Terrijo Fate

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"Welcome back, Corsica"

After the fallout caused by the rampage of a giant walker in the Terrijo countryside, Jessica saw fit to have [member="Corsica Cinto"] tag along for any relief and cleanup operations. Yes, Jessica was still nominally in command on Terrijo, just that the actual work of fighting the Pius Dea remnants left behind in the woods after the main battle against a kilometer-high walker was over was left to other people, such as the reserves that were not used for fighting said walker. Yes, Corsica was grateful for Jessica, yes, she learned a lot about Jedi-hood in the very beginning, back in the Ringo Vinda desert. Just that it was better to leave the heavy-duty combat operations to people who actually were there for that purpose. I hope these new weapons equipped by Umbarans left in reserve will actually perform satisfactorily, especially the Furutakas and Izumos they seem to be favoring, in SAW and AT/AA roles respectively, Jessica thought, while making her approach towards a forest village that suffered from the preliminary engagements fought by the Pius Dea. With supplies in tow, both food and medical, but it wasn't safe for the village's infrastructure to undergo reconstruction just yet.

"Here's the thing, Corsica: although, there are still remnants of the Pius Dea terrorist cell around in the countryside, there are still innocents suffering from what the Pius Dea did around here, so we have to render assistance to the locals while the army is still on the lookout for those remnants. For this reason, be ready to fight in self-defense, but assistance is our priority here"

 

[Jsc]

Corsica nodded to [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] and surveyed the forest approach. It was strange being on the front lines of a conflict zone. Even one so small as this. She felt anxious and a little bit surprised. Anxious that danger could be anywhere and surprised that they were operating so close to it. Well. I suppose time would tell.

"Of course Jess. I'll be ready."

So wasn't of course. Cinto had no firearm on her and equipped only Ben's old lightsaber and her Britney Coat for defense. So, if a real fight broke out she'd be the first to dash and make a run for it. And, yes. Thanks to the Force she could run really, really fast. Ha.

Pondering the treeline now, Corsica wasn't quite sure whether she was here for manual labor, protection duty, or just to watch Jessica work. But? She'd make the best of it. I guess this was what "Jedi" did most of the time anyway. Missions. Or whatever. Might as well experience it first hand.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"We must also look for survivors, render aid to them until we can reach the village. But we have only enough space on the sled convoy for two injured survivors"

Just because two Jedi were escorting the supplies doesn't mean the enemy wouldn't have to take precautions, and neither would they. In the dense woods, short-ranged weapons, point-blank even, work better than engaging at long range, Jessica thought, while slowly tramping through the woods with a hoversled filled with a collapsible kolto tank, kolto as well as food supplies. Sure a speeder truck would have been more appropriate but the trail was impracticable for vehicles; that's why they had to tramp through the woods afoot. Hopefully [member="Corsica Cinto"] would be strong enough in the light to pick up when she left off last time with respect to Force-healing, but there was no guarantees. And now the pair happened to come across an injured survivor that fled some settlement in the rampage the Pius Dea made before the Silvers' army intervened. And then the Force-healing lesson can resume, with a refugee suffering from broken arms. They were to stabilize the patient before that patient could be carried on a hoversled, but Jessica would cover Corsica if the Pius Dea was to target them.

"Now that we found a refugee in the woods, injured and bruised, I'll cover you if needed. However, as I said last time, don't expect near-instant healing every time, and usage of the Force does not dispense you from having to take precautions NFU medics would take. Here diagnosis is the most important part since everything else - especially how the Force will get used, since the Force is a medication here - stems from there"

 

[Jsc]

Corisca was no stranger to rough trails or mountain hikes. Her past occupation as a competitive skier gave her plenty of opportunities to become acquainted with high-altitude exercise. Even with equipment, she could probably hike for miles and not be winded. Alas. She did lament their transportation. Walking through a conflict zone was probably the stupidest thing Cinto had ever done. Not only did it leave you exposed but it meant that any enemy vehicles could engage and pursue with perfect initiative. Over land, sea, or air. And, worse yet... Visibility was limited in these conditions and an ambush could be anywhere.

