Private The Secrets Within

[Coren Starchaser]

It really was time that he took Kyra out of the Temple to see what she was capable of. He didn’t have a far option to go, either. It was actually to one of the outlying islands in the southern hemisphere. Having prepped an airspeeder, and Porter, Coren tossed a few days worth of supplies, including air tanks and battery packs, as well as some extra powerpacks for blasters, into the speeder, a late model V-Wing, by whoever were making them now, but this one was running on a cleaner burning engine and actually set up to land on water, should it need to. Handling, it felt like a V-Wing, but its size allowed it about half the cargo capacity of the U-Wings used by the Alliance.

The flight out wasn’t so bad, only took a few hours, and Coren did leave Navi at the Temple, though if Kyra left Popsicle, that would be something he wasn’t sure of until they left the ship. Though he did specify there was going to be time in the water, and had actually prepped a few aquatic suits for them. He wasn’t sure if she had built her own lightsaber yet, but one thing he knew about this area, from the explorers that found it, it was teeming with the Force.

And as the airspeeder landed, he could feel it. Stepping out of the V-Wing, he turned to his daughter and smiled. The sun was shining, the wind calm, and the water even seemed calm, the Force though, he wasn’t sure where it was going it didn’t feel evil, but it didn’t feel expressly light.

Balanced, maybe?

“Do you feel that?” He asked her, knowing he didn’t give her much in the way of information before he signed her away from her Master for a few days.

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra stepped out with him, no cat in tow. The saber at her side bore the signal of Caedyn Arenais on it, a recent gift meant to replace the one she lost those months ago on Yurb. Every aspect of her seemed to radiate light, from the saber hilt, the cybernetic, to the crystal at her neck. Those around her had seen to it to imbue and cloak Kyra in the path of the light.

Sometimes Kyra wondered if they were afraid she was going to fall like Nida did. It was no secret she had not handled the loss of her sister well, but then again Kyra had never been a stable child. Looking back she could see how hard she had struggled with the force, even before Nida had been lost. She was not normal. Her work with Caedyn Arenais had helped them both come to realize that.

The way she interacted and absorbed the world felt as alien to her as it did to all the rest. It was only her father that had helped her start to see herself as not broken, but... different.

Apparently all Starchasers suffered the same struggle. He had known ways to help her connect. The starburst necklace at her throat, for one, helped centered her. And Caedyn Arenais unorthodox meditation sessions, for another, help her oddly wired brain start to see the larger picture for the first time. Celeste Rigel 's time with her-... well. That was an influence she had not worked out yet.

It was both the efforts of those around her and her dedication that had brought her through the recent months.

Were they afraid, or simply concerned? Their motivations hardly mattered; their attention had helped her all the same. Kyra's energy was calm. The hyperactive static that once filled her aura had subdued. The girl that had nearly tore his ship apart in a tantrum felt distant, something inherently more grounded about Kyra as she approached him.

Maybe meditation really was all that and a bag of potato chips.

"Feel what?" Came the quick, wary response. Her time in the underworld searching for her sister had her hypertuned for one thing only.

Darkness.

She scanned the area, straining to sniff it out. Nothing. Her hand went to her saber, the girl wired to expect trouble at every corner. "Where?"

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The training that Caedyn was offering his daughter was the best he could hope for. Short of having her as his own apprentice, working with Arenais was better than he could have chosen, if he had the option. Coren’s gifts to his daughter were to assist her in fulfilling her own destiny, and protect her from the Sith. The Jedi Master knew that the Sith would come for his family, it was part of the reason why Kaia was trained to be a Warden, always on the move, and Jared was, well, following properly in Coren’s own footsteps.

But Kyra, and the twins, they were unexpected, and he was keeping a closer eye on them. Having moved the family to Kattada, and ensuring he repairs his relationship with Kyra, he was just hopeful she would be seen as a Jedi people could come to. He didn’t feel he needed to force the light on her, with who her mother was, but… He wanted to help his daughter realize just what the Force was for the Starchaser side. An extension of themselves. A tool, and a comfort.

Connecting to the Force at the young age was something that was a struggle, and the Starchasers were known for their feats of the Force once they connected strongly. It was perhaps why Coren was always reaching to it in combat, as opposed to other methods. He didn’t want to lose it. But it seemed that what he was doing, finding the past and learning from it, only served to enhance his capabilities.

