Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Star Wars: Heroes of Another Kind
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 4475219" data-attributes="member: 10079"><p><strong>Chapter 597: Emptiness</strong></p><p></p><p>In a short time, Corinna and Tobias reached a small, mostly-empty warehouse a good distance away from where the creature had been. The only other occupants of the warehouse were some crates that looked to be filled with spare parts, a couple of barely-working glowrods that flickered annoyingly, and some small bugs that kept away from the two of them. The only assurance that they had not been followed was that they weren’t dead, as Corinna had not seen the creature follow them and Tobias hadn’t...well, he wouldn’t have seen it with eyes or the Force. By the time they reached the warehouse and Corinna had gotten them inside, he was nearly unconscious. The poison had worked slowly at first, but had soon left him delirious and unable to walk due to the ever-increasing pain. Because of that, Corinna had practically carried him the last few blocks, which had been an interesting endeavor in its own right. The fact that they hadn’t been killed while she struggled with that was indication enough for her that they’d not been followed.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not...really a healer,” she mumbled, more to herself than anything, as she knelt next to Tobias. He was up against one of the crates, staring off into nothing and struggling to keep his head up. </p><p> </p><p>“...neither ‘m I...” he did managed to reply, though the words were slurred and hard to hear beneath his breathing. Tobias was doing everything he could to try, though. He couldn’t feel his leg anymore. The pain had grown so much that it had reached a point where he had completely lost feeling in it, and breaking that barrier was his greatest problem. How could he fix anything if he couldn’t feel it? But focusing enough on the Force was just as difficult, and that was ignoring the fact that he barely knew where to start when it came to healing. Sure, he’d done it before, but usually it had occurred in moments of panic and instinct had taken over. He’d never really done it intentionally before.</p><p> </p><p>Carefully, Corinna twisted his leg around a bit to get a better view of the long slash that the creator’s tail had left. It was barely bleeding, and the wound didn’t look to have been very deep. The real problem was whatever poison had been in that tail. Tobias had barely been grazed by it, and yet he was on the edge of unconsciousness and likely worse...</p><p> </p><p>“...gonna try something...” Tobias’ strained voice caused Corinna’s Force sense to tilt upwards from his leg to his face, though her head didn’t move at all with it, “Jus...jus don’t freak out or anything. ‘Kay...?”</p><p> </p><p>She studied him carefully for a few short moments, very unsure of what he meant by that, but finally nodded, “Okay.”</p><p> </p><p>Though he couldn’t concentrate enough to do much with the Force, Tobias did have another option. It required much less effort to morph back to his Alraxian body than it did to morph from it. Returning to his natural state was just something his body could do without much prompting. The problem, as Tobias could see it, was that he doubted that would get rid of the poison. But maybe it would...and if not...well...well...uh...he’d figure something else out, hopefully.</p><p> </p><p>In a matter of seconds, a young human no longer sat there against the crate. In its place was an Alraxian with jet-black hair and a dark blue stripe, with a tail to making itself known by flicking slightly. Though Tobias’ eyes were closed, he could feel Corinna’s surprise through the Force. But it quickly faded, and the surprise turned into something else entirely. Tobias would have been able to identify it much more easily had his eyes been open to see the grin form on her face, “You’re not human.”</p><p> </p><p>“Not...exactly...” Tobias answered as best he could, his voice very slightly different in a way that she couldn’t help but notice and he likely never had. Just a bit lower and with the hint of an accent she couldn’t identify there that had not been in his voice before. She also noticed something else. The wound on his leg was gone. The only hint of it left was the tear in his trouser leg.</p><p> </p><p>Tobias felt the pain dim, too. In fact, he could feel his leg again. There was still a shadow of the pain, an odd stinging sensation that he knew wasn’t there without being able to explain it. Had the poison gone? Had it worked? Maybe...he didn’t really know the technical details, as it were, of morphing. Marix would have known. He’d have to ask her about that next time he had the chance. It suddenly struck him as very important information.</p><p> </p><p>Finally, he opened his eyes again to take in the warehouse. The better eyes of an Alraxian did him little good, though. It was still dark, filled with crates, and otherwise empty. Of course, now he noticed a very horrid smell that had been much more tolerable before...</p><p> </p><p>“Did it work...?” Corinna asked, watching him curiously and still with a grin on her face. She actually seemed happy with the discovery he wasn’t human rather than shocked or terrified. That was a new reaction.</p><p></p><p>Nodding, Tobias reached a hand down to feel his leg, not trusting himself enough to just know it was fine, “I..I think so.”