Anoth's Open Orbit

Stormro smiled as he sensed his apprentice's unease and trepidation through the Force; her concerns were hardly unfounded, and yet she trusted him and his answers enough to follow. Granted, it was hardly as if she had any other option at the moment, but he had seen enough individuals freeze up when confronted with the reality of what lurked in the shadows of the galaxy to know that even when given no choice some would have balked. “Indeed...” He had his own misgivings, but he saw no reason to undermine her confidence by sharing his concerns beyond what he had already divulged. If she sought out knowledge and actively asked he would indulge her, but otherwise he intended to play his cards close to his chest as he usually did. Nel shared his curious nature, and in time he knew that she would seek out the answers to any question she might have; all he had to do was wait.

“If you have no other questions, we had best be on our way. The sooner we can locate a suitable location the sooner we can begin creating more suitable facilities as well as proper quarters for the both of us. Thus far we have made due with what I have retained aboard the Wraith and the Unseen Eye, but my studies require more dedicated facilities, and your training would benefit from not being contained entirely within the confines of a starship...” With that he turned and made his way out of the laboratory, retracing the path they had taken through the eerily silent ship towards the hanger without bothering to check to make sure that Nel was following.

Stormro smirked as Nel spoke behind him; as he had predicted, additional questions would come in time as his apprentice's curiosity was piqued. As they entered the hanger and crossed the empty expanse towards his ship the landing ramp of the Wraith lowered to allow them access. "I study a variety of things. Technically those two replica droids are extensions of my studies, although they are hardly the main focus. While I have several projects underway at any given moment, the most...resource intensive one is still in its earliest stages due to the limitations of my current facilities, and that is my efforts to dissect the workings of the Force and the Midichlorians in order to eventually recreate them within an artificial environment. If I am successful, then even droids such as Belbe will be able to sense and wield the Force." He said it with a casualness which belied the profound significance that such an accomplishment would represent, while also stating it with such assurance that one would almost be tempted to accept it as a simple truth rather than an effort which rattled the very foundations of the natural laws by which the galaxy seemed to operate. Making their way up the ramp into the ship, he led the way towards the cockpit as he continued speaking. "The theory is rather simple in all honesty, but putting said theory into practice is proving to be rather...less so..."

Sliding into the pilot's chair Stormro began running through the preflight checklist, flipping switches and adjusting settings accordingly as he continued to speak. "It would seem that the Midichlorians are not entirely predisposed towards bonding with the hosts that I have been able to provide thus far, which is why I need larger facilities with which to design and manufacture new variants. In addition, for as small as they are mass producing sufficient quantities of Midichlorians is proving to be more resource intensive than I initially predicted, further compounding the situation seeing as the Midichlorians tend to perish shortly after rejecting the provided hosts..." Gone was his usual mask of diplomacy and ingratiation, replaced entirely with the vestiges of an incredibly gifted academic and scientist who was rattling on about his work with a trusted colleague.

Stormro smiled with amusement as he gently lifted the Wraith off of the hanger floor and guided it out of the Unseen Eye towards the dead surface below. Nel's reactions were, as always, wonderfully amusing and the Nagaian Sith Lord delighted in drawing them from her. As he did so, the six Majestic-class Heavy Cruisers began maneuvering into the space between the three massive chunks of Anoth, concealing themselves within what was once the planet's core as Belbe notified Phantom's ship that she advised that they conceal themselves as well. Making their way down towards the planet, Stormro continued as the sleek craft began entering Anoth's deadly atmosphere. "A reasonable hypothesis, but one which is unlikely given the existence of Force-sensitive Shards from the planet Orax. They are a crystalline, silicon-based lifeform which has shown the capability to produce individuals who can feel the Force, which lends credence to the theory that the Midi-chlorians can exist outside of organic beings. You are correct, however, in your observation that Force sensitivity does tend to be the exclusive to organic beings. Tell me, what do you know of the Midi-chlorians and how they function?" He was curious as to how much his apprentice knew of the microscopic symbiotes and their connection to the beings with which they coexisted; Not only would an understanding of what she already knew help him to better explain what he was attempting, but it might also reveal Nel to be a suitable assistant. Much of his research and efforts towards artificial Force-sensitivity was based upon this relationship, and it was the lack of such a relationship that was causing many of his problems with the current iteration of the project. Once he navigated this particular hurdle Stormro was confident that he would be able to produce meaningful results.  

