Corellia
Surface: Patten Ranch
Donovan Atrii kneels in the sunken gardens, deep in meditation. He lets the world around him fall away. Since the other night, he has been unable to shake an underlying sense of dread about his fellow Jedi. He has taken all the precautions to shield himself from being visible through the Force, dampening his own signature to prevent being found. He is, after all, supposed to be dead. That means no one would be looking for him.
He does not believe that is the case for the others. He had felt another tremor through the Force this morning, another connection extinguished. He knows this cannot be a coincidence. With the Jedi spread so far apart since their expulsion from their chambers on Chandaar, they were more vulnerable. While most had been given instructions following the loss at Bastion, he had remained on the Republic capital to help manage the public crisis. This led him to Counselor Prescott, a true champion of their cause and for all civil rights. His path began to change and after their "death" they found themselves on Corellia under the sanctuary of Director Veritaas and Della Avers. Their kindness touches him deeply but he wonders what their courage would cost them. Corellia has always had a strained relationship with the Republic. Harboring them could cause the rift to widen or break. He hopes that is not the case.
Donovan and Circe have done well here. Playing the roles of Cale and Octavia, they began to build new lives around the new identities. As Cale, Donovan has completed the training program with the CorSec Academy and won the respect of his peers. Veritaas had then assigned him to the Patten Ranch as planned to oversee the protection of Riley Patten. Circe has been able to help Della tremendously given that she had to balance her work on the People's Council with raising a teenager. Circe has thrived in her new position, somewhat saddened that she could not interact with the populous as much as she would like. Still, she serves the people and strives to make their lives better. It is something she has always loved. These new identities are part of their journey.
His journey had begun long ago and became an emancipation from his former self.
Born and raised in the Corporate Sector to arguably the wealthiest and most powerful family, Donovan was a typical byproduct. His father's sister, Abra, had been married to Lord Rutherford Gellar and after she died under mysterious circumstances and his cousin, Blair, committed suicide, his father became a cold shell of a man. Donovan did his best to become everything his father ever wanted. Handsome, charming and arrogant, he became a popular and influential figure at Valor Prep. He was an athlete and a ladies man who won championships and broke hearts. It was never enough. He found the bottle his senior year and drank his way through the first term of university. With his grades in shambles and his legacy hanging by a thread, Donovan threw himself into the party circuit. The club scene on Mondder back then was legendary. Costumes and music and drugs were all part of the decadent revelry.
He and his friends travelled around the galaxy, following DJ's and opening clubs. They were paid handsomely for their appearances, even though none of them needed it. He became the playboy party fixture, frequently appearing in Holo-tabs with eyes half-closed and a smirk on his face. One summer, he even partied at the famous Club Hex on Hesperidium, knocking back drinks and checking out Imperial models Karen Winton and Kimber Patten on the dance floor. On Corellia, he had been so drunk that he was unaware he passed his second-cousin, Valerie Gellar, on the way to do lines in the bathroom.
His reckoning came on a night on Zeltros. The club was packed and he had taken so many pills he had lost count, washing them down with colorful drinks. A blonde emerged from the crowd, so stunningly beautiful that he could focus on only her. She smiled and took his hand, leading him out of the club. The next thing he remembered, he was in bed in a strange hotel room. The blonde was sitting in a chair on the other side of the room. Disoriented, he sat up and coughed. His throat was burning and he felt weak. Unknown to him, she had run his biological samples as he slept and confirmed what her Master had said.
"We had to pump your stomach," she said evenly. "You overdosed."
"Did I? How do you know?"
"Because I've been there. I took so many pills I almost died. If it wasn't for my friends I wouldn't be here right now. I'm paying that favor forward."
"What do you want?"
"I'm here to help."
"I don't need your help," he said, struggling to get out of bed. He fell to the floor, exhausted and shaking.
"I beg to differ, mister Atrii. You are in a desperate state, a crossroads, if you will."
"How do you know who I am?"
She switches on the projector and cycles through until she finds stories of the previous night, his waxy face plastered across the pages of the tabs.
"The obvious aside, we've felt your pain for a while now. It radiates off of you. You may look the part but you are not like the other boys. You sense things more deeply than others and your athletic prowess was enhanced by your ability to utilize more of your physical strengths. Instead of embracing these abilities, instead of questioning their origins, you chose to douse them in substances. I can relate. It can be a burden, if you allow it to be. It can also be a source of hope and enlightenment, an opportunity to transcend the banal existence of a socialite."
