Ask Breaking Ground

Dash Demeric

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Dash pulled back on the Custodian’s controls, bringing the freighter in low over the equatorial woodlands. The ancient shrine was supposed to be some distance from any settlements, but his information was over a century out of date and the last thing he wanted was to startle the natives.

The Jedi’s green eyes traced the ground as the forest whipped by beneath him. The treeline was beginning to thin to the north, just as it should, and water glistened on the horizon in the morning sun. This was the place.

Bringing the ship to hover over a gap in the trees, Dash slowly lowered it towards the ground, cringing when the struts found the earth quicker than expected. A familiar mechanical cry of surprise came from the back of the cockpit.

Yeah, yeah” Dash said irritably. He was a reasonable pilot these days, but still not a natural and Stan never let him forget it. The stevedore droid put on the same performance every time. “Stay with the ship, but keep an open commlink” Dash said, gathering his things and pulling on his cloak.

Affirmative” Stan replied. The stevedore was not much of a talker. Yet.

Dash hit the release and made his way down the boarding ramp. A quick check of the battered datapad told him he should head north, to where the forest met grasslands and the river. Not for the first time, he hoped the information was still good. If it was, if the wayshrine was still there, he might be the first person to set foot there in a very long time.

Making his was through the trees, he had only gone a little way before it hit him. The calm. A quiet serenity ruled all around him, barely disturbed by the gentle breeze or the birds in the trees. There was no air traffic racing overhead, no hustle and bustle of hundreds of people going this way and that. He could see immediately why Jedi would have been drawn to Kinyen and why they could be again. The natural peace, reigning over abundant life, made the agriworld a rare find in a galaxy of chaos and strife.

Dash glanced about as he walked, wondering what the native Gran would make of a Jedi on the world again. They had toiled the earth beneath his feet in peace for centuries. Hopefully they would understand the Jedi were not here to disturb their achievements, but to protect them from those who would.

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Noone Shabar

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When the sun only barely crested the sweeping hillside of Gran, the world became aglow with golden warmth, all it's creatures intertwined in a moment of calm that was apart even from the planet's natural peaceful equilibrium. It was a good place for any to understand balance, and especially a Jedi.

Noone knelt grass stained knees against the forest floor, beams of golden sunlight cutting through the canopy above washed the forest's edge where he meditated; a pathway to the river that was concealed by an assortment of monolithic stones. He had caught glimpse of them on his trek along the treeline to the place where all things met.

Soft wind sang between the stones, tossing Noone's curls and carelessly flipping pages in the hidebound journal that lay open next to him. He breathed deep to greet the breeze, slowly opening midnight blue eyes to adjust once more to the light of Gran. Seconds past as muddy pupils regained shape and sharpened to slits.

Blinking, Noone reached out for his journal and fingered through the pages, defiant against the wind, finding what resembled more map than field notes. He stared for a moment before once again placing the journal on the ground next to him, this time resolving to set a small stone upon the corner of the page.

One hand slid flat against a patch of moss and he propped himself up to stand, dusting off his trousers. The Jedi stood relaxed in the center of the clearing, his head on a slow swivel, eyes clicking carefully between the stone monoliths.

"What are you trying to tell me..." He spoke on a breath, words followed by a reaffirming sigh.

 
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Dash Demeric

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Dash kept checking the datapad, as if expecting some new information to appear on the screen. He'd obtained it some time ago and read it many times. He knew perfectly well what it said, but he still wished it said more.

A stop for those seeking calm reflection, where the run meets spine and earth.
Amongst the green bounty of the three-eyed, between nature's three kingdoms,
in the place where all things meet.

It was not a lot to go on, but he was not one to give up easily. He had studied it hard in recent weeks and, one by one, the passage had yielded its secrets to him. The Great Gran Run and Corellian Trade Spine met here, at Kinyen, which had to be the earth referred to. The three eyed people were the native Gran, and the three kingdoms the competing grassland, forest and river. If Dash was right, he would find the wayshrine where those three met each other, just a little way ahead. The possibility he might be wrong was not one he wanted to think about.

The ground was becoming a little more rocky and he crested a ridge before making his way down a narrow bank. Emerging into a sloping clearing leading to the forest's edge, he froze.

