Woodland Gathering

[Jon Atreides]

Unpronounceable Wookiee Village, Kashyyyk.​

Jon had left Jedha the moment he had received Tarfful's message. A fellow Jedi Knight, Jon had known Tarfful since his first days in the Order. They had been in the same classes for a few years before Tarfful had jumped ahead of him and gotten himself Knighted. They hadn't seen a great deal of each other since then, but they had kept in touch. So when Jon had received a message from him asking for help he had made his way to Kashyyyk with all haste.

Only when he was already airborne did he realize that he might need help with the situation on Kashyyyk and had sent out messages to other Jedi. He did not know how many would respond, or manage to make it in time, but he did know that the Jedi could not turn a deaf ear to this call for aid.

It was only after landing near the small village that Tarfful's coordinates had lead him to did Jon realize how dire the situation was. The village definitely looked like it had faced the attacks Tarfful had mentioned. With the planetary forces caught up in handling similar attacks on other nearby cities and settlements, this little village had been left to fend for itself. But that alone was not why Tarfful had dragged him here, there was more to this little village, Tarfful seemed to think he had discovered a way to put a stop to these attacks once and for all, and this village was somehow key to that.

As he watched the Wookiees move around repairing their home, he could do little more than pace around as he waiting for Tarfful to return from the expedition he was out on and for his friends to respond to his call for aid. He hoped some would show up, because he was beginning to get the sinking feeling that this might be more than he could handle on his own.

 

[Vollen Shai]

The call had come in just as Vollen had disengaged hyperspace, his small interceptor locked in to a hyperspace docking ring, getting the hang of the new bit of tech he’d managed to pick up. Now if there were problems he could always be in the area to assist.

And now, well it looked like it would be one of those days.

Strapping himself back on for the flight, he shot off at blistering speeds towards Kashyyyk. He still wasn’t quite used to experiencing hyperspace quite so close up, just a sheet of lamniplex between his face and the warped space-time outside. Meditation then was all he could do for his time, losing the trip to the deep bliss of silence, and the him of the engine.

It wouldn’t last. As the docking ring beeped and the galaxy snapped back into position around him, he’d hoped he’d made it in time. Jon’s location was on the far side of the planet, far away from the mighty tree borne settlements that marked the Wookie planet. Drawing closer, cutting through the tree line he felt the violence around him, an aura of fear, brutality, it clung to the world like the fog layer did to the trees as he passed through their canopy and down to the outskirts of the village. And as Wookiee’s scrambled to repair their broken homes Vollens heart went out to them. Even with hyperspace on his side, he was too late for whatever had done this. Hopefully though it had got him there soon enough to stop it getting any worse.

So much was on the shoulders of the Order now, so much on the minds of the knights and masters who made up its ever dwindling ranks. And with the latest cuts digging deeper than most so many felt it was a final straw. Vollen certainly did. Though he abhorred violence still, no longer could they sit back so easily and let violence happen to the galaxy, to the people he called friends, family even. They were already hunted across so much of the galaxy, even with what good they still did.

There was an energy among them all now, to do something. And Vollen could sense it in Jon as he approached the man, pacing in thought. He had plans, clearly. He always did,

“Who did this?” Vollen called as he approached the Knight. There was clearly much wrong on Kashyyyk. Much that hopefully they could fix. Save one, save the galaxy.



@Wit

 

[Venatus Phoenix]

He adjusted his helm for the third time today, once again messing with the newly added visor. It was tinted to help with the glare of sunlight, but the entire thing felt off and strange now. He was used to being able to stare directly out of his closed helm, although the visor provided additional visual coverage of his surroundings. Surroundings that were, to his observations, ravaged, and act that had been done recently. He and those who accompanied him had come at the behest of Knight Atreides and Tarfful, a Wookiee native and Jedi both. The village had obviously come under recent attack, and the yet spry Vahla had taken to helping in reconstruction however he could. Part of him wanted to recommend reinforcing the wooden structures with some metal nails. He could even fashion walls from durasteel if they could salvage it, but he would have to also convince them such change was necessary. He was careful to avoid letting his natural pyrokinetic powers roam freely on the highly forested world, going as far as to refuse to remove his helmet, for fear of setting the home he was rebuilding on fire with the sparks his eyes gave off.

