Ask The Path to Balance: Perspective

Yulie

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Zohrael
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"It's... a bit more complicated then that."

Yulie listened to Izel methodically explain why her idea wouldn’t work. Yulie was not about to rebuke a recognized expert in the field, but she still believed there was a workaround somehow. If the Dark Side lingered like radiation, then maybe they could set something up to accelerate the radioactive decay. Or they could open multiple Light Side valves to flush the system.

She really didn’t know much about the subject and didn’t doubt Izel, but she was a mechanic and mechanics fix things. If something was so broke that it couldn’t be fixed, there was always a workaround. Reroute power, cobble something together that would compensate for the loss in function or performance. Replace the parts if all else failed. She just needed to understand the Force better, and that’s why it stung when Izel declined to teach her how to purify anything.

How could she find a viable solution if she was not taught the most basic application of the purification technique? She told herself that learning about the Force was like every other subject: she needed to know the basics before understanding something more complicated. She didn’t start her trade as a mechanic by jury-rigging an air conditioner from a coolant valve, she started by sorting bolts and things so that she could tell the difference between the smallest parts. It just felt so unfair to be standing on a mass grave of slaves and be powerless to set things right.

But she forgot those feelings entirely when the obelisk started speaking into her mind. It was the voice of Stormkirk and it was unmistakable. So many years ago, she towered over him, drunk on her own hatred, and watched as he was eaten alive by spiders until he became a desiccated husk. She still heard his screams in her sleep. She knew his voice as well as she knew her own.

You can’t be him. I saw what happened.

You made it happen!” The voice rebuked, knowing full well that she was exerting her will to dominate a small army of arachnids. “And that’s why you know it is me. When I died, you were born. The real you. You thought you’ve been alone ever since, but you wouldn’t let me go. I was always there, watching your back. Your shadow. No one else would.

Why?” Yulie shook her head, unable to understand.

We were supposed to leave together and travel the stars. Do you think I cared so little for you that killing me would make a difference?

"Everything you are seeing and experiencing is an illusion. The dark side is feeding your negative emotions in an effort to bring you under it's will. Let go of these negative feelings, focus on the here and now. Remember these words: Emotion, Yet Peace. This is the first tenet of the Jedi Code.”

‘Emotion, yet peace?’ Is that what you believe, now? The Jedi Code? Tell me, YL-2482, what does your code, the Book of Laws say?

Yulie’s heart slowed and she took long breaths with several seconds passing before inhaling or exhaling. She stared at the obelisk with a dull expression and remained still, unblinking. She watched everything turn black as the void, everything except for her and the obelisk. It was wrapped in a blazing red aura, and Stormkirk emerged, healthy, but no older than the day he died. She was caught in its illusion now.

Do not suffer emotion, or you will never know peace.” In the real world, her lips barely moved and no sound came out.

Well, that’s not a good start. Those tenets cannot coexist. Either everything you believe is backwards…or the Jedi Code is a lie. The truth is worse than you realize.” He took her by the hand and she sank into the darkness until they stood at eye level. “You’ve been telling yourself that for almost three years to the day and you haven’t bought a single night of peace. You’re so bloated with emotions that you could burst, and you know why: because you have been lying to yourself. This whole time. Peace! There is no such thing!

@Reyn @Isen
 

Izel Thral

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Isen's response was the last thing Izel expected. It caught her completely off-guard, causing the Vratix to tilt her head slightly in confusion as she processed what the young Kiffar had just told her. Their mission to Onderon had taken place quite a while ago. And her Padawan had been holding onto that cultist's lightsabers this entire time? It seemed very strange to her that he wouldn't feel it necessary to tell her as much, especially with such corrupted weapons. They would pose a risk to any Padawan, but to someone with psychometry like Isen? Had he chosen to to touch them without hers or another elder's supervision he could have easily been turned to the dark side by the wickedness contained within them. When she responded her voice had no edge to it, rather it was filled with confusion and no small amount of hurt. "Isen..."

The disappointed utterance of his name was all she managed before her attention was dragged back towards the Dathomirian. The dark side was swarming around Yulie now, inducing a trance-like state in the girl. She was clearly experiencing a Force vision, and a strong one at that. Izel thought back to some of her personal experiences on Ifrane and Tython. She had experienced visions induced by the dark side as well. They were always very real, and unsettling. But she had gone into them with knowledge of how to defend herself. Yulie had no such defenses. This had been a mistake.

"Yulie!" Izel called to the girl, walking towards her even as she remained staring at the obelisk. The Vratix stood directly between the girl and the black spire, cutting off her view. "Yulie!" She said again firmly, trying to get the girl's attention. If she received no response she would reach out and put a hand on the Dathomirian's shoulder. Once again she would call upon the light within herself, forming a connection with the girl's mind and trying to break the dark side's hold on her. If she did not resist, Yulie would experience the same warmth as before, this time forming a sort of shield to try and block out the encroaching darkness. She would see brief flashes of images through eyes that weren't hers, feel the humidity and hear the sounds of a dense jungle. Then a village, a farm. There were voices in the distance, unintelligible and yet distinctly friendly and welcoming. On the surface Izel got a brief look of what Yulie's own mind looked like and knew there was little happiness in her lifetime, so she instead tried to show her an image of what peace looked like.

@Isen @Zohrael
 

Isen Ramm

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The padawan could hear the disappointment in her voice. He never told her about the lightsabers because he didn't want it seem like he was taking a trophy of sorts. After all of the conversations they had about Isen being too aggressive, too eager to fight, using more force than was necessary to subdue appointments...if Izel thought he was taking trophies from those that he killed, she would be rightfully justified in wanting him expelled from the Order.

But that wasn't his intention at all. This was something that Isen was interested in, being able to purify or heal corrupted objects. Isen would not ever try to read an artifact imbued with the Dark Side with psychometry, so being able to heal items and make them readable would be an asset to him. It was a pragmatic issue for Isen, and in order to learn how to purify or heal items cursed with the Dark Side, he had to first find items that fit the description. Such items don't grow on trees, and these lightsabers fit the bill. And, while he would never say so, having a pair of white bladed lightsabers to pull out when fighting a Sith or Dark Side user might be a psychological advantage in combat.

But, that was a conversation that would have to wait as Yulie was starting to sink into the dark despair that the planet's forces was pulling her into. Isen was unsure how to help, but he knew that the Force connected all things, all beings, and so he would add himself to the chain if necessary. If Izel felt it necessary to put her hand on Yulie's shoulder, Isen would put his hand on Izel's. Isen would have been taught this as "Force Harmony" back on Jedha, but it was one of those subjects that the young, undisciplined youngling would not be giving his full attention.

So here, Isen was not using working knowledge, or even book knowledge. This was purely theory for Isen. If he could send his Light Side aura to Izel, he was hopeful that what the Light Side of the Force that Isen was giving to Yulie would be magnified, enhanced, and that together, they might be able to overcome the Dark that was pulling at the girl.

