The Birth of Fire (Madeline)

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra smiled brightly, happily as Callisto escorted her back to Madeline with little clue as to what would be happening next. After all, it seemed innocent enough. It wasn't like she could actually read the HRD. Not that she had any idea that was what Callisto was.

The young clone looked ahead, sensing something was amiss. Her brow furrowed appearing confused at first. She glanced to the other redhead as terror started to sink into her chest. But it wasn't her terror, now was it? Confusion spread across her features as Phaedra stopped in her tracks. Taking another step further was not something she wanted to do. If anything quite the opposite, Phae wanted to turn and run. She didn't understand. "I ..." The woman started but stopped, not sure how to articulate what she felt it hardly made sense. Surely this is nerves? There's nothing to be afraid of here. It's just a hallway. Trying to convince herself to go forward. Perhaps this will pass... I really hope so. Worry soon replaced her confusion as she nervously took a step forward, quickly closing the distance between herself and Callisto.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


There was so much fear, along with raw, impotent anger emanating from the human who was being dragged along by his captors. Everything about him, from his stance, to his unkempt, dishevelled look and glazed eyes showed him as a most repulsive specimen. Well, there was obviously also the fact that he was a manling. His appearance was so strongly at odds with the precise refinement that Phaedra had experienced so far. A few more steps and then he would be in the same corridor and she would be able to see him, restrained by the droids, which made him grunt.


Fortunately for little Phaedra, she had a mechanical guardian and so Callisto quickly and gently took the girl's hand, wrapping strangely gentle arms around her. "Take him away," she commanded the droids, seemingly sounding oh so protective. "Phaedra, dear, what's wrong? Are you alright?" Totally sounding extremely concerned about the tiny redhead.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

The pain was growing worse in her mind as more emotions began to collide with her untrained mind. Fear, anger, pain all screaming at her, seeping into the very fiber of her soul. As they rounded the corner in the hallway, Phaedra finally came face to face with the source of her pain. Both of her tiny hands flew to her head, clutching at it as her pain grew even worse. She finally screamed out hurting far too much.

"I don't know!" She cried as she felt Callisto wrap her arms around her, and attempt to guide her further away from the poor unfortunate soul. "No! I'm not!" That much she had figured out before a wave of rage washed over her as the man struggled to free himself. Undoubted that he was feeling the same feelings that he was emitting from Phaedra, a feedback loop of sorts.

Without any conscious thought, Phaedra lashed out with the one power she had. She might have been unaware that she had the Force, but she was about to learn the hard way. A powerful invisible wave rose quickly and slammed into the human. The sheer power bone crushing alone without any additional help.

Screams from the man echoed through the hall, that pain riding into Phaedra's mind. And there she lashed out again, this time reaching for his mind. Something akin to a bomb went off within his mind, a slight whimper was the last noise the man made as blood poured from his nose. His very last breath, soon to come.

Feeling that last bit of pain, Phaedra struggled against Callisto to pull away. Her only reaction to want to escape the agony she'd thus far suffered, in addition to feeling him slip away, it was more than she knew how to handle as she bolted down the hall away from the others. Though, in this case she had no idea where she was going, just anywhere but that particular hallway was where she wanted to be.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


Everything had gone marvellously. To confront Phaedra with the perversion that was organic life had been the goal. It had caused her pain and fright. However, she had also touched the Force and unleashed her power upon the insignificant organic. This would open the path for her to learn how to use her gifts and serve Archangel.


Archangel had a plan for her, a destiny. She just did not know it yet. Callisto paid the dead organic no further mind. She registered his last breath and saw the blood pour out of his nose onto the pristine floor, but he was irrelevant. Just like most of his kind. So instead she headed after the tiny redhead. It was to be expected that Phaedra would be terrified and want to be away after such a horrible event.


A quick, purely electronic transmission was sent to Madeline, informing her that things had gone as planned. "Phaedra, dear, wait. I am sorry. I shall keep you safe. I'm your friend, you know I'd never hurt you." All lies, but spoken in such a soothing tone and with such concern for the redhead. "Let's sit down and talk." It did not take the droid long to catch up with the girl.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Madeline in her lab, had gotten the message and sat there smiling quite brightly. All was going according to plan so far. Phaedra had reacted just as they had expected and then took it a step further by instinctively using her force powers without even the slightest knowledge that she had them to begin with.

Phaedra hadn't made it that far along, but far enough away from the man's death to not be as badly affected by his passing. She was panting hard, desperate for air as she tried to make some sense of what had happened. No part of it made sense to her. Hearing Callisto she stopped and turned back, tears running down her cheeks. "What happened? That ... that wasn't normal. Not natural! What am I? Normal humans don't do that. Do what I did. They ... they .... just .... don't."

