Dev A Noble Project

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Let's do it!"

On Ilum, the Padawan who guided them had been rather mean to Bee, so she wanted to do a better job than that. Make the young Jedi feel at ease, and cause little trouble for her father. A Jedi Master was mostly there for oversight or if something were to happen, and she couldn't imagine herself a better choice for this than her Dad. The Shield was pretty good at keeping people safe, after all.

"In some ways," Vera agreed when she got seated to drive them to the caves. "Mom can't do runes like we can, though." She grinned rather smugly and fired up the engines. For just a few seconds, she then hit the gas but with the speeder still in park, so all it did was create some noise.

Her little grin now turned to her father. Of course, she'd be careful.

Vera then shifted gears, and rather gently took off, only to gradually accelerate up to higher speeds. Nothing dangerous, but perhaps a little bit faster than most would go. "Hey, Dad? What would I have to do to get my own speeder?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Be an adult."

Kahlil was tense in his seat, but it wasn't as bad as it could've been. She wasn't speeding at illegal levels at least. But no, she wasn't going to get her own speeder any time soon. She was still a child, after all. "When you get older I might get you one. But not until then, understood?"

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

Shock.

Vera looked over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes at her Dad in complete disbelief, "What? But I'm driving one now, too!" She exclaimed before she turned her eyes back forward and grumbled. "Mom said she had a speeder when she was sixteen." Right as Vera said this, it was as if Valery disappeared in his bind for a moment.

Keeping herself quiet just in case she'd be in trouble for telling their little gremlin that.

"There, the caves are up ahead," Vera said as the mountainous area appeared up on the horizon. The caves were hidden within those mountains, and she could already feel its strength in the Force calling out to her. Still, she was a little focused on the speeder she was missing out on.

"...see, we got there safe. Because I drove."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Did she now?"

That was something they were going to certainly be talking about later tonight. She wasn't too surprised that she did. She was a Jedi in quite the war torn era, so perhaps it was necessary. He raised a brow once they arrived and glanced down towards Vera with a slight chuckle. She really wanted that speeder, huh?

"We can talk more about that later. We're here for the crystals, after all."

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

Uh-oh.

Mom was in trouble now and because of what she told him. Vera smiled sheepishly, and practically could already feel her Mom squinting at her for ratting her out like that. Even if it was an accident. Sort of. She had hoped that it would somehow convince her father to let her get a speeder, of course.

It wasn't entirely off the table, not if she could get Mom on her side.

"I know, and we will talk about it more. Later." A brief squint before she smiled and started leading the way to the caves. Then, her little notepad appeared with hand-written notes. "I was trying to figure out where to start last night. From where I'd be able to hear the crystals best." She looked up and grinned.

"We should try to find the center."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Later for certain. Likely all three of them, given mom was the one that brought it up in the first place. Kahlil just chuckled, but gladly moved on to the crux of their objective. Kyber. She wanted to head to the core of the cave to speak with them?

It was a good idea. He nodded once.

"That works for me. Now, how do we find the center of the cave?"

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Dad?"

Vera's voice was suddenly a lot more serious, as they stood at the threshold of the Ossus caves. She could already feel the vergence inside. The way it called out to her, and the way it manipulated the Force everywhere around them. Every crystal cave tested those who ventured inside, and she knew they were going to see things too.

Especially if they waned to reach the center.

"Can you stay close? I'm afraid it'll show me things like the caves on Ilum did again."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil raised a brow curiously. He hadn't been told much by her on what she went through, but it sounded like something stressful. He smiled after a moment, nodding his head. If she wanted him to stay close by, he would. "We got this, don't worry. I trust that much." She would be fine, that much he believed. She was far stronger than she gave herself credit for.

"Believe in yourself, alright?"

Then he stepped in, still smiling as he walked. The vergence was a welcome feeling, how the Force flowed so freely around him. He'd missed this feeling, if he was being honest. The only thing he missed about the Wellspring.

"The Force will show you things that will make you uncomfortable. But it will never hurt or betray you. Trust in it, and let your fear go."

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

"I saw Mom," Vera said as they started to walk into the embrace of the cave's vergence. Only Aris had seen what she had on Ilum, and he had been the only one she talked to about it. Even now, she felt uncomfortable thinking about it, and she knew it was a memory that would always hurt.

She just couldn't let it hold her back when it mattered. When she had a mission to complete, either alone or with someone else.

"I saw her when she came home when you didn't. I felt what it was like to not have you anymore again. It felt...empty." she wasn't looking at her father this time for fear of tearing up, and she spoke with unusual calmness. There was a measure of pain in her too, but she still walked among the crystals.

Until she stopped all of a sudden, and looked from side to side. "We're being watched. I just don't know if it's the caves, or something else."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

So that's what it was. He glanced to his little star for a moment before reaching out to gently touch her shoulder. He knew what she meant now. It was one of the things he had seen, while he was trapped. It wasn't a memory he liked to remember, but it was one he didn't want to forget. Their trouble, their hardships, he wasn't going to forget them.

There would be a day that he wouldn't come back. That was what it meant for someone to live. They would, eventually, die. He'd talk to her more about it eventually, but not yet. Not here. He glanced around, blinking. They were being watched? That was likely. Kyber was alive after all.

"They're not a threat, at least. Just be calm. We are in their home, after all."

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

Feeling the hand settle on her shoulder, Vera let out a soft sigh and tilted her head, so her cheek rested on top of his hand for just a moment. In a lot of ways, she was similar to her Mom, and the comfort of touch was one of those things that helped her just as much as it did Valery.

