Open An Open Orchard

[Drow Venn]

Yavin IV by all accounts was an amazing place to start an orchard; it had lush plant life that yielded rich fruits like koyo. And Drow intended to start one. For one, he'd obtained a lifetime of studies and notes taken by a long-dead Jedi by the name of Dune Tarn. Tarn had been a botanist first and a Jedi second and these books contained a wealth of information on how to make almost any plant thrive on the planet Teth and, given Teth and Yavin IV had similar climates, Drow was confident he could do this. He'd been practicing with small houseplants in his living quarters in the Temple and had found a certain amount of serenity while gardening that he thought doing it on a larger scale would be quite relaxing. Plus, the funds generated from selling excess fruit could help give the Order more spending power.

He brought with him several people among them a few of the Gammorrean guards from the Grojuk clan that served the Order as security guards. Not only would this new orchard require a guard or two to ward off wildlife and hungry Padawans but Drow figured their large muscles would be perfect in clearing out this area. Plus, they seemed eager to help.

"Right so this area here already has a ton of koyo trees. You can identify them based on the striping of the trunks. We're going to build a fence around here, here, here, and here to keep the animals out." Drow told his assembled crew, marking each area with a pole to convey where the fence would go.

"We can clear any non-koryo trees and use that as the wood for the fencing. While one team is doing that, another team can start digging the holes for the bellberry bushes. About a meter deep and a meter across. Who wants to do what?" Drow asked his fellow Jedi and the Gammorreans.

@Darasuum @Braden Drake

 

[Yvain]

Yvain waddled behind the larger members of the group, he had been growing plants in his little private garden for the last few months. It had been going well, near fifty years of living on an Outer Rim planet growing fruits and vegetables to get by had given him some perfect experience to grow in tough conditions. When the Jedi Master Drow Venn had put the idea forward of a private orchard close to the temple grounds the old Jedi Knight jumped at the location.

The little green man was wearing his usual working robes, the knees stained with dirt from tending to his own plants. "Well, I guess I shall take the bellberry's." Yvain said with a grin whilst pointing out his size. "I think these boys would be better suited with the trees." He finished pointing at the Gammorrean's who had joined the three Jedi.

@Darasuum @Fantasy Liver

 

[Orenth]

Theme​

The sensation of being on Yavin IV was different from other planets. Byron had broadened his sense and awareness as a Knight. He had lacked heavily in that area as a padawan. Time spent meditating in isolation and reaching across a planet's surface was practiced ever sense his time on Spintir. Quick to pick up ships and technology, the man had very limited experience with actual wildlife. He had lived out of his old light freighter before the destruction of the Ajan Kloss temple. The jungle forest had been a home but that too was different from the unique forest moon.

Denon had given the Knight a lot to think about which was why he had been such a recluse as of late. Though he doubted anybody was surprised given his history.

Drow had risen to the rank of Master since he had last seen him. Now the Ishitib was directing the volunteer orchard. The growing plants and the change this had on the environment he wanted to take the opportunity while it was present. Plants were living things and they were closely intertwined with the lightside of the Force in many cases. The Knight felt he was a cross roads in life and straight forwardness of this exercise might ease his mind. At least that is his hope though there are certain doubts that may persist.

"I'll take a look at the trees." The bearded Jedi said simply. Today he was garbed in nothing but his simple green hued Jedi robes. The indications of his mechanical associations weren't present since he knew he wouldn't need them. Byron wasn't sure how they were going to clear so many trees though. What's more, the man wondered how well this was going to go over with other Jedi. Some could see this as deforestation but the man knew it was never so simple.

His gate was slightly different since getting the prosthetic leg. The synthetic body part was taking some getting used to but Byron also felt like the issues it had resided in his mind more than the limb. Taking a breath in of the humid air and the rich scent of decay and life, he pulled off his right hand's gauntlet and placed it against one of the Koyo trees Drow had pointed out.

@Braden Drake @Fantasy Liver

 

[Ruzaan Kai]

"Come on, R1!" Ruzaan walked quickly down the ramp leading out of the landing craft and breathed in deeply. He shivered in excitement as he opened his senses to the environment around him, reveling in the feel of grasses and dirt beneath his bare feet. This place felt alive, so Ruzaan felt alive, too. He'd jumped at the chance to visit a new planet (his third!), especially one as beautiful as Yavin IV.

