LegendsLog:Felucian Chemistry, Part 1
Felucian Chemistry: Part 1 - Death from Felucia
OOC Date: September 22, 2017
Location: Felucia
Participants: Hart Valhoun, Padawan Dumas,
Normally, Jedi Master Hart being called for an emergency meetings with the Jedi Council is nothing abnormal. Yet what is strange is that the Grand Master of the Jedi Order has requested that Jedi Padawan Dumas accompany Master Hart to the meeting. As the Jedi Masters of the Order file in to the Council Chambers, each take their respective seat. However one of the Masters is unable to attent, leaving the seat vacant for the time.
"Don't slouch, Dumas," Hart says, making his way into the council chambers, tucking his hands into his sleeves. He moves to take his usual seat, grunting a bit as he does so.
Dumas follows behind his Master staying always two steps behind and one step to the left. He nods his head at his Master's directions though he doesn't slouch as a rule. Of course, his Master didn't know him well yet and therefore Dumas assumed the comment was more precautionary than corrective. "Yes, Master," Dumas states realizing that Master Hart cannot see his nod. As he enters the chamber, Dumas stops near the door and steps to the side so as to be out of the way. He keeps his head tilted slightly to the side and down so that his face is not pointed at anyone.
When everyone has filed into the room and taken their seats, Jedi Grand Master Bastila Shan begins the meeting by addressing the Council. "I apologize for taking you away from your regular duties. However recent intelligence from the Republic have revealed dire news. The Sith Empire has for the past three months been making a chemical weapon of immense power that could devastate front line soldiers in just a few seconds." As she speaks, many of the Masters look towards each other nervously. For the Grand Master to summon the Council with intelligence like this... This could be bad.
"Normally such a weapon would not be of great concern, however the reports indicate that the chemical is capable of making it's way through the Republic Troopers Filtration systems." Having said that, she looks around the Council to weight their reactions.
Hart Valhoun leans forward in his seat, resting a single hand on his knee as he turns himself towards the Grand Master. He smacks his lips as he considers, but doesn't comment just yet.
Dumas places his hands behind his back as he hears this news. He remains silent though already his brain is at work. It is good that this intelligence has come to the attention of the Grand Master. He wonders how she learned this and more importantly what else she knows. Before he allows his brain to run to far ahead, he decides patience is best.
"This is grave news indeed, Master Shan." One Jedi states, nodding his head in agreement. With that, Jedi Master Shan would peer towards the Jedi Master before continuing on. "The chemical is developed along a strain of flora found in the planet Felucia. Though it appears the Sith Empire have already left their outpost on the planets surface. The weapon is nearly complete and will be mobilited by the end of this month." It is already half a week from the end of the month.
"The end of the month? You can't be serious, can you?" Another Jedi Master speaks up, tilting his head at Jedi Master Shan. "Unfortunately so." Master Shan would reply. "The Republic is already taking two courses of action in response to this. First, they plan on trying a direct assault on the research facility to sabotage their reseach." She pauses for a moment before continuing on. "The second is to send a secret Operations Team to the surface of Felucia to study a possible method to counter the weapon."
"Reasonable," Master Valhoun muses, his hand tapping idly on his knee. "And what recourse would you suggest we take, Master Shan?" Hart asks, an eyebrow raising as he awaits a response.
Dumas listens carefully to all of this. His calm face showing no reaction. Miraluka are not particularly know for emotional outbursts. While he understands why Master Hart was called, he has no idea why he was summoned. Perhaps he is just here to listen and learn about the proceedings of the council for some reason of their own designs.
"We must intervene. If we allow the Sith to use a weapon against the Republic, the resulting death and suffering is too great to ignore." Master Shan would say, responding to Master Valhoun. With her statement comes a wildly agreed upon consensus. There are some who oppose the decision for a moment, countering with viable arguements. Though, that would not last long.
"We will send a handful of select Jedi Knights to coordinate with and assist the Strike Team. However, Felucia is a dangerous planet." She would continue, explaining the situation in further detail. "The Operations Team sent to investigate the counter measure for this chemical will likely not be successful without the help of the Jedi Order."
"I volunteer myself and Padawan Dumas to assist with the efforts on Felucia. He's young, but his ties to the Force will prove invaluable on a planet such as Felucia," Master Valhoun says, nodding as he concludes.
"Thank you Master Valhoun." Jedi Master Shan would say, looking over at the man as she spoke. With a bob of her head, she looks to the rest of the Council to weight their reactions. Again, a few of the Jedi Masters refute the decision, though even less so than prior. If there is a volunteer and it is agreed that this mission needs to be supported, then there is little arguement against it. Although their are some implications that Dumas is not ready for such a mission, those comments too are refuted quickly.
With everyone in agreement, Master Shan looks towards Padawan Dumas and Master Valhoun. "I do not need to remind you that this mission will be dangerous. However it is absolutely critical that we react swiftly. Please, leave as quickly as you are ready." Master Shan would say, then address Hart more directly. "The details will be sent to your quarters."
