Private Into the Living Stone

[Kallous]

"I'm happy to provide." He told her with a smile.

As he set the meat onto the grill to cook it he listened to her answer. And he nodded in agreement as she described what the planet felt like.

"For the most part, I came to the same conclusion. I might word it a little differently, but that is ultimately superficial." He told her as the meat began to heat up. It would be a little while longer before the food was ready, which left them with plenty of time to talk in the meanwhile. "It's a beautiful place. I certainly wouldn't mind coming her every so often to unwind. It's quiet, and peaceful like you said. It would be the perfect place to sit and simply exist for a little while."

His eyes roamed around the area they were setting up in. The sheer beauty of the nature that surrounded them filling him with a sense of calm that he had come to deeply appreciate.

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla smiled as she watched him tend the meat over the fire. There was something quietly satisfying about seeing someone so capable in battle be equally at ease performing simple camp chores. It reminded her that there was more to Kallous than the former Sith he'd once been.

"I can see why you'd come back." She reached into her pack, producing a small tin of ground caf and a pair of battered camping mugs. The water she'd set over the fire earlier had begun to steam, and she carefully spooned the grounds into the mugs before pouring the hot water over them. The rich aroma drifted between them almost immediately.

"Seems only fair we finish the day properly." She leaned forward slightly, setting one of the mugs on a flat stone near the edge of the fire for him to take before wrapping her own hands around the warmth of the other.

She settled back against a fallen log, taking a slow sip.

"It's strange." Her eyes wandered back toward the river, now catching the first glimmers of moonlight. "We've spent months training together on Concordia, and I don't think I've seen you this...relaxed." She chuckled softly into her mug. "Maybe this place is good for both of us."

The thought lingered comfortably between them as the fire crackled, the scent of roasting meat mixed with fresh caf, and the forest settled into its peaceful evening chorus. For the first time since arriving, Veyla found herself hoping they wouldn't be in too much of a hurry to leave once her search was over.

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

Kallous diligently kept his eye on the fire, making sure to tend the cooking meat as needed. The way his friend Ian had taught him so long ago. His thoughts drifted back to her for a moment or two, wondering how she was doing. He'd left rather abruptly, when he departed from her on Veradune. The days spent on that planet had been nigh entirely fruitless, sitting in quiet places as he tried to connect with the force for guidance. He had been able to delve quite far, but the force hadn't given him any guidance. No current to ride, no direction to head, no waves to ride, no star to follow. It simply was, and he couldn't deny that he had grown somewhat frustrated with its silence.

When Seren had called him was when he finally felt something, and as such he had simply gotten up and left with brief goodbyes to his grieving friend. He hadn't been of much use to her, he was not very good with intense emotions like those and had no idea how to help someone who was going through that. Nevertheless he'd also felt bad about just suddenly leaving her.

He pulled his thoughts out of the past and back to the present. he couldn't change what had already been done, much as he wish he would have done differently.

Kallous gratefully picked up the cup offered to him and took a sip. "Thank you."

He set it down before speaking. "Yes. I think it will be. This planet... it's soothing. I feel more. If that makes sense. It's easier to touch the force here, easier to simply exist within it. I know I sound like a broken record, or some obsessed zealot. But it really is a transcendent thing."

He turned the meat over to let the other side cook for a while.

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla smiled over the rim of her mug before taking another sip of the caf.

"You're welcome."

She watched the firelight dance across his face as he tended the meal with practiced care, the orange glow mixing with the fading light of evening. There was something peaceful about seeing him here. Not teaching. Not sparring. Not carrying the weight of his past. Simply sharing a campfire.

"Nah..." she said with a small shake of her head. "I don't hear that from you, Kallous." Her expression softened. "What I hear is a man who's gotten comfortable enough to speak his mind freely with his apprentice..." The corner of her mouth lifted just a little. "...and his friend."

She let the words settle between them without embarrassment or expectation, then breathed in deeply as another breeze carried the aroma of roasting meat through their little camp.

"And..." she added with a quiet laugh, "whatever philosophy the Force has planned for tomorrow can wait until after dinner."

Her stomach chose that exact moment to agree with a faint growl, earning an amused shake of her head.