“The Force, its calling out to anyone listening, but its old… different.” He closed his eyes and took a breath, reaching out. It was through the stone that this island was made of. He touched her shoulder and shook his head.

“No need for the saber, yet. Its ahead, within the stone… Come here.” He said as he approached the stone and put his hand on it, nodding for her to do the same.

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra's head tweaked, tilting to the side to try and catch the call that would never reach her ears. The gesture was executed regardless, her eyes shifting curiously to the sky above them. Her attention snapped to him at the shoulder touch, a bit of her tension melting away after moment of his reassurance. Her hand dropped from the saber, reaching out to catch her balance as she followed him with exploratory steps. He directed her to the rock.

Her good hand reached out with him, fingers brushing the damp stone as she reached for sign of the force. It rang quietly across the tremors of the ground, traveling up her finger tips in an almost bland affair.

"Weird," she whispered, pulling her hand back. It was so different from the frequency of her saber, or the draw of Celeste Rigel as she healed her with light. "It's almost like... unsalted potatoes." Neutral, was the word. It was an almost unfamiliar concept to the girl that fought darkness with light. Its even-quiet sat wrong inside of her, like seeing a friend pale and without life.

She pressed her full palm against it, struggling to pull up memories from the object beneath her.

"Is it okay? Is it sick?"

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Jedi Master watched his daughter and was paying close attention to what she was doing, how she was listening, and using her senses and the Force. “Sometimes the challenge, as I’ve been taught, is that we depend so much on our body that we lose the Force in it.” It wasn’t a problem specific to her, not that he saw. It was a problem to all Force adepts, to learn to let go and to hear the Force. He wasn’t going to tell her how entwined what he was feeling was with the background noise of the planet. He felt that it may actually be the background of the Force on this world. The Master had heard tale of such entities, and living worlds.

He doubted that Kattada was the latter, but the former? Very possible. And the world had some older temples on it, old creations from… he wasn’t sure when. But as they stepped to the stone, what he knew to be part of a fallen structure, should Kyra study it, she’d be seeing cuts in the stone that were not natural, albeit it, very old. As she reached forward, making the physical connection that would assist the Force connection.

Smiling as she spoke, she was searching for the word and it made him laugh a little. “That’s one way to put it. Its the neutral state of it, it’s the balance, the natural state.” He tried to give the feeling more of a vocabulary. “Worlds have dark and light in them, from death to birth, and rebirth, it’s a cycle.”

As she touched again, he shook his head. “Its just very old. The Force also isn’t just the light and the dark side. That is something that took me very long to learn. There are shades in between. This is one.”

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

"Je'daii," she echoed, the connection clicking into place. Caedyn Arenais had taught her about them. In fact, he was one. Or had been once upon a time. She was more equated with the concept than many other padawans at Silver Rest had a right to be, but that exposure did not breed true understanding. He didn't to train her in it, after all.

Or perhaps she did and simply didn't notice. He was her first and only Master, after all.

"Is it... Is it okay? Being like that?" She glanced up at him, her expression reserved as she clearly sought to take cue from his words. "Like I thought you were suppose to be light and all. I mean, if it was okay they would still be around, right?" It was an unexpressed concern she had over her Master, his vague secret always a small bit of an... uncertainty in her mind.

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Jedi Master kept an eye on his daughter. Sometimes he didn’t even feel like al of this was real. Not the fact he had a daughter out of a wedlock, no, that he could believe, but here he was, teaching her about the Force, at an earlier age than he had a chance to with Kaia or Jared. He had walked the pair of them through the motions a few times, teaching them what he knew, and showing them what there was to be seen, but nothing like this, nothing at a seeming beginning of the journey. The other two were already Knights when he approached them.

“They are one such group. When I lived in the Outer Rim I encountered a larger number of different groups.” He took the moment as he heard her question. Looking for the best answer, he nodded. “It is. The Light and the Dark are two ways to view the Force, but that looks at it in the way one looks at a coin. From what I’ve seen, and from what I’ve read, there was one adept in the past that referred to the Force as a river, and that being a Jedi is merely one cup with which to drink from. There are so many other groups.”

