Log:Jedi Order: Meditation on Myrkr
Jedi Order: Meditation on Myrkr
OOC Date: May 11, 2021
Location: Myrkr
Participants: Jedi Order: Rune and Kasia Ashkuri; with Ben Solo as GM
When the Jedi recovered/stole the Moldy Crow, they recovered a set of instructions and coordinates along with it, locations where former/pseudo/unexplained-as-of-yet-connection-to-the Jedi Kyle Katarn had left important items, or at least encountered important items and repurposed them for his own purposes.
One of those locations was Myrkr.
A forested world with a small population, the planet lies on the outskirts of the Outer Rim, garnering little attention from anyone other than smugglers and frontiersmen. The location indicated for the Jedi to search is somewhere beyond the nearest settlement, a good hike through the dark and gloomy woods that blanket much of the planet's surface, too dense to land in or ride a speeder through.
There is no trail, just the trees and the faint light of the nearest star filtering down through the leaves, dappling the forest floor in a pale dance of shifting luminescence as the treetops sway in the breeze. The air is quiet, other than the faint beeping of a tracking fob programmed with the coordinates that beeps ever so slightly more intensely the closer they get to their location, and the rustling of the foliage. A scent of pine, citrus, and peat, initially heady and aggressive, has now faded to a background note with accustomization on the long walk.
"I must say I am enjoying these missions given to us by Kyle." Rune comments as he peers off into the dense forest, hazel eyes straining as if he could see their destination just by doing so. "Even though there was a beast left behind on Umbara, the plant life and general ambiance was rather pleasant. And this..." the young Force user states, holding his arms out to their surroundings. "This reminds me of Yavin, though a little less Force heavy." An eyebrow is lifted to Kasia as the pair walk along, "That planet was steeped in the sense of it." Not so much here, though the woods did seem a little more oppressive and unwelcoming, they were nothing compared to the lava spouts and 'death around every corner' attitude of Mustafar.
As they trekked through the woods, Rune reminded himself he needs to inquire about lighter robes when they arrive back at the temple, these heavier sort were not well suited to rough and thick terrain, his point given a notch when the hem of his clothing catches another bramble as they pass. "We've found structures that need the Force to be manipulated into place at both planets, think we might find the same here?" The more novice of the two Jedi asks his friend, an eyebrow lifting as he turns to regard her, the light of the star illuminating them both as they travel.
This isn't Kasia's first time on Myrkr. Through some misadventure of her husband's, they own property here on the world. A chunk of undeveloped land much like that they're having to hike through today. "This world always gives me a headache," she remarks during a pause taken to try and detach the loose fitting sleeve of her robe from a prickly branch. "Something about it." Which might explain why the patch of owned land remains undeveloped.
The over all positive attitude from the younger Jedi does help her to keep her spirits up, so whatever nature driven annoyances there might be, for now she doesn't voice them beyond the headache complaint. "I honestly have no idea what we're going to find here, but if that's what you found there then there's a chance we were sent here to do the same. If that's the case, this might not be too difficult." She's just jinxed them. "Just make sure to keep your eyes open here, I've heard a little about the sort of beasts that are out here and none of the stories have sounded pleasant."
There is a background level of irritation here, but it's not so bad. Just sort of like the first inklings of a migraine coming on, not an actual headache.
Until the pair start to notice that the trees are changing, a different species becoming more dominant, and then, there it is, a distinct discomfort, a dull throb in the brain that grows with proximity to the trees and the large, lethargic lizards clinging to their bark.
The lizards, for there are many, sometimes multiple on a single tree, don't appear interested in doing, well, anything, preferring instead to simply sun themselves on the bark of their perches. But for whatever reason, their presence, or the trees', is distinctly uncomfortable for the two Jedi, an insensate fog best imagined as if the entire body had gone numb. It's not like that exactly, but it's like that in another sense, as the innate connectedness a Jedi feels to their surroundings is abruptly cut off.
When the change of landscape becomes the most obvious is when Rune first presses fingers in against his temple, the upbeat attitude of the Ysannan quickly replaced with a deepening frown. "I take it back... this place stinks." he remarks, noting that Kasia is dealing with similar pressures in her skull. The pair trudges on, following the now irritating beep of the tracker as it ever drives them on toward their final locale. The wild life is given a few glances, eyebrows raised at the number of creatures clinging to the trees they pass, but other than the first cursory glance their presence isn't really noted for being alarming, just irritating.... like everything around here.
The wrongness of the environment is made whole when the connection is lost to their surroundings, the sensation quite like a constant vibration on one's skin suddenly lifting away, the absence felt keenly though the reason for its departure unknown. "Nnnh... I am beginning to think I would rather have that lava planet back instead of this place. It does not feel... correct."
