Praxeum Days

[Coren Starchaser]

Coren Starchaser spent many of his days still running around the galaxy. He was doing his best to secure Alliance worlds and Shattered Jedi. But for him, it wasn’t about running the charge, not at the moment. He was hopeful he could gather forces, either to help the New Republic take the fight to the enemy, or provide a second prong that allowed the Republic to protect what worlds were around. Between that, and assisting those who needed it, he was a frequenter of the Praxeum on Eira Pechal, but also checking out Sullust, the Star Temple, and the worlds of the Silver Jedi and Republic.

Today, though, he was working on setting a few things up, making sure that he offered his expertise to the younglings and padawans where needed. It was all a matter of serendipitous chance that arrivals would be around. But the Jedi Master was dressed down, as typical, street clothes, with a Power-9 on one hip and a lightsaber on the other, being followed by an astromech. He was going to be giving some of the test fighters the once over and see what he could do about getting some more X-Wings into the line up for Jedi pilots. He knew the Praxeum wasn’t a place to make a war team, but… Jedi were defenders.

As he approached the main chamber, he made sure to check the sign ins, to see who was going where, and who was coming in. Apparently he was one of a few Masters kicking around today, and that meant if anything big came along, they’d call him. Nodding to the Padawan who had gotten desk-duty, he made his way towards the hangars, wondering what shape the fighters would all be in.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi had improbably acquired a stealth starfighter that was designed for Jedi by requiring a skill this one did not possess: it adding a communications transmission system had been considered a detection risk and unnecessary when pilots could rely on telepathy. Her lack of mastery of this skill had previously been prohibitive to her plan to seek out and learn from the Aing-Tii - though ironically, the one time she had employed what limited ability she had, it had then turned out that it would have been wise to abstain.

And so together with the artisans of the Praxeum, Amilthi had devised a plan for retrofitting the fighter with a full communications system. That alone was not entirely trivial, as spots for the emitter would have to be found that did not interfere with the hull's stealth properties. But Amilthi had gone rather further than this and come up with a more ambitious design in an attempt to optimise the ship: she ship should have multiple narrow-angle emitters that would allow it to send targeted communications in one particular direction that would not be received by anyone from a different angle. Someone might still be able to catch reflections and calculate a point of origin from that, but that would take attention, processing power, and a bit of time.

The artisan apprentice who had been tasked with performing the installation was struggling with it, and Amilthi was talking somewhat sternly to the young lad explaining a blunder he had committed. There was no anger in her voice at all, let alone malice; and only the slightest hint of impatience - but she was being precise and thorough in laying out the right and wrong ways to proceed without regard for the feelings of the young lad who, as she would have noticed if she had paid any attention to him instead of just the ship, had lowered his gaze sheepishly and looked increasingly dejected. The black robes that she was now accustomed to wearing probably didn't help.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Praxeum was an interesting place. So many different disciplines and focuses. The Watchman was making his way through and after catching up with some of the younger Jedi, the students, he was finally able to make his way to his target location. That was the hangar. If Starchaser was one thing, he was a pilot. And that meant being able to assist with repairing ships on the go, but not to the extent that an actual mechanic could. But he’d keep it flying and provide a ‘what’s wrong’ to the mechanic.

Or astromech.

The droids were good at keeping things flying and interacting with the machines to tell just what was needed to fix it. Coren was grateful for that bit of tech, at least. Still, an organic’s mind and eyes on something were a bit different and could get the peak performance out of anything. Entering the hangar though, he could sense a bit of desperation with one of the students, and a… he thought more practiced Jedi was there. And his ears were listening to the lesson.

A bit cold, but… to each their own.

Making sure to head over there, the pilot was ready to step in. “What you working on, kid?” He said, approaching the Padawan, before giving the woman a nod. “And with you?” He asked the woman in black. Interesting choice for a Jedi, but not completely unheard of. Skywalker himself frequently wore black. According to legends.

The padawan recognized Coren and bowed, stating Master Starchaser as he began to explain what the pair were doing.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi relaxed and leaned back against the ship, her arms outstretched along its nose. She smiled at the newcomer by way of greeting, and her eyes rested on him, examining him at great length, while the young lad, an artisan Padawan some 15 years of age, did his best to explain how they were installing two targeted communications arrays that Amilthi and his own master had designed, the main one in the snout of the ship and a secondary one in the back to cover the remaining angles, and how they were to be integrated with the ship's computer and sensor systems to use that input for tageting. Amilthi herself had written some of the relevant code.

