Runaway Reunion

[Vreem Took]

His breath was heavy and his head was light, each gasp pounded within his head, he could almost feel his skull cracking from within. Yet each breath helped him to recover just a little bit. His escape had been a risky one but he’d managed to pull it off without receiving any sort of serious injury. But now, due to the large exertion of the Force in such a short period of time, Vreem was finding it hard to keep everything together. His mind was crying for a long respite but he knew he had to get off of this world as soon as possible; there was no time to spare.

Yet he didn’t know where he was going, he couldn’t, his mind would not focus fully. He really had outdone himself this time. If one of the other Masters were here they would be talking to him about the advantages of being conservative and thinking ahead in order to carefully plan one’s actions. Yes, even Vreem was not exempt from the lectures of his peers; he doubted he ever would be. He was in a weakened state right now and was finding it hard to reach out with the Force, he couldn’t tell if that was due to his exhaustion or due to the planet he still stood on. Walking along the barren path Vreem looked at the arid ground before him, the cracks and ruptures within the ground were quite prominent. He could really feel it now, the effects of Korriban, his cage. It felt as though the dark side was stream from the cracked floor like a horrendous sulphurous gas, slowly poisoning and perverting his body.

He was exposed to it much more now that his guard was down; he could here it nagging at the back of his mind as he trawled aimlessly up along path, flanked by two rockfaces. He had exited the cave a little while earlier after discovering a passage which led outside, he’d been lucky that there was another way out as the Jedi Master could have sworn he’d heard to distant sounds of animals and on a world as corrupted as this, they wouldn’t be the petting kind of animals.

But right now he didn’t know where he was or where he was going, he was just trying to get as far away from that valley as he could. Without warning the path widened and Vreem, no longer to hold off the mental strain of the fight, collapsed to the ground where he lay for a few moments breathing heavily again and again. When a small amount of strength returned to him, Vreem pushed himself off the floor and crossed his legs. Now was as good a time as any to meditate, help his body restore some of its strength so that he could get back to the Temple. So he could return home.

After a short period had passed the pounding in his head faded and finally Vreem was able to focus with the Force. He was slightly surprised when he could not sense the presence of any of the Dark Jedi behind him. Perhaps they saw no value in hunting him down, although that was something he doubted. More than likely they had an agenda, and that came before senseless killing. It didn’t take long, however, for Vreem to begin to feel impatient. Meditation itself was never that helpful when it came to restoring one’s mental integrity but here on Korriban it was even slower for the light side of the Force to have any affect on him. In those few moments Vreem fell to temptation, the desire to flee from the world was too great. He called upon the darkness of Korriban and it herded into him. Although he was careful to try and moderate it, Vreem couldn’t deny that this would be an incident to leave out of his report when he returned.

As expected of Grahn’s teachings, Vreem was able to recover much quicker, although he loathed every minute that he used the dark side to revitalize himself. It didn’t take too long until he forced himself out of the trance. He was both shocked and appalled at himself for the weakness, even if it had helped him. As Vreem got to his feet he felt sick with disgust. He was meant to be a Jedi Master, a member of the High Council, how could he have fallen so far as to resort to the dark side of the Force?

Heading along the path once again Vreem seemed to get more and more annoyed with himself, even angry. He was stuck within his thoughts his outrage when the sound of a ship caused him to snap out of his train of thought. He was thankful it had as well because afterwards he’d realised his folly. Every moment he was spending on this world was hampering him, he had just gotten angry at himself, his reaction should have been to absolve those feelings, not fuel them further.

Following the pathway the rock faces sunk into the earth until they were no more and Vreem was presented with the vast lifeless plain which covered a large part of this world. Not too far away he could see the ship settle down, he headed towards it, he could pretty much guess that there was a Dark Jedi on board, which meant another battle. Words would most likely fail him here. Focusing, Vreem cleared his mind, wiping clean the feelings which had built up on him, a momentary weakness which he would meditate upon later, when he was free of this world. After all, he was a Jedi and feelings as blinding as anger could not be kept within his mind. The ship grew larger.

