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Chapter Fourty Five Pacing
back and forth in his situation room as the holovid transmission continues,
Commander Silvas Orian awaits the final bad news. “Commander,
you do understand that I will not be able to sway them in their decision, do you
not?” The commander
stops and faces the vid-cam, “Yes, Madam Ruler, however, I must inform you
that this will complicate our arrangements on many levels.” “I
understand, Commander.” “Are you
aware, Madam Ruler, that your speaker is currently traveling with Master Falion
Mussiri?” The was a
moment of silence before the Ruler spoke, “That will be an unavoidable
obstacle, Commander… You mustn’t allow them to land in Hanna City, detain
them at the Caspian.” Clenching his
jaw once and then allowing his breath to leave his body, “As ordered, my
lady.” And with that the transmission terminates. “I just hope that this is
not my undoing.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With an escort
of six armed guards, Vic Orion strides confidently toward the situation room of
the high commander of the Chandrillan Interstellar Navy. Upon reaching the
doors, he is ordered to halt while the officer in charge awaits orders for his
admission. “Send him
in, lieutenant.” “Aye,
sir…” The lieutenant clicks his heels sharply together as he turns to face
Vic, “Enter, please.” With a look of utter disgust, Vic clips his jaw
together to show his disdain for the young officer, before strolling in through
the doors. Once inside,
Vic notices the spare surroundings, nothing in the room that does not have a
logical and needed function. Hmm… Simple. Efficient. I
must admit, I expected much less from a career military man. I can respect that. Looking up from
his terminal, Commander Silvas Orian acknowledges Vic’s presence with a nod.
“Your reputation precedes you, Orion… I’ve just been going over some files
that my intelligence people have prepared.” Motioning for Vic to take a seat,
the commander continues, “I also see that you have a near perfect record on
assignments. Though I suppose you
had no control over that Zabrakian killing your target out of blood lust, but
still it was a missed bounty.” The commander is trying to get a rise out of
Vic. “Yeah, well,
first of all, I never miss a ‘bounty’.
Second, I don’t collect bounties, I collect pay.
Third, I got the Zabrak’s pay and he’s nothing but another sentence
in my book of death.” Vic does not take bait. “Very
true…” The commander takes a datapad from his desk and then continues,
“Well, now this is what we have worked out for the plans. Please go over them and let me know if you have any problems
with them.” Handing Vic the datapad, the commander expects Vic to peruse the
details. His shock comes
when Vic simply looks him in the eye and says, “I’ve already gone over your
plans, I have my own setup for this little job.” Vic, stone faced as always,
places a data-card in the pad and hands it back to the commander. Taking the pad
in silence, the commander goes through the amended plans.
Clicking through all of the changes, he begins to nod his head as he
reads. “Excellent, a few of these were points of contention for me as well,
and yet others were things I had not considered… I will provide you with the
subspace routes into and out of Hanna City to avoid any detection. It will put
you dirtside in just enough time to setup for the Parade and allow the reception
crew time to get into position. It
does call for some last minute adjustments on my end, but that should not affect
any of your responsibilities. Everything
but one item: you now have three targets.” “What’s the
proximity in the field of fire?” Vic’s lack of surprise shocks the
commander. “Inches,
maybe feet, they will be together throughout the parade.
Here is a holo of the last parade to give you an impression of their
grouping.” Handing him the flimsiplast holo-image, the commander sits back in
his chair. “Okay, it’s
doable, but I’ll need an up in the fee for three simultaneous targets, and
that’s non-negotiable.” The cold and steely gaze coming from this contract
killer is enough to melt through duracrete, but the commander simply nods his
head. “All right, then I’ll be on my way.” Standing as he speaks, Vic
simply turns around and walks toward the doors. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jae-Lee Reklaw
makes all the proper adjustments as he releases the hyperspace lever at the
completion of the inversion bell countdown. However, instead of clear space he
finds himself in the midst of a squadron of fighters. Noticing the three to one
ratio of Waverunners to Riptides, and the Whirlpool Class
medium transport off in the distance, Jae immediately knows that he is smack dab
in the middle of a Chandrillan Naval Battle Group.
Every cell in his brain is telling him to turn around and make a
micro-jump back into hyperspace, but every bone in his body is saying he should
wait and see. Deciding to
take the middle ground he flicks the switch on the internal comm system, “Mees,
I hope you have some kinda plan, ‘cause we just jumped into a nest of
Gundarks. Get up here, and fast!” Appearing
behind his chair, Jae nearly jumps out of his skin, “Blast it, Mees!… You
gotta stop doing that to me, or at least show me how… So, what do we do?” Sliding into
the co-pilot’s seat, Mees reaches over and opens up the sub-space comm system.
“This is SkyDancer, requesting comm code Alpha-Ricevuto-Niner.”
