Private Marks that Maps Forgot

[Meri Vale]

Meri went very still when he pointed it out.

Not frozen—listening.

Her eyes tracked the line of symbols along the wall as he indicated them, following the repetition she had noticed before but hadn't fully accounted for. Triangle. Spiral. Curved lines. Again and again, always in that order, never broken, never reversed. Her fingers curled slightly at her side as the idea settled, not all at once, but in layers.

"I was thinking about what they meant," she said quietly, almost apologetically. "Not about how they were used."

She shifted her weight, careful not to step onto anything yet, and looked down at the floor where the symbols were worked into the stone.

"If the room is teaching," Meri continued slowly, "then it wouldn't just want someone to understand the sequence in theory. It would want them to experience it. To move through it the way it's meant to be learned."

She glanced up at Vex, uncertainty still present, but something steadier beneath it now.

"So if stepping on the curved lines didn't do anything on their own," she said, "then maybe that's because they're not meant to be first. Or even second. They only matter once the choice has been made, and the effort has already happened."

Her gaze returned to the triangle, then the spiral beyond it.

"I think you're right," Meri admitted softly. "The constant isn't just the symbols themselves. It's the order they ask you to move in."

She took a slow breath, grounding herself, and edged just close enough to the triangle to test the distance without committing to it.

"I don't know for certain," she added, careful to say it aloud, "but if this room is meant to teach patience and intention, then standing in the wrong place at the wrong time wouldn't be punished. It just… wouldn't respond."

She paused there, not stepping forward yet, giving the room a moment as if it might object.

"If we do it," Meri said at last, "I think it should be deliberate. One step at a time. And we should be ready to stop if something feels wrong."

Her eyes lifted to Vex again, quietly seeking confirmation rather than approval.

"I can try first," she offered, hesitant but willing. "If that's all right."

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Master Drakkon listened to Meri basically apologize for not thinking of how each of the symbols were used, which was usual for such younglings adapted to the force. With the proper guidance, things would change drastically in the matter of weeks. But for now, that was not the intention Vex had. His main focus was on what everything would lead them to, but helping Meri along the way would be good for both of them. "You have done excellent so far and I do not expect you to be disencouraged so easily. Even without my help, you would have eventually solved the puzzle, that much I know for a fact." He admitted, hoping to instill some confidence back in the young female.

As Meri began to digest the situation, picking away at the possible theories in which to solve the puzzle, Vex listened carefully, taking in the way she thought during such situations, giving him a bit of information on how she could handle things. Meri studied the symbols and Vex studied her, like a Master would with their Padawan. "Not only is this room for teaching, but the entire place was used to help guide younglings to a better understanding of how the force works overall." His voice echoed within the room, while the Jedi moved to the center, allowing Meri to take the lead.

Meri was curious and to some that was not a good thing, but Vex knew that when it came to teaching, it was always best to allow their students to have an open mind, especially when it came to learning about the force. Seeing that the young girl was also eager to not only learn, but to use what they learned to benefit their situation in general. This had Vex excited to see how far Meri would make it through the ruins, plus there was something that the Master Jedi was looking for in the process of this all. The question is, would Vex obtain what he came searching for in the ruins? Time would answer that question. As for now, Vex remained still in the middle of the room, with his full attention on the young girl.

With Meri suggesting on how to solve the final bit of this puzzle, Vex nodded happily before speaking. She wanted to be the one to step on each of the symbols in the correct sequence, so the Master Jedi wasn’t going to stop her. "Please, do. You have been so patient and intelligent through all of this, so I think you deserve to take the lead." He said happily, forming that warm smile once more that was seen clearly from the cyan blade of Vex’s lightsaber.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri inhaled slowly at his encouragement, letting the air settle her nerves before she moved. Praise still made her uncomfortable, but something was grounding in the way Vex stepped back and gave her the space to decide for herself.

"I'll be careful," she said softly. Not a promise of success, just of intention.

She didn't step forward right away. Instead, she stood still for a moment longer, eyes retracing the symbols, not just on the floor but along the walls, the way they repeated without deviation. Triangle. Spiral. Curved lines. Always the same order. Always patient.

"This feels like it matters," she murmured, almost to herself. "Not just that it works, but how it works."

