Private The Vacuum

[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

Valery listened quietly and let out a soft sigh. His answer made her relieved that she hadn't just assumed anything and asked him because it was a lot more relatable to her. He didn't get angry because of selfish reasons, but because this place reminded him of home, and made him realize just how many people lost theirs.

He wanted that to stop.

"I... understand where your anger comes from, Cailen," Valery finally said after a moment.

"When I was younger, these things angered me too and pushed me to fight much harder than I should. I've almost lost myself completely before, and that's what I want to prevent from happening to you." She looked down and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder as they walked down the street.

"It's okay to feel these things when you see something terrible happen. It's human. But don't let those emotions control you. This time, we solved the problem and are able to move on, but it's a slippery slope down a much more dangerous path."

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

He nodded as his Master spoke, her words making perfect sense… until his eyes spotted a charred doll on the edge of the street. It sent a strong pang through his body, like someone had punched him in the stomach.

“It’s unfair,” Cailen spat. It was clear he wasn’t thinking about the bigger picture anymore. His emotions were spiking again.

His head and heart cried out the people, pained by what they faced. He wondered why the Jedi hadn’t come sooner. Weren’t they supposed to stop things like this? To keep people safe from ‘Eternal Empires’ and Mawite attacks and demons prowling the streets?

“How did this happen?” the Padawan demanded, his voice rising to an almost aggressive tone.

“How could this happen?”

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

"This is why I brought you with me, Cailen," Valery said calmly despite the spike in his emotions. She hadn't expected things to be this bad out here, but she hadn't brought him along to see the beautiful side of the Galaxy either. "You've already seen a lot at Tython, but evil finds its way to all corners of the Galaxy."

It was a harsh reality she wanted all of her Padawans to understand. During their training, she'd protect them and teach them whatever she could, but all of it was to prepare them for what the Galaxy was really like.

And it was certainly an unfair place to live in.

"This was able to happen because there aren't enough people to stop it," Valery then explained, her voice still calm. "The Jedi are not so numerous, and with several major powers all collapsing at once, it's impossible to be everywhere. The Maw attacked and killed millions in their path through the core worlds, the Empire turned a superweapon against us on Ilum, the Eternal Empire collapsed and allowed chaos to flourish and now, in the Outer Rim we have another group of Sith terrorizing planets."

She turned to him, her expression serious. "The wars have claimed a lot of lives, Cailen. The Alliance isn't as strong as it was, and for every threat we defeat, two more seem to pop up. It's an endless struggle that has kept the Galaxy in conflict for thousands of years now."

"Your role as a Jedi is not to stop all of it. Not because we don't want to, but simply because we can't. Even with thousands of Jedi, the Old Republic could not be everywhere, and we don't even have half of that anymore." She frowned and let out a soft sigh. "We can only trust in the Force to guide us, and respond to as much as we can. This is why I've often worked myself to my limits, and so many others do the same."

"You can make a difference, but it's important to understand what you're up against. What this Galaxy is like."

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

Cailen remained silent, nodding even though the words were missing their mark. Thousands of years of endless war, death, and destruction, no matter how many Jedi there were?

She made it seem almost… pointless.

‘No, that’s not true,’ the Padawan’s inner voice said. His conscience halted the borderline treasonous thoughts that were swirling inside his head. He hated them, but their bitter taste just wouldn’t fade away.

He looked to Valery, ending the silence that had fallen between them with an honest inquiry.

“Why do we fight so hard if… if nothing ever gets better?”

He was careful not to sound too harsh in his tone, but he needed an explanation. What was the point? Obviously, evil would overcome the galaxy of the Jedi turned their backs on the people. But why fight so hard, train so much, and lose so many lives just for things to stay the same way they’ve been for millennia.

It seemed… well, pointless.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

"Things do get better," she told him, not because she wanted to give him hope now that she felt it all slip away, but because it was actually true. "There has been a lot of war, but the Galaxy has known times of peace as well. That's ultimately what we fight for — to help each other and to make this Galaxy the best it can be."

