Personal Records of Dr. Artemis

[Sept 20, 2009: Ruins of Lusankya]

I wonder if the apprehension-- the fear that I experience every time my supervisor calls me in to his office --will ever go away. I wonder if the 'Trevore' virus has found its way to Af'el despite the desperate attempts by the Defel to prevent such a catastrophe. I wonder if Dr. Trevore himself has been found, and what that will mean for me.

As always in the past, my fears were proven to be baseless. As always in the past, I was reminded why fear is such a dangerous emotion for a Jedi, and I was reminded of the reason for my fear.

I was to accompany an archaeological expedition into the Lusankya searching for the trails of thieves. There are rumors of Sith artifacts being traded on the underground. I was to be sent along in case anything went horribly wrong... beyond the highly probable clashes with traders (should we find any). There might, my supervisor told me, be containers of Krytos virus still within the Lusankya ruins. Most of the planet is immunized, but not the slums. The poorest and most vulnerable part of society is not likely to have been protected against the feared and deadly virus. My job was to keep my eyes watchful for Krytos and be ready to call back the instant I should find something.

Our guide is a curt Dressellian by the name of Kass. I don't think that he's terribly happy being here, but that might just be his personality. There's also the matter of the combat droid... I'm dearly thankful that there's at least one person in the team who knows how to fight, but I won't be getting too terribly close to that one anytime soon. The rest of the team, I like. While I'm still afraid of breaking the microscopes that I work with, Mina seems like she could build one out of sand, rusted scrap metal, and a toothpick. The Archivist, Freya, I don't know much about. She's quiet, competent, and manages a level head. Dannel, the archaeologist, reminds me of my former colleagues in the research industry: completely and utterly in love with his chosen field of study. His enthusiasm is infectious. And then there is Tryce, to whom I am infinitely grateful to for being worse with a lightsaber than even I am. I think that he and I shall get along rather well.

Oddly enough, it was Tryce and I (bad with lightsabers) who were the ones to step up and open the blocked entry door to the Lusankya after Mina accidentally triggered the blast doors. We drew lovely designs in the steel whilst we were at it and I learned that he is a pilot.

Things went downhill rapidly. We'd not gone very far into the passageway when Freya's danger sense triggered. The combat droid went around the corner, and after about a minute we were locked in combat with three old yet heavily armored droids. Or, rather, everyone else fought whilst I tried not to die in case I was needed after the battle concluded. I'm not entirely certain what would have happened had the droid's batteries not petered out. As it was, I healed Mina of a nasty shoulder wound, and she in turn fixed the combat droid up.

The door that the armored droids had been guarding was ominous. Kass checked the other two doors, and behind one of them he found a display of missing Sith artifacts... as well as a thief. A young Trandoshan child who looked extremely surprised at being caught. He ducked into a ventillation shaft, and Kass was unable to stun him. This turned out to be a bad thing. In his haste, the child knocked over a canister of liquid in the room that the armored droids had been guarding the entrance to. And what was this liquid? It was, I discovered upon looking into the room, nothing less than a high concentration solution of Krytos virus.

Joy.

And the child was running, Krytos all over him, directly into the slums.

I called into Caduceus immediately, gave a brief explanation, and continued with the team to track down the child. He lead us straight to a pawn shop. Aha, I thought, that was easier than I expected.

Yeah. The shopkeeper didn't believe us when we told him about the Krytos. He figured that we were there to bust open his operation (which, well, wasn't exactly false...). He called out his muscle, which consisted of a Barabel and four other persons. I put it that way because the Barabel was the truly scary one (after, that is, Freya convinced the shopkeeper that he did not, in fact, want to use the nasty-looking Sith artifact embedded in his palm). I took cover at the beginning of the fight and analyzed the situation. Once the Barabel moved away from the door in order to engage the combat droid, I dove for the door mechanism with intent to destroy it and open the door.

The inanimate object dodged. Really. But it was fine! I skewered it point-blank the next time.

Once the combat droid managed to stun the Barabel, I cut his hands off. The rest of the team intimidated the remaining thugs to surrender. Finally, we're able to dash into the backroom and find the child.

Thank goodness for video games. The boy hadn't bothered to wash off before flopping onto his bed with a game system in hand. Thus, the Krytos virus was (as far as I know) still isolated to the room. I made another call to Caduceus, and from there teams much larger and more impressive cleaned up.

I have a feeling that this is not over, though. We couldn't obtain the exact identities of those whom had purchased the stolen Sith artifacts from the Trandoshan shopkeeper. The presence of Krytos virus unnerves me, as well...

My original intent in hitchhiking as far away from Aretak as possible was to remain out of unnerving, paranoia-inducing adventures. Adventures like the one that my new colleagues and I just escaped from. That was the first I've ever seen of force ghosts. I've heard of them, certainly, but I'd mostly thought of them as benign. Foolish of me, really. I don't fear the ghost of the disemboweled corpse-- having carried the poor fellow's remains and laid him to rest does ease my mind there. But, I keep thinking of that little girl. She was so, so very angry. She hated all living creatures with such an intense fervor that I find myself fearful that she might reappear. I know that's ridiculous. Kass's sensors indicated that all of the ghosts were laid to rest once the Dagger of Ulyoath was secured within the a box of Mandalorian steel.

Logic rarely has anything to do with paranoia. I must keep focused. I must remember what little Jedi training I've received.

Other notes: what have I learned?

The combat droid, 'Eight', is actually not a bad fellow. He has a dark outlook towards, erm, biological lifeforms in general, but I have to amend my first impression of him. He persuaded me to 'spar' with him, and actually managed to give me some helpful training tips. I... don't remember much of the spar itself, to be honest. I do remember attempting to block Eight's attack while flat on my back, but everything is quite blank after that point. Someone was nice enough to place a pillow under my head while I was unconscious. When I approached Eight later and asked him for some tips, I was pleasantly surprised by his helpful response. Aim for the legs! It's less expected than the arms, and sometimes more accessable. I think that I'll try to spar with him on a regular basis, if he doesn't mind. And, erm, if he continues to promise not to kill me.

I was worried about Eight, picking up that dagger in the hidden chamber beneath the fountain. No one else seemed to be, though. Is it simply common knowledge that Sith artifacts won't do anything to a droid? Is it because he isn't Force Sensitive? Because he isn't organic? I should ask Dannel. He would know the answer. Even so... I think I'll request a pair of long, sturdy tongs with which to handle future artifacts of appropriate size, so that Eight doesn't have to.

