Private This Wasn't The Plan

[Kahlil Noble]

Well, this was fitting. For Kahlil, who spent so much of his life running from a fight, from the Sith, getting captured the moment he decided to fight against them only made sense. With the fall of the Empire, the Sith bound to the Rule of Order were freed to go about their own business. Some returned to the shadows. Others joined the New Sith. And a few, the kind he was chasing, took this as a sign of freedom to raze worlds and stomp out any that might stand in their way. Break the chains they viewed holding them down with the Empire's reign. There was some responsibility felt there. A child of the Once Emperor, a Jedi who was once Sith himself, the inactivity in the numerous wars against the Empire.

If he was going to do something, now would be better than later.

Except this wasn't just stopping rampaging Sith like he thought. Darth Fol was a name he knew from when he was still a Sith some decade ago. A nobody with enough power not to get squashed. When Kahlil heard mention of the Lord's actions on one of the more defenseless worlds, he went to put a stop to it. What he expected to find was a Sith drunk on power. Instead, he found a Sith not just drunk on power, but rebuilding. What should of been as simple as defeating the Sith was in turn getting vastly outnumbered and captured.

Now he hung by his wrists in a cell. Kahlil's whole body was screaming with pain. How many times had he been tortured so far? Fol wasn't the one to even give him the time of day. Droids, apprentices. All were sent to 'work' on the Jedi. Not even that. It was the Zambrano name that kept him alive. The wayward son to be used as a weapon against his father. A shame his dad wasn't the kind to care. Eventually he'd just be killed off, when they realized just how useless he'd be in that plan.

He kept his breathing steady, trying to block out the current pain wracking his body. Broken ribs were the worst of it he figured, given the stabbing pain in his chest. At least the lightning wouldn't kill him, but the beatings? Those probably would. Ah, no, he probably was just going to die here. He tried to escape a couple times already, but they were prepared for that. They couldn't dismantle his lightsaber, sure, but they could destroy it. Or lock it away. He hoped for the later, but the prior was more likely.

A soft chuckle escaped him as he opened one eye, staring out at the stone floor below him. This was it, huh?

 

[Valery Noble]

A glimpse of Pain​

---

Valery: Appearance
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: 3:36 am local time


Valery had been asleep for several hours after a long day of training and preparing to begin her duties as a Jedi once again. She was hoping to have some of her energy restored for yet another demanding day, but tonight something would strike her within her dreams that changed all of her plans. At first, she believed it to be a nightmare but the emotions and pain she felt were too real for that to be the case. This had to be a sign given to her by the Force.

Within this vision, she could hear the sound of metal chains that were used to restrain him, so loud that it was almost as if she herself was within the room. She felt the pain of the broken bones and body, as well as the sickening enjoyment those who caused it got out of it. The torture that slowly began to deteriorate the man's body was affecting her as well, emotionally and through the Force. It had to stop.. she had to make it stop.

But there was nothing she could do, not within this vision.

The Jedi she quickly recognized continued to be tortured and slowly but surely, she could feel him fading away like a leaf on the river, heading for a waterfall. With enough time, he would never be seen again and all that remained was a painful void.

With an echo of this pain coursing through her body, Valery's eyes opened and she quickly sat up in her bed, her body covered in sweat. She noticed her hands were shaking and raised them to her head to remove her hair from her face. What just happened? She wasn't exactly sure but she knew she couldn't sit still and do nothing. The man she saw within her vision had once helped her through difficult times, and she couldn't help but feel a need to do something.

But where would she even begin?

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Like this, there wasn't much Kahlil could do but wait for the next beating to start. It was truly a humbling experience, being so powerless. But he wasn't alone. While he had been captured by the Sith, his ship wasn't. More, his droid wasn't. The R-unit was quite the smart little thing, and once it was obvious things weren't going as planned it ran. Fled into orbit and right into hyperspace as quick as it could. And given how The Bastion was built, it was pretty quick.

The issue was where it'd go. Here in former Empire space the closest potential allies were the Silver Jedi. But Kahlil hadn't really made many friends there, that he knew of. And yet the only ally that could really help was on the other side of the galaxy. Fast, potentially no help? Or for sure help that'd take a couple days?

