Research Time (Siobhan)

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"], [member="Phylis Alince"]


By now Siobhan liked to think she had become quite adept at reading her daughter. She was a sweetheart, but still very shy around strangers. Something that would probably changed the more she got exposed to the outside world. Having more people her age around would probably also help. Hopefully Nato's writer will return soon since this one wants the spitfire back.


Regardless, Siobhan gave Galina's hand an encouraging squeeze, when Phylis launched into her short elaboration. The Jedi was being very friendly, but Siobhan was concerned she might be going too fast. "Phylis is a very wise, scholarly woman and a good friend. She wrote those history books I ordered for you from Wisdom Tree Knowledge," she said, holding up her hand so that the librarian would slow down.


Yep, Siobhan had actually bought some of Phylis' books. Not the one on Levitation in the Pre-Tythonian Period though. "You remember the story I told you about my...past encounter with Shadow? We'd like to make an amulet that can help protect your mind against dangers like that. I hope you never have to use it, but better safe than sorry."

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

Galina blinked for a moment, listening between the two women. She was quite thankful for her mother asking for Phylis to slow down. She needed that since it made it easier to make sure she was completely understanding every word. "Oh right, those books. I liked them. They weren't entirely dull, for history books." She said with a smile, a bit more curious about the Jedi, since it seemed she wrote some of the books she'd used to learn about the galaxy around her. Granted, she wasn't that fond of history but at least she found some enjoyment in them.

She lifted a brow, trying to make sure she had absorbed everything that had been spoken to her. Galina finally glanced back to Sio and nodded, "I remember, yes." She said quietly. It wasn't a story she could really forget either.

Finally she at least seemed to grasp the general idea of what was going to happen. "So making an amulet ... I'm okay with that. I suppose, it wont be so bad to have some-thing thing like." The way she spoke some words, gave a clue to basic not being her first language. But that was slowly fading, getting harder to notice with her now. "So, I guess I diamond like shape would be okay with me." At least the redhead was taking this well. After all it seemed totally normal to her right then. Nothing strange had come up. Yet ...

[member="Phylis Alince"] | [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Phylis Alince]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] [member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"]

Phylis beamed happily. "I'm glad you liked them! Any in my catalogue you want I can give you a free one. I'm always interested in helping people who want to read. Hmm, such a lamentably absent habit these days."

Before she could wander off into a lecture she was called back to the present. "Diamond, hmm? Very well. Allow me a moment."

Going to the workbench she started carving away quickly at the block of clay she would use as a mould. She had a very specific idea in mind, and set to work. Eventually she noticed the family was waiting.
"Hmm, yes, this will take some time. Can I call you, Siobhan, Galina, when I'm ready for you to come down here? I need to get everything running, and it will likely be an hour or so. I mean, hmm, you can wait if you want, but it's likely not interesting. Unless Galina would like to learn some basics?"

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Phylis Alince"], [member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"]


So far things were going well. Phylis' enthusiasm was super cute and the same obviously applied to her butt. Siobhan had still not gotten around to mentioning the blood magic part, but decided to bring that up after Galina had gotten comfortable helping the librarian a bit. Having her aid the Jedi for a bit would probably be smart.


"Feel free to help Phylis out, Galina," she said warmly, leaving it up to her daughter. She looked rather proud at Galina's success with Basic. Her difficulties with it were fading and less noticeable every day.

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

Galina grinned, "Oh, really? Thank you. I like learning ... and reading. A lot." She said softly. Truly loving studying and learning about the galaxy around her. For a girl that had spent a good eight years on an island without any thing but her own thoughts and a journal, that probably shouldn't have come as a surprise.

Cocking her head to the side she curiously watched as Phylis worked, hardly aware that they were waiting at all. It seemed she had a natural curiousity to such things. Especially to things she'd never seen before.

She glanced to her mother one last time as Sio spoke, and nodded finally letting go over Sio's hand and wandered cautiously over to Phylis' side. Her eyes locked on the clay mold, wondering exactly how this was going to work. "How may I help?" She asked, not wanting to get in the way or do something unwanted.

[member="Phylis Alince"] | [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Phylis Alince]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"] [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

Phylis looked even more pleased when Galina opted to stay. Finally she'd have someone to explain things too! Perhaps she could even get her onto Levitation in the Pre-Tython period....

"Well, I'm making a mould out of clay. We then bake this and polish it up, and then we pour the molten gold into it. The ceramic doesn't melt no matter how hot it gets, so it keeps the shape. From that I can alter and manage the shape of the object I'm making."