@Reyn @Zohrael
 

Yulie

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The Book of Laws and the Jedi Code are built upon a lie. Your emotions are a gift. They make you strong. They make you powerful. Think about that night in Mon Gazza, when you were jumped at shot at. You fled, yes, but it was a great victory. Everyone feared you! Were you at peace? Or were you angry? Were any of your victories different?

Her battles played out around her, allowing her to watch herself from afar. She was undersized and almost frail, but her fury made her enemies weightless. The angrier she became, the harder she slammed them into heavy objects. It was the Force, it was always the Force, and it only empowered her when she pushed her mercy down.

You bested the most fearsome creature on all of Dathomir and you had never been in a proper fight before. I was so proud of you that day. That victory is the reason you don’t have a bomb chained to your neck and instead live with no masters. That victory broke your chain. Same with your other victories. Waiting tables at a spice den? Letting yourself be groped for tips? You were better off back in the pit, but here you are! Tell me, what really set you free?

…The Force.

Say it. Tell me the truth that you’ve been hiding from your whole life.

Peace is a lie, I only know passion. This passion gave me strength, and with it I became powerful. That power makes me victorious, and it is only in victory that my chains are broken. The Force sets me free.

Yulie!

Yulie rubbed her head. She could have sworn she heard her name but couldn’t tell from where. It was so loud and so distant at the same time. The dimensions of the obelisk twisted, recoiling from the intrusion and it doubled its efforts.

Good. Good. You’re very smart, you know that? That bug doesn’t see it, but I never doubted you. It would have a thousand Jedi sit here for a thousand years and by some miracle maybe it won’t offend them as much. But you…you figured out the solution on the way here and that creature won’t hear it! She won’t even teach you. She’s afraid of you.

Yulie!

The obelisk’s aura blazed, muffling her name through the roar of an inferno. Yulie tried to find that voice, pinpoint where it was coming from. She reached through the Force, sifting through layers of shadow. So much was lost when she found it, the warmth, humility, and compassion trapped in the filter of a black lens. Only the negative emotions touched her mind. Izel’s disappointment in her what her student had done with some lightsabers, her regret for bringing the untrained to the heart of a Sith planet, the fear Izel had for Yulie’s safety. But only the emotions bled through. Yulie could not divine their motivations.

She’s afraid. I can feel fear… regret…disappointment…and Isel..."

He is like a bomb, isn’t he. So calm, but so violent. So proud. When he explodes, and he will, you’ll be the first he strikes. You aren’t pure, not to him, and not to his teacher who spent this whole hike filling his head with ideas about destroying everything with a shadow. You’ll have to kill him before he gets the chance.

No way! He’s a Jedi! One of the most powerful warriors in history by that trait alone! I haven’t fought anything on his level, he’ll rip me apart!

If that were true, they wouldn’t fear you. Didn’t Isen say that you were not far behind him? You can overtake him, but not if he finds strength in his anger before you. There isn’t much time.

I don’t even have a weapon!

Yes, you do. You’re wearing it in your ‘belt’ right now.” In the illusion, the crimson fabric of her belt gently uncoiled into her preferred sarong, and the lightsaber positioned as the belt buckle floated malevolently into her hand.

My beam-sword doesn’t even work! It needs kyber and my shards are too small.

The one on your necklace will do.” Both in the illusion and the real world, the Tainted Nightsister Crystal pushed itself up from beneath her shirt. The knot of its leather string unraveled, and it tumbled into her gloved hand while she stared emptily ahead. The lightsaber however, remained bound in her belt. “It didn’t work when you tried it before because you’ve spent so many years putting all your grief, and shame, and loneliness, and guilt, and regret, and hatred into the wrong object. It needs to go into the crystal. That’s the fuel that powers the whole engine. It only needs to be realigned.

In both realms, the crystal began to pulse with a noxious green light, gathering strength to defend itself.

I will show you.” It placed its hand over Yulie’s, holding her palm tight around the crystal with greater strength than she possessed. “We’re in this together. I’ve got your back. When you turn on that blade, you will be stronger than you’ve ever been, the power of this planet will be at your beck and call, and you will be victorious. If that bug tries to stop you…squash it.” The obelisk wanted Yulie to bleed her crystal and begin her transformation into an Acolyte.

No.

They will kill you, you know that. You cannot face them as you are!

I do not fear death." Yulie said with conviction, reciting the Laws. "Those who fear death never achieve pure power. I will never forget that my magic is to be used wisely and I will never concede to evil…lest I be consumed by it. I am Dathomirian. The blood of Nightsisters flows through my veins and I follow the Laws of my people. I will not abandon them. I will not forget them. And I will return to them.

In the illusion, each pulse of green light burned through the deceptions cast by the obelisk. A verdant wave banished visions of past battles and showed her the Jungle of Kashyyyk, the last place she felt truly happy, with all its sounds she’d forgotten. The air was so humid it was like she could drink from it. Another flash of emerald light bleached the void and showed the Singing Mountain Village, the place that made her love Dathomir. A brilliant viridescent burst peeled away the obelisk’s aura to reveal a homestead on the outskirts of Mon Gazza that she thought of buying someday.

Isen’s extra push helped force Izel’s light through the Crystal’s lens, the visions from another’s eye transcribed as memories where she felt complete. And finally a sage-green eruption dissolved the obelisk. Behind it there were unintelligible voices of friends she had not yet made.

I don’t know what you are, but you are not Stormkirk. He never called me by my slave name. He called me Yola, because he thought calling me Yulie hurt me. You want me to hurt, you want it so much that you’re desecrating his memory by wearing his face. I will not yield to you.

Then strike me down!

You’re the breach.” Yulie whispered. The one thing the pulsing light could not contend with, the one thing that wasn’t a complete illusion. She only saw it as the boy she killed because in that moment she was no better than a Sith. If it’s even possible to realign the planet, I am looking right at the Dark Side’s weak spot. Izel’s right, it’s way too strong for me. I can’t replace that valve. But if I can show them, they’ll know. They can come back someday, when they know what to do. The slaves may finally be able to rest, and if not…I did my part. But I have to believe that on this day, their path to freedom begins.

Yulie took a deep breath and found peace. The obelisk wanted her to think like a Sith, to renounce her Code in favor of its own. But its Code was wrong. The Jedi's tenet of 'Emotion, yet peace' was not in opposition of 'Never suffer emotion'. The two meant the same thing, just from different perspectives. Yulie thought she had to bury her emotions, and in so doing they made her suffer. But she had permission to feel, and it didn't matter what she felt, so long as those feelings didn't enslave her. The way of the Sith was the lie, and she would not abide by it.

What are you doing?” It demanded.

Not suffering emotion.

