The Gravity of Silence

[Quietus]

Still such a child in so many ways. Perhaps she had hoped in vain that the man may have learned greater independence from herself over the years. Given her elusive nature during the last century he'd lived before the plague, while he enjoyed his life as a husband and father again, it was a distant hope he could have come to terms with a life that did not require servitude to a Master.

It was not a life she had wanted for him.

Yet here he was, unchanged and hurting. She knew why, of course, but it hardly mattered in the grand scheme of things. Jake Daniels was a man of his years, but still several millennia her junior. What understanding could come with such time could not be learned in but a year. Could not be gleaned from the cosmos while frozen. He was the man she had forced into cryo nearly five hundred years ago and she?

She was a woman that had lived more lifetimes since then than she cared to count.

There was nothing but patience now. No mirth, no disgust, no anger, no offense to be taken. Unfortunately, despite her patience, the one thing she did not have was time. It was ticking and it was unequivocally merciless.

Slowly the robed woman stood from where she sat by the dwindling flames, "If you wish to see any of your family again, Jake," the woman replied to his scathing hello while she turned to face him with eyes as grey and lifeless as stone, "then you will leave with me now."

 

[Jake Daniels]

It started from a small splinter in seat of the leg. A crack was heard that filled the momentary silence. That small splinter widened then shot outwards in a multitude of directions across. Within seconds the chair itself collapsed as a surge in the force completely broke it apart. That was no test on the force. This was his Lady Silencia. He knew it. He felt it. What he had just done was a subtle expression of his displeasure at what he just heard.

She was frail; more so than he could ever recall. The markings upon her face were new. It was her eyes though, those grey eyes, that seemed truly different. They seemed tired and exhausted. In the past Jake would have held some level of pity for the woman. Today? Not so much. The man kept his composure, albeit with exception to the small temper tantrum with the force that destroyed what had been a functionally usable chair.

"Ironic." Jake said as he adjusted the messenger bag that continued to reside at his side. Was not the place to tell his Lady Silencia exactly what he felt? Was now the time to demand answers to a variety of questions that swirled in his mind. "You have the audacity to show up here," he paused as he carefully thought of his next spoken words. "For half a year I thought I was alone. I searched for your descendants thinking you dead. I found Amorella. I found... them." Jake said in reference to Quietus and Dissero. "Yet I was denied you. I. Denied. My. Right. To. You?" Each of those words met with a full stop as he began to struggle in his speech.

"Now you speak to me about family?" Until this moment, Jakes words were as even as his greeting had been. "My family is long dead. The people I remember, the people that I loved long buried on Honoghr. A planet that I have been on for almost a year. I thought I had a bigger family out there but I was wrong." He paused as his words got caught in his throat. "Why are you really here? What trouble has my Master found herself that she seeks the Apprentice, the only person who stood by her side through it all," references to glories and battles long since passed, "the one person she seems to have forsaken to live a life of abandoned hopelessness? Why has my Mother truly sought me?"

[member="Mahet"]

 

[Quietus]

"Because I am dying," replied the woman, voice as coarse as wet sand across skin, "and there is not enough time."

She had never been known for forthright answers. The woman had spent ages rearing children and pupils in a method that often forced them to find their own answers, to think for themselves. A mentor that never showed or shared all her cards because what was life without a bit of mystery, a bit of wonder? Answers had never been given freely to her. Power, knowledge, skill - none of these things had ever come to her without sacrifice. Why should it be any different for those under her wing?

Not enough time to explain to him 500 years of life and learning. Not enough time to define the reason for his apparent suffering.

But just enough time...

The woman lifted a hand and held it out towards him, skin of cold ash pulled taught over the bones, "One last journey, Jake. Come with me."

...to help him understand.

 

[Jake Daniels]

"How dare you."

Was it a question? Was it a statement? There was no mistake to the emotion that spewed the words from his mouth. His Lady Silencia dying? That was preposterous. Even though she looked it, Jake had always believed that Death was his Lady Silencias B!tch. How could she, of everyone, be dying? She survived the plague when his wife and children did not?

