Wake Up

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]
Well they certainly get that from you,” a playful nibble of his ear followed a shake of shoulders in her chuckle. As if she wasn’t taking fault for her own mischievous nature. Those that knew the Lorrdian Jedi Master were well aware of what sort of pranks and practical jokes the blonde had concocted throughout her years as a padawan and even as a knight. So saying her influence had nothing to do with their children’s current nature was a clear fib on her part.

Sol wasn’t taking it either, and before she knew it, Kira was dipped playfully into the water. Sputtering, one hand slicked back her wet hair away from her face. “Hey!” she cried, scowling up at him with a mock sense of affront. A scoop of her hand would mischievously splash water along his arm, a few scattered drops hitting his jaw and chest.

In hindsight, she should have remembered that her husband was never down for a challenge. But that is what made life with the former false god so much fun.

Didn’t matter their age or just how long they’ve been together. Who they were. Titles or Orders. The Force itself. For a time, they could simply be man and wife having a silly day swimming in each others arms.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He smiled at her. "We should probably get going."

They had all the time in the world, but the sun was steadily climbing in the sky and they still had to dry off and eventually get dressed. It would be best if they made it to Raider's Cove before nightfall. Even with all of his strength Soliael was never really one to take undue risks, and wandering around on an unfamiliar planet without knowing where anything was at night was not exactly the most intelligent of ideas. Kira knew that, and quickly the two of them managed to make their way out of the warm waters of Rishi.

"Let's get one of the speeders." Soliael said with a smile. "Well...you should get one of them."

He grinned at her.

They both knew that flying wasn't really an option for him, especially if they wanted to make it out unharmed.

The curse that plagued the Talith family had never quite been understood of explained, the odd habit that they had of crashing speeders, ships, anything smaller than a capital grade vessel was a strange sort of rule that followed them around. Kaili was the only one that had really escaped it, and that was mostly due to the necklace that she wore.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

A sly grin would reflect back at the Talith. "Yeaahh..." she began, taking a deep breath and giving a slight shake of her head. Droplets of water went scattering as wet tendrils of blonde hair stuck to her cheeks and neck.

"We'd be done with this vacation if you took point on that, kiddo." both hands came up, cupping his face. A silly kiss pressed upon his lips in a quick smooch.

"Hmm.." she gave a tilt of her head, a wry devilishness glittering in her bright blue eyes. A wag of her brows and she added, "I guess I will keep you. You are kinda hot." she said with a silly tone, acting as if she was well pleased with her decision. It would likely result in some sort of retribution, and her subsequent squeal of delight as the Talith swung her princess style confirmed it. One large splash later and her laughter resonated throughout the beach.

Wading to the shore, the two set to gathering their things. Dried off and with their clothes on again, the exploration of the nearby Rishi village awaited them.

Kira would meet him outside, giving the speeder a few last minute checks. They didn't want to get stuck in the middle of the jungle, so having enough gas and a small day sack filled with what they would require would do just fine.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

Soliael hadn't really looked at any of the speeders that Kuat Drive Yards had loaded onto The Freya for them, though he probably should before they got any farther. Rather ironically, even if he couldn't use them, Soliael was an excellent mechanic. The reason for that of course was his innate gift with the ability known as technomancy. Technology, pretty much of any sort, simply sang to him. He could manipulate droids, electronics, speeders, even entire Star Destroyers under the right conditions.

Checking on the speeders would be easy enough, but for now though he'd let his wife do the checking. He heard the droning of repulsor engines within the hangar, the speeder slowly crawling down the ramp as Kira piloted it out of the Ship's bay. "Hey there good looking."

He grinned at her and offered a wink.

"Going my way?" They were going to keep playing games like that, it was simply who they were. Their marriage had been built on the principles of love, respect, and fun. The two of them had never stopped trying to have fun, even after twenty years and four kids. One might have thought that insane, but to Soliael and Kira it was simply how they lived. They didn't need to compete, argue, or let anything fall by the way side. They were simply themselves, and that meant playing games.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

The curve on her lips turned coquettish. With a little extra rev, the check on the speeder was done.

"I just might.." she began, pushing her hair back away from her face. Her blue eyed gaze appraised the approaching Talith with an appreciative expression. Both hands came to perch upon the seat of the speeder, and she would lean forward to coyly flirt.