So when [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] mentioned the words, "I'll cover you if needed." Cinto was downright offended. No. She was getting pissed off.

"Jess. No offense, but screw this guy."

She pointed down to the injured man.

"We don't have time for peasants if there are ambushes about. And letting me try to dink around trying to conjurer up a miracle under these conditions is ridiculous. Frell, you heal him. Because let's not waste time with what's not important."

Corsica turned to the man again,

"And you! Why are you running in the wrong direction anyway? Your village is that way, isn't it? Your home. Your people. What are you even doing out here?"

Rather than heal the man, Corsica felt an interrogation was in order. So many questions to ask. Why was he running? Where was the enemy? Why abandon your home? Where was he going? Did he even understand what a Silver Jedi was? Oh no. Corsica flatly refused to do anything right now but rethink their strategy.

"Jess, what about coms? You're in charge right? Frell girl, call a professional. Don't look at me."

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"In forest warfare, ambushes are more likely to happen near the main roads; this village, which is little more than a lumberjack camp, is a bit secluded to be of much tactical use. Also, the dense foliage cover makes certain options impractical: airstrikes, artillery, especially indirect-fire, to name the main ones"

Dense woods curtailed an enemy's ability to deploy vehicles, especially heavy ones, and airpower was very risky to use in precision strikes for the same reason: the GE paid the price for relying too much these on Dagobah. Yet, ambushes were still a concern, even though she knew that, in forest warfare, tree cover made heavy weapons impracticable and sometimes unusable (mortars, in particular, seemed to suffer in the dense foliage); an airstrike would be more likely to hit a tree branch than a Jedi in these woods. However, [member="Corsica Cinto"] did, in fact, have an alternative use for the patient. But Jessica decided that it was not proper for Corsica to attempt Force-healing just yet, and that perhaps the mind trick would be a better use of this opportunity as far as learning was concerned. She went down to work stabilizing the patient's broken bones, feeling that the patient would be more responsive to an interrogation session if the patient was healthy. Once she repaired the broken bones, using the Force as a medication, she thus began the mind trick lesson.

"Let's switch gears and you shall learn the mind trick instead. Yes, it's about using the Force to change one's thought patterns, yes, it's more effective on weak-minded people, but there are caveats I ought to disclose: since the mind trick, in an interrogation context, is legally considered enhanced interrogation, you should use the mind trick to interrogate people only after conventional methods have been exhausted. Also, you could inadvertantly ruin someone's life if you're not careful"

 

[Jsc]

As [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] mentioned "enhanced interrogation" and it's semi-legal status in Silver Space. Well... Corsica couldn't help but wonder just how F'ed up this mission was about to get. Now. Admittedly, Cinto had used such a technique before with Ben. It was part of the Force Bond they had shared. Being able to feel each others thoughts and emotions. Something wonderful. Something intimate. Something all together magical when used correctly. Alas. This type of mind trick was not that. This would be all together more simple.

Cinto looked at the man and just gave a wave of her hand. Offering only a word.

"Sleep."

And he did. Immediately falling unconscious to her magical suggestion. Cinto, looking almost displeased, turned her back to the man.

"Come on Jess." Her voice filled with leather and grit, "Hmph. Let's just go."

Then she picked him up the sleeping man with little effort and threw him onto the sled. The dark grimace on her mood being all the more visible. Her senses tuned outward. Towards the trees and the dangers that still lay ahead. Her eyes looked out toward the broken village beyond. Wondering just how much more pain and suffering she was going to see today.

"After all. They'll be more where he came from."

