Winter is Coming (Abbi Odell)

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell "]

The broken ruins of Rhen Vars stood out in front of her, Matsu had returned here after so long and she banked in the air as the wind went over the small telekinetic shield she erected to protect her in the wind. The frozen ice where she had fought the creatures from the undercrypt with Iella. She was moving towards the jedi academy the Silver jedi had erected on one of the ancient mountains. Her energies dancing off her skin as she protected herself from the cold before landing on the steps of the temple.

She could see all of them and looked at some of the padawans as she took her equipment pack off from her shoulder and opened it when they gathered getting tiny hands closer to her that she gave them some of the fruits and food she had brought from Shri-Tal and the temple there. Traveling quickly from place to place as they were moving her into the temple. "Alright, alright don't worry there is plenty to go around." She was going inside while holdign a smile on her face and standing there as the bell sounded.

"Hurry and get to your classes." She finished handing it out to all of them and smiled a little as she walked and her research team stood off to the side. Maps and data from what they had been excavating since the Silver jedi made it to the world and she spoke. "So how does it look?" Her researchers were looking at her as they grinned and spoke. "Well that little sephi knight found it... better then we had thought she would have and we've been able to plot a way through the mountains to it."

There was a look on her face while she looked over the maps and spoke. "Don't worry then, I'll go and investigate, send some probe droids and make sure there won't be any surprises. I'll be in the office and make sure you guys rest up, we don't want to be out there and hungry." She wasn't going to have any of those situations and Matsu was looking at the large landing pad as her ship finally arrived with the jedi master entering the academy and going into an office looking out over the main courtyard.

 

[Abbi Odell]

Right as [member="Matsu Ike"] was walking into the office, Abbi was walking out. So as one could imagine the only thing to happen was said door making harsh contact with the young padawan's body.

A quiet squeak escaped her lips as she fell to the floor, the armful of books she was carrying landing around and on top of her. A little dazed but otherwise okay she was quick to get up. "I am so sorry," she said breathlessly never really looking at who was standing in front of her. Only four days at this temple and she was already making a fool of herself.

"I didn't see you, I am really sorry," she gathered her books rambling scattered thoughts about doors and how hinges should work differently when she finally looked up. Most of the books she had gathered in her arms almost fell again. Oh no worries, she was only making a fool of herself in front of a Jedi master.

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu paused as she heard the young girl and moved quickly going around the door and crouching to help her as she spoke. "It is alright, I should have been more aware." A look at the girl though and she wasn't sure who she was. There were many students here and more came as others were transferred to the other temples the jedi ran in the area so. "Who are you?" She said it with a softness to her voice while holding some of the books and rising up to her full five foot stature before motioning with her head for them to clear the entryway to the office and have a safer place. Matsu presented a warm smile while she looked on. "I am Matsu a master here at the temple."

 

[Abbi Odell]

"I'm Abbi Odell, I transferred here a few days ago," she said while gathering the rest of the books. The change from Naboo to here was stark. First of all there was the weather and then there was also the people. "It's nice to meet you," she gave the standard reply. Conversing with people wasn't her strongest suit.

"Did you know that thousands of years before the Clone Wars, an atmospheric cataclysm turned this planet into an icy hibernal surface. Since then, it has been a frigid world of frozen tundra and snowswept mountains," she babbled walking with [member="Matsu Ike"]. "I think that this galaxy is prone to these atmospheric occurrences. It might be due to our location ....." she stopped talking after she realized she had been rambling on to a Jedi Master. "Uh, how are you today?"

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu looked at her as the girl was talking and well she had knowledge which was good and she seemed to almost beam with talking about it. A smile played across her face though while she spoke. "I am doing good and you are very knowledgeable." That was a nice thing to see since most of the padawans she had been meeting were wanting to swing swords. Not that she would deny that had its place but she liked the idea of someone there to contrast them. "Well for being here only a few days you seem to have found a good place and where did you transfer from?" She was curious about that, she was generally at the temples within the Asobi system so it kept her busy there.