Turning back to Jae, who stares at her in utter disbelief, “Just wait.” Her smile,
though disarming, lets Jae know once more, that they have a lot of catching up
to do before they can part ways. “Gods, Mees, what else do I need to know
about this mission?” “SkyDancer,
comm code accepted, transmission being routed now. Please stand by.” “We’ll have
to talk about it later.” As the words leave her mouth, Falion Mussiri enters
the cockpit. Turning to face him, “We’re waiting for the big man now. Go
ahead and put on the headset, and I’ll patch it through as soon as they
connect him.” She turns back around as Master Mussiri does just as she says,
while nodding to Jae-Lee. Throwing up his
hands in surrender, “I give up!… You guys are impossibl-.” “This
is Caspian Control, SkyDancer, the man is now on the line.
Are you secure?” “Affirmative,
Caspian Control, receiving transmission now, and under secure lock. SkyDancer
out.” She adjusts the frequency as she begins to receive the signal. “Is that
young Meesahran I hear?”
The voice is that of a bear of a man. “Yes,
Commander Orian.” “Well,
then I must express my gratitude for that little transmission package you sent
me. Quite an enlightening piece of information you stumbled across, my dear.” “Yes sir, it
was. I have Master Mussiri waiting for you on the secured line. He will have all
the details on our mission to date. One moment, please.” Meesahran pushes one
final button and the Master begins to speak. “Yes, Silvas,
all is well, though we are a bit behind schedule.
I hope that this has not created a problem for you or your people?”
Master Mussiri gestures to Meesahran and she places a hand on Jae’s shoulder
as she rises from her seat, motioning for him to follow her. “I am pleased to
hear that, my friend. And have all of our arrangements proceeded according to
plan?” Following Mees
out of the cockpit, Jae is still in a solid state of confusion as she leads him
down the corridor. “Hey, wait up,” he calls out to her. “What’s going on
now? You guys are having secured conversations with the head of the Chandrillan
Navy out the middle of nowhere, with an entire battle group waiting for us to
drop out of hyperspace. This is way more than I thought we were in for. What’s
really going on, Mees?” Mees looks
around, making sure no one else is within ear-shot, “Look, there’s a lot
going on that I can’t really talk about right now. But, I promise you as soon
as this part of the mission is over, I will not hold anything else back.”
Placing a hand gingerly on his forearm, “You’re just gonna have to trust me
a little while longer, Jae. Can you do that?” Her eyes are aflame with the
burning desperation for his answer as she speaks. Carefully
placing a hand over the one she has rested on his arm, “I can wait, as long as
you promise that we’re gonna have a very long talk when this is all over…
Deal?” “Deal. I
swear.” Her brilliant smile gives him all the reassurance that he needs to
continue working through this in the dark. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Entering the
cockpit, just as her Master completes his conversation with the Commander,
Meesahran moves to sit down on the pilot’s seat. “So, what’s the word? We
haven’t thrown off the schedule, have we?” Taking a deep
breath as he places the headset back into its compartment, “No, we are in
perfect position. Plans have
changed somewhat, however. We are
to continue on to the Caspian Defense Platform, and await the exchange there.” With a
questioning look upon her face, “The Caspian? What for and what plans have
changed?” “It seems
that Higaeri’s contractor had some issues with our original plans that Orian
felt were valid points and so things have been changed. We shall proceed to the
Caspian and await further instructions.” Falion has a troubled look upon his
face. “Is there
anything wrong, Master?” “No, I am
just concerned about some of these changes…” Falion turns to face Meesahran,
“It seems we shall be making a larger pick-up than anticipated.” “I was afraid
that would happen…” Falion looks incredulously at his apprentice, “Please,
Master, do you think I could let you do something like this by yourself?” Chuckling at
the simplicity of her answer, “Yes, I suppose you are right. But it does
complicate things with the package we are already carrying.” His knowing look
causes Meesahran to re-think her position. “You mean we
aren’t dropping that package off?…” Nodding
his head in affirmation. “Well, that will make for an interesting flight to
the Sanctuary, won’t it?” “Yes, quite
interesting indeed… Well, you should get the course plotted in, we’ll be
flying in subspace only as well, to avoid detection. Orian sent the destination
coordinates into the computer, so just plot the course for that and take us
in.” Laying a gentle hand upon her shoulder as he stands to leave, “I shall
be with our confused friend, helping him to release some of that pent up
frustration.” Master Mussiri is about to leave the cockpit, “And
Meesahran?” “Yes,
Master.” “You shall be
piloting alone for the remainder of this leg of the trip.
Is that going to be all right with you?” She turns
around to meet his gaze, “I’ll be fine, but do you want me to seal off the
cockpit?” “No, that
shall not be necessary, I simply want you to use this time to reflect.