The correction made her look away and towards the window of the cockpit, watching things move and shift as they themselve moved into place. She was partly correct, at least, and a small amount of pride filled her chest. She kept herself from leaning back in the seat, as the bruises on her shoulder blades ached slightly and would only hurt more if she put pressure on them. A year on Kashyyk... It seemed so much simpler now then what they were dealing with, with what she was dealing with.A part of her missed it. She looked at the control panel in front of her, thinking of what she knew.

"It's... been a long time since I did any reading on it or learned about it... but they're what allows Force sensitive individuals to exist in a way. Without them, we wouldn't be able to use the Force. It's theorized that life wouldn't be able to exist without Midi-chlorians." Force sensitivity... Talking about it made her remember just how weak she was in that department. What had made the Jedi take her in for training, exactly? She didn't have the answer for that. The Zabrak folded her arms over her chest, looking deep in thought. "Midi-chlorians are often studied by Jedi-healers and non Jedi medical professionals alike into how they work and stuff like that."

Was that really all Nel knew? She scrambled in her own mind for more. She knew more about the topic then that! She knew she did! The knowledge was just buried under a lot of other things, it felt like, keeping her from accessing it. She put her face in her hand, rubbing at the bridge of her nose as she tried to remember. "I was often told that if I quieted myself and listened, they would speak to me... Not sure how that works, really, but... That's all I can really remember at the moment."

She looked over to the man apologetically. She wanted to be of help, to show she wasn't stupid, but she really felt like she'd failed that task. "Sorry, Master. Like I said, it's been a while."

They believed him dead? That would explain the reaction by several in the room; they had seen a ghost just as she had. She drained the last of her drink and set it down on the cil beside her. The fact that he had been dead and returned to the living perturbed her in a peculiar way. She had, to an extent returned from a place on the very cusp of the abyss but she had whole heartedly believed that Eli had been unable to do the same or had he?

Peculiar? How so?

Aysa made a move to speak but his raised hand silenced her before she made a sound. She sat back in her chair and listened, her brow furrowing a little with confusion.

Being found amid the ruins of a building isn’t that strange, so it must be as you said, it’s who he is rather than where he was found. I don’t see why Phantom and Ferinus would be pissed at you though, you gave your apprentice a job to do.

She was getting side tracked. None of what Ver’metus had told her brought her any closer to the answers she thought she was looking for.

Aysa raised her eyebrow with genuine surprise as Ver’metus spoke of Makhai’s mission. So the boy had a spine it seemed; killing his father, even if it was at the behest of his master, but the fact that he was kin to several members of this new found alliance, put a different spin on it. She shrugged lightly and refilled her glass.

“Name, rank, title, bank balance; all of that doesn’t mean shit if you deserve to die.”

Well you clearly couldnt trust him if he ended up dead, but alas, what's done is done. I dont think I've ever regretted killing somebody. I've regretted keeping people alive but they've ultimately ended up dead so I guess that makes the regret nul and void to an extent. But those that I've killed, me myself, no regrets at all.

Aysa chuckled at his raised eyebrow and shrugged her shoulders lightly.

The first kill itself was easy. The emotional aftermath though that’s a different story. But you learn to deal with it and it stops impacting you after a while, you learn to carry on as normal with safe in the knowledge that you did what had to be done. I’ve no shame in saying it, why should I? I’m a firm believer in those that pass the sentence should swing the sword. Those that give only the order to kill hold no true power.