She had to find a way to show the Jedi what she could see. They had to see it for themselves, otherwise they wouldn't know what to look for. Their eyes were trained, they understood the Force so much better, what little knowledge could be gleaned would serve them far more than it would for her. But she did not know how to make them look through her eyes. She could not project her thoughts and didn't even know how to reach out through the Force. But she had to try. She was a mechanic, and mechanics know how to find a workaround.

Yulie searched her feelings for something she could use to make a connection. Perhaps she could invite them in, the trouble would be getting the message across. Was she inside the obelisk? In a coma? She knew she heard someone call her name, they must be doing something to reach her. In her experience, only the darkest emotions brought results. She could not connect with them through those, it would only feed the obelisk and weaken her effort. But there was one other emotion...that teenage crush she had on Isen. Maybe if she put that emotion into her Crystal, he'd be able to sense it. Or at least Izel would; the Vratix seemed to take more notice of it than her student.

If it worked, if they could bridge their minds to hers, they might be able to witness this through her eyes. But it could be risky. It would prolong her interaction with the obelisk, and perhaps open themselves to its influence. She believed they could handle overcome it, and believed they should pursue the knowledge even if it kept her in harm's way. The Dark Side was polluting mass graves of slaves and she would not abide by it. If they felt they couldn't, it would make it a lot easier for them to pull her out of this confrontation abruptly.

Maybe it was pointless, just wishful thinking, but she didn't care. She had to try. If anything could be learned, it could mean that someday Ambria would be healed and the slaves would finally rest. She clutched her Crystal and thought only of chiseled muscles, a tall stature and easygoing attitude.

Come on, you big insect… you’ve got to suspect what I’m trying to do. You’ll be able to pull me out if it’s too risky, but if you have to choose between me or the planet, please, do what it takes to free the slaves!

@Reyn @Isen
 
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Izel Thral

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Izel could tell she wasn't getting through to Yulie. The dark side was too strong here and the Dathomirian had already welcomed it in. Through their connection the Vratix gleaned a few moments from her past. Dark moments. She saw what the girl did, and saw how that guilt was being turned against her now. When the kyber crystal fell to the girl's hand and began to pulse with energy Izel's antennae twitched. Was she preparing to attack them?

The momentary surprise allowed the constant flow of corruption to push in a bit closer to her. That combined with her negative feelings over Isen's revelation were weakening the Vratix. Dammit... The Dark Side is too strong here... She thought to herself as she struggled to maintain her own barriers against the tide while simultaneously pouring more of the light side into Yulie. Idiot... what were you thinking bringing the uninitiated here? Her doubts almost did her in, but then her apprentice was there.

When Isen put his hand on her shoulder she felt the light side between the two of them grow in strength. She turned her head slowly, glancing at her Padawan. She said nothing, but through their bond he would feel her gratitude. Turning her attention back to the young Dathomirian Izel would redouble her efforts to expel the darkness to her. But to her surprise the girl was actually starting to fight back herself. Incredible... The Vratix thought. Here she was, just having discovered her connection to the Force, and already she was able to grapple with the dark side corruption on a dark side nexus! Of course her efforts were clumsy, and she seemed to be thinking of challenging the heart of the corruption itself. But she was still fighting, and that much Izel could help her with.

As both fought to reestablish their connection, Izel was finally able to break through the wall the dark side had thrown up between them. Seizing onto to Yulie's being she was able to yank her back to the moment, breaking the vision and causing the corruption to retreat back within the obelisk. The Vratix sighed from the effort and lowered her hand before speaking to the Dathomirian. "Come now, don't sell yourself short..." She said between breaths, referring to Yulie's plea to try and save the planet at her own expense. "If you want to save this world you can do it yourself. After you've learned how to actually use the power you've got." Her voice had taken on a slightly chiding tone, but overall she was more relieved then anything. Slowly she would turn and look back towards the obelisk, tilting her head curiously. The air felt lighter... Had they actually managed to do some damage to this thing? For whatever reason it was no longer bathing them in dark energy and trying to seduce them, although the general aura of corruption remained all around them. "Interesting..." The Vratix murmured to herself, thinking.

@Isen @Zohrael
 

Isen Ramm

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The eyes of master and apprentice met for just a moment as they worked together to fill Yulie with the Light Side to edge out the darkness. He could sense Izel's approval and thanks for the help. Isen was pleased on two fronts. First of all, he was happy to see that their teamwork was getting somewhere with helping Yulie overcoming her demons- to somewhat of an extent, quite literally. Also, he was hopeful that he had done a little bit to put a dent in her disappointment about the whole cultist lightsabers thing.

Isen's focus was on giving emitting the Light Side of the Force to Izel to strengthen her work on Yulie. By and large, he missed what Yulie was doing, what she saying. After making eye contact, he closed his eyes and focused his energy to helping Izel. Eventually, their work had been successful, and Yulie came to with a decision to push the Dark Side away and work on inviting the Light Side. The padawan couldn't help but provide the slightest smirk at Izel's tone with Yulie. Not that he thought it was funny that Yulie was getting a slight rebuke, but because she had used that tone of chastisement with Isen many, many times over the years they have been together.

"Interesting," he heard his master say. Isen could feel it as well. The very atmosphere was less daunting, easier, less oppressive on both the body and soul.

Isen nodded and looked at Izel. "I feel it too. We can't do it alone. Maybe the entire can't do it, but she's right. This planet can be healed. Even here, the Dark Side can be defeated, drummed back, beaten away." He looked to the Dathomirian girl and gave her a quick nod. "One thing you will quickly learn about the Force is that it's revelations and reinforcements can come from anywhere because the Force is everywhere. You may not have meant to, but you have given some more insight into the nature of the Force. Thank you." Isen turned his attention back to Izel. "This place may be more dangerous than Sullust. Or maybe our guard was up there, more focused. This place is...darker, even if the Sith are not here at present. Maybe it's that the Dark Side has resided here for so long, it has permeated the planet more."


@Reyn @Zohrael
 

Yulie

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What do you hope to accomplish? Your efforts are meaningless. The dead will still be dead. You are nothing. Even your parents couldn’t stand the sight of you, that’s why they abandoned you without a name. YL-2482, all you can do is serve. You could have been great, but you have chosen ignorance and have so broken your own Law. On the inside, you are just so small, an empty space in the shape of a person. Everyone can feel it, that is why they feel ill when you are near. You killed the only person who could have loved you. Hide in his shadow all you want, Isen feels nothing for you, except for that sick feeling he gets when your stench escapes the engine room.

The Dark Side knew Yulie’s every insecurity and they were weaponized by the face of her closest friend. Yulie squeezed her Crystal, thinking only of her one-sided crush. She wouldn’t put pain into the Crystal. That’s what the obelisk wanted. Cruelty to beget cruelty, so she would be cruel to people who would be cruel to her, and the wheel would turn until it grinds her into nothing.

She had a horrifying thought that she wasn’t even reaching out at all, that she was clinging to a hope that would never come. What if there was no way out? What if she was trapped here, all of her uncharitable thoughts forever snapping their teeth at her throat? No one’s resolve lasts forever, her defiance could only hold out for so long.