</p><p> </p><p>There was a short silence, and it was obvious that Corinna wanted to know more about him. Specifically, what he was. But she didn’t ask, and seemed oddly hesitant about it. But something else was on Tobias’ mind now that he was sure he was mostly alright, “Do you have a ship?”</p><p> </p><p>At first, she was taken off guard by the quick shift, but then shook her head slightly and then shrugged apologetically, “Hitched a ride here and was planning to do the same getting out. I uh...think I know a way to get us off planet tonight, though. Do you have any spare credits?”</p><p> </p><p>Tobias had to think about that. Did he? Well, actually...Marix had given him some when he’d first left to go to Yavin IV. He hadn’t used much of it, not really needing to beyond some food here and there while he and Master Ral had been traveling...Master Ral was gone now...</p><p> </p><p>Quickly, he shook that thought off and just answered the question, “A little bit...why?”</p><p> </p><p>“Well...” Corinna’s Force sense shifted away, as if she was sheepishly looking at the ground and trying to hide something she’d done, “We could uh...buy a ship.”</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t have nearly enough for that!” in fact, he was fairly sure he barely had enough for a cheap, broken down landspeeder if push came to shove. In fact, buying anything of that caliber, not to mention a starship, likely would have required much more violent actions than just pushing and shoving.</p><p> </p><p>Still not ‘facing’ him, Corinna spoke very quietly and directly at the floor, “I uh. I might...”</p><p> </p><p>Eyes widening slightly, Tobias nearly yelled at her, “Why the hell did you ask me if I had any money then?!”</p><p> </p><p>“I was hoping you’d pitch in!” she snapped back, pointing a finger at him and her Force sight quickly shifting right back to him, “I don’t particularly want to use all the credits I have if I don’t have to! I have to eat, you know!”</p><p> </p><p>“I barely have enough money for that!” suddenly, it was a competition for Tobias...even if it made no sense.</p><p> </p><p>“Then what good are you?” Corinna sighed heavily and tilted her head back some, “If we try to hire a ship right now and sound urgent, it’ll cost more than just buying one. And we have to get moving. The longer we stay here the more of a chance that thing’ll find us and...well, the less chance we have to warn anyone about it.”</p><p> </p><p>Tobias nodded. It made sense. Hopefully Corinna actually knew what she was talking about, though. He sure as hell didn’t know the first thing about buying a starship, “I guess we get moving then.”</p><p> </p><p>“No,” the word was spoken swiftly and Corinna added to her point by putting her hand on his chest to prevent him from getting up, “You stay here. Lay low and be patient. I’ll get us a ship and be back as soon as I can.”</p><p> </p><p>“But if that thing finds you...”</p><p> </p><p>“Then it will have only found me,” she got to her feet and picked up her staff, which had been lying on the floor next to him, “Just stay here. I won’t be long.”</p><p> </p><p>“You can’t go alone,” Tobias shook his head, starting to get up but finding his body was still weak. Maybe the morphing hadn’t solved the problem of the poison entirely, “I’m not going to see someone else die today. I’m coming with you.”</p><p> </p><p>The Force suddenly pressed against him, holding him down in a very uncomfortable way, “No. I have to do something else. Something you do not need to be around for. Not right now, at least. So you stay here, you stay alert, and you wait. If I’m not back within the hour...find a ship to stow away on.”</p><p></p><p>Though he couldn’t really move, Tobias struggled against Corinna’s hold on him with the Force. Quickly, he gave up, realizing she wasn’t going to relent. Instead, he turned his annoyance to what she’d said, “What are you going to do?!”</p><p> </p><p>Slowly, Tobias felt the pressure of the Force around him lessening until it disappeared. Corinna was facing the other direction by then, but her sight was on him, “If we are going to report this creature to the Jedi to warn them...they need to know what its capable of. Bestine is the largest city on this ball of dust, and we were out in the open instead of in a back alley. There are security devices recording most of the main streets. I’m going to find where they’re kept and get a copy of...of what happened...”</p><p> </p><p>“And buy a ship in less than an hour?!” he tried his best to focus on that rather than her other task. Yes, it was necessary. It made perfect sense. Too much. But...Tobias truly did not want to watch his Master die. Feeling it in the Force was still hurting him in a way that made no sense. To see the Jedi Master’s fight...to see the details that were lost when they ran...no, he couldn’t do that. Not now. Maybe not ever.</p><p> </p><p>“If I’m not back, Toby...get off the planet,” was all she said before turning and heading out of the warehouse. The joy and sense of mischief that had surrounded her sense Tobias had met her only hours before was, for the first time, entirely gone.</p><p> </p><p>And then Tobias was alone in the dark...without his parents, without any friends, and now without his Master. It was not like when Jyren had died. Then, Tobias had been filled with everything from rage and sorrow. Now, though, he felt only emptiness. There was no other word for it. And he knew the danger of that. Master Ral had taught him about it well. In that emptiness, the Dark Side could very easily come if he let it...and that would only take a single thought.