Jake shook his head in disbelief at her statement. Was it the truth? His Lady Silencia often hid her own truths among the lies and misgivings. Why would this time be any different? The Knight scratched at the untidy beard that suddenly grew irritating.

Jake eyed the hand that extended to him, his own brow perking at the unnaturally colored skin. "Why not your children? I'm sure Quietus or Dissero are more suited to helping you, aren't they? After all I'm just a shadow. A man with a glowy stick with no true impressionable power with the force. How could I, you're ever loyal Apprentice, ever be of service in a situation such as the one you now find yourself?"

A headache was setting in. This whole situation smelled fishy. It didn't seem right. A year? A year alone and then this? Who the hell did she think she was? Still... if she was dying would Jake allow it? Even he would not. He still loved the woman that had trained him. He still loved the Grandmother to his children and mother to his wife. He still cared deeply for her. That didn't mean he wasn't rightly p!ssed off with her at the present moment; more so than he had ever been in his life.

If she was dying, he'd help her. If he couldn't he'd ensure he died first.That was Jakes sole promise to himself as he took his Lady Silencia's hand.

The man wasn't going to go back to the loneliness on Honoghr again. He couldn't. He wouldn't.

"Lead the way."

[member="Mahet"]

 

[Quietus]

When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of hatred come,​

​

of all I had done,​

How dare she.

In the shadow of her hood the barest trace of a self deprecating smile might be seen in return to those words. So many things in her life she had rendered upon others and here, of all the things to have come to pass, was the one thing that drew forth offense.

How dare she die.

She who hadn't the energy to express her deep amusement at the irony. How dare she give in to the one thing she had escaped for so many years. How dare she finally succumb to what had claimed so many thousands of billions of others before her. How dare she finally lay to rest after centuries of sleeplessness. How dare she find peace.

and touched the sound​

His hand found hers and it was not the gesture that drew her gaze but the warmth it offered to the withered, cold, lifeless fingers. No further words were spoken, no other movements to be made. The woman closed her eyes and slowly drew in breath. Drew in the light of the room. Drew in the life of the home. Darkness took them. It took them all. With it came the strange sensation of disintegration. Of the body slowly tearing apart piece by molecular piece. The feeling of swimming, of drowning, of twisting and folding. Weightlessness followed by immeasurable pressure. Cold that pierced to the core. Heat that flooded the veins. The home around them dissipated in a flash of incomprehensible everything.

She tore a hole in the galaxy, bent it around them, and pulled Jake through. They disappeared from sight.

The home was quiet and utterly still in their wake.

of silence.​

Jake would hear the tune of the jungles first. Creatures of the lively night surrounding him. The sounds would echo and swerve strangely. His body would feel immense pain and relief at once. Nausea was nigh overwhelming - his insides as though someone had tied them in knots.

Great, strong, scaled hands would seize him. The hands of warriors he had come to know very well. Noghri.

They were helping him to his feet, offering water. Off a ways to his left they were carefully placing the woman upon a stretcher. Her eyes were closed, she was not responding.

 

[Jake Daniels]

Jake's head spun as he felt his body go from a solid mass, to the feeling of nothingness except the sporadic hot and cold, and then back again to his solid mass. Agonizingly nauseous, Jake rolled against the dirt of the Honoghrian village. The feeling of thick hands grabbing at him brought about the natural instinct of a predator; he lashed out. The moment he felt a wrist however and more specifically the scales that encompassed his skin, the Eternal Apprentice focused on the faces around him.

Noghri.

Confusion soon followed.

Then the sight of the same Noghri bringing the man to his feet followed by others whom brought him water. Water which he guzzled down with a sudden thirst he had never felt before. His parched, dry mouth screaming in pleasure at the sudden vitrifaction of such a basic fluid in the galaxy.