"You might want to consider reinforcing this with a little metal. I'd be happy to bend it into shape and place it for you."

He hoped the Wookiees he worked alongside would understand his basic, he didn't know how to speak their strange guttural tongue yet. Though he one day hoped to learn how when time permitted. Venatus had correctly presumed that those who had attacked the village would likely return with greater numbers, but now that the Jedi had arrived the playing field had evened. He would fight as fiercely as he dared to defend their homes, and teach any tyrant who would try and claim the freedom of others the price that is paid. Though he was calm and collected, Venatus wanted to do something more than just rebuild. He wanted to make sure these people never had to uproot their lives for others again. Nobody deserved to live like that. He rose and nodded to Jon and Vollen (who had joined him), his armor clinking as he pivoted on his heels and marched onwards. His armor looked strange among the wookies, but he did not garner too many strange looks.

He diverted his attention back to the Knight who had summoned him and moved to join his side as he looked over the devastated village. It was clear to anyone that Jon did not like the look of this, and his face had begun to reflect it. Venatus couldn't have the one people looked to as their leader visually showing nervousness around the younger folk - whether Jon knew it or not, he had to appear in control of almost any situation now. Gently smiling as he approached, he looked around at the natives as they moved in a disorderly fashion to repair and reinforce their homes. He could see why Knight Atreides was distraught, from this central location the place looked absolutely irreparable. But, it was not so, and everyone assembled here was a living testament to that fact.

"Smile. That look on your face could be mistaken for despair. Despair is only for those who see the end beyond all hope, and we do not."

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

Kashyyyk. Homeworld of the Wookiees, a gorgeous natural forest world that Aliyah has never visited before. She was excited to see how different the planet looked compared to the last couple of forest planets they'd been on. Venatus had stained his armor green for stealth reasons, and made some improvements to his helmet. She had decided to stay in her traditional minimalistic robes, hoping her athleticism and acrobatics would make up for her lack of heavy armor. She didn't really know what they were doing here, whether they were defending the village against another attack or striking back themselves.

Aliyah walked alongside Venatus as he fidled with his helmet before starting to help fix a building. She just looked around as the greenery that surrounded her, and the damaged structures that looked like they had been recently attacked. She didn't know whether to feel frustrated or protective, so she settled for a strange mix of the two as she watched Vollen and Jon watch the same destruction. Venatus joined them a few seconds later, before she decided to walk up and listen in to the conversation. There were only four Jedi here, and it didn't look like more were coming. She hoped that this plan was a good one. She tapped her foot gently as she waited for a response, not wanting to interrupt anyone as they spoke. She watched the treeline as well, making sure nobody was watching from the distance.

 

[Jace Tokani]

With his dark robes flowing around him as he stepped forward, Jace Tokani emerged from the thick woodlands into the opening of the village feeling the Force work around him. There had been great violence that had occurred here recently. Knight Tokani had landed nearby and then walked through the plant growth of Kashyyyk and between the hundreds of meters tall wroshyr trees. Some of the trees even extended to a dizzying height of kilometers in the deeper parts of the planet-spanning forest. Jace couldn't imagine what it was like to live in such trees. Jace had responded swiftly after the call had gone out, knowing that if Jon was down there, then there was likely a good reason for it.

Now that he was standing on the edge of this small village, the young Knight could look around and spy on the number of Jedi already present. He spotted Venatus and Aliyah standing over in one part of the village helping a Wookiee, not far from them was Vollen Shai, and nearer to him was Jon. Well, at least we managed to make it to the right village. It would have been mortifying if he had waltzed his way into a village only to find out it was completely the wrong one. Luckily, his tracking of the signal hadn't led him astray, and now he was here in this village watching as the local population went to work making repairs to the huts and structures.

