Rock and a Hard Place

[Lucy Lou]

Tython​

Laelynn walked through the tall grasses of the planet as she and Rhonan trekked up one of the mountains of Tython heading toward their objective. The pair had been assigned a training mission to retrieve and "artifact" that had been hidden in one of the caves. It was one of the common learning missions that Padawans often underwent to practice tracking skills as well as fighting and problem solving. While Tython was a relatively safe planet, there were still some dangers that would present a Padawan challenge should they run into one of them.

So far their journey had been quiet and uneventful. The two were friends having known each other for years already, but Lael had noticed that in general Rhonan was a quiet, brooding type. There was something underneath those piercing blue eyes, a secret the young Cathar was holding to closely. Speeding up her pace, Lael caught up so she was walking along side the other.

"Isn't this exciting?" She asked with a smile as she skipped along beside him.

@StormWolf

 

[StormWolf]

For most of the hike, Rhonan had kept to himself. Despite the moderate temperature of Tython, Rhonan shrugged himself as deeply as he could into his traveling cloak. Eyes alert and ears twitching, the Cathar constantly kept an eye out around them. While not a planet with notably dangerous fauna, there were opportunistic predators on every world that turned. Though Rhonan was sure predators of the armed-and-dangerous variety would never make it planetside in one piece, it wasn't enough to put his mind at ease. He had not grown long under a Catharese sky, but Rhonan knew enough to stay cautious and stay alive.

Laelynn's chipper tone snapped Rhonan from his reverie so sharply he had to shake his head slightly to regain focus. His brow furrowed for a moment, but then relaxed, a wry smile tugging at the corners of his dark lips, but not quite touching his eyes,

"I suppose," he shrugged, "It's better than sparring with Master Hlodovic again. It still aches to close my fist," Rhonan brought up a hand and wiggled bandaged fingers that popped softly, as if on queue. Dropping the hand back into the folds of his cloak, Rhonan maintained his casual pace to ensure his long legs didn't carry him too far ahead, "How much do you bet the Masters just keep putting the same artifact back each season? How many Jedi must have done this exact same exercise?" Rhonan scoffed with a modest smirk, this one more heartfelt than before.

 

[Lucy Lou]

"You should get that looked at." She said as she reached out and took his hand in order to examine it. She was by no means skilled with force healing as her Master was, but she might be able to ease the tightness. "Would you like me to try and help it a little? Maybe ease up some of the stiffness?" She asked as her hands gently turned over his hand in hers, thinking nothing of the fact that she'd just grabbed his hand.

She glanced up at him as they still walked, keeping his hand in hers, and she flashed a brilliant smile. "Yes, I'm sure that's what they do. Otherwise there'd be no missions left for young Padawans. No artifacts to secure or whatever. Unless they want to release us all on the galaxy." She chuckled.

Ahead of them a cave entrance came into view. The location of the "lost artifact". "Wouldn't that be terrible. We'd all destroy the galaxy at that rate." She jokes as they go. Lael stopped in her steps outside of the entrance, wanting to ease his ache first, if he wished before they began the trial.

 

[StormWolf]

Despite himself, Rhonan couldn't help but smile at Lealynn. She had always been a generous sort, cheerful and optimistic to a fault. No matter what she faced, she always bounced back with a smile, dusting herself off to try again. For that, he admired her. There was a resilience in her that many would not know just by looking at the girl, but having argued and sparred with Lealynn on multiple occasions, Rhonan knew the girl was as tenacious as a wild rancor, when she had a reason to be.

"What kind of Crusader will I be if I can't handle a rap on my knuckles?" Rhonan said with a flat smirk, turning to regard the yawning maw of the cavern as they approached. It didn't look foreboding or menacing, but what Rhonan felt was different. Shadows within the cavern appeared too dark, the air eerily cold. Through the Force, soft ripples washed over Rhonan's consciousness. No doubt "the artifact" they were entrusted to retrieve. It was odd that Rhonan could sense it, but not pinpoint its location. He found his thumb idly brushing the pommel of his training saber, finding solace in the familiar weight and the cool touch of the metal. Rhonan found himself smirking at Lealynn's jest, taking comfort in the camaraderie,

"Between the two of us, I'm sure the Core itself would find itself short on food stores, hm?" Rhonan grinned, patting his middle with an open hand. The resulting noise was a dull, dense thud.

 

[Lucy Lou]

"Yes, but what kind of Jedi are you if you don't take help when offered." She countered but released his hand. Lael was always one to take assistance when offered, there were many times when others knew better than she. Saw something that she didn't. One was only as good as those who were around to support her. Too often, in her opinion, Jedi went off alone. Lone wolves against the might of the galaxy. With help however, two Jedi were better then one. Able to learn from each other. Able to grow from each other.

The girl looked back up from the cavern as she heard Rhonan's deep, rumble of a voice. "Maybe from you." She laid a hand on her own flat stomach. Only at sixteen, the cathar was already leaving her in the dust when it came to size. Her frame staying small in comparison as he seemed to shot toward the sky. "If you grow any further, your feet are going to hang off the edge of the bed. And I've heard the Masters complaining about you needing another set of clothes again." She teased as she started her way forward a bounce in her step.

"Now come on. You refused my offer to help with your hand. Hopefully that doesn't slow you up! I made a bet with Padawan Cliary that we'd beat her and Padawan Tovlar's time in getting the artifact back to the Temple. Don't make me lose!" The bets were just playful competition among the Padawans and at most she'd lose her roll tonight at dinner. Not like it was a big deal. She grinned, flashing her teeth toward Rhonan. If they lost, she'd just steal his roll at dinner.

