[IC] Star Wars: A New Force

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

At Ben's smirk her way, Odette laughed and shook her head, continuing on with what she was doing, looking at the different screens in the ship and making sure they were heading in the right direction as Ben stood up, likely to go explore the ship. She watched him for a moment, a slight smile on her face, before going back to keep an eye on the ship's computers as BB-11 rolled up to settle beside her, as if waiting for instructions. At that, Odette smiled and patted the droids head, "Wanna help me keep an eye on all these computers? You can play co-pilot," Leaning over she smirked as she spoke in a mock whisper, "You would probably be a better co-pilot than Ben anyway."

She sat up straight in her chair again as the droid used extensions to pull itself into the seat beside her so it had a better view of all the screens. Odette had to say, this was a very productive little droid. She was definitely taking it with her when she went exploring the temple, that was for sure. After fiddling with some of the things on the board she heard Ben call out and rose an eyebrow as she looked over her shoulder. He had his back to her and so she stood up, walking toward where he was standing, "Did you just seriously tell me in your own way to get back in the kitchen? Because if you did I'm poisoning any food I make for you." She said, though jokingly as she finally walked up beside him, peering into the room as well.

When she saw the kitchen she blinked a little in surprise, "Well, seems your mom lended up a pretty good ship. Kitchen and meditation all in one. Pretty interesting and useful." She smiled up at him, "I suppose we do have to eat dinner, huh? I guess I can fix us something while you get some meditation in." She said, playfully poking his forehead, "You need it. I haven't seen you meditate in a few days."

[Renny]

Ben Solo

Days... he repeated to himself.

" Has it really been that long?" His thought escaped from this thin lips.

He was certain after some pondering that she was right. He hadn't truly focused on the Force since his shivering encounter with the dark-warrior in his visions. It was a nightmare that he would need to face eventually, that much he knew, but... but he was afraid to. And it was necessarily something he could discuss with Odd. Embracing emotions wasn't the way of the Jedi; Jedi sought peace not followed after ghosts.

Ben sought to rouse his face from the somber expression that painted it as he smirk and adopted a jolly tone. " You're right! I should meditate... its been way to long. In the meantime, instead of cooking... I think you should join me. Remember when we were looking for that map last week... when we melded in the Force. Let's try it again."

Obviously or not, hopefully not, Ben was asking for her support. If he faced that visage again... that thrumming call towards a destiny he couldn't quite grasp; he wasn't sure what he'd do. That dark armor... that hollow breath. Ben shook just thinking about it.

He hurried to the minimalistic side of the room and sat down on the cold durasteel. He had a odd way of sitting when meditating; his leg was stretched as if admiring the sunset on the shores of an ocean planet, his head lowered, his eyes closed. Awkwardly he held his hand out for Odette to grasp, a quaint smile on his face from the anticipation of feeling her skin on his.

" I don't have all day, Odd." He spoke her name tenderly, almost as soft as his mom had said his own.

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

"You want to try to connect together through the Force again?" She asked, tilting her head to the side in curiosity. Before the two of them had done that never before had she heard of two people coming together to enhance their connections with the Force. But then again, she and Ben were likely the first two Force Sensitive beings that had even been together in such a way that they could find that out. Perhaps it was because of their closeness that they were able to seek the Force in such a a way as that.

She watched him walk over and sit down, his posture making her grin just a bit as she crossed her arms over her chest. He had always had a strange way of sitting when meditating, something that Luke had scolded him for at first, but after a while had given up on. It was just Ben's way of meditating and if he was more comfortable and more in tuned with the Force, than who was anyone to stop him. Besides, she found it amusing to see him like that.

His hand held out to her and she smiled a bit more, "Alright, alright. I'm coming." With that, she made her way over and took a seat next to him, sitting in the normal way one might see a Jedi, legs crossed and sitting up straight. She took his hand gently, intertwining her slender fingers with his. She smiled at him softly before closing her eyes and facing her head forward, closing her eyes to delve into the Force.

It was truly amazing every time she went into it, feeling everything around her, feeling as though she herself were a part of the Force. And this time was no different. Well, perhaps it was a little different, but it was in a good way. She was able to reach further. Feel more. Together they were enveloped in the Force and it was the most amazing feeling she had ever experienced.