"Quite so. You have a clear grasp on it now", she commented, and gave the Padawan an encouraging smile. The lad looked at her in confusion, as he had not expected this sudden change in her demeanour, then bowed. "Thank you, Master", he mumbled.

He turned to Master Starchaser again. "You see, the trick is to touch as little of the hull plating as possible. At first we" - he was fibbing a bit here, as it was one of the mistakes he had made - "wanted to install the emitter simply under the hull, but it turns out you can't do that with this Reflec stuff."

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Jedi artisans and tech specialists were that group who were doing more than just being a Jedi, or more than being just a mechanic and repair specialist. He kept an eye on the newcomer, the strawberry blonde. But he was going to make sure that the student wasn’t about to make the fighter explode, or short out. That was the last thing needed. Not that the Praxeum was ever on high alert. Shattered Jedi did their best to keep the fight elsewhere.

As did Republic and Silver Jedi.

Catching on the student’s confusion, the Master smirked. Some people had odd teaching styles, but the woman, she was not someone he recognized. Must be on opposite schedules. “Reflec does make it a bit trickier. Is it working now?” He asked the student.

“And my apologies. I haven’t introduced myself, Master Coren Starchaser.” He gave a soft bow to [member="Amilthi Camlenn"]. "Where are you from?"

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

"We don't know, Master. I still need to reposition the emitters."

"Well then, what are you waiting for", said Amilthi with a smile, pushing herself away from the ship.

Starchaser was not an altogether unfamiliar name to Amilthi. Although she had not been keeping abreast of developments in the galaxy at large very well, he was a character of some renown, and others in the Praxeum had told her that he occasionally visited, even as he was careful not to associate the group with the military operations of the Alliance's remnants in the Outer Rim. That, at least, was a respectable choice, even if Amilthi didn't quite know how she felt about the fact that some people just didn't seem able to leave well enough alone. But at the same time, a strengthening of the Outer Rim Coalition's defenses might well serve a good purpose by discouraging further expansion of the First Order and strengthen what fragile peace there was.

Amilthi rather appreciated the Outer Rim Coalition's nature and way of life. It was not what many would have perceived as the pinnacle of civilisation, and very different from the polished orderliness of her own homeworld, but in her years on Tatooine she had gained an appreciation for looser structures of social organisation which were in many ways more natural. They were, at the very least, more conducive to people leaving each other alone and minding their own business instead of trying to impose their will on everyone around.

"Amilthi Camlenn. Pleased to meet you", she introduced herself. "Where am I from? A difficult question", she remarked with a wry smile. "I'll name the three places I've spent the most time in my life: Ralltiir, Tatooine, and space."

It would have been superfluous to return the question even if Amilthi had much cared. The indelible Corellian accent alone was enough to give away Starchaser's origins.

"In any event, doesn't the future matter more than the past?"

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Setting up a ship was about finesse and love for the vessel. If it wasn’t your own, the art of repair was important. Knowing you could take something from being nearly ruined to completely back to battle ready. On top of that, taking what you had and making it something more than it was. Watching the woman speak to the student, he nodded to the student. “May as well check the systems.” He turned back to the woman who was his new focus today. Or at least the next few minutes. What he was interested in was merely fact finding.

As he was one of the Jedi that seemed to garner some level of fame and infamy on the galactic stage, he always felt it was part of his duty to do his best to link the Jedi of the galaxy. Silvers, Republic, Shattered Jedi. He had to keep abreast of the concepts running around and who was who. It would help when the time came to push the Sith back. He knew it was going to be a problem, Sith always were, and to get the Jedi moving, as some preferred their own borders. But it was going to be necessary.

He just hoped he could keep the Praxeum out of it.

“Nice to meet you, Amilthi.” He said, really not one for formalities as he gave her a cursory glance. “A bit of a traveler. I get that. Corellian but… the galaxy has always needed someone so I’ve been around the block a few.” For being only… oh god how old was he now? Late 30s. Whatever.

