Private In the land of the dead

[Okera Vekra]

Death is only the end if you assume the story is about you. Ishani didn’t feel the hard impact of the ground, the breaking of bones, and the pain of gravities inevitability. Instead, they would feel soft grass, the sound of crickets accompanying the crack and hiss of a fire, and the gentle smell of woodsmoke.
“Long way down hu?” The voice spoke, a voice that no living being had heard in almost a millennium. A togruta woman sat tending the fire, gently poking at the flames to keep them alight as a pot of tea brewed slowly over top.
“Take a moment to gather your bearings vod. The trip can be disorientating, and well… you never really notice something is there till it’s gone.”

Okera Vekra had found herself in these woods a long time ago. Whilst she didn’t entirely remember how they got here, they did know it was because she was in the way. Dealing with powerful entities was never a safe job, and Okera had found that out the hard way. Not that she expected this newcomer to know any of that. Nor did she want to bore them with tales of her trials and tribulations, and the deals she had made along with what she gave.

Many a name existed for what Okera now was, traveller was her preferred. She watched the newcomer, knowing that they would come to realise where they were and what felt oh so wrong. They were dead, but often it was best for those that found themselves here to find it out on their own, adapt to the reality, and then make the journey through with Okera for that was her task and her deal.
“Tea?” Pouring herself a cup and being patient with the newcomer.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

“Long way down huh?”

Ishani didn't feel the grogginess one expects when awakening from a deep sleep. She simply opened her eyes, and there she was, fully awake. As if she'd merely blinked.

Before her eyes had closed, she had been falling into a chasm. So how did she end up lying in a dark, misty forest?

And why did she feel so strange?...

“Take a moment to gather your bearings vod. The trip can be disorientating, and well… you never really notice something is there till it’s gone.”

She finally took notice of the Togruta woman tending the campfire. The woman offered her some tea, but Ishani shook her head.

"No thanks." She sat up. It wasn't difficult and she didn't feel any pain, but there was something awkward about her movements. Her back was broken, and most of the right side of her body had been badly burned in an explosion. She was still clad in the armor she'd worn on the battlefield, though it was scratched and damaged.

"Who are you? What is this place?"

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

For a moment Okera regarded the wounds, something she had seen far too many times to feel revulsion. The burnt flesh and armour, the awkward movement of the body, the scaring of fragmentation. Probably internal organ damage but not that this being would notice the pain and discomfort. How long until she realised her heart wasn't beating. Either way, she regarded them with kindness and a hint of sympathy.
"This place has many names, depends on your belief I suppose. To us togruta, this is the hunting grounds, but put simply it is the land of the dead. Those that are in between so to speak, souls travel these lands to find their way through and into the next life. As for who I am, well long ago I made a deal, I am the traveller, the guide, the ferryman, take your pick. You may call me Okera."

Taking a sip of the tea, how many had she helped since that deal. She wasn't the only guide, nor the only thing here, but that was a complicated subject and honestly, Okera did not fully understand herself. That was the thing about the galaxy, it was weird.
"You do not strike me as a sage on a quest, so I hate to break it to you but ner vod, you are dead. What awaits you is the long walk, the final hunt, judgment, whatever you want to call it. A journey to make and if you wish, I can help you." This normally took a lot to sink in, seven stages of grief, religious arguments. Children were the worst and Okera carried those scars deep, order 66... well that's why she was here. Terminas comes for all, and Okera made that deal. Not that this newcomer would know about it or the galactic events that lead her to that deal, at last count it was around sixhundred years since the empire rose.
"What may I call you?"

Ishani Dinn​

 

[Ishani Dinn]

For a few moments, Ishani simply stared at Okera. The unburned part of her face was expressionless, except for the shock and terror apparent in the widening of her green eyes.

I’m dead. Am I really dead? But…

It all began to come rushing back to her. Tython. The kind man who had led her back to her ship, told her to leave while she still could. Watching the ships appear in the skies as the invasion began. Staring at the controls, and deciding that no, she wasn’t going to run away this time.

She remembered, too, that she had promised her loved ones she wouldn’t fight anymore.

"You're not going to war with the Maw, love. Soon enough you'll be on the other side of the Galaxy from them, and you and the kids will be safe. Promise me, Rhi... Insofar as you're able, don't get tangled up in all of that. Your life matters more to me than the rest of it. Let me do the fighting for us."

Why hadn’t she listened? Why couldn’t she accept that she wasn’t a warrior? She was barely over five feet tall, a little woman with two small children at home.

Oh no. The children. Arcturus.

"Promise me, Rhi..."

