Emerging from the Shadows

[Jaron Lesan]

"Misdeeds, mistakes, we all make them Tmoxin. You have to look past them and forge your own destiny. Make your own path."

The overwhelming thrust of power hit him hard as soon as the words left his mouth. Jaron knew it had not been done on purpose, but he had still not been ready for the initial impact it caused. He quickly pushed back simply to brace himself against the strength she displayed as he quickly wiped a small trickle of blood which fell from his nose. Through all of that, he still heard her question, and pondered the answer. What could he become? Jaron really had no answer for that. What did he want to become? That was a different question entirely. Still as he pondered, Jaron nudged Tmoxin further into the void she was reluctant to cross into.

"I can become a force in this galaxy to keep it from turning on itself. A presence of strength and power to keep worlds from buckling under the weight of the wars which terrorize all of our lives. I will become the one that ensures what happened to Corellia will never happen again."

There were those who though the dark side made a person evil, but that was not true to Jaron. He had learned the dark side made one strong. It was the secrets of a person's heart which made them evil, and pressure exposed what lay hidden deep with. His own aura was still connected with hers, her hand still entwined with his. He continued to lead her forward until both their minds had reached the vast darkness just ahead. She needed to cross the barrier in order to sense the environment beyond the woods and the creatures which lurked beyond.

"Cross beyond that void with me in order to truly see what you cannot see with your own two eyes."

[member="Tmoxin Temi"]

 

[Tmoxin Temi]

Jaron would be able to feel her relaxing somewhat at his reassurance. She sensed that she had hurt him with the sudden, unbidden energy of the darkside. But instead of sympathy or pity she merely observed. And as she embraced her power, she noticed how her all of her senses appeared to be heightened at once. Everything was jumbled together, but Tmoxin felt that if she could unthread the tangle of senses – of touch, of hearing, of sight – then she would be able to control the Force as Jaron suggested. Of course, she hadn’t the training or wisdom to do this but her Force signature was strong just the same and she was at least grasping the basic concept.

After Jaron described his wishes, she was somewhat surprised at his almost peaceful goals. She began to suspect that either he wasn’t a member of the One Sith or that he resided in a sect of them to which Tmoxin had no access. His missive was far from the bloodthirsty, killing machine Sith Lords that the Commander spent her time with.

Tmoxin kept ahold of Jaron’s hand and followed him forward. She didn’t think the mental plane they were inhabiting could get any darker but it did. It reminded her of being a little girl on Hapes, before she had her vision corrected through surgery, and being so frightened of the dark as all Hapans were born with a defect of poor night vision. And as Jaron suggested she wouldn’t be able to see anyway, so she walked slowly and steadily, trying to ignore the feeling that her feet were going to fall out from under her and into a yawning abyss.

[member="Jaron Lesan"]

 

[Jaron Lesan]

Tmoxin was learning, and the outbursts of energy were to be expected. He was glad she felt no sympathy or enjoyment from it, it truly meant she had a stoic approach to this. She wouldn't learn if there were going to be problems with her emotions toward the exercises. If Jaron got hurt, he did. The only thing Jaron found very odd was the way she clung to his hand as they walked the mental plane. Their feet did not physically move, yet she maintained physical touch with him as if there was safety in it. Perhaps this was the difference between men and women, the need for security, but regardless, Jaron found this aspect of her learning to be interesting.

He gently squeezed the hand to provide more encouragement to her. She lacked the confidence she needed, and Jaron would give that to her in anyway he could. The mental plane did grow darker, but it had been nothing more than another barrier for her to cross through. Once on the other side, the forest became alive. Jaron could feel the rush of energy coming from all the life forms in the forest. He knew where the predatory animals laid in wait for their prey. The fear of smaller creatures could be felt. It was a wonderful world as seen through the force, only seen through the force. Surely Tmoxin could see the advantage to pressing through and taking an assessment of her surroundings with the force before leading her squadron into battle.

"Beautiful isn't it," he simply asked, hoping she had gotten the same impression he had. Either way they had been linked mentally, so he was confident she could feel it all too. "Now tell me what you can see, feel, sense?"

[member="Tmoxin Temi"]

 

[Tmoxin Temi]

Tmoxin was grateful for the comfort of Jaron's hand. She ultimately knew inside that this type of weakness, the longing for the touch of another to help ease the fear and anxiety, was probably frowned upon by the Sith. Weakness was not tolerated and was punished swiftly - she had witnessed that first hand. But the Commander felt that if he let go, she would lose access to this dark and bewitching dreamworld that she was entering. And she would probably wake up into the gardens and the Padawan and the Officer would be back to their mundane lives.

At his voice and taking in the beauty of the place, she listened and began to pick up the subtle cues about predator and prey. Tmoxin wanted desperately to be the predator in battle, to feed upon the frailty of her enemies, to poach them and drain them of life.

Her fear of the Force would still be palpable to Jaron but when prompted she began to speak, "I see a pack of wolves and they are taking down a majestic stag. And I can connect with the alpha she-wolf to feel what she is feeling," she said. And the bloodlust she felt to bite into the stag's carotid artery was what she wouldn't admit to Jaron, although he may feel that emanating from the Hapan woman.

[member="Jaron Lesan"]