One thing that amazed Jace about Kashyyyk was how massive the great wroshyr trees were, and even more than that how the local flora and fauna had evolved and grown to match it in size. The Wookiees, the local sentient natives of the planet, of which he had met a few in the Jedi Order or seen in seedy back-alley cantinas and knew full-well their dangerous strength, had grown to great height, and could swing from the massive trees as easily as he might call on the Force to help him jump from building to building. Each Wookiee was well over two meters tall, some significantly taller than that in rare occasions, and each one had the strength and ferocity to tear a man's arm off if they so desired. That left few options as to what could possibly have the balls to attack a Wookiee village. Whoever it was, they either had the biggest set Jace had ever seen, or somebody had some weapons and knew how to use them. The Jedi Knight was banking on the latter.

Walking forward, Jace offered a nod and welcoming wink to both Jedi Knights as they approached Jon and Vollen. "Jon! Glad to see that you have made it safely! So what is happening, brother? Why have we all been called here to Kashyyyk?" Glancing around at the damage this village sustained, he paused wondering if it would give him any insight. "Would it have to do with how he found this place? Or is that just because whatever we're doing needs to start here?" Pausing to look at the others for a moment, he smiled at Vollen bowed respectfully. It was good to see other Jedi, though he hoped he would be of some use here in this endeavor; he felt fairly useless with a lot of the goodwill missions that the Jedi were often called on to perform. "Master Shai, Knights Venatus and Aliyah. Do any of you have an inkling of what is going on, or what we might to do help?"

@Wit

 

[Jubei]

Some Southeastern sections of Olmondo had suffered the most damage when a minor earthquake rolled through Ruusan's capitol city. Jubei had spent the last two weeks helping the people to rebuild. Metalwork was his profession, and with him came the tools and the knowledge to repair just about anything. But while he fancied himself a humanitarian, there was always the feeling of leaving a job unfinished knowing all his tools and knowledge account for nothing when faced with the loss of life, it was the one thing he could never repair. It weighed on him. The smiles of those thankful to have their homes back gave a modicum of consolation, at least.
He left Olmondo a little heavier in the soul, a little happier in the heart.

The moment he broke through the atmosphere came another call for aid, it's origin coming from Kashyyyk, right around the proverbial corner from Ruusan. Once again, he felt, the Force has put him in the right spot at the right time. Tracing back the call's point of origin lead him to what appeared to be a village in ruin, a quick reach of apathy hinted towards a general trepidation. He landed the shuttle as close as he could in case his tool sets were needed, though quickly realized there was very little, if any metal to work with in a place like this. Considering the state of things, it seemed armaments could prove the more useful.

A flick of a finger allowed the saberhilt to bounce to it's place at his right hip as he neared the rear to exit the shuttle. In his Soresu-focused hands it's purpose was much more a shield than anything else. However, the pair of katana&wakizashi at his left hip, there was no mistaking their purpose. Most Jedi would never carry such barbarity, a thing used exclusively to end life. But the fact of the matter was a simple vow: the Jedi are the example of Peace for the galaxy - the lightsaber is a physical, tangible symbol of that peace - a symbol that should never be used as a tool of death, lest that peace be proven an illusion. This is his Way of the Mynock, his Soresu.