Also noticing an unnerving trend concerning violence versus diplomacy. It seems that our group attacks first and negotiates after we find ourselves in over our heads. Freya is the most sensible of the team in this regard; she's saved us several times by persuading whomever we've angered that we, in fact, really don't mean any harm. I should try to be more useful in this regard. I haven't been terribly useful of late.

Except for healing of course, but even then I have found myself inadequate. Poor Tryce. He is absolutely brilliant as a pilot, but in close non-starship combat he's worse than I am. I was grateful for this at first, but now I find myself concerned for his longevity. I attempted to manipulate the Force and accelerate his natural healing after the ghost bride wounded him, but I could not connect to him well enough. This concerns me. Of all of my current colleagues, I know Tryce the best, and apparently that is not saying much. If I'm to be effective at all, I must get to know everyone better. That could be a significant problem in regards to Kass. He is... decidedly distant towards the rest of us. I'm not sure why, but I am pretty sure that he would not welcome me asking why. This is all, of course, assuming that we'll be remaining together as a team.

Somehow, I feel as though that is very likely.

HA. I knew it. I just knew that our little group was going to be staying together. Now it's been made official.

So, once we returned from the mission to Ulyoath and were debriefed, we all had a couple of days to recuperate while the higher-ups processed the news we'd returned with. I took that time to do three things: rest, talk to VLTD 8, and do some research. The first was an excellent idea. The second... I'm not so sure about, really. I contacted 8 through commlink and asked if he would be willing to continue sparring with me, so long as he wouldn't kill or dismember me. I'd learned from the last encounter, and my skills do need work. He seemed... pleased at the prospect of beating me up, but agreed to teach me as well. I'll have to see how that goes.

As for my research, well... it trundles along. My lastest compound does inhibit the Travore virus in vitro, and it does not seem to cause cell death. But I won't know for sure if this is a practical or viable compound unless I find a Defel subject infected with Travore virus to test it on. That... is not likely to happen soon. It could happen. After all, I know where to go... but...

I have not been able to erase those thoughts from my mind ever since. My concentration has been lacking as a result.

Two days after we returned, several people (including myself and my twice-now companions) were 'invited' to a meeting lead by the heads of The New Republic, The Jedi Order, and Caduceus Galactic. Us 'volunteers' were divided into two groups: S.T.A.R.S alpha and S.T.A.R.S bravo. Myself and my companions collectively composed the former group. Our job is, well, rather straight-forward in concept. We are the Sith Threat Assessment and Research Squad.

I just really hope that all we wind up doing is 'assessment'.

Thus far, that doesn't seem to be the case.

Our group decided to look into some cases of spontaneous combustion (yes, I wrote that correctly-- spontaneous combustion). We figured that the four reported incidents on Tatooine could not be merely coincidental. Once we arrived, it was a simple process to discover who was likely involved. The wife (a distressed Arcona heavily under the influence of salt) of the latest victim knew exactly whom was responsible: a man within the ranks of the local Mad Gears gang. We dropped by the Cantina (where the victim had died) and bribed the bartender to give us some information about the gang. Once we heard the name 'Zeth Firestarter' Darkstar, we figured we had our man.

We tracked down their hideout after Mina (wonderful, brilliant, talented lady who actually agreed to help me engineer a Med-pack machine!) fitted our speeder to run over sand. The long trip gave me even more time to think about things that I didn't really want to think about.

We waited for over a day for Firestarter to head out on his own from the base, and then we followed him. We weren't exactly sneaky about it... but in the end our goals were accomplished. Mostly. None of us died, we crashed their ship, nearly killed one of their men (what was Tryce thinking???) whom I was too distracted and incompetent to completely stabilize, and captured Zeth. Turns out that he never had an artifact; he was just a dark side user. This is apparently a novel thing: capturing a dark side user.

We stuck the fellow inside one of the Mandellorian boxes, where he cowered in silent terror after 8 said something to him. Upon our return, we'll hand Zeth over to the Jedi Order.

I have a bad feeling about all of this.

I killed someone today. Directly, for the first time. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I know how I should feel: what the Jedi masters would tell me. It was in defense, after all, and she was evil. Or crazy, or both. I caught of glimpse of her head after Freya pulled the spider mask from her face; slime-slicked needles had perforated her eggshell skull and pierced the brain beneath. She had to have been crazy to do that. Just like someone would have had to be crazy to---

STARS alpha investigated two leads since my last entry, both from the latest issue of the Galactic Times. The first was a botched assassination attempt. The case was curious for a number of reasons, the most significant being that the assailant wielded a lightsaber and also that the protocol droid should not have bought enough time for the Governor of Raltiir (a man reported to possess a number of codes for the New Republic) to escape. During our investigation, we learned that the Governor had little to no clue about the history of his droid, that the droid had possessed and wielded a personalized lightsaber, that the droid was one of only ten M-BR models made with specific and elaborate modifications for the New Republic, all for work in acquisitions. We concluded that the attacker, a droid of the same make as VLTD-8, was after a code that the protocol droid possessed. His memory compartment was missing from the sliced remains.

In anticipation of any further attacks on the remaining six of these types of droids, I contacted each and every one of them and gave them a warning. They all thought I was crazy. Maybe I am crazy. In fact, I'm sure that I'm crazy. I also really don't give a damn. Maybe the attacking droid was only after this one M-BR. Maybe he's going after more. If he does, maybe my warning will help. And if I'm going to earn a reputation as the crazy doctor Artemis, well, it would be more apt than anyone realizes.

Tryce went crazy today, deep within Kessel's wormy, infested crust. As soon as he figured out that energy spiders were the reason that no one was left upon the surface to radio communications, he locked himself within his ship and threatened to leave. I don't blame him. I know how he felt then. I know how he felt later, far underground with spiders and spiderweb slop oozing through leaks in the walls and ceiling and our mine speeder inoperable after Mina and I flailed and failed at wielding our lightsabers. He took off after one of the spiders like a mad thing and hacked at it frenziedly.

I wanted to turn around after that. I was useless with a weapon, and Mina wasn't doing much better. Freya and VLTD-8 were more than competent with lightsabers, and Kass was good with a blaster rifle, but I had visions of swarms and swarms of spiders descending upon us as we crawled on foot through the blackness. None of us knew how far we had left to go. None of us knew how many spiders there were. And how, precisely, was marching blindly to our deaths going to help the kidnapped miners and scouts, assuming that any of them still lived? Not at all. We are an investigation team, and there was a woman down there somewhere with the spiders-- an arachnid biologist --wearing a spider Sith artifact like a shelled membrane over her skull. It would have been smarter to go back, radio out for Jedi masters or a full squad of other combat-trained people to swarm Kessel's labyrinthine depths. If we died, our knowledge would be lost, days would be lost, more people would be lost. But I was too much of a coward to say this. I am more to blame than anyone else.

