Session 31: The Infinity Path, Part IX

General Summary

Day 11, Evening
With the group together and no immediate threat, everyone takes a moment to relax and reflect on what has happened, in their own way. Tomla heads toward the tree-lined coast of Northwest Coromons 3 to meditate and connect with the Force. Rin gravitates toward technology, taking a speeder taxi to Prime Coromon to coordinate the delivery of the hyperdrive to The Dock. And Lem works things out the Bimmiel way - by heading to the Coromon Arena to enroll in a single combat tournament. Having put his body through a lot recently, Lem first heads across the street to the mall where he finds a training facility. He convinces them to provide access to their hyperbaric chamber in exchange for them being able to use his image for marketing purposes. Afterward, he heads to the arena in Lower Coromons and uses his connection with Kritia Haccor to gain sponsorship as one of the Incom Corporation combatants. Once he is allowed in, he finds that he is due to fight the winner of the current battle. However, as Lem sees on the live holofeed, the fighters simultaneously disable each other, knocking them both out of the tournament. As a backup, the arena organizers arrange for Lem to battle two Coromon Headhunter instead. Among the trees, with the soothing sounds of the ocean around her, Tomla meditates. She focuses on her connection to the Force, considering the darkness that has recently started to creep in on her and her inability to purge it. As she focuses, she senses the remnant of a strong, dark, force-sensitive being that recently left the area. She can't tell where exactly they were on Fresia or who it was, but it is disturbing. Remembering how Dal recently came through the Star Temple to aid them in the battle against Cidcreper, she wonders if he may have been the dark force that she sensed. Once on Prime Coromon, Rin organizes the workers to bring the hyperdrive to the docking bay at The Dock where the droid parts and other ship parts of being stored. Not entirely sure how to get everything back to Selvaris, he says aloud that he is ready, hoping that Dal, Dorsk 82, and/or Kyp Durron are listening through the Star Temple. Moments later, Dal steps through a portal next to Rin. Dal explains that they need to move quickly as Dorsk 82 is holding the portal open by himself, which is very difficult for one person to do. With that, Dal uses the Force to lift the massive hyperdrive and push it through the portal. Rin tries to help, but fails, his connection to the Force weakened by his new cybernetic hands. Eventually, they get everything through the portal, and a sweating and straining Dorsk 82 is finally able to let go, collapsing to the ground. With that, Rin begins transporting everything on repulsor sleds to the The Mynock's Wing. Back at the arena, Lem learns the rules of the tournament. The grand prize is 80,000 cr., and all weapons are allowed as long as they are non-lethal. The only exception is Lem's upcoming battle with the headhunters, in which lethal weapons are allowed. Not wanting to make too much of a scene, or disgrace the Jedi Order, Lem wraps fabric around his face to disguise himself. He is led into the arena to an apathetic crowed. Shortly after, two headhunters are let loose from opposite sides of the far end of the arena. The animals rush at him, full speed. Lem uses the Force to throw a nearby broken chain at one of them and then ignites his lightsaber, causing the entire arena to gasp and then start screaming and cheering. The battle lasts a matter of seconds as Lem rolls and dodges out of the way of every headhunter bite and slash while swinging and slicing his saber, killing the beasts one after the other in short succession. Despite the battle's brevity, the arena begins chanting, "Jedi! Jedi! Jedi!", and Lem rewards their ardor with a backflip before being led out of the arena and into his now private quarters, until his next fight. Back on Selvaris, Rin is working on the ship. He is able to get the short-range comms working and then starts exploring the droid memory cores that he and Lem collected from the battle with the The True and Loyals earlier in the day. Using a slicer kit, he taps into each of the units, searching for information on their origin. However, it becomes clear that these are not standard, mass-produced droids. They must have been created in a small, private factory, like the kind wealthy regional rulers or crime syndicates sometimes use. They were also clearly constructed on Khomm and this batch had at least 20 in the production line. Without much more to gain from the cores, he returns to work on the ship. He quickly realizes that he's going to need to some help if there is any hope of the getting it operational anytime soon, so he heads into New Bendu and announces in the town square that he needs help. Ismar Tun hears him and offers his assistance. The two Duros, along with SQ-GE3, a.k.a. Squeegy, and 2-1BZ, a.k.a. 'Bonez, get to work. As Tomla continues her meditations, she senses Dal's presence suddenly next to her. With her eyes still closed, Dal softly asks her to return to Selvaris with him. Ignoring the request, Tomla says that she felt a dark presence on Fresia not long ago, and wonders if he knows anything about it. Looking at Dal, she can see that he is surprised by her question, but also anxious and distracted. He says that he doesn't know anything about that, but that they can explore it later. Luke Skywalker will be arriving on Selvaris shortly and has requested that she and the other Initiates meet with him. Tomla senses no deception from him, and reluctantly agrees to return through the portal with Dal. In the Star Temple, they focus on Lem, watching his battle with the headhunters. Once he is alone in his quarters, they open a portal and Tomla steps through. She tells him about Luke's arrival, and while Lem is hesitant to leave in the middle of the tournament, he has four fights before his next round, so he has time. They both return through the portal. Now back on Selvaris, Lem and Tomla realize that Dal and Dorsk 82 were not expecting Luke and that they are very unprepared for his arrival, as well as concerned about what it means. They walk to the Mynock's Wing to reunite with Rin and update him on what is happening. The three of them discuss what all of this means for a few minutes before Dal comms them to say that Luke is arriving. The Initiates head into New Bendu to greet Master Skywalker. Luke lands his trusty X-Wing near the colony and steps out to greet Dal, Dorsk 82, and The Initiates. Seeing that Kyp is not there, Luke asks where he is. Dal leads him to the infirmary where Kyp is barely conscious, lying in bed - the Yuuzhan Vong virus has taken its toll on his body. Luke and Kyp say nothing for a moment, until a tear escapes from Kyp's eye and the two admit that it is good to see each other. Luke says that they should let him rest, and the six of them head toward Dal's hut so that they can meet and discuss. Luke controls the meeting, explaining that he is not here to judge anyone or convince anyone to stay or rejoin the Jedi Order. The reality is that the Yuuzhan Vong threat is imminent and everything else is secondary. Additionally, he tells the padawans that after everything they have been through these last two weeks, they are ready to attempt the Jedi Knight trials - IF they still want to become Jedi. They must meditate and consider what path is best for them, and how best they can serve the galaxy. Lem quickly says that he is less concerned about loyalty than he is about the Vong, but he would like to return to Yavin IV and continue on the path of the Jedi. Luke agrees with him and says that everyone should take some time to meditate and then they can continue the discussion.