Reject the Codes, ferry the chaos.

[TweedPawn]

One thing Gaunerei had never experienced was the thrill of a speeder bike. He recalled the sound they made, but that sound was mightier with the vibrations of the engines purring in his ears. He cautiously sat behind Ebberla, recalling childhood memories of his father showing him how to ride a horse, bumming rides from friends, and teaching his own son how to ride. Gaunerei thought he had anticipated the power and speed of the machines, but he was gravely mistaken.

The roar of the bike nearly deafened him. He grabbed Ebberla a little tighter than he originally intended to. But that speed! Every Plainsfolk would give their father's left nut for a ride on one of these bikes!

" TOUCH HIS BREASTS?! WEIRDO! " Gaunerei yelled over the speeder bike's deafening cry.

When the bike finally slowed down, he was reluctant to let go of Ebberla. She slinked away from him, the shine of the drowsy sun illuminated her hair. He watched Ebberla leap carelessly over the edge and he laughed as she vanished below the waters.

"And that is the difference between Snamreg and Coreillans."Gaunerei chuckled. His eyes looked out over the flowers in the distant. He took in a breath of the fresh air. For a moment he tasted freedom. Gaunerei, felt the chill through his clothes. He relished this moment. Also undressing first, he safely began to climb down the slope, employing a rather skilled approach to his descent.

"I was once a resident of the Mountains." he said, As he safely reached a firm patch of rocky footing, he waggled his eyebrows and showed off for Ebberla.

"Yup, rock men have hard heads." He chuckled. He once again looked out at the flowers, his eyes entranced by them. He wanted to be amongst them. So, he took a jump into the chilly waters. His eyes searching for Ebberla.

 

[GABA]

Ebb floated on her back, gently push the water around her to move across the lake; she closed her eyes taking it all in until she heard some stones bounce down the steep slope. She had to do a double take as she realized he was in the full nude, scaling his way down the cliff before finding himself a sturdy platform. The Corellian cocked an eyebrow and sighed with a deviant smile.

Once Gaun was in the water, Ebberla swam towards him, relaxing and then floated on her back, "I remember on my ninth birthday, my mother had remained sober enough she wanted to do something special for me, so she brought me here," Ebberla grinned, her eyes sparkled with the joy of the memory, "I remembered being so awe-struck when I arrived and it was the first time I could tell my mother really loved me and she was trying so hard to be a good person. She explained she came here with her mother when she was a child too and maybe someday, I can bring Vida when she is old enough so she can experience it also." Ebb explained.

"The flowers are called jebwas, but the color mutation is inexpiable. I used to tell my friends about the purple flowers, but in the city they're only myth. I even traveled by myself to bring back a purple flower for this old watchman...but I think it was a Jedi test...not that he didn't believe me." she furrowed her brow in thought as she recalled the old man, "Yes...I think it was a test." she said, drifting away from Gaunerei.

 

[TweedPawn]

"The lunar flowers used to be the same way. They would grow so freely in the mountains and valleys. Then, when the planet cooled from darkness, they were lost to the permafrost. I never thought I would be around to see them again. But when they were plentiful, I would just lay amongst them."

Gaunerei dived under the surface, using the Force to "see" the bottom. Just some fish, old trees, and tadpoles. Then, he slinked out of the water, still nude. His body desiring to find rest amongst those flowers.

"They're lovely." He said, wringing the water from his hair. "do you want them?"

 

[GABA]

Ebb drifted to the shallow end of the lake until she was able to stand without trouble in the water. She felt her head tilt ever so slightly as she watched Gaunerei walk onto the bank, drawing closer to the flowers. Her mind went blank, uncertain of a bubbly feeling she begun to feel stir in her chest. However, as he turned around to ask her about the flowers, she quickly snapped out of her daze, her cheeks turning red as she splashed through the water to meet him on the bank.

She smiled and took his hand, "Of course, however, this is nothing compared to the night." she said glancing over to the setting sun, estimating how many hours they had left before dark, "The sky is glorious!" she said becoming more excited to the thought of it. She squeezed some excess water from her hair, and rubbed her fingers through it, giving it a wavy texture.

Old memories begun to flood Ebberla, bringing back songs and poems that were passed down through generations of Corellians. She sang them in the old Corellian language, leaving Gaunerei to catch up with her as she danced and hopped between the flowers.

 

[TweedPawn]

Memories from long ago were painfully returning to Gaunerei. How often had he followed his wife through such open places? Nothing around them but the sky and the ground. He listened thoughtfully to Ebberla's old songs and words. Similar songs played through his mind as well. He felt so alive right now. He was keenly aware of every blade of grass, every movement of his muscles, and now he was starting to notice the way the chill was affecting him.

