Faction No Need for Roads - NJO

[Formerly Spirit of Valor]

NO NEED FOR ROADS

Excursion! In the heat of the Reclamation, the brave Jedi of the NJO find a moment of peace between battles of intergalactic importance. A simple wilderness survival expedition, one intended to strengthen the brotherhood and sisterhood of the order's best and freshly flourishing off the grid on the marshy, forested world of Atzerri. In a time of great turmoil, hero's and trainees alike take the time to find a moment of peace and respite under the turbulent, starry sky. It is a time for reflection, as Jedi come together in conversation and fellowship, dwelling upon that which has been done...

And what may lie just down the road....

CAMPFIRE STORIES

​

Members of the New Jedi Order have begun to gather around a freshly lit fire just at the edge of their campsite. Tales of old, myths and legends, and history long since passed begin to come to life through word and mouth. An opportunity to learn from the wisest of the Order, or perhaps a chance to tell one's own story....

LAYING STAKES

​

The campsite has been staged, but very little of the gear has been set up. Eager volunteers and instructed younger members of the Order begin to unpack, many preparing to pitch a tent for the first time in their lives. The air of impending failure is in the air. For some; A learning experience. For others; A Challenge.

THE WOOHOO

​

Rumors of unusual creatures have been sighted out in the marshy glade of Atzerri. Strange movement, otherworldly howling, larger than life footprints... Locals have begun calling the creature the Woohoo. Rumors of such a being dwelling out in the wilderness is just the kind of thing that draws the imagination of the young and impressionable of the New Jedi Order. Behind the backs of the organizers of the trip, Padawans are beginning to prepare an expedition to find the creature.

 

[Valery Noble]

Anzerri

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsabers
Tag: Open

With her palms facing forward, Valery sat down and made herself comfortable around the campfire. She expected more Jedi to join her soon for something a little different from the usual. They weren't here to train or to fight for the Alliance's safety — this was a time to come together to share stories and enjoy each other's company. Valery had plenty of stories herself she was willing to share, ranging from ancient battles of the Old Republic to more personal stories of her life before stasis.

Or even more recent tales if that's what people wanted to hear.

But she'd also be perfectly content listening to the stories of others instead. As long as this evening remained relaxed, she would be happy. Everybody seemed to need these days off from the craziness that was Jedi duty right now.

"So... stories," Valery began after a moment. "Anybody who would like to start or request one?"

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Atzerri
Tags: Valery Noble

Jasper had been placed in charge of managing the fire. It had been surprisingly easy to start, which was a real shock given how much moisture was in the air. It was cool, and dew still clung to the grass nearby the area they had cleared for the fire. It was warm, not too much smoke and a strong core. The coals at least would keep hot for a while. It wasn't long before more people were gathering around, Master Noble amongst them...

"So... stories," Valery began after a moment. "Anybody who would like to start or request one?"

"Any would be cool," Jasper admitted. "I'm sure you have some crazy stories you can tell. I'll wait on mine for a bit."

Jasper had some old tales he could tell, legends about the mysteries of the unknown. Stuff he heard in his exile, usually at spaceports in the outer rim. Old tales told by hyperspace scouts and smugglers of unknown horrors and concepts that boggled the mind. Fun stuff for a nice camp fire. But his curiosity came first. Valery had lived in two eras, after all. The tales she could tell were surely grand ones, unlike any that he may ever experience in his own turbulent life.

So he sat and listened, tending to the fire.

 

[Inanna Harth]

Appearance: XXX
Tags: Cato Harth + Open
​

The ground was flat and even at the campsite, blanketed with fallen leaves. Holding on to Serena's tiny hands, Inanna was trying to teach the toddler how to walk.

Resistant to the idea, Serena bent her knees and swung from her mother's grasp, whining to be held. Inanna set her down and pointed to Cato. "Walk over to Daddy and he'll pick you up."

Whether she understood or not, Serena was smart enough to know her father was more likely to give her what she wanted. So she stood, wobbling, and tottered a few steps forward before plopping down and crawling the rest of the way. A success, if a minor one.

They had stayed on Narsh only as long as it took for Serena to get well. As for their current locale, they had pulled Atzerri at random out of a list of planets deemed suitable. They quickly discovered that camping was preferable to staying in one Atzerri's corruption-riddled cities.

Inanna's gaze was drawn away from Serena and toward a light that had appeared in her peripheral vision. There was another campfire nearby, with quite a large group of campers. "Oh great," Inanna muttered. "They better not be up all night partying..."