There shall be precious little time for that once we reach our
destination.” His fatherly gaze alerts Meesahran to his intentions. “As you wish,
Master.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sitting, with
her back to the doorway, in front of a makeshift dressing table, Master Mussiri
finds young Xana Tryashoenu finishing up the last of her primping before her
supposed departure. Pausing a moment longer, not wanting to disturb the girl, he
waits to interrupt this happy scene. Looking up,
Xana notices his reflection and turns to greet the older man, “Master Mussiri,
I did not hear you approach. Is there something you need, Master?” Taking a deep
breath before crossing into the room, Falion is apprehensive about what to say
to the anxious young woman. “I am afraid, child, that I have some rather
unwelcome news…” Sitting upon the bunk across from her, he continues,
“There are some additional precautions that we must adhere to and there may
not be time to deliver you promptly for the speech.” Her face is completely
ashen as the words leave his mouth. In the air a
dreadful silence hangs, until Xana breaks her stare and looks down into her lap,
“Is there nothing we can do? This
is ever so important, Master Mussiri.” Reaching out
and taking her hand in his, “I am terribly sorry, my child, but it appears
that things have continued to deteriorate in Chandrillan space. Commander Orian
himself gave the order for us to proceed to the Caspian before we are to be
allowed to land in Hanna City.” The last
glimmer of hope is dashed from her eyes as she lifts them up to meet the older
man’s gaze once more, “I understand…” Her words trail off of her tongue,
but there is not a hint of true understanding in them. “Has the Provincial
Ruling Council been informed of my delay?” “Yes, child,
and they shall do all that they can to await your arrival, but a substitute has
been chosen, should you not arrive in time.”
She nods her head in acceptance, but her sorrow is seething from every
pore of her being. Standing up and
gingerly replacing her hand to its former position, Master Mussiri puts as much
caring and support into his words as he can, “I shall leave you to your
thoughts, my child. And my sincere hope is that we shall arrive in time to
enable you to make your presentation…” And with his final words, he is out
the door. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wandering
aimlessly throughout the ship, Xana finds herself moving towards the quarters of
Jae-Lee Reklaw. Hoping to find solace in his eyes and warmth in his embrace, she
is shocked upon reaching the cargo bay to discover him sparring with Master
Mussiri. She begins to wonder if Jae has not changed the course of his life, to
be studying with the master after all. Deciding that
her presence might be an unwelcome distraction, she moves past the hold. Finding
herself on a direct course for the cockpit and the company of her old friend.
Her grief must be shared, and Meesahran has always been a gracious companion for
such duty. Finding herself
mere feet from the cockpit door, Xana stops. Peering into the doorway, she finds
her dear friend standing on one hand with a look of pure serenity upon her
normally troubled face. Fear she might prove to be unwanted she prepares to back
away, when Meesahran speaks, “How are you holding up, kiddo?” Her face has
not changed at all, and her voice seems to be coming from everywhere and nowhere
all at the same time. “Oh!” Xana
is somewhat shocked by the display, until Meesahran quickly crumples into a ball
and springs straight to her feet with seemingly no effort. “Sorry, I
forget to turn off the projection when I speak in meditation sometimes.”
Grabbing a rag from the navigator’s chair and wiping her brow, “But it’s
good you could hear it. It means
you’ve gotten stronger. Come on in. I
needed a distraction from the vast nothingness of sub-space travel.” Placing
herself in the pilot’s seat, she motions for Xana to take the seat beside her. “Thank you…
I was just hoping that maybe you’ve received word about any change of flight
plans?” Her wistful features are enough to break anyone’s heart. “Nope, sorry,
kid. The big man was very specific
about the route we had to take, and we won’t even reach the Caspian for
another fifteen hours. And then it would be another five to Hanna City from
there. We have at least a solid day’s worth of travel to get through and that
would put us in Hanna City about four hours too late, at best.” Her words,
though true, hurt no less for this disappointed young woman. “I had just
hoped that there might have been some word from Unc-, Commander Orian. He was
aware that I was onboard, was he not?” The longing in Xana’s eyes is almost
more than Meesahran can bear. “Yeah, that
was the first thing that Master Mussiri tried, but no luck… I’m sorry my
other business took so long, maybe if-.” “No, my Dear
Friend, this is not your doing. You were my only hope for arriving at all, so do
not take guilt which does not belong to you…” She looks out into the open
transparisteel window at the empty space before them. “Perhaps it was simply
not meant to be.” “Hey, Xana,
don’t get so tore up over this thing. I
know it was a big deal to be chosen, so try to take some comfort in that. Out of
everyone, they chose you to make the presentation. That’s gotta be pretty
fantastic in and of itself, right?” Mees places a gentle hand on her shoulder. “It was
wonderful to have my work recognized, but no one will ever remember that I was
chosen, only the person who will be giving the speech. My name will never appear
in the scrolls. I wanted that to be my legacy to my mother.” Xana turns away,