She wasn't sitting down just yet, and seemed far too ready to bolt. She'd had quite the fright and emotions were still running high in her mind as she worked through the events, trying to absorb them for what they were. Trying to figure out how she managed such horrors.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


There was, of course, nowhere for the tiny redhead to run. For one, the entire facility was tightly monitored and stacked with droids, but she did not need to know that. Callisto approached the girl, taking slow steps at a time. Given how skittish, confused and terrified as Phaedra, bullrushing her would be a bad idea.


"Phaedra, you did nothing wrong. You were protecting yourself. No one blames you. I understand this is terrifying for you...but we can help you. I believe this is...a special power of you have. But it is completely natural," she said soothingly, placing a very gentle hand on Phaedra's shoulder. "Madeline will be here in a moment."

 

[Madeline Kahoshi]

"Two powers actually." Madeline said quietly as she came up behind Phaedra, but kept her distance. Phaedra seemed just a little too frightened, too upset to approach further. "You're safe now, Phaedra, I promise. We're not here to harm you, only help you. And Callisto is correct. You were only protecting yourself. We understand this. There is no punishment for self-defense."

Madeline let all of that sink in for a moment before she spoke again. "Now, why don't you come with us, to my office." Office, sounded far better than lab, especially for the young clone. Or so Madeline imagined it would be a much better term. "And we can explain these powers to you, help you to understand. Is that alright with you?" Not that Phaedra really had much option, but she didn't need to know that.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Wide fearful eyes locked with Callisto, and she managed a small nod. Her tiny hands were trembling slightly from the entire experience. "I .... Are you ... sure? Natural? Right." Not that she sounded like she actually believed that. "But .... he's dead. How is that okay?" She finally managed.

Her attention had been so focused on Callisto, that she missed Madeline's approach. At the doctor's words, she jumped spinning on her heels and took a couple quick steps back towards Callisto. "Two? I don't understand. These powers?"

Reaching up, she was quick to brush away her tears. Determined not to cry anymore. After all they both had said it was okay. Phaedra sure as hell didn't feel it was okay, but they both had said it. Maybe it is okay, maybe I need to move on. "But he's dead. I ... I felt him die. How can you feel someone die?"

She bit at her lip for a moment pondering what Madeline had asked her. "I ... I don't know. I just ... I don't know." She finally said sadly, uncertain if she wanted to stay or go. After all she was already far enough away from the scene of the death to be alright. But a part of her wanted to stay put.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


"You felt it because you're special, dear. Very special. I know this is frightening to hear, let alone to experience, but we will help you," Callisto said gently. A strong yet gentle hand took ahold of Phaedra's. "You're not ok, not now, but we only want to help you. Come with us, I'll make you a cup of tea, and Madeline will explain everything to you," she added, reaching out to wipe some of the tears of Phaedra's cheeks.

 

[Madeline Kahoshi]

Madeline smiled softly, "It is okay, dear. It's understandable what happened. Trust us, it's okay." The first steps into a great big world for Phaedra and it had gone so well. "He hurt you. It's only natural to want to make the pain go away, and you did that." She said as she stepped a little closer.

"Now, as Callisto said you are not okay. But you will be, I promise. So, come with us, have some tea and relax. I'm sure this conversation would be a little easier if you don't have to be on your feet."

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra's brow furrowed as she glanced between the two women. She jumped slightly, startled by Callisto taking her hand, but soon enough she settled down. She tightly squeezed her fellow redhead's hand as she stood there. "Okay." She finally said, nodding. "I'll come with you both." She sighed, her eyes on the ground. "I want to understand, to know what is happening."

She reached up with her free hand, brushing away the last of her tears. "I guess, let's go."

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


"Ok, dear. Come with me," Callisto said softly. She gently held onto Phaedra's tiny hand and led her back down the corridor. Her grip was light, but firm enough to make the point. By the time the two ladies came down the hall droids had already removed the corpse of the man Phaedra had killed earlier. Even in death he would be useful because they could feed him to the Reavers.


Eventually Phaedra would be confronted with those as well. Breaking their animalistic minds and bending them to her will would be a good exercise. However, all in good time. For now she needed to calm down and understand her gifts so that she could embrace her destiny. Soon they were in the hospital room, and Callisto gently picked Phaedra up, settling her down on the bed. Then the droid walked over to the kettle and switched it on, heating the water and, once it was hot enough, making a cup of Atrisian green tea for Phaedra.

 

[Madeline Kahoshi]

Madeline followed along side the other two and soon enough they were in the hospital room and Phaedra had been sat down on the bed and Callisto grabbed the tea. As for the former Empress, she pulled a stool over and took a seat in from of the tiny redhead, who's legs dangled almost comically above the floor.

"Phaedra dear, now I said there were two powers you have. One is natural Empathy. It's quite the gift that will allow you to feel others' emotions as your own. This of course can be a curse as well of course. It's how you felt the man's pain and his death. It also means that you can bleed your emotions onto others as well, if you are not careful." Madeline sighed softly, wondering how much of this would make sense and how much wouldn't. "You will have to learn to control it and I'm sure in time you'll be able to. Also, there are some beings that you'll never get a read on their emotions for the defenses they have within their minds. It's complicated but true."

