You have been on the ship for a week now. The days stretch together, with afternoons spent with Ch'lana in meditation, and the mornings spent working with the lightsabre. It is a wonderful time, and your strength and awareness of the Force has been growing under Ch'lana's guidance.
But not everything has been roses. For several days now, Niil has been feeling uneasy. He'll catch movement out of the corner of his eye, but when he turns nothing is there. This has been happening with regularity, and has been growing more frequent. He tries to explain it away as a trick of the mind, but his unease has been growing. By the end of the week, Niil is almost convinced that the four of you are not alone on this ship, but he can find no evidence to support his suspicions.
This has been combined with a growing restlessness during his sleep cycle. As the days have gone by, he finds himself getting less and less sleep. He keeps having two recurring dreams. They are separate and distinct - in fact they almost seem to be competing with one another. In one dream, he sees Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan in various situations. Sometimes he is in an energy cell. Sometimes he is on an inquisitor's table being tortured. Sometimes, he is executed by a shadowy figure. The dream is powerful and insistent, and leaves Niil with the feeling that there is somewhere he is supposed to be, and the urgency of that feeling has been growing as the days have gone by.
The second, unrelated dream, is that there is a shadowy figure lurking on the ship somewhere. In the dream, this sinister figure is sabotaging small systems on the ship. At first the problems are negligible, but soon they start to get worse, and Niil wakes in a cold sweat in the middle of the night expecting life support to be shut down, or all the airlocks and bulkheads opened.
These feelings have been getting worse, but they are feelings and half-formed thoughts, and you haven't been able to articulate them. Finally, on the seventh day, you resolve to mention it to Ch'lana at your morning sabre session in the hopes he can dispel whatever is gnawing at you. You sleep peacefully for the first time in several days.
That is, until you wake in a panic. The first thing you become aware of is a warning klaxon. A red dome light on the bulkhead is spinning, casting strange shadows over your stateroom, and a loud warning klaxon blares an alarm.
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OOC: Assuming you want this kept as PM for now . . .
The warning klaxons brutally jolted Niil out of his sleep, and he could feel the fear gibbering away inside him. Even as he grabbed his training saber and heavy blaster pistol from the nearby chair, he focused on calming his mind so he could focus better. Panic isn't going to help here; relax and deal with the situation at hand.
Feeling most of the fear ebb away, Nill reached for the door's control . . . and stopped. What if the hull has been breached? Think, Niil. Activating the ship's comm instead, he said, "Niil here. Do we have atmospheric integrity?"
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Niil tried to calm his fear, but he is having difficulty. Any shred of control he had evaporates when the comlink shows as dead. A quick check confirms - it appears only emergency power is operating. That gives lights, and a few doors maybe. Everything else on the ship will be dead, including life support.
Fear floods through Niil, despite his efforts to control it.
He hears something - a roaring, crackling sound, coming from the other side of the door.
Then, he nearly looses his footing as the entire ship is rocked by some sort of concussion.
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OOC: I take it that there's no way out of this room except through the door to my room? Any vent shafts?
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[OOC: Yeah, the door is the only way.]
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I'm trapped. We're under attack, something sounds like it's trying to cut it's way into my room, and I have nowhere to go.
Niil could feel his breathing become more rapid as his adrenaline kicked in, then he shook his head in denial. No, damnit, don't work on fear! That's going to lead to something stupid. Calm yourself and realize that you have to face whatever's outside. The others need your help. Even Ch'lana. Calm, man. Calm.
Niil worked on his breathing, striving to focus on a calm mind. He absently toggled his blaster setting to stun - he definitely didn't want to have a stray plasma bolt punching through a viewport- and held it at the ready in his left hand. Filling his right hand with the training saber, he pressed the control to the door.
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The door whoshes open and reveals a horrific scene. A fire is raging down the left towards engineering. That was the roaring sound you heard through your door. The fire appears to be fully involved in the aft - far beyond what an emergency fire suppression unit could handle. You had already felt fear before you opened the door, but your heart thunders in your chest as you realize with main power down, the fire will consume all the available oxygen in minutes.
