revivalproject | open ☾ an arrival

Entry tags:

open ☾ an arrival

WHO: Merrin and YOU
WHERE: All over Temba
WHAT: One (1) very confused space witch makes her debut
WHEN: Right now?
WARNINGS: None yet, but will update if anything comes up!

A. YOU'VE GOTTA BE KITTEN ME

Despite the fact that Merrin is absolutely the type to hold grudges, she's somehow made peace with Voroka and the other mothkittens in spite of the terrible crime against her—at least judging by the fact that she's currently sitting cross-legged in the grass near the library while the kittens nap, lounge, and play in the sunshine around her.

A few bolder ones have already approached her, and she extends her hand towards one of them to let it curiously sniff her fingers. She's learned her lesson from last time, however, and she keeps her talisman, a palm-sized, halfmoon-shaped white rock, gripped tightly in her other hand to prevent another theft. That's the last thing she needs, now or ever.

"Hello, Voroka," she says to the mothkitten, though her voice doesn't sound welcoming so much as stern, like a disappointed parent. "Did you think I would not recognize you?"

B. LIFE'S A BEACH

It takes her a little while to find the path to the beach, but she eventually stumbles across it and—well, her home planet, Dathomir, is essentially a dry, harsh wasteland, and the largest body of water that exists there is a swamp, maybe a pond.

So nothing really prepares her for the sight of the ocean stretching out in front of her. It appears almost infinite to her, and she stands there on the beach for a long time, staring out across the water in wonder, her lips slightly parted. Her gaze keeps darting to the waves lapping against the shore as if she's... contemplating something.

(In fact, she's contemplating putting her feet in the water, though she doesn't know how safe it is, if at all. A lifetime on Dathomir has made her wary of everything, even if it looks harmless.)

C. SURPRISE! AT THE DISCO

After a few days of exploring, Merrin has finally started to get the lay of this place, and so she feels comfortable enough using her magick to teleport around—at least in the town center, where she's most familiarized, whether there are other people around or not.

The only thing that heralds her imminent arrival is a thick green fog that she materializes into, and then she's suddenly there, looking completely unperturbed, like she just stepped off a lift instead of blinking into existence halfway across the city.

D. WILDCARD

Of course, Merrin is still exploring. She can also be found in the hangar, inspecting all of the ships, including exploring her own assigned ship, the First Breath, at the inn, contemplating her food options and wishing she could eat Greez's steak, in the hotel, staking out an empty room (or not?) to claim, or pretty much anywhere else, seriously. Jedi and anyone who can sense Jedi will also be able to sense her—she feels pretty similar, actually, but definitively more... dark. Or sinister.

Or feel free to use any of her TDM prompts, if those speak to you more.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

They're similar in this, like they are in most things. She watched her sisters fall, and he his Order. Of course he understands—and that's a comforting thought, even if she wishes it didn't have to be. So is thinking that her survival, as unlikely as it was, is some sort of... defiance to whoever struck her sisters down. They didn't fully succeed, and that is, indeed, something.

Not yet, anyway. Like she told him in the tomb, nothing will bring her people back. Even without the holocron, Cal might be able to find other Force-sensitives, or maybe even other surviving Jedi, but Merrin has no hope that any of her sisters survived. She's the last one. From here on out, only time will destroy the Nightsisters of Dathomir.

But Cal is trying to cheer her up, and that's also something. She smiles slightly, even if it's weak and fleeting. "Yes, that is something. We still survive."

Smiles are a good place to start. Cal knows she's capable of better, but he also knows it takes time to be able to step away from those shadows of the past, and even then, they'll always be there, always a part of them.

"And we'll keep doing so, even here." At least here it seems a more favorable circumstance, storms aside. They had others they could rely on and help out. They're far from alone here.

"Have you thought about any place else to stay, or are you still at the hotel?"

That gets another fleeting smile out of her, though this one is a little stronger. She appreciates the... his... well. She appreciates a lot of things Cal has done for her, not the least of which is the fact that he's standing here with her right now, reminding her that she's not alone.