[Renny]

Ben Solo

His hands were trembling. The deep-seeded fear of the one-time onslaught had cast done its damage. Even through the vision... he had known he would never come close to dark-warrior's affinity in the Force. That thing wasn't just some apparition.

He felt that it was something real... something conscious. His face contorted with agitation; some long forgotten nuisance finally rearing its head. If it was not for Odd's joining hands with him, her pureness in the Force finding its way to his, than he might have quit. Ben's grasp on her's became firm as he felt her meld affinity with his. In the Force, they became a conduit, a vessel. One that was exquisitely large, massive. It poured in and he felt something stir inside him.

Visions of ominous happenings.

He found himself standing among murky ground, rain-soaked and slippery. The downpour above him drenched his robes. The feeling in the air was of dark expectations. He half expected to see the dark-armored warrior when shadows had begun to rise not too far from him. Their was a few but most of them seemed to flock around one in particular, a warrior whose presence was both familiar and all-together alien.

Ben took a step back out of trepidation and bumped into Odd on accident. " You're here too," he whispered, grabbing her by her shoulders before taking a stand in front of her. " You shouldn't be here. Damn, if I knew you'd get dragged in, I wouldn't have asked... I- I just thought you'd drive them away." he muttered.

The shadows looked around before the leader unexpectedly glanced towards him. A red line of energy appeared in the distance, two shorter lines shot from its hilt. A spectral sound echoed from the middle warrior but no words came. Then the others looked towards them as well, as if on a mental link with their master.

Ben shook, backing the two of them up with stumbiing steps. " They're going to slaughter us, Odd. I can't lose you here!" He snapped her hands in his... only it wasn't his hand. It was wrapped in a fine leather from fingers to elbow, black robes covered the rest of his body, and he saw through obscured eye-slots. A red hue vividly lit Odd's face.

"You're the last vestige of my light... I have no choice, Kenobi." Ben spoke, though they weren't his words. He felt trapped inside a vessel, a soul looking outwards.

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

The amazing feeling of being drawn into the Force was short lived. Suddenly there was a feeling creeping into the combined power of their meditation. It was a small feeling at first, one barely noticeable, but then, it began to grow and fear crept into her heart at the smothering essence it held. She opened her eyes, only, when she did, she stood in a strange place, thick fog surrounding the area, rain pouring down around them as mud stuck to her feet. She glanced around as she stood there, staring wide eyed. This place...it looked familiar. It only took a moment to realize why. It was their planet where they had stayed for so long with Master Luke. Only, there was something dreading about it now. A feeling she couldn't quite put her finger on.

Turning, she found Ben in front of her and she looked up at him worriedly before looking over his shoulder to see the group of people a little ways from them, one of them staring at she and Ben. They looked truly terrifying and Ben sounded absolutely panicked as he backed them away from the dark figures. Was this what Ben had been dealing with all on his own? If it was, she could now understand the struggle she had been feeling inside of him lately. She had to help him and now that she was here with him she could.

Her eyes snapped back to look at him again as he said how they were going to destroy she and Ben, making her shake her head, speaking so that she could, hopefully, have courage for the both of them, "No, Ben! We can fight them off! As long as we're together we can do anything! But it has to be together!" She said as he took her hands in his.

But, what if they weren't fighting together?

Suddenly, in a blink of an eye, she looked back at Ben, and it wasn't Ben she was staring at. Or well, it was, but he was different. He was cloaked in all black, holding her hand a little too tightly to the point it hurt, his mask staring down at her. And in his free hand was a light saber, much like his own now, but with a deathly red hue that lit the grey world around them. Her eyes went wide at the words he spoke. That wasn't Ben. It couldn't be. It was his body, but not something he would say to her, or at least, she hoped he would never say to her anyway.

She watched the red saber was lifted, ready to swing down and strike at her and at the last minute she managed to jerk her hand from his, moving out of the way to avoid the deadly strike, "Ben! Stop!" She screamed at him in panic, barely dodging another swing once again. After that, she ignited her own saber, lifting to meet his and block the next strike, their sabers locked as they pushed against one another, "This isn't you, Ben! Snap out of it!" She said to him, panic in her eyes. She didn't want to fight him. She didn't know what to do. She was panicked and scared. She didn't want to loose him and at the same time, was struggling to defend herself as well.

