Private Held in the Currents of the Force

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra nodded slowly as she watched the repair droids continue their routines, her attention following the quiet logic holding the facility together.

"Yeah," she said softly. "Automated systems can keep functioning without people if they're designed well enough. Ships do it all the time. But this…"

Her eyes moved around the chamber again.

"…this place is adapting around failures instead of collapsing from them."

At the mention of the fruit, she stepped closer to one of the processing stations, watching the machinery separate pulp and liquid with careful precision.

"I think the gardens are part of the system itself," she murmured thoughtfully. "Water feeds the trees, the trees feed the processors, and the processors probably recycle something back into the facility."

A faint smile touched her lips.

"Honestly, if this wasn't hidden inside a horrifying spider mountain, I'd probably think this place was incredible."

Her fingers brushed lightly against a nearby console before her expression grew more thoughtful again.

"And the fact that everything smells normal is actually reassuring," she added quietly. "No coolant leaks, no decay, no burnouts. Which means either these systems have maintained themselves for a very long time…"

Her gaze drifted deeper into the facility.

"…or someone was here more recently than we think."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He gave her a nod to that and was moving as he debated turning it off and stopped after he got to the other side of the room. He was looking and stopped for a moment... his body going still and the force energies flared.. then collapsed as the jedi master allowed the energies to focus within his body. THen he was moving and grasped with one hand before he was leaping onto he ceiling and grabbing through a hole. THe jedi master launching off of the wall and coming away as the sounds were there of something struggling where he looked at an Anzellen who was struggling in his hand while he held it out and didn't let it go. "Hmmm." He said it with a look while he was going over towards the taable.

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra was still trying to process the idea that this place wasn't abandoned when Syn suddenly went completely still.

Before she could even ask what was wrong, the Force around him compressed violently. He blurred into motion, launching upward into a maintenance gap in the ceiling and reappearing a second later with a tiny, furiously thrashing creature held firmly in his hand.

Lyra instinctively recoiled, her hand darting halfway to her borrowed lightsaber before she realized it wasn't another spider.

It was tiny, vaguely humanoid, and absolutely outraged.

She blinked, staring at the pint-sized being dangling from Syn's grip as old spacer stories clicked into place.

"Wait…is that an Anzellan?" Cautious curiosity replaced her panic, and she leaned a bit closer. "I thought they were legendary droidsmiths and slicers. Not…hermits living secretly inside ancient spider mountains."

She looked between the furious little mechanic and the pristine automated machinery around them, a faint, bewildered smile touching her lips.

"Okay, that somehow raises entirely new questions."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He looked at the thing in his hand and still held it as it was trying to fight and kick but stopped with a small squeeze... not painful but knowing... assuring that it could go one way as he allowed the force to expand outwards to search for more that might be around them. He wasn't sensing any but held the thing up. "I am not certain, it was moving around in the vents." He looked at it but moved over as it seemed to just be unleashing a flurry of curses in rapid fire succession. Taking all of it before the jedi master stayed over the table and press. "Quiet, answer the questions and I'll let you go or I can let you go now." He said it while holding him over the press and his arm was locked in place and not going to falter his grip was sure enough.

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra watched the tiny creature dangling over the fruit press, caught between amusement and disbelief at the steady stream of high-pitched, rapid-fire curses. The sheer confidence of something so small facing down a Jedi Master was genuinely impressive.

"Well," she murmured dryly, circling the table for a better look at the flailing Anzellan, "at least we found a local. Though I don't think he likes you very much, Syn."

Her humor faded slightly as she glanced toward the dark maintenance shafts. If a lone Anzellan was living in the vents of an ancient facility buried inside a spider mountain, it changed everything.

"He must be maintaining this place personally," she said, more seriously. "Automated systems are good, but they still need oversight to stay this stable."

Crouching to meet the furious mechanic at eye level, Lyra softened her voice, trying to counteract Syn's heavy-handed tactics.

"We're not here to hurt you," she said gently. "Spice spiders chased us into the mountain, and we just followed the power grid down here."

She shot a pointed, amused look up at Syn. "Though threatening him with industrial fruit processing equipment might be hurting our diplomatic standing." Turning back to the creature, her expression turned to genuine wonder. "If you've really been keeping this whole place running by yourself...that's incredible."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He gave a nod to what she said and it might have been true but it didn't mean it didn't help in this case as he moved him from over the press and to the table. "If you run, I will catch you and then I will put you back over the press." He said it crossing his arms over his chest as the creature snorted and looked at them both. THen he was sneering and speaking quickly as Syn listened and was following it a little. "I think he is doing it on purpose but sounds like he crashed here.... which means there is a way to the planet from normal space. Which is beneficial information." He said it whiel checking on more of the room but made a point he was always within open space for stopping should be run.