"I am still there," she says, her head tipping slightly to the side, "though I have not thought about another place, no." Then she raises her eyebrows, asking without words: why?

"Well, Master Kenobi's been wanting to see about converting some of the buildings into space for a Jedi temple. Not exclusively for Jedi, although he does want a place we can train and meditate, but it'll be a place to stay, too."

Obi-Wan had asked him earlier on if he'd stay at the temple once they had one established. Cal hadn't been too sure about where he'd wanted to be before the trip to Coruscant. He supposes it had helped prepare him to really be more open to being closer to people, after spending so much time keeping a cautious distance from them.

"I was going to ask Master Kenobi if he'd be open to other people staying there, not just Jedi," he continues, shrugging a little. "So you'd have some options if you didn't want to stay at the hotel forever."

Ah, Master Kenobi again, though she still hasn't met him. It doesn't surprise her that the Jedi, led by this Master, would want to make a space for themselves here, especially when there are quite a few of them. In a way, she's a little... envious that they can come together, build a small community. And maybe a little jealous too, that Cal can be a part of it, even if she is happy for him.

It would've never occurred to her that the Jedi would accept her into their community, even just to stay. Cal and Cere—Ezra too—have been welcoming to her, but she knows that Jedi don't have a generous opinion of her magick. And there is the... warning, so to speak, that Ezra gave her about Master Kenobi...

Also, she doesn't know Jedi rules, okay? They have lots of very strange ones, as far as she can tell. "This... would be allowed?" She doesn't sound skeptical, per say, so much as surprised this is even an option.

If there are particular rules to setting up a new temple, Cal certainly isn't aware of any. With the likelihood of more Jedi appearing being just as unknown as discovering any potential Force wielders, having a temple just for not even a handful of Jedi seems extravagant.

"I don't see why not. The Jedi are meant to help others, not to be shut off from them. I think visiting Coruscant has reminded us a lot about that."

"So you are helping me," she says, shooting him a dry look. Cal was right about one thing—she doesn't need anybody to take care of her, and the implication that she might offends her a little bit. But she knows he didn't mean it that way, and so she isn't actually offended—this time, anyway. She's just giving him a hard time, before quickly brushing it aside.

The truth is... she's lived alone for so long, but it was by necessity, not choice. Now that she has the choice, she doesn't know how to feel about the idea of living in the temple, among the Jedi. They're not her people, but maybe they don't have to be. Even though she was with the Mantis crew for only a short time, she... got used to sharing a space with them. It was certainly much less lonely.

It's a lot to consider, and her feelings are conflicted. "I will... consider," she says finally, and then adds, "Thank you, Cal." For thinking of her.

He still can't help but tense a little at the response, wondering if he'd overstepped some invisible bounds. Of course he'd meant nothing by it, and to offer help doesn't particularly mean he thinks any less of someone's capabilities. The look from Merrin helps Cal to relax again, even as he wonders if this is how things are always going to be between them. He's gotten a little more used to her brand of...is it humor?

"Not that you need to make a decision right away," he starts to say, trailing off as she says as much. At her thanks, that smile flits back across his lips, and he gives her another nod.

It's humor. She's trying her best, okay?

She'll definitely consider the option, though. But she's only just arrived, so she figures she'll have plenty of time to decide, and that any decision she makes can be reversed anyway, if it ends up not working out for some reason. Either way, she pushes it aside.

"The other Jedi," she says thoughtfully, since he brought them up along with the temple. There's a short pause where she weighs her words, but her tone is inquisitive, not accusing. "You trust them?"

Maybe it's a strange question, since he just invited her to stay with them, but... more than anything, she just wants his opinion on them. There's so much she doesn't know about these Jedi—or just all Jedi in general—and in spite of the fact that she's had positive experience since Malicos, she's still... wary.

