Ask Snapdragon Valley

[Tupe Yashu]

Snapdragon Valley​

Saleucami is a beautiful, temperate world whose name means "oasis." Unfortunately, they were not an oasis from AMS. Though many of the major cities have a high vaccination rate, more rural areas have been slow to receive the precious vaccines. Work together with GHO personnel to distribute vaccines, reassure any worried Saleucamese about the medicine, and potentially snuff out any remaining pockets of AMS if need be. You will start your mission in Snapdragon Valley, the beginning of a line of many rural Saleucamese towns.​

Tags: @LouJoVi @Nor'baal

"I think it was about, say seventy? Yes, seventy, when I last came to Saleucami. Nice world back then, no plague zombies, plus the air was cleaner you know?" Tupe had not stopped talking since the ship had left Brighthome, days ago. "Don't think I had ever ended up here though? Snapdragon Valley I think its called, a lovely name for a pretty nice town."

He was drumming his fingers on the top of his walking stick as the ramp of their ship lowered, opening up to the world below. Taking a deep breath, Tupe briefly closed his eyes and took a step forward. Opening them again, he turned back slightly and asked his compatriot "Anyway, enough about me. Have you ever been to Saleucami?" as he walked down the ramp, and onto the planet itself.[/i]

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

Atias was starting to regret having signed up for this mission to distribute vaccines on Saleucami. While he felt excited for the opportunity of getting out of the Temple and going to work in the field, the Padawan was annoyed in having to work with Knight Tupe Yashu. The old Cosian didn’t stop talking since they entered the ship.

At first it was interesting to hear about the experiences of an older Jedi Knight. However, soon Tupe started to repeat the same stories over and over again. It made the half-Morellian want to make the other to stay silent, but he was educated to be respectful with senior beings. This way, he endured all that in silence.

The Padawan felt relieved when they arrived in Snapdragon Valley, perhaps now that they had work to do, the Cosian would stop talking. When Tupe started talking with him, Atias decided to answer him. “I never visited Saleucami, but my father did. Before the AMS, he used to transport things from Commenor to here.”

When the ramp was open, Atias walked down it as fast as he could and left the Cosian behind. The town seemed to have seen better days. The buildings were dilapidated and many seemed to be abandoned. The half-Morellian turned to the Jedi Knight. “So, where are we going now?”

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

"Tssssk." the Cosian hissed slightly, a smile on his face as he gently reprimanded the Padawan. "If you spend your whole life running after things, you'll forget to value the things around you Padawan." he added, walking down the disembarkation ramp before turning and looking at Atias "Be patient, the way ahead shall reveal itself in its own time." he smiled, trying to assure the younger Jedi that he wasn't in trouble.

The town was clearly down on its luck, the virus has seen to that. He looked around, there was the main street, lined with empty shops and a few down on their luck bars. Around the main street, the residential areas dominated the town, squat houses of varying size, most of which had seen better days. Tupe was, in all honesty, completely unsure as to how he should proceed, the briefing had been sparse at best, but that was just how he liked it.

As he got to the bottom of the ramp, he spotted a flier for the GHO on the ground and gestured to the Padawan. "Would you look at that! Now, I reckon that might let us know where these good Doctors are, no?" he said, a twinkle in his eye as he pointed his stick at the flier.

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

Reprimands weren’t something new for Atias. Sometimes he ends up being discovered while doing his pranks and many Knights and Masters already have punished him or reprimanded him because of it. The Padawan had learned to ignore and not let it affect him. This had become a natural part of his life.

However, when Tupe reprimanded him, Atias felt a bit bad. He probably looked rude with the Cosian, running away while he was still talking. “Yes, Master Yashu.” maybe he should really have patience, but the Knight could be so boring when he starts to talk about things that happened nearly 100 years ago. Well, the half-Morellian would make an effort.

When Tupe pointed to the ground, Atias turned to look at it. There was a flier for the GHO on the ground. A smile appeared on his lips and crouched to pick it. As soon as it was in his hands, the Padawan started to read it. “Cool! There is a map to where the doctors are!” then, the half-Morellian turned to point at a street. “According to it, they were this way!”