“Alright, then, where are you going? When’d you get to the Prax? Don’t recognize you as one of the regulars.”

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

"I suppose you don't. It's been less than two months since I first arrived here - by fortuitous accident, as so many things in our lives happen. It wasn't exactly a targeted approach and Romi and Zylah had to practically dig me out of the snow", she said self-mockingly.

"I don't know that I'm planning to go anywhere, I find the place very agreeable. Though the groups I find seem to have a tendency to disband soon after. Perhaps I should have taken that into consideration." She spoke quite seriously and it was either a very dry joke, or not a joke at all.

"Are you on the way somewhere or just doing an inventory of warm bodies?" she then asked with a fine, whimsical smile.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Two months… When was the last time he was around here? The man shook his head. He had been around for a few months, but he was focusing on the Jedi path and the Alliance mission. That had him traveling around for his own tasks. But this woman had been here, he should have probably paid attention to some of the briefings. “Romi and Zylah are good Jedi. Glad they were able to assist.” He took a second. “But how’d you get in the snow?” Ship crash, he assumed.

“The praxeum is a bit different. They don’t get involved in the wars. They focus on connecting the Jedi, and offering a place for them to train and take leave. Its only what you get in and take out of it. If that makes sense?” He shrugged, not trying to explain, but hopefully punctuate what she may already know.

“Mixture of both. I’m a pilot so wanted to see how the ships are and they need my skill here. Checking to see what is warm around. And… maybe heading to the rec-room, its been a minute since I’ve been back. Gotta see what Jedi are wandering in.” And what they could do.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

"I crashed a ship there. Or should I say, it crashed itself. And then inexplicably failed to die", said Amilthi with an amused shrug, explaining how she had ended up in the snow of the northern wastes. It had been a strange experience that she felt had taught her much even if she could not express it in words. Its absurdity had somehow given a new lightness to her being, and she felt freer, more curious, and more daring than she had before.

Amilthi looked at Coren for a moment, examining him and trying to get a grasp on him. He seemed driven, and somehow restless even in this reclusive and peaceful place - perhaps it didn't quite agree with him not to have a problem immediately at hand that needed solving.

"Let's go then - you've seen only one. There must be more interesting specimens", she said, finally smiling again, by way of reference to his immediate intention.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

“It crashed itself? You not a pilot?” he gave her an inquisitive look. Sometimes Porter flew his fighter, hell sometimes the droid helped fly the Tachyon Rising, but that was something Coren spent years prepping the astromech to do. Sure, Porter was aftermarket, and part piloting droid at this point, but he helped Coren break down firewalls, repair ships, hack communication systems, and fly. So… it was one of those level 100 type of gigs. But he had finally pared down most of his ships. Stuck to his hot-rod freighter, a stealth shuttle, and a fighter. His Sekotan ship had wandered back to its homeworld. One day they’d go back. The Sekot world was something… mystical, almost divine.

Mental walls not being a strong suit, aside resisting the dark side and fear created by such, Coren was an open book. His goals and intentions were clear that day. Reconnect with the Praxeum. And do what he could to assist while he had time off. Other Jedi were coming and going, but he was going to take some time away from the front to be useful here.

Not much time. If he was anything, Coren was a Jedi Crusader.

“Yeah, lets. You been able to meet people here?” He asked, idly as they walked. More fact finding and filling in the time between the hangar and the rec room.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

An inquisitive fellow he was, this Coren Starchaser, or at least so he might come across in his desire to orient himself about the situation and people he faced. Amilthi reflected that this proactive approach to the world was rather different from her own. She had a tendency, a kind of passive instinct, to keep all possibilities in mind, explore them in thought, but wait for events to decide between them.

"I found some familiar faces", said Amilthi vaguely. Romi and Zylah were, in fact, chief among them, both former members of the group she had belonged to on Deneba, and one even an old acquaintance from their days as Padawans in the Galactic Republic. "What I mean is that I didn't exactly choose this system to drop out of hyperspace in, nor for the steering to malfunction. To move a ship without that is a secret I haven't discovered. The Aing-Tii refused to tell me", she continued as they walked, leaving oddly ambiguous whether she was joking.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Starchaser was trained as a Sentinel, and stepped into the role of Watchman. With the betrayal of [member="Taeli Raaf"] he was worried more on what intentions people had from the get go. It made Coren a lot less trustworthy coming out of the gate. But he was going too keep watch and try to make it look like he wasn’t. A tricky thing, and he’d just admit what happened. The Endgame. He could brood, and would. What he needed to do was get to the forefront of the war. Even if he needed to be on the ground for a bit.