"Reminds me of home." he said thoughtfully. "Back in the long ago. When my people were just starting their nations. Everything felt endless to us in those days. The land was infinite, as was the sky."

 

[GABA]

Ebberla turned to see where Gaunerei was standing as he spoke, he sounded solemn, lost in memories that only he held. She walked up to him and took his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"If we look beyond the war and chaos, there is still so much beauty. We can get lost in our roles that we don't see what we want, we see what we are shown." Ebb pressed his hand against her cheek and closed her eyes.

"You know, Vida would love this place. She can run, she can climb, she can splash without worrying about the chaos that is engulfing the galaxy." The Corellian let out a happy sigh, "I miss her and I dread the time that I am away from her."

An evening breeze sent a shiver up Ebb's spine, snapping her out of her daydream; she took a step back realizing she was the only still in clothes, "I would also love if you would put some pants on, wildman." she quirked an eyebrow, giving him a crooked smile.

 

[TweedPawn]

"Heh, yeah. This is the perfect place for a warren. Nice cozy little burrow with a little fireplace. No predators..." Gaunerei was starting to sound like one of his own people. He then looked down at himself as Ebberla criticized his clothing-optional appearance.

"But my pants are allllll the way over there!" He pouted. Realizing quickly that Ebberla wouldn't accept that as an answer, he began to feel through the Force for his clothing. It was taking a while, the duel forces of chaotic light and dark were being woven to do as he willed. He was riding that ferry. He was simply looking for the stream that would grant him a cure for nudity.

Then, like a tooth being yanked free, he felt a pair of pants, some briefs and a poncho hit his chest.

"Missing a few pieces but good enough." He said as he began to dress. He had to admit, that had been a tiring exercise.

 

[GABA]

Though he was speaking basic, his accent had slightly shifted as he started to describe the land of its ideal living conditions. She furrowed in brow at the thought of living in a hole like Della and noted that she wouldn't, nor Vida, ever live in a dirt hole no matter how cozy it seemed.

Gaunerei had pouted about having to get some clothes, but Ebb shrugged with enthusiasm, "Hey, I didn't say to take off all your clothes." she pointed out and then folded her arms. The Force stirred around them as he reached into the Force, search for his belongings, recalling them from where he last left them and directing them over the terrain. She felt his pulse in the Force, a blend of light and dark, a balance as he allowed it to be as is.

She watched him dress, feeling the slight extra effort it took him to regather his energy to even put on his clothes. Ebb felt time slow for her as her thoughts seemed to swarm her mind about him. She was never one to say out loud how she felt, but instead she had shown it by action and it was what she valued in others also. She felt like she did the worse to him, regardless of the trickster getting a taste of another's tricks, and yet he still followed her and tried to help her no matter how many times she had turned away from him. It was always easy for her to cover her feelings with anger, to hide what she really felt with another powerful emotion to protect herself from disappointment, but he seemed to know and yet kept trying to break through that barrier, to listen, to help, and in all she had put him through he cared.

As Gaunerei finished putting on his last piece of clothing, Ebb kissed him. It no longer bothered her if he would never forgive her, she just wanted him to know she cared and loved him. The Force stirred as her lips touched his. She knew she was taking advantage of the fact he just tired himself, but Ebb wasn't sure if the opportunity would arise again as the Moon would pull the rabbit into her light and her spell. She fretted over the consequences, whether or not he would now up and leave, taking with him the secrets he pulled from her, but the Corellian knew overall, what she did for him would be the right thing to do.

Gaunerei would feel a warmth radiate through his body as though he sat by a fire to warm his chilled body. It spread slowly through his body, warming his center and then down his arms and his legs into his fingers and toes. He would feel his mind warm also as it was wrapped in the moon's light, leaving his thoughts clear, wiping away the anxiety that a silver fox will catch him one day.

By the time Gaunerei would feel Ebb's lips leave his, the crescent moon was high in the sky and what only felt like a moment surely had taken several hours. Ebb gave him a tired smile and rested her head on his chest for a moment as her spell tired her quickly than anticipated. She took in a deep breath and pulled on the Force to give herself a bit more strength as she suggested, "Lets build a fire." and started her way to the incline to gather wood.

 

[TweedPawn]

"Well, I wasn't going to gt my clothes wet." He chuckled. He found Ebberla's modesty charming, especially after the closeness they had been experiencing.

"Come on, you've seen men before." Gaunerei kept his teasing up, right until he was kissed. What was he doing now? He had completely forgotten. He was covered in heat, his entire body was heavy. He felt intoxicated. At first, he resisted, for he knew that it was the Light pouring into him. In the past, it had burned him like the sun. But this time there was no scorching fire.

Night had fallen by the time he became aware of his body again.

