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Fallen Empires -- An Old Republic Era adventure (Star Wars)

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007: The Key
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    • Sneak up right behind them before announcing yourself to look impressive: 11

    Demand to know what they're doing: 5

    Physically interpose: 3

    Skylah

    It's not just a machine, this ancient device you're interacting with. It's mystically attuned, somehow, to the Force, like a crude simulacrum of sapient thought, sleepily awake to your touch. When you try to reach out with your mind, though...

    Severe, dominating, unrestrained. Conflict is the natural state of the galaxy, imposed peace a deceptive lull that dulls the mind and breeds weakness. Might makes right — the real order of things, the truth behind the hypocrisies of lesser minds. A foreign paradigm for you in many ways, your natural thoughts glancing off like oil on water. Impossible, on the surface of it, to fully wrap your head around.

    Not unfamiliar, however. You recognise it, know the shape and the nuances of these thoughts, for all that they're not your own. All at once, it falls into place. You know what is being asked of you, what this door needs in place of a key.

    You resurface, pull your hand away, ready to excitedly tell Keel the good news. It's then, at the last possible second, that you know that someone else is here. You whip around disconcertingly fast, come face to face with a strange Mirialan standing behind Keel, and scream in surprise. Equally startled, she is likewise unable to suppress a shout of her own, jerking backward. Your eyes bore into hers, and you both open your mouths to start speaking at once, before stopping at the same time, for the same reason:

    Your hand shoots out to grab Keel's wrist while his hand is still only beginning to go for his blaster. Perhaps, in this stretch of forest, on this part of Tyrost, poking around an Ancient Sith ruin of all things, going for a weapon is reasonable when someone creeps up right behind you and screams. Very quickly, though, his confusion at your having stopped him turns into wide-eyed understanding — the Mirialan is likewise frozen in place, hand on the lightsaber she's halfway through pulling off of her belt. The three of you locked in a strange, three way standoff.

    You all start talking at once:

    "What you think you're—"

    "Just who are—"

    "Are you trying to get—"

    You all trail off as your words overlap too much to make sense, the Mirialan staring from you to Keel, obviously still off balance. You try again first: "Are you insane?"

    "Excuse me?" she the Mirialan demands. "This is a Sith ruin you're poking around at!"

    "Yeah!" you say, raising your voice right back, "yeah, it is! We all know that! Why don't you take your hand away from the weapon, though?"

    She does her very best to look affronted. "I'm not the one who reached for mine first!"

    "You're the one who snuck up behind us like a stalker!"

    Keel watches this back and forth, half in confusion, half in resignation as it increasingly seems like there is not going to be a fight. You feel his arm go limp in your grip, but you don't let go yet — you can't be sure how the stranger would respond to the sudden movement.

    The Mirialan falters entirely here. This clearly is not going at all how she intended... however that was. "I was trying to—" she begins, falters, "um... well." Her jaw clenches shut as she slowly takes her hand away from the handle of the elongated lightsaber. Saberstaff, you realise, and update your mental predictions for the opening moves of a fight that isn't going to happen any longer. "... you weren't supposed to turn around that early," she mutters, almost too quietly to hear.

    "What?" you demand, finally giving Keel his hand back. Hanging onto it would have been nice, under other circumstances, but lethal implements have a way of bringing out your serious side.

    "Noth— What do you think you're doing out here?" Trying to regain some dignity, she draws herself up to her full height, attempting to loom over you. It's generally pretty effective — in addition to having height on you, she's got the build of someone who works out more than is necessary to maintain conditioning, as much as Jedi robes like to hide that kind of thing. From this angle, you get a pretty good look at the geometric tattoos under her eyes, her skin such a deep, mossy green that they're inked in white. You don't recognise the symbols.

    "I don't have to make excuses to you for why we're out here!" you shoot back, leaning up to rather less effect. "What are you doing out here, aside from making a fool of yourself?"

    "I," she begins, mustering as much placid condescension as she can scrape together from the ruins of her composure, "am here on business for the Jedi Order. You have no idea what kind of forces you're trifling with." In the back of your head, you begin to wonder whose Padawan this is — and even leaving aside her age, there is no doubt in your mind that this girl is still a Padawan. You'd think Keel would have mentioned her, if she were Rist's and also, you dimly recall your pa'ma telling you, "Mirialan Jedi usually come in pairs. It's 'tradition'."

    Keel pinches the bridge of his nose. "My sister is trapped inside," he says, cutting through the posturing. "That's my business too. Re— Skylah is helping me."

    The Mirialan looks at him, then at the sealed temple, and frowns. "What are you talking about?" she asks.

    "Avress." Unlike the first, the second Mirialan actually announces his arrival ahead of time. The Padawan nonetheless cringes at the sound of his voice. He regards her calmly as he approaches, the weight of his gentle disapproval landing on her shoulders. "I asked you to wait for me."

    "You... you did, Master," the Padawan admits.

    He gives her a long enough look that she visibly squirms a little, before he turns to you and Keel, looking between the two of you with an unreadable expression on his face. "I am Jorden Venn, Jedi Knight," he says. "You've met Avress, my Padawan."

    "She was really rude!" you cut in, crossing your arms over your chest. Keel shoots you a faintly plaintive look.

