Private Welcome to the Jungle

[Valery Noble]

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Location: New Cov​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Lightsabers: Link!​

Ship: Factory link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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Valery paused and looked around, having felt the same thing but it was already too late — the two Jedi were well within the range of what had been lurking. From all around them, vines began to suddenly lash out from the bushes, attempting to strike at their body and limbs in an attempt to tackle the Jedi. ​

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At the side, a large mouth opened up with hundreds of small, razor-sharp teeth more than capable of devouring them.​

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"Iris!" Valery called out as she began to jump from one spot to another to evade the vines. She had seen plants like this many times before, and much of her Ataru training had been dodging flora like this. ​

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"We need to get our hands on those items and get out!"​

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With the plant moving so much, the two would be able to see more than just a rifle. There were other items on the ground as well, which could potentially guide them to find survivors, if there were any.​

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[Iris Arani]

Meat.

The echo through the Force carried a single word that sent a shiver down Iris's spine. Not just colors. A word, if it could be called that. Instinct, perhaps. Vines erupted from around both the Padawan and her Master, threatening to consume them. Iris's blade cut out, Domxite burning into existence to cut through the swath of plant life so she could jump back and escape the threat with Valery Noble .

"What is this!?"

She was panicking. The darkness here was beyond what she expected. Rising from the depths. Collect the items? They needed to get away! This wasn't just hunger like the animals from before. This was darker.

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: New Cov​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Lightsabers: Link!​

Ship: Factory link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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"Meat" ​

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Valery heard the word and memories instantly rushed into her mind. Much of her early life had been spent on this world, and even though encounters with Drengir were extremely rare, she had heard tales about those who did run into them. With great speed, the woman produced her twin violet blades and began to cut through the vines that lashed out at her and her Padawan.​

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"Drengir!" she called out to Iris, unsure if she had read about them or not.​

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"We have to move!" This time, she agreed with Iris as well — this beast had more than likely killed the research team, but there was no way to do a careful investigation with it still around, and she did not want to attempt to kill it.​

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Valery then moved between her Padawan and the large creature, still cutting through anything that came for them while she hoped to give Iris some cover. But as the young Padawan moved, a vine struck Valery's right knee, and Iris could see her Master's body hitting the ground hard. ​

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It was unusual for the Jedi Master to be caught in such a way, but there was no time to even think about what caused it. She was in trouble, and more vines were coming for her.​

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[Iris Arani]

Drengir?

No, Iris had no idea what those were. She was all about fleeing at this point. Valery Noble was right, they needed to move. The Padawan turned as the Master dove in to cut through the vines and help her escape. Only, as Iris started to run, she didn't feel Valery behind her. Panic filled her mind as she turned just to see the Drengir lurch for her master. No time to think, no time to doubt.

Iris threw Domxite. The pink blade ripped through the air, controlled mostly by the gem housed within, spinning to cut through the vines in a wide arc. Creating a sort of barrier as Iris slid by her Master's side. "Can you stand?" The Padawan was already trying to help Valery to her feet and bring the woman away from the monstrous plant.

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: New Cov​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Lightsabers: Link!​

Ship: Factory link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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With a moan of pain, Valery rolled onto her back as the Drengir moved in for the kill. She knew she had to get out of the way immediately, and channeled the Force to try and force herself up. But Iris was quicker and threw her blade to intercept the vines coming for her. Under better circumstances, Iris' quick action would have made her smile, but there was no time.​

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"I can..." she muttered in an attempt to conceal her pain.​

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Using Iris as support, Valery made it up to her feet and drew her lightsaber back into her hand, blade ignited to fend off any vines coming after the two. ​

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"Let's move." She said, her voice a tad stronger as they began to quickly move away from the dangerous plant. The Drengir, however, was quite persistent and continued lashing out at them — it did not want to lose its meal. ​

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Normally, two Jedi could move really fast, making escape not overly difficult. But Iris would be able to tell that something was off about her Master. She wasn't moving faster, she was almost slowing down gradually, and had difficulties keeping up. Sweat was running down her face, and her skin tone looked paler than ever before.​

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And the Drengir was coming.​

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[Iris Arani]

Iris's brow furrowed. Valery Noble was much.. Weaker than before. What was going on? She didn't have time to try and figure it out. Worse, she wasn't strong enough to carry her master along to safety. She let out a breath as the two continued forward with the Drengir hot on their heels. Valery could move, that's what mattered. So the Padawan slipped back, putting herself between the plant only hungry for meat. Domxite flew back to her hand as she ignited the pink colored blade, her eyes focused.