Now it was on to the second part. "As for the other power you have, that is the Force you used in the hallway, to throw the man against the wall. Purely instinctual use of it, but nonetheless you did it. As for what the Force is, I'm sure you've seen a little about it on the holonet. But it is a mystical energy field that some beings have access to, it is a tool that will help you survive in this great big galaxy my dear girl." She said with a smile.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra followed along and sat quickly on the bed without protest. She tried to smile faintly as Callisto handed her the tea, taking a quick sip. Her attention then turned to Madeline as the woman started to explain these powers she had.

"Empathy did that?" It hardly seemed possible to her but she couldn't deny that it had happened

Then the next bombshell to drop on the poor girl. "The ... Force? So I'm like those Jedi in the holovids? This is so strange. I don't .... I uh ..." She seemed a bit at a loss as she tried to absorb the information.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


"You have the potential to manifest powers like those of the Jedi. But we shall make sure you'll stay free of their clutches, dear," Callisto said softly. Given the fact that the holonet was thoughtfully censored by Archangel, the holovids Phaedra had seen would not have portrayed Jedi in a flattering light. They would have focused on them stealing babies from their families and launching self-righteous crusades.


She opened an internal channel to send a transmission to Madeline. It is only a matter of time before she perceives our nonorganic nature. At the latest when she sees Moira again and notices the lack of emotion in her. To a degree she would feel something inside Madeline and Callisto since they were enteched models and thus in possession of an organic essence.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

"They seem so evil. So horrible." She said with a bit of a tremor in her voice. The girl clearly was concerned with this. "Can you really protect me from the? Keep them from taking me? Their reach seems to go to the ends of the galaxy. How do you know they won't come here for me?" Her eyes darted back and forth between the droids.

At that she sighed heavily. Setting the cup of tea aside as she drew her knees up to her chest and rested her head against her knees. This whole thing, she wasn't sure what to think about, not at all. It was so strange, terrifying and yet a part of it felt good. Phaedra had power, a gift really. Now perhaps she'd realize her potential and ability to help put the Jedi and Sith in their rightful places.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Madeline Kahoshi]

Madeline rose from her seat and stepped forward slowly. Reaching out, she gently brushed a stray lock of hair from the tiny redhead's face. "They are evil monsters, taking little infants from their mothers and enslaving them for a lifetime." The former Empress sighed heavily. "But I have no doubts that we can keep you from them. Not only that but we've made arrangements with a rogue individual to help train you so that you may better protect yourself. Furthermore, you'll soon start self defense training to help strengthen your body, to help give you the tools you need to defend yourself from any threat that may come your way. Have no fear little one, you'll never be far from us. We're always going to keep you safe."

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]

"This facility is very well-protected and unknown to most in the galaxy. It's a haven to protect our work from the Jedi and intolerant fanatics like them. Don't worry, dear. We are well-equipped to protect you from them, and as you master your gifts, you will no longer need protection," Callisto said sweetly.


A transmission channel was opened to Madeline. Do we intend to tell her of our own accord that we are machines or are we waiting for her empathy to catch on? Both options obviously had their pros and cons. Darth Shadow had been recruited to train Phaedra, but it was likely that he would also subtly try to influence her. At the latest, it was probably for the best that she knew the truth before starting training with the manipulative Sith.

 

[Madeline Kahoshi]

Madeline glanced knowingly to Callisto as she received the transmission. I believe it would be best if we reveal it to her. Phaedra discovering such on her own, could have devastating consequences. We need her to trust us completely, to have faith in our cause. She cannot be allowed to believe anything but what we need her to. We will have to find the right way to reveal this. Though we have a little time, while her gifts are uncontrolled, and untrained. With us both being enteched models, that will give her some reading of emotions, enough to get by for a little while.

"Don't worry Phaedra, we will ensure that you are taken care of, protected just as Callisto said. Until a time that you can completely protect yourself. And even then, we will still be here to support and protect you." Madeline said as she gently stroked Phaedra's hair, trying to keep the human calm and soothed, as well as feeling loved and safe.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra nodded with a heavy sigh. Shifting slightly, she found herself leaning against Madeline, seeking what comfort she could from being so near to her. It seemed she was getting better at trusting the doctor. Or at least in this moment, her need for comfort outweighed any fears she held of the woman.

"When will I start training then?" She asked nervously, "I don't want to be weak. I want to be able to protect myself from the Jedi. I don't want to be a slave to them." Though Phaedra had her doubts that she'd be able to truly keep herself completely safe from the monsters of the Republic. But one way or another, this was something she was going to have to face, and she knew it.

[member="Callisto Scarlett"]