After saying that, the boy prepared to run away toward it. However, before he could get too far away, the half-Morellian remembered of Knight Yashu. He was once again going to be disrespectful. His mother would probably be furious if she saw him doing it right now.

Taking a deep breath, the Padawan turned to the Cosian. “Master Yashu, I'll wait for you.” he said, a smile appearing on his lips. He would wait for the Knight to move, so the two could go together. It was a good moment for him to start to have patience.

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

I'll wait for you? Cheeky little so-and-so, the aged Jedi thought to himself as the Padawan practically ran off to complete the mission. Typical. In his not-inconsiderable experience, hastiness led to shoddy workmanship, and for a Jedi, such things could be quite disastrous. Much to his regret, the speed at which the younger members of their Order had operated with of late had led to numerous embarrassments for the Order, and worse still - deaths.

Never would have flown in my day. Tupe reminded himself, with a seld satisfied smile as he tapped his merry way down the ramp in an attempt to keep up with his keen compatriot. "When I was your age," he began, fully aware how, to the Padawan, that statement heralded another long session of boredom "- the GHO didn't exist. It is a relatively modern innovation." he walked up level to the younger Jedi, and linked his left arm with the Padawans for support, before slowly walking in the direction the Padawan had suggested.

"It's quite the collection of good spirits, perhaps like the Jedi, no?" he probed the young learner "Perhaps we have a fair amount in common with them. After all, is it not the way of the Jedi to do good? To help others? To serve the people of the galaxy?" he continued, gently encouraging the young man to express his thoughts.

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

Atias waited for Tupe to come down the ramp, but he soon regretted having decided to do it. The Cosian seemed to be taking an eternity for him to come down from the ship. As soon as the Knight started to talk again, the Padawan knew that he was going to hear another round of boring stories about what he did thousands of years ago. He felt so tempted to run away.

However, the half-Morellian forced himself to stay here. The boy had decided to be patient, so he should endure it. Taking a deep breath, Atias linked his arm with that of the elder Jedi and the two started to walk in the direction that the flier showed. While they did it, the Padawan made an effort to pay attention to what Tupe was saying.

Probably when you were my age, ships weren’t even invented. It was probably something mean of him to think, but the Cosian seemed to be so ancient. He wondered why the Order allowed him to still go out on missions. It could be a danger for him. Atias doubted that Tupe could still hold a lightsaber.

When Tupe said his opinion about the GHO, Atias snorted. “I doubt that. I heard that it was planned by the Senator of Belasco who is now the Prime Minister. Politicians never do something like that because of the goodness of their hearts. It was the minimum that they should do after having ignored the AMS for so long and allowing it to ravage several planets.” the Padawan made no effort to hide his distrust for politicians.

“I bet that this organization is problematic, but the Prime Minister is going to hide the problems and use the GHO to secure her reelection.” suddenly, the conversation with Tupe became less boring. It wasn’t always that Atias could talk about his visions about politics. “My mother used to tell me how the politicians in Brentaal used to do it and I saw some of it in the Commenor, too. They don’t care for the people, only for the votes.”

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

"Never?" he replied "Politicians seem like a miserable lot then." Tupe added, as he continued to gently chide the young learner. Truth be told, a great many members of the political class had proven themselves wanting of late, but had the Jedi been that different? It seemed they caused problems wherever they went. Plus, his newfound compatriot was making quite the generalisation when it came to their political friends, something Tupe was keen not to allow them to get away with.

"I wonder," the pair continued down the road as the GHO building came into sight. It was a motley collection of tents around a squat stone building, which appeared to have once been a cantina. About the tents milled droids, and organics adorned with the logo of their organisation. Everyone was far to busy to see the pair of Jedi approach, and so Tupe continued "- what did the Order do when the virus reared its head? If Temple rumours are to be believed, there are some in our number who foretold it was coming, through visions gifted to them by the Force."

