Deer Country Network

[ Rey looks awkward in front of the camera, this is not her natural element. She doesn't enjoy calling attention to herself, and this feels very self-indulgent, but save walking around and polling anyone she comes across this seems like the most efficient way to ask her questions. ]

Hello. For those of you who don't know me which is- probably a lot of you, my name is Rey.

[ She pauses, chewing on the inside of her bottom lip briefly as she tries to think of how to proceed. ]

I'm wondering how those of you who are used to running for your lives, or fighting every day to survive have settled here. How you found things to be useful to the community.

I was a pilot and a scavenger back home, there doesn't seem to be much call for either of those things here.

So I was just wondering how others adjusted.

Thanks.

[ Anakin woke up this morning and, compelled by his Warmblood nature, decided to give a short lecture. The video opens on Anakin, who is sitting a rug in his living room. His Omen snoozes peacefully behind him. He's even wearing the closest approximation to traditional Jedi robes as he can find.

He looks calm, but there's a trace of warmth in his expression. ]

I noticed that a lot of people here don't know much about the Force or the Jedi. I have some spare time this morning, so I thought I could explain a little bit.

The Force is an energy field that is generated by living things and binds them together. On one level, it's not much different from how anything with mass produces gravity. It's not something you do consciously, and it's not something you have control over. There are people who have a stronger connection to it than others do. We call them Force-sensitives. Someone who's Force-sensitive can tap into the Force and call on its power in various ways-- telepathy, empathy, precognition and prophecy, and telekinesis. For example-- [ He holds out one of his hands and a cup of water floats from off-screen. It hovers for a moment before he uses telekinesis to set it down next to him. ] You can't learn Force sensitivity-- you're born with it or you aren't. But even if you can't feel it, you're still connected to the Force and, through it, every other living thing.

[ He flashes a brief, small smile. ]

The Jedi-- and many others-- believe that the Force is much more than that. It can offer strength and wisdom to those who tap into it. But it has both a light and a dark side to it, just like every living thing.

[ He summons the water glass to him again and passes it from hand to hand using telekinesis. It never touches his palms, instead hovering a few centimeters above them. ]

As Jedi, we consciously choose to draw our power from the light-- compassion, hope, selflessness. We preserve life as much as we can. [ His expression flickers to something sad for a moment. ] Even though sometimes we're forced to fight one person to protect another.

[ He feels the weight of the lives he's taken. Choices he's made. But he shakes that thought away, though the gravity of it lingers in his expression for a moment. ]

It sounds cut-and-dry, but it's not. When you're angry or scared or grieving, it's easy to draw on the dark side-- rage, greed, selfishness. It's easier and faster, but...

[ He brings the glass to hover in front of himself. For a moment, his expression changes slightly and the glass shatters violently. Pieces fly across the room and his Omen snaps awake for a moment to assess the danger. It then gives him a Look and goes back to sleep. The pieces start to float up again, slowly fitting themselves back together as he continues. ]

... there are always consequences.

[ The glass is reassembled, but is still very much broken. He holds it together for a moment before letting it fall apart again. The tinkling of glass falling to the floor breaks the silence. ]

That's why the Jedi focus so much on self-control. Once something is done, it can't really ever be undone.

[ Anakin shrugs. ]

That’s just what we believe. I’m not trying to give a lecture about morality. Our way isn’t the only way-- the Jedi know this and aren’t conceited enough to assume it’s even the only good way.

Anyway, I hope that helped. I’ll try to answer questions, if you have them.

Otherwise. [ He smiles. ] May the Force be with you.

[CW: None for first memory]

( A choice and new beginnings )

[CW: Mentions of war, war trauma, fire, parental figure death, grief]



( Another choice and an end )

[The Omni's screen jumps to Ezra, here in Trench. Ezra sucks in a shuddering breath, on the edge of tears.]

The name he chose was Kanan Jarrus. He was a Jedi Knight. He gave me a family again. We had four years together. It- [It wasn't enough, he wants to say. But that's not quite right. Kanan had given him everything.]

I wish we'd had more time. [He cuts the feed.]

[A new face to these network posts comes on the screen. She appears to be in her mid-teens, and while the Omni isn't that far away from her, it's easy to spot one of the yellow blankets that have been appearing to those under Baus' patronage in her arm. Occasionally, ears that clearly belong to a young bear pop up at the bottom of the screen in the vicinity of said blanket.