</p><p> </p><p>Tobias was not left alone in that warehouse on Bestine to hide silently from a monster of the Yuuzhan Vong.</p><p> </p><p>He had a battle of his own to fight.</p><p> </p><p>One that he had to win...for Jyren and for Master Ral.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ankh-Morpork Guard, post: 4475219, member: 10079"] [b]Chapter 597: Emptiness[/b] In a short time, Corinna and Tobias reached a small, mostly-empty warehouse a good distance away from where the creature had been. The only other occupants of the warehouse were some crates that looked to be filled with spare parts, a couple of barely-working glowrods that flickered annoyingly, and some small bugs that kept away from the two of them. The only assurance that they had not been followed was that they weren’t dead, as Corinna had not seen the creature follow them and Tobias hadn’t...well, he wouldn’t have seen it with eyes or the Force. By the time they reached the warehouse and Corinna had gotten them inside, he was nearly unconscious. The poison had worked slowly at first, but had soon left him delirious and unable to walk due to the ever-increasing pain. Because of that, Corinna had practically carried him the last few blocks, which had been an interesting endeavor in its own right. The fact that they hadn’t been killed while she struggled with that was indication enough for her that they’d not been followed. “I’m not...really a healer,” she mumbled, more to herself than anything, as she knelt next to Tobias. He was up against one of the crates, staring off into nothing and struggling to keep his head up. “...neither ‘m I...” he did managed to reply, though the words were slurred and hard to hear beneath his breathing. Tobias was doing everything he could to try, though. He couldn’t feel his leg anymore. The pain had grown so much that it had reached a point where he had completely lost feeling in it, and breaking that barrier was his greatest problem. How could he fix anything if he couldn’t feel it? But focusing enough on the Force was just as difficult, and that was ignoring the fact that he barely knew where to start when it came to healing. Sure, he’d done it before, but usually it had occurred in moments of panic and instinct had taken over. He’d never really done it intentionally before. Carefully, Corinna twisted his leg around a bit to get a better view of the long slash that the creator’s tail had left. It was barely bleeding, and the wound didn’t look to have been very deep. The real problem was whatever poison had been in that tail. Tobias had barely been grazed by it, and yet he was on the edge of unconsciousness and likely worse... “...gonna try something...” Tobias’ strained voice caused Corinna’s Force sense to tilt upwards from his leg to his face, though her head didn’t move at all with it, “Jus...jus don’t freak out or anything. ‘Kay...?” She studied him carefully for a few short moments, very unsure of what he meant by that, but finally nodded, “Okay.” Though he couldn’t concentrate enough to do much with the Force, Tobias did have another option. It required much less effort to morph back to his Alraxian body than it did to morph from it. Returning to his natural state was just something his body could do without much prompting. The problem, as Tobias could see it, was that he doubted that would get rid of the poison. But maybe it would...and if not...well...well...uh...he’d figure something else out, hopefully. In a matter of seconds, a young human no longer sat there against the crate. In its place was an Alraxian with jet-black hair and a dark blue stripe, with a tail to making itself known by flicking slightly. Though Tobias’ eyes were closed, he could feel Corinna’s surprise through the Force. But it quickly faded, and the surprise turned into something else entirely. Tobias would have been able to identify it much more easily had his eyes been open to see the grin form on her face, “You’re not human.” “Not...exactly...” Tobias answered as best he could, his voice very slightly different in a way that she couldn’t help but notice and he likely never had. Just a bit lower and with the hint of an accent she couldn’t identify there that had not been in his voice before. She also noticed something else. The wound on his leg was gone. The only hint of it left was the tear in his trouser leg. Tobias felt the pain dim, too. In fact, he could feel his leg again. There was still a shadow of the pain, an odd stinging sensation that he knew wasn’t there without being able to explain it. Had the poison gone? Had it worked? Maybe...he didn’t really know the technical details, as it were, of morphing. Marix would have known. He’d have to ask her about that next time he had the chance. It suddenly struck him as very important information. Finally, he opened his eyes again to take in the warehouse. The better eyes of an Alraxian did him little good, though. It was still dark, filled with crates, and otherwise empty. Of course, now he noticed a very horrid smell that had been much more tolerable before... “Did it work...?” Corinna asked, watching him curiously and still with a grin on her face. She actually seemed happy with the discovery he wasn’t human rather than shocked or terrified. That was a new reaction. Nodding, Tobias reached a hand down to feel his leg, not trusting himself enough to just know it was fine, “I..I think so.” There was a short silence, and it was obvious that Corinna