"But the reality is also that we can't be everywhere to help everybody. There are countless worlds out there and trillions of people. If it's not the Sith or other big galactic threats, then there are still local problems too for some planets. Within factions like the Alliance, the former Silver Jedi, the Rimward, and many more, we try to create a good, fair way of living for people. It'll never be perfect, but there is a great effort to live free and in peace."

"An effort that we can't sustain across the entire Galaxy, no matter how much we want to." She let out another soft sigh and stopped for a moment again, so she could look at her Padawan.

"I wish it was different too, but if we accept the way this Galaxy is, we have a better way to prioritize and help as many people as we can. Even if we only have it in ourselves to better the future of a handful of people, isn't that still worth fighting for?"

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

“I-“ Cailen started, but the words he wanted to say felt wrong.

Nothing made sense. This morning, he felt like their cause was noble, that they were making a real difference. Now…

“The Light Side will never truly win… will it?” the boy asked grimly. The words tasted like venom rolling off his tongue, but he couldn’t help but feel this way.

Everything they fought for, fought against, it all seemed futile. Vain. Sooner or later, the Light would grow too weak or too tired to stand up for what’s right. What happens then?

Valery’s fiery eyes bore holes in him, even though she held no ill feelings toward him. He knew she’d be disappointed in this sudden change of heart, and that alone warded him from speaking true about what he felt.

He breathed in sharply, wincing as the adrenaline rush passed and the pain in his wounded arm made itself known.

“M-Master,” Cailen stammered, “my arm…” he held it forward for her to see. No matter what happened, or how he felt about the Jedi’s place in the cosmic sea of good versus evil, Master Noble was still like a second mom to him.

She’d make all of this go away, both in his arm and in his heart.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

"I believe that we still can, as long as we also recognize that even in peace, people can still turn against each other. For thousands of years now, the Galaxy has known both long times of peace and darker times. The latter was always the result of those able to protect others failing to do what they had to do." From corruption to wrong assumptions and bad policies — Valery had sworn to herself that she'd lead the Jedi to be better.

But she knew it would be no easy task.

Valery then stopped to turn to Cailen, as he showed his arm, as well as his pain. A worried, motherly look appeared on her face, and she'd gently reach out to take a closer look. "It'll be okay, we're almost there." She smiled and gently squeezed his shoulder before they continued the path to the hospital.

Soon enough, the tall building appeared in front of them, at the end of a long, ruined street. The hospital had clearly been hit in the attack as well. but it was still standing stronger than most other buildings.

"Alright, let's enter but be careful, okay? I'd rather not get ambushed again."

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

He smiled at Valery’s reassurance, pushing himself forward despite the burning in his arm.

Cailen kept to himself as they neared the hospital, his thoughts steeped with a mix of curiosity and guilt. All these questions seemed to come from nowhere, suddenly bubbling up from an uncomfortable place. They were begging to be asked, but hearing them aloud felt wrong.

When they finally made it to the hospital, Cailen shoved his thoughts to the side. He had to be focused, alert, ready. If there were people inside, they would be relying on him and his Master to save them.

If there weren’t… he’d need to be prepared for a fight.

“Okay,” Cailen replied, holding his saber firmly with his left hand. It felt a bit unnatural passing the weapon to his non-dominant hand, but he didn’t want to risk further damage to his muscles by swinging it with his injured arm.

Following after Valery, the Padawan stepped into the lobby of the building. The dust and char were thick in the air, giving the entire floor a dense, claustrophobic atmosphere. He didn’t like it.

“Master,” Cailen said, nodding to the nearby stairwell.

“How far up could they be?”

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

"They're likely hiding somewhere safe. A basement, maybe?" It made sense, considering that much of the surface had been completely ravaged in the attack. If there were any survivors, they'd most likely be hiding underground, or perhaps in a heavily shielded room somewhere. The latter was less likely in a hospital, so she glanced around, looking for a stairwell that could take them down.

"Hmm, this way."

Slowly and carefully, Valery began to lead the way. Her senses alerted her to life within the walls of the hospital, but it was faint and all the death and destruction had created a void that made it difficult to tap into the Force. Someone was out there, but she couldn't tell who, or how many.

Soon enough, the two Jedi reached the stairwell, and while covered in small pieces of debris, it wasn't compromised. So without wasting any time, Valery began walking down.

