#cal whump

[flammabel]

My brain is in whump mode 🤷‍♀️

How he has any ribs or back left is beyond me. 😶😬

[dragonknightcal]

Day 1: Helpless

Ft: Wind and Twilight

The wind and rain poured down relentlessly, the sky dark and threatening, choking out light and casting all surroundings with an eerie, oppressive gloom. They had been caught by surprise by the portal, falling through and getting separated in the unfamiliar Hyrule. Wind and Twilight had been spit out near a river, and that's where the trouble had started. 

“C-Come on Twi, help me out here!" The sailor grunted with effort. Wind struggled to drag the larger hero’s frame along the muddy ground. The young hero slipped again with a yelp and fell, sliding in the dirt and scraping up his hands and knees, his own injuries aggravated and sending pain racing up his spine. With a shaky huff and wiping frustrated tears from his eyes, Wind got to his feet and took hold of his brother’s arms again, dragging him further towards the cave he had found for shelter. He finally pulled Twilight into the cave entrance out of the rain and fell to his knees with a weak sob. He nudged the older hero with a finger, then shook his shoulders, ignoring the little voice in his head that said he shouldn't shake someone with a head injury.  

“Twi, wake up.” Wind whispered weakly as he shook his brother’s shoulders. “Wake up, Twilight. Please.” 

The rancher obviously didn't respond, and Wind’s head hurt. It was cold in the cave, and his teeth chattered loudly as he laid down and curled into Twilight’s side for any possible warmth. Their combined body heat wasn't enough to stay warm, but Wind felt like he would be sick if he tried to stand again. He couldn't leave Twi alone, either, so going back for their belongings was a no-go. The sailor remembered that Rulie had said that cold was bad for injuries, or something like that, but his head felt heavy and his arm hurt and the scrapes on his knees were bleeding and he just wanted to sleep. 

“M’sorry, Twi.” Wind sniffed weakly, turning his face to bury it in the rancher’s shoulder. “M’sorry, I don't know what to do.” The young boy scrubbed his eyes as he wept, exhausted and alone. “I’m sorry I can’t do more…” 

If Twilight had been awake, he would have dried Wind’s tears and assured the kid there was nothing more he could do, and that he was proud of Wind for everything he had managed to do despite his own pain. 

But he wasn't. Wind was left to sob out his frustration and hurt as the ordonian slept, curled into his brother's side as he waited for someone, anyone, to find them. 

[whumporpass]

Cal Kestis from Jedi: Fallen Order/Survivor. This man (spoilers for both games):

Watched his master die during order 66 when he was only 11

Watched his best friend die by the hands of an inquisitor

Was hunted down by the empire throughout both games

Suffered survivor’s guilt over the death of his master and his friend

Has psychometry, which can be of great use to any whumper who wishes to take advantage of it

His found family decided to go their separate ways and left him by himself

Watched everyone in his new crew get killed by the empire

Got betrayed by someone he thought of as a brother

His new master/mother figure got killed and he had to watch what happened through his psychometry

Proceeded to cry over her dead body

Feels like he has no control over his life and that nothing he does can make a difference in this cruel galaxy

[spidezer]

Whumptober Day 1: "How many fingers am I holding up?"

Cal's return to the Mantis is announced with BD-1 yelling of Cal's concussion. The two have clearly been arguing about this on their way back, because Cal frowns. "Not every head injury is a concussion, BD."

Cere, who's sitting in the galley next to Merrin and trying to teach her Sabacc, stares pointedly. "What did you do to your head?" Cal is holding his hand to his forehead, blood leaking out between his fingers. BD-1 jumps off his shoulder onto the ground, climbing up in front of Cere and projecting a video of Cal walking into a tree on the way back.

"Purge trooper got a lucky hit on me." He bumps into the side of the table as he makes his way to the refresher, disrupting where Merrin is attempting to create a card stack. She makes a face at him, and he makes one back. Cere watches, unimpressed, as he proceeds to bump into four more things in the five second walk. One of those things being Greez.

"Don't you get blood anywhere it'll stain!" He warns, barely dodging out of the way of Cal's arm. Cal gives a thumbs up with his free hand, and disappears into the 'fresher.