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The path to Engineering is blocked by fire. The path to the bridge appears open, though there are signs of damage that way.
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Nill stole a quick glance towards engineering; that option was pretty well out for now, even if he could find a hand-held fire extinguisher. Whirling to his right, he made a dash for the bridge, mindful of the damage. Maybe he could get power going from there.
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Niil sprints quickly down the passage to the bridge and is brought up short. The emergency bulkhead is closed, and through the view port Niil can only see empty space, twinkling stars, and a few bits fo drifting debris. The entire forward section of the ship is gone.
Panic starts rising as Niil stares in disbelief. Then, much to his horror, a face appears in the viewport. Collan's bloated features are visible, mouth open and slack, eyes staring blankly ahead while his hair drifts in zero gravity. He bumps into the door without moving and drifts off out of sight.
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His senses numbed in shock, Niil stood there as he watched Collan's space-frozen corpse drift off. What had happened to the ship to wreak this damage?
Snapping himself out of his mental stupor, he thought about his options, and snorted. There were none. Well, maybe one. Running back to his cabin, he grabbed a pair of towels, rammed them in the shower, and thoroughly soaked them in water. Wrapping them around his body, he took a deep breath, and headed towards the engineering section. Maybe he could fight his way through the fire and into engineering before he was burned to death. Unless the fire had originated in engineering.
OOC: So, if Niil knows the layout of this ship, the only two ways for him to go are either engineering and the bridge, right?
OOC: I forgot to ask . . . are there emergency oxygen/rebreather masks in the cabins or in the corridors in the event of a hull breach or life support failure? If so, that's gonna drastically change what I attempt.
OOC: Can I get to the escape pods from here? And how close is it to the nearest terminal where I can override the safety system? And . . . is there a safety station nearby that I can actually get to?
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[OOC: There's a safety locker beside this blast door. There are four escape pods, two on each side of the ship. A small access passage leads to them. The hatch is about 10' away from you. One goes left, the other goes right. You could try and over-ride the safety system from the door panel right beside you. There is only one passage in this section. Rear leads to the cargo bays, and engineering. Forward in the lounge, galley and the bridge. Staterooms do not have individual showers, but they have a small fresher and sink. There are escape pods on the stateroom section. If nothing else, you could seal yourself off from the fire. Another option might be to override the safety system and open the blast doors. That would put out the fire. The escape pods would have breathers in them, and there are also safety stations throughout the ship that hold emergency equipment that includes breathers.]
His heart thumping in his chest, Niil turns around and freezes in terror.
From here, he can see a figure moving through the wreckage that leads to engineering, passing through the raging fire apparently without a concern. The person is indistinct through the flames and smoke, but one thing is very clear - the glowing red lightsabre in their hand.
Smoke and heat choke Niil, and he strains to draw enough air which compounds the problem. Oxygen is rapidly running out.
Niil tries to calm himself, but his coughing and shaking fingers make it difficult and he cannot reach inside himself for the Force.
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Despite the waves of fear rolling over Niil, he forced his mind to act, and again tried to calm himself. Pivoting around, he grabbed the door of the safety locker next to him and popped it open. Setting his blaster down, he snatched at a rebreather unit and tugged it over his head. At least now he had a limited supply of air. Keeping the threatening apparition in the corner of his eye, he grabbed his blaster, holstered it, and turned to the door panel. If he could override the safety panel, he could purge the atmosphere in this section, which would hopefully put out the fire. Then he could deal with the dark Jedi.
OOC: That's Niil's intent, anyway.
Still trying to get rid of his fear so he can function calmly. If there's any way he can use the Concentrate power in his state, he'll apply it while trying to do the safety override.