She swiftly made the pattern she was looking for and put it into the kiln to bake.

"Now, how you can help is by telling me how much you can use the Force. Have you been taught to use it to shield your own mind? When I make this item we sort of get you to use that power close to it and that makes the piece of gold take on that quality."
She didn't mention the blood yet. Best to work up to it.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Phylis Alince"], [member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"]


This one is very sceptical about anyone finding Levitation in the Pre-Tython period interesting, but they digress...


Anyhow, whilst Phylis was explaining Siobhan stayed in the background, content with letting Galina learn on her own and speak for herself. After all, she had never liked it as a child when people thought they could speak for her. Besides, Galina was a smart cookiee and naturally curious. Hopefully all the Force stuff would not to be too overwhelmning for her. So she gave her daughter a nod and an encouraging smile.

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

Galina managed a nervous smile as she stood by the Jedi master. "Oh, I see." That made sense to her, still she'd never seen it in practice. Her being naturally curious helped put some of her nerves away, making matters a wee bit easier for her. "Makes sense."

A frown crossed her lips, talking about the Force wasn't entirely something she liked to do. She still was largely uncomfortable with it as a whole, but the girl was getting better. It was just another part of her she had to deal with. Her shoulders rose and fell with a heavy sigh. Nervously she fidgeted with her hands, eyes dropping down to the floor. She didn't know where to start, if truth be told.

"A little bit." She finally admitted. Granted by this point it was more than a little bit. But the question morphed from how much can you use the force, to how much do you use the force. There was a difference for certain. "She did show me a little about how to do that. Guard the mind." She said quietly, clearly still quite shy. Just more so about this particular subject than any other.

The Redhead then nodded, "That makes sense, I guess." Admittedly, she didn't know the whole story there but that was a bridge they'd cross a little later. She then gave a glance back to Siobhan, and managed a timid and uncomfortable smile. She just wasn't too terribly sure of what was happening, and would be happening. That and the whole topic of the Force .... Yeah, it wasn't something she liked.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] | [member="Phylis Alince"]

 

[Phylis Alince]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"] [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
Phylis gave her a sideways look. “Ah, still new to the Force, hmm? Unsure how you fit in with it and whether you can control it? Hmmph, we all get that, only practice will show you what’s right to use. Remember, with power comes temptation; unless you can manage your temptation to use the power, it is best to abstain from it,” Phylis said the last quietly to the girl.

She went back to work, taking the ingot of gold and dropping it into the crucible. Then, calling on the Force she levitated it into the hottest section of the furnace.

“Now, we let it melt, and then we start the real process.”

A pause, then a look at the girl, then to Galina’s mother. “There is something else I need. The protection ritual requires a small measure of blood from the eventual user. Now, there’s no reason to worry, I have a sterile syringe with me, and I do not need a large amount. The reason is that by creating this using that it locks its use just to you, so no one else can use it, and it amplifies your natural strength. I hope that’s alright?”

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Phylis Alince"], [member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"]


Siobhan felt a bit annoyed when Phylis gave Galina a lecture about the Force. No one needed to tell Galina about how dangerous it was. The girl had experienced it first-hand on her hellhole of a homeworld. Besides, it's not like Jedi had a good track record, since even Council members kept defecting for no reason. It made her doubt whether the Jedi wanted to win in the first place.


"Galina knows first-hand what horrors can be unleashed with the Force. On her homeworld Force-users ran amok," she said bluntly.

And now hey came to the elephant in the room. Siobhan instantly walked over and took her daughter's hand. Somehow she imagined Galina not talking the whole Force talk well. It was a very sensitive spot for the child. "It will be fine, dear. I know this must appear creepy and unnerving to you, but it's nothing like the Mages on Sigma did."

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

Galina lifted a brow, "Yes and no." Said with a sigh. "And it's not entirely that." Galina glanced back to her mother. "You have to understand where I came from, what the force was treated as and what happened to those who had it, versus those who did not."

It seemed now Galina would finally speak up, and tell her tale. "The planet was locked in a civil war over a thousand years old, between those who had the Force and those who did not. Those who did were mages." The redhead gave a shrug, trying to play off the bad memories. Trying to ignore how they made her feel and how much they frightened her. "I didn't know I did back then. And I was lucky, I would have been taken from my family and thrown in with the lot of the Mages. People I as a child soldier fought against. They were an evil bunch, consumed by power and a need for more." Reaching up she ran a slow hand through her hair, trying to keep her emotions steady. It was just history to her, a past she didn't have to face anymore.

