| abstract
| - Main Corridor - Uwannabuyim This is a good sized, round room. To the port is a set of benches in the walls, a little nook, surrounding a holochess table. Beside that, running along the wall to where the short corridor to the fore section is, is a series of terminals and computers, whose primary function is extra-cockpit monitoring; cargo, sensors, weapons control, et cetera. The low bubble of a ceiling is dark, graphite colored, metallic. The floor is much the same, though composed of grates instead of sheeting. To the starboard, there is a door leading into a stateroom for passengers. Luke, finding the ship's ramp open and sensing Jessalyn inside, ascends the ramp into the ship. As his head levels with the ship's floor, about half way up, he calls tentatively, "Jessalyn?" Luke, finding the ship's ramp open and sensing Jessalyn inside, ascends the ramp into the ship. As his head levels with the ship's floor, about half way up, he calls tentatively, "Jessalyn?" Jessalyn straightens her back, already anticipating Luke's arrival after she'd contacted him. She gives Orson a quick, sympathetic look before striding a few steps toward the ramp. "We're in here. Come on up," she calls, putting on a pleasant expression and folding her hands behind her back. "Though, I think you two have actually met before... Orson Tighe, who is employed by Talon Karrde..." She trails off, clearing her throat before finishing the introduction. "This is the Jedi Master, Luke Skywalker." "Tatooine," Orson supplies, with a wave of his hand, sliding his hand along the ledge of his datapad screen, turning it off. Jessalyn's nervous posture encourages him to stand from his spot behind the holochess table, the frequent command center and planning spot for the ship's operational missions. Face neutral, he dips his head slightly in a nod. "And of course, you might remember me from the other day." Despite the seriousness about him, something is amusing to the broad shouldered mechanic. Luke's cloak cascades around him as he shifts his view from one to the other. "Indeed, yes I remember," he smiles brightly to Orson, trying to offset their mutual unease. "An interesting man, Talon Karrde." He dismisses the thought with a wave of his hand, however, and continues. "Yet you are what is important today, Master Tighe. I do apologize for the steps I felt were necessary to protect you from Simon," he continues, and it's an effort not to glance at Jessalyn as he mentions the newly birth Sith. "Your safety was paramount, and Simon was more skilled with his weapon than I would have first believed. A formidable opponent, not one to try to cut your teeth with a lightsaber." The red-haired Jedi cuts a sharp glance toward Luke, something passing between them through the Force that the woman carefully keeps hidden from Orson's perceptions. There's a hint of disapproval, but an acknowledgment that as a Jedi she would never disagree with him in front of others. She keeps her expression smooth as she folds her long arms over her chest and shifts her weight subtly from one foot to the other. "I think we all made mistakes that we regret on that day," she inserts softly, wanting to defuse any lingering resentments between the two men. The two men she respects most in the universe. How frustrating for them to be at odds with each other when on the inside they were so similar. "We should focus on the present to try to correct them." While somewhat new to the Force, he's not new to reading people in general, particularly one he knows this well, and he follows the direction of Jessalyn's steady glance, frowning at the body language being exchanged. His mouth opens and his chest fills as the man prepares his riposte to Luke, but Jessalyn blocks the attack and he's forced to restart. With that moment of thought -- he did promise her, after all -- Orson reworks what he was saying, in his mind. "Yes, I would like to think that things could have been better all around," the smaller-framed man says finally. "But it's done." Orson gives a nod that seems to mean he considers this topic resolved, and waves Luke further in the ship. "Please, come in," he greets with a new voice. "Make yourself comfortable." Luke stares at Jessalyn as she's trying to send him a combination of body language and feelings through the Force but is genuinely oblivious. Even in the subtle manipulations of the Force, the difference between male and female can be quite.. frusterating. And yet, he does a mental shrug, figuring he will hear about it later. He turns to Orson, once again mentally making note that the fellow was capable of changing his train of thought, a valueable skill. Few enough in his every-day life know how to not speak their mind when needed. A glance to Jessalyn, and another mental shrug. Accepting the invite with a graceous nod he comes on board the ship taking a brief look around the interrior. "Thank you, Orson, if I may call you that? Things could have been better, yes, but they could have been worse. I do not think any mistakes were made," this time he can't help but glance at Jessalyn, "At least none that are not understandable in hind sight." Changing the subject, he quickly continues. "So, you must tell me where you aquired a Jedi weapon? If you constructed one yourself, you are further along in your training than I was lead to believe." The insinuation that Jessalyn lied to him makes her bristle, and she stares at the back of Luke's head as he passes by her and enters the main hold of the ship. Her eyes widen and her lips press thinly together as she just manages to keep her temper from flaring. Taking a steadying breath, she follows after Luke, then takes a seat at the holochess table where Orson was sitting before. She folds her hands on top of the table and considers them both. "Orson has a remarkable ability with machines, Luke," she informs him. "It was how I first discovered he has the Force-gift. He was like a beacon, working on his ship. No way I could miss it." She smiles over at Orson, remembering the shock, and the resultant damage to the ship because of it. "That one wasn't mine," Orson admits with a qualifier, scooting back to his seat at the holochess table. There isn't much duplicity in the man, but his manner with conversation is not particularly revealing. Extensive lightsaber plans and four almost working prototypes are tucked away in different parts of the ship. "It belongs to ... Mira, Simon's travelling companion." A frown plays on his lips, another unanswered question percolating through the conversation. "Former travelling companion, I guess." The man looks from Luke to Jessalyn again, eavesdropping in on more of the body language conversation. "Orson is good," he suddenly declares. "I've