"The food smells delicious."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

Kallous couldn't hold back the amused grin when her stomach announced its impatience. "I'm glad to hear you approve of my cooking before you've even had it. Ian taught me well."

He flipped the meat again to get the other side one final time before serving it. Adding some last-second spices to it to add a little additional flavor as the meat sizzled. Some minutes later he would pull it off the heat, running a skewer through the spine of each cooked creature and handing one off to Veyla for her to eat.

"I hope you enjoy."

Kallous took a bite out of his food, critiquing his work as he did, taking a few seconds to taste it carefully and see where he might improve next time. He hadn't had too many spices on him, so there was only so much he could do, but nevertheless he mulled it over... and came to the conclusion that he waited a little too long to add the spices he did have. It wasn't bad, but it didn't quite have enough time to fully absorb into the meat the way he wanted it to. He would need more practice.

"Not my finest work." He confessed, before taking another bite.

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla accepted the skewer with an appreciative nod, letting it cool for only a moment before taking her first bite.

She chewed thoughtfully, making a point of giving it an honest assessment rather than simply complimenting his effort. After a second bite, she smiled.

"You're being harder on yourself than I would be." She lifted the skewer slightly in his direction. "It's good."

Another bite disappeared before she continued.

"Could it use another minute with the spices?" she admitted with a small shrug. "Probably." A quiet laugh escaped her. "But we're sitting beside a fire, in the middle of a beautiful forest, eating fresh game that was running around less than an hour ago." She looked around the little campsite before her eyes settled back on him. "I'd say we're doing alright."

She took a drink of her caf, letting the warmth settle before speaking again.

"Besides..." The corner of her mouth lifted. "I've learned over the years that food always tastes better when someone else went to the trouble of catching and cooking it."

She glanced back toward the river, its surface reflecting the last light of day.

"Tomorrow we'll find my crystal." She said it quietly, not with certainty born of confidence, but with the calm conviction that had been growing inside her since they'd arrived. "Tonight..." She raised her mug slightly toward him. "...I'm content just sharing another dinner with you."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

"One can only improve if they are able to identify and acknowledge their shortfalls." He told her with a shrug. "It's not that I'm trying to be hard on myself. I'm just making a note of how I can do better next time. That's all."

He took another sip from his own mug before speaking again. "Nevertheless, I'm very happy that you're pleased with my work. I haven't been cooking for as long as most people would be by my age. A little less than a year now? I'd say some ten months since I prepared my first meal." He chuckled remembering the lessons he'd gotten. "I uh... I treated the whole ordeal as though I'd somehow make it explode. Like somehow mixing salt and pepper would spontaneously combust and destroy the space me and my friend occupied. I was convinced that I was learning how to conduct some form of witchcraft or sorcery."

He was, of course, exagerating a little. Though not for the purpose of deception, in truth he was simply making an attempt to be humorous.

Her final statement earned a satisfied nod from him, "It really is quite pleasant isn't it? Just sitting here in the company of a friend. I've made few friends over the years, and I've learned to cherish times like these. They mean so much more than it might appear on the surface."

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla listened with an amused smile, the image of Kallous cautiously approaching a handful of spices as though they might detonate proving surprisingly easy to picture.

A quiet laugh escaped her.

"Somehow..." she said, shaking her head, "I don't think I'd have paid to see that. I'd have been too worried the kitchen would actually explode."

She reached for the small pot, topping off her own mug before lifting it toward his.

"Would you like some more caf?"

Waiting long enough to refill his mug if he accepted, she settled back once more.

"Truth be told..." she admitted, "I should probably learn how to cook myself." She shrugged with an easy smile. "I can make the basics. Enough to survive. Nothing special." She glanced down at the skewer in her hand before looking at him again.

"Maybe that's something we could learn together." There was an easy warmth in her voice. "Neither of us being the master..." A small grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. "...and both of us being students for a change."

She took another bite of the meal, smiling to herself.

"Seems fair." Her emerald eyes met his over the firelight. "You teach me to listen to the Force. We both figure out how not to burn dinner."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

Kallous politely declined her offer to give him another cup of caf. He didn't think it a very good idea so close to the evening.

