Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 13, 2016 13:53:22 GMT -8
Adelle blinked, an earthy scent like a fresh fallen rain flooding her senses as Na'an wrapped her arms tightly around her sides. Really, it was all she could do. Na'an had buried her face in her shoulder, the heat from her skin and her breath warming the fabric of her shirt. Just as suddenly, Na'an fled the room as she muttered beneath her breath. Adelle watched her leave, her mouth slightly ajar as she tried to work out what had just happened. In the years she had known Na'an, physical touch was not the woman's strong suit. Bemused, she looked at Leigh, her jaw working to get out words. Finally her brain latched onto a single word.
"What?"
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 10, 2016 17:23:48 GMT -8
Something akin to a sigh escaped Adelle. She stepped forward as he backed up. "I don't think I made myself clear, so I'll use words you'll understand."
She leaned forward. "What is your designation and your primary directive?"
She silently prayed that she was wrong and he was just an HRD with an unfortunate choice of alias. That Na'an didn't have any new fresh hells waiting for her. The sinking feeling in her gut said there were too many coincidences to be the case. If she was right . . .
Na'an, leave.
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 10, 2016 16:53:40 GMT -8
Adelle closed her eyes and took a deep breath, standing up. She'd been vaguely aware of his approach, the smell of blood and death clinging to the air around him. The A.I. identified the man as Formidonis and he looked how his records had shown him, how Na'an had described him, minus the fresh cut in the center of his forehead. He carried at least three weapons, making armed to the teeth an understatement. His Force signature, however, was little better than the ferns outside. Several things began adding up and Adelle pressed her lips into a thin line. One: Rutil was a man of strict adherence to rules and security. If Formidonis had been detained under his authority, there was no getting out of it. Two: Na'an had fatally injured Formidonis, according to her story. He should have massive cybernetic implants. Three: It was entirely possible Formidonis really had been detained and escaped.
But there was no alarm and no call for his arrest.
She inclined her head by way of greeting, getting a feel for her lightsaber hilt in the Force. The Oracle A.I. was complicit in this; and if this was a droid impersonating Formidonis, she'd only heard of one other droid doing the same.
"I am finished with the Oracle," she said. "What is the nature of your purpose here?"
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 8, 2016 18:10:49 GMT -8
Adelle frowned but gave a prompt answer. "Information and confession. I was unaware that Master Iorek had restructured protocol for this."
All prisoners. Something was very wrong. Rutil hadn't been AWOL for very long: a year at most. Where was he taking prisoners and under what jurisdiction?
"Will you be needing legal identification for this . . . verification process?" She thought for a moment. "Unrelated, how many prisoners does the Praxeum now hold?"
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 8, 2016 17:14:47 GMT -8
Adelle nodded at the revelation. She hadn't even been on planet then. The Mandalorian crusaders attacked while she had been on Felucia, encountering Na'an for the first time if she recalled correctly. Before that, she'd spent six months on Honoghr. From what she'd read in reports, the blockade and ground attack had been fierce. The masters must have been desperate for extra defenses.
The A.I. spoke of Formidonis and Adelle focused on the spherical projection the A.I. chose to represent itself. Her eyebrows raised at the word 'prohibited.' She'd expected restricted, perhaps even under escort or supervision. Outright prohibition smacked of . . . secrecy. Na'an's misgivings started to feel more like her own.
"Reasons listed for the prohibition?"
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 8, 2016 15:25:34 GMT -8
The artificial voice caught her off guard. Adelle swung the chair around to face the projection that hovered over a seemingly blank table. That was definitely new. She kept her face neutral as she addressed the unknown entity.
"I received a tip that a wanted fugitive was being held on planet," Adelle said, a clipped military tone to her words. "Known alias Aherk Formidonis. I have instructions to find and interrogate him."