"You need a ride there handsome?"

A small pat of the speeder seat followed, mirth dancing in her blue eyes. "I got some room here if you'd like." This was how they were. Flirty and silly, as if they were still young sweethearts. It often drove a few people to roll their eyes at their over sugary public affection and cheesy corny pick up lines, but that was just who they were. They enjoyed each other and each others company, and there was no hiding what they felt about each other.

Also, Kira really had a thing for playing skits and improv. Blame all the plays she helped out with the younglings. That carried over into their love lives, and it was more often than not that the Lorrdian would use her skills to play act picking up on her husband.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"Well I suppose I do need to get to town." Soliael said as he began to circle the speeder.

With a bit of subtlety he ran his hand over the machine, the force spiking through it as he checked that the thing wouldn't kill them both. He trusted his Wife of course, and she knew what she was about when it came to these things, but it never hurt to double check. He smiled slightly when he found nothing wrong with the machine, continuing to circle around the vehicle and eventually reaching the other side. With a rather lax move he leaned over the side of the door, elbow resting atop it.

"What's it gonna cost me?" The old man asked. "Kiss? Massage? Other favors?"

He grinned.

His eyes darted for a moment towards the horizon, the sun now beginning to make it's descent.

They had spent quite a bit of time on this beach, and if they continued to play these games they likely wouldn't make it to Raider's Cove before nightfall...then again though it might be worth it.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

“Hmm…” a slight lean forward to the former false god would follow as if sharing a secret. “Kisses and massages are quite tempting… but how well do you work with your hands?” they really should stop. Really really. But it was so easy to fall into each other with the banter and the suggestive commentary.

Especially when one had a husband who was as good looking as he.

“I mean…”

A hip to the side of the speeder and both arms went crossing over the modest fullness of her chest. “Dinner is a good start.” Kira replied, lips twitching.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"I'll consider it." Soliael said with a smirk. His fingers laced over the edge of teh door and then he bounded over its edge. Most speeders were open top, at least the ones that they had brought along. There were likely covered ones back at the ship, though he wasn't too sure if any of them required modification to make them so. There would eventually be a need for more secure vehicles, when they reached planets with not so friendly atmospheres.

He had no doubt they'd be prepared for that.

"Why don't we get to town first." He prompted. "Then we can see about dinner."

With the sun slowly falling it was best to get moving now.

Lest they get distracted again.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

A bounce of glee, and Kira joined her husband, opening the door and sliding in. On the dashboard were two pairs of sunglasses, ones were her husband’s while the other belonged to her. Giddy, the Lorrdian Jedi Master plucked her own off the dash and slipped them on. They were large, wide frames that wrapped around to give her full coverage from the Rishi sun’s rays.

“I can do that,” she told him, giving a slight cluck of her tongue. Left hand took the while while her right instinctively went reaching out for his. There, their fingers laced, and an excited squeeze from his wife relayed her excitement. Kira had always been a rather touchy individual. It was as much due to her nature as her Lorrdian roots. She communicated more with her body than she did with words at times, and all of her family was now well versed in kinetic communication to discern her emotional state of mind.

Speeder reved and engines at the ready, they were off.

“Got anything on the town?” she asked him, keeping her eyes up ahead. They would need to cut across the water and search for the nearest town.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"Not really." Soliael said truthfully. The old man was well learned when it came to cities, planets, and even villages on remote worlds. Part of his knowledge had always been focused on the lesser known regions of the galaxy, what could be found there and exactly how to exploit it. Rishi however was another game. The planet itself wasn't really a mystery, not so much anymore, but it's location made it difficult to study and it's inhabitants didn't really take kindly to scientists coming to research what had happened here. "It's a pirate town."

He said that with a shrug.

The former False god didn't expect trouble in Raiders Cove, mostly because even pirates were smart enough to know there needed to be at least one place where they weren't hunted.

"Bit of a rough place, obviously, but we'll be fine." He expected they wouldn't get a warm welcome, in fact, he more than thought they would likely be entirely ignored. They were an odd couple, but then again on Rishi the odd was often considered completely normal. This place was it's own sort of niche in the galaxy, one that most came to because they had nowhere else to go. He frowned slightly, shifting in the seat as he realized how uncomfortable he was.

