Private Words of Power

[Jasper Kai'el]

Words of Power
Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

Jasper had received the his scars from Darth Carnifex some time ago now. Sith runes engraved in his skin, accompanied by visions of an end time. An end goal. He was forced to come to terms with these things, but they certainly always weighed on him. No curse, but the memory was always fresh in his mind. Too fresh. It came to great surprise then when the returned Kahlil Noble took interest in this. The Master who had assumed to be dead had a history with Carnifex. A familial one, from what Jasper understood. It seemed that word of scars given by the old Sith Lord had peaked his curiosity. They had met informally for the first time flying into Maw Space, but afterwards Kahlil had made it clear that there was something he wanted to discuss with Jasper. This was greatly interesting, seeing as they hadn't met before his period of absence.

The knight wouldn't complain. Any lesson that he could learn from such a prolific and complicated Jedi Master would surely be invaluable. Besides, anyone who Valery Noble trusted enough to bear a child with was surely someone that had merit behind his reputation. Jasper didn't get nervous meeting people these days, but there was certainly a slight level of intimidation going into this particular arrangement. It was almost like he was a padawan again, awaiting lessons from a Master he knew was a living legend. Maybe it was just that, except he was a knight now. He still wasn't used to that. It felt like he had so much to learn still.

So, Jasper awaited Kahlil in one of the empty, one on one sparing rooms. They were more multipurpose these days, used for events, classes, and other things of that sort. He had no doubt that the Master would have some questions about his scars, but the rest was a mystery. What it was that Kahlil wished to tell him could be anything. That's ultimately what made him the most nervous. What should he expect for anything?

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Sparing room meetings.

It really wasn't his style. Kahlil frowned as he glanced around the room, rubbing at the back of his neck. He wasn't too sure if the conversation was going to stay in here, but.. Eh. Whatever. His gaze shifted before the door opened, watching as Jasper stepped in.

"Hey. We'll cut to the chase. Take off your shirt."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

"Hey. We'll cut to the chase. Take off your shirt."

Jasper didn't know what to say to that. He knew what Kahlil meant. He had come to see Jasper's scars after all, but Jasper didn't know if he even wanted to respond to that. The knight was bright red with embarrassment, which didn't help his nervousness at all.

"Jeez," he shuddered. "I... uh, a warning would have been nice."

He took a moment to ease his nerves. The way that he had entered and said that so abruptly was just the kind of thing that set off Jasper's anxiety. After calming down, he finally went through with the deed, removing his tank top and neatly folding it up. His scars were a deep maroon. They were faded, but seemed to still be bruised, which did confuse Jasper. They certainly didn't feel bruised. Perhaps it was just a side effect of the Sith Alchemy that had caused them. Unnatural discoloration to go along with their unnatural source.

"So, uh..." Jasper frowned. "That's them."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil blinked slowly as he stared down at the other Jedi.

Anxiety? Oh. Oops. He cleared his throat before rubbing at the back of his neck and glancing off. "Ah, sorry. I uh, my father's runes are never good news. Has me on edge, I guess." He only looked back once Jasper spoke up, so he could look them over. The runes. He frowned almost immediately.

"Well he's not subtle. Have you tried to have these healed at all? Not with Bacta, but the Light?"

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

"Yeah, I can kinda use it, and Miss Amani made sure it was clear of any lingering presences as well," he informed Kahlil. "And Master Noble gave it an all clear. Uh, after the quick therapy session for the visions anyways."

He shuddered just thinking about the visions. There was nothing that could really fill him with dread like seeing the entire galaxy torn and burning. Still, nothing else lingered, or at least that's what he believed after the Light treatment and no lingering side effects. It was just a strange conflict he had been dragged into, turned into ammo to get into the heads of Valery and the rest of the council.

And that man (though Jasper hesitated to call him a man) was Kahlil's father.

"It's... strange," Jasper admitted. "I feel like it dragged me into something I don't fully understand. Things have been... different since then. And I found out I was born in a vat... I thought I was prepared for... well, out of the blue stuff like that I guess."

Jasper frowned. Kahlil's expression was grim when he saw the scars. He clearly knew how to read them, or at least interpret them. Carnifex was his father, after all.

