All Over Taris, Sunday afternoon
After a week spent tracking Marn Hierogryph, getting the feel for how he worked, and seeing how he spent his time when he wasn’t scamming somebody out of something, Zayne had come to a conclusion: he had no idea how to catch “The Gryph." He ate at different places, slept in different places (probably because there was usually an angry creditor waiting for him somewhere), and travelled everywhere on Taris as long as there was a bargain to be had. While Shad had already completed his Trial and the other Padawans were well on their way, Zayne was stuck with a small-time conman who managed to have his warrant passed up to the Jedi simply because the Civil Authority just couldn’t catch him.
In retrospect, that last part should have been the thing Zayne thought about before starting this trial.
So Zayne started trying to be proactive. If he couldn’t predict where Gryph was going to end up, he was going to have to MAKE Gryph end up where he wanted. All it took was wandering around the Middle City until he found a lone Black Vulkars recruit, the flash of a lightsaber hilt, and an assurance that Zayne wouldn’t be trying to interfere in the recruit’s business (which wasn’t tough since the swoop gangs usually fell outside the responsibility of the Jedi). A couple hours later, Zayne was hidden in the supposedly vacant warehouse where the Vulkar would be meeting Gryph about a new prototype swoop engine that had just fallen off the back of a transport.
“.... of course, a concerned citizen like me, the moment I saw the engine I tried to report it to the TCA so they could get it to the proper owner. But you know the cops, they’re just too busy trying to make life difficult for decent, hardworking people like you, so they didn’t have time for me. The only reason I’m selling it right now is to pay my hospital bills for all the damage lugging that thing around did to my back."
That voice belonged to Gryph, alright. And from his hiding place, Zayne could see him wearing a backbrace. Not that he bought the story of having a bad back. By this point, Zayne was well aware that the Snivvian would do, say, or wear anything to get a better deal, and sympathy would usually work.
“Now, about payment..." Gryph started.
“Sorry. There’s been a recall," Zayne said, dropping down from the rafters. “Marn Hierogryph, you’re under arrest for... well, a lot of things."
Gryph looked at Zayne, then back at his buyer, who was already running off. He gave a sigh and shook his head. “What’re you, then, a boy detective or something, looking to bring down a criminal mastermind?"
“Zayne Carrick, Jedi Padawan," Zayne said, giving an annoyed look at the casual dismissal. He was getting tired of casual dismissals by this point. “The TCA is busy looking for real masterminds, so they threw me this one to take care of before I had to get back for a lesson."
“I knew this smelled funny," Gryph said. “But still, a Jedi intern coming after me isn’t so bad for my rep. Would have been better if it were a REAL Jedi, though."
“It’s Padawan," Zayne said.
“Yeah, yeah, sure," Gryph replied. “But you know what would be even better for my rep than being brought in by you?"
Zayne grabbed his lightsaber and put his thumb on the ingition. “No, what?"
“Getting away!" Gryph pressed a button on the backbrace and rose into the air. “I told you it smelled funny and Snivvians are mostly nose!"
“You have a jetpack?!" Zayne yelled from below.
“And a brand new rep! See you later, Intern!"
And with that, Zayne was alone in a warehouse with an engine that looked like it would barely start. And now he had to hurry back to the Jedi Tower for an announcement.
*****
“Thank you, Zayne, for joining us," Lucien said as his Padawan took a seat after running in a few minutes late. “You’ve all made some progress in your first Trial. Some of you, of course, made more progress than the others." There was a pointed glance at Zayne.
“The Trial of Flesssh tessstssss your ability to overcome great hardship or pain," Xamar said. “Asss we have done our besssst to protect you, mossst of you haven’t suffered too greatly." Zayne caught a slight nod towards Shad, whose had raised his siblings since the death of their parents. Frankly, Zayne thought Shad had already passed this test, but it seemed like he was going to have to do whatever everyone else did out of fairness.