"That crazy bit...." Jake began to say. When his eyes found his Lady Silencia however, his heart suddenly sank. Fear gripped it. Gone, for the moment, was the anger at her abandonment. Gone was the rage at her ineptitude at coming to him in his hour of need. Here she was, in her own and he would be damn sure that he would respond. Afterall, this was the first true time his Lady Silencia had ever come to him in such a state.

The Knight feebly walked to his Master and placed a hand upon her forehead. Her skin was cold, so very cold. Her face sunken, her eyes shut. When Jake drew his palm away, his feeble attempt at eliciting a response, the Noghri carried her off.

Jake took a glance around, noting the village. It was not the one nearest his Villa, that was for sure.

"Where are you taking her?" Jake asked; his question open to any that would respond.

[member="Mahet"]

 

[Ereza]

"To the Temple," one of the warriors hissed in reply, "we have been waiting for your arrival."

"You must rest," said another, a female this time, a Priestess, "come with me, Lord Gravis, I will show you to your chambers."

He would not see her again that day. Evening fell, a knock at his door announced the arrival of several Noghri Priests. They carried into his chamber food, medicine, healing supplies. When the table had been set another figure quietly stepped into the room. A robed woman whose face was hidden behind the wrap of a scarf. The only visible portion of her was that of her eyes, molten gold peering out from behind red and gold folds of silk.

"Good evening, Lord Gravis," she spoke quietly, voice heavy with an accent he likely would not recognize, "I am called Ereza. I am managing the care of the Mal'ary'ush in her final days. She has asked me to tend to you as well and see that you are comfortable until she is ready to take you on the last step of this journey."

The woman looked the man over, a calm curiosity to her gaze, "It can take days for the uninitiated to recuperate from teleportation. I implore you continue to drink water, eat, and rest. In the meantime, she bid me examine your health ... something about a knee brace?"

 

[Jake Daniels]

He’d spent a good hour beneath the stream of the warm shower. The nausea was still excruciatingly present. His muscles screamed at him. His boned cried out. His vision bounced between a fog and pure clarity time and again. The movement through space itself seemed to have a much larger effect than Jake could have possibly anticipated; though how could one ever truly prepare themselves to begin with for such a moment? On one planet one second, then onto the next another? Then it dawned on him.

His lightsaber, one of three he owned, and Skillet, the astromech gift from Amorella still remained hidden away in the abandoned fuel station.

“Crap.” The man whispered under his breath.

Of everything Jake had been without; a decent shave of his now soft face, a good body scrubbing, a nice lather of soap in his otherwise tangled locks, it was a very simply but truly important notion that brought the briefest of smiles to his face. The man scrubbed his teeth. The planet he was on had water and soap. That was it. To feel the mint of tooth paste, the power of a decent floss and of course a nice gargle of a salt water mixture (no mouthwash being present), the Knight felt fresh.

Finding a seat on his bed, the Knight took a long look at his tired knees. They were sore and swollen. Years of wear and tear on the cartilage and ligaments now causing bone to grind on bone. Each step ached; some slightly, others immensely. Before being able to slide on the metal braces, the Knights attention turned towards the door as a knocking was heard.

When the first Noghri entered, Daniels had fortunately found himself clothed. Decent but somewhat loose fitting robes. They did as intended; covered what was needed to be hidden. The Noghri set up a table with food, medicines, and what appeared to be healing supplies of some sort. Those drew a perk from the brow of the Knight; more specifically what looked like some form of pain killer. He’d needed them.

“Good Evenings, Lord Gravis.” The words were spoken by a human female whom entered after the table had been set. She wore rather elegant looking robes though the most noticeable feature was the fact her face was covered by a scarf. Her green-grey eyes being the only part of her physical frame visible. Her name was Ereza, and she stated that she was managing the care of Mal’ary’ush. The part about final days caused a shiver to rise up the Knights spine.

“Let’s just say that any thought of understanding I had about my Masters power were greatly underestimating her. Just one of her many secrets she’s held from me.” Jake said in response to the teleportation. The woman wanted Jake to eat, something his stomach protest, to drink water which he would undoubtedly do, and to rest, which was something that wouldn’t come easy. Jake hadn’t had a decent nights sleep in a very long time.