"They did everything they could to remain in power, including slaughtering those who dared to whisper a word against them. Not even children were spared this fate. Hell most of us ended up on the front lines. There was no place you could run, no place far enough to hide from their reach. To put it bluntly, the Mages were butchers." Once more the redhead sighed, as she squeezed her mother's hand.

"I don't so much worry as to how I'll fit in with it, or whether I can control it. I fear what it will make me in the end. Whether or not I'll be just like them. Because that is the very last thing in this Universe that I want to be. First hand, saw the evils it causes, how it changes people. Even those I knew who showed up with it, became twisted monsters. That is not what I want to be. This power, it corrupts. And I worry greatly that it will corrupt me." She said firmly. "That is my concern, my fears." All well founded fears for certain. "That is a place, a time I don't want to remember. But I'm stuck with that. I can't escape that. And having this power, reminds me of Sigma nine five seven. Reminds me far too much of it, and all the terrible memories that go hand in hand with my homeworld."

With Phylis moving to melt the material, Galina's attention shifted back to watch the woman work. Then the news came of what was needed from her. "You need, what?" She blinked, and glanced to Siobhan, uncertain of this new idea. "Creepy, doesn't even cover it, mum." She said flatly. "I'm not getting out of here, without this ... am I?" She asked, but already knew the answer. "Guess there isn't a lot of choice in this... Fine. I'll live with it I guess. But I don't have to like it." She grumbled in a typical teenage fashion. "But I guess it's done with good reason, which is an improvement over the Mages."

[member="Phylis Alince"] | [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Phylis Alince]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"] [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

Phylis saw clearly how much the story affected the girl. She nodded soberly, it was a tale of woe, of corruption and evil.
She was tempted to use the Force to help calm the girl, but decided not. It was Galina’s burden to bear, and her smothering the pain would not help. Only time and understanding from her family could do that.

“I’m sorry to hear all you’ve gone through, Galina. I wasn’t aware it was so bad, apologies if I sounded insensitive. Hmm, but yes, this is in a good cause!”

After getting the nod from Siobhan she produced a sterile syringe, tapped it, and then gently inserted it into the girl’s upper arm. Now she used the Force to help ease any discomfort or pain. When she had taken the correct measure she laid it aside and put a Band-Aid over the small hole.

“There we go. You OK?”

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"], [member="Phylis Alince"]


Siobhan could not offer super empathic skills to soothe her daughter and still the pain, but that would have only smothered her and smacked of brainwashing to her. However, she would show that she was there for her. Fact was that Galina had never been this specific about her fears related to the Force.


As for time and understanding, far as Siobhan was concerned her daughter would get that from her. So she pulled Galina into a tight embrace, hugging her tightly against her body. "My brave girl. Thank you for speaking this way, Galina. I understand how difficult things are for you a lot better now. You'll never become a monster - not on my watch. Or Tempest's," while she spoke these words she rubbed across Galina's back and stroked across it in hopefully soothing circles.

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

Galina nodded to Phylis. "It's okay. You didn't know." She said quietly, her eyes drawn to the floor. "I didn't have the life everyone thought I did. And I did not grow up within this galaxy, within unknown space, yes. It was different out there. More brutal, more harsh." Of course her coming to Kaeshana had been no walk in the park either. Both her biological parents died in that fiery crash, and yet she lived on.

Her eyes did widen seeing the syringe, but the redhead didn't pull away. Instead she squeezed Siobhan's hand tighter as she winced slightly at the pain, though it had been greatly reduced through Phylis' powers.

She gave a small nod once it was all over. "Yes." She replied. "I'll be fine." Not that she was. With her mood gone sour, it would take her a little while to return to her usual self. Galina just needed a moment or two to let those horrible memories slip away.

At her mother's arms wrapping around her, Galina instinctively hugged Sio tightly in return. "I hope you are right." The fear, the worry likely would be there for a while longer, until the redhead learned to trust herself and her instincts. Something she had yet to manage on her own. "I just ... I can't turn out that way. Don't trust myself right now, not to." She said quietly, hating to admit that flaw she had in herself.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] | [member="Phylis Alince"]

 

[Phylis Alince]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"] [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

“Hmm, a good point. And this at least should help.”

Phylis, seeing the gold was nicely melted, pulled it free with the Force.

“Stand well back, please, hmm, molten gold is not pleasant for the skin,” the Jedi mentioned.

Pouring the molten metal into the mould she carefully deposited the remainder and the crucible onto the forge surrounds, then turned to Galina and Siobhan.

