Private The Depths Below

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

He didn't like the sound of that saying one bit, but pressed on nonetheless.

<Good points. I guess we'll find out when we open that door... somehow> He was still staring at it, trying to figure out a way to open it. Brute forcing it with their lightsabers was always an option, but he was hoping for something a bit more elegant. Something that wouldn't add to their list of archeological "crimes".

But a high-pitched shriek drew his attention away and to an approaching creature. It was cute much like the mermaids before they tried to eat them, and it seemed excited. He saw no reason to fear it.

<Not scared of a cutesy little beluga, are you?> he asked somewhat smugly before he began to swim up towards it. <You wanna take a picture with it?> Slowly he inched closer and moved to pat it. But the moment gave him the perfect opportunity for a little prank as well.

<Look, it's very friendly.>

But then, very suddenly, he began to twitch and move as if the beluga was biting into his arm and trying to eat him alive <Ahh Miri!> he called out, trying his best to be convincing before turning around to look at her with a stupid smirk. Little did he know that this arm would have quite a future ahead of it.

 

[Miri Nimdok]

Miri’s eyes were glued to Kyell as he fearlessly moved to pet the beluga. When he pretended to be bitten, she kicked her feet to swim toward him on instinct, but quickly realized it was a prank. And she had fallen for it, though she pretended she had meant to swim over all along.

<It doesn’t seem too dangerous,> she admitted, watching the beluga float around. <You wouldn’t happen to have any experience with Beast Control, would you?>

Was she thinking of taming the beluga into her own personal water beast? No… not exactly, anyway. But she was thinking it might be communicated with, if not to learn something, then at least to make sure it stayed friendly. Whales were supposed to be highly intelligent, after all.

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

He didn't say anything about his prank, and just let a smirk do the work for him.

<I'm afraid not, but we could give it a shot.> He let his hand gently settle against the creature's skin, but then looked at Miri again, clearly with something on his mind. <I just wonder how it got in here. Was it locked up as well? I doubt it used a key...> He stared at the beluga's fins to confirm.

Kyell then closed his eyes and took a deep breath while he tried to connect with the creature and project his calmness into its mind. If the beluga saw them as friends, it would be much easier to take things a step further. After a few moments, it seemed to be working, as the creature began to gently rub its head against Kyell.

<Another aquatic creature that likes me, but at least this one doesn't want to eat me. I think> He looked at Miri and smiled <Do you want to give it a try as well?>

 

[Miri Nimdok]

<It could’ve come in after we left. Or it could be an ancient evil sea marshmallow who’s been locked up in here for a hot minute.> Calling a million years a “hot minute” was maybe a little bit of an understatement.

Miri fell silent to give Kyell a chance to concentrate. She watched as he bonded with the whale. He seemed to be a natural when it came to establishing mental links.

<Do you understand whale song now?> Miri asked him when it was done. <And have you named him yet? He or she, I can’t tell.>

By now any wariness she had felt toward the creature had disappeared. She reached out to pet it, initiating the bond… and to her surprise, she found two minds instead of one.

<It’s a female, and she’s carrying a baby.> What were baby whales called? Calves?... <Unless her species has an absurdly long gestation period, I think it’s safe to say this one wandered in here recently.>

And now it thought they were its friends. And they were stuck in here with a mysterious giant monster.

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

<Do you understand whale song now?>

Kyell gave her a deadpan stare, <Yeah, I'll teach you soon, and a name? Hmm.> He actually hadn't thought about that at all yet. What would even be an appropriate name for a whale? He then watched her use the same method to connect with the creature and smiled a little when he felt how calm and friendly their new friend was becoming.

<It's a female, and she's carrying a baby.>

<I knew that...>

He didn't, but now he does. <Well, as long as I don't have to see her give birth.> he flashed a dumb grin and gently patted the beluga. <I think we should make sure she's away from here before we get this door open. I'd rather not risk a pregnant animal getting hurt by whatever is out there.>

It seemed like the responsible thing to do. So with a hand settling on the beluga again, Kyell tried to tell her just that — to leave and find safety elsewhere.