There was a man standing between the trees up ahead. He had his back to Dash and did not react immediately to his arrival. The Jedi stood statuesque, hand hovering by his saber hilt. He did not like surprises, nor the look of this situation. He was in the middle of nowhere as far as anyone else was concerned, the chances of wanderers or walkers in these woods were very slim indeed.

The man was here for the shrine. He had to be.

Dash stared at the figure's clothing. It was practical, close fitting, not unlike his own. But it told him nothing important. The man could be anything from a treasure hunter to a Sith agent. If he wanted to know more, he would have to reveal his presence and risk the consequences. It was a difficult call.

But he could not withdraw. Not given what may lie ahead. Readying himself, he forced his hand to relax and let his cloak fall back to conceal his saber hilt.

"Morning" he called, flashing a smile. "I thought I was the only one that walked these woods".

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Noone Shabar

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Noone narrowed his gaze on one particular standing stone in the bunch, the tallest stone by a few feet, the markings on which were more abstract than written. A constellation of spherical grids and lines carved the face of the monolith, trailing up and over-top of the rectangular stone. In quiet contemplation Noone rubbed his face, stopping still suddenly as his fingers rest over his lips, thumb-and-pinky curled along his jaw. His hand floated slow from his face to see the three fingers he held before his eyes, turning his hand over and wandering toward the stone to place his digits upon it's coarse surface.

There, upon timeworn etchings of swaying trees, flowing symbols that had to be water, and the imagery of wildgrass, his fingers found a spot directly in the center. A place where all things met⁠—forest, river and plain. "The green bounty of the three-eyed..." His eyes widened in realization. Though he still had a ways to go to decipher the script of the elder Gran, he was content to be in awe of taking one step forward.

"Morning!" The Jedi heard over-shoulder, wide eyed wonder fluttering to a more furrowed glare as he turned without a word to the source of the distraction. It was a human who approached, a sight as gentle as his sound, trudging down the ridge toward the clearing. "I thought I was the only one that walked these woods."

Noone, seeing no harm in words with the kindred human, made no reaction for his lightsaber hilt, which was strapped securely in a horizontal position at his backside. "Morning." He finally returned in that apathetic Anzati droll. It was no lack of enthusiasm but biology that rendered his words incapable of the same warmth the human had given him, but he did try his best. "Funny, I had thought the same."

The journal laying a few feet away in the grass caught a glance from Noone, it's information splayed open sure to give away any attempt he would make to appear as a commoner on a morning stroll. His gaze returned to the human. "But I cannot lie, I am on no simple morning stroll. My name is Noone Shabar. I've come in search of something hidden around these parts."

It was Noone who broke the stand-off, striding over to collect his journal and satchel. "May I ask what it is that has brought you here?"



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Dash Demeric

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The other man turned to face him, but not before Dash noticed how he'd been studying the nearby rocks. So he did know...

But the newcomer's face was another surprise. Startling blue eyes - like completely blue - stared across at Dash. The man looked young on the face of things, with a clean shaven face and boyish dark curls. But there was something assured in the way he held himself, and those eyes had a look about them. A dangerous look.

"Noone Shabar" Dash repeated, still processing what he was seeing and hearing. He found himself slowing instinctively as he approached. It dawned on him where he had seen those eyes before, many years previously on his pilgrimage to Lothal. There had been a woman with those same eyes aboard the transport for the last leg of the trip. He had never forgotten what he had been told then. The warning he had been given.

"You're...Anzati" he said, the words escaping his mouth involuntarily. He was not sure what help confirmation of the fact would be. From the little he knew, being alone in the woods with an Anzat was to risk death. He would have to be ready.

But Dash did not sense any threat, besides the one he was creating in his head. He managed a glance at Shabar's journal and satchel as the man gathered them up, seemingly in no rush. He certainly looked like some sort of scholar. But that didn't fit at all.

"I'm a Jedi Knight" Dash replied, drawing strength from the words as he gritted his teeth against any reaction. "My name is Dash Demeric. I'm also looking into something in this area. Do you mind sharing what you're looking for and why?" he held his distance, looking the man up and down as he considered an unlikely possibility. "You're not with the Order as well are you?"

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Noone Shabar

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"Yes, I am." Noone rose a cutting glance toward the human at his slip of speech but allowed Dash to finish, folding backward his journal and returning to his full height. "Congratulations on your discovery." He sounded only half-mocking as he sauntered up to Dash, that alluringly violent look about his eyes only growing more unsettling as he approached to stand a foot apart from the Isenian. "Lucky for you I stopped preying on sentients—"

Noone held his journal out toward Dash's chest for him to take. "Also, that I too am a Jedi Knight."