Something didn't sit well with her about this A.I. construct. For starters, she couldn't ever remember it being here in the Strategy Centre. And she didn't really think Master Man'sell had been the type to entrust total security of the Praxeum to a single artificial construct. Having a single point of failure in a security system didn't seem like one of his usually well-thought out plans. "Unrelated query: when was the date of your installation here? I don't recall the Praxeum having an integrated A.I."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 6, 2016 14:19:34 GMT -8
Adelle turned a corner and found herself staring at the entrance to the Strategy Centre. The black tail of a serpent disappeared under the door as it finished squeezing underneath while small clouds of green mist rolled out. The Jedi Knight blinked once and again but no amount of blinking made the green mist—the poison from a previous vision—go away. Cautiously, Adelle put her hand up against the cold durasteel door. Her fingers hummed as the room beyond seemed to thrum like a taut cord that's been struck. But the feeling she got was more telling: an icy rock dropped into her gut and the polar temperature took her breath away. Adelle removed her hand from the door and stared at it, silently willing it to reveal its secret. A keypad next to the door glowed dully in the blood-stained light of the dying sun. Adelle hovered her hand over the numbers, closed her eyes, and focused. Lingering traces of a repeated pattern clung to the plastoid. She hunted the pattern down through the Force, her fingers twitching as she found and moved into the flow. They tapped the keys with a sharp motion as she followed the pattern. She exhaled as she hit the last button, looking at the door to see if she'd triggered the door or the alarm.
Nothing immediate happened. Adelle ground her teeth, tensing in anticipation. Before the fall of Yavin, she could have accessed the Strategy Centre—or at least limited features of it—with a simple Knight level clearance. Master Iorek had to have changed the security, especially if he was letting unsavory characters join whatever operation he was running.
The door hissed open. Adelle breathed a small sigh of relief and stepped inside, flicking on the lights. A black snake head lunged at her, mouth wide. She batted it away—or tried to. Her hand went through the snake's body as if the snake was just made of air. It hissed at her then recoiled inside a darkened screen. Green poison began to roll out of the monitor, spilling onto the controls below and cascading off the desk. Adelle blinked then shut her eyes and rubbed her forehead. When she opened her eyes again, both the snake and the poison were gone. The icy pit she'd felt in her stomach returned. She had a bad feeling about this.
Adelle sat down at the controls and turned on the monitor. Na'an had said Aherk was present on Yavin and badly hurt. If that was the case, Adelle wanted to find him first. Somewhere in Yavin's logs, his name ought to have been recorded. Meanwhile, it wouldn't hurt to probe into why the Strategy Center had caused the two visions.
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Nov 3, 2016 18:31:52 GMT -8
Her trip down the halls to the Medical Centre had been uneventful, if alarming. Most of the people she passed were not Jedi nor wore the usual uniforms the non-Sensitive staff used. More worryingly, most had the look of an escaped convict or mercenaries. Some eyed her warily, some nodded a greeting. Mostly they just noticed the gunmetal grey hilt hanging off her belt and let her be. Whatever operation Rutil was running here, it wasn't restoring the temple in any sense of the word. The halls emptied as she walked on, boots almost silent against the worn floor. She turned left and stopped short.
A heavy green mist cascaded from vents above and hung low over the floor. Skeletons lay scattered across the stone floor, hilts in their hands. Most looked like they were trying to escape. Adelle paled and took a step back, blinking. The hall ahead of her was clean and as empty as the rest of the corridors around her. Red sunlight filtered in from high windows, bathing the hall in crimson. Adelle leaned back against a wall, trying to collect her thoughts. She hadn't been sleeping much the last few days: it could've been a sleep-deprived hallucination. Something didn't feel right though. As if she could smell the poison she saw.
The slender black tail of a snake whipped around a corner and disappeared from sight. Adelle sighed and let her head fall back against the wall, eyes closed. Someone might as well grab the creature and put it outside before someone hurt it. She pushed herself off the wall and followed down the hallways away from the Medical Centre, looking for the black serpent she'd seen.