 

[Miri Nimdok]

<I’m looking forward to it. Give her a silly name, like Lula.>

Kyell seemed a bit stunned to hear the whale was pregnant, having failed to pick up on it before. <It can be a little hard for a noob like you to notice. Here.> Miri guided Kyell’s hand to the creature’s side. <Now can you tell?>

Hearing yet another rumble in the deep, her splayed fingers curled around his. She felt Kyell telling the creature to go—it had thought this “cave” was a safe place to shelter in, but that wasn’t the case.

Rather than leaving, the whale tried to get them to go with it.

<They don’t normally travel alone,> Miri murmured. <If this one’s by herself, what happened to the others?...>

Her concern for the whale’s wellbeing was evident. But they had come here for the ruins, not to find a pregnant beluga a new home. Right? Right…

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

<Noob? Careful or I might just call her Miri,> he smirked and let her shift his hand to the beluga's side, where he could most definitely feel it. He blinked and looked back at her, <I can, and it worries me,> he said, not liking the situation for their little friend at all.

Another loud rumble followed, but it was her words that got him to think again, <If that's the case, maybe we shouldn't send Lula away on her own. I have no idea what happened to the others, but I have a bad feeling about it. Just look how scared she got after the rumbling.>

He frowned and looked at Lula, <She wants us to go.> he added before looking back at Miri. <Maybe this once, we should be careful about what we wake up here.>

 

[Miri Nimdok]

<If we get her out of here safely, maybe we can name the baby after me.>

Miri pouted at the thought of missing out on treasure, but there was no contest. Lula and her calf mattered more than the ruins. The problem was figuring out where to lead her. Miri knew a lot of random facts and trivia about various subjects, but she was not an expert on Lula’s species, nor did she know this area of the ocean all that well. She supposed they could call animal control or some such organization if they got desperate.

Or use the Force, Miri. Duh.

Kyell seemed to be suggesting they not come back for fear of awakening whatever beast lay slumbering in the deep. <Well, even if we leave, the archaeologists will stumble upon this place eventually,> she pointed out. <Then there’s a risk they’ll disturb whatever is in here. Should we try to seal it off, then?>

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

<That sounds like a plan to me>

He was just glad she didn't kill him for wanting to call a whale after her.

Miri then made more good points that really forced him to think, proving this situation just got a lot trickier because of one pregnant whale. <Yeah, I don't think a warning sign will be enough. It wasn't for us,> he said with a smirk before he looked back at the entrance.

<What if we tell Lula to wait just outside the doors we came through? We close them and lock ourselves in here with the key so Lula can't be endangered. We deal with the thing ahead, and then bring her out to safety later? Should cover everything and we might find some cool items in there as well.> He seemed hopeful about this plan.

<If you can tell Lula that, I'll get this door open.> She was better with the telepathic skills, after all.

 

[Miri Nimdok]

Miri gave Kyell a thumbs up, took the key, then turned to Lula. After some silent telepathic communication, the two disappeared back out the way they had come, leaving Kyell to figure out the door.

Returning a few minutes later minus the whale, Miri searched for Kyell in the darkness.

<You didn’t get eaten while I was out, did you? Tell me you didn’t get eaten…>

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

While Miri left with Lula, Kyell had used his lightsaber not to cut through the bulky doors, but to melt and destroy the locking mechanism that held the two parts together. All it took now was some use of the Force to open it, but he'd wait until she returned before he did that.

Hearing her voice in his mind minutes later, he blinked and turned around in the darkness, <Right here,> he said as he ignited his weapon again to give her some light <I'm fine and I got the door open, I think. I just... something feels off, so stay close and let's be careful.>

He extended a hand to telekinetically push open the doors, and after they slowly parted, there was only darkness ahead. Both as a lack of light, and a feeling in the Force that grew now that nothing stopped what was inside. Both Miri and Kyell then felt a strange aura reaching out to their minds to project a deep, sinister laugh into them.

At last, I am free.​

A single light appeared in the distance that slowly grew closer, but only when they were right in front of it, did an undead figure manifest itself in the waters. The skeletal man felt strange in the Force, with his entire being seemingly connected to just the crown he was wearing as if it was the one thing tying his entire existence to the world around him.

<At least this one won't try to eat us...> Kyell commented while the man drew an old blade and clearly prepared himself to kill the two Jedi. Finally, they had their confirmation that it was meant to be a tomb, but not to just bury the dead king. It was meant to contain him.