but not before Meesahran sees the tears in her eyes. “Is that what
this is about? Making some kind of mark for your mother?… Do you think
that’s what she would have wanted for you? To live with some kind of perceived
debt to her memory?” Meesahran’s words speak volumes to Xana’s mind, but
her heart still aches. “Look Xana, I never knew your mother, but I can’t
imagine she would have ever wanted you to carry that kind of burden around for
the rest of your life.” “You do not
understand, Meesahran, my mother was chosen for such an occasion as well. Her
name is in those scrolls, and it was one of the finest days in her life. It was
the day she met my father. It was the moment that she knew all that life had in
store for her. It was the day she
felt that she had become a woman…” Shouting the last words at her friend as
she buries her face in her hands. Meesahran
pauses for only a moment before taking her young friend into her arms for
comfort. Rocking her carefully back and forth, Meesahran puts a soothing tone
into her voice, “Xana, please, you must know that you have reached that point
in your life, don’t you? You are an intelligent, lovely and caring young woman
with so much to offer everyone around you. You don’t need to give some speech
to know that you have reached that pinnacle of development, do you?” Still
holding her with one arm, Meesahran begins to stroke the long blonde hair of the
young woman within her embrace. “I knew you had grown into a woman the moment
I saw you at your brother’s office. It radiates from you, much the same as
your life-force. Anyone who meets you can sense it… And I know of at least one
other person who does for sure…” Meesahran’s careful jibe produces the
right reaction, as Xana pulls back from her embrace; the tears now subsiding. “What do you
mean?” The shock and embarrassment showing vividly in her flushed cheeks. “Jae does not
look at you as though you were some girl… He sees a woman when he looks into
your eyes… Believe me, I should know. Especially since I still get the ‘kid
sister’ thing from him, and I’m older than you are!” Meesahran follows her
comment with a wry wink, letting Xana know she is only teasing her. Bashfully
looking down, before returning the wink with a smile, “I suppose you are
right. It was just that everything
else had gone just the way it had for my mother, and I thought it would do the
same for me.” Mees takes hold
of her lower lip between her teeth in an expression of thoughtfulness, “Yeah,
well, you’ve already broken the mold…” Xana’s confused look prompts Mees
to continue, “You’ve already met the guy. And if I’m not mistaken,
there’s been a lot more than looks exchanged between you two, right?” And
again Meesahran’s words have caused the blush to return to Xana’s cheeks.
“That’s what I thought… So, think of this not as your mother’s story,
but as your own. And the best part is, you don’t know what’s coming next.” Contemplating
her dear friend’s words, Xana’s expression changes ever so slightly, giving
her that radiant glow once more. As
the smile begins to spread across her face she reaches out to embrace her friend
once more, but this time in gratitude instead of grief. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Going through
the ship’s diagnostics one more time, Meesahran tries to busy herself for the
long subspace flight to the Chandrillan North Pole and the orbital defense
platform that rests above it. Having only traveled half way to their rendezvous
point, Meesahran is beginning to question the wisdom of this decision.
She knows that her questions arise more from her own discomfort than with
logic, but she is still frustrated with the decision. Looking at the
short-range scanners once more, hoping for almost anything out of the ordinary
to occupy her attention. When she is just about to switch it off once again, she
notices a small blip on the screen. “This is so far from the normal
spacelanes…” She focuses in on the unknown craft, “What in the name of
Corel?” As she dials up
the power on the scanner and begins to run through a recognition device that she
has been working on, she comes to a sudden realization. With a devilish
look in her eyes, she hits to subspace comm transmitter, “Gods, I guess the
big man is not very creative… Sending us across the same subspace lanes to
avoid monitoring, huh?” At first there
is nothing but static coming through the comm station, and then three distinct
clicks can be heard. Untrusting little bugger. She reaches over and dials
the subspace comm to the indicated channel. “Is that more to your liking,
Vic?” “Just
checking, kid… How’d you know it was me?”
His voice comes over with perfect clarity and a deliberate nature. Just like
always. “Just a
little something I’ve been working on. You
know how I am with my toys.” Her taunt is meant as a goad, getting him to open
up a bit. “Why, you interested?” “I’m
always interested, but I haven’t got time for toys right now.” Oh, well,
maybe this one will get him.
“I had a feeling old Toman was talking about you when he told me about his
‘contractor.’” Her lip curls up in a smirk. “What made
you think that?”
Concise and without detail, letting everyone else give all the answers, Vic
never lets much slip by. “He said he
hired the best, and that Jae knew who he was… And that he specifically left me
out of it, let me know for sure it was none other than, Vic Orion, baddest
specialist in the business.” Her compliment is meant to draw him out one last
time. “Good to
know you still have the skills… So, is Reklaw still with you?” Gotcha!
She smiles with her sense of victory over the enigmatic Orion.
