"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
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