I'm not meant to be a Jedi. Jedi don't think logically. They like to believe that they do, but they don't. Shutting off your emotions doesn't make you a better person. It may, in most cases, make you a safer person, but not a saner one. Just like running deeper into the tunnels of Kessel didn't make us heroic people: it just made us stupid and lucky.

Lucky, because there weren't many spiders. Lucky, because when we found the Sith woman, she was alone save for only a scant few of her arachnid force-bound servants. Lucky, because when Tryce threw himself screaming down the lip of the cavern towards her, his lightsaber carving a phosphorescent path through the black air, he did not die, not even when he failed to parry her riposte and only wound up with a cauterized scar across his chest. Lucky, because the sheer number of blows that we threw at her kept her occupied enough that Freya was able to damage the Sith artifact on her head. Lucky, because when I aimed for her hand to disarm her, my saber sped on through her waist.

Yes, we saved a great number of people. And after seeing how destabilized most of them were, I'm not sure if they would have survived another day. I'm not sure what the Sith woman was planning to do with them. Was it worth the risk? Yes. Absolutely. Does that excuse our folly? No. Not a single one of us trekked back to the surface and warned STARS command of what we had learned and what we were about to attempt. If we had at least done that, then our actions would have been appropriate. I am as much to blame as anyone else. I could have done that, but I didn't. I'm just as crazy as everyone else, if not crazier.

It isn't my place to say anything. I'm a medic. I came along to help people and to heal people. That is my job, and I will follow my companions wherever they go. I trained as a Jedi Apprentice solely to learn greater control over my mind and to extend my healing abilities. But the more that I work among the STARS, the more that I begin to question myself and my place here.

Brilliant me. Brilliant, brilliant me. I spend an hour recording a summary of events since my last log, only to find that the recording mechanism was not, in fact, switched on. I really do not feel like repeating myself, so the details here will be far less prolix than usual...

I have surprised myself. I never would have believed myself capable of taking in a Defel. But I was, and I have, and I've sworn that I will take the fullest advantage of this opportunity.

If, that is, the impending doom of the universe doesn't stop me first. In the course of our investigation into Auron Voss's death, we encountered two highly skilled fighters. After they incapacitated most of us (this team really needs to learn the value of not attacking first), one of them gave Freya details of visions that Auron Voss had been having. We subsequently learned that the head of the Jedi Council has also been having similar visions: visions of an unspeakable horror born of the Dark Side that will cast a shadow over the universe unlike anything time has ever seen.

The Jedi Council did not see fit to warn us of this beforehand. They simply assumed that if we had the right to know, the Force would see to it that we found out. I don't like that policy, but I can understand why it was enforced. Regardless, it doesn't seem to matter; we found out, so clearly STARS alpha is destined to be involved somehow. I can only hope that it is for good rather than ill.

In the interim, we're investigating the ghost ship incident. We learned that the ship, dubbed Purgatory, is a containment vessel for Bo'marr whom have gone insane from the final step in the path towards enlightenment. As the screening process is apparently much more accurate these days, no one has gone insane in recent times. The ship doesn't seem to be aware of this and continues on a set, cyclic path around the galaxy, collecting anyone whom steps on board. We know the ship's next stop, so the plan currently is to intercept it.

Poor, poor Tryce. He'd left for counselling after the last mission involving spiders. He'll be returning to us just as we embark to encounter a ship full of more crazed spider-like beings. I sympathize with him, I really do.

On the subject of the last mission, I fear that I might have acted badly when Freya presented me with Alcina's lightsaber. I don't want her to think that I'm ungrateful for the gesture... but on the other hand I'm certainly not proud of having killed Alcina. Perhaps that's part of the point, though. I believe that I'll keep the lightsaber on my belt from now on, though I do not plan on using it. I'm far safer to myself and others with the new stun saber I requested.

I've never channelled the force before. It was strange. It felt as though something other than myself was guiding my lightsaber in attacks against that monstrous spidermonk. Or, rather, that my mind flowed better and that my hands and feet actually moved where I wanted them to. My comrades think that I'm better at combat now. That unnerves me a bit--I know that instance is not one that's likely to be repeated soon.

We rescued one person from the Bo'mar dreadnaught. He'd been smart and hidden in the ventillation ducts. The other lifeform was in the hospital... he hadn't been as lucky. The spidermink trapped within the room with him had taken him down and exchanged his brain for its own. We stunned the heck out of the creature and took him back to the Bo'mar monks for them to deal with.

On an even more serious note, we botched an attempt to rescue STARS Bravo. They probably would have been fine if we'd never shown up. But now, this factory filled with VLTD models knows we're coming to break the prisoners out of their high security building. VLTDs with real lightsabers, I'm assuming, and more advanced upgrades than 8 has (also assuming). I have no idea how we're supposed to get in there and get out without being killed. I state, once again, that dying needlessly is simply a waste. But unless we can come up with a decent plan... or unless we're extremely lucky...

I hope that the Force decides that it still needs all of us alive. I still have work that I need to do. I still have wrongs to right. I cannot and will not die here.

The rescue plan went off flawlessly. I almost can't believe my own memory. Tryce and Kass, both incredibly skilled, managed to take out the entire wall of the sixth floor facing us. The Beta team managed to do the same, and we collected both prisoners within the span of about a minute and a half.

We all have bounties on our heads now, though. As predicted. All of them are minimal save for the one on 8: 100,000 credits. Fortunately he's somewhat disguised himself, so as long as we're cautious we should be all right.

Cautious being the key word here. Of all things, I never thought I would have to look over my shoulder at my own group. Freya, in her all-knowing arrogance, decided to 'test' out one of the Sith artifacts (the sword) on Tryce. Without any warning whatsoever and without any safety precautions save her own supercilious belief that she could handle whatever effects were thrown at her mind. She believes that she was in control the whole time. I know differently. For a few seconds, that was not Freya.

She did overcome the hold the sword had on her mind, but she refused to admit that she'd done anything even remotely dangerous or wrong. Both annoyed and worried for the safety of the group, I stunned her into unconsciousness. Even after her head 'cleared' she did not believe that what she did was wrong. We don't know anything about the artifacts, she said. She challenged Dannel and I to come up with a 'scientific method for testing the artifacts' other than what she did.

