Ask Kinyen Not with the Outbreaks, Please?

[Arctus Friers]

He needed a bigger ship.

Corellian hells, not just any other ship. A space station, more like, because Selene had grown to her majestic, full, one hundred percent all-dragon glory. He couldn't take her anywhere as freely as he could - and it was not as if he could take her anywhere now that she's fully grown, for that matter. Of course the arrangement had pissed her off to no end, and the Arkanian Dragon had been mostly stuck on her planet of origin, under the watchful eyes of Knight Haldir Eressëa. She had always been a jealous creature, even more so now that in her eyes, her Anooba counterpart now had bragging rights for being the Corellian Knight's constant companion. It took Arctus a full month to assure his pets, his companions, that he would never play favorites; that if he was able, he would bring Selene with him on missions or trips, too, so she wouldn't feel so left out.

His Anooba, Nibs, whined and pawed gently on the ground. Through their bond in the Force Arctus could feel that the canid missed the presence of the Arkanian Dragon. With a smile, he reached out and scratched Nibs on the chin.

"What? Should have just left you with Nay-nay, is that what you're thinkin'?" he asked the Anooba, clearly joking. An amused chuckle escaped Arctus when the canid growled playfully in response, nudging the Corellian's arm while being mindful not to impale the man with his tusk."Sorry, buddy, but I need you here for this mission. Not that I don't trust myself nor my fellow Knight. I just feel like we could use a helping hand- paw, y'know?"

A call for help coming from a farming village on the planet Kinyen was sent to the Jedi Order, outlining a mystery that needed to be investigated and solved. A mysterious figure had been seen hovering just beyond the village outskirts, and days after their appearance a number of denizens have fallen prey to an equally mysterious illness. While reports confirmed that the sickness was not fatal - at least not yet - it was only a matter of time before the disease claimed someone. The Council immediately dispatched Arctus and a newly-minted Knight, Rair, to the scene in hopes of finding not just the cause of the illness nor the shady traveler, but also to find out if the two were connected in some way.

Arctus received the mission details while he was visiting Wroona. The man had immediately jumped in his ship, Nibs on his heels, and travelled to Kinyen immediately. Following the coordinates he received, the Corellian was quick to find the village and introduce himself to the locals. Before meeting the village chief, though, Arctus found it prudent to wait for his fellow Knight first. Currently, he stood under a tree beside a nearby farmstead, hazel grey eyes watching a Gran and her fellow workers tend to silvergrass and other crops. A few meters to his left, a group of children were playing some sort of catch, their curious glances flickering between the Jedi and his four-legged companion. Eventually, one of the braver kids approached the pair and asked if they could pet and play with the Anooba.

The Corellian soon found himself leaning against the tree on his own as the children played fetch with Nibs while he waited for his fellow Jedi to arrive, hoping that she hadn't met trouble along the way.

@KaraLi

 

[Rair]

Tonight the wall is coming down​

I am stronger than my fears

This is the mountain that I climb​

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"There's something really peaceful about these agrarian worlds," the young woman said from her perch among the branches. Her words, spoken mostly to herself, were easy to hear below as her covered gaze stared forward.

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"Come on, Cuetee," Rair grumbled to her droid as she listened to it rattle off their ETA for the fifth time. It still hadn't changed, no matter how many times she asked. "Can't we..."

A series of warbling beeps answered her before she could finish the question and the astromech's tone made it clear that it was already done with her bothering it.

"Alright, fine. I'll be patient... but this isn't my fault!" Dropping her head back against the headrest of her seat, the girl sighed. It wasn't, not really. The Padawan that had been sent to deliver her message had been late, and she hadn't anticipated a mission so soon after being knighted, so her ship hadn't been ready. It all meant that even with QT-11's excellent astrogation, they were still going to wind up on Kinyen a little behind schedule.

Not a great example to make for her first meeting with Jedi Knight Friers.

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The landing was smooth, her ship, Triage, settling in on the opposite end of the village from where Frier's had landed his own. Better, she figured, to have two possible points of egress if necessary, rather than putting their eggs in one basket. Releasing the controls, the new Knight rose and, giving the console a soft pat, sighed.

A quick cursory check of her gear, making sure everything was where it belonged, and she was off. Her initial plan was to get to the chief, reasoning that was likely where her peer had ventured to. That plan faded quickly when, cresting the first hill, her force sight found Friers near a tree not so far away, surrounded by children and... some sort of pet?