“Yeah, I decided to keep him around so I could torture him a little
longer… I also hear you guys had a run in recently?” Mees waits for an
answer, but when silence fills the cockpit, she continues, “Hey, how come you
never told him that we worked together?” “Wasn’t
important at the time.” “Gee, thanks
a lot, Vic. Maybe I should keep
that case of Whyrren’s I owe you.” Meesahran knows that settling a wager is
always important to Vic. “Only if
you want to be known as a welcher. Besides,
I have a buyer lined up for that case… Anyway, what I do is none of JL’s
business.” And
that’s the crux of the situation, his competition with Jae.
“Oh, I see, well, when and where do you want to make the exchange?” “What
‘exchange?’” Got
him this time.
“You think you just get to take the case and move on?…” Waiting
just the right amount of time for affect, “Just kidding… You got the tractor
still working on that heap you call a ship?” She lets her laughter punctuate
her statement. “Don’t
go insulting my ship, kid. Especially since you put that tractor in, you’d
only be taking yourself down… You think you can make a precision drop like
that?” His jibe lets
her know that he is done with the bravado. “Better than
you, any day.” As she speaks, Meesahran activates the tractor beam and sends a
container soaring across subspace at the distant ship. “Question is, can you
catch it?” A moment of
silence follows as the container continues to roll end over end across the space
between the two ships. As soon as
it stops spinning, Meesahran knows that Vic has caught the container, “I
sure hope that thing is temp controlled. Wouldn’t want it ruined by someone
else’s roughnecking…” “You should
know me better than that, Vic.” Mees
places a bit of playfulness into her next parry, “I save that kind of behavior
for other activities.” “You
don’t have to tell me…”
His voice changes ever so slightly, almost softer. “So, what did you tell
Jae about us working together?” “Not much,
just enough to make him blush.” She smiles to herself at the admission. “Of
course that never takes much.” “Yeah...
So, I see you’re still with the old man. Any chance that’ll fall through?”
His voice is still tinged with the softness from before. Being careful
not to disrupt their delicate conversation, “I need to follow this through,
Vic, it just feels like the right thing to do… You know, you’re still
welcome to come along?” The silence
continues and Mees thinks she might have stepped over the line, “I can’t
see myself contemplating the meaning of air for days on end. Thanks, it’s just
not for me.” His ship continues on its path, leading away from the SkyDancer.
“But I have some business to take care of, so I better cut this short.” Meesahran,
sensing that their conversation is over, sends one last transmission, “Well,
thanks. And Vic?… Remember to hook that up into the short range scanner
system.” “You
didn’t?…” He pauses
just long enough to run a scan on the container. “Thanks, kid… I’ll be
sure to take care of that… And Sahran, if I ever decide to retire…” “I know,
you’ll look me up, right?” Her face turning into a wistful smile as she
speaks, “Take care of yourself, Victor.” As the last of the words leave her
lips, she is unsure as to whether or not he heard them, since their ships have
now crossed the boundaries of the sub-space comm. Meesahran sits
back in her seat, drawing one knee up to her chest and ponders not only the
conversation, but also the possibilities of what might have been, had she chosen
a different path. If a lot a things had been different. If I had been
different… ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With
a fluidity of movement and grace, Master Falion Mussiri puts his body through
the rigorous, yet elegant physical routine. Eyes closed, he performs this ritual
exercise purely from memory and experience. Gently
bringing his left arm across his chest to join his right as he swings his back
to the left, slowly raising his right leg into the air and rotating as so to
create a rhythmic arc with the point of his toe. When his right foot
imperceptibly touches the deck, his left begins its gradual ascent into a right
angle from his body as he lean forward, touching his right cheek to the left
knee, just before he completed the arc with his body in a whipping revolution
that was more finesse than speed. Reaching
the top of the arc, and finding himself once again upright, he spreads his arms
out at his sides and then brings back to lie across his chest in a state of
repose. At this resting position, Master Mussiri calls to the observer in the
corridor outside the docking bay, “Come, young one.” Startled
from her silence, Xana Tryashoenu steps forward into the hold, her delicate feet
quietly connecting with the deck floor. “I-I am sorry for disturbing you
Master Mussiri, it was not my inten-…” “Please
child, there is no need for apology.” He opens his eyes for the first time as
she stands directly in front of him. “In a ship this size, even when there are
just the two of us, privacy is not a thing to be had. How may I be of service to
you, my child?” Lowering his arms to his sides and then holding them behind
his back, as is his normal fashion. “Well,
I suppose… If it would be all right with you… Could I, perhaps…” Xana is
fighting with her words, struggling to ask the Master for his assistance. “I
know it has been many years, and I am not as adept as others, but I have
continued to practice your lessons all these years, and I was in the hope that I
might be able to convince you to allow me to perform the ritual with you?” Her
words come so painfully forward, that master Mussiri cannot help but chuckle at
her ill ease. “Please,
child. I shall be most honored to have you join me.” He motions for her to
stand beside him and he returns to the first position in this ritual, with his
arms linked across his chest and his feet firmly together. Xana, somewhat
timidly, takes her place and mimics the stance of the Master. Soon,
they are moving with the same elegant grace of motion, matching move for move.