We do not know anything about these artifacts. That statement negates her claim that she knew what she was doing and that she could be confident that nothing would go wrong. She had no clue how the artifact would react. No idea. Her own selfish arrogance lead her to believe that she could overcome anything, and with that arrogance she placed Tryce's life at risk. Had she wanted to do this properly, she would have brought several Jedi masters with her so that they could stop her if it went out of hand. But no, she clearly stated that had she wanted to, she could have taken all of us out. And therein lies the problem. The fact that no one was hurt severely is not the point. The moment a Jedi begins to believe that the ends justify the means, they are diverging from the path of a Jedi. The moment that a Jedi's judgement is clouded by their own self-confidence and arrogance, they are beginning to fall.

What bothers me even more, though, is the Council's take on this. They didn't approve exactly, but neither did they reprimand her. All they did was change their policies on checking out Sith artifacts (now all of the STARS will have warning before Freya does something stupid again). Kass, predictably, left STARS. I am seriously considering following his example, but I know that STARS has a purpose in the larger scheme. Staying with STARS to work against the Dark Days that are coming is still winning in my mind over leaving in a huff. I admire Kass's integrity, don't mistake that.

If the Council continues to condone behaviour of this sort, however, I am leaving the moment STARS is done. I won't be a part of this new Jedi Order.

I think that I'll contact the sane members of the group and ask if they will aid me in signing a formal complaint against Freya.

In other, more important news, a VLTD model attempted to infiltrate the Jedi Council and abduct the Library's Ember unit. For a few days, we'd been suspecting that this Ember unit is not the same Ember that we'd known. Our suspicions were confirmed after we managed to intercept and disable the VLTD as it fought with the Ember unit (whom was wielding a lightsaber...) It turns out that the real Ember unit is in hiding. Ember contains stores of all Jedi knowledge recorded from during the Emperor's rise in power. We also learned what Organization 13 is looking for: the code to access the Force. Droids who have attained a high enough level of sentience can learn to access the Force. The code is different for each Droid, however. Every one must find their own way to it, so taking codes from Force-sensitive droids will do the Organization no good at all.

I could not have possibly anticipated the magnitude and swiftness of my downfall. I say it like that because 'downfall' is what this feels like. I've been riding along the edge of the vortex for three years, trying desperately for two of those years not to get pulled into the abyss. I knew, I knew that at some point, I would slip and spiral inwards. I just didn't expect it to be so soon. Not now, not yet, not here, and not when I still have so much else that I could do to help, to atone, to...

STARS has been disbanded. Freya has been kicked out of the Academy, but she finds this liberating. I find her reaction unnerving. But perhaps this is the way that it is all meant to be. I have no lifelines and the organization that I was beginning to feel at home in is gone. Caduceus Galactic has warned me to lay low; there's a bounty for my capture (alive only) for purposes of information regarding Dr. Trevore and the Trevore Virus. If only they knew, and they surely will know more soon. I've already let my last name slip, by accident. I'm traceable now.

I've sent the most promising sample of a cure for the Trevore Virus off to Aretak. The sample bears my name but not my whereabouts. I don't know if it will work, but it's the best that I have. Likely, if it does work, it will not clear my name. I would be surprised if some hack of a virologist didn't steal the cure and claim it for himself, but that doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that horrible mistake being wiped out. I know that in the end of this, I'm going to die. I'll be executed by the Defel, killed in battle trying to prevent the galaxy's destruction, or I'll be killed when we all fail.

Alpha has, with the exception of Kass, decided to remain together as the crew of the Prodigal Turtle, thanks to Fey Victus. We've shown ourselves to be useful, and that we can be trusted not to snitch on the less than legal dealings that we're now all involved in. So in-between smuggling deals, we're continuing to investigate the impending doom of the galaxy. Without the financial and authoritative backing of the Jedi Council and the New Republic, I'm not sure how successful we will be. Our group is fragmented. I think that Tryce is the only one among the group anymore whom bears me good will. Mina doesn't trust me ever since I stunned Freya. Never mind that Freya had proven herself to be dangerous to the rest of us. Never mind that she could have resumed her attacks at any moment, as evidenced by her complete lack of remorse or good judgement. Never mind that I only stunned her to protect the rest of us. But, it really doesn't matter. Whatever is out there is larger than this: larger than our squabbles, larger than any of the council's bureaucracy, larger than my fears. To save ourselves and everyone else, we're going to have to do what Mina told the Council we'll have to do.

After all, we're expendable.

I remember how, as I fled through the darkness of space away from Aretak, the borrowed cabins and corners of every ship that I hitchhiked on smelled and felt the same no matter who owned them or what condition they were in. I remember looking up at the window, if there was one, and watching the cold stars fall impassively behind me. I remember closing my eyes and feeling the emptiness around me and within me. I remember that feeling: loneliness. Cut off from my home and my past, fleeing the greatest mistake that I have ever made, fleeing the reality of my cowardice, I slept through nights and dreamed through days wrapped in loneliness.

Now, enclosed in yet another ship and surrounded by familiar strangers, I long for that earlier solitude. There had been a measure of peace there: the peace that comes with diving into anonymity, the peace that comes with being so lost that no one else can find you. When you do not want to be found, the loneliness is a warm blanket that soothes your mind and tells you that you are still safe.

Now, I have nowhere to run. My hidden solitude is being stripped away, and I have never felt so alone.

If I wasn't so anxious about other things, I'd probably be mad as hell over what Freya did: breaking away from our plan to lure out the Repulsor-Heeled Jack serial killer. I was worried about this plan, given our not-so-stellar performance the last time we'd fought him. Freya turned off the tracking device and pretended to betray Mina to Jack. Mina fought him off, and the rest of us arrived in time as backup. Though, I'm not sure that we were needed. Something happened to Mina at the end. A fierceness overtook her that I have never seen in her before.

It seems like we're all slipping into the grey.

I'd be annoyed, but I can't find the energy to waste. My thoughts are consumed with matters more personal and more imminent. I've copied my log files from back then, and I'm going to send them to Aretak the next chance that I get. Once I send those off, they'll act as a clock...ticking. I don't have much time left. I need to throw every free moment into research. Every free moment, so long as I remember to sleep and eat. I can't have a repeat of before.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do about Krad. I can't keep him in the dark forever, whether I want to or not. Nor can I just not worry about it until it happens. I need to know what to do, but I have no one whom I can ask. This ship is filled with people, and I can't confide in any of them.