“I have two.” Jake replied, revealing two metal braces beneath the pile of his soiled laundry. The Knight sat back on the edge of his bed and began rolling up his robes legs. The damage was easily visible though nearly indescribable. Well defined legs covered in a multitude of scars held together by rather flimsy joints. “So are the results from years of conflict. I don’t think there is much you can do for them. As for my health, shouldn’t you be tending my Master? She needs you more than me doesn’t she?”

Jake then paused, “How long have you known the Mal'ary'ush but perhaps more importantly, are you my Masters new Apprentice?”

 

[Ereza]

“Let’s just say that any thought of understanding I had about my Masters power were greatly underestimating her. Just one of her many secrets she’s held from me.”

There came an expression of appreciative understanding somewhere behind the folds of silk, hinted at in the way her eyes narrowed faintly from the bottom. A smile withheld. Hands folded at her front the woman listened with the stillness of a mountain and the presence of one to boot. Jake would be able to feel her own afinity with the Force, her own power radiating in much a similar manner to the way that Amorella's had. Calm. Unintrusive. Not warm like Amore's, though, but cold like snowcapped peaks.

"I have done all that can be done for the Mal'ary'ush. Her case is much to advanced to stop the process now, all we can do is make her comfortable and see to her needs. She is resting now."

Ereza moved further into the room, towards the man that bared his knees. They were as painful to look at as they likely felt. The woman moved to kneel at the bedside, lifting her hands to the gleam of advanced crystal-based technology running along the same paths as the bones within; tiny blue crystals at each joint and juncture. A gesture produced a holographic screen between them which presented the bone structure of the man's legs and the various elements within.

"I have known her for a very long time, since I was a child. I come from her homeworld and met her during the 400 year darkness just after the plague finished decimating our people. I was her student, during that time. You might even say she raised me in lieu of the family taken and lost, but she is a generous and caring individual. She took in many that were orphaned and there are many that could say these things of her. Here they call her Mal'ary'ush because she brought about prosperity for the Noghri people after such a long time of devasting loss. There, on our world, they call her Lanurein - the highest honor our people can attain from the Suzerein."

As her hands slowly hovered around his joints the display on the screen shifted, showing her in great detail all the abuse of his years.

"You have rendered great damage to yourself, Lord Gravis, but it is not irreversible. We can begin the healing process today, but it will take time to complete and you will be required to rest."

 

[Jake Daniels]

“You are too kind in formality. Please,” Jake said, “don’t call me Lord. I am a Servant to Lady Silencia and unfit for that title. Call me Gravis or Jake, whichever suits you.” He was being honest. The man never felt like a Lord on Honoghr. He was a soldier. A Warrior. An Apprentice. Nothing more. His eyes turned from the woman to the holographic screen. He couldn’t read the screen. He wasn’t a doctor. The most he could make out was the bones looked as though they had been gnawed on. A testament to the wear and tear. His gaze returned to the woman.

“I don’t deserve to be healed. I have my own sins that I need to be punished for. Besides, whatever happens to her will happen to me.” Jake said as he began to put the first of the two knee braces on. “First, I don’t rest. There’s nothing that’s been able to keep me down for a long while now. Second, my life is tied to hers. I failed to save her daughter. I failed to save her grandchildren. If I fail to save her then I too will leave this world. I don’t fear death but I also do not welcome it. You say there is nothing that can be done to save her? What exactly is killing her?”

Nothing in his voice rendered any thought of a second-guess. He was stoic and cold. He was a man of his word. If Silencia went, so would he. The man had traveled through warzones, death traps, and literal hell with his Master; why wouldn’t he travel through the gates of Hades with her as well?

 

[Ereza]

"It suits me to do as I am bid by my Lady, Lord Gravis," Ereza replied gently, coming to a stand as the man moved to attach his braces. She watched him as he worked, listened while he spoke, a quietude settling upon her presence.

