfectly calm anyway as she ran through the list of options she could think of.

"I'm not sure Varrin. Anything is possible. The Council could decide to place you in custody until you've atoned. They could sever you from the Force. They might keep you here for healing, to make sure your mind is intact. You might even be released today. But no matter what, I want you to know you made the right decision coming to us. You were right to come here, and rest assured whatever the Council chooses will be right."

She looked to the other Jedi and spoke directly into his mind, her lips remaining pressed together and no sound coming from her mouth whatsoever.

Summon one of the Councilors, I think one of them will be needed soon.

The other Jedi nodded and whispered a few words into a comm link, working to arrange for one of those leaders to arrive and provide real answers.

In the meantime she just turned her violet eyes back onto the man and watched him closely.

[Vako]

Varrin closed his eyes a moment as the younger Jedi spoke. He didn’t have any idea what they would do to him. He wasn’t sure if he would be brought to tribunal for alleged crimes, if he would be subject to large investigation, or if they would just throw him back out into the expansive sea that was the universe. These questions had hardly bothered him when he walked up to the steps, and they didn’t bother him then. He was not suicidal, but he had thought about what would happen if he was dead. The reality was that nothing would really change. He’d been out in the middle of no where for so long, that the only difference that would have come if he’d have died out there was that some of the swamp creatures probably would have had an easy meal. But this bleak outlook was not something that Varrin thought of frequently. It was just his reality.

If he died here though, it would be a bit different. It was not much of a secret that he was actually there, he knew that much. But his being there wasn’t something that he considered should go down with much notice. Had he charged at the steps blade presented and gone out violently, then he likely would have just been billed as a Sith, and silenced all the same. However, Varrin was no Sith, and not a student of Dark teachings. Anything that had managed to find its way inside of him was simply as a result of his spirit breaking. Though it had been broken, he still managed to continue living, which was probably the greatest challenge anyone could be faced with.

Another question appeared in Varrin’s mind as he sat there. His focus fluctuated from place to place, but it found itself on his necklace. He thought about three lightsaber crystals tied around his neck, a light green of his masters, the purple of his apprentice, and the darker green that had been his. He contemplated on what they would have wanted him to do. This thought left him quickly, as a portion of Varrin’s defensive nature came into his mind. Not in an aggressive way, more in a sharp inquisitive sense.

”And what of the three blades?” Varrin asked, for the first time in a way that sounded like he was actually asking something. He had come in with three lightsabers, though two of them hadn’t been used in over 40 years, and were hidden inside of his robes. They all had red crystals placed in them, but they were not the original crystals. The original crystals were on his necklace, but he had still held on to the sabers, and wanted to know if he would get them back.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

The question confused Sherasti, and she looked at the other Jedi present in the room, who seemed to know more than she did. Immediately she could read that he knew precisely what the old man meant by 'three blades,' which was good considering she didn't.

"He's referring to the lightsabers he brought with him. We confiscated them when we took him into custody."

"Ah," Sherasti said as she nodded before turning back to Varrin.

She had an apologetic look on her maroon face as she tilted her head slightly and rubbed one of her three headtails with her left hand. As it happened, the Hutt healer Mal had been quite right. The work he'd done on her weak arm had helped the range of motion greatly, and that was a bit of a relief. She'd gotten so used to the limitations over the years. No longer.

"Well I'm sorry, but you probably won't get those back. Certainly not right now, if that's what you wanted."

[Vako]

A groan came from Varrin’s throat. He didn’t like the idea of the weapons he’d carried for so long being taken from him simply out of no where. He could have expected them being confiscated from him, which is why he did not put up a fight when they had been snatched out of his robes, and off of his belt. But he did not quite understand the full meaning of what the young consular had said. Either she was suggesting he would never see them again, or they would be returned to him at a later time. For now however they were not with him, which did put him on edge slightly. Over a certain amount of time those weapons had come to symbolize what had happened to their previous owners.

Varrin had become a strange person as it came to representation. He kept the weapons with matching red crystals to symbolize their betrayal, pain, and death, and at the same time he kept the original color crystals all tied together and at the base of his necklace to symbolize what they had been. This included himself. He carried his own representation of what he used to be around his neck, simply so that he would have something to look at and remember. The large amount of time he’d had to himself let him think on the past frequently. But when he was doing it so often, the memories became disjointed, diluted, and overtime weren’t even accurate. This led to him forgetting a fair amount of it, which had always been a difficult thing for him to deal with. That was something that led him to remain always in the present, so that he wouldn’t have to recall the fact that he did not remember the things of the past.

”They’re not mine” Varrin hazed out. ”Not all of them” Only one of them had actually been his. But he’d have to know what was happening to them, and to him, before he could really say anything.

He shifted his weight on his seat, and adjusted his robe. He was hunched over a bit, which was common for him. As he moved, some of the fangs and claws that were strung around his robe clattered together, and made a light sound like that of a tribal percussion instrument. He then just dropped his mouth, and Varrin groaned once more.