He turned to face the younger Jedi "Maybe the politicians did a good thing for a bad reason. Does that make what they did, wrong? Is it better to do a good thing for a bad reason, than do a bad thing, for a good reason?" he wondered out loud, as they walked up to the main building of the GHO operation here, soliciting a few hushed murmurs from the workers around them.

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

”They are! Politicians are probably the worst kind of individuals out there, perhaps only coming after the Sith.” Atias continued to show his disgust for this group. “I think that if they were Force sensitive, they would all be Dark siders.” with how they were two-faced and cunning individuals, the Darkness would be perfect for them.

While they walked toward the GHO building, Atias continued listening to what Tupe was saying. When the Cosian asked him what the Jedi Order did to stop the AMS, the half-Morellian didn’t answer at first. They also didn’t act immediately to help the planets that were affected, but there was a good explanation for that.

“Well, the Order was too busy fighting the Sith. And that's another point. If the politicians really cared for the civilians, they would have dealt with the Sith immediately and not let them grow in power like what happened.” he said, after some time reflecting about the Cosian’s question. “Now the people suffer with invasions and they use any small victory to bolster their political campaigns when all of that could have been avoided.”

When they arrived at the GHO building, Tupe made another question that left Atias to think in a good answer that would defend his point of view. While the politicians only did things for their own gain, they at least did something that was good for the people. “I guess so.” in the end, he agreed with the Knight at this point.

Once they entered the building, Atias saw that the place was crowded. There was people and droids moving through several tents, constantly leaving and entering it. A female human in a GHO uniform noticed the two Jedi and walked toward them. Since he was only the Padawan, the half-Morellian decided to leave the talk for Tupe.

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

Making a mental note to raise the younger Jedi 'zeal' with their Master upon the return to the Temple, Tupe kept his concerns to himself. The young Jedi's mannerisms were tempestuous, of that he could be in little doubt, and Tupe was interested in understanding them a little more - especially as such sweeping generalisations around the political class could land the younger Jedi in trouble. However, there was a mission they both had to do, and so he ignored his worries for the time being.

"Knight Yashu, at your service Ma'am. We've been sent by the Order to support your excellent work here. I understand you are having some issues outside of town with some of the unfortunate victims of this terrible virus?" he asked the GHO employee as she approached. "Indeed Knight Yashu, we are." she replied with a thinly veiled sneer. Clearly, she did not think much of Jedi, especially with their recent 'less than helpful' media attention.

"We are at your disposal, Miss...." he paused, leaving the question hanging in the air, which she quickly answered "Doctor Haldreen." the Doctor replied curtly "And yes - I suppose the two of you can be of assistance. We've got a pocket of AMS 'walkers' northwest of the town, I can't risk se -" she paused and rephrased "- your skills would be well matched in getting rid of them."

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

While Tupe talked with the woman, Atias felt a bit of aggressivity coming from her voice. While it was a bit strange for him to see someone acting this way with a Jedi, the Padawan didn’t judge her. After what happened in Kashyyyk it was no surprise that there were people mad with them. Maybe the help that he and the Cosian offer today could help change that.

The Padawan also noticed how the woman, that he now knew was a doctor called Haldreen, was going to say something before changing her mind. Atias suspected that she was going to say that she couldn’t risk sending her agents to deal with these walkers. Of course, she preferred to send the Jedi to do it.

While such thoughts gave him the impression that she considered the two disposable, the Doctor was right when she said that their skills would be good to deal with the walkers. The Jedi could do it more easily than someone that wasn’t a Force sensitive. This also gave the opportunity for the two to show how the Order was useful and did good.

After she gave the instructions to the two about where the walkers were, Atias turned to Turpe. “Was it only me or was she a bit rude?” he whispered to the Cosian. “She seemed to want to send us away as fast as she could.I didn’t think that the opinion about the Order was so bad like that.”

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

"Maybe she was a politician?" Tupe chuckled as the two of them walked off to get going with their mission. Out of earshot, he leaned a little closer to the younger Jedi , and whispered "Or maybe they're a Sith Lord!" Tupe smirked, wandering past the exit from the GHO building, heading toward the northern reach of the settlement.