"Her condition is ... complicated," a pale, delicate hand gestured in such a way to beg his pardon, "I will explain it to you as well as I can. You are aware of what she is, yes?"

 

[Jake Daniels]

Jake huffed at the continued use of the Lord title. He had never been good enough in his Masters eyes to be granted the rank of Lord in the old Sith Empire. Based on her display of power, he was absolutely not on par with her and thus still not eligible for such titles. The fact he had been the youngest Sith to ever be granted the title of Darth was well enough for the man. His tired, exhausted gaze locked onto the veiled womans. She was so goddamn stubborn; he’d give her that.

As he set the second brace on his leg and began rolling down the robes legs, the Knight listened to Ereza’s question. Did Jake know what his Lady Silencia was? “I’m aware. Though that is an aspect of her I never her pushed on, nor did I pry into on my own time. I know she is long lived, I know her species has certain needs that would make the hairs on the back of a mere human stand straight up.”

 

[Ereza]

"Yes," nodded Ereza, "needs that she denied for nearly a century while living under the guise of another. We can sustain ourselves by other means for short periods of time, but we are not biologically meant to handle extended duration of drought. A year, at most, maybe more without suffering from it. But 100 years is too long for any of us, even she. Her body has turned against itself in the form of a disease that causes rapid deterioration. It is irreversible and incurable. By all means, her physical self has already died. She sustains now only by her connection to the Force."

"There is nothing that anyone can do for her," pale eyes tracked the man's movements, "much in the same way that there was nothing that could be done for those taken by the Plague. You cannot fail a test that you were never meant to pass, Lord Gravis."

 

[Jake Daniels]

Even if Jake wanted to stand, he couldn’t. The weight of her words held him in place. The one mightily confident and ever vocal eternal apprentice was left for the moment. How could this be? How could the one constant in his life; the woman who was the infamous Darth Gravis’ ever constant North Star finally go ‘poof’? How could she, of all people, be dying? This was a woman whom had survived the damn Gulag Plague.

“This can’t be.” Jake muttered. Finally the Knight pushed himself up. His knees threaten to buckle but the muscles around them kept the Knight, for the moment, in a painful stand before Ezera. She was only a few inches shorter than Jakes six foot frame. “You don’t understand, Ereza. She’s all I have left. She’s it. Nothing else. I thought I lost her once. I can’t go through that again.” He paused as he realized he was simply repeating going in circles between spoken words and internal thoughts, “When I awoke on Dantooine and returned home, I was led to believe she was dead. I buried my wife. I buried my children. She… was lost to me.”

The man rubbed one temple as he could feel a headache beginning to set in, “Then I found out she was alive. She refused my presence. I lost her again. She then shows up on some backwater hellscape of a planet and I find her again. Now I get to lose her… again? Ezera, I can’t… not again…”

Human psychology was far more complicated than many understood. This was especially true when it came to the idea of grief and loss. Jake Daniels did not fear his own death; he was honest in that statement. He did fear for those close to him. All he had was his Lady Silencia. Without her… he would have nothing… again.
“You say I cannot fail a test I was never meant to pass? Then screw that. We cheat death. She’s done. Why not now?” Jake said, “What about Sith Alchemy? Transfer my life essence to her? Take my life to prolong hers…” Desperate? Absolutely. Realistic solution? Hardly and he knew it.

The first of several more tear began to slowly roll down Jakes cheek, “If there is nothing to do Ezera; then why am I here. To watch her die? To lose the last bit of my sanity that I have been desperately trying to hold onto since I was awoken?”

 

[Ereza]

The eyes that watched him gave a pitying wince, head canting to one side in a fashion to bend and understand this very strong reaction.

"If it were something so simple we would not be where we are today. The Suzerein was her last hope - she spent several months under her care. She has accepted her fate and is doing what she can with what time she has left. You are here to ease her pain and worry. She has brought you here to receive one last gift. Would you still insist on ending your life if you were given your sons back?"