The Anzat wasn't shy to take in the man before him, letting his stare linger odd places on Dash. His jaw earned a longer moment of focus as well as his hands, perhaps less strange the saber on his hip. "I came here off a tip I received." Those eyes drifted back up to meet with Dash's look of concern. "I think there is a place near here deeply bound in the force. Could be nothing... Made contact with a friend on Corellia, deals in art confiscated by the Empire. They recovered an old stone slate, invited me to translate it."

Upon the open page before him lay free hand drawings of the massive stones all around them, juxtaposed by justified boxes of translated text. The process for which Noone took notes was a balance of right and left mind, artful observation and meticulous calculation. One box of strange script, the most prevalent, was shadowed by a familiar translation:


A stop for those seeking calm reflection, where the run meets spine and earth.
Amongst the green bounty of the three-eyed, between nature's three kingdoms,
in the place where all things meet.


"I believe I've found a correlation." He twisted his hips and sifted his gaze over the stone monoliths Dash had stumbled upon him observing. "I've analyzed the language for a while now... and I think it's a dead ancestral tongue the Gran used before switching to basic. The stones mention calm reflection and The Green Bounty of the Three-Eyed more than once."

His attention returned to the newcomer knight, though his eyes trailed along the grass for a moment before they found the strength to rise and connect to Dash again, this time softer than the sharp focus he had received before. "I'm close... I can sense it, can't you?"

Emboldened, he took a step closer to Dash, armoring a determined expression. "I don't think you're here by accident..." He looked hopeful, and more than curious. "What do you know?"



 
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Dash Demeric

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Dash found himself taking the open journal, if only because he hadn’t quite decided what else to do.

Thanks” he said, both for the journal and the mock congratulations. “Lucky for both of us perhaps”. He did his best to crack a smile as he began to regain his poise.

So the guy was an Anzat after all, and a cocky one at that. Noone had bounced up to Dash like the Knight was a mildly interesting meal, rather than the coiled spring he was. Dash might still have to put him straight. But then other Jedi seemed harmless enough. He had striking features in truth, this close up, almost too much to take in with one look.

The Jedi glanced down at the journal, though he could feel Noone’s gaze lingering on him for a long while after. It made Dash feel slightly uncomfortable, which was ridiculous in the circumstances and he did his best to shake it off.

An old stone slate eh....” he murmured, thumbing through the pages of the journal. Noone had both neat writing and an artist’s hand, his writings were easy to follow and absorb and Dash scanned them wide-eyed. Noone had translated much of the text on the nearby rocks by the looks of it and the results fit with everything Dash already understood. He glanced back up at his fellow Jedi, asking himself what the chances of their meeting were, just as Noone posed the same question.

I know that you’re right” Dash replied, gently closing the journal “and yes, I feel it too”. There was a barely perceptible pull up ahead, past the two Jedi between the monoliths. A slight tugging, like the passage of air drawn into a vacuum.

I’ve been working from the same passage you translated, except I found my version in a collection of old Jedi datapads I traded from a collector” Dash explained. He finally found himself relaxing a little as his mission returned to the forefront of his mind. He drew a little closer to his new ally, an eagerness to discuss his findings overwhelming any remaining doubts.

It’s the location of an old rest stop, a shrine of sorts I believe. Here, up ahead, in the place where all things meet”. He motioned to the words the Anzat had translated. It couldn’t be a coincidence that the same site had drawn them together. Dash had more trust in fate.

Seized of newfound clarity, he straightened up and held out his hand to Noone.

What’d you say we find it together?

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Noone Shabar

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Together, a spectre of a smile traced his features, it taking more than a comfortable second to pry his eyes from meeting Dash's own. That gaze sharpened for a moment before his hand finally did reach out to fold into the one Dash had offered, filling his palm with the soft texture of his tattered woolen glove. "Alright Dash Demeric, you can come along." A smirk curled at one corner of his lips as he claimed the discovery for his own, after all he did arrive first. With one quick up-and-down shake of the hand he... continued to hold his grip on the human.