Finally, I shall reign again.​

With a flash of speed, the dead king swam forward with incredible speed and lashed out with his blade. Kyell raised his lightsaber to catch it but stared in surprise when the metal of his weapon didn't melt. Keeping him in a lock, Kyell hoped Miri would be able to offer some assistance.

 

[Miri Nimdok]

At Kyell’s warning, Miri closed the distance between them, peering cautiously through the door as he opened it to find…

A skeleton.

Well, a reanimated skeleton with its essence still bound to its bones, but a skeleton nonetheless. Clad in a suit of armor, wielding an old sword, and talking about how he was free at last to resume his reign, he looked and sounded like he had leaped straight out of a holothriller.

As if in response to Kyell’s quip, Miri felt something latch onto her in the Force, leeching at her energy. <You spoke too soon, Kyell!> she exclaimed, igniting her lightsaber and slashing at the skeleton from another angle. <He's a Force Vampire!>

They would have to get this over with quickly, unless they wanted to wind up drained of life in order to rejuvenate the ancient king.

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

Murderous rats, mermaids trying to eat them, and now a Force vampire?

Someone must have cursed them, he was convinced of it at this point. How could two people otherwise run into so much trouble in such a short timespan? Sadly, there was little time to think about it. He could feel the aura of the undead king siphon his energy away, and no matter what he tried to shield himself, it wasn't working.

<How do we kill something that's already dead?>

Pushing back, Kyell forced his blade away right as he withdrew it to block Miri's strike. But with more speed than Kyell could muster underwater, the undead king swept his weapon around in a wide arc. The tip connected with Kyell's chest, sparking fear in his heart that he'd be cut wide open. But almost to his surprise, the polyweave held together and he was mostly unharmed.

<Too close...> he muttered before he raised his weapon to block another fast-paced strike. This time, Kyell lunged forward in an attempt to pierce through where the heart was supposed to be. That's how vampires were slain, right? Well, he was wrong, and his blade of plasma slipped between several ribs to bring them close together, but without the undead being hurt.

Oh crap-

A skeletal fist connected with his stomach, folding him over and sending him a meter or two up towards the ceiling because of the sheer force behind the blow.

This fight was much trickier than he had hoped.

 

[Miri Nimdok]

While Kyell had managed to keep the heat off of her for a little while, after he was blasted away Miri found herself wishing, not for the first time, that she had guns that worked underwater. If she survived this, she’d either have to find something or commission someone to make it.

His Undead Majesty proceeded to school her in swordsmanship. The leaching of her life force just made things worse. Soon she was sent sprawling across the other side of the chamber, having escaped being sliced and diced only by virtue of the polyweave she wore.

Kyell had posed a good question, which she had yet to answer. What could they do that would defeat an undead king? She wracked her brain, looking for a solution…

<His sword is probably alchemized. If we can use it against him, we might be able to kill him!... Again!>

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

Within a second or two, Kyell recovered from the punch to his gut and swam back down to help Miri fight the undead king. Already, he began to notice that his strength was fading, so they had to come up with something fast. He really wasn't sure but Miri seemed to have an idea that got him to blink.

<His sword is probably alchemized. If we can use it against him, we might be able to kill him!... Again!>

<I'll ask him if I can borrow it for a moment...> he grumbled but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that it was probably their only chance at beating him. So still somewhat reluctantly, he moved to execute a little plan that had formed in his mind.

Waiting for the moment that the undead king moved to sweep his weapon down towards Miri, Kyell accelerated and sat on top of his shoulders from behind, while his hands moved to grab the sword-wielding arm. It looked ridiculous, and the undead king began to thrash around to try and throw Kyell off, but he was still holding on.

<Miriiii!> he called out as he tried to remove the weapon from his grip, <I didn't think this through!>

 

[Miri Nimdok]

Though she was tiring more and more by the second, and she knew her dueling was lackluster, Miri still leaped back into the fight. To her surprise, Kyell leaped on top of the skeleton king’s shoulders and tried to take his sword from him.

It would've been funny, if they weren't in a life-threatening situation.

<Hang on!> Miri slashed at His Majesty’s arm, trying to cut it off at the wrist. She succeeded, her lightsaber burning through the soft joint tendons. The sword fell into the depths, where she lost sight of it.

