Visiting Hours (Open)

[Sejah Haversh]

OOC- This thread is not really for me to play in, but for you. Read it, and then I'll expalin the rest at the bottom.

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The steady thump and hiss of an automated rhespirator accompanied a quiet series of beeps that indicated Sejah's heart was still beating thanks to a form of pacemaker.

He was essentially dead, his body kept alive only by technology, and over the last twenty-four hours no brain activity had been recorded. His condition had been caused by an accident, and had Qua'Na not found him, he would be dead. As it was, he wasn't far from it. The mongoose didn't even know he was unconscious--he didn't know anything at all.

The medical staff, though highly trained, knew of nothign to help him. Nehantite pysiology disagreed with telepathy, which is what landed himt here in the first place, so they could not get into his mind to help him resart his body. All they could do was monitor his functions and pray that no power outages came along. A small corner of the medical bay had been set aside for Sejah, and a vase sat on a small bedside table, though nobody had gotten around to putting flowers in it yet. And even though the medical staff worked at the Jedi Complex, not many of them really knew who the mongoose was, or who to contact. So a general notice of his condition was posted, and it was left at that. That, and visiting hours were open to whoever wanted to stop in and see him.

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OOC- Okay, so not you've got an idea. This thread is the aftermath of one entitled "Cruelty of Love: Violent Mistake" in the GJO Grounds.

If your character is friends with Sejah, or just knows him, or jsut feels like stopping in and saying hello to a guy who won't say anything back, go ahead. Please treat this like you would visiting a friend in the hospital, however you all do that.

[Quay'Na Rakai]

Quay'Na was the first to come in. She sighed heavily as she saw him. He was alive, barely.

She quietly pulled up a chair beside him and gently took a hold of his right paw. The constant blip of his heart monitor, stayed the same. Tubes and wires were coming out everywhere.

"Sejah, I'm here friend." She said quietly. She didn't know if he could hear her or not, but probably not. It didn't matter.

"You have to pull through this, okay? I know you can." The only response she received was the steady beat of his heart and the sound of his respirator filling and emptying his lungs.

She would stay by his side for a while, she wanted him to know that he wasn't alone.

[Dasquian Belargic]

The second, it seemed, to visit Sejah was his roommate. The medical staff waved the Council member in and over to the right bed, around which curtains had been drawn. Dasquian drew them back and stood for a moment, in silent shock. He looked up and down the length of the Padawan’s body, at the machinery around him and back at the blank lifeless face. Trying to sense anything that was going on in his mind was useless, it just prevented a void. Pulling the curtains closed behind him, he stood at the bedside, all the while barely noticing Quay. One hand gently patted one of the Nehantites paws.

If ever there was a guilty man, it was him.

“Hello Sejah, It’s Dasquian… I know that you can’t really hear me,” he began, his voice a little hushed.

“But I hope wherever you are, it is a peaceful place…you are in our thoughts…”

There was a long silence in which he simply stared at nothing as he offered up soundless prayers to the Force that everything would be alright and that Sejah would pull through soon. It was brought to a close by a long exhaled breath. Dasquian absently rubbed his eyes. They stung a little.

“May the Force be with you Sejah. I know I’ll be seeing you again soon.”

He gave his hand another gentle pat before looking up to Quay, his eyes red and nodded. The sorrow was overwhelming. Deep down he knew that Sejah would pull through eventually but seeing him in such a sorry state pained Dasquian. He stepped out and looked back to the Padawan to say:

“Take care of him.”

And then departed.

[Loki Ahmrah]

Loki sat in silence and watched Jedi Knight Belargic leave the ward, his skin was paler than it had been when he had walked in, his eyes were hazy too. The padawan knew that there was someone else in there with Sejah, he had caught a glimpse of her face as Dasquian slid through the curtains moments before. He did not recognise her but according to one of the hospital staff, she had been one of the people who had brought his mongoose friend to the hospital. For the time being, he remained were he was, hunched forward, staring idly at the floor while he rubbed his clammy hands. He wasn't ready to go in just yet.

[Kale]

It took Kale a little while to find the medical ward; he'd only been there once, and that was when one of the nurses stuck him to test his mini-chloroform count, or whatever it was. In a rare show of observance, he'd actually paid attention to one of the general memos on the Temple net and read the news.

The teenaged Padawan stole quietly into the medward and approached the unit where Sejah was laid up, and he held his breath. It had only been a week ago that the mongoose had given him a crash course in saber form. Now he was wired up like a Christmas tree as machines forcibly pumped air into his lungs and blood through his veins. He looked dead, and for all the death Kale had seen during his life on the Coruscant streets, it was hard to take.

He hadn't known Sejah very well, but the mongoose had been the one who took him into the order. Kale felt like he owed him something. But he didn't want to make himself too conspicuous, so he lingered by the far wall away from the woman by the bed and the kid with glasses.

[Ryla Relvinian]

I walked into the hospital room slowly. For some reason, hospitals had always set me on edge, no matter how pleasant the staff or how joyous the occasion. This, however, was not a joyous occasion, and I willed myself into the room despite some personal misgivings.

Although Sejah and I had not cultivated a friendship, we had met several times and even had a quick spar once. He was an excellent swordsman... or would it be swordsmongoose? He was a true joy to fight, and to see him on the bed, cocooned in a tangle of cables, was indeed painful.

I noticed that Loki was sitting on the floor off to the side of the bed, and I gave him a faint smile, a smile that could do nothing to help him feel better. In the empty vase beside his bed I placed a small bunch of flowers, taken from the gardens of the temple just this morning.

"Hey, Sejah. Hang in there, I know you can."

Turning to the bed again, I reached out to grasp Sejah's hand... paw? I gave it a gentle squeeze.

"You are a fighter, and fighters never give up."

I stood for a moment, willing him to suddenly get better. It was a foolish thought, but even though I knew that the Force could not help him, I still tried.