Given what the droid knew, fast was the only option. The freighter was swiftly landed on Kashyyyk some hours later and the droid immediately rolled off and into the space port. It wasn't sure where to start, but maybe asking around might help? Put up a flyer? No, find someone familiar. There probably wasn't anyone, but if there was, maybe there'd be a chance after all.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Silver Landing
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning
Ship: Factory link


After a rather restless night, Valery decided to keep herself distracted with some work. She had gone through her usual routine of morning training and meditation, and now returned to the Landing area to oversee the inspection of her ship. She had only just arrived at the Kashyyk Temple herself, so her ship was going through some maintenance checks. But even with the loud noise of the droids going through components, the roaring engines of ships coming and going outside, and just the general ensemble of sound you'd expect in a Hangar; she could not find the distraction she was looking for.

Images of her vision returned every few minutes at most, causing her to stop and pinch the bridge of her nose. They were quite overwhelming.

But through all of it, something managed to catch her attention - a freighter coming down. It wasn't its speed, design, or anything visual that drew her eyes towards it. Something more profound reached out to her, and she felt a sudden need to approach it.

As she moved closer, she noticed a ramp coming down and expected a pilot to be stepping outside. But there was no pilot.. not a breathing one anyway. Instead, she spotted a little droid that seemed to be in a rush - she had seen this droid before. For a moment, she wondered how and why it was here, but quickly shook away those thoughts.

"Hey there, little buddy." Valery said as she got closer.

"What brings you here?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

This had to be a Force thing. That's all R6 thought about as it rolled down the ramp to immediately see Valery Noble standing before it. A familiar face. The R unit raced down the ramp, trilling loudly. Almost like it was panicking. Which, in a way, it was. Various bits of information were lost in it's panic, but the core of the issue was easy enough to understand. Kahlil had been captured by Sith, and his death was likely imminent. The droid didn't wait for a reply from the Jedi, instead racing behind her to start shoving her onto the ship.

Time was of the essence.

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Silver Landing
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Valery's eyes widened as the droid accelerated towards her and seemed somewhat surprised at the way it behaved - it reminded her of her old droid, which she hadn't seen since before the stasis. She then looked from one side to another, trying to see if anybody else had noticed the interaction, but it didn't seem to be the case.

"Hey, easy there.." she said while she crouched down to listen to the droid explaining the situation. Hearing Kahlil was captured caused her to frown, and she now understood her vision a lot more, and why she felt drawn to this shuttle.

So when the droid rushed behind her and began nudging her towards the freighter, she'd quickly check to make sure her weapon was attached to her belt, which it was, before she walked forward.

"I'm going, I'm going.." she said to the droid as it pushed her onto the ship.


"Take me to him but be careful. We're of no use to him if our ship gets intercepted along the way."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The ship was barely docked for a minute. The moment Valery Noble stepped on board the small droid left her to immediately prepare for take off. The Jedi was left alone as the ramp closed behind her, leaving her in the cargo area of the freighter. It was pretty generic. The whole ship was, at least until the living quarters. That looked more like a small apartment than a ship, and for good reason. This was Kahlil's home.

Having just left the planet in mind hyperdrive was quick to kick in once they made it into space. Soon as the blue surrounded the ship again R6 wheeled its way back towards the Jedi, still obviously panicking and yet that much calmer now that it wasn't alone. Perhaps it was because it had been able to find help where it assumed it wouldn't. The Force must be on their side.

The R unit would lead the Jedi deeper onto the ship, explaining more about just what Kahlil had gotten himself into. Rogue Sith Lord actually building an army, not just trying to rip through the worlds like countless others. Kahlil's capture being alive, for the moment. That sort of thing. All the while, it seemed increasingly worried about what state Kahlil would end up being in.

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Valery stepped on board and watched the little droid rush towards the cockpit. She wouldn't follow it, however, instead choosing to take a look around the interior of the ship. Her own fighter was a simple one-seater, while this looked like a flying house - most of it seemed simple enough, but it looked quite cozy.

