Private Fear Virus: Balun Vale

[Aaaine]

Location: LCFO Headquarters, Vassek.
Time: 1410 hours.

The walk to the testing room would be a short one. The LCFO facility wasn’t the largest at this time, afterall. The lab tech quickly punched the code into the door frame, revealing it to be an extremely minimalistic room. A metal table stationed in the middle, a pair of metal chairs facing each other situated on either side. In the corner, a small medical station stood, seemingly freshly put there and ready to go. Other than those two notable features, the only other difference in the white walls were the pair of small cameras placed near the top of a pair of diagonal corners.

“Please, take a seat.” The lab tech would say, stepping aside to allow the subject to enter and place whatever small bag of items they might’ve brought with them to the side. “ I can take your bag for you to your room, if you wish. I understand if you would rather keep it with yourself, however.” After waiting for a few moments to double check if that was something the subject desired, the lab tech would begin to make their way to the door, bag in hand or not. Standing in the door frame, they shared one last, soft smile in the direction of the subject.

“The Doctor will be in shortly to begin your physical testing. Please, try to use that time to relax. We’ll be here to make sure everything goes smoothly.” With a nod, the tech would leave the room, leaving the subject alone with their thoughts. It would feel like a while until those doors would open up again. That time was the subjects, allowing them to sit with their thoughts and worries about what might happen to them in the next few days, and if they were truly safe here.

| Balun Dashiell |​

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Location: LCFO Headquarters, Vassek.

The promise of ten thousand credits had convinced Balun to sign up for this test. However, he hadn't really known what he had got himself into until he had arrived, spoken with the staff and been led into a trial room. While the people here appeared to be polite, it wasn't easy to know their end goal. They spoke of a better understanding of the Force, yet there were Jedi who had studied for hundreds of years without successfully deciphering all of its secrets. Balun had to question what kind of results a fear toxin might exhibit. However, he knew that back when he was a boy member of the New Jedi Order, they always discouraged students from relenting to their fears. Fear was considered a path to the Darkside if one could not keep oneself in check, and he tended to be impulsive, to act upon his emotions, to be compelled by his care of others—especially those of the select few who had garnered his friendship.

"I can take your bag for you to your room, if you wish. I understand if you would rather keep it with yourself, however."

"What of our weapons?" Balun asked, guiding his robe back past his hip to reveal his Lightsaber. "It's not something I would usually part with, but I have questions about this fear drug of yours. I can't be certain what will happen, and I would not want others to come to harm. As long as I get it back, though, it is more to me than a simple blade." he did not speak with a great deal of conviction, clearly sounding as though he still required convincing. Balun had signed the waiver, followed instructions and stood within the small, ominously pale room awaiting the trial to commence...-Yet there were risks, and he did not at all care for the idea of losing his self-control and winding up harming another person while under the influence of the drug.

Aaaine

 

[Aaaine]

Location: LCFO Headquarters, Vassek.
Time: 1430 hours.

“It will be one of the last things I have you part with before we begin the testing, young jedi. I know how much your religion values their weapons of war.” The words came from the doctor as she entered into the room behind the research assistant. She referenced the lightsaber, a weapon that she had grown to look at with a level of disdain. Crimson red eyes stayed down, glued to the datapad in her hand as she looked over the biography of her test subject for today. It wasn’t until she took a seat at the metal table that she glanced up at the young man, flashing him the smallest of smiles as she nodded toward the seat opposite of her. “Please, take a seat. There’s a few questions I want to go through with you before we start any sort of testing.”

Waiting for him to sit across from her, when he eventually did so Aaaine would slide him the datapad she had walked in with. “There’s a few questions on here I’d like you to answer. You do not have to answer them aloud if you don’t wish, but I can’t promise I won’t have follow up questions based on your answers.” The doctor sat back in her chair, motioning for the jedi to pick up the holopad in front of him. On the gray colored screen lay a questionnaire, filled mostly with basic biological information. Nearer to the bottom, however, a few questions were laid out that might require some extra thought.

“In the past 6 months, have you ended the life of another sentient being?”

“In the past 6 months, has someone close to you passed away?”

“In the past 6 months, have you experienced what you would described as an overwhelming sense of fear?”

“In the past 6 months, has another sentient being attempted to end your life?”

“In the past 6 months, have you used your force sensitivity against a being without the same level of connection as you?”

While Balun took the time to answer the questions laid out, Aaaine settled back into her chair. A second datapad was produced from her lab coat’s pocket. Eyes darting from the datapad to the jedi in front of her, observing him and any small indications he might give of his emotions in the moment. There was more to these tests than just the virus, and every little emotion that could give insight into the jedi’s way of thinking was valuable.

| Balun Dashiell | ​

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Weapons of war, Balun understood how someone outside of the Jedi lifestyle could view their lightsabers in such a way, but this was not how he felt about his lightsaber. Nor was he a member of the New Jedi Order or any other group. Balun didn't comment, however, as Aaaine was entitled to her opinions. Perhaps the questions she were to pose might give her some insight as to the young man's pacifistic methods.

"Thank you," he smiled, stepping forward to take a seat at the table facing her. Aaaine provided him with a datapad and soon explained the process, gathering some information from him before the fear virus would be put to use. "I don't mind answering them as I type," Balun offered, reaching to pull the Datapad closer to his side and looking it over as she continued to speak.

"In the past 6 months, have you ended the life of another sentient being?".

"No, never. Hopefully, I'll never have to," Balun answered honestly, glancing up from the datapad briefly to look at Aaaine. Balun had never enjoyed sabre training, seeing the competitiveness of his fellow students as pointless harm. He understood the need for it, sparring in order to improve their abilities and swordsmanship, but walking away with burns and bruises from the low training frequency sabers always seemed to justify his feelings towards fighting.

"In the past 6 months, has someone close to you passed away?".

"Nah. I was always a bit of a loner back when I was in the Order. I made a few friends but none of them have died, thankfully". Balun had thought that his best friend Nouqai Veil had been killed, but that was over a year ago now and as it turned out, she had turned to the Darkside of the Force and her Master had tried to cover it up out of shame.

"In the past 6 months, have you experienced what you would described as an overwhelming sense of fear?".

"Yes. I recently returned to Coruscant to help my friends protect the Jedi Temple. I left the Order about a year ago, but it was my home for fifteen years and I still visit occasionally. The Dark Empire invaded. I'm sure you'd have heard about it. I was there when the Temple got stormed. I've never seen a battle before. I figured I probably wouldn't make it out," Balun spoke, explaining his presence during the battle of Coruscant while able to visualize the fight internally. It was horrific.

"In the past 6 months, has another sentient being attempted to end your life?".

"Yeah, in the battle in the Jedi Temple. Another Force User attacked me, and I had to fight them; that was after a number of other Imperial Stormtroopers tried to gun us down," Balun answered, soon beginning to type it out on the datapad, tapping the screen in quick succession so that it would be documented.

"In the past 6 months, have you used your force sensitivity against a being without the same level of connection as you?".

"I have. Like I said, I was attacked by another Force User. He seemed much stronger than I am, and he was older, too. From what I saw, I reckon he would have been well-trained. It was the most difficult fight I've ever been in," he concluded, finishing his typing with the device and leaning back against the chair. He looked up at Aaaine once more, awaiting further instructions.