[Quay'Na Rakai]

Quay'Na had been in nearly a trance the entire time she been at Sejah's bedside, her animal healing powers pouring into him., but still it didn't help. With a stir in the Force, she looked up at the others in the room and stood. The Padawan wasn't even for sure who any of these people were and nodded a greeting towards them.

She looked back down to her friend, with tears in her eyes. "I'll be back later, Sejah. Hang in there, friend." She quickly exited the room.

[Helenias Evenstar]

All I could do, after I had heard the news of the attack was tocome to the medical center and stare at my Padawan, feeling somewhat guilty I had not trained him better.

I came in, ignoring everyone else for now. I sat down on a chair, feeling completely misreble and guilty.

[AmazonBabe]

:: AB popped her head in through the door and saw the room was a bit crowded already, not with just Jedi, but flowers and Get Well cards as well. ::

:: She'd been visiting Sejah on a daily basis, not only to see him and talk to him (though he possibly couldn't hear her), but also to make sure that he was alright and healing, if ever so slowly. She was a healer, and because of this, she spent a good portion of time at the hospital at the base of the Jedi Temple. ::

:: While still looking through the doorway, she smiled, glad to see so many here to keep Sejah company, letting a feathery touch of the Force brush over Sejah. Hopefully soon, he would find his way back to them. ::

[Pierce Tondry]

'First was Flix. No, wait. First was Dimmun, then Flix. Then there was Kensing, then Havier, then... then...'

Then they all blurred together.

Pierce looked at the door to Sejah's ward. There was no way to count the number of times he'd come to a hospital to see a comrade injured in the line of duty. It was even worse when he'd been made an officer- then the beings in here were there because of decisions he'd had to make. And for every one person in the ward, there were two that never made back.

Jax had evidently picked up on his father's mood, because the young boy was nestled in his father's arms, sucking a thumb pensively.

Pierce stopped by the door, then turned to face Loki. He waited until the young Padawan looked up at him. "Time only makes it worse," he said with a note of understanding in his voice. "When you finally do go in, you wonder why you waited."

Heeding his own advice, Pierce went directly through the door. He spied the Nehantite's curtained bed immediately and made his way over to it, giving a nod to his fellow Jedi just before slipping inside.

No matter how many times you saw death grinning at you through someone else's lifeless body, it never got easier. Even though the monitors said that technically, Sejah was alive...

Pierce reached up and yanked his blindfold off, staring at Sejah with his own eyes in spite of the uncomfortable brightness of the nearby lights. "I'm sorry it had to come to this, bud," he said quietly. "If there's chance you'll pull through, I hope you can grab it."

[Jax Ivanrue Tondry]

Jax looked around the strange room, and pulled his thumb out of his mouth with a slight pop. "Mongwoo?" He could actually say 'mongoose' now, but Sejah would always be Mongwoo. "Is he sweeping?" He looked at his father with a concerned look in his eyes.

He strained to get out of his father's arms, trying to reach down to the bed where Sejah was.

[Pierce Tondry]

"Yeah, kiddo, he's sleeping," Pierce lied as he reigned Jax in. "He got an owie and needs his rest, so don't disturb him, okay?"

Jax continued to fidget. "I wanna see!" he insisted.

Pierce sighed. "All right, but don't touch the wires, okay? Just give him a pat on the head for good luck."

"Okay," said Jax in that too-serious little boy voice.

Father stepped over to the bed and leaned in; son gave the unconscious Nehantite a soft rub on the head. "For luck," Jax pronounced firmly, eliciting a laugh from his father.

"C'mon now, kiddo," said Pierce. "We need to go do our chores. We can come back and visit Mongwoo later."

"Okay," said Jax.

The two of them stepped back through the curtains with Jax staring backwards at Sejah until the heavy fabric obscured his view.

[imported_J'ktal Anajii]

Night had fallen, and the medical ward was dark, save for a few utility and safety lamps. A skeleton crew manned the ward, and most all of them were bored and tired, having onlt a few patients, and all of them asleep.

J'ktal's short-heeled boots clacked lightly against the polised floor as he entered the hospital, a long bag hanging from his side. The Death-Shadow had been away the day that Sejah was injured, and once he came back, he took special care to gather things important to the comatose Nehantite.

Passing through the security checkpoint, J'ktal made his way to the curtained room where Sejah lay. Pulling the curtain aside, J'ktal looked in at the sight of his kinbeast lying, his body supported by machines, and bathed in the light of the city from a narrow window to his side. Only the hiss and thump of the artificial rhespirator broke the eerie silence, and the gray mongoose closed his eyes and shook his head before passing into the room.

Unlike those at the Order who knew Sejah for his efforts to learn, and his accomplishments, no matter how minor they were, J'ktal knew Sejah at a more personal level. He knew all about his past, how he grew up, and even some things the brown mongoose didn't know himself. At the Rho'istaan, it had been J'ktal's priveledge to see the swordsbeast in actrion, but it had also been his duty to arrest, publicly shame and totrure him. Knowing how great an ordeal Sejah had oversome only made seeing him there, lifeless, more crushing.

Beside the bed, a vase with cut flowers stood, the water half-gone, and the blooms wilting. J'ktal carefully weeded out the worst of the bunch, and then opened his bag to remove a small bouquet of Nehantite blossoms, which he added to the current arrangement. Looking back to Sejah, J'ktal straightened his hospital gown, and took a quick moment to comb his errant headfur. Sejah had been in a coma for several days, and was beginning to look mussed up. When he had done all he could to help his appearance, J'ktal pulled a chair close, and turned on the bedside reading lamp to give himself room to work by.

Next to the vase, a small stand was erected, and Sejah's kris dagger stood up on it. Beside it went a small, framed picture of Sejah when he was fourteen, with his mother and Master Rej on either side, celebrating his latest victory. The sash worn by a master level swordsman was neatly tacked to the wall above his bed, and a small bottle of old brandywine laid on the nightstand, just in case he should wake up and be thirsty.