A series of trills and beeps cascaded from the ramp behind him. "Really? You've been to Yavin IV before?" Ruzaan looked back at the R1-series droid, unable to keep a smile off of his face. "Well, I promise I'll clean your treads when we're done."

R1-NT, however, was not convinced. The astromech beeped and whistled while refusing to budge from the ramp.

Ruzaan's grin spread even wider. "R1, we'll be gardening. With other Jedi. How much trouble could we possibly get into?"

Leaving the shrill misgivings of R1-NT behind with the ship, Ruzaan strode out into the jungle towards the sound of axes ringing through the trees. He had his training lightsaber, a short-range comlink, and his utility pouch, and had eschewed his Wanderer robes for simple robes; no armor needed for this excursion. He was ready for a new adventure!

@Fantasy Liver @Darasuum @Braden Drake

 

[Drow Venn]

While Drow offered the Gamorreans vibroaxes or even his own lightsaber to help with the cutting, the Grojuk warriors insisted on doing it with traditional wood and steel axes. Something about it strengthening the muscles. That was something Drow could get behind so Drow kept both his lightsabers deactivated for now and grabbed an axe.

"I'll help you with the berries in just a bit, Yvain. Also, let me know if you think the soil there would be good for any other berry bushes too. One of the books I read said that perhaps vineberries could grow in this climate but I'll leave it up to your judgement!" Drow told the little green man, trusting Yvain's expertise. He'd get over there to help Yvain in a bit but first, he wanted to help with the trees first. Fortunately, there weren't all that many non koyo trees in this area so the risk of deforestation was minimal. Plus, with how overgrown the moon, most of it still remained untouched by sentient hands. Still, Drow hated wasting natural resources as much as the next fellow so he resolved to use all the wood they cut down today; whether that was for the fence or maybe for building a small toolshed for gardening equipment if they had enough excess lumber.

"Welcome! Grab an axe or grab a shovel!" Drow shouted enthusiastically to the newcomer Padawan, gesturing to either help him, Byron, and the Gamorreans with the trees or help Yvain with digging the holes for the berry bushes.

"Byron, it's good to see you again, friend. I think I still owe you that drink." Drow said, referring to a time where he and Byron had unsuccessfully tried to infiltrate a Kessel slave mining operation. It had ended poorly with a surprise appearance from a Sith and Byron had ended up being Force Pushed in front of Drow's stun blast. The Ishi Tib still felt a bit bad about it but had yet to pay up the alcoholic apology he'd promised.

@Braden Drake @Darasuum @SlagathorTheUnknown

 

[Ruzaan Kai]

Ruzaan's eyes widened as he took in the scene around him. Half a dozen sweaty Gamorreans were competing amongst themselves to see who could fell a tree in the fewest strokes, grunting with exertion and flexing their muscles in between swings. As he watched, one particularly burly Gamorrean squealed in triumph as their tree fell with a splintering crash, prompting the others to loudly concede defeat and begin doing pushups as penance.

Not wishing to be flattened by an errant tree or do pushups in front of the Gamorreans, Ruzaan grabbed a spade and joined the diminutive green man on the other side of the clearing in digging holes. Within minutes he was drenched in sweat, and the local insects were descending en masse. Was his hole really that small?

"Um... Master Jedi, how big are we supposed to make these?" Ruzzan asked as he scooped another shovelful out of the ground.

@Fantasy Liver @Darasuum @Braden Drake

 

[Arctus Friers]

While he still felt out of place in the Temple, it's residents made up for being patient and kind towards Arctus. The former smuggler reckoned at first that his presence alone would be off-putting enough to have the Jedi walk around him in eggshells, the voices telling him so with gleeful malevolence, but Indy's guidance and gentleness managed to coax Arctus out of his own shell and he'd found himself wandering the halls and even joining classes as a means of helping himself adjust and learn about the new life he now led.

And besides, the Jedi kids – younglings, as they were called – were good at distracting Arctus from the poisoned words that haunted him still. Some of them were inherently good at sensing emotions and the one time Arctus had been struggling to shut the voices out three tiny, adorably cute ankle biters broke off from their group to demand for the former smuggler to join them in a game of hide and seek.

All that to distract him from the ghosts that lived in his mind.

It had been a terribly long time since Arctus felt the familiarity of being a brother figure and so he quietly vowed to himself that he would look out for the younglings and protect them even at the cost of his own life, much like he would do for his own younger brothers back in Corellia. Well, the triplets were all grown up, but still.

