The Creation of a Weapon [IC]

[Andnoa]

by Apprentice Tutam


Permission at last and not a moment too late, I have been granted the ability to create my light saber. No more broken wreck of a thing nor risk of my arm being blow of by the weapon granted to me. It is gone now. Ripped apart with some haste so that I can take the crystal for my new weapon. There are restrictions naturally. I would not be Sith however if I did not take every opportunity to surpass them and spit in the faces of those imposed them. Mitina has stated the I must earn a cross-guard on my lightsaber and I can not craft additional crystals to focus my blade in a manner of my choosing.
In my view a stupid mistake on her part, but in time I will surpass these. My hypothesis is this: A lightsaber that can be easily converted into a cross-guard with limited materials and time. I aim to feature all of the advantages of such and several power cells into the design so that when the time comes when I get permission (or even if I do not) this small act will grant me great power. The blade I will build will have these features.
I begin by turning the metal provided to a smooth sheen. In doing this I allow for a micron perfect finish in stainless durasteel. At the end I taper the bar outwards and in to create a pommel. Once satisfied with the shape I bore through the middle of the part, hollowing it out for the placement of the electronics. Next I drill multiple slots and holes in, for various buttons and wires. This will give me the exoskeleton of the hilt and a place in which to start.
Next up I gather my two diatium power cells, wiring them together and through the three state switch to allow for a state of off/on when held/forced on. These must be keep well out of any risk of danger as their potential for near infinite power would greatly prove a risk if drilled into.
At the other end, I prepare the focusing crystal and lens, cleaning both to a high sheen and calculating their precise shape. The lens is fitted to the emitter matrix to focus the beam of the blade and prevent it from exploding from the sheer power of the cells. This assembly in turn is soldered into the energy modulation circuits and the blade length and power adjustment knobs. Finally a component part is ready for final assembly.
Next up is the blade energy channel, to wrap around the beam of unfocused energy and indeed channel it into the emitter matrix for coherency. This is a simple enough assembly to add as it comes in a single piece. The contacts are checked, shined and zinc plated by the manufacturer so there is little risk of a faulty part. Still, this is tested by myself in an attempt to maximize the chances of success. Through my passion I gain strength. Dispassion in such a crucial moment could prove fatal.
Finally and most complicated of all is the crystal mounts and focusing crystal activators. Due to the incomplete nature of my blade and my hopes that it will become something more through work (a symbolism not lost on me.), this will need to be mounted blade wards and far closer the the emitter than usual, with a pair of blocked off vents to eventually become blade vents, the previous energy channel will need to be mounted further forward in a much more compact space. This in turn however gives room to the pair of cells, for which a usual saber would not have room.
The alignment of this is the most crucial stage and as such I meditate. I draw on the deep emotions that are buried in my psyche in an attempt to channel them into telekinetic precision. I realize I am shaking slightly. Anticipation? A warning in the force? The light-saber is a potent sign of the Sith. I will finally have one of my own. I realize that in my head I am not yet sith. Not truly. Not until I can carve out the hearts from those who wrong me, not be a given blade but by one taken. I gained this. I meditate, drawing on all that I am and my will to be.
This is my weapon and I will rip the galaxy apart with it.
I think of those I hate. The weak apprentices who should never have risen above acolytes. The foolish Sith who left before I could take their dark power for my own. The schemers, who put their own needs above that of the empire. I hate them. This weapon is for them, though they do not yet know it. Their weakness must be purged if the Sith are to win the war. Too many soldiers burn for their stupidity. To many assets lost for no reason asides vanity.
This weapon is to cut down all who would stand in the way of the Empire.
I can see it now. The fires and death I have caused and the fire and death yet to come. The blood of the Jedi and Republic soldiers will be spilt by this and though I do not know where or when, I will kill with this. Over and over again. Piles of bodies fill my vision, and yet they all become my body, before. Maybe it is the force that guides my mind, maybe it is madness. I no longer care to see the difference.
This is my weapon.
I open my eyes and from a subconscious daze there it sits. Hours have passed and my body aches but there it sits. My Lightsaber. Not Mitina's cast off broken thing. Mine. I grasp it in both hands and raise it above my head. When the button is pressed by hands that feel disconnected from my mind by light-years, a burst of light blasts from my hands and it sears my eyes so hard that I surely must have failed. I must be burnt alive yet I can not feel it. Has it exploded? When my eyes adjust to the blood fire light illuminating the room around me. In my blindness I take a moment to see the source. The fire comes from the metal tube in my hands. A weapon fit for a Sith.
Success.
My joy is clouded by a realization of the path ahead of me. So much has been achieved but so much more is yet to come. The fire in my palm extinguishes, but the fire inside remains. It is not complete, but neither am I. We will adapt and grow together. We must. The mind flashes back to the visions of the dead, of those I wish to be dead. Such a long journey. I worry if I will live to see the end of it, or if I must create an apprentice of my own.
The force shall free me.