"Be the light even in the most impossibly penetrable darkness."

A voice reached her ears as she continued to push against Ben's saber with her own, the voice of the young man she had seen in her vision in the temple, the one of her younger grandfather, spoke clear as day. She pushed back so that she could stumble a few steps back and looked over her shoulder. There, standing behind her, were Jedi Masters she had never seen before. One of course, was her grandfather. Next to him was a small green creature. Beside the green creature was a man with dark skin. On the other side of her grandfather, was a man with blond hair that came to his shoulders and a scar over his left eye. Beside him was one last Jedi with long hair, the one she had seen killed in her vision and who she assumed was her grandfather's master.

They were all standing behind her like a sort of army and when she turned back around, standing behind Ben was something similar. Standing behind him in the center was a masked figure in all black that stood towering and terrifying. Beside him on each sides were Siths of the past, including the one with the red and black face she had seen killed by her grandfather in her own vision at the temple. Neither the army behind her move, nor did the one behind the masked Ben. Instead, she found herself a second water being locked back into battle with Ben while the small armies of the Light side and the Dark side stood by watching. Once again, that saying was repeated, finding her ears for a third time since she had started having these visions,

"Be the light even in the most impossibly penetrable darkness." This time it was all of them saying it together in unison.

"I don't know how to do that!" She screamed, feeling tears streaming down her cheeks. She didn't even know what they meant by that. How to be the light to anything. To fix this. To save Ben. She didn't understand any of it. All she knew was that she wanted Ben back. Wanted him to be the Ben that could hold her and make all her worries and fears go away. Not this Ben.

She hit against his saber with hers, once again locking them together, "Ben! Please! Come back Ben!" Suddenly her saber was thrown from her hand, "I love you Ben! Don't do this!" In a last attempt to bring out the Ben she knew, she threw her arms around his neck, hugging herself close to him just as the red searing blade pierced into her chest.

There was no pain. Her eyes were closed tightly, arms clinging tightly to Ben, her mind racing as she sobbed and tried to catch her breath. It took a moment for her to open her eyes and when she did, she found they were no longer in the pouring rain or soaking wet. She was dry and safe from harm. But...what about Ben? She pulled back slightly, eyes full of relief when she looked into Ben's eyes. Her Ben. A few sobs escaped her and she hugged him once more, throwing her arms around him and hugging herself close to him, "Don't ever leave me Ben....stay just the way you are...please....don't leave me...."

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Onboard the Discovery

Ben's eyes snapped open with a start, the final images of his... his crimson blade sliding through Odd's naval. Fear and anger swirled into a storm of frustration , with a rich air of relief dancing overhead. He was genuinely, exquisitely happy. Happy that the vision was over. Happy that it wasn't based in the world of reality.

Only... it was based in the Force and that could be just as heartbreaking, he thought.

...

His thoughts were literally silent. Where they had gone he wasn't sure but they were not in the land of cognitive explanation. Odette's sobs and fearful grasp brought him back, but he felt slightly numb. The vision the Force had conjuror was likely, with Odette's and his own affinity coursing down the patchwork, a screen to the future. He hesitated to comfort her both upset with her lack of conviction to strike him down and afraid of his own lack of compassion for her.

...Kenobi? I call her Kenobi, not Odd. My voice was so, so dispassioned. His head lowered as he pulled her into a deep hug, tears trailing down his face. He couldn't let her see him so weak, so desperate. I gotta... I need to... I can't...

I can't comprehend anymore.

He sat with her for hours, incapable of letting her ago until his tears had dried, his eyes were red, and his arms were weak from hugging her. How much time had passed? he wonder as he dropped his arms and sat back. But he knew that he had something indescribeably heavy on his heart now, something that neither the Force nor Master Luke could solve. Only he could deal with the darkness in his heart. He knew that now.

It was his destiny. So said the dark knight in his visages.