Taking a seat, J'ktal sat in silence and looked at Sejah's chest rise and fall, listenign to the electronic beep of a regulated pulse sound through a small speaker. Had the attack taken place on Nehantish, there was no way he would have survived; the planet did not have ample medical technology. J'ktal, himself, often found hismelf going off-world to see a specialist. Though his injury was considerable, it was fortunate that he was so close to proper attention.

"Sejah," he said, breaking the silence, "I am sorry for how I treated you in Nehantish. You must understand, it was not my choice, but my duty. You were incredible, taking all that punishment, and still you came out on top. I apologize for the media, and all the bad press, but they were a necessary evil. You could not have known what was already planned to maintain class structure and avoid a civil war. Unwittingly, you took the place of many others, providing the nobility with a chance to enforce their rules on the lower classes on you. I did not agree with them, but it was in the interest of preventing a war that I went along with it. You knew what I was, and that I could not pull my punches. I would have taken your head, as well, had your friends not interfered. For that, I am grateful; I would be hard-pressed to destroy a beast so masterful with a blade. Someday, perhaps, I will issue you a challenge, as to test myself, but until then, you must rest, and know that your courage has inspired millions."

Reaching down to his bag once more, J'ktal pulled out their bible, and opened it to where a satin bookmarking ribbon held place. In the light of the reading lamp, J'ktal read to Sejah from scripture for hours, though often pausing to make sure that his kinbeast was still responding well to the life support. When he finally finished, the sun was beginning to rise, and so J'ktal stood, placing the bible on the side table as well, then bent down and kissed Sejah's forehead, a tradition usually held for family, or friends held in great respect. Turing the reading lamp off, J'ktal stood and picked up his bag, whispering, "Sleep well," to Sejah before he left.

[Wei Wu Wei]

Wei didn't know Sejah too well. But indeed he had spent several hours with Sejah doing a random assortment of things. Wei remembered racing with Sejah and Zeke through the forest. Then there was the time when Wei's parents came to visit for the first time and Wei's mom absolutely insisted that she help Sejah cook. Not to mention it was Sejah and his connections that helped Wei to aquire his lightsaber war fan.

"It appears to me that you got yourself into quite a scrape, Sejah," Wei said with a sort of chuckle. "But it'll be ok. You seem to be cooperating with your treatment very well, by the looks of the displays on these machines." Wei gestured at the various devices.

"Of course I really don't know anything about any of this stuff. Except that the jumpy line means you're alive." Wei chuckled. "I really am a simple sort, aren't I?"

Wei found a stool and pulled it up next to Sejah's bed. "Remember that war fan you helped me get? The one that works on lightsaber technology? It works like a charm. Of course it melts aftera minute or two, but I never keep it out that long anyway. I really appreciate having it around. It makes for a nice shield. Thanks for helping me out with it. I don't remember if I ever did thank you for it."

Wei continued to talk to Sejah for a while. Wei talked about grass and trees, his parents, other people's parents.

"I better get going. Promised my mom I would write her a letter. She might come visit you if I tell her about how you're doing. She never forgets a face. She still talks about 'the fuzzy young man' that cooked such a wonderful dinner. She wants the recipe." Wei grinned broadly.

"Get your rest. With a little time, you'll be up and about like before."

Wei put the stool back where he found it and gave Sejah a courtesy bow before leaving.

[Jax Ivanrue Tondry]

It was about one in the morning when the door cracked open again. It paused, and then opened more as the faint sounds of a scuffle echoed in the empty hallway. The night nurse in the ward hadn't seen or heard anything, and turned another page in her magazine.

The door to Sejah's room shut once more, and Jax looked around cautiously. He hadn't remembered how to get there...and yet managed to do it anyway. Pierce would wake up later to find the nanny droid missing a needed circuit, and the front door unlocked. Jax had wandered through the halls and into the gardens and then eventually to the hospital where he'd known where Mongwoo was.

He missed Mongwoo. He told the best stories! Daddy had been very sad last time they'd been there, and it had made Jax sad too, even though he wasn't sure why. He remembered something in a story his droid had read to him, about a sleeping princess needing a kiss to wake her up from sleeping. To a three year old, gender made no difference whatsoever, and so the fact that Sejah was not a princess didn't even register.

The bed loomed eeriely behind some drawn curtains, and they were very nearly torn down as Jax got tangled up trying to get through them. Eventually he managed to crawl under them, and then struggled up the end of the bed. Mongwoo was lying very still. He didn't look sick... Sick people coughed a lot and moaned. Mongwoo wasn't moaning or coughing.

But he was sleeping.

Jax carefully crawled up the side of the bed to Sejah's head, and planted a sloppy wet kiss on his furry forehead. Then he sat back to watch Mr. Mongwoo wake up!

But nothing happened. Jax yawned, and frowned. Something was wrong, it was supposed to wake him up! The little boy started whimpering, and then curled up next to Sejah, thankfully on the other side from the lines that ran to the monitoring equipment. Jax put his little arms around the Nehanite as best he could, and then fell asleep.

[Lion El' Jonson]

Down the hall from Sejah's room, a scuffle had erupted.

Several secretaries, nurses, and doctors were making a commotion, waving their hands in the air and babbling incoherently as they followed several figures down the narrow, gleaming white corridor.

A man in a blindingly white Admiral's uniform walked ahead of the medical personnel, happily ignoring their nonsense about 'visiting hours' and 'proper procedures'.

"Well, it is 3:00am..." he thought to himself, grinning. His fleets had pulled into Coruscant mere hours ago, where word had reached Lion of Sejah's perilous condition. Without hesitation he had cancelled all of his meetings with High Command and rescheduled his report to President Organa Solo, then set off alone in a landspeeder. Somehow his bodyguard had tracked him, and now they flanked him, along with a couple of Intelligence Agents and two DKK-04A Security Droids. The imposing DKK Droids nearly filled the whole corridor, each of their 4 arms concealing a heavy blaster cannon.