But before she could get too distracted, Valery felt the hyperdrive engaging and stumbled a little as the vessel vibrated. She sighed softly and turned her eyes to the droid, which approached quite rapidly once again. While she couldn't sense its fear, the little R-unit made it rather obvious that it was worried. But she detected a glimpse of hope in its behavior as well - it had found help, after all.

"Alright little guy, I'm going to need you to be strong for me, okay?" she asked as she crouched down, and placed a hand on top of the droid. She hoped she'd be able to comfort it.

"Kahlil is tough, so I'm sure he'll hold out until we get to him. But until then, we need to not be reckless and remain focused. The last thing Kahlil wants is for us to get captured too."

She then stood up and moved over to a seat inside the cockpit.

"Do you know of a safe place to land? Wherever he is, I'll get inside. But we need this ship to get him back out with us, so it can't be detected."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The droid actually seemed to calm down at Valery Noble 's touch. The worried trilling came to a steady stop, leaving it at least more understandable than before. There was a safe place to land, though it was more because the ship could cloak itself and less that it was actually safe. If someone stumbled upon it, it'd be found none the less. Picking a spot where there wasn't as many people patrolling was the little droids plan, at least.

It wasn't going to be a long trip to get to the planet, but certainly long enough for the R unit to again be nervous. Hours, which was plenty fast given the distance they had to travel, but it was still hours. What exactly would Kahlil of ended up going through in that time? The droid roamed through the hall between the cockpit and the living area, literally pacing in it's own way.

It didn't want to have to wait.

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Valery was worried about Kahlil as well, but she very much understood what her feelings could cause if she were not to control them. Whenever she shared a bond through the Force with someone, whether it was strong or in its early phases, she was almost destined to be troubled by it at some point. It was a deep part of her character, but one she wouldn't trade for anything.

The bonds were troubling in times like this, but they gave her strength as well.

So in an attempt to keep herself focused and ready, Valery decided to spend the journey in deep meditation. The little panicking droid no longer felt like a distraction, and her own feelings weren't going to get in the way either.

She was going to be extremely sharp on arrival. She had to be.

"Force be with me, and with you.. Kahlil." she said softly before she began to clear her mind.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"The Force isn't on your side, Jedi." It wasn't exactly an incorrect statement. The Sith Apprentice before Kahlil spoke with a sneer, slowly pacing back and forth. The Zabrak was enjoying herself immensely. A Zambrano, chained up. At her mercy. Lightning crackled down her arm before she threw it at the Jedi, who helplessly tensed in agony. "It serves me. Just as I'm sure you will too. You're not strong enough to resist, are you?" The torrent was cut off, leaving Kahlil to hang limply by his wrists.

This wasn't the first time he'd been stuck like this. Training as a Sith had brought him to all manner of torments. He was supposed to be different now, but was he? Kahlil stayed silent, his silver eyes glued to the floor as the apprentice prattled on about her superiority. Was this the challenge then? Anger him? Make him lash out? Had to be, always was when he was younger. They sought to break him, bring him back to the dark.

He took a breath as he closed his eyes. No, he wouldn't give in. Not here, not like this. The Force would never abandon him.

Pain warped his mind again. Seemed like the Sith didn't like his little retreat inward. But he pushed past it. Pain wasn't something he feared.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Valery spent hours inside the ship, deep in meditation to prepare herself for the upcoming task. But as the large vessel finally began to approach his target, she began feeling some nerves. She was confident she could set them aside, but being this close and knowing he was being tortured.. she wanted to rush to his help. Even though she very strongly understood how bad of an idea that was.

"Hey little guy?"

Valery had gotten up from her seat and looked for the little R-unit, who had been pacing around a lot. They were approaching their destination and she needed him. Any and all information it had would be useful - she really hoped she wouldn't have to go in blind.

After a moment of searching, she found the R-unit in the hallway, close to the cockpit. She put her hand on top of its head and crouched down again, hoping the calming effect would still work.

