Wake Up

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

A strained noise hummed from the back of Kira's throat. The crystals seemed to glow brighter, their cores flickering as if holding a small flame. Every sway and shift an undulating rise and fall. It was getting harder to concentrate. There was a heady intoxication to it. The way the glow seemed to hypnotize and charm with every circle and upward curve.

"Is...this part of the training then?" a shuddered gasp and then a wry grin. He was indulging her this time around. He knew what she enjoyed and what she considered to be fun. Part of this was a game. Silly as it was, it made their time together all the more interesting.

"Or more on the job Master Talith?" pearly white teeth flashed in the gasp that followed, the blonde feeling her knees buckle as her weight settled against him.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He smiled against her neck, his lips brushing against her skin once again.

There was no question that they were perfect for one another. His early life had been filled with hedonism, enjoyment that could be expected from someone like him, and yet...Kira gave him everything that he wanted. He had never asked much of her, had never demanded or pushed, yet they worked so well together. They were in tune, one resonating on the same wavelength as the other. His fingers pressed against her skin, his breath pouring over her as cloth was slowly pulled away.

He watched goosebumps slowly crawl over her flesh, slowly trailing along as he moved his hands.

A part of him wondered if it would always be this way, if it would ever change. He knew that he could not stop time, he knew that he could not always keep things the same way, and yet...yet everything was perfect now. The kids were grown, they had their freedom, and everything...everything was simply perfect. Soliael pulled her close, gently biting her neck before letting out a slow breath.

"Definitely training." He said as the rest of her clothing dropped to the floor.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"Ohhh that feels good." The low moan of pleasure echoed within the small crystal like corridor a while later. Kira was apt to say nothing felt as amazing as the coolness of the crystal cavern, but the man laying under her was pretty high on the list. While there was no breeze here, the cold felt amazing against her sweat slicked skin. Out of breath and exquisitely aching in parts of her body, the Lorrdian did her best to try and get her bearings. However, it was proving difficult when the object of her brain feeling a bit intoxicated was trailing his fingers up and over the curve of her bottom.

"... my knees though.." she tried to stretch out her legs and a slight ache followed. "Not so much." It had been a rather hard floor even with her shirt set down to give a bit of cushion. Not that they had really both considered how hard the ground was or the slight prod of a crystal at their back.

"I think I'm getting old." A joking quip from the blonde, trying to decide if she should attempt standing or wait. "Need to do some more Tai chi stretches." The flat of her tongue swept over her teeth, a slight grin at the lingering taste.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"You're not old." If one dug deep into that statement they would find the tiniest bit of anxiety slipping through it.

One had to dig for it, but it was there. Soliael feared the day Kira would be gone, though he didn't think about it often. The idea was always in the back of his mind, what he would do when she passed. They both knew it was inevitable, both knew that eventually they couldn't avoid it, but in truth most of the time they simply put it from their minds. She had years yet thanks to the force and healthy living, but the idea still set something off in Soliael that he couldn't quite control.

"I'm old." He said with a yawn. "I have the white in my beard and everything."

The former False God pointed to his face.

He was old, though very likely he'd live for another couple of centuries. He thought that the streaks of white in his hair were likely just a sign of stress, a symptom of having raise four Children until finally being freed of them. The little buggers had some nasty side-effects after all.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

A snicker came up as the Lorrdian Jedi Master draped herself against her beloved husband. A loud smacking kiss caught his lips, said peppered beard tickling the skin against her chin and mouth.

"If you want to be honest. You have white in more than just your beard there buddy." oh did that woman ever have the devil in her aquamarine eyes with the way they danced then. Her punishment was a loud, stinging smack against her rump. Kira gave a small cry, one that turned into laughter as she covered Soliael's face with kisses.

"Hush. Like you aren't the prime example of a good looking hunk." she poked his side, teasing him. With her hair a mused mess around her face and shoulders, one could almost shave a few years from the woman. At her mid-fifties one could say she appeared in her mid thirties. Joy and laughter seemed to permeate her very core, and perhaps one of the real reasons she appeared so young.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He wondered briefly how much longer they would have this, years, decades at least, but...he frowned and then shook the thought away. ”Come on.”

Fingers laced over her skin.

”There’s still lots to do.” While he enjoyed their small bit of fun, Soliael was acutely aware that they were still in the middle of an ancient Jedi ruin, there were things to see, explore, and document. A sigh escaped him, and slowly he pulled away from his wife, half rolling as he tried to gain his bearings.

”Maybe I’ll let you have more later.” He teased with a smile. ”If you ask nicely.”

Once they were back on the ship.

He had no idea how much more of this temple there was, though they had passed two other hallways that they had yet to explore, this room in it of itself likely would have occupied an archaeologist for entire weeks.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"Yeah, yeah." a raspberry followed suit as the blonde poked her tongue out at him. Crawling up to stand, Kira gave a little shiver. Yeah, being down here was still rather chilling. Goosebumps ran up and down her limbs as she quickly slipped on her clothes.