 

[BB-610]

CAMPFIRE STORIES

| LOCATION: Atzerri |
| TAG: Valery Noble | Jasper Kai'el | OPEN |

The notion of 'camping' was a foreign one to BB-610, to perhaps nobody's surprise, but its core concept was one that was relatively simple and even quite interesting to him. No philosophical strings attached, no abstract lens to view it under, just a primitive premise that the droid could get behind: life outside with nothing but the embrace of nature and one's intrinsic instincts to coax them through the night, with quaint organic activities sprinkled throughout. In many ways, 'camping' wasn't all that different to certain missions the droid had been on; the key difference, of course, being that tonight was less about spilled blood on a warzone and more about sugary confectionaries toasted above a fire.

To his understanding, 'camping' involved specific utensils, accesories, and equipment. Thankfully, many of them came pre-installed within the astromech's array of tool-bay disks, so BB-610 was sitting rather comfy. The dangers of wildlife and nature's elements weren't too pressed with him, however, but the fragile organics he had grown to love. As such, precautions were taken, following a rather inspiring proverb he'd overheard of, 'better safe than sorry'.

What this meant was the taxing struggle of a small droid overworking his motors as he tried with all his might to roll up a hill with a bundle of bags, nets, and folded-up tents being dragged along behind him, attached to his multitude of grapple hooks. Through trial and error and sheer determination (and perhaps only a little bit of fear of being by himself for so long), BB-610 finally made his way over to the designated campsite, spotting Valery and Jasper, among others, as he sped towards them much more swiftly now that he wasn't - literally - fighting an uphill battle.

Announcing his presence with a strained bweeeeep, the astromech made his way over to Valery, finally retracting his grapples and letting the overabundance of camping necessities slump onto the ground with a thud, collapsing into a pile that far exceeded the droid's own height. Satisfied, BB-610 chirped that he'd brought all the standard requirements, nodding triumphantly.

 

[Kuzon Lu’ten]

CAMPFIRE STORIES

Tag: Valery Noble Jasper Kai'el BB-610 + Open​

It wasn't long before a short figure hooded in a Jedi robe strolled toward the campfire. Once within meters away from Jasper, the Grandmaster and the rest of their bethern the figure stopped. Then with some hesitation a claw tipped hand reached for the hood and lowered it. Revealed a young Bothan with a padawan braid. From his emerald eyes there was a hint of nervousness and many of the other Jedi could sense it even more so.

Despite his feelings the newcomer then clasped his hands together, bowing to the waist in respect to all those present. For a moment he opened his mouth to speak in order to introduce himself but the Bothan Jedi froze. Feeling like he would be interrupting the padawan instead took an empty spot close to the fire and sat down cross legged. Closing his eyes he began to reach out in the force all around.

It's…different from Kashyyyk but yes the force is strong here. Kuzon Lu'Ten thought in the confines of his mind.

Then the awkwardness began to fade, however, slowly as evident with a relaxing sigh from him. He especially felt the strong presence and most importantly the deep bond amongst the Jedi here at this campfire. The warmth of the flames was welcomed and so was the chirping of bugs nearby.

Subsequently Kuzon opened both eyes staring at the burning embers with a slight smile. He was looking forward to this night. Even though he is a newcomer to be sure, storytelling was one of his great joys in life.

No doubt there will be much to tell in this company. Hopefully I will have my chance as well but I want to listen first.

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Atzerri
Objective: Listen to stories
Tag: Valery Noble / BB-610 / Jasper Kai'el

A camping trip? Silas was all for it as long as he didn't get bitten again. Many of the Jedi order had come onto the planet for a welcome break and a morale boost from the tiring war. When they had landed on the planet there were whispers of Master Valery and others doing stories by the campfire, something of which the soon to be knight was itching to hear.

Once he had set up his tent and put his equipment neatly inside, he made his way over to the spot and saw that a few people were there already. Of course, Master Valery was present, as well as Jasper who was sure to have a few stories under his belt. There was also a small droid perched next to Valery who had been following her for a bit now. He wasn't sure where it had come from, but any friend of his masters was a friend of his. Nodding to each person respectfully, he sat next to BB and glared at him with a smile.

"I see you've made a new friend recently Master, Can I ask for its name?" he said to her with a cool thumbs up to the droid in response. When he sat back Silas himself was tempted to tell a few stories of his own, yet he waited for others to do so first.