He considered this, the idea that the two of them could both learn cooking. It was an essential skill that everyone needed, so he saw no reason why not. He wasn't much of a kitchen cooker though, he was far better when it came to grilling or roasting over an open fire or coalbed. He had no clue what to do with a stovetop or oven. Such things were mysteries well beyond his ken. Nevertheless, it would certainly be worth learning.

"That sounds like a more than reasonable arrangement." Kallous agreed. "I'd be delighted to learn with you."

As he ate he let his eyes wander around the area as the sun slowly dipped below the horizon. The sight of the stars filling the sky, the coniferous trees that surrounded them, the sound of running water, the gentle breeze. All of it lent itself to a truly magical place.

He finished his food soon after.

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla smiled when he agreed, quietly pleased that it wasn't another lesson where one of them stood at the front while the other listened. There was something comforting about the thought of the two of them simply figuring something out together.

She finished the last of her meal and set the skewer beside the fire before leaning back on her hands. The stars were beginning to emerge overhead one by one, bright and unspoiled by city lights. She found herself looking upward almost without thinking.

"My parents used to bring me outside on nights like this."

Her voice was softer now, touched by memory rather than grief.

"We'd sit together after dinner and watch the stars until I started falling asleep." A faint smile crossed her face. "I used to point at them and ask where every single one led. Which worlds were out there. Whether someone was looking back at us from one of them."

She let out a quiet breath, still gazing skyward.

"My father always had an answer." She chuckled to herself. "I'm pretty sure he made up half of them." The smile lingered. "Pirates hiding treasure. Ancient Mandalorian heroes. Creatures big enough to swallow starfighters."

Her eyes drifted from the stars to the fire between them.

"Funny..." she murmured. "Back then I couldn't wait to leave Mandalore and see what was out there." She shook her head gently. "Now I've crossed more of the galaxy than that little girl ever imagined...and all I wanted was to come home."

For a moment she simply watched the flames dance.

"I think she'd be disappointed to know I became a warrior." Another small smile appeared. "She wanted to be an explorer." She glanced over at Kallous. "Maybe...this is close enough."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

Kallous, upon hearing her start to reminisce about her childhood, found himself listening intently. Perhaps with more interest than he'd have expected himself to have. Hearing such a mundane story was, despite its simplicity, something that made him smile as he imagined it. He wondered how he would have turned out, if he'd had a childhood like that. Hearing her speak fondly of her parents made him glad to know that she'd had that.

Even when she mentioned how much it had changed, how she'd wanted to go home once she'd grown up, as opposed to the intensely curious and adventurous young girl she'd been. It spoke of an upbringing that was complete, maybe not always happy, but complete. And he found himself smiling at the thought of a young Veyla, maybe two feet tall, weilding a toy weapon and declaring that she'd find all the secrets the galaxy was hiding from her. It was a picture that kept the smile on his face.

"Well... as far as exploring goes, there's still plenty of time to do that. You never really know everything that's out there. So many places to see, so many things to encounter. From planets like this one, to Star Weirds or ancient ruins. I've been to my own fair share of excavated places, they're not all as exciting as a young Veyla might assume, but some of them can be. I recall encountering a Sith Spirit in one of them, thankfully weakened enough to not pose too much of a threat, but I'm sure you'll get your chance to live those childhood dreams of yours. It's not exactly too late to do such a thing."

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla listened quietly, her eyes never leaving him as he spoke. The firelight danced across his features, and for a moment she found herself wondering how many stories he carried that had never been told.

She let the silence linger before speaking.

"I know your childhood was...very different from mine." There was no pity in her voice, only quiet understanding. "Did you have dreams?" She tilted her head ever so slightly. "Not what someone expected of you. Yours."

Her curiosity shifted as another part of his story caught her attention.

"And what happened with the Sith spirit?" she asked. "I've heard stories, but that's all they've ever been."

She reached over to the fire, carefully lifting the small pot from the flames and setting it on a flat stone to cool for the evening. The fire had done its work, and there was no sense wasting the last of the water.

Settling back against the fallen log once more, she drew her knees up slightly and looked toward the sky. The stars seemed brighter here than anywhere she'd seen in years.

"It's been a long time since I've slept beneath the stars." A peaceful smile found its way onto her face. "I'm glad this is where we ended up..." Her eyes drifted back to him, warm with quiet appreciation. "...and I'm pleased to be sharing it with you."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

He shook his head at her question. "No. No dreams outside of the usual ambitions Sith are taught to have. Gain more power, domination and control were my biggest goals. I thought they were my own, and it wasn't until later in my life that I fully understood that they never were."

