Jedi Insurgency 115

Having erased the mutants from the face of Naboo, there were still a handful of diseased corpses left on the periphery. 

At first, Corvus was going to dispose of them the same way he had with the super mutants. However, he was curious to see if he could cure them with [Force Heal]. In Legends lore, Cade Skywalker had cured himself from a vicious disease known as the Rakghoul virus. That ability, in gaming parlance only healed wounds, or ‘damage’ that the player had sustained. But Corvus had worked miracles before. Restoring sight, destroying cancer. There was some real potential here to do good. 

As a Shadow, his first instinct was to purge every last thing tainted by the grips of the Darkside. But as a Jedi, he was tasked with the protection of the weak, innocent, and just. If he ever successfully overthrew Palpatine, he wanted to be someone worthy of respect. Otherwise, he'd probably end up with a reputation similar to the CIA. A person deemed as a ‘necessary evil’ yet secretly looked down upon by half of the population. 

For an insurgency to gain legitimacy, showing kindness, and acting for the common good were critical. On a personal level, Corvus had lost his grandma during the height of covid, and was willing to put in some time to eliminate this virus. Having experienced one pandemic, he wasn't willing to let a catastrophe of this level spread. 

Approaching a mostly full body, he spread out his hand, and a minty green light fell upon a uniformed royal guardsman, and he used a two part [Heal] + [Revitalize] combo. The black lines that had made him hostile surged forth, and the mutant barred his teeth at Corvus, then got up to lunge at him. 

Jax & Yon had ignited their lightsabers, and were about to cut the man down, but Corvus held up his hand, signalling that they hold back. Using the Force, he held the guard in place, and watched on with sympathy as foam dripped down his chin, and boundless hunger echoed in his signature. 

Holding out his hand again, he pulled upon his connection with his kyber crystal. 

‘Will you help me, little one?’ He asked. 

‘Friend. Always. Forever.’ Her soothing voice rippled across his psyche like a small rock dropped into a cool, still pool of water. 

Serenity spread across him, from his fingers to his toes. Recalling his many healing experiences on Eriadu, and the millions he had helped, he pulled upon the sensation of using [Heal], the ebb and flow that he had developed outside of the System. Acting like a conduit, he allowed the Force to flow through him, and channeled this power like a hose watering wilted flowers. The Lightside sang in his mind, and a mothers laughter tickled his ears. 

Losing himself in the moment, Corvus's eyes were blazing white, and as his gaze bore into the guard's form, he no longer saw flesh and blood. Instead, it was as if his vision had some sort of Force Sight, and all he saw were those black lines, and several dark flecks surrounding a grey, humanoid shaped being. Countless tiny particles of light were leaving his hand in a stream. With a thought, he directed these motes of light at the darkness, and eliminated this ‘plaque’ like a power-washer eliminated dirt. 

Once he had destroyed the filth, he felt himself stumble out of this majestic, illusory state, and accidentally dropped the telekinetic hold on the mutant. 

Right as he was contemplating drawing his lightsaber, he witnessed a miracle. 

“What. What happened?” The royal Naboo guardsman weakly muttered, and held a hand to his forehead. 

Taking a close look, Corvus saw that color had returned to this man's flesh, and there wasn't a hint of infection. 

Eyes going wide, he stared down at the dazed guard in astonishment. This man had been dead. Infected by a virus that made one no different from a zombie. How long he had been a walking corpse was hard to say. However!...However, his [Revitalize] skill had worked on him! It had registered this guard's death as being within the last ‘30 minutes!’ This was huuuge! Theoretically, he could resurrect anyone so long as they were infected by the Marakami orchid!!! 

Whilst he was processing this-frankly insane-revelation, Jax & Yon were staring at him with fervent gazes. Signalling to the pair that he would talk later, he looked down at the crestfallen, former mutant, and his heavily damaged outfit. 

Taking some spare clothes out of his inventory, Corvus handed them to the guard, and then cleared his throat to gain his attention. 

“I am a Jedi, you are saved, friend. Can you tell us how you ended up like this?” Corvus asked in a sympathetic tone. 

The man grimaced, and felt at his neck where a lightsaber had once ended his misery. Raising an eyebrow, Corvus theorized that perhaps the infected had some degree of consciousness. 

“...there's not much to say. Three days ago, the food in the cafeteria had a funny taste to it, and…” The man gulped, and looked away with a thousand yard stare. His next words were barely above a whisper, and Corvus had to lean in close so he could hear them. “And then there was the hunger. Every second it wormed its way into my mind, my every thought, every action, it was like watching a movie through my own eyes. I-I can't-!” 

Watching the guard recount his horror, he saw that the man was about to breakdown, and hyperventilate. Casting [Valor] on him, Corvus could only sigh at his account. Those poor bastards. 

“You are safe now. The Jedi will handle this.” Corvus comforted, squeezed his shoulder, and deposited a blanket from his inventory. 

Glancing at a nearby pile of corpses that had been stuck at the edges of the hangar, he shook his head in pity, and then got to work. 

“You two keep watch, but also observe. Perhaps one day, you will perform these rites on your Master.” Corvus said in a solemn tone. His words were much more serious than his typically jovial, or jester-like nature. 

Jax squinted his eyes, absorbing his every move, whilst Yon seemingly held his breath. Each teen was doing their best to memorize his every move. 

Slightly smiling to himself, Corvus was pleased to have such dedicated disciples. Thankfully he had [Mentor], it wouldn't be long before [Revitalize] entered their repertoire. 

Beginning this difficult, weighty task, it didn't take long for the Falcon to touch down inside. 

Strutting down the Falcon’s ramp, Obi-Wan was dressed in his full clone armor battle regalia-a set that had been revamped with beskar during the journey to Naboo-and the Bad Batch were hot on his heels. The Jedi General's face was encased in a see-through bubble helmet, complete with an air-freshening breathing apparatus. 