Noone leaned back toward the circle of stone monoliths and lead Dash toward where they were gathered, trudging through the circle of the clearing to the tallest standing stone, the one he seemed to be most curious about. With Dash's hand still gently ceased he lead him before the stone and eased his grip, patiently taking Dash's hand in both of his own to guide it along the smooth surface of the waystone. The curious knight turned his attention from the stone to Dash, giving a thoughtful expression as Dash arrived at a point between carvings of river, grass and trees. Where all things met.

"You see? It can't be far from here." Noone truly did let his hand fall from where it lay on Dash's forearm now, the ease of his embrace suggesting that Dash was never truly captive in the first place. "I've been meditating here, trying to sense what route to take into the forest but... I..." He trailed off, stuck in thought as he started a pace around the standing stone unannounced. It was clear in the way that his eyes locked onto the top of the monolith that he had found, or seen, something. "I'm a kriffing genius." Words had under his breath.

"The stones aren't here to tell us where to go, they're here so we can look for ourselves." Noone circled back around the stone to share his discovery with Dash. "Look, up there along the upper half." Up at the higher half of the waystone he pointed out a few wide carvings that spiraled up to the pinnacle of the monolith. "That's not script, those are handholds. The standing stone is high enough to look over the canopy, we can get a clear view of where the Wayshrine lays." Popping a shrug, he continued "less time searching."

"Here, give me a boost." The knight moved anxiously as the cogs in his head started turning, the thrill of discovery never lost on him.



 

Dash Demeric

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Come along?!

The incredulous thought was lost as Noone took Dash’s hand and led him forwards, holding his hand in his own. The Knight might have been shocked, even offended, but he was quickly learning that his new friend was something altogether quite different. He could do little but follow, tongue between his teeth as marvelled at Noone’s cheek.

They reached the tall waystone and Dash’s fingers found the carvings, tracing them to their midpoint, guided by Noone’s touch. The Anzat was glancing from Dash to the stone, like an energetic hound trying to gauge a man’s reaction. The midnight blue eyes flashed again in the light of the glade and Dash found it hard to focus on one thing. His fellow Jedi had an otherworldly appeal of his own.

Yes, it has to be close” he said finally, turning back to the waystone as Noone withdrew his hand. The etchings were clear enough, depicting the same confluence of three forces common to both their texts. “These are definitely closely connected with the shrine” Dash continued, “markers, or signposts perhaps”. He ran his hand along the surface. It was sandstone, and very old sandstone at that. The site might just be as old as his information suggested.

His green eyes were already scanning up the monolith when Noone made his apparent discovery. “They might be…” Dash conceded, peering at the handholds “or they might just be where the stone’s weathered over time”. The young Isenian was more prideful than he liked to admit, and it irked him a little that the dynamic Noone had got there first and was making all the discoveries.

Still, there’s only one way to find out”. Dash crouched down and put his back against the waystone, sweeping his cloak from under his feet and cupping his hands to lift Noone’s own. The athletic Anzat looked a little lighter than Dash, so it made sense for him to make the climb.

Up you go genius” he teased half mockingly “and tell me everything you can see”.


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Noone Shabar

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"Right."

Noone steadied one hand flat against the standing stone and his other on Dash's shoulder as he found a footing against his hands, nodding down at him on a few measured squats before he actually gave the kick to launch. His flight was obviously assisted by the force, making little work of the dizzying leap that sent him grasping for the handholds above, swinging a little wider than looked safe. "Got it!" He grunted and looked down at Dash, though his eyes widened and quickly snapped back to focus on his grip.

"Alright. Let's see..." He tested his grip on the next divot over, making sure the ancient stone still stood firm. Satisfied, he scuffled his boots against the stone and pulled himself over, continuing to do so along the ascending row of handholds. Ending abruptly to a circular array of shallowly carved script, Noone paused and searched quizzically for his next move. His eyes lidded, entirely unimpressed as he found the handhold about three feet above where he hung. "...Shab."

For a second he rocked back and forth before pushing himself up to the handhold, snagging hold of it with both hands close together. "This is⁠—" he had a knowing look as he lifted his gaze to find the next handhold above, barely able to catch his breath as he broke into a little laugh. "This is going to be real funny when it turns out I'm wrong." The anzat snickered to himself whilst climbing.

Eventually he clawed up and found the top of the monolith, a perfectly flat surface that was the easiest yet to pull himself up and over. Climbing up to kneel atop the stone he smirked at the inscriptions there, that smirk drifting from his face as he glanced upward. His mouth was slightly agape as he stood up and panned in awe, able to witness the natural beauty of Kinyen from on high.