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

Odette didn't know how long she sat there clinging to Ben, but to be honest she didn't care. After that horrible vision she didn't want to do anything but hug onto Ben and never let him go, as though if she just kept hugging him it could keep that vision from ever coming true. What did that vision mean anyway? What type of future could possibly befall them that had to do with such a vision? And if it wasn't a vision for the future than what was it? Was it someone messing with their heads? Perhaps the dark side attempting to reach out and corrupt Ben through Force visions? If it was something like that, then she couldn't let that happen. She had to keep Ben by her side. Had to shield him from that. Had to keep him on the path of the Light Side. She couldn't loose him. Not that way.

It was a long while before she and Ben finally pulled from their hug, her wiping the remaining tears from her cheeks while he seemed to have dried all of his already, if he had cried at all, which from his red eyes she was fairly sure he had. As she looked at him a silence seemed to fall over them both for a moment but she couldn't let that silence stay. If she did, that would be succumbing to the fear the both of them felt that weighed so heavily over their hearts. She couldn't let either of them do that, especially not Ben with how pitiful he looked in that moment.

Gently, Odette placed her hands on his cheeks, having him look down at her to meet her gaze, "Ben? I won't let what happened in that Vision happen to us. I promise. I don't know what that was, or why we saw it. But, I will not let it happen. I can't let it." She ran her fingers gently over his cheeks, "We're together. And as long as it stays that way, nothing can touch us. Nothing can turn us into a product of the Dark Side. We're each other's strength." Leaning up, she pressed her lips to his in a comforting sort of way before meeting his gaze again, "I love you, Ben. And nothing will ever change that."

...Five Days Later...

The first two days after that Force Vision both she and Ben had shared were rather quiet other than talking about what they needed to do around the ship and what to eat. The silence between them had worried Odette greatly and every chance she got she was peaking in to check on Ben where ever he might be. It was finally on the third day after the vision that she sat by him and just silently leaned against him, taking his hand in comfort. Even it it was just a silent communication, it was a communication at least and it seemed to work well. After that things got a little better. They were talking to each other and spending time with one another once again, something that lifted a sort of invisible weight from Odette.

Finally they were getting ready to land and Odette was rather excited, walking around and getting things ready for landing while BB-11 whirled about her feet excitedly as well, where as BB-8 stayed at Ben's side. It seemed the two droids had chosen which human they liked better, which was strange considering BB-8 and Ben seemed to bicker more than get along, but that was really Ben's relationship with any friend if she thought about it.

After getting everything ready, she smiled and walked over to Ben, "We're landing in a couple minutes. Ready for our first solo mission, Mr. Solo?" She joked, a small smirk on her face.

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Onboard the Discovery

"Of course, what about you misses Solo?" Ben said with a smile, he pulled his sleeves up and rubbed his pale skin with moxie.

The grin on his face was somewhat cool, holding an edge that wasn't there previously. Bee-Bee Ate was nearby, whirling mechanically in his language of beeps and squeals. Ben chuckled at the excitement that flowed in the droid, it melded very subtly into him, making him cringe. His eyes lowered at the possibilities... the dangers. He lowered his head for half a second before remembering that Odette was nearby.

He was more subtle with his immediate expression change, instead his grimace melded into a worried straight-lined. "I hope we don't have as much trouble finding this piece as the last. We most likely won't though, with Bee-Bee Ate and Bee-Bee Eleven we should be fine. They have scanners and capabilities."

He went to the Co-Pilot chair and sat down. "Let's get down there. I wanna get this over with as fast as possible."

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

16 * Padawan * The Second Temple

"Misses Solo? My, my, I don't remember accepting a marriage purposal from you. Here I thought all this time I was still a Kenobi." She said jokingly, a grin on her face, "Though I do like the ring of it. Odette Solo. Kinda catchy, don't you think?" She said with a small laugh and a smirk as she took the pilot's seat. There wasn't much to do now. The ship was on automatic pilot and woudl make the landing without her or Ben really having to do anything, "I'm all set to get this mission started. Though, just like you, I hope finding this thing won't give us too much trouble or take too long."

She looked at the screens and nodded to herself, "We're going in for the landing." With that, she watched all their instruments carefully and made sure everything was working correctly the whole time while landing. Soon, within a few minutes, their ship was landing down and she stood up from the pilot seat, grabbing her bag to slip over her shoulder and her light-saber to clip to her side, "We landed about a half mile from the coordinates Master Luke gave us for the temple. We'll have to walk there. Let's get started."