The girl's brow is furrowed slightly and her mouth has a small, contemplative frown. When she speaks, her voice is comparatively on the monotonous side and doesn't quite hold the same emotion as her expression does.]

I am Echo. I thought it would be best to ask as many people as possible of this.

What is the true significance of a festival?

[She pauses for a moment or two.]

Is it the reasoning behind it, no matter how dubious the story may be? Is it to promote business and vendors in the area, particularly in places where they can sharply raise their prices to take advantage people's convivial response to the activities? Is it the different offerings in which to partake, which despite the various rationales behind the events remain surprisingly similar in the broadscale? Or...

[A tiny bit of color comes to her cheeks as she hesitates.]

is there some other reason it may be considered important?

[The top of the cub's head has been lingering on the screen longer than it had been during this last part, and Echo turns her attention toward it. Despite the focal shift, her tone of voice is very similar.]

Do not chew on it.

[ooc: Those of the Pandora Hearts world or who have been overly informed about it may choose to note that I arbitrarily made this St. Bridget's Day.]

[Hey all, been a few months. You remember this guy. The shirtless guy with the giant mech. Well he's back. Clothed, this time. Though he might get more help if he were shirtless again, huh. Alas.

Raleigh is outside, sitting next to a planting bed, lush with vegetation. Like so much. It's a suspicious amount of plant life for Trench.

He smiles and waves. It's dark, but there are little torches all over so it's got a luau kind of vibe.

The camera pans so you can see the garden properly. It's two huge raised beds full to the brim on either side of the walkway to a huge, newly finished greenhouse . Lit from the inside, she looks something of a crystal palace.]

Do you all see this? This is the future.

I dunno about all of you but I'm sick to death of mushrooms.

[He pans through the veggies, all growing happily under warded netting. Lettuce, tomatoes, squash, beans, corn. Familiar for a lot of people. Very rarely seen in this world.]

Last month all my powers turned into plant stuff so I've been making and growing as much as I can. Things are hard here and the soil is awful, but it can be done.

[Raleigh moves towards the green house. Free range chickens dart around his feet as he goes, looking for food. He's the mama. Some of them are wearing little crochet hats. Inside the greenhouse is table after table after table of seedlings. The other side is all planting beds full of soil ready to go.]

I've been thinking about how important food is to all of us. Not.. well, obviously it's important, but I mean culturally, too. Making food from home.. having ingredients from home.. that's kind of our last connection.

[He sets his Omni down and reappears in frame. He looks tired, but when doesn't he.]

So.. Is there anyone out there who cares about this stuff? Because honestly I have the land but I'm learning as I go along and I could use the help. I'm not a gardener but I think we can scale this in a way that means we all get access to fresh produce. Like a co-op thing? I dunno. The land needs purifying, water, there's no sun.

I was part of a seed bank back in Deerington. Has anyone saved seeds from last month's growth? Would you donate them towards the cause?

Oh- also dairy. That's something I want to work on. This is a stretch but if you have goats or cattle let me know.

Yeah.. okay. Okay, thanks.

[ there's a house covered in toilet paper with a very tired jedi standing in front of it, just massaging his temple. ]

Is there a reason why my house is covered in paper? I assume there is a purpose to this other than a gross misuse of resources and time. If you have any issues with me, I much prefer a discussion than a clean up job.

[ he swats some of the butterflies away before sighing. ]

I'll be here. Tidying up.

Hello!

[ Enter: Sersi. Despite the whirlwind of events that she left home during, she's smiling brightly at the feed, particularly pleased with how clever she believes her user name is. She's no stranger to technology, and there's even some relief that these function much like cellphones did back home- she may or may not be a little addicted to them.

She pushes her hair from her face and waves with a waggle of her fingers. ]

Is it customary to introduce one's self here? I wasn't sure... [ She pauses and drops her hand with a shrug of her shoulder. ] I figured it couldn't hurt regardless.

I'm Sersi and I've only just recently found myself here... I've been spending most of my time over at the Archives, reading what I could.

[ And admiring the museum side while she was at it. It's mostly strange because back home, museums were more filled with memories of her life on Earth... but here, she feels as though she can enjoy it as a human would there. ]

But I think this question is best posed to the people who live here: what's your best advice for someone new?