Yet the obelisk’s renewed vigor was out of desperation, a final barrage before the Jedi could pull her mind back into the moment and build a wall around it. It was in that last moment that it played the most cruel trick possible.

Yola? What’s happening, where am I? Yola, don’t leave me! I said I was sorry!” And then his death-scream as her consciousness returned to the real world.

"Come now, don't sell yourself short..." She said between breaths, referring to Yulie's plea to try and save the planet at her own expense. "If you want to save this world you can do it yourself. After you've learned how to actually use the power you've got."

Yulie’s body had been unblinking and barely breathing throughout the entire vision. It would have felt like dying if she had been aware of it. Her bleary-eyes fluttered and she gasped for air, half-choking as it rushed down her parched throat.

Did it work? Did they see it? Did Izel hear my thoughts? Ohhhhhh, nooooooo...did ISEN hear my thoughts!?

Her voice hadn’t returned yet, and needed to swallow several times before words would come out. “Was that real? Any of it?” She asked Izel, her voice had a faint Dathomiri accent to it; however fruitless her efforts, the Force knew who she chose to be and what she rejected. She almost didn’t want an answer. She had been so stubbornly certain that she could repair the Force that she walked right up to the obelisk like an idiot and let it show her what it wanted her to see. If it was real…was Stormkirk trapped in there? Did her Darkness drag his soul here and entomb it in a monument to the Dark Side or was it just a lie meant to break her?

If it was all a lie, then it felt like it was all for nothing. The resting place of countless slaves were being desecrated and her efforts may have made it worse. Whatever she had seen could be a wild bantha chase to undermine any helpful progress. The Dark Side isn’t an engine I can fix, I’m just a dumb kid who interrupted a lesson of actual importance and almost destroyed myself.

"One thing you will quickly learn about the Force is that it's revelations and reinforcements can come from anywhere because the Force is everywhere. You may not have meant to, but you have given some more insight into the nature of the Force. Thank you."

I wouldn’t count on my insight.”Her hands were trembling so uncontrollably that she was having trouble making a knot for her necklace. “If there’s a lesson to be learned here, it is to listen to the expert.” She gestured towards Izel and got her breathing under control, giving her eyes one last squeeze before opening them again.

Don’t suffer emotion, or you will never know peace. Do I even deserve peace? Stormkirk...no...obey the Laws. You are Dathomirian. The others will have to believe that when you return. But how do you make peace with this?

I apologize to both of you. This place limits my stamina, and I’m remembering how it feels to be in my body again. I will be more attentive and less noisy from now on.

@Reyn @Isen
 
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Izel Thral

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Izel kept a hand hovering near Yulie as she recovered from her vision, ready to support her if she collapsed. She listened to both the young Force users, still somewhat daunted by the dark power of this place. "I told you the dark side was strong here." She explained before turning towards Isen. "The corruption on Sullust was a much fresher wound, caused by the Eternal making its den there. Should we be able to defeat it, the planet's recovery would be much easier. Ambria is different. Countless Sith have desecrated its surface over thousands and thousands of years. The misery and sorrow of those who were murdered here linger, trapped by the corruption of the Sorceress. Those who came after her only added to that despair." She looked back to Yulie. Even though the girl had overcome her vision, she seemed quite distraught. Izel understood how she felt. When she faced her first vision back on Ifrane so many years ago it had been a most traumatizing experience.

"Nothing you experienced just now was real." She assured the Dathomirian. "The dark side knows your greatest fears and regrets. It used them to try and harm you. That is what it does. It takes the darkest part of you and traps you there. It drags you down a path where you can never let go, never move on. All you will know is pain, and it will be the only thing you can inflict on others. If you give in to it."

“I apologize to both of you. This place limits my stamina, and I’m remembering how it feels to be in my body again. I will be more attentive and less noisy from now on.” At Yulie's words Izel inclined her head slightly, taking on a softer tone.

"You have nothing to apologize for. You are young, and inexperienced. You are going to make mistakes. What matters is what you learn from them." She would then turn her attention back to Isen, taking on a more angered tone.

"You on the other hand ought to know better Isen." She snapped. She rebuked her apprentice from time to time, but it wasn't often she became so outwardly aggravated with him. Perhaps the lingering corruption in the air was giving her a bit of a push. "The mission to Onderon was months ago. Are you really telling me you've been holding on to those things this whole time and never thought to tell me? Or anyone else for that matter? What were you thinking?" She would keep a stony gaze focused on her apprentice, expecting an answer. With the little crisis with Yulie resolved there was now nothing to distract her from judging Isen's actions. Most of her emotions now flowed from disappointment and her pain over being lied to. Well, perhaps not lied to, but she didn't appreciate that he felt it necessary to hide the lightsabers from her. It made her feel as though he did not trust her. It felt like a betrayal of sorts, and through their bond those feelings would be made abundantly clear to Isen.

@Isen @Zohrael
 

Isen Ramm

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Isen had no choice but to take the tongue lashing. He'd earned it. But the words were only a part it all. Their Force Bond was close, they could feel each other's feelings, talk to each other without speaking, even send instructions and messages when not looking at them. This is how Isen felt the hurt and the pain. She felt lied to, and Isen had never lied to her before.

"I didn't see it as a lie, Master. I suppose I talked myself into thinking it wasn't, but I understand how it is." He looked back over his shoulder and sighed before looking back to her. She would be able to tell his regret, and also his apprehension for even telling her now. "The conversation here...purifying, healing objects and places. With my psychometry, I may be asked to read a cursed or corrupted item, but I can't do that safely if it's still full of the Dark Side. That's why I took the lightsabers from Onderon. It's hard to find corrupted items, doubly hard that the Council doesn't take and hide away in a library or lock in a vault. I took them because I wanted to know if you could teach me how to purify the crystals."

He took a deep breath, but he wouldn't look a way. His facial expressions stayed emotionless, but that was just his way. Izel would feel his regret. "I didn't tell you because at Onderon, I got a little ahead of myself. I acted too quickly, too..permanently. I knew how it would look if I told you I took the lightsabers then and there. If not to you, how it would look to Master Tionson. So, I took them with the expectation that once I had gained your trust in this issue, I would let you know that I had them." He paused for a moment. "I understand that in waiting to gain your trust in one area, I may have lost it another."


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Yulie

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"Nothing you experienced just now was real. The dark side knows your greatest fears and regrets. It used them to try and harm you. That is what it does. It takes the darkest part of you and traps you there. It drags you down a path where you can never let go, never move on. All you will know is pain, and it will be the only thing you can inflict on others. If you give in to it."

Yulie breathed easier hearing that. They would not chase her fool’s errand, and her crime had not been committed anew. Old wounds had been opened, but she wouldn’t wake up screaming tonight. If she could even fall asleep. The memory would remain for a while.