Once an older brother, always an older brother.

He'd declined being the big bad monster to the younglings' grandoise play for today, however. Arctus had heard of one Jedi Master Drow Venn's (@Fantasy Liver) project about building an orchard 'round these parts of the Temple. The former smuggler was quick to sign up himself to help in any way he could, and that was how he found himself among the ranks of the Gamorreans who were busy felling trees and making a contest out of it.

Axe in one hand, Arctus had sheepishly declined the offer of one Grojuk clan member in joining their tree felling competition, even joking that he simply didn't have the same strength the Gamorreans possessed. The former smuggler had received a friendly slap on the back that almost had him falling face first on the dirt due to the force behind the slap. Arctus had laughed it off, not offended in the slightest.

Chopping up the wood to be used for the fences and carrying some back on the site, Arctus passed by a Jedi Knight (@Darasuum) in green robes and offered the man a small but polite nod. He'd caught sight of Knight Yvain (@Braden Drake) as well – Arctus had known the little green man from one of Knight Aronas Vicar's classes.

His attention the shifted over the young Togrutan Padawan (@SlagathorTheUnknown) who was enthusiastically shovelling dirt to make a hole for the bellberries. Seeing as the kid seemed to need some help, Arctus had decided to leave the chopping and felling to the Gamorreans and move over to the Togrutan to give the young man a hand.

Once he'd stacked the wood to the side, the former smuggler left his axe behind and swapped it for a shovel. Walking over to the Padawan he'd answer the latter with a friendly smile,

"A bellberry bush will go here so I reckon it's gonna be a meter deep and a meter across."

He looked at the hole the kid was before beginning the process of shoveling away. "Name's Arctus, by the way. Nice to meet a fellow Padawan helping out here."

 

[Yvain]

Where as the bellberry's needed large holes for their planting the vineberries that Master Drow had suggested needed much smaller work, something more suited to the tiny Jedi's statue. "If we work this way for the bellberry's I will start with some Vineberries over here." Yvain said to the two Padawan's who had joined him a shovel in hand, pointing at a line perpendicular to the first fence.

The little green Jedi made his way through the long grass, some of it tall enough to tickle his nose, a large shout in Gammorrean signalled the first tree was falling. Yvain gave a quick look and realizing it was far away carried on moving over to the spot he had picked out for his vineberries. They needed more sunlight than the bell's and less water so having it in the natural clearing to the east of the main sector Master Drow had laid out seemed the most sensible thing.

Reaching the best spot for the sun Yvain began digging, a small trowel in his right hand a second floating next to him with The Force. There was always time to perfect ones ability even whilst gardening he thought as he began making small holes dropping the vineberry seeds in before moving along to the next.

 

[Orenth]

The Jedi lacked his lightsaber and seemed to have forgotten to grab an axe still. His hand placed firmly against the rugged bark. He began to tune things out. The clatter of tools being used against wood echoed through the forest but the Knight didn't mind them. The movement of dozens of feet within earshot were ignored.

In the mind's eye of the Jedi he felt the roots of the koyo tree bit by bit. It was like trying to think about the entire surface pressure on all his limbs at once in equal parts. The man had practiced self sustaining techniques while on Spintir but that was with a lack of resources and in seclusion. The cold mountain tops were harsh but simple compared to the teaming and vibrant experience of just the immediate area. Sufficed to say Byron felt like he could learn a thing or two from a tree.

The Knight didn't try to push himself further in feeling through the tree's senses. Instead he tried to consider the plant's history. Psychokensis was more of a specialty shared by his two mentors, Master Sati and Grayza. But he lacked the affinity for it off the bat. Byron was more curious than anything. The tree was relatively dehdrated. A long lasting heat and lack of rainfall in recent times caused other trees to dry more quickly.

Byron began to move away from the Koyo tree and looked through the arboreal landscape. Trunks and branches criss crossing his line of sight. Native trees, dry and sick would be the best and easiest ones to fell. The green robed jedi stepped over a log and down a slight decline before stopping in front of a trunk as wide as a hoverbus. The man looked it over for a moment, running his hand across the tree. However this one he could tell had a case of severe necrophage. While that would make it easier to move and destroy, he began circling the tree. He planned to punch it or how best to uproot it or throw. The man took off his left matukai gauntlet and stowed it next to the other one before rolling up both of his sleeves.