"Any idea on what those types of crystals might be?" she inquired again, blonde hair popping out of the collar of her shirt as she slipped it over her torso. A nod upwards brought attention to the crystals. They were shifting colors again, and oddly enough, appeared to be glowing brighter.

"Huh." Kira clucked her tongue. Slipping into her shorts she gave a small little hop. "Seema little brighter doesn't it?"

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

Soliael knew a great many things. History, the force, all types of oddities that would have left other people completely stumped. He’d spent half of his life studying, probably more. It Had gained him a great amount of power and knowledge, something that no one could question or deny no matter who they were.

”Not really.” Even he couldn’t know everything. ”I never really paid any attention to lightsaber crystals, though I think we both know they can do some pretty fantastic things.”

A lesson that they had learned centuries ago.

For a moment more he simply observed the odd crystals, wondering if things would turn out the same as they had in the caves.

There was a shift in his weight as he slowly began to to round the room. There wasn’t anything of real note around here save for the crystals. No great bit of architecture, no vault, nothing of the sort in fact. He frowned slightly as he wandered around the room, looking for any sort of clue.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"Well, let me collect a few of them," Kira informed him, bending down after smoothing down her shirt to pick up her backpack. She had several tools there to help with excavating in case they found something interesting. In Kira's case, she had an affinity of collecting shiny crystals and pretty rocks. It was hilarious really, as the woman back at home had a few bookshelves with little displays for her knickknacks.

"Go on and look ahead, I shouldn't be long." Kira assured him, flashing him that sunny smile. "Ah hah! Found it." Flipping a small multitool in her hand, she gave a nod.

"Would be neat to study them later."

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

Soliael lingered for a few more seconds, and then nodded. He set down some things from his pack however, taking out only his flashlight so that Kira would have anything she needed if something were to go wrong. He doubted it would, so far this place had been perfectly benign. The former False god had no idea if it would stay that way, but logic said yes.

”I’ll be taking the left tunnel.” Soliael told his wife so that she wouldn’t be too lost when she got done here.

He planted a kiss on her cheek and then slowly made his way back the way they had come.

The odd mirror lights provided a good bit of illumination, though Soliael still gripped his flashlight. The air of the Temple seemed to grow someone more fresh as he rose back up in the tunnel, coming to the intersection that they had traveled through earlier. This time he picked the tunnel opposite and headed down it, knowing that Kira would follow him soon.

Once again as he descended the air became more stale, untouched for centuries or perhaps even millenia.

An odd feeling began to press on the back of his skull as he wandered, the force pushing him forward.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"If you need me just shout!" the singsong voice of his wife echoed within the corridor while Soliael drifted off. Kira then turned her attention back up to the crystals, Kira's shoulders set straight in determination.

"Alright...not sure what you are exactly... but don't make it difficult for me hmm?" speaking to herself again? Yes. By now her entire family was well used to the fact that the blonde had conversations with herself. Often they were remarks on her current situation or some random stream of thought for a reminder. Either way, it wasn't too bad. Since she was a Lorrdian, that also meant that the hand and arm gestures would follow. Woe anyone when Kira was talking, and she had a fork in hand! Odds were that she just might accidently poke someone mid enthusiastic thought.

The crystals themselves lined the ceiling and ran down the side of the walls. Almost like an arch really. Like the inside of a geode. Instead of trying to pluck one out from the wall, Kira first went searching to see if there were any loose ones on the floor. At least, until a brighter glow caught her eye.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

Soliael went searching quietly through the Temple.

Unsurprisingly he found nothing significant at first, though as he moved deeper down the path that he had chosen things around him slowly began to change. The force urged him onward, and in truth he found himself wandering somewhat aimlessly. Things began to wind in an odd way, rooms appearing on either side of him that he took as dormitories. Indeed his suspicions were confirmed as he passed by an open door, a bed and a simple desk sitting inside.

"Not much as changed." He said quietly as he peered inside.

Soliael still remembered Kira's own rooms at the Jedi Temple quite well, visited when their relationship had been but a budding flower. He smiled slightly as he peered into the room, shifting slightly as he stepped inside and began to look through the contents of the desk.

As he pulled open one of the drawers he found a journal.

"Interesting." The former False god said to himself as he looked at the book for a moment. By all right the tome should have outright disintegrated by now. Turned to dust after centuries of time. Perhaps the air within the Temple had kept it from such a fate, or perhaps the desk was air tight when fully closed. He hesitated for a moment, not wanting to harm the book, but then ultimately decided to free it from its prison. With a ginger touch he lifted the book and gently placed it upon the dusty desk.

 

[Kira Talith]

Oddly enough, there weren't much that were scattered on the ground. A puzzled expression drew over Kira's face. Huh, that was strange. Looking back up towards the roof of the corridor, the Lorrdian frowned at the jutting glowing crystals there.