"I sense a presence down there, perhaps several," she whispered, and right as they passed through the doors at the bottom floor, her senses were confirmed. Up ahead, a kid sat alone with his back against the wall, knees pulled up against his chest. He was crying, and no matter how close they got, the kid did not look up at them.

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

Cailen swallowed hard when he considered the basement. If something as awful as the demons they faced outside were brave enough to prowl in broad daylight, he couldn’t fathom what lurked beneath the ruined hospital.

If only he could strengthen his resolve with the Force. He looked to Valery with concern, but kept quiet otherwise. Wherever she went, he’d follow, knowing she wouldn’t let anything happen to him.

The stinging pain in his arm was quick to cast doubt over that sentiment, but Cailen reminded himself of their previous conversation; Even standing beside one another, a Jedi can’t be everywhere at once.

He stepped carefully over the rubble and broken glass, his light-footed gait refined by years spent sneaking by bullies on Anaxes coming in handy once again.

"I sense a presence down there, perhaps several.”

That elicited another gulp. Cailen could feel… something. But it was faint, indiscernible from the vague junction of muted Force echoes he felt throughout the building. Some were dark, others hopeful, but most of them felt like distant pains from the past. A remnant of the deaths that followed the attack.

Then, he heard what sounded like crying.

In the darkness, Cailen’s eyes struggled to identity its source. He could just make out what looked to be a kid, not much younger than him, curled against the far wall. His eyes flashed from Valery then back to the child.

“Hello?” Cailen said gently, his tone kind and endearing. He tried to channel the same softness that Valery used when she comforted him.

“A-are you hurt?”

He took a step closer, slowly raising an open hand toward the kid.

“My name’s Cailen, and this is Master Noble. W-we’re here to help.”

The child didn’t move, crying still, despite Cailen’s advance. The Padawan inched closer, only a few meters away now. He looked to his Master, his face warped with uncertainty and worry.

“Where’s your parents? Are you alone?”

The presence in Force was growing, but whether it was Dark or Light, Cailen couldn’t tell. He reached for the kid, his fingertips nearly touching the child’s sleeve.

“I-I promise I won’t hurt you,” he said.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

There was no response to Cailen's words.

The boy cried, sniffed, and kept his face hidden behind his knees. As a mother, this was almost unbearable to watch for Valery. To feel the pain, sadness, and especially the hopelessness of a young child was worse than any kind of physical pain. This is why Jedi committed their lives to protect others — to prevent people across the Galaxy from experiencing this kind of grief. But there was more to what she felt from the young boy.

"Cailen..." Valery said softly as he slowly inched closer and reached out.

"I-I promise I won't hurt you,"​

Finally, the boy abruptly looked up, his bloodshot eyes staring intensely into Cailen as if they were looking for a way directly into his soul. His hand reached out, taking a firm grip on Cailen's wrist to pull him just an inch or two closer.

"But they will hurt you."

"AHHHHhhhhh!"

The scream echoed through the empty hospital from further down below, drawing away the Jedi's attention for just a second. The boy immediately got up and ran away, into the unlit hallways that soon shrouded his body in darkness. A wave of darker emotions then struck the two Jedi and the screams they heard were all suddenly silenced.

"Something is very wrong here," Valery said with shivers going down her spine. "Cailen, are you alright?"

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

Cailen gasped sharply, instinctively trying to wrench himself free, but the piercing void behind the strange child’s eyes froze the Padawan.

And then came the screams.

They seemed to assault his ears from everywhere and nowhere, all at once. The boy let go, freeing Cailen to clasp his hands over his ears. He stumbled back and bumped into Valery.

“Master?!” he yelled over the deafening noise, spinning to face her. He wore an expression of pure terror, and even more worrying was the thin streak of blood that began to trickle from his nose.

Cailen stayed as close to Valery as he could, short of jumping into her arms, holding his hands over his ears until the screams stopped. They disappeared as abruptly as they came, leaving both Padawan and Master confused and disarrayed.

"Something is very wrong here," Valery said with shivers going down her spine. "Cailen, are you alright?"

“I- I-“ he stammered, trying to get his bearings. He wiped the blood away with his sleeve, hoping Valery hadn’t noticed.