 

[Abbi Odell]

"Well I was born on Naboo but I haven't actually been there since I was five. I've been to eleven Jedi academies since then, this is the twelfth," she stated matter of factly. It was no secret to her family that she was a failure in the Jedi area. When it came to mediation, telepathy, and telekinesis she did great. When it came to being a BAMF Jedi with a lightsaber and dueling Sith it was almost like being a seahorse in a tree. Not. Good.

"This is actually the first temple I picked," she said with great satisfaction. Finally breaking free from her parents was a great accomplishment for her, even if it meant she was now disowned. "The library is awesome! It had books I have never even heard of. Did you know that they have a book here that completely catalogues the entire fungi species spectrum on Felucia? There is a fungus there that contains a chemical which if used properly can make you see everything as if you were having an out of body experience. But the catch is everything you see is a rainbow! That is so cool, not useful but still cool!"

Stop rambling, stop rambling, stop rambling.

"But anyway, I'm sure you don't want to know about fungus. What do you do here?"

[member="Matsu Ike"]

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu was looking at her and she was from Naboo. She had a small grin on her face with that since she loved the world and it helped knowing the queen. Feena was a great person while she then saw the padawan seem thinking for a moment until she was talking about fungus as Matsu spoke. "That is actually informative and we do have a great library. The work they did rebuilding it here and clearing out the ruins under the temples and ice has been a helpful." She looked around though and motioned to the large doorways that went down into the large crypt like area they had below them. "There is also some of the other tombs we have open for the padawans to go and explore. Not all are good with their blades but being able to study and decipher the the ruins. Plus this is a great place to teach some how to fly lots of padding."

 

[Abbi Odell]

"Yeah, they tried to give me a sparing lesson with lightsabers the second day I was here. It didn't go see well, but on the plus side I got a free hair cut!" She said running fingers through hair that was now a good six inches shorter. So far things at the new temple were going the same way as all the others. All of the masters were hesitant to take her one due to the number of academies she had been to and her inability to even hold a lightsaber without someone losing a finger.

Turning back to [member="Matsu Ike"], she considered what the woman had said. "This place has so much history. It is like a vault kept closed for a thousand years with treasures waiting inside. I hope I get to stay here. This place is so different from all the academies I have been to. Most are only concerned with making soldiers and I definitely do not fall into that category."

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

"Well there is value in a soldier, there is value in teaching one how to defend themselves and be confident in their decisions or orders. The real trick is knowing how far to go in everything, I wouldn't want my padawans to go into wars simply to kill but sending them to protect the lives of the soldiers with them. I can support and teach them how to do that." She looked at the girl and the mention of her hair being shorter reminded her of her own training and how she had lost hair but also clothing.... The baggy kind at first to cut down on all the itching but then switched to tighter outfits that couldn't be caught by the saber. "If you would lik, pick a place and we can go explore it. There are different teams in the field and getting fresh eyes is never a bad thing. We even found several jedi tombs when we were work here."

 

[Abbi Odell]

"Really?!" She asked excitedly. Never before had a Jedi master asked her to go on a mission, even if it was within the safety of the Temple grounds. Most often it seemed that they were trying to shove her onto someone else, probably because she could be annoying.

"There is this one place I would like to see. I heard some of the knights talking about an underground ruin that they think was part of the old temple's archives. No one has been able to really look around fully due to the weather but we are supposed to have a break from the severe weather for the next few days," she told [member="Matsu Ike"]. Ancient Jedi archives were something that not even a timid teenager could pass up, well not her anyway.