Smiling at Ben, she pressed the button to open up the door to the ship and step out onto the planet. It was a planet that she swore she had heard of before. With swamp lands and a murky fog hanging all around, she was sure she had heard of it somewhere. And then it clicked. She blinked in surprise and then looked to Ben, "Hey, I think this might be Dagobah. You know, the planet that the old Master Yoda had taught Master Luke before passing away?" She nodded to herself, "This has to be it. Its the only place like this I've ever heard about."

Pulling her blonde hair back into a pony tail to keep it from getting stuck in any branches, she reached down to pick BB-11 up and put it in her messenger bag, the droid whistling in protest, "We should probably carry these two until we get to the temple. Otherwise they might sink into the mud." With that, after calming the droid, she began walking, watching out for low hanging branches and other things that might get in her way.

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Dagobah

"Dagobah? How in the galaxy did we end up here? You would think Luke would've sensed the second temple here... or at the least thought to check here for it." His words fell into whispers, he felt the swampy air stick to his skin.

Bee-Bee-Ate rolled over to his foot as he grabbed his things, lastly clipping his saber to his belt. He wasn't sure what Bee-Bee-Eleven was made out of but Bee-Bee-Ate was a lot heavier than he thought it'd be. He attempted to lift it up but the weight it carried would have slowed and hampered him. So he used the Force to float it over as he maneuvered through the dense swampland. He was happy his boots were high enough that its dirty soles could go largely ignored if he ran into others.

Maybe it was the royalty in him but he did enjoy looking his best whenever possible. A thin skin of sweat fell over him as he traveled beside Odette, occasionally taking the lead, and checking out dangers before she could whenever possible. He would reach into the Force attempt to probe for dangers that were unseen. He found insects that were large as canines and creatures beneath deep pools of swamp water that were best avoided completely.

Ben was the first break the silence after twenty minutes of silence. "Dagaboh feels different from what Luke said about it. It feels populated for some reason... doesn't it? Teeming with more life."

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

16 * Padawan * The Second Temple

"Well," Odette began, looking around at the swampy land, "It has been thirty years since Master Luke was here training with Master Yoda. Back then he wasn't as intuned with the Force as he is now, or even as intuned as we are with our few years of training. He might not have sensed it for his lack of inexperience at the time." She said and glanced around a little more curiously, "And it does seem to have a lot more life forms here in the swamps. But, like I said before, its been years since he was here. Maybe some lifeforms settled here from another planet. Or maybe there was a population growth from some other lifeforms that were already here."

She continued walking, constantly using the Force to not ony help her with BB-11 but to check out the area around them as well. She coudln't help but notice every once and a while Ben would walk a little ahead of her and would look around while seeming to concentrate. This made ehr smile slightly, though she said nothing of it. He seemed to be so protective over her, though she was very well capable of taking care of herself. Yet, it was a nice guesture to see that he was looking out for her.

"I hope we find this temple and the other peice of the map soon. I don't like mud." She muttered to herself, keeping her saber in her hand just in case they might have a run in with any of the swamp animals that might be harmful. Yet, something was harmful that she didn't expect and it sure wasn't a living thing.

She had been walking a little bit a head of Ben, when she took a step, only to find herself knee deep in mud, "Ugh, great. Again, I reallllly dow like mud." She went to take a step, only to find when she struggled to do so, she sunk deeper into it with a gasp, now up to her waist in it, "Okay, not good...ummm..." She looked to Ben, holding up her hand, "Don't try to grab me out physically. It could have you sinking in it too if you get too close...just...uh..." She had to think for a moment and ran a hand over her forehead, "I guess try to the Force. And it that doesn't work then try a vine or something."

She wasn't sure if using the force to try and pull her out would make her sink deeper into the mud or not, but it was worth a try. If it did then surely they could find a vine that was thick enough for her to hold onto and strong enough so that it wouldn't break if Ben pulled on it. Either way, right now climbing out on her own wasn't an option unless she wanted to drown in mud.

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Dagobah

Ben started forward to grab Odette as she sunk deeper into the liquid mud. The calm in her voice eased him back and loosened his tense muscles but not so much that he felt comfortable. No, he was on the further edge of his cliff of inactivity. If she had screamed, whimpered, or even breathed unearthly; he would had grasped the Force savagely and ripped her from the murky shackles.