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra watched the Anzellan carefully as Syn set him onto the table, her lips twitching faintly at the immediate, defiant sneer the tiny mechanic gave them both. The threat about the fruit press clearly had not improved his opinion of them, and honestly, she could not entirely blame him. However, when Syn translated the rapid stream of angry speech, her expression sharpened immediately with interest.

"He crashed here?"

That single revelation changed everything, drawing her attention upward instinctively toward the ancient structure and the hidden pathways threading through the mountain. "Then there has to be an access route somewhere," she said thoughtfully, her mind already shifting from survival mode into navigation and logistics as she mapped out the possibilities of landing access, docking infrastructure, or maintenance tunnels.

Glancing back toward the Anzellan, her curiosity rapidly overtook her caution, though judging by the look on the tiny being's face, she was not entirely convinced he intended to cooperate easily. Still, the realization that he did not actually belong here softened her expression, making the facility feel less like an ancient mystery and more like a space where two lost travelers had accidentally stumbled into the territory of a third.

Her eyes shifted briefly toward Syn as amusement flickered faintly again. "You realize this is exactly how stories spiral into increasingly strange territory, right?" she murmured under her breath, gesturing lightly toward the furious little mechanic on the table. "First it was spiders, then hidden ruins, then automated gardens, and now we apparently have an angry tunnel goblin mechanic living inside the walls."

The warmth returned to her voice despite the absurdity of the situation as she crouched a little closer to the Anzellan, careful not to crowd him. "Look, we really aren't trying to cause problems for you," she said softly, offering a brief pause before adding with a flash of dry humor, "honestly, we're mostly trying not to get eaten, and he's much nicer than he sounds when he threatens people with industrial equipment."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He gave her a small look but it wasn't in surprise while he was thinking about it. THe news helped them though as he just needed to find a good place to search with the force initially. He had been operating on the idea that they were somewhere beyond normal ships reach but if he could reach the Alema then he would be able to at least have an option for them when he turned back to look down at the being. "If you help us, I will take you off this planet with us." He said it and moved to not be looming over the technician for the moment while he stood behind Lyra and the little guy seemed to be thinking abou it at the moment. Nodding but still annoyed and cursing... but there was a chance as Syn spoke looking at Lyra. "It migh be the beginning but there are worse things that could be happening."

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra watched the little Anzellan carefully as Syn offered him a way off the planet, and despite the continued stream of irritated muttering and curses, she caught the subtle shift in the mechanic's posture almost immediately.

Hope. Guarded, suspicious hope, but still there. Her expression softened slightly at that.

Because underneath the bizarre situation and the increasingly absurd journey through hidden ruins and spider tunnels, the tiny mechanic suddenly seemed far less like a mysterious inhabitant and far more like someone stranded.

When Syn stepped back behind her, she glanced up at him briefly as he spoke, the faintest smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

"That's true," she admitted quietly. "At least the angry mechanic is smaller than the spiders."

Her eyes drifted back toward the Anzellan afterward.

"And honestly," she added, warmer now, "if he's survived alone down here while keeping all of this running, I'm inclined to respect him a little."

The workshop hummed softly around them while she glanced between the processing systems, repair droids, and hidden maintenance passages threading deeper into the structure.

"Besides," she continued, "if anyone knows how this place actually works, it's probably him."

A faint pause followed before she crouched slightly closer to the Anzellan again, more curious than cautious now.

"You crashed here, maintained an ancient automated facility, and survived a mountain full of spice spiders," she said, unable to keep a little impressed disbelief from her voice. "That's honestly kind of incredible."

Then she glanced sideways toward Syn again, the warmth returning to her expression almost immediately.

"And for the record," she murmured softly enough that it felt more private despite the tiny mechanic still glaring at them, "you're right. There are definitely worse things than getting trapped in mysterious ruins with you."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He gave her a small nod of his head with that and they would be able to find something he was certain about that. the anzellen was there and walking on the table as he didn't leap off but was pointing. Guiding towards some of the paneling as Syn listened and moved towards the wall only touching it. The panels popping off to reveal more wires and he looked. "I have no idea what is there but he seems excited at least so we might be making progress. He looked up though at the roof and remained there before he was turning around. Lyra was a breath of fresh air in this at least and she was more persausive then he was in this case as the little guy was looking at him and moved over towards the wires. Directing them to which ones were to the systems and which ones went deeper into the facility and building with communications on the roof.