Their movements quickly begin to resemble the wavering grasses of the
Alderaanian plains, as they go from one side to the other, shifting in a willowy
and harmonious symphony of the beauty of the human form. After
nearly a standard hour of their symbiotic locomotion, the young woman begins to
radiate an astounding presence of peace. Master Mussiri can palpably feel her
serenity in a way that he has never felt from any untrained adept. He tries to
hide his surprise from the girl, but soon it is too much for him to continue to
deny its presence. Slowly bringing himself back to the first position, he takes
a deep cleansing breath and then very slowly exhales as he lowers his head. Once
the breath has completely left his body, he finds that Xana has perfectly
matched him action for action. Looking into the eyes of the beaming young woman,
he speaks for the first time since his invitation for her to join him, “My
child, you were not in error when you claimed to have been practicing those
lessons.” Xana blushes faintly at his words. “Thank
you, Master Mussiri, but I must admit that Meesahran is also to blame for this.
Whenever she has visited, she has shown me more exercises and I have practiced
them faithfully.” Her face is aglow with pride, satisfaction and that distinct
peace of heart. “It has always been a great comfort to me over the years.” Infected
by her smile, the Master also releases a small smile of his own, “And I can
see why that should be the case, young one. You are quite proficient at
achieving the appropriate level of serenity through this exercise. I am most
impressed, my child.” Once
again, Xana blushes at the Master’s words, “Thank you, Master Mussiri. I am
deeply touched by your kind words.” Wiping
the perspiration from his brow, the Master once again takes the first position,
“Shall we continue?” Without saying a single word, Xana takes her place at
his side and resumes the first position. Once
more they dive deeply into the routine of the ritual, soothing their minds,
bodies and spirits with the fluid motions and the serenity that they bring. And,
as before, they become a single unit moving with the grace and elegance of the
blowing wind across the plains. --------------------------------------- Casually
going through the systems checks on the SkyDancer, Meesahran Tofallin
reaches the security system and the monitors of that system. One by one, she
flips to each monitor and does a quick test of the sensors and the camera
mechanisms. Upon reaching the docking bay monitors she pauses. When the bay deck
camera shows her a scene that should be familiar to her, yet in some way it is
foreign. On
the docking bay deck, her Master is going through carefully executed ritual, but
this time it is different. Not just because she is not at his side, matching him
move for move, but because another is there: Xana. The same girl she has shared
the ritual with since she was a girl and Meesahran recognized that spark that
dwelled within her. Where Meeahran was athletic and adroit in her mimicking of
the Master, Xana was lithe and artistic in her interpretation of the Master’s
motions. Pausing
to watch this display of exquisite grace, Meesahran finds that she feels the
slightest twinge of jealousy. Knowing that this feeling is ludicrous, but unable
to will it away. What is this all about? Searching her feelings for an
answer she comes upon the resolution. The
look that has fallen upon Xana’s face tells her all she needs to know:
serenity, peace, centered. Xana has found that ever-elusive center that
Meesahran has never been able to touch. Turning
away from the monitors, Meesahran begins to reflect on her feelings. So
engrossed in her own thoughts, she is unaware when a familiar presence darkens
the hatchway to the cockpit. Jae-Lee
Reklaw quietly steps into the cockpit, and just as he I about to speak, his eye
catches on the security monitor. His eye catches on Xana, as she works
synchronously with Master Mussiri. Her beauty seems to have transcended far
beyond its normal luster and become a beacon to her lovely visage. He finds that
he cannot remove his gaze form her, and is almost hypnotized by the elegant
movements when his focus is pulled away and towards the sound of Meesahran’s
fist hitting the console behind him. “Hey
what did it ever do to you?” Meesahran nearly jumps out of her skin at his
words and takes him aback as well in her response. “Sheesh, sorry, kid.
Didn’t mean to step on your tail, or nothin’.” Catching
her breath and trying to compose herself, Meesahran attempts to brush off the
episode. “Sweet Corel, you must be working with Master Mussiri, in order to
finally sneak up on me like that.” She starts going through some random system
checks to play off her surprise. “Yeah,
but that’s not why you nearly came unglued just now… You’re wound tighter
than an Alderaani grass painting, Mees… What’s up, kid?” Jae takes a seat
at the navigator’s terminal and props his feet up, waiting for an answer. “I’m
fine, and would you please stop calling me ‘kid?’” Her curt response is
enough to clue Jae in on her shift in mood. “All
right, Mees, then why don’t you stop acting like one and tell me what is
kriffin’ wrong with you? And I’m tired of being put off, so no more run
around, okay?… You have to at least be honest and up front with me about
this…” Pausing to think about his words and his tone, he believes he can
push just a bit further, “And you can’t tell me this is privileged
information… Not to a friend…” Pausing once more, he decides to give it at
least one turn of the screw, “Or at least someone you once thought was a
friend.” Hearing
the harsh words of her dearest friend cuts into Meesahran with such strength
that she knows she can longer put him off. At least not about this, not now.