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It takes three tries to get the panel open, his hands are tembling so bad. He pulls the pin and fixes the breather to his face, drawing deep breaths. He can't seem to get enough air, and his heartbeat is thundering in his ears. Standing up, he opens the panel on the door, but his shaking fingers are making it difficult to work.
Even with the oxygen, he cannot seem to get enough air.
After the third fumble, Niil hears the thrum of a lit sabre behind him.
"Niil Spaar. I thought I felt you."
The voice is synthesized, but it sounds familiar. He has heard that voice before, only kinder and gentler. Master Dhoresh.
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Niil stopped dead. He was beyond fear or pain, he just felt . . . numb, lifeless. Turning mechanically to face the figure, Nill shook his head, and muttered, "No. No, no, no . . . there is no way in HELL you're Master Dhoresh. I saw him killed! The man I knew would rather die than turn to the Dark Side! Why? What was the reason for all of this? The ship? Collan?"
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The man is wearing half a mask that covers the left and lower half of his face. Thar is where the synthesized voice comes from. The side of his head you can see is bald, and wicked burn scars cover the visible side of his head. His skin is pale, almost grey and shot through with black veins, and covered in scars. The eyes are badly blood shot.
"I came for you, my apprentice."
Panic grips Niil's body, and his hear is racing dangerously fast.
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Niil gaped at the ruin of a man before him. Dhoresh, turned to the Dark Side?
No. This was just wrong! Even though Niil was dangerously close to suffering a heart attack, he mentally latched on to his own resolve and held on to desperately, as if it was a lifeline. That tiny mote in an ocean of terror had to keep him afloat. The fear was irrelevent here! It had to be! He would not turn! He had the choice, not this twisted horror standing before him!
"No. Never! You may have saved my life by sacrificing yours, Master Dhoresh, but I'll not repay that debt by turning to the Dark Side of the Force. I've seen the things that people have done in its name, and they are wrong.
OOC: Fighting like hell to to think that as long as I refuse to turn to the Dark Side, nothing else matters (ie. fear, pain, death). Trying to use that to get my mind in control.
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Niil continues to try and reach the Force in side him, but the fear filling him makes it twist and worm out of his grasp. He just isn't strong enough to fight through the fear. Every time he tries to reach for it, a tidal wave of panic washes him away.
"Niil, you -know- what they do to force-sensitives. The things they did to me... months of torture. And the only thing that kept me going was the thought that one day I would look on you again.
"I have been wrong, Niil. The things I taught you were lies. Peace is a lie. Think about it? In all of recorded history, how many years of peace have their been? Strife is the natural way of things. Peace is unnatural. I can teach you about this truth, Niil. I can complete your training. It is what you have always wanted - to command the Force. I can show you. Just come with me."
He offers a scarred, mangled hand.
"Trust me, as you once did."
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Niil involuntarily took a step backward, as if the proferred hand was diseased. "Dark Side deception! Peace is NOT a lie! Think about it yourself, Master Dhoresh! Peace is like perfection. You're never going to fully achieve it, but you still strive for it anyway! If that isn't enough to convince you, look at what the Empire had done to people to 'restore order'! Look at what it's done to you! Torturing you for months to 'convince' you that the Dark Side is right? Doing unspeakable things to Force-sensitives? Yes, I wanted to be in touch with the Force, but not like . . . like this! I wanted to strive for peace, to help others . . . not to enforce my will on others through pain and fear!"
Niil stepped back to his old mentor. "And who taught me that, Master Dhoresh? You did. It's not too late to return, to be redeemed. Renounce the Dark Side - renounce the evil, deception and suffering it represents. Evil can't create, it can only destroy. Put the torture out of your mind, and the lies the Emperor and his servants have whispered into your ears. Stop, and truly search your feelings. You were not wrong about what you taught me before. You know I speak the truth. Join me."
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The face smiles above the mask.