Lion had just about reached Sejah's door when a doctor rushed ahead and tried to shove him backwards. That was a mistake. Without a sound one of the security droids surged forward, grabbed the startled doctor, and hurled him bodily 10 feet down the corridor into a weight scale.

"Cypher, Rayne, Kharatakh...take them." Lion uttered, and his bodyguard detached from his side and burst into action.

Within seconds the medical personnel were either on the ground or slumped against the walls. With a slight motion Kharatakh, his Noghri bodyguard, choked the last secretary into unconsciousness, and at last everything was quiet.

"Good job. Wait out here while I see my friend."

The Noghri didn't like to leave his charge alone, but he relented and slunk into the shadows, presumably to drag the unconscious medical personnel into a lounge or something. Cypher and Rayne, both imposing figures in the dimmed lights of the corridor, merely leaned against the walls. Cypher lit a cigarra.

Lion shook his head, approached Sejah's room, and with a whoosh the door slid aside on miniature repulsorlifts. He entered, and saw his friend. The Mongoose lay on his bed, wired into all manner of machines: monitors, respirators...even a difibrilator sat at the base of the bed, it's display showing it was already charged for use at a moment's notice.

He walked over to Sejah, and put a hand on the unconscious form.

"Hey, Sej. Looks like you got yourself into a right mess this time, my friend. I always told you those big, clumsy feet would get you into trouble one day." he joked, though he knew full well Sejah's injury was caused by telepathy.

"When you get out of here, I've got a shuttle to take you wherever you wanna go: Balados, Pantolomin...heck, even Thyferra, if you want. Already got the forged documents." he added, not quite joking. Apparently getting an extrasystem passport was hard if you were a Mongoose...something with insurance, he was sure.

He took out a big card that said "I, Lion El' Jonson, owe you a vacation", followed by a bunch of contact numbers and "get well soon" messages from other trainees who hadn't found the time to visit yet. Lion placed the card on a table near Sejah's bed, followed by a passport and travel brochures.

A slight snore startled Lion, and he looked up to see Helenias sitting in a corner chair, asleep. The sight brought a smile to his face: the normally unreadable, former Royal Guard actually acting like a human being. He looked back at Sejah, and noticed Jax pretending to sleep next to Sejah, though his left eye opened occasionally and surveyed Lion. The scuffle outside must have awoken him. Lion gave Jax a wink, said a final goodbye to Sejah, and then left, the door whooshing open. Lion and his bodyguard were halfway down the corridor when it closed again.

[AmazonBabe]

:: AB came into the hallway from the opposite side as Lion exited Sejah's room. It wasn't odd for Sejah to get visitor's at odd hours, but 3:00 AM was a bit extreme. Then, from her encounters with Lion, he could be extreme. ::

:: She thought nothing of it, and decided to pop her head into the room just to make sure everything was alright. Opening the door slowly, she first glanced at the equiptment, and then at Sejah. He was still sleeping soundly... and apparently, so was Jax, who was cuddled up beside the Mongoose. ::

:: AB couldn't help but smile at the scene. It was sad and touching all at once. She decided the boy would be alright, and she would be just outside at the nurses desk. Closing the door behind her, she went down the hallway to the desk and made a quick comm call to Pierce. A sleepy "mmm" came as the reply. ::

Hello, Pierce. Sorry to disturb you at such an early hour, but I just wanted to let you know your son has made his way back here to the hospital and has found a new room mate with Sejah.

:: There was a fumble and muffled "what" from the other end, making AB hurry to reasure Pierce. ::

Don't worry... I'll keep an eye on him until you wish to pick him up.

:: There was somemore fumbling, another "mffm", and a soft "thank you", and then the comm went silent. ::

:: AB shut the comm off on her end, and silently sat in the seat at the desk, falling into a state of contimplation on whatever might pass through her brain. ::

[Anbira Hicchoru]

The door opened, and a grave-faced figure in dark clothing entered.

"I only recently got the word. What has happened here?"

[AmazonBabe]

:: AB looked up as Anbira walked into the medical wing where Sejah was being housed. ::

He got into a nasty fight and ended up in a coma because of it. We're hopeful he'll regain consciences soon... but it's hard to predict. His body needs time to heal itself.

:: She wished she could give him more information, but even she didn't know much except for his condition. ::

[Loki Ahmrah]

Sejah was in his second week of unconciousness now and there was no evidence to show that his condition had improved. The future looked bleak for Loki's mongoose friend. He sat in silence as he had done for ten minutes everyday since Sejah had fallen into a coma; what had caused it was still a mystery to the young padawan although he'd pieced together from snippets of conversations he'd overheard a vague picture of what had happened down in the garage. Regardless of the how and when, Loki found himself pondering on the why. Why, after all he'd so recently suffered, should Sejah lie lifeless on a hospital bed with no promise of recovery?

It wasn't fair, Loki thought bitterly. He'd seen Jedi more deserving of this than Sejah and yet he is the one in a coma, not them. That is the way things go. The good guys always get the worst deals in life and Sejah was no exception. The padawan coughed deliberately to break the eerie silence in the ward; they were alone now save for a doctor or nurse walking by in the corridoor. His eyes fluttered to the still fisage of his friend every now and then but he never followed through with any effort to say something. He was finding it increadibly difficult; it was so much more easier to talk to someone when they weren't in a coma. Loki cleared his throat.

"Hey Sej." His voice was quiet and hoarse, again he glanced up but there was no movement. The padawan clasped his clammy hands and gave them a rub while looking around the room. It had that sterile look about it which always made the boy feel sick to his stomach. He glanced out at the grey sky. "Looks like it's going to rain."

Looks like it's going to rain? He cringed inwardly. What a stupid thing to say to someone in a coma. Is that the best you can do? The best you can give to someone so close and important to you? Of course it's not. It's just really hard. What would Sejah say if I were in this position? What? Who cares just get on with it. Say something. Anything!