"Keep going! When you're far enough away I'll run." Her blade flashed as she weaved through the vines, severing those trying to go towards her Master. Protecting others. That's always been when Iris was at her strongest. Even now it showed as she kept a calm expression. The Force guided her movements as she kept her distance from the gnashing teeth. "Go!"

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: New Cov​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Lightsabers: Link!​

Ship: Factory link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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Quickly realizing that she was holding back their escape, Valery was about to turn to face the Drengir when Iris called for her to keep moving. With widened eyes, she watched as her Padawan stood between her and the Drengir, blade drawn and fully calm to cover their escape. It was something special to see how much progress Iris has made as a Jedi, but Valery was still hesitant to just leave her behind.​

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"Go!"​

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She seemed determined though, so Valery decided to place her trust in Iris and kept moving. Slowly but surely, she was distancing herself from the battle, but the pain she felt was getting worse, almost as if it was eating her up from the inside. She had to find a safe place to stop and rest or she wasn't going to make it. ​

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Looking around though, all she spotted was a cave. Maybe the one they had seen earlier? The problem was that caves were typically not safe here, but there seemed to be no other options. So with the last bit of energy the woman had, she approached it, only to feel her strength slipping near the entrance.​

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Not able to catch her fall, she hit the ground again and lacked the strength to roll onto her back. While still conscious, Valery lay on the cold, rocky surface, her teeth gritted and her eyes closed as she fought against the pain. ​

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[Iris Arani]

Maybe staying behind wasn't the best idea.

Iris, now much more battered than before, dove through the underbrush in an attempt to make space between her and the hungry plant. With Valery Noble gone, the now enraged Drengir could put all it's attention in chasing after the Padawan. Which only went to show just how outclassed the teen was. Didn't matter how many times she cut through the vines. The Drengir would heal, seemingly faster than she could cut.

Not to mention it's main body that Iris did her best to avoid. Gnashing teeth was the last thing she wanted to deal with. She also couldn't escape. Iris would really have to ask her master to teach her how to move faster some time. When she survived. If she survived. The teen grimaced as she dove under the incoming strike of more vines. She'd given up on using Domxite as a shield at this point.

But what else could she do?

The endless hunger from the plant creature left her constantly feeling cold. Made it hard to think, really. It was Domxite who reached out to calm her mind. Keep her colors bright. She glanced to her saber for a moment and nodded. Then turned back towards the Drengir. She gritted her teeth, tensing her body. Her blade flashed through the vines, and sure enough the main body dove through, hungry maw wide to devour her whole.

Only to be met with a paint can. Nicked in just the right spot. Iris dove to the side just as the compressed color blew up, and she didn't look back. Now was the time to find her master, not see what might've happened to the plant being.

The paint can bought her time. Enough to get away and make distance. Enough to find the cave Valery was in. She rushed to her Master's side, practically skidding across the ground to get beside the laid out Jedi. "Master! Are you okay!?"

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: New Cov​

Valery: Appearance​

Outfit: Factory Link​

Lightsabers: Link!​

Ship: Factory link​

Tag: Iris Arani ​

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While Iris was left to handle the Drengir and escape somehow, Valery was motionless on the ground. She had been in these jungles many times before, but never had anything struck her quite like this. She also knew that it couldn't have been some poisonous animal or plant — she would have felt it or at least sensed the danger. ​

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This was something else.​

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Then footsteps came, and Valery felt her Padawan skidding up beside her. With teeth gritted and pain written all over her features, Valery pushed herself up to hands and knees. Her long hair fell in front of her face, and her eyes remained closed as she tried to focus on her breathing. Valery was trained to handle and withstand great pain, but this was nearly crippling.​

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"I'll be okay, Iris," Valery said, hoping to make her Padawan feel better. She didn't want to seem vulnerable in front of the girl that relied on her.​

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"You've done well, but we're not safe yet," she said between difficult breaths, and with her muscles tense. "We..." she stopped as she felt her arms trembling, and frowned. ​

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"We need to get back to the city."​

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The problem, however, was that they were getting close to evening and with Valery's slow pace, they'd never make it back before dark. Now already, both Jedi could sense a great deal of danger out there — predators and plants looking for a meal. It would not be a safe and easy trip back.​

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[Iris Arani]

Back to the city. Right. Iris nodded to Valery Noble , giving her a brief smile. They could do this. Iris could do this. She'd lead the two through the jungle, away from threats, using her ability to see the colors to find a way through. Even as the night settled in, the Padawan could still see like it was midday. Danger lurked around every corner, but she'd find the path. The missing crew was gone, that much was for certain. With a larger group they could go to find what remained, but right now what mattered was getting her Master to safety.

Until they made it to the large wall, Iris was quiet. Focused. When they finally did, Iris spoke up, glancing to her Master with a faint smile. "We did it."