"When members of our Order kill civilians on Kashyyyk, and much more besides, is it any wonder people think poorly of us." he replied. Tupe was deeply unimpressed with the recent exploits of some of his peers of late, who seemed hell-bent on bringing the good name of the Order to ruin. He had come to see it as part of the mission to try and encourage his young accomplice to see why people looked at the Jedi in the way they did.

Understanding why people disliked them was the first step on discovering what to do about it.

Tupe liked to believe there was some logic to that sentiment.

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

Atias laughed after he heard Tupe’s comments about the Doctor. “Maybe she is both!” he said, faking being scared. “Imagine how evil someone would be being both a Sith and a politician? If this is the case with her, then we need to call the Grandmaster. We would need the entire Order to deal with someone like that.”

He stopped laughing when Tupe mentioned the events of Kashyyyk. The Padawan still couldn’t believe how two Jedi were capable of killing civilians and putting the lives of many others in risk. “I know, but not all the Jedi are like that. They aren’t being fair by thinking that all the Order is going to do it.”

Then, he noticed that what the people were doing with the Jedi wasn’t so different from how he acted with the politicians. In both cases, they believed that a group was evil because of the actions of some of them. Perhaps he should start to rethink his generalizations, but this didn’t mean that he wasn’t going to trust politicians.

The two would continue walking toward the direction that the Doctor had shown them. The buildings around them were becoming more and more ruined. Since Tupe has talked about how the people saw the Jedi, Atias had remained in silence.

They would soon reach a barrier made by the GHO to keep the walkers away from the people. Seeing them walking toward it, a guard would leave his position and walk toward the two Jedi. “This area is forbidden. Who are you two?”

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

A few moments passed, before a sound that could have been air escaping a balloon began to rumple forth from the ageing Jedi. He was laughing. "Imagine the horror!" he wheezed, banging his walking stick on the ground. Maybe the young Jedi was learning!

"But," his laughter faded away "- you must learn to be measured in your worries. Some things are not in our control," he commented, referencing the actions taken by some members of their Order on Kashyyyk "- others are. We cannot control the actions of some of our peers, such as those taken on Kashyyyk. But we can control our actions, what we do in response to such actions however," he stuck his hand in the air with triumph "-we can control."

He smiled slightly to himself as the affronted guard allowed him a chance to prove his point. Gently, he turned to face the guard and raised one of his hands with an open palm, indicating that he was not a threat. "We are here at the behest of Doctor Haldreen." The guard look unconvinced as he reached for his radio, and chuntered down it.

OOC: Sorry for the slow reply here, busy weekend!

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

Atias never expected that Tupe would laugh with him. Or even contribute with his joke. When he discovered that he was going to work with the Cosian, the Padawan thought that he would need to deal with a stern and grumpy ancient Jedi. However, what he found was completely different.

Tupe could be annoying talking about things that happened before the Holonet was invented, but he wasn’t stern and grumpy. The Knight had a good sense of humor and was very wise. Their conversations were starting to make the Padawan rethink his opinion about politicians.

"I understand, Master." he said to the Cosian, after hearing what he had said about the actions of others. Once again the Padawan could see the wisdom in Tupe's words. While it was impossible to control the actions of the others, they could do their part to show to the Galaxy that not all Jedi were this way. Perhaps the creation of the GHO was an attempt of Korre Belasi to show that she wasn't like all the politicians and to make a difference. It would be something that Atias would reflect about later.

The Padawan watched the guard contact Doctor Haldreen. The man didn’t seem convinced by Tupe's words. After a brief conversation, he turned back to the two Jedi with his face even more grumpy. "Alright, the Doctor told you that you were allowed to go. However, you should be careful there. These things are mindless. If it was me, I would have already cleaned the entire area with an orbital bombardment."

Then, he opened the gate of the wall. Atias would continue walking next to Tupe. When they were away from the guard, the Padawan would say to the Cosian. "Nice guy, right? I think that he was hoping for the Doctor to say that we shouldn't be here so he could arrest us."

