Post by Cain on Oct 8, 2008 3:40:30 GMT -5
The Planet Tishi looms, dark and cold. Its surface aglow with cracks and jagged canyons from which magma seep to the surface. Scars from a cataclysm thrust upon the planet long ago that have still yet to heal.
As Cain's shuttle approaches the planet he takes in the scope of the carnage. The surface had recovered some of it's life... but the dark echo of a massive wound in the force still resonated... and Cain would follow it to it's source. Setting his shuttle down on the most barren and lifeless part of Tishi, Cain wrapped his cloak around himself to protect from the fridged air of the desert night and the biting relentless winds. Through the dunes the remnant of old concrete columns were barely visible. As Cain reached the crest of the next dune he gazed over an awe inspiring sight. A massive crater filled with debris. This was it... the wound was here.
"So... this is where the blades were broken..." Cain whispered to himself. He stumbled back a moment as he could hear the sounds of screams carrying on the wind. Cain tried to press forward into the crater, but quickly became dizzy and fell to his knees.
"Unbelievable power..." Cain thought to himself, "Could the wound created here have been so great as to still drain the life from those who stumble into it?"
Doing his best to center himself, Cain continued forward. With every step a new voice cried out to him for help... to turn back... or plead for it's life. Grown men shrieking in terror. Children begging their mothers to 'make it go away'. And below it all a low and almost unintelligible voice, whispering... "It's ours... kill them... kill them all... do it... do it..."
Doing his best to block out the mental barrage, Cain came upon a pile of books, burried in the sand and most burnt beyond use. He sat down besides them and began unearthing the volumes one by one, reading through those that were still legible. Finally he came to a text that seemed as unassuming as the rest, though it wasn't quite so badly burnt. "To my darling wife and son" was written on the inside of the cover. Thick as the book was, most all of the pages were blank, say for one...
"To my darling wife Akira and my son Luster,
When you read this I will already be gone. What they tried to silence by taking my life will live on with you. This secret that they prize so much shall not die with me. While the public reason for my execution was conspiracy to steal the blade, there is actually much more to it then just that. I did in fact plan to take the blade from the temple, but what's more I had planned to destroy it.
You must understand, through my research into the source of the blades power I've discovered a dark and terrible truth. The blade is no god or divinity. It is in fact a parasitic organism. A being in the force whose power is great enough to have blinded us all to its intentions and even its existence. It's ability to slip in and out of our consciousness and blend with our thoughts makes it an undeniable threat. I can hear its voice in my mind's ear even now, as I write this letter. It's become increasingly difficult to know exactly which thoughts are my own and which are being imposed upon me. There's no telling how many of the other elders it has corrupted. I'm afraid there was little recourse, the blade must be destroyed.
I admit I know not how nor whether it is possible to destroy a being of such power, nor do I know what the consequences of creating such a large void in the force would be. Unfortunately I haven't the time to do any further research. It is possible that the complete annihilation of such a being would cause a wound in the force great enough to become self sustaining. At which point the force and thus all life would inevitably cease to be. This of course is only a hypothesis.
Please do not mourn me. My death was an inevitability. My only regret is that I must now leave you and Luster to an unknown fate. I pray for your safety and for the safety of our still unborn child, that he may live a life of hope rather then uncertainty. Goodbye, I will love you always.
Atsuke"
As Cain's shuttle approaches the planet he takes in the scope of the carnage. The surface had recovered some of it's life... but the dark echo of a massive wound in the force still resonated... and Cain would follow it to it's source. Setting his shuttle down on the most barren and lifeless part of Tishi, Cain wrapped his cloak around himself to protect from the fridged air of the desert night and the biting relentless winds. Through the dunes the remnant of old concrete columns were barely visible. As Cain reached the crest of the next dune he gazed over an awe inspiring sight. A massive crater filled with debris. This was it... the wound was here.
"So... this is where the blades were broken..." Cain whispered to himself. He stumbled back a moment as he could hear the sounds of screams carrying on the wind. Cain tried to press forward into the crater, but quickly became dizzy and fell to his knees.
"Unbelievable power..." Cain thought to himself, "Could the wound created here have been so great as to still drain the life from those who stumble into it?"
Doing his best to center himself, Cain continued forward. With every step a new voice cried out to him for help... to turn back... or plead for it's life. Grown men shrieking in terror. Children begging their mothers to 'make it go away'. And below it all a low and almost unintelligible voice, whispering... "It's ours... kill them... kill them all... do it... do it..."
Doing his best to block out the mental barrage, Cain came upon a pile of books, burried in the sand and most burnt beyond use. He sat down besides them and began unearthing the volumes one by one, reading through those that were still legible. Finally he came to a text that seemed as unassuming as the rest, though it wasn't quite so badly burnt. "To my darling wife and son" was written on the inside of the cover. Thick as the book was, most all of the pages were blank, say for one...
"To my darling wife Akira and my son Luster,
When you read this I will already be gone. What they tried to silence by taking my life will live on with you. This secret that they prize so much shall not die with me. While the public reason for my execution was conspiracy to steal the blade, there is actually much more to it then just that. I did in fact plan to take the blade from the temple, but what's more I had planned to destroy it.
You must understand, through my research into the source of the blades power I've discovered a dark and terrible truth. The blade is no god or divinity. It is in fact a parasitic organism. A being in the force whose power is great enough to have blinded us all to its intentions and even its existence. It's ability to slip in and out of our consciousness and blend with our thoughts makes it an undeniable threat. I can hear its voice in my mind's ear even now, as I write this letter. It's become increasingly difficult to know exactly which thoughts are my own and which are being imposed upon me. There's no telling how many of the other elders it has corrupted. I'm afraid there was little recourse, the blade must be destroyed.
I admit I know not how nor whether it is possible to destroy a being of such power, nor do I know what the consequences of creating such a large void in the force would be. Unfortunately I haven't the time to do any further research. It is possible that the complete annihilation of such a being would cause a wound in the force great enough to become self sustaining. At which point the force and thus all life would inevitably cease to be. This of course is only a hypothesis.
Please do not mourn me. My death was an inevitability. My only regret is that I must now leave you and Luster to an unknown fate. I pray for your safety and for the safety of our still unborn child, that he may live a life of hope rather then uncertainty. Goodbye, I will love you always.
Atsuke"