Private The Mist

[Valery Noble]

Crystal Temple

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

This time, Valery was ready.

She wasn't in her Epicanthix dress, and she wasn't unarmed — her lightsabers and blasters were strapped to her hips, and she seemed excited. As serious as it was to hunt down legendary beasts, monsters or whatever they were up against next, she was still Valery Noble. The thrill of a challenge, of a good fight, it would always be exciting to her, and sharing that moment with her husband made it even better. The kids were safe at home, playing and having the time of their life far away from danger, and they'd have some proper husband and wife bonding time.

"I'm. So. Ready~" Valery said as she stepped into the Sanctuary and stretched out her arms in front of her. Fingers and elbows popped, and a bright grin appeared on her face, as she turned to face Kahlil. "This time, you're not taking all the credit for taking it down, babe. I've got to show off a little for you from time to time as well." She winked, waggled her eyebrows and stepped forward into the Temple.

She was clearly in a good mood.

"What do you think it'll be this time? A mutated Rancor? A new type of Sithspawn? ... a big spider?" she shuddered at the thought and quickly looked away, towards the big statue they had talked to last time.

"You're back."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"So long as you don't panic again I'm sure." He teased fully this time around, smirking as she walked alongside her. Similarly, he was all kitted out. He didn't need to be, but it felt right to be in his Jedi robes for this. He rubbed at the back of his neck, glanced around the chamber. It was even more.. Unique, that the temple wasn't under water. Some ray shielding was all it took. Some of the Epicanthix were already going about to help preserve the temple itself.

If this was going to be their world, they were going to make sure not to erase it's past. That was the Epicanthix way.

"If it's a spider, I suppose I'll be the one to handle it, mm?"

He grinned, then looked up towards the statue once they entered that other realm. Nodded. "We did."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Crystal Temple

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"I wasn't panicking," Valery said with a huff and a death glare meant just for him. She knew he was just teasing her, but she was still going to show him what she could do today. "The giant snake was trying to melt you and the familiars, so I just warned you." She absolutely took his teasing bait here, but he'd pay the price for it later...maybe. She still wasn't very good at getting him back for it, but perhaps she'd at least get a moment to show off for him.

"I can handle spiders just fine," she said very stubbornly all of a sudden, her eyes turned away to look at the statue already. She was excited about this mission, and very much fired up to prove herself, even though she really didn't have to for him.

But he teased her, so now she felt she had to.

"We're ready."

"Very good," the statue said in response to them both. "Your next challenge is not a beast contained on this world, but one far away from here in Uncharted space. Deep within the mist of this planet lurks an entity no person has ever seen and survived. Contained to this world, it has lingered there without disturbing the greater Galaxy, but curiosity and the ever-growing desire of mortals to expand will change this."

"Recently, a ship crashed on this planet and all contact with it was lost. It is time this entity is confronted, before it's too late."

Valery perked a brow and turned to her husband. "Sounds spooky, still ready for it, love?" She asked with a slight smirk.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

On a whole different world?

Well, that suddenly took this temple from this planet to the whole galaxy. Who exactly were these people to try and seal away these dangerous creatures? There was a history here, one he really wanted to learn. But, well, business first.

"Just give us the location and we'll handle it, yeah. Shouldn't be too difficult."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Shouldn't be too difficult?

Valery let out a single snort when he said that. Sure, the Serpent had been handled easily, but the circumstances gave Kahlil the ideal tools to take it down. Maybe this threat would be far greater, and they'd really have to give it their all to get through it. Either way, she felt ready and reached down for his hand to hold and squeeze it. A small sign that she was standing by his side, and almost looking forward to this.

A real challenge.

"Let's do it."

The statue's eyes began to glow, and behind the two Jedi, another golden door appeared. This time, it opened on its own, and showed that same swirling liquid that brought them here. But now, it didn't return them to the Temple under the lake — all at once, they stood within a forest, covered in a dense mist. Their senses were immediately dulled, and unable to reach much beyond their limited sight.

It was cold, and the air felt humid, but the strangest thing was perhaps the silence. There were no birds chirping, no wind blowing through the trees, and nothing moved around them. It felt like a void of its own.

"This is certainly creepy," Valery commented, but as she started to look around, she suddenly seemed to notice something and squinted off into the distance. "Do you see that light there?" If he were to look, he'd see nothing, but if he looked around some more, he'd see a light behind him.

Burning far off in the distance, and it flickered like an old lantern.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil stared at the door for a moment before they stepped through. He was.. Actually intending to send them across the galaxy through a door. The last time he'd done something like this he traded his life to save Valery from that Imperial assault. Was it really this easy to just arrive in a different place? He frowned, but he stepped through beside Valery regardless. He wasn't going to leave her side again.

His frown only got worse as he looked around. Shook his head.