Cere cringes with every bang she hears from inside. "Is it just me, or is he a lot clumsier than usual?" Greez throws his hand back towards the fresher as he takes a seat next to Cere, picking up the scattered Sabacc cards and sorting them. BD plays the tree video for Greez again, taking obvious joy in it. Merrin hands him a card that's fallen on the floor.

"I wouldn't be surprised if BD's right and he does have a concussion, or worse." Cere sits back and folds her arms, watching the 'fresher door slide open. Cal appears, forehead cleaned semi successfully.

Semi successfully, because.. "You have put the patch on the wrong side of your forehead." Merrin notes, casting a glance to Cere and Greez. Cal has completely missed the wound on the right of his forehead, placing a bacta patch in the middle of it instead.

"What?" He mutters, and begins poking at his forehead.

"Cal," Cere says, and he looks up at her. "How many fingers am I holding up?" She holds up four of her fingers, waiting expectantly.

"Uh..." Cal squints, taking far too long to answer. BD yells at him that his assessment was right, and to never argue with him again.

Cere sighs, standing up. "I'm fixing you up. Let's go." She grabs him by the arm and leads him back into the 'fresher, careful that he doesn't bump into anything again.

[ironhoshi]

He was pulled from his sleep for some reason. Boba rubs at his eyes with the back of his hands, trying to gain some semblance of coherent thought. No alarms were going off. He sits up slowly and glances over at the sleeping form next to him. Cal has curled up on his side, taken the majority of the covers, and seems to be dead to the world. Boba frowns. 

Did he have a nightmare? 

Then, in the silence, he hears Cal mutter something out. He leans down, closer, trying to hear. He doesn't see it coming so he takes the full force of a fist to the cheek. 

“Fuck,” he gets out while clutching the side of his face with a hand. Cal sits up suddenly, eyes still closed, and he knows something is wrong.

“MASTER,” Cal cracks out.

[whump-kin]

Wheel of Whump 1 - Impaled

cal has some time to contemplate.

CW: Torture, imminent death, mild suicidal ideation, vomiting blood, impalement

All he can do is stare ahead. 

Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. What harm could it have done, he’d thought? Sneak out, away from Bryn, who was so overprotective, always keeping Cal close, burying him under his cloak to protect him from the sun. 

So Cal had slipped away in the night. Nothing too bad. He wasn’t even going to feed. Just wanted to explore the town they were staying in without Bryn constantly having a hand on his shoulder or trying to drag Sh’han away from “relocating” animals they saw in the street.

What he wouldn’t give for that hand on his shoulder now. 

As it was, he was immobilized- stake through his heart, placed with a surgeon’s precision- and impaled on a metal spike. Iron, he guessed. It was up at an angle so his head was forced to tilt back, arms and legs falling behind him, making him look like he was being pulled up towards the heavens.

Whoever these vampire hunters were, they sure had a sick sense of humor. 

He couldn’t move. They’d at least left him with his glasses on, so he could see the massive and intricate sun symbol that he faced towards. Eight-pointed, with the symbol of a crescent moon and blood dripping down in the center. Hostile, jagged, pointy. He’d run over the thing with his eyes- the only thing he could move- probably hundreds of times now. 

The only thing that changed was how much sun showed.

The man who’d put him on here had explained it, or as much as he could while Cal was busy choking up the rancid blood he’d been force-fed, as the spike pierced his stomach. 

This chamber had a very specific design. When the sun illuminated their symbol entirely, it would then be reflected upon him. 

And then, the man had told him, everyone in the vicinity would watch as another monster turned to ash.

It wasn’t too bad, all things considered, Cal tried to justify to himself. He wouldn’t be truly dead. He’d just reform. 

In his coffin.

In Montresor’s castle. 

In the castle he’d spent five long years in, having to be smuggled out and stolen away from by Bryn and Sh’han, who’d almost lost their lives to save him. In the castle where he’d been more property than person. The castle whose master they were traveling in search of a way to break his ties to. 

Fuck. Maybe death was the better option here. Because at least then the rescue had meant something. At least he wouldn’t have to live on in shame of what his short-sighted decision had cost them all. 