"I do," Cal replies. "Master Kenobi's the only one I know by name- he was part of the Council when I was a padawan. Time-wise, I think he's the earliest of us. It wasn't too long after the Purge, for him." There were so many things the Jedi Master was dealing with, and they'd only scratched the surface when they'd attempted to meditate on the trauma that plagued their pasts.

"You've met Ezra." He can only gather from what she's said regarding the other padawan. "He's from further ahead of us, and was born when the Empire was first established. So his training as a Jedi came later, after he'd met another Jedi who had been in hiding. A lot of the Jedi lifestyle is new to him, but he was really eager to learn what he could, when were able to visit the temple on Coruscant.

"Grogu, he's... Actually, it might be hard to believe when you see him, but I wouldn't be surprised if he's older than us all. He looks like one of the great Jedi Masters of the Council, and Master Yoda was more than several centuries old. But Grogu's like a child. I'm not sure what all he's been through but I know that he'd been hiding himself, just like we were, and for so much longer, I think." He remembered the glimpses of the little one's memories, the loneliness that had finally been breached. "He was taken under the care of a Mandalorian- not sure if you've seen him yet, but he won't be hard to recognize. I don't think he's ever taken off his helmet, at least not around people."

Merrin shifts her weight a little, her expression contemplative while she takes in this information. She trusts Cal's judgement, so if he trusts the other Jedi then they can't be that bad. It helps ease a lot of her wariness, and for whatever wariness she might have left over... well, they're obviously important to him, so she'll do her best to at least try to get along with them, no matter what happens.

Obi-wan Kenobi. Ezra Bridger. Grogu. She files all this information away for later, when she gets the chance to meet the rest of them. Again, she's struck by this... happiness for Cal, that he's managed to find some of his people, as well as a small amount of envy. Would any of her sisters ever come here?

"I see," she says finally, slowly. "I will remember this." Which sounds like a threat, with that phrasing, but she means it in the sense that she'll... give them a chance, so to speak. Cal's recommendation means a lot. "And the other... He Rows?" she asks next, awkwardly pronouncing the last word.

A chance is all he can really ask for. Cal nods at her, although as Merrin says 'heroes' as the Agrii have adopted calling them, he can't help but grin a bit.

"I haven't gotten to know them all, but I haven't heard of anyone giving anyone particular trouble. It seems like everyone is pretty open to doing what they can around this city and for the most part get along with each other."

She nods, apparently satisfied by the answer. It's good—it means she can lower her guard... a little bit. And while she's definitely not adverse to conflict, it's still kind of nice to know that everyone here is trying to get along rather than start fights.

"None have given you any trouble?" she asks a little pointedly, just to be sure. Her gaze narrows a little bit as if she expects him to... not lie to her, surely. But give someone else the benefit of the doubt? Maybe. Cal is kind—a peacekeeper. Maybe she just wants to make sure nobody is trying to take advantage of that.

Ultimately Merrin will have to make her own decisions when it comes to the people she meets and whom she'll extend her trust to. Cal knows that goes for everyone in the city as well as the other Jedi. But he's given nothing but his honest opinion and what he knows from experience.

"None," he says, brows arching, slightly in acknowledgment of just how difficult that might be to believe. "Maybe there's nothing worth giving trouble about, being here." He shrugs. "I know that's no cause to let down our guard, but I'm hardly going to complain if everyone's willing to play nice around here."

It is a little difficult to believe that nobody here has caused him any trouble, especially since Cal has been around for so long and likely encountered many people. In this kind of situation—in any kind of situation, really—she would expect conflict, but... well. He's right. She's certainly not going to complain, even if she does find it—

"It is strange," she says, a small frown on her face. "With so many people here from so many different cultures. But everyone I have met so far has been friendly to me." She says this like it's absolutely baffling why anyone would be friendly.

"Look at it this way- everyone brought here is pretty much out of their element." The Imperials, the Sith Lord, even the Force-user whom he wasn't sure about- any of them could have given him trouble, but they hadn't, although Cal suspects it's not entirely due to the situation they'd been forced into. Maybe there's something to whatever sort of qualities the Agrii fished for in seeking out he-rows after all...

