Private Sword and Dagger

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

When had he learned all of this?

Maybe all that time he spent on his room wasn't to play with toys — he seemed to enjoy learning a lot. Just like his father, who she often caught reading up on runes, ancient Force mysteries and other things related to his interests. It was cute in both their cases, and she especially applauded it when it came to Aris. Not a lot of kids spent so much of their time learning and trying to understand more about the Galaxy.

It was going to help him out later.

"Those are both correct," Valery said with a chuckle, not at all surprised about the answer involving food. "To me, fire is about more than just the heat you feel. It's like a heart — beating and giving, and a force that sparks life as well. I draw my flames from my heart for that reason. Though Dad will tell you it's why it's so fitting too, because flames are chaotic, but they're also pure and strong."

"I know you have this flame in your heart too."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Pure and strong.

Aris glanced down to himself, looked between his fists. He was pretty strong, wasn't he? He tightened his fists before looking up at Valery with a much more serious expression. He also knew how dangerous fire could be if it wasn't respected. Dad had taught him that much already.

"What do I do? To start making a fire, I guess. Am I making a fire? Am I setting my hands on fire!?" That seemed exciting, but he cleared his throat to keep the serious nature of the topic on point. "I won't burn myself, right?"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

It was a good thing Dad had taught him to respect fire, especially before a mission with his pyromaniac Mother. Valery was grinning from ear to ear already at the prospect of him punching through a tree with flames. She just... had to make sure he'd do it correctly, and that he wasn't going to end up hurting himself or other people.

"The ability we're covering is called Convection, and you're setting your skin on fire with this, yes." She chuckled and looked him in the eyes for a moment, before her expression grew more serious. "I'm going to explain how to do it, but I want you to be very careful and respectful with its use. We don't just set people on fire — it's immensely painful and even if we're fighting really bad people, we try to avoid unnecessary suffering."

"I've used it to crack or weaken armor, and to take down structures. Sometimes by combining this with Bakuuni Hand. I've rarely used it against a person." Kyrel Ren was possibly the only exception to it.

"Do you understand that?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Painful.

Aris nodded slowly. As cool as throwing flaming fists was, the idea that it could inflict pain had him suddenly much more sober about his earlier excitement. It was powerful, and it would help. But he needed to make sure he didn't use it carelessly. He didn't want to burn anyone. "I understand, mom. I won't abuse it."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"I know you won't," Valery said before reaching out to ruffle his hair. He was extremely adorable to her, so she loved showing her affection this way. He also really liked keeping his hair neat, so it just made it even more amusing to mess it up a tad. Already, she was expecting that little, faint pout to appear.

"Alright, I'm going to show it and I'd like you to try it along with me, okay? To use convection, we have to tap into the Force that's flowing through us. I focus on my heart for it, the beating source that gives me life - that makes it possible for the Force to be within me." She stepped forward, and adjusted her stance so she was strong and balanced.

Of course, right in front of a tree, and she was looking at Aris to make sure he'd step in front of the tree besides her.

"Use that Force to alter your body but only near your skin. Create heat through friction, and wrap it around yourself like a layer. It will burn whatever it touches, but it won't burn you." Valery drew in a deep breath, and in an instant, the flames ignited around her fists and forearms.

A single punch, augmented to be stronger, and she went right through the tree.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He didn't pout.

Much.

At all.

Nope.

Aris cleared his throat of such poutiness as he instead focused on the lesson at hand. He'd been practicing how to channel the Force through his body like she taught him, but to focus it at the ends of his knuckles like she described? He stepped beside her, focused on his knuckles with his brow knitted together in focus. Just have the force around his knuckles. That should be easy enough.

It was, thankfully. Though as he threw a punch and blew out the bark with the raw strength he'd channeled, there wasn't a spark or a flame. ".. I think I'm missing something."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

That was her boy, alright.