Allowing his thoughts to circle around again, he nodded. “Sometimes the Jedi do score others, based on intent… and to me, that is what is the best way to approach the Force. What does the user intend to happen, and are they in line with our school of thought? It was how the New Jedi Order was founded.” His, not the new one.

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra listened. Wide-eyed and opened eared, she soaked up every word her father said. Growing up, she hadn't really pictured what having a father might be like. Some of her siblings had had established fathers but they were all dead and gone before they could make their mark. There hadn't been much for her to yearn for, when the established reality of her up bringing was no dads are normal.

But it was in her more recent time with other people that got her wondering. ... Got her yearning. She could practically hear Acaadi's voice, echoing a recount of Coren as if he was his own dad.

He took me places. Showed me things. Shared wisdom and advice where he could.

A warm tingle ran up her spine, so much that she nearly forgot to reply to him at all. "Is that what you do then? What-... you think is right? As long as they're good people they... " Can be like her master. Can be more grey.

She stood up, wiping sea water off her hand. "What kinda jedi are you?"

Coren Starchaser

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Jedi were the defenders of peace and liberty. What he was, though, was the defender of the galaxy, or one of them. The watchman that kept an eye to the galaxy. He was moving from the Sentinel to the Consular, but he was keeping his role of watchman, of watching the galaxy. But his new task was different, with Jared and Kaia out there, he could be the protector, the teacher, the conduit of the Jedi and the Light Side. But here, on Kattada? It was different, the galaxy was a changing, and he needed to do what he could to pass what he knew to the next generation.

Kaia and Jared knew what they were doing, but Kyra, she was still newer on the slate than his older children were. Watching his daughter grow was going to be very interesting and rewarding. The Jedi Master was nodding as he stepped closer. Listening to his daughter, he shrugged. “I do what I can to help. There are times where I’ve used to feel the ends justified the means, but…” He shook his head.

He didn’t need to go that deep into is mistakes, they were written all over the galaxy.

“As far as Jedi are concerned, I’m a Watchman, a Consular. I use the Force to protect now, to study the past, to prepare for the future, and teach those to defend themselves. And sometimes, how to bring the fight to the Sith… or other bits of darkness.”

Looking at what they had here, this was a temple, but not one for the Jedi. “Do you want to explore the temple further?”

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

What did that make her?

She wasn't sure. She listened to him with a reverence that not even Caedyn often got, her expression reserved and chattered curbed, like she was scared of scaring him away. Her master had already proven his grit. He wasn't going anyway, not even when she wanted him to. Coren, however, was a bit untested.

She wouldn't push it.

She nodded rapidly, attention turning back to the temple they had come for. "Are we trying to find more artifacts? Like for your ship? If I find something can I keep it? What if it's pink? Can I keep it then?" What was that about 'not pushing it'...

She reached her natural hand out, brows furrowed as she bent droplets of water off the stones they were meant to walk on. It wasn't quite the 'parting of seas' the budding elementalist was hoping to show off. But they did move! Ah, well. Better to splash in.

Coren Starchaser

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Coren would let his daughter discover where the Force brought her, how she was supposed to find her role in it, and what position in the greater Unifying Force she felt she could satisfy. What was needed, or more appropriately, what was needed of her. He filled the role of being an explorer at first, and then once the galaxy needed him, he joined others and stepped up to bring their own powers to bear to help keep peace in the galaxy, to be the sword and shield against the darkness. Now? He only hoped he could instill the importance of knowing how to fight and protect against the evil.

As he gave Kyra the option to go inside, he could feel it in the Force, that Starchaser sense of adventure coming off her in waves. He shook his head and smiled. “Depending what it is, how about that? I don’t want to say no, but there are certain things I’m not sure Joza would approve of me letting you handle.” A Sith holocron or relic. If it was from the Jedi, he’d have no real reason to say no.

Watching her move the water with the Force, he nodded. “Been practicing. But no harm in getting wet, I think there is an entance under the water.” He laughed as he stepped out on the cleared steps, grabbing his rebreather, placing it in his mouth and falling into the water.

He’d wait for her before leading them into the temple.

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra watched him put on a rebreather, the realization that she was about to get very wet written plain across her face.

"Oh."