Jess could lay off the training for now. Corsica wasn't feeling very optimistic anyway.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"All right. It's best for you to let me know when you're ready to continue; pushing a paddy too hard will lead the paddy to the dark side. As important as it is to be self-aware, you can't always wait for the ideal opportunity to learn"

High-concentration learning is perhaps not the way to go with everybody. While that sort of methods may have worked with past paddies, it didn't seem to work out that well on Corsica. Then again, to make the most out of a paddy, one must remain mindful of the student's strengths and weaknesses, Jessica thought, while still moving in the direction of the village. Upon arrival, she realized that what's left of the village was turned into a triage camp, with machinegun nests posted at the main access points, and also tons of stretchers with injured civilians and combatants. And yet, [member="Corsica Cinto"] knew that the scene was much like the one she was confronted on Ringo Vinda, only with different scenery and context. Lots of injured, lots of people that suffered and they would all be grateful for the collapsible kolto tank, the medical supplies and the foodstuffs. And yet, since the area was densely wooded, the machinegun nests were actually fitted among the trees, rather than at ground level. The sleeping patient was thus hauled off to one of the many beds dotting the village afterward.

"You must have realized by now that adaptability was one of the key ingredients of Jedi-hood. I'm happy you did resist the temptation to fight the Pius Dea guys yourself"

 

[Jsc]

Another day, another medical camp. Corsica was quickly realizing that joining the Jedi meant joining a relief effort of untold scale. Not only had the Silver Jedi pushed the terrorists out of here, they were also spearheading the rebuilding. Interesting.

Corsica turned to [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] with a nod,

"I've decided to learn about the Jedi by watching them work. Rather than from traditional lessons or classes. I feel the best way to know a religion is not by the power of it's words, speeches, or frilly textbooks. But rather, by the actions of their lay members and generals alike. To see what kind of example they set for others."

She shrugged and pulled her coat close. Almost like she felt a chill.

"I'm sorry if I seem uncooperative. Unlike most students, I'm not an empty glass needing to be filled. I'm already full. A content adult. Just looking for the right crusade to help out with, I suppose."

Crusade indeed. And this camp looked like the perfect place to start. The perfect place to become adaptable.

"Anyway. Back to business. Should we find out who's in charge around here? Then start passing things out?"

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"I overheard you; looks like we have our kolto tank, with a patient in tow" the camp leader noticed the hoversleds with [member="Corsica Cinto"] next to them. "What caused the kolto tank to take this long to arrive?"

"Let's say that we had to cross dense woods and pick up a patient along the way"

That was the cold, hard truth. At least Corsica was upfront about how she feels about her journey to knighthood. Looks like I often seem to pick up those paddies that don't simply want to fight; those paddies that looked to Jedi-hood as a means to simply fight evil often walked a fine line between light and dark themselves, Jessica thought, while also realizing that most other Jedi in a similar mold to her were instead pretty passive. It was not enough to fight for a cause they believed in, excessive zeal could lead to the dark side. Just that it was refreshing to see Jedi not brazenly take the field at every occasion. Sometimes it was best to focus on a handful of tasks that one does well, and not try to be a "catch-all" generalist. Around them was a scene that was a little grim, where the town hall, which housed all the administrative functions of the village, police, firefighting, and, of course, the town council meetings, with half its roof being torn off and the insides being all grimey, with various levels of damage to the walls. Hopefully the town council chamber was just the right size to install a collapsible kolto tank... most of the dwellings that still remained were used to house other refugees and whatnot.

"Just go install the kolto tank inside the town council chamber, and then you may distribute the medical supplies while the kolto is being filled"

 

[Jsc]

Corsica nodded to [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] and silently hoped that the tank came with an instruction manual.

"On it."

She took the sled to the main building and parked it outside. Wandering in, she found the perfect place. Rallying a few helpers, Cinto came back out and moved the tank inside the building. Luckily the tank required very little assistance. Within ten minutes it was up and running to spec. Just don't ask Corsica which button turned it on. Ha.

"Nice. Thanks boys." She nodded to her assistants.