The headache exists in the back of her mind, a ghost of what it could become. Will become. Kasia does her best to ignore it until they near those different trees, and suddenly there's an unpleasant throb. The hand not used to shove aside branches is massaging at her temple as she looks over to Rune. "It's not my favorite world either," she admits. "But the fob is still working, and telling us we're getting closer, so that's good. The sooner we get it done, the sooner we can get out of here." She doesn't mention that they're still going to have to hike back, she's trying to stay optimistic, even if they are in nature. Ugh, nature. "It doesn't feel correct no, and it's not the first time I've felt this way here. Expect that anything connected to the force isn't going to function right, because... it probably won't."
This place, the trees, or the lizards, or the combination of all three, they mess with the Jedi's connection to the Force. It feels almost like... not being connected to the Force. Only that can't be true... can it?
In all the confusion of feeling this way for the first time or remembering what it feels like in Kasia's case, it is easy to miss the approach of a few shadowy figures prowling through the underbrush until they are all but on top of the pair. Two sizeable dark felines spring from seemingly out of nowhere in tandem with each other, moving in sync as they pounce. Kasia is hit by the lunge but the other big cat misses Rune, skidding through the conifer needles that carpet the forest floor as it turns in a low crouch, trying to reverse its momentum.
"That could make our jobs here a little more difficult if we are unable to connect to the Force easily." Rune admits with a sigh, his eyes shifting to the canopy above. "Regardless, Master Katarn would not have tasked us to come here if it were not able to be conquered. We must persist." His eyes were up when they should have been down, the detachment from the Force throwing the two Jedi completely out of whack. Such is the case that he was fortunate to be missed by the first of one of the two felines' attack, the claws raking by his robes as the large beast flew by.
In an instant, the clunky cylinder of metal that Rune liked to call a lightsaber flipped into his hand, a brilliant column of green light hissing as it extended from the emitter. He returned the favor, darting in and singeing the air around the Vornskr as the creature easily dodged his attacks. "I... I really do not understand how the lot of you... make this seem easy." Rune remarks, backing up away from his target with the lightsaber held at the ready. "I have had nothing but trouble with this device." Just like most things technological, the native Ossusian feeling at home with a spear in his hand instead of the Jedi's traditional weapon.
"It could," Kasia agrees, reaching out to give Rune's shoulder an enouraging little pat. He says they must persist, and she smiles a weary sort of smile. "We must pers-- AAAAA." Though she isn't hurt, the large creature does manage to knock her right off of her feet and onto the ground. The GROUND. Where the DIRT and the BUGS are. This is terrible, and no doubt she will take great issue with it at some point, but for now she has bigger issues. Because it happened so abruptly without even the warning she often gets from the force, she hasn't time to have a weapon at the ready, which means as soon as she's flat on the ground she swings a fist at the thing. Is it the most effective attack? No. Is it smart? Also probably no. She's lived with Hex for a long time though, so at least she kinda knows how to throw a punch. After it's thrown she tries to scramble back and get some distance, and if she's able, get back to her feet again.
The hunt is ON and the Vornskr are hungry! Deep rumbling feline growls disturb the quiet of the forest as one circles Rune, pacing back and forth before lunging in behind one of his errant swings. Kasia's attack snuffs its displeasure at being socked in the snout, a clawed mitt reaching out to bat at her but unable to make contact again with the scrambling Jedi.
From their perches in the trees, some of the Yslamiri look on with disinterest. Others don't even look. They're chilling. This is nothing important to them.
Meanwhile, below the perches of the lizards on the tree, something quite important is happening with the Jedi and the Vornskr. Aside from being locked in a battle to the death, or at the very least, the wounding... the lot of the group is content on throwing warning shots. Though content isn't exactly the world to be used in Rune's case, the frazzled Force user literally waving his brilliant green light in front of the big cat's eyes hoping to sear an image into its retina for all the good he's doing swinging the thing. He notes the punch Kasia was able to land on the creature and begins to wonder if he should simply put down the weapon and try that instead.
Kasia is at least made of pretty sturdy stuff and she's faster than she she looks like she should be, so she's able to scramble away and onto her feet. Another lunge and this time she avoids it as well, reaching to yank the saber from her hip and activate it. "Are you okay?" she asks Rune now that she's righted herself, eyes lingering on the vornskr before she slashes at it. Miss. Only trees were harmed in that swing, then a fern, then another tree. "Stay still," she insists at the creature she knows will definitely not listen to her.
The vornskr may be wild animals but even a wild animal can recognize the menace of those glowing blades, and they prowl cautiously in a ring around the pair, never once listening to Kasia's exhortation to stay still. In fact, they do just the opposite, closing in again simultaneously, working as a team to try to bring the Jedi down, but they're too cautious, perhaps intimidated by the flashing lights, and fail to injure either of them.