"You know," He spoke suddenly, this time his voice was clear and bold. "I'm sure you've heard that saying: When it rains, it pours. Well, that is true of you. True of your situation right here because well, I mean, this is it! Isn't it? It has to be! You can't get any worse of than this can you?"

The boy gave Sejah a look of amused disbelief. He shook his head, smiling.

"After this, it's all downhill. And I mean that in a good way, mind you. Once you pull through this, and you're going to, everything else will be simple. I've never known anyone to be so unlucky as you, Sej." He laughed. "You should be kept on a leash or something, I'm telling you!"

He slapped his hands on the arms of his chair and pushed himself to his feet. At the foot of Sejah's bed was a small table, Loki had moved it from his bedside so that he could get a clear view. Not that he could see it of course, but it was the principle of the matter. The padawan began fidgeting with a small metal disk, indented in the center where a nozzle stood upright. He placed it on the table.

"By the way, I got in touch with Master Rej and told him about your condition. This arrived yesterday."

There was the high pitched whine and a blue, three-dimensional projection of Sejah's old master appeared. Loki returned to his seat to watch the recording with him.



"Sejah, my boy, I have to admit, the news of your condition knocked the wind out of me. I sent this to you as quickly as I could and only hope that you'll be sitting up in bed right now, enjoying some grapes, while I remind you of how proud you've made this old beast."

Despite the limited detail, Loki could make out patches of grey against his yellow fur - which is, at present, actually blue - and the remnants of his left ear; a testament to his master's old street-fighting days according to Sejah. Rej beamed, great wrinkled extending from the corners of his eyes. He didn't get to see Sejah after he'd won the Rho'istaan Tournament.


"Your blinding victory at the Rho'istaan has put the old school on the map, a pity it doesn't stand there anymore but I tell you, regardless of the woes of the night previous, I wept for joy to see you win that tournament. You have always been my best student and the finest of swordsbeats. And that is why I know you are going to pull through this latest challenge with the same success.

I tell you m'lad, Garfife works in mysterious ways but rest assured, this is a trial, my boy, one last trial. You're destined for greatness, Sejah Al'jazhaar Haversh. Chin up, I want to hear from you as soon as you can get in touch. You're in my thoughts and prayers. Take care."

The was a second whine and the projection of Rej faded away. The room was in silence again. Loki perked up.

"Well, there you have it. Even Master Rej said you're going to get through this no problem. It'll be just like the tournament. You'll see." This time he was pretty quiet again and found that he wasn't really talking to Sejah but in fact he was talking to himself. He was trying to reassure himself everything would be okay and he was finding it difficult to speak again with a huge lump in his throat. He stood abruptly and took the holoprojector off the table.

"Don't take too long, buddy. I need you." Feeling quite sick now, Loki left the room hoping that would be the last time he'd have to pay his friend such a visit.

[Sejah Haversh]

Electrical pulses throught through his body to drive his heart to pump. Compressed air forced down his throat, then vacuumed back out, made him breathe. All of Sejah's bodily functions were handled by machines, just as they had been for nearly a month.

The doctors had all but given up hope. Statistically, few cases where the subject had been without brain activity for so long ever woke again. There had been talk of whether or not it would be best just to pull the plug and let the mongoose go, but his frequent visitors made the medical staff hold off. Sejah was loved, that much was obvious.

Late on a Thursday afternoon, as the sunlight through the low window was broken by passing speeders, an irregular beep sounded on Sejah's cardiograph. When it happened again, the electronic systyem shut down, but the beeps did not stop. After several weeks of stimulated pumping, his heart finally beat again on its own, and in a regular, though weak, pulse. The transition from electronic to normal beating was so smooth that the medic at the front desk didn't even notice it on the monitor, though that could be blamed on his being engrossed in a murder mystery novel while drinking a diet soda.

Hours later, when the sun was setting, sparks of life begain to fire in Sejah's brain. Here and there, connections were finally restored, and his subconscious let him know that he was still alive. But that wasn't to say he could think. Nothing ran together, only snippets of realization and random words flashed through his sleeping mind.

Then, suddenly, his pink eyes snapped open, and the mongoose began to choke. The rhespirator tube was still inserted down his throat, and initiated his gag reflex the moment he woke. The only thought that completely clicked was to get whatever it was in his mouth out so that he could breathe, but his arms wouldnt' work. All he could do was just hope the tube would suddenly vanish, or he would wake up from whatever horrible nightmare he was in.

[Sejah Haversh]

OOC- Sorry, pal, I realize you put a lot of effort into that post, and it really is interesting, but....

Please, I had left this spot open for Pierce, as stated in Avalon. No offense, we just sort of had this a little planned. That, and Sejah has no idea who Lion is, and I think the Jedi medical staff would raise the alarm if something began to happen to them. That, and I stated what the night medic was doing at the front desk.

Also, I has asked that Helenias not be in the room. That is also due to something pre-planned.

I'm really sorry, but, your post just doesn't work like it is.

[Pierce Tondry]

The powers that be heard Sejah's desperate mental cry for help and made the respirator tube vanish.

Or at least, that's probably how it seemed to Sejah, confused as he was.

Pierce set the plastic tube dripping with mongoose saliva neatly on a bedside tray, then put a hand on Sejah's forehead. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Take it easy, just breathe in and relax. Breathe in-" Pierce inhaled to demonstrate,"- and relax. That's it. There you go."

Then Pierce grinned. "Well, well, well," he said, and then he grinned, and then grinned some more until finally two things beat their way through the wealth of inner sunshine he was feeling at seeing a friend recover from grievous injury he hadn't been predicted to survive. The first thing was that Sejah's disorientation was probably beyond all measure. The Nehantite would have no idea where he was or who the grinning looney standing over him would be.

The second thing was the more practical of the two: that someone on the hospital staff ought to be alerted to this.

"I'm gonna be right back, okay?" he said, calming down a bit. "Just gotta go tell someone on the staff you're alive."