@Braden Drake @Fantasy Liver @Forsythe Crowholde @SlagathorTheUnknown

 

[Ruzaan Kai]

Ruzaan stared down at the small hole he'd made in the ground, wishing it was bigger. He was definitely going to feel this tomorrow. At least he wasn't working alone; Ruzaan was of the opinion that it is always better to have company around, and Arctus seemed like a fellow with lots of stories.

"Hi, Artcus! My name is Ruzaan." the Togruta said, wiping away a bead of sweat from his eyes. "I've seen you around the temple, all the younglings adore you!"

Ruzaan turned his attention back to the hole he was digging. This one would need a lot more work. "Thank you for helping. Got any tales to tell to pass the time?" he asked Artcus.

@Braden Drake @Fantasy Liver @Forsythe Crowholde @Darasuum

 

[Drow Venn]

Byron seemed hyper focused on the tree so Drow didn't get offended when the Knight didn't answer him. In fact, all of the assembled Jedi seemed hard at work getting the orchard ready. It pleased Drow to see all these Jedi come together for a task that didn't involve fighting Sith and the Ishi Tib hoped the galaxy would soon reach a point where this was more of the rule rather than an exception. Still, it warmed the heart and reinforced Drow's commitment towards fighting the Sith. He'd been dealing with a lot lately and getting up to some very non-Council approved things recently but he kept reminding himself that it was all for the good of the Order, for moments and people like this.

So, the Ishi Tib busied himself with chopping down the last of the non-koyo trees, being quickly outworked and outpaced by the Gamorreans. However, as time passed, there was another sound that could be heard by the Jedi that was quite distinct from the axes chopping and the shovels striking dirt. Ten insectoid creatures suddenly approached from the jungle and began walking angrily towards the Jedi and Gamorrean gardeners.

"Klikniks!" Drow called out, recalling the name of the species from wildlife guides he'd read at the Temple. "Territorial carnivores - we must be on their hunting grounds!"

Drow drew his lightsaber and sent a large rock to smash against a tree near the klikniks. The loud noise and sudden movement gave the kilkniks pause as they paced anxiously, assessing the situation. Drow narrowed his eyes, trying to get a read on what to do himself. He hadn't realized there was a nest nearby; otherwise he'd have picked a different spot. Still, it'd be a shame to have all this work amount to nothing just because some klikniks wanted them gone.

"Don't attack just yet! Let's see if we can resolve this without hurting them. They were here first after all." Drow ordered, noticing the Gamorreans looking ready to charge the klikniks with their axes.

@Darasuum @SlagathorTheUnknown @Braden Drake @Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Arctus Friers]

Only a few things could make Arctus blush with shyness and hearing from his fellow Padawan that the younglings adored him was one of them. In a rare show of meekness the former smuggler paused from digging to lift one hand to rub the back of his neck, his ears red from being caught off guard by Ruzaan's casual observation.

Hearing that the children adored a broken man on the mend was... heartwarming, to say the least.

"Ah, well," he said bashfully with a modest chuckle, "they're cute li'l ankle biters. Nice kids, too. I grew up taking care of three younger siblings – triplets – and I just... well, I guess I missed looking after wee tykes and those kids running around askin' someone to play the role of some giant evil monster for their games really did the trick."

And it had. He was well aware that he was old enough to be those kids' dad but Arctus leaned more into the older brother schtick. He had no idea of he'd even make a good father – he never knew who his biological father was and the one he grew up with gave Arctus nothing but physical, psychological, and emotional abuse. The former smuggler frowned upon remembering some awful memories and had to shake his head to clear those off. It was a struggle to open up about them even to Indy, and he wouldn't just straight up tell the young Togruta about his own messed up childhood.

Going back to their task, the former smuggler shot Ruzaan a contemplating grin and shrugged. Considering his previous job description there really were much to tell, but he decided to spare the kid from the particularly gruesome ones as well as some really questionable deeds he had ever done. Instead he chose to regal Ruzaan one of his most treasured memories and encounter involving the woman he longed to see again and whose face he desperately wished to see before either of them perished.

Not like he wanted to die, really. Nor did he wish for his savior to even get an early meet and greet with Death. He was simply being realistic given the kind of life they led.