A satchel of survival items was strapped over a shoulder across his chest, letting it rest behind the saberhilt as the shuttle's rear doors closed behind him. Short minutes later he came to find a small contingent of Jedi among many obviously saddened and angry wookies.
" Brethren." His tone solemn as he looked to each, noting their youthful ages.
" I heard the call. I'm Jubei, Senior Forgemaster of Tidros, how can I help?"​

 

[Zhen'e Ke]

Zhen'e didn't feel particularly out of place amid the Kashyyyk forestry. Between his spartan Jedi garb and wooden staff, he might even have come off as someone who had lived here for some time alongside the Wookiees. Given that had in fact been the case, the scene of devastation unfortunately was not particularly alien to him. The Wookiee homeworld was frequently subject to external brutalities, and there was a constant culture of strife on the planet. Perhaps that was what had allowed the Wookiees to become such a strong race. Nevertheless, it pained Zhen'e to see this village in such a dire state. For the same reason, he couldn't turn down Jon Atreides' call for assistance here.

Spotting the band of Jedi who had also answered Jon's call, Zhen'e made his way towards them, offering as warm a smile as he could in the circumstances. He imagined that all other six Jedi present appreciated the direness of the situation. They wouldn't have responded to Jon's request for aid so quickly if they didn't.

"Appreciate that you fellows have the patience to wait for this old man to catch up," he said to the congregation of Jedi. Turning to Master Atreides, Zhen'e asked, "Do you know more on what is going on?"

@Wit

 

[Venatus Phoenix]

Turning to Aliyah and Jace as they joined the conglomerate of Jedi perched on a clearing that overlooked the construction efforts. As though all their worries had been answered, more and more Jedi began to poor and flood into the clearing, until a group of seven strong stood together. They stood there, looking to the one they found to be a leader, ready to plunge into action, he could feel the righteous hunger for justice. He himself burned with it so purely that he could not stand completely still, and so tapped his foot and paced as the conversations began. He watched calmly as two of the three he had sworn himself to began to speak, until poor Jon was almost flooded with questions and greetings from all directions, any number of which would have confused the Vahla in his younger, more inpatient days. Instead, he fell back on his roots as a lieutenant, turning to the assembly and greeting them all in turn.

"Jace, Vollen, Brothers. For those of you, I do not know; my name is Venatus Phoenix, of Vahla."

Bowing low and sweeping his cloak aside momentarily, causing the helm again to fall askew. Pulling himself upright, he straightened it through gritted teeth before continuing.

"I know not how this destruction came to be, but if history is to be heeded slavers and pirates were the likely culprits. I do not know why we are here, nor the exact purpose of this gathering, that answer is Jon and Tarfful's alone. I likewise do not know whether there is a battle to be had or forges to be lit and structures erected... I await your command, Jon, whatever it is we are here to do."

He was a naturally distrusting person, having been deceived and betrayed for most of his youth, he has grown hyper-vigilant. The betrayal of Master Ward still stung in his mind, when he first met the man he had known something was not right. The betrayals he had suffered had earned him a good deal of insight, and yet another name, "True-Guesser". It should have been obvious that Ward would follow Cregan's footsteps, Shadow after Shadow passing into the depths of the Dark Side. Had Venatus acted on his impulses at the Conclave, and challenged Ward to a duel then and there, he could have made the revelation of his betrayal known to all sooner, and together the entire might of the remaining Order would have taken him down. So now, he observed, and carefully watched. He looked around at his fellow Jedi, having just met the vast majority of them. His eyes, hidden behind glass lenses, held an intense and disarming glare as he carefully examined every inch of his newfound allies. He even went so far as to search through the Force and ensure their aura held no tinctures or severe unbalances, before drawing himself back into the nature that surrounded him.

"...We shall see it done."

Venatus' attention shifted to a winged avian creature that rested in the trees above, nestled and safe. Reaching out through the Force, he sent waves of soothing and friendly energy to the creature - one he believed the wookies called Kroyie. As the bird landed softly beside the assembly, the surrounding wookies became distracted from their tasks as a common food source so willingly landed in their midsts. Leaning down, Venatus began to gently whisper a request to the bird. Telling it that he had no wings with which to fly, but he needed to see from above, asking the Kroyie to be his eyes. It nodded gently in response, raising it's wings and taking off into the blue skies above, disappearing with alarming speeds and reaching high above the treetops. He could still feel the creature's aura from here, and would ask the Kroyie what it saw when it returned.