Hearing himself say the words you're alive brought the smile back to Pierce's face as he stuck his head out of Sejah's curtained confines.

"Hey! We've got an awake coma patient on our hands! Someone grab a doctor!"

Pierce pulled back inside the curtains and turned to see Sejah staring at him with a look of focused confusion. Sejah also tried to speak but only ended up working his lips.

"Take it easy, Sejah," Pierce told him. "You were in a coma, if you can remember what one of those is. There'll be time to talk later, after you get some of your strength back and remember who the hell I am."

An Ithorian physician in a white coat pulled back the curtains and approached Sejah's bed, accompanied by two human nurses. "He has just awoken?" the doctor asked in a peculiarly accented voice.

"Yeah," Pierce replied. "He was gagging on the respirator so I pulled it out."

"You may have saved his life then," the doctor said, turning his hammerhead face to Pierce. "He would not have been able to do so himself. I will take this in hand now."

Pierce nodded and turned to go, catching a glimpse of Sejah's face-

- and it was extremely scared.

One of Pierce's hands lightly gripped Sejah's. "I know it's all real strange right now. But don't worry- things'll be better soon. Just trust these people. They'll take care of you."

Some of the fear in Sejah's eyes filtered and and was replaced with trust. The mongoose nodded, slightly. Giving Sejah's hand a last squeeze, Pierce turned and left to go spread the good news.

[Sejah Haversh]

"They'll take care of me. They'll take care of me," ran through Sejah's jumbled mind. He felt heavy, and lightheaded all at the same time. As his head rolled to the side, the mongoose found it difficult to straighte, and wondered if that was normal.

"That man was nice. Who is he? I know him. What are those people doing? Cheeseburger," his mind continued to ramble as the doctors checked him over. They removed the bits of tape that had been holding the rhespirator in place, and that hurt because it tugged on his fur, but Sejah didn't understand that was why. Only that it hurt. His pink eyes watched as they disconnected his pacemaker, and then placed a few electronic sensors on his body while the head doctor took readings on his condition.

"How do you feel?" The Ithorian asked.

Sejah just cocked his head and blinked, unsure of what was going on. He was pretty sure he had just been asked a question, but he couldn't remember what you were supposed to do when someone did that. Giving an answer wasn't something he came up with at the moment, so he turned his eyes to the side to look the other way.

"Can you understand me? I am a doctor, I am here to make you better." the Ithorian continued.

Still, it was to no avail. Sejah couldn't wrap his mind around what he was saying anymore than he could understand quantum physics. Out of the blue, he said, "Flagline." It was mumbled, and he couldn't seem to make any words to explain it. Though his memory was shot, and his body not listening to what he told it, somehow he remembered his car in the garage, the Krarr Flagline GT-X, and wanted to know if it was okay, or if it was damaged during the fight.

[Ryla Relvinian]

I had seen Pierce in the hallway, looking elated and giving me an excited thumbs-up sign. We exchanged words before he dashed off again, eager to make it back to the Jedi temple and notify more people.

At first, I felt anxious about being one of the first people to see him awake... there were many other Jedi that he knew better than me. But I figured that any familiar face was better than no familiar face, and rounded the corner to the hospital wing that contained Sejah's room.

All at once, as I poked my head in the door, I felt a jumble of emotions where he had previously been a blank page. They were weak still, and mightily confused, but they were there, and it was a good sign. I could see a huddle of doctors around his bed, and one of them turned to see me.

"Yes?" He questioned curiously.

Nervously, I replied, "I'm sorry, I don't want to get in your way here..."

[Sejah Haversh]

At the arrival of a new person, Sejah craned his neck to see who it was, though his eyes tended to wander every now and then. He recognized Ryla, but couldn't remember her name. So instead he used the only real memory he had of her.

"Who won? We sparred in the, in the, in the," he tripped over his words, the next one not coming out until he closed his pink eyes and concentrated. "Forest. On Arcan. We sparred."

Since waking up, Sejah had regained most control over his neck, and some of his arms, but word control was still tricky, as was memory. When one of the doctors tried to ajust his hospital gown, he instinctually snapped his teeth at her, and flared hsi nostrils. Looking back to Ryla, he smiled and tried to wave, but it just ended up as his elbow sliding sideways and his paw lightly lifting.

[Ryla Relvinian]

The doctor had just begun to make a reply when Sejah's face popped up and greeted me, his speech choppy and strained, but his mind awakening more every moment. I threw courtesy out the window, walking in past the doctors and sitting down in a chair beside Sejah's bed, grasping a paw gently and smiling up at him.

"You did, remember? I ended up flat on my back after one of your well-placed parries."

From this vantage point, his neck did not have to strain as much to see me. I could see clearly that, although some of his fur was sticking up from where they had taped the breathing tube, his face looked as alert as it could be expected, given the situation.

Fearing a relapse, I did not press the Force further to sense his mind, relying only on what naturally came to me in the form of emotions. The last thing I wanted to do at a time like this was hurt him further.

"Hey, you gave us quite a scare there, Sejah."

[Sejah Haversh]

Thoguh he didn't know what he did to scare anybody, Sejah nodded his head in an apologetic way and said, "Sorry, sorry."

Images and words flashed through his head faster than he could think everything was a jumble, and only the basics of life seemed to make sense. He knew his name, and knew that he was in a hospital, and that a monster was his doctor. He also knew that this blue woman was a friend, though he didn't know how or when he had met her. He didn't even know why he was in a hospital bed, or why he couldn't feel his legs.

Lolling his head to the side, Sejah looked at the slowly wilting flowers in the bedside vase and said, "Need water. Shouldn't cut flowers, need more water cut than in thr ground." He had no idea why he said it, but at least his words were getting better. Turning his pink eyes back to Ryla, he asked, "Did you bring flowers? Where this am?"

[Ryla Relvinian]

I squeezed his hand gently. "It's ok, we're just glad that you're doing better."