"If you have any stories to tell by all means. I'm all ears for now"​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I've got a story or two." Kahlil leaned forward in his seat, giving Valery the fastest wink this side of the galaxy in the process. Leaning forward, closer to the fire, the shadow behind the large man started to flicker and grow. Unnaturally dancing, no longer in tune with the firelight. As if possessed.

"If people are brave enough to hear them."

Valery Noble | Silas Westgard | Jasper Kai'el | BB-610 | Kuzon Lu’ten

 

[Sayuri Hatoko]

Location: The campfire
Objective: Bond and tell stories
Tags: Valery Noble Silas Westgard Jasper Kai'el Silas Westgard BB-610 Kahlil Noble Kuzon Lu’ten
Gear: Jedi robes, lightsaber attached to belt, satchel of assorted goodies

It was things like this that made Sayuri adore her order, masters, padawans and even astromechs rubbing shoulders at a camp fire gathering. The padawan planned to ensure she was popular tonight and she glanced at her satchel full of all manner of flavoured marshmallows, chunks of chocolate and crackers. She finished setting up her tent and flipped out her bed roll, it looked cosy, a little cold but it would be her home from home tonight. "OK Yuri, sticks; check, sweets; check, hair looks good, makeup; check, bed time is sorted; good, we're ready" she grabbed her stuff and made her way over to the crackling fire, taking her seat on an empty log with plenty of room for another to join, and listening to the conversation. Sayuri looked around at the different faces as they all spoke, she had some stories of her own, she loved a spooky story, but doubted she could keep up with the likes of the Masters Noble.

"If people are brave enough to hear them."

"That sounds like a challenge Master Noble" she laughed, egging him on a little as she opened her pack, pulled out a stick and assembling herself a stack. "Before we start though, who wants hot sugar" she handed the bag to her left or right, whoever grabbed it first and allowed it to do the circle with the implication that anyone could just help themselves. She held her stick in to fire and watched it begin to brown. The ebb and flow of force her was palpable with the number of gathered force users.
​

 

[Valery Noble]

Anzerri

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsabers
Tag: Kahlil Noble Jasper Kai'el Silas Westgard Sayuri Hatoko Kuzon Lu’ten BB-610

Valery caught her husband's wink and smirked just faintly enough for it to hopefully all go unnoticed. But she did shift a little closer to sit beside him and turned her gaze to the group of Padawans who had assembled. Most of them were familiar faces, but a few new ones were here too. Something she always loved to see.

"This here is Bee, or BB-610" Valery told Silas after her little buddy made her way over. "He's a new friend of mine and a companion for when I'm on missions with my ship." She reached over to pat Bee on his head and then turned her attention back to the group as a whole. They seemed interested in her telling a story, perhaps about the Old Republic.

But the way Kahlil offered to tell a story instead couldn't be ignored.

"Brave enough huh?" She chuckled. "Let's hear it." She shot a quick wink of her own and quietly listened.

 

[Thelma Goth]

Tags: Valery Noble Jasper Kai'el Silas Westgard Sayuri Hatoko @Kuzon Lu'ten BB-610
​

Thelma sat near Silas, so quiet it was easy to forget she was even there. She held her stick over the fire, already on her second marshmallow. Sayuri better be careful, or else Thelma would eat them all.

Her gaze flicked up to Kahlil as he offered to tell a story, intrigued. She had no interesting anecdotes to offer, only ghost stories and fairytales. Whether the group would be interested in those, she didn't know.

 

[Cato Harth]

Inanna Harth - Open​

Cato was crouched down with his arms held out wide, coaxing Serena into walking his way, "C'mon! You can do it!" A few steps of progress… until she plopped back down and crawled. He shrugged. Better than nothing, "Cheater."

Serena got what she wanted, as her father picked her up and set her inside of a baby carrier slung around his chest. Cato found the way her limbs dangled out of the straps to be quite humorous. Her curious eyes wandered the natural landscape around them; A far cry from her usual surroundings on Nar Shaddaa.

"Oh, gee," Cato squinted in the direction of the campfire, "Of all the times for us to go camping, how's it we end up with a group like that so close?" Alas, not much to be done, "Wonder who they are." He looked to Inanna, still getting used to seeing her new form each time he did, "Think we should just, move our spot, or…?"

 

[Inanna Harth]

Appearance: XXX
Tags: Cato Harth Valery Noble Jasper Kai'el Silas Westgard Sayuri Hatoko Kuzon Lu’ten BB-610
​

"Think we should just, move our spot, or…?"

"Beat them up and drive them away?" Inanna suggested with an innocent smile.