"You have nothing to apologize for. You are young, and inexperienced. You are going to make mistakes. What matters is what you learn from them. You on the other hand ought to know better Isen."

Yulie went quiet and kept absolutely still when Izel gave her student a dressing-down, keeping her eyes to the ground and her profile low. The Vratix was far from being abusive or victimizing its student, so the violent tempest in Yulie’s heart remained calm. To the contrary, she accepted Izel as the de-facto authority in Force-related matters, so just as Yulie found it unthinkable to butt heads with the Captain, she likewise shied from interfering in this.

Back in the pit, there was no reward for coming to another’s defense from the guards. The only way to spare another of their punishment was to claim responsibility for the offense and receive it in their place, and that was not an option here. She never went to Onderon and could not produce the items Izel had procured to prove her culpability. The best she could do was wait for the storm to pass. Besides, nothing good had come from speaking up today, and she had just said that she would be more silent.

Isen seemed better at de-escalating this sort of confrontation than she was, anyways. The obelisk tried to convince her that he was a bomb ready to go off, but he kept his head, owning up to his decision while giving what sounded like sensible motivations for it, and he sounded remorseful for damaging his teacher's trust. She did not know what she would do if he returned Izel’s anger with his own. There was not anything to do, but hope for it to resolve itself or squeak something out about not feeding the obelisk if they lost control, and likely so quiet that neither would hear it. Break up a fight between Jedi? She would need a suit of power armor to stand in the middle of something like that.

She learned a little, from what she overheard. The proper term was to purify an object, not realign it, and her beam-sword was actually called a lightsaber. It made her feel doubly foolish to be ignorant of their lexicon and yet thought that she could help. Beam-sword. A word invented by a child. They probably thought her no better than a youngling. Lightsaber. She hoped she wouldn’t call it a beam-saber around anyone who knew better. It got her thinking of her own, though.

There was a moment of confusion when she realized it wasn’t in her hand, but it dissipated as quickly as she realized that she was aware of its weight in her belt. Her vision had her holding both the Crystal and the saber, but she only held the Crystal in the real world. Why? Izel said that the Dark Side only deceives, so the Crystal couldn’t have been kyber. Or at least, it was not actually viable for her lightsaber; the obelisk did not seem to intend for her to assemble the lightsaber in the real world. Why? What point was there in doing something to the Crystal but leaving her defenseless?

Her eyes lifted slowly with concern. Perhaps the Crystal was something similar to kyber, or maybe there were a bunch of different crystals that could be affected by the Force. Maybe the obelisk just saw her as an easy mark; either corrupt her or have her do something to provoke one of the Jedi to strike her down. Then the Jedi might turn on each other, and the winner would be taken by the Dark Side. She tried not to think what might have happened if she had gone through with it. The thought of her body being added to the pile of fallen slaves made her feel ill.

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Izel Thral

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"So you admit you kept your actions secret because you knew Master Tionson and I would not approve." Izel replied to her Padawan's explanation unsympathetically. She stared him down a few more moments before finally letting out an exhausted sigh, lowering her head. She could feel her apprentice's remorse, and she had no desire twist the knife. She had never seen the value in berating students, and even this outburst left her feeling a bit disappointed in herself. She raised her head to look at Isen again.

"I would have helped you if you'd only asked." She explained more softly. "I'm on your side Isen, but you keep falling into the same trap. Remember our discussion back at the temple. You make these rash decisions that you know are wrong, and then you just continue down this spiral into making more bad decisions. You tell me you're aware you're acting too quickly, but what are you doing to correct that behavior? What you did was serious. You could be expelled from the Order for something like this." She crossed her amrs as she kept her gaze fixed on him. Tangentially she was aware how quiet Yulie had become. She could imagine how awkward this must have been for the girl, stuck between the two of them and having little to no understanding of what they were talking about. Still, this needed to be said, it couldn't be put off any longer. She felt as though she was failing her apprentice by not finding a solution to this flaw.

"It ends here." She said firmly. "No more deceptions, no more mindless actions." She inclined her head slightly, knowing what she was about to say would bite. "And no more boastfulness. You might not gloat or swagger like some of the other Padawans, but I can read you like a book Isen Ramm, and so can all the other masters as well. You seek recognition, and respect. You are prideful, and it's a filthy stain on everything you have the potential to be." She hesitated, thinking to herself. "And I've helped build that image I suppose. But it needs to stop. It will destroy you in the end. It always does. Remember those like Hardume and Deej. They were so obsessed with personal image, it mattered more to them than actually building something worthy of respect. They were rotting, from the inside out. Is that what you want?"

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Isen Ramm

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"So you admit you kept your actions secret because you knew Master Tionson and I would not approve," Izel would say to Isen. Not so much ask as it was more of a statement of fact.

Still, Isen responded, "Yes, Master." Despite this act of omission, Isen was not a liar in the most technical of terms. He hadn't told blatant mistruths before, and he wouldn't start now. When she mentioned that this was something that could get him kicked out of the order, he perked up a bit. She may have well thought he was taking trophies for the sake of trophies, glorifying the killing of others. He opened his mouth to speak, but this was not the time to argue. He understood that. He closed his mouth and continued to listen.

At this point, she lit into him unlike anytime she had ever lit into him before. She berated him for being arrogant and prideful. This stung a little because this was exactly the thing he had accused many of the other padawans for being. They showed their pride and arrogance quite differently. They showboated, talked trash, acted with conceit, looked down upon others.

In dawned on him in this moment that was part of his problem. While he may not think he was "better" than many of the other padawans, he certainly believed he trained harder, was more focused, and would be better prepared than his peers. This may well have been what she was referring to.

And, if she was wanting to take him down a few rungs on the arrogance ladder, the dressing down he was getting in front of a stranger was a good start. She was, of course, correct. Isen was concerned about his image. He knew his martial abilities were substantial and ahead of many of the knights in the order. What's more, the others in the order knew it too. It became quite clear in this moment that outside of those instances of combat, Isen didn't need to do anything else to prove that. He didn't need to carry himself any sort of way. The proving, by and large, has already been done by his actions. If the Force willed it, it would be proven again on the battlefield. It would not be proven by his demeanor nor his attitude.

"They were rotting, from the inside out. Is that what you want?" she would ask.

"No, Master Thral," Isen would say back. "Of course not. I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about it earlier, and you're right. There are some...inward...issues that I need to correct." Isen really didn't know what else to say. He didn't know if there was anything else that could be said. The only way to fix it was to fix it. Talking about fixing it was just talk.


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Izel Thral

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"No, Master Thral, of course not. I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about it earlier, and you're right. There are some...inward...issues that I need to correct." Isen's response disheartened Izel. She felt bad speaking to him in such a way, even if he'd earned a lecture. More than anything she wanted to offer a solution rather than criticism. They both knew what the problem was, but neither seemed to have any idea how to fix it. All she really could say was 'try harder'. And that wasn't really helpful advice. She remained silent for a few more awkward moments before speaking more diplomatically.

