Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

[Sebastian Nadav]

Standing on a planet shrouded between black holes and a quasar Sebastian found himself to be alone. Or so he thought.

Nothing about this world, not even the strange monastic order he had found her prepared him for the assault on his senses that was about to come. He had been reaching out with the Force, feeling the eddies and whorls as his mind spread farther and farther afield as the monks had been trying to teach him. Every eddy, every whorl within the Force could catch his mind and sling it farther afield. It was an unnerving technique one that was, with time, getting easier but still left the old Jedi feeling empty and hollow. It was like learning to vanish into the Force for the first time but yet, somehow so much worse.

Anger. Fear. Confusion.

All at once emotions of another assaulted his mind. He could feel the person's desperation, their utter confusion and profound sense of relief. Their mind rang with the hallmarks of Jedi training, but unrefined and somehow new. It was the strangest thing. He focused more intently on the mind that had so rudely interrupted his meditations, with ease he slid behind the woman's eyes to see as she did. He doubted she'd feel him there, looking, watching. Her mind was a torrent of urgent calculation and prioritization. Through her eyes he saw the status reads of a ship. It was badly damaged, blinking lights indicating hull breaches and drive failure. Strangely, the sensor array was empty, so was the navicomputer. What had happened to her?

Sebastian felt her sense of tension double as a new alert flashed onto the screen. Life support was failing. Her shock and dismay was such that it jarred Sebastian out of his meditations. As he came back to awareness he threw behind him a single strand of the Force. It bound itself tight to the strange woman, she'd feel it no doubt but she wouldn't be able to do anything about it. He didn't even spare the time to send her a message of help. Sebastian simply ran, the Force carrying his ancient legs faster than anyone would have thought possible towards his ship.

In the cockpit, his he trusted the Force and his precarious tie to the woman guide his hands across the navicomptuer to plot a course. He trusted that it would be right. The Force would not, could not let him down now. There was little time left.

[member="Ayasha Waya"]

 

[Ayasha Waya]

A brilliant light flashed outside of the viewport at the front of the Apogee illuminating the cockpit and causing Ayasha to jolt upright. She glanced to the pilot's seat beside her and noticed that Vu'thari was absent. A sudden wave of anxiety came crashing over the Knight as the twi'lek's prominent presence within the Force was noticeably...gone. “Vu?” her alto voice called out as she turned and scanned the mouth of the passageway for his figure.

The raven haired woman slowly pushed up from her seat and slipped between the chairs as she made her way to the corridor at the center of the large craft. “Vu'thari?” she called out to the Jedi Master as her bare feet carried her over the cool floor toward the back of the ship. Fear gripped the Knight's heart when she reached the cargo bay and the twi'lek was nowhere to be found.

Ayasha turned on her heel and rushed up the corridor, flinging doors open as she passed them. He was not in any of the rooms that served as personal quarters. He was not in the science lab, the medbay or in the fresher. “Vu'thari!” the Galtean native cried out, her voice echoing through the Force as her heart began to shatter within her chest. None of this made any sense. They had left Eclipse together and now...the woman found herself alone...well, almost.

A series of beeps and low tones echoed through the darkness of the dimly lit hall as the Knight neared the cockpit. “SawDip...” she could not compose herself enough to form a thought as the tears that had been stinging at the corners of her eyes began to fall down her cheeks. The little astrogation droid rolled into the cockpit and alerted his human companion to a series of error messages that were rapidly coding on the display.

Silence consumed the control room and the woman slipped into the pilot's seat at the helm of the Apogee. Though her entire world felt as though it was crashing down around her, the case of the missing Jedi Master would have to take a backseat to other matters that were emerging. It appeared as though the ship's systems were beginning to fail one right after another. Ayasha knew in her heart that Vu'thari, wherever he was...however it was he had gone missing...would want nothing more than for the Knight to concern herself with the greater good. At the moment, that meant keeping herself alive and working with SawDip to fix the ship.

The raven haired woman wiped the tears from her face with the back of her arm as her golden eyes scanned the codes that began to scroll across the glowing screen upon the control panel. Though she had been taking flying lessons from Crix and had spent the past few years watching Vu'thari fly, she was only a novice at best. “SawDip, I don't know what all of this means...I need you to communicate with the Apogee's diagnostic system to find the malfunction so we can address it bef-,” suddenly the Knight's words were cut short as a series of alarms began to blare and emergency lights flooded the cockpit with their strobing effect.