always called you Skywalker, but then ... I haven't known you in person. Luke? Master Skywalker? Perhaps there's something else, more formal." His gray eyes flick to Jessalyn, a completely blank look there, and he turns back to Luke. Openning himself up to the receptiveness of the Force, Luke passively measures Orson's strength and compares it to that resonating from Jessalyn. Strong, but unfocused, like a river dancing down a winding path that robs it of its forceful energy at its mountain birth. "He is strong," he comments, more so to Jessalyn. "Perhaps even stronger than you," he says matter-of-factly, "and you have the most potential I have to date met." "If you so wish, Orson," he continues squaring himself to face the man, "You may continue to be trained as part of the Jedi Order. Of course, you will have to obey by its scriptures and law, even before you are formally inducted. Too much ruin has come by my not enforcing this strongly enough." Years of age seem to grow on the Jedi's face as he speaks, yet a smile blooms, gentle and soft on his lips. "Jedi Knight Jessalyn has begun your training, and has agreed to continue to train you as her Apprentice. I see no reason to alter this arrangement, so long as you agree to be bound by our laws, and that it is what you wish to be done." A look of surprise crosses Jessalyn's face, and she glances at Luke, unphased by his assessment of her powers. The last thing she wants to be is the most powerful Jedi. But the prospect of training someone more powerful than she... she had already witnessed the speed with which Orson picked up on his new talents. Yet, they had established such a strong relationship already, it would have been difficult if Luke had decided otherwise. "Thank you," she says to the Jedi Master, her brow wrinkled with slight puzzlement. "Orson deserves this chance, more than anyone else I've met." That thought brings up a new one which she'd been meaning to ask Luke ever since her return. "Tell me, have you trained... any others since I disappeared? It's been so long, I could only assume that you have." Orson Tighe traces a longitudinal line along the holochess board with his finger, feeling at the seam between two squares. His mind wheels suddenly forward. He hadn't expected this exactly, and certainly hadn't expected to feel gratitude toward Skywalker. His head feels like when a matrix of cologarithms snap into place in his mind, except on a much larger scale. "I do desire further training," he says, face flushed and voice solemn. "I've read and studied, and will agree to, erm, scriptures and law, though I admit I need more study there." He doesn't want to put his instructor on the spot. Or reveal some inadequacy in his own approach, so he simply nods. Indeed, Jessalyn has spent quite a lot of time emphasizing the nature of the Force and the role of the Jedi. Orson's firsthand view of the Dark Side at work only a few days ago was deterrent enough to keep him from that path in either case. Luke impishly grins, the farmboy in him coming to the seems; after all it was not all that long ago he took his first ride in the Falcon. "Good then, it is settled. Jessalyn, I expect you to make Orson into the model of the Jedi Order that you have become. And Orson, I expect you to obey, listen, and learn. The only thing I ask of both of you is in the initial stages to allow me to help in training with regards to defense of self. I simply want to make sure you understand the balance of the Force before you become a danger to yourself, or others." He resists bouncing on his heals, only by so much. "I am happy to have you onboard, Orson, and I do not expect you to know and obey all the scriptures tomorrow; you will come to them in time, and we will guide you. I can forsee a time when you shall be known as a Jedi Knight. And it's just Luke." Yet another grin at his own inside joke, a pitty the other two droids weren't here that would understand it. Standing up, Jessalyn walks over to Luke's side and hugs him gently by the shoulders. "Thanks," she says simply, surprised at his generosity, and a little ashamed of herself for being as defensive as she was earlier. She offers a silent apology through the Force, as well as an obvious offer to speak in private later. "I'll do my best. You won't be disappointed." She tries to ignore the ache in her soul that resists taking on such a heavy burden, pushing her feelings almost cruelly aside for Orson's sake. "I'm uh, happy to be onboard," the mechanic says, adopting Luke's own language. With this type of talk, it seemed like there ought to be a Jedi Human Resources department that immediately snatched him up for orientation and had him filling out dataforms. Aside from the slight buzzing in the back of his mind, he felt no different. His observation of Jessalyn, however, gives him pause, and the scene of them fighting Simon flashes through his mind. She didn't need extra burden now. Their friendship would have to be strong, a foundation ... Orson jerks back to Luke. "You've dined this evening, already, I suppose?" Orson dangles, halfway making a polite offer. With a slight shake of his head, Luke responds. "I have not yet, but Leia is expecting me to join them. I've missed the last three times," he says with a cringe, "I don't think I have it within me to miss a fourth. Thank you for the offer, however." He turns briefly to smile at Jessalyn and says, "Take care to not waste much time in training your apprentice. This place will have to do for now, as the Academy is no longer safe. I will tell you about the students trained there, and what happened, later." A brief pause, and he clears his mind of the dark memories that suddenly flash into his mind. Serenity is forced to the forefront of his thoughts and he says, "I have to save myself a scolding, and you have to keep up with your training. I am happy to have you aboard, Orson, and look forward to helping you grow in your abilities. Take care." And with out so much further adieu, he turns and heads back down the ramp, drawing up the cowl on his cloak. Orson watches him go, staring down the ramp. "I will be a Jedi then," he says quietly, voice still solemn. He leans forward and scoops Jessalyn forward with an embrace, leaving his strange vibe about Luke unspoken for the time. Perhaps Jedi Masters were just that eccentric. Jessalyn also watches the Jedi Master depart, as surprised as Orson by his behavior. She gives a mild shrug at the same time the mechanic embraces her, and she laughs, turning to give him a hug in return. "You will be. I'll do my best, Orson. We'll be learning a lot together." She pats his back and closes her eyes, leaning her head into the curve of his neck.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)