"I know this is difficult for you, Niil. I knew you would have trouble accepting it. But you do not know! What scholar would try to argue a point without knowledge of both sides of an issue? Let me show you. That is all I ask. I will not ask you to give yourself to the Dark Side. Only let me show you what I have learned. Then you can make your choice. If once I have shown you what I know, if you decide to refuse my teachings, I will listen to you speak to me about peace. Then, perhaps you may 'save' me as you hope. But either way, even if neither of us are convinced, we will part each the wiser for knowing the other better."
He offers the hand again. "All I ask is you let me know you. Then you can decide for yourself, with full knowledge."
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Despite his terror, Niil returned the smile. "No. If I go with you and let me show you what you know, then I'm already accepting the Dark Side. There is a damn good reason the Jedi have been renouncing it for millenia. History is full of accounts of Jedi being corrupted by the Dark Side, and going on to do terrible things in its name. By the Force, look at the histories of the Sith Wars, Dhoresh! There are also accounts of Jedi who were corrupted to the Dark Side and were fortunate enough to turn away from it and tell their stories. You were trained as a Jedi; you should know these stories. I've already seen what two Sith lords have done to the galaxy, and that's enough for me to decide. I'm sorry, Master Dhoresh, but I want no part of what you're offering to teach me. Not as long as you embrace the Dark Side."
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The smile remains, but it becomes twisted somehow, in ways you could not describe.
"If not for me, then think of your mother. Join me and I will help you save her, Niil. You know what they will have been doing to her. Come with me and we can free her together. Refuse me, and you leave her to the tender mercies of the Empire."
He pauses at your involuntary reaction. "You didn't know, did you? Oh yes, she yet lives! She was also Force Sensitive, Niil. You never knew! How delicious."
The smile twists further, and it chills your blood.
"I think I will go pay her a visit, Niil, and see her myself. We will have much to discuss, her and I." He licks his lower lip and laughs cruelly.
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You've been trying to resist the fear assaulting you, but you are just not strong enough. With what you are feeling, it is too difficult to concentrate. The inner turmoil is beyond your ability to control.
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Niil blanched. "You sick, twisted shit. You sound like those Bloodhounds that chased after us! My parents risked everything to help cover your tracks when you escaped the Purge, and this is how you repay them? Promise to help me free her only if I come with you, and in the same breath you insinuate that you'll torment her more if I don't? I think you're lying. Even if you're not, I'd rather die than learn any 'lessons' you'd try to teach me. I'm never going to end up like you. So you might as well get it over . . ." In mid-sentence, he snatched at his blaster pistol, attempting to blow out the nearby viewport. If he was going to die, he might as well make sure this twisted parody of a man he once knew and respected couldn't harm anyone else.
OOC: MY character sheet - unless it's wrong - says I have a Force point. I want to use that to draw and fire two shots against the viewport. If I don't have a FP left, then I'll use my remaining 4 CP for the draw, and still take two shots against the viewport.
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Niil releases himself, trusting to the Force completely. It blossoms within him, bright and pure. The instant it does, the fear he had been fighting leaves him. The fire and smoke vanish, and the damage and debris is gone. Nill suddenly finds himself alone in the gangway, a breather mask on, and his blaster in his hands. The ship is still in a sleep cycle, so subdued lighting illuminates the floor. No one else is around, and the regular sound of a ship's engines thrums softly in the background.
The door panel is beeping, and when Niil glances at it, he sees the hatch system has been primed for emergency override. He was one keystroke from exposing the entire ship to vacuum.
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"Hoooooo-ly shit," Niil breathed, and took a step back away from the console as if his very proximity to it could still vent the ship's atmosphere. Reaching instead for a comm panel, he activated it to Ch'lana's quarters and said, "Master Ch'lana, this is Niil. Put everyone on alert; I've been . . . attacked. I think we have a Force-trained intruder aboard. I'm near my quarters by the hatch system. Please hurry."
Blaster in one hand and the training saber in the other, he stood guard near the hatch controls and waited for Ch'lana.
