Dark Mind And The Source Of The Monsters.
Back on Tython, young Leah's training was still underway. Her progress was slow but steady, she became wiser and more powerful everyday. But despite her promising progress, Leah couldn't shake a strange feeling she's been having for a while now. She was always told if she felt something strange, she should meditate on it. Following her masters' suggestion, she found a calm place where she could meditate in peace. She sat on a boulder with her legs crossed and eyes closed. She focused on the force within her, while some rocks and sticks were floating around her.
She remembered her training, remain calm, focus on what she's doing, and trust in the force. The Force shall reveal the truth. She took a deep breath through her nose to help her relax a little more. And soon she could finally feel herself being released in to the force. And the strange feeling became more clear, now she could focus on it... but when she did, she began feeling... cold... and scared. Like she was facing fear itself. Despite that she pressed on. The feeling kept getting stronger and stronger... and at last, she heard something.
"At last... you finally reach out to me, child" Came a dark and terrifying voice.
"Who are you?" Leah asked, the cold feeling being replaced by something else.
"You know who I am child. I am the one you've been wondering about all your life" The dark voice said.
Leah grew more worried "I don't understand".
"Those weak fools made you forget who you are... what you are. And is trying to steer you away from your true destiny" The Voice said, sounding angry.
"What do you mean? The Jedi has given me everything. They are helping me become stronger so I can face my destiny. To help bring light back to the Galaxy" Leah said.
The Voice laughed "Is that what they told you? They only train you because they fear what you can become. You hold power they could only dream about. And they are terrified of it, so they are trying everything they can to make sure you never tap in to it. With proper training, you could finally bring the end of the entire Jedi Order".
"No! That is not who I am! I am a jedi!" Leah said, refusing to believe that she was meant to bring destruction and terror.
"You are so much more than that. It's time you remember. You are the child of Terror" The Voice said.
"NO!" Leah screamed as she began loosing control over herself. Her powers suddenly flaring up like a raging fire.
Not to far away, Thrall's eyes shot open as he was forced out of his own meditation when he sensed a horrifying power "Leah...".
"Master Go'el? What is happening?" A female youngling asked, she looked scared, meaning she could sense what was happening too.
"Head back inside the temple and stay close to the other masters!" Thrall instructed as he took of running at full speed.
The closer he got, the harder it became to reach the source. It's like he stepped in to a raging storm that was tearing through everything it hit. Had Thrall not been an ally of the force, the sheer power of this storm would've blown him away. He powered through it until he finally reached Leah. The young girl was holding her head, screaming in utter panik. She had lost all control, and the nearby trees and even the boulders were being broken apart the the pressure of her overwhelming power.
"Leah!" Thrall called out as he had to use more of his own power just to be able to push himself closer.
"Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! JUST STOP IT!" Leah screamed as Thrall kept pushing himself through the powerful force storm and finally managed to reach out and grabbed Leah's shoulder. Which finally snapped her out of her panicked state "Master?".
"I am here Leah. Calm down" Thrall said.
The storm quickly stopped and Leah had tears in her eyes before hugging her master "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!".
"I know, Leah... I know" Thrall said he gently pets Leah's back, doing his best to comfort his padawan.
"I-I meditated on the strange feeling I had, like the masters told me to. But when I did, some dark voice began speaking to me... telling me I was meant to do so many horrible things... and said I was the child of terror" Leah managed to explain through her sobs.
Thrall got a worried look at that. But for now he had to make sure Leah calmed down and didn't have another outburst. It took a while but he managed to calm Leah down enough so she could be brought back to her room where she could sleep. But Thrall was faced with a different situation now. Talking to the Council about what had happened. Those who walk the path of the Jedi are guided and overseen by the Jedi High Council. Sworn to protect and defend the Republic, the Council has existed in one form or another for millennia, comprised of the wisest Jedi Masters of every era. After the destruction of the Jedi Temple and the signing of the Treaty of Coruscant, the modern council removed itself from the politics of the galactic capital and settled here on Tython. Led by Master Satele Shan, the Council now struggles to uphold its peaceful ideals in the face of the Sith threat. This paradox is reflected in the personalities and beliefs of various members of the Council–some, such as the scholarly Master Syo Bakarn, hope the Sith can be redeemed and turned to the light side; others, such as the militaristic Master Jaric Kaedan, believe peace can only be achieved when all those who serve the dark side are destroyed. And he is the one Thrall is the most worried about. No way he is going to be nicer towards Leah after everything that happened, and he was never afraid of speaking his mind.
"We all sensed what happened, Master Go'el. Padawan Leah released a terrifying power we haven't sensed in years. And from the reports we got, she nearly destroyed the whole area she was in until you managed to stop her. Not to mention she scared all the other younglings, some of which were so badly shaken up they don't even want to train anymore, forcing us to put them all through therapy. So I ask you now, Master Go'el, is your Padawan a threat to this temple and everyone who lives here?" Jaric asked, pulling no punches when he listed all the bad things that happened.
Thrall sighed, trying to convince Jaric was going to be difficult, but if he could convince enough of the council, then Jaric won't be able to do anything "I am not going to lie to you all. Leah's power is indeed dangerous if used for evil. But Leah is a kind soul, she would never willingly use her power to harm anyone".
"You missunderstand me, Master Go'el. Leah's loyalty to the order is not in doubt. But what if her actions weren't her choice? What if she was forced in to committing atrocities?" Jaric asked.
Thrall sighed, knowing Jaric had a point "I will admit, there is a risk of that happening. Which makes it all the more important that she is trained to control her power and focus her mind. She is strong, and I believe she can break away from the darkness".