Snow capped mountains rose from the rolling hillside to rival the stars, and watch over the misty forests in it's valleys. Flying creatures swam through the golden morning sky, riding the same breeze that swayed a sea of flowering trees, and he stood with them. "You should see thi⁠—oh, hang on..." The knight halted, his voice echoing down for Dash to collect. "There are more monuments in the forest like these... looks like they form a path? I think they're meant to guide us." He relayed.

Noone's head popped into view over the side of the monolith as the Anzat called down to Dash. "I can't be certain."



 
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Dash Demeric

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Dash watched his new companion climb, half ready to catch him if he fell. The Anzat was nimble enough though and made effortless use of the Force to ascend the waystone.

He shouted down when he reached the lowest inlet. “Well done” Dash called up, smiling sheepishly. He felt a little left behind, but he would have his answers soon enough. Noone was making short work of the way up.

Dash wondered where the other Knight had trained; he’d never come across him before, or any Anzat Jedi for that matter. The Jedi-eating Jedi thing still did really make a lot of sense, but it could wait. If Noone was going to go for him, he would have tried by now.

He felt a sudden urge to glance around, scanning the glade for movement. There was no one there of course, but Dash felt as if he had lost touch with his wider surroundings, absorbed in events. He always tried to keep one eye on the bigger picture and kicked himself at how easily he had lost perspective. Noone Shabar perhaps had that effect.

Dash peered up in time to see the Anzat haul himself up onto the top of the stone and almost disappear from view. He was quiet for a moment, before news of his discovery echoed down to the ground.

Which way?” Dash called up, “where does the path start and which way does it go?”. “Can you count how many stones?”. If Noone could get a rough direction and the number of markers, they could probably follow the route on foot. It had to be fairly close, the Jedi was sure of it.


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Noone Shabar

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"Looked like more than a few, maybe a little under ten..." Both hands slapped down on the monolith to put Noone in the push-up position for him to hop back up onto his feet, casting his gaze back out over the sprawling forest. His finger flicked out before him to count for a spell, "seven, there's seven to lead us! There are more standing stones in the forest... maybe to throw off treasure hunters or—" his words became hush as he started theorizing quietly, having to blink back to consciousness before he retreated too far into his thoughts. There was still much to do.

"Alright," Noone turned on foot and strode fearlessly over the side of the monolith to float weightless down to where Dash stood, as if he had suddenly made an agreement with gravity.

"We're headed that way," the knight extended his arm to gesture toward an opening in the treeline obscured by an entanglement of flowering vines. Before he continued, he stopped to scrawl quietly in his journal.



 

Dash Demeric

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They walked in tandem, trekking through the woods along the bearing Noone had set. While they had to brush the odd vine or bush aside, they found no trees rooted directly in their path and Dash even thought he glimpsed signs of a track beneath the undergrowth. No one had come this way in a while, but it was definitely the way.

They found the first of the marker stones quickly, and thereafter traced a path from one to the next. Each bore different but related carvings, words in the same story that they gradually pieced together. The first spoke of fears, the second of burdens. Dash lingered a while over the third, tracing the symbol for memories. Each of the stones bid them to set something aside on their route to the shrine.

We’re supposed be cleanse ourselves” he said with realisation, motioning to Noone. “Leave everything we brought to Kinyen behind us, before we reach the shrine”. He eyed the Anzat wryly “I guess they couldn’t know I’d pick up something new along the way”.

Dash did his best to follow the stones’ advice as they walked on, but in truth he felt anything but cleansed. Noone’s presence made it hard to relax completely, for he was still such an unknown quantity. The blue-eyed Jedi stopped to scribble in his journal more than once, managing to look both relaxed and intense every time he did. Dash had to admit there was a certain symmetry to the Anzat's face, particularly when he concentrated. It was almost...

He wiped his brow, looking back straight ahead. The heat of the day had him sweating a little beneath the canopy.

What’s your interest in all this anyway?” he asked his new companion, keeping his eyes on the greenery in front of him. “If this place is…there…what do you hope to get from it?”. Dash had his own specific interests in forgotten Jedi constructs, but he had not even asked why they interested the mysterious Anzat. The guy must have seen more than a few in his time.

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