"I will show you how to purify the crystals once we return to the ship." She told him, glancing towards Yulie. "You'll get the chance to see how it works." She turned back to the obelisk and took a few steps towards it. The corruption in the air, though mitigated slightly, was still very strong. She could feel it pressing in on her constantly, and letting herself get worked up like this was only making matters worse. Taking a few deep breaths she calmed herself and replenished her barriers, pushing back the darkness around her.

"Now for the reason we came here..." She began as she turned back to face the two young Force users. "I've talked about this briefly with you before Isen, about how the use of force to defeat the Sith is, in a way, endorsing their beliefs. It is my hope that here we can better our understanding of the Sith, and through doing so, better understand how to sway them back to the path of light without violence." She focused her attention on her Padawan.

"As a basis, I'd like to familiarize you with some of the Sith teachings." She hesitated again, giving a twitch of her antennae. It felt awkward to say such a thing. Even 'blasphemous', if that was a term that rightly applied to the Jedi Code. "For the purely academic benefits... of course..." She tilted her head curiously. "If you could tell me what you do know about them already, I can build on things from there." Privately Izel couldn't help but feel a bit of ironic amusement. She had just talked to her apprentice about how his actions could potentially be grounds for expulsion from the Order, and now she was about to give a lecture in the tenets of Sith ideology. She very much doubted her superiors would approve. Well... What they didn't know wouldn't hurt them... Hopefully...

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After Izel gave Isen the what for and Isen apologized, Izel quickly did a 180 and flatly stated that she would show Isen how to purify the crystals in the lightsabers. Granted, there was no guarantee that should would actually let Isen keep the lightsabers or the crystals after she gave him that lesson, but her entire demeanor seemed to shift. Just like that, she was back to looking at the spire and the lesson would continue on as planned.

Once more, Izel was intent on impressing the belief that the Sith could be defeated without violence or force. She almost indicated that they could be reasoned with, that they would come back to the Light Side of the Force through non-combative means. Isen was extremely skeptical of such an idea. He had no doubt that individuals could be persuaded to leave their dark path and join the light, but as a widespread plan to eradicate the Sith? Isen wasn't so sure. Still, Izel was wiser and more intelligent than many of the masters of the Order, so he would listen and hear her out.

Then she said something that made Isen's heart drop a little. She said she wanted to teach her padawan some Sith teachings. He was just a padawan and Yulie...she wasn't even that. Not to mention that Isen could feel the internal struggle within her, and he wasn't sure if the Dark Side wasn't ahead in that race as it was. Would she be here for the Sith lessons?

And, it was as if the planet could feel Isen's fear. It basked in Isen's nervousness and doubt. If nothing else today, Isen had his master were setting on a new path of trust, so in this instance, in the here and now, the padawan would trust his master to make the wise decisions.

"If you could tell me what you do know about them already, I can build on things from there," Izel said.

Growing up on a very traditional, orthodox Jedi convent, Isen was taught more about the Sith in his history classes in comparison to many of the others in the order. Isen had an advantage as his entire education was provided by the Order. A majority of the Jedi today weren't raised in Jedi schools. Their Force sensitivity was found later in life, and they were taught the the tenets of the Order, how to access the Force, lightsaber combat and the like. Further, while the old masters at Jedha were not particularly exciting tutors, they did enjoy teaching. And, because their entire life was spent in research and did not focus on combat, they knew their stuff.

"I know that Sith are an order who believe in the Force and wield it much like we can. Their religion is about promotion of self and pursuing their own desires above all else. Where we use the Light Side of the Force, the Sith access the Dark Side of the Force. I know they seem to draw power from emotions, especially negative ones like fear, sadness, and anger." He sort of shrugged a bit. "I know they don't play well others a lot of times, within their own kind especially. They are experts at using deception."

That was a pretty basic explanation of the Sith, but a decent enough starting point, Isen thought. You couldn't really sum up the Sith in a short summary much like it would be difficult to sum up the Jedi and what they were. Isen was curious what information she was looking for because he figured there was something specific she wanted to key on for this lesson.


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Yulie

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Yulie could feel her cheeks getting warmer when Izel was not calmed by Isen’s contrition. Without the proper context, it did not seem like his infraction was particularly serious, at least, not in comparison to the stunt she just pulled and the price she almost paid. It made more sense to her to think that she was the one to really upset the Jedi, and it was just taking that out on its student.

Still, she did not speak up, quite confident in her ability to make a mess of things. Many times she found herself in Isen’s spot, and the verbal thrashings tended to worsen if someone else interrupted it. Only once had she seen it defused entirely, and that happened to be when Isen confronted the Captain. Yulie did not have the same presence, and even if she did, she could not imagine it working on a Jedi. She did not see any path to improving things, and since the leading Jedi was not approaching any brazen act of intimidation or sharing any insults, there was no need to make herself into a lightning rod for its ire.

In awkward silence, she patiently waited for things to run their course, and with Isen doing nothing to fuel it, the confrontation de-escalated on its own. Perhaps he would not get in trouble with the Order, either. If that is what Izel was worried about, they could simply keep it quiet. If no one asked, no one would have to know, and if it ever were mentioned, it could be a footnote in a broader story about purifying the Crystals. Sometimes people were willing to overlook a broken rule if something good came out of it.

"You'll get the chance to see how it works."

And she would not ask to participate. She was going to take a hands-off approach with the Force until she had some notion of how it worked. Giving a thankful nod, Yulie hid her excitement beneath a demure mask. More time needed to pass before she felt comfortable putting energy into the moment. Things were tense not long ago, and nerves could still be sensitive. She would let them heal.

"Now for the reason we came here...I've talked about this briefly with you before Isen, about how the use of force to defeat the Sith is, in a way, endorsing their beliefs. It is my hope that here we can better our understanding of the Sith, and through doing so, better understand how to sway them back to the path of light without violence."

Yulie disliked the idea of employing nonviolence to the Sith. If they abide by what happened here, better to wipe them out. All of them. The blood of slaves was screaming from the ground, and it would be inappropriate to answer their call by breaking bread with their abusers. Yulie kept her objections to herself. Was it suffering emotion to want justice? Was it abiding by evil to want revenge? Was there even a difference? The Laws were unclear, and she knew that her perspective was flawed without a proper upbringing among her people. She would have to think on them.

"I know that Sith are an order who believe in the Force and wield it much like we can. Their religion is about promotion of self and pursuing their own desires above all else. Where we use the Light Side of the Force, the Sith access the Dark Side of the Force. I know they seem to draw power from emotions, especially negative ones like fear, sadness, and anger. I know they don't play well others a lot of times, within their own kind especially. They are experts at using deception."