She caught the distinct smell of burning marshmallows on the air. "Maybe they're friendly." Or so she hoped. She kind of wanted some marshmallows. "Besides, who can resist a family with such a cute baby?"

Provided Cato did not object, Inanna started walking toward the neighboring campsite.

 

[Ariana Du Couteau]

Ariana Du Couteau, Jedi Padawan
Location: Near Camp Site, Atzerri
Objective: Find the "Woohoo"
Action: Begin the Hunt for the "Woohoo"
Tag: Open
Outfit (Minus the Right Arm)

She found the idea of camping outside a bit ridiculous, not the strategy or tactics of making a bad situation during long campaigns during war slightly better with suitable camping supplies. No, Ariana simply found the notion that if given an option between four walls with running water and electricity anybody would think the hard ground and lightly covered fabric roofs were superior. If you want to see stars when you lay down to sleep, install a roof with a window. Ariana mused wearily as she slowly dragged herself into a somewhat pitched tent with some of the basic essentials. At the moment she was certain that she would neither freeze or use a rock as a pillow, so it wasn’t a half bad decent job.

With her own nod of approval, Ariana moved away and headed towards the camp-fire where a large group was forming rapidly. Hovering near the back, near the shadows of those gathered caused by the fire, she listened intently to hear what was being said; things like their next objective or other important news. None of the above, story time instead huh? Ariana mused, her left hand rubbing her chin, Brave listeners required for Master Noble? Scary stories weren’t exactly her thing, not that she scare easily (though her brother would disagree), Ariana figured there was still enough time to go seek out the Mysterious Legendary ‘Woohoo’ creature of fabled lore.

Perhaps there wasn’t enough time, but if such an elusive figure could be found Ariana doubted that the ‘Woohoo’ cared enough about their time table. She looked down at her utility belt and counted her rations quickly, though what she really made for certain was that her camera still functioned. A quick power level check and snapping a single shot of herself for memory’s sake, Ariana turned around and headed out to blaze a trail to find this mythical enigmatic furry creature.

Ariana walked with purpose through the camp site, she slowed a tad as she saw a pair with their child heading towards the Jedi Camp-Site. She couldn’t place a name on either them or the child, but those around the fire were also quite new to Ariana so that mattered little. With a wave of her left hand towards them and a quick greeting. “If you’re gunning for snacks best hurry, if the other Padawans don’t finish them the Woohoo will.” She offered a small bow of her head and continued on her path.

Actually, I wonder a ‘Woohoo’ finds delicious. . . who can resist bacon? Only terrifying monsters. . . but if the Woohoo can resist bacon. . . Ariana allowed her thoughts to run wild as she looked at her data-slate for the last sighting of the cryptid.
​

|| Valery Noble | Jasper Kai'el | Inanna Harth | BB-610 | Kuzon Lu’ten | Silas Westgard | Kahlil Noble | Sayuri Hatoko | Thelma Goth | Cato Harth ||​

 

[Aeris Lashiec]

Laying Stakes​

"Hey!" A sharp whistle rang out across the field. A rosy hand lifted to point at Corazon with little to no option to bow out of the incoming order. "You there. Come over here, please. Right away."

The longer the blonde refused to comply, whether out of malice or simple confusion, the faster Aeris' foot began to tap the ground at a hurried pace. By the time Cora had come over, Aeris began to point at a nearby set of crates with some very small tents in it. The blonde librarian and would-be camper tilted her head for Cora to pick it up, and not long after that Aeris picked up her own crate and began to march off, hopefully with her newfound aide in tail.

"Thanks," She grunted under the weight of the cargo and looked over at Cora. "With everyone busy with their own tents it is easy to forget the smaller ones who need more help than most."

"It will be a lot of angry little kids, but… Kind of funny, if you want to stick around."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Jalen Kai'el]

Atzerri
Tags: Ti Izat , Ariana Du Couteau , open...

​

The Woohoo was a terrible name for a woodland anomaly. If it was supposed to be associated with stories that struck fear into the hearts of children, it certainly wasn't achieving that intended outcome. All any of the padawans seemed to want to do is find the creature. That wouldn't do. If the Woohoo was some sort of hairy man, he was surely in danger. Many younger padawans were eager to fight a forest monster, which was likely a far cry from what this 'creature' really was. He could be hurt, or even killed. Jalen couldn't have that. He was a healer, after all. Fortunately, he had help.

"Alright, Ti," he addressed his fellow padawan, slinking into the bush that was their base camp. "We have to find the Woohoo first, before anything bad happens. If he gets injured, medical services are a good four hours out by foot. We gotta make sure that he stays hidden..."

