Private A spark of hope

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Coruscant | NJO Temple
Tag: Yenna

Kyell looked down at his cybernetic hand as he walked up the long staircase, and into the halls of the Coruscant Temple. He was still getting used to how it felt, and the memories attached to it still plagued him in his dreams. He had specifically asked Miri not to lessen the pain of them, as he felt they were an important reminder of what happened. But paired with his now strained friendship with Ara... it was a lot for him to handle. So much so, that he began to doubt his place within the New Jedi Order.

All that kept him from leaving was the support of his girlfriend and the Master who he had grown to care about a lot as well. Impressing her is essentially what had sparked everything — he went on an adventure to retrieve artifacts for her to study, hoping that she'd be proud of his accomplishments. While it was a difficult journey, it had introduced him to Miri, and he had brought along the mask they found as well.

He was eager to show it to Master Yenna.

<I'm sorry if I kept you waiting too long, Master Yenna,> Kyell said telepathically as he made his approach, his struggles visible in his eyes. <But it's very good to see you...> he added while he looked down at the woman.

 

[Yenna]

Sitting in front of a terminal, with a pile of datapads around her, Yenna was almost literally buried under her work in the newly rebuilt archives. She wanted to smack the people that organized this iteration of the archives. After growing used to how everything was laid out on Kashyyyk and New Cov, the new temple's layout had her rummaging in all kinds of odd places to find references and articles for her book.

The book was also another can of worms. Writing a book on the new generation of Mandalorians, along with another series of articles on the fascinating history of the Tusken Raiders, had her digging up pieces of documented history she never heard of in her century of living and learning. With a defeated sigh, the little green Jedi sat back and took a long sip of her canteen for liquid courage. She was going to need a lot more than a canteen to get through it all.

But a presence in the Force drew her strained eyes away from the screen as a smile formed. Looking towards the entrance, she watched as her padawan approached her. One look gave her a plethora of information, and her connection to his gave even more as he greeted her with a downtrodden tone. All of that could wait, however. All she cared for now was that her padawan finally came back. "Kyell!" She greeted, hopping onto the table to get a good look at him. "Returned, you finally have? To see you again, good it is." She admitted as she smiled up at him.

Her gaze lowered to the mask in his hands, one looking a lot more cybernetic since the last time she saw him. "Come, sit. Found, what have you?" She gestured to her seat and held a hand out for the mask, looking it over with a bright grin. "Fascinating... but... wait, this can." She set the mask aside as she looked at her padawan. Stalling and trying to dance around the problem was good for nothing.

<"Kyell... wrong, what is? What happened?"> She asked telepathically, taking hold of his cybernetic hand to inspect it before she looked deep into his eyes.

Kyell Laysel

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Coruscant | NJO Temple
Tag: Yenna

"Kyell!"

Even though he looked and felt different — stronger physically, but much weaker mentally — a smile slipped through the cracks when he heard his Master's voice, and watched her hop onto the table. He had been separated from her for far too long, and now that she talked to him with a caring voice no other Master ever had shown him, he really began to realize just how foolish it was that he didn't come to her sooner.

At her request, he sat down and slowly placed the mask on the table, so she could look it over. It was enveloped in nullification resin, suggesting that it had a connection to the Dark Side. <With the help of someone I've grown very close to, I found the Sanctum of the Exalted on Odryn. This is a mask that managed to control my mind, but we nullified it and... I wanted to show it to you, Master,> he said, hoping she wasn't going to be angry about him bringing it here. Trapped in the resin, it would be safe enough, right?

"Fascinating... but... wait, this can."

He blinked, and looked up to meet her eyes — she knew something was wrong, and as the telepathic connection formed from her end, he began to struggle to keep himself from tearing up. <I... I keep failing, Master. I was almost killed on Empress Teta because I stood no chance, and the same happened on New Aldera...> he flexed his cybernetic fingers and gritted his teeth. <She tortured me, and if it wasn't for Miri coming to my rescue again, I may not have survived.>

He paused for a moment and sighed deeply, <Now I've lost a close friend as well, and I just feel like I can't do anything right anymore.>

 

[Yenna]

The resin around the mask merely sparked further curiosity about the artefact Kyell found, but she continued to shove it aside, literally using her foot to scoot it behind the pile of datapads next to her. What he had going on was far more important. As he started to speak, Yenna realized just how distraught the poor boy was.

Her gaze shifted to his new hand for a brief moment as memories of her former master resurfaced. She wasn't going to let Kyell suffer the same fate Cas had. She would do everything in her power to help the boy. Yenna remained silent after he finished, contemplating her options and what to say with something as heavy as this. <"Kyell... fail, you did not."> She kept the telepathic connection as she sat down on the edge of the desk in front of him. <"Bested, you were. Your failure, that is not. But... you survived. This Miri, I must thank sometime. Back to me, she brought my padawan. Mine, the failure is. Unprepared, you were, because of me. For war, I did not prepare you. And with you back... like that again, I shall not fail you."> She spoke gently as she placed a hand on his. <"Survived, you have. That matters, it is all. Pick ourselves up, all we can do is. Happen again, this will not, next time."> She looked back at the mask for a moment.