Cinto found it interesting that the relief effort for the village was being done on-site. She would have figured an effort like this would involve more vehicles or buses. Running back and forth between the big cities and their hospitals. Alas, poor Corsica knew little about this place or it's population centers. However she did take note of their lack of many modern technologies. Many parts of this village looked to be running twenty to thirty years behind.

Watching the others return to their duties reminded Corsica that she still had many things to do. So she exited the main building and grabbed a bag of medical supplies from the sled. Taking the opportunity to tour the village and make a mental note of who needed what. She'd lost track of the camp leader too. So maybe she'd talk to them later.

"I wonder if this village was destroyed as collateral damage to another attack or rather, as a racial violence against it's citizens? There are a lot of Sullustians around. Huh."

Like it's cities, Corisca knew little of the local conflict. So she was left only to wonder as to why these people had suffered so badly. Especially since they already had so little.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"There are other relief camps for other regions on this planet"

Sullustans were by far the most numerous non-Human race present on this planet, and, by extension, the village, but there were also Trandoshans, Selonians and even an Esh-Kha or two in the village. As for whether the village was attacked as collateral damage for something else or deliberately, she would have to say that it was more likely to be collateral damage for attempts to hit the Silvers' artillery positions when they attacked the Pius Dea's kilometer-high walker. One thing was for sure about [member="Corsica Cinto"]: she knew that relief needed to take into account the local context for proper delivery. Now that the kolto tank was in place, the camp leader fetched the patient that needed it most and thus Jessica was using telekinesis to make the patient levitate and place it inside the now-functional tank. However, she also realized that most of the injuries were broken bones or burns and therefore bandages and dressings were used abundantly over there. And yet she had to make a choice as to which patients to handle: this place sure didn't feel like Therapy Command ran it.

"I'm sure some of those patients would still need something to eat while they recover" the camp leader commented, while giving a list of the patients and their nutritional requirements.

 

[Jsc]

Corsica balked at the camp leaders list. She hadn't realized that the locals would make demands. Not only that but, was that a list of nutritional requirements? Wow. So either this guy was educated and prepared enough to know that sort of stuff or, maybe Sullustians were really picky eaters. Damn.

"Um. I'm sure Lady [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] would love to help you with that."

Corsica shrugged and pointed at Jess. Because she as heck wasn't about to go grocery shopping.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"Sometimes helping those in need does, in fact, require the dirty legwork to be done. It might not sound very Jedi-like, but paperwork is part of the life of Jedi on the field, especially when one is working in close cooperation with the armed forces"

Paige was the other paddy I used to have that actually mentioned bureaucracy as a reason why some Jedi could be wanting no part in any role in the military chain of command, Jessica thought, while examining the list of nutritional requirements; its structure can tell something about who compiled it and why this list was compiled. If that list of nutritional requirements the camp leader handed [member="Corsica Cinto"] made her balk, it's because the list included specific requirements for individual patients, be it Sullustan or not, even though Esh-Khas or Selonians, by and large, had similar nutritional requirements if they didn't have food-based allergies. Speaking fo allergies, some Sullustans were allergic to nuts, others were allergic to seafood, and others still were allergic to lactose which, to someone that suffered broken bones, required significant adjustments. The Trandoshans, on the other hand, preferred meat. So she did, in fact, forward headquarters with a request for supplies based on the nutritional requirements list; until those supplies arrive, they will have to nurse patients back to health.

"Let's see: whenever those supplies arrive, some patients will be airlifted from this place, too. However, the strip mall's parking lot is the only place large enough for a medical shuttle left in this village"

 

[Jsc]

Corsica pursed her lips and nodded to [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] . Quickly noticing that there was nothing religious or ritualistic about anything they had done since arriving. Medical relief. Heavy lifting. Paperwork and event coordination. None of it had anything to do with space magic. Heck, this was typical problem-solving stuff. Like being an intergalactic secretary. It didn't feel divine. It feel like a 9-to-5.

"Should we find another spot then or just go take a look at the strip mall?"