He kept staring at the metal insignia. It was the only thing he could do.

He hoped when the sun hit, it wouldn't hurt.

[believe-in-alderaan]

Formal Union: A Nightsister and a Jedi

Status: COMPLETE

 Summary:

Merrin has just come of age, it's time for her to mate with a nightbrother so that the nightsister clan can grow and thrive. However, tragedy befalls the nightbrother village and Merrin is now being forced to breed with a captured Jedi named Cal Kestis.

[pastelanasblog]

look i get it but i still think it’s so strange that you have to say “i don’t promote eds” on ur vent blog 💀 imagine having a blog to vent ur depression and having to have a pinned post that says “i don’t promote depression, my thoughts are for me only! i think everyone else deserves to live” just so people don’t report you 💀 maybe i’m just bitter but surely these people have some slither of empathy or, god forbid, brain cells

[whumpy-writings]

Obedience

Febuwhump 2024 Day 4

The Dhampir Files Masterlist

CW: Abusive parents (whumpees are adults), referenced lab whump, whipping, carewhumper, lady whumper, conditioned whumpee

Cal sat on the ground, Renn resting his head on his lap as he slept. It had been a couple weeks since the sun experiment. They had been allowed to heal, but Cal was under no illusions that that was the last experiment their parents would conduct.

The waiting was the worst part. He didn't know what the next horror would be, or when it would happen. All he and Renn could do was wait. Renn whimpered in his sleep.

"You're okay, I've got you," Cal whispered as he stroked his brother's hair. Renn hadn't had nightmares in years. But now it seemed like he had them every time he closed his eyes.

The door at the top of the stairs creaked open and Cal tensed. But the footsteps down the stairs sounded different. Uneven. A man appeared at the bottom of the stairs. He had brown hair and was dressed in simple clothes. He crossed the room with a pronounced limp. This was the first person Cal had seen besides Renn and their parents since he was thrown into this hell-hole.

The man moved to the tables and shuffled things around, like he was looking for something. Cal squinted. It almost looked like. . .

"Miles?" A surge of relief went through Cal as his human half-brother turned to look at him. "Miles! Oh my gods, it's you. Hurry, let us out of here."

Miles flinched. "I can't do that," he said. Cal swallowed down his frustration.

"Why not? They're not here right now. There must be an extra key somewhere."

Miles approached the cage with his eyes on the floor. When he stood outside the door, Cal caught sight of the collar, which sat atop a mess of scars from bites. He hadn't had those before. He hadn't had the limp either.

"I'm sorry," Miles whispered. "I'm not allowed to."

"Miles, please, you can come with us. They're torturing me and Renn, I don't know how much longer we can survive this."

"I can't."

"Why the fuck-"

"Miles! I told you not to talk to them!" Cal whipped his head up to see Mother striding toward them, her face furious. Miles went pale. He spun around and fell to his knees, bowing to the floor with his hands on either side of his head.

"I'm sorry ma'am, I'm sorry, it won't happen again." Miles was shaking. Mother stood in front of him with her arms crossed. She shot Cal a glare.

"He hasn't disobeyed in months," she said. "And now I'll have to punish him. This is your fault, Callum." Renn stirred from Cal's lap.

"What's going on? Miles?" Renn's voice was thick with sleep.

"I was just about to discipline him," Mother said. "He was explicitly told that he was not to speak to you two, and he did anyway."

Miles shoulders hitched and Cal realized he was crying. "Please ma'am, please I'll be good please I don't need a punishment."

"That's not for you to decide, human." Mother grabbed Miles's hair and hauled him to his feet.

"Let him go!" Renn yelled. "Don't hurt him!" He grabbed onto the bars. "Please, don't hurt him."

Mother ignored him. "Take off your shirt, hands against the wall."

Miles sobbed as he undressed. Cal gasped. His back was criss-crossed in scars. There were dozens of them. He definitely hadn't had those when Cal and Renn left.

"How many lashes do you deserve, Miles?"

Mother crossed to a bench and picked up a whip.

"No! Please Mother, don't hurt him, it was my fault." Cal's eyes burned with tears. Fuck, he hadn't wanted to get Miles hurt.