Ayasha stood and reached above her head to flick several switches in an attempt to quiet the alarms, but just as she ended their deafening calls, they began screaming as before. Suddenly the Apogee jolted hard to the right, ripping the woman from her feet to the space between the chairs at the head of the craft. “Anything, SawDip?!” she shouted at the droid who was working on a panel nearby. The little mechanical being beeped and whistled a message in binary to which the Jedi dropped her head.

The hyperdrive had experienced an anomaly, a malfunction that the woman was afraid spelled certain destruction for the ship and immediate death for her. Various functions were slowly shutting down as the systems attempted to save power where possible. Unfortunately, the craft had been in low power mode when the hyperdrive went rogue and there were few options left to draw upon. “Life support,” the Knight whispered as she drew in a deep breath and pushed herself up from the floor. Suddenly a new series of alarms began to blare and a siren filled the ship with its sickening call. In a matter of minutes, Ayasha would be facing the remainder of the oxygen supply aboard the craft and the system that pressurized the cabin would go offline. The stress upon the woman's body would undoubtedly cause an agonizing death akin to drowning on dry land. Just then, the woman felt a strange sensation. It was as if another were present with her, though she could not see him. It was another Force user...a powerful one at that, though not Vu'thari. She pondered how it could be and wondered if a spirit within the sprawling energy field around her had come to usher her into the afterlife.

“Shut it down...shut all of it down! NOW!” Ayasha shouted at SawDip. He beeped and chirped in questioning tones as the woman pulled herself into the pilot's chair. “Kill the hyperdrive! I don't care that you can't shut it off, break it! We have to pull out and bring this down wherever we are or I'm going to die, SawDip!” the woman shouted as her hands slipped across the controls before her. The little droid did as he was told and went to work to disable the hyperdrive by sending a terminal series of electrical currents through the system.

Suddenly the Apogee violently jolted forward as if it were slamming into a wall as it tore through space and time and came to rest in the middle of deep space. All at once the alarms ceased and the lights fell dark. The woman sat up in her seat and leaned over to look out of the viewport where she set her golden eyes upon...nothing. SawDip rolled over and beeped in low tones. “There is nothing on the nav. I have no idea where we are. I see nowhere to take it down.”

Ayasha sat back in her seat and dropped her head into her hands. Her heart sank as tears pushed their way from her eyes once again. She could only assume that Vu'thari's disappearance was directly linked to the hyperdrive malfunction, though her mind could not begin to comprehend how. All the woman knew now was that she was alone and the one who seemed to be able to fix anything...was gone. As the ship slowly slipped away into oblivion, the Knight contemplated her life.

“At least I knew you...and you loved me,” she said quietly through deep sobs. As the temperature of the cabin began to dip, Ayasha reached to the back of the pilot's seat and retrieved a hooded shirt that had belonged to the missing Jedi Master. It had been one of his favorites to lounge in and now, it would bring comfort and warmth to the Knight in her final moments. As she slipped the garment over her head, she drew in a deep breath and closed her eyes, imaging Vu'thari's arms wrapped tightly around her...gently carrying her into oneness with the Force.


[member="Sebastian Nadav"]

 

[Sebastian Nadav]

The moment his ship dropped from hyperspace Sebastian knew the Force had not led him astray. He felt tired and old, it had been a long time since he had used the Force so powerfully and for so long...but he wasn't done yet. He could see the ship with the woman onboard, both in his scanners and with his eyes. He guided his ship closer, expanding his force-awareness outward and into the ship. His mind once again brushed the woman's and he caught a chilling sense of finality and resolve from her. She had accepted her end, knew how far her own ability could take her and longed for the embrace for one long gone. To feel that, from one so young, so full of potential, almost made Sebastian despair. It was not her time, he had an inkling of what had happened to her. It was not her fault. It was not her time. He brushed her fading mind once again, sharing with her a portion of his strength and resolve.

He felt her breath in deeply once again as he drew deeply on the reservoir that was the Force.