Watching a young kid punch right through a tree was awesome, but it felt so much better to her that it was Aris. She had taught him how to do it, and he loved every moment of it — that made her motherly side so proud. All he needed now was that spark to ignite the fire, and he'd be able to add so much more of.

"You're channeling the energy into your fist like I taught you with Bakuuni Hand. But for fire to ignite, that energy has to create friction with the air around your hand or even your entire forearm. Make the air tremble, and use your body to draw in the flames that form. It'll temporarily change the nature of your arm completely, of your flesh, but it will not hurt."

She held out her arm closer to him, and if he were to take a closer look, he'd see the air vibrating as spontaneous heat formed around her skin. Then, it ignited again and the flames drew inwards over her arm.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Friction, right."

How did he make friction though? Aris again stared at his hand, glancing between it and Valery's own flaming fist with a frown. He'd never made the Force vibrate before. He hadn't done much with it at all, now that he thought about it. Used it to enhance his body, but how would that translate? Friction was two things rubbing against each other normally. He knew the scientific side of it.

He focused real hard. He could move the force through his body so.. Yeah. That was it. The realization settled in before he put the thought in action. And rather abruptly set his hand ablaze. He jumped in surprise, but pretty swiftly looked over to Valery with the biggest grin.

"Look!"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Valery watched him closely while he tried to figure it out. She had told him roughly how it worked, but it was a matter of feeling and connecting with the Force as well. Perhaps she could have helped him even more with that, but it was far more rewarding if he first tried it himself. He could look at her as an example, and as long as he stayed focused, he would manage.

"That's it..." valery said softly while he was deep in focus. She could feel the Force swirling like him, and for perhaps the first time in his life, it created something chaotic - bright flames.

"You did it!" Valery grinned at him in return and seemed just as excited. "Oh my gosh, you already did it!" She turned back to the tree fast and assumed a fighting stance again. "Come on, stand strong as I've taught you, focus on your breathing and keep your heart beating steady."

"The flames are now a part of you. They will not burn your skin, but they can burn everything else." Once more, she punched into the tree with her own fist, and watched the flames lashing out. Now, it was his turn.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The idle red glow of his fist had him pretty focused on it. He moved it around, almost freely, changing different parts of his arm to glow that flamed color. At least until he reached his sleeve and his shirt started to smoke. He blinked in surprise before quickly patting it out and cleared his throat, nervously looking up to Valery. ".. Right, everything else. I understand."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Maybe Vera was starting to rub off on him a little.

At first, it just seemed like testing out this new ability by manipulating the flames around different parts of his arm. But as soon as he nearly set his sleeve on fire and patted it out, Valery narrowed her gaze a bit. He was usually not the one to get so excited that these mistakes happened to him.

She detected just a little bit of gremlin.

"Mhmm, so let's try it!" Valery stepped behind him and made some minor adjustments to his stance before she was certain he stood ready to not just punch through the tree, but set it ablaze as well. "Once you strike and the flames carry over, it can sometimes be clever to withdraw. The fire and heat will be able to hurt you once they've spread to your target."

"Don't burn yourself, sweetie."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Aris nodded once, fixing his stance as needed before letting his eyes focus on the tree. The feeling, that was what he hadn't understood. Now that he did? He lifted his hands, lowered his stance, and almost immediately his hands began to glow with the heat he could create. Three quick punches, in different parts, shattered bark. Splintered wood. And set it ablaze on contact. He grinned wide at the sight, stepping back to glance towards Valery for approval.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Click.

As soon as Aris turned around to look at his Mom for approval, she took a picture of him with the burning tree and its three holes in the background. <Love, got a fun picture for you!> Valery quickly told her husband while she sent the new image over to him on comms.

She then grinned, put the little camera away, and walked over to pull him into a hug. "You did amazing, sweetie," she said, unable to keep the proud motherly tone out of her voice. Her boy had already mastered convection decades before she had figured it out herself.

"It took me a lot of time to really control fire. Your dad watched me do it for the first time, back on Onderon years ago." She smiled and let out a happy sigh.