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra stepped closer as the panels came loose from the wall, her attention sharpening immediately once the wiring was exposed. Compared to hidden Force visions and spider tunnels, this at least made sense to her.

The Anzellan hurried across the table, pointing rapidly toward different bundles of conduits while muttering under his breath. Lyra followed the pathways carefully, noticing almost immediately that some systems looped locally through the gardens and workshop while others stretched deeper into the facility.

"He's separating the maintenance systems from the communications lines," she said thoughtfully, glancing toward Syn. "The heavier conduits are keeping the facility running, but those smaller ones are carrying signal traffic somewhere higher up."

Her eyes traced the wiring as it disappeared toward the upper structure.

"If communications are still active, then parts of this place are probably still monitoring themselves in real time."

That thought lingered uneasily for a moment before her attention shifted back toward the tiny mechanic. The excitement in his movements was unmistakable now.

"You've been maintaining all of this by yourself, haven't you?" she asked quietly, genuine admiration slipping into her voice.

Then she glanced back toward Syn, faint amusement returning.

"I think he likes us slightly more now that we stopped threatening to drop him into industrial fruit processing equipment."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He gave a nod and the news that it was higher up had the jedi master looking up more and more into the ceiling and upper areas of the building. He touched the wall where he could grip it though and started to climb until he reached the top and there were not many places to grab but he dug his fingers itno the wall and then the ceiling as he balanced himself there. Allowing the force itself to reach out from his body as one hand pulled the saber to his hand and activated it. The blade digging ino the ceiling itself where he could look down. The press as going but Lyra knew better where everything was as the jedi master started to push the stone up.

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra watched him climb with a mixture of disbelief and growing familiarity, because at this point she probably should have stopped being surprised when he simply decided gravity was more of a suggestion than a rule.

Still, seeing him balance against the ceiling while carving into ancient stone with a lightsaber was a difficult image to normalize.

"You know," she called upward, stepping back from the machinery as fragments of stone began falling toward the workshop floor, "most people use ladders when they want to reach the upper levels."

There was warmth in the comment, though, not criticism.

Her attention quickly shifted back to the exposed systems as the ceiling began to open further. The Anzellan was still gesturing emphatically toward the communications lines, and Lyra crouched beside the paneling again, following the circuitry while Syn worked above.

"Careful where you cut," she added, glancing up again. "Those thinner conduits are carrying signal traffic. If you sever the wrong cluster, we could lose whatever system he's trying to show us."

Her fingers brushed lightly along one of the wires before she looked toward the tiny mechanic again.

"He's directing us toward the communications hub specifically," she said thoughtfully. "Which means either there's something important up there…"

A faint pause followed as she glanced toward the widening opening in the ceiling.

"…or someone."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He could hear her while he was cutting into the stone with a nod of his head. important wires, check... possibly someone up there or something check. He was prepared as the saber went in and he slid it in more. The stone starting to fall a little when he was cutting it. Stopping once he had it as the force was lifting it, pressing up and against it before parts of it could fall and smash into the floor and into the equipment. He pushed it up as the air changed but he lifted it and looked down being able to see Lyraa though as he gave a nod. "If there is something find out, we will be able to handle it. Just alert me if there is something after the pair of you."

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra glanced up as the slab of stone rose through the opening, held aloft by the Force before it could crash down into the machinery below. Even after everything she had seen him do, there was still something faintly ridiculous about watching someone casually lift part of a ceiling while carrying on a conversation.

The workshop remained quiet around her, save for the hum of machinery and the irritated muttering of the Anzellan as he continued directing them toward whatever waited deeper in the facility.

"Copy," she called back up, her voice carrying easily through the opening.

Her attention immediately shifted afterward, blue eyes sweeping across the room while her hand rested lightly against the exposed paneling beside her. She listened to the rhythm of the machines, watched the repair droids continue their work, and searched for any sign that something had changed now that they were actively cutting their way upward.

So far, nothing. No alarms. No rushing footsteps. No horrifying spiders deciding to investigate.

"Nothing coming yet," she reported, tilting her head slightly as she listened to the facility around them. "Either nobody noticed you cut a hole through the ceiling, or this place is somehow even stranger than we thought."

A faint smile tugged at her lips as she looked toward the Anzellan, who still seemed far more offended by their existence than concerned about the damaged structure above him.

"Though if something does come running, I have a feeling our little friend is going to start yelling long before I do."

