The Gathering 2.0 (Open to all Jedi)

[Nefertari Sovint]

Nefertari's brother [member="Azu Sovint"] had reached a point in his training where it was time for him to get a crystal of his own. And in a pleasant twist of events, it had turned into a family trip. Nefertari had sent out a transmission to all jedi, letting them know of a crystal hunt in case they'd rather not go it alone.

With Nef on the path to the temple were her husband Gherron, her brother Azu, and her son Articus; who was rolling a snowball now as tall as he was. Azu soon rolled a smaller ball and put it atop the one Articus had made. Despite being years apart in age, the two younglings had formed a special bond not unlike Nef and her sister Miyuki.

"Remember what happened here?" Nef inquired of Gherron

Yes, that question could be viewed as a trap, but even after all that had happened with the netherworld, the dark side, and refuge, Nef was certain the love of her life remembered.

Gherron might be a little upset that Articus was coming along to a Jedi temple, but Nef was still steadfast in her promise to keep Articus from making the Decision of being a Jedi until he was ready. She just didn't intend to raise him completely ignorant of the force.

The four of them neared the temple's entrance.

[member="Gherron Vael"]​

 

[Gherron Dragovalor]

As he looked over the entrance to the caves, Gherron reminisced on old times, and for a moment, he saw shadows of the past. Several young padawans laughing on their way inside, accompanied by some older Jedi. Among them, a younger Gherron and Nefertari, as well as Gherron's friend and mentor, [member="Xander Carrick"]. A small smile traveled upward along his mouth as the visions ceased, and he heard his wife's words. "Yes, I remember. It doesn't seem so long ago, does it?" This was where they had first met, on another crystal hunt. It wasn't too far off inside the caves where he had saved her life by catching her. "You feel like going on any more ridiculous adventures? You know, trying to grab crystals that are probably still there for a reason, perhaps?" He laced his words with obvious sarcasm, hoping to elicit a smile from Nef. As he slowly continued to make his way to the entrance, he felt a small hand enter his own, squeezing tightly. As he looked down, he saw the face of his son staring up at him, looking both anxious and excited. Gherron hadn't told Nef yet, but he and Josh had a talk about the subject not too long earlier, in which he'd convinced Gherron to let things go as they would. If he tried to keep Articus from the Jedi when he eventually decided he wanted to go, he would likely be pushing his son away from him, and that was the last thing he wanted for their relationship. Though he was still so young, Articus had seemed to bond with him as a father, and even now he could feel the strength of that bond. Articus was gifted in that, it seemed. He formed close ties with family. That was an excellent trait to have, and it was one that would surely do him good later on in life.

[member="Nefertari Sovint"]

 

[Azu Sovint]

Articus was more like a little brother than a nephew to Azu. And the kid's bond to the rest of his family was something truly amazing. Hopefully that bond would survive through his tween and teen years.
Azu entered the temple, taking in the sight of the huge chamber. Soon, he'd have a lightsaber of his own, that Azu could say he made. There was still something that drew him to the shiny hilt on his belt. Apparently, the crystal in it had belonged to a Sith named Darth Senet. No matter how many times he asked, Nefertari still wouldn't say much about them; except that Senet had been the posterchild of dark side redemption.

The youngling rushed past the durasteel frame now holding the cave entrance open. This was the starting point of a Jedi journey.

[member="Nefertari Sovint"], [member="Gherron Vael"]​

 

[Nefertari Sovint]

Gherron's sarcasm did indeed get a smile out of Nef.
"With you, I am up for any ridiculous adventure."
Nef felt a small hand slip its way into hers, and looked to see Articus swinging between his parents. Her son was so innocent, it was hard to imagine him in battle. Luckily, the large scale war between the Republic and One Sith was behind them.
Watching Azu run off into the caves, she thought of how she'd never told him that the infamous Darth Senet was actually their sister. After this, he would be ready to learn the truth of the matter.
Nef could sense Articus' excitement, she looked at her husband and then at the boy
"Articus, would you like to take a look?"
Articus nodded enthusiastically, running off from his parents in excitement. Not noticing what was in front of him, the child tripped and biffed it on a Mandalorian helmet.
Sithspit
Nefertari never told Gherron that Articus had been to Ilum before as a baby, and that a group of rogue Mandos had attacked the temple while they were there.
Well, if her husband asked anything about it now...she would open up.