“Well this isn't quite the welcome I had anticipated.” Obi-Wan cuttingly remarked as he glanced at the grim faced native Nabooians. His gaze briefly turned to the black scorch marks caused by [Force Lightning], and a micro expression of displeasure spread across his face before it was replaced by cool stoicism. 

“Better than being being gnawed at, I assure you.” Corvus bit back sarcastically. 

Having caught the split-second change in Kenobi's expression, he chose to ignore it as he worked his magic. Eyes blazing white, he used the concentration, channeling method of [Heal], and removed the darkness from his last patient. Of the countless mutants in the horde that had rushed him, he was only able to save 55. The rest had either been too damaged to heal, or had been burnt beyond recognition by his [Force Lightning]. 

Patting the handmaiden in front of him on the head, he sent her to Jax & Yon so they could practice [Valor]. 

“The whole place smells rotten, General. Echo has some leads that might be worth following up. Me and the boys have been antsy for some action since Eriadu.” Hunter declared, and vigilantly looked around the hangar. 

Corvus slightly inclined his head, giving the Bad Batch's second-in-command permission to speak. 

“Hacking into Theed's primary security server, I discovered that there is an old, underground sub level beneath the animal enclosure. This location was-at one time-the primary site for biological weapons research under the Nabooian King three monarchies ago.” Echo faithfully reported. 

“The killshot is one stroke away.” Crosshair muttered menacingly, and folded his arms across his chest. 

“We go in, and we smash dem!” Wrecker exclaimed. 

“It would seem it was an ambush. I fear for the Queen's safety.” Obi-Wan spoke up, urgency colored his voice. 

Corvus silently nodded, agreeing with the rest of them, that action had to be taken. 

“Excellent report, Lieutenant. How many entry points are there to this structure?” Corvus first praised, and then enquired. 

“Just one.” Echo grimly intoned, and then held up a thin disk in the palm of his hand. 

A second later, a blue, 3D, holographic image sprang to life. It depicted a model of a map, and then morphed into footage of a massive steel structure. 

“This is as far as the cameras go. Everything beyond this point is dark.” Echo said. 

Looking at the image closely, it appeared that the steel structure housed a massive elevator. To Corvus, it looked like the kind of slow moving death trap endemic to horror set-ups, or action games where wave after wave of enemies would be sent at the protagonist. 

Frowning at the scene, he did not like what he was seeing. 

“Does anyone have any suggestions?” Corvus asked. He was wracking his brain, trying to find a solution, and overcome this straightforward assault. 

Unfortunately, his scent and pheromones were detectable by these mutants, and he couldn't simply slip inside from the comfort of invisibility. 

“This trap stinks. I don't like it General, but we can’t seem to find any other way. A direct assault is our best option.” Hunter declared. 

Tech gestured at the holomap, zooming in on the elevator shaft. “The shaft is large enough to transport entire vehicles. If we can somehow fit a LAAT in there, we can bypass the elevator, and provide a means for rapid exfiltration.”

Corvus looked around the hangar, and saw a pair of unused LAAT's sitting in a corner. “It seems like a viable solution. We'll have to make due.” 

“Lovely.” Obi-Wan muttered, rubbing his beard. “A straightforward mission, then. What was all that you were spouting off about ‘saber-monkeys.” Obi-Wan sarcastically remarked with a curled eyebrow. 

Corvus ignored the ‘Master of Trolling’ that was Obi-Wan, and focused on his special forces expert. “Captain, what is your recommendation?” 

Hunter straightened up, and nodded, his mind went into overdrive as it cooked up a plan of attack. “Alright. Here’s the plan. Crosshair will take an overwatch position in case anything tries to escape topside. Tech, you’ll handle the elevator controls and be responsible for emergency evacuation. Wrecker, you’re guarding the rear, nothing is getting past you. Echo, you and I will take point alongside the Jedi.”

Obi-Wan gave a small nod. “I’ll coordinate with Revan to provide cover and, if necessary, barriers against the infected. That is, of course, assuming your talents are as formidable as the stories suggest.”

Corvus glanced at the recently healed, former mutants, and scoffed. 

“I seem to recall offering you lessons, Master Kenobi.” Corvus remarked over his shoulder as he began to march towards one of the LAAT's. 

“Master Kenobi, is it now? And here I thought we were on a first name basis! Where's the comradery, the willingness to bond over a shared struggle!” Obi-Wan melodramatically intoned as he followed along. 

“Let’s move.” Hunter spat. “Before we end up bantering like an old couple.”

“Master Kenobi is in for a shock.” Yon boasted as he ran to catch up. 

Jax wordlessly glanced at the blackened scars in the hangar that still lingered with the power of the Darkside, and furrowed his brow. 

He recognized that the pair of Masters were simply trying to alleviate pressure, and raise morale. The Force stirred, and that pressure he initially felt that warned him of this upcoming danger intensified. 

“This mission will not be so simple. Watch yourself.” Jax solemnly warned, both to himself and Yon. 

As the white haired teen's words were uttered, the pair of LAATs’ engines began to rev, and the sound of high pitched whines filled the air. The survivors of the Blackwing virus looked at them with gaunt, haunted eyes. 

Corvus gripped the railing inside the LAAT as it took off, and watched as the hangar disappeared from view. 

His student-unfortunately-was correct. Delving into the heart of a bio research lab capable of reviving an ancient Sith virus? 

This would not be so simple.

~~~~~~~~~

AN: I know this arc isn't the most popular, but trust me, it has HUGE ramifications. Two really big name players are going to show up in a crazy way. It's going to be so hype, I can't wait till I get to their reveals.