Private Time of Change

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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Bang​

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Valery froze a second as she expected another bolt to strike her body but she felt nothing. No smell of scorched flesh, no crippling pain, nothing. Looking ahead, she saw her Padawan and through the Force, she did finally feel pain, but it wasn't her own. Valery's eyes widened as the young girl crumbled to the ground, and something immediately began to boil inside.​

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Not again. Not this feeling.​

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A fire ignited within the woman and even though another bolt was fired to strike her hip, Valery stood strong and raised a hand. The shooter immediately froze and was slowly lifted off his feet while his limbs seemed to have gone rigid. There was a pressure on him that no person could naturally resist.​

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"You..." She walked closer, her eyes burning with pain.​

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Her hand clenched into a fist even tighter and the man began to experience pain himself, as his body was put under heavy strain. But when it resulted in a scream, Valery suddenly stopped as she realized what she was doing. The pressure ceased instantly and with a powerful throw, she sent him against the wall to knock him out.​

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"Iris!" Valery ran over, her own body burned and bloodied but it mattered nothing. She sat down on her knees and pulled her Padawan onto her lap, her hand supporting the girl's head. A tear rolled down the woman's scarred cheek and her other hand settled over her wound.​

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"Stay with me, Iris. Please.."​

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[Iris Arani]

Valery, calm.

A familiar voice rose in Valery Noble 's mind. Pushing through their bond. For a moment he was there, his hand on her shoulder. Trying to get her to calm down. Just for a moment, until she calmed down. Then he was gone. At least physically. Whatever was happening had pulled his attention. He didn't have all the details, but he was there for her. Iris, though, was in worse off shape. The blast wasn't as damaging as the first time she'd gotten shot, but she was out cold.

As Valery set her hand on the wound, again she would feel Kahlil. His hand over hers.

You know how to fix this. Trust in yourself. The Force. Stay calm.

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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Looking down at the unconscious Padawan in her arms, Valery felt a familiar pain in her heart. She was filled with emotions, both sadness and even a wave of anger towards herself. How could she have allowed this to happen again? Iris was in bad shape and Valery wasn't sure if she going to make it without medical attention, and all because she missed her shot.​

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But as her hope began to crumble, a familiar voice reached out to her through their bond. She felt his touch on her shoulder and the trembling of her body instantly stopped. He always knew how to get through to her, even in her own darkest moments.​

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Her hand shifted over the wound in Iris' gut and again, she felt his hand slip over hers, as his words sparked a different kind of fire within her. Kahlil was right, she couldn't give up on her Padawan; not now. His presence gave her comfort in her strength and with her eyes closing, she drew on the strength of their bond.​

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"Everything is going to be alright, Iris," Valery whispered, her voice soft and calm.​

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The Force then began to freely flow through her hand, drawn from the Dyad between her and Kahlil, and into Iris. Valery had never once healed someone but with his strength, she could heal anything. With her eyes turned down towards the young Padawan, she watched as the injury began to fade.​

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"Come on, fight through it, Iris."​

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[Iris Arani]

It took a moment, but eventually Iris would open her eyes. The haze of pain was a numb ache, or just a memory. She wasn't sure which was the more accurate description. Confusion filled her gaze, though, as she stared up at Valery Noble . "The colors..?" To her, the bond in which Kahlil was there was.. Him being there. No different colors, just a person, existing in her world of colors as they would look to her normal eyes.

Then he was gone. She blinked, turning her gaze to her master, then sat right up. Wincing in the process, but up.

"We.. We need to keep moving."

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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The moment Iris' eyes opened, Valery felt a tear running down her cheek. She wasn't one to show this kind of emotion in front of her Padawans, but the relief she felt right now was overwhelming. "You're okay.." she said as the corner of her lips curled up into a smile. ​

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Leaning back, she allowed Iris to sit up straight and briefly pulled her into a tight hug. Only a second or two at most, but she couldn't help herself.​

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"Right, let's get going." ​

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Valery got up to her feet and offered Iris a hand up as well, "Do you have your lightsaber? If so, you take point but I'm not leaving your side." She began to look around and extended her senses to determine their path forward. After a moment, she gestured down one particular side of the hallway.​

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"Let's go that way."​

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[Iris Arani]

Iris blinked in surprise at the hug. She'd never been hugged by someone else without a reason she understood before. Twice when she was upset. Once when Valery Noble met back with her on Denon. Now? She didn't get it. She didn't react, just sitting there until her Master pulled back. The colors were different between them. Iris had been shot. .. Was that what it was about?

She stood up with Valery's help. Sure enough, Domxite was close by. Flying to her palm as she held out her hand, though through the Gem's influence, not her own. "Where should we go?"

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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Using a gentle nudge against Iris' shoulder, she directed the Padawan into the direction she wanted to move. Together, they walked through the hallways of the large building but as they could likely guess easily, it was only a matter of time before they ran into trouble.​

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As usual, it began with a sign of danger through the Force, sudden this time.​

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From around a corner ahead, 2 armed thugs appeared who opened fire. Normally, dealing with blaster fire was no problem to Valery, even without a lightsaber. But she was in a lot more physical pain than she showed, and most of her focus went into sustaining her body to keep going.​

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This resulted in one bolt striking her dead center against her chest. If it wasn't for her outfit being able to absorb quite a bit of energy, she would have been dead right there.​

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With a pained breath, Valery sunk down to her knees and looked up, "Iris... stop them."​

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[Iris Arani]

Valery Noble 's healing had done more than Iris expected. The Padawan was standing. Walking. She hadn't even thought twice about the fact her ankle had been sliced clean few only a couple moments ago. Beyond what she could heal. And yet, here they were. As the thugs came around the corner Iris had already stepped forward. Her blade shifted through the air, blocking the shots to the side harmlessly.