With his other hand the king grabbed Miri by the throat. She tried to hit him with her lightsaber, but her arms felt heavy as lead in the water.

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

His little stunt had perhaps been foolish, but it worked well enough to give Miri the opening she needed. With a sweep of her lightsaber, she disarmed the undead king, who in his rage, reached out and grabbed her by the throat. Kyell's eyes widened instantly but even though his instincts were screaming to swim to her and free her, he focused on something else.

The young man's eyes closed and with an outstretched arm, he reached out to the alchemized weapon he couldn't see but felt through the Force. He pulled it back up and into his hands while he positioned himself to the side, and using every bit of strength he had, he swept it across the vampire's neck to decapitate it.

Only a second after the head began to float in the water, it was as if a spell had been lifted. The invisible force that kept his bones together faded, and with it, the entire body fell apart, freeing Miri from his grip in the process. Kyell immediately let go of the sword and swam over to wrap his arms around Miri, pulling her into a tight embrace.

<You okay?> he asked as he pulled back and brought his fingers gently up to her neck. <I think I've had enough of things trying to kill me for this trip. Why don't we head back up and relax... or something...> he flashed an uncertain but caring smile.

 

[Miri Nimdok]

Miri felt the grip around her neck not merely loosen, but disintegrate entirely. Then Kyell’s arms were around her, and the king was dead. For real this time.

<Why’s everyone always trying to choke me these days?> she wondered aloud. Glancing at Kyell, she raised an eyebrow. <Too soon?>

His suggestion was the best thing she’d heard all day. She expressed her rapture with a fervent kiss upon his lips. <As soon as we take care of Lula,> she replied. <As for treasure, you can take the sword, and I will take the crown.>

She reached toward the darkness below, calling upon the Force, and successfully drew the king’s crown into her hand.

<Whaddya know, it worked for me that time.>

Kyell Laysel​

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Jerrilek
Tag: Miri Nimdok

<I don't know, but they better knock it off or I'll choke them out...> he tried to joke before he gave in to his emotions and leaned heavily into the passionate kiss. It made him forget everything for just a moment, but the mention of Lula snapped him back to reality again. He totally hadn't just forgotten about their new friend in his desire to get out and spend more time alone with her.

<This will be a great story for later,> he began as he moved to collect the sword. <So how did you two get those items? We looted them off a vampire we killed underwater.> he snorted, forming bubbles around his head, then watched her retrieve the crown with some telekinesis of her own.

<You're a lot stronger with the Force than you give yourself credit for. Telekinesis might sometimes not work out as planned, but your mind...> he winked and began to swim back the way they came until they finally reached Lula just outside the tomb. She had been patiently waiting but seemed very excited that they made it out.

<Should we release her in open water somewhere? Or bring her to some place along the beach where they can take care of her?>

 

[Miri Nimdok]

<This will be a great story for later. So how did you two get those items? We looted them off a vampire we killed underwater.>

<This was mere days after we raided the Sanctum of the Exalted, of course…> she added to his tale, speaking with a casual air as if it were no big deal. <It’s true that I’m something of a thrillseeker, but there are far less dangerous things that can still excite me.>

Like the lingering tingle of his lips against hers, and the promise renewed with every kiss.

Also, the thought of food. Beating up undead kings could really work up an appetite.

Hearing him compliment her Force ability, Miri got an odd expression on her face, largely unnoticeable in the ghostlight of her flashlight. But in the Force, her mixed feelings were detectable.

<In some ways I am quite powerful, in others I’m virtually helpless. I wasn’t born sensitive, and so my connection is fickle. Maybe the Force can’t decide whether I’m worthy or not.>

The reappearance of Lula soon took her mind off the subject. The whale swam around them happily, following them out into the open sea.

Indeed, what were they to do with Lula? <She has no place to go, and she’s not afraid of humans. So… I suppose it would be for the best if we took her to the experts and let them figure it out.>

Stroking the beluga’s head as they headed for the shore, she spoke to it, <I wish I could bring you with me, but my ship doesn’t have a tank big enough for you.>

Was she crying? Nah, just adding more salt to the ocean. Miri was a big softie at heart, though, and it came through in her easy attachment to friendly animals.

Kyell Laysel​