"There's a lot to tell, actually. But my one of my favorites so far was that one time when a Mandalorian saved my life," he told Ruzaan, the corners of his lips tugging upwards in a happy smile. "See, I was a smuggler before being inducted in the Order. Made bad decisions, did bad things. Those eventually came to bite me in the ass one day, and resulted in me almost dying in Tatooine a few years back. I got tasked to make a shipment–"

Arctus dumped a shovel full of dirt to the side as he gazed at the hole he and his fellow Padawan was digging.

"–and got ambushed by bandits. Eight against one was too damn overkill, yeah? And there I was, lying beaten on that sandy planet wondering if my time was already up. You may be wondering – 'why didn't you use the Force to defend yourself?' Well, that's the problem: I had no idea I was actually a Force-sensitive back then, so–"

There really was no need to tell the Togrutan Padawan that he was high off of spice back then. Arctus knew he could fare well against an eight versus one but not when he was wasted as kark.

He felt a strong, insistent tug from thr back of his mind and Arctus was quick to shut his mouth and abandon what he was doing, suddenly on high alert for any possible dangers that might be lurking somewhere unseen. This was how his intuition always warned him of danger, and knowing that said intuition was actually the Force made things vastly different.

Arctus's attention was soon drawn by Master Venn's warning. He quickly stood in front of Ruzaan, instinctively shielding the younger Padawan from harm. Arctus sure as hell had no idea what klikniks were but hearing that the creatures were both territorial and carnivorous instantly had his guard up. Those were two words he didn't like to hear mashed together, more so upon hearing that this area the Jedi Master planned to build an orchard on was likely the klikniks' hunting grounds.

Kark. He shouldn't have left that axe behind.

Arctus heeded Master Venn's order and remained were he stood, albeit poised to attack once push came to a shove. Lifting the shovel with one hand and ready to use it as a weapon if the klikniks were insistent on driving the group away.

Killing them would be easy, though, a lone, sibilant voice whispered from the back of the former smuggler's mind. You miss that, Arctus, don't you? Taking lives. Come on, it would be easy... and they're just creatures. Unless you want to go for the sentients, then be my guest!

His grip on the shovel tightened. Of all the times the Dark Side would pester him...!

@SlagathorTheUnknown @Fantasy Liver @Braden Drake @Darasuum

 

[Ruzaan Kai]

Ruzaan smiled as he listened to Arctus talk about the younglings- so the affection that the former smuggler had for the youngest members of the temple was genuine, and not an act. That was a positive first impression. The Togruta grinned wider and nodded encouragingly as his fellow Padawan launched into his story, and Ruzaan tried to time his digging efforts around Artcus' unique speaking cadence in order to better focus on the story.

You could learn a lot about a person by asking them to share a story, and Ruzaan was curious to learn about the older Padawan. People tended to choose stories that were important to them, and then would, consciously or subconsciously, tell those stories in such a way that put themselves in the best possible light for their audience.

Not so with Artcus. The human's story about his near-death experience was well-rehearsed, as if Artcus had told it a thousand times before, but it was clear that this story dredged up more than a few bad memories for him. Judging by Artcus' body language whenever the former smuggler reached a particularly unflattering detail, Ruzaan had been given the family-friendly version, but Artcus pulled no punches in assigning himself blame. Perhaps too much blame, thought Ruzaan. Eight versus one is a challenge even for a fully-trained Jedi.

Then there was the comment about playing a giant, evil monster for the younglings. Ruzaan his his frown by focusing on the steadily-growing hole they were digging. Is that the role they picked for you, or did you cast yourself as the monster? he wondered silently.

Ruzaan was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't pick up on the threat until Master Venn's voice rang out across the clearing. Ruzaan cursed himself for allowing himself to become so distracted; mistakes like that on Shili could cost you your life.

Quickly, he ran through the survival steps that had been drummed into his head as a child.

1. Group up. That was the golden rule in Togruta society. Akuls, due to their volatile nature, hunted alone and could sometimes be dissuaded from attacking if presented with a big enough challenge.

2. Get moving. This was another tactic used by the Togrutas, whose stripes and markings allowed them to blend easily into the tall grasses on Shili. Movement helped the illusion by making it hard for akuls to target any one individual.

3. Get help. Almost synonymous with Rule #1, the hard-learned lesson amongst the Togruta was that, unless you were going for your akul teeth, you never fought one of the fearsome beasts alone. Only a coordinated, community effort could prevail.