"Now, do you wanna see more of the jungle? I could take you where I had my first big battle. It's during that fight that I got the scar over my left eye, too."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

<I'm concerned.>

It was a brief thought given back. Aris smiled warmly, looking up at Valery before tilting his head curiously. He did want to see more of the jungle, but the idea of seeing where she'd been hurt was a weird thought. Concerning, really. Was this why she wanted his help?

"Okay. Let's go then."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

<Why? Our son is learning!>

She paused with a smirk.

<...don't worry, I put out the fires...>

Valery then turned back to Aris and nudged him along a little bit. A trip into the jungle meant they'd have to be prepared for the worst, and out here, it meant getting stuck. So while they had trained with barely any equipment, she now gave him his backpack and put a larger one on herself. It'd have food rations, some simple cooking equipment, knives, bedrolls and other tools they'd need to go camping.

Almost as if she had prepared to stay longer.

"I can tell you're a bit concerned, sweetie. But there's nothing scary to see where we're going. I have a reason for bringing you there, and it'll become clear later." She smiled and reached down to pat his head as they finally headed away from clearings and paths, to instead go through the wild jungles itself.

But along the way, as they went through thick bushes and around huge trees, Aris would spot a cave not far off from where they were walking. The entrance was incredibly dark, but he'd see a pair of eyes watching him from within, blinking and following him as he moved.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I'm not worried about it being dangerous. It just sounds like a place you have bad memories, mom." That was always the core of his worry. She didn't seemed bothered though, so he smiled regardless and moved to follow Valery. All Aris cared about was that his mom wasn't uncomfortable. Though, he blinked and glanced off towards where he saw something in the cave. Something watching them. He simply dipped his head in greeting, almost, before hurrying along after his mom.

"There are many eyes here watching us."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Oh.

Valery blinked and looked at her son for a moment with quite the smile. He was mostly worried that it would be hard on her, huh? The thought warmed her heart, and she just couldn't stop herself as she stepped closer to pull him into a quick hug. This time, without messing up his hair. "Awe, that's very sweet of you. But I'm going to be okay. I've been back here before, but... something will be a little different."

"Your sister saw something that I'm hoping to show you."

As they walked, Aris quickly learned that they were never truly alone, and Valery just chuckled when she heard him hurrying up behind her. "Stay close, sweetie. Together, we're less likely to run into trouble." Though today, that seemed to not even matter too much. As they moved passed a row of large trees, the surroundings began to change a little. The air felt colder, and plants and bushes around them seemed to be in a state of decay. It was a darker feeling.

"This... is concerning."

The eyes that were watching them grew more intense, and tension was staring to grow. Along the jungle floor, a thick, thorned vine was slowly slithering its way to his legs from behind, hoping to catch the little boy by surprise.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Aris didn't notice the thorns at first. Not soon enough to react to them anyway. It was Seszil who acted, immediately spinning through the air to cleave them apart. Aris jumped back, blinking in surprise as he let his fists light up once again with the heat he'd just learned how to create.

"Plants are attacking us! I know you said they would, but it's still very surprising!"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

New Cov

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber | Double-Bladed Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Valery snickered at Aris' reaction, even though she had to take this seriously as well. He was getting the full New Cov experience right now, and she really hoped Kahlil Noble wasn't going to get angry over it with her. Then again, he did encourage her to bring him here longer than a day, so....

It was probably fine!

"Come on, sweetie, stay close." She was still a worried Mom at the end of the day, so even with Seszil cutting the vines apart, she was keeping him close. "The vines are not the issue. They will keep coming until we get to the source!" She told him, right as even more dark, twisted vined lashed out at both of them.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I'm with you."

Seszil would act the buffer, spinning through the air to keep the vines at bay. Being pure steel it was easy for him to not get caught up at least. Aris couldn't stay the same. He stuck beside Valery, squinting through the shadows to try and see where the source was. He couldn't sense it, not like Valery could.

"I don't know where to look."

Valery Noble