Her curiosity was piqued, which earned a smile from him as he began to recount the tale. "My Master, Darth Va'as, had taken me to a planet who's name I've forgotten. It was some time ago. It was a planet that had once been a part of the Sith Empire prior to the Great Hyperspace War. It was where he based himself, kept several slaves to do manual work for him in excavation, mining and other such tasks. He kept for himself a small army too, as many Sith do. He found and opened an old sith tomb, where a holocron was interred. He instructed me to get it for him, and I did."

He took another drink from his mug before continuing. "When I took the holocron from its resting place, I was accosted by the spirit of the sith that had made it. It was, however, ancient enough that the dark rituals binding it to the material world had weakened significantly. Meaning I wasn't immediately destroyed as I am sure I would otherwise have been. My saber could do it no harm, but I could still touch it with the force. So, with my frustration at my inability to hack it apart I bathed it in lightning until it and its screams vanished into the ether."

He leaned back against the tree behind him with a contented sigh. "I'm glad to be here."

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla listened without interrupting, her eyes fixed on the dancing flames as he recounted the story. She could almost picture it: an ancient tomb, forgotten by time, a holocron resting in silence until disturbed, and a spirit too stubborn to surrender even after centuries.

She shivered ever so slightly.

"I'm glad it was weakened." Her voice was quiet, sincere. "I think I'd rather hear stories about Sith spirits than meet one myself."

For a few moments she simply listened to the river and the crackle of the fire, letting the conversation settle between them. Then another thought surfaced, one that had been lingering ever since he'd first mentioned the ability.

"Do you still think I could learn lightning?" she asked, looking over at him. There wasn't excitement in the question so much as curiosity. "You said before it usually comes from strong emotion, and that it wasn't something we should rush into."

She rested her forearms across her knees.

"Has that changed?" she asked. "Or is it still something better left for another day?"

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

He hesitated a moment, considering her question before committing to an answer. He was deeply hesitant to introduce that power to her, he had managed to wriggle free of the hold the dark had on his life, but that power still required complete control of one's emotion. Because more often than not one had to tap into anger or hatred to power it properly. And he did not want her, in such an early stage of her training, to fall prey to the same thing that claimed so many.

But at the same time... the reason the Jedi struggled with this during the era of the Clone War was because they were taught to wholly deny and throw away all emotion, and not to control it or process it properly. So... perhaps...

"If you want me to teach you, I can teach you. However, I will give you a warning ahead of time. It will introduce a side of the force that you have yet to touch. When it comes to the powers the force gives you, your mind is meant to be the control, the helm, the thing that steers you in the right direction. But your emotions, especially powerful ones, are far better for fuelling more intense powers. What used to be simple telekinesis might now crush someone like a tin can. You have to be able to control it, because if you do not it will control you, and you will fall into the same trap that has corrupted so many."

He looked at her serioulsy now, he wouldn't tell her no outright, if she thought she was ready, he would trust her enough to say that she was. He would, however, caution her. And if it turned out that she wasn't ready, he would pull the plug and prevent her from going to far. That would be his duty.

"So... do you think you're ready for that?"

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla didn't answer right away.

Instead, she watched the fire, listening to the wood crackle as another shower of sparks drifted lazily into the night sky. His warning carried weight, and she could hear it in the way he spoke. This wasn't a lesson he feared because it was difficult.

He feared it because it mattered.

She let the silence linger, considering everything he had taught her over the past months. Learning to listen instead of forcing. Learning patience instead of haste. Learning control instead of simply seeking power.

A small smile finally appeared.

"Let me sleep on it."

She glanced toward the river, its surface reflecting the stars overhead.

"It's a little like tomorrow, isn't it?" she said quietly. "Maybe the answer is already there." She looked back to him with a thoughtful expression. "I just haven't heard it yet."

A quiet chuckle escaped her.

"Who knows?" she said, settling back against the log. "Maybe I'll get the answer in my dreams."

The smile remained, gentle and content.

"If nothing else..." she added, "you've taught me that not every question needs answering today."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

He nodded to her answer. "Very wise. Goodnight Veyla."