Paying careful attention to Isen explain what a Sith actually was, she felt troubled by his assessment, particularly how they drew upon fear, sadness and anger to channel the Force. The obelisk showed her that she too summoned the might of the Force with those emotions. It made sense why the Singing Mountain Clan sent her away; this was exactly what they meant when they said that she abides by evil. The Laws may be the only things to distinguish her from one of them, like a dam holding back rising waters of the Dark Side. She would need to reinforce it, build it higher, and somehow shape herself to meet the Clan's standards.

If she were that close to the precipice of becoming a Sith, what more could she do? Suddenly she took a greater interest in what Izel had to say. Not to face a Sith, but for herself. If she became liken unto them, it would be the same as being dead.

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Izel Thral

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"That is a good summation of their core beliefs, and it gets at their greatest weakness as well." Izel replied to Isen's summary with a nod. She would begin pacing in front of the two students as she continued speaking. "Being that the Sith were originally Jedi who broke from our Order, the first tenet of their Code is a direct challenge to ours. Peace is a Lie, there is only Passion. Through Passion, I gain Strength. Through Strength, I gain Power. Through Power, I gain Victory. Through Victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me. They reject the idea of personal balance, or balance in the universe at large for that matter. Their view of the galaxy is very cynical. They see it as a savage place where only the strong survive. An understandable viewpoint, seeing as many Sith come from very horrific circumstances. Not that it condones their actions." She paused to look at Yulie. She had glimpsed the girl's past during their connection, and recognized she was perfect prey for the dark side.

"Many Sith despise the circumstances of their existence." She explained. "It drives them to hate that which they view as responsible for their misery. This hatred fuels the dark side, which in turn grants them more power. It cannot be denied that power for dark siders is more easily attained, as it is driven by unrestrained emotions, rather than control. At a certain point though, because they have no self control, they become enslaved anew. Not by the oppression of others, but by the whims of an increasingly vicious mind. They become so desperate to continue increasing their power, they inevitably destroy that which they care about." She looked back towards Isen.

"Because their entire philosophy is based around power, they believe those that can use the Force are naturally superior to those that cannot. They see the Force as a tool to be wielded by the powerful for personal gain. They construct, what they believe, is a very meritocratic system. Might makes right. The strongest leads, and those that are weaker follow and covet. How did you put it? They don't 'play well' with one another?" She chittered lightly in amusement.

"That's putting it mildly." She went on. "Because their Code demands the constant pursuit of greater power, they must be conniving in order to survive. Lesser Sith will work with one another to overcome and usurp greater Sith, while greater Sith might kill their subordinates at any given moment if they suspect treachery. It breeds an environment full of mistrust and fear, which in turn continues to strengthen their ties to the dark side." She tilted her head. "This environment produces very cunning and powerful warriors, but also incurs quite a few drawbacks as you can imagine." She paused here and looked between the two students, giving them both time to absorb what had said and ask any questions they wanted, or make observations. She was hoping that her speech would begin to paint a picture for Isen of the inherent vulnerabilities and fears that all Sith possessed. And if he knew what they feared, he would know how to use that to challenge their beliefs, or at the very least exploit them in order to overcome them in combat.

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Isen Ramm

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Isen listened to his teacher, nodding as she spoke to indicate that he was listening. Isen knew that the Dark Side was seductive. It pulls strongly and offers power. Isen doubted that anyone was immune to the temptation. The Dark Side was more than seductive; it was cunning. It would tell you to seek out power, and that you could use it for good. But Izel seemed to make it clear that once one starts down a dark path, it is incredibly hard to be pulled back.

"The Dark Side sounds like a pathway to a downward spiral that gets out of control. Negative emotions make the person stronger, but then they are in an even darker state, so they require more power to compensate. They dig deeper into hatred to get that power, but then they need more power to satiate their new emotional status." He looked at Izel. "It sounds similar to the pathway of those addicted to spice...except they are addicted to wielding power."

His shoulders shrugged his shoulders downward as he thought about the flip side of that, a rather sad conclusion to draw. "Is that why it is easier to convert to the Dark Side from the Light as opposed to pulling those pledged to the Dark Side out of that darkness and back to the Light? They are addicted to what the Dark Side gives them, but..." He thought and couldn't think of anything that compare, "we don't really have anything that we're addicted to...do we?"

He would allow her to answer before he gave his next question. He knew that the Sith achieved their greatest control over the galaxy under what the Sith called the "Rule of Two," the idea that there should only be two Sith in the galaxy at a time- a master and an apprentice. It was ironic that pinnacle of Sith success happened under this Rule of Two as Darth Sidious and Darth Vader ruled the galaxy with an iron fist. A little over a thousand years earlier, there was an army of Sith, and they found themselves in danger of losing the great war between the Sith and the Jedi. Her comments about how the Sith betray each other made Isen think about things from a historical perspective.

"Is that why the Sith were much more successful under the 'Rule of Two?'" Isen asked. "Less backbiting and opportunities to be stabbed in the back? Less internal sabotage?"


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Yulie

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I heard the Sith Code before.

Admitting to such a thing had Yulie fraught with hesitation; only when each of Isen’s questions had been answered in full was she able to summon the temerity to speak of it. The obelisk painted a phantasmagoria from the horrific circumstances of her existence, using her pain and torment as an ink to darken every hue in her memory, and the portraits of her past melted together at their edges into a single landscape. Were anyone to pry into the details of Yulie’s experience, it would be difficult to answer their questions while omitting subjects too haunting to be discussed openly.

It was when you told me the first tenet of the Jedi Code, not long ago. The obelisk used my life as a thesis to prove Sith beliefs over our own, and I almost believed it. I recited the Code in my own words and came close to accepting them. I almost turned away from everything I hold dear.

Her Laws left her vulnerable to the Dark Side’s influence. She found moral certainty to hold on to her beliefs, but it was her resistance to the Jedi perspective that opened the way. Izel was able to dissect Sith philosophy with an academic detachment, but for Yulie, it resonated on a profoundly personal level. She felt like she had to say something about it, and she could not ignore what Izel said about becoming enslaved by the whims of an increasingly vicious mind.

Yulie did not care for power, but she hated those who used it to oppress others. Releasing her demons upon such people was cathartic, as if her masters got to experience it vicariously. It felt good but it did not bring her peace, and her urges kept returning even for those less deserving. They were forming heavy chains around her heart, every link adding to a burden, their weight becoming harder and harder to carry. She promised herself to call no one else 'master' ever again, but a slave to one's self is still a slave.

She wondered if Izel recognized what was happening inside of her, if the Jedi chose its words specifically to relate this truth to her in terms that she would accept, but she could not see how a Sith would do the same. Their beliefs were not like the Jedi’s or the Laws; the way of the Sith was not a list of rules or principles, but an argument that seemed self-evident.

The Sith will not let go of their beliefs unless they believe another’s as valid. And if this planet is any indication, they cannot coexist with anything, including themselves. If not with violence, how do you make them…stop?

She wanted to ask how to make them pay, and in her heart, she wanted to make them suffer. Censoring these impulses did little to conquer them, and knowing their cause was not enough to counter them. The walls were holding; Yulie’s mind was safely quarantined from Ambria’s radioactive corruption, but those barriers could not flush out what Yulie brought with her to the planet.