wanted to know more about him. Specifically, what he was. But she didn’t ask, and seemed oddly hesitant about it. But something else was on Tobias’ mind now that he was sure he was mostly alright, “Do you have a ship?” At first, she was taken off guard by the quick shift, but then shook her head slightly and then shrugged apologetically, “Hitched a ride here and was planning to do the same getting out. I uh...think I know a way to get us off planet tonight, though. Do you have any spare credits?” Tobias had to think about that. Did he? Well, actually...Marix had given him some when he’d first left to go to Yavin IV. He hadn’t used much of it, not really needing to beyond some food here and there while he and Master Ral had been traveling...Master Ral was gone now... Quickly, he shook that thought off and just answered the question, “A little bit...why?” “Well...” Corinna’s Force sense shifted away, as if she was sheepishly looking at the ground and trying to hide something she’d done, “We could uh...buy a ship.” “I don’t have nearly enough for that!” in fact, he was fairly sure he barely had enough for a cheap, broken down landspeeder if push came to shove. In fact, buying anything of that caliber, not to mention a starship, likely would have required much more violent actions than just pushing and shoving. Still not ‘facing’ him, Corinna spoke very quietly and directly at the floor, “I uh. I might...” Eyes widening slightly, Tobias nearly yelled at her, “Why the hell did you ask me if I had any money then?!” “I was hoping you’d pitch in!” she snapped back, pointing a finger at him and her Force sight quickly shifting right back to him, “I don’t particularly want to use all the credits I have if I don’t have to! I have to eat, you know!” “I barely have enough money for that!” suddenly, it was a competition for Tobias...even if it made no sense. “Then what good are you?” Corinna sighed heavily and tilted her head back some, “If we try to hire a ship right now and sound urgent, it’ll cost more than just buying one. And we have to get moving. The longer we stay here the more of a chance that thing’ll find us and...well, the less chance we have to warn anyone about it.” Tobias nodded. It made sense. Hopefully Corinna actually knew what she was talking about, though. He sure as hell didn’t know the first thing about buying a starship, “I guess we get moving then.” “No,” the word was spoken swiftly and Corinna added to her point by putting her hand on his chest to prevent him from getting up, “You stay here. Lay low and be patient. I’ll get us a ship and be back as soon as I can.” “But if that thing finds you...” “Then it will have only found me,” she got to her feet and picked up her staff, which had been lying on the floor next to him, “Just stay here. I won’t be long.” “You can’t go alone,” Tobias shook his head, starting to get up but finding his body was still weak. Maybe the morphing hadn’t solved the problem of the poison entirely, “I’m not going to see someone else die today. I’m coming with you.” The Force suddenly pressed against him, holding him down in a very uncomfortable way, “No. I have to do something else. Something you do not need to be around for. Not right now, at least. So you stay here, you stay alert, and you wait. If I’m not back within the hour...find a ship to stow away on.” Though he couldn’t really move, Tobias struggled against Corinna’s hold on him with the Force. Quickly, he gave up, realizing she wasn’t going to relent. Instead, he turned his annoyance to what she’d said, “What are you going to do?!” Slowly, Tobias felt the pressure of the Force around him lessening until it disappeared. Corinna was facing the other direction by then, but her sight was on him, “If we are going to report this creature to the Jedi to warn them...they need to know what its capable of. Bestine is the largest city on this ball of dust, and we were out in the open instead of in a back alley. There are security devices recording most of the main streets. I’m going to find where they’re kept and get a copy of...of what happened...” “And buy a ship in less than an hour?!” he tried his best to focus on that rather than her other task. Yes, it was necessary. It made perfect sense. Too much. But...Tobias truly did not want to watch his Master die. Feeling it in the Force was still hurting him in a way that made no sense. To see the Jedi Master’s fight...to see the details that were lost when they ran...no, he couldn’t do that. Not now. Maybe not ever. “If I’m not back, Toby...get off the planet,” was all she said before turning and heading out of the warehouse. The joy and sense of mischief that had surrounded her sense Tobias had met her only hours before was, for the first time, entirely gone. And then Tobias was alone in the dark...without his parents, without any friends, and now without his Master. It was not like when Jyren had died. Then, Tobias had been filled with everything from rage and sorrow. Now, though, he felt only emptiness. There was no other word for it. And he knew the danger of that. Master Ral had taught him about it well. In that emptiness, the Dark Side could very easily come if he let it...and that would only take a single thought. Tobias was not left alone in that warehouse on Bestine to hide silently from a monster of the Yuuzhan Vong. He had a battle of his own to fight. One that he had to win...for Jyren and for Master Ral. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Star Wars: Heroes of Another Kind
Top