With a shrug, she slipped low. Maybe if she just wasn't spotted, she didn't need to admit to being late. Treading quietly over the terrain, she approached from behind the tree, and with practiced ease scaled the large plant. Doing her best not to make a sound, she settled herself along a branch, just high enough to make it plausible she might have gone unspotted.

Raising her head, the Jedi smiled wistfully as she let her Force-given senses stretch out over the land before her.

"There's something really peaceful about these agrarian worlds."

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Got 100 steps to go

Tonight I'll make it 99​

@Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Arctus Friers]

When Nibs’ ears pricked, growing still while looking up at the tree Arctus was currently enjoying the shade of, the Corellian Knight should have sensed that something was amiss. But the Anooba was not showing any signs of sensing danger, only displaying alertness and focus. Still, the sudden change in the dog-like creature’s body language alone should have earned the same reaction from the man himself. It seemed as if the peaceful surroundings had betrayed him into a not so false sense of security - there were no signs of danger creeping at him through the Force.

When a voice drifted down from up the branches, Arctus’ initial reaction was to shrug and agree with an easygoing, ”Yep,” - popping the ‘p’ with a slowly growing smile as he watched Nibs resume playfully chasing after the ball the children were tossing for the Anooba to fetch. He wouldn’t have thought much about the speaker had he not remembered that the tree was supposed to be devoid of any other person, let alone someone taking refuge on one of the branches. Arctus comically jumped a bit in belated surprise, stumbling forward and neck craning up to spot the Knight he was supposed to be waiting for, his gaze finding the Miralukan lady sitting high up on the tree.

”Knight Rair!” he greeted his colleague with a bright smile, the embarrassment at having been successfully caught off guard quickly sliding off of him like a water off of a duck’s back. His hands rested on his hips as he grinned up at her. ”How long have you been up in there?”

He would wait for her response with a chuckle before whistling over at Nibs. The Anooba dutifully peeled off from the gaggle of children exclaiming their disappointment with saddened ‘aww!’ and ‘bye-bye, doggy!’. Trotting over the Jedi pair, Nibs sat down and regarded the Miralukan Jedi with a cheerful bark.

”You know she’s up there, and you found it prudent not to tell me, mister?” he playfully chastised the Anooba, but the canid seemed much more interested in Rair to pay attention. It earned a fond chuckle from the Corellian. ”Rude rascal.”

Turning to his fellow Knight once more, Arctus tips his head towards the village center’s general direction. ”Let’s go meet the village chief; the sooner we’re briefed about the whole situation, the faster we can help the people.”

The man’s words were spoken with kindness and respect - just because he was older didn’t automatically mean that he had every bit of superiority over his fellow Knight. She might have been younger, but Arctus was always the type of person who knew that even those younger than him could offer knowledge he had not acquired yet.

@KaraLi

 

[Rair]

Tonight the wall is coming down​

I am stronger than my fears

This is the mountain that I climb​

​

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A hand slipping up to cover her lips, Rair couldn't quite manage to entirely hide the soft laugh that escaped. It seemed her little trick had worked, and much better than she thought it would. Either that or her fellow knight was very good at playing along.

"Let's just say... long enough?" the girl suggested, not bothering to try and hide the coy tone that infiltrated the words. Laying back, she allowed her weight to carry her into a graceful flip through the air before landing on her feet several meters below. Kneeling down and holding a hand out, she waited patiently for the 'doggy' to approach if it wanted to. "It's strange, isn't it? For all the concern over whatever is happening, enough to call us... everyone's still out and running around, letting their children play with a stranger and his pet. I would expect that sort of thing in a city, but a smaller, insular community like this?"

She gave a small shrug before raising back up to her full, rather unimpressive height and turned towards the town center as well. "I'll follow your lead here, Knight Friers," she stated as her head dipped deferentially.

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Got 100 steps to go

Tonight I'll make it 99​

 

[Arctus Friers]

Arctus smiled as he listened to Rair’s observation. It was a sound and reasonable one, at that. He watched as Nibs accepted the young woman’s invitation and approached her, first sniffing her hand then nudging her palm with the top of the canid’s head.

”It is strange, indeed… but at the same time I think it isn’t,” he replied. ”I think they feel somehow reassured that someone is willing to help them in their plight. That they’re still working and letting their children out and about… it’s almost kind of a nonverbal response that speaks of trust, and a show of faith.”

The Corellian blinked, genuinely surprised at his own observation. Chuckling away his embarrassment for the second time of the day, he politely dismissed the formality with which she addressed him and told her, ”Please, just call me Arctus. As one fellow Knight to another, yeah?”