With a signal to his droid to bring the ship above hers to just above the dorsal docking hatch, Sebastian closed his eyes and let go his restraint. The Force poured from him in a rushing tide. It filled her ship with his presence, coalescing around her. Collecting the last traces of atmosphere and warmth around her. He could follow her, keep her safe and protected, but the choice to accept his help and live. To find her way off the ship, accept and couple the extended docking arm to her ship was hers.

If she truly wanted to let it all end here, she only had to stay still. Sebastian was tiring quickly, pushing himself far beyond the limits he had long sense set upon himself but he would not give up. Aid was offered until the very end. If he turned his back on a woman who had been so wronged by fate would have undone everything he had spent the last century of his life trying to accomplish--to atone for. His presence brushed hers, urging her to stand, to fight, to accept her losses and take a hand to move forward.

'Child,' His voice was whisper in her mind. 'This is not how it has to end. Come, I cannot hold for long.

[member="Ayasha Waya"]

 

[TimberWolf]

Wrong account.

 

[Ayasha Waya]

There was an inexplicable peace that now filled the cockpit and enveloped the Jedi Knight. She leaned into the chair that had once belong to Vu'thari and waited until she would become one with the Force. She had fulfilled her promise to the twi'lek and indeed, had loved him until the very end. If love could breach the barrier of life and death, Ayasha vowed her heart to him for eternity. She had lived well and had now as she faced her final moments, her mind was filled with the faces of friends and family. The raven haired woman hoped that she could simply drift off into a dream and awaken in her new spiritual form.

Suddenly Ayasha was propelled upright as she felt the powerful presence from before fill the entire ship. Her golden eyes frantically searched around to identify the source but she saw nothing. Just then, a warm whisper entered her mind, a voice she had never heard before. “Child, this is not how it has to end. Come, I cannot hold for long.” The Knight gasped as she stood and pressed her face against the viewport in an attempt to see around the far side of the Apogee. It was just then that she caught a glimpse of another craft.

“There's a ship, SawDip! There's a Jedi on board!” the woman shouted as she quickly began to piece together what was happening. Somehow, someway this fellow Force user had found her and now...he was trying to save her. Without a second thought, the woman called for her astrogation droid to follow as she sprinted down the passageway at the center of the Apogee. Ayasha could already feel the effects of the rapidly depleting oxygen and knew that she had little time to gather her things and make it to the airlock.

She slipped into her quarters and retrieved a large bag that she stuffed full of her clothing, boots, belt, blaster and other personal items. The woman knew that some things would be lost with the ship as she could not possibly fit everything into the duffle. She grabbed her datapad, comlink and lightsaber last, tossing them into the bag and zipping it only part of the way shut. Ayasha rushed from the room and refused to look back as she was now in a race against time...a race for her very life. This is what Vu'thari would have wanted, for her to live and thrive...even in his absence.

Tears streamed down the woman's face as she reached the airlock that would carry her aboard the ship docked with the Apogee. “Come on SawDip. I'll go first and you can close the airlock behind us,” Ayasha instructed the droid who beeped and whistled in agreement. The woman stepped into the tight space with her large bag and mechanical companion who closed off the connection between the ships while the Knight opened the access to Sebastian's craft.

With a gasp like that of a fish tossed back into water, the woman fell out of the airlock and onto the floor of the ship along with her belongings. The bag spilled open and the Brylark hilt of her lightsaber shot across the floor. Ayasha reached out to pull the weapon back to her via the power of the Force, but her entire body was entirely too weak and she collapsed atop the heap of clothing and miscellaneous items that had scattered from the duffle.


[member="Sebastian Nadav"]

 

[Sebastian Nadav]

Sebastian's body began to tremble. To everything there was a cost...even the Force. In theory a Jedi could use the Force effortlessly and for however long it was required, but in practice that was seldom the case. No being possessed the mental fortitude to set aside who and what they were and give everything over to the Force. That lingering touch of humanity, an awareness of one's self and body, was what caused Jedi to tire. As his body began to reject the energy he was calling to himself, he doubled down with his mind. A double lifetime of rigid discipline clamped down and he did not waver. As the woman aboard the ship scrambled for her belongings, Sebastian followed her, holding air and heat to her body.