[\J|K/]

The ship grew larger as its now well worn surface neared the planet. On board housed Veratos, Apprentice to the Dark Overloard himself. Normally the being stayed submerged in meditation until his craft firmly landed. He did hate space travel so. The traveling bit was well enough, it was really the landings he hated. Though there was something different about this particular landing that tickled his scenes. Perhaps it was his low fuel, perhaps the planet where he was arriving, or the dust storm in the distance. Or maybe, just maybe it was the being Veratos felt on the surface.

Was he waiting for him? Had he been sent by the council to retrieve him? Retrieve, likely not, the council knew the missions they had used their Jahn for. If he had spent this much time from the Order they knew he would be dead or fallen. If this was his lost friend he would be here for his saber or head. Both, in this day and age, were still of use to him.

His shuttle set down on the rocky surface causing more dust and debris to flare into the air. There was little avoiding it now so Veratos spent little time preparing. The landing ramp was extended and he pressed into the cloudy air. The dirt stung his eyes and distracted him. That was unacceptable. Veratos lifted his hand and in a lazy sweep tunneled through the cloud. The Force was not a gimmick or tool to use for cheep tricks, normally he would have fought through the burn. But if this was indeed Vreem Took, High Council Member, Veratos wanted his eyes on him. Ideally before the Jedi Master has time to act.


((omg sorry for the short / lame / awkward / uneventful post. I'm on my way to class and can't stand to make this thread wait any longer.))

[Vreem Took]

Each step brought Vreem a growing disheartening feeling. When he’d taken the first step towards the ship he had felt the root of a feeling within him, and with each imprint his boots left in the dust the feelings stemmed and stemmed. The feeling of darkness and uncertain familiarity grew with him, perplexing him. It was a presence he knew well, one he should be able to recognise and yet it was different, something clouded his mind stopped him placing a face to his feelings. Was it the Force stopping him or was it his own mind, did he not want to figure out who it was in that ship.

As he stood only a few metres away from the ship’s descending ramp, the feelings hung down upon him like a lead curtain. It was before the man was visible to him that the realisation bloomed within his mind. He knew who it was, how could he not know, even after so long the Force echoed within them so clearly that he should have known from the moment ship flew overhead. But it was the darkness which had forced his mind to reject all proposals of reason, to deny the simple truth which he had anticipated long ago. History was catching up with him, here of all worlds, the irony made his stomach churn.

When the dust finally cleared he could see the figure of Jahn Minraun, Jedi Knight, at least he had been the last time Vreem had seen him. When was the last time they’d spoken? That was right, just after the mission to Kashyyyk. It had been that mission which had drawn the two together, they had both risked a lot on that mission it had been extremely dangerous even by Vreem’s standards. Yet they had worked side by side with such precision and speed that success seemed to be the only option for them.

It was a mission which pushed both physically and mentally, made them both ask questions about the Order, questions which Vreem had already confronted but ones that Jahn seemed to be facing for the first time. It had not been long after they had freed the Wookiees, exposed the traders and returned home that Jahn had disappeared, dropped off the Order’s radar. Vreem had thought he’d convinced the Knight to stay with the Order, to see past their failings in order to protect those who needed it. But from the moment he heard of Jahn’s disappearance he had been afraid of the worst. After seeing him at Kashyyyk, he knew that the Knight would not be dead no, he was too good to have failed on a mission of any lesser calibre than Kashyyyk. Which meant he had left the Order, with his lightsaber still under his possession as well.

Even with the use of some of his contacts Vreem had been unable to find even the slightest about Jahn. He had not wanted to believe that he had fallen, but it was rare for a Jedi to fall grey, more often than not they would succumb to the darkness. And now before him stood the same man, the same Jedi he had once known. But now he had embraced the darkness, drew power from it to give him strength. The sight reminded Vreem of himself all those years ago. Yet this felt different, it felt raw, not like the aura of any dark sider he had felt previously. Something was certainly different.

“J… Jahn!” He exclaimed weakly, “why are you… why have you… what are you?” He finished, his mind was a mess, ravaged by confusion and lack of understanding, which came through in his speech. His usual confident tone was lost at Jahn’s presence.