Dumas has heard of Felucia though he will definitely need to read about it. When Master Hart says that his ties to the Force will be invaluable, Dumas' eyebrows go up slightly which is a large measure of surprise on his part. He cannot possiblyl imagine how his meager skills could be of benefit on such an assignment or to Jedi Masters and Knights. That is something he will have to ponder as well.
Hart Valhoun nods as the rest of the Council eventually come to an agreement and turns his attention back to Bastila. "Has the Republic already dispatched the operatives to the area?"
"They have." Master Shan would say, responding towards Hart. Her eyes flicker to Dumas to weight his reaction to everything that has been said already. Though, her gaze wouldn't linger for long before she looks back at Master Valhoun. "The Team has only just left, however. If my understanding of their itinerary is correct, they should be landing on Felucia by nightfall today." The explanation comes just as calm and serene as one would expect from a Master of the Jedi Order. Even more so, given her status as Grand Master. "You will need to leave quickly if you are to arrive before them." With that said, the Council discusses a few more quick points before the meeting is fully adjurned.
"Indeed," Hart says, standing up from his chair as the meeting comes to a close. Nobody else present gets his attention aside from Dumas, who he walks over to. "Padawan, report to the shuttle bay and make sure one is prepped for us as soon as possible. I'll be along shortly." He dips his head to the Miralukan and disappears out of the door.
Dumas remains silent the entire time and tries to react as little as possible though for someone as skilled as Shan she would probably see his surprise. He bows low to the entire Council before bowing again to his Master. "Yes, Master Valhoun." Once Hart leaves the room, Dumas nods to the Council again before turning to follow him. Once out of the Council Chambers, he immediately makes his way towards the shuttle.
Hart would find in his room, already that there is a datapad on his bed waiting for him. It would seem Master Shan had already planned on you and your Padawan leaving for Felucia. The datapad would contain information about the planet, the itinerary for the Operations Team along with a run down of who was involved, along with any other necessary information about the mission.
Padawan Dumas would find that similar preparations have been made. There is already a shuttle waiting for the two of you, with some of your basic provisions loaded in the cargo hold. Upon arrival at the shuttle bay, Dumas would be greeted by a young female Jedi Padawan who bows her head at him the moment he enters the bay. "Master Shan told me to have this shuttle ready for you. She said it was urgent. I hope you don't mind us going into your room to prepare your belongings."
Hart Valhoun has a bad history with shuttle rides, it must be said. In fact, the last one he was on was shot down while he was escorting a senator. Hopefully this one will go a little smoother than that one. The old master sits quietly in his jump seat, reading over the datapad that was provided for him. "Gonna be humid," he offers, a slight bit of grumpiness in his voice.
Dumas paid attention to the controls of the shuttle; however, as much as possible, he read up on Felucia. He figured that the more about the planet that he knew, the better he would be able to help his Master. "Yes, Master." He reaches up and adjusts his blindfold as though that has something to do with the humidity.
Breaking atmosphere on the vibrant, colorful world of Felucia would cause no more trouble than breaking atmosphere of any other planet. Massive stalks of varying flora coat the surface of the planet, giving it it's wide variety of colors. Descending towards the planet, the ships navigation scanners would pick up the short range beacon of the Republic Operations Team. Despite the preparations Master Shan made, the Team had still arrived before you. However as you fly in low to the vegetation, it becomes clear that they had not been here for very long. No more than an hour at best, as the Team scrambles to set up camp. Having identified your vessel, the Team below does not intervene with your landing on the harsh planet below.
Hart Valhoun stands as the ramp at the back of the shuttle lowers and slides his long, heavy robe off, setting it down on the jumpseat. "Keep your wits abouts you, Dumas," Master Valhoun says. "This was a trecherous world even before the Sith decided to get involved with it."
Brushing his long hair back, he moves to speak with the commander of the small task force. "What's the situation?" he asks, hands resting on his stomach as he blue eyes scan his surroundings.
Dumas simply nods his head in response so as not to interfer with the communication from the planet. He turns his attention to the scans of the planet and makes sure the shuttle is ready for landing. The controls are almost automatic as he heads to the site.
Peering out and around the camp that is being deployed, paried with your review of the datapad provided, you know that the team is broken into four major parts. Command, Science, Recon and Security. The total personnel came to a sum of fifty. Looking about you can see the automated turrets that have already been deployed to assist with security. Aside from that, the only tents set up at the moment is the command and medical center tent, with the science, security and barracks tents still being set up.
"Not good. We've only been here for a brief amount of time and already one squad of Troopers ran into a poisonous mushroom that activated like some sort of landmind." Commander Adraec Thelin would explain, pointing to the deployed medical tent. "Six men, two of which have already died. The other four are stable, but won't last long unless we can get the poison cured."