"Well, it's got the vibe, I guess. .. A light?"

He glanced over towards it, tilting his head.

"That's bait."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

It was a strange experience to Valery as well, to just step through a door and end up on a different planet. The closest thing to it was how they were able to bend space through their bond to reach other, but Valery had never been able to do that to travel across the stars yet. Only Kahlil had. Maybe after all of this, they could ask more about the doors, but right now, the eerie atmosphere had Valery focused more on the present.

They had to figure out what was going on here.

"What do you mean?" Valery stared off to where he was looking, and then back to the light she had spotted. "It's that way..." Were they both being baited separately? But how? She felt nothing trying to influence her mind, and Kahlil was Epicanthix. Then again, she couldn't feel much of anything within this mist.

It was like a void.

"Well, maybe we should spring the trap? But which one do we go to?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"It's certainly a trap. Whatever's here probably wants to keep us separate." The serpent was sentient, which meant this likely was too. Ah man, so much to think about. He rubbed at the back of his head before smiling wide towards Valery again. Well, didn't matter what they were intending, he wasn't leaving her side. He reached down, taking her hand in his to squeeze gently and nodded towards where her light had been, if it was still there. He couldn't see it.

"Ladies first."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Yeah I'm not leaving your side," Valery said before she blinked and realized that sounded a little needy. "...I just think we're better off working together." She flashed a grin, took his hand, and turned towards where her light was shining. There was probably a joke to be made about walking hand-in-hand through a mist that felt this creepy, and likely hid a monster of some sort capable of killing just about anything.

But... she liked holding hands.

"Ladies first, huh? You're not scaaared, are you?" she teased with a sing-song voice before she started guiding him along towards the light source. But rather quickly, Valery began to notice something strange, "It doesn't look like we're getting closer," she said after about 5 minutes of walking, and if Kahlil were to look behind him, his own light source seemed to shine just as brightly too, even through a dense forest.

Nothing obstructed it.

The only thing that noticeably changed for them both was that it was starting to get colder. Valery began to regret her choice of clothing very quickly and rubbed the side of the arm she was using to hold his hand. "What if we get lost out here and don't find our way back? Maybe it's trying to do that... I can't sense a thing."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Worry isn't like you."

Kahlil raised a brow as he glanced down towards Valery. He was surprisingly unbothered by the distance they'd traveled. it made sense. They were either following something that was moving and being followed, or they were dealing with some sort of distortion. He wasn't bothered. They'd experienced so many things like this together, at the Wellspring, Tython, even other worlds.

This was just another day.

"I can bring us back, if we need it. The only thing that's worrying is the lack of presence here. You'd think something so dangerous would have some sort of effect in the Force. Though, perhaps it's an assassin type and it's already here with us."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Valery looked up at him and smiled reassuringly, "I'm not sure if it's worry or just... that I can't really wrap my head around this place and the whole sanctuary. All of it feels very strange to me." She paused and chuckled a little, "You don't seem bothered by it at all, though." Or maybe he was just good at hiding it? No, she'd still know because of their bond — he was actually very calm about all of this.

Perhaps not too surprising, given everything they've already experienced together.

"Well, whatever is concealing this enemy, I'm sure we'll find them soon enough, hm?" She grinned, squeezed his hand, and continued to walk forward. Another 20 minutes easily went by before the light she saw suddenly began to flicker, and it was at this moment, that Kahlil would see it too. A single lantern hung from a pole above a small, abandoned campsite. A thick mist covered the cold, hard dirt and backpacks were still left behind.

Dirt and rocks had been kicked over what used to be a campfire, adding to the feeling that this place wasn't abandoned all that long ago.

"You think others have-"

"Those who die in the mist, stay in the mist."​

The voice seemed to reach them like the wind, causing Valery to freeze up for a second while she looked around. Her eyes settled on her husband then, and she smiled sheepishly, "Well, I think someone knows we're here," she commented before her silence allowed them to hear something else.

The faint rattling of a chain.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I specialized in undead as a Sith. It takes a lot more than mist to bother me."

If anything, the only thing that bothered him was just how far they had to walk. It was time consuming. He frowned, closed his eyes to tap down that annoyance. The mist might make the area look creepy, but he was hand in hand with Valery on a walk.

That brought a chuckle.

"A teen me would've thought this was a perfect date."

Would he have? Old him probably wouldn't have thought anything of it. Once they reached the camp he frowned as he crouched down, glanced through the supplies. Yeah, someone was here recently. And the voice only confirmed that.

".. I swear if it's actually undead here."

Kahlil Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"It's always a perfect date when I'm with you, love," she said with a grin far too wide for a place like this and, of course, a playful waggle of her eyebrows. Perhaps it was silly to walk hand-in-hand through a misty forest that was more than likely very dangerous, but it wouldn't ever break their focus, so she didn't mind.