 

[Jon Atreides]

Seeing others arrive started to alleviate Jon's worries a little, they had come in greater numbers than he had expected, and together they surely had a chance of dong something for both just these villagers but other villages facing a similar fate. Closing his eyes, he let out a deep breath, letting out all of his worries and trying to refocus himself, one of the first tricks the Jedi had taught him. Nodding to Venatus, he smiled at the gathered Jedi and gestured towards a small hut that the locals had told him was used the one where Tarffal was born and raised till he had left to join the Jedi Order.

"Some of you might know Tarfful, might have seen him on Jedha. Wookiees are hard enough to miss, one that's a Jedi even more so. Well, this happens to be his home. He drops by every now and then to keep tabs on things." Pausing for a moment, he glanced at his datapad once more to see if there was any word from Tarfful, but still nothing. "Last week he returned home to find the village in much worse shape than what you see right now. A band of slavers flew in under the cover of night, set the place on fire and made off with a half dozen or so villagers. In all the chaos no one even noticed that they were missing till it was too late."

The Jedi would be able to see the shock of the attack and the worry for the missing on the faces of the gathered, the wounds were still far too fresh for them. "This isn't the first time this has happened, similar attacks have been reported all over this side of the planet. Tarfful believed he had found something about the salvers. We were supposed to help him deal with them in some way. He should have been back by now, but if he isn't then it might be on us to take care of this situation on our own." He would look around at the gathered Jedi, sure that they were who these villagers needed. "I don't know how dangerous this might be, these slavers must be a big group if they've been terrorizing so many towns and villages. But we might be all the help they get." He didn't say more, but looked questioningly at the others, the question he had left hanging in the air more than evident. This was gonna get rough, and he didn't want to force anyone into a hairy situation. He needed their help, but he would not force them.

@Nightfall096 @Aurius Pheonix @Autumn's Firefly @Kori Buor @Kibagami @The Living Daylights

 

[Jace Tokani]

Two more Jedi arrived in the meeting place. That made seven. Seven Jedi had responded to the call. That was impressive to say the least, especially given how weak and strained the Order was now. Usually, the Order could only afford to send our a single Jedi or two to calls for aid, but the fact that seven had shown up here on Kashyyyk meant a lot. Perhaps the Force was trying to pull them all together for some special purpose, or perhaps they had all gotten lucky and were available to respond to this one call for help and support. Jace tended to believe the former, as he wasn't a big believer in luck, especially when he knew there was an all-powerful Force controlling everything.

One of the Jedi who approached was on he had never met before, and he introduced himself as Jubei, a Forgemaster of Tidros. Jace had never heard of the place, but perhaps he would learn more of it now. The other Jedi was one Jace recognized from his returned to Jedha, an older man name Zhen'e. Between those two, Venatus and Aliyah, and Jon and Vollen, this was certainly an eclectic group of Jedi, though Jace did not know the specialties of each of the Jedi present, he was willing to be that they would at least be fairly rounded. It was a shame that Jinlo wasn't present, he could use her presence and her skill set at a time like this. Her specialty in the Force would have definitely rounded them out.

Venatus then spoke up, addressing the gathering, and Jace glanced at the older man from out of the corner of his eye, introducing himself to the gathering of Jedi. The gist of what followed seemed to be that only Jon know what was going on here, and they were all waiting for the Jedi Knight who had some inkling of the cause or purpose for their presence there to speak. Venatus then called down a bird from the trees, whisper something to it, the allowed it to take off into the air. Beast mastery? Interesting, not a skill that is commonly employed by the Order. Jace thought to himself as he turned look at Jon.