Dumas nods his head and yes, "Yes, Master." He glances in the direction of one of the soldiers and says, "Excuse me, please guide me to the injured soldiers." As he follows the soldier to the makeshift tent, Dumas tries to center himself so that he can be prepared for the attempt. He knows that it will be difficult due to the unknown nature of the toxin.
Once in the first aid tent, Dumas moves to each of the injured men in turn and places a hand lightly on their heads. With a slow breath, he tries to reach out through the force into each of their bodies to mend them.
"It's possible, but we've not had a chance to analyze the mushroom just yet." As Commander Thelin speaks, the Team has finished setting up the Science tent, now shifting attention to the barracks and security tent as it is being set up.
Rushing into the tent, Dumas can see the men that have been poisoned by the mushroom landmine, comatosed with their life slowly fadding away. Tending to their wound, three of the men have had the poisons purged from their system and should recover by tomorrow. However, Dumas was unable to help the fourth man. It doesn't take long before the last of his life slips away. At least he died peacefully.
"Very well," Hart says, nodding to Thelin. "Now, what do we know about the Sith's operations on the planet? Do we know where their compound was?" The man's hands move to rest on his hips.
Dumas shakes his head and closes the eyes of the dead man. He turns to the surviving soldiers and says, "My apologizes. I was not able to help all." He looks back to that fourth men and asks them, "Have you been able to discover anything about the exact nature of the mushroom?" Dumas turns his face fully to pay attention to the mushroom landmine. He doesn't touch it yet though he tries to see if there are any discernable features like other poisons he is aware of.
Not saying much, the Doctor nods her response at Dumas.
The recon team quickly assembles, three squads of four soldiers form into a carefully designed wedge formation with Sergeant Xicar in the center of the lead wedge.
"You did well, Padawan," Hart assures his student before moving to follow after the recon team. "What do you feel, Padawan?" he asks, looking over to the Miralukan.
"It is hard to make out what I feel, Master," Dumas explains. He gestures with a hand towards the nearby terrain. "There is so much life, so much force. It is like trying to listen to a soft song in a storm. I can feel there is an echo of something. Perhaps the Sith that were here. I will need to get closer in order to try and feel more."
The trip to the was filled with the expected dangers of Felucia. On many occasions, a soldier or two were threatened by the various beats and wild life of the planet. With the quick intervention of Master Valhoun, he was able to keep most of the soldiers from death. However, not all. In the middle formation, on of the soldiers accidently steps on a naturally occuring barbed plant. The plant activated almost instantly, leaping up to steal the soldier away only to be devoured by the thorny vegetation.
As you approach the camp, it seems that the Sith left little behind aside from a few land mines. With Hart's guidance, the team was able to avoid the land mines and enter what remains of the Sith Camp. At a quick glance, there are a few tents left behind. This camp is much smaller than your own, however. It looks like a crew of maybe two dozen people lived here for not longer than two weeks.
Hart Valhoun nods in response to the man, saying, "In time, you'll be able to focus more. Your unique way of viewing the world is as much a burden as a boon, Padawan.
After the trek, Hart wanders deeper into the camp, hands resting on his hips and eyes squinting as he has a look around the place, trying to find anything that the Sith may have left behind.
Dumas nods his head. "Due to the 'overload' I sometimes feel, I find it difficult to be around many people at once. Being in nature isn't as bad though this much is difficult." He knows that this is difficult for everyone and that the only way he will get stronger is to fight through things that are difficult. Unfortunately, he is unable to move fast enough to help the poor soldier who is taken off.
Upon arriving at the camp, Dumas turns his face to the camp hoping that his species unique way of perceiving the world will be the asset that Master Valhoun is hoping for.
The camp was abandoned. Very abandoned. However, one thing would stand out to Hart. A particular plant not far from the camp looks to have been cut at the stem.
Dumas, on the otherhand has opened his mind to the Force. As a result, he senses something far worse. The faint imprint of the Dark Side can be felt here. Likely a Sith of immense power was here, but exactly what they were doing is hard to tell.
"Anything yet, Padawan?" Hart asks, moving towards the plant. "Secure the perimeter," he instructs the soldiers.
Dumas' head slowly tilts to the side. "Wait." He says. Though his word was soft, there was an importance behind him. "That echo, Master. It is much stronger here. It is like a cacophony of clashing horns against the backdrop of rich music." He shifts his head towards Master Valhoun. "Someone was here. Powerful in the force. Sith Lord or Master perhaps. I will need to investigate more, but I would be surprised if there are not traps or unpleasant occurances left behind."
Having felt what Padawan Dumas has pointed out to him, Hart feels it too. What's more, is that the Dark Side was woven into a complex Sith spell, corrupting the very fibers of life in this area. While no Sith traps have been left behind per se, one thing is clear. Sith Alchemy is at work here. The weapon is likely a result of that. As far as the Force is concerned, there is little the Republic Operations Team can do to counter that aspect of the weapon.