That was the easy part. There were still all kinds of questions looming over their current objective. Where was the Woohoo. What were it's patterns so late at night. But, most importantly...

"How do we even find it?"

 

[Ti Izat]

"<The Woohoo is big. I doubt it will be hard found. We simply look up.>"

Ti gave a slow nod as he spoke in Jawaese. Jalen was correct that they needed to find the man first. It would be unfortunate if they were harmed because of a misunderstanding. Master Sinclare had always taught them to never judge a book by it's cover, no matter how hairy said cover might be. It was the reason Ti felt so comfortable as a Jedi, after all. The Jawa adjusted the goggles on his head.

This late at night he didn't need to worry about lights. But others could always have a flashlight.

"<Should we ask for help? Others might not wish for harm. They could want the same.>"

Jalen Kai'el | Ariana Du Couteau

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora had been inching her way towards the campfire when a sharp whistle cut through the night air. She stiffened, pausing mid-step and slowly turned around.

Across the field, an older blonde gestured. Cora looked to her left, then to her right, then back at the bag of marshmallows taunting her by the fire.

She sighed, shoulders slumping in resignation before straightening regally and pacing her way quickly towards the Jedi Knight who'd summoned her. Obedient to a fault, Cora would not go back for the marshmallows and spooky stories, no matter how tempting.

"Yes ma'am, sorry ma'am!" She quickly apologized without a hint of sarcasm, grimacing as she wrapped her arms around the crate and lifted.

Cora nodded slowly, shifting to try and reestablish her awkward grip on the box. She'd never set up a tent in her life before. Why would she? Noble women were rarely exposed to the concept of sleeping outdoors.

"…w-why would the children be angry?" Her voice was tentative, looking over to Aeris nervously.

Aeris Lashiec

 

[BB-610]

CAMPFIRE STORIES

| LOCATION: Atzerri |
| TAG: Valery Noble | Jasper Kai'el | Kahlil Noble | Silas Westgard | @Others | OPEN |

"I see you've made a new friend recently, Master. Can I ask for its name?"

BB-610 perked up, head swirling around to glance at the one who had spoken. He certainly rang a bell-- perhaps he'd been one of the many faces in a crowd during an event BB-610 had attended, but ultimately there was little connection established. The droid inched away, somewhat shy as he was addressed, central optic firmly fixed on the human, only for his festering anxieties to be washed away as Valery ran her fingers along the flat surface of his head. Servos warming with an artificial rumble at his voicebox that sounded an awful lot like purring, the astromech nuzzled up against the Jedi's hand, eagerly drinking in her affections as he chirped happily at her words.

"I've got a story or two."

Turning to face Kahlil, BB-610 chewed on the idea of exchanging stories. The droid had more than his fair share of tales to tell, but he wasn't particularly in a hurry to make them known on account of their... sour endings. Instead, he'd much rather give center stage to the Jedi Master, glancing at him in anticipation.

 

[Kuzon Lu’ten]

CAMPFIRE STORIES​

Tag: BB-610 Sayuri Hatoko Kahlil Noble Silas Westgard Jasper Kai'el Valery Noble Cato Harth Inanna Harth Thelma Goth

Watching the interactions between the others Kuzon stayed silent. Still sitting cross legged he placed both hands on his lap, as he continued to reach through the force. It was part of his way to relax and to get a better sense of his surroundings and…the people around him. So far he felt amusement, curiosity, joy and some anxiety coming from them though Kuzon couldn't figure out all of those were feeling like that specifically.

It's best not to probe any deeper.

With Master Kahlil offering to tell a ghost story Kuzon kept his mouth shut and shrugged his shoulders. Subsequently his gaze turned to Sayuri upon her offer of hot sugar. Seeing the marshmallows he beamed with newfound delight. Quickly he glanced around and to his fortune Kuzon discover a long enough stick behind him. Grabbing it with the left hand the padawan then lifted his right hand toward Sayuri's satchel.

A moment later one marshmallow levitated out of the satchel before flying back to Kuzon until he grabbed it.

"Thank you." He finally said before nodding with further gratitude.

With that Kuzon proceeded to impale the marshmallow on his somewhat crooked stick. Holding the stick with both hands he positioned his treat above the flames in order to roast it properly. While that was happening Kuzon finally took note of the astromech staying close to the grandmaster.

It is amazing how droids who are technically not alive like we are can form deep ties with us. It's true they're not connected to the force per say but they have been made by beings that are so.

He briefly smiled at the thought. It was an interesting thing to think about.