 

[StormWolf]

Dagger-like teeth flashed in a fierce smile as the Cathar bellowed a rough guffaw, his thumbs hooking on his broad belt as Rhonan threw his laughter up to the sky. It was sincere and hearty, sharp shadows cast by the chords in his neck as Rhonan's laugh ripped through the silence.

"That is precious," Rhonan bubbled through his subsiding laughter, his mouth settling into a wolfish grin as he tapped the scuffed toe of his boot against Lealynn's calf, "when two of your strides make one of mine," he teased his petite friend, giving her a shove in addition to the ribbing and banter. "If only your legs moved as quickly as your mouth," he finished with a playful rumble in his chest as he ducked into the mouth of the cave.

The difference between the inside of the cave and the sun-kissed surface of Tython was eerily apparent. Rhonan felt his skin pucker with gooseflesh, though he couldn't say it was from the drop in temperature... at least not solely. Hackles at the back of Rhonan's neck stood on end, his scalp feeling like it was ready to crawl across the room. The pale scar on the back of Rhonan's head throbbed, feeling as if someone was softly tapping his skull with an ice pick. The cave grew vastly darker the deeper Rhonan went, the bottomless shadows in the recesses and crevasses in the walls distorted the musty maw of the cave. There was a ball of ice growing in Rhonan's gut, and the brand on his arm burned like hellfire. His breathing was sharp and shallow, burning his lungs as his chest seemed to tighten. Inky thoughts flitted across what was once clear thought moments before.

Master planned on this. Hlodovic knows my fears, so he rubs them in my face... with her here to bear witness...

Pinching his eyes together rightly, Rhonan's back found the cold, damp wall of the cave and he focused on his breathing. In the stormy sea of his mind, Rhonan envisioned a singular flame, weak and flickering in the presence of howling winds and icy rain, but it burned brightly. With a considerable effort of will, Rhonan attempted to feed his fears – his phobias – into that fire. Stoking it against the storm that wished it snuffed out, seeking the warmth of focus, the caress of the Force as it flowed through him, sweet and pure as wine spring water. Like a great rapids, the Force rumbled and roared within the Cathar, giving him the clarity of being to control his breathing. He was stronger than the fear...

"If you stand like prey, you are prey. If you stand like prey..." Rhonan muttered lowly to himself, his own mantra.

 

[Lucy Lou]

"Ha ha." She laughed dryly. "More short jokes." She stumbled to the side from the cathar's playful shove. He always seemed to forget his strength and it wasn't like she had a lot of mass to combat his force. "I have stamina you fuzzball." She threw back. "Just try and keep up." She jogged into the cave ahead of him. They traveled further and further down into the cave. The darkness closing around them as the air grew colder. The tight space didn't mind Lael and she amused herself by nimbly climbing up loose rocks that lined the walls. Playing a Kiffar game that was similar to "the floor is Lava".

It took her a little to realize that the footsteps behind her had stopped. "I thought you said that I'd be the slow one." She teased back at Rhonan whom she thought was behind her, only to turn and see that the Cather wasn't there. With a furrowed brow, she turned and tracked back through the cave to find him pressed against the cave wall. She could hear his ragged breaths, as if he was having difficulty breathing. His eyes closed and his body seeming to tremble, both with the force and physically.

"Rhonan." She said softly as she moved closer to him. She could faintly hear him mumbling, but couldn't make out the words. Was her friend afraid of the dark? Lael wasn't sure, she'd thought Rhonan was not afraid of anything. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small orb from her pocket, one she'd made sure to grab before they'd left the Temple. Giving it a shake, the small sphere began to glow brightly. The light chased away the shadows as well reached out her free hand to touch at her friend's shoulder as she stood close to him. "Rhonan."

 

[StormWolf]

For a moment that seemed an eternity, Rhonan was lost in a stormy sea of violent memory. It took all the willpower he could muster to not curl up in a blubbering ball. Through the rampage of trauma and anxiety, Laelynn's soft voice cut through the discord, sharp and clean. Rhonan's eyes snapped open, his pupils as narrow slivers of black set against electric opalescence. Panic and instinct raked at the Padawan's mind, his claws extending with a flex of his fingers. Snarling, he mindlessly slashed at the air before him. In his state, it would be easy to evade, especially for one as swift as Laelynn.

As Laelynn's glow-globe pushed back the shadows, Rhonan finally collapsed to a knee. Clutching a hand to his chest, Rhonan panted heavily, almost wheezing as he blinked hot tears out of the corners of his eyes. "Laelynn, I... I'm..." he gulped, his throat feeling bone-dry, his ears and cheeks reddening with embarrassment and shame. "You shouldn't have had to see that..." Rhonan mumbled, frantically wiping the tears as the fell, but not before they left their tell-tale paths in his fur.

 

[Lucy Lou]

As Rhonan's claws swung toward her, Lael leaned back with wide-eyes having not expected her friend to lash out at her. The claws raked lightly across her cheeks, not even deep enough to leave a scar, but just enough to split the skin and draw a little blood. As Rhonan fell to one knee, she reached up and wiped the blood away. The girl knelt down in the dirt next to him taking his hands into hers. "It's okay Rho. Everyone has their demons." She didn't know what his were, but they were clearly strong enough to literally bring him to the ground.

She gave her friend a small smile, the light seemed to help, so she placed the light orb into his hand. "Here you can hold this." She didn't want to make a big deal over his fear, now was not the time at least. She'd asked him about it later. When they were back in the safety of the Temple, not that this place wasn't safe persay, just that it wasn't safe for Rhonan. "Come on. We need to find this artifact for the Masters and then we can leave."