[\J|K/]

A sadness filled Veratos at the sight of Vreem. It was not that he regretted his decision but that he had to leave to this man behind. Kashyyyk had meant a lot to the Jedi Knight Jahn Minraun. It was the first time he learned true respect for a Jedi though it was the beginning of the end for him. The grand master had proven the fatal flaw of the Order to him. The Jedi were not willing to risk lives in order to accomplish what needed to be done. They could never do great things. They could never protect what matters most.

The Jedi had once used Jahn and his ability to resist the Dark Side. They charged him with missions that would melt the run of the mill Knight. The Council must have known the darkness that was growing in the galaxy but they were unwilling to face the facts. Sacrifices must be made for the good of the people. Jahn knew what sacrifice he had to make. He would have to become what the Jedi feared most to bring peace. His sole was forfeit but from his loss a new government would rise. One that was willing to sacrifice. One that was willing to get dirty.

So this is what it came to. Veratos would have to kill the Jedi who Jahn respected most. Vreem was more than a mentor to the former Knight, he was hope. Hope that the Jedi would one day rise to the solution of galactic decay. Now Veratos knew that day would never come. Vreem's death would mark the death of Jahn Minraun and finalize the birth of the Sith Lord within him. Vreem was his sacrifice to atone for the sins of the galaxy. The first of many.

"Its been long Master... much has changed." It was now that Veratos noticed the disheveled demeanor of the Jedi Master. Why was a Jedi lurking on this planet? He must have come expecting a fight. But was he expecting Veratos? Did the Council know just how far he had fallen? Veratos was not going to reveal the depths of his fall, that was for his new Master to decide. The revelation of the Sith was not a choice for him to make. Though he wondered if Vreem knew.

"This planet is a bit far from Council jurisdiction," he paused for a moment then began to close the remaining distance between them. "I wonder what would bring Vreem Took to Korriban. Doing some Dark Jedi hunting, or has the council sent you to collect the fallen?

[Vreem Took]

(It's diabolical but it's something. Sorry about it but I'm just not feeling too great right now.)

Jurisdiction, that was the second time he’d heard such a comment passed during this visit. Truly no one understood that the Jedi, like the Force, had no boundaries when it came to their cleansing. Wherever the Force flowed the Jedi would have the right to pass the necessary judgement but this was not something he wanted to debate. In fact, as a Jedi this probably should have occupied more thought than it did as his mind glazed past the comment.

The doubt and disbelief was beginning to dissolve. Slowly an air of caution wafted between them. Vreem had to face the facts; to deny the truth here would be foolish, Jahn had fallen. He could feel it; the Force seemed to scream the fact to him. How he wanted it to be wrong, for Jahn to simply return to Coruscant with him now, return to the Order. But things were never simple, and the Force was never wrong.

Finally he built up the courage to speak, his mouth and throat were dry through, Korriban’s air had stolen what moisture there had been. “We came to investigate the tombs here and nothing else. The Jedi have sensed the growing darkness as it approaches; we sought guidance, any sort of knowledge which might help us combat this thread before it could spiral beyond control. I joined along because none of the others know this world, they have never touched its surface, I sought to keep them safe. But we were attacked…” He trailed off, what were there losses, one Knight fallen, a Master whom may have been consumed by the trap in the Sith Lord’s tomb and then Ryn to what degree he was injured Vreem didn’t know, perhaps he would never be able to return to the field. All Vreem could do was hope, hope that his fellow Council Member had obtained something which could make up for their losses. In order to keep the death toll down, Vreem also needed to escape this planet.

Jahn approached, Vreem’s hand was steady but only just, he could sense the darkness and how it was beginning to direct itself towards him, perhaps Jahn meant to kill him, the of which knocked Vreem back farther than any punch could. His heart beat with the pounding impact, the loss of a friend was a horrible experience, but to see one turn ruptured hearts so badly that nothing could heal it.

“What happened to you Jahn,” he asked sincerely, “how did you fall so far?” His voice was soft and gentle as he begged the question. Vreem had many weaknesses; his connection to others was probably the biggest. He would become attached and then when something bad happened, it made things tough on him. It was a part of his character he doubted would ever change.