Ruzaan hadn't known Artcus for very long, but he was pretty sure that the older Padawan was about to break Rules 1 and 3 and attack the bugs all by himself. Ruzaan took a breath to try and calm his pounding heart, then stepped up next to Artcus so that he was in the human's field of view. Then, with as calm of a voice as he could muster, Ruzaan spoke quietly so as not to startle the Klikniks or Artcus. "Artcus, think about the younglings back at the temple. Just as they trust you, we need to trust Master Venn."

@Fantasy Liver @Braden Drake @Darasuum @Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Yvain]

Yvain was still crouched down when Master Venn called out about the incoming Kilniks, he had seen the alien creatures a few times since he had first come to Yavin. The little green Jedi has explored much of the surrounding area on foot, looking to get a lay of the land, seeing what creature roamed the forest moon, what plants grew and if need be how to safely get the younglings away if Ajan Kloss tried to repeat itself. Venn was right, they were not outright beasts but defended their lands viciously like all else that lived on the planet.

The old Jedi Knight however was not to fussed with the appearance of the creature and went about the planting of his berry bushes. The Force was extended around him just encase one of Kilniks attempted to come at them from the other side, otherwise Yvain continued with his work. He was sure between one Jedi Master, two Padawans and a Knight they could resolve the issue.

 

[Orenth]

Amid the forest of trees the Gamoreans began to work. The ditches for bushes continued to be made and the agricultural work was aided in part by the Jedi. Placing his hands onto the ground, he dug the fingers into the soft cool earth. On his hands and knees Byron closed his eyes, not bowing or praying but facing the world itself. Hi. I'm Byron. Its nice to meet you. He thought. Though it felt like he may as well be whispering to a distant whale.

Returning his focus to the close at hand his interaction with the Force felt extended. The only way he could describe it would be plugged in to nature itself. Something he didn't marvel in for too long. Imaging the roots like toes and the trunk like a foot, the man raised tendrils of submerged plants and tearing the ground.

Droplets of sweat beaded down Byron's forehead and onto the jungle floor. The creaking of wood and a rolling of rocks had his hands tear into the ground and grasp at the loose dirt before relaxing a moment later. Vines began to stretch out from the Koyo trees, rooting themselves further and more strongly into the ground as Byron focused on them.

The other trees and plants proceeded with their life's course albeit at a rapid pace. Entropy consuming rotting logs and blooming with fungi. Mushrooms spawned from the ground in the space between the Killikin and the Jedi master. The toad stools slowly sprouting out of the ground in places around the Jedi's orchard. Byron still kept his eyes closed, no longer using his eyes to see.



@Braden Drake @Fantasy Liver @Forsythe Crowholde @SlagathorTheUnknown

 

[Drow Venn]

Byron's causing the mushrooms to grow up around the Klikniks gave the insectoids some pause and nervous chittering could be heard from them by the Jedi. This gave Drow an idea. He fiddled with one of the adjustment knobs of his cutlass-hilt shaped lightsaber to set it on a low power mode.

"Switch your sabers to training mode! If we show strength, they'll back off!" Drow said, and hurled his own yellow blade at one of the Klikniks. As it was on the lower powered training mode, it only caused a painful stinging sensation instead of a lethal blow but it still caused the Kliknik to yelp in pain. Drow hated causing pain to creatures who were just living their life but it would only be temporary and they'd surely find other grounds to skulk.

@Darasuum @Braden Drake @Forsythe Crowholde @SlagathorTheUnknown

 

[Arctus Friers]

The world outside seemed to have hardly matter over Arctus as he focused on shutting the malicious voice in the back of his mind. His grasp on the physical plane was starting to loosen as he dug deeper into his own mind, angrily confronting the Darkness that tempted him. It fed on his anger, however, and one voice turned into two, then three, and Arctus was suddenly deaf to the noises all around him.

Shut up. I don't need you here!

A malevolent cackle here, a perverted giggle there... Voices dripping with poisoned honey tempting him to just let go and kill. Persuading him sweetly that the lessons he learned from the Pantoran woman who called herself a Jedi Master were shackles that would hold him down, bindings that wasted his potential. Arctus's free hand rose to one ear, covering it as if to muffle the voices that came from within his own mind.