She returned her attention to the exposed communications lines afterward, staying close enough to monitor the systems while keeping one eye on the widening opening above.

"Just try not to drop the roof on us, alright?" she added, warmth threading through the comment. "I'd hate to explain to people that we survived the spiders and got taken out by architecture."

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

He was listening to her and gave a nod of his head with her words. "Agreed." He was checking it as he remained there and allowed the room to settle around him. His senses were expanding outwards to sense what was there and he moved towards the walls themselves. He was able to check on more of it before looking out the window to provide some information now when he touched it and there was some dust but it could also open up to the outside. The little thing had said there was communication on the roof as he stayed there but wasn't leaving anything to chance. He wasn't going to divide himself from Lyra for too long not out of worry but because it was not smart to separate for longer periods of time when he came back around. "There is an open window here that can go to the roof."

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra looked up from the communications panel at that announcement, her expression immediately shifting into the kind of skepticism normally reserved for mechanics who claimed they had fixed something "permanently."

"An open window?" she repeated.

The pilot slowly rose to her feet and stared upward toward where Syn was standing, as though hoping the statement would become more reasonable if she gave it enough time. It did not.

"Are you sure it's a window and not a very creative way to vent the atmosphere?"

The question was only half a joke. Given their luck so far, she felt it was a perfectly reasonable concern.

Leaving the panel behind, she crossed the workshop floor and tilted her head upward, studying the opening while trying to determine whether the facility looked designed to tolerate exposure to the outside environment.

"Because if I've learned anything today, it's that this mountain enjoys surprises, and most of those surprises have involved spiders, hidden ruins, or both."

A faint smile tugged at her lips despite herself.

"I'd just like some warning before we add explosive decompression to the list."

Her eyes drifted briefly toward the Anzellan, who had thus far proven remarkably unhelpful at explaining things before they happened.

"Though admittedly," she added, "if our tiny mechanic friend has been using it, that's probably a good sign."

Probably. She wasn't entirely willing to commit to that conclusion yet.

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

"Ahhh not sure I would be able to feel the difference. The way it is set up is with metal slats." He gave her a look down the hole though and was going. "But it is cool up here so if it is for heat and to change the air then we will be wanting to know when it does." He said it while he was moving though but stayed up there with a smaller look. Clipping an anchor to it that would allow it to hold as he was lowering it for Lyra if she wanted to see he was move checking what was around them in the force. the vents were here but so far there was nothing within them. "If there is something here, for the moment it is asleep and he does not seem forthcoming, so we will continue to be on our guard."

 

[Lyra Ventor]

Lyra had been considering the practical merits of the lowered anchor and the possibility that Syn was about to convince her to climb through yet another suspicious opening when the second half of his statement finally caught up with her.

She stopped and slowly looked up toward him.

"...Did you just say there is a sleeping creature up there?"

The question came out far calmer than she actually felt.

"Because I want to be very clear about something, Syn. You cannot casually hide that information in the middle of a sentence."

Her gaze shifted from him to the opening above, suspicion growing with every passing second.

"An open window? Fine. Metal slats? Fine. Strange ventilation system inside an ancient hidden facility? Still mostly fine. But a sleeping creature is the sort of detail people usually lead with."

Despite the complaint, she was already moving toward the anchor line, peering upward into the dim space beyond while trying unsuccessfully to determine what exactly qualified as a creature in Syn's vocabulary.

Recent experience had taught her that the answer could range anywhere from a harmless animal to something capable of swallowing a speeder whole.

"How large is it?" she asked cautiously, one hand settling on the line. "Because your definitions and my definitions haven't always aligned during this expedition, and I'd like to know whether we're talking about something the size of a loth-cat or something that considers us a light snack."

A faint sigh escaped her as she looked upward again.

"I'm beginning to think every time we solve one mystery, this mountain immediately creates another."

Nevertheless, she wrapped her fingers around the anchor and prepared to climb, because despite all evidence suggesting this was a terrible idea, she was apparently still following him into yet another unexplored section of the ruin.

Syn

 

[Syn]

Lyra Ventor

"That was more speculative then definitive Lyra." He said it but was looking at her while he remained crushed there and looked down. "There is nothing in here with me, otherwise it would already be known." He said it offering a small nod of acknowledgement though as he was more then glad for her words. He was looking at her preparing to come up and spoke about the place. "Yes but mysteries are something the galaxy has many of and there are only so many most can solve in a lifetime. Even with the force to aid your insight." THe jedi master though remained visible for her while and if she chose to climb up as he was reaching out and checking the areas to make sure nothing was there.