"T-ten ma'am," Miles said. "Ten for my disobedience. His hands were pressed against the wall, his back bared. Tears rolled down his face and he was shaking.

"Only ten?" Mother said. She cracked the whip and Miles jumped. "You disobeyed a direct order. You'll get twenty-five lashes. And then you will clean up whatever blood gets on the floor. Understood?"

"Yes ma'am," Miles whispered.

"Good."

She got behind him with the whip. Renn buried his face in Cal's shoulder. Cal wrapped his arm around him. The whip cracked through the air and Miles cried out. Cal hugged Renn even tighter and put his hands over his brother's ears to try to dampen the sound.

The lashes were hard and fast and soon enough Miles's knees gave out. He knelt on the ground, sobbing as lash after lash bit through his ruined back. It seemed to go on forever.

Finally, the lashes stopped. Miles collapsed to the ground with a sob. "I'm sorry ma'am, I'm sorry, thank you for teaching me to be good." Disgust rose in Cal's throat. Miles was thanking her for torture.

Mother knelt down next to Miles and smoothed his sweaty hair back from his forehead. "There's my good boy. You won't make the same mistake again, will you?" Miles shook his head.

"No, never."

"Good."

Mother met eyes with Cal. "I hope this was a lesson for you too. You are not to talk to him. I would hate for him to be tempted and have to be punished again." Miles whimpered. "He's just a human, after all. His body isn't as strong as mine or yours." She turned back to Miles. "Now clean up this mess. Once you're finished I'll bandage the wounds."

"Yes ma'am." Miles scrambled to his feet and set about cleaning up the blood that splattered the floor. Mother pulled out a chair and sat down just outside the cage.

"Miles is a good boy, usually. Of course, at the beginning he was very disobedient. He tried to escape too, you know. Right after you two left. Isn't that right, Miles?"

"Yes ma'am," Miles said from where he scrubbed at the floor. "It was very stupid of me."

"That's right, it was very stupid, wasn't it?" She smiled icily as she looked at Cal and Renn. "You know he can't see very well, so he didn't get far. We broke his leg when we caught him. We couldn't risk him running again, you see. Then it was just a matter of training. He became the perfect human within six months."

"You tortured him," Cal said flatly.

"No," Mother corrected. "We trained him. There is a difference. He needed to learn which behaviors were acceptable and which were not. We used a combination of negative and positive feedback to help him learn his place. And he's happy now that he understands that we're in charge. Isn't that right, Miles?" Miles knelt down next to her, the floor spotless behind him.

"Yes ma'am, I'm very happy now. I live to serve you."

"You're so sweet," Mother said with a smile. She placed her hand on Miles's head, like he was a favored dog. Cal felt ill. They had broken Miles. His spirit, his personality, was gone. He was a shell of the person he used to be. Obedient because that was the only choice he had. They were going to do the same thing to him and Renn. It might take longer, but one day he would be the one kneeling next to Mother in submission. Cal shuddered.

Taglist: @dragonqueenslayer6 @whumpsday

[wrencatte]

I love writing Mosey for some reason

Mosey sighs. “You’re a good person, Cal,” she says. “But you’re only one of ‘em. You’ve been nonstop since you got here, keepin’ us safe, fendin’ off patrols from both Imps and those karkin’ raiders. I’ve known you a week ‘n you’ve already got me worryin’ ‘bout you. Not just me. All of us.”

Cal hunches in on himself, fingers curled into the nekko’s feathered mane. Hell, that was the last thing he wanted – strangers concerned about him. Everyone in Rambler’s Reach has been fantastic, even the few (living) prospectors he’s run into on trails and in caverns. Paranoid, for a good reason. Wary, for a good reason. But mostly nice. The back of his neck burns, from the sun, from embarrassment, who knows, but it burns. He’s the thorn in the Imperial’s side, the scourge of the Inquisitorius, the Jedi outlaw, the wildfire burning through outposts and tearing down supply lines and freeing prisoners – and he is so – their concern is unneeded. They're strangers, they don't need to be worried about him. He’s fine. He’s fine.

“You don’t have to,” he murmurs. It barely carries up on the wind.