“Sorry, guess it’s just habit… Being closed off, I mean.” She turns
around to face Jae, “It’s been a long time since I was able to confide in a
friend.” Seeing Jae wince at her words makes her immediately regret having
spoken them. She did not intend to hurt him in that way, but merely to speak the
truth. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it that wa-…” Holding
up his hand, “Nah, you can’t help the truth. And neither of us can change
the past, so let’s try to put it behind us, and worry about the here and now
for a change, huh?” And though the seriousness of his words hit home, the fact
that they are delivered with that cockeyed smirk of his, causes some of the
tension to drain away from Meesahran. “Deal…
Start over?” Jae’s nod and little chuckle is all the confirmation she needs
to continue. “Well, where should I start?… The fact that I am a horrible
apprentice? Spend my life traveling in this ship and never staying anywhere long
enough to do anything more significant than having a drink with someone? My best
friend is a practice dummy? And my second best friend is my workbench? You
pick.” The
sarcasm in her voice belies the torment that those phrases entail and Jae
immediately picks up on it. Pausing a moment to take it all in, he asks her only
one question, “Are you really that unhappy with your life, Mees?” She
meets his question with absolute laughter, confusing him to no end. “Sorry,
Jae, I’m not laughing at you… The saddest part of the whole thing, is, no
I’m not unhappy… How’s that for twisted?” Jae
simply stares at her, not knowing just how to react to her declarations. “So
what are you telling me, Mees?” “Well,
I guess that you shouldn’t worry about me. I seem to thrive on misery.” His
look has still not changed, even though she appears to be sincere. “Mees,
that’s got to be the biggest load of nerf dung I’ve ever heard in my
life!… Look I don’t expect much from you, and I really have no right to,
after what’s happened, but I at least expect you to be honest with me.” He
stands up, the anger welling up inside of him is too much to remain seated.
“You’re so tense most of the time a strange breeze will set you off, let
alone someone says the wrong thing to you. You crawl out of your skin every time
I come near you. And I’ve seen you pummel more than your fair share of
equipment since we’ve been on this mission. These are not the habits of a
‘happy’ person. I don’t care what you say, you’re hurting from
something, and I’m damn well not going anywhere until you tell me what in the
name of Corel is going on!” And with his words he turns and hits the switch on
the cockpit door, causing it to close and within seconds he has reprogrammed the
door to only open on his code. “And if I have to lock us in here for days to
do it, I will!” Hearing that door mechanism click causes a look of sheer
terror to cross Meesahran’s face. ------------------------------------------- Walking
into the quarters she has been sharing with Meesahran and the only other female
aboard, Xana is not surprised to find Niija there. Though she is surprised to
find her packing. Wiping the perspiration from her brow with the towel in her
hands, Xana enters the room. “Hey,
I thought you noble types never sweat at anything.” Niija sends a joke to the
young woman as she notices her enter the room. Thinking
on her feet, Xana replies, “We do not sweat, we glow…” She keeps the regal
affect just long enough to punctuate the joke, before they both burst out
laughing. “So, what is with all of this packing?” Niija
continues to stuff things into her bag, “Ah well, this was an unplanned
excursion for me, but Mees managed to find me some gainful employment until the
dust settles back at my old digs. Although… I may find that this military
thing agrees with me… I kind of like the idea of people being required to show
me respect.” Niija looks over her shoulder and winks back at Xana. “I
am certain that you will find it most enjoyable… Until it grows old, that
is… So, when are you leaving?” Xana reaches into the wardrobe locker and
takes a fresh towel and a robe from within. “Oh,
as soon as we dock with the Caspian. They got someone there waiting to pick me
up so I can get to work on a major retrofit.” “My,
it sounds like you will be busy for a while then… Well, I should get cleaned
up before we reach the Caspian… Just in case…” And with that she departs
the room for the ‘fresher. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Standing
his ground in front of the cockpit door, Jae finds that he may have bit off more
than he can chew in this situation. Looking into those eyes, so filled with
fear, makes his heart ache. Meesahran moves for the door, but stops herself, not
wanting to make things worse. She backs off and then turns her back on Jae-Lee
so that she might compose herself a bit before attempting to speak. Her
eyes fixed on a point out in space, visible through the transparisteel window of
the cockpit, Meesahran tries to speak, “Jae, please don’t do this right
now.” The words catch in her throat and are barely audible, but Jae hears them
nonetheless. “I’m
sorry, Mees, but this is killin’ me, and I have to get this thing cleared up
between us.” His resolve has not weakened, even with her tortured words. She