He focused on her face, "You look…familiar."
"I should. You've seen me before. Everyone has. But that was before I embraced what I am."
"What are you?"
She rose from the chair and crossed the room, flipping off the projector.
"I am someone who has been able to find peace with who I am and what I can do. You are suffering; mister Atrii and you are coping with that suffering by drowning in excess. You cannot run from what you are or where you came from. You want more from this life but you do not know how to get it. You are confused, lost and alone even when you are constantly surrounded by people. These people don't understand and they never will. Not like those I represent."
"What? Like, a company? Is this some sort of pitch?"
She sighed, tucking a long blonde curl behind her ear.
"No, it is an offer to change. They sent me to you because they felt you would be more receptive to someone…."
"Gorgeous?"
"With a similar background. We may have grown up on opposite sides of the galaxy but both in extreme privilege and self-involved, seldom seen parents. I know what it is like to try and live up to impossible expectations. The bar is set so high you feel it is easier to just lose yourself in the roar than even attempt to reach it. But you are special, mister Atrii. You possess a connection that few others do. The question is; do you want to continue your spiral until it kills you or do you want to finally find the peace that has eluded you your entire life?"
He didn't know if it was withdraw or the emotional gravity of her words but he became overwhelmed and sobbed into his hands. The entire pretense and the bullshit he had been using a shield came crashing down.
"I do need help," he croaked.
She took his hand, "That admission is your first step."
He nodded and looked up at her.
"Who are you?"
And she smiled, "My name is Melanie."
Donovan had left his friends without a word, boarding her shuttle in silence. She flew to Yavin IV and helped him through the worst withdraw of his life. He had screamed and puked and writhed his way across the passenger cabin. Melanie wiped his brow, kept him company and offered support through it all. By the time they arrived, he was shaken to the core, sober for the first time in what seemed like years. At the bottom of the ramp, waiting for him, was an old man in a brown robe.
"Welcome, Donovan Atrii. I am Master Adin Corrin."
From there, he learned of his unique connection to the Force and how it had played a role in his previous successes. He was skeptical at first and frightened when Melanie left Yavin on her own quest but he came to terms with who he was. He learned and trained and fought through the demons of his past. It took longer as he was much older than the others who had begun training at a young age. He was stubborn but determined and Master Corrin's patience showed him a side of humanity he had never experienced. Corrin taught him the value of life and protecting those who needed them. He accompanied the Jedi on missions, forged his own saber and provided support to the group when Melanie was killed in the battle of Centerpoint. They traveled to Chandaar where they found sanctuary beneath the Senate Hall and protected to the citizens of the Republic as it rose from the ashes of the Imperial defeat.
When he was ready, he returned to the Corporate Sector to discover he had a little sister, Demaris whom he cherished above all else. His parents were outraged by his disappearance and foray into what they saw as an ancient cult. He explained that the Jedi had helped him overcome his addiction and find peace but his father was furious that his only son would forgo the family legacy for spiritual enlightenment. Demaris idolized him but his parents forbid him from influencing her. Curious, he had run her samples and sent it to the Jedi. Demaris held the same markers he did with the same potential. Not wanting to make any decisions for her, he requested that the Jedi not pursue her as a candidate. His request was granted and Donovan remained on Chandaar with the Jedi.
Donovan opens his eyes. How time changes things.
The gardens are just beginning to bud. Spring is still young but the change is near. He reflects on the past and remains firm in his choices. Riley comes into view, leading Circe to a large planter with the first signs of growth. She looks happy as Riley explains something to her and his heart swells. They are forbidden from love and for years it had never been an issue. The more time he spends with her, the larger the danger. He had taken vows yet he finds himself drawn to her. He has never expressed these feelings and kept his desire in check to remain focused on why they are here.
Someone had used a teenager to try and kill Circe. Their efforts to investigate why have been fruitless. The culprit does not know they had failed. However, Speaker Apteen was assassinated shortly after. The RSB has not been able to make a connection but Donovan does not think it a stretch. Someone wants a change in the Republic and they have gone to great and horrifying lengths to achieve it. The unknown lies before them as the call for the next Speaker begins. Who would lead them in this time of crisis? Darkness swirls beneath the surface and with the scattered Jedi's signature's disappearing; he fears they may be at the dawn of a new era.
-TBC