"Should've had the seats replaced." Soliael said quietly. "Damn things."

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

A snort followed her husband’s commentary about the seats and his tush.

“I thought you had ‘nuff padding down there that you wouldn’t need one!” she teased,, giving an expression full of snark and sass. She even stuck her tongue out at him, the wind in their acceleration blowing the strands of blond into the air. You could smell the scent of the ocean. Salt spray hitting them every now and then. While the sun was setting off in the distance, the heat of those rays would still linger.

Overhead, vibrant hues of orange, blues, rose, and slow spreading indigo would paint the late afternoon sky. Scattered clouds decorated here and there, a touch of mugginess that lingered.

“At least the last time I checked,” He wouldn’t see it, but she cast a wink at his direction. Although the wide grin was a sure indication of her impish nature.

“Need me to massage it later?” she asked, slipping her hand from his to give his thigh a light massage. “Check it over for any sore spots?” the amusement would only grow, coloring her cheeks.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He rolled his eyes. "It's not my behind that's the problem."

It was the the backing of the chair really, or rather the odd angle at which it sat. There was something about speeders that was just uncomfortable. Usually it was the chair, but some of the time it was something else. Perhaps he felt that way because when he flew one of these things it ended up crashing, but he was pretty sure that it was just the manufacturers getting things wrong in the vehicles that he used. Of course the manufacturer of this one was Kuat Drive Yards...but they would ignore that.

"Oh well." Soliael said with a sigh. "Let's hurry before it gets dark."

He moved his hand to his wife's leg, gently prodding just above her knee to tickle her slightly. "Wouldn't want to encounter any monsters."

Soliael said the words with a smile, though in truth he wasn't sure just how likely that possibility was. Rishi was unknown to him for the most part, and it was possible, if not likely that this place was crawling with Rancors.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

The dribble of his fingertips tickled her, and she gave a slight jerk and half giggle mewl of protest. “Hey, hey!... No distracting the pilot!” she said with a tease, giving his thigh a little squeeze. Certainly the pot to the kettle, but it was all in good fun.

“Mmm… monsters.” She trailed off. “Don’t worry, Sparky.” a pat of his thigh came next. “I’ll protect you from any that may show up.” It was a hilarious thought considering how tiny the Lorrdian Jedi Master was compared to that of her husband. In fact, the last time they had to deal with anything as dangerous as a monster was back in Exocron.

Not the sort of experience Kira would be happy to try out for a second time.

“Have you heard from Dissero?” a small shift in topic. Soliael had informed her that he was going to be a father soon. Verie was pregnant and it was her first. From the way Sol had made it sound, his uncle was a bit nervous, but excited.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"Not lately." Soliael answered truthfully. "There was that business with my grandmother, but not much since then."

He shrugged slightly. "Dissero has never been the most open."

It was ironic that it was Soliael saying that, especially considering how distant he had once been from his family. Perhaps Dissero would change as much as he had when the kids were born. That thought brought a smile to his face, though it was quickly pushed away as a light in the distance began to appear. At first he thought it might have been Raiders Cove, but the realization hit him that they would take another half hour or so before even getting to the town.

The former False God frowned slightly,

"Do you see that?" Soliael pointed to the light.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"Maybe we could stop by and visit?" Kira offered. They rarely ever really visited Soliael's family. The Shamalains were a bit reclusive when it came to that regard, and Dissero was one of the most prone to the life of a hermit. Micah enjoyed it and he could never get enough of visiting his great uncle's keep, but Kira knew that Sol's mother side of the family enjoyed their privacy.

No one more so than the Queen of Kuat.

"Huh?" pulled out of her reverie, Kira turned her attention towards the direction that her husband had pointed out. Her eyes narrowed as they searched the horizon. At first, she didn't see anything, but a second later -- a slow flare shone.

"Yeah..." the former Master of Shadows scrunched up her face in curiosity. "Think it is an outpost maybe?" Could very well be. Especially if it was out by the edge of the water. Around here there were several scattered islands. Most of them isolated, some of them not. There was even the mainland, with a series of huge jutting peninsulas if the pair ever decided to explore down south.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He thought for a moment. They were close to Raiders Cove, close enough to make it by speeder anyway. He tried to think of a reason why someone would create an outpost so close to the city. It made sense in a way, he supposed, especially if it was pirates. He also knew that Rishi had a native species, though truthfully he didn't know much about them besides the fact that they preferred to stay more inland and in the Jungle. He shifted slightly in the chair, looking around for a pair of macobinoculars or something similar.