When she moved, it was deliberate.

Meri stepped onto the triangle first, placing her foot squarely within its worn edges. She paused there, waiting not for something to happen, but to see if something felt different. When nothing reacted, she didn't panic. She nodded faintly, as if confirming a thought.

Then she stepped to the spiral.

This time she lingered longer, weight shifting slowly as if acknowledging the symbol's meaning rather than simply activating it. The room remained quiet, but the silence felt attentive now, less empty than before.

Finally, she approached the curved lines.

Her pulse quickened, and she hesitated just a fraction of a second before stepping onto them, careful not to rush the moment. She held her breath, every sense tuned for change, ready to pull back if something felt wrong.

"I might have misunderstood," she said quietly, even as she stood there. "But if this place is meant to teach…then it won't punish us for trying."

She stayed where she was, balanced and still, waiting to see if the room would answer—not assuming it would, but hoping she'd listened well enough for it to matter.

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Master Drakkon folded each of his arms against their chest gently, watching Meri with a very careful eye because of what she was about to do. It may seem like a very simple task, but these ruins could have been booby-trapped in order to keep people out, regardless of what was left inside. His eyes watched through the cyan light at each of Meri’s carefully planned steps. First it was the Triangle, then the Spiral, followed up with the two curved lines. As she passed over each one, a small, yet faint click was heard until all three made the same sound.

For a few seconds of waiting for something to happen, they just stood there wondering where they went wrong. But before Vex could begin to explain, the sound of stone grinding against each other echoed through the very room in which Vex and Meri both stood. "Stay close!" He spoke firmly, grabbing the shoulder of the young girl, then pulling her close to his side, and continued to wait for what was happening. The sound didn’t seem to stop, dragging on for what felt like forever, until Vex caught a glimpse of the floor missing from the corner of his eye.

Before the Master Jedi pointed out what had happened, he wanted to wait until the sounds stopped, so that he could explain to Meri what was going on. Just when the crushing stones stopped, a spark of light ignited from within the hole, lighting a small line of fire, much like a fuse to a bomb. Instead of a massive explosion, the fire ignited two torches that hung from the side of the wall within. The small line of fire continued to spark life into every torch that hung within the next layer of the ruins. "All right, let’s see what we got ourselves into," He let out a small chuckle, before stepping forth with the ignited lightsaber in hand.

As both Vex and Meri moved closer to investigate this new hole within the room, they would notice that it was not a hole, but a set of stairs that would lead them deeper into the ruins. "Allow me to go first, I don’t want you getting hurt from hidden traps that may lie within," He said with caution, stepping forward once more to go down the stone steps into the long hallway ahead of him. Once both feet hit the floor, that was when Vex turned and nodded confidently towards Meri. "Come, we have more to explore." His words echoed throughout the hallway in which he was currently standing.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri froze when the first click sounded, every careful thought she had lined up suddenly scattering as the room answered her in a language far older than certainty. She did not move, not because she was brave, but because she was afraid that moving without understanding would make everything worse.

When the grinding began, her breath caught. Stone shifting against stone was never a comforting sound, not in ruins like these, not in places that remembered how to hurt the careless. She startled slightly when Master Drakkon's hand came to her shoulder, instinctively leaning closer rather than pulling away, eyes tracking the shadows as if they might suddenly decide to move on their own.

For a heartbeat, she was sure she had made a mistake.

Then the light appeared.

Not an explosion. Not a trap. Just fire, careful and deliberate, waking torches that had waited centuries to be seen again. Meri let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, her shoulders loosening as the room revealed itself bit by bit.

"So…it wasn't meant to stop anyone," she murmured, more to herself than to him. Her voice was quiet, thoughtful, still carrying uncertainty. "It was meant to be followed."

She edged closer to the opening, careful not to step too near the edge, peering down at the stone stairs now visible beneath the torchlight. The steps were worn, softened by countless feet that had passed this way long before her.

"I think," she added slowly, choosing each word with care, "it wanted whoever came here to trust the sequence…but not rush it."

When Vex offered to go first, she nodded without hesitation, relief flickering briefly across her expression. As he descended, she followed at a respectful distance, one hand trailing lightly along the wall, grounding herself in the texture of the stone.

Her heart was still racing, but beneath it was something steadier now. Curiosity. Cautious wonder.

Whatever waited below, it felt less like a warning—and more like an invitation she was only beginning to understand.

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

With the lights from the torches able to lead the duo through the ruins, Master Drakkon deactivated the lightsaber, placing the hilt back upon their utility belt, while watching Meri make their way down the stone stairs. With one hand gently caressing the wall as they moved forward, Meri seemed more curious now than ever before. Vex understood the curiosity more than anyone, especially at that age when a child is full of questions, always wondering what the galaxy had to offer. The mind of a child was truly amazing because of how vast their imagination dragged on, it was like they understood the world the moment they laid eyes on it.

When Meri finally caught up to the Master Jedi, Vex smiled warmly once more, proud of how far they have come together as a unit. Within the stone walls that Meri was touching along the way, were the symbols that they both came to know and understand all this time. The Triangle, Spiral, and Two Curved Lines. The sequence stretched on through the ruins, even under the surface of the planet. "You are right about trusting the sequence, but there is also more to what you are seeing. It also wants you to trust in the force. That sensation you get in the pit of your stomach, the one that helped you solve the puzzles before, that was the force, guiding you from within. Always trust that feeling, young one." He spoke proudly, while informing Meri about some of the lessons the ruins hold within.

As Meri closed the distance between the two of them, Vex turned and started to trek forward once more. The torches would lead them to the next chamber of the ruins, which might be the hardest challenge yet for the duo. Regardless of what was to come, Master Drakkon walked side-by-side with Meri, making their way through the dimly lit hall. The stairs behind them faded into darkness, the hall finally coming to an end, with only two other ways to go, unless they decided to turn around now. The tall man came to a halt, looking in both directions for a hint of where they should possibly go. Instead of making the decision himself, Vex looked down at Meri and spoke calmly. "This is your moment, young one. Close your eyes, reach deep within yourself, and let me know which way your gut tells us to go." His tone was firm, yet confident because of the trust he had in Meri.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri slowed when he stopped, the quiet of the chamber settling around them in a way that felt heavier than the rooms before. The torches behind them cast long shadows that stretched and overlapped, making both paths ahead seem deeper than they really were. For a moment, she just stood there, fingers brushing lightly against the stone at her side as if grounding herself.

At his words, she hesitated.

"I…don't usually trust my gut," she admitted softly, the confession slipping out before she could stop it. "At least, not without checking it against something I can see first."

Still, she did as he asked.

Meri drew a slow breath in, then let it out, closing her eyes even though it felt strange to do so in a place like this. Without sight, the ruins felt different. Less like stone and symbols, more like…pressure. Presence. Not loud, not urgent, but there all the same.

Her brow furrowed slightly as she listened to herself, to the quiet space inside her chest where thoughts usually tangled. There was a pull there, faint and uncertain, like a suggestion rather than a command. One direction didn't feel wrong exactly, but it felt heavier, crowded somehow. The other felt…open. Not safe. Just open.

After a few seconds, she opened her eyes again, uncertainty still written plainly across her face.

"I might be wrong," she said carefully, already qualifying the answer as she always did. "But one way feels like it's asking something of us. Like a test we're supposed to understand before we pass it."

Her gaze shifted toward the other passage, lingering there a moment longer.

"And that one," she added, quieter now, "doesn't feel empty, but it feels…patient. Like it's willing to wait if we don't choose it."

She glanced up at Vex, searching his expression for reassurance rather than approval.

"If this place really is meant to teach," Meri said slowly, "then maybe it isn't about choosing the right path. Maybe it's about choosing the one we're ready for."

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Master Vex Drakkon remained still, wrapping both arms against his chest, while listening to Meri explain how they didn’t rely on their gut instincts. Instead, they were the type that needed to see something in order to determine their next move. This was a technique used by those with a more broad look upon life and what it may bring them. It was certainly not a bad thing, at least not in the eyes of Vex. "Hm, a lesson for another time," He stated with a pause at the end, while changing his focus on the two directions they could follow. "Never be too quick to dismiss that feeling, even if you think you need to see everything to determine the next move." He added softly.

When Meri began to doubt their decision on which way they should travel next, that was when Master Drakkon spoke out to help reassure the young girl. "In a place like this, there is no wrong way, especially when the decision comes from someone such as yourself, Meri. But," He paused once again, looking down at her with that same warm smile. "Never doubt yourself. You have come so far with very little guidance and that alone explains a lot." He finished speaking, while putting their full attention back on the young girl.

Vex was happy to hear that Meri was discovering the use of the ruins in which they stood in, allowing herself to feel more confident in their choice. Regardless of the choice Meri would make, Master Drakkon would follow her along the way, helping guide her throughout their adventure within the ruins. "And which path best suits you, young one?" He questioned her, ready to hear which path they would explore next. It didn’t matter where they went because Vex knew that both paths would eventually lead to the same location in the end.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri stood quietly for a moment after he finished speaking, eyes moving between the two paths ahead of them. She did not answer right away. Instead, she drew a slow breath, as if grounding herself in the feel of the stone beneath her boots and the faint, steady warmth of the torches along the walls.

"I am not very good at trusting feelings on their own," she admitted softly, not looking at him at first. "They can be… loud. Or misleading. At least for me." Her fingers curled briefly at her side, a small, unconscious gesture. "Seeing things helps me understand them. It gives me something solid to work from."

She glanced up at Vex then, uncertainty still there, but tempered now by thought rather than fear. "But I think I understand what you mean," she added after a pause. "Maybe it is not about choosing one over the other. Seeing first, and then listening."

Her gaze returned to the paths. One of them seemed more worn than the other, the stone smoothed by many passes over time. The other was narrower, its markings less disturbed, the symbols along the wall slightly clearer.

"I am not sure," Meri said honestly. "But… this way," she continued, gesturing toward the less-traveled path, "feels like it was meant to be noticed, not rushed. Like whoever walked it was supposed to slow down."

She hesitated again, then nodded once, more to herself than to him. "I could be wrong. But I would like to try that one. If that is all right."

Her voice was careful, thoughtful, carrying possibility rather than certainty as she waited for his response.

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Master Drakkon could tell that Meri was torn on which way they should choose to follow. Regardless of their choice, Vex remained still, eyes focused downward on the young girl. Hearing her confess that she wasn’t very good at trusting their gut feeling, only caused Vex to smile more because he felt that maybe time would change their view on things. As for now, he stood with both arms crossed against his chest, waiting to hear where they would go next.

Seeing that Meri was still unsure which way they would like to go, it finally hit them and the young girl pointed the way, asking if it was all right with Master Drakkon if they could go the way she insisted. "Then we take our time, soak in this place, feel it out more.”" He replied, moving forward flowy, while guiding Meri down the path she chose. The walls that surrounded them continued to glow brightly from the torches that hung just high enough to keep the light within their eyesight.

There was something that continued to bother Vex deep down, and that was the fact that this child was alone inside a place that could potentially hold danger. As they walked slowly down the hallway, that was when Vex decided to ask the question that bugged him from the very beginning of their meeting. "How come you are here all alone, kid?" He glanced over, trying to see the reaction Meri would make from the question thrown her way. Master Vex wasn’t trying to pry, but he was truly worried for Meri and wanted nothing but the best for them.

The symbols that were carved in the walls had vanished completely, with nothing remaining in its place. It was bare, nothing to show and nothing to hide. The only thing left was to keep forward and continue to take in everything they could. Maybe there was something hiding, or maybe at the end of the corridor, they might be something more for them to solve. Regardless, Master Vex Drakkon remained calm, walking slow and trying to keep the conversation going with Meri Vale.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri slowed a little when he asked, not stopping outright but letting the question settle between them as her fingers traced the cool stone of the corridor wall. The pause lingered, thoughtful rather than evasive, before she finally spoke.

"I didn't expect to be," she said quietly, her voice even but subdued. "Alone, I mean."

Her gaze stayed forward, following the steady line of torchlight along the passage instead of lifting to meet his. Walking helped. It kept the memories from crowding too close.

"There were people once," she continued after a moment. "Family. Instructors. Others whose job it was to make sure I was never by myself, never unguarded, never unprepared." A faint breath escaped her, not quite a laugh. "For a long time, that was simply how life worked."

She took another step, then another, her words coming more slowly now, shaped with care.

"That changed when staying became dangerous," Meri said. "Not because I made a mistake, or because I went looking for trouble, but because of circumstances I had no control over. Being visible stopped being safe. So…I learned to move quietly instead."

Her hand slipped from the wall, folding loosely at her side as she straightened a little.

"I learned how to travel without being noticed," she went on. "How to listen more than I spoke. How to rely on things that don't shift with politics or fear. Old places. Ruins. Patterns that have endured longer than people's memories of them."

The corridor ahead remained bare now, stripped of symbols, as if inviting them forward on trust alone.

"That's why I came here," Meri finished, her tone soft but steady. "Ancient places don't ask who you were born as, or what you were meant to inherit. They only ask whether you are willing to pay attention."

After a brief pause, she added, almost under her breath, "And because I didn't want fear to be the only thing guiding me anymore."

She kept walking then, her pace calm, leaving the rest unsaid but not hidden, trusting that Master Drakkon would understand the shape of what she had shared without needing the names she chose not to give.

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Vex could sense the tension rise as he brought up the fact that Meri Vale was all alone. She slowed their pace slightly, almost as if they were letting the realization sink in. The Jedi Master didn’t say a single word, only listening to every word that the young girl had to say, while keeping pace with them in the process. Life is never easy, even with the proper guidance things can be a bit overwhelming, but the main thing is that giving up is not an option because there are others out there who cared about Meri whether she realized that or not.

Hearing her explain the situation of why she was alone didn’t cause Master Drakkon to speak. Instead, he looked ahead of them both to see exactly where they were within the long hallway, still listening to Meri Vale reveal how they adapted to being alone as well. It was obvious that the young girl needed guidance, which is why Vex continued to help her inside the ruins. If she were to get through this maze without much help, the Jedi Master would offer Meri a life of adventures, training, and guidance through it all. If she would not accept the offer, then Vex would gladly part ways in the end, and continue their mission.

When Meri Vale finished speaking, Master Drakkon placed his hand upon the young girl’s shoulder gently to comfort her, especially when he knew the feeling of being alone all too well. "Fear is an emotion that will only attract you to a life of darkness," He paused for a moment, slowing his pace, while looking down at Meri. "Not like the darkness inside this very place before the torches were lit, but something that brings pain and hatred in one’s life." He finished speaking, putting his attention back on the long hall they were walking down.

As the duo continued down the hallway that seemed to stretch on forever, another stone door was now visible in the distance. When they reached the door together, both Vex and Meri would notice the same mechanism as earlier with the same symbols stretching in a circle within the dial that needed to be turned in order to open. The combination was going to be a bit different this time, leaving them with more questions than anything else. Vex stopped, crossed their arms against his chest, and stared down the dial for a short period of time, before finally turning to see Meri’s reaction to seeing another stone door. "Hm, another door. What’s on your mind, young one?" He asked Meri a question, only to see where their mind was on the matter.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri did not answer right away.

She slowed just a fraction more, not stopping, but letting the space between steps stretch as the corridor carried their footsteps forward. The torches threw long shadows across the stone, and for a moment she watched them instead of Vex, as if they were safer to look at.

"I know what you mean," she said quietly at last. "About fear pulling things in the wrong direction."

Her hands folded together briefly at her waist, fingers worrying the edge of one sleeve before she forced them still.

"I've seen what hatred does," Meri continued, choosing each word with care. "Not as an idea. As something… lived in. Panathea was my home. It was beautiful, once. Structured. Proud. There were rules and rituals and a sense that everything had its place." She hesitated, then added, softer, "Until it didn't."

Her voice did not break, but it thinned slightly.

"I didn't leave because I wanted adventure," she said. "I left because there was fire. Because my House burned, and what followed wasn't something you could reason with. I learned very early that anger doesn't just destroy what it's aimed at. It consumes everything nearby, too."

She lifted her gaze to him briefly, earnest but restrained. "I don't want to carry that forward. I don't want it deciding who I become."

When they reached the next stone door, Meri let the conversation settle into silence on its own. She stepped closer to the mechanism, attention shifting naturally, almost gratefully, back to the work.

Her eyes traced the circular dial, then the surrounding stone. She looked for the familiar clues first, scanning the walls, the floor, the trim, any echo of the repeating symbols that had guided them before. Triangle. Spiral. Curved lines. But this space felt different. Cleaner. Less instructive.

"I don't see the same patterns," she murmured, more observation than conclusion. "Nothing guiding the order from the room itself."

She crouched and leaned closer to the mechanism, studying the dial's grooves, the wear along its edges, the way the symbols were carved slightly deeper here than before.

"Which means," Meri said after a moment, uncertainty still present but focused now, "the answer probably isn't around us this time. It's in how this was built. How it wants to move."

Her fingers hovered just above the stone, not touching yet.

"I think this door wants us to understand it before we act," she added quietly. "Not just repeat what worked before."

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Vex did not ignore Meri’s confession of their past. Instead, he was focused on the stone door that held them from going forward. He wanted to wait for the right moment to let the young girl know that the past is just that. For now, he could see that Meri was examining their surroundings to try and solve the only question on their mind. The Jedi Master had a feeling this obstacle may be the hardest of them all, but he also had faith that Meri would get through with very little effort.

When the young girl finished speaking, Vex smiled warmly once more. She was on to something, making the Jedi Master move forward, attempting to twist the dial with their hand. It didn’t move at all, so Vex pulled away, thinking of what they may have to do in order to move forward. "You are correct, young one. There is more to this door than the typical sequence we have used before." he replied, while pondering on the next move. He stood beside the young girl, eyes on the stone door, mind deep in thought for only a short moment.

After a few seconds of wondering how they could get through, Vex glanced down at Meri with that same smile present on their face. "Trauma has brought you much knowledge and courage, Meri. It is a very unfortunate thing, especially for someone so young. But you don’t have to worry about that anymore. The past is something we can’t change, but the future, that is another story. You have control over what comes next, not what has already happened." He spoke in a calm tone, reassuring the young girl that she has the ability to determine their future.

As Master Drakkon put their attention back to the dial, he began to step forward to get a better look at everything. It was at that very moment when he spotted a barely visible symbol. He quickly reached forward and started to wipe away the grime and dirt that covered what looked like a Square. In that moment, Vex had the eureka moment, looking around to see if he could spot anything else that may look hidden within the dirty stone. "I think the dial is covered as well. Try to clean it off to see if there are any other symbols we need to look for." He spoke politely, but with a tone of haste as well.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri did not answer right away. She listened, really listened, letting his words settle instead of brushing past them, allowing them to find their place before she tried to respond. When she finally spoke, her voice stayed soft and careful, as if each thought needed to be set down gently so it would not fracture under its own weight.

"I know I can't change it," she said quietly. "I don't think I ever believed that I could." Her fingers curled and uncured at her side in a small, grounding motion, the kind that came from habit rather than conscious choice. "But I don't think forgetting it would make things better either. It feels dishonest. Like pretending a stone was never there just because you learned how to step around it."

Her gaze drifted back to the door, to the worn stone and the layers of time clinging to it.

"Maybe that's why I like places like this," Meri continued after a moment. "Temples. Ruins. Old things that are still standing even after everything that happened to them. They remember, but they don't stop existing because of it."

At his suggestion, she nodded once and moved closer, kneeling again at the base of the door. Her attention narrowed until the rest of the chamber faded into a quiet background presence. The air here felt older than the corridors behind them, heavier somehow, as if it remembered being touched less often. She brushed her fingers along the stone until she found a spot where the grime loosened more easily, then used the edge of her sleeve to wipe the dial surface carefully, slowly, and deliberately, watching for anything that resisted the natural patterns of wear.

"I don't think it wants us to hurry," she murmured, almost as if she were speaking to the door itself. "Places like this usually punish impatience more than mistakes."

As more dirt came away, a shallow shape emerged beneath her hands, one she had not seen before. She paused, breath held, and leaned closer.

"This one's different," Meri said softly.

She traced the outline in the air without touching it directly. A square, its edges softened by time rather than worn away, set slightly apart from the others as though it were meant to be noticed only after patience had been proven.

"That makes four," she said, glancing briefly toward Vex before returning her focus to the mechanism. "Triangle. Spiral. Curved lines. And now this." Her brow furrowed faintly as she considered it. "It feels grounding. Like a pause."

She shifted back just enough to study the surrounding stonework, eyes following the way dust collected in certain channels and avoided others. Something along the wall to the left tugged at her attention, subtle but persistent. Meri moved closer and brushed there as well, sleeve darkening as the grime came away, revealing another pattern, not carved so much as pressed into the stone long ago. Two parallel lines, faint and nearly erased, running horizontally beneath the surface.

Her breath caught, just slightly.

"They're not just on the door," she said, quieter now. "They're teaching from the space around it too."

Meri sat back on her heels, taking in both discoveries together, the square on the dial and the parallel lines on the wall. Her confidence did not surge or sharpen. Instead, it settled into something thoughtful and restrained, like a theory she was willing to test but not yet claim.

"I don't know the order yet," she admitted. "But I don't think this is only about sequence anymore. It feels like each symbol represents a way of approaching a choice. Motion. Reflection. Completion. And now…" She hesitated, searching for the right word. "Stability."

She wiped her hands on her trousers and looked back at the door, eyes steady but questioning.

"Maybe the answer isn't just which one comes first," Meri said quietly. "Maybe it's which one you stand on last."

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

The Master Jedi listened carefully to Meri’s suggestion on how the room may work this time, while continuing to brush away the dirt and grime that seemed to be held to the stone for centuries. "You are smart, Meri Vale. Hurrying in such a situation would only cause delay in finding the answer," He paused for a moment, wiping away at the stone wall with hopes of finding more information on how to move forward through the ruins. But as Meri said, this specific area is meant for patience to see if the younglings were able to solve the puzzle without acting upon sudden emotions.

When Meri mentioned another symbol that was different from the rest, Vex quickly stopped what he was doing, and turned around to examine the symbol from a distance. A square. It was a simple shape much like the rest, but would it be the last one both Meri and Vex find, or was there more to the puzzle that they were missing? "Very good, young one," His voice filled with excitement knowing that Meri was hard at work to discover more of what the ruins had to teach.

It didn’t take Meri long to pick apart a solution to what was in front of their faces. Vex folded both arms against his chest and smiled, letting the young girl take the lead on their little adventure. "Tell me, do you believe what you say to be true?" He asked curiously, cocking their right eyebrow just slightly enough that Meri could see the shift in his Vex’s expression. He didn’t want to come off as challenging, more like a test to see how the young girl would react. Vex had an idea of how this would play out, but he also wanted to make sure Meri was confident in their own ideology of the world around them.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri did not answer him right away.

She stayed where she was, still kneeling near the door, one hand resting lightly against the cool stone as if grounding herself in it. The question lingered in the air between them, heavier than it first sounded, and she could feel it settling into her thoughts, turning over slowly, asking her to examine not just the puzzle in front of her, but herself.

For a moment, she looked down at her hands.

"I…" she began, then stopped, lips pressing together as she searched for the right way to say what she meant.

Slowly, she lifted her gaze back to Vex, uncertainty clear in her eyes, but not weakness.

"I think… I do," Meri said quietly.

Her voice was soft, but steady.

"Not because I know for sure," she admitted. "I don't. I don't understand all of it yet. Sometimes I feel like I'm just… guessing. Trying to connect things that make sense to me, even if I can't explain why they do."

She glanced back at the symbols, at the square and the faint lines they had uncovered, as if drawing courage from the work they had done together.

"But when I look at it," she continued, "it feels right. Like it fits. Like the room is trying to teach us something, not trick us. And what I said… it feels like the kind of lesson it would leave behind."

Her fingers curled lightly against her sleeve.

"So… yes," Meri finished, a little hesitantly, but honestly. "I believe it. Even if I don't understand all of it yet."

Vex Drakkon

 

[Vex Drakkon]

Master Vex Drakkon remained standing with both arms wrapped across his chest gently, while looking downward at the young girl kneeling before the door that separated them from the next room. The Jedi Master noticed how determined the young girl was to solve the puzzle, yet she was so patient along the way, willing to wait, observe, and process everything within their surroundings. It was that alone that had the middle aged man intrigued to follow this through as a test of his own so that he could see how much potential Meri Vale truly held within.

Her voice was the thing that snapped Vex out of his very thoughts, causing him to smile warmly once more, while listening to Meri explain how she didn’t quite understand everything she was seeing, but admitted to how things felt right when they fell in place. That was when Vex responded calmly. "Because you aren’t meant to understand it all, not yet. Just like how you feel things are right, that is how this will end. With understanding and patience." His voice managed to echo within the tight hallway the duo were in.

As Meri looked up to Vex and answered his question with some confidence in their tone, the Jedi Master turned to look at the door, then back to Meri with that same warm smile as always. "Then I would like for you to try what order feels right to you." He made sure to put some emphasis on the word you to ensure that Meri knew that this test was all about their decision. Her patience was shining through and Vex felt that she was more than ready to advance forward with what was shown to them.

Meri Vale​

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[Meri Vale]

Meri stayed kneeling for a few heartbeats after he finished speaking, her attention still wrapped entirely around the door. The worn symbols reflected faint light in uneven patterns, some nearly erased by time, others still sharp enough to catch beneath her fingertips if she were careless. She shifted slightly, folding one leg beneath herself, grounding her posture the way she always did when she needed to think.

Slowly, she drew a long, steadying breath. Not out of any lingering fear of the dark, but as a way to sharpen her focus and drown out the noise of her own racing heart.

"I…do not think I understand it," she said quietly, her voice thoughtful rather than unsure. "Not all of it."

Her hand hovered over the first marking, suspended in the air for a moment as if she were waiting for the stone to speak back to her. She glanced back at Vex, searching his face for reassurance, then turned forward again with a newfound sense of purpose.

"But this one feels like it should come first," Meri continued softly. "It is quieter than the others, almost as if it is waiting for a specific touch to wake it up."

She shifted her hand, tracing invisible paths between symbols without touching them, sketching patterns only she seemed to perceive.

"And then this," she added, her voice gaining a hint of confidence as she traced the air. "Because it matches the wall. The lines…they fit together in a way that feels intentional."

A small pause followed, the silence of the ruin stretching out around them. Her shoulders lifted in a faint, uncertain shrug, a small habit that betrayed her lingering modesty.

"I might be wrong," she admitted honestly. "But this order feels…kind, like a melody that does not want to be forced or rushed."

With careful reverence, she finally reached out. When her fingertip pressed the first symbol, there was a soft, almost imperceptible click beneath the stone that made Meri freeze in place. Her breath caught in her throat, held tight as she waited to see if the temple would reject her intrusion.

When nothing happened but the silence, she moved to the second marking and pressed it as well. Another sound followed, deeper this time, a muted hum traveling through the wall like a distant heartbeat returning to a long-dormant body.

"…It is doing something," she whispered, her smoky-gray eyes widening just slightly as she felt the machinery stir.

Encouraged, she continued through the sequence. Third symbol. Fourth. Each touch sent a subtle vibration through the floor, the air growing faintly warmer as ancient mechanisms stirred from a centuries-long sleep.

When she pressed the final marking, the door shuddered with a sudden, heavy weight. Fine dust trickled from its seams, dancing in the light of their glow-rods. A low resonant tone filled the corridor. Not loud enough to hurt the ears, but powerful enough to vibrate in her chest, as if the structure itself were exhaling a long-held breath.

With a slow, grinding motion, the hidden locks disengaged one by one.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

The stone panels shifted. A narrow line of light appeared down the center of the door, widening gradually as the massive slabs slid apart with a deliberate, rhythmic precision. Stale air rushed outward, carrying the scent of untouched chambers and the heavy, metallic tang of forgotten histories.

Meri lowered her hand, staring into the darkness beyond. For a moment, she simply knelt there, stunned by the sheer weight of what she had unlocked. Then she looked up at Vex, her eyes bright with a quiet, radiant wonder.

"It…worked," she said softly, her voice trembling with the effort to believe the evidence of her own hands. "I think…it trusted me."

Slowly, she rose to her feet, though her legs felt a little like lead, and she continued to watch the newly opened passage with a deep, silent reverence.

"May we…go inside now?" she asked, her voice gentle, a fragile blend of intense curiosity and overwhelming awe.

Vex Drakkon