Dagoboh's humid air surrounded him, the bent, crippled, and moss-covered trees were gnarled and twisted around the small clearing. Ben touched a nearby limb above him, his foot was lifted on a thick root that fell deep into the mud Odette was trapped within. He rolled his eyes at her suggestions, her words of warning. As if he hadn't considered the thought himself. He had... truly. Perhaps he would've ignored it but he had considered it.

Looking around him Ben peered up at a cluster of hanging limbs. The nearest one was seven or more feet high, it would be easier to pull her out if he had a better perspective. He raised a finger towards Odette mid-sentence. "I'll get you out, Odette. You don't have to worry about that. I promise you."

Starting with a practiced set of squats, Ben suddenly augmented his strength with the Force and grabbed the limb. He pulled himself up with one hand, hearing BB-8 whirled below. On the large limb he figured that they had lost sight of him. The limb hadn't looked that large from below; it made no sense to him. Ben gleamed over the side, his slender figure standing powerfully. His eyes grew wide.

He had launched himself more than twenty feet from the ground... without even noticing it.

Too much power and not enough control... he said vexed.

"I'm fine, BB-8. Don't worry. You don't have to worry either, hun. I'm good." The last part held a teasing jest to them.

His hand raked towards the sky, pulling Odette out with a tender power that he extraneously made sure of. She would land on the same branch he was on, falling, purposely in his arms, cradled firmly against his chest. "Your Knight is here, your situation solved. In return... I expect a soft, gentle payment." His signature smirk splayed on his lips, his dark curls fell around his downward-turned face.

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

16 * Padawan * The Second Temple

Odette wasn't sure what Ben was doing at first, and then, suddenly he was jumping up into the air, much higher than he had seen him do thus far. She looked up at the tree branches worriedly as BB-8 whirled its confusion and worry as well and BB-11 chirped in questioningly. She and the two droids were relieved to hear his voice and she smirked softly shaking her head, "Show off..." She said quietly to herself in a amused sort of tone. But, she knew it wasn't like he had tried to do that. From the wide eyes he had when he looked over the edge she could tell even the height he had landed had surprised himself.

He really was getting stronger in the Force. Right now, she and him were on even grounds even though she had trained six years longer than he had. Sure, she was wiser and more in-tuned with the Force, but his abilities and skill would soon out-weigh hers if he kept improving at the pace he was. Not that she minded. It just meant better for the Jedi Order. And it made her and Ben a great team. Brains and Brawn. Not that he wasn't smart and not that she wasn't strong, but their skills they had naturally complimented each other. Perhaps that was why she and Ben had been sent on this mission in the first place. To test their strengths together.

As she thought this over, she gasped in surprise, being pulled out of the mud with a powerful yet gently tug. Next thing she knew she was in the air with a yelp, only to find herself landing in Ben's arms up on the high branch with him.

At his words, she laughed softly, "Knight, huh? Since when were you promoted, young padawan?" She teased, tugging gently and playfully at the end of one of his dark curls, "But, I suppose I do owe you some sort of repayment for saving me yet again." She said with another smile and leaned up to press her lips against his once more, laughing softly as she pulled back a little bit, "You know, I like being in your arms. Maybe I should get into trouble like that more often." She joked, her arms around his neck, looking up at him playfully with another amused smile.

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Dagobah

Ben smirked with the aftertaste of her lips still on his own. It was a taste he would never get sick of, one that he craved again. So he pressed his own against her after she wrapped her arms around his neck. A shaky breath left him as he reeled in his urges, his pale head was pressed against her own, his jaw tensing and returning as he exorcised his erotic temperament.

A small chuckle left him. He felt comfortable speaking again.

"Perhaps... but that would mean our mission would never get done." He slowly let his arms fall from her, easing her to the ground before taking a step back towards the edge of the branch. Moss-covered limbs laid themselves out in an irregular path towards the ground. BB-8 and 11 seemed anxious with Odette and himself so far up and away.

Ben rubbed his earlobe before skirting back down with a preternatural, instinct. As soon as he reached the floor, he expected to hear Odette seconds later. BB-8 was in the air a moment later, Ben's hand raised casually, and its arguing sounds being largely ignored. He couldn't see a good way across the greedy mud, not one that wouldn't lead the two in the same situation.