After a moment of stunned understanding, she scrambled to pull her own out. He had asked her to be prepared for the water, after all. Yet somehow she had written off actual swimming from the agenda. He would be forced to wait as she quickly pulled her hair into a pony and tucked away her things behind a zippered pocket. Nothing was on her that couldn't experience water, though she hesitated a glance at her metal arm. ....Of course Yula Perl would have prepared for that.

She went under with a splash, a ball of force light appearing between the two as Kyra was eager to assist in what she could. It was the first skill that Judah Lesan Jr. had shown her all those months ago. ... Over a year ago, in fact. Years? She followed her father towards the entrance, disturbed by the passing of time.

The ancient temple only served to amplify the sensation, the walls closing around them as they entered within. 'Everyone who made this place is dead,' came the solemn comment, brushing against his mind. The light from her ball refracted around them, showing the reclaimed halls of the temple that was no more.

It belonged to the sea now-- a school of small fishes darted past them, their scales shining in the light.

 

[Coren Starchaser]

The Jedi Master was more than happy to be stepping off the land and into the water. He was a Corellian, but he was also well versed in the water. Not one of the hybrids of the galaxy that were set up for the galaxy. As an explorer, he was all around the galaxy and this was no difference. Watching his daughter, all he could do was grin softly with the rebreather in his mouth. As he stepped himself into the water, he submerged to give himself some adjustment to the water, popping his head up as he watched her prepare herself. She really was going to be the best parts of him and Joza, wasn’t she?

At least, that was his hope. Most tech nowadays was at least somewhat water resistant. If she had upgraded some of it at Kattada, well, then, everything should bet set up for most elements, even caustic planets. Though he wasn’t about to send her there, he would make sure those explorers knew what they were getting into and were a species that could handle such.

As she jumped in the water, he watched her and saw the light she created. That was definitely a skill. The Starchasers could do it but their style of light was a bit different than just illuminating the darkness, it was… eliminating the darkness. As he lead through the water, he was feeling the echoes of this temple.

Continuing forward, one hall was completely submerged, a statue of one of the beings who lead it, Coren surmised, encrusted in corals.

Fish were moving, the sea grass and corals were taking over some of the walls. Coren smiled as he looked back to Kyra and gave a thumbs up, indicating that they were going to need to ascend. He knew roughly what to expect here, a small droid had gone on ahead at least to provide them some understanding of what laid before them. A stairway would lead them up to a higher level, and from there, he was hoping they would find some answers.

Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra popped out of the water, the dark staircase illuminated by the orb of light that followed her. She gasped around her rebreather, a few stumbling steps taking towards the steps. Algae ran slick under her fingers as she stumbled on. "This place hasn't seen daylight in-" well like, forever!

She looked around, her head tilting back as she strained to catch a full view of the place. "You think we'll find bodies in here?" She murmured, her voice echoing up the unexplored pathway. She gaped for a moment, then startled, reaching for her arm and fumbling with the cybernetic. Her left hand fussed with the unfamiliar controls, pulling up a heat map. She held up the limb, biting her lip as she scanned the stairs they would ascend.

"Do you think zombies would show?"

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Smiling, he was always more pleased to see a Jedi using the Force I ways that were not wasteful but not… strictly combat. The Force was a tool, it gave the Jedi power, and could be shaped in many ways. Some would disagree, and state that certain uses of the Force was an abuse of what they could do. Others, well, it was a tool, but one had to keep away from falling to the dark.

Shaking his head, he smiled. “It hasn’t. You can feel it in the air, the algae and lichen have taken over.” He was a bit nervous about that, if they couldn’t read the inscriptions on the walls, they could walk into something more challenging, more destructive, than they were intending. But he didn’t feel that in the Force. And it didn’t have the markings of the Sith, so he truly doubted there would be traps waiting for them. As he looked at his daughter, he shook his head again.

“I doubt zombies. The moisture wouldn’t let bodies sit for long. We may come across spirits though.” That he fully expected as he took his lightsaber and shook it out, clearing the emitter of water. A deep breath and he was reaching out in the Force, to see what direction they should be traveling. Seeing her reach out to technology to help herself was a smart move on her part.

The Force could be reconfigured at times.

“I think we have a library up ahead.” Though if they were books or Kyber, he was unsure.

Kyra Perl