“But now we have to create that hardship for you," Raana Tey said. “Most of Taris’s surface is a massive city, but it also features large oceans with some islands. Each of you will be dropped onto one of these deserted islands with nothing but the clothing you’re wearing right now and your lightsabers."
“Your goal," Feln said, “is to survive for a week. If you can escape your island and make it back to the city, your ability to go above and beyond your goal will be taken into consideration. If you make it back, you can use the rest of the week toward completing your first trial. If you don’t, all of the information you’ve found on your target may be outdated."
“If you become Jedi Knights, you will be faced with situations such as this," Q’Anilia said. “A new mission will take precedence over whatever you entered the field to do. Your ability to deal with all challenges you face will in part define your life as a Jedi. Now, come with us. We will be leaving immediately."
“May the Force be with you, learners," Lucien said as the Masters started to turn toward the door, expecting the Padawans to follow them.
*****
A few hours later, Zayne sat on the beach of his island, concentrating on pulling in whatever driftwood he could with the Force. He really needed to get back to the city to resume hunting Gryph, so he needed to focus on getting enough supplies to build a raft rather than simply surviving. It was fine work, reaching far out into the ocean for bits of wood, but Zayne thought he was getting the hang of it. After an hour, it was even starting to seem easier to pull it in.
Zayne’s luck didn’t hold. He heard an explosion high in the sky and looked up to see the flaming wreck of a transport ship falling toward the ocean. As far as he could tell, he was the only person in range to do something about it, so he quickly rose to his feet, held both hands toward the ship, and tried to focus.
With the Force, size didn’t matter. It was a large weight with downward momentum. He was just a simple Padawan. But he had trained hard to deal with adversity. It was up to him. He needed to stop the ship. He could feel the weight of it. All he needed to do was get enough leverage to soften a crash.
It didn’t work. The ship hit the ocean only thirty meters from Zayne’s island. The force of the impact plus Zayne’s exhaustion from his failed attempt to prevent the crash meant that he didn’t have nearly enough strength to protect himself from the resulting wave. The rushing water shoved him through his stack of driftwood and out into the ocean. It was only by instinct that he managed to grab a large piece of wood to keep himself somewhat afloat.
Apparently the Force really wanted to put Zayne through some hardship.
[OOC: Why be nice? NFI due to distance and, um, circumstances. Ahem. Warnings for jetpacks, islands and water, and fiery spaceships.]
In retrospect, that last part should have been the thing Zayne thought about before starting this trial.
So Zayne started trying to be proactive. If he couldn’t predict where Gryph was going to end up, he was going to have to MAKE Gryph end up where he wanted. All it took was wandering around the Middle City until he found a lone Black Vulkars recruit, the flash of a lightsaber hilt, and an assurance that Zayne wouldn’t be trying to interfere in the recruit’s business (which wasn’t tough since the swoop gangs usually fell outside the responsibility of the Jedi). A couple hours later, Zayne was hidden in the supposedly vacant warehouse where the Vulkar would be meeting Gryph about a new prototype swoop engine that had just fallen off the back of a transport.
“.... of course, a concerned citizen like me, the moment I saw the engine I tried to report it to the TCA so they could get it to the proper owner. But you know the cops, they’re just too busy trying to make life difficult for decent, hardworking people like you, so they didn’t have time for me. The only reason I’m selling it right now is to pay my hospital bills for all the damage lugging that thing around did to my back."
That voice belonged to Gryph, alright. And from his hiding place, Zayne could see him wearing a backbrace. Not that he bought the story of having a bad back. By this point, Zayne was well aware that the Snivvian would do, say, or wear anything to get a better deal, and sympathy would usually work.
“Now, about payment..." Gryph started.
“Sorry. There’s been a recall," Zayne said, dropping down from the rafters. “Marn Hierogryph, you’re under arrest for... well, a lot of things."
Gryph looked at Zayne, then back at his buyer, who was already running off. He gave a sigh and shook his head. “What’re you, then, a boy detective or something, looking to bring down a criminal mastermind?"