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 31, 2016 22:07:35 GMT -8
Na'an looked intently at their hands and Adelle watched her face with the same focus. Her rigid stance and wide-eyed expression of a few moments ago relaxed somewhat as her whole body seemed to breathe. Her thumbs wrapped around Na'an's as she spoke. Adelle listened to every word she said and the words she left unsaid.
"I understand." Adelle cocked her head to consider Leigh then met Na'an's gaze again. "I'm only your healer this time around. Your 'doc.' You think it's about to get nasty, I'll get back on the ship. But neither of us will take unnecessary risks. Agreed?"
She held out her hand for Na'an to shake on it.
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 31, 2016 19:16:41 GMT -8
Adelle staggered and fell to one knee as Na'an yanked one of her feet out from under her. She lost the grip on the arm lock, allowing the other woman to break free and scramble to her feet. Na'an cocked a foot back for a kick. Adelle raised her arms to catch the foot as it came forward. But it never did. She let Na'an and Leigh have it out for a moment then launched herself at Na'an, getting in Na'an's face and holding either side of her jaw gently.
"Na'an." She tinged the name with the Force to grab Na'an's full attention. The steel grey iris met hers. "I chose to follow. I am here as support only." She released Na'an's face and stepped back to allow the woman some room. "You've had a bad feeling about this for a while. I'm coming to make sure you survive. Unless you have a complete and sterilized set of field surgery equipment."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 31, 2016 18:59:24 GMT -8
Adelle sat cross-legged on the bunk, hands on her knees in a relaxed pose. Na'an and Leigh had already gathered their things and disembarked. The quiet and the rush of hot jungle air blowing in from the ramp's corridor eased her body and helped further her meditation. But her focus had gone from restoring her center to analyzing Master Rutil. His presence felt much the same as it had whenever she'd run into him: solid, commanding, unyielding. But something wasn't quite right. She couldn't put her finger on it but she felt something prick her senses like the tip of a vibroblade and disappear when she tried to hone in on it. Rutil's self-assured righteousness made it difficult to discern his motive for calling Na'an here.
Something smooth, clammy, and scaly slithered over her lap. Adelle's eyes flew open and down. A large black python slid over her legs and down the edge of the mattress, hiding under the bunk. Someone left the ramp open too long if Yavin's natives were already climbing aboard. When the tip of the python's tail disappeared, Adelle stood up quickly and walked over to the lockers, pulling off her tunic and sash to reveal the armorweave she wore underneath. She opened the locker and pulled out the small bag. A worried Na'an was not a good omen for a mysterious trip and so she had done the logical thing: packed her own surprise. Adelle pulled out the bag she'd brought on board and took off her pants as well. The armor plates absorbed the light, the color seeming to shift from charcoal to a greenish-grey to a blue-grey. Adelle closed her eyes and gripped the first plate tight, standing frozen for a moment or two. Then she slapped it on her forearm and started attaching the rest of the armor before she changed her mind. She tugged on the tunic and cargo pants back over it, retying her sash. Just as well her clothes were mostly baggy. The ace literally up her sleeves would do her no good if everyone knew about it.
A flicker of motion in her peripheral caught her eye. It seems her python friend had grown tired and flicked its tail as it left the bunks. She fasted the utility belt with all her medical supplies around her waist and went to follow Na'an. As she walked into the empty hangar—odd, it showed recent signs of use and repair—she clapped a hand on the captain's shoulder.
"Thanks for getting us here in one piece," she said. "Please don't wander off too far. I'd like to have the option of a fast exit."
Without waiting for his reply, she walked further into the temple. Na'an and Rutil could wait: the medical centre called to her.