“Sio, you might want to take a step or ten back,” she said. Force Light tended to disagree with Dark Siders’ skin about as much as molten gold.

“Now, Galina, focus your energies upon this gold. Reach out with your feelings and direct your power into it, as though you are shielding it.”

Whilst that was going on Phylis poured the blood into the still liquid gold, and started to focus upon it intently. Her hands glowed as she directed the power of the Light into the gold. As she had done with the copper knife she started to act on the metal, binding the gold, the blood, the Force together indivisibly. It would mean that as long as the Force endured in the item it would be unbreakable.

Now all it needed was for Galina to use her power to bind it to her and the ritual would be complete.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Phylis Alince"], [member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"]


Sensing that her daughter needed time after reliving these horrific memories, Siobhan patted her on the shoulder and then stepped back. "I trust you, Galina," she said firmly. The girl just needed more self-confidence. Perhaps also seeing more instances of the Force being used positively would help. Or spending more time with people who were blind to it but did just fine, such as Tegaea.


To a degree, Siobhan realised that she could not shelter her daughter forever. Part of her wondered whether she might not be stiffling her development a bit. After all, any time Galina met someone new, it was her mother who introduced them to her. Likewise Siobhan did not like keeping her out of her eyes for long. Of course, there were good reasons for that. Having more people her age around would help as well. Maybe she needed to run into [member="Abaigeal E'ron"] and Elpsis.


Oh, this one thinks the three would get into lots of trouble!


Anyhow, back to alchemy, pardon, Alkahest! Phylis worked her magic and when she began her light show Siobhan quickly stepped back. She had been burnt a few times by Force Light and it disagreed with her complexion. Unlike some weird kindly Sith, she was not a special snowflake!

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

"Thanks mum." It was good at least someone had some trust in her. Not that she had that much in herself. That would just take time and a better understanding of the galaxy around her. She needed to experience things for herself and learn to act and react without someone to fall back on. She needed that. And soon enough it would be time for her to start wandering the galaxy. Not that Siobhan would let her get too far without some supervision. After all there were plenty of people who would go after her on name alone, trying to get to the daughter of the Firemane owners.

Galina nodded and took a couple steps back, just watching. The last thing she wanted was to get burned. Breathing in deeply, trying to bring some composure into herself before she attempted to follow Phylis' instructions.

There was a nervous glance back to Siobhan, clearly worried. But she was quick to turn back and do as she was asked. Closing her eyes she reached out into the tangled web of the force and pulled gently upon it's infinite powers. Her focus narrowed down to the small piece of still liquid metal. Working she shielded it with care, just as she had been asked.

"Is it done?" She asked quietly.

[member="Phylis Alince"] | [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Phylis Alince]

[member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"] [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

Phylis’ concentration never wavered. The last thing she wanted was to allow any flaws in the process to undermine the power.
The Light entered and bound with blood and metal, and then Galina used her own power to make the item hers.

Swiftly, Phylis levitated the amulet from the mould and set to work physically and with the Force to finish, polish and beautify the item. She didn’t have long at all to act, so she moved quickly, not replying at first.
Finally, after some hard work she applied a final blast of Force Light to the item, and closed the almost sealed molecular bonds. The pendant flashed with final, golden light, and dropped into Galina’s hand.

The Jedi Master leaned heavily against the brick surround of the forge, panting heavily. She’d not made herself pass out this time, but it was close!
“That’s it, Galina…well done. It’s yours now, no one else can use it. Use it well…use it for good.”
With that she slumped down to the floor, exhausted.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Phylis Alince"], [member="Galina Kerrigan-Alcori"]


And so the fun experiment was over and Galina was the proud owner of a shiny amulet. When Phylis stumbled Siobhan quickly caught the librarian, though she took care not to get too close to the artefact. After all, it full of Light Side energy, which was bad. Oh, and for the record, Siobhan only caught and stabilised the woman. No groping in this post. "Good work, both of you. Galina, take your amulet. I'm very proud of you. I'll get Phylis to her room."

 

[Galina Kerrigan-Alcori]

Galina seemed a little shocked as the amulet fell into her hands. She wasn't terribly certain about how it came to be, but it was there in her hand now. Her eyes shifted to Phylis as the woman slumped down to the floor. "Thank you." She said quietly, uncertain of what to do next. "I will, I promise."

She brought the amulet close for inspection for a moment, before she undid the clasp and placed it around her neck. "Okay, mum. I guess, I'll see you both later?" She asked as she started for the door, pausing at the threshold to glance back to her mother.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] | [member="Phylis Alince"]