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"Yes, a spice addiction is a very apt analogy." Izel replied to Isen with a nod. "The Law of Diminishing Returns applies," She explained. "Over time, as a Sith becomes desensitized to their actions, they must become crueler and crueler to maintain their ties to the dark side. Whatever power they gain is not enough, and they must always strive for more." As Isen went on to talk about the differences between the dark and light Izel clocked her mandibles thoughtfully.

"It is indeed much easier to fall to the dark side then return to the light." She agreed. "You know how difficult the life of a Jedi can be." She turned her attention to Yulie for a moment. "While we are not as strict as we once were, we still deprive ourselves of much of what non Force sensitives enjoy. We are separated from the general populace, and must always work hard to keep our emotions in check, because we know we are so inherently dangerous to others. We dedicate our entire lives to the Order's dogma, and because of this have significantly fewer choices in how we can lead our lives." She looked back towards Isen. "And yes, I believe in some ways we too have our addictions. It is not as serious a problem as it once was, because of Rey Skywalker's more lax reforms, but it still exists. Jedi I feel can become too lost in their stoicism, and because of that see themselves as too separate from society. Such worldviews breed arrogance, and ultimately stagnation. They make us weaker." She tilted her head slightly as she looked at her apprentice. "That is part of why we traveled to Mon Gazza. I believe you to a degree have suffered from this issue. It is not your fault, as you were handed over to the Jedi as a child, but the effects have been quite clear. It's why I always encourage you to try and form closer ties with those around you. It is important that if you are going to serve as a protector you are invested in what you are protecting. It is also important to remaining humble, as all Jedi should be."

As Isen began getting into the Rule of Two Izel couldn't help but brighten up a bit. She always loved discussing history, and Isen's already well established education allowed her to have a more in depth debate. "Yes an no." She replied. "Darth Bane was quite the visionary of his time, and I believe he understood what the Sith were meant to be better than any of his contemporaries, but in my opinion he was still somewhat naïve in his vision of the future." She paused for a moment, realizing it probably wasn't in very good taste to refer to a murderous warlord who set in motion the eventual downfall of the Republic a 'visionary'. The Vratix would clear her throat before continuing with more neutral language. "You see Bane had a certain... servile relationship with the dark side. His views in some ways were almost Jedi. He believed that an individual Sith was less important than insuring the continuation and domination of the dark side. That is why he was willing to institute a new Order that would eventually ensure his own demise. While the Rule of Two succeeded in helping the Sith survive, and even produced the most powerful Dark Lord that ever lived in Darth Sidious, it too was a system doomed to failure. The Sith do not draw the selfless type. They are not the sort to willingly die for the good of their Order. It was inevitable that the Rule of Two would eventually collapse as one apprentice would simply decide that they had no intention of dying for the cause. And that is exactly what happened with the last three Dark Lords to exist under that Rule. Darths Tenebrous, Plagueis and finally Sidious were all more concerned with their own longevity then continuing to strengthen the Order. Sidious even blatantly broke the Rule of Two by taking on multiple apprentices and acolytes, and simply withholding the title of Darth from them as a poor justification. Instead of training an apprentice that could one day replace him, he simply used them until they became a threat, or had outlived their usefulness, and then replaced them. And eventually this came back to bite him. Perhaps if Darth Vader's loyalties to the Sith Order were stronger, Luke Skywalker would not have been able to turn him back to the light." She looked between the two students. "So in the end, it remains that the very philosophy that gives the Sith their power dooms them to fail."

@Isen @Zohrael
 

Izel Thral

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Jedi Order
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Jedi Master

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The Vratix would then turn her attention towards Yulie as the Dathomirian asked her own questions. Although she had gotten a hold of herself since her vision, she was still clearly grappling with the dark side within herself. Izel nodded in understanding as she finished. “The Force is a Living thing, and the dark side is the same,” She explained, falling back on her beliefs in the Living Force. “It is deceitful, and cunning. It obfuscates your most closely held beliefs, and can subvert your entire world view if you do not remain steadfast against it. It will make you betray everything you believe in and care about. You have not been the first, and you will not be the last.”

When Yulie asked her next question Izel saw through it quite easily. She could sense what the young Dathomirian was feeling, because she had felt the same way herself in the past. “Sometimes violence is unavoidable, that is why we train to fight.” Izel answered. “Sometimes no matter how hard you try people will not see reason, and they will force your hand. But a Jedi always,” And here she looked at Isen as well to make her point to the both of them. Always looks to violence only as a last resort. But it is not as hopeless as you make it out to be.” Here she took on a softer tone.

“There have been Sith turned to the light before, some of them the worst kinds of people you can imagine. Darth Revan, who led a conquest of half the galaxy, Darth Vader, who nearly exterminated the entirety of the Jedi Order, Ben Solo, Asajj Ventress and more. Many thought it impossible for these people to turn back from the darkness, yet through the dedication of those truly tied to the light, it was done.” She inclined her head slightly, fully aware of the question Yulie really wanted to ask.

“I see myself in you.” She said. “I’ve always hated injustice. I’ve always hated seeing others bullied and beaten down by those stronger than them. But if you sink into that hatred there’s no satisfaction. Nothing to make you feel better. You’ll just go through your life miserable and full of dread and pain. I know it’s hard, and often it doesn’t seem fair. But only seeking to punish only ensures the continuation of the cycle of violence. There is only one way to break that cycle, and that is to make the choice to let the violence stop with you. To let go, and look forward.” That probably wasn’t the answer Yulie wanted to hear, but it was the only one Izel had to give. She tilted her head thoughtfully.

“As far as what we can personally do to make them change their minds? It’s not a simple process.” She explained. “We must strive to understand them, and use every encounter to weaken their resolve.” She looked back to Isen as well. “Engage them with dialog, even if you are under attack. Prey on their fears of other Sith. Make them question their loyalties. Offer mercy when you can, even if it allows them to escape you. Continue to test their dedication whenever and however you can. And always be prepared to welcome them to you, even if you suspect a trick. Do not be naïve, but do not push them away either. Build for them an image of yourself as someone who can be trusted, or at the very least used. Let them think they have control, and all the while continue to erode their resolve. You must be strong both in physical ability and belief. There is a certain balance that must be struck. Show enough strength to be respected, but also be willing to show vulnerability through forgiveness and kindness.” As she explained this Izel realized saying it was no simple task was an understatement. On a large scale it would probably seem like a fool’s errand to most people. But she disagreed. Her studies had led her to believe there was a crack in the very heart of the Sith just waiting to be exploited. Morale was everything, especially in those driven by emotion. If they could demoralize their troops enough, get enough Sith to question what they believed, their entire power structure would collapse under it’s own weight. Fear would drive them away from each other, and ideally into the arms of those that could lead them back to the light.
 
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