"Thanks, Dad," Vera said, still calmly but with a touch of warmth to her voice again.

Her eyes then shifted back around, noting the strange presences she felt. The wind started to pick up, and whistled as it bent around rocks and passed through narrow cracks. The Force swelled, and as Vera turned around, she noticed something very strange — the path back was gone.

Not even 10 steps back, there was suddenly a wall, though with a passage leading left now, which they hadn't taken to get where they were. Was this cave system changing?

"It might show both of us something. But we got this together, yeah?" She grinned again, and reached out with her hand, offering to take his.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Together."

Kahlil nodded in agreement as he smiled back down to her. It was good to see her feel at least somewhat more assured of herself. The Force had changed, and she'd need to keep herself alert and calm to handle what it was that might end up coming to face them. He had little doubt the crystals weren't already aware of their intentions.

"Just keep your eyes forward, never back. We have this."

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

"How are you never afraid?" Vera asked with a slight tilt of her head. She had seen him upset, tense and angry whenever family was threatened or hurt, but was he afraid? Maybe he had been, but she just couldn't tell, or he really had confronted all of his fears and conquered them somehow. The little girl inside her wanted to believe that because she looked up to him so much, but she knew that most people were afraid of something.

"I think I feel something up ahead," Vera then added, and if they both listened carefully, there seemed to be the sound of running water not too far away.

But in the middle of these caves? Another illusion?

"I want to be more like you," Vera then said a little quietly, as she squeezed his hand and moved forward.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Do you know what courage is?"

It was a rhetorical question. She'd already shown courage just facing Carnifex that day, so many years ago. He squeezed her hand gently as they walked to the source of the sound, his smile still calm as ever. "It's not an absence of fear. It's knowing you're afraid, and accepting it. And acting despite it. I am not a fearless person, Vera. But there's so many things that I can't control that there is no reason to be afraid of. All that time I could spend being scared, I could spend with you, with everyone. Fear will always try to lock you up. Don't let it, and keep your head high."

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

Vera stopped.

Her head turned and she looked at her father for a long moment. So many had told her not to fear, and to control her emotions. But none of them had lived through what she had, not at her age and with how close she was to her parents. For years, she had been on the Bastion with them.

Just the three of them.

But these words resonated with her like no other lesson had, and Vera only felt more certain about what she said before. She really wanted to be more like him.

"I'm afraid, Dad," Vera said but without any emotion in her voice, just calmness and focus. "But it's okay. This isn't real, you're with me, and I can do this." She turned around and began to walk, until she stopped to look at the scene the caves had created for them. There was grass now, trees and mud, as rain fell down into a familiar landscape. It was one Kahlil would remember too. It was the place where he had been taken from his family.

Vera had seen it in her nightmares, but this time, she just sighed. "I hate getting my hair wet," she said with a huff, the way her Mother would.

Looking back, she offered her Dad a little smile and reached for his hand, "Can we walk through it together? I don't like this place, but I can feel the kybers behind it."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He took her hand with a smile and nodded. They were showing them something again. The past, the worst day. It wasn't the worst day for him, though. Kahlil looked over the fields, smiling softly as they did start to walk. Were they trying to guide them to acceptance? Guide Vera to acceptance? "I know this place is home to a nightmare to you, but this is a memory I am proud of."

He kept his gaze forward as he spoke.

"I did not want to miss you growing up. I wanted to be there, but I knew your mother was going to die if I didn't do something. I don't regret my choice. I'd only regret not doing something when it was in my power to make things right. Do you understand what I mean?"

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

Vera held onto his hand and walked through the rain. She didn't seem to be upset, and kept herself calm, but she clearly drew a lot of strength from her father being here, and from holding onto his hand. "I understand. You would never let Mom get hurt... Or die." She frowned and for a moment, wondered what life would have been like if Mom had died instead.

The worst part of it - she wouldn't have come back the way her father had.

"Would you have let Mom do the same for you?" Vera then asked after a moment. "Or would you always let Mon live instead?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I think it's a competition."

Kahlil chuckled a little. It sounded morbid, but in a way it was just that. A competition. "We don't want each other to die. We'll do everything we can to make sure that doesn't happen, even at the cost of ourselves. The same goes for you, you know. You and your siblings. Only, it's a parent's duty to lay down their life for their children, not the other way around."

He reached down, ruffling her hair a little.

"But those are just possibilities. Don't dwell on them. Focus on the now, live in the moment. We can't control the future, no matter how many visions we might get. We can only do our best in the moment and use what we've seen to help guide that."

Vera Noble

 

[Vera Noble]

Ossus

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Tag: Kahlil Noble

Vera blinked several times, then nodded in understanding, and listened a little more to what he had to say. Then...she giggled, snorted and slowly transitioned from giggles to laughter. Even here, one of the worst places she had memories of, Vera couldn't stop laughing.

"Do you and Mom make everything a competition? Cooking, sparring, flying, and even who gets to die for who?" She snickered and let go off his hand to turn to him, seemingly no longer phased by the environment.

"But I think I finally understand, Dad. I don't feel so worried anymore."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"We do, yeah."

Kahlil chuckled just a little as he glanced down towards Vera and watched her rush off. She was feeling better. That was a good sign at least, and it made him certainly feel better that she was. Always move forward, no matter what. That's what he hoped she'd learn more than anything else.

"It's how we are, and how we'll always be I imagine."

Vera Noble