He heard the command to build a fire, and he immediately set forth to build a small fire. Its glow kept him drowsy.

"What happened?" he asked, his body still burning. But he knew, didn't he? He finally had freedom again. He could run far, far away.

"Or, I could create some real mayhem." He said to himself.

 

[GABA]

Ebb felt herself definitely slow after ordering to make a fire, she felt as though she certainly needed it as a chill ran up her spine. She was quick to gather some good size sticks, taking her time to glance up at the sky. She heard Gaunerei speak as he started the small fire, she was amazed to see him work so quickly, as though the memory of making one for thousands of millennia ago had just formed yesterday.

"What happened?"

"Love." Ebb quickly interjected, her own mind blurry and her senses now starting to show its exhaustion. It was a more tedious task than she had first thought it would have been, almost like an anesthesiologist as they cleaned the blood while the patient was under the knife. Slow, delicate, meticulous to leave no drop untouched. As why she had done it, it was more just to play with the Rabbit.

Ebb leaned back on her palms while sitting across from Gaunerei, the fire separating the two. She looked up at the dark night sky, the moon in its later phase, leaving the stars to be loved by their on-lookers. "Since, the galaxy believes I am no longer a good person, at least you can be my witness that that Ebberla still exists."

 

[TweedPawn]

Love. That most potent force Gaunerei had ever seen in the galaxy, in the grand cosmos. It was a crushing force that crucified and crowned. Love was a component of Chaos, Apathy belonged to Order. Love destroyed but rebuilt. Apathy brought wastelands. Gaunerei had once known apathy. Used it to dance his sorcery around the Hound. Apathy allowed Gaunerei to justify death of the few. It removed consent.

But love destroyed the God. It turned him into a Man. It wretched immortality and replaced it with a fire that burned brighter than the very sun he stole in the ancient stories. Love halted the Gods' march towards destruction and the annihilation of the cosmos. Gaunerei saw it now. He finally understood what really kept him from turning into what he feared. Love had preserved him, even if he didn't know it. It saved him in the end, even if he was to die tomorrow.

"Is that your wish? " he asked Ebberla. He looked at the stars, recalling how far away they felt when he was a god. They felt cold and lonely, like the souls of mortals. But Gaunerei saw now how they clustered together.

 

[GABA]

Ebb leaned to the side to catch Gaunerei in her gaze from around the fire, "If it allows you your freedom, then yes, it would be my wish." Ebb spoke watching him stare at the stars also.

"There are so many," she continued, taking her gaze to the night sky, "I've admired them since I was young, in awe about how you think you seen them all and then one day, a new one appears. Some come and go, others, like that one," Ebb pointed to a very bright solitary gem, "are always in their place. I can never believe one day someone would extinguish them all." the Corellian paused, a small smile formed as memories poured into her.

"I always wanted to create something as beautiful as the stars. I had a spukama when I was young; he was very old, but very loyal and I made sure to take care of him. He was very dear to me even if he only lived for a couple weeks. I knew about death, but I had never experienced it; it was a hard lesson, but a valuable one. An old Jedi, who had been watching over me had helped me bury Leof, he told me the love and compassion I had held could make the galaxy a beautiful place...and I believed him."

Ebberla sat up, "Was I wrong to believe him?" she asked.

 

[TweedPawn]

" No, you weren't." Gaunerei replied. He stood, his eyes and his presence reaching into the land around them. They searched for danger, any danger. How many Snamreg of him. He then sat back on the ground, content that he did a good job of securing the area.

"I have many things to show you. I want to show you the Universe. But the only way I can, is to once again bring you into me." He said. Ebberla had intruded his mind before, back when he was Della.

"I can show you in the dreams, my domain, my last kingdom."

 

[GABA]

Ebb's eyes followed Gaun as he stood up and then sat back down, she didn't reply right away, creeping thoughts of doubt begun to plague her mind. She was of course vulnerable, opening up to the trickster wasn't something to take lightly. Though she would never know his trust if she didn't test the waters, giving a little bit each time and so far, he gave it back.

However, this time it was different, there were so many opportunities, but she also carried a bad case of Corellian curiosity.

"You didn't allow me to go many places the last time," she replied recalling when she forced her way in the last time, "I want to see more."

 

[TweedPawn]

"If the rest of the Galaxy knew about me, they would too. Imagine the holonet, but for time" Gaunerei said seriously. He would allow her to enter his mind. It would be the same as the last time she chased him. He would be seen as abstract shapes and colors. The sky transformed into shimmering webs.

"I could show you the thousand Ebberlas that existed. The millions that lived, died, and never were. But I will not. For the same reason that I can not show you mine. $-`%*-;___^*^` Pero la ---" Various static sound would erupt from Gaunerei's voice. It was like radios, star noise, and ship sounds all rolled into one.