She could no longer feel him or their children. Arcturus had probably felt her die. He knew that she had broken her promise to him. Now he was all the children had left…

Grief engulfed Ishani like a tsunami. She lowered her head until it rested on her bent knees, crumpling under the weight of it all. Her eyes could no longer produce tears, which made crying impossible, yet the emotional agony tore through her all the same without any outlet.

Okera was gentle, and gave her time to mourn before she spoke again. This time, she asked for her name.

“Ishani,” she sputtered. Raising her head, she shook it. “No. No, I’m not done yet. I don’t care if I’m dead, this can’t be it. It’s not over.”

There was a defiance in her voice which gave greater weight to her words. She wasn’t merely going through a denial stage. She was actively refusing to move on.

“I’ll figure out a way to go back. I’m going to live again.”

That conviction warmed and revived her better than any hot tea ever could.

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

Grief was a horrible aching thing to watch someone suffer and be in pain yet unable to do anything. That aching sob of loss and worry, of reality crashing down on a person's shoulders. Anger, sorrow, pain, and then defiance, fire and fight against the inevitable. Okera regarded this woman before slowly standing, just over seven-foot horns and all, the build of a soldier, the eyes of a being that had seen too much. There was a moment where her lekku and moth moved slightly considering the words out of her mouth.
"It will not be an easy journey." It never was for either of them. "In simple terms to not be dead, you need to make a journey through this world, find the keeper and make a deal."
Okera would help, that was her duty, to help every soul through whatever their decisions may be. The togruta had some immunity to the perils that existed here but she was still bound by rules. There was a point where they would try to dissuade beings from making such a journey but that time had come and passed.
"There will be a cost. The condition of your mortal body will not be... perfect. You may still be scared and disabled from your death but you will live. Depending on what sort of deal you can make, will determine how you come out the other side." Okera had done this before with another traveller, not to prevent her death, but to save another.

The togruta steadied her breathing.
"If you fail you may still be able to pass on. However, there are points where if you should falter you will be lost to the forest and I do not know what happens to those souls. So with the risk of eternal limbo, I ask you, do you consent to take this path. To journey through the dangers of this world and make a deal to live. We are between tick and tock at this moment so take your time. Once you make your decision... then our time begins."

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani expected Okera to say she couldn't cheat death, that it was impossible, or at least try to convince her not to even attempt it. But Okera seemed understanding, and told her there was a way, though it would be difficult and costly.

For the first time since her arrival in the Netherworld, Ishani looked at herself. She took in her scarred, broken body, the ravaged flesh. Her long blonde hair, which she had always taken pride in, was half burned away.

Disability was something that could be fixed, even if she had to replace large portions of her body with cybernetics. Though it would pain her to lose her looks, she'd never considered herself all that attractive anyway. And she knew that Arcturus and the children wouldn't mind, once they got used to it.

"I have a duty to my family," she said at last. "I need to go back to be with them. I want to see my kids grow up. I want to grow old with the one I love."

Again she felt the swell of emotion that usually preluded a crying spell, yet no tears appeared. She couldn't even weep. Perhaps that was just as well, since she didn't plan on staying dead for long.

"I'll do it. Just show me where to go. I'll do whatever it takes to live again."

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

After all these years of walking the in-between, the determination and fire of hope were not yet gone from the galaxy. This woman wasn't the first to have a family and find herself here, in fact, if she asked the Togruta she wouldn't even remember her first parent. She remembered her first child though, not long after she was trapped did she find them. Scared and alone, killed by a lightsabre, killed by Anakin. Not that Okera could do anything with this knowledge, or any of the things she learned. As part of her agreement, she didn't remember any of her time here until eventually old age came to take her. They did wonder if the name Vekra carried on, she did have children even if they were not from her womb.
"The challenges that lay ahead will be many. Not gonna lie I don't know what you'll find, each person experiences them differently. I can offer only advice. Stay close, keep talking, and give your name to nothing."

Okera extinguishes the fire, collects her stuff and gestures for you to follow. Under the woman's cloak, Ishani would be able to see some armour and briefly a symbol she would not know.
"Tell me about your family"

Ishani Dinn​

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani stood up at once and followed Okera through the woods. It was dark, and a mystical mist clouded the area, making it somewhat hard to see. But Okera seemed to know where she was going, so Ishani just focused on keeping up with her.

"Tell me about your family."

For a time, Ishani remained silent and contemplative. She was thinking of her family, imagining their grief, fear, and the sense of betrayal they might feel over her death.

"I have a boyfriend named Arcturus," she said at last. "I wanted to marry him. He told me we would some day. We have twins, a boy and a girl named Marcus and Eloise. They're five years old. Or they were when I died..." She'd heard that time passed differently in the Netherworld. "Arc, he... he gets pulled into the Netherworld sometimes. It's because of a curse someone put on him. He can't control it. I'm afraid that it might happen while he's with the kids, and if I'm not around then they'll be left all alone."