She pulls her nekko back until they’re trotting side-by-side. “Cal… I know we’re barely friends, but barely ain’t not at all. You’ve helped me a lot since you got here. Let me return the favor, as an almost friend.”

[flammabel]

Cal 'I should have no ribcage left' Kestis

[jinmukangwrites]

Bad Things Happen Bingo; weep little lion man (1/14)

@badthingshappenbingo

Next

Prompt: Friendly Fire

Fandom: Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order; Survivor

Rating: T

Warnings: light injury.

Notes: SURVIVOR SPOILERS PROCEED AT OWN RISK. Also yes I know this is a stretch interpretation of the prompt but hey if I'm going to lay awake at night thinking of Jedi Survivor one-shots then I'm going to put them to use and assign them a damn square. Also lemme know if you enjoyed this fic and would like continuations!

Ао3

Summary: After defeating Dagan Gera for a third and final time, the Compass ends up in Bode's hands without a scratch. He could go back to Jedha with Cal... but he's holding what he wants. He doesn't see the point in pretending any longer. He makes a split-second decision. Or: Bode's betrayal goes a bit differently.

-o-o-o-o-

The compass is in one piece.

Bode turns it over in his hands. It's odd, he almost expected his one way ticket out of here to be... grander. Heavier. Yet it's not, it's a simple cylinder with a greater purpose than to look as regal as the rest of the old Jedi temples.

And yet, he can't help but feel enchanted by the little device.

He's so caught up in finally holding the point of everything in his hands, that he almost misses what Cal says next.

"What if Dagan was right?"

Bode freezes. Laughs. "Are you sure you're not still, uh-" he uses a free hand to gesture vaguely. "You know?"

Cal stands up, face determined and step more steady that honestly Bode thinks it should be considering the still smoldering wound across his chest. "Think about it," he starts.

And Bode has thought about it. He's thought about it over and over and over again. It used to be something he didn't have to think about. When this whole thing started, it was so simple. He hardly cared about Cal Kestis, the Jedi who didn't know how to hide. He was a means to an end, a pathway to a greater reward. Yes, his friendship with him, in the beginning, was malicious. Parasitic. He needed Cal to trust him enough to let Cere Junda's location slip. It didn't take long for Cal to do so, but unfortunately, it also didn't take Bode long to find something... unintentional in their relationship.

He began to like Cal; and not only that, Cal's adventures eventually lead him to the perfect opportunity to take Kata and escape the Empire, the Jedi, and everything in-between for good.

He couldn't care less about Cordova, or Junda, Greeze, Merrin. They kept Cal noble. If it weren't for them, maybe Bode could have forced Cal to see that being selfish is the right call here.

Handing the Compass to the Hidden Path won't help anyone, especially not Bode's daughter.

It will keep people safe, sure, but for how long?

How long before the Empire noticed refugees and rebellious soldiers coming and going? How long before the Empire not only tracked them down... but found a way in without the compass?

If two determined Jedi of old could make one of these things, surely someone with the resources like the Emperor or Darth Vader would find a way easily.

His mind is decided even before Cal ends the conversation, a sympathetic smile on his face. "The others will want to see this, let's head back to Jedha."

Bode breathes. Nods his head. "Sure."

He makes an excuse that even to himself sounds lame, anything to get Cal to turn his back on him. It shouldn't make him feel as nauseous as it does when Cal doesn't question him. Doesn't bat an eye as Bode strolls a small distance away. Doesn't turn to double-check when he bends down to rub BD-1's head.

Bode watches with a lump in his throat, he doesn't want to hurt Cal, but he doesn't see any other way.

It's sickening how easy it is to throw the stun grenade and catch Cal in the radius. Cal is always on high alert, able to push a grenade, repulse a blaster bolt, parry a blow, within a pins drop of a notice. Bode knew how he felt about Cal, but this is the proof he needs that somewhere, Cal feels the same way.

Cal trusts Bode enough to let down his guard, and that's what makes it too easy to stab him in the back.

Bode wants to throw up.