“Tends to be what happens here. Jedi tend to come back around all the time.” He grinned, giving a nod to Amilthi. “Ah, you’re thinking of Force piloting, aren’t you?” The Corellian nodded. This was something he was pretty adept at. The thing that the newcomer had said next, though? That was the shocker.

Aing-Tii.

Coren knew them all too well. Not at the level of Julius Sedaire, but he had spent time, between Lords of the Fringe and his explorer days before the Alliance. He was one of those who could fold space. And the more kinetic energy something had? The easier it was for him to move it. “You made it out to the Rift?”

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

"Yes, as a matter of fact. Quite the experience, to be sure, though ultimately I wasted a lot of time for nothing. Well, I shouldn't say that. I didn't get what I wanted, but it's a good place to meditate. I might return one day and explore the things it does to your mind."

That, certainly, was a rather twisted take. Few people would have considered the intense, and rarely agreeable, hallucinations that the place provoked, especially in those who felt the Force, as something to explore. But an experienced mind could benefit from testing itself against its adversity. Amilthi could even imagine exploring its use as a teaching tool. After the considerable time she had spent there on its slow hyperspace routes, she was quite confident that she could not only hold her own, but also guide another through the challenge.

"I imagine you've plenty of experience with it yourself?"

She walked besides Coren, falling neither behind nor going ahead. When they reached their destination, the button for the door was on her side, and she stepped forward to push it, but then waited for Coren to enter first.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Jedi Master nodded. The Rift was a really different place. A bit spidery but if you knew what you were up against? It was something that could be handled. Coren had spent months there, but the way the Force worked, and the time shifts… it wasn’t that long. He was aboard his family’s large freighter the Dawn Treader, and he was working with a fighter that was now almost permanently docked there. His gold Rassilon-fighter. It was how he could communicate with the sages of the Aing-Tii. He had taken time to learn things.

But they could feel it in him. He was a warrior, a soldier, and a crusader. There were skills the Aing-Tii had that they wouldn’t share with the Master. But they knew his intentions were good. And being able to fold space, and use the Force to pilot? That was something they did. And it was something Coren had used a number of times to moderate success. He could probably teach it, for the right student.

“A bit. Hyperspace trailblazer, one of the Jedi aces…” He shrugged it off. “Just comes with practice. What’s your… I guess, discipline? Talent?” He knew what he was getting at, but had to make sure his point carried across.


[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

"Go ahead", said Amilthi with a hint of impatience, nodding through the door. On some level, it amuser her how Coren was so lost in the line of questioning he had sunk his teeth in; but at the same time, it was a bit ridiculous their standing here.

"My talent..." she repeated, thinking. It wasn't that she didn't know what to point at, but she had some difficulty finding the right words. "I suppose you might call it self-control. I've spent a lot of time exploring... whatever it is that I am. My mind and my body, linked as they are. Consciousness and individuality are strange things."

"A bit egocentric, you might say, and not much of a skill. I'm not the worst swordsman, either, but there are only so many problems that can be solved with a lightsaber, and I'm not even quite sure which ones they are." She smiled - innocently, one might have said - and gave a shrug, more to underscore her ignorance than to express indifference.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Corellians and bars, they were something else. Starchaser stepped inside and looked around. This place was set up differently than the rest of… well, the rest of the Praxeum. While they did live in a very high tech world, the Jedi Praxeums were traditionally areas that were away from most communications and the technology. This one, the primary praxeum had a bit of an overhaul from Alliance in Exile teams, and granted tehm some fighters, and base technology to keep everyone alive.

And that also meant a fully supplied bar, if only droid staffed. But there were a few people inside and Coren lead Amilthi to a high top near the bar. A droid would be approaching soon and Coren looked at his new drinking partner. “Control is useful, so many Jedi think Sense and Alter skills are the way to go…” And that included him. “But being the master of you is important.” He turned and ordered a Corellian whiskey, neat.