"Strange indeed," she murmured to herself. Stepping closer to the wall, Kira inspected the crystals further. When she neared they seemed to brighten a shade more. The color change was rather mesmerizing. When she lifted her hand to reach out and touch one, it also reached to her proximity.

Could they be touched by the Force? Likely. Very carefully, her fingers made contact. A brighter hue shone off of the crystal from purple to a teal blue. Very carefully, the blonde shook it loose.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

He frowned slightly.

The journal was completely intact, not a single page out of place, it's cover unscratched and its back seemingly having been crafted yesterday. There was no touch of the darkside of the force upon it, at least none that Soliael felt, nor was there any hint of the light. It was of course possible that the thing had just been genuinely well preserved, but natural instinct told him that was unlikely. There was something else at play here, something he didn't quite yet understand.

With a flick of his finger he opened the book.

The handwriting within was neat and unmistakably feminine. It reminded him of Aela's in an odd sort of way, not flowery, but terse and neat. He frowned for a few moments and then began to slowly read the first page. Unsurprisingly it was a journal, authored by a young padawan who had lived at this temple.

"Aylu Nirim." An interesting name if he'd ever heard one.

The former False God frowned slightly and flipped the page.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"Did you find anything?" the cheery voice of Devin's wife billowed over behind him with an inquisitive note. Once he turn, he'd see her at the entrance, holding a small bag of about a dozen crystals and her signature sunny smile.

"Oh wow," she exclaimed, taken aback at his surroundings. Her eyes went wide. Slowly, she made her way forward, making quiet padfoots across the floor.

"It feels as if anyone could come in at any time. Nothing is out of place. Nothing out of turn. As if whoever had been here had simply just... disappeared."

She shook her head at that, coming to a pause behind him.

"A tome?" blonde brows rose and hid under the messy fringe of her bangs.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"Journal." Tome implied something mystical.
"A Padawan." Soliael further explained. "I think a little younger than Kaili."

Their youngest daughter about...twenty now, and this girl was likely eighteen or nineteen. The Journal detailed her arrival here on this planet, written from a time when she was just twelve. That was no surprise to Soliael, Jedi liked to start training students young. They had likely transferred her here to be in a more calm and secluded place. That in it of itself wasn't too surprising either, sometimes certain students just did better in environments like these.

"She was here for a while it seems." He said quietly.

"Five years or so." Another page flip. "Haven't gotten to the end."

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

"Oh?" her eyes perked at that, she held out her hand. "Mind if I see?"

Naturally curious, the Lorrdian wanted to know what could be within its contents. Devin humored her, handing it over to her. It was rather heavy. A small bit of dust on it that the former false god had managed to wipe off the majority of. Not many actually kept journals anymore; at least in the written format. This must be quite old.

"It's doubtful that any one would simply leave their journals behind." this worried her again. It didn't sit right. Carefully she opened the tomb, delicately flipping the pages to read for herself.

"Anything in there to suggest why this temple was abandoned?"

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

”I haven’t read it all.” He had posed as the god of knowledge for decades, but that didn’t mean he could instantly absorb the contents of a novel just by looking at its pages. There were hundreds of notations within the small Journal and it would likely take him the better part of the night to finish it.


He shifted in place slightly.


”I’ll take it with us to the surface.” He had no idea how long they had been down here so far. ”Read the rest of it tonight.”


It was a journal, private, but whoever had written it was long, long gone. Thousands of years had passed since this tome had been written, and even the longest living species in the galaxy would be hard pressed to still live now. There were few who even knew those times had existed at all, especially after the trauma of the gulag plague.


”Let’s head back to the surface.” He told Kira quietly.


Soliael had enough of the dark.

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]


"Alright." Kira agreed. They had done enough exploring for so long. She extended the tome back to her husband, letting him be the one to bring it back up to the surface. He was always so curious. More so than she at times. He would enjoy reading it and perhaps, they'll find out a little bit more about who had once called this home.

Glancing down at her chronowatch, Kira mulled over the time.

"I'll gather up the surveys the probe had managed to do while were down here." a ninety degree turn and Kira slowly went heading back up the crystal laden corridor.

"We can review it and see if there are any other interesting places to go visit tomorrow?"

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

[member="Kira Talith"]

"Sure." Soliael answered as she slipped the journal into his pack.

There was still quite a bit left to explore, or so Soliael assumed, though there was no way of telling for sure. The Temple, for all they knew, could end right after the portion they had just explored. Jedi were funny people, and sometimes they tended to do things that didn't make a lot of sense.

"Maybe send something out in the landscape too." Soliael offered. "Check if there's any other structures."

They hadn't detected anything from scans in space, but then again they hadn't really detected this place until the probe had sat right in front of it too. Sometimes things could be hidden right in plain sight, and in truth if they were going to explore, Soliael wanted to explore it all.

He looked down at his wife as he walked alongside her. "And I'll do some exploring of my own later."

A hard hand smacked on her rear.