He leaned back against the tree behind him before closing his eyes to rest. His thoughts turning back to where he had come from, and how far he had come since then. It was a good feeling, to know that someone who had been so vile, evil and wretched as he had been could come so far. Whether he would ever live down everything he'd done as a Sith, he could never know. But he could rest easy in the knowledge that he was better now than he was then.

He hadn't really thought about it very much until he met Veyla, truth be told. His time with the Diarchy had been incredibly busy. It was a good time, he missed it. But it had been busy, and it hadn't allowed him much time to really reflect on just how much his life had changed for the better.

He slept easy that night, easy and peacful until the morning broke and sunlight filled the air. The tweeting of birds and the morning dew on his skin waking him from his slumber. Sitting up, and from there standing in order to stretch. He would need to get them breakfast soon, it was never a good idea to do anything on an empty stomach after all. Besides, Veyla's search was hers, so if she wanted to go after her crystal while he was out hunting, it wouldn't bother him much.

Though if she were still sleeping he would let her. There was no need to bother her before she was ready.

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

The first hints of dawn had found Veyla long before the sunlight reached the forest floor.

Years of habit had woken her naturally, and rather than disturb Kallous, she had quietly coaxed the previous night's embers back to life. Fresh water now rested over the small fire, beginning to steam as the familiar scent of caf slowly filled their little campsite.

With the morning settling gently around her, she stepped a short distance from the camp, leaving enough room that a stray swing would never threaten the fire. Her spear rested against a nearby tree. Instead, her hands were empty.

She moved through the opening kata Kallous had taught her. Each step deliberate. Each breath measured.

The forms were still unfamiliar compared to the instinctive movements of Mandalorian combat, but they were beginning to feel less like borrowed motions and more like her own. Occasionally she would pause, correct the angle of a foot or the position of an arm before beginning again. There was no frustration in the repetition. Only patience.

As the last movement came to its natural conclusion, Veyla lowered her hands and turned, noticing Kallous awake beside the fire.

A warm smile greeted him.

"Morning." She nodded toward the pot suspended over the flames. "I figured you'd appreciate waking up to caf instead of having to make it yourself."

Her gaze drifted toward the forest beyond their camp for just a moment before returning to him.

"I slept well." A thoughtful expression crossed her face. "No answers in my dreams." She chuckled quietly. "But I woke up feeling...lighter."

Kallous

 

[Kallous]

Kallous had not expected to be the last to wake up, truth be told. He wasn't much of a late sleeper, and much like her he was accustomed to waking up early in the morning. So when he woke up to find that she'd been up for a while already, with coffee already on the fire. And on top of that she was going through her kata while waiting for the water to boil. He found himself thoroughly outdone.

"How long did I sleep in?" He asked, now looking to the sky to assess the time of day, and see just how lazy he'd been that morning.

He stretched out, relieving himself of the stiffness that came with sleeping on the ground. Much like she was doing now, he began with a few basic morning exercises. Starting with more formal stretching before a round of pushups and crunches to get the day started.

Once those were done he got himself a mug of the morning brew she'd prepared for them.

"I'll need to watch myself around you." He said with an embarrassed smile. "You'll be getting the better of me sooner rather than later if I allow myself to be so lazy again."

Veyla Krinn

 

[Veyla Krinn]

Veyla smiled, lowering her hands after the final movement of the kata as she caught the faint embarrassment in his expression.

"You didn't." She shook her head lightly. "You slept no later than we've been getting up on Concordia."

She reached for a towel from her pack, wiping the light sheen of sweat from her forehead before glancing up into the branches overhead.

"This is just an unfamiliar place." A quiet laugh escaped her. "I woke up when a nut hit me on the head..." She pointed toward one of the towering trees overlooking their campsite. "From that one...I think."

With an easy shrug, she walked back toward the fire, kneeling long enough to check the water beginning to steam inside the pot.

"I figured I'd let the caf warm while I stretched." She looked back at him with a small, easy smile. "Seemed like a better use of the time than trying to fall asleep again."

She rested her hands on her hips, looking toward the forest where yesterday's search had ended.

"Besides..." she said, her anticipation returning, "I'd rather spend the morning looking for my crystal than sleeping through it."

Kallous