I don't know where we're heading to next. I haven't been paying attention, probably because I don't really care anymore as long as we're following a lead. I wish I could keep my focus. If I continue to be this distracted from our objectives, I won't be as useful.

Well. I think that we inadvertently hastened the galaxy to its death when we landed on Socorro. Apparently the sword of hate being on planet caused a fifth "Judge" to rise in the desert. Not a good thing, no. After a lucrative (well, lucrative for everyone except me) trip into some old lava tunnels searching for lightsaber crystals and an investigation into who is supplying the lightsabers we found with the "Sith gang" on Nal Hutta (turned out that the supplier had just gotten a lucky break after he'd found a crashed Mandalorian Jedi Hunter's ship), we got the heck off of that planet and left for the Swoop races.

Our group's suspicions turned out to be spot-on. Organization 13 will attempt to broadcast their signal embedded within a commercial during the races. We know what commercial will be used and we have a copy of a similar commercial that caused a smaller-scale droid rebellion some years ago. We tested the commercial on a Gonk droid, and it nearly killed us. Thankfully, Tryce and Mina were able to prevent the datapad from exploding, so hopefully we have enough evidence to keep this commercial from being broadcast as intended.

On a more personal note, I sent off my old, original logs to Dr. Da'ryan. They're in his hands by now. I have not yet tried to contact him personally, but I will the moment I get a chance.

Dark. Empty. Dark is good. Empty even better. Alone alone alone...good box. Nice box. Safe in here. Safe from them. Safe from her. Nonono that's not right! They're safe from me. Bad me. So terrible. I knew that, though. Freya trying to show that to everyone else? Whyyyyy? Just trying to make things better. All I can do! Whyyyyy is that bad? Not good enough to make things better? Can't even try?

Cold in here. Floor is hard. But it's okay. Empty. Peaceful. Cut off. Cut off from everything and everyone. Drifting...drifting....

Don't want to go out. Glad to be in here. Outside is loud, open. So disappointed in me. Didn't even really help save galaxy, either. Was rest of them. Mina saved galaxy. Mina is awesome. Good person. Should be more like her.

Can't, though. Will stay in box. Box good.

Was pulled forcefully from the box today. I suppose it really is for the best, even if I can't stand the light and the noise and the sense of the Force so close again. This isn't good. I'm afraid of myself, afraid of the people who want to find me, and I'm too weak to know or do what's best to fix this.

I asked the captain for some dye and coloured, non-prescription contacts to disguise myself with. He laughed and told me that if he hadn't possessed stabilizers, he would have fallen over. I don't really see the amusement of it! This is serious! But he did say that he'd get what I needed. He also asked me if I'd checked messages... apparently Dr. Da'ryan has been trying to get into contact with me. I'll bet he has. Part of me wishes desperately to talk to him again, but the rest of me is wary. How did the doctor know how to try to contact me here? Does he know where I am? If he did, though, surely he'd have sent people after me. Maybe he has. Maybe he's waiting for me to call him again so he can get a lock on my position. I don't know. I want to trust him, but I fear that right now that would be incredibly foolish. I could jeopardize not only my own safety but the safety of my colleagues as well. That is unacceptable.

We're already in enough danger as it is.

We landed on Xel'lotath's home planet with the hope of learning how to get rid of the Mark that Mina has acquired via the Butcher. Instead we fell directly into a trap. Kerlos radioed in saying that he was being followed by a Reaper, so naturally the rest of us tumble out of the Turtle to help him. We found three Reapers in total, two of which shadow-shifted away once we arrived and proceeded to steal the Swords of Hate. Freya made it back to the ship in time to confront the two, but even with all of her formidable skill they were still able to escape, leaving Freya severely wounded and us minus the Swords. Apparently Xel'lotath is planning on killing Mantarok with them. This is a bad thing.

Despite the now rather open dislike between Freya and myself (more my fault than hers), I managed to convince her to let me treat her wound. I offered to find a bacta tank for her--which would have saved her eye--but her response was to turn on her lightsaber and give me a look that promised death if I should even try it. So instead I treated her with medpacks. She'll lose the eye, but she won't be at risk of infection.

I wonder why she's so adverse to bacta. I've heard of people with severe allergies to bacta, but this seemed like more than that. Her past is none of my business and I'll respect that, but I do need to ask her a question. I just hope she won't take my head off for it.

Kerlos was shot in the fight, but thankfully he was all right. Treatable with a medpack. I'm still wondering if he's going to sell me out for my rather, um, impressive bounty. Yeah. My actions have caught up with me. I wanted this, but even so, I will take my own life before I let myself be taken to the Defel.

Mina... poor Mina. I have no constructive ideas as to how to free her from the Mark. With Xel'lotath's Reapers going to Socorro in a week, we don't have much time. I wish I was smarter, more useful, cleverer. I want to help, but I don't know how.

Next on my agenda--inform the crew about the mistakes of my own past.

On the one hand, getting the sith holocron went off without a hitch. It seemed flawless.

So, naturally, everything else had to go to hell afterwards. Vision from Xel'lotath: me going completely insane from the Dark side of the Force while in the Defel execution arena and ripping apart the Defel with Force Lightning while they're attempting to kill me. Vision: the new disease spreading to near-humans and devastating the galaxy.

I cannot turn myself in. Turning myself in seems to be the fast route to both of the above. Now, if only there were a way to give myself up and still have my expertise be used to create cures. But, I don't know who would do that. I suppose I could contact Caduceus discreetly and ask...

Oh, yes. And my confession went badly. Dannel and Eight are at least in agreement that we need as many allies as we can get right now, and I'm the best doctor they've got. Tryce, however... let's just say that he's being irrational. Yes, I know I need to turn myself in, but I'm not going to do that when it seems the most likely route to ensuring that a cure for the new disease is not found in time. Once I've done that, I'll give myself up. If I find a way to turn myself in, be medicated, and be monitored while working on whatever biological problems need to be solved, I'll give myself up sooner. No one else seems to understand that, except for Dannel and probably Eight. Turning myself in to die is just as cowardly and useless as suicide. Even more so if the first vision is true...

Unfortunately, I did not articulate that well enough to the group. Tryce won't even let me heal him anymore. My usefulness within the group is slipping. I'm sick and tired of running. I'm sick and tired of trying to make the right choices and failing.

I felt... a little lighter, though, when I sent a reply to Dr. Da'ryan, as well as the cybernetic eye and instructions. I'm surprised he even thought I'd want recognition for the cure I made. I don't want to be known for it, especially when so many Defel would refuse to take it. I'm just glad it's there and working. And that knowledge makes my heart feel a little less darkened.