takes a deep and firming breath, “Then ask what you must… I will try to
answer your questions… As long as they have nothing to do with the mission.” Jae
relaxes a bit with her last words, “Fair enough… Besides the mission is only
consequential to us getting together again.” He takes is own strengthening
deep breath before starting in, “Mees, first off, I want you to know that I
know what happened to you after I left Corellia… And I am more sorry about
leaving you in that position than anything I have ever been about anything in my
life. What happened to you was horrible, and I’m sure there’s more to the
story than you have ever, or will ever share with anyone, but I need you to
know, that you can count on me from now on. If you need me, for anything,
anything at all, I’ll be there, and there’s nothing in the universe
that’ll keep from your call…” Jae pauses for a moment, noticing that
Meesahran has not turned back around to face him yet. “Mees, please turn
around? I need to see your eyes.” There
is a moment, one that seems to last for an eternity, before she begins to turn
around to face Jae. But she does, and when he catches sight of her face he can
see that there are tears streaming down her cheeks. Reaching into his chest
pocket, Jae retrieves the kerchief that he has always kept there, the one his
mother told him to always keep close to his heart. Looking at it with a wistful
smile, he uses it to wipes the tears from Meesahran’s face and then gingerly
places it in her hand, where she is currently holding his heart. “I need you
to know that I never wanted you to feel abandoned, and I certainly never wanted
you to go through anything even closely resembling that kind of hell. You’re
the closest thing I’ve ever really had to a family since my parents were
killed.” Meesahran
takes Jae’s pause as a chance to inhale sharply. Jae waits a while longer to
make sure she is not going to speak, so when she uses the kerchief wipe away
more tears, he knows it is safe to proceed. “Look, I don’t want to be a
pain, but I need to know you aren’t going to come in for the kill every time I
come near you. So, if there is something that I need to be doing to prevent
that, please tell me what it is. I’d never break your confidence, but I need
to be able to get close to you Mees. You’re all I got.” His
words reach her well-guarded heart, and as they break through the years of
isolation, Meesahran feels a tremendous weight lifted from her shoulders.
Sniffling a bit before speaking, “You just need to project a little before you
do anything. It’s the only way I know to turn off the danger sense.” Jae
relaxes a bit more, and sighs, “Okay, that’s easy enough… Even for me.”
His joke is not ill received when he sees a slight up-turn in the corner of
Mees’ mouth. “Okay, now since I can’t ask you about the mission… What is
the deal with you and Vic?” He sees the surprise in her eyes, and feels a need
to clarify, “I sort of overheard you guys talking after we left for the
Caspian. Sorry.” Jae offers his sideways grin and a shrug of his shoulders to
his explanation. “Yeah,
well, there’s a history there…” Her cheeks flush ever so slightly with her
admission, “I even tried to get him to train for a while, but you know Vic.”
Jae is in complete shock. His best friend and his one-time mentor… It just
does not seem possible, but as he lets the information sink in a bit further he
comes to a resolution. I guess it does make some sense. “So, you guys
aren’t current anymore?” “Nah,
divergent paths and all that… But we still keep in touch. Guess we’re both
too nerf-headed to ever give up completely.” To Jae, that explanation makes
more sense than anything else he has heard since joining this mission. “Okay,
so now that I have something I can get my head around… I mean, it’s weird
and all, because I don’t see you that way… And I never thought Vic had much
of a heart to begin with, but I guess I could’ve been wrong about that…”
He shakes at little at the thought once again. “Well,
ya know, sometimes things just happen… Doesn’t have to make sense… Like a
wanderer and a scholar, what sense does that make?” Meesahran shoots back at
him with her own little jibe, and they both laugh with the sound of relief. Laughing
off her comment, Jae decides to get in one more question, while the mood has
lightened, “So, I’ve hear you mention it a few times, but what’s this
‘Sanctuary’ you keep talkin’ about?” As
soon as Jae-Lee says the word, Meesahran’s eyes regain some of their light
once more. “It’s at the center of all the trade routes, and it’s where the
rest of the adepts gather and train. Kind of a safe haven from a galaxy that
doesn’t understand us. Other than this ship, it’s the only place I’ve ever
called home.” Jae likes the sound of that, a home. He seems to have finally
found the family he’s been so desperately searching for, at least one version
of it. “Well,
I think I might like to see it someday.” “That’s
where we are headed after we make the exchange at Caspian.” Her excitement has
let loose a detail that Jae was unaware of, until now.
Creator: PtrsonsZOO (Jennifer)
*SPECIAL NOTE: Due to circumstances beyond our control, the rest of the story will be written by PtrsonsZOO (Jennifer)
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