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 28, 2016 19:34:27 GMT -8
The tempo of the Force suddenly sped up to breath-taking speeds. Adelle barely managed to dodge the first couple strikes before she fell into a Soresu-like defense, moving with Na'an as she moved. Even so, Na'an moved blindingly fast. A hit landed just left of her sternum. She grunted and blocked the next few until Na'an mentioned Aherk. Adelle paused and another fist found her lower ribs. Na'an did not let up, still throwing haymakers."I just—"Adelle ducked left."—Can't—"She blocked the swing."—Risk that—"Using a touch of Force Speed, Adelle grabbed Na'an's wrist with both hands, bringing her right elbow to rest on top of the other woman's. She stepped forward and brought her elbow down, keeping a tight grip on the wrist near her own neck. If it worked, Na'an's arm would be locked, she would fall, and Adelle would have all the leverage."And you think facing Aherk alone would do you any good? You think it'll heal you? Give you some closure?"
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 28, 2016 17:52:33 GMT -8
Adelle felt a shift in the flow of the Force soon after she and Na'an fell. Gone were the familiar patterns and grooves. The current came more organically, spontaneously. Na'an rolled on top of her in a typical grappling mount, one hand still securing Adelle's arm and the other cocked back. Adelle bucked her hips and arched her back, her shoulders off the floor as she twisted her body. Hopefully, that would both loosen Na'an's damn grip on her arm and throw her off the mounted position.
"No, but it's not like you were going to tell me," she said, panting. She pushed herself into a low crouch. "Been avoiding me all week."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 28, 2016 12:28:24 GMT -8
Adelle grabbed her own wrist as Na'an moved to pin the arm, blocking any attempt to leverage it into a submission. She felt Na'an shift behind her as she hooked her right leg behind Na'an's ankle and pulled. "—since he went AWOL. Yes, I know."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 28, 2016 11:51:37 GMT -8
Adelle deflected the jabbing forearm away from her body with a hand and stepped back as Na'an stepped forward. "Your emotions were enough. Fear. Confusion. Anxiety."
She punched at Na'an in rapid succession: one, two, three. "Something horrible's on Yavin. You don't know what."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 27, 2016 19:54:50 GMT -8
The smile did not fool Adelle. She took up a southpaw stance, hands low and open in front of her chest. The armor weave underneath her clothes stretched tight across her skin. Hopefully the plates wouldn't catch on the fabric. "Remember who taught you the set."
She launched into the first strike rapidly. "You're upset with me. Explain."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 27, 2016 18:33:38 GMT -8
The small field surgery kit stayed in her hands as Na'an entered and spoke too loudly. Adelle could hear the frustration in her voice, the fear, the anxiety. She turned and sat on the edge of the bed, resting her elbows on her knees. Might as well answer Na'an directly.
"When it was too late to turn back," she said. "I figured you'd react like . . . this."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 26, 2016 15:55:06 GMT -8
The wires and unattached plates did not inspire confidence but Adelle kept her mouth shut as the captain led the way to the bunk rooms. The stench of stale carbon-scoring filled her nostrils. Fortunately, it appeared he—or someone—had begun repairs first in this area. It could be that the captain was having to do this himself as he could afford it. She stepped inside the indicated room and looked around: clean sheets, no signs of unwanted critters, or other damage. The broken locks gave her pause; Na'an and Leigh wouldn't be an issue but leaving items behind unsecured left a bad taste in her mouth. Some of the medical items she had were unique to the med center here on Felucia and replacing them would be impossible. She stowed her bag in a locker, closing the door and watched it pop ajar just a hair. Maybe she could stash most of the stuff in the utility belt.
Right. Because the utility belt was the only piece she was bringing.
"Thank you sir," she said, turning to the captain. "I'll be staying here until we're ready to take off."
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 25, 2016 19:44:01 GMT -8
Adelle placed a hand on top of Morgan's head. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Behave for your father."
She walked up the ramp, picked up her bag, and walked inside the ship.
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Adelle Bastiel
Member
Right or wrong? I can hardly tell. I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell.
Posts: 338
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Post by Adelle Bastiel on Oct 25, 2016 17:39:59 GMT -8
Adelle pressed her lips into a thin line. She had hoped to avoid this. Adelle strode back to the base of the ramp but stopped short at her adopted daughter's incredulous question.
"I am," she said, raising her eyebrows. "You're up early."
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