"Crap." Soliael said.

Perhaps they should have looked at all of their equipment before leaving. "We need to look through everything when we get back, pack a set of gear for every type of planet and make sure that we have survival stuff, this is ludicrous."

He grumbled more to himself than to his wife.

It was clear that there weren't any macrobinoculars, in fact, all he could find was a glowstick. "Want to go see what it is?"

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

“What’s wrong?” Kira asked, looking at him curiously. She felt the mild edge of frustration coming from him. To be fair, they had been a bit distracted earlier this morning. Missing a thing or two would be expected. When Sol’s attention darted over to the light, Kira caught the meaning behind it.

Ahh.

“Yeaah.. Okay.” that was in regards to making sure they had everything they needed. She visibly perked nonetheless at his suggestion to explore it.

“Sure.” why not? It wasn’t like either of the two were new to exploring and investigating. Scanning the horizon, she searched for a good place to set down.

“Rather not head straight to it… we can hike our way in.” she told him. They were still new to the planet and the area, and were walking in relatively blind. If they set the speeder just a small ways down from the light, they could quietly head on in.

“I know I brought mosquito repellent at least!”

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He nodded in agreement. It wasn't that he was worried about being attacked, but only a fool rushed in head first into action without either a plan, or a bit of caution. That being said Soliael had played the fool more than once, like when Kira had been in danger. The former false god frowned for a moment, then shook his head to dispel the thought.

"Not too far away." He told her.

There was no point in parking miles away from the light, just out of audio range was good enough. He had no idea what or who could be out here, but he suspected that whatever it was wouldn't be expecting company, especially with dusk beginning to pull at the horizon. They had a pretty good chance at sneaking up on whatever, or whoever this was, Soliael was confident of that. Kira did as he asked, and slowly the speeder dipped into a small inlet in the jungle.

"Alright." Soliael said climbing out of the speeder. "Did you take your lightsaber?"

He didn't carry a weapon, though most of the time he didn't need one. That being said it always helped to have one of those glowsticks around.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

The engine went winding down from its hum. Kira had set the speeder under a canopy of large jungle ferns. There was enough room for them to set down and walk around, but allowed a measure of discretion for the speeder.

"I did." she told him, motioning to the bag. She wasn't going to wear it at her hip all the time. That was a big no no. Especially if they wanted to blend in. Not to mention, since the hilt was made from a clawed spiked foot of that Red Ice Monster Sol had slain long ago. It was a rather unconventional saber, but one that Kira held dear. Soliael had managed to pick it up from the muddied slick ground back on Contruum. How he found it in the midst of the struggle, Kira never actually asked.

She just knew that her husband was capable of many things without rhyme or reason. Or explanation. He simply did.

"Want me to take point?" she asked, a half grin in his direction. "I am a bit more sneaky sneaky." she joked, sliding out of the speeder and shutting the door. A reach over to the bag allowed her to search and take her saber.

It was less beach front and more jungle in this area. Mangroves edged the water, and what bit of beach sank into various tidepools. Clipping her saber onto her belt, she went reaching back into the bag. From there, she plucked out a small spray-dispenser.

Mosquito repellent.

"Here... I don't want you riddled with any love bites that aren't from me!"

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He coughed a few times as too much of the fumes got into his nose. "I think it would've been fine. Bloodsuckers tend to stay away from other bloodsuckers."

Soliael joked, though truthfully he couldn't remember the last time a mosquito had bit him.

In truth he was far more concerned about whatever was in that camp. If it was pirates the experience likely wasn't going to go well, if it was the Natives things would be much better, and if it was something else? Well then it would be a mystery, the first of many that Soliael and Kira would encounter on their trip. Oddly enough he found that the last option was his preferred one, that he would rather take the surprise and see what would come of it then walk into something he already knew how to handle.

Perhaps he had been walking through the galaxy for too long.

"Alright sneaky sneaky, let's go." He gently jabbed his finger into Kira's side.