Actually, Cinto sort of liked the idea of being a more mundane Jedi. It felt believable in a way. Grounded. Less lofty and haughty. More dirty and real. It felt like life. Hard, hard life. So her gears began a shift a bit,

"Oh, and what's our time table? Do the Silvers plan on staying on Terrijo long?"

After all. One planet could sustain a single Jedi for a lifetime of problem solving. Fixing this, fixing that. However, Corsica doubted that most Jedi put down roots in any one place for long. Now that she had seen a few Jedi'ish activities, she began to wonder when it became appropriate to leave these people behind to fix their own problems? Or, would the Order always be a crutch to them. A new government and a new way of living. Giving them free stuff for life. Free food, free medicine, free reeducation, and free miracles for everybody. It seemed... Weakening, somehow? Uneven. Unsustainable.

Or, worse maybe. It felt like being conquered.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"You seem much more drawn to non-combat functions of Jedi than to security functions. For the time being, just try to get the patients needing evacuation to the strip mall"

For some reason Corsica may have been living a life more akin to the Service Corps than lives people typically associated to Jedi-hood. But better show the paddies a tamer, more secular version of life as a Jedi - relying too much on adrenaline rushes can, in fact, lead someone to the dark side, Jessica thought, while [member="Corsica Cinto"] was made to believe that not everything has to do with space magic in a Jedi's life - or a Sith's for that matter. That was perhaps the more important thing she feels prospective Jedi often fail to understand: they all seem to want to see combat, to either fight the most formidable evil-doing opponents they could, or to do so as often as possible. That's where a caricatural picture of a Jedi as a Force-using bounty hunter came from, even though few Jedi actually looked to bounty hunting. Jessica was otherwise given an ETA for medvac at about 15 minutes, so knowing who needed medvac and who could be treated on-site was key, and she would only be able to heal one patient before the supplies could arrive, and the patient would be airlifted.

"The Jedi's role here is more important in the early stages of reconstruction, and then gradually fades as reconstruction progresses"

 

[Jsc]

Corsica nodded as [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] answered her questions. Heh. So many questions. Corsica really did know nothing. Funny.

"Right! I'll grab the sled and see who we can get."

The camp leader interrupted her,

"We already have a list of people. Here. I'll show you the first fellow who needs transport to the evac point."

Corsica nodded and moved to leave the compound. Giving a nod to Jess as she passed. She could get people to the strip mall. No problem. I guess that was a part of being "adaptable". Just like Jess had said. These people needed help and it was up to them to see it done. Space magic or not. Divine or dull. They'd get the job done.


.....


Evening came on quickly that day.

Red dusty hues rising in the sky. Corsica dusted her brow and gave a long heavy sigh. Slipping down into a leather seat. Waiting and watching against the setting sun. The last medivac lifting off and finally leaving the camp. Yes. It had been a busy day.

Cinto sat in a folding chair near a campfire of rescue volunteers. Soup hanging in a pot over the fire and coffee cups held tightly in all hands. The Sullustians nodding and talking about their day. Letting their hope for tomorrow rise into the ever-shifting amber hued sky. Corsica turned to Jess and gave a sip to her caf,

"Long day huh." She turned to watch the camp's slowing clamor, "...So. How long have you been doing this Jess? Being a Jedi Commander, I mean?"

The day was fading now. They had time to talk.

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

While [member="Corsica Cinto"] took care of the medvac portion, Jessica instead used the daytime to heal what patients she could using the Force. As night was falling, she must have realized that many of the more severe cases were gone and those that remained were healable rather easily by the use of Force-healing. And yet, among civilians, people asked different things to her, more often about the Force than about significant events in her combat record. Sure, she could talk about her greatest successes in command, the Rift, Ord Radama, Kashyyyk, Barataria, in chronological order, but she'd rather not talk about these events until asked about those. On the other hand, nearly all the non-Sullustans were gone from the village along with medvac and, with them, any nutritional requirement that belonged to non-Sullustans. Unless... unless, perhaps, Corsica or I could eat Trandoshan meat-based meals! Jessica thought, while still being somewhat wary of eating things Selonians or Esh-Khas ate. But, if what she knew about Varindar and what she cooked for Hotelier Squadron was correct, Trandoshan meals are still edible by humans.