[Jenno]

Long day. But then, again, those spent in the temple usually were for Vreem Took. His visit here was coming to an end; the new Blades headquarters on Seraphim was almost ready. It wouldn’t be long before he was surrounded by generals and admirals of the Republic and some of his fellow Masters from the Blades. Strategy and logistics was a gruelling process, but crucial nonetheless.

Vreem had decided to use this opportunity to sit upon the Council today, to deal with the daily matters that came forth. During this session, which not all of the Council Members were required to be present for, they were contacted by the Jedi Gate Master. It was an odd instance where he would message them directly, but he had left information that a possible Dark Jedi had handed himself in to the Order. The Council organised and dispatched a number of Jedi present in the temple to start questioning and guard the man. Vreem said that he would talk to this Dark Jedi and gain an assessment of the man to present to the Council.

It was on his way to meet this Dark Jedi that he was contacted by Jedi Knight Trul Krevak, who had recently returned from the Outer Rim with him. He was helping to oversee the talks with this Dark Jedi and once the Knight asking him questions, Sherasti Rin, had discovered the man’s name, Krevak relayed the information to him instantly.

Vorrin Torik. Vreem didn’t recall the name, but fortunately his position on the council gave him access to a huge range of information on members of the Order, known associates and known Dark Jedi. So arriving at his quarters, Vreem proceeded to search the Jedi databases for what he could on ‘Vorrin Torik’. The results were both interesting and highly confusing.

Storing some of the information on his datapad, Vreem made his was down to the room where this Dark Jedi was being held. As he was on his way a call came in asking for a member of the Council to talk to the temple’s visitor. Vreem made his way to them as quickly as he could. This would be a different experience for him, assuming this was truly a Dark Jedi, to talk to one and not cross sabers with them like he had been doing so frequently with the Sith. But then again, this Dark Jedi was certainly quite different.

Nodding his head to the Jedi who stood on guard at the door, he made his way inside to where both Sherasti Rin and Trul Krevak were. He didn’t know the former beyond any formal matters, but he fought side by side with the young Guardian and so knew the shistavanen quite well. He bowed his heads to them, a small clinking noise coming from his armour as he did so. “Thank you Knight Rin, Knight Krevak. If you wish to remain during this discussion then you may do so.”

Walking towards the Dark Jedi, Vreem bowed his head again. “Hello, I am Jedi Master Vreem Took, member of the High Council. I hope you don’t mind me joining you.” he said, taking a seat. “Would you like some tea?” He looked the Dark Jedi over; he was half expecting it to be some young upstart using the name to get their attention. But no, the man before him was old; his face showed it, and it was certainly old enough.

As Vreem felt the man’s aura through the Force, he could sense the darkness within. But more prevalent than the darkness was the turmoil that raged on around this man. He began to address him. “I’ve been told that you gave the name Varrin Torik to Jedi Knight Rin. After searching our databases I have only yielded one result of a Varrin Torik who could use the Force. However, he was reported to have died on a mission many years ago. If you are who you say you are then please, tell me what happened.”

[Vako]

Sensing a shift in the Force, Varrin’s eyes moved to the side. He did not turn his head, but attempted to catch what it was out of his peripheral. At that moment the door opened up and he could catch the outline of a man. Though the door opening had not changed anything, the closer this man now was presented a strange difference. When he moved closer, his energy seemed to unite with those in front of Varrin. It was a start contrast that he himself could feel plainly. The three worked almost like an open well of energy, the light emanating off of them and pouring around.

This had also happened earlier when Varrin first entered the temple, but this was different. His mind was more open to his surroundings, and less concentrated on searching for something. And with it being so close, and so much, it stood out to Varrin much more.

He kept his eyes on the new arrival. He looked young, but Varrin could sense that was misleading. The man merely looked good for his age, not like himself. Varrin had aged terribly, and had no trace of his youth upon him. He said nothing, and breathed through his mouth unsure of what was going to happen.

”No.” He responded with a grinded tone. Varrin had come to take very little, and had been on a diet of water or juice, and not much of it at a time. He could not find himself drinking for recreation or to calm himself. He took in sustenance simply out of necessity, as that was how he’d learned to survive.

The mention of him being perceived dead didn’t bother Varrin terribly. He had been told by his captor that he was supposedly dead decades ago. That fact was part of the reason he’d stayed away from the Temple for so long. He had trouble coping with the idea of going back to a group that he felt didn’t prepare him for what had happened, and then believed a lie about what actually did. But when asked about what actually happened, Varrin wasn’t sure how to put it to words.

Varrin had never been asked about what happened on the mission to Omwat, never once. He had wondered about how he would tell someone, but had never come to an answer. There was so much to tell. However Varrin had reached a point where he did most of his talking to himself, and not out loud.

His face twitched a bit, his nostrils flared, and left eye narrowed all in a flash, as the images of what had happened rushed through his mind. At that moment he stopped being in the room, and was back on Omwat. He could feel the scar on his back in that moment, and in his mind described exactly what happened in a way that his mind understood completely.