"I need another set of eyes on this, Odd. I can't see another way around. And I'm starting to feel a bit uneasy."

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

16 * Padawan * The Second Temple

Odette smiled as Ben returned her kiss and laughed softly, "I guess so, huh? Oh well. Guess I'll have to save making you hold me for another time then when there's less work to be done." With that, she allowed herself to be put down back onto the branch and watched as he descended to the ground by going from branch to branch. She herself thought of following him down, yet, thought better of it for the time being, staying up where she was, looking in a calculating manner toward the sinking mud below. It was a rather large patch of mud they had to get across and they certainly couldn't risk trying to walk through it.

At Ben's comment, she looked back down at him from where she knelt on the branch and spoke, "It's about twenty feet long, Ben. And no telling how wide the sinking part of the mud could be." She hummed in thought for a moment, looking to the thick branches of the trees and tilted her head to the side, "What about the branches? I mean the trees seem to go pretty far. If we could walk and jump across branches then we'd be away from the mud and not risk sinking in it."

Looking down to him, she smiled slightly and moved by jumping from the branch she had been standing on, to one a little higher in the next tree as she spoke, "See? I think we can do it. We're not that far from the temple either. Once we get passed this mud we should be in the clear for reaching the temple." And so, using the Force she levitated BB-11 above the mud while she herself moved from branch to branch flexibly and with ease, smiling all the while at the challenge of it since she never got a chance to test her training Luke had been giving her before now and she was loving it.

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Dagobah

Ben did the same as Odette. BB-8 had protested a bit as he was brought high into the swamp trees, only a bit and even than it was enough to boil the Jedi slightly. He retained his cool though, even thought his entire being was beginning burn. Perhaps the Force was starting to sear its way through him. He had been using it constantly since arriving on Dagaboh.

He sighed a shuttering breath and BB-8 wavered in the air. He reinforced his connection to the Force soon afterwards and the droid stabilized. The split-moment that occurred was all that he needed, he hoped that Odette hadn't noticed. The four of them would continue through the treetops, being barely visible from the ground. Some places the trees were wide, as wide a hall fit for three people shoulder to shoulder. Others were narrow, requiring them to focus on the Force to balance the impossible but short crossing.

Once they came to the edge, he moved aside a canopy of leaves and gazed out on the scenery of the second temple. A blaring woosh of air signaled the descent of a modified TIE spacecraft. Ben looked at it casually before nudging Odette. "What the dark side was that?" he wondered.

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

16 * Padawan * The Second Temple

It seemed Odette's plan of walking along the tree branches was working. In most places it was rather easy to get across the branches thanks to them being so thick. Yet, in other places the branches were a little skinnier and it was a little harder to make it across them. Yet she and Ben were managing it. She could feel that they were getting closer to the temple and was excited to see what it would be like. The abandoned temple was even older than than that of the one on Coruscant, so surely it would have more secrets in it. She hoped anyway. She was always one for learning new things after all and these temples were clearly a gold mine of knowledge for anyone looking to find it.

Out of the corner of her eye, Odette couldn't help but notice BB-8 waver ever so slightly in the air. She glanced over at Ben for a moment before continuing on, wondering what was going on. She kept this wondering to herself, not wanting to bother Ben with it. He had been having a tough time since the first temple visit so perhaps being near this other temple was bothering him. Or maybe he had just simply lost his concentration for a moment for some reason. Either way, bringing it up would likely do more harm than good and so she kept quiet about noticing it and continued on as they drew near the temple.

She walked up beside Ben as he pushed the branches and leaves out of the way for them to view the temple. It wasn't nearly as glorious as the one on Coruscant had been, but that was expected. It was older and had likely been abandoned for years. Yet, it was still pretty cool to look at all the same. She smiled slightly to herself and was about to jump off of the branch to go over to it when a loud sound of a ship startled her, making her stop and look up just in time to see the ship disappear from sight for now. At Ben's question, she looked to him, frowning slightly, "I...don't know. I'm not used to seeing any ships other than the ones your mother lends Master Luke to use. And I sure have never seen one like that before."