[member="Azu Sovint"], [member="Gherron Vael"]​

 

[Gherron Dragovalor]

Gherron had never before seen Azu, though he remembered Nef talking of him before. Now seeing him though, he couldn't help but to smile at his demeanor. It was true, he was like a brother to Articus; Gherron wouldn't be surprised if he would up keeping the younger Vael out of trouble often. Not having a lightsaber himself anymore, Gherron still had insisted on bringing some protection along. That came in the form of Alnox, his force imbued sword. Strapped across his back, it gave him warmth from the cold, and being this close to him, it did so for Nef as well. Interestingly enough, he still had yet to tell her how he'd got the sword. The crystal that gave it the unique reaction with the cold actually came from this very cave the last time they were here. The blade, he had helped to create with another force user named Phylis. His connection to the sword through blood bonded it to him so that only he could use it effectively, and even then it was very heavy. Perhaps though, maybe Articus would be able to use it when he was ready, being of his bloodline. As the little one ran off and tripped over a Mandalorian helmet, Gherron shot a tiny look of concern to his beloved. There surely hadn't been Mandalorians here before their last visit, so why were there remnants here now? As he thought this, he subconsciously rubbed the small tusk necklace he wore, as both a symbol and a talisman. It had been created for him here from a gorgodon that he and Xander had taken down together and, seeing what he had been going through at the time, Xander had carved into it protection runes to keep him safe. Xander had ties with the Mandalorians... He let the thought die for a moment and stayed silent, picking up a helmet as they passed it and studying it intently.

[member="Nefertari Sovint"] [member="Azu Sovint"]

 

[Nefertari Sovint]

Nef helped Articus up off the floor before reassuringly resting her hand on her love's shoulder as they escorted.
"None of them remain here. I sense we are alone."
Nef remembered getting her crystal and being a guardian of peace. Now, she was playing parenting by ear most of the time. To say Nef was good at it wouldn't exactly be true, but she did her best.

She could sense Gherron missed some of the action that came as part of their old life. In truth, she did too. Her own lightsaber hadn't been used in battle for almost a year. It wouldn't be too long before one of them wanted to go on a most likely dangerous mission, and the other would follow. If, for instance, Nef's hubby returned to the mysterious planet Refuge...that would leave their son in a rather peculiar balance.
Lost in thought, Nef snapped back to reality as a tiny hand tapped her.
"Mommy, something's calling me."
"I don't hear anything..."
"No, I feel it!"
"That is the force, Articus. If it's calling you somewhere, lead the way."
Nef had a passing thought as the child led his parents through the caves that she might be giving Articus a little much free reign. But this couldn't end badly, could it?

[member="Gherron Vael"], [member="Azu Sovint"]​

 

[Azu Sovint]

Azu didn't know much about Gherron, but Nef was happy with him, so Azu thought of him as an alright brother in law.
The Jedi who came to these caves usually had to face trials of some sort to get their crystals, right? Azu wondered what his would be, and he was pretty sure the hand-me-down coat from his big sister didn't count. The junior pilot patch was cool, so was the youngling emblem on the back...but this coat wasn't Azu's style at all, though it was a perfect fit; it was pink for crying out loud!
Coming to a fork, Azu could have sworn he felt somebody brush past him.
"Who's there?"
No answer, but something led him down the left path. It may have been a trick of the low light, but Azu thought he saw images on the cave walls of other Sovint Jedi through the generations.
Coming to the end of the tunnel, it led out into a fully lit room which looked like a Jedi shrine. In the middle of the starbird carved into the ice wall, a crystal shone brightly. Azu crossed the large, mostly empty room and plucked the crystal from the wall before sitting on the floor and taking the pieces of his lightsaber from his pack.
As each piece slid into place, including the decorative marble at the end, Azu could feel an increasing presence. One he hadn't felt since his temporal incident.

​

[member="Nefertari Sovint"], [member="Gherron Vael"]​

 

[Gherron Dragovalor]

As Articus tore away from his parents and scampered off, Gherron could feel Nef's anxiety about the idea of letting him have a bit too much freedom in the caves. Reaching over, he grabbed her hand and squeezed softly. "Let him go off for a bit. I trust that the force will keep him safe." It was the first time he'd spoken like that in a while, about the force in general. Mostly it was due to his conversation with Josh. Perhaps his old friend had ignited the small spark he'd needed to go back to his roots. As he watched his son go farther into the caves, he was reminded of the fact that he had always been, and always will be a guardian to others. Just because he had one more person to protect didn't mean that he could turn his back on everyone else. If anything, wouldn't it be on him to protect his son through the act of protecting others? During his train of thought, a light made itself known to him, tugging at the back of his skull. He shook it off for a moment, only for it to come back stronger. Unconsciously, he let go of his beloved's hand and began walking down another path into the caves, almost in a trance.

[member="Azu Sovint"] [member="Nefertari Sovint"]