But he doesn't, he doesn't waste any time as Cal's muscles seize in the radius of brutal electricity. He lowers the lethality of his blaster—low enough to be of no danger of killing, but high enough to hurt—and shoots Cal right at his knee.

The electricity stops and Cal goes down hard, screaming through clenched teeth at what must be the suffering of landing on his shoulder—jostling that still fresh lightsaber wound—with the added agony of twisting his now damaged knee on the way down.

Bode takes a step towards Cal, blaster drawn. "I'm sorry," he pushes through his teeth, "you'll understand soon."

"Bode?" Cal wheezes, his hands struggling to find purchase to haul himself upright.

Bode's heard his name said in that tone of voice hundreds of times. The Empire isn't the first galactic power to use his espionage. He knows the tone of betrayal well. Confusion. Hurt. He knows the look in Cal's eyes well when he turns to stare at Bode. The greens of his irises are so large and already watery. His face is twisted in pain, in anger, in shock.

He knows this all so well.

It's never hurt to see it like it does now.

But he can't go back. It's now, or failure.

"Bode? What is this?"

"Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you," he assures, approaching closer.

Cal's eyes flicker past Bode's face, but Bode notices too late before BD-1 is on his back jamming his slicer in-between Bode's shoulder blades.

Painful electricity bursts up and down his spine, but it's nothing compared to the shock in his grenades earlier. Those are meant to take down sapient creatures. A slicer is meant for simple electrical hacking. He's able to push through the pain, grabbing BD-1 by the head and launching the little droid across the room.

Cal's on his feet now, face twisted in agonized fury, knee bent wrong but persistently standing on it. "BD!"" He shouts as BD-1 hits a nearby control console and crashes to the ground. Cal glares at Bode, his shock at the situation melting at the sight of his droid being handled so roughly.

"I don't know what's wrong with you, Bode," he snarls, "walk away. We can talk. This won't end well, and we both know it."

His hand goes to his lightsaber, but doesn't grab it just yet.

Bode can't help but feel a flash of admiration for Cal. He's a survivor, to the point he's willing to fight friends who betray if it comes to his life.

That's the kind of Jedi this Galaxy needs now. Jedi who aren't afraid to fight for their lives and what they love, instead of hiding behind that passive aggressive neutrality. "Protectors" Bode's ass. It didn't work before the Empire, and it certainly won't keep anyone alive now.

That's why Bode has to do this.

Cal Kestis is his best friend. His brother. This beast fighting to survive will only become docile and weak if he continues like this, caring so much for the greater good at the cost of his own expense—at the cost of not thinking of what the consequences could be. It's suicide to take on the Empire, he wouldn't have joined them if he didn't think it would keep himself and his daughter reliably alive the longest.

Bode can't bear the thought of Cal ending like that, life wasted chasing an impossible dream. A noble one, Bode knows, but a useless one. He will die by the Empire if he continues like this, or worse, end up strapped to one of those chairs that turn good people into Inquisitors. Either way, it's as good as death.

"What's this about," Cal demands, eyes shooting down to the Compass Bode still holds in one hand. "Was this all for the Empire?"

Bode almost wants to laugh. He's so innocent. Not all the selfish people in the world are Imperial sympathizers.

Instead he meets Cal's glare as coolly as he can. "At first. But with this," he says, raising the Compass to chest height, "we can escape all of it. The dead Order, the Empire. We can be safe on Tanalor, never having to worry."

Cal looks so angry his ears are turning red at the tips. "That's the point!" He shouts, still leaning lopsided on his bad knee. "We can help people there, the Hidden Path-"

Bode shakes his head. "It's not that simple, brother. The Hidden Path, this grand plan of yours, it's only going to get you killed and destroy possibly the last and only safe place from the Empire. I can't let you take this back to them, and I can't let you die with them."

Cal freezes. "What are you talking about?"

Bode lowers the Compass, storing it safely in a pouch on his belt. "Surrender willingly, Cal. The Empire doesn't have to know about Jedha; about Cere." He takes a cautious step forward, Cal stays dangerously still. "The Inquisitors don't have to know."

Grim understanding falls across Cal's face, almost shadowing his features despite the room being pretty thoroughly lit.