Arctus - with Nibs trotting beside him - then took the lead as advised, walking alongside Rair as they made their way towards the town center. Throughout the village, apprehension was clear in the air, and yet the arrival of the two Jedi and an Anooba earned them hopeful glances and, from the braver citizens, polite greetings. The Corellian made sure to return them, a smile warming his features. As the town hall came to sight, a small group of Gran had already assembled by the entrance, with the eldest among them turning to face the Jedi pair.

”Knights Friers and Rair, I presume?” greeted the elderly Gran in Basic. Three eyes blinking in unison, he offered both Rair and Arctus a polite bow. ”I am Ol Eim, the head of this farming village. In behalf of my people, we welcome you to our homeworld.”

”Thank you, Chief Eim, for your warm welcome,” replied Arctus amiably, returning the village chief’s bow. ”On behalf of the Jedi Order, I give you my word that my fellow Knight and I will help you to the best of our abilities so we may discover the root of these mysteries you are all currently facing.”

”Thank you, thank you.” Gesturing towards the town hall, Ol began to lead the two Jedi and his constituents inside the establishment. It was a simple hall lined with benches and tables, all facing a wooden dais at the center of the spacious room. There were a few workers inside, offering the group polite nods in greeting before returning to their work. Ol and his group chose a table close to one of the open windows overlooking the village square. Arctus followed suit, and would only sit down once Rair herself was seated. Arctus silently gestured for Nibs to behave when one of the younger Gran assured him that the Anooba could follow, to which Nibs found himself laying by said Gran's feet.

”I’m sure you have already been briefed about the situation here, but please humor this old Gran again," Ol began, his shoulders drooping as he heaved a weary sigh. ”The guards patrolling the village have reported the appearance of a person of mysterious import wandering the outskirts of our humble town. Although the figure does not show any signs of approaching the village, the fact that they simply hover around was enough to arouse suspicion, more so when one of the guards fell ill to a disease we have not yet encountered nor recorded. At first, we chalked it up to coincidence - surely, the wandering stranger and the guard falling ill weren't connected. But then the figure appeared more frequently days after, and two other guards who spotted them have also fallen prey to that mystery illness. With each appearance, another villager followed suit in contracting the illness - even if they never saw the stranger nor made contact with the guards who have fallen sick.”

The old Gran gazed between the two Jedi.

”I’m sure you have questions about these seemingly connected incidents. I shall answer them to the best of my abilities and understanding.”

@KaraLi

 

[Rair]

Tonight the wall is coming down​

I am stronger than my fears

This is the mountain that I climb​

​

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With a click of her tongue and a soft, "Maybe," the girl conceded her point. Stepping in a step behind and to the side of her fellow knight, she let him lead the way. Head forward, she let the Force be her sight, watching the people as they moved through the town towards the center. For all her own apprehension at the easy trust the village had, watching them made it clear that perhaps Arctus had a point.

Which was weird. In her experience, the Jedi were called to small communities like this when all other options had been exhausted and trust had run out. It made their jobs difficult, but it was what she expected. Here, they were treated not just like honored guests, but... perhaps even friends? Maybe Jedi had helped out before? That or a dozen of other possibilities ran through her mind.

Before she could ponder on it for too long, they were with the chief and she had more to consider.

"An honor to meet you, Chief Eim," Rair said politely as she inclined her head, letting Arctus do most of the talking as she simply listened. By the time things had been explained, her pensive look had been replaced with a frown. They seemed to blame this stranger, but weren't jumping after him?

Another anomaly, but in a good way, and went further to prove Knight Friers' point earlier.

A quick shake of her head brought her expression back to neutral and she spoke up. "Have your people noted any pattern to the appearances? Locations or times favored? Length between? Or do you perhaps have a log we could look at, see if perhaps we can spot a pattern you've missed." Simple investigation questions. Rarely was something truly random. Even if none of the events happened at the same time or in the same place, that alone was also a pattern.

"And the illness... what are the symptoms? I noted no one had died yet, but has anyone recovered?" Pathology was less her specialty, but having a basic understanding of the sickness might be beneficial, and who knew? Maybe Arctus was a doctor and she just didn't know. "And how long has it been since the first sighting?"

She rattled off her questions in short order before forcing herself to stop. She had a dozen more, perhaps, but for now... this would be a good start.

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Got 100 steps to go

Tonight I'll make it 99​