“Zayne Carrick, Jedi Padawan," Zayne said, giving an annoyed look at the casual dismissal. He was getting tired of casual dismissals by this point. “The TCA is busy looking for real masterminds, so they threw me this one to take care of before I had to get back for a lesson."
“I knew this smelled funny," Gryph said. “But still, a Jedi intern coming after me isn’t so bad for my rep. Would have been better if it were a REAL Jedi, though."
“It’s Padawan," Zayne said.
“Yeah, yeah, sure," Gryph replied. “But you know what would be even better for my rep than being brought in by you?"
Zayne grabbed his lightsaber and put his thumb on the ingition. “No, what?"
“Getting away!" Gryph pressed a button on the backbrace and rose into the air. “I told you it smelled funny and Snivvians are mostly nose!"
“You have a jetpack?!" Zayne yelled from below.
“And a brand new rep! See you later, Intern!"
And with that, Zayne was alone in a warehouse with an engine that looked like it would barely start. And now he had to hurry back to the Jedi Tower for an announcement.
*****
“Thank you, Zayne, for joining us," Lucien said as his Padawan took a seat after running in a few minutes late. “You’ve all made some progress in your first Trial. Some of you, of course, made more progress than the others." There was a pointed glance at Zayne.
“The Trial of Flesssh tessstssss your ability to overcome great hardship or pain," Xamar said. “Asss we have done our besssst to protect you, mossst of you haven’t suffered too greatly." Zayne caught a slight nod towards Shad, whose had raised his siblings since the death of their parents. Frankly, Zayne thought Shad had already passed this test, but it seemed like he was going to have to do whatever everyone else did out of fairness.
“But now we have to create that hardship for you," Raana Tey said. “Most of Taris’s surface is a massive city, but it also features large oceans with some islands. Each of you will be dropped onto one of these deserted islands with nothing but the clothing you’re wearing right now and your lightsabers."
“Your goal," Feln said, “is to survive for a week. If you can escape your island and make it back to the city, your ability to go above and beyond your goal will be taken into consideration. If you make it back, you can use the rest of the week toward completing your first trial. If you don’t, all of the information you’ve found on your target may be outdated."
“If you become Jedi Knights, you will be faced with situations such as this," Q’Anilia said. “A new mission will take precedence over whatever you entered the field to do. Your ability to deal with all challenges you face will in part define your life as a Jedi. Now, come with us. We will be leaving immediately."
“May the Force be with you, learners," Lucien said as the Masters started to turn toward the door, expecting the Padawans to follow them.
*****
A few hours later, Zayne sat on the beach of his island, concentrating on pulling in whatever driftwood he could with the Force. He really needed to get back to the city to resume hunting Gryph, so he needed to focus on getting enough supplies to build a raft rather than simply surviving. It was fine work, reaching far out into the ocean for bits of wood, but Zayne thought he was getting the hang of it. After an hour, it was even starting to seem easier to pull it in.
Zayne’s luck didn’t hold. He heard an explosion high in the sky and looked up to see the flaming wreck of a transport ship falling toward the ocean. As far as he could tell, he was the only person in range to do something about it, so he quickly rose to his feet, held both hands toward the ship, and tried to focus.
With the Force, size didn’t matter. It was a large weight with downward momentum. He was just a simple Padawan. But he had trained hard to deal with adversity. It was up to him. He needed to stop the ship. He could feel the weight of it. All he needed to do was get enough leverage to soften a crash.
It didn’t work. The ship hit the ocean only thirty meters from Zayne’s island. The force of the impact plus Zayne’s exhaustion from his failed attempt to prevent the crash meant that he didn’t have nearly enough strength to protect himself from the resulting wave. The rushing water shoved him through his stack of driftwood and out into the ocean. It was only by instinct that he managed to grab a large piece of wood to keep himself somewhat afloat.
Apparently the Force really wanted to put Zayne through some hardship.
[OOC: Why be nice? NFI due to distance and, um, circumstances. Ahem. Warnings for jetpacks, islands and water, and fiery spaceships.]