Finally, now with them all gathered about, Jon started to speak, and Jace listened intently to what the man had to say. Jon mentioned a Wookiee Jedi by the name of Tarful who often spent much of his time on Kashyyyk, checking in with the Order every now and then. Jace knew of Tarfful, though not in a personal manner. It was hard to miss a big walking carpet that could not only rip your arms off but also cut you down with a lightsaber, or crush you with mind powers. Things like that tend to draw attention. But as Jace was still recently returned to the Order, there were still several Jedi that the young man had to meet for himself.

Apparently, these slaver raids were common, but Tarfful felt like he had some information on the slavers that they could use to stop them, however, he had been missing, which meant it now fell to the collection of Jedi Knights to do something about this problem. Jon admitted that he did not know how dangerous the task at hand would be, and that this group of slavers must be fairly large as they terrorized many of the local towns and settlements on Kashyyyk, which mean bodies and weapons. It wouldn't be an easy task. Jace liked that.

Stepping forward, Jace looked at Jon, and nodded. "We must completely destroy these slavers... if we let them go they will only come back with more numbers and cause more havoc and destruction... But someone has to do something, I can't just stand by and not help out. I'm with you, brother. You have my sword." Jace bowed his head to the tall, dark-haired Knight standing across from him.

 

[Vollen Shai]

“And my shield” Vollen added, he shared with a smile, and a short nod of his head. While he’d not had it long now, his Energy Shield was becoming something significantly symbolic to him, something other than a blade to offer. An offer of protection. And it seemed today then that these Jedi gathered could certainly offer the Wookiee’s that, certainly perhaps it could become even a mutual thing. If good relations could be established. And spacers obciosuly has to be contested wherever they stood. If they stood now on Kashyyyk they’d stand with the Wookiee’s with them.

Vollen looked to Jon now. He knew instinctively the man had great potential, he manifested it even now. And with all the assistance he’d provided Vollen thus far he only had respect for the younger man. There would be time for him to step up, and now certainly seemed to be one of them. If Vollen could offer him anything now besides his arms, he’d offer his guidance, what he could of it at least, he not being the most wise of the Jedi these days either. But he had a few years on him at least, and a few battles. Perhaps that would be enough value to offer here.

He smiled to himself as he stepped back from the assembly, into line with the rest. This was Jon’s moment to step forward, and a first chance for many of these Jedi to work together. A good chance then, for them to step up as a team, learn from eachother. That was something they needed he felt. Outside Venatus and Aliyah so few Jedi worked regularly together that some of that camaraderie needed to be rebuilt. Kashyyyk was a good chance to do that, and a chance to get the Wookiees to their side.

 

[Marion Espaa]

"And my bow, for what it's worth. You didn't think I was going to let you fight this without me?"

This was a risk on Marion's part, half because she had just recently elicited the annoyance of the Order, and had a rather brutal confrontation with Ven over it. They hadn't spoken since their fight, they certainly hadn't discussed why history repeated itself on Jedha. She didn't know how to feel about him anymore, she didn't know whether he wanted to see her, and he knew that he held sway with the other Jedi. Even if they didn't know him, his reputation must have proceeded him... He'd won every fight he's ever fought. And yet his ledger remained unstained of his opponent's blood, sparing Marion like he had the others. She never agreed to let an Exile roam free once defeated, but he was altogether a different story. She absolutely beamed at Aliyah, heading for the girl and immediately wrapping her in a hug. She felt comfortable around Aliyah, she was the one who freed her from a slaver's ship. And she was also the nicest person in the galaxy.

"Hello, all. I'm Marion, and I'm here to win this fight if you'll have me. I do have just once question; Do we know how many of them there are?"