By the time she reached the airlock, Sebastian was well and truly spent. His concentration was on the verge of collapsing and the air around him hummed with a faint electric charge. He was putting too much of himself into a feat nearly impossible but it would have been unthinkable to do anything else. The moment she was onboard his ship and the airlock sealed behind her, Sebastian let his concentration drop. He fell out of the Force and back into the world of reality. He tried to stand, but found he could not. He tried to blink the blackness away from his eyes but it wouldn't go. He heard the unmistakable sound of a lightsaber clattering along the floor over the faint noise of the woman's desperate panting. It was alarming, but Sebastian found he could not truly register that emotion. He was too spent. If he had so misjudged her and she had feigned desperation so masterfully then so be it.

His last thought before he fell into unconsciousness was that, if she was to be the instrument of his death at least he would die a Jedi. At long last he'd see Andreas again.

[member="Ayasha Waya"]

 

[Ayasha Waya]

Silence enveloped the entirety of the ship save for a low hum that accompanied the vast array of electrical operations running beneath the surface. Both Jedi had exerted themselves well beyond the threshold of their abilities. Ayasha fought with every ounce of strength she had to survive. Sebastian gave every ounce of strength to fight for her...a stranger to him.

As the Knight lay atop her pile of possessions, she passed in and out of consciousness. Her mind wandered to the distant past. Visions of her brother danced through the place behind her eyes and she smiled, knowing that the moment she became one with the Force they would be reunited at last. She saw Vu'thari's handsome face, scarred as it was. His smile and quiet confidence made falling in love with him so easy. The next images to grace the woman's mind were trainings with her padawans. They had given her so much hope for the future of the Jedi. She had grown close with them, especially Ashlyna who had become to her something akin to a sister.

The memories slowly faded and as they did, Ayasha's eyes opened and focused upon the ceiling of the unfamiliar ship. She drew in a deep breath, noting that the oxygen was full and rich in her present location. It was then that the sequence of moments preceding this one crashed into her mind like a great wave upon the sea. The Knight pushed herself into an upright position and her golden eyes came to rest upon SawDip. A wry smile slipped onto her lips as she reached out and gave the droid a pat atop his head. Words were unnecessary and likely meaningless for the time being.

There was a missing piece to this puzzle, one that Ayasha was soon reminded of as she rose from her mess of belongings and set her feet upon the cool floor beneath her. “Hello?” she called out in hushed tones while her head swiveled around to survey the unfamiliar surroundings. There certainly was another Jedi aboard, she could sense his life signature within the Force. He was powerful though at the moment it felt as though his strength had been compromised. Could the voice in her mind have belonged to whomever it was piloting this craft?

Ayasha gestured toward the Brylark hilt of her wayward lightsaber resting upon the ship's floor. Without any effort she called it to her hand by way of the Force and it came to rest in her grip. The familiar feeling was comforting, though she could not detect a reason to need the weapon. Unless the stranger at the helm was a master at deception, even able to mask his emotions from the natural empath, Ayasha was nearly certain there was no threat to her aboard the craft. Still, she kept the saber in her hand and slowly ventured toward the front of the ship.

The Knight was nearly holding her breath as she approached the cockpit. The powerful presence of the ship's only other occupant grew stronger as she neared the place where he had lost consciousness. Suddenly Ayasha found herself gazing upon the unfamiliar face of a sleeping man. She tilted her head to the side as she studied his features and clothing. He did not look like anyone she had ever seen before and she wondered how and why he would have gone to such great lengths to save her life.

Without so much as a word the Knight slipped past the Jedi Master and sat down in the seat beside him. She glanced down from the viewport just in time to see a few remaining lights aboard the Apogee flicker and fall dark as the ship slowly tumbled into darkness. So many memories had been made upon that ship and it was a bitter sweet moment to observe. Ayasha was thankful she was not aboard the craft in its final moments and instead, sat beside someone she did not know...but wanted to.

The raven haired woman leaned back in her chair and continued to silently watch the man. He breathed slowly and deeply as his body worked with the Force to restore his spent energy. Ayasha did not wish to wake Sebastian prematurely and interrupt this critical process. Instead, she sat nearby and watched over him as he rested, her mind filling with questions with every passing moment.


[member="Sebastian Nadav"]