"We're about to get to our destination, to Kahlil. Do you have any information about where exactly he is? Tell me anything you know that can help me rescue Kahlil."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The droid slowed as Valery Noble neared, drifting to a complete stop as she patted the top of it. The R-unit had calmed some on the trip, but it's own anxiety was growing more and more the closer they made it. And her question only brought that right back to the front of the droid's mind. It would explain what it could, but it didn't know much. Just the Sith, and what Kahlil thought they were doing.

Which was being violent. The fact the Sith here were actually planning some kind of resurgence caught the Knight off guard. Hence his capture. All the droid really could say was this place was dangerous. And that Kahlil was likely deep within.

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Valery nodded in response to the little R-unit. The lack of details of what she was heading into was quite disturbing. But she felt confident in her ability to go unnoticed - she was once a Jedi Shadow after all. She was going to have to take it one step at a time, and gather as much information as possible on the ground.

Then, it was likely going to come down to confronting the Sith at one point or another.

"Alright, I'm going to bring the ship down decently far away from the target, so we're not immediately noticed." she told the little droid. Since it was panicking quite a bit, she wasn't going to allow it to fly the ship right now. "I'm first going to make an approach alone while I'd like you to keep the ship intact. If anybody approaches and it's not myself or Kahlil, do what you must to keep the ship in one piece. We can't get out if the ship is damaged."

Valery paused for a moment. She knew it likely wasn't easy to the droid to be left behind.

"I know you want to help Kahlil too, but I'm going to need you to secure our way out of there first. Can you do this for me?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

There was an obvious hesitation from the droid. It understood exactly what Valery Noble wanted and even agreed with the plan. It was an important part, having a place to get out. Especially if Kahlil was too hurt to move on his own. But the droid was none the less worried. Whatever bond R6 had with the knight was more than just a droid and it's owner. After a moment a low hum would signify it's agreement to the Jedi Master's plan.

The droid set about helping her actually land the ship. It was.. Unique, in that it had some obvious things that needed repair instead of the awkward workarounds that the droid and Kahlil likely just got used to instead of repairing. But the ship would land without issue. There was a town close by, but even flying above it was clear how empty it was. A ruin, and still smoldering from an attack. A low whine escaped the droid.

The town wasn't like this when it fled.

But in the fires revealed secrets. Where most buildings were wood and charred, there was one that wasn't. A durasteel frame had been revealed. It was a base of operations, for what was hard to tell. But there was something important to it. No sign of the Sith, or the Sith's troops though. Abandoned, or hiding. Or on their way back. Time would reveal all soon enough.

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Valery was quite happy with the droid's agreement to the plan. It meant that, hopefully, she wouldn't have to worry about their means of getting off that planet. She could focus on getting Kahlil out, which she assumed to be quite a challenge already. But she wasn't going to let anything stop her from finding him.

With the droid's assistance, the ship would then land close to a village that seemed to have been badly damaged, with the notable exception of a durasteel building. Judging by the droid's reaction, this was an extra reason to worry, because it hadn't been like this when the R-unit departed from this planet.

"Alright, stay here and keep an eye on the ship. I'll be back soon." Valery said after the ship's engines powered down. She had lowered the ramp and stood ready to depart. But she wanted to re-assure the droid a little bit. "I'll bring your friend back to you."

With that said, Valery stepped out of the ship and turned her focus on the village up ahead. As per usual, she concealed her presence in the Force - she didn't want to alert the Sith. But she decided to make use of an old technique she developed back in her days as a Jedi Shadow. To remain undetected, Valery cloaked herself against the naked eye and sound. The technique required a great deal of concentration, and wouldn't allow her to perform other difficult feats, or go into combat without first dropping her cloak.

But for now, she had seemingly disappeared into thin air and began her approach towards the durasteel structure.

"Hold on just a little longer, Kahlil.."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The droid remained silent as Valery Noble departed. If the Jedi could actually save Kahlil, it would express it's gratitude then. For now, it was going to do as asked. Keep the engine running. It slowly rolled back to the cockpit, readying up some controls to get the ship ready for a quick departure. Should be fine enough, provided nothing serious malfunctioned. A low warble escaped the R unit.

Maybe it should check and make sure nothing would malfunction.