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu looked at her and raised an eyebrow at the mention of old temple archives as she had to nod in agreement. That was the perfect place to go though she did hide it on her face for a brief moment... Then lit up even letting it reach those black orbs she had for eyes. "We can do just that, make sure you have your stuff and don't leave anything behind you might need to use. The temple might be secure but the lower areas still have the risk of some creatures." She would also be able to see what the padawan brought for the little excursion as another way how she thought. Light supplies could usually mean that she was lazy or planned to only be out for awhile, to many supplies could mean she was like some she knew and over prepared for things. Matsu touched her equipment pack with supplies but also her journal of everything from her excursions she had done. Her disc saber was on her hip as well as her normal sabers should she need them but was certain she wouldn't.

 

[Abbi Odell]

"Alrighty, I'll meet you back here in a jiff," she exclaimed bubbling with excitement. Hopping off with arms full of books to her room where she tripped and landed on her side covered in the heavy novels. "Ow," she huffed pushing up to the bed where a travel bag lay.

Okay so thermal clothes are a must, as is the small vibro blade she owned (hadn't quite managed to fashion a lightsaber yet...or hold one without damage). There was also the small food packs that were made primarily for the military but her brother had given her some before leaving for some mission. Then there was a lighter, water bottle, and first aid kit. That should be good.

Pulling on some warm clothes and boors, she then shoved some gloves and a hat into her pockets. She made it down to where she was supposed to meet [member="Matsu Ike"].

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu stood there waiting for a moment, her equipment more then ready but the large crypt doors that led into the underground tunnels well was heavy and not made for the padawans to lift it easily. She planted her feet while standing there with some of the shadows that were there in case and she clenched her fists as it was being lifted up for the two of them to go through as she set the locks to keep it in place and they would be able to go through quickly enough. Matsu held her disc blade in her hand just in case as she was looking at the padawan who arrived looking ready to go. Matsu held out her hand and squeezed some light into the area forming a small ball to light up the hallway down into the mountains and ice.

"Ready to go?" Matsu said it while straightening her hair from its large braid so that it could be retightened to appear shorter then it was. She started walking and pulled a glow rod from it as she was walking with a small smirk on her face. The soft crunch under her feet as the small bits of snow that had fallen through from the outside came in. Matsu looked at the padawan and motioned her to come closer as the glow rod illuminated the area in the tunnels more once the doors were starting to close. She looked her over and spoke. "You don't seem to have a saber." She slid one from her sleeve and activated it with a snap hiss as an orange blade appeared and she turned it off. "For your safety it is a training blade, you don't need to use it ever but it can save your life."

 

[Abbi Odell]

Following the Jedi master, Abbi made a mental note of the door that stood before them. Her eyes were wide, observing everything around them. Between a soldier for a brother and years trying to learn how to be a Jedi, she had become very observant of her surroundings.

It was weird to take the training saber. To say the Jedi padawan was hesitant was an understatement. She knew that it was vital for the knowledge of the lightsaber to be learned. However, how long would it take for someone like her to manage its use. "Okay," she said with a nod.

Pulling the coat closer, Abbi looked at [member="Matsu Ike"] with eager eyes. "This is so exciting."

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu looked at her as she spoke. "It is, I often find much more excitement in exploring then just combat." she moved to be at her side while she was looking ahead and speaking. "I know it isn't what you expected but that saber has other purposes, seeing down here where we don't have lights will be needed." A look at her while she starting leading the way inside as she held the glow rod and there were the statues the sith had brought in and built when their empire had prevailed and overtaken the planet. The temple they had built and the jedi got rid of it. Not the best use of their resources but she had seen some stranger things while moving towards the deeper areas and the air changed. The scent of the frozen undead while Matsu tossed the glow rod to their feet. "A first lesson is to allow the light to reflect off your eyes. In low light like this you can see clearly but making out details will be a little harder."

 

[Abbi Odell]

Abbi did as she was instructed by [member="Matsu Ike"]. The air was cold and stale from being closed off to the outside world. It was hard to make out details at first but the young padawan could feel the Force building in her. It wasn't exceptionally strong like some of the the prodigy padawans had but it was there nonetheless.