"I could do without the dark voices though."

The Campsite they found was equally disturbing, as it felt long-abandoned and recently abandoned at the same time. Everything felt cold and dead in this place, but there was more to it. Valery crouched down by one of the bedrolls and gently touched it with her hand, hoping to get some insight through the Force.

But while she struggled to connect, Kahlil suddenly heard the caw of crows, followed by the rustling of leaves and branches nearby. If he were to turn towards it, he'd suddenly see a new lantern hanging from a tree and gently dangling, as if it had just been touched by someone.

Valery seemed entirely oblivious to it.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil didn't leave her side. He wouldn't, asides from being forced to. And even then he'd be struggling tooth and nail to stay by her. In a place like this it was likely the moment they were separated they'd be targeted. So long as they were together, the creature probably wouldn't show itself. Clever, but he wasn't willing to rush into any sort of trap like that.

"Get anything?" He glanced to her before glancing around, frowning. "It's really trying to lure us apart."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"There's nothing here," Valery said with a frustrated sigh, after having gone through the backpacks and bedrolls to find anything about these people. "I can't even connect with the items either. I'm no expert at Psychometry, but I've never felt this empty trying it," she told him before standing up and turning towards him.

This place wanted to separate them?

Valery looked around, not really understanding what he was getting at this time. Were there more lanterns she couldn't see? Valery blinked then and tilted her body and head to look around him.

"Was... that thing there before?" She pointed at what looked like a scarecrow, staring at them exactly where the lantern Kahlil had seen was just a moment ago. "I feel like I'm being watched and I don't like it," Valery then commented, right before a rush of cold wind blew through the trees around them in a circular pattern.

One where they stood at the center.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

".. Maybe it's not real."

Maybe none of this was real. He glanced to the Scarecrow as she pointed it out, frowning deeper. It formed on it's own, from seemingly no where right?

"Of course we're being watched. I feel like we're being hunted, really. Someone is trying to set it up. The more we panic, the easier we are to hunt, right?" It's how he'd hunt a Jedi. How he had, as a boy. He frowned a little before lifting a hand for the scarecrow. He'd unceremoniously bring the Force down upon it to send it into the dirt.

"Stop trying to unsettle us. It won't work. Come out already."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Right..."

This place and everything that was happening was certainly creepy, but it wouldn't make her panic or scared. She had seen far too much for that to happen and stood with someone who she could blindly trust. Quite literally too, as their bond was still very much capable of piercing through whatever was obstructing her use of the Force here.

Valery then watched Kahlil raise a hand to bring down the scarecrow, but as the Force connected with it, the whole thing faded away as it transformed into leaves blowing in the wind.

Then, the sound of a rattling chain returned, before there was complete silence.

From the bushes behind her, a chain with a shark metal hook suddenly flew towards her low over the ground and wrapped itself around Valery's leg. The force with which it pulled knocked her over, but Valery was quick enough to catch herself with her hands, preventing her face from smashing into the dirt.

"Love!" Valery called out, not for his help, but to get him to go after the source - she'd be okay. But right after she called out, the chain started to grow green, and both Jedi would feel something pulling away at the Force within them. Valery even more, as the chain had wrapped around her ankle.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

There it was. The chain came, which he weirdly couldn't sense. Was that a trick of the mist, perhaps? Likely, all things considered. The Force was under control of whatever was here. Illusions, fake realities. They weren't something that worked well on him, but they could, unlike mental abilities. He rushed down the chain, bringing out his saber to hack at it along the way and free his wife from it's clutches.

"On it!"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

The Mist

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Surprisingly or not, Kahlil's lightsaber bounced off of the metal chain, leaving Valery trapped by the ankle while the Force was being drained from them. But that still didn't stop Kahlil from advancing beyond the bushes, only to find what he was looking for. The scarecrow he had seen before stood in front of him again, but it looked far less rigid. Alive, even, and in one hand it held the chain and hook, while the other carried a lantern.

But this lantern glowed green, and through it, he'd be able to see distorted faces of people crying for help; screaming to finally be set free.

And set free they were.

flashes of green light burst from the lantern and into the ground all around Kahlil and Valery, and from the mist, silhouettes with green eyes began to rise. They no longer possessed bodies of their own, so all he could see was a silhouette, but he did have a body, and they craved it.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Damn.

Kahlil let out a sigh as his blade couldn't cut through the chain. It wasn't surprising, but he could feel it draining them. So it was something that devoured the Force, then? That was never a good sign. He could feel himself getting weaker. If that was the case then.. His blade switched off entirely as he ignored the spirits around him. Then, a different blade replaced it. One of pure light burned into existence as he cut out.

"We're not going to let you continue, you know."

Valery Noble