Down in the Dark (Byron)

[Faily]

The entrance to the site of the trial looked innocuous enough. The front seemed to be the entrance to a ruined temple, nothing immediately marking it as any different from the other ruined temples on the planet. But on second glance, the shadows within the entrance was just a little bit darker. The air was just a little bit colder. Even the smell, the taste of it was just slightly off. And the longer one studied any of these things, the more they would cause a creeping sense of dread. Of fear.

Master Murah stood beside Byron at the entrance, giving him a comforting smile. "Remember, I will wait no matter how long it takes."

[Byron Mik]

Byron nodded and said, "I'll be back in time for lunch." He then headed out.

[Murah Bakash]

"Of course," Murah said with good humor at Byron's bravado and saw the student depart.

[Faily]

Inside was a bone-chilling damp air that felt stale and unpleasant. Behind him, the exit stood like a barrier of light against the darkness that awaited him within, and further in the darkness continued in a straight path ahead.

[Byron Mik]

Byron mustered his courage and moved forward, he had bathed in he Dark Side the day before... and that gave him a sense of reckless courage... in her own selfish way Drascovina had prepared him for this encounter in the dark. That thought gave him a shiver, Sith were weird.

Still he pressed forward.

[Faily]

The chill and stale air lingered around him as he pressed forward in the darkness. The dampness seemed to seep into his hair and clothes as well and stuck like a film to his skin.

Eventually he could see the end of the tunnel; a small light growing bigger and bigger as he came closer - and eminating from the light was a crowd. A cheering crowd.

[Byron Mik]

Byron approached with a slightly incredulous look, why would there be a crowd this deep into the mountain... was this the vergence acting on his mind already? Or maybe he really was done.

[Faily]

The light spread around him and he could see a great crowd of people gathered at the Plaza outside the Senate building on Coruscant. They were cheering and waving Republic-flags, some chanting "our Jedi hero! Our Jedi Hero!" Ahead of the crowd was an elavated platform, standing empty as if waiting...

[Byron Mik]

Byron walked into the crowd and asked, "Who is the big hero?"

[Faily]

A few cast him a questioning glance. Their looks were cold, as if he was a stranger or some outsider.

"Lunda Mae!" they called in another place in the crowd, and Lunda herself appeared on the elevated platform.

[Byron Mik]

Byron smiled and approached the rised stage hoping to get a sight of Lunda and let her know he was there as well. He called out, “Lunda… Lunda!”

Maybe the idea that this was going to be a bad experience was overblown.

[Faily]

Lunda looked at the gathered crowd, glancing at Byron in passing as he was just another face in the crowd. The cheers were loud and almost oppressive in their volume, and the great hero Lunda waved to the crowd.

"Thank you, thank you everyone! But I'm just a humble jedi - and not the great hero you all seem to think." The crowd laughed politely at her humility. "It's really strange to have all you people cheering me on like this, as I never had anyone who supported me this way or cheered me on."

[Byron Mik]

Byron nodded at her modesty and said aloud, “Well no one but all the students that saw you as a role model!”

“Enjoy your moment in the spotlight, take a bow!”

[Faily]

The crowd looked at him confused once more, and this time Lunda looked at him too as if he was a stranger.



"Uh, sure!" she kind of gave an awkward bow. "... Who are you, sir?"

[Byron Mik]

"Byron? have you been gone so long that you have forgotten me... is this a joke?" he replied with a mirthful but awkward laugh.

[Faily]

Lunda looked at him questioningly, but also with pity. Maybe he was a confused young man. "I'm sorry, I don't know of any Byron..."

[Byron Mik]

“Well come on I know I am just Jedi Number Four, but surely you remember your old roommate? This is a really bad joke,” he replied with a frown.

“Or maybe this isn’t happening?” he questioned. Byron reached out to touch one of the onlookers curiously.

[Faily]

The shoulder he touched felt cold, and it shirked away from him before starting to fade into grey. The scene seemed to be drained of all color and the people seemingly blending in with it.



"But... you are nobody. The Jedi have heroes, not nameless nobodies."

Lunda turned her back to him, looking away.

[Byron Mik]

“I mean the Jedi have heroes but not every Jedi is a hero… some of us have to do the grunt work to keep the galaxy safe. Humility is a virtue though, if Revan had been more humble maybe he wouldn’t have slaughtered half the galaxy,” he countered.

[Faily]

Lunda shook her head, the movement barely noticeable as she seemed to become one with the grey around them.

"You're no one." It was hard to tell if it was Lunda's voice, or the voice of the crowd, or his teachers. It all seemed to be one and the same.

The greyness was dimming, becoming darker.