”They shot us.”

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sherasti rose to her feet as Vreem entered, bowing her head in respect, her montrals dipping towards him in the movement. As he entered she stepped aside, bare feet moving noiselessly across the floor as she took her place standing by the door.

She peered at Vreem with her violet eyes, sending him a telepathic message as she did so.

I will wait here. If he tells a lie I will let you know. Please summon me if you need me Master Took."

In silence she stood against the wall, arms folded over each other, lightsaber on her belt, standing like a maroon statue arising from a sea of billowing robes.

She'd done her part for now, and it was up to the Councilor to do what had to be done next. She trusted his wisdom and experience to see the right thing was done, to see that justice for all was carried out.

That was the Jedi way.

[Jenno]

From observing the man’s robes, the look in his eye and the way he seemed to shelter himself from the company of other sentiments, it seemed in Vreem’s mind considerably likely that if this man was in fact Varrin Torik, he had lived in seclusion for quite some time. He turned down the offer for a drink; Vreem had hoped that it might have brought about a much more relaxed atmosphere.

He heard the telepathic voice of Sherasti Rin in his mind, but could make no means of acknowledging her words in a way that would keep their exchange quiet. Instead the Jedi Lord looked over the man before him. The Jedi often find that with age comes a great wisdom within many of their Order, or so they believe. But before him he saw a Jedi older than most, one who was lost from their path. But Vreem had come face to face with the darkness present within many and within himself. He knew the scent of the dark side.

But Varrin was not engulfed in its stench. It lingered around him, but far less than many of those Vreem had confronted in his life time. There was certainly a hope for him. But as the lost Jedi responded with three words, the Jedi Master knew it would be difficult to get this man to open up and actually talk.

“I’m sorry Varrin; it’s difficult to grasp the events of the situation through so few words. If you could explain things somewhat more thoroughly I believe we will be able to discuss much more with one another.”

Vreem removed a datapad from his belt, on it he had the information he had found regarding Varrin. “Our archives detail that it was a mission to deal with a group of rogue soldiers. Were they the ones who shot at you? The more detail you can give, the easier it will be for me to understand and to help you.” Vreem gave off a kind and gentle smile, given the so far peaceful nature of the man in front of him, it was important to try and maintain some serenity between them.

[Vako]

The Jedi spoke in front of him. His words were simple, and clear. But all the while Varrin was only taking them at their base. The mind of the old man was drifting back in time, years. He had given a very vague answer for what had happened that night, but it was in part because he himself did not truly want to face before him again what had happened. It was too late for that now. His thoughts moved like a comet hurtling through space. There was nothing to stop it, and if anything got in its way, it would strike it hard. And in his mind, the comet was about to strike the large cluster of memories that was the incident that this Jedi Master wanted to know more about.

Varrin’s teeth pressed together, lightly at first, and then with increased tension. His hands rested on his legs, and his thumb twitched. The thought of the “Rogue Soldiers” firing on him was what was setting him off. He wasn’t going to lash out, and make a run for it as a result of the thought. But the memory itself was of a painful sin that he had committed without any knowledge of doing it. That however had little bearing at the present.

”No.” Varrin hissed out, an evident anger in his tone, answering the question of whether or not it was the rogue republic soldiers that had shot them. He moved in his mind, and his lips and mouth moved slightly as he did, while he looked for the words. ”They… they weren’t rogue…” His airy tone came through, scratchy and his stare was blank. ”… it was Gavit…” He continued. His mind moved through entirety of the weeks events all so quickly, and in his flashes of consciousness he got the words out. ”… He deceived them…. He deceived us…” Varrin had his mind pinpointed to the night, and his blade extended. Deflecting the blaster bolts back at the “rogue troopers” and cutting through them as needed. ”He told us they were slavers… that they were… massacring people, and taking the masses captive....” Varrin’s mouth dropped low. ”And when they fired on us we killed them.”

In an instant Varrin’s anger turned into a horrid fear and sorrow. Almost as though he had just seen a terrible tragedy and could do nothing to stop it. His eyes went wide, and his mouth dropped low. ”But.. they…there… they weren’t the slavers… Gavit sent them there…. He was the slaver…” His right eye then twitched and his left hand trembled while the nerves in his pinky wouldn’t sit still. ”He told them we were rogue Jedi… murderous fugitives… and heading their way…. So they tried to fight us… and we… thought…” Varrin stopped moving suddenly. His gaze still looking out forward, but seeing nothing.

”Gavit then came…. And he…..” Suddenly Varrin could see the Jedi falling. Thun, Yura, and Kaad all being struck down. His scar from the blaster bolt began to hurt as he became conscious of it. ”…. He killed them…” Varrin’s mouth was opened and his expression was that of a person who was looking at something so foreign and difficult to understand that their mind was completely at odds with itself, which for Varrin, was exactly how it was.