    "Yes, I expect she was," Jorden says. Avress's mouth falls shut on the protest she was about to voice. "I would appreciate knowing who you both are, and what your purpose is here."

    You sigh. At least he's being polite about it. "I'm Skylah," you say, consciously omitting your surname. It's not worth the inevitable questions. "This is Keel. His sister followed a Jedi into the ruins days ago, and he asked me to help get the door open again so we can find her. It's got some kind of Force-attuned lock on it, it looks like? Anyway! I know what I'm doing."

    Avress gives a disbelieving exhalation. Jorden frowns very slightly, scrutinising you in particular, gaze staring into your eyes as if looking into you. "I sense some strength with the Force in you," he says, "but little Darkness. Whatever skill you might possess, be aware that this place is unfathomably dangerous — even the artifacts of the Sith are treacherous, however long their masters have left them idle." He looks to Keel imploringly. "I urge you to leave this place, and entrust this task to us. We will ensure your sister's safety if at all possible."

    Keel casts an unmistakably dubious glance at Avress. "I'm not sure I want to leave that to chance," he confides. Avress bristles bristles a little at the obvious slight.

    You don't try very hard to keep a smug note from your voice as you add: "You won't be able to get that door open anyway."

    Jorden turns back to you. Surprised, maybe? He's much better at the unflappable Jedi thing than Avress is. "And why would you say that?"

    You shrug. "Have a look for yourself."

    Jorden turns from you to the door, cautiously moving toward it. Avress is trying to send her most more-serene-than-thou look your way, but it would have worked a lot better if you hadn't seen her jump in surprise earlier.

    As the minutes drag by, Keel finally whispers: "Rist didn't take this long." He glances at Avress. "Where did you two even come from?"

    "Jedi Knight Rist sent for assistance," the Padawan hisses back. "Master will have it open any time now — I'm sure it's very complicated." Jorden, with his hand hovering over the faintly pulsing crysals, does not seem to be any closer than he was to begin with.

    "I'm surprised that Rist could even do it," you admit to Keel.

    He ignores Avress's quiet scoff. "Why?"

    Because she's a Jedi. But you don't say that out loud.

    Jorden finally steps away from the door, face a little troubled. He turns to face you three, looking first at you, then to Avress. When he speaks to her, it's in a flowing, musical language you recognise instantly as Mirialan. Stealing a glance at you first, she replies in the same language.

    Your pa'ma doesn't speak her ancestral tongue at home very often, but you don't need to know too much to recognise that they're talking about you, while you're standing right here. You scrape together what little you can remember from stray turns of phrase growing up, and manage, haltingly: "⟨You're being RUDE⟩." The two Mirialans stop short, plainly taken aback — theirs is not a language widely spoken outside their own species. Your accent is atrocious, but you hope they won't realise that you have nearly exhausted the extent of your vocabulary.

    "... apologies," Jorden says, recovering with characteristic swiftness. Avress is notably more rattled, although her complexion hides the flush she's likely displaying. Jorden continues: "I would ask, then, only that you explain precisely what you know about this mechanism."

    Oh. Well, you set yourself up for that, didn't you? The answer is going to be a little awkward.

    ==========

    [ ] Just open the door, hope the Jedi don't notice what exactly you're doing
    [ ] Be completely honest, although you think the Jedi won't like it
    [ ] Try to play dumb
     
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    • Gazetteer said:
    The Mirialan falters entirely here. This clearly is not going at all how she intended... however that was. "I was trying to—" she begins, falters, "um... well." Her jaw clenches shut as she slowly takes her hand away from the handle of the elongated lightsaber. Saberstaff, you realise, and update your mental predictions for the opening moves of a fight that isn't going to happen any longer. "... you weren't supposed to turn around that early," she mutters, almost too quietly to hear.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    This is as delightfully awkward as I was hoping for. Wonderful.
    Gazetteer said:
    "Jedi knight Rist sent for assistance," the Padawan hisses back.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I think knight should be capitalized here?

    [X] Be completely honest, although you think the Jedi won't like it
    We, uh, kind of walked into this one when we declared confidently that he wouldn't be able to open it.
     
    [Q] Explain in excruciating detail that, since this is a Sith temple, the lock requires a blood sacrifice and also an orgy. Not necessarily in that order, or any order, really.
    -[Q] Slap a hand over Keel's mouth when he tries to tell them that no, it most certainly does not.
    [X] Be completely honest, although you think the Jedi won't like it
     
    [X] Be completely honest, although you think the Jedi won't like it
     
    [x] Just open the door, hope the Jedi don't notice what exactly you're doing
     
    [X] Just open the door, hope the Jedi don't notice what exactly you're doing
    -[X] "Enough to do that safely."

    It shows you know what you are doing and gives them less of a chance to continue being Rude.
     
    [X] Be completely honest, although you think the Jedi won't like it
     
    [x] Just open the door, hope the Jedi don't notice what exactly you're doing

    It's enough to demonstrate that we'll have to come along, but I don't think we need to explain ourselves any more than that.
     
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    [X] Just open the door, hope the Jedi don't notice what exactly you're doing

    Why explain, when you can act?
     
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