We can all be extremely effective when we work together. Who knew?

Xel'lotath grossly underestimated us. Freya had this brilliant plan of trying to remove the mark while within Mina's mind. Strange idea; I never would have thought of it myself. I was going to accompany Freya, Tryce, and Dannel, but once Xel'lotath realized what we were trying to do, she began to kill Mina. I stayed without and with Kerlos's help kept Mina and the others stable for as long as I could. Dannel even flat-lined once and Freya was catatonic for a moment until I helped them. It was frightening, but good to know that I have not, in fact, outstayed my usefulness on this ship. They were in trouble, and I actually was able to help.

Interesting side note: Eight was able to enter Mina's mind as well. I shouldn't be surprised--he's far more than enough sentient to be Force sensitive. I'm rather hoping that he develops his powers, though I've no idea how he would go about doing so.

Xel'lotath of course did not leave Kerlos and I in peace. She continually attempted to cloud our minds with sleep. Near the end, I passed out and entered the dreamscape in time to witness part of what I assume was Freya's nightmare brought to life by Xel'lotath. I am in awe of these people, my companions; they are amazingly strong in the face of the fears that Xel'lotath forced them to face. Granted, I did not witness the horrors shown to most of them, but their bio readings in the waking world had betrayed the duress that they were experiencing.

Admirable people.

Shortly after I arrived, Mina-possessed-by-giant-squid-tentacles attacked us in a stadium full of screaming Defel. Yes, that was fun. But, the good thing is that we we able to stab the life out of the Mark on Mina. That maneuver should have killed her. It almost did. Knowing that my skills unaided would have been inadequate, I channeled the Force once we woke up to stabilize Mina.

We really should do this more often. Work together, that is. I think by this point everyone in the group realizes that we have to, even if some of them don't like it. Tryce didn't say anything to me about the patches that he must have noticed covering the cuts he received. I think that might be a good sign.

Speaking of good signs, we arrived on Yavin to several excellent surprises. The Jedi Council, the Jensaarai, and STARS are working together. We are once again officially sanctioned, and it seems that everyone is doing their part to combat the dark forces emerging. Twenty Eight Jedi Masters fell on Ulyoath, fighting against Ulyoath herself. The Sith was destroyed, having made to see that she was the cause of her own suffering. Supposedly she killed herself. I'm curious to know the entire truth behind her backstory. I think I shall ask Master Odis.

We're absconding with Claire and her awesome sword when we head to Socorro. Apparently that weapon is an heirloom made by her people specifically to counteract the Swords of Hate. Most excellent. We may actually not die horribly.

I feel as though there is more hope now, but at the same time I'm waiting for the other shoe to fall. There is a storm rumbling in the distance of my consciousness. I'm waiting for the worst to befall us, to hamper our plans at the worst of times.

Freya's idea of treating Mina gave me inspiration for eliminating one of those many unpleasant variables. What if it is possible to use the Force, somehow, to cure (or at least control) my own mental illness? I found a book written by a former Caduceus Force Healer. He once worked at a Bimmisaari insane asylum. Using his experiences there, he wrote "Curing the Brain through Mindwalking".

The Captain might mistake me for Dannel or Freya for a while; I'll be doing almost nothing but burying my nose in this book until I've finished studying it.

Thanks to excellent preparation, quick thinking, and skilled backup, we were able to defeat the three Reapers of Xel'lotath. The remaining true Reaper, Dayrius, took out one of his brothers, Claire and two of the Jensaarrai took out another, and the rest of us plus one Jensaarrai fought the last. We even escaped without any deaths, though it was a near thing. The Reaper stepped in front of Freya as Kerlos shot it up with the land speeder's guns. Freya was peppered to the point of dying, and I transfered the Force to her to pull her from death. Mantarok's Reaper healed her the rest of the way.

All in all, it was quite a successful venture. The team is starting to work together consistently, and it's showing. I believe next up we're to help with the Forgotten, although I'm not clear on precisely how we're to do so.

Oh, and I'm green now. Mina dyed me. Really, she could have just said something. I do believe that this is the first prank I've been a victim of by one of the crew. I'm not entirely sure if it was good-natured or not.

Regardless, I'm going to ask Mina if she might be willing to train me in the use of some of the mental aspects of the Force. I need more proficiency before I'm able to cure my own disease.

I may have rejoiced too soon. While I still feel as though we did the right thing by preventing Xel'lotath from killing Mantarok, it turns out that Mantarok plans on consuming the entire population of Socorro with an undead army in order to feed his strength before he attacks Xel'lotath and Chattur'gha. I'm...really not okay with that. At the same time, I don't know what we should do about it. Tryce talked to the Captain, and the Captain--once he believed us--convinced his contacts to cease burials by the judges. This should at least buy us some time, time perhaps to convince Mantarok that we don't need his help (which we probably actually do).

Also, we caught a spy droid watching us after our battle against the Reapers. We failed to catch it or zap it before it flew into the air to self-destruct. It was most likely sent by either Organization XIII or by a bounty hunter. If all goes according to Eight's plan, we shouldn't have to worry about the Organization much longer. I sincerely doubt Thirteen's honour, however.

At the moment, we're focusing more on the Forgotten and saving Coruscant from attack Eva droids. Speaking of which, Mina and Stan were able to fix the Eva droid that used to be the Captain's girlfriend. She'll no longer be compelled to obey to the Forgottens' broadcasted commands, but she will be able to listen to the frequency and track down the source. Or at least, that's what I understand of all of this. We have a plan, and Tryce will most definitely have his moments to shine a day from now.

The Captain gifted me with the correct dyes and, far more importantly, Dr. Da'ryan's package. I haven't opened it yet because I'd had to admit to myself that I cannot build a Level 4 Biohazard Safety Containment Center on my own. I need help. Mina's help. So, I asked her. She, erm, didn't take it very well at first, but I managed to impress upon her how vital this work is and how it really cannot be done anywhere else reliably. Okay, sure, Caduceus, but will they hold on to me or will they send me off to the Defel? I'm quite certain that I have the best chances of cracking this new disease, and I can't do that if I'm dead.

We agreed on a compromise: I get the Captains approval and we build the Lab inside one of the escape pods--just in case something goes wrong. The Captain has no issue with it, so I think we'll get to work on that after the upcoming battle.

Also, I must make a note to talk to Freya. She seems to have a desperate need to communicate that we each should be doing better than we are. I'd like to hear what suggestions she has, specifically. But that, too, will wait until after the upcoming battle.