“So, been hitting the work out spaces as well sa owning the mental exercises, then?” He nodded. “And swordsmanship isn’t everything.” A smirk on his face, he placed his sidearm on the table. “Blasters go a long way.” He watched the droid for a second, giving Amilthi a second to order as he gathered his thoughts.

“When you got into the Rift, what happened. Did you get face to face with the Aing-TIi? What happened?”

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi regarded the blaster with a doubtful look, but said nothing. She couldn't see how it solved anything. On a practical level, she relied on reflecting blaster shots to suit her purpose, which had the benefit of not compromising one's defence - and she had never felt a need to shoot at something or someone without anybody shooting at her. But on a deeper level, Coren's remark completely missed the problem the had alluded to - that to find spots where applied violence would have a notable positive impact on the galaxy was not, in general, easy. She couldn't quite see why Coren should have made the remark, except to point at what he perhaps considered an inadequacy of hers, and she chose to ignore it.

The existence of the place they had just entered had previously struck Amilthi as somewhat antithetical to the nature of the Praxeum. But for people like Coren, it perhaps made sense that it's monastic character was not too pronounced. He seemed to be the kind who might find a refuge from the world that was too unfamiliar simply irrelevant and would consider it inconvenient, rather than refreshing, to break his habits. Amilthi, in line with her own habits, ordered the juice of some fruit or other that happened to be available.

"I did. Not on their planet, but I met some in space. I had to go to some lengths and become a slave for a few days and make my abductors go in the right direction, but it turned out the stories were true and that did the trick. People say they have a unique perspective on the Force, I wanted to find out what's behind that. But, well there is a language barrier, I'm not a very proficient telepath, and they weren't very interested in any exchange." Amilthi ended with a shrug and a wry smile. "Maybe I'll find time to learn and go back one day."

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

For Coren, the blaster was just another tool. He was a Sentinel, and that meant his toolbox was more varied than a lightsaber and the Force, but not as deep in those two realms. He made use of other technology, lock picks, stunning weapons, blasters, to name a few. For him, defense was hitting the target hard, to protect others. It may not have been the best method to protect himself. Scars, and a cybernetic arm shouted that loudly enough to the fact that maybe there were better methods. But if he grabbed attention, and fired first? That meant he could save someone else.

It was why he took the fight to the Sith. A small hit here and there, and you could protect species and worlds from devastation. Sure, there was a certain discipline to swordsmanship that he didn’t have, but there were ways around it. The Corellian was a very pro-forward combat sort of being.

Being well traveled, he had met all sorts. But lately he had been finding himself sitting in the guise of a leader among the Jedi. Or some Jedi. It was familiar but wasn’t challenging to him. Having a place that reminded him of home, or a constant, was easy, though. It made the wars seem less foreign, and helped ground him into who he was, where he came from. Watching the droid depart, he paid attention to the woman before him.

“Aing-Tii are a tricky bunch to get an audience with, I’ll give you that. But self-imposed slavery? Never thought of that as an approach. Always interesting to see how people make it work.” And the image of her as a slave girl, what she must have gone through. He shook his head. “For me it was a bit of shouting in the Force that did it. And yeah, the language was tricky. One of those groups you have to keep hammering at until they teach you. Someone can always translate.” He grinned.

“If you want an audience with them, I know I can get that. Can’t do much for the language. Never had the time. But their view on the Force is something different.”

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi raised an eyebrow and looked at Coren for several seconds with a strange intensity in her ice-blue eyes. So that was why he had asked if she had met the Aing-Tii. It was surprising and intriguing that Coren, of all people, should be familiar with them. He certainly did not, at first glance, appear as the type who would spend months on a strange planet in seclusion from the galaxy to study a foreign view on the nature of things, but clearly there was more to this character. She wondered briefly if it was the Aing-Tii's principled activist streak, inexplicably narrow in scope though it was, that he had connected with them over.

"Do tell", she said eventually with odd seriousness and not a hint of a smile, almost with a kind of urgency. She hoped that that would be enough of a prompt to make him say more about his own experiences and discoveries rather than ask another question. She took a sip from her juice and looked at him with an imploring curiosity in her eyes.

[member="Coren Starchaser"]​