Dinner on Top of the World [Day 10, Mid Evening]

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

The servant entered with a small tray bearing two bowls. Setting them before the two women, a small stand with a porcelain spoon was placed to either side with a cloth. "Gyökér leves, a zimple root zoup popular on Korriz. It iz meant to be bland but hearty. It came into vogue roughly 500 years ago during a varming vamine vhich left zhe veztern continent lacking in a great deal of zuppliez. Zo, zhe peazantry turned to a wery prominent flower root vhich grew in zhe heawy rainz zhat vell zhat year. About fiwe yearz later, v'one of zhe chefz zerwed it to zhe Farro of zhe Vestern Palace und it haz become a traditional vood of Korriz."

"Today it iz moztly used az an appetite stimulant, to prepare uz for zhe rezt of zhe meal, zough back in zhoze dayz it vaz a meal to itzelf. Und, admittedly, zhe chef here doez like to add a bit more zpice to it zhan it vould get back home, but it iz ztill good."

[Raela Ausar]

"Interesting. Bland but hearty... Sort of like something one would eat when they're unwell," she noted, waiting to try it before the Empress Dowager started. She may have, in effect, been from the boondocks, but she knew that much. Once she did, she nodded. "It is good."

She didn't know if Jun-tsu was going to continue the previos conversation after.

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

After a sip of soup, she nodded in agreement, "Zo, you already hawe a research vacility, ztaff, und zhe necessities to continue your vork? Or vould you be reqviring more?"

[Raela Ausar]

"I don't have those here," she replied, shaking her head. "Normally I work out of the facility on my own planet out on the border. Not great for working with large population samples. I'll have to move my operations into the core to get better data, even if I'm not particularly interested in temporal power."

"Besides, my fiance lives here."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"It iz at your dizcretion lady Auzar, keep your old vacility und vork in zolitude, or venture into zhe Core Vorldz to be nearer to zuppliez of all kindz. I leawe you to zet about your vork in a manner you deem mozt prudent to zcientific rezearch."

[Raela Ausar]

She nodded at that. "I'll get it sorted out quickly."

"If you don't mind, I'd like to know more about your tradition. I only know a bit about your approach to the Force."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"It vould take many zuch mealz bevore I could enumerate zhem all in zatizfactory detail." She continued to eat in small spoonfulls.

"But Houze Farro haz long been dewoteez to zhe old vaizh, much like zhat of zhe ancient Zith. Ve vorzhip zhe Forze, und zpecifically un azpect of it vhich ve call zhe Umbră-Ușoară, or Dark Light. It iz an archaic amalgam of many different languagez vordz vor zhe zame zhing, vhat ve might call, zimply, zhe Dark Zide. Zough ewen zhat doez not truly encapsulate neither itz breadth nor nature."

"I vill not go into zuch heady philozophy, inztead, to zay zhat ve, az long time ztevardz of Zith hiztory und myzticizm, zince zhe dayz of zhe jen'jedaii, haw collected zhe ritez, ritualz, und ceremoniez of a zhouzand vorldz vhich all laud zhe Dark Zide. Ve hawe kept aliwe zome of zhe mozt obzcrue pacticez of zhe Forze, including poverz vhich muzt be practiced in tandem vizh all memberz of mein family vorking in geztalt to produze true miraclez of zhe Umbră-Ușoară."

"Many of zhe early ritez ve are taught in childhood, are to purify ourzelves of zhe Light. Indeed a great many of our practicez are meant to draw uz vrom zhe Light deep into zhe pover of zhe Dark Zide, to plazez vhere v'one cannot go vhen v'one iz ztill tainted by zhe Liwing Forze. Zheze ritualz are zteeped in channeling zhe Dark Zide, meditating deeply vizhin it, lozing vonezelf to it, howewer breifly. All in zhe hope zhat v'one day ve might each join in holy union vizh zhe Dark Zide, und abide az zhe Dark Zide itzelf. Zuch enlightening practicez are zhe highezt teaching of Houze Farro, meant to allow uz releaze vrom our phyzical vorm, to exizt az a conzciouz extenzion of zhe Umbră-Ușoară."

"You may be vamiliar vizh zhe lore zurrounding wraizhz of zhe Dark Zide? Zpiritz of zhe departed vho exizt ztill in zhe plazez of zheir demize or az zpectrez. Zhiz iz beyond zhat, a villing liwing dizzolution of zhe body to allow our conzciouznezz und pover to continue on in zhe Dark Zide. To learn itz ewen deeper zecretz vor an eternity."

The witch smirked, "No doubt zhiz all zoundz az zealotouz zuperzition, to v'one zuch az yourzelf."

[Raela Ausar]

"It's only zealotous superstition if it doesn't work," she replied tone matter of fact and with a small smile. "I think those rituals and approaches have value because they do work. Even if there was nothing else to them - and I think there is more than this - they drive the dark and passionate emotion the Dark Side thrives with. My own mindset just makes me more interested in digging into the why of how they work, which some might see as a rather sacreligious attitude."

"There are also some minor philosophical disagreements here and there, but I'm not troubled by that."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"True vaizh, und practize, can ztand to all zcrutiny. Indeed, vizh zcrutiny ve chip avay at vhat iz zuperztition und vhat iz real of zhe practize. It iz pozzible zhat vhat mein vamily doez iz efficatiouz, but it iz zhe manner in vhich it iz done vhat makez it zo, or iz it merely a product of zome minor wagary in itz execution. I look vorward to v'one day zeeing zhe truzh."