"Trying to work things out on our own probably won't get great results, and it's clear enough that finding our own way home will be more complicated than simply finding a ship to get off-world. And it's hard to have ulterior motives when everyone's starting at the same point."

Maybe she's just distrustful, or maybe she's been taught hard lessons—or maybe she's used to a certain kind of... underhandedness from people, due to her upbringing, but in any case, she doesn't find herself feeling as hopeful as Cal does about the people who've ended up here with them.

"So it seems," she says, just a touch of skepticism in her voice, but she's not about to argue with him. He's been here for a lot longer than she has, so wouldn't he know best? Maybe she just needs time, and the chance to get to know everyone—like the Jedi, she'll still give them a chance. "I will remember this too." There's that threat again.

Turning a little towards the worktable, she gestures to that large ring-shaped object on it, with the strange rods sticking out of it. It had caught her attention earlier because she had no idea what to make of it, and now she asks curiously, "What is this?"

His upturned hands paired with another slight shrug suggest that it's still all up to her to decide for herself. He won't fault her for having different opinions, and neither does he fault her for being cautious.

As Merrin turns her attention to the other device on the table, Cal smiles a little. "Tony asked me to help figure out some kind of power source for a project. I thought having it shaped like this would help the energy to circulate more consistently." He carefully removes one of the crystal rods from it, holding it out. "These are what the Agrii had around here as a power source. They're rechargeable."

She hasn't heard that name yet. "A friend of yours?" she asks, taking the rod from him and turning it over in her hands, her brow furrowed while she examines it. Not that... that reveals very much to her, since it just looks like a completely ordinary crystalline rod in her eyes.

In fact, the whole explanation really isn't helping her to make something of this. Power sources... "And what kind of project is this?" It must require a lot of power, she assumes? If he's creating something with so many of these rods.

"Yeah. Tech seems to be a specialty for him. He's the one I asked to make me this housing for the lightsaber I made here," Cal says, gesturing at the blade that's currently more in pieces than whole. "He's pretty bold and not afraid to say what's on his mind, but he's not a bad guy."

Cal studies the setup of the ring. "Some kind of matter transfer. I think it was someone else's technology that they'd suggested would be useful here. From what I gather, it'll be able to break down objects from one place and basically transfer them to another area. Kind of like how you vanish and reappear in places, I guess."

Her eyebrows raise when he explains what the... ring... will do, potentially. She's intrigued by the idea of technology doing the same thing as her magick—kind of like how there are spells that allow one to communicate over long distances, just like a holomessage.

She makes a soft hm sound, then holds out the rod for him to take back. "This would be useful here?" She cocks her head to the side. "I would be able to do it for you. The spell does not only teleport people."

The rod is easily slid back into its place, all of them glowing briefly upon the reconnection, something Cal's taken as a good sign.

"I can see the potential uses. Getting supplies or something from one place to another. The range is a key thing. I'm not sure we'll be using this for people." He glances at Merrin, brows lifting. "You can teleport more than just yourself?" He'd only seen her do so herself, after all.

"Of course," she says, as if it's the obvious answer. The spell is pretty much the same, whether she's teleporting herself, someone else, or even an object. She shifts her weight onto her back foot, looking him up and down with an exaggerated sort of consideration, her lips pursed. "I could teleport you. It would not be so difficult."

It wouldn't been difficult at all, but she's teasing him now. Her face is fairly blank, but it's probably obvious in the amusement in her eyes. Next, she turns her head to look at BD-1. "I could even teleport him."

"Oh yeah?" The look he gives her might be interpreted as a challenge. As he starts to get more used to her, Cal figures a little teasing back can't hurt. Her sense of humor might be a little twisted, but at least she has one.

BD-1's questioning beep is a little more curious-sounding, but then the little guy definitely has an adventurous streak.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

open ☾ an arrival

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject