Private Mystic Signs

[Kahlil Noble]

"Nothing! It's just.. Here, I guess?"

Kahlil shouted in return, glancing back towards Valery for a moment, then around them. He couldn't see through the wind. It was almost like clouds circling around them, like the base of a tornado without the winds being strong enough to toss them. Or perhaps it was something else? He squinted, trying to peer through the haze. Briefly he saw it. A figure.

Watching them.

"Someone's here!"

Find me.

The voice echoed. Not in their minds, but through their bond. He blinked, glancing towards Valery again with a warry smile. Leave it to the Force to bring new surprises. Then he looked again for the figure that was just through the haze of clouds and wind. They weren't there. Alright, not easy then.

Why not just say where you are?

Find me.

Yeah, that tracts.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Valery could barely hear him despite the yelling and stepped just a little closer to use him as a shield against the wind. Another benefit of having a much bigger husband. But as Kahlil spotted a figure, she felt something through their bond that alerted her to what he saw. She looked up, right as he called out, and turned her fiery gaze into the wind.

She saw something too, but who or what was it?

Her Keshian gaze couldn't even tell.

Then a voice echoed not telepathically, but through their dyad, and Valery felt a shiver going down her spine. That had never happened before — their bond was unique in strength and privacy, linking them through space and time. How...? She smiled back at him and turned around fully.

"If we can hear the voice through our bond, maybe we should focus on that to guide us?" Valery asked, now turning to him to slip both her hands into his. Just to help her focus on what linked them together, and perhaps branch out from there. "If we focus together, maybe we can see through the storm?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

<That might work.>

They could always feel each other, so that did mean they might be able to find the intruder? He closed his eyes, ignored the rushing wind, and focused. Not that he could sense.. Anything. The Force was raging around them, interfering in ways he hadn't expected. Or experienced, ever. His brow knitted together before he opened his eyes to stare at Valery again before he gave a shrug.

<I don't think it'll be that easy. You think there might be something we're missing? There has to be something. The rune in my palm lead here. Then.. Another rune. See if you can find another rune! The grass!>

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

While she held his hands and kept her eyes closed, Valery did her best to focus on her surroundings through their bond, but it was unusually clouded. The Force, the way it moved around them in this place — she couldn't recall ever feeling something quite like it. So when her eyes opened to meet his gaze, she actually seemed to be at a loss for words.

<We must be missing something,> she agreed and when he began to run down the steps of how they got here, it clicked with her as well, right after he called out. Valery let go of his hands to take a few steps back and turned her eyes to the grass beneath their feet. To the pattern, it formed as the wind lashed out wildly.

<I think I see it too!> She called out, as excited as a young Padawan Noble who was discovering something new.

<I- can you activate the rune somehow?> Valery then asked. She had seen Kahlil mark down runes before, only for them to be activated later. Maybe this was similar in nature? <I don't know how but if you tell me what I can do to help, I will.> She looked at him with a more awkward smile this time. She had never looked into runes and how they worked, but she really wanted to help him with something important to him.

He had helped her so much in her life. It was time she helped him too.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The gaps in the grass, where it couldn't be whipped around and scattered in the heavy winds. Kahlil's gaze fell to the design as Valery pointed it out. And he reached for it. No hesitation. He didn't recognize the rune, but it wasn't his adapted ones. And it certainly wasn't Sith. Something far more ancient was drawn here. He pulled, weaved, and guided the Force through it until the ground was alight with the rune.

And at once he knew what it did. Understanding came with it, as if a memory that had been locked was suddenly unlocked. And he laughed.

<They're more clever than I thought.>

He reached a hand down, gently touching the rune itself. In a flash it was gone. As was the wind, the seemingly nowhere they were. They were back. The Bastion behind them, the mountains in the distance. And the vague shape of a humanoid, glowing white, sitting before them.

<You found me.>

<You were just hiding. It wasn't too hard.>

There was a chuckle.

<Do you understand?>

<I do. Overwhelm all the usual senses until only the Force is left. Then, show the rune. .. I never thought I'd be able to see the Force like this.>

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

She didn't quite understand. At least, at first. Somehow, as Kahlil was figuring out this ancient puzzle of sorts, she was also beginning to understand through their bond. Not to the level he could — she never would when it came to runes — but enough to know that the world was shifting again after he connected with it.

All at once, they were back where they were. The Bastion was safely behind them, the mountains were ahead of them. She had no idea how much time had passed if any at all. Where had they been and why? The questions were exciting, as it wasn't often that she went into something she barely knew anything about.

So as he laughed, she did too.

Finally, Valery's gaze turned to the humanoid shape, and she squinted to try and figure something out. Kahlil almost seemed to recognize them in the way he talked, but she was curious. <Who are you?> Or perhaps, what are you, but she wasn't going to risk asking that question.

<See the Force? Is that what these runes allow you to do?> she asked, completely amazed by the idea alone. But then, there was a smirk.

<What uh... do you see when you look at me that way?> Personal curiosity, but she also wondered if the Dyad had something to do with it.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

<I do not remember.>

Kahlil raised a brow as he watched the figure, who in turn seemed to just shrug.

<I have been waiting for many, many years for someone to arrive with the rune. We all have. Find the others. Learn what they have to teach.>

<Learn what, exactly?>

There was a pause as the figure seemed to be blinking in surprise. They tilted their head, turned what had to be their face between the two Jedi.

<The Force.>

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

<I do not remember.>

Valery felt something that made her give up on the more playful question she had directed at her husband. She already knew the answer anyway and loved him for it. But it seemed that whoever they were talking to needed help, and while Kahlil asked a question about what they were wanting to learn, Valery focused more on something else.

The others? Learning the Force?

<If we do this, will we be able to help you and the others?> she asked because she didn't know if they were stuck there for good or not. Perhaps they didn't even know the answer, but she'd be a terrible Jedi if she didn't at least try to help. Valery then glanced at Kahlil and nodded.

<We will find the others but will the rune help us locate them?>

 

[Kahlil Noble]

<You misunderstand. We are not.. Here, anymore. There is no one to save.>

The figure glanced between the two before dipping their head regardless. It was impossible to tell, but they seemed to smile. Then raised a hand to gently trace it through the air. Craft the rune in question, and the one that was still inside Kahlil's palm. A sequence. Kahlil's brow knitted together as he focused. Memorized it. So they could be purposefully sequenced together? Their fight against his father only just opened his eyes to how the runes might be used.

<What happens when we find them all?>

<That information is not stored in this vessel.>

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

Valery frowned for a moment when the figure answered her question, but it faded when she believed to see a smile. Perhaps after so long, they had all accepted what happened and who they were. Of course, that still meant that she was going to make sure they'd learn what they could from them, and honor all the knowledge and wisdom they were so willing to share. Hopefully, it would help Kahlil make a difference for many more people.

<Then we're going to just have to go for it and find out,> Valery said with her determined, fiery attitude. She then grinned and reached up to squeeze Kahlil's shoulder supportively.

Even though he was likely far better at remembering rune patterns, Valery had done her best to memorize all the weird squiggly lines as well. This wasn't her specialty, but she'd never not try her absolute best to support him.

<Is there anything else you need to know, love? Or are you ready for the next step?>

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Not stored here, huh?

Kahlil's expression shifted a little as he watched the faceless being. Not a person, a recording. In the Force. Fascinating, to say the least. He was already trying to figure it out, though his gaze again caught the rune in the air and he instead turned his attention to it. He reached up, touching a hand against it. There was a flash of light before the rune seemed to pull itself along his arm before shifting under his shirt. His back.

From under his tunic it was barely visible in the same bright light. The two separate runes now one. Connected. He closed his eyes, focusing on it. The glow brightened as a different rune formed under his eyes, white in color, as he turned his gaze back towards Valery. Smiled, just a little.

"You look like a flame. Bright and warm."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

With a tilted head, Valery watched the runes appear, shining brightly as they formed the sequences they mentioned. She couldn't see the pattern or understand exactly how it felt, or what Kahlil could see through them. But she knew that these were different from the runes he usually summoned. There was something ancient and mysterious about them.

"After today, when they have faded or served their purpose, will you still know how to summon them?" Valery asked, since the way he seemed to connect with them here felt different. But knowing her husband, he'd know exactly how to make them come and go. Perhaps with time and practice, but she knew he could do it.

Kahlil then turned to her with a smile, and Valery blinked at first before she blushed and smirked at the same time. "And you call me the silly romantic," she said with that same blush. She wanted to look more smug and tease him, but his words made her heart beat a little faster.

These little things, she loved.

"But I'm glad that I'm your flame in the Force, too~"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"They're more.. Recordings. Like holocrons, but.. Older."

Kahlil glanced to where the blue figure had faded, giving a faint smile. Older, and less capable it seemed. A basis for what holocrons became? Or just something similar enough that perhaps the Force already had it's plans? Interesting thoughts for sure. At least to him. His face was all scrunched up in thought as he tried to piece it all together for a brief moment. Then he seemed to remember where they were. Smiled sheepishly.

"Well, yeah. Force just seems to get it."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"They do vaguely remind me of holocron gatekeepers," Valery said with a dip of her head. The gatekeepers on Spintir played a crucial role in helping Jedi reconnect with the light side of the Force. Similarly, these recordings were trying to help them as well using some ancient knowledge. It was just amazing how complex the Force was, and how much there was out there to learn for two Jedi.