"Proud of you, I am, Kyell. Together, study that mask, we can later." She spoke aloud with a warm smile. But that wasn't the only problem. And she had a feeling that it was going to be a lot more complicated. <"But... with your friend, what happened?"> She asked him gently as she continued to stare up into his eyes with her golden gaze. Concern for him was firmly affixed along her features, a deep desire to help him in her heart.

Kyell Laysel

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Coruscant | NJO Temple
Tag: Yenna

While he had brought along the mask to show his Master, in all honesty, he couldn't really care about it any less right now. So to see Yenna shove it aside with her foot and focus on him helped, as he felt she had picked up on what he really needed, but struggled to properly ask for. His life had always been simple — training here and there, making music, and keeping to himself, but all of that changed recently, and he was very much still adjusting.

<"Kyell... fail, you did not.">

He looked up at her and felt tears in his eyes the longer he listened to her words. Miri had told him the same, and he knew deep down she was right about it. But to also hear it from his Master helped convince him. Kyell then felt her hand touch his, and finally, a single tear rolled down his cheek, despite all his efforts to contain his emotions.

<I'll do my best, Master,> he promised before he reached up and wiped the tear away. With a deep breath, he calmed himself down and focused on the other question she asked. It was important for him to be honest and open, so he could actually leave what happened behind him and move on.

<I... I messed up,> he admitted and swallowed hard. <Ara was the first I ever felt comfortable talking to. She helped me communicate through a datapad and later became the first I could talk to telepathically. She was my closest friend, and after some time, she had the confidence to ask for it to become more. I felt similarly but before the relationship could grow, I went out on an assignment and met a girl who I fell in love with.>

He paused and finally broke eye contact as he tried to find the words, <Miri quickly became very special to me, and when I told Ara, she was upset... angry, and understandably so. I should have told her sooner.> For now, he decided to leave out the part where she tried to shoot him. As terrible as it would sound, he accepted it was something that happened in the heat of the moment.

 

[Yenna]

A warm smile appeared as she reached up and gently wiped the tear from his cheek. "Our best, all we can do, is. Do, or do not... there is no try." She muttered with a voice like silk, topped off with grade-A bourbon.

But as he continued wuth his story, her eyes went wide and her lips pursed as Yenna glanced away for a long moment. "Trouble, that certainly is..." She admitted with a nod and a swig of her flask before she held it out to him. "You need it, you look like." She quipped as she sat in front of him.

She mulled over his words for several long moments. He did wrong, Ara did wrong, it was not right for either of them to do what they did. But there was quite a bit of experience for her with similar situations. "Kyell... Mistakes, you made. Mistakes, she made. But... hurt, you both are. Forgiveness, all that matters, is. Right now, it hurts. But in time, heal, these wounds will. For both of you. Important to you, if this friendship is... then show her. The past, important is not. Today, what we do, matters tomorrow. Ready, if she is, she will forgive you. And the same, you must do, for the wrongs she did. In your heart, find forgiveness, you must." A bright smile appeared as she leaned forward and held his cybernetic hand with both of hers.

"An important lesson, this is, Kyell. Emotion, yet peace. People we all are. Mistakes we all make. But control us, our emotions must not. Express, but not control. And don't hide. Recluse yourself, you must not. Spend time alone, yes, to work through this. But, yourself, you must not cut off. Go out, be with Miri, make friends... and, when the time comes... your friendship, I hope can be saved." She gave a nod ss she placed a tiny hand on his chin to make sure he looked into her eyes.

"Time, Kyell. Time, and hard work. Feel, I know how you. Help you grow stronger, I shall. But time, and work on one's self, all this is." She sat back and got up to her feet, summoning the mask to her hands with the Force.

Kyell Laysel

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Coruscant | NJO Temple
Tag: Yenna

With a slight shake of his head, Kyell made it clear he didn't want the flask. As much as he appreciated the offer, he feared that if he started drinking while feeling this miserable, it could escalate into a real problem. The type of problem that would only cause him to lose more people he cared about.

Then he listened to Yenna's words quietly and began to calm down a lot more — she was very reassuring, and much of what she said aligned with how he already felt about the whole situation.

"Ready, if she is, she will forgive you. And the same, you must do, for the wrongs she did. In your heart, find forgiveness, you must."

<I will, Master... I was never angry with her, even after she shot me. Only what she did to Miri made me furious, but I think she knows it was a mistake,> he said as memories of that night flashed into his mind. The look she gave him after bashing Miri's head into the bar counter, but even through that, he felt pain inside of her.

Her tiny hand then reached for his chin, tugging it up so he looked her in the eyes while he was encouraged to keep himself surrounded by others. A faint smile appeared, and after a few seconds, he finally nodded, <I'll do my best not to disappoint you, Master,> he said before he watched her summon the mask into her hand again.