Well, that went... interestingly. As usual! Tryce performed quite well, I've heard, in the aerial battle against the Forgotten. The rest of us encountered minimal resistance in finding the Eva signal, thanks to teamwork and a particularly impressive new gun that Kerlos seems to have acquired.

But, it wouldn't be STARS Alpha if something unexpected didn't happn. Turns out that the leader of the Forgotten was actually on the ship that we boarded, rather than the one that everyone else thought he was on. And he was able to neutralize our Force capabilities in the signaling room. We found out later that he used ysalamiri to do so, which I find to be singularly... odd. The pieces do not fit there. I do not understand why he would do so, unless he knew that we were coming, and placed enough confidence in his own skill to be able to defeat us if the Force were not an ally.

Whatever his reasons, he desired to speak to Freya alone, also for unknown reasons. So many secrets, that one. But none of them are my business to ask about. Though we were forced out of the room, Mina was determined to finish what we had come here to do. Eventually we were able to enter the room again, but it was empty. Mina successfully stopped the Eva droids, and yet no one seemed terribly concerned about Freya. Perhaps I worry too much about everything, as she returned unharmed, though the Forgotten Leader managed to escape.

Something about the whole matter bothers me, but I can't place my finger on it. Anyway, I have other things that I need to worry about. Other things that I need to solve. I think I might be ready to try the technique I've been reading about. With luck and skill, perhaps I can cure my own disease.

I. Am an Idiot. Everett always used to tell me that wisdom is not the same thing as intelligence. And yet, even though I didn't trust Dr. Da'ryan, I never thought to check for a bomb in the package. I figured the virus might be booby-trapped, but not with the most obvious trap available to the galaxy. I'm such a genius.

So, Dr. Da'ryan has stooped beyond my level in retaliation. He made the new virus that's emerging amongst the Arhan, the one that will eventually spread to near-humans. He made it using my notes. Even MORE STUPID. Why didn't I just send my cure and my notes to Caduceus? Why did I not think to do the most logical and safest step possible?. But no, oh no, I had to do this. Da'ryan's wife and child died to the disease that I made, and in retaliation he knowingly made one of his own to wipe out me and 99% of the rest of the Arhan race. He doesn't know that I'm a Jedi, and that I can quash the disease with the force (which I managed to do before I was severely infected). He also doesn't know of the potential for his own disease to spread to other races--I wouldn't even know were it not for Xel'lotath's vision. The vision is not a sure prediction of the future, but knowing my luck...

I wonder if Da'ryan would really care, anyway. I can make allowance for his grief. I made my virus when I was delusional, buried in the depths of insanity. I would say that Da'ryan does not have that excuse, and in part that's true, but one could also say that he's gone insane from grief. If he'd just tried to kill me, that would be fine. But retaliating by doing the same thing that I did... that's just not good. That doesn't make anything right.

This all started with me, and I accept that responsibility. I will make sure that I end this.

After staying in containment for 48 hours, the rest of the crew is pretty sure that I'm clean of the virus. I'm planning, as soon as possible, to decontaminate the lab and isolate the virus for culturing. From there, I'll work on a cure. The one good aspect of this is that now Da'ryan believes me to be dead. I need to propagate that belief.

While in containment, I attempted the technique I read about, to delve into my own mind. That was...it was...that was not good. My dreamscape turned into a survival horror setting. My mind was still fixed on Da'ryan, and I didn't know what else to expect. I'll go in more prepared next time.

In other news, Eight is now a Jedi Apprentice! He approached the Jedi Council asking for admission. Oh, I wish I could have seen the looks on their faces when they learned that sentient droids can use the Force. It must have been a beautiful sight. The rest of us arrived on Yaven in time to catch the induction ceremony. Looks as though the Embers decided to follow Eight's lead as well. And Eight, determined and confident, requested to take the Trials to become a Jedi Knight.

He's so sure of his path. I wish I could be as sure. Once, I used to know. Once, life was straightforward. But now I feel uncomfortably like I used to as a child: wary, battered, wondering if what I see is real or not, if what I remember is the truth, if where I'm going leads to failure. I remember how to deal with what I experienced back then, however: determination. I pick a path and stick with it, work at it to the exclusion of all doubt. So I've decided, with Mina, to join Eight in the Knight Trials. The council has sent us to a Graveyard planet: Boz Pity. We are to find the Jedi graveyard, pay our respects, and retrieve any artifacts that we find there. Sounds simple, and yet from the legends I've heard since concerning that planet, we'll encounter heavy resistance.

Oh! And it has been confirmed: Freya is a real person after all! She has a brother who came out of nowhere and joined the ship. He's...well, he'd be more believably Mina's brother than Freya's. He shares Mina's enthusiasm for mechanical things, and he seems to be a bright and outgoing fellow. I wonder why he's joining us now?

I have too many thoughts going on in my head right now. I need to calm down and focus. Focus.

That... was not as hard as I'd expected it to be. Granted, it didn't feel as though I really helped overly much. Mina was the one who was able to banish the Sith rune, and Eight had the brilliant idea of how to destroy the skeletal rancor. It was an interesting experience, though, and I feel as though we really accomplished something good on Boz Pity. Freya even gifted us with black lightsaber crystals upon our return! They are nifty! Placing them in tandem with our current one causes a black center with the colours of our first crystals arcing around the blade. We almost match as a team now! I took the chance, while installing the black crystal, to customize my lightsaber a bit. I hadn't actually done so previously, having never really invested myself in the way of a Jedi before.

So the four of us are Jedi Knights now, officially: Mina, myself, Eight, and Dannel. I don't feel any different, for the most part. My heart has lightened a little, though. I think my path is becoming clearer. I'm slowly transforming into less of a coward-- someone with more confidence. Someday, perhaps, I'll have the strength to respect myself. Maybe then I'll earn the respect of others.

So much to do before then...

We're on our way to investigate the Maw. Tryce is a brilliant enough pilot that he'll have no trouble at all getting us through there. Caduceus has something under quarantine there, something nasty. And, after this, I imagine we might deal with Eight and Organization Thirteen. I'm not sure. Depends on what we find here in the Maw.

Mmm...I should get some sleep. I could talk more, but I'm tired. New policy: when Artemis gets tired, Artemis sleeps. Remaining sane and rational is a good thing.

Must be brief. A little harried. Situation normal right now. Very, very normal. Things of note, in no particular order:

- There are doctors out there who are crazier than I am. This is both frightening and comforting, the latter emotion of which is also frightening.