It had happened before, on the few rare occasions that he’d been exposed to a massive concentration of Dark Side energy. Despite all the trouble he’d had since Tython, Cailen knew exactly what it felt like to brush against evil. He felt it then, when the Maw threatened to rend the Jedi world apart, and he felt it now.

“I’m okay,” he finally said. His eyes cut to the darkness beyond, his inner curiosity contending with the primal fear of what evils awaited them. The ones that wanted to hurt them.

“That was- he-” Cailen stuttered, “Master… I don’t think that was a… a person.”

Even if the boy was human, Cailen had serious doubts about their ability to bring him back from whatever darkness had afflicted him. He didn’t know what to say, much less do. The Padawan just stared, unblinkingly, down the corridor.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

Protectively, Valery brought her arms around Cailen when he bumped into her, hoping that she could shield him from whatever was happening around them. Throughout her life, and especially as a Jedi Shadow, she had seen what the Dark Side could do. What it could create and how it affected the environment. But she had never seen anything like this before, and it was that uncertainty that made her far more protective of her Padawan.

"I don't think he was either, Cailen. I'm... not sure what's happening, so stay close." She looked down at him now and gently squeezed his shoulder. Even if this was scary and dangerous, they were Jedi — they couldn't back away now. There was still a chance that people down there needed their help.

So as much as instincts wanted her to turn around to keep her Padawan safe, she gently nudged Cailen forward and began to walk down the dark hallway. It soon transitioned into the first staircase, leading down towards the basement. But with every step, it still felt as if they were being watched.

The air felt colder, the room somehow looked even darker, and faint traces of smoke seemed to flow down the steps. The Dark Side was a constant pulse, beating against the edges of their minds, and it only got stronger as they disappeared into the depths of the hospital.

But finally, there was crying again.

This time it wasn't a boy, but it sounded like a young girl. She was further down the dimly lit hallway with flickering lights they had reached, but they couldn't see her yet.

"I sense.... I don't know. I'm not sure if she's real or... like the boy."

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

Whether it was the Force, a gut feeling, or simple common sense, every about the dark corridor and flickering lights told Cailen it was a bad idea to press on. He wanted to turn back and run all the to the Bastion, where he knew he’d be safe, but his Master was determined to press on.

At her encouraging nudge, Cailen stepped forward, slowly making his way deeper into the black. The air felt colder, almost sinister. It sent chills down his spine. When his eyes saw the void at the bottom of the stairs, his heart nearly skipped a beat. His extremities felt cold, weightless, like when you peer over the edge of something way too high up. He hesitated to step down, looking to Valery for guidance, hoping she’d think better than to descend any deeper into the hospital.

Her resolve was much stronger than his, though, and he realized that there was no going back.

Cailen’s boots tapped gently on the stairs as he walked, one foot behind the next, to the basement level. Every creak and groan of the structure made the Padawan pause in his stead, waiting for someone - or something - to jump out.

After what seemed like an eternity to him, they finally found the basement landing. And, despairingly, the sound of another crying child. This time though, Cailen held tightly to his grit. He wasn’t going to let another Dark Side spirit catch him by his emotions again.

"I sense.... I don't know. I'm not sure if she's real or... like the boy."

“I can’t tell either,” Cailen said, his eyes scanning the darkness for the source of the wailing.

“I don’t like this, Master. It feels so… wrong…”

He didn’t know what to do, or why the spirits wanted to hurt them so badly. All he wanted to do was help those in need.

Did the Dark Side truly relish in the pain of the innocent that much? It made Cailen nauseous.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

"Stay behind me," Valery said as she slowly began to approach the source of the crying. Through the dimly lit hallway with flickering lights, the young girl sitting with her knees up against her chest could be seen all the way at the back. Long raven hair had fallen around her like a blanket, obscuring her face and features. But it was easy enough to tell that she was young.

When Valery got closer, the girl stopped crying and sniffed a few times instead, her body twitching and shaking a little. Valery stopped, raised a hand to signal Cailen to wait, and very slowly moved closer and closer until...