<Be careful not to remove the resin here, it's a very dangerous mask but I think you'll find it fascinating to study.> He paused and looked proudly at the item he had recovered with Miri. It was a very strange situation that had nearly gone terribly wrong, but perhaps it also sparked them to get so close in the end.

<What's next, Master? In terms of training... assignments.>

 

[Yenna]

Yenna nodded as he admitted that he held no resentment towards his friend. It was very good news for the little green Jedi. It certainly made his journey of recovery a lot easier. All she needed to worry about was his doubts in himself, though she had a plan for that. "Disappoint me, you can never, Kyell. Do our best, all we can do, is." She reassured him with a warm smile.

<Be careful not to remove the resin here, it's a very dangerous mask but I think you'll find it fascinating to study.>

"Of course. Familiar with the power, I am. Tempted, I have been, many times... Nearly, failed as well once, I have." She admitted softly as she stared at the mask. That day, during the first battle of Empress Teta... she came very close to falling. She was not going to let that happen again. Not with herself, and certainly not with any Padawan under her care. "Come, Kyell! To the office, we must go." She spoke up with a smile as she hopped off the table with the mask. "Um... bringing those datapads, do you mind?" She asked with a guilty giggle as she pointed to the pile of datapads.

Once they were off, Yenna jumped up and gently landed on his shoulder with barely any weight to her. It certainly made navigating the temple a lot easier.

<What's next, Master? In terms of training... assignments.>

She glanced at him for a moment as she pondered the question, before her gaze returned to the path in front of them. "First, recover, you must. Some rest, you need. After that, train you properly, I shall. To a planet, I think we must go. Dangerous, it will be. Test you, it will. But strengthen your spirit, it will too." She explained to him, hopping onto her desk once they reached her private study quarters. The walls were littered with artifacts and pieces of history, all from journeys to various planets. Yenna wanted nothing more to add to the collection with the help of her padawan.

"Now... this mask... find it, where did you? Any and all details, a ton, will help." She set the mask on her desk and rummaged through the pile of datapads until she found the one she was looking for. A new file was made with a title aptly named "Kyell | mask | funky". "Removing the resin, are you fine with me?' She asked him as she looked up at him.

Kyell Laysel

 

[Kyell Laysel]

Location: Coruscant | NJO Temple
Tag: Yenna

Yenna's reassurances helped him feel so much better about his future, and it showed in the way he smiled at her. He had been worried about disappointing her, failing his friends again, and that he'd never be able to become a good Jedi. But now that he had a Master who could help him find his way, there was some light ahead of him.

So for now, the focus of the conversation shifted, and their attention returned to the Mask.

"Come, Kyell! To the office, we must go."

He chuckled at her excitement and snatched all her datapads before turning to her. To his surprise, he watched the little green Jedi Master jump up, only to land on his shoulder moments later. Probably something he should have expected from her, but having your Master literally on your shoulders was still a bit strange.

Along the way, Yenna also answered his question, to which he nodded.

"First, recover, you must. Some rest, you need. After that, train you properly, I shall. To a planet, I think we must go. Dangerous, it will be. Test you, it will. But strengthen your spirit, it will too."

<I've never been good at avoiding danger. But I'll do my best to get through it this time,> he said with some newfound confidence and determination as they entered her office. Yenna hopped off his shoulder, grabbed her datapad, and together they moved around the mask to get a better look at it.

<We found it at the Sanctum of the Exalted... or what remains of it. This artifact and others were stored there in nullification resin, but the explosives meant to blow up the structure compromised a lot of it. Miri and I encountered some really, really big murderous rats who were affected by the Dark Side corruption there,> he began to explain with a slight frown.

"Removing the resin, are you fine with me?'

There was a spike of fear in his eyes, and he quickly shook his head, <This Mask mind-controlled me last time, and almost made me kill Miri. Please, Master... not while I'm here.>

 

[Yenna]

Yenna chuckled at his comment on avoiding danger, sparing a glance at her padawan. "Like my old master, you sound." She joked. Though her tone shifted when he described where it came from. Every detail was noted down on the mask. But upon asking about the resin, Yenna looked up from her datapad.

"Okay. Study it later, I can. Serious, it is not." She reassured as she set the mask aside. "And Kyell... fear it, you should not. Stronger, you will become. In time..." She picked up the mask and looked at it, before a smirk formed as she chucked it aside. "In the face of darkness, you will laugh." She quipped as she looked up at him. It pained her to see him so deeply troubled.

But he will heal in time. He had people who cared for him. People who would help him through it all. As long as he knew it, he was going to be fine. "Kyell... need anything, if you ever... afraid to ask, you should not be. For you, I am here." She stated with sincerity.

"Now, rest, you should. Tomorrow, with your lessons, we will continue. And later, on some proper expeditions, we will go. A good trip, in a while, we haven't had." She smiled at him as she took a sip from her flask. She was going to help him get stronger, by any means necessary.

Kyell Laysel