 

[Jake Daniels]

Jake's eyes, for a moment flashed flickers of orange and red. To ask such a question was cruel, in the simplest terms. They narrowed at the woman, never wavering, never blinking. The tears that had begun suddenly ceased as the Knight himself felt one thing; being pissed off.

He ground his teeth quietly, contemplating what she had said. His Lady Silencia was a woman of magic and sorcery; Jake was a blunt force object. He was meant to smash things with a glow stick. He had no deep understanding of the forces more intimate capabilities. However he knew one thing to be true, "When I awoke I tried my damnedest to find a way to resurrect my wife and sons. I bounced world to world searching; all while rebuilding my home. I learned one very important thing. They are gone. There is no Sith spell that can bring back anyone; my wife, my boys, or even my Master if she passes. Once they are gone. They're gone."

Jake took a single, wobbly step forward to draw himself ever closer but not completely onto Ezera, "To answer your question; I would do anything to have my family back. However, they are not here. They are at my home, buried with their mother, soon their Grandmother, and myself. If anyone in my family was alive, then no, I would not end my life." Jake paused and found his seat on the bed again. "I don't know what happens to one after death. I do not know if there is an afterlife or if there is nothing. All I can hope for is that they've found everlasting peace. If my Master is to die, then I hope she finds it as well. There will be nothing left for me in this reality. So why stay?"

Jakes eyes turned up towards Ezera, "She wants to give me a gift? Then her gift can be to not throw in the towel like some washed up has been. She can fight; as she always expected me too. Damn it, why the hell would she just give up like this and why the hell would you ask me such a pointed question?"

 

[Ereza]

There was some part of difficulty in trying to understand the rash reactions of the man standing before her, but to her credit she remained steadfast and unflinching under his heated gaze. Attributed perhaps to her kind or, more accurately, to her upbringing and mentorship. There existed no student or child of Silencia that quivered before such trials and tribulations.

"If you were looking only for Sith spells that might explain why you found no answers. The Lady is not a Sith, nor are her methods or powers derived from the doctrines and dogma of the Darkside," Ereza replied calmly, quietly, hands folding at her front. The woman broke her eye contact with the man, a hint of shame in the gesture. A sigh passed audibly beneath her face covering.

"Forgive me, it is not my place to speak to you of such things. I should have said nothing at all. Perhaps in the morning she will be well enough to explain all that she has done for you during the years that you slept."

 

[Jake Daniels]

"I..." Jake paused as he looked down at his hands, "apologize. My outburst was not meant as a personal attack at you not my Master." Yes Jake knew how to apologize but no he was not good at vocalizing the reasoning behind it. For Daniels, the fact that he was losing another member of his family stung. If his Master was a pillar of unmovable stone when it came to emotional expression, Jake was a torrential rapid of water. He just poured out emotion.


Sleep didn't come to Jake that night. Ereza was right, the teleportation took its toll. The Knight tried to eat. Tried too. Nothing was held down for long however. Nausea mixed with physical and emotional pain ensured that his stomach remained empty. His eyes, thigh heavy, refused to close as memories of a distant past flooded his mind. His various training with his Lady Silencia, the times he came to her aid and he to hers. Yet when she needed him most there was nothing Jake could do.

By dawn Jake had ended up soaking in a tub for several hours. His muscles, though loose, still screamed at him. The pill did little to numb it. Again Ereza was right, Jake needed rest yet the man simply did not know how too. There was simply too much on his mind. When a knock was heard upon his chamber door, the Knight took another half dozen pain pills, picked at a few pieces of now hardened bread, and guzzled the last of his water.

Opening the door to see a Noghri Jake spoke before the native could, "Tell Ereza I'm going for a walk."

With that the Knight limped off.

 

[Ereza]

"Should I go after him, Masenre?"

"Leave him."

She knew Jake well enough to know that he dealt with his emotions physically. A walk, or perhaps a trudge in his case, was simply a means to an end. A way for the man to work through his thoughts of which she was certain there was an overwhelming amount.

Ereza nodded silently to herself before dismissing the Noghri Priestess that had delivered the message.