The girl's head snapped up, red eyes staring at the Jedi Master before the girl transformed into black smoke. It moved fast and swirled around Valery, consuming her in darkness while every single light in the hallway went out. After a second or two, they began to flicker again, and Cailen would find himself alone. Through the bond with his Master, he could tell that she was alive if he was able to focus on it.

But he couldn't feel it around him anymore.

"Are you afraid of the dark, Cailen?" A voice then called out to him from everywhere around him. It was as if the walls were speaking to him.

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

Cailen gasped sharply, trying to find Valery amidst the cloud of smoke that engulfed the room. He waved frantically, hoping his hands would feel her somewhere in the haze, but suddenly the lights cut out, plunging him into complete darkness. When they flickered back to life, Cailen’s eyes widened in terror.

Master Noble was gone.

“Master?” he called out, trying to ignore the gnawing pit he felt in his stomach. He couldn’t sense her anymore, and that sudden distance had triggered a primal fear deep inside him.

“Master Noble?! Where are you?!”

He wanted to stay calm, needed to, but the fear of being alone pulsed through his veins like ice water. Panic was beginning to come over him.

“Valery?!” he shouted. A sinister voice replied.

"Are you afraid of the dark, Cailen?"

The Padawan stopped dead in his tracks, unwilling - perhaps even unable - to take another step. Just like the screams, this voice seemed to come from everywhere all at once. Cailen shook his head, even a simple ‘no’ getting lodged in his throat.

“Speak!” the voice demanded, making the boy recoil.

“N-no!”

He closed his eyes tight. Somehow, self-inflicted darkness felt much safer.

Cailen pushed into the Force, gently, like a friendly visitor easing into a hospital room. His connection was slowly returning to normal every day, but it was still fickle. He taken to treating it like a wounded animal. Approach slowly, calmly, and it will let you touch it.

<“Master…? I- I know you’re out there, somewhere… can you hear me?”>

He wasn’t sure if he was strong enough to speak to her telepathically, but he tried to push the words through to her nevertheless. If she could hear him, he knew she’d respond.

But in case she couldn’t, he took a brave step toward the next junction in the hallway. Cautiously, Cailen moved forward, waiting to hear his Master or the sinister voice… whichever came first.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

Cailen's telepathic call to Valery remained unanswered, and even though he could feel her presence in the Force, she felt so far away. The darkness, however, surrounded him and clouded his senses. He was in the middle of a storm that followed every step he took, and stared straight into his soul. His memories, his emotions, and his deepest fears — whatever was staring at him tried to unravel it all.

"You will be afraid."

The smoke that had been flowing through the hallway started to converge somewhere up ahead. It grew larger and what seemed like an abstract blob of darkness started to take shape. With each inch it grew, it felt as if it looked deeper inside the Padawan, and what formed would ultimately be a manifestation of his greatest fears.

The Smoke Demon stared him down.

"You shouldn't have come here, Cailen."

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

The formless cloud began to bubble and amalgamate into a new form. A recognizable form. A heartbreakingly familiar form.

Cailen knew it wasn’t real, but the telepathic voice that seeped into his mind was visceral. He could feel the spirit prodding around his memories, like tendrils tapping into his deepest thoughts and feelings. His hopes and fears, dreams and nightmares, were all at risk.

“You shouldn’t have come here, Cailen,” it taunted as a face took shape among the plumes, twisting grotesquely as it writhed into place.

“You shouldn’t have come here.”

Cailen stood breathlessly as the smoke demon completed its contortion into a visage of Master Tarus Undara, warping even its sinister voice to match the fallen Jedi’s tone as it was in Cailen’s memory.

“You’re not real,” the boy spat, looking directly into the demon’s eyes. They looked like Undara’s, but were wrenchingly devoid of the spark Cailen knew should be there.

“Bold. Assertive. I like it,” the spirit said as it drew closer.

“You’ve come a long way from the spineless little boy I took from Anaxes.”

Cailen swallowed hard, but he held his ground. He took a deep breath and gathered his nerve.

“You are not my Master.”

“Who would want to be? You’re useless, Cailen Corso. Dead weight. Unwanted baggage.”