Following his gaze to the vase beside his bed, I listened to him attentively, as his words were still jumbled up. I got the basic idea. "Yes, I brought you some flowers a few days ago. You're in a hospital right now."

Hoping it wasn't too much strain to press him further, I continued. "You had a... a fight. Do you remember?"

[Sejah Haversh]

Sejah tried so hard to understand what Ryla was telling him. His ears heard the words, but they just didn't go where they were supposed to. Still, like an old, loyal dog, he tried to appear as if he understood and kept smiling, nearly obliviosu to his surroundings.

What did gesiter was the word fight, and although he didn't remember his fight with terran, he remembered many other things. Drumming up some concentration, he said, "Fight? I can fight. I am a good fighter, won championships. I remember fight." As he spoke, he nodded as if fully confident that he was answering the question Ryla had asked.

It wasn't just the shock to his brain that was causing him such scattered tought, but the drugs that had been used to regulate his body were also still in full effect. Though they kept him healthy, they also reduced his thinking power significantly. All he thought at the moment was that he was okay, and the nice blue lady liked talking to him. Even if he still couldn't recall her name.

[Ryla Relvinian]

What did they put him on? If his responses didn't give it away, the look in his eyes certainly did. It was evident that, whether because of the drugs or because of the trauma, his mind was not connecting completely at the moment. Perhaps it was both.

All I could do was keep talking to him, and keep him feeling safe. Later, when he was thinking more clearly, he would probably not remember this at all, but it would probably comfort him at the moment, even if he did not know what he was saying.

"That's right, you are a great fighter. When we sparred on Arcan, you showed me some new moves."

The Doctor, who had stood there impatiently when I first arrived, had apparently left the room. It seemed that Sejah was as fine as their knowledge could allow. I had confidence that, as the drugs wore off in a few hours, his mind would clear.

[Sejah Haversh]

As time passed, Ryla stayed with Sejah, watching to make sure he was okay. When the sun began to sink behind the screen of massive towers and buzzing speeders, Sejah found himself able to mostly control his arms, and build rational sentences.

He had regained most control of his arms, and was able to wiggle his fuzzy toes, but still could not sit up under hos own power. His muscles were weak from a month of complete inactivity, and his stomach was sick.

Ryla's name had eventually come back to him, and Sejah remembered more of who he was and what was going on, thouhg his recollection of the fight was nonexistant.

"Ryla," he said after a long silence, "What will happen if I can't walk again? No...no.... no Jedi has been crippled like that and been eff-ff-effective."

[Quay'Na Rakai]

"It's not gonna happen, Sejah..." A new voice said. Quay'Na stood leaning against the doorframe, she was tired. Her eyes were somewhat bloodshot from her late night studying excursion.

"It's good to see you awake, my friend." She stepped in further with a gentle smile on her face, while she was holding a small bag.

It was so good to see him awake and alert and talking. Something that she wondered would ever happen again. The young Padawan walked over to him and lightly kissed his furry forehead and gave him a gentle hug. "I've missed you so much." she stood back and bowed a friendly greeting to the Jedi Master. "Master Relvinian, good evening."

Looking back at Sejah, she suddenly remembered the bag. "Oh, I've brought you something." She quickly reached into the bag and brought out a book. "I picked it up for you in the Archives, I thought I could read it to you. It's 'The Lost World.'" She held it up for him to see, knowing how much he loved to read before the accident.

[Pierce Tondry]

"I should have thought of that," Pierce grimaced as he walked in behind Quay'Na. "I didn't really bring anything for you, Sejah, just- just came to visit. You'll probably be seeing a lot of people wander by, though- I did a good job of putting out the word."

Pierce coughed suddenly and looked around. "And, uh, if anyone tells you any wierd stories about a Jedi Padawan whooping and sliding down the stairs in the Great Hall, don't believe them."

The military Padawan gave nods to Ryla and Quay'Na, then stopped by Sejah's bedside. "How are you feeling, Sejah?" he asked, enunciating his words just a bit.

[Sejah Haversh]

So many familiar faces, even if Quay's looked somewhat odd in comparison to the last time he saw her. "Thank you," he said to her as she gave him the book, though his paw wasn't quite strong enough yet to hold it. ""D-doyle is one of my favorite authors. The kiss had come as a surprise, but he wasn't about to complain.

As Pierce returned, Sejah smiled. He could sompletely see his friend doing exactly what he said he didn't do. Swallowing, Sejah cleared his throat and replied, "Feeling okay, I guess. I mean, I can't feel my legs, but, I can think better now. How long was I out for? What happened?"

[Pierce Tondry]

"We're still not entirely sure," Pierce said tiredly. "I've been looking into things as best I can when I have free time, but as best anyone here at the Order can tell, you just came out on the losing end in battle with a Dark Sider. You've been in the hospital for about four weeks."

Pierce coughed again. "And, uh, word around is that you're going to make a full recovery, but your leg nerves will need some time and rehab to be fully functional again."

"I volunteered to help with that," he added.

[Sejah Haversh]

"A darksider," Sejah spoke quietly to himself. He had never met one before that he knew of, and had never really been in a great battle for the good of the Order. The mongose only wished he could remember what happened, but the memory seemed to have been wiped from his brain.

"Full recovery?" he asked, trying to get his mind on something more positive. "Good, I think lying here would drive me nuts."

He didn't go into detail about how he was dreading rehab. Though he had never experienced it before, the concept of medical rehabilitation on Nehantish was not an attractive thought. "Thank you again, all of you. And, four weeks? What have I missed?"

[Quay'Na Rakai]

"I found you," Quay'Na told him quietly. "I don't know what happened, I just knew something was terribly wrong and when I found you...your heart had stopped and you weren't breathing. I tried to get your body started back up as fast as I could...." she trailed off, knowing full well that the loss of feeling in his legs coudl be due to his loss of oxygen to his brain.

As Pierce coughed again, she gave him a concerned look. "Are you alright?"

[Pierce Tondry]

Pierce looked taken aback by Quay's question. "Yeah, why?"