"These humans," the younger woman began after a time of quiet introspection, "feel so strongly. So intensely. Are they all this way?"

"Many, but not all. Their lives are short and forfeit. They are a fragile people. Living in the moment is for some the only way to live."

"Living in the past seems more apt."

"The past is all he has and all he knows. Do not be so fast to judge him. Our people live lifetimes longer and he has awaken to a galaxy five lifetimes beyond his own. Nothing is familiar and everything is changed. It...was not what I had planned for him. These things I will do should have already been done ... but a hundred years from now and not a day sooner."

Ereza's brow knit in thought, "You mean to say he should not be awake?"

"No."

"Then why...?"

The withered elder heaved a sigh of frailty, stoney expression crumbling beneath lines of guilt, regret, uncertainty, "I do not know."

 

[Jake Daniels]

There was an undeniable tension in Jake as he coursed his way through the Temple of Mal’ary’ush. Once again Noghri walked its corridors, at the ready to be of service to his Lady Silencia should anything be of need to her. Their loyalty was just as strong now as it had been centuries passed. Yet Jake felt foreign in a place he once called home; an outcast, a loner. He shouldn’t have felt this way, he knew it. His Lady Silencia was within the confines of the same residence. He could feel her power, her now feeble presence on the force. That power enhanced his own, ever slightly. It was a symbiotic relationship. It was what truly made him unpredictable. Away; he was slightly weaker. Around her? He was just that much stronger.

His hands continued to reach out and grab onto railings or press against walls every few steps. The Eternal Apprentice still tired and nauseated, hobbled along. Noghri took notice but did nothing to assist the Knight. Just as the village near his Villa had come to know him, so did the Noghri around the Temple. If Jake didn’t ask for help, he didn’t want it. They left him be; though black reptilian eyes remained locked on his every step.

Various rooms he passed brought back memories of old. Most of them revolved around the training's he had held with his Master; some held memories of his time as the Guardian of this Temple. He had ensured the safety of every Shamalain; Cerusia, Dissero, Quietus, and of course the children. He did what was necessary to ensure their safety; even if they hated him for it. Jake wasn’t one to make friends. He was the lone wolf; the guard dog to his Lady Silencia.

Then he found himself upon a balcony. The humidity that had filled many of the sunlit halls was washed away in the thick mist of the waterfalls which dotted the temple. The marble floors were slick and the Noghri guards present stood to attention; even as their scaly skin seemed to appear slimy from the condensation that collected upon their flesh.

They took note of the Knight as he approached the stone banister and leaned out. The coolness of the falls, for the moment washed away every worry, every thought. Jake allowed himself to live in the moment. He missed this. The feeling that everything was starting to become whole in his life again. Much like before, the reality was quick to set in once that line of thought began. It wouldn’t feel whole for long. His Lady Silencia was dying.

Turning towards the Guards, three to be exact, Daniels reached out with the force and summoned one machete sized blade to his hand. Almost instantly Jake felt the weight of the weapon and had to adjust it in his hands several times in order to become acquainted with it. The Guards did nothing, though the Knight could feel their narrowed eyes. Jake wasn’t a threat. The Noghri knew this. Yet to take ones weapon as he did was a bold display of authority.

The then Knight pointed the weapon towards another Noghri and the dance began. Jake liked to walk, and run when his knees allowed it. Yet the best way to release built up frustration was using what he was good at; a blade. Training. Sparring. Those loosened him up in leu of lost family. Whereas his Lady Reticea had been his confidant, his safe harbor, she was not here. In her place was cold steel.

"Well... come get your buddies sword back."

As the Noghri drew his own weapon, Jake swung. Steel met steel in a violent clash of metal. So began what would be one hell of a sparring match in the Temple of Mal'ary'ush. This was how Jake would prepare himself to see his Lady Silencia. She didn't deserve an emotional mess. It wasn't fair to her. It wasn't fair to him. He'd be civil and polite but first Jake needed to vent and how he did it was through physical activity.