Her worry was palpable. She could only hope that Arc would realize the danger as well, and brought them somewhere safe as soon as possible. But oh... what if he assumed he couldn't take care of them? What if he left them with someone, abandoned them "for their own good"? They'd lose their mother and their father all at once.

No. She couldn't think like that. She was going home. She'd be there soon.

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

It was better to talk and make ideal conversation, both to not lose the woman or for them to lose their sanity. Okera could not know what the woman was thinking about but an educated guess would be family ties. What concerned Okera though was that this Arc had sometimes found themselves in the netherworld. The togruta was aware there was more than one domain here and that she didn't see every being that travelled this one, but meeting them would be awkward, complicated and terminal.
"If you see them, do not go to them. Stay close, this place will play tricks on you. Whatever you do, stick close and don't go chasing echos." Looking back slightly as she said this, everything she said was from what she knew upon taking her duty, and from learning along the way. Never did she falter in her duty, but that didn't mean she was always successful or that everyone could be saved. Whilst Okera hoped that this woman would make it back there was no guarantee.
"I had a family when I was alive. My wife was a Jedi and we were betrayed, so I found my way here and got her out. My cost was two-fold, for one we could not get involved with the events that were unfolding, and I did not remember what I learned here. The second part is why I'm here helping you" A soft laugh at this reminiscing "We had three children, a genetic daughter of me and her, then she bore twins from our husband. Our life was quiet and peaceful, despite the constant feeling of something missing. I do not regret it. What you need to consider whilst we travel Ner Vod, is what you can give." Keeping pace, the forest path seemed to stretch forward and back forever with a thick mist swirling in and close, touching them both. It never bothered her, but sometimes the other locals wanted to have fun with those she watched.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

"You... you had a wife and a husband at the same time?" Ishani asked, thinking perhaps she had misheard Okera. On her homeworld, polygamy was outlawed.

"What I can give," she echoed Okera's words. In this place full of fog, there was little to do other than think about things. She thought about her family and the reasons why she wanted to go back. Her children needed her. Arc needed her. But... could they survive without her?

Was it possible they'd be better off without her?

She shook her head, trying to clear it of these thoughts. "What does Ner Vod mean?"

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

"Yes. I know marrying a Jedi isn't common but things were different at the time." Understanding the other woman's confusion but misunderstanding that it was about her polygamy, not the Jedi part.
"And Ner vod is mando'a. My friend essentially." The internal conflict of Ishani was not something Okera would help with. Perhaps this was one of their trials, a trial of self and the doubts that crept in.
"What year is it currently? I've lost track"

 

[Ishani Dinn]

"No, I mean..." Well, did it really matter? Okera was long dead, and her personal life was really none of Ishani's business.

"874 ABY," Ishani replied. Then, realizing that Okera might not know about the new dating system, she explained, "ABY means 'after Battle of Yavin'. That was when the Rebel Alliance blew up the Death Star, around nineteen years after the Clone Wars ended."

Which meant Okera had been dead for close to nine centuries. Yet she hadn't become one with the Force yet. That deal she made to become a guide for the dead must've been pretty powerful.

"How much more of this is there?" Ishani remarked, gesturing to the mist that surrounded them. "I've... uh, been to the Netherworld before, once or twice, when I was alive. So I know it isn't all like this. There are deserts, and rivers, and even towns and settlements..."

She wondered if she would see the ghosts of people who had died. Her master, for instance. Or her grandparents. But Okera had warned her not to interfere or chase echoes. Still, she'd be lying if she claimed she wasn't tempted. There were often so many things left unsaid when someone passed away. Wouldn't it be nice to have a chance to say them?

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

For togruta Polygamy was common, and explaining what she meant and why it was bad would probably have taken a while but either way, some things were better left alone.
"Okay, still using the Reformation calendar. I was forty-seven when that happened, took my final hunt at one-twenty. Served in the clone wars and the judiciary before that. I don't know if you're aware of what happened to the Jedi order at the end of the Clone War, but that's why I'm here. Some people are worth sacrificing for." The path still went on as the woman asked how much further they had. Okera considered this and smiled.
"Things are different for those trying to... well do what you're doing. We've actually made no progress, something is keeping us on this path. I believe it is one of your challenges, something the living rarely see. Or a sprites fucking with us. One of the two."

Then Okera stops and looks around. Producing a kukri as she moves close to you. The fog closes in making it almost impossible to see, accompanied by the sound of incomprehensible whispers. Among them though there is a recognisable voice, and soon it becomes clearer.
"Why did you lie to us?" You feel a hand on your shoulder, except it is cold, not like any living being. Missing a heartbeat, but still strong as they try to move you.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

"Why did you lie to us?"