"You have to realize that most Jedi operate independently from the military, since Jedi tended to acknowledge more readily that command-level skill is uncommon than Sith did. I spent about five years as a padawan and about as long as a master"

 

[Jsc]

Corsica nodded to [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] as she mentioned being a Padawan. It was funny really. Thinking of Jess as a learner. I mean, here she was leading a recovery effort on a foreign planet for one of the galaxies largest factions. That made her... Mm. Oh. About 1-in-10-trillion rare. Rarer than a rock star. Rarer than any planet's greatest celebrity. Rarer than even all the gods in the story books that Corsica remembered as a kid. A pantheon of rarity, really. Less than even all the stars in the sky.

Cinto thought about the rarity of the Jedi a lot. How being force sensitive made her special. Gave her responsibility. Thrust her into a world she knew she wasn't ready for. Encroached about on all sides by every demon and little fear the universe had to offer. Tempted daily. Sinning often. And yet... She was still herself. Just a poor blond girl from the snowy mountains. A human. In every way. Trying her best to figure out what to do with herself. What to do with her gifts.

"Do you ever doubt yourself Jess?"

She said it hesitantly. As if there was far too much truth in those words to bear. And yet. She had to know. How heavy is the galaxy sometimes upon the shoulders of kings?

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

"True, I have been a padawan at some point. But I doubted myself much more when I was a padawan, especially early in my padawan stages, than I am now. Especially when one discovers its Force-sensitivity in its mid-thirties because the person who administered the Force-sensitivity test as a child was negligent. Now I can always talk about why Force-sensitivity detection can sometimes fail if you want" she told [member="Corsica Cinto"] while realizing that Force-usage doesn't make someone intrinsically better.

Especially the ubiquitous midi-chlorian counters, which, despite its flaws due to Poissonian noise (i.e. the uncertainty is equal to the square root of the measurement), is still the most common method since it can be administered at any time, anywhere, without the need for Force-sensitivity on the administrator's part, provided one had a blood sample. And that's not even compouding the issue of Force-nexi. Other methods require Force-users to carry out and they are still flawed, but their flaws have nothing in common with Poissonian noise. But false positives and false negatives are notions that people outside STEM backgrounds fail to properly understand, and typically, in a Force-sensitivity context, the band where false positives and/or negatives can occur is within [5270, 5730] so there's a three-sigma, or three-standard-deviation, chance that a false positive (a person is tested Force-sensitive but actually isn't) would not occur if the measurement lies outside of this range, and the same holds for false-negatives, such as Jessica has been (a person is tested as a NFU but actually is Force-sensitive).

 

[Jsc]

Corsica laughed. [member="Jessica Med-Beq"] could be such an odd duck at times. Talking like a robot and thinking like a calculator. Funny. Cinto couldn't help but think sometimes that Jess was really an HRD in disguise. Probably.

"Ya know Jess. For a Jedi Master, you sure can be a strange human sometimes. Hehe."

Corsica mused and giggled as she said that. Figuring now that Jess had taught her so much that she owed her something. Perhaps Corsica would play matchmaker for Jessica? Ah, yes. Now there's a fun idea. Perhaps Cinto could find Jess a man. Hook her up. Get her laid. Hehe.

Then maybe she'd stop thinking like a robot and more like a woman. Maybe. ...Oh dear. Now that thought made poor Corsica remember her own loneliness. It had been years since Ben died and she had yet to find a new companion all her own too. She couldn't mourn him forever.

"Well..." Corsica nodded to her caf, "I suppose we can all be a bit strange at times. Mm."

She touched the lightsaber at her belt. Wondering again if it was finally time to let him go too.