A flurry of angry sounding beeps and whistles sound across the room. BD-1 has made it to his feet, the antennas pulled back like a predator. Bode doesn't know Binary, but it seems, that's all Cal needed to make up his mind.

"I'm sorry," Bode says, twisting the barrel of his gun towards BD-1, turning up the lethality. He doesn't want to hurt the droid—out of all of Cal's friends, Bode liked BD-1 the most—but it's just another soul to make Cal a martyr. The less people Cal has to justify his hero complex, the quicker Cal will understand what Bode is trying to offer.

A better life. No more looking over your shoulder.

"NO!" Cal shouts, sensing Bode's intentions.

Bode swears, he knows how quick a lightsaber draw Cal is, quicker than most Jedi Bode's seen even before the Order's fall. He swings his torso back towards Cal, shooting blindly at the droid and missing by metaphorical hairs. Cal has his lightsaber in his hand, about to burst it into power, and Bode does the only thing he can.

He grabs the lightsaber with the Force, tearing it out of Cal's hand and sending it flying towards his own. The surprise of the Force and the weapon being ripped from his grasp causes Cal to shout and stumble forward on his bad knee. His eyes are wide in shock, wider than they were at the initial betrayal, but Bode knew this revelation would hurt Cal more than anything

Surprise him, more than anything.

Bode grabs the lightsaber, not bothering to light it yet, or think too deeply on how wrong it feels in his hands, how deeply it does not belong to him, and he shoves Cal back with a burst of Force.

Cal gets knocked into his back, sliding a foot or two, groaning.

"You're not the only one who survived."

BD-1 makes to run towards them to do who knows what, but Cal holds a hand out and shoves BD-1 further away. "Warn the others!Tell them to run!" Cal shouts.

Growling, Bode aims his blaster at the droid once again, but BD-1 is already nearly out the door leaving a trail of sad, reluctant, but determined boops. Bode forces himself to ignore the droid, knowing that when it comes to an angry Force user, you don't have time to focus on anything else for long.

Cal's like a cornered animal, Bode discovers, when he's forced to fight without his lightsaber and on the ground wounded. He snarls at Bode and attempts to grab him with the Force, to do what Bode can't be sure. He's trained enough to know how to resist another's reckless tug on the Force, he may be a little rusty but it's childsplay to steady himself within the Galaxy, refusing to be knocked over.

Cal swears at him, abandoning his hopeless task of standing back up—Bode really would have appreciated having BD-1's STIMs right now—in favor of kicking with his good leg and punching with fists that aren't shaped right for something so offensive. Stars, kid barely knew how to fight without a lightsaber. Like this, he's no more scary than the corpse of Dagan laying a few steps away.

The scuffle that happens soon after takes longer than it should. Sure, Cal is a powerful Jedi with a decade of fighting dirty to survive under his belt not even considering the adrenaline he must be under, but Bode's bigger and physically stronger and he's not the one sporting a lightsaber wound to the chest and a blaster to the knee.

Bode can't get Cal pinned, not with him snarling—practically hissing—and squirming like that. Bode shoves him hard on the collarbone, pushing him so his shoulder-blades land roughly on the floor. "Enough!" he says, just as a bright flash of light and a familiar humming fills the space between them.

Cal goes deathly still, furious, as the blade of his own lightsaber rests between his jaw and shoulder, angling up from the floor and under his chin. The heat must be irritating from this small distance from skin contact, but Cal grinds his teeth and looks Bode right in the eyes; fingers digging into the belts of Bode's blaster holsters.

"Last chance, Bode," he says evenly.

"You'll thank me," Bode says back, "in time."

Then he slams down his other hand, hitting the back of his blaster against Cal's temples.

Bode knows how to knock out an enemy he needs alive. It's easy to do, like breathing.

Cal goes limp without a single word more, eyes fluttering but getting closer to closing. Bode retracts the lightsaber and stands up over his nearly unconscious friend. The communicator he lifts to his mouth feels heavy, but he gave Cal an option, and he didn't take it.

"This is a secure channel! How did you-"

"Listen to me, I'm an Imperial agent who has located a terrorist cell on Jedha. Don't trust your scanners, just follow these coordinates," he rattles off a string of numbers. "There are multiple Jedi at this location, inform the Inquisitorius at once. If Lord Vader wants Cere Junda, he'd better hurry."