She was not used to the forest world whatsoever, but looked absolutely natural among the natives there - her armor was made up of cloth and furs, it matched the surroundings almost mockingly. She stood beside Aliyah now and nodded at the leader of the group. The same dark-haired Jedi that seemed to have a plan and a purpose, the only one in that conclave that was making any sense. Now, they were all here. So many Jedi, more than she ever expected to show up. Though she hadn't officially been inducted into their ranks, and instead just took the title for herself, she hoped that fighting beside them would prove her sincerity. She didn't agree with a lot that the Jedi Council did and didn't do, but the Jedi Order wasn't the sum of the Council alone. The beings that stood around her were evidence of something greater on the horizon, a new hope emerging when the accursed Sith seemed to hold every victory. Besides, slavers and Marion had never been on good terms, her clan outlawed in on what territory was theirs, and she was a very punctual guardian. The bow she had referenced was not a longbow, but a crossbow, once she had fashioned in a self-imposed Exile while she best contemplated how to return to the life she knew.

Now, she turned to face Venatus directly. Her question would spark conversation among the Jedi as to what course was best, and that gave her time to garner how he seemed to be acting. He didn't look overly defensive, at least not towards her. She couldn't see his eyes, she couldn't tell if they met hers directly or not. But they were definitely facing each other now. She didn't move for her sword this time, but she watched his hands as she gently closed the distance until only those close to him could hear what she said. Swallowing pride, eyes low and humble, but hopeful.

"I'm sorry. I'm not used to this, I got frustrated and I lashed out at you..."

 

[Jubei]

Watching. Listening. Sensing. The picture Atreides painted was not a pleasant one. Slave trading was easily one of the worst and most widespread problems facing the Republic, the only thing worse were the people facilitating the need for it. What truly troubled him was not it's presents but it's magnitude. Most abductions happen quickly and stealthily, perpetrated by few. But this...he'd never seen anything so boldly illicit. He couldn't help but think this travesty a consequence of the Grand Army's discontinuation roughly a decade ago, had they still been operational this would never have happened, surely not at this scale.

After taking in Jon's plea and aiming to formulate a plan, his train of thought was derailed by some disconcerting words. "Completely destroy"? Bewildered eyes slowly came to rest upon the one that spoke them, and the more words he spoke the more he sounded like Exile than Jedi to his ears. Impatience and blind eagerness, such a mindset can only lead towards complication. He'd keep an eye on this one.
Then, much to his chagrin, others followed in step with this mindset. "Shield", "Bow", ...they all spoke as if preparing for war. Jubei's body shifted uncomfortably.
" Sounds like a rescue mission." Said loudly. He spoke towards Atreides to elicit confirmation, though he spoke to all in hopes of quenching their fire for battle, as such an idea would undoubtedly lead many to their deaths.
" Fighting them alone would be folly. If these slavers are ever to be driven from this planet, it has to be the wookies that do it. But they are..afraid, broken. They need someone to rally behind. We need to find Tarfful."​

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

"It is a rescue mission, I agree. But I really don't feel comfortable bringing the wookies into this, even if it is their planet. The idea of a revolution is a nice one, but we have six knights of the Jedi Order and one master. It's true we might not be able to win this if it turns into an all-out battle, but if we use stealth and subterfuge... If the Wookies want to fight, then they should fight to free Tarfful and act as a rear vanguard for their homes, while we press the advantage with the element of surprise, instead of charging in sabers drawn. They don't know we're here, or that we're coming. And that gives us a huge advantage"

She talked through Marion's hug as they embraced each other and squeezed. She was happy to see the Varite again, even happier to see that she and Venatus seemed to be on good terms again. But there was something different about the two of them now, Marion's eyes were never this afraid to talk to someone. But it wasn't fear for her safety that Aliyah felt, but fear that Venatus would have nothing to do with her because of her actions on Jedha. If she had known dad, as well as Aliyah, Marion would have realized that holding grudges is an ordinary thing to do. And Venatus was anything but ordinary, believing he was going to act like any other being in the Galaxy meant you had no idea what you were dealing with. Though Dad didn't speak immediately, the two of them stared at each other for a little while, until Marion walked closer to him and started talking softly. She could hear the apology from here, but again, this was a really weird scene. There was something new she wasn't understanding.