Modification of a weapon

Permission... Sweet progress. I have been granted my Master's leave to finally generate the weapon I desire. Due to previous diligence in the design, I shall not need much time at all for such a conversion to take place. I have crafted a crystal of my own, suitable to modification to my design as well. This shall be the first step.

A typical Lightsaber crystal would need only a single focus. The complex geometries of a cross guard equipped saber would need three, but I am prepared. Hours of my life have been spent in computer aided design, testing and modifying the design until I have perfected it. The most dangerous part however is the crystal cutting itself. Lightsaber crystals are not diamonds nor like any other gems. A single imperfection can not be hidden or worked around. Explosive results and fatal injury are real risks and I am under no delusion that this is a possibility. Yet as with my other endevour, the risks are far outweighed by the possible rewards.

As the crystal is place into the cutter I feel a pang of fear. So much work for nothing if this fails. So many drudged up memories, saved for occasions of great importance, wasted on it. I shake them off. This will succeed or fail. I have done my utmost to make it succeed. To mindlessly worry when I should be confident in my skill is not relevant behavior. I close the door and press 'go'. Two hours, fifty one minutes and three seconds. Two seconds. One. The clock counts down. Like a nervous parent, I would catch myself glancing at it several times over the coming minutes, as the lasers would etch and carve with nanometer precision. I must continue the work.

I take the saber I have, crafted with such passion just a few months ago but already not enough for me. Unscrewing the mechanism, I remove Mitina's crystal and the remainder of the innards. I shall keep it, but it shall not be used. A spare. Perhaps a gift to my own apprentice one day.

I fetch a vice, holding the now empty saber shell in it side on. Drilling down into the metal, into the blocked vents, I liberate them of their blockage. I turn the saber over and mirror the procedure for the other side. Clocking the drill against the saber, making sure the hole is straight, geometrically perfect and to size. The shiny metal would gleam with machine coolant when it is removed. Polaris makes a point that aesthetic is of use. I view it as an irrelevance, though I would test that theory. Chemical black oxide coatings, with or without a supplementary preservative treatment, may be used where a black surface is required. Only very limited corrosion protection, under mildly corrosive conditions, is obtained as a result of black oxide coating on it's own, but a more virulent strain can be used when coating more durable materials such as the high grade stainless durasteel that I have chosen to use.

The saber is placed in a wire mesh cage and placed into the chemical VAT gently. There it shall be left for several minutes while I make a point of checking and inspecting all of the components removed from the saber. Where an electrical contact has oxidized slightly due to the strain I replace it. Where wires have warped due to heat I replace them with thicker and stronger ones. Faults must be corrected when they are made clear. No further mistakes were present however.

A sharp ding reminds me to removed the saber hilt from the black chemical soup. It is removed and inspected, checking for a uniform coating upon the material before the components begin to be re-installed. This is far slower than simply removing them and nearly an hour would pass, accompanied only by the soft hiss of the laser cutter. When finally this is done I am left only with the need to install the two new emitters, screwing them into place and locking the threads with the force, telekineticly twisting screws embedded in the metal so that no unauthorized persons may alter my weapon.

And now I wait. The clock reads seventeen minutes, thirty five seconds. I reach out with the force, attempting to touch the dark presence in the chamber, as I had before. There is some irony in this. We are both modified and mutilated without our consent, but we shall both be more powerful for it. In addition the extensive modifications are mostly internal. When a Lightsaber crystal cracks it disrupts the flow of energy through it, producing dangerous results. My hypothesis is this: Precise cracking via laser. The dangerous results would then simply be produced in two directions in addition to the blade. The quillons. Stable blades. Not wild and uncontrolled by precise and deadly. No risk of explosion. No risk of arcing and attacking me. Discipline and power.

A sharp ding and the crystal is done. Eager I reach in and touch it, not even thinking as the sheer heat of it after the process would singe my gloves. I tidy my work area and thank the Th'Asidra engineers for their time. I take my now near complete saber and the crystal itself. and begin to meditate on it. Exhaustion would seep in. I have barely slept since I built it. My arm aches from the blood I have removed and applied to it. But I am so close.

My eyes close as I channel all of my fury and passion into a single goal. Aligning the crystal perfectly. I am at an additional disadvantage in this case however as previously only a single axis mattered. Now there are two. My mind flashes with hypothesized blood and fire. Ambition and death as I have channeled before a dozen times. This one would be far easier however. It has been shown it can not resist me. An extension of my will. Mere minutes later I open my eyes and it is done. I reattach the casing fully, using the internal screws to seal it shut. The moment of truth. Red fire would spout from my hand in three directions. The thrum of the blade would be louder than most but the edge would hold remarkably well. Precise and clean. I am getting better at this...