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

"Thank you," Tupe replied to the guard "- I have seen some of these unfortunate victims of the virus up close in the past, and I can hopefully put your mind at ease. We shall do our best to stay as safe as well can my friend." he added, as he walked past the guard and on into their mission.

"Nice guy, right? I think that he was hoping for the Doctor to say that we shouldn't be here so he could arrest us."

Tupe chuckled again. "I don't think I have ever been arrested, Atias. Maybe we should give it a go after this?" he kept his voice as serious as he could muster, whilst trying not to once again laugh. Outside of the settlements walled confines, Tupe felt considerably less safe, he could feel the danger in the air. He heard a rustling in the bushes about 100 yards in front of them, as the first AMS victim humbled forwards.

"I wonder if this one is as talkative as the guard?" he asked, gently relaxing his posture as the creature approached, and clutching the top of his walking stick, wherein lay his lightsaber.

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

Atias laughed with Tupe’s answer to his question. Unlike the Cosian, the Padawan made no effort to remain serious with this possibility. “Maybe we could really do it! imagine how Master Voran would react if she was called to take us out of the jail. I don’t think that she would be very happy with it!”

His laugh would die off when they walked away from the walls made by the GHO. Like Tupe, Atias also started to feel the growing danger. The Force was restless, as if wanting to alert them that an attack was going to happen at any moment. The half-Morellian became serious and paid close attention to his surroundings. He had read about how dangerous the walkers could be. Even if he was already vaccinated, these creatures could still rip them apart.

It didn’t take much time for the first walker to appear. It was exactly like one of the images that Atias had seen in the Holonet. He still couldn’t believe how these creatures were originally normal sentient beings, this virus was really terrible. It was a relief that the vaccine was already being distributed in the Galaxy.

"Maybe, but I think that we would need a protocol droid to translate it." Atias said, before he mimicked the growling of the creature. The walker started to approach them, allowing the Padawan to see the drool falling from its mouth. The half-Morellian pulled his lightsaber and activated it. Usually, the Padawan would jump in the action, but this time he would wait for Tupe to make the first move.

@Nor'baal

 

[Tupe Yashu]

"Maybe." Tupe replied, his gaze never leaving the approaching shambler. In preparation for the mission, Tupe had done a great deal of research into the AMS virus and its effects. From what he had understood, it rendered the victims as monsters, desperate to do harm to all those around them, and for that reason, Tupe believed his compatriot was right to draw their blade. Such beasts as these were unpredictable to the last.

He walked forward toward the creature as it broke into a run, ambling toward him, saliva frothing up in its mouth.

Gently, Tupe continued to plod toward it, before flicking his hand and sending a slight 'nudge' with the force into its legs. The shambler stumbled, falling past him, as Tupe thwacked it on the back of the head with his stick, making us of the force to provide a little extra 'oomph', sending the creature spiralling to the floor, where it lay cold. "Do you have any restraints on you?" the aging Jedi asked, shouting back over his shoulder to Atias.

 

[Atias Zaldreell]

For the Padawan's surprise, he saw Tupe walk toward the creature. This confused him, he didn’t expect that the Cosian would want to face it directly. Atias had read how these things were stronger and could be dangerous for even a Jedi. He had thought that the Knight would have wanted to make a plan first, or at least use a distraction to confuse it.

He watched while the walker moved fast toward Tupe, saliva dripping from its mouth and falling on the floor. The Padawan started to move after the Cosian, preparing his lightsaber to attack the creature and protect the older Jedi.

However, it wasn't necessary. Atias stared wide eyed while the Cosian used the Force against the creature, making it stumble. Then, the Knight hit the walker's head with his stick, making the creature fall to the floor. Once again Tupe surprised the half-Morellian, who had thought that he would have problems during a fight.

He snapped from his surprise when Tupe asked if he had a restraint. Nodding, the Padawan pulled it from his bag and gave it to the Cosian. "I learned that we always should carry one when we are in a mission. There was always the chance of us needing to arrest someone."

@Nor'baal