"There is a sickness that you risk when you see all of your lines. He waits there. And when you see him. It is too late. So, we will look at the life of one thought to be impossible. We will look at a man who lived his life being loved only by his own Son. No one believes in his ability, not even after he was redeemed."

The Prince Dressed in Starlight walked to one of the webs and pulled down a star.

"You know him as Anakin Skywalker."

 

[GABA]

It was much easier this time, like a hot knife through butter, Ebb closed her eyes and focused, slipping and falling into chaotic arrays of colors and sounds before finding herself floating in a sea of webs. Some splintered off, others continued on infinitely into the voids beyond Gaunerei's realm. She reached out to touch a strain that ran pass her, her own mind filled with the noises of voices and the unknown before she quickly withdrew her fingers.

A voice caught her attention, it sounded different, but she knew the presence and she listened.

Skywalker was a popular name in the galaxy at the moment, Ebberla knew about Lana and Andraste for what felt like a life time. A deeply guarded secret that set her on the path that she was on now.

"It was love that saved Luke and Anakin, Luke showed us that with love, there were second chances, even third, or fourth because we are human, not machine."

 

[TweedPawn]

"correct" said the Prince. He allowed the star to drift back to the time streams.

"It seems you know that story very well. So you doubt your abilities. Do you feel small? Do you believe yourself to be unable to create? I have yet to see a galaxy without beauty." He lifted his hands, the stars cleared a space for them.

"In the world of dreams, I can do as I please. I create illusions that I can not create anywhere else. But are they really illusions if they happened? "

A song began to play from the stars. A sound of guitar, electronic piano, and strings.

A concert appeared around them. A collection of light, cheers, and races from places Ebberla could never thought to see. The chords began to start with a band of three singers. They were dressed in bright rainbows of color and light. They looked human, yet completely different.

There was static at first. Then it began to shift as Gaunerei moved like a conductor in a circus. The static became lyrics.

Freak out!~ Awwww Freak out! The claps and screams added to the music. It created a heat hotter than any fever. It's rhythm pounded like a heart.

Another being appeared. A sentient made of onyx and golden scales. Her Emerald eyes shined through her metallic hair. Her voice carried like a opera singer's, meeting the pace and ecstasy of the song. The siren poured her heart out.

My darling, my air
I saw you against the waves.
And I below you as a cascade

forever entiwned, forever under the silver sun.
my radiant one, my song

The light cleared way for the other musicians. The Robots, a duo known to the past and the future, began to tie in the chaos and create the apex, a fusion of voices across time and space. The crowds went wild, their screams nearly drowning the music.

The Second Lead appeared. He was blind, yet his fingers dashed across his instrument like ballet dancers. The passion and fuel of his voice carried across the sea of fans. Across all eras. Across all languages.

"For you there might be a brighter star,
but through my eyes, the light of you is all I see.

for you, there might a better song
but your melody will stay with me"

Gaunerei took Ebberla's hand, his eyes and face clear as day. His smile embracing Ebberla in warmth. He pulled her towards him, sharing with her his memories of joy and beauty he had seen across their galaxy. He felt her potential. He knew her better than she could ever know. He radiated love for her, showing her that her own love was what allowed him to finally thrive. To finally reach who he was meant to be.

How could she doubt herself? After all of this? After everything she had done? She had been right to felt hurt by the Jedi, but she was not immortal. She never could predict the threads. Only a few could, and Gaunerei was now blind himself.

"All of them made this. Not at once, not even in the same galaxy or time as us. But here they are. They created with love. They made this beautiful thing. They could never know You and I would see them. But their songs are not forgotten. Everything you do is seen. You create with every breath. Because you are human. You are mortal. All Mortals love. Or they become monsters filled with apathy. And you are no monster, Ebberla Daw."

 

[GABA]

Ebberla listened to his words, impressed she already knew the story of Skywalker. She had almost forgotten them, though, with the Jedi in the state they were in when she left, it was hard to believe those values existed. However, it could have very well been she had not looked in the correct place.

There was a strum of instruments from behind her, and Ebb turned slightly to see where the source was coming from. It had started out as noise, Ebb had to focus to clear her mind in order to make sense of the tune that was starting to come together. Gaunerei waved his hands like a conductor and Ebb watched in awe, her senses perking as she felt more, heard more, and before she knew it, she was surrounded by interstellar beings.

She felt herself wanting to sway to the music and closed her eyes, listening to the words that were foriegn, but yet carried a familiar message. She felt him take her hand and she couldn't help but to return his smile, welcoming his closeness. She nuzzled him gently, a warmth flowed through her body and her mind cleared, but she couldn't find her words.

"Thank you." she whispered, her bright eyes met his and she kissed him gently on his lips.