The demon floated closer, silently gliding through the hall. It’s face remained unmoved as it ‘spoke,’ seeding its toxic words into Cailen’s mind. He wanted it to stop, knew the words were lies, but-

“Nobody wants you, Cailen. Your parents gave you away to the Jedi. You stood there like a wastrel as your Master was slain. Your first love, she used you like a tool, then slipped away when you needed her most.”

A tear rolled down Cailen’s cheek, but the rest of his flesh was unmoved. Did they really not want him? Was he really just the stray dog that was only cared for out of pity?

Master Noble told him that he was a Jedi, and that he’d make a fine Knight. It didn’t feel like a lie. He knew it wasn’t. But what if…?

“You’re- no, you’re not-“

“Close your eyes, Cailen. Let us in. Breathe in deeply. Become one with those who want you. Lend us your being.”

His eyelids fluttered as the smoke brushed around his skin, raising goosebumps on his arms. He expected its touch to sting the deep slashes in his bicep, but the demon was gentle, like soft puffs of air.

“They can’t see what makes you so special. But we do.“

“No…”

“It’s time, Cailen. Give up. Let go.”

Against all he knew, he slowly closed his eyes, and for the first time in a long while, Cailen felt incredibly weightless. Free. Deep inside, he wanted to call for Master Noble to save him. But the Sith ghost was right there the whole time, redirecting his efforts, sapping his will to survive.

He wanted it to end.

And then, there was the sharp, cold anguish of nothing.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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[Valery Noble]

Ravaath

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Cailen Corso

Cailen didn't need to call for help.

As soon as the Smoke Demon merged with his being, he'd feel a powerful surge in the Force, opposite in every way to the dark spirit of Tarus Undara. Valery had appeared seemingly out of nowhere, as she phased back into the hallway with a firestorm burning in her eyes. She knew what was happening — she had dealt with these entities before — and she wasn't going to allow it to consume her Padawan.

No matter what, she'd always be there for them.

"Cailen, focus on my voice! On my presence!" she called out, as she raised a hand and tapped into the endless stream of Force energy within her. A soft breath left her lips, and from a focal point in the palm of her hand, a bright wave of light expanded out into the hallway, targeting the Smoke demon and its powerful connection to the Dark Side of the Force. While the light beautifully illuminated the entire hallway, the dark side creature was left screaming in agony, as she stripped away its source of strength.

"You will not take my Padawan," Valery assured her with fiery determination.

But even as she fought to neutralize this entity, she knew that she'd need Cailen's help. The creature was trying to draw on his life energy, and only Cailen could resist that before it was too late.

He had to fight back.

"Come on, Cailen," Valery continued, while she blasted the creature with another wave of Light Side energy. "Fight back. Do not let it tempt you. That isn't Tarus."

 

[Cailen Corso]

Location: Ravaath | Soundtrack: Campus

​

Cailen could feel the tendrils violently snake their way out of his lungs, leaving his chest bitterly cold. He gasped for breath against the burning pain, inhaling as much clean air as he could to replace what the demon had stolen. The taste of it lingered in his throat.

"You will not take my Padawan," Valery assured her with fiery determination.

"Padawan..." he mumbled, trying to see through the blurred vision. "M-Master...?"

"Come on, Cailen," Valery continued, while she blasted the creature with another wave of Light Side energy. "Fight back. Do not let it tempt you. That isn't Tarus."

He pushed himself up, rolling over to his hands and knees. The room was spinning. His lungs screamed for more air. Cailen fought to his feet, trying to put eyes on Valery amidst the darkness and smoke. When he finally found her, he stumbled to her side, cowering from the demon and her rays of light. He'd never seen anything like that before, and for the first time, he was afraid of her.

Not in the way he was scared of the smoke monster or the demons in the street, but of the sudden display of unfettered power. It scared him to imagine what intense emotions she must have channeled to summon that king of strength.

"I-I'm here, Master!" Cailen said from behind her. He wasn't sure how to help, or if anything he could do would even make a difference compared to her surge of energy, but he decided to try.

The boy raised his hand, just as Valery did, and held it out toward the smoke. He could feel... something. But he wasn't sure if it was him, or the sheer amount of powerful Force energies flowing through his Master. He closed his eyes tight and held on. For his Master, for himself, and for the Light Side of the Force.

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Tags: Valery Noble ​

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