The collective voice of every Chaldean citizen she had duped into believing she'd won the senatorial election hissed in Ishani's ear. Evidently her first trial was to reconcile with the three years she'd spent as a political puppet. Or perhaps the voices she heard were the voices of everyone she had ever lied to, whether it was a small fib or a great deception. They say everyone is a liar at some point in their life, no matter how small the lies they tell may be, and they must face them all upon their death.

Upon feeling a cold hand on her shoulder, Ishani was startled. But she didn't try to flee like a coward. She whirled around to face her opponent, summoning her sword and slashing at the specter.

"I will never live a lie again!" she cried. "Never!"

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

"FUCK!" The voice of Okera, the impact of the blade on flesh and the thud of the woman falling from the strike.
Despite her protest, the voices still came closer, shapes in the fog pointing accusatory fingers at her. Closing in getting colder and colder as each and every lie came to the forefront of her memory, those of cruelty, those of protection, good and bad. White lies of love and lies of hate. All those she had hurt and betrayed in her deep lies.
"You're going to be okay." There was Okera again. "Everything is going to be okay" Whilst it was Ishani's trial to figure out Okera was there to help her, take the brunt of what came and try her best to guide and protect those under her ward. So Okera told her lie, feeling the scar across her back burn and split as she repeated it.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

One voice in particular broke through the whispers.

"You lied to me."

Ishani felt chilled to the bone. She faced a specter that took the shape of Arcturus, her lover.

"You broke your promise," he growled. "You said you wouldn't get involved in the war."

"But they were killing people! They were going to destroy the planet!" Ishani replied, her tone almost pleading. Begging him to understand. "I'm not a coward, if I can help I will—"

But the image of Arc was unmoved. "Your duty is to the children. They're in danger now because you broke your promise."

Ishani set her jaw. She wouldn't attack him, never. But she needed to find a way past this part of her trials, and he was in her way. "Fine then," she said. "Send the children to my mother, if you can't take care of them until I get back. They'll be safe there. I'm going to keep fighting, keep killing, keep consuming all the souls of my enemies as they fall. This is what I want, and I'm taking it!"

She reached forward as if to pull him into an embrace, but he vanished before she could make contact. The other shades clustered around her, closing in. Reaching out with the Force, Ishani sucked the life from them, screaming as she absorbed their energy into herself.

Okera Vekra​

 

[Okera Vekra]

For eight hundred years Okera had watched this part of the Netherworld, leading people to the other side, helping those that were lost wanting a chance of trying again. The pain and the blood, the suffering that she went through to do her duty, her body always healed but her mind and being suffered. Now she was missing an eye and a large cut across her lekku and face, well not the first time she'd been hurt in the line of duty.
Slowly she pulled herself up aware of the figures closing in and getting closer, not aware of what she was seeing.
"It's not real, whatever it is, they aren't real" The other woman was muttering to herself yelling at things that weren't there, envisioning a reality that was a fabrication of the fog and trials of this land. It was hers to fight, her choices and trials. So Okera could do nothing but wait, whatever was going on was not her fight. Whatever came out the other side, well that might be.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

She was given a moment of ecstatic power, before the visions faded and she was left with nothing but her newfound convictions. Something clearly had happened to Ishani in the mist. A change had come over her. She seemed... darker, harder.

Spotting Okera, she approached the Togruta. "Are you hurt?" she asked, concerned.

Okera Vekra

 

[Okera Vekra]

"Tis but a scratch" A smile and half-joke to it, not holding the bloodied side of her face as the crimson blood slowly dripped to the dirt. The fog cleared up and they were now in a clearing out of the endless lane, a soft hum of interest from the togruta as she looked out.
"Probably should have warned you about that, my lack of body heat. Now only you saw what you did and how that played out. I only know that you started reacting badly for a good ten minutes. Do you need to talk about it or would you rather keep it to yourself?"

 

[Ishani Dinn]

"It doesn't look like just a scratch," Ishani murmured. But the mist was beginning to disperse, and the revealing of a clearing distracted her for the time being.

Okera asked if she wanted to talk about what had happened. Ishani looked at her for a moment or two, then shook her head. "It's... personal business. Private things."

In truth, she wasn't sure how Okera would react to learning Ishani was falling to the Dark Side, much less that Ishani didn't seem to think this was a bad thing. She'd wanted to fall for some time, in fact, but had never been able to work up the courage. All her life, she hadn't cared about doing the right thing, only about what others thought of her. She still cared, to some extent, but death seemed to have freed her.

Continuing further into the clearing, she saw two diverging paths. One led to wide open fields, while the other led to a settlement of some sort.

"Which way should we go?" Ishani asked.

Okera Vekra