More than just a fight happened on Jedha... didn't it? Otherwise, why would she say she's not used to this??

Turning her attention away from the distraction and back to the group of Jedi who likely had quite a few opinions about her plan. But Aliyah genuinely and wholeheartedly hated the idea of using the natives as a backup force. As far as she had been told, the Jedi were here to completely dismantle the slavers in this system, which meant imprisoning or killing them all. There wouldn't be anybody left to come back to Kashyyyk and hurt the wookies any longer. And, if Jon's plan to have a small and secretive base on the planet happened, then Kashyyyk would not only be permanently protected from slavers and mercenary factions - it would also become a haven for Knights of the Order who preferred action to words. She knew that the bird creature that Venatus' had sent into the forest would scout ahead for them and return with an answer to Marion's question, and from there the Jedi could decide whether open combat was the most logical choice.

@Wit @Kori Buor @TheMorrigan @Aurius Pheonix @Kibagami @Nightfall096 @The Living Daylights​

 

[Jon Atreides]

Jon smiled as one by one the gathered Jedi stepped up, not one backing away from the danger that lay ahead. He knew the whispers that had started spreading through the Galaxy, that the Jedi could not be trusted, that they were the same as the Exiles. And considering what had happened over the course of this war maybe they were justified. But this group here, these were real Jedi, and the future looked bright if this was indicative of what the Order had to offer.

"Yes," He spoke up as the topic of rescue was brought up, he wanted to make sure that helping the Wookiees was their focus here, "helping the Wookiees is the priority here. Both those here, and those taken by the slavers. "

He was about to say more when his datapad beeped, and hopeful for a response from Tarfful Jon pulled it out at once. It was indeed a message from the Wookiee Jedi, but given the frantic whispers Tarfful was speaking in wasn't what he had been expecting. But the holomessage wasn't all of it, there was another file attached to it. Jon brought up the attached file as he let the message play out, loud enough that everyone gathered could hear it.

"Huurh uughghhhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh, uughghhhgh wrrhw aaaaahnr huurh uughguughhhghghghhhgh. Aaahnruh awwgggghhh wrrhwrwwhw uughguughhhghghghhhgh hnnnhrrhhh huuguughghg huuguughghg, wrrhw raaaaaahhgh huurh aguhwwgggghhh uughghhhgh huurh. The hologram of Tarfful's head turned away to look at something, before turning back and continuing, even more rushed now. "Hnnnhrrhhh awwgggghhh huuguughghg aarrragghuuhw aarrragghuuhw huuguughghg aaaaahnr. Raaaaaahhgh huuguughghg wrrhw uughghhhgh, aguhwwgggghhh huuguughghg huurh uugggh uughguughhhghghghhhgh. Aaaaahnr uughguughhhghghghhhgh wuuh aarrragghuuhw. Aarrragghuuhw raaaaaahhgh aaaaahnr. And with that the message cut off, so abruptly that Jon had to think that something had happened to Tarfful.

Jon's attention had been split between the holo and the file that had accompanied it, which contained the actual location of the slaver base. He wasn't sure if anyone else had understood all of Tarfful's message, he himself had only picked up on bits and pieces. But he had been able to understand enough for Tarfful's warnings to get through, the slavers were coming back. He was about to pull up the message again and play it through a translator when a distant sound caught his attention. A whine, a very familiar whine. And not just one, many of them, growing louder. Speeders. Jon had just identified the source of the sound as the first speeder emerged from the trees, followed by many more. Whatever Tarfful had done, it had forced the slavers into action, and they were here to finish the job.

"I think we just lost our element of surprise."

OOC: I am wrapping this thread up here. Everyone is free to post their reactions to this post and the arrival of the slavers. We will now split up into groups and deal with the slavers in different threads.

@Nightfall096 @Aurius Pheonix @Autumn's Firefly @Kori Buor @Kibagami @The Living Daylights @TheMorrigan