"So, uh... what do they say?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Born in a vat?

Kahlil raised a brow. "What's that matter?"

Wait, that's not the focus right now. He looked back to the runes with the same frown as before, rubbing at the back of his neck.

"It means Death, more or less. Of all things."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

"What's that matter?"

"Oh, not much really," Jasper frowned. "I was just saying it was weird, but the whole... runes thing was more weird. It was like a comparison. Like, I thought I could handle strange things cause of one, but then it was worse then what I had..." He stopped himself, awkwardly smiling and scratching the back of his head. "S-sorry, I'm getting off track. I'm not very good at conversations."

Jasper's face did become slightly pale when he heard what the runes translated to...

Death.

That was certainly... foreboding.

"Death," he echoed, "I... It would line up with what he showed me. Carnifex, I mean. Oh, well I guess that was already the topic..." The knights face became a little more grim as he reflected on the visions he had seen. "It was the galaxy torn in two... up in flames. Nobody was left. He told me it was his ultimate goal... or the Sith's ultimate goal. Or something. It was hard to focus on the details when he... when he began writing."

If there was a mood, that would've certainly killed it. Jasper was really beginning to wonder what it was that Kahlil wanted to tell him.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Being a clone is only as strange as you make it. I'm a clone, but it certainly doesn't define me."

Kahlil shrugged his shoulders a bit. Then nodded. Yeah, that seemed right, given how the runes were laid out. "Sounds like him. You should get these removed, though. Runes aren't inherently powerful on their own. But when you channel the Force through them, they'll activate. You're more or less carrying a weapon for him to use against you if you ever end up facing him again."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

He was a clone too? That was... certainly something he had not expected. A clone of Carnifex?

"But when you channel the Force through them, they'll activate. You're more or less carrying a weapon for him to use against you if you ever end up facing him again."

"Removed?" Jasper frowned. "Miss Amani and Master Noble said that the dark stuff had been taken care of... That they were just scars now. Miss Amani said that they would be hard to get rid of without extensive surgery too..."

He was very confused by all of this. It didn't help that Jasper had no clue how runes worked, let alone if they were still active or not. It still seemed like there was something he was missing...

"Uh, how do runes work... exactly?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Yeah, there's nothing lingering in them because they're not active. It's- Alright here."

Kahlil raised a hand, rather quickly drawing out a simple rune. A circle, a dot in the center, three lines emerging from the top. It hovered in the air, just glowing gently. Then he took out a marker and drew the same thing on the ground. Which didn't glow.

"This one is 'glow'. As you can see the one I drew in the air is y'know, powered. Because it's made from the Force it'll always glow until I get rid of it. You can feel it in the Force. This one?" He tapped the one on the floor. There was nothing there, just the mark. Until he let the Force flow into it. It brightened right up.

"You can feel it only when I channel the Force into it. It's the same for your marks. They're nothing until the Force is pulled through them. Then you'll probably see those visions again."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

Jasper simply stared at Kahlil, mesmerized by the mind boggling demonstration. They were words, bet suddenly they were filled with the force and doing unusual things. It was crazy. Perhaps there really was something more to the marks on his chest after all. That alarming info aside, Jasper suddenly found himself pondering how such a thing even worked... Or, maybe if...

"Can... you teach me?" Jasper asked in a moment of impulsiveness.

His thoughts reflexively manifested into word.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I- Well yeah. But it's.. The Runes I know are ones I adapted from the Sith. They're no longer dark, but if you're not careful you're inviting the corruption. I can teach you, but you need to make sure you don't ever use it in the Dark. Emotions, they have no place with them, okay?"

Kahlil scratched his cheek. And was doing his best not to just smile. The fact people were interested in learning what he'd created was.. Well he didn't want to seem prideful.

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

"Right," Jasper nodded.

Just the basic Jedi things. Negative emotions into the force often had drastic side effects anyways. It was something that he was always aware of, even subconsciously. It certainly was interesting, turning a Sith art into one based around Jedi teachings. If anything, it spoke to how smart of a man Kahlil was, along side his morality, though his family seemed to already speak to that point pretty well.

"So... what do I start with?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Well, light, I guess. Here." Kahlil looked about the room as he spoke, then seemed to find something he'd been looking for. A quick jog over to the wall, then back, and he offered the key material to any runework. Chalk.