But once she was closer it changed. How she carried herself, held her blade. No longer two hands, but one. Fencing style. Her blade cut through the air, cleaving the blasters, nicking their bodies. Nothing lethal, but more than enough to immobilize them for the time being. Iris let out a breath as the second fell, extinguishing her blade before looking back to her Master.

"Are you okay?"

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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On her knees, Valery was fighting herself through the physical pain and intense strain that had been on her body because of her use of the Force to sustain herself. She had watched her Padawan take down the shooters without killing them, and again the words of her fiancé echoed through her mind.​

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Trust in yourself. The Force.​

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Those words and her Padawan's composure gave Valery the strength to push herself back up to her feet. She drew the blaster pistol into her hand and nodded.​

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"I will be," Valery said with a weak smile. She then looked around for a moment, stuck in thought as she tried to come up with a plan. They were not in great shape and there were way more of these thugs out there. They needed help.​

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"Iris, we're not going to be able to fight them all. To help the people trapped here and ourselves, we need to get help into the building. I think we should try and break through one guarded entrance point. Allow law enforcement to raid the building." she said.​

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"But I need you to be on board with the plan. I need you to be strong and confident."​

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[Iris Arani]

Strong and confident.

If there was anything Iris was, it wasn't that. Not in situations like this. She never thought much on how she felt, just pushed forward regardless. But.. No, she didn't think she was strong or confident. Valery Noble needed it though. Could she? She took a breath, glancing to the lightsaber in her hand. She wasn't hurt, not as much as she had been. Her grip tightened before she nodded.

"Okay."

Then she turned. Domxite wasn't active, if only to help keep the pair of Jedi more hidden. She lead the way, her gaze shifting among the colors to try and find the safest route. Turned out her ability to see people through their emotions made it easier for her to track where had the least amount. Bit by bit they'd get closer to the exit, avoiding confrontation even as the thugs were searching for them.

All the way to the door. Where three stood, acting as guards. Keeping people from coming in, or heading out. Iris crouched by a corner, watching them for a moment before turning her gaze to her master.

"What do we do?"

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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"Okay."​

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Iris was never one to talk too much, but it was the strength with which she delivered it that made Valery feel confident in their escape attempt. She wanted to get out of here, to bring her Padawan to safety, and to return to her family so she could recover. But a lot of danger stood between them and that desire. ​

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Luckily though, Iris had enough strength to turn to the Force and guide them through the remaining hallways safely. The route they took was strange, and certainly not the fastest way to get to the exit, but it was taken to avoid more confrontations. Which Valery could appreciate a great deal right about now.​

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When they finally reached the door, they saw three guards, all of which had their attention turned outside. Law enforcement and even special military units were there, waiting to engage if they had a chance to do so.​

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"While they're standing still, I'm taking one out from a distance. The other two are yours." Valery said as she leveled her pistol and steadied her breathing. With a simple click, she turned on the stun setting and fired.​

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A single body dropped, unconscious, and the other two quickly turned around to engage both Iris and Valery.​

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[Iris Arani]

"While they're standing still, I'm taking one out from a distance. The other two are yours."

"Right."

Iris tensed, poised to strike on Valery's cue. Then it came. As Valery rounded the corner and lifted her blaster, the Padawan took off. Faster than before. She was calm, despite the tension, despite being shot. With Domxite and her master, the Padawan was the calmest she'd ever been. Unconsciously channeling the Force through her body to speed herself up. In the blink of an eye she'd closed the distance, saber already flashing through a quick slash through the first's gun. She spun around him, a foot swinging for the second's. Then another solid kick for the man's jaw.

Knocking him out cold. The first turned, reaching for a knife. But Iris was already on him. Saber now extinguished, the Padawan leapt up, slamming her knee into his chin, sending him spiraling to the ground.

Also out cold.

Iris took a breath, closing her eyes for a moment before glancing to her Master.

"Quick."

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Stobar​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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Valery blinked as she watched Iris move with greater speed than she had seen her use before. Whether she did it intentionally or not didn't matter right now though — it was effective and showed that she was ready to study it more. The thugs were knocked out with graceful strikes and when Iris turned back to her Master, she was met with a blank stare for a solid few seconds.​

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"Right..." Valery smiled briefly and ran over.​

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The two pushed out through the exit and almost instantly, armored and heavily armed police forces were on top of them, guiding them away from the building while they began to storm inside. An array of blaster fire could be heard, but the two Jedi were finally safe.​

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For Valery though, this meant her use of Force Body finally ceased, and the pain struck all at once. She lowered herself by some of the medical personnel that was present and looked up at Iris.​

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"Hey..." she said with a weak voice.​

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"You've done really well — I'm proud of you, Iris."​

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