Tentative fingers reached out and touched the thick stone walls. The presence of the past was almost overwhelming but Abbi kept her emotions in check like the teachings had taught her. "The dark side lingers here," she said with a slight frown. "Is there anyway to to bring purity back to the corruption that the Sith caused?"

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu looked at her. "Possibly in time, they corrupted the hearts of the worlds they were on. Death and slaughter on scales that riveled wars but called it a days work and still managed to condemn others for killing. It is quite a sight and some jedi agreed with them, that is why the order fractured into different sects, why it is still broken." She kept walking and the area went lower while Matsu was letting some energy seep out while she stod close enough to the padawan she wouldn't get lost in the dark. The jedi master letting force energy enhance the low light in her eyes that she could make out. With the disciples it allowed them to see each other when they were cloaking with the force and concealing their presence. "The corruption at the heart of the worlds is the heart of that corruption, on this world they raided some of the tombs and turned the chasms into mass graves. Where we are heading is just past those into one of the tombs they were searching for. Ulic's" She said the name with some small pride, he was a famous jedi, infamous darksider and tragic man at times because you could learn and feel for him."

 

[Abbi Odell]

The Jedi master was wise. Some much so that Abbi wondered whether or not the small woman had ever been like her; clumsy and wary. It seemed like an impossible dream to be like the woman who stood before her.

"I have never encountered a Sith before but for a long time I imagined they were all the same. Just power hungry brutes who could not feel love or compassion. It isn't that simple though and a part of me feels deep sorrow for them. It must be very lonely for a Sith," she pondered quietly looking forward into the dark.

Working on letting the light to her eyes be enhanced by the force. It caused some slight strain but it wasn't too bad. Having been trained in so many academies by this point it was almost a relief to actually be able to harness the force around her. While they worked their way farther down it occurred to the young Jedi this place would be the perfect habitat for wildlife. Hopefully none of them were large with sharp teeth.

"How long have you been with the Jedi," she asked hoping that she wasn't being intrusive. It had occurred to her that [member="Matsu Ike"] had not divulged much information about herself in the short time they had known each other.

 

[Matsu Ike]

[member="Abbi Odell"]

Matsu looked at her as she spoke about the sith and she spoke. "They are, some but there is more to it then that. From my observations the strongest of sith are more tragic. Yes being power hungry can be motivation, the most common of being simply angry... but there needs to be more. The angry ones burn out, all that hate needs somewhere to be directed and they'll soon have nothing left. What is needed is a reason, a reason to fall, they have to make a bargain in their mind. The reason for why they do something needs to start with the best of intentions that they can slowly have become corrupted. altruism becomes greed and pride."

She continued to walk and then stopped to look. "Then slowly as the darkness creeps into them they will have perverted their purpose for doing something but it should not be quick or fast. I have seen jedi betray their purpose and oaths in a heartbeat for the promise of power they couldn't get as a padawan and they never grew stronger only weaker in time." She was walking again as she thought about it while moving. "I have been with the jedi since I was born, my mother was in a penal colony on kessel and after she had me the jedi overseeing the prison's medical team took me to the temple and I was taught by her."

 

[Abbi Odell]

"I can see where one would lose sight of what is good and right. But it makes me question whether some are more prone to it than others," she mused examining the wall closer. The rock that the tunnel was made out of looked familiar. It was something that she had seen in a book once. The information was right below the surface of her mind but was just out of reach. Something told her that it was important to remember what the book had said but she just couldn't.

"That's sort of like my family only my parents are higher up on Naboo. They sent my first Jedi academy as soon as it was determined that I was force sensitive. I haven't seen my parents much since then but I have been able to see my brother, he's a soldier," she said taking a few steps away from [member="Matsu Ike"].

"I don't really mind, sometimes....eeep!" was what finished her sentence as the floor gave out under her and she landed with an grunt in a cavern below the tunnel. "Ow," she huffed through grated teeth.