The town itself was as empty as it looked. The only thing other than the burned buildings were corpses, though. People freshly killed and left to rot. A purge, likely because of Kahlil's intervention to try and stop the Sith. The once Shadow had an easy enough time getting through the town, but it was good she decided to opt for the stealthy route. From seemingly nowhere soldiers would appear. Literally appear. Stealth suits turned off to show a pair of Sith Troopers wandering forward, muttering to each other about being stuck patrolling as they made their way into the reinforced bunker.

Keycards were swiped, and another pair stepped out to take their place. They, too, eventually faded from view. Presumably activating some stealth generator. Whatever was going on they were very much still active.

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


Walking through the village and seeing all the bodies was a tough thing. Seeing and even feeling so much death was never easy. But there was sadly nothing Valery could do for them, but she was still able to help one person. She had sensed his presence ever since her arrival, but she was getting closer.

Stepping up towards the Durasteel bunker, Valery blinked as suddenly a pair of soldiers appeared. They were talking to each other as if they weren't surrounded by bodies of people they had likely killed. This made her frown, but she quickly set aside her feelings as she began to piece things together.

This was a change of guard, of some kind. But these guards would be concealed.

I have very little time but I can do this. Valery thought to herself.

The situation overall was quite difficult - she wasn't sure what exactly was beyond those doors, but she could sense Kahlil there, albeit further down. One way or another, she had to get inside but there was no way she could sneak her way through it all. If slow and stealthy wasn't going to be an option, she was going to be fast. Hopefully too fast for them.

Waiting near the doors, Valery waited for the next change of guards, which took some time but it was worth the wait. As the doors closed behind those going back inside, she stepped out of her cloak and exploded towards the two new guards with incredible speed. She barely gave them any time to respond, before the blades of her double-bladed weapon cut them down.

"May you find rest," she said softly to both, as she grabbed their key access cards into the bunker.

The brunette then quickly rushed over to the door and tried to open it. She was going to chase after the other two guards and dispose of them as fast as possible. Perhaps with all guards out, she could assume her cloak again and leave those inside the base in confusion.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Every muscle was screaming at this point. Sith Lightning had always been one of the worst experiences of his life, and Kahlil certainly didn't relish the fact he got to relive so much of his early torment. He was alone, for the moment. Still swinging by his arms, half conscious as he stared at the ground below him. The Sith that had been chosen as his tormentors seemed to switch more aptly to Lightning, though he swore he heard one of them mutter something about sorcery.

That wouldn't be fun.

How many hours had he been down here? Days, maybe? Time stopped under the pain. It couldn't of been too long. And yet there was already the temptation of the Dark. His old spells, his power from his youth. He wasn't anywhere close to a competent sorcerer, but there were spells he could use that could get him out of this. Muttering a few incantations, channeling the dark, and he would be free.

A grimaced laugh escaped him as he shook his head. Was this truly what he'd come to? Getting captured, tortured, and he'd already be tempted to fall? Truly, he was a terrible Jedi. The laughter tied him over, bringing him from that moment of weakness. Even if there was no escape, he wouldn't let himself fall. He needed to stay true to his beliefs, or everything was a waste.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Valery: Appearance
Location: Kahlil's ship
Tag: Kahlil Noble
Time: Early morning


As Valery caught up to the two guards that had entered the base, she felt Kahlil struggling once again. It made it more difficult to focus, but she couldn't lose herself to her emotions. Not now - she had to remain true to herself. So with unbreakable determination and a cleared mind, she charged after the guards.

Again, she wasn't giving them a chance to respond. With blinding speed, she moved between them and struck them down using the twin-blades of her staff. There was nothing beautiful about it, but the simplicity allowed her to keep going at the same pace. Luckily, she hadn't been noticed just yet, but there was no way she could hide these bodies. So she cloaked up and left them behind.

She hoped that it would create a great deal of confusion for those who found the bodies.

But she wasn't going to wait around for that to happen. Valery was already on her way through the hallway, proceeding deeper and deeper down into the complex. While she moved in her Cloak, she kept her senses on alert, hoping to figure out how many Sith were present.

She wasn't too worried about having to face off against them, but ideally, she wouldn't have to fight them all at the same time.

I'm coming, Kahlil. Hang in there.​