Hazel grey eyes locked on the figure that stepped within his field of vision. The sight of blue and white montrals became footholds to ground the former smuggler on what was happening on the world outside of his mind, and when he blinked his gaze honed in on Ruuzan's face. The younger Padawan was projecting calm which reached Arctus through the Force, and the voices laid out a new instruction set on destroying the kid before him.

It was difficult, but the former smuggler blocked out the voices in favor of listening to what Ruuzan was saying. The Force churned around Arctus, the Dark clawing against the Light desperately so the former could stay on the surface. It was strong, but Arctus's concern over what he might do to the young Togruta should he give in to the angry voices came out stronger, already feeding the former smuggler's brotherly instincts.

He glanced at Master Venn who laid out a plan to scare the klikniks off, eyes widening with amazement as mushrooms suddenly sprouted from the ground between the group of Jedi and the insectoid creatures. The Force pulsed with warmth towards a certain point somewhere far off ahead of them and Arctus caught sight of the Jedi Knight he passed by earlier. Whatever the Knight had done reminded him of something similar Indy did on their first meeting, his curiosity and present concern drowning the malevolent voices that now rang faintly from the back of his mind.

Arctus, you useless bastard–

Ah, kark off.

Gaze drifting back to Ruuzan, the former smuggler gave the younger Padawan a reassuring smile as his grip on the shovel loosened.

"Yeah, you're right," he told the young Togruta. Then, a little sheepishly, he asked, "So, uh, did you bring your training saber with you? We've got to help Master Venn drive off those weird insects."

He only had the shovel to use, but he guessed he could control his own strength so as not to seriously injure the klikniks. The Ishi Tib wanted the creatures driven away and not killed, after all. If Arctus could have things handled his way his immediate thought would be to kill the klikniks, but the call wasn't his to make. And besides the creatures were here first – who was he to decimate them?

One hand briefly patting Ruuzan gently on the shoulder, Arctus shot the kid a kind smile before stepping forward, holding the shovel up like a bat. "Watch out, Ruuzan, alright?" he told his fellow Padawan as he crept closer to the klikniks. One turned to crawl towards Arctus, letting out angry clicks but the Padawan was ready. As the kliknik lunged at Arctus he batted it away with the shovel. The insectoid crashed back down on the ground with a loud and pained screech. It got up and hissed again at Arctus, but it looked like it was done trying its luck as it began to shrink behind its brethren.

@SlagathorTheUnknown @Fantasy Liver @Darasuum @Braden Drake

 

[Ruzaan Kai]

"Artcus, focus on my voice" Ruzaan said, doing his best to project a calm demeanor despite his every instinct telling him to run. Not only were there several large predators present, Atrcus' behavior was deeply concerning. The older Padawan was seemingly locked in some sort of internal struggle, and the outcome was very much in doubt. Careful not to make any sudden movements, Ruzaan assessed the older Padawan.

Artcus' face was locked in a grimace, and their entire body was tensed. His eyes were distant and unfocused, and the man's grip on his spade- which he held aloft, ready to strike- was like iron. Ruzaan opened himself up to the Force and recoiled in shock; waves of emotion crashed over him from his fellow Padawan. Fear, frustration, anger, and malice rolled off of Artcus, battling for supremacy against the man's concern, protective instincts, and warmth. "Artcus, listen to me!" Ruzaan pleaded, as Artcus' grey eyes locked on him. For one terrible moment the man's grip tightened on the shovel, but just as quickly the storm subsided and Artucs gradually regained control over himself.

Ruzaan didn't have any time to question him, however, as a pitched battle was underway against the klikniks. Master Drow Venn led the defense, ordering all lightsabers set to training mode and launching himself at the bugs. Artcus waded into the fray armed only with a shovel, leaving instructions to "Watch out, Ruzaan, alright?" before thwacking a kliknik and sending it off with a blow it would certainly feel the next morning. Master Ryker, in an impressive display of skill, channeled the Force to create a protective barrier of mushrooms while the unflappable Master Yvain continued gardening.

A rapid clicking alerted Ruzaan to the approach of a single kliknik, and it reared at him. Keeping his movements small and nonthreatening, Ruzaan held out one hand towards the kliknik to keep it at bay while he focused on trying to read the creature's emotions through the Force. Perhaps he could learn why they were attacking the Jedi. Hope this doesn't end up being a mistake, Ruzaan thought to himself as the kliknik hissed at him.

@Forsythe Crowholde @Darasuum @Fantasy Liver @Braden Drake