"Draw out the rune. Then we'll see if you can actually use them. That's uh, the harder part really. Sorcery for Sith isn't something anyone can just do. You have to be attuned to it. And they haven't really figured out how people get attuned to it. .. Basically you can do it or you can't. So.. Draw the rune, then try to activate it."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

"Basically you can do it or you can't. So.. Draw the rune, then try to activate it."

"Right," Jasper nodded.

That made sense. For some reason, Jasper wasn't really too worried if he could or not, which was strange. Usually he was more paranoid about his force abilities, but not this time. Was it cause of the runes on his chest? Was it just cause of the specifics of his creation? It was unclear, but Jasper didn't stop to ask. Why did it matter. He accepted the chalk and wrote out the symbol for light, letting the force move through it in a manner not to dissimilar to when he had purified a kyber crystal some time ago. There was a moment of delay, but the rune soon lit up as Kahlil's had.

"Well," he began, still in a bit of befuddlement at what he had done, "I think I may be attuned to it."

That was a first. Then again, he had many of those recently.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"So you are."

Kahlil laughed. Smiled in almost disbelief as he watched the rune light up on the ground. Another Jedi capable of his little trick? This next generation of Jedi was something else for sure. Without another word Kahlil took up some chalk himself to start drawing his own runes. A sequence, though after a moment it was pretty obvious what the rune was. It matched the very same that was on Jasper's chest.

Though with some minor alterations here and there. Notably a rune changed completely from what it was to the very same Jasper had just drawn.

"A rune alone has a basic power. Usually the elements, or a concept. They're words. And when you arrange them in a proper sentence, you can change the effect entirely. And, if you change the words in a sentence, the sentence also changes. I'll teach you the runes you have on your chest. And the runes you can change them to to change the effect. The Sith thrive of secrets and the unknown. The more you know, the less power they truly have. We'll start with the one you just drew, and the original I changed it from. It's probably the most obvious. Darkness to Light."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

Changing... not twisting. That was a pretty clear word choice to Jasper. If the use of the darkside was a twisted perversion, then this was shifting it into a more natural state. The process was, by all means, ingenious. To completely reengineer a Sith art was no small feat.

"We'll start with the one you just drew, and the original I changed it from. It's probably the most obvious. Darkness to Light."

"Darkness to light..." Jasper echoed. "That makes sense. So I guess that means..."

Jasper took a moment to clutch his chest. The runes Kahlil had written clearly mirrored his own. There seemed to be a pretty clear reason for why he had done so. The idea was very much now in the knight's head.

"I can change these..." he continued, "Right?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Maybe. Probably. But the marks didn't fade, even when they were healed, right? Carnifex probably made them to last, so altering them isn't going to be easy. And, if you alter them wrong, you could uh, well. A rune sequence that explodes is considered the best outcome for a failure." Hence why Kahlil drew it with chalk.

"So for now we practice on the floor. Easy peasy. The sequence I wrote doesn't have to be what you change that to, it's just an idea on what might be helpful."

Jasper Kai'el

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Kahlil Noble

"A rune sequence that explodes is considered the best outcome for a failure."

"Oh," Jasper frowned, becoming slightly paler. "I think sticking to writing is probably fine for now."

He didn't exactly want to explode. Just keep it simple. It was better to start by learning, and then work on learning how to change his scars. Whatever kept his torso in place. Already Kahlil was showing how alterations could be made to it, but he stated it was only a suggestion. Ultimately, the choice would be up to him. Perhaps the sequence's new meaning could help point him in the right direction. It was worth an ask.

"So... uh, what did you change it to?" he asked.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil just nodded. Nobody would be blowing up Jasper today. And hopefully never. Grant it they were Jedi, but they could hope they didn't get blown up. He flashed a grin though, shortly after. Tapped the sequence.

"Basically, if someone tries to use the runes, it'll hit them with the Light. Epicanthix aren't the type you can mess with their heads like this vision would, but it'll mess with his connection if he tries to use it against you. It's an option, if you want to try and turn what he did against him. Or we could wipe the whole sequence from your chest."

Jasper Kai'el