[Quay'Na Rakai]

She looked at him, "the hack? Are you getting ill?"

[Sejah Haversh]

Closing his eyes, Sejah tried to think back, nd tried to come up with the elisive memory, but once again it eluded him.

Opening them once more, he looked down to his paw at his side, lifting it and trying to ball a fist, then relaxed it once more. "I guess I owe you my life," he said to Quay'Na. "I'm glad you were there."

The sudden rumbling of his stomach, once again awake after the long sleep, made him chuckle. "Well, it looks like my appetite has woken up again. Anybody want to see wh-wha-what they serve in this joint? My treat," he joked, grinning. Even though it was slightly forced.

[Quay'Na Rakai]

"I was glad I was there too, Sejah. I just wish I'd gotten there sooner." Quay'Na replied with a sad smile. "I'll try to come back in the morning and start reading that book for you."

Her exhaustion was beginning to dwell on her. "So, how've they been treatin' ya?"

[Typhoon]

Bucket. Mop. Toolset. Jus the things a Janitor needed. Today on the cart however, was a box of flowers and other good smelling goodies. Vash didnt ask when he was told to deliver this box. It was quite large and sooo good smelling, the tall gangly human had to have a peek inside. There was food. And a note.

Sejah,

Your not forgotten. I shall be there when you are alone. We need to talk

Vash,

You read another private note, I'll turn you into a frog

Vash closed the box, his face going red.

He found the right door, knocked and entered, placing the box on the table next to he little group and hurriedly made an apology for iterrupting and got out of there.

[Sejah Haversh]

At Quay's question, Sejah lightly fingered one of the IVs still inserted into his forearm. "Good, I guess. I don't remember much," he explained.

After trying to push himslef up on his arms, Sejah gave up and just pressed the button that raised his back so that he was sitting up among his friends. Suddenly his head swam, and it took a short while for him to focus correctly once more. Finding someone to focus on, he continued, "Oh, Gar, I feel weak. You sure it was only four weeks? And, who brought my stuff down?" He pointed weakly at his kris and a few of his belongings on the bedside table.

Just then, the tall janitor entered with his cart, surprising Sejah until he rememberd who he was. But when the box was set down, Sejah's nose took over, and hsi thoughts were drawn more to what could be in the box, and away from everything else. With some difficulty, he managed to pry the lid off to reveal a box of donuts, as well as some other assorted goodies, and a very stately boquet of flowers. There was a card as well, but Sejah found it impossible to read jsut yet. Holding the card out to the others, he asked, "Could, could one of you read this for me? I wonder who it's from. Mmm, smells good,: he said, taking another sniff.

[Pierce Tondry]

Pierce took the card from Sejah's hand and glanced at it. Then he frowned. "Sejah," he read. "Your not forgotten. I shall be there when you are alone. We need to talk."

"There's more," Pierce added, setting the note back down. "But I don't think that part was addressed to you. Which is wierd because I don't think a lot of people know in advance who's gonna read what they write."

"Oh- just remembered somewhere I have to be." Pierce glanced at his wrist chronometer. "You take good care of yourself, Sejah. I'll see you in rehab."

[Kack Mebuff]

Kack had heard rumors that his long time friend, Sejah Haversh, was laid up in the medical ward. So he decided it time to see if the rumors were true or not. Sure enough they were.

Kack strolled into the room with a small box in hand, hidden behind his back.

"Hey, stranger," he began, "looks like you're in rough shape, buddy."

The Jedi held out his hand with the box.

"For you, it's nothing big, but hey, I figured it would help you keep contact with the outside world."

As Sejah opened the box he found a commlink that had all the numbers of their friends stored in it already.

"So what happened?" Kack inquired sitting down next to the bed. His gruff face full of concern.

[Sejah Haversh]

It was a suprise to see Kack back at the Order. Sejah hadn't seen him in quite some time, and it brought a smile to his face, evn though the blind Jedi probably couldn't see it.

"Hey, Kack, long time no see," the mongoose said happily as he took the box from Kack.

The communicator was a great suprise, and he grinned as he held it in his paw. "Thanks, pal, this is awesome," he said, then looked around at the others before explaining. "Well, from what I can tell, I got into a fight in the garage, and whoever it was I was against blasted me with some telepathic message. It basically shut me down, and I ended up here. That's about all I know. But what about you, Kack, where have you been?"

[Kack Mebuff]

"I'm glad you like it."

Kack rubbed the back of his neck at Sejah's question.

"Well that's quite a long story. I guess I've got time to tell. Well it started when I kept recieving dreams of a great warrior fighting on Naboo, my home planet. So I traversed there and began searching for some sign of this warrior."

"After three and a half months I found a hidden temple where I discovered a book of lineage. It turns out that my family on my mother's side was full of great warriors. And as a mark of my bloodline they handed down a great weapon, the blade known as Ruunya, it means 'Red Flame' in the tongues of Elves," Kack patted the scabbard at his side as he spoke.

"The weapon should have passed to my grandfather but his father saw him of ill character and hid Ruunya from him and my mother had no brothers. So it lay hidden for all those years until only two weeks ago when I uncovered Ruunya."

Kack paused for a moment to catch his breath.

"After that, the dreams stopped and I returned to the Order. So, ah, here I am."

[Sejah Haversh]

Kack's story was interesting, to say the least, and Sejah let the commlink rest in his paw as he replied with a weak smile, "Well, at least it sounds like you got something out of the deal."

"It's good to have you back, pal. And, has anybody heard anything from Corin lately? I heard he was back for a bit, and then I haven't heard anything else."

[Kack Mebuff]

Kack laughed as he lifted the blade out of its scabbard.

"Nice new toy," he joked.

After Sejah's comment about their friend Corin, Kack's laughter died down and his expression turned thoughtful.

"No, I haven't seen Corin since I left a few months back. I wonder how he's been. I know he was injured, but I don't know if he's fully recovered or not by now."