It's tempting to drop the communicator then and smash it between the floor and the heel of his boot, but he doesn't. If he does he knows it would feel too much like regret.

Cal's lost his grasp on the land-of-the-awake completely by the time Bode works himself into the mindset solid enough to continue with this admittedly un-thought-through plan. He won't fool himself into thinking Cal wouldn't try to fight back the second he's awake enough to do so, so first thing to figure out is how to effectively keep Cal... helpless... until he can get to Nova Garon, get Kata packed, and nab some Force resistant restraints on the way out.

Luckily, right now, there's plenty of clothes Dagan Gera is no longer in need of. He tears strips from the thick robes and ties Cal's arms behind his back, wrists to elbows, and for good measure he takes a belt and wraps it around Cal's forearms. He then takes more stripped cloth and binds Cal's ankles and knees to their counterparts—careful of the wound, but not too much that the bindings are loose, it's nothing some bacta won't fix later. He also stuffs the blaster he gave Cal what feels like lifetimes ago now into his belt, refusing to think further into it.

He forces himself to work with efficiency, not thinking too deep about how wrong this feels. He never intended to kidnap Cal. He honestly hoped he'd have more time to convince Cal out of his martyrdom.

Hefting Cal over his shoulder, he quickly begins to make the trek back to where he left his ship.... Though not before grabbing Dagan Gera's lightsaber and hooking both blades onto his belt.

[wild-karrde]

For Fandom Friday I'd like to recommend literally any and all of the amazing Jedi Fallen Order & Survivor fics by @pennflinn! My favourites are Hush (a what-if for a big plot point in Survivor that tore my heart out), Good For the Soul (sickfic in the best way with soup as a vehicle for love), and Pay the Piper (multichapter hurt/comfort goodness starring Greez and Cal). I could probably gush about every single fic but I will limit it to top 3 lest this go on forever!

Please go check out her work! I know some of it is posted here, but as someone who reads over on ao3, here's the link to her star wars works!!

AHHHHHH THESE ALL SOUND AWESOME! As someone still emotionally recovering from Jedi: Survivor, I haven't gone looking for fics yet, but you know, these might be the ones that get me into it. I'm very much about THAT AU and also just the Mantis crew doing their best to survive and take care of each other. These are so diverse in their plots and all seem so uniquely wonderful. Thanks so much for the rec!

Participate in Fandom Friday to show your favorite creators from this week some love! :)

[deepwoundsandfadedscars]

Cal Kestis Fic Masterlist

Of my own writing, I don't have a collection for a rec list yet ✌

But I sometimes write Cal Kestis whump and it's prime time for people looking for fics, so I figured I'd put mine all in one place! Listed in order that I wrote them and all of these are during/after Fallen Order, Pre-Survivor so there are only spoilers for Fallen Order!

Taken - 1,896 words

Mid-Fallen Order: Cal is captured by the Haxion Brood (tumblr - Ao3)

Shrapnel - 2,399 words

During a rescue mission, Cal valiantly saves Merrin and a group of hostages, but suffers for it. (prompt: caught in an explosion) (tumblr - Ao3)

Drowning - 1,669 words

After escaping from Fortress Inquisitorius, Merrin rescues him from the water (late game-Fallen Order) (tumblr - Ao3)

The Fall - 1,819 words

Cal takes a long fall during exploration, Cere and Merrin come to his rescue

(tumblr - Ao3)

I'm sure these won't be the only ones I write and I will add to this list as I post them

[breakfastteatime]

Me on my way to inflict horrors on innocent characters

[whump-kin]

The Portrait of King Montresor Valdemar & His Court Magician - Artist Unknown.

Sources say that the magician was spoken of by the king as a sort of surrogate son, although rumors abounded of a darker purpose for the king taking in the boy. Although not officially confirmed, it is believed the king was a vampire, and sired the magician as some sort of spawn.

Historical records are known to be incomplete due to a vast cloaking spell that King Valdemar laid over his kingdom. The artist and time period of this piece are unknown.