"Apart from wholly embarrassing myself with all the waving I have done to this creature, I am currently fine." Rune calls over his shoulder, his attention very much on the prowling beast before him. Another attack from the Vornskr causes the Jedi to dodge back, its claws ripping the air in front of his billowing clothes. "At least they have not hit us yet either!" the Ysannan calls, spinning and coming in again for another series of attacks. Just like Kasia, trees and plant life fly with each swing, the novice Jedi causing more damage to the area than his foe. However, the final swing comes very close to its mark, some hair on the beast getting singed as the blade flickers by. Rune takes this as a win when he gets a whiff of the burnt hair. "I think I managed to give it a bit of a hair cut!"
"You're not," Kasia assures Rune. She might've put more effort into the reassurance, but right now isn't a time for eloquence, it's a time for trying to not die to wild animals. "That's a good thing, let's just hope they don't have friends, and get tired before we do." She tires to give a little laugh as though it's a joke, but it's totally not. The animals prowl around them and lunge, and this time she's a little more ready, slashing at the thing as it goes by her. The second stab misses, but the third hits again to leave behind those unpleasant scorched wounds that come with this sort of weapon.
The vornskr is eerily quiet when injured, letting out only an angry hiss as the weapon penetrates its hide and this quickly dies out as the beast collapses after the second. With a yowl of anger at its companion being struck down, the remaining one twists at Rune, directing a viscous stab of its long, spiked tail at his torso, the jabbing point thumping into the Jedi's shoulder and, along with the pain of being impaled, deposits a dose of a mild sedative naturally produced in the barb. Glistening fangs bare as its lips peel back in anticipation of a Force-sensitive dinner and revenge.
"Here is hoping!" Rune remarks, preparing to dodge and counter-attack when the creature lunges in again. Instead, he became distracted by the howls of the beast Kasia was fighting, his attention drawn to the side at the perfectly wrong moment... that moment being when the Vornskr he was facing decided to attack. Searing pain nearly brought Rune to his knees as a puncture wound penetrated his shoulder, his thick brown robes suddenly soaking through with fresh blood. "NNnnnnngh!" He grunts, his free hand immediately seeking the wound as if he could hold the blood inside. Fear bursts in his mind as sinks to a knee the sedative numbing his mind as well as the wound in his body.
In almost a panic Rune swings the glowing blade in front of him, swiping wildly at the air one time before zeroing in on the mark and sending the column of green through the beast's shoulder. Surprising himself nearly as much as he pained the Vornskr, the third swing goes wide and he sinks back onto his haunches preparing for defense. "Ow....."
Kasia's eyes linger a little too long on the fallen Vornskr as a slight frown tugs at the corners of her mouth, but the the other is prowling again and she whips around just in time to see Rune caught in the shoulder with the barbs. A cringe and grimace follow the injury, and it's not even hers, momentarily keeping her distance as he swings his saber. It's not that she doesn't trust him, it's just that she likes having all her limbs a lot more. The second Vornskr is hit and she takes advantage of it's hobbled status to rain down a couple more blows on the thing, brutal enough to finish the job. She goes still for a few moments to try and figure out if there are more, but if there are it's well beyond her telling at present. "How bad is it?" she asks, looking back to Rune. "Can you keep going or should we stop to dress it first?"
With the two predators defeated, the Jedi are free to continue on their merry way, cuts, bruises, and seeping puncture wounds notwithstanding. The gentle beep of the tracking fob guides them on through the dark forest, passing through the densest parts of these particular trees until finally they become sparse around the time the beeping starts to pick up.
What they appear to have been after lies just ahead: a tumbledown old fortress that has clearly seen better days. The walls are slouched, the windows bare, the doorways empty of doors, the place is wide open. A low ring of prefab panels forms an outer wall perhaps three meters tall, just high enough to be difficult to climb and no higher, but the gate stands open anyway, the durasteel doors slid back on their tracks.
Inside the courtyard, a few of those trees from before, olbio trees, stand in a deliberate ring around a tall mound of dirt, reminiscent of a burial mound, a stone arch embedded in one end, a smooth stone door(?) below it. In the trees are more of those reptiles, the Yslamiri, and as before they merely cling placidly to the bark of the trees. There are other structures inside the walls, but this clearly predates them and based on its central placement must be the reason for this location being chosen at all.
A dopey smile creeps over Rune's lips as he watches a pink column slide through the Vornskr that just injured him moments ago. Once the creature collapses to the ground, Rune does likewise, his eyes seeking the canopy of the trees above... and the Yslamiri, so many Yslamiri... just watching, waiting, judging. "I am on to you lizards... I know your game." the addled Force user remarks as he peers suspiciously from one reptile to the next.