Straightening up, she thought for a moment before looking to him, "I wouldn't think there would be anyone coming here. There's no reason to since this planet doesn't hold any societies beneficial to any other planets. Its all self sustaining here. Whatever that ship is doing here, I don't think its anything good Ben."

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 * Padawan * Dagobah

Ben felt a dreary unease seep into him. The Force was strong on this planet, he knew hat much. He tell from the fusing and mixing intuition he had received about this planet's fauna and environment. All of that info was like gut feelings; he had learned to trust his gut, and had associated it with the Force always. His gut, in that very moment, was telling him to be extremely wary of drawing attention to himself... and to Odd of course. Even more so to Odd.

He would much rather the attention be on him than her.

He felt himself tense up, his smile turned hard and his moonesque skin tone became taunt like marble. As stealthily as Luke had taught them in their espionage training, if one could call it that, Ben made his way down the highland swamps of Dagaboh and towards the green-covered murk of the fauna surrounding the second temple. The landing was not as comfortable as he imagined, his legs had shivered with the impact and his trousers had torned down the side of his left knee.

Once landed, he checked for BB-8, 11, and Odd up above. BB-8 was still hovering nearby; deep, dark branches fell towards the ground around them. He had forgotten BB-8 was with him for the minor part, allowing his hard body to crash against the trees. Ben looked at it and covered his mouth with both hands in a form apology. "Sorry, BB."

It understood the importance of being quiet, cause it quietly murmured its complaints.

From what he understood the Second Temple wasn't too far from them now. Another hour of walking and they could be on its steps.

[AHeartlessNobody]

☾ ΟÐξΤΤξ ΚξΝΟβΙ ☽

16 * Padawan * The Second Temple

Odette watched on as Ben jumped down from the trees in a rather rough landing, biting her lip and watching on to make sure he was okay before indeed seeing he was and letting out a small sigh of relief. She was always so worried about him. As much as he wouldn't admit it, Ben could sometimes be a little reckless and unaware of the dangers he put himself in. Even now he hadn't realized how far the jump down was until he had landed, ripping the knee down to the bottom of the left side of his pants and all together having a sort of rough landing, BB-8 not far behind with a landing very similar due to Ben making it hit against some trees.

When he looked up at her, she nodded slightly to him, as though to silently tell him she was coming down, and was quite a bit more careful than him, swiftly making her way from branch to branch, making her way lower until she was at least a little closer to the ground and jumped down the rest of the way, landing on her feet before she looked up and brought BB-11 down using the Force, being careful to not crash the droid into the trees like Ben had done. She would much prefer to not have her little droid friend dented and scratched up if she could help it.

Once both were down and safe, Odette looked to Ben before she began walking through the woods, being cautious and looking about for anything suspicious or dangerous. On an unknown planet like Dagobah that hadn't been explored in years one could never know what might be hiding around any corner. That, and after seeing that spacecraft just now she had a feeling they wouldn't be alone for long, and if her hunch was right, whoever would be joining them wouldn't exactly be the kindest of people.

"Do you suppose the beings on that craft are after the map as well?" She asked, curiosity getting to her, "I mean, why would anyone come to this place unless they were looking for something of importance. Unless there's something else in that temple, I don't see anything else they could be after...what do you think?

[Renny]

Ben Solo

18 | Padawan | Dagobah

Ben was knelt in a mush of mud and damp fauna. Odette's question was one he had been asking himself. It was there... stuck in the back of his head since he had seen that jet black, sleek aircraft. That TIE variable. The TIE was once a vessel used by the Empire. So why was it back in operation? He had thought that perhaps some scavenger had fixed one up. He hoped he was right.

To answer Odd's question, Ben shrugged his shoulders and stepped out onto the Second Temple's clearing. Powerful vines and roots curled out and into the soil. Patches here and there seemed barren, dead. Ben narrowed his eyes at the three story trek up the crumbling steps. "What you're thinking might be right... if it does happen that they are, than as Jedi... we'll deal with it." A certain steel was in his voice, a kind of assuredness that had been tempered by his latest visions.

He wondered, what would be inside?

That wonderment was soon tampered by the whoosh of another TIE fighter and its drop down into the misty swamps of Dagaboh nearby. Ben frowned, his brow raised. "Let's hurry inside, Odd."