It kept life exciting.

Valery then reached up to boop his forehead, after she spotted him being deep in thought. Just a bit of playfulness to see if it worked with him as well. "Good, I'd not be happy if the Force got it wrong~" she said with a dumb grin. "I wonder what it'd look like to me if I looked around or focused on you. But... you probably already know." She chuckled and drew in a deep breath to enjoy the fresh air of their surroundings.

"Isn't this exciting? Exploring something we don't fully understand together? When was the last time we got to do something like that..." She had a happy smile now and turned back to look at her husband.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I don't think we ever have, if I'm being honest."

Kahlil chuckled a little as he reached out to take her hand in his and squeeze gently. All their time together, they'd never just gone out to learn something new together. They had their paths, their lives, as Jedi. They handled problems together. Never.. Studied.

"We'll see where this all leads together for sure. You ready to leave?"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"I don't think so either," Valery said before she let him take her hand. As he squeezed, she turned to him and looked up into his eyes with that excitement still burning brightly. She had spent about a decade of her life with him now, and there were still new things to discover and experience together. Deep down, she hoped it'd always continue to be like that because few things were as fun.

"I'm ready to leave, so I'll follow your lead. But also..." she chuckled and kept her gaze locked with his, "I don't think my plan of delaying our fun will work out," she then admitted with a smirk, referencing their earlier teasing. "I told you about that diplomatic mission I have to go on after this, but I just have a weird feeling about it, and I don't like being away from home for so long either."

"So once we're done learning, you're mine~" she grinned and squeezed his hands now, while she winked.

"I love you, Kahlil." She wasn't saying it, but something about her upcoming mission rubbed her the wrong way, so telling him this now felt important, and she didn't want to leave without hearing him say it back.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Plan of delaying their fun?

He just smirked. He knew here well enough to know she was indeed not the one who could hold out. The reason behind it though had him frown, just a little. Still couldn't help but grin the teasing grin he had when he knew he won.

"I don't think this'll be a quick learning experience. We'll probably have to pick it up after your mission. So.. Why wait?"

And with that he just scooped her up in his arms to take her right up into the ship.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Getting impatient now?" Valery asked with a teasing grin, "Or do I just have to say I love you and-" She blinked and squealed as he scooped her up and began to walk without saying another word. There was no way she could get out of his arms now, even if she tried but... she loved this.

"Alright, alright..." she chuckled and wrapped her arms around him to pull herself up for a quick kiss. "I suppose the runes can wait a little longer."

With that, they reached the ship.

...
Valery had no idea how much time passed, but her body felt like they had been at it for hours. She rolled her shoulders, put on her belt again, and looked over her shoulders at Kahlil. "Whatever challenge comes next, I hope I don't have to run for it." She walked a little funny and playfully bumped into him.

"Is this next step of the journey still here on Lothal? If so, we can probably just fly there with the ship, hm?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil snorted a bit as he glanced her way again while he finished straightening out his tunic. "I didn't hear you complaining before, did I?" He raised a brow with an all too knowing smirk before bumping her back. Then shrugged. He glanced to his palm, idly watching the rune that was there. Right now, it was dormant. No path forward, huh? Unless.. The glow from under his shirt returned as the runes returned to where they'd been on his cheeks.

The glow was there. Faint, but there. Always there, it seemed.

"There's a place here, yeah. I think it's on the other side of the world, actually. .. It's weird. Like, it's not here, but is?" He was walking and talking, already moving to the controls of the Bastion to get it up in the air and soaring.

"I'm not sure what to make of it b- Oooh okay nope." The rune faded as he reached up, holding the side of his head. "That gives a major headache, heh."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Lothal

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tag: Kahlil Noble

"I'm definitely not complaining but you weren't being gentle with little me," she smirked teasingly and stumbled forward a step when he bumped into her back. She'd never complain about anything regarding him. She loved every part of the last few hours, and what was coming next would also be exciting.

Now dressed again, Valery turned to her husband and watched the runes appear once more. It was a strange look she'd have to get used to whenever he tapped into them, but she kinda liked it at the same time. Hopefully, it would be worth all the trouble in the end as well.

"Kind of like what we just went through? Where it seemed we were on Lothal, but the ship and mountains weren't there anymore?" she asked while she followed him through the ship. Until he stopped and reached for the side of his head. Valery felt his headache and quickly stepped forward to help.

"Heyy, you okay? Anything I can do to help with that?" She was now trying to guide him along to his seat in the cockpit. "What just happened there?" she continued with a more worried wife tone. "I can fly if you need to focus on what you're seeing with those runes."