Kasia's words bring him back to a semblance of reality, an eyebrow crooking skyward while her face swims in his vision. Fortunately he fingers the button on his lightsaber, the blade squealing as it slices more grass on the way back into the hilt. "Hmmm? How bad's what? Ooooooh the puncture? It's fine... I think it missed." He states while clearly bleeding from the wound. Also... Rune is using contractions... this is just not right.
After a moment, Rune pushes himself to his feet, a final suspicious glance given to the scheming lizards above before the tracker is retrieved and their mission continued. The pair walks along, pushing through the forest until the fortress rises before them. Even through the haze of the sedative, Rune peers curiously at the structure, his eyes roaming over the broken down thing while they push through to the courtyard. Once inside, the smooth portal gathers Rune's interest and he steps over to view the door, his good hand lifting to run over the surface. "I've got this, gimme a second." The Ysannan steps back and closes his eyes, calling to the Force through the fog and lifting his hand to command its direction. Slowly the stone door slides into the ground, a solid thunk of stone hitting stone can be heard once it settles into its final place. "That'll do it." He remarks, blurry eyes opening to behold his effort.
Behind the door, a cool, dark tunnel leads slightly downward, no surprise given the fact that the mound outside doesn't exactly go on for miles either. Going in leads away from the ring of Yslamiri-bearing trees, just far enough be free of their confounding influence, whatever causes that. Almost by design.
What's at the end is a cozy but not cramped chamber made of interlocking stone expertly fit together with no gaps or mortar into an almost seamless dome. In the middle of the chamber, a perfectly spherical stone is embedded deeply in the dirt floor, most of its body below the floor's surface, strange symbols carved into the rock.
Kasia's eyes narrow subtly as Rune claims he's fine, eyes sliding over to the currently bleeding wound. A beat is spent in silent assessment trying to decide whether or not he'll bleed to death if they keep going, settling on no for now. "Okay. Well let me know if that changes, I'm not a doctor but I can at least bandage it." He trudges on and she follows, letting him go first in case he needs someone to catch him, or at least to see that he's toppled over at all.
Her feet hurt by the time they arrive at the structure, there are probably blisters forming, but she's tough and doesn't whine about it. "Well this is the place, I think? It doesn't feel any better here, I don't know why a Jedi would want to be in a place like this at all." Okay, maybe a little whining, just not about her feet. He handles the telekinesis aspect, and she waits and watches him do so, smiling as it works. "Well done. Why don't you let me go first, yeah?"
Then she does just that, stepping into the dark tunnel. The saber she carries was deactivated, but now that she's in the tunnel she turns it back on to cast the pink light all around them and illuminate their way. There's a subtle sigh of relief as they arrive in the domed chamber beyond the force dampening influence. "Okay, I take it back, it feels better down here." A pause. "What /is/ this place?" Another shorter pause. "What is that?" Tentative steps are taken toward the buried sphere to try and get a better look at the symbols.
Rune nods to Kasia and bows, sweeping his arms to the side and toward the entrance. Displaying the way ahead for the lady. "Indeed! After you ma'am!" the young Ysannan announces, following in behind her once she's passed through the opened portal. He eyes the walls as they descend, running a hand over the smooth tunnel as the delve deeper. Once they arrive in the circular room, his eyes widen. Even through the venom that tickles his brain, he recognizes this place, or something very similar to it on at least one other world that he visited recently. "This is it... this is what we're here for." the addled one remarks, stepping over to the stone half-submerged in the ground. "We... we need to commune with it, reach out with the Force and touch one of the locks on another planet." This is all stated matter-of-factly and, it's probably true, the Jedi having done this twice already.
The hand not holding onto the saber reaches out to settle on the sphere. It's tentative, as though Kasia is waiting for it to attack, and when nothing immediately sets out to murder her she presses her whole hand against it and closes her eyes. There's a slow breath drawn in and held for a beat, then slowly exhaled as she reaches out with her mind, with the force, trying to do... something. She's still for a little while, just breathing, focusing, holding up the pink saber so she doesn't accidentally burn a hole in something important. Finally she opens her eyes and looks up at Rune. "I don't know what I did, but I did something here." One corner of her mouth hitches a little higher in a crooked smile. "I hope it was the right thing because I don't want to come back."
Rune grins and nods as she takes a step forward, the reluctance fully on display with her body language. "I think you did great. Lemme see if I can help out a little bit." He states, placing his hand on the rounded surface of the sphere to lend his hand in communing with the Force. His eyes flutter shut as he feels the Force flow through him and into the stone, connecting it to the both of them for the briefest of moments. The feeling that he experienced on the other planets rings true in this place as well, the sensation that something changed on Ruusan, something was set into motion, something that completed their mission here. Gradually he removes his hand from the rock as his eyes open, the smile that she shows echoed in his own expression. "I agree, I think we have succeeded here. Now... let's never return." he states, his contractions fading and normal speech patterns fighting to resurface.