"I believe in the girl's strong will power. But the dark side is not something one can reject that easy. We need to remember her connection to the dark side was already strong when she was brought to us for training. So far she has only managed to resist the dark side, but she is yet to fully reject it" Satele said calmly.
"Which is why she will need more help than most. She was made your Padawan because you have experienced the temptation of the dark side and managed to free yourself from it" Said Bela Kiwiiks the Togruta Jedi Master who has her own Padawan, who just like Leah, was a special case.
"I assure you I am doing everything I can to guide her in the right direction... but I worry that my teachings alone will not be enough. She could use more help" Thrall said.
The Protos Jedi master Tassadar leaned forward "Padawan Leah is indeed in need of aid to help her cleanse herself of the dark side. However, isolation is not something I am willing to support. So I will offer an alternate solution".
"What do you suggest, Master Tassadar?" Satele asked.
"There is an ancient Protoss method to dealing with their darkness. It's risky, but if Leah can handle the trials, the darkness will no longer control her destiny" Tassadra began to explain before he activated a planet "Behold, Aiur, the beloved home planet of my people. It's very strong in the force and has many secrets that could benefit Leah greatly".
"You told us about your planet before, Master Tassadar. But are you certain Leah can handle it? And would your people even allow outsiders to take on the tests?" Jaric asked.
"With my blessing they will accept her. And if Leah is as strong as we believe she is, I have faith in her abilities to complete the trials" Tassadar assured.
Thrall bows in respect to his fellow master "Words can not express my gratitude, Master Tassadar".
"No gratitude is needed, Master Go'el. I will pray for your Padawan's successful recovery. May the Force be with you both" Tassadar said.
"May the force be with you all as well. I will return once Leah's trials are complete" Thrall said before leaving the council chamber.
"I trust your judgment, Master Tassadar. And I hope your people can help young Leah" Satele said.
"They will. But it will be up to Leah to accept the help. All we need now, is hope, and faith" Tassadar said.
Back on Taris, Nova had been told the location of the Rakghoul hive, and insisted on checking it out alone. Out of everyone there, she was the best at stealth, and it would be a lot harder for even the Rakghouls to detect her if she was alone. Lena protested but Nova managed to talk her in to accepting the plan and focus more on protecting the civilians from potential attacks. Sneaking through the narrow caves, Nova had to remain on guard at all time. She was deep within the Rakghoul hive, and she needed to locate the source of the outbreak so they could work on a way to get rid of them. It wasn't easy, Rakghouls were everywhere and if she is attacked by a whole swarm she was dead... or worse, she could be turned in to one. But she finally found an opening which lead her to an large open space inside the cave... and what she saw made her eyes wide.
An Eyeless... A massive subspecies of Rakghouls found mainly in rakghoul tunnels. The hulking creatures were known to have inhabited the heart of the plague-ridden tunnels, a single beast for each tunnel network. Scientists debated as to the function of the creatures; some said they were the source of the infection, while others believed they were an evolutionary step caused by the plague. Regardless, they were by far the most dangerous Rakghouls you could ever encounter. Taking it out will be a top priority. Without it, dealing with the rest of the Rakghouls would be much easier.
Nova set up a Beacon that would allow her and her allies to find this place quickly, and she began her dangerous trip out of the tunnels. She could hear the Eyeless letting out sounds... it could trigger nightmares to even veteran soldiers. They could not allow it to remain here, or the chances of clearing out the Plague was next to impossible.
Her escape wasn't as successful as she would've liked. Some Rakghouls spotted her, forcing her to shoot them down before hey could alert the others to her location. She managed to make it back, and her report worried them.
"An Eyeless... this explains why these Rakghouls are more dangerous than normal" Uther said as he stroke his beard.
"Then there is not time to waste. Let's go in to those tunnels and slay the beast" Arthas declared.
"For once I agree with him. That beast needs to die as soon as possible" Sonya said.
"Easy now, both of you. Charging in without a plan is suicide, we need to go over the information we have and come up with a good plan. We can't afford any missteps" Uther said in a calm but firm tone.
"He's right. We only get one shot at this. If we screw up, we will either die or become Rakghouls ourselves" Nova said.
Arthas sighed "Understood. So what is the plan?".
"We need to destroy the tunnels and make sure no Rakghoul slips away. Meaning we are going to transport a powerful bomb and detonate it inside the source. That should collapse the whole tunnel network and finally allow us to clean out the plague" Nova explained.
"But for this plan to work. We need a bomb powerful enough to collapse the tunnels, and we need to place it in the perfect place where it can do the most damage. We can afford to risk the Rakghouls escaping before the bomb has managed to take most of them out" Uther added.
"And you will need an escape way so you can make it out before the bomb blows" Lena said.
"That's where you come in Lena. Once the bomb is set, we will get to higher grounds where you can pick us up and get us out of the blast zone" Nova said.
"Understood" Lena said with a determined nod.
"Hatch all the plans you want. I will focus on slaughtering as many Rakghouls I can" Sonya said.
"Trust me Sonya, your Mandalorian brutality will be needed for this to work. I will need you and Arthas with me to keep the Rakghouls busy so Nova can set up the bomb" Uther said.
Sonya smirked "Now that's a plan I like".
"Then we're all in agreement. The plan begins early morning. I suggest you all take the chance to rest. You will need all your strength to succeed" Nova said.
Everyone nodded and went to rest up and prepare for what's to come. Hopefully everything goes as planed... and nothing unforeseen happens.
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