- I have the cleanest lab in the galaxy right now. And I've isolated the virus. Take that, Da'ryan.

- Freya's usually uncanny awareness of her surroundings is apparently severely hampered when she has a datapad stuck to her nose.

- Tentacles are bad.

- Intelligent, parasitic, invasive, extra-dimensional nanoparticles are worse.

- Red jell-o has been forever ruined for me.

Well, we got out of there alive, uninfected (I think), and having successfully tossed the horrible nightmare-ship into a black hole. I'm told that Kerlos surprised Zarkhov with a shot to the face, taking him out in one blow. I think that's the first time anything of the sort has gone that well for us. Way to go, Kerlos. And way to go, Eight, who single-handedly took out the rest of the control room by blasting the hell out of the window and spacing everyone else.

Mina was all set to have the ship rigged to cut out power halfway out of the Maw, but I suppose it doesn't hurt to be sure. Tryce was able to take out a giant, lumbering....thing....with the luggage cart we were speeding on. And the group of us faced down what appeared to be one manifestation of the giant eyeball creature that Zarkhov served. Eerily, it was able to take on aspects of one of us at a time--abilities, lightsaber colour, and voice. It was singularly odd hearing my own death scream.

Tryce then took out the giant eyeball while dodging space tentacles.

Seriously, looking back on this day...it's just too wrong. No one would ever believe us.

With the eyeball zapped with proton torpedoes, Eve was able to force the ship into heading towards a black hole. We're pretty sure it's dead now. The ship, that is.

We emerged from the Maw to find...emptiness. Caduceus was gone, as was the captain. Spoogle news and a quick comm call gave us some clarification on this matter: the former head of Caduceus has died. Apparently she was only holding on, waiting for Zarkhov to perish. After her death, the captain went to Socorro presumably for the battle against the upcoming undead hoard.

I'm not sure where we're going next, but I'll probably have a day or two, so it's time for another trip into the mind. This time, I know a bit more of what to expect. Maybe I'll succeed this time. I'm not sure what will happen to me. Just in case I don't wake up in time, or something terrible happens to me, I'll let the others know...

Looks as though the Dr. Thegas's technique has some side effects. I'm blind now, even though my eyes seem to be perfectly functional. This development, along with the introspection that I remember from my dream, is driving me to believe that my place is no longer with STARS. This belief is cemented more by the fact that none of the group really seemed to want to give me a definite answer when I asked them if they needed me. I appreciate Dannel's offer to anonymously contact Caduceus, though. The deciding factor here is determining which path will allow me to finish my work on the Galatea cure. I could finish it here, with STARS. I have already made surprising progress...perhaps in part because Dr. Da'ryan used my own notes to craft this virus. I can see some of the similarities in mechanism already.

In the broader spectrum of things, video games are coming to life. Not only do we have a virus that turns people into zombies, but now we have a Jedi on Raxus Prime who is building a mecha from five star destroyers. Yes, it transforms. Yes, it wields a giant lightsaber. It's awesome. Tyr remained behind on Raxus Prime to help with the construction. They really need more aid to get that thing finished before the apocalypse actually hits.

We're currently in the corporate sector in the banking planet looking for one of the Emperor's bank vaults. Mina has it traced, I think, to a couple of people. I'm not exactly sure what we're going to do from here, but I'll attempt to help however I can.

My world has been jolted into perspective. All of my worrying about bounties, and being caught by the Defel, and even wondering if I should turn myself into Caduceus...all of those are really stupid things to be worrying about right now. Really stupid and ultimately irrelevant until we figure out how to deal with the horrifying monster that's waking up from within Myrkr. You know...Sith. I've never felt a presence like that before. The Dark Side was...I really can't describe what it felt like. I sensed it for only a few moments before my mind reeled. I felt intensely, physically ill. I couldn't bring myself to continue past the Ysalamiri bubble. Neither could Tryce. The others managed to go on ahead, to their very near demise.

And the worst of it? None of us were able to come closer than half a mile to Sith. And it was that bad already.

I'd known for a while that there's an impending apocalypse threatening the galaxy. But I'd never understood the enormity of what that meant until now. This isn't something that a handful of people can take on. This is real and terrible and strong beyond anything I could have imagined before descending into Myrkr.

Screw my personal problems. All of that, everything in my sordid past, none of that matters unless Sith is somehow defeated.

Perspective.

Hopefully by bringing the news of Sith's location to the Jedi Council on Yavin, we'll be able to formulate something of a plan as to how to deal with it.

Several potentially horrible events turned out surprisingly well these past few days. For one, Eight is still alive! He did have his confrontation with Thirteen, but he was able to convince his brother to hold off attacks until after the potential apocalypse has occurred. Not only that, but several other of Eight's brothers were perturbed by their leader's lack of concern for droid life. Two of them joined Eight's side. Five also joined us after Mina and Tryce caught his attention. Construction plans for a space mecha transformer made out of star destroyers? Yeah, we got that.

We'd received word that Dannel had died while researching the thousand-year puzzle. This was crushing news, at least for me. Fortunately, when we made it there, it quickly became evident that Dannel was not dead, but rather that his consciousness had been trapped within the thousant-year prison. Yes, translation is a bitch sometimes. Freya, Eight, and I attempted to telepathically communicate with Dannel. We succeeded, but Freya somehow managed to get herself stuck within the puzzle in the process.

While in the puzzle, Dannel located the spirits of his parents. Apparently they hadn't died, but had rather also managed to solve the puzzle and be trapped within. There wasn't a way to get them back out short of sticking them into Freya's and Dannel's bodies, so Dannel told them to stay put until we could all find their real bodies. On Eight's suggestion, I used the mind-delving technique I'd learned to pluck Freya's and Dannel's spirits back into their bodies. Thankfully, I put each one in the right body. I'd probably be severely injured right now if I'd messed that up.

And on a stroke of unusually (for us) good fortune, it turns out that Dannel's parents' bodies (possessed by the creatures who had originally be stuck in the prison) were planning a museum heist that very night. Kerlos had noticed them scoping the place out earlier, so he and Tryce waited and captured them. Once Dannel saw them, a few tense words were exchanged before he used what he'd learned by watching me to do a switch of his parents' minds and the creatures' spirits.

From here, I believe we're off to attempt to stop Ember from kidnapping/saving a bunch of Jedi apprentice children. I'm a bit torn on the matter. I say if any of the kids want to go, let them go. At least if we fail here, maybe they'll have a chance somewhere else before Sith gets to them.